Fortaleza Hidalgo – La GomeraThe monastery stands proudly on the mountaintop yet invisible unless approached from the forested valley, few had ever had the privilege of seeing it. Deep inside the monastery, twelve individuals sat around an oval table, the lighting arranged to ensure only their profiles were visible to each other. Each had entered through a private access arriving to a strictly coordinated schedule. Secrecy was so essential that only the Chair and the Leader were visible to all. None questioned it; all appreciated it, though it sometimes made for stilted meetings. It had been that way for centuries but of course the facilities had been substantially upgraded in the last twenty years to include the latest in modern communication systems.
The Elders’ current leader, Zheng Wa
