Fire - Betrayal (22 page)

Tears ran down
my face as I heard the conditions. I was agonized over how Cate’s heart would be broken again, and wondered if this time it could be healed.  My heart ached for her, but it was my only chance to be with her forever.

“I agree to the conditions that bound me, with resignation that
Cate and I must survive the test of fire to have our love sealed forever. The journey will be agonizing for us both, but when we are reunited, victory will be so sweet, and ever so more powerful.  Be prepared to accept Cate as your own, as a daughter, as a Terrean.  I have absolute and complete faith in her and our bond of love, that cannot be broken,” I replied with conviction.

The Council of Elders watched
me closely as I spoke, their faces in awe of my words and my love that I held in my heart for Cate.  I was as complex as I was pure, and I knew that I would be so much more than any of them could ever be, combined.

The atmosphere in the room of the Council of Elders was forlorn.  They asked
me to leave, adding that they would summon me again when the time had come.

I
breathed in deeply, turned, and walked to the stone door, keeping my erupting emotions in check.  I quickly left the platform from the tree, and ran into the dense rainforest, to find a place of solace.  I wanted to be by myself. I needed to be by myself.  I was shattered at what I had to do to Cate.

My beautiful, beautiful Cate
….

I found a very secluded area in the rainforest by the deafening waterfall. I looked up to the canopy, my face twisted in pain, and then let out a loud tortured cry.  I fell to my knees, tears pouring down my face and rocked myself back and forth holding my chest.

My beautiful, beautiful Cate
…..

I remained in the forest for seven days, alone.  I had to grieve.  I had to be in solitude to prepare my mind for the suffering and anguish to come.  I wished that it hadn’t come to this, but I had no other choice.

***

I became concerned for Ben when he did not turn up for the midday feast, nor dinner.  I walked the street of the village searching for him, questioning the Terreans about whether they had seen him.

On the second day of his absence, Jacinta found
me.

“
Cate, the Elders of the Council wanted me to tell you that Ben will be back shortly, and that there is no need for you to be concerned about him.  He will return,” she reassured.

Then she put her arm through
mine and walked with me around the village, and to the learning hub, where the children were engaged in educational programs.

“
Cate, this is my favourite place to be.  Look at the children, so happy, so eager, so friendly, and so willing to learn and increase their knowledge.  I come here and help out with the program.  It makes me feel really good inside.  Why don’t you shadow me and help out.  It’ll make the time go quicker while you wait for Ben to return,” Jacinta suggested, trying to help me.

“Thank-you Jacinta, for being considerate,”
I said appreciatively, sounding down.

Jacinta was very concerned for
me, and she watched over me, supporting me where she could, trying to ease my pain.

We
spent the next the five days together, and became very close, best friends even, each respecting the other for what they had to give, and for what they had.

On the evening of the seventh day, Ben returned.  His family was sitting down to the evening meal when
he entered the room.  They all got up and greeted him excitedly.  I got up from the table, but stood back and watched him. The family all returned to their seats, and Ben stood at the doorway, looking at me.  He walked over to me slowly, and then kissed me on the forehead, and looked into my eyes deeply before sitting down next to me.

He
was extremely quiet, and distant.  But at least he was back.

On leaving after eating together,
he reached for my hand and held it as we walked.  He was in no hurry, and he did not speak.  He walked me to Grandy’s pod, and whispered good night.  He did not kiss me.  He simply turned and then walked to his own pod to retire for the night.  The spring that he always had in his step was gone, and he hung his head as he walked, slowly.

The next morning, Ben was still the same, aloof and detached.

He engaged in very little in conversation with anyone.

“Ben, spend today with me,“
I suggested.

“Ah, no, I can’t
Cate.  I have a mission that I have to start preparations for.  I am going to be extremely busy over the next few weeks.  But please don’t worry if you don’t see me for a couple of days at a time. The mission is complex and requires accurate development, and precise co-ordination.”

Ben looked into
my eyes, and then looked away. He kept his eyes on the ground, and then whispered, “I have to go.”  And then he walked away from me.

As he walked, Jacinta caught up with him.  He chatted to her engaging in a long conversation.
  I felt that same tinge of jeolousy arise in the pit of my stomach.

That day, every time
I caught a glimpse of Ben as he went about his business, he was with Jacinta, and she was always touching him gently on the arm. My heart sank. Was I losing him?

It was three days until
I saw him again. He looked at me, and then looked away.  He did not come to see me, to say hello, or even smile at me.  I was thinking that I had done something to hurt him, but for the life of me, I couldn’t think of what I had done.

Then
I saw Jacinta, and ran over to her.

“Jacinta, hi! You seem to be as busy as Ben these days.  Are you working on the mission with him?”
I asked.

Jacinta turned and smiled at
me.

“No, “she simply replied.

“Well, I’ve noticed that you see him more than I do at the moment.  How is he going?  Is he okay?  Does he seem himself?” I asked, desperate for some information about him.

“Ye
s, he is doing well Cate.  I am the messenger between Ben and the Council of Elders, who want to be informed frequently of the progress being made on the mission.  So you’re right, I do see him a lot.  I see why you fell in love with him Cate.  There is definitely something about him, “Jacinta said.

Then she ran off.  She had been summoned, and had a job to do.

