Siblings of Sol: Destruction of a Planet

Chapter 18

Evian drinks a whole pitcher of the spiced water to help drive the sad thoughts from her head, as Marie brings them some fruit from the counter at the back of the hall. Jess has returned from taking the new baby to the nursery on the other side of the hall and places her arm around Evian's shoulder from behind.

Evian looks up to her, still sniffling from crying. "How am I supposed to carry on now? How will I get back to my own village? We are a team, and now I have lost my partner."

Jess hugs her tighter. "It is something we all have to face at some time. I often wonder if it is harder on the ones left than it is for the ones that are taken to serve the Shrils."

Evian wants to strike out and tell her just what is going on here on Mur but knows that they have lived this way for generations, and it would do them no good now to even hear the truth. "I know. Maybe some food and a good night's sleep will help me feel better?"

Jess stands up and moves around to the other side of the table so she can rest her hand on Evian's shoulder. "Maybe two females for you tonight at playtime would help you to move on?"

Evian stares up at her for a moment, before looking around at the males coming back from the fields for the evening meal. "That would be nice and safe, but I am thinking two males at least, but only if I get to choose the ones I want."

Jess smiles at her sudden interest. "What ever you want tonight, it is your choice. It is the least we can do for you."

Evian sits up straighter and wipes at her eyes to clear away the tears. She reaches for the pitcher of spiced water and pours herself a full glass, drinking it all down as fast as possible. "Bring them on!"

Marie backs up from the table. "I will go see how long it will be before the evening meal."

Marie leaves quickly as Jess watches her go. "She really likes you; you know."

Evian turns to watch her weave her way through the tables. "I know, but I am afraid that she likes me too much, much more than I can return to her. Adam is the one for me, and there is nothing I can do about that."

Jess looks out over the workers coming in from the fields to see Cal walking more slumped over than usual, and motions for him to join them. "I know what you mean. Cal makes my heart skip a beat every time I see his rippling body moving towards me."

Evian turns to look at Cal. "Yes, he is well built, but Adam is very special in certain ways."

Jess chuckles at her. "Yes, so I have heard."

Jess and Evian both break out laughing and smiling as Cal arrives at the table.

He looks from one to the other. "Did I interrupt something?"

Jess looks up at him. "No, we were just talking about equipment, and how best to put it to use in unusual ways."

Evian bursts out laughing again as Jess follows her example. They both drink a big glass of the spiced water and smile as Cal shakes his head and walks away to clean his hands for the evening meal.

The meal is done, and Evian picks two of the toughest looking males. She is almost a little afraid of what will happen but knows that it is what she needs to get over the loss of Adam. She has no idea if he will survive, or even if he does, will he ever be able to get back to her.

Evian crawls into bed afterwards and is not surprised to find her bed empty. She hated doing it to Marie because of her deep feelings for the girl, but she can only seem to focus on Adam right now.

Morning arrives, and she goes to the main hall almost late for the morning meal. Jess and Marie are already around the side, looking after the new baby and the other young children. Evian eats the grain porridge that is the staple here in the village, along with a thick piece of bread and Avon jam spread over the top. Even though she was dead tired when she crawled into bed the night before, she still had to cry herself to sleep.

The food and the spiced water though start to bring her back to some resemblance of normality though. She gets up and steps around the side of the hall to the nursery, and the small child.

There are still moments when she gets a sudden flashback of Adam and his smile but working with the young children takes her mind from the horrifying possibilities.

The day passes slowly for her as Jess has Marie bring her all the spiced water, she can drink to help her through her loss. The last part of the afternoon brings her to the point where she is thinking more of playtime than Adam, which would make her sad if she could focus on him long enough.

Jarl had left his house by the barrier across the river to see how Evian is doing and to share the evening meal with them. He stands as Evian and Jess get to the table and is about to speak to her, when, they hear a commotion around the side of the hall. Marie comes running, heading straight for their table. "The Shrils have returned, and they have a baby in a bundle again." She starts to cry. "What does this mean?"

Jarl looks to Jess and then the two of them turn to Evian. Jarl places his hand on Evian's as she suddenly straightens up, looking around as if she is searching for a place to hid. "I am sorry, but there is nothing I can do. They have come for you, and I don't know why."

Evian moves as if she is in a trance and walks around the side of the hall to face her fate with the Shrils. She must fight every step of the way just to keep moving, because all she wants to do is run away from them as fast as possible. The trance state wins, because she knows that the alternative is that the poor people of the village would be the ones to suffer if she refuses to go with them.

Everybody is staring at her as Jess steps up and takes the bundle of cloth from the Shril standing out in front of the other two. She lifts back the cover to see the small child slightly moving its pudgy little arms around and squints in the sudden light. "It is another small child for us to raise, love and call our own," calls out Jess, as she moves back behind Evian, cradling the precious bundle.

Jarl steps up beside Evian as the head Shril calls out in his high-pitched voice. "Who is the oldest here?"

Evian looks up to him and says in a quiet voice. "I am."

The Shrils behind the leader step around him and move towards Evian. Jarl steps in front of her, blocking their way. "She is not of this village, and therefore exempt from the gathering."

The head Shril raises his voice which is so high that it hurts the ears of the villagers. "It does not make any difference. She is here now, and the oldest, so she comes with us, or we take the whole village. It is your choice, old man."

Jarl is not swayed by their demands. "Who authorized this gathering?"

The Shril leans down to eye level with Jarl and lowers his voice. "It comes from Kril himself, so stand aside."

Jarl puts his head down and steps to the side so the two Shrils can grab Evian's arms and pull her towards the leader. The leader grabs her right hand and separates her small finger from the rest and then promptly bites it off. He chews thoughtfully on it, before turning to his companions. "She is weak in the need, but she has enough to sustain us."

Evian is cradling her right hand tightly after she pulled it from the grip of the two Shrils, trying to stop the blood from flowing so freely from the gaping hole in her flesh. Marie rushes over and rips a piece of cloth from her short garment and hands it to her so she can wrap it around the wound. The Shrils grab her again as soon as she has it wrapped around her hand and pulls her towards the floating vehicle.

Evian looks back one more time from the craft as the barrier separates for them to enter. A tear runs down her cheek as she suspects that she will not see them again, or Adam, for that matter.