Loti and Wolf skirted the bonfire, making their way to the boulder while a tall woman walked out on the mock stage, flickering like an old-time movie in the muted flames of the dying fire. The eclectic crowd migrated together to the space between the bonfire and the stage. Squeezing shoulder to shoulder they sank to the ground, their eyes transfixed on the red haired lady. A gentleman in a fleece hat settled down with a guitar, picking at a few notes. With the view opened up, Calisto and Guided waved to them from the trees on the far side of the rock. Fiamette trotted past them without so much as an acknowledgment and disappeared into the woods. Calisto’s eyes followed Fiamette as she passed, lingering for a moment on her retreating back, then he turned a warm smile on Loti and Wolf. He made a hurry-up gesture with his hands.
“Osiyo.” Guided greeted Wolf with a slap on his back and grabbed his hand with the other, making him drop Loti’s. Wolf mirrored him and their grins spoke of friendship and a hard won fondness that made Loti’s heart skip a beat. Retrieving her hand, Wolf drew her into their circle.
“Loti, I’d like you to meet Guided by Voices, the tribal leader of the Travelers.”
“Lighten up.” Guided rolled his eyes and wrapped his huge paw around Loti’s small hand.
She gripped back and took a deep breath. “Good to meet you.”
“I hope these guys haven’t scared you too much.” He cast a sideways glance at the two vampires, pulling her a little closer to him. “They can get a bit intense, don’t you think?” His voice was hushed like they were telling secrets.
“Oh, thank god I’m not the only one who thinks so,” she whispered.
His smile was broad under all that hair, but maybe it had to be to be seen. He patted her arm while still holding her hand. “I am so looking forward to getting to know you.” Giving her hand a little squeeze, he jabbed his head at Wolf and Calisto who were watching the exchange intently. He lifted his eyebrows as if to say “Get a load of these guys.” She bit her lip to keep from laughing, and Wolf winked at her. Calisto chuckled and touched her arm.
“It’s time for the ritual of awakening. The others are preparing at the shrine,” he said.
Loti’s smile wavered.
“Take it down a notch, Nosferatu. You’re freaking her out.” Guided draped an arm around Calisto’s shoulders, patting him on the chest. “It’s a simple ceremony.” To Loti, he said, “Don’t worry. We won’t sacrifice any lambs at the altar.” He grabbed Calisto’s face in both hands and smooched him on the lips.
“Not today, anyway.” Calisto waggled his eyebrows as he shoved the big guy away.
Guided’s laugh boomed over the sweet singing and soft guitar, and he cringed like a cartoon character, turning and slinking off into the trees. Loti laughed at him tiptoeing in heavy hiking books.
As they followed his antics, Loti asked Calisto, “What is this ceremony going to accomplish?”
“It’s about figuring out what you are, for one,” Calisto spoke in a low voice.
“These guys seem to think you’re something special.” Guided was careful to keep his voice soft as he waited for them just inside the trees. “And I don’t doubt them.”
“Special? Like what? This nunne’hi thing?” She chewed the side of her fingernail.
“I don’t know what nonsense they’ve been spouting, but yes, like nunne’hi. But nunne’hi is just one term. We call your kind Light Walkers.” Guided fell into step beside her and Wolf as Calisto took the lead. “I know weekenders sometimes refer to us as light walkers, but in our vernacular a Light Walker is said with a capital L and a capital W.”
“Weekenders?”
“Civilians. You know, people who wander into the woods on the weekend?” Guided waved a hand at the trees.
“He means average people, Loti. The tribes live in the woods year-round, so they’ve come to think of everyday people as weekenders.” Wolf squeezed her hand.
“Oh, I get it. Because you only see them on the weekends when they go hiking or camping.”
Guided trilled like a squirrel, startling Loti. “You got it.” He squeezed her shoulder and let go as he stepped ahead of them, the path too narrow to walk three abreast.
“Let’s give you a chance to fulfill your life’s purpose.” Guided called over his shoulder.
Loti blanched. “I have no idea what my life’s purpose is.”
“Then you need to find out,” Wolf said, rubbing a reassuring thumb across hers.
