Emerald Child (Kalika Magic Book 1)

by Karen Hughes

  ‘It’s one of the Disappearing Islands,’ said Kai. ‘There are hundreds of them, all up and down the coast. Some blend into the waves, others rise and sink without warning. Most people don’t even know they exist.’

  ‘Will we be able to find our way back?’ Indie asked, wondering how she was ever going to get home to Aunty Mai.

  ‘I don’t think so,’ said Kai. ‘And why would we want to? We can’t get into the caves.’

  ‘But you promised Millie you’d see her again.’

  Kai stared at the place where the island had been. ‘I know,’ he whispered.

  *

  After a time, they found they didn’t need to flap so energetically to keep aloft. They could float on their backs in the warm air currents, or pull themselves along with their arms as if they were swimming. They were too low to meet the clouds and too high to be drenched by the sea spray. It was a glorious way to travel.

  Indie turned a somersault. She spread her arms and soared over the waves, gazing down at the sea. The water was clear and blue. Schools of fish darted through the coral. Ahead, the shoreline rose into a flat stretch of sand, so white it made Indie’s eyes hurt.

  ‘Look! Hey, look over there.’ Kai pushed his arms forward, gliding through the sky.

  ‘What is it?’ Indie called.

  ‘The Kalika Forest,’ Kai's voice floated back. ‘Can you see it? All those trees. Looks just like your island, doesn’t it.’ He flipped over and did a casual backstroke through the sky.

  Indie looked beyond the white sands, across plains whispering with grass and bushes red with berries, all the way up the hill to the forest.

  ‘What do you mean 'just like your island'?’ she said. ‘It’s nothing like my island.’

  Indie’s island was crooked black trees and glass blue rocks. It was seabirds calling, silver lizards basking and Tiki chasing rabbits with a silly grin on her face.

  The forest ahead was dark and brooding. Grey-leafed trees towered over a world of shadows. Dark shapes surely lurked in the undergrowth.

  ‘You’ve got to be joking,’ Indie said. ‘There’s no way I’m going in there.’

  Chapter 9

  The Seeing Tree

  the sun was low and Indie’s arms were aching. The ground was a soft green blur.

  If I don’t land soon, she thought. I’ll fall out of the sky.

  Kai was already on the ground. ‘Steady … steady, Indie,’ he called. ‘You’ll have to slow down or you'll end up as mush. Slow down! Just sit in the air; it’ll take you down. Indie! You’re going too fast!’

  Indie ignored him. He’s such a baby, she thought. I’m not going to sit in the air. I’m going to land gracefully. With style.

  She could do this by herself; she knew she could. She made a gradual swoop – arms out to a glide – and then … rolling, tumbling, head down, mouth full of grass, over and over and over until clump she was flat on her back, completely out of breath.

  She stood up, rubbing bruised knees and elbows, glaring at Kai. ‘It wasn’t that funny,’ she said.

  ‘Yes it was,’ said Kai, unable to stop spluttering with laughter.

  Indie frowned. So she’d come in a little too fast. So what? She heard Aunt Sofia’s voice in her head. ‘You should try listening occasionally, Indie. You might learn something.’

  ‘You’ve got dirt all over your face,’ said Kai, grinning.

  ‘Look, if you don’t shut up …’ Indie flapped her arms. Nothing happened.

  ‘It only works till you land.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘The flying spell,’ he said. ‘You have to say it every time you want to fly’.

  Indie dropped her arms and looked around. She was standing in the middle of a green field. The grass was tall and sweet and smelled like honey. Up ahead the forest crouched, waiting, its branches stretching towards her.

  ‘Come on,’ Kai said. ‘We’d better hurry.’

  ‘I think I’ll stay here,’ said Indie. The sun was setting. The trees loomed above her like fairytale giants. Fee Fi Fo Fum … nope, she wasn't going in there.

  Kai stopped. ‘Don't be dumb,’ he said. ‘It's almost dark.’

  ‘I'm not coming. I followed you into the caves remember? I trusted you and look what happened.’

  ‘That's not fair.’

  ‘Well, it's not fair you dragging me in there.’

  They stood facing each other; feet apart, fists clenched.

  ‘Come on, Indie. Don't be such a girl.’

