The Memoirs of Light

Chapter 11- Tension

Now it was Aedan’s turn to be angry. “Yes, because we all know how well you do with flying,” he spat sarcastically. “If we had flown the whole way, you probably would’ve thrown up whatever food was left in your stomach, you pansy.”

Jaylin stopped dead, seething in outrage. All of the comebacks in her mind piled up and tangled together until she couldn’t separate one from the others. Completely flustered, she switched topics, “And what about the wolves?”

Aedan’s mouth set into a resolute and angry line, but he did not speak.

“Wait, what wolves?” Avir broke in, “Did they attack you?”

“Yes, they certainly did. They surrounded us at night, and I had to fight them,” Jaylin told him. Her voice sounded calmer than she felt. “He did nothing!”

Aedan still didn’t speak. His eyes glared into empty space, as if he were envisioning something else.

“Why didn’t you help me?” Jaylin implored, more softly than before, “Why didn’t you at least defend yourself? I was scared stiff; I thought they had killed you!”

                He said nothing, but he turned his head to look at her, and his eyes were both sorrowful and unapologetic. After a long moment, he simply stated, “I had my reasons. You grew from the experience, and I did not die,” then his tone brightened, “so I think we can chalk it all up to a success, don’t you?”

Jaylin felt inclined to laugh in disbelief, “You had your reasons? Just like you had your reasons for giving me cryptic nonsense instead of an explanation the first time I met you, and you also had your reasons for not giving me any more information which I could have used while I was struggling down a mountain for nearly a week.”

“Exactly.”

                As Jaylin huffed and threw her hands up in exasperation, Avir decided it was time to intervene, “What Aedan has done, he has done, and it can’t be changed. If you want to learn more, I suggest we continue on. We are already late.” Then he stood and proceeded down the tunnel.

                Jaylin was by this time quite ready to have all of her questions answered, and she started after him as Aedan shot from behind her, “That is, if you don’t mind having to walk there.”

                She froze, forced her fists to unclench, and gathered all her composure before continuing through the cave. Aedan’s laughter echoed slightly as he followed.

They walked for a very long time. As Avir had mentioned, the structure of the cave must have been altered because the bottom of the tunnel was more or less smooth. It rose and fell severely in places, but at least it was a floor. However, the inhabitants of the cave hadn’t bothered to do much else to it. At times the ceiling dropped so low that Jaylin and the two men had to crawl in order to pass through. Only when it narrowed to shoulder-width could there be seen any sign of modification. These did not look like chisel-marks or anything else Jaylin had ever seen. Instead, the rock was exceptionally smooth in contrast to the rest of the cave, as if it had been worn away by a rushing river.

Despite the cramped conditions, Jaylin did not panic again. For some reason, the light from her skin did not fade, and helped to show their way. A few times, when the tunnel walls were so close together that she had to turn sideways to fit through, spots blinked in front of her eyes, but she focused on how angry she was at Aedan and felt better. Well, she no longer felt dizzy. Just the sound of that damn impertinent, cocky, thoughtless redhead breathing behind her made Jaylin’s blood boil.

At last, at last, they could see firelight ahead. They stepped over another stalagmite, squeezed through one last fissure, and they had arrived.

One by one they stepped into a room about thirty feet across; it was hard to judge the height of the uneven ceiling, but Jaylin didn’t feel cramped anymore. The cavern was lit by a small fire in a corner; a chimney hole had been formed in the rock ceiling above it, apparently by the same method that was used to widen the passages. Jaylin was wondering how running water had gotten all the way up there, when she heard someone clearing his throat.

Jaylin suddenly came back to herself and looked down.

The room was full of people; six people, including herself and the two men who had entered with her. A woman approached her and took Jaylin’s hand. “Elora, dear, it’s so good to see you again.”

“Th-Thank you,” Jaylin stammered and stared at the woman. She looked to be in her early forties. Her dark, waving hair was piled on top of her head; Jaylin could see one or two gray hairs, but they didn’t make the woman look any older. Actually, she looked remarkably beautiful. Her dark eyes glistened sympathetically at Jaylin. In short, she was the most motherly woman Jaylin had ever seen.

“This might be silly of me,” Jaylin said, trying very hard to be polite, “but who are you?”

The woman didn’t seem offended. She just smiled an understanding way as a man walked up behind her and put his hand on her shoulder. “This is Maka, and my name is Addam. We are sometimes referred to as Mother Nature and Father Earth.”

Addam looked just as kind as Maka, but he also looked solemn and confident. His hair was a rich reddish brown, like red clay, and his eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled. Jaylin liked him. “I assume I should know you both?” she asked.

                “You used to, but it appears that things have changed. Yes, Aedan told us all about the…circumstances,” she finished in response to Jaylin’s questioning expression.

                “Please, sit, Elora. This will take a while to explain.”

                Maka led her to a table that Jaylin hadn’t noticed before; by now Jaylin was feeling comfortable enough to correct her, “I’m not sure why everyone keeps calling me Elora. My name is Jaylin.”

                “That’s simply a misconception,” Aeden answered from the entrance. Jaylin glared at him.

                “We know this will sound strange, but we’d like you to trust us,” Addam said.

                Jaylin swallowed, nodded, and said, “Go ahead.”