A Peek on Chapter 1 of 'The Ocean Hearth'

Chapter 1: The Thief

A silent crow watched over the city of Eleazar. Sitting atop the roof of the Allfather’s Tower, it gazed upon the splendorous kingdom in the dark of night. What was thirty years ago an evergreen jungle was now a walled city of stone. The works of men allowed the building of homes, shops and castles that marvel even the tall hills of the realm. A thriving city it was. But in the dead of night, not a single soul walked the streets other than the knights on guard. Lighted by the dim torches along the walkways of the city, the night was rather quiet just as any other.

                That’s when the crow was startled by the sound of faint footsteps climbing closer towards it. It flew away the moment it saw the silhouette of three men reaching the tower’s peak, giving out a loud caw as it went. It glided all the way down to the tower’s foot, only to see two guards lying unconscious at the door.

                “That damned crow could’ve gave ourselves away!” complained one of them, red haired and bearded. The two others stepped on to the balcony right after him. They were in brown leather attire with red scarves around their necks.

                “Then we best hurry, Adnar.” Said a man with a deep husky voice. He had long black hair, carrying a bow in his hand. Heading towards the balcony, he came to see the Royal Castle sitting right beside their tower.

The castle was massive and carved out of white marble, planted against a river dam as wide as a field. Man-made waterfalls flowed elegantly down its sides and into a river that divided into streams. He could see lush gardens surround the castle within its walled compound. But their concern was not the castle’s architecture, rather, it was the guards that crawled on every corridor.

                “Over there, Brother Eli!” Another young man called him and pointed at the peak of the tower that was nearest to them. “In two minutes, the guards would change shifts there, leaving the lower levels unguarded. Are you sure your arrow can reach there? I can’t imagine it pierce through the marble wall.”

                “This bow and arrow were crafted by the Sentries of Alos, Obed. Nothing could compare to Alosian arsenals.” He pulled out an arrow with a golden head attached with a rope. Strange inscriptions decorate its shaft. He nock it to his bow and aimed. Holding his breath, he let go of the arrow and it shot swiftly across the sky!

                As it pierced through the air, the three men watched it carry their rope line. And as it landed on the wall, the marble finish of the castle was cracked like glass! The arrowhead planted deeply into the concrete beneath the marble.

                “Good shot!” Adnar said.

                “Quickly! Fasten the ropes!” Eli ordered.

                They quickly fastened the line. They intended to use their bows to hang on to the rope, glide down towards the castle and in through a window. But at such a great height, all of them were quite terrified of falling, leaving their palms sweaty. Even the speed of their descent would mean that they would end up like squashed bugs if their timing was poor.

                Adnar went for the first glide and made a swift landing into the window. Though his body was big, his descent was rather light. Next was Obed, who almost lost his grip. Luckily, he managed to make the leap into the window, though not as smoothly. Then it was Eli’s turn.

                He hung his bow over the rope and slide down. The air brushed through his long hair as he travelled in increasing speed. Unfortunately, midway down the rope line, he heard a crack in his bow. Then right when he when he was about to reach the tower, the bow snapped!

                Obed was just about to scream when Adnar quickly covered his mouth with his hairy hands, not wanting the guards to know their presence. But in truth, Adnar’s heart was racing faster now than he did when he was gliding down himself.

                Luckily, Eli was fast enough to reach up and held on to the rope with a tight grip! Dangling in the mercy of the winds of night, he struggled to hang on as he watched both halves of his bow spiralled down on a tiled roof.

Unfortunately, the sound of its crash caught the attention of a guard upstairs. He went to see for himself where the noise was coming from and found Eli swaying on the rope. Surprised, the guard quickly climbed towards the warning bell and sounded it! The loud bongs of the bell echoed throughout the city, waking many of the citizens and alerted the guards immediately.

Clenching his teeth in frustration, Eli pulled out a dagger from its sheath.

