by Lyra Shanti
In huntress mode, Reese’s will only strengthened. Gritting her teeth, she pushed the goggles to the top of her wavy and wild, red-hair. “Fine,” she said to herself, “let’s do this the old fashioned way.”
Squatting down in a skintight, camouflage jumper, she took out a plasma-candle from her backpack, then held it against the sand. She was losing the sun’s light as it was setting, but she was determined to find Pei’s tracks.
Hynfir had taught her how to track someone back when he was still in The Lirhan army. He hadn’t imagined his little sister would become a soldier, but he had always unknowingly molded her mind. He had influenced her early on, like the first time he took her mock-hunting when she was a young girl. He loved to ride horses and hunt for deer, though he never used deadly weapons in targeting his prey. He loved all animals and taught Reese how to value each of their Gods’ creatures, and so they used stun-guns and blunted arrows. She loved her older brother more than anyone and wanted to be just like him when she grew into an adult. Now that he was gone, she hoped he was looking on her from the heavens, helping her to gain strength and wisdom with each passing day.
Thinking about her beloved brother, she smiled and became even more determined to find Pei. She turned on her heels and searched another section of the sand.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a strange object sticking out of the sand. She grabbed it and pulled out what looked like a melted communications device. “Gotcha,” she said with a smirk. She scanned the object with her goggles; it was indeed made from Deiusian mechanics. She didn’t think it was Pei’s, but it was most likely from one of his Tah soldiers.
I’m close, she thought as she crawled on the sand by using only her legs. Catlike as she moved, Reese ran plasma-scans every ten seconds, continuously searching for a match. After a few minutes, the computer made several beeping sounds. She checked the computer’s reading and saw that it found a match against Pei’s data; his hands and feet had touched the particles of sand where she was now kneeling.
Grinning, Reese felt a thrill of excitement. She had caught her target, though she wasn’t sure where he had actually gone. Looking around the beach, she noticed a strange sort of pattern in the sand; it looked like something big had swirled around there. She guessed it was either a ship or a maybe an animal. She quickly ran up on a tall rock to test her theory.
With the wind blowing her wild red hair, she looked down on the sand from above.
“No way!” she exclaimed. The circular pattern was huge! It looked to Reese like something enormous had attacked Pei’s troop and possibly sucked it down into the sand. “Impossible,” Reese muttered to herself as she jumped back down onto the sand.
Knowing that nothing is impossible, Reese set her handheld computer to scan the patterned area to find the weakest point of entry. She was going to get down into that sand if it was the last thing she did!
When it showed her where to puncture, she pulled out her Viha and shoved it into the sand. She then held it by the hilt and focused her energy into her sword. She never considered herself much of a guru when it came to the Viha - she was never that good at the plasma connection part of it - but she knew she had it in her somewhere.
Closing her eyes, she thought, Show me where Pei is right now. She focused on his gray-green eyes, dark hair, and sarcastic smirk. She missed him terribly and hated how it had ended between them. Even if all they would ever be is friends, she wanted to tell him how she really felt.
After a few moments of deep meditation, she felt a pulling sensation with her Viha. It then tingled her fingers and pulsated in her arms. The plasma within the sword was communicating with her entire being.
Just then, she opened her green eyes and squinted, confused. She knew he was under the sand, and she knew how to find him, though she prayed he was still somehow alive under all that sand. She fantasized briefly about him crashing into the sand and living on the ship’s emergency life support. It was a long shot, but if there was even the smallest chance he was still down there, she had to try. Determined, she pulled her Viha from the sand and put it back in its sheath.
Heading back to her ship, she laughed at herself and her crazy ideas. Diving into the sand with a Krian spy-ship wasn’t exactly sane, but she didn’t care. Pei needed her help and nothing would stop her from reaching him.
“Hold on, Pei,” she said as she got into the ship’s cockpit, “I’m coming for you. Just stay alive, baby.”
--
Watching the deep ocean fish swimming through the surrounding crystalline window, Pei was mesmerized. He sighed, then turned to his beautiful host, and said, “It’s so calming here, under the ocean like this. Your people must be so connected to the water… in a way my people can only imagine, but never truly understand.”
