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Jasper wasn’t fond of heights but he forced himself to look down. His foot was resting on something solid but he couldn’t see anything.
‘There’s something here,’ Jasper said, moving his foot from side to side to see how wide it was.
‘What is it?’ Dekon asked as he leaned forward to peer over as well.
‘Careful,’ Jasper warned as more of his weight was transferred to the unseen object. ‘I think it’s some sort of step or path.’
‘Of course, an invisible path,’ Dekon said with a nod as if it was something he encountered on a daily basis. ‘That makes sense.’
‘Really?’ Jasper queried as he brought his other foot down and allowed his full weight to settle on the surface. It seemed quite a wide area but he felt a surge of nerves when the warf let go and jumped down to join him. He cringed as the warf’s solid bulk landed next to him. The path did not shudder nor sink and Jasper began to feel a little less nervous.
‘It’s a test of faith and courage,’ Dekon said with a knowing nod. ‘I’ve heard of something like this being used in the final stage of becoming a wizard.’
Jasper didn’t reply immediately. He was too busy trying not to grab hold of the warf to keep himself steady. The path seemed wide enough but his brain refused to believe that he was safe. Now that they were a step away from the edge of the cliff the fall seemed even further than it had before.
‘Well, it’s definitely a test of both,’ Jasper said, wondering if throwing a stone ahead would show where the path was. He didn’t consider himself scared of many things but the desire to crawl instead of walk was almost overwhelming.
The warf reached back up to the cliff and grabbed a broken branch off a bush. He stepped forward and banged it on the invisible path in front of him. He worked out in a sweeping motion that reminded Jasper of a blind man he had once seen. Each bang was rewarded with a solid sound of wood hitting rock.
‘Looks safe enough to me,’ Dekon said with a shrug and began walking, testing with the branch as he went. Jasper followed behind and tried not to look down.
‘Recalculating.’
Jasper heard the map but couldn’t focus enough to get the question in his mind out in words. What was the map talking about now?
‘The path stops here,’ Dekon said as he stopped and hit the branch against the invisible path.
‘It stops?’ Jasper asked and tried to keep the fear from his voice. ‘Did we fail the test or something?’
Jasper dared to step forward so that he was standing next to Dekon and gulped when he saw they were standing in the middle of the ravine. He felt a shiver run down his back as he hoped the path back to the cliff hadn’t vanished as well.
‘There’s a wall of some sort here,’ Dekon said as he banged the stick over and over at something solid. The bang-bang of the stick on stone was beginning to get on Jasper’s nerves but it was the warf’s calm manner that bothered him most. How could he stand so easily in the middle of nothing and not seem worried?
‘What do you think it is?’ Dekon asked him.
‘Me?’ Jasper queried. ‘How would I know? You’ve been in this land longer than I have.’
‘Map. Distance to destination, please,’ Dekon asked.
‘A test of courage is not done alone,’ the map announced. ‘You must both overcome your fear to proceed.’
Jasper looked at Dekon and saw that the warf wasn’t really as calm as he sounded. Fear lurked at the edges of the warf’s eyes but he stood straight and relaxed.
Jasper gulped and took a deep breath then let it out slowly. Sure, he was on an invisible path but he hadn’t fallen, yet, and it seemed safe enough. He felt a calmness spread over him as he took a step forward to investigate the barrier in their way. His hands met a solid wall and as he worked across it he found he was no longer worrying about where he was. The surface didn’t feel like rock though and he searched his memory for something that matched it.
‘It’s a door,’ he announced as he felt the grain of the wood with his fingertips. If it was a door then there had to be a way to open it. He felt around and a smile curled the corners of his mouth as his hand touched a wooden handle. He paused briefly then pushed down on it and moved forward to open it.
Beyond the door was a thick mist but Jasper wasn’t stopping now to consider what might or might not be in that mist. He figured it had to be better than standing on an invisible path suspended over a raging river hundreds of feet below.
‘The door closed on its own,’ Dekon said as he followed Jasper through. The warf was feeling around in the mist. ‘And it’s gone.’
‘At least the ground here is solid,’ Jasper said, wafting away some mist and seeing grass and dirt beneath his feet.
‘You have reached your destination,’ the map announced in a tone that said it had finished its work for the day.
The mist began to clear and a lush green landscape appeared. It was a lot warmer here and judging by the fruit-laden trees and brilliant sunshine it wasn’t winter either. They were standing in an orchard and Jasper could see rolling hills in the distance. Wherever this was it was huge.
‘Are we in Terra?’ Jasper wondered aloud. The fruit trees looked familiar yet a little different. Then he shook his head. ‘No, it was winter back there too.’
‘It’s not Warfdon either,’ Dekon added. ‘It’s mostly rocks and mountains there. Not a lot of greenery in my home world.’
‘Well, we’re not going to see much standing in an orchard,’ Jasper said, looking around and picking the direction that seemed the closest to the edge of the orchard.
