This isn’t my time to die. It is not. The tornado gets directly in front of the hut, and the roof immediately is wiped off the building. I can hear someone shriek from inside. The funnel reaches down and grabs Marr. Marr is being sucked up by it, but just in time Rapicik clamps down on his tail and brings him back down. The tables are now being sucked up, and as they shuffle around from the wind, we all get against the wall. The tornado’s funnel now hits directly in the center of the hut, and I can hear Nova screaming on the other side of the hut near Rapicik. The funnel heads directly towards them, but Rapicik grabs Nova and pushes her to the side. Rapicik then grabs onto a metal pole coming out of the ground. It must’ve been used to support the ceiling before. The tornado picks him up, but he clamps his paws down as hard as possible to the pole. He remains safe.
All of a sudden, the tornado shifts in my direction. It comes at me faster than anything I’ve ever seen. It lifts me up with extreme strength, and I know that I am going to die. I whirl in circles as I elevate higher into the air. The wind is so loud I can hear nothing below. All I see are scraps of buildings, dirt, and maybe even another wolf in the distance. I try to scream, but nothing is happening. The tornado has total control over me, and I’m spinning too fast to realize what’s going on around me. Out of the corner of my eye, I see a tall, gray strip of something- I don’t what what it is- in the center of the tornado. Then it disappears as the wind swirls me around in circles again.
I remember Sinsar’s vision he told me about. Many will be wiped out. Am I going to be one of them?
The tornado starts to dissolve and the spinning slows down. The dark cloud begin to disappear and the day becomes brighter. I now realize that I am high in the air.
“Help!” I scream with all my might, hoping that someone below hears me. I can’t land on a concrete surface! I’ll be squashed!
I peer down below as I fall through the open sky. The wind force is so strong that every part of me blows upwards as I fall down. I shriek once more as I see trees down below me. Where am I even at?
The ground nears. There are trees everywhere, and I can’t see anything else. I plunge into the trees, and everything goes black.
“I’m sure he’ll be fine. We should talk to him, though,” I hear a familiar voice say near me. I barely open my eyes. I’m in a small, wooden room lit up by torches. Am I with the Tribe of Ersel animals?
“He is awake,” I hear Ersel’s voice. I raise my head, but then my neck pops. It stings for a second, but then the pain goes away.
“Cup. You were sucked up by the tornado,” Ersel squints at me. He looks similar to when I last saw him. However, his age is starting to get to him even more. Like Sinsar, I don’t believe that Ersel has much more time in this world. But then who will control the Tribe of Ersel Animals?
Ikenus is near a small, seemingly young black wolf. The black wolf stares at me with his icy blue eyes. He is the spitting image of Ersel.
Ikenus, the large black wolf with green eyes, walks over to me.
“I am glad you’re awake, Cup. We have much to discuss,” he dips his head.
“How long have I been sleeping?” I ask.
“An hour. You should be able to return to Jamaa by midnight,” Ikenus guarantees. A wave of relief floods over me.
“Now, that young wolf is Zythril. He is Ersel’s son,” Ikenus smiles at Zythril. Zythril doesn’t speak at all, but he just looks down at his paws.
“I need to speak with you privately,” Ersel interrupts Ikenus while pointing at me.
“Okay, Ersel, good luck,” says Ikenus with a weird tone of voice.
Ersel trots out of the small room, waiting for me to follow him. I get up off of the bed. Maybe this room is a recovery area, where injured animals can stay.
Outside of the room is the long, narrow hallway. It is dimly lit by the torches. There is nobody else except for Ersel and I. We continue walking down the wooden hallway and at the very end, Ersel creaks open a small door.
“Come in,” he says without looking me in the eye. I go in first, and then Ersel follows, slamming the door shut.
Nothing is in this large room. It is empty, but large enough to fit every animal in Jamaa here. My voice echoes in reply as Ersel tells me to sit down. I do as he says, and then he lights a lamp. The large room is completely empty and has a ghostly feeling to it.
“Now, Cup, I believe I may know who will be your final enemy,” admits Ersel, now looking me directly in the pupil of my eye.
