The Battle for Cathora (Book 3 of the Mytar series)

By Robert Cole

After many battles with a creature only known as Zelnoff, the children Mytar finally discover and transport the sixth Mytar from Earth to Cathora, completing the last member of their group. However, the Mytar powers are still underdeveloped and require intensive training to reach their true potential. In contrast, Zelnoff has gained more of the Mytar powers and his armies roam the planet unopposed. When a circling Zentor finds their hiding place, the Mytar children are forced to flee to the mistlands where they are ambushed and scattered.
With the situation seemingly hopeless, they discover critical information which points to a potential weakness in Zelnoff. With this information, one last desperate plan is devised. The Mytar must pool all their powers to fight an alien army and penetrate deep into Zelnoff’s territory, if they have any chance of defeating him.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Robert Cole
• Release date: May 28, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370968596

Robert Cole

Robert Cole works for Reuters Breakingviews, the financial commentary arm of the global news agency. He was previously a leader and obituaries writer for The Times and editor of that newspaper's Tempus investment column.He has lectured in financial journalism at City University, London, since 1995. Earlier in his career wrote for the London Evening Standard and the Independent. He is an experienced occasional broadcaster for Reuters and the BBC. Outside finance, Robert is expert in the study of the British roadside post box.

Book preview

Chapter 1: Cat and Mouse

The Zentor flapped its wings several times until it felt the warm updrafts lift it high over the valley of the Mistra. Adjusting the tilt of its ten-metre wing span, it glided effortlessly towards a snow-capped peak and expertly alighted on a rocky ledge, neatly folding its membranous wings into its long, snake-like body.

In the distance, amongst the swirls of mist rising from the lake below, it had detected movement. It remained perfectly still for some minutes, concentrating on the distant figures that phased in and out of focus as the swirling mists of the lake combined with the shimmer of the Mistra. The Zentor studied the shape and size of the distant figures. Six were children, while the remaining four were adults dressed in soldiers’ uniforms. One of the adults carried a long staff. The Zentor knew it had found Kaloc and the Mytar, yet the discovery was not accompanied by the usual raucous calls summoning others of its kind. Zelnoff, its master, had been clear. They were not to be warned. The attack would come by its master opening portals into the valley. The Zentor launched itself into the air again and glided silently towards the forests of the Mistlands. It would fly directly to its master’s headquarters in the Taal city of Hathor. Zelnoff would be well pleased that the hiding place of the Mytar children had finally been found.

A small girl with pink cheeks and a mischievous grin parted the branches of a large bush. Having previously been stung by its poisonous barbs, she was careful to avoid its many sharp spikes. When she spied a fruit that was roughly the same size and shape as a tennis ball, she carefully slid a thin arm between the branches and plucked it out. She held the fruit up to her nose and squeezed its tough, spongy skin. The mixed scents of oranges and lemons filled her nostrils. She closed her eyes and sniffed its fragrance, and then inspected it carefully to ensure there were no blemishes or cracks, nothing that could weaken its tough, leather-like skin. Satisfied, she turned her attention to her older brother standing expectantly a short distance away. Chris was brandishing a thick tree branch, roughly carved to resemble a baseball bat. He took a few practice swings then looked eagerly in her direction. He had the same green-brown eyes as her and the same straight, brown hair that always hung around his face like a loose mop, but fortunately, his long, narrow nose and the deep cleft in his chin had not been passed onto his sister. She tucked a long strand of hair behind her ear and narrowed her eyes on Chris. With her lips pressed together grimly, she planted her left foot in his direction, drew back her arm, and flung the fruit with all her strength. Chris whacked it high towards a group of trees at the edge of the clearing, but just as it appeared that the fruit was going to disappear amongst the trees, it seemed to stall in mid-air and fell quickly into the waiting hands of a large boy with cropped blond hair.

‘Yes!’ Jeff cried, dancing on the spot. ‘You’re out!’

