THE SWORD AND THE STONE (standard:fantasy, 13022 words)
Author: Richard J Cobain	Added: May 10 2003	Views/Reads: 3973/2503	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
A fantasy story about a young boy on a planet ruled by an evil dragon who by chance discovers the secret of freeing his people and sets out on a journey to do so.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

talk to him sometimes when he was working in the stables, she loved 
horses even more than he did.  She was carrying a basket of flowers 
toward the town centre he noticed and she gave him a big smile as they 
rode by.  Her long usually curly black hair was glistening in the 
morning sun as if it had just been washed.  She must be coming from the 
river he thought and made a mental note of it for future reference.  
Zest waved back trying to control his enthusiasm; it would do no good 
to fall off his horse or something stupid like that in front of her.  
He looked over at lunega and discovered that she was laughing at him; 
he scowled and rode on ahead to get away from such childishness.  They 
broke through the forest to the outside soon after.  Endless grasslands 
lay before them in all directions, Zest inhaled deeply, he was exited 
but also nervous as well, it was alien to him to be so in the open as 
this.  He felt a bit vulnerable to be outside the safety of the forest. 
Memos who was leading them being the oldest called Zest over to him, 
his voice barely carried over the howling wind.  This was only the 
fourth time that Zest had ever been out of the forest in his whole 
life, his people usually didn't venture too far away from home unlike 
the Fulpesos and the Radorians who frequently left their villages for 
long periods of time to travel and trade.  “Where too?” asked Memos 
“you lead the way”.  “Fair enough” said Zest trying his best to sound 
brave and decisive, “follow me” and he took off at top speed in a 
westerly direction.  “Slow down” cried Memos struggling to keep up, 
“you'll tire out your horse”. 

They kept riding for about an hour without luck and Zest was just about
to consider turning back empty handed when he saw what they were 
looking for and he bade the others to stop at the crest of a small 
hill.  About a mile ahead of them was a mountain range and about 
halfway between that and where the tired hunting party were waiting 
patiently, was the reason they were out here.  A Zegebo and a fine 
sized one it looked too was grazing happily unaware that it was even 
being watched.  This was the first time Zest had ever seen a live one, 
“I thought they were smaller than that” he gulped staring at its large 
blue horns which seemed quite capable of ripping someone apart.  “Get 
your spears handy boys eh and girl” said Memos with an apologetic nod 
to Lunega who smiled back at him.  Zest looked over to Sonas who was 
nearly bursting with excitement and laughed.  “Charge” he cried and 
with that they were off.  The quite stupid Zegebo only noticed them 
when they were almost upon it and with a high pitched scream it fled 
towards the mountains with its shaggy hair flowing behind it in the 
wind.  The chase was on. “I didn't know they were so fast” cried Sonas 
who was already falling behind.  Zest could never remember feeling this 
much excitement before and could barely contain himself.  Brakis had 
nearly caught up to it when it suddenly changed direction and ran into 
a cave.  They halted outside unsure of whether to follow it in or not.  
“Let's go in a small bit anyway” suggested Brakis who seemed to be in 
better shape now that they had something to hunt, “there was good meat 
on that fellow”. 

Zest dismounted and led the way into the darkened cave but the moment he
stepped inside he felt that he wasn't in control of his movements any 
more, it was almost like he was being pulled towards something, 
something very powerful.  “Wait up Zest” he heard Lunega calling 
already a distance behind him, but he didn't pay any attention.  The 
cave from what he could make out in the dim light was quite a bit 
bigger than he had initially thought.  As he walked on he heard an 
exited cry from his Grandfather.  “Dear me this is incredible”.  But 
Zest couldn't turn back; he was still being forced onwards to the other 
side of the cave with great urgency.  “This is the writing of the 
Ancient folk” Memos was shouting “the Ancient folk dear me”.  “It says 
there is something in this cave of great importance, to be recovered 
and used when the planet is in its most danger, to destroy the darkness 
from above”.  “What are you saying?” Zest faintly heard Sonas ask.  “I 
can't believe it” exclaimed Memos “they're talking about Raksula, the 
ancient folk are talking about Raksula”.  “Are you serious man?” asked 
Brakis gruffly with doubt written all over his usually expressionless 
face.  “My good man I've never been more serious about anything in my 
entire life”. 

At that moment Zest found what he was looking for, or rather it found
him.  In the days that followed he often wondered whether he had been 
destined to find it or not but the idea that some all-powerful force 
had purposely chosen him an irresponsible young stable boy from the 
Sactra forests to find such an invaluable item was just to much for his 
simple brain to comprehend.  He had reached the other side of the cave. 
 In front of him from what he could make out in the semi-darkness was 
an extremely old looking table made of smooth grey stone covered with 
some kind of writing in black that looked to him like a combination of 
drawings and scribbles, and on top of the table lay the thing that had 
drawn him here a sword made entirely of solid gold.  It was the most 
beautiful perfect thing he had ever seen.  There was a strange aura of 
Godliness about it from its razor sharp tip to its handle, which had 
criss cross lines running diagonally through it.  The sheath that lay 
beside it was also golden; no writings of any kind were noticeable on 
it.  He reached out slowly and picked it up by the grip amazed at how 
light it was, it weighed hardly anything at all but felt so powerful.  
He waved it to and fro captivated by the way the light bounced off it.  
In fact it seemed to be almost generating it's own light if such a 
thing were possible.  Just then a hand fell on his shoulder and he 
whirled around in surprise nearly taking his sisters head off.  “What 
have you found Zest?” she asked in astonishment. 

When they returned the others were standing around a perfectly circular
pillar, which Zest hadn't noticed on his way in.  It was about five 
feet in diameter and went from the cave floor to the roof, which was 
about twenty feet above them.  It was also covered with the same 
strange markings that had been on the table.  Memos was frantically 
running around it mumbling to himself.  “Amazing” he was saying.  
“Truly remarkable, I wouldn't have believed it”.  Just then Sonas 
noticed what Zest was carrying.  “Is that sword made of gold” he 
gasped.  Memos suddenly stopped in his tracks.  “Sword made of gold” he 
cried and whirled around to see what Zest was carrying, then stumbled 
backwards into the pillar with a look of total disbelief on his face.  
Brakis ran to help him up but Memos paid no attention to the bulky 
warrior.  “You found it,” he said at last when he had somewhat regained 
his composure.  “You have found it Zest”.  “Found what?” asked Sonas.  
“The sword of light crafted by the ancient folk countless years ago”.  
“I don't understand” Lunega interrupted.  “Of course you don't so let 
me tell you” snapped Memos.  “When I was a boy a long time ago my 
Grandfather used to tell me about the sword”.  “He said that if the 
planet was ever in danger from a dark evil the sword would be found 
and” here he paused gasping for breath.  “Are you all right 
Grandfather?” asked Zest worriedly kneeling beside him.  “When the 
sword was found” he went on “it was to be taken to the snow lands of 
the North and placed in the stone of Selesial who was the greatest King 
of all the Ancient folk”.  “Having done so the danger would be thwarted 
and all who served the evil one would also perish”.  “Quite a story” 
muttered Brakis.  “I never believed it,” exclaimed Memos “no one did, 
we all thought it was a made up tale past from generation to 
generation”.  “I mean I studied the few surviving scrolls of the 
Ancients but they mentioned nothing about the sword”.  “I would never 
have believed” he said falling to a whisper “if I hadn't seen all this 
with my own eyes”. 

