The Seven Heroes of Erde

Janet

Chapter Three

Janet

Janet Groves sat on her bed, reading, with her lemur, Ping, on her shoulder.

Sea otters spend most of their time to floating on their backs at the surface of the water.

They eat, sleep, and bathe on their backs. They even take care of their young on their backs.

She pulled out her pocket watch. 11:30 pm. Had she really been reading that long? She put the book on her nightstand and let Ping climb down. She lay down on and pulled the covers up over herself.

As she closed her eyes, she thought about what she had read. She loved animals, fitting for someone who belongs to the Nature tribe. Of all the animals she'd learned about, sea otters were her favorite. She'd probably read that book about a hundred times. She'd always wanted to see one, but they don't live in the nature territory; there's not enough water. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

She awoke to a thud and mutterings outside her bedroom door. She crept towards the door, straining her ears. It sounded like her older brother, Jasper. She heard his footsteps and slowly opened the door, just enough to see Jasper disappear around the corner. Curious, she quietly pulled on her slippers and scooped up Ping. She crept into the hallway, following the sound of her brother's footsteps. She tiptoed through the hut after him, wondering where he was going at such a late hour.

Jasper had always had a dark side, always pulling mean pranks and torturing the village children. He was always being punished for something, and when your father was the chief, punishments were harsh. Janet remembered once, she came home from her classes, and Jasper had painted the whole hut bright orange. Their father made him scrub the house for hours until it was clean. He came in after five hours with twigs in his hair and his clothes covered in straw. Janet and their younger sister, Cora, had a laugh about that.

Janet followed Jasper out of their hut and into the village. A relatively large town, it was the capital of the Nature Tribe. The city looked eerie in the darkness. Torches flickered on their posts, casting strange, foreboding shadows. The huts, all smaller than Janet's, looked like shadowy intruders among the surrounding forest. Ignoring her fear, she stealthily followed her brother's footsteps deep into the woods.

Eventually, they came to a stone that had engravings Janet could not understand. She hid in the shelter of the trees and watched with horror as Jasper knelt, put his hands on the stone, and whispered, "Shades, I am here." A ghostly black figure rose out of the rock.

"Jasper, what have you found," it hissed. Jasper pulled out a book. Janet recognized the book from the village library, The History of Erde. He put the book on the stone, and to Janet's amazement and horror, it dissolved.

"Very nice," hissed the shadow, "Do you have any news?"

"None yet, but I will listen in on the chief's council tomorrow," Jasper answered.

"Very well, you have proved useful to the destruction of Erde. Our spies tell us they've sent their informant. Soon, The tribes will crumble, and we will reign."

Jasper grinned evilly. The shadow vanished, and Jasper stood up. Janet knew she had to get out of there. She turned and sprinted, hoping Jasper wouldn't catch her. She didn't get far before toppling onto someone.

"Who's there," called Jasper's voice. Janet froze, unsure what to do. Whoever bumped into her stood up, and held out his hand. Janet took it, pulling herself up. She could vaguely see him in the moonlight. He was built like a blacksmith, with muscular arms and broad shoulders. He had dark, earthy-brown hair and delicate features.