The Adventures of Tarin and Zeke: The Dark Book - Part Three

      "How long have we been flying?" asked Tarin.

      "Nearly an hour, I suppose," said Zeke. Then he looked around. "Well, Meridell's that way. Let's get moving."

      They began walking North. For some time it seemed very nice. It was hot outside, but a cool breeze was blowing through the fields.

     *****

Meanwhile....

      In the mountains in uncharted parts of Neopia, where the cold winds blew throughout the year, and there was no sign of life, there was a fortress, carved inside a mountains. Many towers shot up out of it, in each one were a couple of guards.

      They were Darigan Neopets, and they were guarding Narcissa's fortress. They had no desire whatsoever to be there, however. Many of them had been cursed by Narcissa long ago and forced to do her bidding. They did not wish to carry out her orders, but they seemed to have no choices. Some had joined her willingly. They had always been loyal to Narcissa, and they had always been cruel.

      Narcissa's fortress was warm inside, or at least, it was in the throne room. While she sat at read the book she had taken from the cave, enslaved Neopets hurried around, carrying our her orders.

      Narcissa closed the book she read and gazed into a crystal ball. Through it, she saw Tarin and Zeke walking through the plains, toward Meridell, where something was hidden. She had been spying on them for the past hour, and knew what they were up to.

      "Well, they're going to have a very hard time getting through Meridell alive," said Narcissa. She opened the book again to study a certain page, closed it, smiled, and vanished.

     *****

Outside Meridell Castle

      Narcissa reappeared with a flash of violet light and a pop, right in front of a group of guards.

      "Oi! What do you-?" began one guard, as he raised his spear. The Faerie was too quick for him. He was too late.

      Narcissa raised her wand. Without saying a word, red light shot out of it and into the faces of the guards. Then, she said, "Two Neopets are coming your way. They are a yellow Kacheek and a blue Eyrie, and their names are Tarin and Zeke. They're criminals. I suggest you arrest them or slay them."

      The guards nodded. "Arrest them...," they muttered. Staring through blank, expressionless eyes.

      Narcissa smiled. Her job was completed. All she had to do now was sit back and relax. She vanished with a flash of purple light and a pop.

     *****

The Outskirts of Meridell

      Tarin and Zeke had finished walking through the plains. They sat down and ate a quick lunch.

      "So far, so good," said Zeke, as he bit into a ham sandwich. "No sign of trouble."

      Tarin thought about this. "Maybe she doesn't expect us to try and find her. Boy, won't she be surprised!"

      "I don't know," said Zeke. "Something feels wrong."

      They entered Meridell after they finished their lunch.

      "Where exactly should we begin?" asked Zeke. "The castle? Isn't there a Zafara alchemist named Kayla who lives there? We could ask if she knows anything. And Lisha, Sir Jeran Borodere's little sister might know something, too."

      "Good thinking," said Tarin. "And there's always Lady Illusen. She's a faerie."

      They walked towards Meridell Castle, not expecting a huge welcome, but maybe they could find help. Zeke approached a guard.

      "Excuse me," he said.

      The guard looked at them and raised his spear. It was one of the guards that Narcissa had hypnotized, but Tarin and Zeke didn't know that. "Who are you?" asked the guard.

      "That's Tarin," said Zeke, gesturing towards his friend. "And I'm Zeke."

      "You!" exclaimed the guard. "You're under arrest, criminals!" He drew his sword and pointed it at Zeke.

      Tarin looked at him. "Run!" he gasped. He turned around and bolted across the drawbridge, Zeke right behind them. The guard was acting strangely. He jogged towards them, his eyes blank, his mouth hanging open. The other guards had similar expressions.

      "Is he mad?" asked Zeke, scooping up Tarin and running faster. "He doesn't seem right in the head!" Then he heard a rushing noise and ducked. An arrow whistling over his head. They ran into the forest.

      "Quick! Try Illusen's Glade!" shouted Tarin, as Zeke jumped over a fallen log. Zeke stumbled. The guards were closing in. Zeke jumped back up and kept running.

      A house in the trees was growing closer. They knew that place, they had been there many times before. Outside, an Earth Faerie sat in a chair, reading. It was Illusen!

      "Help!" cried Tarin and they approached.

