by B. C. Harris
“Emily, I have the feeling that you know something that we don’t,” Radwin says.
I lower my voice as I respond, “When Tarcharon opened our cage earlier, Squirt escaped.”
Surprise fills the faces of my friends.
“Where did he go?” Michael asks.
I smile. “He’s in one of Tarcharon’s pockets.”
“Where?” Jasmin says.
“In one of the big pockets on Tarcharon’s trench coat,” I say. “When Tarcharon was walking away from us earlier, I saw Squirt poke his head out of one of the pockets.”
“What is he doing there?” Jasmin asks.
Michael responds before I have a chance. “The key for our cage is in one of Tarcharon’s pockets. If Squirt gets the key, he can help us escape when Tarcharon and his soldiers fall asleep.”
“Is Squirt that smart?” Jasmin asks.
“If he’s smart enough to escape our cage and reach one of Tarcharon’s pockets without being noticed, then he’s smart enough to steal the key,” Jamie answers.
I let my friends enjoy this newfound hope.
“Although Squirt might be able to open our cage, escaping might not be as easy,” I say. “I’ve been thinking about this for the past few hours. It’s unlikely we could ever get past all these soldiers. As well, Tarcharon will likely have guards posted around our cage tonight like he did last night.”
“Do you have a suggestion?” Michael asks.
I nod.
“I think our best plan would be to let Radwin escape. He’s the smallest person here and has the advantage of being able to fly. In the dark, he might be able to get away without anyone seeing him. If he can do this, he’ll be able to return back to Lattisan and get my emerald from Capurni. Once he returns with the emerald, it can take us anywhere we want to go.”
“And if he doesn’t return,” Drew says, “we have missed our chance to get out of here.”
Drew’s comment surprises me. I thought he would support me.
“If Squirt opens the cage,” Drew continues, “I think we should all escape. All we have to do is get past the guards. After this, we could make our way back to Lattisan. We would be able to travel much faster than Tarcharon’s army.”
There’s no response to Drew’s comments.
“I like the idea of all of us escaping,” Jasmin says, “but I’m not too thrilled about getting caught by one of the guards or one of Tarcharon’s other soldiers.”
There is an awkward pause as I consider how to respond.
“Why don’t we combine the two plans?” Michael offers. “First of all, we could let Radwin escape. The most important part of our plan should be for him to get away and fly back to Lattisan for the emerald. Once we’re sure that he’s out of sight, we can determine what’s best for the rest of us. If the guards are asleep, we can all escape, but if the guards are awake, we’ll have to be content with only Radwin getting away.”
“Makes sense,” Jamie says.
Before anyone else offers their thoughts, there is a thump on our wagon.
It’s Tarcharon.
“Deep in discussion, are you?” he says sarcastically. “You wouldn’t be planning on leaving us now, would you?” he laughs wryly, his jagged yellow teeth emerging from his bulging lips.
He glares at us. It’s difficult for me not to look at his pockets. Is Squirt still hiding in one of them, or has Tarcharon already discovered the little zakabibble? Is it possible that Tarcharon will smell Squirt’s presence in the same way he smelled Radwin hiding under the wagon?
“We’re stopping now for the night,” Tarcharon states, looking directly at me. “In the event you have any other friends hiding somewhere, I will be placing additional guards around your cage tonight. If anyone makes an attempt to escape, death will follow.”
I think it’s a good sign that he never mentioned anything about Squirt, but his announcement of the extra guards could prove to be a problem if Squirt returns with the key.
Without any further words, Tarcharon jumps off our cart.
“What about some food and water?” I shout in his direction.
Without looking back at us, he tells someone to get us some food.
In a few minutes the most hideous creatures I have ever seen appear at our cage. Their foreheads are a maze of eyes which appear to be looking in all directions. The perfect sentries, I think. They can look everywhere at once.
Our new guards, I quickly count ten of them, have huge legs and arms as though they have spent their entire lives working out lifting weights.
I watch one of the horrid creatures raise his nose in the air as though he is sniffing for anything unusual.
“I don’t think Squirt will ever get past these guards,” Jasmin whispers. “If he gets caught, Tarcharon is going to unleash his fury on us.”
I agree with Jasmin.
“Let’s hope that Squirt heard Tarcharon’s warning to us.”
Now we find ourselves hoping that Squirt will stay away instead of returning with the key tonight.
“Maybe the guards will leave us alone tomorrow and Squirt can rescue us then,” I say, hoping to maintain some optimism.
Unfortunately, the disappointment is obvious in the eyes of my friends.
Darkness comes quickly.
Fortunately, two soldiers arrive with food and water.
Once the food is inside our cage, we attack it like a pack of ravenous wolves.
Our meagre meal ends much too quickly, although it feels good to have some water and food in me.
Outside our cage, there are small campfires everywhere I look. Even if Squirt is able to open the door to our cage, we’d never get past our guards or the thousands of soldiers that surround us.
Everywhere I look, the guards follow me.
No one has to tell me that they are never going to sleep.
Squirt is dead if he tries to rescue us.
It’s growing colder.
Soon we’re huddled together in an attempt to stay warm.
