“But the fate of the world depends on it. If I understand the provicy you gave us, that means your world will be affected as well. Your world will end.”
“You are very wise, kDira. I will consider what we have spoken about. Please leave me alone to meditate. I will inform you of my decision before you leave here.”
The Provit escorted them out of the Provitos’ chambers and closed the door. “Please have a seat at a table, and I will see that food is brought out to you.”
They all sat down and looked at the others, confused. kDira pondered what the Provitos might have meant by another provicy. How could there be more than one?
Fruits and meats were placed on the tables for the party to pick at and satisfy their hunger. A pitcher of cold, fresh water and cups was brought out, and everyone enjoyed the refreshing drink as they ate and awaited an answer.
It seemed as though hours had passed. The food had been consumed, and the dishes removed by some faceless Provits. Bracken dozed off with his head down on the table, and the others were talking quietly amongst themselves.
Finally, the door to the Provitos’ room opened, and the Provit from earlier walked out holding a parchment. kDira wondered how he had gotten into the room of the Provitos without them seeing, as she was certain there were no other doors in his room.
The Provit walked over to kDira and presented her the parchment.
“The Provitos expresses great concern. He warns to use these words wisely and not to take them lightly. They are not meant for you; they are the provicy of someone else. You are free to spend the night here; we will bring you some cots. But you must leave by first light.”
“Thank you,” kDira said. “We will be gone by first light.”
She looked at the parchment, rolled neatly in her hand. It looked to be hundreds of years old, and certainly not something that was just created that evening.
“Noske, come over here.”
Noske walked around the table and stood by kDira. “Yes, Queen Mother?”
“Take this and read it to us. Skip nothing.”
Noske unrolled the paper and glanced over the words. Then he began to read.
“The Book of Sylys”
Malak and Nonham had retired into the hut and Malak sat down in one of the comfortable chairs. He was amazed at how soft and luscious it was. He had never enjoyed something so soft before.
“Soft as a hundred women’s breasts, your father used to say. That chair was his favorite.”
“A hundred breasts? Yes, I think I can imagine that.”
“And let us not forget you have two eager females downstairs that are ready to satisfy your every desire.”
“Nonham?”
“Yes, my King?”
“You once mentioned a provicy. I wish to see this provicy. I want to know all that it says.”
“I will get it for you and fetch an interpreter to read it for you.”
“I do not need an interpreter, I can interpret the symbols myself.”
Nonham looked at Malak, surprised. “My, my, you are quite the talented one, are you not?”
“Just bring me the provicy.”
“Yes, my King.”
Nonham went over to a small desk and pulled out an ornate wooden box, oblong in shape. He opened the top and pulled out a scroll with a red ribbon securing it. Nonham untied the ribbon and let the scroll unroll. He walked it over to Malak and handed it to him. Malak read every word.
pART 3
The Book of Sylys
cHAPTER 18
The Book of Sylys
72 The Angel will come to rule the
Middle Kingdom on the wings of
his royal father.
73 Be warned that it will be blood that
will try to take down the King.
Blood will defeat vanity.
“What does it mean, kDira?” Ari asked.
kDira pondered the words and had Noske read them again. She repeated the words, again and again, trying to find the true meaning. The Angel? Could the Angel mean Malak? Guller said that the name Malak meant Angel in some languages.
“I do not know. We need to make our way back to Blackhorn with this information and let Guller and Elick go over it with Noske and determine the meaning.”
“It is talking about the Midlanders, is it not? The Middle Kingdom? Could Malak be going to lead the Midlanders? I thought they were all gone after those of us merged with the Blackhorn. Could they have rebuilt the tribe in seventeen years?”
“Again, I do not know. And what is that last part? Noske, read that second half again.”
“Be warned that it will be blood that will try to take down the King,” Noske read. “Blood will defeat vanity.”
“So, when it talks of blood, is that you, kDira?” asked Ari.
“I think it could be. I think it is telling us that I will try to defeat him, but will fail.”
“I think you are right. We need to get back to Blackhorn and study what this means. Let us rest and be ready to leave at first light.”
“Ari is right. We will go crazy trying to figure it out here. I miss my family, as I am sure you all miss your loved ones. Let us rest and be fresh for travel tomorrow.”
“What is this Angel?” Malak asked.
“I am not certain. In some cultures, it is the savior; one who comes to pull the people up from despair and lead them to riches and glory. That Angel is you, I believe.”
“On the wings of his royal father, that would be Sylys Hayden, I suppose?”
“You are very perceptive, my young king.”
“But what is the talk of the blood that will try to take me down. What does this mean? Blood?”
“Why, that is your family. Blood would mean anyone that you are related to by birth. Your mother, for instance.”
“Or Winter. It could be Winter, right?”
“Yes, it could, though I don’t see her as a threat. It will certainly be your mother that will try to dethrone you.”
“Yes, I suppose you are right. What of Agis?”
“Agis is not blood, so according to the provicy, he is not a factor.”
