Eyes of the Sun (2 page)

The one thing he knew was to run downhill. That
had
to lead to somewhere he’d recognize—near the graveyard or Azuriah’s fortress.

He looked back. The Rogs were gaining on him.

Then alarm bells began pealing through the forest. Those were Taga Village’s alarms! Jacob veered right, toward the sound. He dashed around a large oak tree, then under a tall evergreen. The fortress and village gardens popped into view, and he nearly stumbled with relief.

He ran to the back door of the fortress and, without knocking, threw it open and slammed it closed behind him.

Azuriah waited there, still gasping. Even though Jacob was exhausted, he felt a smidgen of satisfaction, knowing the Shiengol was out of breath too.

“What happened?” Jacob asked, gasping.

Azuriah moved a curtain to look out. “I defended us from two or three of them, but forgot that they hibernate in packs of twenty or more. We were quickly surrounded.”

“Great. Now what?”

“We wait for them to leave.”

Jacob slumped to the floor and leaned back, eyes closed. But then the doorknob jiggled. He looked over—Azuriah’s face had paled.

“They can’t turn knobs, can they?” the Shiengol asked.

Jacob jumped to his feet, pushing his shoulder into the door. “Yeah, they can. You didn’t know that?”

Azuriah didn’t respond, but the moment the doorknob started turning, he grabbed it with both hands. Jacob could sense the Rogs on the other side—their urgency—searching for a way to enter. The doorknob kept turning and Azuriah slitted his eyes, his hands going white from exertion.

“Can’t keep this up. Wish I’d finished installing my locks.” Azuriah gritted his teeth. “Go get Kenji. These things aren’t leaving anytime soon. We have to find out what the Makalos do when this happens.”

Jacob ran down the hall to the kitchen and Keyed to Kenji’s place, calling for help as soon as the door was open. Ebony rushed into the room, eyes wide.

“What’s going on?”she asked.

Kenji looked up from his books in panic.

Jacob skidded to a stop at the table, motioning back the way he’d come. “Rogs.”

Akeno glanced at Jacob from where he sat next to his father. “We heard the bells. Everything is fine.”

“Here, yes, but they’re trying to get into Azuriah’s fortress. He doesn’t have a way to keep them out.”

Kenji’s face paled. “I wish Brojan were still here. I’d forgotten about that part of the village.” He jumped to his feet and put on the light jacket Ebony handed to him. “Take us there.”

As soon as the four were through the link, Akeno and Ebony rushed to help Azuriah keep the door closed.

“We’re fine up in the village, but those living around the gardens aren’t safe,” Kenji said. He turned to Azuriah. “The people could stay in your fortress until the Rogs leave.”

Azuriah stared at Kenji. “Apart from having no way to keep Rogs out, what makes you think I’ll agree to that?”

Kenji cleared his throat. “We’ll have to wait them out either way.”

“How long will that take?” Jacob asked.

“A couple of hours, usually. But with there being so much available food?” Kenji passed a hand over his eyes. “It could be days. They’re hungry—they’ve been hibernating.”

Jacob rubbed his chin, thinking. “Why don’t you just tell the trees to get rid of them?”

Kenji shook his head. “Can’t. The forest won’t remove, trap, or control an animal that is native. The Rogs have been here for many years—they’re part of the wildlife.”

“They’ve stopped,” Azuriah said, releasing the doorknob slowly. He watched it—it didn’t wiggle. The Shiengol turned, arms folded, and glared at the group. “Okay, enough chatting. Solve the problem.”

“Well . . . Sweet Pea and Jaegar are out hunting with a group of Makalos,” Ebony said. “When they return, we’ll use a few of the animals from their catch to lure the Rogs away.”

Akeno looked at his mother. “Jacob and I will go—”

“No, you won’t,” she said.

“I’ve done it before,” Akeno said. “And when we get them far enough outside the village, I’ll enlarge a door, and Jacob and I will escape through it and come back here.”

Azuriah nodded. “Yes, that’ll work.” He looked at Ebony. “When will the hunting party return?”

Ebony looked annoyed that Azuriah had given Akeno permission to follow through with his plan, but she didn’t argue. “Soon, I’m hoping. They’ve been gone since before dawn.”

Jacob could tell this wasn’t what Azuriah wanted to hear—the Shiengol wasn’t going to wait patiently.

“Akeno and I can get ready now,” Jacob said. He turned to his friend. “What do we need?”

