Chapter 7

 

 

As Ben stepped through the portal he was surrounded by a silvery shimmer and a deep chill. There was also a pulling sensation in the pit of his stomach, but it all passed in a heart beat as he stepped free again of the portal.

 

He found himself standing on a high hill dotted with a trees under a night sky. A full moon sat above the peaks of high mountains that tumbled away into the night. But it what a moon, he thought in wonder! It was almost twice as big as the Earth’s moon and he knew he had certainly arrived on a different world.

 

A chilly wind blew across the hill and he shivered, not dressed for cold weather in his shirt and jeans. Amazingly the Silvyn was back in his hand, even though he hadn’t realized it after he’d stepped through the portal. Then he noticed that there was a pale orange light shining somewhere behind him, looking very much like coming from a fire.

 

He slowly turned and found himself looking at a girl about his own age. She was standing a few metres away by a small fire, her mouth opened wide in surprise. She was wearing pale coloured clothing, a tunic shirt belted at the waist, baggy trousers and ankle high boots. A long bladed dagger was in a scabbard tied to the belt.

 

‘Who… who are you?’ she asked in wonder.

 

Ben gave a startled yelp, suddenly coming to his senses.

 

‘I… I’m, Ben,’ he replied.

 

Then his heart gave a huge lurch as something massive rose out of the darkness behind her. A bird bigger than a horse came into the firelight and he staggered backwards in fright. He tripped and fell down on his backside.

 

The girl giggled and lifted a hand to stroke the bird’s large head.

 

‘Don’t be frightened,’ she said. ‘This is just Sprite. He won’t hurt you.’

 

Ben was not quite sure about that. It looked very much like a giant eagle, with a large hooked beak and dark green eyes that glared at him. In the firelight he could its body was covered in thick feathers, blood red except for its neck that was dark as ink.

 

And to Ben’s further surprise it was harnessed with reins and had a large saddle on its back. The girl must ride the bird he thought in amazement.

 

‘Do you ride him?’ he asked.

 

The girl nodded.

 

‘Don’t you have Roc’s… where you come from?’ she asked.

 

Ben shook his head, thinking at the same time that Roc’s were a mythical beast on Earth.

 

‘No… not in my world. It must be exciting to ride in the air on him,’ he said.

 

‘Yes, it can be,’ the girl smiled. ‘My name’s Mia, Ben. Where… where have you come from? I saw this silvery shape, then it disappeared and you were standing there.’

 

‘I’m… I come from a place called Earth.’

 

‘Earth,’ Mia said with a frown. ‘Is it… a different world to Tarken?’

 

Ben nodded.

 

‘Is that where I am… on Tarken?’

 

Mia nodded.

 

‘How did the doorway bring you here?’ she asked.

 

What was he to say, he wondered? Mia had seen the portal, so there wasn’t much point in lying about it. He held up the Silvyn.

 

‘This is called a Silvyn,’ he replied. ‘It allows its owner to travel between worlds.’

 

‘Is sounds magical!’ Mia said in astonishment.

 

‘Well… it’s a machine… but I guess it’s a kind of magic,’ Ben answered.

 

‘So did you come here on purpose?’

 

Ben shook his head.

 

‘No, the Silvyn opened a portal… which is what the doorway is and I stepped through it,’ he replied. ‘I had no idea where it would take me… I was escaping from someone.’

 

‘Someone bad?’ Mia frowned.

 

Ben nodded.

 

‘Are they going to come after you?’ she asked warily.

 

Ben shook his head.

 

‘No, they can’t follow me here. But my gran’s been kidnapped by this man and I have to rescue her somehow.’

 

‘Why is this man after you?’ Mia asked.

 

‘That’s a very long story,’ he replied.

 

‘Well, come over and sit by the fire and tell me about it, Ben. You must be cold sitting there in your thin clothing.’

 

Ben hesitated, somewhat nervous about the giant bird that had not stopped glaring at him.

 

‘Don’t worry, Sprite won’t bite,’ Mia said.

 

Ben took a deep breath and getting to his feet, stepped over cautiously. Sprite dipped his head at him and before he could do anything, thrust forward to nudge him in a friendly manner.

 

‘Give him a pat!’ Mia urged.

 

Ben did so, his heart thumping in his chest as he ran his hands through its head feathers. At that the great bird began to make a low buzzing sound in its throat, almost like a cat purring he thought.

 

‘He likes you!’ Mia grinned.

 

‘Better than being seen as dinner!’ he replied with a nervous laugh.

 

The big bird moved away at that and settled down in the shadows away from the fire. Ben sat down with Mia on a large log on the ground and held his hands out toward the fire, glad of the warmth.

 

‘So… where am I exactly?’ he asked. ‘You said this world is called Tarken?’

