by Simon Rose
“Galderon’s sphere grants him great power,” said Soldor. “He’s taken control of the most vicious creatures of our world to help him win. There are hardly any birds left because of the scarans. And the malkonors have devastated the unicorn herds.”
Alcamarus turned to Kilaya. “We need to talk.”
“And Karonvar would like to see the children in the morning too,” Soldor said.
Kilaya walked off with Alcamarus and Soldor to the edge of the clearing. Jessica and Eric were left alone beside the fire.
“Who’s Karonvar?” asked Eric.
“The leader of the Brotherhood.” Jessica took a sip of her soup.
“And what about Kilaya?”
“She’s Karonvar’s closest advisor. She’s a telepath. By the way, I’m so sorry about Septimus,” she said.
“There was no time to do anything. He probably never knew what hit him.” Eric looked down and took a bite of bread, trying to drive the image from his mind. He shuddered before regaining his composure. “So . . . um . . . what happened to you when you vanished from the cottage?” He hoped Jessica couldn’t see the tears in his eyes.
“Well, I appeared in the woods just outside Garoda,” Jessica replied. “That’s one of the portals here. I was scared, of course, not knowing what was going on. Luckily, some of the Brotherhood were patrolling that area. They found me before Galderon’s monsters did and brought me to the camp. The Brotherhood gave me these clothes and helped me to settle in here. Kilaya told me that they have to move camps quite often, but this one in the Forest of Orbann is quite secure.”
“Tobias told me something about the Brotherhood.”
Jessica took the blue sphere out of her pocket and handed it to Eric. “Kilaya says the sphere has incredible powers, in the right hands.”
“I’ll take good care of it.”
“Now let’s get some rest,” said Jessica. “The days are long here. I’ll show you where we’ll sleep.”
As Eric was falling asleep that night, his thoughts kept returning to the horrific moment when the ball of flame consumed Septimus.
Chapter Ten
The Brotherhood of the Fallen
Eric awoke to brilliant sunshine the next morning after a restless night’s sleep, and the events of the previous day came back to him. Septimus . . . Dad.
“About time you woke up,” said Jessica.
The camp was a hive of activity, with far more people around than the night before. A creature with a long tail and wide, transparent dragonfly wings flew into the centre of the camp. She had pale-green skin and short black hair, and was clad in a short white robe. Alcamarus and Soldor walked up to her. The three of them crossed the camp and disappeared into a dark-green tent.
“That’s Zaliya,” said Jessica. “She’s a friend of Karonvar. She must have some news. But never mind that. Kilaya has breakfast ready for us, and I’m hungry.”
Eric followed Jessica to a canopy strung between two stout oak trees.
“Good morning, Eric,” Kilaya said. “I hope you slept well.”
“Yeah . . . well, sort of.” Eric sat down.
Breakfast consisted of a kind of bread and several weird types of fruit. As they ate, Eric noticed that the pendants on Kilaya’s necklace had symbols like those on the armour worn by Alcamarus and Soldor.
“Eric, give me the sphere, please,” Kilaya said.
Eric hesitated for a moment, then reached into his pocket and handed the sphere to Kilaya.
“This is a dangerous weapon,” she said. “It can make you very powerful. That is . . . if it likes you.”
“Likes you?” said Eric.
“The sphere has a kind of consciousness. If it likes you, it can help you do anything.”
“It must like me then,” said Eric, glancing at the sphere in Kilaya’s hand. “But I’m not sure I like it. It’s only brought me trouble.”
The sphere glowed slightly, and Kilaya put it down on the grass.
“You might want to watch what you say, Eric, after what happened to Soldor.”
“Yeah, it was scary,” said Jessica. “Soldor wanted to use the sphere to give the warriors powers to help them in the coming battles. The sphere obviously didn’t approve of that. It shot two lightning bolts at his head and only just missed.”
“So if Galderon’s sphere works like this one,” said Eric, “his sphere must like him, right?”
“That’s correct. With the help of his sphere, Galderon can do terrible things. Without it he wouldn’t have been able to conquer Koronada. But we think this sphere is even more powerful—in your hands.”
