* * * *
BART LED the way into the pine forest where so much had happened during their stay with him. They left the main bridle track and rode to the area on the edge of the forest that Bart called his Christmas tree plantation.
"We're less likely to be overheard here because nobody comes this way,” he said as he brought Obsidianus to a halt among a stand of pines about eight feet in height. They all dismounted, tethered the horses and gathered around Bart, who looked sharply at each boy in turn.
"You three must be having a tough time.” He sighed heavily. “It's bad enough for me; keeping secrets from one's loved ones and leading what amounts to a double life is hard on adults let alone children—even boys who are mature for their age. And you three are at a stage where if your school life suffers it could mean the difference between a satisfying career with a full rich life and just scraping by with whatever job you can get—or, the way things are at the moment, not getting a job at all."
"Don't worry about us,” Peter said, as cheerfully as he could. “We're all aware of the importance of our education and we're working as hard as we can. He looked at Bart's friendly broad face and noted the creases of anxiety crossing the forehead. “We've got each other, you know.” For a moment Peter felt as though he was the older one, with Bart needing his reassurance and protection.
Bart's face cleared slightly. “That's true. Things aren't going the way they were planned, though. You boys were never intended to face the Evil One and his minions on your own. Unfortunately, I believe you have two Lords of Corruption right in your class, watching you all the time."
Peter's face fell. It was something he would have preferred Bart not to know. “Oh dear! How did you find that out?"
Bart gave a short, humorless laugh. “You can't keep information like that from me. I'm one of the Chosen, too."
"Someone must have told you. I don't know what the other Chosen are doing—or what's happening to them—so how come ... ?"
"Merlin can't be with you, as he intended, so I get these things relayed to me. Somebody has to protect you, Peter. I'm aware I'm not really suitable, but I live closer to you than most of the others. I'm sure you appreciate that what happened in the bicycle shed was a mere foretaste of what's in store. You can see how easy it was for them to make you think a silly girl just had a crush on you and to lure you into that shed on your own—despite the fact you'd received a warning that someone in your class was, for want of a better word, a spy."
Peter blushed furiously. He still felt an idiot for having been unable to penetrate Eleanor's disguise. “With a wig, glasses and a brace, she looked so different from the girl I dreamed about. They made her quite ugly."
Bart chuckled dryly. “Yes. Perhaps they made a mistake when they didn't listen to Eleanor herself. But they thought you might have seen through a more flattering disguise, which wouldn't have been anywhere near as easy to effect. So great has their power grown that they knew you had received a warning—and they were able to have Eleanor put on and discard her disguise without anyone at school noticing either change. That sort of power over people's minds is positively awesome."
Peter shivered, feeling as though something was crawling down his spine. “It makes you wonder what else they know. Can they hear us now, for instance?"
Bart shook his head. “I don't know. Can't you use the Obsidian Orb to find out things like that?"
"The powers of the Obsidian Orb don't seem to be what they should—and it's even possible that Sujad, now the Evil One has taken him over, is able to tell when I'm using the orb because of the powers he used to possess.” He shrugged helplessly. “It's difficult to say, really, but I feel if Sujad—or the Evil One in Sujad's form—got hold of the Obsidian Orb now, he would be even more powerful than Sujad was when he called himself Lord of Obsidian."
"Oh, there's no doubt about that,” Bart replied emphatically. “It's what he's been planning all along. While it appeared the Evil One was letting the Lord of Obsidian do whatever he wanted, in truth the more power Sujad obtained the more invincible the Evil One would be when he finally took possession of Sujad. Very simple, but even more cunning than it seems. Those of the Earthlight could do nothing about it except get the Obsidian Orb back from Sujad as quickly as possible.” Bart's face turned grim. “In case you didn't notice, we nearly missed out on that at the end. The Evil One sent the Lord in Blue to grab it from Sujad after the Obsidian Dagger struck. Instead, the Blue Lord chose to take the little wax doll, which was virtually useless without the replica of the Obsidian Dagger in it. Even as the Evil One commanded the Lord in Blue to return to Sujad's side and grab the orb, Merlin came at Sujad's call and Sujad gave the orb to Merlin. We all thought the Evil One then killed Sujad. He simply placed a spell simulating death to both silence the man and turn everyone's attention away from him.” Bart paused and sighed again. “We of the Earthlight were fooled so easily. It seemed to us the plight of the First Chosen One was more important than attending a dead enemy.” Bitterness crept involuntarily into his voice. “If Merlin had stayed at Sujad's side he might have stopped what happened."