The Makalo shrugged. “Just the meat. And a door. Oh, and the Key.”

Jacob patted his pocket. “Got the Key. You have a door?”

“No. Let’s go back to my house and get one.”

They weren’t gone long, but when they returned, Ebony had swung the back door of the fortress open and Sweet Pea, Jaegar, and a bunch of other Makalos rushed in, carrying burlap bags that dripped blood. Rogs roared just a few feet away. Azuriah shoved the door shut barely in time—one of the beasts almost made it inside.

The Shiengol raised an eyebrow at the bags resting on his floor, and the Makalos lifted them.

“You’ve got the meat,” Azuriah said. “Get rid of the Rogs.”

Kenji explained the plan to the hunters. “I’m surprised you even made it back with that much meat,” he said.

Sweet Pea grinned. “It was fun.” He made a fake pouty expression. “And now we practically have to throw away our spoils.”

“Not all of it,” Ebony said. “Sweet Pea, you and I will accompany Jacob and Akeno.”

“Just follow me,” Sweet Pea said. “We’ll run as far from the fortress as possible.”

“And they’ll come after us?” Jacob asked.

“As long as we’re carrying one of the bags, yes.” Ebony said. She inspected the burlap sacks. “Rogs don’t have a very strong sense of smell, but this should catch their attention.”

Sweet Pea retied his shoes, hefted the bag, and then looked up at the others. “Ready?”

Jacob nodded, his heart racing. He’d nearly been killed by a Rog months ago, and here he was, voluntarily going up against at least twenty of them.

After making sure the way was clear, Sweet Pea inched the door open and looked both ways before sneaking to the right. The others followed.

They slipped around the side of the fortress, so far unseen by the Rogs. The creatures were busy trying to get into Aldo’s cabin. Jacob hoped the old man was okay.

Moments later, one of the Rogs raised its snout into the air, sniffed, and then roared. All the Rogs turned, watching Jacob and his group sneak away.

“That’s our cue,” Sweet Pea said. “Run!”

Jacob did just that, dashing into the forest, following the Makalos. The trees grew a lot thicker here than on the other side of the village, and he struggled to keep up with the much faster Makalos. He hurdled a log, snagging his pant leg in the process. He almost fell, but counterbalanced and continued.

His lungs began to burn. The way was steep, there wasn’t a clear-cut path, and Jacob hadn’t done any sort of real aerobic activity since dropping out of basketball. He sucked in as much air as he could, forcing his legs to continue the fast and awkward climb. So far, his injuries seemed to be holding up well.

He glanced over his shoulder. Three Rogs were gaining on him.

Jacob raced around a huge tree, keeping his eyes on the Makalos.

Ebony noticed he was lagging and stopped long enough for him to catch up. Then she ran alongside him, zig-zagging so the Rogs would be confused. It seemed to work, and Sweet Pea and Akeno slowed down as well. Soon, the four of them were running side by side, Sweet Pea carrying the bag of bloody meat.

Jacob kept wanting to ask if they’d gone far enough, but he was so out of breath, he couldn’t. He heard roaring behind them, building in strength. More Rogs had caught the scent and were giving chase.

Moments later, a Rog caught up. Jacob was afraid he would become the creature’s first meal after hibernation, but the beast didn’t seem interested in him—it wanted the food in that sack of Sweet Pea’s.

Suddenly, Jacob’s legs gave out, and the Rog batted him to the side with such force, it knocked the wind out of him. He slammed into a tree and slid to the ground, dazed.

He shook his head, trying to get his eyes to focus. It looked like Ebony and Akeno were dancing with the Rog—they were jumping around it, yelling and bouncing out of reach over and over again. Where was Sweet Pea?

Jacob struggled to his feet, holding his side where the creature had smacked him. That thing had a wicked arm!

Just then, a Rog roared behind him. He whirled, nearly losing his balance. The beast was standing on its hind legs, loose hair tufting into the breeze as the thing shook itself, spittle flying from its mouth.

Jacob turned and ran.

He felt a slight quiver in the ground beneath him when the Rog fell onto all fours again and charged after him.

Not knowing what else to do, Jacob headed toward Ebony and Akeno.

He finally spotted Sweet Pea. The Makalo was up a tree, still holding the bag. The tree bent over, possibly at Sweet Pea’s command, and Sweet Pea jumped to the neighboring one. This happened several more times, and then Sweet Pea fell to the forest floor and started hollering at the Rogs.

