by J. C. Fiske
“Are, are you for real?” Gisbo asked, his face twisted in fear.
“Oh, come on now, you big baby. You are almost going to be a Renegara, don’t tell me you're afraid of one little needle?” Doctor Kalloway said.
“Well, I,” Gisbo muttered.
“Good to hear! Now roll up your sleeve for me. It will be over before you know it. Relax,” Doctor Kalloway said in a no-nonsense tone. Gisbo did as he was told. He felt his sleeve roll up and the doctor grabbed his arm firmly.
“Now look the other way for me, please,” Doctor Kallaway instructed. No problems there. He was never afraid of shots before. It wasn't the needle going in that bothered him or something going in. He just didn’t enjoy the thought of something coming out. The pinch came quickly and Doctor Kalloway was right, it didn’t really hurt. Gisbo breathed a premature sigh of relief and suddenly felt a bit lightheaded and dizzy.
“Done!” Gisbo heard Doctor Kalloway say.
That wasn’t so bad, just feel a bit dizzy, that’s all, Gisbo thought and smiled.
“So, you want to see your blood?” Doctor Kalloway said as she shook a small clear bottle full of red fluid in his face. Bright specks and sparkles flashed in front of Gisbo’s eyes before everything went black. When he awoke, Falcon was standing over him and he was still in the same room, laying down on the metal table top. He rose up to a seated position and the back of his head felt like it weighed ten pounds extra.
“Don’t touch it, you got one nasty bump,” Falcon said. It took a few moments for Gisbo to get his bearings as he stared dizzily at the closed door in front of him.
“What happened this time?” Gisbo asked.
“Apparently Doctor Kalloway,” Falcon said before being interrupted.
“Kalloway! That lady’s nuts! She talked about blue veins! Showed me this massive needle thing, then she shook my blood in front of my face! She . . .” Gisbo yelled, trailing off as the door opened again.
“And for that I’m sorry. Sometimes I forget other people aren’t as fascinated by the human body as I am. The good news is you were out long enough for the lab results to come in! So let's sit down and go over all this, shall we?” Doctor Kalloway said. Gisbo looked at her with a mistrusting glare.
“No needles, swear to IAM,” the doctor vowed, sitting down and opening both her hands for emphasis. “Now, the good news. You don’t have Skarupulous,” Doctor Kalloway said. Gisbo and Falcon both looked at her in surprise.
“He doesn’t? But how can that be? It’s the only option. We checked him at birth and he had enough essential energies flowing through him to be full fledged! That sort of essence doesn’t just get up and walk away unless he has Skarupulous!” Falcon insisted.
“Yes, that is true and that’s the strange part. All of his essence is intact, but it is different from any other essence I have encountered,” Doctor Kalloway said.
“Fantastic,” Gisbo muttered.
“Essential energy is supposed to be constantly in flux, always moving. Your essence seems to have simply stopped,” Kalloway said.
“Wonderful,” Gisbo muttered again.
“We did some quick scans on your body while you were unconscious and made some strange discoveries,” Doctor Kalloway announced.
“Scans? What?” Gisbo started. This cannot be legit, he thought.
“Hey, would you let her finish please? Go on, Doctor Kalloway,” Falcon interrupted.
“As I was explaining, it seems your essence has been building and concentrating to one point near your heart. It is here that it is rotating itself; moving, yes, but it is not traveling throughout your body as it should. When you try to call upon it, all you can muster are trace amounts that have leaked out from the source. It is as if your essence has a mind of its own and is almost hibernating,” Doctor Kalloway said.
“And you’ve never seen this before?” Gisbo asked.
“In all my years as a doctor, never. Neither has anyone else on staff,” Doctor Kalloway said. Gisbo shook his head in frustration.
“Great! A brand new disease. They going to call it ‘Gisbo’ after me, since apparently I’m the only one who's got it? At least I’ll be known for something, even if it's nothing but a big disease in the end. I bet everyone in Oak County would love the irony in that,” Gisbo said.
