Ashes of the Realm - Juliette's Dream Read online

  Most of the giant ging trees had been cleared from the planet when it was settled and developed. By the time El Prado was named one of the Provincial Capitals, they had all but disappeared. It was only after the Searcher’s destruction of the planet’s population that they made their comeback. The gings grew to become the rulers of the forest, and the local ecology that had once built their existence around them began to flourish. The lowest branches were more than fifty to seventy feet above the ground, and all other trees in the forest grew in their shadows. The local trees would only grow to within fifteen feet of the lower branches and no higher. They would also grow no closer than fifteen feet from the giant tree’s trunk. If they came closer, the giant tree would absorb all the water out of the encroacher. The trunks were dry, but the tops were loaded with moisture. The top of the trees collected rain water and dropped moisture to the floor of the forest far below, which nourished plant life under it. Thick undergrowth and hedges crowded the spaces between the gings. Nothing would grow over the giant roots of the trees, either. These roots often ran for hundreds of yards aboveground to merge with the roots of other gings. It was these roots that provided pathways through the forest. Attempting to cross the natural hedge rows that grew between the roots was an exercise in futility. Plant life struggled for the safe, fertile soil between the root paths and grew too dense even for the Torg to break through. The trunks of the giants were the intersections of the forest. They were also the most likely place for Torg attacks. Bowguns were always at hand when one approached the giant trees’ trunks.

  Scotty thought he was getting a nibble when he heard a thrashing in the dense brush over the hill behind him. He snatched his bowgun up and activated the generator with a thumb press. The arrows were an invention of Kip Brown. When an arrow was fired from a bowgun, the sharp barbs at the end snapped out along with the stabilizers. This made the arrows extremely easy to take from a quiver as well as being safe to handle. They were foot-long, smooth shafts until they were fired. It also made loading the arrows into the bowgun an easy operation. They were bundled in groups of ten, and could be pushed into the magazine quickly.

  He eased toward the huge tree, listening for approaching danger. The noise continued unabated as he walked up the hill and around the giant tree to investigate. It could be a Torg, and he was taking no chances. He eased around the tree and saw a small Zord pinned to the ground by a huge branch. He had almost missed it, but the movement of the branch gave its location away. Small was a relative term in that the Zord was easily thirty feet long.

  Scotty looked up and saw that the Zord had flown in to attack a greck nest for an easy meal. It had landed on a branch next to the nest and it had given way, falling on top of the Zord pinning it to the ground. The Zord was not screaming, and Scotty thought it didn’t desire unwanted attention. The Zord struggled, and then saw Scotty standing on the ground above it with a raised gun. It snarled and opened its long, wide snout to show four rows of razor sharp teeth. Scotty put his finger on the trigger and aimed at the Zord’s heart. He just couldn’t force himself to release the arrow.

  Scotty lowered the bowgun, putting it on safe. This Zord wasn’t going anywhere. The two stared at each other and Scotty wasn’t certain what to do. This was a very young Zord, probably still a child, and he saw the Zord’s wing was damaged by the falling limb.

  Suddenly, a huge Torg burst through the underbrush and rushed the trapped Zord. Scotty raised the bowgun up in a smooth motion and thumbed off the safe switch without taking his eyes off the charging Torg. He leaned into the shot, and pulling then releasing the bowgun’s trigger. Firing his bowgun took less than a second. He hit the Torg in the only place that would stop it; between the eyes. The arrow buried itself to the feathers. The Torg came crashing to the ground and skidded to within two feet of the trapped Zord, which had closed its eyes in anticipation of its death.

  After a moment, the Zord opened one eye and saw the dead Torg in front of it with the protruding arrow. It looked at Scotty and saw the bowgun still in his hands. The Zord looked back at the Torg, then stared at Scotty without blinking.

  Scotty stared at the helpless Zord for a long moment and made a decision. He slowly knelt and put his bowgun on the ground. He then removed his quiver and placed it beside the bowgun, went to the towering tree, and began climbing to the lower branches. He looked around and climbed higher. He finally found what he was searching for. He took out his short sword and hacked the branch from the tree. It fell sixty feet on the other side of the tree from the trapped Zord. Scotty climbed down and began cutting small branches from it. After ten minutes, he had a thick shaft about fifteen feet long. The Zord remained strangely still and quiet as it watched him cut the large limb. Scotty walked over to his bowgun and the large creature appeared to know its death was imminent. Scotty placed his two swords on the ground next to his bowgun and walked over to the injured beast with the long branch.

  Scotty put one end of the shaft under the branch pinning the Zord’s wing and lifted until he could get his shoulder under it. He stood and lifted the huge limb pinning the Zord until it was clear of its wing. The young Zord pulled its wing free and scrambled out from under the branch. It then turned and looked at Scotty. Scotty noticed the huge creature grimacing with pain as it dragged the damaged wing.

