Patreus batted off swipe after swipe of the beast’s claws, exhibiting his mastery of the basic combat movements we were taught. He even added occasional artful and advanced variations. Patreus was truly skilled; he was an amazing fighter. He held the scorpfang at bay, seemingly unchallenged and with unstirred focus from his early fall. Peitus began yelling and flailing his arms to draw the attention back upon himself. The beast turned and resumed its pursuit of him, with Patreus following close behind, poised and ready for the strike. Their plan was in motion once again.
Then, while at full gate, the scorpfang reached the end of its chain. The beast violently jerked backward and flew into the air once again with its underbelly exposed, but the chain had given way and broke with a loud metallic snap near the spike which held it. The scorpfang was not yanked backward quite as far as Patreus had planned. The beast fell to the ground and regained its footing, now poised between Patreus and Peitus, striking at both of them frantically, and fully aware of its newly acquired freedom.
With both Patreus and Peitus being trained swordsmen, it was feasible to keep the scorpfang in a stalemate at a safe distance, but the situation could prove disastrous if they began to tire or if the scorpfang turned its attention toward the rest of us. After a few moments of observing the fight I decided that I needed to do something to help them gain the upper hand.
I crept quietly toward the long section of loose chain that still remained secured around the scorpfang. I grabbed hold of it with both hands and wrapped it around my right forearm. I drew out the chain so that it was nearly tightened, but not tight enough for the beast to realize it was fettered. Peitus noticed what I was doing and he motioned for Patreus to move around, so that Peitus was in front of the beast and Patreus was directly behind it. Then Peitus turned and ran, drawing the scorpfang out after him.
The chain tightened around my hands and arm as it was pulled out, and my feet shifted in the dirt. I steadied my footing and imagined myself being part of the ground, like a massive boulder. My feet became sturdy and anchored. My body became solid, and I felt a strength in me that seemed unimaginable. I was like a rock.
As the scorpfang tried to strike Peitus with its stinger, I clenched my stony muscles and yanked the taut chain backward. The tightened links caused the face of the scorpfang to be pulled downward and burrow into the dirt as its tail and stinger lifted up high. The beast rolled forward, tail over head, and flipped, landing upside down with its underbelly exposed.
Patreus, who had followed behind, stood above the beast and plunged his blade downward with both hands into its abdomen. It hissed and squealed, writhing on the ground. Then Peitus approached and sunk his blade to the hilt into the beast’s underbelly. That was the deathblow. The scorpfang was still, and a milky green liquid oozed from its wounds and pooled on the ground beneath the beast. Peitus and Patreus removed their swords and approached me.
“Are these made of stone?” Peitus joked, examining my arms. For a moment it felt as if they were!
“Why, yes, the Fifth Stone.” Patreus added playfully, but with sincerity. “Thank you for that, Valdren.”
“You’re welcome,” I replied.
They laughed and we joined the others. Fiama ran to Peitus and hugged him, then she turned to Patreus and did the same.
#
We sat under the rocky ledge and calmed ourselves. I put on another shirt from my pack, and we resumed the eating and drinking that had been disrupted earlier.
"At the festival there will be so much food you will gain the weight of ten gold bricks," Patreus said as he looked upon our humble meal.
It had been days since we ate a meal of real substance. Before we left for this journey Patreus advised that we pack only enough supplies for one way. We would restock our supply of food and water at a town called Kal'Adria for the trip home. I was worried that our supplies were running thin, not knowing how far it was to our destination and how long it would be until the feast.
“What is the Di’Veridae festival?” I asked.
“Ahh, yes. I shall take this time to explain everything. Di’Veridae is a festival where we celebrate… well, let me start from the beginning, logical yes?” Catching himself, he began again. “First, during the Dark Times, Tumain, Valdren’s Lapisian grandfather, received a message from the king. A very important message that foretold the arrival of a fifth stone to help unite the Haareti in peace and prosperity, and eventually put an end to the Dark Times once and for all. In the message the king said ‘on the fourth day of the fourth season, four cycles from today, the Fifth Stone will arrive in the line of the fourth daughter Mae.’”
