by Oumar Dieng
“My name is Yakhar,” he said. “You are in Admenia, the city beneath the ocean.”
“Wait, did you say beneath the ocean? How did we get down here? You know what, never mind. I need to leave. I need to find my father.” I started walking to leave the room.
Yakhar stopped me. “My elder would like to meet you,” he said.
I pleaded with him that my father was in danger and that we needed to find him. “My father is seriously hurt. If we don’t find him soon—”
“It is customary for a guest in Admenia to meet with the elder first,” he insisted. “Please follow me.” He showed the way with a hand gesture and a slight nod of the head.
We walked into a large room with high ceilings made out of coral reef. The place was packed with people. Yakhar led the way; I followed. They parted and cleared a path all the way to the other end of the room. An older individual sat on the only piece of furniture in the chamber: a white chair, curved and smoothed at its edges. He must have been important, judging by his ample and remarkable outfit, which, unlike anyone else’s, was loose fitting, had colors, and flowed gracefully. We stood in front of him.
“Father,” Yakhar said, “here’s the traveler.” Yakhar stood aside and looked at the man.
The man stood up slowly, and immediately the chair retracted into the floor. “Welcome to Admenia!” he said. “I am Naffore, leader of the Seyamon!”
“Thank you for your hospitality,” I said. “I was hoping you could help me get back to my father.”
“Where is your father?” Naffore asked.
“We took refuge in a cave to take shelter from a lightning storm.”
“The Caves of Akhmore?” Naffore said. “Those caves are forbidden. They are in the realm of the Teramon. We must seek their permission before entering the caves.”
“How long would that take?” I asked. “My father is in those caves, and if we don’t get to him soon, he won’t survive.”
“Your father will have to wait until we get permission from the Teramon.”
I turned to Yakhar. “What’s a Teramon?”
“The people of the kingdom of Teramon are cave dwellers; they are the caretakers of the caves and valleys on Centaura.”
“Would you at least let me go to my father?”
“No!” Naffore said. “It is far too dangerous on the surface. However, I will send word to the Teramon to check on your father. You may stay in Admenia for as long as you want, provided that you respect our laws and traditions.” He turned to his son. “Since you rescued her, it is your responsibility to show her our ways.”
“Very well, Father.”
Yakhar walked me down the corridors. “Before I take you to your dwelling, I will show you around.”
The pedestrians with whom we shared the walk grew in number as we approached the center of the city. Several corridors from multiple directions connected to a central platform linked to a central station. A worker sat behind a glass partition. Just like most people here, he had near-transparent paper-white skin. However, unlike most, he had two extra arms coming out of his abdomen. They looked like tentacles.
Several tubes looped and turned from multiple directions and connected directly to corresponding gates at the main platform. They looked like roller coaster rails except that they used tubes instead of rails. They stood high up in the center of the city, contained inside a dome. The ocean above cast a greenish hue all around us. Every once in a while, a spherical vehicle would shoot out of one of the tubes and stop on the platform. The doors would hiss open, and people would go in and out of them. Some were shooting up vertically, while others were going horizontally. The gentle humming sound the vehicles made could only be attributed to the fact that the vehicles used a clean source of energy. It was as if they were floating on air and being pushed through by wind. The entire layout was incredibly intricate, reminiscent of the inside of a beehive.
We approached the edge of the platform and boarded one of the vehicles. As I stepped inside, I stood against the inner membrane of the capsule, emulating Yakhar and the other passengers. An organic material came out of the wall and gently clamped around my chest and my legs. I must have been nervous, since Yakhar tried to reassure me. “This is quite safe; it is merely for your protection.”
My stomach went into my throat as we descended incredibly fast. I was caught by surprise at first, but soon after, it felt like an amusement park ride. The other occupants of the vehicle, including children, seemed completely unfazed. They must have a strong resistance to gravitational pulls, I thought. Go figure! They have two suns, of course!
We disembarked the vehicle and headed alongside a recreational area where families were playing with their children. “This is our acclimation center,” Yakhar said. “This is where we teach the young ones to swim and to communicate underwater.”
“You can talk underwater?” I asked.
“Sort of,” he responded.
The place was another dome where I could see the ocean on the outside. There were Seyamon children everywhere. I observed a group of children lined up near a pool. They could barely walk. One of the children ran off from the adult supervising him. He stumbled by the edge of the pool. This could be dangerous, I thought. Horrified, I saw the child fall into the pool.
I ran as fast as I could and dove into the water. The child was sinking fast, and the water was cold. I kicked my feet hard and extended my arm as far as I could. Fortunately, I caught the top of his head, pulled, and swam up with him. I held the child over the water surface. All around me, bubbles were coming up to the surface.
Then a head popped up, then another. Soon I was surrounded by the remaining kids who had been standing on the edge of the pool. They were holding their own. They were swimming around me very quickly, fully at ease. Everyone in the aquarium was looking at me.
Yakhar walked up to me. “It is best to let them finish their training, uninterrupted,” he said.
“I thought he was drowning. He was going to the bottom of the pool.”
“Seyamon can breathe underwater for an extended period, even the young ones. Look.”
