Fiction:Bel's Awakening/2



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 Chapter II 

2 hours later.

With the Qad floating by my side, I reached what was considered by many to be my homestead, my territory. The lush and green terrain that once filled my surroundings gave way to burnt vegetation and ash, and some small craters sprouted magma river lines that flowed with the land's erosion. Sectors like these were intolerable for some of my monitors at the time, or as they put it, they had trouble acclimating to the rising temperature caused by the erosion and lava veins that reached the surface The lava did not go far, however, as it immediately fell unto cliff and into a small inland sea. That was the irony and chaos Civa Ghenes represented. One moment you saw a humid and dense jungle filled with rainstorms, another you saw nothing but torched earth and lava strings, and then you saw it all end in a big body of water. It was here, right by the cliff, where I called home.

My little dwelling was nothing more than a two-story house built with the same rock lying everywhere. I was a hunter, so I never needed the soil to harvest anything, and all my items and equipment necessary to be in touch with the broader, planetary civilization was powered by a thermal receptacle buried into the lava streams underground, courtesy of my race's mastery of Neural Physics. On the roof, a cylindrical telescope protruded from the round architecture, just on top of a large window where I enjoyed to gaze at the stars.

"Master! Master!" a voice in my head shouted.

My eyes diverted from my house and towards the red sky. I saw two shapes floating, one was coming in my direction and the other, immensely larger, lied blurred by the planet's atmosphere. The former warped right above me and encircled me and my prey playfully. It analyzed the Qad carefully and then turned to me again. It was a blobby figure with two limbs for legs that hanged effortlessly from it. Its psionic-gleaming eye blinked on and off every time it expressed itself telepathically, and its spherical figure was decorated with erratic lines that glowed with psionic energy and that seemed to power it.

"Dee" I said, reaching out with my hand in the air. Dee noticed this immediately and rushed its eye towards my hand. I let out gentle thoughts of love, and Dee reacted pleased and almost overcome by my pleasure. "I'm back"

"Welcome home Master Bel!" he exclaimed, flipping in the air. He turned towards the creature again. "I see you caught an elder, my lady, should I relinquish you from the effort?"

A psionic beam shot from Dee's eye towards the Qad and I felt how he subconsciously requested I let him carry my prey. I conceded and I walked decidedly towards my house, with my companion and prey right behind me.

"Did you have any trouble protecting the house?" I asked.

"Not at all. There was the usual lava crawler and jungle predator that ventured nearby, but they did not come close to your dwelling my lady, I was bidding my time looking at Ark Ghenes, it usually appears on the horizon at this time of the day, as you already know."

I gazed at the titanic shaper from earlier, still looming in the distance like an artificial moon. Ark Ghenes, as it was called, was the planet's satellite station and our main Communications array, space sport and Research station in the system. It was a beacon of security and the constant reminder that I was being watched alongside my entire generation.

I then glanced at my joyful companion, sensing his innocent playstyle as he rolled the dead body of the Qad a couple of times. An extension of myself, Dee would represent a reflection of what I could not project. He was playful, wondrous and would always look at the sky in a sense of awe. He would come to me with the same words every sunrise: "Master! Master! What should we do today?" He begged, almost like a groan, dreading that I would exclude him from my daily tasks. I did not wish to accept it, but I secretly enjoyed his enthusiasm.

He stopped, sensing something, looking towards the sky.

"Ah! There is a presence wanting to enter our psionic shield, my lady." He said enthusiastic, "Monitor Sarok wishes to speak to you"

I kept my pace towards my house, I was almost there. The circular entrance rolled open and I rushed inside, Dee was actually having problems following me, dealing with his own concentration with the dead Qad.

"Make sure you don't waste any of that Qad, you hear me Dee?" I said, noticing this.

"I won't my lady! You will see all the fresh meat perfectly drawn out of its carcass as you taught me!"

"Very well, I will speak with the Monitor alone. Leave me to your duties."

Deshir flew excitedly towards the back of the house as the door closed behind me.

"I hope you don't get upset with me for intruding like this." A voice said deeper in the house.

Most of my home was empty and minimalistic, with the upper floor being the one which actually contained meaningful belongings, apart from the gigantic scope that allowed me to enhance my senses and study the stars. Conclusively, it was easy to spot the origin of the voice before me. A Civatron figure stood in front of the sole possession I cared to place in the empty walls of my house, a rudimentary depiction of the ancient Krass. Observing it scrupulously, lied a person I knew too well since my birth:.

As I stepped into my house further, psionic crystals were lit reacting to my presence. Civatron households were known to be integrated with the person's essence, therefore acting as an extra limb or part of your brain.

