Green Eyes

The next morning Selene willed the butterflies in her stomach to calm down. She was standing alone in front of a pair of huge bronze doors that led into the Creator’s Chamber, the solitary room at the top of the ziggurat. And she was nervous bordering on terror.

Selene didn’t know what to expect inside. Despite all that she had heard about the Creator, Selene still felt that she knew very little about him. What was his personality? What did he look like? Was he kind? Was he demanding? Was he indifferent? When she had asked these questions, all Selene had gotten was a shrug and the reply that you had to meet him for yourself to know.

“Get it together Selene,” the young Navi commanded herself. This room was for her and her fellow Navi to commune with the Creator. In a sense, she had a right to be here. More importantly, she had a need to be here. So with a deep breath, Selene placed her hands on the doors and pushed. Soundlessly the hinges moved and the door swung easily inward and Selene stepped inside.

Whatever she had been expecting, what she found was definitively not it. The walls were unplastered limestone. There were no carvings or decorations or furnishings of any kind. It was simply a small, empty room. Except for one thing.

Hovering in the center was a large ball of iridescent fire.

The flames almost hypnotized Selene as they danced and moved, changing shape and color. She stepped closer, tempted to reach out and touch it, all the while wondering if this could be…

“No, that is not me,” a voice suddenly sounded in her head.

It was a voice unlike any she had ever heard or ever would hear. Musical in quality, it had the peace of a singing brook, the beauty of an orchestra, and the power of a thunderstorm. The voice seemed to be everywhere and nowhere. It simultaneously comforted and overwhelmed Selene.

“That is merely a physical manifestation of who I am,” the voice went on.

“Who are you?” Selene asked stupidly, already knowing the answer.

“I am the Creator, child,” the voice warmly replied. “But you already knew that. Why are you here?”

“Don’t you know why?” Selene questioned.

“I do,” the Creator said. “The question is do you know why you are here?”

“I, uh,” Selene suddenly felt tongue tied. “I want to know why you chose me. I want to know what my purpose is.”

“As to the first,” the voice spoke, “I chose you because I chose you. It is my right as Creator to choose whom I will without having to answer to anyone. As for the second,” there was a pause, “perhaps I should show you instead of tell you.”

Suddenly the ball of fire exploded, engulfing the room in dazzling light. She was back in Kalashon, in a stone city built into a mountain. She saw a beautiful woman with blond hair holding a young child in her arms.

“Is that me?” she asked.

There was no answer; instead Selene watched in horror as a cohort of black and silver clad soldiers came charging into the house and tried to rip the infant from the woman. The woman bravely resisted, trying to protect her child but the soldiers overpowered her. Suddenly flames erupted all around the dwelling, torching everyone except the child.

The scene vanished and a new one took its place. This time Selene was in Lakeside on that awful night her father was killed. With grief and anger, she again relived the brutal senseless murder of the most important person in her life.

Now Selene was in Beth Haven, watching Jael’s mind get destroyed by Brutus all because she helped Selene and her friends. Moments later she saw Brutus and his sorcerers run rampant through the city, killing and destroying everything they could.

Again the scene shifted to a palace built into the side of an enormous mountain, and Selene was placing a silver crown on someone’s head. Around her, people cheered and yelled. And then, as soon as it had started, the vision faded and Selene was again in the simple room atop the Navi Temple.

“Do you understand what I have shown you?” the Creator asked gently.

“I think so,” Selene panted as she absorbed all that she had seen. “Yes.”

“Then you know what your task is,” the voice told her.

“I do,” Selene nodded as the enormity of what she must do began to weigh down on her. “But how can I do it? I’m just one girl.”

“You are not alone my child,” the Creator informed. “You have your friends, Jared and Mara. Their path and yours must run together for a little longer yet. And I am with you, I always have been,” he added. “Even though you may not have seen it or felt it, I have been there, watching over you. And I always will.”

The voice and the light faded, leaving Selene in darkness. Wearily she looked out the windows, realizing to her amazement that it was dark. What appeared to have been only a few minutes had taken all day. No wonder she was exhausted.

She stumbled out of the chamber, almost falling down the stairs when she felt a pair of strong hands catch her. Selene looked up to see Andrew’s concerned face regarding her. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

“Hey,” she whispered faintly.

“Are you okay?” he asked before looking up to see where she had come from. “No, of course you’re not okay. You met the Creator didn’t you? You learned your mission, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” Selene admitted with a nod before slumping down onto one of the steps. “The phrase careful what you wish for comes to mind.”

“What do you mean?” Andrew sat down beside her.

“I wanted to know what my purpose was,” Selene answered. “Now that I do, it’s overwhelming. I don’t know if I can do it.”

“What is your mission, if I might ask?” Andrew queried.

“To end Brutus’s oppression and overthrow Manasseh,” Selene summed up simply.

“Sounds simple enough,” Andrew observed.

“No, you don’t understand,” Selene shook her head. “Brutus is unlike anything you’ve ever encountered. He’s the only person that actually scares Jared and Mara. Do you understand what that means? They’re not scared of anyone. I’ve faced him twice and was lucky to get away with my life both times.”

“You did survive though,” Andrew pointed out.

“The point is he’s more powerful than any of us here,” Selene sighed. “And then there’s the whole issue of what to do if I succeed. Am I supposed to crown a new king? That’s going to be kind of difficult since Beth Yarack would be wiped out at that point.”

Andrew studied her carefully for a moment. “Come with me,” he ordered, standing suddenly and offering her his hand.

“Okay,” Selene took it and stood. “Where are we going?”

“Just follow me,” Andrew told her as he led the young woman down the side of the Temple towards the lake that shimmered in the moonlight.

