Three Little Pawgors
Chapter 45
XLV
Jim Valenti watched with Kathleen from the porch of their ranch house as Danyy played in the yard with his friend the pawgor. Ten months before, the pawgor had found a mate and increased the pawgor population by three, so Danyy now had not one, but five pawgors to play with. Mama pawgor usually preferred to watch as her three cubs and her mate -Danyy's original friend- played "chase-and-catch," "snatch-the-ball," "hide and seek," "pounce and leap," and other "pawgor games" with Danyy; but she was still young, too, and occasionally she would succumb to temptation and join in the fun.
Kathleen still worried about Danyy, especially when he would be rolling in the grass with the pawgor, wrestling it as though he had a chance in the world of winning such a mismatch. Fortunately, although the adult pawgors were half again as large as a full-grown Siberian tiger or adult male lion, they seemed to know just how much pressure they could put on Danyy and not crush him or seriously injure him. Their antics looked savage and dangerous, but considering their abilities, they were actually being amazingly gentle, probably more so even than with their own cubs.
The cubs, however, were another matter. Though Danyy was able to communicate with all the pawgors and let them know when they were being too rough, the cubs had not yet developed a mastery of their powers and strength. Danyy had been scraped or lightly mauled a few times by the cubs' already foot-long front teeth or their retractable claws, which just seemed to automatically "unretract" during hard play. Most closely resembling prehistoric saber tooth tigers, full-grown pawgors have a pair of two-foot long teeth in the front of their mouths. Danyy was never seriously hurt, though, and could still count all his fingers, hands, and other appendages. Nevertheless, it gave Kathleen cause for concern, though she did have to admit that she enjoyed watching Danyy having so much fun.
Jim had long ago returned the young pawgor to the Nan-Torel, a sort of deep forest-jungle that was its natural habitat, but the young pawgor often left the Nan-Torel to return to the Valenti ranch to find Danyy. When it found a mate and had cubs, it brought them to the ranch, too. The pawgors came and went as they pleased, which was another unusual thing on Antar. No pawgors had ever been known to leave the deep Nan-Torel, and almost no Antarians had ever gone into the Nan-Torel… not willingly anyway… so their paths didn't often cross. The pawgor's prowess is legendary on Antar. It's just that since it lives in the dangerous Nan-Torel, nobody on Antar could remember ever actually having seen one… not until Jim Valenti came to Antar.
Antarians would often make weekend plans to drive by the Valenti estate just to get a glimpse of the pawgors. They certainly weren't going to venture into the Nan-Torel to see one. The deep Nan-Torel, where pawgors live, is considered so dangerous that anyone who enters and is not heard from for twenty-four hours can be legally declared dead. Jim found the young male pawgor trapped under a fallen tree with its dead mama during a hunting expedition in the Nan-Torel, a venture that Antarians considered just plain foolish. He saved the young pawgor and brought it home, never suspecting that the twelve-foot-high enclosure he kept it in was no hindrance at all. When the pawgor was ready to it simply jumped over the fence without even exerting itself. He also never suspected that his young son, Danyy, was talking to the pawgor every day… mind to mind… or that they understood each other.
Now Jim watched as his son, Danyy, played with not one but five pawgors in their yard. He shook his head and smiled at Kathleen.
"Never thought I'd see the day, Kath."
Kathleen watched as yet another car hovered slowly by on the off-the-path road that led by the ranch, trying to get a glimpse – and maybe a picture - of the pawgors.
"Looks like they never thought they'd see it, either," Kathleen said. "Antarians don't have a National Enquirer, but they don't seem to have any shortage of enquiring minds."
Jim nodded, and he and Kathleen both smiled.
"Maybe I should start something like the Discover channel on Antarian TV," Jim said.
"Maybe you should, Jim," Kathleen laughed, nodding. "I'll bet it would be a big hit! It's really amazing how little they actually know about their own fauna… especially considering that they're probably several thousand years ahead of Earth technologically and in almost every other way. You know, before Max met up with the jah-ee, Antarians still considered the jah-ee to be a myth… and no one had ever seen a pawgor! Maybe you should do it."
"Yeah," Jim said, nodding. "Maybe I will, Kath. You know… maybe I will. That's something Danyy and I could do together. Yeah! I'd like that!"
Jim turned to look as another car hovered up the country dirt road… but unlike the ones before, this one turned into the long driveway and drove up toward the ranch house.
"That's Max and Liz," Kathleen said, walking out to meet the car.
"Liz! Max! How are you?"
As the car's engines purred to a stop, the doors automatically slid back with part of the roof, and Liz stepped out of the vehicle, a bright blue Xac-Var IV, and accepted a hug and kiss on the cheek from Kathleen, which she returned.
