The Mountain Prophecy: Chapter 8
I wasn't able to move. I wasn't able to blink. I wasn't able to speak, though I desperately wanted to say something. Anything.
Quest was kneeling in front of Louie, barely breathing. She ran her fingers through his hair lovingly.
I wondered how close they were.
Slowly, I walked over to her, and kneeling, put a had on her tense shoulder. it was shaking, ever so slightly. I took a breath, but before I could say anything, quest spoke.
"He was like a little brother to me, Nolan. I- I grew up with him. I had no idea his death would come so soon. I was sure-" her voice caught in her throat. "I was so sure he would grow up and get married and tell this story to his grandchildren.... He was always so good with kids." She looked up at me, tears lining her eyes, making them glisten. Her eyes were so beautiful, even when they showed sadness. Then, determination flashed through her lovely, melancholy eyes. "We are going to give him a proper burial."
So we did. We buried Louie by the beautiful pond where he died, as a warning to all. Quest said a few words, and laid a bouquet of flowers over the mound of dirt that served as his resting place.
"Come on, lets go find those scrolls." I said quietly, almost a whisper in her ear. She nodded, and stared towards the path, walking quickly, with a goal in mind. We were going to find the Forgotten, together. For Louie.
"For Louie!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. Quest turned and gave me a questioning look, but joined in the call. "For Louie!"
මමමමමමමමමමම
We walked well into the night, having lost valuable time while fighting the spirit. I hoped we would stop and make camp soon, I was exhausted. My feet dragged and I could barely keep my eyes open. It was amazing how much grit Quest had. She had not complained once since we had left Louie, and I was impressed. So naturally I had to keep my complaints to myself.
I must have stumbled or something, because Quest looked behind her, at me. Bumbling around in the half dark, probably tripping over everything, but not noticing. I'm so graceful.
"Nolan, I think we should stop soon," Quest called. She probably noticed how pathetic I looked, with my half open eyes and slouchy posture. I mean, more slouchy than normal.
"You- don't have to- stop for- me," I gasped, putting a hand on my side. I hadn't had this much physical exercise in a very long time.
Quest raised an eyebrow at me. "That settles it," she stopped walking and turned around completely. "We're stopping here."
"Okay." I replied, grateful. We had stopped a gigantic tree that was covered in glowing leaves. The trunk was so big that if Quest and I held hands we wouldn't even get a fifth of the way around. I couldn't tell what the shape of the leaves were, they were glowing too bright. I walked towards it, arms out to feel the bark. I ran my hands over it, enjoying the rough texture on my fingertips. Quest was feeling the bark, too, but she seemed to be looking for something.
I turned back to study the bark some more, the leaves providing suitable light. the bark had a weird, symmetrical appearance, which I thought wasn't normal for bark. Then again, the leaves glowed.
Absentmindedly, my fingers felt a groove that didn't match the rest of the bark, and as I found myself tracing it, my mind raced. Was this a door? In the trunk of a tree? Sure enough, my thumb grazed a deeper pocket of the groove, and I pulled. The door swung open violently, almost whacking quest in the arm, and I shouted.
Quest rushed over and stooped down so she could see inside. She stood back up and gave me a look of approval- because I needed approval from her- and ducked inside.
"Come on in, Nolan! Come see!" She whooped, and I imagined her jumping in the air with excitement. I decided I better go and see what she was so excited about.
The sight was incredible. Inside the tree were plush velvet couches, fuzzy rugs that your feet sank into with every step and a blazing fireplace. Built in bookshelves lined the walls, all the way up to the top of the trunk. Did I mention how tall this tree was? It was taller than the clock tower in the village. taller than two clock towers. The tree had a lifting system, too, so you could get any book you wanted, even if you weren't 30 feet tall. It was the most incredible place I had ever seen.
"Nolan! Come look at this!" Quest said, excitedly.
I walked over- but not before I took my shoes off- to see what she was so excited about. Quest was leaning over a giant map that was spread out on a table by the fireplace.
"Look! this map has the four main villages as well as the Beyond! And It's mapped!" She pointed to a spot on the map. It was a cluster of trees around a few houses. I dragged my eyes over the rest of the map, and they landed on a big red dot that said you are HERE. It was an image of a tree with glowing blue leaves. There was a path marked between the red dot to another tree with glowing blue leaves.
