The Fourth World

by Marina Sandoval

  “A what?” Steven asked.

  “It's a popular means of transport here; you'll see. It only goes to the Oasis...” Lácio had not yet decided whether to go to the wizard with Virginia; he wanted to hear what the others would say first. “If you continue the trip, we can find another means of transportation. I don't know how we will pay for it, but we’ll worry about it later.”

  “When do we leave?” asked Proctor.

  “Today.”

  “If I get it right, you will take Chad to them,” Steven said.

  Suddenly, someone knocked on the door, and everyone rose, alarmed. “Who is it?” asked Lácio.

  “Open the door, quick!” It was a woman's voice, and Lácio recognized it as the woman who had received them the night before. He opened the door wide enough to see her face. “The sermerios are organizing an inspection. I thought you people would want to know.” Then she turned and walked downstairs.

  Lácio felt a stab in his stomach and closed the door quickly.

  “She knows!” declared Richard. “How can she know?”

  “She probably doesn't, but she must presume. Humans never walk in groups around here. Luckily, she warned us.”

  “We have to get out of here!” Steven said.

  “We can't escape. They will just have to find out you're here.”

  Everyone protested, but Lácio shouted louder than them all. “Be quiet; there is no time! You three just arrived; you don't have to worry about anything. Virginia and Chad will pass as our prisoners. They can't take you both if you're already ours.”

  “I don't trust them,” Steven said.

  “You're new here; you can't tell who to trust. They’ll stick to their word.”

  “He's right,” added Virginia. “I think it can work; it's the best we can do.”

  “Tie their hands,” Lácio ordered Proctor. “When they get here, I'll be the one talking to them,” Lácio told the others.

  “Let Ivy out,” said Virginia. She didn't know what the sermerios might do to the wolf. They might not care, but she didn't want to risk it. Lácio opened the door wide enough for the wolf to pass and then closed it.

  As they waited for the sermerios, Lácio paced back and forth. Proctor stayed near Virginia and Chad, like a warden. They were both sitting on the ground, tied together. Steven, Thomas, and Richard were standing in a corner.

  As they waited, Steven told the others about the talk he and Virginia had. The doctor had the notion that Thomas was not affected by the revelation.

  The pirate simply replied, “We have more superstitions than you and we tend to trust in them.”

  “Did you know all this time?” Richard asked, still perplexed by the whole story.

  “I didn't say that, but I had my suspicions. Why do you think I prayed in the boat?”

  “Why didn't you mention anything?”

  “Nobody asked me.” He laughed irreverently.

  They heard three knocks on the door.

  Lácio opened it without hesitation to the three sermerios.

  “We're inspecting the marks of humans,” one of them declared.

  Lácio gave them passage to enter.

  This time, their faces were uncovered. The color of their skin was gray, but they could barely see it for the tribal designs tattooed on every inch of their skin. They had tails like lions, pointy, dark canines, and pointed ears. The one in front, who seemed to be in charge, had short, gray hair, but he didn't look old. The one on his left was shorter, his hair white as snow. And the third one had curly, blue hair.

  They soon noticed Virginia and Chad and turned to Lácio.

  “Did you capture two of the fugitives?” inquired the gray-haired one.

  “Me and my brother did,” replied Lácio, pointing at Proctor.

  “And the three of them there?”

  “We found them on the road; they had just arrived. We suggested they could come with us.”

  “Two fugitives and three newbies! You are carrying a great burden.”

  “We are trying to get back to life. No burden is too heavy,” answered Lácio, staring into the eyes of the sermerio who spoke to him.

  “Your mark and your brother's.”

  Lácio and Proctor held out their hands. The white-haired sermerio went to Steven and the others and gestured for them to show their palms.

  “We've just arrived; we don’t have any marks!” Steven said defiantly.

  The eyes of the sermerio burned like embers; he reached into his pocket and took out a small glass jar. The other two sermerios approached, held Steven by the arms, and forced his head back. Richard got up, but Lácio ran to detain him. The sermerio forced Steven to drink the liquid from the bottle. Next, they looked at Richard and Thomas.

  “It's all right,” Lácio said. “It’s so you can understand what they say.”

  Still, with some reluctance, Richard drank the liquid, since he didn't seem to have any alternative. Thomas didn't show such rebellion. The three of them laid on the floor, their eyes watering and their limbs numb.

  The challenged sermerio bent to look Steven in the eyes. “Here, you will do everything we tell you to.” He pulled his arm out and looked at the palm of his hand, while the other two sermerios controlled Richard and Thomas.

  “Something is still bothering me,” the sermerio said. “I saw you when you arrived. Those two were not tied up; they didn't look like prisoners.”

  “We persuaded them to come with us. We told them somebody would find them eventually, and the journey would be more pleasant without ropes and gags. Yesterday, when we were asleep, they tried to flee; so, we tied them up,” answered Lácio.

  The sermerios exchanged glances until the gray-haired man spoke. “These two prisoners are extremely important; we can't risk losing them. We will escort you to Sermeria; it is safer there.”

  “But they are ours! If your king thinks we were not the ones who captured them, he will not give us what is rightfully ours!”

