Deep in the woods, MistyTrail and Bakhai were separated. They had each gone in different directions upon entering he woods and marched for a count of one hundred. Now the trick was to be the first to discover the other’s hiding place. MistyTrail used her speed and quick reflexes to dash from tree to tree in pursuit of Bakhai. The Qubari stood quietly behind a tree and listened to the animals. He smiled, as he was able to chart MistyTrail’s progress by the shouts of alarm from his animal friends. Squirrels darted away from the human intruder and chattered noisily. Birds took to the upper branches of the trees and alerted their brethren. Bakhai grinned and planned a reception for MistyTrail when she arrived.
Suddenly, Bakhai heard another disturbance in the animal world. He frowned as he realized the paths of the two forest intruders were converging. He began to worry that some animal might be stalking MistyTrail. He started to move towards the disruption.
MistyTrail paused and stared at the chattering squirrel. She frowned as she realized that Bakhai would be able to determine her location by the alarms of the animal world. Her situation was not the same as it had been in the Sakova. She reversed her course and moved a hundred paces in a different direction. Then she tossed a small stone as hard as she could towards her previous position. She smiled when the birds squawked and flew away from where the stone landed.
The racket of the birds also caused Caldal to stop abruptly and listen to the sounds of disturbance. That is when MistyTrail spotted him. She frowned as she wondered what the elf was up to. Instantly putting Bakhai and the game out of her mind, MistyTrail began to silently follow Caldal.
Caldal began to feel uneasy in the foreign woods. He had been in a hurry to spy on MistyTrail and Bakhai, and now he felt as if eyes were watching him sneak through the trees. He stood and abruptly turned around, but no one was there. When he turned back around, Bakhai stood before him with an arrow nocked.
“I thought you were a large animal,” Bakhai smiled thinly. “Are you lost?”
Caldal frowned and looked behind Bakhai for MistyTrail.
“Where is she?” asked Caldal. “I was told that MistyTrail went for a walk in the woods.”
“Actually,” replied Bakhai, “I am looking for her myself. Is there a message that you want me to convey to her when I find her?”
“No,” Caldal glared at the Qubari. “I will tell her myself.”
MistyTrail was behind a tree a few dozen paces behind Caldal. She grinned and stepped into the open.
“What is the message?” she asked.
Caldal turned abruptly and stared at MistyTrail. He blushed as he realized that MistyTrail had been following him, but his mood soon turned away from embarrassment to anger. His fists tightened and his lips pressed tightly together. He felt like a fool. He was about to open his mouth when a loud gong sounded.
“It is a call to the square,” announced Bakhai as he placed his arrow into his quiver. “It must be about Rejji. Come. We don’t want to miss it.”
Rejji had not been heard from in three days since he had entered the prayer chamber. Yltar had held a vigil outside the door and had prohibited anyone from entering. The trio turned and raced back to the village. When they arrived, the square was packed with villagers. Bakhai pushed his way through the crowd, leaving MistyTrail and Caldal stranded on the outer fringes of the assembly. In the center of the square, Yltar stood beside the Astor waiting for the crowd to assemble. When the commotion had died down, the head shaman nodded to the chief.
“Did he talk to you?” asked Chief Dumo.
“He did,” nodded Rejji. “He did more than just talk. He showed me visions of how things were, and how they will be. He showed me so much, that I do not know where to begin.”
“Did he confirm you as Astor?” asked the Torak.
“He did,” nodded Rejji. “More than that. He instructed me to accompany you and the Star to Angragar. We are to cleanse the city of the unholy hellsouls that inhabit it.”
“All of them?” asked Chief Dumo. “Mobi says that there are hundreds of them. If only two of you can kill them, that sounds very dangerous.”
“Anyone can kill them,” interjected the Torak. “We have learned that decapitation will vanquish a hellsoul. Still, it will be a dangerous trip. The spears of the Qubari are ill suited to such a challenge.”
Chief Dumo snapped his fingers at Voltak. The warrior nodded and ran off. He returned in just moments carrying a long, wicked-looking spear with a sharp blade on the end of it rather than the pointed tip, which the Qubari normally use.
“These will be the weapons that the Qubari will carry into battle inside Angragar,” he declared.
Emperor Marak smiled and nodded in appreciation.
“We are not just to kill the hellsouls,” Rejji continued. “We are to resurrect the city of Angragar.”
“Resurrect it?” questioned Yltar. “How do you mean?”
“I mean the city will come alive once more,” answered Rejji. “It will be the dwelling place of the Qubari and more. It will once again be the capital city of Fakara.”
“But it is shrouded in the jungle,” frowned Chief Dumo. “You cannot expect Fakarans to tramp through this jungle to get to Angragar. The creatures in it would kill them.”
“The jungle will no longer protect Angragar,” declared Rejji. “Kaltara said that the jungle would fall away from the city. When Angragar is restored, Kaltara will dwell within its temple.”
Gasps of shock rippled through the villagers. The pronouncement meant that their lives would change forever. Gone from their lives would be the village and the protective jungle around it. They would move into a city that had not been inhabited in thousands of years, and they would share that city with the outsiders. Many of the villagers frowned at the thought of abandoning their homes.
“Opening up Angragar,” protested Wyant, “would allow the Jiadin a target that might cause them to reunite. The tribes have long sought the golden city of Angragar. While those loyal to you would no longer seek to seize the treasure, the Jiadin would. Surely there must be another way?”
“The Jiadin are part of us,” declared the Astor. “They must be brought into our fold. Kaltara was quite clear on this.”
“How are you going to accomplish that?” asked Wyant. “They are bitter enemies of the Free Tribes.”
“I do not know,” admitted Rejji, “but it must be done.”
More questions were shouted from the audience, but Rejji shook his head and raised his hands to silence the questions.
“There is too much to divulge to do so right now,” Rejji said. “I am hungry and must eat. Dwell upon what Kaltara has said and plan for what we must do.”
Yltar and Chief Dumo escorted Rejji through the crowd and into an open courtyard in the palace. Emperor Marak, Lyra, Wyant, and Bakhai followed. Chief Dumo snapped off commands on the way to the courtyard and villagers raced to prepare a meal and bring it to Rejji.
“You are hesitant to divulge the rest of what Kaltara told you,” Yltar said softly. “Why?”
Rejji frowned and started eating the bread that had already been brought to the table. His eyes scanned those who were present before he spoke.
“Kaltara says that I am the descendent of King Regis,” the Astor said. “When Angragar is restored, he expects me to be king of all the land before the Fortung Mountains.”
“And you have a problem with that?” asked Chief Dumo. “You should feel honored. The Qubari already follow you as the hand of God. Most of the Fakarans worship you as the one who united them and brought them food. What is the problem?”
“I do not know,” confessed Rejji. “I do not see myself as a king of anything. It seems wrong to me.”
“Kaltara is never wrong,” smiled Lyra, “but I know how you feel. I felt the same when I was declared the Star of Sakova. I felt as if God had made a mistake, but I grew to know better. People need a ruler to give them direction. Often those rulers take advantage of their high position and act not in the best interests of their people. I have seen it in Omunga, and you have seen it under Grulak. Kaltara’s pronouncement is not so much an accolade to you, but a gift to the people. He knows that you will rule wisely with the best interests of the people always as your goal. The people will look at you and see a king, but Kaltara will look at you and see an obedient servant.”