by Jeff Gunzel
Yellow eyes materialized in pairs, peeking through the brush. The subtle sounds of crunching ground and dry leaves continued to move around them, proving the cats were circling before deciding when to strike.
“Well, this is a fine mess you kids dragged me into,” said Morcel as he gripped his axe. His eyes probed the brush, trying to get a lead on where the strike would most likely come from. “I could have been drinking mead in a tavern with two girls on my lap.”
“Focus, Morcel!” snapped Jacob as he held his staff out straight in a defensive stance. “This doesn’t help anything right now.”
“You said you owed me. You, Jade!” Morcel yelled, shifting his axe from one hand to another, trying to keep in line with the eyes that seemed to constantly shift positions in the brush.
“What?” exclaimed Jade as she kept shifting the position of her daggers from point up to point down and back again. “You can’t be serious. Maybe we’ll talk about this another time?”
“Get ready, you bloody fool,” said Eric, trying to focus on getting his mind right for the inevitable confrontation, but having trouble concentrating with Morcel acting crazy like this. “We need you right now. Don’t fall apart on us.” This is not like him at all. He is no coward. What is he thinking about?
“You said you owed me. Well, I’m calling it in right now. You have to do what I say. On your honor!” the warrior bellowed at the top of his lungs.
Time seemed to stand still as the warrior slowly stepped out of the circle and turned to face the other three. His face shone with serenity as he looked each one in the eye for several seconds. His eyes fell on Jade last, whose face was filled with pure horror and confusion. Morcel gave her a slight smile followed by a wink. He felt nothing but peace in his heart. His death would have meaning. “I’m calling it in, Jade,” he said in an utterly calm whisper. “Protect Eric. You must succeed where I have failed.”
With a thunderous cry that shook the leaves from the trees, the warrior whirled around just as one of the cats leaped from the brush. His axe buried deep into the beast’s skull. Morcel pulled it free just in time to catch another across the throat, nearly decapitating it. Dark blood pumped out like thin tar as he ran through the brush screaming wildly, “I’m right here, you dogs! Come and meet your end!” He ran through the brush at a blistering pace as thorns and sharp branches cut deeply across his face, calling out taunts as loud as he could.
The three friends watched in horror as the beasts went flooding across the path through the brush on the other side. The cats had taken the bait! Sounds of battle and Morcel’s loud continuous taunts could be heard off in the distance. His sacrifice was complete. The warrior would die a warrior.
“No!” Eric screamed as he tried to run off in the same direction. Both Jade and Jacob tackled him before he could even take three steps. “We can’t leave him,” he said as he thrashed wildly to escape their grasps. “He’s going to die!”
Crash. Jade’s fist slammed down into his face. “That’s right, you stupid farm boy. He is going to die!” she screamed as she released yet another right hand. “He sacrificed his life for you. Many have given their lives for you. They sacrifice. They give up all they hold dear in this world, and all you do is question them, you bloody fool.”
Jade was unleashing rights and lefts with almost every word now, held-in frustration released like a river. “You never once—not once—honored their sacrifices. Every single person in the world has more faith in you than you.” She got in one more right-hand punch before Jacob was able to finally pull her off.
Eric was a bloody mess at that point. Jacob had to hoist him up while putting one arm over his shoulder so they could move quickly and get out of this area.
Jade grabbed all the bags, and they were off as fast as they could move.
Eric simply had to shake off the cobwebs from the pummeling he received. After fifty feet or so he was able to move on his own.
Jade led the way, not looking back a single time.
They marched on for several hours before stopping again. It was now closer to morning than the middle of the night. On one hand, pressing on would have allowed even more distance between themselves and the incident, but they were completely exhausted and simply needed to stop.
Jade lay down immediately, not saying a word to either of them.
Jacob and Eric stayed up for a bit longer, each chewing a piece of jerky. It was hard to tell the time of morning, given that the light never seemed to change much.
