Forsaken At The Crossroads

by Joe Sniezek

  Eniyan said, “Here, I think this refers to the size of Ikvig’s people, although I didn’t realize until just now. It’s in the same general direction Ikvig was going, anyway.”

  “What else does that map show, Eniyan?” Wilfer asked.

  “The map is difficult to interpret, as you can see,” Eniyan said and shrugged.

  “Well, maybe we can help, and if not, at least we’ll have some idea of what’s going on. I’m getting pretty tired of not knowing anything,” Wilfer said.

  Eniyan took the map a few paces off the trail, out of the reeds and mud and into the pines. He sat down in the soft blanket of needles under a tree and unrolled the map on the ground. The others circled around and looked on.

  Near the bottom of the map was a river flowing east and west, with four houses drawn on its bank. Eniyan pointed to it and said, “This is obviously the town that just burned.” He dragged his finger up the map and pointed to a drawing of a single plum blossom and said to Zumi, “This must be your land.”

  “Makes sense,” Zumi said and nodded, “The valley turns white with flowers in the spring.”

  Eniyan dragged his finger further East and pointed to the drawing of the large man surrounded by the smaller figures and said, “This is your home.” He glanced at Ikvig.

  “Granberk, yes,” Ikvig agreed.

  “I do not know or remember what these other pictures represent. This map is very old and hasn’t had much use,” Eniyan admitted.

  Wilfer looked at the map where Granberk was. The map was not very precise, it showed the location as either in the foothills or up in the mountains. Near it, he noticed a waterfall drawn on the map. “Is this another gateway, or is that an actual waterfall here?”

  Eniyan could only shrug, but Ikvig said, “I saw a small river there, so it exists. I did not explore and look for gateways.”

  “We could use some clean water,” Zumi said as she gestured to all the mud and dried slime that had caked on them.

  They all agreed, including Ike the squid, who wiggled two tentacles over Ikvig’s shoulders. “Ike could use some water too,” Ikvig confirmed.

  “You can talk to each other?” Zumi’s mouth dropped open in surprise.

  Ikvig answered, “He has a way of getting his point across.”

  “What do you mean?” Eniyan asked, intensely curious.

  “He clicks and makes a little squishing sound, you can hear that. Also, he kind of pulses and massages his tentacles into my back,” Ikvig explained.

  Eniyan frowned skeptically. “That’s not much to work with.”

  “Yes, it’s like facial expressions for us. You can say a lot with just body language. He pulsed at the mention of water, I knew what he meant,” Ikvig said. He looked over his shoulder at the squid, and added, “I also think he can send images to my mind.”

  “What do you mean, images in your mind?” Eniyan asked, now extremely interested, but not quite alarmed.

  “Well, when we were talking about the river, I suddenly pictured Ike swimming and splashing in water. It could have been all my own mind, but if it’s just a coincidence, there have been a whole lot of them since he rescued me.”

  “Interesting,” Eniyan said as he stroked his beard. Wilfer and Zumi just wore stunned faces.

  Wilfer was starting to suspect that the longer he continues this journey, the stranger it will become. He needed more control and a firmer reality, so he resumed his study of the map. What else did the map show? This was clearly a representational map and was certainly not to scale. It was almost like a child’s drawing.

  Eniyan saw him using his fingers as a compass to establish distances. He warned him, “Don’t rely on the distances shown on the map; they change slightly every time you look at it.”

  “What? They do?” Wilfer asked in confusion.

  “They do. That’s why the map doesn’t get much use.”

  “Is it only the map or this entire place?” Ikvig asked, pointing up at the strange daytime stars in the sky.

  “Good question. It is this land. When traveling, distances can change from one time to the next. A one-hour journey can take two hours the next time,” Eniyan informed them.

  “It was Ike’s idea,” Ikvig said modestly.

  Wilfer continued to look at the map. At the very edge of the scroll, he noticed a much larger city with ornate spires, or at least that’s what the rudimentary drawing looked like. “What’s this then?” he asked, tapping it with his finger.

