by Chris Devine
“It is decided,” his tone was final, “you start immediately. I believe Sundaravāda Ciṭṭe will have completed her work in two or three sessions, so you may as well become acquainted.” The meeting was over.
At least it will only be for a finite amount of time, she mused to herself. The ‘finite amount of time’ had different connotations depending on whether she applied the statement to herself or to The Original. The deception she had hinted at in the dream she had given The Original made her uncomfortable; it was too close to a lie. Not a lie, merely an absence of some truths. She had not realised her guard had slipped after her reprimand. Her mental wall clanged hastily and ungainly back into place. She noticed a slight curl of amusement on the other’s lips at her discomfort and she flushed, partly in embarrassment and partly in anger at herself. Safe behind her defences she still held a feeling of disquiet. She examined it. An absence of truth is still a deception. Maybe not an outright lie, but endorsed only by the convenience of semantics. Yes, he was a primitive, violent and disgusting creature, but he still satisfied all the rules of sentience, just. He deserved the whole truth. She took her leave of Wingu Kanzu and walked to the transport tubes, the floor gently accelerating her progress, troubled lines furrowing her brow.
The corridor was reasonably busy but the floor steered her through and around the others so efficiently that she barely noticed her progress until she gently decelerated as she approached the bounce tubes. Wingu Kanzu’s quarters were two decks below the bridge and just above the main laboratories, along with the other senior scientists. The White Room that held the alien - she had difficulty giving him the revered title of ‘Original’ - was located on deck fifty, right in the middle of the ship. As she left the tube at her destination she was nearly knocked off her feet by an overly enthusiastic Paal Kanik getting in. They both sprang back in surprise. The young girl flushed and bowed hastily in recognition of the other’s rank. Although only a Paal Kanik herself, Xnuk Ek’ was close to completing her training and possibly becoming a Nuuktak herself, and as such, was deserving of the other’s respect, although maybe not the amount indicated by the depth of the bow so hastily bestowed on her.
“My apologies,” stammered Niji No Tori, “please forgive me.” Xnuk Ek’ waved a dismissive hand. She liked the keen youngster, she reminded her of herself before her training taught her self-control and mental composure.
“Where would I find the ail…The Original?” she corrected herself quickly. She knew the answer already but wanted to give the youngster an opportunity to recover without losing face at her clumsiness.
“Room three, tank two,” she replied quickly, adding, “Sundaravāda Ciṭṭe is just finishing a session with him now.” Xnuk Ek’ smiled, nodded her thanks and made to leave. Pausing for a second, she turned back and faced the other again.
“I feel the need to disperse some frustrations. Would you like to join me in the Gaming Centre later?”
“I would be honoured!” the young girl beamed. “Although, your skill is well known, I am not sure I can compete at your level.” she added with more than a little trepidation.
“Just promise that you will play to win. Never let the perceived skill of your opponent intimidate you, no one is unbeatable. Remember, there is no shame in losing to a superior opponent, but neither is there honour in losing without trying.” she bowed slightly, giving the other a wry smile and wink. “Shall we say three hours?”
“Yes,” she could hardly contain her excitement, “I will be ready.” she bounced off down the corridor. Xnuk Ek’ watched her go and smiled to herself before getting into the bounce tube.
**********
Breathing was difficult. Don’t force it. Long, slow, deep inhalations and exhalations through the mouth seemed to work best. He had been here before, only this time he remembered. Random facts bounced and ricocheted around his head; ninety three light years, Xi Scorpii, White Rooms, beautiful butterflies. Beautiful butterflies? Where did that come from? He tried to hold that thought for a moment but it slipped out of his reach. The more he concentrated, the further away the answer became. He forgot to regulate his breathing and suddenly gagged for breath. Don’t force it, long, slow, deep inhalations and exhalations. As he fought down the panic and sudden feeling of claustrophobia, the thought danced on the edge of his consciousness, taunting him. As he reached for it, it vanished like a wisp of smoke on the wind.
Fuck you! He spat after it.
Ever eloquent and sophisticated. Travis and Xnuk Ek’ regarded each other through the transparent wall of the tank.
