Aegis Rising (5 page)

She smiled and recited, “
‘Saplings of Aegis, the bearers of light’
.”

“Agreed. They are young, mere saplings,” Ashack said as he inspected the blue sash that was tied around his waist. “But after they have recovered, how do we determine if they are indeed the ones mentioned in the prophecy? How do we decide whether or not to provide them with the training that they would need if indeed they are the ones?”

Tayoka sat with his fingers interlocked and his gray eyes narrowed. “Exactly. Must we train the five first in order for them to fulfill the prophecy, or do they demonstrate their fulfillment of these verses prior to us taking them under our wings as apprentices?”

To ease the perplexity they faced, Nageau gently prodded his brethren. “Remember that our tradition calls for faith. Faith in not only what is apparent, but also in what is possible. It requires us to search our souls for an answer. The prophecy can only take us so far. It is but a guide.”

They fell silent. Saiyu readjusted her headband before venturing, “Let us assume that the first line of the prophecy has come to pass and that the second line remains unanswered. Let us now reflect on the last two lines of the verse: ‘
Gaze upon them for portals that decipher, Shades of Earth, Sky, River, Mist, and Fire’
.”

“I have always imagined that this somehow refers to our crystals,” Tayoka said. “How does it apply here, though?”

The Elders contemplated the question. In the brief quiet, the only sound that prevailed was the crackling of the fire at the center of the assembly shelter. Around it were four low, wooden benches padded with soft hide that the Elders sat upon. On every wall was a long, polished pinewood shelf that held small Tiki-like statues and plants. Carvings of wild animals also rested atop the shelves.

At the far end of the shelter stood a marble table on which was placed a miniature representation of a beautiful island, encircled by golden sandy beaches and surrounded by a sparkling turquoise sea. A majestic mountain rose from the center of the island. Hundreds of small structures that looked like houses were placed around it. The details demonstrated the care with which the craftsmen who constructed the model must have poured into it.

Tikina lifted her gaze from the fire and stared up at the smooth, pointed ceiling. “I think the first step is to spend some time with our guests. We have not had an opportunity to speak with them since the Guardians brought them here. I would like to meet with them personally.”

“Your tone suggests that there is something more,” Saiyu remarked with a curious smile.

Tikina offered her friend a shrug of her slim shoulders. “I am not quite sure, but I do have a seedling of a thought. It is too soon to make anything of it for now. Perhaps we will figure it out in time.”

They fell into silence again, their hopes of finding a meaning to the closing lines of the prophecy’s first verse dormant for the time being. Ashack, who had been quiet, spoke up in his gruff manner. “This is sufficient for today. We have other matters to discuss regarding the village.”

Nageau nodded. “When we bring this meeting to an end later, I suggest we retire to our abodes for meditation and reflection. We will meet here again tomorrow at sunrise. Hopefully, we will have fresh insights by then. Meanwhile, we shall let the children recover.”

“Nageau,” Tikina scolded. “Those five are not children. They are youths.”

Nageau chuckled. “Ah, but at my age, these distinctions do get blurred.”

6

J
ag had been up for a while. He sat in his sleeping bag and stared at the wooden door of the rustic shelter, wondering what time of the day it was. He felt rested and was itching to discover where they were and how they ended up here. More importantly though, he wanted to find Mariah and Tegan and make sure they were alright as well.

He yawned, then made a face as he tasted his breath. Gently tracing the facial cuts on his natural golden-tan complexion, he winced when he touched a burning one. He darted a quick glance at Kody and Aari lying down on either side of him in their sleeping bags. He noticed Kody’s eyes were open and staring upward.

Jag tapped Kody lightly. “Dude, you awake?”

“My eyes are open, so obviously, I’m awake.”

Jag forced a small grin at his friend’s dry response. On Jag’s other side, Aari stirred and opened his eyes. Kody pulled himself upright and took in the shelter in full. “Anyone have a clue as to where we are?”

“None,” Jag answered.

Kody looked around expectantly. “You guys see my dad anywhere?”

Jag shook his head. “He’s not here.”

“Then . . . where can he be?”

“Why don’t we get out of here first then see if we can find him?” Aari suggested.

