The Discovery

      “Somarrah!” The relief in his voice surprised her. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you!”

      “Did you really miss me?” Somarrah asked.

      “Of course, we did!” Her father looked her over anxiously. “Are you hurt? Are you hungry?”

      “No and yes but mostly tired.”

      Now that she wasn’t responsible for herself anymore, her long day was catching up to her.

      “Let’s get you home,” her father said.

      When they arrived, her family surrounded her, poking and prodding with their beaks and questions. Somarrah was too weary to resist.

      “That’s enough. It’s been a long day for us all. Now it's time to rest,” Somarrah’s father decided.

      Somarrah gratefully settled down. As sleep took her, she dreamed of jungle ruins, mysterious symbols and a strange Petpet with uncanny intelligence.

      The next day, Somarrah awoke early and got something to eat. This time, she ate with the younger cubs of the pride and Bashar and Shekhar knew better than to harass them. Once finished, Somarrah went to find her father.

      “Father, I want to learn new things. Can I have a teacher?” Somarrah asked.

      Her parents exchanged a glance.

      “The pride will teach you everything you need to know,” her father said.

      Somarrah sat back and flicked her tail in dissatisfaction. “No, I mean, other things.”

      “Other things?” her mother echoed, sounding mystified.

      “Like what?” her father asked with narrowed eyes.

      “Like yesterday I met a new friend who taught me how to travel through the jungle, but I realized there’s so much that I don’t know and I want to.” As she explained, Somarrah rose to her paws, took a step forward and looked at her parents, begging them to understand.

      Her father looked at her for a long moment before he nodded. “Alright. I’ll visit the nearby villages to find the nearest school so that you can go.”

      “School?” Somarrah tried out the new word. It sounded soft, like a breeze of the hoot of a strange Petpet. “Do they have teachers?”

      “Yes, schools have teachers,” her mother said.

      “Yes!” Somarrah flared out her wings in excitement at the prospect.

      It took her father most of the day but when he returned, he had good news. “There’s a school about an hour away and they’re willing to take you on, Somarrah. You can start tomorrow.”

      “Thank you!” Somarrah raced to nuzzle her father. “I can hardly wait until tomorrow!”

      The next day, her father escorted her the hour it took to get to the village with the school.

      “I hope this is what you’re looking for, Somarrah” her father said. “I trust you can find your way back home after school’s done.”

      “I can do that,” Somarrah assured.

      Her father gave her an affectionate nuzzle before leaving her.

      While her schoolmates and teacher were nice enough, they were also simple. The teacher mostly taught basic survival skills and told stories. This was not the sort of learning she had been looking for. Thankfully, school only lasted until noon. Somarrah flew home, disappointed.

      “School not everything you thought it would be?” Bashar guessed upon seeing her face. He sounded far too pleased by the prospect.

      “Not quite,” Somarrah admitted.

      “I could have told you that!”

      Their father shot Bashar a warning look, wiping the smug look from her brother’s face. He turned his attention back to her. “What happened?”

      “They didn’t teach what I thought they would. I was hoping for something else. More,” Somarrah said vaguely, unable to put exactly what she wanted into words.

      Her father considered her words, flexing one massive paw in thought. “We’ll have to visit The Council.”

      “The Council?” Somarrah echoed, filled with shock.

      The young Eyrie had only ever heard of The Council but had never seen them. She had been taught they were consulted for BIG problems that affected all of Tyrannia. Not just little ole her.

      “Yes, The Council. They’re the wisest ‘pets in Tyrannia. Their wisdom is revered for a reason. If they can’t help you, no one can,” her father said.

      “You’d really go to The Council for me?” Somarrah asked in disbelief.

      “You’re my daughter. I’d do anything for you,” her father said, touching his beak gently to the top of her head.

      That same day they flew to Town Hall to meet The Council. All six elders were there, and her father presented Somarrah to them.

      “She has an unusual hunger for learning, beyond our pride’s means or a village school,” her father explained.

      “For most, ignorance is bliss. For others, the simple life is not for them,” Tekel said.

      “You are not the first Tyrannian to want something more than what village or pride life can offer them,” Kyruggi said.

      “So, what do they do?” Somarrah asked.

