Ghelenden

by Ahmed A. Khan

(c)2004

Dedication: To my father.

Acknowledgements

^^^^^^^^^^^^

Several people helped in creation of this book and I would like to thank them all: Jean Goldstrom for always being encouraging; Susie Mah, for the beautiful cover art; Phyllis Gotlieb and Matt Hughes and Barry Hunter for their comments and reviews of Ghelenden; my wife and children for whom I wrote these stories in the first place; readers past, present and future who - I hope - will enjoy these stories.

(Warning: The following sentence may be offensive to some.)

Above all, my most profound thanks go to GOD.

***************************

Table of Contents

***************************

Introduction: Ghelenden and I

Wordspell

Tug of War

Force of Attraction

Rebirth

The World, The Times and the Unicorn

Ghelenden: An Artist’s View


Introduction: Ghelenden and I


It was 1989 or 1990 and I was working at Kuwait University in the small but rich Middle-Eastern country of Kuwait. I had left India and moved to Kuwait in 1981 after completion of my graduate studies.

My work at Kuwait University moved in spurts. There were periods of high activity interspersed with several days of lull. It was during one of those quiet days that I started developing a computer based role-playing fantasy game.

In designing this game, I created the fantasy world of Ghelenden. Its hub was the Dark Forest which was the source of all that was fantastic in this world. Several countries bordered the Dark Forest, each with its peculiarities, cultures and creatures. This world had magic but what differentiated it from other fantasy worlds was that only the forces of evil had recourse to magic.

The game was not really high tech stuff nor was it meant to be. I worked on it just to pass my time, satisfy my creative urge and, in the bargain, provide some amusement for my kids. I succeeded in doing all these.

I had hardly finished resting on my laurels when it was vacation time. My family and I left for India to attend the marriage of my sister-in-law. While we were there, Kuwait was invaded and captured by Iraq. The famous (or infamous) Gulf War ensued and we were stranded in India for a year. When we returned to Kuwait after its liberation, we found our house totally devoid of any belongings. It had been thoroughly looted. Among the many things that I thus lost was the computer game that I had designed.

The game was lost, but not Ghelenden. Ghelenden wouldn't let go of my imagination and finally it forced me to channel its imagery from gaming to stories. So here are my Ghelenden stories. There are five of them. There is not much of a continuity here. The people, places and times are different in all the stories. However, there are two threads that bind these stories together. One of them is Ghelenden itself and the other is the fact that all these stories are "good, clean fun". Now, here is a term that seems to be in disfavour these days but I am the kind of guy who always opts for the underdog, so good, clean fun it is, whether you like it or not.

When I read short story collections, I like to see the stories either preceded or followed by little notes from the authors about the stories and about themselves. I find these notes extremely interesting. Following the precept "wish for others as you would wish for yourself", I have added little tale-enders (pun fully intended) to all the stories here.

I definitely enjoyed writing these stories. I hope you will enjoy reading them.

That was about Ghelenden. Now about the “I” in the title of this introduction:

I will be brief. My bio and links to some of my published stories (other than Ghelenden) can be found at: HTTP: www.angelfire.com zine2 fictiononline myworks.html.

I am an unashamed (and hitherto unjaded) idealist with my philosophy of life encapsulated in this saying of Ali ibn Abi Talib: “Live life such that people desire to meet you when you are alive and mourn for you when you are dead.”

So onward to Ghelenden.

Ahmed A. Khan
London, Ontario
August 2004

WORDSPELL

What would your reaction be if, one fine morning, a strange old man suddenly pops up to you and asks you if you would help him fight an evil wizard?

My name is Jasmina. Call me Jasma.

I will not give you my second name because very soon, it is going to change and I do not know what it will be. You see, I have two suitors: Jon and Caleb, and I am confused.

Both of them are my colleagues at the advertising firm where I work as a copywriter. Both of them are young, healthy, and smart. Both are kind of cute and cuddly.

Jon is slightly slapdash and clumsy. He is extremely quick and witty when he is with friends, but becomes tongue-tied in the presence of strangers. Usually, his brow is deeply furrowed, as if he is scowling angrily at the whole world. To a stranger, he presents a formidable front but we who have managed to come close to him know how friendly, joyful and caring he can be. He too, like me, is a copywriter.

Caleb is dapper, suave, soft-spoken. He has got one of the most beautiful smiles I have ever seen in a man. He is always nice with everyone, and that is why he is the PR man for our firm.

I am twenty one. People say I am quite pleasing to look at.

I lost both of my parents before I was seventeen. Good thing that by that time I was educated enough and world-wise enough to get along all alone with the business of living. Life was not a bed of roses, but I managed respectably well.

Sometimes, a feeling of restlessness fills me up and the whole world suddenly goes gray and dull.

