Around noon, Julius and the bats returned from hunting. Julius had a handful of pheasants, and Larry and Joe had a couple more squirrels. Immediately, they set to skinning and smoking their meat for the trip.
Overall, it was nice to be out and about, though his hands hurt from the braiding. They didn’t break for lunch until it was nearly evening. Faunus fed the fire and watched as they stuffed themselves with hot bird.
“Where do you normally live?” asked Uncle Bally.
“Down below, in the garden.”
“Why are you only making your way to the summit, now?”
“The garden has been my home for a long time. I wanted to hold out for as long as I could. Now, I see that things are going to be just as messy as the time before.”
“What do you mean by time before? Surely, nothing like this has ever happened.” asked Julius.
Again, Faunus looked at him with darkness in his eyes.
“Why do you look at me like that?”
“You don’t belong here, boy, and you know it.”
“What do you mean? I was invited, you vagrant!”
“Okay, I don’t know what’s going on with you, Faunus, but Julius is our friend.”
He looked at Jacko piteously.
“Well, you should all rest early. Tomorrow will be a tough day, and we won’t stop until the sky is like blood wine.”
Then Faunus climbed up the tree and rested on the same branch with his face skyward. Larry and Joe flew up and landed on his calves and pigeon talked to him.
Jacko, Uncle Bally and Julius grabbed a couple lit logs and went back inside the cave.
“You know, I’m gonna miss this place,” said Julius. “I’m especially gonna be disappointed if we get stuck somewhere when we could have been here.”
“What difference does it make if either way we die? If we leave now, we still have a fighting chance.”
They climbed into their sacks. Julius was out immediately. Uncle Bally watched him sleeping, as he took swigs from his whiskey. Almost as if sensing Jacko was watching him, his eyes flicked directly at his.
Jacko motioned at him with a wave of his hand, indicating that he understood what was going through his mind: Did Faunus know something about Julius?
~~~
The next morning, they ate a couple apples as they geared up, packed the last of their items and set off.
The weather was just as unforgiving as every other day on the mountain. Only this time, with bellies full and Faunus as their guide, the day seemed to progress faster. It was slow-going walking when they weren’t sure of their direction, but with confidence – now that Faunus was there, they moved faster, covering twice as much mileage.
“Nice work!” said Uncle Bally.
It turned out the snow shoes he’d braided really did keep them from sinking.
“It’s nice to take small, normal steps again,” laughed Julius.
If only they had thought of it before, they might have made it to the summit already. Not having to dig ones legs out of the snow with each step was a saver on time and their strength.
Faunus walked far ahead of them, dragging the little mesh sack that was full of wood. But they didn’t get lost because he was so big that his neck and shoulders was always visible from many feet away.
The snow fell lightly that morning, and gradually increased to blizzard status by twilight. But Faunus insisted they press on in spite of the biting cold until the last remnant of daylight was snuffed.
By the end of the day, they were sodden with muddy snow and had rashes on their face. Walking behind Faunus was torture, as each step he took splashed snow up from the ground. Each time he flicked his heel, they got a face full of ice shards stabbing their skin and eyes, and leaving behind the sting of dirt.
The bats tired of the trek after only a few hours of flight. Faunus was kind enough to allow them to rest on his big, bushy head as he walked.
Uncle Bally was worse for the wear. When they broke for lunch, Faunus whittled out a miniature sled on which he could sit as he dragged him up the incline with a harness he’d made the day before.
On the following evening, Faunus caused an avalanche when he used his hands to sweep a blanket of snow off a cliff. He grabbed Jacko and the others right as they almost got swept away. The snow gathered around his ankles, all the way up to thighs, making it so he couldn’t move. He spent many hours into the night trying to dig himself out while Larry and Joe whizzed around his head, teasing him.
That night, the bats were kind enough to make dinner because they were dead tired, and Faunus ordered them to.
Still stuck in the snow, Uncle Bally shouted over the cliff, “Faunus, don’t you ever eat?”
