by Owen Crane
stone on the outer wall of the corridor. She felt for a moment until she found the
tiny indentation, no bigger than the tip of her finger. Into it she placed the index
finger of her left hand, and with her right, she felt along the wall again, this time,
lower down. There it was, an identical mark, invisible to the eye. She placed her
right index finger in the second indentation and pushed. A slim slab of the white
stone swung outward from the corridor wall without a sound.
The gap in the wall was a fraction taller than Ariella in height but narrower
than her shoulders. Beyond it was a tiny stone platform, and beyond that,
nothing but the clear blue sky.
Chapter 3
Ariella stepped lightly on to the platform and moved the stone back into
place behind her. She leaned her back against the outside of the western tower
and breathed. The platform was just wide enough for her to stand on, and from
it led a series of other platforms, forming hidden steps around the outside of the
tower.
The warm sea breeze blew across her as she stood, delicately balancing, on
the thin, white stone. The secret door that she had stepped through faced due
west. All that lay before her was the Southern sea, stretching far out to the
horizon. Standing on this side of the tower meant she was hidden from view
from anyone in Lightharbour.
Being here on the outside of the palace always calmed her nerves. She took
another deep breath then skipped lightly up the stone steps that led her to the
top of the tower. The tower was capped with a stone roof, domed but easy
enough for Ariella to walk across. Surrounding it was a white stone wall that
rose to her waist. From up here she could see the whole of the city.
In the north of the city was the port from where the city got its name, and its
wealth. Ships came from all over the world. They brought with them a dizzying
range of spices and silks, gems and jewellery, weapons and wondrous animals.
Ariella loved the port, the sights and smells, the different sailors from far off
lands singing songs that would cause her heart to soar. She loved to listen to
their stories of adventures, tragedy, romance and treasure. Often she thought of
running, leaving everything and sailing off into the sun, but something had
always made her stay. Duty? Family? She didn"t know, she just knew that
Dawnhaven was her home and where she was meant to be.
Away east lay the bulk of the massive city. Almost one million people called
Lightharbour home. That was the official figures, who knew home many more
slipped unnoticed through its gates? It was by far the largest and most populous
city in Dawnhaven.
To the south and west of the tower were the Eagle Cliffs, and beyond them,
the Southern Sea. As she stood and watched, a pair of the giant sea eagles of
Lightharbour took off from their nest high on the cliffs. The birds were awe
inspiring, so powerful, so deadly and yet wonderfully graceful. Their bodies
were the size of a small horse and their great wings spread out, vast and wide.
Their silver feathers reflected the afternoon sun as they soared on the thermals,
their keen eyes looking for tuna in the sea below.
Ariella sat on the stone wall and looked out across the city. She could clearly
see the main square where this morning’s announcement had been made. The
banners of her family, House of the Eagle, could be seen fluttering in the gentle
breeze. Next to them flew the banners of the Guardians of Dawnhaven, the
golden sun rising on the green earth.
She remembered her mother first telling her about the Guardians. Of how
ever since the Rebellion and the dividing of Dawnhaven into the five Kingdoms,
the Guardians had been the protectors of the Island, the thin line of unity that
bound the Kingdoms together and reminded them of their common past and
their shared future.
Her mother would tell her stories of Vantor, the Lord Guardian, the greatest
warrior of Dawnhaven and master of the Light. How he was there in the final
battle of the Rebellion, when Diatus’ armies were destroyed. He was with Queen
Lucia, Ariella"s grandmother, when she paid the ultimate price to drive back the
shadow beasts.
Ariella"s favourite stories were always of Elsa Leaina, the Guardian"s Master
of Arms. Elsa, the Lioness, strong, fierce and graceful. She would make her
mother tell her tales of Elsa over and over again.
Maybe I’ll finally get to meet her.
The reality of that sent her into a mild panic.
I might meet her! Do Sojourners meet her on the first year of the Journey? Surely
not, she’s going to be way too busy with the fourth and fifth years. I’ll not meet her for a while. Excellent, plenty of time before I make a total idiot of myself.
Ariella smiled and shook her head.
Get a grip Ari, you’re not even on the Journey and you’re already planning your
moment of great embarrassment in front of Elsa. First of all you have to get out of the palace without your mother locking you in the dungeon.
She stuffed her hands deep into the pockets of her black trousers and drew
her shoulders in close. Her default posture when dealing with sadness she
couldn’t control. Unconsciously her fingers felt for the Echo Orbs. The
unthinking moving of them through her fingers seemed to calm her down. But
not today.
The fingers in her left pocket quickly found the marble sized orb and began
passing it from one finger to the next. But her right fingers found nothing. She
dug down into the deep corners of her pockets, slowly at first, but then
frantically searching for her missing orb. She grabbed the inner lining of her
pocket and pulled it inside out trying desperately to find her missing treasure.
