by Kyrja
“I found someone willing to make some eggs and give me half a loaf of bread,” she replied, removing a towel from a plate she held in her hands. “Since your girlfriend didn’t bring us any breakfast, I figured I’d better find some food if we wanted to eat today.”
“That dinner she brought last night was wonderful, wasn’t it?” Sakari replied, refusing to take the bait about Zaria being her girlfriend. She reached for the bread as Kraas put it on the table, then nodded at the basket where the forks were kept, since the other woman was closer to it than she was. She couldn’t believe how hungry she was. Or how good she felt. Today was going to be a great day and she was going to make sure Zaria and Kraas were properly introduced. She’d already decided she had no idea how all of this was going to play out, and she was going to make damned sure nobody had to guess where anyone stood with the others. She had loved Kraas for a long time, but had moved past her once she’d thought she was dead. She had mourned and hated the fact she’d died for her, but had honored her vow to keep moving, just as she would have wanted Kraas to do. She was not going to let Zaria feel left out or awkward. Well, they were probably all going to feel awkward, but they would have to figure it all out together. Like adults. She hoped she was up to the challenge and didn’t end up isolating both of them because she was afraid of losing them.
“Hey! Use a fork,” Kraas chastised, slapping her hand away from the plate after she’d started picking at the scrambled eggs.
“Too bad there wasn’t any sausage,” she said, around another mouthful of eggs and bread.
“I didn’t want to wait for it,” Kraas smiled back at her. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you last night,” she said, after a moment, “but Sahil sends his regards.”
“Does he know you’re here?” Sakari asked, surprised.
“He knows,” was the short reply. Sakari looked at the other woman, understanding exactly what the look on her face meant.
“He sent you here to find me!” she accused.
“No,” Kraas replied, shaking her head, then grinned. “He sent me here to bring you back.”
“Come in!” Kraas sang out to the knock on the door, given that she was too stunned to say anything.
“I brought you some sausage,” Zaria said with a smile, holding out another towel-draped plate as she opened the door.
“No wonder you like her!” Kraas chuckled, taking the plate from Zaria. “She feeds you!”
“I didn’t want to interrupt last night, so I didn’t stay,” Zaria said, standing a little taller, “but I hope you liked your dinner.” Her smile fell when she looked at Sakari. “What’s wrong?” she asked, walking closer, holding out her hand as if to touch or embrace her. Her hand paused for a moment, then she purposefully reached out further, putting it firmly on Sakari’s shoulder. When she looked up at Zaria, the other woman leaned down and kissed her full on the mouth. Hard. “I missed you,” she said, pulling away again.
“Maybe I’m the one who should be leaving,” Kraas suggested quietly. Politely. Her cheeks aglow with either embarrassment or anger.
“No,” Sakari said at once. “Please. Stay. Both of you. Don’t make me choose between you. Please.” Then, realizing what it must sound like to them, she stood up with a wordless cry of misery. “I’m sorry. I really am,” she hissed, trying to maintain some kind of civility in the face of this impossible situation. “I know what this sounds like. Like I’m being selfish. And maybe I am, but I can’t imagine my life without either one of you. Not again.”
Turning to Zaria she said, “I thought she was dead. For nearly a year, I thought she had died protecting me from the emperor’s soldiers when I escaped Bila. I loved her. I still do. But I thought she was dead. I didn’t start something new with you just to turn you away when another pretty face showed up. I …” she hesitated, not sure how to express her feeling. “I … I’m not sure if I love you yet, but I know where my heart was headed before Kraas returned. I wanted to ask you to move in with me. I wanted to start a life with you, and I still do. Please. Please don’t leave.”
Then she turned to Kraas, “I am so glad,” she emphasized the word with all the emotion she had ever possessed, “that you are not only not dead, but that you are here. Right here. I don’t ever want you to leave again. I want to grow old with you, or grow dead with you, just like we always planned. But I …” she stopped, shaking her head. This was impossible.
“This room is entirely too small for the three of us,” Kraas was the first to speak into the silence.
