C h a p t e r I I I

T a l k O f T h e T o w n

Sweating profusely, The Seminary Gang was hiking along a dirt trail that wound through the jungle, closely following the Nephite Ninjas.

There were five Ninjas in all, and Gigel was their leader. He was the only one who really talked, and anything that needed to be said to the Ninjas went through him. They didn’t refer to themselves as Ninjas (and besides, the Nephites had never heard the term before), but they didn’t seem to mind being called by that title. Kenzi was actually the one who coined the term, after having asked Gigel about the robes.

“Young one, these robes are mainly to hide us in the darkness.” Gigel said.

“And they don't convey your Ninja awesomeness?” She asked.

Gigel shook his head, and chuckled to himself. “You must remember young one that I know nothing of these Nin-jus that you keep referring to.”

Apart from Gigel, the Gang hadn’t really conversed with any of the others. Jeneum was the only other one that they had actually heard speak, but he only spoke to Gigel, and it was usually either in whispers or unimportant. He didn’t have a title, but could be referred to as the ‘second-in-command’.

Limha was a lookout and scout. He often traveled up the path beyond view, and was sometimes gone for hours at a time. He was excellent with a bow, and also brought back most of their food.

The last two were Corian and Seth. Both were very quiet, and usually stood on opposite sides of the group, acting as some sort of escort. When they took rests, both would usually stand at defensive points around the group, as though preparing to attack a hidden enemy. Another thing they both shared was a very high repugnance towards Jon.

“Do not take it as threat, young one.” Gigel said to Jon. “They still believe that ye may be a Lamanite spy.”

“But I’m not! Look, maybe if I just talked to them…”

“I would not try.”

“Why, they not the friendly type?”

“No, they had their throats cut open in their youth by Lamanite soldiers…they can not speak.”

“Oh…” Jon said looking straightforward, with a terrified look on his face.

The journey took all of the first day, and went well into the afternoon of the next. The jungle was extremely humid and hot. There had been no rain yet, and the sun beat down on them.

Jon was still in the filthy clothes he’d had from the start, and had attracted a large swarm of flies. By mid-day the stink was so bad that they forced him to take a swim in a small muddy pond. It attracted a bunch of mosquitoes during the evening, but at least you could spend five minutes around him.

Brian had been quite a nuisance…or was hindrance a better word? He enjoyed being a ghost, and proved this every single minute. At first he would hide in trees and bushes, then pop out and shout as they passed by. Eventually this wore off and everyone ignored him. It got really bad during the evening when he tricked Seth into thinking Jon was an invader. Of course Jon was just answering a call to nature, but while walking back into camp the two psycho Ninjas tackled him. Brian naturally got a good laugh.

Kenzi and Kaitlin had to take several rests during the hottest part of the day, and frankly everyone welcomed a break. You could almost pass out it was so humid. Gigel wasn’t keen about taking all these rests, and insisted on pressing forward. Richard was amazed that the Ninjas could still keep going in this extreme heat with all that thick, dark clothing on.

“We have taught ourselves self control.” Gigel had replied.

“They’re very determined…” Jon added in jokingly.

During the second day, they had traveled at a much slower rate, so Gigel assigned Limha and Brian to scout ahead. The Gang had decided to send Brian along as an afterthought, due to the fact he needed no rest, but mainly to keep him from causing anymore trouble.

“Fine! But I’m going to be the very advanced patrol!” And with that Brian took off, passing straight through the jungle again.

“Wait! You need to stay on the trail!” Richard tried yelling to him.

The trail basically wound around in a zigzag pattern, but Brian plowed right through the trees and rocks, making the distance much shorter. Suddenly the trail opened up, and entered into a large valley.

There was a good-sized city covering it, with a towering volcano standing on the other side. The city was surrounded by a twenty-foot wall, made of timber and rock. The trail came out of the forest, wound down the hill, and stopped in front of a gate in the wall. Standing at the gate was a single guard, accompanied by what looked like a Germen Shepherd lying near his master’s feet.

An evil smiled crossed Brian’s face. He turned himself completely transparent (a skill he’d started to learn), and floated down to the gate. As he approached the wall, the dog raised his head and began growling. The guard quickly raised his spear and looked around.

“Shim, what is it?” The guard said looking back and forth.

Brian just floated motionless looking down at the dog, which was now backing up against the wall. It was looking directly up at where he was floating. Brian suddenly began jumping back and forth, taunting the dog. The dog lunged forward, trying to bite him somehow.

“Shim! What are you doing?!” The guard asked, watching as the dog appeared to be attacking thin air.

“Get the Ghost! Get the Ghost!” Brian said in a singsong voice, still jumping around.

