Chapters 1&2
Chapter 3:
As expected her handmaids were waiting for her. The water under the tree was never warm. It was always slightly chilly which suited her just fine as warm water just made people too relaxed in her opinion. She decided not to alter her body temperature and instead welcomed the shivers and the clarity of thought that came with the chilly water. Her handmaids helped her wash her hair and dug their arms into her shoulder and neck helping her relieve some of the pressure from sleeping in tents in the desert and all the other pains that came with traveling with the desert tribe.
Even though she was slightly nervous about the final merge, although she’d never admit it aloud, she was also looking forward to the power that came with it. The Shayhiids were familiar to her. She had felt their presence from birth and could feel their essence right now in the threads of life that ran through the water. She was particularly tuned in to Shun-Na. A slight chill went through her at the thought of Shun-Na and the water around her seemed to respond to the Shayhiid who was known to have control over waterfalls, lakes, and rivers.
Xana submerged herself in the water and embraced the feeling of the Shayhiids. She wondered if the others felt it as strongly as she did. It was unlikely as she was both of royal blood and twice merged. Most people were merged once post birth but as the future leader she would need the third and final as it would allow her full access to the Shayhiid’s power.
By the time she emerged from the water her handmaidens were already waiting at the door. She joined them and walked towards the dressing chamber which was already prepped for her. Her long hair was quickly and intricately woven with vines, gold and copper accessories, and flowers. She was fit in a deep and rich green skirt with slits that allowed a full movement of the legs. Her chest was covered with Remar, a deep brown leather vest with a silver breastplate. It was enchanted to feel light and to be resistant to piercing. It had been charmed yearly since the Original Merge with her first ancestor. It was one of her favorite possessions. She was so excited when her mother handed it to her wrapped in leaves and silk, a rarity for the forest tribe. It looked stunning under the moon.
She decided to sit and meditate until it was time to head to the clearing. Xana sat cross-legged and cleared her mind. She imagined that she was the CËNTRË tree. Then she imagined she was its bark, its roots; then she was every leaf. She could feel the way the wind brushed against them. The feeling multiplied by hundreds of leaves made her feel like she was on the edge of emotional overload but instead of resisting she accepted it.
It was pure bliss. It was emptiness and everythingness. In this release, she could hear the wind speaking. She rode along with it and she became everywhere and everything. She knew that Kilu was eating Ansagaë soup in the relaxed way he tended to do everything. Xana knew that her mother was studying the history books. She knew that her father was visiting a family whose 20-year disagreement he was hoping to settle. In that moment she knew and felt everything but was nothing. Nirvana. It wasn’t hard to understand how people got lost to this.
Then she began to focus. She walked her way backwards from every life and every leaf back to the bark and eventually back to herself. Re-submersion into herself always left her feeling empty and trapped. It was much easier now to slow her breathing. She stretched slowly releasing all the tension that came with feeling and knowing everything but being nothing. By the end of it the guards and her handmaidens were signaling her that it was time to go.
The sun had disappeared by now. It was so dark that it would be impossible to navigate the forest with human eyes even with the brightness that the three moons were shining on the forest floor. Even without the lights Xana would have been able to see but she was glad for the three moons tonight. She looked up to try to catch a glimpse of them. They were just barely visible through the foliage but she could see that two of the three were already full.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Consume, The Blog to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.