Eighth Fire

by Curtis, Gene

  Mark turned to his dad and started to ask how he felt about this home as compared to his parents’ home, but the answer he thought he’d get seemed obvious. Of course his dad didn’t think of his parents’ home as his home anymore. This was his home now, and his family. Never again would his parents’ home be his home.

  Mark thought about how he felt. For him, this was home, here with his family, but The Seventh Mountain was also home, with friends as close as any family could be. He knew one day he’d have to choose one or the other, and he knew what that choice would eventually be. He stood and put his arms around his mother. “Mom, Dad, I love you guys so much!”

  It was just after nine a.m., Virginia time, when Shana knocked on the front door. Mark stood up from the table; no one had left their place since breakfast. His mother stood too, and they embraced.

  Mark said, “It’s time for me to go. I’ll write and we’ll see each other at the flags matches.” He reached out and his father took his hand.

  “Son, I can’t tell you how proud I am.”

  Mark looked his father square in the face and felt his eyes swell. This was the first time his dad had shook his hand. “Thank you, sir.”

  “Well, you’ve earned it s...” The pause was momentary. Steve was going to end the sentence with the usual ‘son’, but instead said, ‘sir.’ Mark thought it was the highest form of praise his dad could think of at the moment.

  Mark nodded his head. He knew exactly what his dad had just done. It was very hard for him to hold back the tears. He kissed his mother on the cheek and said, “Shana’s waiting, I need to go.” He turned and walked to the door.

  He reached the door and heard his mother call from behind, “Benrah won’t hesitate to kill you, or us. You remember that.”

  Mark opened the door and Shana was waiting with her usual smile. She looked behind Mark and said, “Hello, everyone. It’s good to see you again, and just as a reminder, mail pick-ups are on Saturday mornings, don’t forget to leave a curtain open.”

  She extended her arm to Mark and before anyone could say anything they were gone. Instantly they were at the front entrance to The Seventh Mountain. They stood in front of a polished bronze statue of four horses and four students just yards from the front steps of the main entrance.

  Shana said, “Testing begins promptly at seven o’clock in The Oasis. Don’t be late. You’re a level one sophomore, so it’s two points per minute now.”

  Mark asked, “Is Mrs. Shadowitz in her office?”

  Another counselor materialized with a student beside Shana. Shana glanced to her right, acknowledging the other people, turned back to Mark and said, “She should be somewhere around The Oasis. She’ll be starting the testing. Do you really need to see her, or is it something I can take care of?”

  “I don’t know? I just think I know what Benrah wants me to destroy.”

  “Yes, I heard about that.” She shook her head slowly. “What do you think it is?”

  “I think Otomi’s brother stole the power source for the sunstone, and I think I almost know the area where he hid it.”

  “That’s something Mrs. Shadowitz needs to know, right away. I’d go with you, but I’ve got four more students to bring in.”

  “I figured something like that. I’ll find her.”

  Shana disappeared and Mark glanced at the inscription on the statue.

  For Friends

  Destiny Chose Friends, Four.

  Legend Sprang From Emerald’s Core.

  He looked around; the other counselor and student were gone. He thought a little about things that had happened last year, and wondered what lay in store this year. Some of Mrs. Shadowitz’s last words came to his mind. There is more to the staff than we have discovered, and we still have no idea why you four were pre-chosen. He knew without a doubt that more of his destiny would be revealed this year.

  He removed his cloak from Aaron’s Grasp and rubbed his fingers along the emerald green embroidery work along the bottom seam before putting it on. To him, that act was a conscious decision to walk a path he was certain could lead to the destruction of everything and everyone he had ever held dear. He also felt if he chose not to take that journey, his own fate would be sealed. He remembered the story of Jonah; how Jonah had been eaten by a big fish as a result of refusing to follow destiny’s course. He turned toward the main entrance of the mountain and whispered to himself, “Destiny awaits.”