  ‘Such a girl!? All the girls I’ve read about are braver than you’ll ever be, you little creep.’

  ‘Brave! You call this brave? You’re just being stupid.’ He grabbed her hand.

  ‘Ow. You’re hurting me.’

  ‘We need to go,’ he said. ‘Now.’

  ‘I’m not going in there.’

  ‘Come on! There are worse things out here. The forest is safe; it’s home.’

  ‘Your home, maybe,’ she yanked her hand away. ‘I'll take my chances out here.’

  ‘You’re an idiot,’ Kai turned and strode off into the trees. ‘You’ll be in so much trouble. I’m going to get Dargan.’

  ‘Do what you like,’ Indie said. ‘I’m staying here.’

  She watched him go, a sudden doubt coming into her mind. Maybe – not that she believed it or anything – but … well, what if Kai was right? What if there were worse things out here. Just waiting?

  Waiting, waiting …

  Indie gave herself a shake, telling herself she was being silly. She’d stack some branches against that log over there and curl inside for the night. Trudging through the blackness was a dumb idea. She’d find Kai – and Dargan, whoever he might be – in the morning when the sun was shining.

  She looked around for some sturdy branches, but this wasn’t like her own island where sticks and leaves piled around the base of trees and you could pick up armloads without searching too far. The ground here was a living creature, a breathing mass of compost that fell to pieces in her hands.

  She walked a little further until she came to a tree, its branches wider than a large man's chest. There was an opening in the trunk at the base, and the earth all around was smooth and flat.

  She dropped to her hands and knees and looked into the hollow. It was almost dark, so she couldn't see much, but she could tell that it was warm and dry. She crawled in – the ground rough against her palms – and found to her surprise that she could stand up.

  She thought of Kai tramping through the forest by himself.

  There are worse things out here.

  You’re an idiot.

  You’ll be in so much trouble.

  Curling into a ball on the ground, she consoled herself with the thought that she would find him as soon as the sun came up. Yes, she would find him and tell him about this great tree and maybe say sorry for staying behind, but only if he said sorry first.

  Indie's eyes closed. She was just on the edge of sleep when she heard a voice. She sat up and looked around, but it was too dark to see.

  ‘Who is it?’ she whispered, tendrils of fear shooting up her spine. ‘Who are you?’

  ‘A hundred years of sleep, and I was having such a good dream.’ The voice was deep and husky. ‘Hmmm, you’re not one of the Kalika. Still, I am here for everyone.’

  A yawn thundered through the hollow and then the voice again. ‘Go on then, ask me a question. Anything you like.’

  ‘But I ... ’ Indie couldn't see anything and she couldn't feel anything. She seemed to be the only one inside the tree. So where was the voice coming from?

  ‘I am the Tree of Vision, the Tree of Prophecy, the Seeing Tree, whatever. They have called me many things over the years.’ Another yawn, and then a slight note of impatience in the voice. ‘Ask what you will. I haven't got all night.’

  ‘What do you mean? What should I ask?’

  ‘Oh please. Is that your question? What should I ask? Why, that’s the most pathetic question I've ha
d yet. Now then, let's see. How about “What will I have for breakfast tomorrow?” Or “How many hairs are there on the head of a llama?” Or “How far is it to the shores of Lake Wattipittitango?”’

  ‘Well, actually … um …’ Indie wasn't quite sure how to talk to a tree, ‘I need a place to sleep. Could I stay here? I don't want to sleep outside.’

  Something very like a sigh came from the tree: a creaking, groaning sound that rattled the bark and shook the highest leaves.

  ‘Oh very well, go to sleep,’ the voice sounded insulted. It began to mutter, ‘a hundred years of sleep and a frightened child wakes me up, and she doesn't even have a question …’

  Indie sat down. ‘I'm not frightened,’ she said, hoping she sounded like it. ‘You just startled me. And I do have questions. I have hundreds of questions. But I’m so tired.’

  ‘Ah. The frightened child has some spirit. Well, go on. Go to sleep. Your dreams may surprise you.’

  Deep inside the hollow, Indie curled against the warm earth. Sleep came on tiptoe. Dreams followed.