Zest broke a long and uncomfortable silence.  “So this stone of
Selesial, does it really exist?”  “no-one has ever seen it but it is 
written on this pillar that the North Star leads the way right to it” 
Memos replied.  “If you want my opinion” spoke Brakis who had remained 
quite for some time “Raksula isn't going to be defeated by placing some 
pretty sword into a rock in the snow lands which may or may not exist”. 
 “We know that war may be imminent as Ape-Men have been spotted near 
Fulpeso and Radoria so it would be in our best interests to form 
alliances with them and together we might have a chance of defeating 
the Dark One”.  Having spoken his piece Brakis crossed his arms and 
sighed heavily, there was silence once more.  Memos slowly got to his 
feet a short time later and spoke to them “let us return home, there is 
much for me to think about and discuss with the other elders”.  “As you 
wish Grandfather” said Lunega taking his arm.  “Hold on to the sword 
Zest” Sonas whispered to him, “it could be our last hope”.  Zest nodded 
as they headed back out of the cave in silence. 

Zest leapt onto his horse and clipped the Sword to his leather belt,
which he had only recently acquired as a birthday gift from his mother. 
 As they rode slowly away completely forgetting what they had gone into 
the cave in the first place for Zest began to feel very uneasy.  
“Something's wrong” he cried “something's wrong”.  At that moment his 
eye caught movement from high above them.  There were four massive dark 
haired creatures peering down at them with large wooden spears gripped 
at the ends of their gigantic arms.  Zest who had heard of the Ape-Men 
but never seen them before could only scream in terror.  “Retreat” 
cried Memos seeing the danger and they began galloping away as fast as 
they could.  Zest looked back and watched as the Ape-Men leaped from 
the mountainside with frightening agility. They were up and running the 
instant they hit the ground with speed to match that of the fastest 
horse.  Now a chase of a very different kind was on. 

As they fled for their lives in terror spears began to rain in on them
missing them only by a matter of inches.  Zest glanced back once more 
and saw that although the others were keeping pace with him Memos was 
quite a way back and was only just ahead of the sprinting pursuers.  
“Hurry up Grandfather” he roared, “they're right behind you”.  Just 
then Memos looked up and stared Zest right in the eye, time seemed to 
stop all around him and Zest realised that he was looking at a dead man 
and his Grandfather knew it too.  “No” Zest screamed but it was too 
late because Memos was hit in the back by one of the spears and crashed 
to the ground spectacularly.  Zest brought his horse to a stop about 
forty feet from where his Grandfather lay trapped under his crippled 
horse and surrounded by the Ape-things.  “Take the sword to the North 
Zest” he bellowed “destroy the Dark One” And as they tore and ripped 
into his flesh with their savage hands Zest watched him scream and 
scream.  With tears gushing down his boyish face he turned his horse 
around for home. 

It was a long journey home for all of them, they were afraid to stop for
even the shortest rest and were relieved when they finally returned 
home to Sactra.  There was uproar among the other villagers when they 
heard what had happened to Memos.  He was greatly respected by everyone 
in the town being the oldest and most learned among them.  “Raksula has 
gone too far” the men were saying, “we must team up against him and 
bring him down once and for all”.  As for the sword it was taken away 
from Zest by the town elders and placed in Pelway's house (him being 
the oldest now that Memos was gone) for “safe keeping” they said.  Zest 
was outraged by this descision and said that not only had he found it 
but also Memos had told him specifically to bring it to the North.  
“Bah” they said, “all this talk about swords and stones is utter 
nonsense, Memos would never approve of such things”.  “But he did” 
protested Sonas.  “That is enough” they responded in anger “now leave 
us be so we can decide what the next course of action is”.  And that 
was the end of the argument; Zest had lost his Grandfather and now the 
sword.  “I believe you Grandfather,” he said to himself “and I will 
carry out your dying wish”.  With that he walked alone to a secluded 
part of the forest to think, and he stayed there alone with his 
thoughts until the sun began to go down. 

When everyone had gone to sleep late that night Zest crawled out of bed
gathered all the food that he could fit into his sack and made his way 
towards Pelway's hut.  He could have found his way there blindfolded as 
the sword was dragging him towards it once again but the moon was fat 
in the starlit sky covering everything with a silvery glow.  In no time 
at all he was outside the small wooden house listening to the snores of 
the old man when something touched his shoulder.  “What are you doing 
here?” he hissed, “You nearly killed me sneaking up like that”.  “I 
knew what you were planning to do” whispered Lunega “and I couldn't let 
you go on your own now could I”.  Despite his anger at seeming so 
predictable Zest smiled “is your horse fed and ready to go” she nodded 
affirmatively “well wait here for me then and keep quiet” and with that 
he entered the dark little hut. 

He could see the shape of Pelway lying on the ground ahead of him but
there was no sign of the sword yet though something was telling him it 
was past Pelway to the opposite side of the hut.  As he crept past the 
old man he tripped over a pile of clothes and fell to the floor with a 
muffled yelp.  The old man stirred in his sleep and mumbled 
incoherently for a while before apparently resuming his slumber.  Zest 
slowly got back to his feet when the man's breathing had deepened; 
“whew” he gasped wiping sweat from his drenched forehead “too close”.  
He reached the other side of the hut and found a small table in front 
of him covered with a dirty grey cloth, which he carefully removed.  
There it was in all it's glory, the sword, his sword, gleaming in the 
moonlight.  Having satisfied himself that the old man was still asleep 
he picked it up savouring the power that now surged through his arm and 
crept back out smiling as he went. 

“What took you so long?” asked a very anxious Lunega when he had finally
re-emerged, lines of worry were evident in her usually innocent face 
“never mind” replied Zest “I've got the sword so let's just get our 
horses and get out of here quickly and quietly”.  As they walked 
towards the village stable Zest experienced a brief moment of 
hesitation, he had lived here in Sactra all his life and now he was 
going off on some spur of the moment crazy quest, would he ever see 
this place and it's people again, the only people he knew and loved.  
This was a question, which hadn't occurred to him until now, but he 
shrugged it off and put it down to nervousness.  They reached their 
horses, which were all ready saddled up and with a last glance back at 
the only life that they had ever known they turned and rode off into 
uncertainty. 

