The Crooked Staff (The Chronicles of Will Book 1)

by Jared Campbell

  “Awkuhs chioon huy tult,” the chief said from behind Will. To his left stood Tripp, and to his right stood Kellin.

  “We um, need to speak to you. I’m translating.” Tripp looked confused as he looked at the chief, who until now was very light and joyful. Now his face was full of strength and focus.

  “What’s going on?” Will stood up.

  Tripp continued to translate.

  “Long ago, our fathers traveled to this land to escape the evils that chased us. Instead, they followed us here. We brought with us a set of books and papers from the old world, from a prophet named Enush.” Tripp stopped, even though the chief had continued.

  “Do you mean Enoch!?” His question was directed at the chief, who stared bewildered at Tripp’s reaction. Even Will wasn’t sure what was going on, and he understood Tripp. “In the Bible there was a prophet named Enoch. He is the only man who never died, though most say he was raptured.”

  “Raptured?” Will asked.

  “Yes, raptured, as in he was taken into heaven for eternity and did not need to face death on Earth.”

  The chief said something again, his face showed slight irritation at being left out of the conversation. Tripp turned to him, said something and then began to translate again.

  “He wrote these books to keep evil from entering man heart.”

  “I don’t understand what this has to do with me,” Will said.

  “These books contain a prophecy,” Tripp continued, ignoring Will. “In this prophecy, it tells of men from Heaven that would come down to the ground like stars. That they would raise an army to fight the darkness that rules this World. That with them would be the crooked staff, to straighten the world.” Tripp stopped and looked at his friend.

  “He means the angels, right?” Will said desperately.

  “He means us,” Tripp replied.

  The pang in Will’s chest caused goose bumps to rise all over his skin and his head to get heavy.

  “We must ride to the North and get the Ruik tribe. They will help us in the battle to come.” The chief had continued, not recognizing the weight of the moment.

  “Battle!? What battle?” Will asked agitatedly.

  Tripp translated the question and the chief replied.

  “The battle of good and evil, of angels and demons, of Thohg Rine.”

  Will just stared at the three of them. He didn’t know how to react. Should he be excited? He still couldn’t believe they were talking about him. Tripp and Will stared at the chief, both of them unsure of anything anymore.

  “What are we supposed to do?” Will finally asked.

  “We must go and unite the people of this land and fight the gods who rule Thohg Rine.”

  “What is Thohg Rine?”

  “I’m not sure.” Tripp said something in Algaer and the chief continued.

  “Thohg Rine is the home of the demons. It’s on an island below us… I think he means south.”

  “Demons? You mean like the thing that attacked us last night?”

  Tripp’s brow furled as he attempted to continue. “No... he was just one of their servants. They are much more powerful than he.”

  Will could see Tripp was struggling to keep up. It was amazing he had reached this level so quickly. Will felt bad for him, but he knew Tripp loved it. The challenge and the thrill of being immersed in such a language and culture.

  “The gods sent him here to keep us small, but we want to fight. No longer will our women and children die at the hands of these…” Tripp didn’t understand the last word but could tell it was a harsh one by the anger in the chief’s voice.

  “Sir,” Will directed his question at the chief. “You said before that I brought the demon down to the village. What did you mean?”

  “The blood,” Tripp translated. “The blood attracts the Thohg – I mean demon – and he craves it.”

  Will looked at Tripp, no longer addressing the chief, but his friend. “When does he want us to go?”

  “Are you sure you want to? I know this whole thing has been a lot for you. I can see it in your eyes. You’re exhausted.”

  Will took that in. He could feel the pain and angst creeping up within him. He had been pushing it to the back of his mind for a while now. A dark figure in his mind stepped forward, trying to crush his spirit; the same dark figure that haunted all his nights. He winced, attempting to keep himself in check, and stared at his surroundings.

