The Guardians' Pendants (The Zor Chronicles Part I) (26 page)

Ikani smiled,
attempting to field his way through the myriad of questions that
had assembled in his mind.

He sighed. “It makes
sense now,” he began. “Why Remula went after Oren. The Shrine of
the Gods… it would only open for those with a Guardian’s Pendant.
He said something to me… about how he had waited for so long for
his time to come,” Ikani recalled. “Do you suppose that he could
have known about it, even before he questioned you?” the Veha
asked. “I mean, he seemed to have known a lot about Distant Past…
about the age of the Gods, especially,” Ikani pointed
out.

Havea tilted his head
slightly. “I suppose anything is possible, Ikani,” he figured. “But
he is a part of the past now.”

Ikani nodded in
agreement. Havea’s attention slipped beyond the Veha, moving
instead to the mass of rock that lay behind him, and the
outstretched hand protruding from it.

“Demias,” breathed
Havea.

“Yes,” Ikani replied,
turning as well to face the body of rock. “Trapped; frozen by time
itself, never to disrupt the lives of the Zor
again.”

Havea’s eyes shifted to
the ground below his feet at the sound of Ikani’s statement. He
took a deep breath, shaking his head. “Oh, Ikani… how I only wish
that could be true.”

“You… you don’t think
this is it, then?” Ikani asked, eyeing the wise Zor with a puzzled
expression.

Havea hesitated,
stopping to think for a moment before speaking. “You see, Ikani…
whether or not you agree with Demias’ views, you cannot argue
against the fact that he is certainly a being of great power and,
most certainly, of great intelligence,” he pointed
out.

Ikani said
nothing.

Havea continued. “It
would be nothing short of irrational to assume that a being of such
awesome capabilities would leave this land, which he desired so
badly, with nothing more than a single host for his spirit left
behind.”

A look of concern
washed over Ikani’s face as he took in what the wise Zor was
saying, thinking hard about it before speaking.

“So then… you believe
that he will return?” Ikani asked.

Havea nodded staidly.
“Yes,” he breathed. “I do believe he will return.”

Ikani, appearing
frustrated, demanded more answers.

“How did you know?” he
questioned. “How did you know about Demias… about how he rebelled
against the other Gods?”

Havea smiled. “I study
the scriptures of Distant Past,” he replied simply. “You yourself
have even read verses mentioning the rebellious God – often
referred to simply as
Demise
,” he
hinted.

Ikani thought for a
moment. “
Their courage they send,
to bring to an end… The Demise of all, of which they shall
mend
,” he recalled, reciting the
lines from the verses he had found on the walls of Havea’s
cavern.

Havea nodded. “The past
has taught us a great deal indeed,” he stated. “And still, even
more remains to be uncovered.”

Ikani shut his eyes and
breathed deeply. Then, opening them anew, he glanced towards the
sky. The horizon was still warped by the mysterious shattered film
that hung over the city, distorting his view of the clouds and the
blue sky above, coming into view as the sun climbed higher into the
heavens.

“When he does return,”
the Veha began. “Then he will return only to fail anew,” Ikani
declared, clenching his fists as renewed confidence coursed through
his entire body. “For the proud legacy of the Zor shall always
stand strong in the face of those who threaten it!”

At that, Ikani raised
his left arm skyward. “
To Infinity
Together,
” he chanted.
“
Guided by the noble
Gods!
”

The other Veha and the
three wise Zor all joined in, chanting in unison, pledging at the
same time to honor and remember the lives of all Zor who had fought
valiantly on that night to protect their homeland against the
shadows.

“Well then,” Lanaru
piped up suddenly. “I suppose the only thing left to do is to look
forward,” he figured. The others all nodded.

“Indeed,” replied
Arkem. “Fau and I shall tend to the city, then – search for any
others,” he clarified. “You should all rest,” he then suggested. “I
am sure this adventure has taken quite the toll on all of you by
now.”

Kaho nodded in
agreement. “Tomorrow, we shall head for our homelands,” she
decided, turning to the other Veha. “I am sure that these recent
events have taken their toll on the Satellites as
well.”

Havea smiled. “Then it
is settled,” he declared.

***

The day had come and
gone and dusk was once again upon the Islands. Arkem and Fau had
returned with but a handful of both Resistance fighters and freed
members of Remula’s former army. They had all been dispersed to
Af’Lanu by means of the Great Lanu Bridge, given the fact that the
northern island was the easiest to reach and thus electing to use
it as a safe harbor until the following day. Tomorrow, it was
decreed that the Veha would return to their respective home
Satellites to bring to any remaining citizens the news of Demias’
fall and of their victory.

Ikani now stood at the
edge of the Sea of the Gods, gazing beyond the northward silhouette
of Af’Lanu at the distant horizon. He knew that night would soon be
upon them again, but he approached the return of the darkness with
optimism, knowing that a new day would once again offer a gleam of
light at the end of the tunnel of darkness once all was said and
done.

