Chapter Fourteen
Settling In
I've gathered with the other members of our leadership group for a meeting. After HD's ship exploded and he took off, I was left with a clamoring crowd, wanting information that I didn't have to give.
"Angela," Pranav begins, "What happened?"
"I'm not completely sure. I was returning here with HD. He was talking on his wrist communicator to Three who I presumed was onboard the ship. Something really upset him. I think he was cursing, in their language of course, so I'm not one-hundred percent on that. He was yelling though.
"All of a sudden, the ship lifted off. HD was cussing and punching at his wristband. He was furious! I've never seen him so upset. Anyway, the ship flies away and the next thing I know it explodes.
"I asked him if he blew up his own ship, because that's what occurred to me. He never answered, just took off. I have no idea where he is."
Senca is anxious, "Do you think he's dangerous?"
I snort. "Well, hell yeah, he's dangerous. You saw what he did on the ship. He can take a bunch of us out any time he wants to. But to be honest, I don't know if he will. I don't know what he'll do now. It's possible he sent some kind of SOS out to his people and they may come for him."
Meagan was at the back of the group, but now bustles her way to me, "Oh great! Will they blame us then for what happened?"
"From what HD told me, I don't think so. We've been planted here to form a new colony of people for them to hunt. He said it will be generations before they come here to hunt us and he said that when they did, they would only take a few. I know that's not very reassuring, but I have no reason not to believe him."
Meagan continues, "Well, let's assume that's true then. We don't have to worry about an invasion for a long time. We have time to prepare! But what about him . . . what about HD? Is he a threat to us?"
I pause to consider before answering. The room is silent as everyone politely waits. What does your gut tell you, Angela?
"Based on what I know of him, I don't believe so. You all know he told me that he wouldn't hunt us again. Out on our hike to find food, I asked him what had changed his mind about that. He told me that he'd studied us and found similarities between his people and ours and that he'd rather study us than kill us.
"But we also have to consider that he's probably really upset right now. He's lost his ride home and I don't know if anyone is coming to rescue him. He may not be feeling the same way about us. I mean, that had to be a tremendous shock. I don't know if Three accidentally blew up the ship or did it on purpose. Or maybe he was taking off without HD and stranding him here?
"And I don't know that much about their emotions and mental stability. I've only known HD for a few months and I think I was basically his pet. He was always pretty steady in his reactions. He was never abusive to me. He took care of me really and he found this place for us and showed me what we can eat to begin with.
"You know, even when he killed people back on the ship, he was very matter-of-fact about it. What I mean is that he didn't seem to particularly enjoy it. It was just something that had to be done and he was the best man to do it.
"I guess we can speculate all we want, but we really don't know how much, if any, of a threat he is to us right now."
Quietly, Seneca asks, "Does his kind eat us?" Meagan's resounding gasp would make me laugh, except I've asked this question too.
"Uh, honestly, I don't know. They're big meat eaters for sure. I did worry back on the ship, before all of you came, about that. I just don't know."
Pranav pipes, "We should at least post guards to keep an eye out for him."
"You're forgetting he can become invisible. If he wants to come into camp without us seeing him – we probably won't."
"But you could see him back at Oceti, couldn't you?" the up-to-now quiet Navajo leader, Ahiga, asks.
"I could see a moving sort of shimmer, yes," I reply. "But only because I knew he was there and knew about where to look. If he wants to take anyone from the camp, he will and I'll bet my bedding that we won't know about it until somebody turns up missing."
Meagan lilts, "Well we have to do something! People are scared out of their wits!"
"I know! Let's post guards around the camp and I'll try to explain to them what to look for. I guess it's better than doing nothing and if it will help people feel more secure, it's probably worth doing."
Seneca adds, "We should do a daily head count. Maybe when we gather to eat?"
