“I haven’t a clue,” he says. “For all we know that line may simply be there to throw people off. Nothing ever said that every line of a prophecy has to mean something.”
“Can you give it to me one more time?” asks Jiron.
“Sure,” he replies.
When the Fire shines Bright,
And the Star walks the Land.
Time for the Lost,
Will soon be at Hand.
At the foot of the King,
Bathe in his Cup.
Pull his Beard,
To make him sit Up.
Seven to Nine,
Six to Four.
Spit in the Wind,
And open the Door.
“Hmmm,” muses Jiron as he contemplates the words. “The second verse refers to the king in every line. Seems important.” He then turns his attention to the mountain which dominates the entire area. Kiliticus rises immensely behind their comrades on the shore.
“Does a mountain have a beard?” he asks after a few minutes of silence.
“I don’t think so,” replies James. “Is there an outcropping of rock perhaps that appears like a beard?”
They both stare at the mountain and scrutinize its surface. There are many outcroppings and overhangs, but nothing which even remotely resembles a beard. “I think we may be going about this the wrong way,” Jiron says.
“What do you mean?” asks James.
“This isn’t accomplishing anything,” he says. “Think we should return to shore and see if we can come at this another way?”
The only other way which James can think of is to take the line literally and get into the water. He’s simply not willing to do that unless there’s no other alternative. “We haven’t been out here very long,” he says. “Give it a couple more hours and if we’re still without a clue, we’ll go back.”
“Very well,” he says. Making himself as comfortable as possible, Jiron waits. At first the view from the center of the lake is enough to keep him distracted, but after awhile he begins nodding off. Not too concerned, he’s sure James will wake him should anything happen.
If he didn’t have the possible future of going into the water, James would find this a lot more relaxing. Out here in the middle of the lake is very peaceful. The mountains surrounding them give the area a charm he hasn’t found for a long time. Snowcapped mountains covered in trees with the blue sky above them, absolutely beautiful.
Over on the shore the others have given up watching him and begun to explore the ruins. He doesn’t blame them, he’s sure at first they thought something important was going to happen. When it failed to materialize they grew bored and began finding something else to do.
The quiet seems to rejuvenate his spirit, bringing him a peace he hasn’t had for some time. What with all the fighting and bickering between the various members of his group and all the attempts made on his life, this is really the first time he’s been able to completely relax in weeks. Putting his cares aside for a moment, he tries to enjoy the tranquility.
His mind drifts back to the time he and Meliana spent together on her father’s ship just after they came to his rescue. You can bet he was surprised when he saw who it was that rescued him. A smile comes to him at the thought of what his grandparents would say if they knew he was in love. Yes, he is in love. All doubt had been shattered when he looked at her at the railing as he was climbing up from the rescue boat.
Once things settle down he’ll return to Corillian and find her, though how long that will be is uncertain. Most likely she’ll find another man by then, the thought dampens his mood somewhat. But then the fact that she made the long voyage all the way from Corillian on the off chance he may be in Cardri comes to mind. She wouldn’t have done that unless her heart was driving her, and it’s unlikely she’ll find another unless all hope of their union is gone.
Hours drift by and he realizes nothing is going to happen, but the peace of where he is keeps him there. The gently rolling of the raft as it floats upon the water and the sun beating down on him lulls him into a deep relaxation which brings him to the brink of sleep.
Splash!
“Aaaaaahhhh!” he cries as frigid water drenches him from head to toe.
“What happened?” asks Jiron as he’s wrenched from slumber by James’ cry.
“Some damn fish just breached and splashed me with water,” he says.
Jiron looks over to him and sees where water is running down the side of his face. Laughing, he says, “It must have been some big fish.”
“It’s not funny, I’m freezing,” he complains. His hair is now slightly matted to his face and his clothes are sticking to him.
“Time to return?” asks Jiron.
Nodding, with teeth slightly chattering he replies, “Yes.” Picking up one of the crude paddles he begins paddling back to shore. The day is already coming to a close, he had no idea they had been out there that long. Over to west the sun is nearing the peaks and the shadows are beginning to grow long.
One person remains on the shore, looks to be Miko. When he sees them paddling for shore, he gets to his feet and races back to the ruins. Shortly the others gather by the water’s edge to greet them on their return.
When they’re about halfway to shore, James’ eye catches something from the mountain and he glances to its slopes. Not sure at first what caught his eye it takes him a moment to realize just what he’s seeing.
Concentrating on his paddling, Jiron doesn’t realize James has stopped until the raft begins to turn in a circle instead of forward. Looking to his friend, he sees him staring with mouth slightly open at the mountain. He stops paddling as he turns to look. He’s about to ask him what’s going on when he sees it too, a shadowy face on the slope of the mountain. And the face has a beard. “How is that possible?” he asks.
Grabbing his paddle, James replies, “I don’t know but try to remember where the end of the beard is.” Paddling with renewed determination, he and Jiron push for shore.
They continuously glance at the shadowy visage upon the mountain, trying to fix in their minds exactly where the end of the beard lies. It looks to end at a large outcropping of stone jutting out from the side of the mountain.
As they near the beach, James yells, “We found it!”
“Where?” asks Fifer.
Beaching the raft, James and Jiron jump to the sand and break into a run. “Up the mountain!” he cries as he and Jiron race for the spot before the light completely fades. It’s a little ways up the mountain from where the ruins sit and as they climb, the sun drops behind the mountains and the shadows disappear.
“What did you see?” asks Miko.
“A face in shadows,” replies James.
“A face?” questions Qyrll.
“Yes,” he answers.
“But how is that possible?” Uther asks as he follows along behind.
From the front of the group, James’ voice comes back to him, “I don’t know.”
They continue working their way up the slope. Darkness begins to creep into the world as the light slowly fades away. Before it fails altogether, the outcropping of rock which coincided with the shadow’s beard comes into view.
The rock around them begins to show signs of having been worked. Right angles, which could never be formed with such precision by nature start to appear. What use they held can no longer be determined.
Forging through the underbrush James suddenly comes into a clearing and before him lies the outcropping. The signs of human workmanship can be seen all over now. Holding out his hand, his orb suddenly springs to life for
