Chosen (13 page)
‘He’s all right,’ said Gilster,
‘I’ve just put him to sleep, he should be out for a few hours at
least.’
Max regained control of her
senses.
‘Quick, pick him up and put him
back in his car, he’ll be safe there until someone finds him or he
wakes up. We have to get out of here now, he would have radioed in
before he got out of the car, I expect another patrol car is
already on its way.’
Gilster and Haven picked up the
officer, manhandling him back into the patrol car and then raced
back to the car which Max had already started. They jumped in; she
revved the engine a few times before racing off leaving a snake
trail on the side of the road.
‘Oh my god,’ she said as they
pulled away, ‘that was too close for comfort.’
Max had been right about the
mountains, the GPS was leading them higher and higher, and as they
ascended the temperature descended considerably. Taking a turn onto
a little used dirt-track, the GPS was telling them they had forty
miles further to go. The road became harder and harder to navigate,
it definitely hadn’t been used for a long time. Branches leaned
over the track, scratching the roof of the car as they passed;
pot-holes the size of small ponds had to be navigated with
considerable caution. They bumped, battered and jostled their way
along until, suddenly the road ended.
‘I think this is the end of the
line,’ said Max, turning the engine off. They got out of the car
and looked around, it was still quite dark, but the light of the
moon was enough to show them the going would be tough. ‘Looks a
little more rugged than I’d imagined,’ said Max, ‘it’s probably
good we’ll be travelling light.’ They looked up at the mountain
they needed to climb; it looked huge, black and ominous against the
starry night-sky.
Before leaving the resort they
had discussed what clothes would be the best to wear for the trip;
there would be no room for spares in their tiny backpacks. Gilster
opted to wear the clothes he had worn from his own world. “I hope
you won’t be offended,” he’d said to Max, “it’s just that they are
very comfortable.” Max had decided on hiking boots, a pair of
jeans, a long sleeved T shirt and her leather jacket. Haven had a
mix of old and new; he wore his old leather boots, a pair of jeans
Max had bought him, plus a T shirt and his leather jerkin. Both
Haven and Gilster packed their cloaks.
Morning arrived and it was time
to scale the mountain. The air was crispy cold and their breath
came in steaming puffs. Both men were wearing their cloaks.
‘They look warm,’ said Max
shivering in the morning chill, ‘I wish I had one.’
Haven and Gilster exchanged
looks. Opening his backpack Haven removed a cloak.
‘Daria was wearing this when we
came to your world,’ he said offering it to her, ‘Gilster and I
would like you to have it.’
‘No, I couldn’t,’ said Max,
shaking her head, ‘it wouldn’t be right.’
‘Wear it until we find Daria,
we want you to look after it for her and we’re sure she would want
you to use it.’
Max looked from one to the
other and solemnly took the cloak from Haven. ‘Well . . . only if
you two are alright with it, thank you. I’ll return it to Daria the
minute we find her.’ She swung it over her shoulders and wrapped
herself in it.
‘Now,’ said Haven, breaking the
tension, ‘do we have enough food for the trip?’ Gilster and Max
burst out laughing. ‘What?’ said Haven, his face was a picture of
innocence. ‘We’ll need all our energy.’
‘Sure,’ said Max, picking up
her pack, ‘sure, you keep telling yourself that.’
Daria woke in a dark place. The
smell was atrocious. There was one, tiny window high up, the light
of which never made it to the floor. The stone walls of the
cell—and it was a cell she was in--were damp with dripping water
and covered with a soft, squishy, green moss; the straw-covered
floor was full of fleas and she could hear the squeak of mice and
rats running around in the dark shadows. Her arms were manacled at
the wrist with heavy chains attached to the wall, a slops bucket
sat in the corner of the cell, stinking and overflowing. Her face
was bloodied and bruised and she had a split lip and broken tooth
from the beating she had received. But despite her injuries her
thoughts were only for her friends, ‘poor Gilster, I hope he’s all
right. I hope all my friends are safe and well and continuing the
journey. Now it begins,’ she said aloud, her voice echoing off the
cold walls.
