Deltora's Protector

Chapter 12 – The Valley of the Lost

Previously on Deltora's Protector:

Harry Potter was tortured for months in a prison known as the Island. During his stay he lost his voice and as such can no longer speak. A rescue attempt was made and while Harry managed to get out, it wasn't in England he returned to. He was washed ashore the western shore of Deltora and taken care of by Verity, the spirit girl of Bone Point Lighthouse. Shortly afterwards he met Steven, Nevets and Queen Bee. He was renamed Aiden and spent a few months recovering at Queen Bee's orchard. One day he snuck away to the City of the Rats and became the owner of a fine bracelet. Aiden joined Steven on his rounds and during his adventures became friends with the Ralads, a Dread Gnome, the Resistance and became an enemy of the Shadow Lord. He witnessed the rebirth of the village of D'Or and discovered that his blood protection from his mother is still active. He was a part of the Resistance's investigation to learn what became of the finalists in the Rithmere Games, completed his animagus transformation, escaped from Del Palace knowing the identity of Adin's Heir, and is on his way to the Valley of the Lost.

His adventures continue...

I guess I should start by saying that I have known about the Belt of Deltora and your quest since before your adventures in the Forest of Silence…

"What?" Lief exclaimed, almost removing his hand from Aiden's but the boy's grip kept him still. "How is that possible?"

I have been dreaming about you for a bit more than a year. After a few months I started to dream about Barda and Jasmine as well, but it wasn't until you found the Topaz that I started to understand. Crashing into you on my way to Raladin was another puzzle piece; from that moment I knew that you had the Belt.

"How?" Jasmine asked. "You were being chased by wolves if I remember correctly."

Yep! But when I collided with you, Lief, I felt the Belt pulse. Did you feel it too?

"I felt something," Lief admitted. "But at the time we were a little busy for me to think anything of it, and then I forgot about it until you brought it up."

I followed you to the Lake of Tears after you left Raladin, at the request of the Ralads as they were worried about you and Manus, and knew that I had been there before. Soldeen was very kind to me, helped me escape from a Grey Guard, who probably didn't taste very nice. Anyway, I watched while you convinced him to give you the Ruby, but before you could add it to the Belt the Sorceress Thaegan appeared. As you were you were not strong enough to defeat her, so I did it and left before you could recognise me.

"You defeated Thaegan?" Jasmine asked incredulously. "That shadow was you? How?"

"I'm curious about that too," Barda admitted. "But how much do you actually know about us?"

Almost everything. I was outside of Tom's shop waiting for Doom when you were there, and then when you got ahead of us, Doom and I followed. What were you riding that could outpace a horse?

"Muddlets," Lief explained.

Never ridden one of those before… Aiden mused. Anyway, Doom and I continued on to Rithmere when you arrived at the City of Rats. I'm guessing that you needed to kill Reeah? Such a magnificent creature.

"He was trying to kill us!" Jasmine defended hotly. "And nearly did kill Lief!"

Reeah was a servant of the Shadow Lord, Aiden agreed. But he was loyal to the last Protector, and never gave him up to the Shadow Lord.

"You've been to the City of the Rats?" Lief asked. "Wait…I remember Reeah saying something before I passed out. He said something about looking for you, as you were Deltora's hope."

That's a new one. I haven't been called that yet.

"And then after that you rigged the Rithmere Games?" Jasmine prompted, not too concerned with what Reeah had said near the end.

I didn't rig them, Aiden denied. To be entirely honest I was protecting you. The fate of Rithmere's Champion has always been unknown. If you were to become Champion, as you did, we weren't sure what would happen to you. Your quest was far more important than winning a tournament. By knocking you out early we could have protected you better. And if Glock was Champion, well, no one would really miss him would they?

"You call what you did protection?" Jasmine snapped.

It's better than what Doom did. And if I hadn't already known that you were capable fighters I would have been right next to him locking you in your room and then helping you escape to the Shifting Sands. I was gathering information in Rithmere, as Mother Brightly would only let one of Doom's 'sons' stay without competing. Dain had a much more convincing presence and I don't like fighting.

"Does Doom know about our quest?" Lief asked. Aiden nodded with a smile.

"Who else knows?" Barda added apprehensively.

