Aela Read online

  Rom gave Aela a penetrating look and placed the Sword in his belt, ‘I do not trust Brude either, but there is no other place we can go. Eena is after us for her own ends and Juno will show no mercy if he catches up with us. We would find it too hard to survive in the forest on our own especially when the snow comes and food is very scarce.’

  With a sigh Aela shook her head, ‘As usual Rom you are right. There is no other place we can go. We do have family and friends there and somewhere to live.’

  So Aela and Rom started to walk in the direction of the Temple of the Moon, once more retracing their footsteps on their journey home.

  CHAPTER 5

  The Rising

  Juno was not happy with the latest news that Eena had the true Sacred Sword and it was seen by his men being carried by Rom at the head of her army. His little scheme whereby he had a replica made, he feared, would become unstuck. The elders of the council once they had examined this Sword would realise that it wasn’t the ancient one with the magical powers.

  Difficult questions would be asked of him of what happened to the true Sword and as custodian he would be accused of failing in his duty to protect it. He didn’t want to think of what they would do to him, as he had made many enemies with his despotic rule over the people and there were a number of individuals who wished to seek their revenge.

  ‘I must create a diversion away from the truth,’ Juno muttered to himself, ‘but what can I do?’

  Then a sudden thought came to him ‘I will make up a story of how the Sword was stolen from the inner sanctuary and spirited away and the replica was made to fool the people.’

  He would then rouse the people to seek revenge and demand the return of the true Sacred Sword to the Temple of the Sun. His eyes lit up with this idea, he could rule all three kingdoms at once, amass great power and wealth and get rid of his enemies for ever. I must rally the people to the Temple immediately.

  ‘Guards, send out the couriers with the news that at sunset everyone is to assemble in the Temple as I am going to make an important announcement.’ With all these splendid thoughts buzzing in his head he strode out of the room to put his plans into action. ‘Why hadn’t I thought of this idea before!’ shouted Juno at the top of his voice.

  At sunset men and women began to walk towards the Temple and soon the main area was full of people milling around, some talking softly amongst themselves, others standing silently deep in their own thoughts, but all were waiting for Juno to appear. The area was already lit by torches to add to the drama of the occasion, Juno had planned a spectacular event, as he was determined to get his own way with the people.

  There was a roll of drums, then out strode Juno resplendent in all his magnificent robes carrying the fake Sacred Sword in one hand. A hush fell on the crowd as they beheld Juno standing in front of them, instinctively they knew they were going to witness an important moment, so all eyes were on him.

  ‘My people, I have asked you to come this evening as I wish to share with you all the fact that this Sword is a false one. Eena’s men have stormed the inner sanctuary torn down our own true Sword and replaced it with this replica in order to try to trick us and lure us into a false sense of security.’

  Immediately an uproar erupted amongst the crowd, people started to shout. ‘Kill the traitors, War, war against Eena’s men. We must rescue our Sacred Sword and bring it back to our Temple.’

  Juno was very pleased with the crowd’s response.

  He had difficulty in hiding his feelings of elation and excitement and had to look away from his audience for a few seconds. Then turning once more to face the people, he held his hand high above his head. The crowd seeing this gesture stopped shouting and a deep hush, then silence fell amongst them all.

  ‘We must act now, before it is too late.’ Juno was cut off from his speech, with a sudden roar from the crowd that was deafening to all ears.

  ‘To arms, to arms. We must defeat Eena and her army now,’ was the repeated chant from the crowd. Juno tried a couple of times to quieten the mob, but to no avail.

  So in the end, he strode off the platform amidst the deafening roar from the crowd echoing in his ears. He wasn’t too displeased with the result of his revelations and the response he received from the people. Now he could set in motion his long secret dream of invading his rival’s territories, vanquishing his foes and becoming very rich and powerful in the process.