After a few hours of walking,
the sun had risen high enough over the trees to make the going a
bit easier. They were still in the forest at the base of the
mountain but would soon begin winding their way up, and then the
real work would begin. But they did have one thing in their favour,
a track up to the plateau, which was where they were heading. Many
years ago it had been used for hiking, but the track had become too
dangerous and had been closed to the public.
Haven, Gilster and Max trudged
along in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Haven was
worried that when they reached the top they would not be able to
find the portal. He had been listening intently for any voices that
might lead him, but as yet he had heard nothing. “I wish the
Uthians would be a little more specific in their instructions,” he
thought as he continued to lead the small group onward and upward.
Max was thinking about what it was that would be expected of her
when they reached the final destination. Would she know what must
be done? Would she be up to the task? Gilster was thinking about
Daria, “I’m so sorry that I couldn’t save you,” he thought, “maybe,
if I had fought harder. I should not have opened the door, Haven
warned me not to unless I was sure who it was, it’s my fault what
happened. If anything happens to her I will never forgive myself.”
The three continued on, finally making it to the track that would,
hopefully, lead them up the mountain side and to their
destination.
Haven called a halt before they
started their ascent of the mountain. ‘Let’s have a short rest and
something to eat and drink,’ he said sitting on a nearby rock,
dropping his pack to the ground. He carried the largest pack, not
wanting his friends to have to struggle under too much weight.
Removing a couple of apples and a water bottle from the top of the
pack he passed them to his friends.
Gilster shook his head, ‘no
thanks, I just need to rest.’ He walked away, sat down with his
back against a large oak tree and closed his eyes. ‘Just call me
when we’re moving again.
Haven and Max sat together
eating their apples and talking quietly.
‘Something is wrong with
Gilster,’ said Max worriedly looking over at him sitting with his
head resting on his knees. ‘I’m sure he is still blames himself for
Daria’s abduction.’
‘He does,’ whispered Haven, ‘I
have picked up some of his thoughts, he thinks he is not worthy to
be on this journey, he thinks that he could be putting you and me
in danger.’
‘That’s ridiculous,’ said Max,
‘why would he think that?’
‘You and I both know it’s
ridiculous,’ said Haven, ‘but unfortunately that’s what he is
thinking.’
‘Do you think I should say
something?’ said Max looking over again at Gilster.
‘No,’ said Haven quickly, ‘no,
definitely not, he will know I’ve been listening and he hates it
when I do that. Let’s just leave it for now, and see how things go,
I’ll continue to listen and if he doesn’t start improving then
we’ll discuss the best thing to do.’
‘All right, but you keep me
informed as to how he is,’ said Max.
‘Come on Gil,’ said Haven
getting to his feet, ‘let’s get going and get this thing over
with.’ Gilster rose slowly. Haven and Max, looked at each other,
the concern for their friend showing on their faces.
‘By the way Haven, I know what
you have been doing and I ask that you stop, immediately,’ said
Gilster as he repositioned his pack on his back.
‘He only did it because he’s
worried about you; we’re both worried about you,’ said Max.
‘I know and your concern has
been duly noted, but it is unfounded, I’m fine.’
‘I’ll stop only if you stop
blaming yourself for what happened to Daria, it wasn’t your fault,’
said Haven.
‘Each has his own burden to
carry,’ said Gilster, ‘and this is mine, but I ask you again, as my
friend, please stop.’
‘I will stop . . . for now,’
added Haven under his breath.
The three began their ascent of
the mountain. Max and Haven tried desperately to keep up the normal
banter that usually existed between the group but soon fell silent
when it became apparent Gilster was not interested.
The higher they went the less
vegetation they had to contend with, until eventually the trees
were left behind on the lower slopes and only the hardiest of
alpine vegetation was evident in the small stunted bushes that
edged the path and the mosses and lichens clinging desperately to
the rocks. The temperature had been dropping steadily all
afternoon, and then it began to snow, the flakes falling softly and
quietly from the leaden sky. Still the group climbed. Haven had
asked a few times if anyone would like a break but the answer was
always the same, “no, let’s just keep going,” until in the end he
gave up asking altogether. The sun began to drop in the sky and
Haven knew they wouldn’t make it to the top before dark. They would
have to find somewhere to spend the night or risk breaking a leg on
the icy path. The wind had been increasing throughout the day and
Haven started to have concerns a storm may be on the way.
