“Indeed this is quite strange. Are you positive?”
“I haven’t had the chance to come up with a clever way to discuss it with Gramps, but I am fairly certain. Whatever I did to heal you and apparently your preexisting conditions no doubt came from this new manifestation.”
“New manifestation?
“It basically reads as Unfettered Healing. I thought it was just something atop my other healing abilities, but it seems to be completely separate. I don’t have a clue what the implications of this different healing is, but considering it is attuned to Life, that alone must affect its potency, not to mention my newfound power levels. It isn’t as if I have had many opportunities to figure it out, I only just got back yesterday, but for now it keeps superseding my other healing abilities.”
“Your healing was already extraordinary as it was.”
“I guess, but now who knows what I am capable of. I can’t even tell if I used active or regenerative healing on you. Do you feel tired at all?”
“Not in the slightest. Actually, I feel quite rested.”
Anaar slumps to the ground, covering his face with his hands. “I don’t know what to do. What do you do when you yourself feel like you are a freak? I can’t control my powers. Honestly I’m just happy I was able to make water constructs and not accidentally burn the whole dojo down.”
“Do you not feel as if you are being overly harsh on yourself?”
“What if I hurt somebody?! Actually, I have hurt someone! Look at what I did to you, and I wasn’t even trying!”
“Are you used to mastering everything you encounter immediately?"
"Well no, but it doesn’t take that long usually.”
“You are saying it does take some time and practice however?”
“Well… Yes…”
“Then it would appear nothing is out of the ordinary. You just need the time to practice.”
Anaar huffs as he sits up. “Everything just seems so wrong. I know logically I should not feel as broken up about Yefferson as I do, especially since he had no problem trying to kill me, but I can’t help it. I have all these crazy things going on with my powers that I have no explanation for, and I still haven’t even come up with what I will tell everyone about why I was gone. I just wish I could go back to the days when everything was normal.”
“When exactly was that?”
“I don’t know, before I ever came to Sophangence!”
“Sophangence is a place for the abnormal. When you took this place on as your new home and life, you accepted that as truth.”
Anaar could not find any falsehood in Master Shin’s words. The life he lived before was normal. He knew coming to Sophangence would be different, but he was not prepared for just how much his life would change. Though there were many amazing things he would never trade for anything in the world, he had also been plunged headlong into more danger, peril and weirdness than he ever hoped for.
“You know what, you have a point. I accept that Sophangence is not normal, but I am going to do everything in my power to lead as normal of a life as I possibly can from this point forward. I’m going to enjoy my classes, hang out with my friends, and enjoy my boyfriend. I have had enough of all the strange stuff in my life, even for Sophangence’s standards. I am going to get my powers under control, and fly under the radar as much as possible.”
Master Shin did not respond, but he did acknowledge the boy’s resolve. He recognized that spark of determination in his eye and was curious to see how he developed. As Anaar walked out of the dojo, evaporating the water constructs as he left, he took a deep breath and decided he would not take any chances, and had Hobb call him a shuttle back to his room to get started on his new journey toward normalcy.
4
In the time since Anaar’s arrival to the village, Yatik had noticed a palpable tension building. Anaar had taken note of the throng outside her house before, but he had no frame of reference for their typical behavior. For all he knew, this could be quite common in their culture.
Yatik understood the true foreboding such things brought, as her status granted her power and authority that could easily overrule the elders of any village. The pure reverence that was shown to her at all times was indescribable. Her privacy was always considered paramount, as the information she was privy could very well be such that it would cause friction between the clans.
No one had come to seek her counsel since Anaar’s visit, and whereas they would normally go out of their way to greet and speak to her, she was currently being avoided if possible. She tried her best to look past what was going on, but it had begun to grate on her. She was never one who reveled in celebrity, but she was finding being a pariah to be something she disliked far more.
She sat reading, hoping her mind could be diverted from the thoughts of the village and how her children were faring, when she felt a group of people converging upon her house. It was not abnormal for groups to pass by, but this group was different. She could tell from their energy signatures that these were some of the most well respected and powerful individuals of her tribe. Standing from her chair in her atrium, she calmly moved to her front door to meet them.
Upon her exit, she could hear from their hushed tones that they wondered if she knew they were coming, or if she was perhaps just leaving of her own accord. Standing tall and straight, she greeted her guests with a subtle smile and eyes that seemingly pierced through all of them. When they had reached the foot of her stairs, she outstretched her arms in welcome.
“Had I known I would have so many visitors I would have prepared a meal! What brings such esteemed members of our clan to visit me all at once?”
An older man, tall with greying hair and skin that looked tough and leathery but bore very few wrinkles stepped forward to take charge. “High Shamaness, with all respect to your position, I believe you know why we are here.”
Laheo Runtoswa was a shrewd man and one of the wealthiest in the village. Being of the only Water Affinity family in their village, he commanded much power and respect just by nature of the family in which he was born. Due to his expansive wealth, his upbringing had been spared no expense, which afforded him much more knowledge than the average villager. Though not the highest ranking of the bunch, he was very close to the top.