She stared up at him, wanting to say something, something level headed and wise. “Okay.” Duh.
Something heavy turned inside her—slow, deep, vast. With a silent click, it settled into place. Afraid of dislodging it, she attempted to hold her mind still, but it twitched with the urge to grasp at the solidness. She kept her eyes on the pine needles carpeting the forest floor as they hiked on. Glancing up for a moment, she grabbed at the sensation, stumbled, and Wolf’s ever-present hand caught her. She felt for the thing—it was still there, unmoved. The path spilled them into a small clearing, and Guided took the opportunity to drop back beside her.
“Loti, your first step on this journey is to create inner justice and relieve your own pain.” His tone had changed, still gentle, but more serious.
“Will this ceremony do that?”
“No. I think that’s already happening.” He nodded at Wolf. “Believe it or not, I think the big guy can help.” Guided grinned over her head at Wolf, whose face hardened once again.
She stifled a sigh.
“The ceremony will provide us with some answers, but you’re going to need to do the rest.”
Loti looked from Guided’s reassuring smile to Wolf’s broody frown and took a shaky breath. The path slinked back into the dark woods, switching back and forth down the steep mountainside. A pink glow spread between the dark trees. Yes, definitely, pink. As the forest thinned at the bottom of the descent, a full, roundish orb rose from the river basin; its pointed petals reached for the black sky. It was a very big, pink lotus flower.
“That’s the Shrine,” Wolf told her.
As they left the trees to walk across the river basin, a large, pale-pink archway greeted them. Four arches guarded the entrance to a muted garden. A long line of water fountains gurgled into a rectangular pool that led to the shrine, slate paths on either side. The flower was an actual building. It glowed from within without any artificial means of light.
Wolf tugged her hand. “Come on.”
She hadn’t realized she’d stopped walking. How could I have studied here for three months and never knew this was here? I walked all the trails, went to all the shrines, and performed all the pujas.
“Calisto. Namaste.” A man appeared out of the shadows of the archway, prayer hands at his heart center, bowing. A door stood ajar just behind him, light spilling out.
“Namaste, Chanpreet. We have a possible healer Guided would like to test.” Calisto waved Loti and Wolf forward.
“Guided?” The man’s frown eased a bit. Guided brushed past Calisto and greeted Chanpreet with his signature shoulder slap and hand shake.
“Namaste, Chanpreet. This is Loti Dupree.” He waved Loti closer, but she stepped back into Wolf, forcing a smile.
Chanpreet the gate keeper nodded. “This was not arranged through the appropriate channels, Calisto.” He peered over Guided’s shoulder at a gracious Calisto, who lifted helpless palms to the sky.
“It’s hard to know what the proper channels are these days,” Calisto said with strained patience.
Loti blinked at the tone of Calisto’s voice. Wolf curled a protective arm around her.
“Now, brothers.” Guided sank his hands down through the air in a Thai chi move. “Chanpreet, no, we didn’t have time to talk to the council, but time is a factor, from what I’m told, and we’ve only just learned of Loti’s potential.”
The short, bald man sighed, his shoulders tightening. “When the others showed up, I called Gurudev. He said Wolf contacted him last evening.” He nodded at Wolf, w
ho nodded back. “Why didn’t anyone tell me? Do you know what kind of position you’ve put me in?” He threw his hands in the air with an exasperated sigh.
“We’re very sorry, but we are pressed for time.” Calisto clasped his hands in front of his chest. “The tribe arrived a couple hours ago. And I respect your duties—this is not ideal, but it is necessary.”
“She’s vulnerable, Chanpreet.” Wolf flexed his jaw. “Someone marked her and attacked her—to what end, we’re not sure. Death magic was used.”
Chanpreet’s eyes widened, and after a long silence he nodded. His shoulders relaxed, and he let his hands fall to his side. “I wish you would learn to make a phone call once in a while, Calisto. You know those jangly machines? Those are phones.” His eyebrows arched. “Margarite could have addressed the council during the day and we wouldn’t have this. . .breach of procedure.” Chanpreet’s words were tired.
“If Dayalananda weren’t bedridden, I wouldn’t have to ask for permission.” Calisto said in an unembellished tone.