  He went over to the limbs he had hacked off his improvised shaft and looked at the Zord, then at the limb. He walked over to his swords and picked one up. He heard the Zord snarl behind him. Scotty ignored the danger signal and began cutting small branches and sprigs off the limb. He turned and looked at the injured wing, then turned back to his cutting. The Zord stopped snarling and watched what he was doing.

  Scotty looked back at the damaged wing and cut the limb to a smooth, six-foot long shaft. He then sat down and took the fishing wire from his pouch. He cut five, six-foot long strands and tied hooks to each end. He then laid the sword down, picked up the shaft and wire strands, and walked toward the Zord.

  The Zord stared at Scotty but allowed him to come closer without snarling. Scotty said, “If you don’t get this wing repaired, you’ll die.” Scotty then held the shaft up against the bone that had been broken on the leading edge of the Zord’s wing and sized it against the opening. Scotty put the five wires in his mouth and put the shaft up against the break in the wing and pushed the two broken bones together. The Zord snarled its pain and Scotty quickly took the strands and pulled the shaft tight against the broken bone. The Zord’s skin was so thick, the hooks penetrated and held without penetrating too deeply. Scotty stepped away from the Zord and slowly backed up the hill. The Zord stared at him with its yellow eyes and watched him pick up his weapons and leave.

  Later that afternoon, Scotty came back to see the Zord had consumed chunks of the dead Torg. He couldn’t see the Zord but knew it was there. The Zord watched him approach and snarled. Scotty put his weapons on the ground and carried two buckets of water he had brought from the river. He placed them in front of the injured flying beast, backed away, and left. The Zord watched him go and then drank both buckets. For the next two weeks, Scotty returned with buckets of water and replaced the ones he had brought the day before.

  On the fifteenth day, something remarkable happened. As he approached with the buckets he saw the Zord flapping its wings. He put the buckets down and watched as the Zord looked at its wing, then at him. Scotty knew what it wanted. He went back to his pouch and returned with a small pair of hook removers. He walked slowly up to huge animal and took the hooks out of the Zord’s wing. When the final hook was removed, the shaft holding the broken bones together fell to the ground. Scotty backed away, picked up the two empty buckets along with his weapons, and turned to leave.

  “Why did you not kill me?”

  Scotty stopped dead still, shocked at the Zord’s question. He didn’t hear that question. It was in his mind. He slowly turned and looked at the Zord and said, “I couldn’t just let you die. You’re young and have your whole life in fron
t of you. Killing a being that is defenseless is wrong. Not trying to help one that is injured is also wrong.”

  “Were you not afraid I would kill you?”

  “Yes, but I had to try. You would have warned me my efforts were doomed to failure if you tried to harm me when I lifted the branch.”

  “What would you have done if I did?”

  “Your injured wing wouldn’t allow you to move quickly enough to catch me. If I couldn’t help you, I would have ended your suffering with my weapon. I couldn’t let you die in a Torg’s jaws.”

  The giant creature stared at Scotty and said, “I have always considered your kind no different than the Torg. You have given me things to consider. Maybe you aren’t as dangerous to my people as the Torg.”

  “Are the Torg a real danger to you? Your natural weapons are formidable.”

  “Yes, they are very dangerous. We must nest on the ground, and they cause massive loss of life.”

  Scotty thought about that and said, “I can come and help you remove them from your nesting grounds. Our weapons are effective at killing them.”

  “I’ve seen that demonstrated.” The Zord lowered its head and said, “I don’t think my leaders would accept your help.”

  “Why not?”

  “Your kind invade our territory and kill the food we prey on. We cannot see you as anything but invaders.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. Our choice was simple, come here or die.” Scotty stared at the Zord as the silence continued and said, “I never knew your species were able to communicate.”

  “We do not normally communicate with anyone but our people. You are the first since my ancestors were captured and imprisoned on this planet. It was your species that kidnapped us from our home world. I had to know why you saved me. If our roles were reversed I would have killed you.”

  Scotty stared at the Zord and said, “I can understand your hatred. You are justified in feeling as you do. However, I wish you a long life and many hatchlings.” Scotty turned and walked up the hill.

  The Zord watched him leave and didn’t want to believe what it had witnessed. The being he had just communicated with was a gentle spirit, and was not what he thought him to be. It had listened to Scotty’s thoughts and wondered why the small two-leg was helping. The Zord shook its head, flared its wings, and lifted into the afternoon sky. It was troubled for a long time after it returned home to his worried family. After six months, the communities noticed that they had not been attacked by Zord for weeks. Scotty didn’t offer a reason why that was happening, but guessed the one he helped must have had a wing in it.