“Really?” asked Eric.
“Yes. It could be because you’re from Earth.” Kilaya poured water from a jug into a large wooden bowl. Then she picked up the sphere and handed it to him. “Here, Eric. See if you can make it work.”
“How?” Eric asked.
“Just focus,” replied Kilaya, placing the bowl of water in front of him. “Clear your mind. You too, Jessica. It might like you.”
Eric held the sphere in his palm. At first nothing happened. Then suddenly he was surrounded by thick fog and mist.
“Don’t be afraid, Eric. I’m here to help you.”
Eric thought it was Kilaya speaking to him, but then the voice changed.
“I can be anyone you want me to be, Eric.”
This time the voice reminded Eric of his mother. He knew she’d be worried about him. He never got a chance to call her like he’d promised. And now he had no idea if he’d ever get home again. Then the voice changed again.
“Or perhaps you prefer someone else?” it said in Jessica’s voice.
Eric almost dropped the sphere in alarm. His heart was pounding.
“Look at the bowl, Eric. Don’t be afraid.”
The fog dissipated, and the sphere slowly rose out of Eric’s hand and floated above the bowl. It glowed brightly as it hovered between Eric and Jessica. In the air above the bowl, an image shimmered into view—stars swirling against a night sky. Suddenly the image changed, and a bird’s head—its beak open wide—appeared, screeching. It was a tall bird with brown feathers and a huge yellow hooked beak. Instead of wings it had short arms, each tipped by a long curved claw.
“That’s a terrorbird. It can’t fly, but it can run very fast,” said Kilaya. “It’s at least ten feet tall.”
The terrorbird melted away and was replaced by a large, lumbering black-haired gorilla with one eye in the middle of its forehead, and a long trunk and tusks, like an elephant. It had claws like hunting knives.
“A terexian,” Kilaya said. “Its trunk can crush a grown man. They serve Galderon, just like the terrorbirds. That’s enough for now.”
Kilaya reached out and gently took the sphere, which immediately stopped glowing, and handed it to Eric.
Alcamarus and Zaliya came out of the green tent and walked over to join Eric, Jessica and Kilaya.
“Eric, meet Zaliya,” said Kilaya.
Zaliya’s green skin had stripes, almost like a tiger’s. She also had pointed ears.
“Hello, Eric,” said Zaliya. The short antennae on either side of her forehead vibrated. “I’m sorry to hear about your father.”
“Thanks. I’m sorry too.”
Zaliya turned to Kilaya. “On my last flight I saw signs of terrorbird activity north of here.”
“We’ve been here too long,” said Alcamarus. “We have to move soon.”
Zaliya turned to Eric and Jessica. “Karonvar is ready for you now.”
Kilaya held open the flap of Karonvar’s tent, ushered Jessica and Eric inside, then turned and left. At the far end of the tent stood Tobias. At a table next to him sat a strange creature, looking at a map. He had a goatee and jet-black hair swept back from his face. Two small horns protruded from either side of his upper forehead.
He looks like the devil!
Tobias turned to see who had come in. “Eric!” he said, hurrying over to embrace him. “I am so sorry about your father. He was a good friend.”
“Yes,” agreed Karonvar. “He played a big part in our early battles to regain our freedom. I was the chief advisor to Vina of Garanbal before the crisis.” He pointed to the map on the table in front of him.
Eric, Jessica and Tobias sat down around the table. The map was labelled with the same Celtic symbols that Eric had seen before.
Karonvar touched each spot on the map as he spoke. “Zaliya is from Tilatt, Kilaya is from Kadosch, and Alcamarus and Soldor are from Ovolan.”
“Galderon was the guardian of Tekara,” said Tobias, pointing to the bottom left of the map. “Galderon defeated Kromm, then moved on to Tilatt. By the time he attacked Garanbal’s territory, the other nations had formed an alliance. We are all that is left of that army.”
“Look here,” said Karonvar. “That’s Garoda, where you all arrived through the portal. It was the last city to fall, after a long siege. Galderon killed many, and enslaved everyone who survived.”
