D. MacHale - Black Water

A strange thing happened. As soon as the gar heard the word “home,” it was like his pain went away. The word had a calming effect on him. He looked at Timber, and laughed. Right in his face. Whatever “home” meant, it gave him the strength to stick it to Timber. It was a brazen move, but not a smart one. Saint Dane didn’t like being dissed. What happened next was something that surprised even the klees in the torture room.

“Tell me!” Timber ordered the gar angrily.

The gar suddenly stopped laughing. His body went stiff. He snapped a surprised look at Timber. Their eyes met and he slowly arched his back as if straining against a heavy weight. The klees looked at each other with curiosity. They didn’t know what was going on.

“What’s happening?” Kasha asked.

“It’s Saint Dane,” I said sadly. “He’s doing this.”

The poor gar strained against the cords tying him to the bench. His whole body went red with the exertion. He lifted up off the table, defying gravity.

“Tell me what this is!” Timber bellowed, losing his cool.

The gar screamed in pain. The two klees backed away. I was pretty sure they had never seen anything like this. I didn’t want to watch, but I had to. So did Kasha. This was her first lesson on the evil depths that Saint Dane could sink to. Finally the gar let out a guttural, anguished cry. I heard a sickeningcrack. The gar went limp and fell back to the table. One of the klees felt his neck.

“How did that happen?” the klee asked in wonder. “He’s dead.”

“No!” Timber screamed in frustration. He grabbed the klee by the throat and shouted, “Find out the purpose of these cubes or you’ll be the next one on this table!”

“Y-Yes, I understand,” the frightened klee babbled.

Timber tossed him aside and stormed out of the room. I turned away from the small window and looked at Kasha. She was shaken. Boon bent over and puked. It wasn’t a kittycat hair ball gaak, either. He totally ralphed.

“Welcome to the wonderful world of Saint Dane,” I said to Kasha, trying to control the quiver in my voice. “Was it real enough for you?”

Kasha took a step back and cleared her throat. She tried to speak calmly, but her voice was shaky. “I need to go to my father’s home. You are welcome to come. Maybe we will find something of use there.”

“Good,” I said. I had to get out of there. I was sweating and shaking. Boon’s puke didn’t smell so hot either. We left the tree quickly and made our way across to the far side of Leeandra, and Seegen’s home. None of us spoke. I think we were in shock. I know I was. I wondered if after seeing that horrifying scene, Boon was still enthusiastic about doing battle with Saint Dane. When we arrived at Seegen’s tree house, Yorn was waiting for us outside.

“What are you doing out here, Yorn?” Kasha asked.

“I didn’t want to go inside until you arrived,” the old klee answered.

“That’s silly,” Kasha said. “You’re like family.”

Yorn smiled sadly. With the loss of Seegen, their family had just gotten smaller. We all went inside and I saw that the place was set up very much like Kasha’s.

“You won’t believe what we just saw,” Boon exclaimed. “The Inquisitors were torturing a gar to find out where Black Water is.”

“Black Water?” Yorn asked with surprise. “Seegen spoke of Black Water. He seemed to think it was real.”

“So do the gars,” Boon said. “And so does Saint Dane,” I added.

“Saint Dane?” Yorn asked, surprised. “He was there? With the Inquisitors?”

“Yes,” I answered. “He’s taken the form of a klee named Timber.”

“Boon told me,” Yorn said, shaking his head sadly. “It’s frightening to think he has found his way onto the Council of Klee. Why is he interested in Black Water?”

“That’s what I’d like to know,” I said.

Kasha didn’t say a word. She kept looking back and forth between all of us, trying to understand what it all meant.

Boon asked, “And what are those little brown cubes the gars have? Saint Dane was real interested in those, too.”

“Maybe your father has some answers for us,” Yorn said.

Huh? Now it was my turn to be confused. “What do you mean?” I asked.

Kasha reached into a fold of her tunic and pulled out a small, wooden key. “My father gave this to me the last time I saw him. He said that if anything should happen to him, I needed to use it right away.” She went to Seegen’s kitchen table and pulled it away to reveal a bench that was built into the wall. She ran her hand along the bench, just under the seat, until she found a small hole.

“This is where my father kept his most valuable possessions,” Kasha explained.

She inserted the key into the hole, turned it, and I heard theclickof a lock. Kasha lifted the seat to reveal a hollow area beneath. There was only one item inside. It was a wooden box about the size of my mom’s jewelry box. I wanted to make a comment about how Seegen didn’t have many valuable possessions, but figured that wouldn’t be cool. Kasha removed the box, dropped the seat back down, and placed the small chest on the table. I noticed that on top of the box was a folded piece of paper. Kasha opened the note and read it aloud:”For my daughter, Kasha.”

“It’s for you!” Boon exclaimed.

Kasha gave us all a quick, nervous look, then opened the box. She pulled out another note that was on top. She first read it to herself. A tear welled up in her eye. None of us said anything. That wouldn’t have been cool. Kasha sniffed, stood up straight, and turned to us, saying, “You should all hear this.” She read the letter aloud.

“My dear Kasha, If you are reading this, it means I am dead. Please do not grieve for me. This was the way it was meant to be. I know you do not believe in the Travelers, and our mission. I don’t blame you. But I’m afraid you will soon discover that it is all true. Eelong is in grave danger. If Saint Dane succeeds in his quest to destroy the gars, our home will be crushed. As difficult as this is to believe, Eelong being destroyed would be a small catastrophe compared to what would follow. Saint Dane must not succeed. If you choose not to follow your destiny as a Traveler, I would understand. The fault is mine. I have not done enough to prepare you for this responsibility. But I will ask one thing of you. It is something you must not refuse. A gar will arrive one day who goes by the name of Pendragon…”

Kasha looked at me. I stared back silently, though I was dying to shout: “Keep reading!” She continued.

“Share with him the contents of this box. I wish I knew more about Saint Dane’s evil plan, but I’m sorry to say I do not. I did discover this much: The gar legend of Black Water is true. It exists. I know, because I’ve been there.”

Whoa, that officially made this note a shocker. We all exchanged looks, then Kasha continued.

“I believe Black Water is central to Saint Dane’s plans. So does the Traveler named Gunny. He is waiting for Pendragon at Black Water.”

I stood up straight. My heart raced. Gunny was alive.

“I need you to help Pendragon get to Black Water. This is my request to you. Please, please honor it. I’m proud of you, my daughter, but more than that, I love you.

Kasha lowered the note. Nobody could speak. Seegen had reached back from beyond death to finish his duties as a Traveler. My first thought was that I wished I had known him. My second thought was voiced by Boon.

“So what’s in the box?” he asked.

Kasha reached inside and picked up another piece of paper. She stared at it for a moment, as if not believing what she was seeing.

“What is it, Kasha?” I asked softly.

She handed the paper to me, and I examined it to see hand-drawn symbols and numbers that made no sense.”Idon’t understand this,” I said.