Glancing toward Sarpe, Maopa leaned close to Arbora to whisper a question. "What be wrong with Sarpe, there? She's lookin a little puny."
"She's tired. Her last trip into the mortal world has really affected her energy level. It'll take awhile, but she'll be alright. I think she's got a girlfriend, but she won't tell us about her."
"Playin' it real secretive like, eh? Well, that be good news if'n she got her one. Now if only Mari would show herself soes I knowed she was okay."
"I wouldn't worry too much. I'm sure she'll be back soon. In the meantime, let's let Sarpe get some rest and go pick on Ursa. She's feeling a little grumpy."
"Can't be havin' that now, can we?" Maopa chuckled, trying to recall a time when the bear spirit wasn't grumpy. She couldn't.
M
ARI REACHED HER destination in less than a minute. During the short journey, she noticed the deep pulsations had slowed to less than a million beats per second.
"This isn't good,"
she muttered. "Daughter, are you okay?"
"Hurry, Mother. I hurt."
Mari could feel her pain and attempted to soothe it as much as possible. Her child had grown stronger in the past five billion years, making it more difficult to ease her discomfort. "I'm here."
The sigh of relief was audible. "Take away. She die soon."
It was true. No one but the Earth Mother could withstand the beat of her daughter's life force for long, even at the reduced rate.
"Thank you for calling me. I'll see what I can do. Can you hold on a little longer?"
"I try, but soon beat must grow. Not good to keep slow. I grow weaker. Many die. I die."
"I know. Please hang on as long as you can."
Approaching Saira, Mari was surprised the apparition couldn't feel her presence. Apparently, something was terribly wrong.
"Saira?"
Confused, Saira searched the darkness but couldn't locate the spirit. "Mari? I can't see you."
"No one can see in this place. What are you doing here?"
"I came in search of an answer, but now I'm lost."
"And did you find your answer?"
"No. I should have known now was not the right time."
"How so?"
"Because the tug was too weak. Because I felt no compulsion. I chose to come, knowing the time wasn't right."
"Is that why you can't find your way back?"
"It's the only reason I can think of. I've never been lost before. I find it rather frightening."
"I can imagine. The energy here is stronger than anything you could have ever encountered. That's more the problem. My daughter has tried to reduce its effects, but she can't sustain this level for long. It's imperative that we get you out of here quickly."
"I've tried, but I can't find the right thread. They all look alike."
"With good reason. Life began here. It's the birthplace of everything on this world. But we can discuss this later. At the moment, we need to find a way out of here for you."
"Can't I go the way you came?"
"No. Unlike you, I need nothing to guide me here. What exactly are you looking for?"
"The end of the thread that led me here... but I can't find it."
Running her hands around the giant ball of threads, Saira became more frustrated. "How can I tell one from the other if they're all the same?"
"That's a riddle we're going to have to solve."
Mari tried to decipher minute differences in the threads but found none. There was no end or beginning to any of the string-like objects. She could feel her daughter growing weaker and knew time was running out.
"Daughter. We need your help."
"Yes, Mother. I help."
"The Traveler. She needs to return the way she came. We can't find the thread to lead her home. Do you know which one brought her here?"
"No."
"Will you try to find it for me?"
"I try. I try."
Time seemed to have slowed to a crawl as the two entities waited. Saira was feeling slightly better since the pounding had eased, but she knew it was at the expense of Mari's child.
"If she doesn't find it soon," Mari said, "you'll have to choose one and take your chances."
"I'll do what I must before jeopardizing your daughter's life any further. If I fail to find my way home, then so be it."
"I suspect failure may be more catastrophic than you think, Saira. It's imperative you arrive in the present as quickly as possible."
"I find, Mother! I find!"
the voice said joyfully.
"Where?"
Mari and Saira searched the ball for the thread but didn't see anything different.
"We can't find it. Can you try a little harder to show us?" Mari said.
In the middle of the tangled ball, the tip of a small thread wiggled frantically as if desperate to attract their attention.
"You see? You see?"
"Yes, daughter. We see it."
"Traveler go now?"
"Yes, Traveler go now. You've done well, daughter. I'm proud of you."
Turning to Saira, Mari pointed to the tiny object moving rapidly back and forth. "Time to go."
"Thank you, Mari." Totally out of character, Saira hugged Mari and then grasped the thread. Immediately, she felt a familiar tug.
"Thank you, Gaia!" she called out.
"Bye, Traveler, bye,"
the voice replied, saddened by the apparition's departure. The Traveler had been the first to visit her other than her mother.
A powerful surge sent Saira speeding on her way to the present. The heartbeat of the planet resumed its normal pace.
