Chapter Six: Help
"I will." The voice said again. Rehani looked around. Nobody was there.
"I will." The voice repeated over and over.
"You said that already! Who are you?" Rehani finally yelled.
"Calm down, Rehani." The voice sounded amused. "To get out you must all take the link of a family. Numair. Find out Rehani's parents. Find out who she really is. Then link together and think." The voice ordered.
"All right. But who are you?" Numair asked, walking around the room, looking for the voice.
"That's for me to know and you to find out." The voice cackled.
"Oh, come on!" Rehani cried. But the voice has disappeared.
"The link of a family? How?" Daine muttered to herself. "Numair, quickly. Do the spell so we can get out soon."
"Come here, Rehani." He instructed. As he was about to speak, his mouth dropped open.
"What is it Numair?" Daine asked hesitantly.
"It's her, Daine. It's her." Numair whispered. "I just have to make sure."
"Who?" Rehani asked, baffled.
"Oh, Numair. We can't keep our hopes." Daine murmured.
"Who?" Rehani asked, getting mad now.
"We had a daughter." Numair began haltingly. "She looked a lot like you. She had her black hair from me, her gray eyes from Daine. We were teaching her meditation, and we were having a lot of trouble. Anyway, when she was six, she disappeared. We looked and looked for her. We never found her. The way things are, I think you're Rehani Salmalin."
"But I've lived in Carthak all my life!" Rehani protested.
"Do you know your parents? Do you know why you look Tortallan? It's an explanation. Come let me do the spell to make sure." Numair replied. He placed his hand on Rehani's head and spoke a spell in Old Thak. There was a loud bang and Numair and Rehani flew against the wall. There was golden writing in the place where Rehani had stood. It said, Rehani, daughter of Numair Salmalin.
"Mithros!" Rehani exclaimed, standing up and rubbing her back. "That hurt!" But they were ignoring her. They were staring at the golden script. Daine burst into sobs.
"Daine? Daine, sweetling. We found her. Why are you crying?" Numair asked quietly.
"I'm just so happy!" Daine blubbered. Numair turned to Rehani.
"I can't believe we finally found you, Rehani. We had given up hope." Numair told her. He raced to her and smashed her back against the wall as he hugged her.
"Ow! Ow ow ow ow ow!" Rehani shouted. Looking guilty, Numair stepped back, grinning sheepishly.
"Alanna can fix you up when we get out. The voice said to link together as a family and think." Numair told Rehani and Daine.
"Link? Like how hold hands in a circle. Think about what?" Daine asked, bewildered.
"Sure. Come on, let's hold hands and think about getting out. Just say over and over in your heads, I will get out. Or I want to get it. Which one?" Numair replied.
"I want to get it. Then that voice can help us. If we say I will, then it sort of means we have a way to get out." Rehani answered before Daine. Daine nodded. The stood in a circle in the middle of the room, clasping each other's hand. They thought, I want to get out, in the middle of that windowless, white washed room. There eyes closed tight, they stood straight and tall. Then there was a huge BANG! The room spun and spun around and kept spinning and spinning and spinning. Then there was another loud BANG! And a big CRASH! And they stopped spinning.
"Are we out?" Daine asked dazedly.
"We did it! We're in Daine's room!" Numair shouted.
"We made it! We did it! We made it!" Rehani screamed, dancing around. Alanna appeared in the doorway. She raced straight for Daine and Numair. They did a three way hug.
"Where were you? What happened? I was afraid you were killed or kidnapped or something terrible!" Alanna cried.
"It was Varice Kingsford." Rehani answered. "She put them into a little room without windows or doors. An animal told me it was Varice, so I went to her rooms to get the keys while she was at the banquet getting the food ready. But she caught me and put me in the same room as them. This voice came, and it said to link together as a family and think. But we didn't get it at first, then Numair realized that I must be his daughter or something. So he did the spell that says the father. There was a big BANG and we flew against the wall but there was golden script in the place where I had been. It said, 'Numair Salmalin,' so we held hands and thought, 'I want to get out.'"
"Then we spun around and around and around and we ended here!" Daine finished.
"You found your daughter? Oh Daine, Numair. You'd just given up hope." Rehani was surprised to see tears in Alanna's violet eyes. Rehani began to laugh. She whirled around the room, laughing. Alanna, Daine, and Numair joined in. The other members of the Tortallan delegation appeared at the door staring and mouthing "crazy" to each other.
"What's going on?" Sir Gareth demanded.
"Rehani is my daughter!" Numair roared.
"We found her!" Daine screamed.
"I found my parents!" Rehani shrieked.
