Barkwood

Barkwood

Barkwood Trilogy Book 3

André Ferero

Published by Fabella Press at Smashwords

Copyright 2020, André Ferero

Smashwords Edition, License Notes:

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Dedicated to Annie.

Thank you for your love,

support, patience and understanding.

Without you, nothing would have been possible.

Chapters:

1: Torn Between Two Worlds

2: A Place Of Darkness

3: The Return

4: Furtive Journey North

5: The Way Of Fire

6: Outburst

7: The Kingswood Secret

8: The Rocks

9: A World Of Weaklings

10: Cascade

11: Touching Fire

12: Searching In Vain

13: Fire And Water

14: Ghost

15: Ultimatum

16: Infiltration

17: Discovery

18: The Trap

19: Clanna's Wish

20: Revelation

21: Turmoil

22: A King's Death

23: A Kingdom For The Taking

24: A Change Of Plan

25: Confrontation

26: Unexpected Help

Epilogue

About The Author

1: Torn Between Two Worlds

Blaze ran blindly, crashing through the undergrowth, pushing small branches and dark leaves out of the way, ignoring the scratches on his face and arms. Behind him, only feet away, Fangar followed, his long teeth bared. He stayed on the boy's heels without much effort. Above Blaze, in the tall trees which towered over him, barks jumped from branch to branch, screaming as they leaped, moving in the same direction as Blaze. He did not lift his head to look up at them. He only ran, looking straight ahead, as if he was in a long, dark tunnel.

It felt good to be in motion, with feet falling hard on the damp forest floor and heart racing out of control, beating faster and faster in his chest with every new step he took. Running like this, like a wild animal set free, had always helped Blaze to shut off his thoughts. And a blank mind was exactly what he needed right now, even if only for a short while.

He knew the thinking, the sorting out of all the new information, would come later, probably soon. But for the time being he didn't want to try and make sense of what he was told by Arkeo. All he desired to do was to run, to feel his body working, experience the pain of exertion in his muscles and the burning of quick breaths in his lungs.

His running continued for another twenty minutes. All the way Fangar flanked Blaze, shadowing him like a dark guardian angel, concerned about the boy's safety. The barks were also still present, not understanding why Blaze needed to run, thinking it was some kind of game that human boys liked to play.

Blaze did not stop once to ask himself if he was running away from something, or towards it. All that mattered was to keep moving, to be really inside himself, hidden from the outside world within the safety of Barkwood.

Blaze reached a grassy glade and came to an abrupt halt. He shot a glance up at the fragment of blue sky that was visible beyond the highest treetops. He bent down and rested his hands on his knees, fighting for breath. Next to him Fangar also stopped, eyes trained on Blaze. From the trees King Bark and some of his bark troops drifted down to the clearing, landing lightly on the soft grass and moss.

Blaze looked at the animals surrounding him. He wondered why they had followed him. Why do they care about me? he thought. What do they see in me? Something I can't even see myself? Who is that self, anyway? Apparently someone I do not really know. A person who is from two worlds. The one I have been living in, Discordia, and the other one, where I am from, according to Arkeo. What did he call it again? Oh yes, the Crucible Kingdom, on the other side of the desert, far far away.

And parents, royal parents. A King and a Queen. How is it even possible that both of them are still alive? I thought they were dead, have even accepted it. Now I find out that they are alive and well, and that they want nothing more than to see me again. Parents. Imagine that. What are they like? And what will they think of me? Will we even get along? Or, will we be like strangers to one another?

What about Sibyl? What will happen to her if I decide to go back to the Crucible Kingdom? Wouldn't it break her heart to see me leave? How can I do that to her? She has been the only mother I've ever known. I can't just sever all ties with her. It will destroy her.

What must I do, Fang? Blaze said out loud, looking straight at the big fang and scratching his head. Or do you want me to call you Fangar from now on? According to Arkeo that is your real name. Yes, I'll call you Fangar and you can call me Prince, Blaze said and laughed. Can you believe that, Fangar? Arkeo says I'm a Prince. He must have it wrong. I've never felt like a Prince. Just look at me. I'm only a barefoot boy dressed in old clothes. Not much of a Prince, if you ask me.

