Returning
***
I awoke without a trace of pain, and found the crutches still by my bed. Then I did have a cunning plan: what better way to appropriate medical supplies than wandering round a Healing Centre? No one would look twice at me. I was amazed at how quickly theft had become second nature to me.
I swung my legs over and grabbed the crutches, only to find a nurse grab them and try to pull them back.
"You've had enough exercise for the moment," she said smilingly, "You haven't even had breakfast yet."
"I was just going for a little walk, I need the practice," I said, trying to twist the crutches out of her grip.
"You really ought to rest," she said more firmly.
"I've been resting all night," I said, getting one crutch free and abandoning the other.
"You must stay here!" the nurse entreated.
"What, without a chaperone? It simply isn't done!" Falling Smoke interrupted, entering the fray. I grinned at him.
"Good heavens, man! This is a hospital, not a garden party!" I said.
"Here," he said, turning on my screen and navigating to a folder full of human movies.
"To stop you harassing my men," he added.
"Where did you get these?" I gasped, entranced.
"Don't ask."
"You've been breaking into the old servers!" I said accusingly. He rolled his eyes.
"Are all American officers so ill-mannered?" he asked, "Now you rest this morning and we'll have you up later on." I nodded obediently, unable to argue with his thoughtful face.
"There'll be no escape for the Princess this time...." he whispered to me as he left.
I kept one eye on the movies and the other reading through Soul news for the last few months. Our tv segments were having an impact. It confirmed people's suspicions that the humans were not dying out. It was sparking interest in doing something differently. If people feared the humans, most also had an underlying discomfort with Seeker methods on Earth. This could be our foundation for change.
***
Falling Smoke came back at lunch time for another walking session. My muscles seemed to be remembering how to work, and increasingly I only used the crutches for balance. But he was called to attend a patient and all too soon I was relegated to my bed.
That night he returned again.
"My, aren't you dedicated," I said.
"My place is with you. I go where you go," he intoned.
"You can't go with me forever you know. You'll be stuck here when I make the great escape."
"Then take me with you. I want to see the real India."
I laughed, but he continued.
"Nothing I have been told about these people is correct. I need to see for myself."
"You wish to see the frontier?" I played along.
"Yes sir, before it's gone" he replied. I shook my head smiling. I never knew when he was serious. He did such a good Dances with Wolves impression.
"I hope that won't be the plot line this time around. But it's so similar, isn't it? 'They have been like all the others. They take without asking. Our country is all that we have, and we will fight to keep it'," I quoted.
"I don't understand their obsession with fighting," he said, frowning. I sighed and thought about how to explain.
"I was reading up on human history. That Indigenous history stuff is really interesting, you know?"
He looked at me, interested, waiting for me to go on.
"When the other humans first invaded this country, they took the land. They thought they could because they told themselves that the indigenous people didn't own it. But they didn't understand what ownership meant to those people. Later, they came to study it, and understood some more. They wrote about things that were possessable, that you could own, and things that were unpossessable, that could never be owned by anyone. Land was considered unpossessable, like water and air. No one has a right to keep it from another. No one can. If anything, you are owned by them." I glanced at him. His brow was furrowed, concentrating, but he seemed to be following.
"And then they talked about possessions. Alienable and inalienable possessions. Alienable possessions are things that can be separate from the self. Like food. You own it but you share it around. Then there are inalienable possessions. These are things you can't separate from," I took a breath, "like children." I finished softly. He thought for some time as I swung down the corridor rhythmically.
"You're saying we shouldn't implant the children, aren't you," he said finally.
"For a start, yes," I replied.
"But how will Souls survive here?" he asked.
"To be frank, I have a lot of difficulty seeing a future for the Souls here." I admitted. He thought on this for a while.
"If we could perfect adult implantation, perhaps we could only implant the violent ones. Their people could vote on sending them to us," he said, looking at me hopefully.
"Just the violent ones," I shook my head. "I don't know." We had arrived back at my bed for the third time. He drew up a dose of No Pain and I lay down without a fight.
