Jack Shian and the King's Chalice by Andrew Symon Read Free Book Online Page A

to get there.”
    Rana and Lizzie bounded down the stairs, each trying to reach the bottom first.
    “Where are you going?” called out Rana.
    “Shhh!” hissed Ossian, glancing nervously towards the kitchen. His face registered dismay as his mother appeared.
    “Where are you off to? Mind that they’re leaving before suppertime.”
    “I’m just goin’ to show them the waterfall again,” said Ossian. “We’ll be back soon.”
    “Well, don’t be long. Jack and Petros start work tomorrow, they mustn’t be late.”
    The boys made their way outside, but were inevitably followed by Rana and Lizzie.
    “Where are we going?” asked Lizzie.
    “What d’you mean, ‘we’?” said Ossian. “This is boys’ stuff. You can go and play by yourselves.”
    “If you don’t let us come along, we’ll tell Aunt Dorcas,” said Rana simply.
    Seeing that he had been out-manoeuvred, Ossian motioned to the girls to follow. Although his pace was fast for them, they knew that complaining was not an option. A good fifteen minutes later Ossian stopped and turned round.
    “We’re goin’ to see someone,” he stated simply. “And you’ve to swear not to tell Dad. He’ll go spare if he finds out, so you’ll all be in trouble too. Got that?” The others indicated assent.
    “Jack,” continued Ossian, “d’you remember the Oakshee mentionin’ Tamlina? Well, I’ve found out where she is today.”
    “What were the Oakshee like?” asked Rana, wide-eyed. “Dad says they can be dangerous.”
    “Never heed them now,” said Ossian irritably. “I’ve sent a grig ahead to let her know we’re comin’. We don’t want a repeat o’ last time.”
    “Who is Tamlina?” asked Jack. “I’m sure I’ve heard the name before somewhere.”
    “She’s the Enchantress,” explained Ossian. “And today she’s comin’ to collect plants near here. A Ghillie-Doo told me last night.”
    “A what?” said Petros.
    “Ghillie-Doo. They’re tree guardians, they hear all sorts o’ things. One o’ them told me last night that Tamlina’s goin’ to be near here today.”
    “D’you talk to trees a lot, then?” laughed Rana.
    Ossian’s eyes narrowed.
    “Just because you’ve no’ met different Shian in your cosseted wee life doesn’t mean they’re no’ important. This one knows a lot more than you, for a start.”
    Rana blushed, and averted her gaze.
    “Which plants is she collecting?” asked Lizzie, breaking the awkward silence.
    “There’s hawthorn here, but she does all sorts – could be almost anythin’.”
    Reaching a small clearing, Ossian stopped. “We’ll wait here. The grig’ll find us.”
    “A grig’s like a pixie, right?” said Lizzie. “Mum told me. They’re friendly.”
    “It’s not ‘pixie’, it’s ‘pisgie’,” snorted Rana. “Only humans call them pixies.”
    Ossian withdrew a small pot of heather honey from his pocket. “We’ll have to pay her; they like this.”
    They all sat down in the clearing and waited. Small insects buzzed in the sunlight, and Jack started to feel sweat trickle down the back of his neck. He swiped irritably at the midges.
    “Have you met Tamlina?” he asked Ossian. “What’s she like?”
    “I’ve seen her once. She doesn’t go out o’ her way to meet people, but if we’re lucky she’ll maybe tell us somethin’.”
    After what seemed like an eternity, Jack heard a faint whirring sound. There weren’t any grigs in Rangie, and he wasn’t quite sure what to expect.
    A tiny winged creature flew towards them, no bigger than Jack’s hand. It flew straight to Ossian, and hovered in front of him, performing a bee-like dance. Ossian nodded.
    “She’s nearby. She knew we were comin’, but at least she doesn’t think we’re tryin’ to sneak up on her. Nobody’s to speak unless she asks a direct question, and be careful about lookin’ her in the eye.”
    They made their way cautiously across the clearing and carried on along a barely discernible path.