“I am not sure what you are saying. For me, it was only several days. I noted how long I was there,” said Tenashar.
“You are not mistaken. To your waking mind, it was only a few days. You were in such deep meditation and learning that you lost all sense of time,” replied Cadica.
“I truly learned many things from your father.”
“Of course, but you are unaware of what you have learned. Please understand that in the meditation, you moved around as if in a dream, as if you were asleep during the passage of time.”
Cadica’s warm words embraced Tenashar’s heart. “Do not fret over what you learned while you were in my father’s world. You won’t remember it until it’s needed.” Cadica put her little hands on Tenashar’s shoulders to comfort him. He was simply being told not to think too much.
When Ilaythesia came upon them, she looked content and happy with the tale of Tenashar’s accomplishments. “Soon you’ll be ready to depart our world. Keep the Sharzeen Saitha has given you. This Tansatei is the one you will confide in. A life may await you in which she may become your mate.”
Tenashar and Ilaythesia walked into the opening expanse of the desert to talk about his stay with Saitha.
“Someday perhaps, the deserts may recede.” Her voice held a slight note of regret. “Then this beauty will be gone. Yes. These wastelands are tranquil and wonderful to behold, but their beauty is simply different. We still need forests and grassy hills. Once your journey is accomplished, perhaps things will be different from what you have known.”
“Ilaythesia, what will happen to you? And what about Cadica and Saitha and his family?” Tenashar asked.
“It is possible that Cadica and I may simply not exist once the change you are to make comes about, or we may be transformed. You may recognize us even if we are not who we are now. However, what we taught you will remain.”
Ilaythesia’s words began to turn Tenashar’s mind, making him question the wisdom of continuing his journey. He wanted his friends to stay as they were.
“My heart doesn’t want to leave you. I want to stay here with you and Cadica. Could I? Could I split myself in half? One to stay with you, and the other to complete the journey? Let other people find a way to send the Orbs away. Perhaps they were meant to be here. Besides, I don’t know where this journey will lead me.”
“There is no other way. I believe you must follow the path that has been put before you. The world must proceed on its proper course. It doesn’t matter if it’s negative or positive. Cadica and I are living in this world the way it is, though deep in our souls we always felt that our lives were not the way they should be. Most of our people have sensed this from birth. Do not worry about us. When you return from your journey, Cadica and I will be here.”
Ilaythesia’s words made tears roll down Tenashar’s cheeks. She was like a mother sending her son away to manhood. While Ilaythesia spoke, Tenashar was struck with an image of Eirshiquanai spinning a protective sphere around Ilaythesia and Cadica. Butterflies hovered around the sphere. This seemed to show him that a whole world could change while those in the sphere remained untouched by time.
Tenashar was quite aware that it was time for him to leave the desert world, and he felt that departing under the stars was the right time. Quietly, Tenashar and Etutsha started walking away. Tenashar didn’t know if he would ever see Ilaythesia or Cadica again. Cadica stopped him and stared deeply into his eyes. She put her hand on his forehead and gave him the knowledge of how to make a Sharzeen. He stroked her hair, turned, and strode away. Etutsha went ahead, looking for the place they had entered the desert so they could go home. He had already taken a last look around to make sure they had left nothing behind. Tenashar and Etutsha walked into the distance.
Cadica called out. “Tenashar, keep walking in a straight line, and you’ll soon be in your world. Goodbye! I’ll miss you both! Come back someday.”
“I’ll see you again! Tell Ilaythesia I’ll miss her,” Tenashar called out to Cadica as a last farewell.
Cadica’s figure grew smaller, though she never stopped waving. Soon, she completely disappeared. Tenashar spotted a tall figure watching them from a distance and believed it was Ilaythesia.
chapter 24
Many Existences come Together
A day and a night had passed since they had left Cadica and Ilaythesia. Tenashar looked at the early evening sky, glowing a bright red and green. Faint stars were starting to appear, reminding them of the night they had left Cadica. There was no sun, yet some warmth lingered.
