Yazen (Ponith)

by Nicole Sloan

  Chapter Six

  I'm the first to wake up and I’ve got a splitting headache. I look over and Alex is sprawled out all over the grass. Jenn is cuddled up next to me. Kolin is nearby sound asleep, drooling all over another Faun. Rowin is nowhere to be found.

  I quietly get up and decide to change into my other clothes because I can still smell the wine from last night. I try to do it quickly before anyone else wakes up. Man … I really could use a shower. I try to mask the smell with some deodorant. I comb my hair and put everything back in my bag.

  I only have a few more breakfast bars in my bag. I open one up and begin to eat it while drinking a little bit of water from my canteen.

  I hear a noise outside, so I decide to look and see what it is. There’s no one around, so I walk toward the front gate. It’s still early but it looks like its going to be a beautiful day outside today. I see something running to my left and I catch a glimpse of a white horse in the woods. I turn to go back in, and then I see Rowin coming back with some fruits and berries.

  “Good morning, Rowin. We'll be out of your way soon. Thank you again for letting us stay last night and for dinner,” I say while putting my canteen away.

  “No problem at all, Zac, it was a pleasure to have met you. I have breakfast for you before you do head out,” he says while showing me the food.

  “Looks good, I’ll wake the others and we’ll eat,” I start to walk over to Alex and Jenn.

  “Wait, let them sleep. They look like they need it. Come outside with me for a minute,” he waves his hand for me to follow him.

  “What’s the matter?” I ask him while we walk far enough away, so we don’t wake the others.

  “I just want to tell you about some of the creatures on our planet. It is said that your planet is very different than ours. As you know so far, there are Centaurs, Fauns, and Dryads. We still have many more creatures that live in Yazen,” Rowin says while sitting down.

  “Can you tell me about the Dark Elves?” My grandpa didn’t mention them to me.

  “Ah, they aren’t native to Yazen. There are led by two ‘Dark Lords’ and their names are Caoell and Kumbricia. They're gifted, and amongst their own they call themselves High Mages. They started to take over about 45 years ago. They entered our portal looking for one of their kind that ran away and came to Yazen. Once they found out that one of their own was living here and he abandoned the dark arts, they begin to attack us.”

  “We weren’t prepared for their assault and as a result we didn’t put up much resistance. They eventually used their magic to push us back here and in the meantime they brought over some of their Dark Elf kin. The Dark Elves are very vicious and cruel, following their code of rule, their dark arts. They will come through our lands sporadically to steal our goods and even some of our people, to turn them into slaves. I don’t know for what reason; they so far have been unwilling to talk or negotiate with us. We have to fight them or they will end us,” Rowin says with a saddened voice.

  “Why did they steal the Yazen gem? So no one could leave?” I ask him while watching him pace around in concern.

  “Yes, we’re held captive here in a way but then again, we really don’t want to leave Yazen because Yazen is our home. No one dares to go near them, as we don’t want to lose any more of our people. When they first came here, a few of the Dwarves tried to fight them, and they were slaughtered. Since then each of the races has ceased trying and has just retreated to their own refuge,” he says while dropping his head down.

  “I know it’s hard to talk about, but I appreciate you telling me about them,” I put my hand on Rowin’s back to let him know that I care.

  I turn around and I see Alex and Jenn up and coming out to greet us. Alex’s hair is sticking straight up, and Jenn’s red lipstick is smeared on her face.

  “Good morning, sleepyheads, it’s nice to see you alive and well,” I smile as I head over to them.

  “I slept like a rock. I haven’t slept that good in a long time,” Alex says while holding his belly. “I’m starving. Can I have some of the fruit that’s on the table?”

  “Yes, that food is for all three of you. I wanted to make sure that you had breakfast before your journey into Yazen,” Rowin says while going back to the den.

  We all sit at the table and eat breakfast together. Jenn is able to use some water to clean the lipstick off of her face and Kolin wakes up and looks at us like we’re ghosts.