Jag nodded. “Yeah. We need to find Teegs and Mariah, too.” He struggled out of the sleeping bag and found himself standing on wobbly legs. It felt odd using them; they didn’t feel like his own. Tentatively, he placed his left foot forward, testing it. He looked down at his friends. “If you don’t mind, maybe we can take it slow—real slow.”

Aari bobbed his head eagerly as he too got out of his sleeping bag. “I’m with you. Zombie speed suits me just fine.” With Jag’s help, he managed to awkwardly stand up. They looked down at Kody. With an unspoken agreement, Jag took hold of Kody’s left arm and Aari took his right one. Together, they got Kody up onto his feet.

Jag rolled his shoulders stiffly. “Ready?”

“I think so,” Kody replied, leaning to one side from the aching in his right hip. “Aari?”

“Let’s go.” Although his voice sounded confident, it wasn’t hard to tell that Aari was sore too.

Jag limped to the door, took a deep breath, and opened it. Twilight welcomed them. The three gazed up at the open heavens, agape.

“That’s
beautiful
,” Aari murmured in awe. “What is this place?”

His friends had no answer and they continued to stare upward. Stars were beginning to glitter brightly, and the shades of blue, purple, faint orange and pink melted with each other. It was nature showing off its work of art. For that moment, they forgot their pains.

And then—

A bark sounded. Jag, Aari, and Kody froze. The bark faded to a whimper after an almost inaudible, “Shh!”

Jag leaned closer to his friends and muttered, “We’re gonna have to go on carefully. There are people here.”

He took the lead again and the trio advanced cautiously, taking in the surroundings. It wasn’t long before they heard the sound of flowing water. Jag pointed to a winding path between a few trees and they padded next to it, curious and alert, letting it lead the way. They noticed a gently rolling river alongside the entire length of the path. Jag frowned. He knew there wasn’t much light and that the water would appear darker, but it seemed a peculiar color. Almost—green? Teal? He was mesmerized by the lively hue.

The boys half-limped along the path for the next few minutes in silence. Twilight was almost gone now, and the moon emerged to cast a glow in the darkening sky. Jag gazed up at it, remembering all of a sudden his ride on the massive bear. He recalled the mystical air around the creatures and their gleaming eyes. And their tremendous size! He still remembered the fierce yet protective sensation he got from his mount.

Wait. Was it all a dream?
He stopped in his tracks, befuddled.

Aari bumped into him, and Kody bumped into Aari. They groaned as their aches flared.

“Did you have to stop like that?” Aari struggled to keep his voice quiet.

Ignoring Aari’s comment, Jag turned around to face his friends. “Do you remember the bears we were on?”

Kody and Aari gave him looks as if demanding to know if he’d gone mad. “What bears?”

“The bears—you know, the huge ones that brought us here.” Jag waved his arms around.

“I think the pain went to your head, pal,” asserted Aari. “Are we really supposed to believe that we arrived here on
bears
? Get a grip.”

“I saw them,” Jag insisted in frustration. “I
know
I saw them, and I
know
I wasn’t hallucinating.”

Rolling his eyes, Kody muttered, “Yeah, you probably dreamt it, then.”

Jag huffed, then relented and reluctantly agreed. “Probably . . . it was just so real, though.”

They ambled on for a while more until Jag halted again, eyes trying to pierce the darkness ahead of him.

“What is it this time?” Aari grumbled. “A kangaroo doing ballet?

Jag raised a finger to his lips. “Shh. Did you hear that?”

Kody and Aari strained their ears. Suddenly, a large black shape leapt out in front of them, its thick tail flying. They heard a growl emanating from it, and the three stood rooted to the spot, petrified.

The creature advanced stiff-legged, hackles raised. They could make out a canine shape, but it was larger than any dog they’d ever seen.

The animal’s yellow eyes gleamed and the teens saw a flash of sharp white teeth like daggers of ice.

Wolf!

Adrenaline kicked in. Jag’s fear vanished almost instantly and together with it, his aches. He stood with his feet planted apart, ready to fight the animal should it attack them.

“Chayton!”

The wolf paused and looked back. A form was hurrying in their direction. Somewhat to the boys’ relief, it was a human shape. As the person drew closer, Jag heard a quiet mutter of recognition from Kody.

