Gust's Maze

Marcia Andrade

Description

Felwitt is a place like no other; battered by heavy snow, covered by dark clouds, and completely isolated from the rest of the world, as a result of a curse that has fallen upon it. The dramatic events that have led to this are kept secretly hidden away, especially from the younger generation. Despite the terrible ordeal imposed upon the villagers, they have learned, over centuries, how to survive thanks to their remarkable resilience and, most of all, their mysterious and precious gold. Felwitt, however, is not a community free from problems, in particular when it comes to its most notorious teenager, Gustav Grubbin, known as Gust. Ironically, after an unexpected encounter with the village tramp, he is the one determined to find out the truth behind the village's bizarre weather conditions.What Gust discovers turns out to be more than he was bargaining for. Despite his initial scepticism and scorn, Gust, with the help of his uncle, five mismatched friends, and a small chameleon embark on a fantastic journey through an enchanted maze, to overcome its five gates and reach Lord Ivanor's castle. Here, they will try to retrieve Nana's wand, stolen from her a long time ago when she was the protector of this once beautiful and prosperous village, and finally break the curse.Book reviews online @ www.publishedbestsellers.com

Sujets

• Children's

Informations

• Publié par: Pneuma Springs Publishing
• Date de parution: 08 décembre 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781782281719
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Gust’s
Maze







Marcia Andrade
Copyright

Published in 2011 by: Pneuma Springs Publishing
Gust’s Maze Copyright © 2011 Marcia Andrade
Marcia Andrade has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as Author of this Work
Pneuma Springs
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Andrade, Marcia. Gust's maze. 1. Fantasy fiction. 2. Children's stories. I. Title 823.9'2-dc23
Kindle eISBN: 9781782280095 ePub eISBN: 9781782281719 PDF eBook eISBN: 9781782280934 Paperback ISBN-13: 9781907728297
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, save those clearly in the public domain, is purely coincidental.
Pneuma Springs Publishing E: [e-mail] W: www.pneumasprings.co.uk
Published in the United Kingdom. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. Contents and/or cover may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written consent of the publisher.
Dedication

