Following the Footsteps of the Lost Tribes

by Yossi Soika

  “All my life is devoted now to correcting these terrible injustices. I’ve established an affiliation with scientists that research ways of transforming life in the Third World for the long term, and my contribution is great.” Bon Bonique paused for a while and barked, “Please bring the two Bird People!”

  On his command, I was momentarily paralyzed.

  “And now, Dan my new friend, I’m giving you your first task which is to test the effect of these substances on the Bird People.”

  After hesitating for a while, I asked Bon Bonique what the design of the trial was exactly, because those people were the tragic result of human-eagle hybridization.

  “Is it acceptable to cause pain to such wretched animals to amend a wrongdoing?”

  “My clever friend, I also feel and agonize over inflicting it on them,” he said, “but we must embark with our trials at some point. Please call to mind that if these trials have good outcomes it also means benefiting these pathetic creatures.”

  To my question “Why begin with the Bird People?” he answered succinctly, “It’s very simple – the Bird People are resilient creatures with meager brains.”

  “You are wrong,” I addressed him, “not long ago, I spoke with the Bird People in their prison cell. It is true that they are not very gifted with wisdom but they have feelings like love, envy, hatred…”

  “I must admit that you are partially right, but to my regret I don’t have a choice. These creatures have power that might benefit the entire Third World and release them from their inhuman suffering. Among humans you can also find some guinea pigs who will not survive the trials.”

  I listened attentively to his words but couldn’t believe my ears.

  “You are on the wrong track. Hurting someone’s life is forbidden, even if it brings forth the healing of others. It’s inexcusable to harm a man even when it means healing others. No one can judge on who lives and who dies.” Simultaneously I also felt shrouded by feeling of distress that enveloped my body.

  However, the other man didn’t hear my reflections and said, “Let’s get off on the right foot.” After a short pause he added, “We will do this with utmost caution, and with awareness of the great impact of these powerful substances. I’m going out for few hours and then I’ll return with the exact directions for using these substances and a weekly schedule. After the first trial we shall closely examine the results.”

  Shortly after he left I could hear the Bird People crying and begging me to inform them of my plans.

  “I really don’t know,” I answered, utterly c,onfused and revealed what the chief scientist was after. “You must certainly be aware that this is a very difficult problem and that I really don’t know what I should do?”

  “Sir! You promised to let us go, so please release us!”

  “And if I release you, where will you escape to?” I asked, “You are few dozen feet below the surface of the lake, and there is no way you can get to the water’s surface without the proper gear.”

  “We’drather die while escaping than be used as guinea pigs.”

  After they pleaded and begged for a few minutes that I should fulfill my vow to them, I felt helpless, so without further contemplation I freed them from their handcuffs.

  I called out, “Run to your freedom, you wretched creatures! Here, I’ve kept my promise to you, and I shall endure the consequences.”

  The two Bird People rose to their feet, embraced me warmly and leaped out of the opening of the laboratory. Surely they will not make it out alive in the current, how sad, but it’s better to die than to go through the tortures of the laboratory. Such great strength is imbued in these weird creatures.

  A few hours later Bon Bonique returned to the laboratory.

  After seeing and hearing about their liberation his face became as red as blood, and he exclaimed with suppressed wrath, “How dare you do such a stupid thing? What shall I tell those who ask? Obviously, they are going to punish you severely. I’m sorry but I must inform them about what you have done. I of course cannot predict how they are going to punish you. It probably won’t be mild.”

  Suddenly I thought about how terrible it was when my bloated body was transparent like a glass. Would such a predicament await me, or an even worse one?

  Bon Bonique exited, enraged, and when he reached the door he reproached me, “I’ll try to appease your sentence but you must promise me that you will not continue to do such stupid things.” Not long after he left he returned with bad news. “I’m sorry but I failed. In three days you’ll be sentenced and during the three days until then you shall be my assistance in the laboratory. It’s very bad that you freed the Bird People. They are excellent animals for laboratory trials. Some years ago we conducted an experiment on a Human Shark. He got the unique substance, and shortly afterwards he burst into tiny pieces. The biggest surprise was that the fragments turned into Human Sharks. Another trial conducted with a miniscule Human Octopus who received a double-dose resulted in him swelling so quickly that he destroyed the laboratory building. From that day on we take great caution with dosages; we learned fast that we are dealing with biological bombs.”

  “Why not get rid of these hazardous substances?” I asked excitedly, “They pose a threat of enormous damage.”

  “You are right, and indeed they can pose a threat of great damage – damage or new life, who knows? Perhaps I shall be able to amend the big mistake.”

  While he spoke, I kept thinking about the trial and punishment that awaited me. What would my punishment be? Are they going to exacerbate or alleviate it?

  The time until my trial was getting shorter, but the third day ran at an irritatingly slow pace. During the first morning hours of the third day two Dolphin People entered the laboratory, and asked me to join them.

  “What is going to happen?” I inquired, but they just replied very quietly “You have nothing to fear, you are going to get a fair trial.”