Yesterday, it was a few minutes past noon and I was sitting in my office wrestling unsuccessfully with a copy for something called Flit beauty soap, and the feeling of restlessness was almost unbearable when there was a knock on the door.

"Come in", I said and the door opened and a strange apparition came in. This apparition was a man, bespectacled, bald-pated and barefoot. He wore a T-shirt, a pair of shorts and an old straw hat. He was of medium height and build and sported a short white beard. He was smoking a pipe. Kindliness and good humor were etched on his face in a network of fine and delicate wrinkles.

"My name is Tim," he said, "I come from a place called Ghelenden and your help is needed in fighting an evil wizard. Will you help us, Jasmina?"

I sat there unresponsive, simply staring at the man, open mouthed.

The man called Tim seemed to find my stupefaction quite amusing.

Suddenly, the ridiculousness of the man's appearance and his proposition hit me and I grinned. Any other time and I might have simply asked the man to leave my room, sure that he was insane or this was some sort a gag being played upon me. But then my restlessness lay heavy upon me and I thought, what the heck, why not go along with the man and see where it all leads to?

So I got up and made a slightly mocking bow. "My services are yours," I said. "Lead on, McDuff."

I left the room with him.

Hearing the sound of my footsteps, Jon peered out of his cabin. He gave Tim a startled glance and looked at me questioningly. I shrugged and spread my hands.

"I am going out on some urgent business," I said. "See you later."

Jon nodded and went back to his work.

Outside the office, I turned to Tim.

"Ghelenden, isn't it? To fight a wizard?" I looked critically at my dress. I was wearing a brown and white knee-length frock and a pair of ice-cream white stockings. I had my hair tied in a white scarf and I had cream coloured shoes on my feet. Would this dress be suitable for a fight with a wizard, I thought, or should I wear something more appropriate? Perhaps an embroidered robe and a cloak?

"Won't I need any luggage? Clothes, tooth brush, towel?" I asked.

"No. Everything will be provided for."

"How do we reach Ghelenden?" I asked. "Riding on a unicorn?"

"No," said Tim. "Riding on thought." And I blinked and found myself standing in an unfamiliar street. Tim stood beside me, pipe in his mouth, his lips curled in a smile.

It was a busy street, lined with shops and houses. People moved about. Everything gave the picture of a street like so many streets in my own city, except for a few minor differences. Not many city streets in our world have a separate lane for unicorns.

I was in Ghelenden.

What have I let myself in for? I had a slight feeling of misgiving, which soon vanished in the wonder of it all. It was a beautiful, bright day here. A playful wind was mussing up the green tresses of tall trees. The sun was bright and made all the things - the buildings, the lamp posts, the trees, the people, the vehicles -- cast sharp shadows on the ground.

We were standing in front of a decent looking house, white-walled and red-roofed. A high fence went around it and there was a wooden gate in the fence. The house looked old, quaint, cozy and pleasant.

The gate of the house opened and a young boy of about five came running out of the house and hugged Tim. Tim lifted him up in his arms, kissed him and slowly lowered him to the ground.

The boy was fair, had dark unruly hair, a round, cuddly face. The eyes were big, dreamy and innocent, with intelligence and impishness peering around corners.

Tim noticed my questioning glance.

"His name is Arokyo," was all he said.

The boy, hearing his name mentioned, looked up at Tim and then at me. Hesitantly, he approached me, stared into my face with those soulful eyes, smiled softly and extended his hand to me for a handshake. I smiled, ignored his hand, scooped him up in my arms as Tim had done, and kissed his cheeks. Then I put him down.

Suddenly shy, he ran back the way he had come. Tim followed him and I followed Tim into the house.

The first thing I saw was a small garden, green with a variety of plants and grasses. The fragrance of freshly watered earth filled my nostrils. Mixed with this were a myriad fragrances of a myriad flowers that grew all around in wild abandon. In the midst of this splendor, stood the house.

An hour later, after a sumptuous meal followed by tea in the garden, I found myself properly settled in Ghelenden. I found out that we were now in a town called Targot, which was located on the eastern fringe of something called the "Dark Forest", in the land of Ghelenden. Surprisingly, I seemed to be taking everything quite matter-of-factly, as if it was a routine matter for me to be asked to help people in fantastic lands fight their evil wizards.

We sat on wicker chairs, Tim and I, in the garden, chatting together as if we were friends from way back. Arokyo sat on Tim's lap. Tim was telling me about the situation in Targot.

It seemed that a few months back an evil and powerful wizard had moved into Targot. His name was Umrig the Merciless. He had built himself a castle in some place called the Dark Forest, and from there, wreaked havoc on the people of Targot.

"Why me?" I asked. "Why was I selected to fight this wizard?"

