Aegis Rising (18 page)

“Maybe we should split into two groups to look for a crossing,” Kody suggested. “One goes that way, and the other goes the other way.” He stretched his arms and pointed in opposite directions along the length of the river.

“Sure. Mariah and I’ll go that way.” Tegan began heading upriver, Mariah following. The boys looked at each other, a seed of concern growing in their minds. Neither wanted to call the girls back and tell them not to go alone. Tegan and Mariah despised it when people thought they were too delicate and needed constant protection.

As the boys hesitantly began walking in the opposite direction, Jag hollered, “Call if you find anything! And don’t cross the river alone!”

Tegan, without turning back, raised her hand, indicating she heard him.

The boys followed the river’s current. “Most rivers are crossable at some point,” Aari mumbled to no one in particular. “Hopefully this one’s no different.” He jogged ahead, scanning the place for a natural bridge. “There has got to be one here somewhere.”

They passed a few rocks that seemed ideal, but when they saw the water splash over and completely cover them from sight, they walked right past.

“I don’t hear anything from Mariah or Teegs,” Kody said, a little worriedly. “You think they’re okay?”

“I think they’re fine,” Jag answered, although he sounded a little anxious himself. “They just haven’t found anything worth yelling out for.”

“Here,” Aari called. He was a couple of dozen feet down from where the two boys were standing. He pointed to a line of large rocks in the river that extended toward the other side. “What do you think?” he asked when Jag and Kody reached him.

Jag and Kody observed the rocks and looked at each other. “Well?” Kody asked.

Jag shrugged. “Seems fine.”

Kody dipped his head and then yelled at the top of his lungs for the girls to come back. They didn’t have to wait long, and soon Mariah and Tegan were standing beside them, praising Aari for his find. “Who’ll go first?” Mariah asked.

“I’m game,” Kody announced and bounced forward one rock at a time, carefully balancing himself. Once he crossed, he looked at his friends and yelled, “It’s about forty feet across! Be careful! Some of the rocks are kind of slippery!”

“I’ll go next.” Tegan warily made her way across. Kody offered her a hand. She grabbed it and he helped her to the other side. Mariah was next, then Jag, then Aari. Kody looked proudly at what they’d accomplished. A word formed in his throat but it vanished when he saw a couple of packets resting on the ground on the opposite bank. “Whoops, I think some food dropped out of my bag.”

Tegan walked behind Kody and closed the pack on his back securely. “Smarty,” she smiled. “Fetch?”

“You bet.” Using the stepping stones again, Kody quickly hopped back to the other side, picked up the food, carefully placed them in his pack then closed it tightly. He turned around, gave the rest of the group a thumb’s up and sprang onto the first stone. Some water splashed onto the rock but didn’t bother him. He bounded confidently to a couple of more rocks. More water splashed and drenched his right shoe. Momentarily distracted with the uncomfortable slopping and squishing, he put his left foot on the next rock. His foot glided over some wet moss that had grown on the big stone and, with a startled yell, he lost his footing and fell over backward into the river. His friends on shore cried out in alarm.

Kody’s head went under the swift-flowing water. Forcing his arms and legs to move, he propelled himself back to the surface. He gasped for air and spewed out swallowed water as he tried to grab at a rock. He was a second too late as the current swept him downstream. Panic shut down his mind and he only moved automatically to keep his head above the water. He didn’t even notice his food pack being tugged from his shoulders by the rapid-moving waters.

Jag began sprinting along the bank to keep up with Kody. His long strides were still no match for the increasing speed of the current but he didn’t stop. He kept an eye on Kody, seeing the other teenager’s head constantly bobbing above and then under the rolling water.
Hang in there, bud.
Jag’s eyes flicked up and ahead for an instant and he saw that on the side closest to him there were rocks that extended halfway to the middle of the river. He bellowed at the top of his lungs, “Kody! Move to the rocks!”

Kody didn’t hear, and as Jag watched, his friend’s struggles began to diminish as he started losing energy. Desperate, he roared again, “
Move toward the rocks, Kody!
”

Jag’s voice must have reached Kody’s ears at the last moment. The fallen boy strained his body toward the rocks. He slammed into the granite and groaned out loud. He hung on, the cold water splattering his back.