"You're growing fast. Soon you'll be able to control everything at will. Have you thought about that?"
Mari asked her first born.
"I think, Mother. I no know. It seem far away still."
"Well, you have plenty of time to plan ahead. When the time's right, you'll make the right choices... just as you did now."
Mari could feel her child swelling with pride, and she smiled. "You're my first born, Gaia. You will always be my favorite."
"You too," Gaia said and beamed.
It was such a childish response, but Mari was happy. "I must go now, but you know I'm always near if you need me."
"I know. I happy you come. Happy Traveler safe. She nice. Will I see her again?"
"I think so, when the time is right. Now that you know what she needs, you'll be able to guide her home."
"You tell Traveler, she come anytime. Short stay, though. I not like pain."
"I'll tell her. I'm sure she'll have lots of questions for you."
"And I her too."
Mari was about to leave when she felt a warmth encircle her. "Mother?"
"What, daughter?"
"I love you."
"I love you too. Be happy, and call to me if you ever need me."
"I call."
Mari sensed Gaia wanted to ask her something, but was reluctant to take up any more of her time.
"Is there something else you want or need?"
"Many questions I have. Can you stay longer?"
Nodding yes, the Earth Mother slid down next to the threads of life and made herself comfortable. Now that Gaia had evolved to a sentient level, Mari recognized her daughter needed not only guidance, but the emotional stability only a mother could offer... not to mention company. The time had come for her to provide both. Unknowingly, Saira had once again affected the lives of those she came in contact with. Mari's future was becoming more interesting and a lot more complicated.
After answering all of Gaia's questions, Mari returned to her realm and then decided to visit the Eternal Flame in search of Maopa. Standing patiently, she listened to the lecture from the small human spirit and then apologized for having left so abruptly. Afterward, she told everyone about the predicament Saira had gotten into and then caught up on the latest gossip.
Y
EMAYA AND DAKOTA had just finished shopping at the Bed and Bath for new bed linens and were heading toward Victoria's Secret to check out the underwear selection. Having regained her sense of humor, Dakota was teasing Yemaya about the few pounds she had gained.
"You can laugh all you want, but you're going to have to be a real magician to make that tummy disappear if you keep wearing those tight jeans."
"Are you saying I picked the wrong occupation?" The Illusionist smirked and reached over to ruffle Dakota's hair.
"Naw, but you might want to think about expanding your horizons. Oh wait. You already have."
Giving Yemaya a wicked grin, Dakota took off running, knowing she would pay for her remark later. After realizing she wasn't being chased, she looked back and saw Yemaya standing next to a newsstand, staring at a row of magazines.
"Hey, what's up?" she asked, walking back to see what had attracted her partner's attention.
On the front page of a popular but sleazy tabloid was a picture of two women sitting on a park bench with their arms wrapped around each other in an intimate embrace. The headlines read, "Illusionist Makes Magic in City Park." It went on to describe how Yemaya Lysanne was caught cuddling with an unknown woman in a small park in Baltimore. Dakota could tell by Yemaya's rigid body that she wasn't happy.
"Looks like Mari and Maopa don't know about the paparazzi," Dakota said, not sure what else to do. "It's kind of a cute picture in a bizarre sort of way. I mean, knowing that's us but it isn't."
Yemaya didn't move or respond. All she could do was stare at the photo, unable to voice her thoughts. The beast within trembled and tried to make its presence smaller.
"Listen, sweetie, I know you don't like publicity, especially this type, but it'll blow over in a week. Trust me, I'm in the business."
Silence.
"At least they recognized you. I'm just the 'unknown woman' in the picture." Dakota could almost feel the drop in temperature when Yemaya turned icy blue eyes in her direction.
Uh oh. This isn't good.
"Okay. So it's tacky, but who really pays attention to tabloids? Everyone knows it's crap, and besides, the picture doesn't even look like you."
The Illusionist didn't even blink. She just stared at Dakota, her jaw clenched, muscles flexing as teeth ground silently together.
"Okay, you just stay here and think about how you're going to kill the photographer, but I need underwear... badly. I'll be back in a while."
Exasperated, Dakota stalked off, knowing things didn't bode well for the rest of the day. She had almost made it to Victoria's Secret when she felt a presence behind her. Turning around, she nearly bumped into Yemaya, who had silently followed her.
"Look, if you're going to give me the silent treatment because of your ancestor's irresponsible behavior, then you can wait out here."
"
My
ancestor's?" Yemaya growled, grinding her teeth.
"You're the one that attracted all the attention... at least, the photographer thought it was you. He sure didn't take that photo because of me. I don't have a fan club or newspeople chasing after me to get a story."