“Sometimes, but usually only for ceremonial reasons.”
Jacko knew what he meant only too well, thinking back to his dinner in heaven.
They tried to get to sleep early but it was difficult with the loud sounds of Faunus still digging.
“Don’t you have the power to move the snow?”
“You can’t use magic on the mount; it’s a holy place.”
Right as he said this, the cliff trembled. Then all the snow around his legs cleared down and off the nearest peak.
At dawn, Jacko woke feeling rather well.
He rubbed his eyes and opened them. Uncle Bally and Julius were puttering about the fire. Faunus was standing dead still on the other end of the cliff.
There was a question that was nagging him. He slipped out of his bag and laced up his boots.
“Hey,” he said, the snow crunching under his feet.
Larry and Joe sat on his head, bickering as usual.
Faunus didn’t turn to face him but continued to stand there with his eyes closed.
“What is it you want?”
“You remember the last time this war was fought. Can you tell me what the last conjurer did to win? I mean it can’t just be a final battle between me and a demon, can it?”
“I can’t tell you. It’s forbidden to interfere with fate by influencing it in any way. To do so could cost our side, greatly.”
“Knowing what others did before might save my life, and put an end to this war now.”
“What is your life compared to the Earth and the billion souls that inhabit it?”
Jacko said nothing.
“You’ve been told before, and I’ll tell you, too: You’ll know what to do when the time is right. You must do it on your own. I’m only here to help you get up the mount and nothing more. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like a few moments of peace.”
After breakfast, they set off as usual. Uncle Bally seemed to enjoy the day much more, as he didn’t have to walk. Faunus dragged him and the wood along as if they weighed nothing.
They stopped for lunch and then continued until the sun disappeared behind the horizon. The evening was so cold that no matter how hot Faunus made the fire, they couldn’t get warm.
To help, Faunus placed large rocks in a ring around them. He promised to keep feeding the fire, as they slept through the night.
Jacko, Uncle Bally, Julius, Larry and Joe all huddled close together and to the fire. For the first few hours, they rested nicely, but about midnight, there was an earthquake, and the sound of a dozen sonic-like booms.
They sat up in their sacks, put on their shoes and exited their shelter.
Faunus stood on the edge of the cliff, looking down with a stone cold expression.
“They’ve begun taking over,” he said.
They moved beside him and looked below.
“My lord,” said Uncle Bally.
Below, down in the garden, a large fissure had formed in the ground; it went on for miles out of sight. Slowly, bubbling up from within the crack was a glowing reddish-orange liquid.
The magma continued to rise and bleed out over onto the snow. Trails of bubbles formed as it melted the snow and surface into its runniness. An impression of a trail was made as it melted down and traveled through t
he snow.
“Look over there,” said Julius.
On the east side, trees were slowly deleveling, as their trunks were devoured by magma.
“Get your things, now,” said Faunus. “We must get to the summit and we won’t stop until we do. The end of the world is very near; it’s no longer safe to be here.”
They grabbed fire logs to help light the way. But Jacko was still worried that they could lose each other.
“Here,” said Faunus, pulling out the harness he used to pull Uncle Bally. “Tie this around your waist. This way, we won’t lose each other.”
They did as he said.
As they walked along, Jacko couldn’t help but look over the side, every so often. The magma was quickly spreading, taking out the entire garden. When he thought about all the animals and trees dying, he felt sick.
Suddenly, there was a large rolling earthquake. Part of the mountain base had collapsed. Magma rose up higher and higher. The smell of sulfur made it hard to breath.
Dawn never came, though by the time they decided to rest, it was noon. Temperatures leapt from freezing to nearly 100 degrees. They peeled off their clothes, and sat on the ground, wiping their sweaty faces. With every breath Jacko took, he tasted the sulfur in the air, making it hard not to drink all his water. His skin felt like salami.