After several minutes of riding Zest began to feel uneasy about
something, “what is it?” his sister asked from behind him her long hair 
swaying in the breeze “i don't know” he answered her, “it almost feels 
like we're being followed or something don't you think?”.  “Weird” said 
Lunega more to herself than Zest “I don't feel anything”.   “Who are 
you trying to reassure” Zest smiled “me or you”.  Suddenly his smile 
faded and he stopped his horse putting his hand up “shh” he ordered and 
faced back the way they had come.  “Someone's coming” he spoke soon 
after “what?” gasped Lunega but even now she could hear the pounding of 
hooves just ahead of them.  Before they could even get to the side of 
the beaten track a horse came belting at them from the darkness, the 
rider having seen them too late gave a high pitched scream and pulled 
on the reigns in a last ditch attempt to stop but his horse threw him 
off and into one of the trees at the edge of the path as it skidded to 
a noisy halt.  Zest quickly jumped from his horse and drew his sword.  
Seconds later the stranger came slowly crawling back out of the tree 
cover moaning and seeming quite disorientated.  It like them was 
dressed in a long black hooded robe.  “Reveal yourself stranger” 
commanded Zest in his most authoritative voice to the stranger who was 
still on hands and knees.  “Doroma” cried the stranger “Sonas Doroma 
please don't hurt me my head is so sore”.  “Sonas” exclaimed Zest “it's 
me Zest and Lunega is with me”.  “Oh thank goodness I found you” he 
laughed, “I thought I was too late”.  “How did you know where we were?” 
asked Lunega still in amazement.  “I knew that you'd try to get the 
sword back so I decided to come with you but I was very sleepy and 
dozed off, when I awoke I rode to your hut and seeing that you had 
already left I headed out North as fast as I could”.  Zest smiled 
warmly as he helped his friend to his feet “you've still got lots to 
learn about riding but we'll take you anyway”.  “I wouldn't have it any 
other way” beamed Sonas having apparently gotten over his sore head. 

They rode hard and fast that night after leaving the forest to put the
most time that they possibly could between themselves and Sactra though 
they didn't really expect anyone to come after them.  On they went by 
the moons light restlessly, always following the North Star, which was 
one of many neighbouring moons and was close enough to be seen in 
daylight.  Some time after dawn they decided to stop for a while.  They 
had enough food to last them about five days and seeing as it would 
take four at least to Fulpeso they decided they would stock up there by 
bartering the few items with which they had in their possession.  It 
had been endless field since leaving the forest with nothing to break 
the monotony but Zegebos, which they steered well, clear of and trees.  
It was under one of these huge trees they now took shade from the heat 
of the sun; it was shaping up to be one of the last hot days as winter 
was fast approaching.  After some homemade bread and river water they 
fed the horses and set out again. 

As the day went on the field land started getting gradually worse and
when they stopped for the night under another giant tree the ground was 
more rock than grass.  They had talked rarely that day being each 
engrossed in their own thoughts but as they sat around a small fire 
eating more of the tasteless bread they entered into conversation to 
pass the time.  “Do you think that there are any Ape-Men around here 
who may spot our fire and come and investigate it?” asked Sonas 
nervously.  “I don't know” answered Zest, “but you have got a point, we 
had better put it out to be safe” and with that he got to his feet and 
stamped it out leaving Sonas cursing his own stupidity.  “I wonder what 
Fulpeso is like?” said Lunega after a brief silence.  “I was there once 
a few years ago but I can't remember much of it except that it is 
situated at the bottom of a large valley in the great mountain range of 
Pregal” spoke Sonas.  After some more chat it began to get dark and 
more than a bit cold so they turned in for the night but none of them 
got much sleep with the ceaseless howling of the black wolves of 
Gatrere who sang their songs all night to the silvery moon. 

They awoke early next morning and headed off after a small breakfast. 
They could now see the Mountains of Fulpeso far into the distance, 
which was still more than two days riding away.  Zest studied his 
companion's faces as they went; Sonas seemed quite optimistic and full 
of energy whereas Lunega looked a lot more solemn and serious.  
Suddenly Zest's mind turned to his dead Grandfather and he wished that 
he was here among them, but he knew that he was here in a spiritual way 
inside each of them acting as a kind of guardian angel.  “Oh 
Grandfather” he sighed “I don't know if I can do this without you” 
Sonas at that moment feeling his friends doubt slowed his horse till 
they were side by side “what's wrong?” he asked “you're not losing 
confidence in yourself are you?”  “No” smiled Zest “I was thinking 
about Memos” “you know that he'd want you to go through with this don't 
you Zest” “ya I guess so” “well that's that” cried Sonas “onward to 
Fulpeso” and they rode on into the night with renewed determination. 

The next day was largely spent riding in between short breaks and went
without incident but the morning after they suffered their first real 
set back; Lunega's horse had disappeared during the night along with a 
share of the food, which had been tied to her.  “Never mind” said Sonas 
looking on the bright side “we still have enough food to get us to 
Fulpeso and you can ride with me”.  But he had been a bit too 
optimistic about their rations because after they had eaten there 
wasn't much food left at all, they had just enough left for a scant 
meal and they still had many hours travelling to do.  But they 
continued on nevertheless with the great mountain range drawing closer 
every step. 

About two hours before it would begin to get dark they reached the
mountain range.  “Where do we go now?” asked Lunega.  Sonas knowing the 
way led them in a Westerly direction until they could see the shady 
town of Fulpeso in the distance.  Hundreds of little huts some wooden 
but most constructed of loose rock which was abundant in these parts, 
clung to the lower slopes of the mountain, on either side of the great 
river.  And there in the centre squashed in by the little houses was 
the dwelling place of King Dobegal IV, the largest building that any of 
them had ever seen.  A huge building it was complete with towers and 
spirals that were made look even bigger due to the huts alongside it, 
which were dwarfed in its shadow.   The town was built in a V shaped 
valley caused by the river Dalule that gushed from high up the 
mountainside.  As they neared the town though they began to sense that 
something wasn't right.  There was no movement of any kind going on 
there and not a living thing was to be seen in the usually bustling 
streets.  Also strange was the fact that there wasn't smoke rising from 
even one of the numerous huts, which indicated that the town was 
utterly deserted.  When they reached the town, they were quite scared, 
it was totally abandoned, a ghost town.  “I don't know what to make of 
this,” murmured Sonas as they dismounted their horses uneasily.  Never 
before had they seen anything so blatantly eerie, they couldn't shake 
the feeling that something very wrong was going on. “What happened 
here? Asked lunega who was nervously biting her lower lip” the others 
unable to answer the question just stood silent wondering what the next 
step for them was.  They weren't waiting long though because just 
seconds later a huge net fell on them from above catching them totally 
off guard.                                                              
                 They hit the ground with a crash and of course the 
more they struggled to free themselves the more entangled they became.  
Knowing that escape was hopeless Zest looked about for the culprits and 
saw them standing on a mountain ledge above them much like the one the 
Ape-Men had surprised them on some days before.  These weren't savage 
brutes however; they were men and that was something at least for the 
trio to be grateful for.  “What's going on?” they cried as the men 
climbed down by rope to meet them, but the men ignored their questions 
and spoke to each other instead.  Now they noticed more people mostly 
men approaching weapons raised from the huts that apparently weren't 
deserted as the group had originally thought.  They all looked very 
frightened.  “They don't look dangerous,” said one of them “we can't 
take the chance of freeing them” said another.    “Listen here” Zest 
roared “we are merely travellers passing through and mean no harm to 
you so free us and show us the hospitality that you're supposed to be 
famous for”.  At this the men began mumbling to themselves and soon 
later spoke to the group directly for the first time.  “We will free 
you but we must tie your hands”.  “Agreed” cried Lunega who was in 
terrible pain.  “Very well then, after you have been freed and tied you 
will be taken to our King where it will be decided what will become of 
you”.  Although they didn't like the sound of it one bit they had no 
choice but to agree to the men's terms. 

