The Inner Realm

by Dale Furse

  “Hmm, he could have been checking to see if we were following them.”

  “Yeah. Anyway, will Ludo give us his horse? The king and him can walk with your father. I can double with you and Vala can stay with them,” suggested Mike.

  Vala snorted. Her face reddened and her eyes blazed, but she didn’t say anything.

  “Even if they agreed, which I doubt, and assuming they stop for the night, it would still take us more than a day to reach them, no matter how fast we ran. Then we’d still need to find the bandits again.”

  Mike made a face. “I couldn’t run long anyway, I’m already bushed.”

  “You’ve been puffing and wheezing for ages. You need to run more,” Vala said, her top lip curled in a sneer.

  “I get enough exercise at home thank you very much.”

  “We must continue on this path,” Noor said, ignoring their words. “I have to find out why Derek took the child.”

  Mike’s eyes widened. “You think Derek is the culprit then?”

  “He is the leader of the thieves.” She patted the ground beside her. “Sit and rest before we continue.”

  Although Vala acted fine as she sprawled next to Noor, Mike could tell, her muscles ached as much as his did. He hoped, they hurt more. He immediately regretted the thought. He didn’t want her in more pain than he was, she just pushed the wrong buttons.

  Mike sat, groaning with relief.

  Vala threw him a small smile.

  His lower stomach lurched down and back as he gazed at her. He didn’t really want her to be in any pain.

  Once his head cleared, he realized the sky didn’t look any different than it did on Earth. Wispy strings of clouds blew across the waning blue-grey as the sun made its journey to the other side of Cillian. Black dots appeared in the distance to the east, and as they flew closer, it was clear they were birds. They formed the normal arrowhead shape, changing leaders regularly. “Look, Noor.” He pointed, glancing at Vala. Her eyes remained closed.

  “Ah, Rorts.” Noor said. “They’re heading to the ocean for their dinner. Fish feed on the surface at high tide.”

  “How far away is the ocean?”

  Noor pointed west. “Not far. The woodland ends at the coast.”

  Mike’s growling stomach told him he hadn’t eaten since the fruit many hours earlier.

  Noor must have heard his stomach, or her own might have rumbled, because she said, “I think we might find something to eat in those bushes.” She got to her feet. “Come on, before night falls.” And she took off in a sprint.

  Vala appeared out of nowhere and fell in beside Noor.

  The bushes Noor had pointed to were the ones across the plain. Shit. As fit as he was from practicing Taekwondo, Mike could only just managed to keep up. His lungs burned, and his legs seemed to double in weight every few steps. By the time they neared the place where the horses disappeared, he was struggling for air.

  Noor stopped and gasped for air as she bent with her hands on her knees. Vala did the same, and her eyes said she didn’t care what Mike thought.

  But Mike found he couldn’t stand, let alone talk, so he fell to the ground and tried to catch his breath. Pain burned deep in his thigh. The infection was worsening.

  Within those painful seconds, the sun disappeared below the horizon and darkness surrounded them.

  Noor’s breathing calmed. “No moon,” she said. “But the stars are bright. We can continue. Our eyes will adjust to take in the maximum light.”

  “Thanks for the tip.” He couldn’t make out Noor’s features when she turned her head toward him. His sarcasm wouldn’t impress her, but he didn’t care. He hauled himself up onto his feet. He didn’t know how long his body could keep the infection at bay—or if it would get worse.

  He found out a little later. His thigh throbbed so painfully he fell onto his knees.

  “Are you all right?” Vala knelt beside Mike.

  “I’m fine, just need to rest a bit.”

  “All right,” said Noor. “We can rest until first light. With no moon, the bandits will also stop for the night.”

  Mike closed his eyes and a big plate of fish and chips filled his mind. The image was so real; he could almost smell his favorite meal. He shook his head to rid his mind of the image and opened his eyes. Cherry leaved bushes of differing sizes grew between them and the trees. The closest bush, full of black berries, caught his eye. He got up and hurried over to it. “Noor. Are these berries safe to eat?”

  “I can’t see them from here,” she said.

  “The berries are small and black.”

