by Susan Kite
“We wanted to visit others… We knew, well, we thought there were others in the desert, but you were—here instead.” Corree stopped abruptly, wondering if she should even be talking to Greelon. He was the enemy, after all. She should have done what the Federation wanted, but she couldn’t. To not know about the others; all those others she had grown up with.
Now she was a prisoner of Ologrians and Ologrians ate humans! She shuddered and pressed her eyes together to stop the sudden desire to cry. Corree realized there were no tears to leak from her eyes. Ologrians didn’t cry?
Corree forced her emotions down. She had to think logically. Greelon had not hurt her. At least not yet. She was locked in a small room, but… But what? How long would she be kept here? Corree wanted to move. In the forest she could climb, glide, and travel incredible distances in any direction she or the group decided to go. She was free. Or she had felt free until the trip to the pod. Here? She had been given food and water; that was it. “How long are you going to keep me in this tiny box?”
Again Greelon cocked his head and considered. “We cannot let you out until we know it is safe for us.”
“You’re bigger than I am. There are more of you.” Then in a small voice, before she could stop herself, Corree murmured, “I want to go back to my forest.” She clamped her thin lips shut before she said anything else.
“You are still very young, barely the age of learning,” Greelon answered, his voice subdued. Corree didn’t totally understand the last part of his statement, but his tone seemed different—sad? “You could have human…that could hurt us.”
What in the world was he talking about? Her confusion must have shown because he continued.
“Tiny things in your body that could make us sick.”
Corree still wasn’t sure she quite understood, but felt he wasn’t making anything up. She remembered the map in the pod. It had shown another group in the desert. What had happened to them? Were there other human prisoners here besides her and Riss? Could they have been eaten? “What happened to the others?”
Now Greelon looked confused. “Others? There was only you and your companion.”
“But there was another group there. A desert family. That’s who we were going to see.”
“There were no others. We saw no evidence that there ever had been others.”
That couldn’t be, she thought. Everything else was right that the holo-man had shown them. Her thoughts whirled around in her head, each one faster and more confusing than the other. She noticed Greelon had stopped talking to her. He was watching and only began to speak when she turned her attention back to him.
“I noticed how quickly you changed, while this…Riss, was much slower in his mutation.”
Corree noticed Greelon didn’t ask why she changed. He must have figured that one out already. She just shrugged, or made a close approximation.
Without saying anything else, Greelon left. Corree lay back down. The conversation had left her feeling tired and depressed. Eventually, she fell asleep.
****
Pounding in her head woke Corree up. The headache made her queasy and she sat up slowly. The queasiness rose into something Corree could not ignore. It was more than just the protests of an empty stomach. Gulping in air, she wondered if Greelon had put something in her food. Why would he do that, though? Were they experimenting on her? Maybe trying to kill her? But if they wanted to do that, they could just use their weapons, like they did on that colony.
The only other time she had felt something like this was right after they had landed on Mendel. Their stores in the pod had run out and they were forced to find food from the forest. Most of what they had tried was fine, but when they were very hungry, she would try other things she wasn’t sure about. Some of the things seemed right to eat and turned out to be good for them. The few things she had been doubtful about had made her stomach and head ache. One or two made her feel horrible. Like now, except this was worse. Corree heaved, and what little she had eaten the day before came up. Regardless, she continued being sick until her sides ached. For a long time she couldn’t stop.
“We made sure what we gave you was safe for you to eat,” Greelon said.
She hadn’t noticed he was there.
“Physiologically speaking you have changed into an Ologrian.” Greelon’s pinched features were emotionless.
“So, what’s doing this?” she gasped.
“Perhaps one of our organisms infected you before you entirely changed. That shouldn’t be so; we tried to keep you in as sterile an environment as possible, but there was contact.”
“Sterile?” she asked even as her inside roiled again.
“That means there is nothing to hurt you—germs—tiny organisms.”
