Tamers

I wake up to my face in Will’s chest, snuggled up, I smile. I wiggle my nose, then sneeze. Damn his fuzzy head. I carefully wriggle myself out of his hold and crawl outside of the shelter. I squint my eyes. Ill never get used to the bright sun shining down on this island. I turn to the right and sigh. “Still here?” I ask.

“Why would I not be here?” Novi asks in a serious tone. 

“Well I don’t know. Don’t you have a home? A cave? Or somewhere you live? Go to every night?” 

“This whole forest is my home. I sleep wherever I want.” 

“Why did you sleep here then?” I ask. I just find it weird that a large panther wants to hang around humans. 

“You are the Tamer. We have not had a Tamer in a long time. I am honored to be in the presence of the Tamer.” She says this with her mouth open. Is that suppose to be a smile? “Do you not want me here?” 

“No. I mean yes! I don’t mind. I was just wondering.” I travel down to the water to splash my face then head back to the shelter to see if Will is up. He is, and obviously still afraid of Novi. He stares at her afraid to leave the shelter and she sits, head turned staring right back at him. “Good morning sunshine. Im going to get more water and food. Will you be ok?” I ask him in a cheery tone. 

“Sure just bring your pet with you.” Novi growls at him as he says this and Will flinches. I look nervously between both and walk into the shelter to grab the backpack and water bottles. 

“I would stop calling her that If I was you. Her name is Novi.” Will rolls his eyes at me, and continues to have a staring contest with Novi. “Will you come with me Novi?” I ask her tentatively. She bares her teeth at Will then pads over to me. 

Walking through the jungle I ask Novi many things. “Why can I talk to you but never my cat?”

“Have you tried having a conversation with your pet?” She asks walking through the forest much easier than myself.

“Well no, but I do like, talk to her and coo at her I guess.”

“Maybe she just doesn't want to speak to you. She knows what you are saying though.” 

“Oh.” I say rather miffed. My cat knows that she can talk to me but never has. What an a*****e. I should've got a dog. “Are there anymore people..” I trip, “ I mean Tamers on this Island?” I ask her.

“I have not seen any.” 

“Then how do you know about them?” I ask confused. 

“My ancestors lived with them.”

“So they are just legends? You don't know if these Tamers are real or not?” I ask kind of getting disappointed. I swear she said she spoke to Tamers before. 

“I can speak to you and you can speak to me right?”

“Well yes,”

“So Tamers are real. I cannot speak to your human male. He is not a Tamer.” 

“But you can understand him?”

“Yes, but he does not have the ability to understand me.” We reach the stream and Novi lays by the water, reaching her paw out to splash at fish that swim by. 

“Is there any trace of the Tamers that used to live here?” I ask crouching, filling the water bottles up. 

“Yes.”

I wait, she doesn't continue. “Ok and…?”

She gets up and stretches. Then walks over and sits by me. I sit cross legged across from her. “The Tamer home is in the valley.” She lifts her head and points her nose beyond the trees behind me. I turn but I cant see anything but tree trunks. I get up and walk up the hill. Novi follows. I get to the highest point I can and try to see past the trees. I never actually took a serious look at the island. Its huge. There are three large mountains and a valley in the middle. All trees. No open spaces. One could easily get lost forever. A flock of birds fly past. The first mountain itself is much too far from where I stand. I contemplate wether I should travel there to find out what Novi is talking about. Im very interested, though Im sure if there are any signs of life, it'll just be ruins. 

“Would you like to visit your home?” Novi says from behind me, also taking in the view of the island. 

“Maybe.” I say. When should I go? What would Will say? I of course wouldn't go without him. I doubt he would be open to the idea of venturing anywhere but the beach. I sigh. “Lets go back.” Novi follows. 

Back at the shelter Will hasn't really moved. I hand him a water bottle and a mango. I tell him about my day and talk with Novi. I don’t think he still fully believes that I communicate with her. I mention venturing to the inside of the island. He doesn't really respond, he kind of just grunts at the idea. 

After a couple days Will is able to limp on his foot. He attempts to catch fish but thats a dub. I laugh as he hobbles around and struggles, and he throws the net in frustration. He’s so cute with his wild blonde hair. Novi never leaves us. Ever since she appeared, she spends each and every day with us. Only going into the forest to do her business and hunt for her own food. She hasn't offered to or brought us meat since that one time, and Im too afraid to ask. Like she said, she's not my pet. Since Will is still alive he’s calmed down with Novi being around, I guess finally being assured that she's not going to kill him. One night while feeding the fire, I spot Novi walk over, and lay a foot away from him. He gives her a side glance then goes back to whittling a large branch with the knife. I smile at the small interaction. 

“How old are you?” I ask Novi one night. 

“Four…”

“You’re young.” 

“If you say so Tamer.” She never seems interested in talking to me. Its been nearly a week and Im still ecstatic that I can speak to animals. 

“Where is your family? Are there any other panthers around here?”

“I don’t know, and not that I have seen.” She yawns. Gosh. 

“That must get lonely.” I say, saddened at the thought of not being around more of my kind. I look at Will, who again is messing with his large branch. Im glad Im not in this s****y situation alone. “Why haven’t I seen other animals?”

