What was the meaning of this?
As he watched and listened, Cameron began to suspect that Tem-aki and GEA-4 were as surprised by the Summoning Skull's strange message as he was. Silently he watched them watch the images inside the skull. The strangest thing was that from his perspective, he could see the couple seated on the ground through the side of the skull, but when he focused on looking into the skull's interior through the eye sockets, all he saw was empty space.
How could that be?
Suddenly, the woman opened her eyes.
Emerald green eyes, the color of a priestess.
Cameron gasped.
~o~
Nimri stared at the skull. Was it a trick of the light or did she see a face smushed against the inside of the skull? She blinked, but the only thing that changed was that beyond the flattened nose, which might – or might not – be part of a human face, she recognized GEA-4's eyes. Stranger still, off to the side of the skull a pair of brown eyes watched.
Did this mean the meditation had worked?
Or was her imagination going haywire?
"Larwin," she said softly, "do you see any difference in the skull?"
His eyes opened and turned his head, until he was looking at the back of the sun-bathed skull, as its vacant eyes gazed at Sacred Mountain. Two creases appeared in Larwin's forehead, then he leaned slightly toward the skull and squinted. "Is there something in there?"
"So you see them, too? It's not a trick of the light?"
"If you mean my sister, GEA-4 and a disembodied pair of eyes, yes."
Nimri blinked several times, then studied the flattened face. She had never imagined that Larwin's sister would have a smushed-in-looking face, but since he immediately recognized her, this must be how she looked.
"If she appears in there," Larwin paused to swallow, "does that mean she's dead?"
"I wish I knew," Nimri admitted, as she studied the poor woman who had apparently gone through life with a wide, flat nose. Had that affliction been something she was born with or due to some accident? She chewed her lower lip for a moment. "Did Thunder mention a third person?"
"Beg pardon?"
"He said Tem-aki and GEA-4 were missing, but who belongs to those other eyes?" Gooseflesh rippled over her arms. "It looks like the third person is watching her, and I was wondering if Thunder told you about a third person, or what the meaning of the eyes might be."
"He didn't mention anyone else to me." Larwin scowled. "You were the one he told about meeting her, first. I just learned about that a bit ago." He studied the distant image. "Do you think that other one is a threat?"
"I have no idea," she admitted. "Worse, if they are still alive and in danger, how can we help?"
"You've already begun to help."
"How so?
He gestured toward the skull. "Your guess about myst power seems to have opened some sort of communication link."
Nimri rubbed the tense muscles at the back of her neck. "I guess it is a start." But she wished she knew how she'd done this and how she could use it to find the information they needed to find Tem-aki and GEA-4 – hopefully alive and well. Unfortunately, since their images were inside an emblem of the dead, Nimri didn't have much hope of that.
"At least we now know they are alive and well," Larwin said.
Nimri turned to him, mouth half-open in surprise. Had she said something aloud? Snapping her jaws shut, she swallowed, then asked, "How can you know that?"
Larwin pointed beyond Tem-aki's shoulder to the lumpy black box in GEA-4's hands. "One, I don't think deactivated 'droids would end up in the same place as humans. And two, I suspect they might be seeing our images somehow, because Tem-aki is obviously staring at something and GEA-4 is using her tricorder to analyze something."
Could he be right? Nimri studied the vague images and was surprised to notice that now, there were two pairs of disembodied eyes in the background. Four eyes! Despite the fact that one pair of eyes appeared chocolate brown, and the other blueish, they reminded her of the cold, golden gaze the guardian's of the Star Bridge had fixed on her when she had guided Larwin to their world. Nimri shivered at the memory and looked for a tell-tale golden glint. But, if the original dark eyes had any color, it was more like a warm chocolate-brown and the newer eyes, now had a familiar green glint that looked a lot like Thunder's eyes.
She was almost positive that Thunder could not have died and passed to the next life, since she'd seen him. So, assuming he was alive, why was his image in the skull? Nimri rubbed her aching neck, as she asked Larwin if he thought the eyes looked like Thunder's.
