The Persistence of Memories - A Novel of the Mendaihu Universe (16 page)

“Purely as a Watcher,” he said quickly. “I
took no part in it except to warn your sister of impending crises.
I never told you directly to go to that warehouse. I told your
sister and her partner. You moved on your own. Whether you were
influenced by her or by the situation at hand was entirely your own
choice. Regardless: I watched, and you acted. I want you to know
that, Dearest: I have no plans to interfere with your Embodiment. I
do not want to influence your actions. But if it pleases you, I
offer my allegiance. I am yours if you need me.”

Denni cocked an eyebrow at him. “I'm only
fifteen, Kindeiya. I'm just trying to do the right thing. I’m not
planning on world domination. I'm a Watcher like you. I prefer
observation and learning rather than shaking it all up.”

“A quite admirable decision,” he said. “The
offer remains regardless, Dearest One.”

“You know,” she added. “Karinna was
absolutely livid about that deadline you gave her. Was that only a
suggestion of yours? You told her I
had
to be there. It felt
more like inevitability, now that it's behind me. But regardless of
how it all turned out, I think I would have made it to the
warehouse eventually, on my own terms. Is that what you really
meant?”

Kindeiya nodded. “As a Watcher, the things we
say are often misunderstood. We are often mislabeled as
visionaries...but we're merely reality seers.”

“What's the difference?”

“Visionaries are commonly lumped with fortune
tellers and diviners, making educated and sometimes lucky guesses
at a limited number of outcomes to a specific event. Watchers, on
the other hand, could be seen as reverse profilers. We see all
possible — no, let me rephrase that. We
understand
all
possible futures, and choose what we believe is the most inevitable
outcome.”

Denni frowned again. Was she a reality seer?
Or was that ability in the realm of the One? She’d been running on
instinct from the beginning, going with whatever made her soul
sing, but she knew there had to be more to it. She huffed in
frustration; there were too many questions and not enough
answers.

She used the silence to take another quick
study of her surroundings. There was something vaguely familiar
about this place, the gazebo and the garden both. She had
definitely been here before, or at least someplace very much like
this. The sensation of familiarity was much like a dream or a false
sense of déjà-vu, as if her subconscious had been there without
her.

“How did I get here, anyway?” she asked. “And
where are Amna and Dolan Usara? Are they safe?”

“They are safe,” Kindeiya said. “They are
currently at their own sehna lumia. They have already been told of
your whereabouts, so all is well between the three of you. Since
this is the first time visiting for emha Ehramanis and yourself,
you probably will not be able to connect just yet, as you are still
acclimating to your own. Edha Usara is choosing to remain
disconnected for now, as he wishes not to influence your visit. As
for how you got here? Well, you'll have to ask Dolan yourself. He
was the one to guide Amna and yourself to where you are now.”

“Dolan did this?” she asked. “I knew there
was something about edha Usara, but I could never figure out what
it was. Is he a Traveler of some sort?”

His face grew dark momentarily. “A reality
traveler,” he said. “There aren't too many around...sadly, their
numbers are dwindling fast, and we have very little sehndayen-ne on
Trisanda or Gharra who are strong enough spiritually and physically
to teach it. But…”

“It's not the same as Lightwalking?” Denni
asked.

“Lightwalking is...” Kindeiya faltered.
“Well, it's not
linear
, but it's not using multiple
realities, either. It's more the absence of linear space travel,
though time is still present. That's why a shuttle from Gharra to
Mannaka is still an eight-hour ride. I gather you’ve stepped into
the nonspace before?”

Denni shuddered at the sudden turn in the
conversation. If Kindeiya knew of her whereabouts after the failed
Ascension, then surely she'd spent far too long in nonspace. With a
slight hesitation she told him as much, giving him the barest of
personal details. Kindeiya had just offered allegiance. He was a
part of the Mendaihu following, the Warriors of the One that she
had inherited. He was owed that much. Perhaps, once she learned to
trust him a bit more, she would enlist him as an advisor. If she
were to go to war with the Shenaihu nuhm'ndah —Goddess forbid — she
would need someone who knew things she didn't.

