Curtain Fall Chapter 20

Secretary Spears sat brooding at his desk in his office in the Pentagon. He puzzled at what DD Feber had done this morning. The defense by Feber, a man who until now he’d believed to be an enemy in the administration, had thrown him badly. If he also considered that Feber advanced (or at least presented) the idea that the present level of preparedness was insufficient he was forced to consider the idea that Feber’s previous actions had not actually been driven by self interest. He might actually be one of the unicorns’ in government: an honest man truly devoted to fulfilling his duty!

If that is true, he really needed to speak with Feber in order to understand his knowledge and reasoning. To this end, Spears instructed his secretary to call and arrange a meeting with the Deputy Director. With in the hour the meeting was scheduled for lunch in 2 days time at the Dama Pastry and Cafe not far from the Pentagon.

The 2 days passing saw him sitting down at the cafe with Feber. George started the lunch meeting, “I know we’ve often found ourselves at logger heads in the past. I’m pleased you had time and was willing to travel to Washington to meet with me today David.”

David chuckled with a sense of acknowledgement, “Yes George, it seems as if we’ve often been at odds. I hope you know any opposition I have had only to do with my assessments of how actions might be interpreted, and my belief we still don’t know enough to assume the apparent difference in our comparative military abilities is as lopsided as it might appear.”

“Then why did you recommend increasing our readiness?”, Gorge asked.

David cautioned, “I didn’t ‘recommend’ it exactly, I simply could not ignore information we are getting.”

He paused as the waitress came and took their orders. After the eating, the waitress supplied the extra potent coffee that Ethiopian restaurants are famous for and left where upon he continued, “What we’ve been able to learn as we’ve begun gaining some familiarity with their language and based on the attacks on the patrol boats, I’m coming to the conclusion that their society might not be as unified as we might first have assumed.

If we conclude that the Tarneerans and not another foreign power rescued the Tarneeran women, it may be possible that another faction is holding them in order to bring pressure on the faction we are in contact with. As you likely know, the drones we’ve been trying to use to monitor these people have also recorded an increase of what we interpret as military action. Increases in patrols and the numbers making them. So far, we’ve not detected activity outside the dome but I have to assume that they are, at least some of the time, outside; else a Tarneeran rescue wouldn’t have been possible.” His face became grim.

“What I do know for certain was that the city we are in communication with is considering aggressive actions to hunt down those responsible in order to meet out ‘Justice’.”

George swore tightly but low, “Damn it! It feels a little like the weeks before Ferdinand’s assassination sparked WW1!” He looked at David, his face becoming grim as well, “Do you have any idea of their true military capabilities?”

“Very little. What we do know is that it appears the men are telekinetic. While we’ve never directly observed them using it at a distance, we have to assume that this capability exists. As proof I give the barrier that surrounds their territory. It is clearly an expansion of the localized abilities we have seen. Imagine, if you will, what they might be able to do with telekinesis at a distance against a vulnerable target, say a sewage treatment plant? A chemical plant like Bhopal in India? How about a nuclear power plant?

Even just using what we’ve seen they could kill quickly and silently. Imagine one of the men with handfuls of projectiles, able to unerringly direct them into the brains of targets while at the same time being invulnerable to hand carried weapons? One man could kill a heavy battalion by himself!” David took a deep sip from his coffee while watching the SecDef’s increasingly pale face.

“Now consider the women. While they haven’t demonstrated being telekinetic, they do possess projective empathic abilities. I myself watched one woman render a person unconscious simply by looking at her.

Now reports we’ve analyzed concerning the “visions” of Adrasteia suggest she can press other emotions. She completely shattered one man’s sanity recently. I’ve been told he may never recover beyond drooling and gibbering, even heavily sedated. While I caution against equating Adrasteia’s level of abilities with the general Tarneeran population, there might be ways to amplify what they do have. They mentioned something called a ‘nexus’. I suspect that means that they can work cooperatively to amplify their powers.”

George stared completely aghast. “Good God!”, he muttered weakly.

