Zac’s Destiny, Lynne North [summer books txt] 📗

dazed after last night’s happenings. He loved working with the horses, and greeted them all as individuals. It was hard work, but he enjoyed it. Today was especially difficult only because he had so much on his mind. He needed to talk to Beth as soon as possible.
Once his first duties of the day were over, Zac rushed over to the kitchen for his breakfast. Most of the castle staff were seated and already eating.
“Where have you been, boy?” asked the head cook, a large imposing woman who always seemed to have a huge wooden spoon gripped menacingly in her hand. “Nearly missed your tucker, you have. Aren’t you hungry?”
“Starving.” Zac replied with a grin. He sat down on one of the wooden benches and looked around for Beth. His eyes brightened when he saw the young girl wave from near one of the huge hot stoves. She was soon over with both their breakfasts in her hands.
“What kept you this morning?” Beth asked. “Was it something to do with all the noise last night? We weren’t allowed to see what was going on, but everyone was frightened. It isn’t like you to be late for food, so what happened?” She looked concerned as she placed a bowl of steaming porridge in front of him.
“It was frightening,” Zac admitted, already digging into his breakfast.
“What was it?” Beth asked, a troubled frown on her face.
“One of the soldiers came back,” said Zac, wondering how much to tell his friend.
“One?” asked Beth. They had both watched the troop ride out two weeks ago.
Zac nodded, looking down at his bowl. He scooped another spoonful of porridge into his mouth, then said, “He returned alone.”
When Zac looked up again, he saw Beth was waiting for him to continue. Unsure what to say, he settled for the truth. “He was seriously injured, Beth. He died.”
The girl looked distressed and frightened. Zac knew he had to tell her what he’d heard. Sometimes, not knowing what was going on was the worst part. Until last night, he hadn’t known the purpose of the troops riding out either. “I heard Garth talking later, after I returned to the stable,” Zac said, only to be slapped across the ear.
“LORD Garth to you, my lad,” corrected the head cook who was passing behind him. “And don’t you go eaves dropping on your elders and betters, you hear me?”
“Sorry,” he muttered, flushed with embarrassment. Zac waited until the cook was out of earshot, then told Beth about the conversation he had overheard. Her large brown eyes opened wider and wider.
“Oh Zac, what can we do?”
“Well,” he continued, “There’s a lot of talk about finding Aldric. They believe if he can be found, then everything will be all right.” Zac pulled at the frayed sleeve of his woollen shirt. “I don’t understand why, Beth. What’s so special about Aldric?”
Beth looked puzzled too. “He can do some amazing tricks. I’ve seen him make coins appear out of thin air, or even from someone’s ear, but I don’t think that would be much use against demons.”
“Don’t get me wrong,” said Zac. “Aldric means the world to me. After all, if he hadn’t found me in the forest as a baby and brought me here, I wouldn’t even be around.”
Zac knew little or nothing of his early life. All he remembered was being brought up by various household staff. Aldric had visited him often during his younger years. He seemed to take a special interest in his health and well being, like he felt responsible for him. Sometimes it troubled Zac that he had never known his mother or father, but he had no major complaints about his life. He worked long days, but in his fifteen years of life he had been well looked after, and he was happy most of the time.
“You’ve always been very special to Aldric,” replied Beth, pulling Zac back from his thoughts of the past. He believed his mother must have hated him to do such a thing. The thought that she could abandon him still hurt.
“Yes, I know,” he replied to Beth “He’s special to me too.” Zac smiled, scraping every last morsel of porridge from his bowl. “But I still wonder why Garth, Lord Garth,” he corrected, looking around with thoughts of his stinging ear, “thinks he is so important”
“I don’t know, but I’m on serving duty today, I’ll do my best to listen out for more news. The masters often act as if we’re not there at all when we serve at meals. Half of what I hear would make your hair curl, even more!” she added, ruffling Zac’s black hair.
“I’ll have to go,” he said, standing. “Wilf will be after my hide if all the stables aren’t mucked out on time.” With a grin, he added, “I’ll see you later.”
Heading back to the stables, Zac smiled to himself. Beth was the younger sister he’d never had, though there was just a year between them. She was always there for him when he was worried, upset, excited even; to listen to him and to share his feelings. Life was good for him.
The shock of reality came back with a bump. What a fool he was. How could he have forgotten, even for a moment, the conversation he’d heard last night? Life was soon to change, very much. It was going to be affected for the worst, and there seemed to be nothing anyone could do about it.
The whole morning passed in much the same daze to which Zac had awoken. His mind was so full of worry and curiosity, he found it difficult to keep his mind on his work. At midday break, Beth had little time to speak as she bustled around serving the other workers. She did manage to slip in a few words.
“I’m sorry, Zac,” She passed him a plate of mutton stew. “Everyone is being so wary of us today. Few words have passed between the Baron and his sons within our hearing.”
“Hurry along, lass, I’m starving” called Brent, the fencing master.
Zac didn’t blame him. The food smelled delicious. With an apologetic smile, Beth hurried on with the meal. Little else passed between them before Zac had to be off to exercise the horses not being used. This was the part of his job he liked best. He loved to ride, and was quite an accomplished horseman. Sometimes, when she had an afternoon free, Beth would ride with him too. The masters didn’t mind. They knew the horses were always there when they needed them, and were well looked after. Today though, Zac rode alone under strict instructions not to leave the castle grounds.
“Why’s that, Wilf?”
“It’s not your place to ask why, boy, nor mine to tell you. Just do as you’re told,” he replied.
Zac sensed Wilf knew little more than he did. The stable master liked to drop hints of knowing about the goings-on around them, but this time his sour expression told the boy he had been unable to find out the true reason for the new ruling. The shroud of mystery was rapidly descending on the whole castle, growing thicker every day. Zac began to ponder just how much even the masters know for fact, and what was little more than speculation.
By evening, neither he nor Beth were any the wiser. Everyone was being very tight lipped and walked the corridors as if the weight of the world was sitting on their shoulders.
“You know what they say,” Beth said, “No news is good news.”
Zac knew she didn’t believe what she said, but he appreciated the fact that despite her own fears, his friend was trying to ease his. He realised how selfish he’d been. Just because he was so worried, it didn’t give him reason to trouble Beth.
“I know,” he replied. He smiled and squeezed her hand. “Anyway, maybe I heard wrong. It was the middle of the night and my mind was full of what had happened. We’ll find out what’s going on for sure in the morning. Everything will be all right, you’ll see. Why, I bet Aldric is on his way right now.” Zac knew he was trying to persuade himself about this as much as he was trying to convince Beth.