“They don’t want to be seen.” She says nonchalantly staring at the dark ocean. “You do not want to meet other animals. They are sneaky and boring.” 

“In other words you just want me all to yourself.” I joke with her. She gives me a look with no response. 

It takes about a week and a half for Will’s ankle to almost fully heal. He plops next to me one morning and wraps his arm around me. I nearly choke on the banana Im eating as he gives me a grin. I glare up at him. “I see it doesn't take much for you to gag.” He says to me. 

“What the…” I stutter. Novi lifts her head to look at us and lays it back down, turned away for a nap.

“We’ve been here for a little while and no-ones come, flown by, or gone by on any sort of boat. We really are isolated.”

“No s**t Sherlock.” I say in a bitter tone. He just shakes his head at me. Im in a bad mood. “What are you getting at?”

“Im just saying…. we might be here forever. Which means we might have to make this our home, build a better shelter and…” He stops and looks down giving me a strange look. I stare back confused, my eyes asking him to go on.  “…and we might have to start our own civilization and family.” He winks at me and tightens his arm squeezing me. I stare up at him in utter embarrassment beginning to blush. Ive gotten darker in the time we’ve been here so maybe he wont see it. “Just kidding, I was actually thinking Id be up for looking around this island. I doubt any rescue is coming. Theres no reason to stay on the beach. Maybe we can figure out what this Tamer nonsense Novi keeps talking about is.” 

I clear my throat, getting excited. “Really? Your not worried about dangerous animals getting us, or one of us getting lost or something?” 

“Well so far we’re still alive.” he says pointing towards Novi who is napping and ignoring us. “Im getting bored anyways. We need to figure out where we are. Your right, there actually might be man made things here. Especially if Novi says so.” 

I smile. “When are we going to go?” 

“First thing in the morning.” 

I have another strange dream that night. Im in a gold hallway. Theres people standing against the walls. Their faces and arms tattooed with swirls and tribal patterns. In between each person is an animal. Panther, tiger, leopard, monkey, swan… it goes on. The people don’t look at me but the animals do. All of the human faces are facing the end of the hallway. As I walk down the hall, the tattoos on the humans become less, their clothes become more modernized. The first humans wear clothes to cover their privates, tattoos and hoops in their face. I stop at the last person who also is not facing me. Its a little boy, looks around the age of ten, and around his neck is a cobra, moving, sticking its tongue out at me, watching. The boy has one tattoo on his right arm, just a simple band with what looks like two waves. He is wearing robe like clothing. Looks like a mix between African and Arab style. His pants are puffed out ending at his calves, his robe covering one arm, tucked beneath the other. Its orange with brown design. Beautiful material. He has a small crown on his head. I reach out to touch the boy and the cobra strikes at me. I snap my hand back and trip, stumbling foot after foot until I fall down into a puddle. I lift my hand to see that it is a puddle of blood. I become anxious, hyperventilating. I look up to see the cobra slithering towards me fast. I scream!

I wake up with a start. Will is rubbing the fuzz thats begun to grow on my head. “You have beautiful skin.” It takes me a minute to register what he just said as my mind is still reeling from my dream. I blink away the memory and smile at him. 

“Is that your way of saying you like black girls?” He barks out a laugh and sits up. The sun is just beginning to rise. I sit up as well rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. 

He throws the backpack filled with our water bottles, one blanket and some fruit to the front of the shelter. I crawl out and stretch in the morning heat. I nod at Novi who barely acknowledges me. Will comes out behind me holding the large branch he’s been messing with. Its pointed at the end. He stomps it on the sand proud of himself and I raise an eyebrow at him. “What? Real men have spears.” I scoff at him and put on the backpack. Novi gets up and leads us into the forest.

“How long will it take us to get there?” I ask Novi.

“One day running for me. Two days for you slow humans.” 

“Ok.” Most of the day trekking through the forest is quiet. Novi jogs ahead and comes back constantly while Will and I try to speed walk through the forest as much as we can without tripping. It’s hot, and muggy, and my stomach is hurting. “Where are we going to sleep tonight?” I ask Novi around noon. “Do you know of a cave or something like one on the way?” 

“I do not know. I can find one.” She says.

“What do you mean you don't know? Haven’t you traveled to the Tamers home before?”

“No I’ve never been to the Tamers home. And I sleep in trees, there is no need for me to know where caves are.”

I stop in my tracks, and Will stops ahead looking back confused. “What do you mean you’ve never been to the Tamers home before? How are you leading us there then?” I asked stressed out. Will comes up next to me.

“What? She’s never been there before?”

Novi sits in front of me cocking her head to the side with her mouth open looking as if she's smiling. “All of us know how to get to the Tamers home, even if we have never been there.” She says amused, blinking her large green eyes. 

“Oh, are you sure?” 

“What did she say?” Will taps my shoulder. 

“She said she knows how to get there.” 

“Travel straight. I will find you a cave to sleep in tonight.” Novi says as she trots past us. 

I shake my head and walk past Will. Theres a lot that cat doesn't know that she pretends to know. It makes it sketchy following her. 

“I can't get used to this.” Will says walking next to me. 

“Get used to what?” 

“You… talking to Novi. She’s an animal. It’s just so weird!”

