by Sanders, Dan
“You, Emily, are the Chosen One as foretold in the Wellwyn Prophecy. I have not seen the prophecy. Only the seers of Wellwyn have. But whisperings have revealed this much.
“’The Chosen One will usher in spring and act as the symbol for that season, under the guidance and name of Eostra.’
“You see Emily, spring is a pivotal period for people of both worlds. The rite, ritual and celebration of the vernal equinox of spring represents renewal: renewal of the lands, renewal of families, and renewal of hope for better times.
“More than what I have said I do not know. I must warn you and your chosen companions that you will be in danger. There are powerful forces that will do all they can to ensure that ultimate harmony is not reached, that you fail in your mission, and that Eostra is never able to revive the balance between the elements of the Twin Worlds.”
Emily gazed around the table. All stunned eyes were on her. The Emperor of Adros had a look of pity. Bevan cast her a downward stare.
“I don’t even know what to ask next,” Emily said. “The Emperor is right. There has been a mistake. I’m nothing but a bird, a simple bird.”
“Emily, I believe in you.” Noogie flapped onto Emily’s shoulder. Her fine claws dug into her fur. “You have always been the one to solve problems. You don’t fear anything. You care about others.”
Emily stood to her full height, her ears like white antennae. “I am scared all the time. I’m just curious about things. I nearly got you killed.”
She had said it. It was out in the open now. Noogie flew off her shoulder and landed on a nearby table. A red tail feather settled on the table.
Daimon knelt before Emily and said, “Emily, if it wasn’t for you, for your sense of justice, I would have been savagely beaten, or worse. Don’t you want to get home? I do, and so does Noogie. We must help these people.”
Rupurt patted her paw, jumped off the tables and padded after Noogie. Emily sat, stunned.
“Besides, if it’s not you,” Alecia said, “somebody who has survived so much, and has been blessed by Eostra, who is it going to be?”
Emily’s mind whirled. Where did she begin? She knew so little.
“Emily, they are right,” Magas said. “You’re not alone. And you are special. Remember your early time on Earth.”
“I was strange, not special,” Emily shot back.
Magas walked away, beckoning Emily to follow him into the private garden through the rear door of the dining room. Daimon ignored Aldrick’s warning stare and followed Magas.
Chapter 12
Emily’s Destiny Revealed
PRIVATE GARDEN OF EMPEROR HEILYN,
ADROS– CRYSTAL CITY,
ANNWYN
When they were alone, Magas continued. Emily liked the sound of his deep voice. Its musical speech had a clipped and well-rounded air, but she sensed an aged longing, of one not wanting to speak, as though it drained him of more important things. It sounded like a voice she could trust.
Magas had his nose deep in an orange flower with gold flecks bordering each petal. “This is a Silytus. It has powerful healing properties to those that know how to seek its gift, but if harvested incorrectly, they inflict a terrible rash in the most uncomfortable places.”
Daimon poked his fingers in the offending flower. Magas slapped his wrist and whispered sweetly to the flower.
“How do I know I can do this?” Emily said. “How can I know you know what to do?”
Magas twisted the ring on his finger. “Let me help you see into me a little. Open your minds, both of you.”
Magas saw Daimon’s unsure gaze and said, “Eostra has seen an important role for you, young one. You will need to trust me and tend Eama closely. Now, picture my mind.”
Magas kneeled before them and placed a hand on each of their heads. They all closed their eyes. At first Emily saw only black, then a fuzzy warmth buzzed in her mind, making her long ears vibrate. Colours swirled before her closed eyes. Two doors appeared. One was a gold luminescent door, and Emily thought this must lead to Magas’ mighty mind, an impenetrable gleaming fortress. The other was a simple wooden door, smaller, with a stream of yellow light seeping through the cracks. Daimon’s, she thought.
Emily heard a mental whisper from Magas.
’Ask to enter my mind; trust me.’
She asked, and entered into his mind, and her mind exploded in stars.
