Aegis Rising (24 page)

Akol squinted as he recalled. “They did not resist. I think they now truly understand that they are in danger if they are alone out there.”

“Do you suppose they would be willing to stay?”

Akol shrugged. “Unfortunately, I am unable to answer that. You would have to ask them yourself.”

Nageau raised his head. “Then we shall see them. Once they have rested and are feeling better, please inform us. We would like to speak with them.”

Akol bowed and headed toward his sister’s
neyra
where the five were being treated.

Nageau stood by the water’s edge and watched him go, then closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. He remained still for the next several minutes, clearing his mind of all thought, then opened his eyes and walked upriver to cross a bridge to the south side of the valley.

He found his comrades outside the Elders’ assembly
neyra
and together they headed inside. When they’d all sat in their respective places around a small fire that Tikina made, Saiyu asked, “What is the news with the five guests, Nageau?”

Nageau smiled. “They are safe and mostly uninjured, with the exception of Mariah who sprained her ankle.”

“At least that is something to be thankful for,” Saiyu sighed. “Now I only hope that they will not attempt to run off again.”

“After what they have been through, I doubt they will,” Nageau replied. The Elders hadn’t slept well during the night; the mixture of worry about the five and the illness in the village had caused them some stress. At least with the five now safe and sound, a portion of their concerns were eased.

Ashack, being the skeptic that he was, spoke in his deep, dulcet tone. “We seem to be facing a problem. On one hand, there is the task to decide whether these five youths are the ones foretold in the prophecy, and if they are, we have a responsibility to train them. Yet on the other hand, our village seems to be falling into turmoil. We have now had up to four cases of illness, and one of them has passed on in the most horrific manner. It is of extreme importance that we discover what is causing this sickness and how to protect ourselves from it.”

“We do not have to make a choice between our responsibilities to the prophecy and the responsibilities to our people,” Tikina said. “We should be able to do both.”

Ashack rubbed his temples and then slid his hands back into his dark hair. “Perhaps I am not constructing my thoughts properly . . .”

The voices of his companions faded in Nageau’s mind. He stared fixedly into the fire, then raised a finger. The Elders went quiet and looked at him. He was in deep thought and, after a few moments, said softly, “Everything that is unfolding before our eyes . . . are these things not mentioned in the prophecy?”

The others fell into thoughtful silence. Saiyu rose from where she was seated and went to a table in the far corner of the
neyra
. She picked up a parchment and returned to the others, carefully unfolding the paper and revealing runes printed neatly and with utmost care. Saiyu ran her finger across the parchment, then softly murmured the verses of the prophecy.

When she finished reciting, the Elders looked at each other but no one spoke. Then Tikina quietly said, “I suppose the decision to train the five must be made based on our own judgments, given the conflicting challenges we are facing right now.”

Tayoka held his hands close to the fire and gazed at his fingers. “And to help us make that judgment, I think we should give them the image assessment.” His companions cocked their heads interestedly. He continued. “That way, we will be almost certain that they must undergo the training. After all, only our people have the innate ability to complete that assessment. If these five are the ones, then they should have no trouble passing this test, even if they are from the outside world.”

“That sounds reasonable,” Tikina said slowly.

“Saiyu, Ashack?” Nageau turned to the couple. “What do you think?”

The pair exchanged glances, and then Saiyu dipped her head. “I believe we are both in agreement to this. In addition—upon them passing the image assessment—within the first few days of the initial stage of their training, we should know if we are indeed on the right path.”

“So then, since we are all in agreement, I expect all that is left to do is convince the five to stay and train with us,” Tikina said. “This should be interesting.”

“What if they do not want to stay?” Ashack demanded. “What would we do then? Certainly we would not hold them against their will.”

“No, we would not,” Nageau said sharply. “We must carefully think through the manner in which we will approach this subject.”

“After the nightmare they have been through, perhaps convincing them that we really do care and being frank with our proposal would be the best course of action,” Saiyu said.

The Elders conferred further on the topic before deciding how exactly the subject would be broken to the five. It took them a while to reach an agreement.