"Don't ask me, ask the oracle," said Tim.

"You have an oracle?"

"Yes, and when asked about how to fight Umrig, we were given your name and address."

"Why?"

Tim shrugged. "Why particularly you, I cannot say. But a champion from your world is logical enough," he said, "because Umrig uses evil spells that belong to your world."

"Spells belonging to my world?"

"Yes," said Tim. "I will tell you the names of some of his spells and you will understand."

Some of Umrig's spells were called as follows: Socialism, Communism, Capitalism, Economic-policy, Foreign-policy, Party-politics, See-eye-aye, Kay-gee-bee, End-justifies-the-means-and-other-assorted-doctrines, etc.

I nodded. Yes, these were evil spells from my world, right enough.

"Then there are other reasons for your choice," continued Tim. "Umrig's magic is a magic of words. One reason you have been selected is that you are in the advertising business, which depends on wordspells too. Another reason is that you are a woman and only a woman can fight Umrig word for word and come out the winner." I thought of brisling at this statement but Tim didn't give me time. "Further," he continued, "she had to be athletic, a girl who could run fast, jump long. She had to be intelligent, sharp, adventurous and stubborn. I think you were the logical choice."

I reviewed Tim's words. I was athletic, yes, and I could run fast. That is how I had managed to remain a virgin till now. And of course I was intelligent, and sharp, and adventurous too. But stubborn? Was I stubborn?

"It is absolutely true that we of Targot desperately need your help," said Tim. "You don't know the misery being caused to us by Umrig. But Let me make one thing very clear. Fighting Umrig will not be an easy task. If it was, we would have dealt with him long time back and would not have required outside help." He puffed on his pipe. "Your path is strewn with danger. Injury and death will dog your footsteps." He paused and gave his pipe another puff. "Knowing all this, do you want to help us? The decision is yours to make. If you say no, it would be perfectly understandable and we will safely return you to your world right now." Another puff on the pipe. "What is your decision?"

"Give me some time to think," I said.

"All right," Tim said and suddenly smiled and animatedly started chatting with me about this and that. His conversation was so lively that I soon forgot about the decision that I had to make and began having a good time. Tim smiled a lot and he made me smile too. It was fun talking to him.

Sometime during the chat, Arokyo left Tim's lap and came and sat on mine. I kissed him and continued talking to Tim. Slowly, a question began forming at the back of my mind. I had not heard Arokyo's voice even once till now. Why was he such a silent child? I interrupted Tim's flow of talk to ask him this question.

Tim suddenly fell silent.

"Arokyo cannot speak," he said quietly.

I was shaken. Arokyo was dumb?

"A victim of Umrig," continued Tim.

"What?"

"Yes," his voice dropped low. "His parents were killed by Umrig's magic."

"How?"

"Arokyo's parents were farmers. One day, at the time of harvest, Umrig's minions came and demanded one half of the field's harvest as tribute to Umrig. Arokyo's father refused and Umrig does not brook refusal." Tim paused.

"That night," Tim continued, "Umrig himself came to the farmers. Standing by the harvested crops, he waved his hand. Suddenly, something happened to Arokyo's parents. Their faces wild with horror, they got up, lit torches, ran to the crops and set fire to them. The fire spread. It consumed the crops. Then Arokyo's parents threw themselves into the fire. Arokyo was four years old then. He saw all this happen right before his eyes. That was the day that he lost his voice. I found him wandering in the streets of Targot one day, hungry, dirty and crying."

It took me some time to assimilate all this.

"How do you know this incident in such detail?" I asked in a shaken voice.

Tim thought for a while. He turned to Arokyo.

"Show her," he said.

Arokyo looked at Tim, wide-eyed. Then he turned to me and looked deep into my eyes. Suddenly, the living room and Tim and the daylight all vanished and I was standing beside a burning grain shed. I saw it all, exactly as Tim had described and when I came to, Tim was bending over me in concern and I was screaming.

It was much later that I calmed down.

"What was it?" I asked Tim in a low voice.

"Arokyo is a telepath and can transmit vivid thought pictures to others," he said.

I looked at Arokyo to find his face stained with tears. It made my heart ache.

There was silence for a while, which I broke.

"I will fight Umrig," I informed Tim. In normal circumstances, it would have been funny, a simple young girl vowing to fight a mighty wizard, but these were not normal circumstances. I was the chosen champion of Targot.

"Thank you, Jasma," said Tim, gently.

I spent that night in Tim's house in Targot.

Early next morning, Tim knocked on the door of my room.

"It is time to go. Get ready," he said and left me.

I quickly finished with my toilet, took a cool, refreshing shower and put on my dress.

Tim was waiting for me on the breakfast table.

"Where is Arokyo?" I asked.

