The Wild Ba’Neesh Chapter Thirty-One ©2019 Fay Thompson All Rights Reserved

Mael heard Serla cry out in consternation just as he exited the door ramp of the sub’s floater. He couldn’t run, his turtle-like feet were not designed for speed so he was nearly last to the door, following Mick who was being careful due to his recent health problems. Brad arrived first, only to find the gap between the ship and the cave wall too narrow. He solved the problem by nudging the ship, stabilizers and all. He heard yelling from within and he grinned, damned if he was going to miss anything due to someone parking too close to a damn wall. Not this time.

Serla stuck his head out, “Are you done? You probably bent those stabilizers with your antics.”

“You yelled.” Brad grinned, making no effort to offer an apology.

Serla looked past Brad to where Mael was finally catching up. “Mael, I think you should be first.”

Brad just grunted and stepped up, screw that. He was first, he would be first. Serla knew better than to tussle with an exo and he backed up. His internal device messaged Brad to beware of massive Vrill puddling on the decking.

Brad gulped and powered his transparent face plate up so that he could look with his real eyes. Mael shoved at him from the back saying, “Stop blocking the door you big lump of metal.”

Brad edged to one side just far enough to allow Mael in followed instantly by Anya. Mael halted nearly as fast as Brad had earlier. It was Norris. Mael’s defensive helmet flashed to bitter cold and then back like it was uncertain but wary.

Mick arrived in front of Elias and boldly stepped in and then gaped first at the Akaitapi and then at the most miserable looking group of Ba’Neesh he’d ever seen. Elias shoved him roughly to one side, throwing his body in front of Mick.

“What?” Mick banged against a seat and it hurt. He peeked around Elias who was staring, not at the massive Akaitapi, but at the gardener guy he’d seen on holos off an on all day. Norris someone. A Stringer with Mael, whatever that meant.

He felt Her flow through his bone, eliciting another burn bite of Vrill and then She was standing directly in front of Norris. He was rocking rhythmically, he eyes rolled back in his head, his body rigid and now Mick saw his hands, they looked white hot and he knew enough to understand the Soek was pouring Vrill out uncontrollably.

“Norris?” Mael asked, concern in his tone.

“I have found you.” Kiena said to Norris. When he didn’t respond, she solidified and repeated, “I have found you.” In true Speech.

The shabby Ba’Neesh trilled and then collectively yelled out, “We remember, we remember.”

Norris’s eyes struggled to normalize. He stared at the apparition in front of him radiating Vrill. He blinked.

“Feed me!” Kiena ordered.

Mael jumped toward Norris on one side, the Akaitapi on the other, but none of them were fast enough to reach Norris before he lifted his hands up to grab her entirely Vrill-based roe-deer horns. The arc of Vrill threw everyone backwards and the two of them were too bright to observe. Brad deployed his filters and stepped toward them. He was ready when the transfer stopped and Norris collapsed backward. He caught him.

“Next time protect him from injury.” He spoke firmly to Kiena who was radiating. She didn’t answer. She was facing the Akaitapi and to Mick’s readjusting eyes, they didn’t look exactly pleased to see Her.

“Neeshatari.” The leader of the Akaitapi stepped closer saying, “We are not surprised, if not entirely pleased either. We challenge your possession of this Soek.”

“You cannot challenge the dead, Aapisowoohta Aahsssapit.”

“Star Watching.” Serla translated.

“You cannot possess the living, Iiyiko Iksstsoohkinn Payoonihkaawa.”

“Hard Shell Initiation Breaks.” Serla translated again. “They speak the language of the Niitsitapi, a Native American Peoples.” He offered in explanation. He sent Brad a message saying he was picking up accelerating message traffic nearby, likely searchers.

Mick’s face was screwed up trying to follow the enormous names. He hurriedly repeated Iiyiko over and over in his mouth trying to fix it into his memory. His bone was telling him each name was a true name for each of them. There was something dangerous about knowing a being’s true name, particularly a being with massive Vrill-radiating horns and a penchant for stabbing things. He squirmed. He wasn’t supposed to know the name or She would have told him Herself. Iiyiko whatever whatever. And, the Akaitapi leader, she was A–pee–so–who-ta. That was rather embarrassing, to be truthful. It sounded better in English, Star Watching. His brain tugged at that name and he frowned, it was attached to the thing he shouldn’t remember.

Jeffrey had entered after the juicing, which is what Elias whispered to Mick had sort of happened, albeit light years different from anything like it in his memory. Jeffrey hurried over to first Norris and then Evgeny a scowl growing on his face. “What the hell happened to that one? You said one brain-wiped patient.”