      Illusen looked up from her book. She rose quickly from her chair. Tarin and Zeke stopped behind her. "They're after us!" Zeke exclaimed.

      Illusen asked, "Who? Them?" She saw the guards approaching, they were crashing through the trees.

      "They've gone mad!" said Tarin.

      Illusen looked into the eyes of the guards, the she raised a wand that looked a bit like a thin tree branch. A green jet of light shot out of it, and the guards stopped in their tracks. Their eyes went back into focus.

      "Er.... Where are we?" asked one guard.

      "Where's that Dark Faerie?" asked another.

      "What's going on?"

      "What happened?"

      "You were just hypnotized," said Illusen, calmly. "I suggest you return to the castle."

      The guards left, and Illusen turned to Zeke and Tarin, who were panting.

      "Th-Thank you, milady," gasped Zeke, rubbing his chest.

      "You're welcome," replied Illusen, sitting down next to them. "What happened?"

      "I don't know," said Tarin. "We just tried to speak to one of them, and they wanted to arrest us. We're not thieves, or anything, though."

      "I know you aren't," said Illusen. "Yes, I do think that they were under a spell. I don't know why, though."

      "We think we might have an idea," said Zeke. He explained everything that had happened.

      "If that's the case," said Illusen after he had finished. "I'm going to have to block those kinds of spells in Meridell. I'll set up a barrier to block Dark Faerie spells."

      Tarin nodded, but he thought that if Narcissa was trying to stop them, Illusen wouldn't really need to guard Meridell against her right now. But they still had to find a way to Narcissa's fortress.

      "I don't know where she was banished to," said Illusen, "but she is not allowed in Faerieland, not after what happened. I think she went to some mountains."

      Tarin did not ask exactly why Narcissa was banished, and he decided he did not want to. Illusen took something out of her pocket and muttered something under her breath. She tapped it with her wand. Then, she held out a wooden recorder. It was glowing with a green light. Tarin took it.

      "If I'm right, that should whisk you straight to Narcissa's fortress when you blow on it," Illusen explained. "But don't use that just yet. It needs something else to work properly, and you should blow it at the lake North of Meridell."

      Tarin set the recorder safely in his bag.

      "Go to Meridell Castle, first," instructed Illusen. "I think Kayla and Lisha can help you."

      Tarin and Zeke stood up. "If there's anything we can do for you, milady, for saving us...." said Zeke, but Illusen shook her head and smiled.

      "No, no, don't worry about that," she said. "It's alright! Just try hard on your quest, okay?"

      "We will!" said Tarin. "Thanks again!"

      They began walking to Meridell Castle.

      "You know, I think Narcissa's been watching us," said Zeke.

      "Oh, has she?" asked Tarin. "Well, the twisted fiend can watch this." He looked around. Nobody was nearby, so he blew a raspberry. Zeke laughed.

     *****

      Later that afternoon, Tarin and Zeke sat down on a couch across from Kayla, a red Zafara in a cloak and pointed hat, and Lisha, a yellow Aisha wearing red glasses.

      "So, you need something to make this recorder work properly?" asked Kayla, examining the recorder. "I see what it needs. Lady Illusen put a spell on it to find Narcissa. All it needs," she continued, "is the right ingredient to make the spell work." She drew a vial from her cloak and placed a drop of red liquid on the recorder. It shook violently for a second before glowing purple. "That should do it!"

      "Ooh, nice one," said Lisha, looking at the recorder.

      Tarin dropped the recorder into his back pack again.

      He and Zeke walked back through the front doors of the castle.

      "Good luck, you two," said Lisha.

      "Thanks," replied Zeke, as he and Tarin walked across the draw bridge.

     *****

      The two reached the lake Illusen had mentioned earlier. They had no trouble finding it, since it was quite a big one, surrounded by dark trees.

      "Well, ready?" asked Tarin, taking the recorder out of his back pack.

      "Only if you are," said Zeke.

      They both felt very nervous. Zeke put an arm around Tarin's shoulder, and the little Kacheek blew into the recorder. It gave a loud, high note, and a waterspout rose from the center of the lake. Tarin and Zeke gasped. The vortex glided over them and glowed violet. Then, they felt as though they were being carried away, through a whirlwind of a rainbow of colors. Then, it stopped.

To be continued...