Everflame: The Complete Series

by Dylan Lee Peters

  Ben and Tomas crossed the stream and began to lead the travelers into the dense forest that loomed on the other side. The sun was still up, but it would only be so for a little while longer. As it was already, the forest shut out most of the sun’s light and made it very difficult to see.

  “We should be there before the light is completely gone,” Ben assured them.

  “Evercloud,” said Whiteclaw, “were you able to purchase the salve that I had asked for?”

  Evercloud sighed and slumped his shoulders. “I’m sorry. That should have been the first thing I did.”

  “Don’t worry,” piped in Tomas, “we have all kinds of medicines back at home and you’re welcome to them.”

  “Thank you,” said Whiteclaw. Then, turning to Evercloud. “You still have all of the currency that I gave to you?”

  “Well, not all of it.”

  “Evercloud, I told you to only purchase the salve.”

  “Yes, but you also told me to go to the tavern.”

  “And what did you purchase at the tavern?”

  “A mug of ale.”

  “A mug of ale? Seriously, Evercloud?”

  “Uncle, would you trust someone who entered a tavern, all alone, and didn’t purchase a mug of ale?”

  “Hmm,” Whiteclaw pursed his lips. “I suppose you have a valid point.”

  “We’re here,” said Ben.

  The party had reached the entrance to a cave and a faint light could be seen coming from inside. The entrance was not especially big, at least compared to the caves that Evercloud and the bears were used to.

  “We’d better go inside first, so that Father and Sister aren’t scared,” said Tomas, and the brothers Floyd disappeared into the cave, reappearing only minutes later.

  “Welcome to our home,” said Ben, arms outstretched in welcome. The travelers entered the cave.

  The cave was much larger on the inside, with a roomy common area and many rooms adjacent to it. There was a fire going directly in the middle of the common area and a large boiling pot sat upon it. The smell that came from it set Evercloud’s mouth watering. He couldn’t remember having eaten anything that day. Large, colorful carpets adorned the floor of the cave and scrolls and maps hung on the walls. The bears were fairly impressed.

  “I suppose I’ll do the introductions. This is Evercloud, Whiteclaw and Riverpaw,” said Tomas, pointing to each of them in turn. The three travelers made their greetings politely. “And this is my father, Nikolas.”

  “Very nice to meet you,” said the old man. He had lost the majority of his hair and it seemed as though a fair amount of his sight had abandoned him as well. When the man looked at the travelers, it seemed as if he were staring straight through them. “Bears that speak. Well, I never.”

  “And this,” continued Tomas, “is our sister, Iolana.”

  “It is a pleasure to meet you,” said Iolana and she bowed slightly. Evercloud could not take his eyes off of her. He had never seen a woman like her before. She was rather small and slender with long, red hair that fell in curls around her shoulders. Her skin was so pale that it almost seemed luminescent, and her blue eyes sparkled like a river in the moonlight. She smiled at him and he felt as if he might fall down. He put his hand out against the side of Riverpaw to steady himself.

  “Are you all right?” asked Riverpaw.

  “I’m really well. How are you?” said Evercloud.

  Riverpaw wrinkled his nose and looked at Evercloud as if he were the strangest thing he had ever seen.

  “Well,” began Nikolas, “dinner is almost ready and then we can get to know each other a little better. The stew probably won’t be enough for the two of you.” The man gestured toward the bears. “But I have a couple of boars that were going to be for tomorrow. I’ll think they’ll do nicely.”

  “That would be most appreciated, thank you,” nodded Whiteclaw.

  “Whiteclaw,” said Tomas, “if you would follow me, I can help you dress that wound.” Whiteclaw again nodded and followed Tomas into an adjacent room.

  When Whiteclaw and Tomas returned, everyone was finding a seat on a rug so that they could eat comfortably. Tomas had not only dressed Whiteclaw’s wound but also found a thick, leather strap that fit nicely around the bear’s head, in order to provide some protection. Evercloud thought it looked funny at first, though he never would have said so, but after a few minutes it took on more of an intimidating effect. Whiteclaw looked like a warrior, and in a strange way, Evercloud found himself moderately jealous.

