Chapter 4 – Dialogue
"Are you finished?" asked Bright Moon on Fallen Snow. In the mid-morning sun Marc Walters, Kate Gonzales, and Scott Adelman stood looking out over downtown Chicago. She regarded the three Humans standing on the observation deck of the Administration Building. The Humans had made a series of hand gestures in the open air, but now stood still. A bizarre action even by human standards, but Bright Moon knew better than to dismiss it as human foolishness. They were sending a message, presumably to their fellow humans.
Marc glanced at his watch. "Yep, we're done here."
"And this confirms your safety to your friends? Was it received? What assurances will you giving me they will not start sending out information on how to remove Souls?" Bright Moon found herself growing irritated. Marc always had such effect on her. Seekers Simple Sunlight and Twice Fires standing next her looked at her in mild surprise at her aggravation.
Marc smiled at her, a friendly smile which dropped when she continued to glare at him. "I know they got our all clear message because I saw the return signal. They know we are safe." He shook his head at her and continued, "Bright Moon, why would we come this far and then turnaround and blurt out your big deep dark secret?"
She found her irritation with him rise and spoke harshly, "I don't know. You pull these ridiculous stunts, having us rush you up to the top floor just so you can dance around. Is this all just a game to you?"
Besides Bright Moon, Simple Sunlight and Twice Fires stiffened as Marc drew close to her. Marc said quietly and sternly, "No. This is not a game." He looked the three Seekers over. "Do you think I'm doing this to rub your faces in the fact I've got your secret. That I'm making you jump through hoops for fun?" He sighed and said, "It's got nothing to do with you."
Twice Fires spoke up now with a condescending attitude. "Well Human, why don't you enlighten us."
Marc scowled at Twice Fire but spoke to Bright Moon. "This stunt, as you put it, is for my people." He gestured out to the city beyond the overlook. "I am proving to them you Souls are willing to take us seriously. That our knowledge of Soul removal is better left as a secret and not a weapon."
"But you said your people wanted to find peace with us. To no longer fight," said Bright Moon as her annoyance gave way to apprehension.
"Bright Moon, we aren't…" Marc hesitated as he tried to explain. "We aren't like Souls. We don't see everything the same way. Humans are much more individualistic. Lots of different opinions," he stopped and pointed to himself with a small smile," and believe it or not everyone agrees with me."
He straightened as Kate and Scott joined him. "My point is – plenty of us felt it didn't matter what we did. We could save ten thousand Souls ten times over and you would still want our destruction. So I needed to show them my way could work and you were willing to play ball."
Bright Moon closed her eyes. She wished to work with and understanding Humans was easier. They were such a frustrating race. She was trying to help the humans and all Marc did was finding ways sure to antagonize her people.
Simple Sunlight broke up her thoughts as her fellow Seeker addressed Marc. "An ingenious plan." Bright Moon opened her eyes and saw her looking thoughtful. "There are multiple buildings one could observe this area. With binoculars, one could be even farther away. We would not be able to search all the buildings before your people disappeared."
"Well, that was the idea," said Marc. He looked Simple Sunlight up and down about her unusual dress compared to the black clothing Bright Moon and Twice Fires wore. He asked, "You are?"
The Seeker addressed Marc with the smallest of smiles, "Seeker Simple Sunlight."
Humans and Seekers began to walk back to the elevators which would take them back to meet with the Quorum. Marc asked Simple Sunlight "Can't say I remember you. Are you new?" Kate gazed at the Seeker as they walked. "Pretty sure we captured her in the net with Bright Moon's pals back in that old warehouse."
Simple Sunlight bobbed her head towards Kate while Marc snapped his fingers. "Ah right," said Marc with a grin, "good times." This brought a frown from all three Seekers as Marc's people entered the waiting elevator. As they joined the Humans Scott asked Simple Sunlight, "You weren't with Seekers in our tunnels. What happened?"
The auburn haired Seeker regarded Scott. "This body has a chronic iron deficiency. I was out of the city visiting my original healer for treatment. So I was not with Bright Moon in the tunnels…Or any of the horrible events which followed." The Soul looked down at the floor of the elevator sadly. Her reminder of the deadly events which affected both Human and Soul brought silence to both groups and what brought them together now.