"Not at all," I said, "You know I welcome you here above everyone else, albeit I expected a mere projection of you, teacher."

"I bet Deshir perceived me wrongly, but it is as expected. Us Civatrons can hide our presence to the Vaalaa as much as we can crush them with it." He said proudly, still gazing at the Krass depiction. "How is your residual analysis going with this one?" He asked, meaning the picture.

I approached him and observed alongside him.

"It has been fruitful, teacher, it took me some time but I was able to extract some important prints in the picture. It seems that the species that painted this on the cavernous pits of Garnam were psionic, like ourselves, or at least showed potential to awaken someday. Their prints indicate that they committed to these paintings almost religiously."

"Impressive. Most Impressive." He said.

"What are you doing here, Monitor?" I inquired, trying not to be disrespectful, "It's not that I don't enjoy our archeological conversations, for I am as passionate as you are, but I doubt you came all this way to simply talk about my assignments from the Cradle."

"Indeed, I come to you because I wanted to ask you about more important matters." He said, clearing his throat in the process. I could sense his nervousness, so I started to suspect where he was going. "As you know, the War Games are within two star rotations and..."

I turned, clearly apathetic. "You know what I think about this, Monitor," I interrupted, "I do not seek that path, I wish to become a curator, like you, and dedicate myself to uncover more Krass artifacts."

"Listen, little one, I hear your wishes and I could not be happier about your life choices, but it is my duty as a teacher to see how your potential is well put to use in our society."

"You told me that a Civatron can choose his or her own path in the Universe." I retorted.

"Indeed, one can, but when a Civatron such as you, who displays enormous psionic potential, ignores greater roles within society, the Universe itself is put to waste. Remember the Book of Discipline child..."

"I know the Book well, teacher," I interrupted, "I have memorized and recited the Valader's teachings for as long as I can remember. I understand its weight and effects on the Universe, and I believe it to be the truest of all interpretations of the reality we live in."

"Then..."

"However, I can't stop thinking, where does our sense of Unity place individuality? At what point should we renounce to our wishes for the greater good? Why can't I let others seek glory while I dedicate myself to my passion."

"Child..."

I breathed, waiting for my words to make the Monitor surrender. He touched my arm, and I sensed his selfless wish to make me happy.

"I know it's selfish of us, your brethren, to ask that you step up and think about greater things, such as challenging the duelists participating in the War Games and attaining your rank as a Civatron Warrior, but it is for the greater good of Civatron society, and for the galaxy and the universe by extension, that we uphold our duty for our people and all peoples. You say you know the teachings of the Valader, of Kroc, you say you accept them, then uphold their values."

His words pierced me, and I was rendered speechless. However, I stared at the picture once more and saw the Krass in it. I simply wanted to know more about them, their mysteries burned a fire deep inside my spirit, and that caused me to be stubborn. I could not avoid it, I really wanted my path to be one like my mentor.

"Come with me to the Cradle, little one, let me complete your training. With your skills, you can reach greater heights than I ever could."

"But... even if I go, I will have to face opponents far greater than me, right? How am I supposed to fight against people who revel in battle when it is not my passion."

"I'm sure you will find your way, you hold great potential! The same passion you have for history and archeology can also be a great motive to fight. Try it, my child. Battle will always be the Civatron's way."

I closed my eyes, ashamed.

"I-I'm sorry, Monitor. I can't. Battle is not this Civatron's way."

I could sense Sarok's disappointment. However, there was something more beating alongside his heart. A cold realization, a fear of death, similar to the one I experienced with the Qad, only that this time it was regretful. I dared not turn away in shame, only hearing how he warped away.

"A Civatron can try and flee from what afflicts others and focus on their art, but the reason we fight is that those same afflictions eventually reach us and overcome us, making us fight for them and bring order and balance to the universe. Meditate on this. My little Bel, I truly hope you change your mind about all of this, and embrace your destiny." He said, like a thought slowly fading away as Sarok's presence dissipated.

"I'm truly sorry, teacher."

After a few minutes, Deshir's voice appeared again.

"Master! I am done with the preparations for your dinner, should I enter and serve your ingredients?"

I cleared my eyes and cleansed my mind of this bittersweet thought. I glanced at the Krass on my wall. I had finally attained what I wanted, I would be left alone and I would dedicate myself to uncover the secrets of the Krass. However, Sarok's regretful mind stuck with me, albeit momentarily, as I saw my cheerful companion coming in with the different parts of the Qad already sliced.

I decided to finish my day with a well seasoned and steamed Qad, and then to enter the Iluvii in order to rest.

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Bel's Awakening

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