by Jem I Kelley
The murals use of strong colours caused giant images to leap at Aden. He saw figures with red marks on foreheads talking to a crowd of sumptuously clothed people; a wondrous city of canals and towers; a roaring comet in the sky; a barren desert with a huge sun; a city exploding; a settlement beneath huge cliffs; a devastated and barren city.
The pictures told a story, although the nature of it was unclear. As he inspected the murals closely he saw Disc-Artefact use, and stone circles.
“The Amari are mixed up in whatever is going on here.”
Bliss took her eyes away from the mural of the devastated city.
“They seem to have their fingers in a lot of pies. You know, it’s nice and cool in here.”
Indeed the air was moist and cool, and the gurgling noise in the centre of the room probably was the cause.
Aden stared at the wooden vat from which the splashing noise came. It occupied most of the interior of the room, which made it about the size of the Todd’s house. Strange bands held its slats together.
A wooden ladder ran up its side, and Aden climbed this. When he reached the top he found himself looking down at darkness. Waves of cool air rose from this mini-lake.
Above the barrel hung two objects, looking to Aden like drinking horns of the type Novogoradians used, only considerably larger.
Runes covered the horns and they glowed with a dim light reminiscent of the sticks used to light the room. From the horns streams of water fell.
Aden turned towards Bliss.
“It’s one big barrel of water.”
Bliss let Aden climb down, then inspected the top of the barrel herself.
“They must be magic. They’re hanging from cords, there’s no way water should be able to come out of them. What with those light sticks too; it must mean these people have sorcery.”
He glanced down at the open door and held the Disc-Artefact ready.
“Wherever those people are.”
Aden moved to the shuttered windows, “This whole place is odd. It’s not like any of the other artefact worlds found so far.”
Bliss climbed down the ladder and came beside Aden.
“If we could get hold of a few sheets of the glass we’d make a handful of silver, I reckon.”
At the bottom of the water barrel a brass tap protruded. Aden went to it. Near the tap were buckets, watering cans, and urns: all the equipment needed to move the water to the glasshouses.
He pointed towards the ceiling.
“Let’s check out the dome.”
They returned to the outside, and the burning heat, and scanned the area for movement. Nothing. Where was everyone, wondered Aden? Could a disaster have hit the place? If so, of what nature, and were he and Bliss in danger? He glanced back, feeling relief to see the Disc-Artefact in his friend’s grip.
The two of them climbed the stone block staircase on the outside of the building and found themselves on its roof beside the dome. The dome was two-thirds the size of the building it sat on, allowing space for piling of the goods which would be lifted and lowered with the hoist and pulley.
As Aden approached a door in the side of the dome, he noticed the whole dome structure was wooden; it had wheels on its base which rested on a metal track and was composed of two halves: with one half being slightly larger than the other. It appeared one half of the dome could slide behind the other part, leaving a large area open to the elements.
The door into the dome had no lock. Aden knocked on the door, and when there was no reply, he entered.
The interior held shadows, and Bliss wedged the door ajar to allow light in. Aden saw shapes in the centre and approached them. He gasped at what he saw.
“Look at this!”
It was a stone circle, a smaller version of the one on the mountainside. Along the perimeter of the circle lay a narrow stone wall on which lay discs, placed in indents about a foot apart.
“Discs,” said Bliss greedily, “lots of the beggars!”
Her eyes glowed.
“These’ll be worth a fortune, Aden. Discs! Even Kurt and Sally never found artefacts on the worlds they visited.”
Bliss did a little jig, and Aden watched, too stunned to celebrate. This world had its own Discs! No disc-world ever had its own discs! Bliss was right, this might be a treasure beyond treasures! The bards would clamour for a story like this!
The friends explored the small circular wall. Aden noticed beside each artefact a map was carved into the stone. Each map was the same except for the jewels. Each had three jewels embedded in it. The position of the scarlet jewel differed on each map.
He traced his finger across a map feeling the smooth of the finished stone alternate with the rough bas-relief depiction of mountain ranges: “No ocean, just mountain and plain. I think the map is of this world. Look here. A blue jewel is always on the edge of this mountain range and near it, a yellow jewel.”
Bliss joined Aden, and stared at the map.
“Do you think the blue jewel shows the positions of the stone circle we arrived at, and the yellow jewel, the dome?”
“Must be.”
Bliss looked at the other maps and said. “The red jewel is in a different place each time. This dome thing must be all about discs, and the red jewels, I think, are where each artefact travels to.”
Aden realised what was unusual about this.
“That would mean the artefacts in this dome travel to different parts of the same world. Not to other worlds like the artefacts from Haverland.”
Bliss lifted one Disc-Artefact from the plinth and turned it over in her hands.
“It looks like our artefact. Got a funny pattern, the brass button, the safety dots.
Bliss lowered it to the indent it rested upon.
“Perhaps no people are around because they all live where the red jewels are?”
Aden walked around the stone table, peering at the maps again.
“Maybe, but why not just grow their crops where they live?”
“Don’t know. I wonder if the other settlements have their own domed buildings and their own artefact discs?”
