The Crystal Clipper (4 page)

A stunned and barely conscious David lies at the entryway to Ishtar's cave. Carefully, Ishtar moves the boy closer to the light of the campfire. He checks David's eyes, his respiration, and his wrist pulse for signs of life. Satisfied that he is alive, his attention shifts to the silk pouch David carries tied to his belt.

“Well, well. What have we here?” Ishtar removes the pouch from David's belt and pours the contents into his hand. Surprise and pleasure register as one emotion on Ishtar's face as the colored crystals fill his palm. His reaction then evolves to ecstasy at the sight of the Singer crystal, and then to bewilderment.

David stirs, moans in pain, then falls unconscious again. Ishtar selects a few of the colored crystals and, with his cutter's tools, skillfully chips a few pieces off each one. Among the twelve crystals that David carries, there are all the colors of the body chakras: red, gold, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. They will coordinate and harmonize David's body with etheric forces to bring about healing, wholeness and spiritual unfoldment.

Ishtar places the pieces in a copper bowl, then respectfully returns the rest of the crystals to David's pouch. First, boiling water is poured over the crystal fragments, then a small energy pyramid made of copper wire is placed over the bowl. In a short while, the water is heated and imbued with the energy and power of the crystals. When David stirs, almost regaining consciousness, Ishtar offers him a taste of the elixir from a cup. David coughs and sputters and the brew dribbles from his lips.

“I know it's wretched,” Ishtar says flatly, “but it will help to heal you quickly. Drink up.” David drinks a little, then tries to move, groaning loudly at the attempt. “Be still,” Ishtar says, soothingly. “Let the elixir do its work. Sleep awhile.”

Each time David stirs from his sleep to a semi-conscious state, Ishtar offers him a taste of the medicinal brew. Hours later, David awakes fully.

“Where am I? What happened?”

Ishtar helps David to sit up a bit, propping him up with some cushions. “You had a very bad fall, but I don't believe anything is broken.”

“It feels like
everything
is broken.” David takes a bleary-eyed look around, then sets his gaze on Ishtar, puzzled. The man is bearded, distinguished, with warm yet penetrating eyes.
His clothes. What is it about his clothes? They are almost medieval. Did I take a quantum leap backward in time?
“What is this place?” David asks.

“This is my camp, and my humble home these days. You made a rather grand entrance, falling down that hole as you did.”

Ishtar's voice is rich and resonant, his tone cordial. Music to David's ears. David is astounded that he can hear the man speak, just as he heard the Gypsy. “I couldn't see a thing. It was pitch dark up there.” He stops a beat, weary, then, “Exactly what is up there? Some sort of island?”

“Yes, you are correct.”

“Where is it? I mean, what part of the world am I in?”

“More to the point, from what world have you come?

“The States,” David replies matter-of-factly. Ishtar looks at David blankly. “United,” David qualifies. “…of America? Earth?”

Now Ishtar nods in recognition. “A long journey. What brought you to our island?”

“A sailing ship brought me here but, believe me, I still don't really know how I got here.”

“I don't understand.”

“Well, first I'm on the beach by my house,” David begins his story, “cleaning my crystals -”

“You work with crystals?” Ishtar jumps in.

“Yes, now and then. Well, I laid them all out on the sand. I wanted them to be out in the electrical storm that was coming -”

“Yes. Very good for them.”

“…I started arranging them in patterns. You know - grid patterns?”

Ishtar nods. “I am familiar with such things.”

“When I arranged them in a Star of David -”

Ishtar is further intrigued. “A most powerful grid.”

“I'll say. When that lightning bolt hit the Singer -”

Ishtar's left eyebrow shoots upward. “Singer?”

“Yes, a crystal my aunt gave me.” David opens his pouch and presents the Singer to Ishtar. “Amazing, isn't it?”

“Amazing.” Ishtar's quiet affirmation belies the fact that he has already seen, and recognized, the sacred Record Keeper.

“The lightning strike hit the Singer head on and the force knocked me out cold.”

“Unconscious? How long?” Ishtar presses David's eyelids back to study his pupils for signs of a concussion.

“I'm not sure, really. But when I looked around for Sally -”

“Sally?”

“My sister, Sally. She was gone and her wheel chair was empty.”

“Your Sally cannot walk.” Ishtar's tone is sympathetic.

“No, she was in a car accident. And that's what makes it even crazier. I mean, where could she go? I ran around looking for her everywhere and that's when I saw it - a ghost or an image, like a hologram. It was some Gypsy woman telling me Sally was in her crystal ball, in some far off, dangerous place. She said I would find her only when I could take the journey from the darkness to the light. Weird, huh?”

Just then, Dorinda enters the cave and moves about in the shadows. She lights the candles on a candelabra, illuminating the volumes of books and artisan's tools on Ishtar's worktable.

