30ish

Tsuda lined the painted figures up carefully on the stone bench. Her painting had improved considerably, and the little statues gleamed brightly in the aafternoon sun.
“Alright, Mede, you can come over now.” Tsuda beckoned her friend who had been standing in the doorway of her house. She came slowly through the garden, and knelt down in front of the bench.

“Tsuda, these are beautiful…” Mede ran a finger along the wing of a clay bird, straining upwards as if to fly away from her touch. Next to it stood a bit of driftwood, its natural twisting shape carved into the form of a young man, reaching out to touch a flame that hung always at the tip of his fingers. Another clay figure was that of a flower, delicately opening itse brightly colored petals. Several others lined the bench, and Mede’s eyes roved over them in pure delight. She had not seen sculptures since she was a child in the Selides islands, and she had not realized that she had missed such things until these stood before her, miniature but lovely.
“I want to show these to a few people I know…I think I can trust them. It’s mostly just the monks who will not stand for them; in fact, I heard once that the Astaldi used to be great artists and sculptors, but that all ended when we first warred with the Temaltans a few thousand years ago.:” Tsuda sighed. “We were never very good at waging wars, and the Temaltans love nothing better, so…I suppose it was inevitable.”

Mede nodded slowly. “Perhaps you’d best start with things like that flower, and maybe the bird. You know, natural things that have no religious significance. Maybe they would be less wary of those. I know! You can go into the market, and leave one of these at the well, and see what the response is. There would be little risk in that, I think, and it would let you see how people react. If they immediately destroy it, well, then at least you know. But if it’s admired, or taken home, then you’ll know that people like it.”

“It’s an idea, at least,” Tsuda said, standing up and brushing off her skirt. “Are you ready? You said you wanted to try going back together today.”

“Yes, I think it’s time we tried it. My father says that it’s often more effective than when one person goes. The process is the same, we just try to stay aware of each other while remembering.”

“that’s not exactly what I’d call easy, but then, you’ve been doing this a lot longer than I have.” Tsuda carefully cleared the figurines off the bench, and sat down; Mede joined her, and the two girls linked hands. The two young women sat on the ground facing each other, and gently clasped hands. As her eyes closed Tsuda could feel herself moving backwards into memory faster than she had ever done. She swiftly lost awareness of everything external, and she found herself standing in a wind-blown plaza.

The sun burned brightly in a pale blue sky, and a row of black-robed men stood across the square. She saw a quick flash of light as they raised their knives and blood hissed onto the sand. Large wolf-like creatures rose from the stones where the blood fell, and stood beside the monks.

The ginger-haired woman stood before them, tall and unafraid; her proud words rang out across the sand. The monk spoke again, and accusations of witchcraft fell like stones. Across the plaza, Tsuda saw another monk enter, with a small white-haired child in his grasp. She felt herself cry out, and lunged forward; the sand grated under her feet as she ran towards the child. Suddenly she was jerked backwards, and almost fell, finding herself in the grip of two of the monks. Their faces were so close that she could see the pupils of their bright green eyes, and she struggled to break free. Their grip was firm, though, and she could not break loose.

More words passed between the men seated near the middle of the courtyard and the monks, but Tsuda did not hear them. Her eyes were fixed on the white-haired child; then, the accusing monk stepped forward, and the young woman was made to kneel. "No!" she tried to scream, but almost gagged as a thick leather glove was forced between her teeth, muffling the sound. The clear notes of a song drifted across the plaza, and the sword fell swiftly. As the world went black she saw wisps of ginger hair drifting across the stones with the sand.

Mede could feel the hot stones of the pavement beneath her feet.

The sun shone brightly, and her hair lay hot and heavy on the back of her neck. Her legs ached, but she knew that she must not fall, must show no weakness. As she stood silently, she saw a row of Temaltan monks, with rajiks newly sprung from the blood of their masters standing in attendance. She felt no fear of the monks; now that they knew who and what she was, there was nothing to be done.