Suddenly, he once again
became conscious of the object in his hand. He opened it up,
running his fingers over the legendary Tavar Ring. It was an object
said to have been passed down from the days of Distant Past,
carrying with it inherent powers that were all but impossible to
find in objects manufactured in the present day. Ikani gazed down
at the Ring with many feelings and questions alike floating through
his stream of consciousness.

“May the legacy of
Tavar Havea and all great Tavar before him live forever,” Ikani
spoke softly to himself, shifting his gaze to the horizon again.
“But I am beginning to feel as if there is no longer any need for a
single ruler of this land. Rather, I believe that as we move
forward, we should all do so together.”

And so Ikani raised his
arm high, preparing to launch the Ring into the depths of the Sea
before him. However, as he did so, a great invisible force seemed
to grab hold of him, stopping the Veha in his tracks and freezing
his outstretched arm above his head. Ikani looked up, dumbfounded,
marveling at the light that appeared to be emanating from inside
his hand. As he brought it down once more and opened it up, his
eyes widened in sheer surprise as they fell upon not one ring, but
four.

“Amazing,” he breathed
in disbelief.

“Have you a moment, Ikani?”

The Veha turned towards
the direction of the voice.

“Ah, Tava – err,
Havea,” he corrected himself. “Yes, of course.”

“Very well, then,”
Havea answered. “I just figured that I should thank you once more
before I am off.”

“Off?” Ikani
questioned, surprised. “But to where?”

The wise Zor smiled. “I
must see to my own destiny now,” he replied vaguely. “But fear not,
Ikani, for we shall meet again someday.”

“When?” Ikani begged,
lamenting the imminent loss of the wise leader and friend, to whom
Ikani had quickly become quite attached following their first
meeting in Af’One.

Havea reached up,
resting a hand on Ikani’s shoulder in the same way the Veha had
done to him before. “Soon enough, Ikani,” he answered simply. “Soon
enough.”

The wise Zor now
fidgeted, appearing troubled. “But before I go,” he added. “Is
there anything that you would like me to know, or for you to know
yourself?”

Ikani hesitated, unsure
of how to reply. Truthfully, there was much that he wanted to know.
The Veha particularly found himself troubled by the memories of
Remula’s words from before, pertaining to something – a
certain
power
– which Demias supposedly desired more than
anything in the world; a power that the other Gods had apparently
locked away, long ago.

He shook the thoughts
from his mind. Then, slowly, he extended his hand toward Havea,
revealing the four rings.

“Marvelous,” Havea
breathed in awe. “I suppose the Gods no longer mean for a single
leader to oversee this land. You should be honored, Ikani; as
should all of you.”

Ikani tried to force a
smile, though none such came to his face.

“Is there something
troubling you, Ikani?” Havea asked.

The Veha shook his
head. “No,” he lied. “Well… not exactly. It’s just… I’m not sure
that I am ready yet,” Ikani admitted. He took a deep breath,
attempting to compose himself. “I suppose that I have become quite
fond of being called Veha… I wouldn’t want to give it up and settle
down as a Tavar just yet.”

Havea chuckled
slightly. “Well then, my dear Ikani, I suppose it is for you to
decide, then, whenever it is that you are prepared to pass that
torch on.”

Ikani’s eyes turned
downward once again towards the four rings. With his other hand, he
reached for one, bringing it close to his fingertip, knowing that
placing it around his finger would ultimately extinguish his Veha
powers once and for all in favor of the wise mind and bearings of a
noble ruler. He froze, shut his eyes, and placed the Ring back
amongst the others, clasping his hand over the four
anew.

“No,” Ikani decided.
“Not yet.”

Havea nodded. “Very
well, then.”

At that, he turned
around, calling his Firewolf. “Come, Kanae!” he exclaimed. “Let us
be off!”

The wise Zor then
turned back to Ikani, giving him one last smile and a nod of
acknowledgment. “Until we meet again then, Veha Ikani,” he said,
winking.

Ikani nodded back.
“I’ll look forward to it,” he replied with a warm
smile.

“Ikani!” came the sound
of Kaho’s voice from far behind him.

Ikani turned around to
find the other three Veha hurrying in his
direction.

“Look!” the female Veha
beckoned, pointing towards the sky. Ikani turned his attention
toward the heavens. His eyes were bright with awe as the evening
sky became bright with thousands of falling stars, scattering
across the surrounding islands, bringing a new wave of life to the
Satellites of Paradius.

“Where has Havea gone?”
Lanaru asked suddenly.

Ikani pointed towards
the east to where Havea now walked alongside Kanae, gradually
becoming smaller in his field of vision as he headed towards the
open horizon.

“I suppose his journey
must continue now as well,” Ikani figured. “Along with our
own.”