“Who is it, then?” I question him.
“It is Rocky. Rocky will destroy you and your friends. He will betray you out of jealousy. He still wants Nova, and you aren’t making that possible for him. Rocky will recruit a group of animals that also have reasons to kill you. Katira and Brent don’t like you at all. Ranel might even join them, for she believes it’s your fault her brother died. Every animal has something against you, and Rocky’s group will make you pay if you don’t kill him first,” Ersel coughs up a small amount of blood as he finishes.
“But Ersel, I don’t believe he would do it. He is much more mature now. We are friends,” I argue.
“You have to watch your back, Cup. After all, the final battle will be a betrayal,” says Ersel with a tone of voice I’ve never heard from him.
“Jamaa is in deep danger from Rocky. He is much more powerful than you think. He is good at convincing. Even the Alphas believe he will betray Jamaa,” Ersel attempts to convince me.
“Wait- how do you know that? How do you know that the Alphas don’t trust him anymore?” I raise my eyebrows, waiting for a sincere and honest answer.
“It’s because they told me themselves. Liza spoke with me yesterday. They’ve already discussed it, but they aren’t announcing it to the public yet. Their beliefs still need more evidence. But Cup, I know this is true. If you believe me, your life will no longer be in danger. Go home and kill Rocky now,” Ersel demands with a huge growl.
“No, Ersel. I cannot,” I reply with honesty in my voice.
“Very well, then. Believe what you want. I will still help you if danger comes,” Ersel finally lets me win the argument.
“I guess I will keep an eye on everyone. But I still don’t believe it yet,” I tell Ersel, trying not to make him feel bad.
“Okay. You may go,” he dismisses me. I trot out of the door and Ersel remains inside of the colossal room.
What kind of thoughts could be going through Ersel’s mind now? He is convinced that Rocky is the real enemy. I don’t believe it, though. Right now, I am more concerned about Kurkah and when he will attack.
I leave The Tribe of Ersel Animals behind, and I am once again in the mystical forest. But I can’t pay attention to the scenery. I need to think.
If Rocky is the enemy, then who is the black wolf that was Archie’s grandfather? Ersel comes into my mind, but Ersel isn’t the name of the wolf. The old Archie must not have anything to do with the final betrayal.
Once I arrive back in Jamaa, the town is absolutely devastated. Scraps of metal are everywhere, and bricks lie out in the open. Animals are scattered around, searching for their loved ones.
“Cup! You’re alive!” I can hear Nova’s familiar voice shout.
Nova races right up to me and hugs me. We both begin to cry in tears of joy.
“The tornado is over. We’re safe now,” she smiles while whispering this into my ear.
Deep down, I doubt it. This is only one of the three disasters to come soon.
“Let’s go an meet Orellan now. It’s nearly midnight,” Rocky whispers in my ear. I am sleeping in my den with Nova, Rocky and Ranel by my side.
I rub my eyes and finally awaken. Zikah and my mother, Zara, are both sound asleep on the other side of the den. Rocky and I wake the two girls up.
“It’s midnight,” I whisper into Nova’s ear. She quickly nods, and then gets up.
Rocky does the same with Ranel, and I can hear Ranel tell something to Rocky. He laughs silently.
“Maybe we’ll lose Katira, Brent and all of the others while we walk there,” I suggest as we exit the den and out into the cool, summer night. The moon is brightly lighting up the sky and everything seems quiet around Jamaa Township.
“This place is still so ruined,” I take another look at my surroundings. I am lucky that my den is still there. Nova isn’t so lucky.
As we walk towards the path to Liza’s hut, Rocky asks “Where were you after being sucked up by the tornado?”
“Oh, I was with the Tribe of Ersel Animals. They managed to save my life,” I reply.
“Did they say anything interesting?”
“Nope.”
We continue walking in silence until finally we reach the path. Sitting on the path is Orellan, caked in mud.
“The tornado was rough,” he coughs as we greet him.
“I was sucked up by it,” I tell him. Then I look down at myself. I now realize how filthy my fur is, how much fur I have lost, and how exhausted I look.
“That must’ve been rougher. How did you even survive?” wonders Orellan with awe in his voice.