Several hours later, they faced a rock incline that disappeared into the clouds. Jacko was grief stricken. He sunk to his knees and was despaired.
“How the hell are we gonna get up there?” asked Julius.
“You’ll hold onto the harness I’ve prepared,” said Faunus.
“It’s not strong enough,” said Uncle Bally, looking at the thin twine Faunus handed him.
“After millenniums of making harnesses, I think I know what I’m doing. I made the harness for this moment, because I knew none of you would ever make it. Now, tie it around your waists.”
The harness was made of a dozen vines double braided. Every few feet, there was a reinforced loop. He selected the loop that would fit him perfectly, and pushed the knot of the harness through, and then tied it as securely as he could.
Faunus put the other ends of the harnesses in his mouth. Then, before Jacko could talk him out of it, he stuck his hands in a little crevice of the incline and pulled himself up.
“You can’t be serious!” shouted Julius. “You can’t carry us up by your teeth!”
But he was wrong. Faunus was strong and fast, as merely a moment later they were swinging from the vines hanging from Faunus’ mouth. Larry and Joe stared down at them from Faunus’ head.
Scared, Jacko closed his eyes and prayed that the climb was almost over. The longer they were suspended the more scared and frustrated he felt. Every so often, though he told himself not to, he opened his eyes and looked down.
An hour passed, and Faunus didn’t slow one bit. Uncle Bally continuously drank whiskey with his eyes closed. Julius prayed under his breath.
“UUUUhhhhh!!!” Faunus’ suddenly groaned.
“Are you okay?” asked Jacko.
“Don’t talk to him!” shouted Julius. “What are you stupid?!”
Suddenly, the temperatures dropped. A dense cool air touched Jacko’s skin. Feeling relieved, he opened his eyes once more and found that ceilinged right above Faunus head was a thick wall of cloud.
Faunus disappeared into the cloud. White enveloped their heads, moistening his skin and mouth as he breathed. In the cloud, it was so dark that he barely saw the others faces. Though the moisture felt good, Jacko’s heart pounded. It was one thing to see the danger, but not to see it was even scarier.
“UUUUUUHHHH!!!”
The density of the wet mass made Jacko feel like he weighed 200 pounds. Faunus must have been affected, too, for he staggered, a bit, as he reached up to grab a bit of rock.
After a while, the shape of the mountain seemed to narrow from a wide cliff to a thin slope, making Jacko wonder if the rock could collapse.
Without warning, they fell several inches: the harness slipped through Faunus’ teeth.
Just as Jacko thought it was over, that they were going to die, Faunus head disappeared, as did his shoulders and the rest of his body. It took a second for him to realize that Faunus was climbing them out of the cloud.
The pressure of gravity lightened, and it got a few degrees warmer. Then Jacko’s head broke the last bit of the cloud layer, only to be blinded by bright yellow sunlight against bright blue sky.
Jacko crushed his eyelids shut. Not seeing blue sky in months had taken a toll on him. He wasn’t used to the brightness.
Faunus groaned once more, but then he leaned forward, and as he did this, Jacko and the others slammed into the cliff. His entire front was dragged along the rock like cheese on a grater. He turned his head to avoid cutting his face.
Uncle Bally yelled, “Don’t push away from the cliff; you’ll only create more pressure on the harness and Faunus.”
Then the intensity of their fronts being graded increased for a moment before they slid onto a smooth grassy plain.
They stopped moving. Jacko felt the cool grass on his skin and knew he lay on ground. He wanted to open his eyes, but the sky was too bright even with them shut.
Finally, after a few minutes, Uncle Bally said, “Okay, come on, let’s open our eyes. We just need to deal with the pain and get moving.”
Jacko groaned as he conceded. Slowly, he cracked his eyelids, but kept his field of vision directed at the green grass.
Peripherally, he saw up ahead, Faunus lying on the grass and breathing hard.
“Are you alright?”
“Oh, I haven’t worked that hard in centuries,” he said.
