Ghost Monkey

by Paul R. Davis

  Aavu attacked from behind, clawing and nipping, until he was kicked in the face. Still, he attacked again. Pahto shifted into an elephant and sat on Aavu. The tiger scraped at the stone, doing his best to escape. It looked like Aavu was given another broken leg instead of revenge.

  Bajjo swiped at the elephant furiously. This time, Pahto picked up the badger and slammed him repeatedly against the ground, then stepped on him and shifted into his elephant form. Bajjo cried out as bones snapped audibly.

  The room shifted under Sugriva's feet as he tried to regain senses. He wanted to sprint, to pounce the bandit king and help Bajjo, but he couldn't walk in a straight line. Labda continued his strikes, until Pahto kicked back as an afterthought. The man slammed against the back wall. He didn't get back up, and Sugriva thought him for dead. It was the most likely scenario unless he pulled off a final burst of magic.

  Then Bagheer dropped down. Claws on his hands and feet dug into the flesh, while his dagger met with the elephant's throat over and over again, slicing and stabbing, the blood gushing out from the large creature. Pahto shifted back to janaav in the hopes of freeing himself of the panther, but it only allowed the dagger to cut deeper. Bagheer slit deep into the throat, and opened up Pahto's neck, the river of blood flowing abundantly.

  Sugriva collapsed to the ground, no longer required to pretend he could stand. Face down on the stone, he gave a thumbs up and said, "Great work guys. I'm going to throw up now."

  Chapter Six

  The Seers Seen

  Age of Finality

  The boy yawned as the sun set. Lights built into the city streets illuminated the evening. The kid said, "Tell me more tomorrow, please?"

  Sugriva laughed and ruffled the boy's hair. "I'll see you in the morning." With that, the boy scampered in the direction of the orphanage, glowing orange from the street lights.

  Scholars strode through the city with books in their arms. Different theories on different devices were discussed. Any salvage sites which were not illuminated would be abandoned for the night, while those with working lights had a constant rotation of clever minds trying to puzzle out the riddles. A few smiths attempted to work with the lights so they could make them portable, but the technology was beyond them. After a light was destroyed due to tinkering, it became illegal to tamper with them.

  Theories on the lights spanned from some sort of magical energy long forgotten, to trapping fire spirits in them to use their essence to fuel the lights. All of the concepts were fascinating, and Sugriva did like to listen in from time to time, but beyond the base theories, he couldn't comprehend it.

  The traffic thinned out as Sugriva left the settled regions of the massive city. The ghost town was surveyed to be able to hold at least a million people, and they brought a mere fifty thousand. Even if they brought all the inhabits of Jaya and the neighboring kingdoms, without any deaths from the demon invasion, they would fill a quarter of the city.

  A structure off to the side had an open yard of rock. An engineer said it was likely a warehouse with the yard for staging goods. There were hundreds around the city of Bahimatt.

  The inside was barren, with a dip in the floor. A rail set in the dip, going in one side of the structure and out the other. Some rails glowed. Some went above the city. Shacks connected to the rail every couple hundred feet.

  Sugriva's ears perked at the sound of footsteps outside, and he shifted into a monkey. The rails were convenient for running out of the warehouse without going on the main street, and his agility allowed him to easily traverse it, as it narrowed significantly above the city.

  He glimpsed a shadow against the moon and street lights, though he couldn't make out the figure. He darted across the rail, up a line of shacks, then through a few buildings. After the fourth building, the shadow disappeared.

  In front of Sugriva stood the massive dark blue dome. On the dome there were silver dots mirroring the sky above. The scholars debated most heavily on this astrological structure. What was it for? What was inside? Why were there no doors?

  Most pressing, however, was why shadows went in and out at night, yet no one saw—

  Then there was a light to interrupt Sugriva's thought. An amber glow briefly shot across the street, and then it was gone. It was at a bad angle, a door where Sugriva couldn't see, but he dashed down the rail, down the side of a building, and out to where he saw the light. It was just a wall.

  "Ashtadash curse you." He pried at it, looking for cracks, but the wall was an entirely smooth alloy, some sort of metal that the people of Sankive knew nothing about. "Still means I've seen more than the scholars." He knocked on the wall and it reverberated.

