Shadow Speaker, page 24
“Easy,” Jaa said. “The plant regulates the air, but it’s still a little thin up here.”
The soldiers walked slowly to accommodate Ejii and Dikéogu’s slow pace. The hallways were small gardens. Bushes and trees grew through the floor and the ceiling was carpeted with a dense rug of tiny, dark green buds. Butterflies, red flies, and bees flew about, some snapped up by wall geckos, chameleons, and tree frogs. There were two blue scarab beetles on the branch of what looked like a stunted iroko tree. One of the beetles multiplied into three, and they all walked in different directions.
The soldiers led them into a large, elaborate room. There was a mirror embedded into the wall. Palm trees reached the high ceiling in all five corners of the room. At the room’s center, plants with large, bell-shaped white flowers grew next to a large round table surrounded by chairs. And vines with star-shaped leaves crept around the large windows on the far side of the room.
“The meeting will be in the conference room in twenty minutes,” the stocky soldier said. When the soldiers left and closed the doors, Ejii relaxed.
Dikéogu sat down hard in one of the chairs, his arms wrapped around his chest. “Inflated evil camelshitting fat-assed bastard. How can he be the chief of this place?”
“Chiefs don’t always represent the places they rule,” Buji said.
Ejii wondered how much of a say his wives had in their plight. Probably not much. She thought of how her father was going to marry her off to his cook’s lazy son.
“He could have killed you,” Gambo said sternly, striding up to Dikéogu.
“What happened?” Ejii asked.
“I wasn’t afraid of the man who beat me in that slave camp and I’m not afraid of that giant piece of camelshit!” Dikéogu snapped. Outside Ejii heard the rumble of thunder and then saw a flash of lighting. The sky had been clear when they arrived. A more than mild breeze sprang up in the room, blowing dried leaves about and rustling fresh ones. Dikéogu stood up, acknowledging Gambo’s challenge. Ejii blinked. Dikéogu didn’t seem afraid of Gambo at all. He must have forgotten what Gambo was and what he had done to those crazy confused Americans in the desert. Or maybe he didn’t care.
“We asked you to be careful, Dikéogu! Are you deaf?” Gambo shouted.
“But what happened?” Ejii asked again.
“Didn’t you see?” Jaa asked. “Or maybe your attention was elsewhere?” She smirked.
“I won’t accept slavery,” Dikéogu said. “People should live as they choose.”
“You now know one of the greatest problems that will arise from the great merge,” Gambo said. He held out a hand. Dikéogu looked at it, wiped a tear from his face, but got up on his own. After that, things quieted. While Jaa, Gambo, and Buji sat at the table and quietly talked, Ejii and Dikéogu sat in front of the large window.
“That was another one,” Ejii said, as a shape zoomed by. “It had blue eyes, too.”
“I wish they’d fly by slower,” he said.
The window gave them a spectacular view of Ooni and beyond. A flash of lightning lit up the sky from far away. Ejii looked sideways at Dikéogu. She looked away when she saw that he was looking at her.
“You did that, didn’t you?” she asked.
He nodded. “The Desert Magician, I think he . . . rewired me or something. I can feel the control now, like the sky is part of me.”
“I can imagine.”
There was a rumble of thunder outside.
“Dikéogu, try not to get so angry,” she said. “The chief is a sad man. His fat is different from most people’s. His is like a coat of sadness and he gets fatter every year and it gets heavier and harder for him to carry it around.”
“You looked into him?”
“How could I not?” she said. She gasped and pointed. “Dikéogu, look!”
She landed on the outer edge of the window. Dikéogu pressed his face to the glass and put his hand on it. Her wings were encrusted with frost. “Kola!” Dikéogu shouted, smiling. “I didn’t know you could fly so high!”
The owl opened her beak and must have hooted; Ejii couldn’t hear through the glass. Then she clicked a talon on the window where Dikéogu’s hand was. The sight of Dikéogu and Kola, hand to talon, made Ejii’s heart flutter. Then Kola launched herself into the sky and flew in a broad circle. And that was when Ejii saw . . . a man?!
“That’s Sunrise!” Ejii said.
