The first ever Brook Festival was held on the jungle side of the disc of Agê, though it was determined that the location would be in the forest if it was successful enough to warrant a second festival, and it would alternate each subsequent time the festival was held. The first festival was organized by Agê’s council of various dwellers of her disc who had positions of influence in the larger population.
The location for the festival, the Triangle Glade, got its name because it was tucked under three hulking trees that darkened the space underneath. The Glade was larger than two Earther football fields put together; it was large enough that thousands of Fonlanders were able to pass through at various times to rest for a few days. There were a few trees smaller than the hulking ones in the Glade, but the space was dominated by the roots of the Triangle trees that grew at different heights and were large enough for visitors to climb over or under them to create camping grounds. A brook, that is fed from a river of waters from Agbe’s disc and stretches across the disc of Agê, runs through the Glade, and even though it is usually dark inside because of the complete cover of the Triangle trees overhead, there are bioluminescent plants dotted on the root system and the trunks of the Triangle trees and inside the brook that give soft light to the Glade and make the babbling waters glow.
The Brook Festival was designed to foster appreciation for the Glade’s brook. Performers of all kinds; including dancers, singers, writers, and actors; were invited to perform along the brook to showcase its beauty. The brook was often neglected by careless visitors to the Glade who sometimes used it as a bathroom, or for more illicit activities. The same was true for many of the bodies of water on the Disc and organizers hoped to have future festivals at other picaresque locations to raise awareness that some bodies of water should be protected from waste and contamination.
Tracia was personally invited to attend the Brook Festival by organizers who were familiar with her Essence, and they hoped she would attract many festival goers. The price of admission was a chip of rhasd larger than a pea. For a chip of rasd lager than a hard fruit, attendees were given rare Smiting Cards supplied from the recently created Smiting Chamber on the Disc of Sakpata. The Smiting Chamber was a major donor to the Brook Festival with the hopes of spreading the popularity of the game among dwellers of the Fonlands Discs.
Tracia’s fellow mmoatia, Pultine, was also invited, and she was happy that they would be able to spend time together. They had only met briefly when Pultine visited the jungle at the behest of Agê to meet her sister; the two shared no biological connection, but their physical features were strikingly similar and they were both so much unlike anything else that existed on the Disc.
The Wompus King was invited. He was a large panther-like creature, with long fangs that curved down from his lips and almost scraped the ground. His fur was deep red and he had a thick mane that maidens lined up to braid for him and adorn with flowers.
The Abada Idol was invited. She was a large, gray-white, horse-like creature with two horns; the longest curving up to a sharp point from her nose, and the other on the bridge of her nose. She was the largest Abada of the disc and she possessed a Third Heart like the mmoatia.
The Yumbo triplets were invited. They were born from aziza parents like Tracia, and they presented as something distinct, even from Tracia and Pultine, with their chitin wings. The Triplets were well-known mediums, capable of commune with the souls of deceased Fonlanders, and diviners, who used the Du Smiting Deck to give glimpses into the futures of those who sought them out.
It is also important to note who was not invited; including the Asanbosam Champions, the Eloko leader, and the Zomo Monarchy of kin lepusraj. The Zomo Monarchy was particularly offended to not be invited as the rulers of the Western Jungle and the progenitors of all rabbit-like creatures on the disc, including the horned rabbits who were known as peaceful inhabitants of the disc that were often kept as pets by dwellers of the disc because they were loyal and cuddly but also ferocious enough to serve as hunters and protectors. The Zomo Monarchy ruled the Western Jungle by decree of Agê, but there was considerable friction between them and the other rulers, particularly Golden Trumpet in the Northern Jungle because of the numbers of azizas that kept the horned rabbits as pets. The Zomos viewed rabbits as the most respectable inhabitants of Agê’s disc and they resented the connection Agê seemed to have with the off-spring of the azizas who were born with wings and subsequently gifted a Third Heart. At the time of the first Brook Festival, there were three winged aziza offspring with a Third Heart, and only one lepuraj, but they were not a member of the Zomo Monarchy.
The first Brook Festival promised to be a memorable event and all of the well-known attendees were scheduled to arrive an hour into the start; a purposeful move by the organizers so that attendees could line up to see them arrive. The celebrities did not disappoint, except for Pultine who arrived much later than everyone and nearly missed the first day of the festival.
Tracia arrived with her best friend Nille, an abada she’d met in the Eastern Jungle while she was on diplomatic trips to visit with the Abada Idol in the place of her mother. Nille was in the Idol Court of the Eastern Jungle, though her position did not involve governing of the jungle, but was more of a superficial position bestowed upon the tallest and strongest abada. Nille was in perfect shape and she was capable of feats of strength that she performed for the Idol and higher level members of the court for special occasions.
