Mystery Land - Chapter 2 - Celina's Gift

This is the second part of the Mystery Land series. You can read the first part by clicking on the following link "Mystery Land - Chapter1 - The Mystery Begins".

#1: Celina's gift

Abar turned around to see a beautiful lady carrying a strange weapon. He instantly recognized her face. She was Celina the Wizard of the dark forest. Abar bowed down to the lady and thanked her for saving his life.

"What are you doing here Abar?" Celina inquired. "My lady, I am here on a quest," he replied to her without revealing his real intentions. "Another Quest, ha! Your King will never rest till he burns down every single village in this Kingdom. Tell me, Abar, why do you follow such an evil man? An honorable man such as you should know better."

"Evil or not he is my King. I have followed him this far and I shall not abandon him now. Once Riley conquers the whole world I shall return to my family and serve him no more. I shall honor my promise that I made to him when he took me into his service when everyone else had abandoned me."

Celina knew that King Riley had taken care of Abar as his own brother. So, it was natural that Abar felt indebted to his King.

"My lady, thanks for saving my life. I must take your leave now," saying this Abar mounted his horse. "Wait, Abar. I know where you are headed. I saw some of your men cross the Dark Forest a few days back. They were heading towards the Mystery Land. But, I saw none of them return back. I have no doubt that Riley has sent you here to scout for him," Celina stopped him.

Abar just looked at her and admired her ability to read his mind.

"Beware Abar. You have no idea what you are dealing with," she cautioned him.

"I do not fear death, my lady," Abar remarked. Celina sighed. She knew it was impossible to convince Abar.

"Take this weapon with you, it will keep you safe. Your sword will be of no good against these people," saying this she handed him her weapon. Abar looked at the strange weapon in wonder. It was a small white pipe the size of his hand and a red light was glowing inside it. There were green and red circles on the side of this pipe. Had Abar not seen the power of the weapon with his own eyes he would have passed it off as an ordinary toy.

"I got this weapon from these mysterious people. They come to the Dark forest for hunting sometimes. One of their men was mauled to death by the Lions and I found this weapon by his side," Celina explained how she came into the possession of this powerful weapon.

Abar accepted the weapon from Celina and stared at in amazement. He was surprised to find how light the weapon was.

"Abar, promise me that you will not use it on mortal men and use it only to defend yourself," Celina said holding her hand to her heart. "You have my word lady Celina," Abar promised her holding his hand to his heart.

Celina showed him how to use the weapon. "You need to press the green circle first. It opens a crystal where you can see everything around you. You need to select all the things you need to fire upon by placing your finger on the crystal. When you are done, you need to press the red circle. It took me about a year to learn how to use this weapon."

Abar wielded the weapon as instructed by Celina and fired at a nearby tree. The tree was cut in half as a red light escaped the weapon. Abar wondered how much destruction his King would cause if he came into possession of this powerful weapon. No doubt Celina looked so worried.

Abar took leave off Celina and headed to the Mystery Land. Celina looked grim as Abar disappeared out of sight. She loved Abar and hoped he would be fine.

#2: King Runal - The Elf King

Two Elves marched hurriedly into the court of the Elf King Runal. Their names were Shalan and Matas. They were the Elf spies. "We have some important information, my King," Matas addressed the Elf King. King Runal signaled all the elves to leave the court. All the Elves except his son Prince Yala and Princess Zena sat in the court. King Runal signaled his spies to deliver their message.

Matas who was the senior of the two spies spoke,"My King, a dark Wizard has raised a dead army. He plans on attacking King Riley very soon." Matas explained that the two Elves were crossing the countryside when they heard an enchantment in the ancient language of Shu fill the air. They got curious as to how a mortal man knew this language. They sneaked into the graveyard and hid behind the graves. They saw a young wizard spelling dark enchantments and raise dead spirits. They heard the spirits promised him to seek vengeance against the evil King.

As King Runal heard this detail from his spies a sinister smile crossed his face. He exchanged amused looks with his daughter and son and they all smiled at each other. It seemed like one of their plans was in motion.

#3: King Riley

King Riley used the cover of darkness and slipped quietly out of his palace. He mounted his horse and headed to the Golden mountains. At one time it was the main source of the Gold in the kingdom. But, now the mining had been stopped as all the Gold had been mined out. King Riley had used the abandoned mines to build a Prison. This deep underground Prison was used to keep the most dangerous prisoners. Only a few trusted soldiers knew of this Prison.