  “There is a city. It is a very far journey, through a desert. We cannot go there, but that place is not so lonely as here,” Eniyan said with a shrug.

  Wilfer sat back after he finished looking at the map. He turned to Ikvig and asked “What is your home like? Gran-something?”

  “Granberk,” Ikvig said, “It is a beautiful land of tall mountains and thick forests filled with much game for hunting.”

  “You’re a hunter, then?” Wilfer asked.

  “Yes, but that is what everybody in Granberk does.”

  “Where is your bow?” Zumi asked, “Did you lose it in the water?”

  “No bow. I was trapping. I hit the snared animal with my hammer here,” Ikvig pointed to a large war hammer strapped to his thigh. They hadn’t even noticed it with so much mud caked on him.

  “Well, good that we have that, at least. We are woefully unarmed,” Wilfer said with sadness.

  “How did you come here then? You said wasn’t totally an accident?” Eniyan asked.

  “I was deep in the mountains, and I was caught by surprise by a snowstorm. I ducked into a shallow cave to get out of the wind. The snow doesn’t bother me, but the wind in the mountains can be deadly.”

  “There is snow there now? I hate the cold,” Zumi said.

  Ikvig nodded and continued with his story, “The cave was very shallow, but once I was inside, I saw it traveled up and then further back. I climbed up to explore and grew dizzy. Difficult to explain, but I realized I was someplace else, not in the same cave anymore. I decided to explore more, and that lead me here. I started walking and I guess I got carried away and ended up in town. The fire started right as I arrived.”

  “Bad timing,” Wilfer said.

  “Is that what it was?” Eniyan said, cryptically.

  “Well, I don’t think a snowy mountain will be good for us, right now,” Wilfer said

  “Ike doesn’t like snow any more than Zumi does,” Ikvig agreed.

  “But we can head in that direction even if we don’t cross through. Just for the fresh water in the nearby river, at least,” Wilfer said.

  “We need to wash this mud off or we will get skin sickness,” Zumi pointed out, gesturing to their filthy bodies.

  “That’s good for now, but it’s really not much of a plan. We have no weapons. We have no food. And we have no idea of what to do once we get there,” Wilfer lamented.

  “One step at a time son,” Eniyan said as he patted Wilfer on the shoulder and they resumed their walk.

  Eight

  The waterfall was beautiful to behold. The water tumbled down over a smooth cliff face approximately the height of three men. The foamy water from the falls continued to flow into small pools that were interconnected by short sections of rapids. This canyon was a land of plenty. There was fresh running water for drinking, still water for bathing, and a flat area on the banks to set up camp. If there was one drawback, it was that there was only the one way out of the area. The back of the canyon was blocked by the falls and other impassable rocks. While the sides of the canyon could be climbed, it would be too slow and difficult to be used as an escape route in an emergency. If they did, they would be exposed and vulnerable for the duration of their slow ascent.

  Eniyan mentioned this to the group. “We will be vulnerable here if we are found,” he warned.

  “In that case, let’s not be found,” Zumi said cheerfully.

  That seemed to settle the matter. Wilfer walked along the water to a small pool at the edge of the river.
It was a good place to camp. They all set down their belonging and worked at peeling off their hardened muddy clothes. Ikvig headed straight to the water and walked in, clothes and all. Ike slipped off his back into the water when they were only knee deep.

  Eniyan wandered away to do a quick survey of the area. He inspected the local plants, tested the stability of the slopes, and spent an unusual amount of time examining the waterfall itself. Wilfer realized that Eniyan was the only person who remained clean. Of course, there was a perfectly reasonable explanation for that; Eniyan was the one who braved the fire instead of jumping into the mud. Nonetheless, it stood out in Wilfer’s mind. Eniyan did seem to have an abundance of good luck. Perhaps there was some merit to Eniyan’s passive approach to things. It did always seem to work out for him.

  After washing up as well as they could, they joined together at the spot that Wilfer picked. Ike continued to swim; he seemed to prefer the water. Eniyan started a campfire.

  As they warmed themselves around the fire and settled in, Wilfer asked Eniyan, “Did you see anything interesting here?”

