by Sheryl Seal
We left Aponi’s lodge and walked through the village. We went onto the trail that led towards the caves in the mountain.
I was anxious and before Aponi could say a word, I thought to myself Golden Eagle and shifted. I was soaring high in the air where a few seconds later she joined me.
“Very good Oria, you have been practicing. You have learned quickly.”
“Yes, I have made peace with myself and who I am. I believe it will all become easier for me now. I seem to be able to have found my control. You circle to the left and I will go to the right, over the cliffs, how does that sound to you?”
“Like you have also found your voice, you are my Queen; I will do as you ask.” I could hear her laughter in my mind and then I heard her say, “And it’s about time, thank the Great Spirit.”
Wow, I thought to myself, now I even sounded like a Queen. Giving orders and taking control of the situation. I hope she didn’t think I was bossy about it. I could tell by her thoughts that she wasn’t. She seemed at peace with me and my newfound leadership.
We separated and I soared over the cliffs looking in every nook and cranny. I saw a lot of lizards, snakes, insects, and rodents. There were many other great things you can see with the sight of an eagle. I came to the caves and shifting into a mountain lion checked in the first one thoroughly. The next cave I came to I shifted into a bat because I thought that would be cool. It wasn’t until I hit the daylight that I realized that was a mistake. I shifted quickly back into an eagle. I hadn’t forgotten how upset I was about Grey Wolf. I was scared to death that I might never see him again. Shape shifting is great though and I wanted to see what all I could do. I needed too. After all there hadn’t been a lot of opportunities to shape shift yet. There had been too many, one incidents after another happening. Aponi was right about using every spare minute I had to practice. I needed to learn more about myself and what I could do. Then mastering these gifts could only be more useful. I tried listening to the sounds of other animals and listening to the land. There was much to learn about sorting it all out. It could be very hard hearing and feeling the pain of every animal. Even the earth itself had plenty of pain. It is after all a living soul.
I couldn’t read Grey Wolf’s thoughts so I don’t know why I thought I could feel him if he were near.
I started soaring back up over the ridge. I thought I saw a small speck of something moving in the distance. I kept my eyes on the target and sailed in for a closer look. The closer I got the bigger the animal became. I finally made out a big white tiger with black stripes moving like a blur. With my sharp eyes on the tiger I could tell that it had noticed me also. Then suddenly the tiger shifted and it was Yori.
What the heck is she doing out here in the middle of nowhere? Up to no good, I was sure of that. Her aura is so black.
Grandmother always says there is no such thing as coincidences. This is The Great Spirit at work and you need to look to the signs. As plain as day I heard her voice say, “Sometimes when things are falling apart, they may actually be falling into place.”
So I glided down toward Yori and shifted as I was coming in for a landing. Oops, I flopped right into her and we both went sprawling on the ground. Was this an accident because I was new to shifting? I think not. The snickering in my head brought me up short. I could read her mind for a split second before the walls were thrown up. “You are such a waste of raw talent, stupid little girl.”
I held back the emotion of what I knew to be a small victory for me.
We both got to our feet. Yori whipped on that fake smile. She uses it for all of us stupid little girls. In her phony voice dripping with venom she snapped at me.
“You need to learn to control your landings little Queen. You may just come crashing down never to get up again.”
I just bet she’d love that. Thinking this thought I kept my mouth and mind shut to her and let her continue.
“The rest of the village is looking for Grey Wolf too. I didn’t know anyone was looking in this direction or I would have gone to another location.” She spoke these words with that smooth as silk voice of hers. It was really starting to grate on my nerves. Just to keep up appearances, I put on my brightest smile and yes, I played dumb. Grandmother would say, “Kill ‘em with kindness.” I would give it my best shot. I was dusting myself off and replied sweetly. “I was actually supposed to be further up the ridge but I’m still learning and must have gotten blown off course. I’m lucky to have seen you and recognized the fact that you are a shapeshifter. I could have been up here forever trying to find my way back. I’m so sorry I crashed into you though, I’ll keep practicing. It’s all just so scary.”
Was that an eye roll she just made at me? I’m sure it was. How mature is that?
“A Golden Queen cannot go around afraid of her own shadow. What will the people think of a leader that is afraid to use her powers?”
“Well, I just need some time to practice and grandfather has been very busy. Hey, maybe you could help me train sometime. I hear you are the best there is.”
“Well of course I am but I am way too busy. Right now we are looking for Grey Wolf, or have you forgotten that?”
“Oh, of course not, have you seen clues to his where a bouts? I haven’t found anything.”
“Umm, no if I had we would be back in his lodge by now. We would be enjoying a nice fire and each other. I haven’t any idea to where he has gotten off to. It’s as if he has vanished off the face of the earth. Like all the others, I’m afraid. I’m going to search another area so I will probably be back to the village much later than everyone else. Let the Elders know for me will you? Oh, and the way home is that way.” Then she pointed in what I knew to be the wrong direction. I know right? Witch.
