Chapter 3 - Into the Forest
Jasper stood still for a moment, thinking hard about everything the fairy had said. She was right; it was a dangerous quest, but one that Jasper was sure was worth it. He couldn't go back to his regular life knowing that there were magical creatures in the world, and no matter how tricky the tasks were he would do them. He was sick of being the one who couldn't join in. He was going to go and have the first adventure of his life and get out of this place. Being free to go, and to get his wish of being just like everyone else was more than he could have dreamed of and he wasn’t about to give up on the chance.
Quickly he grabbed the floating map from mid air and studied the lines on it which showed him which way to go. Amethyst had been right; the dark forest wasn't far from here. It lay on the other side of the train tracks which passed by the town’s school, and he would have no problem getting there. He’d seen those trees before, from his window as he’d watched the children playing in the school yard in the distance, and he’d always thought they looked huge and terrifying. Going in there wasn’t something he was jumping at the chance to do, but if it meant he would be granted his one and only wish then he had to at least try to complete the tasks.
Moving quickly before he could change his mind, Jasper slipped through his door and made his way down to the coffee shop on the floor below. He didn’t try to move silently; he was sure his Father was still awake, waiting for him to go down and start his work. Even after all these years Mr Grind still kept close watch on him and so to get out of the shop tonight he was going to have to be very careful. He jumped down the stairs one by one, his feet making no more sound on the hard wood than a mouse, and strolled into the shop area. He’d have to find something to put some snacks in, and water, too, for his long journey. Jasper looked around for something suitable and his eyes fell on a glowing bundle on the counter. It shone with the same pale pink light as the map and Jasper knew immediately it was another gift from Amethyst. He moved quickly towards it and found a rucksack filled with water bottles, sandwiches and snacks, all the perfect size for him. He looked upwards to the sky, hoping Amethyst could hear him as he whispered his thanks.
Now all there was left to do was to find a way out. It seemed Amethyst had fixed that for him, too. A trail of light led him to a hole in the wall near the front door. It looked as though it had been freshly chewed there by some unknown rodent, and it was the perfect size for him to slip through. He took one last look behind him as he climbed through the hole, listening to the distant snores that meant Mr. Grind had fallen asleep, before pushing himself through and disappearing into the night.
Jasper made his way to the edge of the forest without using the map, wishing he'd thought to bring a torch with him. The way over had been lit by streetlights but now that he was here, looking into the dark gloom of the forest, he'd have given anything for a little light. For a second he considered going back home, but despite his fears he was excited by the idea of his adventure and so he reached into his backpack and pulled out the map, determined to carry on his journey.
He looked at the glowing paper, studying the lines on it which would take him to his destination, but as he stepped forward it jerked out of his hands and floated in mid-air in front of him, just as it had done in his bedroom when Amethyst had made it appear. It glowed with pale pink light which reminded Jasper of Amethyst's skin, and which lit the path ahead just enough for him to see where he was going.
The map floated forward a little, away from Jasper and along the path and as he followed it he understood that it was magical and would lead him to his first task without him having to look at it.
Jasper walked determinedly along the dimly lit path behind the magical map for what seemed like hours, stopping only to sip some water and munch on half a jam sandwich. Noises in the bushes at either side of him made him jump and the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he imagined huge rats and snakes lurching out of the shadows towards him. He kept his eyes to the path, refusing to look into the darkness lest he spy a pair of eyes staring back at him. The sun had begun to peek over the horizon up ahead when the map suddenly stopped, rolled itself up, and wedged itself back inside the backpack.
“I must have made it to the first task,” Jasper whispered to himself, startling himself with the sound of his own voice after the hours of silence, and he stepped forward gingerly, pushing his way past some low hanging branches which were blocking his view of the path ahead. He didn't know what he had expected to see when he arrived here, but the sight that appeared in front of him was far from anything he could have imagined. There were hundreds upon hundreds of people; not regular sized humans like you or I, but tiny people, all 6 inches high like Jasper, running around each other, pulling on hundreds of ropes which they lashed to nearby trees and pulled tight, securing them in place.
Jasper blinked his eyes several times, rubbing them to make sure what he was seeing was real. He couldn't look away from these tiny people; he'd never seen anyone his size before last night, and now he'd not only seen Amethyst the fairy, but hundreds of people who looked just like him. It was a strange feeling to him, standing next to people who didn't tower over him, and he was frozen to the spot, his eyes darting from person to person, taking everything in.