He wore a long, bright yellow flowing caftan and long pants. His dark skin clashed beautifully with his clothes. They watched as Kola and two of the huge white owls flew with him in a large circle, a delicate dance in the sky. Then Sunrise descended and the white owls left him. Kola flew down with him.
The soldiers came. It was time for the meeting. They were led down the hall to two large purple metal doors. Ejii reached into her pocket and held the warm egg stone tightly in her fist. I hope I know what to do with this when the time comes, she thought. A scarab beetle flew past her head and landed on her shoulder.
“Get off me,” Ejii grumbled. It was so close to her ear that she could hear the beetle folding its wings.
“Better those than the red flies. I think they bite,” Dikéogu said, scratching his arm. “I’ll get it.” He plucked it up and it made a noise that sounded oddly like a soft giggle as it wiggled its antennae. Another appeared on Ejii’s shoulder. It opened its wings and flew away.
The doors opened, and as they entered the room, Ejii and Dikéogu moved close to each other and tried to hide behind Jaa, Buji, and Gambo. All the way around the room were windows, giving Ejii a 360-degree view of Ooni. The ceiling was high and domed, covered with green hanging vines. Amongst the vines, to Ejii’s horror, was a noisy flock of frolicking red parrots. Below the parrots was a wide round table around which many different types of people sat. The chief was on the farthest side, flanked by two soldiers.
“Sunny day,” Jaa said, her high-pitched voice echoing around the room.
There was a man who looked as if he was made completely of metal. His skin shone like mercury. He wore a long silver caftan. Every time he moved, Ejii heard the tingle of bells. Three small, fluffy-looking baboons with large golden eyes sat next to him. Two more sat on the conference table, and Ejii thought she could see the tops of the heads of another two sitting on the floor. All of the ones she could see carried small pads of paper. These must have been the future-seeing baboons who’d saved her life by telling Sunrise where to find her. Next to them was a large, gray-furred gorilla wearing a green-jeweled necklace.
Next to the gorilla was a man with skin as dark as Ejii’s, but his long hair grew in large shiny curls. He was bare chested, and Ejii wondered if he wore any clothes from the waist down. Next to this man was . . . Ejii didn’t know what it was. It looked like a cross between a rabbit and a kangaroo. Its had white fur and large black eyes with gold pupils.
Jory sat next to this creature. She wore a green dress and yellow bangles all the way up her arms. She raised her chin at Jaa, who did the same. Next to her sat Sunrise. Next to him was a group of four-inch-high people sitting on the table. They each were various shades of oily green skin, wore all black, and had large bulbous noses. And close to them, further down the table, a wisp of smoke hovered above a chair.
Jaa’s greeting was met with human words, grunts, jingles, silence, and squawks. The parrots had all squawked in unison, and Ejii had to work hard to not tear out of the room screaming. Gambo turned and motioned for Ejii and Dikéogu to step forward.
“These two are our apprentices,” Jaa said. “Dikéogu and Ejimafor.”
“The shadow speaker is the one on what she called ‘walkabout’?” Jory asked.
“Yes,” Jaa said.
“I think they were both on walkabout,” said the man Ejii thought was naked.
“Enough,” the chief said. “Jaa, Gambo, Buji, sit down.” He motioned to the three empty seats at the table. Ejii and Dikéogu remained standing.
“Masters, make these two less ignorant,” the chief said, sighing with boredom.
Ejii wanted to shield her eyes as the naked man with the long beautiful hair stood up. She sighed with relief when she saw that he was wearing a blue loincloth. His name was Djang and he was a shaman from Australia. Ejii almost laughed. No wonder he knew about walkabout! The furry baboons all gestured wildly as they each stood up. The gray-furred gorilla stood up, slow and shaky, clutching his chair for balance.
“I am Obax,” he said in a gruff voice. “A chief from the Greeny Jungle of Ginen. These are the idiok and they do not call each other by name. Just call them ‘friend.’”
The silver man, who called himself the Shining Wizard, jingled as he spoke. His motions were smooth and fluid. When he spoke, his voice was accompanied by the sound of clanging bells. He was from a world called Ngiza. A few of the parrots had flown around Ejii’s head, but she found the courage to stand tall. Then they quieted. “We waste time on these children,” they squawked in unison. “We have important things to discuss. We want to return to Agonia.” The sound of their voices was unnerving.
