Chapter 20 – The Air Idol

TIME JUMP: 5 WEEKS

Things were fine, for a while at least.

The children had settled into school nicely. Aurora was learning how to read and write in English and was progressing nicely. The others were settling down and making new friends. Their school life was normal and happy.

The resistance continued to keep watch over all public places and the town centre, though nothing major had happened since before they had gotten the first artefact into their possession. They hadn't seen hide or hair of Vaughan. Yet.

As the days weeks and month had passed, the professor and Emmy were getting closer and closer to one another. The odd date turned into dinner every night together, and eventually they ended up spending all of their free time together. Whenever one of them was on watch, the other would go too, to keep the other company, as they didn't expect anything big to happen.

And nothing happened.

Vaughan's plan was going well.

He waited for his spy to report back to him, with news of the artefacts and their whereabouts. And news on Bronev's intentions. He tapped his foot on the ground impatiently as he waited outside of the Beachwood estate for his informant.

And here she was. Young, beautiful and standing before him.

Vaughan smiled widely. "What have you got for me?"

The girl smiled. "They will be heading out to get the next artefact shortly. Jai's arm is fully healed and she is ready and able to get the next one. What is your plan?"

"We continue to wait," Vaughan replied. "Until the resistance gets all of the artefacts. But I would appreciate being kept in the know of young Miss Altava's movements. I want to know everything about the girl. Where she sleeps, what she eats, who she speaks to, where she goes. Understood?"

The informant nodded. "Understood."

"And Bronev..." Vaughan's smile widened even further. "You, my friend have already sealed your own fate. Oh, yes. My revenge will be sweet."

"We will set off immediately," Jai said firmly.

"Are you sure you're in a fit enough state for this?" Brenda asked nervously. "The cast only came off yesterday. And your ligaments are still quite stiff."

"I will be fine," Jai insisted.

"I propose that we all help you to fight this next beast," the professor said.

"No," Jai said, shaking her head. "Never."

"We don't have to do the killing, we can just distract it so that you can have an easier time getting to it," Emmy said. "C'mon, it's taken the last five weeks for you to recover. Maybe this way you might get out with fewer injuries."

"No."

"But Jai—" the professor began.

"I have spoken. I will go alone if I must. I only need one other person there to drive me to and from our next destination. It is pointless there being anyone else there. Layton will go with me, the rest stay and take watch. Keep a close eye on the first artefact, Emmy. I have a feeling that Vaughan is in the vicinity and he's after it."

"I'm going with you," Emmy said firmly.

"Fine," Jai said, handing the artefact to Bronev. "Keep it safe."

Bronev nodded. "Right you are."

"Emmy," the Professor said. "I really don't think you should go. You've been through enough."

"If you go, I go too," Emmy said firmly.

"But –"

"I'll be fine. I promise you," Emmy said. She reached over and took his hand.

The professor took it and smiled. "I know, but I can't help but worry." He kissed her hand.

"Neither of you will be going anywhere near the idol. I will do the fighting, you will drive me there. Understood?"

"No. We will distract it and you will finish it. Understood?"

"Jai sighed. " Do you want to put your lives in danger?"

"If it means stopping Vaughan and saving the lives of others, then yes, that is exactly what I want," Emmy replied.

"Well, if you're distracting it, then the larger the group, the better," Bronev pointed out. "I think I should go as well, along with a few of the resistance's most experienced fighters. We will need an adequate distraction for this beast

"Jai sighed again. " Fine. But this idol, or monster as you call it, will not be the same as the last one. Prepare yourself for the worst."

"Of course," the professor replied. "I'm glad we can help you."

Jai took the artefact from Bronev and handed it to Brenda. "Keep it safe," she said.

Brenda nodded, looking anxious.

"Right," Jai replied, grabbing her bow. "Let's be off."

After saying their goodbyes and being told numerous times to be careful, they got into the car and set off. Jai held the knife out the window, as she did the previous time, and the beam of light that emitted from it pointed off due south east. Layton started the ignition and the group set off. After much consideration, they had decided to take Emmy, Layton, Bronev, Vinnie, Carla and Antonio, as they were experienced fighters and well trained in athletics. Bronev sat in the passenger seat while Carla, Antonio, Emmy Vinnie and Jai were all squashed in the back seat. Emmy was sat at the back between Carla and Vinnie, much to her dismay. Vinnie was smiling sweetly at Emmy, who was doing her best to ignore him.

"So," Vinnie grinned. "I heard about the new boyfriend." He smiled at the professor and turned back to Emmy. "I really didn't think he was your type. You always went for the bad boy lean mean fighting machine over the academic type. What's changed?"

Emmy scowled and didn't reply.