"Your Healers can't fix your iron deficiency?" asked Kate.
Simple Sunlight shrugged gently, "Most of the time its a minor issue. They assure me with care and correct upkeep this body will last for a long time."
"You make it sound like you're taking your car in to get its oil changed," said Marc with note of disgust in his voice.
Twice Fires challenged, "These bodies require care so they are healthy. What is wrong with maintenance of the body? I take excellent care of my body."
Marc glanced over Twice Fires. Human and Seeker were the same height, but Twice Fire's body was much more muscular than Marc's. "What do you do slick, go to the gym? Lift some weights, do a little resistance training?" Twice Fires blinked in surprise and nodded as Marc continued, "Yeah, well congratulations, you can pick up heavy things. Got a lot of muscles on you but you've got the endurance of a wet sock. Likely slow as hell with all the extra bulk."
Twice Fires snorted, "It's served me well in my calling as a Seeker."
"Maybe so," replied Marc with a sneer, "but I've been in as many fights as years you've lived, Seeker. Won plenty and but also lost. What I've learned is strength alone rarely wins the battle."
Kate clicked her tough in disgust, looked from Marc to Twice Fires, and shook her head. "Unbelievable. Next thing you two will be doing is flexing muscles or see who can run faster. Human or Soul, men are such idiots."
There was silence in the elevator for a few seconds and then Simple Sunlight let out a little giggle. She covered her mouth but then snickered again. She looked apologetically at the other two Seekers and said sheepishly, "My apologies, but it was sort of funny." Perhaps it was Kate's joke or seeing Marc red-faced with embarrassment and not knowing what to say but Bright Moon felt herself smiling along with Simple Sunlight.
The elevator stopped and the doors opened. Marc sighed and said, "Alright, enough foolishness from all parties." He looked meaningfully at Bright Moon. "Can we get down to business?"
####
Agent Williams reached over to a small case opened on the coffee table and picked up a small but sharp scalpel. He examined the back of the woman's head. There was a faint pink scar near the base of the neck. Agent Gray pulled her short blond hair away from her neck as he assisted Williams in his work.
The woman lay face down in the carpet of her living room. She was unconscious from the spray of SLEEP Agent Anderson had given her when they first arrived at her home. They already established she was alone and her nearby neighbors were all off at work. Souls were so predictable in their routines Williams and the others knew they there was no need to rush.
The scalpel cut into the pink scar and Williams pulled it deftly across the woman's slim neck. He felt the muscles of the neck split from the cut of the blade. A pool of blood quickly formed and Gray soaked it up with a surgical towel. Williams began to apply a small amount of SEAL to the wound to stop the bleeding while he worked. There were plenty of reasons to hate the parasites, thought Williams, but their medicine wasn't one of them.
Soon he saw what he was looking for in the body, the top of the spine and the base of the skull. Tightly wound around the spine was the small silver body of the alien parasite. Gray blotted the cloth across the cut clearing away extra blood. This brought the little alien into better view for Williams. He examined it thoroughly, in a way it was beautiful. The silver of its body made it almost glow. The body was small, but it stretched in length as it wrapped around the spine. Hundreds of small hair-thin antenna stretched taught as piano wire, interfaced the silver creature to its host body. Williams found himself gently stroking the little silver Soul.
A crash sounded out in the hallway and both Williams and Grey looked up quickly. Agent Anderson's young face poked in from the hallway and looked apologetic for the disruption. From the bedroom, Agent Adams came out carrying a large book. He looked sharply at Anderson. He spoke to him calmly but with an edge to his voice, "Agent, while we relatively safe in this house at this hour I would advise you to be careful and more importantly be quiet."
Scolded like a child before his father Anderson ducked his head and returned to his search in the hallway and foyer. With the large book Adams sat down on the sofa and asked, "How are we doing?"
Williams gave a quick shake of his head, clearing the odd set of thoughts he was having about the parasite. "Doing fine, we'll have it out in a few minutes."
"Excellent, please proceed," replied Adams as he began looking through the book.