King Riley got off his horse and tied it to a post. He entered the lift chamber which was guarded by two fearsome ax-wielding soldiers. The soldiers bowed down to their King and hailed,"Victory my Lord." The King raised his thumb and ordered,"Take me down to the prison." One soldier entered the Lift Chamber and pressed the lever down. The lift creaked as it slowly started its descent into the deep mine. The mine was very deep and dark. The lift took a long time to reach the bottom of the mine. As the lift touched the ground, King Riley jumped out of the lift and ordered his soldier to wait for him.

The King pulled out a torch hanging on the wall. He ducked and made his way to the prison chamber. He soon reached the prison and brought the torch in front of him to see the prisoner inside the dark cell. An old man saw the light and covered his face. "Is that you Riley?" he croaked. "Yes Father," King Riley replied. "I am here to seek your help."

#4: Sam

Sam knew that the dead spirits he had raised were not enough to destroy Riley. He knew very well that Riley had powerful Wizards and Elves at his service. He needed more help. Sam sent his spirits far and wide in the Kingdom to find out if there were others who were willing to help him. A spirit named Hawa returned to him and told him that there was a powerful Wizard in the Dark Forest who despised the King as much as him.

"You must seek her help," Hawa advised Sam. Sam took Hawa's advice and at once prepared to ride to the Wizard to seek her help in destroying Riley.

To be continued

The Accident

My name is Anjali. I was only twenty-four years old when this incident happened. I was married to a handsome Air Force Pilot, Squadron Leader Ranjith Singh. Ranjith and I had met at a Pub a few months back and it was love at first sight. We had dated for only about four months when he had proposed to me and I had said yes to him. We were both heads over heels in love with each other. We had informed our parents of our decision. They had readily agreed. After a brief meeting of our parents, the wedding date had been finalized and we were married in another couple of months. Coming to think of it now, everything had happened so soon.

Our wedding had taken place in Delhi where my parents stayed. After the wedding, we stayed at my parent's house for about a week's time. After one week, we took a train to Agra where Ranjith was currently stationed. The train journey was short and it took us only about three hours to reach Agra. It was nearly noon when we reached Agra. It was the month of July and it was hot. The temperature was around 31 degrees and the humidity was also very high. It had been raining the last week but the high humidity was making us sweat very badly. We had quite a bit of luggage with us. Ranjith had said that some people from his office would be coming to help us with transporting the luggage.

On reaching the station, we found that no one had arrived. So, Ranjith made a few quick calls to his office people. I saw that he was shouting and seemed to be upset. I was a little taken aback as I had never seen him lose his cool all this time. So, after he finished his call I asked him what was the matter. He said that there was some miscommunication about the time of his arrival and his office people had thought that we would be arriving at 11 PM and not at 11 AM.

I told Ranjith that it was alright and we could hire a luggage van to carry all our luggage. We had around ten big suitcases and three heavy bags with us. So, we hired few porters and asked them to carry the luggage to the taxi stand. At the taxi stand, Ranjith booked a luggage van and also a cab. He told me that he would be coming along with the luggage van as it would not be safe to leave all our luggage unattended.

He wrote down the address of the Air Force Officer Quarters and instructed the cab driver to drop me safely there. I was hesitant at first to travel alone. I hugged him and told him that I was not feeling comfortable traveling alone. He assured me that we were about to meet again in half an hour and there was no reason to worry. He said that the journey from the station to the Air Force Quarters was only about half an hour.

I took the cab and Ranjith boarded the luggage van. I felt silly to feel worried and waved him goodbye. My cab started and as Ranjith had told me, we reached the Officers Quarters within half an hour. On reaching the quarters, I was met by people from Ranjith's office. They had come to welcome me. They greeted me warmly and carried my luggage. They had already arranged for our stay and took me to our quarters. Ranjith's senior officer Wing Commander Mahesh Suri came over to our quarter and introduced himself. We chatted for some time and had tea. After a while, I started becoming anxious as Ranjith had still not arrived. It had been almost an hour since I had reached the Quarters and there was still no sign of him anywhere. I tried calling Ranjith but his phone was unreachable.

