The Pilgrims of Rayne

IBARA

I was struck by the quiet.

It’s not often you can say that quiet has such an impact. It didn’t seem to bother the Jakills, though. From the moment we saw the city, they were over the moon with excitement. (Assuming that Ibara has a moon, that is.) For years they had spoken in secret whispers about what might lie beyond the shores of their island. They met in the jungle to wonder and plan. They were so driven by their hunger for the truth, they were willing to become outcasts among their own people to find it.

Their long-planned search was about to come to an end in a place called “Rubity.”

Those who weren’t manning the sails or below tending to the engines were eagerly leaning over the rails as if those few extra inches would get them a better view of this wondrous city. At first there was nothing but enthusiasm. As we sailed closer, their emotions were less obvious. Looking at their faces, I could guess why. I felt it too. Maybe not as strongly as the Jakills, but I felt it. There was still excitement of course. but there was also worry. What if the reality of Ibara turned out to be dismal? That would be bad enough, but it would mean that learning the truth wasn’t worth the sacrifices they had made. Nobody spoke. Nobody laughed. Nobody speculated on what it was they were seeing. They all silently kept inside their own heads. One way or another, their lives were about to change. I could only hope that their dreams wouldn’t turn into nightmares.

“A pier!” Loque shouted from the bow. “We can tie up there!” He pointed off the starboard bow to what looked like a low structure built out onto the water. It looked like a few other ships were tied up as well. It was as good a place as any for us to aim for. Siry made a slight course adjustment and we glided toward the pier.

For me, the real show was about to begin. I felt as if we were growing closer to Saint Dane. This may sound weird, but the odd quiet of this city made me think of him. Maybe it was because something felt off. The others didn’t know what to expect from a city, but I did, and I knew something wasn’t right. At first we were too far away to hear anything more specific than a wall of city white noise. We never hit that wall. I listened for random honking car horns, shouts, sirens, music… anything! There was nothing but the lonely, hollow sound of wind blowing through the canyons of buildings.

Siry gave the wheel to Loque and took me aside. “Okay, Traveler,” he whispered. “What do you think of this?”

“It’s a city,” I said. “Think of Rayne, times a few thousand. No biggie.”

That seemed to relax Siry. It wouldn’t last.

“But something’s odd,” I added. “It’s too quiet. Cities are cities because they’re loaded with people and activity. I don’t hear any of that.”

Siry listened for a moment, and frowned. “I don’t know what I’m listening for.”

“Life,” I answered. “If you get that many people together in one place, they’re going to make noise. Rayne is louder than this.”

Siry looked at the buildings that were now growing to the size of skyscrapers. It looked like any city you’d see on Second Earth. Nothing unusual… except for the silence. Siry went back to the wheel, saying to Loque, “I’ll bring us in.”

Loque nodded and called out to the others, “Docking party! With me!”

Five of the Jakills left their vantage points by the rail to join Loque and prepare to tie up the ship at the pier. I wandered back to the bow of our ship and took another look at the looming city scape. My eye caught something that seemed a little off. We were still pretty far away so I couldn’t tell for sure. I had to wait patiently, watching, knowing the closer we got, the more clear it would become.

I glanced down at the water. It was just as green and sparkling as back on the island. Below the surface I was able to make out shapes. At first I thought I was looking at rocks. Or maybe a reef. But as the water grew more shallow, reality became clear. Literally. There were ships down there. Wrecks. A lot of them. They were big, too. It was hard to tell for sure, because I didn’t know how deep it was, but some of these sunken ships looked huge. I’m talking ocean-liner huge! We passed over the decks of several wrecks of all sizes. The water was clear enough to see the difference between pleasure boats and others that looked like working boats or freighters. We passed over one monstrous shadow that was definitely an ocean liner. I could tell because toward the tail was the faint blue color of a swimming pool. I got the chills. I was looking down on a graveyard of sunken ships.

