Moho (Part One: Rise of a Symbol) Read Online Free Page B

his real height.   To sum it up, I just don’t like it. But I must admit that the use of Springstones was a smart move. The warm, golden-white light evokes memories of this , in retrospect, utterly protective feeling of The Spring.
    “Maya?”
    “Moho?”
    “Why are we here?” I ask to Maya's surprise. “I mean, what’s the purpose of the Islands?”
    "Cosmo has united the leading authorities in the fields of body, mind, and essence connectivity right here on the Islands. They are organized in several departments and help you develop your skills in those areas," she explains seriously. "Oh, excuse me, I forgot to list matter connectivity."
    Well, that really cleared things up.
    She leads us towards a group of odd-looking trees she refers to as 'Springtreegrove'. I was so taken by her that I didn't realize that we aren't alone any more. More and more people are heading into the same direction. When we arrive at the Springtreegrove, I get nervous and realize that coming to the Islands was an astonishingly foolish decision. There are hundreds of people hanging out in the grass, chatting, and laughing. The atmosphere is very relaxed. They seem to belong here. But I? I don't know anything about the body, mind, and… I can't even remember the other kinds of connections… How are those people in the Springtreegrove going to react when they find out I’m a fraud? My stomach turns. And then Maya makes it worse.
    “I should go to my Springtree over there. Yours is the last one on the left,” she lets me know. Our trees are on opposite sites of the grove…
    She wants to shake hands and stretches out her arm towards me. That is kind of cute. I shake hers and she loosens her grip. But I don’t want her to leave me and so I pull her closer. She looks at me with innocent wonder in her eyes. “What are you doing?” she asks.
    “Connecting,” I answer and press my forehead against hers. I feel her warm skin against mine and her hot breath against my chin. Her eyes are firmly pointed towards the ground. Then, when she lets go off my hand but I don’t let go off hers, she smiles and closes her eyes. I can’t say for how long we 'connect' like this but she eventually pulls back her head. She just stands there for a moment before she turns around and leaves towards her Springtree. I follow her into the grove and make my way through the crowd towards my tree.
    The trees form an almost closed circle except for a small opening towards the peaceful ocean. With the last rays of the day, the sun illuminates the trees. Very extraordinary trees, actually. There are about three dozens of them organized in two rows and each is entirely unique in size, shape, texture and color. My Springtree, for example, has a knobby, orange-red bark and countless yellow branches that seem to grow like weeds out of the thick trunk. I guess it's pretty but the random collection of exotic trees and the fact that I don’t know anyone makes me feel even more out of place. I’m not sure if I can get used to all of this. The grass is simply green, though. So that’s a start.
    I observe the people who are standing under the branches of my tree. They must also be new here. And yet they seem to know each other. I want to join one of their small groups but no one seems to notice me and I’d feel better if someone invited me into their conversation. So I end up not talking to anyone and simply observe the large crowd in the Springtreegrove.
    I don’t see Aleeya anywhere. Or Cosmo. I'd really like to talk to him. The only person in the crowd I recognize is Maya. She is standing across the grove under a very tall purple tree which has very long, puffy, beige leaves that blow in the wind. A young man is talking to her and they both seem to enjoy their conversation. Maya is happy. She talks a lot but also listens with great interest. He and Maya touch each other’s arms quite often, which makes me uncomfortable.  They appear to be very good, probably old,