“I was taken care of by the Tribe of Ersel Animals. They live a little ways from Jamaa and help us whenever we’re on a journey,” I explain to Orellan. He probably doesn’t know anything about them.
Orellan nods. Then all five of us head into the small, bamboo forest.
“Now, there is an entrance to the Dream World somewhere in here. It’s now hidden, but I’m sure we’ll find it,” Orellan says, biting his bottom lip. The moonlight guides our way through the forest as we search for the entrance.
“Aha! We found you!” a raspy voice says from behind me. I spin around and attack the figure without thinking.
“Who is it?” I ask.
Then I look down at who I have pinned. Brent is beneath my paws. Katira, Daymond, Rosa and Nile are standing by the side, waiting for me to get off of Brent.
“Don’t you know how dangerous the Dream World is?” I ask with anger in my voice.
“Yes, I do. But I want to help you on your mission through it. I want to prove to you that I have changed,” Brent gasps for air underneath my grip.
“Then you may. But if you die, you can’t blame me,” I release my grip on him. He squirms out from underneath and sprints over to where Katira stands.
“Please, Cup. We are truly sorry. Just let us help you in the Dream World,” Katira stares at me with depressed eyes.
“Whatever,” I grunt.
“Why are you three coming?” I point at Daymond, Rosa and Nile.
“We also want to help you,” Daymond is the first to reply.
“Everyone in Jamaa is a team, and I know that we can help defeat the enemy. We need to discover more truth in Jamaa,” Rosa speaks up after Daymond.
“I’m also ready to help you, Cup. I might’ve never been an important figure in your life, but I want to help you save Jamaa,” Nile is the last to speak out of the three.
“I really don’t want you all to come. It’s dangerous. But as you wish, I guess you can come,” I stare out into the open. Do these animals even have brains? I guess I shouldn’t be mean to them. I am the one going into the Dream World, anyways. I don’t want to be a hypocrite.
“Follow me,” I gesture for all five of them to come. I lead them into the large bamboo forest.
“Orellan? Nova? Rocky?” I ask with a loud voice. It echoes into the distance, and then I hear a reply from Orellan.
I look around, trying to distinguish which area the voice came from. Then I head north into the forest, sprinting with all my might. The others follow behind, but not nearly as quick.
I finally reach Orellan, and he’s standing by Ranel, Rocky and Nova. They’re all digging up dirt, and I can see the hole starting to open up in the ground.
“Help us dig!” Ranel demands as we all arrive.
“Well, what is this?” I hear Wandel’s familiar voice from behind me as we all begin digging.
“Wandel.” I turn around. Everybody else remains at work.
“And Marr? You too, Nymin?” I gasp at the sight of them.
“We’re making up for the time we lost with you. We both want to help you on your mission,” Nymin speaks before Marr.
“I know the Dream World is risky, but we need to help,” Marr smiles.
“I brought these two with me. Katira told me about this. I wish to help you, too,” Wandel smiles directly at me.
“You can all come with. But this is your last chance. It is dangerous, and you might die. Are you sure you want to come?” I offer for them to leave.
“We’re all sure,” Wandel dips his head.
“Nova, somebody is guaranteed to die. We have many coming with us,” I whisper into Nova’s ear as we finish up digging. Down below, a cave full of crystals is now visible.
“I know, Cup,” Nova gulps as we all hop down into the bright, crystal cave.
“Now, before we enter the Dream World,” I raise my voice with authority in it.
“I need to explain how to stay safe there.”
Everyone suddenly goes silent, waiting for me to continue.
“The Dream World can take you into the past, present or future. The past and future are very, very dangerous to visit. We will all sleep on the largest crystal. We will be taken to a base area. All of us will hold paws, and I will think about the past. We will be taken a second into the past. In each past, there will be a portal leading into a more distant past. It chooses how far into the past you go. It could range from three-hundred Jamaasian Years ago, or just another second into the past. It’s very dangerous. The portals also close at random times, so if we get trapped in a certain past with no portal back, we’ll sleep in real life until our deaths. The only way to get back to the base is going through the portals you used to get back. We all have to stick together,” I explain and take a deep breath after finishing.