Peter instantly leapt to Merlin's defense. “It wasn't his fault! How was he supposed to know what the Evil One was up to?"
"How indeed, Peter? But don't jump to conclusions. I don't blame Merlin. No one does, except perhaps Merlin himself. He's extremely demanding of himself and very intolerant of his own errors. He can find excuses for the failures and weaknesses of others, but not for his own. He's also inclined to blame himself for other people's mistakes and failings, which doesn't make for much peace of mind. He wouldn't be the first leader to have fallen into the trap of expecting perfection from himself, of course. But most perfectionists also expect others to be perfect.” Bart turned back to his horse. He stroked the animal's nose. Obsidianus nuzzled his hand. “Well, we didn't come out here for philosophic discussion. I'm sure Jamie and John are simply itching to try out their new mounts, and Obsidianus hasn't had a decent run for a while. Dreyfus also looks as though he wants to know what's keeping us. Let's try to enjoy ourselves."
He untethered Obsidianus and swung himself into the saddle. The boys did likewise. The three silvery mares following the midnight stallion through the pines with the dog at their heels were a startling sight. With their glistening coats making them almost ghostlike, they made such a strong contrast to the black horse that he, too, appeared unreal. Only the four riders spoiled the illusion.
Bart led the way back to the bridle path and they trotted along in silence for some time.
"Want to let them have their heads for a bit?” he asked when they reached the main path, which was wide enough for two horses to pass each other easily. “I'm sure you two are dying to see what Silvera and Crystalline can do."
Bart let the twins pass him and they set off in single file at a steady gallop. Peter followed and Bart took up the rear.
When Jamie saw the path fork into two narrower lanes he brought Silvera to a halt and turned in the saddle, grinning from ear to ear. “She's the best horse I've ever ridden!"
"Me, too!” John cried, reining Crystalline in behind Silvera.
Bart looked pleased.
"Which way now?” Jamie asked, looking at the branching paths.
Preoccupied with the twins’ pleasure, Bart hadn't noticed the forking of the way and looked at it in surprise. “I thought I knew the paths through the forest quite well. I don't remember this one."
Memory stirred uneasily in Peter. He had the strange feeling of having played out this incident before. It's a bit like acting in a new play and finding a scene from another play that you acted in some time ago dropped into it with a few changes, he thought. He glanced along the way they had come. "I think we should go back."
Jamie and John looked at him in dismay.
"But we've hardly started!” Jamie protested.
"We haven't had a decent run yet,” John added.
Neither seemed to feel any apprehension. Perha
ps they were too wrapped up in the pleasure of riding the new horses.
Peter opened his mouth to try explaining his feeling but got no further. Suddenly he felt the throbbing of the Power of Obsidian. At the same time, Bart and the boys became aware of the pulsing light that seemed to come from Peter himself.
"Don't be afraid, Peter. Take whichever fork you like. Neither will bring you to any danger."
"Essence of Obsidian!” Peter breathed in relief. “I should have thought to ask you straight away! I can't think why I didn't. Isn't the right-hand path the one we took when Sujad captured six of us? Doesn't it lead to Sujad's dungeons?"
"The dungeons aren't Sujad's any more. It's not wise to assign things to him that no longer belong to him. But, yes, it is the same path."
