The Elderine Stone (27 page)

No one really knew what to say, Devon could feel the embarrassment flooding into his cheeks, as he felt the shame of having a royal bodyguard that had the perception of a blind bungus beetle.

The Dark Lady broke the silence with a soft chuckle “Really now, that was quite something! Perhaps I should change your protector into a body that more suits the size of his brain!” With a wave of her hands swirls of colourful magic shot across the room towards Grimble. Grimble’s body, bloated then contracted a few times until he finally shrunk in size and transformed into a mouse. The friends gasped in terror as Grimble the mouse scurried behind Devon for protection.

“What have you done?” Devon cried.

“
Ha-Ha, that’s better. Your pet looks much better this way I think, young prince. Now shall we stop with the games and get this over with? As Sherbit is now on my side, although I have to say through no choice of his own, it looks like it will be two against three, oh and the mouse, but after that excellent display of talent by the young Prince’s protector I think that the sides are quite even. Oh wait!” she chuckled again “sorry I forgot, why play fair when you can play to win?’ with a laugh the Dark Lady began to wave her arms around hypnotically in circles. Her body began to transfigure. She grew in height, her dark hair raced down her back, her skin began to change imitating an evil darkness, it was as if her body was transforming into a shadow, some form of beast known only within nightmares. Devon gulped as he realised what she was turning into. This beast before them was the same horror that had frightened him so many years ago in his fathers hunting lodge, and what had chased him in the woods earlier. She had been playing with him, directing him to find Emily and Jason.

The friends looked on in amazement. Even Sherbit who had been standing beside the Dark Lady was trembling. Emily was the first to make a move. She stepped forward and raised her staff.

“
We have to fight her now, we will win! Jason we can help but you must find it in you. You must find the way to destroy her!”

Emily began to concentrate on a spell, holding her staff in front of her, she only closed her eyes for a brief second, but this was long enough for the Dark Lady to strike, with a swift move of her dark arms the Dark Lady threw Emily to the side crashing her against one of the stone walls.

“
Emily!” Jason cried as he saw his friend lie against the wall with her staff lying against her, she didn’t move. He hoped that she was ok, but he could not run to her as the battle had started. He had to destroy the beast in front of him.

Devon stepped forward. He held a pendant in his hands, holding it out. He whispered something, summoning a white winter wolf of incredible size. Its claws tapped on the stone surface, ready to advance.

“
Is this the best you can do, heir to the throne?” The malevolent apparition of the Dark Lady laughed, as she focused on the wolf unsummoning the creature. “You can’t expect to win with these children’s tricks!” She moved forward and began to wave her arms again, “My turn!” she exclaimed with an evil snigger.

Devon stood motionless
with Grimble the mouse cowering behind. Their feet frozen to the ground. Straining until the blood rushed to their heads they tried to lift their feet. But it was useless it was if they had been turned to stone. They could only watch as the battle continued around them.

“
She has cast a hold spell on us Jason, it is up to you. You must destroy her!” Devon cried.

The dark figure stopped and began to transfigure back into her human form. When the transfiguration was complete, she smiled at Jason.

“
Oh Jason, you know you are my son. Come join me, together we could rule this kingdom. Look you have seen the powers that I control. You too have these great abilities Jason, look within. Together we would be unstoppable”

“
I’d never join sides with you!” Jason cried “I would never betray my friends! And you are right, I do have the power within, and I will use it to destroy you!”

“
Fool! You are like your father. You never see the benefits of anything! If that is your choice you leave me no option but to destroy you and your meaningless little friends too!” The Dark Lady once again began to spin her arms in front of her invoking a spell to destroy the group of friends.

Without thinking Jason grabbed his pendant and held it out just as the Dark Lady had finished casting. A sharp bolt of light emerged from the Dark Lady’s hands directed right towards Jason, but before it could even reach him, a flash of light burst out of Jason’s pendant. The flash was magnificent filling the room with an ultimate white light. Jason shielded his eyes with one hand fearing the worst. A sharp scream filled the room, and then there was silence.

