Wonderful people throughout the author’s life provided unique and irreplaceable lessons and inspirations:
Juniper
Russell
Esther
Smith
Vicky Ball
Dottie Frisbie
Linda
Dezzutti Martha
Higgins
Jennifer Carolyn Gates
Susanne Koller
Rachael
Bleich Charleen
Cox
Paula Wells
Meredith Herzog
Sarah
Satterthwaite
Patricia
Sharp
Ashley
Riddle Peter
James
Antonya Pickard
Valuable readers gave the author feedback after digging through early drafts of the book:
Ardith Libby
Dan Clark
Cecelia
Harper
Karen
Oster
Holly
Chalcraft
Toni
Corkran
Karen Pihlak
Cherish Broker
Shelley
Johnson
Jimmy
Johnson
Brendan
Aragorn
Deborah
Meier
Katie
Norris
Aurora
WindDancer
Excellent critiquers commented on thousands of passages, then provided reactions during in-depth interviews:
Sidney Oster, 8
Dylan Oster, 10
Sarah Bray, 10
Joshua Clark, 10
Mitchell Bendis, 10
Jessica Johnson, 10
Catherine “Cat” Harper, 10
River Lyons, 11
Aditya Srinivasan, 11
Courtney Snyder, 11
Madison Frasier, 12
Thurston Coatney, 12
Jasper W. Romero, 12
Mariah Bruns, 13
Katheryn Brunswick, 13
Kristen Voie, 14
Hannah Li Powers, 14
Margaret Brunswick, 15
Alex Chalcraft, 15
Patrick Murray, 16
Kathryn C., 16
Stephanie Louie, 16
Abby Powers, 17
Brie Polette, 17
Elwin
Aragorn,
17
Rachael
Hedges
Winn
Barrientos
Elizabeth
Renguso
Beth Littlewolf
Careful publishing assistants and proofreaders brought the final manuscript as close to perfection as possible:
Sarah Bray, 11
Mariah Bruns, 14
Joshua Utter, 14
Alex Chalcraft, 16
Amanda Herman, 17
Rachael Hedges
Deborah Meier
Contents
1 The Shack in the Wilderness ............................................. 1
2 A Bit of Paradise ................................................................ 7
3 Tera .................................................................................. 14
4 A New Team Member......................................................20
5 The Truth About Stars.....................................................25
6 Farmer
Keni.....................................................................30
7 Farmer Keni’s Daughter .................................................. 35
8 A New Student ................................................................. 41
9 Travel
Plans .....................................................................46
10 Communication ...............................................................52
11 Vibrations ........................................................................ 57
12 Shepherdess Noni............................................................60
13 Eighty-Eight Sheep..........................................................65
14 Rain, Rain... .....................................................................70
15 Difficult Parting ............................................................... 75
16 The Gaseous State of Water ............................................ 79
17 Many Hard Lessons.........................................................84
18 To the Sea ........................................................................ 91
19 Port Town ........................................................................95
20 The Cave.........................................................................100
21 Little Thief ..................................................................... 106
22 Kit....................................................................................114
23 Brainwork ...................................................................... 120
24 Mommy.......................................................................... 124
25 Farewell to Port Town ................................................... 129
26 Real Thieves................................................................... 132
27 The Edge of the Ocean................................................... 136
28 In a Pinch........................................................................141
29 What Comes In Must Go Out ........................................ 147
30 Ancient Beings of Light ................................................. 152
31 Gleaming Eyes in the Dark............................................ 159
32 Trial by Teeth................................................................. 164
33 Different Strokes............................................................ 169
34 Lumber Town ................................................................ 173
35 Happy Birthdays............................................................ 178
36 Whispers ........................................................................ 186
37 Fish Stew.........................................................................191
38 Leadership Lessons ....................................................... 194
39 A Strange Guide............................................................. 197
40 Dreadful Waiting ...........................................................206
41 Reunions and Hard Choices.......................................... 212
42 A New Companion......................................................... 218
43 Proposal .........................................................................223
44 Trigonometry.................................................................229
45 Precious Freedom..........................................................245
46 Grief ...............................................................................254
47 Mati’s Story....................................................................259
48 Perspective.....................................................................264
Chapter 1: The Shack in the Wilderness A horn sounded from the tower over the Traveler’s Gate, causing wagons and carts to quickly scramble off the roads. Four horsemen of the City Guard poured through the stone gateway as morning light gathered just below the eastern horizon.