"Well we don't have to solve all the world's problems tonight," he said gently, "Plenty of time for that later."
I groaned.
"You're never going to let me out of here are you."
"Don't you even think of escaping," he replied warmly, a smile in his voice, but I was asleep before I could reply.
***
The morning was bereft of Falling Smoke, but he ducked in just before lunch, still wearing a surgical cap and booties, and threw me a package. I ripped it open.
"Clothes!" I squealed, "Does this mean I can leave?"
"This afternoon," he said, enjoying my reaction, "I have a surgery scheduled first." I beamed at him. "I'll be baaack," he drawled, Terminator style. Package to be delivered to hotel this pm, I messaged quickly.
Later that afternoon I was surprised to find he was driving me back to the hotel personally.
"Well I can see why you were in such a hurry to get here," he said, wrinkling his nose at the spartan motel grounds, bare concrete balconies and steel staircases open to the weather. I wondered at his sarcasm. Maybe the Souls were getting more human.
"There's no place like home?" I suggested, getting out of the car awkwardly with the crutches.
"I've never heard of such bad taste," he said, getting out to help me. "I can't convince you to come back with me?"
"No chance of convincing me of that." I laughed.
"Would you be more convinced if I fell to my knees?" he dropped to his knees and grabbed my hand.
"Turn me loose, you varmint, and get out of here!" I laughed, trying to feel horrified and failing spectacularly. He let go of my hand stood up, grinning.
"Now as a matter of principle you are not to help me to my room," I warned as he followed me to the outdoor stairs, nervously thinking of the humans.
"Yes captain," he smiled, and contented himself to watching me from the base. I arrived at the top out of breath, despairing at my weakness. I put one hand on the doorhandle to my room and turned to him.
"Thank you," I said sincerely, "for everything."
He smiled a little sadly.
"My pleasure. Anytime." He gave the banister a pat and turned to the car. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"See you."
I pushed open the door and gratefully fell onto the nearest bed.
The door closed by itself and Dorsey immediately fell on me in a hug.
"You're ok!" she said, relief flooding her voice. Alex was lurking in the background. She made way so he could give me a quick hug too.
"I'm fine! Better than fine. It's so good to be out of there!" I said happily, stretching my legs.
"That's incredible," Alex said softly, shaking his head, "I… we thought you were gone."
"I should have been. You should read the accident report. It was nasty." I sat up and emptied my pockets. "But it gave me a chance to get some more supplies, look, this one's for healing arthritis! Edie will love that. Let's see, oh lots of No Pain of course…"
"Was that a Healer driving?" she said, peering through the blinds.
"Yes; my healer," I laughed, but no one seemed to get the joke. Definitely too much No Pain. "He was the surgeon that fixed me up."
"Very considerate of him to drop you off personally," she said. How could I hope to explain to a human about the thoughtless kindness of Souls? They'd never believe me. I wasn't a particularly great example.
"He's just a really nice guy. All the nurses think so."
"Really."
"He's just making sure I'm ok. He's going to come check on me tomorrow too, don't let me forget."
"Do all doctors take such a personal interest in their patients?"
"Um, I don't know," I said, "I suppose so. He's probably just keeping an eye on his handiwork, apparently the surgery was a bit intense." She was still looking out the window thoughtfully.
"It's not like he's checking up on you guys. He doesn't know anything about you. I didn't say a word. He thinks it was just a normal car accident."
She smiled at me and rubbed my arm.
"Oh, hey! Check these out," I turned on the rooms screen and found the movie folder, "Ta-da!".
"Oh man!" Henry crowed, as the other's faces lit up "Movies! Oh my god: Aliens. We have to watch that."
"I don't know," Dorsey said, stealing a glance at me.
"Come on guys!" Henry said, jumping onto the bed and arranging the pillows like a sofa, then throwing himself down. "Dorsey, get the popcorn!" Dorsey gave up and grabbed some chips. In squeezing the four of us onto the bed, somehow I ended up next to Alex. I stuffed some chips in my mouth and tried to concentrate on the movie.