“He isn’t wiped.” Brad said, “He is enervated, or drained or something. I suspect its like casting drop. He fed Her.” He pointed at Kiena who continued to be present, a first for everyone in the room.

“Is that why everyone is acting drunk? I smell excessive Vrill, like a damn ozone stench.” Jeffrey said with some sarcasm. “First I had to deal with Vrill-pooping over-excited Ba’Neesh on the sub and now you tell me She sucked on him like a damn vampire? Seriously, manners here. She can’t drain him like this, it’s inappropriate.” He fumbled around in his med kit bag and brought out an ampoule. He pressed that to Norris’ shoulder and muttered about stupid Soek.

Anya snickered. Jeffrey’s complaint landing precisely at a gap in the clearly serious Akaitapi to Neeshatari interaction. The local Ba’Neesh were circling the Neeshatari, whispering in Neesh. The Akaitapi snorted.

Jeffrey turned on Evgeny sagging in the seat. He unstrapped him, pressing to keep him from falling out of the seat. “Well, well?” He said, his voice getting louder. “Do you expect me to lower him to the floor myself?” He said, his tone continuing to be peeved and dominant. “You!” He pointed at one of the Akaitapi, “With your massive shoulders you can probably bench press this Soek. How about you and that other one whose name I can’t remember much less pronounce at this exact moment and yes, I remember who you are, I’m being impolite and not properly respectful and bite me, no, not literally. This Soek needs our attention immediately and if Serla gets any more grim-faced he will explode. No, I don’t want him touching Evgeny. I need clean energy, pure-ass Vrill and you two know you have the gods-be-damned best there is.”

This round-about compliment hastened the two Akaitapi to step over to assist Jeffrey in lowering Evgeny to the floor. They stretched him out in the aisle and then backed up.

Jeffrey glared over at Mael. “Stop standing there thinking and get your butt over here with Elias, between the two of you we should have the first of Evgeny.” He said briskly.

Mick stared, utterly captivated by how Jeffrey cut through all of the positioning and background politics of each of these Ba’Neesh and top Soek like so much butter. He approved. He was also intensely curious as to what Elias would do. Elias had held Mick’s entire memories and then given them back, that’s what others had told him. Now he would see it done.

He was only here because Elias wouldn’t leave him and Elias was here because Mael insisted and Mael was here because both Elias and Evgeny were his Stringers, a relationship Mick was still unraveling. He liked being in the thick of it even if it were likely the weirdest thing ever. He kept eyeing Iiyiko, expecting her to vanish but she was hovering over Norris, that made him feel a little jealous. To his mind Norris was like a battery for her. He was glad it wasn’t him, the guy was out cold and if Jeffrey’s tone was any indication the guy would be grumpy and with a header when he woke. He commiserated, thankful that at the moment he was neither itchy or exhausted, a big improvement.

Elias squatted on Evgeny’s right side, Mael on his left. Each of them placed their hands, fingers clustered as tightly together as possible against the Soek’s temples.

“On my mark.” Jeffrey said. “Focus on Evgeny at five. Articulate his name like a sigil and summon his memory.”

To Mick, Jeffrey sounded like a seasoned expert. He wouldn’t have guessed that the healer had only ever bound his own brains back together. That made Mick the virginal cherry popper for this process. This Soek wouldn’t have to be peeled, the lucky bastard. Mick was still picking red stuff out of his hair like some algeafied dandruff.

“Now.”

Everyone leaned in to watch, including Iiyiko.

“I see.” Said the local Ba’Neesh leader. Her tone brilliant and excited.

It didn’t take long, apparently a five-year-old didn’t have much data to stream back. Mael let go and when he did, Elias followed saying, “That wasn’t nearly so bad as with Mick.”

He and Mael both stood back up and moved through the Ba’Neesh crowd to stand relatively near to the four Soek mules. Those Soek were holding up the wall next to Serla and Brad, who were whispering together about the intel suggesting their location had been detected.

Elias joined Mick, he was shaking. “Vrill drop.” He said in explanation, “but, not too bad. With you I had a terrible header and felt like I wanted to die. Now I remember Evgeny when before he was just someone I remembered slightly who had disappeared or died. Now, he’s a person again.”

They watched Jeffrey call the lead local Ba’Neesh forward.

“She’s too weak.” Aapisowoohta said. “Chain them. They all followed Anya’s instructions to take his memories. They have done so with all of these Soek.” She gestured at Norris and the quivering four mules.

“I don’t know how to chain.” The local Ba’Neesh said, her tone both irritated and interested.

“You kneel at his head.” Aapisowoohta said, “The rest of you local Ba’Neesh will grab an antler or horn until all of you are connected.”

“Oh. Will that be fun?” The local Ba’Neesh asked.

