The Ageless One: Beginnings by The Ageless Author (early reader chapter books TXT) 📖

“Doelan, I was there when you ran off. You didn’t collapse. At least…no one saw you collapse. You kept running, and as long as it took to find you…you must have been running for long time.”
It took a second for Doelan to process this. He tried to speak a couple of times but words seemed to fail him. He didn’t understand.
“But that means...Liri? How long was I gone?”
Liri swallowed again. “A week.”
Doelan lay there with a stupefied expression on his face. An entire week? He had been missing that long? What could he have done in that time?
“I’m sorry Doelan,” said Liri. “I don’t know what happened either. Are you sure you don’t remember why you were running?”
Of course Doelan remembered, though he wished he didn’t. In his stupor, he told the truth, “Yeah. Goblins.”
“Goblins?” asked Liri in disbelief. “What about them?”
Doelan was shuddering just thinking about it, “I thought I saw some.”
“In Halhor? I think other gislers would have noticed.”
“Maybe I imagined them,” said Doelan.
“What do you mean?”
Doelan thought about how to explain it. “You remember that magician?”
Liri thought about it. “Yeah, the human. He told us the story about the goblin wars.”
“Well when he told that story last nigh…I mean…I guess that night…a week ago…he told that story and…it scared me.”
“Oh,” said Liri silently. He didn’t say anything else for a few moments. Doelan waited patiently, and then Liri said, “Is that why you were running?”
“I think so. I can’t remember much, but I remember thinking that there were goblins around me. I don’t know.”
“That doesn’t explain where you were.”
“I know.”
They sat in silence for a few moments. Doelan huddled up a little. Liri looked at him with pity. They might never figure out what had happened to Doelan. Still, Doelan was worried more about something else. Something that he knew was coming. He shivered some more, very scared. Liri noticed, and realized…
“You’re afraid you’ll see goblins tonight aren’t you?”
“Yes,” Said Doelan flatly. “I know they come out at night, when it’s dark. That’s when I’ll be scared again.”
Liri thought for a moment, and then spoke, “You know Doelan, you aren’t the only one whose been afraid of things at night.”
“What do you mean?”
“This human kid who came to Halhor, who was probably just being mean, told me that there’s this kind of dark creature that hides under your bed at night. Adults can’t see them, so they can’t check for you to see if it’s safe.”
“Really?”
“No. My father told me that this is an old tale…just made up. Anyway, he also told me that, to stop being scared at night, I should count.”
Doelan stared in disbelief. “Count?”
“Yes. Count until you can’t imagine the creature anymore, because that’s where the creature is. In your imagination.”
Doelan didn’t believe it, but then, “I suppose I can try that. Did the dark creatures go away for you?”
“I don’t need to count any-more.”
Doelan still wasn’t sure about it, and Liri noticed.
“Doelan, could you at least try it? I…I don’t want you to disappear again.”
Doelan looked at Liri, who stared back nervously. Doelan didn’t want to disappear again either. He knew, for his own sake and Liri’s, he was going to have to be brave.
“Okay Liri, I’ll try.”
They smiled at each other, though secretly Doelan believed it wouldn’t work. Still, it was all he had, for he knew that he would have to face the darkness again.
Soon.
…
Awake, late at night, Doelan was scared again. Those bug eyed creatures with their bloodletting shrieks…He huddled up, as if the blankets could shield him. He was still in the hospital bed in that wing of the orphanage. He was alone, so he felt nothing to inhibit him from crying.
Every time he heard a creak, or some other noise, he imagined a goblin. He looked around. Every shadow moving made him cringe and want to hide. Then…like before…he saw what he thought was a goblin.
Crying some more, he thought…remember what Liri said. Count.
“One…two…three…” he wasn’t feeling any better, “four…five…six…” at least he wasn’t picturing goblins any-more, “seven…eight…nine…ten…” he calmed down a little, “eleven…twelve…thirteen…” he peeked out, not seeing anything. He sighed in relief that he hadn’t seen any goblins, with their empty eyes, their sharp swords… “Fourteen…fifteen…sixteen…”
He kept counting. It kept his mind off of goblins, and eventually he got to sleep.
…
He woke up the next morning, and the first thing he did was breathe a sigh of relief. The sun was out, and that was a comfort. He breathed in and out, thankful that he had gotten through the night.
“Are we feeling better?” asked the red headed Nurse with breakfast for him. She had just entered the room when Doelan looked up.
“Yes, thank you,” said Doelan, who was famished. He sat up, ready to eat.
“I don’t suppose you remember where you where?” the nurse asked as she places a wooden try filled with bacon, eggs, and water on his lap.”
“No,” said Doelan. “I still don’t.”
“Alright,” she replied before leaving.
As Doelan ate he thought about it. He didn’t know where he had gone. He wondered if he ever would.
In truth, after that day, inquiries were made, but no one ever found out where Doelan had gone. Nothing strange happened for a while, so it was eventually forgotten, if not completely. It was the mystery that was never solved. Where a young orphan had been for an entire week.
At that moment, though, Doelan was happy, thankful he had a way to fight his fears. He was also thankful for Liri, and Liri’s father. Doelan stopped eating for a moment. He suddenly felt sad that he didn’t have a father to tell him this kind of stuff. However, he was glad Liri shared his father’s advice with him, and was eager to thank Liri again and tell him how it worked.
He really was thankful.
Still, he knew his fear of goblins would haunt him for a long time. This wasn’t just an imaginary creature under the bed. The goblins were real, and it his fears of them wouldn’t go away so easily.
And someone watching him knew it, all too well.
Doelan was being observed by a mind. The person who owned that mind wasn’t watching him with physical eyes, but observing him through pure thought. She had no need to watch him in person, and as far as she was concerned she had more to learn by watching him with her mind, for what she would see in person was different than what she saw now; a boy eating bacon and eggs in a bed.
So strange, she thought, as she gazed at him. His fears of my goblins allowed him to see them. I didn’t know that was even possible. It even allowed him to get away…even if it was for a short while. What’s even more amazing, though, is that he was sent back to us. He isn’t particularly important, so far as I can tell.
Still, one more little boy in my fold will be helpful, if only by a little. And now that he has a way to block the goblins out, his fear of them shouldn’t cause any more trouble. Still, I might want to keep an eye on him. I don’t foresee him causing me too much trouble directly, but if he alerts other gislers to my presence that will set me back a while. Let’s just hope my goblins can keep him from escaping again.
Little Doelan, I’ve got my mind on you.
For now, Doelan was safe, and happy eating his breakfast. But he had caused trouble, and was bound to cause more.
****