The pulsing light went out. “The Essence of Obsidian says we may take either path,” he told the others. “Shall we take the left one? I don't want to be reminded of Su—of the Obsidian Dungeons.” He corrected himself just in time.
Dreyfus seemed to feel the same. Without waiting for the horses he set off down the left-hand track at a steady trot.
In single file and at a slower pace—because of the narrowness of the lane—they moved off along the left-hand path. This time it was Peter who led, with Dreyfus alongside. Bart observed fleetingly that the boy rode nearly as well as Jamie and John, who, he believed, were born on their grandparents’ farm and once owned a horse between them.
The foursome rode at an even canter. The steady clip-clopping of the horses’ hooves gradually became rather mesmeric. Each rider was wrapped in his own thoughts. Bart's were centered on his beloved forest. It was, he admitted, a dim and chilly place for winter riding. It was also strangely silent. An occasional ray of sunlight slanting through the canopy hinted at the warmer air outside. Perhaps, he thought, they should have stayed out in the open.
Peter was totally oblivious to his surroundings. His mind was concentrated on the path ahead. His heart beat high with a mixture of excitement and apprehension. Something is waiting for us. Whatever it is, it's terribly important to our quest. He attempted to probe into the distance. It was like trying to see through a dense fog. He tried to discover what power it was that hindered him. As far as he could tell there was no spell blocking him. It was more as though there was simply nothing there—only what should have been there. He could feel neither evil nor good. There seemed to be no explanation at all for the strange feeling engulfing him.
He brought his mind back to address the Obsidian Orb. Maybe the Power of Obsidian could help. He had no time to act, however; the sound of galloping hooves came from behind with the suddenness of a thunderclap. Peter turned to look back along the path.
"Is there someone else riding this morning, Bart?” Somehow the noise made him nervous. They all brought their horses to a halt.
"There are no bookings for this morning. There's a group of four coming this afternoon. But in the meantime we should have the forest to ourselves.” Bart, too, sounded uneasy.
They listened for a few moments. The forest resounded with the pounding of hooves.
"They're not as close as they sound,” Bart said. “But they're riding very fast, like the hunt after a fox, or horses on a racetrack."
The drumming became even louder.
"They seem to be coming this way,” John said tremulously. He was in the rear and felt extremely vulnerable.
Without warning, Peter's uneasiness turned to alarm as a tide of evil malice washed over him. It surged back and forth like great waves on a beach. At its strongest it nearly knocked him off Argent's back. Instantly he knew the reason for the periods of weakening in the flood. He felt something trying to stem the flow. Someone didn't want him to be aware of the evil, was deliberately trying to block his senses.
"Run!” he yelled at the top of his lungs. At the same time he urged the pony forward.
Argent instantly broke into a headlong gallop. Dreyfus streaked ahead. Peter heard the sudden thunder of the stallion's hooves behind him. The sound grew louder as Jamie and John gave the mares their head. All four horses sensed their riders’ terror; but none gave way to panic. They could only run in single file, so Argent necessarily set the pace.
The trees flashed by on either side of Peter in a green blur. Then everything started changing. The alteration was so gradual he failed to notice at first. The dark green blur slowly gave way to a haze of shifting fog and shadowy patches. Then abruptly the way ahead was swallowed into the murk. Peter couldn't check Argent. Heedlessly, she rushed straight into it. Peter could now see nothing ahead. He could barely see Argent's head. Her neck was still stretched forward in headlong flight; her ears were laid back. Frantically he tried to pull her up. If he couldn't see the way ahead it seemed hardly possible his pony could. And what about the others? his mind shrieked at him. They won't be able to see me. If I stop Argent but they can't stop, there'll be a horrible accident.
He was aware Obsidianus and the mares were still at his back; the pounding of their hooves hadn't diminished. And following, getting closer, came the thunder of the other horses. What's behind is worse than what's ahead.