Clasping her fingers high over her head and stretching her spine, Tikina asked, “Have you arranged a time to meet with the youths?”

“Akol will call on us. I expect the meeting would occur after their dinner.”

Saiyu smiled. “Speaking of Akol, he is a truly remarkable young man, Nageau. You and Tikina must be incredibly proud of him. He conducted the entire rescue operation in an exemplary manner.”

Nageau and Tikina beamed proudly and Nageau nodded. “Thank you, Saiyu. Something tells me that he will be doing much greater things as he matures into full adulthood.”

“Tikina did well, too,” Tayoka said. The other Elders agreed.

Tikina smiled coyly. “I simply held the fort until Akol and his companions came along. Poor Akira has some injuries, but she will be fine in no time.”

“That eagle’s tenacity and willingness to work with you is incredible,” Saiyu commented.

Tikina’s smile widened. “The Guardians were not far behind Akol and his friends, though. They would have intervened if our youths were unable to handle the wolves.”

“Were they patrolling the southern corridor?” Saiyu asked.

“Yes . . . our most vulnerable side to outsiders.”

Nageau held his mate’s hand. “We have been well protected for centuries. It will not change. Now, I would like to know if anyone has anything to report about the ailing patients in the convalescence shelter, or of any other happenings.”

The others shook their heads.

“So far, everything is peaceful,” Tikina said.

“How are the patients?”

“They are all quiet and cooperative.” Tikina grimaced. “I will admit, though, that it is difficult to see them strapped down to the beds.”

“Pray that there will be no more incidents,” Tayoka grunted. “Perhaps the universe will grant us that blessing.”

*  *  *

The friends were sitting on the couches in Huyani’s living area, waiting for the Elders to arrive. Chayton, who had greeted them each with a friendly, slobbery lick to the face, was now curled near the entrance of the
neyra
, dozing. The five envied his calmness; they were worried about what the Elders might say or do because of their attempted escape.

Huyani walked in and smiled graciously at them. “Relax,” she advised. “The Elders are not coming to chastise you or yell at you.”

Kody fidgeted. “Yeah, but I’m pretty sure we caused an inconvenience for you guys.”

“Nay. In fact, I do believe that your little expedition broke a few of our people from their habitual routines. Gave them a little more excitement than usual, if you will.” Huyani patted his cheek before withdrawing to the kitchen quarter of her shelter.

Kody smiled comically. Tegan and Mariah gave him a look. He shrugged. “What? Being mollycoddled gives me a nice feeling.”

“She wasn’t mollycoddling you, Kody,” Tegan said. “It was just a light pat. Mollycoddle means she was pampering you.”

“Call it what you will.”

The group quieted down when they heard the unmistakable tone of adult voices. A moment later, Huyani and Akol guided the Elders into the living quarter where they sat on the couches and a couple of chairs that Akol had pulled in.

Once everyone had settled comfortably, Nageau focused on the five. “I must say, my young friends, you are a bold and daring group.” His smile was so winning that the five didn’t know if they should say thank you or be ashamed.

Nageau leaned back. “There is nothing to feel chagrined about. The only thing here that needs to be said—and I am sure Akol has already told you this—is that we are glad you are safe. It is dangerous outside this valley. The untouched wilderness does not take lightly to people with no credible navigational experience or survival skills.”

Aari rubbed his forehead. “So we found out,” he said, then looked up at the Elders anxiously. “Are we in trouble?”

Tikina was pleasant. “No, you are not.” She shared a look with the other Elders. “We do have a
proposal
for you, though.”

The five frowned at each other. “What kind of proposal?” Jag asked.

Nageau came out directly. “That you stay with us, and that we train you to be as skilled as our people.”

The friends were stunned into silence. This was most definitely not what they expected. One question surfaced in their minds—“Why?” Jag asked.

“My companions and I feel that there is something very special within each one of you,” Tikina answered, “and we would like to help you uncover your skills.”

“But
why?
”

Tikina pressed her lips together, then said, “There is something you must know, younglings. The people of Dema-Ki are half-bloods. We are part native, but our other ancestors were from an island long gone.”

