Bet you all thought I was dead, but I'm not! I read DQ3 and got inspired - I'll try to finish this story very soon. Hope you remember what's going on and a million apologies for the terrible wait!
The Story So Far (It would be great if you could skip through the whole story again because there are lots of clues etc) but the very short version is...
Sharn was poisoned by a mysterious messenger who gave Leif a riddle with which to find the antidote.
Leif Barda and Jasmine head off to a land above the Shadowlands
Doom stays to guard kingdom
They meet men in the mountains
The evil Kaif betrays his captain (Jovan) and leaves L, J and B to die
They find the first ingredient in the Forests
Then they become trapped in the misty mashlands
They end up in a house that seems perfect but is really evil -
Everyone should look over chapter 12 before heading on into this one. Good Luck! I'd really love to hear your comments and any ideas on what you'd like to happen
The map for the story is
Chapter 13 - Illusion 16/7/04
There was a foul taste at the back of Leif's mouth. The thought of what he and Barda had been eating a moment before made him want to be ill. He could hardly comprehend how they had been taken in by the two evil women - and what might have become of them if not for Jasmine!
"Leif! Help us!"
He heard his friends' shouts barely a moment before the great table was upturned before them, Jasmine and Barda using all their strength to lift the heavy wood. Leif quickly added his own strength, his mind hardly able to focus on the job. The knowledge that the next ingredient to the antidote was somewhere in this room, combined with the unutterable horror of the decaying house and it's evil occupants confused his thoughts. He could not think of anything that could possibly be added to the burning jar he clutched tightly in his palm.
After an agonizing moment in which the table teetered on the brink of falling, it finally over balanced, spilling all the rotten food and cobwebs down with it. The grey table cloth, that had once seemed so white and welcoming, slid down, sweeping everything onto the floor. The candles that had been burning with agonised faces staring out from the drowning wax, fell upon the cloth. Flames leapt up as the tablecloth blazed to life, and the women screamed. The orange fingers stretched up to the roof, scorching the webs that lined the ceiling.
As one, the three companions turned, and ran for the entrance hall. It was if a great wind had swept through the building, for fire already curled up the winding stair down which Jasmine had come. Leif saw at once that there was no escape that way.
Leif glanced fearfully to the dining room, and saw with horror, the figures of the two skeletons, hung now with burning rags emerge from the doorway. "They are coming!" he yelled to Barda who was wrestling with the bolts on the front door.
Jasmine was running her hands over one of the two mirrors beside the door. Leif cringed as he saw his own terrified face reflected back at him, and saw the fire at their backs closing in.
"It is solid!" Jasmine cried as Leif joined her, pressing his free hand to the reflective surface. At once he gasped and almost dropped the small vial from his other hand.
"It is the looking glass! It must be the next ingredient!"
Jasmine beat her fist against the glass. "How can it be?" she shook her head, "It is impossible!"
"Barda! We must break the glass somehow!"
"I still have my sword," Barda came up to them, glancing nervously behind. "But I doubt it will work. Some evil spell is upon this place and I cannot shift the door an inch."
Leif looked behind and saw the figures of the foul women immerge from the doorway into the hall.
"We gave you shelter!" One of the women called, but the voice was no longer sweet and enticing, but a terrible shriek and hurt Leif's ears.
"You owe us your lives! You cannot leave this house!"
While he was speaking Barda had turned the pommel of his sword to face the mirror, and now he rammed it forwards with all his strength. There was a terrible shriek from the women as the glass shattered and Leif stumbled back as the entire panel flew inwards. He threw his arm across his face and felt the tiny shards of glass tearing into his skin.
There was a great rumbling noise from somewhere above, and the floor beneath them trembled. Leif opened his eyes to find the terrible hollow skull of the woman leering over him. Scraps of flash still clung to her white boned cheeks and the hand that reached out for his face retained yellowed nails.
He felt frozen, trapped by the hollow sockets that stared down at him. He could not seem to move. In the back of his mind he heard someone calling his name, and then the hideous spectre above him was jerked to the side with a sickening crunch of broken bones.
Jasmine was pulling him to his feet and half dragging him towards the fresh air streaming in from where the looking glass used to stand. He caught a glimpse of Barda stumbling to his feet, dragging his sword, blood across one side of his face.
Their feet crunched the glass beneath their feet, and Leif saw that Jasmine's feet were cut and bleeding. Then he finally remembered! The Vial! He had dropped it! Wrenching his arm from Jasmine's grip, he pushed back past Barda, who yelled his name, and scrabbled about on the floor among the broken shards of the mirrors. The glass sliced into his knees, and small stinging cuts lacerated his fingers, yet he hardly noticed.
