The New World (The Last Delar)

by Matthew Cousineau

  "My father taught me before I ripped out his throat. It is how I control my territory."

  "You are a descendant of the great Daboon warrior Mar-Ra, and your blood is strong. I offer you this, my servant . . . swear yourself to me, and I will give you the power to unite all of the roaming clans. Once they have either joined or fallen before your might, you will then bring them to me. No longer will the Daboon have to scavenge and live in filth. Join me, and together we will assemble the greatest army in all the world. Deny me, and only pain and suffering will you endure before your death."

  The beast looks up at the man shrouded in darkness. " I will join you dark one."

  Un-Nabus smiles behind his hood and walks to the side of the Daboon. He touches his staff to the beast's head. "You will be reborn tonight, and from this moment on you will be called Un-Ra." Un-Nabus takes a stone from his belt and drops it to the ground. A bloody light rises out of the mud. "Your hand, Un-Ra, give it to me."

  Un-Nabus raises a finger, and his nail grows into a claw. He uses this claw and slices the Daboon's hand. "Now reach into the mud and grab the stone that I have dropped, and be reborn." Un-Nabus raises his hand and a mist seeps out of his dark mark, taking the form of the Book of Ixkin.

  "Lower your head."

  Un-Ra lowers his head as his new master commands. Un-Ra reaches into the mud and feels the cold stone in his grip. The pages of the Ixkin begin to shuffle, and then a page rips out from the book, shooting into the air before floating down to the crouching Daboon. The page begins to burn, sprinkling its ashes over the Daboon's back. Un-Nabus lowers his staff into the mud and walks around the Daboon, creating a line that circles the beast.

  "Raahhh," Un-Ra roars, "pain! Great pain!"

  The Ixkin closes and dissolves into darkness seeping back into Un-Nabus's mark. Un-Nabus raises his arms, and the marsh engulfs the Daboon in a cocoon of mud. Un-Ra struggles inside, trying to free himself as the cocoon suffocates him. Soon he stops resisting and becomes lifeless and still. The cocoon bubbles and swirls until it hardens around the beast. Un-Nabus sits besides the muddy shell and waits for the surface of the cocoon to begins to crack. Once the cocoon has dried and changed color, Un-Nabus lowers his staff and taps it against the cocoon.

  "Rise, Lord Un-Ra, and show yourself to me."

  Un-Nabus takes a step away from the mound of dried mud. The hardened cocoon begins to crack and shatter and Un-Ra slowly ascends from his mud-baked prison. His fur is dripping with a dark liquid, and his body swells. Un-Ra has grown and his shoulders have become broad. His quills have light-colored tips that drip and begin to harden. His re-made claws and teeth have become like blades, smooth and black, fierce and deadly. His eyes have evolved, growing wider and closer to his snout, and their color has turned from white to blood red. The beast raises his hands and touches a large stone helmet that he now wears. The helmet has images of tortured men and burning Hhtuno symbols covering its black surface. On the front of the helmet the upper jaw of a Daboon hugs Un-Ra’s forehead.

  "Lord Un-Ra, a powerful creature you have become. Now bow before me." Un-Ra bows without hesitation. "You will search out all of your kind, and they will join you, or they will die. You will take your army to the black shores where each Daboon will fill a sack with as much sand as it can carry. Once you have done this, you will march west toward the Whispering Canyons. You and your followers can kill and plunder all in your path. There you will wait for me at the Broken Stone. Never have you been to any of these places, but the helmet of your ancestors that has been remade will guide you. Do you understand?"

  "Yes, my Lord, it will be done."

  "Now go, and do not fail me." Un-Ra stands tall and roars loudly into the night, arching his back and brandishing his quills. Each quill echoes loudly and they strike each other as his back convulses. He then turns from his master and runs toward the other Daboon.

  "Come, Gnyok. Our final journey together begins. We travel to the lowlands of Escamacu. It is there where we will claim the Len of Ituha. Once I posses that, your freedom I will grant." Puddle timidly uncurls from his protective ball and slowly follows his master as they leave the marshes.