Aden felt a surge of excitement.
“That would be a lot of discs!”
Bliss’s posture coiled with excitement as she pointed at an artefact on the plinth. “Perhaps these people know how to spot a good artefact from a bad artefact without having to risk their lives? Perhaps they can even make artefacts. Let’s try this one and go to another one of their settlements.”
“That’d be stealing.”
Bliss rolled her eyes.
“I said use it, not take it, wimp.”
Aden ran his finger along the edge of the artefact beside him. Who knew what sort of danger they could drop themselves into by pressing the button on one of these? Who knew what sort of creatures ran this world. It might be Amari, or it might be dwarves, or it might be something else again. Even if it were Amari, who could say they’d be friendly?
“No. I think we’ve done enough for today.”
Bliss swung round.
“Kurt would have tried one of these artefacts. He would have wanted to know what the other alien towns were like.”
“Sally would have been patient,” replied Aden, “Took time to think things through before using someone else’s artefact. Look, come on, Bliss, we have to take our exploring one step at a time.”
“Why?”
Aden sighed, and then an argument occurred to him which he thought Bliss would listen to.
“We’ve been gone from Haverland at least six hours, probably eight or nine. If we’re really unlucky we’ve been gone a lot longer than. It’s difficult to tell without a normal sun in the sky. If we get back late, we might have to explain were we’ve gone. If anyone but your granddad finds out we’ve got a working disc, they’ll stop us using it.
Bliss’s face fell.
“There is that. But that means we’ll never be able to use these discs, it takes so long to get here we won’t have enough hours.”
“Not true. We won’t stop at the tower next time, and we’ll take shorter rest breaks. Maybe we can make a small sun dial to bring with us next time, to work out what the time is when we're exploring?”
Bliss’s smiled weakly, and shrugged.
“Okay. Sounds good to me. Let’s go home then.”
Aden took a last look at the interior of the dome and put his finger on the artefact Bliss held out. “Ready?”
“Yep.”
Bliss pressed the button.
Chapter 49: Blissaden
Granddad Todd lay on the bench snoring when the friends re-appeared. Their movements woke him. He snorted and blinked, then massaged life back into his face.
“Ere, it can’t be tea-time yet, what’s happened?”
Aden saw Bliss glaring at him.
“What time is it?”
Granddad Todd walked to the corner of the roof from where he could just make out the clock on the Town Hall.
“Just gone three O’clock. You got almost two hours left.
Aden met Bliss’s accusing gaze and shrugged.
“I just thought it best to come back now.”
“Why?” asked Granddad Todd.
“Well… we could have used another Disc-Artefact but it we didn’t know how much time we had left. So we thought we’d come back.”
Granddad Todd's face registered shock.
“Another disc! What you on about Aden, lad?”
The friends started their tale from when they’d arrived on the stone circle. Soon they’d told about the long walk down the stairs and the even longer journey on the valley floor. Within minutes they’d begun to explain the abandoned tower.
“Never mind towers, what about the green squares?” said Granddad Todd with a flick of his hand. “What is it a garden in the desert, or a forest perhaps? Do elves live there, or gnomes? That’ll be it, won’t it, gnomes?”
Bliss looked at his granddad blankly.
“Forests and gardens, what are you on about?”
“The green squares.”
“They’re crops inside big glass covered sheds.”
“Crops inside glass!”
“Yeah.”
“Elven crops, gnome crops?”
Bliss shrugged
“Stuffed if we know, no-one was around to ask. It might have been red dragon’s crops for all we know.”
Aden rummaged inside his haversack and lifted up something which looked like a cross between an apple and a radish.
“We brought back some fruit we found.”
Granddad Todd waved his hand in dismissal.
“Show me later. I’m more interested in who grew these things. Didn’t you see no one?”
“No.”
“Those plants didn’t grow themselves.”
The friends told him about the building with the magical water horns, and the vat they filled. Then they told him about the dome above and the artefacts it contained. All proof that somewhere, there were people of some sort.
Granddad Todd’s eyes gradually widened until they were like saucers.
“Jumping crickets whatever will you tell me next?”
Aden grinned
“That’s about it. It’s not Adventurine, is it?”
Granddad Todd chuckled and slapped his thigh.
“No, it’s not. No rain for a start. It’s a damn good adventure though, eh kids?”
They agreed. If he’d wanted to find a great world, thought Aden, he couldn’t have asked for anything better than this.
Granddad Todd’s lips pressed together before he spoke.
“So where are the gardeners?”
“Perhaps they all live elsewhere, and use Disc-Artefacts to visit the glass-houses,” suggested Aden.
“Seems a bit of an odd thing to do.”
“Or…” said Aden, another idea coming to him, “Perhaps they sleep during the day, and come out at night.”
Granddad Todd clicked his fingers. “That could be it! It’ll be a lot cooler at night. It makes sense for a people who live in a really hot desert to try to avoid the worst heat as much as possible. Your next expedition will have to start in the evening, late evening. You’ll get an easier journey and stand a chance of catching the gardeners then.”
Bliss leaned back and put her hands behind her head.
