CHAPTER 4: Wonders of the Outer World
The car collided with a large bump, jolting Milo awake with a gasp.
"You fell asleep, Milo." Kida looked at the slightly groggy man with a smile. She then giggled and gazed back out of the car window.
"Oh, um, yeah." He glanced around in a hurry, wondering where they were. "Uh, Garret? Garret? Are we headed to that, um, 'new' spot?"
"Yep. Just like you told us to." The young explorer peered at him through one of the mirrors. "We're almost there."
"Good. Thanks." Milo laid back, listening to the wind against the car. The scholar noticed the rain, indeed, had cleared up, leaving the beautiful light of daybreak beaming through the clouds, causing dewdrops to glisten like gold.
"Your trees are very colorful," Kida commented after a moment. "Are these always this way?" Her eyes remained locked on the world outside the vehicle.
"No, not actually." In the autumn, the leaves change color. Then they fall of--"
"'They fall off'? Your trees die every year?"
"Um… they go into a hibernation of sorts. After the winter's colder temperatures, the leaves grow back again."
"So the trees outside Whitmore's mansion the last time I visited were not dead?"
"No."
"They are quite beautiful, yet so odd."
"Not really. Atlantis doesn't really have seasons. While you have two harvests a year, for example, the rest of the world is lucky to have one. Your trees never have to shed their leaves from the cold."
"Here we are!" Garret interrupted. The man looked into his mirrors to reassure himself the other two vehicles had followed, though he knew only the couple sitting behind him would be the only ones to emerge to get a better view.
Milo opened the door and stepped out. He walked around to the other side of the car, intending to open the door for his wife, only to find she had already emerged. The two clasped each other's hands and serenely paced towards the shore of the bay. The flowing gold leaf of the water only added to the spectacle. To a figure across the bay the polyglot pointed, and the Atlantean stood in awe of it.
"It is the greatest statue I have ever seen!" exclaimed the queen due to its sheer size. A sense of incredible awe swept over her as she gazed on. Never had she beheld a structure so large that was not a building. Clouds stained with the dyes of sunrise provided a glorious backdrop to the sight, as well as providing an aura of purity.
"Yeah… Beautiful, isn't it? We call it "The Statue of Liberty."
"It is so grand…" She paused, marveling at the morning-sun-bronzed monument to American freedom. "Is it only a piece of art, or does it protect your people?"
Milo chuckled good-naturedly. "Only art? No. And it does protect my people, though not like Atlantis's stone giants. You see, the statue is a symbol for freedom, justice, and the promise of a better life. It inspires people to work for these things and gives us hope when things look bleak. When people immigrate here, this statue is meant to welcome them into the nation." He felt Kida lean close to him during his display of patriotism. "So, what do you think?"
"Indeed, it is magnificent!"
The wind aroused the leaves of the trees to the morning air. Having been awakened by the autumn rains, the grass blushed emerald as if in embarrassment for being caught off guard in the spring-like temperatures. Late birds paused on their travels to perch and chirp at each other. The diminutive creatures spirited themselves away at the crunching of leaves beneath the feet of approaching people.
Wordlessly Milo and Kida walked, hand in hand through the park, taking in the beauty around them. The trees burned with color and the sweet, damp smell of decaying leaves was quite evident. Lovingly, they smiled to each other often during the stroll as if to make sure their true love was still present.
With every glance to her partner the same wonderful feeling of elation shot through the queen's frame, bequeathing silky, strong wings to her very spirit as it neared the heavens. Her heart beat true with fervor at the mere thought of him. "Spirits of Atlantis," she thought in silent prayer as she beamed at her husband, "I thank you for bestowing upon me such a fate. I am so fortunate to have such a husband. He is kindly, wise, and even courageous enough to risk his life for others, for our people! Most wondrous of all, he loves me with all of his heart, as I do him. You have my deepest and most eternal gratitudes." Again her eyes met those of her husband, and her heart stirred her to speak aloud.
"Kahg moakh GAH-nesh-suhg-tihk."
"Kahg moakh GAH-nesh-suhg-tihk," Milo conferred, repeating Kida's confession of palpable love with a wide grin.
The queen's smile faded as she looked past her husband, her eyes squinting against the sunlight falling through the leaves. He followed her gaze to the forms of two elderly men playing a game on a stone table. She peered at them intensely, her lips moving slightly in remembrance of an old event.