Mahesh noticed my anxiety and asked me what the matter was. I explained him everything. Mahesh asked me not to worry and said that probably the luggage van had got punctured. I was still not very convinced and started to worry. Seeing my state, Mahesh asked me to rest for some time and said that he would go out and make some inquiries regarding this matter. I closed the door and lay down on the bed. I closed my eyes but I was feeling very uneasy and restless. I sensed that something was not right. Suddenly, the doorbell rang and I ran to open the door hoping that Ranjith had returned at last. When I opened the door my happiness vanished into thin air. Mahesh was standing outside the door with two more officers. One of them was a tall and smart lady. The other one was a medium height gentleman of a fair complexion. The expression on the faces of these people was very serious. Seeing them, I judged that something terrible had happened.

Mahesh asked me to take a seat. The young lady officer by name Sunanda held my arm and gently guided me to the sofa seat. After I had sat, Mahesh told me that he was about to reveal some serious matter and that I should try to keep calm. I had already started crying and asked him what was the matter. He said that Ranjith had met with an accident on the way to the Quarters. He said that he had suffered several critical injuries and had been admitted to a nearby hospital.

I started weeping uncontrollably. Sunanda tried comforting me by patting my back. I asked Mahesh if Ranjith was in a critical state. He nodded in reply and said that he was being treated for serious injuries in the operation theater. I said that I wanted to go to the hospital. Mahesh and all the other officers got up and took me to the hospital in a car. During the car journey, Sunanda tried comforting me and said that everything would be alright. I was still in a state of trauma and was praying God to keep Ranjith safe.

 We reached the hospital in about fifteen minutes time. On reaching the hospital, we checked at the Reception for Ranjith. The receptionist guided us to the Operation Theater. When we reached the Operation Theater, we saw doctors operating on the patients inside. We were not allowed to go inside. I could not make out Ranjith's face from the small window of the door. I started crying once again. The officers started comforting me. Meanwhile, the doctor came outside and we checked with him about Ranjith's condition. The doctor said that the injuries were serious and he could not answer about his condition till the operation was over. After a couple of hours, the operation was over. The doctor came out of the door with a bent head and my heart skipped a beat.

He came to me and said sorry we could not save him. I started crying. I could not believe all that was happening. How could God be so cruel? We had been married only for a week now. How could God do this to me? I was shell-shocked and sat down and with my head in my arms started weeping. Suddenly, a familiar hand brushed my long hair gently and whispered my name, "Anjali Darling". I looked up to see Ranjith standing next to me smiling. I looked on in disbelief. I looked at the other officers and they were all smiling too. The officers loudly exclaimed,"Welcome, to the Air Force Family."  I was too shocked to react and stood bewildered. I jumped into Ranjith's arms and started crying. He caressed me affectionately and said that he was fine. In a short while, I realized that Ranjith and his officers had played a prank on me.

In the span of the next few months, I came to know that a prank is played on every spouse of a newlywed Air Force couple. Every husband/wife who joins the Air Force family has to be mentally strong owing to the nature of their spouse's work. They have to be prepared to bear any kind of ill news at any time. I was the subject of many such pranks in future also. Also, I participated in playing pranks on other people too. Over the course of many years, I realized the true importance of this prank. Many years later, when Mahesh passed away in an air accident, I could see that same sadness in his wife's eyes which I had experienced all those years back. But, she had become a tough woman and kept her own when she was conveyed the tough news. This made me realize the sacrifices of our armed forces and their families and I feel proud to be part of this great institution.

The End

The Trek

Last month, I had gone Trekking with two of my best buddies David and John to the Smoky Mountains. The Trekking trip was John's idea. John is a wildlife photographer. He had traveled to several exotic places around the world. Now, that he was back home after two months long assignment, he had pulled me and David for this trip.

He came over to my place about a week before the trip to convince me to join him. He said, "Sam you have to come. It will be a great trip. Just you, me and David camping in the mountains, just like the good old times." I told him that I was busy with a writing assignment and my new book was slated for a release next month. But, he would not listen. So finally, I relented and agreed to join them.

It had been several years since the three of us had gotten together. I was not sure how the trip would come along. I had not spoken to David in a long time even though both of us stayed in the same city. We had met very less after the college. So, I thought maybe this trip might be a good opportunity to say one final goodbye to my old friends.