The youth dropped down to one knee next to the wolf and slipped a rawhide collar around its neck, scolding it in an odd language. Jag, Aari, and Kody shared puzzled looks. The wolf lowered itself to the ground and whimpered roughly. The youth stopped his scolding and stroked the animal’s head. He glanced up at the trio. The friends saw a smile playing on his features. He stood up, and holding the wolf by the collar, bowed slightly and said, “Akol.”

Kody leaned toward Aari and whispered, “What?”

“How would I know?” Jag whispered back.

“Maybe it means ‘sorry about that’ in his language,” Kody proposed carefully.

“Could be.”

The youth, overhearing, shook his head and indicated to himself, repeating, “Akol.”

Aari realized what he was trying to say, though he was a little startled that the youth had understood Kody since he appeared unable to speak their language. “It’s his name!”

The youth turned to Aari, beaming. Jag raised his eyebrows and introduced himself and his friends. “I’m Jag. This is Aari, and that’s Kody.”

Akol said their names, seeming satisfied. He turned around, waving at them to follow him. After a moment’s hesitation, the boys quickly limped after him. He led them in the direction they had been heading. The wolf looked over its shoulder at them and undecidedly wagged its tail. Its dark fur shimmered in the moonlight.

A couple of minutes later, the boys and the wolf turned in at a shelter almost like the one the trio had been in, but much bigger. The wolf wagged his tail eagerly and trotted through the open door. Akol and the younger teens followed him inside.

Inside, the shelter was warm and cozy. Although the material used to build the place appeared to be the same as the shelter the boys were in, the interior was very different as it was furnished much like a house. There was a kitchen, a living room, and a small dining area.

As the boys took stock of what was around them, Kody noticed the pretty girl who had been with Akol previously. She was standing in front of a shelf and arranging flowers in a marble vase. When she saw Chayton looking up at her with a canine smile on his face, she laughed and went over to a counter to grab a bone. She handed it to him, and the wolf accepted the treat in his jaws. Turning around, he padded out of the shelter and into the night.

The tall girl stared after him fondly and then turned to Akol and the three friends. She and Akol engaged in a dialogue, again in that foreign—but strangely melodious—language. After a few moments of talking, she turned and faced the trio. They shuffled uncomfortably under her amused, intense gaze. She said something and pointed to herself.

“Just a wild guess, but I think she’s introducing herself,” Aari whispered. Jag and Kody nodded their agreement.

“Huyani.” Akol pointed at her as he looked at the friends.

“Her name is Huyani?” Kody asked. Both Akol and the girl smiled, appearing contented. Akol then jerked his chin at the boys and said to Huyani while specifying them in turn, “Jag, Aari, Kody.”

“Jag, Aari, Kody,” Huyani repeated. She gazed into the trio’s eyes deeply, as if probing.

Akol, noting that the boys only wore thin-layered tops, went to one end of the five-sided cabin. He returned with pullovers similar to what he was wearing and distributed the woolen garments. The friends accepted them gratefully and slipped the pullovers over their heads. They grinned, thankful, then laughed at one another. Neither had seen the other wearing such clothes and it looked strange on them, although the multi-colored material looked good on Akol.

Huyani and Akol joined in the merriment, then Huyani walked over to what appeared to be an island counter in the kitchen. The wood was polished so well it shone. She handed the four boys a drink from the counter and helped herself to one as well.

“Wonder when was the last time I ate, because I’m
starving
.” Kody clutched his rumbling abdomen in embarrassment when Akol, Huyani, Kody and Aari chortled at him, though not unkindly.

“That was loud,” Jag grinned. He paused with his cup halfway to his lips when a pang of hunger tackled him. “Okay, now I’m hungry too. Thanks a bunch for mentioning it.”

Akol chuckled and went to another side of the shelter. He brought back three strips of juicy meat. Huyani placed shallow wooden plates in front of the famished friends and proceeded to sprinkle some kind of a powdered spice onto the venison. She turned around to another counter flanking the first. This one had a glowing clay plate sitting on two rows of blue flames. As she proceeded to cook the meat on the hot plate, the mouth-watering aroma drifted from the sizzling strips of meat to the trio’s noses, teasing them with its appetizing smell.