Orien stood alone at the bow of the ship,
fumbling with his red lei, watching the Vimana take off and land from the
airport as the ship neared the Atlan harbor, wishing his fate didn’t have to be fated this
way. Lochia had been a terrible experience, that he had left Lochia was the
only thing that made him happy.
He
fought back a tear as another Vimana roared out of the airport, so stunning in
the golden sun, he loved them so much, he was so sure he would be
taking them to the stars one day, he had dreamed so earnestly of being an Astronaut
since as long as he could remember... And now the dream was over.
"This is the Greatest Honor" he
reminded himself of Hedena's wise words, but it hardy helped. How could it be? He glanced down to the so-called 'sin-full' water below, rushing past the ship's bow, trying to think positive like she
told him to. Would the Promised Land really be as cool as this? Hedena assured
him it would be, that he would get to be an astronaut after all, but no matter
how many affirmations he repeated to himself he couldn't help but feel unsure
about it, he felt sad, scared of the
journey ahead.
The happy sounds of Bella laughing amongst a group of goddesses, brought him back to the surface. He turned towards them but only caught a glimpse of her giggling over the silly things they giggled about... He had dreamt about Bella
too. Now he would never see her again, unless she died an Honorable Death too.... He eyed the goddesses one by one... They were the lucky ones, born beautiful and carefree, their futures and dreams
still lay before them, attainable.
He
let out a sigh and returned his gaze to the so-called 'sin-full' water rushing below. It wasn't that
he didn't want to go to the Promised Land, it was that he was going too soon.
Bella
spotted Orien standing alone and broke from the group to walk his way, sensing
his sadness. Deep down she didn't want him to go, but she understood why he had
to.
"Are
you nervous?" She asked, straightening his crumpled red lei. Bella was
graduating from the Ephra Institute, she had quietly taken Orien under her wing
because she liked him.
Orien
never told her she had made a difference in his life when some of the goddesses
had been so hard on him, he wanted to but the words just couldn’t leave his
lips. He stood up straight.
"Of
course not" he lied, feigning a smile.
She
kissed his forehead and pinched his cheek. "Cheer up Glow Boy" she
urged. "Soon enough you'll be in the Promised Land! Wow, I wish I could
come too!"
Orien
tried to cheer up, Bella was right, it wasn't like he had been sentenced
to Hellias or anything. He watched her skip off to be with her
friends, hardly feeling any better, longing for more of Bella in his life.
Bella was every inch a goddess, a true goddess,
she had a fabulous future ahead of her… A future without him in it.
A
tear sprung from his eye, he wiped it away, it wasn't fair. Why wouldn't
anyone believe in him? Didn't they call him Glow Boy because of his
amazing talents? It seemed like nobody wanted his talents, he didn't
understand, they had all been so excited to see them, he even met the king!
He
blinked away the tears, returned his focus to the waves below, he tried to
think about other things but the closer they got to the harbor, the closer they
got to the airport and that only made it worse.
Once
again, aribu from near and far poured into the Grand Courtyard gates, packing
the stands around the royal stage. Zara stood nervously in the wings beside
Eden, watching the students moving into their group formations. Her heart was
pounding, nervous to be playing a Lead Role in the Graduation Ceremony today,
she certainly didn’t feel up to it. In fact, she wasn't feeling up to
it at all, she felt so ill, her head was exploding in the bright sun and
she was having dizzy sensations under her itchy black robe. Her veins pumped
with a violent sort of adrenaline as conflicting thoughts of the sacrifice
warred with her consciousness. Orien?
She tried to remain focused on something other than troubling thoughts, aware of her malfunctioning mind running away on her again, it was scary. What did he look like?
She tried to remain focused on something other than troubling thoughts, aware of her malfunctioning mind running away on her again, it was scary. What did he look like?
She
tried to shake her thoughts by focusing her attention on the students as they
gathered in their groups, they all looked so happy and excited, it brought back
memories of her own graduation. It seemed like such a different world now as
she watched them giggle amongst themselves in their pretty graduation outfits.
A smile returned to her lips as she remembered how it felt, standing there with
her class in her glamorous blue dress, so eager to experience the exciting
future.
The
crowds hushed as the gods began to arrive, they took their seats on the upper
balcony overlooking the stage. From where she stood Zara could see them all
quite well, they all looked so important on stage.
Then
Nolan arrived... Visualizing
herself wearing blinkers, she tried her best to look proud, watching instead
the drummers marching around the courtyard. An emcee marched out of the
opposing wing and stood at the podium, commanding the attention of the
audience.
"Citizens of the Atlan Empire" he
summoned. "Allow me to present to
you, your most noble and almighty... King
Atalon, god of Divinity!"
The crowd erupted in cheers, turning the courtyard into a sea of waving flags as king Atalon took his place at the podium.
The crowd erupted in cheers, turning the courtyard into a sea of waving flags as king Atalon took his place at the podium.
"Greetings, my fine aribu of the Atlan
Empire!" King Atalon's voice resonated across the Grand Courtyard,
powerful, magnetic, amplified by the echoes as it bounced off the walls. "It is with great expectations that this
year, I present the most promising examples in the history of the Atlan Empire..." A
short drum roll teased the crowds... "The Rabbit Year Gens!"
The
crowds erupted with whistles and cheers, waving their red flags in celebration
as the drums rolled again, building into a thundering crescendo. Feelings of
nostalgia poured forth as Zara watched the students climb the steps of the
runway, walking the walk she too had worked so hard to master. How many of them
would meet nothing but shattered dreams, like she had?
The
drumming rolled to a stop as the graduates gathered in position, quieting for
the king as he raised his hand for attention.
"My friends..." the king began.
"These are not the finest examples
by chance. I would like you to
congratulate Hedena!" He gestured towards his sister, she smiled and
stood on cue, radiant in the late afternoon sun. "Hedena, our most gifted and talented goddess of Conformity must be
first and foremost, congratulated for her most excellent accomplishments this year!"
The
crowds roared with cheer, waving their flags, but Zara felt nothing but deep
disappointment surge from inside as Hedena walked up to the podium, still
struggling to believe the goddess of Conformity could be so mistaken about her
after all this time.
"Thank you" Hedena began with a
smile, holding her hand up to quiet the crowd. "Indeed these are not the finest examples by chance!" She
gestured towards the Rabbit year Gens. "In order to produce such an incredible line, we had to start with
excellent bloodlines. Sixteen
years ago we produced an outstanding new generation and this is the result!"
Cheers erupted again, stimulated by the rolling drums. "However, it is with great regret"
she continued, "that I must remind
you how many of the Culloom Rabbits are missing from the Graduation
Ceremony this year. Let us take a moment of silence to remember those who were
victims of the cruel and savage Aquilla and his TERRIFYING dogons!"
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