"Is that Kah-LUHN?" she finally asked in a near whisper.
"Oh, um, well, sort of. It's the surface equivalent. It's played mostly the same way. We call that game 'chess.'"
"Chess…" she voiced, testing the word. Kida stared at the pieces, each shape vaguely familiar. "It does look like Kah-LUHN…"
Suddenly becoming aware of the voices, the head of one of the players rose and looked at the couple. In a deep, gravely voice, the elder called out to them: "If you want to come watch it won't bother us."
"Hush, Earl! I'm tryin' to make my move!" creaked the other in annoyance.
"Sorry."
The queen smiled with enthusiasm to the linguist, and then approached the old men to take Earl up on his offer. Her husband followed. Earl beamed with a cocky smile, Kida noticed, clearly happy with his standing.
"The reason you don't mind 'em watchin' is because you're winnin'!" The man smiled to the other in a half-mockingly, half jokingly manner.
Kida leaned forward to analyze the game's progress. She found it was true Earl was winning, for he had many white pieces off the board by his elbow. The leading player noticed her interest and concentration.
"Why don't you let the lady move for you, Gunther, if you think it may help?" Earl habitually cracked his knuckles in punctuation.
"Why not?" the man relented with a sigh. "Probably won't make much of a difference, anyway. Go on, Miss. Give it a try, if you know how."
Kida looked at him with a pleasantly surprised expression. "PAH-- Thank you, sir!" she said, catching herself. The queen diverted her eyes to the board, noting every piece's position, color, and musing about their moves. "This is the kurhuana, and this…" she said silently. There had been myriad decades since she had played. A distant memory was recalled, in which an ancient woman patiently taught the young, curious little girl how to play. The woman had been the last of the enthusiast of the game, Kida evoked, and her passing brought the passing of the game's popularity. Still a few of her techniques remained ingrained in the queen's mind. Slowly she reached out a bronzed hand to Gunther's only rook, slid it diagonally across the board, and slew an ebony pawn by knocking it over with a tap. Her hand remained glued to the rook as she sat it down. "This is satisfactory, is it not?"
Gunther huffed at her, for at first he only beheld she had taken a mere pawn. He didn't answer for a moment, leaving Kida standing in an awkward position. The old man's eyes darted from one piece to another, and finally realized an opportunity had arisen. Then he thought, "Another two moves, assuming he doesn't move or block the king, and I'll have him in check!" With a stone-cold expression, he somberly said, "Just leave it, Miss. That'll do." The elder, poker face still on, motioned for the woman to come closer with a twitching finger. She leaned close, her ear to his mouth. "Thank 'ya! I've got a chance here, now, but don't smile! Don't want 'im to think I might have an edge. You can go now, and I advise you do before we give something away!"
Kida nodded comprehendingly and turned, taking the arm of a slightly confused Milo, and led him away.
"Ummm… Good-bye, gentlemen!" the bookish man called to the elders.
"Farewell!" the queen shouted.
"See you!" the two men simultaneously called back.
Milo waited until they had walked out of earshot. "Kida, what was that all about?"
She laughed and shrugged a little. "I believe I helped him more than I realized."
Kida's hand brushed against Milo's, and he took hers without hesitation as they continued to stroll past the blazing trees of autumn.
"What? You're not coming, Garret?"
"Sorry, Sir." The man yawned. "I need some sleep. Good 'ol Whitmore was nice enough to rent a room for me and the other drivers so we could all drive 'ya around later." Turner chuckled to himself. "We're not being paid for nothin'!"
"I understand. I hope you get some good rest." Milo didn't notice the sound of a car door opening.
"Thank you, Sir. I'll see the both of 'ya this evenin'."
"Thanks. We'll see you." The linguist turned his head. "Kida, you--"
The queen was gone from the seat beside him. "Kida?" Concerned, he turned to get out of the car. He reached his hand toward the door handle, only to find it moving away as the door opened. Milo looked upward, taken aback, to see Kida standing there, holding the door open for him.
"You did say it was good manners to open the door for others in your culture, did you not?"
"Um… actually I meant it was good for men to open the door for women, usually… but that's okay. There's a lot to learn, still." He emerged from the vehicle, but poked his head back in for an instant. "Have a good sleep."
