Eighth Fire (7 page)

Mark turned to his dad and started to ask
how he felt about this home as compared to his parents’ home, but
the answer he thought he’d get seemed obvious. Of course his dad
didn’t think of his parents’ home as his home anymore. This was his
home now, and his family. Never again would his parents’ home be
his home.

Mark thought about how he felt. For him,
this was home, here with his family, but The Seventh Mountain was
also home, with friends as close as any family could be. He knew
one day he’d have to choose one or the other, and he knew what that
choice would eventually be. He stood and put his arms around his
mother. “Mom, Dad, I love you guys so much!”

It was just after nine a.m., Virginia time,
when Shana knocked on the front door. Mark stood up from the table;
no one had left their place since breakfast. His mother stood too,
and they embraced.

Mark said, “It’s time for me to go. I’ll
write and we’ll see each other at the flags matches.” He reached
out and his father took his hand.

“Son, I can’t tell you how proud I am.”

Mark looked his father square in the face
and felt his eyes swell. This was the first time his dad had shook
his hand. “Thank you, sir.”

“Well, you’ve earned it s...” The pause was
momentary. Steve was going to end the sentence with the usual
‘son’, but instead said, ‘sir.’ Mark thought it was the highest
form of praise his dad could think of at the moment.

Mark nodded his head. He knew exactly what
his dad had just done. It was very hard for him to hold back the
tears. He kissed his mother on the cheek and said, “Shana’s
waiting, I need to go.” He turned and walked to the door.

He reached the door and heard his mother
call from behind, “Benrah won’t hesitate to kill you, or us. You
remember that.”

Mark opened the door and Shana was waiting
with her usual smile. She looked behind Mark and said, “Hello,
everyone. It’s good to see you again, and just as a reminder, mail
pick-ups are on Saturday mornings, don’t forget to leave a curtain
open.”

She extended her arm to Mark and before
anyone could say anything they were gone. Instantly they were at
the front entrance to The Seventh Mountain. They stood in front of
a polished bronze statue of four horses and four students just
yards from the front steps of the main entrance.

Shana said, “Testing begins promptly at
seven o’clock in The Oasis. Don’t be late. You’re a level one
sophomore, so it’s two points per minute now.”

Mark asked, “Is Mrs. Shadowitz in her
office?”

Another counselor materialized with a
student beside Shana. Shana glanced to her right, acknowledging the
other people, turned back to Mark and said, “She should be
somewhere around The Oasis. She’ll be starting the testing. Do you
really need to see her, or is it something I can take care of?”

“I don’t know? I just think I know what
Benrah wants me to destroy.”

“Yes, I heard about that.” She shook her
head slowly. “What do you think it is?”

“I think Otomi’s brother stole the power
source for the sunstone, and I think I almost know the area where
he hid it.”

“That’s something Mrs. Shadowitz needs to
know, right away. I’d go with you, but I’ve got four more students
to bring in.”

“I figured something like that. I’ll find
her.”

Shana disappeared and Mark glanced at the
inscription on the statue.

For Friends

Destiny Chose Friends, Four.

Legend Sprang From Emerald’s Core.

He looked around; the other counselor and
student were gone. He thought a little about things that had
happened last year, and wondered what lay in store this year. Some
of Mrs. Shadowitz’s last words came to his mind.
There is more
to the staff than we have discovered, and we still have no idea why
you four were pre-chosen.
He knew without a doubt that more of
his destiny would be revealed this year.

He removed his cloak from Aaron’s Grasp and
rubbed his fingers along the emerald green embroidery work along
the bottom seam before putting it on. To him, that act was a
conscious decision to walk a path he was certain could lead to the
destruction of everything and everyone he had ever held dear. He
also felt if he chose not to take that journey, his own fate would
be sealed. He remembered the story of Jonah; how Jonah had been
eaten by a big fish as a result of refusing to follow destiny’s
course. He turned toward the main entrance of the mountain and
whispered to himself, “Destiny awaits.”