“My family was in the city during the siege,” Tobias said, clearing his throat. He stood up from the table and wiped a tear from his eye. “We saw everything with Septimus’ sphere. They are probably all dead—my wife, my boys, my mother, my brave father. Every one of them.” He took a deep breath. “I should go now and assist Alcamarus.”
Karonvar nodded and Tobias left the tent.
“Tobias misses his family,” said Karonvar. “I don’t know how much longer any of us in the Brotherhood will survive. We’ve lost so many good people.”
“Like my dad,” Eric said with a sigh.
Karonvar put his hand on Eric’s shoulder. “Your father remained true to the cause. He was brave and selfless. But I feel we have some hope with the sphere he made. Has Kilaya told you about its abilities?”
“A little.”
“Galderon will try to steal your sphere. And if he does, he’ll be able to open portals into every universe. He’ll be invincible.”
“Can we stop him?” Jessica said, turning to Karonvar.
“I think so. Right now we’re here in Zangocia,” said Karonvar, pointing at the map. “But by tomorrow we’ll start moving toward the Citadel in Tekara.”
Soldor rushed into tent. “Karonvar, there’s a dead olokaren on the beach. It’s one of the big ones.”
Karonvar hurried from the tent, and Eric and Jessica followed him.
Kilaya came up to them.
“What’s an olokaren?” Jessica asked.
“You need to see it for yourself,” replied Kilaya.
A small crowd had gathered near the water’s edge. A hideous black shape lay on the beach. It had an insect-like head, with four eyes extended on thick stalks, and multiple tentacles covered with deadly looking spikes. Its tail and flippers were similar to a whale’s.
Eric took a step forward to get a better look, but Karonvar grabbed his arm.
“Don’t get too close,” Karonvar warned. “The shorter tentacles have mouths with razor-sharp teeth.”
“But it’s dead, isn’t it?”
“We need to be sure.” Karonvar nodded at four men armed with long spears, who took a step forward. “The olokarens attack anything that swims. They even eat each other.”
Suddenly one of the olokaren’s tentacles lashed out, and one of the men was bitten. He screamed in agony and collapsed, his body convulsing.
A trumpet call sounded. “The scarans!” Karonvar shouted. “Galderon has found us.”
Scarans soared toward the beach, and hordes of olokarens cut through the waves. In the distance a throng of soldiers from Galderon’s army were approaching from the far end of the beach.
“Kilaya, take Jessica and Eric to safety,” said Karonvar. “The rest of you, come with me.”
Kilaya led Eric and Jessica and a few others up the cliffs overlooking the beach. Below, the battle was raging. Galderon’s troops, terexians, malkonors and terrorbirds advanced on the Brotherhood warriors. Hordes of scarans swooped down and scooped up soldiers, tossing them into the crashing waves, where the olokarens devoured them. Alcamarus and Soldor were directing their forces from the edge of the forest, but Tobias and Zaliya were nowhere in sight.
“We have to go, Eric!” said Kilaya, tugging at his arm. “We have no time to waste.”
But when they turned to leave, their way was blocked by two towering terexians. One bellowed as it raised its trunk in the air, and the other glared at them with its single eye.
Suddenly there was a flash of steel as Karonvar appeared from nowhere. A single blow from his sword felled the first terexian, but the other slashed at him with its claws.
Karonvar fell but quickly scrambled to his feet. “Run!” he shouted as he struggled to protect himself with his shield. “Save yourselves!”
He dealt several blows to the terexian’s trunk but that only angered the monster even more. It snatched Karonvar’s shield and tossed it aside. Karonvar continued to slash at the terexian until it grabbed his sword and snapped it in two. The terexian then picked up Karonvar, crushed his ribs with its trunk and flung him over the cliff.
Jessica screamed.
“There’s nothing we can do,” shouted Kilaya over the terexian’s roars of triumph. “We need to get out of here quickly.”
