The Ancient Lands: Warrior Quest, Search for the Ifa Scepter (6 page)

“I understand,” said Anika. “Good luck to
you then. Come along Farra.”

“Good bye Mr. Bomani,” Farra said in an
eager voice and a grin from ear to ear. She waved as they walked
off. Bomani turned and said nothing. He simply waved as he walked
away.

Farra walked with her mother toward their
village watching Pupa as he scurried along, stopping to sniff at
every rodent and insect that caught his eye. He was so young and
small. Her connection with him was very young with room for so much
growth. She imagined how their connection would be when he reached
the age and size of Laka. She longed for that connection with Pupa,
and she could not tear herself from the thought that this journey
of Bomani’s would be the just the thing she needed to enhance the
bond between her and Pupa’s souls.

“Mother,” she said in a timid voice, “I’d
like to go with the boy.”

“He didn’t seem as if he wanted company,
where ever he was going,” said Anika.

“Yeah, but I think he was just being
stubborn. I don’t think he knows what he needs.”

“You’re probably right.” Anika agreed. “But
that is
his
journey; it doesn’t mean that it is yours.”

“Isn’t it the way of our people to help
others? Whatever journey he is on, it can’t be that difficult. He’s
alone. Besides, I seek to strengthen the bond between Pupa and me.
I look forward to our sacred union,” Farra pleaded.

“Sacred unions are tricky things Farra. You
are at the age when your body, mind and soul, long for it. It’s
different with everyone. It could be something that takes a very
long time to achieve. You have to find your own path, but don’t
expect to gain your sacred union too quickly. A sudden union makes
for a very hard journey, which could end in possible death. It is
better to take your time through your journey. It may take a while
to achieve your union, but it is the safest way.” Anika advised her
daughter wisely.

“Be it short and hard, or long and easy, I
don’t mind, Mother. I’ll take whatever road the gods wish me to
take. It’s just that I feel something inside me telling me to
follow the boy.”

“My solemn answer is no. But if you insist,
I will support you should you wish to confront the council with
this matter.”

Farra stopped in her tracks, her eyes opened
wide with fear. “Me? Speak with the council?”

Farra was both afraid and excited; she had
never been before the Animen Council. Sure, she had seen the five
old wise ones, three men and two women, walking about the village,
moving to and from the hall. But she had never exchanged anything
beyond a greeting with them before now, — and she had certainly
never been inside the hall itself!

The Elders of the council were considered to
be the wisest of the village, and they made all of the critical
decisions. The Animen were sorcerers, and sorcery was something
that was not easily predictable. The Council seemed to have a keen
sense and understanding of the fundamentals of their magic. Their
methods and knowledge of the world were sometimes not entirely
understood. Even among a people of sorcery, their powers seemed
beyond the reach or comprehension of the common Animan or
Anifem.

While most of the people wore clothing that
was brightly colored, the Elders of the Council generally kept to
wearing tones of brown, gray, black, and white. Walking beside
their wolves of matching fur only added to their omniscient
effect.

To Farra and the rest of the children, the
council members may as well have been gods. When she was younger,
she had heard many tales about the Elders: “
They can move
mountains just by thinking about it! They can hold their breath
under water for a week! If you lie to them, they will know, and
then they can melt your brain!”
Of course, as she got older,
she concluded that these were all rumors,
she hoped
.

Nevertheless, Farra and her mother
approached the Elders. The dark, clay dome was built with a
skeletal system of branches that held the clay in place. The
smallest sound echoed throughout the chamber, especially for those
that stood at the center, in this case, Anika and Farra.

The inner dome sat inside a larger one to
allow air to flow inside, and to keep the light out. The only light
inside came from torches scattered along the wall and the subtle
glow that emitted from the crystals atop the Elders' staves.

No one called them by their names. They were
always referred to as the 1
^st
, the 2
^nd
, the
3
^rd
, the 4
^th
and the 5
^th
. It was a
pyramid hierarchy. The 1
^st
led, followed by the second
and third who shared equal power, as did the following fourth and
fifth.

