by Joe Sniezek
The soldier seemed to accept that but still did not release them. Wilfer tried to nudge things along in that direction. He asked, “Is the way clear? How are thing looking up ahead?”
The soldier assured them all was normal and that there were more groups of soldiers following behind them. Zumi took the hint as well and said, “Thank you, men, for keeping us safe,” and she took the reins of their horse as Wilfer carefully stowed away their weapons. As they walked away, Wilfer was careful not to look back. He was certain he could feel the soldier’s eyes on his back.
They travelled up and down the undulations of the ridge, and soon they were out of the line of sight of the soldiers. Wilfer was unable to find a good place to descend, only steep slopes of loose rock. Trying to descend here would not only be difficult, it would certainly attract attention. Every fiber of Wilfer’s being screamed for him to run, but that would be the worst thing to do, so he calmed his nerves and resisted the temptation to do anything out of the ordinary – including looking back over his shoulder.
After a short while, their path on the ridge descended into a saddle formation. They were secluded with a rise before them and a rise behind them. Wilfer could not withstand the stress anymore. He said to Zumi, “We’ll descend here. If they see us, we’ll either bluff our way out again or make a run for it. What do you say?”
“I don’t want to try to bluff again. I shouldn’t have given my real name. It was all too risky. I’m not good at it. I say we go down.”
∞∞∞
As they grew closer to the entrance of San La, they saw more and more troops down on the plain. The entrance to the canyon containing the gateway was blocked with an encampment much like the one around the one to Wilfer’s home.
Wilfer stopped the horse under a grove of trees on the mountainside and rested. He said, “I don’t think this is going to work and I’m growing tired of taking risks.”
She looked at him with compassion in her eyes and said, “Why don’t we rest a while. You can tell me everything you know. How were you able to bluff the soldiers so well? How do you know what to say?”
Wilfer smiled and replied, “So the tables have turned. It feels good to know something, for a change.”
“Tell me,” Zumi pleaded with a laugh.
“The soldiers are very passionate about the cause. That’s what makes them so dangerous. Basically, they are a meritocracy. People are valued based on what they do, not who they are. People who are in a position they didn’t earn must be removed.”
Zumi’s eyes widened, “That would mean overthrowing every government.”
“Yes. And they just might do it. More people join every day. They told me more join rather than fight against them.”
Zumi grew quiet and contemplated it for a while. Then she asked, “So where do you stand on the issue?”
Wilfer sucked in a large breath of air and said, “That’s a good question.”
“You don’t seem especially outraged at their beliefs,” Zumi pressed.
“I can see the benefits of both sides of the issue, and I can see problems with both. Eniyan was trying to teach me that. But as for myself, I don’t think I would fit in very well.”
“Maybe you would. Maybe that’s why so many took an interest in you?”
“I don’t much like authority, whether it’s deserved or not.” Wilfer shrugged.
“So what does that mean for us then?” Zumi asked.
“Oh, It’s ‘us’ now, is it?” Wilfer gave her a sidelong glance.
“What are we going to do now? You don’t support either side. Where does that leave things?”
Wilfer leaned back with his hands clasped behind his head. “That’s a good question. I’m not sure. How about we find out together?”
∞∞∞
Under the dark of night, Wilfer and Zumi once again approached the enemy. He looked down at the encampment and saw the familiar sight of campfires dotting the land. However, unlike the encampment around the gateway to Jorden, these fires were laid out in an orderly grid pattern. During the daytime, Wilfer was sure he would see that a military town had formed. There was a twin row or torches leading towards the gateway itself. It was now heavily guarded; never again would that army be taken by surprise.
“What do you think?” he quietly asked Zumi.
“Not looking good,” She groaned, “See those grid patterns? They plan on staying a long time. I need a closer look – close enough to see faces. I have to check something.”
They silently descended closer to the camp. As they peered through the bushes, Zumi gasped. At least a third of the people in the camp were from her homeland.
Wilfer said, “Looks like they picked up a few new recruits.”
“That explains why the soldiers up on the ridge didn’t give us much trouble. But look, not everybody is a soldier. This will grow into a town,” Zumi said, trying to work through her confusion, “Are my people, cowards? Is their message that compelling?”
“You could probably find someone down there to ask,” Wilfer said.
“And what? Do I just show up and start digging wells? Roll up my sleeves and get right to work?”
“They like people to do what they’re best at. I think you’d find something better than digging wells,” Wilfer said.
“Do I choose or do they choose for me?” Zumi asked.
Having no answer, Wilfer just shrugged.
“They will end up eating themselves. One thing about having fixed place in society since birth is that it keeps the peace. There’s no benefit to fighting because it wouldn’t change anything. You don’t become king just by killing the king,” Zumi said.
