by Kyrja
“A little, yes,” she hung her head. “But I told him he has to leave the city quickly, or else my grandmother will find him, and … well … she would hurt him, I’m sure. And if she wants to hurt him, then he probably isn’t as bad as I think he is.”
Jarles sighed, shaking his head and looked at her. “You really are amazing, my young friend,” he smiled at her.
“I think I’m going to go to Midbar,” she told him. “Do you want to go with me?”
“I would like that,” he replied, meaning it. “I know my grandfather wants my parents and me to go back to the desert and live there, like we would have if they had never died.”
“But you don’t want to go,” her reply was a statement, not a question.
“No,” he said slowly.
“Sea Gods should be in the sea,” she smiled at him.
“Ha,” he chuckled. “I suppose they should. But my mother and father aren’t sea gods, so maybe by the sea, but not in it. Maybe,” he paused, “you’re the one that should come with me?”
“No,” she answered right away. “You need time with your parents. I know I would like to have time with my mother. My real mother, but she’s in Bila, helping the Empress.”
“Well, you can’t go to Midbar tonight, and you can’t go back to your Grandmother the Goddess, so come on,” he urged, holding out a hand as he stood up. “Let’s go back to the temple and wait there for everyone to wake up. Maybe we’ll get some rest while we’re waiting.”
She stood up, then looked up at him, her face very serious. “I like you, Sea God Jarles. Thank you for being my friend,” then she took his hand and they walked back into the city together.
* * * * * * * *
Amphedia rose quietly out of the sea, watching them go, and smiled. She had followed the girl here, with Siri’s prisoner, wondering what she was doing, and if she had been acting on Siri’s behalf or Oculis’. Brave little girl – she had freed Chared’s son all on her own! And she was right, Siri would be furious. Oculis too, if she was right. Although he would be more afraid than angry.
And well he should be, Amphedia thought. Because now she knew exactly what she needed in order to get what she wanted. Little Nieva would be the perfect hostage.
Chapter Fifteen – Giya’s Apprentice
“Jikangai,” Jahari said, “isn’t a place that you can walk to on your own two feet.”
“What does that mean?” Kraas wanted to know, obviously surprised.
It had been a very, very long time, Jahari knew, since she had last thought of that place. That place that wasn’t a place. “Outside of time,” indeed, she mused. It existed, and was a part of the planet itself, but one didn’t just “go” there. Lumas had made certain of that. She had wanted Deiserin to suffer for all eternity for having betrayed their pact. For having created an unending war. Lumas, for her part, as she recalled, was shocked that the Empress would have lost her mind for having had to kill her newborn child. “Here he is, better than new!” the Goddess of Beauty had announced after breathing life back into his tiny, bloody body. Jahari cringed with the memory. Lumas had been much more than she had expected, and yet, much less as well. Jikangai was certainly evidence of that.
“There are two circles of what you might think of as both time and space,” she said, walking over to a table that a bowl of fruit on it. Dumping the fruit out, she chose a small melon, placing it back in the round basket, then placed the basket back on the table. “In the center is where the first empress, Deiserin, is trapped. Time moves faster there. She cannot escape by flying, if she were able to do so, nor can she dig into the ground to escape. Her prison is a perfect sphere. She has been compelled to walk around the circumference of the circle all day and all night. Forever. She never rests. She knows no hunger and no thirst. She has no choice but to keep putting one foot in front of the other until the planet itself dies, I suppose. Perhaps she would continue, I hope to never know.”
“Time and space?” Zaria interrupted, obviously shy to voice her question. “What do you mean by that?”
Jahari sighed. “Time and space coexist together; that’s the simple answer. Let’s just say that while Jikangai exists as a physical location on our planet, it also exists away from here. A place where only those who can leave the planet can travel to.”
“But Borja said that Ozahm took a Fire Tender with him,” Sakari pointed out, frowning.
“Wrapped in her life force, yes, you mentioned that,” Jahari agreed, pressing her fingertips to her forehead in a very human gesture of frustration.
