The Persistence of Memories - A Novel of the Mendaihu Universe (64 page)

Saone backed up, afraid to be put on the spot
like this. Now that he’d put the idea in her head, she
could
sense Denysia, the One of All Sacred, right now, at this very
moment. The clarity of the connection seemed like second nature.
And it scared the hell out of her.

“Dehndarra Né hra nyhndah,” Matthew said
softly. “The One is part of the whole, and parts of the whole make
up the One.”

“She's...”

You can trust him,
she heard from
within.

“Who —”

It's me,
She said.
You can trust
him, Saone.

Eyes wide and darting, she backed away
further until she hit the corner of the bed. She startled herself,
pushed away, and stood. She had her hands down by her sides, but
she was flexing her fingers, ready to move.

“I advise listening to her,” Matthew
said.

“She's —”

I'll need all of you soon, Saone...please,
trust him.

“She's...at Moulding Warehouse,” she said,
hardly believing herself. “Sitting with her sister. Five bays in,
four tiers up, away from everyone else. They're talking about what
will happen.” She gasped, feeling the sudden iciness in her chest.
“Tomorrow,” she said.

“Yes,” Matthew said. “Tomorrow.”

Saone let out a breath and felt all the
tension in her body spill away, all at once. She felt tired and
weary from the constant fear and confusion. She slowly walked back
to the desk, her mind reeling…she was wide awake and aware of
everything around her. The newness of this room, its new
furnishings, its comfort. She saw behind Matthew’s aloof façade,
sensing that he was equally as afraid to face the next day as she
was. He knew what was coming; she did not. Yet they both felt the
same fear. “A new Season,” she said, and sat down hard on the
swivel chair. She exhaled once more. Not a sigh of resignation, but
of acceptance.

“Yes,” he answered, and grabbed for the
bottle of wine. “A drink before the war,” he said, and poured two
glasses. He handed one to her, the other he held aloft. “Peace,
Love and Light be with you, tonight and for the rest of your life,
Saone Lehanna. Strength be with you.”

It had been awhile since she'd been toasted
like that by someone other than a family member. It was touching,
and eerily prescient in its own way.

Peace, Love and Light be with you,
Denysia,
she said within.
Strength to you, for tomorrow we
die.

“Goddess!” Matthew sputtered, having heard
her words.

A shiver shot down her back, not from her own
words, but from her continual connection with Denysia. She
had
heard it, and understood exactly what she’d meant. Saone
closed her eyes and sipped from her wine glass. Things were not
going to be the same, come morning. They were never going to be
quite the same.

...to be reborn as Spirits in Peace,
Denysia answered.
A cycle ends, another begins, and we are all
part of it.

“Goddess,” she said, and tossed back the rest
of the wine in her glass. Matthew refilled them, and continued to
do so until the bottle was empty.

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

Unbroken

She wanted to do this. For the first time in
her young life, Denni wanted so very much to do this. She wanted to
face her deepest fear and take hold of it, and mold it into
something she could relate to and understand. Not just to overcome
it, but to embrace it and wield it as necessary: to accept it
within her spirit as she would any other emotion, positive or
negative. This was not a strength of the One, but a simple strength
of all Gharné. Very few chose to face it, even those in the role of
deity. She was not alone in this, not in the least. She was
surrounded by others equally strong in spirit, all supernatural in
belief and strength, yet still mortal. Every single one of them
facing the same uncertain fate.

Despite the uncertainty, they too chose to
accept it.

She sat cross-legged on the concrete floor
with the others in this small circle, having an informal chat
session. Caren sat to her immediate right, always by her side now,
with Amna to her left. They were the consorts of the One of All
Sacred, though she would rarely think of them in that way. They
were sister and best friend, and in her heart they always would be.
Anando sat to Caren's right, her sister’s cho-shadhisi and
spiritual anchor. He had taken over the day-to-day running of
warehouse living while Nehalé Usarai was away.