Kiyana smiled and nodded as she looked ahead of her. “Yes,” she replied, “we are one with Osha's domain.”
Pei nodded, though he didn’t really comprehend their connection to each other, and their Goddess. Looking at Kiyana’s unfocused, yet beautiful turquoise eyes, he wished she could see what he saw. He was curious to know how she walked and moved around so easily, even though it appeared her eyes had no sight.
“Lady Kiyana, may I ask you a question?”
She turned to him and nodded with a smile.
“I don’t mean to pry, but… I noticed that your eyes are always fixed forward. Am I wrong to assume that you are blind?”
Kiyana half-smiled and said, “You are somewhat wrong and somewhat right, General. Though my eyes have lost their ability to see, I am far from blind. Instead of looking with my eyes, I sense the world with Osha’s vibrations.”
Pei looked at her with a perplexed expression.
Feeling his confusion, she further explained, “When I was a child of three, I was chosen as the next Seer, and I learned to sense the energy inside the water, as well as inside the entire universe. It is a gift I have learned to harness and treasure. Unfortunately, as my inner vision grew more powerful, my eyes slowly diminished. I am grateful, however, for I know Osha protects and guides my people because of the vision she has bestowed me.”
Listening to her in the dimly lit ocean viewing hall, Pei felt his heart swelling with love for the lovely shaman before him. Her words were poetic and pure; even the way she spoke was fluid like water, and it made his head feel light and calm. “Lady Kiyana,” he softly spoke, “I am honored to know you and your people, and I am thankful for your help with finding The Dome. My king is committed to rescuing the people trapped inside, and he has charged me with saving all who are enslaved on this planet. Your aid will not be forgotten by him… or by me.”
Kiyana smiled and then reached for him with her left hand. Sensing his location, she rested her hand on his heart. “Good General Pei, I am aware of your king… and his cause. Osha has shown me his path and his choices. It is frightening, for I know not which choice he will decide upon, but I am certain that it will be the right one. Osha knows all, my general. Do not worry, you will fulfill your mission, and the universe will become balanced once again.”
Pei didn’t know if he could trust so easily when it came to fate, but he wanted to believe her words. There was something about Kiyana that made him feel at peace; her soothing voice and stunning turquoise eyes filled him with warmth and hope.
“Lady Kiyana?”
“Yes?”
“How do I conquer my fear the way you seem to have done? I was once a man of faith, you see… a long time ago. Like you, I believed wholeheartedly in the natural order of The Un. But when many terrible things happened to me and those I love, I became bitter, and I found myself angry at the Gods whom I once believed in without a doubt. I found that the confidence I once had was merely an illusion to hide my true feelings of doubt. I suppose my question is… how do I return to the innocence I once had when I was a priest?”
Kiyana thought for a moment, then said, “You cannot return. Innocence, once lost, is forever gone.”
&nb
sp; Surprised at her answer, he asked, “But… if that is so, how can any of us retain hope in this chaotic, dark world?”
“Pei,” she replied with a gentle smile, “the world is more than dark. It is full of light as well, and even within the darkness, there is the power of the universe, which creates even more light. You must try to see things the way I do, without your eyes, but with your heart and your senses.” Taking his hand, she extended his forefinger to point at the see-through crystalline wall and said, “Fear is like the ocean. It seems to us dark and foreboding, full of dangers and mysteries unexplained. However, fear is also what guides and moves us to take action. You see, fear is one of the greatest strengths we have, if only we let it be like candles in the darkness.”
“I… don’t understand,” said Pei. “How does one do that?”
“First, you must try to love your fear, the way my people love the ocean. Accept its purpose, then embrace it. Soon, you will be able to let go of your anger and resistance to change, and then, you can use your fear to become wiser, better… more flexible about time and all of its chaotic patterns. This knowledge is still within us, though hidden in the back of our minds. Like deep water, fear was once a home to us, but now, it is the unknown, and we no longer remember how to swim through its waters. It is a great shame, for we could all be strengthened by our fears, instead of becoming weakened by them.”