  “He'll know. We will not take the merit from you. We want to make sure that the prisoners arrive in Sermeria without complications. They need to die as quickly as possible, to serve as an example to others who think they can escape.”

  “Sir, I don't wish to disrespect your orders, but I’ve spent almost all the money I had for a place in the next asadélis...”

  “Don't worry. We will travel together. You won't need money. Consider this your lucky day. We will pay. And once we are in Sermeria, I am confident you will receive the honor of coming back to life. Everything will be forgotten, and you will be happy forever.”

  The other sermerio laughed.

  The gray-haired man proceeded. “I will place a guard at the door and another in the street under the window.”

  “Are we prisoners?”

  “Not you, but those two are. If they've tried to flee once, why wouldn’t they try again? I'll speak to the captain of the asadélis and come back to get you.”

  They left the room, closing the door behind them.

  Chapter V - Hubert

  After sinking into the sea, Hubert sank quickly. He looked up and saw the shapes of his companions disappear. He didn't know what had happened. But he assumed he had killed himself without realizing it. He regretted it, but it was too late; so, he did it as quickly as possible, releasing all the air from his lungs. He felt his heart race from the lack of air. The salty water entered his mouth, and finally, there was only emptiness.

  Hubert opened his eyes slowly. Everything was blurred. He was in the water and could remember nothing. Gradually, everything came back to him. He jumped with fright when he recalled his suicide, but then fell, because his foot was bruised.

  I drowned and hurt my foot?

  He was in a stream full of deep, green water. In front of him, there were stones and, to his surprise, a rainbow so close, he could touch it. Behind him was a cascade of earth-colored stones. He looked to the other side and, to his astonishment, there was a pink swan swimming in the creek. The swan
stopped and stared at him. Hubert had the same confidence with animals as he had with humans—that is, none. He got up slowly, his ankle bleeding and aching. When he stepped onto the ground, he saw a duck looking at him with the same expression as the swan.

  What nonsense. Since when do ducks have expressions?

  He gave the little creature a faint smile and continued walking, following the path of the waterfall, hoping to get somewhere.

  The landscape was encouraging, and the sun was hot in the sky. It had been some time since he’d felt the warmth of the sun. Beside the small river, there were many daisies. He walked among them until he arrived at a nice forest with red leaves on the trees and on the ground. He entered the forest, staying beside the river. He walked for a long time, until his eyelids were drooping closed. When he could not take another step, he sat down against a tree, falling asleep right away.

  The roar of his stomach woke him. He drank water from the stream and washed his face and hands. His bruised ankle seemed to get worse, but at that moment, he was only thinking about eating. After some unsuccessful attempts, he managed to catch a fish with his hands and cleaned it with a knife he took from his boot. He lit a fire with sticks and stones and ate as though it were a delicious banquet.

  He knew it was best to keep moving until he found someone, but he was in a lot of pain and had to stay there, at least for now. A few days passed, and he kept the same routine: Walk a little; find shelter under a tree; eat fish; and, now and then, talk to himself or to the ducks that passed by. One day, he thought about making a duck roast, but since they were his only company, he didn't dare kill them.

  One day, when he was walking, keeping to the river, he heard a noise—the sound of a bugle or something. He looked where the sound was coming from, and as he did, his eyes almost popped out of his head.

  On top of a tree was a woman. Her long, white hair, threaded through with green strands, flew in the wind. She wore a long dress that resembled a peacock's feathers. He would have found her charming, had it not been for the wings she had on her back.

  Since he could not explain what he was witnessing, he preferred to stop looking. He turned his face to the river and stared at his reflection with his pulse racing.

  This is not real. This is not real.

  The woman saw him and was intrigued; she flew down from the tree and walked to him. When she was close, he turned around, coming face to face with the woman and letting out a scream, which made her scream as well.

  After they stopped screaming, she said, “How did you get here?”

  But all he heard was a musical sound. “What... who... who are you? I do not understand...”

  “I asked first.”

  “You have wings!” Hubert said uneasily, not caring that he didn't understand a word she’d said.

  “And you do not,” she answered indifferently. “I think it's best you tell me how you got here and who you are because people like you are not allowed to be strolling around here.”

  “I... what... I don't understand you. Do you speak my language?”

  The woman let out an annoyed sigh. “So, you just arrived! Just what I needed...”

  “What?” shouted Hubert, as if she were hard of hearing.

  She gestured for him to come with her and fled off in the same direction he’d been going before he found her, but he didn't move.

  “What are you doing standing there? Come on.” The woman gestured with her arms for him to follow.

  “I will not walk around with a woman who has wings, in a place I don't know.”

  With little patience, she rolled her eyes and continued walking. Hubert looked back and this time, he was not surprised to see the swan and the two ducks looking at him reproachfully.

  “What do you want?” he asked them despairingly.

  When he realized the woman was almost disappearing through the trees, he ran after her. It was painful to run with a bruised foot, so he shouted for her to wait. She heard it the first time but forced him to run and yell a little more before stopping. When he caught up with her, he said, “Can we walk slowly? My foot hurts.”

