by Rudi James
He turned to face the tube of orange light. ‘You inside light, not worry. We come back. Next time be fast.’ He then faced the one who had tossed the black powder. ‘Take message for Droch. We returning and am meaning business.’
The cavern was quiet now. Alex picked himself up and dusted himself down. There was nothing to do but retreat back to Shanglo's Haven.
As they left the cavern, Boris picked up the fallen lance that his earlier attacker had been carrying and spoke once more to the conscious guard. ‘You not follow,’ he said, pointing the lance menacingly.
The guard put up his hands in a gesture of compliance and with that the rescuers made their way back into the tunnels.
Chapter Seven
Fire Lance
Alex took a last look at the scene they were leaving behind as they entered the labyrinth once more. ‘I wonder what will happen to the rest of your people we’ve had to leave behind.’
Drum looked up at Alex as they walked. ‘I think they’ll be alright for now. Droch still needs them as a means of bargaining, remember,’ he said, still out of breath.
Alex nodded in agreement, his pulse still racing after the events in the chamber.
‘Me agree,’ said Boris. ‘I think Droch take no action yet, but we act soon to free others if possible.’ He looked down at Alex. ‘You, my friend, very brave in chamber. You save Boris, even though you have no powder to fight enemy. You very brave.’
‘I agree with you Boris,’ said Drum. ‘I think it’s about time Alex learned to use the powders.’ He looked at Alex. ‘What do you say?’
Alex didn't know what to say, although he inwardly knew that he would dearly love to get to grips with the powders. ‘I . . . er . . . I suppose so,’ he said, without trying to look too eager.
‘There's no suppose so about it,’ retorted Drum. ‘I'm going to teach you just as soon as we get back to Shanglo’s Haven. In the meantime let's hurry along and make contact with our escaped friends. Under the circumstances I didn’t see exactly who they were.’
Boris was busy examining the lance he had picked up. ‘Me wondering how working,’ he mused. I glad this only one enemy have. We in trouble if more in chamber.’ He turned and handed the device to Drum. ‘What you think?’
Drum took the lance and turned it over and over, examining both ends very carefully by the light of an oil lamp.
‘It's just a hollow tube with a small aperture at this end,’ he said, pointing to a hole at one end of the tube. ‘There is also a device which I can slide over the hole. Furthermore, the thing isn't completely hollow because when I look down one end of the tube I can't see any light at the other end.’
The group had slowed down while the examination of the device was being carried out. Alex looked on with great interest. ‘Mind if I have a look?’ he asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
‘Certainly,’ replied Drum, handing Alex the lance. ‘But be careful,’ he added, ‘don’t move that slider whatever you do. We don't want to risk firing it again at the moment.’
They stopped walking altogether as Alex took a really close look at the aperture.
‘I can see a faint purple discolouration around the hole,’ he remarked after a while. He rubbed the area with his finger. Some of the purple came off and Alex held out his hand.
Drum examined the purple mark on Alex's finger. ‘I don't like the look of this, I have a bad feeling that Droch has concocted yet another powder and is using it as a weapon with the aid of this device. I think the purple stain is the remains of that powder. Well spotted Alex.’
‘You mean something like gunpowder?’
‘The only thing that this stuff and gunpowder have in common is that it’s loaded into a firing device, like the old muskets from your realm,’ replied Drum. ‘There the similarity ends. This powder is far far more deadly. You saw what it did to that wall in the cavern. The powder somehow transforms itself into a projectile when fired. You saw the red fireball. Speaking of which, I wonder if this thing will fire again?’
‘I have a feeling it will,’ said Alex. ‘When I tripped up that Sand Dweller going for Boris, it looked very much like he was about to use the weapon again.’
‘I think we should make with all speed back to the village, show this to Shirrac and arrange a test firing to see exactly what it does,’ suggested Bremmish, who had become visible again, together with the rest of the escort team. ‘I don't think it would be wise to try and fire it again in the confined spaces of these tunnels.’
