Just as I
’m about to ask, Gunthreon says, “We must go now. Finish up your last bites, please.” Bu’s hands move the fastest I have ever seen, and he swallows everything in front of him in one mouthful.
Gunthreon pays the waitress and nods at the keeper, who actually nods back. We head onward.
Chapter 36
Seductive
The walk to Socola is one of absolute silence. My travel companions, I’m beginning to feel, are extremely nervous, the fear thickening each of their energy fields. I even catch Bu crying a few times. My energy reaches to his and I softly touch it, stroking it, and willing some happiness from him. He glances at me briefly as he continues walking, and takes a deep breath. As we approach Socola, I break the silence.
“Gunthreon, ho
w can Socola have no sun?” I question. “How can it be that the sky turns dark right where their lands begin?”
“Well, in t
he beginning,” says Gunthreon, “Velopa and Neda worked together by defining the lands harmoniously, yet making each one unique, and all the while having fun with it. This was when the good lands, like Meadow’s Edge, were formed. But once the arguing began, things changed, and we got places like Gernwood, where Bu lives. Each land we travel to can have its own fauna or animals, or, like Socola, have its own moon. Renhala is like a giant puzzle—all the pieces are different, but they fit together to form one giant, awe-inspiring picture.” He smiles. “It’s such a magical place, and this is why we have to protect it. And by protecting Renhala, we protect Abscondia. We must have Velopa withdraw its troops from Abscondia.”
The sky is black and the coolness of night lingers in the air as nameless bugs buzz and chirp. The only difference between a real nightfall in my realm and this is that there are no
stars. There is a moon, though, and it is
huge—a
ginormous, breathtaking moon. I feel like, if I keep walking, I’ll be able to walk right up to it and put my hand on it. There’s no man in the moon, but definitely craters, holding secrets of their own. The moon shines upon the endless expanse of forest beneath it. I hope to see light somewhere, possibly lights from a town or even a campfire, but there is nothing—just blackness. A big, black, flying bug lands on my chest and clicks loudly at me while trying to pierce through my thick sweatshirt with a long straw-like beak.
Lupa quickly swats it off with a stick. “Damn bloodsuckers!” My eyes open widely at her. She says, “Broofwings. Just don
’t let them touch your skin, please. They’re like giant, nasty fleas to the mooncats—and are especially dangerous to us humans.”
“Why?” I ask
.
“Just do as I say!” she
replies, and catches up to Gunthreon.
Bu walks right next to me, and every time I move, he moves with me.
“Bu, sorry, but I need some space. You’re gonna trample me.”
“Sorry, Kailey. Bu scared.”
“Yeah, big fella, I know,” I say. “We’re here with you so don’t—,” I hear something rustle in fallen leaves, and I jump, “—be scared,” I say, gathering myself. I soon find myself walking closer to Conner.
He looks at me. “Kailey, sorry, but I need some space.”
I stick my tongue out at him in the dark. “So, who are we supposed to meet? How do we know where to find them?” I want this over and done.
“They know we
’re here. We have to wait for them to come to us,” says Gunthreon. He seems sure of himself, which is slightly comforting. Lupa walks right next to him, holding his arm a bit tight.
Before we have a chance to take another step, I hear more rustling. Gunthreon turns toward the rustling sounds.
“We come in peace. We are here to speak to your alpha cat,” he states. “Can you tell me who currently holds this position? It would be greatly appreciated if we can address him correctly.” Gunthreon faces forward, but I know he sees nothing. I turn away from the moon so that I can see better. It’s like when you glance at the sun, and it leaves that splotch in your eyesight, and you can’t see anything because your eyes are so dilated.
Blocking the moon helps slightly, and I see something coming toward us ever so slowly. Bu does his owl-head thing to look in the direction of the creature and it growls, slightly.
“Hello,” says Gunthreon. “We bring no danger with us. Do not fear our greble if you mean no foul play. I am Gunthreon, and this is Lupa.” He tries raising the arm to which Lupa hangs on with a death grip. “Conner, Bu, and Kailey. I ask your name.”
