The Xalinor Chronicles

A stormy night

A few moments after the eagle disappeared, Jake returned to his normal state. Seeing through the eagle’s eyes had been a fascinating experience but it made him feel a bit light headed now. It took him a while to readjust to his human senses once again.

“Did you find anything? Is there any sign of Nelly?” asked Zill’s father impatiently.

Jake cleared his mind and replied, “The eagle disappeared inside a well in the middle of a clearing on the farthest end of the forest. Right before it vanished, I saw a pair of round black eyes staring from the darkness. Maybe we should check out that well.” He pointed towards the east and said, “We should go that way.”

Before the others could discuss about it, Zill cried, “Let’s go!” and hurried towards the direction in which Jake had pointed. Zill’s parents followed their son, deeper into the woods but Yolen decided to stick with Jake. He knew that only Jake could protect him from the dangers which might lie ahead. After trudging through the knotted vines and thorny creepers which littered the forest floor, they finally managed to reach the clearing on the other end. In front of them lay the ruined well which Jake had seen through the eagles’ eyes.

With torch in hand, Zill approached the well cautiously. The others followed close behind. He was about to lower the torch into the well’s mouth when a sudden gust of wind blew it out. A streak of forked lightning split open the sky with a thunderous c***k. Immediately, the storm clouds burst open and poured forth a shower of icy cold raindrops. The gnomes, who were clothed in crudely woven linen clothes, started shivering in the cold. Large drops of rain fell on their burning torches, extinguishing their only source of light. Jake and his companions were left in complete darkness.

Suddenly, a panicked cry was heard from inside the well.

“Is someone there? Please help us get out of this well. The well is filling up with water!”

Yolen recognized that voice, “Ari, is that you? Who else is down there with you?”

“Yes, it’s me! Master Yolen you have to help us. There are 4 others with me,” answered the voice inside the well.

Zill’s father rushed to the well and shouted, "Is Nelly with you?”

“Yes, father. I am here!” someone cried in a squeaking voice.

“Nelly, I will save you!” Zill groped around in the darkness and tried to find the rope tied to the well. It was so dark that even the gnomes couldn’t see properly. As another bolt of lightning escaped from the stormy sky, it lit up the clearing for a brief moment. That was enough for Zill to grab the rope. “Nelly, grab the rope and we will pull you out!” he shouted loudly.  

“The rope is torn at the middle. We can’t use it to climb out!” replied a female voice. “Please hurry up! The water’s rising!”

Inside the well, the water had reached up to Nelly’s knees. Since gnomes were only half as tall as most humans, they were in a perilous situation. As the large drops of rain splashed around in the mud, Zill looked around him frantically to find a way to rescue his sister and the others.

Jake knew he had to think on his feet to save them from drowning. “We need a source of light!” he exclaimed. “It’s impossible to do anything in this darkness.”

“Wait, I have something,” said Yolen, and he started rummaging through his satchel. “This should do the trick,” He held out a tiny crystal jar. As soon as he unscrewed the lid, a tiny ball of light, the size of a small pea, appeared in front of them. “This was the last fire beetle in my collection,” he exclaimed with a sigh.

Despite its tiny size, the fire beetle glowed brightly in the dark, and faintly lit up the surrounding area. Jake’s  searching eyes suddenly fell on a moonleaf tree. Without wasting another second he ran towards the tree.

“Zill, come here and help me cut this vine. You have a dagger with you, right?”

The little gnome hurried towards Jake. He took out a rusty iron from under his clothes and handed it to him. After a great deal of hacking and slashing, Jake was finally able to sever a long portion of the thick vine. He quickly rushed back to the well and tossed one end of the vine into the dark pit. He tied its other end around a large yelen tree.

“Grab that vine, I’ve tied it to a strong tree!” he shouted.

The long and sturdy vine was just what they needed! Slowly the gnomes trapped inside started climbing towards the opening. When it was Nelly’s turn to climb outside, Jake had to pull the rope with all his strength since Nelly was just a kid and couldn’t climb properly. Ari was the last to come out of the well, just before the water reached the neck of the well.

Zill’s father breathed a sigh of relief as Nelly ran towards her brother and hugged him tightly. A few minutes later, the heavy downpour faded into a light drizzle and the moon reappeared in the sky. All the gnomes thanked Jake for saving their lives. They were quite surprised that a human had gone to such lengths to save them.

“Jake Riley, this is my sister, Nelly,” said Zill, introducing a cute little female gnome with beautiful round eyes.

Jake smiled and patted her on the head.

“Thank you for saving me, strong human,” Nelly held out a shiny crystal clasped tightly inside her little palm. “This is for you. I found it inside the well.”

As Jake gently touched her delicate fingers, they opened to reveal a mysterious looking violet colored crystal.

Yolen’s mouth fell open in astonishment. “That’s a skill shard!” he exclaimed with surprise.