'Besides, it's probably not a good idea to consider these beings as mere animals in a laboratory. Although I don't deny that this method is the "most correct" way to get an objective view of them. That's why we decided not to interfere in their development, or at least not in a very direct way.'
Lucien thought, remembering the meeting he had just attended.
'But if we consider these beings as samples in a laboratory, it's perfectly natural that they be separated into groups and exposed to different types of situations with small degrees of interference, right? One group without any intervention, developing as it should in a more or less favorable location for its species. One group with a slight intervention, such as silently guiding them to a more suitable location, etc.'
Lucien considered several situations with different degrees of direct and indirect interference, and made some superficial simulations in his mind. Simulations, whether in the mind or in laboratories, were easy to do even with the minimal amount of data obtained so far.
However, simulations, no matter how realistic and fact-based they may be, would hardly follow the line of reality, even for Lucien and his friends.
Seeing the young man with bluish skin and dark blue, almost black, hair, still kneeling before him, Lucien had two impulses.
The first, was to observe how they would respond to various situations he simulated in the last few seconds, from the mildest to the most severe.
The second, unexpectedly, was simply to set aside his rational and curious mind and just help the young man and his family. Simply because he had already gone through something similar, millennia before, when he was just a "normal" human.
Lucien saw a bit of himself in Movuya: a young man barely out of childhood, brutally thrown into a world that barely cared about him. Who lost his home and everything he knew to the greed and envy of others, who fought desperately to survive, hiding and crawling on the ground in an environment saturated with dangers, all to manage to live another day.
The difference between them was that Lucien faced all this alone, and had to fend for himself as best he could. He himself acknowledges that it was actually good that he was alone in this case, since that way he wouldn't have direct responsibility if something happened to other people, which happened several times.
Ironically, it was because he was alone that he had the monstrous and infinitesimal luck to find and be accepted by one of the Nexus. His body not rejecting the enhancements was also a stroke of luck with minimal (miraculous actually) percentages of success.
Movuya, on the other hand, had his family and tribe to worry about; if he put that aside, he would probably have a better chance of living, but Lucien believed it wouldn't be a life worth living.
And if the young man had made that choice in the fight against the creature, it's quite likely Lucien wouldn't have been helped. He probably would have relegated his entire species to another type of creature generated by MATER radiation, relatively more intelligent than the others, like a particularly skilled species of apes.
With all this in perspective, Lucien decided to combine both motives.
He would help Movuya and his family to win back their tribe and assess how the other tribes of the same species in their area would behave during this process, quietly helping one or another, and eliminating those who could harm his "experiment".
Having decided what to do, Lucien approached the young man. It would be easy to use his telekinesis to lift him, which would create a sense of awe in him and the others. But that would be too impersonal and unnecessarily intimidating.
To Lucien telekinesis was a weapon and a tool, to be used only against enemies or when he needed to float/fly for some reason, or simply because he wanted to, in the second case.
Kneeling in front of the boy, Lucien touched his shoulder and encouraged him to look at him.
"You know you don't need that to ask me for help, right?"
He asked, raising an eyebrow with a loving look on his face, as if looking at a child, or a pet, depending on how you saw the scene.
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Movuya didn't know how long he had been in that position of absolute submission. He didn't know if Lauxiem would understand the meaning of the gesture, but if he didn't, he was sure his mother would explain.
This position didn't just mean surrender or acknowledgment of the other's superiority, but a gesture that said: 'I surrender everything I have within me, including myself, and give it to you.'
According to the elders, the practice of absolute submission was one of the few points in common among the various tribes of the flooded plains. Adopting this posture essentially consisted of abandoning one's previous identity, individual or communal (if done by the chief), and accepting a new one, instituted by the individual for whom the gesture was made. Whatever that new identity might be: brother, servant, slave, etc.
Apparently, in the history of his tribe, they heard of only 5 cases of someone performing this pose, 2 of which were individual cases from long ago considered myths for the tribes of the plains. The other 3 were performed by chiefs of other tribes for his father.
To be clear, Movuya's father was not a war-monger or war fanatic; these chiefs had agreed to integrate into Movuya's tribe after seeing the prosperity his father had brought and receiving help in times of greatest need, without asking for anything in return.
Making that gesture was an indication that Movuya was willing to give up everything he was up to that point, in exchange for power. Generally, as the name suggests, absolute submission would not allow for requests or conditions, but in his tribe this changed thanks to his father.
He had decreed that, in exchange for the submission and integration of other tribes, he would allow certain conditions, if reasonable, to be met.
In this case, the only condition Movuya asked for was to gain strength; he also wanted his family to be safe, but imagined that during the process of strengthening himself, they would be allowed to stay with him. He had no basis for believing this, but he felt something deep within him that assured him Lauxiem would do it.
Therefore, he remained silent and waited until the divine being who had saved them gave his verdict. Perhaps only a few seconds passed, but they seemed like years to the young man.
Finally, he heard the sound of footsteps ahead of him. Approaching, he suppressed the trembling that almost broke out and continued waiting. Lauxiem came before him, placed a hand on his shoulder, and said:
"You know you don't need that to ask me for help, don't you?"
He spoke in a resolute and calm voice; it literally sounded like music to Movuya's ears. Tears threatened to fall again, but just like the tremor, he stopped them.
Looking into the rosy eyes of the being before him, the young man said.
"I, can I... Can I become strong? Strong enough to protect that dear one I have and save those I still can?"
Movuya asked, half hopeful, half fearful of the answer.
"That's for you and those you help to decide. I can give you the means to do something, but achieving it is something you yourself must accomplish."
Lucien replied seriously, but with a melancholic look.
"My mother and my sister? They—"
"They'll stay here too, I imagine you're not the only one who wants to settle scores."
Lucien said immediately; this was another of the few times even the most socially inept person could read the atmosphere. The anger at losing her home, her husband, and almost becoming a plaything for a wretch, who in her concept was less than mud formed from stagnant water, was more than evident in Milian's eyes.
If her son were to tread the path of vengeance and reclaim his home, she certainly wouldn't stand by and watch. After all, Milian might not have been the best warrior, but she wasn't the worst either. In this situation, who better than her to teach her son about the combat techniques of her tribe?.