“Yea I know right. What does it look like when she’s talking to me?”

“Well, it just looks like she's staring and breathing at you.” He says. Im getting exhausted and cranky, stomach still hurting and I stop to take a water bottle out of the bag. Will takes the back pack from me and puts it on. 

“I see her lips move.” I say to him. 

“Thats odd.” He takes the water bottle from me, drinks some then places it back in the bag. He then grabs my hand and we continue through the forest and underbrush. About two hours pass, and Will and I come through a clearing. We finally made it on top of the first mountain. Im sweating and gross, I look over and notice Will is so wet from sweat I can see through is white T. We look down beyond us. I see nothing but trees, trees, and more trees. I take a seat, and pull Will down with me. “Where the hell is Novi?” I ask more to myself than to Will. 

“Miss your pet?” He muses.

“Be careful. Every time you say that she pops up. Just might bite you one day. I don't see anything down there, where do you think she’s taking us?” I look down. Among the trees I see the stream which runs through the valley. I still cannot see the other side of the island. The other two mountains are in the way, with a small pass in between that curves around the other side of the mountain to the left. Will puts his arm around me and raises his spear, tensed up. I look at him with a start but he’s looking at the brush to the right of us. It moves and out jumps Novi, with a rodent in her mouth. She trots over to us with her kill and sits, devouring it. Will looks at her in disgust and lowers his spear. 

“I found your shelter for tonight.” She says to us licking her paws when she’s done with her meal. 

“Where?” I asked exhausted.

“A few miles from here.” I stand up and pull Will with me. Hand in his, I motion with my other for Novi to get going. 

“A few miles my a*s.” I grumble several hours later as it begins to get dark. We finally happen upon a small clearing, with a cliff as a back wall. Novi pads over and lays with her back to the wall, feet stretched out watching us. 

“Are you going to build your fire?” She asks. Switching her tail.
“The moons out tonight, and its hot. I don't see a need to.” I say looking up. 

“You might want to.” She says and glances into the trees. I stare at her but she offers no explanation. 

“Novi says we need to build a fire.” I say to Will. He lays the pack down and grabs branches, grass and sticks from the edge of the trees. Novi watches him as he works to get the fire started, and I pull out the one blanket from the backpack and lay it next to her. She shifts one giant paw so as not to touch me but doesn't move. Cats are so stand offish I swear. I lay down on my side, resting my head up on one arm. Will settles himself behind me in the same position and lays one arm across my stomach. I snuggle back. 

“What do you know about the Tamers Novi?” I ask. Both Will and I look over at the giant black cat. The fire illuminates some of her body but mostly we can just see her large green eyes. Novi blending into the dark. 

“Tamers…” She begins, “were hunters. Hunting for a Tamer means hunting for your beast. They would find their beast, and dominate it. Some with words, most with words actually, as the animals automatically respected the Tamer’s. Being able to communicate with them was a blessing. Some had to tame their beasts with strength. It is said Tamers would have the markings of the beast that they tamed.”

“You mean like tattoos?”

“What are tattoos? Novi looks at me confused. 

I lift up my arm and show her the words I have on the underside of my left bicep. It says “No matter how far.” A little something I got with Landon before he went away. 

“Aah, yes markings like that.”  As Novi speaks I translate to Will who actually looks interested in our conversation for once. I lay my head down as he casually rubs his thumb up and down my arm. Feels so nice. “The Tamers lived in a palace along with their beasts. To live with a Tamer was to live in heaven. Never needing or wanting to leave for anything. Food and water there.”

“What is their palace like?” I ask her.

“The palace is the city for Tamers. The water runs through, growth on the inside. All of the homes connected. Tamers were family. The palace is made of colorful stones, that shine when one walks through. It was a peaceful haven.”

“Are you sure that place exists?” I ask skeptical. It sounds like a great legend and all but sounds too good to be true. 

“How could such place not exist?” 

“Why have you never gone there before?”

“I cannot go there without a Tamer.” She says to me as if I should know this. 

“Why?” 

“Without a Tamer, the palace is cursed.”

“Cursed? What does that mean?” Will says behind me. 

“I do not know. It is just cursed.” Will shakes his head as I translate the unhelpful message. Just then we hear thrashing and howling in the forest. I sit up frightened, Will holding onto me. Novi lifts her head but doesn't get up. “Go to sleep Tamer, you are safe with me here.” I look at her and back at the forest. I lay my head down and mumble to Will what Novi just said. It takes him a moment before he does the same but I can feel him tensed behind me. Its a while before either of us goes to sleep. Novi stays awake the whole time. 

“We will follow the stream all day.” Novi says trotting ahead of us. We woke early today, barely eating before we started walking again. Will and I hand in hand enjoying the forest. Today we hear more noise. Thrashing in the brush. Birds calling to each other up ahead. The deeper we go the more I think I see shadows running by. Its about midday and We are sitting against a large tree trunk taking a break. Im talking to Will about nonsense when I start hearing voices. 

“Tamer.” They whisper. I look around. 

“What is it?” Will asks me looking around as well, trying to figure out what’s caught my attention. We hear Novi growl and look at what she's threatening. In front of us is a large baboon. It takes a step towards us and Novi snarls. I look at her in horror then look back at the monkey. 