"The lean mean fighting machine?" Carla scoffed. "Who is that then? You?" she began to laugh. "In your dreams, Vin."

Vinnie ignored Carla and continued to smile at Emmy.

Emmy turned to Vinnie and asked. "So how is Stacey these days?"

Carla's mouth quirked as Vinnie glared. "Honestly, Emmy, if I wasn't drunk that night, we would still be together. I swear."

"You had your chance and you blew it," Bronev called from the passenger seat. "Now leave Emmeline alone."

Emmy smiled. "Thank you, Uncle Leon," she said gratefully.

Vinnie sighed and fell silent.

"So where exactly are we going?" Carla asked.

"Wherever the sword points us," Jai replied. "Turn left here."

The professor nodded and turned left.

"We're headed for Mallow, by the looks of it," Bronev said. "These idols reside in the remote places, don't they?"

"Not necessarily," Jai said. "The water idol takes the form of the sea, or a river. And rivers are the bridging points where towns occur, are they not?"

"True," Bronev replied. "But would the people in the town not notice the water idol in their midst? After all, they are living in the nearby vicinity of the thing."

"The idols remain dormant until the light of the sword is shone upon them," Jai replied.

"So, they're asleep?" Emmy asked.

"Precisely. They take the shape of their element until they are awoken. Then they take the shape of the beast we will see," Jai said.

"Like the mountain?" the professor asked. "The beast took the shape of a mountain, but when you shone the light onto it, it came to life."

"Exactly. Turn right here."

The professor turned right and he entered a large city. It began to rain and the wind began to pick up its pace.

Emmy sighed. "Typical miserable Irish weather," she said.

The professor smiled. "Similar to the typical British weather, is it?"

"Similar, except it rains more here," Emmy replied with a smile.

The professor took in his surroundings. He saw the mountains up ahead. He looked back to see that the beam of light which was emitting from the sword was pointing in the very direction of those mountains.

"Are we headed for those mountains, Jai?" he asked.

"The vicinity of them, yes," Jai replied. "Sinead has given me a bit of information about the area. I believe we are headed for the village of Meelin. It lies to the centre of the Galtee Mountains and is the highest village in all of Ireland, also making it the windiest. I believe we are about to encounter the air idol."

"The air idol?" Bronev asked.

"Yes. This idol is made up of the strongest air particles, the wind. These particles band together to create the wind monster which protects the artefact's location. I believe that the artefact is hidden in an underground chamber, and when we find the monster, we'll find the artefact. But the monster will do everything it can to protect the artefact. I don't think a petty distraction will cut it this time. With the earth idol, maybe, as the artefact was hidden inside it, but with this one, the artefact is hidden in the area, so this idol will not be so easy to distract. You will see when we get there."

"Right," Bronev said. "So it will be in a gaseous form?"

"It is able to change its state of matter at will," Jai said. "It changes from solid to gas every so often."

"Then how will you be able to get it?" Emmy asked. "If it keeps changing from solid to gas, it will make it damn near impossible to attack."

"You will all have to distract it while someone with a good aim shoots it with my bow," Jai said. "I believe it will stay in the state of matter it is in, as it will not have enough power after being injured to change to another state of matter. While it is stuck in a solid state, I will make my attack on its weak point."

"So it will take all of us to do it?" Vinnie asked.

"One person could do it, but it would be very difficult," Jai explained. "This is a very dangerous mission. If anyone has any doubts, they should leave now."

No one said anything after this statement. Jai sighed.

"If you are all intent on staying, then we had better proceed."

The car stopped at a set of traffic lights. Jai sighed again.

"I think that going by car will take far too long. There appears to be some sort of obstruction ahead."

The professor stuck his head put the window and looked. He came back in, sighing. "Road works," he said. "They could take hours. We should find a different route."

"I think we should park up and walk," Jai said.

"I'll stay here in the car, where it's safe— I mean to watch it, and you guys can go ahead," Vinnie suggested.

"Right. Come," Jai said, getting out of the car.

The others followed suit. Emmy and Carla looked at Vinnie, disgusted.

"Chicken shit," Carla said under her breath.

"Have a nice walk," Vinnie grinned. Emmy gave him a filthy look and slammed the door shut. The others walked on as Vinnie moved to the driver's seat and sat back, relaxed. "That's better," he sighed.

The group walked on and on, through the town and well into the countryside. They all had a good time, walking, talking and admiring the scenery, but after a few hours of non-stop walking, the novelty soon wore off.

"Can we stop a minute?" Carla croaked.

Jai squinted ahead of her. "There is a shop about six hundred yards from here. We can all eat and rest there. I am sorry, but we cannot afford to stop or waste any time today."

"Okay," Carla gasped.

