by Alex South
“Hey, sorry about the stasis ring knockout,” the second figure apologized sheepishly. “We knew you would pull some crazy stunt if we told you beforehand. You can be mad at us later. Don’t worry, though; nothing is gonna happen. No problem has outsmarted us yet. Cale is just being a wimp,” The female voice added with a lighthearted laugh. Jess, Oa thought to himself. He heard sadness hidden in her voice. Jess spoke again, her words sincere and warm, “We love you Kai; remember that.” The image of the two Awoken froze for a moment, then the light flickered and died.
Kai got up and walked out of the room. Susan followed closely, sensing Kai’s distress. Oa stayed, staring at the specters of Cale and Jess.
“Ember fission—a piece of the Destroyer’s power. It annihilates only the Awoken. Cale and Jess were brilliant, but I didn’t teach them enough. There was no way they could have known it would engulf the entire city. Their containment field was no match for the raw power of the ember fission bomb they must have made. The city will be forever covered in the shadow of that blast. These reflections of the Awoken are burned into place for the remainder of time,” Ohm said sadly as he motioned toward the fallen figures.
“Kai refused to accept it,” Oa said, kneeling next to Cale and Jess. His head bowed with crestfallen realization. “It must have driven her mad—finding this, only to then spend countless cycles wandering blindly through the fog as she tried to escape the city. Her dead friends were probably the only thing she was able to see in the darkness.”
Oa and Ohm walked out to the landing at the top of the stairs. Down below, Kai sat on the edge of the plaza, looking around at what used to be her home. Susan rested next to Kai, tail curled around her comfortingly.
“She never could have made it out on her own. Susan must have found Kai and guided her out of the mist,” Ohm reasoned.
“Susan flew her away from this,” Oa said softly as he recalled Kai’s tale of her first encounter with the lightning varl.
“Now that Kai has closure about the fate of her friends, she needs a new purpose,” Ohm said. He turned and looked at Oa intently.
“I understand,” Oa replied knowingly. He was about to walk down to Kai, but he turned back to Ohm. They needed to discuss the implications Istaar had on their ultimate goals before he could hope to comfort his friend with a clear mind.
“It seems like Eol was not involved in this. It was a weapon made from the Destroyer …” Oa theorized, pausing in thought to contemplate any possible answers to the puzzle. “Now I know you say they’re crazy, but the writings in Bolleworth did seem to link the Destroyer and Eol.”
Ohm gazed around the spacious dwelling, then down at Kai again. She had not moved. “The original Destroyer is gone, but I am afraid you’re onto something. The oracle’s ravings may hold some truth. Fred has been analyzing this place since we arrived. Now before I continue, you should know that nothingness has always surrounded our world—but only recently has it come alive,” Ohm explained. He grew somber as he unveiled his theory. “This mist is composed of an emptiness; blank spaces in existence. Hidden within, is a clue to the nature of Eol. Notice how this black fog moves, as if it has an instinctive consciousness of its own. This Void is not like the lifeless abyss of old. This is a Void like Eol, not the same but a close and primitive relative. If this prototype Void was birthed from ember-fission technology, Eol might have been created in a similar, more controlled circumstance.”
“Eol was created,” Oa asked baffled.
“I can not be sure yet,” Ohm replied. He stopped looking down at Kai and glanced toward Oa. Their gazes locked. “I am uncertain how factual the stories of the Enlightened are, but one thing is certain—many Awoken have been making pilgrimages to the Enlightened City to start new lives. If knowledge of other ember-fission experiments still exists, it will be found there.”