Chanpreet drew his lips into a tight line. “We’re all doing the best we can.”
“Gentleman,” Guided drawled, laying a hand on each man’s shoulder. “We’re all worried about Gurudev.” Turning to Calisto, “But, we’ve got to get a move on.” Calisto lowered his eyes. Loti found it difficult to determine Calisto’s mood. He was so controlled.
“Thank you brother, Chanpreet. We will discuss these matters at our next council.” Guided bowed, prayer hands at his chest.
Chanpreet bowed back, eyeing Loti as he stepped into the doorway. When the door closed, Loti relaxed her jaw as she followed Guided down the path to the shrine. “What was that all about?” she whispered to Wolf.
“The ashram is experiencing difficulties since Sri Swami Dayalananda has taken a turn for the worse.”
“Is he sick?” she asked, picturing the kind visage of the guru. She’d last seen him at the graduation ceremony. He’d smeared talik on her forehead
“He’s not sick, but he’s old and tired. His body is wearing out. He’s over one hundred years old, and I think he will take mahasamadhi soon.” He shrugged, but not in indifference. It was more like he was trying to shake something off.
“Maha-what?”
“Consciously leaving one’s body.”
“You mean death?”
“No, it’s not the same for an enlightened person. It’s a conscious choice. Dayalananda is approaching his time, and he will go on when he is ready.”
Loti wrinkled her nose. “I’m not sure I believe in ‘enlightenment’. What does it mean really? Sitting around on a mountain top, perpetually high on some pretentious construct of a god and staring at nothingness?”
Wolf snorted and the rigid lines in his face melted away in a surprised smile. “Enlightenment is not achieved by isolating one-self.”
“Is that what Gurudev says?” she guessed.
“To me,” he muttered, and to Loti’s regret a little hardness returned to his eyes.
She changed tactics. “Sooo, Calisto doesn’t like the new ashram politics?
Wolf huffed out his nose. “No, not all. But it’s more than that. There are different opinions about the purpose of the ashram these days. Some want to keep Dayalananda’s vision true, like Calisto, while others want to take the ashram in different directions.”
As they approached the shimmering shrine, Loti became more and more entranced by the luminescent pink against the black mountains and night sky. The James River whispered behind it in the flood plain as a cold wind swept through the sleeping garden. The stars winked out one by one east to west. The air smelled and felt damp.
“Let’s get inside,” Guided called as he held open a glass door.
A ring of pink faces floated in a murky, round room. They bobbed toward her, and she realized they were people.
“Hi, I’m Mitch.” A young woman held out an armful of dark cloth.
Loti looked to Wolf; she was doing that a lot. Couldn’t she make decisions for herself anymore? She felt like a wooden Pinocchio, waiting for a dark fairy to bring her to life. For reasons she couldn’t fathom, Wolf felt like an old friend. And more. He was taking the robes from Mitch when Loti reached out and snatched them up.
“Hi, Mitch. I’m Loti,” she said as she stepped up.
Wolf raised one eyebrow.
“You can change in the restroom.” Mitch lifted the corners of her brown robe and curtseyed. “Attractive, no?” She giggled.
Loti glanced back at Wolf as Mitch led her away, but he was gone. Her throat tightened as she entered a dimly lit foyer with bathroom doors marked “Men” and “Women”. The surreal mix of banal and sacred was almost funny to her, but even the spiritually devoted needed to use a bathroom. She stepped up to the Women’s room with a little curl to the corner of her mouth, but stopped short as she came abreast with another tribesman. Other popped in her mind. His eyes held their own light, but that could have been the reflection of the exit sign or the low pink glow that imbued the room. She kneaded the alien sensation like it was bread dough until it formed a thought. “Are you part fae?” she burst out, then wanted to smack herself.
He blinked, stepping away. Without warning, Wolf’s hand was on her shoulder. He’d appeared out of nowhere.
“How did you know that?” The man wrinkled his nose.
“I’m not sure.” Loti clutched the robe. “I didn’t mean to offend you. Sometimes I speak before I think.”
“It’s okay, Loti,” Wolf said as Guided appeared beside him. She wondered where they’d come from and then a beaming Calisto joined them.