  “They sound like normal table berries.” Noor moved to the bush and picked one. She squashed the one in her hand and smelled it. “Yes, they’re safe.” Moving to another bush, she began dropping the berries into her shirt.

  Mike did the same and picked every one he could find. “Here, eat some,” he said to Vala as he rolled them out onto the ground in front of her.

  “Thank you.” She smiled.

  She seemed sincere. Some peace at last.

  A high-pitched TTTTTTT beat in the distance.

  “Mashki,” Noor said. “Find some tinder and perhaps some dead leaves.”

  Already on hands and knees, Vala scrambled about searching the ground with her hands.

  It seemed to Mike, neither Noor nor Vala could see in the dark as well as he could. He questioned the need to find wood. “Why?”

  “We need to light a fire. It’s the only thing Mashki are scared of.”

  TTTTTTT TER TTTTT squealed closer.

  “Quick, they’re coming,” Vala panted.

  They prowled over the ground collecting dead twigs and leaves.

  “Pick out two of the straightest pieces,” she said, as she piled what they had collected.

  Mike put the two best sticks he could find into Noor’s hands as Vala positioned herself between him and Noor. She was scared.

  TTTTT TER TTTTT. The squeals, even closer, had Vala falling forward, knocking Noor so hard she dropped the sticks. “I’m sorry,” Vala said, and fell in search of the sticks.

  Mike joined her, as the high tittering sound tore through the darkness not three meters away. Noor notched an arrow.

  Heart beating faster than it ever had before, Mike panted. His hands flew over the ground in all directions. The only thing he accomplished was to mess up the pile of tinder. What he needed was a nice thick branch.

  He took a sharp intake of breath and steadied himself. Focusing through the blackness, he scanned the area. The sticks were where they had fallen near Noor’s foot. He picked them up and pushed them at Noor. “I’ve got them, Vala.”

  “Take the bow and arrow,” Noor told Mike.

  He did. He’d never used a bow, but he’d seen archers before. He had also seen people try to shoot an arrow only to have it drop straight to ground.

  Noor rubbed the sticks together so fast Mike could no longer make out each separate piece.

  “Keep piling the leaves up,” Noor whispered.

  Vala pressed in close to Mike and, without thinking, he put his arm around her shoulders as much for his comfort as hers. With one hand, he bent and amassed the leaves against the vibrating sticks.

  A spark sprung from the sticks. “Come on,” Noor said. “Come on.”

  Mike turned his head this way and that. The sounds surrounded them. He expected the Mashki, whatever beasts they were, to attack any moment.

  More sparks flickered into life and then more until a small flame burned bright under Noor’s hands. She moved the sticks and began again to rub briskly over another part of the mound of leaves. Mike pushed more leaves higher with out being asked. Another flame appeared and joined the first. Soon, the whole pile was alight.

  A squeal like pain sounded close to Mike’s ear. He turned. A head full of teeth snarled less than a meter away. Angry, red eyes with large black crosses for pupils glared at him. The thing appeared to be all eyes except for the many long, pointed fangs jutting out
of its lower jaw and even sharper teeth hanging from its upper jaw. He couldn’t see how high the thing stood, but its bull-sized head was about the height of Mike’s chest. He squinted. It could have its head hung low to see them better.

  Vala’s body tensed and Mike froze. Within his peripheral vision, he spied another shadow join the first.

  The fire’s glow grew and brightened. The beasts were as big as bulls. They slunk low and stepped forward. He thought he heard Noor call his name but couldn’t be sure. The beast’s eyes were mesmerizing. He blinked and pushed Vala behind him. Red eyes had him entranced and the silence deepened.

  Fierce hands grabbed his shoulder. His brain cleared in an instant. Control over his body returned and heat blazed against his back. He half turned as Noor pushed a fiery stick into his hand.

  “You too, Vala. You can do it.” She pressed another fire-stick into Vala’s trembling hand.

  Mike thrust his stick at the beasts. Vala too poked her stick forward.

  Raising a burning arrow, Noor fired the flames into the advancing Mashki. The arrow found its mark.