“Relax, Aku,” Chief Ette said. “We have a few minutes.”
“Tanah, I am,” the giant kangaroo-like creature said in a soft voice. She sounded annoyed but her face remained blank, as any such creature. “Also, I from Agonia. I am in agree with Aku. No time for learners.”
“I am Jory of Lif,” Jory said. “I’m glad to see children here.”
“I represent Ginen,” Sunrise said. “But my mother, Arrọ-yo, is from Earth. It’s good that you’re here.”
“We’re the Kad’an from Lif,” said a voice that echoed around the room. The little people stood before a plant bulb that grew in the center of the table. The bulb served as a sound amplifier. “I am the spokesperson, Tsirita,” one of them said.
It was the puff of smoke’s turn. When it spoke, Dikéogu jerked and had that look of flight on his face. Ejii grabbed his arm, though she, too, was horrified. The voice vibrated inside her head. “I am Smoke from Ngiza,” the voice said. “I have seven minds, two in the future, one in the past. We should treat these children with respect. Welcome.”
“Thank you,” Ejii and Dikéogu said.
“Now, both of you get out of the way and let us talk,” the chief said.
There were two mats on the floor behind Jaa, Gambo, and Buji, for Ejii and Dikéogu. They quickly sat on them and let out sighs of relief.
“Thank goodness that’s over,” Dikéogu whispered.
“I know,” Ejii said. Her heart was still beating fast. She looked at her egg stone and looked around the room. No sign of what to do with it.
“Masters,” Chief Ette said loudly. He turned to the window. “The sun rises. We’re right on schedule.”
Sunrise laughed loudly as the room lit up with sunshine.
“This has nothing to do with you,” Chief Ette said, irritably.
“If you say so,” Sunrise said, still smiling.
“Representatives of the five worlds, the Golden Dawn is officially in session,” Chief Ette said, squinting in the sunshine. “You have been called for this meeting because of your connections, your vision, and your power. Something has happened and things will never be the same.”
“What’s happened has happened,” Jaa said. A red flower with a spiky stem bounced off of Chief Ette’s head. He grunted with annoyance, catching it and throwing it aside. “Now how will we prevent war?” Jaa looked at Chief Ette as she said this.
“War isn’t a problem yet,” said the Shining Wizard.
“It will be,” Jaa said. “There are no longer any borders between the worlds. Ginen, for one, can’t rely on the guardian to maintain order. The Desert Magician loves trouble, as all gods do.”
“Sunrise,” said Djang the Australian. “Tell us what you’ve seen.”
Sunrise stood up. It was obvious that he liked to hear himself speak. He walked with his hands behind his back as he looked out the window. “Ngiza, Agonia, Earth, Ginen, and Lif all hold a place in my heart,” he said. “Even the guardians allow to me move freely. So you can imagine how I feel now that all five of these places are all suddenly one, open and known to each other.
“What have I seen? Cultures spilling into other cultures, people making friends with people, plants fighting with plants, people fighting with people, people fighting with plants, disease. There are no wars on a grand scale, like what happened on Earth. But there will be if nothing’s done. All of us here have influence. We can spread the word. Many people don’t understand what has happened, and so everything new is perceived as an attack.”
“Earth humans are the problem,” squawked Aku. Several of the birds flapped their wings. “Many have already migrated to Agonia from an Earth place they call China. They think that the birds there have no spirit energies and they slaughter us for food! They shoot us down! Next they will bring their poison machines. We Agonia people are against killing, but what else can we do? Soon, we will fight back.”
“And what of the Agonia bird tribes that flew into China?” Sunrise asked. “There is nothing left of the food the people planted there. Do you expect Earth humans to rely on spontaneous forests for substance? And I saw human bodies, too. Slaughtered also, flesh gnashed by strong beaks. At least the Earth people do what they do because they seek food. Those humans were killed for sport. I’ve seen it.”
Aku was quiet.
“Even here, Earth people wreak havoc,” the chief said.
“Since when?” Jaa demanded.