"Still sleeping."

We finished our breakfast in silence. After breakfast, Tim lit his pipe and sat puffing at it in silence.

"Your mission begins, lass," he spoke at last. "Let us go."

We went.

There was a horse carriage, with two horses hitched to it, standing outside the house. Tim clambered up and helped me up beside him. Tim took the reins and we began moving.

We soon left the city behind and turned a small dusty road.

I don't know how long we traveled. The early morning breeze, the rhythmic clip-clop of the horses' hooves and the steady flow of the carriage on the roads of Targot made me doze off and I woke up only when the carriage stopped.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"At the edge of the Dark Forest," replied Tim.

I looked about. Yes. There was the Dark Forest. If there was any forest that deserved being called Dark, it was this forest. Even in broad daylight, I was unable to see things beyond a few feet from its edge. It was one of the most uninviting places I had ever seen. But due to some strange reason, it fascinated me. It made me feel exhilarated.

I left the carriage.

Tim picked up a knapsack from the rear of the carriage and handed it to me.

"It holds some provisions for your journey," he said. "From here on, you will travel alone for I am forbidden to enter the Dark Forest," he said. "Be alert in the Dark Forest. It is strange place and both good and evil run rampant within it. Your job is to find Umrig and fight him and defeat him any way you can. I wish you good luck." He paused. "Do you have any questions?"

"Yes," I said. "One full day has passed since I left my world. When will I be able to return?" I was thinking of Jon and Caleb and how worried they will be at my absence.

Tim smiled. "Don't you know that in places like Targot time runs at a different rate than the world outside? You can live here even for a year and return to your world within a couple of hours of your time."

I thought it over.

"How will I find Umrig's castle?"

"You will have a guide," he said cryptically. "Any other question?"

"Yes," I said. "You have told me about Umrig and about Targot's predicament. Now tell me about yourself. What is your involvement in all this? Who are you?"

I saw a peculiar sight. I saw the wrinkled old man blush. Then without answering, he geed up the horses and moved away, leaving me to stare after the vanishing carriage.

I hung the knapsack on my back.

Finally, I entered the Dark Forest, and as I did so, I shuddered. I don’t know why, but I did. I had hardly walked a few paces when I felt the Dark Forest closing in on me. I felt totally cutoff from the outside. Huge trees and dense underbrush were all around me. Daylight filtered through their thick foliage and spread on the ground in a silvery haze. The ground was lush with soft downy grass.

Wild scents invaded my nostrils. Wild sounds filled my ears.

I don't know how long I walked. In the Dark Forest, time seemed to have lost much of its meaning.

As I continued walking, I realized something. The forest seemed to have distinct pockets of moods. At places it was gloomy. At other places it was quite cheerful.

I began feeling alone and miserable as I wandered aimlessly. Now that I was inside the Dark Forest, what was I supposed to do? How was I to find Umrig? What was I supposed to do after finding him? Where was that guide I was supposed to have?

Suddenly I heard sounds of someone walking through the underbrush. My heart missed a beat. What wild beast would it be? A lion? A tiger? Or would it be some unbelievable monster? A troll? A goblin? I hid behind a tree trunk and waited.

Soon, the creature ambled into view and I almost gasped at his strange appearance. Imagine a man-like figure, about seven feet tall, extremely thin, every limb and every feature of the face delicate beyond belief. Imagine a certain beauty and gracefulness mixed with the strange and delicate structure just described. Imagine this delicate creature wearing a delicately designed robe of some softly shimmering, green material. If you want description more concrete even if crude to sink your teeth into, then imagine a graceful blend of a man and a praying mantis. More than this I cannot say.

Unerringly, the mantis-man approached the tree behind which I was hiding. "Come out. Don't be afraid of me," he said.

His words stung. Afraid? Jasma the fearless?

"So who's afraid," I said in a trembling voice and stepped out.

The mantis-man bowed gracefully. "Welcome to the Dark Forest," he said.

"Who are you?" I asked. My voice was firmer now.

"I am an elf," he said. "I am called Fleigen and I have been sent to guide you to Umrig's castle."

Oh-ho. So this was my guide. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"I am Jasmina," I said. "Jasma to friends. Which way for Umrig's castle?"

Fleigen laughed. "Why in such a hurry?" he asked. "First we eat and rest. Come."

"Where to?"

"To my tree house."

I saw Fleigen's tree house.