Williams nodded and began to trace down the body of the parasite. He felt along the body, feeling where the many antennas joined the body. Feeling each ridge, he was looking for a slight bump larger than the others. He reached the end of the little body without finding the larger ridge. His hands were large, and he didn't have much room inside the small woman's neck.
Starting again, he noticed his hands had a slight tremble in them. Something at the back of his mind bothered him. With a glower of frustration, he shoved the thoughts away and concentrated on his task. This time he felt the larger bump on the alien creature. He applied a small amount of pressure and all at once the thin tentacles began to retract from the woman's spine and brain. The body of the parasite began to undulate slowly as the hundreds of connectors retracted into its body.
Gray was already prepping a small silver tank as Williams began to pull the alien slowly out of the woman's body. The alien worm pulled and squirmed in William's hand. Once again he experienced an odd feeling towards the little creature. He brought the little alien up to his face and watched as it moved its feelers about slowly.
"Careful," warned Adams. "For now we need it intact and undamaged."
"Right," nodded Williams. Gray finished opening the cryotank and Williams slowly put the alien into the container. Gray then closed the door with a snap and the cryotank's light went from green to red.
Williams stood and looked down at the small blond-haired woman, and he noticed he had some of her blood on his hands. He addressed Agent Gray, "Can you finish her? I want to clean up." Gray nodded once and began to clean and close the wound on the woman's neck.
Down the hall of this house was a small bathroom and Agent Williams walked into it and turned on the lights. He turned the faucet on and slowly began to wash his hands. So far all was going according to plan. Their quick raid on the cryotank facility had been successful. No one would be finding Distant Harmony's body or the changes they had made. So why did he feel worried?
Williams finished cleaning his hands and turned the water off. He glanced at himself in the bathroom's mirror. He felt the early stage of a headache coming on, and he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small white pill. He swallowed it dry and then turned off the lights. The headaches came more often, and he was using more of the medicine. The doctors said the pains were normal and not to worry. But Williams just couldn't shake his anxiety.
Williams paused to consider his feelings. Perhaps it wasn't so much anxiety as it was anticipation. At long last, their time had come. Soon they wouldn't be hiding in the shadows. Adams would deliver a blow to the parasites, a hit unlike any other.
Returning to the living room, Williams saw Gray over the body, still running through his examination. Adams sat on the sofa still reading the book. Williams saw it was a photo album. He gestured to the album "What is that?"
"This," said Adams as he examined the book's cover, "is the story of two people. Man and a woman." He flipped through the beginning of photos. "They meet, fall in love, and then get married." He paused on a picture and Williams could see it was the woman on the floor in a beautiful wedding dress.
Adams continued turning pages and said, "Then they buy a house, this house. The man goes to work, and the woman stays home. All is wonderful." He slowed his turning of pages and began to look at the couple's faces. "One day the man comes back from work, but he's not himself anymore. He's been taken over by a silver worm. Then he brings his lovely little wife to the hospital and now she's one of them as well."
Adams stopped and flipped back and forth between a page of photos, then he points at one. Williams doesn't see anything at first, but then he notices their eyes. Both of them have a glint of silver in them. Earlier photos show the couple's eyes as normal. Adams looked out the window of the house and sighs, "Now these aliens seem to like each other well enough, and they don't seem to mind the living arrangement. So they go right back to the same routine. He goes to work every day, and she plays the happy homemaker. Maybe they really love each other, or maybe they're just going through the motions."
Gray spoke up as he completed inspection of the now freed woman. "Subject is non-responsive to light reflex, no pupil contraction. Scanner shows only minimal frontal cortex activity. But it's still too early to tell if she'll recover or not." He glanced over to Adams and Williams and said hesitantly, "We could try some of the drugs."
Adams shook his head, "No, don't bother."
A burst of static sounded in Williams' ear. He had nearly forgotten about the small ear bud he was wearing. Then he heard the voice of Agent Kendrick. "Subject is approaching, about two minutes out."
"Copy that," replied Adams.
"Do you need me to follow him in?" asked Kendrick.
"Negative," responded Adams. "Remain in the van and hold position. Let me know if anyone else shows up. This has the potential to become…messy."
"Understood," came Kendrick's cold reply.