A tall, impossibly thin girl with a springy mop of sandy-coloured hair strode over to Jeff. ‘You cheat! I saw what you did.’

‘Yeah,’ Chris added. ‘Susie’s right. The rule is you can’t use your powers.’

Jeff flicked the fruit back and forth between his hands. ‘I don’t know what you’re all on about,’ he said, looking completely dumbfounded.

‘I saw it too. You definitely used your powers to catch the ball.’ A small overweight boy with a wide, flat face and beady eyes added his voice to the chorus.

Jeff glanced across at Joe. ‘Who would believe you anyway?’

‘Everyone,’ Joe replied confidently. ‘In fact, they would believe me over you any day.’

Jeff glanced around at the smiles of the others. ‘You just don’t want to admit you’re out,’ he said, turning back to Chris.

‘We all saw you do it,’ Susie called.

Chris walked back to his position. ‘We’ll have it again.’ He knew that Jeff would never admit he had cheated.

Fiona threw the fruit again. This time, Chris came forward and belted it high over the lake. When it reached its highest trajectory a sudden gust of wind caught it and sent it flying back to the shore where a pale-looking, dark-haired girl snapped up the catch.

‘You cheated as well!’ Joe yelled.

‘I didn’t cheat,’ Cathy looked at Joe, her brown eyes full of indignation. ‘You can’t blame me for every sudden gust of wind.’

‘You created that wind and blew the ball back!’ Chris yelled.

‘No I didn’t.’

‘Yes you did,’ Jeff said. ‘I saw you watching it.’

‘We were all watching it.’

‘Yeah, but I saw that look in your eye.’

Cathy looked at him curiously. ‘What look?’

‘That look you have whenever you’re about to change the weather.’

‘Well hitting it into the lake is out anyway,’ she said, now in a huff.

‘We didn’t make that a rule,’ Chris said.

‘Yes we did,’ Fiona said, glaring at her brother. ‘You’re the one who insisted on it.’

‘But Cathy cheated, so it doesn’t count,’ Chris argued.

‘You still hit it over the lake,’ Susie said. ‘It doesn’t matter whether Cathy cheated.’

‘But the ball didn’t land in the lake,’ Chris pleaded.

‘Are you now saying Cathy didn’t cheat?’ Susie asked.

‘Ahem…’ A tall, bald man with black eyes and grey skin stepped forward. He had been listening to the argument with a growing sense of despair. ‘I hate to interrupt your important discussions,’ he said, his tone heavy with sarcasm, ‘but we have to leave Sudalere at once.’

Everyone stared at him.

‘It can’t be helped,’ Kaloc said in a resigned tone. ‘The Mistra have reported that a Zentor has found us. We probably only have a few hours before Zelnoff sends his soldiers after us.’

Kaloc was the last remaining Guardian of Cathora and was their leader. He had guided them through many physical and mental struggles with an enemy that was as vile as it was superior to their little group in every way. Only Kaloc’s immense willpower and intellect had kept them all alive for this long. There would be no arguing with him. Chris threw his bat onto the ground. He knew, more than anyone, what this meant. Zelnoff and his foul army of creatures would soon be here, killing everything in their path. He and the other children - five 12-year-olds and Chris’s sister Fiona, who was 11 - had been transported from Earth by the Guardians of Cathora and represented the last resistance to Zelnoff that remained on this planet. They were all that was left of a group called the Mytar. The Mytar were seeded every twenty years on Earth, and each member possessed a special gift that would only manifest itself in this world. Chris could read the minds of other intelligent creatures and bend them to his will, Susie could communicate with all life on the planet, Joe could change into anything he liked, Jeff could move large objects with his mind, and Cathy could control the elements; all handy gifts, when facing the forces that were aligned against them. However, the real problem was that the leader of this invading force, Zelnoff, also possessed many of their gifts. In fact, he had managed to gain everyone’s gift but Cathy’s. If Zelnoff managed to capture Cathy and obtain her gift, he would have all the Mytar powers. Then, all he needed was the sixth Mytar, Fiona, to magnify all the powers of the Mytar within himself. He would then be unstoppable, even by the Mytar. Chris looked up at the sparkle of the Mistra above him. They were the spirit beings of Cathora. With no physical form, they existed as points of light as they watched over and protected all the life in the vast forests of the Mistlands. This valley was their home, and had served as a hiding place for the Mytar over the past few weeks. Now Zelnoff would use the seven portals he had already captured to open gateways into the valley. His soldiers would try to capture Cathy and Fiona and kill the rest of the Mytar. Chris shivered involuntarily at the thought.

