The Shrine of Avooblis

by Charles Streams

  Jinxy’s Bauble Emporium stood out because of the brightly colored balls that hung from the porch of the store, dazzling in the dimming light. The porch light was off, but Dugan went to the door, knocked quietly, and then pushed it open. Dagdron and Earl followed him inside. A single lamp sitting on the counter lit up the store. Fitting the name perfectly, there were shelves and shelves of baubles. The ornamental balls were of all sizes and colors. And, while some were a single solid color, others gleamed with glitter and other sparkly decoration.

  As Earl, fascinated, examined the baubles, Dugan went to a shelf against the back wall and tapped on it softly. He waited for a response but not receiving one, pulled out the bookcase. Dagdron was quick to follow him through the doorway behind. When his father lit a lantern in the back room, it was obvious that something was wrong. Bottles had been shattered on the floor and scrolls had been strewn everywhere.

  “Get out!” Dugan said. He grabbed Dagdron’s arm and pushed him to the front of the shop. Earl was mesmerized by the baubles so he hadn’t noticed the robed figure who had slid silently through the front door.

  “I thought you would show up eventually,” Rance said. He smiled as Dugan and Dagdron drew their daggers and Earl his sword.

  “Jinxy better be alive,” Dugan said.

  “Like I told him, as long as he abandoned shop for a while, he is no concern of mine,” Rance said.

  “We’re leaving,” Dugan said.

  “Nah. I don’t think so,” Rance said. “Not only do I still owe you for the dagger in my shoulder, I think Dagdron and I should have some time together.”

  “He has nothing to do with this. Gwydion involved him. Dagdron didn’t know what was going on.”

  Rance chuckled. “That’s what’s funny about all of this. Before last year, only a few people had any inkling that the Arches of Avooblis even existed. When everything fell apart during our little altercation in Bodaburg, I had to ask myself why Gwydion, so intent on keeping the arch crystals a secret, suddenly was involving first years at his playground of an academy. Was it really just to get his hands on the second arch? Or does he need—”

  Before Rance could finish, Dugan lifted his hand and fired a flame spell at him. Rance dodged and retaliated with lightning spells, crackling as if surrounded by electricity. Earl, always trying to be honorable, charged the enchanter. Before the young warrior could get in close enough range to use his sword, Rance cast lightning balls from both hands, blasting Earl backwards, where he crashed into a shelf, shattering baubles.

  Dagdron, seeing Earl’s unsuccessful attempt, decided to take a distance approach. He stashed his dagger and picked up bauble after bauble, launching them in Rance’s direction. The combined onslaught of flame spells and baubles was too much for the enchanter in close quarters, so he ducked out of the store. Dugan was at Earl’s side in an instant, helping the groggy boy stand up.

  “Dagdron, you and Earl need to get back to the cave and head for Lordavia,” Dugan said. “I will come find you as soon as I deal with Rance and find out if Jinxy is all right.”

  “I’m not leaving,” Dagdron said.

  “Your lives are in danger,” Dugan said. “I’m sorry that you got involved in all of this, but I can’t protect you here. Go to Lordavia. You can be safe with Earl’s family until the academy starts again.”

  “You haven’t told me anything!” Dagdron said, furious. “What do the Arches of Avooblis do?”

  “All I know is that they’re evil!” Dugan exclaimed, losing patience.

  “What does Avooblis even mean? Where did the arches come from?”

  “I don’t know! But stay far away from them! I came to Cliffmount to get us away from everything. I thought returning the arch to the headmaster would be end of it, and give you the chance to get proper rogue training. I was wrong and I’m sorry, but you have to go to Lordavia for the rest of the summer.” When Dagdron still didn’t budge, Dugan continued. “The Arches of Avooblis killed your mother, okay? Please be done with them. I don’t want you to be harmed too!”

  The front window shattered as a blast-bolt spell blew through it, so Dugan grabbed Dagdron and Earl and dragged them outside. Rance had been joined by Kas and Wally in the street, and the three enchanters were casting spells at the shop. Rance continued with his yellow lightning spells, while Wally was sending flame spells and Kas blue blast-bolts.