David nodded, “Now do you understand my caution? I fear we are completely unprepared to fight an all out war with these people. Oh I’m certain we would win ultimately. We outnumber them by far too much. But it might wind up being a very Pyrrhic victory...”

The SecDef nodded weakly, “I have to agree with you. We have no tactics in place to fight a war against these Tarneerans. At best it would be like WW1 all over again. At worst, we would be the French against the Germans of WW2.” He dropped his head and began rubbing the bridge of his nose as if trying to offset an oncoming headache. “What do you suggest?”

“Honestly sir, be very, very careful. Try VERY hard not to seem threatening or aggressive. If I were commanding the base, I might even invite a representative to the base and encourage her to question the troops. If she identifies any of the conspirators on the base, have them arrested and even turn them over.”

George recoiled at the last suggestion, “Turn them over?!?!? Absolutely out of the question!”

“Then find a way to ensure the Tarneerans believe they will be punished. Hold the tribunal right there. If they don’t believe your people, I suspect they would meet out their own forms of revenge...”

Jill and Carol, still holding one another loosely looked at the women around them. Of the 13, four were unconscious. The remaining attendees from the circle of workers were scrambling to their feet with shocked expressions bordering on terror while looking as if they were staring at the spark of an arc welder. One of the three outside the original circle of women, still looking as if she were staring into a terribly bright light, called out in a quavering voice, “Asha amin laito! lle naa n'alaquel a' amin?” This obviously meant nothing to Jill, but she could feel a desperate hope fighting against the shock she also felt coming from this stranger.

Carol focusing on the woman speaking gasped and whispered urgently to Jill, “Honey? That one looks like she is related to you! A sister or cousin?”

“Oh my God.”, Jill said quietly, “I guess this confirms my theory that I was originally given the form of someone else!” Her eyes welled with tears as she realized the pain the strange woman would feel when the woman discovered That Jill wasn’t the relation that she thought Jill was. “Let me up Carol.”, Jill asked with sadness in her voice.

Carol stepped off the stone and then helped Jill to stand. Jill, for her part, brought her emotions under tight control and the women around them stopped squinting. She then started walking with her hands out to show she was not aggressive and slowly stepped towards the three women just outside of the circle. “Uh... Hello? I’m sorry I don’t understand what you are saying. I don’t speak your language.”

The woman became confused at hearing a language she barely spoke. How could Asha not understand? ‘My baby must be playing some strange game. Why?!?’ She stepped forward to pull her daughter into her arms and hugged her fiercely. She let her daughter feel her joy and relief that Asha was returned to her and she vocally and tearfully expressed her joy as well.

Jill stood gobsmacked and distressed as the woman pulled her into a hug, While she felt the love and relief poring from her she could not help but also hear and feel the cries of dismay coming from the other women. The others were apparently terrified of her for some reason and her understanding of this bled to Carol, who moved to her back and faced the others. She then, of all things, started growling at them! ‘What the frick is going on!?’ Jill wondered.

Mridulae had stared with wide eyes as Turi moved to embrace what ever occupied Asha’s form. In fear, she cried out, “No Turi no! Get away from it!” Several of the others also exclaimed with horror as well. Most of the women watching this sent calls for help to their bondmates. She watched with dread as what appeared to be Asha gently extracted itself from Turi’s grip. She gently cupped Turi’s cheek and said something too softly for her to hear over the growling of the humanoid that had appeared out of nowhere and now crouched protectively between Asha’s form and the others. As a handful of Bondmates appeared, it redirected its attention away from Turi and to the threat of the protectors.

Turi was gently but irresistibly pushed away from Asha so that she and the savagely beautiful humanoid were standing alone side by side. What looked like Asha then looked at the women and the men gathered with their spears at the ready. It seemed to discount the protectors and then focused on Mridulae and spoke in the human language while it gestured to the fallen women. Was it threatening them? Mridulae couldn’t tell as she could sense little from this being save the frightening and writhing aura that surrounded it. All she could feel was a feeling of immense power, tightly restrained.