She steered the conversation back to its
normal route. “A reality traveler doesn't so much use Lightwalking
to move, as they choose their desired path and move along it
regardless of outside influence, am I right?”

“You’re very close,” Kindeiya said. “A
reality traveler can have a foothold in many places at once. They
are constantly within the Light, fully and completely connected to
it. And in that respect, they are able to move towards a specific
destination by merely shifting which reality they are in.” His mood
seemed to lighten a little, now that she began to understand. “A
reality traveler influences the path to his desire, and moves
towards it without hindrance. Dolan must have wanted to bring the
two of you to these Gardens, bypassing the normal routes. He may
have felt it was important to do so, I don't know. You'd have to
ask him.”

Denni stood up and stretched. It wasn't often
that she participated in these philosophical discussions such as
these, even with Caren and Poe. She enjoyed them immensely, though
they were few and far between, and she treasured the lessons
learned from them. Unfortunately, she would need to be heading back
to Bridgetown soon, to Caren and to the problems that the Sprawl
held for her as the One of All Sacred. Again she winced at that
thought; she did not want to fix everybody else's spiritual
problems, especially when they needed to learn it all
themselves.

“The reluctant shepherd,” Kindeiya said.

“I wish you wouldn't do that,” Denni said,
shooting a hard glance at him. “Read my thoughts, I mean.”

“For that I do apologize,” he said, standing
up and joining her. “But I’m afraid Dolan is correct; you leave
yourself far too open for influence. And in this instance, I must.
You consider yourself a leader of Gharra while in your role as the
One of All Sacred, do you not?”

Denni nodded. “Yes, and I’ve accepted that
role for the most part.”

“So if you don't like it, why do you do
it?”

Denni gaped at him. “Well, I don't have much
of a choice, do I? I lead them out of a sense of need, Kindeiya. I
feel I owe it to them. I
want
to lead them. I want to be
someone they can rely on. If the One of All Sacred were a pathetic
figurehead of a leader, an icon rather than a person of compassion
and strength, would you want that person to lead you? I know I
wouldn't.”

“You don't believe you're an icon,” he
offered. “Do you?”

“I certainly hope not!” she laughed, in spite
of the serious tone of the conversation. “Look at me, I'm just a
kid! Seriously, though, I’m more worried of being seen as one years
from now. I know it sounds stupid, but it's only a matter of time.
Say what you will about Meraladians and Mannaki, but give us time
and we Earth humans turn into raving zealots once we have enough
people and the right belief system behind us. History proves
that.”

Kindeiya grinned. “Being cynical won't help
matters,” he joked. “No, I think the problem is not your followers.
I think it's you.”

Denni blinked. “Me?”

“As I said, the reluctant shepherd. You're
not afraid of your sheep following you. You're afraid of what will
happen once they stop following you and take their own paths to
greener pastures.”

“Well put,” she said. “I don’t think that’s
entirely the reason, but it’s part of it.” She smiled at him as she
sat down again. She took another look at herself, at her mature
body, the slightly taller and sleeker frame. She guessed herself to
be in her late twenties here, about ten or so years ahead. She
wanted to remember what she looked like here, if only as an anchor
to remember how she had gotten here and could do it on her own. It
was time to return.

“As lovely as it is here, I'm afraid I must
leave,” Denni said. “I thank you for the wonderful conversation,
edha Shalei. We must meet here again sometime.”

“I'd enjoy that,” Kindeiya said, and
outstretched a hand for her to shake. She took her hand in his,
covering it with her other hand, and did not let go right away. He
seemed to blush slightly, but didn't hide the fact. “You are always
welcome to visit me at the KJS building in McCleever,” he offered.
“Call any time. We can continue these conversations if you’d
like.”

Denni smiled and shook his hand again. “I
would like that. Thanks again, Kindeiya. Love, Peace and Light to
you.”

“And to you, Dearest One,” he said, bowing
his head in reverence. His image wavered as he lifted back up to
full stature. He took a few steps backwards then disappeared with
the rest of her surroundings. Her grip on his hand faded into
nothingness, and she no longer felt the body of her older self. She
closed her eyes, opened them, and knew she was back in the
inescapable darkness that she had taken to get to that Garden.