  The wounded beast’s mouth opened. A squeal pierced the air and had Mike’s body tensing even more. The creature spun on its haunches, a body of a small mammoth. Both Mashki ran into the night. Mike heard several other sets of feet lumber off.

  He hadn’t realized he’d been holding his breath until he let it out. “That was close.” He looked over at Noor.

  With another fiery arrow ready to fire, her eyes took on a mad aspect against the orangey-yellow flames. She lowered the bow and scraped the arrow into the dirt to extinguish the flames. “If you come across the Mashki do not look into their eyes. They hypnotize their prey before attacking.”

  “I can believe it.” His own reaction, or lack thereof, pretty well proved it. He shivered. “Thank you, Noor.”

  Noor smiled before holding Vala. “You did well. I am so proud you didn’t run.” She moved her head back to look at the frightened girl. “You stood and fought.” Noor held her close.

  Vala sobbed. “I wanted to run.”

  Another admission of humanity. Mike grinned. “You wouldn’t have left me, you like me too much.”

  Vala shook her head and made a face that said, ‘not likely’.

  Noor turned to Mike. “We will be safe as long as we stay close to the fire. You two sleep and I’ll take first watch.”

  “Okay, but as soon as you’re the littlest bit sleepy, you wake me up. I don’t want to be Mashki food.”

  Noor laughed. “They wouldn’t have eaten you, they’re herbivores. They would have killed you though. They are extremely territorial.”

  “Not much difference to me,” Mike grumbled.

  ***

  Hankley sat back and let out a long sigh. Thank Azu the boys are safe. Those Mashki might not eat meat, but they were territorial. A shame the Shanks weren’t there to get a lesson on Cillian life forms.

  As if on cue, the Shanks appeared in the wall office.

  “Where were you? We’ve looked everywhere,” Shank Two said.

  “Yeah, everywhere.”

  Hankley opened his mouth to speak a lie and closed it again. The words wouldn’t come out, he couldn’t lie. Not even to the Shanks. “I descended into the mortal world and tried to talk to Mike.” He hurried as Shank Two appeared to get ready to yell at him. “The bandits kidnapped the little one, Terni, and stole all the horses. I wanted to make sure Mike brought Terni back to the wall in time to go home.”

  “Poor little thing.” Shank Two clutched his grey robe. “We have to help them.”

  “Yeah, help them.”

  “Wait a minute, you mean I have to help them. I have already spoken to Mike so I am already in trouble when Oln finds out. He’s already warned me not to interfere.” He wagged his head. “It’s too late for me. You two can help me from up here.”

  “What did Mike say?” Shank Two asked.

  “Not a lot, he couldn’t understand me. It seems his understanding of Zandell’s language does not reach us here in Oln’s kingdom. Going through the wall only translates the languages used on the specific planet.”

  “How are you going to communicate with him?”

  “Yeah, how?”

  “I’m not sure. I can’t let him step foot here and that’s how our language is absorbed.” He paused. “Hold on, there is a way. There’s a gem that works the same way.”

  “Okay,” Shank Two said. “Where is it?”

  “Yeah, we’ll get it.”

  “Ah, that would be a no too. It is in Oln’s sanctum—the artifact room where the sword of Dragonlee rests. I have to go.” Hankley jumped up. “You two can be my lookouts and make sure you let me know if anyone even approaches the sanctum.”

  “All right, let’s go.”

  “Yeah, let’s go.”

  Thankful no one stopped them on the way, Hankley left the Shanks and entered the heavy doors. Once inside, he thought he should have reminded them of their part, but with no time to spare to go back, he made his way through the empty rooms to the artifacts’ wing.

  Entering from a different door than usual, he paused to get his bearings. On his way again, he made his way through the door-less archways until he was in the right room. He found the burgundy jewel, so dark it was almost black, resting on a shelf below the painting of Oln with his sister, Mav. Both sets of eyes appeared to gaze down at Hankley’s hand clasping the stone. He dropped it in his pocket and spun away from their stare.

  Taking two empty breaths, he hurried to his usual entry door. As he passed the sword of Dragonlee, it shook a little. He halted to inspect it. A chuckle sounded behind him. He wheeled around, expecting Oln.

