The location where Aubriet was to meet the mysterious Board Member of the Joint-Venture was in a part of town where no respectable meetings would be held. Stella made sure of that – so no more pursuers this time around. Aubriet was told to put on a polo T-shirt and jeans Mr Noi was the only ‘loyalist’ on the Board, and he wore dark glasses in casual clothes to look the part. Aubriet shifted in his seat. This looked like a make-shift office to him, and Stella had driven him personally to the meeting point. He reminded Aubriet to project confidence, else all would be lost if Mr Noi walked away.
At length, Mr Noi spoke. “You are not welcomed by the Board here. They seek to dispose of the assets of the company and file for chapter 11. The management is rife with corruption and the politics are about personal gains, not the organization interests. The only reason why it hasn’t fallen apart sooner is because they haven’t reached a consensus on how the plunder is to be shared.” Aubriet shook as he heard this.
What did I sign myself up for? It’s a nightmare…
Mr Noi leaned back. “You shudder. Yes – that would be an expected response. Stella and I have worked out a plan for you. I will buy you some time. You will be presented before the board in two months’ time. By then, you will need to lift the company out of this quagmire by securing the supply line, fixing the production line and pacifying the labour union. Stella has arranged for these three problems to be solved by Thomas, Rian and herself. Your key task is getting the finances sorted out with the banks, creditors and give the company a lifeline. I have managed to get the Deputy Financial Controller to co-operate with us on this. He wants out.”
Aubriet’s eyes narrowed. “What exactly are we talking about here?”
Mr Noi shook his head. “Isn’t it obvious? The management has been cooking the books. From round-tripping, to asset misappropriation and every fraudulent technique you can think of. It’s your baptism of fire Aubriet, you have exactly two months to unravel the stink. Pull the truth out of the falsified financial statements, deal with the fraudulent monoliths and re-start the company. Are you up to it, Managing Director-Designate Aubriet?”
Aubriet’s head spun.
Are you up to it? It was the voice of the Hydra turned doppelganger once more… and they are right… Am I cut out for this ?
* * *
“Where in the world am I?” exclaimed Aubriet in astonishment as he stumbled out of the portal. It did not seem real. Aubriet seemed to remember that he already had an audience with the Elves earlier, what was his name… the head of the council? And why was he here in this funny forest all of a sudden?
The woodlands was a fair-sized one, or so it was reasonable for him to assume; no matter where he looked he could see nothing except trees, from big, burly oaks to slender birches, to the thick heather and wildflowers that submerged the forest ground in some two feet of lush foliage. A fine mist hung in the air like a veil; the sky above was a pale, sleepy blue, unmarred by any sign of clouds. Birdsong floated in a leisurely trickle through the air, and there were brief scuffling sounds as some small animal fled through the foliage from the strange personage and the huge grey stallion which had apparently fallen out of the sky. It was very much like the forests in which Aubriet had spent much of his life back in Bretunia, with one rather striking exception – every leaf, every tree-trunk, every blade of grass and flower petal, was pure white. The waters glimmered a stone’s throw away, a peculiar sight to behold.
“It’s the edge of the Elven Whitewood Isle, Aubriet,” jingled Sheja in a rather short-tempered voice. “Or didn’t you notice that? And I’m not here to spoon-feed you. It’s your quest – do what you must. In case you haven’t noticed, the Elves have sent you a message. Go seek out Crimson of the Elves. Look to the mountains on your right. Good day.” With that, Sheja blinked, and the medallion darkened.
The abode of elf Crimson was just a stone throw’s away and it did not take long for Aubriet to locate Crimson for the elf was waiting for his arrival, and entertainment was the order of the day, so the elf had cheekily said! Crimson spared no time in niceties, and summarily sent Aubriet on his way for his ‘test’ with a snap of his fingers.
Zap… Zap…
Aubriet began orientating himself to his surroundings. To his horror several tendrils of grey-blue smoke were sinuously winding their way into the wind from the mountain peak. The earth rumbled and sent him sprawling. Suddenly, the ground was jerking and jolting violently. Aubriet grabbed the nearest rock and clung onto it. Aubriet glared at the volcano’s ridged brown side vehemently. A loud snapping sound, like the crack of a huge whip, shuddered over the land, and the mouth of the fire-mountain coughed up several orange-red spears of liquid flame. The smell of burning sulphur wafted uninvited to Aubriet’s nostrils. Aubriet whipped his head wildly from side to side – there was nowhere to run. The entire island would be swallowed by the eruption – there was only the sea. But it would turn into a heated, bubbling frenzy once the lava touched it!
There isn’t anywhere else, thought Aubriet grimly. I have to get out of this alive. I’ll have to risk it.
Since the reign of King Arthur’s, the Knights of Camelot had grown in numbers until they formed a full Order. As an Order they were entitled to full military education instead of being sent into battle willy-nilly, using whatever skills they might have picked up. As the King’s son, Aubriet was required to set an example for all the novices, and thus he was proficient in all the skills he had learned up until the time he had left the castle, and that included swimming. Because of this, Aubriet had a choice – he could swim in full armour if he had to, and be fully armed for whatever met him later, or he could take off the armour to increase his speed in his attempt to outrun the lava flow.
