The Pendant Read online

  “The guide you need to obtain the royal seal from Kinfen’s heir,” Ria started to quote.

  “Stop there,” Sam instructed. “That’s the problem. I am the guide, but I did not retrieve the seal. Quartilla, Nosmas and Hawk did.”

  “She is right you know,” Patrick said unhelpfully.

  Tor stroked his beard as he pondered what had been said. “For every other clue, there has either been a physical reason why the person specified in the clue has to be present or there has been someone there to ensure they are the right person.” Sam’s mind went back to when she had retrieved a previous clue. She had to drink poison to prove she really was ‘from another world’. It had turned out not to be poison, just a test, but she saw what Tor was getting at.

  “Then logically, the same should have been true this time. Someone or something should have prevented anyone but me getting the seal.”

  “Exactly,” Tor confirmed.

  “So why was I able to take it from Prince Manus’s neck?” Nosmas asked.

  “Maybe Sam was supposed to request that Manus hand it over and he himself was supposed to confirm her identity?” Quartilla volunteered.

  “It is possible,” Tor agreed, “but unlikely. I cannot see a man like Manus willingly giving up the royal seal. It was not even his to give away, if you remember. Legally it belonged to Tallon.”

  “Something strange is going on here,” Patrick said thoughtfully. “After he had retrieved the final clue, if my memory serves me correctly, Tor mentioned something about the Baron being surprised as the wooden plaque the clue was written on had not been there the previous day.”

  Tor nodded. As always, Patrick’s memory was perfect. “It was almost as if someone was watching us and planted the clue as soon as we arrived in the city.”

  “What are you suggesting?” Ria asked.

  “I do not know,’ Patrick admitted, “but it is looking more and more likely that there is some sort of twist to this quest that we have yet to discover.”

  Nosmas was looking at Sam and his staring started to make her feel uncomfortable. “There had to be a reason for the clue to mention the guide,” he said, thinking out loud. “We have proven that Sam was not actually needed, so what possible reason is there for her being named?”

  “Could whoever planted the clue have known that the group would split up and they wanted Sam and Dean separated for some reason?” Ria suggested.

  Tor shook his head. “No. The clues were all written before my father died. Nobody even knew of Sam and Dean’s existence, let alone their relationship.”

  “But were they written before your father died?” Patrick asked. “You yourself said that you felt as if the last one was planted just before you retrieved it. Could someone else be responsible for this quest?”

  “I hate to admit it, but I have been thinking the same thing for a while,” Sam said.

  “It is possible,” Tor said reluctantly. “Though who it could be or what they could hope to gain from it, I cannot think.”

  “There is one thing that has happened as a result of the quest,” Ria said in a strained voice. She was staring at her hands as she spoke, unwilling to meet the eyes of her companions. “The number of people in line to the throne has been greatly reduced.”

  Tor looked at her in horror. “Are you suggesting someone set up this quest in order to murder my brothers?” Ria did not need to answer, the look on her face said it all.

  “But why split up me and Dean?” Sam asked.

  “I have no idea, but I do know one thing,” Patrick said. “Your nightmares started almost as soon as we obtained the clue that caused us to go in two different directions. Am I the only one who thinks that is too much of a coincidence?”

  There were murmurs of agreement. Patrick and Tor’s eyes met. “Are you thinking what I am thinking?” Patrick asked.

  Tor nodded. “We need to reunite as soon as possible.”

  Chapter 18

  Seth and Dal walked out of the tunnel to find Dean being held prisoner by the largest snake either of them had ever laid their eyes on. “Rats,” it hissed. “Visitors. How inconvenient.” It turned to stare at the newcomers. “Would you mind waiting where you are for a few moments while I eat my meal?”

  Seth was about to reply when he realised the snake was talking about Dean. He raised his torch up, brandishing it like a club. “Let our friend go,” he demanded.