  ---

  Puddle and his master have sailed down the Catawba river, through the forest swamps and the land of the Kusso-Natchez on their quest to the southern shores. Now in the early morning, Puddle stands at the edge of the forest smelling the ocean on a light breeze that blows inland. Standing under what shade he can find, he licks his skin that has become irritated from the salty wind. Puddle knows his orders are to not stop until his feet touch sand, but he dares not leave the comfort of the forest.

  "I wonder to myself why my slug of a servant has stopped and disobeyed my commands."

  Puddle yelps in fear, curling into a ball at the sound of his master. He quickly uncurls and crawls to Un-Nabus's feet, begging, "Please, Master. I do not mean to disobey. It is the nasty sun and salty wind little Gnyok fears. It burns and dries my skin." The darkness around Un-Nabus picks Puddle up by his back, moving him away from his master's feet. "Better the burning of the sun than my dark grip digging into your slimy flesh." Un-Nabus watches with pleasure as his slave shakes at the thought of his master's punishment.

  "Stand, Gnyok and stop your sniveling. Follow me to the water's edge." Puddle hesitantly follows his master toward the ocean. Crouching as he walks, Puddle tries to protect himself from the ocean winds. Once they reach the shore, Un-Nabus raises his hand, and Puddle watches as darkness spills from his master's dark mark and forms the book of Ixkin.

  Puddle has never seen an ocean before and is confused by its vastness. He steps back watching the waves crash against the sandy shores. He looks up and down the shoreline, seeing nothing but sand and water continuing to the horizon. Trees that once covered these shores have been uprooted and are slowly reclaimed by the approaching waters. Puddle looks at these trees and fears the power of the ocean. How could water rip trees from their roots he wonders. What a place this is, horrible and evil. He looks back to the forests and years to leave these wicked shores.

  The pages of the Ixkin flip, and Un-Nabus begins to read. "Yes, Yes, I see . . . it will be done to perfection." Un-Nabus looks down from behind the book. "Gnyok, have you ever seen an ocean sponge before?" Puddle looks up with a blank stare. "Look here, worm, and do not forget what I say, or my dark fingers you will feel." Un-Nabus touches his staff to the shore, and the sand grows black. Puddle watches in wonderment as the sand begins to take shape, mimicking his masters words.

  "Once you have dived along these ocean mountains, you will come to a place where light cannot touch. You will continue to dive, searching for a ledge on the mountain. There you will kill your companion. Once its blood stains the water, it will show itself to you. What you seek is a very rare blood sponge. When you see the sponge, you will wrap it in this water satchel. After you have done this, you must swim with all of your strength to the surface. Have you understood what I have spoken?"

  "Yes, Master, but what companion?"

  Un-Nabus reaches for his hood, pulling it over his head and transforming into the Hornbill. With his talons Un-Nabus grabs Puddle by his shoulders and soars out to the open ocean. Covering his eyes in fear, Puddle feels the claws of the bird open, and he screams as he falls toward the water. He waits for the pain of the crash, but it never comes. With his eyes still shut, Puddle can feel the ocean water splashing against his back. He opens his eyes to see that he is lying on the ocean, moving with the flow of the waves. Puddle flinches seeing Un-Nabus standing on the water next to him. Un-Nabus opens the Book of Ixkin, and Puddle watches the pages begin to turn furiously. A page shoots out from the book and floats in the wind. The page hovers for a moment, then in a burst of light it shoots toward Puddle, striking him on his stomach. His heart starts pounding, and his muscles start to spasm.

  "Remember what I have told you. Take this water pouch and wait for the pain to start before you dive into the water." Puddle looks up at his master and say
s, "What pain …"

  Puddle grips his throat as his skin splits open. The sides of his neck are on fire, and he starts choking.

  "Dive, fool! Find the sponge."

  Puddle dives into the ocean, and instantly he is relieved. Above the surface Un-Nabus takes out a shell from his belt and crushes it in his hand. Pieces fall, bubbling as they sink into the water. From the crushed shell swims a fish with large veiny sacs over its body. From its head hangs a long antenna that dangles between its black eyes. Its underbelly is lined with many flapping legs that propel the strange grub-like fish in the water.