“I’d rather sneak back during the day and use one of those Disc-Artefacts.”
“Don’t be silly,” said Granddad Todd. “You have to learn as much about the glass-house settlement before you explore anywhere else. Don’t you agree, Aden?”
Aden turned his head to see Bliss giving him an irritated stare, and decided to be humble. It had been the extreme heat which had led to their disagreements, he thought, more than anything else. It’d been hotter on that world than Dazarian even. Now, as the relatively cool air of the Haverland afternoon lapped deliciously around him, Aden felt a sense of calm return.
“I’m more excited by Bliss’s idea, but I think you’re right Mr Todd. We have to do this scientifically.”
Bliss folded her arms and pouted.
“If it’s to be night travel,” said Aden. “We could use the stars to keep our direction. I expect that’s what Sally and Kurt did.”
“Dunno about that. I’ll have to think about it,” said Granddad Todd.” When you going anyway? Next Friday night?”
Bliss sighed sullenly.
“Yes, I suppose so.”
Aden just nodded.
“Now these other discs,” said Granddad Todd, “The ones in the dome. How do you know they only went to other places on this... have you got a name for the world yet?”
“We couldn’t decide.”
“How about you call it Blissaden?”
The friends exchanged looks. Usually, thought Aden, worlds were given names that indicated the character of the place, but not always. A combination of both their first names, Blissaden, sounded good.
Bliss’s petulant expression gave way to a smile: “Blissaden. I like the sound of that. Alicia would hate it.”
“These artefacts ...” said Granddad Todd.
Aden settled back on the bench. With the excitement fading, he realised his legs felt like jelly. He tried to focus on Granddad Todd’s words, as sleepiness crept up on him too.
“Tell me more about those artefacts.”
“We knew where they went because of the maps.”
“What maps?”
Aden explained the maps, and the different coloured dots and the arrangement of the Disc-Artefacts.
“What about the filling of the water barrel. You sure it was magic?”
Aden described again what the inside of that part of the building beneath the dome looked like. He looked to Bliss for confirmation; and saw his friends eyelids fluttering, the expedition had certainly drained them of energy! Aden tried to continue with his description.
“Water poured out of the horns, Mr Todd. It couldn’t have been anything else but sorcery, because the horns were hanging from the ceiling.”
Granddad Todd whistled and shook his head.
“Sorcerers on a dry world… How come the Amari didn’t ban sorcery there?”
Aden shrugged.
“Got a real mystery world,” said Granddad Todd. “We’ll have to have a good think about this. Think about what it means and whether it’s safe for you to go back there at all. Don’t you agree, Bliss…? Bliss?”
Chapter 50: The Damaged Market
“Yer don’t go flapping around like that,” said Granddad Todd, “when you’ve got stomach poisoning.”
Bliss had her hands on knees as she squatted and watched the creature.
“Maisie looks healthy to me.”
It was morning the day after their expedition and the three of them watched a stout hen with black plumage squawk and flutter.
Granddad Todd swooped her up, inspected her eyes and beak. “Yes, this one’ll be laying eggs for a long time yet.”
He offered her a handful of grain.
Maisie stabbed at the food. Nearby, Rupert the rooster flapped, with what looked to Aden like indignation.
The previous night they’d offered Maisie the berries from one of the red cobs brought back from Blissaden. She’d pecked at them like she did at anything else which looked like food.
Granddad Todd lowered the hen to the surface of the roof.
“Just because Maisie’s not sick doesn’t mean we can boil the other the cob and have them with the roast dinner.”
“Why not?”
Granddad Todd seemed surprised.
“It needs testing on humans. I’ll eat one of they berries later and see how it goes. One shouldn’t give me much more than a stomach ache at most. If I’m okay, I’ll try a few more. If that don’t give me the squirties then we’re probably safe eating the alien’s fruit.”
“I can’t see how it’s going to be any good to us even if we can eat their crops,” said Bliss. “I mean, it’s not like they can grow loads and loads to sell us. They only have a few greenhouses and it’s not as if they can grow anything outside in the desert.”
Aden thought about the alien’s limited growing space. Bliss was right. Even if there was a demand for the exotic vegetables and fruit in Haverland, the alien gardeners wouldn’t be able to supply much. Somewhere, a trade deal must exist, he thought. That would lead to money. Money would allow him and Bliss to give up working on the market and become proper Disc-Men. As proper Disc-Men they could explore to their heart’s content. Also, they’d be able to buy a lovely big house for Bliss’s parents and grandparents; not to mention Aden would be able to bring his parents back to Haverland. If the bugbears leave Ice Holm alone – he pushed down the last thought which crept into his mind, and focussed on possible trade with the mysterious owners of the glasshouses.
“Perhaps, because they haven’t got loads of growing space, we could trade the other way round? We grow their crops over here and sell them back to the aliens? They could pay us with gold or gems.”
Bliss clicked her fingers.
“I like that idea.”
“Got to be careful about growing over here,” said Granddad Todd. “I expect they teach about it in the Disc-Man Academy these days. Of course, you friends don’t go to the academy, do you.”