The days are full of work. We set to creating spears, along with bows and arrows, in order to hunt the fish and animals for meat and defend ourselves. Several of the guys actually set up a forge to melt down our precious bits of metal to make sharp points for hunting. Our lone geologist is busy looking for native metals. We're surviving on the grains and fruit in the meantime and starting a grain patch to see if we can cultivate the kernels from seed. Deliberate planting will be much more efficient than gathering. However, we have no way of knowing the seasons here, so this first small planting may be in vain.
We make sure that people stay in groups. No one wanders out of sight of our guards and the daily head count shows our number to be steady.
I'm worried about only having a few sources of food, so I'm taking a small group of my warriors and some people with pertinent experience with me on an expedition. With carefully observation, I'm certain we can find other animals to hunt as well as edible plants.
We hike the now familiar rock crack path to the plains that lie behind the escarpment. Aleki is in the lead with the rest of us strung out behind him. We're all quiet, constantly looking around, searching for whatever might be useful. Upon exiting the crack, we fan out onto the plain.
The fringe of plants tickles my bare legs as I pick my way through them. This climate is hot, tropical even. Weeks ago, I abandoned my fur dress for a short leather loincloth and sparse top. It's only inside the cavern that we grab our furs and bundle up for warmth. Our talented group of tailors has been working hard to get everyone suitably clothed. Parents are letting their little ones run around naked in order to save the scarce leather for the adults. Scarcity and tropical warmth keep our clothing size to the minimum.
What I'm really wishing for now is a hat, a nice broad brimmed straw hat to keep my eyes from squinting and my head cool. We have basket makers already collecting dried plant material. I bet they could learn to make hats.
A sudden loud airborne screech has us searching ahead. We've seen small birdish things from afar, but haven't been able to catch any of them yet. A flock of fliers is rising from the plain, making lots of noise as if they've been startled. They fly toward the precipice behind us, reminding me of a school of fish, twisting and turning together. Their wings make a rushing sound as they fly overhead. There's nothing airborne after them, so I refocus on the plain.
The undergrowth is moving. Wispy green fronds wave back and forth as something makes its way toward us. My warriors move to the front of our group, grasping knives, axes and spears, prepared to hunt or defend against whatever appears.
They're getting closer, whatever it is that's making those plants move. And I can hear them now - soft squeals and grunts along with low churring sounds. They aren't moving very fast and it looks like they are turning. As though we are of a single mind, we start to chase after them.
Is this the best idea? We don't know what we're after.
It's not too far to the river now. The creatures are headed there. We form a large running semicircle, hoping to surround them against the river bank. Our trap speeds up and I pump my legs to keep with them. My shoeless feet must be taking a beating, but I'm too caught up in the excitement of the chase to care. The underbrush thins and ends where the tall fruiting plants take over near the river bank. At last we'll be able to see our quarry.
Breathing hard, I pull up at the sight of the creatures. Alien pigs. We've been chasing pigs. At least a dozen of them cow together in a circle, snouts out with a group of babies in the middle.
I can't help but laugh. "Sausages with legs!"
Each mottled oblong body is smooth and hairless. The body sports a head which tapers to a pointy snout at one end, and is round with a wispy tail on the other. Large eyes are set on each head side, like typical prey animals, and they have very round, very large ears. They have four short legs, each ending in a round pony-type hoof.
"Or short Dumbo's!" Aleki calls.
I regret it when we kill one. They are rather cute. Aleki humanely kills an adult and the rest of the little herd scrambles away, wide-eyed and grunting. He proceeds to gut the carcass and bleed it out while our resident zoologist, Marie, examines the entrails.
"It's a ruminant!" she exclaims. "There are several stomach chambers. Let's see what you've been eating." She slits them open and then picks through the mush.
"Based on the snout, I'd say these fellows dig in the dirt for dinner. Look here." Marie holds up a hard round brown ball after washing it from one of our two canteens. "I think this is a nut. Can somebody crack it?"