  “Really,” it said, sounding disappointed rather than aggressive. “Can nobody take a joke anymore?” It slowly unwound itself from Dean’s body and slithered across the floor towards Seth and Dal.

  “Joke?” Dal stammered. “You think threatening to eat someone is a joke?”

  If the snake had shoulders it would have shrugged them. “I thought it was funny.”

  “So you are not going to eat me then?” Dean asked. He had no idea how fast the snake was and wanted some reassurance before moving.

  “No,” it confirmed. “I do not like humans. They taste bitter and their clothes play havoc with my digestive system. It is really hard trying to persuade them to undress before I eat them.” Three pairs of eyes stared at it in disbelief. “Just kidding.” It sighed, making a sound like steam escaping. “Humans really need to develop a sense of humour.”

  Seth was the first to find his voice. “Sorry. It is just that we are not used to having a conversation with a snake.”

  “Apology accepted. Now, introductions. My name is Essieth, but you can call me Subtracter.”

  “Subtracter?” Dal asked, still not sure that she was actually talking to a snake that thought it was a comedian. Maybe she had fallen asleep in the cave and was dreaming.

  “Well just by looking at me you can tell I am not an adder.”

  Dean groaned. Seth grinned; he was beginning to like the oversized reptile. He told Essieth his name and introduced his wife. “The grumpy one is Dean.” Dean nodded his head at the snake, not sure that he was comfortable with it knowing his name. Having it coiled round him, saying it was going to eat him, had chilled him to the core and he was yet to recover. He felt a sudden desire to go back through the tunnel and sit by the fire as soon as possible.

  “You know why we are here,” he said. “Can I please take the gemstone and get out of here?” He managed to remain polite, but only just.

  “What is the hurry?” Seth asked. “How often do you get to hold a conversation with an animal?” Dean looked at him, unable to believe he had just made that statement. “Oh yeah. Sorry. I forgot. You do it all the time.” His cheeks began to glow pink with embarrassment, causing them to clash with his hair.

  “You may choose your gemstone,” the snake hissed, annoyed at having to get down to business so soon. It did not get many visitors and wanted to spend more time with them. Waiting until Dean had reached his hand towards a stone that gleamed red, it added, “But make sure you choose the right one.”

  Dean stopped and let his arm drop to his side. “What?” he said, turning to look at Essieth. He was sure the snake smiled at him.

  “You cannot take just any stone,” it informed him. “You may only take the one that is required for the quest.”

  “Wait a minute,” Seth called out. “The clue only said that a gemstone from the Grundle’s lair was needed. It did not say anything about a specific gem.”

  “Then you have a problem.” The snake sounded quite happy about it.

  “How do we know you are telling the truth?” Dal asked suspiciously.

  “You do not, you just have to trust me.”

  “Great,” Dean exclaimed in frustration. “Any suggestions?” Dal and Seth both shook their heads. The snake had not given them any reason to take anything it said seriously, but could they take that chance? “Well, assuming Subtracter isn’t lying to us, the one we want must be unique in some way. Start looking around and see if any of them look different.”

  “What do you mean by different?” Dal enquired.

  “I don’t know,” Dean shouted. “Wh
y don’t you try asking Hissing Sid over there, though I doubt it will tell you anything useful.” He gestured towards Essieth as he spoke. The snake had no idea who, or what, Hissing Sid was, but still felt it was being insulted somehow.

  “I think I will wait till the next ‘blind man’ arrives. He may be more friendly.” It began to slither away into a dark corner of the cave.

  Dean called after it. “There will be no more.”

  Essieth stopped and turned its head around. “Of course there will,” it said confidently. “There are still two Princes in search of the final destination. You are the first, therefore there is one more to come.”

  “Actually Dean is telling you the truth,” Seth said sadly. “There are three Princes left and they are now working together. The rest are all dead.”

  “Dead?” Essieth reared up in surprise. “Why are the rest dead?”

