by K. E. Drake
Her soft voice sounded sheepishly. “I didn’t think of that.”
Samuel shook his head with a trace of a grin on his lips. He pulled an extra blanket from the same saddle pack before he went back to where Ruby sat and held out the extra blanket to the girl. “Here, you can use one of mine.”
Ruby blinked at him, but hesitantly accepted the offered item, lightly taking the roll from the prince’s hand and giving a small smile of thanks.
The prince nodded once in response and moved to the other side of the campfire across from Ruby. He unrolled his blanket to lay upon the grass and then sat on the cloth, groaning as he eased himself to lie down on the makeshift bed and stretched his long body out on his blanket. He rested his head on his arm and turned his gaze up to watch the silver stars twinkling in the sky.
Ruby fiddled with the tie securing the roll, waiting until the prince no longer looked at her before doing the same. Pushing herself onto her knees, she unrolled her blanket onto the soft grass within the line of comforting light coming from the campfire. She smoothed the corners out and crawled onto the pallet, lying down. She breathed a long, quiet sigh and weariness suddenly washed over her. Her muscles ached with a dull throb and her eyelids became heavy with sleep. She rolled onto her side and curled up, yawning quietly. “Good night,” she bade the prince.
“Good night, Ruby,” she heard the prince’s low reply through the haze of her coming slumber, and she drifted to sleep with a smile on her lips.
Chapter Four
Avon
“This is my kingdom.” Samuel announced proudly as he and Ruby crossed the border from Omrie into Avon late the morning of the third day. The pair rode on a wide dirt road in a field of grass spread out around the bases of great, towering mountains which dotted the land surrounding them.
“Wow,” Ruby breathed softly in the peaceful quiet. She craned her neck to look up at the peak of a nearby gray mountain that seemed to reach up and touch the sky. Two smaller mountains, not quite half the size of the larger one, stood on either side of it.
She shook her head in awe and glanced back to Samuel. He wore a pleased grin as he too watched the mountains pass by.
“You must really love your kingdom,” Ruby offered. She found herself smiling when Samuel turned to her and the expression written on his face was one of appreciation.
“I do,” he agreed. He looked out at the land ahead of them again and his eyes took on a troubled look. “Sometimes I worry I won’t be a good ruler, like my father.”
A long moment of silence passed as Ruby considered him. “I believe you’ll make a great king. I mean it.” She insisted when the prince looked doubtful.
Samuel was quiet for a moment before his uncertainty seemed to fade. “Thank you.”
The morning passed and it was early that evening when Samuel and Ruby came to a stop at the base of the tallest mountain that Ruby had seen yet. A warm, early summer breeze rustled the tall grass as she craned her neck towards the sky.
The mountain stood so high that the top point was nearly invisible past the puffs of white cotton clouds floating in the sky. The bulging, uneven stone of the mountain was the same shade of gray ashes. Cliffs and ledges protruded from the side of the mountain for as high as Ruby could see, making her head spin just thinking of how high it was.
“At the top of this mountain is said to be a deep cavern. It’s where I have determined where the Kepa Jewel is placed,” Samuel spoke, drawing Ruby from her fretful thoughts.
She could only gape at the prince, hoping that she misunderstood him. “You want us to go up there?”
“If we’re to retrieve the Kepa Jewel, I do.” Samuel gave a nod and urged his stallion forward.
Ruby sat paralyzed on the back of her mare, watching as the prince steered his horse to the base of the mountain. He came upon a path in the stone that sloped up from the ground and appeared to wind up and around the mountain.
This is part of the adventure. She took a deep breath and slowly blew it out in an attempt to calm her nerves, even as her heart thundered against her chest. Clicking her tongue against her teeth, she urged her mare to the mountain and guided her to follow the prince up the steep incline.
They made their way up the path and the steady beat of their horses’ hooves clopping on the smooth stone filled the air.