"Quest... are there more trees like this? I mean, not just the glowing leaves, but the inside, too?"
Quest just grinned at me. I took that as a yes.
We studied the map for a few more minutes, then Quest went to look for a book and I decided to explore a little. As I walked to the other side of the room, a door appeared in the bookshelves. I walked faster, curious. When I opened it and walked inside, I immediately smelled food. Real food, too, not the dried stuff we'd been eating for the last couple days. I stepped into the room, excited, and there it was. A whole roast, still warm, biscuits, fruit and a pitcher of water. My mouth watered.
"Quest! Food!" I shouted. She came running.
"Yes! I was hoping the tree would give us some food! And look," she pointed to two beds, piled high with blankets and pillows. It looked extremely comfortable.
I turned back to the food, and Quest laughed. It was a merry sound, like bells jingling. It made me happy that she could laugh so soon after Louie's death.
"Go ahead and eat Nolan. I'll join you in a minute." She smiled, and left me to the food.
I picked up the knife, and cut into the roast. It was like cutting through butter. I put the piece of juicy meat in my mouth, and chewed slowly, closing my eyes and moaning. It was so much better than dried food. I gobbled up at least half of the roast, and stuffed fruit in my mouth. The grapes were my favorite. They were just ripe enough that they would pop when you bit them, and just the tiniest bit tart.
By the time Quest came back in the room, I had collapsed on one of the beds, and was half asleep.
"Good night, Nolan." Quest whispered.
I mumbled an incoherent reply, and nodded off.
මමමමමමමමමම
"Nolannnn... That is his name, is it not? He is the boy we have been watching for so long, and I intend to have him. He must be brought to me. His mother will want to see him."
"That is not the only reason you want him, correct?"
"No, I am using that as bait. The boy has no idea his mother is here, has no idea what I plan to do with her. Frankly, he has no idea what I'm going to do with him. If only I had those scrolls."
"Master... I have been tracking their progress."
"Report, Servahcah. I am anxious to know what you have seen and heard."
"The girl has told the boy- Nolan- and he knows about us, at least a little bit. They are in the Shielded Wood currently, but I do not have their exact whereabouts. It is the Shielded Wood, after all.
The girl and the boy- if I am guessing correctly- are headed for The Beyond, trying to find something called The Forgotten. I think I might know what that is."
"And what of the third human? You have not mentioned him once."
"Oh, yes... um, well the Dryad got him. At the pond. He has been buried there."
"Mmm... yes, that is good news. Please send the Dryad a message for me."
"Yes, Master. What would you like me to send?"
"You may tell her... that it was a job well done, and I expect no less then the best."
මමමමමමමමමම
I sat up, gasping. That was the weirdest dream I've had for a while....
I looked to my left, at the other bed, and noticed Quest snoring. I didn't want to wake her up just to tell her about a silly nightmare, so I slipped out of bed and quietly tiptoed to the door.
Once outside, I immediately rushed over to the map, to see if there had been any changes since the night before.
There was nothing new.
But wait. just on the edge of the Shielded Wood- where we were- was a little black dot, the size of a pea, with the word Servahcah underneath it. I tripped over the word in my head a couple of times, and decided to say it out loud, for good measure.
"Serv-ih-cuh? S-air-v-ic-ah? S-ai-"
"Serve-AH-C-Ah. He is The Voiceless One's servent. Hence the name SERVahcah."
"Oh, I get it." I replyed. I wondered what he was doing on the edge of the wood. Then I remembered my dream.
"Quest, I had the weirdest dream last night." I proceeded to tell her my dream, and the more I told her, the bigger her eyes got.
"Oh no. Oh no no no no! That is not good. We have to get to The Beyond. We won't be really safe until we make it there." She looked around frantically, then took a step towards the lift. I knew what she was doing. Once she was on the lift she directed it towards the far wall. The Legends section. Quest gingerly pulled a book off the shelf and dusted it off gently. She brought it down to me, but I ignored it, and grabbed her free hand. Her breath caught in her throat, and she looked up at me.