  Over dinner, Evercloud told the Floyds of how his father, Eveneye, had found him when he was very little, and then, of how he had become king. The family found the story very interesting. They seemed to want to know every detail of the Kingdom and how it operated. Evercloud was more than pleased to have an audience. He continued his story all the way up to their departure.

  “So every bear in the Kingdom can speak?” asked Nikolas.

  “All animals can speak if they wish you to hear them,” said Evercloud.

  “Well, I suppose I shouldn’t be so surprised,” Nikolas shook his head. “Why would the Ancients create creatures who cannot speak when they themselves have the ability to do so?”

  “I agree with your statement, Old One,” said Whiteclaw, swallowing a chunk of boar. “But for the sake of argument, how do we know that the Ancients could speak?”

  “It is a good question,” nodded Nikolas. “However, there are references in The Book of The Holy that suggest that they did.”

  “The Book of The Holy?” asked Evercloud.

  “Yes, The Book of The Holy. It’s the Tyrant’s own account of how he came to power, mixed in with his teachings and codes and whatnot. Most men hold onto it as if it were the air they breathe. Rubbish, I say. Lies and propaganda. The Tyrant used this book to convince the human race that it was he who created the world, and that the Ancients were evil creatures intent upon destroying it.”

  “But you just said that this book is filled with lies and propaganda,” said Evercloud. “How can we assume that any of it is true?”

  “Your logic is sound, my boy. But all lies have some truth. I have my own reasons for belief.”

  “Would anyone like more?” asked Iolana, rising to her feet with a smile. Her voice ran through Evercloud’s mind like a song. He found himself repeating her name in his head. Iolana. Iolana.

  “No. Thank you, Iolana,” said Evercloud, staring dumbly into her eyes.

  Whiteclaw noticed his infatuation and turned to Riverpaw. “That didn’t take long, did it?”

  Riverpaw chuckled.

  “What did you say?” asked Evercloud, shaking himself out of his trance and looking at Whiteclaw.

  “Oh, nothing,” said Whiteclaw, and then changing the subject, addressed the Floyds. “I think we have all had quite our fill and we thank your generosity and hospitality. You do a service to your entire race.” Riverpaw nodded in agreement and thanked the Floyds as well.

  Now Ben walked to the center of the circle and addressed the travelers. “You have told us of the rumors of the Ancients that have reached your kingdom and it’s only fair that we now share what we know. The short of it is that we believe we know the general location of the Ancient, Tenturo.” The three travelers looked at Ben in disbelief. “Allow me to explain. Firstly, my brother and I found the giant footprint that you spoke of. We found it in the Glass Desert that lies west of this forest. From there, my brother went to our cousin, Terrence, who lives in Yorebrook. He has sworn to the same mission that we have, and he spread the word among our supporters. I continued west, through the desert and into the White Mountains. It was there that I came across something that I think you should see for yourselves.” Ben pointed to the entrance of a room, adjacent to the room they were in, that had a rug hanging to conceal it from sight. Everyone got to their feet, and following Ben, entered the room.

  “By the Everflame,” exclaimed Whiteclaw.

  There, lying upon the floor of the room
, was the largest white feather any of them had ever seen. It was so large that Evercloud thought it looked much like a bed he would quite like to fall asleep on.

  “We believe that Tenturo is in the White Mountains,” Ben said, looking at them as they stared in awe.

  “Have you made any attempts to find him since finding this?” asked Riverpaw.

  “No, we didn’t believe that we had the force that might be necessary,” added Tomas. “But now…” and he looked at his brother.

  “What my brother is alluding to,” said Ben, “is that with your help, we think we do have the necessary force.”

  “What exactly do you mean when you say necessary force?” asked Whiteclaw.

  “Well,” began Ben, “in The Book of The Holy it says–”

  “You seem to derive a lot of your information from a book you claim is rubbish,” interrupted the elder bear.

