Desert Song (Horse Guardian)

by Angela Dorsey

  “From a different place,” said Angelica. “It is hard to explain.”

  “A different country?” asked Sophie.

  “Yes, you could say that,” was Angelica’s answer.

  “How did you find Aria?” Sophie asked in frustration, trying to understand. “Why did you come here?”

  “I came to help her,” Angelica said in answer to Sophie’s second question.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I will tell you, but first you must tell me your story. That is the most important thing now. Who I am or where I come from does not matter. We must make a plan to save Aria.”

  Sophie’s eyes searched Angelica’s face. Even though Angelica hadn’t really answered any of her questions, there was something about the older girl that she trusted. There was a quietness about her. A peace.

  And I have nothing to lose, she reminded herself. Maybe I’ll even be able to talk her out of making me return Aria. She might know some other way to keep Aria safe from the mountain lion.

  “Okay,” agreed Sophie, but then her voice faltered.

  “Well?” asked Angelica, prompting her. Sophie drew a deep breath. Aria moved from the oat bucket and sniffed at the hay. Without a word, Sophie stood and picked up the hay net from where she had dropped it. She tied it in its usual place, glad for the small interruption, and then reluctantly turned back to where Angelica waited. Taking her courage in hand, she lowered herself to the ground again and began to speak.

  It didn’t take long to tell the entire story. When she was done, Sophie looked up at the sky. The moon hung over them like a huge, glowing coin. Sophie closed her eyes and, with her head still tipped back, took a deep breath of the silver air. Then she asked the question that was eating at her. “Are you going to tell Joel and Kalene about Aria? Are you going to tell them what I’ve done?”

  Angelica was silent for a long moment as she too, watched the moon hang in the night sky. Then she turned to Sophie.

  “No,” she said. “You are.”

  The mountain lion glared at the creatures below from his safe perch on the top of the canyon wall. He wasn’t sure why he’d returned, especially after he’d been so frightened the night before. All he knew was that the fear inside him had turned to rage. An unreasonable, hate-filled, black anger that ate at him from the inside and wouldn’t let go.

  He could tell they hadn’t noticed him yet. Even the horse hadn’t sensed him. He’d been very careful to stay downwind, careful to contain his energy. The lion growled quietly as he watched the Bright Creature, the human, and the horse.

  The horse would be no problem to kill. He’d done it before. Even if it were big and fast, once he was on its back, it wouldn’t have a chance to escape. It would be almost too easy.

  But the human? He had never killed a human. He always wondered how strong they were. This one didn’t look as strong as the hunters. It was much smaller for one thing and its arm seemed to be trapped inside a fat white bone. But, most importantly, it didn’t have a fire stick. The big cat had seen a human with a fire stick kill a coyote once. The human had aimed the fire stick at the coyote, there had been a loud noise and the coyote had fallen, dead. The lion’s eyes analyzed the small human. Yes, he was sure he could take it down as long as it didn’t have a fire stick. It might even be the easiest to kill.

  The Bright Creature was the one he didn’t know about. He didn’t even know what it was, let alone how to best attack it. The lion growled again as he stared at the creature. It really didn’t look very strong. It too, was smaller than the hunters, smaller than the horses and cattle he had slaughtered. Could it be stronger than them? Stronger than him? Eagerly the cat leaned forward. No, he didn’t think so. But it might put up a good fight. So many of his victims died too easily, long before his blood-thirst was satisfied.

  The lion’s tongue darted from between his glistening teeth to taste the blood of the deer, metallic and strong, on his jaw. He could hear his heart pounding in anticipation of the hunt. With a low, resonating rumble in his chest, he lowered himself flat to the ground and crept forward.

  “What do you mean?” asked Sophie, aghast, her hopes dashed. “I can’t tell them. I’m not going to tell them! Didn’t you hear me? If they know, they’ll send me away.” Sophie felt tears threaten to spring from her eyes again, but she didn’t care.

  Angelica didn’t respond. Instead she looked up at the bluff. Her eyes ran along the top of the canyon wall.