"Quest," I said raggedly. "He has my mom."
Quest was kneeling in front of Louie, barely breathing. She ran her fingers through his hair lovingly.
I wondered how close they were.
Slowly, I walked over to her, and kneeling, put a had on her tense shoulder. it was shaking, ever so slightly. I took a breath, but before I could say anything, quest spoke.
"He was like a little brother to me, Nolan. I- I grew up with him. I had no idea his death would come so soon. I was sure-" her voice caught in her throat. "I was so sure he would grow up and get married and tell this story to his grandchildren.... He was always so good with kids." She looked up at me, tears lining her eyes, making them glisten. Her eyes were so beautiful, even when they showed sadness. Then, determination flashed through her lovely, melancholy eyes. "We are going to give him a proper burial."
So we did. We buried Louie by the beautiful pond where he died, as a warning to all. Quest said a few words, and laid a bouquet of flowers over the mound of dirt that served as his resting place.
"Come on, lets go find those scrolls." I said quietly, almost a whisper in her ear. She nodded, and stared towards the path, walking quickly, with a goal in mind. We were going to find the Forgotten, together. For Louie.
"For Louie!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. Quest turned and gave me a questioning look, but joined in the call. "For Louie!"
මමමමමමමමමමම
We walked well into the night, having lost valuable time while fighting the spirit. I hoped we would stop and make camp soon, I was exhausted. My feet dragged and I could barely keep my eyes open. It was amazing how much grit Quest had. She had not complained once since we had left Louie, and I was impressed. So naturally I had to keep my complaints to myself.
I must have stumbled or something, because Quest looked behind her, at me. Bumbling around in the half dark, probably tripping over everything, but not noticing. I'm so graceful.
"Nolan, I think we should stop soon," Quest called. She probably noticed how pathetic I looked, with my half open eyes and slouchy posture. I mean, more slouchy than normal.
"You- don't have to- stop for- me," I gasped, putting a hand on my side. I hadn't had this much physical exercise in a very long time.
Quest raised an eyebrow at me. "That settles it," she stopped walking and turned around completely. "We're stopping here."
"Okay." I replied, grateful. We had stopped a gigantic tree that was covered in glowing leaves. The trunk was so big that if Quest and I held hands we wouldn't even get a fifth of the way around. I couldn't tell what the shape of the leaves were, they were glowing too bright. I walked towards it, arms out to feel the bark. I ran my hands over it, enjoying the rough texture on my fingertips. Quest was feeling the bark, too, but she seemed to be looking for something.
I turned back to study the bark some more, the leaves providing suitable light. the bark had a weird, symmetrical appearance, which I thought wasn't normal for bark. Then again, the leaves glowed.
Absentmindedly, my fingers felt a groove that didn't match the rest of the bark, and as I found myself tracing it, my mind raced. Was this a door? In the trunk of a tree? Sure enough, my thumb grazed a deeper pocket of the groove, and I pulled. The door swung open violently, almost whacking quest in the arm, and I shouted.
Quest rushed over and stooped down so she could see inside. She stood back up and gave me a look of approval- because I needed approval from her- and ducked inside.
"Come on in, Nolan! Come see!" She whooped, and I imagined her jumping in the air with excitement. I decided I better go and see what she was so excited about.
The sight was incredible. Inside the tree were plush velvet couches, fuzzy rugs that your feet sank into with every step and a blazing fireplace. Built in bookshelves lined the walls, all the way up to the top of the trunk. Did I mention how tall this tree was? It was taller than the clock tower in the village. taller than two clock towers. The tree had a lifting system, too, so you could get any book you wanted, even if you weren't 30 feet tall. It was the most incredible place I had ever seen.
"Nolan! Come look at this!" Quest said, excitedly.
I walked over- but not before I took my shoes off- to see what she was so excited about. Quest was leaning over a giant map that was spread out on a table by the fireplace.
"Look! this map has the four main villages as well as the Beyond! And It's mapped!" She pointed to a spot on the map. It was a cluster of trees around a few houses. I dragged my eyes over the rest of the map, and they landed on a big red dot that said you are HERE. It was an image of a tree with glowing blue leaves. There was a path marked between the red dot to another tree with glowing blue leaves.
