The Door Within
PRAISE FOR THE DOOR WITHIN TRILOGY
“In the tradition of C.S. Lewis’ Narnia Series,
The Door Within Trilogy
beckons the reader to come along on an epic fantasy adventure to faraway lands and the more near places of the heart. Readers of all ages will find that
The Door Within
delivers heart-pounding thrills as well as themes and principles that will linger with you long after you put the book down.
The Door Within
reminds us that there is much more to life than what we see before our eyes.”
Josh D. McDowell
Best-selling Author and Public Speaker
“Batson leads young readers to a fantasy realm where faith and sacrifice serve as essential tools in an epic battle between good and evil.”
Publisher’s Weekly
“Those who enjoy fantasy, from young teens through adults, should feel right at home with this.”
Liz Duckworth
Aspiring Retail
“
The Door Within
has all the trappings of J.R.R. Tolkien’s
The Hobbit
.”
Joe Burris
The Baltimore Sun
THE
DOOR
WITHIN
BY
WAYNE THOMAS BATSON
© 2005 Wayne Thomas Batson
First in a series of three novels.
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a trademark of
Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Thomas Nelson, Inc. books may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fund-raising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail [email protected].
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Batson, Wayne Thomas.
The door within / by Wayne Thomas Batson.
p. cm.
Summary: Three ancient scrolls beckon high school student Aidan Thomas to enter a realm of knights, kings, and unusual creatures, but he must rely on instinct and his latent athletic ability to deal with the terror, tempest, and treason offered by this new world.
ISBN: 978-1-4003-9243-8 (premium)
ISBN: 978-1-4003-1011-1 (tradepaper)
ISBN: 978-1-4003-0659-6 (hardcover)
[1. Space and time—Fiction. 2. Christian life—Fiction. 3. Fantasy.]
I. Title.
PZ7.B3238Doo 2005
[Fic]—dc22
2005009216
Printed in the United States of America
07 08 09 10 11 RRD 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To the one true King,
through whom all good things come:
I bend my knee and await your command.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1 FROM NIGHTMARE TO NIGHTMARE
CHAPTER 3 TREASURES IN EARTHEN VESSELS
CHAPTER 5 REALMS THAT LIE UNSEEN
CHAPTER 9 STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND
CHAPTER 10 THE GATE OF DESPAIR
CHAPTER 13 ARMED AND TERRIFIED
CHAPTER 25 THE BATTLE BEFORE THE SEVEN TOWERS
CHAPTER 31 THE COST OF FREEDOM
CHAPTER 32 THE KNIGHT OF THE DAWN
AIDAN (AY-DEN) THOMAS
When Aidan’s parents move the family to Colorado to take care of his wheelchair-bound grandfather (Grampin), the teenager discovers the Scrolls, which start him on an adventure of a lifetime
.
MR. THOMAS
Aidan’s father.
MRS. THOMAS
Aidan’s mother.
GRAMPIN
Aidan’s grandfather on his father’s side.
He is confined to a wheelchair.
ROBBY PIERSON (PEER-SON)
Aidan’s best friend in Maryland.
ACSRIOT (AX-REE-AHT)
Glimpse warrior, who often questions the judgment of others.
BOLT & NOCK
Twin Glimpse warriors, who are both very highly skilled archers.
CAPTAIN VALITHOR (VAL-EH-THOR)
The new Sentinel of Alleble, and the Captain of the Elder Guard.
ELEAZAR (EL-EE-AY-ZAR)
Glimpse warrior. He is an emissary for Alleble and
is well versed in the Kingdom’s lore.
FALON
The elder of all mortiwraiths, who are enormous,
venomous underground serpentine creatures.
FARIX (FAIR-IX)
Glimpse warrior, who does not wear armor.
GWENNE
Glimpse swordmaiden, who is Aidan’s guide.
KALIAM (KAL-EE-UM)
Glimpse warrior, who is also known as Pathfinder.
KINDLE
Glimpse armory keeper.
KING ELIAM (EE-LEE-UM)
The noble and wise monarch of Alleble, who invited Aidan to his kingdom.
KING RAVELLE
Ruler of Mithegard.
LORD RUCIFEL (ROO-SI-FELL)
Paragor’s Lieutenant, who wields two swords.
MALLIK (MAL-ICK)
Glimpse warrior, who wields a massive war hammer.
MATTHIAS (MA-THI-AS)
Glimpse warrior, who is very competitive.
NOCK
Glimpse warrior. See Bolt.
PARAGAL (PAIR-A-GALL) / PARAGOR (PAIR-AH-GORE)
The first Sentinel of Alleble, who now rules over Paragory.
TAL
Glimpse warrior, who likes to compete.
THE REALM
The world of Glimpses, once united with our world,
was separated by The Schism.
ALLEBLE (AL-EH-BULL)
The first Kingdom of The Realm. After The Schism,
Alleble remained the center of The Realm.
PARAGORY (PAIR-AH-GOR-EE)
A kingdom built by Paragor and his army.
MITHEGARD (MYTH-GUARD)
A kingdom in the northwestern part of The Realm.
A
dventures are
funny things.
They may creep out of holes,
appear down a seldom
trodden path,
fall out of a tree, or even
arrive in an envelope,
but they always start
the same way.
Adventures always
begin with
the unexpected . . .
T
he first sword missed Aidan’s head by an inch. It slammed into the massive catapult’s wheel, stuck for a moment, and jerked free. In that breath of time, Aidan batted away the second sword and threw himself down the hill.
This foe was beyond Aidan’s skill. His only chance was to get away, to escape with . . . Aidan looked down at the torn parchment in his hand. It was something important, this parchment, something of infinite value, the key to it all—only Aidan could not remember why it was so precious. He only knew that it was and that he must not let the enemy get it.
As he ran, Aidan glanced over his shoulder. The knight in dark armor crashed down the hill, gaining rapidly. His cloak trailed behind him like a gray wing, and he swung his two swords in wide arcs, carving the wind. The blades came closer . . . and closer.
Before Aidan could run another yard, the knight in dark armor fell upon him. Aidan turned, fended off a blow, then ran a few steps; turned again, sidestepped one blade, and barely blocked the other.