"Could be." He looked deep into her own eyes, then back at the skull. "Same green, so probably."
"But how?"
"He's got a skull in his bedroom, doesn't he?" She nodded. "Then his theory about these things being for communication could be on track."
Nimri assumed that 'on track' meant correct. Larwin frequently made strange little remarks like that, which reminded her that he'd had a whole different life and other-worldly experiences before he came to her world.
She sighed and turned her attention to the skull, which needed to be understood if answers could ever be found.
Another question popped into her mind: if or when they found Tem-aki could she heal the poor woman's face?
And would it be rude to try?
For all she knew, big flat noses were considered beautiful on Guerreterre and nice, normal noses, like her own and Larwin's were considered homely.
Chapter 16
The scent of night flowers was beginning to perfume the air with their heady sweet scents when Thunder and Raine arrived. Nimri and Larwin were sitting in their garden, watching the sun's dying rays put a halo around the top of the stately sequoia their home was built around, when she heard them talking. It was Nimri's favorite time of day, but rather than relax and enjoy it, she hopped up to meet their unexpected guests. Before he said a word, Nimri knew Thunder had returned because of the skull's strange images. What she didn't understand was why he had brought Raine.
Just as Nimri hugged them both in greeting, Mica wailed from his basket under the gingko tree. Raine's eyes went wide with excitement. "May I?" She nodded toward Mica.
"Of course," Nimri said. Raine didn't need to be told twice. As she rushed toward Mica's spot in the shade, Nimri looked at Thunder and said, "She loves babies."
"I noticed." His eyes softened, as he watched Raine pick Mica up. Immediately, the baby's cries stopped. "Now, they are both happy."
Nimri nodded. "But you didn't bring her over here for baby cuddles, did you?"
"Not totally." He smiled. "Have you and Larwin observed anything unusual in your skull?"
"You know we have, because that's why you're here."
He nodded. "Tem-aki and GEA-4 were with you. When did they return?"
"They haven't."
"Then why were they with you?"
"From my perspective, you were with them."
"Seriously?" Nimri nodded. Thunder frowned. "How could that be?"
"Well, GEA-4 is amazing, perhaps she managed it."
"Is that what Larwin thinks?"
Nimri bit her lip as she shook her head.
Thunder lowered his voice to a whisper, "Does he think what I think? That they are dead?"
Nimri shrugged. "I don't think anyone knows what to think, even Kazza seems fascinated by this."
Looking thoughtful, Thunder scratched his head. "Maybe he is the ideal one to figure it out." Nimri felt her eyes open wide. "What? You don't think so?" Thunder put his hands on his hips. "Have you thought about the fact that it is a skull from one of his long-lost kin, and not a human?"
Nimri put her hand over her mouth, as she gasped at his logic. "Why didn't I think of that?"
Thunder shrugged.
~o~
Tem-aki perched precariously on the ledge of a boulder and stared into the calm water of the peaceful pool. At dawn, when she'd walked along this beach, the water ha
d lapped much closer to the ten-story-tall vertical stone wall that imprisoned the thin sandy beach next to the bay. She wasn't exactly sure why the water was lower, now or why the pool with the colorful fish and strange pincushion creatures seemed peaceful, but GEA-4 had shrugged off her comments with one word. 'Tide.' For now, Tem-aki was just happy to have found a seat where she could look into the water and watch the fish.
Who would ever have thought that something, which she had always thought of as an exotic food, could be so colorful or interesting to watch?
Or live in an environment which smelled like something was decaying nearby?
Some yellow-green fish with bright blue freckles and half-closed olive-colored eyes, had been half buried in the sand under the warm clear turquoise water but five of them were now moving around like some form of strange birds, as they navigated around a purple fan like plant, their one foot wingspans banking like a plane as they made the tight turn.
Suddenly, an orange and white snaky thing lunged out of a hole near the base of the fan and all the flying ones darted away. The patch of pretty flowers nearby snapped shut and vanished into straw-like holes. Tem-aki gasped as she leaned forward.
