The Nian Chronicles

Alaene couldn’t find Talek at the practice grounds the next morning. She checked all the office nests and all the groups of trainees and Dancers. No one had seen him.

“Please let him be resting,” Alaene murmured as she flew to his home. “Please, please, please!”

She got to the nest and called out, “Commander?”

There was no answer. She knocked at the wall of the nest but heard nothing.

“Commander Talek!” she yelled, drawing attention of other officers who came near to watch.

“We haven’t seen him come out, Second,” a minor officer told her.

“Maybe he’s a hard sleeper.” She steeled herself and entered the home, but there was no sign of him on the first level. “Commander?” she called down the hole to the second level.

Alaene still heard no answer, so she poked her head through. He wasn’t there! Had he left without anyone noticing? Where would he go besides the barracks? She drifted to the second level and approached a hole leading to the food storage area. Had he not heard her because he was in the lower level?

She hesitated on the edge of that hole, not sure what she’d find. “Commander Talek!” she called again, and the silence raised goose pimples on her skin.

Cautiously she put her head through the hole and peered into the semi-dark. The walls of the nest let in enough daylight to see by, and she looked over the dried fruits, nuts, seeds . . . and Talek lying face down!

“Commander!” Alaene wailed.

She hurried through the hole to his side and rolled him over. He felt cold, and his face had turned as blue as the berry in his limp hand. She searched for a pulse but found none.

“No,” Alaene whispered. “No, oh no!”

She screamed for help, and several officers came through to find her lying over Talek’s chest.

“Is he . . .?” they asked somberly.

“He’s gone!” Alaene sobbed. “He’s gone!”

They wrapped him in a blanket and carried him out. Alaene tried to fly after but had no strength. Several females caught her from falling off the porch and supported her through the gathering crowd. No one spoke louder than a whisper. Alaene’s sobs carried through the crowd.

At the barracks, every trainee, Dancer, officer, and staff member stopped their work and bowed their heads as Talek’s body passed. Medics hurried after those bearing him into his office to determine his death. Alaene sank to the ground outside, empty and cold.

Talek had been her mentor and commander since her induction into the Dancers. She couldn’t remember him not being commander. Someone commented that he’d been a commander longer than any other Nia, but now he was gone.

A numbing pain enveloped Alaene, muffling everything else. She heard Nia moving, talking, and making arrangements for a funeral. Some of them spoke condolences. She heard it all but couldn’t respond. Her mind, her body, and her heart refused to work.

Morning had waned to midday before Alaene uncurled from a huddled ball.

“Alaene, dear, you must eat,” a familiar voice urged.

“I’m not hungry.”

Surprised that her two female escorts were still there, she finally looked up and found Zabor’s gray mother Ana and his yellow Aunt Trina! Her own mother had also joined them, her brown face streaked with tears.

"Oh, Alaene," Shania whispered and hugged her. "I am so sorry."

“Alaene, dear,” Ana soothed. “I know this is hard, but eat to keep up your strength.”

“The Lizia are coming,” Alaene moaned. “We needed him!”

“He picked you as his replacement, and we know you’ll do a fine job of leading the Dancers.”

“I’m too young!” Alaene protested.

“Did you know Commander was only a hundred and fifty when he took command?” Trina asked.

Alaene started at the gentle female, realizing Talek had been younger than her! “Why?”

“Everyone higher ranking was dead, either killed in a Dance or from old age.”

“But there are still others older than me!”

Just then Sergeant Ramal came out of the medic nest. “Commander Alaene, you may be young, but we need you. I promise, no one else wants this position. We haven’t your courage.”

Alaene shook her head. “I’m not brave!”

Sergeant Ramal smiled. “I’ve never talked face to face with an eagle nor teased a bobcat.”

Alaene stared at him. “That was duty, not bravery!”

He nodded. “Duty done, even in the face of fear or danger, is bravery, Commander. The remaining Dancers have heard about your confrontations with these animals. They know your skills. They honor your call of duty to the Younglings. They will follow you anywhere. You are now in charge.”

Alaene opened her mouth, wanting to ask but too afraid. Her eyes slid to the medic nest door.

“He had a heart attack,” Ramal murmured, his eyes lowering. “I wish I had urged him harder to see a medic.”

Shania tutted, “You cannot blame yourself for that. We all know how stubborn Commander Talek was.”

“What do we do now?” Alaene groaned.

Ramal reached down to her. “We must move on.”

Alaene stared at his proffered hand. Slowly she took it and stood. He saluted, which she returned. “The funeral arrangements have been made. Word has been sent out, even to the dissenters.” Ramal advised.

“Thank you,” Alaene whispered.

Hundreds of warriors stood in a colonnade at the parade grounds behind Talek’s bier, which would be carried by six warriors. Everyone waited for Alaene to take her place in line behind the bier and lead them.

