Season 2 - Blogisode 4

CHAPTER FOUR


MAY 15TH 2014

The water trickles down Jade’s backside creating an eerily erotic blue and grey shimmer over her body as the moonlight bounces off of the pond's reflective surface below. She stretches, arms raised to the sky, back arched towards the full moon.

She shakes her jet black locks loose from her nape and back, sprinkling drops of rain over the calm waters of her bathing pond, tucked comfortably within the jungle green and vine. With a sign of satisfaction she dives beneath the surface and slides just beneath the line with the sensual grace of an animal meant for life in waves to emerge again far side near the banks.

A clap from the sky like thunder by the wrath of God shakes the earth rippling tide through the shallow pond and sending Jade back to the water with a slip and tumble.

She splashes back scrambling to gain footing and erect herself toward the source of the disturbance. Her eyes slowly cut back to the sky, then freeze, a hint of shock.

“Jesus Christ…”

The heavens open up before her eyes as her line of sight fills with the ever expanding light, too bright for nature, red, as if someone were to coat the moon in blood, it changes the colors of the forest.

It overtakes the cosmos, blotting out the brilliance of all the heavenly bodies replacing the tranquility of their beauty with…

BOOM

A shot of light explodes out from the corner of the horizon up to the source of the disturbance. Red electric it explodes with the energy of an atomic bomb sending shockwaves across the sky turning night to day.

Jade stands frozen in awe at the sight, then no sooner than it had begun it stops. A whipping snakes tail of red and white flickers up from the earth and vanishes into atmosphere, then silence.

The light fades and her eyes adjust once more to the moon bright eve, she takes the time to collect her thoughts, her composure, climbs the bank and scrambles into her shorts and top, not bothering the time to dry.



Nine men sit somber round a large marble table set center in the cathedral styled conference hall. The walls etched from old stone, windows peak the light from slits some thirty feet above, touched to the ceiling.

The council of nine, as they were referred to by the others, sit silent, faces connect to one another with sign of deep gravity in regard to the topic at hand. Their robes flow behind their chairs and to the concrete floor beneath, each one a different color, direct opposition to the drab humility of the tattered wears they don beneath.

Round the table one to nine their robes code color emerald green, gold, silver, purple, black, red, blue, orange and yellow.

One of them, name of Seven, takes to speak “I feel that until we have more information the best course of action is to simply do nothing.”

Several of the others spark to quarrel, a paunch little man who holds the current title of Four rises to his feet, finger raised. “You all well know that the rest of them are going to look to us for answers as soon as that door swings open, and if we go out there in a remain of calm, do nothing, then we are going to be the ejected if not beaten to the earth in a fit of uncertainty and fear.”

“Oh come now Carl they’re far from savages. You were no better than the rest of them some ten months ago, far from their superior today. Now sit back down you dramatic little tart.”

“My name is Four, Klein, and you know that.”

“Yes and mine Eight but who’s counting?” The tell of a smirk makes slick to Eight’s cheek.

The banter rises to a chatter then an uproar as all nine join in the back and forth.

The door near back the conference hall slams open with speed connecting to the stone wall to its side silencing the roar. Jade stomps across the floor toward the table parked at the far side, still dripping wet in no more than the shorts and top she had mind to toss on before running back from the spring moments earlier.

“Did you see that? Did you all just see what I saw not ten minutes ago?”

Nine lifts himself from his chair. “My God child what are you doing? Look at yourself.”

“Hello father.” She nods matter of fact then shifts back to address the full council. “Well?”

“Dear we have hardly an idea what to think of that phenomenon let alone what to do about it, or if need be anything done at all.”

She slices eye quick to her father with a scowl. “You know damn well what that was. And stop talking like that, you spend five years in the woods and you start talking like fifteenth century noble lords, all of you.”

Two of the men turn to one another, shrug. The others respond in tell from their eyes, a monocle of truth on her tongue tugs at something in the annals of their memory.

Jade’s father motions with a hand of silence to the rest. “We are discussing the matter right now Jade, in fact we had been discussing it with some degree of progress until you stomped in here sopping wet and full of distraction. Now I beg you please go dry yourself off and wait for me at home. I promise we will sort this and I will personally bring you the detail.”

Jade eyes the nine, side to side.

With a humph. “Fine.”

She turns and exits as abruptly as she had arrived.

“I apologize for the intrusion, now where were we?”

The council settles and commences discussion of the matter.

“What did she mean about the way we talk?”

Outside of the chamber Jade stands with her back to wall next to the entrance, door slightly ajar. She cocks an ear toward the conversation within and slides to a sitting position on the floor beside the doorway where she listens with visible interest.

The banter and debate from inside filters out into the passageway.

“You can’t expect us to make that assumption without something more than an elaborate firework display Seven.”

“I’m telling you the path has been shut, or blocked temporarily, but I know exactly what those lights meant and so do you. We’ve been studying this for near three decades now, some of us six and more, fireworks?”

“I’m saying we need more before we can be certain.”

“More of what? You want the sky to open up and swallow us all into oblivion? I suppose then you might be satisfied. The Nakuri are gone, albeit temporarily they are gone and this is our chance to seal that fissure forever and assure that we don’t…”

“That’s enough. I’ve heard more than my fill for an eve, frankly I’m exhausted. I agree with you both. If in fact we have an opportunity we need to seize it, but we will need to examine this further before making a firm go of anything.”

Jade mouths the words ‘Nakuri’ with a hint of interest.

The sound of feet shuffling on stone jerks Jade to her feet and down the hall.

“We will talk more on this tomorrow.”

“But Nine I’m sure…”

“Tomorrow.”

The echoes of voice and footstep grow louder as Nine nears the front door.

The door swings open and Nine exits the conference hall with speed in step.

"Goodnight.”



NOVEMBER 29 2014

James, Persia and Christina stand on the line where the forest meets the sand. This will be the last time they cast eyes upon their short lived utopia. The cabins are gone, sent way the first in a heaping bomb fire that had served as a farewell earlier in the day.

All they could carry and everything they would need is now slapped on their backs in preparation for the journey ahead.

James lights a cigarette from the pack in his breast pocket and takes one last look at the world that could have been, then turns and steps into the wood.

“Let’s go.”

Persia tugs gently on Christina’s sleeve. “Come on.”

The two women follow James, backs to the beach.

They would find a new home, they would find a haven.