He finally discovered the bottle and grasped it, feeling it pulse hotly between his fingers. At that moment, he felt Barda's strong arms close about his own and he was dragged out through the door.
"Wait!" he yelled, "wait, let me..."
But he was pulled out onto the soggy mud before he could explain, and not a moment too soon. A horrendous spitting sound rent the air, and all went grey as the house fell inwards upon itself and a great cloud of dust swept over them.
When Leif looked again, his eyes watering from the dust, there was nothing there. Mud flats stretched out as far as they could see in every direction, and the house and its terrible occupants were nowhere to be seen.
Leif caught his breath, leaning his head on his knees, and felt his heart slow to a steady beat. He looked down as his hands, and was surprised to see that they were streaming with blood. He had believed, for a moment, that the house had simply been an illusion. There were even a few shards of the mirror still sticking in the cuts. He grimaced as he plucked them out, flicking them onto the ground where they sank into the mud. He rolled the last one in his fingers for a moment, and then remembered - the antidote!
He lifted the bottle from where it lay on the grass beside him, and dropped the small piece of the looking glass into it. Instantly the heated glass cooled, and Leif sighed as he replaced the stopper upon the bottle.
Barda and Jasmine crawled over to him, watching as he put the bottle back into the pocket of his cloak.
"Someone knew what would happen, what we would do." Jasmine wiped her muddied hands upon her knees.
"They are playing with us," Barda said, holding one hand to the large cut upon his cheek. "The riddles, the quest, it is as if we were figures upon a game board."
"And someone else is controlling the play," Leif added, feeling suddenly tired now the fear had left him.
Jasmine looked as tired as he felt. "How can we possibly defeat an enemy who can predict every step we take? We have no way to control our search."
"Luckily we do have one important advantage," Barda winked at Leif and he understood.
"That is right," he said, "We have Jasmine of the Forests who will ever be there to rescue her gullible companions from complete disaster."
Jasmine stared at them both in disbelief. "You two..." she shook her head, and climbed to her feet. "I will never understand you!" She turned sharply away. Lief returned Barda's wink as he caught the side of Jasmine's lips trying to hide a smile.
thanks for reading everyone!
Thanks to all who reviewed the last chapter so long ago, hope you enjoyed this one :D Love to hear your criticisms and what you thought :D
The Story So Far (It would be great if you could skip through the whole story again because there are lots of clues etc) but the very short version is...
Sharn was poisoned by a mysterious messenger who gave Leif a riddle with which to find the antidote.
Leif Barda and Jasmine head off to a land above the Shadowlands
Doom stays to guard kingdom
They meet men in the mountains
The evil Kaif betrays his captain (Jovan) and leaves L, J and B to die
They find the first ingredient in the Forests
Then they become trapped in the misty mashlands
They end up in a house that seems perfect but is really evil -
Everyone should look over chapter 12 before heading on into this one. Good Luck! I'd really love to hear your comments and any ideas on what you'd like to happen
The map for the story is
Chapter 13 - Illusion 16/7/04
There was a foul taste at the back of Leif's mouth. The thought of what he and Barda had been eating a moment before made him want to be ill. He could hardly comprehend how they had been taken in by the two evil women - and what might have become of them if not for Jasmine!
"Leif! Help us!"
He heard his friends' shouts barely a moment before the great table was upturned before them, Jasmine and Barda using all their strength to lift the heavy wood. Leif quickly added his own strength, his mind hardly able to focus on the job. The knowledge that the next ingredient to the antidote was somewhere in this room, combined with the unutterable horror of the decaying house and it's evil occupants confused his thoughts. He could not think of anything that could possibly be added to the burning jar he clutched tightly in his palm.
After an agonizing moment in which the table teetered on the brink of falling, it finally over balanced, spilling all the rotten food and cobwebs down with it. The grey table cloth, that had once seemed so white and welcoming, slid down, sweeping everything onto the floor. The candles that had been burning with agonised faces staring out from the drowning wax, fell upon the cloth. Flames leapt up as the tablecloth blazed to life, and the women screamed. The orange fingers stretched up to the roof, scorching the webs that lined the ceiling.
As one, the three companions turned, and ran for the entrance hall. It was if a great wind had swept through the building, for fire already curled up the winding stair down which Jasmine had come. Leif saw at once that there was no escape that way.
Leif glanced fearfully to the dining room, and saw with horror, the figures of the two skeletons, hung now with burning rags emerge from the doorway. "They are coming!" he yelled to Barda who was wrestling with the bolts on the front door.
