Jack Staples and the City of Shadows

by Mark Batterson

  Alexia had no idea, though she’d often wondered. The dress seemed to have a life of its own. She’d worn it for more than two years and it had still fit perfectly. Until Korah had destroyed it, the dress was still as good as new.

  Alexia stood proudly and looked at the rest of the children. “If I’m going to stay with you and lead this gang, then we need a better name,” she said. “From now on we will be known as the Gang of Rogues, and we will rule this city!”

  All five children jumped and cheered wildly, dancing about as they whooped and hollered in excitement.

  Present day

  Alexia was horrified as she watched the Oriax escort Josiah back into the coliseum. Why would anyone kidnap an orphan boy from Belfast? Her mind spun as she turned and raced toward the palace. She was meant to meet with Belial before the sun set, and unless she hurried, she was sure to be late.

  Although she hated leaving him, Alexia knew she couldn’t just run in and rescue Josiah. She needed time to think, to make a plan. Maybe it was a misunderstanding. Maybe she could tell her father or Belial and they would release her friend.

  Maybe they don’t even know he’s being held prisoner! she thought. Belial told me I could ask for anything and he would do it. I’ll ask for Josiah’s freedom!

  At the palace, she began to climb. She wasn’t thinking as she leaped between two balconies and continued upward. The balcony to the throne room was fifty stories up, and she was in a hurry. It was far quicker to climb the outside of the palace than to run through the maze of endless corridors. Up, up, higher she went. Her fingertips curled around a slim edge of stone. Her heel hooked around the body of a gargoyle. Then, as she pulled herself up to perch on the windowsill, Alexia suddenly realized what she was doing.

  What am I thinking? She was forty-eight stories up! When Alexia looked down at what she’d just climbed, she gasped. Suddenly dizzy, she leaned against the palace wall. She had great balance, but this was ridiculous.

  Alexia pulled aside a heavy curtain and peered into a large chamber. Torches lined walls gilded in tanzanite, and elaborate tapestries hung from arched ceilings. Alexia stepped quietly inside, planning to walk through to the corridor.

  “Father,” she whispered, as dread rose in her belly.

  Every tapestry in the chamber depicted different scenes of her father just moments away from killing someone. In each tapestry he wielded a bone-white sword and had a look of ecstasy in his eyes. His victims’ faces showed only terror.

  I must be in Father’s chamber! She had never been allowed to come to him and hadn’t been able to find where he stayed. Fear coursed through her as she walked past hundreds of tapestries into an adjoining chamber that held her father’s bed. Next to the bed was a large number of skulls, a mixture of animal and human. Alexia shuddered. She hadn’t realized she was afraid of her father until this moment. But now she was terrified.

  She fingered a skull that could have belonged to an Oriax. Lying next to it was a black chain with a small, blue-veined stone at the end. As she looked closer at the stone, she saw something moving inside.

  “How could you lose her?”

  Alexia jumped at the sound of her father’s voice. She pocketed the stone without thinking and darted out of the bedchamber toward the outer window. Her father had entered from another room.

  “Your only job is to watch a little girl—and you lost her in a city that we control?”

  “I was watching her closely, master.” Whatever was speaking had a distinctly whiney voice. “But then she went to the rooftops. The girl is fast. I couldn’t keep up!”

  Alexia stood frozen in the center of the outer chamber. She had been running to the windowsill when she’d spotted the largest tapestry in the room. It was huge and showed her father holding a blade to her mother’s neck. Lying at their feet was another man. Alexia could only see the back of his head.

  What? Horror and confusion churned inside her.

  “No!” the creature whimpered as something crashed to the floor.

  Alexia darted to the window, quickly stepping onto the sill and out of sight.

  “I do not accept failure,” her father said cruelly as he entered the chamber of tapestries.