  When I heard their words, I chuckled, “Ha, a fair trial?! Anyone with a brain knows that sordidness is the big winner, since the governing administration centralizes all available power, which allows the administration to twist and distort the truth.”

  Before I concluded my protest the two Dolphin People pushed me through to an adjacent ball to ours, and we immediately started moving in very fast. Suddenly I noticed the thin grate I was standing on and the large gaping space underneath it. What is this opening? What is propelling the ball forward? It’s a diving bell! But what was moving the bell? I reflected with great wonder when I detected no trace of an engine. Who had built this extraordinary device for them? Is it possible that the Dolphin People have reached such a high level of advancement? If so, I’d like to know what the next surprise might be? I did not finish asking my endless questions, and the diving bell started to slow down its downward drop. And when it stopped the two Dolphin People grasped me with excessive force and injected my arm with a particularly painful shot.

  For a moment I wanted to scream but I lost my voice. I was dazed and felt intense nausea.

  “In few minutes you will be allowed to leave the bell and follow us and swim in the streets of the big city,” I heard them talking to me.

  “How can I swim at such a great depth with no diving gear? I’m a human not a fish.”

  “You don’t know the substance we injected into you. This substance allows you to stay underwater without oxygen for days.”

  “You are wrong. I must breathe oxygen – without it my body will collapse! Without oxygen there is no life. Please don’t turn me into your guinea pig!”

  For a moment I believed that my life would end in a diving trial without oxygen, but they repeated, “Don’t worry, we are not going to hurt you. You can easily check what we have said. Here, hold your breath for a minute and you’ll find out that we speak the truth.”

  I hesitated for a moment but then I held
my breath; in a marvelously way I didn’t feel a breathless choking. After I repeatedly tried the new skill I had gained I cautiously left the bell. My eyes adjusted to the scenery with great marvel – there were clusters of long stretches of big and small buildings in piles everywhere. Avenues with strange and different trees filled up each corner and lit, with their flare of colors, the gloomy bottom of the lake. But the strangest thing was the splendid melodies I heard everywhere. I tried in vain to locate their source.

  “We can see that the graceful self-played music astonishes you. Well, sir, the source of these beautiful melodies is the fruit trees around you. A tree with ripe fruits that plays melodies to announce that the fruit has matured; a tree sparkling like a rainbow calls forth the Dolphin People to feast from its fruits.”

  A town of sounds and lights I thought, relishing the authentic spectacle. But I was not allowed to enjoy the scenery, and the two attendants held my arms and swam with me into an enormous structure. Though its door was wide open, water did not gush in. How the water didn’t flood the open hall was beyond my understanding. I stepped inside cautiously. The two attendants stepped forward marching with tiny penguin-like steps.

  “Sit down please, and wait for the honorable judges,” one of the guards at the door screamed. “The three honorable judges will soon arrive and they will impose guilty or not guilty. Please pay attention to keep the rules of courtesy, otherwise you will be severely punished,” my attendants read to me.

  At the central part of the hall stood a prominent and raised bench adorned with many decorative trees that illuminated the courtroom with a strange greenish light. Three Dolphin People walked slowly into the hall of the completely silent courthouse, passed the impressive raised bench that was in front of me, and sat themselves on their huge and over-padded thrones. For a long moment their looks pierced me and soon one of the judges said, “You are requested to stand up here, please,” and pointed to a small dock. “You are accused of a very severe indictment: releasing the Bird People. Why did you do it? This is a severe felony, and it is our duty to punish you for that with the severest punishment.”

  “Honorable judges! Who gave you the mandate to judge me? And why don’t you reprimand the cruel trials executed in your laboratories? You shall never become human again! You are soulless, and your ruling is diabolical!”

  Silence prevailed in the court hall.

  The judges ran a hushed discussion and at the end of their whisperings one of them turned to me and announced,

  “Now for the issuing of your verdict. Stand on your feet Son of the Upper Continent. You are sentenced for releasing prisoners and for causing severe damage to the laboratory, according to our people in place, and based on your admission of guilt. Therefore we are sentencing you to serve as a guinea pig in the laboratory – you are going to return there but this time as the guinea pig, not as the scientist!”

  “Impossible!” I yelled aloud, “How dare you to make a guinea pig out of me!! Damn creatures! You’ll never become human again, damn fish!!” At the sight of my onset of hysteria, the three judges hurried to leave the hall. My attendants tied my hands behind my back and pulled me out of the Court hall to the bell.

  It was not long until I found myself bounded and encased upon the wide laboratory table that I had left not long ago. For a long time I sat there unable to scratch even the tip of my nose, that annoyed me greatly.

  And what now? The question drilled into my mind, but I was answered sooner than I imagined in the form of two Dolphin People who entered the laboratory, lifted me easily, and walked me to the main trial room. They left me on a metal table. After a few moments three Dolphin People entered, examined me thoroughly, and loosened my bindings.

  “Unfortunately, we must execute some trials on you according to a Supreme Court of Justice verdict. We advise you to cooperate. It will benefit both you and us.”