"Quest... are there more trees like this? I mean, not just the glowing leaves, but the inside, too?"
Quest just grinned at me. I took that as a yes.
We studied the map for a few more minutes, then Quest went to look for a book and I decided to explore a little. As I walked to the other side of the room, a door appeared in the bookshelves. I walked faster, curious. When I opened it and walked inside, I immediately smelled food. Real food, too, not the dried stuff we'd been eating for the last couple days. I stepped into the room, excited, and there it was. A whole roast, still warm, biscuits, fruit and a pitcher of water. My mouth watered.
"Quest! Food!" I shouted. She came running.
"Yes! I was hoping the tree would give us some food! And look," she pointed to two beds, piled high with blankets and pillows. It looked extremely comfortable.
I turned back to the food, and Quest laughed. It was a merry sound, like bells jingling. It made me happy that she could laugh so soon after Louie's death.
"Go ahead and eat Nolan. I'll join you in a minute." She smiled, and left me to the food.
I picked up the knife, and cut into the roast. It was like cutting through butter. I put the piece of juicy meat in my mouth, and chewed slowly, closing my eyes and moaning. It was so much better than dried food. I gobbled up at least half of the roast, and stuffed fruit in my mouth. The grapes were my favorite. They were just ripe enough that they would pop when you bit them, and just the tiniest bit tart.
By the time Quest came back in the room, I had collapsed on one of the beds, and was half asleep.
"Good night, Nolan." Quest whispered.
I mumbled an incoherent reply, and nodded off.
මමමමමමමමමම
"Nolannnn... That is his name, is it not? He is the boy we have been watching for so long, and I intend to have him. He must be brought to me. His mother will want to see him."
"That is not the only reason you want him, correct?"
"No, I am using that as bait. The boy has no idea his mother is here, has no idea what I plan to do with her. Frankly, he has no idea what I'm going to do with him. If only I had those scrolls."
"Master... I have been tracking their progress."
"Report, Servahcah. I am anxious to know what you have seen and heard."
"The girl has told the boy- Nolan- and he knows about us, at least a little bit. They are in the Shielded Wood currently, but I do not have their exact whereabouts. It is the Shielded Wood, after all.
The girl and the boy- if I am guessing correctly- are headed for The Beyond, trying to find something called The Forgotten. I think I might know what that is."
"And what of the third human? You have not mentioned him once."
"Oh, yes... um, well the Dryad got him. At the pond. He has been buried there."
"Mmm... yes, that is good news. Please send the Dryad a message for me."
"Yes, Master. What would you like me to send?"
"You may tell her... that it was a job well done, and I expect no less then the best."
මමමමමමමමමම
I sat up, gasping. That was the weirdest dream I've had for a while....
I looked to my left, at the other bed, and noticed Quest snoring. I didn't want to wake her up just to tell her about a silly nightmare, so I slipped out of bed and quietly tiptoed to the door.
Once outside, I immediately rushed over to the map, to see if there had been any changes since the night before.
There was nothing new.
But wait. just on the edge of the Shielded Wood- where we were- was a little black dot, the size of a pea, with the word Servahcah underneath it. I tripped over the word in my head a couple of times, and decided to say it out loud, for good measure.
"Serv-ih-cuh? S-air-v-ic-ah? S-ai-"
"Serve-AH-C-Ah. He is The Voiceless One's servent. Hence the name SERVahcah."
"Oh, I get it." I replyed. I wondered what he was doing on the edge of the wood. Then I remembered my dream.
"Quest, I had the weirdest dream last night." I proceeded to tell her my dream, and the more I told her, the bigger her eyes got.
"Oh no. Oh no no no no! That is not good. We have to get to The Beyond. We won't be really safe until we make it there." She looked around frantically, then took a step towards the lift. I knew what she was doing. Once she was on the lift she directed it towards the far wall. The Legends section. Quest gingerly pulled a book off the shelf and dusted it off gently. She brought it down to me, but I ignored it, and grabbed her free hand. Her breath caught in her throat, and she looked up at me.
"Quest," I said raggedly. "He has my mom."
Comments
Post a Comment