The Magic Lands (16 page)

Dredger had kept himself apart
from the others as they went, apparently preoccupied by some
private debate. So when he approached Tom, falling in beside him
and matching him stride for stride, the boy was somewhat alarmed
and glanced up at the warrior nervously.

The man gazed down upon him
with a frightening intensity, his eyes yellow in the eerie
radiance. "You offered me the opportunity to examine the map
again," he said bluntly. "Does it still stand?"

Tom met the big man's regard
and wondered if he would ever come to like him. He doubted it
somehow, but at the same time realised that whatever it was that
Dredger had to do, it was important and therefore any help he could
give the man should be granted without question. "The map is yours
to look at any time you like," he answered coolly.

With a shrewd gleam in his
eyes, Dredger smiled. "I understand you better than you think, and
I know you will do whatever you have to do." It seemed he was
content to leave the conversation at that, but as he was about to
fall back and walk with the badger, he added, "I will look upon the
map when the light returns. My path will take me from you
soon."

Jack, who walked just behind
Tom, listened to this carefully and was jubilant, although his
expression remained neutral.

She will be pleased. And I so
much want her to be pleased.

Completely unaware of his
friends thoughts, Tom marched on now at the head of the company,
feeling like the leader of an expedition trekking into some
uncharted region, in search of a great and wonderful treasure. In a
way it was almost ironic. When he had been just a little younger he
had often played games that were much like this, only now,
incredibly, he was actually living one.

His thoughts turned to Lisa,
who came to him in his dreams. Who was she really? And what did it
all mean? He knew beyond question that he would meet her somewhere,
sometime soon, but it was becoming more and more difficult to tell
when he was dreaming and when he was actually awake. Was she real?
He wanted to believe that she was. The way he felt about her was
almost magical, like a dream itself. He smiled to himself at that
notion. Was all of this really no more than a strange dream? No, he
reminded himself quickly, this was real and so was Lisa. He
imagined her face, her

pretty eyes regarding him
fondly and experienced emotions that were foreign to him, a deeply
felt longing for some unobtainable thing that he barely understood.
Can dreams really come true?

He looked over his shoulder at
Jack and saw his friend lumbering along just behind him. "Jack!" he
said with an easy grin.

"What can I do for you?"

"How's it feel to be part of an
adventure?"

Jack scratched his head,
feigning deep thought. "Well," he said eventually, "it beats doing
the washing up!"

Laughing, Tom moved beside his
friend. "I'm glad you're all right now," he told him, his sense of
relief obvious.

Jack nodded, glancing away. "So
am I."

"Now, let's just get on with
what we have to do," urged Tom, "and beat the hell out of that
White Wolf!"

The other boy grinned, rather
too fiercely. "Yeah, let's hunt it down and spill its guts!"

Tom smiled, but it occurred to
him that this was not really the sort of thing he would have
expected to hear from Jack. But after all that had happened, he
supposed they had to expect to see changes in their attitudes and
behaviour.

Within his own tired,
bewildered mind, Jack considered the other boy as they continued to
travel.

Who are you Tom? Who are you
and why do I hate you so much? It's not that I want to hurt you.
It's just that you're getting far too big for your boots and you've
got

something of
mine.
His face contorted with the pain of his
thoughts.
I really don't want to hurt you.
But I must do what I am told.

"When we reach the fork in the
road, I must part from you," indicated Dredger as they marched over
a low hillock. A straight, stone road awaited them on the other
side, stretching away into the distance. The warrior knew that his
journey must take him far to the west, for with Tom's permission he
had consulted the map when it became apparent that the day would
not swiftly return.

The darkness remained vigilant,
the surrounding woods beset by shadows cast by the anomalous
illumination that accompanied the night and baffled by this strange
phenomenon, Tom found himself voicing a question. "What causes that
glow?"

"Phantom stars perhaps,"
answered Mo dryly, "or the playful heart of the Wolf.”

