Chosen

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Chapter 12: Good News

Maria looked out over the water with her eyes focused on some indiscernible horizon. "Right now she is very worried that she might lose her mate. That is why she holds so tightly to him. Before she met him she felt so lonely."

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Lopez noticed that his walk had that inescapable "spring in his step"as he made his way to the clinic that morning. True. He was in a good mood, the best he'd felt since the cargo had been drawn up from the bottom of the river. But a short lived moment of success that had been. The Princess seized her chosen reward, snatching Burns away, followed immediately by Switchblade bearing down upon them. Since then smiles had been difficult...until now.

Last night his daily Portuguese lesson had taken an unexpected turn, and Nurse Márcia Almeida had taught him quite a few words and phrases he was certain never to need at the clinic. And as she pulled her clothing back on afterward, she had smiled at him and said: "Your luck's about to change. I can feel it."

"I think it's already changed," he had responded and then grinned and reached out to slap her playfully on the thigh.

"Hey!" she squawked and turned to face him, but he grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her back into the bed. She giggled and squirmed as he held her down kissing her neck and shoulders. But then she lay still looking up at the ceiling. "I can feel it in the wind. There will be good news for you tomorrow. Maybe you'll find your friend."

"Maybe," he said, unfastening the buttons on her blouse for the second time that night.

Márcia sighed. "But then you'll leave me."

"Don't talk about an uncertain future. Just enjoy the present."

"Is that your prescription for me, Doctor?"

"One of them," he had whispered softly, catching her earlobe between his lips.

He passed the market, people waving and wishing him well. The people here were so friendly. Only two and a half weeks had turned him from a stranger into a respected pillar of the community. Passing the church and the polychrome Madonna statue in the fountain he breathed a quick prayer for his lost teammate, and then one of thanks. Even Mary's placid expression seemed to carry more of a smile today.

Arriving at the clinic, he winked at Márcia in the hallway and went right into the treatment room that he had been assigned. Entering, he was startled to find someone already waiting for him. There was Maria, sitting in a chair with her grandfather dozing in the chair next to her.

"You must help him," she said, her low voice and dilated pupils indicating that it was the River Princess addressing him.

"Help who?"

"The Beetle-Guide...my mate."

Lopez set down his bag and went and squatted before her. "What help does he need?"

"He is sick. His skin is hot. I touch him and he feels like the sunshine. He isn't eating much. He wouldn't leave the bed this morning."

"Take me to him. I am a doctor. I can make him well."

"No! You will steal him from me."

"I suppose bringing him here is also out of the question."

The Princess nodded.

"Then how can I help him? Let me go to him. He is no good to you if he dies."

She whimpered and recoiled, the statement hitting hard. "Give me some medicine to help him. Maria says there are medicines that make the men-of-land well."

"I can, but you must tell me exactly what is wrong with him." Julio grabbed a notepad and a pen and perched on the end of the treatment table.

The River Princess began to describe the symptoms, and it was quickly obvious that Burns had contracted malaria, probably of the P. vivax variety, the most common disease in these parts. "I will prepare some medicine for him, but you must take it right to him. He has a serious sickness and it requires immediate attention. Where are you?"

"I am in the river outside the town. I will come to the boat docks."

"I will have Maria bring you the medicine there. Watch for her there."

"All right. Please hurry. I don't want him to die."

"He won't if you do as I say."

Maria's eyes returned to normal and she sat there in her usual post-possession daze. Lopez immediately began packing up a kit to send to Burns, finding a case that could be made waterproof and filling it with Chloroquine and Primaquine tablets as well as instructions to Burns and a small bottle of ibuprofen. And then he opened his bag. Keeping his back to Maria, he took a small case from inside it.

Sector had left three homing devices for him to use should an opportunity like this arise. He took one of the three, activated it, and carefully slipped it into a packet containing a surgical gauze bandage and tucked it alongside the pills.

Opening up his computer next, he opened the tracking program and verified that the homing device was working. Sure enough, a little red dot appeared first over northeastern Brazil, and zooming in, it was soon at the corner of Rua Carlos de Carvalho and Rua Treze de Julho. If the Princess followed his instructions, soon that little red dot would be leading him straight to where ever she was keeping Burns.

It was bad news that Calhoun was sick with malaria, but if it were not for that very same thing, he would not be sending this little infiltrator out right now. The good news outweighed the bad.

Márcia had been right about good news. Tonight he was going to take her into Macapá and to the nicest restaurant he could find.

The package closed and sealed, he turned to Maria. "Let's go. We have to take this quickly."

"All right." She shook her grandfather awake and the three of them walked down to the docks. Maria led them down to the marina were things were quieter, and Lopez spotted the River Princess hiding between two boats. He placed the package in Maria's hands. "Please tell her that she needs to take this to her mate right away. The sooner he gets this medication, the better."

Maria did so, shyly handing the plastic case to the fishwoman. Long scaly arms reached up and took it from her. There was a pause as the two simply stared at each other, and then Maria glanced back at Lopez. "She says she will swim her fastest to him."

Lopez smiled. "Excellent. Tell her to come back tomorrow, and I will have more medicine for him."

Maria paused again, and then: "She says that she loves him." The River Princess smiled at Julio, blinking her golden eyes deliberately slowly at him. Her colors seemed brighter than he remembered.

"I know. But if she really loved him, she would bring him here. Tell her that."

Maria did, and the River Princess' smile turned to a scowl. She pulled the package to her chest and dove into the water.

Lopez sighed. "Maria, I have to get back to work at the clinic now. Thank you for coming to me."

Maria took his hand, and then suddenly she hugged him. "The Princess is my best friend. The Beetle-Guide makes her happy. If you can save his life, she will stay happy for a long time."

Lopez knelt down and placed his hands on her shoulders. "She has placed us in a difficult situation, but I will do what I can for my friend. Maybe someday the Princess will realize that she has made a poor choice in kidnapping Mr. Burns."

"I feel it when she is happy. When she is sad, I cannot help but cry."

He paused. It had not occurred to him that the psychic link would extend to emotions as well. "What do you feel now? What is the Princess feeling?"

"Now?"

"Yes."

Maria looked out over the water with her eyes focused on some indiscernible horizon. "Right now she is very worried that she might lose her mate. That is why she holds so tightly to him. Before she met him she felt so lonely." And after a few more moments, she turned back to the doctor. "She is gone now."

"Thank you again, Maria. Come find me at the clinic when she returns."

Lopez hurried back, immediately sitting down at the computer to see where the package was heading. Sure enough, it was there, currently crossing the main stream of the Amazon. He kept one eye on the direction as he pulled out his phone. "Matt! Good news!" he said excitedly when the other end was picked up.

"You found him?"

"Almost. How soon can you get down here?"

"Not soon enough."

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Chosen continues in Chapter 13: "Danger in the Darkness"

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M.A.S.K. and all related concepts, characters, worlds, and events are property of DIC Enterprises, Inc and Kenner Toys. Original characters and story elements are property of E. Potter, writing under the pen name of Miratete.

This fic is dedicated to Ben Chapman (1925-2008), Ricou Browning, and Tom Hennesey (1923-2011)

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