Tranquil Fury (29 page)

It was after the second sun had set that they came across the campsite the Dawnfalcons had prepared. And when the wagon stopped, Mirtza unloaded the chests, while Logan gathered firewood. Eventually, he extended his arms, bringing fire to the pile of sticks.

Mirtza dropped the empty chest, “How did you do that?”

 “Well, I guess I am Sister touched.” Logan rolled his shirtsleeves back, displaying the feather tattoos, “See, Sister’s marks, or so I am told.”

Mirtza looked at Lauren, “Earth Daughter did this to you?”

“No, not my sister, Sister”

Mirtza scratched behind his ear, “Not Lauren, a different sister? Who’s sister?”

“Mother”

“Your mother has a sister?”

“Not my mother, Mother.” And Logan picked up a handful of dirt, “You know, the one who is guiding Lauren.”

 “Who is Sister?”

 “No idea, never met her. John thinks it has something to do with me and Lauren being twins.”

 “What are twins?”

 Logan shook his head, “Let’s wait until we get back, I am sure that Zack can explain it better.”

Mirtza, still amazed and confused, picked up the empty chest, and began preparing the meal, while Gingaar and Lauren stayed with the Earth Mother, trying to comfort her. Some of the elves found quiet spots where they fell fast asleep, and others assumed guard positions. The Earth Mother was sleeping in the back of the wagon, when Mirtza deployed his bats and replaced all the contents of each chest—except for the percolating pot and mugs.

Alron was sitting beside the fire when Lauren got a refill of hot bean juice, and sat down beside him, “This is all so strange, where are we taking the Earth Mother to? Is there a special graveyard where Earth Mothers get buried?”

“Graveyard?”

“You know, a place where… they bury those who have passed. Died?”

“Naught field of graves does wait for Earth Mother. We does take her to her tree, where she does be reunited with Mother.”

Lauren looked at Alron, “What do you mean a tree, you mean a wooden box. Right?”

“Naught.” Alron turned and pointed to a large tree, “We does take her to Mother’s tree.”

Lauren looked at the tree, at Alron, back to the tree, and then to Alron again. “What do you mean?”

“Mother does wait to embrace Earth Mother.” Alron reached down and picked up a handful of dirt. “This does be Mother, when Earth Mother and tree does be one, she does be part of Mother.”

“What happens at the tree,” asked Lauren?

“Mother does embrace her, as it does happen for years of two thousand.”

Lauren, figuring something got lost in translation switched the topics, “I had a brief talk with her the other day. She wants me to guide you to find the people, so Eric can raise an army. Now that we know what is happening, I guess it makes sense. And if I am the only one that can hear Mother, then all I have to do is tell you what she tells me. I don’t know why, but I really don’t have anywhere else to go, and if Mother believes in me, if the people need me, if it will stop innocent families from dying, then I really should do it.”

From his talks with the Earth Mother, Alron understood that the Earth Daughter would play a different, more significant role. One based on action, like when she led them to the mass grave with the feeding vultures, not one where she sat in the background and only advised, like other Earth Mothers—which he would prefer. He was undecided on how to interpret the two different messages.

 “Alron, are you listening?”

 Alron gave his head a shake, “Earth Daughter. I does need to secure mine camp. We shalt talk tomorrow.”

Lauren shrugged her shoulders, got a fresh refill of hot bean juice, and sat back, watched the intense colors dance across the night sky, as camp security was not her concern. All she had to do was pass on Mothers instructions,
maybe being an Earth Daughter won’t be that bad.

*
*
*
*
*
*
*

Mirtza rattling the pots, and the smell of hot bean juice dragged Lauren from her sleep the next morning. Still confused by the whole tree concept, she was not sure of what was actually happening. For some reason, Alron did not seem to be as motivated to get them moving this morning, as he was sitting with the Earth Mother in the back of the wagon, and when Lauren approached, Panry intercepted her. When they finally got under way, Gingaar quickly moved to the front bench, began talking to Mirtza, and Lauren had a bad feeling.

 “Earth Daughter, Alron does talk much this morning. I does think I hath misspoke. Mother Chosen thou does be, thine purpose does naught be to guide, it does be to lead.”

 “Pardon?”