Queen Bee knows, as I was with her when you won the Topaz, Steven and Nevets know as I asked them to look out for you, and Doom knows because I trust him. Oh! And Sion here knows as well, he thinks that you are alright for being humans. There are others who you have met on your journey who also know, but it's not because I have told them.

"Doom told us off, after the two of you rescued us from the Grey Guards," Barda continued with a sigh. "I thought he was just protecting you because Jasmine had accused you of trying to hurt others, but now…he was warning us. He wanted us to know that you were important and that we should be careful with how we treat you. It's because you knew about us right?"

In a way. Doom is very overprotective of me, and I think that that's because I helped him to remember his past. He can't be with his child, but he can be with me. He has really pronounced protective instincts, but I think he forgets that his child isn't eight anymore.

"Where'd you go after you rescued us?" Lief asked.

Del, your father is proud of what you have accomplished. His hope has been restored and can't wait for you to return to Del and rid this land of the Shadow Lord.

"You looked like you had been tortured," Barda observed. "And I remember Doom being particularly bad tempered when we were in the Testing Room."

Like I said, he worries. A messenger from the Resistance stronghold in Withick Mire had ridden to tell Doom that I was hurt, without waiting for me to wake. I left as soon as I could though so that I could reassure him that I was fine and pass on new information that not even the Shadow Lord knows yet.

"What information?"

That you will find out when the time is right.

"Alright, so for the past few weeks you've been making your way west?" Lief asked.

Correct. Did you pass on my message to Gla-Thon? How are she and the other gnomes?

"Gla-Thon was a lot more willing to help us after I passed on your message," Lief admitted. "Seemed to think that you were in danger and that helping us was the only way she could help you. When did you meet her?"

Some members of the Resistance had tried to kill her when she was walking around outside, just because she was a Dread Gnome. I healed her, she learnt that it was a human who stole my voice, and we parted ways. She told me that she would continue to serve the Shadow Lord until another option turned up, and when you turned up for the Emerald she knew that the Shadow Lord's days were numbered.

"I have one more question before we continue on," Barda said after Aiden allowed them to gather their thoughts. "How is it that you know when we've gathered the Gems? You say that you 'know' but how do you know?"

I showed you my opal, every time that something big happens with you, unless I'm already there, the opal shows it to me. Congratulations on escaping the Maze of the Beast by the way.

Barda nodded, accepting the explanation. Jasmine seemed to accept it as well, but it was Lief who was still staring at Aiden curiously. Aiden put his glove back on and stood up. As he started walking, not waiting for the others as he was sure that they would want to talk about what they had learnt without him listening in. So instead he rehashed the conversation to Sion who wanted to know what they had spent so long talking about.

After a while he looked over his shoulder and saw what it was that the Shadow Lord's minions could recognise on sight. He reluctantly removed his red scarf and waited until they were closer before handing it out to Jasmine. She looked at it curiously and asked what it was for, and Aiden mimed tying it around his head. When she still didn't appear to understand what he wanted her to do, he took off his glove and held out his hand to her. She took it nervously.

At the moment you are too recognisable. If you put on the scarf to hide your hair it will be harder to recognise you. Grey Guards and Ols are looking for a man, a boy, and a wild girl, not a man and three boys. It will be safer to travel if you are hidden in plain sight.

Jasmine nodded her understanding, even if she didn't like it. She explained to the others what it was that Aiden wanted her to do, and then she allowed Aiden to help her cover her hair so that she would be mistaken as a boy. Disguise in place, the quartet and three animals continued on to the Valley of the Lost.

That night the small group learnt of another tagalong. It seemed that Neridah really wanted to travel with them, despite the animosity between her and Aiden. She insisted that her plan was to return to her home town, which coincidently was along the same path as the Valley of the Lost, but it wasn't until she completely broke down sobbing in Lief's arms that the "true" story came out. She wanted to leave the Resistance because she had a broken heart.

"I love him!" Neridah sobbed. "But Doom is cruel, and cares nothing for me! When there is a choice between listening to me and 'talking' with Aiden he picks the boy every time! I cannot stay where I can see him every day. I cannot!"

Aiden's eyebrows raised in disbelief. He wondered if Doom knew she was declaring her love for him, and then shuddered slightly. Doom was old enough to be his father; he didn't need to hear annoying girls shouting out their love for him. However, it seemed that they only person who was on Aiden's side was Jasmine. The girl would clearly have copied Doom and ignored Neridah in favor of Aiden. Lief and Barda clearly had no idea what to do with crying girls, and allowed her to join them for a few days so that she would stop crying.