It was a dream - a dream come true. How many of you, when you were young, didn't dream of living in a tree house? I did. Well, here was the tree house, more beautiful than any tree house I could have imagined. The tree on which it was built was probably one of the tallest trees in the Dark Forest. It grew on the banks of a small rivulet called Dreemer. Its foliage was lush green, interspersed with red, blue and yellow flowers that gave off a fragrance slightly similar to musk. Holes were cut in the tree trunk to act as a ladder. We climbed up and up the tree and moved through branches and leaves and more branches and leaves and at last entered the tree house through a trap door fitted into its floor. The tree house was quite spacious. Big windows were cut into all four of its walls. Cloth curtains covered the windows. The view from these windows was grand. The tree house had been built so high that it rose above most of the trees of the Dark Forest. Looking out of the windows, what one saw, through a network of overhanging leaves and branches, was the blue expanse of the sky and the treetops, in various shades of green, spreading on all sides as far as the eyes could see.

Soon it began growing dark, so Fleigen lit a candle. By the candlelight, Fleigen offered me some food. Whatever it was, the dish looked, smelled and tasted delicious. Then he gave me some fruit juice to drink. It was sweet and refreshing. After the food, I rummaged through my knapsack to see if a nightgown had been packed. I found a pair of pajamas and changed into them while Fleigen stepped out of the trap door for a while. After I had finished changing, I called out and he re-entered. Then, while the night wove its enchantment all around us as it can be woven in a tree house of an elf in the midst of the Dark Forest, we chatted.

Fleigen told me a little about himself. He was a young elf, out on his first adventure, and it was an honor being able to assist the champion of Targot, meaning me. I hope I was modest enough to blush.

It was a strange time that I spent in the tree house. Here I was, a young girl, all alone with someone of the opposite sex. It would have been an embarrassing situation, except for the fact that I was human and he was an elf and there was no hint of sexuality between us.

Some time in the midst of all our chatting, I dropped to sleep.

Dawn came. Fleigen woke me up. We put our respective heads out of a window and looked around. Like the night, the dawn too was enchanting. The Dark Forest lay spread before me in a hazy brightness. Dew drops lay thick and heavy on the leaves and flowers of our tree. Standing there high up in a tree house, in the company of an elf, feeling the refreshing morning breezes playing about my face while mists rose out of the treetops, I felt an ache in my heart. I wished I could have my friends, Caleb and Jon, standing there atop the tree house with me at that moment. I wished they could meet this wonderful being, this elf called Fleigen.

We came down the tree house, washed our hands and face in the flowing water of Dreemer and had a breakfast of fruits.

Then it was time to leave.

. We started. Fleigen carried a knapsack with him, just like the one I was carrying. After sometime, we came to a small clearing in the forest. In the midst of this clearing was a pool of water.

"This pool will help us in fighting Umrig," said Fleigen.

"How?"

"First, you will have to cut your finger and let a drop of your blood fall in the pool."

"Black magic?" I was alarmed. The only thing I knew about black magic for sure was that it was bad. I also knew that blood was often an important ingredient in black magic.

"No black magic. In fact, no magic at all. In Targot, magic is used only by those who are evil. The drop of blood symbolizes your intention that you are willing to give your blood for your cause. Without this symbol of commitment, the pool will not speak to you."

"All right, what then?"

"Then certain words will appear on the surface of the water. You must memorize these words for they shall be the key to Umrig's lair."

We approached the pool. The water in the pool was dark and still. I groped in my knapsack and found an evil looking knife. I nicked my left thumb with it. I let a drop of my blood fall in the pool, then fixed my eyes on the surface of the water. The drop of blood, as soon as it touched the water, spread forming a red circle over the dark water. Within this red circle, words appeared.

These were the words that appeared in the pool: RUN, JUMP, SWIM, CATCH, DUCK.

Few seconds later, the words vanished.

"You got it? You got it all?" the elf asked excitedly.

"Yes," I nodded, "but what in the world am I to do with these words?" And I told him the words.

"For one thing, these words will open the door of Umrig's castle," said Fleigen. "And who knows what other uses they may have."

I had to be satisfied with this.

"What now?"

"Now I will tell you about Umrig's lair and the spells that guard it," said Fleigen, and he proceeded to do so in great detail.

Umrig's castle could not be approached by land. It was too well guarded. The only possible approach could be through the air. This approach too was so well protected by strong spells that even birds couldn't fly over the castle. Of all the creatures in Targot, only a dragon would be powerful enough to pass through these spells.

In brief, Umrig's castle was impregnable. Then what was I doing in Targot?

But Fleigen was not to be put out. He was full of optimism.

"Don't worry. You will find a solution to the problem of entering Umrig's castle," he said. "After all, you are the champion."

I hoped I wouldn't disappoint him.

We moved through the Dark Forest. I was feeling slightly down in the dumps thinking about Umrig's castle and Umrig himself.

The air suddenly exploded with sounds of breaking branches and falling trees. Unearthly screams tore through the forest air. I turned around, grabbed Fleigen and clung to him in fright. After a few moments, realizing what I was doing, I let him go, abashed. Targot had got itself a really fantastic champion.

