Dragonfly

A rite of passage...

The dragonflies hovered about the pond, buzzing their holy song, while Ephrem stood at its bank thinking through the circumstances that brought him to this place. It was full of power, subtle and simple, infusing the air with a dizziness that clouded Ephrem's judgement for a moment while his mind found its bearings and allowed him to focus on the important business at hand. A large, green lizard plowed through the brush, stopping for a moment on the path behind him. Glancing his way, it seemed to give him a bare nod of its head before lumbering into the brush on the other side. Ephrem watched for a few moments as the lizard made its way through the brush, leaving a loud rustling in its wake as the tall grasses and small trees bent away from it almost out of respect. Then the rustling stopped, and his attention once again turned to the clear, greenish water of the pond, the dragonflies buzzing, and the hand-sized water spiders that skimmed across the surface searching for prey.

In the sky overhead, harpy eagles circled the valley, their eyes scouring the ground. Ephrem knew they were far up in the sky, their eight foot wingspans barely visible in the cloudless sky. One eagle broke from the rest, rushing the ground like lightening, and came away with an unfortunate rabbit wriggling in its giant paw. The harpy sped west toward the taller of the two mountain ranges which surrounded the valley. Two others gave chase, hoping to steal a meal. Their cries as they approached the lead bird echoed a chilling rhythm through the glade, bouncing off the surface of the pond and surrounding Ephrem as if in warning. He chuckled a bit, nervously acknowledging the dangers he faced. He took in the feel of the place, at once exhilarating and enervating, and breathed in several deep breaths to steady himself. He set aside the weapons he'd brought with him: a short bow, a quiver with twelve arrows neatly farrowed, a short, flat sword razor sharp, a leather whip, and his small shield with the red harpy eagle crest surrounded by pewter and fringed with freshly polished brass.

At seventeen, Ephrem was tall with short sandy blond hair, hazel eyes, and a deeply tanned body that was deceptively lean. He removed his shirt, stopping for a moment to watch another harpy eagle hunt. This one missed its target, shrieked its frustration, and took its place alongside its companions in the sky. As he sat down to take his boots off, he laid his last weapon beside him on the path. It was a seven inch dagger with a red marble handle, grooved and roughened for grip, sheathed over a brass rod and butt. The brass extended to form the core of the blade, but blended seamlessly into the steel, forming a single thin line running down the center of the blade from its quillion to where it stopped about two inches short of the tip. It would be the only thing he would take with him as he entered the pool. He removed the rest of his clothes and stood, his dagger firmly gripped in his left hand.

He had to make his decision now. Either move forward into the depths or turn back. No one would think less of him if he grabbed his gear and went home. There would be no taunts from his friends or disapproval from his father. He was young to take this trial, but not unusually so. Many had gone before, and many would come after. But if he did turn back, he risked losing his place among his people. No chance of that, he thought, then placed the dagger grip between his teeth and strode into the pond. The dragonflies and eagles, spiders and snakes, lizards and insects, and all the denizens of this magical place seemed to stop and watch his progress until his body disappeared beneath the surface, circling once around the rim of the pool's bottom, rising one last time to breath deeply, and then diving swiftly into the mouth of a small cave which stretched out from the pool's rocky depth like a hollow, blind arm reaching for nothing.

The darkness disoriented him, so he slowed for a moment to find the edge. It felt like moss covered mud. He grabbed a bit in his right hand, carefully removed the dagger from his mouth, and rubbed a bit of the mossy substance along the center of its blade. Immediately it burst to life, lighting the cave so completely that the teen was startled and had to squint a bit until his eyes adjusted. But he began losing breath. So he moved quickly, but effortlessly, through the water.

He felt peaceful, perfectly at home here though the cave was dark and cramped, and the water too cool to be comfortable. This was the magic working on him, he knew. As he glided through the water the contentment he felt settled a little too easily on him, the peace a little too peacefully. He quickened his pace, moving further into the arm of the cave for what seemed to be several minutes. He knew that couldn't be true or he would have drowned by now. But his lungs were straining for air, tightening just enough to let him know had to find an air pocket soon or he would drown.

