Bearing the Creation and Destruction of Power: Part I
"How much for this?" I asked, holding up a jet-black urn for Lady Osiri to inspect.
"500 neopoints," she replied, not even looking to see what I'd chosen. I whistled, carefully setting the urn back down. 500 NP isn't in my budget at the moment. I like shopping for pottery, when it's cheap. Once, I found a pot for 50 NP in someone's shop. I'm Taiyani, a 13-year-old girl. You've probably never heard of me, I'm not well known. I have one pet, Kyonga, who is a female blue zafara. We live in a small neohome in Neopia Central.
"Kyonga, we're going," I called, coming out of Osiri's tent to find Kyonga digging a hole in the burning hot sand of the Lost Desert.
"Tai," she whined, still digging her hole. It was getting deep now. "Do we have to go?" Suddenly a clump of sand flew up to hit me in the face.
"Kyonga!" I yelled, shaking sand out of my shoulder-length nearly white blonde hair.
"Sorry," she muttered. "I didn't mean to."
I grimaced. "Let's go."
"Wait!"
What now?" I asked, sounding nearly as whiny as she did.
"I think I found something," Kyonga replied.
"Really? What?" I asked her, slightly more interested. She held up a little stone jar. It looked something like Lady Osiri's pottery, only much older and a different shape than Osiri would make. It also seemed to be granite, not the black stone Osiri used.
I raised an eyebrow quizzically and took the jar from Kyonga. "And it was just sitting in the hole?" I asked incredulously.
"Well, yeah," she replied.
"Weird," I muttered. "Let's bring it home with us."
"Are you sure?" asked Kyonga. She almost sounded scared. "There's got to be a reason it's here."
"Oh yeah?" I countered. "Like what?"
"Uh...we...I dunno, but there's got to be a reason."
"Hmmm," I mumbled, slowly turning the jar to get a better look at it. It was dark gray, with flecks of white, and had strange looking gold symbols engraved in the surface.
I tried to unscrew the jar, but it seemed to be glued shut. "Ergh, I can't open it. Let's worry about this later," I told Kyonga. "Why don't we go home?"
"Okay," replied Kyonga, getting up from her bed of sand and bounding off across the Desert.
***
"How on Neopia are we going to get this open?" I grumbled to myself.
"Break it?" Kyonga jokingly suggested. I glared at her. We'd gotten home to Neopia Central from the Lost Desert and were now trying to open the mysterious jar.
"Hey, I was just joking!"
I grinned at that. "I know." Kyonga grinned back and flopped down on our couch. I sank into a soft green chair. "Got any ideas?" I asked.
"Well, not really," she said hesitantly.
"What do you mean 'not really'?"
"Well, I was just thinking that it might work to run the jar under hot water. I kinda doubt it though," Kyonga told me.
I stared at her. "How did you know that?" She shrugged. "We might as well try it."
I got up and took the gray jar into the kitchen. Kyonga followed me and jumped up onto the counter. I shook my head. "You know you're not supposed to be up there."
She just ignored me. "Too bad." I turned on the faucet and held the jar under the powerful jet of water. Taking the jar away from the faucet, I turned it off and tried to open the small jar. The lid moved a little, but not much. "One more time," Kyonga decided. I put the jar back under the faucet and turned it on, letting the water wash out the grooves of the jar. Then, firmly gripping the lid of the jar, I twisted. It came off easily.
"Ta-da!" I exclaimed. Kyonga grinned broadly.
"Anything in there?" she asked, trying to peer into the jar.
Ummm, I'm not sure," I told her uncertainly. Reaching into the little gray jar, I pulled out a large, dusty blue stone. "Oh my gosh look at this!" I screeched. At that moment the doorbell of our neohome rang loudly. I rolled my eyes and went to answer it. Stone still in hand. I expected it was some newbie begging or something. I stead it was my friend Alysen. She has freckles and strawberry blonde hair, and is one of my best friends.
"Hey, Taiya, what's up?" she asked.
"Oh, not much," I replied. "I just found this weird stone. Come on in." Leading the way into the house, I handed her the jewel that I still had in my hand. She nearly dropped it.