‘I fully agree with that,’ said Drum. ‘Does everyone else?’
They all nodded vigorously as if to emphasise the fact that the sooner they got going the better they would like it.
‘Very well then. I don't like to use the flying powder except when I really have to. Shirrac warned me it would be one of the most difficult powders to produce in respect of time and quantity, should it ever be necessary. It also takes the longest to replenish itself. However, we need to get back to the village quickly and flying beats the devil out of walking. The running powder is fine when there’s a straight path, but with the twists and turns in these tunnels we’d be bouncing off the walls at the speeds we would be running at. No, flying can be more controlled. Let's form groups of two. Boris you go with Hogarth. Alex can come with me. Bremmish and his team can stay in their groups as they are.’
Boris looked uncomfortable. ‘Me fly?’ he said, making a sucking noise as he breathed in sharply. ‘I not liking that. I not like heights.’
‘You'll be OK,’ Drum assured him. ‘Nothing to it; in any case we’ll only be a few metres off the ground. Any higher and we’d be scraping the tops of these tunnels. With your height your feet will be pretty close to the ground anyway.’
Boris looked dubious. ‘I try,’ he said in his deep voice.
Drum looked around. ‘I wonder where Jorash and the rest of the invisible lookout team have got to. I almost forgot about them.’
‘We’re up here,’ said a voice from above. It was Jorash.
‘Well, stay invisible and follow us,’ commanded Drum. He looked at the rest of the group.
‘Right, everyone in pairs. Alex you stand next to me. If you're all ready, let’s fly home.’
Four separate hands each tossed a small quantity of green powder in the air. Four brilliant green circles of light appeared and began to descend in the way that was now becoming very familiar to Alex. These particular circles did not roll like a smoke ring nor did they sparkle or dance. They shimmered and pulsed and came down very flatly and evenly.
Before he knew it Alex was inside the perimeter of his circle with Drum. There was no cylinder of light this time. Instead the circle suddenly vanished and Alex, feeling rather light-headed, found himself lifting gently off the ground alongside Drum, whose arm he found himself hanging on to.
‘There’s no need to hang on Alex,’ remarked Drum. ‘You'll be quite safe.’
They gradually glided forward, faster and faster, until they were moving through the labyrinth at some speed.
To Alex it was a marvellous sensation. The flight was so smooth and quiet, the ground skimming silently by beneath him and the air brushing gently over his face. The walls of the tunnel seemed to be racing by. He was beginning to enjoy himself immensely. The others all seemed perfectly relaxed, except Boris. He was bending his knees as if trying to prevent his feet from scraping the ground, although he need not have worried. He was well clear, even when he was at full stretch. He caught Alex watching him and grinning, and grinned back nervously, at the same time pointing first down and then up and pulling a face and shaking his head as if to say ‘this is not for me’. Alex turned his attention to Drum.
‘Can I ask you something?’
‘Go ahead.’
‘How is it that the ring of light that’s allowing us to fly is no longer visible? I would have thought that it would have to stay in view to have any influence.’
‘Actually no,’ replied Drum. ‘The ring of l
ight transforms the area it occupies into a kind of energy field. Once the field is established the light vanishes. The user is then able to control the field because it is tuned into the special frequency of his mind. As you know, the brain is capable of generating tiny electrical signals.’ Drum looked at Alex to make sure he was making himself understood.
‘In this case the field responds to flying commands, after amplifying the brain signals. The field is able to exert high energy levels, enough to lift you and move you in any direction, as you can see. All the powders work like that; except when travelling from realm to realm or through time itself. You then remain within a light cylinder in your own envelope of time, so to speak. You no doubt had that experience when you arrived in our realm with Hogarth.’
Alex nodded.
‘I did tell you that Shanglo was a scientist,’ continued Drum, ‘and not really a magician. The powders we have and their uses are all part of his scientific legacy. I'll tell you more once I start to teach you how to use the powders.’
‘You really are serious about that?’
