The Coming

CHAPTER 3 - GHOST STORIES

...The toxins contain Lanthanides complexes that bind to DNA and cause catastrophic damage. Their exact function however is a paradox due to the fact that although their structures were investigated in great detail, all studies failed to address why they are so deadly to Terrans and the Terran ecosystem in general. Additional studies also failed to address the Blood-Eye Trait Immunity…

Journal entry 01-01-02-04 from the Personal records of Ahien the Elder.

‘What happened to Eve then Great Mother?’

One of the gathered children asked. It was amazing how some of them still managed to stay awake. Most of the children around the elderly woman had fallen asleep. Astounding as the story was, there was no way that it could beat the sweet embrace of the night, the warmth of the fire and the comfort of their makeshift camp all around the woman.

‘This is a story for another Sun-hide by the pyre’s warmth. As I promised earlier, I would be delighted to tell you all about it until the end if you all would care to listen. This Sun-hide, however, will not be the Sun-hide that you will hear the end of it.’

With these words, Great Mother covered the three children that succeeded into keeping the dreams away, with some long Aspect hide pieces and kissed them goodnight. They would all sleep right there with her. It was not the first time she shared her hovel with these or other children and their parents were not going to miss them. She was the Great Mother after all. The woman looked at the faces of each of the Children, all of them now deep into their dreams. She savored the company of these innocent little souls around her. After her task was done, she tossed another large piece of Aspect Carapace into the fire and closed her eyes too as she covered herself. Her last thoughts before she surrendered herself to the dream-god were about her grandchildren. Please, oh please all gods above, around and below, let them still be alive. Please let them find their way home. The Great Mother was then lost into a short and uneasy sleep. During which, she dreamed about her own grandmother, Eve.

‘Where can they be?’

The sentinel by the entrance-fire asked his appointed companion for the night. Sentry-shifts were standard practice in the Den. Two sentinels armed to the teeth, each walking on opposite sides along the walls of the small entrance chamber. They were to be relieved of their shift by the next lot of sentries, after ten standard-issued carapace fragments burned completely by the Sentry outpost fire. The men were walking on opposite directions so that one pair of eyes was always set upon the entrance of the Den. Additional sentinels located at a small permanent Sentry outpost further in the chamber and by the entrance to the main hall, was assigned to keep an eye of them, as well as to convey any information to their hierarchy, further into the Den. The man that spoke looked tired and agitated.

‘I wish I knew Thunt.’

The second sentry replied. He walked toward the fire, tossed a small Aspect carapace fragment into the flames, and resumed his appointed route.

‘Two Sun-lengths is a long time to be unaccounted for. Sure they can take care of themselves out there, but still, they would not have gone missing for so long under any circumstances unless something bad had happened to them.’

Thunt stopped at the end of his route, looked ahead toward the sentry outpost and lifted his right hand. A tired-looking sentry from the outpost lifted his own hand as a response and continued to chat with his companion. Most probably both sentry pairs were having the same discussion. He turned around and made his way towards the Den entrance.

‘You know Thunt, they can still be alive, if they found shelter and managed to build a pyre, there is a chance that they are alright.’

‘Beul, I wish I could get comfort by your words, but you know very well that if they have found a shelter we would have found them by now. The Scouts checked all the nearby cave systems around here that are safe enough to be used as an emergency shelter. They found no traces of a pyre.’