Chapter 94 Sacred Creature

Chapter 94 Sacred Creature
Perrin had dropped his map and was now holding his spear with both hands. The two Assassins ran up to him, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary at first. They knew something must be wrong, though, because the young man was shaking and backing up.

Zorrik and Ra'Jeem stood on either side of him, hands on hilts, but didn't draw their weapons. Suddenly, the Disciple Assassin let out a gasp and nodded toward the undergrowth just off the road.

Zorrik followed his line of sight and saw something move, ever so slightly. It was almost the same color as the grass and leaves that were shaded by the canopy above. Whatever it was, he could tell it was large and appeared to be lying in wait. He nodded for Ra'Jeem to unsheath his scimitar, and he did the same with his dagger.

As if sensing that it wasn't going to ambush an easy meal this time, the creature came out of the jungle and onto the road. All three of them backed up a step at the sight. It was a reptile of some kind, but nothing like any of them could remember seeing. Its back legs were muscular, and its tail had to be at least two meters long. The front legs were longer than the back ones, allowing its wide, snake-like head easy access to the men's midsections.

"What the hell is that thing?" Perrin screeched and backed up into the Assassins.

The creature opened its mouth and hissed at them. It was a loud, gurgling sound, as if it were used to spending most of its time in the water. A lengthy forked tongue shot out of its mouth, and then it started walking forward. It didn't move very fast, but they figured it didn't have to.

Perrin held up the spear, but didn't throw it. He made stabbing motions instead, but the creature was undeterred. When the young man managed to strike it, the action only seemed to anger it, and its hiss turned into a growl. The three of them had no choice but to continue backing up, so Perrin took a breath and prepared to throw the spear the next time the creature opened its mouth.

Zorrik had been watching the exchange, while his mind strategized the best way to get out of this situation alive. He knew the animal's skin would be thick, probably too thick for his knife or the spear. He was about to nod at Ra'Jeem to try with the scimitar when another rush of memories flooded his mind. It was enough to make him stumble, but he caught himself before he could fall. He looked over at Perrin, who was readying his spear to throw into the hissing reptile's mouth.

"Wait!" he screamed.

Perrin turned his head in surprise, but then quickly turned it back.

"I thought you wanted me to use the spear to defend myself?" he said, frantically.

"I do," Zorrik insisted.

"Well..."

"But we can't kill it!"

"What?" Perrin said in disbelief.

At this point, the creature had stopped, almost as if it was confused by what was going on. Even Ra'Jeem was staring at Zorrik like he was insane.

"Zorrik?" he asked.

"It's sacred to the Zytherians," he answered.

Perrin let out a sigh so deep his entire body seemed to deflate. "You know how much I love culture," he said, "but what are we supposed to do then?"

"He has a point," Ra'Jeem agreed. "I don't think we should let it eat us out of respect."

Zorrik held up his hands. "Just...give me a second." He thought back, trying to order his thoughts. After a few moments, he nodded and took a deep calming breath. The creature seemed to have grown bored with their discussion and was hissing at them again. The Master Assassin walked around his companions, though, and moved toward the angry creature.

Ra'Jeem whispered his name, but Zorrik gestured for him to stay quiet. Then he began to sing. Ra'Jeem recognized it as the same lullaby his Master had played for him months ago, when they were still getting to know each other.

Zorrik carefully continued to step forward, drawing the reptile's attention away from Ra'Jeem and Perrin and their weapons. He slipped his dagger back into its sheath, and he could feel his Mate's warning stare boring into the back of his head. He ignored it, though, and sidestepped away from the creature's head. He continued to sing, and slowly it closed its mouth. It still watched him, but seemed less hostile.

"It's working," Perrin said, both surprised and impressed. When Ra'Jeem only nodded, he added, "How?"

"I don't know," the Disciple admitted. "I've never seen anything like it. Though I suppose it's not much different than soothing a Lomai."

"I've never had a Lomai try to eat me," Perrin quipped.

"I suppose not," Ra'Jeem said with a sideways grin.

It was at that point that they realized the singing had stopped. Ra'Jeem hissed over at Zorrik, but the Master Assassin only threw up his hands.

"I don't remember the rest of the words," he hissed back.

"What?" Perrin exclaimed again.

Ra'Jeem swore under his breath and readied his scimitar again as the creature began to advance on Zorrik. He ran forward, ready to strike, when suddenly, the jungle around them was full of rustling underbrush and the sound of humming. He lowered his weapon as, one by one, people began to emerge from the trees. They were all humming, and soon the sound filled the road. Then, in unison, they began to sing the same lullaby Zorrik had sung.

The Master Assassin stepped over to his Mate, and the two of them watched in awe. At first, they couldn't take their eyes off the people. Ra'Jeem had never seen so much bronzed skin in his life, not even in the Imperial City. It was as if the sun had a special relationship with these people. Covering their skin were tattoos of all shapes and sizes, jewelry made of shells, rope, and precious stones, and loose, flowing robes. Their hair, in shades of gray and black, was tied up like his and Zorrik's, and though their eyes all had his Master's shimmer, some of them were brilliant blue, emerald green, and even a few that looked lavender.

Finally, the Assassins turned their attention back to the reptile and were surprised to see that it had gone fast asleep. They watched as the people covered it in flower petals, and then one of them stepped over to them and Perrin.

She was shorter than Zorrik, but carried a presence. Unlike the others, her hair stood out around her head. Her eyes were the same amber as Zorrik's, and she looked him over, briefly, before addressing all three.

"We welcome you to Zytherion," she said.