Chapter Six – A Marvellous Gift
As he entered back into the great hall, a strange man towered ominously over him that made him jump back in surprise.
“Ah, good morning Prince,” he said with a quiet smoothness to his voice. His eyes were scared over behind wrinkled skin as he stood tall in a long black gown and bore wafer thin hair.
“Um, Good morning Sir,” William slowly replied.
The man laughed raspingly, “Don’t know when I was last called that! My name is Avarian ... Your father has asked me to teach you.”
“Teach me?” William repeated in confusion.
“Precisely,” Avarian replied, “Leptar will already know that you are here. He isn’t going to give up Aurora easily. I can aid you.”
For a moment William said nothing but gazed at the frightful man before him, “How is it that you see me?” He sheepishly asked.
“Just because a man cannot see, Prince,” Avarian paused as he smiled and walked slowly backwards, “it does not mean, that he is blind,” he loudly added as he raised his arms and the hall instantly filled with spirits that glowed intensely and flew at tremendous speeds as they wove tightly around each other.
William instantly tensed up as he watched with fear. His eyes widened dramatically and his mouth gaped open. Slowly, the mage lowered his arms once again, as he walked slowly back to William and the spirits - just as instantly - disappeared.
“My friends show me everything that I need to see,” he paused and smiled gently, “be not afraid young Prince,” William’s eyes began to narrow and his mouth slowly closed as he composed himself; “They are with me always and they keep me safe in this world. They are my guides,” Avarian said lovingly, “as I said, I can help you.”
“Ah!” The King shouted with great affection as he walked up from behind them. “I see that you two have met!”
William slowly nodded.
“Yes my King,” Avarian smiled, “we have indeed.”
The King sighed, “Now William, we need to start your training,” he looked at Avarian and placed his hand firmly upon his shoulder before looking back at his young boy, “there is not a man, in my world or in yours, that I trust more,” he looked back at his friend, “did you bring it?”
“Yes, my King - as you asked.”
The King smiled warmly, “Good. Follow us William,” he gestured as they walked quickly away.
William followed as they hurried across the great hall before they entered through a plain wooden door that was partially concealed by one of the curved stairways.
Before them, sat a single chime that luminesced brightly in the gloominess of the small room. The King and Avarian walked straight on to it, whilst William fell slightly hesitant; “Where are we going?” He cautiously asked.
“To an Aurorian monastery,” Avarian replied quietly before the King could even open his mouth, “fear me not, William. I only mean to help you.”
Slowly, William stepped on to the chime and walked up to his father before all three of them disappeared into the thin air around them.
They rematerialized on top of a chime that glowed vividly in the near darkness of yet another small room that sat far underground. Avarian led the way and cautiously, William followed, as his father walked quietly behind them. Quickly, they left the small room and hurried along a damp, dingy corridor that took them to a small flight of stone stairs. Eventually and still in darkness, they came to a huge wooden door that slowly opened as they approached. Inside, a large, airy, yet dingy room was solely lit by numerous wooden torches that blazed away - held in their holders and fastened to the walls. Stood all around them, were numerous figures - all draped in long dark robes, with pointed hoods and veils that covered their mouths.
Each of the figures held - clasped tightly in their cupped hands before them - a large metallic sphere that dangled freely on a long thin chain. As the great wooden door - that was now behind them - closed, the figures began to swing their metallic spheres gently from side to side as each one slowly released a thick blue gas - that glowed intensely - into the dusty air around it.
“Do not be alarmed William,” whispered Avarian, “these are Aurorian monks. The gas is merely an aid to help you relax.”
William turned to face his father; who placed a hand firmly on to his shoulder.
“It’s ok,” he said softly.
William looked back to Avarian - who had taken an egg-shaped rock that glowed vibrantly in the darkness – out from underneath his cloak and offered it to William - who stared at it, as it reflected itself in his bright blue eyes.
His father removed his hand from William’s shoulder, “Take it boy,” he whispered quickly.
William slowly took the strange rock which still glowed furiously, with both hands, as Avarian released it and watched in anticipation. Immediately, the rock began to rumble.
“Quickly Prince!” Avarian stressed, “Place it on the ground!”
William gently placed it on to the dusty ground before him and remained squatted before it as he gazed in wonder.
