“Zafeen! Zafeen! Zafeen!” Varn continuously yelled until he ran out of breath and started all over again.
His heart paced while his limbs pranced about. He vigorously called out to his brother, who stood by the altar. He was busy addressing the elders inside the stonehenge. With a loud ruckus, he persistently cut through them and fell to his knees right before him. He randomly gasped and babbled out confusing words. Zafeen finally stepped down from the altar, accompanied by his ravishing wife Kart. They led him to the side, away from the elders, so they could discreetly deal with him.
“What is it Varn?” Zafeen asked.
“Bermuda!...Fell!...Gone!” He blathered.
“What?” He was still confused.
“Wait, where’s Jayd?” Kart intuitively asked.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, Jayd’s gone.”
“What do you mean gone? Gone where?” She screamed in his face and moved closer to him. “Gone where Varn? Huh? Where?”
She insistently interrogated him while her red fiery eyes bulged out.
“Come on Katherine, go easy on him.” Zafeen held her back.
He looked to the triceratops and instructed him to escort her home. He then whispered inspiring words to her, and she gave in to his command, even though she cried all the way.
“Alright Varn, tell me what happened?” He demanded, the second Kart vanished from their sight.
He explained the entire gruesome ordeal, with every single excruciating detail. However, in all that vivid description, only one word caught his grasp, predators. He clenched his jaws, his veins popped out from his skull to his neck, and his eyes twitched with fury. Not once did he shed a tear or even let out a silent sob. He tightly held himself together and focused all his rage into a fictional secure box inside his mind. He safely locked and stored it deep into his subconscious. He then waited until the time was right, before unleashing it to the world.
Chapter 17: Mourning.
The cold dark and windy night set the mood to their depressing lives as the whole of Praemar mourned for the lost prince. There was nothing but silence engulfing the entire land. All preys came from every corner of the earth just to share their deepest condolences to both Zafeen and Kart. They all gathered at the Stonehenge, too sad and depressed to even gossip or murmur a word. The sweet soulful melody of the songbirds rang all around, honouring the memory of Jayd.
“Katherine! Come on, we’re gonna be late!” Zafeen called out.
She ignorantly glanced at him and bowed her head in sorrow. By now, her tears had formed a muddy spot below her chin, as she lay helpless in that cave. Zafeen looked back at Varn, who stood by the cave’s front porch, and commanded, “Leave us.” He then vanished into the night. Zafeen moved closer to Kart and gently caressed her. He tried to comfort her in her deepest moments.
“Remember when he was just a baby. He tried so hard to walk.” She softly sounded out.
They both envisioned it in their minds and let out a small chuckle. They found humour in the thought of young Jayd falling every time he tried to walk. Somehow, he would always get back to his feet and try even harder.
“Feels just like yesterday.” He said.
His focus shifted over to Jayd’s favourite sleeping spot. He pictured Jayd rattled every time Varn laid on it. This brought a smile to his face as he laid his head to rest on her forehead. He felt her warmth and heard her heart beat as he held her tight in his arms.
“I miss him Zafeen. I miss him so much.” She sobbed.
“I miss him too.” He confessed, allowing his heart to break down just this one time and mourn.
“Destroy them, destroy them all. Promise me.” She poured out all her anger into one giant flame.
Her heart grew darker. She blindly let the anger inside fuel her rage, controlling her emotions and every word she said.
“I promise.” He gladly accepted.
They then glared at the fading moon in the clouded sky and their minds wandered off into the horizon.
“What have you done Saber?”
“I didn’t know Kyra!”
“You didn’t know? Am I supposed to believe that?”
“Am not lying to you!”
“What are we supposed to do now? Run? What about the kids?”
“That’s not what I meant!”
“Then what did you mean?”