“Now don’t jump to conclusions. There is just one thing that worries me. We noticed that the essence within you seems to be enlarging as it spins.” Kallaway paused a bit before continuing. “Now this behavior worries me because, as your essence expands with the rotations, it is building pressure within your chest. You won’t be able to feel it, no, not now. Probably not for some time, but possibly down the line, if this keeps up . . .” Doctor Kallaway trailed off, not wanting to finish. Gisbo got the gist of it either way.
“Even better! So I’m going to explode or something? Is that it? Just like that? One day, BOOM! No more Gisbo?” he shouted.
“Again, don’t jump to conclusions. This is only a theory. We are going to work on this and figure out some way to possibly stabilize it. There is nothing wrong, as far as we can tell, with your essence concentrating into one place. It just seems to act out of its own accord, as if it were separate from you. This won't hurt you, you just won’t be able to access its power. The problem is the growth of the essence. Essence gets more powerful as it adapts to your growing body, but I have never seen it grow spontaneously. We need to watch this and keep it monitored. I have faith we will come to a solution to stabilize your condition. You have my word, Gisbo,” Doctor Kalloway said. Gisbo sighed.
“Why couldn’t I just have Skarupulous! Now I got a freakin’ bomb in my chest! And quit looking at me like I’m some sort of medical marvel!” Gisbo accused.
“It wasn’t my intention, forgive me. We will get to work on solving this problem. I am somewhat excited in a way; this is something new and challenging to tackle when I'm not dealing with nosebleeds and the common cold. Don’t worry, Gisbo, you can go about your life normally without fear. We caught whatever this thing is early and time is on our side. Try not to think about it,” Doctor Kalloway said.
“Easy for you to say!” Gisbo said.
“Everybody has their issues, Gisbo, everybody. You are no different. Let's go back to your tree house and I’ll cook up dinner for you and Rolce and talk everything over. How about it?” Falcon said. Gisbo grunted and they were out the door.
Rolce greeted them with Harpie and Fao flanking him. True to his promise, it looked like he was studying up a storm. Dozens of books were laid out on the kitchen table with various notes scribbled on paper.
“So how’d it go? Oh! I have been learning a bunch of cool techniques I’ll have to show you later!” Rolce rambled.
“Well, I don’t have Skarupulous. Instead I have an energy bomb in my chest that is gonna blow up and kill everybody one day. Wanna see?” Gisbo said, lifting up his shirt. Rolce looked horrified. Falcon shook his head.
“Excuse me? Gisbo, that is horrible!” Martha exclaimed as she stormed through the door. “I came back from my scouting mission as soon as I received word. Oh, honey, everything is going to be ok,” Martha said as she embraced Gisbo in a hug.
“He’s just overreacting. It’s only a condition they’ve never heard of before is all. As long as they keep it monitored, he should be fine. How goes the search? Any clues?” Falcon asked Martha. She looked relieved by the news.
“Oh, thank IAM then. I received the message from Norse and returned as soon as I could to make sure you were all right. As for the search, nothing has come up yet. My squad just finished clearing the outskirts of the Soarian territory. No traces of Shax or that snake, Lokin,” Martha revealed.
“I’m really sorry, Gisbo, I don’t know what to say,” Rolce looked as if he was about to cry.
“There’s nothing to say. What did I tell you about that mopey dopey crap? I can still function normally, I just wish for once in my life I’d get dealt a good hand or something, but enough, enough complain
ing! I'm going to sit and eat this meal and enjoy my life and the bomb in my chest!” Gisbo said as he slumped into his chair with finality.
“And a meal you will get! Rolce, clean this mess up! It is filthy in here. And clear the table while I throw on some dinner,” Martha ordered. Hearing this, Gisbo perked up.
“I thought Falcon was cooking for us,” Gisbo asked. Martha’s eyes smoldered at this comment.
“You mean to say you enjoy Falcon’s cooking over mine?” Martha asked.
“No, no I didn’t mean it like that at all, I,” Gisbo stammered.
“Here I come all this way to make you a hot dinner and you refuse? Such ungratefulness!” Martha scolded.
“No, it's not that, it's just Falcon is really good with steaks and that secret marinade he’s got,” Rolce tried to pitch in and defend his buddy.
