CHAPTER ELEVEN
Eben slept well that night for the first time in many nights. They left the cleared area and rode quickly toward the enormous mountains ahead. Ominous dark clouds filled the sky above, but there was no wind or rain. Kiarn and Gasta led the way through the wilderness, and the craggy slopes slowly started to become significant foothills. All the other forest creatures had left their company overnight. They turned to the west and came upon the Merus River once again. The river gushed down from the hills above. The company found an old path that followed along beside the riverbank. The path was carved from the rocks and wound a way through the hills ever upward toward the towering snow-capped mountains above.
‘This path leads directly to the Northern Pass,’ said King Ignis, staring sternly upward to the mountains above. ‘The Northern Pass was once a well-travelled way to Scaldonia. Many knights and wizards tried to vanquish the draug; none of them ever returned. This is a cursed way.’
‘Draugs often try to trap their prey. It has long been said that they flee from the goodhearted,’ said Baftel. ‘The draug will attack our weaknesses. They are ghostly wraiths that prey on the innocent creatures of our world. The draug of the Northern Pass is said to be very powerful, a dark shadow from the Forgotten Age.’
‘Can you see the draug with your powers, Baftel?’ asked Meara as they proceeded along the path.
‘When I look toward the Northern Pass all I see is an image of myself staring back at me. It is like looking into a mirror. I have never seen this vision before,’ replied Baftel.
They rode onwards, following the path up into the mountains. Eben stared up at the enormous icy peaks that rose high into the clouds above. The path led them along the base of a valley. At the far side of the valley they reached a wide stairway that was carved from the rock and ascended for hundreds of yards directly up the side of a great mountain. Each step was big enough for a horse to stand on, being over thirty feet wide and twenty feet in length.
‘These stairs are called the Sky Steps and were built by the Ecorian Emperors in the days of old. I have always wanted to see them,’ said King Ignis, looking up with wonder. ‘At the top of the steps we will find the Astrum Chasm; that is where the draug is said to live.’
‘Kiarn and Gasta will not go any further. They say that they will honour the forged alliance with men; however, they will not go to a place of such hopelessness,’ said Meara. ‘They’re frightened for us. They sense evil above the Sky Steps, and they warn us not to proceed. An image of despair drifts down from the mountain.’
‘We are three wizards and four warriors. If we cannot defeat this draug, no one can,’ said King Ignis as he rode forward and started moving up the steps.
They followed King Ignis as he boldly ascended the Sky Steps. Eben looked back and could see the red fox and the large black wolf staring up after them. After the company had gone a short way up the fox and wolf ran off and were gone from sight. The climb was difficult for the horses, but eventually they reached the top.
Directly before them was the opening of a chasm cut between two vertical cliffs that ascended high above. The chasm was about ten feet wide at its entrance and only a pale light flowed down from above. Eben couldn’t see very far into the gloom and shadows. The path led directly between the cliff faces of two adjacent mountains. A bleak feeling of dread seemed to flow out of the darkness. The horses were anxious and didn’t want to continue. King Ignis jumped down from his horse and drew his sword.
‘We will have to lead the horses,’ he said as he took the reins and tried to pull his horse forward; the horse wouldn’t move. Cassiel tried the same; his horse also refused to go on.
‘They will not enter the chasm,’ said Meara.
‘Then we will have to kill the draug so they will,’ said King Ignis, shaking his head in frustration.
The King then turned and walked into the opening between the two cliffs, holding his sword up as he proceeded. Eben dismounted and drew his sword and followed after the King. The others weren’t far behind. The way was shadowy and full of oppressive gloom. King Ignis strode forward with confidence. Red caught up to Eben and had his own sword ready. An overwhelming smell of decay permeated their surroundings.
As they advanced the distance between the cliffs widened to about forty feet. Hundreds of feet above they could see the slight gap between the two cliffs; the faintest light drifted down from above. Eben could see an object ahead on the ground. King Ignis stopped. A few moments later Eben and Red were standing by his side. The object was the skull of a horse. Various other bones were scattered about. Cassiel reached them and a moment later the others arrived.
‘The draug is very close,’ said Baftel, his eyes scanning the rock walls of the chasm. The group looked about and could see nothing in the gloomy shadows.
‘Here, old draug,’ whispered Red, attempting to lighten the mood. A nervous smile crossed his face.
