Race for the Flash Stone (The Anlon Cully Chronicles Book 2)

by K Patrick Donoghue

  The voices he heard when the vision began belonged to other people sitting at other tables on the cliff-side lounge. None of them seemed to notice Anlon, which was just as well. If they interacted with him, Anlon could only smile and bow like some kind of foreign tourist.

  When he got up close to the wall, his opinion of the shells changed. Still colorful, there was no paint involved in their appearance. The colors, stripes, swirls and polka dots were all natural features. Some of the patterns Anlon recognized from his study of marine biology, but others were completely unknown to him. He reached out and touched the surface of a few. It amazed him to feel their texture.

  When he returned to the table, Malinyah offered him a drink, saying, “Enjyia.”

  Anlon, feeling a tad more relaxed, raised the glass and added a second word to his Munuorian vocabulary: “Kaeto. Enjyia.”

  He raised the glass to his nose and sniffed the pink-hued, watery drink. It had the same floral scent as Anlon had noticed in her hair. He took a sip and swished the slick fluid in his mouth. There was a gritty bite to it, similar to the greens powder he mixed in with his morning orange juice. But the enjyia’s bite was far subtler. As he swallowed it, he noticed a sweet aftertaste followed by a tingling in his throat.

  Anlon bowed slightly and said kaeto again. Suddenly, he felt like the foreign tourist he imagined moments before. Malinyah motioned for him to sit. He nodded his head and lowered onto the chair. Looking out at the vista, Anlon’s eyes and mind flitted in every direction, trying to take in as much as possible.

  Ahead, Anlon’s attention was again drawn to the ships. There were three of them, and in the brief time Anlon had been on the ledge they’d already closed in on the shoreline.

  The ships were unlike any Anlon had previously encountered. They were streamlined, almost dolphin-like in their shape. From a rounded nose at the bow, the hulls on each ship swelled outward to form bulbous curves that tapered sharply as they neared the stern. Most conspicuous, there were no sails or masts. In fact, there appeared to be no structures above the deck at all. Nor were there any visible oars. Watching the craft cut effortlessly through the water, Anlon wondered what propelled them.

  To his left, he saw the volcano Pebbles had mentioned. The pitch of its slopes was steeper than any Anlon had seen in pictures or in person. Its peak hovered above a thin band of clouds, making it look like it floated in thin air.

  To his right, Anlon spied another volcano. This one was shaped more like a mound. It was much shorter than the other volcano but had an elongated base. Brightly colored foliage grew along its slopes.

  Returning his gaze to Malinyah, Anlon pointed at his chest and said, “Anlon.” Pointing to her, he repeated her name. Then he pointed toward the steep volcano with an expectant look. Malinyah nodded her understanding and said, “Tumaera.”

  He gestured to the mound-shaped volcano, and she replied, “Artosae.”

  Anlon was thrilled to realize his Munuorian vocabulary had expanded another one hundred percent. He felt a strong temptation to sit back and enjoy the view, but his curiosity wouldn’t allow the notion to take hold. Retrieving the enjyia, he took another drink and studied the mixture more closely.

  It was definitely plant-based, but it wasn’t fruity. Given its watery appearance, Anlon guessed it to be something steeped, like tea, or something juiced, like lemonade. A thought crossed his mind. He reached for the pitcher. It was coated in condensation. With his finger, he drew the Sinethal’s etched leaf symbol, the symbol for the Seed Stone, as Devlin had named it. He turned the pitcher for Malinyah to see his drawing.

  She smiled and nodded. She held out an open palm and circled a fist against it. She pointed back at Anlon’s design. “Terusael.”

  As Anlon guessed, enjyia was the life-extending drink made possible by the Terusael, the Seed Stone. He presumed her hand gestures symbolized how the Stone was used. Extending both hands, Malinyah encouraged Anlon to reach out his as well.

  When she gripped his hands, a new vision appeared. Malinyah stood at a counter. On the counter was a potted plant. Next to it was a pile of small seeds. Aside the pile of seeds was a Breylofte. Next to that, a small egg-shaped Stone. Malinyah pointed from the plant to the seeds. She pinched some of the seeds and dropped them in the bowl of the Breylofte. She pointed at the egg-shaped stone and said, “Terusael.”

