Read The Sword and The Seven Stones: Diamond Page 2

  Chapter 2

  “What do you mean he left? I told you to do one thing and that was to keep him here until I could talk him out of this. Gavin was so angry right now. If he didn’t find Alman, then friend or no friend, Nicholis would have his head for this. The guard informed him that they left three hours ago.

  When Gavin got to the stables, his horse was already there waiting for him. His four best men would go with him. Nelvil, Jordan, Churil, and Reed. He had never been close to this part of the land but he heard the stories that some men would talk about when they were into their cups. Gavin wasn’t born into a rich family but was born to a lady’s maid of the Queen’s. She was from a proper family but had no riches. As the King grew up, Gavin was there by his side. Nicholis made him head of the King’s army. He knew his friend did that so that he could have a title.

  Grabbing the reins, He put his foot in the stirrup and threw his other leg over his horse’s back. As he turned the horse around, he noticed that his men were waiting on their steeds. All five of them looked so menacing. He could only hope that they would find Alman soon.

  Alman and Harry stopped at a cave for a while, to get out of the rain. The storm had gotten worse over the last hour. They had been riding for five hours straight and the horses were tired. They were glad that the cave was big enough to bring the horses in. This way, they wouldn’t get spooked from the lightening. Harry found some kindling and dried moss and started a fire. They decided to stay there for the night. The horses were spent anyway. Harry got a good fire going and Alman took out some food that he packed from his bag. He knew eventually they would have to hunt for food but for now, they could eat the cheese and bread that he took from the kitchen on the way out. “Okay, so you get to keep the sword if you find this guy an almond tree? Why don’t you just cut one down from around here? There are hundreds of them,” Harry asked him as he took another bite from the sandwich he made out of his portion. Alman thought the same thing but for some reason when they guy told him where to find it, he knew that he couldn’t substitute it with another. The old guy would know. “No, I thought of that too but I have a feeling that I’m being sent on a quest for some reason. It isn’t even that I want to go to that part of our land. It is a need inside me that I have to get there. The sword is what is pulling me there. Harry, the first time I lifted the sword in my hands, I felt it had become a part of me. I know it doesn’t make sense.” Alman shook his head. He didn’t know if he was explaining it right to his friend. Harry wanted to believe him but a sword becoming a part of someone was ridiculous. He heard that men form a special bond with their swords but they didn’t become part of them. Plus, how could a sword give out feelings? For a minute, he thought his friend may have drank something in the village to make him go a little strange. The only reason why Harry came with him was to make sure he was safe. Alman would be the next King one day. It was his duty to remain by his side. Harry finished his sandwich and rolled up his bag to make a pillow out of it. “Well friend, I’m going to sleep. We can set out in the morning.” Alman knew that it sounded crazy but it was true. Something happened when he held it for the first time. Rolling up his bag, he went to sleep too. He knew the fire would keep till the morning and the horses finally settled down. He hoped the storm would be gone by morning also. It was only a couple of hours later that they woke to their horses breaking through the entrance of the cave. Alman and Harry stood up to do battle. Backs against each other, they both watched as the walls started to close in. As they inched their way to the mouth of the cave, they suddenly felt that they wouldn’t make it. “Run!” Alman screamed out to Harry and as they did, the floor beneath them opened up. The fall seemed endless, yet it was mere secs. They both fell with a large splash into a pool of crystal clear water. Swimming over to the side, Alman and Harry climbed up the bank and sat there, catching their breaths. “What the hell was that about?” Alman said as soon as he could talk. Harry stood up and looked around. “I don’t know but your sword is glowing. Bring it out so we can see where we are.” Alman took it out of its scabbard and held it up. It lit the whole underground cave up. “Where are we?” he asked Harry who had gone over to one of the entrances leading to somewhere and turned to look at his friend. “We must be in one of those underground caves. I heard of these. You could walk for miles through a mountain.” Well, Alman thought to himself, I would rather be on the other side of the ground, as he got closer to Harry. “Which one do you want to check out?” Harry asked him. Alman pulled his compass out of his coat pocket. “We were headed north today. Let me see if this will work down here.” As he flipped the lid open, the compass spun around and then finally stopped on a direction. It showed that out of the two entrances, they would have to take the left one. Alman stood in front and used his sword not only for protection but to light the way.

