It took a while for the whole party to reassemble on the far side of the bridge. Mobi was the last to cross and immediately took the lead again. Within a few minutes, the jungle parted and the group emerged in the village of the Qubari. The Qubari guide led them along a long street towards the village center. Villagers flocked to the street and lined it to watch the procession of outsiders. Some of the outsiders had been to the village before, and the villagers called them by name. Each of the Qubari bowed low when the Astor walked by.
When they reached the center of the village, the tribal elders were already assembled. Rejji and Bakhai stepped forward and embraced their grandfather, Chief Dumo. Rejji introduced everyone while villagers spread blankets on the grass of the central square. The Qubari filled the blankets with food dishes and various drinks. After Chief Dumo and the head shaman, Yltar, greeted Emperor Marak formally, they embraced him as one might an old friend. They turned to Lyra and both Dumo and Yltar bowed formally.
“So you are the Star of Sakova,” smiled Dumo. “I have heard much about you. You are welcome in the land of the Qubari.”
“Thank you, Chief Dumo,” smiled Lyra. “This is quite an experience for me. I have heard stories of the Qubari, but no words can give justice to an actual visit. Thank you for your welcome.”
“You have come to visit Angragar?” asked Yltar.
“We have,” nodded Lyra. “I am not entirely sure of the purpose of our visit, but it has been commanded by Kaltara. Thank you for allowing us passage.”
“One does not argue with Kaltara,” grinned Yltar. “Our home is your home for as long as you need it.”
“I think Rejji needs to speak to Kaltara,” interjected MistyTrail. “I bet that is the reason for our trip to Angragar.”
Yltar stared at MistyTrail for a moment and shook his head. “While you are correct about the Astor needing a visitation, it is not Angragar that he must go to. Rejji is Qubari. He must seek Kaltara in our temple here. It is also not up to others to decide when he must do this. It is when Kaltara calls him that is important.”
“I was taken to Changragar by the Chula,” frowned Emperor Marak. “That was my awakening, but I was brought there by the Chula. Are you saying that it is different for the Astor?”
“Are you saying that the Chula were not motivated by Kaltara to take you to Changragar?” smiled Yltar. “Perhaps Kaltara has used the Torak to bring Rejji here for his awakening? It was said that Kaltara instructed you to go to Angragar, was it not?”
“Very clearly,” nodded the Torak. “The Star and the Astor were to accompany me.”
“And here you stand not a few hundred paces from our temple,” smiled the head shaman. “Mobi could have taken you directly to Angragar. Why have you come here?”
“I promised the elves that they would have proof of some things that I stated regarding their relations with humans,” answer Emperor Marak. “I understand that those records reside inside your temple.”
“You are correct,” responded Yltar. “So part of your trip is to specifically visit this temple in the company of the Astor. Is that any stranger than the Chula taking you to Changragar?”
“It is not,” chuckled the Torak. “Kaltara does indeed work in mysterious ways.”
“He does,” smiled Yltar. “Let us have some refreshments while we talk.”
Yltar extended his arm towards the blankets laden with food. The outsiders joined with the Qubari people in a festival. Qubari musicians played drums and flutes while other villagers continued to bring food to the square. The outsiders and the Qubari mixed well and many conversations were struck. Mobi and Voltak sat with Gunta and Halman and discussed the affairs of their very different cultures. Temiker, Axor, and Yltar sat to one side and discussed magic. Eventually LunarSigh joined their conversation. Marak, Lyra, and Rejji sat with Chief Dumo, elder Pulom, and elder Anderal. DarkBlade stood impassively behind Lyra, seemingly ignoring everyone. Wyant walked over to him and tugged on his arm.
“We should listen to what the warriors are talking about,” suggested Wyant as he pointed towards Marak’s shadows and the Qubari warriors. “I understand that our trip to Angragar will be extremely dangerous. We should know what is ahead of us.”
DarkBlade looked hesitantly across the green at the warriors and then back at Lyra. His hesitation to leave her side was obvious.
“There is no safer place for your Star of Sakova than in this village,” prodded Wyant. “She is surrounded by people who would die to protect her. Come.”
DarkBlade said nothing as he reluctantly allowed himself to be pulled from Lyra’s presence. Wyant led him over to the group of warriors. Mistake, MistyTrail, Eltor, and Caldal found themselves surrounded by curious Qubari villagers. They chattered nonstop as they inspected the ears of the elves and talked about the lost city of Angragar.
“As you can see,” Mistake said to Eltor and Caldal, “these Qubari recognize you for who you are. These are the people that the elves left behind to guard the lost city of Angragar. This whole Qubari Jungle was created by the elves.”
“How can you know that?” Caldal asked skeptically.
“It is true,” offered a villager. “The Qubari are descended from King Regis who reigned in the time of the elves. It is the job of the Qubari to maintain the jungle and guard the lost city of Angragar. That is our whole purpose for living. We are the guardians.”
“I thought the elves attacked Angragar,” scowled Caldal. “Now you are telling me that you guard the city for the elves? That makes no sense.”
“The elves were mistaken in their attack,” explained an old man. ”They were tricked by Vand’s people into thinking that Angragar had attacked their homeland. King Regis finally discovered what had happened. He got the elves to stop the attack and discuss the problem. That is when the truth became known. The elves are friends of the Qubari. You are honored guests here.”
“I do not remember my studies that well,” frowned Eltor. “I remember about the attack on our homeland by ships from Angragar, but none of what you are talking about. If what you say is true, why are we taught that the humans are our enemies?”
“I can not speak to what you are taught,” frowned the old man, “but the records of the temple are very detailed. If you are allowed to read them, you will learn the truth about relations between Angragar and Elvangar.”
“You know the name of our homeland?” gasped Eltor. “I purposely avoided any mention of it, and I know that no one else spoke of it either.”
“Of course we know,” smiled the old man. “The Qubari have a special magical talent that is not know elsewhere. It is the ability to communicate with animals. It was taught to us by the elves, therefore some among them must have this ability as well. Am I right?”
Eltor nodded with surprise. “You are correct,” he stated. “I cannot imagine that any human would know that. I would like to see those records inside the temple.”
“I cannot imagine an elf here in the jungle created by elves that would question the good relations that we had over many centuries before the end of Angragar,” declared a woman. “The elves were long our allies. They were tricked into attacking Angragar, but we do not hold that against them. Why would they hold it against us?”
A loud gong sounded and everyone’s attention turned to Chief Dumo. The Qubari chief stood with his arms raised high for silence. He waited patiently for the crowd to simmer down.
“The festival will continue,” Dumo declared, “but our guests have business within the temple. I ask all of our guests to gather at the temple.”
The outsiders separated themselves from the villagers and moved towards the temple. Chief Dumo stood on the steps and waited for them along with Yltar and the elders.
“The Astor has requested access for all of you to the ancient archives of our temple,” declared Dumo. “I caution you to be careful in your search for information. Many of our scrolls and books are very old and fragile. They have not been preserved as the ones in Angragar have been. The village elders and I will be available during your search. If you have any questions at all, please ask them.”