"And what about Dredger?" Tom
continued, his inquisitive mind moving quickly from one subject to
another, "what is waiting for him out there?"

"The Second Beast," stated the
badger. "Many are the theories as to what it might be, as to its
significance. For myself, I am still uncertain, though I have given
it much thought through the years."

"I too have wondered," Dredger
said joining the conversation, having been listening attentively as
they walked the road. "But I know this. The Second Beast is a part
of the prophecies, a part of the trials that we each must face. And
I know where my destiny must take me. Into Hydan where the hooded
foe awaits."

"And I shall pray that you do
not fail your test," the badger pledged, "as I pray we do not fail
our own." For a few moments there was silence between them, the
gravity of what faced them oppressive.

"But what has all of this got
to do with the Wolf? That's what I don't understand," Tom spoke up.
He found the whole concept of another beast very confusing.

With a mild chuckle, Dredger
swept back his long hair from his face. "Everything native to this
world is a part of the Beast, the true Beast. It is the father of
all evil here.”

"Your words are certainly
true," agreed Mo, "and it is best remembered that evil is often
more complex that it might first appear. The beguiling darkness
serenades us with sweet melodies of ambition. The righteous must
take care lest they fall under the spell of the charming
beast."

Dredger looked down at the
animal, his eyes glassy. "I trust you have noted the incident with
the boy…Jack."

"Indeed," the old badger
replied.

"Watch him at all times.
Shadows are moving within him. Perhaps it would have been better if
Tom had not come upon me in the forest when he did."

Mo did not answer and although
Tom was sorely tempted to argue the point, he chose to let the
matter rest, knowing that no good could come of further
confrontation. The warrior was naturally cautious, he understood
and his reluctance to accept Jack's recovery was to be expected. As
for the incident in the forest, Tom preferred to put it behind him.
It scared him too badly to consider what he might have discovered
if he had arrived a few minutes later.

"There are parts to be played
by all of us," Mo uttered, but the warrior had said his piece and
strode on, quickening his pace.

Quite suddenly the light
returned and Tom almost stopped in his tracks, his eyes struggling
to adjust, but Dredger from a little way ahead called back to him.
"Puerile tricks to cloud our minds."

Their progress on the roadway
was much swifter than had been the case on the open terrain. The
high branches of many lofty trees dominated either side of the
extensive lane and amongst the boughs several signposts had been
erected. Beneath one such sign they paused and Tom studied the map
once more at the warrior's request. While they did so, Jack stood a
few feet apart and watched them with a sullen expression.

"A bit further ahead, just
beyond The Forest of Syndrian there’s a fork in the road," Tom
related.

"I must take the westerly path
and you the easterly," Dredger stated.

"So we say farewell," the
badger said.

Dredger nodded shortly. "You
have not far to travel before you will reach Gelaré Mound. The
Wastes lie upon the other side. It will be a time of great
testing."

"Then let’s just get on with it
and do what we’ve got to do." It was Tom's voice that interrupted,
a little shaky but nonetheless determined.

Is it really
my job to save the world?
The idea seemed ridiculous.
How could he do anything? He was not a warrior like
Dredger.

A thunderous voice made him
start. "Now," cried Dredger, clapping his big hands together. "Let
us march into the demon's snare!"

They moved on, now at a
cross-roads in their journey and Tom felt certain that once Dredger
had left them, they would be far more vulnerable. What if the Wolf
came then? With this thought turning inside his head, he saw in the
distance that the road began to change, the grey stone appearing to
widen and as they drew nearer, it soon became apparent that this
was indeed the choice of paths that Dredger had alluded to. The
road split in two, branching off in opposite directions.

They stood at the threshold of
the two separate roads, one leading into the east, the other into
the west where the desert prevailed.

"Ah, to find the end of this,"
whispered Dredger.

"We wish you well," Mo told him
with sincerity.

"And I shall be in need of your
good wishes," answered the man as he gazed out along the ashen
road, "they are the hope of worlds."