We had agreed to travel the Friday evening and return back by Sunday evening. The mountains were only a six hours drive from our place. So, we had planned to do a 5 A.M. trek on Saturday. David picked me up and also John from our houses. He was a teacher in the government school. I saw that he had some gray hair now and wore thick spectacles. The mustache on his face made him look like a very different man from the one I last remembered. "Hi David, it's good to see you," saying this I shook hands with my old pal. "It's good to see you too, Sam," David answered.

I felt overjoyed to see my old buddies. They looked different now. But, I felt the same happiness in their company as I had felt during our college days. At that moment, I felt that I had done the right thing by agreeing to come for the trip. We reached our Motel by 12 A.M. So, we decided to catch up on some sleep before the trek. We took adjacent rooms, 301, 302 and 303. We decided to regroup at sharp 4.30 A.M. I was exhausted after the long drive and went to sleep immediately. I was woken up at 4.30 A.M. by the sound of my alarm. A little annoyed, I switched off the alarm and got up. I picked up my trekking gear and went to the parking area.

David and John were already there. We started the car and started for the mountain foothills, the place from which we had decided to commence our trek. The foothills were just about ten miles away from our Motel. The jungle area started after a few minutes drive. The jungle was very thick and it was very dark. David had to switch on the fog lights to see the road properly. After about a half an hour's drive, we reached the foothills. Since it was off-season there were few trekkers. In fact, we had not spotted more than a couple of other trekkers.

We strapped all our trekking gear and started the climb. The climb was difficult. We were all in our mid-thirties and were not as fit as we were during our college days. As we were mid-way through our ascent, David said, "Look, guys, there's a cave down there. Let's check it out,". As I and John looked, we saw a small cave at a distance. We decided to explore it. We reached the cave entrance. It was about eight feet in height and around two feet in diameter. It was pitch dark inside and we switched on our torches.

Our torch light revealed that it was a big cave. I was surprised that I had never heard or read about this cave even though we had visited this place a couple of times before. The cave had some kind of foul stench and the side walls were damp and covered with moss. I could see water dripping in small drops from the ceiling. I was amazed at the cave and started checking the far end. I turned back to tell, "Wow, what a cool place,". But, I was surprised to find neither David nor John behind me. "Hi, Guys, where are you? I can't see you," I called out. I could not hear back any response. So, I thought that they must have come out of the cave and I decided to go back too.

I came out of the cave but still could not see my friends. I got a little nervous and tried calling them. But, the network signal of my cell phone was weak and I could not call them. I was now in a conundrum. I did not know if I should I look inside the cave or if I should climb up or simply go back to the car. I was getting anxious when suddenly I noticed another trekker at some distance and called out to him. "Hi Mister, please wait," saying this I ran in his direction.

The man was a tall and muscular man in his late thirties. He was carrying a backpack and wearing black goggles. "Excuse me Sir, but did you see any two people on your way up here?", I asked him breathing heavily. "No. I am sorry Sir, but I did not see anyone," he replied earnestly. I started feeling very tensed and did know what to do next. He sensed my anxiety and asked,"Is everything alright Sir, Can I help you in some way?".  So, I told him my story and explained him my situation.

I learned that his name was George. George suggested that we should check in the cave once again. We both checked the cave thoroughly but still could not find them. So, we decided to climb up the mountain thinking that the two would have climbed up hoping that I would follow them. So, we both started the climb. George talked to me and it helped to release my stress. I learned that he was a dancer and that he liked to trek. After about a couple of hours of the climb, we finally reached the mountain top.

The cool breeze and the amazing view from the top of the mountain greeted us. I looked around to see if I could find my friends. But, still, there was no sign of them. I became worried and looked at George. We decided to take rest for ten minutes and then start our descent. I was worried that something wrong had happened to my friends.

George was very supportive and comforted me by saying that my friends would be alright. He said that they probably would have played a trick on me. I became angry and thought that if this was the case, then I would probably never forgive them. After ten minutes, we began our descent. It took us about three hours to descend the mountain. Finally, we reached the foothills and I rushed to the place where we had parked our car. The car wasn't in sight anywhere. So, George offered to drop me off at the Motel.

