Zantalth: The magic is returning Read online




  Zantalth

  The magic is returning

  Copyright 2018 Gary Burfield-Wallis

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgements

  Chapter I

  Chapter II

  Chapter III

  Chapter IV

  Chapter V

  Chapter VI

  Chapter VII

  Chapter VIII

  Chapter IX

  Chapter X

  Chapter XI

  Chapter XII

  Chapter XIII

  Chapter XIV

  Chapter XV

  Chapter XVI

  Chapter XVII

  Chapter XVIII

  Chapter XIX

  Chapter XX

  Chapter XXI

  Chapter XXII

  Chapter XXIII

  Chapter XXIV

  About the author

  Other books by the author

  Connect with the author

  Acknowledgements

  This book would not have been possible without the support of my wife, Ann, or the encouragement and help from my daughter Amanda Poppleton and William Johnston.

  I would also like to thank my good friend Peter Blay for the excellent and magically creative work he did in creating the cover and building the website http://zantalth.info

  Chapter I

  Tallia sat with her legs dangling over the western outer wall of The Plateau looking down to the fields far below and the dark forest beyond which stretched as far as she could see. The morning sun warmed her face, and the soft breeze gently played with her long dark hair as it hung down to the middle of her slender back.

  The plateau of Skasdiz was where Tallia and her mother had lived all her life, never leaving the safety of the village high above the Mid-lands. This was soon to change as her thirteenth birthday approaches, the age that she is allowed to climb down the ladders to the ground to help tend the fields below. She would prefer to join the hunting teams that go a little way into the forest but being a girl that will never be allowed.

  “What you doing?” said a voice from behind her.

  She knew well that the voice was her best friend Jeb, a boy who had lived two doors down from hers and she had spent every day for as long as she can remember in his company.

  “I’m watching” she replied without turning around but continued to stare out on to the lands below her, deep in thought.

  “Watching what?”

  “Not what, for what.”

  Jeb screwed up his face as he tried his very best to understand what Tallia meant. After a painfully long silence, Jeb tried again, still not understanding, “What you watching for?”

  “Monsters”

  “Don’t be daft. They're not real. They are just stories to stop people trying to go down after the sun has gone.”

  “They are real, I have seen them.”

  Jeb staggered back and his eyes opened wide in surprise and said with a higher pitch than normal, “WHAT — really — really really?”

  “Yeah, well sort of”

  Jeb’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean, sort of?”

  Tallia snapped her head around and stared at him. They were just dreams but dreams that kept repeating and lately they were getting more vivid and more detailed. She couldn’t tell Jeb, he would make fun of her, but she felt she needed to tell someone, to warn the villagers, it was all so real. She just didn’t know who to talk to or where to begin.

  “Well?” Jeb said in a somewhat demanding tone and placing his hands on his hips, the way his father did when he was trying to find out what mischief Jeb had been up to.

  “Shut up Jeb. I’ve got to go feed the animals.” She swung her legs back over the wall, slipped down off the wall and strode passed her friend with her small button nose in the air.

  Tallia went about her jobs as she did every day of feeding the chickens and collecting any eggs they had laid then walking down the hill to deliver the eggs to old Mrs. Pace who is responsible for the provisions store.

  Tallia liked Mrs. Pace, she always had a big smile on her face and selected the best piece of fruit for her depending on what she has that’s fresh.

  “Good morning my little elf,” Mrs. Pace said.

  “Good morning Mrs. Pace.”

  “Are you okay? You look worried.”

  “Sorry Mrs. Pace. I’ve not been sleeping so well. Guess I am a bit tired this morning.” She lied.

  “Well, you go and see Mr. Spice at the apothecary he can draw you a sleeping-draught to help you sleep.”

  “I will, later on,” Tallia said with no intention of doing so. She wanted to keep a clear head at night to try and remember every detail of her dreams.

  “In the meantime take this to keep you going,” and gave her a crisp green apple which she ate as she walked to the pig pens to feed the pigs with the waste food people had left in the slop buckets.

  Tallia sat on the pen fencing watching the pigs eating deep in thought about the dreams she had every night. She tried to remember when they first started or rather when she first had the dream she has every night now. She couldn’t be sure. It was a long time ago. All she was sure of is that the dream is getting more detailed. It used to be very vague with shapes and things that made no sense. But last night was the most detailed and things were starting to make sense, and it wasn’t good. The forest monsters were coming out of the forest while the sun was still up and they were climbing the ladders.

  The sun was soon at it’s highest point directly above Tallia, and her stomach began to complain at being empty. She jumped off the fence said goodbye to the pigs and walked through the streets of the domed shaped houses towards her own home.

  Like most of the other houses, it was quite small above ground with enough room for an area to prepare and cook food on a simple log burner. Over the other side of the round room, a table and chairs were placed for eating, and any other activities people needed a table for. They still used the caves underground that their ancestors had dug for keeping the stores of food and for sleeping in.