“I don’t know if I could ever be like that,” said Pei.
“We were all once that way, my friend," Kiyana replied. "A very long time ago, every creature was Osha's child, and we saw the universe as our mother and friend. But with time came separation and diversity of the species. It was necessary for our evolution to become different, but we forgot our connection. Soon, our diversity triggered our fears once more, and we became ignorant about our mother.”
“Our mother? You mean Osha, the Goddess you worship?”
“I do not worship her, Pei,” smirked Kiyana. “I am simply her voice. She is not a Goddess either. She is much, much more.”
Pei wanted desperately to learn everything Kiyana seemed to understand. He hadn’t been so intrigued and spiritually motivated since his days at The Holy Temple. It didn’t hurt that she was also immensely beautiful. If Meddhi-Lan had been a gorgeous Tirleni woman, I may have studied a lot harder, he joked to himself.
Kiana smiled, making Pei wonder if she somehow had heard his thoughts. Testing his curiosity, he mentally asked, “Can you hear me?”
Again, she smirked, then nodded.
“Wait, seriously… can you hear my every thought?”
She giggled and said, “Only when it is very strong. Your thoughts can be quite… bold and full of fire.”
Pei’s face became flushed as he tried his best to hold back his embarrassment.
“I’m sorry,” he replied under his breath.
“It is alright, General, I like how bold you are.”
He looked at her, catching her turquoise eyes with his. Even though he knew she couldn’t see his eyes, he felt as if their souls touched. Lingering in the moment, Pei felt the need to kiss her lips, but he held back. She is a woman of stature and wisdom, he told himself. I cannot treat her like a normal woman.
Smiling, she leaned into his ear and said, “But... I am a normal woman, Pei.”
Feeling her breath on his skin made his heart race. He looked down and lifted her chin. Leaning toward her, their lips almost touched.
“General Pei,” said Maisy.
“Huh?” replied Pei, completely caught off-guard.
Maisy smirked, realizing she had interrupted their moment, then said, “I uh… I can come back.”
“No, it’s alright, Lieutenant,” said Pei, straightening away from Kiyana. “What is it?”
“Well, you’re not gonna believe this, but General Reese is here.”
Pei’s eyes widened as he gulped. “Reese? Why? How?!”
“Lady Kiyana,” said one of her guards as he entered the room. “There has been a breach into our tunnel.”
Being the only one present who understood his language, Kiyana nodded and replied in the universal tongue, “Yes, it is the fire-warrioress who was meant to lead the battle… when it is time. I have seen her in my dreams.”
Pei was slightly unnerved by the idea of Kiyana dreaming about Reese; it just seemed unnatural. He had no idea how Reese had even made her way into the Tirleni tunnels, but he couldn’t help respect her for finding them. “Crazy Reese,” he said with a shake to his head. "Take me to her, Maisy.”
“Yes, Sir,” she replied as the four of them headed toward the main entrance.
When they arrived, Reese was mid-hug with Sterek. She was sopping wet as she turned around with a grin.
"There you are, you naughty boy."
"Reese," replied Pei, “what are you doing here in-"
Before he could finish, Reese ran up and grabbed him tight. "I knew you weren't dead!"
Pei's annoyed expression turned to a smile. Despite the pain she had caused him before, he was glad to see her.
"Don't scare us like that," she added while still hugging him. "When your tracking signal went dead, we all feared the worst. I knew you were alive, though. I could feel it."
Noticing Kiyana's raised eyebrow, Pei felt self-conscious, so he pulled away. "I'm fine, Reese," he said, walking toward Kiyana. "Let me introduce you to Lady Kiyana, the leader of the Tirleni."
Reese gave an irreverent nod to Kiyana, then said, "Nice to meet you." She then walked to Pei and took his arm so that he'd follow her. "Look... I'm glad you found the Tirleni and all, but your king is really worried, and your sister too. You've got to let them know you're alive, then send them your present coordinates."
