CHAPTER FOURTEEN:

A NEW COMPANION

The last thing Jason saw was a golden light that obscured his vision.

When he opened his eyes, he was stunned to find himself standing in a thicket of grey mist. They swirled around him like clouds on a rainy day.

"Filli?" he called, reaching for his shoulder. But the little creature was gone.

Gasping, Jason looked around at the empty expanse, and that's when he realized that he was alone.

"Kree!" he called in the raven's tongue. No answer.

"Berda! Lana!" Nothing.

Jason glared down at the topaz. It warmed his hand until it turned clammy, and its golden glow flared like a star. What kind of trick was this? Berda had mentioned it was powerful, right before Lana said something about...

A great white light shined in front of him, and when Jason looked up, his heart skipped several beats.

Standing in front of him was a tall, middle-aged man, dressed in ragged clothes but bearing a smile worthy of a king. His dark hair swayed as though a breeze was blowing by. His green eyes were bright and filled with immense joy.

"Jason!" the man spoke. "My boy, is it truly you?"

Jason felt his arms sag, his heart pounding. For a brief moment, he felt like his seven-year-old self again. "Papa?" he breathed.

The man smiled and opened his arms. Jason beamed and ran into them, his chest shaking as though trying to hold back his delight.

"If this is a dream, I never want to wake up!" Jason said. "Oh, Papa, can it really be you?"

"Yes, Jason," the man replied pulling away gently. "Now listen carefully. I don't have much time."

Jason stared at his father, and he saw what he did not see before. The man before him seemed far different than he remembered. His skin was unnaturally clean and bright. The outline of his body shimmered like a ripple on the water.

Then Jason recalled what Lana said to him... and he froze.

"Jason," the man continued, "I am so proud of you. You have been so brave and strong since your mother and I were taken away. You have done well. Now you must do more."

"What do you mean?" Jason asked softly.

His father smiled. "The girl Lana and the woman Berda are on a quest of great importance. They have a chance to free Deltora from the evil Shadow Queen; to bring happiness and hope back to the people. You must go with them, Jason, and help them in any way you can. It is your destiny. Do you understand, my son?"

Jason nodded slowly. "I understand, Papa... but, won't you come with me?"

He knew in his heart that it would never be so, and he cursed himself for asking. His eyes turned glossy, his breaths coming out unevenly.

The man placed both hands on his son's shoulders. "I will be watching over you, Jason, as I always have. There is so much more for you to see and do. No matter what happens, never stop fighting for others, and remember everything your mother and I taught you."

The man's form seemed to be fading away. Jason could see the grey mist swirling, coming to reclaim his father.

"Wait!" Jason pleaded, as though the child within him – the part of himself he had long forgotten – had returned. "Don't leave me, Papa! Not again...!"

"I'll never leave you, my son," his father whispered. "Now go forth. Stay strong – and know that I will always love you."

The golden light faded at last, and Lana blinked at Jason.

The boy had gone rigid all of a sudden, his eyes wide and his mouth tight. He clenched the topaz in his fist, his hand shaking. Filli peered at him worriedly.

"Jason?" Lana said tenderly.

The boy blinked, as though her voice had woken him from a dream. Then he turned to her, his cheeks ashen.

"You said," he croaked, "that the topaz brings the living into contact with the spirit world." It was not exactly a question, but Lana nodded all the same.

Jason sighed with a shudder. "I just saw my father," he said, his tone deepening, "which means he is dead, as I feared. I wanted to believe it wasn't true... but now..."

Lana saw a single, glistening tear leak out of the corner of Jason's eye, and her heart sank. She walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder. To her relief, he didn't shrug it off.

They stood there like that for a long while, never speaking but comforting each other with their presence. Berda watched them from aside, her head hung down in sympathy. Kree had landed beside the group, his eyes never leaving Jason.

Finally, Jason sniffled and held out the topaz to Lana. "I believe this is yours," he said whilst trying to smile. "No point in stealing it now that I know what it does."

Lana took the gem and smirked. "Gold isn't your colour anyway."

Jason huffed and turned towards the companions, his eyes wet but sparkling with renewed confidence. "My father told me that I should accompany you on this quest of yours," he explained, "and I think it's a good idea. You two ladies wouldn't have survived the first day without me anyway."

Lana almost laughed, until Berda came up to both of them, her eyes narrowed. Lana swallowed hard and was about to defend Jason, until Berda shook her head with a meek smile.

"When I first embarked on this quest," she said, "I was afraid that Lana would be more of a hindrance than a help. But if it weren't for her, I would not be standing here in front of the two of you. And you're right, Jason – it seems that we both owe you a great debt. What better way to repay it than to allow you to come along?"

Lana grinned at her, amazed at how easily Berda said those words. "You're serious?"

Berda nodded. "If Fate has decreed that we are to be three instead of two, then so be it. But let me be clear," she gave Jason a mischievous grin, "don't expect me to allow you to save me every time we find a gem. I have to keep some of my honour, you know."

Jason laughed. "I'll keep that in mind," he said.

"Kraa! Kraa!"

Lana squealed and cowered as Kree fluttered above her, patting his wings at her in defiance. She managed a weak smile. "I guess this means Kree is coming with us too, huh?"

Jason snorted. "Of course he is, and so is Filli! I never go anywhere without them!"

Filli purred excitedly and nestled her fur against Jason's face. Kree flew to land on Jason's outstretched arm and crowed out happily.

Berda rolled her eyes. "Well, so long as the trees don't join us as well, I suppose we can put up with Filli and Kree."