“The four daughters of Loula and Tillius?” I asked, remembering their significance.
“Yes, Mae was the name of the last daughter. Tumain knew this, so he decided to travel to Ahaareta to relay the good news to any pure Haareti he could find. After all, a fifth stone would perhaps bring some balance back to Haaret, helping the Lapisians as well as the groundsmen. But at that time, as is still true today, it was very dangerous for Lapisians and Aquidians to journey to Ahaareta or Uhaaretu, so Tumain feared coming here.
“However, when he did come here he was surprised to see that there were many pure folks living in secret among the corrupt, the way we still do today. When he found the pure, together they created genealogies, many of which are included in the Hope. They traced the lines of the pure and the ancestry of Mae. But there were many descendants, and time was running out to the day when the Fifth Stone was to arrive. Tumain still had not told the others, the Aquidians and the Uhaareti, of the king’s message. So he left, and the Ahaareti continued making the genealogies of Mae’s lines in hopes to find the name of the person who would receive the Fifth Stone.
“Tumain traveled to Uhaaretu and then Aqos, where he met his wife Neira, Valdren’s Aquidian grandmother. Together they set up a messenger system for sending information between the realms. The Ahaareti, meanwhile, still tried to figure out who was going to receive the Fifth Stone. The day approached and no one had received the stone; it never came. But a woman had gone missing, a woman who descended from the fourth daughter Mae.
“She left her home and followed a star in the sky that burned bright and drew her toward it. She followed it west from her home near our farms. It led her beyond the Balitstone Caverns, across the western branch of the Tillian River and to the shore of Lake Channus. There she saw the king. He gave her a newborn child, his own son, named Ver’Deiro. He told her to raise him and care for him as his mother. He told her that Ver’Deiro would help defeat Scievah and show the Haareti the way back to true purity and eternal peace.
“The woman’s name was Mae, named after the fourth daughter. She said that Ver’Deiro was the Fifth Stone. And so it is said to be the Divine Providence that the Fifth Stone came to someone in the line of the fourth daughter Mae who also happened to be named Mae.”
“But a person isn’t a stone. I don’t understand,” said Lunaris. “How is Ver’Deiro a stone?”
“And that is precisely what happened then; nobody understood. There was no stone, yet Mae said that Ver’Deiro was the Fifth Stone. There were skeptics among the pure, and many did not believe Mae. But as Ver’Deiro grew, they came to know that he was in fact the Fifth Stone. As the stones provide us with the Bountiful Gifts, so too did Ver’Deiro provide for us,” Patreus explained.
“How did people come to believe him?” Lunaris asked.
“He grew up with knowledge of the ancients without ever having been taught anything. He found secret temples that the pure built in the ancient times that were lost and forgotten. He knew he was the prince without anyone ever telling him, and he said he was the Fifth Stone. His friends believed him, but others among the pure were doubtful until he started to focus his power and become the Fifth Stone, so to speak,” said Patreus.
“What do you mean? What happened?” I asked.
“When Ver’Deiro was here the lands were tranquil. When he focused his power, crops f
lourished, storms subsided and earthquakes ceased. He rekindled the light of Uhaaretu and replenished the Bountiful Gifts. It was as if the Firestone was back upon its altar and Scievah had never taken it. People saw with their own eyes that he was the Haareti embodiment of an elemental power stone. He performed the kind of magic that even Scievah could not perform. No Haareti, even if they held all four stones, could do what Ver’Deiro did.”
“What did he do?” I asked.
“It was as if he wielded the stones’ true powers, for good and not evil. He repaired and healed instead of destroyed and harmed. He touched crops and they flourished. He soothed an insane man’s mind, restoring peace to him. The sick were cured simply by being in his presence, and he even brought life back to a newborn child who was born still.”
“No one can do that!” cried Deius.
“But he did,” Fiama interrupted. “That child was me.”
There was silence for a moment; we all sat in quiet contemplation of the idea that Fiama had miraculously returned from death as an infant. My thoughts wandered to Lunaris, and how she too seemed to have been brought back to life when I held her in my arms by the riverside.
