Sapphire of the Fairies soh-1

by Richard S. Tuttle

  Tanya nodded and Arik opened his shirtas little as he could and turned so that Tanya could not see butthe Queen could. The Queen’s eyes grew wide and she startedshaking.

  “Son,” she ordered, “free theprisoners and invite them here. I will offer them my apologies whenthey arrive, but yours may be needed at the time they are released.They are to be treated as guests, but I fear they may take offenseat the way they have been treated already.”

  After Midge had left to free theRangers, the Queen returned her attention to Arik. “I am sorry if Ihave embarrassed you, Arik,” she apologized. “You are a specialperson to the fairy people and a very honored guest. If you wishnot to be embarrassed by this in front of your people, you haveonly to request it and I will make sure it is not mentioned. As forTanya’s lips, that is your own problem.”

  “What does it all mean?” Arikasked. “It is only a rash which I picked up in Tagaret.”

  “It is not a rash, Arik,” theQueen assured him. “It is the mark of the Bringer. You have beenchosen to return the Crown of Light to the fairy people. Who choseyou or how you were chosen is unknown to me and does not matter.The Prophecy foretells of your arrival and the task that awaitsyou. If you want the Holy Sapphire, you will have to return theCrown of Light to the fairy people.”

  “Where do I find this Crown ofLight?” Arik asked.

  “I have absolutely no idea,”confessed the Queen. “It has been lost for ages and if any fairyknew where it existed, we would already have it in our possession.It is the very symbol of the Fairy Monarchy.”

  Chapter 24

  Reflections

  Garth, Kalina, Fredrik, Niki, and Tediwere brought to the Father Tree in the apple orchard to meet QueenMita of the fairies. Tanya smiled openly at their arrival, but Arikseemed distant and lost in thought. Queen Mita stood regally on theplatform and welcomed the humans.

  “Greeting to you all andwelcome to the land of the fairies,” she intoned. “You have mydeepest apologies for the treatment given to you upon your arrival.While I did not order your capture, I did know about it afterwardsand consented to your imprisonment. For that I can only offerapologies that are insufficient to compensate you. You are now freeand are welcome as my guests. We will extend every courtesy to youduring your time with us. I am Queen Mita, Queen of the Fairies,and this is my son, Prince Midge.”

  Kalina stood with a tight grimace onher lips. Fredrik and Tedi looked around as if to determine whetheror not they were in some kind of dream. Niki peered at the smallQueen as if examining her wardrobe. Garth stepped forward andbowed.

  “If the thoughts of yoursoldiers were that we were coming to attack you, then they behavedadmirably,” Garth offered. “We had no way of announcing ourarrival, but we have ridden far and long to seek your audience. Wehave a matter of grave importance that must be discussed with YourHighness. I am known as Garth Shado.”

  Queen Mita smiled deeply. “You are amost eloquent and gracious guest, Garth. I have been discussingyour adventure with Tanya and Arik. I know why you have come andwhat it is that you seek. The Holy Sapphire will be presented toArik when he returns the Crown of Light to the fairy people.Introduce me to the rest of your group.”

  Garth threw a puzzled look at Arik andTanya as he introduced the Rangers to Queen Mita. The Queenapologized and welcomed each member of the group before addressingGarth again.

  “I assume by the others’deference to you, Garth, that you are the group’s leader,” theQueen began. “It is late and while you have slept, my people havenot. Midge will help you set up camp and we will discuss things inthe morning.”

  Garth nodded and Midge flew down tohover before him. After inquiring about the Rangers’ requirements,Midge selected an area of the orchard that was not far from theFather Tree and still allowed for a campfire. The Rangers set upcamp while flinging questions to Arik and Tanya. Arik ignored allof the questions and was the first down on his blanket to go tosleep. Tanya looked quizzically at Arik every time someone askedher what was going on. Eventually, she suggested that discussing itin the morning was a good idea and she also retired. With no one toanswer their questions the rest of the Rangers drifted off tosleep.

