Legend of the Timekeepers

by Sharon Ledwith

  The whole city shimmered when the sun touched it. Lilith hooded her eyes. The opulence of the City of the Golden Gates was like nothing she’d ever seen in any other place. And probably would never see again. Orichcalcum was plentiful and used as trim for homes and temples. Flat-topped pyramids were positioned throughout the city, all built on higher ground. Crystals the size of Elie’s head adorned every pyramid’s summit. The deeper they walked into the city, the steeper the land became. Every now and then, Lilith would scan the canal looking for a glimpse of Anapa’s ferry.

  They had almost reached the inner circle and the final wall of the city. This wall was bathed entirely in orichalcum. The wall sparkled like a raging fire in the midst of changing direction, projecting the simultaneous feelings of a warning and an auspicious welcome for Lilith’s return home. Rhea stopped singing, severing the connection she had created with all those around her. Lilith shivered and clasped her hands.

  “Why do you wish to meet with Belial, Shu-Tu?” Lilith asked, breaking the silence between them.

  “Your dream did not reveal this to you?” she replied warily.

  “No,” Lilith replied, tired of lying. “All I know is that we were sent here to return the One who must banish evil, before the end of the first major quake.”

  Shu-Tu held her hand out to the other seers to stop them. “You know.”

  “Know what?”

  “You know of the impending doom. You know of the prophecy. You are the Timekeeper.”

  Lilith sighed and unclasped her hands. She reached under the neckline of her gown and pulled out her life seal to show Shu-Tu and the other seers. Rhea gasped. She placed her hands together and bowed reverently. “We have been foretold of your coming.”

  The four other seers placed their hands together and bowed too. Lilith heard them mutter a prayer to Poseidon. Confused, she shook her head. “All I know is that we were sent here by the Children of the Law of One to complete a task.”

  “Then that is all you need to know,” Shu-Tu replied. “That knowledge is enough for now.”

  “So how—” Lilith paused, trying to form the correct words “—will I know what needs to happen next to carry out the Law of One’s wishes?”

  “You don’t,” Rhea replied. “You look, listen, and trust. That is all any of us can do.”

  “You must open your mind, child,” Shu-Tu said. She reached out to touch Lilith in the center of the forehead. “Deep, inner knowledge comes from this place. Learn to open this area, to receive what needs to be received, and the answer will come.”

  Shu-Tu’s eyes moved around, looking this way and that way, focusing but not focusing. “Do not allow your fears to cloud this area, Lilith. Fears can cripple a person just as they can cripple a country.” She removed her finger from Lilith’s forehead and looked around before she said, “Fears need to be removed from the mind so that insights may be received. In any matter, you must learn to dig deep within yourself, remove the illusion, and seek the truth. This will set you free.”

  “But how will this help Lilith return the One who must banish evil?” Ajax-ol asked, adjusting the rope around Elie’s thick, wrinkled leg. She smacked him with her long snout.

  Shu-Tu arched her white brows. Her eyes spun around her sockets. “You were not spoken to, Tau.”

  “But, this one seems different, Shu-Tu,” Rhea said. “Perhaps the people of the Black Land allow certain liberties for their hybrids. Perhaps we should listen to what he has to say.”

  Lilith sighed. “Permission to speak, Tau.”

  “You say Lilith must remove illusion and seek the truth,” Ajax-ol said, scratching at his paws. “You say she is the one Atlantis has been waiting for. I say you’re expecting too much from this girl. It is up to Atlanteans to wake up to the abomination of the Sons of Belial. This crisis did not happen overnight.”

  “No, it did not,” Shu-Tu replied. “But who is to say it cannot be corrected by tomorrow? This is the power of hope and faith. You need to understand that.”

  Ajax-ol grunted. “It would take the forces of Poseidon to correct what Belial and his Black Priests have done here.”

  “Precisely,” Shu-Tu said. “The earthquakes and eruptions are Poseidon’s way of letting Belial and his followers know just how displeased he is. They will either get worse or get better.”

  “What if they get worse?” Lilith asked. “What does the prophecy say about that?”

  Rhea placed her slim hand on Lilith’s shoulder. “The prophecy is clouded. That is why we asked for an audience with Belial.”

