Protector of Men Ch 75
"Alright, it's over," she told him as the noise of excited speech became greater. Zandra moved to leave the great hall, but Shade held her arm for a moment.
"Come on, Zandra," he pleaded. Trim and Kesia left them, they smiled and made their way out. Cover still stood by, gazing indifferently at the crowd around him. Zandra was silent and watched Shade begging, enjoying the look on his face - however brief.
"Be like everyone else," he continued, almost on his knees, "Stay for a while?"
She paused, and in doing so realized that Cover was with them no longer. It was just her and Shade surrounded by Zionite strangers. He was her only connection now, which made it a little hard to leave.
"Okay," she sighed, allowing Shade to pull her further into the fray, "Just for a little while."
Shade smiled, and she followed suit with a sheepish grin that almost surprised Shade with its sincerity. She looked around for a moment; there must have been at least a three hundred people in the gathering, all milling about aimlessly. So this was the last living city.
Boom!
They heard the music start simultaneously; a single beat that trembled through the cave floor like thunder, soon followed by others equally isolated and profound. Shade suddenly looked at Zandra, his eyes wide.
"What?" he asked, his voice rising along with the music. Zandra wasn't moving, and he was worried that she wasn't going to dance.
"Nothing!" she shouted, giving up. There was no harm in letting go for a little while… was there? She didn't care. The music had finally taken over, and though it was primitive in form, it spoke to them. It connected with the Zionites on its basest level; it incited in them the desire to rejoice, to celebrate, to rebel against the all-too-common feeling of dread; of war. Zion erupted into simultaneous movement.
Their dancing started out slow and irregular; neither knew quite how to move around each other, and therefore their movements were jarring, off-beat. Shade laughed once at their awkward jig, and as the music got louder, he moved in closer, more serious. Zandra accepted his advance, but focused on the music.
Boom! Da-Boom!
It was easier to move with the beat now. The music sped up, was louder, and they moved accordingly. Their eyes met briefly, only for a moment suspended in time – but it startled them out of their trance. Zandra laughed confusedly, broke the continuum of their grace and Shade stopped as well. But the music played on; the caves echoed with the noise.
Boom! Da-Boom! Da-Da-Boom!
"What?"
"What?"
Neither could hear what the other tried to convey, and they laughed, soon forgetting their questions in the confusion of the dance. Again they moved close to each other, both desiring the essence of the music. With each change of the beat they too moved, following, then leading only a second later. Neither focused on anything, and instead it was as if the two were possessed by something neither knew they held inside. Everything lay in the music. The primitive, raw music led them on.
Boom! Da-Da-Boom! Boom! Da-Da-Boom!
She was moving without thinking. The music had tapped her soul and every move, every muscle that had been cooped up for twenty-two years finally had a chance to stretch and get moving. She enjoyed the mere sensation of it; the idea was marvelous: it was all real. This was what it felt like to really dance. She was graceful in her spasms, often closing her eyes in sheer bliss, letting the music fill every inch of her being.
Da-Boom-Da! Boom-Da-Boom! Boom! Boom!
Shade too was on automatic. This seemed so natural, so easy that thinking was absolutely unnecessary. The beating of the drums went faster, but they did not follow its new pace. Shade advanced further, and they were now close enough to touch - though they did not. Doing so would have ruined the poetry they were creating. He watched her as she progressed; her smile kept him in a rapturous trance that made his movements easier. Both reveled in the experience they were having; a dual ecstasy in which the music kept them moving in a way that they never would have thought possible. The music had aroused something in her that had in turn, excited a part of Shade that he thought dead. He was enveloped in her, and she in him.
The melody was echoing in their minds, the people surrounded them, the ground reverberated with each beat. Their breathing was fast, their pulses quick, the smell of sweat lingered in the hot air. Zandra's muscles burned with overuse. It was all in the action of the moment; they were all living life second by second.
Boom. Boom.
But as soon as it had started, it was over. In a matter of seconds the music had faded to a solitary drum and everyone had come to a standstill. Zandra tried to catch her breath. Again their eyes met, but this time the gaze was held. Together, silently, they came to the realization of what they had been doing. Together, and silently, they realized that the barrier had been broken, whether intentionally or no.
