Chill (Klance Warmth series Book 2 of +4)

9: Magma Beneath the Surface

Hunk stood by their pod and waited anxiously for the elder's answer while Coran clattered about inside doing who knows what. It had been a nerve-wracking few minutes and Hunk couldn't help but worry about Lance and the others. They were out of range of their communicators. He knew. He'd tried to contact the Castle as soon as he dared. All he could do now was stand and wait.

He looked up when footsteps approached but was somewhat disappointed to see Shay and not the elder. Still, he offered her a friendly smile. "Hey," he said. "What're you up to?"

She looked at Hunk oddly. "I am not up on anything," she said.

Hunk blinked then laughed. "No, no, it's just a phrase," he said, waving away her confusion. "Don't worry about it. What do you need?"

"Nothing," she said, coming up to him softly. "The elder has yet to make her decision regarding these ones. I am sorry."

Hunk's smile softened. "Hey, it'll be okay," he said. "It's not your fault. I get it. It's a serious thing." He looked down at the ground, thinking of his friends, his family, and the disheartening sounds of the Balmera's moaning. "I'm sorry we're causing so much trouble for you."

"Do not be," Shay said. She brushed her toes through the dirt nervously before speaking again. "Tell me of the sky. What is it like?"

"The sky?" Hunk asked, looking up at the Balmeran's glowing yellow eyes. "Haven't you seen it before?"

Shay looked away. "No," she admitted. "But sometimes at night, I sneak up the tunnels as high as I dare and imagine what it is like." She hopped up onto the pod, using her tail for balance as she went before perching on the roof and gazing out to the main mining hole beyond the tunnel. "Tell me?" she asked again.

Hunk smiled and leaned back against the cool metal, crossing his arms behind him and resting his head on them. "I don't know much about this place," he said, "but where I'm from, the sky is this bright, vibrant blue. It's hot and humid and breezy. The clouds are white except for when there's a storm or something. Then they're gray, some darker than others." He sighed.

"The beaches are hot and sandy and the water's freezing and perfect for surfing," he said. "There're volcanoes there too. This one near my home is called Kilauea. It's where Tutu Pele lives."

"Tutu Pele?" Shay asked, tilting her head down to the yellow paladin's curiously.

"Yeah," Hunk said. He noticed Shay's look and blushed, looking away. "I know it may seem a bit childish to some people, but I do believe in her," he said softly. "I'm a scientist so I understand what makes a volcano works, what goes on inside it and all that. But I just..." He shrugged. "I can't let go of this nagging feeling that she's there watching over me and my family. That's enough to make me believe." He smiled. "She's not the most gentle of goddesses and she's got quite a temper, but she protects my family and that's all I care about."

"This Tutu Pele," Shay asked, pronouncing the goddess's oddly to Hunk's amusement, "she has a temper?"

"Oh yeah," Hunk said, laughing. "She throws temper tantrums sometimes which result in eruptions from Kilauea. These eruptions can be destructive, but they're not always bad." He lifted his head back up to Shay and smiled. "My family and I used to leave offerings for her to keep her temper under control. It didn't always work, but it meant something to me."

Shay smiled and looked back at the tunnel's entrance, the tantalizing light shining through it faintly from far above. "I do not know what 'Tutu Pele' is," she said slowly, "or 'volcano' or 'beach' or..." She ran a thick finger over the pod's metal surface. "I do not know most of what you speak of," she admitted. "But I hope to see them one day."