Eury and Rycka stood by the front porch and listened to them argue. Their voices echoed aloud inside the cave making it hard to drown them out. They tried flapping down their ears but it still didn’t shut out their distinct voices. They heard every single word she threw at him. She continuously punished him mercilessly all night. Not even the rustling leaves, the howling wolves, or the thunderous sky could lighten the mood. Suddenly, they were quiet, and Saber emerged from the cave with a disappointed look on his face.
“Dad?” Eury worried, but he just walked away and avoided their gaze.
Chapter 18: Stray.
“Are mum and dad still fighting?” Eury asked as Rycka made his way to her.
“Yep,” He replied, “Let’s just go see what Ranus and the others are up to.”
“You just wanna see her again.” Eury commented and rolled her eyes.
“Isn’t that obvious? There’s nothing better to do here anyway.”
“Fine, but I make the calls this time.”
“Sure, whatever you say.”
“Where were you last night? Everyone waited for you.” Varn caught Zafeen by surprise just as he was about to sprint off into the sunrise.
“We decided not to go after all,” He replied, “But you were there. I hope you handled it?”
“Of course, that’s what family is for.”
Zafeen glanced back and gazed on Kart’s restless body asleep in the cave. The last words she said to him replayed in his mind repeatedly.
“There’s one more thing I need you to do for me.”
“Anything.”
“I need you to look after her.”
“Where are you going?”
“There are a couple of things I gotta take care of.”
The mid-day sun shone brightly in the sky as Eury and Rycka returned from the lake. However, the tall tropical trees shielded them from the sun’s rays and the wind cooled their warm-blooded skin. They laughed and shared puns along the way.
“Told you it would be fun.” Rycka boasted.
“You were right.” She admitted.
Suddenly, he sprang out and goggled his eyes at her, with his tongue hanging out. Unimpressed, Eury shoved him out of her way and walked passed him. Rycka came running after her, and together they walked side by side through the midst of that jungle. He slightly kept shoving her to the side but she reflected it back at him every time.
“Hope mum and dad are over it by now,” said Eury.
“Yeah, I don’t think I can take another day of it.” Rycka added.
“Me too.”
They came to a curtain of reeds and noticed how peculiar everything seemed all of a sudden.
“Hear that. It’s quiet.” Rycka motioned to the surrounding nature.
“Yeah, too quiet.” Eury agreed.
The once croaking frogs or the brawling family of baby leopards they had previously heard had suddenly gone numb. Rycka then noticed strange footprints in front of them. Not one creature in Huxton fitted its description. Therefore, like the little detective that he was, he decided to investigate and unknowingly left her sister all alone. Her focus was affixed on the reeds while her every nerve beckoned her to make a run for it.
“Come on, let’s get back home before…”
She shifted her eyes in his direction and realized that he wasn’t there. She turned around, but there was no sign of him anywhere.
“Rycka! Stop playing around, this isn’t funny.” She shouted into the silent abstract vacuum of the forest, but the only voice she heard was her own.
“Rycka?”
She called out one more time.
Only this time, her senses kicked in and that’s when she realized that something was wrong. Without giving it too much thought, her reflexes reacted to her every emotions and she ran like a maniac through the woods.
“Come on honey, how many times do I have to say am sorry?” Saber softly begged for her forgiveness.
She stood by the corner and stared at the wall, avoiding his gaze. Shunning him from her presence, she angrily grunted and stiffened her shoulders. He distinctly whispered to her one more time and hoped to rekindle that old spark they once had.
“Mum! Dad!”
Eury suddenly crashed into the cave, all out of breath. She struggled to sound out the words as Kyra came running to her side.
“What’s wrong sweetie?” She worried.
“He’s gone,” she cried.
“Who’s gone? Rycka?” Saber asked.
She shook her head and stared at the floor. She was so afraid and ashamed to look him in the eyes.
“It’s okay sweetie. It’s not your fault.” She said, wiping the tears off her.
“It’s already begun,” said Saber, “Where were you when he disappeared?”
He looked at Eury, but she was too sad to talk. Therefore, she whispered it to her mother instead.
“By the reeds,” said Kyra.
