by Grace Rawson
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be so blatant.”
“Worry not Jamie Gettner. You are a reporter. Your job is to look at things from every angle, is it not?”
“Yes, it is I suppose.”
“Are you hungry?”
“Not at the moment, but I am sleepy.”
“Wait here one moment.” Bol gets up out of his seat and walks to the back of the room. He opens a door that Jamie assumed led to the outside, but to her surprise it leads to another room. The room is quite dark inside. He disappears inside for a moment. When he returns he is holding a bottle in his hands that contains a dark green liquid. Handing it to her, he speaks.
“Take a small drink of this.”
“What is it?” asks Jamie, holding the bottle up to the light in order to study its contents.
“It is a painkiller of sorts that my people make. It is made from a mushroom that we grow. It will help you sleep as well as take care of the pain.”
“Is it safe for a human?”
“It is,” he answers.
“How can you be so sure about that?”
“Some of my people sell it to the guards and others that come to various places along the wall. They abuse it and use it to get high, but it has no adverse effects if used properly. I promise you.”
“Alright.” Jamie tilts up the bottle and takes a small sip of the liquid. She expects it to be nasty, but to her astonishment it tastes a lot like grape juice with a hint of something that she has never tasted before. “Wow!” She holds the bottle out and studies it again. “That doesn’t taste at all like medicine.”
“No it doesn’t, and that is the reason that one must be careful with it. Even though it doesn’t taste like it, that is an extremely powerful painkiller. If abused it will destroy your liver and kidneys in a matter of months.”
Jamie’s eyelids are already beginning to get heavy, but her mind has always been sharp and is still working properly, if a little slow. “This must be what people are calling Astara Morphine. I’ve heard that junkies will give anything for a swallow of this stuff.”
“I’m afraid so.” He reaches out and takes the bottle from her.
“Thank you for what you...” She lays back on the bed with his help and closes her eyes. She struggles to open them again, but her eyelids feel like they weigh a thousand pounds and each thought takes all of her concentration to formulate. “Thank you for... today...”
“You are welcome Jamie Gettner.”
Jamie drifts off to sleep with a smile on her face.
*****
The smell of something delicious being cooked wakes Jamie. She sits up on the edge of the bed she is in, and winces at the pain that shoots through her head. For a second she can’t remember where she is, but then the events of the day before come flooding back to her. She is sitting in the kitchenette across from the bed. Bol is standing with his back to her as he cooks over a small stove.
“Good morning Jamie Gettner.”
She isn’t sure how he knew that she was up, but right at the moment she doesn’t care. “Good morning Bol. May I ask where you bathroom is?”
He points with a spatula at a small curtained-off room to the right of the kitchen. “In there. There is running water, but not much I am afraid. I live by an adage that I believe comes from your people. If it is yellow let it mellow. If it is brown flush it down.”
Jamie chuckles, but it hurts her head so much to do so that she cuts her laughing short quickly. “Thanks.”
She rushes to the curtain and whips it aside. Behind is more than she expected, but less that she is used to. A toilet sits in the corner and beside it a couple of rolls of cheap brown toilet paper. A small tub sits along the opposite wall, but she can see no spout. He must carry the water up in buckets, she thinks as she rushes to the toilet to pee. A small window in the wall beside the toilet provides a view of the camp. She looks out the window and catches her breath.
She is at least three floors off the ground and looking over a small square. Vendor stall after vendor stall lines the square with Astara going to and fro looking at the wears of the vendors as they cry out what they are selling. Astaran children run around under the feet of the adults, playing as human kids do. For a moment Jamie merely sits on the toilet and looks out over the camp. Despite the apocalyptic look of the town the Astara seem to be happy. She watches as a mother and her daughter buy some fruits from a vendor and walk away from the square holding hands. Smoke rises from various places all over the camp; never enough to be from a major fire, so she assumes the smoke must be from cooking or heating fires. A large well takes up the middle of the square. A single Astara stands by the well. Some aliens bring him a slip of paper. He punches a hole in it, and then pulls up a bucket of water for them, which they divide out and carry off in various different containers. Most of the Astara have blue, green, or orange hair, but a few of them have hair that is nearly black like Bol’s. Must be a genetic difference like purple eyes in humans or webbed feet, she thinks as she pulls her gaze away from the window.
As she starts back out the door Jamie catches her reflection in a small mirror that is hanging on the wall. She gasps and puts a hand to the sides of her head where her hair is shaved off. Recalling the conversation she had with Bol the night before, she remembers that he had to cut away her hair to get to the cut on her head. She runs a hand through what is left of her hair and turns away from the mirror. I can’t believe that I’ve got a freaking mohawk. Never saw that coming.
“How do you feel this morning?” Bol asks as she sits down at a small table he has set up between the kitchen and the bed. On the table are two plates with eggs and what looks like spinach.
“I feel a lot better, but my head still hurts if I move it to quickly or bend over.”
“I suspected as much.” He points to the greens on the plate. “The vegetables on you plate are ones that survived from my home planet. We call it caravish and it greatly promotes healing in the body when eaten. After we have finished eating I will take a look at your cut and re-dress it.”