“And blood will defeat vanity. What is that?”
“It is a warning to you. A warning not to be too vain in your leadership. Vanity could be the weakness that could cost you the throne.”
“I have much to think about. I am getting tired. Send the females up here; I wish to retire for the evening. Will you be back in the morning?”
“I will, your highness. I will have guards assigned outside the hut for your safety. Should you need anything, call out to them, they will assist you.”
“What if they wish me dead?”
“I think compared to the previous king, anything is an improvement. You have nothing to worry about.”
“Then why post a guard?”
“In case the blood we discussed comes knocking at our door sooner than we expect.”
The morning light was just peeking through the trees as Winter and Fralek were stalking the pack of chideer some distance from the Blackhorn village. Each time they approached the pack, it would startle and move farther eastward. The pair pushed on further and further as they followed the herd deeper and deeper into the Kaiba Forest.
Winter had insisted upon going on a hunt because she felt she was not truly pulling her weight within the tribe. She thought it necessary to prove herself among her peers, and despite her father’s objections, she had managed to get him to allow her to go out, but only with the added protection of Fralek as a hunting companion. Fralek readily agreed to the task, insisting that he owed it to Agis and kDira for the night he had drunkenly spilled the beans about Hayden.
“They just keep pushing eastward, Winter,” Fralek said, stopping as the last of the chideer ran off into the woods.
“You have not exactly been the quietest hunter I have ever been with,” Winter protested. “Next time I will hand pick my escort. Ari, I remember, can be as silent as a treecat.”
“I am sorry, young Princess. I will try harder to be quiet.”
“Let’s give them a minute to settle down, then we will begin to stalk them again. If you scare them once more, I will admit defeat, and we will head back.”
“That sounds like a good idea. My old feet could use a break.”
Fralek, now getting a bit gray around his temples, was showing signs of his age. Nearing fifty seasons old, he was no spring chicken. Lack of exertion and work had left him a bit on the chunky side, and not one to use as the first line of defense. Winter was glad she had her own skills to rely on; she was not too sure how Fralek’s skills would protect them if the need arose.
The two sat on separate stumps and pulled out some bryne to drink and assorted dried meats to nibble on.
“Fralek, tell me what you know about Hayden.”
“My young Winter, do you want to see your father decapitate me? I survived blabbing to Malak about it once. Now you ask me to tell you of Hayden? I don’t think so.”
“It does not affect me.”
“For fear of death, I would rather you learned that story from someone else. Let us go stalk some more; I will try to be quieter.”
“Fine,” said Winter, standing up and grabbing her gear. “But I will hold it against you from this point onward because you would not tell me.”
“Fair enough.”
They set out on the hunt once more, heading further east. True to his word, Fralek was indeed quieter than he had been. After an hour they caught back up with the herd. This time they could see a couple good-sized chideer grazing on the lower leaves of a small tree. Carefully, Winter and Fralek nocked arrows. In unison, they took aim and shot. In unison, two chideer dropped to the ground.
“There we go! Now that is a hunt!” Winter cheered.
“Well done.” agreed Fralek. “Let us dress these out, then we can be on our way back to the village.”
The two headed over to their kills and began slitting the still-warm chideer from the genitals, up to and through the rib cage. They then pulled the innards out and left the offal in a pile.
“Looks like our work here is done,” Winter said, bending down to grab her kill. “Fralek, you can hunt with me anytime.”
“Thank you, Princess,” said Fralek, as he whacked Winter on the back of her head with a tree limb.
“Father, I am worried about Winter,” Charlomine said. “Should not she be back by now?” Charlomine, a quickly-growing young girl of fourteen seasons, was every bit the spitting image of Winter at the same age. Winter’s young sister also had blonde hair and bright blue eyes, and a fire inside her that set her apart from the others in her peer group.
The sun was beginning to hang low in the sky, and usually, hunting parties were back in the village by this time. For a hunting party to stay out so late in the evening was very unusual.
“Yes, I believe she should.” replied Agis, “but she is a strong girl, and she is with Fralek. I have to trust that she will return soon.”
“Could you send some warriors out to do a quick search of the area?”
“I could, but I think it would betray the trust she expects me to show in her.”
“Father, please,” Charlomine entreated. “Send out a search party. I am worried about Winter; I have a bad feeling.”
Agis thought for a moment and then decided to err on the side of caution. “Very well. I will organize a party quickly. But you will see, Winter will be back in the village very soon.”
“Thank you, father.”
Agis left the hut and headed over to the guard on watch. There he instructed the warriors to assemble a party of four and head out in the direction that Winter and Fralek had left in, and to make haste. Agis could not escape the urgency he himself felt and did not want Winter to get a sense of it.
Within minutes the group of warriors had gone and were rushing down the trail in search of the Princess and Fralek. They searched into the night until it was too dark to see well enough to continue. At that point, they made camp and hoped that Winter and Fralek would come across the camp while returning to the village. It didn’t happen.
cHAPTER 19
When Winter awoke, she found her hands and feet bound and a gag in her mouth. She sensed she was moving, but she had not fully regained her senses. She opened her eyes and saw the ground moving underneath her head, and she realized she as being carried over someone’s shoulder. And why did her head hurt so bad?