They rounded a rock face and
the full force of the wind hit them, pushing them back and taking
their breath away. Haven leaned into the wind his arm up in front
of eyes trying to see the path ahead. He turned back to see Max and
Gilster battling to stand upright, their cloaks wrapped tightly
around their bodies.
‘What shall we do?’ shouted
Haven, his voice lost in the howl of the gale.
‘We can’t keep going in this,’
screamed Max, ‘it’s too dangerous.’
‘I agree,’ yelled Haven, ‘shall
we go back down a bit?’
Gilster fought his way to
Haven, his cloak held in front of his face. ‘I think I saw a small
cave a few minutes back down the mountain, do you want to go and
have a look?’
‘Definitely,’ shouted back
Haven, ‘you lead the way, you know where it is.’
As they began to make their way
slowly back down Max stepped on a loose rock and rolled her ankle,
causing her to fall heavily to the ground. Haven bent down to help
her up and saw tears of pain in her eyes.
‘Here,’ he yelled, the wind
whisking the words from his mouth ‘grab hold of my arm and I’ll
help you.’ Max wrapped her arms tightly around Haven’s forearm and
felt herself lifted from the ground. He took her backpack off and
swung it over his arm, he would have carried her but it was too
difficult to see with the snow blinding his eyes; the path was too
narrow and he didn’t want to risk dropping her. He positioned her
under his cloak for protection against the weather. With her arms
wrapped around his waist and his free arm holding her tightly
against his body, they began their slippery descent. Rounding the
rock face the wind abated slightly allowing them to see Gilster
standing up ahead looking up at the rock face.
‘What happened? I was just
about to come back and look for you,’ yelled Gilster.
‘I tripped,’ said Max through
gritted teeth. As Haven slowly lowered her to ground, she winced
with the pain, sweat beading on her forehead.
‘I’ll be right back, will you
be ok?’ he said. She nodded. Walking over to Gilster, he asked,
‘have you found it yet? I’d like to get Max inside as quickly as
possible, she’s not looking good.’
‘How bad is it,’ asked
Gilster.
‘I’m not sure, but she’s in a
lot of pain.’
‘It’s just up there,’ said
Gilster pointing to a dark smudge on the rock face, let me go up
first and check it out, we don’t want to drag Max all the way up
only to find I was wrong.’
‘All right,’ said Haven, ‘I’ll
wait with Max until you get back.’ Gilster started to climb the
rock face. Haven walked back and sat down next to Max, ‘how are
you?’ he asked.
‘Not too good I’m afraid,’ said
Max, sweat beading on her upper lip, ‘I think I’ve broken my ankle,
the pain is quite bad and I don’t think I’ll be able to walk.’
rope,’ he said, ‘we can pull her up.’
‘You get her into position,’
said Gilster, ‘I’ll climb up again with the rope and anchor it for
you.’ With that, he picked up the rope and started to climb again.
Haven returned to where Max was sitting on a rock waiting for
him.
‘Not long now Max, we’ll have
you safe and warm soon, Gilster says the cave is big enough for all
of us to fit in so we’ve decided to stay there overnight and
continue on to the plateau in the morning.’
‘That’s good news,’ said Max,
the colour draining from her face, ‘but I don’t think I’ll make it
with this ankle.’
‘That’s not a problem,’ said
Haven, picking her up in his arms, ‘I brought a rope, we’re going
to pull you up.’ They reached the spot where Gilster had climbed up
and waited for him to return. A few minutes later a rope came down
closely followed by Gilster.
‘It’s done,’ he said jumping
the last few feet.
‘Right, let’s get you ready,’
said Haven tying the rope around Max. ‘I’ll climb up first,’ he
said to Gilster, ‘that way I can pull her up and you can climb up
with her making sure her ankle is kept safe.’
‘I’ve just put him to sleep, he should be out for a few hours at
least.’
