PROLOGUE
Bracarea Dag, year 1 a.m.g.*
As the darkest night silently covers us all, rain starts to fall heavily outside the old tent where I pen these words to you. The torrential cry of the rain sounds like old women, crippled by despair and fear, as if they were already mourning the inevitable loss of many after tonight.
It has finally come to me, that by this time tomorrow I may not be in this verse anymore, this might be the last words I write, the last night my eyes see. So I shall not close them, for I want to take all this wonder with me. I will not stop writing so that by morning you know our story from us and nobody else, as over you, if you choose falls the task to continue our quest to eternity.
They say it is all going to happen because of the "two dirty girls from Mandeley." They say the two girls need to know their place, as no one from Mandeley, an end of the world village, in the plains of Konya with its houses made of red mud, full of miserable peasants, and foragers, an in between world forgot by the best of men, could possibly claim what they are not. Yet here we stand, challenging what many believe to be our fate. “Who are these 'impertinent children' to defy the established order?”, they scoff, outraged by our audacity. But WE ARE here. And because WE ARE, WE CAN claim what is ours. After all, does the bird in the sky need to claim his right to fly, NO! He simply uses his wings for that is his birthright. Our gifts are to be fully used in all their colors, instead of having to be conformed to what others expect from us. Funny, isn’t it, how they hold so much expectation for others without fulfilling their own. If refusing to mold ourselves to them is treason, that I am the ultimate rebel, for I rather betray others' vision of what I am instead of being disloyal to myself. I shall not conform to what doesn’t fit me.
I cannot deceit you and say I am not afraid. I am terrified, after all, tomorrow we will rise to fight what has been called the verse’s biggest battle of all times. The nobodies against the most powerful empire in this world. We are uprising with an army 10 times smaller than the one of our opponent. Maybe as the others tell me, I might be over-optimistic with the number. So “why do we deliver ourselves to slaughter?”, they ask. “We don’t.”, I answer. We deliver ourselves to victory because what many don’t understand is that we have already won. For “two simple insignificant girls from poor, ugly Mandeley”, have come this far, to the heart of the empire with all its power and riches to claim what's rightfully theirs.
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The future emperor, who once sought our destruction, has finally taken notice of us. We in our insignificance became an important enough threat that he can no longer ignore our claim and will do everything to erase us. He was the one that “summoned” us when we were at peace with our destiny and the world. Now that we rose to the challenge and came, he doesn’t want us here! Validating what I have learned on this journey - those who strive to appear the strongest are often the weakest.
So after tomorrow, regardless of the outcome, Theophilus, the magnanimous, the soon-to-be-anointed emperor of this verse, will no longer reign supreme. His name will always be followed by the name of the “two girls of Mandeley” who dared to challenge him before his coronation by simply being themselves. For we have indeed been here and we have already left our mark! We do not come alone - 50,000 souls have joined us and are ready to stand by the truth.
“And how did these girls get to be at the center of the biggest battle ever fought?” They will ask. And that is the story I want to share with you, in the hopes that whatever is the outcome tomorrow, when you read it, you too feel inspired to fight the good fight, join our fellowship and continue the only worthwhile mission for eternity. For it is now known to me and my sister that the power of one can elevate the life of many. “Velle est posse.**”
Therefore, I rise, fully present, ready to see, hear, sense, and feel whatever the end might bring. I feel a pulsing energy moving through my body. Inside of me, is the power of a thousands seas, the strength of a storm, and a passion as intense as the biggest fire ever seen, and it is with all this that I go to battle tomorrow. For my gifts are many and I vow to use them fully. Nothing, absolutely nothing, and no one will make us turn back, for I AM WE!
Ori of Mandeley
*a.m.g - After Mandeley Girls
** To be willing is to be able