Neely nodded.
Ajax looked at the bug. “How old is he?” Please be young, Ajax thought to himself.
Neely lifted an eyebrow. “He recently turned twelve.”
Ajax sighed in relief.
“My point is,” she continued, “everyone’s lifespan is different. Elves and torts are almost immortal.”
“What’s a tort?” he asked.
“Don’t worry,” Neely winked. “You’ll meet one soon. These species can live forever in a perfect world. But they can be killed the same as you. So, if an elf can avoid getting stabbed or poisoned or other various manners of death, an elf has the capability of living forever. Torts too. Seers, dragons, and langabeasts, while not immortal, can live an extremely long time, like a few millennium.”
Ajax couldn’t wrap his head around living forever. He looked back to Spots, who didn’t seem particularly worried that he only had a dozen or so years left. “Neely, what about you?”
She didn’t have to be clairvoyant to know what he meant. “A hundred and fifty give or take a few years.” She smiled warmly, then added, “And before you ask, I’m ninety-two.”
He stopped and looked at her. “Wow, you look really young.” Ajax noted, although he really didn’t know much about her species.
She winked at him.
He picked up a stone, tossed it up in the air, and caught it. “So,” he began while he was catching the rock, “how old is this friend? Has he already lived an abnormally long life?”
She looked at him disapprovingly. “Just because it’s not what you are used to, doesn’t make it abnormal,” she scolded.
You’re right, sorry, Ajax thought.
“So now you want me to read your mind?” she confirmed, sounding surprised.
He shrugged. “Well, if you can’t stop yourself from doing it, I figured I might as well make use of it,” he smiled.
“You are very interesting, Ajax.”
“So are you ever surprised? I mean being a mind reader must make it difficult,” he wondered.
“Occasionally, yes. A few have learned to shield their thoughts. Especially sorcerers. And I can only read what you are currently thinking. I can’t go inside your mind and see everything you have ever thought.” She pulled out a red fruit that she had saved from breakfast and pulled off a section. It was a deep, blood red and pulled apart similar to an orange, but didn’t have a skin to peel. “Although some can.”
After Neely had finished a section, she offered a piece to him.
“To answer your earlier question,” she began as he savored the juicy morsel in his mouth, “I have no idea how old my friend is. It’s not anything he has ever shared.”
Ajax stopped. “But I thought you had never been to the Screeching Desert before? How will we find him?”
“What does that have to do with anything?” she asked incredulously. Then after reading his mind she shook her head. “Just because I haven’t been to a place doesn’t mean I can’t follow directions.”
Ajax nodded. “That makes sense.” He thought Neely must consider him a fool sometimes. He needed to deliberate a little before he simply opened his mouth.
“True, that would do you some good,” Neely laughed. “You may be a little rash, but a fool,” she shook her head, “I think not.”
As the day passed, Ajax decided it would be a smart idea to get to know more about the land he was in. He peppered Neely with questions. She was patient and did her best to explain things.
He learned that there was only one real city, called Elf City. Most of the population lived scattered and hidden throughout the land, limiting their contact with the elves as much as possible. She was also able to tell him that the creature he had seen at the docks was a deflater that could simply flatten itself at will. Ajax wondered how that would feel.
By nightfall they were just beginning to walk on sand, and the vegetation around them was beginning to thin.
“Neely, why haven’t we passed any other travelers on the road?” Ajax wondered. For two days, they had remained on this trail, but never encountered anyone.
“That’s a good question,” she noted, placing her hand on his shoulder. “Two reasons,” she began, holding up a finger. “First, this is a less-traveled path, and second, not many people venture out here—it’s very dangerous, even if you know what to look for.”
Ajax swallowed hard. “Do we know what to look for?”
She moved her hands up and down like a scale. “More or less?”
He didn’t feel very reassured.
“I have heard about the dangers, and have a fair idea of what to look for.”
“I guess that’s better than nothing,” he shrugged.