  “You asked to see Belial?” Lilith turned to look Rhea in the eye. “What do you hope to gain from him?”

  “Clarity,” Shu-Tu said. “If nothing changes, then everything changes.”

  Ajax-ol sighed. “Then let’s hope for change.”

  Rhea giggled. “Change is the only constant, Tau.”

  10

  Belial

  “Ohhh, it’s exactly how I remembered it,” Lilith said, with a hint of longing. “So beautiful, so grand.”

  “You make it sound like you haven’t visited here in a long time,” Ajax-ol whispered.

  “I…I haven’t.”

  Lilith stared up at the Temple of Poseidon situated on the highest point of the city. Made of the whitest and purest marble, and trimmed with shiniest orichalcum, it resembled a gleaming pearl in an oyster to her. It would take a line of at least twenty tusked beasts to measure this magnificent structure’s length, and twenty-five stacked on top of each other to judge the height. Brilliant marble steps were cut into the hill, winding upwards as if the Atlantean craftsmen followed a serpent’s trail. Then Lilith looked around. Blue tiles, polished to the highest luster, covered the grounds of the courtyard below the temple. Flowing fountains were everywhere, offering people sanctuary from the heat and a place to congregate. A succession of golden statues, all former kings and their wives, held their position among the flowering shrubs and lofty trees. Silver snakes surrounded the base of each statue, their eyes glittered with gemstones the size and color of ripened olives. Elie raised her long snout and bugled, then headed for the closest fountain, scattering peacocks in her wake.

  Ajax-ol stumbled and fell. At least he had enough sense to let go of the rope.

  “Are you hurt, Tau?” Rhea helped him up. She was trying not to laugh.

  Ajax-ol grinned. “I’m not now.”

  “Your claws, they…they look infected,” she said, pointing. “You keep scratching them. And the flies are attracted to the smell. That is not good. Your tail seems lifeless too. Perhaps I could give you a healing powder for relief?”

  “Um…sure, yes, that would be kind of you.” Ajax-ol wiggled his behind. “But…but first, Elie needs food. I shall lead her to the grassy knoll near the canal.”

  Ajax-ol bowed to Rhea, then turned and ran after Elie, who was now spraying herself all over using her powerful long snout. Some of the mist landed on a group of priests dressed completely in black robes. Lilith’s eyes widened. Uh-oh, not on the Black Priests, Elie! One bellowed out a vulgar word Lilith had heard her uncle utter only once when he and her father were discussing Belial.

  “Augh! Who owns this disgusting tusked beast?” a Black Priest shrieked.

  “Hello, Bus-Lu,” Shu-Tu said, her voice void of any emotion. “She belongs to us.”

  “Shu-Tu? Weren’t you banished from the Temple of Poseidon?”

  “Yes, I was,” she replied stoically. “Belial is expecting us.”

  Lilith’s stomach cramped. The Black Priest Shu-Tu had called Bus-Lu strutted toward them, his robe unfurling like a vulture’s wings. His dark gray hair was pleated and tied back, making his plump clean-shaven face look like a melon. Oddly, his eyes matched the color of his hair. Black Priests had always had a reputation of being above all others, of an
swering to no one except Belial. And judging by this Black Priest’s manner, Lilith knew that nothing about him was reverent. “Expecting you? What game are you playing here, Shu-Tu?” Bus-Lu asked, exposing his uneven teeth. “Seers are no longer welcome here.”

  “I play no games, Bus-Lu. I only bring Belial news of the prophecy.”

  Bus-Lu wiped his damp chin. “Tell me. I will relay your message to Belial. Your ridiculous spinning eyeballs will only serve to distract and make him laugh.”

  Lilith heard guffaws coming from the fountain. At least Ajax-ol had managed to lead Elie away from the rest of the Black Priests.

  “I seek his audience, not yours, Bus-Lu.” Shu-Tu’s eyes rapidly moved from side to side. Then she went cross-eyed and grinned. “Now go back to lurking in Belial’s shadow, you poor excuse for a priest.”

  Bus-Lu growled. “You dare to insult a Black Priest? Guards! Surround the tusked beast and bring it to the temple! It will take the bull’s place for tonight’s sacrifice!”