  Garth awoke early and retrieved waterfrom the stream to make coffee. As soon as Garth got the firegoing, Prince Midge appeared to offer his help. Garth’s questionswere shrugged off with an explanation that Garth should learn ofthe discussion from his own people. Midge did prove to be pleasantcompany and Garth enjoyed stories about fairy life. Of course,Midge’s favorite story was about the time he accompanied the Mageand Garth detected the soul of an adventurer in the fairy Prince.Midge did explain to Garth what had happened on the trail with thecasting of the Sleep Spell, the levitation of the prisoners, andthe disappearance of Tanya.

  Soon the smell of breakfast and thesound of voices awakened the Ranger camp. Many fairies were alreadyroaming about the orchard and all of them sported inquiringglances, but no one bothered the humans. Garth invited Midge tojoin them for breakfast and the green fairy was elated. Overbreakfast, Tanya explained how she avoided capture and planned theinfiltration. Garth thought Midge’s eyes would fly out of his headwhen Tanya described how she grabbed the Queen. When she got to thepart about the Queen’s determination to see Arik’s chest and somereference to the Bringer, all eyes turned towards Arik. Arik turnedbright red and stalked off to his blanket.

  “What is all this about?”Kalina demanded of Midge.

  “It is not my place to talkabout it,” Midge declared.

  “The Queen said that she wouldforbid her people to talk of it if Arik requested her to do so,”Tanya prodded. “Arik did not make such a request.”

  Midge stared over at Arik while hetalked. “Our Prophecy foretells of the one who will return theCrown of Light to our people,” Midge finally got out. “We know Arikto be that individual whom we call the Bringer.”

  “How do you know it is Arik?”pressed Kalina.

  “He bears the mark foretoldupon his chest,” frowned Midge. “Now that I have told you, will youspare him further grief and embarrassment?”

  “What else do the Propheciesforetell?” Garth asked.

  “I am only permitted to speakof the Prophecy as far as I have,” declared Midge. “To say more isto betray my people. Please do not abuse the hospitality that wehave extended.”

  With that Midge flew off to sit nearArik. “You have no reason to be ashamed of what you bear,” Midgetold Arik. “I would gladly bear it for you if that were possible.It is a sign of greatness to my people. You should remove yourshirt and wear the mark as a badge of honor because you have beenchosen for an honorable task. There is not one among my people thatwould look upon it with anything but envy and awe. You are to berespected and revered.”

  Arik looked at the diminutive Princeand smiled. “Thank you, Prince Midge,” he said softly. “Your wordsare kind and I respect them, but I am not a fairy. My own peoplewill find amusement in my disfigurement and I will be scorned as afreak. I just want it to go away. I want to return home and fishwith my father.”

  “Alas, Arik,” Midge sighed,“greatness can not be discarded. Destiny cannot be tossed by thewayside with careless abandonment. For whatever reason you werechosen to perform this great deed, only you can perform it. Whatcomfort could you enjoy with your father, knowing that there werepeople who needed help, which only you could provide? Face it, myfriend, you have been chosen and you will perform the task. Giventhat, make the best of it. Be proud of who you are and strive to doyour best. I will help you in any way I can.”

  “Thank you, Midge,” Arik said.“You have mighty words for one so small. Perhaps you can help mepractice my swordsmanship.”

  Midge turned a pale green and Ariklaughed. “I am sorry, Midge,” he apologized. “Practicing helps meclear my head and I did not think before I spoke. Your words havehelped me and I will dwell on them while I practice.”

  Arik rose and called out to Tanya aboutpracticing. She rose immediately and joined Arik in a clear areaaway f
rom the fire.

  “Practicing is a good idea,”she mentioned. “It will clear your mind and make you realize thatwe are all friends here and will help each other through whateverdifficulties we face.”

  Arik nodded and squared off with hispractice sword. Once the swordplay got underway, Tanya noticed thatArik’s mind was still on his troubles. She pushed hard at him witha variety of strokes. Quickly, Arik responded to her vigor, firstdefensively, then with bold attacks of his own. The fightingbetween Arik and Tanya became so intense that Fredrik and Tedistopped practicing with their staffs to watch. Kalina and Niki alsoabandoned their magic lessons and soon a crowd of people andfairies had gathered to watch the dueling pair.

  Tanya tossed her cap to the ground androlled past Arik while attempting a hit across his legs. Arikcaught her movements just in time and leaped over her sword swing.Upon landing he rolled himself into a ball and continued away fromTanya so she would not catch him turning around. Jumping to hisfeet, he saw Tanya closing on him and raised his wooden sword todeflect her blow.

