Episode Twenty four: Respect

After their introduction as the Tribe of Flowing Waters, Leader Amaci offered for them to eat with her later. She told them that until then they should just relax in the village. Then she sent her hunters and gatherers back out into the wild. As Lakia looked around the small group of villagers, she noticed that they were hungry. Their food bin was low. Nor was there any sign of crops in their field. Even their berry bush was empty. Lakia turned to Blanne and Hong. "No wonder the villagers of this tribe were hunting and gathering - they have so little to eat! Is Leader Amaci going to give us the last bits of food out of their food bin? I can't take their only food. We need to do something!"

Blanne said that he will supply food for their meal the same way he did for Lakia and Hong the night before. Although Lakia was happy to hear that they would have food for the day, she was more concerned over whether they would have food that will last them much longer. "Why not walk over to the river and see if there are any fish in it." Hong suggested. "Perhaps they have plenty of fish that they just haven't caught yet."

So Lakia walked over to the river. She peered into the water and saw that the stream didn't have any fish. She looked back over her shoulder at Hong and Blanne and shook her head. Hong and Blanne grinned at each other. Lakia closed her eyes, reached down and touched the water with one hand, and touched the medallion piece with the other. Sparkles rose up from the river and it was filled to overflowing with fish. The members of the tribe were fascinated by what Lakia had done.

"She has come to bring balance back to Isola!" Many of the villagers shouted. But even more of them did not know how to fish. Lakia and Hong showed a few of them how to catch the fish, and let them teach the others. Blanne stood back smiling. He knew that the King and Queen had made the right choice in choosing Lakia.

Meanwhile, Paco's Runners had followed a path on this side of the Hope River. This path ran along the river all the way to the little village. Before the trio knew it, Paco's Runners were running through the village. Hong and Lakia hid behind a hut, and Blanne took a guarding stance in front of them while grabbing his medallion. Hong reached up and held his arm. "Please, let Lakia." Blanne agreed. Lakia was stunned. It was one thing to get the fish to return to the area, and another thing to make people go away. However, the Runners were running as if they were searching for someone or something.

"They are after you, Lakia. Or your medallion piece!" Hong told her.
"What should I do?" Lakia replied. Then she tried to get the medallion to work, but it didn't do anything.
"This time you will need to ask the Guiding Hand for help."
She could see that some of the Runners were running in their direction. Yet, Lakia stared at them in disbelief, "I don't believe in the Guiding Hand!"

The whole village stopped, even the Runners. They all looked upward, pulled out their scripts, and asked, "GH HP, LAKIA DOESN'T BELIEVE IN THE GUIDING HAND???" HP nodded, "I'm trying to fix that." Then they put their scripts away and carried on about their ransacking and fleeing.

"Ok, ok." Lakia said. Then she tried again to work the magic of the medallion, but again, it didn't do anything.
"Lakia, stop. You have to ask the Guiding Hand for help!" Hong insisted.
"No! It just doesn't make sense for someone so small to communicate with someone of such great importance!" Lakia saw another runner coming her way and jumped into the empty berry bush alongside the hut. The Runner kept going, as if he were now chasing her. "We really don't have time for this! The medallion worked before when Blanne changed, and when the fish came. I don't need the Guiding Hand to help me. I need to get my medallion to work!"


Blanne turned around and placed his hand on her shoulder and spoke to her gently. "Dearest Lakia, if you want to be captured then just sit there and be stubborn. You can't be a leader on your own. The sooner you realize that there is something out there that is greater than you, the sooner you will be rescued and the better Leader you will become! The medallion will help you help others, but you need the Guiding Hand to help you. Do you understand?"

Lakia saw the Runners destroying the village as they searched for her, and then looked up toward the sky. She began to understand that she might have been chosen to be the next Leader. This caused her to be a bit frightened. What if she wasn't brave enough? What if she made a mistake and the entire island became endangered? What if the other piece of the medallion is found and its owner hates her. What if that is who is trying to take this piece from her?

Finally, in fear and respect, Lakia held her medallion piece in her hand and whispered, "Guiding Hand, I don't know if I'm supposed to be the villager chosen to lead my tribe, but I know that I am not strong enough to do it on my own. Please guide my path and help me to do what is right. And, Guiding Hand, please save us from these Runners."

All of a sudden, Lakia felt a hand pick her up and lift her up into the air. The others saw her disappear and smiled. The grip gently let her go behind a group of trees on the village's edge. Lakia touched one of the trees as she landed, still holding her medallion close. The tree shook violently and opened up. Then she heard a noise like that of the gong. Thousands of large pink petals and pollen scattered all through the air into the village and scared the Runners, sending them on retreat. The little village gathered all around her, cheered for joy, and danced atop the lovely pink petals. Lakia had found one of Isola's hidden passageways!


Back in the western village, Elder Tarik wondered if the tribe should wait for Shuka's return. It was his responsibility to protect the village. He held a meeting of the Council of Elders and discussed another plan: While the builders work hard making the raft, the rest of the villagers should move their Esteemed Totem Poles to the shallow waters off ocean shore, as a barrier against the Sea Monster and further attacks. Once again, the elders were in disagreement. By the end of the evening, they made their decision...

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