  A trickle of fear slid down Sophie’s spine and she searched the darkness with Angelica. “What is it?” she whispered. “What’s wrong?”

  “He is here. Somewhere. I cannot tell where,” Angelica whispered in return. In one fluid movement she was on her feet, her golden hair rippling in the soft light. When Sophie opened her mouth to speak, Angelica raised her hand to silence her again. The older girl listened for a moment, staring off into the darkness. Then a low whistle came from her lips. Immediately Aria left her hay and trotted toward them.

  “Come,” whispered Angelica and motioned to Sophie to move to the center of the clearing with them. “Quickly.”

  Sophie didn’t hesitate. She jumped to her feet and hurried to stand beside Aria.

  “Stand by her head and keep her from running away, no matter what. She must not panic and run toward the willows or the rocks. She must stay in the open,” commanded Angelica.

  “What is it?” asked Sophie, although she had a good idea.

  Angelica confirmed her suspicion. “It is the mountain lion. He is stalking us. I think he intends to attack.”

  “How do you…” Sophie began to ask, but Angelica interrupted her with the answer to her question.

  “I can feel his evil drawing nearer. I can feel his desire to kill like a black mist in the air.” With that she left Aria’s side and walked cautiously toward the shadows at the edge of the enclosure. “He is very close,” she added, without turning back to Sophie. “I will stay between you and him, but first I must discover from which direction he comes.”

  Sophie stood at Aria’s head and waited. Suddenly, she spun around and looked into the black night behind her. What if the mountain lion attacks from behind when Angelica is in front of us? she thought. She turned back toward Angelica with worried eyes. Or what if it springs out of the darkness to attack Angelica? Sophie watched the older girl walk in a circle around the enclosure, her golden eyes probing the shadows.

  Angelica made a full turn around the two in the center before she looked back at Sophie. “He is very near, but I cannot tell from which direction he comes. And I do not dare lead Aria from the enclosure. The trail to the open desert is too narrow and we would be too vulnerable.”

  Sophie’s fear mounted. It was hard to breathe. “What do we do?” The question rushed out, even though her tongue felt like rubber.

  “Stay in the middle of the enclosure, away from the canyon walls and the underbrush. He may jump from above or rush from below. Either attack could be deadly,” said Angelica. “I will continue to circle. He was afraid of me before. Maybe he still is, a little.”

  “No,” protested Sophie. “You stand with us, beside Aria. What if the mountain lion waits until you are on the opposite side and then attacks us? We should stick together. It’ll be more afraid of us if we’re in a group.”

  Angelica paused, her face undecided for a moment. Finally she spoke. “I will stand with you until I can tell from which direction he comes.”

  “Okay,” said Sophie, relieved. She felt so much better with the older girl near, even though Angelica was probably as helpless as she was against a crazed mountain lion.

  Angelica moved to stand to one side of Aria while Sophie stood on the other. They listened in the silence for a sound, any sound that might give an idea of where the cat might be. Sophie tried to see into the shadows at the edge of the enclosure. She didn’t notice any signs of life, but after a moment her eyes made out the shape of a large stick lying a few feet away from the edge of a clump of thick wil
low. I need something to fight back with, thought Sophie. It’ll only take a second to grab the stick and get back to Aria. Then I can protect her better.

  With a quiet step, Sophie moved toward the stick. She’d just reached it when she heard Angelica’s urgent whisper behind her. “What are you doing, Sophie? The lion could be anywhere.”

  Sophie looked back. “I need something to fight with and this stick is big enough. Then I can hit the mountain lion if it jumps at Aria,” she explained, turning away from Angelica to pick up the club.

  Angelica yelled “No!” at the very moment Sophie saw something move. Like dark liquid, the large cat flowed toward her, low to the ground. A terrifying rumble erupted from its chest. Sophie saw its fangs gleaming in the moonlight. Her heart hammered as her fingers groped for the wood.

  The beast stopped a few feet away from Sophie and glared at her, unblinking. Slowly Sophie straightened and swung the stick into position as if she was ready to play baseball. She began to walk slowly backward. A strange buzzing filled her ears.