  “Are you real? I thought I had a dream that you came through a portal and then we danced all night together,” he says while standing up on his hooves. He is still swaying and barely able to stand up straight.

  “That really happened, Kolin,” Jenn says, giggling. I think I remember Jenn and Kolin dancing for a while together. Kolin is very nice, but he seems to be very skittish.

  We clean up and start to pack our stuff up. We say our goodbyes to everyone and thank them for helping us out, but I’m in low spirits about what we’re up against. Rowin’s story and tale makes everything seems all that more grim. How are we supposed to get the gem back? It seemed so easy before but now I can’t get my head around it.

  “See you later and thank you for all the help you’ve given us!” I shout as we’re heading back out toward the Deeproot Forest in the distance.

  As we’re walking, there are different animals everywhere. We see all types of animals from deer, rabbits, butterflies, lizards, snakes, to squirrels. There are flowers everywhere, trees, and bushes. To the left of us is an open field full of pink and purple flowers. They're quite the sight to behold. I could lie down in the middle of them and stare up at the sky for hours.

  We continue to walk for a while and finally reach the start of the forest, and it seems to be very quiet and peaceful here. We decide to stop and have a picnic for lunch and we eat some of the food that I brought as we relax our feet. It’s not a lot and we’re all worried about what we’re going to have later for dinner. I check the compass while we’re stopped and notice the gem is quite a distance away from us still. There are some birds singing around us, chasing each other from tree to tree and I wonder why we haven't seen any other Dryads around yet.

  We start to hike again when Alex stops me. He says, “Look at that deer. I bet I can get a bead on it with my rifle.” He shows me his rifle. I forgot that he had brought it.

  If he does kill it, we could use my hunting knife and cook it for dinner over a campfire. Alex aims his rifle at the deer. He puts his finger on the trigger and whispers, “Everyone, cover your ears.”

  Jenn and I bring our hands up over our ears to muffle the noise. Just when Alex is about to pull the trigger, I can feel a sharp edge pressing against the small of my back. I look back and see that we’re surrounded by men and women pointing bows and spears at us. Alex has jumped back and has his rifle pointing at one of the men now.

  “Put down your weapon, now!” the man yells at Alex. Alex resists putting his gun down, glancing over at me, looking for a clue as to what to do. Jenn and I put our backs together next to Alex.

  “Alex, just put your gun down. If you don’t, they’re going to kill us,” I say softly to him.

  “How do we know that they won’t just kill us as soon as I put my gun down?” he asks.

  “We don’t, but we’re better off putting the gun down. Jenn and I don’t have weapons to help fight,” I tell him.

  “This is my last warning. Put the weapon down now or we’ll put you down. I’m counting to three, and then we’re going to fire. One … two …” the man yells out.

  Right before he gets to three, the big white horse that I had seen earlier that day runs between the man and Alex. It’s a big horse. It’s a … Unicorn.

  It has a large, spiraling, yellow horn on its forehead, with white fur that's gleaming in the sunlight. It has dark black hooves and it has white hair for a tail, long white hair from the top of its head down to the back of its neck. It’s absolutely stunning to look at. Its eyes are bright blue, just like Jenn’s and
its large nostrils are snorting air out at the people pointing their weapons at us while stomping its hooves on the ground.

  The ambushers back away from us, while we try to move away from the Unicorn. We all watch it while it starts to walk over to me. I’m petrified that it’s going to spear me with its horn, but instead it stands in front of me, staring at me. I'm afraid to make any sudden movements. The Unicorn snorts at me and then turns to look at the others. I'm not sure what I should do.

  “It can’t be; is this man bound to the Unicorn?” the man asks out loud to everyone. Everyone begins to lower their weapons, including Alex.

  “What does that mean?” I say out loud, to no one in particular. The Unicorn stands by my side, as if it’s protecting me.