She heard herself responding to their charges, knowing all the while the futility of it all. The monks would kill her for being a Selidian priestess, no matter what she was accused of. She heard the sentence pronounced, and knelt to receive the blow. As she felt the shadow of the monk fall across her back, she began to sing, a song she had learned in the temples. At the last moment, when she heard the whistle of the blade, she looked up, her eyes meeting the bright purple eyes of a young woman in the middle of the crowd. Then a sharp pain at the base of the neck, and darkness.

Blackness descended on both of the young woman, and they fell bakcwards into memory again. Colored lightning flickered across a rounded dome, and Tsuda felt power surging through her feet. She felt frozen,unable to move anything save her eyes. There was a wall of flames surrounded an altar; through the flames she saw the form of a girl, crying out in pain. Her blue eyes were wide and her blonde hair was beginning to burn. She reached a pale hand through the flames towards Tsuda, but Tsuda was still immobile.
A man with glowing eyes stepped forward into the light of the fire, and spoke with a voice that sounded like the roar of a waterfall. Across the fire, she saw a man with black hair and green eyes; he looked on with a calm glee, seeming to relish the sight.
The great dome cracked, and the floor split open; Tsuda felt as though the abyss ran through the center of the earth. A few of the priests fell into the gaping crevasse, and were lost to sight in moments. An instant later, the altar followed, dropping into the hole in the earth like a blazing demon. The lightning that had flickered across the dome fell in great bolts, consuming the priests, and Tsuda's foot slipped from th brone circle on the floor. The power ceased to surge through her, and she fell to the ground, unable to breathe. As her vision dimmed, she saw the green eyes blazing through the fog, and a shining sphere of silver light.


Mede opened her eyes to find Tsuda hunched over, shoulders racking with sobs. The Selidian quickly moved over to sit by her friend, and held her close. “Shh, shh, it’s alright.” She ached to tell the young woman that it didin’t matter, that the past was over and gone, but she knew that she could not. The past had happened, and it had forever left a mark on Tsuda’s soul. Tsuda alone could decide what to do with that mark.
“It was my fault, Mede. They would never have been able to do that ritual without a priestess, and I let it happen. I knew it was wrong, but I wanted more power, I wanted to help, I wanted to become a great servant of the gods. And it all fell apart. I….” She stopped suddenly, fell forward onto the grass, and was violently sick. Mede held her hair out of her face and held her up until it was over.
“Here, move over onto the grass on the other side of the path. I’m going to go get some cool water for you. You’ll feel better in a minute, just wait for me, I will be right back.” She sprinted away into the house, and returned a few moments later with a small pile of clean rags and a bowl. Stopping by the well, she quickly poured cold water into the bowl, and returned to Tsuda’s side. Tears continued to slide unabated down Tsuda’s dark cheeks, and Mede carefully wiped her face clean. She took another cloth and after wrining it out, placed it across Tsuda’s forehead.
“I hate him,” she whispered quietly, so softly that at first Mede did not hear.
“I hate him, and I don’t know what he wants with me.”
“Who? “ Mede rinsed out the dirty rag, and set it aside.
“The monk. He was there when they killed…” she winced, and turned her face away. “When they…we …caused the fall of Suktis. He was the one who killed you in the courtyard. He wants something from me, and I want nothing of him except that he die, preferably as painfully as possible.”
“Tsuda, how do you even know it’s the same monk? They all look so much alike, with that dark hair and green eyes.” She sat on the grass beside her friend, and tried to keep her calm. “It could be any of them.”
She shook her head. “No, I saw it in his eyes. The same eyes, they’re different from the other priests…almost like they go further back…like empty holes.” She shuddered, and was almost sick again. Mede took a small cup and helped her sip from it.
“You cannot hate him, Tsuda. It will be much worse for you if you do, and it will harm his soul too.”
“Good!” Tsuda spat. “I would give up my own soul to drag his down to hell!”
“You don’t mean that.”
“Of course I do! He has killed everyone I loved, my husband, my child, my friends, and even my homeland. And I let it happen. No more! I will destroy him, no matter the cost!” Tsuda’s eyes blazed purple, and she clenched her fists. “I will not rest until he is destroyed.”
“Tsuda! Listen to yourself! You cannot hate him so much, no matter what he has done. The hatred will destroy you. Listen, you remember when I told you about the souls that go up intot he sky as stars? Not every soul makes it. Some souls choose badly, and refuse to learn in their lives. They sink further and further into hatred and fear. We were not made to know such things, and too much of them tears us apart, from ourselves and from others. A soul that gives in to hatred and fear rips itself apart. It becomes nothing.”
Tsuda turned her face away from her friend. “I let the girl die. I let my daughter die, and I let you die. My soul is nothing already. I will destroy him and die in peace.” She burst into tears again, and Mede held her until the tears ceased, and Tsuda slept.