  Puddle frolics in the blue water and tries to get a feel for the current. His body grows strong and his blood warms. He looks down into the abyss of the open ocean and sees streaks of glimmering light shining down from above. A swooshing sound behind him attracts his attention. He looks around and sees nothing but blue. He looks up and sees the distorted shadow of his master. Turning to swim away from the surface, he sees the small fish. It swims in front of him playfully. Puddle tries to catch the fish, but it moves too fast. Intrigued, Puddle swims after it into the deeper ocean.

  The water becomes darker the farther down he swims, and Puddle loses the fish in the hazy water. He stops to look around to see where he is. He looks up to find the surface, but it has long vanished. He looks down, and bubbles creep out of his mouth as he gasps at what he sees: a vast oceanic mountain range that plummets into the darkness of the ocean.

  Puddle wonders how he is going to find anything in this maze of underwater rock. He thinks of what will happen if he comes to the surface empty-handed. He thinks of the punishment that he will receive. Suddenly, a thought enters his mind; I will not go back. Master cannot find me here. I will live down here in the mountains, in the water, free and safe from him. Filled with a rush of joy, he swims up and down in celebration. Then, Puddle slowly stops kicking and remembers what his master told him the day of his enslavement. The dark mark on his back begins to burn, and Puddle senses that his master is hearing his thoughts. Panic-stricken, he tries to remember where his master told him to find the sponge. He thinks back to the shore and the map his master showed him, but all he can remember is the fish. Puddle is startled when he hears something disturbing the water. He looks over his shoulder and sees not one thing but thousands of small creatures racing towards him. He tries to escape but the tide of small fish engulfs him. Puddle senses their fear. Being a creature himself that has run from many beats he knows when something is fleeing a predator. Puddle is right and through the barrage of fish he sees the monster.

  Puddle sees its gaping mouth first. It is like a giant hole in the water. It is devouring everything. Puddle can feel a sucking of the water around him, pulling him closer to this monster. He swims as fast as his arms allow. Hundreds of small sea creatures slam into his side, pushing in all directions. Now out of control a strong current tosses him out of the way of the monsters mouth just as it passes him by. Then another wave of water and strength suck him back. He bounces off the creature’s body over and over again. Then once he thinks he is free the giant tail of the beast flaps and shoots him away. Rolling in the bubbling aftermath of the great sea creature Puddle tries to gain his senses. He stops trying to fight the water and lets it control him. He floats deeper and deeper into the darkness of the deep ocean.

  Once the water has settled and he can swim again Puddle opens his eyes. A light begins to glow in front of him. An orb of light dangles in the water. The light mesmerizes Puddle, and he is filled with the feeling that he must touch it. His large eyes glow with light as he pursues it down the ocean mountain. The further he swims, the colder the water becomes, cramping his muscles. The light is getting stronger and moving faster. He starts to hear a popping in his ears and pain in his head. Puddle swims into the side of the mountain and scrapes his forehead. Rubbing his head Puddle flinches feeling a shadow pass overhead. He tries to regain his senses in the darkness. He looks around for the swimming light but it has vanished. Puddle hears something move above him again but this time it feels closer. Helplessly, he tries to feel for the mountain wall with his hands. Searching the wall, he begins to see the outline of his shadow. A light is growing behind him, and Puddle begins to shake in fear. He can feel the presence of something, something evil, something dangerous. He turns and sees the fish that came to him. A light dangles from its head. It is swimming peacefully. Puddle likes the fish its round shape and non-threatening look please him. Then through the light Puddle sees an open mouth filled with hair-thin fangs and white lifeless eyes. He screams, frozen in fear, Puddle panics and stares at death that is speeding toward him.

  "Kick off the wall, you fool!" Puddle hears inside his head.

  Puddle kicks off the wall just as the dark fish bites down on Puddles companion. He looks back and sees the bio-light from the antenna now blurred by thick murky water, and pieces of fish begin to fall like snow until the light dies out. Darkness reclaims the deep ocean for a moment before a crimson glow grows, leading downwards. Puddle follows the trail of glowing water and his heart stops, "THE BLOOD SPONGE!" he shouts as bubbles fill the water.

  This very small but vibrant sponge is now sucking in the blood from the dead fish. Its outer skin shines brighter as it absorbs more of the blood. Puddle moves closer to the sponge. He watches blood from the fish being drained out of the water by the vampire-like sponge.