Opening his eyes Jason could see dark purple smoke in front of him. He watched in angst, waiting to see what had happened. The smoke slowly dissipated clearing the chamber. The Dark Lady began to reappear from within the clearing smoke. However something was different, Jason felt a strange feeling, the Dark Lady no longer seemed so dark, what lay in front of him seemed to be a weak middle aged woman lying on the floor. She was breathing heavily as if she was struggling for her last breaths of air. Without a thought of concern Jason moved towards the huddled woman, his fear now lifted. He knelt down beside her, and moved to place his hand upon her shoulder, as his hand lowered, the Dark Lady turned over to face him. Jason was suddenly struck with an emotional force so strong, tears began to well in his eyes, for the first time in his life, as he looked down at this defeated sorceress, he recognised someone who loved him. The power of Jason’s pendant had not only defeated the Dark Lady, but also freed his mother from her cruel entrapment of evil. Although she would soon succumb to this world, she had been freed. A tear fled from Jason’s eye down his cheek and fell to the stone floor below. His mother smiled and with great effort raised her hand to his cheek to wipe away the trail of the tear.

“
I love you Jason.” She smiled. Her eyelids flickered as she exhaustedly drew in her last breath.

Devon and Grimble stood watching filled with their own share of the emotion. The hold spell had now worn off, leaving them free to move, but the emotions they shared with Jason, held them still. Grimble was still in the form of a mouse and had not transformed back. They felt powerless to do so as they watched Jason hold onto his mother’s hand.

Sensing that he had to change the mood of their victory Devon forced himself to move. “Jason you did it! You destroyed the dark power of the Dark Lady!” Devon said as he began to walk over to him.

“
Maybe, but I also feel I have killed a great and loving person, who had been corrupted by this world.” Jason said holding back another tear.

“
You freed her Jason. You destroyed the evil that was eating away at your mother. She will have thanked you for that.”

“
I know.” Jason said, lifting himself up off the ground letting go of his mothers hand and resting it on the ground beside her. “Where is Emily?” Jason looked over at the wall to see Emily still lying against it with her staff lying beside her. He ran over to her.

“
Emily, please be okay. She is gone, we destroyed the Dark Lady. Wake up Emily.” Jason lifted Emily’s head hoping that she was ok. He had come so far, and he had learnt so much about himself, but it was only with her help and support that he was able to do what he had done. Memories flashed through his mind of when he had first met her, back in the Elderine Forest. She too had grown so much. “She can’t be gone now” Jason said softly to himself. Tears began to run down Jason’s cheek, as he held Emily in his arms, he couldn’t bear the thought of losing Emily now too.

As Jason held onto Emily, his pendant began to glow unnoticed by anyone in the room, it pulsated for a few seconds then dimmed. Slowly Emily began to come around, her head was spinning. “Well that thump against the wall had really knocked me out cold.” Emily said as she blinked a few times readjusting to the light of the room. Finally when she regained full control of her senses and sight, she looked up to seen Jason holding her.

“
Jason, are you ok?” She asked.

“
You’re… you’re ok!” Jason cried with elation “We did it Emily! We destroyed the Dark Lady! We can go home now.”

“
Home.” Emily said, realising that Jason had learnt a great deal about himself and his future in that short time that he was alone against the Dark Lady. “Yes, let’s go home.”

“
There is just one thing I want to do before we leave.” Jason said.

“Yes sure, anything” Emily replied wondering what Jason wished to do in this place.

Jason stood and walked towards Devon, saying something to him that Emily couldn’t make out. Either she was still feeling a little dazzled or Jason was speaking quietly as to not be heard. Devon nodded and they both walked towards the body of the Dark Lady. They lifted her and began to carry her out of the chamber. Pulling herself up, Emily followed them out of the temple.

