Revelation
IX: A Rumor on the Wind
Morgan walked into Sunroost, and went to the town center. She removed her cloak hood and approached the info center. "You wouldn't happen to have seen a mongoose other than myself around here lately, have you?" The lady behind the desk replied, "There was one in town two days ago. He helped solve a problem we've had for quite awhile. It's nice to actually be out again without having to be wary of what could happen. Will that be all then miss?" Morgan nodded and walked away from the town center. The silver mongoose walked to the area of the town that had seen the battle between Tretch and Storm when they had arrived to Sunroost. Morgan kneeled down and placed a hand on the darkened dirt where Tretch was destroyed by Storm's power. The events of that day were relived in her mind as she went back two days before this day. As the events continued, she walked with the past memories as they appeared anew. In a matter of minutes she relived what had happened to Storm and Madeline, and how they came to begin journeying with Seamus and Serena. The silver mongoose let the memories fade away before she returned to the present day. Morgan closed he eyes for a little second and then looked up to see the same path Storm had taken. "I'm getting closer to him. I'm only a few days behind, and I'll soon catch up." She waved her hand and her hood went over her head again.
Serena and Madeline walked out from the guestroom and looked at the two guys sprawled across Geoffrey's living room. "You would think they'd be able to sleep in one spot." Serena said. "I agree Serena." The lop-eared rabbit walked out from behind the kitchen curtain with two plates on a tray. "I heard you two moving around and fixed you some breakfast. I'm surprised you two are up this early being that you stayed up so late." He handed the tray to Madeline before disappearing behind the curtain again. Madeline called out, "Would it be alright if we took this to the guestroom Geoffrey?" "Be my guest. You're cleaning up whatever you get something on." The two of them walked back to their room and left Storm and Seamus to their sleep. Serena closed the door behind them and sat down on the bed next to Morgan. "I wonder how long those two plan on sleeping. It wouldn't be good to let them sleep the entire day away." Serena said as she grabbed the plate Madeline held out to her. "We'll let them sleep until the afternoon. If they're not up by then, we'll let Geoffrey wake them up." Madeline blew one of her bangs out of her face before biting into a bread roll. The bang fell back where it was at first before being blown back. A few minutes of silence passed before Serena broke the silence. "How come you wanted Storm to dance last night?" Madeline remained silent for a bit, but answered her friend's question. "When we were kids, he enjoyed dancing. We both did. We started a tradition of dancing during the Harvest Festival back at the monastery. He has slowly been moving away from dancing every time, but he's kept the tradition we had. You've seen how he becomes more himself when he can let loose on the issues at hand." Serena raised an eyebrow at Madeline's response. "We both know that, that explanation is true, but it's not the full explanation." The grey cat sighed, "You're right Serena. When we first met, the fact that I looked like someone from a dream he had before arriving at the monastery was definitely weird. The next few weeks that we spent together as I showed him around the place and showed him how things worked in a monastery. Although, it was a little weird the following day after we met. His fur went from a light silver to light brown with his outer strands being silver. It's strange how someone can change just like that. Back to what I was getting to, I've grown really close to Storm over the past ten years. It started out more as just to help him adjust to the new place; since he was away from home, by giving him a kiss on his forehead, and so on, but when he was settled in with the environment, I stopped doing that. One night, he came in and kissed my forehead like I did before he went to bed. This was a good four years after he showed up, and he told me that it was for what I did to help him adjust. We grew out of it, but never went far from each other when we had spare time aside from duties we had to do." Serena chewed some of the cheese with her bread and finished it off with a swig from the small flask. "Sounds like you have a long running relationship built up Madi. I wouldn't waste the opportunity while it is present. You don't want to rush it either or have things go south over the idea of becoming more than friends." Madeline nodded, "You're right again Serena. I'm just not sure how he feels. I know he's getting use to the new memories and those he's still recovering. Until he is fully recovered, I won't say anything. I'll wait until he remembers everything." "That would be the best solution in my opinion." Serena said backing up Madeline's choice. The two of them finished up their breakfast, and took the tray back to the kitchen. As they passed through the living room Geoffrey was reading through a small book and using the unconscious mongoose as a foot rest. "You're friend may be in the middle of the room, but he isn't half bad as a foot rest." The lop-eared rabbit remarked. The two