I flashed a look back to the buildings. As we grew closer, the truth was slowly emerging. The buildings were no more alive than the ships below the water. I could make out detail. The structures were scarred and pitted. There was more broken glass than intact windows. Some buildings had huge chunks taken out of them. I couldn’t tell if the gashes were a result of some kind of attack or simply rotting away. I looked up one wide street between buildings to see that an entire, huge building had crashed and crumbled there. The wide boulevard was totally blocked by the massive hulk of this toppled skyscraper. The ground was mostly covered with rubble. There were massive piles of broken cement and twisted steel. It all had a strange, magical sparkle that was kind of pretty, until I realized the sparkling came from light reflected off tons of shattered glass. There were cars, too. Lots of them. Many were buried, their headlights peeking out as if trying to get a final glimpse of daylight.

The one thing I didn’t see was people.

Several Jakills lowered the mainsail. We relied on engine power to continue our slow journey toward the pier. I could now see the ships that were tied up. They looked to be military craft, not unlike the boat that the Flighters used to attack Rayne. These boats looked even worse for wear than the Flighters’ junker. Huge patches of rust had eaten through their hulls. I was surprised they were still floating. One was barely above water, with its stern dipped below the surface. It would only be a matter of time before it slipped down and joined the others in the underwater tomb.

Looking at the Jakills, I saw more confusion than concern.

They didn’t know what a city was supposed to look like. To them this was normal. Of course the big question was what happened? Why was the city empty? No, not just empty. Abandoned. Was there a war? The thought flashed that maybe there had been some kind of epidemic that wiped out the population, and we were about to be exposed. But whatever happened there, it wasn’t recent. This place had been dead for a long time.

I had to believe that if there was a nasty biological threat, it would have died off long ago. At least, that’s what I told myself.

Siry expertly guided the ship toward the pier. We gently bumped along our starboard side as Loque and the other Jakills jumped over the railing with ropes. There were large cleats that they used to tie us off. As the rest of the Jakills came up from below, Siry gathered the entire group by the bow.

“Pendragon says he’s seen places like this before,” he announced confidently. “It’s called a city.”

Rat boy asked, “Where did Pendragon see a city before?”

Everyone looked at me. How was I supposed to answer that?

“I’ve heard of places like this,” I said vaguely. “But I’ve heard they are busy places that are full of people. This city looks… looks-“

“Dead,” Loque said soberly.

All eyes turned to the city of rubble.

“Here’s the plan,” Siry said, sounding businesslike. “We’ll send a small party out to explore. The rest should stay here and guard the ship.”

“Against what?” rat boy asked. I really had to find out what his name was. Calling somebody “rat boy” wasn’t cool.

Siry answered, “There may be Flighters here.”

“Who’s going?” Twig asked.

“Me, Twig, and Loque,” Siry responded. “I’m going too,” I said.

Siry shot me a ticked look, as if I had stepped on his authority again. Too bad. I wasn’t about to hang out on that ship. I needed to learn about this city. I didn’t want to make this a power struggle, so I quickly said, “If there’s only a couple of you going, you might need protection.”

How weird was that? I was putting myself out there like some kind of enforcer. Or some kind of… Loor. Siry thought about it, then nodded.

“All right, Pendragon will come too.” He said this to the group as if it were his idea. I had no problem with that. He saved face and I was going on the scout. Siry addressed the group again. “Do not let anybody aboard. If anything happens to this ship…” He let the thought dangle. He didn’t need to finish. Nobody wanted to be stranded there. Every Jakill nodded in agreement.

Siry, Loque, Twig, and I prepared for our trip by each taking a wooden blowgun and a pouch with ten blow darts. I wasn’t sure if I’d be effective with the blowgun, seeing as I’d never tried it before. I figured the wooden weapon would be better used as a short club. I took the darts just the same, tucking the pouch and the weapon into the waist of my pants.

“We won’t be long,” Siry announced.

The four of us climbed over the railing and dropped down to the pier. The wood beneath our feet felt like squishy sponge.

“It’s rotten!” I called out. “Watch where you walk. You don’t want to put your foot through.”