Drum nodded, but said nothing, and they continued the rest of their journey through the labyrinth in silence.
For Alex the flight came to an end too soon. He felt he could have stayed up in the air for much longer, such was his enjoyment of the effortless twisting and turning through the tunnels. He felt slightly disappointed when the exit to the banquet area finally came into view. It was the same kind of feeling he used to have, when he was much younger, when a great ride at a fair came to an end.
As they came out into bright sunlight a great deal of cheering greeted them. Shirrac, Leena, Jissi and dozens of Realm People, including the ones who had escaped the clutches of the Sand Dwellers, had gathered to await their safe return. Shirrac stepped forward, hands outstretched.
‘We were extremely worried that something dreadful had happened back there. The six who escaped told us what went on in the cavern and we thought perhaps you had not fared so well.’
‘As you can see we’re all fine,’ Drum reassured him, as two of the escapees stepped forward to introduce themselves to Alex and Boris.
‘I’m Greff,’ said one of them.
‘And I’m Storro,’ said the other, as both of them shook hands with Alex and Boris.
‘We cannot thank you enough for helping us escape, and I speak for all of us,’ said Greff.
‘How did you get back here so quickly?’ Alex asked. ‘I would have thought we’d catch up with you seeing as we were flying. And how did you find your way out of the labyrinth?’
Greff smiled. ‘To answer your first question, Boris was actually telling the Sand Dwellers the truth when he told have a them some of us had more powder hidden on us. I did in-fact small amount of the flying powder which the Sand Dwellers somehow missed, when they searched us.’
‘I see, that explains it,’ said Alex.
‘Secondly,’ continued Greff, ‘The Sand Dwellers were always moving us around the various chambers and we were able to build up a pretty good picture, in our minds, of how the tunnels were laid out. Greff smiled again. ‘In any case, it wouldn’t have mattered if we didn’t know the first thing about the tunnels. As long as you know where you want to go and think about that place, the powders will take you there automatically. Perhaps that hasn’t been explained to you yet.’
‘Wow!’ Exclaimed Alex. ‘I did wonder how Hogarth managed to get us to the right place when he brought me over to your realm. That explains a lot.’
Just then, two brief bursts of white light in mid-air revealed Jorash and the rest of the lookout team, as they dropped their mantle of invisibility. The team, Jorash leading, came down to earth to join the rest of them.
‘What was going on in the cavern when you left it?’ Shirrac asked.
‘Not much,’ replied Drum. ‘We left the Sand Dwellers pretty dazed, with no small thanks to Alex here.’ Drum explained what had happened and gave an account of Alex's involvement.
Shirrac listened intently and looked very impressed. He turned to Alex. ‘And you didn't have anything at all to defend yourself with, not even any powder.’
Alex shook his head and tried to make light of his part in the skirmish.
‘He is far too modest,’ declared Drum. ‘I think we, or rather I, should teach him a little more about the use of the powders. It was his idea in the first place to use them as we did in the Sand Dweller chamber. It was a huge success and might well point the way to our future strategy. I only wish we had freed more of our people.’
Shirrac thought for a moment. ‘It’s highly irregular to teach an outsider the secrets of our powders,’ he said, looking very stern. Then a beaming smile spread over his wise features. ‘But in this case I’d be delighted to make an exception. You have my permission and full support.’
‘Excellent!’ exclaimed Drum, delighted. Then he became more serious. ‘It won't be long before Droch hears of our escapade with his minions in the labyrinth; if he hasn't already.’ He turned to Boris. ‘What do you think Boris?’
Boris nodded his agreement. ‘Me think so. We act fast now. I go back in forest and find Droch if possible, but first I want see weapon fire.’ He pointed at the lance that Drum was still holding.
‘Ah yes, that thing,’ remarked Shirrac.
‘Let's use that as a target,’ suggested Drum, pointing to a banquet table that had become detached from the rest. ‘We don't use that any more and it will provide quite hefty resistance to the weapon. We had better move it as far away from the rest of the eating area as possible.’