As she and her mother addressed the Council
of Elders, it sunk deep into Farra’s mind that everything that was
about to happen inside the dome was about her. She took a deep
breath to calm herself and waited nervously scratching at the side
of her staff. She was so focused on simply making it to the center
of the room that she didn’t notice the sound of her own scratches
echoing throughout the chamber. The Elder’s all turned to look at
her fingernails raking against the wood, and so did her mother.

“There is no need to be nervous child,” the
Third spoke in a soft female voice. “The Council is always here to
help, not harm you.” Farra caught herself. Now she was even more
nervous and embarrassed than before.

“What is this quest that you speak of?”
asked the First. Farra looked to her mother nervously, but Anika
could not speak for her. Her mother was allowed to be present to
vouch for her, but it was Farra’s responsibility to stand up for
herself and plead her own cause. She didn’t know what to say, so
she said nothing until her mother nudged her with an elbow.

“Um…I wish to aid a young warrior on his
journey.”

“A journey to where?”

“He does not speak of his goal.” Her voice
came out a bit more high pitched than usual but she managed to get
the words out.

“Doesn’t it seem a bit foolish for you to go
on a journey when you have no idea where it leads?” said the
Second.

“Wise one, a person cannot always know where
she is going, or where she will end up. Mother has always told me
that it is the journey that is important; that if the unknown keeps
you rooted, then progress can never be made.”

The Fourth was deeply impressed by her
answer. “Well, your mother has taught you to speak with wisdom.
Since you do not yet possess your full power, do you think that
your wisdom will be enough to sustain you on this journey?”

“We – Pupa and I – are nearing the time of
our sacred union. I had hoped that maybe by assisting this boy, the
journey would help us to discover ourselves,” replied Farra.

“You hope?” said the First. “What if the
gods do not grant you sacred union? What if they don’t approve?” He
looked over to Anika kneeling next to Farra. “You give your
consent?”

“Yes,” Anika answered. “She is strong and
wise for her years but most of all, I trust her to follow what she
feels inside.”

The Elders leaned toward each other and
spoke amongst themselves for a moment. Farra concentrated on
listening in, but the sharp mumble of whispers could not be
deciphered. She was able to make out one word, “TEMPLE.” She leaned
in closer to hear more only to have her arm grabbed by her mother.
The shake of Anika’s head told her she would have to wait to hear
their response.

“We don’t make this decision lightly child,”
said the Second. “We have to wonder, does this have anything to do
with your father?”

“My...my...my father?”

“Yes your father,” said the Fifth. “Do you
believe him to be alive? Perhaps what you really want is to go off
searching for him.”

“My father, sir, is gone. I don’t know if he
is alive. I mean sometimes I hope he is, but... No, I assure you,
this is not about my father.”

The First began to speak, “You have come to
ask our permission to embark upon a journey. For this, you must ask
yourself. Come closer.”

Farra looked up at Anika. She wanted to
move, but fear wouldn’t let her without her mother’s approval.
Anika’s nod told her that it would be okay. Then she realized that
her mother was staying in place. Reluctantly, she understood, she
had to approach them, the Elders, alone; without the comfort of her
mother by her side. “Come on, Pupa.” Farra whispered.

Pupa anxiously jumped up and ran to her
side. Anika once again nodded and gestured with her hand for Farra
to move forward. Hesitantly, she approached the First as he moved
to the front of his seat and leaned down toward her to get a good
look at this child. His hesitation built a well of anxiety inside
of her. Her heart began to pound so hard it felt as if it was going
to burst.

He placed his staff in front of her and
instructed her to place her hands on the large crystal at the
top.

“Place your hands on the crystal,” said The
First. “Look deep within it. No matter what you see, you must not
look away, and you must not take your hands off until I tell you
to. This is a test; if you let go, you fail. If you fail, you
cannot go. Do you understand?”