The two boys carried the body over to a clear area outside the temple and lay it to rest on some soft ground. Jason then began to look around, noticing some stones he went to collect one then proceeded to place them around his mother. He was burying her.

Emily looked on as she watched her new close friend, bury a woman that he had been told he must hate and destroy yet know that she was his mother. She walked over to them to give them some help. She felt strange too. She was now helping to bury someone she had feared and hated. She understood why Jason wanted to do this so she helped. She had already decided she would follow in his path no matter what choices or decisions he made.

When they had completed the mound, they huddled together as they looked around. This once beautiful city, had been haunted by demons and evil, yet now it seemed like there was a new sense of freedom granted upon the land. The spirits that plagued the lost city would remain until The Lord of Darkness was destroyed, but now there was no one controlling any evil operations in the North.

“
I’ve freed her.” Jason said as he stood between his friends “I’m ready for whatever challenges are directed towards me.”

Emily hugged him tight
. She had watched a boy grow into a hero.

They had one last look around the place where they had fought a very important battle. Breathing in the air of victory they felt the reassurance that they had saved the day. Sherbit was no where to be seen.

The journey home, as Jason now called it, was much more serene than their journey to the dark temple
. This time Jason really had the opportunity to gaze out onto the far stretching plains of Hasparia. He could observe the new and mysterious creatures that inhabited the plains and the Elderine Forest. Most importantly Jason could stroll in these new lands, breathing in all that was fresh without having to worry about what he must do next. He had defeated the evil in the Dark Lady and freed his mother at the same time. He had grown stronger in such a short time. Jason was now truly feeling that he could command his own life no matter what was thrown at him.

The friends walked happily together, their minds now at rest, and their hearts filled with a new sense of joy and accomplishment. Each member of the group had played an important role in the past events and each could finally say that their task was now complete. They knew that they had stopped the Dark Lady in her quest to release the Lord of Darkness from his glassy prison, and as a result saved many from horrible fates.

Jason’s mother had been freed, although her time with her son was short, she gave him a treasure that he would hold onto forever. He now held onto memories and knowledge that someone loved him unconditionally. Jason had been without this feeling for such a long time. It gave him a new strength, and ambition to move on in this new world. As for the evil that corrupted the Dark Lady, its presence evaporated into the ground of the lost ruins, never to torment the lands of Hasparia again.

Many truths were uncovered
. However, one thing still puzzled the friends. Sherbit, an imp who had travelled with them through the lands on their quest to destroy the Dark Lady had disappeared, leaving many questions in his trail.

The friends were still unaware if he was truly a servant of the Dark Lady or perhaps she had cast a possession spell on the poor creature. His mind which would not have been his own had led him to carry out the things that he wouldn’t normally have done. However the friends could not cast from their heads the question that Sherbit maybe voluntarily decided to work for the Dark Lady, tricking them into a false friendship so that he could lead them to their deaths. Either way he was gone, leaving the friends to rejoice in their victory.

Emily, although blissful that Jason had fulfilled his destiny, and accepted it, was a bit apprehensive about returning to Haspar. She knew they would be deemed heroes by the royal family, the New Order and of course the citizens of the lands of Hasparia, but she couldn’t help but remember that time in her grandfather’s study. The thoughts polluted her head, and for a moment she had to stop as the images of the skulls, bones, and that strange object with the icy surface crossed her mind. The secrets that her grandfather hid deep within his underground layer would soon be unearthed, shattering the reality that she and her family had lived in. She had matured much, during their quest, not physically, but mentally. She was no longer the over excited young wizard with little experience that left her family home with her grandfather a while ago. She had learnt much about herself, and the world around her. Having to help Jason come to terms with his future had aided her in gaining her own strengths, she had him to thank for this, but she had a feeling he knew. They had grown considerably close, a friendship that sparked from the very beginning, she knew it would be one that would last, and for every moment she thought about him, she hoped that she could be there beside him no matter what the situation, so that she could help him through.