Jag finally reached the rocks. He rushed over them as far as he dared go and stretched out his hand. Kody reached up and was about to grab it when he lost his grip on the rock and the current swept him away once again.

Horrified that he was so close to saving his friend and the chance had literally slipped through his fingers, Jag quickly backed up to the bank and continued running. Kody was several seconds ahead of him. Intent on reaching his friend, Jag didn’t notice the fallen tree resting on two huge rocks over the river about fifty yards away until moments later. An idea formed in his mind. He gathered his energy and forced himself into a full sprint. Passing Kody, he reached the fallen tree. He climbed on, panting, then trod to the center and lay down. The tree itself was a few feet above the water; no way could Kody grab onto it.

As Kody drew nearer, Jag stretched out his hand. Kody tried to reach for it but the current was too fast. Not willing to lose his friend for a second time, Jag flipped over at lightning speed to the opposite side of the trunk and made a wild grab at Kody’s shirt as the other teenager passed underneath the tree. For a moment, Jag thought he’d failed again but realized the collar of Kody’s shirt was crumpled in his clenched fist. He tried to haul Kody out of the water but wasn’t strong enough.
More strength and more speed, that’s what I need!
Jag thought to himself, his teeth gritted from the effort of holding onto his friend.

“Jag!” Mariah’s voice rang out. He cast a quick look over his shoulder and saw the other three racing over to the tree and clambering on.

“I’ve got him! Help me pull him up!” Jag shouted over the noise of the current. With some effort, the four managed to pull their sodden and dripping friend out of the water and onto the fallen tree. From there, they guided him back to shore where Kody collapsed, shivering uncontrollably. After a few minutes his shuddering subsided just enough for him to thank Jag, Aari, Tegan, and Mariah, who were rubbing his arms and back vigorously to warm him up. He stared at the river, shivering. “I c-could have been swept away t-to who knows w-where . . .” He trembled again, both from the cold and the thought.

“Are you alright?” Jag asked worriedly. Waving the question aside, Kody curled into a ball to conserve the little warmth his body had. His friends watched him silently for a minute more while rubbing his back until he’d warmed up a little. He stretched out and struggled to his feet, trying to wring out his clothes. “You’d think,” he complained, still shivering, “that with all the cool inventions those villagers came up with, waterproof insulation would be among them. But nooo . . .”

Jag felt himself grin. “Yeah, you’re definitely alright.” A breeze picked up and blew toward the group. Kody shivered again and muttered something in annoyance. The other four smiled sympathetically. Mariah passed her pack to Kody and ordered him to change out of his soaked clothes.

“Where am I gonna change?” Kody protested, stiff with cold. Mariah pointed to the trees and reluctantly, Kody obliged, walking quickly into the forest and soon being out of sight. Several minutes later he walked back out, looking more relieved. His shivers were settling down. He passed the pack to Mariah, then the girls wrapped him in a hug to help him warm up faster.

Kody looked at his friends ruefully. “I’m so sorry. The food’s gone.”

“Better the food than you,” Tegan said gently. Kody smiled a little in response but it was clear he was unhappy with himself.

“It wasn’t your fault,” Aari consoled him. “Accidents happen.”

Kody sighed. “Still. I feel like an idiot. Now we’ve got no food at all.”

The friends glanced at each other. Truth was, they
were
concerned that the pack was gone. It contained the food they all depended on.

Mariah looked up. “We should get going.”

“Yeah. Come on.” Jag turned and walked northward, keeping close to the tree line. His eyes astutely picked up details as they continued on for the next fifteen minutes. He frowned as he looked at the trees further ahead. A number of them appeared to have burn marks on their bark, and some of their trunks were scarred badly. The trees gave the surroundings an ominous feeling. The only thing that lightened the atmosphere was the small creek that snaked from the main river and disappeared beyond the trees.

“This is kind of creepy,” Tegan quietly remarked as she walked beside Jag, looking at the blackened trees. He nodded silently and scanned the foliage as they continued to walk. Then, without warning, Tegan tumbled head-over-heels, rolling several yards down a small slope. Caught off guard, Jag and Mariah scrambled down to her and helped her to her feet. “What happened?” Jag asked, bewildered.

