statue, and as he moved it to one side, he felt underneath the plaque. At first, he could not feel anything, but as he searched, he did find something. There was a loose stone, and although it fitted well, there was a little movement. Roggie wriggled it about as it began to come forward, and with a little more effort, the stone popped out, and he just managed to catch it as it fell to the ground.
Roggie placed it to one side, reaching into the space that it had left, and after searching for a few minutes, he grabbed hold of something. It felt cold and metallic, with a long handle and a ball at one end. Roggie pulled it out gently, and there glistening in the sunlight was a golden sceptre, just like the one in the dream!
The sceptre was beautifully carved just like the one on the statue, and consisted of a golden rod with a ball on one end. It also had a gauge running along the rod with a type of measurement on it. It really was exquisite, and what the gauge meant Roggie had no idea, but whatever it was for, it did not detract from its beauty.
Still studying the gauge, he suddenly noticed something out of the corner of his eye. There hidden on the far side of the wall, there was another arch. He gently placed the sceptre down, before moving towards it. The arch marked the beginning of a path, which although overgrown seemed to lead down the other side of the mountain.
Roggie looked dumbfounded, this was the second time that what he had dreamt about had materialised. Perhaps there was more to the Faery after all?
There was one thing for certain, and that was the fact that she did not appear to mean him any harm, which was very welcome after encountering the Men. With thoughts still concentrated upon her, he returned to the sceptre, picking it up to admire it again.
Even though it was incredibly old, it was still shiny, and he could see his face reflected in its golden surface. He looked back towards the carving of the Great King, to see if it was the same sceptre as he was holding. It was, but that was not the only thing that he noticed. For when he looked a little closer, he suddenly realised that the Great King looked almost identical to himself!
Seven
The birds chirped merrily away in the sunshine, as the gentle breezed ruffled the leaves, sending down a shower of fresh blossom onto the balcony. Little tufts of pink and white gathered amongst the stonework, as Roggie stood there in disbelief.
It was with more than a sense of shock that he stared at the carving of the Great King, and then back at his own reflection. There was no doubting the fact that it was almost impossible to tell them apart, and the likeness was uncanny!
The more that he compared the two images, the more alike they became, so much so that he had to put the sceptre down. It was all very odd, and more than a little scary. Roggie had never been one to look at himself very often, as the villagers did not posses any mirrors. He had only even seen his reflection in the water of the village pond, and not taken much notice of it. Vanity was not one of his failings!
Still feeling uncomfortable, he carefully placed the sceptre in his bag along with his other things, and sat back wondering what to do next. The Faery had encouraged him to venture out through the other arch, although he was reluctant to do so.
Roggie was never one to rush into things, and as usual, it took him quite a while to decide what he was going to do. The major deciding factor was the fact that he was still hungry, and had no food left. There did not seem much point in staying here, particularly as the image of the Great King had now begun to unsettle him. So, being as he could not go back the way he had come, the only other things that he could do was to see what lay beyond the other arch, and hope that he could find something to eat. Taking one last look back towards the carving of the Great King, he slipped his bag over his shoulder, picked up his spear, and slowly walked towards the archway.
It was very similar to the one that he had emerged from yesterday, and it also led into a passageway cut into the mountainside. He could see the bright sunshine on the other side, and so taking a deep breath, he pushed his way through the undergrowth that obscured it.
The passageway was clear, although when he reached the other side, he found that the undergrowth was quite thick again, and he had to struggle to force his way through.
On this side, there were two stone pillars making an arch, just like the ones on the other side. Fortunately, the floor of the path was smooth and reasonably wide, although there were many branches that had grown across it, making his progress difficult at times. It was quite hard work, and he used his spear to clear the way as best as he could, thrashing at the branches, and pushing them aside, before they sprang back when he passed.
Roggie had no idea where he was, the only thing that he knew was the fact that he was descending into ever-deeper forest. According to his dream, he had to find the Wise Old Griffin, who and whatever he was?
Roggie had absolutely no idea, and tried to remember if there was any mention of him in the tales that the village elder told. He had spoken of many adventurers and of the strange creatures which they had encountered on their travels. The tales were mostly from a very distant past, and of even more distant lands. However, he could not recall any mention of a Griffin. The tales had always fascinated him, and they had taken up a lot of his time, and his thoughts come to that!
It seemed like another lifetime now, as he pushed his way past a rather large bush, holding it aside with his spear as its leaves almost covered him completely. He did remember once asking the elder what lay on the other side of the hills which surrounded the valley, but he did not know for sure.
Village life had just crept by for what seemed like an eternity, with no one venturing further than the little wooden bridge. They did have the very occasional visitor from the next valley, which was also inhabited by Elphin Rabbits, and the two communities lived side by side, although very independently.
Neither Roggie, nor most of the other villagers had ever ventured there, and they only ever had contact with each other every few years or so. When that did happen, it was only ever a courtesy call, possibly involving a trade of some sort. Both communities were so independent, that they seldom bothered each other, although they were there for each other in times of trouble, although there had been no trouble for many years, until the Men arrived that was!
Roggie wondered if the Men had been to the other village too, and he shivered when he thought of its inhabitants being asked to either hand over their gold coins, or be forced to work in the gold mines.
Power and greed were very strange concepts to them all, and the vision of the Self Appointed One that he had seen in his dream, entered his mind. Roggie just could not understand his motives, as the villagers thought of themselves as rich because the valley provided them with all that they needed. What was the point of having large amounts of gold when there was nothing that you could spend it on?
Roggie would have liked more clothes, although he could always trade for them if he wished. On reflection, he had been very happy with all that he had, and to change it would have meant working, and working was something that he was taking a break from!
Contentment was something they all prided themselves on, which to everyone was worth far more than any riches they may have had, as they all knew that money could not buy them happiness.
It was a wonderful feeling when you did something for someone else, and were rewarded by a gift of some kind. That was the very thing which they all cherished, as everything they had was made with such loving care. Everyone within the village was respected, as they were all able to contribute something, and in a way, it was a type of utopia!
Roggie sighed, realising that those days had come to an abrupt end. It was such a shame that their idyllic way of life had been ruined by those unpleasant Men. They were so different to the ones mentioned in the tales, who had been kind and generous, that was until the terrible battle of so long ago. It was then that a sudden thought struck him. There was one tale he had been told of the land that lay beyond the hills, which was something that had given him nightmares - The Land of
the Bears!
Bears were said to be powerful creatures, large and often bad tempered, and thoughts of their fearsome nature sent a cold shiver rolling down his spine. Apparently, they loved to wrestle, and decided many things by the outcome. Practically all disputes were settled in this way, and according to the tales, it was common for one Bear to be lifted clean off the ground by another. They wrestled each other until one of them had the other in what they called a Bear hug, which was not quite as friendly as it first appeared!
Roggie shivered again at the thought of being hoisted up off the ground, and squeezed until his eyes almost popped out. He made his mind up then and there, that if he ever encountered a Bear, he would never argue with it!
The undergrowth was getting thicker the lower down the slope he went, and the number of trees had increased dramatically. Then, all of a sudden, as he pushed a large leafy branch out of the way, he could see a gap in the trees.
Roggie stopped to rest for a moment, and as he looked out, he could see for miles. All there seemed to be was an endless sea of trees, which stretched right over the horizon. With all of those trees, how was he ever going to find the Wise Old Griffin?
That was however, not his only problem, as the next section of the path