“I don’t like it any more than you. But I wonder if it’s just the change itself that we don’t like. There have been a lot of big changes recently.” Wilfer said
“I wish we could change things back,” Zumi said with a pout.
“We’ve certainly tried harder than anybody else. But it didn’t seem to do much.” Wilfer said with a shrug.
“So what, everything is pointless? Is that what you’re saying? Don’t do anything because nothing matters?” Zumi was growing upset.
“I think forces have been in motion for far longer than anybody realizes. These three realms with their permanent gateways so close to each other, yet none remembered the others? I think long ago, something terrible happened here. Did you notice that the gateway to Granberk was buried in rubble? Isn’t that similar to how we drowned the gateway to Jorden?”
“What does ancient history have to do with us? I don’t want to give up just yet. Am I supposed to just make the best of things? I like how my life is now. I don’t want to give that all up.” Zumi was on the verge of tears.
“Maybe you wouldn’t have to. Everybody starts with a blank slate. Some people fall, but some people rise up,” Wilfer comforted her.
“Sounds terrible,” Zumi said.
Wilfer nodded. “Yeah, sounds terrible to me, too.”
“So we have to go back and try to make it work?”
“Yes. Or run away. To strike out towards new lands where they’ve never heard of us or any of this.”
“I see,” Zumi said with a big smile on her face.
Twenty-Six
Wilfer looked out over the horizon and down at the plains below. He saw tiny people in their tiny battles; from this height and distance, he was struck by the insignificance of it all. Did any of it really matter? Wilfer was not a king, and never would be. If it was not him, then did it matter who it was? He looked up at the daytime stars in the sky. He could never get used to this strange land, and yet it had grown to feel like home to him. Maybe anyplace could feel like home after enough time.
As he looked up at the sky, he saw a large bird flying by. Birds were very rare in this land. So rare, that this was the only one that Wilfer had seen, and he wasn’t even sure it was a bird. It had large wings and an impossibly long tail. The tail was at least three or four times as long as the wings were wide.
Its size was difficult to judge at such a height and distance, but the bird looked large enough to swallow a man whole in a single gulp. From this distance, it was a thing of pure beauty; it shimmered in a rainbow light. It was every color and none, like the shimmer of oil on water. The bird did not look down as it passed overhead towards the west. Wilfer’s heart filled with a powerful yearning for freedom and that’s when he made his decision.
Wilfer sighed deeply. He said to Zumi without taking his eyes off the horizon, “I know that there’s an entire amazing world out there. I could never be satisfied just going back to my little room. My world would feel so small. Do you know what I mean?”
“I feel the same way. The adventure, the independence. Going back, no matter how wonderful things were, would feel like a prison,” Zumi said.
Wilfer said, “I don’t know that I ever was satisfied. I can admit that now. I really wasn’t fitting in very well. I never liked well-trimmed hedges. I never understood planting tulips under a window. A year of gardening for one week of flowers.”
“What’s out there for you, if not hedges and tulips?”
“Whatever I want. We get to choose.”
“Whatever you want, huh? What would that be, exactly?” Zumi asked with a raised eyebrow.
“What everybody wants,” Wilfer said as he placed his arm around her hips and she leaned into him. “I want to see what’s out there. I want to go where the road takes me. I want to be where I’m needed.”
“You sound like Eniyan,” Zumi chuckled.
“Yeah, you know? Eniyan was on to something. I don’t fully understand it, but I want to give it a try. Maybe I’ll meet him again someday, even if it’s just in people’s stories and memories.”
“Sounds good to me,” she smiled.
∞∞∞
They spent the rest of the day just relaxing and talking. It was best to travel at night. When the sun eventually set, they broke camp and carefully wandered down out of the foothills.
“So where are we going?” Zumi asked.
“We’ll head west. I remember Eniyan telling me of a city. There will be more opportunity and maybe even some answers,” Wilfer told her.
“Do you know what lies between here and there?” Zumi frowned slightly.
“I’m up for a challenge,” he shrugged.
“I’ll say,” she laughed, “We still don’t have any money. We’ll need to pay for food and shelter.”
Wilfer’s face dropped. He did not think of any of that. Suddenly he was glad that Zumi was with him. Two heads are better than one. “First we must get out of this valley into the world beyond. And before that, we have to get around the army,” Wilfer said.
“Yes,” Zumi said, “How do you propose we do that?”
“We could just walk in the open and pretend that we belong. Walking away would probably cause less alarm than walking towards it,” Wilfer said.
“Let’s put a pin in that one. What else you got?” Zumi laughed.
“Create a distraction, maybe?” Wilfer suggested.
“No way. I don’t want any more trouble. We will just go. We can either be bold or subtle, but let’s just walk away.”