Some of the group stepped forward to lift the log, which was about four feet in diameter, and move it to a safe distance. They were stopped, however, by Boris.
‘Leave to me,’ he said. He walked over to the table and picked it up in both hands, effortlessly. Everyone gasped at this display of strength, for the log was very heavy.
‘Where you want?’ Boris asked Shirrac.
‘About fifty metres away.’ Shirrac replied. ‘Everyone take cover.’
They all took refuge behind bushes, trees and the larger tables. Boris took the table, walked with it to the far side of the clearing and set it down. As soon as he had come back and taken cover himself, Shirrac spoke.
‘Drum you do the honours.’
Drum stepped out into the open, lance in hand, and pointed it at the target. He put his thumb on the sliding mechanism and very gingerly began to move it over the aperture. The lance suddenly lurched backwards in a recoil action accompanied by a very loud crack. Drum almost lost his balance but just managed to hold on as a deep red fireball emerged from the end of the weapon. It hovered for a fraction of a second and then, with a fearful rushing sound, accelerated forward at tremendous speed towards the log.
The fireball hit the log and for a brief moment nothing happened. Then a rumbling noise began to emanate from the target, getting louder by the second. A deep red glow began to spread upwards and outwards from the point at which the fireball had struck. The table seemed to swell and pulsate. Finally it exploded. Pieces of charred wood and bark were thrown in all directions. It was jus as well the horrified watchers had taken cover. Although the debris from the explosion didn’t quite reach them, the blast itself was forceful enough. When the dust had settled, everyone slowly emerged from cover and stood in dumbfounded silence.
‘Whhoww!’ Boris exhaled. ‘That look more powerful than in chamber,’ he remarked.
‘I suspect,’ said Drum, ‘that the wall in the cavern was able to absorb a great deal of the energy, while the poor tree stump was not.
‘This is not good,’ observed Shirrac. ‘Are you sure this is the only lance they had with them?’
‘It was,’ Drum assured him. ‘In fact, I believe it shows that Droch is running very low on his wretched mutated powders, otherwise he would have more of these weapons by now.’
‘I hope you're right,’ said Shirrac. ‘Were you aware that your people had such a device, Boris?’
Shirrac looked thoughtful. ‘That could mean that Droch hasn't had time to manufacture many of them. This one may even be the only one. You can lay odds that he will make some more if he can.’
Drum and Alex examined the lance further.
‘I suspect that there are a number of chambers inside, each one holding a small amount of the powder Droch has concocted, although it’s anyone's guess how many times it can fire,’ declared Drum. ‘I think we’d better render it harmless.’ With that he removed the mechanical slider, having to use some force to do so. Just for good measure he crushed the slider under foot. ‘That will make sure no one can re-activate this thing,’ he remarked. ‘Not even accidentally. There’s no way we would use such a thing. We believe in self-defence using the minimum of force. In fact I felt rather guilty that we had to do what we did in Droch’s labyrinth. I expect Boris must have felt quite bad in dealing with his own people the way he did.’
‘Not feel guilty,’ contradicted Boris. ‘All my people in cave, bad people. They follow Droch without Droch bad powder. They deserve what Boris do.’
‘How do you know they were willing followers?’ Shirrac asked.
‘I recognise. I recognise bad powder use when I see. Enemy in cave not control by Droch with bad powder.’
‘I see,’ Shirrac nodded his head slowly. ‘I think I should contact the Elders in the other villages.’
It was the first time that Alex had heard any mention of other villages.
‘I didn't know you had other villages,’ he said. ‘I suppose I should have realised there would be.’
‘Oh yes,’ replied Shirrac. ‘They’re dotted around the edge of the forest. You’ll have to visit some of them some time, but right now I think Drum should get on with the task of teaching you the use of powders. The rest of you go home for now.’
Everyone emerged from their hiding places and began to disperse towards the village.
‘You two girls had better get off home to the village with the rest of them,’ advised Shirrac.