Fangar barked at Blaze, as if he understood his words. He bent down and licked his feet, to tell him that there was nothing wrong with being barefoot.

It's a lot to take in, Fangar. To learn in one day that I have parents, that I'm a Prince and that I'm not really from here. It's going to take some time to get used to all of this. Maybe I never will. Maybe I just want things to stay as they are. But then, on the other hand, I would love to meet my real mom and dad. Do you think they'll even like me, Fangar?

Fangar barked twice and wagged his tail excitedly.

From behind Blaze, coming from the direction he had arrived from, he heard somebody crashing through the forest, cursing as he came closer. Blaze turned to look who it was. He saw Arkeo as he stumbled into the clearing, pulling twigs and cobwebs out of his long orange hair and wiping dust from his eyes.

There you are, Arkeo said as he saw Blaze. I thought I had lost you.

That was the intention, Blaze said. I just needed to be alone for a while.

I understand why.

Do you really?

Yes, of course. You learnt quite a few important things this morning. Unexpected things that will change your life completely. Am I right to say that the news I gave you was the reason why you ran away, Prince Blaze?

Yes. And please don't call me Prince. I'm still trying my best to get used to that idea. I mean, until recently I was called Umber. Then I was told by a woman called Gazer that my true name is Blaze. Which, I expect, you would want to call me.

Yes, of course. It's the only name I can call you. Back home, in the Crucible Kingdom, our names are very important to us. It tells people something about who we are. Take Blaze for example. When you were born and your parents saw the colour of your hair they knew you could only be called Blaze, that no other name would suit you. They also knew that your hair would give you strength, the strength and power of fire. I have never called you by any other name but Blaze.

Blaze it will be, then. As long as you leave the Prince part out.

I have no problem with that. Although, back home I will not be allowed to only call you Blaze. It is not the proper way to address the son of the King by his first name only.

Luckily we are not in the place you call home right now. We are here, in Discordia, the only home I have ever known.

You are right, Blaze. We are not in the Crucible Kingdom. I know that you don't remember anything about it, did not even know about its existence until I told you about it. But, as the Prince of the Fire People you do not have a choice but to return there with me. That was the promise I made to your parents, to find you and take you back home, to the place where you belong.

And you just expect me to turn my back on my life here, and on all the people I love? How can you even ask that of me?

I'm not the one who's doing the asking, Blaze. I am merely carrying out orders. The orders of my King and Queen. Orders I have vowed to obey until the day I die. Then, of course, there is the matter of duty as well. Being the Prince, it is your duty to return to your parents and take up your place in the kingdom, to fulfil your destiny there.

What if my destiny is not to go back there, but to stay in Discordia, to do my duty here, to help the people I know and love?

That is a possibility, Blaze, but that is secondary to your responsibility to the Crucible Kingdom. It is your destiny to rule there when your father dies. You can't ignore that, must obey the call.

I will need time to think about all of this. I want to go and meet my true parents, I really do, but I also believe that the people here in Discordia need my help right now, that I can lend a hand to bring about the changes they so much long for.

I will not disagree with that, Blaze, but we must return to the Crucible Kingdom first. Your parents believe you are dead. Imagine how eager they will be to see you once they find out that you are alive.

There's only one problem with going back there, Arkeo. As soon as I'm there my mom and dad will never allow me to come back here again. They'll be too scared of losing me once more.

Yes, you're right. Your father might still give you permission to return to Discordia when he learns what is at stake here, but your mother will never allow it. Losing you once nearly destroyed her. If she ever has to go through that again it will kill her.

Can't they come here, Arkeo?

That's not a good idea, Blaze. The trip through the desert is a dangerous one. I don't know if your mother is strong enough to survive it. And what do you think Amuz will do when he finds out that they are here? He will arrest them and imprison them immediately. Because he will see them as a threat. You know what Amuz thinks of people with hair like fire. He's scared of them.