"I will." The voice said again. Rehani looked around. Nobody was there.
"I will." The voice repeated over and over.
"You said that already! Who are you?" Rehani finally yelled.
"Calm down, Rehani." The voice sounded amused. "To get out you must all take the link of a family. Numair. Find out Rehani's parents. Find out who she really is. Then link together and think." The voice ordered.
"All right. But who are you?" Numair asked, walking around the room, looking for the voice.
"That's for me to know and you to find out." The voice cackled.
"Oh, come on!" Rehani cried. But the voice has disappeared.
"The link of a family? How?" Daine muttered to herself. "Numair, quickly. Do the spell so we can get out soon."
"Come here, Rehani." He instructed. As he was about to speak, his mouth dropped open.
"What is it Numair?" Daine asked hesitantly.
"It's her, Daine. It's her." Numair whispered. "I just have to make sure."
"Who?" Rehani asked, baffled.
"Oh, Numair. We can't keep our hopes." Daine murmured.
"Who?" Rehani asked, getting mad now.
"We had a daughter." Numair began haltingly. "She looked a lot like you. She had her black hair from me, her gray eyes from Daine. We were teaching her meditation, and we were having a lot of trouble. Anyway, when she was six, she disappeared. We looked and looked for her. We never found her. The way things are, I think you're Rehani Salmalin."
"But I've lived in Carthak all my life!" Rehani protested.
"Do you know your parents? Do you know why you look Tortallan? It's an explanation. Come let me do the spell to make sure." Numair replied. He placed his hand on Rehani's head and spoke a spell in Old Thak. There was a loud bang and Numair and Rehani flew against the wall. There was golden writing in the place where Rehani had stood. It said, Rehani, daughter of Numair Salmalin.
"Mithros!" Rehani exclaimed, standing up and rubbing her back. "That hurt!" But they were ignoring her. They were staring at the golden script. Daine burst into sobs.
"Daine? Daine, sweetling. We found her. Why are you crying?" Numair asked quietly.
"I'm just so happy!" Daine blubbered. Numair turned to Rehani.
"I can't believe we finally found you, Rehani. We had given up hope." Numair told her. He raced to her and smashed her back against the wall as he hugged her.
"Ow! Ow ow ow ow ow!" Rehani shouted. Looking guilty, Numair stepped back, grinning sheepishly.
"Alanna can fix you up when we get out. The voice said to link together as a family and think." Numair told Rehani and Daine.
"Link? Like how hold hands in a circle. Think about what?" Daine asked, bewildered.
"Sure. Come on, let's hold hands and think about getting out. Just say over and over in your heads, I will get out. Or I want to get it. Which one?" Numair replied.
"I want to get it. Then that voice can help us. If we say I will, then it sort of means we have a way to get out." Rehani answered before Daine. Daine nodded. The stood in a circle in the middle of the room, clasping each other's hand. They thought, I want to get out, in the middle of that windowless, white washed room. There eyes closed tight, they stood straight and tall. Then there was a huge BANG! The room spun and spun around and kept spinning and spinning and spinning. Then there was another loud BANG! And a big CRASH! And they stopped spinning.
"Are we out?" Daine asked dazedly.
"We did it! We're in Daine's room!" Numair shouted.
"We made it! We did it! We made it!" Rehani screamed, dancing around. Alanna appeared in the doorway. She raced straight for Daine and Numair. They did a three way hug.
"Where were you? What happened? I was afraid you were killed or kidnapped or something terrible!" Alanna cried.
"It was Varice Kingsford." Rehani answered. "She put them into a little room without windows or doors. An animal told me it was Varice, so I went to her rooms to get the keys while she was at the banquet getting the food ready. But she caught me and put me in the same room as them. This voice came, and it said to link together as a family and think. But we didn't get it at first, then Numair realized that I must be his daughter or something. So he did the spell that says the father. There was a big BANG and we flew against the wall but there was golden script in the place where I had been. It said, 'Numair Salmalin,' so we held hands and thought, 'I want to get out.'"
"Then we spun around and around and around and we ended here!" Daine finished.
"You found your daughter? Oh Daine, Numair. You'd just given up hope." Rehani was surprised to see tears in Alanna's violet eyes. Rehani began to laugh. She whirled around the room, laughing. Alanna, Daine, and Numair joined in. The other members of the Tortallan delegation appeared at the door staring and mouthing "crazy" to each other.
"What's going on?" Sir Gareth demanded.
"Rehani is my daughter!" Numair roared.
"We found her!" Daine screamed.
"I found my parents!" Rehani shrieked.