Reign Of Fayala

Judgment

          It was late in the afternoon and Fayala was deep in thought as she approached the Temple. She had just destroyed the entire town of Bidar as effortlessly as picking a flower. She struggled with the efficacy of her actions and the fact that she had little if any remorse over what she did to Dr. Waterford. Vengeance aside, she viewed the affair as a function of what she represented as the Earth Goddess and her responsibility as the planet's  guardian. She needed to set an example for the other towns.     

            She had left through the main temple doors and not locked them so that she may reenter without bothering her resting servants. Although she thought whimsically, after today's demonstration she will probably never need to lock the doors again ...

"And why is that sister?" Was the telepathic greeting.

"Mira, is that you!" Fayala replied in kind.

"Yes it is me," said Mira.

"You are feeling better, I am so glad," Fayala rushed to Mira's chamber.

She eased into a kneeling position just inside Mira's room, Ohas was there as well, next to Mira's bed. Mira was sitting up, sipping broth from a bowl held by Ohas.

Ohas also greeted Fayala psychically, "others are coming out of it as well, several servants and priestesses, they are tired but alert and talking." 

Fayala smiled then suddenly realized that Ohas had joined their telepathic conversation, "Greetings ... sister," Ohas looked up at her and nodded.

"I believe Ohas has acquired her psychic abilities as a result of the joining I used to heal you," explained Mira.

Mira swallowed a small amount of the soup. "So why would we never have to lock the temple doors Sister, especially after what just occurred here."

            Fayala thought of what had happened to Bidar and the Doctor for but a second but that is all it took for Mira and Ohas to glimpse the carnage that had occurred. They saw Bidar ablaze and the Doctor being burned alive.  Mira gasped, she was shocked and speechless that her Fayala could have done such a terrible thing.

"It had to be done, you both know that," stated Fayala.

"But the whole town as well, why?" Asked a distraught Ohas.

    Fayala looked down at her priestess, she needed her, and Mira as well if she was to get through this, "I punished them for their desecration of this temple, what they did to me, you, Mira, all of us, and for what they planned to do to our Mother Earth.  Now no more talk of this, let us look to our own injured," she concluded.

______________

             The next day saw more servants and priestesses up and about the temple. Fayala greeted each, taking them up her hands creating a personal telepathic link conferring her gratitude and deep affection for risking their lives to save her.

At midday Fayala led the survivors to the entryway of her private sanctuary. She pushed open the massive doors and led the procession through the cave and out into the beautiful valley that had been her private retreat for over two hundred years.   They carried with them the remains of their fallen brothers and sisters which they placed into a grave located on a mount that overlooked the lake.

A monument was built in their honor consisting of stone slabs that covered the graves with their names chiseled into the stone. Fayala led them in a communal telepathic joining where they were able to share remembrances of the deceased. This was a particularly emotional moment, for Fayala now realized that she had developed a complacent acceptance of her station that distanced her from knowing many of the people who willingly sacrificed their lives for her.