Chapter 6

Ebony woke up and groaned. Clutching at her head she sat up and waited for the room to stop spinning. When she eventually decided it was safe to look up, she saw Ruby sitting watching her. The blonde barkeeper raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"Sorry," Ebony mumbled.

"You can't keep this up, Ebony!"

"Spare me the lecture, you're beginning to sound like Amber!"

"Gee thanks!" Ruby rose and brought a bowl and pitcher of water over to Ebony's bedside table. "Wash, drink, dress and you'll start feeling a whole lot better."

As she watched Ruby's back disappear out of the bedroom door, Ebony sighed, then groaned again: her hangover was getting worse. She reached for the pitcher of water and took the glass off the top of it, setting it down on the table next to the bowl. Pouring herself a glass of water, she lifted the glass. It slipped through her fingers and hit the wooden floor, smashing like an overfilled water-balloon in the summertime games of days gone by.

Ebony stared at the broken glass in a trance. It looked just like ice. She could remember seeing ice hanging in great, sparkling stalactites from the cabin where she and her sisters used to go skiing with her parents years ago. She remembered competing with Java and Siva to see who could knock down the most with snowballs. She remembered seeing the shards of fallen ice on the wooden patio, sparkling in the cool, clear sunlight as they slowly melted away. She remembered picking up the shards and feeling them, cool, against her warm skin. She was so warm now. So warm. If she could just feel the ice again, cooling her face, her neck, her wrists. She reached for the ice...

****

Jack opened his eyes tentatively. Everything remained dark. He couldn't see! Why couldn't he see! Panic began to rise in his throat as he sat up and looked all around him. As he caught the diamond shimmer of the waterfall curtain behind him, he relaxed. The light reflecting through the water was the silvery light of the moon and stars, but it was light nonetheless. Jack got to his feet and steadied himself against the wall of the cave. Feeling for the alcove, he found a torch and some matches and, after a few attempts, managed to gain a little more light to guide him through the cave. Finding his pack only slightly damp, he hoisted it onto his shoulder and, rather shakily, started to make his way through the tunnel.

****

Jetta sat around the campfire with the rest of her tribe around her. Beside her, Lana sat with Hope on her knee. She had been introduced to some of the new members of the tribe, including Vicky, the other girl on guard when she had arrived. Vicky was only a little younger than Jetta, maybe about 16. Her straight brown hair, cut to just above the shoulder, was brightened with green and blue streaks and long extensions. Here and there she had feathers braided into the streaks, which matched those on her dark blue halter-neck top. The top itself covered a see-through purple shirt with three-quarter length sleeves and contrasted sharply with a cream wrap around skirt trimmed with the same green in her hair. Her tribal markings were minimal: blue eyeliner and shadow surrounded her black eyes and a green lightning streak, outlined in the same bright blue as graced her eyes and hair, led down her left cheek to her dark red, painted lips. She had been wary of Jetta to begin with but, once Jetta's identity had been made clear to her, she had warmed quickly.

Jetta had caught up with old friends too. The three women who had officially welcomed Jetta home had known her from the very formation of the tribe: Alkaia, the leader of the Amazons and her two generals, Morgaine and Jewel. Together they formed one third of the Amazonian Council. Alkaia had the casting vote; she always had. Morgaine and Jewel would sit on either side of her at the Council Table with three more young women on either side of them. Jetta had once been a member of that council, but her place had now been filled by a young woman named Rialle, who had joined the Amazons in their fight against the Chosen and, ultimately, their return to the hidden valley. Rialle had not joined them at the welcoming feast and campfire, choosing to remain at a distance from her council predecessor until Jetta had re-established herself in the tribe. Instead, she and another young woman Jetta did not know, Charlie, had taken up guard duty at the lake while the others enjoyed the party.

"Don't worry about her," Lana told Jetta, with a conspiratorial air, "Rialle just prefers to sit back and watch for a while before she makes any moves. She'll probably come and make your acquaintance in a few days on her own terms, once she thinks she knows more about you than you do about her."

On Jetta's other side sat Leila, another member of the council. Leila was the youngest council member, but held her station as she had been with the Amazons since just after the virus and had quickly risen to the prominent position of Healer. Leila's parents had run a successful apothecary store in one of the wealthier city suburbs, where money and leisure had allowed a proportion of important families to indulge in alternative therapies for numerous medical complaints. Leila had spent many summers helping her parents in their shop, filling out prescriptions, restocking shelves and eavesdropping upon sometimes confidential consultations.

Jetta had known Leila ever since she herself joined the Amazons, but in the two years since she had last seen her, the younger girl had changed a lot. Her chunky cut brown hair still held her familiar blue streaks, but her outfit was much more grown up. Clad in matching, semi-sheer blue trousers and top, she was easily picked out in the crowd. Her top split open from just below the bust to reveal a bright sapphire resting in her navel, surrounded by an iridescent, circular blue flame. The shining paint matched the flame-like shadow over her eyes and her blue-painted lips. Much had changed in the young girl and Jetta couldn't help wondering if her personality had, or had not, altered just as much.

****

Stumbling a little, Jack stepped out of the dark cavern into the clear, starlit night. He could see the warm glow of a campfire in the distance as he looked out across the valley before him. Surely that fire would be at the hub of the camp, where Jetta and Hope would now remain until he reached them. Even now, they could be sitting round that fire with the rest of Jetta's tribe, sharing their evening meal. At the thought of food, Jack's stomach rumbled, bringing him out of his reverie and making him turn back to the path before him. In the flickering light from his dying torch he could make out the rocky walkway, sloping down the side of the cliff. Picking his way carefully, he headed down, into the valley.

As Jack neared the valley floor, his torch petered out. Left with nothing but the starlight to guide his steps, he slowed his descent considerably, keeping one hand on the cliff wall and testing each step thoroughly before he committed his weight to it. Eventually he felt the softer tread of earth under his feet and relaxed a little, only to stumble into the edge of a pool. Hastily stepping backwards, Jack peered into the darkness. On closer inspection, he could see the stars reflected in the shivering waters of a lake, with dark ripples inferring their way out from where he had stood only moments ago.

Looking around once more, Jack turned in what he hoped was the direction of the campfire and started walking. He could hear his feet brushing through the grass of the valley plain as he walked, then he took a step and the noise stopped. He took another few steps and found the noise of the grass returning. Stepping back a few paces, he found the silent spot, crouched down and felt the ground. There was no grass here: it had been worn away. Feeling the surrounding ground, Jack found the edges of the path. Once he was sure he would be walking away from the cliff and not towards it, he stood up, slowly, and carefully walked forward, listening to every step. He was so intent upon following the path with his ears that he failed to notice the two, slightly more solid shapes hidden in the bushes he was passing.

"Halt!"

Jack jumped at the sudden intrusion of sound, but stopped where he stood.

"Wh-who's there?" Jack stammered, trying to catch his breath.

A dark figure detached itself from the shadow of the bushes. It was followed by another, slightly more visible figure.

"We are Amazons," the dark figure replied, "and you may not pass."