 

‘This is northern Tarken,’ Mia replied. ‘My home is further north still in a great forest. There is west, east and southern Tarken. Beyond that there is just ocean and in the south, ice. But what of your world, Ben… or better still, tell me of this bad man who is after you.’

 

For some reason he felt he could trust Mia, even though he had only just met her. She was friendly and had an easy going nature about her. He figured he might as well tell her everything. He was going to need some help in this strange land whilst he figured out how to rescue his gran.

 

‘Well… it’s all about the Silvyn,’ he said.

 

He then told her all that had happened since Alex Runcin had arrived at Mr Wallace house. He told her about the fire and how he was given the Silvyn. How Mr Wallace had left him a letter explaining what it was. Then the arrival tonight of Alex Runcin and his henchman who had overpowered his gran.

 

‘The Silvyn opened a portal for me to escape and here I am,’ he said finally.

 

‘It sounds like you’re in awful trouble, Ben,’ Mia said in serious tone. ‘This Alex Runcin sounds like quite a bad person.’

 

‘He is and he won’t be happy that I’ve disappeared,’ Ben said. ‘But he has my gran and will hold onto her until I tell him what he wants to know. It’s the Silvyn he’s after, though he doesn’t know about it specifically, only that Mr Wallace had something that gave him such a long life.’

 

‘Well, we’ll have to think of some way to help you, Ben,’ she said. ‘My brother, Dale, will be here in the morning and then we can fly home to my village and see our father. He might be able to think of something.’

 

Ben grinned, happy to have found a friend in Mia, even though he had no idea what her folk could do to help.

 

‘So what are you doing out here,’ he asked.

 

‘It’s part of my training to be a Skyrider,’ she replied.

 

‘A Skyrider?’ Ben queried.

 

‘Skyriders are highly skilled Roc flyers amongst my folk,’ she replied. ‘We protect our villages from dangers. My brother and I are here because last week a Grawl pack killed some of our farm animals.’

 

‘Grawls?’ Ben queried.

 

Mia nodded.

 

‘They are large predators,’ Mia replied. ‘They are  vicious creatures and almost always hungry. Dale and I have been tracking the pack for several days and found it late yesterday only a few miles from here. We landed here to eat and rest, then as night came, Dale took off on his Roc, Whisper, to spend the night on the plains west of here. At dawn he’ll drive the pack up the valley below.’

 

As she talked Ben wondered what it would be like to fly on the great birds. He reckoned it would be an absolutely incredible experience.

 

‘So have your folk always flown on Rocs?’ he asked. ‘Do they all look like Sprite?’

 

‘Oh, yes. We’ve ridden them for many generations,’ she replied. ‘And there are several different types. Sprite here is a mountain Roc. Then there coastal Rocs which are a bit smaller and are coloured brown and white. Then there are southern Rocs which are completely black and a bit bigger than Sprite.’

 

‘How do your folk catch them?’ Ben asked in curiosity. He thought Sprite looked pretty intimidating for anyone to just jump onto them and fly away.

 

Mia smiled.

 

‘We breed them,’ she replied. ‘Skyriders are introduced to their Roc’s at an early age and bond with them for life. Sprite has been mine since I was eight.’

 

‘How long do they live for?’

 

‘Oh, about the same time as we do,’ Mia replied. ‘When I retire Sprite will be set free to fly where he wants. But few do, enjoying our company too much.’

 

‘They’re an incredible looking animal,’ Ben said. ‘There nothing like them in my world.’

 

‘Tell me about your world,’ Mia asked.

 

Ben told her about where he lived, his gran and the school he went to. He told her about motor cars and aeroplanes as that was how his world travelled about. At the end she was just staring at him in wonder.

 

‘You’re world sounds amazing… but perhaps a bit noisy and busy for me,’ she said.

 

‘It can be,’ he replied with a sudden yawn.

 

‘It sounds like you’re ready for sleep,’ Mia said.

 

‘Yeah… I am a bit tired,’ Ben admitted.

 

‘I’ll get some blankets,’ she said and getting up, went over to Sprite.

 

There was a large satchel tied behind the saddle, as well as a roll of blankets. Ben quickly found himself wrapped up in one and lying on the ground by the fire.

 

‘Are we safe sleeping here?’ he asked a little nervously. ‘From the Grawls?

 

Mia waved at Sprite.

 

‘Rocs eat Grawls,’ she said. ‘He won’t let any near us.’

 

Ben nodded, staring up at the star filled sky and the huge Tarken moon, his mind whirling with thoughts. Why had the Silvyn had brought him to this world he wondered? Would Mia’s folk be able help him somehow to rescue his gran? But any answers didn’t come as he was suddenly asleep.