The scene was mesmerizing; young Seyamon were swimming in aquarium-like pools. They were natural-born swimmers and quickly moved with ease and finesse from the deepest part of the tanks to the top with remarkable agility.
“They are learning to swim? I have never seen children on Earth being this comfortable with water. Maybe it’s time that I learn more about your people,” I said, embarrassed and blushing.
It had been hours since Naffore dispatched scouts to the Caves of Akhmore, where I had left Dad.
Yakhar walked into the room.
“Have you found him yet? Do you have any news?”
“The scouts have returned with some unfortunate news, Sali,” Yakhar said.
I sat down, expecting the worst.
“Your father was not found in the Caves of Akhmore.”
“When I left him, he could barely walk. There is no way he left on his own.” I paused to contemplate what could have happened. “What about the animals? Were they around?”
“Unlikely. The fire hounds do not normally go into the caves; they are too unstable.”
I shook my head. “Sometimes you don’t know what you have until it’s gone,” I said. “I came here in hopes of finding my mother. But now I may have lost my father in the process.”
“Perhaps your father is OK. If he was indeed unable to walk, as you said, then we must assume that someone found him.”
“If someone did find him, why would they take him?” I asked.
“It stands to reason that if he was injured, he would have needed medical attention.”
“How do we find out for sure?”
“Tomorrow we will be witnessing the crowning of my father. He will be taking his place as the new ruler of Centaura. Representatives from all the five kingdoms will be present. I will ask if anyone has come across your father.”
“Great. I will ask a
round too,” I said.
“I am sorry, Sali,” Yakhar said, “but no outsider may witness the crowning ritual. It is not allowed.”
“Oh. I see …” My disappointment was conveyed by my body language, and Yakhar caught on to it.
“Rest assured,” he added, “I will make sure to inquire about your father with every representative.” He slowly nodded his head forward, a gesture I had observed since arriving on Admenia that signified the end of a conversation. He walked out.
10
The Crowning
The city of Admenia was vivacious and festive. Centaurans were celebrating the crowning of King Naffore. Colorful decorations hung along the walls of the corridors. The people were joyous and ceremonious. The high ceilings of the domes were covered in multicolored vines that glowed, alternating colors of the light spectrum.
It was not difficult to figure out where the crowning was being held; I merely had to follow the movement of the crowd. I am glad I didn’t stay in my room, I thought. But I’m not gonna let another parent disappear. After Yakhar had left for the ceremony, I had vacated my room. I was hoping that if I could attend the crowning, I could ask around.
The crowd gathered on the main floor of a large amphitheater. An elevated stage stood at the center of the amphitheater. There were no empty seats in the venue. A white throne in the shape of a shell sat at the center of the stage, with a small altar on the side. Five clusters of benches, equidistant from one another, faced the throne on the main level. On each cluster sat different types of humanoids that I was seeing for the first time. It seemed all sorts of people were in attendance. I weaved through the crowd to get a better look at them. That’s when I saw Yakhar. He was seated right next to his father, Naffore, along with several other Admenians. He was dressed ceremoniously like the rest of the delegations present.
Four large horns positioned around the room blared a continuous and monotonous melody from the top of the amphitheater. Quickly the chatter that emanated from the crowd died down. Naffore stood up, and everyone followed suit. The resulting wave of Admenians standing up rippled through the entire venue, from the main floor to the towering stands. All eyes turned toward the small path leading to the entrance of the auditorium.
A chariot pulled by two animals rolled in slowly. A dozen guards in armor followed close behind. As the chariot got closer, the spectators stepped out of the way, widening the path to the stage. Some observed in fear as the small battalion got closer. I understood why the spectators reacted the way they did soon after. Fire hounds! I thought, as a wave of nervousness ran down my spine.
The delegation came to a halt. One of the members of the delegation stepped forward. “Behold,” he announced, “Dagrof, king of Centaura, leader of the five kingdoms.”
The crowd on the main floor bowed their heads and held their hands over their chest. Surprised, I quickly emulated the crowd to avoid getting noticed. Two guards detached from the battalion and stood guard on the stage. The King stepped down from his chariot, dragging a train behind him. He stopped inches from the steps of the stage. Two of his servants ran up and detached the train from his shoulder pads. They quickly folded the train back and returned it to the chariot. A third individual ran up to him and presented him with a wooden staff. The King took it and proceeded to the throne. He waved his hand, putting his subjects at ease. Naffore welcomed the King and invited a man to take the floor. The man, a Seyamon elder, was dressed in a festive robe and a headpiece that resembled a seahorse.
“Centaurans,” he began, “welcome to the crowning! Today, we crown a new leader, a new king. For three cycles, our king, Dagrof, and his people, the Vacamon, have led our Centaurans; like his father and his father before him. As ordered by the Council of Elders, we honor the agreement between the five kingdoms so that each of our peoples gets a chance to rule Centaura.” The Seyamon elder turned to his left, where a Seyamon held a small box. The elder opened the box and pulled out a golden conch shell. He extended the conch shell far in front of him and scanned the delegations. “We are here today to crown Naffore of the Seyamon as our next king. Is there anyone who opposes the wisdom of the Council?”
