by W. D. Newman
CHAPTER 12
TIME OUT
When they stepped through the Merlin tree, they immediately knew they were in Faerie. The dazzling sunshine warmed their skin while, at the same time, a soft breeze refreshed them. The bright colored flowers that spotted the grassy hillsides swayed in the wind, teasing the industrious little honey bees that were hard at work, zipping from bloom to bloom. In this land of perfection, the gnarled and twisted Merlin tree looked very strange and out of place. The last time they were here, these fields were empty and there were no signs of civilization anywhere nearby. Now, however, the place was teeming with activity. Two rows of large square tents had been erected with a wide grassy avenue between them. At the end of this tent-lined street stood another tent that was much larger than all of the others.
Elves had always used tents. In Camelot, before the construction of Castle Twilight, they had lived in a city of tents; tents all shapes, sizes, and colors. The tents that formed this garrison, however, were not like any of the tents that were used in the days before the dragon had wakened. The tents of those days were brightly colored with various designs. These tents were plain and utilitarian, but the remarkable thing about them was that they seemed to reflect their surroundings. The material appeared to blend into the grassy fields, making the tents very hard to detect from a distance. The grasses and flowers on the tent’s design even seemed to sway in the breezes.
“Where do you think we should go?” asked Casey.
“I would guess the large tent at the end of the street,” Louise answered.
“Follow me,” said Nob, yanking on his beard. “We’re not going to get anywhere standing around here wagging our tongues.” The dwarves had grown accustomed to being in the Twilight and felt at home there among their elfin friends, but coming to Faerie, for some reason, still set them on edge. Nob started down the street with Gob and Amos right behind him. Louise and Casey followed along, but they never made it to the large tent; halfway down the street they were halted by an elf they did not know.
“It is not often we see a dwarf in Faerie and today I find two strolling down the street of our very new and very secret garrison. Could it be that you are part of the renowned trio of Hob, Gob and Nob?”
“At your service,” said Gob with a bow. “I am Gob and this is Nob. Hob is away to Dwarvenhall with Gabriel and Ben.”
“Ben Alderman is here?”
“Yes. This is his grandmother, Louise, and his sister Casey.”
“And this giant tree trunk standing behind us,” said Nob, hitching his thumb over his shoulder, is Amos. He’s a shape shifter.”
“I see,” the elf replied, looking up at the fur clad giant standing behind the two dwarves. “It seems the appearance of Ben Alderman is always a herald for ill times.
“It could be,” Amos said quietly, “those ill times are a herald for Ben Alderman. He has saved many people, elves included.”
“True,” the elf conceded. “I cannot argue that and we are certainly forever in his debt. I suppose I should take you to Jonah and let him decide what to do with you.”
“That is exactly who we came to see,” said Louise. She was beginning to get angry with the elf for his lack of manners and inhospitality. “Gabriel sent us here to meet with Jonah, so take us to him at once.”
The elf raised an eyebrow, but when Louise pushed her sleeves up and planted her hands on her hips he reconsidered whatever objections had been forming in his mind. “Very well, follow me.”
As it turned out, the large tent at the end of the street was serving as the stables for the horses. The smaller tents were the barracks where the elves were housed and the last one on the right was apparently the officer’s quarters. The elf held the tent flap aside and motioned for them to enter.
Comfortable chairs and sofas lined the perimeter of the tent and in one corner sat a large pot with a beautiful flowering vine that snaked its way up the tent poles. Sunlight streamed in through a small window near the plant and dozens of tiny honey birds zipped from bloom to bloom to drink the sweet nectar. In the center of the tent, Jonah was leaning over a large table that was covered with various assortments of maps.
“Jonah?” said Louise.
The elf was so engrossed in his thoughts he did not hearthem enter the tent. He looked up and when he recognized them, all of the worry that was etched on his face evaporated.
“Louise!” The elf hurried around the table to embrace them. “What are you guys doing here?”
“We were just visiting, but it seems lately that every time we come here we get caught up in something sinister and dangerous. It would be nice to come here for a pleasant trip and then return home no worse for the wear.”
“I agree, but circumstances dictate otherwise. Has Gabriel sent you? Where is Ben? For that matter, where are Gabriel and Hob?”
“They are off to the archives of Dwarvenhall,” Nob answered, “looking for some pictures of the Dragon’s Cradle.”
“Ah, the prophecy. You know of this Dragon’s Cradle?”
“Oh yes, but we’ve never seen it. It’s back on Crag.”
“But we think Ben can take us there,” said Gob. “At least, Gabriel believes that he can.”
“Hey,” Louise cried. “You don’t think they will try to go to Crag before they come here, do you?”
“Oh no, I hope not,” Nob replied. “Gob and I are looking forward to visiting Haven; our ancestral home on Crag. Hob knows that too, so he’d better not go without us.”
“There’s nothing that be done for it now,” said Amos. “If they do go, Ben will be in safe hands with Gabriel and Hob.”
“Amos is right,” said Jonah. “Let’s all sit down and be comfortable. We have much to discuss.”
Once they were seated at the table, Casey noticed that everyone became still and silent. She looked at Jonah, who was sitting in front her. The elf was looking across the table at Louise. He wasn’t blinking and his mouth was open. Casey, thinking some wrong with her grandma, turned to see what Jonah was gawking at. Her grandma was sitting beside her, gripping the sides of her chair as if she were getting ready to scoot herself closer to the table, but she was not moving either. Gob and Nob were perfectly still too. They were not even twitching, which was highly unusual for the two dwarves; the only time they were ever still was when they were sleeping. Lastly, she glanced over at Amos. The friendly giant was as still as a statue, but what Casey saw behind him, in the corner of the tent, made her cry out and jump up from the table.
