The Right Of Torran

Chapter One

Bambi

Earth: October 2125

Bambi Reed staggered to her knees when the harsh hands manhandling her pushed her forward. Landing heavily on her hands, she gasped in the air as she lifted her head to glare at the Earth Elders who had demanded her presence.

Six men stood in a semi-circle before her, all heavily hooded and covered entirely by brown robes. The Earth Elders took pride in keeping their identities hidden. The fear of not knowing who your neighbour was kept people from swaying from Elder Law.

Bambi had only known life under Elder Law and a life of servitude as a woman in the Holy Land. She'd heard the rumours of how Earth used to be before religious zealots had taken control of select governments after the first Volarian encounter. The tales spoke of true freedom, fun and play, friends and love. Women had been allowed to work and earn their incomes. Now, women were wives, mothers or servants. Most girls had arranged marriages organised by the time they'd reached puberty. Under the laws set by the Elders, girls were allowed strict schooling before they were married off in their late teens to grown men approved by their fathers. After that, their only job was to produce the next generation, care for their husbands and home, and serve the Followers of the Holy Land.

Thankfully, Bambi hadn't been desirable to any men in her Holy Land sector. For whatever reason, people seemed to steer clear of her. Her older sister had been cruel when they were children, telling Bambi many reasons why other children hadn't wanted to play with her, but as she'd grown, she realised that it wasn't just people her age that kept their distance. It was as if they were all weary of her; something about her had put them on edge. Bambi had been relieved when her father had received no expression of interest for her hand. She had no interest in becoming a breeding bride. Instead, she'd been sent to clean the boarding homes of Elders in training. She didn't have an income, wasn't allowed breaks, and wasn't allowed to mention anything she happened to see while on Elder grounds. Thankfully, she didn't interact with Elders nor see what was happening behind closed chapel doors. She was grateful she'd been in a Holy Land sector. According to her older brother, sectors governed by Volar sent unmarried women to Volar as punishment.

The last decade of her life had been servitude to the Elders, and she'd done everything by the book. So, she couldn't understand why they'd forced her to appear to them tonight. She'd been off Elder grounds, walking back to her home as women were not allowed the means of transport without the supervision of a male relative or consort. But before she'd even crossed the gate of her home, she'd been ambushed. Elders had wrestled her back to the Elder grounds before taking her to the main chapel, where she now sat heavily on her knees.

"You've had the devil in you before you came into this world." The Elder in the middle said, pointing a gloved finger in her face. Bambi reared back, shocked by his words. A forgotten memory flittered forward, one of her mother saying something similar to her when she was younger. "You were cursed even before we could baptise you." he continued. He stepped back from the semi-circle as if he thought he was already too close to where she knelt. Bambi was bewildered when the remaining Elders followed, moving further back from her as if she was suddenly contagious.

"You even have the mark of the devil, " another Elder hissed, throwing his hand toward her left hip.

Horror gripped Bambi as her gaze followed to where his hand now pointed. The mark on her hip had been there since birth. It'd first resembled any other birthmark, a slightly off-colour smudge on her skin. But as she'd grown, the mark had begun to change. Strangely, its form had developed into the shape of someone's hand. It'd been darker against her pale skin as a child but had faded well in adulthood. But the Elders shouldn't have known about it. Bambi had learnt early on to keep her birthmark to herself, especially when it'd begun to change. Her immediate family knew about it but were deeply ashamed of the mark, so they never mentioned it. How the Elders even knew about it was deeply concerning.