The Magic Lands (18 page)

"Now, now, my dear Dredger,"
soothed the voice from behind the mask, "there is no need to become
aggressive. I am not here to fight with you. I am here to help
you."

"Help me?" repeated the
warrior, unconvinced.

"Indeed," continued the masked
man, "if it were otherwise, I would not wear this face." The smile
on the mask seemed to widen visibly. "And then it would be a
different tale to tell."

"How can you aid me?" Dredger
asked sharply, unease growing within him, the stranger's scrutiny
all the more disconcerting because he could not see the man's
eyes.

"Why do you suppose that I have
two horses when I need but one?" Geheimnis asked. "I shall
accompany you across the desert dunes to Hydan, your destination. I
understand that you do not trust me and that is as it should be,
but perhaps as we travel you may come to value my fellowship."

At a loss, questions turning
over in his mind, Dredger saw that the offer of the steed was one
that he would be a fool to refuse. The very fact that this masked
man knew of his goal meant that there was more here than met the
eye. More beneath the mask perhaps. He resolved to play along with
the man, at least for the time being. "We shall

see what we shall see," he
returned with a nod.

"Indeed we shall," agreed
Geheimnis.

It had been a difficult climb,
but all three now stood upon the summit of Galaré Mound and looked
down upon an unearthly sight.

Tom could hardly believe his
eyes. Below them in a great valley there was a prodigious forest of
trees, leaning away into the distance. But these were not like any
other tree he had seen before. They were living ice, swaying and
moving as if disturbed by a persistent wind. And yet the air was
still.

"The Forest of Issylvan," Mo
said with admiration.

"Are they alive?" questioned
Tom, his eyes transfixed by the stunning vision of crystalline
trees.

"They are an enigma," replied
the badger. "Some claim it is only the ice gradually melting that
gives them the appearance of movement."

"Whatever they are, they're
very beautiful. What do you think, Jack?" The other boy merely
gazed down at the valley of ice with an expressionless stare, his
face drawn. "Are you all right?" Tom asked, stepping closer to his
friend, afraid that he might be ill again.

Jack blinked slowly and glanced
at Tom. "I'm fine.”

"So what do you think of it?"
questioned Tom again.

"White," muttered Jack, his
voice barely audible.

All through the valley deep
snow like a magnificent carpet layered the ground. And beyond the
forest rising in the distance, a black line marred this perfection,
tall cliffs of ragged stone dominating the horizon, barring all
passage.

"Be careful on the way down,"
advised the badger and no sooner had he spoken than Tom was
climbing down the other side of the mound, a fierce longing to walk
among the incredible forest of ice urging him on.

Descending at a more cautious
pace, Mo sniffed the cool air and murmured words in a strange
tongue. Neither of the boys heard his utterance, but both were
immediately charged with a throbbing warmth that seemed to emanate
from within. Tom found the sensation exhilarating. But to Jack it
was as if his insides were being seared, an internal fire scorching
him. Trying to conceal the agony he was experiencing, he explored
his mind for memories of Her face.

Please make it stop.
Please!

And then, he saw her. Beneath a
tree of ice, kneeling by its thick white trunk, almost invisible.
She was smiling. A coldness touched his heart and the pain
ceased.

Jack glanced quickly at the
badger before quickening his pace to follow Tom, his friend now
weaving through the trees just below.

Poor
Tom
, he considered with genuine regret.
You'll never know what it's like to be really in
love.
You’ll never know.

"Shall we ride?" said
Geheimnis, handling the reins of the horses and holding one

out graciously for Dredger.

The warrior took the leather
roughly from the other's fingers. "I have no time to squander."

"Quite so, quite so," sang the
masked man.

"But take heed," Dredger
warned, "If you make any attempt to hinder me it will prove a
foolish mistake for which you will pay dearly."

"Your words are hard, my dear
Dredger. But they are only words."

The warrior glared at the other
man. "It can be put to the test now, if you wish."

