Revelation: The Todor Trilogy, Book One

by Jenna Newell Hiott

  Numa crossed the threshold and gasped. At least a thousand oil lamps were lit and rested on the floor and shelves that lined the whitewashed walls making the room seem as though it glowed with divine light. The dirt floor was completely covered with fairytooth and its sweet smell filled the air. All the benches in the Meeting House had been removed so that it was just an open room with the exception of a single table that had been pushed against the north wall and a huge piece of polished silver that rested against it. On top of the table were three wooden bowls and three large posies made of every flower Numa had ever seen. They were beautiful.

  “Joyous day, children.” Only then did Numa notice the four women standing against the east wall. She recognized them all immediately. Two were her own mothers, Gracewyn and Felyse, the third was Gemynd’s mother, Molly, and the fourth was Overseer Marta. What Numa was surprised to see, however, was that all four of them were completely naked.

  “Please come in,” Marta said to Soman and Gemynd who still lingered in the doorway. “We are here as your mothers. Because your mother cannot be with us, Soman, would you permit me to act on her behalf today?”

  Numa watched Soman nod slowly. Sometimes it seemed unfair to Numa that she got to have two mothers when Soman had none. But Soman would always remind her how much he loved sharing a sleeping dwelling with the Keepers and that he wouldn’t want it any other way.

  Today, however, Numa doubted Soman could still feel that way. She studied the four women. Her mother, Gracewyn, was a dark beauty with skin the color of fertile soil. She kept her curly hair cut tight against her scalp, which served to accentuate her best feature: her perfectly golden eyes. Numa’s other mother, Felyse, was tall and had skin like Numa’s: a pearly white. Felyse’s hair was a silvery color and fell down well below her waist. Her eyes were the color of the sky. Both of Numa’s mothers were strikingly beautiful. Molly, Gemynd’s mother, was also beautiful, with her copper-colored hair and big, brown eyes. Overseer Marta looked like a twisted monster standing next to these other three women with her scarred skin and only a few straggly strands of hair sticking out of her nearly-bald head.

  Numa was trying to figure out a way to offer one of her mothers to Soman without hurting Marta’s feelings when she noticed a tear fall down Soman’s cheek. “I would really like that,” he said with a heartfelt smile and ran to give Marta a hug.

  Numa recoiled at the thought of what her scarred skin must feel like.

  Gracewyn was suddenly standing right next to Numa and bent down to whisper in her ear. “You must find the beauty in all things,” she said. “It is not just something to be seen with the eyes.”

  Numa bowed her head in shame. How did her mothers always know what she was thinking?

  “Let us begin your preparations,” Molly said.

  The mothers approached the children and removed their tunics and underclothes. They even removed the children’s sandals so that they were now as naked as the women.

  “Today is the day that you become official members of Aerie,” Felyse explained. “And today is the day that nothing will be hidden from you. All the members of Aerie come before you--and you before them--completely naked, as a show of the openness and trust that you are now a part of. Do you understand this, children?”

  Numa and her friends nodded.

  “Good,” said Marta, “Then come stand over here.”

  The mothers led them toward the table and had them stop directly in front of the piece of polished silver. Numa was once again confronted with her reflection. But, unlike the exercise during discipleship, this time she could see their entire bodies. She had never before realized how different she was from Gemynd and Soman. For the first time in her life, Numa felt distinctly female.

  But it was also the first time she noticed the stark differences between Soman and Gemynd. Soman was much, much taller than Gemynd and appeared to have the body of a grown man with his broad shoulders and defined muscles. His wavy, blonde hair hung down to his shoulders and it even looked like he had the beginnings of more blonde hair growing on his chest. His hands and fingers were enormous, especially in comparison with hers and Gemynd’s. As she studied him, she had the thought that this was a body that was made for work.