Chapter Eleven
Visions
By nightfall, the remnants of the Brotherhood were hidden in caves deep in the Ligordian Mountains. Zaliya and Soldor were helping some of the stragglers, but there was still no sign of Tobias.
Once everyone had gathered, Alcamarus addressed the assembled group. “I won’t detain you for long. I know you’re all weary from the journey. Karonvar meant so much to each of us. If it hadn’t been for him, the Brotherhood wouldn’t exist. He can never be replaced. We owe him everything, and I hope in my heart that I will be a worthy successor.”
Everyone nodded their heads. Exhausted from the journey, they settled in for the night. Eric shared a cave with Kilaya and Jessica, and fell asleep beside a small fire.
Eric stood in a dark circular room. At its centre was a stone archway, surrounded by stone pillars, fitted with flaming torches. The room had a ceiling but no walls, and Eric could see the night sky beyond the pillars. Septimus was chained to one of them. His face was almost drained of colour, his eyes half-closed.
As Eric approached, Septimus looked directly at him. “Eric, I’m alive,” he murmured. “Help me.”
Eric sat up with a start, his heart pounding. He was sweating and gasping for breath. He scrambled over to where Jessica lay on the opposite side of the fire. It was dark outside and the fire was still burning.
“Jessica,” he whispered. “Wake up.”
“What is it?” she asked, slowly opening her eyes. “We can’t have been asleep very long.”
“It’s Septimus,” Eric said, quietly. “He came to me in a dream.”
“So?” Jessica yawned as she sat up.
“It was so vivid. He told me he’s still alive.”
“But didn’t you say that thing shot him with a fireball?”
“I know. It’s crazy.”
“Your dream could have some important meaning,” Kilaya interrupted.
“You’re awake?”
“Of course. I rarely sleep. Where was Septimus in the dream, Eric?”
“It was dark, but there were flaming torches. There was an archway in the middle of the room.”
“The Citadel,” Kilaya said. “He could still be alive.”
“But he can’t be,” insisted Eric. “I was there. I saw him burn up with my own eyes.”
“Eric, it’s possible that Septimus was somehow teleported to the Citadel.”
Kilaya took the sphe
re out of her pocket and handed it to Eric. “I want you to concentrate, like you did last time. Focus on your dream, anything you can remember, no matter how insignificant it may seem. Maybe the sphere will show us what’s happening.”
They sat in silence. Soon the sphere pulsated gently. Eric felt completely at peace. The sphere began glowing with a pale blue-green light.
“Let go of it, Eric,” Kilaya said.
“What?”
“You’ll see.”
Eric let it go and it slowly rose into the air, suspended above the fire. Swirling stars in a black sky filled the sphere. Soon Galderon’s Citadel in Tekara appeared, steadily becoming clearer. Steep cliffs surrounded the jet-black stone fortress on all sides. It looked like it was carved right out of the cliffs. The Citadel had six tall, black pointed towers. At the top of the tallest one, a bright light was pulsating. Where the cliff face merged with its walls, there were several caves, far above the tropical forest floor. High in the sky above the Citadel, forked lightning flashed back and forth across a huge whirlpool of black clouds, just like the one back on Earth.
The image changed to a scene inside the murky walls of the Citadel. It was the same room that Eric had seen in his dream.
“Look at the archway, Eric,” said Jessica. “It’s another portal.”
Images of herds of unicorns, soaring griffins, and a black sky speckled with stars, planets and meteor showers flashed across the archway.
Then a figure emerged from the darkness, clad in a full suit of lightweight jet-black armour and a black cloak, fastened at the neck by an elaborate golden clasp. His hair was swept back from his blue-green face and he had a thick white beard. Eric shuddered, recalling the face he’d seen at the tomb in the church back at the village.
“Galderon,” said Kilaya.
Galderon’s skin was reptilian, covered in scales. His eyes were pale green with large black pupils. He had bony ridges at his eyebrows, and his ears were slightly pointed at the top and bottom. The symbol on his breastplate was the same as Tobias’.
Septimus was chained to one of the pillars. He was only semiconscious, and his face was cut and bruised.