At this Geheimnis laughed, a
rasping sound unpleasant to Dredger's ears. "That will not be
necessary," he said and pulled himself up into his saddle.

Deftly mounting the black steed
that his companion had offered him, Dredger readied himself for the
journey that would take them across the Sea of Tears. They stood at
the edge of a vast and barren desert and only a very few really
knew what could be expected within its pale, immutable regions.

Riding his own grey mare,
Geheimnis led the way out into the undulating land of sand and
heat. "Are you ready to dream?" he asked ambiguously as they moved
slowly across the desert plains.

"I will face what I must," was
Dredger's short, impatient reply.

"Warrior brave!" called the
other man. "This will indeed prove to be a fascinating
journey."

They rode on, the horses' hoofs
sinking methodically into the sand. The air grew warmer by degrees
and soon they were enveloped in an almost unbearable heat.

"Answer me a single question,"
Dredger asked, mopping the sweat from his face with a sleeve. "Why
should you want to help me?" He looked at Geheimnis’ face and noted
with some surprise that the mask no longer displayed a smile. Now
it bore no expression at all. Only the shadowy slits of eyes
remained.

"Perhaps I have something to
gain," came the soft reply.

"And how did you know I would
come?" continued Dredger.

"You said one question and now
you have asked two," admonished Geheimnis drolly, turning his
frozen countenance toward the warrior.

Dredger smiled. "I would trust
you more if you told me the answers to my questions."

"Very well," replied the masked
man. "You yourself know that there are many forces at work in this
world. It was foretold that you would come long ago. And I have
awaited your coming. You have your destiny to fulfil and I have my
own."

"That tells me little,"
persisted Dredger with an edge to his voice. "What is your purpose
once we reach Hydan?" He had decided not to broach the subject of
the Second Beast, preferring to wait and see just how much, in
fact, the stranger knew.

"There are beasts," Geheimnis
intoned, "and there are men." He paused a moment, the heavy
sultriness of the desert stifling. "I travel to Hydan to find the
way of men above the way of beasts."

"If you say you come for men, I
too go there for that reason. But not only for men, for all
creatures who oppose the Beast. The White Wolf is the enemy of all
who cherish honour and justice." Dredger said this with rising
emotion, his words spilling forth passionately.

"The Wolf does not concern me,"
Geheimnis answered flatly. "For a time we must travel the same
path. It should be enough to say that I have no wish to obstruct
you, quite the contrary. I trust you will show me the same
courtesy."

Wiping his brow again, Dredger
looked up into a bright sky. "I cannot say I trust you or even
understand you, but I am willing to travel with you to the Land of
Scars, beyond which lies the lost city. There we will both learn
what the other has in mind."

Beneath shining trees that
moved above them like a thousand swaying giants, Mo and the two
boys went.

All that
glisters is not gold,
thought Tom, the words passing
through his mind uninvited.

"Is it very far to the caves?"
Jack whined.

"Not far, not far," replied the
badger. "But if I were you, Jack, I would not be quite so anxious
to reach that place."

"Why not?" Jack said without
any real interest. "What's the big deal?"

Mo eyed him with a long,
questioning gaze. "There is great danger there. They are the caves
of Rith-ran-ro-en. You may have reason to remember that name and it
could prove to be a very great
deal
for one so unwary."

"I like it here!" called Tom
from a little way ahead. He was moving through the ice forest as if
in a day-dream. The place was so beautiful, the trees glinting and
sparkling with a magical light of many colours.

"Stay near!" Mo said with
authority.

Tom decided to ignore the old
badger. He wanted to run through the snow, kicking and skidding on
the ice. He increased his pace and left the others behind. The
trees seemed to sing to him and he wanted so much to climb to the
very top of the highest of them.

Behind him, hidden within the
banks of snow, Mo called out to him.

