Date: Wed, 11 Feb 2004 14:52:58 -0800 (PST) From: Warren Powers Subject: Journey Through Kajahri - Chapter Two Hey everybody! Here's chapter two of JTK, I hope you enjoy it. This is where the fantasy kicks in, and you meet Nefan! :-D You know the usual disclaimer junk, although I doubt you would listen in the first place, lol. IM me on AIM at Warren Kefa or email me at supergenious2003(at)yahoo.com (@ removed for spam purposes). Tell me what you think! Chapter Two: The Boy Who Came From Nowhere Peering through the dense foliage of the forest, I kept my eye on the small animal before me as the rain beat down upon my head. Slowly, I eased out of my sitting position and tensed, knowing the moment to strike was coming soon. Suddenly catching the scent, the animal stiffened and looked my way, preparing to run off into the wood. Not wanting to go home empty handed, I sprang from my crouching position. But I was too late and crashed into the mud as the rabbit bounded away. I despise rainy mornings. The overcast weather makes the animals wary, almost giving them a sixth sense to oncoming danger. I don't mind hunting; in fact I've grown accustomed to the thrill of the chase and the triumph of the kill. But when the ocean blue of the sky is covered by a thick sheet of gray, it makes everything bleaker, hopeless. I was taken into Kahtroki's clabaharem when I was very young. An offering to the Forest god Herne K'rile, I was abandoned by my parents when I was still freshly born, as a gift to appease the Forest Spirit; at least that's what the Sprites tell me. Although in the stories of ancient offerings, it was usually a female child that was abandoned, not a male one. The earth was still moist as I ambled though the endless gray, looking for windberries and at least some kind of meat. Seeing the exposed plants of a knuckleroot, I dug into the ground, prying it from its soft prison. Suddenly, my nose detected something else. A human, but it wasn't the same as one of the villagers. It was something else, a different human. Other humans in Sancta Woods? It was too early in the year for Phantara's Collectors, and hunters almost never came this far. Breaking into a silent trot, I darted through the thick underbrush of the forest, coming quickly to the source of the strange, yet familiar scent. There, naked, bruised, battered and broken, lay a man. No, more correctly a boy, breathing faintly, almost dead. I circled him, doubt piercing my thoughts. Was there any way that he could also be an offering to Herne K`rile? Just like me, he was left naked and unconscious in the middle of the forest. But no, he was much too old, around my age, it looked. I slowly approached him and poked his side, but got no response. He was an attractive boy, built leanly, he looked like a runner. I gently touched his face and was startled by how cold his cheek felt. Briefly, I considered leaving him there, and going to tell the others at the Clabaharem, but there was something about this boy, something I couldn't quite put my finger on. "You should hurry, you know." I looked up and saw Samali, one of the younger Tree Sprites sitting in a branch above me, swinging his legs. "What do you mean?" I asked. "Don't worry Nefan," He said lazily. "I'm sure the wolf packs will wait to eat him as long as you want them to, especially with that wound on his thigh." Glancing down, I could see a small trickle of blood where a branch had scraped his skin. "Dammit! Now I have to rush." Sighing, I heaved his body onto my shoulders and started off at a brisk pace towards my camp. Samali danced along beside me. "What are you going to tell Kahtroki?" He buzzed around in front of my face, his small wings beating furiously. "I'll tell her exactly what happened. I was gathering the morning meal and I stumbled across this boy." I grunted and shifted his weight, trying to lighten the load a little bit. "I hope she lets you keep him. He looks like a strong worker." I suddenly stopped and looked at him. "Kahtroki wouldn't give him to the collectors, would she?" Samali laughed. "Oh please Nefan; why else would she keep another food consumer around? We still need another prospect for the Collectors. You know those diamonds won't mine themselves." I frowned and walked a little slower. "What mines are they collecting slaves for this year?" The fact that Phantara used slave labor always bothered me, but to contest Phantara's will was certain death. Samali grinned and said, "The Har'kin mines of Southern Yoon. I hear they're offering tiger skins this year. Won't that be great? Sixteen new tiger skins. Oh, I can't wait." He put a bit more dance in his step. "Sixteen?" I asked him. "But that's one more over the quota. We don't have to give him to the Collectors." Samali stopped and turned to face me. "Why do you care? What's so special about this boy?" He suddenly smiled. "I bet it's cause you found him unclothed isn't it?" I grabbed the back of his tunic and threw him sideways in the air, narrowly missing a tree. "No, that's not why. I really don't know. He just seems different than the others, more important." "Whatever." Samali shrugged his shoulders and zipped ahead. "I'll meet you at home; I'm going to tell Kahtroki about the new slave-boy." But before I could protest, he had already disappeared into the leaves. *** An hour later, I finally reached the village, making my way past the slave hut. The current fifteen slaves had already finished they're morning chores and were lying around the fire, cooking the disgusting rations that were provided for them. I wouldn't exactly say the collectors would be pleased. None of the slaves we had were human, most were small trolls taken from the high mountains. I glanced around to make sure no one was looking, and dropped the knuckleroot I had found earlier into the dirt as I walked by. "Oops, silly me." I said, trying not to smile. "Now this knuckleroot is ruined. I guess I'll have to leave it here." One of the troll's smiled at me, and I walked to my Claba, still balancing the naked boy on my shoulders. Kicking the door open, I slowly dropped the boy onto the bed. Seizing a small rag from the cleaning bowl, I dressed the wound and covered him with a blanket. "Ah, so this is our newest prospect." I whipped around to see Kahtroki, the Clabaharem's mistress, standing in the doorway. "Samali tells me that you simply found him in the woods, unclothed." I motioned for her to take a seat. "Yes, that's right. What else did Samali tell you?" Kahtroki raised an eyebrow. "He told me that you seemed unusually attached to this boy. He thought you would finally take a Shall of your own. But I told him, 'Nefan, have a personal slave? Never.' But he seemed adamant that you wouldn't send him to Har'kin." I swallowed and looked up at Kahtroki. "Well," I began. "So it's true." Kahtroki said, surprised. "You want him as your Shall." "Please Mistress," I said. "It's not what it seems. I only want him as a Shall as to save him from the mines." "Why?" asked Kahtroki. "Why him?" "I don't know." I told her. "Samali asked me the same thing, and I gave him the same response."There's just something about him..." "I see." Kahtroki stood up, and turned to the door. "I will consider it, Nefan. Because of the circumstances, you are excused from your daily duties for today. Care for your shall instead." "Thank you, Mistress." I bowed slightly, and sprinkled the ritual water at her feet. "Klasaka." "Klasaka, my child." She slowly closed the door.