  She nodded, and they followed the path.

  They walked in silence for a time. He had already realized that she understood what he was saying, and so, he grew bold and added, “Sorry for what I said about you having wings. They're fine.”

  She smiled at him, pointed to herself, and said slowly, “Ha-bel.”

  “Habel!” he repeated excitedly. “Hu-bert.”

  “Hubert,” she repeated, still smiling.

  At the end of the trail, Hubert glimpsed a huge tree with thick roots growing out of the earth, forming curved shapes on the ground. Thick branches grew from the top of the tree and continued until they reached the clouds. A curving wooden staircase led to a house in the center of the tree and other stairs to the right and left were facing two other, smaller houses. The three houses were connected by wooden bridges.

  She led him up to the central staircase and flew to the house. Hubert stood there with his mouth open for a while. He was so amazed that he went up slowly, almost hypnotized.

  Arriving at the door of the house, he saw Habel talking to a young man; he had a cold face and messy brown hair.

  “Theo,” Habel said, pointing at the man. The house was all wood, and the ceiling was covered with leaves. The furniture was also made of wood and books were scattered all over the place. A red sofa was in the center, and in the right corner was a table loaded with things like jars, papers, and quills. In the other corner, there was a fireplace. Theo left the room through the door on the left.

  Habel gestured for Hubert to sit down. They each sat on the sofa, looking straight ahead. The uncomfortable moment passed quickly. The door opened, and a man arrived. Hubert thought he must have been in his sixties. He had a gray beard, and his hair was gray as well. Theo was behind him with the same unhappy expression on his face, but the old man looked thrilled.

  “Zauber,” announced the man, shaking hands with Hubert, who also introduced himself. The old man soon recognized where Hubert was from. “I don’t speak his language,” declared the old man to the other two. “Let's get him to understand us. Habel, get the potion.”

  “But it's the sermerios who should...”

  “Get it, already; I have no time to waste! They will not mind.”

  The woman complied while Hubert stared at them, wide-eyed. Habel came back with a glass bottle in her hands. Hubert rose, making negating gestures with his hands while he walked towards the door. Hubert didn’t know what that was, but he didn’t have a good feeling about it.

  Zauber ran to him and held him down. Though he was an old man, his hands were strong. “Theo, do not just stand there; help me!” Theo obeyed, while Habel stood, watching the scene with the bottle in her hand.

  Hubert looked at her with an expression of questioning and fear.

  “Just do what you must do, girl!” Zauber shouted.

  She approached slowly, placed her hand gently on Hubert, trying to calm him down. Zauber and Theo forced Hubert's head back and held it. Habel tilted the bottle to his mouth while he struggled, but little by little, he felt numbness seep into his body and his eyes started to water.

  They led him to the couch and laid him there.

  “Now, we can talk,” Zauber said. And this time, Hubert understood but didn’t reply promptly. “Sorry, but that's the way it has to be done. It's the only way to get you to understand us. Everyone goes through this; you'll feel better soon.”

  “What did you do to me?! Hey—I understood what you said! How is that possible?”

  “That's a potion that makes you able to speak and understand our language.”

  “Potion?” Hubert repeated, even more troubled; he tried to rise again, but could not. “Where am I? Who are you?”

  “Calm down; one thing at a time. You are in Arvel. It's strange that you got here! How did this happen? Tell us everything.”

  “No! I'm leaving.”


  Zauber placed a hand on his shoulder firmly. “Boy, we do not wish to hurt you. See? You're okay. It was necessary.”

  Meanwhile, Habel and Theo watched the scene silently. Habel was still holding the bottle. Hubert glanced at them stiffly, but they both looked so saddened that he soon softened. It was true that he felt better already.

  He began his tale reluctantly, telling everything that had happened to him from the moment he and his companions found themselves in the boat until he saw Habel on the treetop. When he got to the end of the story, the old man got up and ran to the table. He searched through some papers, found the one he wanted, and handed it to Hubert.

  “Is this the woman you saw?”

  “I think so... it looks like her, but I don’t remember precisely; I have not seen her for a long time.”

  “You said you appeared in the river near the waterfall?”

  “That's right.”

  Zauber grinned. “You're in luck, boy. That woman is a fugitive. If we go back there, we can capture her and take her to the sermerios. You can get back to life and I can get... it does not matter. Come on; there is no time to lose.”

  “Sir, I have no idea how I got here. I don’t know how to go back and who are these serm... what?”

  “Sermerios. I just need you to go back and earn her trust. We'll have a signal and when she's sleeping, I’ll appear.” Seeing the boy's indecision, he continued. “I'll tell you everything you need to know about this place, but now, we need to act fast before she leaves or someone else finds her. This can be dangerous; we need to hurry!” Hubert did not move, so Zauber tried to settle him down. “I'm not the enemy. I'm trying to help you, and by helping you, I'll help myself, too. Understand? It's a trade; everyone wins.”

  Zauber explained who the sermerios were in a hurry, and Hubert listened with suspicion and surprise. He had trouble understanding everything, and the man gave him no chance to ask questions.

  When the old man finished, he said, “So, let's go!”