"Time to climb," said
another, more persuasive voice and Tom ran on, sprinting towards
one of the towering trees. For several moments, standing beneath
it, he struggled with indecision. He knew that Mo was calling him
back, but something deep within commanded him. The trees whispered
words of longing to his heart. He stood before the sparkling ice
tree and marvelled at the way its clear white trunk glistened. His
fingers tingled as he took hold of an icy branch and
somewhere distant he heard an urgent voice calling him back,
but he didn’t want to listen. The ice held him captive now as he
began to climb up into its frozen embrace.

RITH-RAN-RO-EN

Within Jack's tired mind a
battle waged. Two voices sought control of his thoughts.

Things will be so much better
now. And after all, he does deserve to die. Isn’t he a thief and a
liar? He was never your friend anyway. Forget him. Forget you ever
knew him.

This first voice seemed so
reasonable, so plausible and he would have been content to listen
to it, if it were not for another voice that screamed at him. The
sound was loud and frantic, seeming to pound inside his skull.

Help Tom! He's in terrible
danger. Help him! HELP HIM!

Jack felt as if his mind was
being torn apart. Anomalous images ricocheted through his brain,
fragments of memories that he could not piece together however hard
he tried.

Everything is
fine
, a gentle voice cooed, reminding him of his
mother.
The boy is not worth risking
anything for. Look out for yourself. Only yourself.

But the other voice rose louder
and louder in his head, refusing to be suppressed.

You must act NOW! Do something
or he'll die. TOM WILL DIE! Is that what you really want?

With a tremendous effort of
will, as if slowly emerging from another dark dream, Jack shook his
head absently. "Tom," he mouthed. "Tom!"

Slowly at first but then
breaking into a run, Jack made his way through the trees, stumbling
over high banks, patches of slippery ice threatening to send him
sprawling

into the snow. Searching
desperately with his eyes as he ran, Jack saw the blue of Tom's

jersey at the foot of a
shimmering ice tree. "Tom," he shouted, "Stop! Don't do it!" But
with a sense of horror he saw that Tom had already begun to climb,
hauling himself up into the lower branches of the tree.

Gaining speed as he raced
toward his friend, the snow sliding and crunching under his

boots, Jack flung himself
forward, grabbing at Tom's dangling leg. Then, with a great heave,
he pulled with all his strength, his breath forced out of his body
as Tom landed clumsily on top of him, both boys collapsing onto the
cold, icy ground. Within Jack's head voices whispered and muttered,
but the words were unintelligible. A vision of a woman's face
loomed in his mind, her moist, red lips curled up in a ferocious
snarl, white teeth glinting razor-sharp and he wondered blankly if
she meant to eat him. Then the image dissolved as he heard a
familiar voice calling his name. "Jack...Jack, are you all right?"
Blinking his eyes, he saw the face of a boy he knew very well. "Is
he all right?" questioned the boy with obvious concern.

"I think that he is relatively
unharmed," answered another, deeper voice.

Carefully sitting up, Jack felt
a sharp pain in his ribs. "Ouch!" he exclaimed and rubbed his side
gently.

"What’s wrong?" asked the boy
kneeling at his side. "Are you hurt?"

"Probably just a bruise," Jack
assessed and looking up at the other boy's face he experienced a
sudden joy. "Tom," he said, as if just savouring the sound of the
word.

His friend smiled back at him.
"Yes, it's me."

With a bemused grin Jack got to
his feet, feeling a little winded and with a few aches and pains,
but all of this didn't seem to matter. It was as though he had been
away for a very long time and had finally returned home.

The desert unfurled before
them, a yellow covering for an unforgiving land. It was said that
each grain of sand was a single tear, shed by those who had lost
themselves in this searing, oppressive terrain.

Dredger was indifferent. He had
no intention of letting whatever influence the dunes had touch his
mind. He would not be kept from his purpose by anything or anyone.
Glancing over at the mysterious figure who rode at his side, the
warrior once more questioned the motives of the masked man. But
these thoughts were left unresolved when his companion spoke.

"Can you feel it?"

Dredger eyed him quizzically.
"What should I be feeling?"