Can't we let them know I'm alive, but that I have work to finish here first? Won't that put their minds at ease and make the waiting for my arrival easier?

I don't think so. I believe that as soon as they find out you are alive they would want to see you immediately, not wait for months, maybe even years, for you to get home. Nobody knows what is going to happen here, how long it will take to overthrow Amuz. Maybe it will never happen. Anyway, it is not really our fight.

Maybe it's not your fight, but it definitely is mine. You should make it yours as well. I thought you were friends with King Core and Queen Caru. Don't you want to see them freed and put back on the throne?

Yes, of course I do. But, nobody is even sure if they are still alive. Maybe Amuz has killed them long ago.

What if he hasn't, though? Then we can help them. By helping them Discordia will be better for everybody.

There's nothing I want more than that, but I must take you to meet your parents first. I don't have a choice.

What if I refuse to go?

Then I will have to force you.

Are you allowed to do that to your Prince?

Yes, if he defies a direct order from the King.

It sounds like my father is a real dictator.

How can you say that, Blaze? Your father wants you back home not because he's a dictator, but because he loves you.

If he really loves me he will understand that I can't just turn my back on Discordia. He should then support my decision to stay here and complete my work first.

Arkeo and Blaze fell quiet for a few moments, thinking their own thoughts, then Blaze spoke up again.

Tell me something, Arkeo. How will my parents find out that I'm still alive?

They'll only learn about it on the day they see you.

Exactly. And that's why they must not see me yet, not until I've finished what I must do here. As soon we have defeated Amuz I promise that I will leave.

No, I cannot allow that. What if something happens to you here, while you're trying to help the Discordians? How will your parents feel when they find out that I found you, only to let you get caught, or worse, killed? And how will I feel? I already thought I allowed you to die once. That knowledge, that self-blame nearly was the end of me. No, this time I will make the right decision. And that is to take you back home within the next day or two.

There must be another way, Arkeo.

No, in this case there isn't. The only right way is to go back to Fornax, to your parents. Come, let's return to Paragon's treehouse. We must prepare for the journey back.

It took Blaze and Arkeo much longer to walk back to Paragon's treehouse than it took them to reach the glade. As they walked, accompanied by Fangar and the barks, Blaze's thoughts were burning in his head, like a furnace fire threatening to leap out and consume everything standing in its way.

With every step Blaze took he was trying to find a way to stay in Discordia. A way acceptable to Arkeo. But Blaze knew, even after only knowing the mage for a few short hours, that he would not be persuaded in any way. Arkeo's mind was made up. All he had to do now was to carry out the orders of his King.

Blaze realised that the only way to defy Arkeo was to disappear. Leaving without a trace sounded easy, but Blaze knew that carrying it out would be more difficult than merely thinking about doing it.

One of the first problems he identified was a destination. All the places he knew were also known to Sibyl. She would find him without much effort. If he stayed in Barkwood, and tried to find a hiding place somewhere, the barks were bound to tell Paragon where he was. And leaving Barkwood was not safe, not with Amuz and his Enforcers looking for him.

Blaze anyway had no desire to turn his back on Sibyl and his other friends in Barkwood. He wanted to fight by their side against Amuz, not on his own. Together, he knew, they were stronger than alone.

If only Arkeo could see it his way. Why is he so adamant to go back to the Crucible Kingdom? Didn't he say that the Ferals were defeated, that there is peace there for a change, peace that is supposed to last for many years to come?

By the time Blaze and Arkeo reached Paragon's treehouse he had not yet found a way of persuading Arkeo to allow him to stay in Discordia. It seemed inevitable that he was destined to start on a journey to his birthplace within a day or two.

Outside Paragon's treehouse Sibyl waited for Blaze. Not far from her Lea stood, as well as OutCider and Ryder. Even Paragon and Keeper Bark were there. When Sibyl saw Blaze she opened her arms wide and motioned for him to come closer. Blaze put his arms around Sibyl. Her scrawny arms were wrapped around his back. She held him tight. As they stood there together Blaze tried to convince himself that everything was going to work out right.