  "I'll be back," he shouted at the dome.

  THE FOLLOWING MORNING, Sugriva darted about the streets and found a group of scholars. "Who works on the dome? I saw something last night."

  The men laughed. "If a monkey warrior saw something we didn't, then I guess we're all going to be born blind in the next life." When they finished, one of them said, "But if we didn't listen to any rumors, we would miss some of our finds. Good warrior, what did you see?"

  Irritated, and a touch embarrassed, he grumbled, "I climbed around a warehouse near the dome and saw a shadow."

  Another scholar shrugged and walked off. "Shadows are nothing new. Everyone who strolls past that dome says they glimpse a shadow."

  Sugriva let him leave. If he was going to be a jerk about it, that was his loss. Once gone, he continued. "I followed the shadow through the streets until it arrived at the dome."

  "Oh." The scholars were interested now.

  "I lost sight of it, but stuck around a while. Then a light poured out onto the street."

  This made the scholars gasp, elbowing each other. Frantic words shot back and forth as theories were altered and conjured. The monkey couldn't make anything of their ramblings.

  "Monkey," one said, breaking out of the tizzy. "Show us where the door was."

  The validation made Sugriva’s chest puff out.

  THE MORNING BROUGHT a rude awakening. A shadow hovered over Sugriva's bed—a man with a staff. "Good morning, Sugriva, feral monkey of Sankive, Ghost Monkey, bane of demons. There's a woman in the north who will soon have similarly pompous titles. It exhausts me to say them all. Anyway, did you sleep well?"

  Kill it, the voice screamed, and Sugriva saw the wisdom.

  Sugriva gave into the voice and reason faded away. His body flung forward. Claws swiped through the air. The intruder had a staff which detached into seven segments held together by metal links. Wood and metal slammed into the monkey's temple, dazing him. As Sugriva tried to shift into a janaav, he was brought out of the form, his mind too fuzzy to maintain it.

  "Bad monkey," the stranger scolded. "You're meant for great things, but here you are, attacking wildly."

  "You broke into my house!" Sense came back to Sugriva, as he shook his head. The room spun from the pain. "You could at least be a beautiful woman."

  "I'm not a bad looking man, but I can see the disappointment." He paced the room. "Leaping out of bed, the graceful monkey king assailed his opponent with little difficulty, using his enchanted earth staff to pin the man to the ground. That's how the battle should have read, but no. Feral monkey flies into a rage and paws blindly at nothing. Then he gets knocked upside the head." He got close to the monkey's face. "Do you see the difference? It's really shameful."

  "What do you want?" He pushed the stranger away.

  "I misjudged you. I'm guessing those scholars yesterday didn't know who you are."

  "Why?"

  "They listened." He paced the room, looking up at the ceiling, hands behind his back. "You see, I thought, a monkey with your reputation for madness would be swept aside as a lunatic. Everyone but the children treat you that way." He looked out the window, hands behind his back.

  The words were matter of fact, but it hurt. Truth usually hurt, Sugriva reflected on the pain in his heart physical. He clutched his chest and loneliness entered.


  "I'm sorry," the man said, stopping a moment to grimace. "I struggle with niceties. It's why I bring difficult people together."

  "Stranger, you spoke the truth." The words were weak, that of a dying man.

  "Stranger? Oh." He laughed, then put a hand to his mouth, the laughter obviously louder than he thought it was. "Sorry. I'm Han Lou. You can call me Lou. My story is a strange one, and stranger yet where I've been. There are lands you can't even imagine and futures you'd consider insane. But you need to know about the dome and the Seers."

  "There are people in the dome?"

  "Some. Most of us are far flung. I travel a lot. Go to this island. Go to that desert. After this little reprieve, I get to climb a cold mountain." He sighed. "A very tall, cold mountain.

  "Anyway, only you can know about the dome. The scholars stopped snooping around, now they're back at it, and it impedes travel. My colleagues are upset with me." Lou walked up to Sugriva and asked, "Can you keep your mouth shut for me?"

