Chapter 1 Part 3

The hour that followed was one of total enlightenment. The unicorn's attitude had changed completely. His recognition of Avery's sword was only the tip of the iceberg. Ganatar gave his own testament to his guests. He, as they were aware, had been imprisoned by the gods as punishment for the unicorn species' condemnation of the gods' rebellion against the Creator.

The whole world that made up this prison was an artifact from a time before the gods. Ganatar stated that though he had no proof, he believed that this world was a creation of the Creator for a purpose that not even the Godking could fathom. He did however say that the gods had taunted him with the knowledge that only the Sword of Justice had the power within itself to free him.

Ganatar then described the fateful day that he was bound and dragged by the gods Dagba and Surter to the mountain cavern where the gemstone was kept. He recalled the centaurs who had been taken against their will into that dark hole as guinea pigs to map out the labyrinthine path to the center. He described the horrible scene of the dozens of centaurs who died every time the unseen path made turns or came to a dead end. He mentioned that no matter how long he had been imprisoned, he could never forget that day. He pitied even more the few centaurs who survived and had to return to their people and explain the deaths of their brethren.

The five companions listened to Ganatar describe his loneliness on the island and the ache for his own kind. Calista felt ashamed for making such a fuss about missing Sam when this creature had been separated from his own kind for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years.

When the oration was completed, Avery spoke for them all. "Ganatar, whether you grant our request or not, we’ll do everything in our power to return you to your kind."
Calista bit her lower lip and her eyes misted over, but she kept her silence. Armegon noticed the reaction and reached out to squeeze her smaller hand. "We’ll help you escape," he affirmed. "We hope that you’ll celebrate your own freedom by helping to grant the freedom of another."

Ganatar remained silent for several long moments. "How do we get out?"

Armegon smiled. "Let's start at the very beginning," he said.

"A very good place to start," Ultrecht agreed.

"You mentioned a tower?" Armegon asked.

When daylight returned, they broke camp and followed Ganatar inland. They paused at the pool to refill their water supplies, then proceeded on toward the base of the volcano. Ganatar filled them in on the islands geography. "The volcano is dead, of course," he said. "And there is very little harmful life on the island. Inside, however, is another story. I have avoided the interior of the Tower with good reason. As best as I remember, there are several large rooms and a couple of nasty inhabitants that hang out up there."

"What kind of 'nasty inhabitants' are we talking about," Armegon asked as he gazed up at the tall cinder cone.

"I am unsure of that," the unicorn replied. "I did not wait around to conduct an interview with any of them."

Ultrecht examined a rock outcropping. "This volcano may not be dead," he stated. "The island was formed by a shield that may have gone dormant for a long time, but this cinder cone implies that it was active some time later."

"Is there any evidence of impending eruption?" Avery asked.

Ultrecht looked at the worried faces around him. "Oh, no!" he said quickly. "I didn't mean to alarm anyone. It was just a point of geological record."

"Try to keep your mind on business," Armegon chided. "We can deal with curiosities when matters aren’t so pressing."

Ruk dropped his pack under a tree. "Before we proceed," he said, "I want to get ready."

"That’s a good idea," Avery said. "We can leave the luggage here. "It won't take long to work things out in there. I recommend we only carry what we need and travel light."

Calista responded by dropping her own pack and unstowing her bow and the hip quiver. She unwrapped the arrows and buckled the quiver about her waist. She finished the ritual by pulling her bangs back and tying her hair into the ponytail that had become necessary to keep her hair out of the bowstring's way.

Armegon, Ultrecht and Avery were making similar preparations, while Ruk had unpacked the huge battle-ax and helm. He finished the preparation by attaching the steel tips to his horns. In no time, a battle ready exploring party was leaving the discarded packs of cooking supplies and bedrolls under the trees and moving towards the volcano's base.

Ganatar led the way stating that he knew of an entrance into the inner chambers near the base. He led them halfway around the base to the backside where a ravine in the cliff face led inward a few hundred meters and ended in an almost vertical wall with a cavern opening at the bottom.