Page 68 of The Cerulean Sister
I strap in for descent and worry about creasing my gown and appearing unkempt upon arrival. I wonder who will greet me atthe dock and if the priestesses will take me straight inside to begin the ritual or if I will need to speak with Emperor Matthias.
I am prepared for both. I am also prepared if Crixa is present.
Will she be waiting to humble and embarrass me immediately? I'm sure she will strike me but only in private. She has done so for much less.
The entire planet comes into view through the cockpit windows. I thought I may feel anger at seeing Cosima again, or even a sense of homesickness. Instead, an anxious fluttering in my stomach blooms, urging me to get on the ground and start walking to Leema.
There is no way of knowing how long it will be before I can see her, or if I will even see her at all until I find a way to get into that temple.
I need evidence, something solid,I keep repeating in my head, but I am not exactly sure what that will look like yet.
"It's so dark," Calliape whispers from the seat next to August.
"Frith and Viathan cast it in shadow as the conjunction gets closer. Soon, it will be pitch black," I say in a strange, recited tone, as if I have already returned to my days as a scribe copying facts in the library.
"An entire world in darkness." Calliape shakes her head.
In the peak days of the conjunction, there is more crime and erratic behavior reported in the city surrounding the Estate. The moon being closer than ever affects people in odd ways, the darkness concealing some of the evils they can commit only in the shadows.
Cosima appears ominous, every energy, good or bad, heightened, and we can feel it all the way up in this ship.
"Prepare for descent," August says in a serious tone, not commenting on the dark world staring back at us.
I clutch at the armrest and close my lids, but I can't remember if keeping my eyes open or closing them helps withthe empty feeling in my guts as we exit the space between and enter into another planet's domain.
August recites all the still unfamiliar ship commands aloud as he flicks buttons, and even Calliape pushes a few of the ones he points to, hoping she will participate.
The ship jumps and rocks a little as clouds stream past us. I press my back into the chair again, wishing 99 were seated behind me, that I could reach back and feel him squeeze my hand, wordlessly letting me know he has me. Instead, I squeeze the armrest and close my eyes again to stare at the inky, translucent frame where our tether used to be.
My breath gets frantic as the cockpit air slowly acclimates us to the dry climate outside. I can taste the dust and almost feel the grains floating in and out on each breath.
We pass through the resin-like protection ward, dipping downward. It passes over the ship, making the visibility just slightly less crisp, a difference that could go unnoticed by someone who does not know how thick it truly is.
Within the ward, there is another layer I don't recognize. Something new and feeding off the other for its strength. It’s sticky and parasitic, like a dirty film left on the skin as we pass through.
The world is cast in a strangely blueish-purple hue, like the entire planet is hung in the balance of dusk with only a few rays hitting the buildings, giving them an unnatural halo.
"Brace for landing," August announces.
I can do this.
I chose this. I am in control.
I am different now. I am not afraid.
As the ship's feet touch Cosima's surface, the cockpit halts in a shivering rumble, making the strap on my chest dig in, bracing to hold me in place.
Dust swirls all around us, blotting out any view from the cockpit windows.
Even still, August is staring intently into the docking port like he is waiting for the sandy flumes to settle, his head moving slightly, tracking the path of something or someone.
"What do you see?" I probe, wondering why he is unnervingly silent and not his normal joking self during a rough landing.
Calliape squints and leans like she notices it too.
I unlatch my seat belts and stand between my friends.
The dust clouds do not have to fully settle to make out the orangey flames of torches.