  The two warriors continued on,oblivious to the crowd, focusing their entire attention on eachother. His body aching and drenched with sweat, Arik subconsciouslystripped off his shirt and threw it to the ground just in time tofend off another of Tanya’s attacks.

  The fairies in the crowd gasped at thesight of the mark upon his chest. Niki hid her face with her handsand Garth and Kalina stared without expression. Fredrik and Tedistarted to laugh and both felt something hard strike the backs oftheir heads. Turning around they saw Midge and another fairy withslingshots and the fairies were not smiling. Their laughter died intheir throats as they turned back to watch the match.

  Arik and Tanya had noticed none of thereactions, as they were too intent on gaining an advantage over theother. Arik scored a couple of kill hits on Tanya, but the youngwoman ignored them and continued her attack. The match lasted forover half an hour before Arik had Tanya on her back with his woodensword at her throat. Tanya submitted and Arik collapsed on theground alongside her. Applause rang through the orchard from largehands as well as small and Arik and Tanya noticed their audiencefor the first time.

  Arik realized that he had shed hisshirt for the first time in weeks and stared at the faces aroundhim. There was nothing but praise in those faces for a performancewell done and he laid his head back down on the ground.

  “That was the finest displayof swordsmanship I have seen in years,” complimented Garth as hetossed a towel to each of the fighters. “Perhaps you two are readyfor a session with me this afternoon.”

  Many times Garth had used a swordsession with him as a threat to those who were acting cocky, butArik and Tanya knew that this offer was entirely different. Theyrealized that they had impressed Garth with their expertise andthat brought a smile to each of them. The crowd slowly broke upwith some fairies lingering to catch a last glimpse at Arik’schest, but he did not notice them. Midge flew over and landed onArik’s upraised knee.

  “I am certainly glad that Idid not take your offer of practice,” Midge commented. “You bothknow how to handle a sword well. I saw some of our army instructorswatching and a few of them took notes on your movements. You saidyour father was a fisherman. How did you learn such a skill at yourage?”

  Arik sat up and grabbed his shirt.“Garth has been teaching us,” Arik replied. “Tanya had professionallessons and I learn from her as well.”

  Tanya reached over and put her hand onArik’s arm as he tried to put on his shirt. “May I look at itfirst?” she asked softly.

  Arik’s face reddened, but he nodded andTanya sat up to examine his chest. Over his left breast wasengraved a reptile, which resembled a snake with legs. The reptilesported a large pair of wings and had a forked tongue protrudingfrom its mouth. What amazed Tanya most were the colors. The reptileitself was a bright green and the wings were black. The eyes andprotruding tongue were a vivid red.

  “It looks like an artist’spainting,” Tanya stated. “Not just any artist, but a very wellskilled artist. This came from that rash you got inTagaret?”

  Arik nodded and started to put hisshirt on, but Tanya reached out and ran her finger over the tinydragon. “Amazing!” she commented. “I wonder how one of those wouldlook on me?”

  Arik turned redder than the reptile’seyes and he quickly shrugged his shirt on. Tanya caught hisreaction and blushed herself. “I didn’t mean to say that out loud,”she chuckled. “You will NOT imagine it on me,” she added as sheplayfully swatted his shoulder.

  Midge leaped into the air as Arikjumped to his feet and extended a hand to Tanya to help her get up.“I will have trouble not imagining it, now that you have mentionedit,” chuckled Arik. “Let’s go see if the others have any ideas onhow we are to find this Crown of Light.”

  Midge landed on Arik’s shoulder as theyreturned to the campfire and helped themselves to coffee. Garth,Kalina, and Niki were sitting and talking to Queen Mita and theconversation was centered on the Crown of Light.

  “We had the Sword of Heavensto help us find you,” Garth was saying. “We have no such aid infinding the Crown of Light. I have no idea even where to startlooking for it.”

  “We can not have come this farjust to fail,” sighed Kalina. “The Ancient Prophecy led us to theSapphire of the Fairies. The Fairy Prophecy must have a clue tolead us to this Crown of Light.”

  Queen Mita shook her head. “There is noclue in the Prophecy and no mention of anything that will lead Arikto it.”