We walked gingerly toward shore, mostly with our eyes down, to be sure we weren’t stepping on a plank that would splinter and plunge us into the water. Along the way we passed a few more of the military-looking gunboats. Up close these boats looked even worse. Their hulls were rusty. Their decks looked as rotten as the pier. I noticed something that made me a little nervous though. As bad as the boats looked, the large gun that was mounted near each of the bows, the same kind of gun that had fired on us off Rayne, looked pretty clean. It didn’t gleam or anything, but it looked to me like it might actually work. I tucked that thought away and kept moving.

We reached the beginning of the pier and stepped onto land. The first thing that caught my eye was a large street sign on the ground that was nearly buried in debris. At one time it was probably bright blue with large white letters. The color had long since faded. The letters had gone gray. But I could read it. There was a large arrow on top, under which it read: FOURTH STREET BRIDGE. I wondered if this was actually English, or my ability as a Traveler translated it for me.

The four of us stood together, silently taking in the remains of what was once a busy metropolis. To say it was a mess is an understatement. The city was in ruins. I was afraid a strong gust of wind might topple one of the huge structures down on top of us. It felt like a giant, fragile, city of cards.

“Let’s look around,” Siry said, a little less confidently than before.

We walked slowly through the rubble, our sandals crunching the debris. The area near the pier looked like it might have been open space at one time. Maybe it was a park or an area for ships to off-load cargo. Now it was a massive junkyard. Most of the rubble was just that-nondescript rubble. Every so often I’d see something that looked like what it had once been. I saw a suitcase, the skeleton of an umbrella, many bottles of different shapes and colors, even a few shoes. That was creepy. Empty shoes.

Twig took a deep sniff and said, “There’s nothing here that grows.”

“Really,” I agreed. “I think it’s been that way a long time.”

“How do you know that?” Siry asked.

“Because Twig’s right,” I answered. “There’s nothing organic here. We’re not seeing any life, but we’re not seeing any death, either.”

“What does that mean?” Loque asked.

“There’s no bones,” I answered glumly. “Everything organic has turned to dust. That doesn’t happen overnight.”

“What do you think happened?” Loque asked.

“Let’s try and find out.” I took the lead, making my way through a labyrinth of destruction. I scanned for the remains of an explosion or an earthquake or any other clue as to what might have happened. Nothing jumped out at me. It seemed like the only destructive force that had visited these buildings was time.

“We should go deeper,” I said. “Maybe into one of the buildings.”

“It all seems so fragile,” Loque said thoughtfully “Anybody want to turn back?” Siry asked. Nobody did. We walked on.

I lead the group toward the first line of tall buildings and the one street that looked fairly clear. Stepping past the first building was like walking into a canyon. The buildings on either side of us created giant walls that cut much of the light. It was a lot cooler in there because of that. We passed a few cars that were nothing more than skeletons of metal. The interiors had long since dissolved to dust.

Loque asked, “What should we be looking for?” He spoke softly, as if we were walking through a graveyard.

“Signs of life,” Siry answered.

We continued on, crossing a few streets, moving farther into the city. The ground level of the buildings looked like it once held shops. My curiosity said to go inside and check one out. My common sense told me it might be suicide. We passed block after desolate block with no clue as to what had happened. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The city was simply abandoned. I saw only one thing that didn’t quite fit. It was far ahead of us.

I couldn’t tell exactly how far, because there was a haze of dust in the air that made seeing long distances difficult. It looked like a black wall. Stranger still, the slope of the wall seemed to be at a forty-five degree angle to the street. All the buildings were more or less boxes with vertical or horizontal lines, making this black diagonal slash stand out. I didn’t understand why, but the sight of this black wall made me uneasy. I wanted to get there and find out what it was when Siry put on the brakes.

“Stop,” he ordered. “We’re getting too far away from the ship.”

“Just a little farther,” I suggested.

“No,” Siry said quickly. “There’s nothing here for us. We could search for hours and still find nothing.”

“What about your quest to discover the truth?” I asked. “We can’t turn back now.”