All will be fine, child, Sibyl said, echoing Blaze's thoughts. Just you wait and see.

I don't want to leave you, Sibyl. And I don't want to leave Discordia. It's not a perfect place, but it's the only home I've ever known.

I know, Blaze. But sometimes we must do the right thing, even if it's not easy.

Then you agree with Arkeo? You also think it's best for me to return to the Crucible Kingdom?

Yes, I do.

Won't you miss me, Sibyl?

More than anything, Blaze. But when I found you that day in the Vale of Obscurity, I knew that you didn't really belong to me, that you were only a gift, given to me to look after for only a short while. I always knew the day would come when you would go your own way. Now it has, and I must let you go. I don't have a choice.

Why don't you come with us, Sibyl? I'm sure my parents will love to meet you, and thank you for taking care of me for all these years.

I would love to go with you, Blaze, but I can't. There are big things about to happen in Discordia and I know I will be needed here.

Will you ever come to visit me where I'm going Sibyl?

I don't know, Blaze. It sounds like a perilous journey to reach the kingdom where you're from, not one for an old woman like me. You'll have to return here when you want to see me again.

I will Sibyl, I promise you that. As soon as my parents will allow me to come here.

I'm glad to hear that, Blaze. I will wait for the day of your return. But now you must get ready to leave. I will help you to pack your bags.

Sibyl took Blaze's hand and led him into the treehouse. Blaze did not count the number of wooden stairs they climbed to reach the room where they had left their belongings earlier that morning. He looked at his bag and realised that it was already packed, that he was ready to leave.

Is it really that easy to exchange one life for another? Just pick up the few things which belong to me and leave? Just turn my back on all that's familiar here and go somewhere new, to a place completely foreign? Blaze shook his head in disbelief.

A few minutes later Arkeo arrived in the room. He studied the pained expression on Blaze's face and pitied him. He did not want to wrench Blaze away from his life in Discordia, but he was forced to do so. Forced by duty, by his vows to his King and Queen.

We will not leave today, Blaze, Arkeo said. You can use today to say goodbye to your friends here in the forest. Maybe we can even have a farewell meal with everybody tonight. Then we can be on our way early tomorrow morning, around sunrise. Does that suit you?

I suppose so. But, what will be even better is if we didn't have to leave.

I know, Blaze, but we must go.

Blaze sighed deeply. He picked up his bag, feeling its weight. He dropped it on the floor again and looked up at Sibyl for help.

Come with me, both of you, Sibyl said. We need to get enough supplies together for your journey through the desert. From what I've heard it's not an easy part of the trip.

Sibyl led Blaze and Arkeo back to Paragon where he stood talking to Keeper Bark and Ryder. She told him what they needed. Paragon listened attentively as she listed one item after the other. Once she finished talking Arkeo added several additional things to the list. For the rest of the day they busied themselves by preparing for the long journey to the north.

In the late afternoon Ryder approached Blaze and called him to the side.

I've never been one for saying goodbye, Blaze, so I will keep this as short as possible.

What do you mean, saying goodbye? Are you going somewhere?

Yes, Blaze, I'm on my way to Hoville. There are prisoners there who must be freed. I've had news that they will be moved soon. I can't miss that when it happens.

Who are these prisoners? Are they important?

They are close friends. If we can free them they will help us in our fight against Amuz and his Enforcers.

I hope you succeed, Ryder.

I will try my best, Blaze.

I wish I could come with you.

I know you do, Blaze, but unfortunately our roads are separating today, branching off in opposite directions. We have no choice but to follow where they lead. Hopefully they will meet up again one day.

I'm not so sure about that, Ryder. It seems as if I will go far away and never return here.

I don't think that's the way it will work out, Blaze. Remember, you can decide what will happen. You have the power to shape the future in any way you want. If you really want to return here, you will, and nobody will be able to prevent you from doing so. Never forget that you are the master of your future, and not the other way around. I am certain that we will see each other again, even if it isn't soon.