“That confounded marinade! Steak is best clean and salted! Why I never!” Martha said, then started to get herself under control. “I’m sorry, dear, I just took that the wrong way. Don’t know what came over me,” Martha apologized.
“Don’t worry, that happens to me all the time,” Gisbo smiled. Martha grinned as well as she went about preparing the vegetables. Falcon bent down to whisper in his ear.
“My steak beat hers in a taste contest years ago. She’s been sore about it ever since,” Falcon whispered with a wink as he fired up the grill. Within a few minutes, all was calm and forgotten as they shared a nice meal and the boys said goodbye to Martha and Falcon for the night.
Later that night when they were in bed, Gisbo found himself laying on his back and staring out at the stars above through his sky window. Why was it him, Rolce and Jackobi that had to deal with so much baggage? Life just wasn’t fair. Looking down at the empty bunk only infuriated him more. He supposed there were people worse off in the world, like the kids kidnapped by Shax and Lokin, and he'd heard rumors there were many Flarians clinging to life, hiding out in the deserts of Flaria. He couldn’t let himself feel like a victim. He had friends, he had shelter and he had food. Most out there didn’t even have that. For a while Gisbo had been pondering the thought of a caring God. Never. We are all on our own, Gisbo thought, before drifting off to sleep.
Chapter Twenty: The Gift of a Lifetime
The rest of the week flashed by for Gisbo and his classmates as Perry focused on reviewing the material learned to start fresh with Elekai’ techniques the following week. This allowed Gisbo to fit in with everyone else, at least for a few more days.
The weekend came and Gisbo loved Saturday mornings, just for the sheer fact he could sleep in as long as he wanted to, sometimes even 'til noon. Rolce was careful not to disturb his friend each morning as he arose with the sun and started his daily routine of studying Elekai’ techniques. Rolce had also received a special book on Sybil techniques from Moordin and he constantly searched for any knowledge that might help in discovering Jackobi’s location.
This morning was different, however. Gisbo was awoken rather early by an excited Shaved, who normally wasn’t all that excitable to begin with. Gisbo wasn’t even upset, realizing that if Shaved was excited about something, it was definitely something worthwhile.
“I got a message from Ernie an' Dave. They want you both down at the shop right now,” Shaved said with a smile. Gisbo yawned and stretched.
“But it’s the weekend! What the hell do they want? Ernie didn’t find the broken scaffold in the sand pile, did he?” Gisbo asked. Shaved shook his head, smiling a bit bigger.
“Nah, nothing like that, I’ll see you over there. It’s sort of a surprise,” Shaved admitted and without another word he was out the door. Gisbo looked over at Rolce, who shrugged. They both got cleaned up and made their way over to the shop, where Dave greeted them in his normal friendly fashion.
“Ohohoho! Come to work a few days early, eh?” Dave said.
“What do you mean? You and Ernie wanted to see us,” Gisbo said. Dave put on a confused look and turned around to shout to Ernie.
“What? Hey, Ernie! These two guys say we called them over here for something. You know anything about it?” Dave said. Ernie looked up with a grin.
“Nope, sorry, don’t know what you’re talking about,” Ernie answered as he went back to work.
“Great, so I got out of bed on a Saturday for nothing?” Gisbo asked. Dave just laughed.
“Ohhh come on now, only joking with ya, my boy. Step right in!” Dave said, motioning them forward with a big forearm.
“So, you guys all set to use Elekai’ now, eh?” Ernie said as he got up from hammering away at a fresh sword. Gisbo turned the other way, a little embarrassed.
“Now now, don’t look at me like that. Shaved told me all about it, so don’t you fret! Now listen here, you guys have been working for us for nearly a year and I can honestly come right out and say it has been the most productive year our shop has ever seen!” Ernie said proudly, causing the boys to smile too.
“Plus, Dave an’ me were equally proud of the success both of you have made in your training. Now that you guys have shown proper knowledge for a Renega, it is time for you two to buy yourselves your very first weapons, which is why I’ve called you both here,” Ernie said, pausing a bit to smile.