“I’ve never seen her that mad,” said Eric as he used some of the water from one of the skins to wipe dry blood from his face. His eye was swollen, and he had many welts on his forehead. “It’s possible she’ll never speak to me again.”
Jacob said nothing, merely took another bite of jerky, staring off into the distance.
The air finally started to feel a bit cooler, which was a welcome change. There was no breeze, however, which would have been better. The eerie silence remained. This was the first time they wondered if the total lack of nature’s songs would affect their sanity. It was just so unnatural. They sprawled down on the ground, trying not to think about it, not to think of any of it, but it was no use, as Morcel’s face drifted through their thoughts. There were no comforting dreams for anyone.
After a few hours’ rest filled with unsettling images dancing through their thoughts, it was time to move yet again. They repacked the bags with the little they had taken out and set off once more.
Jade took position at the front without saying a word. The boys fell back a bit to give her some space. She didn’t seem any less angry than before, and they saw no reason to make it worse.
Eric and Jacob continued on in complete silence, keeping watch in all directions, not trusting this forest one bit.
The routine stayed intact for the next two days straight. They would stop a few times a day just to rest while Jade generally swiped a sack full of rations and slipped away to lean against the nearest tree. Jacob would still sit with Eric, but it was always silent, as their unspoken thoughts and worries remained so. Even though they hadn’t known Morcel that long, they had considered him a friend. The fact that he had given his life for a cause not of his own haunted everyone—especially Eric, who continued to replay Jade’s words in his head. He knew she was right, of course. Many had sacrificed themselves for him, and all he did was question their motives. The truth in her words seared through him like fire. His guilt became a close a companion.
The evening camps were no different than the daily breaks that had become more and more frequent. Jade would sit alone against a nearby tree while the two boys sat together and ate quietly. Jacob wanted so badly to try and reassure his friend, to tell him everything was going to be fine; that Jade would snap out of this soon and it would be like nothing had ever happened. But as positive as Jacob was nearly all the time, he just couldn’t do it. He could see no silver lining here. Jacob could always brighten a room with his wit and flashy smile, which rubbed off on those around him. This, however, was just different. For the first time in his life, he wasn’t sure everything was going to be fine. He started to feel more like Eric had rubbed off on him.
The general mood had reached its lowest point. The boys no longer walked side by side. Jacob took up the rear. Everyone wanted their own space as the seemingly hopeless journey continued.
Eric had finally come to a decision. He walked faster to share space with Jade. They needed to talk. He walked beside her for a time, but she looked the other way, trying to pretend he wasn’t there. She never so much as looked at him, but didn’t chase him off either.
“How much longer is this going to continue?” Eric mumbled, looking everywhere but at her. She finally spared him a glance as they continued down the leaf-covered path. “Look, I don’t know what happened back there. I didn’t want him to give up his life so recklessly for a cause not of his own. But he made a choice, and whether or not I agree with it, he made it!”
Eric agg
ressively grabbed Jade by the shoulder and spun her around so they were face to face. He saw the startled look in her eyes, but he continued anyway. This needed to be said. “He made a choice. I never had that luxury. My life was once normal and good. I had a father.” He winced even as the words came out. “I never wanted any of this. It was forced on me!”
He began shaking her as anger flooded through him. “And you—you had even less of a choice. Taken away as a baby with no memory of ever being loved. Forced to train like a savage every single day for a cause you never even bothered to question. Whipped like a dog! Did you think I didn’t see the scars on your back that you’ve been trying to hide all this time?”
He stopped shaking her as the blind rage subsided. Just now he seemed to realize for the first time what he had been saying, had been doing. He jerked his hands away as if Jade were made of hot coals. By then Jacob had run up and tried to step in between them. Eric stared at his own hands in disbelief, as if they had acted on their own.