He saw Mrs. Shadowitz seated at the center
table on the stage opposite the main entrance to The Oasis.
Students, all wearing cloaks trimmed in tribe colors, were milling
around talking to each other. Mark waved at Nick and Jamal when
they called to him, but otherwise ignored them while he walked up
to the stage. He knew better than to just walk up onto the stage
until he was summoned. He called, “Mrs. Shadowitz.” She glanced at
him with a quizzical look on her face, and then motioned for him to
put his hood up before stepping onto the stage.

Mark approached her and said, “I think
Benrah is after the power source for the sunstone.”

“What makes you believe that?”

“When I came out of the labyrinth, the first
time, I started having this dream over and over again, until Ricky
Barns and all. I just forgot about it. I didn’t have it again until
last night.”

Mrs. Shadowitz said, “Show me the
dream.”

Mark learned last year that he projects the
thoughts in the front of his mind into other people’s minds, a rare
ability the Magi called Rooack Dabar, or spirit speak. He’d learned
to control it with the help of exercises Mr. Diefenderfer had
assigned for that very purpose. He brought the dream to the front
of his mind, remembering as much detail as possible.

After he finished Mrs. Shadowitz asked,
“Does the dream always end there?”

“At first, they ended earlier than they did
in the one you just saw, but each one went a little farther until
they all just started ending there.”

“Do you recall any names of landmarks or
anything else that might help us identify a specific place?”

“Only that the people that lived there
called themselves The People of the Land
,
and meant to help
the warrior...Xocotli. Xocotli! That’s the warrior’s name, Xocotli!
I didn’t know that until just now!”

Mrs. Shadowitz nodded, “Is there anything
else that might help us identify this place?”

Mark shook his head, “No ma’am. I can’t
think of anything.”

“Very well, right after today’s testing is
done, I want you to go to the library and start looking through
books that deal with that area, especially pictures. See if
anything looks familiar, like you’ve been there before.”

Mark nodded and said, “Yes, ma’am. When I
find something, I’ll come tell you?”

“You just tell Shana or Jeremy. They’ll get
the word to me faster than you can. Now, go take your seat, it’s
almost time to start.”

Mark found Nick, Jamal and Chenoa seated at
an Emerald Tribe four place table and sat down. On the table in
front of him was a test booklet almost an inch thick.

Chenoa asked, “What’s going on? Nobody will
tell us anything.”

Mark knew she was referring to Ricky Barns
and what happened in the labyrinth. He said, “I don’t know much,
they aren’t telling me either, except that Benrah wants me to
destroy something I’m supposed to find sometime in the future.
Benrah didn’t say what it was, only that he’d destroy everything
and everyone I held dear if I didn’t do it.”

Chenoa blurted out, “You can’t destroy it!
It’s —” She caught herself.

“It’s what?”

Chenoa thought fast. “If Benrah wants you to
destroy it, and he can’t destroy it, it’s too important to destroy,
that’s all.”

“If I don’t destroy it, Benrah says he’s
going to destroy everyone I ever held dear.” Mark looked at each of
his three friends in turn. “That means he’s going to kill all three
of you.”

Nick said, “He can try,” and chuckled.

Mark leaned forward and shook his head.
“Listen, I’ve seen him and what he can do. Even Mr. Diefenderfer
and Mr. Young together didn’t stand a chance against him. Do you
understand what I’m saying?”

Mrs. Shadowitz’s amplified voice sounded
over the din of the students. “Ah-hem.” The hubbub settled
immediately. “Thank you for your attention. Before each of you is a
test booklet containing two thousand individual items. There are no
correct answers, only answers and descriptions that you feel are
best for you. This is a survey to help us determine your preferred
methodology. When that determination is made, you will receive a
second stone for your signets.

“You may take as many breaks as you like
after you have completed the first one hundred items. You may leave
when you are finished with the survey. There are no restrictions on
activities unrelated to the test. Yes you may talk, just be mindful
not to disturb others nearby. If you wish to eat, please do so at
one of the dining booths. Counselors and staff are not allowed to
give advice or suggestions to students for the duration of the day.
I think that about covers everything. You may begin.”