Time passed, although how long it was, Ruby didn’t know. It passed by in a blur. Her lungs began to burn and only then did she realize she held her breath. Forcing herself to breathe again, she kept her chin up and her eyes fixed firmly on the back of Samuel’s white-cotton shirt. Don’t look down. Don’t look down. It will be all right if you don’t look down.
She didn’t listen to herself. Her gaze fell from her traveling companion, over the edge of the cliff, and down the straight drop to the ground that seemed to spin far below her. She yelped and clutched her horse’s reins tighter, pulling her horse to an abrupt halt.
Samuel heard Ruby gasp and looked back to her. “Are you all right?”
Ruby only shook her head. Her eyes were squeezed closed and her knuckles tinged white from her death grip on the reins.
He veered his horse around on the broad path and came down upon her side. “Ruby? Come on, we have to keep moving.”
“I can’t,” she squeaked. “I can’t go up there. I’m terrified of heights."
When Samuel said nothing, Ruby willed her eyes open to see him watching her, his brow furrowed with his disbelief. “You’re scared?”
Ruby nodded sheepishly and fought not to let her gaze slip.
Samuel studied her for a moment and his emerald eyes softened. “Come here.” He moved his horse forward again and on the outer side of the path before he waved her forward.
She hesitated for a moment and then gingerly urged her horse forward, slowly coming upon his right side in the space between him and the side of the mountain.
“There.” Samuel gave her a smile which seemed to chase away all her fear. “Now you can continue without being close to the edge.”
Ruby stared speechlessly at the prince, only able to manage a nod when he watched her expectantly.
Satisfied, Samuel urged his steed forward again, slowly enough to make sure that she came along with him, and she did, although she found her mind distracted by him. Her heart lifted at the thoughtful gesture that touched her heart, and she breathed a little easier.
They rode side by side in silence for several minutes and Ruby calmed enough to take in the magnificent scenery spread out beyond them. Before she could help herself, she let her gaze drop past the prince and over the ledge to the rocky bottom below. She gasped again and snapped her head back up.
Samuel looked at Ruby out of the corner of his eye. He moved his horse slightly ahead of hers and positioned his body in between her and the edge of the cliff to block her view. “Maybe talking would help take your mind off your fear,” he suggested, not removing his eyes from the winding path.
Ruby gave him a grateful smile, although he didn’t see it. She searched her mind for something to say. I would love to know more about this treasure he’s searching for. “How did the Kepa Jewel end up at this mountain?”
Samuel’s bright eyes met Ruby’s, there was a glimmer in the emerald depths. “Do you know the story of the Five Kings?”
“My father told me the tale when I was a child. That was so long ago,” she admitted.
“The time of the Five Kings took place nearly two hundred years ago,” Samuel began. “It all started with the jewels. The gems were forged and infused with magic. However, the power the Jewels possessed would only work if all five were joined together. Separate, they were useless except for their value for their enchanted nature. Only the ethereal appearance of the jewels and the faint traces of magic within them are what sets them apart from any other treasure. Each of those jewels are the only ones of their kind and are worth more than any treasure in existence. Even one of those Jewels could bring Avon out of debt,” Samuel added, pausing i
n his storytelling to look at Ruby.
A light gust of the warm summer air swirled past, rustling the shorter strands of her red hair which slipped from her coiled braid. She smiled brightly and nodded, eager for him to continue. “What does their magic do?”
Samuel chuckled. “I don’t know for certain. Nothing of the magic was recorded in the archives. All I know for certain is that they are enchanted.”
Ruby breathed a gasp, her eyes wide. “What about the Five Kings?”
“King Darian ruled over the kingdom of Glendower during that time,” Samuel continued the tale for her. “When Glendower’s queen passed away, in his grief, the king passed on the reign of the kingdom to Prince Alistair, the eldest of the five princes, on his twenty first birthday. Alistair also received a special gift, the Lewana Crystal, from the king.”