  The monkey nodded, dumbfounded. This was the biggest find. It was the purpose of the dome, and there were people going in and out of it. People who likely knew all the secrets to the city. "What are the lights?"

  "What?" Lou cocked a brow.

  "The lights that turn on and off by themselves. They don't need fire. What are they?"

  "Uh," Lou looked up for a while, making a stupid face. "I mean, will you understand?" He stared off into the distance again, then shot his focus back to Sugriva. "The elemental spirits are infinite. Their power is therefore infinite. We bred spirits, siphoned power, and placed it in crystals used for the lines. The enchantment then goads them into when they can or can't use their power, which is what sets time."

  "So you enslave spirits? Seems cruel."

  "To you. All the spirits you speak to are sentient. Most aren't. The flickering candle has a spirit looking over it. It is summoned when the candle is lit and snuffed out when the candle fades. Are you cruel for blowing out the candle?"

  "That's not what they teach."

  "Messes with the order of things. Elementalists are aware of this. They can feel it. But spirits made sure they were elevated in Sankive so they could push you around. Everywhere else ignores them or knows them for the tools they are." Lou looked out the window. The early risers were up and going to work, moving goods, or just getting some fresh air. "Any other questions I don't want to answer but will if it ensures your silence?"

  "I want to see inside the dome. If you don't let me, I'll tell Prince Anka."

  Lou's jaw dropped. "Seriously? Blackmail? You're supposed to be honorable."

  "Maybe in some future you saw? But right now, I'm a survivalist." He gave a simper. "And an overly curious monkey."

  "I have to check with my colleagues. I'll come back to you within a week with an answer."

  Before Lou could leave, Sugriva said, "And if you kill me, I'll have ways of letting everyone know what you are."

  "If killing you was an option you'd be dead. You think you're the first one to discover the secrets?"

  MIDDAY, AS SUGRIVA lay out on the street enjoying the warmth of the sun, the boy came back. "Ghost, I'm back."

  "Where are your friends? I'm sunbathing." He waved the boy off.

  "They are doing what they want to do. I don't want to do that. Tell me more of your story. Isn't Puncture Day next?"

  Pain exuded from his chest, tingling in his fingertips. "Puncture Day pierced the heart of Sankive—the people of Jaya and the seven kingdoms, even those who loathed us."

  "So you'll tell me about it?"

  Sugriva smirked. "Of course. This is the tale of Puncture Day."

  Chapter Seven

  The Story of Puncture Day

  Age of Men 807

  Pahto's corpse burned on a pyre to release his spirit into the next reincarnation. Euphemisms coated the harsh words regarding the elephant's next life, as it was against dharma to speak poorly of the dead. Sugriva knew Pahto would come back as something horrible in penance for the many sins of this life.

  As they feasted, pyre raging in the distance, Ishku sat between Sugriva and Aavu. Sugriva reached out and put his hand on hers, and she laced her fingers between his. Aavu growled and bore fangs in a feeble threat.

  Bagheer emerged from the darkness and sat next to Sugriva. "You play with chaotic and demonic paths when you sit by her, let alone hold her hand. It is my duty to report this when we rejoin the ranks."

  "Do what you need to," Sugriva whispered, but the damage of Bagheer's presence was done: Ishku retracted her hand.

  Bagheer continued, "Your uncle may have been a bad man to you, but you repay him with dishonor. You are sure about this path?"

  Sugriva reached out and held Ishku's hand.

  "So be it." He walked back to the Jayan table, set outside of the light. The warriors preferred it that way so the Ashtadash couldn't see the company they kept.

  Sugriva spent more time with Ishku and less with his people. Aavu responded to him instead of rejecting him outright. The people of Mibtha warmed up to the monkey and talked and traded with him. Some thought there was a chance to seduce him, but Ishku was the only woman he wanted.

  Bagheer approached him one morning. "Do you intend to come home with us?"

  "No," Sugriva said, wiping sweat from his forehead as he worked a field. It was still the cool season, but the humidity was stifling.

  "You can no longer drill with us."

  "Fine."

  "If the Fangs attack, you are not considered one of us."

  At this Sugriva laughed. "Can't be that picky, Bagheer. If the Fangs attack, we're all warriors."