Aleki takes it, places it on a rock and whacks it with the back of his axe-head. It's well smashed. Marie picks through the pieces. "Yes, I'd call this a nut. There is a hard shell and meat inside. But can we eat it?"
Bravely, she cleans off a tiny piece and tastes it, immediately making a face and spitting it out. "Wow, that's disgusting! I can't even describe it to you. It tastes like shit."
We're all laughing now. Through my mirth, I ask, "Well what about the meat? Does it taste like that too?"
"I'm not tryin' it raw," Aleki announces. "I'll roast it back in camp and we'll see. You can have the honor of the first piece, Angela," he says with a wink.
"I wouldn't dream of taking that honor from you, Aleki. You made the kill, the first taste is yours." I bow dramatically. "Okay everybody, let's scout the riverbank. Last time we went downriver, let's go up this time."
The edge of the river is easy to traverse. What few rocks there are lie flat and smooth, probably worn by eons of flooding. The ground is dry, but turns to mud as you near the water.
We spend time navigating the bank as well as searching the water for new life forms. A voice stops us in our tracks. It's Seneca up ahead, standing on one of the flat rocks, pointing down at the river.
We jog to join him but are caught up short at the top of the bank by what we see. There in a snag, floats a substantial body. Or at least what's left of one. There are arms and partial legs, but the head is gone. Aleki reaches in and grabs it by an arm, hauling it up on the bank as we gather round. Marie quickly scrambles to a crouch down by the grisly cadaver.
The body only carries bits of scorched clothing here and there. Marie begins telling us what she sees, "As you can see, this body has been partially burned," she points to scorch marks and areas of cooked blistered meat. "It's a male," she references what's left of the exposed genitalia. Gingerly, she picks up one mostly blackened hand. "It's been out a while, this body isn't fresh and looks already scavenged. Something's been chewing at the legs. If you lucky dogs were down here with me, you'd smell it."
In unison, we all take a step or two backwards. "What a strange hand. This man was very large . . . it's not a man. Angela, this is one of them . . . the aliens. See the scales here on the back of the hand?"
I slide down the embankment to look at the patch of unburnt skin and then see the broken off but still visible talon on the thumb. The rankness of decay greeting my nostrils. Oh my God. HD?
Marie goes on, "And this is really strange. The head was removed with something surgically sharp. Its head was cut off!"
HD you're here. You're alive!
"I think this is Number Three," I explain. "He must have survived the blast somehow and made it here. Maybe he took HD's little ship. And, I think that HD found him, dead or alive, and cut off his head."
"Why would he do that? What's he want with a head," comes the question from the bank top.
"A trophy would be my guess. I saw many skulls in his quarters. He had a whole room full of them. They were souvenirs from his hunts. I think that HD took his skull as a memento. I'd say Three really shit in his own mess kit."
At the mention of HD, the warriors visibly stiffen and put their heads on swivels. They're nervous, worried that HD's around. I'm strangely comforted.
Thinking aloud, I state, "I guess we'll just leave this on the bank for the scavengers."
No one replies as we continue our trek, leaving the rotting corpse of Three behind.
We never encounter HD on this hike. Not a footprint, not a trace of him or the small ship that I wondered if Three had escaped in. The small ship. Has HD has flown away in it? Maybe that little ship can take him back to his people. It's small, but maybe it's as capable of interstellar travel as the big ship. I wish you well, Huge Dude.
It's the close of the day. Our groups are melding together into a single tribe and we have gathered together in the main cavern to share a meal of fish and fruit. The alien pig we killed today was roasted, sampled and pronounced delicious, although not tasting anything like pork, or beef or any Earth creature. The brave souls who ate it will be carefully watched for any signs of ill effect by our medical group.
After eating we gather in a great circle around the main fire. We have several talented story tellers and one of them begins to regale us with amazing tales. I lean back against a rock, warmed by the fire, and feel my eyelids grow heavy. As I relax, someone walks up next to me. I try to rouse myself to respond to the inevitable question. Before I can say, "Can I help you," a man's smooth voice addresses me. "Do you mind if I sit down?"