“I may be a seer, but it does not do one well to know all. I would appreciate if you would enlighten me.”
With conflict evident on his face, Laheo found his words exploding forth like a geyser’s spontaneous eruption. “You have befouled the sanctity of High Shamaness!”
It was clear no one else expected such an unfiltered declaration, even if they were of similar thought. There was a light rumbling amongst the throng, it evident that their internal feelings were in conflict with the expectations of decorum. The air became heavy with uncertainty as Yatik’s raised eyebrow caused everyone to question their course.
“That is quite the accusation that you have made. I would request your explanation as to why you feel this is so.”
Finding himself trapped, Laheo remained silent and wavering. It was already a difficult situation, but now he had been called on by the High Shamaness herself to directly speak her crimes. Everyone in the crowd waited with bated breaths to hear what he would say next, if anything at all. Time seemed to crawl, still with no words being uttered, but if nothing, Yatik was a patient woman, a trait which came with the territory of a seer.
The turmoil roiling inside of Laheo was becoming too much to bear. He could not suffer to be seen as weak and a fool for challenging the High Shamaness, only to immediately cower from his own actions. Despite being much older than she, he could not simply ignore the years of respect he had come to have for her. He could feel the stares of the others behind him, leering with expectation. Finally, the geyser erupted again and the words sprang free.
“Your position is one of sacred purity and wisdom!” As the words escaped his lips, he suddenly felt ashamed, his eyes dropping and his head bowing slight
ly. “Given what has come to light…”
Yatik expected as much, but she was not one to be easily cowed. The greatest regrets of her life had seemed to be lightening their ponderous hold on her since reuniting with Anaar. She would pay almost any price to change the past, and the mistakes she had made. She would not be deterred from a path that would work toward that end.
“Are you speaking ill of my child Laheo?”
The barbed question had the effect of emboldening him, rather than frightening or embarrassing him, allowing him to raise his head and speak more confidently. “I will speak ill of no child, but I will not hold my tongue regarding that man you proclaimed to be your son. Furthermore, there was speak of you having more than one child! How are we to trust your words when you brazenly declare your lies?! How many times have you laid on your back in sin?!”
Though Laheo had found the strength to press on, hurtling his accusations with renewed vigor, the rest of the throng was in a quivering uproar. One woman had even fainted upon hearing the words. Laheo’s jaw was set, his position unwavering as he locked his eyes with Yatik’s. He expected his words to elicit more of a response from her, but instead she gazed at him unshaken as if she was peering through his very being.
Raising her voice to make sure she would be heard over the murmurs of the crowd, Yatik responded to Laheo with a practiced poise befitting someone of her position.
“I have two children. Twin boys, which I will not be made to feel shame for their existence. During my travels I spent a number of months in captivity. This was without a doubt one of the darkest chapters written in my tale. I was savagely raped by a madman time and time again who was convinced I would bear his children, despite me being barren. To my chagrin he was correct.”
All of the fuel that had given Laheo strength was sapped away in an instant. The crowd around him gasped, as others wept in response to the words that had just crossed their ears. Laheo felt lower than filthiest of scum he could imagine. Never could he have expected such an arduous life was hidden behind the ever benevolent and wise High Shamaness, and now he had attempted to shame her and had it laid bare. He wanted to end his life in that very moment, and even with that attempt to atone he was doubtful the spirits would be appeased. From behind him he heard another voice emerge from the crowd.
“If such an awful thing happened to you, why would you be proud of it?”
Yatik looked to the new voice, her expression softening as one does when explaining something simple to a child. “I never offered up praise for my circumstance, however the miracle that resulted is the greatest achievement of my life. As a man you could never understand how crushing it is to a woman incapable of bearing children. It was not made any easier when it was explained that the powers I bore were what I paid such an immeasurable price for.”
“If it was such a blessing begotten of a curse, why did you not return to the village with the children? You never once spoke of having been with child!”
Tears began to stream down the cheeks of Yatik’s soft, yet angular face. “A mother would do anything to protect her children. At the time, the greatest threat to them was none other than myself. I gave up my children in an effort to protect them. I have yet to know if I made the right decision, but the past is something that cannot be changed. I can only look toward the future and what it holds.”
A shout rang out from the back of the crowd, partially choked with emotion. “Who is this monster?! We shall have his head for defiling such a pure and wonderful soul!”
Others joined in as the crowd’s volume went from a murmur to a clamor. As the fire was stoked, Yatik raised her hands for the attention of those gathered before her. Once she felt it had finally quieted down enough, she spoke, choosing transparency rather than playing the role of a vaunted victim.
“My family, I thank you for your zeal, but I can only hope that the man in question died long ago. Even if he yet lived, none of you would be nearly enough to cast judgement upon him. You should also not seek such a course, for it is a path of ruin.”
