by Lisa Chitty
‘It sounds like you met the same nutter that we did,’ said Steve. ‘He said something about getting a travelling companion and that they’d be female.’
They all stood in silence for a moment.
‘Well at least he’s consistent in his fantasies.’ Randall broke the silence before regarding Abi thoughtfully. ‘Listen, I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be wandering around here alone. I think you should join us. My names Randall by the way,’ he belatedly introduced himself.
‘I’m Abi,’ she replied, offering Randall her hand.
‘Good to meet you, Abi.’ Randall shook the hand that she had offered him. ‘My two mates here are James and Steve.’ The two men nodded in acknowledgment. ‘Once we get back to our hotel, we can help you find your way back to wherever you need to go. It’s probably easier that way.’ Randall looked at Abi, waiting for her response.
She regarded him for a moment thinking about her options. Being with these guys did seem to be the lesser of two evils. ‘Alright,’ she replied. ‘It probably is better if I come along with you. That is if you guys don’t mind.’ She turned to look at James and Steve.
‘Of course we don’t mind,’ said James. ‘In this instance Randall is absolutely right. It’s not a good idea for you to be on your own round here. Besides which,’ James grinned. ‘I would never leave a damsel in distress!’
Abi smiled back at James and then turned to Steve. ‘I’m Ok with it too,’ he replied. ‘A word of warning though. Just please don’t start siding with Randall in any arguments as then we’ll be in a deadlock and he’ll automatically think that it means he’s won, It’s bad enough already that he’s our boss without making him feel even more superior.’
Abi laughed before she responded. ‘I can’t make any promises. But if I think you’re right Steve, of course I’ll side with you.’
They all started walking off in the direction that the three men had been originally going in, generally talking and laughing but thankfully not arguing. They spent most of the time trying to find out as much as they could about one another. Randall, Steve and James all worked in London for an advertising agency, working as a team, with Randall as their boss. They all had very different characters though.
Randall was the oldest of the three, being almost forty. He was also the tallest, standing well over six foot tall. As he was used to being in charge he had an authorities manner and used his height to emphasise it. His dark hair was tidy and cut short and was starting to grey at the temples. He was the only one of the three who was married and he also had two children.
James was a consummate bachelor. Slightly scruffy at the edges, his longer hair was in disarray, but that was probably down to a nervous habit of running his hand through his hair when he was thinking. He liked his single life and had no intention of changing it unless he met what he called the ‘perfect woman’ or though who she was or what would make her perfect, he didn’t seem sure. He was slow and steady and liked to think everything through before doing anything, often winding up Randall and Steve in the process.
Steve was the complete opposite. Still in his early thirties, he was a bit of a womaniser, and seemed to constantly live life on the edge. He seemed to radiate energy and didn’t enjoy standing still, he constantly wanted to be doing something and in his spare time enjoyed participating in any sport that he could. He was lean and athletic, but also self conscious. His mousy brown hair was cut in the latest style, and his clothes were from designer shops.
The three very different personalities of the men blended perfectly, enabling the three to work as a very successful team, always satisfying their clients. Whatever they wanted, one of the trio would be able to supply their needs. It also meant that they were very good friends outside of work.
Abi didn’t seem to fit in though. She lived in Devon, working as a receptionist in a family hotel on the South Devon coast. She loved her job, and delighted in making sure that the guests of the hotel didn’t want for anything. Most of the time she achieved this by charming what she wanted out of the rest of the staff at the hotel, but occasionally she would lose the temper that seemed to be the legacy of her being a redhead, to get what she wanted.
Her long copper curls were currently tumbling untidily down her back, catching the sunshine and the attention of both Steve and James. Like them, she was also single, and Steve had been quick to pick up on this, but had been rebuffed by Abi.
They had been walking for about half an hour when they realised that they were coming to the edge of the forest. The sight of clear sky had them all hurrying forward as they were all anxious to get their bearings and find out exactly where they were. As they reached the edge of the trees, they saw that they were standing on top of a small hill overlooking what appeared to be a little village.