‘Agreed,’ Dekon said and followed Jasper’s lead. ‘I guess we’re looking for a well of some sort.’
They emerged from the trees and the heat of the sun warmed them instantly. It was definitely not winter here.
‘I don’t see a well, but there’s a statue over there,’ Jasper said, and pointed to a tall stone statue of a man that stood on top of a small hill ahead of them. There were no other signs of habitation or settlement anywhere. He couldn’t see any houses, or smoke drifting into the sky from chimneys. The only sounds Jasper could hear were birds and a slow meandering stream to his left as it tumbled across rocks.
‘It’s as good a place as any to start,’ Dekon agreed.
The stream looked to have originated up the hill and they followed it up the gentle slope.
‘Do you reckon it’s drinkable?’ Dekon asked. ‘I left the water-skin back in the wagon.’
‘I’m not trying it,’ Jasper replied, suddenly aware of the heat and how thirsty he was.
Up ahead the water was pouring gently out of a small opening in the side of the hill and they left the sound of it behind as they continued to climb. It hadn’t looked such a large hill from back at the orchard and Jasper turned to look back. The orchard seemed small and distant now and this land, wherever it was, went for miles in every direction.
‘Nearly there,’ he muttered to himself to keep motivated. He hoped the climb was worth the effort. It had become more and more rocky as they went and now there was barely any grass at all.
‘At least we’ll get a good view from up there. If there’s a well around we’ll see it,’ Dekon said, and his expression said that he too was looking for a good reason to continue climbing.
The statue was now immense and they trudged up the last few feet to reach the top of the hill. They stood next to the statue and barely came up to the top of the man’s boot. Jasper banged it with his fist and it echoed.
‘It’s hollow,’ Jasper said in surprise.
‘Well, that’s an impressive view,’ Dekon said as he sat down and rested against the statue’s boot.
Jasper sank down next to him and had to agree. The land went so far in every direction that it faded into a haziness and as far as Jasper could see it was totally uninhabited.
‘How are we supposed to find a well in all of this?’ he asked, and felt the edges of doubt creeping up on him again.
‘There’s something odd up here,’ Dekon said. ‘I can hear the stream again.’
Jasper looked at where Dekon was pointing. The statue stood on a massive stone prominence on the flat-topped hill. Just over the edge of the huge slab of rock a gentle mist rose in a swirling pattern. He stood up and walked to the edge of the rock. The rock had been cut to form steps down to a slightly lower portion of the hill and at the bottom of the steps lay the oddest thing Jasper had seen so far.
It was a second statue. It was another man, and would have been just as tall as the one behind him — if it wasn’t sunken into the rock. The statue’s arms were raised and the only part above ground was the statue’s head and half of each of the arms. The arms stuck out of the rock a short distance from the head on two sides of a large hole in the ground. The head was at one end and water poured out of the rock between all three parts of the statue.
The water tumbled into the hole and it was filled almost to the top. A whirling, swirling mist rose slowly from the water’s surface and was blown away by the gentle breeze that swept across the top of the stone hill.
‘I think we’ve found the well,’ Jasper said quietly.
Both he and the warf went slowly down the steps and walked over to the well. They walked around it twice before stopping opposite the head.
‘Okay, so we’ve found the well,’ Dekon said. ‘It doesn’t look very wise. Are we supposed to just ask it a question?’
‘Arlo said it could answer any question,’ Jasper reminded him. ‘Back home we threw coins in a well and wished for what we wanted.’
Dekon looked at Jasper as if he were mad. ‘You threw money in a well and made wishes? Did you get what you wished for?’
Jasper coloured a little with embarrassment. ‘Um... no, I don’t recall ever getting my wish.’
‘Perhaps you should have kept your money and used it to buy what you wanted,’ Dekon suggested.
‘Jasper is partly right,’ a voice said from behind them.
Both Jasper and Dekon turned instantly and saw Arlo standing behind them. He was taller than Jasper and there was no blue haze around him.
‘You’re real then,’ Jasper said, not really surprised.
Dekon, however, looked confused and took the blue stone out of his pocket and held it up.
‘Do you go in and out of the stone as you wish?’ Jasper asked.
‘I was never in the stone,’ Arlo replied with a shake of his head. He waved his hand around the surrounding countryside and then pointed at the tall statue. ‘I live here. You were banging on the walls of my home just a few moments ago. Some call me the Well Watcher.’
Jasper let that sink in as his brain immediately started throwing questions at him but Arlo pointed to the tall statue.
‘We probably should take this conversation inside for some refreshments. It’s hot out here.’
Jasper looked at the well. All he wanted to do was find out how to get rid of his magic or go home. A sudden thought occurred to him and he wondered which one he wanted more. If he went home he would leave this place behind forever and even though he had only been here a few days it seemed like it was a part of him. Did he really want to walk off and never think of Elvale again? Yet if he stayed, and found a way to remove the curse, then what did he do? Settle down in a town like Dekon had and find something to do while he lived his life in Elvale? Was he supposed to just sit back and watch while the black queen ruled so harshly over the people?