Then again under her breath which I could soo hear, because apparently my hearing is very sharp now, she whispered. “Some Queen she is. Clumsy, awkward and has no sense of direction, stupid, stupid girl.”
Then she was gone. She shape shifted into the white tiger as she started walking away from me and dashed away.
I also got a sense right before she shifted that she liked making me think the worst about Grey Wolf. Could it be she was jealous of little oh me? Now it was my turn to have a complacent smile on my face. I was glad I had listened to the words of my very wise grandmother. I silently said a thank you to her.
“Things certainly are falling into place, I would say.” I remarked self-contentedly to myself. We will see when I find Grey Wolf what is what.
I heard Aponi coming before she was within a normal humans hearing range. I sat down on the ground to wait for her. As I sat there waiting, I felt very in tuned with the elements. The more I listened, the more I heard. I started to hear a strange humming that seemed to be coming right out of the hills. I looked around and couldn’t see anything. There definitely was something going on here. I can totally feel the vibrations.
Aponi glided in and landed beside me. She shifted as she landed. She was already talking as she walked over to me. “I haven’t found anything. Please tell me you have found something.”
“At first, I hadn’t but now I’m not so sure, do you hear that humming all around us?” I watched as she tilted her head to listen to the sound. Clearly only I was hearing it though. She shook her head no and said she didn’t hear any humming or anything else for that matter. “This is really weird because there should be other sounds. The insects, birds and other animals are too quiet. There should at least be a breeze this high up.” She added.
I nodded my head yes.
“That’s exactly what I was sitting here thinking. It is all too quiet. I started really listening and I could hear this humming. I knew it was The Great Spirit that brought me here to see Yori in this spot.”
“Yori was here? What was she doing here?”
“Searching for Grey Wolf, she said. I didn’t believe her. She is up to something.”
It was Aponi’s turn for the eye rolling. She didn’t like Yori and wasn’t
afraid to show it.
“She is always up to something. I haven’t trusted that woman since she came here. Tell me what this humming is that you hear Oria.”
“There is something going on in this area. I think we must speak with grandfather as soon as possible. Maybe he will know what is happening. It’s a low humming but I can hear it. There is evil all around us, I can feel it Aponi.”
We were walking about so I could get a handle on what I was hearing and at the same time I was sending a message to grandfather with my mind.
Chapter 24
In less than a few minutes he was standing beside us as I was walking around the face of the mountain. I was trying to find the source that had now become a pulsating sound.
“Well done my Queen, your power grows strong.” Grandfather was already speaking as he shifted from the falcon. I asked him to listen and describe what he heard. “Like Aponi, I also cannot hear any humming, or anything else. This is most undeniably wrong. I believe your gifts are in tune with the Spirits. We must follow the power you have been given. I do feel a great darkness and evil up here. Where do you think the humming is the strongest?”
I moved in front of the wall where the humming seemed to be the loudest.
“It seems to be strongest right here on this part of the mountain. It is pulsating, I feel it stronger the closer I get to it. I cannot figure out what it can be. It is almost vibrating now. I feel very compelled to touch the wall right here. What do you think grandfather?”
“I think you need to listen to your feelings and do as they suggest. This is your inner spirit guiding you. You must always listen to this and follow your life force. Go ahead Oria; place your hands upon that spot and be prepared for anything.”
I held up my hands and as I placed them on the wall of the mountain, there was suddenly a whirring noise. It made grandfather and Aponi fall to their knees with their hands over their ears shrieking.
I immediately pulled my hands away and rushed over to them to see if they were alright.
The noise had not affected me but I had noticed the rippling effect. It was like a rock being thrown into water. Apparently my touch had created the horrific racket when I touched it.
I helped them up off the ground.
“Are you two alright? I ‘m so sorry, I had no idea that would happen.”
“Yes my dear, I am fine. How are you Aponi?”
She said that she was also okay and added. “Please do not do that again, I don’t think I could’ve taken that noise much longer. It felt like I was being torn apart.”
Grandfather nodded his head in agreement.
“What do you think that was grandfather?” I asked him frightened.
“I believe this is an alarm of sorts. Whoever has done this has great magic. They either know we are here now, or this is to keep us out.”
He clicked his tongue in thought and continued. It could also be possibly to keep someone in. There is life beyond this rock.”
I had been so busy with the humming noise that until now I hadn’t felt the life behind the rock. Clearly it was there though.
“What do we do now? How do we figure out what or who is on the other side of this?”
Grandfather said we needed to go back to the village and gather some supplies. I would need to lift the spell on the mountain; he thought that was the only way we would discover the truth that was hidden here.
By the time we had gathered the supplies and were back at the wall of the mountain, the moon had reached high in the sky. We worked by its light setting everything up.
We had gathered salt, white sage, lavender blossoms and chamomile. We needed several white candles and had to find a black one. We found the candles in Aponi’s things. No surprise there.
All was laid out in front of the wall and grandfather said I should begin now.