  She saw a flame-haired man with the clothes of a king lifting her onto a pony; and a queen, brown-skinned and laughing, her dark hair falling down her back. She saw a gardener with broken fingernails and grasshopper legs digging holes for the spring planting, ‘Mind yerself there, young miss. The queen'll skin me alive if ye git yerself covered in mud’; and a baby, quiet and big-eyed. ‘Don't poke him, Indie. He is not a toy.’ And she saw the queen crying. Crying, crying, as she was picked up by an old woman with white hair and taken far, far away.

  *

  She woke with a start. The sun was streaming into the hollow in the side of the tree. It was like being in a cave, but the walls were living wood and she could hear the whisper of branches, the shiver of leaves.

  ‘Well, well. Good morning, little one.’ The voice of the tree was not at all frightening in the light of day.

  ‘Good morning,’ said Indie, stretching her arms.

  ‘My name is Kaosha,’ the voice murmured, filling the hollow with a gentle hum. ‘I have shown you some memories which lay in the darkness, waiting for you to find them. You are more than you seem, little one.’ There was a strange sound, like a chuckle, and the voice went on, ‘A princess, eh? You don't look like a princess.’

  ‘I'm not a princess.’ Indie kicked the dirt with the toe of her boot. ‘I mean, I can't be. Kai is the prince. He has the robe and the spinning and the spells and everything. I'm just helping him.’

  ‘Did you not understand the dream? You are the king's eldest child. The wise women took you away to the islands to hide you. You have hair and eyes like your father, King Eamon, which meant they couldn’t hide you among the forest people like they could your brother.’

  ‘My brother?’ Indie jumped to her feet.

  ‘The boy who brought you here.’

  ‘Kai? Is Kai my brother?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Indie couldn’t believe it. Kai was her brother. She had a brother…

  Kaosha rustled his branches and spoke again, ‘Come now, child. What do you ask of me? What is it you wish to know?’

  ‘Kai … my brother … ran off into the forest by himself.’ She paused. ‘I … I should have gone with him. But it was so dark and there’s a sorcerer, you know, an evil sorcerer and Kai wouldn’t listen and I got angry …’

  ‘Yes, yes,’ said the tree. ‘And your question is?’

  ‘I have a brother,’ Indie whispered, still trying to comprehend this new life-changing event. ‘Kai is my brother.’

  The tree was quiet. Birdsong floated on the breeze. Insects buzzed.

  Indie looked up. Kaosha was singing.

  In the depths of the forest you will find it,

  In the shadows where the darkest ones bide,

  Where Yoki dances in springtime,

  And the moss lays a path by her side.

  Look beneath the roots of old Willow,

  'Neath the cut of the rock shining bright,

  Take from him the gift you will find there …

  Kaosha stopped and made a ‘grumphing’ sound in his throat. Indie didn't know if trees had throats, but she didn't feel it was right to ask.

  ‘Look,’ Kaosha said, ‘I could do the whole lot in rhyme like I'm supposed to – all very poetic, but a little tedious from the teller’s end. I'm happy to tell it the way it is, if that's all right with you.’

  ‘Sure,’ said Indie. ‘I'm in a bit of a hurry anyway.’

  ‘All right then, pay attention. You must go deep into the forest to the place where the Yoki River flows, where the banks are covered in moss. There you’ll see an old willow tree with a twisted trunk. Don't expect him to speak to you: he’s been asleep even longer than I have. Beneath his roots, on the edge where the rocks are most colourful, you’ll find a wooden box. Your father, King Eamon, buried it there many years ago. Open the box and you will find what you are looking for.’

  A box. Under a tree. Near the river.

  ‘Thanks Kaosha,’ she called, crawling out of the hollow and running into the forest. The voice of the tree followed her, but she couldn’t make out the words.

  ‘Goodbye!’ she called. ‘Thanks!’

  Kaosha watched her disappear. He called after her. ‘Your brother is much more than he appears. You must learn to trust him.’

  ‘Poor child,’ he rumbled to himself. ‘That sorcerer is the least of her worries.’

  Chapter 10

  The Village in the Treetops

  while indie was dreaming her strange and vivid dreams, Kai was running – on and on until the sun faded from the sky and the forest came alive with the rhythms of the night.

  Shhh-cha, shhh-cha. Lava beetles flew around his head: flashes of red in the dark.

