Tales of Yibixus: Greda

Greda

Having locked herself in her study. Greda stares vacantly at the pages in front of her. Books and documents on Formador studies litter her desk. Every single piece of information she could get her hands on about the phenomenon has been gathered for study.

The room is only lit by a small lantern in the corner of the room. A relic she keeps from the pre-selee energy times, left to her by her granddad. The light softly flickers off her face as she struggles to concentrate, having been at it for hours.

“Greda?” a meek voice calls through her closed study room door.

The creaking of movement is accompanied by a bright light streaming in through the crack in the opening door. Greda’s husband, Hans, slowly opens the door to stand in the doorway worried for his wife.

“Are you ok?” he asks, holding a small glass of Nipsaft.

Having to adjust to the bright light of the hallway, Greda holds a paw across her face and turns to her husband.

“Not really…..” she says with a long exasperated breath.

“Do you wanna talk about what happened today?” he asks softly, approaching her with the drink held out. “You’ve barely spoken since you go home.”

Passing her the pale-yellow drink, he then places a paw on her shoulder to comfort her. Greda takes a small sip of the Nipsaft and allows herself to relax, but only for a moment.

“So, one of your students was a Formador, huh?” Hans asks, knowing she should talk about it rather than shutting herself away.

Greda’s face drops. “Yeah,” she replies with the weight of the world seemingly upon her shoulders. “Couldn’t have happened to a nicer kitten either.”

“I thought it was supposed to be a good thing,” Hans asks, confused as her reaction goes against all the things he’s read about it. “I thought being a Formador means you’re special.”

“It’s not a good thing,” Greda scolds her husband, nudging his paw from her shoulder. “I’ve heard what they do to these poor kittens, Hans. Being found as a Formador instantly takes their life from them. No longer are they able to get a career, a home, or even raise a family. They are put into service, and that service drains their lifeforce.”

“Is that why you’re so upset about it?”

Tears form behind Greda’s eyes, and she takes a long sip of her drink. “Yes. Lea was kind and gentle. The sort of kitten that cared for everyone around her. The sort of person our society needs to lead us to a better future.”

Hans takes a moment to think of a response as his wife wipes the tears from her eyes. “Could the test have been wrong?” he asks innocently, being male and never subject to it himself.

Greda rubs her face in exhaustion. “No,” she replies, not wanting to be rude to the man she loves. “From what I understand, it’s pretty cut and dry. Once a Formador kitten is exposed to the Remnant, they faint.”

“They faint?” he replies curiously.

“Yeah….,” Greda sighs, taking another sip of her drink. “I assume that’s what happened to Lea.”

Hans then looks over her shoulder at the books on her desk. He reads several of the book covers and comes to an understanding of what his wife is trying to do.

“And all this…,” he points at the books. “Are you trying to research a way of stopping it?”

Turning to look at her notes, Greda nods her head. “You know me so well,” she chuckles nervously. “I’m desperate for it not to happen again.”

“If you could figure out a way of stopping them from fainting…?”

“Exactly!” Greda beams a smile, pleased her husband is being so supportive. “Then I could spread that information, and I’d be able to save innocent lives.”

Hans gives his wife a wry smile. “And have you?” he asks gently.

“No,” she holds her head. “I thought If I read all these research papers…,” she picks one up and flings it haphazardly across her desk in frustration, “then I’d understand why it happens and how to stop it.”

Hans rubs one of his ears with his paw in thought. “Wouldn’t it make more sense to question its origin? Y’know, turn off the water flow from the source rather than trying to stop it upriver when the flow is stronger.”

Greda looks up at her husband from her study chair and gives him a confused look. Hans reacts nervously—not wanting to offend his wife.

“Erm…,” he stutters, knowing he may have overstepped the mark as a male. “Well, and you’ll have to tell me if this is right,” he mumbles, fiddling with his paws. “If you were to understand why the Formador phenomenon happens, you might give a clue on how to work around it?”

Greda gently smiles at her husband and his suggestion. “Good idea,” she replies, holding her free paw out for him to hold. “I don’t deserve such a caring husband. Why are you so good to me?”

“Because I love you,” Hans answers, gripping her paw tightly. “And I hate to see you beating yourself up for something you can’t control. I love that you care for your students so much, but it’s a phenomenon that’s been studied for years without much result.”