  VILLAGERS FISHED THE flooded city for massive catches. Smoked meat and nuts in fish stomachs fed Mibtha for months after the flood waters receded. Sugriva, Aavu, and Ishku stayed in Ishku's hut which was up on a mound above the waters. Children listened to stories out of the rain. The narratives were different from the fables in Jaya. Ishku taught inclusivity and avoided lectures on dharma.

  Aavu walked over to Sugriva and sat down while Ishku continued her tale of the three ox and a hungry tiger. Aavu said, "It's been a year. We're thankful that you killed Pahto, but when are you leaving?"

  "Never." Aavu's eyes went wide at the statement. "I'll be outcaste."

  "Why?" His voice went a little high, and the children looked to Aavu, before Ishku brought their attention back to the story.

  "Too much time with you and Ishku." Sugriva looked at the ground, pushing around a pebble with a twig.

  "You're a fool. I'm here because there wasn't another path. But you—" He growled, his throat purring.

  Sugriva replied, "You had a trade. Working with death would limit friends, but you would still have them. Pay is good." Sugriva looked into Aavu's eyes, and the tiger grimaced. "You know why I threw it away. Same as you." He looked back to the dirt and whispered, "Ishku."

  Ishku gave a wide smile, losing her spot momentarily. The thought she heard him through the heavy rains brought warmth to Sugriva's chest.

  "I get it," Aavu said. He stood up and stretched. "I'm going outside for a bit." He shifted into his tiger form and left the shack.

  Sugriva's ears perked up, and he quickly shifted into a monkey. The rain masked a melodic slithering, but training made him aware of the difference. Gasps followed the shift in sounds. Shifting back to his man form he shouted, "Alarm!" He rushed outside, staff in hand.

  A snake at least twenty feet long dropped down on Sugriva. Sugriva thrust up and cracked a fang, the strike missing the skull due to water pouring down into his eyes. Then, as the serpent sprung again, Aavu stepped forward, grabbed it, and ripped its head off. Fighting was heard throughout Mibtha, soon followed by screams as unexpecting civilians were attacked.

  "Alarm," Aavu yelled, running toward a gong. He struck it several times, and Sugriva fended off the snakes while the village stirred. People rushed toward Ishku's house, many forced onto boats. Snakes rocked the boats, and coils wrapped up and aro
und victims, pulling them into the depths.

  Another Fang advanced on Sugriva in his janaav form. When he leapt toward Aavu and Sugriva swung, the Fang shifted into a snake and the strike missed entirely. Fangs sunk into Aavu's neck, giving a grip before the snake turned back into his janaav form. Oversized canines ripped into Aavu's throat. Aavu howled, then bit into the snake's skull, crushing it.

  Sugriva watched as Falak jumped out a window, turned into a kite, and bolted off toward Jaya. It was his job. Run away and warn the others. Bitter laughter cut through the chaos. They were not meant to survive. He pondered how many others were under attack.

  Bajjo's roar of glee penetrated the deluge, as he shredded Fang after Fang. They kept nipping at him, but it didn't slow the badger down. He cried out, "Finally, something to do!"

  Bagheer said, "We should not wish chaos on these people, even if it allows us to follow the warrior's path."

  "Where is Labda?" Sugriva asked, making his way to Bagheer and Bajjo. Aavu followed them. The bite on his neck turned purple and swelled.

  "His soul is being judged by the Asthadash," Bagheer said, thrusting and slicing at Fangs with his dagger. "They caught him in his sleep."

  Aavu interrupted, "We need to defend Ishku's hut. It's the high ground, and the tree is defensible."

  "Chaos take your precious otter. We are here to survive," Bajjo hissed.

  "Bajjo," Bagheer said, "Look." The people fled toward Ishku's home, huddling inside. Some were making their way up the large branch which led up to an opening in the trunk of a tree. "Outcaste or not, our dharma is to protect."

  Crowds ran through the tree tops. Fangs snagged a few, bitting or wrapping around, and knocking them off the branches, into the waters below. Snakes waited in the waters to capture easy meals as villagers bobbed up once or twice, then were brought down and never seen again.