Farra looked back at her mother for
reassurance. Her mother nodded, urging her to proceed and follow
the First’s instructions. “Go ahead child,” he said to her.

She took a deep breath as if to swallow a
huge chunk of courage out of the air, and then she placed her hands
on the crystal. Still, she was reluctant as if the crystal was hot
and she was trying to get used to the heat. There was no heat. It
was only her fear of the unknown that radiated through her hands.
She had no idea what to expect.

With the touch of her hand, the crystal
began to glow brighter, and then she noticed something moving
inside. Her curiosity beckoned her to concentrate and look deeper
into the crystal. Images moved around inside the luminous gem,
changing from one image to another. Only she could see them.
Everyone else could only see the light.

“What do you see?” asked the First.

“I see the ocean,” she responded, “I see
birds. I see the land around. There’s me! I’m on a mountaintop. Oh,
and there is Pupa!” She smiled as the images came. The images of
Pupa sent a peaceful feeling of joy and warmth that charged through
her body.

She focused and looked deeper into the
crystal, “There is someone else there, but I don’t know who it is.
The moon, it’s sad. Oh! There is sadness all around. There is the
boy, Bomani. He’s the boy from the stream. Something is wrong—very,
very wrong.”

Just as the images came, they became less
distinctive until she couldn’t clearly make out the shapes with her
eyes at all, but somehow her mind and heart understood what was
happening. She could feel and understand them so clearly that her
voice began to quiver as she spoke.

“There is sadness all around. Pain!
Death!”

She began to pull away, as if the crystal
was a brilliant fire too bright to look directly into.

“What’s happening?” Farra exclaimed, “No!
Make them stop! It’s too much! Please, there is too much
sadness!”

Finally, she could no longer stand it. She
pulled away and let go of the staff. The crystal dimmed to nothing
and the Elder’s staff dropped to the floor. Farra turned her head.
She placed her hands over her eyes, dropped to her knees and
wept.

There were murmurs in the room. The air was
thick with disappointment. The shame she felt paralyzed her and
bound her to the floor she knelt upon. Anika rushed to her aid and
wrapped her arms around her. “It’s okay.” She whispered into her
ear.

“No mother, it’s not. I failed.”

“She’s not ready,” said the Second.

“She cannot go,” said the Third. “I’m sorry,
mother,” Farra said to Anika pulling her hands from her face,
looking at her through the steady stream of tears that fell.

“What was it?” Farra asked. “What was all
that stuff that I was seeing? Is that what is going to happen? Is
that the future!”

“Do not be hard on yourself child,” said the
First. “We are not always ready for the things we want. You have
much time to grow. Never forget what was told to you by the
crystal. Do not think of it as the future. The future is what we
make of it. The future is shaped by the gift of choice. The crystal
showed you what it had to for you to develop strength within
yourself, and to aid you in the choices that you must make. When
you are ready, you will know what to do.”

Morning came and Anika woke with the sun, as
usual. She rubbed Laka’s head, who was still asleep on her floor.
Then she washed her face with water from the large bowl that she
kept in her section of the house. The house had four rooms in it:
one for her, one for Farra, a common area, and that which was used
for preparing food. She prepared a small meal for Farra and was
sure to include her favorite, twilka berries. She had earned it
after having the courage to face the Elders the night before. Quite
honestly, she was relieved that the Elders denied Farra’s request
to go off and aid the boy on his journey.

Still, she sympathized with Farra. She
understood how important the quest was to her. It was her mother’s
instinct that wanted to keep her home and away from danger. And it
was her mother’s instinct that wanted to help cheer her up now.

She carried the food across the common area
and into Farra’s room. She managed to hold on to the tray, but her
limbs almost went completely limp when she found Farra’s room
empty.

Anika placed the food on a small stone table
in Farra’s room and ran into her own compartment. “Laka!” She
called her wolf. “Farra is gone. Help me find her!”