 “Mother does want thou to lead. Find, save her children. Only to one that Mother canst speak to, would she bequest such a charge. Thine task does be great, that does be why Mother does choose thou, and does be why, thine staff she does gift to thou. It does be thou that shalt push back the shadows, expose truth, does what thou must, to save her children.”

 “Do you want me to raise an army and lead them into battle? What the…”

 “Mother does want thou to act as does be necessary to save her children. What thou does, how thou does it, it does be up to thou. Mother wilt guide and help thou. But it does be Earth Daughter, Mother Chosen that her children wilt listen to, follow. Mother does see this, when thou does get answers many. Earth Daughter does take action, and action does be what Mother does need. Shadows enough we does hath, it does be thou that does push them back, push them back with action.”

Lauren thought back to when John had spotted the circling vultures, and how she had forced her pony into the field first with the others following her.
Crap, “
When you say lead, what do you mean?”

“Where thou does go, others does follow. When thou does speak, others does listen. When thou does command, others does act.”

 “Who are these others?”

 “All that thou does find. It does be thine words they does follow. Mine elf friends, Ironhouse also, follow thou they wilt. Then others shalt believe in thou, join, follow where thou does lead. When others does see thou, they will see Mother, follow thou. And thou wilt push back the shadows, expose truth, lead the children to freedom, and reclaim the lands.”

Lauren could not believe the words she was hearing.
Guide is one thing, just point. Lead, that is something else
. Lauren went to the end of the wagon, stepped over the back, and called to Logan who circled his pony around.

 “What’s up Lauren?”

 “The Earth Mother wants to talk to you.”

Logan shrugged his shoulders, slid out of the saddle, and handed Lauren the reins. As he ran up to the wagon, Lauren climbed into the saddle, and before he realized the stunt that she had just pulled, she was trotting past the wagon and up the path.

Alron had witnessed the strange events transpiring, unsure of what was happening. When he saw Lauren ride ahead, he quickly made his stag bolt after her.

 “Get away from me Alron!”

 “What does be thine problem Earth Daughter?”

“Lead. Is she joking? How long was she an Earth Daughter when Mother asked her to do something like this, to rouse the people, raise an army? How long Alron?”

 “Earth Mother hath naught done what thou does describe. Naught any Earth Mother or Earth Daughter hath.”

 “I have been one for what, fifteen days? Your lands are a mess, invaded, and everybody has fled. Now you want me to find them, tell them everything is going to be okay? Just form an army, go fight the invaders? It will all be okay. Oh, and by the way, some of you, maybe most of you, are going to DIE. But it will all be okay. Are you people freaking crazy?”

“Does let us return, with Earth Mother we canst talk.”

“She wants me to send innocent people to their death? How can somebody even ask that? Do I look like I have fought a war? Do I look like some sort of general, able to find a way to defeat another army?”

 “Please does calm down Earth Daughter.”

 “No, if you wanted me to receive Mother’s messages and forward them to you, that’s one thing. But if you expect me to look down on a crowd of fathers, sons, and brothers, ordering them into battle, commanding them to die, that I cannot do, will not do. I don’t know anything about battles, and that lack of knowledge will mean even more deaths. You want to saddle me with that burden, stuff those images into my pillow every night, and hope they don’t invade my dreams? Pick somebody else. I will not kill innocent people for your Mother.”

“Please does calm down Earth Daughter.”

Lauren was on a roll, “That is probably why she brought me here. None of the other Mothers or Daughters would do it. They probably said ‘find somebody else.’ When none would, they just grabbed somebody from somewhere else. You’re special, you’re great, and by the way, kill half the people that believe. Alron, do you have any idea how many people die in a war? Thousands, hundreds of thousands.”

 “Earth Daughter does please calm…”

 “Mother didn’t bring me here to help. She brought me here to be a bride, and wants me to share a bed with death.”

 “Earth Daughter, the lands, death does stalk already.”

 “Where I come from, we have had lots of wars. You didn’t see us pull somebody from your world to fight our battles.”

Alron was Earth Guard, protect and serve was his oath, and nowhere did it mention verbal abuse. He grabbed the reigns from the pony, pulled it to the side where he had spotted a deadfall. After he tied the pony to a tree, he lifted Lauren off, and set her down on the deadfall, pulled out his flask, took a long hard drink, offered it to Lauren. She thought of Zack, his ability to use beer to generate logic, and took a long drink as well.