She saw images of a young Magas on a giant white horse with a blue mane. He spoke to a floating essence. Eostra? Another image appeared: the young Melder in a forest of ancient trees, staff in the air, pushing back a fallen rockslide, saving a litter of tigers. He held a cub under his arm. A cloud of colour swirled in front of her. Years had passed and an older Melder was now in battle against a black cloud, tinged with green. His staff and ring were aflame. Earth and Air and Water were ablaze in power, the ground trembling. A meteorite was in his control. He pulled his arms back and hurled the sky-stone towards the black cloud, burying the darkness. And all Emily saw was exploding dust and blistered elements. A crater was left in the desolation.
Emily yanked herself out. The images and feelings were too strong. For the first time in her life Emily felt more insignificant, more important, more needed, all at the same time. Her mind was numb and her fur was wet.
“On Annwyn, we learn through being connected to things; through the mind and the body. You learned many things in our connection, though you are not aware of them yet. The connection is why you can understand me and your human friend from Earth.”
Emily became herself again and her world returned. Daimon was breathing heavily, his eyes aghast at Magas. He had seen what she had.
“I spoke to you both through Thoughtspeak,” said Magas aloud. “All Annwynian beings have the power. You will learn it in time.”
“By the gods,” Daimon said. “What world is this? Gods as men walk the land in plain sight. Speaking to minds. Is there nothing you cannot do?”
Magas smiled before contining. “Emily, Daimon, hear me now. The land is out of balance and the elements are not in harmony as they should be. Everything has its place: a season, a symbol, and a controlling element. Emily, you are that symbol for Spring. And you have been chosen.”
“What do I do?” Daimon asked.
For a while Magas sat in silence, rubbing his beard. He said, “Ah Daimon, my young Athenian. I had not foreseen your arrival. While I am unsure of your final purpose, Eostra has tasked you with the burden of protecting Emily on her mission. Her success is for all peoples on the Twin Worlds.”
Daimon paced the floor. “This is lunacy. You ask a simple Earth boy and a bird, sorry rabbit, to fight a war only a god could win?”
“Gods, as you call them, are bound by their own creation. They are not omnipotent. Here, the world and the people are one, and it is in this connection that the war will be raged and your own power will need to be discovered, power even I cannot yet see.”
In shock, they followed Magas back to the Emperor’s private sitting room. Prince Bevan’s leg swung mindlessly over the velour arm of a floating couch. The gold trim on his black boot glinted from the soft crystal lights floating along the wall.
Noogie was swinging her wing under the floating couch. Daimon joined her and said, ”How is such magic performed?”
The Emperor said, “Again with the magic. It is not magic. They are simple Power Planks; crystals that harness the power of the land to float. They are commonplace in Annwyn.”
Emily shook her ears to refocus her mind. She said firmly to the room, “If I do this, and I’m not saying I can, what do I have to do?”
Magas resumed his seat and laid his staff across his lap. He smiled at her with sad eyes. “Find the prophecy. Only among those pages can you find the instruction of what you must do. But Emily, you must fulfill your mission by the first spring morn.”
“I don’t even know the mission,” Emily objected. “Let me see if I understand you. I must find a prophecy, understand what
it means, and do what is says, all before when? How many sunsets?”
Bevan said, “Melder, I agree with the rabbit. That is only two moon cycles from now. Even I would have trouble with that task.”
“Where do I begin?” Emily asked.
Everybody turned from Emily’s pleading gaze.
Sitting on a floating chair, Magas breathed deeply and said, “The prophecy was hidden by the seers of Wellwyn three hundred cycles past. Nobody knows exactly its whereabouts or its instructions. That is why I have asked the brilliant scholar Professor Icelander to join you.”
Aldrick spoke as if running from thieves. “Emily, we will go to Loric, where I reside at the Hawkmoth Academy at the Loric campus. We will study the archives and ask the tellers of ancient histories, and so on and so forth, to reveal the likely location of the scroll.”
Bevan coughed and said, “I don’t mean to offend, my dear man, but I have another idea. On my travels I have seen many strange things and met even stranger beings. I believe there is one who is well travelled in the dark places on Annwyn. She might be best placed to find what can’t be found.”