‘Great! Civilisation at last’ was Randall’s response to the sight.
‘We’ll soon be back and I can have a shower and wash my hair,’ said Steve. ‘I feel absolutely filthy.’
‘Who cares about washing?’ James answered. ‘I want a decent hot meal and something to drink.’
Abi stood there smiling about to say what she wanted which was pretty much James’s and Steve’s responses combined, when she noticed that Randall had gone quiet and there was a slight frown on his face. ‘Randall, what’s up?’ she asked him.
He turned to look at her. ‘Look down at that village and tell me if you think anything’s wrong with what you see.’
Puzzled, Abi turned to look down the hillside. She looked for some time wondering what Randall meant but it gradually dawned on her that he was on to something. The village below wasn’t at all what she was expecting or even hoping to see.
Randall must have seen the dawning realisation on Abi’s face. ‘You can see it can’t you?’ Abi could only nod in response. ‘Well, at least you’re quicker than these two.’ He indicated James and Steve with a dismissive wave of his hand.
‘What?! It’s a village, with houses and people. Let’s just go down there and get some directions.’ Steve turned to James. ‘Come on. If we start going down there the other two will soon follow.’
They both started down the hill before Abi called out. ‘Wait!’
They turned to look at her and Steve responded. ‘Now look Abi, we did say not to side with Randall as it makes his head swell.’ Steve grinned and turned to James who was laughing.
‘But he’s right,’ Abi replied. ‘There might be houses and people down there but can’t you see what’s missing? Hasn’t the complete lack of any cars down there registered in your brains at all?’
James and Steve turned to look. ‘She’s right mate,’ James eventually said to Steve. ‘There aren’t any cars, and more than that, I can’t see any garages or driveways for any cars.’
Randall moved beside James and Steve. ‘It’s not just cars that are missing. There are no street lights, no TV aerials or satellite dishes on any of the houses. There also aren’t any electricity cables or phone lines. In fact’ Randall continued, ‘there are no signs at all down there of a civilisation that we would recognise.’
The four of them stood on the hill gazing down at the village. Where were they? Could it be true that they were no longer on their native planet?
Chapter 2
The four of them stood on the hill looking at the village for some time. They all felt uncertain and weren’t sure if they wanted to go down the hill and find out what lay in wait for them.
‘Come on.’ Randall broke the silence. ‘There’s got to be a rational explanation for all of this so let’s go down there and find out what’s going on.’ He turned to look at the rest of the group. His gaze stopped on Abi’s face. He could see that she was afraid. ‘Hey, it’ll be alright. You’ve got the three of us to protect you now. Although,’ and here he paused thoughtfully. ‘I don’t know how much help I’ll be as I have a bad back, and James here isn’t renowned for the speed at which he does things, so he won’t be able to react fast enough. So th
at just leaves Steve, but because he’s so impulsive, I don’t know how much good he’ll be!’
Abi laughed at the images this presented in her head, whilst Steve impulsiveness wasn’t a bad thing and James was declaring that he wasn’t slow at everything. He just liked to take the time to think things through.
Randall smiled. ‘There, that’s better, you’re laughing now. Are you coming?’ Randall held out his to Abi and she stepped forward and took it, for although he had proclaimed that the three of them would be useless at protecting her, she felt strangely safe with them. As she took Randall’s hand the reassurance that his touch gave her was all that she needed to accompany him down the hill. James and Steve followed behind not wanting to be left on their own.
As they entered the village Abi’s nervousness returned. Randall had let her hand go by now and she was wishing that he was still holding it. The place was totally alien to her. Now that they were down amongst the houses they could all see that wherever they were it wasn’t like any lived in town back home. None of the houses were made of brick, it almost seemed liked the walls were made of mud. They all looked small with tiny windows, glazed with imperfect glass. The street that they were on, which appeared to be the main one, wasn’t paved, it was covered in cobbles. But this was better than the side streets that appeared to be no better than the dirt tracks they had all followed in the forest.