Niko stopped abruptly. “We should camp here,” he informed the group. “There are still some trees and a little fruit. And I don’t want to enter the desert in the dark.”
They made camp and ate a quick meal of hard cheese and a few more dried fish.
There was no talking that night. The rhinoceros had stressed the need for sleep, and after startling everyone the night before, Ajax didn’t want Niko to have another reason to dislike him.
He wasn’t sure why the rhino didn’t seem fond of him, but he almost never spoke directly to Ajax, and Ajax had caught Niko glaring at him on several different occasions throughout the journey thus far.
Ajax wondered how the Prince, Niv, and Axel were fairing in this strange new world. He thought about his parents and hoped they didn’t believe that another son had abandoned them too. He hoped with three people missing they would assume something else had ensued.
If his mother thought two sons had left without a word, would she be able to handle it? Ajax slept fitfully throughout the night. His worries weighed on him as if he were carrying a ton of bricks.
He awoke to the sizzling sound of something cooking. He rubbed his eyes and sat up slowly. Niko and Neely were about twenty feet away. They had made a small fire and were frying something on a flat rock.
“Good morning,” Spots greeted as he flew over to Ajax.
Ajax stretched, arching his back, attempting to work out some of the stiffness in his muscles. He longed for his bed. The ground was not treating him well.
“Smells good,” Ajax noted.
“Niko found a few eggs, so you get a break from fish and fruit,” Spots winked.
“Amazing!” Ajax stood and made his way over to the fire. The eggs didn’t resemble anything he had ever seen. Each egg, cracked on the stone, was about the size of one of his plates back home. They were dark purple in the center, and the parts that would have been white were black with bright yellow spots.
“Are you hungry?” Neely guessed, using a stick to slide the egg onto another cooler stone.
Ajax grinned widely. “Starving,” he answered, nodding his head. “Neely, what kind of animal do these come from?”
“A hippofluff,” Neely responded as she passed him an egg. “Niko found them a little ways from here. Let’s hope we don’t happen across one.” She shuddered.
Ajax turned to the rhino, not wanting to know what would happen if they encountered one. “Thank you,” he smiled as he took a big bite. Niko grunted and piled a couple of eggs onto another rock.
The egg was very fibrous. It had a texture similar to celery, but not as moist. The flavor was pretty bland. The colors and the aroma had deceived him—he had been expecting something more. He got to the center of the egg and took a bite. Red liquid oozed from the center.
“Oh my goodness!” Ajax exclaimed. His mouth was on fire, and his eyes started to tear up. “Water!” he croaked, trying to look around for the pack Neely had been carrying.
The rhinoceros started laughing big belly laughs.
“Here,” Neely said. “This is better than water.” She handed him something gray and squished. It oozed a milk-like substance in his mouth. The liquid had a slightly bitter taste, but it eased the burning in his mouth almost immediately.
“Guess the boy can’t handle the heat,�
� Niko laughed.
Ajax wiped his eyes with his sleeves. He had eaten a pepper or two occasionally back home. Nothing compared to the level of spice in the food he had just consumed. He finished the egg, careful to leave the rest of the center untouched and avoid any more of the red liquid. He observed the others all devouring the eggs as they would a piece a fruit. Even Spots ate an entire egg with no problem.
Niko was the first to rise. “We’d better get going.” He looked to Neely. “What direction are we headed?”
“Fez resides to the east,” Neely answered as she was stuffing the last few fruits from the trees into her pack.
Spots settled on Neely’s shoulder. “Let us know if we approach anything dangerous.”
“I’ll keep a close watch.”
The rhino claimed his normal place in front, followed by Neely and then Ajax.
The heat became intense very quickly in the desert. There were hills and hills of sand. Hiking was slow-going and tiring, climbing up and down the massive dunes.
Ajax saw something resembling a cactus. It was green and twisted with bright red spines sticking out of it. Neely cautioned them to give it a wide berth. The spines were venomous and would shoot out if something came too close.
