Everflame: The Complete Series
Page 59
I never could have imagined how beautiful she was. I have never been in such awe. My skin was tingling and my fur was standing on its end. I opened my mouth to speak and could not. She never touched me with her physical presence, yet I could feel her. I still, to this day, struggle to understand what she is, but she is amazing. Her name: Harena.
“And now,” said Eveneye, maniacally flipping to the next marked page. “Listen to this next passage.”
There are more of them! By the grace of the Ancients, there are more of them. Harena gave to me their names and now I must find them. They are the eight daughters of the Skyfather. Harena was but the first, she the spirit of the desert sands. There is also Dendrata, the spirit of the river and trees, Nivalia, spirit of ice and snow, Tallulah, spirit of the oceans deep, Lithlillian, spirit of rock and mountain, Selva, spirit of the jungle wild, Aella, spirit of the wind and plains, and Amber, spirit of the infinite sky. I might search my whole life, but I will find them, even if I have to comb the entirety of Ephanlarea and beyond.
At this, Eveneye closed the book.
“Well,” said Tomas. “Why did you stop? Did he find them?”
“I think he must have, but there are no more passages written on the subject. Either he was too busy to write about his findings or he thought it too dangerous to continue to detail his knowledge.”
“If he wrote no more upon the subject, why do you assume he found the others?” asked Ben.
“Because of this.” Eveneye flipped the book over, revealing the back cover. Etched into the leather was a smaller version of the map that Jared had found in the vaults of Nefas.
The group looked at the two maps with awe and reverence. They knew they were in the midst of great and ancient secrets.
“The eight daughters of the Skyfather,” echoed Evercloud.
“Who is the Skyfather?” asked Riverpaw.
“Your elders did not teach you of the Skyfather?” asked Iolana. Riverpaw shook his head, so Iolana explained. “The Skyfather is the ancient name for the sun. We believed it was he who created the Earth. We have no proof of this, and no one has ever had contact with the Skyfather. It just seemed logical.”
“What of the eagle feathers?” asked Evercloud. “What do they have to do with the Skyfather? Do they mark the locations of his daughters?”
“I do not know,” said Iolana plainly.
“It would seem, according to these writings, that the feathers provide a doorway to the daughters,” said Eveneye.
“What do you know of the eagle feathers, Annie?” asked Evercloud. “When I met you in the pit, you had them dangling from your ears.”
“Just coincidence,” said Annie. “I like the way they look. They hold no meaning.”
“So, that’s it then,” said Tomas excitedly. “We need to find the daughters of the Skyfather.”
“To what end?” asked Ben. “If this map is real; if this map works and we can find the daughters, we know not if they would be sympathetic to our fight, or if they would even be able to help. What if the Skyfather is sympathetic to the Tyrant? He has returned after time absent, stronger than before, has he not? What if that power has been derived from the Skyfather?”
“I don’t think that would be the case,” defied Iolana.
“But you don’t know,” reaffirmed Ben.
“No, I don’t,” conceded Iolana.
“It doesn’t matter,” argued Evercloud. “It is obvious that Harena helped Strongback, and we know what power the Earth gave to Strongback. That alone should satisfy our doubts.” Evercloud turned to his father. “What does Strongback’s diary say about the Earth giving him the Everflame?”
“Nothing,” answered Eveneye. “I only gleaned that information from the writings of the elders, and their account is brief. It is possible that they did not know as much as they let on.”
“Look at the maps,” pointed Evercloud. “One of the feathers is located in the desert on the Western coast of Ephanlarea. That must be where Strongback found Harena. I say we go there.”
“What of Tenturo and his task?” asked Ben.
“He will understand why we have left. He will deem this as important, I know he will. Besides… I believe I have my purpose.”
“You have?”
“I can’t explain it perfectly. I don’t completely have the grasp of it, but I can feel it now. It won’t leave me.”
“Then, what are we waiting for?” asked Tomas jumping from the table.
“Tomorrow,” said Evercloud with a glint in his eye. “We leave tomorrow.”
Chapter 15: A Barely Rising Sun
“Don’t worry, little one. You’ll be all right. Nothing will harm you.”
Evercloud woke with a start. It had been the dream of being left in the woods again, but he was unable to glean any more information from it. The dream had only served as a rude awakening.
We are following dreams and visions, Evercloud shook his head. Is this what our quest has come to?
Evercloud dressed and left the small room he had been staying in. He longed for the days when he could climb the tower stairs and sit in the chamber of the Everflame, staring out at the world around him. He had known such peace in those days, though he had not appreciated it as much as he should have. Now, the flame in that room was a fake, and the real Everflame hung, cast in metal, at his side. He wanted to get out of the castle, get out of the shell, and to be free of walls.
Eveneye had shown his son one passage that had been built in the castle’s shell. It led to a large ledge, open to the sky, where you could look out over the forest. Eveneye had it built for his own use, so he could look upon the world as he had done from the room of the Everflame. It was a selfish request that Evercloud was grateful his father had made. As he opened the door at the end of the passage, and walked out onto the ledge, he was not surprised to see his father already taking full advantage of the view provided by a barely rising sun.
