Moon Kingdom: Fair Warning

Men Who Were No Longer Men

        Fear filled Athena's mind then, as Bree's scream filled her soul with images of death and destruction. She saw in that instant a village in the midst of a forest. Small houses were built of wood, sturdy trees interlocking above them created a canopy.
     At first it seemed a peaceful and safe place and Athena did not understand the terror that she felt. Then, from the shadowy edges of the village, came a growling sound that she had heard before. It was the same rumbling that came from the forest outside of Marama- so loud she could hear it from miles away.
      Then, the bears appeared. The bears that had once been human; Athena hadn't understood what this meant before but now she saw what Bree had meant. They were large, with great teeth and claws. Their features were like those of a bear- a nose like a bear, hair like a bear, ears like a bear. However they stood like humans and they wore the ragged remains of human clothing. Their eyes, though void of human emotion, were human eyes.
     Athena closed her eyes, trying to banish the images from her mind. It was no use. She heard the villagers scream as they were torn apart. She felt their fear as they tried to run and hide. It was when she saw a certain couple get murdered by the beasts that she felt especially sick.
     Guilt and hesitation flooded her then- there was a second of debate over fight or flight. Literally, she chose flight, and was suddenly in the air beating black wings threw a tangled maze of trees. Adrenaline pushed her forwards until she collapsed.
      When Athena was back in her own mind, she opened her eyes. Around her stood the Spiritesses, and she could tell by their expressions that they had seen the same horrid sights. She remembered Bree's scream and turned to her friend. Bree was collapsed on the grass.
      "This is what you came to warn Marama of?" Diana asked, approaching Athena and then making her way over to Bree.
     "I had no idea it was this bad." Athena admitted, "She didn't tell me- wait, how did we even see that?"
     "Psychic connection brought on by a flood of power, emotion, and urgency." Diana said matter-of-factly, as she examined Bree, "She's fine but we should get her inside."
     They lifted Bree up and headed towards the door. The other women followed silently, with the exception of Sonya and O, who stood in the courtyard whispering.
     Athena was worried; she couldn't believe the threat that faced Marama. It had wiped out an entire village in a few hours. Marama was larger, and better defended, but surviving a surprise attack seemed impossible. She knew more than ever that she had to warn the city.
     Inside, they lied Bree down on the bed she had slept in the night before. Athena and Diana then sat on the other bed. They were silent for a while, both contemplating the events that they had just witnessed through their connection with Bree's mind.
     "I can't believe I didn't think about how this affected her." Athena frowned, "I've been with her the past few days and didn't even think about what she might have witnessed, what she might be going through."
     "I don't blame you." Diana said, "It's an unimaginable tragedy. You had no way of knowing- no way of fully understanding without seeing it."
     "We need to go to the King today." Athena insisted, "We can't wait much longer- Bree said to expect them to arrive at the city in a few weeks."
     "You're right, there can be no more waiting," Diana agreed, "I'll talk to Sonya about going with you. I want to back up what you saw and offer assistance defending Marama."
     "Thank you," Athena said.
     Diana left the room. Athena continued to sit there, pondering the things she had seen and heard. The beasts were unlike anything she had seen before. She wondered where they came from and how many other places they had destroyed.
     As she sat there, she also recalled what they had been doing before Bree had screamed. She remembered distinctly how good she had felt and how her body had felt as though it were filled with light. As it turned out, she had the potential to be a Spiritess. Her energy was that of spirit, and it flowed through the lapis lazuli ring that her mother had given her years ago.
     She tapped the ring, creating a miniature flurry in front of her. Athena reached out her hand and felt real snow land on her bare skin. It was cold and wet. A part of her wished she could fix the warm winter with this power. She felt instinctively that the unusual weather was connected to the appearance of the bear-like beasts.
     A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.
     "Come in." She said, turning to face the door.
     It was the priestesses Sonya and O. Sonya entered first, walking slowly as at her age she wasn't very mobile. O came in behind her and closed the door. Athena offered Sonya her seat on the bed, which she took silently yet graciously.
     "I've been speaking with O, who as you've learned is from the same village as Bree- the village Luna." Sonya informed her, "She did not see the vision as we saw it but it agrees with her account of events."
     "So you know the danger that we are all in." Athena said.
     "I know," Sonya spoke slowly, "That an entire village has been wiped out by an evil force. I know that the Wateress order has been almost entirely destroyed by the violence of men who are no longer men."
     "This is why we need to warn the king, and the people." Athena said.
     "We agree." O, who had been silent to that point, spoke now, "However there is the matter of our aid that we must discuss."
     "What do you mean?" Athena questioned.

[note: http://uncloudedjoy.tumblr.com/post/140914030234/i-just-love-making-characters-in-doll-makerseven this is a rough idea of what some of the characters in this story look like- read the full post for clarifications]