Nothing.
Where is it?
She started searching the rooftop, pacing back and forth trying to retrace her
exact footsteps.
Nothing.
The corridor.
She jumped the low stone wall and ran down the steps to the hidden door.
She paused for a moment with her ear to the stone. Silence. She quickly found
the small holes on the outer wall, pulled open the door and slipped inside. Her
eyes scanned the corridor, hoping to find a glimpse of the orb, hoping it had
rolled into the corner of the narrow passage.
Nothing
Not good Ariella. Not good at all. Where is it? Where did I drop it?
Absent-mindedly she put her hands into the left pocket, her fingers closing
on the remaining orb. She gasped. The orb was, ever so gently, humming.
Someone’s talking.
Swiftly she pulled out the orb and placed it to her ear.
“I’ve lost her, what am I going to do?”
It was her mother’s voice, but different. There was deep sadness, something
Ariella had never heard before. She felt her throat tighten and tears spring in her
eyes.
She’s talking about me.
“She is not lost.” It was Hakeem, his deep voice soft and melodic.
“How can you say that? She’s going on The Journey. People die on The
Journey! Even if she survives she’ll be a Guardian, she’ll no longer be part of my
House.”
“She will always be your d
aughter. Being a Guardian will never change
that.”
There was a long pause. Ariella held the Echo Orb closer to her ear.
Where is it, where did I drop it?
She tried to retrace the events of the last hour.
I felt it after I threw the dragon book at the twins. I’m sure it was in my pocket when the gargoyle brought Hakeem’s gift. Where then? They’ve never fallen out on their own before.
Then she realised. That moment in the library when she had shouted at her
mother. She remembered her hands flying from her pockets, fists clenched. She
was so angry. Moments before she had been spinning the orb in her fingers.
The orb must’ve fallen when I pulled my hands out. It’s still in the library.
“When did you know?” It was her mother again. There was no anger in her
voice now, just sadness
“Late last year, just as the selection began.”
“How did you find out? The selection is secret, no one is supposed to know
until today, until the announcement.” The Queen’s voice cracked and Ariella
thought she heard the soft sound of her mother’s tears.
“You didn"t tell me.” The Queen, spoke softly.
“No.”
“Why?”
Hakeem sighed. Ariella felt for him. She knew when she went forward for
selection that Hakeem was going to find out. She was sure that there was little
that went on in Lightharbour without him finding out. It seemed to her that
Hakeem was on first name terms with the whole city; nobles at court, traders in
the markets, and especially the sailors on the docks. On top of that, Hakeem had
a way with the gargoyles and the gargoyles seemed to be able to get anywhere.
The gargoyles of Lightharbour were not like ordinary gargoyles. They
moved. Not all of them, but enough. It was the day after the end of the
Rebellion. Queen Lucia had sacrificed herself to destroy the shadow beasts and
had scattered the Light across the entire of Dawnhaven. Somehow, some of it
had found its way into some of the gargoyles and they, ever so slowly, came to
life. The initial shock of seeing stone carvings jumping across the city roofs
settled down after a few months. Now they were included as just another piece
of the wonderful colour that makes up Lightharbour.
“She is growing up my Queen. She chooses her own path.”
“A path away from Lightharbour, from her responsibilities, from me.”
“Yes.” Hakeem paused. “There is something different about Ariella.
Something I cannot see, cannot predict. Whatever you say or do now, I do not
believe that you can convince her to stay. She is going to leave for Trevena
tomorrow.”
“And then what?” The anger had returned to the Queen"s voice now.
“You have a city to rule. And the boys will need you more than ever. Soon
Osias is going to realise that with Ariella as a Guardian, he"s next in line to the
throne. I think there may by some power struggles between your sons that will
need your influence.”
Ariella heard the queen try to suppress her laugh.
She heard movement, then footsteps. Her mother’s? Then there was silence
again. She held her breath trying to hear the slightest sound from the library.
“What did I say?”
Ariella nearly jumped out of her skin. It was Hakeem"s voice, loud and clear
through the orb.
He must be holding it to his lips!
“Meet me in the garden, if you would be so kind, Your Highness”
It was spoken as a request but Ariella was already moving out of the corridor
and down the long winding stairs towards the palace gardens. Hakeem spoke to
her like no one else and she found herself responding to him differently to
anyone else. After her father died, he had been a constant in her life. There had
been many times over the past years when she had needed his strength, his
wisdom, his courage and his joy. She responded to Hakeem because he had
proved, time and again, that he loved her deeply and wanted the best for her. It
meant that he encouraged her when she was down, praised her when she
succeeded and corrected her when she went astray.