“Out of the question.”
“Where is this person, Prince?” Magas said.
“Last I heard she is in Mirakoth.”
“Aldrick,” Magas offered, “Mirakoth is on the way to Loric. Perhaps a quick visit will bring no harm. If she is not there, you can continue your search with your scholars.”
Aldrick frowned, scratched his curls and said, “What is this creature’s name?”
“Lupita Bothan. She answers to Lupi, although I have called her other names. She is an Agramond.” The Prince smiled to himself and rubbed a smudge on his boot.
“What is an Agramond?” Daimon asked.
The Prince looked disdainfully at Daimon’s ignorance and said, “An Air-Elf.”
“There we have it,” Magas said. “We should retire for the evening, for tomorrow Emily rides to Mirakoth and Bevan will escort the Adros Dagger to Ibendari. He will demonstrate the wondrous Adros discovery at the Gala Ball.”
Daimon raised his hand and said grimly, “Melder Whiteoak, how am I to protect Emily?”
“There will be others to assist you. In time you will learn the ways of Annwyn and grow in power.”
“I don’t plan to stay. I just want to help Emily so I can get home. My mother will be fretting for my safety.”
The Emperor said to Daimon, ”I may be able to help, young Earthling. You are now one of us. Eostra has spoken it. I have a gift that will bring you aid.”
The Emperor removed a blue crystal blade from the wall. He held it with both hands and spoke quietly to the sword. It burst into a blue sapphire flame. He wove a figure eight in the air, leaving a halo of blue light in its wake. He spoke again and the blade snuffed out, leaving a dull blue glow. He turned the blade over and handed the hilt to Daimon. “It is made of the finest Adrosian crystal. You may need this as you protect the Chosen One.”
Daimon’s mouth dropped open. His hands shook as he grasped the hilt in his fingers.
“I have never…”
Slowly at first, then with increased speed, Daimon spun the blade in various patterns. It remained a dull blue. He overbalanced and nearly swiped Aldrick’s curly hair. Aldrick cursed and Daimon sheathed the blade.
“Sorry,” he said.
“You will be.”
Prince Bevan said, “Boy squire, you are skilled with the blade?”
Daimon beamed. “As the aide to General Xenophon, I was his sparring partner. My father says that what I lack in stature, I make up for in skill with the blade.”
The Prince nodded and said, “All very well, but you need to connect with the blade to release its true power, as the Emperor just displayed. Believe me, on Annwyn, you will need it.”
“The Prince is correct, Daimon,” the Emperor said. “What you hold in your hands is a CBlade, a crystal blade of Annwyn. Each CBlade has a deep connection to the land and its power, but they are only as good as the bearer’s connection with the land.”
Daimon nodded, and said to Emily, “Emily, I will aid you until we defeat this darkness. Together we will complete the hero’s journey, and together we will bring courage and honour to our people and they will tell stories of us, like the gods.”
Everybody stared at the human boy. He sat next to Emily and drank from his goblet. Emily gulped. She cleared her throat and raised the attention of the guests.
“I can try, nothing more. I am only a bird. Don’t ask more.”
“That is all we can ask,” Magas said.
One of the Emperor’s attendants burst through the door, his black robes hustling along the crystal floor.
“Murder, Your Majesty… Four guards murdered.” Tears ran down the white paste on his face. Magas strode over to the man. Bevan rolled off the lounge and with a single movement withdrew the great stone blade off his back, its rock hue casting a shadow across the room.
The guard composed himself, brushed his robes and said, “A cloud… I mean a man, cream hair, blew in and stole the Adros Dagger. Your Majesty, it is gone.”
“How could it be stolen?”
“The men controlled all elements, and knew the words to unlock the crystal bonds.”
The Emperor threw his arms in the air. “Don’t stand there, Prince Bevan, retrieve the Dagger, and don’t spare the life of the culprit.”
The Prince narrowed his eyes at the Emperor’s demand but before he could speak, Magas raised his staff. Seeing the look the ancient Melder threw at him, the Prince held his tongue, pushed his royal blue cape behind his shoulder and strode from the room. Daimon rose to follow but Magas placed his hand on his shoulder.