  Rom and Aela continued to walk through the forest looking out for familiar landmarks to guide them home to the Temple of the Moon. Suddenly Rom stopped in his tracks and held up his hand for Aela to do likewise and placed his hands on his lips for her to be silent. At first all they could both hear was the gentle rhythm of their own breathing, but listening more intently, they both thought they could hear a very faint sound of the movement of a large group of people walking through the forest.

  Rom dropped to the ground and placed his ear directly on the ground. He detected a faint vibration of the earth moving regularly, he realised that this could mean a large body of humans were just behind them.

  ‘Quick, Aela climb up this tree we must act now,’ whispered Rom in her ear.

  Both clambered up the tree trunk with rapid speed climbing nimbly into to the thick foliage of the branches. They then placed their bodies flat along a thick branch each holding their breath hardly daring to look at the other person.

  Very soon a figure of a warrior appeared holding a sword in one fist and a shield in his other hand. He looked around cautiously and was soon joined by a number of other warriors who had quietly formed a circular formation behind him. Both Aela and Rom recognised some of the men as belonging to their community, who with their families were living near the Temple of the Moon. There was a slight pause amongst the group, then without a word the men continued to advance cautiously through the woods.

  It was sometime before Aela and Rom felt they could breath normally. They stayed in their positions lying prone along the branch for sometime, after the warriors had passed beneath their tree.

  ‘I think we are now out of danger,’ muttered Rom.

  ‘What does this all mean Rom and where are all those men going?’ replied Aela.

  ‘I don’t know,’ added Rom, ‘but one thing is certain we must hide from them, as my gut feeling is, we must not show ourselves to them, even though they are our people.’

  Aela nodded her head in agreement. ‘What are we to do Rom, if we cannot go home, where are we to go?’ exclaimed Aela.

  ‘Let’s climb down from the tree and give ourselves time to think, what is to be our next move,’ replied Rom.

  Soon they were on the ground again both looking around left and right to make sure there was no enemy hiding behind a nearby tree.

  ‘Perhaps we could follow them and see where they are going,’ suggested Aela. ‘Then we can plan our next move.’

  ‘On the other hand we can continue making our way back home as originally planned,’ replied Rom.

  Both were uncertain as to which action to take at this point, so they thought the best thing to do was to look for a sign which would decide the matter. Aela and Rom sat on the ground facing each other with their hands resting on their laps.

  ‘Close your eyes Aela, and look within yourself and I will do the same,’ urged Rom.

  There was a mutual silence between each other as both figures concentrated on the task at hand. Their pulse rate and heart beat began to slow down until it was almost imperceptible and very hard to detect.

  Fleeting pictures began to form in Aela’s mind, as if she was a bird in the sky looking down on the ever changing scene on the ground. She saw many warriors walking through the woods and realised these were the same men that she and Rom have just seen a short time ago. They were intent on their task of moving in a particular direction, which appeared to be at this point to be towards the direction of the setting sun.

  Suddenly a thought came to her that these men were heading towards Eena’s territory and their
aim was going to be invade and try to conquer her lands and take prisoners and loot, Then an image of the Sacred Sword appeared glittering in the sunlight and it started to swirl around in an circular movement in the air. Many hands were seen clutching at it, the face of Juno appeared and faded, then Eena’s smiling face could be seen whilst all the time she was chanting, ‘It is mine, it is mine’.

  Then Brude’s face full of rage bellowed, ‘I will kill you all, nobody is allowed to touch the Sacred Sword but me. It is mine, it is mine.’

  Suddenly, Aela’s spirit was jolted back into her body, She opened her eyes and there she could see Rom sitting in front of her, still deep in a trance. What appeared to be a long time for Aela, Rom finally opened his eyes and he smiled at her saying playfully, ‘You thought I had gone to sleep on my job.’

  Aela glared at Rom. ‘I at least know the difference between trance and sleep and you certainly were not asleep. Well what did you see?’ she demanded.

  ‘Well, it was not very clear and rather strange,’ replied Rom.

  ‘I saw a lot of men fighting each other, many men are wounded or are lying dead on the ground. Above in the sky is the Sacred Sword glittering in the sunlight. There were many hands trying to reach towards the Sword, but none could touch it. Then the picture faded and I opened my eyes and I could see you sitting in front of me.’