“Because the only way people can get there is if they are dead,” Kraas added. “Does that mean that he killed her, the Fire Tender, in order to get her there?”
“Yes,” Jahari nodded. “But he is the Lord of Death, and it would have only taken a moment of her being dead to travel there. He would have brought her back to life immediately if he intended to use her as you say Borja explained. She may not have even realized she was dead.”
“You don’t sound like you believe his plan will work. Using the Fire Tender, I mean,” Kraas said, her face filled with doubt.
“It’s actually a very solid plan, but only if he can get Giya to go to Jikangai,” Jahari countered.
“Don’t be alarmed!” a new voice called out, as if at a great distance, causing everyone in the room to be instantly on-guard, and then suddenly there was a man standing in the room with them. He had his hands held out in front of him, as if to offer evidence he meant no harm.
“You know me,” he told them, looking at their faces. “Some of you do anyway,” he amended.
“Who are you?” Sakari demanded, moving closer to him. Jahari saw her fingers moving and knew she was preparing the necessary Uchawi symbols to either immobilize him, or harm him in some fashion.
“That won’t be necessary, Sakari,” she spoke up immediately. “This is Eruitt, the man Giya appointed as her apprentice. You must remember when she told us she was leaving to rest,” she prompted. She was relieved to see Sakari relax her stance. They didn’t need any more “incidents” at this moment. Killing Heiken by making it look as though Denit had passed judgement on him for refusing to serve Nohoyo had been a strategic move on her part; one she regretted, but had deemed necessary to unite everyone in moving past the harm already done to their entire people. Harming Giya’s apprentice would serve no such purpose.
“Why are you here?” Kraas asked, her face revealing outright suspicion. Of course, she hadn’t been here when Denit had risen as the new Sun Goddess, so there were many things she wouldn’t know, Jahari realized.
“I remember you,” Sakari offered, looking him up and down, as if she might still take a bite out of him. “You were the one who was watching over all the council members when they … dissolved, or fell apart, or whatever it was they did.”
“When they did what?” Kraas exclaimed, wrinkling her nose in disgust.
“I told you we would have to give you a lesson on local history,” Zaria chuckled lightly.
“They exploded, really,” he said, a strange look on his face. Inhaling, he swung his arms in front of him, telling Jahari he was more nervous than he appeared. She had seen these kinds of movements before, in people who were uneasy. She almost chuckled, except for the fact that he really shouldn’t even be here at all.
“Wasn’t that just after you started the war with Vray’s help?” he looked sideways at Sakari, a sly smile on his face. Jahari decided she liked this one. Humor – even about such terrible events – was something she would always appreciate.
“Why are you here, Eruitt?” Jahari asked, cutting through the chatter.
“My Lady,” Eruitt actually bowed, much to her amusement, and a bit of appreciation, if she was honest with herself. “I am here because I was already on my way to see you when I heard you discussing Giya. Instead of walking the rest of the way, I felt it would be more expedient, if rather rude and awkward, to come more quickly. My apologies for the intrusion.” He bowed
again.
“Why were you already on the way here?” Jahari asked at the same time Kraas asked, “What do you mean you heard us talking about Giya?”
Holding up his hands, as if to ask them to be patient, or quiet, Eruitt told them, “I was on my way here because you were one of the four Ahadi Lumas had watching Giya for so long,” he nodded at Jahari, “and I felt you were the best choice to bring news of Giya to. Especially since I will need your help to free her from Jikangai.”
“So she is there!” Sakari hissed.
“Why were you listening to us?” Kraas repeated her question. “How is that even possible?”
“Sometimes it’s important, in my role as Giya’s apprentice to know what is going on in different parts of the world, and I can’t be everywhere at once. I may be her apprentice, but I am still human and not a god.” When Kraas started to protest, he held up his hand, a smile no longer on his face. “It is my duty to do what must be done, and I will not apologize if you are uncomfortable with that. As it happens, I was on my way here, as I said, and it was important to know if Jahari was still here, or if one of the other gods had tried to take her place. I am most pleased to find that you are here, My Lady,” he nodded his head in Jahari’s direction, “and that Nohoyo’s progress is moving in the right direction.”
