The Rift

Chapter Four

"What is this?" Jericho asked as he examined the weapon in his hands. It had a long wooden handle with a wicked, white spike on one end and what looked like the rock hard chitin of some huge crustacean's claw on the other.

"Jensai." Marika examined her own weapon, it looked much more intricate, with carvings along its handle and extraordinary jewels encrusted into it. "Stronges war tool, gotta Devi'shark burner." She pointed at the white spike then clacked her teeth together as if she were biting something. "Riftie-crab crusher." She moved her finger to the chitin.

"And I'm supposed to . . . what? I don't know how to use this thing!"

"Cap'n be sayin' Jericho gets arms. I be doin' his doin's." Marika turned out toward the ocean, they could see the spraying v's of water in the wake of the riftmen. It was impossible to tell how many of them there were, but Marika and Jericho were two of about two dozen men and women who stood between the islanders and their attackers. Half of the protectors took their lead from Marika and carried Weapons like Jericho's Jensai. The others grouped with Delgen, though frightenigly unarmed, and Cap'n stood in front with the water tickling his heels.

Jericho could see the rift rats daring each other to lunge for Cap'n's feet, but he appeared to be just out of reach. All the action made the shallow water behind him look as if it were boiling.

"Riftie-men be announcin' dey comin." Cap'n called with his back to the sea. "Thinkin' dey showey show be makin' scaredies o' us! I and I --" He nearly punched his forehead and his gut as he said it. "Knowin' iz-landahs not fraid o' no thing!"

The men and women cheered and Jericho's knees knocked.

"Iz-landahs be strong!"

More cheers.

"Be brave!"

Whistles and bird calls and air punching.

"Iz-landahs fight . . . Fight! . . . FIGHT!" The old man seemed so young, so full of youthful rage and passion. With each word his voice grew louder and the crowd did too. Jericho simply gulped and watched as the telltale riftman V's moved closer.

"Looks like there's just a dozen of them." He whispered but nobody was listening, not that they could hear him if they were.

He turned over his shoulder and looked at the cliff. He imagined running up that winding path and seeking the safety of the fresh water crater, but he knew he couldn't do that. He looked around himself and watched the armed warriors chant their battle cry towards the rift while Delgen's followers fell to their knees in the sand and cast their arms out wide.

"What are they doing?" He watched their silently moving lips as they whispered to themselves.

One of the riftmen dipped under the surface and broke out through the waves. It landed amongst Marika's warriors and screeched a frightening threat to the people around it. Marika screamed back and thrust the Devi'shark tooth hard into the creature's gut. It's strangely coloured blood seeped from the wound but it screamed again and slashed at the closest person to it.

Jericho froze to the sand as other riftmen joined the fight. One ran right for him but a man struck its head and it fell. Jericho started shaking and muttering things to himself about why he wasn't built to fight.

"Jericho! Where you be goin' to?" Marika called out, he hadn't even noticed he had started backing away. He watched a woman behind Marika writhe as the claws of a riftman tore through her stomach, another man was bleeding in the sand.

"I can't, this isn't me. I can't!" Jericho turned to run, catching a glimpse of light emanating from Delgen's group. He rushed up the side of the crater and the riftmen followed. One soared through the air and came down hard on the ground in front of him. He screamed and lowered his Jensai, impaling his attacker on the long white spike.