Fuck you too, and the fucking horse you rode in on. Travis vented his frustration at the spectral figure outside.
I see that your healing is nearly complete. You are no longer just a broken, whining animal. Now you are snapping, growling and straining to savage the ones who saved your life, she taunted, her contempt hanging thickly on the air. She took a moment to compose herself before continuing. I have been given the task of preparing you for our arrival on Otoch.
I bet that just made your day. His sarcasm hung as thickly as her contempt for him. He paused for a moment, contemplating a thought as his anger and frustration subsided. After all, is wasn’t her fault he could not hang on to his dreams. You don’t like me, do you?
A warning thought pricked the back of her mind and she refrained from answering.
You don’t like me and have been given the job of looking after me. I think this is more like a punishment and you really have no interest in my welfare at all.
Your deduction is reasonably correct; however I do have a vested interest in your welfare. After all, you are the ‘Saviour of Our Race’. She spat the title out, lacing it heavily with venom.
Travis considered this for a moment before responding. It seems that we both need each other. When Xnuk Ek’ did not respond, he added, you need me to save your race and I need you to teach me.
Teach you what? He was starting to intrigue her.
How to use this telepathy thing properly. He felt Xnuk Ek’ smile. I propose a truce.
A what? She was familiar with the term but not the context. After all, the Xi Scorpii were not at war with Sol 3. She examined the alien’s thoughts and deduced that he was beginning to accept his situation and wanted to reconcile his differences with her. This rapid acceptance to his change in circumstances made an impression on her, but she was not about to give in so easily.
I should be dead, yet here I am, wherever ‘here’ is. This is because of your intervention, so whatever your motives, I owe you my life. In the darkest corner of his mind a thought festered: but if I ever find that you were in any way responsible for the death of my family, you will live just long enough to regret it. Xnuk Ek’ caught an undertone of menace, blinked in surprise and it was gone, replaced by the other’s sincere wish to reconcile. Because of your intervention, he continued, I find myself in an unfamiliar world. I need your help to adjust and learn. Please help me. He projected an image of being lost in a vast emptiness. The image was a reflex, showing he was frightened and alone. Everything he had known was gone and could never be replaced, even if they healed him and took him home. For the first time since their first meeting, she felt his loss and even a pang of sympathy. She gently touched the side of his tank; her mind slipped past his woefully inadequate defences, found the spot and tweaked it in a particular fashion.
“Sleep.” His eyes closed, his muscles relaxed, any defences he had in place crumbled away. She stayed inside just long enough to leave a message.
It was the first time he had dreamt since the accident. He was standing on a hill looking over a barren and shattered landscape. Sharp, jagged rocks pointed accusingly towards a crystal blue sky. Ranging from the size of a small car to over thirty metres high, they littered the vista in all directions. A hot and arid wind blew across his face, scorching the back of his throat as he breathed. There was not a hint of cloud to offer shade from the blazing sun and he felt that his skin should be blistering in
the heat, but this was a dream, so he survived. No animals roamed, no birds flew and no plants grew.
His dream allowed his vision to zoom in and wander around the rocky desert, like a remote control camera. On closer inspection he saw that the rocks were etched with intricate patterns and geometric shapes. He felt as though they should mean something to him. He studied them more closely. Such ugly outcrops of stone, acute and angular, but such beauty carved upon them. He drew back to a medium view and realised, somewhat dispassionately, that he was looking at the ruins of a city. The rocks were the remnants of buildings, but this was not natural decay. They had been torn apart by some violent act into almost unrecognisable fragments, yet there were no scorch marks or craters indicating fire or explosion. He felt that the city had been destroyed a long time ago, but there was no sign of erosion on the ruins. He drew back to a long view and saw now the outline of order. There were wide boulevards, squares and plazas stretching to the horizon in every direction. This city must have been huge, he mused. Who lived here? How many? There must have been tens of millions. What happened?
