Chapter 10
Flying above the snow-covered surface of the world, Melissa wandered aimlessly through the frigid skies, kicking up massive plumes of white powder in her wake. Her thin blue robe billowed under her sweater as dozens of firespheres spun constantly around her creating a tunnel of warmth. Across snowdunes and through mountain passes she darted, randomly incinerating immense tracts of landscape with white-hot tendrils of sussa, bemoaning the mistakes she made. For while she was able to filter water for drinking and manipulate rough roots into something edible, though she was warm and never felt more powerful, her soul ached with remembrance of what she had almost done.
In her travels she came across several more of the metal relics she and her hlenna had found, and paused to excavate and explore inside. The metal beasts were grey and black constructs -- quite unlike the faded white ship she found with Asil -- with many small dark windows set into metal boxes and many sticks and levers set into the walls. She felt they were weapons of war, and wondered what it was that could have defeated them. Faded dusty footprints inside the vessels warned that she wasn’t the first explorer, making her wonder if anyone alive knew what exactly the vessels were.
As she left the third vessel, having slung her sac of supplies over her back, a dozen figures dressed in thick white clothing carrying grey metal sticks with handles stood in the snow, waiting. They stood soundlessly, and she was amazed that she didn’t hear their approach.
“Who are you?” she asked.
“Kill it -- quick!” shouted one of the men.
One of them raised their stick, pulled something, and expelled a brilliant flash of light. Melissa instinctually deflected the bolt, but could feel a small degree of pain.
“Why do you do this?” she demanded, becoming incensed. “Explain yourselves quickly, or feel the wrath of an Archsussa!”
Melissa crouched down, trying to focus her mind. It was the first time she would use sussa in an offensive capability, and was conflicted about how far to go.
Could I really kill someone -- even if it was in the protection of my own life?
“I knew it!” yelled one of the figures. “Turn it on!”
One of the figures pressed into a small grey box he was carrying and suddenly all Melissa’s senses felt distant. She could still breathe and think, but the world was suddenly dark and cold. The cold felt close and sharp, and her legs began to buckle under her weight.
“What have you done?” she whimpered, as she found she was unable to use sussa to warm herself. “I . . . I can’t conjur a firesphere! I can’t warm myself. What are you?”
One of the figures confidently approached and pulled open his thick, fur-lined white hood, revealing a wrinkled, leathery face with piercing blue eyes. She felt like she was looking into the face of a man like Ruger; one battle hardened and without mercy or pity. She cringed, trying to crawl away, but he snatched up her face in his hands and squeezed, as the others behind him laughed.
“I am Ocin, and we are the scientists; those who would snatch the world back from heathen like you.”
They marched her through the snow into a biting, frigid wind. A collar and chain was put around her neck, kept by Ocin. Though she pulled her sweater close around her, it afforded little protection as the soft falling snow had turned into a biting hail.
“Don’t you have anything warm I could wear?” she meekly begged. They all carried large pacs on their backs, and Melissa knew they must have spare clothes.
“You should have been prepared,” rebuked one of the men. “It is the arrogance of your kind that will be your downfall. Besides, you have a very pretty sweater,” he said sarcastically, to the laughter of the other men.
They walked a little more, and Melissa fell into the snow as her head swooned from lack of food.
“Don’t you have any food? I’m so hungry.”
Her whimpering was met with raucous laughter.
“You have enough blubber on you to last days and days, my leviathan princess!” She started to cry at Ocin’s insulting words, but was yanked by the chain around her neck close to his pitiless face. “Your tears do nothing for me, little girl. We can resist the power of sussa and the power of feminine sentiment. You would do well to use your mind rather than your emotion, for it is the only thing that will save you out here.”
Melissa stopped her tears, and forced herself to move on, knowing that she would need to depend on those people for her life.
Where are you Asil? Can you ever forgive me? Will I ever see you again?
They pressed her on in a grueling march through the snow, and Melissa thought she had never exerted so much in her life. Her underarms were drenched with sweat, while her eyebrows were covered with ice. Down through a wide valley with hip-deep snow they travelled, being whipped on with expletives and cruel laughter. A hundred times she swore she would kill them all if she got free, and a thousand times she begged to be released.
Once through the valley, a tall mountain stood as lone sentinel, surrounded by low, grey homes. On the side of the mountain a patch of snow shimmered. It made Melissa dizzy to look at it, and she swooned at its effect.
“It did that to me, the first time I looked on it,” said a tall, thin youth that had been walking silently next to her for most of the trip. Whenever she stumbled after her first fall, he steadied her, and something about his presence made her feel less terrified. “It’s best if you look sideways at it, and only then will the entrance be revealed.”
She did as he said, and was awestruck at what was revealed. A mammoth metal ship, like ones she had seen earlier, was merged with the mountain itself. Though partially covered in snow, both halves of the ship were visible, peeking out from both sides of the mountain. She felt dwarfed by its presence, as never before had she seen a singular structure so massive.