“Come, my son, sit. It has been far too long.”
Evercloud sat down on the ledge next to his father and stared out at the ever-brightening sky. The mellow-golden light of the sun touched the canopy of the green forest and made it shimmer. A light breeze touched Evercloud’s cheek, and finally, he recognized his home.
“You’ll take the journal, won’t you? Strongback’s journal? I think you should take it on your journey.”
“I will.”
“I suppose it would be foolish of me to tell you to be careful while you’re out there.”
“No, not foolish. I’ll try… Father?”
“Yes, son.”
“I want you to know what my purpose is and I want you to know that I learned it from you.”
At these words, Eveneye turned his eyes away from the horizon and looked at his son. Evercloud continued to speak.
“I used to think that life was about trying to be the best I could be, whatever that might mean. Trying to live my life ethically, justly, and trying and do good things in the world, not bad. But I’ve realized that is only a small part of it. I’ve realized that I don’t matter as much as I thought I did. Well, not to say that I don’t matter. I know I matter a great deal. But my purpose…it’s not about me. My life isn’t about me.
“There is good in this world. There are things I’ve found in this world that are precious to me, because they bring light into my darkness; they chase away my darkness. I know now that my life is about those things. My purpose is to fight for those things, fight for the things that fill me with light, and fight against the things that threaten them. Just like you did…just as you still do. You’ve fought against darkness for me, and for Mom. You’ve fought the darkness in your life for everyone around you…I want you to know that I will do the same.”
Evercloud looked at his father and it felt as though he were really seeing his father for the first time. Yet, in another way, he felt a familiarity so strong it was as if he were looking at himself in a mirror.
Eveneye leaned down and nestled his h
ead against his son’s. “I love you, Evercloud.”
“I love you too.”
“When the darkness comes for you, fight and never stop until it’s gone.”
“I will. I promise.”
SOUTH
Chapter 16: Man of Metal
The moonlight was bright as Queen Faedra glided along the dock that led to her ocean vessel, The Midnight Grace. She wore a white gown, made of an illustrious fabric that shimmered in the moonlight, as if it were made of a million fireflies. Faedra’s long and slender arms were held up at her sides as if they pulled her legs into motion like the movements of a master puppeteer. As she reached the end of the dock, she nodded and smiled with genuine pleasure at the captain of The Midnight Grace. The stocky man had a short-cropped, black beard and eyes as gray as an ocean storm.
“Where to tonight, m’lady?”
“Surprise me,” spoke the Queen softly, but with no lack of authority. Her blue eyes were rimmed with lines of gold and white, and her red lips, parted to display teeth as white and pure as the moon’s reflection upon the surface of the ocean.
“Yes, m’lady,” said the captain, knowing full well that his choice had better produce a positive reaction.
Queen Faedra boarded the large boat, its sail jutting high into the night air, with the help of her guards who were never far from her side. They extended their arms for her as gently as a father to his child. Queen Faedra was the treasure of Nefas, a woman whose beauty inspired prose and whose will commanded fear. The Midnight Grace left the dock for a trip into the wake of the moon, and the Queen found her favorite place along the starboard rail. Faedra loved the sea at night, she felt more secure under the guise of the night sky. She allowed herself the leisure of letting down her long, blond hair from its jeweled perch to rest upon her shoulders and trickle down the inward curve of her back. Faedra sighed and looked at the moon.
You are the only thing more beautiful than I, she thought.
The Queen lowered her eyes and let them rest for a while upon the mysterious depths, as the ship was guided out to sea. Once she had given herself an adequate amount of peaceful meditation, she called to one of her accompanying servants.
“Patrick. Patrick, bring me the news of the day.” Patrick did not answer and the Queen did not wait to reiterate her demand. “Patrick,” she said, allowing a thin amount of steel to shade her normally dulcet tone. Still, Patrick did not answer.
Queen Faedra turned to look upon the deck of The Midnight Grace and was shocked to find herself alone. With a shiver, the Queen moved through the adjacent rooms of the ship to find that they were all empty, and when she entered the wheel house to find her captain lost as well, panic struck at her heart. She gave out a brief shriek and began to call out.
“Hello!” she called to no one. “Where has everyone gone?”
With eyes wide and pulse racing, the Queen scurried back onto the deck and into the moonlight. She looked out into the wake of the vessel to see if she had been abandoned, and then, suddenly found herself knocked to the floor of the deck. Rising from the dark waters and into the cool air came the crackling and humming of a great electric figure, who burned as white as the light of the moon. Faedra was frozen and could not muster the breath to scream or utter as much as a whisper. Her mouth opened and closed as she tried to grasp the ability to speak.
“I can’t hear you, Faedra. Do not leave me disappointed.”
A tendril of electric light snaked its way through the air toward Faedra’s face, and just as it was inches from making contact, the Queen regained her speech.
“M-My Holy.”
“Yes,” said the Tyrant, as his tentacle of light stopped its progress, and instead began to retreat. “It is I. I have a desire that must be sated, Faedra.”