“So it is true?” The baboon says to me walking around keeping an eye on Novi, but speaking to me. It’s voice is raspy and high pitched. It sits on its butt and claps its hands. Mouth opened wide in a laugh, eyes red and beady, teeth long and pointed. The baboon creeps me out. “They were right!” It laughs a high pitched screech. “They were right!” It says again. It hops up and Novi gets ready to pounce. The baboon jumps onto the nearest tree screeching. Leaves falling from where it disappeared. I stay put as Novi looks around. 

“Lets go.” She says in a harsh tone. 

“What just happened?” Will asks me. 

“I don’t really know. He was surprised to see me.” I tell him confused. We hurry after Novi who has continued walking, Will not letting go of my hand, spear in his other. All day I see little eyes everywhere. A flock of parrots watches from above as we walk past. All chanting “Tamer.” A while later a tiny monkey runs by and nips at my finger. 

“Oh holy f**k!” I scream. Novi runs over and scares it away. 

“Hate monkeys she mutters.” She continues ahead at a faster pace and in a bad mood. I hear wild life all around us, but don't see any more animals for a while. In the late afternoon Novi stops abruptly and growls at something in the bushes to our left. She crouches and prowls putting herself between us and whatever is in the brush. “Show yourself!” She growls menacingly. Will stands in front of me raising his spear, not understanding what Novi is saying but sensing the situation. Out of the bush comes one huge striped paw, then another. A large tiger emerges sizing up Novi. He’s double her size and looking between her, Will and I. 

“Do you belong to this Tamer?” The tiger asks Novi in a low deep voice. It walks around us at a slow pace, being mindful of Novi, but too curious about me. 

“Yes.” Novi hisses at the tiger. He walks around and behind me. Novi pounces towards him and growls. 

“Careful beauty.” The tiger purrs at Novi. “I mean your Tamer no harm. Im simply… interested.” Will pulls me behind him and points the spear at the large tiger. “Speak Tamer.” He commands me. 

“Do not speak to her in that tone!” Novi lashes back at him. 

“It’s ok Novi.” I say to calm her. Im not sure about this situation but it seems to me that these animals are more curious than they are a threat. “Hello.” I say to the tiger tentatively. “I am Dina, who are you?” I slowly come from behind Will. He takes my hand before I step to close to the extremely large feline. 

“I am Balaraj. The strong.” The tiger says proudly. 

“We shall see how strong were you to come near my Tamer.” Novi spits out. 

“Ive already told you, I intend no harm to your Tamer beauty.” The tiger smiles at Novi. I realize Will has no idea what is going on and I quickly translate to him in a whisper. The tiger watches me, as Novi watches him. He speaks to Novi. “Why are you wandering through the forest?” 

“That is none of your concern.” She growls to him.

“We’re going to the Tamers home.” I offer to Balaraj. He eyes me. 

“To your home?”

“Uh… yes.” Novi turns and gives me an evil eye. I shrug apologetically. 

“Many know that you are here.” He says standing. I will assist you to your home if the Tamer will have me?” The tiger crouches down on his front to legs as if in a bow. 

“No.” Novi growls at him. 

“That’s fine.” I say. She turns and gives me a confused look. Id rather have this giant beast as an ally instead of an enemy, roaming around and watching us. 

“Excellent.” Balaraj purrs as he trots over to me. Will tenses up and I use one of my hands to lower his holding the spear and give him a look that its ok. I put one of my hands out for Balaraj to sniff. He does so and lowers his head to me. I rub it. Novi watches us with a look of disapproval. Or is that jealousy?

We continue to travel in awkward silence. Novi is upset that I have allowed the tiger to join us. Though she has commanded that he stay at the rear. He is often out of site, stalking among the trees and she obviously does not trust him. Will is still very confused as to what happened, and even though I try to describe what transpired, I still kind of don’t get it myself. We take a last break once we finally reach the valley. I slump against Will who rubs my head. Im exhausted physically and mentally. From the fear and excitement of being surrounded by strange beasts. Listening to Novi and her semi trustworthy information about the Tamer Palace. Im starting to wonder why we even went out on a whim to trust a large black cat into the forest of a strange island. I drink a little bit of water before Novi rushes us. The tiger barks out a laugh from where he is perched on a tree branch across from us. Will flinches. I don't think he’ll ever get used to this. 

“We must hurry. I want to reach the palace before it gets dark.” Novi says. Balaraj jumps from where he is and approaches us as Novi gives him a glare. 

“Have you ever been to the palace beauty? He asks. 

“No have you?” She retorts back.

“Ive seen it.” 

“Really? I ask interested. “So its real?”

“Ha! You did not believe your beast when she told you of it last night?” He laughs at us. Thats creepy. He was watching us last night. I wonder if Novi knew. 

“Have you traveled inside tiger?” Novi asks him with an attitude. 

“No one has beauty. It is cursed.” I guess Novi did know what she was talking about. I feel bad for embarrassing her. 

Will grabs my hand. “Lets go.” He says. I look at him. He looks exhausted and freaked out. As if being surrounded by these animals is too much for him. I can imagine how watching me talk to non-responsive  animals can seem weird. 