She embraced that darkness, no longer afraid
of it.

Denni woke to the sound of a BMPD transport’s
siren as it shot past her building. She opened her eyes and took in
a deep breath of warm, humid air, the kind that settled upon the
city in the early evening during the summer. She was back on the
roof again. She was squatting under the parapet, facing southeast
towards the Mirades Tower. Amna was nowhere to be found, but she
could sense her nearby, possibly back in the apartment.

Why had she been dropped here rather than
back on the couch? Was that Dolan's doing, or was it her own
subconscious? Did it really matter? She stood up, stretched, and
took in her surroundings. She was herself again, her own scrawny
teenage body draped by a baggy tee shirt and loose pants. A far cry
from her much more attractive older self, but that didn’t matter.
She leaned up against the parapet and watched the city again. The
sun had just set over the western horizon but the sky still held
its blue-gray color, offset by the bright pinpoints of light that
dotted the skyscrapers downtown. She smiled at it all, enjoying
just how peaceful and beautiful this city could be. In spite of
everything, she found herself holding back tears.

I am Light...I am thought,
she said
within, only to herself.
I am Love.

I am Hope.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Progress

Poe opened the door to Yoshi's Diner and a
gust of high-blast air conditioning and the noise of fifteen
different conversations hit him square in the face. There were
plenty of ARU agents were occupying the booths today, sipping their
coffees and going over their current cases. He recognized a good
number of officers from his department, some by their spirit
signatures as well. The mood was electric, full of both excitement
and agitation.

He headed towards one of the rear booths,
where a young rookie named Colin Strasbourg was talking to Drew
Kaplan, an older agent from Poe's department. The two agents were
as opposite as one could find at the ARU; Colin was diminutive,
twitchy, and easily riled up, while Drew was heavyset, calm, and
only spoke when necessary. Poe had met Colin about a year ago when
the kid first came to the Unit, had trained him on a few things,
but other than that they rarely crossed paths. Drew, on the other
hand, was an old friend and mentor from when Poe himself was a
rookie. They looked to be in the midst of a heated debate and
neither was willing to give in.

“Settle down, you two,” Poe said, leaning
over their table. “Don't make me call the Chief Inspector on
you.”

“Alec!” Drew said, bursting into a wide
smile. “Excellent timing. Have a seat!”

“Thanks,” he replied, and gave Colin a
withering glance, waving fingers at him to scoot over. Clearly
embarrassed but too proud to admit it, the kid rolled his eyes and
moved further in. Poe nodded his appreciation and gave him a wide
smile. “I'm on your side, kid. Lighten up.”

This elicited a chuckle out of him. “Thanks,
Poe. I need all the help I can get with this guy.”

“Quit while you're ahead,” Poe said. “Either
of you seen Gorecki come in yet? We're supposed to meet here in a
half an hour.”

Drew frowned. “Christine? Goddess, how is
she? I haven’t seen her in months.”

“She's freelance now,” he said. “She's been
assisting with Caren and I as of late. If she hasn't come in, I
suppose this is a good place as any to wait, if you don't
mind.”

“Not at all,” Colin said. “Maybe you can
prove to this guy that the rush of graffiti lately corresponds with
the recent street attacks.”

Poe raised an eyebrow at him. “Why are you so
interested?”

“Ugh. Not you, too? Fine, I can't prove it
right now, but I'm convinced the tags are a direct link. There’s no
other reason they’re there, unless some jackass is trolling
us.”

“It could be anything, really. Could be the
signature of the attacker, or it could be someone just wanting to
divert attention by making us look for connections where there
aren't any.”

“Or it could be the signature of the victim,”
Colin suggested.

Poe grimaced, shaking his head at him. “I
don't see how that could be the case,” he said. “Why would they
want to deliberately put themselves in harm's way?”

“My point exactly,” Drew huffed. “A reality
seer can make mistakes with their predictions, but making
themselves a target would be suicide.”