Moon Kingdom: Fair Warning

Decisions, Decisions

     Just a minute's walk from their destination, Diana stopped suddenly. Bree almost didn't notice as she continued on. Athena turned toward her and, asking Bree to stop, walked back a few steps to find out what was going on. Diana looked worried.
     "What's wrong?" Athena asked. Her blue skirt billowed from a sudden breeze and then settled once more. Diana was silent.
     "We don't have time for this." Bree complained, "Why do I feel like I'm the only one taking this seriously."
     Diana sighed. She nervously played with her amethyst ring and then moved her hand up to the mandala pendant all Spiritess women wore around their necks. Finally she faced Athena and Bree straight on and opened her mouth to speak.
     "I want to stay with you." She declared firmly.
     "We promised we would take you back." Bree pointed out.
     "Yes, I know." Diana nodded, "And you will take me back, but then I will follow."
     "Will they let you?" Athena asked.
      "They will be angry and try to convince me to stay." Diana acknowledged, "They will not force me. I know we've just met and I am unsure how I can help you but I know in my heart I cannot go back."
     Bree threw her hands up in defeat. She turned to continue walking. Athena smiled at Diana and gave her a reassuring nod. It seemed as though their small party was growing. Athena was at once pleased and confused. They still had no real plan to defend their city. She hoped the Spiritess women would still help them.
     The three women walked into the courtyard once more. For Athena, it was like returning to a place of support. Bree felt as though she was returning in defeat. Diana had the sense that she was coming back to the place that she could no longer call home.
     O walked out to meet them, followed by a couple of younger Spiritess women. They were informed that Sonya was resting, as her age required her to do daily. Athena was a bit jealous, wishing she could take a break. She wondered though how it felt, to have to take it slow and not be able to do as much. It probably felt disempowering.
     "Arya already knows." O said, tilting her head towards the dark-haired woman beside her.
     "Have you told Sonya?" Diana asked.
     Athena wasn't sure what they were talking about. She looked at Bree who shrugged. As they walked inside, both were silent. They knew it wasn't worth interrupting this discussion. There were more important things to be done.
     "We haven't." O replied, "I was hoping we wouldn't have to, hoping you would change your mind."
     "My mind is made up." Diana said, surprisingly calm.
     They were speaking about Diana leaving the order. It was a big decision, one that couldn't have been made lightly. Athena looked around at the building- these were the familiar corridors of Diana's home. She was giving this up to help her city.
     "Can't she come back after?" Athena asked, curious now about the way things were done.
     "Sadly, no." O replied, "We do not go into the world outside- even Diana leaving for such a short period was unusual. Of course errands have to be run and visits occasionally made but, for the most part, we are not in the world."
     "It would break our vows." The blonde Spiritess who attended Arya spoke then, before they both turned down another hallway.
     They entered a small room with a table and chairs. There were some papers and pens lying on the table; one high window let in a square of sunlight. O sat down on a chair. They were fairly small, wooden and faded grey-brown. The finish long worn off of them. Diana took a seat and the other two followed her lead.
     "I don't approve of this at all." O started.
     "Why does she need your approval?" Bree snapped.
     "Don't presume to speak about things you know nothing about." O replied, and then turning her attention back to Diana, "How do you think you can help them better by being away from your home?"
     "I'm not sure." Diana admitted.
     "Excuse me," Athena interrupted, "But how is sitting around in here going to help anything?"
     "As an individual, even with your wintery powers, how much can you do to change this winter?" O asked her, "The heat is getting worse. From what you've told us people living in the Eastern wall of Marama have been drunkenly worshipping the sun for weeks."
     Athena frowned. It was true, but didn't seem relevant. She knew that her powers alone couldn't fix things- that was the very reason she had come all this way for help. Initially she had wanted help from the king but it had been refused. Now she feared help from the Spiritess order would be denied as well.
     "Now imagine your powers amplified so that they're about fifty times stronger," O continued,     "Think back to yesterday when you shared Bree's memory of the attack on Luna. Spiritess women don't just connect to each other's thoughts but also to each other's powers. Each woman's abilities can be amplified by the joining of spirit with the other women. It is together that we are truly strong."
     "If that's the case, why don't we just go out there and fight? All of us might stand a chance against the bears if..." Athena trailed off when she realized nobody else was excited about her idea.
     "You don't understand," Bree shook her head, "They don't care. These women with all their power will sit behind these walls until the danger reaches them. Then, and only then, they will defend themselves. They won't go out of their way for anyone else. They simply do not care."
     Bree's eyes were narrowed in accusing anger. She scowled across the table at O, who seemed taken aback at the accusations which had been flung, it seemed, right at her personally. Athena watched wide-eyed, waiting for the response from the older woman.
     "We have our ways, our traditions." O said calmly, "We do not get involved. We are defensive not offensive. We will not leave and we will not fight until the threat is at our door."
     "So you won't help us then?" Athena was hurt by O's cold response.