      “Leave Tyrannia to satisfy their hunger,” Plesio said.

      Her father pulled her close. “My daughter is not leaving.”

      “No, of course not. She is far too young for that.”

      “While options are limited, we do have a teacher in Tyrannia that can offer ‘pets like you a more advanced education than can otherwise be found here. However, they teach in the jungle, not the Plateau.”

      Somarrah looked up at her father in silent question.

      “If they’re offering Somarrah what she needs then she’ll be there,” her father assured. “Thank you for the information. We appreciate your guidance.”

      The two Eyries offered a respectful bow before leaving the Town Hall.

      The next day, Somarrah’s father escorted her to the jungle village. It was much bigger and busier than the young Eyrie had been expecting. Suddenly, the excitement she had felt was marred by apprehension.

      Her father extended a wing to brush her back. “Remember that you’re a Skyheart. You’ll be fine.”

      Somarrah nodded, feeling braver. She had already been through the jungle, and faced off with a strange Petpet almost as big as she was and nothing bad had happened. Her father was right. She could do this.

      They stopped at a simple stone structure with a thatched roof.

      “Have a good day, Somarrah,” her father said before taking flight.

      Somarrah was on her own in a strange place once more but this time, she was ready for it.

      “Are you lost?” a green Chomby around her age asked. He held the same sorts of objects in his hands that she had seen in the ruins.

      “Hey, I’ve seen those before!” Somarrah exclaimed.

      “What, books?” The Chomby gave her a curious look.

      “Is that what they’re called? Can you understand the symbols inside?”

      “You mean, read?” the Chomby asked. “Yeah, I can read.”

      Before Somarrah could pester the Chomby with any further questions, they were joined by an orange Kougra.

      “Hello, Steygo!” the Kougra greeted the Chomby with a warm smile. She looked at Somarrah. “Who’s this?”

      “My name’s Somarrah. I’m here for school,” Somarrah said.

      The Kougra’s green eyes glittered with warmth. “A new student! How exciting! Well, Somarrah, I’m so glad you’re here. My name is Miss Tangee, and this is Steygo, your classmate. Are you ready to learn?”

      “Yes!”

      “Then let’s get started!”

      Somarrah immediately immersed herself into her new environment. Steygo seemed happy to have someone else to learn with. Miss Tangee was patient with her and introduced her to new concepts in an easy-to-understand way. Somarrah drank it all in like sunbaked ground soaked up water. It was challenging but engaging too. She couldn’t be happier.

      Somarrah was looking through a book about Brightvale, where Miss Tangee had gone to university when she stopped short. There on the page was the Petpet she had seen in the ruins! She looked up at her new teacher. “What sort of Petpet is this?”

      “That would be an Albat. They’re native to the Meridell-Brightvale area. They look a little like Eyries, don’t ya think?” Miss Tangee explained.

      “Are they nice?”

      “Very! A little on the reserved side but they make good Petpets and were common enough, especially for scholars.”

      Somarrah continued to study the page in silence, mind drawn back to her encounter.

      “Put the book away for now. Its lunchtime!” Miss Tangee announced.

      The word was foreign to Somarrah and not just because it was spoken in Common. “What’s that?”

      “You know, we’re having a break to eat before we learn some more,” Steygo explained, taking out his own meal.

      “Oh, I didn’t bring any food with me.”

      “No problem! We don’t mind sharing, do we, Steygo?” Miss Tangee prompted.

      “Nope! Not at all,” Steygo said.

      Together, they shared a large salad with roasted vegetables drizzled with honey (which reminded Somarrah of Magani), grilled meat (which Steygo passed on), coconut juice to drink and Hutcakes (that Steygo’s mom had baked) for dessert. All of it was surprisingly tasty, despite that almost all of it was new to Somarrah. They also spent time getting to know each other.

      Somarrah felt comfortable with both her new teacher and classmate at once.

      The school day ended a few hours later and the young Eyrie headed home. As she flew over the jungle, she thought of the ruins she had found. She wasn’t ready to go back yet but she would one day. Once she learned a bit more from her new teacher and was able to put that knowledge to use. She couldn’t wait for that day to come!

      At last, she had found what she was looking for.

     The End.