“There’s a report that two young adults are apparently missing.” The others nodded since they had already seen it. But the two in question were engaged to be married and they may have just gone off to be alone and plan their future. There was some concern but it was too early to be alarmed.
“We need to impose a curfew. And, no one should be allowed to venture forth except in pairs,” suggested Bluster.
“Good idea. And let’s have the Guardians keep an all-day, everyday watch over the village,” suggested Puffer. He meant that they should fly patrols over – as opposed to walking through – the village.
They continued to discuss the situation for another two hours. Finally, Zephyr called for a vote. There was no dissent. The Council would call for a full town meeting to tell the people what they knew and what steps they were taking to ensure everyone’s safety. Following the meeting, Zephyr and Bluster would go to the Nauti village and meet with Howl – Zephyr’s counterpart.
*****
The assembly was to be held that afternoon. By the time the announcement was made, however, BreeZee had already left for the day.
Windy and Skye were missing. And even though they no longer consider her their friend, she still felt as she always has. She loved them both. Their estrangement was her fault. She had come to realize how crazy the Zynnia story must sound to others. From now on she would stop talking about it . . . maybe even pretend it was her imagination.
BreeZee had also known how Windy felt about Skye. She had waited for her girlfriend to talk about it but that never happened. So Bree didn’t mention it either. In retrospect, she should have said something . . . her silence was probably mistaken for an interest in Skye that she didn’t feel. He was like a brother to her . . . nothing more.
So, if they were in trouble, she was going to save them. That’s what friends did.
Then she laughed to herself. Who would of ‘thunk’ it . . . timid BreeZee was going to try and rescue someone — make that two some ones — who were in trouble. This was the same girl that, not too long ago, was afraid to be out sailing at night. Wow, how things had changed.
More to the point, how she had changed.
Chapter 8 – Zazzi, the Caretaker
Present Day on Zynn-Zaz’zia
They followed this new ball of blue and red light back the way they came . . . towards the lava pool. As they got closer, the light shot ahead towards the serpent who was still swimming in the steamy stuff. The two seemed to converse then they both made their way back to the girls.
“Follow Me,” said the serpent.
“Egg?” asked Bl’azzz.
“Might as well.” She and Sylvia were still on K’ssss, M’egg on Soo, and the dragons walking along side as they followed the serpent down a different tunnel than the one that they had originally taken.
As the distance between them and the lava pool increased, the walls turned from the red glow to a pretty pink and grey while the water changed from red to a luminescent green.
It became bright enough that the girls no longer needed their light sticks.
“I wonder where this glow is coming from?” M’egg asked no one in particular.
“I’d guess it’s from some kind of phosphorescent algae in the water,” replied the way-to-smart Aeri’elle.
“Well deduced,” said an ethereal voice from the darkness ahead of them. It was the serpent.
“He’s got good ears,” teased Soo.
“More importantly, he’s obviously highly intelligent,” replied the dragon since she was the one it had complimented.
“Don’t let it go to your head. He’s just being polite; that’s how we serpents are.” Aeri’elle rolled her eyes.
But K’ssss had a different observation . . . one that she had made before. “H’sssss, he’s very cute.”
“Why you love-sick, loveable leviathan,” said Soo. She shook her head, pretending to be a sad but happy parent. “How soon these kids grow up.”
M’egg, as she was prone to do, just listened to the banter. Not a moment had gone by since this rescue mission had started that she wasn’t in awe of these girls. Then she mentally corrected herself changing girls to sisters. Just the thought that she was now a member of this heroic group made her swell with pride. They were so much more than the history books had made them out to be. They weren’t just brave and resourceful, but also smart, clever, warm, funny, supportive . . . and a million other wonderful things. Then unbidden, the thought of the person she had been for way too long crept into her mind and she actually blushed. Luckily, the glow in the tunnel hid her coloring.
She did experience one other powerful emotion . . . she continued to feel totally unworthy to be called a Hameggattic Sister. But she was determined to change that by the time this mission had ended. Right now, that meant more to her than being Queen of Aerianna.
A few minutes later they enter a large cavern where the rock outcroppings were covered in a green moss, the water churned in purplish swirls and the walls glowed in a pageant of reds, greens and pinks illuminating the whole magnificent scene.
It was breath taking.
Egg, as you would expect, said it best . . . “OH MY GOSH.”
“Indeed,” said the Princess marveling at the beauty surrounding her. “Indeed.”
Before the others could chime in with their assessment, the serpent turned and said, “Welcome to my home.”
Then, as usually happens to the Sisterhood, things got a little weird. The serpent said, “K’ssss, it would please me to show you more of my humble dwelling.”
“H’sssss. Okay.”
“Not so fast, you wide-eyed wiggle worm. You ain’t going nowhere with no one until we at least know his name.”
“Good thinking, Soo,” said Egg who didn’t know if she should be grinning at the serpent for inviting K’ssss on a date, or K’ssss for being moonstruck and giggly or Soo for acting like your typical earth Mom. “So, Mr. Serpent, what is your name and where are we? Oh, and what’s with you and Zynnia and that ball of light?”