“It’s a sylus egg,” Avarian whispered as it rumbled on.
“A dragon William!” Announced the King; “Your dragon!”
“Yes … a dragon!” Avarian smiled, “But a special type of dragon. A sylus is a creature that will always look out for you, as long as you leave it be,” William watched the egg as it continued to rumble with great awe in his eyes, “a sylus must be free to live alone, as it chooses to. It will visit you, when it likes, from time to time and it will always come to you if you are ever in any danger.”
With that, the egg stopped its frantic rumble, causing William to peer closer, before it suddenly smashed - all by itself - into smithereens and left a little creature as it coughed and gazed at William; who was still squatted before it.
“Pick it up,” Avarian gently whispered.
William cupped the little sylus gently in his hands. As he stood up, he brought his hands closer to his face so that he could better see the small creature in the dim light.
“It will give you a gift, you must accept it with an open heart,” the King said softly.
The tiny creature slowly opened its mouth and instantly released a green plume of gas into William’s face. William immediately fell unconscious on to the stone floor beneath him as the sylus leapt quickly from his hands.
William awoke, on a small bed of straw in a small bare room, as the sun streamed in through the small window beside him. Slowly, he arose and walked out into a huge stone hall. A plain wooden table stood at one end - where Avarian and his father were sat before a simple meal of bread and oats.
“Ah. Glad to see you up and about my boy! I was getting worried,” announced the King, as William slowly approached.
“Aye!” Replied Avarian: “There’s not many that sleep as long as that after a sylus waft!” He chuckled to himself, “Have some food and something to drink.”
“How long did I sleep?” William asked inquisitively.
“We have been here for two days,” replied the King quietly.
“Have we missed the games?” Asked William quickly.
“No,” laughed the King, “they start tomorrow. Have some food, William.”
William took a seat and helped himself to a bowl of oats and a handful of bread rolls.
“Good,” said Avarian, “you must be hungry.”
William said nothing but stuffed his little face frantically.
“After you have eaten,” Avarian continued, “we will go outside and you can free your sylus.”
The three ate in silence until they were full and could eat no longer.
“Where is the sylus?” William eventually asked after he drank a tall glass of water in a single attempt.
Avarian reached into his pocket and brought out the little creature as it sat quietly, nestled in his large hand. When it saw William, it leapt from Avarian’s hand and flew across the table to where he was sat. William opened his hand as it appro
ached and it landed comfortably upon it.
William laughed, “It can fly already!”
“Sylus can fly just a few hours after hatching,” informed the King as he chuckled gently.
“He’s been waiting for you,” Avarian added.
“Then let’s release him!” William exclaimed, as he stood up and quickly headed for the open archway that led out into the glorious day. The King and Avarian quickly hurried to follow him out.
The grounds of the monastery were vast, with stone aqueducts and outhouses dotted around them, whilst long thin grasses covered the ground beneath them.
“Do I do anything special?” Asked William as he looked back to his father.
“He is a part of you now,” Avarian answered, “he has given you part of his spirit. Do whatever you feel is right.”
William raised the little creature - that still sat happily in his hand - up to his face and gave it a little kiss on the top of its head.
“I’ll call you Draygor,” he whispered, before he stretched out his arm and Draygor flew slowly away. The three of them stood and watched the wondrous creature as he flew further and further, until he was completely out of sight.
“Now what do we do?” William asked slowly.
The King smiled, “What do you want to do?” He asked gently.
“Well,” William thought for a moment, “what about that training?”
“It has already begun,” announced Avarian with a smile, “you have released your sylus. That shows that you are not of selfish nature. The sylus spirit - that is now within you - shall grow and strengthen your own resolve.”
“More importantly,” added the King, “it shall strengthen you as a whole and it will help to protect your spirit from the evil of this world that would readily corrupt - or indeed - harm it.”
William fell silent, “Where do we go after the games?” He eventually asked, as if a great burden had suddenly been bestowed upon him.
“Avarian shall be travelling with you,” said the King, “he and his spirits shall watch over all of you.”
“But where do we go?” William repeated.
“To Feliisha,” Avarian announced, “and to Aurora’s Oracle. There she shall guide you.”