If Corree hadn’t been so miserable, she’d have laughed at the irony of what he was saying. Four gray walls, gray ceiling, gray floor. It was sterile all right.
“It will not take long to develop vaccines to guard you from any of our bacteria….”
When his voice trailed off and he didn’t say anything else, Corree looked up. Greelon had vanished and the window was gone. She didn’t know how long she sat huddled in a corner, nursing her misery. Her stomach was still rebellious, but there was nothing left. She was left gasping at every bout. Her ribs ached. She almost missed the quick pain in her hip.
“Sit still,” Greelon commanded her from the other side of the window.
Corree was too miserable to do anything else but sit. The pain was brief, but she finally recognized it. A shot. The needle was administered by a robot arm that was now withdrawing into the wall. “What was that for?” she mumbled. When she didn’t get an answer, she figured Greelon was gone again. She didn’t even look up to corroborate her guess. This time he really was gone a long time. There was no food or drink to judge time with, even if she cared. Sleep was restless and filled with terrible dreams of Ologrians tearing off her limbs and munching on them with great satisfaction while she watched. Bouts of nausea were accompanied with exhausting rocking in the corners of the tiny room. Moans filled her ears but seemed distant.
Corree didn’t care about anything now; all she could feel was her misery. Maybe she would die here, but if she did, she wouldn’t hurt anymore.
****
Greelon straightened up, rubbing the pelt at the small of his back. His spine creaked. “It is as I feared.”
The two other Ologrians watched him, but said nothing.
“There is a virus in her system that seems to have mutated into something deadly to us.” Greelon figured the eruption would be immediate.
“They allowed us to capture them! They wanted her to be captured,” snarled Merkom. “She knew! The human vermin knew!”
That last accusation had crossed Greelon’s mind when he realized the truth, but he had dismissed it immediately. He did the same now with a wave of his hand. “If you mean the human younglings—no. They didn’t have any idea we were there. I believe the female when she said she was looking for other human mutants.” He rubbed his long, pointed chin thoughtfully. “However if you mean the Federation meant for us to capture them, then I believe you are right. And if they meant for us to get this virus and die, you are probably correct in that supposition as well.”
“What?” Merkom and his companion, Issoril, spluttered.
“I mean the Federation was counting on us capturing and studying them. The male, Riss, was programmed to be aggressive and the female was given something that would multiply and react after coming in contact with one of us. They developed a virus that could cause a plague.”
“The caretaker has been in contact with her!” Issoril added, his jaws clacking their fear and indignation.
“Place him and anyone else in contact with him or the humans into quarantine,” Greelon ordered. “Put the humans’ clothing and any utensils they have touched in the laboratory isolation chamber. Anything might prove useful in the quest to stop a plague. Oh, and by the way, I believe each one of us
has been in contact with someone who has been in contact with the caretaker.”
“The humans must be terminated!” the other two scientists chorused.
“No!” Greelon snapped. “She is important. Her ability to mutate is important. Why the humans have used her this way is important.” Issoril and Merkom continued to clack out their venomous desires. Why can’t they see this? The humans have figured out a means of adaptation so drastic and so phenomenal we can’t destroy these two specimens. Even The Head and The Claw can see that! “We have to develop a vaccine that will not only save us, but save her as well. I need your help, though. I believe the contagion will be fast acting. We don’t have a lot of time.” He glared his point. “If you want to live, you’ll stop wasting time complaining and help me.”
Despite their anger at the humans, Greelon’s fellow scientists began working with him to find the cure for the deadly virus.
Two days later, Greelon realized his guess had been right. The caretaker had almost died, as had the human female. Greelon stretched and felt joints pop and muscles protest. His eyes burned from fatigue, but he was confident his team had come up with the right antidote to the virulent contagion. The caretaker was not getting worse. In fact his fever had decreased by a fraction.
The human was also recovering. It was slow, but she, too, had shown improvement since being inoculated. Greelon blinked in surprise as he realized he hadn’t even asked her for her name.