After having their weapons confiscated which made Zest furious and their
arms quite securely tied behind their backs the group were led away 
from the village, which came as a surprise to them.  They were taken 
out of the valley where they then turned North Westerly always keeping 
close to the mountainside.  Soon later the men turned towards the 
mountain and led them up a small path, which was invisible from the 
ground.  It wound its way up steeply and soon they were standing 
outside the mouth of a large cave.  The inside was enormous, a huge 
group of people from the village, which must have been about four 
thousand people were squashed together in the most claustrophobic way.  
There was only one make shift tent in there but a huge one it was and 
this they were ushered towards by the men while onlookers stopped and 
stared at them with suspicious eyes.  Zest never felt more like a 
criminal in his life. 

When they reached the tent the men beckoned them to enter but did not
follow them in.  The king was seated on a large wooded chair in the 
centre of the room; he was discussing something with an elderly looking 
man when Zest and his companions entered through the red silk curtains. 
 He was a good-looking middle-aged man save for a fresh looking scar 
running down the entire left side of his face.  There was an air of 
great wisdom and intelligence in that face.  “That will be all Mayeyd 
for the moment” he spoke in a commanding tone and the man left with a 
bow.  “Now” he said and eyed each of them in turn quite rudely.  “Who 
may I ask are you three and what are doing in my territory?” having 
introduced themselves Zest spoke up “we were on our way to your village 
to get supplies your Majesty”.  “Supplies for what?”. The King 
interrupted.  “We are on a journey to the snow lands of the North” he 
replied ignoring the sharp intake of breath from his companions.  “For 
what purpose?” the King asked still with great suspicion written on his 
wise looking face.  Zest then seeing no reason to lie, as it would just 
likely get them into more trouble told their story from start to 
finish.  The King said nothing throughout but nodded along at times.  
“Well” he exclaimed when Zest had ended the tale, “quite a story 
indeed, though complete rubbish is all it is as you should really know, 
I don't believe you are a danger to me or my people however and so I 
will return your weapons and horses, you are free to come and go as you 
please”.  And with that he rose from his chair and cut the binding 
ropes from them with a dagger before seating himself again.  “Our 
deepest thanks your Majesty” spoke Zest bowing his head low “but would 
we be at all unreasonable in wanting to know why we were brought to you 
in such a fashion and why your people were hiding in the village from 
us when we arrived?”.  At this the king's face turned quite sad “it is 
a grave tale” he said “but I suppose you deserve to hear it as it has 
dire consequences for us all”. 

“It happened four days ago” he began “on a day like every other, the
market place was busy birds were singing in the trees and the sun was 
shining on us, it was a beautiful day but then they came”.  Here he 
paused for a few seconds to get himself together.  “Who?” Sonas butted 
in forgetting that he was talking to Royalty.  “The Ape-Men” answered 
the King with a heavy sigh.  “They appeared from nowhere a large group 
of them about a thousand I would say in a very organised fashion and 
halted a few hundred meters outside the town”.  “After about half an 
hour a small band of them entered the town and demanded that I meet 
them outside immediately”.  “Well it seemed that I had no choice so I 
went out to them accompanied by all the able bodied men that I had”.  
“I didn't like the look of them one bit but they enraged me by saying 
that we had an hour to turn ourselves over to Raksula as slaves or face 
the consequences”.  “After a very brief discussion with my men we 
decided to take our chances rather than surrender to those brutes”.  “I 
told them that under no circumstances would I turn my people over to 
their leader and the words were hardly out of my mouth when they 
attacked with such speed and ferocity as I will never forget” having 
said this he gingerly rubbed his hand over the scar on his face.  “We 
lost about seven hundred men” he said with tears swelling in his eyes 
“they lost about one hundred”.  “We were no match for them being the 
peaceful people that we are, we never stood a chance”.  “When they were 
satisfied at having completely crippled us they left vowing that they 
would return soon with the same proposition”.  “After that we moved 
here to regroup and we hope to launch a surprise ambush on them when 
they arrive, it is our only chance”.   “We are expecting them any day 
now” he paused for a lonf time before saying “we have sent word to 
Radoria for help and are hoping that they will send us many men because 
we are never going to surrender, never” he pounded his fist on the 
table before him to emphasise his frustration but succeeded only in 
knocking over a wine glass which smashed to pieces on the rock floor.  
Little did he know however that his men never got to Radoria, they were 
completely on their own.  “We are so sorry” spoke Zest “we had no idea 
that things were this serious”.  “Yes this is only the beginning of 
Raksula's plans but I fear in my heart that he may be too strong for us 
all” and with that he fell into deep thought and waved his hand to 
dismiss the group upon which they bowed graciously and left. 

They decided to spend the night there and bartered various items for
food and at the end of a tiring night they had accumulated enough 
edibles to last them weeks.  The atmosphere in the cave was very tense, 
as people had nothing to do but wait for the Ape-Men to return.  Some 
people were actually talking about surrendering and a few small 
scuffles broke out on the subject, which were quickly broken up.  Much 
to the trio's delight however the watchmen had nothing to report by the 
time it got bright the following morning. 

They woke at dawn with the sun beaming into the cave and decided to
leave as soon as possible after they had something to eat.  Word had 
got out of their adventures so far and Zest found it very annoying that 
people were staring at his sword and asking to touch it though the 
entire population thought their quest was utter nonsense and were not 
afraid to tell them so.  They left the cave thanking the King for his 
hospitality and walked to their horses painfully aware that everyone 
was watching them.  Minding their horses were a very strong looking man 
and a young boy of about eleven years.  Zest couldn't help staring at 
the boy, there was something different about his face, his eyes were 
very narrow but they screamed of wisdom, his mouth was tiny his nose 
sharp and were those pointy ears?  “You know,” said the man as they 
mounted their horses “we really could use you in the fight against 
Raksula”.  “You may have a vital role to play in it”.  “We already do” 
said Zest and was about to ride off when he felt a tug at his leg.  He 
looked down and discovered it was the boy.  “I believe in you mister” 
he said looking Zest straight in the eye with hope etched all over his 
innocent face.  “I know you're going to do it”.  Zest felt very odd 
after hearing this, he felt that something had just passed between the 
two of them that he couldn't understand but without further adieu they 
left the doomed town of Fulpeso forever without a backward glance. 