“What’s he doing?!” Adnar said in panic. Suddenly, two guards appeared behind him, both holding sharp swords in their hands. Alarmed, Adnar and Obed quickly pulled out their swords as well.

Meanwhile, Eli struggled to swing his dagger upwards to cut the rope above him. And when he did, the line instantly collapsed! Praying in his heart, Eli used the weight of his body to swing himself down towards the window. His heart punched rapidly against his chest as he accelerated towards the tower. Growling, he threw himself into the window and knocked down both of the guards that were about to attack his two comrades!

It was a loud and clumsy landing, leaving him tumbling against the floors and crashed on the wall.

“Eli, are you alright?!” The young Obed quickly came to help him up.

Eli, gripping the side of his chest just nodded while still clenching his teeth, but this time, rather than of frustration, he was in pain. It was sharp and made it hard for him to breath.

Adnar looked down the window and saw a dozen of men rushing in through the doorway. He then looked at the injured Eli who was supported by Obed.

“More are coming, brothers. But we can’t fight them here.” Adnar said as he reached out the window and strongly pulled the dangling rope by the window that was left by Eli. The arrow then dislodged from the marble walls as he pulled it in.

“What are you doing?” Obed asked. Adnar proceeded to another window across the stairwell.

“I hope you’re ready for another jump, Eli!” Adnar grinned as he planted the arrow into the marble wall outside the window with immense force. He then let down what’s left of the rope that luckily ends just a few feet off the ground.

The young Obed then helped Eli to stand up and head towards the window. But as they approached, the sound of clanking armour below was marching nearer towards them. Obed gave a worried look at Adnar.

“Go” Adnar whispered.

“No, brother! We go together!” Eli spoke with a gasping voice.

“If we go together, who will guard the rope as we descend? Go on then, both of you! The mission has to be finished!” Adnar said as they exchanged worried looks. With a heavy heart, Obed carried Eli on his back.

“Come now.” Obed said as he went towards the rope. But before he climbed out, he took one last look at his brother in arms. “May I see you in the Allfather’s court, Adnar!”

“So as I see you, Obed. Now go!”

Obed quickly scaled down the rope as Adnar turned around and grasped his sword with both hands. Just then, a troop of knights reached him.

As Obed reached the ground, he heard Adnar’s battle scream followed by the clanging of metal. He then let Eli stand on his own. Eli saw that Obed’s inexperienced eyes was filled with fear, signifying the worry in the depths of his soul.

“Let’s not let Adnar’s sacrifice be in vain, Obed” Eli patted him on the back. Obed gulped as Eli led him hurriedly to the castle’s corridors.

In the midst of the shadows, they traversed across the huge hallways of the castle. Their worn out boots rubbed against the stony floors. The walls of the corridors were decorated with torches, flowers and intricate carvings. But they did not have the time to admire its beauty. Door to door and wall to wall, they stealthily avoided the numerous guards that were on high alert. Finally, they reached the door to the throne room.

Pushing it with great force, they opened the heavy, wooden doors and saw its interior. It was a grand spectacle! Huge pillars held up a dome that sat upon a high ceiling. Stained glass art was illuminated by the moonlight, revealing images of the All-father and the gods. A red carpet rolled along the centre of the room, ultimately leading up to a pyramid structure with a golden throne on its summit. And mounted above the throne was a bluish stone so beautiful and bright, that it was radiant! It was mesmerizing to see even in the pale glow of the night.

The Ocean Hearth… Eli whispered to himself.

Obed ran up the staircase to the throne and knocked the stone out of the wall and stored it in his sack. Unfortunately, the timing gave no allowance for them to celebrate when the guards barged in. Startled, Eli and Obed ran off through the back door. The guards chased them close behind.

But Eli was quite the acrobat. After turning at a corner, he swiftly jumped out of a window and on to a roof below! Obed, seeing that he had no choice but to follow, leaped right after he inspired himself a deep breath of courage. They continued jumping from roof to roof until they reached land and ran as fast as they could through the King’s Garden. Finally, they found themselves some bushes to hide in. So they squat down as they watched the guards scattering all over the garden.