  He saw Mrs. Shadowitz seated at the center table on the stage opposite the main entrance to The Oasis. Students, all wearing cloaks trimmed in tribe colors, were milling around talking to each other. Mark waved at Nick and Jamal when they called to him, but otherwise ignored them while he walked up to the stage. He knew better than to just walk up onto the stage until he was summoned. He called, “Mrs. Shadowitz.” She glanced at him with a quizzical look on her face, and then motioned for him to put his hood up before stepping onto the stage.

  Mark approached her and said, “I think Benrah is after the power source for the sunstone.”

  “What makes you believe that?”

  “When I came out of the labyrinth, the first time, I started having this dream over and over again, until Ricky Barns and all. I just forgot about it. I didn’t have it again until last night.”

  Mrs. Shadowitz said, “Show me the dream.”

  Mark learned last year that he projects the thoughts in the front of his mind into other people’s minds, a rare ability the Magi called Rooack Dabar, or spirit speak. He’d learned to control it with the help of exercises Mr. Diefenderfer had assigned for that very purpose. He brought the dream to the front of his mind, remembering as much detail as possible.

  After he finished Mrs. Shadowitz asked, “Does the dream always end there?”

  “At first, they ended earlier than they did in the one you just saw, but each one went a little farther until they all just started ending there.”

  “Do you recall any names of landmarks or anything else that might help us identify a specific place?”

  “Only that the people that lived there called themselves The People of the Land, and meant to help the warrior...Xocotli. Xocotli! That’s the warrior’s name, Xocotli! I didn’t know that until just now!”

  Mrs. Shadowitz nodded, “Is there anything else that might help us identify this place?”

  Mark shook his head, “No ma’am. I can’t think of anything.”

  “Very well, right after today’s testing is done, I want you to go to the library and start looking through books that deal with that area, especially pictures. See if anything looks familiar, like you’ve been there before.”

  Mark nodded and said, “Yes, ma’am. When I find something, I’ll come tell you?”

  “You just tell Shana or Jeremy. They’ll get the word to me faster than you can. Now, go take your seat, it’s almost time to start.”

  Mark found Nick, Jamal and Chenoa seated at an Emerald Tribe four place table and sat down. On the table in front of him was a test booklet almost an inch thick.

  Chenoa asked, “What’s going on? Nobody will tell us anything.”

  Mark knew she was referring to Ricky Barns and what happened in the labyrinth. He said, “I don’t know much, they aren’t telling me either, except that Benrah wants me to destroy something I’m supposed to find sometime in the future. Benrah didn’t say what it was, only that he’d destroy everything and everyone I held dear if I didn’t do it.”

  Chenoa blurted out, “You can’t destroy it! It’s —” She caught herself.

  “It’s what?”

  Chenoa thought fast. “If Benrah wants you to destroy it, and he can’t destroy it, it’s too important to destroy, that’s all.”

  “If I don’t destroy it, Benrah says he’s going to destroy everyone I ever held dear.” Mark looked at each of his three friends in turn. “That means he’s going to kill all three of you.”

  Nick said, “He can try,” and chuckled.

  Mark leaned forward and shook his
head. “Listen, I’ve seen him and what he can do. Even Mr. Diefenderfer and Mr. Young together didn’t stand a chance against him. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

  Mrs. Shadowitz’s amplified voice sounded over the din of the students. “Ah-hem.” The hubbub settled immediately. “Thank you for your attention. Before each of you is a test booklet containing two thousand individual items. There are no correct answers, only answers and descriptions that you feel are best for you. This is a survey to help us determine your preferred methodology. When that determination is made, you will receive a second stone for your signets.

  “You may take as many breaks as you like after you have completed the first one hundred items. You may leave when you are finished with the survey. There are no restrictions on activities unrelated to the test. Yes you may talk, just be mindful not to disturb others nearby. If you wish to eat, please do so at one of the dining booths. Counselors and staff are not allowed to give advice or suggestions to students for the duration of the day. I think that about covers everything. You may begin.”