I hope you're right, Ryder.

So do I, Blaze. Anyway, it was an honour to know you, even before I found out that you are a Prince. I wish you all the best for the future and hope to see you again, when the time is right.

Ryder held his big hand out to Blaze and the boy shook it. Then Ryder pulled him closer and gave him a quick, awkward hug. The boy and the man let go of each other. Blaze watched as Ryder climbed into his saddle, fighting the tears that were threatening to roll down his cheeks. Ryder's horse walked off into the depths of the surrounding forest and he soon disappeared from sight.

That evening, around seven o'clock, everybody assembled in Paragon's treehouse dining room. Apart from Blaze, Arkeo and Sibyl, Paragon and Keeper Bark were also there, as well as Lea and OutCider. Fangar sat in a dark corner of the room, eyeing the humans. King Bark was seated on the floor, not far from Blaze, barely taking his eyes off the boy's face.

The meal went by mostly in silence, without much speaking, as if all those present were eating alone, at separate tables in different rooms. Blaze found it extremely difficult to get through the meal without revealing his true feelings. To him it felt as if he was busy getting torn apart, with his body being forced to go in one direction and his feelings in another.

He hated how he felt and wished he could control his emotions. The only way to control it, he believed, was to stay in Discordia. But, then there was always his true parents to think about as well. He had to go and meet them, had to find out where he was from, who he really was.

After the meal Blaze went to bed, but he was unable to fall asleep. Too many emotions and thoughts battered him. The feelings were mostly of loss and disbelief. Blaze was unable to accept that it was possible for his life to change so abruptly, without any warning. Why was he forced to lose so many things, in such a short time?

As he fought sleep, his thoughts dwelled on finding a solution, a viable way of living between two worlds. Blaze finally succumbed to tiredness without discovering a way out of his predicament. He had no choice but to leave everything behind at sunrise the next morning.

In the darkness of the early morning a hand shook Blaze awake. It took him a while to recognise Sibyl. He finally focused on her face. For a moment he forgot that he was about to embark on a journey far away, into the unknown. The reality of his imminent departure hit him in the chest as soon as Sibyl spoke.

It is time, Blaze. You must get ready to leave. You have a long road ahead of you.

Blaze did not want to get up, wished to stay in the warmth of his bed, where everything was safe and familiar. He did not only long to stay in his bed, he also wanted to stay in the life he had known until now. Blaze longed to continue to play his role as a simple boy, a role in which he felt comfortable. He had no desire to go away and become some fancy Prince in a kingdom he had no feelings for.

I don't want to leave, Sibyl. Can't my parents just come here to meet me?

Unfortunately not, Blaze. You must go to them.

What if I refuse?

It will break their hearts when they learn that you didn't want to meet them.

And it will break yours when I leave. You are the only mother I've ever known. How can I just leave you behind?

Because you don't have a choice, Blaze. We don't have a choice. Sometimes our destinies are bigger than us, stronger, and we must obey, no matter how it makes us feel.

Well, I can tell you that I don't feel right about leaving. Everything tells me that I must stay. That it will be bad for me to go. Shouldn't I listen to that voice in my heart? Isn't that the only voice which speaks the truth?

It's possible, Blaze, but you'll have to ignore it.

Blaze somehow found the strength to climb out of bed. He got dressed in the riding clothes which Sibyl had placed on a chair close to him. After dressing, Blaze went to the dining room and had breakfast. He didn't notice what he ate, didn't taste anything, only chewed and swallowed the food because he knew he needed the sustenance.

That morning, before saying goodbye to everybody, even time was in a hurry. It went by in a rushed blur. Only minutes before leaving, Blaze left the treehouse. All his friends waited there. Blaze felt removed from reality when he saw them, as if he wasn't really the one saying farewell.

The imminence of departure only hit him when it was time to part with Sibyl. He was unable to stop the tears. They flooded out, staining his cheeks. Blaze did not care that he was crying in front of everybody. His tears were important, necessary. He cried all of them for Sibyl.

