4Chapter 19
I am at the limits of my endurance. This is really a lack of thought on my part. What so I do if she's not there? It's already too late to Call someone, now that the ceremony has started. I really don't think I have the energy to run the whole seventy kilometres on uneven ground again. It has taken me nearly two hours to get Tal in sight. Based on my personal statistics for the school's annual marathon, this run would drain me for the next six hours. I might as well wait until the ceremony is over to get someone to pick me up, rather than take my time walking back to town.
Sigh…why couldn't I have been born a Flyer? The distance was so deceptively short when Elle flew me over the first time. Good thing I had the common sense to ask the M'kina for the exact direction. Who knows how long it would take me if I had played the guess-Tal's-coordinates games? And come to think of it…
I slow down to a jog. Stupid me, I should have just asked them if Elle was with Tal.
Being able to read my mind, the M'kina immediately answers with the drop of a single leaf. Giving my thanks, I place the leaf at the base of the tree from which it fell from. Then I groan in frustration. Now that I've stopped, I don't feel like picking up the sprint again. My legs feel heavy enough that taking slow, small steps is already a huge effort. Fortunately, I am nearly at the base of the hill where Tal stands – or floats.
I take my time so that I can catch my breath. There's no use in arriving there and spending five minutes gasping for breath, unable to speak. Finally, I reach the top of the hill. I view the scene in front of me. Tal doesn't look like he's had too much trouble with yesterday's misfortune. He definitely has his roots dug deeper into the ground than before, enough to possibly support his weight for a short while should his levitation fail. But I can see that the soil around his roots has been eroded – a quick attempt by the M'kina to lower him into the ground gently, so that he would not fall over. It is brave of Tal to be willing to float again after yesterday.
I slide through a small parting between the roots, too tired to walk around to the larger opening obviously meant to be the 'front door'. The first thing I notice out of place in the missing bookshelf and the table beside the bed. Elle has told me that her belongings here come from three different sources: the factory; the telekinetically-forced bonding of essential elements; and the temporary use of force and light-bending. Those two must be formed by the latter.
I can't help but smile at the neat arrangement of the books on the ground. That is just like Elle. Not too far away, I spot an unusual hole in the ground. This definitely was not made by the M'kina – it is a very rough circle, and the removed soil lay nearby. Tal points out the waterhole to me. Not wanting to be rude and with the fact that I am quite dehydrated, I take a drink before heading over.
Inside, Elle sits hunched over her knees, which are propped close to her chest in the tight space.
"Elle, what are you doing?"
She raises her head, gazing up at me. "Hiding."
I sigh. "Are the M'kina fine with this hole?"
She shrugs, and drops her head back to her knees. "If they are not, they can feel free to close it up right now."
I bite my lower lip, not sure of what to do. I have very limited experience in this regard. The only time I can remember consoling someone was the first time I came to Tal. And Marcus advised against approaching her yesterday. "You're missing the ceremony for your brother."
"I…" If it is even possible, Elle curls up more into herself. "I can't go. Not again."
I think about it for a second, then slide down into the hole. This seems to surprise Elle – she must not be paying attention, though I admit I usually avoid any such situations as I never know what to do – and she shifts to the side to let me squeeze in beside her. This place is actually quite comfortable and cool. Elle rests her head on my shoulder.
"You're sticky," she mumbles.
I brush back the hair that is plastered on my face. "It was quite a run."
"You shouldn't be here."
I nod. "Marcus is making a public announcement after the ceremony. I can wait."
"He is able to explain it better. I am particularly bias about it."
"How so?"
She sighs. "I can't explain it since you don't know what it is about."
I close my eyes. I really don't feel like moving. I'm actually comfortable enough that I can sleep. But I'm not one of those people who can fall asleep anytime when they are tired. Sleepiness and being tired are two different concepts to my body. Maybe we can just lie here in silence. This place is so peaceful, despite being a hole in the ground. But maybe that's why Elle is in here. And I'm just disturbing her peace.
"No," Elle says, holding onto my arm, "stay here."
I smile. I have no problem with that.