Tsuda woke in the hammock; it was nearing sunset. She sat up quickly. Mede was nowhere to be seen, but a gleam of lamplight shone in the doorway, and Tsuda sassumed she was inside. She slipped out of the garden, and into the quiet streets. As she walked restlessly, the sun set, and the cold orb of Lotha began to shine above the waves of the sea. She stood on the cliffs, looking down into the waves. In the icy light, the fervor of her hatred had cooled, and she felt herself torn. The hatred still clutched her heart, whispering sweet visions of revenge; but standing under the stars, her eyes were drawn upwards.
“Oh, gods, help me now,” she whispered. As Lede rose golden from the waves, following her Twin, Tsuda saw the warmer light fall upon the waves and tinge them with yellow. She quickly turned and found her way to the entrance of the narrow passage that led down to the shore. It seemed tighter than usual, and in the absence of sunlight, was pitch black. She felt tears slide down her cheeks again as she brushed against the walls of the miniature canyon, and gasped for breath. The walls seemed to close in around her, and she felt as though green eyes peered out at her from every crevice and nook. Her heart rose into her throat, and just as she was about to collapse with fear and exhaustion, she saw a gleam of golden-blue light on the cliff wall ahead of her. She wound through the final turn, and found herself standing on the beach. The tide had come in, and the sand lay shining and wet in front of her; each moon cast a shining path of light across the water and sand.
Tsuda’s heart seemed ready to take wing, and she laughed, laughed in relief, in joy, hiccupping as she blinked away the last of the tears. She stood for a moment in the light of the two moons, then picking up a small stone from the shore, turned to the sandstone cliffs, and began to carve.

When morning came, Mede came rushing down to the seaside—she had been unable to follow Tsuda’s trail the previous evening, but in the pre-dawn light, she quickly slid down one of the cliffs to reach the shore. She found Tsuda, hair disheveled and filled with sand, eyes bright and shining in the rosy light.

"I was so worried about you," Mede gasped. "I couldn't find you at your house, or..." her voice trailed off as she looked at the side of the cliff. Tsuda took one final scrape with the stone she was holding, and then let it fall from her fingers.
The first beams of the rising sun struck the side of the cliff, and it shone like a static flame. Emerging from the side of the cliff was the figure of a woman; her arms wrapped around the cliff on either side, trying desperately to break free of the stone. Her face was lifted to the sky, and her eyes were wide open. From her shoulders sprouted the faintest hint of wings, still lodged in the stone.
Tsuda bowed her head in exhaustion, and almost crumpled to the sand, but Mede caught her, and helped her regain her footing. Tsuda cast a glance over her shoulder at the rising sun, and the brilliance of the dawn made her blink. The two women turned silently into the light.
As the sun's disc lifted free of the waves, Tsuda began to sing.

"Bless this day, bless this land
Be with us and teach us as we walk
Help us to love, help us to give,
And bring us to the stars in the end."

The waves crashed, and the song was lost in their sound, except to the two standing on the shore.