Aapisowoohta snorted as she and the Akaitapi and Iiyiko all moved back toward the small group of waiting Soek creating a distinct separation of contact.

Mick noted that Iiyiko was behaving just like the others, as if She were physical flesh. Had eating from Norris made Her alive and physical? He whispered the question to Elias who shrugged his lack of knowledge.

The local Ba’Neesh formed a wedge of hands on horns all hovering over the main one who had her hands on Evgeny’s temples.

“You ready?” Jeffrey said, listening to Serla’s translation into German. He looked over at her, to his eyes she was in truly horrific condition, he schooled his expression to hide that assessment. Soon enough he would have her, all of them in his care. They would recover. The horror of their pending termination clutched at him. He reminded himself that Evgeny had saved them but he couldn’t escape the knowledge that this same Soek was likely responsible for the death of hundreds of Ba’Neesh. He had to divorce that thought too, healing was at hand. “Focus on Eric when you took him.” He said, again with translation.

The local Ba’Neesh nodded.

“Now.”

Mick gaped. Evgeny twisted and screamed with Jeffrey holding him down by kneeling on his shoulders. He could see the Vrill washing over the tops of the Ba’Neesh like a rippling wave. Iiyiko snuffled and she was joined by the Akaitapi, a sound of understanding and approval. A memory manifest. He stiffened. He was watching all of them remember. It’s what they did. That fact surfaced like a sledgehammer hitting his skull. He moaned and bent forward gasping. Elias put his arm around him and told him to breathe through it.

“They are rememberers.” Mick said. “They are remembering. They know I will remember too. I can hear them.”

Mael’s eyes fixed on Mick, knowing Serla and Brad were picking up every word. This was why Mick must be with them, he thought again, Mick was a key to unlock the bigger mystery. The Rememberers. What a telling descriptive.

The local Ba’Neesh lowered her hands, Evgeny was still flopping about but she had a look of distinct pleasure on her face. “I like Vrill sharing.” She grinned.

“Damn drunks.” Jeffrey wobbled with the after affects as he climbed off of Evgeny whose eyes were fluttering and whose hands were grasping.

“My fucking head.” Evgeny screamed. “What did you do to my fucking head?”

Jeffrey nodded and looked relieved. “You will have a slight header and muscular aches for several days, Evgeny. You will find your early self is now intact. You will attend to me as soon as we get the hell out of this increasingly dangerous position. I will give you just enough pain killer to allow you to function without passing out. Sorry about that, but we can’t let you rest right now.”

Evgeny listened to this with contempt. “You call this a slight header?” He said with blistering sarcasm.

Jeffrey pressed an ampoule into Evgeny’s shoulder. “Yes.” He said, “You should have seen Mick, I peeled him, poor bastard.”

Mick nodded. Evgeny was staring around in increasing bewilderment. “Who are these…these Ba’Neesh?” He pointed first at the Akaitapi.

Mick was first to answer, perhaps in sympathy for what Evgeny was experiencing. “That boss one is Aapisowoohta something, something, that means Star Watching. I don’t know the other’s names, likely long and hard to pronounce. Collectively they are the Akaitapi, those who live under the mountain. The She, that is Iiyiko something something I can’t remember, it means she breaks shit with her hard head or something. She’s dead, I think. That Soek with the helmet like a turtle is Mael Strom, the exo is Brad the Pirate and the really pretty Ba’Neesh is Anya. She is tight with Mael Strom although I don’t understand exactly what that means.”

As it turned out, everyone was pleased with Micks backhanded explanation, even Iiyiko, although Anya gave him a hard look.

Evgeny had tracked this description with his brain struggling to push things into sensible coherence. “Who are you?” He finally asked.

“Mick Huxley, the stupid Soek you’ve been trying to kill.” Mick answered.

“Oh.” Evgeny nodded and then grimaced. “Fucking hurts.”

“Yeah.” Mick answered, “It’s better to sleep it off. I had to after you wiped me. But Serla over there says we have incoming and now that you are up on your feet again, brain intact, we better get out of this cave before your old buddies use us for target practice. Likely they have more of those spider bug things. Bastards.”

Evgeny saw Norris. “You killed him?” He accused, managing to weakly reach Norris’ side.

“Vrill drop.” Jeffrey said. “I’ve doped him out, lucky bastard. He will sleep off the worst of it, unlike you.”

Evgeny turned back to stare at Iiyiko. “What are you?” He asked.

She laughed. “Revenge.” She answered. “I am Revenge!”

(I realize this is a complex cast of characters but I don’t believe in the ‘special’ savior individual. I believe, as you can see, that each of us brings our own strengths and weaknesses to the challenges in our lives. I hope you like my cast as much as I do. No, don’t ask me to pronounce those names. J)