"Wh-what is that sound?" I tried covering up my fright.

"It sounds to me like a dragon in pain," he said. "Come, let us look."

A dragon? Oh dear!

We made our way through the underbrush. We moved closer and closer to the sounds and at last, the final curtain of the underbrush parted and we were in the presence of a dragon in pain. And it was a presence indeed.

The dragon was at least three hundred feet long from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail, and about two hundred feet broad from wingtip to wingtip. He was blue and gold. He was flailing and rolling about on the ground and in the process, reducing many of the surrounding trees to splinters. His screams rang through the forest and with each scream, a jet of flame escaped his mouth and nostrils.

"Dragon, hey dragon," shouted Fleigen. The dragon heard his shout and stopped its flailing for a minute to look at us. Our sudden appearance seemed to astonish him. "Huh! Who?" he said.

It didn't surprise me that the dragon could talk. I was in Targot, wasn't I?

"We want to help you," Fleigen said. "Tell us what is troubling you."

This statement seemed to further astonish the dragon. These tiny things -- an elf and a girl -- wanted to help him. It must have amused him no end. If only he could ignore his pain and laugh.

"Tell us what is wrong with you," the elf shouted again.

Well, there is no harm in telling them, the dragon must have thought.

"I have a sliver of glass in my left eye," he said.

"Oh, oh!" Fleigen was dismayed. "How did you get it?"

"I was climbing the glass mountain and got caught in an avalanche."

"Wait a minute. Aren't we getting our fairy tales mixed up a bit here?" I remarked mildly.

Both of them ignored my remark.

"Oh, you poor thing!" Fleigen exclaimed, addressing the dragon. I looked at him and looked at the three hundred feet long "poor thing". A sliver of glass in the eye? Was it such a big problem? I asked Fleigen.

"For a dragon, it is," said Bel. "Anything falling into the eyes of a dragon cannot be removed unless the dragon can be made to cry so that the tears wash away the thing."

"I still don't see the difficulty," said I.

"The difficulty is that no amount of pain or sorrow can make a dragon cry."

"Oh, oh!" A perfect Catch-22 situation. Then suddenly I had an idea. "I bet I can make it cry," I said.

"Impossible," was Fleigen's flat reply.

"Let me try," I insisted.

He shrugged. "Why not?" Then he turned to the dragon, who had resumed his flailing and his screaming.

"Hey, dragon," Fleigen hollered. "We can make you cry."

"Don't be ridiculous," said the dragon between screams of agony.

"We really can make you cry," Fleigen assured the dragon.

"All right, no harm in trying," the dragon agreed.

"But there is something you will have to do first," I said.

"What?"

"You must lie down on your back and you must promise not to move for at least fifteen minutes, no matter what we do to you." I had read in some fairy tale that a promise binds a dragon tighter than any rope.

The dragon hesitated, thought it over, and said, "I promise."

The dragon laid himself down on his back. I broke two stout branches from a fallen tree and extended one of them to Fleigen. He looked at me questioningly.

"Tickle him with it," I said and proceeded to tickle the exposed under-belly of the dragon. The dragon started roaring with laughter. Understanding dawned on Fleigen and he enthusiastically joined me and we tickled the dragon and the Dark Forest rocked to the sounds of the dragon's laughter.

"Ha ha ha ha oh ho ha ha ah I say ho please stop ha stop ha I ha ha cannot ho oh ho any more of this ha ha ha," roared the dragon. We went on tickling him. And tears of laughter filled the eyes of the dragon and with the tears, out came the sliver of glass.

"How can I ever repay you puny creatures," the dragon later tried to express his gratitude.

And I had my second brilliant idea of the day.

"But you can repay us," I said quickly. "Just get us inside Umrig's castle."

The dragon thought this over.

"It is a strange request," he said. "All right, but the spells protecting Umrig's castle are very strong and I have the power to take only one of you with me through these spells."

"I will go," I said, then turned to Fleigen. Fleigen bent down and embraced me. When we broke apart, there were tears in my eyes, and Fleigen's too.

"Take good care of yourself, girl," said Fleigen.

"Take good care of yourself, elf," said I.

I mounted the dragon and took a firm grip on his neck. With a breathtaking whoosh, the dragon took to the air.

We flew over the treetops. Wind screamed past my ears and I held on to the dragon's neck for dear life. My heart was pounding and blood was racing through my veins. I was excited, and I was frightened.

Suddenly, the treetops opened up to give a view of a castle made of milky white stones. A pale mist and a deathly silence lay over it. We had reached Umrig's castle. A high wall ran around the castle. As the dragon neared the castle, he began to slow down, as if he was encountering some resistance in the air. The dragon pitted his mighty strength against this resistance and soon, broke through it. We had now crossed the outer wall. The dragon dropped down.