"Thanks. I will."
"Farewell, Mr. Turner," Kida voiced.
"Bye!" Milo closed the door and the Wildcat, followed by the other vehicles, rolled away in the direction of a nearby hotel.
"Well," started Milo, turning to the crew behind him, "who's ready?"
Simultaneously amongst laughter the crew and the queen responded, "We're ready!"
"What should we do first?" the scholar implored further.
Vinny was the first to speak. "Actually, I'm ah kinda hungry. Am I right when I say no one's had ah meal today?"
Grinning, Cookie began, "Well, if yer hungry, jest shew me to the nearest kitchen and-"
"No!" the rest of the explorers cried in unison.
"We really don't wanna make 'ya work on your time off," Sweet said in a nervous, yet good-natured tone.
"Well, t'ain't nothin' if-"
"Thank you, Cookie, but it will not be necessary." Kida's voice was cool and persuasive even though she did not want to encourage him.
Milo led the group to the gates and paid for their admissions. As they entered the park, he handed Kida her ticket stub as a sort of a souvenir.
A strange, wonderful new world filled the Atlantean's vision. Children merrily giggled as they ran down the fairway, speeding past families and couples who walked hand in hand. Intriguing items peered out of shop windows and people shouted out strange words as they called out the names of their delicious wares. Pleasant smells, both salty and sweet, mingled with the scents of nature to create delightful aromas. Men advertised the presence of their games while bizarre machines, bearing passengers slaved away in front of the sapphire sky backdrop. As if to herald the discovery of such a place, a warm zephyr rose, playing with the queen's few loose strands of hair.
"Kida?"
"Mm… What?" She swung her head quickly to her husband, who had broken her mesmerized state.
The scholar chuckled softly and took her hand. "We need to find a good place to sit down and eat. I'm surprised you aren't starving since you're used to five meals a day. Comparatively small ones, but…"
He led the awe-struck queen to a group of small, outdoor tables while everyone else paid visit to a nearby food stand.
"Now, I'll be right back, okay?"
Kida nodded and sat down in a chair Milo pulled out for her. The polyglot left, only to be accompanied by the crew a moment later, carrying alien articles. He sat down two paper bowls on the table as the rest of the crew sat down to talk and eat. Milo handed her a foreign utensil, which appeared to Kida as a thin rod attached to an elongated, inverted dome. He then slid a dish to her. She could not fully conceal her shock and disgust. She stared at what she perceived as cold, smooth mud sitting gooey in the cup.
"Sorry. I would have gotten us cones, but they were all out," he apologized as he dipped his spoon into his food. As he was about to eat, he noticed his wife's expression. "Uh, is something wrong?"
Kida paused before replying in a careful tone, "This? You eat… this?"
"Yeah. It's ice cream. Chocolate, too. It's sweet."
"You mean the doctor made--"
"No, no. It tastes sweet. It's made from the milk of, well, one of our animals, and some of our plants, and… well… Just try it."
Rather bravely the queen did as she observed Milo do, dipping her spoon into the ice cream, then brought the dark-colored substance to her mouth. She closed her eyes and swallowed quickly, expecting a dreadful taste. However, finding it was, indeed, saccharine, to her pleasant surprise, she displayed an amazed smile. "This is delicious," she voiced to her spouse, dipping her spoon back into her food.
"I said it would be good. This is my favorite flavor. We'll try another flavor next time." He grinned to his wife before beginning to eat his own.
Soon the group had finished their cuisine and left, heading to one of the park's well-known rides.
"A 'ROH-ler COH-ster,' Milo?"
"Uh-huh. Think of it like this: the vehicle rolls and coasts along the track."
"How is the vehicle controlled?"
"Uh, as soon as it's out of the station, it really isn't."
"It is not?!" Kida exclaimed as she stepped out of the gate towards the nearest car. The other explorers boarded, though Sweet, due to his size, almost couldn't ride
"It's fine! It's safe, just like a Ketak. Just sit down and pull the bar over your lap. I mean, you get a thrill from hunting. This is safer." The queen pulled down the bar without hesitation, the feeling of nervousness and excitement driving her on. Milo sat and secured his restraint after his wife completed the task.
"We are confining ourselves to an uncontrolled vehicle?"
He smiled. "Basically."
