Farra was both afraid and excited; she had never been before the Animen Council. Sure, she had seen the five old wise ones, three men and two women, walking about the village, moving to and from the hall. But she had never exchanged anything beyond a greeting with them before now, — and she had certainly never been inside the hall itself!
The Elders of the council were considered to be the wisest of the village, and they made all of the critical decisions. The Animen were sorcerers, and sorcery was something that was not easily predictable. The Council seemed to have a keen sense and understanding of the fundamentals of their magic. Their methods and knowledge of the world were sometimes not entirely understood. Even among a people of sorcery, their powers seemed beyond the reach or comprehension of the common Animan or Anifem.
While most of the people in the village wore clothing that was brightly colored, the Elders of the Council generally kept to wearing tones of brown, gray, black, and white. Walking beside their wolves of matching fur only added to their omniscient effect.
To Farra and the rest of the children, the council members may as well have been gods. When she was younger, she had heard many tales about the Elders: “They can move mountains just by thinking about it! They can hold their breath under water for a week! If you lie to them, they will know, and then they can melt your brain!” Of course, as she got older, she concluded that these were all rumors. At least, that is what she hoped.
Farra and her mother approached the Elders inside the hall. The dark, clay dome was built with a skeletal system of branches that held the clay in place. The smallest sound echoed throughout the chamber, especially for those that stood at the center, in this case, Anika and Farra.
The inner dome sat inside a larger one to allow air to flow inside, and to keep the light out. The only light inside came from torches scattered along the wall and the subtle glow that emitted from the crystals atop the Elders' staves.
No one called them by their names. They were always referred to as the 1st, the 2nd, the 3rd, the 4th and the 5th. It was a pyramid hierarchy. The 1st led, followed by the second and third who shared equal power, then the fourth and fifth.
Everyone in the room was accompanied by their wolf. The First wore a black cloak. His wolf was the largest in the room. It sat next to him as he sat in his chair.
Both the Second and Third’s wolves were grey the Forth wore white with a white wolf and the Fifth wore brown, with a brown colored wolf. Farra looked at Pupa, noticing that he was the smallest wolf in the room.
As she and her mother addressed the Council of Elders, it sunk deep into Farra’s mind that everything that was about to happen inside the dome was about her. She took a deep breath to calm herself and waited, nervously scratching at the side of her staff. She was so focused on simply making it to the center of the room that she did not notice the sound of her own scratches echoing throughout the chamber.
The Elder’s all turned to look at her fingernails raking against the wood, and so did her mother.
“There is no need to be nervous child,” the Third spoke in a soft female voice. “The Council is here to help, not harm you.”
Farra caught herself and stopped scratching. Now she was even more nervous and embarrassed than before.
“What is this quest that you speak of?” asked the First.
Farra looked to her mother nervously, but Anika could not speak for her. Her mother was allowed to be present to vouch for her, but it was Farra’s responsibility to stand up for herself and plead her own cause. She did not know what to say, so she said nothing until her mother nudged her with an elbow.
“Um…I wish to aid a young warrior on his journey.”
“A journey to where?”
“He does not speak of his goal.” Her voice came out a bit more high pitched than usual but she managed to get the words out.
“Doesn’t it seem a bit foolish for you to go on a journey when you have no idea where it leads?” asked the Second.
“Wise one, a person cannot always know where she is going, or where she will end up. Mother has always told me that it is the journey that is important; that if the unknown keeps you rooted, then progress can never be made.”
The Fourth seemed impressed by her answer. “Well, your mother has taught you to speak with wisdom. Since you do not yet possess your full power, do you think that your wisdom will be enough to sustain you on this journey?”
“We – Pupa and I – are nearing the time of our sacred union. I had hoped that maybe by assisting this boy, the journey would help us to discover ourselves.”
“You hope?” said the First. “What if the gods do not grant you sacred union? What if they don’t approve?” He looked over to Anika kneeling next to Farra. “You give your consent?”
“Yes,” Anika answered. “She is strong and wise for her years, but most of all, I trust her to follow what she feels inside.”
The Elders leaned toward each other and spoke amongst themselves for a moment. Farra concentrated on listening in, but the sharp mumble of whispers could not be deciphered. She was able to make out one word, “TEMPLE.” She leaned in closer to hear more, only to have her arm grabbed by her mother. The shake of Anika’s head told her she would have to wait to hear their response.