  Malinyah lifted the Terusael and slowly circled inside the bowl of the Breylofte. Anlon could hear the faint scratching of the friction between the two Stones. At that point, two things happened: the Terusael began to glow and a soft whine echoed from the Breylofte. She never altered the rhythm of her circles, but the Breylofte’s whine picked up in intensity the longer Malinyah stroked it with the Terusael. The inside of the bowl began to glow as well. Malinyah ceased circling and tapped the pulsating Terusael against the inner surface of the bowl. Small sparks leapt out. She did this several times and then returned to circling the egg-shaped stone inside the bowl. Malinyah repeated this cycle a half dozen times before ceasing the demonstration.

  The two Stones, seated side by side on the counter, turned pale orange as their glows subsided. When they’d returned to their original colors, Malinyah poured out the seeds from inside the Breylofte. They had been blackish before, but now were a light brown. She planted the altered seeds in a new pot.

  The vision switched to a fully grown, flowering plant. Malinyah picked its blossoms and crushed them in an ordinary bowl. Soon, a pinkish juice formed among the pulverized petals. She poured the juice into a pitcher of water and stirred. Enjyia.

  Anlon pondered the demonstration. It appeared Malinyah stimulated the seeds with a combination of magnetically charged sound waves and small electrical shocks. He was most impressed by how precisely, and yet gently, Malinyah had manipulated both forces. It was a good reminder that no matter how powerful the Stones might be, it took a practiced hand to wield them.

  He released Malinyah’s hands and the vision returned to the cliff ledge. He thanked her for the demonstration and sampled more of the enjyia. It was probably an illusion, but Anlon felt a little woozy, almost sleepy. He yawned and lowered the glass.

  Malinyah extended her hands again and asked, “Tuliskaera?”

  Stifling another yawn, Anlon nodded.

  When the new vision began, Anlon and Malinyah stood at the base of Tumaera. Anlon stared up at its near vertical walls. With his head bent all the way back, he said, “Looks like something from Dr. Seuss.”

  Looking around, Anlon saw a variety of flora around the volcano’s base. They were all popping with rich colors — red, green, orange and even some blue. Among them, Anlon noticed a plant with the flowers Malinyah had pulverized into enjyia.

  Malinyah called to Anlon. In her hands, she held two Stones. One he recognized as a Naetir. The other was a marbled, gray-green, cone-shaped rock. The Flash Stone.

  “Tuliskaera,” said Malinyah, holding forth the cone-shaped device. Anlon received it and was surprised by its weight. Unlike the feathery-light Naetir, the Tuliskaera was dense.

  About the length of an average bottle of water, the Stone was about five inches thick at the base of the cone. Surprisingly, however, the Stone was not bottom heavy. In fact, it felt perfectly weighted midway up the cone, which seemed impossible for a natural stone. Anlon examined the Tuliskaera’s tip with his index finger. There was no hole leading into the Stone, nor was there any seam at either end or along its side.

  The most stunning feature was an etched snake coiled around the body of the Stone. The green snake’s open mouth was poised to strike. Anlon wondered about the design’s significance. He looked toward Malinyah and pointed at the snake. She made an angry face with teeth bared and raised two fingers like prongs. She bit down and hissed. An interesting analogy, thought Anlon.

  Malinyah reached for the Tuliskaera and then motioned for Anlon to follow her to a field of lava rocks at least twenty feet tall. When they stood about fifty feet away, Malinyah gestured for Anlon to stand b
ack.

  Malinyah moved the Naetir close to the base of the Tuliskaera. Unlike the Sinethal, the Naetir didn’t clamp onto the underside of the cone. She touched it gently against the Tuliskaera and circled in a motion similar to her earlier demonstration of the Terusael.

  After a few minutes, she lifted the Naetir to show Anlon the underside of the Tuliskaera. He noticed a small circle in the middle of the cone’s base was glowing. Malinyah reapplied the Naetir and continued to circle it against the bottom of the Tuliskaera.

  When the snake began to glow, Malinyah ceased scraping. She turned and looked briefly at Anlon, then focused her attention on the lava wall. She slammed the two Stones together and a bolt of lightning shot forth from the Tuliskaera’s tip. The bolt sizzled into the wall of lava, turning the spot it first struck into a molten rivulet.