“My place is bigger,” Zaria offered.
“But Sahil wanted me to bring you back to Bila,” Kraas countered. “We need you there.”
“I can go anywhere you like,” Zaria added. “So it sounds like there isn’t much of a problem here at all.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Sakari stammered, feeling both relieved and somehow ashamed.
“Then save it for later,” Zaria told her, “because the first thing we have to do is go talk to Batal.”
“Why Batal?” Sakari asked, confused. “I thought I was supposed to take three days off. Jahari said …”
“Jahari herself tracked me down just a little while ago and asked me to relay the message. Batal thinks the water is being poisoned, and that Borja is responsible.”
“Who is Borja?” Kraas wanted to know.
“I’ll tell you all about it on the way there,” Zaria told her, holding out her hand to the other woman. “Bring your sausage with you, Sakari. Using your Uchawi magic will get us there faster than anything else. Come on,” she invited, holding out her other hand. “Let’s go together.”
Chapter Twelve – Ancient History
Nodding at Vray, Muuaji was relieved to see the other man smile at him. Drawing courage from the exchange, he stepped away from the edge of the human circle into the center. Inhaling deeply, he waited while everyone surrounding him stopped talking. Everyone was standing, so those who were further away from the center were still moving, bobbing their heads, to get a better view of him. He waited another few moments, then began walking around the empty space in the center of the circle, looking not at his feet, but at all of the faces, still silent. He had marked out the circle earlier, so knew he would be taking forty paces in silence, glancing into the eyes of all the Kasais and Magami gathered together. Never before had such a gathering taken place, but it would soon become commonplace. Many of the things he and Vray would implement today would become familiar routine in the months and years to come, although they were certain some of their plans would be changed, and some would fail. But it would all start today. Both the failures and the successes.
As he moved back into the center of the circle, Vray joined him. Quiet voices created a low buzz around them, as expected. And yet they waited. Muuaji continued to scan the faces he could see in front of him and was heartened to see both kinds of their people standing together, instead of separating themselves into Kasais and Magami. Perhaps they were ready after all. Most of them would be, he hoped, and the rest would have to be dealt with.
There was the sound he and Vray were waiting for. Even those who wouldn’t be able to see her walk in, would be able to feel the unmistakable presence of the Goddess of Nohoyo. Despite dozens of people being cramped together in a circle, an aisle was instantly created to allow her passage to the center. They were already uncomfortable being here, in the place where thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of people had been murdered over the past many centuries to appease the never-ending appetite of the Sun God. Some because they had been called upon to commit those murders, and the others because they had been held responsible for choosing who would be murdered. Even though Denit had destroyed the shields, and all of the debris had been hauled away, this place was a constant reminder of what had been, and the fear of what might come again.
Muuaji stood with his back to Vray’s as Jahari retraced the same forty steps he’d taken, looking into the faces and eyes of everyone assembled, as he’
d done, all in silence. When she returned to the center of the circle, he and Vray turned to face each other, bowed to one another, then went to their knees in front of their goddess. Muuaji felt a swell of emotion wash through him as he heard everyone around them doing the same.
“The Sun God is dead!” Jahari announced. “And so are all the old ways! You no longer serve Sov! You no longer serve Denit! You, and all the people of Nohoyo now serve me. You have a choice to stay or to leave. To serve or not to serve. To worship or not to worship. From this day forward, this temple is mine. You are here because each of you possess a very special kind of magic. You did not choose to have this magic, but you have it just the same. You may choose to use it to the benefit of all in Nohoyo, or you may leave. You are the ones who will forge a new day, a new land, a new future, and we need every one of you. It will be hard to leave behind everything you have ever known to be true, but this is what you must do. Kasais and Magami will work together. This is your home, your land, your families, and your lives. Everything depends on you. In honor of you, and your work, we will name this temple “Honba Temple.”
“My temple!” Vray shouted, tilting his head so he was facing the ceiling far above him.
