by Jon Chaisson
*
Kai sat cross-legged on the rocky ground at the Crest, to Denni’s right. Everyone had subconsciously stood or taken a seat on either side of the young girl, a miniature hrrah-sehdhyn of protection around her. Her friend sat up front, Caren at her left, with Ashan and Poe taking up the rear. Poe was nearest her, only a few short steps away. She’d only noticed their positions minutes later when she felt a shiver through her spirit, when Denni had contacted Ampryss again.
She glanced at Poe again, watching him silently. He was looking out over the Sprawl with a different sight now…he was no longer up here to clear his head, not anymore. There was a saddened look in his eyes, as if he understood what his city was about to face, and he felt powerless to protect it. Tentatively she moved closer to him, sliding her arm underneath his and taking hold of his hand. He looked down at their entwined fingers, first with an expression of surprise, then with genuine comfort. His eyes met hers at the same time, for the first time intentionally. Guiltily she peered through his hazel eyes into the shimmering light that was his soul…and realized that it was staring back at hers, searching and hoping for a love that transcended over all this. With conviction she promised herself she would try to give as much as she received.
We do not need words, she thought, comforted by that. Just ourselves.
Sitting on a boulder a few yards away, Ashan cleared his throat to make sure he had her attention. Blushing, she covered her mouth to hide a giggle and faced him.
She has been talking to Ampryss for the last half hour, her brother said. But even I can’t hear a thing. She won’t let us in.
Kai nodded, not knowing what else she could add. Minutes after they had made their way up the winding path to the summit and settled on the rocks, Denni — who on first view of the Sprawl from this vantage point had stared in slack jawed and teary-eyed wonderment as if she had never been up here before — had suddenly grown silent and moved some distance away from the others. She had found a seat that was a little too close to the Crest’s edge for Caren’s comfort, but had maintained enough distance to remain safe. The young friend, Amna, had taken sentry position, sitting cross-legged on Poe’s outcropping of rock and enjoying the view. The others had eventually taken their position soon after.
Amna can hear a little bit, Ashan said. She said she had heard Ampryss at the school, just enough to feel a presence but not enough to understand it. For Denni’s sake, she’s not saying anything until this is over.
Until what is over? Kai said with a little more edge to her voice than she’d intended. This fiasco, or her conversation?
I do not know, he answered.
“What do you think?” Alec said. Startled, Kai turned to him to answer, until she realized he’d spoken to Caren. “Nice view, yeah?”
“Not bad,” she said, noncommittally.
Poe’s eyes suddenly sparkled. “Hey, you know who’d love it up here? Christine Gorecki.”
The mention of the woman’s name lifted Caren’s mood significantly. “Christine! Goodness, I haven’t thought of her in a long time! Sure, she’d love it up here. All the space and peace she’d need for her spiritwork.”
“I really should call her,” Poe said. “I’d almost feel guilty if we didn’t involve her in this somehow.” He turned to Kai and smiled. “Christine’s one of the best freelance spiritworkers in the Sprawl.”
“Has she worked with the two of you?” she asked.
“Off and on,” Caren said. “She used to be in the Branden Hill ARU, but she quit about six months ago and we haven’t seen nor heard from her since.”
“Her choice,” Poe added. “’Spiritual burnout’ is what she told me.”
Caren turned back to the city, a somber look in her eyes. “It’s truly a great view, but it would be better without the storm,” she said. “Is that cell going to hit anytime soon, or is it just going to sit there over the suburbs?”
“NewsComm reported a light shower,” he answered. “Though those clouds are a bit dark for it. Don’t suppose this uprising has anything to do with it?”
Caren raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Accumulation of spirit energy? There’d definitely be some sort of disturbance, but nothing that big. Kai, what do you think?”
“Could be, but I’m not sure,” she said, hating herself once again for not telling her the full truth. “Although I’m not very good at reading residual energies as such. You’d want someone who could read more closely than I could…”
“…like Nehalé Usarai,” Caren finished. “I’ve thought of that. Either way, it’s screwing up the launch-and-land windows for the Nullport, by the looks of it. I haven’t seen a transit ship or a payload in the last three hours…and that’s not normal. I know the weather’s bad, but not enough to warrant shutdowns. Any more of this and we’ll effectively be cut off from the rest of the CNF.”
As soon as she had finished those words, Kai knew Caren had regretted them.
Poe finally answered after an uncomfortably long pause. “Would the Shenaihu go that far?”
“It depends,” Ashan said coldly. “But let’s not dwell on something that may or may not be true. Besides, it looks as though she’s coming out of it.” He lifted his chin up in Denni’s direction. She had come out of her trance, peaceful as it may have looked to the others, shaken and wrapping her arms tightly around herself. Amna moved in first, comforting her in her return, whispering calming words to her as she passed the waking state into full consciousness.
Aware that everyone was looking in her direction, Denni quietly stood up and stretched. There was a strange calm about her, a peace that had risen above everything else, as if all the questions that had bothered her emotionally and intellectually had finally been answered. The gesture of a soft smile as she looked in their direction was a blessing from her now, and they knew it. She had uncovered the truth of the Mendaihu and the Shenaihu; it was beyond any simple explanation that she could give. She would have to teach them herself.
“What time is it?” she asked.
Poe checked his watch. “It’s about quarter to two.”
Denni smiled at him and with a few tripping hops over the ledge’s rocky covering she stood in front of him. It was the adoration of a young girl who looked up to him like an older brother. She wrapped her arms around his waist and buried herself into his uniform. Surprised and touched, he reciprocated, encircling her with one arm around her back and the other clutching her opposite shoulder, just like he always did.
“Strength,” she said to him softly. “Keep your strength, Poe. It’s your greatest asset.” She pulled out of the embrace, and made her way towards the spot she had taken earlier. She stood there, back to the others, looking out over the Sprawl as if she commanded it, and nodded. “It will happen,” she said out loud.
“What will?” Caren asked, making no attempt to hide her concern.
“The Shenaihu and the Mendaihu will reunite,” she said.
Both Kai and Ashan froze. She glanced at her brother, but once again he was stone-faced. She desperately needed to know what Ampryss had told her now; this had not been an expected move from the One of All Sacred.
Denni faced them without missing a beat. The smile was gone, replaced by a sober acceptance. “Not right away, of course. And not without the expense of lives and spirits. But if all goes according to plan, then there is little to worry about. Which is why I have to be down at the warehouse at four.”
“What happens at four?” Ashan asked.
Denni flashed him a smile. “You’ll know soon enough, sehnadha. Everyone here will be a part of it.”
“Denni —” Caren started.
“Remember what I said on the way here,” she said, cutting her off. “You won’t lose me, Karinna. I’m always here. You, of all people, will be there for me when I most need it.”
Caren started to ask, but thought better of it. If Denni knew what was going to happe
n, then she would not bother asking.
“We should go now,” she continued. “The earlier the better.” She bounded back off the ledge and started down the descending path. Amna followed quickly after her, wordlessly but with a wide smile. The four adults remained there, feeling more than a little skeptical and unsure of what had just happened.