  Mo-chikachik, mo-chikachik. A red owl sat on a branch, watching him.

  He was still angry with Indie. Dumb girl. Staying out in the grasslands where the sorcerer's men could find her. Dargan would know what to do. Indie would listen to him, and if she didn’t … well, Dargan would carry her if he had to.

  By the time Kai reached the trees marking the entrance to the village, the moon was hiding in the clouds. Stars sprinkled the sky with silver. He tried to make out the thatched roofs of the tree houses, high above the ground; but the shadows covered them, keeping them safe.

  Kai walked between the trees and stood very still. It was too quiet.

  He stepped back into the shadows, watching, waiting; and then crept through the darkness to Grandma Helki’s tree. Steps wound up through the branches, decorated with the same shining stones that decorated the old chest on Indie’s island.

  Chimes tinkled, high in the branches.

  Kai stopped. What was that?

  I’m just scaring myself, he thought.

  ‘Grandma,’ he called softly. She’d be so pleased he was home. ‘Grandma Helki. Are you awake?’

  The moon burst from the clouds and bathed the forest in her pale, cold light. Kai was almost at the top of the stairs. He looked past the shadows to the other tree houses and the sway bridges that led from house to house.

  Smoke drifted from the remains of the village. The bridges swung against the scarred trunks of the trees. Everything was charred and black.

  ‘Grandma Helki!’ he cried, not caring who heard, hoping there was someone left to hear. ‘Grandma Helki! Dargan! Where are you? Can you hear me?’

  Silence.

  He climbed further. Grandma Helki's house was still standing; he didn’t have time to wonder why. The door flew open. Rough hands hauled him inside.

  He was face to face with two men, wearing black tunics with the sorcerer's star emblazoned across the chest. Their faces were worn and marked, and when they spoke their voices were low and terrible.

  ‘The king's brat,’ said the tallest, a big hairy man with the arms of a bear. ‘Told ya he'd come back.’

  ‘Bout time,’ said the other, spitting on Grandma Helki's polished floor. ‘Two days we bin waitin' an
d nought to eat but rabbit food. Let's get back to the castle. I want a big, juicy crocodilla steak.’

  ‘Wait!’ The big man held Kai by the arms and his breath washed over the boy in rank waves. His teeth were black. One eye was white and lifeless, sinking into the base of his eye socket.

  ‘The Lady said there were two brats. We can't go back without the other one; it’s more than our lives are worth. She'll show up soon enough.’

  He tied Kai's arms behind his back and stuffed a rag into his mouth. Then he shoved the boy into the corner, kicked him, and told him to lie still.

  The smaller man smiled a gold-toothed smile. He sharpened his knife on a stone. ‘Why don't we finish this one off now, Gar? Save us the trouble of carryin' 'im to Ballyndor.’

  ‘You're a fool, Pem. You heard what the Lady said: bring 'em back alive.’

  Gar hammered the smaller man on the head with his fist. ‘Now shuddup. It’s bad enough we lost all the others.’

  ‘Yeah, bad luck for them that they were still 'ere when we captured the camp. Hard fighters, I'll give 'em that,’ Pem rubbed a grimy hand across his face. ‘Took five of us to knock down the big guy.’

  ‘Well they're not here now,’ Gar growled. ‘I leave you to guard 'em, with five of me best soldiers, and when I come back they're gone and all I 'ave is a bunch of men standin' round shaking their 'eads. The sorcerer'll be furious.’

  ‘An' the Lady,’ muttered Pem.

  ‘She's a nasty piece of work, that one,’ Gar said, shuddering. ‘Even meaner 'n him.’

  He nodded toward Kai, who was listening with a sick, hopeless feeling in the pit of his stomach. ‘Wouldn't like to be you, boy. Not when she gets a hold of ya.’

  Outside there was a cracking of twigs and a rustling of bushes.

  ‘Shh,’ Pem whispered. ‘It’ll be the other brat.’

  He picked up his knife and stuck it in his belt before creeping across to the window. Gar crouched by the door.

  The sounds were closer now.

  Kai scrabbled at the ropes. He had to warn Indie. He tried to spit the rag from his mouth.

  ‘Hey, none of that!’ The man's boot caught him in the jaw. His head rang at the impact and he could taste blood on his lips.