THE KEEPERS RISE

Chapter 8 - Unsettling Differences - Part 1

*Remember to click the play button to listen to the soundtrack as you read!*

Will'ym activated the teleporter again. Instead of the docking bay's teleportation building, Velda opened her eyes to see more dense forest, blocked only by a thin layer of glass. Turning to investigate the space, she saw a room-sized glass dome surrounding them, protecting them from the rain that was falling outside. Each drop plinked against the smooth surface before sliding gently down the side to pool on the forest floor, which transitioned nicely from dirt to the glass around them. The teleportation pad was a rather small percentage of the room, and only a semicircle, extending outwards towards the center of the dome. In the middle, a glass table and set of chairs emerged from the floor, with no obvious seams to suggest that they hadn't been built into the room from the very beginning.

Ozul and Will'ym stayed in the teleportation bay as the rest of them, besides Velda, wandered into the space to find seats on the glass chairs. "What should I make?" Will'ym was asking. "It's your turn."

Ozul pondered the question for a moment, rubbing his chin with one paw. Finally, he said, "There's a rare flower that grows on our planet, the pseli, it's sweet and we have it with meals on special occasions."

Will'ym produced a stream of magic and began to form some recognizable shapes. "What are they like?"

Velda left them to their ponderings and sat down at the table in the middle of the three-chair-wide gap, quietly observing the crystal-clear surface as the other Keepers conversed quietly amongst themselves. Even in the orphanage on Myusaria, she had never felt so alone.

After what felt like forever, Will'ym and Ozul came to the table and sat down beside her. She was already relieved that Will'ym was there, but he charmed her even more with a small wave of his hand above the tabletop, releasing a plume of white magic in front of them that she saw as easily with her eyes as by sensing his aura's increase in power. "We've got pseli flowers and hachinu on the menu tonight," he announced.

As he did so, the forms of the food began to appear in front of them, each an exact copy of a large, exotic steamed fish with tiny, iridescent yellow flowers bordering it. Will'ym had his eyes tightly shut in concentration until the magic faded completely. Ozul smiled slightly at his plate, and Velda saw in his gaze a longing for home. She shared the feeling with him.

Velda had never had anything like the food Will'ym and Ozul had produced. The fish, though typical in taste and texture, had a hint of otherworldliness to it that she had never encountered before. Each of the flowers tasted like pure sugar, something that reminded Velda too closely of the sugarcane that she was accustomed to eating at nearly every meal. The other Keepers seemed equally entranced by the dish, and for a while there was near-perfect silence as they enjoyed it, only interrupted by the raindrops that pattered incessantly above their heads.

Finally, Ozul broke the silence, saying dramatically, "Well, we're all together now."

Iyan, the kathumis, looked up at him in astonishment. "You're not even going to acknowledge that this is amazing?"

Ozul looked at him blankly. "What?"

"The food," Titus clarified. "Obviously."

"Oh." Ozul looked down at his plate. "Well, it's pretty normal food where I come from. Not for the working class, but royals are wealthy enough to afford the flowers."

"You're royal too?" Velda asked.

Ozul looked at her inquisitively. "You're also royal? You said you're an orphan."