“I don’t think you should perform,” Tracia said absently. She wore a form fitting, muted yellow tunic as she floated beside Nille, who she trotted through the foliage with fine leather accessories covering her back and the fronts of her legs. The light of Agê had recently set, but the foliage around them glowed softly, giving a light blue hue to the night. Tracia seemed to be looking for something in the woods as they passed, but Nille didn’t seem to notice.
“I like to show off,” Nille said. “Uprooting a large tree with my horns is a crowd pleaser.”
“You want to be the Idol of the East?” Tracia asked. “Is that it? You’re trying to…,” there was rustling in the leaves and Tracia stopped. Nille stopped when she realized Tracia was hovering.
“What are you doing?” Nille asked, and she turned to face Tracia.
She smirked at Nille. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t sure that he was going to meet me here. You go ahead, we’ll be right behind you.”
Nille snorted with disgust. “You can’t wait until we get to the Triangle Glade? You’re gonna just do it while you fly there?”
“I haven’t seen him in a while,” Tracia said. She was hiding her embarrassment, but it was clear that embarrassment wouldn’t stop her.
“You can try romance at the Festival. It’s alway beautiful in the Glade. You can enjoy a relationship beyond your bodily pleasures.”
“I will see you there,” Tracia said, and then flew off into the thick leaves as Nille trotted on.
As Tracia flew into the thick foliage, she felt sharp teeth clamp down on her leg. She was grabbed midair then dragged down, smacking her wings and body against tree limbs until she slammed against the ground. She was attacked and it took her a moment to realize what was happening and to defend herself. When she realized that there was a snarling beast trying to rip her leg from her body, she extended a hand that charged with her Essence in an instant, then a blast of the glittering energy exploded at the beast and knocked it away. Tracia stood gingerly, never taking her eyes from the dark form of her attacker,who was whining in pain in the glowing grasses. She focused on her misshapen leg and when it was back to normal after a few seconds, she approached the attacker with a glittering ball of golden Essence in her hand. She recognized the large hyena that she had injured.
“Kabu?” Tracia said with surprise. “You really want to settle this now? I’d rather not shred you to nothing with my Essence before I go try to have fun at this Festival, but I will.”
“Consider yourself lucky,” Kabu said between winces of pain that were interrupted by bouts of maniacal laughter. “I couldn’t resist that Essence of yours, but there’s a whole pack on the way to the buffet in the Glade. We’re probably missing it as we speak.”
“Why would a pack of hyenas attack the Festival?” Tracia asked aloud, aware that Kabu wouldn’t answer; he just laughed. She had an idea why, even without his insight.
“Is that you Tracia?” she heard someone call, and when she turned, she saw an angel descend into the jungle. It was the angel that she thought had rustled the foliage initially, before Kabu’s attack.
“Metatron!” Tracia called and she waved her Essence to flag him. Soon, the tall statuesque male with golden yellow hair and white feathered wings, wearing a toga of light cloth covering his body, landed next to her. He looked younger than Tracia and his skin was pale compared to hers.
“I was wondering what happened to you,” he said and he grabbed her face in both his hands. The two kissed passionately. “Did this beast tell you about the pack advancing on the Festival?”
“He did,” Tracia said. “You mind watching him while I go handle that?”
“Won’t you be late for the grand entrance with all of your adoring fans?” Metatron asked jokingly.
“No, I won’t,” Tracia said dismissively.
“I think Kabu won’t be a threat to anything for a while,” Metatron said, “there’s a hole in his side. Let’s go. I want to feel you as much as I can while I’m here.”
“Your master keeps you on a short leash,” Tracia said as she flew away.
Metatron was close behind her. “My master is grooming me for something big. But I didn’t come here to talk about Lêgba.”
Metatron grabbed Tracia’s hand as they flew and her hand began to flow with her glittering Essence. Metatron began to absorb it and his hand pulsed with golden energy that diffused throughout his body. His eyes rolled back in his head and if he had not been holding on to Tracia, he may have slammed into a tree. When he recovered, he licked his lips and smirked at Tracia.
“That was a quickie,” she said with a laugh. “Eyes up, I see the pack moving just up ahead.”
Metatron let go of Tracia’s hand and he seemed to disappear as a flash of lightning that sparked around the trees and in the overgrown bushes. In a few seconds he was flying next to Tracia again, and she saw the unconscious bodies of the hyena pack scattering the foliage. They landed in the Triangle Glade that was already a raucous party.
“You didn’t leave any alive?” Tracia asked. “I’m going to have to question Kabu about all this?”
“Sorry, I didn’t think about that,” Metatron said. “But don’t worry, we can party for a while. He’s not going anywhere. Let’s pitch a tent and get some alone time before we find Nille.”
“I have to go make my entrance,” Tracia said. “You want to come with me?”
Metatron ran a hand through his hair and looked away.