“My temple!” Muuaji repeated, raising a fist into the air.
Many voices filled the space around them as those surrounding them echoed the cry. After a few moments, Jahari raised her hands to quiet them.
“My temple. Honba Temple. This is your place. To live, to grow, and to flourish, but you must do the work. And there will be new temples as well. We will build and rebuild. We will take care of each other, including the sick, the elderly, and those who need us. Vray and Muuaji will work with all of you, and we will meet here often to help each other.”
It seemed to Muuaji that the goddess was glowing with hope and pride. Her smile was reflected on all the faces he could see around him. There were those who would resist, he knew, but they had a plan to help make the transition easier for everyone.
He got to his feet as Vray did the same, bowing once more to Jahari and to each other, then they turned to the people surrounding them and bowed to them. It was too big of a moment to pass without shouting with joy, so Muuaji shouted “Hyo Jahari!” and was joined by dozens of voices with everyone surging to their feet as Jahari left them through an aisle which had quickly opened for her once more, this time lined with men and women shouting her name.
* * * * * * * *
As soon as Jahari walked out the door, Vray called all of the Magami to one side of the room, while Muuaji called the Kasais to the other side of the room. He was still amazed at how gigantic the room seemed without the shields. He, for one, would be glad when they were able to meet in other places; it still made him feel uncomfortable to be here. He couldn’t begin to imagine how the others must feel. Every single person on the other side of the room had killed people in this very room. And he, of course, had been responsible for sending many of those people here to die. It didn’t matter, now, that at the time he had thought he’d been doing what he was supposed to do, and had even taken pride in his work. Now that he’d learned what he’d really been doing, he could do nothing but live with the shame and do everything in his power to make sure nobody else would ever have to feel the way he did. And that meant dealing with the worst things first.
“Baltu! Tatjana! Heiken!” he called out, drawing immediate attention to those whose names he’d shouted. Nor were their reactions surprising. He knew these three would be the hardest to convince to cooperate. Vray had counseled speaking to them in private, but he knew the Kasais better than Vray did, and speaking in private would only give them the opportunity to say he’d said something other than his true words, or to pretend as if he had never spoken to them. Being reasonable wasn’t something any of them had ever learned. He had only begun to learn how to cooperate over the past couple of months because Vray had taken the time to teach him. Unless he wanted to let someone else lead the effort in transforming the Kasais, this task was his own, no matter how much he loathed it.
“Come forward!” he barked, when they remained where they were, surrounded by their close associates and friends. He would have to isolate them, or they would feel empowered, or even required, to challenge him. Standing alone, they were more likely to feel vulnerable. And that is exactly what he wanted them to feel. His task was to knock them down, then to offer them what they didn’t know they wanted.
“Each of you has been chosen to lead a new project. Baltu, you will choose ten people to help you build a place for the elderly who have no families. None of those you choose will be Kasais. If you finish before three months’ time, you will be rewarded with a new home of your own. You will get to choose between three of the houses that used to belong to the council members, but are now empty. You will ask for help, not demand it. I will interview your workers on a regular basis, and if any of them complain, you will be replaced. And you will lose the chance to have the new house. The more highly your workers praise you, the more you will be rewarded.”
Before Baltu had a chance to speak, he turned quickly to Tatjana. Both she and Baltu had once commanded the Kasais together, so it was critical they not be allowed to remain together to cause trouble. “You will choose one of the rooms in this temple to be a repository for as many historical records as can be found, collected, organized and stored. You may choose six people to help you with this project, but none of them may be Kasais. You will offer payment to those who wish it, but you may take nothing without permission. You will be responsible for building the shelves, tables, chairs, and everything else needed to make this happen. You will travel all throughout Nohoyo to make sure you have a collection worthy of the Goddess Jahari. We will use these materials to teach the true history of our people. You will choose a house from those the former Council members lived in within the next three days and will report back to me within ten days with the people you have asked to help you. Again, the more highly your workers praise you, the more you will be rewarded.”