“And please promise me that you’ll never come back to the Dream World. I can’t stand thinking about any of yours deaths-” I stare at Brent and Katira- “even if I do have a grudge against you. It was your choice to come here, and I honestly can’t change it.”
“What are we doing in the Dream World, again? I completely forgot what you told me,” Nile asks.
“We’re bringing Archie back to life. In the Dream World, you can view the spirits of animals that die right after their death. You can’t talk to anyone that’s still alive in the past or future, though, but you can talk to spirits. You can bring spirits back through the portals, to the base, and after thinking about waking up, they’ll be alive and with you once again.”
“How come we don’t bring everyone back to life, then?” Rosa looks confused.
“Because the Dream World is too dangerous to visit. It’s a huge risk,” I finish up explaining. I clearly remember everything that Dawn had told me.
“Let’s go now. Enough bickering!” Rocky lets out a large laugh. He jumps on top of the largest crystal and begins to sleep.
I still remember the first time I experienced the Dream World, when my father visited me. He’s never said anything about it from then on. I don’t want to hear about his experience in it, either.
I begin to sleep on top of the large rock. Immediately I am taken to the pitch black base once again.
Everyone is here, and most of them are wide-eyed with shock. Only Rocky, Nova, Orellan and I aren’t surprised.
“This is the Base of the Dream World. To awaken, you have just to think about waking up,” I say.
“Let’s start going into the past. The second disaster might happen soon, and we need to be there to help everyone else. Besides, what will everyone think if we’re missing in the morning?” my voice shouts out in warning.
“Now, everyone grab paws,” Nova orders, knowing the next step. We all do it in less than five seconds.
I begin to think of the past. We are all suddenly whisked through a spinning vortex full of every color imaginable.
After a few seconds, we arrive in Jamaa Township. It is bright and in the afternoon.
“It looks like we’re a little farther into the past than I expected,” I point out.
Wandel is sitting on the bridge with everyone else. I am still talking to them.
“I remember that!” laughs Wandel.
“Come on. We can’t stay here long. Remember, the portals can go out at any second,” I remind everyone.
“We need to find the next portal!” Rocky demands with rage in his voice. The portal is nowhere to be seen!
“Where is it?” gasps Nova.
“It’s above us!” I can hear Orellan’s surprised voice. I suddenly look up and see that the portal is nearly six feet above our heads.
“Everybody, get on my back!” I order. Rocky is the first to hop on top of it. After getting on my back, he tells someone else to climb on top of him. Orellan climbs up my side and on top of Rocky. From there, he hops right into the portal. Nova goes second. After getting into the portal, she is followed by Ranel, Wandel, Rosa and Nile.
“Wandel! You go now!” I order. My bones are starting to shake after holding so much weight for a long time.
“No! I’ll help everyone else!” Wandel argues back.
“Daymond? You can fly. Help the others get up to the portal,” Daymond does as I says. He lifts Marr and Nymin onto his back, and flies them up to the portal. As Daymond comes back down, he picks up Katira and Wandel.
“Alright, Brent, you come up!” Rocky shouts from above me. Brent climbs up me, and then gets on top of Rocky. He leaps into the portal.
“Daymond! Fly Rocky up there, then come back for me!” I tell Daymond. He nods. He picks up Rocky onto his back and flies him up to the portal. Rocky leaps through it and is safe on the other side.
Daymond flies down for me, picks me up like prey, and flies me up to the portal. We both fly through together and crash land onto the other side.
On the other side, Jamaa is full of battling animals. They are snarling and fighting off many, many phantoms. Have we already arrived to the time where Achie died?
“Oh no… this is the battle with the Phantoms we had a little while ago. Cup, you were in Zone Two during this battle,” Wandel seems frightened to death as he speaks to me.
“Don’t worry, Wandel. Nothing can harm you here except for memories,” I reply to him with empathy in my voice.