Elle suddenly laughs. "You always have a tendency to overestimate your abilities."
I mock indignation. "When?"
"About two hours ago," she says matter-of-factly, "when you decided to run all the way here. And just now, when you thought you could stay quiet for who knows how long?"
"Well, I have to make up for my lack of useful Skills."
She frowns. "Don't say that. Your Sight will be very useful from now on."
This statement seems to relate to the announcement that Marcus will soon be making. Well, Elle might as well just tell me now, now that she's brought the topic up.
Elle exhales deeply, getting herself ready to dive into a long explanation. "Marcus wants to send us all back to Earth."
Well…I certainly didn't expect that.
"That was why he approached me as Mark Sampi," Elle continues. "He was afraid that I would not listen to him if he came as Marcus Kyner. To be honest, he was right. I was angry he made my family's death into something as stupid as an ill-conceived disease. My father was one of the top medical researchers. It just made him seem inadequate…it humiliated him. I could never forgive him for that.
"But even so, I cannot oppose his reasoning for the migration to Earth. The M'kina granted us permission to inhabit this planet for as long as they can continue to have the power to support us, or until we find another suitable planet. There is an implicit reasonable duration, and we probably still have another couple hundred years as long as our population growth rate does not increase. But our scientists haven't been successful at finding another uninhabited habitable planet, and though they don't say it, us being here is a burden on the M'kina. It is primarily for the sake of the M'kina that we leave."
"But why now?"
"Compare your view of the world say, five years ago, and your view now. Can you say you still have your innocence? That we can continue our lives the way it has been?"
I have to think about it.
"The essence of our survival as Elpisians has been our innocent acceptance. But humans are naturally curious beings. With the past few years as the trigger, it won't be long before all the preparation and secrecy will be exposed. Not everybody will be able to accept it as easily as both of us. It is only a matter of time, maybe within the next generation or two, before something goes out of hand. So, we might as well go back to Earth now, rather than trouble the M'kina here."
It is not as easy as I'd thought it would be to accept her words. Indeed, I understand the reasoning behind it. But selfishly, I like the way I have been living here. I may be adaptable, but I am not willingly so.
"Marcus is an influential man, even on Earth. He has a lot of connections, and something they call money, which apparently gives one certain privileges or power. He says he will try to keep everyone close to each other, and he will do the preparations to hide our background from the people of Earth and keep us as safe as possible."
I clasp my hands together. "But it still isn't a very favourable outcome. How does he expect to convince the others?"
"You are too hard on them," Elle chides. "The majority of Elpisian haven't been influenced by the events of the past year. They are still very loyal. And Miss Tau has ascertained that there is no other with the same mentality as the real Malcolm Gamma."
"Then what about you?"
She lifts her head, staring at the brown wall of soil in front. "My bias lies in very selfish reasons. One, I am the one who has to create the portal back to Earth, a difficult feat which I have yet to try. Two, my mind can only take so much knowledge. Earth is purported to be in existence for around four billion years, with millions of different species, and a current record of seven billion humans. I have had nineteen years to absorb all the knowledge of this planet. To process that much knowledge of Earth to the present time would be absolute torture. And three, the M'kina are perfectly fine with letting me stay behind."
"What about me?"
She smiles. "They like you too. But the others won't be so willing to leave if we were allowed to stay behind."
"They don't have to know," I joke, knowing full well her answer.
"It wouldn't be fair."
"So we're going to Earth."
She does not respond immediately, continuing to stare in front of her. It doesn't surprise me when I see the tears forming in her eyes. Without hesitation, I shift my position to pull her into my arms.
"I hate this," Elle cries softly, her voice breaking. "I hate it so much. I've lost everything."
I know. I know, Elle. You want to be fair to the others, but life just isn't fair to you. Your family… Amy, the one person whom you've been able to confide to your whole life… Brendan, the man you've loved for so long… And now your home.
I can't help but think about Peter. Why does life like to tease Elle? To destroy her family, only to dangle the hope of returning her brother to her in front of her face… But in his short moment of awareness, Peter killed himself. It was false hope. He did not know how to consciously control his Skill, so the only way for the effects of Reality Bending to be permanently removed was for the user to die.
