Balance of the 12

by Ania Bo

  Shasta danced tentatively at first, and Dwade chuckled as he watched the shy Shasta as she tried to move her hips along with a woman who was trying to give her a dance lesson. Zeorgan, who felt no shame dancing had joined the others the moment the boys ended their performance. He forced Dwade, Violen, and Han out of their seats and onto the makeshift dance floor. Dwade saw Shasta’s triumphant look now that she wouldn’t be the only one who was forced to make a fool out of herself.

  Dwade was handed a tambourine, and the Zaends held hands and danced in a circle around the fire. As the flames gave off their orange and red glow and the people moved around it with their vibrant clothes glowing in the night, it was a spectacular sight that struck happiness in the hearts of the Readers and Dwade.

  In the circle of dancing Zaends, Dwade spotted Violen. She was laughing and smiling as they moved round and round the fire.

  Violen had finally let go and allowed herself for one night to forget all the many years of training and rules the Readers had drilled into her. For one night, she would be truly alive—carefree, blissful, and spontaneous. She caught Dwade staring at her as she danced, and she smiled at him, accepting the warm feeling that flowed through her from his gaze.

  As they all continued to dance, the Zaends erupted into song:

  Keepers, Keepers, Keepers

  We are the Balance keepers.

  Hidden in snowy lands,

  Welcome to our fairyland.

  The temple has set you free

  So, friends, you must be.

  No time for sorrow.

  We look to tomorrow.

  Let are lotuses comfort thee.

  The song ended in clapping, then the music died down to a low hum. The Zaends mingled and talked, taking frequent glances at Shasta and Dwade. They were anxious to find out which race was in danger of extinction and which of the twelve girls would produce the child.

  Lucidum stood and quieted his people. “It has grown late, and the moon has reached its zenith. The Visionary Reader must ready herself, for in the morning she will identify the Regenerator. She must complete her purification rites. Therefore, we must leave you now.” An audible grumble spread through the people, and Lucidum gave a smirk. If he allowed it, he knew his people would celebrate until the sunrise. “Please, please, do not stop on our account. Continue your merrymaking in honor of the Creators,” he added. The crowd cheered as Dwade and Shasta gave a final wave and followed Lucidum away from the fire and toward a stand of trees, Violen and Han bringing up the rear.

  As they walked, they heard music back at the square as the people continued to dance and feast. Once they were far enough into the forest and the trees had muffled all outside noises, they saw steam rising in the distance. Fear clutched at Shasta’s stomach as she tried to imagine what kind of purification rite she was about to be subjected to. If the test of intentions was any indicator, it wouldn’t be good. Dwade reached over and squeezed her hand as if sensing her anxiety. It helped a bit.

  The warmth of the steam brushed across their faces as the trees stopped, and there, in the middle of the forest, were two springs. One consisted of hot water, as was evident from the rising vapor, and from the other cold water emerged. From here the water flowed into separate canals that led back to the Zaend village.

  Lucidum had remained quiet since they left the feast and gave no explanation for this strange water system, but the companions assumed this was the way the Zaends received their fresh water. As they continued east, they came to an open, rocky field where hundreds of steaming pools of spring water dotted the land. Each pool was divided from the others with a thick copse of trees, necessary to give a bather privacy from his neighbors.

  “You will bathe to cleanse yourself of the grime of this unbalanced world before you are to enter the temple. It is customary that those who pass the test of intentions must wash in our springs,” Lucidum told them. “At this time of night, you may have some privacy as our people only use the pools during the day.”

  The travelers were elated. They had not washed in days, and a smile formed on each of their faces. Shasta felt an even greater sense of relief since this was all that was required for her purification rite. After their difficult journey into the Zaend lands, this rite was an award for her, being able to comfort herself with the hot water.