  Dugan, Dagdron, and Earl did their best to dodge the spells behind the cover of the hanging baubles on the porch. The spells were smashing the baubles, though, so their shield was thinning.

  “My baubles!” a voice yelled.

  Jinxy, with his big, springy blond hair, looked horrified from the corner of the street. He lifted his hands in the air and small orange flame balls drifted lightly into the air before darting toward the three enchanters.

  “Go,” Dugan said to Dagdron and Earl.

  Dagdron listened this time, and he and Earl made a run for it as Rance, Kas, and Wally were distracted by Jinxy’s arrival. Rance and Kas cast spells at them, but they were able to escape down the street as Dugan and Jinxy prevented the enchanters from following. Dagdron glanced back once and, while he saw a few spells, he couldn’t tell whose they were or who might be winning the battle.

  The two boys raced back up the crevice into the cliffs, climbing up above to enter the cave through the chimney. Even Earl was too out of breath to discuss the happenings extensively, but when he had gathered up most of the items Dagdron had taken out of his pack, he turned to his companion.

  “I hope your dad and Jinxy are all right,” he said.

  “Who cares? They deserve what they get for lying to us and getting us caught up in this.”

  “Your dad was just doing what he thought was best.” Earl turned to pick up the three whetstones Dagdron had thrown on the ground. As soon as his friend wasn’t looking, Dagdron slipped the book about Coastdale into the pack, covering it with a couple of food rations. He leaned casually against the wall as Earl spun back, finished packing, and tied his pack closed.

  “Ready?” Earl asked.

  Dagdron nodded, and the two boys climbed up through the cave. On the top shelf, Dagdron took a moment to look down into the darkness of the cave before slipping out of the hole between the boulders.

  “My stay in Cliffmount was much shorter than I would have preferred,” Earl said, trying to sound optimistic. “But it was still amazing seeing where you live. And now I get to show you where I live. You’re going to love Lordavia.”

  “Hooray,” Dagdron said expressionlessly.

  “You’re going to love it,” Earl repeated as the two boys headed across the boulders in a southwesterly direction.

  Chapter 3: Central Crossing

  Dagdron and Earl traveled late into the night along the dirt road that Earl said would take them to Lordavia. Dagdron, never having been any place other than Cliffmount or Bodaburg, followed Earl’s lead. That first night, they passed a couple of campfires, but the boys, still afraid that Rance, Kas, and Wally might be on their trail, made no contact with anyone. When they were too tired to continue, Dagdron led them off the path, looking for a place to sleep. As soon as the rogue found a flat area free of rocks and vegetation, he wadded up his cloak and lay down, using it as a pillow. Earl, pulling out his bedroll, took longer to get ready for bed, but fell asleep shortly after his companion.

  The following morning, Dagdron woke up first. Although the sky was clear and blue, the boy wasn’t happy to see the sandy, dry-climate around him. He thought he was going to have three months of summer in Cliffmount. He sat up, stretching his arms and legs before looking at Earl. His friend, with a pleasant smile, was still sleeping soundly on his bulky bedroll. Dagdron hadn’t expected to have to sleep next to his academy roommate for another two months, either.

  Dagdron, wanting to stay busy, put his cloak back on and threw his dagger at the nearest tree. He practiced dagger throwing until he saw Earl rousing, and then he ran back to the campsite.

&nb
sp; “Let’s go,” Dagdron said.

  “An adventurer should always start his day with a hearty breakfast,” Earl replied as he got up and rolled up his pad.

  “If you take out your adventurer’s handbook, I will shred it.” Dagdron still had his dagger in his hand and he saw Earl glance at it. But Earl, used to Dagdron’s threats, repacked and grabbed a handful of granola to eat before they hit the road.

  “It’s a beautiful day!” Earl said as they started their march.

  Dagdron ignored him and took a fast pace. Earl, even with his heavy pack, matched the speed and whistled as they went.

