She approached the door cautiously, unsure what she would find on the other side, as Solace had never opened a door for her before. The girl peeked into the room and was instantly at ease. Instead of the sterile white and soundlessness that characterized Solace, the open room was small and filledwith dark wood bookcases that stretched up farther than the girl could even see. They seemed to blend into the very sky itself. The girl turned her wonder-filled eyes toward the corner of the room where a large fire roared in the equally large fireplace. It was a singular slab of stone with reliefs carved across the entire surface, and as the girl gazed, the etchings moved and shifted, almost as if they were rewriting themselves in front of her eyes. The girl was certain she could lose all sense of time if she stared at that fireplace for too long.
With a herculean effort, she ripped her eyes from the fireplace and gazed at the rest of the room. A large, patterned, rust-colored rug dominated the floor, with two black wingback chairs and a round end table completing the space. The girl took a deep breath, instantly drowning in a feeling ofhome. The familiar scent relaxed her body and she found herself walking into the room, the door shutting of its own accord behind her.
Her toes dug into the plush carpet and the girl was certain she had never felt anything softer. She let out a small sigh of contentment followed by a bloodcurdling scream when she heard a warm chuckle from the chair directly to her left.
Heart pounding, sweat beading on her brow, the girl spun on her heels to face the intruder.
How did they access Solace?!This wasn’t supposed to be possible. Or at least she didn’t think it was. Her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother had never covered that piece specifically, though the girl also never thought to ask. In the chair was a woman, but the woman looked exactly like the girl, just slightly older. Was this a reflection of herself? A future version? The girl’s head started to whirl with possibilities.
“Sit, child,” the woman said warmly and gestured to the other chair, “before you give yourself an aneurysm thinking so hard. I’ll explain everything in time.”
While the girl was taken aback at seeing the woman in Solace, she found that after her heart rate had settled, she wasn’t frightened. More just unnerved and wary. With a quick glance back at the woman, the girl took the three steps to the other chair and sat down. Hopefully gracefully. Her mother would definitely want her to display some decorum, even ifthis washerSolace.
“It’s actually everyone’s Solace, dear, though we can somewhat control who accesses our goddess.” The woman leaned her head against an arm propped up on the chair, a smile softening her face.
“You . . . you can hear my thoughts?” the girl stammered.
The woman smiled. “Yes and no. I hear echoes of what things could be, and your echoes are particularly loud. Partly because we are in your constructed version of Solace, and partly because we’re related.”
Already the girl had just as many questions as she had answers.
The woman smiled that beautiful smile again. “I’m your great-grandmother, dear. I just appear how Iwantto appear here. Solace lets me manipulate my image to how I desire it. At least, for now.” The woman’s smile dropped and she looked suddenly sad, but quickly wiped the expression from her face. “I know you have so many questions and will have even more after this conversation, but I need you to sit and listen first. Can you do that for me?”
The girl’s hands rested in her lap but twined together in anticipation. As a Matriarch, the girl’s great-grandmother—and consequently her grandmother, mother, and even her—could see both memories of the pastandpossibilities of the future. Other Keepers who were not part of the Matriarch line only had one ability, and to varying degrees. Clearly, the girl’s great-grandmother saw something far in the future, or a series of events, that hinge on her.
How terrifying.
The Matriarch straightened in her chair and gave another smile, but it was strained and didn’t reach her eyes. She leaned across the table to grasp the girl’s hand quickly before releasing it and sitting back.
“First, my dear, I need you to know how loved you are. And how strong you are. Unfortunately, you are going to question both of those things, and soon. But I need you to know you are stronger than you know and so, so deeply loved. Please don’t give up and please don’t give in when the world darkens and your journey grows difficult. I need you to always pick the more difficult path, the one that youdon’twant to choose. Because, eventually, the sun will shine again, even though the darkness will seem everlasting.”
She paused and the girl nodded her head in acknowledgment.
How could she ever think she wasn’t loved?
The Keeper of Memories shot her another small smile before taking a deep breath and continuing her story.