I can’t stop thinking about Squirt.
- 38 -
MORNING
It was a cold sleepless night, imprisoned in the cage. Although we tried to keep each other warm, we weren’t very successful. As a splinter of light creeps over the top of one of the huge mountains beside us, I wonder if this is going to be my last day. For that matter, it could be the last day for all of us.
Squirt never returned during the night with the key to our cage, leaving me to assume that either Tarcharon discovered him in one of his pockets, or Squirt heard Tarcharon’s warning to us and he was smart enough to stay away. Of course, another possibility is that Squirt fled on his own.
“Come up with any new plans?” Radwin asks when he sees me looking into the sky at the morning light. Radwin probably survived the night better than the rest of us. I think his body is better able to cope with colder temperatures.
“Maybe Squirt will still appear with the key,” Michael says.
“Let’s hope not,” Jasmin says, as she glances at the guards who are watching every move that we make.
I tremble as I realize that soon Tarcharon is going to discover that I don’t know the exact location of Shinti. I’m terrified to think how he is going to react when he finds this out.
There’s a part of me that is saying that I should tell him the truth before he discovers it for himself. Maybe being honest with him would keep us all alive a little longer.
If Squirt is still alive, there’s a chance that he might be able to open our cage, at least allowing Radwin to escape, although this is going to be much harder to accomplish during the day.
The Shadite army stretches forever behind us. There are thousands and thousands of soldiers.
In front of us is a long line of trucks, and in front of the trucks are more than one-hundred large weapons leading the procession.
“Here he comes,” Jamie announces.
I turn to see Tarcharon and two of his soldiers approaching.
“If we could get him to open the door, I could challenge him to a fight,” Jamie says. “While we’re fighting, Radwin could escape.”
It’s hard for me to believe that it is Jamie who is talking about fighting Tarcharon.
Before we have a chance to discuss Jamie’s plan, there’s a huge thump as Tarcharon jumps onto our cart, followed by two soldiers who looks as big and mean as him.
“Good morning,” he says menacingly.
The tone of his voice sends shivers down my spine.
“The time has come for you to give me the exact location of Shinti. Tell me the truth, and you and your friends will live a little longer. Tell me any lies, and your friends will be tortured.”
Tarcharon smirks at Jasmin who stares right back at him.
“I think I will start with that one,” he cruelly announces as he looks at Jasmin.
She doesn’t flinch.
Tarcharon looks infuriated by Jasmin’s arrogant reaction.
“I’ll tell you everything you want to know,” I say.
I have no desire, or strength, to lie anymore to Tarcharon. Whatever he wants, I’m going to tell him. As brave as my friends are acting, I am no longer going to jeopardize their lives by lying to Tarcharon.
“Don’t do it,” Jasmin says angrily to me.
Tarcharon reaches into one of his coat pockets and pulls out the key.
“Don’t pay any attention to her,” I say to Tarcharon. “She’s a little tired. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”
“No Emily, don’t do it,” Jasmin says forcefully.
Tarcharon pauses. He looks anxious to get at Jasmin.
“I’ll tell you the exact location of the emerald.”
“Really?” Tarcharon barks at me. “Didn’t you tell me yesterday that the emerald was in Shinti? Are you changing your story? Did you lie to me?”
I don’t know how to respond. If I agree that I was lying, he’s sure to harm one of my friends. On the other hand, he’s going to discover the truth very soon on his own.”
“About a thousand years ago,” I start again, “after the rebellion in Shinti, the inhabitants of Shinti used their emerald to create a secret underwater world. The emerald that you want is now being kept in this secret underwater world. Without my help, there is no way you will ever discover its location.”
Tarcharon looks intently at me as though he’s trying to decide if I’m telling the truth.
“Secret underwater world?” he says. “This is a completely different story than you told me yesterday.”
“Yes, this is the truth,” I say as convincingly as possible. “I can show you the exact location of this underwater world once we get through the mountains.
“Let’s see if you are telling me the truth.”
Tarcharon stares ferociously at each of my friends.
His eyes stop at Jasmin. He opens the cage door and says,” I think I’ll start with that one.”
Jasmin continues to look rebelliously at the hulking monster.
Tarcharon reaches for Jasmin.
Suddenly Michael launches himself at Tarcharon, but he bounces off him like he ran into a brick wall.
Tarcharon rips Jasmin from the cage.
“Let her go,” I shout at Tarcharon as he wraps his huge arm around her neck. “If you hurt her, I swear to God I’ll die before I ever take you to the emerald.”
Jasmin remains defiant in spite of the suffering she is about to face.
“There’s no one on Tamor who knows the location of this secret underwater world except for me,” I say with determination.
Jasmin is turning blue from a lack of air due to Tarcharon’s vice-like grip around her neck.
“Is that so?” Tarcharon snarls. “You lied to me yesterday. Do you know what happens when someone lies to me?”
With all my might, I stare at Tarcharon as though I’m no longer afraid of him.
Furiously he tosses Jasmin back into the cage, almost knocking me over. Jasmin hits the floor hard.
She gasps for breath.
I turn back to Tarcharon.