“Who said that?!” The guard began spinning back and forth quickly, trying to spot his unseen foe. “Show yourself!”

Brian suddenly had an instinct, and reached out to the dog. The dog began growling even more. As Brian touched it, his entire form was pulled inside, and he transferred from ghost form into the dog. As soon as he possessed the dog, he had complete control. Because of this, the dog instantly stopped barking. The guard paused and looked at his furry companion.

“Shim? Are you alright?”

“Oh yeah, I…uh, bark…! Bark! Bark! Bark!” Brian said, pretending to be the dog.

The guard just stared at the dog, his mouth wide open, and began stepping forward to take a closer look. Suddenly, a wooden pole came up from behind and hit the guard over the head. The guard fell unconscious, revealing Limha who now was also looking at Brian/dog in confusion.

“Good work, Limha.” Came Gigel’s voice. “But why didn’t you get the dog too?”

Brian turned to see the rest of the Ninjas and Gang walking down the hill, just exiting from the jungle. Kenzi looked down, and suddenly saw the dog too.

“Look Kaitlin! A dog!”

Kaitlin and Kenzi both came down the trail, and walked over to Brian. They both crouched down, and stretched out a hand.

“Hello doggy! Who left you out here all alone?” Kenzi said, beginning to stroke his head. Brian restrained himself from laughing.

“What’s its name?” Kaitlin asked, reaching out to pet it too.

“Brian…” The dog said smiling mischievously.

Kaitlin jumped back, and Kenzi yelped falling backwards. Brian/doggy began laughing, and rolled over onto his back, feet flying in the air. Jon and Richard began cracking up, and almost fell over laughing. The Ninjas seemed to enjoy this humor as well, and chuckled with the Gang.

Brian left the dog’s body, and the dog took off running into the city. Brian looked down at Kenzi, who was still sitting on the ground, and began cracking up again. Kenzi just glared at him.

“If you’re trying to kill him with that stare, it won’t work…he’s already dead!” Richard added in jokingly.

Kaitlin helped Kenzi back onto her feet, and she just shook her head at Brian.

“Man, it’s been awhile since I’ve had a good laugh.” Jon said.

“See!” Brian stated. “Good laugh! You needed a good laugh.”

“You had better hope that you stay dead…” Kenzi said, still glaring at Brian.

The Nephite Ninjas had stopped laughing, and were all staring at the city. The Gang turned and looked at them.

“This city was not here before.” Gigel said.

“Huh?” Jon said.

“Wait, I thought you said this was Helam!” Richard said.

“I said that we would journey to Helam, not that this was Helam.” Gigel replied, still looking only at the city.

“We should probably go see. Maybe get a better idea about what’s going on?” Kaitlin suggested.

The Ninjas all grasped their weapons, but didn’t pull them out. “You may go in, but we will wait here… There is an odd feeling about this mysterious place.”

The Gang shrugged simultaneously, and began walking through the gate. Richard looked back once, but the Ninjas were still standing on the hill, looking at the city nervously.

At first, they came across no one, and it seemed as though the city was abandoned. However, as they continued down the main road a large group of people could be seen gathering to somewhere up ahead.

“Come on!” Jon said, starting to run towards the gathering.

As they caught up, Kenzi tapped the shoulder of one of the locals. “Excuse me, but what the heck is going on?”

The local turned, and looked her up and down. He had a confused look on his face, and began laughing at her. Kenzi then realized that she was still wearing her modern clothing. They were all still wearing their modern clothing.

“Why, that awful prophet is on trial at the temple.” He replied in a less than friendly tone, turning away from the Gang.

Undeterred, the five of them continued walking with the crowd, and approached the center of the city. They forced their way through the large crowd, and came to an opening where they had a better view. In the center of the gathering was a large viewing area, with a tall stone pole in the middle. Bound to the stone pole was an old man with thin gray hair that hung past his shoulders. His appearance wasn’t what caught the Gang’s attention though; it was the fact that he was currently being set on fire by ceremonially dressed guards.

As the first flames flared to life, scorching the papery skin on his old frail body, Kenzi and Kaitlin gasped. Kaitlin covered her mouth, and almost looked away. Jon, Richard, and Brian all just stared wide-eyed. To their horror, they then realized that the man was still speaking; his voice coming strong but in short bursts, making it hard for them to catch everything he said.

“And in that day…ye shall be hunted…and ye shall be taken by the hand of your enemies…and then ye shall suffer…as I suffer, the pains of death by fire… O God, receive my soul…!” The flames rose up, and the man within cried one last time in agony before dying.