A bell rang and the train jolted forward. The queen's eyes were wide, not with fear, yet they displayed a slight unsuredness of this culture's bizarre ways. The train began to climb the lift hill, a constant clanging joining with the creaking of wood. From this vantage point, Kidagakash saw the entirety of the amusement park laid before her in all its grandeur.
"I am sooo excited!"
"Don't' forget to raise your hands!" Kida heard Audrey shout to her. "It makes it more exciting!"
The train hesitated as it reached the hill's summit. A dull, indifferent voice met the queen's ears. "We're all gonna die." With that, the vehicle began to plunge downward.
"AAAAAAHHH-HA-HA-HA!" The queen's cry turned to enthralled laughter as she threw up her hands halfway down the drop. The train careened over hills and turns, desperate to get to a destination it was not even aware of. Screams of pleasure filled the air, yet were quickly lost on the gusts of wind. Kida was exhilarated by the sheer speed and power of the contraption, fascinated by its mystifying engineering. Finally the ride found its target, a plateau on which to turn back and send its passengers down another heart-stopping plunge. The vehicle used its newfound energy to head back into the station. After several disorienting hills it stopped quickly, causing the breeze behind them to catch up and buffet their heads from behind. For but a second the passengers were quiet, civilian, explorer and Atlantean alike, thrilled to a temporary state of silence.
"Can we go home now?" Packard's monotone, unflappable words, the first of the passengers', caused an uproar of laughter, everyone but those who knew her best thinking her to be sarcastic.
The sun set peacefully, painting the sky a rainbow of warm hues. Coming clouds, stained magenta, were onlookers to the event. Below the couple boarded yet another ride.
"Climb up and sit-- No-- Okay, you go it." Milo pointed as he instructed his wife how to get onto the carousel horse. She felt him sit behind her on the white wooden animal. "Okay, would you like a chance to ride a second time?"
"Yes! All of these rides are enjoyable. Why would not this one?"
"Here's what we have to do. See the brass rings?"
Kida looked in the direction he pointed and nodded.
"We have to catch one of them as the carousel turns to get a free ride. It's quite a reach, though. At least there's a special going on, so couples only need to catch one ring, not two."
The sound of a bell beckoned the rise and fall of the horses' imaginary gallop. To steady themselves, Kida grasped the pole in front of her, and Milo, Kida. The jovial merry-go-round mechanized orchestra began its playing with the movement of the ride, adding to the playful atmosphere.
"You want to try first?" inquired the scholar.
"Yes, please!"
Holding the pole with one hand, she extended her fingers to the glittering hoop. Her digits felt nothing as they swooshed by the untouched target. The carousel finished a full revolution.
"Uhh! I missed! I shall try again!"
The queen stretched even further this time, her fingers barely touching the treasure. As passengers reached out the merry-go-round made another turn.
"That's alright. I'll try." Milo reached over Kida's shoulder to grip the decorative pole and tried for the ring as well. The carousel revolved again, the scholar only brushing it with his fingers.
"Ah! Okay, new plan," he began as the ride began its fourth revolution. "I'll hold your hand and the pole. You reach for the ring!"
The Atlantean opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the voice of a second bell.
"Uh-oh! That means the ride's only going to go around one more time!"
Kida grabbed Milo's hand and heaved her body outward, smiling lightheartedly. The linguist was only grateful he had already been holding onto the post or else he and his wife would have fallen off the horse. She reached out, felling the wind flow around her as the ride began to slow. Ahead was the object in question, gleaming with the light reflected from the last rays of the sun. Like a lancer she eyed her target, moving her lance, her hand, into position. The couple gripped each other's hands tightly for fear of separation. Closer the target came, and closer still until it was within striking distance. The queen lunged forward, hoping to obtain the prize. That movement, whether a success or a failure, decided everything, decided the immediate future. Minutes passed in a fraction of a second for her. A simple twitch could induce a miss. Accuracy was everything.
For the second time in her life, Kida felt a ring slip onto her finger.
"Is it a holiday?" inquired the queen.
"What? What do you mean, "holiday?" Her husband thus answered a question with a question.
A gentle breeze caressed any bare skin of the two and serenely flowed around the bodies of the other explorers. They walked under the night sky, clouds hiding the magnificent moon and stars.
