On Eagles Wings

By Dawn Davies

It was a star-spangled night where the frosted heavens glittered with promise; one of those rare, magical evenings when it seemed that anything might be possible.

Paul is a 10 year old boy living on a farm in Wales. When a door suddenly appears in his bedroom, he walks through and is mysteriously transported into a world 1,000 years in the future. Before he can return to his home he has to fulfil a quest to rescue prisoners being held by the evil lord Elevion. He receives some help from a new friend, a talking horse and a magnificent eagle.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Mar 30, 2007
• ISBN: 9781456790639

Dawn Davies

Dawn Davies has a BA from Vermont College of Fine Arts and an MFA from Florida International University. She is the recipient of a Pushcart Special Mention, and her work has been published in numerous journals and anthologies. She lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where she does everything from work construction to teach college writing. Mothers of Sparta is her debut.

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Contents

Chapter 1

The Door

Chapter 2

Gaius

Chapter 3

The Journey Begins

Chapter 4

Dreams

Chapter 5

Shoes

Chapter 6

A dark encounter

Chapter 7

An unexpected friendship

Chapter 8

Joy

Chapter 9

Lies in the dark

Chapter 10

Water

Chapter 11

The Hidden City

Chapter 12

Elevion’s lair

Chapter 13

A Journey by Water

Chapter 14

Release

Chapter 15

Elevion

Chapter 16

Farewell

Dedicated to Samuel

- and all boys with lively imaginations.

Chapter 1

The Door

It was a star spangled night where the frosted heavens glistened with promise; one of those rare, magical evenings when it seemed that anything might be possible. The countryside around, held its breath as if in anticipation. Silver fields stretched out in all directions basking in the moonlight. On one hilltop stood an old thatched farmhouse, glowing with inner warmth beaming through its windows in defiance of the cold night. Bryn Hyfryd Farm sat on the Radnor/Herefordshire border where sheep outnumbered humans one-hundred to one. Mr. and Mrs. Reece owned it and it had been in Mr. Reece’s family for the last three generations.

In one upper window, a young boy stood motionless, watching. Paul was a lively and intelligent 10-year-old boy who was tall for his age, or so his mother told him. He had sandy-coloured hair, enormous brown eyes, and a ready smile. He was still dressed in his day clothes after having been out in the fields helping his dad bring in the youngest lambs and ewes for the night. He had been in his bedroom for some time, long enough to kick off his slippers and socks. It was late and quiet and Paul decided to open his bedroom window to take a breath of air.

Earlier that day he had read an incredible story about a man who changed peoples’ lives. The book, which lay abandoned on his bed, was a recent birthday present from his parents who thought it was important for the boy to develop his imagination. Paul tried imagining himself in the hot, dusty land changing lives but found the icy wind’s breath stole his dreams and muddled his imagination.

Suddenly, the hairs on the back of his neck prickled upon hearing a sound behind him; someone was in his room. Paul spun round expecting to see his dad creeping up on him as he sometimes did for fun. To his surprise, no one was in the room, but something was — a door. It had appeared in the middle of his bedroom. The door had no frame and hovered, suspended in mid-air.

Uncertain as to what this could mean, Paul crept around it. It certainly looks ordinary – if you can call a door standing by itself ordinary! Why has it appeared? How? Is it safe? Will something dangerous come through it and attack me? Tentatively, he reached out and touched it. It is real. Should I knock at it before trying the handle? No, best wait a minute and see what will happen. He sat on his bed for a minute or two. This is ridiculous!

Paul circled the door several times and then made the decision that would change his life forever. Slowly he grasped the door handle, turned it, and pushed it open.

A blast of hot air startled him, dispelling all remaining thoughts that this might be a dream. This is exciting! Peeling his sweater off he was about to toss it on the bed when he reconsidered. Best keep it with me. He tied it around his waist by the sleeves.

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Excited by the prospect of adventure, Paul did not pause to put his slippers back on. He stepped through the inviting doorway accompanied by a slight swoosh and the door closed with a click behind him, and vanished.

Paul stood alone, and for the first time afraid, in an alien world. What if I can’t get back? Would Mum and Dad worry about where I am?

There was something familiar about his new surroundings, it was as if he were standing in his father’s fields, everything around him was almost the same, only it was very hot. The heavens stretched above him, glassy-black and pierced by stars. Paul breathed in the night air. This reminds me of when I first got off the plane in Cyprus last year. There was a sandy smell, mixed with a warm, spicy aroma, which tickled his nose. There was a light breeze, but that too was warm. Perhaps it will cool down later.

Paul stood for a few moments, shivered with anticipation, and began chewing his nails; something he always did when he felt anxious or afraid. Great, now what do I do? He looked around him. Stretching out in all directions was rippling grass, bowing gently with the warm night breeze. In the distance, to his left loomed a grey-black hedge. To his right the ground sloped away, and in the distance, a small cluster of buildings huddled together with a faint light flickering in one of the windows.

Well that’s new; there are no buildings there on my dad’s farm. I wonder why there are no electric lights. Perhaps there’s been a power cut, Paul muttered.

He began his descent towards the light and the hope of company below. He turned for one last look at where he had come from and it was then he noticed that although the fields looked familiar, there was a space where the farmhouse, his home, should have been. Stunned, Paul gasped, in his mind, a door closed as he realized there was no way back.

Paul’s progress was slow for he seemed to step on every sharp stone. Why didn’t I at least put on my slippers? He sighed as, yet again, he stubbed his toes.

The heat, along with the late hour, sapped his energy leaving Paul feeling exhausted. Frequently, he stopped to wipe his brow and catch his breath. Soon sweat trickled down his back. He wished he had bought some water to quench his growing thirst.

He had barely descended halfway down the hill when he suddenly felt fearful. The hairs on the back of his neck felt as if they were on end. Glancing behind him on the hilltop, he noticed a grey mass blotting out the moonlight. A sense of darkness and oppression overwhelmed him, causing his knees to buckle as his fear pushed him down to the ground. Terrified, he covering his head with his arms and trembled as his ears hissed and sang with the pressure. A malevolent smell invaded Paul’s senses and he retched due to its intensity. Then suddenly, it was gone.

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Cautiously, Paul uncurled himself and raised his head, gulping down the fresh air. He glanced around, half-afraid that whatever ‘it’ was it could still be lurking somewhere. Encouraged by the stillness, he rose to his feet, confused. What was that? Where did it come from? Perhaps it’ll return? I hope not! Paul continued to walk down the hillside toward the welcoming light ahead, glancing back toward the hilltop every so often, half-afraid that the ‘thing’ would reappear or be silently sliding down the hill, following him.

Chapter 2

Gaius

Before long, Paul stood in front of three low cottages, clustered together as if conspiring against strangers or outsiders. Finding a small group of bushes nearby, Paul sat in their shadow and studied the houses. Each one had whitewashed walls that eerily reflected the bright moonlight. Each had a thatched roof with a squat chimney piercing the darkness of the sky. Because the roofs almost touched each other, they looked strange and sinister. Two of the cottages had tiny black windows like empty eye-sockets; the third house’s windows glowed and flickered eerily. A thin stream of smoke was coming from the chimney of the cottage which was the nearest to him. I wonder who needs a fire on such a hot night as this, Paul whispered.

Still trembling, he knocked on the door of the one with the light and fire. His heartbeat quickened. What if there’s something hostile inside? There may even