Ariella walked slowly through the palace, careful to avoid as many people as
possible. She found one of the many side doors that led out to the vast palace
gardens. The sun had started to sink in the afternoon sky but the garden was
warm and the honey bees flew lazily through the air seeking nectar. The fruit in
the trees was beginning to grow after the spring blossom had fallen. Oranges,
olives, pomegranates and pineapples all grew in the palace gardens. But
Ariella’s favourite was passion fruit. She craved it almost as much as the
chocolate brought in on the trade ships.
She avoided the formal path of the main gardens, with its fountains,
sculptures and topiary. Instead she turned to the west and followed a smaller
path heading to the edge of the garden. In the middle of the long outer garden
wall was a small gap. Through the gap was a stunning sun terrace perched
precariously, over hanging the Eagle Cliffs. The view was spectacular. To the
north and south Ariella could see the massive sea cliffs stretching out for miles.
She could see the eyries of the nesting eagles and some of the great birds soaring
high in the clear blue sky.
To the west was the Southern Sea, calm as a mill pond today, hardly a ripple
on the surface. She loved the sea, stretching out for miles before her. It never
ceased to amaze her how one day it looked like it would shatter like glass if you
dipped your toe into it. Yet other days it could swallow the grandest ships in the
navy, gone, smashed to pieces by the brutality of the swell.
This was Ariella"s favourite place in the garden. Whether it was the view,
the sense of freedom, the privacy or the closeness of the passion fruit vines, she
didn"t know. Maybe all of them. All she knew is that here, she smiled, always.
When Hakeem said to meet her in the garden, she knew this is where he
meant. He was already waiting for her, standing on the edge of the terrace. His
eyes fixed on an eagle flying over the sea, hunting for an early supper for the
chicks in the nest. He turned at her approached and smiled his wide, infectious
smile. The whiteness of his teeth stood in contrast to the dark brown of his skin.
The many lines across his face creased deeper with the breadth of his smile. His
„happy lines" he called them. He would tell Ariella that lines are a sign of a life
well lived, full of laughter, friends and adventures.
He spread his strong arms wide and Ariella dove into them, burying her face
in the magnificent silk scarf that wrapped around his head and several times
around his neck. Nowhere in Dawnhaven produces silk like this. Hakeem told
her it was from his birth place, many miles across the sea. The silk was soft, a
pale green emblazoned with a thousand golden flowers she didn"t recognise.
He held her close for a long time. She always felt safe in his arms. He led
her to a pair of intricate chairs facing out to sea. They sunk into the soft cushions
and breathed in the fresh sea air.
“Well child, you"ve caused quite a stir.”
Ariella squirmed in her chair under Hakeem"s heavy gaze.
/> “Is she going to be okay?”
“She will be. In time.” Hakeem kept his eyes on Ariella. She dropped hers
to the white stone terrace.
“Did you forget what I wrote in the note?”
“No. It"s just… I got angry. She was being so unreasonable, she was treating
me like a child”
“Unreasonable?”
“Yes!” Ariella said that a little more forcibly than she intended.
Hakeem said nothing. He kept his intense brown eyes on Ariella. She tried
to meet them but had to keep looking away.
She was unreasonable! Wasn’t she? I don’t know anymore. She was treating me a
like a child, she said I couldn’t go, but I am going, it’s all I’ve ever wanted. Surely she can see that?
Ariella paused for a moment, Hakeem"s eyes were searching her, looking for
some response.
“Maybe, I could"ve spoken to her before…”
“Before? Before it was announced to the whole of the city. Is that what you
mean?”
“Yes.” Her shoulders dropped, her chin rested on her chest.
“She loves you child, much more than you realise. She was shocked by the
announcement and angered by the manner in which it was done. Grace was
needed. Did you treat her graciously?”
Ariella felt the tears well in her eyes. She spoke just above a whisper.
“I was angry. I told her grandmother would"ve let me go”
It was Hakeem"s turn for his shoulders to drop.
“My dear child, you are your father"s daughter. You have a soul of
adventure and people will follow you, but you have much to learn. We do not
treat people with grace because they deserve it; we treat them with grace because
it is the best for our own heart. Your heart is beautiful Ariella, guard it, guard it
with everything you have.”
Hakeem paused.
“And what have I told you about the Echo Orbs and spying on your
mother?”
“It was an accident! It fell out when I was shouting at her. I was holding on
to the orbs when we were arguing and then I got so mad. I pulled my hands out
of my pockets and it fell out. I didn"t notice, neither did she, we were so busy
yelling at each other. I"ve never used it to spy on her, I promise.” She realised
she was pleading now, needing Hakeem to believe her. She didn"t want his last
memory of her, before she left, to be about this.