I see Wandel as a shadow of the past. He’s fighting off a huge phantom. Behind him is a helpless, female arctic wolf. She looks terrified. Suddenly, the huge Phantom knocks Wandel over and Wandel screams with horror. The Phantom goes behind him, and pins the arctic wolf to the wall of her den. Wandel gets up and tries to tackle the Phantom, but he doesn’t budge it. The Phantom kills the arctic wolf.
I look at Wandel. He’s staring at his paws while we race to the next portal. The next portal is directly in front of us, but it is many feet away.
I slow down, looking behind me. Everyone else is in front, and they don’t seem to notice me stopping.
If I want to save the arctic wolf, I am risking my life. Is it really worth it?
Pure depression. I remember exactly how Wandel’s eyes looked as he came into this place. I have to save her. It might waste time, but the Dream World has never let me down before.
Sprinting towards the rising spirit, I shout at it. The spirit looks exactly like the female Arctic Wolf that just died, except the spirit is translucent and heading to the Heavens of Jamaa.
“Is that you, Cup? The one to save Jamaa? How are you here?” she asks.
“There is no time to explain. Please, just follow me!” I demand. I begin sprinting towards the glowing portal. The spirits follow close. A Phantom King jumps right out in front of me, but I go through him like he’s made of air. Nobody except the spirits see me here.
“Go through the portal with me!” the spirit follows me. She hops through the portal just as I said. On the other side, everyone else is sitting there, waiting for me.
“Bellina!” Wandel screams at the sight of her.
“Wandel? Oh Zios!” Bellina, who is still a spirit until she arrives back in the Crystal Cave, responds with emotion flooding through her voice.
I ignore their reunion, trying to avoid Wandel. I don’t want a thank you.
“I know what you did back there, Cup. That’s extremely nice of you,” Ranel whispers into my ear. I smile back at her.
Jamaa Township looks as normal as ever. Everyone is outside and doing their things. Animals are everywhere, shopping for new clothes and furniture. Many of them are chatting. And directly in the center, I can see myself talking to some of the animals of Jamaa.
“My old Jammer’s dream was to get that diamond sword. But I guess the journey did change me. Kurkah, Nova and I were sent to figure out where the Phantoms were at. We went on an adventure,” I hear my old self say. This must be right after my first battle with the Phantoms!
“Okay guys. We’re really close,” I announce.
“I think I remember this,” recalls Rocky.
“I do too. It was after the battle with Kurkah!” Nova suddenly brightens up.
“I vaguely remember this time. I usually spent my time indoors, thinking about other things,” whispers Orellan.
“There’s the next portal!” I point out. There’s a large, glowing purple portal near the entrance to Jam Mart Furniture. We all rush towards it, and enter it in no time.
On the other side of the portal is the battle against Kurkah.
“This is it! We have to find Archie!” I demand. Every animal races into a different direction, searching for Archie.
Nova searches in the direction of Appondale. I head to the area near Liza’s old hut. I can’t really remember where Archie was killed, but I think it was around here. Rocky follows in my direction.
A Phantom rushes through my like air, but I pay no attention to it. I continue my quest to find Archie.
The sky is darkened and the swarm of Phantoms seems unrealistic. Many of them are coming, and I can hear the shrieks of many animals as they begin their battle. Where could Archie be, though?
“Cup! I think I found him!” I can hear Daymond’s shriek. I turn around. Daymond, Brent, Katira and marr stand near an Arctic Wolf trying to fight off three phantoms. The arctic wolf is slowly being overpowered, and I can tell that it is Archie. He is wearing all of his rarest clothes. His diamond sword glistens in the darkness. “I will not go down without a fight!” screams Archie.
“I might’ve been a bad person, and I’m sorry! This is for everyone in Jamaa!” Archie leaps directly at one of the Phantoms and bites down on its tentacles. The other two phantoms quickly surround him. A third phantom comes down and helps pin Archie to the ground. They slowly consume his body.
“Archie…” I can hear Ranel’s silent voice in the distance. Even though her brother was rude, she still loves him.
Archie’s spirit now flows from his body and begins travelling up.
“Archie!” I shriek.
The spirit of Archie still looks the same, but he is translucent, just like Bellina was.
“Cup? How? What the?” Archie seems confused.
