TA Chapter 13 Decision.
Ril Milena(POV)
To me, the air had become thick, or maybe, I was just having trouble taking it in due to my body reacting to the atmosphere in the room. Five world leaders, gathered in a single room, not harmoniously, but because an unpredented event had happened, throwing a wrench into all the previously laid out plans.
I was standing behind, and to the right of my mom's chair. The oppressive air in the room from some sort of invisible emotional fields around the leaders had already caused goosebumps to break out onto my skin.
But this hadn't even been it's peak! Earlier, I had felt as if death itself had been staring me in the face as Chief Lutalo antagonised Luthor Dugavu, then moved on to do the same to Dan Mpologoma.
I had taken a glance at the man, only to hurriedly shift my gaze elsewhere since those intense crimson pupils, though having been directed elsewhere, had still unnerved me. It had made me wonder whether that was how predators terrified their prey into freezing.
I shuffled my feet to try and shift my weight from one to the other. Only a few minutes had passed and yet, my energy had already been sapped by the emotion and ego storm raging within the room. The backrest of my mom's chair was starting to look like the best spot to lean, but gazing at the others standing still as if they had a pole up their butts, I couldn't do it.
"War! Conflict, is cruel. How many lives have been sacrificed to reach this peace? How many more would we need to sacrifice to reach whatever image of true peace you have constructed in your mind?" asked Snow, leaning forward in her chair.
A pang of something dark stirred within my chest as I gazed at her otherworldly beauty. My mom was a seductive beauty, that much I could tell after many men's eyes had particularly lingered upon her bosom, butt and face, but this woman was an ethereal being. Her beauty was the kind that made you feel as if it was fragile, as if she had just walked out of a fairy tale! And most of all, she was just a few years older than me!
I lowered my gaze to hide the dark expression on my face. I had caught the way Luthor's eyes had lit up upon skimming over her. And it had twisted my heart in knots.
"True peace... I am not such a naive idealist. All I want is the end of every single beast threat upon our lands." Chief Lutalo said, leaning back into his seat, not breaking eye contact with the woman.
"We didn't come here to debate things like this. We gathered to discuss what should be done about our asteroid situation. Mr. Luthor! You are the foremost expert in everything dark energy. What are you thoughts?" asked mother, her tone dismissive of the bickering.
A brief unreadable expression crossed Chief Lutalo's face before it transformed into a stoic mask. Raising my eyes to David, I was startled to find that he was gazing at me. His right eye winked, with my face crunching up in disgust before I hurriedly transferred to Snow Mpale, who was now leaning back in her seat unperturbed, as if the previous outburst had been an illusion.
My attention fell on Mr. Luthor, whose fingers were intertwined below his chin, while both the index fingers poked right below his lower lip. His upturned eyes made it seem that he was pondering something deeper within his mind.
"I will go."
The words came out unexpectedly. I had almost jumped from my skin when his eyes turned to mother, only breathing out a silent sigh at the fact that that intense gaze, capable of searing skin and dredging out the hidden heat within, hadn't fallen on me.
I bundled fistfuls of my dress within my hands and focused on the conversation. Someone was most probably going to question him. His answer would be important since Chief Lutalo was unlikable, Snow Mpale was content to just sit there, Dan Mplogoma... I didn't know what to make of him, and mother, though she spoke a lot, I had already concluded that she was not one to make a decision lightly. So, that only left Luthor Dugavu, the man I had come to view as someone driven.
The way he gazed at people, the way his eyes glassed over sometimes, as if he was lost in a world only he could see. Then there was the way he walked with long powerful strides that made it seem that he was going somewhere important.
Of course I knew how creepy it made me look that I noticed all those things, but that was how a fan loved their idol.
"Are you thinking of sending someone to that continent?" asked Dan Mpologoma, his tone projecting curiosity.
Chief Lutalo, Snow Mpale, my mom... Basically everyone in this room had eyes peeled and ears sharpened to Luthor Dugavu.
When I had first noticed this... Vibe, where the rest of the leaders were always consciously, or subconsciously dependent on Luthor Dugavu, my heart had swelled with pride.
"I will be going personally!"
"Mr. Luthor!" exclaimed the dark haired woman standing behind him, her composure broken to be replaced with anger.
"The young lady's reaction is warranted. How could you be thinking of doing something that reckless?! You are the leader of a state?" chastised Dan, having almost leaped out of his seat at Luthor's answer.
I placed a palm over my lips to cover up the smile that rose unbidden at the way his cheeks rippled at his sudden movement.
Though, it vanished as my eyes fell back onto the resolute man on the table, handling each and every single one of their questions and doubts. Each of their dissuasions slid off of him like drops of water on an umbrella. It was something in his eyes that made me reach the conclusion that no one would be able to make him take back his decision.
These people, whether they understood or simply ignored his resolve, I didn't know, but all I knew was that it was similar to almost a year ago when I had decided to personally oversee the installation of a very important piece of equipment on the telescope by climbing onto the scaffolding.
Mother's dissuasions, no matter how she had worded them, or threatened me, had fallen on deaf ears. It had been something I had decided needed my personal touch. She had failed in her endeavors and I had come down after the installation unscathed.
"That man's gaze reminds me of some brat. Doesn't it, Ril?" I flinched at my mom's whisper, a helpless smile stretching my lips.
"Before the asteroid, or even alien craft arrived for that matter... Actually, you could even say from the moment I had left school, I have been researching ways to make humans capable of using dark energy. To evolve just like the beasts..." Luthor Dugavu started, silencing everyone, with jaws dropping, eyes flickering and facial expressions lagging, upon multiple people's faces, including mine.
"We can build weapons. Powerful weapons that can take down any beast on the planet. But we ourselves are not evolving! As you saw in the moving images, those aliens won against that black beast yet, many died because of dark energy poisoning. We need to become stronger, to evolve like them. Dark energy is the philosopher's stone. That's why I am personally going. I won't stay here and twiddle my thumbs when the greatest discovery, or threat to our existence, is on Kisol!"
I clutched at my chest, feeling as if my heart was about to burst out of it. Those passionate words had hit me harder than expected.
"Hahahahahahaha... Interesting! Interesting! Interesting! I had been totally fooled! You actually have a flame capable of consuming the entire world buried within your chest! For the first time in my life, I am very glad I was mistaken." chottled the Chief, a huge smile stretching his lips, with pupils glittering with joy.
"I will go with you!" the woman standing behind Luthor made that declaration, her eyes boring into the seated Luthor.
"Why would I leave you behind? We are going to need all the combat specialists we can get." mumbled out Luthor, a light smile upon his lips. And somehow, it made my heart race.
"Mom?" I called out softly. I knew it was impertinent, but that didn't matter right now as I had to express my feelings into words.
"What is it?" She asked quietly, her voice cracking.
"I want to go too."
Silence fell upon the two of us, with my eyes widening when my mind finally caught up with what I had just suggested. I clutched my dress within my palms, crushing the fabric within them, fearful of the coming rejection.
"We shall speak at length after this meeting."
That was all she said. It wasn't an outright denial, but my heart still failed to settle down. The worries that surfaced from beneath the lake that was my mind, started eating away at me such that the rest of the meeting's conversation flew past me.