His musings and confusion were interrupted by seeing Dekon following Arlo towards the towering statue. He caught up with them when they reached the steps and followed them into a small door that stood open in the side of the huge boot.
Jasper had expected the inside of the statue to be dark but as soon as they entered both Jasper and Dekon stood and stared. There was a spiral staircase just in front of them, leading up the leg of the statue, but that wasn’t what had their attention. The walls of the statue looked solid from the outside but on the inside they were invisible. They could see right out across the land in every direction. It was as if the entire statue was built out of glass.
‘Come on up to the living room,’ Arlo said as he led the way up the steps. There were a lot of them and Jasper felt tired just looking at them.
‘I wish we were at the top of the stairs,’ Dekon muttered and looked hopefully at Jasper.
Nothing happened.
‘Alas, even wish magic doesn’t work here. No magic of any sort can exist near the well,’ Arlo explained. ‘The well will absorb any magic for as far as you can see across the land. That’s why there are no other dwellings in sight.’
Jasper felt a sigh of relief run through him. He had forgotten what it was like to not worry about magic even though it had only been a matter of days. Here at the well he was back to being just an ordinary person and it was nice. Even trudging up the steps seemed a small price to pay for such freedom.
They finally arrived at the top of the stairs into what Jasper could only assume was the body of the statue. It looked like any typical living area with a sofa and several chairs and rows of books on shelves.
Arlo fetched a jug of water and some cups then they all sat down. Jasper took a long drink while staring out at the view and Arlo continued his explanation.
‘I used the stone to keep an eye on what was going on out in the other worlds and to contact my fellow wizards who may be travelling the lands. But when Melani became queen I instructed that the stone be hidden in Dragon Tower. She would have used it to trace the location of the well. All maps were banned from leading anyone here again.’
‘But surely if they’ve been here before they know where it is anyway,’ Dekon asked, and looked to be struggling to keep up with the explanation.
Arlo shook his head. ‘This is not an actual place. It is a destination.’
Now Jasper was as confused as Dekon looked.
‘This land is anywhere and everywhere but also nowhere,’ Arlo continued as he saw their expressions. ‘The journey to the well is not fixed and requires the traveller to show their worthiness to ask their question. If they are not worthy then the journey will never end and they won’t reach the well but if they are the journey could be as short as a dozen steps.’
‘But if the queen isn’t worthy she wouldn’t have found it anyway,’ Jasper pointed out.
‘The rules don’t apply to wizards of certain power,’ Arlo said with a shake of his head. ‘All they need is a map to request the destination but no wizard can override my ban on the maps — not even Melani.’
‘Why?’ Dekon asked. ‘If you’re more powerful than her then why are you hiding here instead of removing her from power?’
Arlo smiled. ‘I wish I was more powerful than Melani. No, it’s just because I created the maps in the first place. As creator they look to my instructions first.’
Dekon was frowning deeply and looked to be struggling to find a way to say what he was thinking. ‘And you were here the whole time we were talking back in the library.’
Arlo nodded and Jasper understood the warf’s concern.
‘Which means we could have asked you, then you could have asked the well and told us the answer,’ Jasper said with a questioning lilt that bordered on an accusation. ‘There was no need for us to trek all this way.’
‘A common misconception,’ Arlo replied, and not looking at all bothered by Jasper’s tone. ‘The well demands payment for its answers. I cannot give that payment for you.’
‘What sort of payment?’ Dekon asked, and glanced at Jasper. ‘You mean he was right to want to throw money into it?’
‘Not quite,’ Arlo said in a slightly mysterious way. ‘The journey, overseen by the map, is part of the payment but to get the answer to your question you need to sacrifice something.’
Images of goats being thrown into volcanos leapt to Jasper’s mind and if Dekon’s expression was any indication his own imaginings were far worse.
‘What sort of sacrifice?’ Jasper asked. He didn’t recall seeing any goats and, even if there was one, would he have the stomach to do such a thing?
‘It must be something that is very important to you,’ Arlo replied.
‘Like a gem-studded dagger,’ Dekon suggested hopefully.
‘Perhaps if it was a family heirloom given to you on the day of your forebear’s death and it came with a promise to keep it safe forever,’ Arlo didn’t seem convinced as he looked at the small dagger hanging from Dekon’s belt. ‘It looks rather new.’
‘Then we have nothing to give,’ Jasper said with a sigh. ‘I brought nothing with me from my old life.’
‘Don’t be so sure,’ Arlo said. ‘The map does not let anyone enter this land if they do not carry the item that can be given.’
Jasper and Dekon looked at each other then began to pile their worldly belongings in front of them. There wasn’t much. A dagger, a few gold coins, a rusty old nail, the map, the blue stone, the grey stone that he had thought was the blue stone, a box of tinder sticks and the black marble drift stone.
‘Well, that’s it,’ Dekon said. ‘Which one is it?’