‘Let’s keep moving,’ said King Ignis. He led them forward a little further through the chasm. More and more bones were scattered across the stony ground the further they went and the smell of death grew stronger. The King stopped suddenly and seemed frozen in place.
‘What is it?’ whispered Eben, but King Ignis didn’t answer and only stared ahead and seemed to be in a trance. Eben looked back to see that the others were all frozen and staring ahead with glazed over eyes. Only Baftel was unaffected and he quickly rushed to Eben’s side.
‘Eben, listen to me,’ stammered Baftel urgently.
‘What’s going on?’ asked Eben, looking towards the King who was still frozen. His eyes darted about, searching for the hidden enemy in the shadows.
‘What you see you do not see; what you hear you do not...’ said Baftel. He didn’t finish his sentence
‘Do not what?’ asked Eben, looking back to Baftel. Baftel simply smiled. ‘Do not what, Baftel?’ repeated Eben.
Baftel pointed ahead. Eben looked further down into the chasm, and the gloom began to disappear. The area lit up with a soft warm light.
‘Down there, Eben. She is waiting for you,’ said Baftel calmly.
‘Who?’ asked Eben, feeling confused for a few moments. He looked to King Ignis, but the King was gone.
‘Go and see,’ said Baftel.
Eben stepped further along the way and could see someone approaching from up ahead. He stared as the person grew closer. She appeared to him, and he was taken aback by her exquisite beauty. Her long hair was blonde and like silk, her eyes like blue sapphires, and her skin was translucent. She was dressed in a fine flowing linen dress, and she smiled at him as she approached. Eben felt all his fears drift away as she grew nearer. Her exquisite beauty set his mind at ease.
‘Who are you?’ asked Eben softly, awestruck in her presence.
‘Eben, how is it that you don’t know me. I am your wife,’ she said. For a moment he felt confused.
‘What! My wife! Am I married?’ he asked, feeling bewildered. His mind seemed to be drifting in a cloud, and he couldn’t focus on anything but the woman in front of him.
‘Of course,’ she said as she beamed at him; her beauty was like nothing he had ever seen before. Eben looked about and saw the chasm was gone. An instant later he was standing in a field of long green grass and the sun was shining brightly. She took his arm gently.
‘We must go,’ she said as she tried to lead him away.
‘But my friends, I can’t leave them,’ he said. Her smile faded from her face for a moment.
‘Your friends are gone.’
‘Where are they?’ asked Eben, feeling the confusion was overwhelming.
‘They left you, Eben. Don’t you remember? They no longer have any need of you. You are a simple villager. Adventures should be left for heroes. Surely everything you want and need is here with me,’ she said, smiling at him reassuringly. Again she tried to lead him away.
‘They wouldn’t leave me,’ said Eben, resisting her. She looked back and frowned.
‘They had to go. They are glad you decided to leave the important things to them. You know you could never be a hero. Eben, it is your right to be here. You deserve to be here with me after all your suffering and pain. You have had such a hard and lonely life. Look at the beauty of this place. You deserve all this.’
Eben thought of Red and Stella. He thought of Cassiel, Meara, and King Ignis. He wondered why they had left him and felt deeply disturbed. He could feel his sadness growing.
‘I need to go back to them and say one last goodbye. They are my friends; I can’t desert my friends. They need me,’ said Eben.
‘You can’t go back,’ said the beautiful woman, her voice becoming firm.
‘Why?’ asked Eben, feeling his sadness growing even stronger.
‘Because your parents are waiting for us,’ she said as she tried again to take him away. Eben felt a sudden sense of joy at hearing the news and the sadness melted away.
‘My parents are here?’ he asked as he felt his happiness growing again.
‘Yes,’ she said smiling. ‘They want to see you so much. We must hurry before they leave,’ she added.
The world around him shimmered and she faded. A flickering shadow replaced her for a moment. Eben felt like he was about to wake, but a moment later she returned.
‘What was that?’ he asked as he looked about the beautiful meadow.
‘Nothing,’ she replied and smiled appealingly. ‘Absolutely nothing,’ she added, trying to reassure him.
Suddenly the shimmering happened again. Her smile quickly faded into a sneer. This time the world around Eben started to collapse and dissolve like smoke being blown away by the wind. He looked about and could see the rock walls and gloom of the chasm again.