And so they carried on where they left off following the North Star
relentlessly.  At about midday three eventless days riding after 
leaving Fulpeso they stopped for a rest at the foot of a massive 
mountain range, which they were unfortunately going to have to 
traverse.  Sonas spoke breaking a long silence “who exactly is Raksula 
anyway?”  “I mean I've only heard of him by listening to the elders and 
the rumours going round the village”.  “Memos used to tell me” answered 
Zest “that he is a huge black dragon who arrived here from the second 
moon of Trelsa many years ago and created the Ape-Men to be used as 
pawns in his plan to take over our planet”.  “Why would he do such a 
thing?” asked Sonas again in his innocence “because he is evil in it's 
truest form and is the biggest threat that the people of this planet 
have ever faced”.  “I don't think we'll be able to get the horses up 
there” said Lunega on a more practical note pointing to the mountain 
“it's too steep for them”.  “You're right by Unopa” Sonas cursed and 
sighed patting his horses great back “I'm going to miss you old chum”.  
So that was it they had no other choice but to leave their trusty 
steads at the foot of the mountain and continue the rest of the journey 
on foot.  It was with heavy hearts that they began the long trek up the 
rocky slopes listening to the sad neighing of their four legged friends 
left alone below. 

They climbed higher and higher that day wrapping their robes around
them, as it was very cold, the days of sun were behind them now.  They 
had been going for about an hour and a half when something very 
unexpected happened.  They had discovered a path upon which they were 
making steady progress when they turned a corner and found two Ape-Men 
standing directly in front of them.  The only thing that saved their 
lives was that they hadn't been talking while rounding the corner and 
the Ape-Men were as surprised to see company as they themselves were.  
They drew their swords immediately as the things charged at them with 
heavy looking wooden clubs.  One of them went for Sonas and Lunega and 
the other came for Zest.  It swung wildly missing his head by a matter 
of inches causing him to stumble and fall backwards towards the edge of 
a very high cliff.  His sword dropped from his hand and lay a few feet 
from him but it was too far.  The thing was standing over him with club 
raised and a look of primal joy on its face.  Zest had only time to 
think to himself “ this is it, I'm finished” when fate threw him a 
lifeline.  He clearly saw something small flying through the air from 
high above, smash into the back of the things neck with a thud.  With a 
loud roar of anger, surprise and pain it wheeled around which gave Zest 
the chance he needed to grab his sword and plunge it deep into the 
hairy back of his attacker as he did so he noticed that there was in 
fact an arrow protruding from the things broad neck.  Dark blood gushed 
out as it fell to its knees and died.  Retrieving his weapon Zest was 
just in time to see his comrades finish off the other one with a 
combined effort.  They stood panting over the bloodied corpse.  “Anyone 
hurt?” asked Zest when he had regained his breath.  “Just a scratch” 
said Sonas pointing to his left shoulder, which was bleeding heavily 
and bruised badly.  Lunega bandaged him up and he swore that it wasn't 
as bad as it looked.  “What is it?” they asked when they saw their 
leader looking high up the mountain face.  “Someone or something is up 
there watching us” he said “and it saved my life”.  With that he told 
them of how he had defeated the Ape-thing.  “That is weird” said Lunega 
feeling more than a bit uncomfortable.  “I don't like the idea of 
something being able to see me when I can't see it”.  “Well it seems to 
be on our side anyway for now” spoke Sonas “so I suggest we move on and 
keep our eyes peeled”.  They agreed and with that they left the scene 
of the battle and carried on for the rest of the day without any sign 
of more Ape-Men or their mysterious ally. 

The next day was more of the same thing, they followed rocky paths
sometimes climbing high sometimes descending and it wasn't long before 
they were panting for breath.  As they went they talked about their 
quest, how far they had come, how far they had to go which was about 
seven days by their reckoning and they also talked about Fulpeso.  It 
was now four days since they had left and all of them especially Zest 
had a bad feeling about the place.  He had no way of knowing but he 
knew all the same that since they left the Ape-Men had returned and it 
didn't take much imagination to guess what had happened.  “Do you think 
they're strong enough to fight Raksula?” Sonas asked.  Zest paused for 
a second before answering “not a chance”, “they will be crushed if they 
defy him again”.  “I hope you're wrong” spoke Lunega “as do I” said 
Zest sadly but he had always trusted his “feelings” growing up and now 
they were telling him that Fulpeso wasn't going to be much of a place 
to visit from now on. 

Later that day when they found themselves ledge, which sheltered them
nicely from the wind they decided to take a quick rest, they were 
nearly through the mountain now and the first flecks of white snow were 
beginning to fall about them.  Once they had cleared the mountain which 
they expected to do in about a day or so they would find themselves in 
the snow forests of the North and after that was their destination, the 
Selesial pass, a narrow flat stretch of land rumoured to be miles long 
surrounded on both sides by trees at the end of which would be the 
stone of Selesial.  Zest guessed about six days in all now their 
journey would last if they kept up a steady pace, which was easier, 
said than done.  He eyed his sword carefully, it seemed that he had 
always had it and he was really becoming accustomed to the feel of the 
golden metal in his hands.  He began wondering if he could really give 
it up when the time came. 

During the next days travelling Zest couldn't shake off the feeling that
they were being watched which had been nagging him all day and the day 
before but was now eating him alive.  Once as he looked about he 
thought he saw something small and black moving from behind a rock high 
up in the direction from which they had come but with the snow falling 
and the thing being so far away he couldn't be sure of what if anything 
he had seen.  But one thing was certain they were being seen all right. 
 He didn't tell the others that this morning he had seen a new set of 
footprints near their fire.   He began to conceive a plan and told the 
others.  They walked for about another two hours and when it began to 
get dark they lit a sheltered fire but instead of staying with it they 
headed back at a quick pace to a predetermined hiding place.  They were 
going to wait here at a fork in the path with a big rock wall to hide 
behind and catch their follower if he/she or it noticed their fire and 
was still pursuing them.  Sonas carried a small version of the net that 
they had been caught with in Fulpeso and it would do the job perfectly 
here on this snow covered windy mountain path.  Lunega had also covered 
the tracks leading to the hiding place and so the trap was set and all 
they had to do was wait in silence. 

They stood quiet for what seemed to each of them like an eternity.  As
they waited they each became engrossed in their own thoughts.  
Questions like “were we wrong about this?” and “was there ever anyone 
following us?” were occurring to them and Lunega was just about to 
speak up on the subject when they heard or more precisely thought they 
heard something coming their way.  They listened intently almost afraid 
to breathe lest they be heard.  Crunch, crunch, it was the unmistakable 
sound of something coming towards them through the snow.  After every 
two of three steps the sound would cease for a while and then begin 
again.  A few minutes of this went by.  Crunch, crunch, crunch, surely 
it was almost on top of them now.  Then after another brief pause, 
which however seemed like an eternity to the group they saw the small 
dark figure that had been on their trail rounding the corner.  Quick as 
lightening Sonas threw the net and before the thing had time to react 
it was trapped.  “Agh” it screamed “let me out, let me out”.  Lunega 
lit a branch covered with oily rags and held it over the net to get a 
look at their prisoners face.  “Oh my God” gasped Zest with the most 
powerful feeling of “déjà vu”.  “You're that boy from Fulpeso, the 
stable boy that said you believed in me”. 