“It’s time to begin,” Ramal urged.

Alaene stepped into line and faced the bier. Talek looked peaceful in death. He’s safe from the Lizia now, she thought.

They couldn’t take advantage of his aged body and slower reflexes. It was better this way than to find him dead after the battle; or worse, not find him.

“Begin the march,” she ordered Ramal.

“Yes, Commander.”

The bearers rose in unision, keeping Talek steady. Alaene rose behind, and the rest followed in two neat columns. They traveled through the entire city. Citizens watched as the procession passed then fell into line behind the Dancers.

The funeral march even passed the new settlement. The dissenters had lined up to watch then also fell in line. Refusing would have been horribly bad form.

A funeral pyre stood ready near the rocky banks of a small creek passing by the shelter caves. The pall bearers laid Talek’s body on the wooden pile. When the procession had all arrived, chosen family and friends related memories of the deceased. Alaene would be expected to say a few words, but again she didn’t know what to say.

You always know what to say, Talek’s voice whispered in her mind.

When her turn came to speak, Alaene stepped up to the bier and all eyes fastened on her. Her family was present, Talek’s close kin were in the forefront, and on the edge of the crowd stood the dissenters, including Nadia and Zabor. Her friend was somber and seemed not as tall.

“My fellow citizens and Dancers,” she began. “Today is an ending and a beginning. An end, because one we love and revere has gone ahead to a place we all will see, be it sooner or later. Talek was my mentor, he was my commander, and he was my friend. I will miss him greatly. I will miss his wisdom and his kindness.

“But be that as it may, we are also at a beginning. I know he wouldn’t want us to languish in sorrow. There is work to be done. He put plans in motion, so continue them. He put me in charge, and I will live up to that calling the best I can. I call on every one, everywhere, to honor Commander Talek by honoring what he stood for--being prepared for your responsibility and doing it when the time comes. He never saw battle, but he was ready for it down to his last breath. May we all do the same.”

Alaene accepted the torch Ramal passed to her and touched it to the oil-soaked tinder at the base of the bier. Flames took hold of the tinder, then the kindling, and finally the wood that Talek lay on. Heat forced Alaene back as the flames licked along the wood, hissing and popping as they went. Talek’s hair caught on fire followed by his clothes. Ashes spewed into the sky as the fire consumed him and the wood.

Some Nia sobbed, and others began to chant the death song:

Gone like the wind, gone like the rain,

Gone like the dew from the ground.

Gone to the land from whence none return,

Gone to his place in the clouds.

Gone is the day, gone is the night,

Gone is this season of life.

Gone to his rest, may his journey be blessed,

Gone only a moment in time.

Alaene watched the fire until only ashes remained. She sighed, releasing her pain with the billowing smoke. Talek was gone. It was time to move ahead and get things done. He would be expecting it. She turned and found Zabor behind her. How long had he been standing there?

“I am sorry,” he said quietly. “He was my friend, too.”

“I need you,” Alaene whispered. “All of you. The Lizia are coming. We need everyone.”

Zabor didn’t answer for a while. “I will think about it,” he finally agreed then flew off.

Alaene watched his gold and black wings flash in rays of sun back through the forest to the new settlement. At least they had not quarreled. At least he had not denied her outright. And with that slim chance that he would return, others might also. Talek’s death may have brought a welding link to their fractured community; but only time would tell.

Zabor couldn’t rest when he returned to the new colony. While Nadia socialized with a few friends on a rock, he sat apart in a tree, wrapping his arms around his knees. The northern horizon shimmered with rising heat from the land, and he wondered again if he was doing the right thing.

“What if they are real?” he wondered.

Nadia laughed and he jerked, thinking that she had heard him, but she had only been amused at something her friends had said.

“Did you see her standing there?” Nadia retorted. “She looked like she had died. And this talk about uniting together; does she honestly think Talek’s death will bring us crawling back? Nians die all the time. What was so special about Talek’s death? He was old.”

Zabor scowled at his wife, but with her back to him she didn’t see it. He leaped up in anger and buzzed down to her. “Nadia. You may not like Alaene, but I will not have you dishonor her, and I will not have you dishonor Commander Talek.”

She gaped at him hovering over her party. “So, maybe you still like your little girlfriend?”

“Alaene will always be special to me like a sister. Nothing between us will ever change that. She is a good person. I am with you as you wanted, so leave her alone.”

He zipped off, not waiting to hear her response. He would hear it later in their nest, he was sure, but for now he didn’t want to endure her tirade in public. He zoomed past the sentries at their border and infiltrated the main village, checking on the daily activities. He didn’t see much going on as he wandered the entire village until he came to the edge of the forest near the caves.

