The First Ones

by Michael Weinberger

  Ignoring each other the two Ancient creatures clawed at the snow-covered earth for any purchase that might stop their slide toward the inner fires of the volcano, but all of their efforts were met with either soft snow, or frozen hard earth. Kaylanna opened her wings, caught the wind and lifted her body off of the ground at the last minute. Benjamin reached for Kaylanna in an attempt to prevent her escape from the death slide but she pulled her legs up and out of his grasp in time. Kaylanna watched in surprised glee as Benjamin continued to slide toward the magma vent and directly into little Aurora before the momentum carried them both over the edge and into the emptiness of the volcano’s void.

  Chapter 34: The Curse…

  Kaylanna’s eyes just stared after them as the pair disappeared over the edge and into the darkness. She flew toward the volcano’s vent, but had to veer away as an ash cloud rose from the depths of the volcano’s magma chamber. There was no sign of the Spirit Bear or the child, and Kaylanna just hovered with her eyes scanning the darkness for anything that might indicate the pair hadn’t fallen to their doom.

  She saw no signs of life and Kaylanna turned her eyes back to the sky to watch as the last of the Northern Lights faded to leave only the black starry night of the Alaskan wilderness.

  The world went quiet, and in that moment, and with a great realization settling over her, Kaylanna rejoiced.

  She had done it!

  The spell had been cast and the sacrifice of the First One made under the illumination of the Northern Lights had been completed. Perhaps not from the dagger as planned, but the ritual had only called for the death of the child, it wasn’t specific about the manner in which that death had to occur.

  From the depths of the earth came a rumble that forced Kaylanna to retreat to the edge of the crater, where she landed and watched with a great anticipation for the fruits of her labor to come into being. The ash cloud grew in size and speed as it plumed and roiled from the vent. Kaylanna knew it was the sprouting of the spell’s plague cloud, and that the beginning of humanity’s final moment had begun.

  Then a scream broke through the silence.

  Purely on instinct Kaylanna turned to see the Chosen One’s mother peering down from the edge and desperately searching for any sign of her child. Kaylanna regarded the woman for a moment, she had been a worthy adversary and deserved a warrior’s death. Ironic that her death was about to come from the plague and would be ignoble for one such as her.

  Kaylanna turned back to the plague cloud to watch it rise higher and higher into the night sky before she turned to the woman, the mother and Guardian of the First One. Kaylanna moved toward the wailing cow, intent on delivering a quick end to shut her up once and for all.

  But she never saw Jet arrive and he was vengeance in human form.

  Arriving on the back of a snowmobile, he looked like fury itself as he launched himself forward to slash at her throat with Grandpa George’s staff. The talons of the Great Horned Owl secured to the end of the staff sliced through the leather-like flesh at her throat as easily as if it were no more than mist. Kaylanna coughed and gagged as her bat-like hands covered her wound in shock and pain. Her blood flowed through fingers inadequate to the task of staunching the tide and stained the ground where it fell.

  Kaylanna’s legs failed her and she dropped to her knees as her eyes darted around in utter confusion. The wound shouldn’t have had such an effect on her, but she felt her body shifting back into her human guise as the magic in the artifact stole her strength.

  Jet stood before the Ancient and reversed his grandfather’s staff in his hands so the point tipped with the large obsidian spearhead he had retrieved from Grandpa George’s medicine bag was pointed menacingly into Kaylanna’s face.

  Kaylanna choked out a laugh and her voice was a raspy ruin as she spoke, “You’re too late! I’ve already won! There is no undoing the spell once it has begun!”

  Jet looked toward the volcano’s vent and studied it for a second before the realization set in and caused his body to deflate in understanding.

  Kaylanna made a croaking sound, likely a laugh, as Jet turned his gaze back to her, “You wanted a world without humans. A world you might keep all to yourself? Maybe you accomplished that, maybe it can’t be stopped.”

  “No ‘maybe’ child. The world is mine, and you will soon die from what I have unleashed.”

  Jet looked to Ursula and watched as she crumpled in on herself as she continued to cry after her daughter.

  “I may have failed to stop you, Kaylanna,” Jet said as he raised his spear, “but this is for my Grandfather, you Bitch!”

  Jet thrust the spear into the center of Ursula’s chest and felt the obsidian spearhead pierce flesh and bone as it slid through her chest. He thrusted harder and felt something yield inside the Ancient’s body, before the obsidian sank deeply into and through her wicked heart. Kaylanna screamed as the flesh around the wound blackened and bubbled as if it had been doused with acid. Jet snarled as he twisted and ripped the spear from her body, then drove it back into her stomach. Kaylanna coughed out black blood, her hands leaving her throat to grab at the spear’s shaft as it entered her again.

  Jet kicked her hands away, ripped the spear out again and repeatedly drove the spear in and out of Kaylanna’s body over and over, until he made one last thrust that drove the jagged spearhead through her right eye, into Kaylanna skull and pierced her brain.

  Kaylanna’s body thrashed in death and dissolved into the same bubbling, black, tarry ooze as her children had when the magic that sustained them left their bodies. Jet put his foot on her head, pinned it against the snow and lava rock while she died, until there was nothing more than bones sitting in a pool of black slime.