  ‘Well that is not very helpful Rom. At least I saw a little more detail than you did,’ retorted Aela. She then recounted her vision. ‘All I could see was war between Juno, Eena and Brude, fighting over the possession of the Sacred Sword. We must make sure we are not taken by either of the three leaders and then be forced to reveal where you have hidden the Sword, Rom,’ replied Aela.

  ‘Very wise of you, Aela,’ came a booming voice from the thick foliage, near where Aela and Rom were sitting.

  Both jumped hastily to their feet staring towards the bush where they had heard the sound. Rom had unsheathed the Sacred Sword at the ready to fight the enemy who was behind the bush.

  ‘Come out who ever you are,’ shouted Rom.

  ‘All right, all right, I will come out, but do not run me through with your sword. I come in peace, I do not want to harm either of you.’

  The branches of the bush shook violently, as if someone was making their way through the thick foliage. Out popped a dishevelled figure wearing a long thick garment which reached to the ground, who was completely covered in leaves and small twigs.

  ‘Why you are Ette!’ exclaimed Aela, ‘You shared your fish with us a number of days ago.’

  ‘That is so,’ replied Ette. ‘I think the situation is very dangerous for both of you, especially now that you are fugitives and you Rom, possess the Sacred Sword. It won’t be long before the trio Juno, Eena and Brude realise what has happened, then they could then resolve their differences, combine forces and come after you both.’

  ‘What are we to do?’ asked Rom.

  ‘I think the best action is to go into hiding for the next few days and then plan our next move,’ suggested Aela.

  ‘See which side wins out of the conflict and perhaps we may be able to bargain with the one who has won. At least we have the Sacred Sword and could hand it over on the understanding our lives are spared.’

  ‘I don’t think much of that plan,’ retorted Rom.

  ‘Well, Rom, think of a better idea,’ Aela angrily replied, as she stalked off then she quickly sat on the ground, holding her head in her hands staring out into the distance.

  ‘I think that plan is reasonable,’ stated Ette in soothing tones, ‘Although I wouldn’t hand over the Sacred Sword too readily, as none of them can be trusted to keep their word in any bargain that is agreed upon, by yourselves. Come with me and I will hide you from your enemies and then we can think of a plan so that we all, survive and to live another day.’

  Aela and Rom looked at each others face briefly, they both nodded their heads in agreement and then looked towards where Ette was standing nearby. Without a word Ette turned on her heels, walked straight back into the foliage where she had come from, with Aela and Rom quickly following behind her.

  Brude’s warriors made very good progress walking through the forest and they were very soon at the border of Eena’s territory.

  ‘Let the men rest in this clearing for awhile whilst I plan the next move to attack Eena’s cave and take her and her men by surprise,’ commanded Uthor.

  The men on hearing this instruction from Uthor, decided to make themselves as comfortable as possible, either by placing themselves on the ground, whilst others chose to sit on nearby rocks or low branches hanging from nearby trees, each patiently waiting for their next orders from Uthor and his officers.

  Uthor realised that it would soon be dark, so if he is to make a move he must do it quickly or he will lose the advantage of surprising the enemy. The attack must be now or never, so he quickly issued his instructions for his men to take up strategic positions and then he gave the order to march forwards speedily and quietly. Very soon the army were situated at the entrance of Eena’s Cave and with a quick movement he unsheathed his sword.

  Uthor shouted, ‘Charge, victory is ours!’

  The men let out a loud cry, ‘Victory, victory,’ as they ran straight towards the entrance of the Cave. The guards were taken by surprise and were soon overpowered and many of them were killed. Inside the Cave there was chaos, with intense hand to hand combat. There was a constant clashing of swords and banging of shields.

  Then suddenly there was a blood curdling sound behind them as Eena’s men rushed up from the rear, determined to take revenge on Brude’s warriors. The battle raged on for some time with many deaths and casualties on both sides and it did not appear either army was winning the battle. Exhaustion set in, as the men struggled to fight on as either side was determined they were not going to admit defeat.

