by Ritu Ghosh
They heard a bell and the door of the dining hall flung opened. A very lean lady walked in, she had a grim long face and she wore a white apron with a white hat that covered all of her hair. She was pushing the breakfast cart into the dining room. The cart looked loaded with all kind of yummy food. A plump man suddenly appeared from behind her.
“I will take it from here” said the man. The woman gave him a catty look and walked out.
The man cheerfully hugged Belster. “Belster! My friend! It has been such a long time. I am so glad to see you here again and this must be the lovely Sandra” He walked up to Sandra and planted a kiss on her forehead which she wasn’t expecting. “Welcome to the city of Balin friends” He turned to Belster and said “Please introduce your friends Belster”
Belster introduced everybody one by one. The man met everyone with the same enthusiasm. He remarked that Flynn reminded him of one of his own nephews. He hugged Flynn so tight that it took all the air out of Flynn’s lungs.
“How rude of me not to introduce myself” He said looking ashamed. “I am Tom Cinn, the owner of the Lions. It is a pleasure to meet you all” He served the food on to the table. There was Eggs, Bacon, Pancakes with syrup, butter and chicken sandwiches for everyone. “Once again, welcome to Balin, enjoy your Breakfast!” Tom said smiling as he left. They ate till they couldn’t eat anymore. Ony was so full that he could not help but belched out loud which made everyone laugh.
After the big breakfast, they wanted to just take rest. Flynn looked sleepy already. Aaron could hardly stand. Both the girls looked weary too. Cody came into the dining hall as soon as they finished eating and showed everyone to their rooms. The three men shared a three bedroom suite with its own hall and bathroom. The girls got an overly decorated room which they seemed to like a lot. Aaron and Flynn got a big room with an equally big bathroom and a balcony. The bags were already kept neatly arranged near the mantel piece in their rooms.
“Enjoy your stay, young sirs!” Cody took leave finally. Flynn was not able to hold his excitement.
“Look at this place!” He sat on the big metal framed chair. The cushions on it were so soft, but sturdy. “I feel like a king here” said Flynn.
Aaron had already occupied one of the two small beds after removing his jacket and belts.
“Well I don’t’ know about you, but I sure feel like a king. This is the softest bed ever!” Aaron pulled the soft cotton blanket over him, it made him feel like he was sleeping on soft clouds as he closed his eyes. He heard Flynn saying something, but he was too sleepy to understand.
Aaron’s eyes opened only by evening. There was still some sunlight coming through the windows. Flynn was fast asleep in his bed. Aaron got up and started the fire at the fire place. He sat next to it for sometime feeling the warmth of the fire. He heard some noises downstairs. The sounds of singing and dancing and thumping. Aaron wanted to see what was going on. He slowly reached for his jacket which was kept next to his bed and slipped out of the room not waking Flynn up. He followed the noise and it grew louder and louder as he approached a room.
He opened the door of the room from where the sounds were coming. It was a large room filled with people from the city. They were drinking and smoking pipes while singing and dancing. They stopped for a moment to see who has come in and then continued with whatever they were doing. Aaron looked around, there were a number of tables and chairs. Most of them occupied by men and women of all ages. It looked like a place of gathering to him.
In a corner, he saw Tom sitting with Belster. Jane and Sandra also sat near them at another table. Aaron walked to the table that Tom and Belster were sitting at. Belster and Tom were so engrossed in their own talks that they did not seem to notice Aaron. Jane saw him and invited him to their table.
“Where is your friend?” Jane asked.
“Still sleeping!” Aaron had to shout to be heard above the noise.
“What is this place and why is everybody dancing?” he asked bringing his head closer to Jane’s ears.
The dancing stopped in sometime and the noise dropped. People went back to their business of drinking and talking to each other.
Jane smiled. “This is one of the famous bars of Balin. People from all over the city come here to have Beer. The brew is one of the finest in the whole land and people just want to have fun” she said.
‘Just have fun!’ that was something Aaron had never heard of. In Brinsar, the only time you could have fun is when the harvest is good and you have worked hard enough for that. He guessed that it must be different for the people in the city.