“It is quite a shame you won’t be able to use natural Elekai’, Gisbo, but heed the word ‘natural.’ Now, this has been something we have been playing with for some time before your little incident and, thanks to much genius work by myself, Knob, Ernie and Shaved here, it's ready. So, if it's all right with you, we have come up with something special for you, Gisbo: Ern an' Dave’s engineering at its finest! Go get the package, Shaved.” Dave said. Shaved nodded his head and went out back.
“Now previously, you see, this wouldn’t have been possible. This technology is rare and designed specifically for someone like you,” Ernie said, this time smiling with all his teeth in view.
“So, so what are you trying to tell me?” Gisbo asked, trying not to get his hopes up too fast.
“What we are trying to tell you, Gisbo, is this. Perry told Narroway of your incident and how you reacted. It was a rare instance to begin with, followed by an even rarer response. Narroway was deeply moved by your determination and since he has known of this secret scheme me and Ernie have been working on, he decided that such a rare case deserved a rare reward. You, Gisbo, are going to be able to use Elekai',” Dave said. Gisbo stood for a moment in shock as Shaved returned from the back of the shop holding a package wrapped in brown paper.
“Open it,” Shaved said. Gisbo grabbed the long package and unwrapped it; carefully at first, then ripping the paper away all at once. There, in his hands, he held a Talon Sword, his very own Berserker weapon. Gisbo didn’t quite know what to say as he stood there, holding the fine weapon with his jaw dropped.
“Now that’s not just any old sword you got there. It is also a bit bigger, so it doubles as a skeeting sword, which is why your gonna need one of these to go with it,” Ernie said as he tossed him a basic Knuck Knife.
“As you know, when you're up there flying, you need something to parry with should an enemy attack come. The good guys aren’t the only ones who know how to Skeet,” Ernie said as Gisbo caught it cleanly.
“You’ll notice, Gisbo, the handle of your sword is a long cylinder. Normally the steel of an Elekai’ weapon is mixed with ground up elemental stones. Yours will work differently. Remember the various power sources found throughout Heaven's Shelter? This right here is a compressed version of that,” Ernie explained as he held up a bright red, translucent stone that was perfectly round and had a long, thin red spike at the top that tapered to a point. To Gisbo it looked like a rather large nail topped with a circular orb about the size of a hockey puck; nearly weighed the same too, as Ernie dropped it into Gisbo’s hands.
“We have assumed you and Shaved have about the same quantity of elemental essence, as you are about the same age and at same point in your training. We tested it on him and calibrated it to emit the same
power level. As Shaved grows in his training, we will hopefully be able to continue the process, as it is still at its experimental stage. Like I said before, this technology is absolutely new and top secret; it's only known to the Renegades. Such power wasn’t meant for the average person and you are only receiving this privilege because you have shown yourself to contain enough essence. You just have a problem getting ‘er out, that's all! This device was ordered into production by Chief Narroway himself as a precaution, in case evil decides to show its ugly face once more and we need additional fighters. We live in dangerous times and need to prepare ourselves for the worst; even one or two fighters with Skarupulous could tip the scale. Now, enough with all the preliminary crap, I bet you’d like to try it out, eh? Just don’t kill yourself,” Ernie grinned. Gisbo nodded with excitement.
“But first I gotta give something to your coworker. Don’t think we’ve forgotten about you, Rolce! And don’t worry about Grandfield either. We got him early this morning at the Donut Shack. Shaved, go get Rolce his present!” Ernie said. Again, Shaved disappeared to the back of the shop and returned with a very long, thin package wrapped in the same brown paper. Rolce received it gladly as he unwrapped it, already knowing what might be inside. A long, metallic pole-arm that took on a greenish tint if you held it to the light emerged from the brown paper. Rolce adopted a look of overwhelmed gratitude, a smile Gisbo hadn’t seen for quite some time dawning across his face.
“That right there was made by your buddy Shaved. It was carved from the trunk of an oak and purified for weeks in a special water mixed with particles of earth stones, then coated in a special steel mixture. Sorry we can’t tell you what it is; secret Dave an' Ern recipe. Just know that it is designed especially for our pole-arms, making them lightweight with the wooden base, but plated with a surface hard as diamond to deflect virtually anything thrown your way,” Dave said. Rolce couldn’t stop grinning.