A huge white building loomed over me. The dragon deposited me near the door of this building. "Now you are on your own, tiny," said the dragon. "I go," and he went, and I was on my own, a lonely, frightened girl, standing before the door of a wizard's castle.

Suddenly, Arokyo's tear-stained face swam before my eyes. I clenched my teeth and resolutely stepped up to the castle door. I was pushed it to see if it would open. Nothing happened. Then I remembered something. I remembered that the words I had seen in the pool were supposed to open the door to Umrig's castle.

"Run jump swim catch duck," I said.

Slowly, soundlessly, the door opened. It was pitch dark inside. I stepped through the door into the waiting darkness. As soon as I did so, the darkness vanished and an eerie glow filled the air. I was standing in a huge hall. The door through which I had just stepped in was behind me. Ahead of me was an expanse of uncarpeted floor. The floor and the walls of the hall were jet black, as if covered with soot. Far to my right was another door which led to the interior of the castle.

"Welcome to the house of Umrig, Jasmina," a sibilant voice erupted in the hall. I looked about wildly. There was no one to be seen.

The voice laughed softly. "Are you afraid, Jasmina?"

Of course, I was afraid. Who would not be, in my place? But if Umrig was trying to frighten me some more, he had reckoned without my immense self-esteem. Suddenly, I was more angry than afraid.

The door far to my right opened and Umrig entered the hall.

Umrig was old, gray haired. He wore a sleek, black, silky dress. His features were sharp, very sharp. On his head was a hat. In his hand was a cane. In his eyes was sheer murder.

The clichéd cold shiver ran down my spine. Here, then, was the man who was terrorizing Targot, the man who had murdered Arokyo's parents.

"You thought that you, a chit of a girl, could defeat me, the great Umrig?" I once again heard his sibilant voice. "Be afraid, for you are going to die for your presumption."

Umrig raised his hand high up in the air and started mouthing some strange words. Slowly, as his voice grew in volume and his flow of words speeded up, a ball of fire sprang to existence on the upraised palm of his hand. The ball grew in size. Within moments, it was big enough to engulf me entirely. With a final utterance, Umrig hurled the ball at me.

Watching the fireball float through the air toward me, I almost panicked, but Umrig's taunting "chit of a girl" pierced my panic and suddenly, I recalled Tim's words: "Umrig's magic is a magic of words. One reason you have been selected is that you are in the advertising business, which depends on wordspells too. Another reason is that you are a woman and only a woman can fight Umrig word for word and come out the winner."

Instinctively, I knew what to do. Mirroring Umrig's earlier gesture, I raised my right hand high up in the air. I had no particular magic spell to utter but if words were magic, I had them plenty. So I started.

"Flakmaster lipstick," I said, "with its new, fresh mint taste your man is sure to like.

"Ninety percent of the intelligent people of the world use Watergate washing powder."

My voice rang in the hall. Was it wishful thinking or did I actually notice the speed of the fireball reduce? With vigor, I continued my assault of words.

"Want to give instant vertigo to anyone laying eyes on you? Wear our latest psychedelic shirts."

The fireball skidded to a stop ten feet away from me. The intense heat from it was quite painful even at this distance.

"Have you ever seen lightning on four wheels? Go take a peek at the the latest model of Mustache, the car that keeps up with the times."

The fireball actually moved back a few feet. Sensing imminent victory, I delivered the coup-de-grace.

"Make him fall all over you. Use Flit beauty soap," I shouted at the top of my voice.

The fireball had had enough. It fled full speed back to Umrig.

Umrig gave a shout of anger and waved his hand in the air. The fireball vanished.

Next, Umrig pulled out a whistle from his pocket and blew on it. Immediately, the hall seemed to be filled with ghouls, demons, trolls, ogres and a lot of other unheard of creatures. They moved menacingly in my direction, led by Umrig.

Could I fight them all off with more words or should I try running away from them? I decided on the later course. I removed my knapsack from my shoulders and threw it away. I dodged the first onslaught and ran like a rabbit to the door on my right.

I emerged into a courtyard and daylight, with Umrig and his minions close at my heels, bellowing angrily. I led them a merry chase down the courtyard, searching frantically for an escape route. The courtyard led to a narrow alley. I sprinted down the alley. Umrig and his entourage followed. The alley suddenly broadened a bit and a deep pit yawned just a few silly millimeters away from my feet. Somehow I managed to stop myself in time before I plunged down the pit.

The palms of my hands went cold and sweaty at the thought of what might have happened if I had not been able to stop my headlong rush. I looked around to see what I had to do now. The pit was wide but did not span the alley from wall to wall. There was a ledge, about a foot wide, on either side of it.

