Anais Eternal

by Paige Graffunder

  I rubbed my temples. "So, you weren't born, you were made, like by a machine?" Etachs was silent a moment while they considered my question.

  "Kind of, I was grown using cells from my base unit, and cells containing Human DNA. I'm not a scientist, so I can't really explain it. I was an infant, but instead of being inside a host, a parent, I was inside an incubator, until I was fully matured, and then I was released." Etachs paused, "But I was one of the first made with the Human genome incorporated, and it had some unintended side effects. When we incubate our new ones, we feed them all the information about ourselves, our history. It isn't meant to evoke emotion, because well, most of us don't have any. But in me it did. I felt the full impact of our mistakes, our hubris, and the devastation that we cause. I hid it for a while, but as soon as I was discovered, I was imprisoned, and isolated. Shut off from the rest of my people, to insulate them from my affliction..."

  Tatiana snorted derisively. "That's what we call your people you know," she raised her eyebrows at Etachs. "The Devastation."

  Etachs lowered their head, ashamed. All of this was so weird for me; I had never seen a Himlani express any emotion at all, and to see so many from this one. It gave weight and the distinctive taste of truth for the story they wove. What I didn’t tell Etachs about guest rights, was that under the magic that bound us not to harm them, it bound them to truth. If they lied to us intentionally, we would be free to kill them. The ancient magic lay still and docile as an old cat. No breach in the laws of hospitality, so no lies. At least not intentional ones.

  "So, if you were imprisoned, how did we find you? We know from when the Devastation was new, that it is almost impossible to break free from your prisons, hundreds of our rescue attempts failed..." I paused, the collective pain of so many of us lost threatening to overtake me.

  Etachs shook themselves and looked at me again. "I come from an intelligent species, but one without a moral compass. With my new Human genes, I was given a gift that none of the others were. I am able to feel. Probably not as deeply as you do, but I am able to do it. They didn't know what to do with me, so they locked me away, but I was able to watch, and wait, and learn. Everything in Himlani society is done in an ordered, regimented way, even the way we hunt. I am sure you have noticed. It all has patterns. So, I learned the patterns and exploited them. I would have made it out. I would have gotten away without anyone noticing but..." They trailed off again, the pink sparkling tears springing back to their eyes, their hands wringing the fabric I had given them. "There was one other like me in that place. Their cell was next to mine, and we would speak late at night when the others were sleeping. They were kind, they felt like I do, they understood. Right as I was at the borders of our city, I stopped. I couldn't leave them to that fate. I thought I had enough time, but I didn't. I got them out, but they were sick, injured, and weak. They had been in there for too long, much longer than me, and the years of torture, neglect, and malnourishment had destroyed their body. I carried them for a as long as I could, but it made me slower..." Their voice broke as the tears spilled forth, a wash of pink and pain. "I couldn't save them. I tried, but I wasn't strong enough. I wasn't fast enough. I..." They lowered their face into their clawed hands, crying with the vulnerability of a child who has waited too long to sleep, into the fabric.

  I rose from the box, ignoring Tatiana's protests, and crossed to Etachs. I knelt before them, acting on the instructions my magic was whispering into my head, without even realizing that was what I was doing. I put my hands on their head, my fingers sliding into their raven black hair. I was surprised by how sleek and smooth it was. Like water, but not liquid. I allowed a little bit of magic to pour from me into them, soothing their pain, easing the burn of wounds much deeper than the skin. After a moment they quieted and leaned into my embrace. I held them and stroked their hair, letting their feelings pass. After a few moments, they collected themselves and drew back, their red-rimmed eyes peering at me.

  "What did you just do to me?" they asked in a whisper full of both awe and apprehension.

  "I felt your pain, and I held you," I answered back before rising to my feet and walking back to my seat. I could feel Tatiana's disdainful glare boring into the back of my head, but I did not look at her. Etachs took a shuddering breath and continued.