“Who's that?” David whispers, straining to sit up to see her better.

“Don't be alarmed. It's only Dorinda, a very good friend.” Ishtar's hands on David's shoulders settle him back on the pillows. “Perhaps you should sleep now.”

David draws in a shallow breath. He is still very weary, but eager to continue with his story.

“There's more. It's even more incredible. This big white ship suddenly appears, an old time ship - a clipper - I couldn't believe my eyes. But there was not a soul on it, no one to sail it. It began to move, with me on it, and I thought, well, why not? If this was all a dream or something, maybe I should see it through to the end. I had to find Sally no matter what.”

“And the ship brought you here?”

“Yes, after the worst sea storm I had ever seen in my life. I thought I was going to die, but when the storm was over, we just drifted to the island. Then, on the shore, there she was again.”

“The Gypsy.”

“Yes, the hologram, coaxing me onto the island with these crazy riddles.”

“Riddles. What kind of riddles?” Ishtar hides his amusement with a straight face.

“Cryptic messages like, 'Before you can walk in the light you must get used to no light at all,' ” David recounts with a tinge of sarcasm, “and 'It's not where you go that matters, it's where you are.' Stuff like that.”

Ishtar stifles the urge to laugh. “Quite profound philosophies.”

“Then she disappeared. And it became totally dark, no moon or anything. Then I fell right into a big hole or something. That's the last thing I remember.” David holds his head, once again aware of his aches and pains.

“You've been talking too much. Get some more rest now,” Ishtar says firmly.

Acquiescent, David settles down into the cushions and tries to get comfortable, but he is startled to see Dorinda's face peering at him over Ishtar's shoulder. David lifts his head to get a better look at her. No turban or dangly earrings, but the face is the same well-worn face. Soft hair, blonde going gray. Her clothes, too, are an eclectic style like Ishtar's. She moves back into the shadows again.

“It's her! David's cry is more a hoarse whisper. “She's back.”

“Who? Dorinda?”

“No - yes - I mean - she's the Gypsy, the hologram.”

“Well, you know what they say about Gypsy holograms. They all look alike.” Ishtar offers David more of the elixir. “Drink this, it will make you sleep peacefully.”

David shakes his head, refusing the drink. “No. She knows where Sally is. I've got to talk to her.”

“Dorinda has gone about her business now. Tomorrow you can question her,” Ishtar promises. Tonight, sleep and regain your strength. Here.”

David drinks then closes his eyes, yielding to a deep, sweet sleep. Ishtar slips quietly from the cave and finds Dorinda just outside the entryway.

“Dorinda? What have you been up to now?” Ishtar chastises her. “Did you really entice that boy here with that hologram business, and that silly Gypsy disguise of yours?”

“Yes,” Dorinda admits, smugly. “And I did it rather well, didn't I.”

“But you know that leaving the parameters of the island is dangerous,” Ishtar reminds her sharply. “You could have been suspended somewhere out there in time, or dissipated entirely.”

“I had to take the chance, Ishtar. For Saliana. For all of us.”

“But how can we be sure the boy is up to the challenge?”

“He has courage, Ishtar. He withstood the most horrifying storm. And he has knowledge of the crystals.”

“Yes, he has crystals, including the Record Keeper. But doesn't even know the power of what he possesses, let alone how to use it. And didn't you notice, in his ear, the hearing instrument. The poor boy is deaf. Although I must admit he speaks splendidly well.”

“His affliction, dear Ishtar, is more advantage than handicap. He can hear what others cannot, or I never could have connected with him. He heard Saliana's song.”

A look of knowing crosses Ishtar's face. “Saliana's song. Of course. And now he can hear everything, everything we say. Because he heard Saliana's song.”

“From that moment, he was bound to us by fate.”

“Yes, but he is also young and innocent,” Ishtar says, still circumspect. “He will be no match for Jaycina's cunning or her ruthlessness.”

Obviously undaunted, Dorinda cajoles further. “There is something more that he has, the one thing above all that will make him succeed. He has desire, Ishtar. Desire to find his sister no matter what the cost to himself.”

“To find his sister, yes. But not Saliana,” Ishtar volleys with her again. “How can you possibly convince him to take up our cause?”

“By making him believe that in rescuing Saliana he will rescue his sister as well.”

“I don't know, Dorinda. Deceiving him - it just isn't the right thing to do.”

Dorinda speaks the solemn truth. “It is the only thing we
can
do.”

Having slept restfully through the night, David is able to accompany Ishtar to meet a man named Judiah. He follows closely on Ishtar's heels as the older man carries a torch to light their way along a secluded path.

“Why are you using a torch? Don't you have a flashlight?” David asks.

“Flashlights are a thing of the past,” Ishtar answers.

“I don't understand,” David says, consternation becoming part of his personality.