How cruel…
I stare at the ring on my finger. Michael is also being remembered in this ceremony. He is the reason why I should actually be there, not Marcus' announcement. But I've already said goodbye to him in person, instead of his ashes. That is what matters to me.
And who gave me that opportunity?
"You have me, Elle," I say firmly. "That's got to be worth something, right?"
"Everything," she replies softly.
"Just the two of us now."
She laughs. "You make it sound so dire."
"I'm serious," I say, nodding. "We can be Companions."
"We're barely even out of our teens!" Elle exclaims, pulling back to look at me. "Surely you can wait another ten or twenty years?"
"What, only middle-aged people can be Companions?" I am unable to hide the smile from my face.
"That is the usual practice."
"We're practically one already."
"You still have a chance with someone else," Elle objects, her mood lifting. "Perhaps you'll catch some Earth-man's heart."
I try to be indifferent about it. "He can never replace Michael. At best, a Companion, but having read things about Earth culture…I doubt he'd be satisfied with that."
"Well, then…" Elle takes my hand, and suddenly, the view is very bright around her. "Consider this my acceptance, if it comes to that."
I blink, shielding my eyes from the brightness. "Where are we?"
Elle sits up straighter, and points. "Look."
Something pushes my back, and I drop my hands to maintain my balance. I had not been sitting in a position suitable for a place without something to lean on. The ground feels strange. My eyes finally adjust, and I suck in a breath. White grainy soil.
No, it is sand.
I jump to my feet and look to where Elle is pointing. A vast light blue area expands out into the unblocked horizon ahead of me, the white foams of gentle waves sweeping up close to my feet. The ocean!
I grin, and childishly kick at the white sand.
"You like it," Elle comments, still sitting down.
I stop what I am doing, and inhale deeply. "The air smells so different."
"It's the water. Its properties are slightly different from the lakes and rivers inland."
"Forget the science!" I drop down beside her. "It's so beautiful."
Elle smiles. "On Earth, the majority of the planet's surface is covered by oceans."
"One point for Earth, then."
"Indeed," she agrees.
I gaze at the ocean. It is truly as Michael had said. I feel at peace here. It is as if all my – our – troubles are just a distant memory. If only we could stay here forever. Hmm, I suppose I could make Marcus get us a house by the ocean. Yes, that will certainly do.
Author's Note:
This is the end of Exiled: Hope. I hope that you had enjoyed reading everything thus far. The ending may be a little disappointing and open-ended, at least, it is for me, but I hope I still managed to put up a good read for everyone. To those who reviewed, your feedback was much appreciated and encouraging. Thank you so much for that!
If you'd like, please have a look at my other fiction: Ghost of Souls. If my current plan works out, it is like the prequel to the prequel of Exiled: Hope, in a spin-off kind of way. That is, we have the same universe (not Elpis, but the same Earth) and different characters, but events that happen in one story affect another story. In my current plan, Ghost of Souls is the introduction to the universe of extraordinary people, and the next story will have events that lead to the migration of these people to Elpis. Once these two are up, I'll probably be writing a second draft of Exiled: Hope, with little tweaks to better suit my universe. Thanks. (The writing is much better too, in my opinion.)
Again, I apologise for the half-hearted effort, and the possible confusion. In my original plan, I had wanted to write a sequel that would explain the Elpisian culture more (due to it being set on Earth, and so comparisons will be made – rather than explaining it here, where these things are considered normal and hence would not be explained due to it being in the first POV). But because of the change in plans, this explanation will not be happening for a long time. So, I will list down a few Elpisian terms and culture, and if you want to know more, feel free to message me.
Partner: Your partner is either your boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife. In a community that small, people know which is which.
Companion: It's for people who've been widowed or can't find the right one. They may find a (or more) Companion, who is like your best friend and housemate. You know, they share a home, responsibilities – like a second family. A purely platonic relationship.