“Thank you Bol.” Jamie eats her meal with gusto and when she finishes, Bol checks her wound.
“It looks better than it did yesterday, but I am still worried about infection.” He holds a jar out before her and lets her take it and examine it. “This is a salve my people make. It promotes healing and helps to prevent infection. I used some on you yesterday, but you were unconscious. Now I will ask you if I may do so again.”
“Of course.”
“This will sting slightly.”
Jamie winces and hisses through her teeth as he applies the salve to her head wound. It doesn’t sting ‘slightly’ at all. The only thing she has ever had sting as badly was one time in school. She smiles as Bol finishes wrapping her head in a bandage.
“What is so funny, may I ask?”
“I was just remembering a time at school when me and a few of my friends did something that we thought was funny, but turned out to be a lesson for us as well.”
“Oh.” He slides in front of her and sits down in a chair. “If there is one thing I love it is a good story. Please continue.”
“Well, I was sixteen and I played softball. Do you know what softball is?” At his nod she continues. “My and a few of my friends on the team thought it would be funny to put muscle rub inside the softball helmets before practice. Muscle rub burns like that stuff you just put on my head.”
“Oh.”
“Anyway, we put the muscle rub in the helmets and thought we were the smartest pranksters in the world. Only problem was that when it came time for us to put helmets on during the practice we had forgotten which ones had the muscle rub in them and which didn’t. We put on ones that did, and when our heads started sweating the muscle rub started burning our scalps and we were running around with the others in just as much pain.” Jamie lets out a sigh and shakes her head. “That was a good day even if we did forget which helmets were which.”
Bol lets o
ut a chuckle. “Sounds like you had a lot of fun with your friends.”
“I did.” She indicates the empty plate in front of her. “Thank you for the meal Bol. I can’t repay you right now, but I will.”
“Just to have you write a report on us for the newspaper will be more than enough. Maybe you can help spread the word that my people aren’t as bad as most think we are. I know that you had a rough time on your first day, but don’t let those few who would seek to ruin your time here set the mold for the rest of us. Only a handful like Grum and his associates are like that.”
“I know all about his kind. We have people just like him in our own society. Never happy with what they have and always ready to take out their anger and frustration on the nearest outlet.”
“That is the way of it.” He offers her his hand. “Come now. You need more rest so that your head has time to heal.”
“I would like to see some of you camp first.” She argues.
“There will be time for that later. Rest for now.”
She stretches out on the bed with a sigh. She hadn’t noticed before because she had been reminiscing, but she had a splitting headache. She eagerly takes the pain reliever drink from him and drinks from it. Instantly, the pain begins to recede and dull down.
“You know something?” She asks him as she feels herself falling asleep.
“What’s that?”
“I have never seen an Astara before I came here other than in pictures and never as up close as you. I must say that I am surprised by how human you look. In the movies and other media they try make you look like something akin to monsters. I have to admit that I’m surprised by how human you look. Other than your hair and eye color you look just like a human.” Her eyelids are growing heavy, but she continues to speak. “The only other thing different is that stripe across your nose. I thought at first it was a tattoo, but now that I’ve been around a few of you I see that it is some kind of birth mark.” She closes her eyes and smiles as she drifts off to sleep. “You’re handsome too, with your broad shoulders and kind smile. A woman could get used to waking up to that smile...”
The next morning Jamie opens wakes up to the sound of someone knocking on the front door. She sits up slowly in bed and is glad to find that her head barely hurts at all. There is still some residual pain when she moves it too quickly, but other than that it feels pretty good. If only I still had my hair. She runs a hand over her scalp and winces at the sound that the short hair makes as it bristles against her palm. Another knock at the door reminds her of the reason she woke.
Not thinking, she gets up and starts for the door. A strong hand falls on her shoulder just as she is reaching out to take hold of the doorknob. She turns around and faces Bol. He shakes his head and motions for her to step to the side.
“I don’t have many visitors up here,” he explains as he steps to the door. In one smooth motion he flings it open and drops into a low fighting stance with his arms up and poised to strike out.
Jamie is ready for an attack, but lets out a sigh when she sees that an Astaran woman is standing in the doorway. An older Astara, if her white hair is any indication of age like it is in humans. Bol leaps to his feet and bows before the woman.
“Elder Rin. I am sorry for that display of ignorance, but I had a run-in with Grum a few days ago and was afraid that he was here to cause even more problems.”
“Do not be sorry my child.” Elder Rin reaches out a hand and lays it on the back of his head. “You were prepared and there is nothing wrong with being prepared.”
“Thank you Elder Rin.” He straightens and steps to the side. “Please come inside and make yourself at home. My house is your house.”
“Thank you my son.”
Elder Rin steps inside and her eyes go to Jamie. Instantly, Jamie feels uncomfortable under the intense gaze of the female Astara. She stands her ground despite her every instinct telling her to run as the Astaran Elder steps forward and extends one of her hands. This close, Jamie can see that the older Astara’s skin is covered with fine wrinkles much the same way that a human of eighty or ninety would be. She takes the hand and finds that the grip is strong and resilient.