“Which way do we go now?” Obed whispered, worried. Eli took a look around and saw a small stream nearby.

“That stream will lead to the underground tunnels. And if all goes according to plan, Naessa and her brothers should be done removing the bars at the end of it, just as planned.”

“And what if the guards see us?”

“We run.” Eli then took the lead and ran along the stream. They followed it out of the courtyard, being as quick and quiet as they can. Finally, they reached a small tunnel entrance.

“Go! I’ll cover you” Eli told Obed.

“No, brother. We go together!”

“One of us have to reach the other end if we want this mission to succeed”

“Then let me cover you!”

“There is no time to argue, Obed. Now go!” Eli pushed him into the entrance.

Obed stumbled in but gained back his footing. Right then, a troop of horsemen galloped in from behind Eli.

“Halt in the name of the King!” ordered a commander in golden armour; his stallion as white as snow.

Obed was frightened, but Eli put a finger over his lips and shooed him away. Obed shook his head as his eyes got teary. Eli gave a stern look at him, signalling him to keep on going. And so he hesitantly did.

Eli slowly turned towards the horsemen and went out of the tunnel, his hands up in the air.

The commander stepped down from his horse and marched towards him.

“Get down!” he said as he punched Eli on his pale face. Eli fell to his knees. The commander grabbed him by the hair. “Thank the Allfather that you submit. Or else you would’ve ended up like your friend in the tower.”

“Where is he?!” Eli asked.

“He’s gone!” The commander grinned. “Men! Search the tunnels!”

“I won’t let you!” Eli growled. He gave an uppercut straight to the commander’s jaw, removing his helm and proceeded to give repetitive hits to his face. The horsemen immediately stepped down from their horses and raised their swords against him.

Eli fought all of them bravely with his bare hands, evading each swing of the sword and exchanged them with his gloved fists. But alas, they outnumbered him and grabbed him by the arms, forcing him to kneel back.

The commander, angry, got up and delivered a hard blow to Eli’s head, rendering him unconscious.

“Find the other one, now!!!” he shouted. At the command, three guards went into the tunnels. “Send this man to the dungeon.” He grunted as he brushed of the blood off of his iron glove.

Meanwhile, Obed was still running in the tunnels. The water was knee deep. A few times, he slipped and fell. But he carried on, gripping tightly his sac with the Ocean Hearth inside. When he finally saw the light, he quickly headed towards it.

But from the distance, he could hear the sound of splashing water behind him accompanied with the sound of clanking armour. The guards must have found their way around the tunnels and picked up on his trail.

As fast as he could, he dashed towards the end of the tunnel. But the deepening waters did not made it any easier for him to run. But as the gods have intended it, he finally found himself going through bent steel bars while the stream of water gushed out to a river nearby.

“Obed?!” a woman called out.

He turned and was relieved to see a young, dark skinned woman with braids. A few other dark skinned men in red cloaks were beside her too.

“Naessa!” Obed didn’t believe he could see her again. She quickly came and gave him a hug.

“Is that the Ocean Hearth?!” she was excited. Obed gave her a peak at the bluish radiance of the stone along with its starry splendour. It gave her an odd sense of sureness. But then she paused. “W-Where are your mentors?”

Obed just glanced silently into her eyes. He tried to mutter words, but his voice could not escape his throat. Naessa’s eyes immediately start to water.

The rest just bowed their heads in respect. May we see them in the Allfather’s court. They whispered. But suddenly from within the tunnels, a voice called out.

“Over there! Halt in the name of the King!” the echo of the guards reached out of the tunnel.

“Close it” Naessa ordered.

Her brothers, though with saddened hearts, then rolled a boulder over the tunnel exit, blocking it. Only the running water of the stream could trickle through its cracks.

“Let us return to Elmswood” Naessa wiped off her tears and head for her horse.