Suddenly off balance, she shrieked as she threw herself back against the boulder. Her spine hit the solid rock with a thud. It hurt, enough for her eyes to water, but falling into something without oxygen could have been deadly.
Heart pounding and eyes closed, she leaned back against the safety of the solid rock, until her pulse calmed. When she opened her eyes, she was looking skyward into Saphera's questioning gaze.
Tem-aki jerked in surprise and nearly launched herself into the water. She dug her bare toes and fingers into the rough rock and told herself that Cameron would not allow the cat into his house, if it was dangerous. That didn't calm her slamming heart, but she did manage a ragged breath.
When she dared to look back up, Saphera was lying down, chin on crossed paws with ears pointed forward as she stared down. Tem-aki gulped. "Are you happy?"
Saphera cocked her head to one side.
"Are you going to lie there and stare?"
Saphera blinked.
"You are, aren't you?" If she hadn't been afraid that launching herself into the water meant death, she wouldn't feel so threatened. Still the creature's body language didn't appear menacing. But that didn't mean she was any less trapped. "Why am I even trying to talk to a dumb beast?"
With a snort of disgust, Saphera lunged to her massive paws, dove over Tem-aki's head and landed in the water. She then casually paddled toward shore.
Tem-aki held tight to the rock so she wouldn't fall in after the cat.
When her heart finally stopped slamming against its imprisoning ribs, her fingertips were slick with blood. Carefully, she climbed back up the massive side of the rock and made her way toward shore. Once on the other side of the massive rock, she saw that the dry sand she had walked over to reach the boulder was now awash with water.
She stared at the shifting, rippling water.
How deep was it?
If she hopped down, would it suck her feet down, like the shallow water she toyed with most mornings?
Tem-aki swallowed her fear, but the lump in her throat remained.
Was it her imagination, or was the water traveling farther up the beach with each wave?
Brow furrowed in concentration, she remembered that today was the first time she had ever noticed that dry sand touched this particular lump of granite, as she walked the beach.
Worse, the water seemed to be rising minute by minute.
If she didn't move, now, she might be stuck here. Standing up, she hiked up the robe's voluminous fabric and leaped as far as possible, then ignoring the sucking sand, she ran for her life.
~o~
Cameron watched a moray eel stick its head out of a yellow coral head, and at the same time, avoid a cloud of small, bell-shaped jelly fish, which were transparent except for the four purple circles each of them had in the middle of their bodies. Closer, a school of orange, purple and pink fairy basslets reminded him of sparks from a fire, as they darted and swirled among the coral.
Hearing a splash, he looked up and saw Tem-aki, robe hiked up to her waist, exposing beautiful, long legs, running from the boulder, where she had been observing life in the tidal pool.
As she sprinted past, he noticed panic etched on her normally calm face. Cameron stood up and prepared to confront whoever had frightened her. But no one seemed to be in pursuit.
More splashing in the tidal pool drew his attention away from the beach, but it was only Saphera toying with the moray eel. Cameron sighed and wondered if he would ever be able to convince her to leave it alone. It had been seven years, since he had noticed Saphera harass the moray the first time. He had felt choking fear when he saw her jaws so close to the eel's poisonous flesh, yet he had managed to shake off the horror of what might be and shout at her to leave the thing alone.
Of course, Saphera had ignored him then, as well and the hundred other times he had warned her about touching the creature.
The strange part was that, even on the occasions when her jaws clamped onto a moray and she tossed it out of the water, she never appeared to show any signs of poisoning.
Not seeing anything unusual chasing Tem-aki, Cameron jumped down from the boulder and headed toward the stairway to the cloister. Despite Tem-aki's tendency to avoid speaking, she did say an occasional word or two, and if she was as upset as he suspected, perhaps she would finally talk to him.
