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“That may be true, but maybe they’re playing you. For all we know, they smiled in your face before sneaking a backstabbing attack,” the professor insisted. “After all, the Syllens went to sleep while still being at war with off-worlders. Why should we assume that the resentment and hatred towards us have abated? We need to set up defenses to protect our people against more attacks. They’ve been gone a long time. Mazeria is our home now, too!”

“Whoa!” I exclaimed, jumping to my feet with a bewildered expression. “With all due respect, Professor, everyone needs to slow down. As Chief Constable Daleus said, there’s absolutely no proof that the Syllens are behind this. You’re correct in stating that they awakened only two days prior to the attack. And that does raise some serious red flags. However, they’re not the only beings who have awakened.”

Confused and shocked murmurs echoed throughout the room while the four people on the panel gave me a stunned look.

“What do you mean?” Mares asked.

I tapped the button to activate the microphone integrated into my seat so that I wouldn’t have to shout while being clearly heard by everyone.

“I was with a group who got attacked earlier today in the Etreya Botanical Garden. While we were there, a Kalrin—what most people refer to as a wood fairy—actually opened its eyes and interacted with us, although in a very limited fashion.”

More shocked gasps fired off in the room.

Mares cast a questioning look at the Chief Constable before returning his attention to me.

“Are you certain?” he asked. “I have seen no such mentions in the reports I received.”

I rolled my eyes with annoyance.

“Every single person in my group mentioned it to the officer who took our depositions. He seemed to think we had suffered some sort of mass hysteria. But I assure you that we did not. The statue woke up, and then it showed us the safe path out of the garden. I believe that it ordered the lethal plants to stand down.”

Professor Ludwig burst out laughing before looking at me as if I had lost my ever-loving mind.

“Ms. Fiore, I understand that you underwent a traumatic experience. But it seems that the intense scare you faced messed with your mind. There is no such thing as the wood fairies awakening,” he said in an obnoxiously condescending tone.

“Yes, there is!” I said in a tone that brooked no argument. “There is far more than just the Syllens who hibernated over all those centuries. And why are you so shocked by that possibility? The Syllens were literally ‘fossilized’ for 450 years just like a tardigrade. Why would there not be other creatures who followed the same cycle?”

To my relief, a few people in the crowd whispered their agreement or at least seemed to consider the merit of my assertion.

“Because it’s too farfetched,” he replied in a haughty tone.

Chief Constable Daleus appeared to want to intervene, but the Governor discreetly touched her arm and shook his head in a subtle fashion. In that instant, I realized he wanted me to continue building the arguments against the professor. It made sense as the Governor was under very strict instructions to keep the peace with the Syllens. He undoubtedly welcomed anything that would help shift the blame away from them.

“Is it farfetched?” I challenged. “Before this meeting, I mapped out all the reported attacks in a fashion similar to the one provided by our dear Chief Constable, which is currently still displayed on screen. One thing every single one of these sites have in common is at least one Kandra tree with one or more wood fairies on them.”

This time, my comment struck a nerve. The Chief Constable tapped something on the interface of the table, and seconds later, new markers appeared on the map, this time indicating the location of the Kandra trees in the attack zones. Another, louder wave of murmurs coursed through the attendees.

“See?!” I exclaimed in a victorious tone. “Maybe it’s just a coincidence. But we cannot deny the possibility that the attacks came from them instead of the Syllens.”

“While your theory has merit, why would they do that?” the Governor asked with genuine curiosity.

However, the intensity of his gaze seemed to somewhat plead for me to make an even stronger case.

“It is purely speculation. However, try to put yourself in their shoes. If you fell asleep for centuries and woke up only to discover that your tree has been moved and that you are surrounded by off-worlders, wouldn’t you be terrified? While we have little information about the history of the pilgrims who first colonized Mazeria, we know that they went to war with the locals. These creatures probably also saw the Settlers as enemies. With all that combined, it only makes sense that their instinctive reaction would be to attack us. Therefore, I believe we need to appease them and take them back to where they belong,” I said.

Professor Ludwig snorted. “Fancy interpretation. But you merely suffered post-traumatic hallucinations. These are just statues.”

“No, they’re not!” Ashley exclaimed as she shot to her feet. “I was there. I saw it, too. That fairy, creature, or whatever it is, opened its eyes, looked at us, and pointed the way out after Mirella pleaded for it to grant us safe passage.”

She was the pregnant woman who had been with us in the Botanical Garden. To my shock, almost as one, four of the other guests from my group who had chosen to also attend this town hall in person rose to their feet. The young man who had repeatedly asked me what was going on addressed the panel.

“Listen to this woman,” he said forcefully while pointing a finger at me. “She saved all of us! The trees listened to her. That statue looked at her and listened to her plea to spare us. I don’t understand any of it. I’m just an artist. But one thing’s for sure, I fucking trust her. And the plants trusted her enough to let us go, too.”

My chest constricted listening to his passionate description of the event and to have him so strongly vouch for me. The other members of our group also expressed their agreement with his statements.

“Professor Ludwig is right that this is our home,” Ashley said. “But the Syllens were here first. Every single person in this room and on this planet agreed that we would only stay here so long as we pledged to honor their rules and their sovereignty. I pray that Mirella is right, and that the Syllens didn’t launch this attack against us. If we messed up somehow, let’s find out how and fix it.”

She rubbed the bulge of her pregnant belly as she glanced around the room before looking back at the panel.