"We wanted to see how you guys were doing up here," Liz said. "I don't know why, but it just seems like we haven't seen each other for a very long time."
"Yeah, it does, doesn't it," Kathleen agreed. "I was just thinking the same thing this morning. Funny, isn't it? We were all right here just a few days ago talking about… you know, the problems…" Kathleen was hesitant to open a dialog into the virus catastrophe that had befallen Antar. "But in spite of that, I can't shake the feeling that we were somewhere else for… a lifetime or something."
"You feel it, too?" Liz asked.
"Yeah. I'm remembering bits and pieces from when I was in the other timeline with Michael. The odd thing is, it feels more and more like I had a whole life there, not just a month or so after the Nogi-K'ya changed the timeline."
"Yeah," Liz agreed. "That's how I feel, too. And there's something from there that I know I should remember, Kathleen… only I can't seem to remember it, and it's killing me."
"Well, it'll come to you, Liz… maybe today, maybe tomorrow, maybe in a month… but it'll come to you sooner or later. I wouldn't worry about it."
"I guess not."
"I see the little pawgors are doing fine," Max said.
Kathleen nodded. "Yeah! They're a wild and frisky bunch."
"Don't you ever worry that they'll hurt Danyy," Liz asked… "I mean, accidentally or something?"
"I do," Kathleen said, nodding, "but Danyy seems to feel that he's safe, and they are very gentle with him. I know it doesn't look like it, but…"
"Is it normal for the pawgor to be chewing on Danyy's head like that," Max interrupted.
Kathleen turned around quickly. Danyy's head was inside the pawgor's mouth, and he was holding its two-foot-long front teeth in his hands like two bars of a jail cell. Kathleen started to yell or run to his defense, but at that moment, Danyy extricated his head from the pawgor's mouth.
"Look, Mom! Now my hair's all slicked down! I got Jung-Jo to lick it!"
Kathleen closed her eyes tightly for a moment and wrinkled her nose.
"You're taking a long bath when you get in the house, young man! No 'ifs,' 'ands,' or 'buts'!"
"Aw, Mom! I can comb my hair down now and it'll stay down!"
"I didn't know you worried about that," Jim said.
"I don't…" Danyy said, "but Mama likes it that way."
"Not licked down," Kathleen said, breaking out into laughter in spite of herself. Liz wondered if the laughter was amusement or relief. It was probably a bit of both.
"Max, what would you think about me starting a sort of Animal Channel or Discover-type channel on AntarVision," Jim asked. "You know, there aren't any zoos on Antar, and people here don't even know what some of their animals look like. They're just folk legends. Nobody ever saw a jah-ee before you befriended one…"
"Nobody who lived to tell about it," Max corrected. "Well… almost nobody, I guess. Somebody had to have seen one to start the legends."
"Yeah, well, that's what I mean, Max. And nobody ever saw a pawgor until I brought Jung-Jo back… Okay, I know, nobody who lived to tell about it."
Max smiled and nodded. He had seen a couple of pawgors when he was running from Kivar's soldiers and hiding out in the Nan-Torel, but the soldiers who chased him into the Nan-Torel had seen them, too… and only Max had returned from the Nan-Torel. Nobody could be really sure what ever happened to the group of soldiers who went in after Max. But one thing is certain… none of them ever came out.
"I think it's a good idea, Jim. Go for it if you want to do it! You're the most qualified person on Antar to do something like that."
"I think you're the only person on Antar qualified to do it," Liz laughed.
"You're probably the only one who would do it," Max said, nodding in agreement.
"Let's go inside," Kathleen said, pushing them toward the house. "I'll get you some coffee and jaht-roo cookies. I might have some left-over japo, too."
"Sounds good," Max said.
Inside the ranch house, Max and Liz sat down together on a typical oversized Antarian sofa, as Kathleen hurried to pour some coffee for everyone and bring out a tray of jaht-roo cookies and chilled japo-mevanish. Few Antarian families were ever without these basic treats, which could always be whipped out on a moment's notice for guests. For planned or more formal events, the japo-mevanish was served flaming. The flames gave the Antarian flan-like dessert a crispy but sweet coating, in a way like roasting a marshmallow over a fire. And jaht-roo cookies were made from a very light and wispy sugar dough, the same dough used to bake playing pieces for the Antarian game of Jaht-Roo, from whence they got their name. If you could take cotton candy, turn it into cookies, and make it slightly crisp, you would almost have jaht-roo cookies. Coffee, which had been unknown on Antar prior to Max's return, was quickly becoming a favorite with many Antarians, as was tea, though native herbs and beans were usually substituted, since real coffee beans and tea leaves were a special commodity on Antar.