“So, where did you learn to use your bow like that?” he turned to Sandra and asked her.
“My father taught me, he taught me all that he knew” she looked happy “But I still have to pass the trial”
“Trial? What Trial” Aaron asked.
“Having your skills is not enough Aaron, every Defender has to go through the trial. If you pass it, only then can you become a true defender.” Jane said cutting in between.
“Mother used to say that you never know when your day will come. It’s better to be prepared for the worse” Sandra said and fell silent. A tear formed near her golden eyelashes.
Aaron realized that she had lost her mother in this war.
“Sandra, everyone has to go one day. We are a part of a very important mission. You should be proud of yourself” said Jane wiping away Sandra’s tears.
Aaron looked at Jane and wondered the same thing again ‘What had made Jane so strong?’ But what she said was right, they were a part of something very important and he should also be prepared to face the evil, like the others.
Flynn joined them soon, but he was not able to speak much in front of Sandra. He stuttered a lot. After sometime, the girls got up and joined the others to dance.
“Care to join us?” Ony and Dan appeared from behind with large mugs of beer and meat pies in their hands. Aaron and Flynn ordered some beer for themselves too. Flynn was nervous after talking to Sandra. He gulped the whole mug down in seconds before Aaron could say anything. Ony and Dan sat there and watched Flynn in amazement.
“What is this stuff? It feels sooo..good. Can I have more?” Flynn asked in his drunken voice.
After many more rounds of beer, Flynn started to sing as if there was no tomorrow. He got up and joined the others in dancing. Dan got up and sat next to Belster and Tom. He was pulling long puffs on the pipe and was having a serious conversation. Ony and Aaron were still sitting at the table.
“So, who trains me?” Aaron asked Ony suddenly.
Ony was too drunk, he was not sure what Aaron was asking.
“What do you mean?” he tried to look serious.
“Sandra’ father trained her. Jane is trained by Alfadon. What about me? Who trains me?”
Ony sat upright and thought for a moment “Dan will train you!”
“Dan will train me?”
“Yes! Dan, like your father, is an excellent swordsman. Even though there was a rivalry between them, he was assigned as your mentor by your mother. He has to teach you all that he knows.” Ony said with his eyes, half closed.
“There was a rivalry between Dan and my father? But why?” Aaron was surprised.
Ony was hardly able to keep his eyes open as the waiter served him his tenth mug of beer. “Don’t worry, I will tell Dan that you are ready to train. He is my good friend. You should also keep an eye on your good friend who is getting into trouble right now” Ony pointed at Flynn who was in the crowd.
Flynn was now dancing with Sandra hand in hand and had forgotten all about Belster sitting right there. Jane was watching them and everyone was clapping and encouraging Flynn to kiss Sandra. Aaron immediately got up and waded his way through the crowd to reach Flynn. But he was too late. Belster had already pulled Sandra out and was really mad. He went upstairs grabbing Sandra by her hand. Jane followed them trying to convince Belster that it was only a dance.
Flynn was standing on the dance
floor all alone now trying to understand what just happened. Aaron pulled him by his arm and took him to the room.
“What do you think you are doing? Do you want to get into trouble with that man?” Aaron was angry.
“I think I am going to be sick” were Flynn’s last words before he ran inside the bathroom. He didn’t come out for about an hour.
Aaron made Flynn take a warm shower before dinner. He stayed close to Flynn as he didn’t want him to do something stupid again.
Everyone was silent at the dinner table. Belster and Sandra didn’t show up for a while. And when they did, Sandra looked worried but she didn’t say anything to anyone. Flynn didn’t lift his head till he finished his dinner. Belster was giving him the ‘I am going to kill you’ look. Flynn slipped away after dinner, as soon as he could.
Aaron waited for others to finish, he wanted to talk to Dan about beginning his training but he didn’t get a chance. Ony still ate as Aaron waited to talk to Dan. Dan lighted another pipe and signed Aaron to leave him alone. Then he started to speak to Belster in a hushed tone. Feeling irritated, Aaron walked to his room. The door was wide open. Inside, the fireplace was lit.