Max regained control of her
senses.
‘Quick, pick him up and put him
back in his car, he’ll be safe there until someone finds him or he
wakes up. We have to get out of here now, he would have radioed in
before he got out of the car, I expect another patrol car is
already on its way.’
Gilster and Haven picked up the
officer, manhandling him back into the patrol car and then raced
back to the car which Max had already started. They jumped in; she
revved the engine a few times before racing off leaving a snake
trail on the side of the road.
‘Oh my god,’ she said as they
pulled away, ‘that was too close for comfort.’
Max had been right about the
mountains, the GPS was leading them higher and higher, and as they
ascended the temperature descended considerably. Taking a turn onto
a little used dirt-track, the GPS was telling them they had forty
miles further to go. The road became harder and harder to navigate,
it definitely hadn’t been used for a long time. Branches leaned
over the track, scratching the roof of the car as they passed;
pot-holes the size of small ponds had to be navigated with
considerable caution. They bumped, battered and jostled their way
along until, suddenly the road ended.
‘I think this is the end of the
line,’ said Max, turning the engine off. They got out of the car
and looked around, it was still quite dark, but the light of the
moon was enough to show them the going would be tough. ‘Looks a
little more rugged than I’d imagined,’ said Max, ‘it’s probably
good we’ll be travelling light.’ They looked up at the mountain
they needed to climb; it looked huge, black and ominous against the
starry night-sky.
Before leaving the resort they
had discussed what clothes would be the best to wear for the trip;
there would be no room for spares in their tiny backpacks. Gilster
opted to wear the clothes he had worn from his own world. “I hope
you won’t be offended,” he’d said to Max, “it’s just that they are
very comfortable.” Max had decided on hiking boots, a pair of
jeans, a long sleeved T shirt and her leather jacket. Haven had a
mix of old and new; he wore his old leather boots, a pair of jeans
Max had bought him, plus a T shirt and his leather jerkin. Both
Haven and Gilster packed their cloaks.
Morning arrived and it was time
to scale the mountain. The air was crispy cold and their breath
came in steaming puffs. Both men were wearing their cloaks.
‘They look warm,’ said Max
shivering in the morning chill, ‘I wish I had one.’
Haven and Gilster exchanged
looks. Opening his backpack Haven removed a cloak.
‘Daria was wearing this when we
came to your world,’ he said offering it to her, ‘Gilster and I
would like you to have it.’
‘No, I couldn’t,’ said Max,
shaking her head, ‘it wouldn’t be right.’
‘Wear it until we find Daria,
we want you to look after it for her and we’re sure she would want
you to use it.’
Max looked from one to the
other and solemnly took the cloak from Haven. ‘Well . . . only if
you two are alright with it, thank you. I’ll return it to Daria the
minute we find her.’ She swung it over her shoulders and wrapped
herself in it.
‘Now,’ said Haven, breaking the
tension, ‘do we have enough food for the trip?’ Gilster and Max
burst out laughing. ‘What?’ said Haven, his face was a picture of
innocence. ‘We’ll need all our energy.’
‘Sure,’ said Max, picking up
her pack, ‘sure, you keep telling yourself that.’
Daria woke in a dark place. The
smell was atrocious. There was one, tiny window high up, the light
of which never made it to the floor. The stone walls of the
cell—and it was a cell she was in--were damp with dripping water
and covered with a soft, squishy, green moss; the straw-covered
floor was full of fleas and she could hear the squeak of mice and
rats running around in the dark shadows. Her arms were manacled at
the wrist with heavy chains attached to the wall, a slops bucket
sat in the corner of the cell, stinking and overflowing. Her face
was bloodied and bruised and she had a split lip and broken tooth
from the beating she had received. But despite her injuries her
thoughts were only for her friends, ‘poor Gilster, I hope he’s all
right. I hope all my friends are safe and well and continuing the
journey. Now it begins,’ she said aloud, her voice echoing off the
cold walls.
After a few hours of walking,
the sun had risen high enough over the trees to make the going a
bit easier. They were still in the forest at the base of the
mountain but would soon begin winding their way up, and then the
real work would begin. But they did have one thing in their favour,
a track up to the plateau, which was where they were heading. Many
years ago it had been used for hiking, but the track had become too
dangerous and had been closed to the public.