“Who am I kidding?” Tracia said, almost angrily. “You can’t be seen with a mmoatia. I’m not good enough for the proud son of Lêgba.”
“That’s not true,” Metatron insisted. “It’s the other way around. If Agê knew I was here, she would burn out the jungle to root me out. The son of Lêgba isn’t even worthy to tread the same ground as her most honored mmoatia. I’ll go find Nille and say hello. You make your entrance. Then I want you inside of me.”
Metatron kissed her, then flew away. He made her happy. And he was right. Golden Trumpet would shrivel up and die if she knew she was fraternizing with Metatron, and Agê wouldn’t tolerate an iteration of Lêgba on her Disc. Tracia was happy that Metatron was at the Festival, though. She could ignore the mystery of the identity of the organizers of the thwarted attack while she stared into his eyes.
***
Very unexpectedly, Agê appeared in the Triangle Glade on the last night of the Brook Festival. Tracia had spent all of the Festival with Metatron, and when they weren’t pleasuring each other, Tracia enjoyed performances with Nille. The rompo singers were better than she anticipated, and she met them personally after their last show of the festival. They all sat around a fire roasting hard fruit and throwing the shells into the fire. Tracia and Nille had nice singing voices and they all sang the songs of the Disc that praised Agê and the Essence rich soil that gave life to the flora and fauna.
When Agê arrived, Tracia worried that she had summoned her there somehow, but all of the attendees bowed to the Vodun who was draped in a robe that was made of moss glowing light blue, and underneath, she wore a tunic that was similar to Tracia’s, but it was adorned with flowers and seemed to shine in the blue glow of the Glade.
“I am sorry to interrupt,” Agê said to the thousands of eyes that watched her with admiration, some with fearful reverence. Because she was so engaging, she seemed to be talking to each of them directly. “Even from high up on my perch, I could feel the reverie here, and the respect for this beautiful spot formed by some of the oldest inhabitants of this disc. The Festival is a true celebration of the beauty of our Disc and I am glad that the organizers have plans to showcase other spots in the future. In order to truly christen this first ever Brook Festival as a significant event in the history of our home, I wanted to make an announcement that will change the way we coexist.”
The attendees of the Festival began to look curiously at one another, wondering what Agê had arrived to say. Tracia knew what was happening, but she couldn’t believe that it was happening at the Festival. Golden Trumpet had voiced concern at the amount of fighting Tracia was forced to do to defend the North against packs of hyenas like the ones she and Metatron had neutralized to start the Festival. Golden Trumpet and Tracia knew that the hyenas were often employed by the Zomo Monarchy because it was hard to prove their involvement in the attacks the hyena carried out. Tracia was sure that this was the case even though she had yet to question Kabu, who was presumably still injured in the jungle. The Zomo were determined to undermine the kin that they viewed as enjoying more favor with Agê, and Tracia knew that the Western Jungle bragged about the lack of hyena attacks in the West. Tracia also knew that these actions by the Zomo only put pressure on Agê to do what she had apparently shown up to the Glade the glade to do. Agê loved every creature of her Disc, and she would do what her advisors, particularly Golden Trumpet, suggested to keep everyone safe.
“From this day forward, I will determine which kin is allowed to reside in each of the five jungles, and the three forests. To prevent the type of attacks that the Excellent Tracia thwarted at the start of this Festival, unbeknownst to everyone in attendance, no dweller of this disc will be able to inhabit a jungle or forest without consultation with and consent from myself or one of the rulers of the jungle or the forest. The rulers and I will gather in a predetermined location regularly to hear requests for permission to travel outside of your designated jungle or forest. I will personally see to the relocation of kin to their new homes if necessary and it will commence in three risings of the light. Please, enjoy the rest of the Festival and I look forward to seeing you all again soon.”
Tracia’s entire mood changed. Others tried to thank her for the news that Agê had delivered about her heroics, but she looked for Metatron who had probably left the Glade as soon as he knew Agê had arrived.
“I can’t believe they went through with this,” Tracia said to Nille who was still admiring Agê as she departed the Glade in a flash.
“It makes sense,” Nille said. “A hyena attack could have been a massacre. And it not the first time you’ve had to do away with them, you and your secret boyfriend. This separation will keep dangerous dwellers from the helpless ones.”
“A partition is not the solution,” Tracia said with frustration. “My secret boyfriend can’t be here to accept the thanks he deserves for actually stopping that attack because of the very same fears that precipitated this partition.”
“I’m surprised to hear you say that,” Nille said. “I would imagine you would be tired of fighting by now. But I guess with your lightning bodyguard, you don’t have to worry about anything, even the eloko.”
“I don’t need Metatron to protect me. And if you think that this will do anything but make this disc more dangerous with infighting, then you are very mistaken.”
Tracia flew away from the Glade, angry enough to forget the fun she’d been having.
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