As if awakening from a dream, they suddenly found themselves surrounded by trees. Very different smells arose; the scent of pine trees refreshed their spirits. The old, familiar dampness and trackless miles of forests indicated they had arrived home. Yet a question entered Tenashar’s mind. Is it the same as when I left? Perhaps we have been absent from our world for years.
His question was soon answered by an odd but very familiar voice that rang with laughter. “Who are these two very strange people who come to seek me out after such a long time? You two should have talked with me! I was very lonely. But you know I am not so important.”
Tenashar and Etutsha peered into the dark and finally made out a thin figure approaching. They felt no sense of danger or alarm, only relief, as if Nainashari were a grandfather coming to welcome them back.
Nainashari smiled as he came close. He started making humorous animal noises. They both burst out laughing and ran to hug the funny old man. It was as if fresh water had soothed their hearts.
His eyes showed that he already knew where the boys had been, though he said nothing. Nainashari took both boys by the shoulder, showing how proud he was of them and of what they had accomplished in the desert world.
Tenashar believed that Nainashari had sent them into that world to learn many things that were important for the people in the present and the future.
Though they had felt the passage of time, Tenashar and Etutsha had not aged during their sojourn in the desert, but some things at home had changed. The entrance to Nainashari’s cave was larger, and acres of land nearby were under cultivation. He had been busy in their absence.
“What’s wrong, my friend? If anything is bothering you, please tell me.” Though Nainashari still laughed merrily, his smile was tempered by concern.
“You don’t understand what the desert was like. It was harsh and beautiful, and the people and things were different. It was strange and mesmerizing in a good way. We left behind a desert I could say was home. Ilaythesia and Cadica had greater concern for the world. They were trying to make it live again, and they were succeeding, but something was sad about their desert world. I don’t know what it was, but I will miss that world.”
Etutsha nodded. “I’m in complete agreement with Tenashar. I also miss that world although I just came back. I also have a yearning to go back.”
Nainashari asked, “What’s wrong, my friend? Your sadness speaks to me. Laugh, and it will fill your soul. Come into the cave to eat and rest.”
They nodded as one and followed Nainashari into the cave. While change had come outside, the inside was still as they remembered. Nainashari invited them to a meal. Much of the food, especially the fruits, was only vaguely familiar, perhaps things newly cultivated. Yet at the same time, some of the fruits were familiar—Tenashar thought he had tasted them in Cadica’s desert world. Then the connection became clear to Tenashar; he realized the food Nainashari had created by cultivation and crossbreeding would become the basis for the future and the desert world’s survival.
Nainashari was unusually quiet during the meal. The old man gazed fixedly into Tenashar’s face, unnerving him. It was some time before the aged hermit spoke, and when he did, his voice was serious.
“Stand or sit as you want, but let the Tree Woman teach you something tonight. Events are beginning to unfold, and you need to listen to her and be with her. Soothe her roots, and perhaps she’ll teach you more than she wants to. Und
erstand her and be her friend.”
Etutsha departed with Nainashari, leaving Tenashar sitting at the table, picking at the remains of the fruit. He felt someone was looking at him, and he slid his eyes across to Wajanie. The Tree Woman’s eyes were closed, but a smile was on her lips. Before Tenashar’s eyes, multiple images of her began to shimmer and vibrate in his mind. Some of these images had their eyes open, others began to speak, and still others appeared to sleep. Hundreds of images of Wajanie appeared.
Thousands of voices came to his mind all at once. He couldn’t understand anything at first, but gradually, he began to hear some more clearly than others. One of the whispers told him that Wajanie was one with the forest. Her branches were like arteries that communicated with all living creatures, much like the arteries spreading life throughout the cave and the string lamps that crawled to the ceiling to create light. She must have been responsible for all life that flourished in the cave.
Tenashar finally understood Wajanie’s function and found new respect for Nainashari, who had created, nurtured, and maintained the fabulous Tree Woman.