  Lucidum pointed at the trees. “You can use their leaves as towels. They will dry you quickly and make a balsam to soothe your weary bodies. Place the leaf at the trees’ roots and it will bring the tree nourishment. It is not the Zaend way to create waste,” he explained to avoid a volley of questions.

  They nodded to Lucidum to show they understood, and each picked a pool, undressed, and entered the warm waters. Dwade found the water scalding at first, but as he eased himself into the pool, his muscles relaxed. He hadn’t realized how tense and stressed he’d become. While relaxing, he noticed the sparkle caused by moonlight on his sword lying with his clothes. Nobody took their weapons from them. In fact, they didn’t even care about the Hikar diamond Shasta had. They really don’t care about the world outside. A great feeling of respect and sadness at the same time beat in his heart. He wished Zaends were a party to the war so they could protect mankind. They were a true ally Dwade trusted to do what was right. He tried to dismiss the thoughts of war from his mind. His duty was to protect the Regenerator, not to stop the war, but he would do everything in his power to save his people. He took deep breaths and closed his eyes to enjoy this moment as much as he could.

  It was peaceful sitting in the hot spring with the moon as their only form of light. While the others cleaned themselves of filth and grime, Lucidum returned to meditating, levitating over a small pool as he mumbled to himself.

  “It’s so nice once you’re in,” Dwade said to break the silence since they were all close enough to hear one another.

  “Yes, it’s great,” Shasta sighed.

  “We’ve not been able to meditate or rest for days. I feel my energy flowing freely again,” Han said.

  “Be quiet,” Violen muttered irritably. “No one can concentrate with you three yapping.”

  After Violen’s reprimand, Han lowered himself back into the water, but there was a burst of anxiety that suddenly and unexpectedly grew within him. His eyes moved rapidly behind his closed eyelids, and he seemed to wince in pain.

  Sensing that something was wrong, Lucidum raised his head, his eyes opening wide. Anger overcame him, and he waved his arm across the springs. A calm wind swept across the pools, and it caused the visitors to shiver. Han’s eyes stopped moving abruptly, and he reopened them. The expression left on his face was one of fearful desperation.

  “What was that?” Dwade asked, confused.

  “An energy surge,” Shasta replied.

  “Yes, it’s done away with my meditation,” Violen grumbled.

  “Han? Did you feel that?” Shasta asked.

  Han had overheard the others but remained silent. He dove under the water to clear his head, and the others assumed he was ignoring them.

  After feeling sufficiently clean and refreshed, the four of them dried themselves with the large leaves, dressed, and found their way back to Lucidum who appeared to be slumbering while still floating in mid-air.

  “Should we wake him up?” Dwade asked.

  It was then Shasta saw Lucidum’s energy surrounding his body. She looked at the other Readers, but neither of them appeared to have seen what she had. “No,” she said sharply. “He’s awake.”

  As Lucidum slowly returned to the ground, his face was tense. “I’ll take you to your quarters,” he said. “You must get some rest before you meet the Creators.”

  They walked back into town, and on the way, Dwade tried to obtain additional information about the Zaend irrigation system, but Lucidum was very quiet and only responded when he felt he absolutely needed to in order not to appear suspicious. There was no hiding the fact that something had happened at the spring, and Dwade desperately wanted to know what it wa
s.

  Leave him be, Shasta snapped. It is rude to force a leader to tell his secrets. Whatever happened will either be revealed, or it won’t. Dwade was dissatisfied with Shasta’s advice, but he allowed the Zaend leader to return to his thoughts. The telepathy thing was still disturbing sometimes, especially when Shasta was right.

  Not too far from the square, Lucidum stopped before a house much smaller than some of the other dwellings they had come across. “Here we are. This is one of our few guest houses,” he said. “You will rest here tonight.”

  Inside, four mats lay on the floor with woven blankets folded neatly on top. Lucidum only stayed long enough to wish them a good night, then they were left to themselves. Besides the mats on the floor, there was nothing in the room, but a toilet enclosed in a room no bigger than a closet and a sink to wash their hands.