Up ahead, the cave rose sharply and, as he swam upward, he noticed two symbols seemingly drawn into the roof of the cave. One was a white circle with four dots forming a square within it, the symbol for air. The other was a red "X" with a green line across its axis, the symbol for poison. A solid wall separated the two symbols, stopping about three feet short of the cave bottom. He tread water beneath them for only a brief moment before heading toward the white circle. His lungs were bursting now, he had to have air. But as he approached the circle, the dagger between his teeth began to heat up quickly, and he pulled back away from it as if punched. The "X" was the only option left, and he strained for it before he filled his lungs with water. He burst through the surface into a shallow, long air pocket, moving so swiftly that he hit his head against the roof of the cave. His dagger came loose and dropped to the bottom like a rock. The air was damp and stale, but Ephrem gulped it down for several minutes, resting to let his body energize for the rest of his swim. Then he noticed the light in the room beginning to wane.

He dove down and quickly found the dagger. After coming back up to the air pocket one last time, he swam forward, replenishing his dagger with the illuminating substance.

He found three more pockets of air in the same fashion. The same symbols drawn onto the the cave ceiling; the same short, solid wall separating them. The air was always stale, but breathable. After he left the fourth air pocket and passed beneath the separating wall, however, something changed. The separating wall slammed into the cave bottom, cutting off his path back out. In his ears, he heard a rushing sound, like strong winds through trees. Then a current hit him squarely across his torso and carried him dozens of feet up a shaft in the ceiling. Just as it seemed the current would smash him against the rocks above him, another current caught him and pushed him hard to his left. The pressure almost caused his lungs to empty. Moments later, the swift current emptied out into a large open space. Ephrem tumbled over twice before smacking the surface of an underground lake with his back. The dagger spit from his mouth, and he had to dive quickly to catch it before it disappeared into the depths of the lake.

He was exhausted. Treading water caused his muscles to burn, and he couldn't seem to catch his breath. He held the dagger high over his head, but could see nothing around him but darkness, cold and black. For the first time that day, he didn't know what to do. He was trapped. The gushing waterfall gave him a reference point. So he swam back toward it, hoping to find a shore or a wall, something solid he could hold onto and give his aching muscles a rest. As he approached the waterfall's perimeter, the light from his dagger gleamed on a wall of solid rock. He reached along it and found a small ledge. Lifting himself out of the water, he was relieved to find the air warm and fresh. But the glow of his dagger went out.

***

Above the surface of the earth, flying in synchronization, the dragonflies continued their buzzing song. They dashed across the pond, from water's edge to water's edge, moving in figure eights that crossed in the center of the pond. From above, their kaleidoscopic movement mesmerized. This movement gained speed with each revolution of eights until the buzzing of their wings drowned out the sounds of the valley and their blurred figures formed perfectly elliptical lines of infinity. Then, each of the 21 dragonflies speared headlong into the pond and morphed into human form upon touching the water's surface. With a fierce grace and stunning speed, they chased along the same small, hollow arm Ephrem had entered a few hours earlier. They glided seamlessly through the water, propelled by something unseen and unknown by humans. Their path wound away from the one he'd taken. These underground passages were well known to them, and they had no need of air. So, they reached the underground lake quickly and headed for the rocky cliff from which the waterfall gushed its water into the lake.

By now, the boy lay in utter darkness, his body shivering slightly. He'd remained on the ledge, afraid to move since he had lost the light. Just then, a calm voice spoke out of the darkness. He tensed as he listened.

"Why are you afraid, boy? The danger lies on the far shore. We'll see you safely home if you choose." It was a male voice that spoke. Ephrem hesitated a moment before answering.

"How many others are there?" He heard other figures in the water, but couldn't make out their number.

"There are 21 of us in total. Will you continue or do you choose to go home?" The voice was not impatient, but merely needed an answer quickly.

Ephrem's eyes had adjusted a bit to the dark, enough so he saw a pin prick of light shining in the distance. He must have missed it as the light from his dagger shielded his eyes in much the same way as a campfire might shield one from a distant torch. He had come too far to let fear turn him back.

