Saiyi's eyes felt heavy when she woke. Her dream had seared into her memory as if she had lived it. It left her with far more questions that she ever had before. She did not put much stake in visions, but she could not doubt that she had just received one. A vision of what though, she wondered. She opened her eyes and sat up. Movement on the edge of her bed startled her. On the lower edge of her bed sat a woman. While Saiyi was shocked, the stranger did not seem dangerous. Besides, she thought, I am a Goddess. What could she do? When the strange figure saw Saiyi was awake, she rose. The woman was tall with waist length straight hair, so black that it seemed like a shadow flowing from her head. Her clothes likewise were deep black and consisted of a tight one piece body suit that included the high heels. She had long slender limbs with skin nearly as pale as Saiyi's was when she arrived on Hagoa. Around the woman's neck hung an amulet similar to Saiyi's own, but the gem inside was deep water blue. The stranger's face had soft but defined features and by all accounts she was the most beautiful woman Saiyi had ever seen.
"I'm sorry if I startled you little one. You were having a bad dream I think."
Saiyi immediately recognised the voice. It was a voice she last heard when she lay dying in the wastes.
"Mother?" Saiyi was not fully sure, but she had a strong hunch.
"Yes dear. On Cyla, they call me The Mother Goddess. Though my name is Kakai."
"You gave me this." Saiyi held up her amulet.
"Indeed. Yours is special too. It is undiluted and further strengthened by your heritage."
More questions Saiyi had no answers to.
"My heritage? Do you know of my birth parents?"
"I am sad to say I don't, but I can sense in you the power of the Chosen. Undoubtedly your parents are among your peers."
"You mean I'm the child of a God?"
"I mean at least one of your parents were Chosen. More than that I cannot say I'm afraid."
"I'm sorry for being so forward Mother." Saiyi felt ashamed that she had lost her manners. The Mother Goddess smiled. Saiyi froze. That smile. She always suspected the woman in her dreams was The Mother Goddess. More and more the figure in her dreams seemed to spell death, chaos, and the end of life as Cyla knew it. Yet this woman before her was neither frightening or as sinister looking as in the dream. Perhaps Saiyi's dreams were just that, dreams. If they weren't then regardless of the beauty standing at the foot of her bed, she would have to be vigilant. Saiyi decided to stay alert just in case. Kakai seemed to be studying her, head tilted to one side. She clearly saw the struggle inside Saiyi's mind. Her smile remained, never quite reaching her eyes. It was unnerving, cementing the young Goddess' notion to be ready for anything.
"Is everything quite alright Saiyi?"
"I'm alright, thank you. Excuse me for a moment please." Saiyi left to slash water on her face and collect herself. She returned having regained her confidence.
"Your visit is quite welcome Mother. How may I be of service. I never did get a chance to thank you for the gift." Saiyi gestured to the gem around her neck.
"No thanks are needed dear. It is a gift to the deserving ones. My Chosen few that rule and defend the world."
"My fath… The man who raised me thought you had left Cyla millennia ago."
"Granted I do not make myself known to many. But Cyla has been my home for some time now. I stay as a final guardian against my kind should they return to finish what they started."
"Will they? Return I mean."
"I suspect so yes. Before long no doubt. That is why it is important that you are ready. You will lead the Chosen with your natural abilities."
"I am still learning. It will take me years to get it all in my head."
"Why child, this is because you are learning like a mortal. The amulet does more than exert your will on the physical world. Much like your immortality and lack of hunger, the amulet can enhance your own body."
Saiyi's interest was piqued. Threat or no, she needed to know what this woman knew.
"Would you teach me, please Mother?"
"No need young one. You have great teachers as it is. You just have to focus inward. Stop trying to exert your power on the world, before you can use it on yourself."
"Why did Shiwa not teach me?"
"Because she forgot I suspect. They all do in time. It's the price they pay for eternal life. You are not like the others though. You will not need to forget like the lesser Chosen."
"I don't understand. Mother please…" The Old Goddess held up a hand.
"All in good time love. I am happy to see you are well. We will speak again." The area where Kakai was standing seemed to fold in on itself and she was gone. Saiyi felt like she woke from a dream again. Was that real she wondered, or more of my imagination running wild. No matter the answer she decided to attempt what Kakai had suggested. She wasted no time.
"Focus inward, focus inward, focus inward." The young Chosen kept repeating. She spotted her Sahgiw book. Sitting at her desk she opened the book and focussed on her amulet. It began to glow as she did so. Saiyi held the focus on that feeling and tried to read her first lesson. It was a chapter on grammar, the part of the island language that gave her the most grief. She found that the concentration on the amulet did not lessen her focus on the words. The symbols washed of the page into her head. It felt as if a switch had been flipped. Her thoughts clearing as she continued. The book seemed so obvious suddenly. The knowledge flowed like a river of clear water into her. An hour later she had finished the entire book. No detail had been overlooked. She needed a test. Without changing into her day clothes she sped out of her room. She wanted, no needed Wep. The strange vision forgotten for the time being.