It takes us an hour. We stumble along, tripping over roots and vines as the large cats glide through the forest patiently waiting for us to catch up. The sun is just beginning to set when I hear a small waterfall. I run towards it past the rest of the trees. Theres a sense of urgency that has overcome me. A throbbing in my head, though not painful. I hear whispers in my head. Another language. They talk along with the rhythm of the waterfall. Novi runs after me and Will right behind her. Balaraj stays back and creeps among the trees watching us. I stop suddenly staring upwards. Will coming behind me and grabbing my hand. 

In front of us stands a humongous gold wall. Like legit gold. Solid gold! It spans out too far for me to see. The wall is so high I have to crane my neck back to see the top. There are two large wooden doors covered with vines. Novi comes from behind me, circling back and forth, trying to figure out what to do. It is obvious the doors have not been opened in a long time. I turn my head down, angled to the left and cringe as more whispers flow through my head. Will wraps his arms around me in concern. He says something but I cannot hear it. I walk up to the doors and put my hands out. Expecting the doors to be too heavy to even budge, but they open with just the touch of my fingers. A shrill chime rings from somewhere and Im asleep. 

I wake up in the middle of the night. “Will?” I look around confused. Will gets up from across the room on the floor where he was sitting, petting Novi behind her ears, and rushes over to me. Novi watches him and I without moving. 

“Are you ok?” He says in an urgent tone. He grabs my face and searches my eyes, checks the back of my head, and my neck. 

I don't pay him any mind though as I look around the room Im in. Its gold. The entire room. There are mirrors in all of the corners. Open windows on three of the walls. Beautiful cream drapes hanging with no sign of age except dust. On the ceiling is an amethyst crystal light. I realize Im sitting on a comfortable padded bench. The cloth striped burgundy and gold. I pay attention to Will finally. “Are we inside of the palace?” I ask in amazement. 

“Yes.” He looks at me then back at Novi who is looking at the doorway where Balaraj tentatively steps in taking in the surroundings. I get off the bench. It is the only piece of furniture in the room besides the mirrors. “Are you ok?” Will asks me again. 

“Yea I feel great! Have you guys looked around?” I ask. 

“No. The cats are afraid to go anywhere without you.” 

“Lets go then. Im up.”

Will looks at me worried. “Maybe you should rest. We should get some sleep after our long day.”  

“We finally made it here. Im not tired anymore. I want to see this place.” I plead with him. 

He gives me a long look then smiles. “Of course. Lets go master Tamer.” He jokes with me. He lends out his hand and we walk out of the room. I rub my hand against the bamboo door as we walk out. Novi follows behind. We walk down a long gold corridor. There are open windows all along that allow the moonlight to shine through. The light shines onto the jewels on the ceiling that reflect beautiful colors everywhere. No need for electricity here, the whole place is lit up. Now I understand why Novi said the palace had colorful stones. The people who lived here arranged mirrors and large stones to reflect off each other and produce light when the moon was out. Smart. I look around in wonder. Will doing the same. The halls are smooth but have pillars every couple of feet with intricate designs carved into them. 

Will stops at large wooden double doors in the middle of the hallway. I look back down from where we came. It’s so far away I can barely make out Balaraj’s body. Novi saunters down the hall slowly taking it in herself. He pulls on one of the rings and the door opens with a loud creak. Inside is so plain but beautiful. There is one large canopy bed in the middle of the room. There is a window on the two side walls, with royal purple and gold drapes hanging down. There are mirrors in each corner and a trunk on the far left wall. I walk over to the trunk and wipe off the dust on top. Its a red wooden trunk with gold sides and a gold latch. There is no lock so I open it. Inside are robes. Like the ones I saw on the boy in my dream. I lift up a long rich red and gold dress. Small, looks just my size. It has a v-cut in the front but gold lace to cover it. The sleeves are long and silky with gold lace at the end. They flow out like the bottom of the dress. I turn around excited to show Will and see that he is slumped on the bed, passed out. I knew he was exhausted. I should've let him sleep. Behind the bed on the back wall are two more doors. I open them to see a small pool. More like a clear pond, with lilies floating around and lavender flowers on top. “Be careful Tamer.” Novi comes up behind me and lays down at the entrance of the door. I regard her for a moment then begin to take off my clothes so I can clean myself. She’s a female, and an animal, who cares. Once I get off my tattered black parachute pants, and disgusting tan cami, I bathe in the surprisingly warm water and pull on the dress which fits around my body perfectly. Its cool, and smooth. Feels like silk. 

I walk past Novi, rubbing my hand against her large black head as I walk by. She closes her eyes and purrs. Our first sign of affection towards each other. Will is knocked out half of his body on the bed. I push his heavy legs onto the bed and climb in after him. The bed has cream colored blankets and pillows. It is beyond comfortable. As soon as I settle onto the bed, I fall asleep with my head on Wills chest. The best night of sleep Ive had in a long time, feeling more relaxed than ever. 