Oa nodded. The mystery of Eol was beginning to come together. He wanted to discuss the topic further, but he remembered Kai. Mysteries and plans could wait. His grieving friend was what mattered most. He turned from Ohm and walked down the stairs to the plaza. The young Awoken sat down next to Kai and Susan. His feet dangled off the edge of the deck. Down below, a web of catwalks connected the various chambers. The trio sat together for a long time. Oa did not want to speak. He knew nothing needed to be said yet, and so he just sat. It was a simple act, the best method he could think of to remind Kai that she was not alone. At first, Oa had to work to quiet his mind, to let go of his speculations regarding Eol and the Legion. Then he found himself trying to track the time, wishing he had a pack like Fred to count the weebles his mind was experiencing. Quickly, he let go of the notion, refocussing on Kai. He joined her vigil with both his body and mind, letting his thoughts clear until he sat in total serenity. Time passed unmeasured by the group as they rested in silence. Ohm watched from the doorway to the lab above. Eventually, instinct prompted Oa to place his hand on Kai’s shoulder.
“You said I should hope even though I have always known deep down what happened. And for a moment, I did, Oa. I just don’t know what purpose that hope serves if it’s still crushed in the end,” Kai admitted sadly.
“Want to see something weird?” Oa asked changing the subject. He had no answer for her. She didn’t need one.
Kai turned. “I guess.”
Oa pulled up the tunic draped over his shoulders. “Look, I don’t have a soul ember. Bizarre, huh?”
Kai stared in puzzlement. “Yeah, that is pretty strange,” she agreed, slightly more engaged.
“Ohm says I’m special or something. That I might be the first Awoken ever made, and that I’ve got a gift. I sometimes wonder what good gifts are if they can’t be used fully or if they ultimately fail. I suppose in the end it could all lead nowhere. When I’m gone, that’s it. I won’t leave behind an ember,” Oa admitted, drawing a parallel between his life and the life of Kai’s friends. He turned and looked at her.
“While I am here, I want to make this place better, the way Cale and Jess did by saving you. I won’t run from the Legion forever. I want to fight back, to resist Eol. He is hindering my gift, and he is hindering this whole world. I want to defeat him and help make things better to honor the memory of lost Awoken, like Cale and Jess,” Oa said, pulling out the bag of soul embers from his satchel. He loosened the drawstring to show Kai its contents.
“I started by stealing these embers from Eol. We are taking them to the Enlightened City to see if the Awoken there will help us fight him. Rumors say they are great warriors,” Oa explained. “So, do you still want to help us get there after all this?”
Kai stared down at the embers for a moment before she looked back up at Oa. Her visual receptors glowed warmly. “Of course I do; don’t be stupid. I’m the one with the ship, right? How else are you guys gonna get there? Some dumb water jet?” she joked, shoving Oa lightly. Passion returned to her voice. “Count me in. You guys are my friends now. I want to help protect the Awoken, even if it means taking a bunch of shiny rocks to some random place we have only heard rumors of, so we can fight an unstoppable monster.”
Oa chuckled. “Thanks, Kai. I’m so glad we met you.” He hugged her gratefully.
Ohm jogged down the steps. He strode over to the elevator platform in the center of the plaza. “Actually, our ultimate mission can wait a bit longer. Let’s go find another lightning forest. I have something to show you two. We are in much less of a rush to get to the city now that we have the ARI,” he said warmly. As Ohm stood waiting, the rest of the crew got up and walked over to meet him on the center of the lift.
“I disagree, the constant advance of the Void requires us to expedite our journey to the Enlightened City,” Fred said, expressing monotonous concern.
“That is pure, weapons-grade malarkey, Fred. It is because the universe is collapsing that we should spend some time showing our friends something fantastic,” Ohm teased, turning Fred’s cherished word against him.
The platform began to rise back up into the ceiling,
returning them to the world above. Kai looked over the edge. “Goodbye,” Oa heard her whisper.
He moved to stand closer to her. “Don’t worry, there is always still time for a happy ending,” he said reassuringly.
“Ha! You and that hope stuff,” Kai laughed, slowly shaking her head.
“It’s why I keep him around. I discovered I am quite fond of his naive attitude. I certainly get none of Oa’s cheer from Fred, the potentate of damp jackets,” Ohm joked.
They rose up through the dwellings entry portal, back out into the darkness. Oa called Seeker to his hand and led the group home in silence.