“Flynn, why did you leave the door open?” he asked as he entered the room.
Someone was sitting near the fireplace with his head down. But it was not Flynn. Aaron came closer to take a better look. The stranger could be anybody, it was hard to trust anyone. Aaron eyed his sword that he kept under his bed.
“Who are you? And what are you doing here?” He asked loud enough to scare the stranger. The stranger had long blond hair and he wore a short dirty tunic. The rest of him was still in shadows.
“Show your face stranger” Aaron said stepping back.
The man got up and came towards Aaron. Aaron now thought how he would reach his sword.
“Master Aaron!” he heard a familiar voice “It’s me!”
“Billy?!” asked Aaron, surprised.
“Yes it’s me, Billy” Billy answered.
Billy was now visible clearly in the light of the fireplace. His face was smothered with black dust and his clothes were torn. He looked very weary like he ran for miles.
“Are you ok Billy? What happened to you?” Aaron asked as he helped Billy sit on a chair.
“Your brother…”
“Brandon?! What happened to Brandon?”
“They took him”
“What?! Who took him?”
Billy fell silent again. He stared at Aaron like Aaron knew what he meant.
“No! What about uncle?”
Billy lowered his eyes to the ground. “Your uncle is no more…”
Aaron felt a sharp pain in his heart like it had been pierced by a knife. He fell on the bed and hid his face.
Chapter 13
The Enchanted Castle
“How did this happen?!” finally Aaron pulled himself together and asked Billy.
“They attacked yesterday. They destroyed everything your uncle had. Your house and your farm. There is nothing left anymore” Billy was almost sobbing.
“But they told me, my family will be safe if I leave. They lied to me” Aaron covered his face again.
“Where did they take Brandon?” Aaron suddenly asked. “Billy, we have to do something to bring him back. He is not old enough to protect himself” Aaron pulled out his father’s sword from under his bed.
“I don’t know what to do master Aaron. I really don’t. They took master Brandon into the deep jungle.
I tried to stop them but I couldn’t” Billy’s head hung in shame. He felt responsible for Brandon.
“I understand Billy..” Aaron said calming Billy down “But how did you find me?”
Billy stared at Aaron once again, like Aaron was supposed to know that. Flynn walked into the room and was surprised to find a stranger in the room. “Who is this?” Flynn asked Aaron as he walked in.
“Flynn!” Aaron turned to Flynn “The wolves have taken my brother away. This is Billy.. I told you he works for my uncle. Uncle…. he is dead!” his voice died.
Flynn looked in amazement, “What? But how did he find us?” He looked at Billy from head to toe. “We have to tell somebody. I will go get Dan” he rushed out of the room.
Aaron didn’t speak. He was in a lot of pain to say anything. His family was gone in a day. His dreams shattered. His home broken. The only person he wanted to be the safest, was now in the clutches of the monsters. He couldn’t bring himself to terms or imagine such a horrible thing.
“Aaron, are you all right?” the silence was broken by Dan who entered the room with Ony and Jane. Flynn followed them. “I heard what happened”
“You said my family will be safe if I leave” there was anger in his broken voice.
Dan fell silent. Jane came forward and held Aaron by his arms and led him to a chair.
“I know what you are going through Aaron, we all have been in your place” Jane said softly.
Belster and Sandra came in as well.
“I am sorry about your loss Aaron” Dan said in a glum voice “But I thought that the wolves know nothing about your family. And once you were out of there, they would chase us and not harm your village”
“Then why have they attacked, if they know that I am not there? Why do they want to harm my family?” Aaron was enraged.
“I am very sorry about your uncle” said Belster seeming concerned.
“Boy, you could not have saved him even if you wanted to” said Ony wiping his tears.
“What do you mean?” Aaron asked. “Of course I could have saved them, I could have at least kept them in a safer place”
“That is of no use” Dan said grimly.