  “Please,” Ben pleaded, “hear me out. If this feather and the footprint in the desert are signs that Tenturo is out there, then why has he not returned to us? There must be a reason. Possibly, something keeping him. Let me read you a passage from this book and then you tell me yourselves.” Ben went over to a shelf and picked up a copy of The Book of The Holy and opened it to a marked page. He then began to read:

  “…And then the evil beast came at the Holy,

  Cursing his name with its foul breath.

  It came down from the sky and slashed with its claws

  And it snapped with its beak.

  But the Holy would not allow evil to win the day.

  He conjured two magnificent steeds to combat the monster

  And banish it from whence it came.

  “Now, granted, we cannot take this book as truth, but something is keeping Tenturo away. It is only wise to prepare for all possibilities.” Ben finished and stared at the travelers. “Will you help us?”

  The bears looked at Evercloud and he looked back at them. It didn’t take but a glance for him to see the concern in their eyes and only a second to realize why. Evercloud turned back to Ben.

  “Almost all men worship the Great Tyrant and feel that the Ancients are evil. Why should we believe that you are different? Why should we believe that you would not use us to find the Ancients, only to harm them? We only ask these questions in protection of the Ancients.”

  Ben looked at the travelers with sadness in his eyes. “You haven’t lived in our world to know why we feel the way we feel. So let me describe it for you. It is not a picture filled with harmony and happiness. It is not a picture of peaceful coexistence. It is a picture of fear and hatred and distrust. It is a picture of men at war with not only the world around them, but also with each other. And we have been told that this picture has been painted by a being that calls himself the Holy, a being that calls himself good, and kind, and all that is right. That doesn’t seem to add up to us. So we call him the Great Tyrant and we choose to turn from him. We choose to do all that we can to bring about his end, however little that may be. We strive for a world that promotes trust and honor and peace, a world where children are not left to fend for themselves in the wilderness, a world where a man can believe what he chooses without fear of death, a world where I don’t have to hold a knife to a man’s throat before I can trust that he and his companions are good in nature. I see the Ancients as my only chance of such an existence. So what say you, travelers? Do we stand together?”

  “Yes,” said Whiteclaw. “We head for the desert in the morning.”

  Chapter 19: The Glass Desert

  The next day, the group readied themselves for the journey.

  “Here, take these, I’ve outgrown them. They’re no use to me. Take them.” Ben threw a pack at Evercloud. He opened it and found it contained some clothes. “And you can use the pack on the journey.”

  Evercloud took out a pair of trousers, a shirt, and a belt. He stepped into the trousers and pulled them up. They were a much better fit and were made of a much cooler material. The shirt was also a better fit and thankfully, made of very thin leather, rather than the rough material of the other shirt. This shirt was also sleeveless, which Evercloud felt, at this point, was necessary. He then strapped the belt on and found there was a holster that his claw hooked onto quite nicely. Now I look like a warrior, he thought, and strapped the pack onto his back.

  Not all of the family was joining the quest. Old Nikolas was staying behind and much to the disappointment of Evercloud, so was Iolana. Once they had made sure that they had everything they needed, the group gave their goodbyes and thanks to Nikolas and Iolana. Evercloud couldn’t help but linger in his goodbye to the beautiful woman.

  “Thank you for your hospitality, Iolana…I hope that we will see each other again.” Evercloud blushed slightly.

  “I believe we will, Evercloud. Good luck to you.” Iolana reached her hand out and touched Evercloud’s, causing him to blush even more.

  “All right,” called Whiteclaw, “let’s go.”

  Evercloud waved one final goodbye and the group began to make their way west. It was a beautiful morning to be walking through the forest. The sky was blue and the air was warm, a slight breeze moved through the trees and the world seemed to shimmer. Birds sang in the trees and Evercloud felt as if he could fly. He couldn’t wait to find Tenturo. He thought of the feather and imagined the great beast, soaring high above the mountaintops, a bringer of peace and prosperity to all creatures. He imagined himself back at home on Gray Mountain, his mother and father so proud of him, and his uncle, aunt and cousin sharing in the happiness. They would all be around him, proud of him and loving him. They would all be there, and so would she.

  The group had walked out of the forest, well before midday, and was now on a stretch of plains. Evercloud had been walking alone, silently, immersed in his fantasies, and ahead of the pack, as Ben caught up to him.