“I’m going to bring you back to life. Follow me,” I tell him. Archie’s green eyes brighten up. He is the spitting image of Ranel with the same gray fur.
All of us meet up again in the center of Jamaa Township.
“It’s time to head back through the portals. Run as fast as you can!” I say.
Instantly, everyone starts runnin towards the portal leading back to the present. Archie has no idea what is going on, but he does it anyways. We all make our way safely through it.
“Keep going!” I instruct everyone as we now head through the next portal. This one will lead us to the latest battle with the Phantoms.
This portal is easy to get through. It is very close to us already. We all easily get through it and arrive back in the latest Phantom battle.
Way on the other side of Jamaa Township, I can see the portal starting to dim. It is going out!
“Everyone, run! The portal up there is going out!” I take a deep breath as I sprint as fast as possible.
Nova suddenly stops as a huge crack in the ground forms. The look on Wandel’s face tells me he remembers this. Nova, Katira, Brent and I are all trapped behind the crack as everyone else just barely made it. It is too wide to jump, and too long to go around!
“Give me your paws! Now!” Rocky screams from the other side. Everyone is still waiting for us on the other side. I am happy to have such amazing friends.
I tell Nova to go first. Rocky holds out his paws as far as possible as she jumps. He catches her in his arms and sets her down on the other side. They both turn around and wait for the next animal to come. Brent tells Katira to go next, but she argues.
“No. I won’t leave you,” Katira cries.
“I’ll be fine, Katira. I promise. Please. We will soon fit into the World of Jamaa. Just not yet,” guarantees Brent. I now feel really bad for the two. Maybe they do want to change their ways. Have I been wrong all of this time?
Katira is finally convinced and jumps into Rocky’s arms. She waits patiently on the other side. Up ahead, the portal is nearly out. We have to hurry!
“You go first, Brent. I misjudged you. Accept my apology,” I dip my head to Brent.
“You will always be welcome by me now.”
Brent smiles widely. His expression tells me that he could never thank me enough. He jumps across the wide gap and into Rocky’s arms.
Immediately after, I jump, too. Rocky sets me down and everyone sprints as fast as they have ever done. Brent and I trail behind as we were the last ones to get over the gap.
Everyone else is in front of us as Brent and I are nearly at the portal. It is barely visible as it begins its very final moments.
“Thank you, Cup. Tell Katira I’ll always be with her, no matter what.” Brent’s voice sound harsh coming from slightly behind me.
“Wait- what?” I begin to ask. At that moment, Brent shoves me forward with all of his might. I barely make it through the portal to the other side. I crash through the crowd of animals waiting for Brent and I. I get to my paws and look behind me. The portal is gone, and Brent is now trapped in the Dream World until his death.
“Brent!” Katira’s shriek makes my heart flinch. Brent sacrificed his life for mine.
“Katira, Brent will always be with you. No matter what,” I assure Katira as she cries. I feel a lot of empathy for her right now. It must be horrible.
“You killed him! You killed him! Now I’m going to kill you!” scrams Katira. She leaps at me, but I barely dodge her. Nova grabs Katira and pins her down.
“Katira, I am sorry. I really am. But it’s not his fault,” Nova looks at me.
Katira squirms beneath Nova’s grasp, but cannot get out. She finally gives up.
“Okay. I believe you,” she gasps.
Nova releases Katira. Katira gives me a dirty look.
We all remain silent as we head for the final portal. After entering it, everyone has arrived back in the Base of the Dream World.
“So now what?” Archie’s voice sounds from in front of me.
“We think about waking up,” I announce.
I instantly think about it, and everyone begins to appear back in the Crystal Cave.
“You two are now alive again,” Orellan points to Archie and Bellina. Wandel still looks thankful and then looks at me. The happiness in his eyes is so easy to see that I can’t resist a smile.
Then the thought of Brent’s death comes back into my mind. I look around and spot Katira crying above Brent’s sleeping body. No matter what, he will not awaken ever again.
I now have to take charge again. I need to keep everyone safe.
“What happened today is horrible. I demand- and I seriously mean it- that nobody shall ever enter the Dream World again.”
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