Going Places - An Animal Jam Fanfiction

One - Learning [third]

"Why aren't they here?"

It was 4:03am and only two of the eight expected Jammers were present. Greely's haughty face flickered with annoyance. Liza's composed smile wavered as Graham checked his sundial watch. "The meeting began 3 minutes ago, ma'am. They must be late."
"We told them this was urgent!" The wolf alpha's hard-edged voice shook the mahogany speaking stage. "They signed the contract to join our society, therefore is their duty to arrive on time." Liza opened her mouth in objection, but Greely's rough growl cut her off before a word could escape. "We must proceed without them. Don't start that, Liza, we can and we will!" Impatience flitted across the Panda Alpha's face. The shorter monkey twiddled his thumbs awkwardly as the two alphas behind him began to quietly argue. Greely was beginning to sound violent when a nervous young voice interrupted them. "E-excuse me? Well.... We're here and we'd like to know what you have to say....... Please will you tell us, even if the others don't arrive?"

WisteriaMoon smiled anxiously from her seat at the powerful figures before her. Liza wearily turned away from Greely and gave her a kindly beam. "Of course, dear. Before we do, if you don't mind, do you know where the other Jammers are today? Just in case they turn up halfway through our explanation."
"Aparri and Bepper had to go and visit their great-aunt in hospital and Twinkle and Lilac are probably asleep. That's all I know." Silence filled the room momentarily, then a low, quiet spoke up from the other side of the room.
"Snowyclaw is also still asleep. She told me to tell you... sorry. She lost a close buddy to a Phantom Raid yesterday and doesn't feel up for it. Knowing Skorm, he's either with Bepper and Aparri or still asleep."
"Thank you, Julian," said Liza as Greely gave an impatient sigh.
"Pampered teenage brats. Sleeping in while brave Jammers are perishing on the battlefield."
"Greely!" Liza hit the great wolf's shoulder with her bamboo cane. Julian and Wisteria glanced at each other with widened eyes.
"Battlefield? We're going to fight?" Wisteria looked at the Alphas with excitement racing in her stare, but Liza shook her head.
"Not you, dear hearts. A duo mission. You will be going to the Kimbara Desert to search for the final two Alpha Discs, the discs of Mira and Zios themselves. But you won't take a step out the door without these."

Suddenly, the dim room darkened and the old panda's eyes filled with a murky light. The two Jammers gazed at her, bewildered and scared.
"Wisteria." The brown wolf gave a little jerk and twitched her ears. "You are courageous and your loyalty is extreme. You strive to do right and will fight for Jamaa to the ends of the earth." Wisteria glowed with pride as Liza gave her a warm and loving smile. She turned to the fascinated horse. "Julian. Your intelligence is great and you have a strong sense of honour. You are sensible, calm, kind and a good listener. But your love for Jamaa, our history and our people outshines all of these qualities." She gave him a wonderful, caring gaze and his heart swelled with pride. The panda continued, "you and your teammates each have your own master quality. With that master quality comes a special power. You two will discover this power on your journey. Brave Jammers, I present to you: the Diculects of Jamaa!" There was a blinding white flash and two necklaces with strange charms threaded on them floated down on to the two Jammer's necks. Liza's eyes returned to normal and the darkness disappeared.
"You are dismissed," growled Greely.

There was a long moment of silence before Wisteria remembered how to move. Slowly, inch by inch, the two of them edged their way out of their seats, then ran to the door, with the amulets swinging by their chests. Wisteria had just put her paw on the door handle when....

"WA-A-AIT!" Graham leapt off the stage and sprinted through the assembly hall as quickly as his stiff old limbs could carry him. Huffing and puffing, he handed two pieces of paper to Julian. "It's..... a list," he breathed, "of the stuff.... you'll need..... for the trip. Good...... luck!" But door had already slammed shut and his words were lost in the air.

- - -

"Wow."

They had walked through the grand old building silently. There were no jokes, no chats, no careless banter. The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Julian believed, then, that his heart would never stop racing. This atmosphere continued, even when they were through the richly carved double doors. The moment the cold breeze hit them, they sunk down, in sync, on to the lavish marble steps outside the Jamaasian Palace's cloying smells. For a while they sat there, staring into each other's shell-shocked eyes, until Wisteria finally said it.

"Wow."
"I couldn't have put it better myself."

Carefully avoiding the ever-bustling streets of Aldan and Congo, the famous Jammers made their way back to Wisteria's house. The colourful Easter decorations were hung everywhere and the trees were lush and green. When they crossed the bridge to the Temple of Zios, Wisteria spoke up again.
"These amulets could be scrape us a few rares. Look at the colour! Must be ancient." Seeing the shock in Julian's eyes, as if she'd offended him, Wisteria burst out laughing. "I'm only joking, Julian! I would never betray the Alphas for a red hat or two. Do you think they're phantom made?"
"I doubt it," said the horse absent-mindedly. He felt a twinge in his stomach at the words 'red hat'. It reminded him of a Jammer who he didn't especially like. "Phantom-made objects tend to have a dull, dark colour or hold evil powers. They are usually dangerous. Never pick up a strange ring or necklace if you find one. The metal they use is poisonous to Jammers. It will take over your mind."
Wisteria smiled cheerily at him. "I wonder if Mira or Zios made these?"
"Actually, it's possible." They had passed the broken Zios statue but, now Wisteria had given him the idea, he was itching to go back. "It look similar to the material of his mask." They turned down an identical backstreet, Amur, then walked down a lane lined with violet-flowered trees. "Wisteria Way," Julian smiled. "It's really nice day, even if it is a little early."
"Julian, I was wondering. We can take the amulets off, right? I was thinking.... We can't let anybody know about this mission. I don't know why, but it seems right."
"It is right," Julian thought aloud, "because we don't know who we could trust. Anyone could see, and then tell others, and then tell the phantoms. Oh my Mira. We should take these off, now!" Wisteria was already pulling the necklace from around her neck. She wasn't wearing her signature look yet, instead she had a white knitted jumper and a dark grey scarf. It was mild out, and early for her, Julian knew. He was often up at ungodly hours searching for artifacts and mysteries around Jamaa. He had now earned the nickname "the Jammer Detective" and he was always determined to live up to it. Smiling, he grabbed the chain of the amulet in his muzzle and lifted it off his neck. He quickly dropped it into his dusty-brown backpack and continued walking.

He'd never really given into the neon glow of fame, Julian thought as the gravel of the beautiful lane crunched under his hooves. For a while, he had. But those were days he liked to forget. When his longing for knowledge was buried under a need to satisfy his audience. What had he done? Something bad, something wrong. Something that made everybody hate him. Now he was changed. As Wisteria's gorgeous crystal palace loomed into view, he allowed himself to slide his eyes in her direction. She was wearing white fedora. Her fur had been styled with a monochrome theme today. He didn't like to think it, he didn't like to base opinion on looks alone, but she was.... pretty, to say the least. Her sense of style.... her airy laugh...... her twinkling eyes....... But no! Aparri and Wisteria were already close. He didn't want to interfere and upset her. He'd find the right Jammer. Maybe. Wisteria was next to the door, fumbling with her keys. "Here!" She stuck the key in the hole, but before she could twist it, it was pulled open.

Aparri himself flashed a gleaming smile as he opened the door wide.