  “I’m sorry for threatening you. We thought you were a threat to our people, as we don’t allow any violence in our forest. My name is Laderic and these are some of my companions. You must be here to help us," Laderic say, while staring at the Unicorn.

  "We just want to go back home," Jenn tells them.

  "Why would we help you when you just threatened to kill us?" Alex says. I notice he still has a tight grip on his rifle.

  "I apologized for threatening you; we didn't realize who he was,” he says while pointing his spear in my direction, “If we would have known, we would never have drawn our weapons," Laderic says.

  "We are trying to find the Yazen gem to go back home," I tell him. I'm starting to get angry with this guy, first threatening me and then telling me I'm supposed to be helping them.

  "You're bound to the Unicorn. We have a legend amongst our people that says that when evil threatens our ways of life, the Unicorn will select a leader to restore the balance. The Dark Elves have overrun us and pushed us back, enslaved our people and took our lands. You must be the one!” he says while looking to his companions for confirmation.

  “You said yourself that you are trying to get the Yazen gem, so that means that you'll have to fight the Dark Lords to get it back. You've been sent here to help us against the Dark Elves that have taken over our planet. The Unicorn protecting you confirms it! What's your name?” Laderic asks while ushering his other companions over to me.

  Laderic looks as if he could be close to our age, if not younger. He must be one of the Wood Elves Rowin told me about, as they were said to live in this forest. He has long, blonde hair that’s almost white with two braids in the front of his face. His hair is longer than mine. His eyes are a dark forest green color that remind me of the trees back in the Tongass National Forest. I notice some of these Wood Elves have different tattoos on their bodies. Laderic's tattoo looks like a green vine running up and down his arms and legs with white lotus flowers attached intermittently to the vines.

  “My name is Zac, and I travelled here through the portal from Earth. I don’t understand what I have to do with this Unicorn. Why did this Unicorn come to me?” I ask them in a confused voice.

  “Can this place get any weirder?” Jenn whispers in my ear. Alex overhears Jenn and nods in agreement.

  “If you’re willing to trust us, I’d like for you to come back to our refuge. I’d like to introduce you to our king and queen and you can stay with us for the night if you’d like,” Laderic says while the other elves in his party disperse.

  “What do you both want to do?” I ask Alex and Jenn. I don’t want to be the only one making decisions on our adventure.

  “We can go, but we need to watch out for them. I don’t think we should trust them more than we have to,” Alex whispers in my ear.

  “I think we should go. At least we will have a safe place to sleep tonight. Plus, I like have never seen a king or a queen before,” Jenn says.

  “Okay, Laderic, we’ll take you up on your kind offer. We’ll follow you. Thank you for your open hospitality,” I say while we follow them back to their home.

  While we’re walking, there are dozens more Wood Elves that are coming out of the trees and following us. The Unicorn follows us still, although at a bit of a distance. I’ve never seen an elf in real life before, let alone so many. They really do have pointed ears!

  We come to a stop in the middle of what looks like hundreds of tree forts all connected together by rope bridges. It’s the most incredible thing I’ve ever seen, so intricate and high up. They have wooden, spiraled stairs wrapping around the trees, going up to the forts and they have large wooden walkways connecting the larger trees together. They use big leaves for curtains in some of the windows, and a few of them have flowers hanging on their tree homes for decoration.

  “Welcome to our home. Please wait here for a moment. I have someone who wants to meet you,” Laderic says while going up to a nearby tree home.

  “Wow, could you imagine having these tree forts back home?” Alex asks while hitting me in the arm.

  “That’s high up there. I wonder if anyone has ever fallen from up there. If so, that has to hurt,” Jenn rambles, as I think her nerves are kicking in. She’s afraid of heights and has been since she was little.

  As we’re waiting, some of the Wood Elves form in a large circle around us. They are all whispering and pointing at us. I feel like we’re animals at the zoo, like we’re being singled out. The oddest part of all is that the Unicorn’s still with us; it has not left my side since the raid.