Eben could hear the gasps and moans of the others as they all woke from the illusion. He looked back and saw they were in shock. Meara sat down and King Ignis stood looking down at the ground gravely. Baftel lay beside Eben on the ground. The old wizard had aged many years and the irises of his blue eyes were almost completely white. His hair had also become as white as snow.
‘Eben...’ he muttered. ‘Eben,’ he repeated in a soft and weak voice.
‘I’m here, Baftel. What happened?’ He took Baftel’s hand and helped him to sit up. Meara came to their side and had regained her composure.
‘I vanquished the draug. It fled into the mountains and is now little more than a harmless shadow,’ said Baftel with a croaky and weak voice. ‘But it took much of my life essence and my eyes. I will never see again.’
‘What happened?’ asked Meara calmly.
‘The draug set a trap for us. It tried to lead us into an illusion of what it believed was the fulfilment of our deepest desires. My ability to see beyond such lies saved me from falling into the illusion. I didn’t have time to warn you properly. My will locked with the will of the draug in a fight to the death. I had to sacrifice much of my life force to defeat the monster. I had to show I was prepared to lose something of myself to save you; it was the only way I could overcome the draug.’
‘Then you saved us,’ said Meara. King Ignis walked over and joined them. ‘Baftel destroyed the draug.’
‘You did well, Baftel,’ said King Ignis as he knelt beside the frail old man and tried to help him to stand up. ‘Never have I seen such things as the things I have just seen.’
‘What did you see?’ asked Eben.
King Ignis looked at Eben with deep sadness in his eyes. ‘I can’t speak of what I saw,’ he replied sorrowfully. ‘We should move on from this cursed place.’
The company slowly recovered from the dream illusions of the draug. They collected their horses from the southern entrance to the chasm and then moved along the way heading north toward Scaldonia.
**
The chasm opened onto a stone platform that was about a hundred foot wide and long. The view of the mountains was magnificent. They could see the Kingdom of Scaldonia in the distance. A vast plain extended as far as they could see. A stairway, much like the Sky Steps they had ascended, led down the far side of the mountains. The company said very little. The trauma of being offered such temptations had shocked and tested them all.
‘We will be in Scaldonia soon,’ said King Ignis. ‘From there we will ride quickly to intercept my army before they attack Orelin. I hope we are not too late.’
The day was slowly drifting into night. They found a place to camp in a valley between two mountains. Cassiel and Meara managed to make a fire from magic alone as there was no wood to burn in the mountains, and the night was icy cold. They sat around the warm fire in silence and rested. Baftel was now dependent on others to lead him onward.
They rested that night and very little was said. The following morning the sky was blue and there were fewer clouds. They all felt like a shadow had passed, and a renewed hope grew in their hearts. They set off and by midday the pass was leading them out of the mountains. Lush grass plains stretched out into the distant horizon. Scaldonia looked to be mostly flat with few trees.
They came out of the mountains and into the plain. King Ignis increased the pace. Baftel’s frail condition kept them from galloping; at best they could move at a slow canter. The King was growing impatient.
‘My army will be moving ever closer to Orelin.’
‘You should ride ahead,’ said Meara. ‘Baftel is in no condition to move so quickly. I will stay here with him and come to meet with you at Orelin.’
‘I don’t want to leave you here alone on these cold plains, yet I fear that if we do not ride like the wind our mission will be in vain.’
‘I will stay behind with Meara and Baftel,’ said Stella.
‘So will I,’ said Red, obviously not wanting to go ahead without Stella.
‘And you, Eben?’ asked King Ignis.
‘I will come with you,’ said Eben.
‘I’ll also go with you, Your Highness,’ said Cassiel. ‘If we ride quickly we will reach Orelin in a matter of days.’
‘Good. We will take the three fastest horses and ride as quickly as we can. If everything goes to plan we will meet with the four of you in Orelin.’
They all agreed to the plan and exchanged horses. The swiftest steeds were given to the King’s company. The three of them then rode out across the flat grass plain, galloping into the northwest. For many miles they rode at a dashing pace.
‘No hills, just horizon,’ said Cassiel. He stared out into the distance. The flat plain stretched onwards as far as they could see with nothing but grass.
‘Only Scaldonian nomads live in these cold grasslands. I admire them for making their lives out of this bleak land,’ said King Ignis, his strong dark eyes scanning the distance.
They continued riding as quickly as possible.