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“My esteemed ladies and gentlemen, we’re gathered here today for a very special occasion, one that happens so rarely that we’re unlikely to experience it more than once in our lifetimes. Most of you know me. For those of you who don’t, my name is Jameson, and tonight I’m assuming the role of examiner.
“You all know why we’re here. To establish whether Claire Cunningham truly is a budding goddess of destiny. There will be a series of three tests to determine this. Since the greatest doubt exists at the start, we’ll begin with a level one test – the least dangerous category. The test subject is exposed to minimal risk, but the result is also not especially meaningful and shouldn’t be regarded as more than just a further piece of evidence. The tasks in the subsequent levels are increasingly demanding. For each level, there is a selection of tasks to choose from, and a lot is drawn to determine which of them Miss Cunningham must perform. This means that no Council member can assert any influence.” He turns to the door and calls out, “Miss Cunningham?”
The door opens again, and this time Claire enters. She’s wearing a dress that flows over her like a blue waterfall and sparkles under the lights. The color accentuates her pale skin, and the elegant cut makes her look somehow innocent, vulnerable even. Standing tall, she strides into the room and positions herself behind the table. Her long hair is pinned up so that not a single loose hair touches her naked shoulders. Her bare skin makes her look even more vulnerable. But I know Claire, and I know that’s she anything but a pushover. She will have prepared extensively for this day. But was there any training or practice she could do in preparation for this particular test?
“As you all know, the goddesses have their own language. They are the only ones capable of understanding it. The goddesses were always very careful to keep it secret even from their disciples. In the year 1293, the Council in Italy managed to compel a goddess to translate a single page of a book. We have that transcription here today. If Miss Cunningham is a goddess in the making, she’ll be able to read the text and translate it for us. At the end of this test, a selection of Council members will sit down together and go through Miss Cunningham’s translation in order to confirm beyond a doubt whether she has passed or failed.”
So Claire won’t have to fight or be at any risk of injury. That’s reassuring. Even though I don’t particularly like her, I don’t want anything bad to happen to her. I know from personal experience how merciless the Council can be.
“The book and the translation have been made available to us by the Council family in whose possession they have been for many years. So it’s impossible that Miss Cunningham has ever laid eyes on them.” The old man gestures in our direction. “Ms. Fabrici, Mr. Fabrici, would you mind confirming in your own words that these documents have consistently been kept under lock and key and that Miss Cunningham has never had access to them and that nobody has been in a position to pass their content on to her?”
I lean back in my seat and glance sideways at the family seated beside me. The question is basically unnecessary, and everyone knows it. The Fabricis hate the Cunninghams. They’d never let those texts leave the house, let alone get into the hands of the Cunninghams.
On one of my few visits, Alessandro showed me the room where they keep these treasures. Obviously, he only did it with the aim of impressing me and getting me on side with the Fabricis. But the room was very secure. Only family members could enter it, and the objects themselves were also protected. I’m absolutely certain that Claire has never had access to the text. If there were even the slightest doubt, the Fabricis would never have agreed to this particular test. So I guess we’re about to find out whether or not there’s a goddess inside Claire.
Mr. Fabrici gets to his feet, gazes around the room with a solemn expression, and says, “I hereby confirm that no one outside of my family has ever set eyes on these documents. Miss Cunningham can’t possibly know what’s written on them. I give you my word.”
The examiner nods contentedly and turns to Claire. “Are you ready?”
Her gaze sweeps across the room. She’s still standing as straight as an arrow, showing no signs of nervousness or fear. She nods slowly.
Another door opens, this time at the side of the room. Four men enter. The first is holding something wrapped in a piece of leather. The others flank him as if they’re afraid he could be attacked at any moment.
The first man slowly leads the way, places the object on the table, and whips off the piece of leather. Then he steps back, and he and the other men position themselves around the table.
“You may begin,” says the examiner.
At that moment, the lighting in the auditorium is dimmed. Claire steps up to the book, which is already open at the page that she’s supposed to translate. She places her hands on either side of the book and bends over it. A screen is unfurled on the wall behind her, and a projector is switched on. The translated text is projected on the wall in front of us so that we can follow along to see if Claire’s words match the translation.
Claire just stands there quietly, staring at the book. She looks completely absorbed and focused. Everyone waits with anticipation for her to begin, but she continues to stare silently at the book. I guess it’s a difficult language, and she needs time to formulate the right words. Or is she unable to read it?
The tension in the room is palpable, and I squirm uncomfortably in my seat. Still nothing happens, so I allow my eyes to wander over the text and discover that the content is pretty bland.
“We have existed since the dawn of humanity. Born in order to forge destiny. Alive in order to guide the course of history. Imbued with power, in order to fulfill our tasks until the end of time.”
I look at Claire again. When will she start reading? The audience is growing restless. I can already see the hint of a smile on Mr. Fabrici’s lips. And Alfredo looks smug too as he murmurs to his father, “I wasn’t expecting her to fail the first test. But this is good for us.”
“Destiny certainly seems to be playing into our hands.” Mr. Fabrici laughs softly at his own clever pun. But then his smirk disappears.
Claire suddenly raises her head and looks directly at him and then at me. Her eyes drill into me, and her expression is cool and haughty. A cold shiver runs down my spine when I see the way she’s standing there: unfazed, fearless, staunch, undaunted. For the first time since meeting her, it occurs to me that maybe she is different – that there’s more to her than meets the eye. I swallow hard when I hear her voice begin to correctly translate the text.
“We have existed since the dawn of humanity. Born in order to forge destiny. Alive in order to guide the course of history. Imbued with power, in order to fulfill our tasks until the end of time.”
I quickly fix my eyes on the projection again and read on to see if Claire gets the next part right.
“We live our lives in the service of humanity. Without us, they would be directionless, without purpose. They need us as they need air because we give their lives meaning, a path, an objective. We are everything and nothing at once. We are the wind, sun, rain, earth, fire.”
Claire reads from the book, line by line, and every word matches the translation. After she reads out the last sentence, a heavy silence descends on the room. Everyone is simultaneously impressed and unsettled. Until now, it was merely speculation that Claire could be a goddess. Now they have the first proof, and it changes everything.
Mr. Jameson steps up beside Claire. “Thank you.”
The four men take the book away again.
“The expert panel will now withdraw and confer.”
I roll my eyes because this step is basically unnecessary. Everyone heard that her translation was correct. But this test is obviously very important, so there has to be an official confirmation.
Mr. Fabrici gets up and says, “I’ll go and confer with the others then.” He sounds disgruntled, which is understandable. He knows he has no choice but to confirm that Claire has passed the test.