  “I hope you’re not thinking of giving that to the mortals.” The voice belonged to Gart.

  “Sir,” Hankley said, bowing deeply. “Ah…”

  “You ventured down to the mortal world.” He wagged his finger. “I don’t think my brother will be very happy.”

  “No, Sir.”

  Gart chortled. “Go, and don’t return to the sanctum until Oln sends for you.”

  “No, um, yes, sir.” Hankley didn’t wait to be told twice and bolted out of the sanctum. He did not know why Gart let him go or how he knew Hankley had gone below, but he was more than thankful to leave his presence.

  Hankley frowned and scratched his head. What was Gart doing in Oln’s sanctum?

  Chapter 11

  Something shook Mike’s shoulder. It shook again. It was a small hand.

  “Terni?” he said, his brain still foggy from sleep.

  “No.”

  Mike opened his eyes and Vala leaned over him. Her fair hair, free from her usual plaits, fell partly over her face within a breath of Mike’s nose.

  “It’s time to go.”

  Once she had moved away, Mike blinked at the brightness of the day. He groaned. “You let me sleep all night?”

  “You snored all night.” She held out a dirty sweet potato. “Here, I dug up some cefre.”

  “Couldn’t you at least find something to boil it in?”

  “Even if I could be bothered, we don’t have enough water to waste on cooking.”

  Mike’s stomach rumbled and he took the food. His energy returned as he chomped on the sweet, juicy tuber.

  Noor had puffy, dark patches under her eyes as she approached. “I’ve found Derek’s tracks,” she said. “We’ll keep heading north. There’s plenty of food in the forest there.”

  “How can you be so sure the tracks are Derek’s?” asked Mike.

  “One of his horse’s hooves is pigeon toed. The blacksmith used to have a terrible time shoeing him, but he isn’t wearing shoes now, nor are the other horses. There are five mounts and all need farrier work. Look, can you see the difference between their horses and Bruno?”

  “Bruno?”

  “My horse’s name.”

  Mike peered at the ground where Noor pointed. He nodded, but they looked like scuff marks in the dusty dirt to him.<
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  “If he keeps pushing them the way he has, they’ll all be lame in a few days.”

  “Doesn’t sound very smart,” Mike said. They needed horses to get around the vast land. Why would he risk their health?

  “I’ve given up trying to understand him.” She sighed. “Eat up and we’ll go.”

  “The fire’s nearly out.” Mike eyed their surroundings. “What about the Mashki?”

  Noor smiled. “They don’t come out during the day. There must be caves around here somewhere to hide away from the sunlight.”

  Vala extinguished the remains of the fire then they continued the chase.

  Noor knew of a place north by a lake where they would find clean water and fruit trees. They made good ground through the thinly wooded forest, only stopping every now and then so they could dig up some tuber or another. After the first couple of stops, Mike could recognize the plants so help dig the yams. At least he didn’t have to stand back feeling useless.

  After what must have been at least three hours, Mike slowed his aching legs and smiled inwardly as Noor and Vala slackened their pace. Vala was still light on her feet, but Mike could tell by her restrained gait her legs were as tired as his. He was about to suggest they rest when Noor stopped and ducked behind a small tree.

  With her finger on her closed mouth, she indicated with her other hand for Mike and Vala to do the same.

  Keeping his eyes on Noor, Mike jumped behind another larger tree. Vala squeezed in close beside him as he pressed his back hard against the craggy bark. His heart, beating loudly, sped up. Whether it was from fright or Vala’s body pressed against his, he didn’t know but he wished it would keep quiet. He did not want her thinking he was scared or anything else. A minute passed without any other sound.

  A tear tracked down Noor’s cheek. He inched around the tree and peered in the direction she looked.

  Derek and his men camped by an immense lake. Mashki must have also visited them during the night, because a dead one hung on a spit above the still burning fire. The smell of roasting meat had Mike’s stomach doing flip-flops as his mouth watered. He stared at the cooked beast and had to force himself to look away. He spotted Derek at the water’s edge.