It gestured again at the unconscious women and spoke once more, this time letting a little aggravation into its voice. It was becoming angry? If that anger were unleashed the First Healer feared for the consequences. No it had to be subdued, so that it could be controlled.

Mridulae realized that her best hope would be to strike quickly. While horrifyingly powerful, she might still be able to surprise it. With her own years of experience, and help from the others she should be able to distract it enough for the men to render her unconscious. Then they’d be able to work to restrain and bring it under control. She flashed what she hoped was a look that conveyed “be ready” and quickly stepped forward. Watching its eyes widening she quickly grasped its head and pushed a piercing probe forward and into its mind.

At first there was what seemed an impenetrable wall that she slammed against, but then it opened to her and Mridulae plunged into an incomprehensible expanse. There were no markers common to a Tarneeran or even human mind here in any logical format! Instead, she was adrift in a strange maelstrom that pulled and ate at her very psyche. Wailing she tried to retreat, but wasn’t certain ‘how’. This mental landscape had no up or down. Even the concept of direction, or here and there seemed foreign! Fearing she was doomed her mind shrieked in terror.

Then when she was about to surrender and allow awareness to disintegrate, the force stopped and she found herself standing on a featureless white plain. Mridulae once again had a strange dreamy sense of a physical self. She looked down and could see a body in the very ceremonial clothes she’d dressed in this morning. “What.. What happened? Where am I?”, she asked aloud to herself.

“Is this cool or what!?”, spoke a voice behind her. Mridulae spun around to see the form of Asha standing several feet away. She stood arrayed in a deep shimmery crimson full length gown. She also wore strangely iridescent bracers and a beautiful tiara. Against one hand she also had around buckler of the same material as the bracers. Asha looked around like a kid just getting her favorite gift. “I’ve never spoken mind to mind like this before!” As the seeming Asha spoke, Mridulae was aware that she was speaking a human language but the meaning was transparent to her. Asha then turned and focused on the healer. Her eyes shimmered with all colors at once. “Sorry it took a bit to come to you, but I had to avoid some unpleasantness first. Really? You try to talk and then sick the soldiers on us?”

Mridulae blanched as she realized that the surprise attempt to get the being hadn’t worked. She feared that even thinking it was powerful, she’d greatly underestimated it and their protectors were injured or dead, “W- What did you do?”

‘Asha’ smirked a bit and replied, “Oh, your boys were looking to get frisky, so I moved to get us away from them. You, my lover, and I are presently floating just underneath the barrier your people erected; We’re several hundred feet in the air.” She knelt down and proceeded to rub the featureless white ground with a cloth that Mridulae hadn’t seen before like she was cleaning a surface. As she did the white was replaced by a vision. Looking like a round window, ‘Asha’ stood and stepped back while motioning for Mridulae to come and see.

Cautiously she approached and looked. What she saw caused her to gasp as it was if this were a window from a great height looking down at the palace below. She could clearly see tiny people standing in the grove and others about the palace pointing at them. As she stood transfixed ‘Asha’ popped up with, “Since you‘ve shown me this ‘mind thing’ do you mind if I invite my lover in? She’s uh, a bit afraid of heights..”

With that, the image of the savage beauty faded into view, all the while holding her hands over her eyes and whining, “No, no, no, no! You did NOT float me again!”

‘Asha’ giggled and pulled the woman into a hug. “I’m sorry baby. It was the best way to keep things from getting ugly!”
Opening her eyes, she suddenly began to relax. After glancing quickly around and taking stock of Mridulae, she twisted to look back at ‘Asha’. “Are we back in that place? How did you get us ‘There’?”

‘Asha’ giggled again, “Oh we’re not Outside honey”, she nodded in the other woman’s direction, “She showed me this! I think we’re in my mind right now.” She favored the healer with a gimlet eye and continued, “I felt her trying to force her way into my mind; I think her intent was to knock me out or something. She couldn’t but I got curious and decided to do a bit of Judo to use her intentions against her. We wound up here. She couldn’t handle what she was seeing so I built this protected space.”