“So how do we get Giya out of Jikangai?” Sakari asked.
“Jahari needs to finish explaining about the fruit and the basket,” he said nodding at the table.
“Very well,” Jahari agreed, picking up the melon once more. “If this fruit represents the circumference of the circle Deiserin must walk in her tortoise form, where time moves more quickly than it does in the rest of the world, then this,” she placed the melon back in the center of the basket, running a finger along its ragged edge, “represents the second, larger circle, in which time moves more slowly than it does in the rest of the world.”
“Borja didn’t mention anything about a second circle,” Zaria protested.
“Nonetheless, that’s how Lumas created it; I was there,” Jahari replied.
“Well, yes,” Eruitt agreed. “However, you failed to mention the Keeper of the second circle.” He looked at her, as if he wanted to apologize for contradicting her.
“The Keeper …” Jahari echoed dumbfounded. “What are you talking about? Lumas didn’t place anyone there. As I told you, I was there. I was called to bear witness to Lumas’ handiwork. All of the Ahadi were.”
“Who else was there, My Lady? Do you know?” When he saw the look of anger stealing across her face, he sighed. “I apologize. It wasn’t my intention to upset you. I suppose I just thought I was being clever. I was never meant to fulfill Giya’s duties. I only wanted to help her. She was there,” he told them. “Giya. She is the planet and the planet is her. And even though it exists “Out of Time” as you say, it is also here. “
“But how do you know about this second circle and the “Keeper” there?” Sakari asked, a frown on her face.
“The same way I know that Giya is in Jikangai. She told me.”
“She did what?” Kraas exclaimed. “What is it with all these gods?”
Jahari could see the pieces to the puzzle coming together and smiled. Of course! It all made sense now. That meant there was hope of averting this nasty situation created by Ozahm! If she was honest with herself, she hadn’t seen how it would have been possible to keep Ozahm from killing Giya, and the entire planet with her. Now, though, there might be a way.
“Her husband,” she said. “Deiserin’s husband. He loved her beyond reason.”
“Yes,” Eruitt sighed with a smile, and Jahari could actually see the man’s relief in the way his body sagged a little, as if he felt like he was finally getting through to her.
“Zemer was his name. I remember now. He was holding her hand when Lumas changed Deiserin into a tortoise. He told Lumas that she should transform him too, because he had stood by her side through everything, and had even been the one responsible for stealing their three children from their rightful parents. Lumas refused, saying his punishment was to live the rest of his life without her.”
“I didn’t know the story,” Eruitt said quietly. “Only that it was her husband who became the Keeper of the Second Circle of Jikangai.”
“But how does this get Giya out of that place?” Sakari wanted to know. “Is her husband still alive after all this time?”
“He should be, yes,” Jahari responded, nodding, at the same time Eruitt told her, “No,” shaking his head back and forth.
“By Sov’s eye, this is maddening!” Kraas shouted, throwing out her hands in frustration. “Which is it?”
“Giya found a way to release him years ago,” Eruitt told them. “He had thought he would be able to wait for her, you see, his wife – the Empress. But he had placed himself into the Second Circle; Lumas had no hand in it, although she allowed it. Well,” he paused, “it would probably be more accurate to say that she hadn’t stopped him from doing it. But,” he held up a single finger, “Zemer was alone, for a very, very long time. He lived out many life times there, alone. He grew lonely, and … well … who knows what else? Can you imagine it?” Eruitt asked them. “Living for centuries by yourself?”
“So Giya let him out and then what happened?” Zaria asked, reaching for a piece of fruit laying on the table.
“She created P’onyem,” he shrugged. “Very much in the same manner that Sov and Lumas created her, Giya created P’onyem, a woman of the desert, from herself. Zemer … well … he … he lay with her,” he stuttered, and Jahari found herself almost laughing at loud at his embarrassment.