“I can’t just… not try…,” Greda says sullenly.

“But maybe it’s like the portals. Maybe we’ll never know its origins and why our species is able to do it. Maybe it’s just our creator’s design?”

“Don’t get me started on the portals,” Greda huffs. “You know I don’t support the mandate. I’ve had so many male kittens who are so incredibly gifted with them but frightened to show even their parents through fear.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely,” Greda replies, feeling a wave of anger for the Royal family bubbling beneath her skin. “I had this one kitten called Otto in my class. I’ve never seen someone so talented. Hans,” Greda says with a hint of regret. “I caught him creating portals with only his claws. I think I frightened him by catching him at it, and now he’s gone missing!”

“Just his claws!?” Hans gasps. “Is that even possible?”

“Apparently so,” Greda answers bluntly, feeling a deep regret for his disappearance. “And now he’s disappeared off the face of Yibixus.”

Hans knows his wife well. He knows she’s hurting. He brings his paw to her face and touches it gently until she looks up at him.

“That is not your fault,” he says, staring into her eyes as tears bubble behind them. “You can’t protect every student, Greda. You can’t pressure yourself like that.”

“I know…” Greda exhales as tears dribble from her eyes. “But I can’t just sit back and watch it happen to countless others. There must be a reason all of this is happening!”

Hans wipes a tear from his wife’s face and leans in to kiss her on the forehead. “How can I help?”

“You want to help?”

“Of course,” he replies, kissing her again.

Just as Hans steps back from his wife, the entire house groans shudders, and the power shuts off. The light streaming in from the hallway disappears and leaves the pair standing in the soft glow of the lantern hanging beside the desk.

“Another power outage,” Hans sighs in reaction. “That’s the third one today. Good thing I’ve already cooked dinner, or we’d be having javi cake for dinner.”

“So much for that limitless energy they keep promising us, huh,” Greda says sarcastically.

Greda then reaches across to the lantern and turns a small dial. The room becomes brighter and more comforting as it’s bathed in the warming natural light.

“I was talking to my mom the other day,” Hans idly chats. “She was saying that life before selee energy was so much easier. Make me wonder if we are going wrong as a society.”

“Doesn’t help when we keep invading other worlds for resources,” Greda quips.

“I’ve heard this latest war isn’t going so well. The creatures on the planet are like nothing we’ve ever encountered. Typical of the Royal family and Royal guard to be so arrogant.”

“Shhh…,” Greda cuts him off quickly. “Hans,” she whispers, trying to get him to lower his tone. “Don’t say things like that so loudly.”

Hans looks mortified. He forgets himself and quickly apologizes to his wife for speaking so out of turn. Greda, however, only smiles. This is why she loves him so much. He questions everything like she does. Not one to blindly go along with what the masses are being told.

“I need more information,” Greda whispers, taking a sip of her Nip sath. “Ideally, I need information from within the Royal Guard. I’m sure if I could get access to their classified information, I might be able to figure something out.”

Hans’s face lights up. He’s just remembered something that might help.

“Someone from the Royal guard paid us a visit yesterday and I completely forgot to tell you,” he says, hoping she’s not going to be mad with his forgetfulness.

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” he smiles. “She seemed very interested in talking to you. Lina was her name.”

“Lina?”

“Uhuh,” Hans nods. “I think she wanted to talk to you about one of your students. Maybe she’s just as upset by the state of things as we are and wants to help?”

Greda gives him a doubtful look. “What makes you think that?”

“She was talking to me about how unfair it is for males in our society,” Hans explains, convinced that Lina might be Greda’s chance to access classified information. “You should go meet her. Maybe she can help, and in return, you can give her the information she wants.”

“Information?” Greda asks, reacting suspiciously.

“She didn’t tell me what she wanted to know,” Hans admits, but in his excitement, ignores the warning signs. “This might be our chance. She’s high ranking, so maybe it’s fate?”

“Do you think I should?” Greda asks honestly, unsure what to do. Her instincts are telling her it’s a bad idea, but she can’t deny the logic that it might indeed help. 

“Yes,” Hans beams a smile. “If anyone can get to the bottom of it, you can. You’re the smartest person I know!”