  Malinyah slowly moved the beam upward, across, down and back to her starting position. The beam hissed and crackled as it cut into the rock. In one quick motion, Malinyah pulled the Naetir away. The rectangular shape she had etched into the lava glowed, while streams of molten rock slid down its surface.

  She paused, looked back at Anlon and then once again directed her gaze at the lava rocks. This time, her movement was swift and violent. She slammed the two Stones together and made a slashing motion with the melded Stones. The lightning bolt leapt toward the top of the wall and cleaved a huge chunk free from its spot. A car-sized boulder tumbled down and crashed on the ground. As soon as it landed, Malinyah slashed again and carved the boulder in two pieces as easy as a knife through paper.

  Anlon thought of Pacal’s description of the Tuliskaera: “It’s a weapon. It makes this Sound Stone look like a twig.”

  Malinyah approached one of the cleaved halves. It still smoked along its carved face. She stood a few feet away and tilted the hockey-puck-shaped Naetir on its side. She tapped it against the base of the Tuliskaera instead of slamming them together. A beam of lower intensity shot toward the rock. The beam didn’t waver and crackle like lightning; it was steady like a laser. With a surgical touch, Malinyah shaped the top half into a sphere.

  When Anlon let go of the Sinethal, Pebbles was standing by with a glass of water at the ready. She helped him into a sitting position and said, “Didn’t I tell you? Was that cool or what?”

  After a couple of generous gulps, Anlon smiled. “Kaeto.”

  “Aegan,” replied Pebbles, invoking the Munuorian’s equivalent of “you’re welcome.”

  “Remember how I was saying archaeologists would want more proof than Malinyah’s word?” Anlon said. “Um, I retract that statement. Wow!”

  “What did you think of enjyia?”

  “It made me sleepy, but I liked the taste,” said Anlon.

  “Oh, my gosh. I literally fell asleep on the table for a little bit. Malinyah had to wake me!” Pebbles said. “What did you think of the view from the cliff?”

  “Stunning, no other words needed.”

  “And the volcano?”

  “Which one, Tumaera or Artosae?”

  “There were two? I only saw Tumaera,” said Pebbles. “Did you see the seashells?”

  “I did. I touched them. Such amazing detail in Malinyah’s memories.” Anlon thought of his earlier Neil Armstrong analogy and shuddered to imagine experiencing the first walk on the Moon in the same level of detail.

  “Did you see the Tuliskaera?” Pebbles asked.

  “Yep, held it in my hand. It’s heavy,” said Anlon. “How about the glowing snake?”

  Pebbles hissed and crooked two fingers. Anlon said, “Hey, she did that for me, too!”

  They exchanged stories for several more minutes. Anlon told Pebbles about viewing the Terusael demonstration. Pebbles shared the gensae conversation in return. He talked of the ships; she told him of Malinyah’s stark post-Munirvo vision.

  “I wish I’d seen that,” Anlon said. “So, Malinyah said they lost their magnetic abilities after Munirvo?”

  “Well, that was my interpretation, but she didn’t say it like that. She said they lost the ability to read Terra’s mind.”

  Anlon nodded. “I think I’d interpret that the same way as you. It makes sense, really. I imagine the world turning upside down would alter the magnetic field.”

  “She was very open. She said they relied on their gensae too much,” Pebbles said. “She said that made it harder to cope after Munirvo, that they were kind of screwed trying to survive on what was left of Munuoria.”

  “Did you ask her about the map?” Anlon asked.

  “No, not yet.”

  “How about the dragon-head statue?”

  “Nope. We were kind of reconnecting more than anything else,” Pebbles said. “I can go back and ask right now, if you want.”

  “It would be helpful to get answers sooner rather than later, if you don’t mind. At least we don’t need to ask about the other statue. Pretty clear it depicts the Tuliskaera in use.”

  “Any other questions you want me to ask?”

  Anlon thought about it and said, “Yeah, while you’re at it, I’ve got two more for you. Ask her if she knows where her Sinethal was kept. Who knows, she might give us a clue that will help figure out where Devlin found it.”

  “Okay. What’s the other question?”