“We have something here, Wolf. She is definitely—” Calisto started.
“I’m right here. Don’t talk about me like I’m a prize poodle,” Loti snapped.
Mitch stepped in, guiding her away from the men. “Let her change, will ya?”
“I apologize, Ms. Dupree.” Calisto bowed, grinning joyfully the whole time.
“Don’t take him too seriously, Loti,” Mitch said. “He’s over 2,000 years old—a Roman citizen at one time, and he still hasn’t gotten over it.”
Nerves clattering and spine buzzing, Loti hesitated with a hand on the bathroom door. “2,000 years old?”
“Over. Apparently, he met Jesus.” With a shiny smile, Mitch winked.
“Jesus Christ?” Loti’s eyebrows arched. “Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ?”
Mitch chuckled. “Well, so he says.”
“You don’t believe him?”
“Oh, I believe him.” Mitch shooed her into the bathroom. “You’ll have to ask him about it sometime—when you have a few decades to kill.” She laughed as Loti scrunched her brow. “Go get changed. We can talk after.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
Changed and back in the round room with a growing crowd, Loti fingered the long brown robe. She cinched the belt a little tighter and smoothed the front down. Fleece. She expected something hand woven and scratchy. Small clusters formed of two and three people, around a large pedestal in the middle of the room. A ring of white quartz statues held hands around a pink quartz sphere. She moved closer until she could make out that each statue had different features—African, Asian, pointed ears. Oh. There were different species too: fae, vampire, and others she couldn’t quite figure out. One had the face of a snake with a small round thing imbedded in its forehead. What the heck?
“I’m not going to say something stupid like ‘don’t be nervous’ because I don’t know exactly what’s going to happen.” Guided spoke into her ear. “But, really, everything will be fine. You’ve already had one impromptu test and passed with flying colors.”
“The part-fae guy? That was a test?” Not looking up, she studied the intricate details of the quartz carving.
“Well.” He smiled sheepishly. “It wasn’t on purpose. I think Calisto’s right about you.”
Her stomach churned and her spine buzzed harder. She tore her eyes away from the carvings to see Guided nodding over the cro
wd at someone. Wolf was suddenly beside her, taking her hand. She squeezed his fingers as the jangles subsided, then grinned as he pulled and tucked at his own robe.
“It’s a simple test, Loti.” Wolf grimaced as he cinched the belt.
“Then why all the pomp and circumstance? The robe? The ritual?” Her temples throbbed and she rolled her jaw. “How ‘bout asking me a few questions and be done with it?”
Wolf smiled in commiseration. “They like their ways.”
“Let’s head upstairs. They’re ready for us.” Guided put a hand on Loti’s elbow.
The small crowd meandered to the spiral staircase. Loti accepted a cushion from one of the two people who stood on either side of the stairs handing them out. Wolf stayed close behind her in the enclosed stairway, his hand resting on the small of her back. It would have been jet black if it weren’t for the small lights on the steps. When she stepped out into another small foyer, she breathed a sigh of relief to be out of the claustrophobic space. A sheesham wood archway graced the entrance to the shrine, a pink glow oozing through the intricate carvings.
As she passed under it into the shrine, a large, glowing ball of pink pulsed. Every hair on her body stood up. The orb hovered above an altar of water with real lotus flowers on the surface. Wooden altars stood at regular intervals all around the perimeter of the room with indecipherable writing and familiar symbols embossed on them. The air in the room smelled clean and snapped like a thunderstorm had just passed through.
“Come, sit here.” Guided led them to the center of the shrine and pointed to the floor in front of the light. As Loti walked closer, chills frothed up her spine. She and Wolf sat on their cushions while twenty or so tribesmen formed a semi-circle around them. She twisted around looking for Calisto and Margarite, who smiled and waved when she caught their eye. All of their nest mates were there except Fiamette. Loti didn’t know if that was good or bad.
“We’ve brought Loti to the shrine to determine if she is one of us.” Guided addressed the group from the bottom step leading up to the glowing orb. Loti clasped her hands in her lap, nervous apprehension twiddling her thumbs. Wolf’s hand rested on her knee.
Enlightened (Love and Light Series) Page 11