  Nature always seemed to calm Will. It was a trick he learned back in the air force, during difficult training exercises designed to crush the mind and eliminate all hope. Just then, what looked like a butterfly flew by him. It glided through the air, and Will felt as if it was a sight meant just for him. His heartbeat slowed and his mind focused.

  “I’m ready.”

  Tripp smiled and his eyes grew wide, it was clear that he was excited about what was going on. Then again, he was excited about nearly everything. It was almost as irritating as it was endearing.

  “Good,” he responded.

  Tripp turned toward the chief and repeated Will’s response. The chief looked pleased. He turned and called for the entire village’s attention.

  Tripp explained to Will what the chief was saying to the crowd. He was calling for all the warriors to step forward for the battle. Every man stood up, including Kellin. There, just behind Kellin, was Rya. Will’s heart stopped.

  “No!” the word had slipped out of his mouth before he even knew it.

  Confused, the chief turned and looked at Will. Not understanding what he had said, he turned back to Tripp and muttered something in Algaer. Tripp responded quietly.

  Will barely noticed the communication between the chief and Tripp. His eyes were locked onto Rya’s. She saw him staring at her but was trying to avoid his gaze. Truly, Will thought, she is the most beautiful girl I have ever seen.

  “I can’t let her go,” he said under his breath with determination.

  “It’s her choice,” Tripp said to Will, tearing his focus away from Rya.

  “But...”

  “She has made her choice. The chief was very adamant about it.”

  Tripp thought of the women who had joined the air force with him. How strong and determined they were. He didn’t see any of that in Rya. The thought of the creature from last night jolted him. He wanted to stop her, but when he looked back at her face, she was grinding her teeth in anger. Not at him, right?

  After the crowd dispersed, he chased after her, but she evaded him and disappeared back into the village.

  Tripp slowly walked up behind him, “We leave tomorrow.”

  “Alright,” Will’s face looked distracted and nervous.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” Tripp asked.

  “Ya, I’m sure.” Will looked the opposite.

  “I found out,” Tripp continued, though he faced the ground. “Why it is that she’s treated so differently here.”

  Will finally looked at Tripp, curious.

  “Do you remember the Sahk-Behk?” Tripp asked, knowing the answer.

  “Of course, I can’t forget.”

  “Well, they worship the gods from Thohg Rine by voluntarily scratching out their eyes. They call it Urone. The children are subjected to the cult and its ideologies at a young age and forced to abide. Before this chief came to power over the tribe, they used to do raids on the Sahk-Behk. They would take the children and try to bring them back to the Algaer to protect them. None would come back with the Algaer, until the chief found Rya. It was the day before her Urone, and she was scared. The chief looked into her eyes and saw how beautiful she was. He picked her up and brought her back. She’s the only Sahk-Behk to return and not fight back against the raiders. That was the last time they tried. Since then, the Sahk-Behk have gotten stronger and have allied themselves further with Thohg Rine.”

  Will stared at Tripp for a moment in disbelief. The thought was so repulsive. She came from them? It couldn’t be true, yet now it made a little more sen
se why she wanted to fight back.

  “She’s going to fight because of what they did to her people,” Tripp said, practically reading his mind.

  Before Will had time to process what he just learned, the rest of the crew came walking toward them.

  “What’s going on?” Lo Su asked.

  Tripp began to explain the whole thing to the others. Lo Su and Ahmed were atheists and the whole thing sounded like fairy tales to them, but Fernando was Catholic, and the idea was a little more acceptable to him. When asked if they wanted to come to the north tomorrow with them, they looked around at the village.

  “I think we should stay,” Fernando finally answered.

  "You want to split up?" Will asked quietly.

  "I think we should too," Lo Su added.

  "Why would you stay here?" Tripp asked.

  "The ship landed off the coast of here. Maybe we can figure out what's going on. Plus, this whole Hiktar situation is a little weird. I would rather stick with what I know," said Fernando.

  "Alright," Will said hesitantly. "The choice is yours."

