The Mender

#8 THE PARTING - Children's Services

The end-of-term papers and projects were piling up for Esri. If only she could survive until the Christmas holiday break. Navigating life in Flat Rocks while trying to carry on like a normal high school student during her awake hours was increasingly stressful. And, after the flint-cutting incident with Troy, Esri's reputation was anything but normal.

She faced increased scrutiny and notoriety from both teachers and students. It felt like her dad and teachers analyzed every small sign from her to see if it was a signal that she was screwing up again. She tried to stay on top of her school work, but she had trouble focusing and her grades were slipping. Many students either gave her a wide berth or wanted to high-five her for "kicking ass." Esri didn't know how to handle either reaction.

And, further complicating her life was the move to the one-bedroom apartment with her dad and Jilly.

The day Esri's alarm interrupted Nagar's End Days and her plea to stop the Violent Ones, Esri could barely pay attention in her classes. She tried keeping an attentive expression on her face even as she was thinking of Nagar. Esri's mind was awhirl. She had to talk to Clea and Thomas before tonight. Though it would surely would get her into a pile of trouble, she skipped her last class.

"Esri, we didn't expect to see you so early. What's going on?" asked Clea.

"Many things. I left school early. No, don't say it," Esri held up her hand. "I know, I shouldn't have, but I have to talk to you. Nagar is dying. I worry what will happen. Even as she got weaker, everyone still listened to her and respected her. I'll miss her terribly, and her death will leave a big hole at Flat Rocks. She was asking for me, just as I woke up. I know she'll want me to do something about the Violent Ones, but how can I?"

Clea said, "It's not up to you alone."

"Of course, yes, Zura is there. She's my rock," said Esri.

"And, Tars and Saba and Barsa and Kai and Nat and Grilu," Clea ticked them off. "And many others. They trust you and believe in living by the Agreements."

Thomas said, "Clea and I have talked and thought a lot about what might have occurred with the Flat Rocks people the first time, without your Mending. I believe what happened is that the Violent Ones stayed together as a tribe and became one of the core groups of homo sapiens that left Africa after the Toba volcano eruption bottleneck. And, in time, they went on to populate the rest of the world."

"But not everyone is like Ulun today. There are lots of good, kind people in our world," said Esri.

"As there are good, kind people with Ulun. Look at Geslo," said Thomas.

Clea said, "But by keeping Ulun's bode together, it allowed for the perpetuation of cultures of violence and greed to the point where we now throw up our hands and say, we've always had war, always had warrior cultures. It's just the way it is and, anyway, even if you want peace, you have to 'fight fire with fire.'" She sighed.

"At the moment in time of your Flat Rocks people, the numbers are clearly on the side of those who believe violence is wrong," said Thomas.

"And your Mending is about seizing this moment," said Clea.

Esri took this in. "And dividing the Violent Ones." She sat quietly for a minute, then nodded. "Why not? It won't be easy, but why not?"

* * *

Esri worried that when she got home there would be a message on the phone for her Dad to call the principal about her skipping her last class. No messages were waiting, someone might call later, or, fingers-crossed, maybe she wouldn't face any repercussions.