“Leave this to those who know this world,” Magas said.
Daimon nodded and plumped himself on one of the floating chairs.
They waited in silence. Emily couldn’t believe what was happening. She had dreamt of high adventure all her young bird life but always from the safety of the clouds. The Adros guards scuffled back into the chamber. They bowed quickly before the Emperor, their oversized heads wobbling perilously close to the floor. The Prince ambled into the room, casually sheathing his blade.
“Well?” The Emperor demanded.
The Prince said, “The culprit is long gone from this place.”
“You must leave at once and retrieve it,” the Emperor implored the Prince. “Annwyn’s future depends on it.”
“I have no time to find your dagger,” said the Prince as he sheathed his great weapon. “I am the King’s representative in the Errenor Cup. Besides, I think you overstate the blade’s importance.”
Emily thought the Emperor would burst. His head turned a dark shade of pink, his neck grew, and he raised his hands to the crystal walls around him. The whole room vibrated, as the yellow, green and red walls pulsed in time with the Emperor’s anger. Somehow, Emily felt the pressure and pain in the Emperor’s heart and she sympathised with him.
Magas touched the Emperor’s arm. The Prince spoke with his servant. The Emperor eventually calmed under the reassurance from Eostra’s most ancient Melder.
“The Prince is right. He cannot do it alone,” Magas said. “I think this being is a powerful Melder for Torek. I am in error here. I assumed Lord Torek would not be aware of the Adros Dagger and was distracted with the Chosen One’s arrival. He must not yet know of Emily, which is sound news indeed.
“Prince Bevan, I will ride with you to Ibendari and seek help from other Melders of Eostra. We will all reunite with Emily and her friends at Ibendari for the Gala Ball.”
Magas turned to Aldrick. “At first light, you will lead Emily and find the prophecy. You have seven days. Our enemy has its first advantage.”
Chapter 13
Mirakoth
MIRAKOTH,
ANNWYN
The morning sun faded and winds swirled against the dusty snow like earthy fingers racing across the magic land.
Carrying their special passengers,
the royal horses looked like four black ants crawling across the white Adros plateau.
Three black birds with copper beaks and copper talons hung on the wind, silently watching the travellers below.
For most of the time the group travelled with chins resting on their chests. Emily closed her eyes and let her mind drift, full of questions about this new world. Flying little people, magic daggers that could travel between worlds and a world where everybody could control rocks and wind and water. And everybody thought she was strange. But they said her work could bring peace to the seasons, for both worlds. She could save her brood from starving.
They rocked with the rhythmic motion of the royal steeds. More than once she caught herself with her paws clenched around the basket she rode in. Rupurt’s round blue nose would stare up in concern but all she could manage was to cover his forepaw with her own.
Once she leaned back and watched puffy pink clouds cruise across her vision. Pink clouds, she thought; another strange thing. She saw Noogie spiralling against the emerging blue sky, a creamy red dot weaving through the clouds. Emily tried something she learned from Magas. She pictured Noogie, her face, her mind, and her thoughts. The sky faded to black and suddenly she saw the little red door of Noogie’s mind. Emily knocked. Startled, Noogie welcomed her in.
“Noogie?”
“Is that you Emily?” Noogie Thoughtspoke back.
“What’s it like up there? What can you see?”
“It’s breathtaking. It’s similar to our homeland; but different in so many ways. Bigger, more colourful… I feel things.”
“I wish I were with you. I feel it too. The connection with the world, the land, its beings, is so strong, almost physical.”
Noogie flew barrel rolls in jubilation, a contrast to the darkness behind her.
“Show off,” Emily Thoughtspoke.
“You sound different Emily,” Noogie said. “Older, not just your mind but you think older. You, but not you.”
“Let me know what’s ahead,” Emily Thoughtspoke, not wanting to agree. She did feel different. She remembered her lost family and her lost life and felt sad. She pulled on her rabbit ears to see if they were still real.
