Tama of Tomeowrrow

The curse of the Earth Totem

Purr 

I rumbled contentedly in Amaya's arms as she gently patted my ear. "I don't know what I'm looking at," Amaya said, squinting at the bizarre drawing Ray had scribbled.

"Looks like a hemorrhoid," Nick commented, leaning in.

"What? No, it's supposed to be Mallus. Demon horns, you see?" He huffed, before shaking his head, they were going off track. "Anyway, the hunt for the six totems has begun," Ray announced, a determined glint in his eye.

"There are only five tribes in Zambesi," Amaya replied. "Each was gifted with a totem. And I checked; there's no record of a sixth."

"Well, the good news is that we have the Air and the Spirit Totems," Ray said, looking at Amaya.

"Kuasa has the Water Totem," Amaya added.

"And since the final totem is a complete mystery, that leaves us looking for Earth and Fire. The Fire Totem, which is currently smashed, by the way, was last seen in a Detroit museum in 2018," Ray explained, waving his marker around as he spoke.

Wait, how do you know that?" Amaya asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Because it is with your granddaughter Mari's—aka the other Vixen's—boyfriend, Dr. Adam Macalester. He's dedicated his life to studying the Zambesi totems," Ray explained hesitantly.

"Well, if Constantine is right and the only thing that Mallus fears is the sixth, then we need to get our hands on the Fire Totem," Amaya said, nodding in agreement.

"Collect the set, win a prize," Mick chimed in, taking a swig of his beer.

"We need to tell Sara we gotta get to Detroit," Ray said, looking determined.

"Nope, she and the girlfriend are off to Star City. Sara's been texting some guy. They're going on a date," Mick interrupted.

"How do you know? Are you looking at her phone?" Ray frowned.

"I look at everyone's phone. Helps pass the time," Mick shrugged nonchalantly.

"Well... who are they going on a date with?" Ray wondered aloud.

"Obviously it's Ava," Amaya chuckled.

"Oh, that's hot," Mick quipped with a grin.

"What's hot?" Sara asked, striding in with Nyssa, looking sharp in a dark navy suit and Nyssa in a form-fitting back dress.

"The Fire Totem. Hot, hot. Very hot and currently in Detroit, so what do you say we motor off to the Motor City?" Ray responded eagerly.

"Right now? Nyssa and I might sit this one out because we have to do... business back home," Sara said, her tone clipped.

Meow For a world-class assassin, you don't lie very well, Sara.

"I bet you do," Mick smirked.

______

I curled up in my bed, happily gnawing on the delicious bone marrow Sara had given me before she left. "Keep an eye on the team, will you, Tam? We don't want to come back to a sinking ship," she had said with a wink.

As I enjoyed my treat, Zari approached Amaya, who was staring intently at the center console. "Hey... you okay?" Zari asked, noticing the far-off look in Amaya's eyes.

"My granddaughter, the good one, she's out there. I want to see her more than anything," Amaya admitted, her voice tinged with longing as she gazed into the distance.

"But you can't without screwing up history," Zari pointed out gently.

"Some days, I wish I had never heard of time travel," Amaya sighed. "Yeah," Zari sighed in agreement.