  “They really do live simply here,” Violen mused.

  “Nothing like the luxuries you have in Atlantis,” Dwade sarcastically agreed.

  Dwade took the sleeping mat next to Violen and watched the ceiling for a while as the others lay down to sleep. His adrenaline was still pumping from the tests they had endured. He couldn’t believe they had made it through, that all of them had made it.

  Violen and Shasta had already fallen asleep, and he gazed at Violen as she breathed softly. On the furthest mat, Dwade noticed Han wasn’t sleeping either.

  “Can’t sleep, Han?”

  The Reader jumped as if Dwade had startled him. “No, can’t sleep,” he replied quickly.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, yeah, just still a little shook up by the tests we completed. We really were lucky to make it out of there.” Han gave a soft chuckle.

  “Yeah, my heart is still racing after fighting off that cocoon tree,” Dwade said with a laugh. A silence overcame them as they thought of all they had been through to make it to this point. Dwade started to ask Han about what he thought about Lucidum’s strange behavior, but by the time he looked over, Han had already turned away from him and appeared to be asleep.

  Dwade sighed. “Let’s try this again.” He lay back down on his mat and closed his eyes, hoping morning would come soon.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Birdsong and the sound of the Zaend people going about their day caused the travelers to wake up from their night of sleep if they could call it that. It had been only five hours since Lucidum left them at the guest house, and they could have kept sleeping. Han was the first to get up and opened the door to take a deep breath of cool, clean air. The others followed his lead, eager to find Zeorgan or Lucidum so they could finally enter the Zaend temple and meet the legendary Creators. They walked the streets, uncertain of the right way to go or where to find their chaperones. Next, to one of the neighboring dwellings, a Zaend who resembled a Kree chatted with a bright yellow bird. Whatever the bird was telling him, the man responded by chirping cheerfully.

  “How can such a place exist where everyone is so happy?” Shasta asked incredulously. Though the Readers lived in peace and harmony, she had never felt anything like this in Atlantis. This place’s energy was so high and positive, but it appeared they didn’t make any effort to maintain it as the Readers did in Atlantis. They were meditating, on a diet all the time, and lived by strict schedules to stay balanced, but here in Zaend lands balance was naturally set.

  There is a great difference between peace and joy, Dwade telepathically responded as he didn’t wish Violen and Han to hear him. He didn’t want to upset his fellows, but Shasta had to think about this, she was the Visionary Reader.

  She stole a glance at Han and Violen and wondered, Maybe the Readers do not know as much as I once thought.

  After they passed a few houses and shops, they caught a delicious scent in the air. In a kitchen with its doors wide open, an old man was taking out dozens of loaves of bread from a stone oven. Dwade immediately recognized the smell and said, “He’s making bread like my mother used to bake.” A wave of homesickness overwhelmed him, and he led the others toward the bakery. The old man with his scruffy, white beard welcomed them at the door with a bow and a smile.

  “Would the Protector and his Readers like some breakfast?” he said, pointing at the loaves.

  “How do you know how to bake bread this way?” Dwade asked eagerly.

  The man smiled contentedly. “My mother taught me just as her mother taught her.”

  “Zaends really know how to cook and bake delicious meals,” Violen said while taking a deep breath to enjoy the smell of freshly baked bread.

  “No,” the baker replied. “I’m not a Zaend. I am just a man, a human just like the Protector.” He pointed to Dwade. “In my youth, I migrated here, and thankfully the Zaends took me in.”

  His explanation only increased their concern. Han asked, “How did you manage to pass all those tests to get here?”

  Dwade added, with similar curiosity, “We thought other races weren’t allowed here.”

  “What tests?” the baker asked. It was his turn to be surprised.

  “The labyrinth and the like, up there, before you reach the village,” Han said with the hope of learning more from the old man.

