Sometimes comes from within
18
JUL/20
Paulu listened with pride as her children recounted the tale of their adventures in the mine beneath the oasis. The children…well, she couldn’t really call them that any longer, could she? They had grown a lot in the weeks since leaving Trobridge and were growing more confident and capable by the day. While the tribe had suffered terrible losses during their travels to this oasis, Paulu was beginning to feel certain that they would be in good hands with Joe, Oni, and Selise assuming leadership roles. She shot Joe a dirty look as Oni recounted the part of the story where the giant three-legged monstrosity had struck his brother down with a mighty blow, “…I thought he was a goner.” Joe looked back at his mother sheepishly and muttered, “Well, Rain healed me.”
Rain, the Mul-blooded orphan had been a real blessing to the tribe. How odd it was that he had come to them as he had. The desert is normally a greedy mistress: keen to take, and sparing with her generosity…often giving barely enough to survive, if anything at all. But the desert had brought them many gifts of late. It had brought them a competent waterfinder and healer, in the form of the orphan Rain; it had brought them a powerful protector, with the addition of the fiery dragonborn, Ayassa; and it had brought them him. The Stranger. Paulu looked over to where the strange outsider sat – apart from the tribe as usual – only half listening to the accounts of their exploits in the mine. Like most of the rest of the tribe, Paulu could not get a read on the man. He had certainly proved himself useful with his prodigious mental abilities, but he always seemed to hold himself apart – and above – the rest of them. And there was something oddly familiar about him, but she could not quite put her finger on it. She felt a strange sense of kinship with him whenever he utilized his psionic abilities, and any sensation of solidarity with the man disturbed her deeply.
Her children wrapped up their tale and transitioned into speaking of the Prophecy that bound them all together, and the need of the tribe to travel soon. As they spoke, Paulu reflected back to her visits to the ancient Mul Seer after each of the children was born in order to have their fortunes read, as tradition dictated. The ancient woman could purportedly read the future upon the scales of a serpent as readily as a Defiler could read the letters in a forbidden tome. As the venomous serpent slithered through her gnarled fingers, she had seemed honestly perplexed by what she seen reflecting back at her in the checkered patterns adorning the snake’s back. Phrases like “destined for greatness,” and “powerful prophecy,” and “change the river of history” passed through her awestruck lips. Of course she and Agis had beamed with pride at these revelations, but part of her had always suspected that the woman gave a similar reading to every child that crossed her path. After all, no one would pay a sizeable sum of food and water and ceramic for a prophecy that predicted that your precious child would end up as Inix dung, would they?
A sudden disturbance beneath her feet broke her from her revelry, and dozens of giant furry spiders erupted from the ground around them. “To the mines!” Selise yelled ,”I’ll cover you.” And her spritely daughter led half of the tribe to underground safety. “We shall hold them off,” Oni said confidently, as he and his brother, along with Rain, Ayassa, and the Stranger stayed behind to do battle with the swarms of arachnids that quickly overwhelmed them.
Selise got them to the safety of the mines and turned to keep watch at the top of the stairs. The remainder of the tribe stood huddled in the darkness, but unlike in times past, they were not eager to stay in safety, but instead yearned to join the fight. Dark skinned Soot readied her sling and licked her lips in anticipation; Ajamu, the tribal guard paced up and down the stairs in frustration at being sequestered underground; and Pakku, all silence and shadow, spoke out “Why do we hide here underground like children. We should be out there with them.” Even Agis seemed irritated. He was worried for his children, but the fate of the rest of the tribe was his chief concern. “We are ill-equipped to do battle; we lack the weapons and training and we will get in their way. If we get hurt, it will divide their attention between fighting the threat and protecting us.” While he spoke with confidence, the look of worry and apprehension in his eyes betrayed his true feelings. He wanted to be up there fighting beside his children and protecting his people with his life, as he had in his younger years. She knew that it killed him to hide underground while the sounds of battle raged outside.
Paulu heard the cries of anguish and concern from her children as the fighting continued above them; the sounds of battle echoing off of the stone walls and assaulting her ears. She felt white hot anger grow inside of her. Her children were suffering to protect her. To protect them. How had it come to this? Aren’t we all a family? We should all carry an equal share of the burdens. An unnatural heat spread through her body as she stood there, threatening to overwhelm her with its ferocity. She turned back to the others and was about to speak, when their shocked expressions stopped her in her tracks. They were bathed in amber light and staring at her with looks of aghast wonder. It took her a moment to realize why…as she looked down at her hand, she realized that the light was coming from her! Her entire body was glowing from within with a pulsating golden light; and for some reason, she thought about the Stranger again…