The Time Stone (15 page)

“
Mother nature is a pain.”
Tina joked laughingly.

“
Remind me to laugh
later.” James added sarcastically. Then suddenly the bushels of
leaves and vines before them rustled to their shock and out popped
a hairy figure and then multiple hairy figures in a clearing
surrounding them.

“
What are they?” Tina
screamed looking at the figures which had snouts like wolves, hair
all over their bodies, long tails, and paws like monkeys. They were
nude, had long shaggy hair all over their bodies wet from the
perspiration of the jungle climate, and walked upright like men
dancing in a hunched over position as if stumbling to maintain
their equilibrium. They circled around the duo as both seemingly
worried and got closer in a frightened embrace. “What are these
things?” Tina uttered.

“
Beats me” said James. “I
think this is goodbye.” He whispered as the razor sharp claws of
the head of the pack slashed within an inch of James’
face.

“
Use your powers.” Tina
yelled.

“
I can’t” James spoke
paralyzed with fear as he waved his hand to the head of the pack
but nothing happened. The head of the pack growled ferociously as
he revealed his fangs and drooling interior mouth. The others
bellowed in a similar manner in support as they began to close in
on the duo. Then suddenly without delay, a swishing noise was heard
above through the trees and a singular figure emerged swinging in a
couple of times and striking the head of the pack in the back of
the neck and he dropped to the floor to the dismay of his
followers.

“
What the…?” James and
Tina uttered bewildered.

The figure swung back and landed on
the soft grass before them. It was a young blonde-haired woman with
bright eyes and a fierce determination in her grit. She wore animal
skins and furs that made her seem to blend amongst the wolf-monkeys
and she held a long wooden staff that seemed to be a natural
extension of her long legs and tall form with amazing fitness,
physique and prowess.

“
Wow, she is amazing!”
Shouted Tina.

The woman without hesitation turned
and performed a serious of roundhouse kicks and jumping assaults
spinning through the air with her staff and maneuvering wildly as
she seemed to control the air about her and her staff to land on
the ground and pogo up each time and attack the followers of the
pack until they were all knocked down. The duo had ducked down in
fear as they tried to fight but were outmatched. James had
outstretched his hand and with the power of his thoughts, a dead
branch on the ground lifted up and hurled itself upwards towards
one of the pack who was about to pounce on the female warrior from
behind and it knocked him out and down to the ground hard. The
female warrior acknowledged this strange gesture with a nod and
continued on with her assault. When the last of the pack fell, the
female warrior stood before them landing on her feet, her legs
astride and staff about her. The pack slowly rose and began to run
into the woods one after another.

“
Oh my God” Tina
screamed.

“
Who are you?” Asked James
curiously.

“
Alexa, of the tribe
Awondel! You come to hunt?” She spoke in a primitive and broken
English manner.

“
I guess we are.” James
nodded. “I am James. This is Tina.”

“
Come with me. Be safer.”
She led them out into a path in the woods that was apparently
untouched by the pack because the trees appeared to be covered in
foul smelling plants. The duo clinched their noses as they followed
Alexa through the jungle who had obviously already having grown
accustomed to the smell, and exhibiting to one another not so fond
memories and recollections of the tunnels in the jail they were
captive in previously.

“
Is our life always going
to be on a path of stench?” James joked and Tina smirked not as
amused as their trek through the jungle commenced.

James and Tina felt that they were
being escorted like lambs to the slaughter. They were grateful that
their savior was so helpful but they seemed to doubt their
benefactor in some way as if she was hiding something. She said
very little during their trek through the forest as if not having
much to say or the ability to say it well enough for them so she
responded to their inquiries with one word answers, “Yes”, “No”,
and “Wait.” When they asked what those wolf monkey creatures were,
she merely responded with a word, “Beasts.”

“
Are they from here?”
James Asked.

“
Yes!” Alexa responded and
accelerated her walk forcing them to run to catch up.

“
Are you familiar with any
legends regarding what we saw so far?” Asked James.

“
There are only too many.
One of the most prominent is an ancient legend telling of the tep
zepi or the first time. This is supposedly a time when ‘sky gods’,
‘sky watchers’, or beasts came to man to provide everything from
laws to fire and knowledge. They transformed the land to water and
flew through the air in flying boats.” Tina spoke quickly as the
duo tried to catch up with their new friend.

Alexa walked quickly while speaking
slowly. “Hurry. The beast men will return.”

“
Unreal… like spirits or
invisible aliens?” James uttered.

“
They were supposed to be
like protectors to guide people to their ultimate fates but little
is known about them.” Said Tina. She and James continued into the
forest led by their strong ad silent guide, Alexa.

Within moments, they arrived at a
series of bushes. Alexa turned to the duo and nodded with a stern
look as if cautioning them and then looking around to make sure
they were alone. Without a word, she used her hands to part the
bushes and a metallic door was revealed. The door seemed like
nothing they have ever seen, a metal of strange lucre, showing
apparent signs of age like dust and mold growing on it but no rust
and no tear. There was a small insert in the center of the door for
some type of object. Also, there was a strange gilded like design
of a double curved line with a loop in the center and two on the
bottom so it looked to James like five orbs hovering before
him.

“
What could that mean?”
James wondered thinking the primordial woman before them couldn’t
have made it like that.