Antonio reached into his rucksack and pulled out a one litre bottle of water. He handed it to Carla. "Drink this."

"Thanks, babe." She gulped some water down and smiled at Antonio.

Antonio smiled back and put an arm around his wife's shoulders.

They kept on walking until they reached the said shop. Everyone bought sausage rolls and water. Except for Jai. She stood outside and waited for the others to finish. "Humans are very weak creatures," she thought. She felt her body growing tired, as everyone else did, but she chose to ignore it. Just as she did with her own body many millennia ago. She never stopped to rest or eat when on a journey; she would just keep going until she got there. She may have picked a leaf or two on the journey there if she felt on the verge of collapse, but that was the extent of her rest on a journey.

She sighed. "I do wish they would hurry up," she thought irritably. "We don't have all day."

Just as she thought this, the others came out of the shop. They seemed to have more energy and were livelier than before.

"Come," she called. "We must keep going. Quickly." And she walked on.

The others followed. Jai held up the sword and the beam headed off up the hill. She smiled; she could see where the beam ended and their desired destination. She turned to the others.

"Just up this hill. About a half a mile. Brace yourselves."

Carla gulped. She felt nervous. She turned to the professor.

"Have you got a plan?" she asked him.

The professor frowned. "Jai? Is there anything that the creature likes or dislikes? Something that we could distract it with?"

"Hmm..." Jai said, deep in thought. "I believe there is."

"Yes?" the professor asked.

"Sound. The air idol has a strange reaction to sound. It is attracted to it."

"So if we just make some noise, it should come towards us?" Emmy asked.

"I think you're right, Emmy," the professor smiled.

"We'll make the noise, and you get ready to shoot it, Emmy. Then Jai will make her attack," Carla suggested.

"And you must shoot it when it is solid, or I will not be able to get to it," Jai added.

"Right," Emmy said uncertainly.

The professor looked at her and smiled. "Perhaps I should do the shooting."

"Yeah," Emmy laughed. "I'd only miss."

The professor laughed as well. "It's not that, Emmy, I just didn't want to pile all the responsibility on you."

"I know," Emmy smiled, putting an arm around him.

"There," Jai said, halting them about fifty yards from a large farmhouse. The farmhouse looked old and in disarray. The galvanised roof was hanging off of it and the doors had been blown in. It looked deserted.

"Wind damage," Jai said. "We're here."

She raised the sword and the beam hit the field in the centre. A gush of wind came from that direction.

"It's waking up," Jai warned. "Get back, everyone."

They did as they were told and backed up to the wall of the farmhouse. Jai stepped forward.

The wind got stronger and stronger with every step Jai made towards the wind. The others were blown against the wall, but Jai managed to keep upright as she advanced on the wind.

The wind twisted into a tornado-like form, sending out stronger gusts. It twisted faster and faster, blowing everything away from it. Jai was nearly blown backwards and she found it harder and harder to walk in the conditions.

The others were trying to talk to one another, but as loud as they yelled, they could not hear one another over the racket of the wind.

The strong winds twisted and twisted until they formed a sphere like shape. Arms and legs began to protrude from the shape. It was becoming solid.

The winds began to die down and the others could just about hear each other again. Jai turned and waved to the professor. "NOW!" she screamed.

The professor stepped away from the wall and was nearly blown backwards from the force of the winds, which were still very strong. Emmy darted forward to help, as did Bronev and Antonio, and together they held the professor steady and he readied his weapon. They all held the bow steady and the professor readied an arrow. "I really can't see how this is going to work," the professor thought to himself. "After all, the wind is blowing in the wrong direction."

But that suddenly changed. The wind's direction had changed and everything was being blown towards the idol. The professor let go of the arrow and it flew off in the direction of the idol. It hit the idol square in the chest and the wind stopped.

Jai ran as fast as she could and jumped up on the idol's back. She searched for the weak point. She saw it, right on its head. She stabbed with all her might. A blinding light emitted from it. "It's working," Jai smiled. Then her smiled faded.

She was blown off and high into the air. The idol blew her fast across the field and over the farmhouse. The other's screams were inaudible over the sound of the wind.

Jai hit the roof hard and rolled off. She hung onto the edge on the galvanised roofing as she dangled over the edge of the roof. She could feel the galvaniser coming off of the roof as she hung on tight. "Uh-oh," she thought.

She looked down to see the others crowding around underneath her.

"CATCH ME!" she screamed as she let go of the galvaniser and dropped to the ground.

The others gathered round underneath her and they all caught her before she hit the ground.

They put her down. "Thanks. Phew!" she exclaimed, grinning at the idol. "Who's up for round two?"

Everyone laughed.

The idol was turning back into wind and was turning away.