  Seth explained about the will that ordered the quest actually being a tontine, which was cursed so that Tor’s brothers would kill themselves if they were the last to retrieve a clue.

  Essieth was horrified. “I knew nothing of this,” it said solemnly. “The man who approached me never mentioned it. I would have refused to help if he had.”

  “What man?” Dean asked, intrigued.

  “I swore an oath not to reveal his name.”

  “Then describe him,” Dal suggested.

  “All humans look the same to me,” the snake said regretfully. “He was like him,” he flicked his tongue towards Dean, “but not as fat.” Dean bristled at the insult, but remained silent.

  “What about his hair, or were there any distinguishing features on his face?” Dal asked.

  Essieth appeared to think for a moment. “Now that is strange. I never saw his face. We met in the outer cave, which he lit only with a torch. The hood of his cloak kept his face in shadow and he never removed it. I did not realise at the time how odd his behaviour was.”

  “That does not help us much,” Seth said despondently. Knowing exactly who had instigated the quest would not help them in any way, but he was curious and had hoped that the snake would have been able to tell them something useful.

  “Sorry,” the snake said sadly. Then its eyes lit up. “I am not permitted to tell you which gem to select, but I may be able to give you a clue.” It swung its head from side to side as it thought about which words it could use that would be of use without violating the vow it had taken to not reveal the exact location of the gem. Finally it decided on the right wording.

  Some people find me boring

  My colour I cannot reveal

  Your light may expose me

  But often it will conceal

  “What good is that?” Seth complained. “It tells us nothing.”

  “Wait a moment,” Dean said. “Let’s think about this for a minute before reacting. We know Essieth cannot tell us directly where to find what we are looking for. We just need to use our brains a bit.”

  He ran through the clue again, whispering it to himself. “Boring. Boring. What’s another word for boring?” he asked Seth and Dal.

  “Politics?” Seth suggested, earning a dark look from Dean.

  “Tedious, repetitive, lifeless,” Dal suggested. “Dull, uneventful, mundane.”

  “Dull,” Dean said, seizing on the word as soon as he heard it. “What’s another meaning of dull?” He was looking at the gemstones on the wall beside him as he spoke. Seth followed his gaze.

  “Of course,” he called out, seeing where Dean’s train of thought was leading. “All of these gems sparkle. We are looking for one that does not.” He glanced at Essieth, but the snake showed no reaction to his statement.

  Having solved the first part of the clue, they turned their attention to the second part. “Your light may expose me is obvious,” Dean said. “When you shine light on it, you can see it. That’s not much help. But when would light conceal something?”

  “Shadows,” Dal almost shouted. “The gemstone we are looking for is concealed in the shadows. It can only be seen when light hits it directly.” Once more Seth glanced towards Essieth, but was disappointed to again see no reaction. Had they worked out the clue correctly? There was only one way to find out.

  While Dean and Seth began searching the edges of the cave, shining their torches into every conceivable hiding place, Dal remained with Essieth. Something had been puzzling her and she finally plucked up the courage to ask. “How are you speaking to us? I mean, it should be physically impossible for your mouth, tongue and jaw to form the words.”

  The snake flicked its tongue towards her, its black eyes shining in the faint torchlight. “You are correct,” it replied. “I cannot form words. You are not hearing me with your ears. I am projecting the words directly into your mind.”

  Dal thought about this for a moment. “So why does your voice sound like it is hissing? Surely you can sound however you want to.”

  A strange noise came from the direction of the snake and Dal was worried, until she realised it was laughing. When is stopped, it spoke once more. “I form the words, you control the accent. You hear what you imagine I should sound like.”

  “Oh.” Dal felt embarrassed and a little ashamed. “You are not insulted I hope.”

  “Of course not,” Essieth assured her. Despite trying her hardest, Dal could not stop herself from hearing a hiss at the end of each word.