The people who were about stared at them or ran away. Mother’s took their children’s hands and dragged them away. Those that they did see where dressed very differently from current fashions. The women had full length dresses made of some very coarse looking material on, with rough cord belts round their waists. The men appeared to be wearing something similar to tunic and hose also in a rough looking material. None of the people that they saw looked too clean either. It was like they had stepped back in time into medieval England.
Abi was walking more and more slowly as she became afraid of what was around her. When she felt a hand on her arm she nearly screamed and jumped out of her skin. Then she realised that it was just James who had touched her.
‘Come on,’ he smiled at Abi. ‘If we all stick together it will all seem much better. Safety in numbers and all that.’ He kept his hand on her and as Abi took a step towards him, he lifted her arm and tucked it under his. ‘There, that feels better doesn’t it? Now neither one of us will get left behind.’ The reassuring touch was all she needed and she was soon striding on again beside James towards Steve and Randall who had stopped to wait for them.
‘Finally. You’ve made it here at last. You certainly took your time didn’t you? This isn’t a walk in the park you know. We do have a deadline.’
The four of them froze in their tracks as they all recognized the voice. They turned as one to the direction that the voice had come from. Standing in one of the side streets, was Theldon.
‘Are you stalking us now?’ Randall demanded. ‘If so, just go away and leave us alone. We don’t need your help. We got here on our own and now we’re going to get directions to our hotel.’
‘Who are you going to ask?’ queried Theldon. ‘I don’t see anyone that appears willing to assist you.’
Randall turned away from Theldon and went towards the person nearest him. As he took a few strides towards them, the man turned tail and fled. ‘Hey, come back’ Randall called after him. When the man took no notice, Randall looked back at Theldon. ‘I’ll try someone else.’ Randall walked towards a knot of people standing on the corner. As they realised that he was coming over to them, they all went off in different directions. This happened several times before Randall gave up and came back to where James, Steve and Abi were standing.
‘You tried, mate,’ Steve told him. ‘But I think they’re scared of us. I mean, look at us, we don’t exactly fit in with the locals do we?’ Steve gestured to himself and the clothes that he was wearing, which reflected the latest trends on the high street.
Randall looked around him and shook his head. ‘So, what? We trust this nutter do we?’ Randall indicated Theldon. ‘You think that he’s going to be able to give us directions?’
‘Well, so far he is the only person who appears willing to talk to us. We could give him a try and if we don’t like it we can carry on and find another town, where maybe the inhabitants will be friendlier.’ Steve shrugged his shoulders as if he wasn’t that bothered.
‘James, I suppose you’re going to side with Steve aren’t you? You usually do.’
‘I do think Steve has a valid point. Theldon does at least appear willing to assist us.’ James then turned to Abi. ‘It’ll be alright, I don’t think he wants to harm us.’ He still had Abi’s arm tucked into his and he gripped it slightly firmer as if to reassure her.
Abi turned to look at Theldon. ‘I think you’re right James, he won’t hurt us. I trust him.’
Randall looked at them in amazement. ‘Have you three lost every ounce of sense that you ever had? He’s delusional! He thinks that we’re on another planet! How on earth is he going to be able to help us?’
‘If you’d like to follow me I’ll take you to my home and you can freshen up and have something to eat and drink.’ Theldon turned around and went down the side street that he had been standing in. James, Steve and Abi immediately followed him.
‘Oh, come on now, this is ridiculous! You’re just going to go into his house? Who knows what he’s got in there, or what he’ll do when he’s got you inside.’ Randall stood on the main street yelling after his friends. ‘Guys, this is a really bad idea, now come back here and we can do something more sensible! Guys! Guys?’ Randall began to realise they had no intention of going back to him and were leaving him standing in the middle of the street on his own. ‘Oh for God’s sake!’ he sighed. ‘I suppose I’d better come too, you’ll only get into trouble otherwise.’ He swore and then walked after them to Theldon’s house.