"My gosh, it's heavy! Where'd you find it?" Alysen exclaimed.
"I know," I replied. "We found it in the Lost Desert." Just then, Kyonga skipped into the room carry8ing a wet cloth.
"Let's wipe it off so it isn't so dusty," she said, obviously talking about the sapphire blue crystal.
"Okay," I said. Alysen handed the stone to Kyonga. She wiped the rag over the jewel until it shown. I gasped and took the beautiful shining stone from her.
"Wow," I said reverently. "It's amazing." Absentmindedly fingering the gem, I asked the question we'd all been thinking. "What do you think it is?"
To tell the truth, Alysen said, "I haven't a clue."
"Neither do I," Kyonga chirped from her position on the floor. "And I'd like to know why it was buried in a jar in the Lost Desert," I put in.
"Can I see the jar?" asked Alysen.
"Sure," I replied, leading he way into the kitchen where the small jar still sat. Alysen picked it up and looked inside.
"Hey look!" she exclaimed. "Something else is in here!"
What?" I gasped. She reached into the jar and pulled out a little rolled up piece of paper. Alysen handed it to me and I carefully unrolled it. There were words on the paper, but they were very hard to read. I sat down in a kitchen chair and peered at the paper. Though faint, I could read the message, and here is what it said:
"To whoever finds this:
First, I should tell you who I am. I am Sakirina, the one-time bearer of the stone you have found. The stone is called the Gem of Truth, and is very powerful. You can use it for magic, but only if you have a truthful heart. You should also know that, while the Gem of Truth can be useful to you, it can also cause destruction. That is a risk you must take. You are now the bearer of this power. Good luck."
After having read the note aloud, I sat there in stunned silence. "Why do you suppose this Sakirina person buried the gem in the Lost Desert," asked Kyonga.
"Who knows? Maybe because it causes destruction, like she said," replied Alysen.
"That's possible," I said at last. "But I don't really think so."
"Why not?" Kyonga asked, sitting in the chair across from me.
"I don't know. I wonder how Sakirina knew whoever found the gem was supposed to be its bearer," I replied.
"Maybe she knew that it would be the fate of whoever found it to be the bearer," Alysen told us.
"Then that would mean that Kyonga and I have to be the bearer," I concluded uneasily. "Can we do it?"
Kyonga looked at me bravely. "I'll do it. Will you?" she said.
"I think I have to," I replied, sounding braver than I felt.
"I'll help!" Alysen exclaimed. "I'd do almost anything for some adventure. Life is so boring sometimes."
"Really? Great! Let's Neomail Dialin and see if she wants to help too," I decided, getting up and going tot he computer. Dialin was another of our friends. She had brown hair and eyes, and lived on Mystery Island, but could easily get here because her red eyrie, Tensio, could fly her. As I sat down in my computer thinking what to write, Kyonga looked out the window, paws on the sill. She giggled.
"Uh, Tai? I think Dialin is here already."
"What?" I shot out of the chair and went to look out the window, Alysen following. Dialin was coming up the walk, Tensio and a purple grundo I'd never seen before in tow. I grinned and went to open the door.
"He y'all!" Dialin called. Kyonga bounded out the door to talk to Tensio.
"Hey Di!" I called, stepping on the porch. "Who's the grundo?"
"That's Hallazi. Just adopted her from the pound," she replied. Alysen went to get the gem and the note. Dialin and I sat down and I began to relay the events of the last hour and a half. Alysen came back out and sat down next to me, handing the note and the gem to Dialin. She read the note and carefully examined the Gem of Truth. "Weird," she said finally.
Suddenly I noticed that Hallazi was just standing on the walkway. "Kyonga, Tensio!" I called. They came racing over.
"What?" asked Tensio, out of breath.
"I think Hallazi is feeling left out-let her play with you," I ordered.
"Yes, mom," Kyonga muttered, rolling her eyes. They went to talk to Hallazi.
"So what are you going to do about this?" asked Dialin.
"There's not much we can do," I replied. "I guess we just have to accept that we need to be the gem bearers."
"Why do I have a feeling you're getting yourself into trouble saying that," Alysen asked.
"Because I probably am," I replied, giggling.