Adams stood and addressed his team. "Everyone take their positions. Do not fire unless absolutely necessary. I want this one taken alive."
In unison they said, "Yes sir." Williams got up and took his place in the living room. He pressed up against the wall next to the hallway. Agent Gray quickly gathered the medical supplies and returned them to his bag. He took a position opposite Williams. From here they would be hidden until someone entered the room. Agent Anderson took his place in the kitchen if the subject tried to run out the back door.
It was little less than a minute later when they heard the garage door open and car pull in. Soon after they heard the garage door go down and a moment later a door opened. From the hallway a young man's voice called, "Sweetie, I'm home."
Williams stood motionless and an empty silence was the only thing to answer the man. Footsteps came down the hall and they were not slow or hesitant. They were ones of somebody eager to meet their love. Again the voice called, closer this time, "Sings, where are you?"
A tall man with blond hair, still wearing the white coat of a Healer, walked into the room. The very first thing he saw was the woman lying unmoving on the floor. He rushed to her side in alarm. "Sing from the Shadows!?"
Focused completely on the woman he had rushed past Williams and Gray without seeing them and now the two men stepped into view. Their weapons aimed directly at his chest. The young man gaped at them in complete surprise. Now Adams calmly walked into the living room and said softly, "Matthew, we need to talk."
####
"I propose we amend the current third paragraph of page six to include a sentence defining the terms of engagement," said Ice Cleaver to the other members of the Quorum. There was a quick nod of heads around the table. Dry Sands on the Plain looked up from her notes and said, "A point of information, would we present the changes as a new version or just an addendum to the current edition?"
"I think they are trying to torture us," whispered Kate to Marc.
Marc wasn't able to completely suppress his grin. He whispered back, "Not what you were expecting?"
"Two and half hours of this…this blather," came Kate's harsh whisper.
Marc felt a soft poke in his side and looked over to his left where Scott was sitting. He raised a finger to his lips urging silence. Marc just shrugged, Kate wasn't wrong. The meeting with the Quorum was torturous to listen to, but it wasn't intentional. The Souls of the Quorum were just conducting their business as normal. He suspected at some point the Souls had read Robert's Rules of Order and then followed it religiously. The three Human visitors were quietly waiting their turn to speak.
Scott returned to listening to the Souls and Marc noted he was actually taking notes of the meeting. 'God bless him, he's a saint,' thought Marc as Scott studiously followed their conversation. Marc leaned back in his chair and watched the proceedings as the Souls continued to talk. He wasn't interesting in what they were saying, just how they were saying it. He was sizing up personalities of the Souls making up the Quorum.
Marc hadn't been sure what to expect when they meet with the Quorum. But as he reflected on the last couple of hours, this meeting was exactly what he had come to expect from Souls - simple, effective, and utterly boring. Souls from each of their Callings made up the Quorum. He looked from one Soul to the next: Healer Long Rivers, a middle-aged man with a neatly trimmed beard. Comforter Benjamin, a tall white-haired man. Educator Dry Sands on the Plain, a young pretty brunet woman. Builder Ice Cleaver, a pudgy little man. Marc stopped short at the next man, Seeker Skyward Into the Night. Of course, he was a member of the Quorum.
The Seeker was staring back at Marc and as usual he didn't look happy. Marc returned the stare and soon it became of contest of who would look away first. At the beginning of the meeting, Skyward had introduced Marc, Scott, and Kate. He acted as if he was terribly sorry to bother his fellow members with the humans. The Souls had stared nervously at the Humans, as if they were a pack of wolves preparing to attack a herd of sheep. But the twelve Seekers standing nearby Marc and the others eased their fears.
Seeker and Human continued their stare down, oblivious to the others. Marc turned away first, he wasn't going to let the damnable Seeker get to him. He let Skyward have this little win. While still new to the Quorum and its members, Marc was beginning to suspect Skyward wasn't much liked by his peers. Well, as much as Souls ever did dislike each other.
Scott poked him again, this time harder, and he looked over to his friend. "What?" he asked in a hiss.
"Long Rivers asked you a question," said Scott.