His jagged fangs are salivating.
I don’t back down. I pretend that I’m no longer intimidated by him.
He slams the heavy door, almost striking my face.
I don’t move. Not an inch.
Tarcharon smirks with amusement as he locks our cage.
I continue to stare at the bully with all the hate I can find inside me.
“Before today ends, I will have the emerald,” he boasts.
- 39 -
A NEW PLAN
Look up into the mountains to your left,” Jamie whispers to me as we slowly snake our way through the canyon.
I look in the direction where Jamie is staring, but I can’t see anything.
“Watch closely,” he says, trying to subdue his enthusiasm.
I stare high into the mountains in a location where there’s a larger outcropping of rocks, but I can’t see whatever Jamie is referring to. Perhaps the heat and the absence of water and food are causing him to hallucinate.
Within the last few minutes, the sun has edged its way over one of the huge mountains that border the valley where we’re travelling. We’re continuing our slow, methodical march. It’s starting to get hotter inside our cage. In another hour we might have to worry more about the heat killing us than we do about Tarcharon.
Jamie and I are sitting together on one side of the cage while Drew and Jasmin are on the other side.
Michael is standing in the middle of the cage with Radwin hovering beside him. They’re whispering as though they’re sharing a secret.
“There!” Jamie says excitedly, elbowing me playfully in the side.
Once again, I look at the mountains beside us, but I still can’t see anything.
“There,” Jamie says again.
This time I actually see something moving behind a large rock in the mountains. Although I only catch a brief glimpse of it, it’s green. I wonder if it’s a gorgan.
“Watch carefully,” Jamie says in a hushed voice.
Suddenly a familiar head pokes up from behind a rock.
“It’s Frank,” I say, much too loudly. As spontaneously as I say her name, I quickly add in a loud whisper to my friends, “Don’t look up. Stay calm. Don’t do anything that might attract the attention of the guards.” Then I say to the others in a hushed voice, “Frank is in the mountains.”
As I glance at Michael and Radwin, the look on their faces suggest that they have already noticed Frank.
During the next few minutes, Frank’s head bobs above the rock several times. It’s almost as if she’s trying to get our attention.
“I think we should signal Frank to let her know that we see her,” Michael says. “If she keeps poking her head up and down, it’s not going to take very long before one of the soldiers sees her. We’ve got to keep this secret.”
“We need to lower our voices and stop looking into the mountains,” I add. “Remember we have guards watching everything that we do.”
“Any ideas on how we can signal her?” I ask.
“I know what to do,” Radwin says.
“What is it?” I say.
No sooner have the words left my mouth when Frank’s head appears once again. At the same instant, Radwin blinks his lights three times. By the time Radwin has finished, Frank disappears again.
“Three flashes,” Michael says to Radwin. “What does that mean?”
“In our world, three flashes means that we need help,” Radwin replies.
Frank pokes her head above the rock, this time waving her arms once above her head.
“She waved her arms one time,” Radwin says with relief. “One wave means that she understood my message.”
As I continue to gaze into the area where Frank is located, I wonder if there are any other kabingas with Frank. So far, I haven’t seen any.
“How did she get there?” Jasmin asks. “She never entered Shade with us. I thought sh
e was dead.”
“I guess she somehow survived,” I say.
“Kabingas,” Radwin says, “are expert travelers in the mountains. Maybe Frank has been flying throughout the mountains looking for us. It’s possible that she was attracted by the noise from the massive army traveling through the canyon. Who knows how long she has been watching us, waiting for one of us to see her?”
“She could fly back to Lattisan and get my emerald necklace,” I say.
“How can we get her to do that?” Jasmin asks. “We have no way of communicating with her.”
“Unless we find a way for Squirt to reach her,” Jamie offers.
“We don’t know if Squirt is alive,” Drew says.
Drew no longer appears to be brave in the manner he was at the beginning of our mission. He is sullen and withdrawn from the rest of us. I am beginning to suspect that Drew has a dark side to his personality that I never noticed before.
“Maybe we could use a signal to tell Frank to get the emerald,” Michael suggests.
One of the fierce looking guards who is walking beside our wagon grunts at us suspiciously.
“Look away from Frank,” I whisper to my friends. “If we give her location away, the Shadites will kill her. We need to turn away from her, and see if we can come up with a plan. Frank might be our last hope for surviving.”
“I agree,” Michael says. “Why don’t we let Radwin watch Frank while the rest of us try to figure out some way to tell her to get Emily’s emerald?”
Radwin begins to fly slowly inside our cage while the rest of huddle together on the floor.
“Maybe we could use some form of sign language,” Jasmin offers.
“I wonder what type of signals she would understand,” Michael says. “Radwin, do you know if there is some kind of sign language that Frank would recognize?”
Radwin hovers near us and says, “Doadlings use their flashing lights in various sequences to communicate with other doadlings, but I don’t think Frank would understand any of these signals other than a few very basic signals such as the one I sent to her a few minutes ago.”
“Why not act out what we want Frank to do?” Michael suggests. “That would be easy for us to do and it’s unlikely that the guards would understand what we’re trying to do.”