“Anything.”
Suddenly, the Tyrant dropped to the deck of the ship the figure of a man, which fell with a muted clang. The Queen rushed to the man and touched his arm to find it cold, hard and smooth. Faedra recoiled as she realized that it was no man at all, but a facsimile made of metals.
“What is this?” Faedra asked, turning her gaze upward to the being that floated above the ship’s deck.
A flash of light came forth as the Tyrant raised his hands, and suddenly, the man of metal gained tremors of movement, slowly lifting itself into an upright position. The man then stood, his eyes glowed with purple light, and his voice came forth slowly.
“I-am-Tom-a-ton.”
Then, the Tyrant lowered his palm and the energy that had given the metal man life, ebbed and then failed. This caused his metal frame to fall with a clank to the ship’s deck, where it lay motionless.
“I want many of him,” said the Tyrant.
“How many, my Holy?”
“Enough that I should be satisfied.”
“Yes. I will do this.”
“Good.”
And with no more words, the Tyrant dove overboard and his light disappeared beneath the surface of the water. Queen Faedra stared down at the motionless heap of metal lying upon the deck of The Midnight Grace and wept softly.
Chapter 17: An Old Friend
Evercloud, Riverpaw, Annie and the Floyds had left almost immediately after the Kingdom of Bears had held the death ceremony for the man named Jared Kane. Eveneye had remarked that it was a historic event. Never before had the death ceremony been performed for a human. The man’s body had been placed upon a small, wooden raft, set afire, and then sent down a wide stream. A bear, by the name of Greatroar, had said words of thanks for Jared’s battle against the evil beast and had given a poetic account of how Jared’s body would now be given to the Earth, by the grace of the Ancients.
The event was somber, even for the bears who knew little of humans, save for the few who had begun to live upon Gray Mountain. The death ceremony of Jared Kane seemed to mark a definitive change in the world for the Kingdom on Gray Mountain. Evercloud noticed it, and so did Eveneye. They looked at each other with knowing glances, not needing to exchange a single word. The Kingdom would no longer be the Kingdom of Bears, because it was no longer a kingdom of only bears. It was written in the eyes of the bears who expressed a sadness, genuine and profound, for the death of a man. It was written upon the arms of the men and women who bore Jared’s body to the raft upon the stream, taking part in a ceremony that had never been known to humans. It was in the air, it was everywhere. The world was changing… The world had changed.
Evercloud had been eager to resume the quest, but when it came time to leave the mountain and his family, he was sad. A great piece of his heart resided in the rock of Gray Mountain and it always would. The group of travelers gave their goodbyes and thanks, and then left in the quiet of the noonday sun.
With the mountain behind them and the horizon to be pursued, Iolana, Ben, Tomas, Annie, Evercloud, and Riverpaw headed west to find the first eagle feather they hoped would lead them to Harena. For the better part of a day, the group was silent as they walked, but eventually curiosity got the better part of the newest member of the group. Annie was very interested to learn all she could about her new companions, and after roughly one week, her questions began to exhaust each member of the party to the point that they had to take turns speaking with her. Annie’s appetite for knowledge was voracious. She pestered Evercloud and Riverpaw on every matter she could think of concerning the Kingdom on Gray Mountain. When Riverpaw grew tired of her questions, he would often take to lying in order to entertain himself at Annie’s expense. Evercloud had learned to keep an ear on Riverpaw’s accounts, so as to ensure he wasn’t playing too much with Annie’s mind.
“Well, we don’t always eat human,” said Riverpaw. “Only when we are very hungry or on certain holidays. Evercloud, as well, has eaten human many times.”
Annie’s eyes grew wide with horror and Riverpaw smirked impishly.
“Riverpaw!” Evercloud scorned.
“I’m joking,” Riverpaw admitted to Annie, reluctantly, as she sighed with relief.
“It’s amazing that any of you are alive,” observed Annie.
“I’m still shocked almost daily,” admitted Tomas.
“What’s shocking,” said Ben, “is having to come to terms, so frequently, with how little we really know about ourselves and the world around us… but in a way, it’s also exciting. Discovery, adventure.” Ben allowed himself a furtive smile.
But of all the things that held Annie’s curiosity and imagination, the woman with the ancient powers topped the list. Annie spent hours by Iolana’s side as the group traveled across Ephanlarea. Annie picked Iolana’s brain for every bit of her history, and every morsel of history she could tell of the earth. Iolana never grew weary of the conversation; never became frustrated with the inquisition. After but a week of travel, one would have thought the women were old friends, given how they interacted with each other. Evercloud wondered if Iolana hadn’t been missing feminine companionship for some time. He watched the women from a distance, laughing at each other over some shared joke, and he felt a strange emotion come over him.
I’m jealous, he thought in astonishment. His eyes looked over Iolana and found peace upon the surface of her pale skin, he found happiness in the curls of her long, red hair, and found desire within the depths of her soft, blue eyes, but these emotions were not hers, they were his. He turned his gaze away from her and looked toward the horizon as a horrifying thought occurred to him.