  Garth smiled every time the Queenmentioned Arik and the Crown of Light. She accepted all of theRangers as being part of the expedition. She accepted Garth as theleader of the Rangers, but when it came to the Crown of Light, shenever left any doubt that Arik was all who mattered.

  Midge flew off in a hurry while Fredrikand Tedi returned from their staff practice. They had also gatheredan audience who applauded, but the fairies’ enthusiasm was clearlyfor the swordplay exhibition.

  “Perhaps if we knew what wewere looking for, we would have a better idea of where to look,”Arik suggested. “Do you have any books that have pictures of thecrown?”

  Queen Mita tilted her head and lookedat Arik. “I can show you a vision of it,” she offered. “I forgetthat you are not versed in the ways of fairies. We have the abilityto create visions from thought. All I have to do is think of apicture of the Crown of Light and project it.”

  Queen Mita turned towards the fire anda cloud of smoke congealed above it. The center of the cloudstarted glistening and as the smoke dissipated a shiny, gold crownadorned with sapphire gems appeared. Everyone gasped at thelifelike image as it rotated over the fire.

  “How large is it?” Tanyainquired.

  Queen Mita smiled and pictured herselfwearing the Crown of Light. The added perspective broughtrealization of how small the article actually was.

  Fredrik shook his head and frowned. “Weare expected to find something that small and all we know is thatit is somewhere in the world. If everything depends on us findingthat, we might as well go home.”

  Kalina stood and walked around thefire, slowly examining the crown. Garth watched her and shook hishead. “It is the same from every angle, Kalina,” he statedfrustratingly.

  “Sorry, Garth,” she repliedabsentmindedly, “but something is tickling my memory. Queen Mitacan you visualize it in the palm of my hand, or any hand around thesame size?”

  Queen Mita wrinkled her brow for amoment. “Open your palm,” she requested.

  Kalina held her palm flat and QueenMita landed in the center of it. Next she projected an image ofherself in Kalina’s palm and projected it over the fire. The imageshimmered slightly as she altered it to include the Crown of Lighton her head. Then in an eye blink, Queen Mita disappeared from thevision and the Crown of Light rested on Kalina’s palm.

  “Does that help?” the Queenasked.

  “Yes,” shouted Kalina. “I haveseen this crown and held it in my very hand not twenty years ago. Iam sure it is the same one.”

 
“Great,” shouted Tedi. “Whereis it?”

  Kalina’s face clouded with frustration.“President Suarez of Cordonia showed it to me just before OscarDalek’s wedding. He thought it would make an unusual wedding band,but Callie declined it.”

  “Well let’s go to Cordonia andget it back for the fairies,” exclaimed Tanya.

  “The Cordonian Royal Palacewas buried under a mountain in the Collapse,” Garth stated.“Actually that is not a correct statement. The Palace merged withthe mountain is actually a better description. In all probability,the Crown of Light is now part of the mountain. Even tearing themountain apart piece by piece would not recover the crown in anycondition that we would recognize.”

  Despair fell over the group andeveryone fell silent. Fredrik started moving a pebble around withhis staff and Tedi tried to shift his seat a little farther awayfrom Niki who kept trying to lean against him. Garth and Kalinastared at each other across the campfire and Queen Mita flewherself down to the ground. Arik looked around the campfire at thesullen group and rose to his feet.

  “My father did not raise me tobe a quitter,” Arik announced, “and I know Prince Midge willaccompany me if no one else will. Are the rest of you in this onlywhen the way is easy?”

  “Give the man a tattoo,”scowled Niki, “and he thinks he can bring a mountain to itsknees.”

  Garth stood and placed his hand onArik’s shoulder. “Pay no mind to whiners, lad,” Garth smiledbroadly, “and never doubt your abilities. The Rangers are bound forKantor and if it is a mountain that must be conquered, then amountain will fall before us.”

  Tanya leaped up and started rolling upher gear. Kalina gently touched her on the arm. “In the morningwill be soon enough, warrior,” Kalina smiled. “We have the chanceto enjoy the hospitality of the fairies before we depart and youstill have that session with Garth this afternoon. I look forwardto watching it. It has been a long time since a woman made Garthcry.”