Page 35 of Tears of Tungsten
It was nothing like New Washington and it couldn’t have been more different from Tartarus Base if it had tried. I liked it and I hoped we’d be able to help the people here with their problem, whatever it was.
The shuttle landed in a clearing in front of the village. When we made our way outside, we were greeted by a woman dressed in a robe very similar to my mother’s. Hers was lined with fur, however, a testament to the colder weather here. I was immediately grateful my mother had provided me with a change of clothes. I’d have stood out like a sore thumb dressed in my Chimera Academy uniform. With my hood on, I was just another servant of Gaia, and the people in The Ural Mountains were unlikely to recognize me anyway. The tournament hadn’t been transmitted here, so to them, I’d just be the High Priestess’s aid, and not Acting Pilot Renard, the tamer of the Sphinx. I wasn’t ashamed of my accomplishments, but I could acknowledge that my connection to The Grand Judiciary was problematic. So even if it was dishonest, it was better to hide my true identity. I didn’t think the inhabitants of the village would happily welcome me here when I’d become so deeply entrenched in the system that had oppressed them.
“Welcome, High Priestess,” the woman said in heavily accented English. “You have our deepest thanks for coming. We hope you can assist us with the issue we discussed during our last conversation.”
“It would be my honor,” my mother replied. Turning toward me, she made the quick introductions. “This is my aide and daughter, Selene. Selene, this is Sister Anya Brevokic, the leader of the coven here in Gaia’s Haven.”
I bowed at her, acknowledging her superior position. “Greetings, Sister Anya. Thank you for the wonderful work you do in Gaia’s name and for receiving my mother and I in your settlement.”
“I am the one who is grateful. Without assistance from your mother and other High Priestesses, we would not be able to keep the haven afloat.”
“I take it High Priestess Elena was here as well?” my mother asked as she started walking away from the shuttle.
Sister Anya nodded. “With her help, we’ve managed to stabilize the situation a little, but I’m still very concerned. I fear for the future of the settlement.”
“What exactly is the issue?” I asked, unable to control myself.
Sister Anya didn’t mind my nosiness. “Over the past decades, we’ve been working heavily on solidifying the ground around the settlement and returning the mountains to their former glory. We’ve had excellent results, which was why our little home was able to grow. But as of late, we’ve had several alarming incidents. There’ve been a lot of avalanches, and we came close to losing some of our most talented magic users. One week ago, our crops burst into flames for no apparent reason. Our animals fled. It’s inexplicable, since as far as we can tell, there haven’t been any real disturbances in the energies of Gaia.”
That did sound pretty terrifying. I wondered if I should really be here. It was a delicate situation and I didn’t have enough control over my powers. But I was just here as an observer, so maybe it didn’t matter that much.
I’d have to follow my mother’s lead on this one.
Sister Anya guided us toward the very edge of the settlement. Several people bowed in front of us as we passed, and I noted they were both male and female. It was a little surreal to see such a community. Women were holding hands with men, and fathers lifted their children over their shoulders so they could see us better.
My mother and I were just people, and yet, our arrival was obviously important for this community. My heart clenched in my chest as I watched them all together, family units that weren’t separated by arbitrary standards.
It had never occurred to me to question The Grand Judiciary’s rules on something so basic, but now that I’d seen this, how could I not? Nobody should have ever been deprived of the right to choose their own destiny. It was so unfair that these people had to hide like this, that their love for their partners was considered a crime.
I shook myself and focused on the matter at hand. I wasn’t here to mourn one of the many injustices created by The Grand Judiciary. I was supposed to learn from my mother, so that I could protect my own family, my lovers, Sphinx, and the other chimeras.
Sphinx didn’t speak to me, sticking to her decision to not contact me a lot when I was on Earth. Even so, her presence still lingered at the back of my mind and it helped. I wished my lovers could’ve been here too, that we could have held hands and shared the same open affection these people displayed. But until then, my connection with my friend would anchor me and guide me in my lessons.
An explosion of bright teal snapped me out of my thoughts, freezing me in my tracks and echoing through my body like a tachyon blast. If I didn’t fall to my knees, it was only because of the amount of training I’d done with my lovers and my teachers. It was coming from somewhere to our right, almost blinding in its intensity.
The irony was that my mother and Sister Anya didn’t seem to notice at all. It was unbelievable, since my mother was so much more powerful than me. But the truth couldn’t be denied. For a few seconds, my mother and Sister Anya just continued their conversation, as if nothing was going on, as if the sky wasn’t suddenly ablaze with an anomalous light.
They only stopped when my mother noticed I wasn’t following them anymore. My mother turned toward me, frowning. “Selene? What’s wrong?”
“Mother, can’t you see it?” I asked, staring at the horizon like a woman in a dream. “The blue-green.”
“Blue-green?” Sister Anya repeated, sounding alarmed. “Where? Can you show us?”
I pointed in the right direction, but neither of them was able to see what I did. “Impossible,” my mother murmured. “There’s nothing there.”
Despite her words, she and Sister Anya took my claims seriously. Sister Anya summoned five other priestesses to join our small team, as well as a few men to boost our forces. I wondered why she hadn’t done that before our arrival. Had she deemed the location she’d planned to show my mother safe? I wasn’t sure, but one thing was certain. What I’d seen did not belong to that category.
Once she ascertained that the group was prepared, my mother guided us forward. “Keep an eye out, Selene,” she told me. “Let us know if you see any change.”
“I could take the lead,” I offered. “It would be simpler.”
My mother shook her head. “If there’s indeed something dangerous here, you’re not equipped to protect yourself.”
I disagreed, but decided to obey her anyway. Maybe it would be better to not use my tachyon manipulation here. My mother was the expert on Terra and I wasn’t arrogant enough to believe I had more experience than her.
The whole group left the settlement behind and advanced through the wilderness. None of them could see the light, even if it was growing brighter and brighter. At one point, it became necessary to stop and shield my face, because my eyes were starting to hurt.
“Selene?” my mother asked, noticing my discomfort. “Are you well?”