“I was with him when he did it,” Patreus continued. “I saw it happen with my own eyes. I was in my sixth cycle, but I still remember like it happened yesterday. Truly a miracle,” Patreus confirmed. “It’s all written in the Hope.”
I reached into my pack and pulled out the Hope, which I had packed and aimed to read on our journey. I examined it as Patreus spoke.
“After he left us, a group that was very close to him, including myself, created written accounts detailing the things he did and the lessons he taught.” He motioned to the Hope in my hands.
“Where did he go?” Lunaris asked.
“To Eterna, with his father and the Divinae.”
“Will he be back?” Lunaris continued.
“He said he would return, though not in Haareti form, but in stone form. The powers of Ver’Deiro will emerge from within all pure Haareti when the Divinae descend upon Haaret once again in the Great War.”
“But there must be someone who could use the stones for good. If Ver’Deiro was the king’s son maybe he could use them for good,” Deius suggested. "Maybe he touched the stones like Scievah, but instead used the powers for good."
“No. Only the king can use the stones for their true and good purpose. We know that. When wielded through the Haareti, the stones can only cause destruction. Since Ver’Deiro was Haareti, he could not use the four stones for good.”
“Only the king? Not even the king’s son?” Deius pressed.
“Not even the prince, and that is why one logical explanation for his miraculous powers is that he was the Haareti embodiment of the Fifth Stone. He, himself, was a stone of some kind. The other logical explanation is that Ver’Deiro was the king himself, here on Haaret and not in Eterna. Since only the king can use the stones for good, and Ver’Deiro was not a lifeless piece of rock, then Ver’Deiro must have been the king on Haaret, using the stones the way the king does. We believe he was both; king and stone.”
“But how can he be the prince but also the king?” I asked. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“He was the king’s son as all Haareti are children of the king. He was the Haareti embodiment of the king.”
“So Ver’Deiro was the king, the Fifth Stone, and a Haareti? All three?” I verified.
“Yes. The embodiment of both king and stone in the form of man, and in fact he was a fourth entity as well; a prophetic spirit.”
“What is a prophetic spirit?” I asked.
“A ghost of sorts. When Ver’Deiro died…”
“He died?” Lunaris questioned. “I thought you said he was in Eterna?”
“He is there. His spirit has gone to Eterna like all the pure who pass into the realm of spirits.”
“Are the Divinae dead as well?” she followed.
“No. The Divinae are part spirit to begin with; angels. They are very unique beings indeed, somewhere between the living and the spirit world,” Patreus explained. “When Ver’Deiro died,” he continued, “he revealed his fourth form, the spirit, to Croyan, Valdren’s father, and the pure Haareti at the old temple of Il'Nidim. In his spirit form Ver’Deiro gave us the prophecy we call the Hope.”
“What does is predict?” I asked.
“When blood from the impure lines mixes with the pure, the Fifth Stone will return with the blood of all four; the Divinae shall assemble an army for war, and the Unity will conquer evil and bring peace forevermore.” He said it from memory. “But take heed, for the mountains will bleed, the ground will quake, and the very skies will break.”
Patreus held his hand out to me and looked down at the Hope, motioning for me to hand him the book. I passed it over and he thumbed to a specific part.
“This is what Ver’Deiro told Valdren’s father and the pure Haareti at the old temple of Il'Nidim.” He began to read. "'In these Dark Times, when corruption plagues Haaret, the king will send the four Divinae to assemble an army for the Great War. The king will bestow the powers of the Fifth Stone upon those Haareti possessing pure and divine spirit, forming an army under the Divinae, lead by the Unity, a Haareti possessing the blood of the four races. The Unity will conquer evil and reunite the four races of Haaret in peace and harmony, and the Divinae will once again place the stones at their altars.’
“And then he gave a warning; ‘Others will come before the Divinae with promises of peace and unity, but they will be the minions of evil, and will deceive the Haareti, forming a dark horde with the souls of the fallen. They will seek the power stones and all of Haaret will become a battleground in the Great War between good and evil.” Patreus stopped reading, but a strained and encumbered expression lingered on his face and left me with the thought that there was something more to the prophecy. Something he did not read, something unwritten.