“Since you sent that envoy of idiots!” Chief Ette screamed. “And every day there are more reports to me of human foreigners. It’s only a matter of time before one of them brings another of their poison machines! Our world is a place of . . .”
“Earth people don’t want to do any of what you’ve said,” Jaa said. “You can’t base everything on ten stupid men who acted against orders.”
“Says who?” the chief retorted.
Jaa ignored his comment. “Ginen technology is far superior. Go to the markets on Earth and the best products are from Ginen! How do you think those things got there? Obviously Ginen people are migrating to Earth, too!”
“Small small woman,” the chief said, looking at her with disgust. He was breathing heavily. “I won’t let Ooni be turned into the wasteland Earth has become!”
Ejii found herself growing angry as she listened.
“Such human behavior,” Obax the gorilla said, shaking his head. “It’s a cycle.” The idiok were vigorously scribbling and showing each other what they had written and scribbling more.
“Look at what they’ve done to themselves,” Ette continued. “They’re the reason for all this in the first place! I don’t want their kind here!”
Gambo put a hand on Jaa’s shoulder and told her to be quiet. “So what do you suggest, Chief Ette?” Gambo said, through clenched teeth.
“I’m prepared to do what I have to do!” Ette shouted. The fat under his chin jiggled. “Nip the problem in the bud before it blooms!”
“Chief Ette has my full support,” squawked Aku.
Tanah kicked her strong, kangaroo-like legs under the conference table, making that side of the table bounce up several inches. “We join you if we must,” she said. “This what I wanted learn today. About these toxic Earth humans.”
“These people are supposed to decide what’s to be done?” Ejii whispered loudly.
“Ejii,” Dikéogu said. “Quiet down!”
“We agree,” Tsirita said into the voice amplifier. “We cannot live in a world like the Earth. We breathe through our skin. We’ll go extinct!”
“This is ridiculous,” Djang said. “I’m from Earth and I live with my tribe off the land. We belong to the land. I didn’t come here to . . .”
“Neither did I!” Jory said. “Chief Ette, your warmongering sickens . . .”
“Earth is the problem!” Ette bellowed, shaking his fat fists. He calmed himself. “Gambo, Djang, you have my respect as Earth men.” He flashed a look at Jaa. “But Earth is corrupted. Look at how nothing makes sense there. Spontaneous forests indeed! I strongly suggest you move to Ginen, for my allies and I plan to have Earth subdued.”
Ejii gnashed her teeth. Jaa looked daggers at Ette, the sides of her eyes twitching.
“That’s enough,” Buji shouted. “This is outrageous, you can’t . . .”
“We will!” the parrots all squawked.
The Shining Wizard’s bell jingled.
“This is pathetic,” Sunrise said.
“Was this meeting even meant to be a meeting?” Jory nervously said.
“Who will join hands with me?” Chief Ette asked ceremoniously. “Who will . . .”
“No!” Ejii yelled, standing up before she knew what she was doing.
Chief Ette sucked his teeth loudly. “Jaa, shut this girl . . .”
“Enough!” Smoke’s voice didn’t have to be loud to be heard. Everyone yelped and quieted. Even Chief Ette. His soldiers, who up to now had barely even blinked, clapped their hands over their ears. “Let the girl speak.”
All eyes turned to Ejii.
“Huh?” she said.
“Speak, Ejii,” Smoke said. “Clearly. Now!”
The tension in the room seemed to squeeze at her face. “Um . . . you . . .” Ejii sighed, afraid to speak, afraid of saying the wrong thing. Most of the masters seated before her had blood on their hands just as Chief Ette, Jaa, Buji, and Gambo did. She could practically hear what her father would have said had he been here: “Sit down and close your mouth. How dare you speak before such great men!”
“Speak, Ejii,” Smoke said. “Speak before your moment passes.”
She took a deep breath, and when she spoke, her voice was steadier. “You . . . you all call yourselves masters? Masters of what? I can’t believe the . . . the . . . the stupidity of what I’m hearing.” She paused. Her words tasted good. “Chief Ette, you’re Ooni’s government leader, and that’s a feat in itself. Even if you did murder your own brother years ago and try to assassinate Jaa last night, I respect your work as a leader. You’re a great man, but have you ever been to Earth?”