Something caught his eye. On the horizon there was a momentary glint, like sunlight striking a diamond, behind the heat haze. He squinted against the glare of the sun to try and make out the source. He thought he could see a dome arcing towards the heavens, but then the haze thickened and obscured his vision. A movement. A shape became discernible in the haze. It grew slowly in size as it moved closer and resolved into a figure. It moved with long graceful strides, looking straight ahead, unhurried and unhindered by the uneven ground and its numerous obstacles.
Time concertinaed, as time does in dreams, then the figure was standing at the foot of the hill where he stood. She, for he could now make out the female form, stared steadily into his eyes and began to climb the hill. She was tall and slim, with tanned skin and long silvery hair cascading over her shoulders. Her silver irises reflected the pale yellow sun. Xnuk Ek’ stood before him wearing a coat of white clouds, butterflies with jewelled wings in fabulous colours danced around her head, under the skin on her high forehead a bright star twinkled, like a solitary diamond over a pale red sun, and a bird with feathers of all the colours of the rainbow and delicate gossamer wings sat on her right shoulder. He felt a stirring and realised he was naked and sporting a full erection. Xnuk Ek’, who had not noticed or did not care, stared steadily into his eyes.
“This is what we did to ourselves, the result of our collective arrogance and greed.” she gestured to the surrounding devastation with an arm trailing wisps of vapour as she moved, which caught up as her arm stopped moving. “This is also to be the fate of Earth. This is the legacy we have bestowed on you. Are we worth your life? You still have a choice.” her eyes fixed him with a stare, pleading with him to say “yes” and the bird and butterflies danced furiously, their jewelled wings dazzling him. Xnuk Ek’ turned and began to walk away. She stopped, turned again, held Travis’ eyes with an intense stare that bored deep into his soul, and smiled. A smile so perfect his heart ached. The crashing orgasm that suddenly wracked his body caught him by surprise and he woke with a start, his heart racing.
He was disorientated and forgot to regulate his breathing. Unable to get enough oxygen, he panicked. Pnigerophobia gripped his throat with icy fingers, the more he panted, the less oxygen he took in. He screamed and thrashed, beating uselessly at the wall of his transparent prison, unable to satisfy his body’s craving for oxygen. Indistinct and distorted figures crisscrossed his field of vision, the sound of a large body of liquid draining rapidly, then the sensation of laying on a hard surface. He struggled onto all fours and retched violently, vomited clear liquid and inhaled noisily. Exhausted, he collapsed to the floor, panting, and lost consciousness.
The next time he awoke, he could breathe naturally. He could feel the rise and fall of his chest; he could smell and taste the air. It was clean but with an indefinable manufactured quality. He was on his back but could not feel the surface he lay on. He detected a movement close by and opened his eyes. Xnuk Ek’ stood over him with her eyes narrowed and her lips pressed tightly together in a stern frown. Next to her was a younger woman looking very concerned. She had a paler complexion than her companion and a petite frame, round face, small round nose, full lips and brown opal shaped eyes. Her shoulder length dark brown hair seemed to cling to her face and she looked out of breath, as if she had recently been exercising strenuously. Niji No Tori, the name unfolded before him. On the other side stood Sundaravāda Ciṭṭe. Much older than both the youngsters, as the grey streaks through her hair and creases in her dark brown skin showed, but her violet eyes flashed with as much life and vigour as the others.
“You interrupted my game.” For the first time he heard Xnuk Ek’’s voice through his ears. It had an odd undertone that held his attention. For the first time he heard its tonal quality; lower in the register than normal which gave it a sexuality that excited him, vaguely reminiscent of Marilyn Munroe but with faint South American overtones, he thought.
“You interrupted my dream.” His voice sounded hoarse and hurt his throat. Niji No Tori looked bemused while Sundaravāda Ciṭṭe eyed Xnuk Ek’ with an expression of annoyance.
That was most inadvisable. The thought was directed at Xnuk Ek’ but Travis caught the edge of it. She stepped forward and moved her hands slowly in an intricate pattern over the entire length of his body, paying particular attention to his head. “He is unharmed by his ordeal. However, he was not yet ready to be released; his muscles have not yet fully rebuilt and his internal organs still need time to fully regain their functions. He will tire easily and will not have full control of bodily functions for a while.” The comments were aimed directly at Xnuk Ek’. “There is little to be gained from reinserting him into the tank but, as his Ka’nsah you also have the responsibility of administering to his needs, so I release him into your care.”
