Authors: P.G. Thomas
“Is something up,” asked John?
“Ever get a test back, where you studied really hard, knew all of the material, but still failed?”
“No.”
Lauren rolled her eyes, looked for a new reference, “Let’s try this one then, ever walk into a room, had everybody stare at you? You check the room number and you know that you are supposed to be there, but still feel out of place?”
“I can relate to that. What is going on?”
“They were waiting for us. They just do not know why, or what we are supposed to do. They thought we were going to bring them answers. And better yet, the Earth Mother said Mother has chosen me, and tonight she will proclaim me an Earth Daughter. John, what do they see in me? Why did they bring us here?”
John sat down on the bed, “Calm down. So now everybody knows there are problems here, but nobody is sure what is going on. The first thing they need to do, is to pull back the veil of mystery from around those suspected problems, expose them for whatever they are. Information is knowledge, and knowledge is power. Without sufficient information, they are powerless. Let’s talk with them, see if they can collect some evidence to determine exactly what is happening.”
Lauren started to calm down, and nodded her head in agreement.
“Next, why Lauren? Well, she has always been a driven and strong willed person, been active in social and environmental causes, speaks her mind, and has a genuine interest in others. Why not Lauren? You have never been one to shy away from a problem, or back down from an issue. Last year, when you ran for student government, you could have won, if you had shown more confidence, but sometimes I think you are more comfortable in a crowd. But when the spotlight is on you alone, you often want to retreat into the darkness. Why Lauren? Why not? Now, if instead of waiting for you, they were waiting for Logan or Zack, then I would really wonder about this world. Stop and think about it, it makes perfect sense, well under these circumstances. Just calm down, and believe in yourself, as somebody here obviously believes in you very much.”
Lauren shook her head, “They could have brought scientists, generals, any number of more educated people. People better able to examine, understand, and plan a resolution to an issue. My seventeen years of vast experience really does not qualify me for a role like this.”
“Well, maybe it is a combination of your drive, and lack of knowledge or experience, that establishes the importance of you. Maybe they seek a solution that only you can manifest. Keep in mind, experience or skills, as compared to results, do not always go hand in hand. There are many examples of unqualified people making breakthroughs, and just as many examples of qualified people failing. Right now, we are here, and they have selected you. We really don’t have any choice in what has happened, so we need to figure out what to do next. And maybe when this is done, they will send us home. But right now, stop questioning yourself and everything else. Why is not important, as you need to concentrate on what, who, where and when. You have been involved in similar issues back home, so just repeat what you did back then. Now, are you feeling better?”
Lauren looked at John, “I don’t belong here. I am not part of this world.”
John shrugged his shoulders, “You are here, and a part of this world now. If they were waiting for us, then maybe we are supposed to be here.”
The expression on Lauren’s face had changed from irritation to puzzlement. “I need some time to think. Thank you.”
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It was the last meal of the day, and the Earth Mother had Lauren sit beside her. Just before Gor brought in the food, the Earth Mother stood and tapped her wine mug with a knife. She had Lauren stand beside her, “I does be proud to announce, Mother has shown me that friend Lauren does be blessed with her gift. I hereby does proclaim Lauren to be Earth Daughter.” Everybody raised their glasses and gave Lauren a cheer. She felt like she should say something, but before she knew it, everybody was eating. The Earth Mother looked up at her, “Sit down, cold thine food wilt soon be. Oh, I does forget to mention, big on ceremonies we does naught be. Tried them centuries ago, but naught any could agree on anything.”
As Lauren sat down, the Earth Mother placed a small gold and silver stickpin beside her dinner plate. It had a diamond at the top, surrounded by a gold leaf. She did not say anything, and instead, continued to eat. Lauren took a sip of her wine.
So now I am an Earth Daughter. What the...