“Here,” he said several minutes later as he took a seat on the pebble beach a few hundred yards west of where the old docks were.

“What are we—,” Selene began.

“This is my favorite place in all of Jerel,” Andrew cut her off, looking out over the water. “Do you know why?”

“No,” Selene hadn’t a clue. She could’ve read his mind, but decided that wouldn’t be polite.

“Because this is where I was found,” Andrew answered.

“Found?” Selene raised her eyebrows.

“I’ve been living here since I was twelve,” Andrew explained. “You and I have a lot in common, including that we hail from countries that aren’t exactly on good terms with Navi. In Malchi, Navi are hated and feared for their power. If a Navi is born, either they are killed outright or taken to be trained to serve the state.

“I was lucky, or luckier,” Andrew went on. “My parents weren’t fans of the empire and followed the Creator. When I was born, they kept me hidden as long as they could. It wasn’t that hard at first: unlike Esthorians and Kalashonians, Malchians have all sorts of eye colors so at first no one paid attention to a green eyed boy. But then my powers began to manifest themselves when I was twelve.”

“And I’m guessing that didn’t go over so well,” Selene observed.

“You could say that,” Andrew confirmed. “When the local warlord found out that a village had been sheltering a Navi for a decade, he was furious. He marshaled his entire force and set to wipe my entire village out. Fortunately my parents got wind of it first and with the help of some neighbors managed to escape.

“The warlord hunted us for weeks as we fled,” Andrew recalled painfully. “At first the plan was to flee to Esther but we the warlord caught up to us in the Razor Mountains. Before he could get to me, my parents put me in a boat and floated me down the Schwarzbeuge River. I floated for three days before washing up here, half dead. Johann found me and the rest of the Navi nursed me back to health and I’ve lived here ever since.”

“What happened to your parents?” Selene inquired.

“I don’t know,” Andrew picked up a pebble and pretended to study it. “Probably executed for crimes against the empire. Malchians aren’t known for their forgiving attitudes.”

“Sounds familiar,” Selene reflected on her own people’s rather swift justice. “Why are telling me this?”

“A few reasons,” Andrew locked eyes with her. “One is that I want you to know me better. But more than that think about my story and yours. I was given twelve years to grow up with my parents and then we were given warning just in time to save my life. When I was put on the boat, I washed up here of all places, right where I needed to be.

“You had a father that protected you and kept you safe from Manasseh and Brutus for 25 years. And then, just when everything seemed to fall apart, Jared comes into your life and rescues you,” Andrew continued. “That’s not chance or luck or coincidence; that’s the Creator watching out for us. We may not realize it at the time, but looking back I can clearly see his influence on my life. And if he was watching over me then, then he’s watching over me now.

“The point is, Selene,” Andrew summed up, “that you’re never alone. The Creator is always going to be with you and he’s given you the tools and powers to succeed. If he says you will do something, then you can bet your life that you can do it.”

“I’d never thought of it like that,” Selene said, reflecting on her past in an entirely new light. “What was the other reason you’re telling me this?”

“To tell you how lucky you are,” Andrew replied. “Both our peoples have rejected the Creator and followed their own path. My people are oppressed like yours and worse, they oppress others. I know the looks that your friends Jared and Mara give me for being a Malchian and you know what? Those looks are deserved. My people have done some pretty awful things in the last few years.”

“But you didn’t,” Selene interjected hotly. “And you shouldn’t be held accountable for the actions of your people.”

“Maybe not,” Andrew allowed. “But I understand their distrust of me and my people. More than anything I want to change that. I want help my people; to save them. I haven’t been back to Malchi in 15 years. But that isn’t my mission; not yet anyway.

“But you,” Andrew looked at her pleadingly, “you have the chance to fix your nation. More than that, you’re charged to. Do you realize how incredible that chance is?”

“I guess I hadn’t,” Selene admitted, recognizing that she had been looking at this in an entirely negative light, something she routinely chided Jared and Mara for. She could do this. No, she would do this.

Peace settled over her as she sat up straighter. “Thanks,” she told Andrew with her usual smile. “You’re right; this is a good thing and I will do this.”

They sat in comfortable silence for a moment, just taking in the beauty of a full moon glimmering off the lake.

“This is poetic, don’t you think?” Andrew commented.

“How so?”

“Well, I’m talking to Selene in the light of full moon on the beach of Moon Lake,” he explained with a wry grin.

“I’m not following,” Selene furrowed her eyebrows.

“Well, Selene is a Malchian word that means ‘moon’,” Andrew explained. “So I’m talking to the ‘Moon’ sitting on the beach of Moon Lake while a full moon is shining.”

Selene chortled softly at the long pun. “That’s funny,” she laughed. “I’ve always wondered what my name means. And I’ve been wondering for weeks what the name of the lake is.”

“Well, now you know,” Andrew smiled broadly.

“It’s a beautiful night,” Selene observed as she took in the scene.

“Not as beautiful as you,” Andrew whispered in a low voice.

Selene turned to see his gaze transfixed on her, his face only inches from hers. Suddenly her heart was pounding in her ears and her stomach started doing jumping jacks. The rest of the world fell away until there as only him and before she knew it, she was leaning in for a—

Ice suddenly seized her gut, causing her to shudder violently. Blinking, she looked to see that Andrew was having the same reaction. Terror began to grip her as Selene recognized that feeling; a feeling she hadn’t felt in months; a feeling she’d almost forgotten.

“It seems there’s a chill out tonight,” Andrew commented awkwardly.

“No there isn’t,” Selene replied in a terrified whisper. “He’s here.”

“Who’s here?” Andrew cocked his head in confusion.

Selene looked up at the larger Navi, her green eyes wide with terror.

“Brutus.”