  “Nooo!” Rhea screamed, falling to her knees.

  Temple guards, with breastplates made of orichalcum, circled Elie and Ajax-ol and waved their gold-tipped spears in the air. An archer pulled out of the ranks and readied his bow with a silver-tipped arrow. Ajax-ol held tightly to Elie’s rope while patting her leg in an attempt to keep her calm. Elie began to teeter. She flapped her huge ears, raised her long snout, and cried out a warning.

  Panicking, Lilith found a freshly tilled garden next to a circle of giant white crystal stones. She dug her feet into the soil until she could only see the tops of them. Then Lilith opened her arms wide, closed her eyes, and concentrated. Please, please, please, protect Elie, please, please, please!

  “Release the tusked beast!”

  Lilith opened her eyes. I know that voice. “She-Aba?”

  “Make way for the Emissary of Duo-She-Dui from the Black Land,” Tau announced, holding Ajax-ol’s gilded staff in front of him. His life seal swung proudly from the top of the staff.

  “What’s the meaning of this? Who is Duo-She-Dui?” Bus-Lu snapped, turning to face She-Aba.

  Lilith looked behind her friends. Both Etan and Anapa were tying the ferry to a dappled marble dock. Anapa appeared nervous, his pointy ears lowered. However, Etan seemed more at ease, his shoulders down and body relaxed. They must have concocted this plan on the way here. She noticed a swarm of flies gathering around his wounded leg. This didn’t seem to bother Etan, as he remained focused on securing the ferry.

  She-Aba swished a hand in the air. “Silence! To not know Duo-She-Dui insults not only my people but your people as well.”

  Lilith smiled. She-Aba was taking her role as an emissary seriously. Lilith noticed She-Aba seemed taller. She looked down, and her eyes widened. She-Aba had on a new pair of shoes. These were higher than any of her other creations and decorated with strips of orichalcum and colored gems. She’d also crafted her life seal into a fancy brooch which held the spotted animal skin she wore in place. She-Aba sauntered over to stand before Bus-Lu. Her shoes gave her the advantage height-wise. Tau joined her. He banged the staff three times on the ground, reached into his leather pouch, and produced a small scroll. He handed it to She-Aba, who opened it. Her eyes bugged. She passed it back to Tau.

  “I cannot read your scribble, Scribe. You read it,” she said flatly.

  Tau rolled his eyes. He cleared his throat, and said, “By decree of the House of Duo-She-Dui, we come bearing an important message from the people of the Black Land.”

  Bus-Lu laughed, his fat throat bulging to twice its size. “The House of Duo-She-Dui sends children to the Temple of Poseidon? No wonder the Black Land is full of savages and fools!”

  The other Black Priests howled with laughter, slapping each other’s backs. Even the temple guards snickered. Lilith clasped her hands. This wasn’t going in their favor. What were She-Aba and Tau up to? Barely controlling his laughter, Bus-Lu waved to his fellow priests to be silent. He smirked and said, “So what is this important message that the House of Duo-She-Dui sends children to deliver?”

  The guards had lowered their spears, some leaning against them, in anticipation of hearing what Tau had to say. Lilith’s toes started to tingle. This sensation moved through her feet and surged up her legs. Releasing her hands, Lilith let the earth talk to her, link to her, and connect with her in a way she’d never known before. Be prepared, a voice whispered to her.

  She jerked. “Be prepared for what?”

  “This message, melon-head!” Tau said as he dropped the scroll and raised the staff. He walloped Bus-Lu on top of his head. Crack! Bus-Lu screamed, collapsed to his knees, and coddled his head like a precious golden egg.

  Lilith’s mouth dropped. She wasn’t prepared for that. “Tau!”

  “Yes?” Tau and Ajax-ol said in unison.

  Lilith groaned.

  “There are two Taus?” Rhea asked, standing. “This…this cannot be chance.”

  “Archer! Kill the human-jackal hybrid who brought these scourges from the Black Land here!” Bus-Lu yelled, trying to stand. Dizzy with pain, he fell again.