***

Even though he’d believed his mind would never give him any peace that night, Zac was asleep almost before his head touched the straw. Dreams clouded his mind, nightmares of trying to claw through a dense fog. He was pushing past bright red trees that reached out to grab him as he forced his way. Like crawling in quicksand, he had to dig his broken nails into rough tree bark to drag himself on. He was heading somewhere, and knew he had to get there soon. In frustration, he didn’t know which way to go. His surroundings were vague. There was something he had to remember, but it wouldn’t come to him. The harder Zac tried to reach out for it, the farther it escaped his grasp. His head began to pound, the pulse of pain nauseating.
He could hear a voice in his dream, but inside his head rather than coming from his surroundings. It frightened him. The voice was insistent, and Zac covered his ears to try to chase it away. I’m going mad, he thought. Soon, it became impossible to keep fighting. His dream self stood still in the fog, and gave him up to the words in his head.
“Come to me. You must come. Do not fight your destiny. Do not turn away. Do you hear me, Zac?”
“Yes”
“By all the Fates, at last!”
It was a voice Zac recognised, but couldn’t place. He was both afraid and fascinated. His knew in his dream he could answer without voicing his words aloud. “Who are you? What do you want with me?”
“It is I, Aldric. You must know my voice by now, boy? There is no time. I do not know how long I can keep this contact open, nor how long it will be undetected. Listen carefully, Zac. Go to the Baron tomorrow. Tell him what you have experienced. You must remember this! Many lives could depend on it. You must come to me, in whatever way you can. See the Baron and ask him for my casket.”
“Casket?” Zac asked.
“Don’t interrupt, boy, just follow my instructions. If the Fates remain with us, you will understand everything soon enough. If they do not, then your knowledge will be useless anyway. See the Baron, ask for the casket, and tell him you must seek me. He will understand.”
“But how, where?” Zac was confused, but he knew this was all too far fetched to be a dream.
“Use your mind, boy, not your eyes. You will see,” Aldric urged.
Zac stared through the dark, bleak swirls, concentrating as hard as he could. The mist gradually began to part, until only wispy tendrils remained.
“Behold, and remember,” Aldric’s voice continued, much weaker now.
Before Zac stood a huge, imposing tower, pointing high into the starless sky. A dark finger aimed at the heavens in warning. A gleam of black radiance surrounded the structure that bore no windows or doors. No way in, and no way out.
“You’re in there?” asked Zac.
No reply came to him.
“Aldric?” he called. He tried again, louder this time. “Aldric?” He felt alone, and afraid. Zac could smell horses now, his senses becoming stronger. He found himself chilled, but in the darkness of the familiar stable.
He lay awake for hours, then the exhaustion from the previous night’s lack of sleep finally allowed him to drift back into oblivion. The remainder of the dark hours were dreamless, yet he awoke with a feeling