CHAPTER 183

"It is forbidden to speak with them, young one. Are you aware why?"

She nodded. "I am aware, elder. But I don't understand why I cannot speak with this one. He cannot see me, and is content to catch his fish and then go. He believes that I am a young woman from the village, and--"

"Therein lies the problem." Gaia shook her head. "What if he goes looking for this young woman? Should he decide to pursue your identity, suddenly the humans will hear about a strange voice that can be heard down at the bridge."

"Let them talk, then." Abella waved her hand at the others. "Those who are made of stone do not fear words."

The third elder, Lave, growled. Long ago, he had used so much heartfire that his mouth had stretched and distorted until he was no longer capable of proper speech. Through some means, the other elders understood him.

"Elder Lave informs you that words are rarely harmless," Torma said. "You are only thinking about what is right before you and not what lies ahead."

"They are one and the same," Abella replied.

Gaia shifted, which caused her wings to briefly unfurl. "Consider this, child. Should this man try to learn who you are from the village, the other humans will learn that there is a young woman unaccounted for, should they choose to believe him."

"I don't see the problem."

"That is because you are young." Gaia crossed her arms. "Should the others see fit to help this man, then one of two things happen. The first is that they decide that this woman is real and hiding. As they look for her and discover nothing, they eventually determine that you must be a spirit, or some other entity trying to lure him to his doom. Humans are notoriously suspicious of what they do not understand, and will often go to extremes. Suddenly, we have a mob of humans looking everywhere and chasing rumors until they end up here. The clan has to move, which is no simple feat."

Abella shrugged. "We are moving next spring. By the time the humans can get organized, we will be long gone."

"And what of this man you are so fascinated with?" Torma shook his head. "What if they decide he is simply hearing voices? What will the humans do with him?"

Abella opened her mouth, then sighed. If history was any indicator, he would likely become an outcast. The village tolerated him only because he was self-sufficient and lived with his mother. Did she really want him to end up alone simply because she wanted to get to know him better?

Or worse, he could be labeled as a witch. He would likely be drowned in the very river that was his livelihood.

Lave grunted, then pointed at Abella with one of his many hands.

Gaia frowned at Lave. "That punishment is not fit for this crime."

Lave snapped his teeth and continued speaking. Abella had rarely heard such continuous sound from the elder, and could almost make out a rumbling voice beneath the noise.

Torma held up a hand and waited for silence from his fellow elder. Lave shook his head in disgust.

"Elder Lave wishes to subject you to a punishment known as the Earth Mother's Embrace."

This caused the members of the clan to mutter to themselves, but they were silenced by a dirty glare from Gaia.

"I have not heard of this punishment," Abella replied, her voice shaking.

Torma looked around the room. "As we come from the earth, we must someday return to it. It is a punishment that we have not done since before your time due to its cruelty. It is a punishment by which you are buried alive beneath the stone of the earth. There, in the Earth Mother's Embrace, you will slip in and out of consciousness as your body gathers just enough energy to keep you alive, but not enough to escape."

Abella's jaw dropped open in astonishment.

"It used to be done as a punishment to enforce the will of the clan," Gaia continued. "We were created by the Earth Mother to be her eyes and ears, to soar among the clouds, and to be confined to the rocky depths is to deprive us of our purpose. Those who have suffered the Embrace have explained that they are aware the whole time of their misery. There are those who have been buried and forgotten, or the earth has moved and crushed them into dust. It is dangerous and reserved for crimes only against our own kind."

Lave growled again.

"And while I agree, Elder, that the young one has made a mistake that risks our safety, it was not deliberate. She did not make her choice with disregard for the clan. Rather, she is selfish, as most of the young ones tend to be." Torma bared his teeth. "As one who has been punished with the Embrace, I would vote against it."

"As would I," Gaia added. "But be warned, child. Should your continued love of humans risk our safety, we would rather exile you than bury you beneath the ground and away from the sky. Do you understand?"

Abella swallowed the lump in her throat. "Yes I do, Elder."

Elder Torma opened his mouth and an eerie ringing sound made Abella's teeth buzz in harmony. The other Elders opened their mouths to make the same noise, and her eyes fluttered open, revealing darkness. Though the memory had burst like a grape beneath her feet, that infernal sound remained.