“It’s something, isn’t it?” remarked the youth.
“Yeah,” was all Melissa could manage.
The youth pulled down his white hood, revealing a baby’s face that had adult scars. As young as Melissa, he had warm, dark-grey eyes, and long, unruly black hair that hung about his gaunt face. Though his gaze was precise and clinical, Melissa felt compassion lay slumbering behind it. She noticed for the first time that he wore furs about his neck, and while others wore white jackets, his was tan, and the others seemed to afford him some respect. “To think, one day it flew in the sky, like the levitating cities.”
Melissa shook her head in disbelief. “What kind of Archsussa could have powered it?”
“No sussa powered that ship,” sneered the youth. “Science was its only power!”
“Come on, Richard,” said Ocin, “we need to get under cover.”
Melissa was led through a small village at the base of the mountain, filled with low homes made of wood and cleared, dirt roads. The rough sound of charaks could be heard, and as they passed through the center, large pens could be seen housing them.
“Do you use them for battle, or sport?” asked Melissa.
“They draw our sleds, so we can cross the snow plains while light remains in the sky.”
They walked up a path roughly-paved with large stones. A thick cheet of ice glazed over the stones, making it a treacherous route for all involved -- especially Melissa, whose feet were almost numb with frost. The thin leather sandals she started out with broke long ago, and the pain from her feet terrified her. Worried she might end up losing her feet, she began to cry.
“I’m in so much pain!” she moaned.
Laughter from most of the group was her only reply, and though she met the youth’s gaze, it returned no compassion or pity.
The path led to just under the massive ship, and as they approached a panel slid open. Two guards holding more black weapons came out.
“Don’t tell me you finally caught one, Richard,” said one of the guards roughly.
“Yeah, finally,” answered Richard. “It was only a matter of time.”
Ocin gathered Melissa’
s long hair into a ball and yanked her head up. “And it was an easy capture too! What a pathetic waste this thing is.”
The other guard added; “must be one stupid heretic to be caught in the open snow.”
It was too much for Melissa. She dropped to her knees and cried, bawling in the snow. She had never felt so ugly and stupid in all her life. He refused to let go of her hair, even with her crying, instead laughing with the guards. Melissa struggled, but his hold was too firm. She was shocked to see Richard calmly pull the man’s hand from her hair.
“Ocin, she’s a heathen, but we can act better than that.”
Ocin backed away, grumbling, as Melissa pulled her hair back and nodded gratefully to Richard. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me, heretic,” he replied with a sneer. “I act with courtesy towards you because it’s the rational thing to do. You will be of no use to use bawling on the floor.”
She was led up through the bowels of the metal ship to the second level. The structure rest at a downward angle, and all had to hold onto a wooden rail affixed to the wall to guide them down. The lighting came from small glowing bulbs positioned at equidistant intervals on the walls that emitted a faint hum. Melissa couldn’t help but stop to examine one.
“What is this?”
“It is a torch that isn’t of fire, and not powered by a heathen Archsussa.”
“Then what keeps it lit?”
“Science,” said Richard, his voice full of reverence. “Science enables us to use all kinds of fuel to illuminate our surroundings, cook our food, keep us warm at night. And when we wake up, we aren’t obligated to give thanks to an Archsussa. We merely thank ourselves for the ingenuity to live by our own means.”
She hated his arrogance, but he still acted as a gentleman, steadying her through the corridors. His gaze was always stern yet warm, and she didn’t know if his words or his physical acts represented who he really was.
Into a large room Richard led her, bidding her to sit at a wide table. Food was finally brought along with a tall glass of warm xuno. It was meager, offensive-smelling fare, appearing to be leftovers from leftovers. The food sat on a dirty plate, and no napkin or eating utensils were placed with it. Despite her hunger, Melissa balked at eating it, anxious as to its source.
“It can be taken away, and given to someone much more deserving,” rebuked one of the guards.
Melissa quickly picked some up with her hands, and she consumed with relish, finally drawing a little comfort from something familiar. As she ate, Richard sat across from her, now dressed in tan slacks and a tan shirt, which seemed to be a uniform to Melissa. He was thin, but with strong shoulders and arms, and his thick, long hair was drawn back into a ponytail. He wasn’t particularly handsome, but his clinical gaze was intriguing to Melissa, and no matter how hungry she was, her eyes kept straying back to his.
A few minutes after Richard sat down, a short, thin old woman with dark glasses hung over her eyes joined them. Slowly the old woman pulled her glasses off, revealing a burnt scar where her left eye should be. Melissa couldn’t help but stare, as she had never seen anyone who wasn’t healed and perfect.
“Do you like the work of your Freilux?” asked Richard scornfully. “And yet, she sees better than most on this world.”
“I have no love for the Freilux,” retorted Melissa, washing down her food with a gulp of xuno. “He stole power from my father, Darian, who rightfully ruled our world.”