I could feel the green eyed monster surfacing in my heart.  Jealousy was a destructive emotion, I knew that.  But, Jacinta was my friend, and surely she knew how much I loved Ben. Surely, Jacinta wouldn’t use her messenger status to make an impression on him, taking him away from me?

I
decided that the best course of action to take was to go about my daily duties with a thankful heart, looking for opportunities to help other people and teach the children.  I had told myself, no, convinced myself, that, Ben was busy with the mission, and once it was over, I would have him back again.

But
I was always on the lookout for sightings of Ben.  I needed to know how he was doing. Each night as I went to bed in the underwater pod, surrounded by the soothing fish and rocking motion of the sea, flashes of memories of Ben during the day would enter my head.

Jacinta touching him, and looking into his eyes.

Ben talking to Jacinta often, and smiling.

Ben running after Jacinta to give her some sort of information, and Jacinta smiling at
him affectionately.

Ben and Jacinta sharing a meal together while looking over some sort of plans.

And then there was Ben looking at me, not smiling, his face pained, and then walking away.

My
nights became an occasion of sleeplessness, and longing for Ben, and deep sadness as the reality set in, that perhaps he didn’t want me anymore.  After all, I was not a Terrean, and I was inferior to them.

Then one twilight time,
I unexpectedly came upon a vision that sealed the end of my relationship with Ben.

Just off the walking path beside the shore to the teal
lake, I saw Ben with Jacinta, facing each other and mind talking.  They were standing extremely close to each other, and then they kissed briefly, but long enough to tell me the story of how my relationship was going with Ben.

Our once, seemingly indestructible bond of love, had been torn apart.

I looked away from them.  I could not expose myself to the vision of Ben with another woman anymore. Silently, I fell to my knees on the ground, my heart breaking, again, the agony unbearable.  I should
never
have come here with Ben.

I must leave Une Autre Terre, soon, very soon.

As I prepared for my departure, I wanted to say good bye to the people that I had come to love.  I worked in amongst the people, the children.  I ate with them and cleaned with them.  I played and laughed with them, and kissed them goodbye.

Then, at
night, I saw Ben sitting down to eat with his family and Jacinta, while I ate with my Grandy and Poppy.  After the meal was done, I walked over to Ben.

“Ben, I need to talk to you,”
I said seriously, trying to control the agony that I felt in my heart.

Ben looked up at
me.  He stood immediately, and followed me out of the door and down to the beach.

I
stood facing the sea, tears falling from my eyes, my back to Ben.  Slowly he came up behind me.

I
turned to face him, and looked into his empty eyes.

“I am leaving, to go back to the
Earth Ben.  I see what is happening between you and Jacinta.  You belong together.  You are both Terreans.  I know that the Council of Elders does not approve of inter-world relationships like ours.  I cannot put myself first.  I must think of your needs and the needs of Une Autre Terre.  It is best that I leave you. They win.  They get their wish.   I release you from our bond.  It has been broken.”

Ben stared into
my eyes, but did not show any emotion.

“When will you leave
Cate? I would like to say good bye to you before you go,” he said, tears finally filling his eyes.

“I shall leave tomorrow at sunrise.  The hunters are willing to help me safely out of the portal.”
  Then I ran off.  I could not deal with the trauma of leaving the love of my life, the parting of our souls.

I
did not sleep that night.  I felt that I would cry for eternity.

Sunrise seemed never to come. But when it did,
I was ready to go.  I went to meet the hunters at the receiving tent, as I had organized.  But I arrived earlier, preparing my mind and my emotions.  I looked over Une Autre Terre, reminiscing fondly.  It was truly a beautiful place.

I
lowered my head in deep sadness.  I wasn’t really ready to leave. I would never be ready to leave Ben, but I was left with no choice. It was time.

Rebellious Acceptance

A slight sound on the rainforest floor
caught my attention.  I turned to find Ben standing there, his face serious, brooding and full of pained emotion.

He walked silently to
me, staring into my eyes, letting out the full force of his cerulean eyes upon me.

I
could not take my eyes from his.  He had mesmerized me, as he intended.  I loved him so deeply, and always would.  There would never be another man that I could love so deeply, so truly, so purely.

He
moved his hand to my face and wiped away my tears, before he brought his lips to mine, kissing me passionately and urgently.

He led
me into the receiving tent.

“I love you
Cate.  But I know that you must go.  I have only one request from you before you leave.  Let me seal my love with you.  I want you so badly, and I have waited for so long.  We can’t part like this, without me becoming one with you.”

Tears were streaming down
his face.  He kissed me hungrily and started to undress me. I moaned in pleasure.  We stood there naked, wanting each other desperately.

Ben lowered
me to the white linen bed, as the sun’s rays set an orange glow over the land.  He had truly given into his self control with me.

I
ran my hands over his glorious body and through his hair and over his face, tracing his lips, and then kissed him hungrily.  He moaned, ready to become one with me.

But then,
I pushed him away, shaking my head.

“I cannot do this with you Ben, even though I have waited for it all of my life, even though I love you so deeply it hurts.
You must only become one with your wife, and that is not me.  The union of two people is such an intimate and sacred thing, it must only be in wedded bliss.  I am sorry, but I respect you, and the people of your world far too much, to betray you, and them like this.”