After a slight pause, Kida reworded her question. "Are we attending a monthly social dance or is this a dance for one of your holidays? Is this a special dance?"
"Oh, no. This dancehall is always open. Coming here is a social event, though not like the ones in Atlantis. Couples and friends come here to dance. As for it being a 'special dance'…" Milo smiled affectionately as he let go of Kida's hand to place his arm around her waist. He brought over his left hand for her to hold, instead. "Here we are."
Sweet came around and held the door of the dancehall open for everyone, and a kind, jolly smile marked his face. The group entered in their formal attire, nodding a thank you to the doctor. The polyglot straightened his bowtie upon entry.
The music of 1938 floated to Kida's ears. To her, the alien notes possessed an unexplainable, mystic beauty to them. The hall was crowded with people of every shape, size and age. The center of the hall was brightly lit in comparison to the rest, which was romantically lit with darkness.
"I'm sitting this one out," came Packard in a nonchalant tone.
"Yeah, we'd better leave you to alone," Audrey said. Then while leaning close to Milo, she added, "Go get 'em, Tiger," before she walked away with the others. Kida watched as the crew found some chairs along the wall to sit and view the event for a few minutes.
The queen glanced around the room, thrilled with the entire atmosphere. Her husband allowed her to look around, perfectly understanding her curiosity, and patiently waited until she would be ready to dance. Kida heeded everything her senses told her, from the smell of a sweet alcoholic beverage someone held as they strode past, to the feeling of her crystal necklace on top of her elegant dress. People danced in the vast lighted area of the room, as if the Mother Crystal were waiting to take them all into it's heart. Her interested eyes darted from one face to the next. Their eyes were especially fascinating to her. "Now, what did Milo say?" she asked herself mentally. "The eyes are… windows?"
She looked to an elderly woman, her eyes undulled by the burden of life or the prospect of death. The green eyes of a young man looked into the hazel of an even younger woman as they swept each other further into the light. The queen met the gaze of a middle-aged man whose eyes shone brightly from across the room dreaming of someone to make his wife.
Her eyes finally landed upon a very handsome youth who was notably scanning the room for someone, judging by the fast turning of his head. His distant eyes, set deep in his angular features, fell upon hers. The two looked for each other for an instant, his dark eyes noting her light blue ones. "There is something…" Kida's mind began, but she ignored her senses only in that respect, thinking the presentiment ridiculous in this culture.
She turned her gaze lovingly to her husband. The queen found his vision locked upon the dark-eyed man whom she had just seen, the man who was now leaving the dancehall. Milo's countenance was grave, concerned.
"Milo!" Kida raised an eyebrow as she got the scholar's attention. "You are not jealous, are you?" Her smile was gentle, yet there was some evident concern.
The erudite man, who had changed his line of sight to his wife, was taken aback and looked around as if to search for an explanation. "Huh? What? How did you--?" Milo simply gawked at his wife and blushed, embarrassed.
Kida hummed a laugh. "Do you believe I was born but a century ago? I have seen that expression on couples in Atlantis." The muscular woman put her arms around his neck, putting her face close to his, and looked into his innocent, knowledgeable eyes. "Do not worry. There is a reason I married you so quickly." She rose onto her toes, despite her high-heels, and tenderly kissed the linguist on the cheek. Though the blush remained, a love-struck grin grew across his face. He gazed adoringly at his soul mate, and she did the same.
"Could I have this dance?" Milo asked, finally, hearing a new love song begin. He bowed and extended a hand for his wife to take hold of.
"Why could you not?" The queen grasped her hand devotedly.
He chuckled softly. "Just do what I do." He then led her slowly to the dance floor.
Sweet looked in and sighed admiringly at the scholar king and warrior queen. He turned to see the rest of the explorers, watching while either standing or sitting. The physician shrugged his massive shoulders, thinking, "Why not?" He stepped in front of the young Latina sitting next to him and bowed. Audrey was surprised, but rather pleased to be invited to dance, and rose form her chair. One would believe more than a foot difference in the dance partners' heights would make the dance awkward, but the doctor and mechanic proved that wrong in their bold, smooth strides. It was like a father dancing with his daughter.
Cookie decided to do the same. The chef, too, bowed, in this case to Packard. She stood up and wordlessly followed him, her face unconcerned as always. They followed Audrey and Sweet into the light.