“You two stay here. I’ll take care of it.” He growled and dashed out of the cave.
He glared into the setting sun and its reflection glistened in his eyes. Eury rolled into her mother’s arms and she hugged her back. She held her so tight that she could feel all the pain she was going through. She brushed her chin across her forehead, and gently sang a soft and peaceful lullaby to soothe her nerves.
“Rycka! Son! Can you hear me? Where are you?” Saber roared into the distance as he stood by the reeds.
None of his senses could help him this time. The place had been dusted clean. There was no trace of anyone ever having been there. All he could do was call out his name. The setting sun casted its rays one final time as the night approached.
“It’s all my fault mum!” Eury cried out in her arms.
“It’s not your fault sweetie.” She comforted her.
“It’s all my fault!” She cried.
Kyra tried her best to calm her down. This time she sang her best lullaby, and the crickets lent a hand in the tune. She sang her heart out, hitting all the right tones until she fell asleep. She rested her heavy teary eyes and snored like the little princess that she was. Suddenly, creeping in the night, Saber appeared. He wore a dull expression on his face. Kyra gently slid out from Eury’s tight grip and placed her on the floor.
“Did you find him?” She whispered as she walked towards him.
He just shook his head and stood silent, watching the sleeping beauty snore the night away.
“If it’s a fight they want, then a fight they’ll get.” He growled, before storming out of the cave and disappearing into the night.
“Where are you taking me Zafeen? It’s the middle of the night.” Kart complained.
She blindly followed her dragging companion all across the plains, from their cave to the darkest part of Praemar.
“Trust me Katherine, you’re gonna love this.” He replied as he led her to an abandoned cave near the graveyard.
The stench of misery and despair engulfed the place. The long forgotten and unseen spirits roamed, haunting, and spreading wretchedness wherever they passed. Zafeen and Kyra emerged at the hollowed cave. A large and round embedded stone blocked its entrance. Two of the largest black furred terrestrial and vegetarian anthropoid apes stood guard. Zafeen signalled in their direction, and with a lot of might, they rolled the stone away. The moon shone its light into the cave and revealed the dark hidden secrets that it held in its depths.
“Who is that?” Kyra asked, shocked by the sudden revelation.
“I think his name is Rycka. Am not sure.”
“And why is he here?”
“Because his father took our son from us, remember?”
“Are you saying that this is his son?”
Her face suddenly lit up and she once again felt the anger coursing through her veins. She ragingly glared at the sabre-toothed cub whose back laid against the wall. He was so afraid to face them that he kept mumbling to himself. He tried scaling the wall or digging through the untainted cave, but all that restless rustling did him no good.
“What do you plan on doing with him?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“Does Varn know?”
“No. Not yet.”
“Good, let’s keep it that way. We don’t want him blabbering his mouth all over Praemar.”
She took one last peek at Rycka and engraved his image in her mind, fuelling her rage. Zafeen then motioned to the always alert and on their feet gorillas. They rolled back the stone in its place while Rycka screamed out for help. His voice faded as the cave once again became dark, cold, and lifeless.
“Well…well…well, look who’s here, the mighty Saber. And what do we owe the pleasure of your presence?”
Hunter came out of the pit with both Kyle and Aaron in his shadow. They dispersed and surrounded him.
“This looks familiar. Oh wait, yes. This is exactly how you looked the last time you were here. Only this time, there is no one here to save you.” He stalked him.
“I am not here to fight you Hunter.”
Having confirmed the truthfulness of his words, he signalled to Aaron and Kyle, and they retreated into the woods.
“Alright Saber, why are you here?”
He dug deep, not knowing where to start. He still couldn’t believe that he was about to go through with it. If only he had another way.
“I need your help.”
Hunter suddenly broke into laughter while Saber embarrassingly watched. Even the happiest hyenas were far off in comparison.
“What? You need my help? Is this a joke? Because if it is, you got me.” He chuckled.