  Jet let out a breath, his battle with the Ancient had ended, and he turned toward the volcano’s vent to see Ursula in a suicide crawl for the vent’s edge.

  Chapter 35: Outcomes

  Knowing Jet had to control his momentum as he moved to intercede, otherwise the ground would be too slick to stop them both Ursula from sliding into the vent, just as it had carried Benjamin over the edge. Jet shouted to her as he ran toward the rim, but she didn’t seem to hear or care to stop.

  Jet grabbed at Ursula’s leg and tried to hold her back, but Ursula was far stronger and, in her grief, would not be denied.

  Voices in the dark behind them called out, and Jet cried back for help as he heard more snowmobiles pull up, but Ursula had dragged herself beyond the point of no return and he only had a grip on one of her legs. Then his feet struck something below the snow that was solid enough to give him a purchase to stop their slide from going in any further. In response Ursula began to thrash desperate to break free and end her own life likely without even realizing that she’d be taking Jet along with her. It was all he could do to plead for Ursula to stop struggling, when he heard it.

  The sound of a child’s laugh rose out of the vent and carried on the wind as it escaped from the volcano.

  Ursula stopped her efforts upon as she heard the sound and froze.

  Jet knew the laughter could only have come from Aurora, not the First One inside Aurora, but Aurora herself.

  Jet and Ursula’s eyes tracked the sound of laughter skyward along with the plague cloud. Ursula began to sob as she looked at the smoke swirling in the air above her, and held out her hands, as if reaching out for Aurora one last time.

  Tears filled Jet’s eyes and fell down his cheeks. He may have failed the entire human race, but in that moment, all he cared about was having failed the one tiny, beautiful child. A little girl, who hadn’t volunteered for any of this, but was still a victim nonetheless.

  “May your spirit find peace,” Jet whispered, as he fiercely wrapped his arms around Ursula who, after a pause, gripped him back tightly in return.

  Something stirred in the air as they watched the smoke waft above them and sparks began to ignite within the smoke cloud. The effect grew in intensity until the entire cloud was animated with flick
ering lights. Jet frowned and looked to Ursula, but she was too lost in her grief to notice or care. Jet wanted to comfort her, but he felt a compulsion to look back to the glowing smoke cloud and noticed it had stopped rising into the sky.

  The colors of the cloud had changed and were noticeably similar to those of the Northern Lights. Jet found himself mesmerized as the cloud shifted with the light and smoke separating, until the ash and soot floated up to disperse on the wind while the light flowed softly down toward Jet.

  Everyone, including the Spirit Bears and the First Men all watched as the glow began to sparkle as it enveloped Jet and swirled around him like a collection of fireflies, until it covered his skin. Jet looked down on himself with more interest than fear as his body slowly absorbed the light and it faded fully into him. It tingled a little, but otherwise he felt no different and once the final bits of light were gone. Jet kept his embrace around Ursula as the rest of the First Men recovered from the spectacle and reached for them, extending ropes and using everything at their disposal, until they were safely back from the edge of the volcanic rim. The Spirit Bears reverted back to human form and were given warm clothing, while the First Men began chanting various prayers or offering sympathetic words to Ursula.

  Then the sound of laughter filled the air again… but this time the laughter was coming from inside the volcano’s vent.

  Jet and Ursula let go of each other as confused looks crossed over their faces and everyone turned to the vent.

  It was Benjamin’s broken, not quite human voice that broke their stupor.

  “Okay, once more. Hold on!” came Benjamin’s voice from the darkness of the vent. There was another laugh as Benjamin shouted, “Here we go! One, two, three!” and Benjamin’s half-bear, half man claw hands appeared at the rim of the vent, gripping it tightly.

  Jet and Ursula both scrambled to their feet, as Benjamin made a grunting sound of effort before his furry head and shoulders rose out of the vent with Aurora riding piggyback on his shoulders, gripping tightly to the fur at his neck while smiling widely at his antics, apparently enjoying every moment of the ride.

  Ursula moaned, and tried again to crest the edge of the crater, but Benjamin saw her move and shouted, “Don’t!” Benjamin, now with a good hold of the side of the vent, shifted back to human form in order to speak clearly as Aurora wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. “There’s nothing to grab onto within the crater. Send down a rope, and have the snowmobiles pull us out.”

  No one moved, or even spoke, until one of the First Men shouted a victory cry, and ran for his snowmobile. As soon as that first cry erupted, the rest of the crowd joined in, including the Spirit Bears, and Jet found himself cheering with the rest of them. Aurora was safe, the Ancient Kaylanna was gone and her spell to end the world had never happened.

  They had won.

