ROTU: Chapter Twenty-Nine

The same week that her flight touched down in Baltimore, Jalena located the first Conduit. Watching for influxes of light on the grid of her tablet, she wandered the streets where the energy was most concentrated or remained for longer periods. The patterns of light led her to a tall black woman who worked for the postal service.

She followed the woman on her mail route from a distance for several days just to be certain she had the right person. After noting the woman's schedule, Jalena entered her home while she was at work. She searched through the woman's mail and learned that her name was Natasha Levine.

Despite the spikes of Conduit energy around Natasha, Jalena was still somewhat taken aback by the self-destructive behavior the woman displayed. Most nights Natasha came home and drank straight from a whiskey bottle while strumming an acoustic guitar until she fell asleep. After studying her habits, Jalena noted that she routinely engaged in this pattern to purposely keep herself buried. When Natasha was sober, she researched alternative or esoteric teachings online. If the messages resonated, her energy would brighten, but would soon flatten again when she engaged in her daily routine. When the dissonance between the dissatisfaction with reality and the desire for something more increased, Natasha's addictive behavior spiked.

Jalena relaxed in her rental vehicle outside of Natasha's home the night before she planned to approach her. As she was giving the team an update on her trip, Natasha surprised her when she suddenly bolted from the house and sped away in her car.

Jalena said her goodbyes to the team and turned on the windshield wipers of her rental as the wind picked up and rain began to fall. She followed Natasha from a distance as she drove to a different area of the city.

Natasha screeched to a halt beside a white, yellow-trimmed house. Thunder clapped and lightning spread across the sky as she gulped down the rest of the whiskey she had with her. As she got out of the car, the empty bottle fell to the curb. She hurried across the yard and up the steps of the front porch to the house.

Jalena parked her car further up the street and moved closer, thankful the night sky and weather served as a cover. When she got closer to Natasha, her true name surfaced in her thoughts.

Drisana.

Although she could feel Natasha's emotional discord, Jalena's eyes widened and her senses heightened as she watched Natasha pull a 9mm stored in her jacket and kick open the front door of the home.

The man and woman in the room jumped as the doorknob hit the wall and Natasha pointed the gun.

The shirtless man in the recliner jumped to his feet. "What the fuck?"

"Tasha, is that you?" a petite woman in a robe stood up from her seat on the sofa.

Natasha didn't answer but locked her gaze on the man before her.

"First, me…then your…" Natasha shook her head "…niece," she finished in a whisper. She brought the gun up higher, level with the man's heart. Her hand shook, causing the lingering raindrops on her jacket to fall to the carpet below.

The woman took a step toward Natasha.

"Mother, stay where you are," Natasha demanded.

"What the hell are you talking about, girl?" the man yelled.

"Shut up. You know exactly what I'm talking about. Senji called me…crying. She told me that you tried to force yourself…" Natasha's voice faded. Her eyes were wide and teary, but her gaze remained steady.

"Honey, don't be ridiculous," Natasha's mother said with a nervous chuckle. "Have you been drinking again?"

"Shut up," Natasha repeated. "You didn't believe me then about what my monster of a step-father was like, so I don't expect you to believe me now."

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Natasha's stepfather demanded angrily. "I haven't done anything to you or anyone else."

Natasha cocked her gun. "Shut up."

Natasha's stepfather quietened, his eyes remained wide and fixated on the gun in Natasha's hand.

"You deserve to die," Natasha said as her eyes spilled over with tears.

"Tasha, you're drunk," her mother said softly. "You don't know what you're saying or—"

"Like I didn't know back then? I was wrong then too, huh? I, and now Senji—we just keep making up the same stories." Natasha scowled as she pointed the gun at her mother. "What the fuck is that matter with you, mom? I know you know," she hissed. "As a woman, you should be ashamed—buried in fear just like the rest of this fucking society. You sold out to this—" she gestured with her gun "—the first white man scum available after dad left just so you wouldn't feel lonely."

Natasha's mother began to cry as Natasha's stepfather grabbed his cell phone. "I’m calling the cops."

Natasha quickly pointed the gun back at her stepfather. "I don’t fucking think so," she said slowly.

"What do you want?" he asked helplessly.

"I first want you to admit—to tell her the truth." She gestured to her mother with the gun, then stopped abruptly and glanced behind her. Her eyes widened as she saw Jalena's silhouette standing in the rain.

"Now is not the time for this," Jalena said softly as she stepped closer. "It is beneath the task you were born for, Drisana. It is time we go."

At the sound of her true name, Natasha froze. "What did you call me?" She slowly lowered the gun, her curiosity temporarily overshadowing her anger.

"I called you by your true name," replied Jalena. "I will explain everything, but for now we must go. Your stepfather is about to call the police."

Drisana turned back to the room.

"Never mind that now," Jalena stated before Drisana could react. "Release the power you are giving him over your emotional state. You have more important work to do. Besides, he will get his karmic return. He lives in more heartache than he has delivered, and his physical heart will fail him soon because of it."

Drisana stared at Jalena, still caught off-guard by the interruption. "Um, I think you have the wrong person, lady. I am nobody."

"Oh, you are much more than that, my friend." Jalena allowed a spark of her light to flash through her eyes. "I know this all sounds strange but will tell you more if you come with me now. I know that you wish for a different destiny, and now is the time to change your path."

Drisana's eyes widened. She turned to her mother again, then lowered and released the clip on her pistol.

"Tasha…" her mother began.

"No," Drisana replied simply. "You should be ashamed." She held her mother's gaze as she backed out of the doorway and turned to follow Jalena. Still somewhat dazed, she said, "I think you might be crazy, and I don't know what kind of magic you just did, but I got nothing to lose."

"That's the best position to be in," Jalena replied with a smile as she held out her hand to take the gun. "Let's get rid of this. I already have everything you need packed for you. Our flight leaves in the morning, but we can find one in the next two hours if you are ready."

"I am. I don't care where—just want it to be to a different world than this one," Drisana said as she opened the passenger door and sat in Jalena's car.

"It will be…more than you know."