  The man’s eyes grew large, and he took a step back. “You mean the test of intentions? I didn’t take that test because when I reached the snowy shores, I wanted nothing but to escape a world ruled by violence and greed. My intention was pure. I heard about the test after I arrived here. I have been here since I was twenty-one. This is my home, and these people are my family.” His words brought a cold chill into the small room that should have been warm from the hot oven.

  Dwade looked at the old man with suspicion. “The test of intentions is not taken by all?”

  “This is the center of the Balance, at least in this dimension. The universe is in complete control, deciding what to do and what is best. As far as I know, no. The ones with pure hearts and clear states of mind don’t take the test. They simply walk through the temple and walk out. Only those the Balance does not wish to enter must fight their way through, and none of those people can make it out alive.” The baker gave a frightful pause. “Did you have to fight your way through?”

  Dwade had to think carefully about his answer. If people learn the Protector did not enter freely, they may lose their trust in us. There is something wrong here. He looked at his friends and said, “No, of course, we didn’t.”

  The Readers didn’t know what to do. Dwade was lying, they didn’t know how to lie, so they stayed silent. Oh my Balance, how many times do we have to deviate from our precepts just to reach the Regenerator? Violen thought, but she nodded, hoping it appeared convincing.

  The baker showed a sense of relief and abashment. “Of course. Forgive me. Why would the Protector be tested? What a silly thing to ask.” He commenced taking some of the loaves he had baked earlier and gave them to his visitors. “I hope your stay will be as nice and peaceful as long as mine has been.”

  Dwade nodded and smiled at him. “Thank you,” was all he could say after realizing the Balance didn’t fully trust them. The baker returned to his work and left the companions to take their bread outside.

  Dwade’s mind was still occupied with the intention test. What did we do wrong?

  As they left, Violen said, “So this man’s intentions were pure, but ours were not? How is that possible? Why was the Balance suspicious of us?” Her expression reflected the genuine hurt she felt toward the land that had questioned her motives. Nobody had the answer, so her fellows stayed silent. They were all disappointed and confused.

  They were still in a dazed stupor when Zeorgan appeared on his dragon and landed in the middle of the street. The dragon spent so much effort not to hit and pull down anything, but the people easily moved around him, making it clear they were used to such activity. “There you are. Lucidum is waiting for us. It is time for you to enter the temple.”

  Though yesterday they might have all been filled with enthusiasm, the prospect of meeting the Creato
rs only brought them more stress now that they felt the Balance had deemed them unworthy.

  Nevertheless, they took a place on the back of the dragon and flew toward the imposing structure. Upon their arrival, they saw the temple was larger than it had appeared from the village. There must have been one hundred steps leading from its base to the temple entrance where Lucidum waited.

  The companions hopped off the dragon and prepared to climb before Zeorgan gave them a warning. “As you land on each step, breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth, and thank the Balance for your existence.”

  They climbed the steps slowly, doing as they were told. It took them a while, but in the end, they had not grown tired during the climb. “It’s so peaceful,” Violen said enchanted as she looked out to the village and the lands beyond.

  Lucidum bowed as they neared the top. “Welcome, soldiers of the Balance. Prepare yourselves to meet the givers of life.”

  Shasta led the group behind Lucidum, and hundreds of memories flowing through the walls reached out to greet her, almost as if the temple itself were a Kama and she was unwillingly decoding it. She marveled at its long halls and high ceilings. Just like the temple in their test, they were painted with the colorful lotuses that represented the Zaends. There were also depictions that told the story of the twelve women and their role in the universe. The temple itself was made from both limestone and marble. There was a colonnade on each side of the temple which allowed the calm wind to blow through the halls, and it rustled the purple drapes that hung between each column. The whole atmosphere seemed otherworldly, giving the companions a feeling that something extraordinary was about to happen.

  There was a staircase in this section of the temple which spiraled all the way up to the top where it led to an opening up to the floor above. “One floor up, please,” Lucidum instructed.