Tevun-Krus #114 - Hollow Earth (A Different Earth, Part 2)

Goddess Under Ice - A Story by @wdhenning

Goddess Under Ice

by wdhenning

The sweet song began as only a whisper in frigid winds, growing day-by-day in slow crescendo. She sang in the language of dreams, calling to me with a heartfelt aria that reached deep within my soul. But there was also a yearning, a melancholy plea for freedom. Intoxication became obsession, and I had to find the singer and help her.

After suffering my own heartbreaks, I felt oddly compelled to take this Antarctic research station post. Alone over the winter, I hoped to figure out my life's direction. Regardless, I should have known not to venture outside in the deadly, bitter cold, but I could not resist the song. Donning my parka, I stepped out into the bleak landscape, lit only by faint rays for a mid-day sun that did not clear the horizon. Icy snow crunched under my boots as I followed far the haunting melody. Nothing else mattered.

Then the snow dropped away beneath my feet, and I clawed at slick ice while I slipped into the dark void.

*****

Where was I? The long fall into a glacial abyss should have killed me. My eyes would not yet open as my mind swirled. This place was warm, though, and the musty scents of life filled my nose.

A deep voice growled. He spoke an unknown language, yet strangely, I understood the words as if my mother tongue. "This cannot be! He is not of the people."

A feminine voice answered, "But yet, do you not also feel the quickening? Should we not try?"

He huffed. "Very well. But if the Goddess does not stir, I will kill the outsider myself."

My eyes snapped open. Four brown eyes set in cinnamon faces stared down at me. They wore simple beige tunics tied with leather cords. The eyes of the gray-haired woman projected caring, but those of the massive man showed contempt. I gulped as he put a hand to the bone knife tucked into his waistband.

"Umm, could we discuss this?" I asked.

There was no discussion, instead the huge man dragged me outside and tossed me into a crude cart like a sack of potatoes. A strange burro-like creature drew us along, clomping on a cobblestone path.

This place was like a tropical paradise. Twin suns warmed a lush landscape of palms, sprawling trees, and colorful flowered plants. A clear blue sea sparkled in the distance. From among simple houses of wood and thatch arranged in expanding semi-circles, more eyes gazed at our passing. How could this world exist under the ice?

We made our way up the hill to a sprawling white-stone palace. The song rose again, the singer gleefully hopeful about my arrival.

The cart stopped before a long open passageway flanked with carved rock columns and potted fragrant flowers. Urging me on, the man and woman led me to a central courtyard flanked by two stiff guards wearing white and holding long pikes. Before entering, they went down to one knee and bowed their head in reverence. In response to a not-so-subtle suggestion, I did the same.

There, on a dark wood dais under the shade of a high domed roof, laid a sleeping woman surrounded by a shimmer of darkness. With soft-flowing dark hair, a pleasing face, and a lithe body covered with a long white gown, she was stunningly alluring by any standard. But the most beautiful of her was the heart revealed by the song.

The massive man scowled, lifting an eyebrow as if to say 'well?'.

This scene had a definite 'Sleeping Beauty' vibe to it. So, risking sacrilege, I bent down and kissed her full lips, lingering there.

A drawn breath passed her lips and amber eyes fluttered opened, while the warmest of smiles brightened her face. She spoke without speaking. "You came."

"Why me?"

Slender fingers stroked my cheek. "Long have I waited. The blood of the enemy flows within your veins, yet your heart remained good. Only that would break the curse."

"This was not how I expected this day to go."

"You shall understand, my savior," she replied with a grin as I helped her rise. "Destiny calls us both. Stay here with me."

I didn't know what this destiny entailed, but living in paradise with a goddess sure topped a lonely Antarctica outpost.