Anyway… I'm having a bit of trouble trying to come up some tracks, but I think I'll manage.
3/07/05 okay, so I didn't get this out real quick, but you know I mean well. I've been doing things like a comic called The Four and Legend of Armis as well as my Wonderland series. Then, I started a new HP story taking place four years or so after To Have and To Hold. It took a bit of rereading to do this, and a bit of reeducating myself in Space Case lore, but I got the next chapter out. XD Enjoy!
Chapter Thirteen
Harlan woke up. He opened his eyes and gazed blearily around him. He found himself in a cage, in a dark corner of it to be exact, but the light coming from the window was intense. It almost blinded him even as he looked at the light on the floor.
"You are awake?"
He turned quickly to see who was talking to him. It was the same woman he had seen earlier, though he could see her more clearly this time. She was very pretty. Her long blonde hair fell around her heavily and her eyes peered at him like holes.
"Yeah—yeah, I'm awake," he said as he rubbed the back of his head. He was beginning to get a headache. "Where am I?"
"You are in our prison and if you wish to get out, you had better tell us everything."
Harlan shook his head to rid it of the fuzziness. "I already told you everything. The Zeeks are trying very hard to get rid of the Tirateem—for good. I was sent to get reinforcements—then I was attacked—and here we are."
The woman's expression never changed. "That still does not explain you."
"I'm from a planet called Earth. I and my crew landed here on a false message sent out by the Zeek leader. He held a friend and me captive until we were rescued by my other shipmates."
Harlan glanced around again; only able to see so much of the cage he was in. The heat alone was unbearable. "Do you have any water?"
The woman didn't move. It was as though she was a robot of some sort. Somehow, though, her face was different than before, as though scrutinizing him. She picked up a bowl and handed it to him. "Here."
He took the bowl and drank from it. It was warm, but at least it was wet. He saw her watching him very carefully. When he finished, he handed the bowl back to her. "Thank you."
"You say the Zeeks have a leader now? Who?"
Harlan shrugged at her. "Zanathos, I think. Why?"
There was a strange expression on her face, suddenly, she touched the bars on his cell and electricity flowed into him. He saw her face had changed into anger. "You lie! Zanathos isn't real! He was once a god in the heavens, but he's only a myth!"
Harlan dropped to the floor, twitching uncontrollably. He wrapped his arms around his stomach in an attempt to keep himself from moving. "It ISN'T a lie! AARGH!"
"He's a myth, you hear me! A MYTH!"
Suddenly, she let go of the bars and Harlan could move again. He briefly wondered how she had done that when her words sunk into him. "A myth? What do you mean?"
She waved her hand dismissively. "That is correct—you are an outsider with no inkling of knowledge to our entire culture. Fine—I shall tell you about Zanathos the trickster."
"Zanathos once lived in the heavens with the other gods and goddesses. He preyed on the weak of mind to carry out his evils, usually causing the person's destruction. When he wasn't finding ways of tricking people, he was looking for ways to stay alive."
"He knew that the time of the gods would disappear, but he wanted to be the last one standing. He kept making the adults make strange potions to keep him alive until he eventually caused the genetic disorder in everyone on the planet. Others will tell you it was the adults who caused our suffering, but it was really Zanathos who gave them the questions."
Harlan let it all sink in. He wondered if this Zanathos was similar to the mythic Zanathos. "So he just disappeared with the rest of the gods?" Harlan asked.
The woman nodded. Harlan was sent reeling into more questions inside his brain. Then, the woman leaned forward and smiled at him. "Well, it seems you've learned your lesson. I think you may be let out now and sent back."
He got to his feet quickly. "I need help though! The Tirateem are going to be slaughtered by the Zeeks regardless if their Zanathos is THE Zanathos or not! They're going to die unless I can get help!"
The woman stood up and walked to the bar, but didn't touch them. She just gazed into his eyes with her own black eyes. "Then, they die. We can not get into this battle. The Zeeks will come after us as well if we try." Then, she started walking away.
Harlan wasn't through yet. He growled at her and grabbed the bars. "Do you honestly think that they'll stop at the Tirateem! They'll conquer the Tirateem then come after the Sertina and the Lokalit and whatever else you have on this planet!"
She stopped and turned around, fixing him with a cold stare, but he could clearly see fear in her black eyes. She walked forward to him and glared at him. "Don't you dare put this on my people! We've been through enough without having to add the stress of a fake war on hand. If I find that you are lying," she ran a finger down his cheek, electricity making it twitch some, "I'll kill you—personally."
Then, she wrenched open the door to the cell and grabbed his arm, his sleeve saving him from the electricity that seemed to be flowing from her. They walked out of the room and then walked out of the building. Girls with babies and boys walking about stopped to stare at the woman and him.
"My people! We are in dire trouble! I need twenty of my strongest warriors to aid in the battle against subduing the Zeeks!" She held up Harlan's arm with hers and cried out. "WHO WILL JOIN US?"
