Twenty-Six - Tarka

There was a teapot sitting in my empty tree hut back home. Every night for months, I would make myself a cup of tea, and the water would finally get hot enough to the point of bubbling. I'm pretty sure the amount of steam coming out of my ears was more than that kettle produced, and the blood in my lizard veins turned more hot than that water.

"I KNEW it," I muttered under my breath. Then, I thought to myself, "Anything against Lesion is music to my ears."

Tristram and Alden turned toward me. "Do you know anything about him? He is one of your leaders."

"I know he's a dirty scumbag, personally."

"Ouch, what did he ever do to you?" Tristram asked.

Alden said nothing, only looking at me with a slight anticipation. I shook my head.

"We'll talk about that later. So, what's going on exactly?"

Rhythmus looked at each of us before explaining. "I guess you young ones have been out in the jungle for so long that you don't even know."

"Know what?" Alden asked.

"There is now a world war being fought this very moment."

All fell silent.

"That's terrible!" a depressed Alden exclaimed, eyes widened.

Tristram slammed his fist down on the table. "That coward! Scoundrel!" Composing himself, he quietly asked, "What should we do, Rhythmus?"

"We must convince the Brackins and the Palkins that Lesion is the evil one creating all the chaos in the others' worlds, not each other. Since the three of you are all from these three lands, you should convince your people to stop the war before more damage is created. If we don't succeed . . ." Rhythmus trailed off. "Well, let's just hope there'll be a world left to live in."

"Well, we can't ALL go together. We have to split up somehow. But we can't go alone; we need to pair up," the Brackin strategized. I could tell by the look in his eyes that he was loving this already and wanted to redeem himself. I could see that in Alden's eyes, too.

"I'll go with Tarka," Alden piped up. I raised my eyebrows at him, and finally agreed that the two of us would go together.

Tristram turned to the old man. "And what about you, Rhythmus? Are you coming as well?"

"I suppose I must; since I don't belong to anyone's land, I would be on a neutral ground with everyone. Well, except with Lesion," he grumbled.

"Then it's all settled then! Why don't you two go towards the Palkin land," Tristram pointed at us, "and Rhythmus and I back to the Brackins'?"

I shrugged. "I really don't care where I go. I won't be accepted anywhere anyway."

Alden and Tristram both sighed as if to say, "Whatever, don't even go there."

"Now, now, don't fret my dear," the old man patted me on my scaly back. "You don't know that. Honestly, Tristram and Alden might not be accepted back in their homelands either."

"Oh yeah, they were banished. I almost forgot."

So, we all went our separate ways.

About 45 minutes or so into the trek, Alden turned to me. "So, you were prompted to tell a story about Lesion. What did he do to you? Did he hurt you?" he asked with concern in his eyes.

"Not physically . . . to me. I don't know if you really even care to listen to me. I don't even think I should be telling you this. Why should I trust you?"

"I've kept you safe thus far."

Good point.

I took a deep breath and dove in. No turning back now.

"A year ago, I met someone at the supermarket. His name was Damian. He was a natural Viridian rebel," I chuckled remembering that day. "He became my best friend. He was there for me when my mother passed away and when my father . . . kicked me out of the house."

Alden's eyes drifted toward the ground. "Oh . . . I'm sorry."

"It is the Viridian custom. At age 16, you are considered old enough to live on your own and create a life for yourself. But he really did want me out; he never loved me like my mother did. After she died, I had nobody but Damian. He didn't have anyone either; his parents were gone. He needed me, and I needed him."

We stopped at a creek for a water break and to rest a few minutes.

"So, what about Lesion? What does he have to do with this?"

"Well, I already told you that Damian was a rebel of sorts. He knew something was going on, and that they were evil. He wanted to expose them, but he never got a chance to." I started pulling some grass out of the ground. "The leaders found out about his plan to expose them, and they captured him from his hut and arrested him. I was nearby and ran to the leaders, kicking and pounding them with my fists, screaming at the top of my lungs to let him go. Two more leaders grabbed my arms and held me tight. Lesion emerged from the group and told me that Damian was a traitor to his people, and he needed to be punished. I screamed at him all the more, but he and the other leaders ignored me, and the leaders that held on to me tied me to a tree. 'Damian!' I screamed for him, but I couldn't see him. I finally got free of the bonds, but no matter how long I ran in their direction, I couldn't find them. The next day, I went into the market and found newspapers of the news that Damian had been sentenced to death; he was put up in a tree to be pushed off and fall to his death below on the jungle floor." I took a deep breath, realizing I hadn't been breathing at all for the past three minutes. Salty water started dripping out of my eyes before I could control myself. "I ran all the way back home without stopping, and I cried on my bed for days. I didn't eat for nearly a week. And now I have no one." I started sobbing. "Alden," I looked at him and then buried my face into my lap. "I loved him."

Alden was silent, unsure of how to take in all of what I had said. He scooted over closer to me and wrapped his arms around me. After a few minutes, he whispered, "Tarka, I had no idea. No wonder you don't trust anyone. I am so sorry. Shh shhh shh, it's okay. Please stop, I hate when girls cry," he urged. He gave me a handkerchief he had in his pocket. I wiped my face and blew my nose.

"Please don't ever use that against me." I could barely whisper as I buried my face into his chest.

"Never."