A thought suddenly came to him. If Nainashari had the skills to make living, thinking trees, perhaps this was the secret that could make Cadica’s world green again. For a moment, he believed his journey had been completed, that he had found his answers. If Wajanie extended her arteries over all the land, perhaps she could somehow make it unpalatable for the Orbs and force them to leave.
But why, he wondered, didn’t Nainashari go to the desert world himself and teach Ilaythesia the secrets of rejuvenating the land?
The old man’s voice whispered within him. “I am unable to enter the desert world. I’ve tried, but it just spits me back into my own time.” Tenashar looked around, but his friend was nowhere to be seen. Still, his voice rasped on. “You ask why you and Etutsha are able to go there. This is unfair to me. Someone, some power, must like you better.”
That night, Wajanie gave Tenashar a dream in which many things came and went, including images of Tansatei and Jerry that merged to become one. Wajanie stretched out her branches. Each branch was a spoken word that Tenashar learned to understand. His eyes deepened in awe as she showed him places he had never seen—lands across the ocean, and others to the south and north known only to merchants.
Suddenly, he was whisked away and found himself looking into Nainashari’s world. Tenashar saw the truth of all that Nainashari had told him, for the ancient one was truly a remnant of the forest people who had dispersed and disappeared. The cave had always been his home, but Tenashar was shown the future, when Nainashari’s home would encompass the whole forest. He saw the desert spread, and he watched the cave and forest fade away, moving into another realm of existence, untouched by the changing world. He could hope for a time when his people could move into this forest, finding safety in its depth.
Wajanie was growing silent. She had said all that had been needed. The lessons were finished. She needed to rest. Later, as he gained wisdom, her words, thoughts, and teachings would become second nature to Tenashar.
Outside, Nainashari slept among the comfort of leaves and ferns. Tenashar crept quietly toward him, but the old man didn’t stir. There was only the slightest murmur of breath from his ancient lips. The sense that Nainashari would not be staying in the world very long touched Tenashar deeply. He felt a need to comfort his friend. Soon, he would depart to the spiritual world, leaving behind a shell that once contained a surprisingly gentle soul. Tenashar pushed these thoughts away, but still, it worried him. Who will take care of the cave when Nainashari passes away?
He calmed his heart and lay down near Nainashari, whom he now thought of as a cherished grandfather. Tenashar felt very comfortable near him.
The next morning, the sky was a dark red, as if the night had never lifted. The sun was a disturbing yellowish-red hue. Even Nainashari hadn’t seen anything like it before.
“I wonder, my boys, if your friends from the other world have something to do with this. Something is amiss. I almost hope the Orbs are doing this, because it would be easier to accept that.”
Nainashari appeared gripped with fear, and Tenashar and Etutsha were just as scared. It seemed that they were no longer protected. Tenashar’s confidence dried up. He wondered if Wajanie might have answers for why the sky was turning red. Almost at once her words came into his mind. “Our world is merging with another. The sky is from a different reality, intertwining with ours, like two layers of glass. Perhaps even a third world exists.”
Strange sights began to appear around them. Unfamiliar landmarks and even stranger things came into view. Tenashar thought Cadica’s world may have been merging with his, but he saw nothing that reminded him of her world. He wondered if it would last for only a few moments or become reality.
Nainashari said, “I know what you are thinking, Tenashar. I’m proud of your developing wisdom, confidence, skill, and power.”
Tenashar’s voice, though questioning, was not weak or uncertain. “Nainashari, do you know what is happening? Are all these worlds becoming one?”
Nainashari did not reply.
It occurred to Tenashar that during this convergence he might be able to step into those other worlds as he had done in Ilaythesia’s garden. He heard voices coming from many directions. One of the voices seemed to be Cadica, and she sounded very close. The sky shifted color again—this time to shades of green and lavender. The images of strange rocks and trees became transparent and faded away, replaced by familiar deserts, rock formations, and colorful sands. Cadica was waving at Tenashar from the distant horizon.