A loud and terrifying roar made him jump and fall backwards onto the muddy ground behind him. He looked around for its source, his eyes taking in not only the people in front of him but also what they were doing in the clearing. He'd been so busy looking at all the people that he hadn't been paying attention to what they were trying to secure with their ropes. His eyes traveled upwards to the treetops high above him, and fell upon the most terrifying thing he had ever seen; a huge figure dressed in armour as black as coal was fighting against the ropes. As Jasper watched it fell to its knees and looked at him with red eyes that glowed like the embers of a fire. He couldn't see a face behind the helmet it wore: only wisps of black smoke surrounding those evil eyes. Jasper had no doubt in his mind; this was the Dark Knight. The map had been right to stop him here; his first task was in this clearing and he had no time to prepare himself. He had to act now to help all these people.
Quickly coming to his senses, he scanned the huge figure for what he was looking for. Yes, there! He spotted a glint of silver around the Knight's neck and knew that that was where the Dark Dagger was hanging. He shot into the clearing, making for the knight’s neck, ignoring the shouts of surprise echoing around him as the people spotted him running. As he made his way quickly towards the struggling figure, he heard the people calling to each other, some whispering as he passed.
“What do we do now we have him pinned down?” One voice called; they'd trapped the knight and had no idea how to defeat him. If Jasper didn't act fast then they'd all be in grave danger.
“Who is that?“ Another voice whispered as Jasper zoomed past, determined to complete his task before his bravery faded.
“It can't be... Can it? The prophesy?”
“We're saved!”
“The Knight is too strong! We cannot hope to hold him much longer!”
Jasper dived towards his target, grabbing on to the black armour which glowed purple and green as the light from the morning sun began to hit it. It reminded Jasper of a rain beetle, how the colours shifted as he pulled himself up the slippery surface, falling a few inches as the Knight struggled. He was sweating now, wishing he had left his backpack on the ground before beginning his ascent. Quickly, not caring for the contents he slipped it off and heard a thud as it hit the ground which was now far below him. He was sure his water bottles had burst, but he didn't have time to care about that now. He felt light and able to make his climb much more easily. Only a few more inches and he'd be there.
With an almighty roar the Knight broke the ropes holding his right hand down. Jasper panicked, knowing that it was only a matter of seconds before he was thrown from the Knight's body. He doubled his efforts, picked up the pace. The Knight knocked some of the people below out of his way, freeing up more of the ropes and he began to stand up.
“He's getting loose!” Voices from below called. “We can't hold him any longer!” The people below began to flee, the ones left holding ropes abandoning them and running for their lives. Jasper couldn't afford to look down now. He was almost at the Knight's neck and he could see out of the corner of his eye the hand coming for him.
With a last burst of energy he launched himself upwards, grasping at the chain he could see round the Knight's neck. It came loose from under the armour and Jasper fell, holding on to the necklace like a rope. The chain extended to its full length, and with a jerk Jasper felt his descent halt. For a split second he was suspended there hanging on to the chain with the dagger swinging on it like a pendant, then he felt it snap and he fell down, down towards the hard ground below.
Chapter 4 - The Princess and the old woman
Jasper braced himself, waiting to feel the ground hit him hard on the back, but the thud never came. Instead, he landed somewhat softly into several pairs of arms which were interlinked and ready to catch him. He looked around into the faces of the people who had saved him, who were looking at him with a mix of surprise and awe. Above him, the Dark Knight froze with his red eyes wide, clutched at his throat as though searching for the necklace, and suddenly burst into a cloud of black smoke and purple-green dust which was carried away on the breeze. The clearing seemed to lighten as though a shadow had been lifted, and Jasper let out a breath of relief. He had done it. He had defeated his first enemy, and retrieved the first trinket.
The people holding him lowered him to the ground, and someone brought his dripping backpack to him. Nobody said a word: they all appeared to be in as much shock as Jasper was, and stood around him in a circle, taking in the sight of him.
“Um, hello,” Jasper said, breaking the silence and trying to appear braver than he felt. Though these people looked more like him than anyone he'd ever known, they were still strangers and he wasn't sure he could fully trust them. They did save me from hitting the ground, though, he thought, and smiled shyly round at everyone in what he hoped was a reassuring way.
Movement in the crowd made him turn, and he watched as a young girl flanked by two boys, all in full fighting armour, pushed their way towards him.