  “I’m not going to resist – I’m your prisoner. I don’t have a choice.” I whispered furiously, “Three damn fish sentenced me.”

  “Okay, let’s start with the first trial. There are few bottles of medicines with pills you already know. Please take three red ones.”

  “Three red pills?!” I cried out in fear, “Underwater life has shrunken your tiny brains! These are biological bombs… it’s not going to be a trial… it’s an execution!”

  “We are really sorry, but these are the directions, and this is by Supreme Court rule!”

  “Executed by the chief scientist? It’s impossible–a Son of the Ten Tribes will perform forbidden trials on me? It’s unbelievable! You are shameless liars.”

  “Scientists determined which trials are essential, and our honorable judges ratified it.”

  “Honorable judges? – Brainless fish!” I repeated and broke into a loud yell, “I object!”

  But my yells and pleas didn’t help; two of them held me, without any effort, the third fed me the pills. For a few minutes I didn’t feel anything but a mild bitter taste in my mouth, and then slowly I started to feel an increasing burn in my body and I started to shake like a leaf. My mind yielded to dizziness and I passed out into a stupor. I wasn’t aware of how long I lay therein that condition; however, when my eyes opened, I was about to faint again. My body had been through a shocking transformation – it wasn’t my body anymore – I don’t believe it! – I was given a gorilla body with a tiny human head.

  “Where are you Mr. Da Costa? What’s happened to you?” At the end of my clamor of protest an uncanny growl erupted from my mouth.

  From the Bottom of the Lake…

  to a Pitfall Snare

  “I’m destroyed!!” I shrieked, “How did I become a gorilla? Damn pills!! Damn judges!” All at once I hopped from where I was and examined the surroundings. I have to get out of this lousy place, even if it’s the last thing I do in this life. Effortlessly, I slammed the three scientists to the far end of the laboratory, and started to walk aggressively toward the entrance, and from there straight to the bell. Simultaneously, five guards emerged from a nearby room, the collision was inevitable. The results left me overwhelmed… the five injured guards were left lying on the floor screaming in pain and fear. I couldn’t believe my eyes. After I got over my initial shock I lifted one of them in my arms, like lifting a feather, and exited with him to the bell.

  I heard one of them shouting, “Hurry, call the guards; the prisoner is escaping with a hostage.” After reaching the ball, I awakened the passed out guard and signaled to him to hurry and drive the bell up to water’s surface.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, “I’m not allowed to do what you ask. I will be punished severely for that.”

  When I heard these words, I started to growl frantically. I grasped his throat and gnarled my menacing teeth at him. All at once, the ball started to rock excessively and began to accelerate its climb.

  That’s strange, I though, what’s going on here? The hostage’s face also expressed his great astonishment, but time was too short for questions. I had to escape.

  I felt the pressure weighing strongly on my body but it faded as I ascended. In a few minutes I was at the surface level of the lake. I got out of the bell, and I gingerly climbed onto the shore. Now, from where I stood on the lakeshore, I could see the Dolphin Man peeping out of the water.

  “So long, Dolphin Man!” I roared. “Go back to your own kind and tell them to stop their terrible experiments. You will never be human again. Never!”

  I will also never be human again, I mused in great sorrow. And, I couldn’t return home either. Who would accept a weird monster with small human head and a six and a half foot tall gorilla body?

  The Dolphin Man lifted his hand and shrieked. “You haven’t been released yet! There are many enemies that await you in the Third World, and you, sir, you don’t have even one friend, soon you will fall prey to them.”

  What should I do? I wondered, Where are you, Melan
ie? What will her reaction be when we meet again, with me inside the body of a gorilla with a shriveled head? My God, where have I fallen? First of all, I must hide these terrible red pills. Who knows? Maybe these pills will act as an antidote that will allow me to become a person again?

  Then I stood on the beach and scanned the horizon. After I made sure no prying eyes were spying on me, I dug a hole where I was standing, buried the pills with sand and stones, and immediately set off to find Melanie and Mr. Da Costa. For long hours I encircled the lake looking for them, passing near the tiny waterfall, but I didn’t come upon even the slightest trace of Melanie’s footsteps. Has something happened to her? Perhaps she met Mr. Da Costa and they both returned to the Land of the Ten Tribes? Or perhaps at this very moment they are looking for my footprints? Anything is possible.

  I had no idea how long had passed since we separated. I felt very frustrated because I had forgotten so many things and had lost my sense of time. There is no doubt that they followed my footsteps; they are probably aware of my capture and imprisonment in the heart of the lake. But … they don’t have the means to rescue me… Oh no, this is terrible!! Many various, strange scenarios raced through my head. Anything is possible, I though. Perhaps Melanie is on her way home, and what would she say to my worried parents? Obviously she wouldn’t tell them the story about the Ten Tribes… and If so, what should she tell my parents? My predicament certainly wasn’t good. She can’t tell anybody any of it… and no one will be able to release me from the Third World, the most protected place in the world.