girls laughed a little as they saw Storm with his face buried in the cushion, and the rabbit's feet perched on his back. Geoffrey rubbed the pad of his left foot with his other foot, and accidentally prodded Storm in his side. The mongoose jerked to the side and fell on his side laughing. After he was done, Storm sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Who is the one that decided to wake me up by poking my side?" Geoffrey buried himself back in his book while Serena and Madeline pointed to the lop-eared rabbit trying to act nonchalant. "Ha ha, very funny Geoffrey." Storm said sarcastically. Seamus stretched and his back let out a series of small pops. "Ah. That was a nice sleep. What about you, Storm?" The mongoose stood up and sat down in the chair. "Well, it was restful. However, I remember falling asleep in the chair, and I woke up on the floor to a jab in the side." "The sun is beginning to reach its zenith. You four better hurry and locate your belongings. I know you don't plan on staying another day. I wouldn't stay, mainly because I'd want to get back on my journey. That's if I had one to get back to." Geoffrey said as he set his book aside. "I guess you're right Geoffrey. We wouldn't want to leave and find out that we left something here." Storm looked around and underneath the chair. "While on the topic, has anyone seen my boots?" Serena placed a hand to her forehead and shook her head from side to side. "You left them at the front door Storm. They were there when we arrived yesterday and found you inside." The mongoose laughed sheepishly. "Right in the place that they were when we arrived. Guess I'm still waking up." The others laughed, and the traveling group began scouring the cottage for anything that was something they brought with them. After a few minutes of raising small puffs of smoke the group, on the mission to find the next generation of elementalists, was standing on the front walk of Geoffrey's cottage. "Watch out for any robbers on your travels." Geoffrey told them as he said his good byes. "I'm sure we can take them. We're elementalists after all." Seamus said. They began walking through the garden and back onto the main path.
The group of friends started back on the road, and enjoyed the clouds that cut off the sun from burning down on them. As they continued to walk, they noticed two other travelers ahead of them. Madeline stated, "They appear to be discussing something. I wonder if they know about any nearby towns." They approached the two lemmings that were talking about something that involved Sunroost. "I heard that they came in out of the blue, and asked about the one who returned the peace. Then they just walked off. If you ask me, I think they're after him for some reason. Maybe they have a score to settle." "Don't be daft Roger. Who'd want to tango with someone who could do that?" Madeline approached the two of them and asked, "Who is after who now?" The two lemmings jumped a bit and turned to face the grey cat that had walked up behind them. "Great Scott! Don't give us a heart attack like that. We've already tried giving ourselves a couple of them in the past. We've been better about it though. What was that you said?" "I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were so jumpy. I asked about who is after who from Sunroost." The other lemming sighed and brushed a paw across his brow. "That's a relief that you aren't here to rob us. I met up with my friend Digory here, and while I was in Sunroost I heard talk about someone looking for a mongoose. They were wearing a cloak when I saw them. I didn't see a face. They were a mysterious character walking through the town." Storm had caught up in time to hear the part about this person looking for a mongoose. "What's this about a mongoose?" He asked Madeline. She replied, "This lemming told me about someone in Sunroost asking about a mongoose." Digory was snickering as Roger poked Madeline in her knee, which was his chest level. "I have a name, and that name be Roger. I'd like it very much to have it used." "Sorry Roger." Serena bent down a little and waved at the two lemmings. "You two are so cute!" A nerve twitched in Digory's forehead and he threw a small rock at Serena hitting her right between her eyes. She reeled back trying to look at where the rock hit her. "AUGH! He hit me with a rock!" The lemming crossed his arms. "We're not cute. Well Roger is, but I'm handsome. Not cute. Get it girly?" "Why you little dust ball!" Seamus held onto her and pulled her back from getting to Digory and said, "We'll move on ahead. Meet us when you've found out everything from Roger and Digory." Serena had smoke coming out of her ears, literally, as Seamus pulled her away. Madeline and Storm returned their attention to the two lemmings. "Is that all you know about this person?" She asked Roger. He nodded, "That's all I know about. If you want to know more, feel free to walk to Sunroost." "That's alright Roger. We've been their already and we plan on moving on to another town." Storm and Madeline thanked the two friends and went to catch up with their friends. "You know Roger. I think that was the mongoose that person is looking for." "Don't be daft Digory. He was obviously an otter." Digory used a small ladle to give a quick rap on Roger's head. "Otters have sleeker fur dingy eyes. His was…fluffy."