  The rogue and warrior journeyed for three days along the dirt road. The regions they passed were mostly uninhabited barren areas with few trees and many weeds. Occasional roads forked off the main path, leading to villages to the east and west. While Dagdron was content to walk in silence, pondering about the Arches of Avooblis and the events that had occurred in Cliffmount, Earl, unable to withstand any sort of silence for long, pointed out all sorts of rock formations, asked Dagdron his opinions about the little they knew about the arch crystals, and got an early start on lecturing the rogue about how he should behave in Lordavia.

  On the third day, the landscape became much greener with grass and plants. A narrow river crisscrossed at different intervals, where wooden bridges had been built so that the caravans with carts and carriages could cross. Earl whistled more colorfully along with the scenery, and Dagdron lengthened his stride, hoping to end their journey any amount of time sooner.

  Toward the end of the third day, they caught up with a caravan. There were twenty to thirty people traveling together. Four carts, pulled by horses, creaked along, carrying the women, wares, and other supplies. The men walked, keeping the carts stable. The children of the group played as they went, throwing sticks and rocks they found along the way.

  Dagdron was ready to pass them directly, but Earl stopped him.

  “This could be a good opportunity to join a caravan,” Earl explained. “I bet they’re planning to camp at Central Crossing and then head to Lordavia.”

  “What’s Central Crossing?” Dagdron asked.

  “I told you about it an hour ago. Weren’t you listening to me?”

  Earl paused, waiting for Dagdron to reply. The rogue kept his face expressionless, remembering how he had been thinking about his own plans as Earl had been explaining to him.

  “Central Crossing is the middle point between Lordavia and Broodavia. There’s a giant hillside there, and most caravans camp there. Even if this group isn’t going to Lordavia, I bet we can find one to join there.

  “A caravan would slow us down,” Dagdron said.

  “I know we’ve been safe so far, but there are dangers other than Rance. There are more bandits and creatures on the roads leading east and west from Central Crossing because that’s the main merchant route between the two biggest cities of the land.”

  “We’ll decide once we get there,” Dagdron said.

  The members of the caravan greeted them politely as they passed, though giving them a second look, not only for being so young and traveling alone, but for traveling together as rogue and warrior. Earl greeted them chivalrously, but then was forced to catch up to Dagdron.

  An hour later, they reached Central Crossing. Although Earl had been describing it more in detail over the last hour, Dagdron was still surprised. The hillside was enormous. A few trees had managed to grow in some places, while flowers decorated the slopes more plentifully. The circular area around the base of the hill was grassy as well, but was worn by the traffic and campers that frequented the place. The largest roads headed off to the east and west, but smaller paths sectioned off diagonally to different parts of the land. Wooden signs with the names of various cities carved on them pointed out the correct trails for travelers.

  “The caravan I was with on the way to Cliffmount spent very little time here,” Earl said as he and Dagdron walked around the area. “It’s nice to be able to see it a little more calmly, but even better, it’s great to be here with you. Too bad Lita can’t be here with us.” He pointed to a sign with “Thornrim” carved on it and then cast a quick glance at Dagdron.

  “Have you heard from her?” Dagdron asked.

  “No, but her whole family was going to do a summer training program together in the wilderness around Thornrim.”

  “That’s too bad,” Dagdron said. “I thought maybe she had sent you a note about wanting to move to Bodaburg.”

  “Dagdron,” Earl said. “I thought you were going to be nice about it for once. I’m very fond of Lita, but I have no intentions other than being a really good friend with her.”

  Dagdron allowed himself a small smile. The village of Bodaburg was largely populated by people who had fallen in love while at the Adventurers’ Academy, being forced to give up their dream to become adventurers. Earl and Lita, though not permitted to, had spent a lot of time together during their first year at the academy, and Dagdron always teased Earl about it.

  “Dagdron, can I please ask you a favor?” Earl kept talking before Dagdron could decline. “I know you’re not into exploring the areas of the land like I am, but, growing up in Lordavia, people always told stories about climbing the hill at Central Crossing. Can we please go to the top?”

  “Sure.”

  “It won’t take long.”

  “Sure,” Dagdron said a little louder.