  A few moments later, Laderic comes down the stairs, and there are five other Wood Elves following him – three female elves and two male elves. I wonder if they're his family or if they're in charge of the forest.

  “Zac, this is my family. This is my father, Nytril; he’s our King of the Wood Elves. This is my mother, Korla; she’s our Queen of the Wood Elves. Drakoe is my twin brother, and these are my younger sisters, Calina and Narissa. I told them you were bound to the Unicorn. I knew they would want to meet you and see the Unicorn with their own eyes,” Laderic tells us.

  They don't seem like they’re interested in meeting us; they're more interested in observing the Unicorn. I wonder if it's the first time they’ve seen one.

  Nytril looks to be the age that my father would be if he were still alive. He has long hair like Laderic, but it’s braided in the back and is more of a dirty blonde color. He’s wearing a unique necklace that looks like it’s made of long bones – possibly teeth – hanging from his neck. He doesn’t look like a king to me. He doesn’t have on a crown or wear any special attire.

  Korla looks to be about the same age as Nytril, and she seems to have a motherly instinct to her. Her hair is long, straight, and brown, and it goes down her back. She wears a brown headband with a green emerald in the front of it. It makes her look more like a queen.

  Drakoe looks identical to Laderic except he doesn’t have the braids in his hair and he has a bluish-green colored bird on his shoulder; he has the same tattoo Laderic has. Calina looks similar to her mother and has long, straight, brown hair. She wears leaves in her hair for design.

  Narissa is beautiful. I think she’s even cuter than Jenn. She’s different from the other elves. She’s the only elf I’ve seen so far that has dark blue hair, plus her tattoo covers her whole body. It looks like a large tree climbing up her body, branches going everywhere. Her eyes are a dark green color, and she has a smaller, pointy noise. Her lips are tiny but look soft and her bangs hang down and slightly cover her eyes, similar to my bangs. I find myself having a hard time not staring at her. She has the cutest freckles that cover her nose and cheeks, as well as her shoulders.

  “Hello, Zac, my name is Nytril. I’m the King of the Wood Elves here. It’s a pleasure to meet you," he says finally, after taking his eyes off of the Unicorn. "Who are the others that travel with you?” Nytril asks politely.

  “These are my two best friends, Alex and Jenn. They came here with me to travel to your planet to learn about it. My grandpa George has asked us to come here to Yazen,” I tell him, while Alex and Jenn shake his hand.

  “It’s our pleasure to have you stay here with us. We would like to get to know you. I see that
you have been chosen by our legendary Unicorn. This is a huge honor," he says to me. I can feel my cheeks beginning to turn red, as I notice everyone staring at me.

  "I really don't know why this animal tried to protect me in the woods. I'm not special; I'm just an ordinary kid. I don't understand why everyone is telling me I'm bound to this animal, no offense," I explain to him.

  "Will you consider staying here with us for a few days and let us show you around? I would like to teach you about the Unicorn, Yazen, and tell you about some of our history. If you’ll let us," Nytril asks.

  “Can you please give me a moment to talk it over with my friends?” I ask him as politely as I can.

  “Take all of the time you need,” he says while examining the Unicorn some more.

  Alex, Jenn, and I form a circle, “What would you like to do?”

  “I still don’t trust them. We can stay, but I don’t want to count on them saving our lives after them threatening us. I’ll be sleeping with my rifle next to me,” Alex says while glancing at his rifle.

  “I think we’ll be fine, Alex. I think we should stay and learn more about Yazen, help us get more information about what we’re up against, and maybe they can help us get the Yazen gem back so we can go home,” Jenn says in a cheerful mood.

  “I agree with Jenn. I think we should stay and learn more about this planet before we venture further into more dangerous scenarios,” I tell Alex. He doesn’t look too happy, but he agrees to go along with us.