The creatures—including the one chasing Jacob—paused and looked his way.

Sweet Pea opened the bag, tipping the contents onto the pine needles beneath him.

With one massive, combined roar, the Rogs tore off in Sweet Pea’s direction.

“The door,” Ebony shouted.

Akeno pulled it from his pocket and dropped it fifty feet away—not far from Sweet Pea.

Jacob and the two Makalos raced toward it, Jacob taking the Key out of his pocket.

They arrived at the same time as Sweet Pea, with some of the Rogs rushing toward them.

Jacob pushed the Key into the lock and turned it. He flung the door open and they all scrambled through. A Rog jumped into the frame. Jacob tried pushing the door shut, but the creature was too big and too strong. The door flew open, smacking Jacob in the shoulder, and he fell to the ground.

The Rog hesitated, obviously trying to see into the dim room. It stepped forward, sniffing and growling. It shuffled forward again, clearing the doorway.

Akeno slammed the door shut before more Rogs could enter. The Rog jumped and lunged toward the Makalo, but Ebony was there with one of her long knives. She swished at the beast, catching it on the shoulder. The Rog turned to her, about to attack.

Suddenly, a loud crack sounded through the air, and the Rog fell to the ground.

“Thank you, Akeno,” Ebony said, putting away her knife. “We’ll need to transport it back through the link as soon as possible.”

She opened the door and called across the meadow to several Makalos who were carrying gardening tools. She motioned frantically, and soon they were all running to the tree.

“All right, Jacob,” she said. “Open the link.”

He did so, then stepped behind the door. The Makalos held their shovels up, but no danger came rushing through, so they dropped them. Akeno shrank the Rog, then enlarged it far away from the door, through the link, in the forest.

Jacob closed the link and plopped into the grass of the meadow. “I don’t ever want to do that again.”

Ebony smiled. “You won’t have to, hopefully. We don’t normally have problems with Rogs.”

“Uh-huh,” Sweet Pea said. “When they come out of hibernation, they’re always grouchy and hungry.”

Ebony rolled her eyes. “Yes, but we take care of them when that happens. They awoke earlier than usual. It caught us off guard.”

She pulled Jacob to his feet. “You’d better return to Azuriah’s fortress and see if he wants you to finish your practicing.”

He nodded and headed that way.

Azuriah didn’t answer Jacob’s knock, so Jacob went home to practice there.

Chapter Two: Flames and Burns

Before practicing what Azuriah had taught him, Jacob decided to check up on the Lorkon.

He Time-Saw, finding them in the throne room of the castle in Maivoryl City. The Lorkon king, Keitus, stood with his palms on a table, staring down at a ton of papers and books. His lip was curled, the veins on his forehead standing out, and Jacob looked away in disgust as blood oozed from his chapped, red hands to the wood beneath them.

The other three Lorkon appeared to be waiting for Keitus to say or do something. After several moments, Keitus straightened and stepped away, his black robes swirling around his legs. He said something unintelligible and Jacob focused harder, trying to follow the discussion.

“Soon . . .
they
. . . her,” Keitus said, walking to his throne. He sat down.

In the way the Lorkon king said “they” with such disgust and annoyance, Jacob knew he was referring to King Dmitri and his followers. But who was the “her” they were talking about?

One of the other Lorkon pulled a book off the table, reading from it. “Fire Pulser . . . royal blood . . .” He looked up at Keitus and said one word. “Lasia.”

Keitus leaned forward. “You’re sure?”

The other Lorkon nodded and Keitus shook his head, appearing to be deep in thought. Jacob concentrated extra hard—he wasn’t sure why it was so difficult this time to follow the conversation, but he couldn’t afford to miss anything. Especially when he remembered that Lasia was the name of a Fire Pulser Dmitri and the others had buried—one of the elemental traps set to stop the prince from rescuing his princess.

“It’s time,” Keitus said, his words completely clear now. “We leave tomorrow morning. Begin preparations immediately.”

The other Lorkon snapped his fingers and a Molg entered the throne room. The Lorkon barked out an order and snapped his fingers again. This time, several Dusts and Molgs rushed in and began following commands, running around, gathering things. Jacob pulled away from his vision.

It was obvious that the Lorkon were planning to do something with Lasia. But why bother her? She wasn’t harming anything or anyone by being underground. Jacob knew Azuriah wanted to move her from the land and return her to her own world, but why should the Lorkon be concerned about her?