Page 79 of I Married A Syllen

That evening, Cedros teleported us back to Drossara, Taelen’s village. As much as I wanted to remain in Ungaro to complete the work there, we had our own village to take care of. A few of the rescued queens went to the Tekere Valley where our orchards grew to awaken our Kalrins. When we arrived, many of the little creatures were already flying around, operating their magic.

To my surprise, Taelen took me to a new area a short distance down the river from the village. We accessed it through a passage nearly impossible to see unless you knew of its existence. The rock face of the mountain created an optical illusion that perfectly hid it. But if you approached it from the right angle, it was wide open for all to see. I doubted they built it with any intention of secrecy. The Syllen architecture always leaned towards every structure blending in seamlessly with the environment, unless they were meant to stand out as beacons or landmarks.

Like Taelen often said, the Syllens didn’t have enemies or predators… well, other than off-worlders. They didn’t even have locks on anything. What was the purpose of stealing when you lived in a society that ensured everyone’s needs were met, and where material possessions only mattered in terms of their usefulness as tools?

We emerged on the other side of the tunnel into a massive shrine filled with immense trees. My heart skipped a beat when I realized it was the hibernation chamber where all the Syllens remained dormant. This place, and the interior of the hand-shaped healing temple were among the few places that weren’t included in the holographic virtual guided tours. Countless times, I tried to imagine what this place would look like. But nothing prepared me for just how beautiful and sacred it felt.

Giant Mother Trees lined the walls of the circular cave. A statue of a female I recognized as Goddess Etreya adorned the back wall of the shrine. Clear water streamed out of her eyes and pooled at the base of her feet. It trickled into a narrow stream that crossed the entire cave towards the main exit tunnel. Flanking her, the statues of a Syllen boy and girl each held one of her hands while looking up at her with adoration.

However, it was the trees themselves that retained my attention. Or rather the giant knots around their bases and roots covered in a dome of amber. And within, I stared with awe at the Syllens curled up in fetal positions. Some of them almost appeared mummified from being completely dehydrated. Similar to the tardigrades, shedding ninety-seven percent of the water from their bodies allowed them to hibernate safely for an indefinite period.

Many alien species—mostly smaller primitive creatures—used similar cryptobiosis techniques. In their case, it was to hibernate when their environment attained extreme freezing temperatures. With the Syllens, they produced special proteins and sugars to form a protective shield that locked their cellular structures and DNA in place to prevent decay. It was like a form of natural cryogenic stasis without the risk of cellular damage.

Hundreds of Syllens lay dormant here, the cave stretching farther than I expected. I wondered if they strategically chose their pods before the Long Sleep. The Syllens closest to the exit were all almost fully rehydrated whereas the further back you went, the more mummified they looked. It would make sense that they would put the essential members at the front as they would be first to awaken.

Taelen led me to a tree with an empty pod close to the entrance.

“This is where I slept,” he said wistfully while caressing the tree trunk.

The tree rustled its leaves in greeting, making him smile further.

“Great Mother, this is my mate, Mirella. Soon, I hope she will have veris like Torokso’s mate so that she can also properly make your acquaintance,” he added, slipping his arm around my waist to bring me closer to the tree.

“Greetings, Great Mother,” I said in Syllen, feeling excessively self-conscious. “Forgive my clumsy language skills. But it is an honor to meet you.”

The leaves rustled again, but this time, blue flowers bloomed around the branches. Tears pricked my eyes at this display of happiness.

“She warmly welcomes you,” Taelen said proudly, a large smile stretching his lips.

“Thank you,” I said with a stupid grin on my face.

“Come, let me show you my parents,” he said, leading me by the hand to the second tree to the right. “They’re in the process of awakening as we need Mother’s hunting skills, and Father’s farming talents.”

Seeing them in adjacent pods on the same tree did the funniest thing to me. That they were curled up in a fetal position facing each other couldn’t have been a coincidence. Even in their Long Sleep, they were cuddling with each other.

“You must be thrilled to finally be reunited with them,” I said.

“I am,” he said with obvious longing, before giving me a sideways glance. “I also cannot wait for them to meet you.”

He chuckled at my uneasy smile.

“Don’t be so nervous. They will love you, like everyone else who has met you so far,” he said with a confidence that did wonders for me.

“I hope so,” I mumbled. “But what about your brother? Is he awakening, too?”

Taelen gave me a sad look.

“Not yet, unfortunately. We do not need a potter at this time. But with so many Kalrins awake, and the queen’s diligently stirring the others, it should only take a couple of weeks before we can get to him.”

“That’s wonderful!” I exclaimed.

“It is,” he said warmly.

Letting go of my hand, he placed a palm on the side of each of his parents’ knots. His veris extruded, and his gaze went out of focus for a few moments. As he disconnected from them, I wondered what he had said.

Taelen then took me outside, but not through the secret passage we used to enter. Instead, we exited through the cave entrance where the shallow stream ran through the middle of the corridor. A curtain of water rained in front of the exit. As we stepped out, I realized that the overhanging ceiling protecting us from the rushing water was in fact the stone sculpture of two cupped hands.

My eyes widened upon realizing where we were. While we knew for a fact that the Syllens were dormant inside a cave, they had been extremely tight-lipped as to where it was located. To think it had been right under our noses!