  Then everything seemed to happen at once. The lion leapt toward Sophie, just as an explosion of light burst from behind her, sweeping around and through her body to reach the big cat. The explosion pushed Sophie toward the mountain lion, but it seemed to affect the creature even more. In mid-spring he was blown back. As Sophie tumbled to the ground, she felt the brightness coursing through her like a lightning bolt. Her whole body tingled. But it wasn’t a bad feeling. In fact it was wonderful. Sophie had never felt so alive, so vibrant. Her heart throbbed. Her breath came in gasps and, even lying on the ground, she felt dizzy and light-headed. And fantastic. Absolutely fantastic.

  Slowly the tingling feeling faded. With surprising ease, Sophie pushed herself into a sitting position and searched the underbrush. The cat was gone.

  What on earth was that? she wondered as she climbed to her feet. What happened? She turned to the center of the enclosure to find Aria standing calmly, her head lowered.

  Angelica lay at the mare’s hooves, crumpled into a heap. Her arms lay limply on the ground and her hair spilled across the dry desert ground like a silken mantle, white in the moonlight and drained of all its vibrant color.

  Gone. Energy gone.

  But I had to save her. I would do it again. If I could.

  Aria is here. I feel her presence like a living flame. Will she save me? Only she can. I am at her mercy.

  My light is going out…

  Sophie ran to Angelica’s side, knelt beside her and picked up her pale, limp hand. “Angelica!” she said loudly. With an effort, she calmed her voice. She leaned over the fallen girl. “Angelica, are you okay? Can I help? Tell me what’s wrong so I can help! Please, Angelica. You’ve got to be okay. What happened?”

  When Aria touched Sophie with her muzzle the first time, Sophie hardly noticed. The next time, Aria gently but firmly put her muzzle against Sophie’s shoulder and pushed her back. Sophie fell backward, catching herself with her left arm. She looked at Aria with amazement. Aria had never done anything aggressive in all the months Sophie had known her.

  With wide eyes, Sophie watched the gray mare lower her head and blow gently through her nostrils onto Angelica’s stricken face. Angelica didn’t move. It was as if she was dead, but Sophie couldn’t see a mark on her. The mountain lion hadn’t come near her. Sophie looked back at the willows where she had last seen the big cat. It was still gone. She turned back just in time to notice something fall onto Angelica’s marble cheek. A tiny crystal drop. Then another. Around each miniscule drop, Angelica’s skin lost its ivory paleness, the new color spreading outward like ripples on a pond.

  Sophie gasped. The water drops were coming from Aria. The mare was crying. Two wet tracks of tears were running down her face and the tears were dripping onto Angelica. And they were curing her from whatever made her fall. Sophie watched life return to Angelica’s face and spread to her hair, turning it from silver-white back to gold.

  Aria loves her, thought Sophie. That’s what’s curing Angelica. Aria’s love. But Aria hardly knows her. How could she love her so fast?

  Suddenly, the image of the wild horses standing in their perfect circle leapt into Sophie’s mind and she understood. The mountain lion had been stalking them and Angelica had scared it away. Then the herd had come forward to greet her. They had no fear of her. They loved her, just as Aria did. Maybe all horses loved Angelica.

  Angelica’s eyes opened and Sophie moved farther away. Angelica smiled weakly and struggled to a sitting position.

  “Who are you? What are you?” asked Sophie quietly. Aria nickered to Angelica and snuffled in her hair. “Are you an alien? Or magic? Or an angel? What?”

  “I am Angelica. Only Angelica,” said the girl, reaching up to stroke Aria’s nose. “I do not know how else to say it. I am simply myself. It is only what I do that is unusual.”

  “What do you do then?” asked Sophie.

  “I save horses. I am brought, no – pulled, to where I am needed by the horses themselves. That is my calling, my job. When you did not come to Aria last night, she was frightened that something had happened to you. Which I see it did.” Angelica reached out and brushed her fingers along Sophie’s cast, then pulled her hand away. “She was also frightened by the mountain lion. And she was frightened for Melody, afraid of what might happen if she came before her time and no one was here.”