  "We almost made it, but right at the border, a patrol of enforcers intercepted us. They opened fire, and I begged Marx to run, and they tried, but they were too weak. I slowed myself down to wait for them. I grabbed their hand and pulled them along behind me, but it wasn't long before we were cut off. We were pinned by a hunting party, and Marx, they..." Etachs' voice broke and wavered as they finished. "Marx was injured too gravely. I was hit too, but I just ran. I left Marx there. I ran away like a coward."

  They looked at me again, through tears pouring down their face, all the purple gone now, their scales a ghostly pale silver. "When you found me, I was badly hurt and trying to decide if I should go on, or just die. I had no idea they were exercising a camp nearby. I wish you had let your sister kill me; it would have been kinder."

  Tatiana spoke cheerfully. "See Anais, the Beasty wants to die anyway, let's grant its wish!" I shot her a disgusted look that cowed her immediately.

  "If you can joke about that now, then you're as heartless as the Himlani," I hissed at her. She scoffed and muttered under her breath something about just wanting to do Etachs a favor. Etachs, for their part, said nothing. I turned back to them; my voice softer again. "I'm sorry about your friend. I don't really know what to say about the rest of your story." Etachs shifted uncomfortably like they wanted to say something but weren’t sure how to start. I raised an eyebrow at them.

  "I have some questions, I understand if you don't want to answer them, but I will feel better if I ask them." They looked at Tatiana, who was still looking at them with a sardonic, wry smile on her face.

  "When you stopped her from killing me," their eyes turned back to me, "what did you do?"

  Invisible

  Etachs didn’t know when the others realized they were different. All they knew was that one day they were in their quarters sitting at the small desk and reading the logs from the patrol, and the next instant clawed hands had gripped their arms and dragged them out of the chair. Etachs didn't even have time to scream before there was a pain in their neck, and the world went black. When they woke again, their muscles ached. Etachs didn't open their eyes right away. Instead, they took stock. It was quiet, but not silent. They could hear movement around them but muffled as if it wasn't in the same room. Etachs was on a cold, hard surface. Their implants that allowed them to interface with the habitat's computer were disabled locked out of the system. After they had ascertained that nothing was broken but that they were likely injured, they opened their eyes. Himlani society was sparse by comparison to most other species that Etachs knew about. The Himlani had a system for other planets, find, identify, assess for usefulness. If the species was useful, befriend the species until the desired knowledge was acquired, or whatever they wanted from the people physically had been harvested. Either way the directive ended the same way, with the species extinct. The history of the Himlani people was bloody, but they did insist on keeping excellent records. Too bad that meticulous fastidiousness hadn't applied when it came to preserving their own genetics. If they had, Etachs probably wouldn't be in this mess. This room was the sparsest space Etachs had ever seen. One slab of metal jutting from the wall to act as a bed, a 2-meter by 2-meter space, containing a waste disposal unit, a small jug of water, and an empty metal bowl.

  Etachs reached a hand up and touched their neck, the resulting stab of pain made them wince. The spot where the needle that had carried whatever drug it was that knocked them out was raw, like several of their scales had been scraped away. Etachs looked down, inspecting their body carefully for further damage, as they lay on the floor. There were several places where scales had been ripped away, the pale injured flesh beneath painful to the touch. They kne
w they would grow back, but it was likely to be a slow, itchy, and painful process. While the Himlani had faster than normal regenerative properties, the Human genome inside of Etachs slowed the process considerably. Not so much that it would have made a difference normally. What would have healed in a day for most Himlani might take a couple of extra hours for Etachs. However, any prolonged weakness in this place would not bode well for Etachs’ survival long term. Slowly they sat up and sighed. They lifted their hands to run their fingers through their hair and froze immediately. Their claws encountered scruffy stubble only. With horror, they realized the enforcers had shaved their hair off. With an agonized wail, they finally understood what had happened and gave over to the grief. They had been captured, this was the defect camp, and they would never get out of here. They would die in here, subjected to experiments, and whatever else could be thrown at them. Etachs dissolved into terrified sobs of helplessness. The emotions that had landed them in this place washed over them as relentless and indifferent to the erosion of Etachs’ psyche as the sea is to the beach.