To Amna's left was Mancka Udéma, the former
Mendaihu representative of the Provincial Governor's Council. Her
days lately had consisted of community service at the warehouse and
the drudgery of meetings with Councillor James out on Sachers
Island, and little else. She was the reflection of everyone else
down on the main warehouse floor, her natural empath abilities
magnifying and refining it, making it all the more readable and
understandable for those here in this circle.

Poe had been in the area earlier, very close
by, but had chosen not to enter the warehouse, for reasons she
didn't quite understand. He'd appeared on her radar a few hours
ago, and had been on his way here, only to stop one block away with
a sensation of dark thoughts surrounding him. He had been training
with an Elder Mendaihu, but where had he been over the last day and
a half? He was already heading elsewhere now. He hadn’t traveled by
any normal means either. He'd moved within the Light...all on his
own! She was so proud of him when she sensed him Lightwalking away
from the area, immediately afterwards she felt an unexpected
dread...as if he was no longer the man and the protector she had
always known. Something had changed within him, something
dangerous.

Akaina, who sat to Mancka's left, had sensed
the same thing, and her reaction had been a mixture of concern and
dread. She and her brother Ashan had come to the warehouse soon
after he’d appeared, hoping to catch him as soon as he came back
from his training, and they must have sensed his presence as well.
Kai was distraught, having missed him deeply. Recent events had
kept them apart for far too long.

“Word is that something could happen as soon
as tomorrow,” Anando said. “I've heard from reality seers and
spiritsensers, the Shenaihu have grown weary of this standoff and
they want to act. But they haven't made their intentions clear. We
should remain vigilant. Our people here in the warehouse are
itching to take their places around the city, and will do so only
when I give them the go-ahead.”

Denni bowed deeply. “Noted and appreciated,
Anando. What
do
we have from the Shenaihu? Anything at
all?”

Ashan moved slightly forward and bowed.
“Akaina and I have been sensing around the city. We find nothing
out of the ordinary. Aside from the congregation down in South
City, there has been no action in any of the other sectors. Minor
pockets of recently awakened Shenaihu are moving around, but they
have not shown any aggression. They have not yet chosen their
path.”

“However...” Kai added, “Upon a cursory
investigation of the South City area, the Shenaihu are creating a
collective similar to the one here at the warehouse. We have
contacts down there, all cho-nyhndah, and are reporting directly to
Ashan and myself.”

Denni nodded. “Any spiritual movement?” she
asked.

“Nothing out of the ordinary,” she continued.
“We encountered no major rituals, no spikes in energy levels.”

She bit her lip, thinking about that. “Let me
know as soon as they report back. I want everything from concrete
evidence to just plain gut feelings.”

“Yes, Dearest,” Kai said.

The honorific made her twitch. She didn’t
want the subservience of her closest friends. It was expected now;
she was the One of All Sacred, and within this circle, she was
their leader and it was the highest Meraladian honor to address the
One as the supreme leader on Gharra. When she was fulfilling her
duties as the One, she approached the role naturally, embracing it
and using it to full effect. So when they called her Dearest, she
felt the love in their spirits as they spoke to her. They were
willing participants because of their faith in her. This, without
the aid of the eight previous Dearest.

Still, a part of it always rubbed her the
wrong way. She was no more a human being than anyone else here.

“Thank you, Kai,” she said. “Have you heard
from Alec in the last hour? I believe he's heading back towards
Branden Hill.”

“He is heading in that direction,” she said.
“I'm sensing he's not in the best of moods right now. He might be
heading to his apartment, but I believe his true destination is ARU
Headquarters.”

“He wants to confront Farraway,” Caren said
impatiently, momentarily forgetting where she was. “Damn fool is
reacting to his anger again. Elder Nayélha must have done a number
on him.”

Denni let her sister's inappropriate words go
for the moment. “Is it imperative that he be here at this point in
time?” she asked as an open question.

“He's to sit at the left hand of the One,”
Anando said. “Between Mancka and Amna. He's the Warrior of the One.
He should be here, but no, it is not imperative right now. We are
strong, and the circle holds. He must arrive before morning,
however, if he is to be here in time.”

