7: Fight or Flight
That night, I could not sleep. I found it difficult to control my thoughts, my mind racing
rapidly back and forth, from past to present. I would go to close my eyes, but all that I could
see was the image of destruction, of Madain Sari's death and the shattered crystal. To think I
had been a part of it was the greatest pain of all.
Still dark, and early in the morning, I got up from my bed and walked over to one the
openings of my room. Towering high above the continent, one could see the stars in all their
infinite glory, dancing around the radiant moon, the planet Terra. Moris had said that she was
reflecting Gaia's changes recently, but I had always thought so. Perhaps, though it hurt to admit
it, Terra was nothing more than a mirror of this world. That was why it was so easy to dismiss,
and not care about. I missed it.
Their whispers pulled me back into reality. Their gentle voices came from the pod just
beneath and adjacent to mine. In the faint lamplight of their pod, I could make out their forms,
but not their faces. I listened, longing to find out the mystery behind this moonlit conversation.
"How could you let this happen?"
"How could you?" The woman softly cried. The man went to her side, and tried to
comfort her.
"Had you not left us..." She began.
"Had I not left you Cleyra would have been without its King! You could have come
with me."
Moris?
"I... I did what was best for her. It is only our connection that puts her in danger."
"And what would you wish? Do you wish I could take it back, or take it all away? I'm
sorry but I can't!"
The woman arose, and walked toward the pods' edge. I pulled back slightly, to avoid
being spotted. Only then did I feel a tint of guilt for spying. But I couldn't resist. I needed to
know.
"No. I love Sadr'ena. And... I loved you. Nothing is worth losing those years. I just
wish... I wish... I miss her, Moris! And your men? They'll never find her! I should be the one
out there looking for her! If my mother could do it, I can do it too!"
Sashr'en ran into Moris' arms, momentarily overcome with tears and heartache, but then
pulled back, and ran from the pod. Moris was Sadr'ena's father? Things were beginning to
make more sense.
I turned to head back to my bed, only to find Sashr'en standing at my door. Tears
almost faded away, she looked at me both in shock and comfort. Slowly she approached me,
pausing but a few feet away. She glanced up at me, her eyes sparkling with as much life and joy
as they had the first night we met. A look of hope had found its way past her sorrow.
"I know where she is," Her soft voice whispered.; "Help me find her, and I'll give you
anything."
I was slightly confused. She barely knew me. How could she trust a stranger so easily?
"I..."
"You're the only one I've got now, Kuja. You listen..."
She walked closer, taking one of my hands into hers.
"Please..."
I couldn't say no. Knowing who her mother was, and seeing the determination in her
eyes... Instinctively, I knew she wasn't safe here. Besides, she was here, now, standing before
me and trusting me. She was my first true friend. How could I refuse? She was the only one I
had ever known to fully accept me.
Sashr'en left to pack her bags, and I did the same. We left that morning before dawn,
wanting to avoid Moris at all possible costs.
Being without a weapon, Sashr'en had found me a magic staff. She carried an ancient
spear, presumably from the time of her mother.
The journey down the trunk took until well after sunrise, but I can distinctly remember
how eerie that sunrise was. Just over the horizon, with the coming of the sun, came a ferocious
roar of wind. Upon it, were carried thousands upon thousands of violent, piercing screams,
childrens, adults, and animals alike.
"The four powers," Sashr'en told me.
The sound has never left my mind, and at that moment, I could have only wished it
would have been my last encounter with it. Little did I know what our destination held in store.
Things in Alexandria were much worse...
That night, I could not sleep. I found it difficult to control my thoughts, my mind racing
rapidly back and forth, from past to present. I would go to close my eyes, but all that I could
see was the image of destruction, of Madain Sari's death and the shattered crystal. To think I
had been a part of it was the greatest pain of all.
Still dark, and early in the morning, I got up from my bed and walked over to one the
openings of my room. Towering high above the continent, one could see the stars in all their
infinite glory, dancing around the radiant moon, the planet Terra. Moris had said that she was
reflecting Gaia's changes recently, but I had always thought so. Perhaps, though it hurt to admit
it, Terra was nothing more than a mirror of this world. That was why it was so easy to dismiss,
and not care about. I missed it.
Their whispers pulled me back into reality. Their gentle voices came from the pod just
beneath and adjacent to mine. In the faint lamplight of their pod, I could make out their forms,
but not their faces. I listened, longing to find out the mystery behind this moonlit conversation.
"How could you let this happen?"
"How could you?" The woman softly cried. The man went to her side, and tried to
comfort her.
"Had you not left us..." She began.
"Had I not left you Cleyra would have been without its King! You could have come
with me."
Moris?
"I... I did what was best for her. It is only our connection that puts her in danger."
"And what would you wish? Do you wish I could take it back, or take it all away? I'm
sorry but I can't!"
The woman arose, and walked toward the pods' edge. I pulled back slightly, to avoid
being spotted. Only then did I feel a tint of guilt for spying. But I couldn't resist. I needed to
know.
"No. I love Sadr'ena. And... I loved you. Nothing is worth losing those years. I just
wish... I wish... I miss her, Moris! And your men? They'll never find her! I should be the one
out there looking for her! If my mother could do it, I can do it too!"
Sashr'en ran into Moris' arms, momentarily overcome with tears and heartache, but then
pulled back, and ran from the pod. Moris was Sadr'ena's father? Things were beginning to
make more sense.
I turned to head back to my bed, only to find Sashr'en standing at my door. Tears
almost faded away, she looked at me both in shock and comfort. Slowly she approached me,
pausing but a few feet away. She glanced up at me, her eyes sparkling with as much life and joy
as they had the first night we met. A look of hope had found its way past her sorrow.
"I know where she is," Her soft voice whispered.; "Help me find her, and I'll give you
anything."
I was slightly confused. She barely knew me. How could she trust a stranger so easily?
"I..."
"You're the only one I've got now, Kuja. You listen..."
She walked closer, taking one of my hands into hers.
"Please..."
I couldn't say no. Knowing who her mother was, and seeing the determination in her
eyes... Instinctively, I knew she wasn't safe here. Besides, she was here, now, standing before
me and trusting me. She was my first true friend. How could I refuse? She was the only one I
had ever known to fully accept me.
Sashr'en left to pack her bags, and I did the same. We left that morning before dawn,
wanting to avoid Moris at all possible costs.
Being without a weapon, Sashr'en had found me a magic staff. She carried an ancient
spear, presumably from the time of her mother.
The journey down the trunk took until well after sunrise, but I can distinctly remember
how eerie that sunrise was. Just over the horizon, with the coming of the sun, came a ferocious
roar of wind. Upon it, were carried thousands upon thousands of violent, piercing screams,
childrens, adults, and animals alike.
"The four powers," Sashr'en told me.
The sound has never left my mind, and at that moment, I could have only wished it
would have been my last encounter with it. Little did I know what our destination held in store.
Things in Alexandria were much worse...