The Mender: Book 1 of The Mender Trilogy by Jennifer Marchman

Author:Jennifer Marchman [Marchman, Jennifer]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Stående Bjørn Press
Published: 2023-09-11T16:00:00+00:00

Sanctum, Axis Mundi, the True line, 1995

A man and a woman stood naked on the amphitheater floor, blood running down their legs. The woman hunched over her scalpeled belly, holding it in place. Behind them, the council sat on a dais, but the couple faced the audience, and Yggdrasil sheltered them all. Eva looked at the rainbow of individuals surrounding her. Many were friends she knew well, and the novitiates clustered in rows at the front. Rarely were all the people of Lux Libera rallied within the sanctum of Axis Mundi.

Tophe’s jaw pulsed in his ashen face. She reached for his hand, but he had it curled into a fist. He wagged his head as if to deny what was happening, and his eyes were rimmed red. She wrapped her hand around the back of his.

Elder Gulpilil rose to address the gathering as silence rippled across the stands. All stood in unison, eyes attentive, ears open, mouths shut. “You know why we are gathered here today. It is with a very heavy heart we have passed judgment on Sister Sakura and Brother Enrique.” He paused in his pronouncement, scanning the ranks lined up before him.

“Sterilization, their punishment for fornication, was carried out this morning,” he continued. The woman on the stage wept openly; the man at her side stood erect, granite-faced. Tears rolled down Eva’s cheeks, but she dashed them aside and shot a glance up at Tophe.

“They also stand accused of apostasy and have been found guilty. We are assembled to witness their expulsion from our community, committing them into the Abyss. They will be forever separated from God and the True line.”

Elder Gulpilil returned to his seat, and Elder Roberts stood, bowed to Elder Nnaji, and then, at her nod, walked with ceremonial dignity to stand before the couple. A Brother approached him, bearing a sacramental knife. Elder Roberts lifted the blade from its pillow and hoisted it above his head as he pivoted to face the watchers. He slowly withdrew the knife from its sheath and lowered his arms.

“I mark these apostates so that all may know their crimes.”

At that moment, Sakura’s courage failed her, and she turned to run. Two men seized her, dragged her back, and held her in place. Enrique’s face twisted into a rictus of torment, but he forced his eyes away from her to stare over the crowd.

Eva wished she could stretch beyond the people and hold Sakura’s hand. Disbelief, anger, betrayal, and love warred inside her.

Elder Roberts turned to Sakura, who shouted and struggled before he even raised his arm. Within seconds, her cries slid to screams of agony. When he backed away, a large X had been carved across her forehead. Enrique’s face glistened with tears.

Elder Roberts took a cloth from the Brother and wiped the blade. Blood ran down Sakura’s cheeks and dripped onto her breasts. He turned to her companion.

Enrique adjusted his stance, planting his feet and squaring his shoulders. No sound came from him, and when Elder Roberts moved aside to clean the knife, Enrique glared at them all from where he stood.

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