Back aboard the ARI they all stood out on the open deck, basking in the soft orange glow of the ship’s lighting. Behind them the ramp closed shut.
“Why are we going to another lightning forest?” Kai asked Ohm.
“To use that equipment there to make some atter,” Ohm replied, pointing to the controls of the mechanical metal arm that rested in a folded position on the support struts above their heads.
“Of course, atter …” Kai said. She paused to let her sarcasm sink in before asking, “What is atter?”
“You will find out when we get there,” Ohm replied secretively.
“Fine,” Kai huffed impatiently. “Oa, it’s your turn to drive.”
“Thanks! I do want to fly recklessly fast through this fog,” Oa admitted enthusiastically.
Even with the boisterous statement, no one moved to go inside; they all stood in silence, held fast by the dismal aura of the city.
“Let’s go already! I want to see what the big crane on the roof does,” Kai said loudly, ruining the stillness.
All at once, everyone returned to themselves and hurried back to familiarity. Ohm and Fred regally sat down into the power hub, reconnecting to the ARI and bringing all the ship’s systems online. Oa rushed past them to the cockpit and threw himself into the pilot’s chair as Kai and Susan flooded in after him. Kai sat down in the copilot’s chair. Susan floated between the pair, eager to be a part of the flight. Oa had them in the air before Fred could activate the restraint harnesses. The safety straps clipped into place as Fred rushed to catch up on his flight protocol check list.
“Which way do we go?” Oa asked.
“According to the our scanners, the closest lightning forest is directly behind us,” Ohm informed him.
“Then let’s get out of this city!” Kai said, eager to be far away from Istaar. She activated the flood lamp to light their way. Oa spun the ARI around then shoved the throttle, sending the ship hurtling though Istaar.
Oa corkscrewed past the towers and bridges as the thrill of flying rushed through the crew. Kai kept the flood lamp pointed dead ahead to reveal objects they were about to crash into. Oa let out a whoop as they cleared the edge of the metro. Fractions of a weeble later, they burst forth from the thick fog back into the world. Skylight returned, brightening the cockpit with glorious shades of rosy pink, revealing a new cycle. Oa had no idea how many cycles they had been gone. Straight ahead of them lay rolling dunes of fine gray sand.
“Lightning forest dead ahead,” Kai called out. Far off in the distance, a brightly glowing maroon beam rose up to the sky out of the windswept dunes. The peak towered over the horizon behind the forest.
“This is one of my favorite places in the world,” Ohm said.
“The energy flow is truly intricate and remarkable,” Fred agreed.
Filled with eager anticipation, Oa edged the throttle to near maximum as he roared over the dunes. Down below, the reflective sand gleamed beautifully in the sky light. They sailed over valleys and ridges. Susan peered out of the window, her deep violet eyes ever watchful of the horizon. They sat in silence, gazing at the beauty before them. As they neared the column of fire, Oa realized that this forest was different. Instead of one stream of light splitting into many, the maroon forest was made up of numerous stems of lightning. The roots rose up from the ground, weaving in and out of each other to create a mighty pillar that seemed to hold up the sky.
“Anchor us just off the ground, as close as you can to the branch right there,” Ohm instructed, pointing out a root rising out of the ridge closest to them. Kai quickly located the spot Ohm was referring to and pointed it out to Oa. He slowed the ARI and cruised casually over a shallow valley in the sand. The far end of the basin rose up into a smooth winding ridge. The root they were heading toward sizzled up out of the hilltop. The sand around the base of the stem pulsed a deep red as the energy of the forest flowed through it. Oa halted the ARI as close as he could to the crackling pillar. Fred shut of the engines and released the restraint harnesses. Oa spun his chair around and hopped out of the seat, exiting the bridge ahead of Kai and Susan.
Ohm was already out on the deck of the ship, standing next to the forward support strut. He was fiddling with the buttons and knobs on the control panel attached to the metal pillar. Oa noticed the sling Ohm had set up for himself.
“Hey, you finished it,” he said pointing to the fabric stung up between the two support beams on the deck.
