บท 53: Dark Jackal From North
"So, the rock and the water on its surface are what came to be known as Lagoon of Holy Water?" Asked the lion tribe head.
"Yes. It is not like any other ordinary water. First of all, the water is always crystal clear no matter what is done to it. Secondly, once drunk, one can go for ten days without food or water. For beasts like us, it nourishes our souls and minds granting us powers beyond imagination. I don't really know what it can do to you humans since after the beasts learned of its existence, no human has been allowed to the water." Jade finished in one breath its breathing hastening upon mentioning of the water's benefits.
The others nodded in agreement. The beasts were naturally stronger than ordinary humans. Once they discovered such a treasure, they could not share it with other weaker beasts let alone the humans.
"What happened to Kuluwa Madevi Jade Eagle?" The ever soft-boiled Apeleka asked with a frown on her beautiful face.
"She died when the ethereal rock dropped from the sky. It is said she had cast one of the most powerful spells during that time. Her body was also still too
weak to cast that spell leading to her demise. The people that lived around here during that time took her body to give her an honorable burial but she turned to dust. Her story has been passed from generations to generations since then."
Apeleka's eyes moistened when she heard the Jade Eagle.
"Don't cry Apeleka, are you not aware that the greatest gains are obtained from the greatest pains?" Consoled Jakony.
"Jade Eagle, why is it that there are only the Sambu people here yet there are people from other communities that survived the calamity?" Asked the lions tribe head.
"All the people from other communities that survived were only six men. They all went to help give Madevi an honorable burial alongside other eight Sambu men. All these fourteen people became sterile after the incident."
What followed after Jade Eagle finished its explanation was heavy sighs from the three lions, Jakony and the two humans.
"How come you know this much?" Ratong' asked gobbling the last pieces of zebra's meat.
"My clan is specialised in reading almost every living creature's mind. I obtained the information from the Sambu people themselves even without them knowing." Eagle replied proudly.
This left Ratong' who had asked the question earlier to look at the Jade Eagle with envy.
"From what I can see from the map, this Lagoon of Holy Water is not far from the path we are to follow. we should head over and take a look."
All the eyes of the beasts and Apeleka lit up when they heard what Ochieng' said. They all leapt to Jade Eagle's back and without warning the bird disappeared from the spot. It only took two hours to arrive at the location the laguna was located. The speed Jade Eagle used was incredible, it was as if it had teleported.
Boom!
Even before they landed, an ear deafening explosion reverberated in the air. The Jade Eagle that was flying a distance away from the Lagoon of Holy Water shook vehemently from the explosion. Its flying became unstable and it appeared like it was on the verge of falling.
"This is really bad." The bird shook its head in fear.
"What do..."
Ochieng' wanted to ask something when another explosion resounded. This time, Jade Eagle plummeted to the ground. Those on its back were caught off guard, they were thrown to different places in miserable conditions. Only Apeleka seemed fine since during the fall, Ochieng' had already held her tightly to help her fall without being injured.
In their ambivalent state, a large beast appeared. Its appearance was peculiar but when one looked closely, one could see its close resemblance to a jackal. Its size was reminiscent of a mountain. It was entirely dark and when closing to Ochieng', Apeleka and the others, it looked like darkness was befalling them.
The air around it made every creature around it find it hard to breathe. Ochieng' was surprised upon seeing this. He had never seen or heard of such a large beast. Knowing that allowing fear to overtake him could result in their doom, he turned to Jade Eagle to ask a few questions. Before he even spoke, the imperious thunderous voice of the beast rung scaring him stiff. Unfortunately, he did not even understand the language the beast used.
"It is asking you what you two humans are doing here." Jade Eagle's voice came to him just in time.
Even though he was fearful, he stood up and tried to remain as calm as possible. He then answered the beast in Lu language, the only language apart from Lang he understood, "We are just passing by. We don't really want trouble with you."
"So you are from Lu tribe. Wait... you are a 'Mogwedhi'?" The beast said in Lu language but having thought of something, it asked its dark eyes brightening.
"That is not important." Ochieng' answered nonchalantly though deep inside he was not himself.
"Yes it is not important. I see you have 'ordained' one of these beasts so it is not possible to 'ordain' another beast. I don't want future trouble, since you have dared come into my territory, I won't let you go that easily. I really won't be the great Dark Jackal from North if I do." The beast thumped its chest cavalierly.
"You are the great Dark Jackal from North?" Jade Eagle asked its expression turning more grave.
"You see, even the little eagle knows me human..." The beast laughed in an overbearing manner.
"Let us end this. I am going to start with this little girl. I have never eaten such a beauty before. This is a privilege." It laughed even louder when it said this.
The jackal lifted its massive paw and struck it towards Apeleka. Apeleka was perspiring and trembling in fear. Knowing that if the paw landed, it could destroy Apeleka to an extent that even her regeneration ability could be lost, Ochieng' knew he had to rescue her.
"Wait!"
Ochieng' wailed at the top of his lungs unconsciously lifting the map alongside his arms. The beast wanted to disregard him but when it turned its head and saw the map, its eyes lit up and it unknowingly withdrew its assault.
"The Turkan Map. Where did you obtain that from...that is not important. Boy, hand over the map and I might consider letting you go." The beast threw a scheming eyes at Ochieng' as it said to Ochieng'. Ochieng' did not fail to see those eyes.
"Ochieng', like I told you before. With your strength no beast can be a match for you. Beasts like this one are extremely powerful but they have their flaws. If you can take advantage of their flaws, I don't think it can be a threat to us." Jade Eagle's voice again rung in Ochieng's ear.
Ochieng' in turn threw a 'tell me the flaws' look at the bird and in one breath it said,
"This Jackal is amongst the strongest beasts of the North. It is very intelligent. It is however known for its poor reflexes and for high protection of its navel. You can hit any part of its body but gain nothing. If you hit its navel nevertheless, the beast will be weaker than the ordinary beasts you know of."
Ochieng' nodded in understanding. It actually took not more than five seconds to communicate with Jade so no matter how intelligent the beast was, it could not realize that Ochieng' and the bird were talking.
"You might consider letting us go? Since you are not sure, there is no way I can hand over the map to you. What I am going to do is to destroy it, we are going to die anyway." And with saying that, Ochieng' held the map tightly between his arms and was ready to destroy it.
"Wait! The map cannot help me alone. I need a 'Mogwedhi' and finding such people is like looking for a coin lost in the sea. Since I have you, why don't we cooperate with you and after obtaining the treasure, we'll share what we shall get and part ways, of course I am the one to curry the map."
"How can I be sure you will not kill me after we obtain the treasure?"
"Killing you is as easy as cutting grass. I can kill you even now and go look for a 'Mogwedhi' to help me in this quest. Letting you live until now means I have already let you go."
"Fine. If you want it, I can't really stop it. There you go."
Ochieng' then threw the map up for the beast to reach for it.
Apeleka, Jakony and the three lions turned to Ochieng' and looked at him in wonderment.
Had this Ochieng' lost his mind? When had he been this stupid? How can he trust this creature?
Only Jade Eagle looked calm. It had seen through what Ochieng' was intending to do.
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