Zherosha Chronicles: Depth Perception

"Amnika, you can't be too slow," Zeth said to his daughter.

Amnika tried picked up the pace. She found it difficult to keep up with her cape. It kept opening, and the weight of it caught in the wind, slowing her down.

Zeth stopped and let her catch up.

"I guess I'm not used to the cape," Amnika apologized.

"Here," Zeth said. He grabbed the edges of the cape and pulled them over her shoulders. "Cross your hands and grab the edges."

Amnika struggled a little while trying to follow her father's instructions. "Why can't there be fasteners on the inside?"

"Sometimes you will need to take the cape off quickly." Zeth continued towards the city wall gate.

"Really?" Amnika said, "When?"

"Well, you will need to take it off to manipulate energy outside of yourself."

"Why would I do that?"

"There may be a time when you need to."

"But When?"

They reached the gate that separated the city from the outside world. Very few Inersiens went outside of the wall, and if they did, it was always with a Natisien or two.

Zeth stopped and turned to her. "You can ask all the questions you want when I'm not taking care of my responsibilities," he said.

Amnika nodded, then they both went inside.

One of the Natisiens greeted Zeth. They began to talk in Zherosha Standard. Amnika could only catch a few words. After a few moments, Zeth gave the Natisien the box that he had in his hand.

They walked across a catwalk. Above were the transport tubes. One of the transport cars whizzed overhead. Amnika could feel the rikta energy passing overhead. It was so overwhelming that she instinctively ducked.

One of the Natisiens saw her and laughed. "Look!" He held his hands up over his head to demonstrate that there was plenty of room.

Amnika looked up. She couldn't see his hands, so she tried to take a step back to get a better look. She stepped on the back of her cape and fell.

"Amnika?" Zeth asked, concerned. He stopped talking t.

"I'm okay," Amnika responded, "I tripped on my cape."

The Natisien laughed and got to his knees. He held out his hand. Amnika could only grab his index finger to help herself up. He carefully straightened her cape and patted her on the head.

"Be careful little one." He pointed to the rail on the walkway that connected the inner gate with the outer gate. "It's a long drop." He went back to work on a panel behind him.

Amnika looked at the rails. On either side of the walkway were the two large rikta generators that powered the city. She became curious about how far of a drop it was. She watched her father, hoping he would finish quickly. The Natisien who spoke with her father wouldn't stop talking.

Bored, she slowly made her way to one of the rails. She wanted to see the edge, but her father caught her.

"Amnika, the rails aren't safe. Stay away from them," he warned.

Without breaking eye contact with her father, Amnika took a few steps to the center of the walkway. She waited until Zeth was busy talking to try again.

Still not taking her eye off her father, she slowly worked her way to the rail. Zeth didn't look back, and she finally was able to peer between the lower bar and the edge of the walkway.

She couldn't see the bottom. So she decided to try to drop an energy burst and see how far it would go before she couldn't pick it up. She began to work one out.

It took enough focus that she didn't see that the Natisien and her father were watching her. The Natisien put his hand on the upper rail and nodded in Amnika's direction. Zeth nodded back, and the Natisien jerked it hard.

The sudden motion and the loud rattle it made cause Amnika to jump back squealing, and she landed on her backside. Her eyes wide, she looked at her father.

The two Natisiens on the same level burst out laughing. Four others who were watching from above joined in.

Amnika looked at her father expecting a stern look and a lecture about being too close to the rails.

Instead, he had a look of amused curiosity.

"What," he said crossing his arms, "were you doing?!"

"I was seeing how far it was by how long it took me to feel it."

"I can watch her." The Natisien that helped her up earlier put Amnika on his shoulders. She found straddling his neck to be difficult, and she used his wiry hair to balance.

When she positioned herself to keep from falling off, she looked up and saw Nahaeda, an older Natisien, standing by the outer gate.

While Natisiens were free to come and go as they please, they usually stuck to protocol, only allowing permanent citizens in restricted areas. Nahaeda was the tribal leader from the mountains. No one dared to question him. Inersiens know that the Natisiens revered him and didn't want to insult them. Natisiens.

Nahaeda, like most tribesmen, didn't shave, and he wore more traditional clothing of the tribes. Covered in fur from scants and other animals, he seemed out of place among the Natisien citizens there.

He stared at Amnika.

Feeling a little intimidated, She rested her chin on the wiry red hair of her temporary caretaker.

Noticing Amnika's distress, Zeth looked up at her. Then he followed her gaze. He was a little taken aback to see Nahaeda there.

"How old is she?" Nahaeda asked.

"She's in her sixth cycle." Zeth

"That's young to be that aware of her energy."

"Yes, it is rather unusual," Zeth said.

Nahaeda didn't anything else and continued looking at Amnika.

Zeth waited for a moment to see if Nahaeda would do anything. When nothing else happened, Zeth continued with his duties.

Then a voice called out in Natisien dialect that someone needed to repair a minor leak.

"Well, then, little one. It looks like I have some work to do," Amnika's caretaker said. A passing Natisien female offered to take Amnika, but then Nahaeda walked over.

"I'll take her," he said in a gruff voice.

Amnika squealed a little and clutched the hair of her Natisien caretaker tightly. "Amnika," her father cast a thought to her, "He won't bite, and I'm right here."

She hesitated, then straightened up to allow Nahaeda to take her. He gently cradled her in his arms and brushed her hair out or her face. Her dark auburn hair wasn't typical of an Inersien child.

"Hmph," he grunted softly, "She even looks like her." Then he looked at Zeth. "This Glondikia's daughter?"

"Yes," Zeth said. He kept an even tone. He seemed a little disturbed but kept whatever bothered him to himself.

Nahaeda smiled at Amnika, and she was no longer afraid. She then noticed a certain, calming energy coming from him. She settled in, snuggling close. Amnika noticed he had an outdoor musky smell. Scants typically had a distinct horrid smell, but his furs smelled like him instead.

When Zeth saw that Amnika was no longer in distress, he also calmed down.

"You finish," the old Natisien said to Zeth, "I'll look after the little one."

Zeth nodded and continued to tour the area, making notes on his tablet of what needed repairs.

After some time of cradling Amnika while her father worked, Nahaeda put Amnika on his shoulders.

Amnika held onto Nahaeda's hair with one hand while petting the soft fur with the other. Its softness mesmerized her, and she loved feeling it between her fingers.

Then she saw his braids buried his hair. On the end of each of them were beads. She couldn't make out if they were wood or stone. Her favorite was the bright blue one. It was the same color that rikta energy produced.

When Zeth finished, he thanked Nahaeda and took Amnika to the towers. The leader specifically requested him for a special meeting.

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