The PriZin of Zin

by Loretta Sinclair

  Morgan opened his mouth to scream, but nothing came out. Wanting to run, but unable to move, Morgan, locked in time and fear, stared straight into the face of horror.

  Striking like the wind, the serpent swooped down, snatching Morgan in its mouth and slithered back down into the water in the blink of an eye. The three friends stood terrified and alone on the shore.

  The only sign that evil had even been there were the lapping waves on the beach and, in its wake, two empty footprints.

  Chapter 3: SEARCH

  Search verb ˈsərch transitive verb: to examine in seeking something

  Thunder boomed once again through the new world, and the sky went as dark as night. There was no lightning, but again and again the thunder roared around them. In the distance, the faint light from the volcano bottom shone. Rather than the crimson glow it offered just moments before, this was a dark foreboding phosphorescent light. Below the volcano, in the once tranquil pool, water caught in the raging turbulence of a violent boil, steam rising with urgent fervor, locked in by the stone ceiling above. Thunder boomed again, shaking the ground under their feet with all the force of the earthquake that landed them here just a short time before.

  “How dare you!” the thunder roared. “You were warned!”

  Hunter, Ian, and Aeryn all looked around for the source of the voice. They saw no one.

  “Does your kind never learn?”

  “Who are you?” Hunter asked, eyes darting back and forth for some signs of life.

  “I Am.”

  “You are what?”

  “Silence!” the voice boomed back even more loudly, and more menacing than before. “I speak!”

  Ian spun around. “There,” he whispered, “the food tree.”

  “I am dead. Nevermore shall I bear fruit because of you,” the tree said.

  Ian, Hunter, and Aeryn all looked up at the massive wooden monolith before them. It had grown four times in size, and now a giant green eye glared at them from the center of its trunk. The eye blinked at them, pupil moving from one child to another, and back again, splinters dropping to the ground with each motion. Its branches now dry and brittle, leaves dead and falling.

  “Please,” Aeryn cried. “Where is my father?”

  “Gone. You have foolishly unleashed the powers of those who will devour your essence; the ones who seek to extinguish your spark for all eternity. Only you now have the power to leash them again.”

  “Where? Please tell me where?”

  The eye crackled and blinked again. “Nowhere.”

  All three stared in silence as the tree continued to grow and die at the same time.

  “Your father is neither here nor there,” the tree said. “He is not lost, but neither is he found. He is nowhere.”

  “Nowhere?” Ian asked. “Where is nowhere?”

  “A place of nothingness. A barren wasteland with no future. He has gone to the wilderness.”

  “Can we find him?” Aeryn pleaded.

  “You can find him,” the tree thundered, “but escape is his and his alone. You can only lead. He alone must choose his path.”

  “How can I lead if I don’t know the way?” Hunter tried to ask.

  “Silence!” the tree boomed again. “Listen, and you will know. Hear, and you will understand. Seek, and you will find. You must all choose wisely from this moment on. To not choose wisely will mean certain death. You will all be sent to the place of no return. You will be thrown forever into the darkness of the Pit of Despair. It will then be too late. For now, there is still time. Knock and the door will open.”

  Snapping sounds crackled and popped around them. Branches began to break off and fall to the ground like monstrous spears. The giant tree listed dangerously to one side. The more it leaned, the more the trunk broke, the fibers of wood giving way under the enormous weight. It slowly began to fall in one painful, final, death throe.

  “Please! Please,” Aeryn cried, running toward the tree. “Where is my father? Where is the wilderness?”

  “The prison,” the tree echoed as it fell. “Beware of the Spark Eaters!” it wailed, timbers snapping in two.

  “What is this place called?” Hunter screamed.

  Seconds before it hit the ground with an earthshaking roar, the tree uttered one single word.

  “Zin.”

  “I don’t think he’s coming back.”

  “He said he’d come back,” Aeryn turned to Hunter. “We just need to be patient.”

  “He’s not coming back.” Hunter snapped. “The little green monster left us here.”

  “He’s not a monster. He said he was a leprechaun.” Aeryn looked around.

  “I know,” Ian shot back from the dark shore. “He’s Alastair.” The sarcasm in his voice was unmistakable.

  “Maybe we should look for him.”

