Kaija: Queen of Stone

12.5

I left the castle, strolling down the dirt pathway toward the stables. I wasn't used to taking this walk alone. Most of the time, Jonga stayed by my side. We walked and talked about our days, laughing and smiling. Now, the loneliness overwhelmed me as it walked hand in hand. The night air mocked my breathing as it breezed through. Creatures scurried in the night, causing the horses to bray from within the stables.

I thought of the Rabaka and Jonga. I don't think they would be stupid enough to attack the same night. Jonga acted without a thought, and liked to hunt his prey, but I was sure the members of the Rabaka were a lot more calculated than he was.

I peered into the dark stables, the tinder rats were bothering the horses, scurrying under their feet. Their blue fur reflected in the moon's light as they darted away from me, hiding underneath the hay.

I sighed, shushing the horses as I continued down the path toward the cottage a little ways down. I expected a light to be shining inside, Jonga hanging in the door, waiting for me with a smile. The delicious scent of roasted potatoes and herbs stemming from the house. But the house was silent and dark. The smells were phantom.

We had lived with each other for as long as I could remember and now that he was gone, the cottage was no longer a home. It was a reminder of the past.

Jonga was not just a housemate, he became my brother. Once Jonga revealed he was a part of the Rabaka, I felt conflicted. The Rabaka was everything we stood against and more. An evil organization set out to destroy, and they achieved in destroying the one thing they had believed in; the Guardian. The wall was our sole protector now.

I remembered the first time I met Baria and the Guardian. I was walking through the woods alone, lost and afraid. My mother had sent him there to find a unique plant, but I could hardly remember her face now. I was so young, six years in age.

I traveled for what felt like days, hiding in the hollows of trees. I feasted on strange violet bumpy berries that left a horrible taste in my mouth and found rainwater from within the waterways in the woods.

It was the way to survive.

I searched for the plant my mother described, one I now knew as the Santrom plant. I wasn't sure why my mother needed it, but after seeing Qia use it, I knew someone was injured and close to death.

The more I searched, the further I plunged into the belly of The Sacred Wood. Swallowed alive, I found myself in a clearing with a large tablet illuminating blue in tinted writing. I could not understand the language or interpret it. As I narrowed my eyes, from behind him, a bush quivered.

I remembered how much my heart surged as Jonga appeared. Black, long dreadlocks scourged with dirt and branches. His eyes were dangerous and black, alerting me of danger. He gulped, his skin was a shade darker than my own. I wondered if we were both lost from the same place, but never bothered to ask. I was too terrified to.

At first, I was skeptical about running. My legs wouldn't allow it. Until I recognized Jonga was holding a spear. I tried to run away, my breathing burned his lungs. My tiny legs crumpled underneath me as ropes wrapped around my calves. I remembered how cold the ground was as my face greeted it. Jonga brought me to my knees, pressing the spear into my chest. He gritted his teeth, his eyes highlighting with an ousting of ferocity.

"Wait!"

Jonga staggered over me, searching my face.

"I am lost!" I shouted out. "Please, don't hurt me. I am lost."

Jonga heaved, moving himself from my body. He blinked, uncoiling his spine. "I am lost too."

Once I explained who I was and that I was lost, Jonga reconsidered his choice to kill me. Though we both did not know that we were being hunted. From behind Jonga emerged a beast of silver. Golden orbs as luminous as the sun danced in its eyes. The creature stood towering over us with a majestic woman on its back.