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Authors: Z. D. Robinson
Tags: Fantasy
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Genesis returned, and at full strength again.
“I hesitate to say ‘good morning,’” she said, “but I’m glad yesterday is over.”
Jadzia arose, stretched and yawned, and quickly sought out the fallen tree behind a patch of bushes. “I’m glad too,” she called out from her makeshift lavatory. “Promise me I never have to see another person die.”
“Do you see now why I’m opposed to killing anything?” Genesis asked rhetorically.
Jadzia emerged from the bushes and said: “Yes, but that poses a bit of a problem.”
“What’s that?”
“Who’s going to make our breakfast?”
Genesis laughed heartily. “I suppose this means I’ll need to find some more vegetables.” She disappeared into the woods and scoured the ground for something to eat.
Jadzia slowly stepped into the creek. The water was still cold, but Jadzia didn’t care. She sat on the bank and dangled her feet in the creek and then slid her body under the water when she realized it was just deep enough to cover her body. She floated atop the icy water for as long as she could tolerate before climbing onto the warm grass where she dried off in the sun.
“So what next?” Genesis asked as she entered the clearing with a trove of mushrooms and herbs in tow. She couldn’t carry much in her hands, but she gathered the vegetables into a ball and pushed it through the air as though its own gravity held it together. When she reached the banks of the creek, she set the ball on the ground and separated the food.
Jadzia yawned again and stretched. “Can I just stay here forever?”
“You can . You’re far from the war. There’s no one around.”
“I’d sure love to,” she said. “But the feeling I had last night when I went to sleep hasn’t gone away.”
“What feeling is that?” Genesis asked.
“I know you said your power needs to be used responsibly, and I agree. In fact, I’m glad the power you possess is in the hands of someone so wise and considerate – even if you do brag too much.” Genesis frowned.
Shaking off her barb, Genesis sat beside her on a boulder. “Tell me truthfully,” she said, “if you could do anything with the power I have, what would you do?”
Jadzia sat up and mused aloud: “I know saving my parents would be a selfish act, but I must admit, I’d still save them if I could. On a larger scale, I’d do anything I could to stop that bomb from going off. I’d probably prevent the whole war.”
Genesis didn’t say a word in reply for several minutes. She merely acknowledged the words of her friend and nodded as she weighed their larger implications. “I have to be honest with you,” she said finally. “When I flew off earlier this morning, I made a special trip into the future. I had a few questions of my own. I wanted to learn more of the bomb, who made it and why. It wasn’t pleasant. I travelled as far into the future as I could and the fear of that thing still dominates humanity. The terror of it has never gone away. It ended the war, however, but the Americans had to drop a second one to do it. A new war simply replaced the one that just ended.”
Jadzia’s hopes of life returning to normal diminished. “No matter what happens I want you to know that I am eternally grateful for giving me hope, however short-lived it may have been. And I saw my parents before they died. I can’t thank you enough.”
“You’re very welcome,” she said.
Jadzia began to fidget with a clump
“I hesitate to say ‘good morning,’” she said, “but I’m glad yesterday is over.”
Jadzia arose, stretched and yawned, and quickly sought out the fallen tree behind a patch of bushes. “I’m glad too,” she called out from her makeshift lavatory. “Promise me I never have to see another person die.”
“Do you see now why I’m opposed to killing anything?” Genesis asked rhetorically.
Jadzia emerged from the bushes and said: “Yes, but that poses a bit of a problem.”
“What’s that?”
“Who’s going to make our breakfast?”
Genesis laughed heartily. “I suppose this means I’ll need to find some more vegetables.” She disappeared into the woods and scoured the ground for something to eat.
Jadzia slowly stepped into the creek. The water was still cold, but Jadzia didn’t care. She sat on the bank and dangled her feet in the creek and then slid her body under the water when she realized it was just deep enough to cover her body. She floated atop the icy water for as long as she could tolerate before climbing onto the warm grass where she dried off in the sun.
“So what next?” Genesis asked as she entered the clearing with a trove of mushrooms and herbs in tow. She couldn’t carry much in her hands, but she gathered the vegetables into a ball and pushed it through the air as though its own gravity held it together. When she reached the banks of the creek, she set the ball on the ground and separated the food.
Jadzia yawned again and stretched. “Can I just stay here forever?”
“You can . You’re far from the war. There’s no one around.”
“I’d sure love to,” she said. “But the feeling I had last night when I went to sleep hasn’t gone away.”
“What feeling is that?” Genesis asked.
“I know you said your power needs to be used responsibly, and I agree. In fact, I’m glad the power you possess is in the hands of someone so wise and considerate – even if you do brag too much.” Genesis frowned.
Shaking off her barb, Genesis sat beside her on a boulder. “Tell me truthfully,” she said, “if you could do anything with the power I have, what would you do?”
Jadzia sat up and mused aloud: “I know saving my parents would be a selfish act, but I must admit, I’d still save them if I could. On a larger scale, I’d do anything I could to stop that bomb from going off. I’d probably prevent the whole war.”
Genesis didn’t say a word in reply for several minutes. She merely acknowledged the words of her friend and nodded as she weighed their larger implications. “I have to be honest with you,” she said finally. “When I flew off earlier this morning, I made a special trip into the future. I had a few questions of my own. I wanted to learn more of the bomb, who made it and why. It wasn’t pleasant. I travelled as far into the future as I could and the fear of that thing still dominates humanity. The terror of it has never gone away. It ended the war, however, but the Americans had to drop a second one to do it. A new war simply replaced the one that just ended.”
Jadzia’s hopes of life returning to normal diminished. “No matter what happens I want you to know that I am eternally grateful for giving me hope, however short-lived it may have been. And I saw my parents before they died. I can’t thank you enough.”
“You’re very welcome,” she said.
Jadzia began to fidget with a clump
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