“To remember it easier, we say ‘When the blood from the impure lines mixes with the pure, the Fifth Stone will return with the blood of all four; the Divinae shall assemble an army for war, and the Unity will conquer evil and bring peace forevermore. But take heed, for the mountains will bleed, the ground will quake, and the very skies will break,’” Patreus repeated.
A chill ran down my spine. I couldn’t help but hear and rehear his words echoing in my head: “the blood of all four.” That was to be me, I thought. But it was all so new to me. I knew nothing of my importance until just recently, so how could it be me? It seemed Patreus planned his whole life on the messages, while I was just thrown into the situation, the responsibility.
What if it wasn’t me and Patreus was wrong? I was scared. Nervously, I blurted out another question to avoid the subject of me being this Unity, this prophetic warrior, which was obviously on everyone’s mind.
“So, what is Di’Veridae?” I repeated my original question, which still hadn’t been answered in Patreus’ typically thorough and meandering historical discussion.
“Ah yes, of course. Di’Veridae celebrates the day that Ver’Deiro revealed his fourth form, the spirit, and gave us the prophecy. Other celebrations throughout the cycle mark the day Tumain received the king’s message, the day the king came to Mae with Ver’Deiro, and the time in his youth when Ver’Deiro began to channel his benevolent powers. There are four holidays, one to celebrate each of the four forms."
There was a brief moment of silence between us, but it was broken by a rustling sound from behind us. Patreus and Peitus drew their swords once again and investigated the sound. It was coming from the ogre’s den. As we approached we realized it was more of a scurrying sound, a small animal perhaps. Patreus and Peitus entered the vile smelling hole. Its wretched stench billowed out and strangled our senses even from a distance.
“Prairie rats!” Patreus announced from within the cave.
Peitus let out several muffled coughs, and he soon exited the toxic den doubled over and heaving, sounding as if he were going to retch
in sickness. He quickly covered his nose and mouth with the inside of his elbow and trotted toward us. “Disgusting in there!” he exclaimed.
“Indeed.” Patreus emerged from the den with several items in his hands. “Living amidst his own waste and excrement.” He flopped the possessions on the ground before us as we gathered around. Among them were a decorative glass jug filled with shimmering liquid, countless strings of fashionable beads and jewelry, shining gems and gold, and a few small battered swords. Some of the items had what looked like blood on them; some of it dried and some of it fresh. We looked up at Patreus for an explanation of the morbid treasure trove.
“There were several bodies, or pieces of bodies I should say. It seems the scorpfang did the killing and the ogre did the eating, as did the prairie rats, on whatever scraps lay around.” Our eyes and noses wrinkled with shock and disgust. “He had these items inside.”
“Is it safe to refill our water with that?” Deius asked, pointing at the jug of water.
“No.” Patreus said abruptly as he kicked off the lid and spilled the water onto the ground. It shimmered and sparkled as it soaked into the dusty earth. “That water is poison, gathered from the Fountain of Power in the oasis to the north of here.”
“But we’re running low on water. Couldn’t we drink it just to quench our thirst?” asked Deius.
“I’m afraid that would only replace one thirst with another; a far more dangerous one,” warned Patreus. “One that may never be quenched.”
“What would an ogre want with it? And aren’t ogres supposed to live deep inside the mountains?” Lunaris asked.
“According to the old legends, yes. Giants live on the mountains, and ogres live in the mountains. But this was no ogre,” Patreus explained. “This was an Ahaareti, only poisoned, like the giants Valdren saw. His wicked heart and desires led him to a horrific life of villainy and cannibalism.” Patreus condemned him. “Look.” He pointed. “Heirloom jewelry, a signet ring with a crest of one of the pure families to the north, and other personal effects.” He became angry as he sifted through the items belonging to unfortunate passersby. “Now you see firsthand the treachery of Scievah’s mischief.” He grunted.
The Return of the Fifth Stone Page 12