“The chef did as instructed, and then bowed to her before retreating to his chores from a moment ago. I was surprised at the level of authority she seemed to have over him. I decided to wait to eat the cookie until after Genovene and I walked outside and were on the golden road again.
“‘Go ahead and taste it!’ she urged.
“I took a small bite, and the instant I swallowed it I felt lightheaded. The sensation soon subsided, and with it my immediate desire to return home.
“‘This is really good!’ I told her, surprised at how enamored I was over such a trivial thing as a chocolate cookie. I’d never tasted anything like it before and quickly devoured the rest of the cookie, still hungry for more. ‘Would you mind if I had another one?’
“She chuckled softly, but grew silent as she considered my request. ‘Why don’t we wait, Jack,’ she finally told me. ‘I’ll save my cookie for you to nibble on later if you’d like, but we mustn’t spoil your appetite. It won’t be too long before the Celebration Feast starts. As it is, I’ve got just enough time to show you around my village.’ She slipped the cookie into her gown through a slight opening near her neck, and seductively moved her shoulders back and forth, allowing the treat to slide between her breasts where the ridge of the cookie’s edge soon disappeared. My train of thought vanished with it as I watched her do this.
“‘A ‘celebration feast’?’ I asked, when I regained my composure. A strange euphoria now flowed throughout my being. ‘What’s that?’
“‘I forgot to tell you, didn’t I?’ She raised her eyebrows in mock surprise. ‘Our village is having a special dinner today that you’re especially invited to attend. Do you have any idea why?’
“I shook my head no, fighting to maintain my concentration while the euphoria gained strength.
“‘This feast is for you,’ she said. ‘It’s in your honor.’
“‘It is?’ I asked. I couldn’t prevent the wide smile I felt spreading across my face while the strange blissful feeling continued to envelope my senses.
“‘It most certainly is!’ she said, beaming with delight. ‘Now, let’s get started on your personal tour. Shall we?’ She held out her arm for me to take and we moved deeper into the village.
“At one point, I pulled out my watch to try and see what time it was—strictly out of curiosity, as I no longer cared about getting home on time. The crystal face glistened in the near noonday sunlight, and for the first time I noticed the crystal had been scuffed up a bit. This made me sad, though I had absolutely no idea why. At least I could still read the time clearly enough, which I knew was important for some reason. It was 11:30 and I felt good that I still had plenty of time available to me. ‘Available for what?’ I wondered.
“Genovene watched me in my struggle as I’d nearly stopped moving. Her smile remained as radiant and alluring as ever, with a slight hint of tenderness emanating toward me from her luminous eyes. ‘Jack, you shouldn’t worry about what time it is. I won’t forget what time your grandfather’s expecting for you to be home. Before your stay is over, I do hope you learn to trust me some.’
“I just wanted to check the current time, that’s all,’ I told her, and then slipped the watch back into my short’s pocket while meeting her intense gaze with my own subdued one. I couldn’t get over how very beautiful she was, and the worst part for me was that her allure was growing stronger by the minute.
“More and more villagers appeared around us, until they threatened to overrun the entire road. Like swarming insects they seemed to come out from everywhere, quickly crowding us while we moved deeper into the village. I felt suffocated by their presence. Suddenly they all froze in their footsteps, looking back nervously toward the village entrance.
“At first, I saw and heard nothing and openly wondered what they were distracted by. Then, the loud groaning of the village gates announced the massive doors were reopening. Once the groaning stopped, another sound soon filled the air, growing louder and louder as it echoed throughout the area. The sound of horse hooves and wagon wheels clicking against the road’s golden flagstones moved swiftly toward us.
“The villagers scattered off the road and Genovene steered me over to one side, barely avoiding a speeding stagecoach as it raced passed us. It was pulled along by what I believe were four white Arabian stallions driven by a ruggedly handsome man with long flowing white hair. The man’s lustrous mane and flashing blue eyes were very similar to Genovene’s, and he was dressed in a black cloak trailed by a long black cape. The carriage itself was a brilliant white, laced in gold trim and decorated with gems covering the reins and restraints used to guide the horses.