"She defeated him in the Rithmere Games," Jasmine muttered to Aiden later on. "How could he have forgotten so easily?"

He's a boy, Aiden mentally told her. His gloves were in his bag so to talk he was walking hand in hand with the wild girl. Girls everywhere know that to get a boy to do their bidding they either needed to bat their eyelashes or burst into tears.

"Speaking from experience, Aiden?" Jasmine asked with a smile.

I've learnt that usually when girls speak to me they want something. I hate it how they will make a big fuss, pretend to be insecure, or flirt to get it. What's wrong with just asking?

"You are a strange boy Aiden," Jasmine decided. "But I'm glad that you're not under her spell."

Aiden grinned. He had been told that he was strange often enough that it didn't bother him anymore. Being strange was just who he was, he wouldn't change that for anything.

Two days later Neridah was still travelling with them. Barda at least had lost all sympathy for her, but it was to Lief that Neridah clung to. Aiden understood that to women Lief was a good looking man, but he also recognised that Lief had no experience when it came to women. After being in Del, and seeing the state of the city, he gathered that Lief had had little time to be interested in girls, and girls had little time to be interested in him. So the fact that Neridah was showing an interest in him, something that no girl had shown before, he had no idea what he was doing.

"The way I see it we have two choices," Jasmine stated after they stopped for the third time that morning. Neridah was sitting by a stream cooling off her feet. "One, we hit her on the head and run; or two, we push her in the river and run."

Neither Lief nor Barda showed much enthusiasm for either option, though Aiden had lifted his hand to show that he voted for the second one. Jasmine smiled at him, but otherwise lifted a third finger to suggest another option.

"I knew that you two wouldn't like those options so option three is we tie her up and then run."

"I don't think I could do any of those things," Barda admitted.

"I agree, I could never hit a girl and I'd feel bad tying her up," Lief added. At that moment Neridah reappeared with a bright and happy smile, asking when they would be going again. Aiden pulled a gold coin from his pocket and threw it up in the air towards the bushes. Option four. Neridah's eyes followed the coin's path and darted after it, and as soon as her back was turned Aiden grabbed Jasmine and Lief's hands with the intention of running. But as he started to move Lief pulled off his cloak and the four of them hid under it as Neridah returned. Aiden wondered why, but he could feel the magic in the cloth, and since Neridah gave no sign that she could see them he assumed that they were invisible. That was pretty cool, much better than his own invisibility cloak as that had no warming abilities and was only good for turning the wearer invisible. Aiden wondered where Lief had gotten the cloak.

Neridah ran off down the path, the wrong way, and once she was gone Lief pulled the cloak off of them and they began walking again to the Valley of the Lost. Jasmine congratulated him on his coin idea, to which Aiden had merely grinned. He was tempted to pull out his flute as he hadn't been able to play for a while, but the threat was still out there so instead he hummed one of the tunes that he liked to play.

They walked for another two days before arriving at the Valley of the Lost, and just from looking into it Aiden could understand why it was called so. A thick grey mist crawled sullenly on the valley floor, and through the mist dark shadows moved aimlessly. An air of hopelessness and despair wrapped around each of the travelers, and Aiden knew that no animal would be able to live within the valley. He untangled Sion from his neck and set him on a tree branch where Jasmine's animal friends Filli and Kree had also been set.

"Filli and Kree do not like the valley," Jasmine explained. "And I don't think Sion likes it either with the way he's willingly staying behind."

"Why?" Lief asked. Jasmine shrugged and Aiden used his magic to pull the mist up to look at it.

"They will die," Jasmine continued, ignoring Aiden. "The valley is not for them, or any creature. The mist will kill them."

"What about us?" Barda asked.

"I can see people down there," Jasmine said pointing. "If it is safe for them, it will be safe for us."

Aiden nodded his agreement and began his decent, not waiting to see if they were following him. The ground was steep and treacherous, slippery with loose stones. Twice in so many minutes Aiden had to stop to regain his balance, and several times he was hit in the back of the head from where the trio had dislodged stones of their own. And then Lief slipped and couldn't regain his balance. He collided with Aiden and the two rolled down the path all the way to the valley floor. Barda and Jasmine called out to the two of them, but neither had the ability to answer.

