16
Jake was waiting for them in the Great Hall.
I have some news that I believe explains the reason for the two eggs at the hatching grounds. My Lady, do you remember the last group to come in about a year and a half ago? It was a rather large group of people. There was among them a rather large man, big like Daniel and a very strange female with him. They had both been military fighters, and they brought quite a lot of weapons with them. She was very short with people; she did this to keep them away from her. She kept to herself, and only spoke to the man. I could not get a feel of her back then as she kept herself shut off. The man had a good heart, and obviously loved her; but there was no relationship between them.
What is this about Jake? Is there a problem? Kate asked.
Daniel asked: do I need to call the other riders Jake?
No, no my friends. The man and the female are in the hatching grounds. Queenie tells me that they are begging permission to go into the egg chamber. They can hear the little ones, and they are worried about them. I did finally get a glimpse of the female just now when I probed her. She can hear one of the eggs, my Lady, and she has a good heart. During the great wars with the insane ones, she was a victim of terrible, terrible abuse. The man saved her, and she stayed with him out of loyalty at first. Now, she cares for him a great deal, but does not know how to tell him. They both started to hear the little ones two nights ago.
I would like you both to go down there and be with them. They need to be properly instructed on what to do. I have told Queenie to hold them there till you arrive. My Lady, I believe you will be able to connect with the woman. Daniel, the man will understand you easily, he already respects you a great deal. Their names are Jackson, and Sarah.
Daniel and Kate headed to the hatching grounds at a fast pace. “I’ll go in first Kate, you come in behind me. We don’t know what we will be facing in there. Daniel told Queenie that he was on his way there. As they rounded the bend to the opening, Oreo came up the other side. She pranced inside, and Daniel was afraid that she might attack the two people. They went inside quickly.
The woman was on one knee petting Oreo’s head, the man behind her. Queenie was blocking the way to the egg chamber. Jake had filled her in on what was going on.
My Daniel, they will not hurt my children. I believe they can hear them. The woman was on her knees; I believe she was begging me to allow her to enter.
I’ll take it from here Queenie, he assured her.
“Jackson, Sarah, why are you here? It’s alright,” he held up his hands, “just tell us why you are here.”
Jackson spoke for them both, “we can hear these little voices. They have been calling us for two days now. We have to go to them Daniel, please don’t stop us.”
“Jake says that you are both good people. But there are things that you must know before you go in there. Are you both willing to listen?” Daniel said sternly.
“Yes, we’ll listen,” Jackson answered for them both, a little defiantly.
“The answer must come from each of you; Sarah, will you listen also?” Kate spoke in a gentle voice.
A very soft, “yes” was heard from Sarah. Kate saw that there were tears in her eyes.
Kate began to explain to them what they should do when they entered the chamber. She explained how to find their egg, how to talk to their egg. She told them about the electric charge they would feel, and also about the change that would take place in their bodies. She instructed them on how to care for their eggs; told them everything.
Daniel looked them both in the eye, “Do you still want to go in there?”
There were black markings on Sarah’s face and arms; camouflage to conceal her looks. She reached for the bandana around her head and removed it. She proceeded to wipe her face clean of the black goo. She looked at Jackson, smiled, and held out her hand. He took it and they both turned and walked toward the chamber.
Kate could see that she was really very pretty under all that coloring. She didn’t want to scare the little egg. Nice gesture, she thought to herself.
She and Daniel went to the entrance and watched them. They did as they were told, and the bonding took place. Kate noticed that the electric charge they both received was a rather large one. Daniel led Kate to the outer chamber and waited.
“This is really weird Kate, they have never joined in on anything with the other people, and they always stayed to themselves. I mean, they pulled their own weight sure, but they never got chummy with anyone.”
“I think that is all about to change Daniel.” Kate smiled and continued, “I think they are going to make quite a formidable pair.”