“Why is this called the Screeching Desert?” Ajax asked after a few hours of walking. “It seems so quiet to me.”
“Let’s hope it remains that way,” Niko grunted.
Spots flew over and landed on Ajax. “This is the home of the sandworm,” he explained. “They are lightning fast, and almost fly over the sand. When they catch the scent of their prey they screech until they acquire it.”
“We don’t want to come across one. Their bite is deadly,” Neely added.
Ajax was glad he had a sword, although he hoped he would never have to use it. It was still comforting nonetheless.
At the end of the day Ajax was thrilled to be stopping. His energy had all been spent and he was excited to be sleeping on the sand, which he assumed would be softer than the ground.
He had scarcely finished a long drink of water when he heard it. A long high-pitched shriek filled the sky.
Niko pulled out his ax. Ajax jumped up, pulling his sword from its sheath.
“Neely, get between us,” Niko ordered. “Of course it would choose now to strike, as the light is beginning to fade.” He shook his head, disgusted.
Neely moved in between the big rhinoceros and Ajax. Ajax tried to look brave as the screeching continued to get louder.
“Now would be a good time for some of that magic, Sorcerer,” Niko called.
Ajax pulled his medallion out of his shirt. It had protected him before; there was no reason to imagine it wouldn’t again. But even if it did, what about Neely and Niko? Spots could probably fly away, but Ajax needed to help them if he could. After all, they were out here putting themselves in danger because of him.
The screeching was so loud now, Ajax had to fight to stand up and not drop his sword to cover his ears.
The sand began to be kicked up in the distance. Something was moving fast and coming straight for them. Suddenly a head appeared over the sand dune. Ajax stepped back, almost falling.
Worms in his world were small and relatively thin. The longest he had seen was a couple of inches. Looking at the gigantic snake before him, Ajax realized he needed to start asking more questions. That is, if he lived through this.
The monster hurtling before him held his head about ten feet from the ground. Ajax guessed he was about thirty feet long. He looked down at his sword. It looked more like a toothpick in comparison to the size of the serpent.
The worm reached Niko first. It lunged at him so fast, Ajax’s eyes could barely register it. The rhino spun, shoving Neely out of the way with one arm while slicing into the neck of the snake with the other.
The monster reeled back and hissed loudly, then continued screeching. Niko’s ax had barely done a thing to the giant creature.
The sandworm swayed from side to side. Ajax moved in front of Neely. “Run!” he told her, taking a stance beside the rhino.
The serpent shot forward toward Ajax. He began to dodge to the side, but the snake must have gotten close enough. Just as before, when Prince Blake had reached for the pendant, a force exploded out, throwing the creature back.
The snake fell back, dazed.
“Quickly!” Niko shouted, running forward and slashing madly at the serpent.
Ajax followed suit, striking close to its head.
The sandworm reeled back and swung its tail, knocking the rhinoceros into the air. He flew about twenty feet and came crashing down hard, stirring up a cloud of sand in the process.
Ajax heard Spots fly by. He wasn’t certain with the noise coming from the snake, but he thought the ladybug mumbled something about the serpent being too big.
He glanced at Niko. He didn’t appear to be moving. The snake struck quickly, seeing Ajax distracted.
The medallion protected him a second time, sending the serpent flying.
The creature seemed to be more prepared the second time and recovered much more quickly. This time, however, instead of moving back to face Ajax, the monster headed straight for the rhino lying limply on the sand.
The light was fading fast. Ajax could barely make out the outlines of the sandworm and the lump of Niko. He quickly tried to think of something to do. The image of the pinecone shooting up in the air flashed in his mind.
He clasped the medallion and held it forward, then he pushed his other hand, palm facing the creature. He envisioned the snake jetting upward and yelled, “Up!”
The sandworm shot up and out of sight; a moment later it came hurtling down. It smashed into the sand, causing a small whirlwind of smoke. Ajax waited for the dust to dissipate. The monster was twitching. He rushed to the head and hacked his sword into his neck. After several good whacks, the head was severed off.