As they came to a stop, Aiden had to push Lief off him as the larger boy had landed on top of him. Rubbing his sore ribs, Aiden stood and looked around. The mist caused a haze to block their vision, and Aiden had to prevent himself from rubbing his eyes as doing that wouldn't help. The plants were like dark shadows looming around them, and the people were more like ghosts than any other being. A soft sigh, like the wind through the trees, echoed around them but there was no wind.

"Sorry Aiden, are you alright?" Lief asked. Aiden nodded and then turned so that he could look back up the path. Lief called out for Barda and Jasmine, and they answered. Aiden pushed the mist back slightly so that it looked like they were in a bubble, and when the last two members of their group joined them they started to walk further into the valley. The ghostly shadows crowded around them but the bubble that Aiden had created prevented them from coming closer.

"Who are they?" Jasmine asked, her dagger hanging loosely in her hand. "What is wrong with them?"

Aiden tried to shrug, and that was his first clue that something was wrong. He couldn't move. As the others were still behind him he couldn't see them, but as they hadn't passed him he figured that they were under the same spell that he was. He cursed and pushed more magic into his bracelet so that he could break the enchantment.

"Do not waste your strength," a cruel voice stated. "You can do nothing unless I wish it." Aiden stared towards the only patch of colour in the valley, and studied the tall being coming closer. His eyes were like to red hot coals, his beard was longer than even Albus Dumbledore's and reached his knees, his robe was dark and long, covering every inch of him except for his face, and from each sleeve were two grey cords. The cords disappeared into the mist from where he had come, but Aiden couldn't figure out what they were attached to.

"Welcome to my valley," the man continued. "It has been a long time since I have had the pleasure of visitors. And now I am blessed with five."

Five? Aiden thought. He wondered if this man had ever learnt how to count, and then it occurred to him that this was the Guardian of the Diamond, the one who was pretending to be the fallen King Endon.

"Perhaps you thought to trick me by splitting your party, did you?" the man continued. "Ah, this is what I like to see. Visitors who like games. That will make things so much more pleasant, for all of us."

He gestured with one finger, gesturing into the mist, and to their surprise Neridah stumbled forwards. Aiden sighed in disappointment. Sion must not have seen her for he was sure that the snake would have bitten her if he had the chance to.

"Who are you?" Lief asked.

"I?" the man asked. "Why, have you not guessed? I am the Guardian."

Introductions made the Guardian turned and started to walk away, carelessly beckoning over his shoulder and the five were forced to walk forward with them. Aiden walked forward, not fighting the spell as he knew the others were doing, and studied the magic. It had slipped right passed his protective bubble from the mist, but it seemed that its only purpose was to control their movements like a puppeteer. He figured that with time he would be able to break it, but there was no harm in it at the moment. But in future he would create a shield that prevented other magic from touching him.

Behind him the trio were talking about their destination, and Neridah revealed her true colours as only being after the Great Diamond. Aiden was still able to use his magic, but as they were still being controlled he saw no purpose trying to trip her. He would wait until later when he could make it look like an accident.

They were taken to a palace made from glass. If the sun was able to cast its rays upon it, the palace would glitter like on giant jewel. As the Guardian stated, it was a dwelling fit for a king, and gave them the first clue as to his identity. Four misshapen beasts came out of the palace and Aiden's eyes widened in horror. They were hairless and gross, covered in sores and boils, with twisted arms hanging almost to the ground. From their necks were grey cords that were connected to the Guardian. Aiden shuddered.

"Here are my pets – my companions," the Guardian introduced. "I have kept them hidden until now, not wishing to alarm you. But you will learn to love them, as I have done. Perhaps you already do so, though you do not know it. They are fine, strong monsters, are they not? They protect me, and keep me company. Their names are Pride, Envy, Hate and Greed.

"Their names are a little joke of mine. For though each has one of the faults I have mentioned, none has the fault after which it is named. Greed is not greedy, Pride is not proud, Envy is not envious. Hate is not envious either, not at all. But more importantly, it has never hated in its life. You see? Is that not amusing?"

He didn't receive a reply, but Aiden didn't think he expected one. He gestured for them to enter the palace, which they were unable to refuse, and were forced to follow him to a luxurious room. The monsters followed in after them, and started to fight when they wouldn't all fit in at the same time. The Guardian flicked them with the cords and they settled down. He looked over his shoulder and gave them more information about his pets.