Any look of amusement drained from Xnuk Ek’ was replaced by the look of disgust and loathing Travis was used to. Administering to its needs! Bodily functions! I have to clear up its ta'kuba!
You would do well to mind the teachings of your Nuuktak, Xnuk Ek’!
Xnuk Ek’ staggered under the weight of the reprimand and the mental slap that accompanied it. Her mental shields slammed hastily into place. Twice in one day. What has this creature done to my self-control? “Yes, Nohchil. My apologies, the outburst was unwarranted and unnecessary.” she bowed in supplication and waited until Sundaravāda Ciṭṭe acknowledged her apology, fuming from behind the safety of her screen. Twice in one day I have displayed emotional outbursts. What has this creature done to me to make me forget twenty years of teachings? And to be reprimanded in front of a junior Paal Kanik! I will not forget this, animal.
“Very well.” Sundaravāda Ciṭṭe nodded before rendering Travis unconscious again. “Come Niji No Tori, we shall leave the Paal Ka’nsah and her new Paal Kanik to become better acquainted. The cutting remark was not lost on Xnuk Ek’, who seethed silently behind her wall as they left.
Xnuk Ek’ regarded her charge for the first time without a physical barrier between them. In the Sol 3 medical facility his broken body had been encased in the coarse medical wrappings favoured on that world and with probes and equipment sprouting from his body to send information to the arcane machines around him. In the Healing Tank the liquid and wall of the tank had obscured her view. As he lay naked on the bed, she took a moment to appraise the being her whole race was depending on. He was completely unremarkable; his brain cavity was just too small, his ears too big, his nose was ugly and misshapen and all that body hair only justified her original deduction that he was only a short step up the evolutionally ladder from his ancestral apes. He was also completely out of condition; his muscles were weak and flabby and his stomach bulged in an unsightly fashion. She compared him, momentarily, to her favourite lover, his beautifully toned body all smooth and firm, and his stamina! She smiled as the memory of their last encounter replayed in her mi
nd. It seemed so long ago, although it was only her last rest period before she left on her mission to the surface of Sol 3 to collect this alien. Soon my beautiful Lak’in, soon. She promised herself. A mischievous thought crossed her mind. I wonder…..she thought to herself and her smile took on a wicked smirk as she adjusted a particular thought wave pattern used to stimulate receptive males and attract lovers. She was not disappointed when he showed an immediate reaction, even unconscious. Her eyes grew wider and her jaw dropped in amazement as the reaction continued. Maybe this was the reason their brains were so small; all that evolution had to go somewhere. He stirred on the bed as he started to wake up. Hastily she switched off her transmission and waited patiently while he opened his eyes.
“Can you stand?” The question was merely a request for information; there was no concern or sympathy in the voice.
“Of course I can.” Travis had no intention of appearing weak. He gritted his teeth, heaved himself into a sitting position and swung his legs over the side of the bed. The effort exhausted him and he sat hunched forward, panting heavily. Xnuk Ek’ regarded him coolly. Her instinct was to help another in obvious distress, but the distress of this one secretly pleased her.
My God, how long have I been on my back? He thought.
“About one hundred days.” Travis looked up, startled. “According to the notes made by your healer on Sol 3, plus the time you have been here.” she continued, smirking.
Memories started to flood back and played through his mind like a montage of movie clips: the train journey, too much vodka (as usual), the crash (the noise, blood and death), flying through the air, nurses, Kylie Minogue (Eh?), doctors, being unable to move or communicate, strangers at the end of the bed, dying, floating in a tank of liquid, Xi Scorpii, 92.6 light-years, dreams of shattered lands, beautiful butterflies (WHAT?), birds with rainbows in their feathers, gagging for air. He started to hyperventilate, as reality hit him square in the face. He pitched forward. He saw the featureless floor rise up to meet him but merciful blackness engulfed him before he landed.