“With little time to spare—Fred says there is a high probability that I have a sleep approaching—but before that happens, I want to show you both how to make some atter,” Ohm replied. He grabbed a tiny mechanical arm on the control panel that Oa noticed was a replica of the crane above the deck. Ohm unfolded the mini appendage, and immediately the crane over their heads began to unfold as well. The ancient machinery creaked and groaned; but it moved smoothly, mimicking the position of the miniaturette was Ohm adjusting. He rotated the crane to point toward the branch and extended the end. Overhead, the automated crane extended out toward the pulsing energy stream until its claw was just barely touching the stem. The whole contraption started to hum as the power of the forest began to flow through it.
“Now that I have made the connection, neither of you should mess with the positioning. I spent heaps of weebles perfecting the proper placement of an atter gatherer. You’re both lucky I’m around. Otherwise you would have to mix with impure energy. The only things you are allowed to touch are the mixing controls,” Ohm instructed them sternly.
Oa knocked his hand against the metal support strut he was leaning against, making a loud interrupting clang. “Ohm, what’s atter?” he asked impatiently.
Kai was sitting with her back against the railing as she stroked Susan’s head. She raised her hand. “I already asked that question and I’m still waiting in suspense for an answer.”
“Ill-mannered class,” Ohm muttered to himself shaking his head. “I was getting to that part. Mixing atter is the ancient art of harnessing the natural life energy of these forests and experiencing it directly. You trap the energy with the device above and adjust the frequencies you collect. Once your atter is complete, you absorb it; and the energy passes into your veins. The experience is quite unique. This skill has been lost to the rest of the world for a long time, but I built my own atter gatherer up on the roof so I would not forget about it,” he said, reminiscing about his old hobby.
“Come on over here, and let me show you both how to make some. Then I’m going to collapse on this sling,” he said waving Oa and Kai over to the control panel.
They walked over and looked at the console. Other than the miniature crane, there were not many other controls: six rotating knobs and a single button.
“These six frequency adjustors will allow you to distort and select the different types of energy being harvested. That big button activates the collection channels and will send the harvested energy over there,” Ohm said, motioning to the other support strut on the deck. “When the process is done, just grab the little atter orb in your hand and apply some pressure to it. The energy will disperse into your body,” he paused to make sure they understood. “Alright, I’m going to go lay down now.” Ohm walked over to the sling he had strung up. Without hesitation the old Awoken collapsed back onto it.
“Can I try it first?” Oa asked Kai.
“S
ure, why not? I’m in no rush. It looks like we have plenty of time to use it,” Kai said, shrugging. They both peered around the beam to see that Ohm was already motionless in the sling, asleep. Oa followed Ohm’s instructions, and began to fiddle with the frequency adjustors. There was a small screen on the control panel, and it displayed the different wave patterns being adjusted. Oa tried to adjust the waves so that they flowed in a coherent harmony with one another. He decided there was no way to know the quality of his efforts until he tried the atter out. He pressed the lone button and the hum of the crane became a loud whine for a moment as the accumulated energy drained down to the containment unit on the other support strut. Oa and Kai strode over to the other side of the deck. They looked into the solidly built canister bolted to the metal beam. A thick cable snaked out of the canister up to the crane. There was a single switch on the side of the canister. Oa flipped it, and the container popped open. Inside were several nodes similar to the ones in Susan’s storm simulator, each of them faced in toward an amorphous blob of energy floating in the center of the cramped container.
Oa reached in and grabbed the bubble. When nothing happened, he pulled the blob out for further inspection. The partially transparent globule had a bright blue hue. The inside appeared to be flowing like liquid. He squeezed the bubble tightly, and it burst into a tight cloud of sparks and light that dissolved into his hand. He found that his mind did not have a word to describe the experience. He strained briefly, trying to think of the right word. Then suddenly, it came to him: taste! I am tasting it, Oa thought to himself. The sensation was so strange that he decided he needed to try it again once Kai had had a turn.