  “So, Evercloud. Is this, in fact, the first time you have been around other humans?”

  “Well, yes. I suppose it is.”

  “I think that you fit in just fine. The bears have raised you well. They are not so different from us as I used to believe. I mean, we both live in caves don’t we.” They both smiled at the joke. “I hope they feel the same way about us.”

  “I believe they will,” said Evercloud. “That’s really the point of all this, isn’t it? To create a better world, restore a harmony.”

  “Yes, I suppose it is.” Ben opened his canteen and took a sip, and then he offered it to Evercloud.

  “No, thank you.”

  “Evercloud, I know that trust is something that builds over time, but I want you to know that you can trust me. You will meet many people who will not deserve your trust, so stay cautious, but remain open-minded. If there are any questions you have about our world, just ask.”

  “Thank you, Ben. I, as well as Riverpaw and Whiteclaw, are lucky to have found you.”

  Ben glanced back at the rest of the pack, the two bears walking alongside his brother. “So, you really are the only human that lives among the bears?”

  “It’s just me,” said Evercloud nodding.

  “Well don’t worry, my friend, you will meet more men than I’m sure you care to before it is all over…as well as many other fair women.” Ben patted Evercloud on the back and Evercloud smiled and nodded. Ben’s words had seemed a bit odd to him though, after he had thought about it for a minute. What did he mean by other fair women? he wondered.

  The five of them walked on through the day until the sun began to set, then they stopped by a stream.

  “This is the last stream before we reach the desert,” said Tomas. “We should make camp here for the night. I’ll shoot some fish with my bow.”

  “Don’t waste your time,” said Riverpaw as he waded into the stream. Within seconds, he had already begun to throw fish onto the bank.

  “Well, I suppose I’ll make the fire then,” said Tomas.

  “What do you need to make a fire for?” asked Evercloud.

  Toma
s chuckled. “To cook the fish. Don’t tell me that you eat them raw.” Evercloud nodded. “Oh, well… we prefer them cooked. Besides, it’s good to have fire going. It helps to keep the animals…away.” Tomas realized what he was saying, just as the words slipped out of his mouth. He slowly turned his head toward Whiteclaw, horribly afraid that this was what Whiteclaw had been talking about when he had said, not do anything that will force us to kill you.

  “Funny,” huffed Whiteclaw with a stoic glare. “We don’t start fires mostly to keep the humans away.” Tomas began to shake faintly in the legs and stuttered, trying to apologize. Suddenly, Whiteclaw’s lips cracked in a large bearish grin. “Calm down, little man. Where’s your sense of humor?” Whiteclaw sat down and began to laugh heartily. “You looked like you thought I was going to eat you.”

  Riverpaw now began to laugh as he stood in the stream and even Evercloud and Ben began to smile.

  “The bears are making fun of me,” muttered Tomas to himself. “Wonderful.”

  It wasn’t long before the fire had been built and everyone had eaten their fill. The sun had set and the group sat in the glow of the firelight.

  “I should warn you, there are dangers in the desert,” Ben began while he picked his teeth with a fishbone. “Apart from the danger of getting dehydrated, there are poisonous snakes and scorpions. Also, there are crabs.”

  “Crabs?” said Riverpaw. “Are they poisonous crabs?”

  “Well, no,” continued Ben. “But they’re really big crabs.”

  “Oh,” said Riverpaw with obvious cynicism in his voice.

  “Anyway, I assume that the two of you defend yourselves without any weapons,” Ben said, looking at Whiteclaw and Riverpaw. “My brother prefers the bow and I carry a sword. I noticed, Evercloud, that you don’t carry a weapon, so I brought along a second sword.”

  “I have a weapon,” said Evercloud.

  “Oh, sorry, didn’t see it,” said Ben, confused. “Where do you keep it?”

  Evercloud untied the piece of cloth at his waist and uncovered his claw. He walked over to Ben and held it in front of him. Ben’s jaw dropped as he marveled at the golden weapon. It looked magical in the firelight, as if it held some ancient power.