"You would honor me, Shifter, if you and your companions would go with me across the lake."

"We cannot, but will meet you there." With that word, the Shifters dove under the water and moved silently away, leaving Ephrem to swim the lake alone.

His swim was uneventful, but long. The muscles in his arms and legs balked as he neared the far shore and pulled himself from the water. As he did so, the water slipped away from his skin, leaving him perfectly dry. And puzzled.

No one was there to greet him, only a single torch and a large stone door. Set into the door were four wheels, each with symbols on them. It seemed their surfaces could be rolled downward, or upward, into the wall, revealing new symbols. For now, they simply read "?", "R", "Q", "T". He thought for a few minutes before testing them.

His first try was to place his hand, palm up, at the bottom of the first wheel and attempt to spin it upward. It didn't budge. He knew puzzles like this could be both a trap and a test. One he didn't know the answer to. He thought about the symbols for "journey", but none of them appeared to be present on the wheels. He made sure by spinning the first wheel downward to see if the first symbol, "<", showed up. The wheel spun all the way around, revealing a "!", "5", "T", "X", "Y", and the original "?". As the wheel stopped on its first revolution, a few pebbles fell from the ceiling across Ephrem's shoulder. They didn't hurt him, but were an excellent warning to think smartly before acting. The symbols for manhood made no sense, they were only two, but there were four wheels. The symbols for "rite" were four in number, and included the symbol "5", but that word didn't seem correct either. As far as he knew, there would be no rites or ceremonies. Then it came to him; the word had to be "passage". Nothing else fit, and this was a passage of sorts. In his excitement, he spun the first wheel to its "X" position; doing the same with the second wheel, another "X". On the other side of the door, he could hear a horn, faintly resounding through the rock. It took his attention away from the third wheel, and he missed his target, overshooting the third "X". He gasped as a rumbling came from overhead, as if rushing toward him, and the rock above began to give way. He jumped backward and stumbled on the ledge, falling into the water. He was saved by dumb luck.

When he resurfaced, he could see the dirt, rock and sediment piled up in front of the door. It filled the ledge, even spilling into the lake itself. Dust choked him as the air filled with the last puffs of earth coming from the ceiling. He pulled himself back onto the ledge and began to dig the pile away from the door. When he reached the wheels once again, they had reset to their original position. This time, he shut everything out of his mind, focusing only on the wheels, ignoring the horn that sounded as he formed the word "passage"-"X", "X", "X", "Y".

The horn sounded once again, this time echoing across the lake as the door split in half, revealing two doors pushing inward, opening up to a large, brightly illuminated room. Before him was a 25 yard long path leading to a circular stone island that had to be at least 100 yards in diameter. The Shifters ringed the edges of island, spaced perfectly along the greenish clear pool that surrounded the entire room. The center of the island fell into a square pit that Ephrem judged to be about 20 yards across and 20 yards deep. One of its corners pointed toward the path so that it appeared to be a diamond shape from his perspective. Seated on a stool at the opposite corner of the pit and dressed in black, sat a thin, bald Shifter, back straight, head held imperiously high, holding a ten foot long staff in his right hand. He stared deeply into Ephrem for a moment and spoke.

"Clothe yourself!"

The ferocity with which he said it startled Ephrem, and he realized he was the only one in the room still naked. He reached down and put on the clothes left for him-a white tunic and pants with a red belt.

"Come to the end of the path, but do not step on the island."

Ephrem did as he was told. He walked to end of the of the path and knelt on one knee, his faced looking straight forward as if staring at a wall, and placed his dagger at his right side, pointed toward the door. The Shifter walked around the pit and approached him, looking hard and tough, his stare deeply penetrating Ephrem once again.

"What gives you the right to come here?"

"The right of passage." Ephrem made his reply calmly, evenly.

"The rite of passage? There will be no rites here, no ceremonies. Once again, what gives you the right to be here?"