  Then Uthor shouted at the top of his voice, ‘Fight on, fight on men.’

  Spurred on with this incentive, Brude’s men gained extra energy and the tide of battle soon turned in their favour.

  Very soon, their was a silence again, except for the intermittent sounds of wounded men groaning and whimpering, as they lay at all weird angles on the floor of the cave. The whole scene was lit up by the flickering light coming from the torches that were hanging on the walls.

  Uthor was completely exhausted, every limb of his body was wracked with pain and he had difficulty catching his breath. Slowly he began to breath more evenly and he looked around, taking in the scene in front of him and he quickly realised he and his men were triumphant. He let out a cry of joy, ‘Where is Eena is she dead or alive. Bring her to me at once.’

  One of his men came forward. ‘Unfortunately mighty one, Eena and a large party of her warriors escaped through the minefield of passages at the back of the main Cave.’

  Uthor was furious at first, but realised he could not do anything about the situation for the time being at least. ‘Bring me a prisoner, so I can find out what are Eena’s plans and perhaps where she and her army are going to hide. Go now, make haste as we must capture Eena and her men as soon as possible,’ shouted Uthor.

  A prisoner was brought before Uthor, by two guards and he was ordered to kneel before him and threatened under pain of death to reveal Eena’s plans. ‘Oh master, I do not know anything of Eena’s plans as I am but a poor man and mean nothing to her. She would not notice me if I walked past her. My name is Mer and it is my job is to make sure the torches are lit along the passageways and also the walls of the main cave. Do not kill me, as I have done no wrong.’

  ‘Surely you must know something, You must have heard gossip,’ retorted Uthor.

  There was a slight pause as the prisoner was desperately thinking of how he was to survive this interrogation. ‘There is one thing I do recall, at one stage Eena had two special prisoners, Aela and Rom.’

  With this new unexpected information Uthor’s eyes were riveted on Mer’s face and he leaned forward placing his face clo
ser to him, ‘Tell me more, tell me more, and if I am happy with your information I will spare your life’ uttered Uthor in soft tones.

  Feeling relieved Mer gained a little more courage, hastily cleared his throat. ‘Well, just after the last full moon Aela and Rom appeared at our Cave. Rom was to be taught fighting skills by Ardu and Aela was to improve her visionary gifts under Eena’s guidance.’

  ‘Is that so!’ exclaimed Uthor. ‘Why is Eena doing this and where is Aela and Rom now?’ glared Uthor.

  ‘They have escaped with the Sacred Sword into the forest.’

  ‘And how did they get the Sacred Sword in the first place?’ queried Uthor.

  ‘That I do not know,’ Mer hastily replied.

  ‘Well, you have told me something of what has occurred. Take him away and treat him well,’ ordered Uthor. ‘Bring me a courier so I can give him a message for Brude. I know there is more to the story than I have been told, but I must be patient,’ and he let out a hearty laugh at his own joke on himself.

  Standing in the courtyard of the Temple of the Sun, Juno’s warriors had assembled ready to march to battle, to defeat their enemy who had stolen their Sacred Sword. Juno was in good humour as he busied himself with the task of issuing orders to prepare for battle. Arnor was at his side giving assistance, knowing his position was very tenuous since he lost the fight with Rom. Even though he had not fully recovered from his injuries he was determined to gain further glory on the battlefield.

  ‘We must make haste so that we can surprise Eena and Brude and their men,’ growled Juno. Turning towards Arnor Juno asked him, ‘Are you well enough to march with me, do you need more time to recover from your wounds?’

  ‘I feel much better than yesterday,’ replied Arnor clutching his side with both hands, as he struggled for breath.

  Juno was not impressed with Arnor’s explanation. ‘I think it is best you stay behind with some of my warriors and guard the Temple. Make sure you do not fail me a second time in your duty,’ added Juno menacingly.