  Then Numa turned her attention to Gemynd. Although he was smaller than Soman, he was still considerably taller and broader than Numa. His naked body looked the way she imagined a seven-year-old boy’s body should look: soft and still growing. He kept his black hair cut short above his ears and his face was put together in such a way that Numa often thought he was even more beautiful than her mothers. His eyes were black too, and so clear and deep sometimes she believed it was possible to fall right into them. Suddenly, Numa realized those eyes were looking right at her. She felt her face heat and looked at her own reflection only to find that her normally pale cheeks had become the same color as her hair.

  Then she remembered the words Gracewyn had whispered to her only moments before. Beauty was not just something to be seen with the eyes. Numa closed her eyes and decided to see if she could feel the beauty of Soman and Gemynd. She first focused on Gemynd and then on Soman and simply tried to feel. Was it possible to feel beauty? Numa put all of her attention into it and became completely unaware of anything else around her.

  “What’s happening?” Molly suddenly shrieked and Numa’s eyes popped open. The sight that met her eyes caused her to jump back and she saw that Gemynd and Soman had done the same. The big piece of polished silver that Numa had just been gazing into was now folded completely in half before her.

  There was a whir of activity as all four women spoke at once but then it stopped as Felyse simply said, “Forgive me,” and took the folded piece of metal outside.

  “How did that happen?” Gemynd asked.

  “We’re not sure, dear,” Molly replied and patted him on the shoulder. “Unfortunately, though, you will not be able to see your reflections for the rest of the preparations.”

  Soman shrugged. “We can just watch each other.”

  “But I don’t understand how that happened,” Gemynd said again.

  Numa felt frozen in place. She couldn’t explain how a big piece of metal could suddenly fold itself in half, but she had the unshakeable feeling it had something to do with her.

  “It is time to make the flower crowns, children,” Gracewyn said as she walked to the table.

  “Can’t anyone explain to me what happened with the silver?” Gemynd persisted.

  Numa felt her bottom lip begin to tremble. She blinked and a tear rolled down her cheek. “I think it was me,” she sobbed.

  “No!” all four mothers exclaimed at once and rushed to her.

  “What do you mean, ‘it was you’?” Gemynd asked.

  Numa swallowed hard. “I was trying to feel beauty and I felt something strange happening. I don’t know what it was, but when I opened my eyes, the silver was folded.”

  “What are you talking about? You’re not making any sense,” Gemynd said, obviously becoming agitated.

  “How do you feel beauty?” Soman asked.

  Numa looked to Gracewyn for support since she was the one who told her that beauty wasn’t just seen with the eyes. But Gracewyn had her eyes locked with Felyse and both of them were wringing their hands nervously. Numa started to feel very afraid.

  But then, Marta started to laugh. She laughed and laughed and laughed. She laughed so hard that she had to prop herself up against the table. It was such a peculiar sight that Numa began to chuckle too, in spite of herself. She’d never before seen this side of Overseer Marta.

  “Please, forgive my irreverence,” Marta said when she had finally caught her breath. “I do not mean to laugh at you, sweet Numa. It’s just that when I pieced together what really happened, the whole thing struck me as funny.”

  “Well, what did happen?” Gemynd asked, still fixated on the question at hand.

  “Look there,” Marta said, pointing to the floor where the piece of silver had been.
Numa looked, but all she saw were the oil lamps that had been placed there. She looked at the others and saw that even Gemynd looked confused.

  “It must have been because of the lamps,” Marta explained. “The heat from their flames softened the metal until it simply folded in on itself.”

  “The lamps,” Numa muttered, taking it all in. That certainly did make sense and now she felt rather foolish for having drawn such unnecessary attention to herself. Numa looked around and saw relief come over the other faces in the room. All but Gemynd’s. He still looked puzzled.

  Wanting to put the whole thing behind them and get back to the day’s festivities, Numa squeezed Gemynd’s hand and gave him a smile. “I bet you’ll look very handsome in your crown,” she said, hoping to distract him. She looked at Soman, too, not wanting to leave him out. “You’ll both look like kings.”

  At last, the three children were ready for the parade. It was the moment they’d been waiting seven years to arrive. Although they were naked, like all the Aerites, the three sevens had their bodies painted with vibrant, colorful designs and on their heads they each wore a beautiful crown of flowers. Numa thought her crown was the loveliest because it had more heidelsnaps in it than the boys’ did.