  Gavin knew that they wouldn’t be able to go on. They had been riding for hours and the horses were getting tired and the storm had become vicious in the last hour of riding. Branches were getting ripped off the trunks of trees. He knew that they had to find some shelter for the night. “Let’s stop up ahead. Do you see that overhang, up there? ” He shouted to the men. The wind had grown furious. It wasn’t going to let go anytime soon. On the side of the mountain, they got to the large overhang. At least it would get them out of the rain. This was just the first mountain that they would have to go over. Another four or five still lay between where they were and where Alman said he wanted to go. Churil tied the horses up and while Reed went to go find some dry wood, Nelvil took a walk and came back with a couple rabbits. They would be eating little tonight. Gavin took a seat against the rock wall. At least the wind was to their backs. They would stay a little drier. Churil had the rabbits gutted, skinned, and roasting over the fire that Reed got going just moments before. He had found some small bits of dry moss and some wood along the rock wall. With his axe, he split some of the wood to make kindling, then threw some larger pieces on it. Gavin took a seat next to the fire. They were all drenched from riding in the rain. Jordon came back from walking the perimeter around them. They were in the clear from what he would see. “Alman has just a few hours on us, I’m sure of it.” He looked at the others as he took a piece of rabbit from Churil’s knife. The others nodded. Gavin had never ventured onto these lands. No one did. There was an evil to that area. Many men tried because of stories of finding great wealth on the other side. Nicholis and he use to talk when they were children about going there and fighting what demons kept everyone at bay. After hearing the stories in the pub while into cups, Gavin realized that it was no myth but truth. His own uncle went there and they never saw him again. He boasted that he would take on whatever evil lay there and reclaim what was theirs. He took an army of men and not one came back. As Gavin threw his bag between him and the wall, he looked over at the men he had with him. He knew with these men behind him, he might be able to get to Alman in time. After the King lost his wife, the kingdom was unsure if he was fit to rule. It took a lot of work but with the help of his loyal friends, they brought him back around. If he didn’t bring Alman back to him safe and sound, Gavin knew that he would never be able to bring Nicholis back twice. He could only hope that the both of them got to a safe area and out of the storm. Gavin closed his eyes and thought back to the night that Rosemele died. Gavin had never seen so much grief pass through the palace. She died from a fall down the stairs. She lost her footing. It was just a freak accident. How many times did they all run up and down those stairs growing up? Nicholis and Rosemele had been in love from the moment that she came to court. It was a match signed from birth. When she had Alman, the Kingdom rejoiced. She had lost so many before. She was a strong woman but after the birth of their son, she couldn’t give the King any more children. Nicholis didn’t want her to try anymore either. He was so in love with his wife, that he feared that he would lose her too the next time they tried. When she fell down the stairs, she was rushing to meet her husband at the door.
They had gone to the east side of the mountain to hunt and as she put her foot down upon one of the stairs, it turned the wrong way and she fell down the rest. The screams could be heard through the large wood door. Nicholis heard the scream and ran in to see his beautiful Rosemele land on the marble floor. The blood ran from behind her head. Nicholis knew she was gone the moment he brought her into his arms.

  Gavin needed to get Alman to him before something happened. He would never forgive himself if he got Alman back in time to only watch his father die. He hoped that they would have more time together. Looking over at their horse, he was glad that they would be able to move faster than Alman and Harry. Their horses weren’t the same as the ones Gavin and his men rode. Alman’s horse was from amazing stock. He had speed and he was a strong horse but Gavin looked over at the five horses he and his men rode. They were close to twenty hands high, and built like rock walls. These were war horses. They did battle, keeping the kingdom of Maramar safe.