  “This is not an often used canyon. I do not think we will be bothered,” Eniyan replied.

  From in the water, Ike made noises and wiggled his tentacles at Ikvig. Eniyan looked at Ikvig, expectantly. “There is a gateway under the falls,” the giant translated.

  “Where does it lead to?” Eniyan inquired.

  “Ike didn’t go through,” Ikvig relayed as Ike wiggled, “But he says it’s probably too far to benefit us, seeing how bad we swim.”

  “Well, if we can’t go through it, that might be to our advantage. They may not have anticipated we came here.”

  “No one saw Ike or Ikvig, right?” Wilfer said, “If they saw us leave, they would have given chase right away.”

  “That may buy us some time,” Eniyan thought aloud.

  Ike slid his body halfway out of the water, twisted some tentacles back into the water, and brought forth a load of a dozen decent sized fish. Each one was large enough for a person’s meal. Ike pulsed and wiggled with happiness. “There are lots of fish in the river,” Ikvig translated.

  “We can dry some. That takes care of the food problem,” Zumi said. Ike nodded as much as a squid could and slipped back underwater to get more fish.

  “What’s he like?” Zumi cocked her head and pointed at the now-departed squid.

  “Their kind sometimes come through the gateway to this land. They are able to live on dry land, but they have trouble getting around, and they prefer to stay moist.”

  “How did he find you to rescue you?” Eniyan wondered.

  “He said he heard me splashing. They can hear over great distances underwater, but I am not certain. Talking with Ike is strange. It’s like talking with only vision and feelings, but no speech,” Ikvig said.

  “Perhaps you can only understand him because he saved you. I wonder if he can communicate with the rest of us. I would like to test that, someday,” Eniyan said.

  “But is he nice? You know, honest and caring and that sort of thing?” Zumi asked.

  “Yes, he is friendly. It is almost like with a horse or a dog. They won’t harm you and don’t mind your company. Yet, you can’t talk to them like a person. Most people would consider a dog to be a friend, no? So yes, he is a good squid and he is my friend.”

  ∞∞∞

  Everybody spent time preparing for the night. Ikvig had left to gather firewood. Zumi went off in search of something to use as bedding. She returned shortly with an armful of leaves and said that would work until she found something better. Eniyan busied himself by cutting saplings. He brought them back to the campsite and formed a large pile of sticks. He had amassed quite a few, several dozen at least.

  “What are those for?” Wilfer called as Eniyan went out to gather more.

  “What else is there to do?” Eniyan answered over his shoulder.

  Wilfer followed the old man’s lead and took out his own pole that he had kept since he first picked it up in the boat. He took out his own knife from his belt and placed it to the end of his pole and bound it with some twine he had teased free from the burlap blankets. This would make a better weapon than a staff or knife alone. Although, it would be of little use against a sword.

  Zumi came back with enough leaves to make a bed that was big enough for everyone. It hardly rivaled the comfort of a cotton or feather mattress, but it would keep the cold from seeping into their bones as they slept. It would not be the worst night they’ve had; Zumi would be rewarded for her efforts. Zumi noticed Wilfer wrapping his pole with twine.

  “Oh, that’s a good idea, we need more rope,” Zumi said as she went to work braiding some.

  “Want help?” Wilfer said as Eniyan had finished gathering the saplings and sat down with a sigh. He didn’t want to ask what they were for a second time, so he cleverly rephrased his question as an offer to help.”

  “Some can be for a lean-to if we want,” Eniyan answered the unasked question.

  “Another good idea,” Zumi said. She and Ikvig worked together to erect a simple frame for a lean-to. Ikvig staked and bent the saplings while Zumi lashed them together with lengths of rope.

  “And the others?” Wilfer persisted.

  “Maybe we’ll sharpen the rest. I don’t have a full-fledged plan,” Eniyan said with a shrug. Wilfer didn’t bother to reply and grabbed the nearest stick to work on.

  After a while, Wilfer had sharpened many sticks. He turned to Eniyan and said, “I don’t know what to do next.”

