A TALE OF CAGES AND VINES (COMPLETE)

PART 10 - IMAGINATION

Imagination

They were stopping at another hostel to get meet up with the rest of the guard before starting off their journey. Dev still had no idea where they were going or what they were looking for.

"All the trees are nearly gone or empty, the crystals all dung up and all my people are nearly extinct, what could the guard possibly want?" Dev whispered to Hunter who simply shrugged his shoulders, "I would not have an answer for that."

Dev huffed.

"We will know soon enough when we met with the rest of their company," Hunter assured her.

"As long as I am not expected to have words with them," Dev muttered," I do not like soldiers."

"You do not like anyone from the Other Land. Sometimes I do wonder if you like me or not as well, "Hunter mused.

"I live with you. You are protection and safety for me, that is all," Dev told him with a grin.

Hunter gave her a mock glare while Dev grinned. They strode on in silence until Hunter told her that he had a question for her. They were behind the soldiers and kept back at a respectable distance with them.

The solider had questioned Hunter how he had bought Dev when they realized that she was Zelowalli but he had simply said she came to him in her in her own ways. He did warn them that the knowledge of the land he has is with me and because of that, on one is to harm me.

The soldiers had nodded but one of them mentioned why did I look so feminine that one time my hood fell off. Hunter had simply said I inherited a lot of my looks from my mother and that it was natural for some Zelowalli men to look feminine.

"Dev?"

Dev blinked when she realized that Hunter was waiting for an answer to a question she did not hear.

"What do you know of the war?"

The Zelowalli girl shrugged," What I know is what I hear."

"It has occurred to me that your people would have had chances to survive if not for your vows to your God."

"That...is true. But Inka is the God of Kindness and nature."

"Did you know that your God was not original of this land? That he was a God of War?'

Dev looked up with alarm and turned to her Master, "Pardon?"

Hunter seeing the look on her face frowned, "I thought you knew this."

"No... he...our people...," She tried to deny but then stopped, "Why are you telling me this now? We have been travelling for countless summersand now you chose to tell me this?!"."

Hunter sighed, "I thought you knew. I thought your people knew of his origins."

"What I was told was that he made this land for us. And he blessed us with knowledge of healing as well as charging us to keep peace. Peace and kindness was what he valued above all else in the land."

"And your vows?"

"To keep peace," Dev hissed before taking deep breaths to calm herself down. She was not supposed to be anger but she was. Inka was a God of Peace. He would never fight. Would he?

"He understood your vows must have meant that should there be an invasion, you would not be protected."

"No one told you and your people to come here and bring your lies with you!" She hissed at him. Hunter's eyes widened at her outburst and she shrank back. Taken back by the angry tone in her voice, she turned away and tugged her hood lower over her face.