  “P-p-please?” the creature whimpered. Alexia peeked around the corner of the window. Her father was standing with his back to her, his sword in his hands. The whimpering creature had seen her. Its one eye opened wide in surprise. It began to point in her direction—

  Alexia squeezed her eyes shut. She heard the chunk of the sword and the sound of something falling to the ground and rolling away. She trembled but didn’t wait. She leaped from the sill and grabbed the head of a beastly gargoyle. Panic and confusion roared inside her as she began to climb once again.

  Alexia needed to be away from her father. She needed to think about the tapestry, and she needed to get to Belial. The sun had already set, and she was late.

  Chapter 14

  THE GUARDIANS’ RIDDLE

  Jack stood at the edge of the jungle, hidden behind a gigantic tree. “What do you mean, you’re leaving?”

  “I cannot enter the Forbidden Garden, Jack. That is your quest. There are other things I must attend to now.” Elion turned and looked toward the south. “I will go to the City of Shadows. I fear our friends may need my help if they are to survive.”

  “So you’re just going to leave me here? I’m the Child of Prophecy. You’re supposed to take care of me, to keep me safe!”

  “Have I not done so?” Elion’s voice was more warm than chiding. “No Sephari can enter the Forbidden Garden. To do so would be death.”

  Just beyond the trees a small expanse of sand spilled into the ocean. A short distance beyond was an island barely large enough to house a tiny log cabin. A thin plume of smoke rose from the cabin.

  “And I am afraid it is worse than you think. You should know that almost all who have tried to enter the Forbidden Garden have died gruesome deaths,” Elion said. “The Author has placed two guardians to keep watch over the garden. Only those who are deemed worthy shall pass. The guardians will present you with a test; it may be a riddle or a task of some sort. Should you pass, you will be allowed to swim to the cabin. Should you fail, they will kill you.”

  Jack’s jaw dropped in disbelief. The world started spinning as he waited for Elion to say more, but nothing came. “I don’t understand,” he said finally. “You brought me here so the guardians could kill me? What kind of test? And why do I have to meet with Time?”

  “I do not believe you will die. The Author has great plans for you so I have to believe you will pass the test. And you must meet with Time because there are things you must see that only she can show you. I do not know what comes next. But I believe you are ready for this test. I believe in you, Jack Staples.” Elion looked toward the south again. “But I must leave now. Do you have any last questions for me?”

  Jack could think of a thousand questions, but he shook his head. Elion’s eyes blazed with a silvery light. “You will do well.” She cupped his chin. “You were born for this. To be right here, right now, is your destiny. But you must not delay; step out from behind this tree as soon as I leave.” Elion stepped away and bowed her head. “Until we meet again.” Without another word she turned and walked into the jungle.

  Jack stood in stunned silence, watching the spot where he’d lost sight of Elion. When he turned to look back at the tiny cabin, he was surprised to see it was getting late. The sun hung low on the horizon, painting the world the color of blood.

  He wanted to run back and scream for Elion. But he knew she was gone. So he studied the ocean. Everything looked completely normal. Maybe she’s wrong. Maybe I can swim to the cabin and just walk in.

  Deciding it would be far worse to make the swim in the dark, Jack took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and stepped out of the jungle. Nothing happened. He took a cautious step fo
rward, then another as he walked to the water’s edge and stepped in. Hope rose in his chest as he continued forward. Maybe the guardians aren’t here, after all!

  But the ocean began to bubble and churn as something enormous rose from its depths. The ground rolled and knocked Jack to his knees. He screamed and tried to stand. The sand was also churning as something colossal ascended from the ground. Water and sand showered down. Jack gasped for breath as murky saltwater spilled down his throat, threatening to drown him. Then the boiling stopped as suddenly as it had started.

  Jack wiped sand from his eyes. He was paralyzed by fear. He stood sandwiched between two gigantic … somethings. The guardians were identical except for the colors of their scaled skin. They stood taller than the jungle trees and had the look of both lizard and eagle.