“Do you mean he had sex with her?” Jahari let her smile widen at his discomfort. “Oh Eruitt, you really are too much,” she chuckled lightly, shaking her head. “Go on. I assume there was a child born of this … union?” she asked, still smiling.
He cleared his throat, nodding. “Yes.”
“Why is this important?” Sakari asked. “I really do wish you would get to the point.”
“Oh, let him go on,” Kraas disagreed, shaking her head, then leaned against the table with her arms crossed. “I’m getting quite the education.” She huffed, still shaking her head.
“You’ve met P’onyem’s son, Sakari, and so have you, My Lady,” Eruitt told them. “Although with everything going on when Denit became the Sun Goddess, you may not remember him. His name is Chared.”
“And what good is this Chared going to do us?” Kraas growled. “Borja specifically said that only the direct descendant of the Empress’ second daughter, Binti, will be able to stop the tortoise. And that’s the Emperor of Bila, not Chared.”
“And,” Zaria added, licking juice off of her fingers, “she said we would have to figure out how to replace the Empress with the Emperor.”
“We should already be on our way there, instead of listening to this … this … children’s story,” Sakari huffed.
“Borja lied,” he told them quietly, then waited for the shouts of disbelief to subside.
Jahari watched the three women shout questions and accusations at the young man and was impressed how calmly he handled the situation. She considered that, perhaps, there was more to him than most would see. Certainly Giya wouldn’t have chosen him as her apprentice without good reason. The fact that he had known about Jikangai at all was evidence that he was connected in some manner to Giya. That, she mused, or one of the other Ahadi. Truly, there had been no other witnesses to Lumas’ imprisonment of the first Empress of Bila. She hadn’t considered that Giya had knowledge of the event, but he was right in that Giya was the planet and the planet was Giya.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Zaria asked quietly.
“Borja didn’t tell you about the Second Circle of Jikangai because she wanted you to fail. It’s true that Ozahm stole her life force so that he could cloak the Fire Tender – her name is Sina, by the way – but she wants Giya dead almost as much as Ozahm does.”
“That�
�s absurd!” Jahari interjected.
“Is it?” Eruitt asked, looking directly into her eyes. “Giya poisoned the waters of the desert long ago, after she made her pact with Amphedia, the Storm Goddess, to make sure that any Tuq’deb male who drank it would be unable to sire the savior Amphedia wanted to create as her heir. Who do you suppose created the magic necessary for Giya to do that?”
“No!” Jahari was adamant. “Borja never revealed herself. Never. We would have all known if she had revealed herself to Giya. You’re wrong. Or Giya is lying to you,” she pointed at him.
“The Goddess Borja created the Bahari, all of those who are part human, part sea creature came from her. Other than the True Children of Amphedia, of course,” he amended. “Giya sought her out for this information without knowing she was actually one of her own guardians that Lumas had tasked with protecting her.”
“Borja is afraid Giya will reveal her secret,” Jahari sighed.
“And now she has,” Eruitt nodded his head once for emphasis. “Borja is helping Ozahm.”
“Listen,” Kraas pointed at him, “all of this is fascinating, but you still haven’t told us how we’re supposed to save your precious Earth Goddess.”
“We will all have to work together,” Eruitt sighed. “I don’t like any of this any more than any of you do. I would rather have remained ignorant of … of all of this!” he shouted for the first time. “Someone once told me there is a burden in knowing too much, and at this point, I have to agree. We may still need the Emperor, just in case Borja is right. Do you know how to replace the Empress with someone else? You were there, is Borja telling the truth?” he asked Jahari.
“I …” Jahari paused. “I was never as close to Lumas as I was to Giya,” she admitted. “I was disgusted by the whole incident, but I cannot imagine Lumas making some kind of proclamation of how to undo what she had just done. More likely, Borja got the information out of Lumas over time. She often spent a great deal of time in the seas, where Lumas enjoyed her own reflection. Chances are she charmed the information out of the Goddess of Beauty with flattery. So no, I can neither confirm nor deny that what Borja has told you is true.”