Serena had calmed down and smoke had ceased rising from her ears. Seamus somehow missed the spectacle of seeing actual smoke appear from nowhere. "I guess that was the only they had to say about whoever it is that is looking for Storm." Madeline nodded, "I wonder who is looking for Storm." "I bet it's that Ragha character." Storm said resolutely. Serena piped in, "I'd have to disagree with that statement. Why would he look in the town when he gave us a welcoming gift in Sunroost and followed up with that forest after party?" "I can vouch for the welcome gift and for throwing some junine around." Seamus added. They continued to walk on reading maps they brought as they searched for the next town. "It's out of the way, but I'd like to see Verona's capital, Verona Isle. I hear they have all sorts of fancy technology and gadgets." Serena said while reading the little snippet below the section header. We'll get there eventually, but we don't want to miss any elementalists that may be in between here and there." Storm said. Serena frowned a bit, but brightened up when she noticed that Storm didn't object to going there at all. The four of them continued to walk along the path as they headed for the next town on their map, and occasionally commented on some of the scenery or how far they were, which was mainly from Serena.
Morgan had her cloak off as she walked past Digory and Roger while they were sitting in some shade a few yards from where Madeline spoke to them. She waved as she passed, and continued to chase after her target. Without her cloak she wore a white shirt with a lightweight, light purple shirt underneath. Her twin skirts rippled in the wind when it happened to come up. She left her dark brown hair to hang down in the wind. Morgan left the path and found a shallow river embankment where she could rest for a bit. The silver mongoose set her pack down and pulled off her shoes. The cool waters flowed over her feet as she readjusted the violet and dark grey skirts. She leaned back on her arms and listened to the water roll over the pebble bottom and lap at her ankles. "Hello there. Who are you?" Morgan jumped up and looked around for the owner of the voice. "Where are you?" She asked ready to jump the person if they meant harm. "I'm right here. My name is Robin." A chickadee glided out from a tree and landed next to Morgan. "I saw you stop here, and I was curious to who would be here." Morgan returned to where she was sitting. "Sorry for being so abrupt Robin. My name is Morgan. It's nice to meet you." Robin walked over to a rock and sat down. She wore a red shirt with tan bell-bottomed pants and had her feathers kept in order with a folded headband with four feathers going down from her head and six smaller ones that went to the sides in front. "That's fine. I'm used to just going here and there. I meet people every so often, but usually stay to just me and my pack of stuff." She patted a brown backpack she had set down next to the rock. "Where have you been Robin?" The chickadee looked up at the mongoose. "I've been everywhere it seems. I've stopped in Sunroost, Verona Isle, Thunder Gulley, Highpeak, and many more. Being able to fly and walk has its advantages. What about you?" "I haven't travelled a lot. I've been to Oaktree, Sunroost, and Gierdëlien. I haven't been anywhere else." Robin nearly fell into the river, but managed to land on the bank and remain dry. "You've been to Gierdëlien?!" Morgan was surprised at the chickadee's response. "Yes I have. I was there ten years ago, but I haven't been there since. It was after going to Gierdëlien that I went to Oaktree for a day. I had an errand to run there." Robin crossed her arms at Morgan's last statement. "Unless you're twenty-seven and still look this good, you would have been six or seven then. What kind of seven year old runs an errand?" "Well…" Morgan wasn't sure if she could trust this person, who just showed up, with information like that. She thought of a small lie to satisfy the curious chickadee. "It wasn't a big errand. My father had me pick out a few flowers from a stand. Otherwise, I was with my parents while in Oaktree." Robin repositioned herself on top of the rock after her mishap of almost falling in the river. "My dad and mom travel a lot. We see each other when we meet up for a few days every season. Otherwise, we're all off travelling. I don't mind it much, since we all don't tolerate each other's company for more than when meet up." Morgan laid down on her back with her hands behind her head. Robin looked at the silver mongoose lying out next to the water and pressed her fingers together. The chickadee broke the silence, "Hey Morgan." The mongoose opened an eye. "Hmm?" "I know I just met you, but I was wondering if I'd be able to tag along with you. I may travel a lot, but I'd like to have a travel buddy." Morgan stayed quiet as she considered what the chickadee was asking. "I guess it wouldn't hurt, but to be fair; if you end up being a thief, I won't give a second thought about hitting you over the head." "That sounds fair." Robin responded. Morgan pulled her feet out of the water and dried them off on the grass. She slipped her shoes back on and went over to her pack. "Come on Robin," She started, "It's almost night time, and I'd like to catch up with my target." Robin jumped off of the rock and caught up with the silver mongoose. "What do you mean target? Are you some sort of bounty hunter or something?" Morgan shook her head. "I'm not a bounty hunter. I've been tracking him for a couple days now from Oaktree, and I'm closing in on him." Robin followed her along the path all the while wondering who this person was.