Mridulae looked at the being in Asha’s form completely at sea. This being clearly was not Asha. It wasn’t like any human she’d ever experienced either. If what she’d first felt was a true taste of the mind of this being, it was alien beyond anything she could ever hope to understand! Yet as alien as it must be it (giggled?) and spoke with its companion in a way that any lover might?

In a weak and quavering voice she asked, “What are you?”

‘Asha’ rested its chin on the other woman’s shoulder and actually looked introspective. “You know, that’s a good question now days! My memories tell me I’m a human. I was born and grew up in a very different form. Then the Curtain Fall happened and suddenly I was in this body! Carol, here,” she kissed the savage woman, “helped me and kept me from loosing my mind. She helped me adjust. With this body came a bunch of cool powers and I toyed with the idea of being a superhero named Lady Adrasteia.”

Seeming to sense confusion in the healer she expanded, “Superhero? Think of a person with powers beyond normal people who uses them to protect and help others.”

She then shuddered. “Then something happened at a large gathering of people. I helped them but they gave back more than I could handle so I think I found myself Outside of this reality.” She took on a beatific smile. “It’s really beautiful out there. It’s like feeling absolutely everything and nothing at once! It’s like becoming absolutely everything and nothing at once! But not everyone can handle it. Most need order and certainty.”

She looked at the healer and then after thinking added a bit more, “So, I guess I have to say I’m something else now. The “Outside” seems as natural to me now as this reality does... Does that help you any?”

Mridulae didn’t respond verbally; she simply stared at this being with eyes as big as saucers.

“Now before we go back lady,” Jill asked, “there was one of your people down there who looks like she’s related to this body. Could you tell me who she is please? I’m afraid she’s going to be heartbroken when she learns we’re not actually related.”

“M, Mother...”

“Oh damn...” Jill breathed. With that said, The three watched through the window until they were maybe 50’ above the ground. Carol and Mridulae felt a strange emotional pressure and they suddenly found themselves back in their bodies Staring at over a hundred Tarneerans. The armed males all had their weapons at the ready, while a circle of men ringed one of the stones and were in some sort of trance. The women (the unconscious ones had finally been removed) all stood in a cluster, hands linked with dangerous but frightened looks. As they were 15 ft from the ground they felt their feet touch a strange invisible surface. Realizing they had somehow erected a smaller area effect forcefield, Jill allowed them to drift to the ground by sliding along the barrier.

Now on the ground, the three women stared silently at the crowd. After a minute a woman, imbued with a great air of authority directed her eyes at the Tarneeran woman with Jill and Carol. She called out in their native tongue, “Mridulae! Naa lle varna? Mani marte? Sut ume lle oa’l!? Naa re nu tura sii'?” <“Mridulae! Are you alright? What happened? How did you float!? Is she under control now?”>

With Jill watching with a question in her eyes the healer responded, <“I have not been hurt High Mother. This being lifted us with her will. As for what happened she wished to speak to me without having to strike anyone down.”> She took a quick but still wide eyed glance at ‘Asha’/Jill and continued in a shaky voice, <“As for under control... No. She is not restrained in any way. I fear she is beyond any mortal power!”>

Hearing this, Anarra frowned. ‘Mortal power?’, she thought, ‘The test of wills must have gone against Mridulae!’ In a grim tone Anarra called out loudly, <“It is as we feared sisters, the first healer is under Asha’s sway!”>

Upon crying this all the women bent their wills to inflicting pain on Jill and Carol. As they did the armed men began to move forward.

Jill muttered an exclamation as she felt a terrible burning of her skin and in her body. She could feel the collective pressing on her as the healer she had spoken with screamed out in horror, desperately yelling something. With dozens focused on Carol, she simply made a strangled sound and dropped like a stone. Through her increasing haze of pain Jill saw this and let out a howl of pain and rage. The quickest of the protectors stepped up to her and prepared to strike her with his crackling spear.

