The Song

Posted on Fri Apr 28th, 2023 @ 5:43pm by Ombretta del Carlo

585 words; about a 3 minute read

Ombretta loved the song.

No one could ever hear it, any many sound manipulators had tried. Everyone swore it wasn’t real, but Ombretta believed it anyway. Since the age of 5, she’d been an orphan. Her parents had both lost their families in the aftermath of the pulse. Like many orphans, Ombretta remained close to home, foraging scraps from wherever they could find.

She was a year old when the pulse hit, and it was a miracle she made it to five, and then six. She’d watch her home crumble without electricity and the earth slowly begin to reclaim it. The solar radiation had made it hard for plant life to grow, but on the day she heard the song, she discovered a lily. Its petals were wilted, fighting to survive the concrete jungle.

Her mother loved lilies, and in a brief moment, this six year old snatched up the lily and ran home to show her mother. Only then did she remember the horrible truth. She began to cry. Tears streamed down her face and Ombretta couldn’t control it.

And that’s when she first heard the song.

Ombretta looked down and saw that her tears had fallen on the petals. The dim purple had become more vibrant. The stem had become firm. The petals had even opened in a graceful formation. Ombretta swore it was singing a song of comfort to her, even though no one else could hear it.

In the years that followed, Ombretta learned more about her newfound abilities. She could communicate with plants in ways that no one ever could. All it took was a simple touch, and she could hear their song and sing with them. Their melodies were beautiful, even though all anyone could see was the end result. When she spoke to plants, they grew. They changed. She could revitalize a patch of grass in seconds. She could grow a garden in a week. As St. Louis transformed into what they now call a “Hometown” she helped develop the bio farm, carefully crafting environments that could produce vegetation for survival and beyond.

Using her powers came at great cost. In the beginning, using her powers would drain her after a few minutes. But with practice she was able to expand that to hours on end. The more she sang with the plants, the more the plants began to give back to her. Now, at the young age of 31, her hands and arms no longer bore any traces of her Hispanic heritage. A crisp algae coated her hands and forearms, looking almost like gauntlets. Ombretta did not know the last time she wore real clothing, as her outergarments were now a loose-fitting conglomeration of vines and leaves. Her once black hair bore a strong green tint, and it was highlighted wonderfully in the sun or bright light.

Ombretta found herself always energized by the sun, swearing she was more energetic in the spring and summer, suffering the autumns and winters when the plants shed their leaves and hibernated. These changes did not phase Ombretta. If these helped her sing better with the plants, then so should it be.

The real tragedy was that those around her knew very little about Ombretta. She could speak, yes, and she could carry a conversation. Ombretta would do whatever she was asked, as long as the plants were safe. They were, after all, the only ones who knew her as Ombretta.

Everyone else just knew her as Flora…

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