All around the flowering vine, small brightly colored honey birds were frozen in mid-flight. Their tiny wings, which beat so fast in flight that they were practically indiscernible, were now clearly visible on the stationary birds.
“Grandma?” Casey whispered. “Grandma, are you alright?” She reached out to touch Louise and a deep gentle voice spoke to her from behind.
“Do not touch her, child. She and the others are unharmed.”
Casey spun around and a bright light flared up in front of her, temporarily blinding her. The darkness quickly receded from her vision and as her sight returned to normal she spied an angel standing quietly by the tent door. At least, to Casey the man looked like an angel. The white robed creature was every bit as large as Amos. Thick golden curls, a strong jaw line and high cheek bones framed a pair of eyes that were indigo blue and flecked with silver. Casey fell to her knees and covered her head. She did not feel in danger from this being, but she was terrified nonetheless.
“Rise dear one. You are wise to fear me, but there is no need. I am here to help you.”
Casey climbed back into her chair. She didn’t trust her legs to support her just yet. “Who are you?” she asked with a trembling voice.
“I think you know, do you not?”
“Venus?”
The creature smiled and Casey felt all of the worry, fear and stress melt away from her. “Are you here to help us defeat Bellator?”
“Shouldn’t you be giving that information to Ben? Isn’t he the chosen one?”
“Perhaps, but the information I have is for you and only you.”
“Why me?” Casey asked. She didn’t like the direction the conversation was heading and she could feel the panic slowly building in her chest. “If not Ben, then why not Gabriel or Jonah?”
“The information I have would be of no use to them; it is about your bracelet. That’s why I’ve come to you; there is something you must know about one of the charms.”
Casey glanced down at the charms dangling from the bracelet Marcus had given her back in December. He wouldn’t tell her what the charms did. He said it could alter the future if she knew. That was only a few months ago, but it seemed like eons. So far she had only used one of the charms and that had saved Hob’s life. Actually, capturing Arinya and removing her from Long Lake had probably saved countless lives. Casey’s curiosity briefly overcame her fears. “Do you know what these charms do?”
Venus nodded.
“Why are you going to tell me? Marcus didn’t think I should know.”
“Yes, Marcus is wise, even wiser than some of the immortals. He has the gift of foresight and sees all of the many paths that fates may travel to their final destiny. He also understands that foreknowledge of these paths may alter their courses, thus altering the outcomes. He was right in withholding that information from you.”
“Then why tell me now?”
“I am going to tell you what one of the charms will do. That is all. I will not tell you when to use it or how to use it. I will not even instruct you that you should use it, but we are dealing with powers beyond the comprehension of anyone on Faerie, Camelot, and Earth, and this bit of knowledge may tip the scales in your favor. However, as Marcus feared, this knowledge may also lead to the destruction of you and your loved ones. It could even lead to the destruction of all three worlds. The choice to know is yours, Casey. Choose wisely.”
Casey bit her lip. Why her? Why now? No wonder Ben was the chosen one; this was exactly the kind of thing that he could puzzle out. She could just picture him pushing his glasses up on his nose, cupping his chin in his hand and scrunching up his brow as he worked the problem out in his head. What would Ben do? Marcus didn’t want to tell her this information and even Venus agreed that it could lead to their downfall, but why would he offer to tell her anything unless he knew it could help them. He even admitted that it could help them. It must help them, otherwise why would he appear to her? Finally, she made up her mind. “Tell me,” she whispered.
“There is a charm on your bracelet that looks like a sundial.”
Casey knew the charm he was talking about. It was a small disc with a triangle protruding from the top. Around the edges of the disc were strange markings and tiny runes. She flipped the bracelet around until she found the charm and rolled it between her fingers while she waited for Venus to continue.
“A sundial marks the passage of time. The charm you hold between your fingers has the power to slow the passage of time.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Look around you,” Venus instructed. “Time has slowed for everyone, but for you and me it progresses at its usual pace.”
“This is something you did?”
Venus nodded.
“And this is something my charm can do?”
Again, the immortal nodded.
“How do I get it to work?”
“The triangle that rises from the disc is called a gnomon. Pinch the gnomon between your thumb and index finger and speak the word cease.”
“That’s it?” Casey asked, rather incredulously. “I thought it would be something really complex.”
“Often times, the most powerful spells are the easiest to cast.”
Casey thought for a moment. A charm that stopped time could be invaluable in the fight against Bellator. If they couldn’t use it to actually defeat him, then they should at least be able to use it to rescue Marcus. Her mind was racing with the possibilities when she noticed that Venus was becoming translucent and beginning to fade away. “Hey,” Casey cried. “Where are you going?”
“I cannot remain in Faerie overly long for fear that Jupiter will sense my presence. I’ve already stayed longer than is safe and I must be leaving. Farewell child.”
Suddenly, a thought occurred to Casey. “Hey wait! If I ever decide to use this charm, how do I get time to start back?”
Venus actually laughed. “Where you come from, the passage of time is marked in something called minutes. The spell will last for several of those minutes, but only the Creator has the power to stop time. It is the second most powerful force in all of His creation.”
“What’s the most powerful force?”
Venus winked out of existence but, a second before time resumed its steady march, Casey heard his voice whisper a single word…
“Love.”
*****