The five raised their eyebrows slightly, wondering where this was heading. “What’s this got to do with us?” Kody asked.

Nageau leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees. “There is a very old prophecy of ours. It tells of a darkening time throughout the earth. A world in turmoil.” He paused, clucking his tongue as he searched for words. “Preceding this darkness, five younglings would descend from the sky, and we would train them as part of our duty.” He met the eyes of each of the friends.

“We didn’t descend from—oh, wait, yes we did.” Kody’s eyes widened in realization and he waved his arms in front of his chest. “Whoa, there,” he said. “I think I know where this is going, and I’m just going to say straight up—”

“We are not the people from your prophecy,” Jag stated firmly.

“Come now,” Tikina cajoled. “All we are saying is that we would like to extend our hand and teach you some valuable skills.”

Mariah folded her arms. “What exactly would we be getting ourselves into if we did agree to this idea?”

Nageau answered her. “We will help you unleash the latent powers of your minds. Once you learn how to control your mind over your body, you will be able to increase your physical capabilities by leaps and bounds.”

The five stared at him blankly. “Pardon?” Kody said, looking slightly dazed.

Nageau beamed. “It means we would help you increase your prowess, with the end results being, among other things, increased speed, agility and strength, learning how to move objects with one’s mind, how to handle physical adversity, how to survive in harsh environments and so forth.”

The five looked at him a little guardedly, but their eyes shone with newfound interest. Aari pondered for a moment. “We would all get those talents?”

“It depends on your core skills.”

“What honestly makes you believe we are the ones, though?” Kody asked.

“The prophecy states five younglings would rise from the flames of a fiery bird. Your aircraft, as it was struck by lightning, caught on fire and resembled our legendary fire bird, the Cerraco. You indeed did arise from it. Also, the colors of each of your eyes match the shades stated in the prophecy’s first verse.”

Tegan shook her head. “I’m sorry, but that isn’t enough proof for me to want to stay and train with you. Coincidental occurrences, sure, but I just don’t find it to be proof.”

Akol and Huyani were rapidly interpreting the conversation for the other Elders, who were beginning to look a little nervous. Then Tayoka spoke up and Akol translated. “Elder Tayoka says that he understands how you might mistake us for crazed people living in the middle of a forest, raving about divinations. However, as we have revealed before, we are descendants of an advanced civilization. They were the ones who passed down their knowledge and helped us survive and grow as a people. This prophecy came from them and we have never once doubted their wisdom and ability to predict the future.”

“Quick question,” Aari asked. “How exactly do you know what skills we have that need sharpening?”

Nageau smiled. “We do not, but if you do agree to stay—and not flee again—then we shall take you through an assessment, followed by the first stage of your training. Within three days of training, we will know if you are indeed the ones. By then, we would have identified the hidden faculties we must help you uncover.”

The five looked at each other, unsure what to say. They were tempted to become as skilled as the villagers, especially after the manner in which they had been rescued, but the thought was still outlandish. Tikina said softly, “You need not give us an answer right away. Perhaps we will hear your response tomorrow after you have had a chance to speak with each other?”

Jag nodded in relief. “Please and thank you.”

The Elders rose to their feet with warm looks. They said goodbye to the seven teenagers in the
neyra
and left. Akol plunked down on the couch the Elders had been sitting on and ran a hand through his short-cropped black hair.

“Akol?” Jag said. Akol looked up and nodded for him to continue. “What do you think about the whole thing?”

Akol leaned back and stretched his long legs. “Could you specify?”

“The whole bit about the prophecy. And the training . . .” Jag pulled at a thread on his hoodie absentmindedly. “What’s your take on all of this?”

Akol crossed his arms and thought for a moment. “Let me begin by saying that the Elders mean well. They are not ones to deceive people, in case that happens to be on your mind. About their understanding of the prophecy . . . The Elders are incredibly wise, as were all the Elders before them. Prophecies are serious matters with us because they
are
real. If they truly believe you could be the ones, it would be prudent to heed their words. You will not be forced if you do not wish to be a part of this, but . . .” Akol was not sure how to finish. “. . . But it may cause a disturbance in the order of things.”