  “Where?” Ian screamed at Aeryn. “The bushes he disappeared into are gone, thanks to your father. That tree killed everything. There’s nothing here now. Everything’s dead here, including him.”

  Aeryn burst into tears. She tried to speak, but couldn’t.

  “Stop it, Ian, or else.” Hunter was at his sister’s side.

  “Or else, what?” Ian squared off against his long-time friend. “What are you gonna do?”

  Hunter turned and put his arm around his crying sister.

  “Oh, you gonna be a chicken now? Gonna hide like a little girl?” Ian’s anger flared. “Come on, rich boy, don’t turn your back on me.” Ian shoved Hunter’s shoulder. At the lack of any response, he shoved again, harder.

  “Stop it, Ian!” Hunter screamed. He wheeled around to face his friend head-on, and froze.

  It was faint, but he heard it. The others looked around too. Hunter paused, waiting to see if he could hear it again.

  Nothing.

  “Push me again,” Hunter whispered. He looked at Aeryn. “Cry.”

  Ian reared back and shoved Hunter so hard he fell to the ground. Aeryn wailed and threw her hands up to her face. Ian dove on top of Hunter and the two rolled around in the wet sand for a moment, while Aeryn, ever the drama queen, sobbed on the sidelines. Then, they all stopped.

  There it was again.

  Laughter! Someone was watching them. Watching, and laughing.

  All three bolted toward the dead food tree where the noise was coming from. They split up to surround the trunk from all sides. Hunter was the first to clear the limbs. As they rounded the backside, there was the little green leprechaun, rolling in hysterics on the ground. Hunter grabbed the tiny creature, making sure he did not get away.

  “Nnnnooooo!” he screamed, his merry little mirth changing to fear. “Ye can’t have me treasure.” He fought against Hunter’s tight grip. “Ye can’t have it, I sayz!”

  Ian caught up and threw himself into the mix, pinning the old man to the earth.

  “Nnnnooooo!” it wailed again. “I will not give it to ye! I will not!”

  “Calm down!” Hunter yelled. “What are you talking about?”

  “Treasure. The gold is mine. Ye can have the other, but not the gold. NOT THE GOLD, I SAY!”

  “CALM DOWN!” Ian shook the little man to get his attention.

  “Ye don’t have to get violent, laddie,” Alastair snapped back. “I didn’t hurt ye.”

  “No, you just left us out here alone, that’s all.”

  Alastair giggled again.

  “You promised to come back,” Aeryn snapped. “What happened?”

  “Never said when,” Alastair giggled again.

  Ian threw the little creature to the dirt again and pounced on him. Alastair screamed and wailed until Hunter pulled him off.

  “Stop!” Hunter screamed. “Everybody stop!”

  They all froze and turned to look at the eldest boy.

  “What is ‘the other’?”

  Alastair looked stumped, aged little head cocked sideways. He did not answer.

  “You said, ‘you can have the other, but not the gold’,” Hunter demande
d. “What does that mean?”

  “Oh,” Alastair said, standing and brushing the dust off his tattered green suit. “The legend,” he said, “and the wishes.”

  “Wishes?” The children all looked at one another. “What wishes?” Aeryn asked.

  Alastair sighed, arms dropping to his sides. “Everybody knows when ye catch a leprechaun ye get three wishes. Everybody but ye three dunces, apparently. Ye can have yer wishes, and the legend, but no more! Ye hear me? No more. Then ye’re on your way. The lot of ya… pain in my arse, I tell ye.”

  “What’s the legend?” Ian asked, still holding Alastair by the coat tails.

  “The rainbow. Do ye not know of the legend of the rainbow?”

  “Rainbow?” Aeryn asked. She turned her head toward the sky.

  “Yes, the rainbow, lassie. Ye do know what a rainbow is, do ye not?”

  “Yes, I know what a rainbow is,” she snapped. “Do you get them down here?”

  “Oh, aye, we do. Beautiful they are. Especially when He is there.”

  “He?”

  “Yes, He. The One.”

  “He lives on the rainbow?” She looked upwards again.

  “Aye, there, and other places at times.”

  “Is that how we find Him?”

  “’Tis one way. There are others.”