Chapter Nine
Corree awoke in something much larger than the tiny room she had been taught in. She felt softness cushioning her mutated body, enveloping it almost like a nest in a forest giant. She had never felt such softness. Even the robe that was wrapped around her was softer than anything in the rain forest. Tiny tubes extended from her arms and soft restraints kept her from moving more than a finger length. She gazed around and saw a tall machine chirping near the head of her nest.
Corree realized she didn’t feel sick, nor was she sore. What had been wrong with her? Had the Ologrians been experimenting with her? But no, Dr. Greelon had acted surprised at the strength of the sickness. There was something about the equipment that told Corree they were trying to take care of her rather than experiment on her.
She heard a soft whoosh and looked up. Greelon stood in an open doorway. He clicked deep in his throat before walking in. Corree wasn’t sure what the sound was supposed to mean so she didn’t say anything.
“You are recovering nicely,” he said.
“What was wrong with me?”
“You had a virus that mutated the same time your body did. It almost killed you.” He paused, looking uncomfortable. “It would have killed all of us if we had not found the antidote.”
“I don’t understand,” she began. “You said something about one of your illnesses making me sick…”
“It wasn’t one of ours. It was something you carried. It was meant to kill us.”
“W-what?”
“I may be wrong, but I theorize that you were injected with a dormant virus. It was supposed to grow and multiply when you either mutated into an Ologrian or came in contact with one of us.”
Inject? The holo-man wasn’t able to do that. So… “How?”
“That was what I wanted to ask you when you feel better,” Greelon said, his voice showing not a hint of emotion.
Corree was confused. How could someone do that? “Regular humans can’t live on Mendel,” she snapped. “That’s why we were made. I have not been around a human since we were sent to live there, so how could someone inject me with something?”
Greelon make more clicking sounds. “I will have to ponder that…levret… I am sorry. I never asked how you are addressed?”
“Addressed? Oh, my name? It’s Corree.”
“Cor…ree.” More clicking, this time deep in his throat. “It is a…good name.”
“Why am I being held down like this?” She tried to raise her hands.
“You were moving too much while you were sick. It was the only way we could make sure you received the medicine and nutrition.”
“Can you…I am awake now. Can you remove them, Dr. Greelon?”
“Yes, of course.” He touched a button on the side of her nest and the restraints fell away. “Please do not try to leave the room, though.”
Corree came to a full realization of her situation. “How long will you keep me prisoner before you kill me and eat me?”
“What? Eat you?”
“Don’t your warriors eat their prisoners?”
He narrowed his eyes. “Where did you learn of that?”
“It’s true, isn’t it?”
“You said you had no contact with humans since your landing on Mendel.” Greelon paused. “Or perhaps this is something they indoctrinated you with before you were sent to Mendel?”
Corree seriously considered lying to him and telling him it was before, but she couldn’t. She didn’t sense any deceit in him. He was…he was trying to be kind. “I haven’t. I learned some things from a holo-teacher like the one that taught me your language.”
Again, Greelon looked thoughtful. “And this teacher told you we ate humans?”
“Yes.”
“There is a warrior ritual of ‘tasting’ one’s enemy. Nothing is eaten, but the warriors draw in the scent, feel and, yes, the taste of the enemy’s skin. It has been many generations since actual tasting took place.”
“But Ologrians were tearing off limbs and biting them after they killed all the people in a Federation Colony,” Corree persisted.
Greelon made more clicking sounds. They were strident as though he was angry. “Apparently you were only shown a part of the actual battle as well as some contrived scenes.” He straightened his robe. “You saw the fury of warriors stirred into revenge killing. What would you expect if one of your ships had been destroyed with many of your comrades aboard? It was not a warship; it was a contact ship. There was much killing, but believe me when I tell you that even in their anger, the warriors did not eat their victims.”