“Holy...” was all Jon got out. It didn’t take more than a second for the teens to know exactly who they’d just seen murdered. This was the execution of the prophet Abinadi.

The Gang turned tail, and took off running. People in the crowd began yelling as they all ran by, shoving them out of the way. They didn’t stop even to catch their breath. They just kept running, trying to escape the horror that lay behind them. While running through the city they passed through a tight alley. There was a loud crashing sound from behind, but they didn’t pause to see what it was.

The Gang exited the alley, and reached the gate. Upon exiting they all fell to the ground, and lay there panting. The Ninjas came running up quickly, and Gigel bent down over them.

“What was it that ye saw?” He asked quickly.

“Prophet…stake…burned…” Kenzi breathed, still panting heavily.

“A prophet? In there being burned?!” Gigel stood up, and pulled out his sword. He and the rest of the Ninjas began heading towards the gate.

“Wait!” Richard yelled. “It’s too late to save him…we must get of here…now!”

The Ninjas stopped, and Gigel turned around. “Why must we move with such urgency?”

Richard slowly sat up. In the story of Abinadi, he had gone to the city of Noah to preach repentance. After two failed attempts he was burned at the stake. He did manage to convert one man, Alma, who then gathered all the righteous in the city and fled. No sooner then that, an army of invading Lamanites came in and took over. “The Lamanites are marching towards this city…you were right to fear it.”

“And when they arrive, everyone they don’t take into bondage…they will kill.” Kaitlin said gravely.

Gigel considered this for a moment, and then said, “We will march to Zarahemla.” He turned to face the rest of his men. “Get some supplies from the city…this will be a long journey.”

“Long journey?” Richard asked. “How long are we talking about?”

“Two weeks…at the least.”

“Two weeks?!” Brian shouted. The rest of the Gang just stood open mouthed.

“It is a difficult journey through the wilderness to the north.”

Richard looked over at Kaitlin and Kenzi, who just shrugged. He turned to look at Jon…but Jon wasn’t there. “Guys, where’s Jon?”

Everyone’s heads turned, but Jon couldn’t be seen anywhere.

“Where’d he go?” Kenzi asked, looking around nervously.

“He must still be in the city.” Richard said.

“Didn’t he run back with us?” Kaitlin asked.

“I’m almost sure he did! But…maybe he took a wrong turn.”

Gigel motioned towards the other Ninjas, who then started walking towards the city. “I will search for your friend while we gather supplies for the journey.” He then turned to Jeneum. “Jeneum, stay with the young ones and keep your eye out for danger…and their other little friend, of course.”

Jeneum nodded, stuck his sword in the ground, and rested on it. Gigel turned and joined his men, heading into the city.

Brian began floating in circles, every now and then sticking his hand in objects, and often seeing how high he could float. Kaitlin and Kenzi sat down with their backs to a steep part of the hill, while Richard rested against a tree. Several minutes passed.

Finally, after what seemed hours, Gigel and Corian emerged from the city. Kenzi and Kaitlin were both asleep, and their heads lie to the side limp. Richard nudged them awake, and they both slowly stirred. Once Kenzi saw Gigel, she quickly stood up as quickly as her half asleep self would allow.

“Did you find him?” She asked, yawning.

Gigel shook his head. It was then that Richard noticed that Limha and Seth were missing. “Gigel, where are the others?” Richard asked.

Gigel rubbed the back of his neck, as though he was thinking over some decision he’d just made. Kaitlin quickly noticed this.

“They’re still in the city?” She asked.

“Well…we felt it necessary to split up…in order to find your friend, Jon…” He seemed to be shifting, as though he wasn’t saying everything.

“Wait,” Kenzi began, “you left some of your men behind, just to look for Jon?”

Once again he shifted slightly. “We need to return to Zarahemla, and we do not have time to spend searching for him.”

“Does this have something to do with the Lamanites that are marching towards this city?” Richard asked.

“Time we have not, and this new information ye have given us must be presented to the Nephite Leadership.”

“So what does this mean for Jon?!” Kenzi asked threateningly.

“Worry not for your little friend. Limha and Seth have agreed to stay and search for him. When they find him, they will take another way to the north, and meet us in Zarahemla.”

Kenzi scratched her head, and looked back at Richard and Kaitlin who just shrugged. Kenzi turned back, and looked down at the ground. She then nodded slowly. Gigel seemed relieved, and nodded towards Jeneum and Corian. They each gathered up what appeared to be a sack of supplies, and headed back up the trail. Gigel turned back to the Gang.

“We march north now. I suggest that ye watch your backs. The wilderness can be filled with wild beasts…human and animal.”

fin


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