By the time we reached the Motel, it was noon. I searched for David's car but could not find it in the parking area. I could not understand what in the world was really happening. I went to the Motel's reception and inquired if my friends had checked in. The receptionist gave me a puzzled look and asked: "Excuse me, Sir, but I do not know about any of your friends." "Please check the reservations against the rooms 301, 302 and 303," I asked him getting impatient. "Sorry Sir, but we do not have any rooms with these numbers. The third floor has been shut down for business for the last five years." "What?", I said as my head started reeling and I took a few steps back. I held my head tightly with my hands lest it fell off due to the force I was experiencing inside me.

I looked at George and he was looking at me anxiously. "Do you remember Sam?" he asked me in low voice. "Remember what? Who the hell are you ?", as I said this I began to see the scenes from past life in flashes. I saw me, David and John driving to the Smoky mountains. Only it was our younger selves back from our college days. We were all looking so happy. Suddenly, out of nowhere a wild buck stood in the center of the road. David steered the car to avoid crashing into the buck. But, he lost control and the car rolled over and fell down into a ditch. I rolled out of the car and came onto the side of the road. I saw David and John trapped inside the car. As I rushed to help them, the car suddenly burst into flames and I fell back due to the impact. My head crashed into a tree and I fell unconscious.

George revealed that I was in a state of coma for the last ten years. He said that when I woke up, the time had completely stopped for me. I still thought that David and John were alive. I did not remember about the car crash. So, George who was my Neurologist had decided to enact a small role play to make me recall my past life. So, he along with some other doctors had enacted the whole episode.

I later met with the other Doctors who had played the roles of David and John and thanked them for helping me. I visited the families of my real friends and offered my condolences and explained to them about the incident which led to our accident. They were happy that I had recovered from my Coma and wished me the best of luck. I feel so much blessed today to have been able to share my life's story with you all.

The End

The Rainy Night

I was working till late evening that day. We had to deliver the final build to the client by EOD. My boss had called me in that morning and had issued a stern warning “Shaun! Get your team up to the task and make sure that the build goes today! I do not want any excuses this time”. It was a tough assignment but at last, we got it together and delivered the build successfully. I was elated that my boss would be happy now and I could talk about my promotion in the next appraisal meeting. I was feeling hungry and I grabbed a cheese burger and a soda from the office vending machine. I finished my meal with few of my team mates who had stayed back for the project delivery. We cracked a few developer jokes during the meal and all of us were so relieved to have finally completed this project.

After having our meal, we locked the office and took the elevator to the basement car parking. We said our goodbyes and drove off to our homes. My house is a bit far from the office. I commute around 30 miles to reach the office every day. I had got a great deal for this house last year. A family that was living there had to urgently shift to London for business and they sold the house to me at quite a bargain rate. I was so lucky to be living in a big house now. It was so much better than my one bedroom, rented Apartment. The only downside was that my house was now a long distance from the office. It took me almost an hour to drive to the office and another hour to get back home. My drive back home takes me through the freeway for about 10 miles from the office.Then for the next 10 miles or so there is a lonely stretch of big Victorian style houses. The final stretch again takes me through a forest area. My house is in a lonely forest place. But, I enjoy the peace and calmness of my locality. As I took my car out of the driveway, I looked up to see dark clouds. I checked my phone and saw a thunder storm warning. It seemed like it could rain heavily at any time now. I could see bolts of lightning in the distance. This was not a good sign, I hoped I could reach home safely before it started raining too heavily. 

I drove at a good speed of 80 km/hr. and I had only gone about 7 miles from the office when it started raining. The rain was bad and I could not maintain my speed. I reduced my speed to around 50 km/hr. and could barely see around 15 feet ahead of me. I started driving carefully. There was a sharp bend ahead in the road after some distance. As I took the sharp turn I could hear my tires screeching loudly but I maintained the car balance and could somehow keep the car steady on the road. I had barely gone 50 feet ahead when I saw a tree had fallen in the center of the road. The tree had also brought down an electric pole. I put on my brakes as hard as I could to stop the car. The car tires screeched as the car stopped barely inches away from the fallen tree. 