Looking up, there is a tallish guy with long dark hair flowing down past his shoulders. I blink several times before I realize that it's Daniel Riding Horse from the Oceti camp. I haven't had much change to speak with him as he's not a hunter or warrior. I wrack my brain, trying to remember what skill team he's on.
"Sure, Daniel. Pull up a rock." A yawn forces its way to my mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry. It's been a long day."
"No problem. I don't mean to bother you; maybe you want to turn in?"
"Not quite yet. Please sit down. I'm sorry, but I don't remember anything about you except your name. Please refresh my memory."
A grin flickers across his fire-lit face. "I'll try not to bore you. I'm from Montana, the Apsaalooke, or what people call Crow nation. I was at Oceti Sakowin for about a month before you showed up with your alien friend. I'm an R.N., on the medical team. I worked in a clinic on the rez back home. Spent some time in Billings working at a hospital, but, you know, my people needed me."
"I admire your loyalty. I was away from my people for many years."
He nods and doesn't ask why, but instead comments, "Many of us leave for many reasons. But we're here now, maybe the last of our tribes. I have been wondering if anyone on the council has given thought as to what to name our new planet and our new nation."
"We haven't," I smile. "But we need to. I'm glad you brought it up. Do you have any ideas?"
Daniel's sculptured cheekbones frame his returning smile well. "There are some names I like. My people call the Earth, Grandmother. That's kind of long though."
"What is 'grandmother' in Apsaalooke?"
Daniel looked crestfallen, "I'm ashamed to say that I don't know. I don't speak it and I was raised by my aunt. No grandparents."
"Hey, don't feel so bad about that. Many of us don't speak the language of our tribes. I used to when I was little, but I've forgotten most of it."
"Do you remember the word for grandmother?" he asks.
"It's Unci or Kunsi, depending on if it's your Mom or Dad's mother."
Daniel's smile is infectious. "Maybe we could find out every nation's word for grandmother and choose the name from that."
"That's a great idea! I'm going to present that to the council. Thanks, Dan! Or do you prefer Daniel?"
"I answer to either."
"My closest friends and family call me Angie. But Angela is okay too. Glad to get to know you better, Dan." I extend my hand for him to shake.
His hand is warm, larger than mine, and unexpectedly soft and smooth. Well he's a nurse, not a stone mason. He clings to my hand just a tad longer than necessary.
"I'm going to call it a day." I get to my feet and Dan quickly follows.
"Would you like me to walk you to where you sleep?"
I raise an eyebrow, pursing my lips, and he immediately reacts. Is he blushing?
"Oh no! I didn't mean it that way. I just thought it was . . . the polite thing to offer. I'd really like to get to know you better . . . Angie."
I search his handsome face in the firelight, assessing intent. "I haven't had any time to think about relationships. And I didn't mean to accuse you of anything, I was just surprised. I think I'd like that, Dan – to get to know you better. But be warned, taking care of the people comes first."
"I understand," he nods with enthusiasm.
"I'll find my own way and I'll look for you tomorrow. Okay?"
"Okay! Have a good night's sleep."
"You too."
I pick my way through the crowd and out of an abundance of caution, take a confused route back to the little hidden side cave I call home. Nestled in my bed, I take stock of the evening.
Well, Daniel. As my Dad used to say, 'you wouldn't make a freight train take a muddy road.' But beauty is only skin deep. Smart. Good manners too. Can't believe I hadn't noticed you before. In my old life, I would have spotted you right away. Being the leader sure changes your perspective. People are beginning to pair up. We need some kind of marriage ceremony. Our new nation needs its own traditions and ceremonies. . . Talk to the spiritual leaders about that. Name the planet . . . Grandmother. . . Like that . . . What's everyone's word? . . . HD, are you still here?