He was more surprised to see Tansatei, indicating that geographic distances and time were merging. Tansatei called to him, saying that she had been worried about him and that she wanted to join him. She told him all that had happened since he had left the village and how they were stunned by this merging of places and times.
Sanashei was also near. “Be well, and keep yourself strong, my son. And know who you are.” He spoke with compassionate tears in his eyes. A lone tear trickled down Sanashei’s cheek.
The world shifted again, and great structures began to appear all around Tenashar, Nainashari, and Etutsha. This, they guessed, was the world Jerry was part of, and Tenashar looked for her. But rather than being a reflection in a pool or standing nearby in reality, she was looking at him from the sky—a vantage point from which she could see them all, even Cadica and Ilaythesia, and she appeared excited to see all Tenashar’s exotic and singular friends.
The worlds shifted again, and Jerry’s figure and her world began to fade, her voice becoming distant and faint. She reached for him as she faded.
Unfamiliar people flickered in and out—vanishing as quickly as they had appeared. The instability made Tenashar uneasy. Between these flickers of vision, he began to see darkness, like cracks in all the worlds, where creatures slipped forth to stare at him. Some tried to grab him but were stopped as if by an invisible wall. Tenashar flinched, and they faded into nothing.
The world dimmed to an uneasy twilight again, and the forest reappeared. The only things that remained of the strange changes were large spheres of shifting colors and scenes—just like those he had seen in Ilaythesia’s world.
He caught a glimpse of the desert world in one shining globules just as it faded away. Tenashar knew he would see Cadica and Ilaythesia again. Most of the spheres remained, at least for a while, and the trio found they could push them around easily. Tenashar also discovered he just needed to think of one of them and it would come to him, but the spheres raised serious questions. Tenashar reasoned, If the Orbs are not stopped, and if the land could no longer support life, people will need to find another place to settle, and the spheres could very well be the answer.
It seemed logical and simple to Tenashar, but when he explained it to Nainashari, he was very uneasy. “We don’t know who has left these spheres for us. Was it the same person who caused the worlds to overlap? I don’t fully understand
the workings of the spheres, although I was able to build something like them.”
It had to be someone else, Tenashar thought. Ilaythesia had also created her own spheres, but these didn’t feel that they had come from her. Tenashar went up to one of the spheres. He sensed it was something natural, as if created by nature herself. Even if that was the explanation, the overlapping of worlds had never happened before. Could Ilaythesia be causing it? He had many questions—some he’d even almost forgotten, like what had happened to A-amar and Una-sei. He recalled the Sharzeens that Cadica had been playing with and felt strongly that she had summoned those fearsome companions to protect and guide him. He wondered about Tansatei’s voice that sounded like that of an older woman. Had that been a similar world-shift, back at the glass waterfall? Could that have been the work of Nainashari? Tenashar remembered that during the time of the stone guardians, it was their power perhaps that made her voice sound like that of an older woman.
Tenashar asked himself all these questions but found no answers. He remembered that the Mushroom and the Rock had told him once that time and the world had shifted before. He realized that he would have to understand these changes and perhaps accept them and that the people of this world would have to cope with the changes—their survival depended on it.
The spheres still hung in the air all around, but the shifts had ceased, or at least were no longer perceptible. But it will happen again, Tenashar thought. It might even become a permanent part of their world.
“Perhaps I should stay here for a while to think about what is happening, I need a little rest,” Tenashar said.
“Rest a bit, but understand the spheres are not your concern. You might have to travel farther to find answers. Remember the Orbs?” Nainashari asked.
The sky was still filled with strange colors, and the spheres were still there, shifting a little but seeming to fade.
“Well, I think it’s time to get going, to head for somewhere. Do you have any ideas, Nainashari? What about you, Etutsha?” Tenashar asked.
A Journey of a Thousand Seasons Book 1 (Journey Series) Page 14