  Lo Su looked over at Fernando, "We'll stay."

  Fernando nodded.

  "Alright."

  They spent the day listening to the chief talk to the rest of the villagers. He was telling them what was going to take place in the coming days. The one warning Will kept hearing as Tripp translated was “watch your horse.” It was a strange warning, to say the least. The whole time the chief spoke, Will just stared at Rya. He wanted her to look at him, but she was focused. Probably for the better; maybe she would be more prepared for the battle, and Will would have to worry less for her safety.

  Finally they were released. Will went straight to his hut, then turned to look back at the village. There she was, standing in front of the large fire at the center of the village, staring at him. As he turned and saw her, she disappeared back into the village behind some huts. His eyes went to the ground as he thought how very frustrating this was. He turned and entered his hut. It wasn’t difficult falling asleep that night. His day had been so eventful. His mind wandered for a moment, reviewing his day, and then he blacked out.

  Will opened his eyes and couldn’t believe it. He was back in the Qarib II. The lights in front of him were flashing and random sirens were going off. He watched as he responded to the flashing lights and the alarms. The noise was deafening, and it was seconds before he realized that he wasn’t doing anything. Instead, it was as if his body was on auto-pilot. He finally turned off the noise and instinctively checked the status of the crew. Everyone was fine. The pain hit Will instantly: some of these people would die today. Will un-buckled himself and headed for one of the windows on his left. It was the strangest thing he had ever experienced, moving without choice. As he looked out the window he saw space, empty space. Though the stars were beautiful, he knew what he was looking for: a planet, any planet. He turned around and ran to the other side, again peering through the window.

  There in front of him was a large ball, colored blue, brown and green. It looked like Earth, but it wasn’t. Where three fourths of Earth was covered in water, this planet was covered in land. Lots and lots of land. Will remembered back at Earth how every man, woman and child were desperately looking for more land. This place would definitely provide for thousands of years. Will tried to turn around and go back to the panel. He wanted to return to Earth, and a moment of panic flickered. He couldn’t move! He just stood there, dumbfounded, staring at the gigantic brown orb as it hung in space. What a weird dream this is, Will thought.

  “This isn’t a dream, Will.”

  That startled him, and he turned to look for the speaker, but it was dark. Where there was once one main chair in the command room, there were now two, and the new one was occupied. A middle aged man of average build sat in the seat, staring off into space.

  “Where did you come from!?” Will heard himself yell.

  “I’ve always been here, Will.” The man turned to Will, and for the first time, he saw his face. He was tan and older looking. Not worn down, but wise and strong. He had a short beard and his eyes were a deep blue, like the ocean. Will walked closer, taking in the man who sat before him. He was wearing a suit like Will’s. It looked like a dark gray polyester. Will just stared for a moment, unsure of what was going on.

  “Who are you?” he asked.

  “You know who I am,” the man stood. “ I have been in your life since you were born. I helped your mother carry you. I walked with you to school on your first day of kindergarten, and I saved you from falling on the playground.”

  Will’s eyes grew wide as he cocked his head slightly in fear.

  “I watched you sing in the church choir as a boy. Your soul cried out with joy and longing for me.”

  A tear formed at the bottom of the man’s eyes as he continued.

  “I watched you turn from your mother, your church, and God when you embraced the world. I wept when you left your mother in that house years ago, saying you were leaving. And I held her as she wept for you.”

  How could he know these things? Will’s own eyes formed tears and his body began to weaken. It was like his meeting with Michael, only this time it was stronger.

  “I wanted to reach out to pull you back to her, to me, but I know your fate. I guided the Professor to you weeks ago on those sullen lunar streets. I watched him speak to you, embrace you, and I softened your heart to help you go with him.”

  Tears rolled down Will’s cheeks and hit the floor of the ship. They were creating a puddle now; a puddle he would bow in, to the almighty God, creator of the universe.