Feet mounting each step with determination, he climbed the tall, steep stairway, which was anchored in a crevice of the sheer rock wall. On the patio, the novices were working on decorations and entertainment for the forth-coming Summer Solstice Ceremony, which would begin at Dragon Ridge with the next moon cycle.
A nasty-sounding laugh echoed among the other voices. Recognizing Varlet's tone, Cameron paused to listen to what the misfit, who only seemed to like people, who were either exactly like him or those who tried to curry his favor, was laughing about. Since a major premise of their faction was to accept others and treat everyone as they wanted others to treat them, Cameron had been surprised when Varlet passed his initial training phase.
He was even more surprised that in the months since Varlet had been under his own supervision, the initiate had not done anything which was punishable by expulsion. Varlet had come close to the line, yet he had never actually crossed it.
Hearing no more laughter or derogatory comments, Cameron resumed climbing the steep stairs. Now, instead of wondering why Tem-aki had looked so terrified, he wondered if Varlet or his syncopates had done something to terrify her. Much as Cameron would like to believe her haste to return to his home had something to do with wanting to watch their solstice preparations, in his heart, he knew she did not have any interest in the most important project any draco could ever be assigned to oversee.
In the 1066 years since his ancestors came through the Star Bridge, each eighty-two year-cycle end had been a special time. Had Tem-aki and GEA-4 arrived because this year's Summer Solstice marked the end of thirteenth cycle and the beginning of the fourteenth?
For the first time in his life, Cameron wondered if being in charge of officiating at the celebration would be good or bad.
Whatever it was, it was his responsibility.
As the preparations on the patio came into view, Cameron's gaze sought Tem-aki, but he only saw Varlet. The typical group surrounded the tall, wide-shouldered man. If Varlet didn't have shifty eyes and thin, angry lips, he would be handsome and if he had a more caring heart, he would eventually be a good draco. Unfortunately, Cameron doubted that Varlet would ever become a good draco and realized that as long as the man kept just inside the regulations, there would never be just cause to dismiss him.
Perhaps it would be wise to think of a reason for him to resign.
~o~
"Shine a light from the back, so the light comes out of the eyes," GEA-4 said as
she held the candle to the back of the crystal-quartz skull. When the interior of the skull began to glow, she added, "It activates the power."
Tem-aki frowned. "What is the purpose?"
"I believe it might act as a dimensional door."
"You think we passed through to a different dimension?" The high-pitched note hurt her own ears, almost as much as the thought that she might have ended up somewhere from which she could never leave.
"It is a possibility."
Tem-aki stared at the crystal-quartz skull. On other worlds, it would be viewed as a masterpiece of art, with no special powers, except its ability to captivate the viewer's interest.
Could it be a way to communicate with her brother, even if he was in another dimension?
If so, it was a miracle that she should use, not complain about because this form of communication was not exactly what she wanted.
So what if Larwin wasn't in front of her and she couldn't speak to him? So what if she didn't know where he was or where she was. She'd spent most of her life not knowing his actual location because, as a Shadow Warrior, his missions were top secret.
She had a way that she could communicate with him, and she needed to figure out how to use it.
Heart pounding, she turned to GEA-4 and told her what they needed to have available the next time the skull connected with Larwin.
Chapter 17
Tem-aki watched Nolan, the kind gray-haired grandfatherly-looking one, instruct Benji, the energetic, young one with freckles, how to chop onions, tomatoes and peppers. Guerreterre's food was processed in factories on whichever world produced it, so she had only seen what the vegetables looked like in pictures and holograms. The reality of cutting onions was not only an eye opening affair, it was an eye watering one, too.
Benji's eyes were watering so badly that he nicked his finger.
Nolan hustled the boy over to the bamboo tube that ran a continual stream of water into a large bowl and washed the injury clean, then applied pressure to the cut flesh. All the while, Nolan calmly spoke to Benji. To Tem-aki's surprise she understood the essence of what he was saying, so apparently GEA-4's most recent additions to the language program were working.
Fire Island: Book 3 of The Chatterre Trilody (Chatterre Trilogy) Page 12