"Like children, my pets sometimes do not agree, and need a firm hand. The envious one and the proud one are both afraid of Greed. But they will fight if they have to. For, after all, they are linked together and cannot escape."

The five unwilling followers were directed to sit at a long table that was overflowing with food. They were instructed to eat, drink, and enjoy each other's company, for afterwards they would be expected to play the Game.

The Guardian regaled them all with tales of how he had been born into great riches, but lost it all through wickedness and envy. He was driven from his home; no one would lift a hand to help him, until he found solace in the valley. In time he transformed into the creature he was now and turned the valley that had once been home to many different animals, into the Valley of the Lost. A voice spoke to him, and in time he realised that where the light had betrayed him, the darkness would give him strength. After accepting that, he became the Guardian.

Aiden admitted to himself that if he hadn't already heard it from Doom, and met Lief's father in prison, he would wholeheartedly believe that the Guardian had once been King Endon.

The Guardian finished his plate, and Aiden wasn't surprised to note that his companions hadn't come close to finishing theirs. He himself had not been able to eat a bite of the food before them; he was too concerned about what lay ahead of them. The Guardian led them to another room that had an adjoining room protected by a glass door. In the smaller room was nothing but a small table and a glass casket, though it was what was in the casket that caused both Aiden and Lief to react as the Belt and the bracelet had grown warm. Inside the casket was the Great Diamond.

"No force can unlock this door. It is sealed by magic," the Guardian explained. "It will remain sealed until you have won the right to open it. So – will you play?"

"Do we have a choice?" Jasmine asked.

"Why, of course!" the Guardian exclaimed. "If you so wish, you can leave here now, empty-handed. Turn your backs on the Gem you came to find. Go back where you came from! I will not stop you."

"If we win the game and enter the room, the Diamond is ours to keep?" Lief asked. "You will allow us to leave this valley, taking our prize with us? You swear this?"

"Certainly!" said the Guardian. "That is the rule. Your prize will be yours to keep."

"And if we fail?" Barda asked. "What then?"

"Then – why, then, you are mine to keep. Then you will remain here, like all the others who have chosen to match wits with me. You will become part of the Valley of the Lost, forever."

Aiden grabbed Jasmine's wrist, as she was the closest to him, and telepathically asked her to speak for him. She agreed and turned to the Guardian, asking the one question Aiden wanted the others to know the answer to.

"What is the aim of the game?"

"You must guess my name," the Guardian said with a smile. "Will you play?"

Aiden nodded immediately, he knew the answer already but he figured that it wouldn't hurt to play along. Neridah refused, and she ran away from the glass palace as fast as she could. The final three hesitated, but in the end they agreed to play the game.

"Excellent!" the Guardian cried. A candle appeared on the table in the middle of the larger room, wick already burning. "The life of this candle will be the time you have to open the door into the casket room. If the door remains unopened when the candle dies, you will admit defeat and become mine. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"I wish you good night then," the Guardian said. "All the clues are in this room, though you will need the first to find out my name. In one way it's hidden, in another, it's as plain as the nose on your face. Oh! And one final piece of advice, you have one chance to open the door, and one chance only. Don't waste it on a guess."

The Guardian left the room, and for a moment the four remained still. Aiden broke the stillness by flopping onto a nearby chair. A small headache was starting to form behind his eyes, but otherwise he was just tired. Around him Lief, Barda and Jasmine started to look for the first clue, and after sitting still for several minutes Aiden joined them.

For an hour they searched every corner of the room, under every surface, behind every book on the bookcase. Lief found the Book of Deltora Aiden had seen once before when he was in Del, and read out a passage about the Diamond.

The diamond is the symbol of innocence, purity and strength. Diamonds gained nobly, and with a pure heart, are a powerful force for good. They give courage and strength, protect from pestilence and help the cause of true love. But take heed of this warning: diamonds gained by treachery or violence, or desired out of envy or greed, are ill omens, and bring bad fortune. Great evil comes upon those who gain them without honor.

It was for that reason that Lief insisted on playing the game fairly, without trying to cheat by breaking into the room with the diamond from a smaller door that all four had seen. It was also for that reason that Aiden vowed not to give away the answer as he didn't know if it would count as cheating. So he subtly helped them figure it out without appearing to. He stood in front of the mirror, studying the dark circles that were appearing under his eyes and the faint bruise that was left over from his time in Del, and then gasped in shock as words appeared before him. He summoned the others over and Barda read the passage aloud.

