Lodestone Book One: The Sea of Storms by Mark Whiteway Page B

not
allow–”
    The holographic
image suddenly fizzled and went out. Keris stared into the now
silent machine. Could it be true? Was the
Prophet truly trying to destroy the Kelanni? The woman from the past must be dead now, she realised; her
bones long since turned to dust. Yet everything she had said made
so much sense. She thought of those who had died– who would yet
die. He had to be stopped. She needed time to think. First though,
she needed to get to Gort. Or there will
be more innocent deaths.
    The Chandara
holding the staff spoke
up.
    “You Have Seen Before. Now You
Must Leave.” He turned to the other Chandara on her left. “This Is
Boxx. Boxx Is The Key. Boxx Must Go With Keris. For All
Kelanni.”
    The Chandara crowded in the
chamber were watching her expectantly. She raised her
head.
    “I am ready.”
    The Chandara on the right picked
up the little machine and handed it ceremoniously to Boxx. Boxx
waddled to a side entrance, Chandara clearing a path either side.
Keris followed, ducking once more as she exited the large chamber.
Another narrow path led down the inside of the Great
Tree.
    After a short while, Boxx led her
into an anteroom. There was another table rising up from the floor
on which her clothes were neatly folded, with her cloak lying on
top and her pouch of lodestones beside them. Her clothes appeared
to have been cleaned and mended and she was surprised to see her
diamond bladed staff propped up in the corner. The Chandara must
have retrieved it from the top of the pass, but how had they known
she had been there? Had they been watching her?
    She dismissed the thought and got
dressed. Boxx stowed the contraption in a pack which it fixed to
its back. The creature then led her back out into the passage and
down a short way until it opened up into another large area.
Sunlight was streaming through an archway at one end. They walked
through and Keris found herself at the base of the Great
Tree.
    The gnarled trunk stretched away
left and right and upwards to the very heavens. Orange, yellow and
purple moss clung to its bark and red leaved vines wound around its
lower limbs and spurs, lending it a festive appearance. Massive
roots broke though the rich forest loam, before diving beneath it
in search of hidden wellsprings. It was ancient; how ancient, Keris
could not even guess. She saw Boxx regarding the Great Tree
wistfully.
    “The Great Tree; My
Home.”
    Keris turned, heading off across
the dappled sunlight of the forest floor.
    After a moment, Boxx dropped to
all sixes, and trotted off after her.
     

Chapter
8
     
    Light was fading from the sky;
casting sprays of orange and ruby red to merge with Ail-Mazzoth’s
sullen crimson glow. The smouldering hues infused the trees with a
lurid radiance, making it seem as if the forest were ablaze. The
Chandara did not seem to use names, but she had learned that
Kelanni of ancient times had called it Illaryon. The name was
vaguely familiar; it lay to the west of Chalimar and its dependent
towns.
    They were camped at the edge of
the trees. Keris was seated on the ground, with her legs tucked
under her. She was still wearing her cloak. Boxx was carrying a
quantity of fruits in its pack, which Keris had supplemented from
what she could find. She had not felt so well fed and rested for a
long time. But she had found that there was a price to be
paid.
    She was used to
being alone, to working alone. She had learned to rely on herself
ever since her parents had left her at the Dagmar manse. As a
worker on the estate, and later at the Keep and during her training
as Keltar, she had concluded time and again, that the only person
you could truly depend on was yourself. Oh, there were always
people who would show an interest in you; who would listen
sympathetically; who would even declare their wish to become your
friend. But ultimately, it always came down to the fact that they
wanted something from you. Everyone has
their own agenda.
    That is not to say that she was