Without hesitation, they turned onto the westward road to Port Town and spurred their horses to a trot. They had only gone about a mile when the lead horseman raised his hand and all four quickly came to a halt beside a huge old oak tree.
“You there in the woods!” he yelled. “Show yourself and give good account!”
A few seconds later, a large and stocky brown-haired lad of about fourteen years came out, yawning and stretching. “Sorry, Sir, just catching some sleep before market opens.”
“Why should I not think you a run-away slave?” the guard challenged.
Boro swallowed. “Um . . . would a slave have a money pouch . . . with copper and silver pieces?”
The guard frowned. “Show me your silver.”
With shaking hands, Boro pulled the pouch from his cloak pocket and fished inside. He felt the great gold piece, but avoided it as he pulled out an assortment of small coins for the guard to see.
“I’m . . . supposed to buy supplies, but . . . um . . . one of my silvers is yours for . . . guarding the kingdom well.” He picked out a shiny coin and offered it
up to the guard.
The lead horseman nodded to one of the others, who snatched the coin.
“Don’t be caught lurking around in the trees again.”
“Yes,
Sir.”
All four guards set spurs to their horses’ flanks and were gone as quickly as they had come.
Boro stood beside the road trying to master the trembling in his legs as Ilika and the other eight students, still in sopping wet clothes, gathered around him.
Shaggy black-haired Kibi squeezed his shoulder. “Good thinking!”
“You were great!” young but stocky Sata said with admiration, wrapping her strong arms around him for a moment.
Miko, holding hands with Neti, looked at Boro with intense dark eyes and mumbled words of appreciation. Neti, pretty even in wet, muddy travel clothes, sensed a hint of jealousy in her beloved.
Toli, with clumsy words and fidgeting hands, and fourteen-year-old Buna, with her twisted grin, added their thanks while standing as far apart as possible.
Slender, quiet Rini just smiled at his friend and continued shivering.
Last to arrive, thirteen-year-old Mati leaned on her crutch. “I think it was actually me they saw,” she said with a guilty tone through chattering teeth.
“It doesn’t matter,” their teacher Ilika said, his fair hair catching the morning light. “We’re on this journey together, and a problem for any of us is a problem for all.”
“That’s what I was thinking,” Boro said. “We just got out of those wet, slimy tunnels under the walls. We don’t need to go to the dungeon or — worse
— back to the slave market.”
Everyone chuckled and nodded.
“That wouldn’t have happened,” Ilika said with a reassuring voice and a slight smile, his right hand touching the wide metal bracelet on his left arm.
As the guards were long gone and the road remained empty, Ilika and his nine students looked up at the giant oak tree once more.
“You were right, Mati,” Ilika said in a calm voice. “It does look strong and
. . . almost wise. A tree that size is hundreds of years old.”
Mati shivered. “Really? That’s older than people live!”
“Yes. And I’ve heard there’s a tortoise in warmer parts of the world that lives four or five hundred years.”
“What’s a . . . tor . . . toise?” Boro asked, fumbling with the strange word.
“A turtle about four feet long. You can ride them . . . if they let you.”
Sata’s eyes grew wide with wonder. “That’s huge! Could we get them, instead of horses?”
Ilika laughed. “I’m afraid you’d die of old-age trying to get somewhere on a tortoise. I’ve seen worms that can go faster.”
