and experience. We ‘Keepers’ (That was what the people called us) had been guarding the stones and fighting enemies like Vantrax for centuries. It fell to us to protect them because one of our ancestors on Earth had once unwittingly opened the box, revealing its whereabouts to everyone and opening the portal.”
Harry stopped talking again as he saw more confusion in the young boy’s faces. “Am I going too fast for you both?” he asked. “It’s vitally important that you take all of this in.”
“No, go on granddad, please.” begged Jake. “The portal. If the box is closed, how do they come through into our time? Err... I mean dimension? Your... err, our enemies, I mean?”
“Good question, Jake. Okay. The centre stone of Reolite is the key. Ours is housed in the box, the four corner stones protect it, you see?”
Harry could tell the boys didn’t understand, so he decided to change his tactics.
“Right, listen to me carefully. The centre stone, as I said, is made from Reolite. It’s an incredibly rare and precious gem. Several pieces of it have been found over time in a few locations across the Continent of Estia, which is where Rhuaddan is located. Each piece of Reolite can be used by sorcerers or wizards who have the knowledge. With just a small piece of Reolite, they can summon the same powers as our stone. Only their stones, and hence their powers, are greatly limited in strength and duration in comparison with ours. Each time they use their stone, its powers diminish ever so slightly, along with its size, until eventually it becomes nothing but a totally useless rock. Our stone was placed in the box long ago by a great wizard named Tien. He made the box and he set the four protective stones within it. They suspend the stone in mid air, protecting it, and they also greatly magnify its powers. It can be used time and time again, because the box and the other stones shield it somehow from the eects of use. It doesn’t reduce in size, or lose its power as the others do, you understand?”
The two boys nodded and this time Harry continued without pausing.
“Anyway, Tien placed the crest on top of the box so that only members of our family, as the designated Keepers, could activate it and unlock its secrets. The crest is the lock if you will, but only we have the key. The first Keeper from our family, how he came to open the box, and why it was our family who were chosen, are long stories that I’ll hopefully have the time to tell you later. But we have protected the stones with our lives from that point onwards. Now, would you like another cup of tea?” Harry asked, sensing that the boys may need a break to take in all they’d been told, though he was really hoping that they didn’t.
“No, no, go on!” replied Ben, answering for both of them. “Vantrax. And Jake’s dad?” he asked impatiently, reminding Harry of where he was.
“Oh yes, right, well... Thank you Ben. Let’s see. Ah yes, the task should have passed to my son, you’re right. But an opportunity arose and I took it!” stated Harry defiantly, as if trying to justify his actions. “Vantrax found himself another piece of Reolite. He used it to send three mighty warriors through the portal.”
Harry’s expression and tone changed suddenly to one of sadness and pain, as he began to recall the events of long ago.
“I wasn’t in when they found the house we’d just moved into. Jean was in the kitchen making our tea. She never had a chance! Before I arrived home, the leader of the warriors, a huge, muscle-bound freak called Sawdon, captured her....”
He stopped talking again briefly and took a deep breath. It was difficult for him to speak of these events, even after such a long time.
“You okay, granddad?” asked Jake, in a soft voice full of genuine concern. He was feeling emotional too, he felt like crying, but he wanted to hear the story. He’d waited so long for an explanation of the events of his grandmother’s death. This was a million miles away from what he’d expected to hear, but he needed to know nevertheless. “Can you go on?” he asked sensitively.
“Yes. I have to.” replied Harry, as he wiped away the tears from his eyes and took a couple more deep breaths. “Sh-she was almost dead when I got there,