  “You all look magnificent,” Molly breathed and Numa saw that she had tears in her eyes.

  “It is time, children,” Marta said and led them to the door of the Meeting House.

  As they stepped outside, Numa saw that all of the members of Aerie had gathered on the grass to meet them. Not a single person wore any clothing.

  “How grand you look!” Keeper Stout said as he stepped forward from the crowd. “Are you ready to begin?”

  Numa nodded along with Soman and Gemynd, but she could not seem to move her gaze from Keeper Stout’s unclothed belly. She’d never seen anything like it. Somehow, it appeared even bigger without a robe over it and it was covered with thick, dark hair. But Numa was even more surprised when he turned to address the crowd and she found herself suddenly staring at his naked backside. She wasn’t the only one, as she saw Soman shudder beside her. Numa then glanced at Gemynd, which was a mistake, because the look on his face nearly threw her into a fit of giggles.

  “Joyous day, all Aerites,” Keeper Stout said in a loud voice. “Today we celebrate Gemynd, Soman and Numa as they officially join us as members of our beloved village. Their membership begins with a parade of the village wherein they will be informed of everything that all Aerites must know. Then they will meet you all back here for the feast and celebration. All Joy for all of Aerie!”

  “All Joy for all of Aerie!” the crowd responded.

  Keeper Stout once again turned toward the children. “As your teacher, it is my honor to lead you on today’s parade. Let’s begin.”

  As they followed Keeper Stout across the grass, a group of musicians fell in behind them playing a Joyful tune that made Numa want to dance. Since she knew she couldn’t stop the parade to dance, she decided to skip instead. With Gemynd and Soman next to her, she skipped her way through the village: past the Eating House and kitchen to the Healer’s garden and shop; and on past the livery, the butcher, the foodstock fields and barn. Numa skipped all the way past the vineyard and right up to the base of the Baldaquin tree.

  “So far I haven’t seen anything new,” Gemynd complained. “This is the same route I take to discipleship every day.”

  “It is important that you see the entire village,” Keeper Stout replied patiently. “Just in case there is something you never noticed before.”

  Numa looked all around her, wondering if perhaps she’d overlooked something. It all looked exactly the same as she’d seen it a thousand times before.

  “Let’s continue,” Keeper Stout said and led them back around the lake by the oil press, through the farming fields and across the river by the bathhouses. Still, Numa had not seen anything she hadn’t seen before.

  Keeper Stout continued to lead them back to the rock wall and once they reached it, they would have seen all of Aerie. Numa was beginning to feel disappointed. Perhaps Soman was right and there weren’t any real secrets. Maybe there was nothing about Aerie she didn’t already know.

  “Look,” Keeper Stout said, pointing towards the rock wall.

  Numa looked and looked. She crouched down and stood up on tiptoe. She tried squinting her eyes and opening them wide, but all she saw was the rock wall and the squatbottle bushes that grew against it.

  “What do you see, Keeper Stout?” Gemynd asked, obviously not seeing anything either.

  “I think I see something,” Soman said and walked to the squatbottle bush nearest the waterfall. “There’s something behind there.”

  Numa raced up to where Soman was standing and peered through the bush. It did seem to be darker behind it than the other bushes, but Numa never would have noticed that on her own.

  “Good sight, Soman,” Keeper Stout said. “Children, this is the first of the secrets you will learn today.”

  “What is it?” Gemynd asked and ran to the bush.

  “It is the entrance to the wealth of Aerie,” Keeper Stout said and moved the bush’s branches aside, revealing a large hole in the rock wall. “Follow me.”

  Numa instinctively reached for Soman’s hand. It looked dark in that hole and she had no idea what was inside of it. Soman squeezed her hand reassuringly and gave her a gentle tug. Numa looked at Gemynd and could see in his eyes that he was both afraid and curious at the same time. She watched until his curiosity won out and he scampered into the hole after Keeper Stout.

