Preface
Gillum ran as fast as he could through the forest, jumping over branches in the path, spooking small forest creatures as he sped by, before finally emerging from the forest into the meadow at the edge of the village. He was only ten years old, but he was faster than anyone else in the village. For that reason, he had been chosen as one of a select few who stood watch with the Guardian. Gillum slowed down for a moment as he tried to decide the fastest route to his destination, running through the village or around it. He knew that the village streets would be crowded at this time of the morning, so he opted to run along the edge of the village to reach his destination on the village’s far side.
Bowden was hammering away on his anvil, stopping to check the progress on the candlestick that he was fashioning. The cool mornings were his favorite time of day to work even though his anvil stood under the shade of a large tree so that it was never in the direct sun. He’d been the village’s blacksmith these past ten years and a village leader since he helped repel an attack on the village five years ago. Bowden had been instrumental in negotiating a treaty with their two neighboring villages making the outlying villages fearful to launch another attack. Things had been so peaceful these past years. Bowden hoped that it would continue.
“Bowden!”
Bowden looked up just in time to see Gillum trying to slow himself down. The lad slid into the tree, hitting it somewhat hard.
“Are you okay?” Bowden was slightly concerned. “What’s all the rush for?”
Gillum rubbed the shoulder that had hit the tree. “It’s happened!”
Bowden put down his work and stared at Gillum. “What’s happened?”
“The crystal is glowing,” Gillum told him. “The Guardian sent me to get you.”
“Did you see it?”
Gillum shook his head. The crystal was inside the cave entrance and only the Guardian entered the cave.
“Go tell Anyon,” Bowden instructed. “Have him bring everyone to the cave entrance. I’ll meet you all there.”
Gillum nodded and ran into the village to find Anyon. Bowden sighed and looked toward the forest. The attack five years ago was nothing compared to this. They’d all be lucky to survive.
***
The cave was deep in the forest but still within the village’s boundaries. Walking through the woods, you’d probably miss it all together if you didn’t know where to look. The entrance was little more than a rocky mound covered with moss and foliage. One would have to bend down to enter the cave.
“Guardian, where are you!” Bowden shouted into the cave upon reaching the entrance.
After a few moments a robed figure emerged. The figure stood before Bowden briefly before pushing back the hood that obscured its identity.
“It’s happened,” Allana told him.
Allana had only been Guardian the past two years. The tall, willowy girl had become Guardian shortly after her seventeenth birthday, chosen by the previous Guardian on his deathbed. No one ever questioned a Guardian’s choice of successor, but normally the future Guardian was chosen well in advance so that they might train with the current Guardian and learn to read the Great Book. Allana had not received any training and had struggled to make sense of what she had found in the cave.
“The crystal is glowing?” Bowden wanted to make certain that Gillum had gotten the message correctly.
Allana nodded. Bowden could see that she was shaking.
“Gillum is informing Anyon. He’ll bring everyone from the village here,” Bowden told her.
“Then everyone will enter the outer chamber of the cave,” Allana told him.
“That is where the Great Book is kept?”
“Yes,” Allana confirmed. “I’ll read the legend and then open the doorway to the inner cave.”
“Do you know what lies inside the inner cave?” Bowden had no idea what actually lay within the cave, he’d only heard stories. He hoped that none of them were true as they all involved the destruction of their village.
“I don’t know,” she shook her head. “The doorway can only be opened when the crystal is glowing, and I haven’t had the courage to look.”
***
It took more than an hour for Anyon and Gillum to gather the villagers and lead them to the cave entrance. During that time, Bowden learned that Allana couldn’t read the Great Book. The former Guardian had died before giving her any instruction. She confessed to Bowden that she could only read one word in the Great Book and only because that word was in their language and was a word that all learned when very young. She was able to read some of the books in the cave but was frustrated that the meaning of the most important text eluded her.
“We all know the legend,” Bowden reminded her. “Repeat it and add whatever else you think pertinent.”
Allana nodded, still in disbelief that the crystal was glowing while she was Guardian.
“Can you open the door to the inner cave?”
“I think so.” Allana was so nervous. Soon all the villagers would be here and would be looking to her for answers that she didn’t have.
“I suggest that you take only Anyon and myself into the inner cave until we can confirm what’s in there,” Bowden suggested.
Allana nodded and then pointed in the direction of a large group of villagers being led by Anyon, Bowden’s fellow village leader.
“So, it’s actually happened,” Anyon smiled at Bowden before looking at Allana for confirmation.
Anyon was about twenty years older than Bowden but was still one of the best hunters in the village. His skill with a bow had been crucial in their victory five years earlier. Anyon had been one of the two village leaders when the attack happened. He had put forth Bowden as the second leader after the prior leader’s death in the attack. Anyon’s wife had been killed in the attack but his five sons and two daughters survived. He hoped that Bowden would marry his eldest daughter, Enid, but Bowden had not yet made up his mind.
“All who wish may now enter the cave to witness the glowing of the crystal and hear the reading of the legend,” Allana announced as she turned and bent down to enter the cave.
***
Allana had always considered the cave to be rather spacious, but now, with a couple of hundred villagers occupying the space, it seemed much smaller. Besides the main outer chamber of the cave in which they now stood, there was a smaller chamber off the outer chamber that served as living quarters for the Guardian, for once the Guardian’s vows were taken and the robes of the Guardian were donned, the Guardian only left the cave to step outside the entrance to speak with the watchers or village leaders and to collect supplies. Everything the Guardian needed was brought to the cave by the villagers. The Guardian’s safety was the priority of the village.