“The driver smiled and waved to us, his cape and hair floating and whipping around him as he flew by. Blown back by the wind from the passing carriage, I watched it as it disappeared around a corner in the road ahead, a shimmering white blur on its journey to whatever destination it had. Once it had safely passed, the villagers crowded back onto the road, raising their voices joyously and waving their arms above their heads. They then chased after the speeding carriage as an excited mob, leaving only a few stragglers in the immediate area as the village gates slowly closed again.
“‘Who was that?’ I asked.
“‘That was Malacai, my brother,’ said Genovene in admiration. ‘He’s always in such a hurry!’
“‘How many brothers and sisters do you have again?’
“‘Two of each,’ she confirmed for me, ‘and, they’re all looking forward to meeting you, Jack!’
“I couldn’t help but smile again, flattered at being treated as so important. Genovene affectionately massaged my shoulder before sliding her hand down to mine again. We then stepped back onto the golden road, following the excited mob chasing after Malacai in the distance ahead of us.
“‘Where are they all headed to, anyway?’ I asked.
“‘They’re on their way to the plaza leading to the tower,’ she replied. “Did you see how excited they are about the Celebration Feast? It should be quite an event this time!’
“‘Do you have these feasts often?’
“‘Not often enough, I assure you,’ she told me. ‘We all love a good party around here, and today’s the perfect opportunity for one!’ Again, she seemed barely able to contain her excitement. It seemed her hair and gown turned translucent in the sunlight. But it was no longer possible for me to know for sure whether my eyes were playing tricks on me, or whether that fact was even important.
“‘There’s an amusement center just ahead of us that I think you might enjoy. Our arcades are truly unique. Would you like to see if there’s anything you might want to try your hand at?’
“What kid wouldn’t? I could only imagine how cool an arcade around there would be. I imagined every kid on the planet would love to trade places with me right then if they could. ‘Sure,’ I said. ‘That sounds great!’
“She led me off the road to our right, and we soon stood in front of the wildest arcade I’ve ever seen. The building was incredibly gaudy in some ways and at the same time incredibly cool, like it belonged to Universal Studios in Orlando, or some place like that. Layers upon layers of twinkling jewels crowded the outside walls of the building in chaotic designs. The walls themselves were made of purple marble that was trimmed in gold, with hideous holographic monsters depicted in violent battle scenes upon each wall. The entire building stuck out like a sore thumb amongst its more elegant neighbors.
“A pair of tall golden pillars framed the entrance of the arcade, which was a high-rounded archway rising some thirty feet above us. Once we walked inside the building, I allowed my gaze to wander from wall to wall, taking in the multitude of games and other amusements situated beneath a burgundy colored ceiling that featured more monstrous images in holographic form. The dark green walls of the enormous room were covered with similar effects.
“At present, only a few villagers were there in the arcade, since most everyone else in the village had chased after Malacai. The excited laughter o
f these few jovial folks echoed against the lofty walls and ceiling, making it seem like a lot more people were in there with us.
“Some of the games in the room were familiar to me, such as a long row of pin-ball machines standing up against the wall nearest to the main entrance. Yet, most of the other games were completely foreign to me. Genovene led me further into the immense hall while everyone turned their heads to acknowledge her presence, though only for a brief moment. The allure of whatever game or amusement they were involved with soon recaptured their complete attention.
“As the two of us neared the center of the room, we came upon a lovely female flanked on either side by a handsome muscular male. All three were gathered in front of a mahogany game table that featured a horde of interlaced serpents carved upon its four legs and along its sides. The table was circular, but similar to a pool table, with its mesh-like pockets stationed at various points along the circumference of the table and red velvet covering its top. This was the game’s only similarity to anything I’d ever seen. Sitting on top of the table were five large golden vipers with intricate purple, red, and black patterns covering the top portions of their slender bodies. At the moment, they hissed and thrashed violently upon the tabletop.