  “I’m sure it’s safe, Numa,” Soman said. “Keeper Stout would never lead us into danger.”

  But Numa wasn’t sure. She’d looked at this rock wall a thousand times in her life and never noticed a hole in it. How could she be sure that she knew Keeper Stout as well as she thought she did?

  The musicians stopped playing as everyone waited for Numa to enter the hole.

  “I’ll be right with you and Gemynd is in there,” Soman urged.

  Numa nodded slowly, coming to terms with the fact that she was going to have to go in there. She took a step forward and then another. Just as she was about to step into the darkness someone reached out and grabbed her free hand. It was Gemynd.

  “I checked it out for you, Numa. It’s not scary at all. There’s light just up ahead. Come on,” he said.

  Bolstered by Gemynd’s reassurance, Numa followed him into the hole. For a moment, all was black. There was no light at all and Numa felt completely blind. Gemynd pulled her forward and up ahead, around a slight bend, Numa began to see a soft glow. She focused all her attention on that glow and moved toward it. Before she knew it, she could see all around her.

  “Holy Deis,” Soman gasped.

  The four of them stood in an enormous tunnel. It was about as wide as the Baldaquin tree and the ceiling soared up to at least sixty hands. There were oil lamps hanging from hooks every eight hands, illuminating the whole area and showing that the tunnel stretched on further than Numa could see. In the center of the floor of the tunnel were two ruts that ran the entire length of it.

  But the most amazing part of the tunnel was the jewels. The walls and ceiling glittered and sparkled with them. The dancing light from the oil lamps caused a brilliant show of colors to jump and swirl inside the tunnel. Every color imaginable, and even some Numa had never seen, shimmered before her. Numa was awestruck.

  “This is the wealth of Aerie,” Keeper Stout said with a grand, sweeping gesture of his arm. “It belongs to all of us.”

  “These are all ours?” Gemynd asked.

  “These jewels--and whatever is bought with them--belong to the members of Aerie, which now includes you.”

  Gemynd let go of Numa’s hand, walked to the wall and began picking at one of the jewels. “How do we get them out?” he asked.

  “That is the job of the Jewelers,” Keeper Stout explained. “They use their strength along with special tools to pry the jewels from the rock wh
en they’re needed.”

  “I’ve never heard of the Jewelers,” Numa said. “Do they stay down here in the tunnel?”

  Keeper Stout chuckled. “No, they live among all the inhabitants of Aerie. Jeweling is not their full-time task. Many of them work with the foodstock or operate the oil press, but when jewels are needed, they come down here to work. They keep their job as Jewelers a secret so that no one but the members of Aerie know about its grand wealth. If any outsider were to discover this, it would mean the end of our Joyous way of life.”

  “So, we must keep this secret too?” Gemynd asked, still trying to pull a jewel free from the rock.

  “Yes, children,” Keeper Stout answered. “This is very important. You must never share this secret. You must never talk about it with the younger children and you most definitely cannot speak of it to any outsider. Do you understand?”

  Numa nodded along with Soman and Gemynd, but she wasn’t quite sure she did understand. “Why would our Joy end if an outsider discovered the jewels?” she asked.

  “Because outsiders would surely want to steal them. And they would destroy Aerie to get to them.”

  Numa shuddered at the thought of Aerie being destroyed. But she was still confused. “Are the jewels our source of Joy? Is that why the outsiders would want them? I thought the Deis were our source of Joy.”

  Keeper Stout placed a hand gently on Numa’s shoulder. “The Deis are our source of Joy. The Deis gave us the jewels as our source of wealth. We need wealth in order to get some things that we cannot make or grow here in Aerie, such as metal for our tools. There are many places outside of Aerie that were not given a source of wealth so the people of these places would like to take ours.”

  Numa looked to Gemynd, expecting him to have just as many questions as she, but he stood quietly, fixated on that jewel.

  “Why didn’t the Deis give everyone a source of wealth?” Numa asked when she saw that no one else was going to ask.

  “That’s a lesson for another day in discipleship,” Keeper Stout said with a grin. “Now, let’s move on.”