For Melissa, Natalie and Daniel,
It is all for you
The Novel
1
“I shall repeat it once more. I will knock on her door with an excuse of some sort while you go to the back and snatch the pie from the windowsill. Do you understand or should I repeat it again?” asked Gust, rather miffed.
“ I do,” Never replied promptly. “But I am quite small, and what about the dog?”
“ She always keeps the dog inside at this time; besides, you would not know what to say to her and, more importantly, I shall not be blamed for that … as usual.”
“ Fine,” Never replied, still not entirely sure about the whole thing.
“ And don’t forget to leave the side gate open,” Gust stated firmly.
Never just looked at his friend and nodded his little head in complete obedience. As soon as the door opened, he scampered to the back. Even before opening the side gate, the boy already felt overwhelmed by the tempting smell coming from the pie cooling on the windowsill, as though hypnotised not only by the smell but also by the view. Never approached it without realising that the gate had shut behind him. There was also another problem: between the boy and the pie stood a prickly bush, covered in snow. Its sharp thorns sticking out like little claws were a warning not to be ignored.
Never came closer to the bush and raised his arms as high as possible, trying to reach out for the well-sought prize. He still could hear his friend talking to Mrs Doer.
However, after a few pricks on his arms and legs, he managed to get the pie. He looked at it with absolute delight as his mouth watered. Suddenly, the boy heard the front door closing and, as he was about to leave, he noticed a shadow on his left-hand side.
Never didn’t move. Turning his head slightly, he saw Mrs Doer’s black dog snarling at him. The boy started to quiver as drops of sweat began running down his temples.
Adding to his misery, he saw the gate was shut. If he tried to open it, the dog would certainly charge at him, or Mrs Doer would catch him, or whatever else … Never just wished he had his slingshot but, again, what would that do? Then he stopped thinking and did the only thing that came into his head - he hurled the pie at the dog and, while the animal backed off, he opened the gate and fled the scene as fast as he could. Mrs Doer heard the noise outside and peeped through the window to see her dog licking her delicious pie, all smashed on the ground. The red berry jam splattered on the white snow was quite a scene. Despite all that, she was still able to see the culprit and knew exactly who he was; because in this small village, everybody knew everybody else.
Felwitt was a small, mountainous village, fringed by the so called Mountains of the North. It was practically in the middle of nowhere, battered by endless snow, covered by ominous dark clouds, and completely isolated from the other villages. Despite its exceptional weather, generations of Felwittians had accustomed themselves to this hostile environment, not because they wanted to, but for the simple reason that they didn’t have anywhere else to go. They weren’t welcomed anywhere else because of what had happened in the past.
There was something else that made this village unique - it had gold and plenty of it! Although it had a more sinister origin, this precious metal was the purest in quality, like no other, and it was their main source of trading and survival. Thanks to the gold, and the villagers’ resilience and modesty, Felwitt had endured through time.
But like any other place, it still had its share of troubles, and the day wasn’t even over when a policeman came by Theophilos Grubbin’s house looking for his nephew, Gustav Grubbin - notoriously known as Gust because when it came to stealing, he was as sudden and as quick as a gust of wind!
2
Judge Clisson, the eldest village councillor, cleared his throat and said solemnly, “Would you like to say anything before I pass sentence?”
“ He is just a kid playing around,” intervened the teenager’s uncle in his defence.
“ He did not mean any harm.”
“ Gustav is fifteen years old and he should have known better. Furthermore, this was not his first offence. I shall take into consideration the fact that he was not the one who actually stole the pie in question. However, he has planned and incited a child to carry out the robbery, no matter the reasons behind it. Therefore, I have decided that Gustav Grubbin is guilty and he will be sentenced to community work: shovelling the snow on the main square twice a day for the next two weeks, starting tomorrow.”
With these words, Judge Clisson wrapped up the trial. As many times before, Gust had appeared in the small village court to answer to his unlawful deeds. Although he always denied any wrongdoing, he knew deep inside that he was guilty. This time, however, he didn’t agree with the verdict at all. He was just helping his younger friend to fulfil a silly whim by eating Mrs Doer’s famous, irresistible and, most of all, expensive red berry pie. Where they lived, fruits were a luxury brought in from miles away, as they couldn’t grow their own because of the severe weather conditions they had to endure. Even the wild berries found in the woods were withered and poisonous. On the other hand, Gust felt completely humiliated by the sentence passed on him. He was prepared, as always, to face any kind of punishment, but having to shovel snow like a street cleaner was too much for his pride. Despite his reputation, he still had his dignity to preserve.
3
That night, Gust didn’t have much appetite; he just poked at the food relentlessly while his uncle looked at him with a mixture of feelings. As sorry as he felt for the teenager, he knew perfectly well that Gust had to be punished, even if what had happened wasn’t entirely his fault.
“ Cheer up! It could’ve been worse,” Theo said, smiling.
“ I was just trying to help that silly boy,” said Gust unenthusiastically.
“ It was still wrong and you know it.” Then he added, “I don’t understand what the point is in doing what you do? What you steal is of no value.”
“ People are careless; they leave things lying around … I take them because they might be of some use,” Gust replied, squaring his shoulders.
“ As long as people don’t give permission for these ‘things’ to be taken, they are still theirs even if it is rubbish. You are always caught anyway,” said Theophilos, with a hint of a snigger.
“ I know, I know! I am not proud of what I do,” said Gust irritably. “It is more like a challenge to break the rules imposed upon us … a daring act.”
“ Is it really worthwhile?”
“ Not really. But one day I shall prove to everyone who Gustav Grubbin really is and they will respect me as I deserve - as we both deserve - and then I shall finally leave this frozen graveyard forever!”
“ I wish you all the luck.”
“ You will be coming with me. There is nothing for you here either.”
“ There is nothing wrong in being a cobbler.”
“ No, but compared to what you once were.” Gust paused. “I still remember how everyone in the village loved watching your magic tricks; they admired and respected you. You gave them happiness and excitement, something to brighten their dull lives, and then … everything finished,” Gust sighed with desolation.
“ After the fire trick went drastically wrong, how could I carry on? People could have been killed,” said Theo sourly.
“ But nobody has died and accidents happen.”
“ I was banned from performing, have you forgotten?”
“ Judge Clisson, of course. Anyway, you could’ve had another chance. It was your passion, your life! Now look at you … you have changed so much.”
“ I am getting old.”
“ It’s more than that; you’ve become so bitter as though they’ve condemned you to death. They shouldn’t have done that!” bawled Gust, wiping off an inconvenient tear.
“ I may not be the happiest man on Earth, but I shall be fine as long as you are around. You are the only one I have got.”
“ And so are you.”
“ Listen, Gust. As I’ve told you before, things aren’t always the way we wish them to be. You might disagree now but, with time, life shall teach you … one way or the other. In the meantime, don’t rush, and take good care of yourself,” Theo said reassuringly.
And yet, at the same time, he tried to hide his concerns about his nephew’s future. Gust wasn’t as mean as he looked or pretended to be. However, he was a rebel in his own way, and he could never obey and follow the rules like everyone else. He had lost his parents at a very young age, like many other Felwittian children, and although his uncle tried his best in bringing him up, it wasn’t quite the same. His uncle was always busy with his magic performances, leaving the boy to fend for himself on many occasions. Gust grew up distrusting everyone and q