Mark opened his booklet. The questions
began:

1. What considerations should be given when
changing a light bulb?

2. I dislike the color chartreuse. Rate this
statement from 1 to 10 and discuss how it applies to you.

3. How would you organize your group of 6
people with 4 shovels to dig a hole?

4. Discuss how you decide to store your
clothes.

5. Describe people that want to be friends
with you in terms of intelligence and aspirations.

6. Discuss which is more important: details
or the source of the information.

7. Discuss how you know when you’ve achieved
success.

8. How do you feel books should be arranged
in your library?

9. Which are more important and why: actors
or stage hands?

10. Discuss which should be treated first
and why: symptoms or cause?

A hundred questions later, Mark was finished
with section one of the test. He sat back in his chair and rubbed
the heels of his hands across his forehead before looking around. A
few students had gotten up for a break, but Chenoa, Jamal and Nick
were still scribbling away. He stretched, leaned toward Jamal and
whispered, “I’m taking a breather,” and pointed to an empty
booth.

Jamal didn’t look up. “I’m on number
ninety-eight. I’ll be there in a couple of minutes.”

Nick and Chenoa glanced up, nodded and went
right back to work.

Jeremy walked up just after Mark sat down in
the booth and sat a cold glass of tea on the table. “You want to
order now or wait for your friends?”

Mark said, “I’m going to wait. Thanks for
the tea.”

“You’re welcome. How’re you doing on the
test?”

“I thought you weren’t allowed to talk to us
about the test.”

“I just can’t give any advice or
suggestions, and that’s not just for the test either. That’s for
everything. I can’t even recommend food. I can ask you questions
though.” Jeremy tilted his head just a bit and smiled. “How’re you
doing?”

Jeremy’s goatee, the roundness of his head
and his muscles made Mark think of a cartoon genie he’d once seen
on television. “I’m not quite brain-dead yet. Who invented that
test?” He rubbed his forehead again.

Jeremy cocked his head and raised his
eyebrows while frowning at Mark. “You know I can’t answer that, and
you already know the answer to that anyway. You don’t have to ask
me.” Jeremy looked up and saw Nick get up. “I’ll be right
back.”

Nick slid into the booth. “Man...That has to
be the worst test I’ve ever taken. If a light bulb’s burnt out, you
just replace it. What’s to think about?”

Mark was still rubbing his forehead. “You
could always replace it with a different kind. What are you doing
making me think about that again? That part of the test is over,
and besides, I’ve already got a headache. I don’t need another
one.”

“The test wasn’t that bad; I mean it wasn’t
bad enough to cause a headache.”

Jeremy returned and sat a glass of milk in
front of Nick before setting down two cups of coffee. “Do you want
to order now, Nick, or would you like to wait?”

“Do you have any aspirin? Mark has a
headache.”

Jeremy studied Mark for just a moment.
“Mark, what are you feeling?”

“I’ve got a headache; what do you think I’m
feeling?”

Mark was guarding his thoughts, but it
didn’t take receiving what he was thinking to know something beyond
the headache was troubling him. “No need to get snippy. I can’t
give you advice, but you know where to go.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound rude.” He
took a long drink of the tea, slid out of the booth just as Jamal
and Chenoa were coming up and said, “I’ll be back.”

Mark didn’t stop when Chenoa asked,
“Where’re you going?” He went toward the main entrance of The Oasis
and almost bumped into LeOmi Jones on her way out. LeOmi seemed in
as much of a hurry as he was.

LeOmi had changed dramatically from the
first time he had seen her last year. Her hair was no longer short
and spiked, but it was now long enough to have been styled if she
had chosen to do that. Mark instantly did a mental comparison
between LeOmi’s hair and Chenoa’s. In Mark’s mind, Chenoa won hands
down.

There was something else different about
LeOmi this year too. Although Mark could only see her face and
hands, what he could see of her didn’t look as pasty white as she
had been last year.

Mark said, “Excuse me.”

LeOmi held the door for Mark. “Don’t tell me
you have a headache.” Her tone seemed a little sarcastic.