  Mark opened his booklet. The questions began:

  1. What considerations should be given when changing a light bulb?

  2. I dislike the color chartreuse. Rate this statement from 1 to 10 and discuss how it applies to you.

  3. How would you organize your group of 6 people with 4 shovels to dig a hole?

  4. Discuss how you decide to store your clothes.

  5. Describe people that want to be friends with you in terms of intelligence and aspirations.

  6. Discuss which is more important: details or the source of the information.

  7. Discuss how you know when you’ve achieved success.

  8. How do you feel books should be arranged in your library?

  9. Which are more important and why: actors or stage hands?

  10. Discuss which should be treated first and why: symptoms or cause?

  A hundred questions later, Mark was finished with section one of the test. He sat back in his chair and rubbed the heels of his hands across his forehead before looking around. A few students had gotten up for a break, but Chenoa, Jamal and Nick were still scribbling away. He stretched, leaned toward Jamal and whispered, “I’m taking a breather,” and pointed to an empty booth.

  Jamal didn’t look up. “I’m on number ninety-eight. I’ll be there in a couple of minutes.”

  Nick and Chenoa glanced up, nodded and went right back to work.

  Jeremy walked up just after Mark sat down in the booth and sat a cold glass of tea on the table. “You want to order now or wait for your friends?”

  Mark said, “I’m going to wait. Thanks for the tea.”

  “You’re welcome. How’re you doing on the test?”

  “I thought you weren’t allowed to talk to us about the test.”

  “I just can’t give any advice or suggestions, and that’s not just for the test either. That’s for everything. I can’t even recommend food. I can ask you questions though.” Jeremy tilted his head just a bit and smiled. “How’re you doing?”

  Jeremy’s goatee, the roundness of his head and his muscles made Mark think of a cartoon genie he’d once seen on television. “I’m not quite brain-dead yet. Who invented that test?” He rubbed his forehead again.

  Jeremy cocked his head and raised his eyebrows while frowning at Mark. “You know I can’t answer that, and you already know the answer to that anyway. You don’t have to ask me.” Jeremy looked up and saw Nick get up. “I’ll be right back.”

  Nick slid into the booth. “Man...That has to be the worst test I’ve ever taken. If a light bulb’s burnt out, you just replace it. What’s to think about?”

  Mark was still rubbing his forehead. “You could always replace it with a different kind. What are you doing making me think about that again? That part of the test is over, and besides, I’ve already got a headache. I don’t need another one.”

  “The test wasn’t that bad; I mean it wasn’t bad enough to cause a headache.”

  Jeremy returned and sat a glass of milk in front of Nick before setting down two cups of coffee. “Do you want to order now, Nick, or would you like to wait?”

  “Do you have any aspirin? Mark has a headache.”

  Jeremy studied Mark for just a moment. “Mark, what are you feeling?”

  “I’ve got a headache; what do you think I’m feeling?”

  Mark was guarding his thoughts, but it didn’t take receiving what he was thinking to know something beyond the headache was troubling him. “No need to get snippy. I can’t give you advice, but you know where to go.”

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound rude.” He took a long drink of the tea, slid out of the booth just as Jamal and Chenoa were coming up and said, “I’ll be back.”

  Mark didn’t stop when Chenoa asked, “Where’re you going?” He went toward the main entrance of The Oasis and almost bumped into LeOmi Jones on her way out. LeOmi seemed in as much of a hurry as he was.

  LeOmi had changed dramatically from the first time he had seen her last year. Her hair was no longer short and spiked, but it was now long enough to have been styled if she had chosen to do that. Mark instantly did a mental comparison between LeOmi’s hair and Chenoa’s. In Mark’s mind, Chenoa won hands down.

  There was something else different about LeOmi this year too. Although Mark could only see her face and hands, what he could see of her didn’t look as pasty white as she had been last year.

  Mark said, “Excuse me.”

  LeOmi held the door for Mark. “Don’t tell me you have a headache.” Her tone seemed a little sarcastic.

  “Yeah, I was just going to get something for it.” Mark walked through the door.