Forcing himself to look up at Jade was nearly unbearable. Tears streamed down her cheeks. Disbelief and pain filled her eyes. He wished he could crawl into a hole after cutting her so deep. “Jade,” he said as his own eyes began to tear up. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to—”
Thsssssssssp. A sharp pain ran up the side of Eric’s neck. When he instinctively reached with his hand, he pulled out a small dart with two blue feathers attached. His eyes grew wide with panic as he screamed for everyone to run. Three steps were as far as he got before collapsing to his knees. He tried hard to clear his head as it began to fog up, to force his failing body to respond.
His heart sank as the other two fell to their knees right next to him, each with a similar dart protruding from their necks. As the forest began to spin around him, Eric’s final thoughts were of his treatment of Jade, how those very well may be the last words he would ever say to her. That fleeting thought filled him with more pain and horror than the possibility of his own demise—a fate he now felt he deserved—as the jungle faded into blackness.
* * *
Eric slowly began to open his eyes. His head felt light and fuzzy as he shook it back and forth. His first impulse was to close his eyes again and go back to sleep. The last memory before losing consciousness flooded back to him as soon as he realized he couldn’t move his arms. Now fully remembering everything, he thrashed while trying to clear his head at the same time. Stop panicking. Just figure out where you are and what’s going on. He stopped thrashing and took a deep breath, scanning his surroundings.
The black walls seemed to be made of some sort of dark stone cut into perfect rectangle bricks and layered with mortar, as far as he could tell. The bare walls held no pictures or decorations of any kind that he could see. There was not even a single bit of furniture in the plain room. There were, however, two open windows that allowed a subtle cross breeze. Hot air moving felt better than hot air standing still, if only by a little.
The floor consisted of wooden planks that were sanded smooth, but had no stain or finish of any kind. The rickety door looked to be made of bamboo shoots tied together by some kind of fibrous yellow vines. As his eyes gazed up, he could see the roof looked much like the door, bamboo tied together with the same yellow plants. His feet were bound together with the same vine, while his hands were tied behind a thick wooden post. The knots were tight. He twisted his wrists back and forth to try and loosen them.
The door swung open and a tall figure entered the room. Eric’s blood froze as the strong scent of spices filled the room. The bare-breasted woman that came in was about six feet tall. Her skin was mostly light, with several dark patches that looked to be rough and scaly. The woman had thin, white hair and was covered in shiny gold jewelry. Three large gold hoops pierced each ear, and two smaller ones graced each of her nipples. Gold and silver chains of various lengths fell around her neck. A combination of silver and gold loops ran up each arm as well. The small gold hoop in her left nostril seemed subtle when compared to the other gaudy jewelry that seemed to cover her from head to toe.
“I know exactly what you are,” Eric hissed as he began to thrash again, pulling hard on the twine ropes. “My friends and I have gone through hell just to stand before you. Where are they? What have you done to them?”
The woman’s bright yellow eyes remained fixed on him. She tilted her head to the side, looking quite amused, and smiled wickedly. She took another step towards him before sidestepping to expose the doorway.
Jade had been standing behind her the whole time.
Eric’s eyes grew wide, not knowing what to make of this. His companion stepped through the doorway with a blank look and turned to the woman. “Ericando tres toora beropa,” she said, gesturing towards the doorway.
The tall woman glided gracefully back the way she came. She turned to Eric one last time before leaving. “You sssay you know what I am,” she said in a light, youthful voice that sounded odd coming from the large woman. “Who or what I am is not important. We shall ssssssoon see who or what you are...Eric Aethello.”
The woman strolled from the room without a second glance.
Chapter 15
Addel awoke from her pain-induced coma. Never had she experienced such a thing in her life. Her body ached, and her head swam in a pool of clouds. When she tried to rise, her stomach emptied itself onto the floor. Falling back onto her dingy mattress as the room spun like a top, she felt as if she had been drinking for a week. Trying to get to her feet no longer seemed like such a good idea, as simply sitting up was challenge enough. But to her relief, her head seemed to be clearing quickly even as she lay there.