Surprised, Marc looked up to see Long Rivers looking at him, with just the faintest of smiles. "I'm sorry Mr. Walters. I explained we were breaking for lunch and if you and your friends would join me. There is someone who would like to meet you."
Marc grew confused. "Who wants to meet us?"
"Again I apologize," said Long Rivers gently, "We had meant to go over our agenda with you. But your…detour to the roof threw off our schedule. Specifically one of my healers and his friends would like to meet with Miss Gonzales."
"Me? Why?" asked Kate.
Long Rivers grew surprised, "Don't you know? Your endeavors at the hospital have been a source of much discussion among the healers."
"Well, you know how it is when you move," said Marc in jest, "your mail never gets forwarded and you're busy redecorating so you don't pay attention to the news."
"Of course," replied Long Rivers, either missing or ignoring the joke. He stood up and Marc and Scott followed while Kate remained in her seat. Marc leaned down and said quietly, "If you don't want to, it's okay."
Kate shook herself and got out of her seat, "No, its fine. I just can't figure out anything I did would be so important."
They followed Long Rivers out the door and down the hallway. A group of Seekers moved with them. Marc sighed to himself and tried to hide his annoyance. It appeared the Seekers would be following the humans where ever they went. He glanced over and found Bright Moon on Fallen Snow walking nearby. Their eyes met for a moment. He tried to smile at her, but she quickly turned away. 'Impossible woman,' thought Marc.
Exiting the hall Long Rivers led them into a small room. Like the other room they meet with the Quorum, this room was sparsely finished with dull off white walls. In the room sat a grey-haired older man. Next to him sat a young couple with a baby. At sight of these people, Kate's jaw dropped in complete surprise.
"Darren?" said Kate when she recovered.
The grey-haired man stood and closed the distance to Kate. He gave a quick bow and said, "Kate I am most pleased to see you again."
"Well…good to see you too," said Kate. She pointed at Darren and said to Marc, "This is Healer Darren. I worked with him during the plague." Marc and Scott returned the simple bow. She glanced over to the couple with the baby, who were watching her with wide eyes. She turned back to Darren and asked, "Is that…umm Dancing Blue or something like it?"
"Blue Waves Dancing," said the woman softly while holding her baby. She was a small woman with curly black hair. She indicated the man with thinning blond hair next to her and said, "This is my partner Many Eyes Seeing." The man briefly smiled at the Humans but his attention was almost entirely on his partner and child. Now she smiled down at her daughter and said, "And you remember her, yes? We named her Sunrise on the Wide Lake."
Kate smiled broadly and kneeled down next to the couple. There was no fear from them at her approach and they gladly let Kate hold their infant. "Of course, I remember you little one," said Kate as she held the baby carefully.
Marc turned back Long Rivers and Darren and asked, "Kate told us about helping deliver the baby, is this why she's such a big deal?"
"Yes," agreed Long Rivers as he firmly nodded. "She helped save mother and daughter. The act of birth is very special among us Souls. Kate Gonzales' actions during the crisis have been told and retold among many of us.
"I don't know about saving anyone," said Kate and turned to Blue Waves Dancing. "You did all the hard work. I just yelled."
Blue Wave Dancing shook her head, her black curls dancing around her head. "No, Kate, I couldn't have done it without you. When I had given up, you forced me to go on. You were so strong." Kate now blushed at the Soul's words.
Scott moved close to Marc and said quietly, "This is really important to them isn't? You would think they would be offering Simon a statue or something."
Marc considered and a thought which had been in the back of his mind pushed its way to the front of his busy mind. "I think when Simon forced Crystal Spires out of Annie it might have burned a bridge or two." He lowered his voice, "Or maybe entirely different, Souls are so hard to figure out."
Scott shrugged with a smile, "Well they are aliens."
Marc was about to respond when Kate gave a gasp and with a sudden start handed the baby back to her mother. Blue Waves Dancing grew instantly worried about her child. She checked the newborn over quickly. Kate had gone nearly white. Marc was over to her side almost immediately. "What's wrong?"
"The baby," said Kate in a near whisper. "She opened her eyes and I could see it…see the reflection in her eyes from the lights." She turned back to the infant and said in despair, "The baby has a Soul."