Two hours later they emerged from the chamber; and the difference was extraordinary. Jackson stood erect, not hunched over; he walked with more confidence; his physique was stronger, leaner. His face was radiant.
But the biggest change was in Sarah. Her sandy blonde hair was shoulder length now, her face shined with a glow of happiness. She was softer, the anger and fear was gone. There was confidence as she came right up to Kate.
“Thank you, thank you so much!” Tears were streaming down her radiant face as she hugged Kate, “he’s wonderful, no he’s more than that; I just can’t find the words. He was sent to save me, he told me so!”
Kate took her by the arms, “it’s okay Sarah, I know what you mean. It is hard to find the words. You both need to rest now. We’re going to take you to the mess hall first; you have to get some food into yourselves. Then you will need to rest; a lot of changes have taken place in your bodies.”
Daniel was telling Jackson the same thing. Jackson turned and stared at Sarah for a long time.
“Sarah, my God you’re so beautiful!”
“Jackson, I never noticed how handsome you were.”
They had both spoken at the same time.
Daniel and Kate looked at each other knowingly and smiled. This is going to be interesting my love,
Kate said. Daniel just grinned and nodded.
They led them out of the Hatching Grounds, down the mountain and into the mess hall. They were oblivious to their surroundings. They ate what was put in front of them, and drank lots of sweet tea. They spoke to each other in soft tones. Daniel could see the love that was there between them starting to blossom. He had them follow him out and he took them to their quarters. He left them alone after telling them to come see him and Kate when they woke up.
Inside their quarters, Jackson started to make his way to his sleeping area when Sarah stopped him. “Can we sleep together Jackson, I don’t want to be alone tonight,” she softly said.
“Of course Sarah,” he said as he took her gently in his arms and kissed her; then they climbed into bed, curled up next to each other and slept.
Over the next 6 weeks they became like two different people. The change in Sarah was nothing short of a miracle. She became more out going, joined in with the women on things that had to be done. She was cheerful, engaging, offering her help with a myriad of things. Kate could see that she was in love with Jackson. She caught her staring at him one day, and there was no doubt about that look.
Then one afternoon Sarah came to Kate. She told her about what had happened to her, and they both cried at the brutality that she had suffered. She explained that she loved Jackson, but she was unsure how to tell him. She still had a problem with someone touching her. Kate told her that she knew for a fact that Jackson loved her; she saw it every time he looked at her. She told her she needed to trust him, and take a chance on love. That she should tell him of her fears, and ask him to be gentle with her; he would understand.
Meanwhile, Jackson had spoken to Daniel. He told him about what had happened to her. She was a member of his military unit. After a particularly nasty battle, she had been separated from her group. She was taken prisoner by a band of marauders; she had been brutally tortured for any information she had; and then she had been tied down and raped at will. This had gone on for many weeks before he found her. After he rescued her it had taken a lot of patience and hard work for her to tolerate being around people. He believed she stayed with him out of gratitude, and because she felt safe with him.
But it all changed after they made contact with the eggs. She didn’t hide behind the camouflage paint any more. She seemed happier. She had actually allowed him to hold her for short periods; and she had kissed him, a first. He felt that she wanted more, but she was still afraid. Daniel told him he was doing the only thing he could. He told him not to worry; with enough patience he would be able to get her to trust him. She would come to him when she was ready.
Sure enough, a couple of weeks later Jackson returned from his evening shower. As he entered his chamber, he saw her there in his bed, waiting for him. He went to her and asked if she really wanted this; she responded by pulling him to her. She asked him to be gentle with her and they spent several hours making slow love and healing each other. Later, as they lay in each other’s arms he saw she was crying; panic set in as he thought he had hurt her. She told him no, that these were tears of happiness, tears of release. That was when she told him she loved him. That she had been in love with him for some time but didn’t know how to tell him. The joy on his face told her how he felt about her.
They requested quarters on the mountain the next day.
High on the mountaintop Jake kept pace with the changes. Their healing has begun. We are almost ready now.