Corree couldn’t say anything for a moment. She remembered her question to the holo-man in the teaching pod. Didn’t anyone bother to ask? If Greelon was telling the truth, it seemed no one wanted to. “Maybe they were afraid. Or someone made a mistake?”
Greelon gazed at her thoughtfully. “Perhaps that is a possibility, Corree. It is something to consider.”
Corree decided to change the subject. She didn’t want to take a chance of irritating Greelon. “What is going to happen to me and Riss?”
“For right now, you are under my care until we arrive at Alogol. Then it is up to The Head and The Claw…our supreme leadership. I am hoping they will continue to allow me to have guardianship over both of you.”
“Why?”
“Why?” Greelon asked in surprise. “Because I am a scientist and despite your appearance, you are a different species.”
Corree couldn’t help it; she shuddered. He would do the same thing the human scientists did.
“What is wrong?” he asked, moving to the side of her nest.
“You are a scientist,” she answered in a small voice.
“I don’t understand….” His red eyes grew dark. “Your ability came because of what your scientists did to you; am I correct?” When she nodded, he continued. “They did things that hurt you?”
“Yes.”
“If I know something will be painful, I will let you know. I do not anticipate more than taking a little of your blood to make sure you are healthy.”
Again, Corree felt he was telling the truth. Greelon left but very quickly came back with a small container of something nourishing as well as pleasant tasting. Almost immediately she felt sleepy and suspected there had been some kind of medicine in the liquid. She didn’t remember Greelon leaving.
The next day Corree was feeling well enough for Greelon to take her on a tour of the scout craft. It was much bigger than the pod that had taken them to Mendel. In fact it was many times larger
than the teaching pod. When he took her to a large room where the ceiling showed a star-filled expanse, she gasped in wonder. Corree had seen stars in the sky before the moons rose on Mendel, but never had she seen anything like this. Clusters of bright orbs glowed dazzling spectrums of colors. Single stars vied for attention everywhere she looked and deepest black filled the spaces in between. Corree knew about stars, but had no idea they could be so varied in size and color.
“We are fortunate to be near a part of the galaxy where many stars are born,” Greelon explained. “The ship’s energy panels always face that direction. The astronomers can study whenever they choose even as the ship’s power cells draw in the radiation from the stars. The rest of us come here to feel the heartbeat of the gods.”
“Heartbeat of the gods?” Corree asked.
“We feel our souls are entwined with the stars. Their energy feeds us. There are many who feel the gods—the makers, reside in the stars.”
At his words, Corree felt a pang of longing for her own home; for her forest on Mendel. She looked for the blue sun. There were a couple of stars that were close in color, but none were hers. Corree thought she understood what Greelon was saying. “Where is Mendel?”
“It is behind us. We are traveling toward my home planet.”
Corree wanted to ask if she would ever go back to her home, but she didn’t. She was afraid of the answer Greelon might give her.
“Would you like to see what I am working on?”
Working on? she wondered. She couldn’t imagine what a scientist in a ship of warriors might be working on. Corree followed Greelon into his workroom. She was surprised to see that the walls were lined with small narrow boxes decorated with a variety of designs. There had been similar things during her days growing up under the care of the scientists. Corree knew they contained information, but had never had a chance to look at one.
“May I see one of those, please?” She pointed.
Greelon looked surprised, but he quickly pulled one down and opened it. There was a small, rectangular-shaped item inside and Greelon took it out. He slipped it into a machine and pointed toward the only section of the wall not covered with the shelves. Lines and squiggles showed up on the wall. They scrolled slowly up, showing more strange lines and shapes. A picture came up. Corree walked closer to study it before it disappeared. To her surprise, it stopped and she was able to examine it. There were several Ologrians, most of them large, but one quite small. The small one was held in the arms of a large one. It was different. The skin was almost white and its eyes were much smaller. There were stalk-like growths on the top of its head. There was no pelt and no tail. The legs seemed stunted and much too short to hold up its body.