"Kath," Liz said, turning to address Kathleen, "What exactly do you remember from Earth… I mean from the alternate timeline… not our real past in this timeline?"
"It's kind of fuzzy, Liz… it's just starting to come back to me… a little bit more each day. I remember working with Michael in some way to try to fix the timeline. I remember Jim being hurt… or maybe killed."
Liz looked shocked, but then she seemed to remember something about it herself. "Yeah, I think he was… I remember something about that being said."
"Well don't look at me, girls," Jim said. "I was dead. I can't help you."
"Maybe you were just hurt, Jim. I'm not sure you were dead."
"No, I was dead, Liz," Jim said with conviction.
"How do you know, Jim," Kathleen asked. "Do you remember anything?"
"I remember… something," Jim said.
"What," Liz asked.
"I remember… that is, I think I remember… a bird… with a broken wing. I picked it up to see if I could help it, and it…"
"It what," Kathleen prodded.
"It did something weird. It suddenly became very heavy and exploded or hit me with a flash of… energy or something… it blinded me."
"What happened then?"
"I don't know, Liz. That's all I remember. Things just went blank after that. I think I might've been killed and fell into the quarry."
"Yeah," Kathleen agreed. "You were in the quarry! And you were… dead. I remember that now!"
Kathleen swallowed as she said the word "dead." "I… I wanted to get us both back here to save you, Jim."
"Well, the next thing I remember is being back here, Kath, so you girls must've done something right. But I guess I can't be much help. You know, Michael could fill in a lot of these pieces. He came back with all his memories intact."
"Yeah, I know," Liz nodded. "But he doesn't know what it is that I can't remember. I already asked him."
"Did he tell you anything else?"
"Not much. He said I needed to remember it all myself. But I know that Kyle was a professional trainer or something and Alex was famous… I think he was a country-rock crossover singer. And I was head of the molecular biology department at Harvard and almost married some idiot professor who won a Nobel using work I had done. Michael stopped the wedding."
"Did Michael tell you all that," Jim asked.
"No. I remembered most of it. Michael just confirmed it and gave me a few details I wasn't clear on."
"Yeah? Head of molecular biology at Harvard, huh? Way to go, Liz… I think. What about me?"
"You were the sheriff, Jim… in Roswell."
"Dang, I was hoping I was a famous singer, too," Jim said, feigning disappointment.
"You can sing for me, Jim," Kathleen said. "I like your singing."
"My groupie," Jim said with a grin. "You know who else could fill in the gaps for us… those Nogi-K'ya guys. They were there wherever we were. They were in both timelines. They just moved around between the timelines like walking from one room to another."
"Yeah, I know," Liz nodded. "But they won't tell me. They know! I'm sure of it… but they refused to tell me what I need to know."
"Not very friendly of them," Jim said.
"It's not that… It's just that they have these strict laws about changing time and all, and they're afraid that telling me will cause some kind of time disruption or something."
"They worry too much," Jim said, shaking his head with a sigh. "It's a wonder they ever get anything done at all. They spend their whole lives 'studying possible ramifications.' They don't have time to do anything that might cause ramifications!"
Liz and Kathleen both laughed, and Max smiled.
"What about you, Max," Jim asked. "What were you in the alternate timeline?"
Max shook his head. "I don't know. I haven't remembered yet."
"Nothing?"
Max shook his head. It wasn't the whole and honest truth. Max did remember some of his life with Liz in the future time "bubble." He just hadn't been able to explain it to himself yet. It wasn't the alternate timeline that the others were in, and Max didn't have that key to the puzzle yet… especially since he also remembered going to California after graduation and never seeing Liz again. Until he understood it himself, he was hesitant to mention anything at all. The fact is, Max had also felt a deep feeling in his gut… an empty feeling… like something had been lost that was far more than just important… something that had to be remembered. But Max had kept it to himself. He didn't like to share his feelings openly with most people, and he wouldn't share feelings that he didn't understand with anyone.
"Strange that you don't remember anything at all, Max," Jim said. "Do you remember anything about Max in that timeline, Liz?"
Liz thought about it. "He was a student at Roswell High. We never really went together, I don't think… just spoke to each other in the hall a few times. I went to Boston after I graduated, and I don't know where Max went. I never saw him again." Liz thought about it for a moment. "No… no, that's not true. Max and I were together… at some time… But how can that be? I went to Boston and never saw him again."
Liz looked troubled and perplexed. Jim thought he saw a similar look cross Max's face.
"You sure you don't remember anything, Max?"
Max shook his head then added, "Just what Liz said. What she remembers. That's what I remember, too."
"Then you do remember something."
"I guess so… but it's not important."
"It might be, Max," Kathleen said. "Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean it's not important."