So great was his terror of what was behind that his mind agreed to face whatever lay in front. Even as this brought a grain of comfort, a great dark shadow stretched over his head from behind. It was like a huge black bat. He knew the shadow had no substance but was simply a manifestation of the will of its owner. It strove to reach him. Peter bent his whole being into resistance of its power. He felt the frustration of its striving. For a moment he saw the substance of the shadow. It was the Lord in Blue. All his concentration was fixed on Peter. The Blue Lord, Peter now realized, was as powerful as Sujad had been as Lord of Obsidian. He hated Peter more than he hated the Earthlight itself. The Lord in Blue hurled the knowledge at Peter like a bolt of lightning Why do you want me to know that? Peter wondered briefly.
He strained his attention forward into the murky half-light. Escape! Escape! Now getting away was all that mattered. He put all he had into it. Then abruptly the shadow released him. He and Argent seemed to gather speed. They hurtled onwards as though plunging down a hill.
He knew his pony was now totally beyond his control. All he could do was concentrate on merely staying in the saddle. As the shadow left him he heard two cries from behind. One sounded like someone making a great physical effort. It ended on a triumphant bellow. The other was like the shriek of a lost soul plummeting to hell. Peter's inner ears shrank from the deafening tumult of the two sounds. Despair seized his heart as though he himself was the lost soul.
He wondered later if he had closed his eyes at the terror induced by the two cries, for he saw nothing of his surroundings after this until Argent slowed down. As she came to a stop Peter opened his eyes. Argent was trembling all over. Peter took a deep shaky breath as he looked around. It was very dark. He couldn't work out why, but was aware of strange flickering lights in the near distance. He turned back to the others.
Obsidianus was barely visible, but the intermittent light flickered over Bart's face, emphasizing its pallor. He appeared unhurt. Then Peter turned his gaze to the two mares. They stood out like shimmering, silvery ghosts in the eerie light. Jamie's wide, frightened eyes stared back at Peter. As Peter's glance darted past him towards John's horse, Jamie turned his head quickly towards Crystalline. She seemed all right, although she trembled more violently than the others....
...but there was no sign of John.
Chapter 6
Under the Forest
PETER, BART and Jamie stared at the empty saddle in horror. The meaning of those chilling cries was now all too clear.
Bart dismounted carefully; in the flickering darkness it wasn't easy to judge the terrain. He approached the shivering Crystalline and soothed her with gentle caresses. His investigation showed that, apart from her terror at the experience she had undergone, she was unharmed. Bart then checked the other horses, calming their alarm. Despite the predicament in which the two
boys found themselves, they couldn't help marveling at his skill.
"Wh—what was it? What took John?"
Echoes threw Jamie's questions back at them.
It was Peter who answered, his voice unsteady. “The Lords of Corruption. I think only Sujad—the Evil One—was missing. And he wasn't with them simply because he's working his evil ... elsewhere."
"He does battle with the Sleepers,” Bart said, looking at the lights flickering over the ground. Then, his eyes staring fixedly at the nearest light, he quoted softly: "Commanders of Light and Darkness waged war within the womb. Corruption and vicious treachery then led one on to doom. But in the Great Halls of Draining Light, in a fortifying bower, the Sleepers weave dreams while invoking the revival of their power."
Before Peter had time to wonder where Bart learned the rhyme, or to ask if he knew the meaning of the riddle, Jamie broke in. “This is no time to be quoting bad poetry.” His voice was harsh and broken—and accusing—as though lashing out at Bart for his apparent inability to save John.
Hastily Peter tried to reassure him. “It was me they were after, not John. The Blue Lord tried to reach me but failed. I think they took John to lure me into a trap. The Lord in Blue knows I'll go after him. But if we work together we'll find a way to get John back."
As he spoke, Peter took stock of their surroundings. They were in some type of underground chamber. There was no way of knowing the route they had come. Any one of the several openings behind them could lead back to the forest.
The Third Age of Obsidian [Quest for Earthlight Trilogy Book Three] Page 6