Alexa removed a small silver metallic
cylindrical object from her exterior garter belt. James saw it had
the same gilded like marking of the five orbs etched on it. She
inserted the object into the insert on the door and stepped back.
Within nanoseconds, the key moved through the door and disappeared
to the other side as the door slid open revealing an inner sanctum,
an encampment where others were walking and sitting. Alexa led her
two new companions into the room and the door slid shut behind
them. Alexa pardoned her way back to the door and removed the key
she previously inserted that was now resting on a similar insert on
the other side of the door.

“
Come” Alexa beckoned to
James and Tina. She led them through the encampment. James and Tina
looked up in awe at what appeared to be a never ending ceiling that
seemed to veer up into the heavens, well lit, a dome shape at the
very top, and plants of all varieties growing in the dome, animals
of various species local and foreign to this land walking about as
if in their natural habitat. There were straw huts in no particular
formation surrounding the encampment and objects of normal kitchen
use, clay pots, plates, and goblets scattered about. The people
were thin and frail, brown and tan skinned, unlike Alexa, and some
were taller than others and they wore skins like Alexa. They smiled
as they saw the strangers in their home but some kept their
distance. Seeing fear in their eyes, James kept his eyes forward as
he and Tina followed Alexa. She led them to a small hut which
seemed bigger than the others at what appeared to be the end of the
dome. James and Tina looked back in shock at a great deal more that
was uncovered by these simple villagers and they wondered who or
what could have created and occupied this place before these people
moved in. James and Tina entered the larger hut and walked to the
back several yards into it passing benches and artifacts lined up
along the sides. James stood in awe at the symbols he never saw
before. Tina was amazed.

“
Wow, check out the images
from history!” Tina exclaimed in pure joy.

“
You know this stuff?”
Asked James.

“
Are you kidding? I
studied many symbolical arts in college… the little college I did
get.”

“
That’s more than what I
got.” James shrugged. “But I recognize that one.” James pointed to
the five orbs symbol they saw on the door and key to this
place.

“
It’s the symbol for
union.” Tina explained. “I also see Greek, Roman, Far Eastern…” she
continued.

“
Great,” James interrupted
beckoning to their host who appeared to be impatient from their
abrupt stop.

“
Come,” Alexa said. They
followed her without another word and were led to an elderly man
sitting down with his legs crossed at the far end of the hut. Light
Latin style music played in the distance by wooden string
instruments and animal skin drums. The melody was rhythmic in the
large dome that appeared to enhance the acoustic vibrations and
spread it throughout the tent.

“
It sounds like a
rhapsody” commented Tina.

The man wore a small headdress made of
animal skull and a long well-adorned robe with feathers, jewels,
metals, and other artifacts found in nature. He appeared to be the
leader, well respected, and reviled. He had a long white beard and
long white straggly hair over his dark tan face and deep brown eyes
that were shut. Alexa kneeled down before him and then sat cross
legged as he did. She beckoned to the duo to do the same and they
slowly did. The man’s eyes opened. He spoke in a language that they
did not understand. It was darker, colder, and mysterious. Alexa
nodded as he spoke looking at James and Tina directly.

“
You are here from a great
distance.” Alexa spoke slowly translating for the man.

“
Yes, how did you know?”
Tina asked gently perplexed furrowing her brow.

”
You are out of place.”
Alexa spoke softly with no trace of any accent of any
kind.

“
That was obvious.” Said
James. “Do you know what he is saying, Tina? You are the educated
one.”

“
I don’t really know. It
sounds like it might be Portuguese or Spanish or a combination and
some words I cannot tell. I am fluent in both a little bit, but
there are some deviations in what he is saying. I also studied
Latin a little bit but forgot most of it. James, I don’t
know….”

The man continued to speak his voice
and tone charismatic and deep, crinkly and monotone, as if many
were speaking through him.

“
We meditate to become one
with the Gods.” Alexa said continuing to translate.

“
What language is that?”
Tina asked.

“
It is the language of the
Gods, from long ago, the Creators.”

“
They built this place?”
Tina asked.

Alexa nodded slowly with a look of
sincerity.

“
The Pregivers of our
lineage who granted the gifts to man are those we worship.” The man
spoke more angrily and began to shout in the language of the Gods
as Alexa translated diligently into English for the duo. Then in an
agitated moment she beckoned to James and Tina. “We must go.” Alexa
warned.

“
What did he say?” Asked
Tina.

“
There is something I must
show you.” They rose and walked out.

“
So where are you from?”
Tina said making small talk. “It’s just that you don’t seem to be
from around here, for the most part.”
“I was born in a distant land. The Awondel found me when I was of
age thirteen years.”

“
That explains why you are
not like the others here.” James added.

“
They never treated me
like anything other than one of their own. They are my people. They
are my family.”

“
Who are the Awondel?”
Asked Tina.

“
They are the lost tribe
of the Pregivers, the left behind children of the Gods and
guardians of their greatest treasure.” Alexa spoke with reverence
and sophistication.

“
What is that?” Tina
asked.

Alexa remained silent and led them
into a crevice that led to the exterior of the dome, which they
soon found out was a cave.

“
And the old man?” Asked
Tina.

“
He must be left alone to
meditate… come” said Alexa.

James and Tina were surprised to see
that this structure was partially submerged in a cave and the tribe
could access it. Alexa picked up and lit a torch with a
lighter.

“
Where did you get that?”
Asked James.

“
We got from traders in
the nearby market village as I represent the tribe in gathering
supplies and goods as well as many things.” Alexa
replied.

“
What’s this?” Tina asked
with wonder in her eyes and curiosity in her heart as Alexa’s torch
illuminated the cave walls and there were a series of pictorial
diagrams, arches, figures, and symbols painted on them.