  Dean was searching the left side of the cave, while Seth took the right, starting from the entrance. The gems were every colour imaginable, but all shone brightly, even without the light from the torch touching them. Seth had reached the far corner, towards which Essieth had been heading before Dean’s declaration that there would be no other visitors had reclaimed its attention. It was dark and gloomy, the glow from the gemstones barely providing any light. Seth raised his torch high above his head so as to illuminate as great an area as possible, and slowly moved it about. The gems shone brighter, none of them appearing dull, and he was about to move on when something caught his eye. To be more precise, it was the lack of something that caught his attention. He moved his torch closer to the spot he was interested in and multiple colours shone back at him; red, yellow, green, blue, purple. One of the gems was completely clear and sent a bright beam of light into the cave when the flame from the torch grew near.

  In the middle of all of these gems was a dark patch. It was not until he was close enough to almost touch it that he could see the black stones, doing their best to hide from the torchlight. He reached out and was about to place his fingers on one when he quickly drew them back, remembering the words of the clue. The ‘blind man who can read’ was supposed to choose the gemstone, so he called Dean over.

  Dean agreed that the stone Seth had found matched perfectly with the clue Essieth had given them and took out his knife. He slowly cut at the rock around one of the gems, taking care not to scratch or damage the gemstone, and prised it from the wall. Smiling to himself, he approached Essieth, who was still deep in conversation with Dal.

  He held out the black gemstone so the snake could see it. “I wish to take this one. Have I chosen correctly?”

  Essieth sighed. “You know I cannot tell you that.”

  Dal looked at it carefully. “What is it?” she wondered out loud.

  “It is a black sapphire,” Essieth informed her. “Very rare and very valuable.”

  “What do I do if it isn’t the right one?” Dean asked, not caring about its value.

  “Come back and choose another.” It was the answer he had been expecting, but it was nice to hear that he would be given the opportunity to try again if he had made a mistake.

  “What will you do now?” Dal enquired. “You will have no more visitors. Will you not get lonely?”

  The snake shook its head. “I have lived here alone for many years. I will be fine. Besides, I am due to shed soon. That is a very tiring process so a few weeks sleep to prepare for it would be most welcome.”

  “You could come with us,” Seth
suggested.

  “That is very nice of you,” Dal said to her husband, smiling sweetly. He decided not to mention that the only reason he made the invitation was due to Cirren’s snake phobia.

  “Thank you,” Essieth said gratefully, “but I must decline. I am not pleasant to be around when I am shedding.” It opened its mouth wide, revealing long fangs. “I might bite.”

  Uncertain whether it was joking or not, they made their goodbyes and quickly departed. “What took you so long?” Brodin asked as they emerged from the other side of the tunnel. “You have been gone ages. Did you have trouble deciding which of the multitude of gemstones available you wished to take?”

  “Something like that,” Dean said sourly. He explained the problem they had faced and how Essieth had done all it could to help them choose the correct gem. “I think we have the right one, but I can’t be sure.”

  Seth, seeing Cirren wince at the mention of the giant snake, sidled up to him and casually mentioned the scene that had confronted them when he and Dal had emerged from the tunnel to find Essieth wrapped around Dean. Cirren paled as Seth went on to tell him about the snake threatening to eat Dean. He neglected to mention that it had been joking, but was quite happy to bring up that he had asked Essieth if it wanted to join them on their journey for a while.

  “No,” Cirren said loudly, standing up from where he had been seated by the fire and backing away. “No way. I will not travel with an oversized reptile that is likely to eat us while we sleep.”

  Unable to contain himself, Seth burst out laughing. “Stop worrying,” he said, putting his arm around the Prince’s shoulders. “Essieth was very friendly, but declined our offer. I just wanted to see your reaction.”

  “You are a cruel man. I have never understood why my brother puts up with you.”

  “Enough chatting,” Brodin’s voice echoed round the cave. “We have the gemstone so we should move on. If the storm has ended,” he quickly added.