I wasn’t exactly sure what I was supposed to do. By my past experiences so far, I knew that it would come to me. I walked over to the wall and standing there I held up my hands and the words just came out of my mouth.
“By the light of moon’s wane
Cleanse the soul of this stain
Let the spell be reverse
Lift away this dark curse…”
The moon started to grow dimmer. The darkness grew and was all around us. It was hard to see anything. Then all of a sudden a bright pink shimmer in the wall of the mountain appeared like a small dot. It grew quickly until it was big enough for six men to come stumbling out. They were dazed and confused about what was going on. One of the men was Grey Wolf. I didn’t know the rest of the men, but grandfather and Aponi were clearly happy to see them. Of course they would be the missing Dwellers from the village.
I ran to Grey Wolf and threw my arms around him. I told him how happy I was to see him and asked how they had all come to be locked in the mountain.
Grey Wolf was still trying to clear his head. He hung on to me tightly though. I could tell he was happy to see me. He kept pulling me back at arm’s length to look at my face. Then he would pull me close for another hug.
None of the men could say how they had come to be there. Their stories were of course different as to the last thing they remembered and who they were with. All I really knew was that we should get away from this part of the mountain and I told the others this before I turned back toward the mountain.
“As we leave this sacred space
Return thy soul to grace
I forgive what was done
Let the spell be undone…”
The mountain groaned and the shimmering ended. The humming and pulsating also grew quiet until it stopped. Finally the moon grew brighter and the mountain was as it should be.
We packed up our things and I could feel Grey Wolf’s eyes on me the whole time. If only I could feel what he was thinking.
I tried once more to see if I could read his thoughts. I felt like I had almost breached through but then up came a brick wall. Literally, that’s what I saw in my mind.
I turned to look at him astonished and he was just sitting there watching me. His perfect eyebrow was arched high in question. He had this self-satisfied grin lighting up his handsome face and his silver eyes sparkled with delight.
I rolled my eyes at him and turned away with a smile spreading across my happy face.
Chapter 25
Grandfather decided we needed a plan of action against this unknown evil. So before we went back to the village we needed to unravel some of this mystery. We traveled away from the prison the men were held in; down to the cave that Red Thunder had brought me to when I had fallen from the cliff.
We made a fire and handed out some pouches that contained food. There was plenty of food and a few gourds of water. Grandfather was always prepared. Then Grey Wolf came and sat beside me while the others spoke with Aponi and grandfather.
“The last time I saw you, you were lying right here asleep from the wound on your head.”
I looked at him dumbfounded.
“What? How is that possible? Only Red Thunder and I were here that night.”
He looked very much tormented and I felt for him immediately.
“Not true, I also was here. I am sorry Oria, and I fear it was my fault you fell from the cliff. I was never so scared in all my life. The thought of losing you before our life together has even begun… It has been a torture on my soul. I was the Grey Wolf that startled you on the trail. I had to catch up to you to explain about Yori and the kiss you witnessed between us. You fell over the cliff and I was coming to help you and trying to shift but could not. I was trapped in my spirit animal. Red Cloud came and helped you and I watched and waited. When he left the cave for a while, I came in and checked on you. He had bandaged your head and you were sleeping so I left. I was in search of grandfather. I knew he would know the reason why I could not shift. I hoped he could help me. All of a sudden there was this horrible buzzing noise. That was all I remembered. I woke up in human form in that tomb there was no escape from. I h
adn’t been there long when you came and released us. All of the men’s stories are about the same; they were in animal form when they were captured. None of them have a clue to who the responsible party is.”
I thought about all he had said and was not surprised they hadn’t a clue. Although, I had all the evidence I needed.
“So, you were the grey wolf on the trail?” I tried to hide my excitement that he had cared for me all along.
“You came for me? I’m so sorry I was just so mad when I saw you kissing Yori that my first response was to run. Why were you kissing her?” That slow sexy smile started across his lips and then it spread clear to his twinkling silver eyes.
“She had promised to speak with me about things she said she knew were happening. I knew that she had more information. I also knew she would never trust me unless I played her game. I asked to spend the day with her and we could talk of all she knew.”
He looked thoughtful for a moment, then carefully added.
“Yori is a very resourceful woman, only for a kiss, she said.”
Then he watched me carefully as he continued.
“Before I knew what was happening she reached up and kissed me. I did not return her kiss at the time. I was caught off guard. Are you jealous My Queen?”
He asked this question with a full blown chuckle.
“I am not!” I said defiantly. Then a slow smile crossed my lips and I whispered, “Maybe a little.” I looked down and started tugging the fringe on my moccasin slightly embarrassed. He reached over and caressed my cheek. He then lifted my chin up and looked me in the eyes. Right before he kissed me he whispered huskily, “These are the only lips I wish ever to kiss. I’ve already told you this and I would never lie to you.”
The kiss was leisurely and deliberate, driving all thoughts from my mind. Then I heard my name being called. Startled, I pulled away from Grey Wolf and peeked over at Aponi. Everyone was watching our display of affection with wide grins on their faces.