I had two choices. I could either walk the ledge and go to the other side or I could try and jump over the pit. It was a jump of about twelve feet. The clamor of my pursuers who seemed very close made my decision for me. My heart in my mouth, I took a running jump.

I cleared the pit and before racing ahead, gave a backward glance. The sight I saw made my hands more clammy than ever. I saw the ledges of the pit move into the wall and vanish. The pit now spanned the whole width of the alley.

What if I had taken the ledges instead of jumping over it? I shuddered at the thought.

Umrig and his monsters spotted me. With a roar, Umrig jumped over the pit, closely followed by his scum. I churned my legs faster and faster and managed to put a little distance between us.

The alley ended. I emerged once again into a courtyard. Smack in my path was a huge pond of water.

What should I do now? Should I skirt it or swim across it? What dangers lurked in the water of the pond?

I shall swim, I decided. I could cross the pond swimming underwater. That way, I might be able to dodge my bloodthirsty pursuers.

I removed my shoes and threw them into the pond. Then I dived. Swimming under water, I reached the other side of the pond in less than two minutes.

There were thick reeds growing in the water. Slowly I raised my head a few inches out of the water and peered out from behind the reeds. Umrig had reached the pond and was casting his eyes all around, trying to locate me without success. It looked like I had earned myself a breather.

Methodically, I began reviewing my chances of escape. Suddenly, something struck me.

Remember the secret words: Run, Jump, Swim, Catch, Duck. Now think over all that had happened to me after coming face to face with Umrig. First I had "run" from his hoard of monsters. Next I had "jumped" over the pit. Next I had "swum" across the pond. And what is more, all these had been the right actions, actions which had kept me safe so far. Was this correlation of my actions with the secret words a co-incidence? I doubted it.

What now? What was the next word in the series? "Catch".

Catch what? Of course, how about the last word "duck"? Catch duck? Yes.

I looked around. There, right in the middle of the pond was a solitary duck swimming around in short circles.

It sounded like the silliest way of fighting a wrathful wizard but I decided I had to catch that duck.

I went underwater once again and re-emerged very close to the duck. The duck seemed to take no notice of me but it was different with Umrig. He spotted me and gave a shout of pure panic. "There she is. She is going for the duck, the source of all my magic. Stop her."

And the ghouls and demons and ogres and trolls jumped into the pond.

And I stretched my hands and and caught the duck.

And the world went topsy-turvy.

There was a crack of thunder and Umrig disintegrated, simply and surely. There was another crack of thunder and Umrig's castle vanished in a cloud of dust and smoke. There were no more cracks of thunder but all the ghouls, demons, ogres, trolls and whatnots ran into the forest, tails between their legs.

The duck in my hand simply vanished.

Dripping wet, I came out of the pond.

"Yoo hoo," I heard a voice filled with joy. It was Fleigen's voice.

I passed out.

I woke up in Tim's house with Tim and Arokyo bending over me, and they were smiling. I smiled back.

Then it was time to leave.

"You know you could live in Ghelenden permanently," said Tim.

I was silent for a minute before replying.

"No," I said. "For people of my world, places like Ghelenden may be good to visit once in a while, but not to reside in permanently."

Tim nodded. "I knew you would say that," he said, "and you are right."

One moment, I was in Tim's house and the next moment I was standing in front of my office, blinking foolishly. I looked at my watch. It said 3.00 pm of the day that I had left for Ghelenden.

Half an hour later, I was in my office, once again struggling with the copy for Flit beauty soap.

Ghelenden had become a dream.

On the subject of Flit beauty soap, my mind remained a blank for a long time. Then I remembered, as one recalls a dream, the fireball episode with Umrig. The words I had then uttered regarding Flit beauty soap came back to me and I grinned with joy. I had the idea for the advertisement.

I picked up my pen and wrote down the copy. Then I wrote down instructions for the illustrator.

The advertisement would show a sly young girl drop a cake of Flit soap in front of a young man. The next panel would show the young man slip over the cake of soap and land into the outstretched arms of the girl. The caption would read: "Make him fall all over you. Use Flit beauty soap."

At last, one of my problems of the day was solved. But the other problem remained. I was still confused about who to marry, Jon or Caleb?

***************************

"For people of my world, places like Ghelenden may be good to visit once in a while, but not to reside in permanently."

Believe it or not, I wrote the above story just for the sake of the above sentence. This was my first Ghelenden story, my longest till now, and the one story that incorporated a number of ideas and elements from the game that I had designed. Tim and Fleigen are two characters from this story that I plan to use again in the Ghelenden pageant as are the two characters that appear in the next story. They are called Bo and Bel. How's that for triteness?

***************************

This is the first story in Ghelenden. To return home, click here.