The sky was bright and clear, a
gentle breeze ruffling the leaves of the trees. The grass, faded so
as to be almost colourless in places, moved restlessly at the edges
of the stone highway.

"Goodbye," said Tom
solemnly.

With a smile, one that was warm
and sincere, Dredger extended his hand. "Farewell, Tom, for
now."

Shaking the man's hand, Tom was
moved fleetingly by the sheer eccentricity of the recent events
which had led to this parting. He wondered not for the first time
if he had gone completely mad. But he was quick to dismiss this
idea as mere foolishness. He had to keep a tight grip on himself
from now on. There was far too much at stake and whether he
accepted it or not, what he had always thought of as madness had
become reality.

"And farewell to you, old one,"
Dredger said to the badger, "protect and guide these younglings.
They have need of you."

Jack remained silent as these
sentiments were exchanged, a coldness gripping him. He knew what he
had to do, but even the thought of it made him feel sick inside.
Hesitantly, he moved forward. "And I wish you the best of luck
too," he offered as enthusiastically as he could manage.

The warrior regarded him with a
long, probing stare. "I am not in need of luck. But I thank you all
the same."

Mo looked up at the tall
figure. “We will look for you on our journey."

Dredger turned to Tom. "Keep
the map safe," he said with emphasis.

Patting his shirt where the
parchment was concealed, Tom nodded. When the warrior had looked at
it, not long before, he had found himself eager for it's return and
had been almost relieved when the man had at last given it back to
him. It disturbed him that he should have reacted in this way, but
he put these thoughts aside for the moment.

"Now I must go," Dredger said
at length and with the rucksack slung across his back, he moved off
along the road that branched to the right. Tom, Jack and Mo watched
him without speaking, but the warrior did not look back. Eventually
the road turned away to the west and the man's dark form was lost
from sight.

"Now we must be on our way," Mo
told them after a few seconds.

"When can we rest?" whined
Jack, rubbing his head as if he were in pain.

The badger did not look at him.
"When it is needed.”

"He's right Jack," said Tom
with some sympathy, "we have to keep moving."

The other boy tried not to look
too disgusted at this, but disgust was what he felt.

Who do you
think you are, Tom? My lord and master? Well, you'll soon see who's
really in charge. Just wait until She comes. Just wait and
see!
Jack's mind bristled with images of what She
would do and how much She would love him for being so good. But he
kept these thoughts to himself, closely guarded within his bitter
heart.

As they began to walk again,
Tom decided he would ask Mo a bit more about their destination. So
far he had been told very little and didn't want to be left in the
dark any longer. "What exactly is this land of snow and ice we're
heading for?" he asked bluntly, making sure his discontent was
conveyed and he won a sidelong glance from the old badger.

"Well, Tom, it is an unusual
place, that much I can tell you."

With a sigh that bordered on
exasperation, Tom stared up at the sky for a moment, framing
another question in his mind. But then, realising that he would get
no more from the animal than Mo was willing to reveal, he looked
back over his shoulder to where Jack came dawdling behind them. "I
must admit that I'm feeling tired myself," he confessed. "It's this
place. It's almost as if we were being drugged or something."

"That’s not so far from the
truth," Mo replied. "The Wolf is always around us. It rides the
winds, it is one with the earth. Its influence is everywhere."

"Why is it so bad?" asked Tom,
knowing it was a childish question.

"The wolf, the wolf, the big
bad wolf," the badger chanted in a low voice. "Why is it so? You
might just as well ask why is the grass green? Why is the sea
blue?"

"But they’re not," countered
Tom, "that's just what people say. Things are never exactly one
colour."

The badger smiled. "You’re
growing up, Tom," he said, "and you are learning fast. But what
about white? Are things ever truly white?" The boy frowned,
wondering. "And what about black?" the badger continued, with a
blink of his large brown eyes. "Black and white. Are things ever
really black and white?"