"Speaking of the trees," Lana said, pointing to the hole in the roof, "look there!"

The group gazed up at the new opening and were awed to see several animals crawling into the chamber. Birds flew high and low. Squirrels and wood mice and chipmunks began gnawing on the dead vines greedily, their teeth snipping them away easily. Once freed, the branches of the trees pulled and twisted away, basking in the sunlight they were so long denied.

"The curse of The Dark has been broken," Jason said cheerfully. "Now all of the animals can return and the trees can spread out their branches like they used to. Soon they will be strong enough to banish the monsters from this place forever. Within a few days, the Forests of Silence will be good and thriving again."

Lana couldn't help but smile. Already the evil machinations of the Shadow Queen were coming undone. Perhaps if Lana and her friends defeated the other guardians, more parts of Deltora could be freed as well. This gave Lana more optimism than ever, and she finally believed in her heart that the end of the Shadow Queen's reign was soon upon them.

But first things first, she thought triumphantly, we have to recover the rest of the gems.

As the forest slowly transformed around them, Lana took off the Belt of Deltora, its silver metal glistening in the sun's rays. She fitted the topaz into the first of the empty seven medallions. At once it radiated with a vibrant glow, stronger than when Lana first put it on.

All the while, Jason stared at the Belt with admiration. "I've never seen anything so beautiful in all my life," he said once Lana had secured the Belt back on her waist.

Lana beamed at him. "It'll be even better once we find the other six gems. Once that's done, we'll be closer than ever to defeating the Shadow Queen for good!"

"All right, you two, let's just stay focused on getting the next gem," Berda announced, her palace-guard demeanour returning. "There's no telling what other kinds of monsters or obstacles we'll face next."

Jason sighed. "Oh, Berda, don't be such a wet blanket," he teased. "I kind of liked you better when you were knocked out by the Wenn."

Lana giggled when she saw Berda scowling. "Come on, you guys, we're supposed to be a team now," she said. "If we work together, then nothing can stop us!"

Jason glanced at her, his green eyes twinkling – or maybe that was just a trick of the sunlight. "You're still the craziest girl I have ever met, Lana," he said, "but you're also the bravest."

Lana raised an eyebrow at him and twirled her braid. "Don't go crushing on me now, Jason. We've only just met."

Jason's face turned as red as a tomato, and he held out his hands. "What?! I didn't... That's not what I meant!"

Berda burst out laughing, her low voice turning into a vocal choir through the chamber. Kree let out a throaty chortle.

It wasn't long before Lana, Jason, and even Filli joined the cadence of laughter.

Moments later, the three companions made their way down the Wenn-Del Path, emerging outside of the Forests of Silence. Lana paused to take in the great expanse of blue skies and green hills ahead of them, and her heart fluttered with excitement.

It was a big world, and the path would not be easy. But Lana knew it wouldn't be long before the Belt of Deltora was whole once more.

She thought about her parents, and the promise she gave them.

She thought of Berda and Jason, who now walked at her side, and the mysteries and dangers that awaited them.

But Lana was not afraid.

She reached down and felt the Belt through her tunic. The topaz – the symbol of faithfulness – warmed at her touch, as though it could sense her courage.

One gem had been found. Only six remained.

And so the quest would continue.

The Shadow Queen waited until Fallow finished his report. Then she unleashed her fury in a haze of red lighting and swirling dark mist.

"The topaz was taken?! FALLOW!"

Her snivelling servant cowered in the wake of her wrath. "My most sincere apologises, my great mistress," he squeaked, "I assure you, this is only a minor setback."

"You FOOL!" the Shadow Queen raged. "My power over the Forests of Silence has been broken – by a pair of mortal travellers, of all things! Do you mean to tell me that they miraculously knew of the gem's whereabouts – and were able to destroy Gorl?!"

Fallow shivered as though a sudden chill had taken him. He was too afraid to even speak, and that made the sorceress even angrier.

It happened right under his nose, that's why, she thought, her red eyes glowing hot. He let these thieves slip through his crooked little fingers!

Then again, she was also to blame. If the cursed Jalis knight had been so easily defeated, then she had put her faith in the wrong guardian.

But the travellers themselves gave the Shadow Queen good cause to worry. They would never have gone deep into the Forests of Silence of their own accord... unless they knew that one of the gems was there. They found the topaz quickly enough. What if they knew the locations of the other six? What if...?

What if, somehow, they were planning on restoring the Belt of Deltora?

The memory of that horrible dream returned: the star of seven-colours; her kingdom of shadows cowering underneath its rainbow radiance.

No, she almost whispered. I will not allow it!

"Fallow," she growled. "Recover the gem at once, and bring me those who stole it from me, alive and unharmed. I want the pleasure of punishing them myself... mercilessly!"

Right after, she thought, I squeeze the truth of their discovery right out of them!

"As you command, my queen," Fallow bowed stiffly and fled the chamber with haste.

The Shadow Queen remained for a long while, brooding and thinking feverishly.

There was no way Queen Enda or her unborn brat had survived the attack on Del Palace. But who else could have known about the topaz? What if the thieves already had the Belt with them?

Only one thing was certain to her: the Shadow Queen had to stop these so-called travellers from recovering the six remaining gems. She would not be ignorant of this "minor setback" any longer. The other guardians would have to be warned immediately.

And once I learn of the identities of these wretched humans, she thought sadistically, I shall enjoy hearing them scream until their bones crumble to dust!

The Shadow Queen let out a malevolent cackle as she vanished in a swirl of black and red, returning to her comforting domain in the Shadowlands.

THE END