“Who are you what are you and why are you following us around?” asked
Sonas angrily after a long and powerful silence.  “My name is Weblin 
Freg and I'm a Vortas, and when you came to Fulpeso I knew I was 
destined to follow you, I haven't done any harm I saved you in fact” he 
said pointing to Zest.  “Vortas” growled Sonas “I've never heard of 
it”.  “I am one of the last of my people” explained Weblin the rest of 
us live way down South, we only wish to keep to ourselves”.  “Then what 
were you doing in Fulpeso?” asked Lunega.  “Well the excluded life 
wasn't for me so I journeyed alone for a long time before settling in 
Fulpeso.  “Journeyed for a long time, what age are you? Asked a very 
confused Zest.  “My people have a much greater longevity than yours” he 
smiled, “now could you please let me out?”.   “Yes we had better let 
him out of the net at least” spoke Zest “he did save my life.  When the 
net was removed Weblin got to his feet nervously and picked up his 
things, a bow and quiver full of arrows and a grey sack.  “I know it 
sounds strange” he began “and ordinarily I would never do such a thing 
but when I saw you three I knew that I had a part to play in your 
journey and begging your pardon I just won't take no for an answer”.  
The group looked at each other and without saying a word it was 
accepted that he could accompany them.  “You saved me from the Ape-Man 
back there” said Zest “and something is telling me that we can trust 
you so welcome aboard”.  “Terrific” cried the young lad.  Lunega 
shivered with the cold “we had better return to our fire” she said 
“it's getting very dark and soon we won't be able to find our way 
back”, so with that they headed back to the fire which had nearly gone 
out, and as they went they began talking and realised that they had 
more in common with Weblin than they thought and even Sonas seemed to 
have changed his mind about the little likeable character.  By the time 
they reached the fire, which had nearly gone out the group, were crying 
with laughter at Weblins stories. 

They woke early next morning and set off at a brisk pace talking happily
unaware that at the same time King Dobegal IV of Fulpeso was being 
hustled to Raksulas fortress of evil which lay in the heart of the 
Ladrobian Mountains about twenty days walk from where Zest and his 
friends were travelling.  As they walked Weblin told them tales of his 
upbringing and his life in Fulpeso that made them roar with laughter 
but the tales were also tinged with sadness, as they all knew the fate, 
which that town had most certainly befallen.  About halfway through 
that day after descending steadily they had finally put the great 
mountains behind them.  Now they found themselves staring at the cold 
and unforgiving snow forests of the North through which no-man had 
passed through since the days of the ancient folk.  “What can we expect 
in there?” asked Weblin.  No one answered him though as they were all 
lost in thought.  After having a nip of wine which Sonas had acquired 
in Fulpeso they trudged their way past the first of the tall trees with 
snow falling all around them. 

Although it was always mostly dark under the cover of the trees they
decided to camp for the night when the stars came out.  Having been 
unsuccessful in their attempts to start a fire due to the howling wind 
they gave up the idea and wrapped their blankets tight around them.  
Long after the others had drifted off to sleep Zest lay awake unable to 
take his eyes away from the North Star, which had brought them so far 
and would bring them further still.  Many thoughts came to him on 
nights like these, his childhood in Sactra, his mother and father whom 
he had left behind without even telling them goodbye, pretty Florja 
with her enticing smile, all the times he had spent with his 
Grandfather and the untimely end to which he had come to and this sword 
which had started it all.  He held it up over his head and watched the 
way the moons rays bounced off it and the way it's internal golden 
light spread across the snow covered ground.  He sighed and watched as 
his frozen breath floated away into the night.  “I wish I could just 
float away too” he mumbled as his eyes closed themselves “just float 
away forever” and with that he fell into an uneasy sleep with dreams 
full of noisy movement and grunting. 

After a feeble breakfast the next morning the group headed off.  The sun
was breaking through the thick white clouds above and the forest glowed 
with beauty not that any of the group paid attention however being so 
stiff with cold that they could barely walk.  “Another night like that 
will kill us all” mumbled Weblin.  Zest could barely keep his eyes open 
having had so little sleep when Sonas called them to a halt.  About 
five minutes from their campsite the snow was covered with many tracks. 
 “I don't know what they were” he spoke “but there was at least four of 
them and they've been here quite recently”.  Everyone stood silent 
unsure of what to say or feel, then Zest remembered the sounds he heard 
last night.  “I thought I was only dreaming,” he explained “but it 
seems now that I wasn't”.  “We can thank our lucky stars we didn't 
light that fire,” said Lunega “we would have been easy prey for 
whatever it was”.  They all agreed and decided to carry on with their 
weapons handy and their eyes and ears open. 

In the dark realm of Ladrobia King Dobegal VI of Fulpeso was being
dragged through the many twisting turning underground tunnels of the 
mountains by a band of dirty filthy Ape-Men.  They had returned to the 
town the same day that Zest and his friends had left.  Once again they 
had demanded that the town be turned over to “Raksula the Great”.  Not 
being prepared to do so the people launched a last ditch surprise 
attack on the barbarians which was quickly and brutally thwarted.  They 
then proceeded to rage and plunder and kidnapped the King on orders 
that he was to be brought straight to Raksula immediately if he 
resisted.  And so here he was three days later, utterly terrified and 
all alone on his way to meet his greatest enemy. 

They rounded bend after bend in the dark before suddenly breaking into a
massive open space in the heart of the mountain.  The vast area was lit 
by hundreds of flaming torches, which filled everything with red light 
and gave things an air of unreality.  And there he was in the centre 
surrounded by countless numbers of the Ape things which all believed he 
had created.  A huge black dragon he was, so big that he dwarfed 
everything around him.  Smoke bellowed from the nostrils on his 
anciently wise face filling the cave with his foul stench, but worse 
than the stench far worse in fact were his eyes.  All knowing and 
obscenely intelligent they were and to look into those dark eyes not 
only made you feel transparent and worthless but also filled you with a 
dread worse than any you could imagine.  Dobegal tried to scream but he 
couldn't, his body had gone completely out of his control and his grip 
on reality started to loosen. 

“Bring him to me” grunted Raksula in the deepest and most blatantly evil
voice that anyone had ever heard.  The Ape-Men obviously afraid of 
their leaders wrath dragged the limp captive in front of the dragon and 
left him go.  Dobegal fell to the floor and stayed so with his hands 
over his head crying.  “On your knees” ordered the Dark Lord and as if 
controlled by some force other than him own Dobegal found himself 
kneeling before the evil one.  “No” he was crying, “this isn't 
happening to me, it's a dream”.  “Look at me” bade the dragon and 
against his will Dobegal looked into those eyes again.  “You will 
surrender and your people my slaves”.  “Yes, yes” screamed the broken 
King “anything”.  Raksula broke a long and painful silence “you know 
something” he spoke.  “I know nothing let me go” begged the man, “it's 
all a mistake”.  The Dark One looked through him again with his 
dreamlike eyes. 