  As she walked in a marvellous smell of freshly baked bread and her mothers delicious chicken stew wafted over her. Tallia’s favourite meal. Her mother was standing by the log burner stirring the stew. Eynam, her mother, looked very similar to Tallia. She had long dark straight hair, a button nose, and full lips. Tallia’s eyes were different, they were almond shaped, but her mothers were more round. Most striking of all though was Tallia’s emerald green eyes that seemed to sparkle when she looked at people. Everyone else in the Mid-lands had chocolate brown eyes.

  “Hello mother,” she said as she kissed her on the cheek.

  Eynam just smiled at her daughter and began spooning the stew into two wooden bowls while Tallia took her place at the table and tore off a chunk of the still warm bread. Eynam put the bowls of steaming stew on the table and sat down opposite her daughter who immediately tucked into it while making satisfied little noises.

  As they ate Eynam watched her daughter eating. Tallia looked up at her mother and smiled to say thank you for her favourite meal. Eynam stared into Tallia’s eyes completely mesmerised by the beauty of them as so many are when they first meet Tallia. Even at a young age, Tallia found that she could hold someone’s complete attention just by looking into their eyes. It was if she could hypnotise them.

  Tallia looked down at her bowl, breaking the spell, as she scooped another spoonful of stew into her mouth making sure she got a piece of the chicken.

  “Tallia, I have a lot to do after we have eaten. Would you go and help Mrs. Brooks for me please? She does deserve more time than I can offer her today.”

  Mrs. Brooks was a kindly old lady wh
o lived three streets away. No one knew just how old she was, but Tallia suspected she was at least two hundred maybe even more. She lived on her own and was completely bedridden so needed someone to go feed and wash her every day. Several of the ladies in the village took turns to go and look after her and spend a little time with her, so she was not too lonely.

  “Of course mother, I like talking to her.”

  “Thank you. I have put a bowl of stew and bread over by the window for you to take to her.”

  When they had both finished eating, they stood, as they do every day, side by side to wash and dry the pots, bowls, and spoons. “See you later mother,” Tallia said and gave her mother a kiss before grabbing the stew and bread from the windowsill and leaving for Mrs. Brooks house.

  As she had done on countless occasions in the past, Tallia helped Mrs. Brooks with eating before washing her and then doing any housework that was needed. Because of her frailty, Mrs. Brooks is one of the few on the plateau who has their bed on the surface. It had been many years since she was able to climb up or down the ladder of the vertical shaft that leads down to her cave.

  Having completed all the chores, Tallia sat down on the end of her bed to talk. She told Mrs. Brooks all the things that were happening in the village and what she had been up to, sometimes embellishing a little here and there to make the news more interesting. She did think about telling her about her dreams but decided it was best not to as she didn’t want to frighten the dear old lady. Mrs. Brooks, would in return, tell Tallia stories from when she was a young woman and her childhood. She was such a good storyteller that Tallia would be entirely wrapped up in the story even if it was one she had heard many times before. She would never let on she had heard it before partly because she didn’t want to upset her but mostly because she loved to listen to them again and again.

  Mrs. Brooks looked towards the window. “It’s time you went my dear,” she said, “You must not be late for prayers.”

  “Oh crumbs yes, thank you, I was enjoying your story so much I hadn’t noticed how late it had become.”

  Prayers were held every day just as the sun touches the horizon. Everyone gathers by the eastern outer wall and Merek, a tall, thin sallow-faced man, who is the priest of the plateau leads them all in prayers.

  Oh mighty and kind Skasdiz

  We honour your name

  Please forgive us in anything we have done to offend or upset you.

  We are most grateful for your love and protection

  We thank you for your gift of life

  As our ancestors did, as we do, and as our children will, we will never forget your protection of us in the Great War of the gods.

  We shall forever be in your debt.

  Please continue to protect us and to raise the sun up again so that we may continue to live and serve you as you desire.

  Everyone then fell silent and meditated on the greatness of their god until the sun had completely disappeared and darkness had come.

  Merek then said, “As the first dark descended the gods created fire so that the people were not frightened,” and he lit a torch and held it high.

  We are no longer afraid. Praise be to the gods.

  Torches were lit from Merek’s and were handed round to every person to light there way back to their houses.

  Every night Skasdiz would look down over the lands and would see a single point of light grow in brightness in each settlement which would then spilt of into many smaller lights spreading out as his people would safely go to their homes to sleep. He would smile at this and feel happy. Sometimes he wondered if his brothers drew such happiness in the north and in the south from such a thing. But then again they never loved the people as he did, so maybe not.

  That night Tallia dreamed, but this time there was more. She didn’t wake as the monsters climbed the ladders. This time only one approached and climbed the ladder near where she was sat on the wall.

  Tallia wanted to scream out and warn the villagers, but she was unable to move, unable to make a sound. All she could do is just watch, terrified.

  The black monster climbed onto the wall and crawled along it on all fours towards her slowly. Her heart was beating faster than it ever had and felt as though it was about to explode out of her chest.