I could've sworn it was a dream. All of it. Theres no way I’d find a palace of gold, no a paradise, in the middle of an isolated island. And theres absolutely no way I can talk to animals. This is all a dream or I have been hallucinating. Before I open my eyes I rub my arm. Yes, I feel silk sleeves. I open my eyes with a smile and lift my head. I really am here. I really am in this paradise. And next to me is the most beautiful human being I have ever seen. I lean down close to Wills ear and whisper to him. “Wake up.” He moans a bit and it is the sexiest thing ever. “Wake up.” I whisper again. I hop off the bed before he opens his eyes. I look in the trunk again to see if there is anything I can find for Will. I pull out green and black harem looking pants with a black sash attached, and a white v-neck cotton shirt. I hold these pieces of clothing up as Will finally awakens. 

He looks at me with sleepy eyes then walks over and grabs the clothes from me, checking them out and feeling them through with his fingers. I point at the door that leads to the private pond where Novi is still sleeping. Without a word Will heads out there. I return to the large comfortable bed and wait until Will finishes cleaning up. When he comes back I start to say good morning when I choke on my words. He’s standing in front of me with the pants that fit very nicely, but no shirt on, exposing his wonderful chest and abs, tanned from our weeks on this island. His hair is down in wet golden locks. He grins at me and I realize my mouth is stuck open. I shut it quick. Without a word between us, Will climbs onto the bed one knee at a time and leans over me. He grabs my neck with one hand and inches his face closer to mines. I can feel the heat of his body, hot even with the silk of my dress between us. His warm lips connect with mine and I reach forward, returning his passionate kiss. I wrap my arms around his neck and let myself fall back into the comfort of the bed and Will’s body.

All to soon though he separates. “Good morning.” He smiles at me, and Im breathless.  He pulls me off the bed and holds me in an embrace. Both of us silently trying to get ahold of our situation. I hear a shake and look over to see Novi waking up, stretching and yawning. She stares at us and blinks, then walks past us without a word and out the door. I grab Wills hand and follow her. As soon as I walk out of the one open door I trip. Come to find out its over Balaraj, who's sleeping in the doorway. He wakes with a snarl. “Er, sorry.” I apologize to him. He shakes his large furry head, barely blinks at me, then lays his head back down to sleep. 

We make our way down the rest of the long golden corridor, and step out into what looks like a courtyard. The courtyard is huge. Looks like a town square. In the court yard are many trees of bananas, apples, mango, and starfruit. Bushes grow in the corners with some strange purplish berries. Will goes over to one and picks a berry. “Are these ok to eat?” He asks me. I shrug and look at Novi.

“They’re fine.” She says. I repeat. Will tastes it and smiles. 

“It’s sweet.” He grabs a handful and walks back over to me, popping one in my mouth. It is sweet, and delicious. I cant figure out what it taste like though. The palace makes a square around the courtyard with no visible exit. There is one short archway to the left where the stream flows under and through the courtyard, out of another archway in the corner to the right. The stream flows straight and then curves so it flows right in from of where we are all standing and curves again to flow out of the other archway. Kind of making a crooked “U”. There is a small bridge where we walk over from the entrance and into the square. On the side of each archway are large bushes with beautiful pink and lavender flowers growing inside of them. There are many other doors that look like they belong to homes and shops? We walk to one door behind a mango tree and open it. Inside are vases, many vases. I look inside one but there is nothing but dust. “Do you know what these are for?” I ask Novi.

“I have no idea.” She lays by the door. 

“Water, food storage.” States Balaraj sauntering in after us finally awake. He still makes me nervous. I cant quite figure out his personality yet. He goes to another empty vase and sniffs it. 

We leave this shop and head to the doors next to us. When opened, we find several trunks inside on the floors, and shelves of material on the walls. Obviously some type of clothing or needlework shop. I lift up an article of clothing nearest me and shake out the dust. Its a soft plain white dress. I hold it up to myself. It’s length is right above my knees, its collar gold plated. It looks almost Egyptian, sleeveless, cotton maybe. It has an embroidered gold belt around the middle. I drape it over my arm, I love this. Will looks at several articles of clothing inside of a trunk towards the back but doesn't hold on to anything. 

We go door to door checking out whats inside of each room. Most are small rooms, with not much more than a single bed and trunk, mirrors, and extravagant curtains and sheets. “Why is everything gold?” I ask out loud. 

“The Tamers were very wealthy.” Novi answers. “In gold, food and animals.”

“How did they find it all? Dug for it?” 

“Most likely.” Says Will. Around the courtyard we come across a bath house, a room with a large fire pit, probably for cooking, and more homes. Some homes have just one room, some have two. The one door next to the archway where the stream flows in is the first door we come across that wont open. Will and I cannot even make it budge, and the two large beast don't offer any help either. “What the hell is inside that its locked?” Will says frustrated. 

“Stop! Maybe its a mortuary. There might be like mummy’s inside or something!” I say getting creeped out. Will gives me a strange look. 

“Really Dina? Thats your first guess?” 

“Well what else would be locked up?” He sighs and shakes his head judging me. Just then we all hear a crash and look up. Dark clouds rolling in at a steady pace. “Rain.” I mutter. Will and I grab a handful of fruit each from the surrounding trees and we all walk back down the corridor from which we came. “This place is beautiful but for some reason I expected there to be like, pictures or writing on the walls. You know how there is in pyramids and shrines of civilization that have gone extinct.” I say to Will and the felines as we relax in the room we slept the night before. 