Ephrem flustered, "I meant--"

"You meant what, boy? You meant to come before the Shifters to be tested? Is that what you meant?"

"It is our way, yes."

"Suppose I choose not to test you. Suppose I kill you and feed you to the lake. What would keep me from doing that?"

"You are merciful." Ephrem barely spoke the words when the Shifter's hand struck him hard across the side of his face, drawing blood from his upper lip and nose. Ephrem continued to kneel, not wavering. At least not wavering much.

"Does that seem like mercy to you! Go back to the valley if want mercy! Crawl back to your people and tell them you came all this way looking for mercy, but found none!" He struck Ephrem again, this second blow sending him tumbling to the edge of the path. Instinct overtook him, and he jumped to his feet, snatching the dagger in his left hand and turned to face the Shifter again, ready to strike if another blow came.

"What, no more cries for mercy? Good. You'll need that fire in the pit." He chuckled while gesturing his staff, calling the Shifters on either side of Ephrem. They grabbed him firmly and threw him into the pit. It was a ten foot fall, but the ground was soft. He rolled twice and stood looking a cage door. Behind it paced an angry, four foot long green lizard. It spied him quickly and hissed, trying to claw its way through the door.

The Shifter raised the staff horizontally over his head and nodded for the gate to be opened.

The lizard lunged forward, striking Ephrem with a claw that ripped a gash into his right shoulder. Ephrem shifted his feet and leveraged himself against the powerful reptile as it passed him, tossing it into the wall a few feet away. The lizard dazed as its head struck the hard stone, but recovered quickly. Ephrem struck out with his dagger, forcing the lizard to stand its ground, then brought his left leg up hard, catching the lizard under its chin and sending it reeling once again. This bought him enough time to put some distance between him and his attacker.

The lizard growled angrily and stood on its hind legs, leaned back on its tail and shot itself like an arrow at Ephrem's torso. It didn't miss. Ephrem let out a grunt as the creature buried its head into his stomach. He barely had time to fall down before the lizard raised up again, opening its jaws wide. From his back, he caught its midsection with his feet and pushed with all his strength, tossing the it to the left. It rolled once and stopped itself by burying its massive claws in the dirt and steadying its muscled frame. Ephrem vomited blood onto the ground as he rolled to his feet and stood coughing and wheezing.

For a brief second the two opponents faced each other. Then the lizard let out another growling hiss, causing Ephrem's ears to ring. It launched headlong toward the wall near him, grabbing and clawing its way along the smooth stone until it sprung for his head, jaws gaping. Again, Ephrem ducked quickly enough to avoid death, but too slowly to avoid the reptile's three inch claws. This one sliced a neat cut across his neck, barely missing his jugular.

For a moment, he wavered. The day had been long, and it seemed as if the last bit of strength his body possessed was about to drain from him onto the soft dirt of the pit. He stumbled to his knees. The lizard, long and green, rose up one last time, sensing the desperation of its opponent. It hissed loudly and leaned back on its tail for one final blow. That's when Ephrem saw it. Tucked beneath the lizard's left foreleg just where it met its torso was a large, yellow lemon tick, a parasite that drove its host mad with rage. When the lizard finally lunged at him, Ephrem lunged right and brought his dagger across the reptile's torso and with one flick of his wrist, plucked the lemon tick from its perch. When it landed on the ground, the lizard breathed heavily and lay prone. Ephrem rose to his feet and pierced the tick through with the point of his dagger.

"Kill it! Now is your chance! The dragon is defeated! All you must do now is finish it!"

Ephrem turned and looked the Shifter directly in the eyes. He was through fighting for the day. So he tossed dagger into the soft floor.

"I didn't come here to look for mercy, Shifter. I came to bring it. I won't kill today."

The Shifter smiled widely and brought the staff down hard onto his left kneee, snapping it into two even pieces. He tossed one five foot length down into the pit at Ephrem's feet.

"Then this is yours. Make what you will of it."

Those were the last words he heard before Ephrem succumbed to his exhaustion and passed out.

 

Author's Note

Please offer your suggestions and honest critique.