Theldon’s house was no different in appearance to any other they had seen in the village. It was compact and Randall and James had to duck their heads as they went in. Inside it was just one large room with a ladder going up to a sleeping loft. There was a fire in the hearth with a bubbling pot over it from which came a tantalising aroma.
‘Sit, sit.’ Theldon urged them. ‘You’re probably starving and could do with some food. If you’ll just give me a moment I’ll dish the stew up and you can tuck in.’
The four of them went over to the wooden table in the centre of the room and sat down at one of the chairs. The table was just big enough for the five chairs that were arranged round it, almost as though Theldon had been expecting four visitors. He served up the stew deftly and poured water for them all. The food tasted great and even Randall seemed to lose his misgivings at this point, as he tucked in as heartily as the rest of them. However, once he had satisfied some of his hunger, Randall soon became his demanding self again.
‘Right,’ he declared. ‘I think an explanation is in order. That is if you can actually separate fantasy from reality.’
‘Randall! Give him a break, he has just fed us after all.’
Randall turned to look at James. ‘Typical! Just like you to think of nothing but your stomach. I suppose you’re looking for dessert now are you?’
James decided to ignore the sarcasm. ‘Well, something sweet right now would be nice, but I don’t want to impose on Theldon’s hospitality.’
Randall shook his head in disgust and turned back to Theldon. ‘Well?’
‘If you’re willing to listen, I’ll explain.’ Theldon settled himself more comfortably in his chair. ‘By the way congratulations on completing your first task. Although it wasn’t too hard.’
Steve frowned. ‘First task?’
‘I think Theldon is referring to the fact that we found one another and travelled here together. We are meant to be a party of four aren’t we?’ Abi turned to Theldon for confirmation.
‘Yes. It’s been written for some time that four strangers, three men and one woman would come here in t
he fight against evil. And now, here you are, just as it was foretold.’ Theldon grinned round at all of them.
‘Here we go,’ groaned Randall. ‘He’s plainly in a world of his own, so I think it’s time to go now. We gave him a chance like you wanted, now let’s get out of here.’ Randall rose to go, but forgot his height and the lowness of the ceiling and hit his head on a beam. ‘Ouch!’ Randall sat back down quickly, clutching his head and began cursing.
‘Oh do be quiet,’ Steve requested. ‘It’s your own fault you banged your head and whilst you get over it we’re going to listen to what Theldon has to tell us.’
Randall glowered at Steve but subsided.
Theldon resettled himself and then spoke. ‘It wasn’t always like this round here you know. People never used to be so afraid. There was a time when you would have been welcomed no matter what you looked like. However, the Baron’s ancestors changed all that. We used to have a Royal Family. King Raydon and Queen Alissandra were on the throne and they ruled well. They were very popular monarchs. Yes, there were taxes then and occasionally there was drought or the crops didn’t do that well but on the whole it was a very peaceful time.
But some people weren’t satisfied, didn’t think that our King and Queen were suitable to rule and thought that someone else could do better. It began quietly. A small rebellion here and there, hardly enough to take any notice of. Everyone failed to notice the one thing linking them all together. All the rebellions were lead by a Baron Hurlon. He had a large parcel of land on the edge of the Kingdom but it wasn’t enough to satisfy him. He was a hard and cruel master as well and if any of his staff did anything wrong, he had them whipped. If he was feeling particularly vindictive he would do the whipping himself!
Anyway, he thought the whole Kingdom should be run how he ran his land. Said there would be more profit to be gained if there was a harder taskmaster in charge and that the surrounding Kingdoms would then take more notice of Trelyssia. He gradually gained more and more support until he had enough people for a large army. When he realised he had the force that he needed he starting planning his conquest. He waited until the night of the Summer Festival knowing that because of the celebration there would be a minimum amount of guards on duty. He and his army attacked the castle, dragged the royal family from their beds and murdered the King and Queen and their children too.’