The demolitionist looked on with an admiring smile and took the match out of his match as he stood. He looked to the side for a dance partner. Beside him, to his shock, sat Mole, who was still gazing at those on the dance floor. The diminutive man was putting his hands together in a slow-motion clap.
"I am sooo excited!"
Vinny quickly deemed it best to discretely slide away with the prospect of finding a beautiful girl his age, and, hopefully, with some "flare."
Bathed in cool light, Milo and Kida lived in a timeless state, each step as wondrous as the next. The normally clumsy Milo found, in his passion, a rhythm to which he could move in a coordinated manner that he could combine with his spouse's grace. The two moved as one on the crowd of comparative individuals. As the tides they flowed in and out, sweeping this way and that in unison with the grace of the music.
The song came to its climax and with it, the queen paused mid-step to throw her arms around her husband. When they ceased their embrace, they gazed serenely into each other's eyes, fond smiles pervading their expressions. Upon the song's final note, Milo dipped his wife, who was surprised by, but did not fight, the action. Kida felt his warm, tender lips caress hers, and in the cerulean radiance the two participated in tender kiss.
Milo and Kida walked down the busy street, once again hand in hand. "So you had a good day?" asked the scholar.
"It was splendid. Thank you, all of you," she said to the explorers.
"Hey, we had fun too," Vinny voiced.
"Really, there's no need to thank us. Whitmore put this all together," Audrey said.
The discussion was interrupted by a thunderclap erupting from a distant sky. The gentle wind, as if startled by the noise, seemed to flee from the thunder.
"Well," chuckled Milo good-naturedly. "Speaking of Whitmore, I guess his prediction for the weather was only for daytime. At least we'll be indoors for dinner. I think you'll like the restaurant-not that I've been there, I mean. It sounds real good, though. Come on. We gotta get to the rendezvous and meet with Garret."
Kida's thoughts were elsewhere, however. Her mother, she had inferred, took up the same tradition she was practicing at that very moment. She could but wonder if her mother had visited the cultures of this continent so many millennia ago.
Yet Kida could not comprehend how such a wondrous nation could be overlooked. The queen could hardly believe she had found what she believed was the gem of societies fabled in oral stories throughout the ages. "The people are knowledgeable," she thought, "for they have the ability to read. Why would they not know their history and have learned from it? There is such prosperity here. Their technology is sophisticated, and the people fare so well they have leisure time. People were kind enough to invite me to watch a game. A statue was even erected to invite newcomers. The dancehall was filled with a wonderful peace. This nation is content, prosperous, wise, kind, peaceful…"
"Milo, our people have been searching for so long… Your society seems almost ideal."
"Whoa! Ideal?" The crew walked in from not of a large theater whose doors were already brimming with people walking out. "America has its good points, but it is far from ideal."
"I know there are people like Rourke and Carnaby in the world, but there seems to be so much promise--"
Another strike of thunder ordered the people in the theater to emerge all at once, for the popular act that was being preformed had just ended. The scholar's voice was drowned out by the multitudes of enthralled tones praising the show. A mob streamed out like a flood. Milo grasped his wife's hand to keep her from being separated.
It was all in vain, however, as people, being either careless or rude, burst through the group. The handhold of the couple was severed as a gangly man pushed trough. The group was swept into the crowd.
"Kida! Kida!"
"Milo!" Kida disappeared from her husband's sight as a flood of people further enveloped her.
The polyglot managed to sidestep the flow of the crowd. There he found Vinny, who was glancing around for any of the others.
"Vinny! We've got to find Kida!"
"What ah 'bout the others?"
"They can get to the rendezvous, and they'd go there if they can't find us. They know what to do! Kida doesn't!" Genuine apprehension for her well being shone in his face as a concerned Sweet stepped from the mob. "She may be tough, but she doesn't know enough about America to keep her safe!"
Based off the Disney Picture "Atlantis: the Lost Empire." The name "Atlantis: Revelation," as well as the characters Temlohn, "MUH-suh MIH-kee" and Khohbdesheh are my (Rebmakash's) property. I do not own the name, ""MUH-suh MIH-kee"." The name "Khohbdesheh" is my property only when used as a name. Fan fiction storyline also my property. Milo Thatch, Kidagakash, and other characters, names, concepts, and non-gibberish Atlantean are property of the Walt Disney Company.