Offscreens: I may not have made it clear, but the Elpisian technology is far more advanced than that of Earth's. Paper is not in use (at all). So when I say notebook or book, think tablet (specific to reading/writing). Offscreens are like loose-leaf paper, kind of like holographic projections that you can write on (probably detects your writing by motion detectors – haven't work that one out), and store back into the book.
Computers: Their version is a simple black box that holds everything. A holographic screen is projected out of the box, usually against a wall of some sort, but can be in mid-air. A holographic keyboard and touchpad can be projected too (again, motion detectors to reflect what you're typing etc.), but if connected to a power slot on a compatible desk, a physical keyboard and touchpad will be used (see Chap 15).
Education: Comprises of fifteen years, each year holding three age groups i.e. Year 1: 5-7; Year 2: 8-10; Year 15: 19-21. So there will be two year gaps between successive student intakes i.e. at one particular calendar year, the school Years will only be Year 1, Year 4, Year 7, Year 10, Year 13. This is to avoid the overlapping ages (Quite confusing, I know, but has to be done because the population is so small and classrooms will be almost empty otherwise, especially when taking into consideration the ample amount of subjects at the tertiary level). Because the Elpisians are more advanced, their education is also more fast-paced. The last seven years are equivalent to a university degree, where the last two is that of a doctorate level. This is comparatively long because they learn everything of a subject i.e. if you take Physics, you're learning everything: classical mechanics, electromagnetism, quantum mechanics etc., not just mastering one field.
Skill: Elpisians think of their supernatural abilities as normal extensions of their human ways. Skill is separated into three main categories: Mentals (Skills manifested through the mind – Mindreading, Empathic reading, Intellects); Builders (Skills manifested through the body – Shapeshifters, Speedsters, Super-strength); and Outers (Skills manifested as an external ability – Pyrokinetics). There are also sub-categories that linked similar Skills together e.g. Kinetics and Readers.
M'kina: The original inhabitants of this planet. They are tree-like beings (size can differ, but in our normal terms, you would see them as the same species – say if they look like oak trees, then every single M'kina is an oak tree.) Their leaves are blue, trunks dark brown. They think as one, but at the same time, are also individual beings. They have full control over the elements of the planet, choosing when they want it to rain, or to have an earthquake etc., they also have strong mental-like powers. Grass is not native to this planet. Grass and some harvestable plants (for food) are brought from Earth. These would look as we know them to.
Physical features: Elpisians are generally short (by Earth standards). The gravitational force is three times that of Earths, and over the two hundred years there and roughly ten generations, Elpisians have evolved to suit that planet better. In fact, they have over-evolved, in that if we treat the planet as Earth, they can do more than Earth humans can e.g. a 100m Olympic men's race-level of speed (about 9km/s) is the normal speed that most of them can run at (considered a fast jog), and they have the endurance to keep at that speed for at least an hour; they are so much stronger – on average able to lift twice their weight easily (referenced in Chap 6).
Elsina gas: This low density gas is emitted by the M'kina (like how oxygen is emitted by our trees, but not necessarily by the same procedure). The more the Elpisians are exposed to it, the better (or more) they evolve e.g. Gabrielle is stated many times to be one of the strongest and fastest bare (a term for when not using Skills) because she often treks through the forest, visits Tal who is on a hill and flies (thus breathing a lot of the gas); Flyers are also stated to be, on average, better than the other Skillusers.
Assignment and Skills Test: Jobs are assigned based on Skill type and level of Skill. The length of commitment is determined by the amount of Skillusers of the same type and level to take over, the difficulty of the job, and the happiness of that job. Miners have the lowest duration of commitment due to the comparative abundance of Telekinetics and their isolation from the town.
The planet: Why is the ocean so special? The planet is just one big continent, and the town of Elpis is situated right in the centre of it, surrounded by forest. It is a long way to the ocean, and the only way to get there is by flying (a very long time) or teleporting.
Elle or Gabrielle: Full name Gabrielle Delta. Clara just has been calling her Elle since they met (in my original plan, it's supposed to be due to Clara's young tongue being unable to pronounce the name). Only a handful of people (common close friends of the two) call Gabrielle Elle, and it is because it was Clara who introduced her as Elle.