  “Who dares disturb our rest?” the water guardian bellowed. Its scales were silvery green and its voice so thunderous Jack almost covered his ears. The guardian shook its birdlike head, and more water cascaded down.

  From his knees, Jack yelled, “My name is …” He coughed, spitting mud. “My name is Jack Staples and I am here to meet with Time!”

  “Jack Staples?” the guardian behind him boomed. Its scales were red and gold, and as it spoke, its long, sinuous neck glided down so it could get a better look.

  Jack was petrified. The guardian’s eye was as big as he was. “What kind of creature is a Jack Staples?” the guardian rumbled. One of its two sets of eyelids flicked closed and then opened again, its gigantic pupil focused on Jack.

  “I’m not a creature. I am a human!” Jack tried his best to sound brave.

  “A human, you say?” the guardian boomed. “You are small for a human.”

  The other guardian, with silvery scales, lowered its head, eyeing Jack closer. “He is a puny thing!” it bellowed. “Aren’t most humans bigger than you?”

  “I’m just a boy,” Jack said defensively, standing as tall as he could.

  The golden guardian made a noise as loud as thunder. Jack covered his ears as the silvery guardian joined in. It was so loud that the earth began to tremble.

  They’re laughing at me! “I may be a child,” he screamed, “but I am the Child of Prophecy and I demand you let me in to meet with Time!”

  The guardians stopped laughing and lowered their heads to examine Jack once again. “The Child of Prophecy, you say?” the silvery guardian boomed. “We shall see. Maybe you are and maybe you are not. Thousands have tried to enter the Forbidden Garden, but few have ever done so. Do you think you will pass our test, Jack Staples?”

  Jack swallowed hard. “What happened to the rest of them?”

  The silvery guardian growled. “We get hungry, waiting here so long.”

  “In the olden days a warrior came every month. But we have not eaten in over a hundred years. We are famished, Jack Staples.”

  “And though you are small,” the silvery guardian said, “we will savor your taste.”

  Jack turned warily as both guardians leaned forward in anticipation.

  “We have a riddle for you,” the golden guardian thundered.

  “Answer correctly and you may enter the Forbidden Garden. Answer incorrectly and we will dine on you before the sun sets,” the silvery guardian roared.

  “No!” Jack screamed. “That’s not enough time! The sun will be down in just a few minutes!”

  “These have always been the rules. Surely you were told not to delay?” the golden guardian bellowed.

  “Yes, I was told to come right away, but I wasn’t ready. I wanted to think about it first!”

  “The rules do not change because you are not ready. You must answer by sundown or die,” the silvery guardian said.

  Jack wanted to scream as he turned to look at the sinking sun. The bottom of the golden sphere was already touching the horizon.

  “Answer this riddle,” the golden guardian said, “and you may pass without delay.”

  The silvery guardian continued. “What is used every day but totally invisible? With it you can see the impossible, but without it, you would be utterly alone. It grows bigger with time but can be destroyed in a moment.”

  Jack’s heart sank. Arthur was brilliant with riddles. Back in Ballylesson Arthur used to ask Jack a new riddle every day. He had a whole book of them. But Jack had never once gotten the answer right.

  The silvery guardian looked at the sun. “You have four minutes before the sun sets, Jack Staples.”

  “No! You have to give me more time. That’s not nearly enough. I don’t even know where to begin!” But the guardians merely looked at him with hungry eyes.

  Jack sank to his knees. “If it’s not visible, then it can’t be something physical.” His mind raced. “With it I can see the impossible, and without it I would be alone.” Jack had no idea what this meant.

  “Three minutes left.” The golden guardian smacked its gums hungrily.

  Jack trembled. “If it helps me see the impossible, then it must be a good thing. But if I don’t have it, I am alone. So whatever it is, it helps me get friends or something …” Jack searched the guardians’ eyes for any sign that he was right, but they merely stared at him, unblinking.