“Let us return to the palace,” said the King quietly, “tomorrow brings the big games.”
At that, the three of them returned to the small chime within the monastery that the King and Avarian had used to bring William up from the depths and returned instantly to the palace.
They all re-emerged from the little room and walked back into the hallway renewed. William headed outside and into the sun that battered down whilst the King and Avarian went their own separate ways.
William hurried between the monumental white pillars that flanked the main entrance and down the huge white staircase that led into the open grassland that the palace sat amidst. He noticed his sister sat in the tall grass ahead and he rushed toward her. She turned with a smile as he approached and he sat down beside her.
“Hello little brother,” she smiled, “did you get your sylus?”
“How did you know about that?” He asked with an increasing grin.
“I heard talk,” she replied.
“He’s called Draygor!” William excitedly announced.
“That’s a good name for a sylus,” Hannah smiled.
For a long while, they sat still in the grass without another word passing between them.
“Where’s Feliisha?” William eventually asked curiously.
Hannah smiled, “It’s a marvellous place William. It’s a floating city, full of enlightened people!”
“Avarian said that we need to go to Aurora’s oracle,” he added.
“Then there we shall go,” she replied with a smile, “we should be glad if Avarian is coming.”
William smiled and lied back in the tall grass before he closed his eyes under the heat of the day. Hannah too smiled, as she looked at her small brother beside her, before doing the same. There, the pair remained, whilst the rest of the day trickled slowly away.
The morning of the Glitherhiem Games had finally come and the air buzzed with electrical excitement. Galadria Stadium - where the first event was to be held, was a forty-thousand seat venue and was full to the brim with spectators as they laughed and chattered - and those that knew the fallen twenty remembered and celebrated their lives and many happy years of service. The sun pounded down hard as it always seemed to and the heat of the day had already picked up. The King sat on his majestic chair inside of the royal box, with William, Hannah and Avarian sat around him.
“Ladies and gentlemen!” Came a loud voice through the many speakers that sat in their housing throughout the venue, “boys and girls! Welcome to the Glitherhiem Games!” A roar of thunderous cheer came from all around before it gradually quietened back down. “Let us take a few moments to remember the twenty brave souls that lost their lives that led to these extraordinary events.”
Everyone fell silent as time seemed to stand still. Only the odd rustle from the odd breeze that blew about the stadium could be heard. Eventually, the commentator over the microphone spoke again; “Twenty day-works will now be released in remembrance.”
Just as they were announced, they were lit and flew high into the air, high above the stadium with monstrous explosions from each one that sent reams of colour racing throughout the air in all directions.
“To compete for the twenty places aboard the Firefly, are just over two thousand - five hundred competitors, from all over the Kingdom!” Eventually announced the commentator after all twenty day-works had exploded to their final majesty. A huge roar once again rose up, before it quietened back down, as ten horse-mounted soldiers with numbers on their fronts and on their backs, rode proudly on to the grounds.
“Today’s event is the short sword fight!” Cheers once again filled the air, “ten horse-backed fighters at a time, will be allowed on to the grounds! The object for you guys down there is to stay on your horses!”
With that, the ten soldiers - all with a short-sword of hardened steel clenched tightly in their fists, began to battle it out for all that they were worth. The clinking of armour mixed with the cheers from the crowd, as one by one, they fell from grace and disappeared from view. Each winner of a remaining pair rode out of sight to a heroes cheer. The heat sweltered as the day pressed on and groups of spectators began to utilize the chimes at the tops of the stands - some of which returned later in the day. By the final showdown of the remaining pair, most everybody had begun to show signs of wear and the immense heat had all but died back down as the sun began to slowly fade away. The final sword-fight endured for quite some time, but eventually, one of them fell.
“And there you have it folks! The winner of the sword-fights! Give him a hand!”
The cheer that ensued out-shone all that had gone before it with a thunderstorm of applause that accompanied it, before the winner finally rode out of sight and the crowd gradually quietened back down for the last time.
Soon enough, everybody - in their dribs and drabs – had made their way to one of the many chimes and before long the venue was almost empty. The King rose gracefully from his seat and followed by his three companions, stepped on to the private chime that sat nestled within the royal box.
“Well, how did you like it?” Asked the King as they all materialized upon the small chime in the Palace once again.