Haven, Gilster and Max trudged
along in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Haven was
worried that when they reached the top they would not be able to
find the portal. He had been listening intently for any voices that
might lead him, but as yet he had heard nothing. “I wish the
Uthians would be a little more specific in their instructions,” he
thought as he continued to lead the small group onward and upward.
Max was thinking about what it was that would be expected of her
when they reached the final destination. Would she know what must
be done? Would she be up to the task? Gilster was thinking about
Daria, “I’m so sorry that I couldn’t save you,” he thought, “maybe,
if I had fought harder. I should not have opened the door, Haven
warned me not to unless I was sure who it was, it’s my fault what
happened. If anything happens to her I will never forgive myself.”
The three continued on, finally making it to the track that would,
hopefully, lead them up the mountain side and to their
destination.
Haven called a halt before they
started their ascent of the mountain. ‘Let’s have a short rest and
something to eat and drink,’ he said sitting on a nearby rock,
dropping his pack to the ground. He carried the largest pack, not
wanting his friends to have to struggle under too much weight.
Removing a couple of apples and a water bottle from the top of the
pack he passed them to his friends.
Gilster shook his head, ‘no
thanks, I just need to rest.’ He walked away, sat down with his
back against a large oak tree and closed his eyes. ‘Just call me
when we’re moving again.
Haven and Max sat together
eating their apples and talking quietly.
‘Something is wrong with
Gilster,’ said Max worriedly looking over at him sitting with his
head resting on his knees. ‘I’m sure he is still blames himself for
Daria’s abduction.’
‘He does,’ whispered Haven, ‘I
have picked up some of his thoughts, he thinks he is not worthy to
be on this journey, he thinks that he could be putting you and me
in danger.’
‘That’s ridiculous,’ said Max,
‘why would he think that?’
‘You and I both know it’s
ridiculous,’ said Haven, ‘but unfortunately that’s what he is
thinking.’
‘Do you think I should say
something?’ said Max looking over again at Gilster.
‘No,’ said Haven quickly, ‘no,
definitely not, he will know I’ve been listening and he hates it
when I do that. Let’s just leave it for now, and see how things go,
I’ll continue to listen and if he doesn’t start improving then
we’ll discuss the best thing to do.’
‘All right, but you keep me
informed as to how he is,’ said Max.
‘Come on Gil,’ said Haven
getting to his feet, ‘let’s get going and get this thing over
with.’ Gilster rose slowly. Haven and Max, looked at each other,
the concern for their friend showing on their faces.
‘By the way Haven, I know what
you have been doing and I ask that you stop, immediately,’ said
Gilster as he repositioned his pack on his back.
‘He only did it because he’s
worried about you; we’re both worried about you,’ said Max.
‘I know and your concern has
been duly noted, but it is unfounded, I’m fine.’
‘I’ll stop only if you stop
blaming yourself for what happened to Daria, it wasn’t your fault,’
said Haven.
‘Each has his own burden to
carry,’ said Gilster, ‘and this is mine, but I ask you again, as my
friend, please stop.’
‘I will stop . . . for now,’
added Haven under his breath.
The three began their ascent of
the mountain. Max and Haven tried desperately to keep up the normal
banter that usually existed between the group but soon fell silent
when it became apparent Gilster was not interested.
The higher they went the less
vegetation they had to contend with, until eventually the trees
were left behind on the lower slopes and only the hardiest of
alpine vegetation was evident in the small stunted bushes that
edged the path and the mosses and lichens clinging desperately to
the rocks. The temperature had been dropping steadily all
afternoon, and then it began to snow, the flakes falling softly and
quietly from the leaden sky. Still the group climbed. Haven had
asked a few times if anyone would like a break but the answer was
always the same, “no, let’s just keep going,” until in the end he
gave up asking altogether. The sun began to drop in the sky and
Haven knew they wouldn’t make it to the top before dark. They would
have to find somewhere to spend the night or risk breaking a leg on
the icy path. The wind had been increasing throughout the day and
Haven started to have concerns a storm may be on the way.