  “Sharpen another stick,” Eniyan answered, which brought a smile from Ikvig and a little laugh from Zumi.

  “I meant tomorrow and the next day. After we leave this canyon,” Wilfer whined.

  “You don’t really need to, right?” Eniyan said. “You can only do one thing at a time. So right now you’re sharpening a stick. Whether you had big plans for tomorrow or not, you’d be sharpening a stick either way. So why fill your mind with distractions?”

  “But,” Wilfer asked, “if you just go along with things and only worry about what’s right in front of you, how do you ever get to where you want to go? You’ll never get anything done, always starting with one thing but finishing with another.”

  “A river always flows to the sea; no dam or diversion can stop it in the end,” Eniyan said.

  “A river doesn’t have to worry about food or shelter.” Wilfer was growing frustrated.

  “It is a metaphor,” Eniyan said, “No metaphor is perfect. You can choose to take meaning from it or not.”

  “It’s a bad metaphor,” Wilfer said as he rose to his feet. He had just about enough of this conversation. He just didn’t see how it was helpful.

  “Sometimes things go wrong, no matter how well you plan or prepare. And sometimes things go right even if you do nothing. We will only stay here a day or two. We have food for today and even dried extra. Now we could spend our time emptying the lake and processing hundreds of fish. But what would we do with all of it? How would we carry it? Wouldn’t that just bring more problems?” Eniyan explained patiently.

  “Yes. I see what you’re saying. I guess I do overthink things, sometimes. But I’m just afraid, and rightly so. But you take it too far the other way. You avoid all responsibility and just make other people decide everything,” Wilfer challenged after thinking about it for a while.

  Eniyan widened his eyes in surprise and smiled. He wasn’t insulted; he found it amusing. Wilfer saw that Zumi was frowning; maybe that was too harsh. He grew quiet for a while, to let the conversation cool. There was no need for an argument.

  Wilfer changed the subject by saying, “Where do you come from, Eniyan? What were you doing before we met?”

  Eniyan looked off into the distance and exhaled. After a long pause, he said, “I have been drifting for a very long time. I have been doing nothing and everything.”

  That seemed like an evasion to Wilfer, so he tried a different question. “How long have you been here, in
this realm?”

  “This place has many names, but in ancient times, it was called Toriga,” Eniyan said. “It is a very large place. I’ve spent my life wandering it but have yet to see only a small fraction. I came here as a child. I can hardly remember how.”

  “Oh, Toriga,” Zumi said.

  “You’ve heard of it?” Eniyan was surprised.

  “Just in myths and stories for children.”

  “Ah yes, myth can hold memories for a long time. I suspect it was different in the past, but this part of Toriga is a dead zone. Not many people come here. There is really nothing here: few animals, few people, and crops grow poorly. Now it’s just a way to get from one place to another.”

  Realizing that Eniyan was not going to entertain them with stories from his past, Wilfer gathered a handful of ash and headed upstream. “Maybe I can wash my clothes a bit better,” he told the others as he went.

  Wilfer found an isolated pool near the falls and dammed it up as best he could. When he dumped the ash into it and stirred, the water turned grey. He had heard that ashes could be used for cleaning, but he was doubtful. He shrugged and stripped off his shirt and pounded it against the stones in the water.

  “Room for one more?” Zumi said as she followed him. She squatted down next to him to inspect his handiwork. “Hmm. Does that work?”

  “Yeah,” he said, laughing, “Maybe.”

  “Good enough for me. Here,” she said as she tossed her vest to him.

  Wilfer looked at her and smiled. He focused on washing the clothes for a moment, then decided to be direct. He asked her, “You can return home anytime you want, can’t you? Why are you coming along with us? It could get pretty dangerous, you know.”

  She laughed and gave a little shrug. But when she saw that Wilfer was expecting an answer she said, “Well I am the only one with a crossbow.”

  “That’s true, but…”

  “I want to make sure you’re safe, Wilfer,” she explained, “I like you, you big dummy. I want to bring you back to San La with me. I haven’t made a secret of that.” She punched him lightly on the arm as she said it.