5
1
"How much for this?" I asked, holding up a jet-black urn for Lady Osiri to inspect.
"500 neopoints," she replied, not even looking to see what I'd chosen. I whistled, carefully setting the urn back down. 500 NP isn't in my budget at the moment. I like shopping for pottery, when it's cheap. Once, I found a pot for 50 NP in someone's shop. I'm Taiyani, a 13-year-old girl. You've probably never heard of me, I'm not well known. I have one pet, Kyonga, who is a female blue zafara. We live in a small neohome in Neopia Central.
"Kyonga, we're going," I called, coming out of Osiri's tent to find Kyonga digging a hole in the burning hot sand of the Lost Desert.
"Tai," she whined, still digging her hole. It was getting deep now. "Do we have to go?" Suddenly a clump of sand flew up to hit me in the face.
"Kyonga!" I yelled, shaking sand out of my shoulder-length nearly white blonde hair.
"Sorry," she muttered. "I didn't mean to."
I grimaced. "Let's go."
"Wait!"
What now?" I asked, sounding nearly as whiny as she did.
"I think I found something," Kyonga replied.
"Really? What?" I asked her, slightly more interested. She held up a little stone jar. It looked something like Lady Osiri's pottery, only much older and a different shape than Osiri would make. It also seemed to be granite, not the black stone Osiri used.
I raised an eyebrow quizzically and took the jar from Kyonga. "And it was just sitting in the hole?" I asked incredulously.
"Well, yeah," she replied.
"Weird," I muttered. "Let's bring it home with us."
"Are you sure?" asked Kyonga. She almost sounded scared. "There's got to be a reason it's here."
"Oh yeah?" I countered. "Like what?"
"Uh...we...I dunno, but there's got to be a reason."
"Hmmm," I mumbled, slowly turning the jar to get a better look at it. It was dark gray, with flecks of white, and had strange looking gold symbols engraved in the surface.
I tried to unscrew the jar, but it seemed to be glued shut. "Ergh, I can't open it. Let's worry about this later," I told Kyonga. "Why don't we go home?"
"Okay," replied Kyonga, getting up from her bed of sand and bounding off across the Desert.
***
"How on Neopia are we going to get this open?" I grumbled to myself.
"Break it?" Kyonga jokingly suggested. I glared at her. We'd gotten home to Neopia Central from the Lost Desert and were now trying to open the mysterious jar.
"Hey, I was just joking!"
I grinned at that. "I know." Kyonga grinned back and flopped down on our couch. I sank into a soft green chair. "Got any ideas?" I asked.
"Well, not really," she said hesitantly.
"What do you mean 'not really'?"
"Well, I was just thinking that it might work to run the jar under hot water. I kinda doubt it though," Kyonga told me.
I stared at her. "How did you know that?" She shrugged. "We might as well try it."
I got up and took the gray jar into the kitchen. Kyonga followed me and jumped up onto the counter. I shook my head. "You know you're not supposed to be up there."
She just ignored me. "Too bad." I turned on the faucet and held the jar under the powerful jet of water. Taking the jar away from the faucet, I turned it off and tried to open the small jar. The lid moved a little, but not much. "One more time," Kyonga decided. I put the jar back under the faucet and turned it on, letting the water wash out the grooves of the jar. Then, firmly gripping the lid of the jar, I twisted. It came off easily.
"Ta-da!" I exclaimed. Kyonga grinned broadly.
"Anything in there?" she asked, trying to peer into the jar.
Ummm, I'm not sure," I told her uncertainly. Reaching into the little gray jar, I pulled out a large, dusty blue stone. "Oh my gosh look at this!" I screeched. At that moment the doorbell of our neohome rang loudly. I rolled my eyes and went to answer it. Stone still in hand. I expected it was some newbie begging or something. I stead it was my friend Alysen. She has freckles and strawberry blonde hair, and is one of my best friends.
"Hey, Taiya, what's up?" she asked.
"Oh, not much," I replied. "I just found this weird stone. Come on in." Leading the way into the house, I handed her the jewel that I still had in my hand. She nearly dropped it.