No one in the delegations of diverse races said a word.
“Very well,” the elder said. “Let’s begin.” He held one end of the shell to his lips and blew in it. A white powder escaped from the shell and rose up above the crowd, slowly dissipating as it went higher. “As this powder dissipates, so shall any and all quarrels and grievances between any and all kingdoms present here today.”
The elder arranged for King Dagrof, the outgoing king, to stand face-to-face with Naffore, the incoming king. The elder positioned the King’s staff between the two Centaurans, with each holding on to it. He looked at the King first. “Do you agree to relinquish your rights and responsibilities as king of Centaura?” The King nodded. The elder turned to Naffore. “Do you agree to take on the rights and responsibilities as king of Centaura and to protect all equally with resolve and determination?” Naffore nodded.
The elder pulled a ring from the box and slid it on the finger of Naffore. He then pulled a different ring from the finger of the outgoing king, Dagrof. Naffore held the staff. A small ring of yellow energy hovered around the staff. Naffore closed his eyes. The staff glowed brightly and the energy moved from Dagrof to Naffore. The latter let go of the depleted staff. “The full energy of the Staff of Wisdom is now within you,” said the elder. He turned to the delegations and announced, “Behold, the new king of Centaura!”
The crowd erupted in cheers. “Five kingdoms, one destiny!” The crowd repeated the motto.
There was a lot of movement in the crowd. Excitement and exaltation emanated from the group. All this excitement caused the crowd to be agitated and to sway back and forth, left and right in a mesmerizing trance like a display of emotions and celebration. The crowd was intently focused on the event.
For the most part, my presence within the Centaurans went unnoticed. I stood next to a woman with a young Seyamon child who gently tugged my robe. I looked down at the child and smiled back. It was one of the Seyamon children from the aquarium. I recognized her because she had a small black birthmark on her forehead, which was uncharacteristic of Seyamon, since they had perfect uniformity of pigmentation in their skin.
The day before, when Yakhar had given me the news about my father, I had been frustrated. I hated the feeling of helplessness I had experienced since I had arrived on Centaura. Part of me felt that it was my responsibility to find the only parent I had left. I had decided to take matters into my own hands. So, when Yakhar had left, I had walked down the corridor and come upon two Seyamon dressed in the same attire: long, flowing ceremonial robes with long sleeves and a hood. I had walked behind them as they exited their dwelling and snuck in. I had borrowed one of the robes to mask my appearance as I tried to get more information about Dad’s whereabouts, inconspicuously. I was determined to find out what had happened to Dad.
I gestured to the Seyamon child not to say anything to her parent. But nonverbals from Earth did not necessarily translate on Centaura. The child got the attention of her mother anyway. The denouement was strangely similar to what a child on Earth would do to get the attention of her parent. For a moment, the similarities between our two worlds distracted me.
“Tukikat,” the mother said to me.
“What?” I asked.
She repeated, louder this time. “Tukikat.”
My translator must be broken, I thought. “I don’t understand.”
A few other spectators repeated the same word. “It’s the tukikat.”
Oh crap! I thought. Not broken at all; they are saying a word that the implant is not translating. And they all seem to know what it means. That’s not a good thing.
Immediately two Seyamon guards stepped forward, parting the crowd. “Reveal yourself!” one of them said. Not hearing a response from me, the guards primed their weapons. “Reveal yourself,” they repeated.
I slowly lowered the hood, revealing my face. The auditorium fell silent. The guards seized me. Yakhar stood up and made his way toward me. Our gazes crossed. I could tell that he was as disappointed as he was surprised.
The guards brought me to the King. From my vantage point on stage, I felt the intimidating anger and foul words of the crowd. Some of them were yelling, “Blasphemy!” A salvo of resentment and insults rose from the crowd. And as more and more people yelled those words, others echoed them.
The King raised his hand and quieted the crowd. “Young traveler,” he said, “it is forbidden for a tukikat to attend the crowning. Our sacred ritual is only meant for people of Centauran descent. You must be from Centaura to bear witness to the crowning. As king, I must uphold our laws and customs.”
“Father,” Yakhar intervened, “she is a traveler; she does not understand our laws.”
The King interrupted with an authoritarian voice. “It was your responsibility to teach her to respect our ways, was it not?”
Yakhar nodded.
“And yet here she is,” the King continued. “I am put in a position to pass judgment,” he continued. “Do you agree that you have violated our laws?”
“Yes, but I didn’t know that it was forbidden.”
“Ignorance is not an excuse to break the law,” he interrupted.
“Your admission of guilt to this crime in flagrante delicto leaves me no choice.”
“Wait, what? A crime?”
“Silence!” he said. “Know that I will take into account the fact that you saved my son’s life.” He paused for a moment. “You are hereby banished from Admenia!”
“Father,” said Yakhar, “I implore you to reconsider. She may not survive alone on the surface.”
“Perhaps she should have thought of that before breaking our laws. You have until morning to leave Admenia. We will provide you with sustenance for your journey.”