"Yes, I know, Reese, and believe me, I've tried... but our equipment was mostly destroyed when we were sucked down here by their plasma machine. And I tried using my wrist computer, but it's not able to send or receive signals."
"Really? What about Sterek's fancy tech ship? I would offer mine, but I kind of crashed it."
Pei laughed, tickled by her sense of humor. "I've missed you, Reese," he said, giving her a gentle hug. Reese smiled, though she was surprised by his outward affection. She had figured Pei might hate her after she left him for Baran, but instead, he seemed genuinely happy she was there.
"I missed you too, priest, “she jabbed with a smirk, for old time's sake.
"As for Sterek's ship," added Pei after their embrace ended, "it's still functional, but it’s not really for communications. It's on emergency power, and it needs to be charged, though it could probably send Ayn a signal. Sterek, can you send our king a message, and let him know we're alive and well? Let him know we've found the Tirleni as well."
"Yes, General," replied Sterek, "though the plasma core of the ship was damaged when we were dragged into the tunnel. It may take some time to get the core running."
“Understood. Do what you can," ordered Pei, "and in the meantime, let's hope Ayn and Ona sense my presence the way you did, General."
Reese smirked, proud of herself. She had found him, her once beloved Pei, but could she win him back? She doubted it greatly, but she definitely planned on trying.
Pei, however, had no such intentions. His thoughts were only on two things: their mission to find The Dome, and his own mission to become closer to Lady Kiyana. As for Reese, he loved her, but didn't trust her worth a damn outside of battle.
"Reese, have you heard from Lod Zin?" he asked, purposefully changing the subject.
"No, she replied, "but I'm sure he's fine."
"I'm not so sure," said Pei. "When last I left him, he was spilling our mission to Vax. To be honest, I fear for his life."
Reese sighed and said, "That kid is such a moron... a sweet, adorable moron."
"He is being taken to The Dome as we speak," said Kiyana to the surprise of everyone.
"What?" said Pei. "Are you sure?"
Kiyana closed her eyes for a moment, then nodded. "I see him fast asleep...
inside a ship headed far into The Deep of Osha's womb. They are going to The Dome. I can feel it."
Pei shook his head. "That stupid kid! We've got to get him, and all the other prisoners, out of there."
"Don't worry," said Reese with a smirk, "I'm here now, and I'll make sure you fulfill your mission."
Pei grinned, wondering how it was that Reese always managed to make him smile, even in the darkest of times.
--
Despite his Tirleni ancestry, Goral hated the open ocean. Looking out from the top level of his black warship, he felt nauseous and dizzy. This kind of thing isn’t for me, he thought, trying to hide his weakness from his hardened, Ohrian naval crewmates. How did I get here? he pondered, sick and sweating. I should be on Xen, back in my mansion with my servants and comfortable bed. I’m no sailor, yet I’ve been made captain by that madman. Vax is not only crazy, but a moron if he thinks I can convince the Tirleni that I am one of them! This entire operation is beneath me!
Feeling awful, Goral turned to the white-haired, yet youthful navigator at the helm and said, “I’m going to lie down for a while. I trust the ship in your capable hands, Navigator Eloy. Alert me if there’s any sightings of Tirleni.”
“Yes, Captain,” replied Eloy. “And should they become hostile?”
“Just hail them and show our flag of peace. We will convince them they have nothing to fear… and then I will deal with them directly. Now let me sleep.”
With that, Goral left the bridge, and then hurried to his room down below. He knew he was going to vomit, but he hoped to make it to his bathroom before it happened; the last thing he needed was to be made fun of by his crew. This mission is humiliating enough, he thought as he hurled into his sink.
After a few minutes, his stomach finally quit turning, and he went to lie down on his bed. It wasn’t as nice as the posh, velvety bed he once had on Xen, but it was soft and good enough to sleep on. He could still feel the ocean’s waves rocking him back and forth, but it wasn’t as intense as it was on the bridge. Soon, he was fast asleep, dreaming of dancing, naked slaves who fed him fruits and cheeses.