I cursed my luck as there was no other way around to get to my place. There was also no point in turning back as the office was locked and my colleague had taken the keys with him. There were also no Motels nearby. So, I parked my car on the side of the road and placed a STOP sign on the rear of the car so that no other vehicle would accidentally bump into it. I took out my umbrella and got out of the car. The best chance I had of surviving this bad weather was by seeking shelter in a nearby house. I could spot a light from a distance and decided to move in that direction. I started the flash light from my cell phone and started walking in that direction. My shoes were now completely soiled after walking in the wet mud. After walking for about half a mile, I came to the source of the light. The light was coming out of the window of an old Victorian mansion. 

I opened the gate and watched for any sign of a guard dog. On making sure there was no dog, I passed along a small garden and went to the main door of the building. There was a doorbell by the side of the road. I rang the doorbell and waited for someone to answer it. After waiting for about a couple of minutes, I was about to press the doorbell for the second time when the door was opened by someone. At the same time, a loud thunderclap followed and a cold shiver ran down my spine. The flash of lightning revealed the face of the person. It was a beautiful face. It was the kind of face that can bewitch a young man. The woman was dressed in a black dress. 

With one hand, she was holding a candle stand and with her other hand, she held the door open. “Yes, Sir! Caught in the rain now, are we?” she asked me with a smile. “Yes, Ma’am! There’s a tree fallen down the road and I can’t go any further until it’s been removed. Could I spend a few hours in the house till the rain stops?” I asked. “Of course, Please come in,” she said. I got inside and it was quite dark. I had turned off my cell phone flash light and the only light in the room was from the candle in the lady’s hand. I was feeling slightly uneasy in the darkness. I guess the lady sensed it and said “The power went out with the rain. And, the emergency light is kept upstairs” she said pointing the candle in the direction of the stairs. The stairs were leading to another floor within the house. These were big wooden floors which I had seen in the big mansions in old English movies. She placed the candle stand on a table and made me sit on a sofa. “My name is Shaun Graham” I introduced myself as she sat on the opposite sofa seat. “Nice meeting you Mr. Graham. I am Sofia Hepburn” she answered. “Miss Sofia, do you live alone here?” I asked her out of curiosity. “No. Actually, my sister and her son are also staying with me. They are sleeping upstairs.” We talked about for a little while and then we felt sleepy. Sofia politely arranged my bed in the guest room and went upstairs to her room to sleep. I kept my phone on the side table and as I was feeling very tired I fell asleep immediately. 

I woke up early in the morning and came out of my bedroom. Since it was quite early I did not wake up Sofia or her family. I left a thank you note for her on the table and left the place. I found my car and saw that the cops had already cleared out the tree and an electrician was fixing the pole. I felt so glad that I had found such a nice house to spend the rainy night. I was also thinking about my charming hostess and I decided to thank her by taking some flowers to her over the coming weekend. I drove home and suddenly realized that my phone was missing. I remembered that I had kept it in on the side table and had forgotten to collect it. In a manner, I was glad that I had found an opportunity to meet her again so soon. I quickly dressed up and finished my breakfast. I took my car and on my way picked up some flowers. I smelled the flowers and I could imagine Sofia opening the door for me in her lovely black dress. 

I tried imagining what I would speak to her. I guess I wanted to ask her out for dinner. I drove the long distance very quickly and as I approached Sofia’s house I could see few police cars parked outside. I got concerned and hurriedly parked my car. I got out and approached a police officer who was sealing the area outside the house. I greeted him “Good Morning Officer!” and asked him anxiously “Is everything alright?”. “I’m afraid not Sir! There’s been a burglary last night here.” “What?” I muttered. “Is everyone in the house alright?” I asked him anxiously.

“The land lady and her son were found murdered upstairs by the house maid today morning.” “What about the sister?” I asked. “Is she fine?” I asked desperately. “There were only two people living in this house. By the way, are you related to these people?” “No. I guess I confused them for someone else” I said. I looked up again and confirmed that it was the same house. The whole thing became clear to me in a moment. Sofia was the burglar. She had murdered the lady and her son. When she saw me she played along as the owner of the house and must have slipped away from the house while I was sleeping. I knew that the police would track me by through my cell phone. So, I narrated the whole episode to them. Sofia was caught a few days later in another city where she was spending the loot with her boyfriend. From that day I made sure not to venture into lonely houses to take shelter.

THE END