“It’s not a joke Hunter. I really do need your help.”
“Help with what?”
“The preys.”
Hunter abruptly froze at the single utter of that word. To him, the word ‘prey’ held more meaning than anything in his entire life. Considering how much they have been through together, when it finally came to that, they both had a mutual agreement.
“They took my son. I have to get him back.”
“How?”
“Invasion.”
“You want to wage a war with the preys?”
“Couldn’t have said it better myself. You in?”
“Heck yeah.”
“It’ll be just like old times. You, me, and a pile of broken bones.”
They smiled and let their over-imaginative minds create the best of the worst yet to come.
Chapter 19: Final Stand.
“I know by now you’ve all heard the rumours,” Zafeen began his well-rehearsed speech to all the council members, elders, and generals.
The bright orange setting sun pierced its rays through the trees and lit up the pedestal on which he stood. However, the stonehenge’s pillars casted their shadows on the rest of the crowd. They all looked on to his majesty, and as always, the queen was by his side.
“And am here to tell you that,” he hesitated, “They are all true. The predators are planning to attack us at any time. I wouldn’t be surprised if they are already on their way right now. But as always, I’ve got a plan.”
Suddenly, the two vicious and unfriendly gorillas came out from behind the pillar and escorted the frightened cub through the rattled audience. They all stood up at the mere sight of him, murmuring as the foul creature passed by. He felt so out of place that he couldn’t even lift up his face.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, I give to you…our ticket to victory.” He proclaimed and they all cheered him on.
“I don’t believe this.” Varn whispered to himself even as the proof stood right i
n front of him.
From the look in his eyes, he was most definitely surprised.
“Are you nuts?” He consulted Zafeen, who basked in the limelight of his own appraisal.
“Relax, I’ve got it covered.” He assured him, still hooked to his overzealous state.
“You all know the plan?” Saber growled.
He stood in front of the most ferocious, unsympathetic and brutal predators. All hungry for some prey meat. Lake Guilderm was so dark and silent at that time. Maybe it was the cold night, or the savage beasts on its shore plotting their ruthless demise.
“We go in, hack some heads off, and save Rycka. We got it. Piece of cake.” Sand cockily replied.
“Yeah, easy as pie.” Stew added.
“Byron, you’ll lead the first attack, and Hunter, you’ve got the next. I’ll deal with his majesty supreme myself.”
“Do you have to do this Saber?” She cried.
“There is no other way Kyra.”
“And when Eury wakes up, what am I supposed to tell her?”
“Just tell her that I went to get Rycka back.”
“Just promise me you’ll come back.” She worried and gazed into his eyes.
“I promise.”
He leaned in closer and softly caressed her restless heart at ease. He then took one last glance at Eury and sprinted off at the break of dawn.
“You all know the drill!” Zafeen commanded.
He stood in front of a three lined-up strike team, all awaiting his orders. They stood firm and held their ground. They precisely asserted themselves in position and cautiously looked on ahead. Zafeen was beside Varn and Kart. Not a sound came out of them, while they uttered their last words deep into their hearts. For Kart and Zafeen, it was a sincere dedication to their beloved son. For Varn, it was a simple ‘help me’. He was scared as hell and wanted nothing more than to get the heck out of there. The wind abruptly blew right through them and they embraced it. They felt the world around them as it brushed through their fur. It carried up the light dry sand off the ground and fogged their sights. The sky became cloudless no more, and the sun hid its light from them. Soon, darkness engulfed the thunderous sky.
Suddenly, they heard loud trampling footsteps heading their way. It got louder as it drew near. They tried focusing their eyes and hoped to glance a peek through the curtain of sand. When the fog cleared, they found themselves staring at their most frightful nightmares come to life. Saber, along with Byron and Hunter, stood on the other side of the field. They too had their own three lined-up strike team backing them up. They were ready for whatever the preys would throw at them. Saber ragingly stared into Zafeen’s eyes as he huffed and puffed the sand off his face.