  Chapter 36: Six Weeks Pass as Quickly as Rain

  The rain had finally let up and Jet was screwing in the legs of a new IKEA coffee table, marking the last of the repairs and replacements to put Grandpa George’s cabin back in a restored condition. Setting the piece down on its legs and adjusting its position on the throw rug to suit him, he moved to the sumptuous leather sofa that had been delivered a week ago. He noticed it still had that intoxicating “new leather” smell as he lifted his half full coffee mug to his lips. The contents of the mug were warm and comforting and Jet felt his whole body relax as he admired the work he had finally finished. The room was pretty close to what he remembered and, now that most of the furniture had been replaced, the cabin actually began to give off the feeling of home. There were still several irreplaceable pieces missing from his grandfather’s collection, sacrifices to the war that had been waged, but Jet had acquired other pieces. Although the new items held no magic within them, as had the old versions, they imparted a kind of magic of their own in so much as they filled the empty space and made the it feel whole again. Jet marveled at the sense of completion and, despite knowing that the cabin would never really be the same, he allowed himself the small victory of honoring his grandfather by restoring it as best he could.

  He had been living and restoring Grandpa George’s cabin since returning from that final battle on the volcano. Returning to California, including his job with the Forestry Service, just seemed inconsequential now. He had emailed his resignation to his superiors, who although initially angry with him for disappearing, had put him on personal leave as opposed to terminating him.

  Jet had argued against it, but acquiesced in order to prevent any hard feelings. He never intended to return and was going to be very busy, traveling from one spiritual place to another, from tribal land to tribal land, in order to meet with elders and learn as much as he could about what it meant to be a Shaman. He had abilities now that needed to be both controlled and understood, and it was his responsibility to use these abilities properly, and to their greatest potential.

  Jet took a long pull from the coffee, considered the lukewarm contents to be in need of some more heat, and stood to move into the kitchen. Against one wall was a buffet table, made from the live edge slab of an Eastern Red Cedar tree. The wood wasn’t indigenous to the area and was a replacement for one that his grandfather had made from a fallen Red Alder tree that had grown nearby. The switch was one of Jet’s personal touches, and he loved the contrast that the white sapwood had with the deep red heartwood of the cedar. He couldn’t help staring at it for a few seconds each time his eyes landed on it. It also smelled amazing, just like walking into the humidor at a cigar shop, but it was the buckskin medicine bag, which rested on top of it that commanded Jet’s attention now. He didn’t remember putting it there, although he did remember taking it out of the box he had placed it in earlier, and he lifted the medicine bag with his free hand.

  The bag had been the catalyst for his spirit’s awakening and he could feel the vibration of power running through the bag as he held it. He considered putting it away, hiding it from view because of a worry that something so personal and powerful should be kept somewhere secure. But this was his grandfather’s bag and, metaphysically speaking, it contained a portion of the spirits of his grandfather, his father and himself. Putting an almost living thing into a dark storage space simply seemed wrong, so Jet folded the shoulder strap over itself, set the bag respectfully back down on the buffet, and nodded his head in agreement with his decision. The beautiful wood appeared to be a properly regal resting spot for something as important as the bag.

  A warm feeling flowed over him, and as he studied the bag, now residing upon the buffet table, he felt an arm sensually encircling his waist from behind.

  “Is everything all right, love?” Ursula whispered in his ear.

  Jet nodded, “It’s happy there.”

  “What?” Ursula asked gently, “Your grandfather’s bag?”

  Jet laughed, “I just said what was in my head, and the feeling I was getting from the space.”

  “Just as your grandfather had told you to do, when you were a child, right?”

  “Yes,” Jet confirmed, “it all seemed so silly to me back then. How could the bag literally be happy, you know? It’s just a bag, right?” Ursula set her chin on Jet’s shoulder while peering at the bag on the buffet table, as he continued, “And now, I know what he meant.”

  “So, the bag really is happy?” she teased.

  He laughed with her, “No, but the space is peaceful, and it just feels very right, hence the feeling I get from it, which I can only describe in terms as…happy.”

  Ursula smiled, “You’ve only spoken with a couple of the Inuit and Haida elders at this point, but you’ve already learned so much. You’re looking at the world in a completely different way now, aren’t you?”

  “I’m trying, but it’s not coming easily to me,” he admitted. “I suppose it’s to be expected. All of the years thinking one way left an impression that’s going to clash with my new philosophical outlook.”

  “Is that a bad thing?” she wondered.<
br />
  “Frustrating perhaps, but not really bad.”

  “Fair enough.” She reached around him with her other arm, holding out a large Thermos, “I just filled the Thermos with a fresh brew. Do you need me to warm you up?”

  “You already are,” Jet said with just a bit of sensual intent.

  “Really?” She cooed, and her hand drifted to his lower abdomen playfully. “I could make it really hot, if you like.”

  He could feel his breath catch pleasantly, as he considered her offer before asking, “Think we still have time to…?”

  “Not for anything grand, but maybe something quick, if you are up for it.” she said as she ran her hand below his beltline, “The question is, are you up for it?”

  Jet felt a shiver of anticipation beneath her hand, “I will be, if you keep that up.” Then a familiar twinge of regret went through Jet, and he hesitated.

  Noticing, Ursula asked, “Are you still having a hang up about us being together?”

  Jet sighed, “Sorry, but it’s my old way of thinking, the romanticism of ‘growing old with the perfect someone you love’ idea.” Jet raised one eyebrow, “Or maybe I just want what I can’t have.”

  Ursula set the Thermos on the floor and wrapped both arms around Jet’s waist, “You know we were prophesized to be together for a reason, right?”