Allana stood behind a dark wooden table at one end of the cave and waited for the villagers to settle down. They were all looking at the large, glowing crystal above the entrance to the inner cave. Deciding that it was time, she picked up the large book on the table and held it over her head. On the cover of the book was a depiction of the Northern Star.
“Behold the Great Book!” she spoke loudly, waiting for the villagers to turn their attention to her. As they all became quiet, she set the book back on the wooden table in front of her. She looked out at all the faces that she used to see every day before becoming Guardian, took a deep breath and began.
“In the beginning, when the world was new, there was only the Great Tree.” She could see the villagers all nodding in agreement, all of them knowing the legend. “All life sprang from the Great Tree. Animals sprang from its roots everywhere in the world and dragons burst forth from the top of the tree. But it was here in Kyrnorstyr that the fairies appeared. The first to come forth was the Queen of the Fairies who stood and waited for the rest of the newly created fairies to emerge from the great root of the tree. The fairies were beautiful creatures, fair and graceful; they embodied all that was good in the world. That is except for one.”
All eyes were now on Allana as she continued the story, the villagers all swept up in the legend.
“The last fairy to appear was just as beautiful as those that had come before her, but instead of being filled with goodness, she was filled with evil.” Allana paused a moment and looked at the crowd. “Almost immediately the evil one and the queen locked eyes. The evil one knew that the queen meant to destroy her. Spotting a dragon flying overhead, the evil one shifted her form into that of the great beast and took flight. The queen too shifted her form and went after the evil one, a great battle between the two taking place. The queen knocked the evil one from the sky, the two then changing back to their natural forms, but the queen was not powerful enough to destroy the evil one, so instead, she imprisoned her in crystal and locked her away underground.”
All eyes turned to the entrance above which the crystal now glowed.
“Humans appeared next,” Allana continued the legend. “The Fairy Queen explained what had transpired and told we humans that her magic would not hold the evil fairy forever. One day, she would break free. But all was not lost on that day, for there would one day be born a Fairy Queen more powerful than all the queens before her. The Fairy Queen told us that the destiny of the fairies was to travel to Adarlyndra where the Great Tree stood. She left us the Great Book and the sword of magic. The Great Book contained instructions on what we must do to find the Queen of Legend. The Fairy Queen promised that when the Queen of Legend touched the sword of magic, the crystal above the door would glow to warn us that the evil fairy would soon escape.”
Allana couldn’t help but glance over at the glowing crystal. “The Queen of Legend will come to do battle with the evil fairy. If she is victorious, peace and prosperity will cover the world forever, but if she fails and the evil fairy wins, darkness and despair will fall over the world for all time.”
Bowden could see that Allana was shaking with fear and decided to intervene. “But the Queen of Legend will not fail,” he declared. “With our help, she will be victorious!” He walked forward and stood next to Allana. “We all know her name,” he turned to Allana who held the Great Book open to the only page with a word written in both the ancient, indecipherable language, and the common language.
“Elizabeth!” Allana shouted, the villagers beginning to chant the name over and over again until Bowden raised his hands to quiet them.
“I will now open the door leading to the inner cave,” Allana announced. “I ask that you all remain here while I take Bowden and Anyon inside to see what lies within.
The villagers made a path for Allana to reach the doorway. She stood a moment staring at the heavy wooden door. She would have had no idea how to open the door a few months ago, but as luck would have it, she had found a picture in one of the books in the Guardian’s library which seemed to depict someone opening the door. She hoped it worked. She turned to Bowden who nodded in encouragement.
“I will now open the door,” she declared, hoping that she was right. She reached up one hand and put it on the glowing crystal and waited. For a few agonizing seconds nothing happened, but then the door opened with a creek, making Allana jump. She looked at Bowden who gestured for her to go first.
***
The doorway opened to a long, dark, rocky corridor which would have been too dark to traverse except that as the trio made their way down the dark passage, torches on the walls burst ablaze, lighting their way.
“How is this possible?” Allana asked, although she already knew the answer. Magic!
“The original Fairy Queen must have anticipated our need and enchanted the torches,” Bowden guessed.
The passage led to a cavern many times the size of the outer cave that Allana had occupied the last two years. As they entered the cavern, torches came to life illuminating the room.
“Look!” Anyon pointed toward the center of the cavern.
Allana gasped when she saw it. Bowden stared, his blood running cold in his veins. In the center of the cavern stood a large clear crystal. Inside the crystal, was a fairy.
“Just like in the legend!” Anyon could hardly believe it. “I’m going to get everyone, so they can see.”
“Wait, Anyon!” Bowden called to his fellow leader, but Anyon was already hurrying back toward the corridor.
“Don’t you think that everyone should see this?” Allana looked at her companion.
Bowden didn’t reply. He stood staring at the fairy in the crystal. All the old stories told of the beauty of the fairies, but none had come close to their reality. Even through the crystal he could see that she had pale, almost white skin, with long silver hair and long, elegantly pointed ears. He was wondering what color her eyes were when suddenly one opened. In an instant he realized that it was looking at him.
“Down!” Bowden pushed Allana to the cavern floor just as the crystal shattered.