Blue Waves Dancing smiled happily at her child and then to the humans, not understanding their pain. "Yes, a new-born Soul in a new-born Human body. She will grow up and love this world and all its people. I just know it."
Kate closed her eyes.
####
Matthew sat on the couch as Gray and Williams held their guns on him. The parasite kept looking back to the woman on the floor, his eyes desperate. He looked up to Adams and said in a pleading voice, "Please let me check on Sings from the Shadows. Did…did you hurt her?"
Adams picked up the Cryotank and showed it to Matthew. "Sings from the Shadows is in here." He pointed to the red light on the tank. "She…well let's be technically correct here…It is safe and sound."
Matthew's eyes widened in alarm as he realized what had happened to his partner. For a moment, it appeared he would vomit but after gulping nervously he forced himself to relax. He once again glanced at the unmoving woman, "Is she…umm…Elizabeth alright?"
Adams' eyebrows raised and with an edge of curiosity in his voice asked, "The host body? What do you care of her well-being, parasite?"
"I am a healer. I care for all life. I don't want to see her hurt," said Matthew. Although still clearly frightened, there was an edge of outrage in his voice.
"Really?" replied an amused Adams as he sat the cryotank down, Matthew's eyes never left it. He then sat down across from Matthew and pointed to the unmoving woman on the floor. "She is basically a vegetable, no higher brain activity. I would say you and your kind have already done plenty of damage."
Matthew looked stricken and again seemed ready to throw up. He glanced fretfully between Gray and Williams. They only returned a stony glare to the parasite cowering on the sofa. With a trembling hand, he gestured to Adams. "Why are you helping him? Please don't do this."
Without warning, Adams jumped up from his seat and covered the distance between Matthew in one quick stride. He bent down and pulled the terrified Healer up and drove his fist into his stomach. Matthew howled in pain. Adams let go and Matthew fell back onto the sofa with a thud. The Healer writhed in pain and then he curled into a tight ball and vomited.
Adams studied the traumatized Healer and then knelt next to Matthew and said in a low voice, "You don't get to ask questions. That's not how this works." He looked Matthew in the eye and continued, "And you don't get to suicide yourself either. If you do, I'll rip every antenna off your Sings. One by one, I'll make sure I do it slowly. Sings from the Shadows will die in agony."
Matthew paled and begged, "Please don't hurt Sings. Please…Please…I'll do whatever you want."
Adams nodded in approval, "Good. Very good. Matthew, I want you to tell me everything you know about Marc Walters."
####
"I am sorry," said Healer Long Rivers. Marc could tell the Soul was quite upset. But he didn't much feel like accepting an apology. He simply stood and waited for the Healer to continue. Long Rivers sighed and continued, "The story of a Human helping a mother and child in the middle of the disaster has become something of a wonder and inspiration to my people. An event which brings our two races together." He looked down sadly. "I didn't think about it from your perspective. Insertion of a newborn is…a given." He paused, tried to find words but eventually gave up and again repeated. "I am sorry."
Marc closed his eyes and tried to will away a growing headache. He didn't know the first thing about diplomacy, negotiation, or politics. And even if he did, it might be useless when dealing with an alien race which had a fundamental different look on life. He was beginning to see just how difficult trying to find peace with the Souls would be for both sides.
'Be diplomatic,' Marc told himself. He wasn't sure how. If Long Rivers was attempting to see it from the Humans perspective, he supposed he could try to see it from the Souls'. He opened his eyes and said plainly, "Long Rivers I know you didn't do any of this on purpose. You were trying to help improve relations between us and I can't fault you for that."
Long Rivers reflected on Marc's words and said slowly, "Thank you." He paused before asking, "Will Kate be alright? She was very upset."
Marc thought about how angry Kate was now, but went for the more tactful answer. "She will be, just give it time. But let's not have anymore surprises for now. Okay?"
"Agreed," said Long Rivers with a nod and continued down the hall to the doors to the Quorum meeting.
Marc just shook his head. This was going to be a long day.
AN: Well I'm back to the main story. Writing about what happened to Matthew was hard, but having the baby be soul was nearly impossible to write. Well read and review. Thanks
-Walker