Max looked slightly embarrassed. "I guess you're right, Kathleen, but if I don't understand what I remember how can it help anyone?"
"Maybe if you and Liz both try, you might put the pieces together."
Max nodded. "You're probably right, Kathleen. I know I don't open up much. I usually do with Liz, but I just don't know how this could help. I don't even know if it's real… or just my imagination. I might just be misleading everyone… including myself."
"Or you might not be," Kathleen said.
Max nodded. "I remember going to California after graduation, like I said. I never saw Liz again after that… but… I also remember Liz coming to me… being with me."
"That's what I remember, too, Max," Liz said.
"We were together for a while…" Max added.
"A day? A few hours? A month?"
"I don't know, Kathleen," Max
said. "Longer, I think."
"Longer than a month?"
Max nodded. Kathleen looked at Liz, and she nodded, too.
"Well, you both agree on something. There must be something to it."
"Why didn't Michael tell me this," Liz asked, looking at Max.
"I don't know, Liz. Maybe he didn't know it."
"How can he not know it, Max? He has all his memories!"
"Then maybe," Kathleen interjected, "you need to figure out how you two had time to be together for more than a month without Michael knowing it."
"Maybe," Liz replied hesitantly. "I do recall hiding something from him."
"Now we're getting somewhere," Kathleen said. "What was it that you hid from Michael?"
"I don't know. I don't remember."
"Okay then, let's try it a different way, Liz. Why didn't you want him to know whatever it was?"
Liz thought about it. "Max said it could hurt our chances of getting back to this timeline, I think."
"Do you remember that, Max," Kathleen asked, turning to Max. "Why would it hurt your chances?"
"I don't know. I think the Nogi-K'ya said it would… or might."
"Figures," Jim mumbled.
"So the Nogi-K'ya were there," Kathleen nodded. "Who else? Was anyone else there?"
"There were other people, sure. Max was in the palace here on Antar… but… it wasn't here… not in this timeline, I mean… It was somewhere else. Michael wasn't here. Kyle, Alex, Jim, and Tess weren't here either… and you weren't here."
"What you're saying, Liz," Jim
interjected, "is that it was a totally different timeline. That's the only
conclusion I can get from it. If it wasn't this timeline and it wasn't the
timeline we were all in… the alternate one… it had to be a totally different
timeline. How did you get there? Do you remember?"
"I think I used the sphere," Liz said.
"Why did you go to this other timeline," Kathleen asked.
"I was looking for Max… in the future, I think."
"Do you remember why?"
"No… well, maybe. I think I wanted to find out if Max was really there and we were really married."
"Okay. That's important," Kathleen said. "So you went to the future with the sphere. Only… it was the future of the timeline you were in, not this timeline… not the one you're married to Max in."
"Yeah… that must have been what happened," Liz said.
"And you found Max," Kathleen continued, "but the rest of us weren't there. So you spent time with Max there… over a month according to Max…"
"A lot more, I think…" Liz said hesitantly. "A year, maybe."
Kathleen's mouth dropped open. "A year? And Michael didn't know this?"
"No. I returned to the exact time I had left from, so there was no time lapse for him. It would have been like I left and came right back."
"A year!" Kathleen repeated, incredulous.
As Kathleen was thinking about this, Danyy came running into the house, his hair slicked down flat.
"Mom! Look what I got!" he held out his hand, and in his hand were seven coruns, three yaronins, and several kyrin, close to fifteen dollars if measured in Earth money.
"Where'd you get that, Danyy?"
"People have been paying me to let them take pictures of me with my head in Jung-Jo's mouth."
"Oh, for…" Kathleen huffed. "Jim, you've really got to do something about this."
Jim smiled and nodded. "D'you think they'd pay me if I stick my head in his mouth, Danyy?"
"Jim!"
"Alright… alright… just kidding, Kath. How about it, Danyy?"
Kathleen pursed her lips together tightly. At that moment, the three pawgor cubs followed Danyy into the house. Everybody laughed, and Liz added an "awwwww."
"They're adorable, Kathleen."
"Outside, they're adorable," Kathleen said. "Inside, they're something else. Danyy, can you take your friends back outside? Please?"
"Sure, Mom." Danyy turned and herded the young cubs back out into the yard.
"Kath," Liz said with some hesitation. "Why do I feel like there were four cubs?"
"I don't know, Liz. There were always only three."
"I'm getting that feeling again, Max… like one of them is missing."
Kathleen looked at Liz and suddenly became almost white. "Liz, you were with Max for how long? A year?"
"I think so." Suddenly, Liz realized where Kathleen was going, and all the color drained from her face, too.
"Omigod! Omigod! …Jeffy!"
tbc