Lotus Isle: Book II

By Don P. Bick

Lotus Isle: Book I is a must read - this is the 2nd in the series - much is explained in the 1st book that needs to be understood when reading this 2nd book.

The adventure continues for the seven companions in their quest for the magical bridge. Join them once more as they confront wonders and strange things in this new land they now call home.

Camran and six companions set out on a quest for this illusive bridge. The Oracle of the Forth Order is their guide. Life in this strange world is wondrous and yet filled with unknown dangers. This group of seven must overcome all obstacles and difficulties, including death itself, in order to reach a successful conclusion to their quest, and thus gain the second key to eternal life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Don P. Bick
• Release date: Jul 7, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476473864

Don P. Bick

Don is a Vietnam Veteran. Recently he spent several months in Vietnam working on his war memoirs - The Boy Died In Vietnam. He has written several novels and short stories. His two favorite topics are love and life after death. Visit his website for more information. Your comments are always appreciated!

Book preview

LOTUS ISLE: BOOK II

Key the Second: The Giver of Life

By

DON P. BICK

Electronic edition published by Don P. Bick.

Copyright 2012 by Don P. Bick, all rights reserved.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Author’s note: The Lotus Isle series is basically one long novel created in seven parts. Book I of this series is a must read. In that book I describe much in this new world. I spend very little time re-writing or re-stating things that were written or described in the first novel. This novel, Book II, begins where Book I ends.

ORACLE OF THE FOURTH ORDER

For it shall come to pass when those arriving in this world will accomplish the necessary prerequisites; move into peace and tranquil freedom; into a Golden Land of plenty. The alternative is darkness and death.

When a representative arrives from each of the seven major globes during the same year, they shall face the challenges together. If successful, they will unlock the secrets and enter the Ring of Fire.

The path to this Golden Land lies across the magical Bridge of Seven Colors. One end of this Bridge begins within the Ring of Fire. The other sets in the Golden Land. The Bridge spans the gap for all the dead and dying to cross: thus, they enter a land of pure being, into a world of eternal life – the Golden Land.

A quest to gather the keys which will unlock the secrets of this Bridge shall be led by one who arrives in the Golden Flower - a representative from globe the fourth. He will be accompanied by the illusive one and the red warrior. The rest of the members will be determined by calling upon the initial guidance of the mystical cave. This mystical cave lies at the head of a creek that replies to all who speak - the seven will be revealed there.

Solve the secrets of this Bridge and the doors to death will be closed forever. Fail to solve the riddle and the Lotus Isle will become a place of torturous evil and darkness, an unspeakable world of corruption.

Seven golden keys are necessary to unlock the final door, admitting entrance into the Ring of Fire. Each of the seven quest members must possess one of these keys to gain entrance through that final portal.

KEY THE FIRST: The stone door, barring the way to this key, is opened when it is realized the door is an illusion. As the south wind blows and the eastern mountain peak radiates its whiteness in the west, so shall the pass to this key be revealed. The eagle in the west holds the key in his mighty talon.

KEY THE SECOND: The dying flower shall be revived by the giver of beauty and life. The flower grows in the west, south of the living lake, north of the wind. The wind blows its bowed head toward the living. Its roots search in vain for fertile soil. There is only rock, surrounded by water. When the flower raises its head, and smiles, the key is given to the giver.

KEY THE THIRD: The animal's hatred is discharged by the red one, leaving an open path for the retrieval of the key. The animal's passion surges to the fore when speared through the heart. His lair is in the southwest at the base of the golden peak. The slain one yields up its key to the slayer.

KEY THE FOURTH: The fruit of the golden flower moves upon the lake of fire until the cool center is reached, and thus the key. The flower's seed blossoms into a master among men when the key is grasped from above. The volcano lies in the center, waiting to send out its new life to all things dying. The fruit of the golden flower creates his key from the union of the dead and the living. As in the manner of arrival, the fourth is the last, the seventh.

KEY THE FIFTH: The illusive entrance into the cave of darkness lies midway between noon and midnight. The reflection of the shining stone reveals the key and the way. Only the quickened one sees and responds. The shining stone lies in the north where the river issues forth from the mountain lake.

KEY THE SIXTH: Submerged within the lake of night lies the lighted jewel. When blue smothers the light the key is rendered unto the newly enlightened one. Deep within the dark bowels of rock there exists a placid lake of night. Light upon the mystery of its location reveals the exit.

KEY THE SEVENTH: The dark chamber explodes in terrifying beauty, revealing that which has been hidden, the key to the Bridge. At the moment of shattering the key is given. They know it not but proceed to take up the fourth.