It seemed half the villagers were busy here carrying buckets of dirt and rocks out of the caves. Others carried in mortar, wooden support posts, or baskets of food. Worry niggled at his heart when a whistle blew and villagers scurried for safety. He hung behind a tree while Dancers whirled to face the black animal lumbering from the forest.

It walked on four paws to the creek for a drink, heedless of the buzzing creatures hovering over it. One swipe from its clawed feet could have killed a Dancer. The animal shook his shaggy black body and opened its muzzle in a moaning cry. Zabor jerked as two smaller animals the same as the first waddled and tumbled from the forest down to drink also.

A flutter of wings caught Zabor by surprise as Sergeant Ramal appeared next to Zabor. “Those are bears,” the officer answered his unasked question. “The mother must have come south to find food for her cubs.”

As they watched, the bear studied the water with intense eyes then swiped at the stream. Her paw snagged something shiny from the water and flung it onto the bank in a fluid arch. The cubs pounced on the trout immediately, fighting over possession. A second fish followed, ending the conflict as both cubs settled down to a tasty dinner.

“So, these are more animals from the legends.”

Ramal eyed him sideways. “Yes. We have seen many animals from the Histories recently.”

Zabor didn’t argue as Nadia would have. He just watched the massive mother bear catch and eat her own fish before calling her cubs farther down the stream. They licked the last remnants of her fish then scrambled after in an awkward game of pouncing, trying to prevent each other from reaching her heels first.

“Interesting.”

Ramal nodded. “I'm curious as to why you're here. I've heard that you're in charge of the new colony under Nadia.”

“Governor Nadia,” Zabor corrected. “And I am . . . Minister of Foreign Affairs.”

Ramal raised an eyebrow. “I see. I hope that the colony and the village can remain on peaceful terms.”

Zabor nodded. “As long as the village leaves us in peace.”

“Or what will happen?”

Zabor heard the challenge in his voice. “I will leave that up to the Governor.”

Ramal eyed him straight on this time. “We have no intention of harassing the colony, Minister Zabor. We want peace also.”

Zabor gestured to the caves. “But you whip the Nians into a frenzy over a fairy tale. How is that peaceful?”

Ramal hesitated, glancing at the caves. “Without the caves, this summer will be much less peaceful than any of us would like. Even now we expect to only have less than three weeks. Have you heard about Commander Alaene’s talk with the eagle?”

Zabor narrowed his eyes. “I heard rumors. No details that can be confirmed.”

“Well, I’m confirming them. She spoke directly with Sari-gan. He claims the Lizia are three weeks behind , following his trail for food. We have only that long to get ready. I hope your colony has sufficient means to protect itself. If not, the colonists are welcome in the caves. We have accounted for their numbers in our expansions.”

Zabor drew back, surprised that they would . . . but no. Alaene would protect everyone, even dissenters. “We have sufficient means,” he retorted. “And, again, we are sure they won't be needed; this summer, or next, or any thereafter.”

Ramal shrugged. “As you please,” he murmured. “If you will excuse me? I'm being called.”

Zabor nodded and watched him flutter off, wondering for the hundredth time; if the Lizia were real, and they were the size of a cat as reported, then how would any Nians survive an entire flock? Just another reason to discredit the legends, because logically, the Nians should have been extinct by now.

He turned and flew back to the colony at the level of the tree tops, wary of predator birds, especially stray eagles that might come back. He shook himself, trying to break decades of training, but the warrior in him kept scanning the skies, the trees, and the horizon.

The sun burned his wingtips, driving him back to the shade of the forest. Nian eyes worked just as well in dim lighting as they did in the daylight, and even shadows on the forest floor were not completely dark.

Nadia paced outside their nest, fuming as he had expected. “I am very angry at you!”

He nodded. “I expected as much, but your behavior was not acceptable to me.”

“Reprimanding your governor in public is not acceptable to me.”

Zabor studied her snapping wings and pink cheeks. “Nadia. Talek is gone. We are free of the villagers. Ramal agreed to keep the peace. We are welcome at the shelters if they are needed. Keep the peace with them.”

“If they are needed?” she laughed. “What a waste of time digging holes in the ground to hide from imaginary monsters. What did you tell him?”

“That our forces are sufficient for any danger, and we do not feel the shelters will be necessary.”

“Good. At least you did one thing right.”

Zabor flushed at her backhanded compliment. “What will make you happy again?”

Nadia crossed her arms and tipped her head towards the nest opening.

“After you,” he soothed, bowing slightly, not wanting to mate with her again but wanting to appease her anger.

She fluttered towards the opening, turning back with dreamy eyes and a half smile, taking his breath away. Was this beautiful creature really his wife?

“Come, Zabor,” she urged, holding out her hands.

Willing and unwilling, he clasped her hands and allowed himself to be drawn inside.