"My secret name awaits within.

My first, the first of Pride's great sin

My second and last begin

The sum of errors in the twin

My third begins a sparkle bright –

The treasure pure? The point of light?

My fourth, the sum of happiness

For those who try my name to guess."

"Well that was as clear as mud," Jasmine muttered. "Anyone else understand what that's telling us?"

"I have seen something like this before," Barda admitted. "It's a puzzle. I think your mother had you doing puzzles like this when you were growing up Lief."

"Yeah," Lief agreed. "The rhyme tells us how many letters are in the Guardian's name. It tells us how to find out what the letters are. But it is more difficult by far than any puzzle I have ever solved."

Aiden once again dropped back on the chair he had started out on and stared up at the roof. As he knew that the answer was ENDON, he mentally put each letter into the clues. Pride's great sin would start with an 'E', so that would make it envy. Errors in the twin, whatever that meant, was 'N', so it could be nine, nineteen, or anywhere in the nineties. Treasure pure, point of light, was 'D', but Aiden had no idea what it could stand for. And then the sum of happiness was 'O', but Aiden knew that one person had already guessed the Guardian's name.

Turning his head he noticed that the candle was almost finished, he estimated that there was probably another half hour left. Lief, Barda and Jasmine were standing next to a painting of stars and diamonds, so he went to join them. They were working out the sparkles bright part of the riddle, and Aiden tilted his head to look at it. Diamond started with a 'D', so that would be the answer, but now he needed to figure out why. He gasped when he saw it and used his hands to explain it.

The painting had sixteen squares, but if one was to divide the painting into four small squares a pattern would emerge. In each box there was one more diamond than in the last, so the final square, the one that was blank, would be a diamond. The group wrote that down on a sheet of paper to keep a record of their findings. Aiden noticed that they had already put an 'O' in the fourth spot, and then in the third spot went a 'D'.

? ? D O ?

Jasmine was the one who found the twins, and that was because she had seen the rug the chairs and table were on top of. At first glance the two rugs looked identical, but after taking a second glance the quartet had noticed several differences. Counting them was fun, Aiden decided, and the total sum of errors was nine. Lief wrote down the letter 'N' in the second and last place, leaving the first blank for Pride's greatest sin.

The three decided that they would go to the four beasts to investigate, but Aiden remained behind, and as such was the only one to see Neridah break into the Diamond's room, steal the Diamond and run out again. Aiden couldn't let her escape so he stunned her as she escaped through the door. With a sigh he decided that he would wait until the others came back with the correct name, and then once the door opened he would drag Neridah back in.

When Lief, Barda and Jasmine returned there was a depressed weight on their shoulders. Aiden stood straighter upon their return, and cocked his head to the side in curiosity.

"His name is Endon," Lief whispered. "He was King Endon."

The glass door behind Aiden opened and he looked back at it once curiously before turning back to the trio.

"Evil has eaten him from within. Even Jarred would not recognise him now," Barda added. "Jarred always said that Endon was weak. Foolish and weak. Protected from the world, and used to flattery and power. But still he loved him, and tried to protect him. He saved Endon from the palace, and certain death. And for what? For this!"

"But how could Father know that Tora would refuse to help?" Lief asked desperately. "How could he know that Endon would turn to the dark side, to regain all he had lost?"

Aiden shook his head sadly. Already the three had forgotten what Doom had warned them. Not everything was as it first appeared, and while Doom had also been tricked, he now knew the truth. He let them bicker and walked through the glass door to where Neridah had tried to escape.

The woman was just outside the door, Diamond still clutched in her hands, but Aiden didn't doubt that she was dead. As his stunning spell had hit her, causing her to fall, her head had crashed open on a rock. A pool of blood surrounded her head like a halo, eyes clouded over in death, but even her final fate couldn't hide the expression of greed on her face. Aiden may have disliked the woman, but he hadn't wished death on her. For that he was sorry and bowed his head momentarily in mourning. He knelt down and pulled the Diamond from her hand, wincing slightly as his bracelet started to burn his wrist. He swapped hands and then reclined back on the door so that he could watch what was happening on the inside.