“You know something about me” spoke the dragon thoughtfully, “something
about a young boy with companions”.  “Leave me be” begged Dobegal “I 
have given everything to you”.  “Tell me of this boy” ordered Raksula 
with flame gushing out of his nostrils “why does he pose a threat to 
me”.  “Don't make me tell you” pleaded the King with tears rushing down 
his face “tell me now or I will kill everyone you have ever met” roared 
the Dark one and his voice was so loud that it shook the very 
foundations of the mountain and scattered birds more than a mile away.  
Knowing that resistance was totally useless Dobegal completely broke 
down and told everything he knew.  When Raksula heard about Zests sword 
he flew into such a rage, as he never had before.  The Ape-Men stupid 
with fear ran from him fleeing for their lives.  “You are telling me” 
screamed the dragon “that some insignificant miserable little forest 
boy has found the Sword of light and is on his way to the Selesial 
Pass”.  “Don't kill me” cried a petrified Dobegal, “I could be useful” 
but those were the last words he was ever to speak because Raksula 
roasted him alive that instant with his fire breath.  Turning to the 
Ape-Men who were still making their way out of the cave he cried, 
“attack and kill with no mercy”.  The Ape-things glad to still have 
their lives fled from their master to organise this massive assault.  
With that the Dragon gave a deafening roar and spreading his powerful 
wings he left his lair and flew upwards, surging toward the huge 
opening at the top of his mountain with one thing on his mind “get to 
the Selesial Pass and rip this boy apart”. 

Zest and his companions walked on through the snow forest in silence
wondering what and where were the things that had made the tracks, 
which they had seen.  All of them had their weapons handy Zest his 
sword, Lunega her dagger, Sonas also had a sword which he had 
“borrowed” from his father back home and Weblins weapon of choice was 
the bow and arrow which apparently he was very skilled at, according to 
himself anyway.  They had been walking for some time through the high 
snow and were very tired and just about to stop for a rest when 
disaster struck.  They unexpectedly broke into a clearing in the middle 
of a huge band of trees upon where they saw four Ape-Men not fifty 
paces from where they stood crouching down eating what looked like a 
large bird.  Before the group had time to react they were spotted and 
charged at.  “Spread out” cried Sonas and they formed a semi circle 
around the advancing Ape things.  Weblin was fumbling his first arrow 
into his bow when Zest encountered one of them it made a clumsy lunge, 
which he avoided, and having done so he plunged his golden sword into 
the things broad rib cage, wincing at the horrible cracking noise it 
made.  Sonas also had just dispatched one of them with a savage sweep 
of his sword.  Lunega however was not fairing so well as two of the 
things had ganged up on her and had knocked her to the ground.  “No” 
screamed Zest on seeing this but he was too far away to do anything.  
Sonas was running over to help her but he wasn't going to get there in 
time.  Lunega's eyes met her brothers at that moment and it was the 
same look that Memos had given him before he died.  Surely history 
wasn't going to repeat itself.  He screamed his sister's name, as one 
of things was just about to club her when there was an audible twang 
and the thing fell limp with one of Weblins arrows in the back of its 
head.  Now Sonas reached her and with a scream he slashed at the other 
monster in fury making a large wound on its powerful hairy back.  With 
a roar of pain it whirled and clubbed him in the side of his golden 
haired head.  He was blown backwards through the air, his sword went 
flying from his hand and blood was splaying out from his broken skull.  
He hit the snow with a thud.  Lunega got to her feet roaring and 
stabbed the thing with her dagger until it was clearly dead.  She then 
collapsed on Sonas; he was still alive, barely.  His blood had covered 
the snow around him in crimson.  “Oh Sonas” she wept as the others 
arrived panting.  “You can't die now, there's so much more we have to 
say and do”.  He stared back at her with glazed eyes and in that moment 
she realized that she loved him now and always had.  His breathing 
became laboured and started to slow down.  “Good bye fair Lunega” he 
said quietly.  “May you find someone someday who has the courage to 
tell you” and here he paused coughing and it was obvious that trying to 
talk was putting him through grave pain “their feelings for you” and 
with that he smiled as his breathing stopped and his soul passed on 
into the next life.  His unblemished face grew calm and peaceful and 
only then did the shock of what had just happened begin to sink into 
Zest.  “No” Lunega cried and fell on his still chest, Zest and Weblin 
stood over her with wet eyes. 

They buried Sonas in the snow on the spot upon which he had fallen, some
of it retained the colour of his blood and to the group it made his 
death seem that bit more finite.  Zest was overcome with emotions he 
felt grief for his best friend who had been taken away from them two 
days before the Selesial Pass, anger at the monsters that had killed 
him but more than that he wanted revenge on Raksula the demon that had 
created these stupid but savage monsters.  “Here me now Dark dragon” he 
roared into the whirling wind and falling snow “I will kill you even at 
the cost of my own life”.  Having his emotions now sufficiently raised 
he ran to the thing which had killed his friend and began hacking it 
until it was an unrecognisable mass of red flesh.  “Do you see this 
Raksula” he screamed in rage again as Weblin tried to drag him away 
from the mangled body “you're next” and at that moment the wind stopped 
howling and the snow ceased falling and the sun broke through the thick 
clouds above nearly blinding the travellers who had for the most part 
been walking all the time in semi darkness.  And it was beautiful in 
that moment being bathed in sunlight and the group understood that 
Raksula could control a lot of things but he couldn't control the sun 
or the clouds in the sky.  He wasn't a god and so he could be beaten.  
“I will defeat you,” mouthed Zest who had fallen to his knees with 
absolute certainty “I will kill you”. 

Having laid his sword on top of his make shift grave, as was the custom
when a warrior had fallen in battle they said their prayers for him and 
moved on with heavy hearts taking one last look at the mound under 
which he lay before disappearing back into the darkness of the forest.  
The rest of that day seemed like a blur to them, they walked in silence 
for a long time before deciding to camp for the night but nobody could 
really remember anything that happened of note after leaving the burial 
site.  They ate their rapidly depleting rations and turned in for the 
night.  It took a long time for Weblin and Lunega to go to sleep but 
they did eventually drifted off, but Zest was left awake, never was he 
more awake in his life.  He got up wrapping his blankets tight around 
him and sat down on the stump of a fallen tree from where he could gaze 
up at the North Star.  There was no wind that night and only a light 
snowfall.  He sighed as it covered his head and shoulders, “I wouldn't 
be sorry if I never saw snow again” he said when he heard the crunching 
of feet behind him he turned around quickly only to see his sister 
standing there with tears in her eyes.  He made room for her on the 
stump and she sat down.  He put an arm around her and they stayed that 
way looking up at the night sky for a long time. 

Ape-Men can travel swifter than any other living creatures when they put
their minds to it and as soon as Raksula's order went out they massed 
their armies and took off straight away in three groups, one for Sactra 
though they weren't sure of it's exact location, one for Fulpeso to 
reinforce the group who were still stationed there but hadn't yet 
received their new orders and the third and largest group headed South 
for Radoria which was the closest populated area to Ladrobia.  That 
group ran all day and night and when Zest and the others were waking up 
the morning after Sonas had died thy had reached their destination. 