“And you might want to explain about the lava pool,” added Sylvia.
“And what do you know of our friends?” added M’egg.
“And what’s with this beautiful cavern?” added Bl’azzz. “Makes me wish I was a serpent.” The other six sisters turned their attention from their mysterious host to the F’yre Dragon and stared. “No, no, no . . . I don’t really want to be a water worm; I was just trying to make a point.”
“Water Worm?” asked Soo sweetly. “Did you say Water Worm?” Turning to the others, she asked again “Did she say Water Worm?”
“Oh, she did,” responded Aeri’elle with a twinkle in her eye. “She most certainly said Water Worm. Is . . . is that an accurate description, I wonder?”
“Come on Soo, you know I was just kidding.”
“Water Worm? You giant ball of gas, I should bite your tail off.” She was kidding, of course, but she made it sound like she was mortally offended and steaming mad. Then, without warning, she dove at her friend . . . her mouth wide open.
Bl’azzz was so shocked by her friend’s response that she burped and burned. M’egg yelped as the fireball passed over her head, while the others burst into laughter.
“Oops.”
Before the tomfoolery could continue, the serpent said, “Please . . . I don’t understand?”
“Don’t understand what?” asked Egg.
“What you are doing?”
“Oh, sorry. We’re just teasing one another.”
“Why?”
“Um . . . because that’s what friends do.”
“Oh.” The serpent seemed confused by the concept.
“So, can you tell us what’s going on? Why did Zynnia send us to find you?”
“And how about answering those other questions,” added Sylvia.
At this point, the Circle of Life descended and hovered at eye level to the serpent. Again, they appeared to be communicating. When the conversation was o
ver, the serpent said, “I will answer all of your questions . . . but you must answer mine as well.”
“Yours or Zynnia’s?” asked Aeri’elle.
“Mine.”
That was interesting.
“What do you want to know?”
“Tell me of yourselves. And, I would know more of K’ssss.”
“H’sssss.”
The girls all exchanged grins.
“Okay, let me start,” and Egg introduced everyone again. “So, together, we’re the Hameggattic Sisters. The reason we formed the Sisterhood was to help . . .” and Egg recounted the Quest as quickly as she could. However, she spent a little more time talking of all the contributions K’ssss had made. She finished with, “And the Queen asked us to come to your world to find our friends and bring them home.”
“Thank you. That is a wondrous story and this is a noble cause you now perform. You must be very glad that K’ssss is also with you.”
It took a superhuman effort not to giggle but the girls managed to pull it off. M’egg, ever the diplomat, responded with “we all take great inspiration from K’ssss. She is a remarkable individual.”
“H’sssss”.
Soo was about to say something rude to her friend but decided this wasn’t the time.
“Now I will tell you of myself. First, my name is . . . is . . . um,” then the serpent did the weirdest thing; it started to laugh uncontrollably. “H’sssss, h’sssss, h’sssss, h’sssss, h’sssss, h’sssss, h’sssss, h’sssss . . .,” and it just kept on laughing.
Like laughter on earth, it was contagious and K’ssss and Soo joined in.
“STOP,” yelled Egg holding her ears at the annoying sound.
The serpent and K’ssss continued laughing but Soo was able to get herself under control. “Sorry about that. We call it a H’ssssie Fit . . . you know, when you can’t stop laughing.”
That made Egg and Sylvia burst out laughing.
“Oh, good grief. Not you two,” complained Aeri’elle.
M’egg who was smiling explained to the others. “On earth a hissy fit is a slang term for when someone throws a tantrum. It is the exact opposite of what these three are doing.”
“Oh,” said the dragon not seeing the humor in the situation.
A minute or so later everyone got themselves under control. The serpent said, “I apologize but you must understand that I have been here a very long time with no one to talk to.”
“What about the other serpents?”
“They have limited intelligence. The conversations are usually one sided.”
“So how old are you?” asked K’ssss a little crestfallen.
“I don’t age as long as I live in here. So, I am still quite young. Does that please you?”
“H’sssss.”
“That’s a yes,” said Soo.
“But why did you start to laugh?” asked Bl’azzz.
“Because . . . “
“Because he forgot his name,” interrupted the Princess.
“Really?”
“It is true. But long ago, I gave myself another name in honor of the Caldera of Zaz’zia . . . what you call the lava pool. So, if it pleases, you may call me Zazzi.”
“Zazzi,” said K’ssss. “That’s a pretty name.”
Zazzi smiled then bowed his head in acknowledgement. It was very obvious to the other six girls that there was a little chemistry between these two.
“She could do worse,” whispered Soo to Bl’azzz.
“Got that right.”
M’egg asked, “Zazzi, what is the purpose of the Caldera? What is it that you do there? And, how do you survive the heat?”
“I survive at the pleasure of Zynnia. The how of it she would need to tell you. As to its purpose and my responsibility . . . the Caldera assimilates the knowledge and experience of all those that have passed or are about to pass.”
That explained the question he had asked when they first met – ‘are you near death’.