  “They don’t make aspirin for what I’ve got. There’s only one thing I can do.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  LeOmi stepped out, bent her head down and turned in a slow circle. She started walking toward the mall. “Why don’t you just go get some aspirin?”

  Mark caught up and started walking beside her. “What’s going on?” Something deep inside him, almost an instinctual feeling, told him he was right to go with her. She stopped in the mall, bent her head again and turned in a slow circle again before resuming a course toward the recreation area in the center of the mountain.

  “My brother has the rescue ability. I’ve evidently got it too. I was just a kid when I overheard him talking about it to our dad. Right now, somebody is going to die if they don’t get help soon. I sense that. That’s why I have a headache. You probably just need aspirin.”

  “How can you be sure?” Mark knew that was a stupid question. His feelings told him she was absolutely right, not about the aspirin, but about someone needing help.

  “I’ll tell you what: you go get some aspirin and we can talk about this later.”

  They had just passed the area of the elevators, reaching the first of two cobblestone roadways encircling the interior of the mountain when LeOmi stopped and turned in a circle again.

  Mark asked, “Why do you keep doing that?”

  “I’m trying to figure out which way to go. The pain is less when I’m facing in the right direction.”

  Mark bent his head and turned in a circle. The pain was substantially less when he was facing toward the interior of the mountain. He pointed and said, “That way.”

  They jogged to the next intersection just past the tennis courts, paused to determine the direction and continued past the baseball fields to the center of the mountain next to the Council of Elders’ chamber.

  Mark said, “I feel it stronger now; this way.” He went to the left, around the chambers and took the third road; the one leading through the botanical garden. He jogged beside LeOmi and noticed his headache had been replaced by a strong sense of urgency, verging on panic. They didn’t stop at the next intersections to determine their path; there was no need. Which way they needed to go was as easy as picking out where one of many conversations in a crowded room w
as coming from.

  They reached the exit and slammed through the door. Mark saw The Island to his right. He stared at the wall circling the mountain about a mile away and knew immediately where they had to go. In his mind he saw himself and LeOmi running full out on horseback toward the wall. He pointed at the wall and said, “The Wastelands, that’s where we need to go.”

  Mark, along with Chenoa, Jamal and Nick had toured The Wastelands last year with Mrs. Shadowitz. It was the last section beyond the wall they had explored and that had been just before Christmas vacation. Mrs. Shadowitz said she had saved this section for last since the daytime temperatures in that area stayed well over 120° during the summer and well into the fall. The temperatures didn’t become tolerable until the end of fall or early winter. It had been over 90° when they had been in there.

  He turned to look at LeOmi and to his surprise two horses were standing beside her. She was in the process of mounting one of them. One of the horses was The General, lead horse for all the Seventh Mountain horses and the other was an Emerald Tribe captain, distinguished by the single emerald stone in its headdress.

  LeOmi yelled, “Yah!” and started her mount galloping toward the wall with her cloak flapping behind her.

  Mark jumped on The General and took out after her, his sense of urgency was increasing. He yelled, “Hold up! You’ll die in there! We need protection!”

  LeOmi showed no signs of stopping or even slowing. Mark caught up with her and about a minute and a half later they were at the wall. No matter how hard LeOmi tried, she couldn’t get her horse to go between the overlapping wall sections to the other side.

  Mark yelled again, “You need protection! Or you’re going to die in there.”

  LeOmi slid off and ran through the opening. Mark followed.

  Mark had no hope of catching her; she was very fast. Twenty yards on the other side of the wall he stopped and watched. The sun began to roast his face and neck. He had a strong urge to follow her, but he’d been here before. He knew the rock strewn sand would soon be as hot as a griddle, if it wasn’t all ready. He saw LeOmi stop, pull a bottle from Aaron’s Grasp and pour the liquid on her head. She started running again. Less than fifty yards later she stopped, crumpled to her knees and then fell face forward, catching herself on her outstretched arms. A moment later she stood and started stumbling back toward Mark.