  “And coming down will be so easy.”

  “I already said I would.”

  “Thanks, Dagdron.” Earl smiled and took off up the hill.

  Dagdron, expecting Earl’s pack and boots to give him trouble, was surprised when he had to catch up with his companion. Earl was scurrying up the hillside with the traction of a mountain goat.

  Both boys, even being in shape, were out of breath after scrabbling up the humongous hill. Earl belted out an exclamation as he lifted his arms in the air and twirled around. On his last spin, he tripped over his feet and fell to the ground, where he extended all four of his limbs in elation.

  Dagdron, in the meantime, looked down and out over the surrounding area. The people below appeared tiny as they circled the hill, set up camp, or headed off on one of the pathways.

  “Now do you understand why I like to do things like this?” Earl said, joining Dagdron. “The view is amazing, and it’s experiences like these that you always remember. When we’re official adventurers, every day will be like this.”

  “I get what you mean, but I wouldn’t call it amazing,” Dagdron said.

  Earl chuckled, accepting that as high praise from his rogue friend.

  “Do you want me to be honest with you?” Dagdron asked.

  “A hero should always be honest.” Earl watched as Dagdron turned his blank face toward him. “Yes, I want you to be honest.”

  “Because I won’t tell you, if you prefer not to know.”

  “Know what?”

  Moving behind Earl, Dagdron untied his pack and rummaged around until he found the book about Coastdale.

  “I’m not going to Lordavia yet,” Dagdron said.

  “Dagdron, your dad told us to go to Lordavia for protection. And he told us specifically not to go to Coastdale.”

  “You already know—”

  “Yes, I know if your dad tells you to do something then you don’t do it.”

  “I can still sneak off in the night if you want.”

  “What do you even expect to find there?”

  “I don’t know,” Dagdron replied. “Maybe nothing. If we find out more about the arches, then fine. If not, we still have the rest of the summer to be bored in Lordavia.”

  “Lordavia is anything but boring,” Earl said. He knew Dagdron was teasing him, but he wasn’t sure how to respond about going to Coastdale.

  “It might be our only chance. Unless you want to take a vacation halfway through our second year at the academy.”

  “I know. But why would your dad warn us not to go there? Something r
eally sinister is going on with the arches. If they were created in Coastdale, maybe there are other enchanters searching for them there.”

  “Last year I wouldn’t have even cared. But everyone keeps saying that, like it or not, we’re involved now. I planned on going back to Cliffmount for a peaceful summer, and never returning to the academy. But, if I do have to go back there, I’m only going back with as much knowledge about the arches as I can get.” Dagdron looked down to hide the emotion he was showing. “I’m sorry, Earl. I don’t want your life to be in danger if the enchanters find you on the way to Lordavia, but I’m going to Coastdale.”

  “You’re right,” Earl said. “Last year I was a little naïve about a few things dealing with our quest. The adventurer’s handbook repeats, over and over, the importance of having as much information as you can in order to fulfill a quest adequately. We need to learn all we can before heading back to the academy. Even then, Rance and the others might still come after us. I’m not going to underestimate anything this year.”

  Dagdron gave a short nod.

  “You’re welcome,” Earl said. “I know you really didn’t want to go alone, and I would never abandon you. That, and I definitely want to see where you were born as well.”

  Dagdron started down the hill before Earl could continue.

  “I can’t believe you made me carry that book the past three days. I knew my pack felt heavier.”

  Dagdron lengthened his strides.

  “And just so you know, I’m going to read aloud from the adventurer’s handbook as we travel to Coastdale. I still don’t think you’ve read it completely through.”

  Dagdron was now running. Earl, trying to match his pace, tripped and rolled past the rogue, beating him to the bottom. Worried about such a big stumble, Dagdron hurried to his friend, but Earl was already standing up with a huge grin.

  “Can you imagine what a great tale this will be?” Earl said. “Someday I’ll be telling about our quest planning on the top of Central Crossing Hill where I rolled down. How many people can say they’ve done that?”

  “How many people want to say they’ve done that?” Dagdron said.