“We are well met young woman.” Elder Rin smiles. “I heard that you had a very interesting time one your first few minutes in our lovely Camp Venogar.”
“I did.”
“I am sorry that happened to you. I hope that you won’t let the misguided actions of a few rebellious ones set the tone for the rest of us, for that is not who we are as a collective. We really are a civilized species.”
“I have gathered as much from how Bol has treated me and from stories I have heard from others who have worked with your kind before.”
“That is good.” The older Astara sits in a chair and motions to the one across from her. “Sit my child. I would discuss with you your reasons for being here.”
“Okay.” Jamie sits across from the Elder Rin. “What is it that you would like to know?”
“Firstly, I want to know about you.”
“Well, there isn’t much to tell. I work for the Gazette. It is a newspaper that circulates through most of the big cities and also on the internet.” Jamie stops short. She realizes that neither of the Astara may know what the internet is. “The internet is a large communications...”
Elder Rin raises a hand and stops her mid-sentence. “We know what the internet is, child. We may not have access to it here, but we are fully aware of what it is and how it works. We had a similar thing on Sendara only we had a different name for it. I won’t bother you with the pronunciation or even the name for it no longer exists save in the minds of those old enough to remember it. Continue.”
“Like I said I work at the Gazette, but I also have a degree in biology, which is the study of life.”
“I see.” Elder Rin waves a hand to Bol who is standing behind her with his hands clasped behind his back. “Get us something to drink young Bol and hurry back. It would seem that we have much to discuss with this young woman.”
Bol hurries off to the kitchen. Jamie watches him out of the corner of her eye and wonders to herself exactly who this woman is and what power she holds to make Bol jump at her command. He returns and hands out drinks for everyone. As Elder Rin takes a sip of her drink, Bol sits cross-legged on the floor to her right.
“You say that you are a biologist and you study life. Is that why you have come here?” Elder Rin asks.
“Yes and no. I came here in part to study your people, but I want to write an article when I leave that will be published around the world. I hope to show the peoples of Earth that you and your kind are not dangerous, and that you should not be kept in camps like this any longer.”
“So you wish to help us. Why?”
“I hate seeing anyone or anything treated badly just because they are different than the majority. I don’t know how much you know about our history, but on Earth we have had a problem with something very similar for hundreds of years. For a long time we sold and bought each other as slaves. And for thousands of years we have been killing and enslaving each other for nothing more than the color of our skin or our religious beliefs.”
“We had the same thing happen on Sendara. It is one of the reasons that we had to leave in the first place. Different factions warred against each other until finally they brought about the death of our entire planet. We Astara who live on your Earth today are from the faction that did not want slaves. We believed in equal rights for all. I would like to say that all of the members of the other faction was destroyed too, but alas it cannot be said. I fear that a small number of them hid themselves on our ship and came here with us. We tried our best to quell them from starting over and have had moderate success in this camp, but I am afraid that news from other camps is not so good. I fear that the much larger camp know to you as Camp Houston is full of members of the faction that wants slavery and destruction. It seems that by the luck of the draw most of the ones who hid aboard our vessel ended u
p there. We have a few here as you found out for yourself on you first day here, but most of them stick to the shadows and have very little sway over the community. I hope to keep it that way.”
“Yours is an interesting story Elder Rin, but I still don’t understand why you wanted to talk to me.”
“You will soon enough.” She turns to Bol and nods. “It is time Bol.”
Bold stands and looks Jamie in the eyes. “Some of us are very sick. We need medicines, but we get very little other than what we grow ourselves and what we can bribe the guards to bring to us. Only bribing doesn’t always work. Eight times out of ten they take whatever we are using to bribe them with and keep it for themselves without giving us what we asked for in return.”
Jamie sits up in her seat. “And what do you want from me? You want me to smuggle things in to you?”
“Only a small quantity of the drug you call antibiotics. If you could bring us a few pills or better yet a whole bottle I could synthesize the drug and mass-produce it for the sick.”
“Why are you asking me?”
“Because the guards have changed around the camp and we don’t know any of them well enough to bribe yet. We would wait and gain the trust of a few of them, but such a thing takes time and time is not something we have at the moment.”
Jamie sits for a minute and lets everything that she just heard sink in. To help the Astara is one of the reasons she came here, but she also knows that if she gets caught smuggling anything in to the aliens that she will get life in prison for aiding the enemy. She isn’t sure she is willing to risk her freedom to save a few sick Astara. Looking around the room, she meets the gaze of Bol and remembers how gentle he was with her and how he had saved her life.
“Okay.” She takes a long drink of her soda. “I’ll help, but you need to tell me exactly what you want and how much.”
“You are doing my people a great service.” Elder Rin nods to her and stands. “I will leave you two to discuss the rest of the plan.” As her hand reaches for the door she turns back around and looks at Jamie again. “I will not forget what you have done for us, young woman.”