"QUICK! THE DISTRACTION! MAKE SOME NOISE!" Jai bellowed. "PROFESSOR, READY YOUR NEXT SHOT, I'LL GET INTO POSITION!" and she ran off towards the idol again.

The others went back to the wall where they were earlier, and held Layton steady as he readied another arrow.

"READY? ON THREE, EVERYONE SCREAM OUT AS LOUD AS YOU CAN!" Layton yelled. "ONE... TWO... THREE!"

And they all screamed. They screamed out as loudly as they could, at the very top of their lungs.

"Odd," Emmy thought as she cried out loudly. "I find this so therapeutic." She laughed to herself as she screamed.

Their efforts had not been in vain. The idol, by some miracle of sorts, heard their screams and had turned towards them. It began to twist as it approached them, as it did earlier, and began to turn solid. As its arms and legs began to appear again, Layton released the arrow.

The arrow was drawn towards the idol as the wind changed once more. It hit the idol in the stomach, or where it's stomach was supposed to be, and Jai ran again.

She jumped on its back once more and stabbed it, in the exact same place as before. And everything stopped.

The noise had stopped, and Jai's mind was empty, almost blissfully blank.

But a new noise soon emerged.

"AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!"

Jai leaped off of the idol's back and ran to greet the others, glad that she wasn't too hurt this time. The idol collapsed and it's solid form soon disappeared.

"Jai!" the professor called as she reached them. "I'm glad to see that you're still in one piece. Are you hurt?"

"No." Jai looked around. She held up the sword once more, and it's beam pointed off to where the idol had disappeared. "Follow me."

The group went over to the area that the idol had disappeared.

"This area is just dirt," Emmy said, frowning. "But the rest of it is grass. Why is that?"

Jai didn't answer. She brushed the dirt off, revealing a stone surface with a slit in it. She placed the sword into the slit. It fitted perfectly. The sword glowed as soon as it entered.

"Stand back," Jai order, retreating from the stone area. The other's followed suit.

The ground opened up to reveal a set of stone steps. Bronev's eyes widened at this.

"WH-what? How did you know—?"

But Jai had already begun to descend the flight of stairs ahead of them. They all ran after her.

The stairs led to an underground chamber. It was dimly lit by a torch or two and in the middle of the room was a stand with an artefact on it.

"Here it is," Jai smiled, reaching out and taking the artefact.

"This chamber definitely looks Azran to me." Bronev said, fascinated.

"We must leave. Now." Jai headed for the staircase once more. The others followed.

When they reached the field, Jai removed the sword from its slot and the ground closed up once more. Jai covered the stone surface with dirt once more and it looked like it had never been touched. Jai turned to the others. "This place must never be opened by any of you," Jai said slowly, "Do you understand?"

They all nodded.

"Good," Jai said.

They heard a car pull up at the farmhouse and they all turned. Vinnie was there in the car, grinning. He stepped out and they ran over to greet him.

Vinnie grinned at them all. "You all look exhausted." he smiled. "Wanna ride?"

They all got into the car without word. Vinnie smiled to himself and got back into the driver's seat.

"Well, how was it? Did you get it?" Celeste asked Bronev as soon as he got in the door of the Triton's place.

"Yes."

"Good. Two down, two to go."

"Bronev smiled. " Indeed."

The professor was sat down at the kitchen table, studying the artefacts carefully. There was a different symbol on each of the six sides if the cube-shaped artefact. The professor frowned, trying to decipher them. Emmy sat down next to the professor and looked at the artefact over his shoulder.

"What do you think it means?" Emmy asked.

"It is some sort of warning," the professor replied, still frowning. "It is warning us against something. I think it is only part of the message."

"So you think it says "Beware"?" Bronev asked.

"Yes," the professor replied.

"It is warning you against using the Grounds of Rebirth," Jai said. "All of the artefacts are carrying a message in its inscription."

"So, if the other one said "rebirth," then the artefacts are saying "beware rebirth"?" Celeste asked. "Because the Grounds of Rebirth are dangerous. Like you said."

"Yes," Jai said. "They must never be used, or the darkness souls may be brought to this world."

"But you said that you could not prevent it," the professor said.

"No. I cannot prevent the darkness souls from coming here, but we can prevent a lot of the damage they can do. You will see when the time comes."

"What sort of damage?" Emmy asked.

"All sorts," Jai replied. "I cannot say; it is difficult to describe. But I'm sure you will see it for yourself."

"There are different symbols on each side of each artefact, but they all translate to roughly the same thing," the professor pointed out. "Why is this?"

"I cannot say, not until the time is right," Jai said. "But I am sure that you can figure it out for yourself in time. I will leave it to you to figure it out." Jai smiled. "It will be educational for you."