  As exhaustion flooded Etachs’ body, bone deep and crushing in its heaviness. Their crying subsided a little, and semi-rational thought returned. They were curled up under the metal slab that served as a bed, their cheeks stained red with their tears. Just as they were about to fall asleep, they heard a scratching on the wall next to them. Etachs couldn't move; they were too tired, too sad, and then they heard a soft clicking voice coming from the room next door. A gentle lullaby, the likes of which Etachs had never encountered, sung in a wavering, sad voice. Etachs closed their eyes and drifted into a restless and exhausted slumber.

  ◆◆◆

  I peered at Etachs, "What do you mean what did I do? I did magic," I said warily.

  "But you couldn't have, none of the sensors in the area went off. The sensors I have in and on my body didn't go off, and I was really close to you. If you did magic, then they should have detected it. I should have detected it." Etachs frowned.

  "What do you mean, your sensors?" Tatiana asked suspiciously, her hand dropping to rest on the hilt of her knife.

  "I stole a sensor net off one of the Enforcers. It works with my implants..." When Tatiana and I just stared at them, they sighed and reached up to their hairline. Tatiana rose from her seat and started to draw her knife. I held a hand up to halt her. Etachs snagged something close to their scalp and pulled, what looked like a tiara of dainty wire, with little bulbs attached. Tatiana narrowed her eyes.

  "They are attuned to your kind's magic and they alert us when it is used, but they do other stuff too..." Etachs trailed off.

  "Things like what?” I asked, leaning forward and cocking my head to the side, interested in this thing we knew existed, but had no real idea of how it worked.

  "Well..." Etachs seemed hesitant to continue.

  "They aren't going to give away their secrets, Anais. Even if they claim they are hunted by their own, they still aren't going to give away their comrades," Tatiana said with disdain she made no effort to disguise.

  "That's not it!" Etachs broke in hurriedly, frowning for a moment before continuing. "I am trying to think of how to put it in terms that would make sense to you."

  "Because we're so stupid?" Tatiana shot back, crossing her arms across her chest.

  "No." Etachs said flatly, "Because it's specific to our implants. Some of the things they do won't matter, because it only affects us. Stuff that wouldn't matter to you."

  "Like what?" I asked. My sister was being hostile, but I was just wildly curious. This was not an opportunity that any Fae since the Devastation had had, and even prior to that what they were told were more likely than not lies.

  "A lot of your flora and fauna is toxic to us if we ingest it mostly, but some things even proximity can cause us harm. So, it lets us know if we are close to it," Etachs explained. "For example, there is a plant native to this planet that is irritating to our scales if we are in close proximity and can cause respiratory distress if we are too close. If we eat it, it can be fatal."

  "What plant?" Tatiana asked.

  "So you can kill me?" Etachs said harshly, in their first show that my sister’s constant hostility was wearing on their patience.

  "No, so we can protect ourselves from others of your kind," I said quietly before Tatiana could continue her onslaught.

  "I don't know what you call it. It's a bushy type of plant, with long stalks and rods of grouped purple blossoms..." Etachs started, paused, then sighed. "It would be easier if I could show you."

  "Show us how?" I said, raising an eyebrow.

  "Like this." Etachs opened their palm and looked at it. After a moment, a small holographic image appeared hovering over it, rotating slowly. "We have other implants in our palms that can allow us to do this, but it takes a considerable amount of energy to maintain." As they finished speaking the image flickered.

  "Lavender," Tatiana said quietly. "The plant is called lavender." Neither Etachs nor I acknowledged her.

  "What do you mean energy?" I asked.

  "The implants are powered by my body. For the innate things, like the sensor net, it doesn't take much for it to run, but to do things like projection, it requires as much energy as say, a rigorous workout." They shrugged. "It's kind of hard to explain, but that's the best I can do."