  “Now I am here with you, Will, as you head toward that planet and are forced to make a choice.”

  His last word hung in the air, full of mystery. Will looked up, deep into the man’s eyes. He realized he was on his knees.

  “What choice?”

  “You will learn, but first I have something to give to you.”

  Will’s eyes went to the man’s hands but the man didn’t move, not at all.

  “What g…” Will’s eyes opened wide in amazement and fear, as pain filled his mouth. It was like an inconsumable fire had broken out and now danced on his tongue. He tried to scream but instead closed his eyes, fighting the pain.

  12 Rohk

  “Will!”

  The yell woke Will from his dream. He opened his eyes and reached for his tongue, trying to fight the pain, only to find it gone. The sun shone through the roof of his hut, the same way it did every day. He briefly wondered if he would get a funny tan mark on his face from it. The dream was still alive in his mind and he was fighting to come back to reality. Tripp entered the hut dressed in leather armor, obviously from the Algaer. He looked strong. He wore what looked like a kilt made of leather, his chest plate also made of very thick leather and held together by stone rings made of what looked like marble. His head was adorned in a bronze helmet in the shape of a horse’s head, with its mane comprised of bronze shingles going down to his shoulders.

  “Will,” he repeated. “Come on, let’s get going. We’ve already begun.”

  There was no way of keeping accurate time anymore. Somehow the thought of bringing watches had been overlooked in the planning of their mission.

  Will got up and walked outside to join the rest of the Algaer. They were all gathered around the ashes of the fire from the night before. Some of the Algaer applied the ashes to their uniforms with strange sharp-edged designs. Will came closer to the group and headed straight for the uniform line; Kellin walked straight for him and, instead, started guiding him toward another line.

  “Nope, sorry, you’re gonna have to go in this line first for sandals,” Kellin said.

  Will stopped, his mouth opened wide and his shoulders rose, he looked like he saw a Thohg.

  “I understand you…” he said, dumbfounded.

  This time it was Kellin’s turn to look terrified. In fact, almost everyone stopped and looked at Will. They all stood bewildered
; no one moved, no one even breathed.

  “I understand you…” Kellin replied.

  Tripp looked over and saw everyone staring at Will again. He jogged over, fearing another confrontation. How many problems could one man cause? He almost laughed aloud at the thought.

  “What happened Will?” Tripp asked, humor in his voice.

  “I… I understand them.” Will looked real shaken.

  “What?” Tripp didn’t understand.

  “The…Them. Are they speaking English?” Will asked frantically.

  “I really hope so,” Tripp chuckled as he turned and spoke to Kellin. “What happened?” he asked.

  “Tripp, he’s speaking Algaer,” Kellin said cautiously.

  “No, you’re speaking English!” Will almost yelled, desperate to hold onto reality.

  Tripp’s jaw dropped and his head turned toward Will, “How are you doing that?”

  “Are you sure this is Will?” Kellin directed his question toward Tripp with suspicion in his voice.

  “I don’t know,” Tripp responded in Algaer, eyeing Will.

  “It’s me, how can you question that, Tripp?” Will responded in English.

  The whole crowd looked astonished.

  “How is this possible?” Tripp asked.

  “I don’t know… I… I had a dream!” Will shouted after having an epiphany. “I dreamt I spoke to a man on a ship and he burnt my tongue.”

  It sounded crazy, and Tripp looked even more confused.

  “He said he was giving me a gift, and then my tongue started burning.” Will spat out the words trying to reach some clarity.

  Tripp gasped, “He burnt your tongue?” He looked genuinely serious.

  “Ye… Yeah, why?”

  “You were given the gift of tongues! That means that the man in your dream was another angel!”

  “No,” Will said sincerely, “No, he was more than an angel.”

  Tripp’s head cocked to the side and his eyebrows furled.

  Tripp turned toward the crowd and yelled “The Hiktar received the ability to speak Algaer.”