The Four Stones

Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Goodbye for Now

Malachi sighed, his eyes holding sadness because of what he was about to say. “I think I should head for the cave now, but before I go, here’s the map.” He handed them the map of the area with all the tower locations on it. “The last tower is on the east coast waaaaay over here. It should only take a few days though, if you keep a good pace going.”

“But, don’t you need this?” Jasmine asked, looking concerned.

“Nah, I know how to get to the cave from here. I’ll be fine.” Malachi assured them.

“Are you sure your shoulder will be okay?” Wysteria asked.

“I’m sure. There’s not much left to heal anyway. By the time I get to that cave, this injury will be nothing but a memory.” Malachi assured again.

‘Alright. You can go, but don’t miss us too much, Macky.” Jonathan teased.

“If you see Carl, give a good punch in the gut for me.” Richard said.

“Oh, don’t you worry. I will.” Malachi said, chuckling evilly. “You guys be extra careful. Have someone keep watch at all times. Follow the map. Don’t get lost. Make sure you get plenty to eat and drink.”

“Alright, alright, we get it. You’re starting to sound like a mom.” Jonathan said, laughing.

“Just please, be careful.” Malachi said, group hugging them.

“We will. Don’t worry.” Wysteria said, reassuringly.

“You better.” Malachi said.

The four teens waved until they were out of sight. Malachi stood and watched them until they were on the distant horizon. Once he couldn’t see them anymore, he began his solo trek to the cave where Cyrus’ powers were sealed. He missed the chatting and playful teasing already. It was too quiet.

“Well, here I go.” Malachi said to himself. “Richard, Wysteria, Jonathan, Jasmine….be safe.”

The four teens walked and walked. There was nothing but hills and plains for miles in front of them. It was good because no one could ambush them, but it was bad because they were out in the open. It was unnerving to say the least. Before they left the tower they were surrounded by forest. It may have been easy for people to ambush them, but they felt safer surrounded by trees. And to top it all off their ‘guardian’ was miles away on his own quest. To put it simply, they were scared.

When the sun started sinking low behind them, they decided to find a somewhat secluded area to set up camp. The best place they could find was reclining against a fairly large hill. They built the campfire at the base of the hill and leaned against the hill like a headboard. Jonathan took first watch as the first stars appeared in the sky. Jasmine went next. Jonathan leaned against the hill next to Wysteria. He wrapped an arm around her so he knew she’d be safe. After Jasmine’s watch,

Richard was the last watch of the night.

As the first rays of morning sun appeared over the horizon, Richard went back to sleep until it was time to eat. Jonathan hunted down some rabbits, so they roasted them on the fire for breakfast. They trained a bit before starting off again. It felt strange not having Malachi leading the way, though Richard did a pretty good job assuming leadership.

Meanwhile, Malachi was making good time on his journey to the cave.  A few times he turned around to say something to one of the teens, only to remember they weren’t there. Then turned a saddened gaze back to the road ahead of him. Similar situations happened to the four teens. One would turn to ask Malachi a question, only to find air where Malachi usually stood.

On the second day after leaving Malachi, around mid-afternoon, to their left about a hundred yards, they saw the remains of a tower, but not just any tower. It was the tower of the Earth Emerald. When Carl stole the jewel it collapsed like the others.

“Look! Over there! Isn’t that one of the towers?” Jonathan asked pointing at the huge pile of rubble.

“Well, it was one of the towers.” Richard said looking down at the map. “This is a good landmark. We’re about half way there. We should probably start heading south east. Soon we’ll be at the coast and we can follow that until we reach the tower.”

“Good idea.” Wysteria said.

It wasn’t long before they entered a forest area once again. This settled their nerves partly. It was also easier to find food. Water was also more abundant. Their first night in the forest was peaceful. The sounds of the forest at night lulled them to sleep, except for the one on watch.

    Meanwhile, Malachi was missing telling stories around the campfire or stargazing with the four teens. He missed the morning training sessions. He even missed being called Macky by Jasmine and/or Jonathan. He thought about all these things as he made his way to the cave, fighting through the forest that kept getting thicker and thicker.