“No Archsussa should ever rule over us!” yelled Richard, slamming his fist onto the table. “You are all bastard, forsaken creations!”
“Enough,” said the old woman quietly. “Sit back Richard -- this will do us no good.” Her singular gaze turned on Melissa. “I’ll bet you thought no one lived on the surface, eh my little heretic?”
“Honestly, no,” she replied in-between chews of food. “Did you come here after the apocalypse?”
“No, no,” said the woman, as she came close. Melissa could feel her eyes inspecting every fold of her skin, and was starting to lose her appetite.
“Why do you examine me?”
“A good choice of words, for a young girl. I am examining you, because I have never been this close to an Archsussa for this long a period of time. Oh, I’ve met the Freilux and Provni Darian when he was alive, but those were both fleeting meetings. What is your name, young child?”
“I only tell my name to those who are my friends, and you distinctly are not.”
“We will get it out of you,” threatened Richard, “along with anything else we want to know!”
“Aren’t you scared of what I might do?” asked Melissa. “How are you able to restrain my sussa manipulation anyway?”
The old woman sat back, yielding to Richard.
“We are scientists, and have been studying ‘sussa’ as you call it for many generations. Do you think it is some coincidence that sussa appeared just after the First Apocalypse? That science has all but disappeared as your kind took control?”
“Why do we need science?” asked Melissa. “An Archsussa can take care of an entire levitating city.”
“Yes, but the cost to feed an Archsussa’s ego is too much to bear. One must have independence. Sussa is a bastardization of the word ‘science.’“
That sounds like what my Asil said, she thought. “So what will you do with me?”
“Dissect you,” answered the old woman simply, without an ounce of pity, “to find out what makes you different.”
Melissa felt her heart drop, and looked to Richard, hoping to find some support or doubt in his eyes, but he had turned away.
“You . . . would kill me?” asked Melissa weakly, her voice breaking.
“Your kind has killed the progress of countless generations!” shouted Richard with another loud thump of his fist on the table. “How many died in the Second Apocalypse, all because of the arrogance of an Archsussa?”
“What do you mean?” asked Melissa.
“Do you know how many times we begged Darian to allow scientific inquiry into the Apocalypse and into sussa?” asked the old woman. “Yet each time he refused us, saying no one need worry as he could divert the effects if there were another Apocalypse. Liar! He wanted to keep control over the people, and look at what was the result. There is nothing more devastating than the Archsussa’s arrogance, and we have had enough. You seem like a pretty, innocent little thing, but I have learned those even with a face like yours can be perverted to evil by the effects of sussa.”
Melissa watched desperately as the old woman stood, and Richard with her. “We operate first thing in the morning. Alert the doctors to be prepared. Have the guards take her to a cell.”
“No!” she screamed, as Richard ordered two guards to take her. “How can you do this? Are you a bunch of butchers? Murderers?” She writhed in their clutches, trying to extricate herself but their hold was too strong. “Let me go -- I haven’t hurt anyone!”
“Your kind has hurt plenty,” rebuked Richard as she was lead down the hallway. “Perhaps now we can learn how to hurt back.”
Down through the vessel she was led, through corridors that seemed unending. It felt like she was back in a levitating city, except that the air was close and dank, and she had a terrible sense of claustrophobia. She knew they must be a third of the way inside the mountain, and any accident would be a terminal one.
Many of the corridors were filled with residences. Graffiti littered the walls, but not of simple names scrawled with paint. They were more like murals, or quilting squares, depicting whole lines of families, names of relatives long past and the meager accomplishments they made. Part of her was cheered to see life still flourished after the Second Apocalypse, until the inhabitants realized who she was.
“Sinful Archusssa!” yelled a tall man with a long grey beard. “They should’ve killed you out in the wastes!”
“Heathen!” yelled another. “Heathen!” soon yelled many men, women and children, as they gathered at their doors t
o watch her pass.
“Looks like you’ve made some friends,” jeered one of the guards leading her.
“Die heathen die! Die heathen!” they cried, throwing scraps of garbage at her. She slipped and fell from one, and to her consternation, instead of being helped up by the guards, they let her lie in filth as a crowd gathered to pelt her more.
“Please,” she pleaded, whimpering, “help me!”
The guards laughed more, and only after most had their fun throwing garbage in her face, did they pull her up and press her on. Eventually they got to a lift, and Melissa felt relief as the thick metal door closed, silencing the deafening cries for her extermination.
“God, does she stink,” said one of the guards.
“It’s all that blubber,” said the other. “I think that sussa stuff make’s ‘em smell even worse.”
The lift stopped, and the doors opened onto a dark, damp level. They pulled her down midway, and threw her in a small room.
“Looks like you just won yourself a quick weight-loss program,” sneered one of the guards as he closed the door. “One meal, once-a-day, and you just missed yours. Maybe you should’ve eaten some of the shit they threw at you.”
Melissa sat back and cried as they turned out the lights and filled the darkness with howling laughter.