Through tightly gritted teeth Jill snarled “No!”, and she raised a hand. Suddenly the spear instead of swinging forward was twisted in the man’s hand. He then found his whole body spinning so that the spear point plunged into the stomach of the next closest man who slumped in the portal of the protective dome and bottlenecked the other soldiers temporarily.

Many of the women who saw Asha handle the men from a distance of several feet gasped in dismay, their concentration faltering. As the first man stared in disbelief at what his spear had done, he had just enough time to register a painful pressure then his head twisted around almost 230 degrees to a loud accompanying CRACK!

The pain, while agonizing, couldn’t hold a candle to what she’d felt months ago at the memorial and it left her with enough awareness to know she had to end this quickly. With as much concentration as she could gather she focused on the men trying to maneuver through the portal. Every one of them took a step or two and fell as she tightly pinched their necks from the sides. Not knowing the locations of the Tarneeran equivalents to the human carotid arteries she simply more generally squeezed. This was successful in rendering them unconscious, but also damaged a number of larynx.

More women panicked and broke their focus, which eased Jill’s agony. Not entirely trusting her ability to walk, however, she slowly floated towards the portal so that she could enter. While she moved she noted in passing that the healer she had spoken to was on her knees sobbing and pleading in their language.
Jill stood in the portal now after pushing the unconscious men and dying bodies out of the way. She gazed about and noted a group of men clustered around and pressing on one of the standing stones. They were obviously doing some sort of mental working that made use of that stone. Feeling that the boulder was important, she extended her arm and pulled. With a strong effort she wrenched the 2’x2’x6’ crystal pillar out of the ground, and out of the grips of the men. Once out of reach, the barriers fell.

This action shattered the concentration of the remaining women as they stared aghast at Jill while the standing stone gently floated to touch her palm.

Finally freed from the attack, Jill visibly trembled with rage as she rose a few feet into the air so she could see all the women. Many of the women farthest away, and understanding there was no longer a physical barrier, turned and fled. The fewer remaining women shielded their eyes as if Jill were burning with a light brighter than the sun and clustered around the seeming leader.

With a voice that almost echoed like thunder Jill snarled, “IF YOU’VE KILLED CAROL I WILL DESTROY EVERY THING OF THIS CITY!”

Anarra had in a few minutes watched all their plans and efforts come to ruin. As they had begun, she’d heard Mridulae scream and beg them not to provoke what looked like Asha. Then after they’d ignored her pleas she’d heard the healer turn to “Asha” and tearfully beg for mercy; all while the being that bore the form of Asha tore through them like a scythe before a field of crops. Too late she grasped their foolish arrogance.

Anarra then heard the thunderous promise and made a choice she hoped would spare her people. Not daring to look at this being of unimaginable power she began to walk forward. Gesturing “No” when her followers made to stop her, she walked over to where “Asha” floated and slowly dropped to her knees, the she prostrated herself.

Suspecting that this being chose to speak the human tongue she replied to the threat, “On behalf of my people, terrible goddess, I beg your mercy! If you must pass judgement choose me as the sacrifice. We feared you were a child of wild and uncontrolled power that needed to be contained. Fearing your strength, I decided to distract you so our men could subdue you. Never did we intend lasting harm.” She turned her head to look at the crumpled form of the being’s companion. If you will allow, perhaps your new devotee, Mridulae, could revive her...”

Jill froze as she heard the leader name her a “goddess” and noted that her shock provoked a fresh flinching in the women. ‘Devotee!?’, she wondered. She struggled fiercely to contain herself and waved to Carol, “Do so!”, she barked. The High Mother then ordered Mridulae to attend to and revive the companion.

The healer moved to the companion under an almost painful gaze and she quickly examined her. Confirming no real injury she projected soothing energies and encouraged Carol gently to consciousness. In short order Carol gave a feeble, “Ow! Oh shit that hurt!”

Jill’s attention turned instantly to Carol as she heard her partner awakening and she immediately dropped to crouch next to her. “Baby! Are you hurt? I was so scared for you!”