The Guardian was talking to the trio, and it appeared that he had figured out who they were. Pride, Greed, Hate and Envy charged at them, and after slipping the Gem into his pocket Aiden joined the fight. The beasts had self-healing capabilities, so instead of attacking them directly Aiden went for the cords. The Guardian's eyes were red and Aiden knew of his danger moments too late. His body stopped moving and one of the beasts charged at him. At the last moment Aiden threw up the strongest shield spell he could imagine. The beast fell backwards from the strength of the shield, and while Aiden was unaware of it, everyone else had seen how his eyes started to glow vibrant green, a cold light in the darkness.

Aiden broke through the spell and rushed at the Guardian, dodging the beasts as he did so. Lief called out warnings to him, but Aiden ignored him and jumped onto the Guardian's back. The Guardian spun around angrily, but Aiden had a plan. While the bracelet he was wearing wasn't as strong as the Belt, he had enough magic to break through the spell the Shadow Lord had on the man. Lief and Barda severed the cords that connected the beasts to the Guardian, and as Aiden forced more magic through his bracelet the palace around them began to break. The trio escaped through the door, only to discover the fate of Neridah.

The palace shattered and the next instant the valley was flooded with colour and blinding light. The air cleared, and from the clearing mist rose men, women and children who were staring at their hands in amazement, then at each other, and jumping around in joy. When the glass finished falling all that was left was a modest home protected by two large trees. Lief looked at the many men, women and children and remembered what the Guardian had told them. His whispered words had Barda and Jasmine looking back at the others in the valley.

"The first of my subjects, the largest number, came to me in a great wind, the pride that had caused their fall still fresh within them…Barda, Jasmine; I think that these people are the lost people of Tora."

"I think you're right Lief," Jasmine whispered, staring at the unchanged faces in shock. Barda nodded, but soon his gaze returned to what used to be the palace.

"Neridah stole the Gem," he stated. "And then she died before she could get far from the palace. But where is the Diamond now?"

"I'm sorry Lief," Jasmine continued, her eyes on Neridah. "If I had my way, no doubt we would be lying here or somewhere like it, ourselves. The curse – is strong."

"Strong enough for the Guardian not to fear theft," Barda said grimly. "The Diamond could be relied upon to act before the thief escaped the valley."

"So who took it from Neridah?" Jasmine asked. "And what happened to Aiden? He was still in the palace when it shattered."

Aiden was still in what used to be the palace, but he was not alone. The amount of magic he had used to break the spell had weakened him, and he was lying on the ground waiting for the ground to stop spinning. Sitting next to him was the man who had been the Guardian. He was now wearing a white robe and his beard was shorter. His eyes were now a clear blue and staring up at him Aiden could barely see any similarity between him and the Guardian.

"Are you able to move?" the man asked. Aiden shook his head with a morbid smile so instead the man helped him to sit, and then to stand. Aiden needed to rest his entire weight on the man as he was helped from the house. Lief was the first to notice him and rushed over to help him sit back on the ground once again in the sun. Aiden raised his head, eyes closed, to bask in the sun's warmth, and started when a cold hand rested on his forehead. Aiden opened his eyes and saw the former Guardian walk away so that the travelers could talk in privacy.

"You look awful Aiden," Jasmine told him. "Are you alright?"

Aiden smiled at her before pulling the Diamond from his pocket and giving it to Lief. It had completely slipped his mind what happened when the Gems were returned to the Belt, and as such was shocked when his bracelet once again exploded with light as he hadn't put his gloves back on. Jasmine pushed his sleeve up and gasped as she finally spotted the smaller version of the Belt of Deltora.

"Where'd you get that?" she asked. Aiden twisted his hand so that he was holding hers.

It is my fate.

"Fate?"

"Aiden, that looks exactly like the Belt," Lief whispered. Aiden reached over and grabbed his hand, his strength fading fast.

I was asked once how I knew that you had won each Gem. This is how I knew. Now, I'm going to pass out. I'll wake in a few hours, just leave me here.

"Aiden? Stay awake! Aiden!"

Aiden smiled as he fell into the beckoning darkness. The Belt was finally completed. But now there was one thing that concerned him: Lief was the Heir of Deltora, he had found all the Gems and restored the Belt, and he was wearing the Belt around his waist…so why hadn't the Belt glowed like the sun as the stories told? What were they missing?

Next up in Deltora's Protector:

Chapter 13 – The Joining of the Tribes