  “Ask her about Cassiopeia. Ask her if it was visible year-round.”

  “Really? You’re fascinated with Cassiopeia, aren’t you?”

  “Just ask her, please. I’m interested to know whether it was always visible, or if there were times during the year when they couldn’t see it. If it wasn’t always visible, it would be great to know how many days a year they couldn’t see it.”

  “Is this another memory test?”

  Anlon smiled. “For Malinyah, not you.”

  Pebbles reengaged the Sinethal and greeted Malinyah in the marble hall. Together, they walked outside by the wading pool and sat at its edge. Pebbles dangled her feet in the water. Looking down, she again noticed she wore a tunic. She smiled. She could actually feel the tepid water between her toes.

  “So, Anlon has some more questions,” started Pebbles.

  “If it gives us a chance to talk, Alynioria, I’m always pleased to be with you,” Malinyah said.

  A warm rush passed through Pebbles. She blushed. “That’s sweet. I feel the same way.”

  Malinyah waited for Pebbles’ question and swirled her own toes in the pool. Pebbles said, “Let’s get the easy ones out of the way first. Anlon’s interested in Breylif. The constellation, not the butterflies. He asked me if you could see it all the time or if there were times you couldn’t see it.”

  “What an interesting question. Why does he want to know?”

  “I have no idea. Every time I ask, he just grins at me.”

  There was a pause as Malinyah contemplated an answer. During the pause, Pebbles lightly splashed the water with her feet. Then she noticed something odd. The broken chain tattoo that graced her ankle wasn’t there. She lifted her wrists and saw the huddled angel and Trinity knot were gone as well. As were the scars beneath them.

  Malinyah said, “We could see it most of the year.”

  The answer stirred Pebbles’ attention. “Huh? Oh. Right. Um, I know this seems like a ridiculous question, but do you know how many days a year you couldn’t see it?”

  “Why?”

  “Anlon…what can I say? He’s geeky.”

  “Geeky?”

  “Oh, sorry. Just an expression. He’s a scientist; he likes to ‘know’ things.”

  “Let me see. I would say a little more than a month each year.”

  “Okay, great. Thanks. Next question, do you know what happened to your Sinethal after you died? Where it was stored?”

  Malinyah bristled. “Why?”

  “Um, we’re trying to figure out where Devlin found it. Anlon thought he might have found it wherever it was kept after you died,” Pebbles said.

  Malinyah pulled her feet from the water and abruptly stood. “I don’t know.�
��

  “Is everything okay?” Pebbles asked. Goose bumps dotted her arms and legs. “If I upset you, I’m sorry.”

  There was no answer from Malinyah. She just stood staring off toward the field of Alynioria flowers. Pebbles asked, “Should I stop asking questions?”

  “It’s all right, Alynioria,” Malinyah said. “Please continue.”

  “Are you sure? You look angry.” Pebbles reached out a hand toward Malinyah, but the Munuorian Andaer paid no heed.

  “I’m not angry, I just don’t know the answer to your question.”

  “Okay, well, I won’t ask that one again. Promise.” Pebbles smiled.

  There was no response from Malinyah. She remained standing, arms folded, looking away. Pebbles briefly considered ending the Sinethal session, but she knew Anlon really wanted answers about the map and statue.

  “Devlin had this statue,” she began. “It looks like a man with the head of a lizard or a dragon. The man is holding a sword in one hand. The dragon’s face looks angry.

  “When Devlin went looking for more of the Lifintyls using the map you showed him, he drew a picture of the statue in his notes. We can’t figure out why. Do you know anything about a half-dragon, half-man statue?”

  A curious Malinyah finally turned toward Pebbles. “A statue? No.” Malinyah paused for a moment and then added, “And we didn’t use swords to defend ourselves, we used the Tyls. There were foreign tribes that used swords, but not Munuorians.”

  “Oh, yeah, I guess we should have thought of that. It’s just, it has the Sulataer symbol on the back of the dragon’s head. So, we thought it had something—”

  “I told you! I don’t know anything about a statue,” Malinyah growled.

  Session over.

  CHAPTER 12

  JUNGLE FEVER

  Rio Teodoro (Roosevelt River)

  Amazon Rainforest, Brazil