“Each prince was one year apart in age, and every year, when each prince turned twenty-one, he would receive the next of the four Jewels,” Samuel said. “Adolph, the second oldest prince, received the Teryl Gem. Alanzo, the third oldest, received the Night Ruby. The fourth prince, Ansel, received the Danica Diamond, and the youngest prince, Andrew, received the Kepa Jewel.”
“After the rest of the princes turned twenty-one, they each moved away from Glendower. Alistair remained in Glendower and ruled as king alongside his new bride, Lady Tawnya Blake.”
“Adolph took the Teryl Gem and moved to Tamall, where he married the princess Vivian. Alanzo took the Night Ruby and traveled to Omrie, where he joined the king’s army before soon marrying the eldest of the king’s five children, the princess Moriah.”
“Ansel, who received the Danica Diamond, went to live in Kently. He never married, but he traveled the kingdoms in one adventure after another. Prince Andrew brought the Kepa Jewel with him when he came to live here in Avon.” Samuel looked out upon the land, fields of green spread out below them and the mountains in the distance as their horses climbed higher up the trail.
“Andrew married the young queen Katrice of Avon who had recently lost her first husband in a war. Andrew was said to have magical powers and when he and Katrice had their first son, he was thought to have inherited his father’s magic.” Samuel’s voice faded then and he glanced to Ruby, trying to gauge her reaction. Did I reveal too much?
Ruby didn’t seem to notice. She tilted her head up as she watched the wisps of white clouds gently float along the sky, seeming to have relaxed a little with the story he told, so he decided to finish. “As time went on, the Jewels were passed along, hidden away, traded, and even lost. There was enough written on them and I was able to track them down to where they might be today. There’s one in almost every kingdom. One in Avon, in Tamall, Glendower, and Kently. The only one of the jewels I haven’t been able to track an exact location for is the Night Ruby. That jewel has less recorded on it than any of the rest. The only information I could gather is that Alanzo had the ruby hidden not long after he arrived in Omrie. I’ve come up with a few likely locations where to search for it. It could be anywhere between eastern Omrie and western Glendower. I’ve planned to search for it last to see if I can narrow down the jewel’s possible locations.”
Quiet fell over them again and they rode for several moments before Ruby spoke again.
“Thank you.” She glanced back to the sandy-haired prince with a smile. “For talking to me. It helped.”
Samuel nodded. “You’re welcome.”
An hour or maybe longer passed and Samuel and Ruby came to a stop on the pinnacle of the summit. The cliff at the top of the mountain path was long and wide, and the smooth stone of the ledge was a paler shade of gray than the mountain itself.
The sun now hung directly in front of them in the evening sky. The golden sunlight cast shadows on the gray rock and did little to illuminate the gaping black hole in the side of the stone.
Ruby shifted in her saddle as she stared at the black hole. “Please don’t tell me the jewel is in there.”
Samuel dismounted his horse. “If I followed the clues on the map correctly, it is.” He searched the ledge and then crouched to pick up an old, dry stick of wood. One of the ends was charred black, as if someone had once used it as a torch and then left it.
Taking a deep breath, Ruby slipped out of her mare’s saddle and took a few slow steps to the mouth of the cave, almost as if it would come alive and swallow her whole. She placed a trembling hand on the edge of the opening, leaning in just enough to see nothing but darkness.
A warm glow came up beside her, illuminating the inky blackness around her. She whirled around to see Samuel holding the stick that he had just picked up. He had set a fire at the end of it and held it up as a makeshift torch.
“How did you...?” Ruby looked from the crackling fire back up to the prince. “How did you light that so quickly?”
Samuel didn’t answer her. Instead, he looked to the cavern and then gave her a level stare. “You don’t have to go in there with me. In fact, it would be safer for you if you stayed out here.”
Ruby’s eyes fell to the cavern once again and she opened her mouth and shut it again before she shook her head. “It isn’t much of an adventure if I sit by and let you collect all of the Jewels by yourself.” She spun on her heel back toward the cave and hesitated for only a moment before she marched on, disappearing into the dark hole.