  “How do we know when He’s there?”

  “Look for that which is forbidden, and you will see.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Have ye forgotten so quickly? Dense, yer kind. No sense. No sense at all!” Alastair huffed and pulled away. “I just told ye.”

  “I wish you would just speak English,” Ian said.

  Alastair smiled. “Aye, laddie. That I will. And that be one of yer wishes.”

  “No, wait,” Ian protested. “I didn’t mean- - -”

  “Too late, lad. One be gone and two to go. Use them wisely.”

  “Everyone be quiet,” Hunter yelled. The group calmed down and stared at one another, then all three turned to look at Alastair. He stood smiling at them. Raising his little hand, he wiggled two tiny crooked fingers.

  “We need some help,” Aeryn said. “We can’t do this alone.” The boys nodded.

  “Would it be an official wish, then?”

  “Yes,” Aeryn said. “I wish for help for us.”

  “So be it. Ye shall each have a helper on yer journey.” One finger went down, and one wrinkled digit wiggled in the air.

  “I wish I could understand what you’re talking about,” Hunter whispered.

  “No!” Ian screamed and shoved Hunter again. “Now you’ve wasted the last wish!”

  Alastair smiled. “Wisdom,” he said, impressed, “a fine choice, lad. And so ye shall have it, but only you. Now for yer warnin’.”

  “Warning?” Ian asked. “Is he kidding?”

  “Heed it well, child, or suffer all eternity because if it.” Alastair stepped back from the group. His voice took on a serious note. “The road is long and fraught with danger. Seek the one who will stand and fight, not he who will run and hide. Ye must each journey separately, but find the same road. What ye seek is the same, though a different path.”

  “Why do we have to go separately?” Aeryn asked.

  “Silence,” the leprechaun said, “time is short. Ye must complete yer journey by the time the sun rises on the third day. For then, it will be too late.”

  “What sun?” Ian asked.

  Alistair shook his head. One tiny aged digit pointed toward the bottom of the bubbling volcano. “Each time mother sun boils with anger is one morn. Aye? And each time she settles herself calm-like is what ye call night. Can ye grasp that, laddie?”

  “Aye,” Ian snapped. “And what if I refuse to leave them?” he asked, feet planted hard, pointing at the Welch siblings. “They’re my friends.”

  “Stubbornness will get ye nothing, if not killed, lad. Learn to work with the world, and not fight against it.” He turned back to the group. “Seek the great warrior, for only he can save ye when evil closes in. Listen to him. Fear the warrior. Flee when he tells you, and don’t look back. It will take the essence of all of ye together to defeat the evil one. Don’t hide yer spark. Let the world see it. It will be the only thing to save ye. If ye fail, then the lot of ye will be damned to die the living death – fer’ever.”

  “You shall each have a gift for yer journey.” Alastair began backing away, almost looking as though he was afraid, eyes darting around, wringing his hands nervously. “Use it wisely. Ye shall find yer destination by land, sea, and air. Hold fast to the strings in the mist, for they alone will sustain ye when all hope is gone. There are those to guard ye, those to fight ye, and those to challenge ye. Ye must learn to know the difference.”

  “Only trust beyond a shadow of a doubt.” Alastair was at a decent distance now. “Never forget, especially in the castle. Fear the one who can extinguish yer spark for all eternity. Flee from him.”

  Without warning, a small feather floated down from the sky and landed at Aeryn’s feet. She reached down and picked it up. In front of Ian landed a small flask of clear liquid, and at Hunter’s feet, a quartz rock.

  “Seek the truth which will light your path. Evil must always give way to the truth, and darkness to the light. Wash away all that holds ye back. Ye can only lead your father back home. He alone must choose. Put out your hands.”

  Each of the three extended their open hands, palms turned upwards. Into each, floated down a single tiny yellow seed from the sky. “This is all you will need.”

  “What is it?” Ian asked.

  “Now go!” the tiny creature boomed. He turned and disappeared once again into the rocks. The earth jerked and shook. The ground beneath their feet lurched, sending them all hurtling through time and space.

  The light of the volcano went out, and the temperature plunged.

  Their screams became muffled and faint as they flew through absolute darkness, swallowed up in the pitch black hole of this new world. Slamming into the dark, hard ground, three separate aftershocks rocked the earth beneath them, and then, nothing.