  As the monster's face came right up to hers, she was able to see it clearly. It was an old woman’s wrinkly face with a long hooked nose, and small beady dark eyes and a long scar ran down her right cheek to a prominent and pointy chin. The face opened her wrinkled lips as if to speak and Tallia saw that the few teeth she had were black and decayed. The stench of her breath as she breathed on Tallia made her stomach heave and she wanted to turn her head away but still could not move.

  “So, you are the one,” the face said with a coarse crackling voice that sounded as if it was older than the gods themselves. “I wasn’t expecting a girl and one so pretty. That’s really going to upset the old fools,” and she cackled with laughter.

  Tallia felt as though the old woman was moving around inside her head, looking at her thoughts and memories. “Oh dear me,” the face said, “You have absolutely no idea at all have you? Well, this will be interesting.”

  Tallia wanted to ask what was going on, who was she, what did she mean, but she was unable to speak, unable to move.

  “The magic is returning,” and she cackled with laughter again. “For you my pretty one. It’s time.”

  Tallia woke with a start and sat up in bed with sweat pouring off of her and her heart racing.

  Chapter II

  With her heart still racing she climbed the ladder up to the surface room. It was dark and quiet as her mother was not up yet. Tallia slipped quietly out of the house and walked to the western wall to sit and watch the sunrise but mostly to think.

  Unlike normal dreams, the details did not fade, and she could remember every bit in such detail as if it were happening again at that very moment, even the vile stench of her breath filled her nostrils as she remembered what it had said to her.

  Tallia went over it again and again as the sky began to lighten way off to the west, but she didn’t notice, and it wasn’t until the brightness of the sun burned her eyes she closed her eyes and enjoyed the soft warmth on her face.

  Eventually, she opened her eyes and looked around. Everything seemed the same as it always had but Tallia felt different. She felt strange but not in any way she could identify like when she is sick. No, she was not feeling sick if anything she had never felt so well. This was something very different, very strange. She tried to decide if it was a good or a bad feeling but even that was impossible to tell.

  It’s time. Time for what? She wondered. What else did she say? The magic is returning. What can that possibly mean? Everyone knows the elders have always been the only ones with magic since the gods gave it to them at the end of the gods war. It doesn’t make sense.

  Tallia sat and looked out over the forest and pushed these thoughts to the back of her mind while the dream was vivid and detailed it was, after all, just a dream.

  A small bird flew past her and landed on the wall a short distance away. As she watched it tilting and turning its tiny head, Tallia could imagine what it could see. The more carefully she watched the bird, the more clearly she could, kind of, see what the bird was seeing. The bird suddenly took off and flew into the air right passed her again. As the bird flew between her and the sun, Tallia closed her eyes because of the brightness.

  The image of what the bird could see didn’t disappear as she closed her eyes but became more vivid and bright. She could see the village below and all the domed houses as the bird swooped over the top of them.

  Tallia panicked her heart racing and opened her eyes to see that all was quite normal with the fields and woods below. She was confused and frightened but also curious. With her heart still racing she carefully closed her eyes and saw nothing. The image through the bird's eyes was gone.

  She let out a long sigh and wondered if she was just ima
gining things. Maybe that stupid dream had made her more tired than she felt and was just seeing things. She shook the thoughts from her mind as she slid down from her place on the wall and headed for home and some breakfast.

  “Hello darling, you were up early today,” her mother said as she walked through the door.

  “Yeah, I couldn’t get back to sleep so decided to go watch the sun come up.”

  “I used to do that. Beautiful isn’t it.”

  “Yes, it is.” Tallia sat down at the table and looked at her mother as she stood with her back to her stirring a pot of oats for breakfast. Tallia was thinking how beautiful her mother's hair was and hoped hers would stay like that as she got older. Tallia thought she heard her mother say something about lunch being earlier today as she needed to climb down the ladders to see someone.

  “Sure mother, I can start my chores earlier today if you need me back sooner.”

  Eynam turned around and said, “What did you just say?”

  “I said I would be back earlier for lunch as you wanted.”

  “How did you know?”

  “You just said so.”

  “No, I didn’t. I was thinking it, but I didn’t say anything.”

  “Yes, you did Mother I heard you.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “How would I have known if you hadn’t said anything?”

  “Oh, I guess you’re right. Oh dear, I am thinking aloud now. I must be careful what I think especially if I see Mrs. Croft. I don’t always think nice things about her.”

  “MOTHER! That’s not how you have raised me.”

  “Yes you’re right Tallia, quite right. I must try harder to find things I like about her and ignore the ones I don’t. Thank you.”

  “That’s okay mother. Sometimes people challenge me as well.” They both shared a large knowing grin.

  After eating and washing up, Tallia went about her usual morning routine of feeding the chickens, delivering the eggs and feeding the pigs. As a precaution, she avoided eye contact with any of the animals even though she was sure it was just some sort of hallucination and wanted to think about it some more before finding out for sure. After all what with the dream as well she had a lot to think about.