“‘Come on over, Jack,’ said Genovene. ‘They won’t mind us getting a better view of their contest.’ She led me to the left side of the table. Both males held a loose bundle of large white marbles in one hand. In their other hand, they each held onto a single marble, apparently from the bundle. They leaned over the table with the vipers snapping their jaws at them, a mere foot or two away.
“The female standing between the two males threw a sapphire ball, slightly larger than the marbles, into the vipers’ midst. All five snakes converged upon it, where finally the smallest and quickest of them captured and swallowed the glistening blue ball. No sooner than this snake finished swallowing the ball, the largest viper devoured it. The other three snakes immediately retreated to the sides of the table.
“At that point, the two males crouched just above the table’s surface, each placing their marble between their thumb and forefinger. Suddenly, the sapphire ball came flying out of the largest snake’s mouth. It ricocheted against the sidewalls of the table and the vulnerable bodies of the group of vipers still sitting on the table. An instant later, the male villagers carefully aimed and flicked their marbles onto the table. One of the marbles slammed into the careening sapphire and sent it into a mesh side-pocket.
“The male closest to me shouted gleefully while thrusting his hands into the air. The other male frowned, slapping his palm down upon the table in frustration. The girl seemed mostly unaffected by any of this.
“‘This game is called ‘Torens’, and you probably can guess the objective,’ Genovene explained. ‘Rumus won this match, but Mina’ri has won his fair share of matches, too. Phletrea, the pretty girl standing between them, is here to keep them both under control. Actually, she’s better at this particular game than either of them.’
“The snakes moved back into the center of the table with the smallest one crawling out of the largest one’s mouth. A moment later, all five were hissing and thrashing again as the two villagers prepared for a rematch. Genovene gently tugged on my arm, directing my attention to what appeared to be a waterfall flowing from an unseen point in the middle of the air down into an ornate gold basin secured upon the floor.
“The six-foot wide band of water flowed swiftly and continuously, crashing toward the arcade’s floor from its origin nearly twenty feet above us. I was completely intrigued by this illusion, far more than the table of snakes or anything else I’d seen so far in the arcade. I moved over to the waterfall and thrust my hand into the rushing water. To my utter amazement, my fingers not only got wet, but were also thrown downward by the water’s force as it sprayed out upon us.
“‘Careful, Jack!’ she laughed. ‘It’s a lot more realistic than you expected, isn’t it? Most of the games and amusements in here are like that. I’ll bet you’ve never been in an arcade quite like this before, have you?’
“I nodded in agreement, still stunned and forced to rethink my earlier assessment of the table of snakes along with several other games I’d seen.
“‘You’ve got to see this game over here in the corner!’ said Genovene, turning my attention to a large red and black rectangular box standing near the rear wall of the room. ‘It’s called ‘Thunder Knight’ and I think you’ll absolutely love it! Come on!” Her enthusiasm was by then irresistible to me, and under the spell of it I followed close behind her as she moved over to the game.
“At first glance, ‘Thunder Knight’ looked pretty much like the video games I’d seen at the arcades that Lee and I frequented in Demopolis. But once I moved up closer to it, I saw clearly that it was quite different from anything I’d ever seen. It didn’t contain an actual video screen. It was just a big fancy red and black box with ‘Thunder Knight’ inscribed across the top and sides of it. Where the video screen would normally be found was a large hole flanked on either side by a pair of gold handgrips.
“A brilliant orange glow emanated from a six-inch space between the game and the floor beneath it, illuminating the bottom portion of the game. The enamel of the predominantly red and black metallic paints glistened richly in this light, adding a lustrous sheen to the seven-foot box. It appeared the box was floating, though more than likely, I realized something beneath the box held it up. I bent down in front of the game to verify this, but the light was too damned intense for me to see through it once I pushed my face up to the space between the floor and the game.
“I stood back up and decided to peer down into the hole in the game box. Immediately I felt extremely disoriented, as the hole seemed infinitely deep. I staggered back from the game.