Chapter Three
His Friend

It was a chess set of wood, but finely carved with the pieces colored purple, green and gold on one side with red, white and black for the other; the squares were green and red. It had a sort of jester, masquerade theme to it. The king was a jester sitting on a throne, and the queen was a jester woman. The bishops next to them were jesters with recently fired bows, arrows in their heads, and sad expressions. The knights were jesters trying with great difficulty to mount horses while the rooks were towers with jesters hanging upside-down from the battlements. And lastly the pawns were comedy masks, each portraying a different emotion, and a few rude faces.
It was with this chess set that Doelan and his friend Liri sat down to a game. By this time Liri was thirteen, dark haired, and a little taller than Doelan, who was twelve. The two of them were dressed in cloaks, sitting down in a clearing with one tree in it. In the distance a set of quaint marble cottages, a city of sorts, could be seen, and on the other side of the boys the sun was low, casting a yellow light over everything. Doelan and Liri were looking at the game, ready to make their moves, well, for the most part anyway.
“Are you sure you want to play this game?” asked Doelan. “Playing against me can’t be too hard.”
“Oh come on Doelan,” said Liri. “You’re getting better.”
“I can tell,” said Doelan sarcastically. “Last time we played instead leaving me with just my king, like you first did, you left me with my king and a pawn.”
After a second of silence they laughed.
“Well, that is better,” said Liri. “Even if just a little. Now, it’s your move.”
Doelan thought for several seconds and then moved the pawn in front of the king forward one space.
“You think about it that long?” Liri inquired. “That’s been your first move every time we’ve played. I know it’s good to think about it, but only if you do something clever. Moving the same first piece every time isn’t clever.”
“Well,” Doelan hesitated. “I don’t know I...”
“Doelan!” cried a boy’s voice from in the distance.
“Oh,” said Doelan. “That’s Erid. I guess I’d better get back to the orphanage.”
“Already?” asked Liri, checking the sky. “It’s hardly sundown.”
“You know how Erid is,” said Doelan. “He’s really annoying that way; worse than a pack of flies.” he began to imitate buzzing noises. “Bzzzzz.”
“Doelan you really shouldn’t disrespect to your elders like that.”
“Ah yes, everyone says that Erid, Mayor Aralor, and all the others are our elders, but I still can’t believe it. I mean...”
“Is this the problem where you think they don’t look that much older yourself?”
“Well, Erid is supposed to be thirty two, and the mayor is supposed to be Forty one, but they look the same to me. And they look exactly the same as the other elders too, even though they’re supposed to be over a hundred!”
“Well that’s a common thing for our people. When you’re a gisler you stop aging when you turn fifteen. That’s why outsiders call us the ageless ones.”
Doelan grunted. He knew that, but it still seemed odd. He couldn’t really understand why he felt that way. If he had known his parents then maybe they could have told him. If Doelan had a