“I didn't see any books either. Did these Tamers not know how to write or keep records?” 

“If they did I doubt you could read their language human.” Balaraj says, musing at Will. I translate.

“Your right.” Will says. “But even so, without pictures or anything, I feel like theres no history to this place. Or none that we would ever know of.”

I switch into the comfortable white dress I found in the one shop. Its so much cooler than the silk dress I was wearing. It looks better on me as well, the white cloth. I look in one of the mirrors. I do really look like an Egyptian, with my skin darkened even more from the sun, and the beginning of an afro on my head. “Black Queen.” I mutter to myself and smile twirling.

“You’ve got that right.” Will says winking at me. I swat my hand at him and climb into the bed. Behind the canopy we watch the rain pour down into the beautiful pond. Thunder sounds and I flinch. Will turns to look at me, smirks and pulls me closer to him. Even though we slept well the night before Im still exhausted from the weeks on the island, laying on that uncomfortable sand, and our two day trek here. I lean in close to his chest, Will smelling of fresh water, cucumber and manly must. My eyes start to grow heavy. Will is telling me something about the distance between lightening and the sound of thunder and blah blah blah. 

I wake up suddenly. I look around and everyone is sleeping. Im still in Will’s arms. By the door is Novi and Balaraj is laying in the corner by the trunk. It’s still pouring outside but the thunder and lightening has stopped. My head tingles and I get up. I head towards the open door. Balaraj lifts his head but I put my finger to my mouth in the hush signal and he lays back down. The hallway is lit up with torches. “Did Will do this?” I mutter to myself. I go to one torch. There is nothing inside feeding the fire. “Hmm.” I pad down the hall in my bare feet. The tingling feeling in my head turning into a buzzing in my body. Before I reach the courtyard I take a right turn down another hall. Theres a door at the end that leads outside. The buzzing is turning into a humming I can hear. “Where is that humming coming from?” Outside there is a stairwell to my left. I walk up the stairwell and reach the second floor of the palace. I peak inside but the humming is coming from further up the stairs. I continue. Past the third floor and up to a small fourth floor. The doors to the fourth floor are gold, unlike all of the other wooden and bamboo doors in the rest of the palace. They are not solid but more like gates, with a flowery design. I don't see a lock so I pull on one of the gates. It opens without a sound. The humming has stopped. I step inside but stop immediately. I get a strange feeling of life inside of here. Torches are lit all around this room and I realize its a prayer room. All around the room are statues, of many animals. I notice the panther first, who looks like Novi, not that Im good at telling the difference between giant cats anyways. There is an elephant, an ostrich, an alligator, a gazelle, a baboon, an orangutan, and many more. Some of the gold states are on the ceiling looking down on me with an intense disturbing gaze. There are also shelves lined on every wall, and lined higher than me with scrolls. 

I slide against the wall to the first shelf and touch the first piece of paper expecting it to crumble but it doesn’t. It rolls off the shelf onto the floor and opens. I follow it with my eyes to the middle of the room where the floor indents into a circular sitting area where a red wood pedestal stands in the middle. On top of the pedestal is the crown I saw in my dream atop of that little boys head. In the middle of the crown is a statue of the cobra. I walk fast towards it, amazed that this, this thing from my dream is here, in front of me, shining in perfect condition. “Whats going on?” I mutter to myself in amazement, reaching my hand out to the crown my heart beating fast. “Aah!” I screech! The cobra was not a statue and in the blink of an eye, it slithers down the pedestal to the floor behind me. 

“Tamer.” I stare at the cobra as it hisses. Too stunned to respond. Im terrified of snakes, I can barely breathe. On top of that, one of the most dangerous snakes is in front of me and I don't know wether it is a friend or enemy. “You have come back?” 

“I was… never here before.” I stutter. 

It slithers around the circular seating area and watches me. “What is your name Tamer?”

“Dina.” I circle with it not wanting the cobra behind my back. The snakes voice is one that I can not figure out. “Are you a male?” I ask. 

“I am neither male, nor female. I am Aasim. Protector.” It says posting up in front of me, rising to my eye level. The cobra is not big but it is not tiny. The length is about seventeen feet. Aasim’s voice is smooth and ghostly. 

“Protector of what?” 

“Why the Tamer’s of course.” Aasim’s voice sounds more feminine as it says this. “Your people.” 

“I don’t know anything about my people.” I admit to the snake. The color of Aasim’s scales I notice change. From olive green, to yellowish tan and black. Almost mesmerizing me. I try to focus. 

“Would you like to know?”

“Yes.” I say too fast. Aasim begins to circle me again. 

“Tamer’s are the real Kings of the forest.” It begins. “They’re home on this island for thousands of years. Living in peace amongst themselves, and the beasts here. Only killing what they must eat and use for survival. They had much wealth though it was not needed. They put their wealth into their home, gold providing an everlasting place to live. Only among their last few years did the Tamers reach out to other societies, though I warned against it.” Aasim says this last bit in a deep hiss, almost growl. 

“You warned against it? How long have you been here?” I asked in an unbelieving tone. 

“I never leave Tamer.” 

“Why.”

“Because like I said, I am the protector.”

“Why did you not want the Tamers to reach out to other people? I ask skeptical. 