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One sentence and everything changed. The next morning, all of the elves and dwarves—including Mirtza—began to call Lauren, Earth Daughter. Her friends did as well, but she could sense their sarcasm. She spent the day with the Earth Mother, trying to get a better understanding of what was happening, what should be done, and especially, all about Mother. The others either offered to help the dwarves in what they were doing, or spent the day outside. For a change, it was an uneventful and quiet day.
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John found Ryan, Logan, and Zack sitting on the terrace that evening. They all had new clothes which Fodu and Fen had made for them, using their old clothes as a pattern. Zack was upset, as his were not black, but instead a pale shade of green.
“What’s it mean now that Lauren is an Earth Daughter?” Ryan asked John, “And why do they call them that?”
“I would rather you ask me a math problem. As for Earth Daughter, I think Earth refers to the ground, not our planet. It’s what Mirtza said, Mother is the ground or earth. I think the translation ointment simply found the closest word to soil, and for us that word is earth, which we also call our planet. As for the rest, none of this makes any sense. This has been a crazy two weeks. Magic, elves, dwarves, and now Lauren is an Earth Daughter. It is as if somebody put some stray cards into the wrong deck. We don’t belong here, yet here we are. And they were waiting for us. Maybe we are supposed to be here. I really don’t know.”
Eric joined them, a pitcher of dwarven ale in his hand, “Ryan, you seem to be doing much better. Two weeks ago climbing a set of stairs was impossible for you, now you are in the best shape of your life.”
“There is something about this place that seems to agree with me, though, to be honest, I would rather be home. I miss my family.”
“We all miss our families,” said Eric as he filled the mugs, “Right now, there is nothing we can do about that.”
Logan reached for a mug, “But what I don’t understand, is why we aren’t all freaking out about it more. Back at that weird forest, I thought I was going to see a nuclear explosion the way Eric and Lauren were going at it. I haven’t seen her that mad since…” And Logan saw Ryan lower his head to the ground, “Sorry, you know what I mean. Over the last two weeks, we have all been thinking about our families, and yeah, weird crap is happening. But still, shouldn’t somebody be jumping up and down, screaming something? Shouldn’t we at least be crying ourselves to sleep? Why isn’t somebody angry?”
John shrugged his shoulders, “Maybe it is this Mother character? Maybe she is somehow calming us down? When Mirtza left us alone in the forest, it was the first time we were by ourselves. The shock had worn off, so Lauren and Eric vented their frustrations.”
“She started it.”
John continued, “It doesn’t matter who started it Eric. But that is where Lauren found that strange staff. Maybe someone is looking after us as well? In a world where nothing makes sense, that would be logical. So we miss our families and think about them, but somebody is stopping us from freaking out over them, and all of the other strange stuff that has been happening.”
“Not all of us feel that way,” replied Zack, “I am sure my uncle has already started legal actions to get his hands on my money. By the time I get back, I will be broke and living on the streets.”
Logan looked to Eric, “What do you think? Is John right?”
“I don’t know. I think about my family all of the time. Every night in my dreams, I visit them, hoping somehow that my thoughts will find them. Let them know that I am alive, and I tell them not to worry. That and the beer helps.”
“Beer, it does a body good.” Zack said as he refilled his mug.
“I do not understand how you guys can drink so much of that stuff,” replied John, “Do you know what it does to you?”
Zack smiled, “The golden nectar. It celebrates victories, drowns the sorrows, kills the pain, and exposes the dark truths. Plain liquid? No, a gift from the gods. It will make a shy man brave, turns a brave man into a fool. Each vessel consumed alters the destined course, tests the fates. It is only in alcohol, that one can both find, and hide from themselves at the same time.” All four looked at Zack, “You guys really question everything too much. We are here. Embrace it. Life goes on until it stops. Parents give you up for adoption. Life goes on. Get new parents after years in foster homes. Life goes on. New parents get divorced. Life goes on. Then divorced parents die. Effing life still goes on. School bus gets in an accident. A new effing life, but it still goes on. Accept that which you have no control over. It makes it easier.” Zack reached over to the pitcher to refill his mug, “The path to victory is best achieved through acceptance.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Eric said.