  Before Lilith took her next breath, an arrow flew at Anapa. Etan roared, pushed his friend into the canal, and took the arrow for his friend. He grasped the arrow protruding from his stomach, threw back his shaggy head, and roared with enough power to scatter a flock of birds resting in a nearby tree. Then Etan stumbled and plummeted to the ground.

  “Etan!” Ajax-ol screamed. He dropped Elie’s rope and sprinted toward him.

  Before the archer had time to nock another arrow, Tau poked him in the stomach with the staff, then struck him across the chest. He stumbled backward and fell into the closest fountain. “And that’s for Etan, serqet-breath!”

  Panicking, Lilith clapped her hands together three times, then opened her arms wide, letting all her foreboding feelings seep into the ground. She closed her eyes. Use me. Show me what I need to know, and what I need to do. Suddenly, a small, but significant tremor shot through her toes and up her legs. Lilith opened her eyes and smiled. I know what to do.

  Concentrating all her thoughts on Elie, Lilith began to sway, moving her hands back and forth, like branches caught up in the wind. Her body spiraling in, spiraling out. Slow at first, she gained momentum, while her whole body swayed, rocked, and wavered with the language of the earth. Elie mimicked Lilith, her huge body moving to and fro, her snout swinging, her tusks cutting into the air. Lilith directed Elie toward the attacking guards on her left. Elie scooped them up with her long tusks and pitched them into the canal. Turning, the great white beast picked up the remaining guards and heaved them into the tree tops. Most had either lost their spears in the canal or were caught in the branches. Elie raised her long nose and trumpeted a victory cry.

  Lilith released her bond with the earth and ran toward Etan and Ajax-ol. Anapa had managed to pull himself out of the canal and stood dripping over them, with his ears forward and his eyes solemn. Anapa’s earring glittered, catching the sun in an unusual way so that it shone down on Etan’s face. He was smiling that knowing smile. His breathing was deep and labored. Blood covered both his paws and seeped into the ground. He looked directly at Lilith for a moment, his smile deepened.

  “Timekeeper,” he strained to say, “you know what to do. You know what you are capable of now. My purpose here is done.”

  Lilith jerked. “You knew? All this time, you knew?”

  Etan nodded in silence.

  “No, no, no, Etan.” Ajax-ol cradled Etan’s head in his lap. “The seers are here, they…they know of remedies that will heal your arrow wound.”

  Lilith licked her lips. “The wyvern. It…it poisoned you, didn’t it?”

  Etan nodded slowly. “I took in the poison, so that you, your friends, and Ajax-ol may live.”

  “But…but the tail
never touched him,” Ajax-ol said in a broken voice.

  “The back claw did,” Etan replied weakly. “It’s…it’s tipped with a slow-acting poison.”

  “Did…did I hear you correctly?” Rhea asked as she walked up behind them. Elie’s rope was in her hands. “Did you just call Tau, Ajax-ol?”

  Ajax-ol sighed. “Yes, Rhea, it’s me.” He pulled off the fly-infested paws, then ripped away the tail She-Aba had fashioned for him and cast them aside.

  “Why would you pose as a human-lion hybrid?” She squeezed the gold rope in her hands so tight her knuckles turned white.

  A laugh sounding like a snake’s warning hiss echoed behind them. “Because Ajax-ol, son of Ajxor, is a coward. And cowards tend to hide in sheep’s clothing.”

  Lilith glanced over her shoulder. Her jaw dropped. She’d seen many drawings and carvings of him before. Statues were erected all over this city by his followers. Her throat tightened at her first real glimpse of him, this magus, this monster.

  Belial loomed before them, his shadow engulfing Etan’s face like a hungry viper. Tall and lean, his straight nose overpowered his long face and small ears. A corkscrew-braided beard covered his entire chest, and his shoulder-length dark brown curly hair was held in place by a purple headband with an orichalcum snake’s head protruding from it. Lilith shivered. Even being in this dark magus’s shadow was enough to snuff her light out.

  “Move aside,” She-Aba yelled, pushing her way past the guards flanking Belial. Tau was two steps behind her, holding up Ajax-ol’s staff, which he’d recently turned into a weapon. “I am the Emissary of the House of Duo-She-Dui from the Black Land. I demand an audience!”