  “Melody? Who is Melody?” asked Sophie in confusion.

  “Aria’s foal. The one she carries,” explained Angelica. “The filly foal by Sky, the wild stallion.”

  “Sky? The mustang stallion has a name? And Melody? She has a name already? Did you name her?” asked Sophie, sounding flustered.

  “The wild herd sire is named Sky. And who chose Melody’s name is not important,” said Angelica apologetically. “I am sorry to confuse you but it is so hard to explain these things. And what really matters is that Aria was frightened and she pulled me to her. And now my job is to save her and her foal.”

  “And me?” asked Sophie, softly. “Is it your job to save me? Because you did, didn’t you? That light. It was from you, wasn’t it? It killed the mountain lion.”

  “No, I did not kill him,” said Angelica and shook her head. “I would not kill him if I could. Even though he has let evil overcome him, it would be wrong to take his life from him.”

  “But the light was from you,” said Sophie again. A statement, not a question.

  “Yes,” said Angelica. “I sent my light. All of it in a single burst. It threw the mountain lion back and he was afraid, so he ran. He did not have to run. It was his choice and we were lucky that was the choice he made.”

  “And then after you sent your light, you didn’t have any left,” said Sophie, quietly. “Were you dying?” When there was no reply, she answered her own question in a whisper. “You were. You saved me, even though it could have killed you.” Suddenly, Sophie couldn’t speak. The magnitude of Angelica’s gift flooded through her and she felt a lump in her throat. “Why would you do that?” she managed to say.

  “Death is not the end you think it is, Sophie,” said Angelica softly. “Only the physical part of me can be hurt when my power is spent. There are many would sacrifice to save you, Sophie. Aria would have if she could. And I believe your foster parents would as well. I think you underestimate your worth to them. You underestimate their love for you.” She put her hand on Sophie’s shoulders. “I know you do not want to tell your foster parents you have taken Aria because of your fear that they will send you away. But maybe they will not.”

  “How can you say that? How can you know?” asked Sophie in a choked voice.

  “I do not know. I wish I did,” said Angelica. “I wish I could tell you for certain that everything was going to be okay. But they sound like kind people. They seem to care for you very much.”

  “Can’t you just know, like you know Aria’s foal is a filly and that her name is Melody?” asked Sophie, her eyes hopeful.

 
“I know those things because I know Melody. I understand horses and, though Melody is not born yet, she is still here. I know the name she chooses for herself and why,” explained Angelica. “But I do not understand people in the same way. Like you, I can only make the best judgment I can.”

  “Why did Melody choose that name?” asked Sophie. She wanted to think about something besides Joel and Kalene, about anything other than being sent away.

  Angelica smiled. “Melody has heard sounds even from inside her dam. She has heard the wind playing in the willows and the brook bubbling from the ground and splashing out of the pool. She has heard the hawk’s cry and the whisper of the deer as they come to the spring to drink. And your voice. She has heard your voice speaking kind words to Aria, words of encouragement and love. To her, these sounds are like music and she wishes to be named for the songs she has heard.”

  “The songs of the desert,” said Sophie, in a soft voice. “Like a quiet lullaby. A melody. She sounds like a beautiful foal.”

  “She is,” said Angelica. “And she trusts you to take care of her. You and Aria.”

  Sophie sighed and scuffed the ground with her shoe. There was no way out of it. She had to keep Aria and Melody safe from the mountain lion, no matter what, and the only way to do that was to return them to the ranch.

  I’ll have to take the chance that Angelica might be right, realized Sophie. It means I have to trust that Joel and Kalene love me enough to forgive me. And if they don’t, well at least Aria and Melody will be safe. Melody should grow up as a tame horse anyway. Then she’ll always have food, and no crazy mountain lions will be after her. Sophie grimaced, thinking through the rest of her decision. Even if Joel and Kalene sell her because she’s only half Arabian, they’ll find a good home for her. And if they send me away, I’ll just go. It’s not like they were going to adopt me or anything. I would’ve had to leave sometime, anyway; Child Services always takes me away in the end.