They rounded a rock face and
the full force of the wind hit them, pushing them back and taking
their breath away. Haven leaned into the wind his arm up in front
of eyes trying to see the path ahead. He turned back to see Max and
Gilster battling to stand upright, their cloaks wrapped tightly
around their bodies.
‘What shall we do?’ shouted
Haven, his voice lost in the howl of the gale.
‘We can’t keep going in this,’
screamed Max, ‘it’s too dangerous.’
‘I agree,’ yelled Haven, ‘shall
we go back down a bit?’
Gilster fought his way to
Haven, his cloak held in front of his face. ‘I think I saw a small
cave a few minutes back down the mountain, do you want to go and
have a look?’
‘Definitely,’ shouted back
Haven, ‘you lead the way, you know where it is.’
As they began to make their way
slowly back down Max stepped on a loose rock and rolled her ankle,
causing her to fall heavily to the ground. Haven bent down to help
her up and saw tears of pain in her eyes.
‘Here,’ he yelled, the wind
whisking the words from his mouth ‘grab hold of my arm and I’ll
help you.’ Max wrapped her arms tightly around Haven’s forearm and
felt herself lifted from the ground. He took her backpack off and
swung it over his arm, he would have carried her but it was too
difficult to see with the snow blinding his eyes; the path was too
narrow and he didn’t want to risk dropping her. He positioned her
under his cloak for protection against the weather. With her arms
wrapped around his waist and his free arm holding her tightly
against his body, they began their slippery descent. Rounding the
rock face the wind abated slightly allowing them to see Gilster
standing up ahead looking up at the rock face.
‘What happened? I was just
about to come back and look for you,’ yelled Gilster.
‘I tripped,’ said Max through
gritted teeth. As Haven slowly lowered her to ground, she winced
with the pain, sweat beading on her forehead.
‘I’ll be right back, will you
be ok?’ he said. She nodded. Walking over to Gilster, he asked,
‘have you found it yet? I’d like to get Max inside as quickly as
possible, she’s not looking good.’
‘How bad is it,’ asked
Gilster.
‘I’m not sure, but she’s in a
lot of pain.’
‘It’s just up there,’ said
Gilster pointing to a dark smudge on the rock face, let me go up
first and check it out, we don’t want to drag Max all the way up
only to find I was wrong.’
‘All right,’ said Haven, ‘I’ll
wait with Max until you get back.’ Gilster started to climb the
rock face. Haven walked back and sat down next to Max, ‘how are
you?’ he asked.
‘Not too good I’m afraid,’ said
Max, sweat beading on her upper lip, ‘I think I’ve broken my ankle,
the pain is quite bad and I don’t think I’ll be able to walk.’
Gilster was
back in no time, a smile on his face. ‘Good news,’ he said,
‘it
is
a cave and
it’s a decent size and out of the wind too, only problem is, it’s a
bit of a climb, I don’t know how Max will get up there.’
rope,’ he said, ‘we can pull her up.’
‘You get her into position,’
said Gilster, ‘I’ll climb up again with the rope and anchor it for
you.’ With that, he picked up the rope and started to climb again.
Haven returned to where Max was sitting on a rock waiting for
him.
‘Not long now Max, we’ll have
you safe and warm soon, Gilster says the cave is big enough for all
of us to fit in so we’ve decided to stay there overnight and
continue on to the plateau in the morning.’
‘That’s good news,’ said Max,
the colour draining from her face, ‘but I don’t think I’ll make it
with this ankle.’
‘That’s not a problem,’ said
Haven, picking her up in his arms, ‘I brought a rope, we’re going
to pull you up.’ They reached the spot where Gilster had climbed up
and waited for him to return. A few minutes later a rope came down
closely followed by Gilster.
‘It’s done,’ he said jumping
the last few feet.
‘Right, let’s get you ready,’
said Haven tying the rope around Max. ‘I’ll climb up first,’ he
said to Gilster, ‘that way I can pull her up and you can climb up
with her making sure her ankle is kept safe.’
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