Tegan was wide-eyed. “I have no idea. I think my foot hit something.”

The friends looked back and saw Aari and Kody standing at the top of the slope where Tegan had tripped. The two boys bent down, brushed away some dirt and pulled off a few broken branches. Jag and the girls made their way up to the pair, who were now crouched and staring blankly at something on the ground in front of them. The sunlight that filtered through the trees reflected and bounced off a shiny red object.

Kody pulled it out from the ground and held it up for the group to see clearly. “From the plane.”

Realization dawned on the five. Jag switched his gaze from the red object to the lacerated trees around them and spoke softly. “The plane’s got to be here somewhere.” He looked over his shoulder, deeper into the forest where the marred trees beckoned. His movements brisk, he headed further in, following the stream. The rest caught up and warily stayed close. The forest got darker the farther in they went. Climbing over and down a large fallen tree in their path, they halted and stared, aghast.

Thirty feet away, through some tall coniferous trees, was the partly charred wreckage of the Piper Comanche.

19

T
he Elders were pacing back and forth in front of their assembly
neyra
when Akol ran back to them, breathing hard. Chayton was at his heels, whimpering anxiously. “I have looked everywhere, and there was not a single trace of them,” he said, puffing. “They must have left during the night.”

“Why would they foolishly stray from our protection?” Saiyu demanded. “They were safe with us. Against the power of the forest, they are mere fledglings!”

“They may have been protected, but I believe they were a little less than happy to stay in our village,” Tayoka said. “Do you not recall? When we had our first talk with them, they wanted to know when they could leave.”

“But to wander out there alone! My goodness!” Saiyu faced Tikina. “We must find them.”

Tikina nodded and stepped away. As she closed her eyes and prepared to enter her meditative state, a bloodcurdling scream ripped across the valley. Snapping her eyes open, Tikina exchanged stunned looks with the other Elders and Akol. They heard footsteps rapidly approaching and Huyani burst through the trees, panting for breath, her brown eyes wide with fear.

Akol stepped beside his sister and held her as she tried to form coherent words. “Fiotez . . . I do not know what happened . . . he is—he is . . .” She leaned against Akol to steady herself, pressing her palms to her face, and tried to regain her composure. Chayton nuzzled her knee, looking concerned, his ears folded back.

“Where is Fiotez right now?” Nageau asked.

Huyani pointed straight ahead. “He was in between the convalescence shelter and the school.”

“You mean he is out of his bed?” Tikina asked, alarmed. Huyani nodded.

The Elders turned and rushed westward, leaving the siblings and the wolf behind them. They crossed a path and ran over it into the trees until they reached a second path, parallel to the first, and found themselves near the convalescence shelter and the school building where the younger children were. What they saw shocked them to the core.

Fiotez was half-stumbling, half-racing around the school, screeching as if he were a dying animal. Blood was streaming from his nose and ears. When he opened his mouth to bellow, crimson splattered out. His eyes were reddened, and he heaved a long, metal object high above his head.

“An ancient sword!” Saiyu gasped. “He took one of the ancient swords from the temple!”

Fiotez swung the blade at a young child who was screaming and running away in terror. As Fiotez lunged at the boy, the Elders realized that it was the madman’s own son.

Diyo tripped and fell as he tried to dodge his father. He looked up to see wide, crazed eyes, and foam dripping from his father’s mouth as Fiotez stood over him with the sword raised. The boy screamed again, tears running down his face.

As the Elders raced forward, Fiotez’s manic eyes registered recognition as he stared at his son. For a brief moment, a look of utter pain and remorse flitted across his face. Then, without warning, the sword fell from his clenched, claw-like fingers and he dropped to the ground, writhing.

Saiyu bounded ahead of the others. She lifted Diyo to his feet and hurriedly ushered him back toward her companions. By this time Huyani and Akol had caught up with the Elders, and Saiyu left Diyo in their hands. Chayton weaved between the young boy and the siblings, fretful.

Nageau approached Fiotez carefully and stopped when he was several feet away from the fallen villager. Fiotez’s thrashing was settling down but he was still twitching uncontrollably. Foam had encrusted his mouth and his bloodshot eyes slowly glazed over until he stopped moving altogether.