“Neither does life.” Zack took his full mug, and headed back to his room.
The remaining four looked at each other, that was the most they had ever heard from Zack. Eric poured the last of the pitcher, but as John’s mug was still half-full, he put his hand over the top to decline any more.
“To Zack,” Eric said, raising his glass, “May one day he defeat the blackness that both consumes his soul, and fills his closet.” On that note, they all headed to their rooms with the hope that their dreams would somehow find their family and friends, letting them know that they were safe.
Chapter 12
Lauren approached John at the morning meal, “I want you to talk to the Earth Mother, Alron, and Aaro after breakfast.”
“Why me?”
“You said it best. They need to figure out what is going on.”
“When I said ‘they’, I actually did not include me.”
“Well, if Mother can choose me, and I don’t have a say in it, then I can choose you to help, and you get the same amount of input as I did.”
John felt he would have a better chance of arguing with the night, about the value of light, rather than trying to back out of Lauren’s request for help. So after the meal, he followed them all up to the Earth Mother’s favorite terrace.
The Earth Mother looked to John, “Earth Daughter does say thou hath thoughts we does need to consider?”
John scanned the small group, “The other night, everybody made contributions to the events of the recent history. However, the majority of the evidence provided was hearsay. It was not information known first hand, but heard from somebody who heard it from somebody else, and the facts we have right now are few. The dwarves discovered a town on the northern Bright Coast, which now appears empty, but that is too far away for us to check. The dwarves fled the eastern range and stayed here for a short time. Midlanders, as you call them, began to flee their lands and claimed to be fleeing from some sort of plague. Evidence supported by Mirtza and those posters. Then the elves fled, and finally, whatever midlanders were on the outskirts fled as well. From the sounds of it, you fifteen are the only ones left in this area. Aaro, are there any midlander villages nearby that we can visit and investigate? See if we can find any clues as to what actually happened?”
“One large, three small. Days of seven travel, need we do” Aaro replied, his deep, thick voice, echoing softly off the far mountains.
“Friend John, what does thou expect to find,” asked Alron?
“I do not know, but I would like to see something for myself,” replied John.
“Earth Mother, what does thou think,” asked Alron?
“Answers we does want, though I does be weary to send thou into plague.”
“If it truly is a plague, it would most likely require a living host to survive. If the stories are true, everybody is gone, so the plague should be dead,” replied John.
“Earth Daughter, what does thou think,” asked the Earth Mother?
“John is the smartest person I know, and what he said makes sense. We just don’t really know anything, and maybe this investigation will help reveal some of the answers that everybody wants.”
“Mother sent Earth Daughter. If Mother does trust her, then who does I be to question Mother. Alron please does arrange as necessary, and does keep me advised.”
After the Earth Mother left the table, Alron was quick to act, “Three elf, three dwarf, Earth Daughter and friend John. This does leave ponies of four for pack animals. Does any hath questions?” When nobody said anything, Alron looked to Lauren and John, “We does leave tomorrow.”
Lauren was not expecting such quick actions, and she looked to John, who nodded in agreement.
Lauren looked at Alron, “Sure. Can you make the arrangements that quick?”
“We shalt leave after first meal the day next.”
As Aaro and Alron left, John smiled, “That went well, didn’t it?”
Lauren slowly shook her head, “Let’s wait until we get back, before we determine the outcome.”
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The following morning, John was standing beside Lauren in the doorway that faced their outside terrace. An unexpected storm had formed quickly, and now raged outside, the trip postponed until the weather improved. John was disappointed with the change in the weather, as a storm this intense would quickly wash away what little evidence may have still lingered at the midlander sites they were supposed to visit. As they watched the lightning explode across the sky, illuminating some mountaintops, silhouetting others, John had a feeling of foreboding in the pit of his stomach. After one horrific explosion of thunder that made them both jump, they realized that Aaro was standing behind them.