  I’m utterly alone right now! His thoughts were becoming frenzied. Where are my friends now? How could Elion just leave me here?

  Jack quickly skipped to the next part of the riddle. “It grows bigger with time,” he said aloud. “This must mean it’s like a muscle. The more I use it, the bigger and stronger it becomes.” He was pacing now, his mind turning somersaults.

  “Two minutes before the sun sets,” the silvery guardian rumbled.

  Jack pushed them out of his mind. Did Elion plan this all along? Did she want me to die?

  No. Jack took a breath, trying not to think about the fading light. “It can be destroyed in a moment …” He repeated the last part of the riddle, but he couldn’t think straight. He thought despairingly of his mother. “If Mother were here, she would help me, but she left!” he screamed. “Now I am alone!”

  Hot tears ran down his cheeks, and as the last rays of the sun sank low on the horizon, the guardians rose higher, staring down at Jack as if he were an ant about to be stepped on.

  “One minute until darkness comes,” the golden guardian rumbled. “One minute until the feasting begins!”

  “Mother left me and now all I have is Elion!” Jack cried. “I thought she cared. I thought—”

  In that moment, Jack remembered something. On the morning his mother died, just before he discovered her body, he’d fainted and gone back in time. He found his mother in the kitchen, and she immediately rushed him outside so he wouldn’t be seen. It had been snowing and the wind blew wildly.

  Jack had tried to warn her that she was going to die, but she wouldn’t listen. She’d knelt beside him and told him she loved him. She hugged him fiercely and kissed him on the cheek. And then she had told him to find Elion. “You can trust her above all,” she’d whispered.

  In the fading light the guardians became beasts of pure terror. Row upon row of fangs lined their eagle-like beaks, each fang two times bigger than Jack. And as the last rays of light faded, the guardians growled in anticipation.

  “Trust!” Jack screamed at the top of his lungs. “The answer is trust!” Turning quickly so he could keep both guardians in view, Jack screamed for the third time. “Trust is used every day, in every relationship. But it is not visible!” Jack talked as fast as an avalanche. The last rays of the sun had disappeared and he desperately hoped he wasn’t too late.

  “If we trust with all our hearts, it gives us the confidence to try the impossible! And if we don’t allow ourselves to trust, we will be alone. The more we trust someone, the more the trust grows. But no matter how big it gets, if someone betrays you, trust is destroyed!” Jack struggled to breathe as he waited to hear if he’d gotten the a
nswer right.

  Both guardians began sinking downward, as sand and water churned once again. Jack fell to his knees, unable to keep his body from shaking.

  As the silvery guardian sank lower, it looked at Jack. “I am glad we did not have to eat you,” it boomed. “We have awaited your arrival since time before time. Be strong, Jack Staples. Be strong and have courage. The end is near; the choice will be made; the Last Battle comes,” it thundered as it disappeared beneath the waves.

  Chapter 15

  THE GANG OF ROGUES

  “Where have you been, my lady?” Belial offered a waxy smile. “I have been worried about you.”

  “I was walking in the city and I lost track of time,” Alexia said. “I am sorry, Belial. It won’t happen again.”

  Alexia was still breathless from her climb. She’d climbed into a higher window and raced to the throne room. Her mind spun as she thought about the tapestry in her father’s chamber. Why would Father hold a sword to Mother’s neck? And who was the man on the ground?

  Belial waved a hand. “I am not angry, my Alexia. I merely wanted to be sure you were all right. I look forward to our times together.”

  Alexia sat down on a padded chair opposite Belial. They were sitting on the balcony of the throne room, gazing at the city. She schooled her face and tried to steady her breathing.

  “What is it?” Belial patted the sweat on his brow. “I can see you have something on your mind. What troubles you?”

  Alexia thought a moment and was surprised to find she was actually starting to like Belial. He had only been kind to her since she’d arrived in the city. Even the sickly smell emanating from him didn’t seem quite so bad today.