The creature comes closer, and as it does, I can see that it
’s about the size of an oversized puma or jaguar. As it slinks toward us, it begins to talk, its voice rich and full of seduction. I find myself so enraptured, I don’t even hear the words being spoken. The sound is thick and soft, and I feel like I could reach out and stroke the velvet-like words. Once it comes into full view, its slick, gray fur is even more alluring than its voice. I imagine the creature brushing against me with the full length of its body, adding its scent to my own, and it makes me want to nuzzle my face against its neck and breathe in its savageness. When I reach to its energy I recognize it as cautious, yet intrigued, and a bit of regality flows along the edges, almost making one feel small in its presence. This creature is absolutely magnificent.
“Kailey, don
’t.” This is Gunthreon, and he sounds a bit further away from me than I remember him being.
“I am Nayla,” speak
s the cat. “It seems as though your Kailey has never met one of our kind.” The sound of my own name rolling off her tongue wakes me from my trance, and I realize that I am standing within five feet of this awesome creature. If I would close the gap between us, I could touch and embrace it.
“Kailey.” It
’s Gunthreon again, and he slowly pulls me away. He turns back to Nayla. “You know this is meant as no disrespect to you, but as an acknowledgment of your great power.” He walks backwards slowly, pulling me with him.
Nayla
’s voice creeps up into my ears again: “Understood.” She sits on her hind legs, just watching us. Bu looks away, pretending he doesn’t even see the giant cat in front of us.
“She
’s absolutely stunning,” I say. Nayla purrs loudly.
“Yes, Kailey, she is. Just stay back here with Lupa.” Gunthreon hands me over to Lupa.
Nayla’s voice is soothing and warm: “It is mating season, you know. It would be smart to keep a watch on such a lovely girl.” I want to run to her and kiss her forehead and scratch behind her ears.
After getting a glance from Gunthreon, Conner speaks to Nayla. He tells Nayla we mean no harm, and he asks of her alpha male.
“Yes, of course. It is Michel,” says Nayla.
“May we speak with him directly?” Gunthreon talks with a bit of sternness in his voice.
“If you let me smell her.” This catches me off guard. She was definitely staring at me when she said that.
“If you promise not to harm her.”
“Well, you come in peace, so I have no reason to, right?” says Nayla. Gunthreon frowns, but must agree with her.
Lupa holds onto my arm firmly and doesn
’t let go. If anything, she tightens her grip as Nayla moves forward. I also sense that Bu has moved forward, despite his fear of her. Nayla moves in very stealthily and brings her face up to mine. I close my eyes and feel a tingling sensation all over my body, making my hairs stand on end. She sniffs me all over and lingers in certain places, making the energy in me wake from its lumbering sleep. My monk’s spade is warm, and she steps away from it.
“Keep her at bay, or I might need to defend myself, and that could get ugly, no matter how pretty she is. I feel her power,” says Nayla.
Lupa speaks in my ear. “Kailey, relax, please.”
“Why does everyone keep telling me that? Geez. I
’m fine, really I am,” I say.
Nayla stops directly over my backpack and takes s
everal deep breaths. She seems satisfied, and purrs again. “She smells divine. Michel would love her.”
“You know we must ta
ke that as a threat, Nayla,” states Gunthreon. “We would like to speak to him if he is available. We have let you do as you like, now return the favor.”
“No need for hostility
, Gunthreon. You know what we are. I shall carry your request. You may travel ahead and take shelter until you hear from us again. Goodnight, lovely one.” This, again, is meant for my ears. My arm hurts from Lupa’s grip.
Nayla turns and begins walking away, but then she stops and turns her head back to us. “Better keep that small one in your pack, because she may seem a little too appetizing to some of my friends.” With this, she sprints away into the darkness.
As she leaves I spring back to my usual self—unfazed by giant cats. I immediately take my pack off my back and open it to find a certain woodsprite huddled up in a ball, shaking with fright. “Please, oh please, don’t let them eat me!”
“Je
nna! What are you doing?!” I shout. “That was
so
stupid.”