The sun was dipping beneath the horizon allowing the moon to show off among the stars. The four travelers broke off from the main path and found a clearing that wasn't too far from the path, but was hidden from view. Seamus came back from his scouting excursion and began putting his tent up. "There's a river about four yards from here. It's a shame we didn't find any elementalists in that small village back there. It was neat to find people that had been part of a branch, but they didn't receive any powers." Storm hit a tent stake into the ground with a rock before saying, "That is cool. I didn't expect anyone to be an elementalist in that village; though, it was so small." They ate a little from their packs, but they retired to their beds early in order to get back on track with sleep. Storm closed the tent flap and crawled over to his blanket while Madeline was already under hers. "Storm, I want to ask you something." He settled down and pulled the blanket up over himself. "Shoot." Madeline swallowed and gathered her confidence. "To what extent… how much… do you…" "Are you trying to ask if I love you?" He said in order to try and help her. Madeline sighed with relief, "Yes. That's what I was trying to ask." She flipped over to face him. She glared at some bangs that fell in her face and brushed them back. Storm was looking at the tent roof, but looked at Madeline after thinking about how to put his answer. "I do love you Madeline. I have been trying to find a way to say that to you, but you beat me to it." Madeline asked, "Do you mean it?" He nodded. "I meant each word. You're the one that welcomed me to a new place, and we've grown up together. In later years I figured out I loved you. When we were little; though, you were my best friend. Now come over here you." He held his right arm and Madeline scooted over to lay next him. He wrapped his free arm over the top of her and closed his eyes waiting to fall asleep. Madeline snuggled in closer and placed a hand on Storm's as she waited for sleep too.
Morgan and Robin watched from a bush that was on the outskirts of the camp. Morgan asked Robin to quietly fly over the camp to locate Storm. "What's your plan now that everyone is asleep?" The silver mongoose pulled a black robe over her top, and adjusted it as it fell in place. "I'm going to go and wake him up. You're welcome to tag along if you are quiet as you can be." Robin nodded, and set her backpack down next to Morgan's. The two of them moved around the bush and closed in quietly on the sleeping travelers. They reached Storm's tent without noticing any major disturbances. Morgan slowly opened the tent flap at Storm's and Madeline's heads. She gave it Robin and motioned for her to hold it. Morgan didn't notice Madeline under Storm's arm, and placed a hand over Storm's mouth, but accidentally brushed by Madeline's ear. "Storm what is-" The grey cat looked up to see two piercing amethyst eyes wide with fear looking into hers. Madeline cried out, "STORM!" Morgan pulled her hand back and stumbled backwards, and Robin jumped away. Storm jolted awake and stared at Morgan. "Take this bandit!" He sent a lightning bolt at his "adversary", but Morgan summoned a psychic wall, which deflected the bolt. The diversion allowed Storm to get out of the tent, and draw his knives. Morgan was pinned against a tree and saw that Robin was in the same position except Seamus and Serena had her surrounded. Madeline walked over to where Storm had Morgan pinned against the elm. "Who are you, and why are you looking for me?" Morgan placed a hand on the dagger, and lowered it from her face. "My name?" She asked. "Yes your name. What is it?" He said again not letting his guard down. Morgan regained her original composure and stepped forward, which forced Storm to step back. She spoke out clearly, which caught everyone's attention, "My name is Morgan Vairehëim, the daughter of William J. Caeruleo and Jess L. Caeruleo. Your sister."