Samuel stared at the spot where she disappeared.
“Stubborn woman,” he muttered under his breath and then dove into the black tunnel after her. The orange glow of the torchlight chased back the inky blackness surrounding him, revealing the smooth walls of the tunnel and Ruby, who inched carefully further down the path with one hand on the wall and the other extended into the shadows in front of her.
Samuel growled low in his throat and caught up to Ruby. He shook his head at her, but he noticed how she visibly eased with his presence. He peered into the blackness and lifted the torch higher, casting the firelight further ahead to reveal a downward slope in the path and thick cobwebs that covered the walls ahead. “Come on.” He started forward and Ruby scurried to follow closely alongside him.
“Do you know how far it is to the Kepa Jewel?” She asked quietly, looking to the high cavern ceiling almost as if she thought it may fall in on top of them.
“Deep in the heart of the cave,” Samuel answered, his low voice bouncing off the stone walls.
“Oh.” Ruby nodded and looked down in time to see a large rat skitter across the floor in front of them. She gave a small yelp and moved closer to the prince, near enough that her arm brushed his.
Samuel felt Ruby come closer to him, and he glanced down to her as they walked. His chest constricted as thoughts for her safety raced through his mind now that they were inside the mountain.
They made their way down the straight path with the hollow silence surrounding them. After only a few minutes, the tunnel suddenly opened up and Ruby and the prince slowed to a halt just inside the room. Ruby stared at the area, her mouth agape.
The room was spacious and circular and had a high, domed ceiling, which had a small skylight in the very center, allowing beams of daylight to shine through and illuminate the chamber. The walls and ceiling were covered in webs so thick that only patches of rock was visible beneath. In the center of the room on a stone pedestal sat a small, pale-pink Jewel.
“The Kepa Jewel,” Samuel breathed in wonder. He stepped away from Ruby and moved further into the room to study the Jewel closer. The pink gem brilliantly glinted and sparkled in the warm glow of the torchlight. “This is it. The map was correct. The legend was true. I’ve found it!”
“And too easily,” Ruby added cautiously. “If the Jewel has been here for nearly two hundred years, why hasn’t anyone found it and taken it by now?”
Samuel turned back to look at her. “I’ve told you before, it’s because of all the time that’s passed that these jewels are now believed to be nothing but myth.”
“But this was too easy.”
“The beg
inning of the journeys usually are,” Samuel ground out. He spun back around on his heel and crossed the rest of the distance to the pedestal. He stepped through an invisible force like a shield surrounding the Jewel and he froze, his muscles suddenly going tense.
All was quiet for a moment before a low rumble came from deep within the mountain. The two fell still and their eyes flew to each other. Suddenly the floor quaked beneath their feet, causing them to lurch forward. Bits of dust and debris fell from the ceiling and clattered onto the floor as the mountain rumbled again, louder this time.
Samuel didn’t hesitate. He reached to take the Kepa Jewel, but the mountain above them gave a violent roar. The ceiling fractured and a hulking piece of the stone broke apart and hurtled down.
Samuel saw the boulder and leapt back with a shout only a moment before it crashed to the ground with a thunderous impact, crushing the pedestal and burying it and the priceless Jewel beneath a pile of rubble. He brought a fist down on the rubble with a shout, but it was drowned out by the noise as the mountain quaked and rocks began to rain down around them.
Ruby screamed as she barely dodged a falling rock. The prince snapped back to reality and he leapt into action. Abandoning the lost Kepa Jewel, he ran back to her and took her hand. “Come on!” He pulled her out of the room and they ran back towards the tunnel.
They ran back up the straight pathway, ducking and dodging falling pieces of rock and debris as they fell from the ceiling. Ruby stumbled and almost fell as the mountain shook again, but Samuel held tightly onto her hand and kept her on her feet.
The first glimpse of sunlight shone into the passageway from the entrance as boulders rained from the top of the cave until it was nearly filled with the broken chunks of stone.