“While I want you to know those things, that was not why I summoned you here to this room. I am pleased to see that you mastered the task I set for you today, and quickly at that.” Her words carried a note of pride. “I only wish that I had more time to teach you everything. Alas, we can only work with what we are given. Each of the tasks I gave you had a purpose—to prepare you for this moment. Once you wake from Solace, you will witness destruction and death, yet you will not be able to intervene. You’ll want to look away, but I need you to look. I need you tosee. You must store the memories of what will happen to our people. History is written by the conquerors, and we cannot let him become one.”
The girl shook her head, not understanding anything the woman was saying. She opened her mouth to ask one of her questions, but her great-grandmother silenced her with a wave of her hand.
“I’m sorry, my dear,” she said without an ounce of remorse, “but I cannot allow for distraction or questions. There is more. Once you wake from Solace, I need you to return to the village as fast as you can, do you understand? You need torunlike your very life and that of countless others depends on your speed, because it very well might. You must leave your spot on top of the hill and ignore what is happening around you. It will be difficult, but you need to block it out and not think. Run as fast as you can to the main house. Enter through the secret door you were tasked to find so many moons ago. Take the hallway straight to the Room of Knowledge and enter the hidden alcove in the way that you discovered during another of your tasks. Do not stop for anyone—not me, nor your grandmother, nor your mother. Not your friends, not even the babies. You run straight there and hide in that room. Am I clear?” Her voice was tinged with a slight edge of manic desperation and fear.
The girl nodded her head, her voice still stolen.
The woman visibly relaxed at the girl’s agreement.
“Once you get there, shut the door. Do not let anyone else in with you. Do not open the door again until you are certain that the danger is long past. You will know when the time is right. In that room, I need you to find Solace as quickly as possible. You will need to calm your heart and reach it faster than you ever have—use the breathing techniques we worked on andempty your mind ofeverythingexcept for reaching Solace. It is imperative you get here quickly.
A new door will be opened for you once you reach Solace.Run. You must get to that room. The door will shut and you will be inundated with memories of your people. See them all. Store them all. I know we haven’t been able to even begin practicing how to store memories, but you will know what to do. Store them so they are not forgotten. You will see so much—more than anyone, let alone someone your age, should see. Internalize it. Hold it close to your heart. Let it consume you and make you angry. It is the fuel you will need to keep going. Hold on to it.”
The woman paused and her eyes grew wide. She looked around frantically for a sound only she could hear. As quick as lightning, the woman grasped the girl’s hands again and pulled her close so their noses were a mere breath apart. The look in the Matriarch’s eyes was sad, overwhelmingly sad. But resolute.
“It is almost time, my love. After today, you will be the only Keeper of Memories. The souls of your mother and grandmothers will reunite with Solace; we’ll be here, but not. You will be the sole owner of the memories and futures held inside this hallowed place. It is a great burden to bear. And not one that any one person should have to carry alone. That is why there were always three generations, with the eldest passing into Essence once the fourth generation had mastered all of their tasks. Your mind will slowly collapse over time—it could be years, it could be decades. But it will happen. You need to make sure that everything is in place before that occurs. Find our lost sisters and brothers. Some will be easy to find, others will hide. Gather them. Protect them. Let them help you.” The woman grasped the girl’s hands tighter. “You are our last hope.Youare the final Keeper of Memories.”
She closed the remaining distance between them and pressed their foreheads together, breathing deeply as if committing the girl’s scent to memory. The girl had so many questions. So many doubts and things she needed to know, but she still couldn’t speak. The woman pulled away and gently stroked the girl’s hair.
“You are so loved. So. Loved. And you are so strong. The strongest of all of us. This is always the way it had to happen, always the way it was meant to be.” Tears fell from both their eyes. The girl didn’t know when she hadbegun to cry, but she felt the visceral emotions of her great-grandmother coursing through her. The woman pressed a small, quick kiss to her forehead, her temples, her nose, and her mouth, the customary send-off for a Keeper of Memories answering Solace’s call home. She gave the girl one last sad smile before squeezing her hands and dropping them. “It is time, my dear. Open your eyes. Andrun.”