  "Take out your water pouch and put the sponge inside it NOW!" Words from his master explode in his mind, propelling him into action. He grabs the sponge and wraps it in the water pouch. "Now swim to the surface, for the cold fingers of death are reaching for you."

  Puddle feels the frigid ocean wrinkling his flesh. He tries to swim to the surface, but his strength is fading with every stroke. He moves fast, but his muscles are tightening and his lungs feel as if they are freezing. He is getting closer to the light, but his vision is becoming blurry. Puddle slows and his mind burns; he starts to choke and he touches his neck, feeling the gills around it shrinking. He tries to swim farther, but his arms fail him and he floats dead in the water. His eyes slowly shut and the cold waters take him.

  ---

  The warm comfort of a crackling fire stirs Puddle. He weakly opens his eyes and feels grey wolf furs wrapped around his body. He sits up and looks around in confusion. It is dark, and his body is sore all over. He looks over to see a pile of shellfish by a log. The smell of the fish rumbles his stomach and waters his mouth. He sits on the log and picks up a very large clam. He opens his mouth to eat the shellfish.

  "You did well today, Gnyok." Puddle drops the clam as he hears his master's voice. "The Blood Sponge is in good health, and our journey together is almost over. Now feast on your reward and rest, for we wake early."

  Puddle wastes no time devouring his reward, and when his stomach is full, he falls back into a deep sleep. Un-Nabus disappears into the darkness, leaving his slave to his prize.

  Un-Nabus opens the Ixkin, "You must follow the inlet into the everglades. There you will see many islands of trees and grass. You must find the island that is covered in Brou trees. That is where the Mankah guards the Len of Ituha. Tomorrow will be the highest tide of the moon's cycle, and the glades will swell with ocean water. Release the Blood Sponge into the current that flows back to the ocean. There you must summon the Mankah and confront him. Unleash the Eel-Tu-Naw. This will distract him until they come. When they have arrived, go to the island and have your slave enter the cave. You cannot touch the Len until you have freed your servant. After you have the Len, you must go to the edge of the Whispering Canyons and reunite with your Daboon warriors." Closing the book, Un-Nabus raises his hand and the Ixkin transforms into darkness, seeping back into his dark mark. After the book is gone, Un-Nabus lifts his hood, transforms into the Hornbill, and finds a tree to rest in.

  "Wake, Gnyok," Un-Nabus shouts, and he hits Puddle with his staff.

  Puddle gets to his feet quickly. "Yes, Master," he says as he stumbles, trying to gather
his things.

  "We leave now."

  Together Un-Nabus and his servant follow the shore to a bay searching out a large tributary that leads to the lowlands. Standing on the tributaries bank Un-Nabus waves his staff, and the darkness that surrounds him takes the form of a small canoe. Once he and Puddle are inside the canoe, Un-Nabus points his staff inland, and the canoe begins its steady journey against the current. The canoe moves deeper into the everglades toward the tall marsh grasses and tree islands.

  "There, Gnyok," Un-Nabus says, pointing, "is the island where the Len resides. Within that island the Mankah, guard of the Len, has slept for an age, protecting what we seek. He was once the citadel guard for the Hhtuno. But he betrayed the Hhtuno lord in a great battle, and today he will pay for his treachery. Once he is slain and the Len is mine, then I will grant you your freedom."

  Puddle's eyes blink in excitement, for he has dreamed of this day. It could not come in a better place. The everglades are muddy and wet with plenty of cover and food. "Thank you, Master."

  "Do not thank me yet. You have to survive long enough to be given your freedom." Puddle's smile disappears, and he starts chewing on his nails. The dark canoe stops on a muddy shore not far from the island where the Mankah sleeps. The boat disappears, leaving Un-Nabus and Puddle standing on the shore facing the island. Small crabs franticly rise out of their borrows and scamper away sensing a predator is close. Un-Nabus takes out the water pouch that holds the sponge.

  "Gynok, take this and swim out to the deepest part of the river. Once you are in position lower the sponge into the water and squeeze it. Once you have squeezed the sponge, swim back to me or be consumed by what comes."

  Puddle takes the sponge and swims into the river. The darkness that surrounds Un-Nabus swarms, circling his hand. He speaks into the darkness and as his lips move, the darkness around it grows and vibrates to his voice.