Several men and women cried out in a cheer. Harlan glanced at the woman with a concerned gaze. He wondered if she had meant that she would be joining the fight as well.
She didn't even look to him. She just put their arms down and looked at everyone, even though she was speaking only to him. "I am the oldest among us, I must come along." Then, she turned to him and smiled. "Knowledge shall win this war."
He was slightly taken aback by her. He wasn't entirely sure how to take her statement, but knew better not to ask.
Commander Goddard waited impatiently for something from Harlan. He could see Feera and Tavik talking heatedly to one another. He glanced at his compupad impatiently once again, but he expected nothing as he'd noticed before. What was taking that boy so long?
Suzee walked out of the girls' hut looking somewhat better than before. Rosie had told him about Suzee's problem. He hoped she had somehow managed to keep Zanathos at bay.
"Incomping Message"
Goddard hit the ground when he jumped for the compupad. It was a bold fight against his own two legs as he reached out and caught the compupad in his hand and turned it on. "HARLAN! WHAT!"
"Geez, commander, could you shout any louder?" Harlan's grinning visage could be seen quite clearly.
"Do you have any idea just how long we have been waiting to hear from you?" Goddard growled. He was happy to see Harlan safe, but his irritation must be known to the boy.
"We're almost there, commander. In fact… you might be feeling a slight—"
There was a rumbling sound and Goddard heard the sound of the Christa landing not far off. Goddard grinned and closed the compupad. "THEY'RE HERE!" he called to the village.
Harlan landed the Christa without too much difficulty. "THELMA?" he asked to the air.
"Yes, Mr. Band?" she said as she appeared next to him.
"Can you tell me if there is anyone outside that doesn't seem friendly?" he asked. The last thing they needed was to have the Zeeks attack the Christa herself.
"Yes, I can." THELMA didn't say anything more, smiling that blank smile.
Harlan stopped when he realized that she wasn't saying anything else. He looked over his shoulder at her and raised his eyebrows. "I meant are there any unfriendlies out there NOW, THELMA."
"No, there are not. The Christa sees no one other than a big band of people running out to meet the Christa waving spears and other primitive instruments about and shouting."
Harlan groaned and rubbed his head. "Open bay doors."
He walked out and waved to Feera and Tavik. "We have the Sertina warriors here," he said with a half smile.
The woman walked down the ramp in her usual grace. Blonde hair flowed around her as she walked toward the group assembling. Tavik blinked and bowed to the woman. "Jenna," he said in awe of her.
Harlan blinked and looked to the imposing woman. He hadn't thought to ask her name, of course she never even gave him the impression that he should. Tavik seemed to notice the confused expression Harlan was sporting. "Jenna is known. Although, I would have thought she'd have been taken a long time ago by the disease."
Jenna inclined her head. "Your village, please."
The Sertina and Harlan were taken back through the forest to the Tirateem village, or what was left of it from the Zeek attack. One thing could be said about the Tirateem was that they'd been attacked so many times that they'd become accustomed to rebuilding everything within a limited amount of time. It wasn't too much of a consolation, but enough of one.
Commander Goddard grinned at Harlan when they arrived. "Mr. Band, I see you did a job well done, eh?"
"What are the services that we are needed for?" Jenna stated in that commanding tone she had. She didn't seem the least bit afraid of Commander Goddard or Miss Davenport, who really couldn't frighten a mouse unless it was with school work and exams.
Commander Goddard nodded to the leader of the Sertina and they walked into Tavik's hut. There was a crude map laid out with a compupad next to it with a better version. "We are currently still trying to get the Lokalit to join forces with us, but we can make it without them if Miss Zeetsil comes back empty handed."
"You are… an adult… an aged adult," Jenna said in a soft tone.
Goddard actually flushed slightly. "I'm only fourty."
Outside, Radu looked to Harlan. "Just how old is she? She looks much older than her people."
Harlan shrugged, but he felt Feera behind him tap his shoulder. "She would be far older than anyone you have ever met."
"I wouldn't go so far as to say that," Harlan said.
"Why do you say that?" Radu asked softly.
Feera looked reluctant at first, then moved as though to walk into the hut. "She was one of the scientists who created the disease." Then, she walked in, thusly cutting herself off from the two boys.
Harlan and Radu looked to one another. "How can she be so old if the disease killed all the adults?" asked Radu.
"Hell if I know," Harlan grunted. He didn't like being confused.
"They have the Sertina….and Jenna." Zanathos grunted as he opened his black eyes.
Treya looked on at Zanathos with worry clear on her face. She put on the metal mask she wore into combat and stood. "I shall prepare the troops, sir."
"Do that." When Treya left, Zanathos touched the screens in front of him lovingly. "Jenna…you always did strike much the same. You've done it before… and you'll fail again."