I love you, Blaze, and always will, Sibyl said, fighting back her own tears. She held Blaze tight, wondering how she would deal with the loss of the boy who was like a son to her.

I love you too, Sibyl.

Don't take too long to come back for a visit, Blaze, Sibyl said and tried to smile, but the smile didn't want to come.

I won't, Sibyl. I promise you that.

Arkeo and Blaze climbed into their saddles. OutCider was accompanying them to the edge of the desert, so was Fangar. It was a small consolation for Blaze that he did not yet have to part with Fangar. That parting would come later and was going to be as difficult as leaving Sibyl behind.

Without any more delay OutCider led the way to the western edge of Barkwood. Above the travellers, in the branches, King Bark and his troops jumped from tree to tree. They made no sound, fully understanding what was going on. They too were sad to see the boy of fire leaving. King Bark was more than sad, he was also angry, unable to understand why the boy did not want to stay in Barkwood, the best place in the world.

2: A Place Of Darkness

Few people knew about the existence of Quarantine Island. It was a secret place, obscured not only by the dark mist that surrounded it even in daytime, but also by the lies that were so often told about its existence. Even the few people who knew that the island really existed were not always sure of its exact location. It was not difficult for them to believe that the isle was not firmly anchored to the bottom of the Sea of Storms, but that it drifted from one place to another in the surrounding ocean.

In reality Quarantine Island never moved, but remained stationary about sixty-six leagues east of Menice. The reason why it was always enveloped in black mist was the unwillingness of its inhabitants to show themselves to people from the outside world, those who passed the island on their ships.

The island dwellers usually consisted of at least three Pernicious Witches. The witches were the overseers of the place, but behaved more like small gods, controlling every aspect of the lives of the human slaves who were forced to live on the rocky island with them, to serve them in whatever way the witches saw fit.

The current head-witch was called Queenie. She had chosen the name herself when she became the witch-ruler, to remind all island inhabitants that she was a Queen in her own right, a Queen of dark arts and malignant magic, reigning her small island queendom with evil force.

Everybody who had the misfortune of meeting Queenie quickly learnt not to vex her. Sometimes, when new slaves arrived from the mainland and saw her placid, good-natured face, one which resembled that of a grandmother, they mistook her for a kindhearted, harmless old woman, and did not show her enough respect.

Those poor souls soon ended up at the receiving end of Queenie's anger, to show them who she really was. When shown even the slightest disrespect, something inside Queenie snapped and whipped her emotions into a fury so vehement that it made her lose complete control of her rational faculties. Her rage often ended the life of a new slave in a cruel and agonising way.

Queenie's witch-sisters were called Carbuncle and Blister. Their own eagerness to unleash wrath on the slaves was nearly as strong as their older sister's. The two of them had hideous, wrinkled faces, topped with wispy white hair, oily and dirty from years without washing.

Whenever Carbuncle and Blister cast their small black eyes on someone, the person trembled. Their thin, white lips never smiled and the corners of their mouths were always pulled down in annoyance, making their ugly faces seem even uglier than they already were.

Apart from the witches and the slaves, Quarantine Island was also home to three other residents, two of them male and one female. They were triplets, eighteen years old, but unlike any human children.

The oldest of the three was a girl. She was called Ghoul, not a very feminine name, but one which suited her perfectly. Since Ghoul was born a full minute before her brothers she considered them as unruly youngsters, and herself as their master. Her brothers, Foul and Vile, did not always obey her. This led to clashes between the three, often violent and noisy.

Ghoul, Foul and Vile had been living on Quarantine Island since their birthday. Their mother, Verruca, was the head-witch when they were born. She died during labour, just as Vile slid into the world, the last of the three.

It was never clearly established if the birth of her three children had killed Verruca, or if she was poisoned by one of her sister-witches, a witch who started calling herself Queenie soon after the birth of the triplets.

On the day of their birth, the babies' father was nowhere near Quarantine Island. He had more important business to attend to on the mainland. Things like planning a revolution and overthrowing the good King Core and his wife Caru.