He weighed the odds quickly and decided he would swim with the armour. If the lava caught up with him he would have to sink below the surface to the cooler water below – hot water would float since it was lighter – and try to hold his breath until it was safe to go up. He stared at the volcano; rocks were raining down from its peak like snow, and a heavy, black plume of sooty smoke had swarmed into the air above it. The rumbling was thunderous, deafening; even so there was still some time before it would go. Aubriet pulled off the metal guards on his gauntlets, threw off his shoes, helmet, cloak and cuirass – breast-plat and back-plate fastened together. After a brief debate, he took off the chest-plate as well, leaving only his chainmail shirt. When he had discarded all the steel he could safely get rid of, he plunged into the sea and swam furiously, but alarmed to find that the raging current was very much against him.
The volcano rumbled a little longer, then, in a huge resounding bellow sending a shock to Aubriet’s ears that made him scream in pain, a fiery maelstrom exploded from its upper half, raining blackened debris several miles around. The force of the explosion was so great that all the rocks flew past Aubriet as he desperately fought the sea, careening over his head into the distant ocean with a host of titanic splashes. A second mighty blast sent half the mountain flying into the air. The sky had turned inky from the smoke and the smell was terrible.
And then the lava came.
It did not so much flow down the sides of the mountain as it was thrown. Orange-red globules sprayed out across the island in a deadly patter and spouted into the churning sea; the collective sound of the steam that hissed from their contact was like a high, shrill scream. The water began to bubble and boil; Aubriet cried out in pain as the steaming water wrapped its fingers about him.
Feverishly, he struck out with all his might, pulling against the tide. A furious wind had begun to blow, swirling the black sooty smoke in with the clouds; ash and dust formed a thick, viscous layer on the ferocious surface of the sea. The dust whipped madly into Aubriet’s eyes; the gale dove into the sea and folded it over the knight’s puny body so that he was thrown almost directly on top of a glob of cooling lava. Grimly, Aubriet pressed on, ignoring the pain and surety that he was being fried, roasted, toasted and boiled to a soggy crisp.
Earth, wind, sea and fire began to battle on the surging, swelling ocean floor. Aubriet was tossed about helplessly on the heaving sea, pelted by the falling debris, flung about like a rag doll on the whirling wind which was already showing signs of spiraling into a typhoon. Without consciously realizing it, Aubriet begun to mutter a prayer in his mind. El Shaddai, Holy and Divine, grant thy child in peace to dwell; grant that he forgiven be; grant that he shall come to pass, Thy words my comfort, O Thou art. El Shaddai, Holy and Divine.
He swung his arms in rhythm with the words. His entire consciousness was fixed upon them, fixed upon the prayer as though it were a mantra. He was completely unaware of the pain in his shoulders, of the stinging water on his scalded legs and chest. He was not even aware that the boom of the explosion had quite deafened him temporarily; in fact he shut his eyes to keep out the dust and subconsciously sealed his sense of smell against the stink of burning brimstone. He was moving through the water on faith alone, on the simple assurance that he would live through the grace of his God.
Buffeted along by the raging wind and sea, Aubriet was soon swallowed deep into unconsciousness. When he opened his eyes once more, he was once again on the shore of an island, face-down in the sand, being lapped gently by glittering warm waves. He blinked once, tenderly twitching one finger. With great effort he turned onto his back.
“I’m alive,” he whispered in wonder. Then he leapt up with a whoop of joy. “I’m alive!” he cried. “Arrgh!” he then exclaimed, doubling over and falling back down onto the sand.
Alright Aubriet. Sheja murmured within the medallion. That’s not too bad. On to the next task then. Crimson, head of the Whitewood Elven Council hinted his approval of you by signaling me magically. They were observing your feats from the Elven towers. Crimson was amused, but he cautioned that the quest ahead is the main act. So be prepared… and, oh? What’s wrong?
“What’s wrong? What’s wrong? My legs have been cooked, my arms have been dislocated, my head is full of hot pokers and my chest has been skinned and you ask me ‘what’s wrong’?!” Aubriet groaned, twisted into a tight knot on the beach. “Death would have been more merciful. Could you maybe conjure up a hatchet and swing it into my head?”
“It’s tempting,” sniffed Sheja, “but I’m supposed to keep you alive, not end your suffering. Stand up.”
“I can’t,” moaned Aubriet.
“Don’t be a baby,” said Sheja implacably. “All your life you have been told you can’t. It has been ingrained into your psyche. For once, believe that you can! Come on, get to your feet. No wonder they don’t have male galans. A few scratches and you’re begging death.”
“A few scratches?” exclaimed Aubriet indignantly. Nevertheless he gathered up his aching bones and balanced himself unsteadily on his feet, leaning heavily on a nearby tree. This island was a great deal more pleasant than the previous one. It was covered with greenery so thick that the branches of the trees formed an interlocking canopy over forest ground.
And oh, look! That’s what is left of the volcano after the eruption, and the waters have filled the void and formed a nice little lake! Nice ending for this first illusory test, Aubriet. Time to snap out of this magical illusion!” With a bright flash of light not unlike the one preceding the teleportation from the Tower of Dreams, Aubriet and Crimson appeared at the foot of an Elven Tower.
One who seeks the balde of elements must be worthy of it. You must face a test before you can lay your hands on the fabled sword. Ever wonder why it is called the Blade of Elements?
Suddenly lightning cackled and the rains came. The waters splashed over Aubriet’s face as he looked up. This time it felt real, Aubriet heaved. This is no illusion – the main quest is about to begin!
Workplace Coaching Inquiry by Coach Tom: You’ve uncovered your lifetime mission. Who would you choose and how will you persuade them to join you?
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