“How about edha Slater and emha Kennedy?” she
said. “I'm sensing their presence in that area as well. They're at
the ARU already.”

Caren nodded, bowing in deference this time.
“When they stopped here earlier, Sheila hinted that they were going
to confront Farraway as well. Would you like me to contact
them?”

Denni thought, then shook her head. “No, I
think it's all right. They'll return on their own. Their fates have
been chosen and their duties are ready to be fulfilled. I would,
however, like to speak to them before tomorrow morning. I will find
them myself, but I shall take Amna in case security is needed. They
shall take the seats exactly opposite me, between Anando and
Akaina, as Observer and Messenger. Until then, we should rest.
Later tonight we can take care of any last minute preparations, and
we shall embrace whatever the Shenaihu have planned for us.

“Until then, Peace, Love and Light to all of
you. You're all in my mind and in my heart.”

“And to you, Dearest One,” they said in
unison. “And you in ours.”

Five bays in and four tiers up, Denni
reclined against the pile of pillows stacked in the corner of her
sister's makeshift living space. Her dry eyes burned and her calves
hurt from being on her feet all day. It was only about five in the
afternoon, just past the sinking of the sun, and she was exhausted.
This was not the shape to be in right now! She stretched out her
legs and yawned, hoping she could at least relax her nerves for the
time being. If it wasn’t for the fact that she had a billion other
things to do before tomorrow morning, she’d have passed out
already.

Hey,
she heard from within. A second
later, Caren's head popped up at the opposite corner, near the
ladder. “Care for some company?”

“Sure,” Denni said, and slid over to make
room. Caren climbed in and lay next to her, snuggling up. Despite
their wildly differing fates and roles as Mendaihu, Caren was still
her older sister and still fiercely protective of her. Whatever
happened in the future, Denni would always hold onto that. She
nestled into Caren's embrace, closed her eyes, and let out a
satisfied sigh.

“The warehouse is in good hands,” she said,
stifling another yawn. “It's become self-sustaining. It's a
successful community now.”

Caren hummed in agreement. “Thanks to you,”
she said.

“Thanks to Anando,” she hummed. “He's done
more than his share. He's sacrificed a lot...even spending time
with you.”

She felt Caren's disappointment, masked by
acceptance. “He's been honest about that, Den, I'll give him that.
As much as he wants to be with me, his priorities keep him here
longer than he would like.”

Denni opened her eyes and turned to her.
“You're not angry?”

Caren laughed quietly. “Sure, I'm a little
annoyed. But I think our situation is a little more important. I
miss him, and he misses me.”

“You should be with him,” Denni said.

“I'll see him later,” she said.

“You should be with him right now,” she
continued.

Caren laughed. “Fesh piann, hon.” she teased.
“I'm the big sister here. I tell
you
what to do.”

Denni forced a smile. “Fair enough. But you
should see him tonight. I'll be back in my little cubicle to give
you two some privacy.” She felt Caren blushing, the radiant energy
suddenly pushing away from her face. She giggled and turned to face
her. Sure enough, her face was crimson. “You know what I mean,” she
added.

“Yeah...” Caren said, nudging her. “I know
what you mean, brat.”

“Good.” She turned back onto her side, closed
her eyes, and smiled. “You two belong together. You’re like perfect
anchors for each other.”

Another trickle of energy, this time of joy.
“Thanks, Den. I needed to hear that.”

“It's true,” she said. “You were together
before, and you're here now. Your purpose here is to protect me,
but it's also to find Anando and rekindle the physical and
spiritual love you've always had for each other. Listen to your
heart, Karinna. Listen to your
spirit
, listen to what it
sings. Whatever it sings to you is the truth. Does your spirit love
Anando Shalei?”

“I...” Caren frowned deeply. She knew the
answer already, she just needed the strength to accept it. “Yes,”
she said finally. “Yes, I do love him, and I know I always
have.”

“Does he know this?” she asked.

“Yes,” Caren said, bowing her head. She was
afraid to look her own sister in the eye.