Radoria however was a very difficult place to attack as the city housing
a population of about ten thousand was situated on a large hill 
entirely surrounded by water upon which entry was only gained by means 
of a single draw bridge which was manned at all times.  It was Feddet a 
young soldier who was the first to notice the Ape-Men charging in the 
distance.  Ever since word had got out of the Fulpeso incident by means 
of a young boy escaping from the town by horse and arriving here two 
days ago to warn them half dead with exhaustion King Bo Ghelas II 
ordered that a watch must be kept constantly to alert a sudden attack, 
and here just an hour into Feddets first watch they were coming.  “By 
the moons of Trelsa” he cried in fear “they're coming hence” and with 
that he sounded the large warning bell till his arms were sore.  More 
soldiers quickly joined him until the whole Radoria army some four and 
a half thousand strong were armed ready and waiting to defend their 
city to the death.  They watched in horror as the hairy abominations 
raced forward pausing neither for food or breath.  The first of them 
were at the moat now and they dived in without a moment's hesitation.  
“Archers ready” screamed the general “fire, fire, fire”.  Feddet who 
was himself a skilled archer began shooting at will, picking off two of 
them with his first two arrows but sweat began pouring down his face.  
Some of them were out of the moat now and there were seven thousand of 
the brutes if there was one of them.  The twanging of bows and the 
shouting was deafening as tensions reached climax.  “Cannons ready” 
someone was shouting “fire”.  Some of them were charging up the hill 
now screaming in their own primitive language.  “We're not going to 
make it,” sobbed Feddet but nobody heard him. 

The sun was hidden behind the clouds once more but that didn't matter
Zest, Lunega and Weblin walked on with a newfound determination, after 
all Sonas would have wanted them to anyway.  The number of trees was 
rapidly declining now and they knew they were coming close to the pass. 
 The day seemed to be passing quickly and they were making good 
progress when Zest suddenly stopped.  Somehow he knew that something 
bad was happening in Sactra.  Unknown to him the Ape-Men had entered 
the forest and had encountered the peoples look out party.  All but one 
stayed and battled the things right there amid the tree's the other 
Naskal son of Brakis ran back to the town to warn the others.  At the 
same time Fulpeso was also under attack.  The women and children had 
taken refuge in the mountain while all the able bodied men they had 
were battling the Ape things for their survival in a losing battle on 
the outskirts of their town.  All three of the major civilisations on 
Rajhtal were on the verge of ruin. 

Spurred on by this Zest ran forward ignoring the cries of protest from
behind.  He was the only one that could save them all now he was the 
chosen one.  He ran on leaving the trees of the great Snow forest 
behind.  There was just plain snow ahead now but he didn't care he knew 
he was going in the right direction, he could feel it even without 
looking at the North Star.  It was so close now, his heart began 
pounding and his breath became quick and sharp.  He vaguely heard 
someone shouting from far behind him when he stopped.  He was on the 
top of a very high hill; beneath him about a mile away was the 
beginning of the Selesios Pass.  A perfectly snow covered straight 
stretch of land surrounded by trees all the way.  It seemed to go on 
forever but as he squinted his eyes he thought he could make out the 
end of it far into the distance.  As he stood there taking in the 
marvellous view the others caught up with him obviously annoyed at his 
sudden outburst but they quietened down when they saw what he was 
looking at.  “We're finally here at last,” gasped Lunega in triumph. 

They stood in silence for quite a while savouring the moment.  This was
the end of the road, the final few miles.  “Lets go” said Zest setting 
off at brisk walk with the others struggling after him.  It was 
beginning to get dark now but they were to close to stop, what little 
rays of light had been present were now dying quickly but a full moon 
was rising to take their place.  Zest looked up to the cloudy sky and 
caught a glimpse of the North Star before it disappeared behind a large 
group of dark clouds.  Snow began to fall lightly as they reached the 
end of the hill and the beginning of the long straight final road. 

Little did they know that as they walked on through the snow Raksula was
closing in on them at an alarming rate and had already picked up their 
scent, his eyes glowed red with rage and smoke began pouring out of his 
nostrils.  Any animals which, were unfortunate enough to be out when he 
passed by, fell to the ground screaming and shielding their eyes with 
primal fear.  The group kept going at a steady pace and were nearly 
there when Zest stopped them.  “I feel something” he said.  The others 
who didn't understand stopping with the end so close were urging him on 
when Weblin saw it. 

The first thing he thought was “I must be losing my mind” but when he
reopened his eyes and saw it coming still he knew he had to act.  “He's 
coming” he screamed and already they saw the fire building in its 
opened mouth.  They turned and ran but it was useless the thing would 
be on them in a matter of seconds, so with this in mind Weblin shoved 
Zest out of the way as the dragon passed over them scorching the ground 
with red-hot fire.  Zest hit the ground with a thud but was quickly up 
again and dragged Lunega who was lying beside him hands on head to her 
feet.  The remains of their friend were about fifteen feet from them 
still smoking in the snow; he didn't even have time to scream before he 
had been fried.  They could see the bow which had saved both their 
lives and which he had always carried in hand until the very end.  
Zests heart was breaking but knowing that time was crucial he raced 
forward again pulling Lunega by the arm as the dragon was circling 
around to make another run at them.  They sprinted on glancing over 
their shoulders to see how close he was to them.  They could clearly 
see the stone now it was a simple square block of stone upon another 
one of the writing covered tables, it was about fifty feet away but the 
dragon was right behind them now, much closer this time he thrust 
forward his mighty talons as the runners dived to the ground for 
safety.  As he fell Zest felt something rip into his back quite deeply. 
 He hit the soft snow with the wind knocked out of him, he was so tired 
and very nearly drifted off into blackness when the sword became hot in 
his hands and he knew he had to go on that bit further, he got to his 
feet slowly and caught sight of Raksula making another of his wide 
arches in the sky coming around for one last attack.  As he got to his 
feet he realised that this was the nightmare he had been having for the 
past few months, he was now living his nightmare, but he was going to 
beat it.  He looked for his sister and to his utter dismay saw her slim 
figure lying mangled in a pool of blood about twenty feet in front of 
him.  She was most certainly dead.  Zest screamed with anger and he 
turned around to face the dragon that was coming at him again.  Even 
from this distance he looked the thing in the eyes and to his surprise 
he saw fear, this spurred him on and he turned and sprinted towards the 
stone as fast as he could.  The sword was getting hotter with every 
step he took but he held on as he past the body of his sister without a 
second glance, he was totally determined that he was going to get there 
after all it was up to him alone now.  As he ran images flashed through 
his head his childhood in Sactra, the time he was caught steeling bread 
and was beaten by his father, Florjas innocent smile, Memos being 
killed by the Ape-Men, being captured in Fulpeso, having his life saved 
by Weblin on the mountain side and the deaths of all three of his 
companions.  He gritted his teeth and put in a final burst of speed.  
He could hear the thing coming behind him now and knew it was so close. 
When he reached the steps that led to the Alter he dived onto the table 
and slotted the now burning hot sword into the side of the Stone of 
Selesial.  The second he had done so a blindingly blue light flashed 
out from the stone covering everything.  He heard roars of immense pain 
from somewhere close by, Zest screamed as he covered his face and when 
at last the light faded and he opened his eyes there was no sign of 
Raksula.  It was over.  As the world slowly began to darken around him 
Zest smiled despite the pain because he knew he had saved the world for 
the people who were still left alive to enjoy it. 

THE END 

Richard J. Cobain 27/08/2001 

Copyright © 2001 by Kieran McCarthy 


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