“‘This can’t be possible,’ I whispered in astonishment. I looked at the front of the game once more and estimated the floor was a mere four feet from where the hole began. If the hole continued through the floor of the arcade, then where was the light coming from? I looked over at Genovene, and she encouraged me to check under the box again. I got down on my knees and tentatively reached my hands and the rest of my arms’ length into the space, feeling the coolness of the room’s marble floor beneath my fingers. There wasn’t a hole of any kind. I stood back up, completely baffled.
“‘It’s quite different from what you’re used to, eh?’ she confirmed. ‘To play this game, you must stand as close as you can to the hole and brace yourself with the handles. Then, close your eyes. That’s it!’
“I peered down into the bottomless hole. It seemed so dangerously deep, like if I got too close it might just suck me down into its impenetrable darkness. To steady myself, I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. I placed both hands tightly upon the handgrips and closed my eyes as Genovene instructed.
“All at once I heard wild animals calling out to one another, as wind rustled through branches high above me. The air around me was filled with the pungent smell of pine. I slowly opened my eyes and was genuinely surprised to find I really was in a forest. Large fir and cedar trees, along with smaller ferns and shrubs, surrounded me. The songs of birds and chirping insects seemed to be everywhere and sunlight streamed down in misty rays shaped by the trees’ dense foliage. The game box, Genovene, and the rest of the arcade were nowhere to be found.
“Suddenly, everything went deathly quiet. A sound like thunder approached me from the distance to my right, gradually growing louder and louder. Soon, I heard battle cries and the neighing of horses. I ducked for cover behind a thick mulberry bush, getting out of the way just as a medieval cavalry dressed in red and white armor came pouring through the forest, while more horsemen dressed in blue and gray armor pursued them. The second cavalry soon caught up with the first one before they reached a nearby clearing, and a bloody battle ensued. I was both sickened and badly frightened, as I watched the bloodbath through the branches and leaves of the mulberry bush.
“The
men in blue prevailed, completely obliterating the red cavalry. The victors walked through the forest amid the fallen horses and soldiers, finishing off any surviving red and white clad soldiers who were still alive. The sound of the heavy swords hacking and tearing at the bodies, along with the pleading cries for mercy from the doomed and dying men, nearly caused me to faint.
“I was especially disturbed by the fate of one dying soldier. The man fell just a few feet in front of me on the other side of the mulberry bush and was mortally wounded. He wheezed from a gaping wound in his rib cage, struggling in vain to stand back up. The soldier raised his sword in a last valiant attempt to fend off another soldier in blue and gray who was walking stealthily up to him.
“Without saying a word, the advancing soldier closed in, and in the blink of an eye swung his broadsword from his side, severing his unfortunate victim’s outstretched arm and hand, along with the top half of the man’s head, armor and all. The arm and attached hand flew through the air, landing less than a foot away from me. Horrified, I looked down at it, the severed muscles still twitching beneath the bloody remnants of the soldier’s glove and chain mail. The victim’s body fell over, landing in the front side of the mulberry bush, a stream of gore soon running to the base of the bush as the man’s blood and loosened brain matter poured out.
“I barely stifled a scream. I desperately wanted out of whatever nightmare this was, so I stood up and ran from the mulberry bush in pure panic, frantically trying to find a hidden doorway or some other way to leave the game and its bloody forest. My efforts failed to locate an exit, as nearly every direction I turned led deeper into the forest. I sprinted for the clearing, but soon the blue and gray army came after me, shouting in anger with their swords drawn high above their heads.
“Just before I reached the clearing, I tripped over an exposed tree root and tumbled to the ground. When I tried to get back on my feet, I slipped on some loose soil near where I’d originally fallen, which gave my pursuers the opportunity to catch up to me. Grimacing with unbridled malice, the soldiers bore down upon me. I thought for certain I was about to die, but just then, an enormous knight dressed in red and black armor stepped in between us. Another fierce battle took place, from which this knight arose victorious. He whirled around to face me, roaring with a terrible voice while he drew back his sword to strike me. I screamed as loud as I could.
The Golden Talisman Page 12