“He can never be forgiven for stealing the innocence of our High Shamaness!”
Swiping her hand sharply to the side, the crowd immediately quieted at the action. “A thief cannot steal that which is not there! As foul as his many crimes may be, I refuse to convict anyone of a crime they did not commit. My ‘innocence’ was long gone before he had ever captured me. Your notion that I must be something other than human is a folly of your own choosing.”
Laheo had recovered enough to understand the meaning behind her words and was the first to speak out. “Then you admit to willingly opening your legs to perversion?!”
“My dear Laheo if it is perversion you speak of, do you not have more instances of such than I have days of life on this planet?”
His mouth fell open, stunned at the rapid rebuttal posed to him. “I am not the High Shamaness! It is not my duty! Also, I am a man, and we have needs!”
“Faithfully have I served our people for decades! I refuse to be told that as a woman my desires are something to be suppressed, and that it is my duty to uphold frivolous ideals! If my many years of dedication is not enough to prove my worth, then nothing will ever be good enough.”
“But-”
“But if I was good enough before you obtained this knowledge, then I should be just as good with you aware. If you feel that you can perform the duties of High Shamaness better than I, then please, I welcome you to take up the mantle. Otherwise, I will continue dutifully as I always have.”
Laheo fumed and looked unconvinced, whilst others simply gazed around, afraid to meet one another’s eyes. It was then that Laheo changed to a topic that the group had initially discussed before but had yet to be presented.
“What of your children then? If they were to come to be of the village, being directly of your blood-”
Waving a hand dismissively, Yatik responds with exasperation at the implications of the comment. “I met my child for the first time in nineteen years. His brother still yet eludes me. They are powerful men with their own lives. I sincerely doubt you need worry about them taking up residence in the village and presenting a challenge to your status.”
Though it was exactly the conclusion he had been reaching, Laheo scoffed as if what she had just said could not have been further than what he was concerned with. If he was honest, this brought him untold joy. Though her family had seen a great elevation in their status when she had become High Shamaness, it was still nothing compared to his own. Yatik however held a status that far exceeded his family’s. If her direct descendants were to become part of their society, they would create an entirely new line that would sit at the pinnacle of their society.
“I would be lucky if I ever saw either of my children again. I will not go seek them out. I lost that right long ago.”
Seemingly satisfied with the knowledge that Yatik had not been secretly plotting against them all along, Laheo and the others bid goodbye to her, allowing her solace that with everything out in the open the worst was over. Left alone with her thoughts, she returned back to her atrium where she wondered about the state of her children.
From the troubling news she had received during Anaar's visit about the path Yefferson had taken, to the overwhelming strength that just one of them possessed, Yatik found herself more troubled than ever by what the future might hold for her family. Still unsure if Meysam perished that fateful day, her mind traveled back to what would happen if he were able to weaponize even one of their children. She knew all too well that the greatest advantage she had was that if he did survive, he would not know that he had two children instead of one.
Making her way to the kitchen to fix herself a cup of tea, she could not shake the nagging sense of foreboding surrounding the subject. Her abilities had been nullified when related to her children or their father, so she could only presume what she was feeling was some motherly intuition. It was not lost upon her that Anaar had left without exchanging contact information,
and she had to fight the intense urge to press the issue.
She thought that long ago she had made peace with never seeing her children again. As her tea steeped, she gazed absently out the window, wondering if she had made the right decision. In the end, she reaffirmed the resolution made long ago that would allow her boys full control over the relationship, or lack thereof they would have. Heaving a heavy sigh, she took the honey from the cabinet and tried her best to clear her mind lest she dwell on it forever.
5
The feeling Anaar had as he awoke in the morning transcended bliss. Though he was not happy about it, Phavian begrudgingly agreed to sleep in his own room until Anaar could get his abilities under control. No matter what he did, his attempts to dampen his senses came undone as he slept, which was unusual for him. As a result, he could not bear to suffer Phavian’s horrendous snoring, shuffling, or various body odors.
What he was beginning to realize was that his issue was not simply a lack of control, but in reality, his senses had become so powerful, the normal regression they did whilst asleep was now as if he had not dampened them at all. He knew sleeping separately was only a temporary fix, but as it stood, it was his only option to save his relationship. He clambered out of bed to use the bathroom and begin his day.
In his struggles, he had foregone going to the gym as was his usual, but he decided he could not bear to go without it any longer. Reaching for his toothbrush, he began to go through the perfunctory motions as his excitement rose for his workout. He spat into the sink and reached out to turn on the water, but as he grabbed the handle, with seemingly no resistance at all it came off in his hand.
For a long while he simply stood there staring from the handle he was holding, to the now broken sink. Finally, Hobb speaks up as Anaar seemed to have lost himself.
“I will be sure to put in a maintenance request to have that fixed by the time you return.”
Thanks… This makes no sense…
Revelations (Song of Sophangence Book 4) Page 5