“We don’t make this decision lightly child,” said the Second. “We have to wonder, does this have anything to do with your father?”
“My...my...my father?”
“Yes, your father,” said the Fifth. “Do you believe him to be alive? Perhaps what you really want is to go off searching for him.”
“My father, sir, is gone. I don’t know if he is alive. I mean sometimes I hope he is, but... No, I assure you, this is not about my father.”
The First began to speak, “You have come to ask our permission to embark upon a journey. For this, you must ask yourself. Come closer.”
Farra looked up at Anika. She wanted to move, but fear would not let her without her mother’s approval. Anika’s nod told her that it would be okay. Then she realized that her mother was staying in place. Reluctantly, she understood, she had to approach them, the Elders, alone; without the comfort of her mother by her side. “Come on, Pupa,” Farra whispered.
Anika once again nodded and gestured with her hand for Farra to move forward. Hesitantly, she approached the First as he moved to the front of his seat and leaned down toward her to get a good look at this child. His hesitation built a well of anxiety inside of her. Her heart began to pound so hard she could see her clothing vibrating on her chest..
“Place your hands on the crystal,” said The First, placing his staff in front of her. “Look deep within it. No matter what you see, you must not look away, and you must not take your hands off until I tell you to. This is a test; if you let go, you fail. If you fail, you cannot go. Do you understand?”
Farra looked back at her mother for reassurance. Her mother nodded, urging her to proceed and follow the First’s instructions.
“Go ahead, child,” he said to her.
She took a deep breath as if to swallow a huge chunk of courage out of the air, then she placed her hands on the crystal. Still, she was reluctant, as if the crystal was hot and she was trying to get used to the heat. There was no heat. It was only her fear of the unknown that radiated through her hands. She had no idea what to expect.
With the touch of her hand, the crystal began to glow brighter, and then she noticed something moving inside. Her curiosity beckoned her to concentrate and look deeper into the crystal. Images moved around inside the luminous gem, changing from one image to another. “What do you see?” asked the First.
“I see the ocean,” she responded, “I see birds. I see the land around. There’s me! I’m on a mountain top. Oh, and there is Pupa!” She smiled as the images came. The images of Pupa sent a peaceful feeling of joy and warmth that charged through her body.
She focused and looked deeper in
to the crystal, “There is someone else there, but I don’t know who it is. The moon, it’s sad. Oh! There is sadness all around. There is the boy, Bomani. He’s the boy from the stream. Something is wrong—very, very wrong.”
Just as the images came, they became less distinctive until she could not clearly make out the shapes with her eyes at all, but somehow her mind and heart understood what was happening. She could feel and understand them so clearly that her voice began to quiver as she spoke.
“There is sadness all around. Pain! Death! Pupa!”
She began to pull away, as if the crystal was a brilliant fire too bright to look directly into.
“What’s happening?” Farra exclaimed, “No! Make them stop! It’s too much! Please, there is too much sadness!”
Finally, she could no longer stand it. She pulled away, let go of the staff, and closed her eyes as her head dropped to the side. The crystal dimmed to nothing and the Elder’s staff dropped to the floor. Farra turned her head. She placed her hands over her eyes, dropped to her knees and wept.
There were murmurs in the room. The air was thick with disappointment. The shame she felt paralyzed her and bound her to the floor she knelt upon.
Anika rushed to her aid and wrapped her arms around her. “It’s okay,” she whispered into her ear.
“No mother, it’s not. I failed. Did you see? Did you see the images?”
“We could only see the light,” her mother answered. “What did you see?”
“I’m not sure mother. Sadness, pain, death.”
“She’s not ready,” said the Second.
“She cannot go,” said the Third.
“I’m sorry, mother,” Farra said to Anika, pulling her hands from her face, looking at her through the steady stream of tears that fell. “What was it?” Farra asked. “What was all that stuff that I was seeing? Is that what is going to happen? Is that the future?”
“Do not be hard on yourself child,” said the First. “We are not always ready for the things we want. You have much time to grow. Never forget what was told to you by the crystal. Do not think of it as the future. The future is what we make of it. The future is shaped by the gift of choice. The crystal showed you what it had to for you to develop strength within yourself, and to aid you in the choices that you must make. When you are ready, you will know what to do.”
The Ancient Lands: Warrior Quest, Search for the Ifa Scepter Page 4