Gunthreon, infuriated, marches over, and I wince as he reach
es for my bag. “How dare you!” he blurts. “I have a mind to leave you on a silver platter skewered with some vegetables!” He pulls her out by her stringy hair.
“Owww! Put me down!” She tries to scratch him, but cannot reach his hand or arm.
“You shall not jeopardize our mission here. Go home!”
I try to reach out for her, because at this point, I
’m afraid Gunthreon may dropkick her. I get a hold of her and take her in my hands.
“Let me talk to her. Alone,” I
request, my mother hen instinct kicking in.
“Fine, but hurry it up,” grumble
s Gunthreon. “We must move forward.”
I carry Jenna away from the group. “Jenna, why are you here?” I say.
Jenna has tears in her eyes. “Why does he hate me so much? He doesn’t even know me.”
“I don
’t really know. You haven’t answered my question.”
“You seemed like you could be my friend. I don
’t really have many friends,” she says. “I also thought that maybe I could talk to him.” She points to Conner. “Sorry I ate your vegetable patty.”
I laugh. “That was you, huh? I was gonna blame Bu.”
“You can’t leave me here,” she pleads. “I will surely be mooncat dinner. If you want, you can leave me at the next town you visit. I’ll be as quiet as a fluffmouse, I swear!”
“If you can behave, I
’ll carry you,” I say. “I can’t hide it from Gunthreon, though, so you need to convince him you can be trusted.” She nods. We walk back toward everyone.
“Well?” I can tell by his stance that Gunthreon wants to be rid of Jenna.
“Come on, Gunth, you know damn well that I can’t leave her here,” I say. “She’s agreed to leave us at the next town we visit. Is that good enough for you?”
“Fine,” he cluck
s. “I am not a monster, you know. Do you forget I could have just persuaded her to jump in Nayla’s mouth?” Gunthreon stares at Jenna. “Next town and you’re gone, agreed?” Her head nod seems to satisfy him.
Conner walks over to her and holds out his hand out. “I
’m Conner,” he says. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
She blushes the deepest red and grabs his finger with her hands, shaking it. “
My
pleasure.”
“I can carry you a bit if you like. Give Kailey a rest.” I didn
’t even know she was in my pack, all two pounds of her. I know it’s just an excuse so he can have Jenna all googly-eyed over him.
“Whatever,
” I say, handing Jenna over to him. She snuggles in his hands.
When only his eyes can see, I stick my finger down my throat. He just grins and mouths, “Jealous?”
We continue deeper into Socola, looking for a comfortable place for shelter. Eventually, we find an opening to a rather dark and scary cave, which resembles the mouth of a moaning deathman. “This is it.” Gunthreon stands in the mouth, willing us all inside.
“No,” Conner says, shaking his head. “We could get ambushed, and there would be no way out.”
“He’s right, Gunthreon,” says Lupa.
“Bu
stay guard.” We all turn to Bu, surprise splashed across our faces. “Bu want to stay outside to watch. Please, Gunthreon.”
“He
does
have the speed and strength to be a good bodyguard, I think,” I say.
“Do we have a majority?” says Gunthreon. Lupa, Conner, and Jenna all nod. “So it shall be. Who will make the fire? It will surely get cold tonight.”
Bu hugs me. He lowers his voice to a whisper: “Bu won’t let them hurt you, Kailey.”
“Thanks, Bu. I think we
’ll be all right, especially with you on watch.” He leaves the cave and attempts to hide behind the nearest bush, but he is clearly too big, for I see his arms and top of his head sticking out.
“Time for a snack, I think,”
Lupa says, digging into her bag. “Food always calms my nerves.”
“Lupa, where are you packing all this food?” I say.
Jenna jumps down from Conner’s hands. “Did you already forget her gift?”
It suddenly hits me what she means. “Oh yeah, that
’s right! Show me something amazing, Lupa.”
Lupa walks over to me, holding the smallest tomato, still on a piece of vine. She displays all sides of it like a magician and covers it with her hand, and in seconds, the tomato is the size of a small pumpkin.