Ajax collapsed onto the sand. The screeching was finally silenced. Spots flew over, lighting up.
“Where’s Niko? Neely?” Ajax asked, rising to his feet and sheathing his sword.
“Niko’s this way,” the bug replied as he flew. Ajax hurried behind him. “Neely, all’s clear!” Spots called.
Kneeling down beside the rhino, Ajax rested his head down on the beast’s chest and listened. “He’s breathing and he has a heartbeat.” He sighed in relief. Niko was covered in scratches and bruises were already beginning to form.
Neely came and knelt beside him. She shook the big rhinoceros gently. He moaned, but didn’t regain consciousness.
She opened a vial and poured a green liquid down his throat. “By morning we should know if he is going to be alright.”
“You all get some rest. I’ll keep watch tonight,” he offered. After seeing how fast a sandworm could move, he didn’t want to be caught off guard by one.
“We will take it in shifts,” Spots insisted.
“Ok,” Ajax relented. “Get some sleep, I’ll wake you in awhile.”
He heard Spots snoring almost immediately, and wished he had the ability to fall asleep as quickly. Neely took a little longer.
Exhaustion washed over Ajax. He had never been in a real fight before, and now that the adrenaline had left his system he was spent. It took every ounce of strength to force himself to remain awake. After what seemed like a few hours he woke up Spots.
“Your shift, buddy,” he yawned.
Spots opened and closed his wings and flew up a few inches, then landed. Ajax wondered if that was the bug’s equivalent to stretching.
Ajax lay down on the sand. Sleep found him quickly that night.
Chapter XI
It took Leif a couple of hours to march to the town and back. While he was gone, Niv doted on Sky. She stroked him, rubbed his ears, and flattered him. She had noticed flattery seemed to get her everywhere with him. So much so, that he even permitted her to ride him.
She was riding him around the cave, laughing, when Leif came back.
“Wow!” Leif said as he looked at the scene he had stumbled onto. “You never let me ride you,” the elf complained. “You told me it was undignified.”
Sky stopped and Niv slid down. He looked embarrassed.
“Well, you told him to keep me safe. Sky thought I should practice in case we needed to rush out of here. He didn’t want me to accidentally step in sinking grass, or run into any other number of hazards that I, as a foreigner, could have easily succumbed to.” She turned to Sky and winked. “Sky is very dutiful. He didn’t want to let you down.”
“Yes, you told me to protect her,” Sky piped in.
Leif gave Niv a questioning look.
She noted the bundle in his arms. “Are those for me?” she guessed, changing the subject.
He looked down at the pack, having forgotten about it for a moment. “Oh, yes. Here.”
Niv accepted the package. She looked down at her dress. It was a mess. “So, where can a girl take a bath around here?”
“Excuse me?” Leif asked.
Niv folded her arms. Surely, they had baths here. “You know, water, to get cleaned up.” She motioned cleaning her arms the best she could while holding the bundle.
“No, I understand what a bath is, but you do not appear dirty to me.”
Niv smiled. “Well thanks, but I feel dirty. I need to rinse off before I put clean clothing on.”
Sky had reverted to his medium size. “I’ll go see if I can find any water close by.”
The elf shrugged. “Okay.”
A few minutes later the hoosula returned. His fur was dripping and his face was sullen. “Well, I found a small pond.” He shook his fur out. Niv stepped back to avoid getting wet. “The branch I was on broke,” he griped.
“Thanks for looking,” Niv smiled meekly. She stepped towards him and knelt down. “You are still the most handsome cambriar I’ve ever seen.” She ruffled the fur on his head. “So brave and daring.”
He puffed up, looking proud. “This way, Nivara,” he scurried out.
Leif chuckled. “Well, you certainly have a way with him. I have never seen him come around so quickly. He enjoys sulking.”
“A lady has her methods,” she teased. “Flattery will get you everywhere,” she winked.
The Portal Keeper Page 11