"My gosh, it's heavy! Where'd you find it?" Alysen exclaimed.
"I know," I replied. "We found it in the Lost Desert." Just then, Kyonga skipped into the room carry8ing a wet cloth.
"Let's wipe it off so it isn't so dusty," she said, obviously talking about the sapphire blue crystal.
"Okay," I said. Alysen handed the stone to Kyonga. She wiped the rag over the jewel until it shown. I gasped and took the beautiful shining stone from her.
"Wow," I said reverently. "It's amazing." Absentmindedly fingering the gem, I asked the question we'd all been thinking. "What do you think it is?"
To tell the truth, Alysen said, "I haven't a clue."
"Neither do I," Kyonga chirped from her position on the floor. "And I'd like to know why it was buried in a jar in the Lost Desert," I put in.
"Can I see the jar?" asked Alysen.
"Sure," I replied, leading he way into the kitchen where the small jar still sat. Alysen picked it up and looked inside.
"Hey look!" she exclaimed. "Something else is in here!"
What?" I gasped. She reached into the jar and pulled out a little rolled up piece of paper. Alysen handed it to me and I carefully unrolled it. There were words on the paper, but they were very hard to read. I sat down in a kitchen chair and peered at the paper. Though faint, I could read the message, and here is what it said:
"To whoever finds this:
First, I should tell you who I am. I am Sakirina, the one-time bearer of the stone you have found. The stone is called the Gem of Truth, and is very powerful. You can use it for magic, but only if you have a truthful heart. You should also know that, while the Gem of Truth can be useful to you, it can also cause destruction. That is a risk you must take. You are now the bearer of this power. Good luck."
After having read the note aloud, I sat there in stunned silence. "Why do you suppose this Sakirina person buried the gem in the Lost Desert," asked Kyonga.
"Who knows? Maybe because it causes destruction, like she said," replied Alysen.
"That's possible," I said at last. "But I don't really think so."
"Why not?" Kyonga asked, sitting in the chair across from me.
"I don't know. I wonder how Sakirina knew whoever found the gem was supposed to be its bearer," I replied.
"Maybe she knew that it would be the fate of whoever found it to be the bearer," Alysen told us.
"Then that would mean that Kyonga and I have to be the bearer," I concluded uneasily. "Can we do it?"
Kyonga looked at me bravely. "I'll do it. Will you?" she said.
"I think I have to," I replied, sounding braver than I felt.
"I'll help!" Alysen exclaimed. "I'd do almost anything for some adventure. Life is so boring sometimes."
"Really? Great! Let's Neomail Dialin and see if she wants to help too," I decided, getting up and going tot he computer. Dialin was another of our friends. She had brown hair and eyes, and lived on Mystery Island, but could easily get here because her red eyrie, Tensio, could fly her. As I sat down in my computer thinking what to write, Kyonga looked out the window, paws on the sill. She giggled.
"Uh, Tai? I think Dialin is here already."
"What?" I shot out of the chair and went to look out the window, Alysen following. Dialin was coming up the walk, Tensio and a purple grundo I'd never seen before in tow. I grinned and went to open the door.
"He y'all!" Dialin called. Kyonga bounded out the door to talk to Tensio.
"Hey Di!" I called, stepping on the porch. "Who's the grundo?"
"That's Hallazi. Just adopted her from the pound," she replied. Alysen went to get the gem and the note. Dialin and I sat down and I began to relay the events of the last hour and a half. Alysen came back out and sat down next to me, handing the note and the gem to Dialin. She read the note and carefully examined the Gem of Truth. "Weird," she said finally.
Suddenly I noticed that Hallazi was just standing on the walkway. "Kyonga, Tensio!" I called. They came racing over.
"What?" asked Tensio, out of breath.
"I think Hallazi is feeling left out-let her play with you," I ordered.
"Yes, mom," Kyonga muttered, rolling her eyes. They went to talk to Hallazi.
"So what are you going to do about this?" asked Dialin.
"There's not much we can do," I replied. "I guess we just have to accept that we need to be the gem bearers."
"Why do I have a feeling you're getting yourself into trouble saying that," Alysen asked.
"Because I probably am," I replied, giggling.
5
1