The quest is sanctified before the Ruler of the Waters. The seven members pledge themselves in uniform purpose.

Let it be known:

1. The Plutonian brothers shall remove the dead ones.

2. The Vulcan on Serpent Isle will exact a price for their contribution.

3. Death will be revisited, while the mystery of the Sun shines forth.

The mysteries are deep, the rewards great. To fail is to live a torturous and painful death, forever. To succeed reveals the way of life, and thus truth and purpose.

PART I

Chapter 1

The air was somewhat cool with a slight breeze coming out of the north. There was barely enough air movement to billow the sails during their brief journey. Druc slowly disembarked from the old and weathered wooden ship. The vessel belonged to a small race of people known as the Vulcan. Not much was known about them except for the fact they were the sole inhabitants of Serpent Isle, a short boat ride off the east coast of Lotus Isle. Nearly all the information about these people was speculation or outright fabrication, for few had ever interacted with the mysterious race.

As Druc walked down the length of the gangway to the dock below he couldn’t help but notice things that he had failed to see before. It was just as dark on this night as it had been that first night, but unlike before attached to posts along the dock railing torches were ablaze. They were spaced evenly apart and allowed enough light for the workers to continue their labors after daylight had ended. He was now able to make out details he had missed during his previous time at the dock. And just as before there were no workmen in sight, which seemed strange considering all the lit torches. It was a little eerie being the only one on the dock with all the lights blazing. But then everything about his trip out to Serpent Isle had been strange and mysterious.

Thick wood planks pegged with three-inch hardwood dowels created the surface area of the loading and unloading platform. Here and there he could see stacks of wooden crates ready to be hoisted onto a Vulcan ship, or perhaps picked up by one of the frequent caravans that traded various goods with the Vulcan, in exchange for some of their rare and precious metals. The docks were located on Lotus Isle and stood directly across the short expanse of water from Serpent Isle. They housed the loading and unloading facilities used by this strange and mysterious race for their exports and imports. There was no town or settlement nearby. In fact, it took many grueling days of travel just to reach this area from the nearest colony of people. All travel had to be made over land. And the terrain was treacherous in the best of weather conditions. It was impossible to travel around Lotus Isle and get to this side of the island by boat or trading ship due to the extreme hazards at the north and south ends of the Isle.

The Vulcan had inhabited the small Isle off the coast for untold centuries. It was said they came from a planet within the orbit of Mercury, even though there were no known planets within that section of space. Of course, if a planet had been on the far side of the sun it could easily had gone undetected in the solar system by those on certain planets. But logic says that any planet that close to the sun couldn’t possibly have life on it, or so it would seem. So that statement only succeeded in creating more of a mysterious air to the seldom seen Vulcan.

Much about these reclusive people was either unknown or simply rumor. No one really knew the origin of this unassuming race, or much about them at all. Druc had discovered that most of what he had heard about them prior to his trip over to the Isle had been false, or at best a great exaggeration. And although he had just spent several days on Serpent Isle among them, he didn’t really know much more about the Vulcan than before. They were indeed a secretive people. One thing he did know, he was no longer frightened of them. For, of all the things he did learn while in their care was that they were a deep compassionate group, and most trustworthy.

It was no longer raining as it had been when he departed from these same docks several days earlier, however, it was just as dark beyond the limited light of the torches. The Vulcan only made the trip to Lotus Isle during the night and preferably on the darker ones. It was no wonder little was known about them. They were seldom seen, even by the caravan dock workers while they toiled loading and unloading the Vulcan ships.

Druc looked forward to seeing his friends again, although he felt a little apprehensive about whether they would accept him as they had before. He hadn't been on Serpent Isle for more than a few days, but even in that short period of time it seemed as though an awful lot had changed. He knew that most of the change had occurred within him. His perspective on life in general; his beliefs, attitudes and values were not like they had been prior to his time among the Vulcan. He had been changed physically as well. That was easy enough to see. And as a result, he wasn’t sure how his comrades would view his new appearance. He had no doubt his new look was beyond their wildest thoughts or expectations.

He stood on the rough thick planking, alone in the shadows cast by the torch light, and breathed a deep sigh. The pudgy fingers on his left hand groped for the clasp of the dark blue cape he wore, a gift from the Vulcan leaders, drawing it more tightly around him to ward off the chill of the night. Planted on the planking at his right side stood a golden staff, intertwined with bronze and silver serpents, the crystal globe at the top was now aglow with a soft pale blue. It was no longer a clear glass orb as it had been when he took the short journey across to Serpent Isle. Even after all he had endured during the past few days Druc still didn't know or understand the significance of the blue light. If one looked closely the soft light seemed to swirl and move around inside the crystal orb as though blue clouds were moving slowly across a brighter blue sky. But it was a subtle movement and would probably go undetected by the casual onlooker. The magic of the light gave Druc some comfort when he gazed into the crystal ball. The light was a living force and it was now connected to him.