The faces of his friends told a similar story.

Cathy hurled the fruit into the lake. ‘Where are we going, anyway?’

‘The Mistra will guide us into the Mistlands,’ Kaloc replied, raising an eyebrow at their reactions. ‘There are many places where Zentors will never find us.’

‘Who are Zentors, anyway?’ Fiona asked. ‘And why should we leave just because of them?’

Chris watched his sister, standing defiantly with her legs slightly apart and hands on hips, sulking because her fun had suddenly been cut short. Fiona was the final Mytar that Chris had brought though the portal from Earth. Nearly fifteen months younger than him, she still operated on the premise that the world revolved around her. Therefore, it was only logical that everyone, and everything, should bend to accommodate her needs. Having only arrived on Cathora two weeks ago, she had no idea who the forces of Zelnoff were, nor what they looked like. She was in for a big shock, he thought grimly, watching her chew a strand of her hair.

‘A Zentor,’ Joe began, rubbing his chin and putting on a croaky old voice, ‘is a creature the size of a house with huge bat wings, fangs, and a tail like a snake.’

‘They’re not a pretty sight,’ Chris cut in, trying not to let Joe’s fertile imagination scare his sister half to death. ‘They’re Zelnoff’s pet spies in the sky.’

‘Wow, cool,’ Fiona grinned. ‘I can’t wait to see one of them.’

With this encouragement, Joe promptly transformed into a Zentor, with a few embellishments such as a set of teeth that even a Tyrannosaurus rex would have been proud of.

Fiona squealed, then quickly regained her composure. ‘That’s not too scary,’ she said, shrugging her shoulders in apparent disdain.

But Chris heard a definite tremble in her voice and noticed that her cheeks had drained slightly. For Fiona, the last two weeks in this place had been like living in a giant fun park. A crystal-clear lake that felt like a warm bath, huge cat-like creatures called Mistra Prower that had freely offered her rides on their backs, and nightly feasts of exotic food and shellfish in front of a blazing bonfire. She was probably having the time of her life. All thoughts of home appeared to have been erased in all the excitement. Chris had deliberately not pushed the harsh reality that Kaloc and the Mytar were engaged in a deadly game of cat and mouse with a creature that would not be out of place amongst the Earth’s worst tyrants, and that the odds were stacked heavily in Zelnoff’s favour. Chris just didn’t know how Fiona would react to such news. Her temper and unpredictability really worried him. He knew Kaloc had also been worried and had decided not to tell Fiona that she was Zelnoff’s ultimate target. The worry of it might be too much for someone whose most difficult decision on Earth had been what TV programme to watch. Nonetheless, Kaloc had remained upbeat. ‘She is a Mytar, after all,’ he had said. ‘She was born with an ability to endure great hardship and strength of spirit that few possess.’ Chris watched his sister, amid all the frantic preparations prior to departure, trying to climb onto a Prower for a quick ride around the camp. He hoped Kaloc was right. If Zelnoff ever got his hands on her, well…it didn’t bear thinking about.

Chris walked over to where the parts of the portal were being divided up amongst Kaloc’s soldiers. Seanus, a large, furry, gorilla-like hominid, was carefully placing each part in a long sack-like backpack, while Pepas, a dwarf-like creature with large, jagged ears was carefully wrapping each part of the portal in cloth before handing it to Seanus. Two more packs lay on the ground, already partly filled with parts from the control panel.