“I’m Princess Sapphire.” The girl announced pompously, inspecting him from head to toe. “You’re Jasper?”
Jasper was startled. How had she known his name? This whole thing was getting weirder by the second. “Y… yes,” he stammered. “Yes, I'm Jasper.”
“Then follow me.“
The girl, Princess Sapphire, turned and walked away, expecting Jasper to follow. He wasn't sure he had much choice at this point and anyway, he was too excited to have found people like him to turn away now. He'd completed the first task much quicker than he expected thanks to their help, so surely he had enough time to find out more about these people before he moved on to the next?
Jasper followed Sapphire through the forest, followed closely by her guard and those who had remained when the Dark Knight had been defeated. They walked single file along a small dirt path which wound its way through the trees. Jasper examined Sapphire as she walked ahead of him. He'd never seen a princess before, but he would have thought she'd have been wearing a long flowing gown and a tiara; not the armour made of tree bark and acorn husks that she was wearing. She didn't look much older than he did, either, and he wondered if it was normal for young princesses to go around fighting huge enemies around here. He didn’t really know what was normal anymore, to be honest.
It wasn't long before they reached another clearing in the woods, and strode out into the centre of it. The crowd behind Jasper started to get smaller as the people left the procession and made their way into houses which surrounded the clearing. Some opened doors carved into the sides of the trees and disappeared inside; some jumped down through trap doors hidden in the earth. Jasper saw other people with tiny children come out of their homes to greet the fighting party as they returned. When they spotted him, however, they stopped what they were doing and stared; they obviously weren't used to strangers around here.
Princess Sapphire stopped in the dead centre of the clearing and opened a round wooden trap door set into the dirt. Jasper peered down into the hole beneath it. It was pretty dark down there; he couldn't see the bottom, or any lights lining the way down. There was no ladder either.
“After you,” the princess said with a smile, gesturing to the dark pit. Jasper didn't think he wanted to go down there. His eyes widened in surprise and he started backing away.
“Um, no.. no thank you, I think I'll just be going now.” But the princess's guards stopped him from running, and with an exasperated sigh, pushed him into the hole.
It turned out it wasn't as deep as Jasper had thought. He fell about a foot and hit soft ground at the bottom. It was pretty light once you were down there, too. He looked to his left and saw a tunnel lined with flame torches stretching off a few feet and ending in a wooden doorway. He started along the hallway and heard three soft thumps from behind him. Sapphire and her guards had dropped down and were following him along the corridor.
“Hurry up, she's waiting for you.“ Sapphire said, and Jasper hurried along the hallway. Who was waiting for him? What was going on here? He tried asking Sapphire these things but she just gestured towards the door, motioning for him to go through. Realising that he didn't have much of an option, Jasper took a deep breath and pushed open the door.
“So, Jasper, you have come to us after all.”
A voice floated towards him as he entered what turned out to be a large and comfortably furnished room. There were carpets and cushions, many flame torches and floaty curtains hung around the dirt walls. Jasper looked around, searching for the source of the voice and his eyes fell upon an old woman sitting in a wicker chair. She, again, was no bigger than he was. Her skin was soft and pale, full of heavy wrinkles that showed her age. He looked into her eyes and realised with a start that she was blind. Milky whiteness covered where colour and pupils should have been and as the old woman stood, she used a twisted wooden cane to steady herself.
She approached Jasper and stretched out her open hand towards him. “May I?“ she asked, and Jasper knew that she meant the dagger. He was clutching it tightly in his hand, having never let go since he'd fallen from the Dark Knight's neck with it, and although the old woman looked harmless he was reluctant to give it up. He glanced behind him at Sapphire and her guards blocking the only way out, sighed, and handed over the weapon. He hoped the old woman wouldn't keep it; he needed it for his next task and without it Amethyst would never be able to make him big.
The old woman took the dagger and felt along the length of it with her long and frail fingers. “Yes, it is as I predicted. You have stolen the Dark Dagger from the Dark Knight and defeated him. You, Jasper, are the one the Prophecy spoke of.“
She handed the dagger back to him, much to his relief, and he quickly stowed it away in his backpack. “What do you mean 'the Prophecy'?“ he asked, “What Prophecy would speak of me?“
The old woman turned and seated herself in the wicker chair, her gaze falling on the flames in the hearth that Jasper knew she couldn’t really see. She was silent for a moment and Jasper wanted to ask again about the prophecy, but something made him wait, and before long the old woman turned back to him and began to explain.
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