The change had taken place as a result of the re-polarization process he had undergone. It was the reason he had gone to the Isle in the first place. The Vulcan either couldn't or wouldn't tell him any more regarding the staff or its newly acquired blue light. His hand didn't hurt anymore either, although the anguish of the experience he had recently undertaken would forever be branded upon his memory. Still, he had yet to get over the depression that clouded his mind regarding his right hand, although it had been almost three days since the re-polarization process had been completed. Physically, the healing had been almost immediate. But deep inside he was troubled by the outcome and was having difficulty accepting that he could never be useful in his stone trade ever again. All during his previous life on Saturn, as well as his brief life in this new world, Druc believed he had a gift working with his hands shaping stone. And before this new adventure he felt like he had found his true calling in life. However, he did realize his present work was much more important than laboring over his rock projects, but that didn’t stop those pesky thoughts from creeping into his mind and playing with his emotions.

The flapping of leathery wings brought his thoughts back to the present. Eagle, the forever loyal bird, landed on a pole a few feet to his right. Rarely did the animal fly at night, unless it was to stay near Druc. And Druc was always grateful for his company, even though Eagle wasn't what you would call friendly. In fact, he seemed to treat most things with total indifference, one rare exception being fish. He loved to eat fresh fish and could devour several large ones in a single meal. Eagle was also completely independent, often leading Druc to wonder how he could be so fiercely loyal at the same time. And yet he had demonstrated time and time again how attached he was to all the group members since the creature began traveling with them. The important thing was that the giant bird was always there at his side, a comfort when things were not at their best. Eagle had spent the entire time Druc had been on Serpent Isle sitting within his sight, and for that he was very grateful.

With the golden staff echoing off the planking with each step, Druc walked up the pier toward the camp where the others had been waiting for his return, the blue crystal globe faintly lighting his way. In the distance he could make out the campfire of his friends and companions glowing in the dark, and he knew it hadn’t been easy on them these past few days. They had no idea what had happened to him or what had been going on over on Serpent Isle. They had no choice but to wait until Druc returned, no matter how long that would end up being. He had no doubt that the waiting had been anything but restful or relaxing, especially not knowing what was taking place across the water with him. There hadn’t been any updates or communications from anyone during the entire time he had been gone.

Bran, the Martian warrior, was taking his turn on watch as Druc approached the camp. When Bran realized who it was, he let out a loud yell and ran to his friend, grabbing him in a bear hug and lifting him off the ground. The others, hearing the commotion, came running out of their shelter to see what all the fuss was about. They saw Druc entering camp and rushed to hug him and welcome him back. But when they saw his hand shining in the firelight, they stopped dead in their tracks, the expressions on their faces saying it all.

Druc didn't lose his right hand completely. He thought that was what was going to happen when he plunged the staff into the molten metal. At least that was how he initially interpreted Te's words. The cost is your right hand, was how she had stated it. Instead, the hand had been transformed into part metal and part flesh. Te referred to it as an energy transfer medium. What that meant, Te had explained the day following the re-polarization, was that the hand could now transfer the life essence flowing in and through the golden rod. The energy could safely be channeled from the staff into his right hand, up through his arm, and out into the physical world, via his left hand.

The fingers on his right hand were now completely metal and melted into the staff itself, causing a complete union with the golden rod. His fingers and the major part of his hand had been transformed into solid gold. The solid gold gradually returned to flesh as the process proceeded up his arm. Just below the elbow his arm was all flesh. In this way, he was told, the staff's energy could travel the graduated change into his physical body, and under his direction, out into the world.

Druc didn't know how to use or direct the energy flowing through the staff; had no way of believing that it even existed. The only indication of energy being present came from the lighted orb at the top of the golden rod. Other than that, he felt nothing in his right hand; no energy or feeling whatsoever. He was only told he would know how to use it when the time came. And he was going on trust that this would be the case.

The staff was now affixed to his right arm permanently. They were inseparable. Druc was learning to make the necessary, and sometimes very difficult, adjustments to his everyday life. It had only been a few days since the re-polarization, and he was trying his best to live with the suddenness of not having the use of his right hand any longer. He was also dealing with all the changes in his life that came with having the golden staff permanently attached to his arm. This had presented some challenges initially, but with each passing day he was learning how to overcome those.

The day following the re-polarization the pain in his hand had subsided to a mere ache. The pain in his mind over losing the use of his right hand was overwhelming that first