“Because like I predicted it was the downfall of your people.” Aasim says stopping in front of me, and standing to my height. The snake is intimidating and I take an involuntary step back. Aasim flares out it’s head and weaves back and forth distracting me. Before I realize it, Aasim drops and I feel teeth, no fangs sink into the back of my left thigh. I scream out falling, grabbing my leg. 

“Why.. why did you bite me?” I stutter, head getting dizzy, barely making out my words. 

“I will show you the history of your people.” Aasim says to me. Before I fall into unconsciousness I hear a deafening rawr and an equally dangerous hiss. 

The courtyard is surrounded by people of brown color. All the color of clay and earth. Their bodies covered with gold bangles and faces pierced with wooden jewelry. They are all peaceful, some laughing with their animals. Animals everywhere. There is a baby elephant sleeping near where the stream enters the courtyard. Someone comes running into the courtyard, shouting about strangers. Several of the men and woman get up and talk to the young girl that came running in. The tallest woman walks to the one room near the stream that was locked and opens it, emerging with several  bone knives. They are the size of my forearm and curve to their point. She puts them in straps that are on her back and she leads a party of five out of the palace. Two woman, three men. On the beach they encounter seven men. They are dirty, so dirty its impossible to tell their race. Their hair is black, and eyes are squinted. They have a large wooden fishing boat behind them and are trying to communicate with the Tamers. One of the men looks behind the Tamers and spots a large tiger and orangutan watching them. The man yells and points scaring the other men. The large woman who led the party smiles, and calls her orangutan over attempting to introduce it but soon realizing that the men don't understand. She points to a tattoo of an orangutan on her ribs and points again to the monkey. The monkey stays still as to not further terrify the men. Soon they calm down but still look wary. 

Communication remains difficult until the girl that originally told the Tamers of the strangers that arrived, runs out of the forest. She is carrying a bag made of animal hide. The large woman tells her to remain back still not trusting the strangers but the girl comes forward anyways revealing gold inside of the bag. All of the men ooh and aah as they look at the gold and one runs back to the boat and returns carrying fish. He points at the fish and then at the gold insinuating trade. The large woman shakes her head. The one man runs back and returns carrying a bundle of soft shiny cloth material. The Tamers look at the cloth with interest and nod their approval. They exchange gifts. 

Time speeds up, many boats arrive to the beach, each time meeting a group of Tamers and their beast. The humans bow to the Tamers and their magical animals who they can speak in tongues with, then they exchange gifts. Asians come with silk and foods, Arabs with materials, goodies, and writing utensils. Africans with similar items and new animals, asking the Tamers if they can speak to these animals which the Tamers can. They gawk and praise the Tamers. Once in a while the Tamers will permit an outsider to live with them, teaching them things they did not know before, modernizing them. The human that stays never leaves though, falling in love with the golden society and peaceful nature. The Tamers clothes, expressing the culture of the many different races they have encountered. Many gifts given. 

The last boat arrives. Men, many men, skin white as an elephants tusk. Tamers pleasantly greet them. The Tamers do not know that these white men have already heard of the golden island, and the beast talkers. Another boat lands on the other side of the island undetected. The Tamers offer a trade but are unsuspectingly cut down. The animals, horrified come to their Tamers defense but are no match for the white mans dangerous machines that shoot out before the animals can even come close. Back at the palace white men converge on the peaceful society, slaughtering the women, men, and children, and every beast they see. The Tamers are a match though, killing many of the white men until more come with their shooting machines. The young king comes to the entrance of the courtyard watching in horror as his mother and her wild hyena bite, stab and kill a tall skinny white man but are shot in the back and neck by another. He turns and runs only to be confronted by three more men. His gorilla tells him to run. He is protected. The young king does not want his gorilla to be hurt but is forced away. He runs to the shrine on the fourth floor. 

“Aasim…!” The boy falls over a pile of convulsing bodies. Aasim slithering back and forth in anger. “Please Aasim. I do not want my people to die!”

“I told your people not to associate with outsiders Vasin.” Aasim hisses angrily. 

“Please Aasim. Please.” Vasin is on his knees. Begging the cobra who towers over him. Aasim studies him. 

“Pray Vasin. To the gods. When you are done you will run to the beach and hide on the ships the men came in. You will not be found. When they arrive to their home you will run, and begin a false life. Never to speak of this place again. You will pray to the gods that your bloodline will continue, and your people will live. You will never speak to another beast for fear of discovery. Now pray Vasin!” 

Aasim slithers past Vasin and out the door. Shots are heard and people scream. Vasin prays, he chants, he prays. All is silent. He gets up, lays his crown on the wooden pedestal, and wipes his face. He turns and runs, down the golden stairs, down the golden corridors he runs. Passing dead bodies of Tamers, and convulsing bodies of white men with snake bites all over. Aasim nowhere to be found. He closes his eyes running past his people. Down to the beach Vasin hides in the trees, no one is seen. Behind him in the forest he hears men screaming. “Kill it! Snake!” They yell. “Why cant you hit the blasted thing?!” Someone screams. Vasin runs for the nearest boat crawling to a lower deck and hiding in a barrel. He cries silently, hearing men board up top.