Muuaji saw Tatjana open her mouth to speak and even though he was pleased she didn’t have her usual scowl creasing her features, he held up a hand, signaling her to wait. To his surprise, she closed her mouth again, and did as he asked.
“Heiken,” he said, turning to look at the man. He had truly not wanted this position to go to him, but Vray had insisted. Evidently he knew Heiken from past experiences and felt he would be the right one for this task. His own experiences with the man were exceptional only in that he had been particularly brutal. “You will be responsible for all of the gardens around the city, including the fountain area north of the city. You will choose twenty people to help you …”
“No!” Heiken protested. “I know nothing of flowers and plants and … trees!” he spat. “They are nothing to me! I will leave Nohoyo, or I will stay and not do this. There is nothing you can do. You heard the goddess, she said it is my choice to serve or not to serve. You cannot make me do this thing!” he balled up a fist, shaking it at Muuaji. Suddenly he cried out, clutching his forehead with both hands. When Muuaji automatically moved towards him to help, the other man screamed for him to stay away.
“Stop this!” Heiken shouted at Muuaji. As he fell to his knees in pain, he held out his hands to break his fall, revealing the sunburst tattoo on his forehead. Instead of white with yellow markings against the man’s dark skin, it was red. Blood red, and dripping into his face.
“Let me heal you!” Muuaji cried.
“No! You did this! Don’t touch me! Get away from me!” he shouted, waving his hands in front of him, to shoo him away, then he screamed again.
“Someone help him!” Muuaji looked left and right, panicked. But no one stepped forward. Not even his closest friends took a single step towards him. Heiken curled himself into a ball, with his hands over his face, his legs jerking.
“Please!” Muuaji pleaded, his hands in front of him in supplication. He refused to believe no one would help. He looked into i
ndividual faces and saw not horror or fear, but disdain and dismissal. This man meant nothing to them. This life was not important. In the past, they would have called a Fire Tender to take his lifeforce so it wouldn’t be wasted. But now, they had nothing to do, so they did nothing.
Disgusted, he dropped to his knees. Muuaji decided he was going to help no matter if Heiken wanted him to or not. He held out his hands above the other man’s shaking, jerking body, energy already flowing to stop the pain and begin the healing.
“Stop!” he heard Jahari’s voice above him. He stilled his hands to see her standing over him, a frown on her face. “This is Denit’s judgement,” she said, in a clear voice that carried so every ear would hear and every heart would freeze. “He chose not to serve, as was his right. You all heard me give you the choice. Do you see where his wound is? On the very symbol which proclaims him as a Kasais. Before the Sun Goddess rose into the skies above, she gave each Kasais this symbol so that everyone would know that when they spoke to one of you, they were also speaking to her. This is her judgement. Perhaps the rest of you will choose more wisely.”
Then she looked at Muuaji. “Burn his body and choose another for the gardens,” she said, looking him right in the eyes. Bowing once to voice his understanding, he got back on his feet.
Jahari wasn’t done with them yet, though. Raising her chin, she said, “Those who wish to leave, do so now. Leave here now, and leave Nohoyo within five days. Those of you who choose to serve will follow Muuaji’s orders and you will be rewarded.” With that, she turned and walked away from them.
* * * * * * * *
Letting out a low whistle of admiration, Kraas exclaimed, “This is amazing!”
“It’s beautiful,” Zaria agreed, kneeling down to dip her hand in the water.
“I had no idea they’d done so much here already,” Sakari said, in awe of the sprawling oasis Borja, Savaar, and the others had created. If she would have had to guess before seeing it with her own eyes, she would have had to say she had only expected a small lake and a few trees. Maybe some scrub grass or something, but not this. There were full grown trees everywhere, grassy areas, and flowers spread throughout the area as far as she could see. Not to mention the crystalline water. And there was even a kind of shoreline all around the lake made up of white sand and the tiniest of pebbles. It was an amazing work of art in her mind. Certainly unlike anything she had ever seen herself, other than – maybe – some of the indoor gardens in Bila.