“You will, in time,” Ishtar states flatly.

David is doubtful. This entire experience is something he can't understand, let alone why there is no electrical power on this island, or why Ishtar lives in a cave instead of a house.

“And besides,” David presses on, “if it's morning, why is there no sunlight?”

“Our island is devoid of any light at all,” Ishtar says, stating the obvious, and gloomy, truth.

“How can that be? No sun? No moon? That's not possible.”

“Just as you can hear me speak? On our island, the impossible becomes possible.”

“Great. Now you're talking like the Gypsy. In Riddles.” David's patience is wearing thin. “Besides, I thought I would be able to talk to Dorinda today, to ask her about Sally.”

“Dorinda is an elusive one. I never know when she will appear or disappear.”

David sniffs caustically. “You're not the only one.”

Ishtar stops short and David nearly piles into him. “We are meeting a friend here,” Ishtar says. “He is the only other Islander besides Dorinda and I who has managed to retain his freedom, such as it is. I've asked Judiah to meet us, so we can go and see this sailing ship you speak of.”

As his name is mentioned, Judiah approaches, also carrying a torch. He is a mole-like, overly solicitous little man. Usually, he defers to Ishtar's wisdom and authority. Dorinda has often expressed her doubts about Judiah's allegiance, but Ishtar usually dismisses Dorinda's suspicious rantings.

“Ishtar, good. Dorinda said you would be here.” Judiah acknowledges David. “Is this the boy?”

“Yes. David Nickerson. He's come to the island under mysterious circumstances. I thought you would want to see the ship.”

“Yes. Yes. It just may provide our means of escape,” Judiah's voice dances up and down annoyingly. “Can you lead the way, David?”

David tilts his head in a gesture of uncertainty. “It was so dark when I came here. The only thing I remember is the moon was high and full and the island was a silhouette in the sky. Then the moon eclipsed totally and it was pitch black.”

“Then you arrived from the west side of the island,” Judiah surmises.

“That's good,” Ishtar comments. “It means the ship is far from the Palace's view and won't be easy for them to spot.”

“For who to spot?”

Ishtar ignores David's question. “There is also a series of torch posts along the beach that we can light without being detected.”

“Detected by who?” David wants to know.

“Whom,” Ishtar corrects him.

“Okay. Detected by
whom
? I thought you were the only ones on this island.”

Ishtar puts him off again. “I'll explain later. Let's proceed to the ship.”

At the beach, Ishtar finds a torch post anchored deep in the sand and lights the wick. He finds another and lights it as well. In the amber glow, David spots the dinghy he used to row to shore. It sits securely on a sand bank as though waiting for David's return.

“There. There's the dinghy.”

The trio dashes to the boat, pushes it to the shore and into the water, then they jump in one by one. David rows the dinghy to the Moon Singer. Atop the black water, the clipper ship emanates a mystical white glow, as though to light their way in the dark. Ishtar and Judiah are noticeably impressed, especially Ishtar whose face expresses the remembrance of an awesome power.

“Magnificent. Magnificent,” Ishtar exclaims.

“Amazing,” Judiah agrees, as usual. If his eyes were opened any wider the orbs would fall out. “Truly amazing.”

David rows to the side of the ship and ties the dinghy to the rope ladder. One by one, the three men climb the ladder and board the ship.

Once aboard, Ishtar and Judiah find lanterns to light on the ship's deck. They carry the lanterns as they inspect the ship from stem to stern. Ishtar stops at the base of the clipper's mizzenmast and runs his hand up and down the surface. He touches one of the gold rings and inspects it carefully.

“Never would I have thought it possible. Never.” Ishtar's voice is almost hushed in reverence.

“What is it, Ishtar?” Judiah asks, replicating Ishtar's tenor.

“Let's go below,” Ishtar says, avoiding Judiah's probe.

Down in the captain's quarters, David picks up the leather-bound journal lying on the desk. “This is the Captain's Log. It explains about the ship. I couldn't believe my eyes when I read it.”

Ishtar scans the log, then pounds it jubilantly with his fist. “I knew it! Her masts are made of crystal. More pure and more powerful than anything mined on the island. And the rings - they are the impetus for her power. The extraordinary energy from this ship could provide the means to overthrow the Snake.”

David's stomach jumps. “The
snake
? What snake?”

“Judiah, we have here more than a means for our escape. We have the weapon to destroy our enemy, to redeem the island as our own once again.”

David is really perturbed now. “What enemy? Who are you trying to destroy?”

Now it is Judiah who ignores David's questions. “You may be right, Ishtar. But how do we capture such energy from this ship? You know that all of the island's electrical currents have been diverted to the Palace. We have no conductors, no conduits.”