“Are you saying that you somehow harvest peoples’ memories? To what end? asked Aeri’elle.
“It is Zynnia’s wish not to waste the life experience of her people. Using the Caldera I can save — then pass along — the collective knowledge and life experience of those that came before. It is also hoped that with this ability, we can bring the other serpents to sentience.”
“That is truly amazing,” replied the dragon who was so excited by the concept that her wing feathers were standing on end. “In essence, you’ve created a living history book of this planet. Not only do you have the ‘what’ of it, you also have the emotions of the people that lived it.”
“I am glad that it pleases you.”
“Can this technology be used by others?” asked M’egg. She understood her sister’s excitement
“That I cannot say.”
Egg was getting a little impatient. She didn’t see how any of this conversation was helping with their rescue mission. So before either sister could ask more questions, she interrupted. “Zazzi, can you tell us what happened to our friends?”
Before he could speak, the Circle came down again and spoke to him. “Zynnia commands me to tell you about this planet and its people first. Then I will tell you what little I know of those you seek.”
“Zynnia?” asked Syl. “How can that be? Her image blinked out when her computer failed. So why did you say Zynnia commands you? She’s de… um . . . she’s gone.”
“As long as Zynn-Zaz’zia exists, so does Zynnia.”
“And the Circle . . . what is that exactly?”
“The Circle of Life is . . .,” Zazzi hesitated as he tried to think of the right words. “Well, it speaks for Zynnia. However, it is also part of the Caldera. It is my way of controlling the process of harvesting memories. Once harvested, those memories are then stored in the Circle.”
It was kind of confusing but Egg understood and said, “Got it, I think.”
“Zazzi, please, we are most anxious to resume our rescue mission,” said M’egg. That was her way of telling the serpent to speed things up.
“Of course. Let me quickly tell you of Zynn-Zaz’zia . . .”
Chapter 9 – OH NO MO
Zephyr
Zephyr and Bluster set out for the Nauti village, which was on the other side of a mountain range. Well, to be perfectly honest, these mountains weren’t very tall – more like overly large hills. However, they were spectacular, if not in height then in color. They were called Zynnia’s Passion and they sported swaths of bright orange and red rock contrasting brilliantly against mud-brown outcroppings.
As they crested the last peak, Bluster asked his companion for the hundredth time, “What do you think is going on?”
Zephyr smiled. “I think that’s what you and I are about to find out.”
“But what’s your guess?”
“I think they’re all Moon-Struck,” kidded the clan leader. Being moon-struck meant that you had seen the face of Zynnia and the sight made you lose your mind. It was just an old wives tale used to scare the children.
“Do you really think so?” replied Bluster with a look of horror on his face.
“No, you Tissel’twix. I’m joking.”
The embarrassed Bluster sputtered, “I knew that. Really, I knew that. I was just playing along.”
“Good to see you haven’t lost your sense of humor.”
They continued in silence for another twenty minutes. Then Zephyr said, “What was that?”
“What was what?”
Instead of answering, the clan leader spiraled higher to get a better look. His companion followed.
“What are you looking for?”
There was a layer of broken clouds between them and the ground so it was hard to see. But Zephyr had seen something . . . and whatever it was had been large and red.
He continued to scan the scene below waiting for it to reappear. Finally it did.
“Look. Over there,” and he pointed.
“What . . .,” but B
luster couldn’t finish. He was shocked into silence.
He finally managed to find his voice. “What is it?”
“Whatever it is, it’s big.”
“You don’t think the Nauti made it, do you?” The Nauti were engineers and builders. But they worked with metal and wood, not flesh and bone.
“No. And before you ask, I have no idea where it came from. Let’s get out of here before it sees us.”
“What about Howl?”
“Whatever that thing is, it’s headed for the Nauti village. If it’s in league with them, then we’re in worst trouble than we thought. Let’s get back home. We need to redouble our security.”
“Are you sure?”
“Well, if you want to volunteer, you could sail down there and distract it while I continue on to see Howl.”
Bluster turned white. “I think you’re right. We should go back.”
*****
BreeZee
She had searched everywhere she could think of . . . all the places the three of them had visited over the years or had wanted to see. There was the Tea Kettle, of course, and the Valley of the Mysterious Mist . . .
. . . with its strange ring of rock pillars. Most kids were too afraid to get near the place and, needless to say, the old BreeZee would never have gone. But in this case, neither did her two friends . . . though they always talked about going.
The next place she went was called the Purple Pillar of Passion . . .
On earth, you might call it a lover’s leap. On Zynn-Zaz’zia, it worked a little differently. The idea was for a boy and a girl to sail from bottom to the top, spiraling slowly around the monolith until they reached the plateau at the summit. There, they would exchange private vows of love and fidelity. It was a way to seal your devotion and confirm your commitment to one another.
The last place she could think of was Tranquility Bay that separated the Wind’dancer island from the off-limits, don’t-you-even-think-about-exploring Isle of the Zaz’zia Caldera.
Box Set #2: Zynn-Zaz'Zia: [The 4 book 2nd Adventure of Egg and the Hameggattic Sisterhood] Page 18