 “First this privilege does be great. Second, before this trip does end, thou shalt understand Mother, does believe in her as I does.” Alron took another pull from his flask, hoping to find more answers, “Now, as for lead, thou does have many options to choose from. If an army thou does need, thou canst also find those qualified to plan, and lead thine battles. Mother does naught expect thou to walk into battle, though it would not surprise me if thou does. Second, possible it does be that thou does raise an army larger, surrender invaders does.” Alron pulled out a deck of cards from his pocket and fanned them out, “Future does be like these cards, many possibilities does I hold, but only one wilt actually happen. Until one does be pulled from mine deck, we does naught know what does oppose us. Should thou fret about all, thou does be right, we does lose. But only one does we hath to worry about. Now does pull one from mine deck.”

Lauren understood that she was only considering the worst case scenario, and that there was a chance that she could push the war onto Eric, and that sword. Other things may happen as well, but the possibility of bad things occurring, seemed much greater than good things materializing, and she reached to pull a card from the deck.

Alron was not worried about which card she selected, it meant nothing, as he just needed a way to demonstrate his point. The deck he carried was for training new recruits, a game as old as the Earth Guards themselves, used to teach novices strategy with limited options. A chance to test them, so senior members could see how they would think, plan, strategize, especially when they were dealt a less than favorable hand. The cards represented threats, offenses, defenses and more. In most cases, a winning hand did not exist—how you played the cards, decided who won.

Lauren pulled a card, held it up to Alron. While he didn’t react on the outside, he could not believe what he saw. The Death Card, one of the most powerful cards in the deck, which represented a hand that once played, guaranteed your victory— in most cases. He then instructed Lauren to pull out a second one. He would lie, tell her the stronger card represented her, the weaker one represented the black-clad forces.

Lauren pulled out a second one, the Fool, the only true wild card in the deck. Normally removed for most matches, instead reserved for advanced games, and he had forgotten that it was in the deck. It could change the results of the last card played, took a lifetime to remember all of the rules for this card alone, and was the only card able to nullify the Death card. If both were played at the same time, the match would end in a draw. To watch Lauren pull out the two most powerful and feared cards, Alron felt like it was a message, but was unclear what it was trying to tell him.

“Thine first card does be the black-clad,” he said calmly, “It does be weaker than thine second card. Thou would win.”
It does be true
, “But in mine hands, I does hold many other possibilities. Until we does find thine opponent, we does naught know how thou does need to act.” Alron then quickly handed his flask to Lauren, to celebrate her victory, and hoped the silver wrapped contents would calm her down. She drained it, and Alron prayed that Panry’s flask was still full. Lauren, still on edge, thought that maybe she had overreacted, went to her pony, climbed into its saddle, and headed back to the wagon.

Alron took a minute to look at the two cards she had left face up on the deadfall. He would have felt better if he had said, ‘the first was thine opponent, second does be thou.’ There were some, who used the deck to foretell the future, but usually after they had emptied the silver flasks, and nobody ever took it seriously. Alron held up the remaining cards, pulled one out, looked at it. The Grave Card, it symbolized a single death. When dealt to you, there was one primary hope, the Chaos Card, which caused the cards in play to be shuffled, then re-dealt. In that process, you hoped the Grave Card would end up in your opponent’s hand and not back in yours. When played, it symbolized your own death, not your opponents. Its purpose, test the new Earth Guards, see how they would strategize, try to control the game, and see if they could figure out an option. Each card had at least one card that would counter it, but this one was different. If it was in play, the key was making your hand last long enough, to find the Chaos Card. The Grave Card was always the last card played, when no other options were available, and it was better to lose the match than to play this card on yourself. In addition, the rules stipulated, that when a match was done, if any held the Grave card, they had to play it. For it was possible to win the match, but still lose with this card. Alron re-boxed the deck, and tucked them into his pocket. He would have liked to ask the Earth Mother if what had just happened meant anything, but she was too close to her tree, and he did not want to trouble her.
Death, Fool, Grave, good omens or bad?
Alron put away the cards, went in search of Panry’s flask.