Jacob awoke an hour or so after sunrise, feeling refreshed and energetic. He rolled over to face the other side of the hut and saw that Akeno had already left. Alarmed, Jacob jumped to his feet and started pushing against the walls of the hut, but nothing gave.
“Akeno! Hey! How do I get out of this thing?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t tell you,” Akeno’s voice sounded muffled through the wall. “I’ll always leave a place for us to exit. Once you’re out, though, you won’t be able to get back in, so make sure you don’t leave anything behind.”
The branches quivered and shook around Jacob, and before he knew it, he stood in the open, next to the bushes and fallen tree that looked as they had the night before. It was a clear morning, and a brisk breeze ruffled Jacob’s hair. A feeling hit him—excitement? Was it possible he was excited for this trip? He frowned, not yet ready to let go of his grudge over having to go at all.
Akeno sat on a log and put on his shoes, which had fresh leaves attached to them. “That ought to do it,” he said.
“That’s so weird.”
“Hey—at least it keeps the dirt away.” He stood, adjusting his top hat. For the first time, Jacob took notice of Akeno’s other clothing. His black T-shirt had the word “dare” spelled out across it in bright red, and he wore brown pants. Dare?
“The Minyas came while you were sleeping,” the Makalo said, “but I let them go play. We’ll need to call them again.” He walked to a dandelion plant and picked one of the bigger, fluffier heads. He whispered into the seeds and blew them into the air, turning the head so he wouldn’t miss any.
Jacob watched the seeds float off. “Why dandelions? And what do the seeds do?”
“They’re available during a large part of the year. The seeds carry the message to the Minyas. I don’t know how, so don’t ask.” He smiled to show he wasn’t trying to be rude. “Okay, they’re coming.”
“How do the Minyas fly without wings?” Jacob asked.
“They use their magic as a way to maneuver, and choose what does and doesn’t affect them: gravity, resistance, laws of physics—things like that.” As the Minyas arrived, Akeno motioned toward Jacob. “September, Early, this is Jacob. He’s here to help us get the Key back.”
“Don’t they remember me from earlier? When they were helping with the Rog?”
Akeno laughed. “I doubt they do. They probably didn’t pay any attention to the cause of the commotion.”
“Hi, Jacob,” Early said. She spoke to September. “My, isn’t he a big Makalo.”
September laughed, slapping his knee. “He’s not a Makalo,” he said. “He’s a human!”
Jacob shook his head. Akeno was right.
“Oh, another one?” Early looked at Jacob, tapping the side of her face with a finger. “Why’s he here?”
“Don’t care. Come on!” September grabbed Early’s hand, and they flitted away.
Akeno called to the Minyas to stop, then told Early to deliver a message to his parents, telling them the group was heading off. Jacob was a little surprised when she acted thrilled to do it. After a bright flash of light, she was gone.
“How fast do they go?” Jacob asked.
“They travel at the speed of light when they combine their powers.”
“Are you sure?” Jacob asked. Akeno had to be exaggerating. “That’s really fast. I don’t think it’s even possible.”
“In normal cases, obviously it wouldn’t be possible. But remember that the laws of physics don’t apply to them. Their magic makes them invincible to anything that might cause a resistance. There are drawbacks to using their magic, though. In order to travel that way, a Minya must have been to, or seen, the place where he or she is headed. The magic draws on their memories and propels them forward, taking them to their destination. If they don’t know where the place is located, it can be very dangerous, since the magic will then take the shortest route, which is sometimes through solid objects.” Akeno paused. “Oh, and don’t say please to them—they don’t like it.”
“What? Why not?”
“Hundreds of years ago, they were slaves. You don’t say please to slaves. Now it’s just a weird thing about them. Honestly, no one really knows how the mind of a Minya works.” Akeno looked up and frowned, searching the air. “Early should be back by now.”
They continued waiting in silence. After a moment, Jacob spotted Early zooming toward them.
“What took you so long?” September said as soon as Early was close enough.
“Kenji gave me some honey. And they say hi and are happy that nothing bad has happened yet.”
Akeno laughed out loud. “‘Yet?’ Are they expecting us to have that much trouble?”
Jacob picked up his bag. “Let’s get going.”
“Yes, good idea. We can eat while we walk.” Akeno pulled bread and jerky from his knapsack, handing some of it to Jacob.
Jacob fell into step behind Akeno, munching on a piece of bread, appreciating the beauty of the morning and tranquility of the thin forest. The sun was bright, but not too warm, and the sky was almost cloudless. The leaves and grass glowed light green in the sunny morning light, and there were flowers everywhere.
After several minutes of walking, the trail turned sharply upward and looked like it would be difficult for about a hundred feet or so. Large weeds and underbrush grew over the path, and they had to push their way through.
“Not . . . much . . . farther,” Akeno said, panting.
As predicted, the path stopped. The sheer canyon wall rose up before them, with a gaping hole in it and broken boards on either side of the hole. The boards appeared to have been ripped off, and several were strewn across the ground. The canyon wall was solid rock, and the hole looked man-made.
Jacob picked up one of the smaller pieces of board. The wood was attractive, somehow, in its coloring. It was very light brown, with silver streaks flowing through the grain and was thick and sturdy. “I’m guessing this is where the Lorkon came in.”
“Yes, this is the entrance.” Akeno said. He motioned to the wood in Jacob’s hand. “That comes from the Kaede tree—the same tree which produces the healing sap.”
“Oh, yeah. The sap smells like maple syrup. Why’s that?”
“It’s a type of maple tree—but don’t eat it. It tastes disgusting.” He laughed—probably at a memory. “The trees are awesome. They’re grown naturally, but with some . . . help from Makalos.” He smiled. “Rezend makes them grow stronger than other trees, and steel develops in the grain, making it nearly unbreakable.”
“It looks really cool,” Jacob said.
He dropped the board and studied the area. The ground had leveled, forming a small meadow in front of the entrance. There were only a few trees up here, and they looked as though they had some type of horrible disease. Their leaves were shriveled, the bark had a slight red shade, and the grass around them was yellowed.
“It’s sad to see the trees like this,” Akeno said. “Normally, Kaede trees live through everything.”
“The Lorkon did it?”
Akeno nodded. “Let’s get going.” He walked to the tree closest to the entrance, putting his hand on it for a moment. A frustrated expression crossed his face. “I can’t sense anything. I hate running blind like this.” He frowned at the tree, then turned to Jacob. “Are you ready?”
“I guess so,” Jacob said. “I can’t tell which emotion is stronger right now—nervousness or excitement.”
“Me neither.” Akeno motioned to the hole. “After you.”
“I’ve got a better idea. You go first, and I’ll make sure no one kills us from behind.”
“Right,” Akeno said, laughing. He entered the tunnel.
The hole was the perfect height for Akeno, but Jacob had to duck to get through. It was cool and dark inside, and Jacob’s eyes had just enough time to adjust when suddenly the tunnel ended.
Akeno stopped abruptly and Jacob ran into him, squinting in the brightness
of the sun. Looking ahead, his jaw dropped.
“Whoa,” he said, eyes wide.
Chapter 6. Infected
We finally managed to contact the Makalo patriarch and beg his assistance. Luckily, he is just as determined as we are to remove the Lorkon from our land. The Lorkon have amassed a huge force, and the patriarch is sending an army of Makalos to assist in the war that is surely coming.
Kilenya Series Books 1, 2, and 3 Page 10