“It was thrilling!” William replied, full of bounce.
Hannah laughed, “I haven’t heard anyone say thrilling for ages!” She exclaimed as they walked across the hallway.
“Well it was!” Insisted William with a huge smile that threatened to burst passed the boundaries of his face.
“It must be a boy-thing,” she laughed, “I liked it, but not as much as you did, obviously!”
“What do we have for tomorrow?” William asked excitedly.
“Tomorrow will test the contenders shooting ability,” replied the King.
&
nbsp; “I like shooting too!” William Exclaimed.
The morning of the second day of the games had quickly arrived and once again, everybody was full of beans. The venue for the second day’s event was an area of the Northern Plains. It had been cleared of beasts and foul creatures aeons earlier and had been reclaimed and fitted-out with ultra hi-tech holographic equipment. It was a vast area of sandy open space, dotted with great stone pillars that held the railing-encompassed platforms that the spectators would sit upon. Each platform held its own chime. By the time the King and his three companions arrived on the royal platform, the others were full to the brim with more and more excitable and boisterous spectators. Again the atmosphere was electrical as the same two and a half thousand soldiers stood ready on the plains below - each with a modified rifle.
“Alright! Welcome to the second day of the Glitherhiem Games!” Came the commentator’s voice as it blasted through the speakers and sparked an outcry of cheers and encouragement for the soldiers below; “Today is the shooting and the ferocity event! Thousands of holographic targets are going to soon be racing through the air! Each rifle will fire electrical signals that can be detected by the targets and that will make them disappear. Our computers will be able to keep tabs on who shoots what!” Another roar filled the plains, as did tens of thousands of different coloured targets, all of various colours and sizes and all that raced and whizzed through the air at different heights and at different speeds.
Right away, the soldiers began to shoot, as behind the scenes, the computers kept track of which targets were shot down by which rifle. Each time a target was shot, another would materialize elsewhere to take its place. The spectators went ballistic as they shouted and screamed down at the soldiers that frenzied far below them. The sun wasn’t as hot as it had been - which was a good thing since there were no shelters on the platforms – and the manic mayhem continued for what seemed like half of the day, until finally, all of the targets suddenly vanished and the soldiers all lowered their weapons.
“Well, wasn’t that fun!” Came the commentator’s voice once more, “The next and final event is the ferocity event!” The crowds cheered like never before as all of the soldiers below them exchanged their rifles for modified sabres as they utilized chimes that sat around them and returned moments later; “This event will test the contender’s speed and coordination as well as their stamina - which is undoubtedly already drained! The contenders must sleigh as many Kaybar as they can! Kaybar are ferocious and hideous, but don’t worry folks - these ones are holographic!”
Instantly, thousands of holographic beasts appeared among the ever-ready soldiers - who immediately began to slash frantically at each one around them. As one-by-one the creatures were vanquished, more and more appeared elsewhere on the plains - just as the coloured targets had. Again the frenzied madness ensued, as the spectators - that overflowed the platforms above - cheered for the soldiers below. Eventually and after tens of thousands of holograms had been slain, the gigantic holoprojectors - that also dotted the site, were turned off - and the beasts, all at once, vanished into nothingness. The very tired, two and a half thousand soldiers, stood on the empty plains once more as they gasped madly for air.
“HooWee!” Came the familiar voice over the speakers once again, “There’s a lot of tired faces out there! By the time you’ve all gotten your breath back, the scores would have been added to yesterdays - and that’ll be that!” The crowds cheered wildly whilst the exhausted soldiers on the ground looked at each other in wonder. After a few minutes, the names of the top twenty were read out over the speakers. Each name sparked an outburst of cheer and applause from the spectators above and quiet congratulations from their fellow comrades on the sands with them.
“And that’s the twenty!” Announced the commentator once all of the names had been read out; “Well done to you all, but especially to those of you who will now join the crew of the Firefly – which, by the way - leaves at first light tomorrow! Spend the rest of the day saying your goodbyes and I’m sure you’ll all make fine additions!” With that, loud brass band music played out through the speakers as the spectators slowly left their platforms buzzing. Once again, the King arose from his seat and followed by everyone else, stepped on to his private chime before disappearing.