A short distance away, Altac was busy talking to Kaloc. Altac was Kaloc’s second- in-command, and Chris and Susie’s favourite amongst Kaloc’s soldiers. When they finished their conversation, Altac knelt beside a pack and began packing it with herbs and vials full of ground seeds. These were healing medicines that Altac had processed from plants he had collected since their arrival in the Mistlands. Chris and Susie had accompanied him on many of these expeditions in the valley. With Susie acting as an interpreter for the Mistra, their searches had always yielded a rich bounty of both food and medicinal herbs. They had both loved these trips. The beauty of this valley, the friendliness of all its creatures, and the companionship of this fearsome warrior with long curls of black hair and a scar running down from the corner of his mouth would remain with them forever. ‘Need a hand?’ Chris asked, stopping in front of Altac.

Altac smiled warmly at the sight of Chris. ‘No, thank you. Everything is nearly done.’

‘So how bad is it?’ Chris asked. ‘I mean, will the Mistra be alright? Can Zelnoff do anything to hurt them?’

Altac paused and looked across at Chris. ‘That is not a question I can answer,’ he replied. ‘The Mistra lack physical bodies, so they cannot be harmed by weapon fire, but this Zelnoff has already demonstrated mental powers beyond anything we have ever seen before.’

‘Oh.’

‘Kaloc may be able to give you a better answer,’ Altac continued, returning to his packing. ‘All I can be sure about is that the Mytar will be protected. The Mistra Prower will accompany us to the Mistlands and act as bodyguards. Obra, their leader, will be our guide. Considerable numbers will also be left behind in Sudalere to provide a rather unpleasant surprise for whomever, or whatever, appears.’

Altac was being diplomatic again, but Chris could read fear in his thoughts and a deep concern that this time, it might be beyond the three remaining soldiers and Kaloc to provide adequate protection.

‘How’s your sister bearing up?’ Altac asked.

At this question, Chris smiled grimly. ‘For now she’s good, but she hasn’t faced Zelnoff yet.’

Altac nodded that he understood. ‘I will do all in my power to protect her,’ he promised.

Chris nodded. He had no doubt that Altac would do his best. He always did.

The company set off in single file, largely in silence. Each Mytar was given packs to carry, mainly filled with blankets, food and clothes. The company’s immediate destination was the tunnel they had passed through a few weeks earlier when they entered Sudalere. This tunnel led through the mountains to the forests of the Mistlands and was about half an hour’s strenuous walk up the steep slope of the valley.

Chris, like the others, had been worrying about their discovery since Kaloc’s announcement, and was determined to seek Kaloc out at the first opportunity. He passed him a short distance away, standing on a rock ledge that overlooked the valley. He smiled briefly when he caught sight of Chris. From this vantage point the valley was spread out before them, a crystal blue lake encased in rainforest and surrounded by jagged, snow-capped mountains. Above the lake, the atmosphere shimmered with the forms of the Mistra, giving the whole valley a sparkling appearance, like a constantly twirling jewel.

‘Magical.’ The word had sprung to Chris’s lips before he even realised it. 

‘Yes, indeed magical,’ Kaloc replied, not taking his eyes off the valley.

However, Kaloc’s words had such a distant, distracted quality to them that Chris realised he was a long way from just admiring the view. ‘Are you worried about the Zentor?’ Chris asked.

Kaloc glanced down at him. ‘I am worried about many things,’ he sighed. ‘The Zentor amongst them.’

‘Oh, right…’ Chris waited for some further response from Kaloc, but instead the Guardian continued to stare down into the valley. It was clear that he wasn’t in the mood to talk, but Chris wasn’t in the mood to be ignored. ‘So how are the Mytar going, anyway?’ he asked.

Kaloc turned and studied him for a moment. ‘That is a question that should best be answered by you, not me.’

‘But how would I know? You’re the expert.’

Kaloc smiled at this. ‘I wish that were true. But I only have legend to guide me. The Mytar have never been called upon in the history of