They traveled only by moonlight without torches, which could be seen from a great distance. However, they did travel slow and choose their path carefully. Although this part of the foothills was not particularly treacherous, they had to be careful about making too much noise. A gentle breeze would stir the leaves now and then and under that cover, they picked up their pace. But when the wind died down, it was eerily quiet and a single snapping twig would give their position away.
The landscape was a patchwork of forest and open field. Avoiding the open was no longer possible. Eventually, they came upon the road they had travelled while under guard. That seemed so long ago. Wilfer paused before crossing the road, and carefully waited nestled within some shrubs. Although the road was empty, it was the most likely place to be spotted.
Wilfer said, “I think we should finally part ways with the horse. I know I was adamant about keeping him, but I don’t know where we are going. I don’t want to be responsible for dragging him into danger.”
“That’s nice. But I don’t remember you saying that about me!” Zumi said.
“Well, there’s another reason, too,” Wilfer laughed, “I’d like to send old horsey here down the road while we head cross country. If they come looking for us, they’ll keep following the road, not go cross country. A little distraction.”
They unloaded everything they needed from the horse. They took all the food they could, but some of the extra supplies were just too much to carry on foot. Also, leaving some packs on the horse gave the impression to anyone finding it that they might still be nearby, or that they would come back soon to reclaim the horse.
Wilfer fondly patted the horse and wished him goodbye. He told Zumi to start walking and gave the horse a hard slap on the rear to send it down the road. He quickly caught up with Zumi to begin their two-person journey.
They avoided roads. They carefully entered fields and clearings, mindful not to linger, making their way down to the stagnant river that ran near the town that Wilfer found himself in at the beginning of this adventure. The river was a bit different this time around; it was still muddy but had more water flowing in it due to Wilfer’s flood.
As they walked along the river, they came to the low lying area that had now flooded into a lake. There was no dry passage to the land beyond; the way was blocked.
“I think we should swim,” Wilfer said to Zumi, “Going around would take too long and be too risky. There are probably soldiers everywhere, don’t you think?”
“I don’t want to get in that water,” Zumi wrinkled her nose in disgust, “But you’re probably right.”
The lake was clogged with debris. Swimming through it was difficult. Wilfer worried about getting snagged on something and pulled under. He grabbed hold of a large log floating near them as they swam out. The log allowed them to keep their heads above water when they needed a respite from swimming. It also served as camouflage; if anybody were to look their way, they could duck behind the log.
Halfway across the lake, something brushed against Wilfer’s leg. Probably some of the debris that he was extra careful not to get caught in it. Zumi was less fortunate; she let out a small yelp as she was pulled sharply under water. Wilfer panicked and began to look and thrash about to find some way to save her. It was dark, he could hardly see anything. There was not much he could do. He did not have much time for panic because he soon felt something wrap around his own ankle and pull him down, as well. Deep down in the cold black water, he was released as suddenly as he was grabbed. He immediately swam to the surface. Breaking through the surface of the water, he saw Zumi had already surfaced.
A dark mass rose from the water, followed by a mass of tentacles. Wilfer relaxed when he recognized his old friend, Ike.
“Hey, Ike! How are you?” Wilfer said. The squid rolled and showed them the two tentacles that had been torn off were now small stubs about a foot long.
“That’s great! You regrew your tentacles,” Zumi clapped.
Ikvig wiggled excitedly and projected a mental image of the giant Ikvig to them.
Wilfer reassured the squid, “He’s fine. He ran into battle.” Wilfer tried sending back images of Ikvig running into battle with a yell, swinging his war hammer with a huge smile on his face. Ike wiggled excitedly in what Wilfer assumed was a laugh.
Ike gestured to the other side of the lake with his tentacle and Wilfer said, “Yeah, we are crossing the water to begin a long journey.”
Ike grabbed their hand with a tentacle and gently placed it on the log. Once they were holding on tightly, the squid grabbed the log and shot across the lake to the far shore. It swam just under the surface and was able to achieve great speeds. Wilfer had never been on any boat that could move that fast. In a heartbeat, they were on the far shore saying their goodbye to the squid.
“We wi
ll meet again, Ike. Glad you’re ok. Thank you for all the help you’ve given us.”
The squid sent an image of the four of their group standing surrounding the squid, each of their eight hands held aloft with a tentacle in a sign of conquest. Wilfer reached over and gently patted the squid and walked up the beach out of the water.
∞∞∞
Wilfer and Zumi travelled through the night. By sunrise, the lake they had helped create was barely in sight. Wilfer turned around and looked at the sun reflecting off the distant water and sighed. Zumi stood beside him and put her hand around his waist. Wilfer placed his arm across her shoulders, in return. She leaned into him and they stood still for a long while, resting and absorbing the full impact of their past, present, and future.
Wilfer turned back around, grabbed his pack, helped Zumi with hers, and walked away into the great unknown.
∞∞∞
THE END
∞∞∞