  Scotty had turned seventeen three weeks earlier and was stretched out on his favorite hill with Jingo staring at the stars. “Jingo, what do you think about the Zord?”

  “I think the zookeeper that originally set all the animals free just before the Searcher destroyed his city should have been shot.”

  “Jingo, he died with the city.”

  “Then he should have been shot before he died. Releasing those fifty nesting pairs and the herd of Torg was unforgivable.”

  “I’ve looked up information in the learning center and discovered that the Zord were captured on a planet that was not a member of the Holy Stars Realm. They were actually brought here illegally.”

  “What does that matter? Those flying monstrosities should have never been released.”

  “Jingo, we were the only planet to ever have any in captivity. The Duke wanted his planet to be the greatest in everything. The Holy Realm stopped all capture of the Zord after El Prado caged theirs.”

  “So?”

  “There had to be a reason.”

  “They were too flipping dangerous to keep. That’s a no brainer.”

  Suddenly, Scotty heard, “I wish to communicate.”

  Scotty said, “Where?”

  Jingo said, “Where what?”

  “At the bottom of the hill you’re on.”

  “I have a friend with me. May I bring him with me?”

  “Scotty what are you talking about?”

  “I am also bringing a friend. Your friend may come, but do not bring your weapons.”

  Scotty turned to Jingo, “Jingo, I am going to talk with a friend. I would like you to come with me, but I need you to do one thing.”

  Jingo looked at Scotty and said, “What?”

  “Leave all your weapons here.”

  “Are you out of your blooming Human mind?!”

  “Jingo, you must do as I ask. This is important.” Scott began removing his quiver and swords, laying them on the ground next to his bowgun.

  Jingo turned small circles as he called Scotty names. Finally he said, “You can’t do this.”

  “Jingo, are you going with me?”

  The small Cainth swore and began removing his belt, “Can I carry one sword?”

  “No.”

  Jingo put them down and Scotty said, “That includes the one in the scabbard on your back.”

  Jingo swore louder, but pulled it out of his shirt and put it on the pile with his other weapons. “Are you satisfied?”

  Scotty smiled and said, “Follow me.”

  Scotty started walking down the hill and Jingo started a running commentary, “Who are you meeting down here. Is it a girl? Are you in love? Scotty’s in love! Wait a minute. Why would a female be here without weapons? This doesn’t make sense. Why would you ever leave your weapons behind? You know how dangerous it is without them. Are you losing your mind? You know I’ve been worried about you lately. All you do is stare at stars. Why do you do that?”

  They reached the bottom of the hill and the Zord Scotty had helped was standing there on its back legs in the brush. Jingo never saw him until Scotty stopped.

  Jingo slipped as he reached the bottom of the hill. Scotty gave him a hand and lifted him to his feet six feet from the waiting Zord. “I give up, why did you come here?” That’s when Jingo saw the Zord.

  “Holy Mother of a Torg’s backside!” and Jingo fell over his feet as he tried to run back up the hill.

  The Zord said, “Your friend talks a lot.”

  Scotty sighed and said, “Yes, but he’s a friend I trust with my life.”

  Jingo heard the Zord, stopped dead in his tracks, and grew silent.

  Scotty looked at Jingo and then said to the Zord, “It’s when he’s silent that he’s the most dangerous.” Scotty turned to Jingo and said, “Relax, he’s a friend.”

  Jingo couldn’t speak.

  The Zord said, “This is the reaction I expected from you when you found me.”

  “Your people do frighten us.”

  “I guess I know why.”

  Jingo was hearing the conversation and he got up and walked to Scotty’s side, “It’s because you are killers extraordinaire and you’ve killed us for centuries.”

  “Why, thank you. We do pride ourselves on our skills.”

  Scotty touched Jingo on the arm, telling him to be silent, and said, “You invited me here for a reason?”

  The Zord gave a whistle. Scotty and Jingo watched as a giant form came out of the twilight and landed in front of them. The Zord had to be twenty five feet tall on its back legs with a wingspan of more than two hundred feet. It was bigger than any Zord either of them had ever seen.

  Scotty looked at Jingo and was amazed that he was not afraid. Jingo actually looked relaxed.

  The smaller of the two Zord said, “This is my father. He wishes to communicate with you.”

  Scotty looked up at the giant creature shifting colors to match the background and said, “Welcome, what is it you wish to talk about?”

  The giant looked down on the two friends and said, “I see my son was right about your existence. I was concerned that he had lost his mind. He said you would talk without fear.”

  “Our biggest fears are of things we don’t know. However, you do sense fear in me.”

  The giant stared at Scotty for a long moment, “Why didn’t you kill my son when you had the opport
unity?”

  “It would have been wrong. I told him so at the time.”