Before Aaron could go mad and yell at Dan, Jane clutched his arms. “Aaron, he knows. He tried to save his family from the evil ones, but it didn’t work” whispered Jane.
Aaron didn’t expect to hear that. He looked at Jane in surprise and she shook her head slowly. Aaron looked at Dan with sympathy now. Aaron didn’t know that behind his stern face, there was hidden such pain.
Dan looked the other way and said “Let me know if I could be of any help to you” and left the room.
Ony patted Aaron on his back and followed Dan. Belster and Sandra too said a few words of condolence and promised Aaron to help find his brother.
Flynn and Jane remained with Aaron in the room. Aaron was still sitting with his head buried in his hands, he didn’t know how to feel. He wanted to cry, but no tears came out anymore.
“Aaron, I understand what you are going through. I felt the same way when my brother was taken away” said Jane.
“Taken away? By whom?” Flynn asked.
“By the Lurgs” Jane tried to hide her tears but a few escaped from her eyes. “The Lurgs were searching for us frantically, but we hid for many days. One day, my brother went to get some food for us but never returned. I found his shirt in the jungle after a few days, it was torn and had blood on it. I knew they had taken him but my mother still thinks he will come back one day” Jane couldn’t hold back her tears anymore, she let them fall free. Aaron grabbed her hand, he knew that she was feeling the same pain as him.
Flynn watched as Jane gained control of herself and stood up next to Aaron. Then she continued “I have lost my father too in this war Aaron. The Defenders have lost many of their family members. Sandra lost her mother and Ony his only daughter. Alfadon too lost all his family and all his relatives”
“But why would Zorath harm our family if he is really after us?” asked Aaron.
“Zorath’s plan is to destroy our families so that we back off in fear and not fight him” She looked at Aaron. “He wants to weaken us by hitting us where it hurts the most” she sighed. “Aaron, it’s easy to give up this fight, but we have to be very strong to face the Evil. We cannot let anything break us down. The fate of our world depends on us. If we back off now, the world will be destroyed and there will be no good left in this world.”
Aaron suddenly reali
zed the extent of sacrifices the Defenders had to make to fight the Evil Force. He now knew that his mother and father did the same. He wanted to stop the Dark Lord before he harmed any more innocent people. He stood up and wiped his tears away.
“You think my brother is still alive?” Aaron asked Jane.
“He could be, wolves normally do not kill small children. He was of no use to them as he is not even the first born. I think he is alive. But to know for sure, we have to go to my home town, the Witch Valley. My mother would be of great help in such matters.”
“Witch Valley? The valley of magic?” Aaron was amazed. He always thought that the valley of magic was something of a myth. He never really believed that such a place could exist.
“You will like it there, it is a place your mother used to live in” Jane was smiling now as she remembered Witch Valley. “Take some rest now, we will go there tomorrow. I will convince the others”
Jane took leave. Flynn didn’t say much as he himself felt for Aaron’s loss. He sat next to him quietly for some time. Soon, both of them went to bed, but Aaron couldn’t sleep. What if Brandon was in a bigger danger than he had expected? How did uncle die? What happened to Mrs Renn and the other helpers of the farm? Where they all hurt? His heart sank thinking about all this.
He remembered Matt. How Matt would cope up with all this. How would he tell Matt that it was because of him that uncle Sentas was no more. Aaron sat up on the bed and reached for his bag, he took out the book Matt gave him again. He wished that the book would give him some magical answers; after all, it was the Book of God. He turned pages aimlessly until he saw these words “God’s angels are always with you, protecting you and keeping you safe” Aaron wished the same for his brother, he felt that God will not abandon him or Brandon. He put the book back and went to sleep. He dreamt of angels all around Brandon, keeping him safe from big scary wolves.
“Aaron, Aaron wake up” he heard a soft voice and slowly opened his eyes to find Jane standing there all dressed up. She wore a trouser and a white shirt with a leather vest.
“We are all ready to go” she said as Aaron opened his eyes. “We are waiting for you in the dining hall” saying that Jane left the room.