After a few more minutes, Jacko’s eyes throbbed less.
“Can you see this?” said Uncle Bally.
Slowly, he looked up. Uncle Bally pointed at the sky which, although blue, was surrounded with tinges of red.
“It’s almost like we’re in a bubble,” said Julius.
“Faunus?” asked Uncle Bally.
“I need a moment.”
Several miles of plush grass stretched before them. To the left, there were more cliffs, and to the right were tall, bushy trees. A bird flew in a circle above their tops, and then dived into their brush.
Larry and Joe floated in the air, looking at the white building snuggled between the cliffs and the woods. It looked similar to the Parthenon; it was rectangular, lined with columns and had a long stretch of stone steps.
“Faunus, do you know them?” asked Uncle Bally.
From the steps, three extremely large persons with long white hair and beards stood, looking right at them.
“What is this place?” asked Julius.
Faunus pushed himself up off the grass.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Summoning of the Gods
Chapter 10
Jacko had met several gods, most of whom were patient, wise and likeable. However, the gods of the summit looked like the sort his mother used to tell him about: mean, nasty, and probably hated half-breeds like Jacko. Even from afar, they seemed to look at him, Uncle Bally, and his imps as if they were a contagious fungus. Julius, they didn’t even acknowledge.
They made their way across the lawn, and climbed the 100 or so steps up to the hall of the Parthenon-like structure that Faunus called the Temple of Jupiter. The three long haired men looked, scathingly, at them, as they walked by.
The steps of the building were made of some kind of mortar, as was the temple. Enormous rays of sunlight beamed down, through the columns, across the plain white floor. The ceilings were several stories high, and before them was a neverending hall of columns.
They continued in for a while until another white haired-long bearded man appeared. Faunus fell to his knees and bowed his head.
“I wasn’t expecting you,” he said.
His voice was basso profundo, and exceptionally loud, causing him to wince with each word he spoke.
“
Yes, well, things are getting desperate. This is Jacko.”
He stood and pushed him forward.
“You’re small!”
Jacko shot his hands up to his ears. He didn’t respond, for fear the god would talk more and shatter his ear drums.
The man stared a moment, taking him in and then spoke again.
“Welcome home, Faunus. We’ll leave him to you.”
And then he vanished.
“Where did he go? How did he do that?” asked Julius.
They walked back out of the hall. The three men still stared at them from the steps.
“This way,” said Faunus.
He led them down the 100 steps, and right into the woods.
“How big is this summit?”
“The surface is fifty square miles. It’s small but you’ll have everything you need, here. You can hunt and fish, and the water is pure to drink.”
The wooded area was an interesting mix of bushes and trees, evenly spaced out. Lots of light reached down from the sun, warming their skin. And every few feet, their leaves and bushes trembled.
“Are you sure we’d be welcome to hunt here?”
“Yes, why wouldn’t you be?”
“Don’t want some angry gods coming after us. What if we kill a sacred animal?”
“Don’t be silly.”
Faunus led them to a river spot with a dozen trees, from which hung half a dozen white hammocks.
He walked to the edge and looked down. The water ran, slowly, down grade; it was so clear that they could see salmon, on the very bottom, playing in it.
“You may stay here.”
Then he turned to leave.
“That’s it?” asked Julius.
“You have what you need. I must go, now.”
Jacko ran to catch up to his side and shouted, “Faunus, I was told my family is here. How do I find them?”
“That’s not my concern.”
“Take me to someone who can help me, then.”
“I can’t. My part is done.”
He vanished.
Jacko walked back to their spot by the river.
Larry and Joe were splashing in the water.
Julius, who was unpacking his bag, said, “Well, not that I’m ungrateful, but I thought we’d have beds and showers. You promised. Now, we’re in the same situation as down in the garden. What happened to that sanctuary you described? You made it sound like a hotel.”
Not sure of what to say, he turned his attention to Uncle Bally, who baited a line with a bird kidney, and tossed it in the stream.