Still a little fuzzy, Carol joked back, “Damn! I should have at least gotten a good buzz on before this bitch of a hangover... Yes I’ll survive Jill. Uh, what happened?”

Jill nodded towards the healer and confided, “Apparently she wasn’t the only one who was scared of me.” When she saw Mridulae flinch at being mentioned. Jill’s eye’s softened at her and she gave a gentle smile and slowly brought a hand up to caress the woman’s cheek while letting her feel a gentle warmth. She looked back down at Carol and continued, “It seems that the mayor of this city decided they needed to take me into custody or something so they tried to “Taze us with their psychic swat team. She swears she meant no lasting harm.”

Aware that those around her were watching her like lit stick of dynamite Jill adopted a somewhat embarrassed demeanor, grew tearful and continued, “They stopped when I didn’t fall and lashed back at them. I. I think I hurt some of them badly. I lost it when I thought they’d killed you. I could have killed them all..”. At this Jill broke down.

Carol forced herself to get up and wrapped her arms around her lover and made shushing sounds. As she gently rocked Jill she looked at the Tarneerans in view. Many, seeing Jill sobbing looked quite confused. She chuckled a bit and nudged Jill a bit and remarked, “It looks like you’ve really got them confused honey.”

Jill snorted wetly and replied, “That’s probably because I’m not acting like they expect a goddess should act!” She looked at the leader, “She addressed me as quote, ‘terrible goddes’, unquote. Can you imagine thaa—-“. Jill ground to a stop as Carol stiffened as if struck by a bolt of lightning.

Carol pulled back just a bit and turned back to Jill with an eye speculative wonder. “Maybe. Maybe they’re not that far off the mark!” At Jill’s shocked look Carol grabbed her hands excitedly, “Hear me out sweetie. Due to the Curtain Fall you’ve become insanely powerful. You, by your own admission, are comfortable outside of our reality. You have a ‘Mount Olympus’ out there, created by you and tailored to you, You’ve answered prayers and you even are feeding on devotion!” She laughed with amazement and continued, “How is any of that different from any of the pre-Christian deities? Don’t think in terms of the New Testament Christian God. Think of the Roman, Greek, or Sumerian gods. They weren’t all knowing beings; no they were often portrayed as immensely powerful beings that often still had human foibles! Think of how earlier cultures would have viewed you. Maybe your superhero name of Adrasteia is closer to the mark that we thought?

Utterly gobsmacked, Jill continued the line of thought. “But if I became this because of the Curtain Fall then...”

“Then there may be others like you running around the Earth!”, Carol exclaimed.

Looking off into the distance she muttered softly, “Holy crap! That could explain why I saw other paths leading away from this reality!”

Carol grabbed her arm with excitement, “Wait! Hold the phone operator! You saw other ‘paths’?!?”

Jill nodded. “Yep! I wonder what I would find if I followed another one. She then paused a bit and posed another question, “Maybe the ancient gods of old were like me. That would mean that our Curtain Fall isn’t unique! Maybe it happens periodically. But why?...”

David was in his temporary D.C. office when he received a call from George. “Mr. Secretary! I am pleased to hear from you so soon after our lunch meeting today. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Secretary Spears greeted him back warmly and then quickly came to the purpose of his call, “David, I felt you should get first notice of the reports I’ve just received from a couple of my surveillance drones over the Tarneeran dome this morning. Apparently we were able to capture some sort of combat in the Tarneeran area. The images suggest that one woman faced off against over a hundred others and routed them. I’ll send you what we have but it appears it may have been Adrasteia against individuals from Terielen! I’d appreciate your analysis as soon as possible! Thanks!”, and George hung up.

‘Terielen!?!?’, David wondered, ‘That is the city where the mother, Turi is supposed to be from! Where our contacts are from. Is it possible they’ve lied to us all this time about the relationship?’, he asked himself. ‘If they mislead us about this, what else have the hidden from us?’