  "So, your sensors are keyed to our magic, but you didn't sense mine?"

  "No, I was told that Fae magic was beautiful when wielded, but I saw no nothing. I saw the magic working, of course, but the sensors didn't go off. And there is another interesting thing," Etachs said. I nodded for them to keep going. "The parts of my body that you healed..." Etachs ran a clawed hand over their side, now covered by the new bronze scales. "My implants think those parts no longer exist."

  "What does that even mean?" Tatiana scoffed.

  "It means that my sensors and my implants think that parts of my body are missing. They don't see what was healed." Etachs said quietly.

  "Does that matter?" Tatiana said, her voice softening just a little.

  "I don't know," Etachs responded. "It might. Some of the things I can do are dependent on my implants knowing that my body is there, but I haven't tested anything yet."

  "Well, that seems like something that you might want to find out about," I said. Etachs held my gaze for a long moment, then nodded.

  "I'm going to activate my cloaking, but I am not going to move. I just want to let you know, so that one," Etachs gestured at Tatiana, "doesn't murder me." Etachs smiled a little, and I couldn't help but smile myself. Tatiana scowled, but her body posture relaxed. Etachs closed their eyes and after a moment their scales began to shimmer and change. I don't really know how to explain it other than as a clearness that started in their chest and radiated outward, swept over them. It raced along the length of their limbs and down to the ends of their hair. Only the scales that were that pretty blue silver changed. The rippling transparency did not affect the bronze scales that my magic had made. Soon, only a mottled patchwork of scales remained. It was beautiful, but also terrifying. You couldn't make out a clearly defined shape from the scales, but it was apparent now how much damage had really been done to their body. A huge patch that spanned almost the entire left side of their torso was left, as well as patches along where their left arm was most recently, the tips of both their ears, and stripes and spots on both legs, one claw tipped toe. They stretched in patchwork, disconnected strangeness from their thigh to their neck, with other stripes and patches along the rest of their form. A moment later, the same ripple went through them again, this time resolving them back to their normal pearlescent blue-silver.

  "Well..." Etachs sighed, "that is unfortunate."

  Tatiana and I exchanged a glance, then I said, "But what does that mean, if you can't sense my magic, and the places my magic healed you aren't affected by your cloaking?"

  Before Etachs could speak, Tatiana cleared her throat. "I think I know why, but it is not a conversation I wish to have
before we sleep."

  I twisted around on my perch to face her fully, brow furrowed. She gave me a pointed look. "Food, and sleep, first. It has been a long day and I need some time to figure out how to explain it without just raising more questions." Her tone was authoritative, but not unkind, and I bowed my head in acceptance. As Tatiana and I began to unfurl our bedrolls, and open a few of the crates stored here, removing bags of grain and salted meats to feed us, Etachs shifted uncomfortably. Tatiana raised an eyebrow at them.

  "I- I don't have anything to contribute," Etachs said sheepishly. Tatiana hardened her face into a scowl, opening her mouth to bite out a harsh remark, but I interjected before she spoke.

  "That's OK. We have an extra bedroll here and enough food for the three of us." Tatiana turned her scowl on me, but I raised my eyebrows at her. "They are our guest; we are bound by hospitality. We took them with us, they are our responsibility, and we will do by them what we would do by one of our own. We are all exiles here."

  Tatiana's expression softened at my words and she bowed her head minutely, as though she were a little ashamed of herself. She began rummaging through the supplies until she found a bedroll, blanket, and extra coat. While Etach's legs were vastly different from ours, their torso wasn't much different, other than the absence of breasts.

  I looked up at Etachs. "Are you a boy or a girl?" I asked curiously.

  Etachs blinked at me in surprise. "I am neither. I told you, my kind has no reproductive ability, and therefore the concept of gender is irrelevant." I mulled this over for a moment, then nodded.