Spectra: The Mark of Eden

The Mark

None too gently, they were ushered back to safety by Pragley. There was no talk, no idle chatter—just the steady sound of heavy breathing and hasty footsteps as they passed through the fields.

Finally reaching the farm, he practically pushed them past the door's threshold and locked it behind them. Once he was sure they were relatively secure within the house's walls, he turned on Val.

"How do you know that symbol?" he growled harshly.

Val was taken aback by the abrupt change in tone. "I-I told you, I saw it on my pod, the one I woke up in."

"Do you have any idea what it means?" Pragley hissed urgently. "Any idea of the significance that it carries?"

Wordlessly, he shook his head, becoming more and more frightened by the irva's aggressive interrogation. "I don't—I don't know what—"

"What do you know?"

"Prag, stop!"

Ten came to his rescue, standing in front of him and staring down her uncle. "Does it look like he knows what it means? Scaring him half to death isn't going to solve anything!"

Pragley's gaze snapped to her, and then back to Val—but this time, it was softer as he saw the look in Val's eyes. Just as suddenly as his anger had arrived, it dissipated.

"I ... you're right," he murmured. He glanced at Val solemnly. "Sorry, kid. I know you're not at fault here, I just ..." A shameful look overcame him, and he trailed off into silence.

She stepped towards him tentatively. "What is this about? What is it you're not telling us?"

He sighed heavily, seemingly contemplating whether or not to answer her. He eyed Val tiredly.

"I don't suppose you've heard of Eden?"

The boy stared back blankly, eliciting a weak smile from Pragley. "Figured as much."

"What does Eden have to do with this?" Ten inquired, crossing all four of her arms across her chest.

Val raised his hand up slowly. "Er, if I may—what is Eden?"

"Eden is a forbidden place, a mystery to the rest of Spectra," the gruff alien answered shortly, crossing his secondary arms. "It's in the center of the galaxy, and surrounded by an enormous energy cloud that destroys anything that tries to enter."

Val's breathing began to quicken. "An ... energy cloud?"

"Yeah," Prag answered, oblivious to his reaction. "Stretches for lightyears from one end to the other. Some say it's where life began, where motes of stardust came together from null-space and formed the first living beings. Others say the Architects predate Eden, using some unknown power within it to raise other creatures out of the mud, moving them to the Planes where they could grow and evolve freely before it was time to ascend—"

Val held both arms up, his eyes widening. "Okay, you're throwing out way too many terms that I have no meaning for. You two have talked about Sentinels, Architects, the 'Tenets', and now Eden, but what are they? How do any of these things fit together?"

Grunting, the large irva walked over to the couch and sat down. "Hmph. Well, it might just be easier to start at the beginning."

When neither Val nor Ten moved, he gestured to the other chairs in the room. "Go on, have a seat. This might take a while."

Obliging him, the two of them each found an adjacent seat and waited for Pragley to begin his tale. Leaning forward, he clasped his hands together.