Acacia: A Heroine's Story “Quiet Livia, or I won’t be able to concentrate. I’ve almost got it.” Acacia was balancing an empty oxygen tube on her index finger.
“You won’t beat Taryn’s record. He’s the best balancer at the school,” Livia replied with a smug look.
“I can try, can’t I?” The tube fell to the ground and rolled away.
“I knew you couldn’t do it.”
“Liar,” Acacia smiled at her friend. They were interrupted by loud shouts coming from the council house. “What’s going on in there?”
“Beats me. A messenger brought a letter for the elders this morning. Maybe it was bad news, and that’s what they’re yelling about.”
Acacia looked at her friend suspiciously, “How would you know that?”
“I was helping my father fix the security pad near the mail gate.”
“Well I want to know what’s going on. Come on, lets go find out.” Acacia crept to the council house window and slipped in. There was a large refreshment table in the front hall. She crouched under it and listened to the conversation in the next room.
“The letter clearly states that Lucia has our magnacore. If we don’t give her the Oren, she will switch off the power to the electrosphere. Do you all know what that means?” one elder was saying.
“Yes, we all know. The gravity of Aldrich will cause this city to implode, along with everyone in it, but what can we do? If she gets the book, then there is no telling what she’ll do with it. It holds more power than any other she possesses,” another elder replied.
A third elder stepped in, “She said she would give us word on what to do at 1500 hours. It is near that time now. Let us wait to see if she will negotiate with us.”
Acacia saw the wall screen light up and blink a few times before Lucia’s face could be seen.
“Hello, gentle people of Aldrich. I see you have received my letter. I will give you your instructions now. You have exactly 100 hours to give me the Oren. If you do not cooperate, I will shut down the electrosphere at the end of that time. Now gentlemen, we all know what that means. This entire city will be ONE GIANT PANCAKE!” The screen blinked out. The councilmen were now silent. Not a word was spoken.
Acacia tried to remain still, but she felt some dust settle in her nose. Every single man in the room turned around when she sneezed. Her cover had been blown.
***
“Acacia, what were you thinking? No one’s allowed in the council house, not even me, and I’m the Assistant to the Mayor!” Auner, her father, was red in the face, “Donella, what are we going to do with her? She gets in trouble almost every day!”
Donella turned to her daughter, “Acacia, I didn’t want to do this, but you are grounded for the remainder of the week. I don’t want any complaints about it. Do you hear?”
Acacia had been trying to explain the whole thing to her parents after getting brought home but they wouldn’t listen. All she could do now was say, “Yes Mom.” She dragged her feet to her room and threw herself on the bed. Zeke, her little compu-friend blipped from under her pillow. He crawled out on his little metal legs and looked up at her with his cute red eyes.
“WHAT’S WRONG, FRIEND?” the words ran across his mini screen.
“Lucia’s got the magnacore. My parents won’t believe me. We have to do something though, or she’ll shut down the city.”
“WHY DON’T YOU STOP HER YOURSELF?” Zeke answered back.
“That’s crazy. Alva hasn’t finished my training yet as a Munik warrior. I’ll get killed. Remember, Lucia has studied the ancient texts. She knows the powers of a Munik mind, and how to defend herself against them.”
“YOU HAVE COME FAR IN YOUR TRAINING. YOU KNOW HOW TO TRAVEL GREAT DISTANCES.”
“Makes no difference. What would I do once I got there?”
“DON’T ASK ME,” Zeke turned around and crawled back under Acacia’s pillow. She just sighed and went to sleep.
***
“Alva, what are we going to do?” Acacia was sitting with her head in her hands. Alva could tell she was worried.
“Child, do you remember the Pandlamone Holocaust?”
“No, I wasn’t born yet. Remember, I’m only sixteen.”
“Oh yes. You must remind me often. This old head of mine is failing me. Now, about the holocaust.
“It was a horrible time for our people. We were trying to help the Pandlamone people, but our own resources had failed us. We were lost as to what to do. Being a peace-loving planet, we didn’t want to grab the attention of the Naudligs. If they knew we were helping, we would be stuck in the middle. This would mean only destruction for our planet, and we had no hope.
“Just when we felt sure the Naudligs were coming for us too, a great Munik warrior came. She used her powers to revive our resources. The weapons were restored to working order, the food in our gardens began to grow again, and our mines began to produce more fossil fuels than ever before. We organized a plan to bombard the Naudlig base. She helped us throughout the fight with their leader. She helped us defeat them. Because of her, the Pandlamone people were safe.”
“Who was she?” Acacia asked, now fascinated by Alva’s story.
“She was Lucia.”
Acacia couldn’t believe her ears. “But if Lucia helped save Aldrich, then why does she want to destroy it?”
“Lucia was different back then. She loved all life, and helped defend it. But behind her back, her father, Colonel Maykin, signed a treaty with the Naudligs. He sold her to their king for forty greigans. He had needed the money for his own debts, and the treaty gave him protection from further invasions.
“The Naudligs beat her and tortured her. They told her they would kill her if she ever misbehaved. Fearing for her life, she became a slave in the king’s evil palace. Eventually, the corruptness around her affected her. She became as cruel and heartless as the Naudligs themselves. As time wore on, her wickedness took the attention of the king. He had finally found a bride in her. They married, and she became queen of the Naudligs. Eventually, the king died, and her foolishness got the kingdom destroyed. She was left all alone with her cold heart.”
“But I thought a Munik warrior never turned bad.”
“She wasn’t really a Munik warrior. You know that Acacia.”
“She studied the books and taught herself, right?”
“Yes, and that is her weakness. She doesn’t understand what it means to be a Munik. She doesn’t understand the full effort it takes to devote your life to good and righteous living. Her ignorance has turned her to sin.”
Acacia now understood why Lucia wanted The Oren. She wanted to learn more spells, but her unknowingness clouded her mind. She would use the spells only for herself. This self-indulgence would eventually destroy the galaxy.
Alva studied Acacia’s face, studying her countenance. “You, child, will battle Lucia.”
Acacia snapped her head up. “You aren’t serious are you?”
“As serious as I am standing here. You mustn’t worry, child. I will help you, but if you are to save this city, we must increase your training.”
Acacia’s face grew pale, “You mean, I have to work harder?”
Chapter 1
“Acacia, what are you doing?”