The triplet's father, a Malefic Sorcerer called Diabolus, was in league with a man called Amuz, someone who did not possess magic abilities, but who had an unequalled desire for power and an intellect solely dedicated to cunning. Amuz was the right man to be the face of the new regime in the kingdom and Diabolus spent many years as his aide, plotting a coup.

The plotting was so important to Diabolus that he did not pay the message he received, informing him that his children had been born, much attention. He read the small note from the Pernicious Witches and burnt it soon thereafter. As the flames crumbled the note into ashes, all thoughts about the existence of his children were also burnt from his mind.

Diabolus did not care if his children lived or died. He never made an effort to return to Quarantine Island to introduce himself to his offspring. Fatherhood did not interest him in any way. All he cared for was perfecting his craft, his dark magic, and to find ways of using that magic to transform the world into an easily controllable place.

Thus, with their mother dead and their father indifferent to their lives, Ghoul, Foul and Vile grew up without parents. They were left in the care of the island witches, with clear instructions to teach them how to become Warlocks.

With the mixed blood of Verruca and Diabolus flowing through the veins of the Warlock apprentices, the witches expected that they would one day become three of the most powerful sorcerers to walk the face of the world. They were not wrong.

But, due to the intensity of Warlock training, it usually took twenty-five years to complete. Eighteen of those years were finished in a mostly satisfactory way. Only another seven remained. Seven years in which to teach Ghoul, Foul and Vile stability in the use of their black arts, and obedience. Queenie was not convinced that seven years were long enough to teach them that.

The three children, as Queenie continued to call them, were the most disobedient students she and her witch-sisters had ever taught. They often questioned the judgement of the witches and challenged them directly on many occasions.

The only way of ensuring complete obedience from the young Warlocks was to discipline them with the Coercion Whip. They were only six years old when Queenie was forced to use the whip on them the first time. On that day she did not hesitate to use the whip, she actually enjoyed it, especially when she noticed how much the children hated to be brought back in line by a whip that did not only hurt them, but also humiliated them.

The Coercion Whip was one of a kind, of great importance to maintain control. Over hundreds of years the whip was passed down from one head-witch to the next. Nobody remembered who the original creator of the whip was and what spells were put into it to make it work so effectively.

All Queenie knew was that the whip was strong enough to command obedience from the three rebellious Warlocks. Without the whip even Queenie's dark magic was not powerful enough to subdue them. What would have happened then? How would the three children have been taught stability and obedience?

Nowadays Queenie was never without the whip. With the lash coiled into a circle and attached to the whip's handle, it hung from a belt around her middle. Whenever the Warlocks disobeyed her she reached for the whip with a quick movement, practised over many years.

Ghoul, Foul and Vile hated the Coercion Whip. They did not hate it as a result of the pain it caused them, nor due to the humiliation of its bite. They hated the whip because they knew that it was the only thing in the world that could force them to carry out tasks they did not want to perform.

Ghoul was the first triplet to discover how little control Queenie would have over her and her brothers without the whip. She was nine years old when this realisation dawned on her. On that day she decided to steal the whip and to destroy it. For many weeks she wanted to obliterate the whip and, by doing so, take back the power she believed her and her brothers should have over the witches.

As the weeks went by Ghoul changed her mind. She no longer desired to steal the whip only to burn it to ashes. She wanted to get hold of it to become its master. She often imagined how much her inherent power would increase if she held the whip in her own hands. She laughed out loud when a picture of her whipping Queenie and the other witches appeared in her mind.

The only problem was that Queenie never let the whip out of her sight. She carried it with her day and night, did not even allow her sister-witches to use it. To Queenie the whip was the symbol of her power over everybody else on the island, as well as the most effective way of holding on to that power.

Ghoul often explored the dark island and stronghold where they lived on her own, usually while her brothers were busy entertaining themselves by playing pranks on the slaves. One day, not long after her eleventh birthday, she found a hidden door at the far end of the dungeons. It led into a room which she had never seen before.

What surprised Ghoul on that morning was not only the discovery of the door, but also the fact