Fralek! Fralek was taking her somewhere. Why were her hands tied, and why was she gagged?
Suddenly her senses were clear and she began to struggle, causing Fralek to suddenly lose his balance and stumble. Both Winter and Fralek fell to the ground in a heap. Winter rolled over to see Fralek struggling to get back on his feet.
“Listen, now, Princess,” Fralek said, pointing a finger at her, “you cannot keep struggling like that or I will have to conk you on the head again.”
Winter tried to vocalize her protest, but the gag only muffled anything she tried to say.
“I know, I know, you have a million questions. They will all be answered, in time, but right now, I have to get you back up on my shoulder so we can be on our way again.”
Fralek reached down to pick Winter up again, but she thrashed about and did her best to kick at him with her bound feet.
“You are a fighter, just like your mum. I respect that, I really do, but we cannot be having this, so be a good girl and let me pick you up or I will have to knock you out again.”
With a swift grab, Fralek wrapped his arms around her midsection and threw her over his shoulder. She kicked a little but soon calmed down.
“That is better. We do not have to be enemies. It is a long trip to Midlandia, and if you want to eat and drink on the way, then you will do well not to put up a fight.”
Fralek walked for a brief period when he suddenly became aware that the front of him was becoming warm. When he realized what was happening, he dropped Winter to the ground with a thud.
“Did you just piss on me?”
Winter lay there on the ground, laughing uncontrollably through her gag. Fralek went over to her and kicked her in the midsection. Her laughing stopped momentarily, but then she continued.
“Little lady, you are lucky I am under strict orders to take you to Midlandia alive, or I would slit your throat right here and now!”
Fralek stood there, considering his options. They had several days hike ahead, and carrying her was definitely going to be difficult, especially with her awake and resisting him. He reached into his pack and pulled out a length of rope. From it, he fashioned a noose. He walked over to Winter, placed the noose over her head and snugged it down around her neck. From there he moved to cut the bonds from her feet.
“Now you will carry your own weight. If you try to run, this rope will pull tight, and you may strangle yourself. Now get up!”
Winter just lay there, defiantly. Fralek went around behind her and kicked her once more in the back. “I said, get up!”
Slowly, Winter rose to her feet. She looked Fralek in the eyes and willed him to feel her resolve to kill him should she get the chance, then she set out walking in the direction Fralek pointed. She promised herself that she would not make this easy for him, but she had to think.
With Winter leading, wearing her choker leash, the pair walked for an hour or so. As they walked out of the Kaiba Forest, the sun was going down through the trees behind them.
“We will camp here,” said Fralek, setting his pack down under a tall tree just at the edge of the Urec Plains. He tugged on the rope and pulled Winter in close to the tree. Tossing the loose end of the rope over a limb that was above his head, he tied the rope off, leaving just enough slack for Winter to sit up against the tree.
“I am going to have some of this wonderful chideer. Sadly, I could not carry you and two chideer, so I cut off just enough for me to eat on the way to Midlandia. You might get some if you cooperate, but you have been pretty bad so far. Maybe
tomorrow your hunger will make you a bit more cooperative.”
Winter huffed at Fralek through her gag and turned her head away from him. Fralek laughed and sliced himself a few pieces of the raw meat. “Your attitude will change after a day’s trek tomorrow. You will see, we are all slaves to hunger and thirst.”
The search party returned to the Blackhorn village early the next morning and described finding the kill site where Winter and Fralek had harvested the two chideer. They questioned the fact that both kills were still lying there, properly field-stripped, but with only a small portion of the meat missing.
“Why would they do that?” Agis asked of Omiroe. “Who leaves their kill on the ground and only takes a small bit of meat? Surely they would have brought everything back with them to the village?”
“It does not seem like coming back was part of the plan at all,” Omiroe replied.
“Do you think they were captured?” Agis asked. “Perhaps by a wolfpack?”
“If I were on a wolfpack and came across a breeder with a fresh kill, I would certainly take the kill, too, as a bonus of sorts.”
“But if it were a wolfpack, they most certainly would have killed Fralek. They found no other body.”
“The only logical explanation would be that whoever took Winter could not carry the entirety of two chideer.”
“And with the absence of Fralek’s body, we can only conclude…”
“That the one that took Winter is Fralek.”
“That bastard!” Agis said, pounding his fist on the table top. “Would he be going back to Midlandia with Winter? Do you suppose that is where Malak is now?”
Omiroe sat back in his chair as Agis stood up and paced the length of the hut. Then Agis turned and faced his old friend.
“We need to get kDira back here as fast as we can,” he said. “Gather two of our fastest runners, equip them with enough food and drink for six days, and send them out to catch up with kDira, pass the news on to her, and get her to make haste getting back here.”
The kDira's World Anthology Page 34