  Hunter or Hunted?

  Chapter 4: Scared

  Scared/adj/: thrown into or being in a state of fear, fright, or panic

  Day 1:

  Hunter slammed down hard on his back, air exploding from his lungs. Rolling to his side, he gasped and choked, grabbing at his chest. The wind knocked completely out of him from the fall, Hunter’s lungs fought again and again with each new breath to replace the precious air that had been forced from his body only seconds before. After several attempts, his breathing managed to stabilize, coughing subsided, and his heart rate slowed.

  Hunter lay on the ground for a long moment, trying to get his bearings in the pitch blackness of the cavern. He felt around him in the dark. His hand touched fine dirt, but not much else. Then it brushed something hard. He drew it close and felt it with both hands. It felt like— oh yes. It was the rock that ridiculous little elf had given him. No directions, and no light, nothing but dirt. Hunter felt lost.

  “Ian?” he ventured. “Aeryn?”

  There was no answer.

  On the horizon, a faint bluish glow was just beginning to rise where the crimson sun had been earlier. It resembled a moon. As it took shape, so did the world around him. Darkened by the dusky glow, everything was cast in a bluish-gray hue.

  Hunter was surrounded by trees. The lake was gone, as was the fruit tree and the thick brush they had been near earlier. Wherever he’d been thrown, it was a long way from the others. Hunter was now in a dense forest. Giant redwood trees, hundreds of feet tall sat a short distance away and towered above him. The branches of the trees bore soft green needles so thick nothing could be seen between them. Around his feet a few rocks were scattered. As he surveyed them, another sailed past his head and landed with a thud at his feet.

  Hunter froze, eyes scanning the dense forest cover. A light breeze rustled the branches, making them all sway. Another
rock sailed out from the darkness. This time, Hunter was able to see the direction it came from.

  “Hey!” he yelled.

  No response.

  “Help!” he tried again.

  Again a rock sailed out, this one almost striking his head.

  “Hey!” he screamed back. “Stop!”

  A barrage of large rocks began to pelt Hunter from the shadows. He tried to take cover, running for a large outcropping of rocks near where he had landed. He cowered behind it while more rocks pelted his open position, bouncing off the shelter above his head. Unable to move, Hunter weighed all of the options his mind could render.

  How can I escape?

  I can’t. I’m not good enough. I don’t know what I am doing.

  Why is this happening?

  I don’t know. I am powerless to stop it. Not good enough.

  What should I do?

  I’m too scared. I can’t. I can’t - - -

  Over and over again the questions tore through his mind, as the rocks landed nearer and nearer to his hiding place.

  A large rock bounced off the boulder sheltering Hunter and smashed into the side of his head. Fighting back tears and the rising fears that he had battled his whole life, Hunter heard the words of his father echo in his head.

  Face your fears head-on, son. That is the only way you can conquer them.

  He swallowed hard and looked at his trembling hands. Reaching down inside himself to depths he did not know he could reach, he summoned the courage to stand and fight. Hunter grabbed a stick that lay on the ground at his feet and leapt from his hiding place. He ran straight toward the spot in the forest where the rocks had been coming from, screaming and waving the stick over his head like a club. Bursting through the thick forest cover and into a clearing, he wailed at the top of his lungs, only to be met with a scream of equal intensity— and fear. Hunter froze and looked across the clearing at the source of his attack.

  Cowering in the clearing was a huge dark brown animal. With every move of Hunter’s, it cowered and yelped more, like a frightened dog.

  When Hunter froze, so did the creature. When he moved, so did it. It took only a second or two to realize that this thing was just as afraid as Hunter was. Every time Hunter twitched, so did the creature. Hunter tried to move a little to one side to get a better view. It screamed again, the sound resembling something like a bear, or a gorilla, but not really. The tone of the wail almost sounded like a dog, or maybe a wolf. It had almost a howling quality, but not quite those either. After a long moment, Hunter decided that this thing would not hurt him. He bent to the ground and gently laid down the stick that he carried, then backed away a full step, and showed the creature his own shaking hands. It was a peace offering, the only thing that Hunter knew to do.