Ishtar reflects a moment. “It will take some doing, perhaps some miracle. But soon the Island of Darkness will exist no more. It will once again be the City of Light, the light of hope for us all.”

* * *

Later that day at the entryway to Ishtar's camp, Ishtar gives an apprehensive David instructions as he is about to explore the island alone. He finally agreed with Dorinda that they must use David's determination to find his sister to their own advantage, but his decision is more than a deceptive ploy. Ishtar knows the true power of the Moon Singer and the source of that power; that the Singer is a microcosm of the ship's infinite knowledge and wisdom, for it is a chip from the same vein of crystals from which the Moon Singer's masts have been sculpted.

“I have work to do and cannot go with you to find your Sally,” Ishtar says, not revealing the true reason for sending David out by himself. “Judiah has cleared a path for you to walk safely around the island. As long as you carry this lantern, you will find your way easily.”

David's hands are as pleading as his eyes. “But, Ishtar, I haven't the faintest idea where I'm going. The only reason I found my way here was because of the Gypsy hologram - or Dorinda. Whoever it is, she's the only one who knows where Sally is. What if she doesn't appear again?”

“She will appear again. There is some very mysterious connection between you. Allow it to reveal itself. Now, if for some reason you become lost, or encounter trouble, come back as quickly as you can. Here.” He hands David a small pouch. “Sprinkle these along the path behind you as you walk.”

David looks at the granules inside the pouch. “What are they?”

“Seed crystals. Once they touch the earth, they will glow. If you fall into danger or darkness, the seed crystals will lead you back to my camp, but will be extinguished under your feet.”

“What if I don't find Sally? What if she isn't out there after all?”

“Then you must keep trying until you do find her,” Ishtar encourages him. “Now, go. May God be with you.”

Cautiously, David maneuvers his way along the path, holding the lantern in one hand and sprinkling the seed crystals every few yards with the other. Now and then he softly calls his sister's name, and tries to invoke the image of the Gypsy once again.

“Sally. Sally, are you here? Sally?”
I feel like an idiot. How can she hear me anyway if she's in some crystal ball?
“Gypsy? Or whatever you are. Where are you? I need some assistance here. Come out, come out wherever you are.”

David continues to walk along the path for what seems like miles. He feels tired and sore and decides to rest a moment, but a faint glow in the distance causes him to hasten his step. David calls out apprehensively. “Is that you, Gypsy? Dorinda? Sally?”

Continuing on warily toward the light, David notices the glow intensify. He comes to a clearing and moves decisively toward the radiance, then comes to an abrupt halt, both puzzled and fascinated by what he sees.

Across the valley, on the summit of a hill, lies the Prism Palace, a shimmering vision amidst an otherwise dark and dense terrain. At first glance, it appears to be a crystal of monolithic proportions. It is deceptively transparent, with near-blinding refractions of light that obscure its interior from view.

Angular and defined, the structure reminds David of a geometric puzzle with smooth and seamless interlocking pieces: a tetragon on the left, a trigonal on the right, a hexagonal center that towers over all. He is compelled to run to its threshold, to let the Celestial rainbows of color wash over him, embrace him, consume him. But his ethereal impulse is jerked back to hard reality when he looks more clearly at the sight before him.

On the perimeter of the Palace grounds is a dormant volcano. A ritual is taking place at its mouth, with hundreds of subjects totally entranced by throbbing chants and the staccato pounding of ceremonial drums. David conceals himself behind a tree and watches, mesmerized.

Attending the ceremony is the High Priestess Jaycina, strikingly costumed in a vibrant ceremonial gown and jeweled headdress. All of the subjects wear their customary simple white robes, except for one of them whose robe is embellished with a breastplate of ornamental metals and gemstones. The subject is led, resistant and writhing, to a pedestal at the edge of the volcano. Immediately, sparks begin to generate from the volcano, as though it is hungry and about to be fed.

At Jaycina's imperial gesture, two guards move a huge lodestone into position at the far side of the volcano, then step aside. Swiftly, an enormous flash of electrical energy surges between the lodestone and the victim's breastplate. He is literally magnetized and lifted high into the air, floating on the electrical current like a puppet on a string. While he hovers over the center of the volcano's mouth, the drumming and chanting built to a mad frenzy. The lodestone is then pushed aside, cutting off the free-floating electrical current.

The victim plunges helplessly into the depths of the volcano, screaming screams that David now wishes he could not hear. The drums and chants crescendo, echoing throughout the valley, vibrating through David's body, then cease when the volcano is appeased.

Heart pounding fiercely, terror reflected in his eyes, David turns to run, but is surprisingly overtaken by two men. As David struggles to fight them off, he drops the lantern, which emblazons the clothing of one of his assailants. The flames flare dangerously close to David's own clothing, but he breaks free.

His feet flying over the seed crystals, David runs back down the path to Ishtar's camp.