While the others talked, sixteen-year-old Miko and slightly-younger Neti began looking for the trail. The healer had promised it would be near the old oak tree. Finally enough light gathered in the morning sky. “Shack’s this way!” Miko announced.
The rest gladly followed. A faint trail wound through the trees and underbrush, giving the impression it went nowhere and was not worth exploring. After a few minutes of walking, the group entered a clearing with an old, partly ruined cottage, and a little wooden corral, both green with moss.
The two-tone call of a donkey greeted them.
Mati immediately smiled and hobbled toward the old corral, stopping just inches from the shaggy gray head that stretched through the rails. The donkey drew deep breaths to take in Mati’s scent.
Miko went toward the old wooden shack to see what he could find.
Shutters dangled at odd angles, one wall was completely missing, and the rock chimney had crumbled long ago. He was soon back outside. “The roof only covers about half the floor, but it’s enough for our bedrolls. There’s a saddle and other stuff for the donkey, and a few old dishes.”
NEBADOR BookTwo: Journey 4
Just then Neti and Sata pranced back into the clearing. “The stream’s just a little way down the trail, and the water tastes good,” Neti said, a drop still lingering on her chin.
As Ilika looked around and listened to their reports, he took on a serious expression. “Remember, this is the wilderness, in some ways safer than the city, in some ways more dangerous. Everyone take at least one friend if you leave the clearing.”
“I’ll choose wilderness any day!” Kibi assured him with a grin, then danced away toward an old stone campfire circle covered with years of dead leaves and fallen branches.
Just then the sun rose over the eastern hills in a cloudless sky. All their faces glowed in the orange light, and everyone began removing wet cloaks and boots, or opening bedrolls.
At the old fire circle, Kibi cleared off a log and began slicing fruitcake and cheese. “Okay, here’s breakfast, and I’ll be asleep in the sunshine very soon.”
Sata took some food over to Mati where she sat on a stump near the corral, talking to the donkey. Soon the pair of friends were yawning and stretching out on blankets near each other.
With an effort, Ilika shook off his weariness, picked up the rope Toli had dropped, and selected several trees that would stay in the sun most of the day.
A few minutes later, Boro turned over to try and get more comfortable on his bedroll, and saw Ilika unpacking saddlebags and hanging wet clothes over the rope. He hopped up and spoke in a friendly but scolding tone. “You’re not supposed to be working while we’re sleeping! You’re the captain!”
“What do you think a captain is, Boro? You led us through those tunnels.
Does a leader avoid tasks that need to be done?”
“Um . . . no, I guess not.”
“A captain is a servant, Boro. He serves his ship, his passengers, and his crew. You did more than your share today, and you saved my life. Go, sleep, and I promise I will be doing the same very soon.”
Boro returned to his bedroll. Though he wore a thoughtful expression for a few minutes, he was soon fast asleep.
Deep Learning Notes
The western half of Ilika’s map of the kingdom uses very common symbols that the students learned in Book One, chapter 35. It is presented at the beginning of Book Two as it was before Ilika added any lines or notes, and therefore can be used as a challenge: to find the route the characters took during the book. Hints: the shack and Farmer Keni’s farm are both on the map, and the group never went through the town of Horse.
Why did the peasants scramble off the roads when the horn blew from the tower over the Traveler’s Gate?
What would have probably happened if Boro had insisted that Mati confront the guards, since it was her they saw?
Even though Boro lost a small silver piece, what did he gain by talking to the guards?
The students were surprised that both a plant (oak tree) and an animal (tortoise) could live longer than people. Their surprise is understandable, considering that people do live longer than most plants and animals, even in a medieval culture. They will learn in Book Three how difficult it is to make accurate statements that include the words “all” or “none.”
What qualities did the ruined shack and its surroundings have that gave all
the students such a sense of relief and safety?
What value system was Boro using when he complained that Ilika should not be working while they slept?