“We’re not turning back,” he bristled. “I’m thinking we came to the wrong place for the wrong reason. There’s nobody here. These buildings look ready to collapse. We don’t want our quest to begin and end here.”

Loque agreed. “The only reason we’re here is because it was the closest point on the map. Maybe we should sail up the coast.”

It was hard to argue with their logic, but I wanted to keep going. I kept staring over Siry’s shoulder at the distant black wall. What was it?

“I’m hungry,” Twig added. “We haven’t eaten since yesterday.”

“It’s true,” Loque added. “We need to find food and fresh water.”

“I have an idea,” Twig said with excitement. “Let’s sail back to Ibara, wait till dark, then send a small party to shore to steal supplies.”

Siry said, “And what if they start firing that weapon at us?”

“If they wanted to sink us, they would have yesterday,” Loque said. “Maybe Twig’s idea is a good one. I can swim to shore with a small group. Half of us can steal provisions while the others find a small boat and-“

“Wait,” I said abruptly. I had been half listening to their debate, but something Twig said finally sank in. “What did you say. Twig?”

She looked at me uncertainly. “I said maybe we should go home and steal some food.”

“No, I mean what did you say exactly?”

The three of them looked at me quizzically. They didn’t know where I was going with this. I wasn’t so sure either.

“I don’t understand,” Twig said.

“Where did you say we should sail to?”

“You mean Ibara?”

“Yes!” I exclaimed. “You said we should sail to Ibara.” “What’s the problem, Pendragon?” Siry asked. My pulse started to race. “Twig said we should sail back to Ibara. Why did she say that?”

“To get food,” Loque said impatiently.

“No! I mean why didn’t she say Rayne?”

The three again exchanged confused looks. Loque answered, “Because Ibara is the name of the island. What’s the problem?”

Now my mind was racing along with my pulse. I hoped there was an easy explanation for this.

“You call the island where Rayne is ‘Ibara’?” I asked.

“Yes!” Loque answered. “Ibara is the island, Rayne is our village. Didn’t you know that?”

Obviously not.

“Then what do you call everywhere else?”

Siry scoffed. Loque stared at me. Twig looked a little scared. To her this was crazy talk. I hoped she was right.

“What are you talking about, Pendragon?” Siry asked.

I felt as if I were about to hyperventilate. “This planet. This world. Whatever. The whole place, not just the island. Is there a name for it?”

Loque laughed, “Of course!”

“Is it Ibara?” I asked hopefully.

“Is this a game?” Loque replied. “Ibara is the name of our island.”

“Then what’s the name of this planet?” I screamed. Siry said, “I don’t know what game you’re playing, but-“

“Humor me!” I shouted. “What’s the name of this world? The whole world.”

Siry answered with one simple, shattering word. “Veelox.”

Nothing moved, though it sure seemed as if I’d been swept up into a tornado. It felt like the buildings around us were suddenly spinning. They weren’t of course. It was all in my head. That word hammered so hard, I nearly fell over. I could barely breathe.

“Veelox?” I managed to say in a small, pathetic voice. “Siry, the name of this territory is Veelox?”

Twig and Loque looked to each other, holding back nervous, confused giggles. As far as they were concerned, I was insane. At that moment I agreed with them. I felt insane. Siry frowned. I guess he didn’t like my reaction.

‘Are you all right?” he asked.

I couldn’t answer one way or the other. I guess that meant no.

“Rubity,” I stammered, thinking out loud. “It’s not Rubity. It’s Rubic City. This is Rubic City.” “Uh-oh,” Loque said. Yeah. Uh-oh. That’s one way of putting it. “What now?” Siry asked.

I lifted my eyes to Loque. He wasn’t giggling anymore. He looked dead serious. Any thought about crazy old Bobby Pendragon spinning out of control and ranting about the name of the planet was gone. He wasn’t even looking at me. He was looking past me to something that made him get real serious, real fast.

Holding back his emotion, he said, “We’re not alone.”

(CONTINUED)