What did that beast do to me? What “gift” was he talking about?
Her door blasted open so hard, it nearly flew off its hinges. Dragot stormed into the room, towering over her like a tree dwarfing a bush. “How are you feeling?” he boomed in a rush that seemed very uncharacteristic of the calm demon.
The truth was, she was starting to feel much better. She’d been on death’s door a minute ago, but now she felt better than she had in a long time. What did he do to me?
“Well, regardless of how you feel, you need to come with me right now,” the demon said, and reached down with a clawed hand to grab her.
“I can walk, serpent!” she screeched as she pulled away from his attempt.
“No doubt you can, and will,” he said, once again speaking in his usual patient voice. “That is, after receiving Krytoes’s gift, I’m sure there are a great many things you can do well. Come, follow me.”
He led on as she followed him to his private chamber. Never had she stepped inside this room before, but she could feel its powerful magic quite easily. The way the walls continued to bleed seemed to bring the chamber to life.
“You now have both the power and the proper facilities to do as I command,” said Dragot, starting to sound impatient once again. “I will need two separate gateways, each leading to a separate location, by tomorrow. They must be able to transport a large number of people at once.” Addel began to protest once again, but he cut her off instead. “You now have the power to accomplish this.”
He began pacing back and forth as he spoke. “It seems the man-child has made contact with the crytons. No doubt they will perform their ‘ritual’ to see if his claims are true. This cannot happen!” he boomed as he turned to leave.
Addel stared at his back, half in shock. Eric was in contact with the crytons? She was fully aware of their existence, but didn’t think he would ever get this far. To have actually found them! No wonder Dragot was so nervous.
He turned back towards her once more. “We will attack Taron and the dead forest at the same time.” With that, he stormed away.
If she was half in shock before, it was complete now. He’s insane.
* * *
Eric sneered at Jade as she began to untie him. “Well, at least you’re going to untie me, I guess that’s something at least.” He continued staring at her coldly. She rol
led her eyes at him while tugging at the knot around his feet.
“So I guess these crytons are your buddies now, huh?” he said without so much as blinking.
“They knocked me out too, you idiot.” she shot back at him as she disappeared behind the wooden post to free his hands. “What were their scouts supposed to do? As far as we know, they haven’t seen humans in a very long time. Besides, in case you didn’t notice, they honored my request to speak to you alone. That should count for something. They could have killed us if they chose to,” she grumbled as she loosened the final knot, pulling a bit harder than might have been necessary. “Maybe one of us would have sensed their presence if you hadn’t been—” she quickly averted her eyes and stopped suddenly in mid-sentence.
A jolt of pain stabbed through Eric’s heart as he remembered once again the line he had crossed. “Jade,” he said softly, gingerly getting to his feet. After stalling for a while, she finally looked him in the eye. “I’m so sorry for what I said. I didn’t mean any of it.” He ran his fingers through his thick, curly hair as he turned to face the wall, having a hard time seeing the pain in her eyes. The pain he had caused. “It was just that...I felt so helpless.”
She lifted one eyebrow as he continued.
“I mean, you’re my guide. You’re supposed to tell me where to go, what to do, how to do it. When you stopped speaking to me, I was lost. Lost without my guide...my guardian...my friend. I had no idea what to do.” This time, he walked right over to her.
She jumped a bit from the aggressive movement.
“I know I let you down,” he said in a low whisper. “I don’t ever want to feel like that again. Like...like I’ve hurt you, betrayed you.” His voice started to gain strength again. “But we’re here now. Thanks to you and Morcel’s ultimate sacrifice, we made it,” He moved even closer and placed his hand on her shoulder. “I need you now more than ever.”
They stared into each other’s eyes for some time before Jade cleared her throat and looked away. “Follow me,” she said, wearing a lopsided smile. “We’re not done yet, we have work to do.”