Jasmine was running her hands over one of the two mirrors beside the door. Leif cringed as he saw his own terrified face reflected back at him, and saw the fire at their backs closing in.
"It is solid!" Jasmine cried as Leif joined her, pressing his free hand to the reflective surface. At once he gasped and almost dropped the small vial from his other hand.
"It is the looking glass! It must be the next ingredient!"
Jasmine beat her fist against the glass. "How can it be?" she shook her head, "It is impossible!"
"Barda! We must break the glass somehow!"
"I still have my sword," Barda came up to them, glancing nervously behind. "But I doubt it will work. Some evil spell is upon this place and I cannot shift the door an inch."
Leif looked behind and saw the figures of the foul women immerge from the doorway into the hall.
"We gave you shelter!" One of the women called, but the voice was no longer sweet and enticing, but a terrible shriek and hurt Leif's ears.
"You owe us your lives! You cannot leave this house!"
While he was speaking Barda had turned the pommel of his sword to face the mirror, and now he rammed it forwards with all his strength. There was a terrible shriek from the women as the glass shattered and Leif stumbled back as the entire panel flew inwards. He threw his arm across his face and felt the tiny shards of glass tearing into his skin.
There was a great rumbling noise from somewhere above, and the floor beneath them trembled. Leif opened his eyes to find the terrible hollow skull of the woman leering over him. Scraps of flash still clung to her white boned cheeks and the hand that reached out for his face retained yellowed nails.
He felt frozen, trapped by the hollow sockets that stared down at him. He could not seem to move. In the back of his mind he heard someone calling his name, and then the hideous spectre above him was jerked to the side with a sickening crunch of broken bones.
Jasmine was pulling him to his feet and half dragging him towards the fresh air streaming in from where the looking glass used to stand. He caught a glimpse of Barda stumbling to his feet, dragging his sword, blood across one side of his face.
Their feet crunched the glass beneath their feet, and Leif saw that Jasmine's feet were cut and bleeding. Then he finally remembered! The Vial! He had dropped it! Wrenching his arm from Jasmine's grip, he pushed back past Barda, who yelled his name, and scrabbled about on the floor among the broken shards of the mirrors. The glass sliced into his knees, and small stinging cuts lacerated his fingers, yet he hardly noticed.
He finally discovered the bottle and grasped it, feeling it pulse hotly between his fingers. At that moment, he felt Barda's strong arms close about his own and he was dragged out through the door.
"Wait!" he yelled, "wait, let me..."
But he was pulled out onto the soggy mud before he could explain, and not a moment too soon. A horrendous spitting sound rent the air, and all went grey as the house fell inwards upon itself and a great cloud of dust swept over them.
When Leif looked again, his eyes watering from the dust, there was nothing there. Mud flats stretched out as far as they could see in every direction, and the house and its terrible occupants were nowhere to be seen.
Leif caught his breath, leaning his head on his knees, and felt his heart slow to a steady beat. He looked down as his hands, and was surprised to see that they were streaming with blood. He had believed, for a moment, that the house had simply been an illusion. There were even a few shards of the mirror still sticking in the cuts. He grimaced as he plucked them out, flicking them onto the ground where they sank into the mud. He rolled the last one in his fingers for a moment, and then remembered - the antidote!
He lifted the bottle from where it lay on the grass beside him, and dropped the small piece of the looking glass into it. Instantly the heated glass cooled, and Leif sighed as he replaced the stopper upon the bottle.
Barda and Jasmine crawled over to him, watching as he put the bottle back into the pocket of his cloak.
"Someone knew what would happen, what we would do." Jasmine wiped her muddied hands upon her knees.
"They are playing with us," Barda said, holding one hand to the large cut upon his cheek. "The riddles, the quest, it is as if we were figures upon a game board."
"And someone else is controlling the play," Leif added, feeling suddenly tired now the fear had left him.
Jasmine looked as tired as he felt. "How can we possibly defeat an enemy who can predict every step we take? We have no way to control our search."
"Luckily we do have one important advantage," Barda winked at Leif and he understood.
"That is right," he said, "We have Jasmine of the Forests who will ever be there to rescue her gullible companions from complete disaster."
Jasmine stared at them both in disbelief. "You two..." she shook her head, and climbed to her feet. "I will never understand you!" She turned sharply away. Lief returned Barda's wink as he caught the side of Jasmine's lips trying to hide a smile.
thanks for reading everyone!
Thanks to all who reviewed the last chapter so long ago, hope you enjoyed this one :D Love to hear your criticisms and what you thought :D