With a hoarse yip, the canid turned and ran, its tail up and wagging, a limping run leaving a trail of dappled red. It couldn't run quickly—a mercy, since neither could Vasi. Not only was each step a study in either too—soft snow or upturned ice, but every part of his body hurt when he moved. Nothing broken, he told himself bitterly, but several things definitely bent.
The canid stopped by a rock larger than its body and made the same howling sounds it had on the transport. Forewarned by this and the unsettled feel of the bio'face, Vasi expected what he found as he brushed snow from the figure barely visible beneath the boulder. Professor Emeritus Y Ebbet, of the 114th Siring by Raken, would never analyze the secrets of this Hoveny site, or any other.
Vasi hesitated, wanting to pay proper respect, but minutes counted if Medya was injured. "Find her," he ordered the canid, standing up and giving the signal.
The canid looked from the snow-covered corpse to Vasi, then back again. The Tidik repeated the signal, frantically. He waved in the direction he thought Medya might have been swept.
Abruptly, the beast seemed to understand. It began to push and jump its way through the loose snow in the direction he'd indicated. Vasi followed, worried by feel of exhaustion through the bio'face. He had no idea how to tell it to slow down, to conserve energy. He couldn't stop his own urgency from passing to the beast.
He should have tried harder. He should have reattached the leash. He should have remembered even half of what his father had tried to tell him about mountains and their appetites.
Because the dog ran straight over the crevasse before either of them could suspect this latest treachery, the snow dropping from beneath its wounded feet. There was time for Vasi to throw himself forward and flat, his fingers unable to reach even that stupid rope of a tail; there was time for the creature to yelp in terror, the emotion pouring through the bio'face until Vasi shouted as well.
Then, a searing flash as if a light had lanced through his brain. And, nothing.
Not nothing. A weak, terrified sound echoed upward. "Is—Is someone there?" More strongly. "Watch out! Don't come closer! Who fell?" this in a hoarse whisper, as if the speaker feared having lost her rescuer. "Is anyone there?"
"I'm here, Medya. Vasi."
"Who fell?" the voice asked, confused and querulous. "Was it—Ebbet?"
"Just the damn dog," Vasi told her in his calm, emotion—free voice, licking tears from his lips, hands gripping the snow.
~~~
Waiting rooms seemed unsettled, like weather over a mountain's peak: welcoming, but never comfortable, friendly, but never personal. Vasi didn't care for them, especially when he was surrounded by aliens.
He didn't like the room and the aliens, two male and three female Humans, probably didn't like him. At best, they likely suspected he was spying on them. At worst? Could they tell he was here without permission? Without authorization from the First? Vasi kept his back straight and flaps courteously closed—as if a Human might notice—and tried to remain as inconspicuous as the only non-Human on this world could be.
The door opened. A pair walked out, a Human female and a dog. Vasi was startled to see such a different beast. This one was heavyset, and darkly furred with a coat that rippled like issa-silk. Its head was larger than the entire body of that damn dog at the bottom of the crevasse. But the soft brown eyes surveying him curiously, the wet moving nose, were the same. Vasi opened his mouth, wanting to ask—
"Sai Vasilo Aris, please."
He closed his lips and answered the summons, stepping past the pair.
The Human behind the desk—there was always a desk after a waiting room—stood when Vasi entered the room. Another Human remained seated, a frown on her face. "Welcome, Finder Aris," the standing Human said in a pleasant voice. Comspeak, of course. "I'm Samuel Edwards, Assistant Director of the Biointerface Project. This is our Liaison with the Research Council of the First, Atima Seung. Please. Have a seat. What can we do for you?"
Vasi sat; the Human matched his movement. "I want one of your dogs," he informed them.
"Our dogs work with Human partners, Finder Aris," Seung said in a soft voice, with a hint of steel beneath.
"So your species can be of value within a Triad," Vasi countered. "I am aware of the political rhetoric. It means nothing to me. I want a dog. I'm willing to pay what you require." The words came out flat. Perhaps they were harsh. He saw their reaction, the tightening of their mouths, the way they looked at each other as if summoning support. But Vasi didn't know what else to do. His flaps opened despite his best efforts to restrain them, surely another feature of his alienness that would offend these beings.
Edwards tapped a datacube with one blunt-nailed finger. "We're aware you had a bio'face installed—without our approval—to allow your Triad to continue working with Finder Durgin's dog. That wasn't meant to be a permanent arrangement, Finder Aris. You've already had the implant removed. I really don't see that we can accommodate you. Surely a Finder of your abilities would prefer to use technological means—and you already have a fabulous new site to explore."
Vasi's flaps began to tremble, and a tear trickled maddeningly along one lip. "I want another dog," he said evenly, dreadfully sure they were going to refuse. Why wouldn't they? They couldn't understand.
He didn't.
Seung held up her hand when Edwards would have answered. She leaned forward, her strange pale eyes intent on Vasi. "I feel for your loss, Finder Aris."
"The Professor Emeritus—"
"Mesky," she corrected. "Your dog."
He hadn't known the damn dog had a name—or that Humans named their animals. "Mesky," he repeated. "I want another."
"Why? And don't tell me it's because you couldn't have found the site without him," the female's voice was sharper. "I won't accept that."
"Because. Because." Vasi stopped on the word, unable to frame the thought, let alone wrap it in their mutual, pitiful language. Comspeak. Common speak. Useless speak. The way it was on Aeande XII; the way it always was away from his own kind. He gave up, flaps quivering, dumping unshareable scents of misery and loneliness into the room.
A warm hand touched his arm. The Human female had come to crouch beside him, her expression now one he couldn't read. "I didn't mean to upset you," she told him.
"How do you know I'm upset?" he asked. "I haven't told you so."
"You are Tidik." A slight wave to his neck. "I may not be physiologically able to detect your messages through the air, but I do know they are released during stress. I also know you can't change the inflection of your voice, so I must discount that as a measure of your emotions. But the droplets on your upper lip? I've read Tidik literature, Finder Aris. Those are what we would call tears, are they not? Released, as ours, during sadness or pain. So I know. You cared for Mesky. That's why you want another dog."
"He could do that, too," he confessed, overwhelmed by such unexpected empathy. "Understand what I felt, without this nonsense of speech. We Tidik—it's not easy for us to work with other species. They call us cold and unfeeling, because we don't wail and shout as they do. But the dog knew—" Vasi stopped, embarrassed, and looked from one Human to the other. "It made me feel less alone," he admitted to them and to himself. "A silly reason, isn't it? I've wasted your time. I apologize." He stood to go.
"I can't promise another dog for you, Finder Aris," Edwards said with what sounded like honest regret. "The bio'face is the only trump card we have right now, the only way we can gain access to the Hoveny sites for our species. Maybe, one day..."
Vasi nodded. "I knew. I just hoped." He understood the reluctance of the First. Humans were numerous, but possessed unremarkable technology, biology, and culture. Why admit more of the species to the secrets of the First? But Vasi looked at Seung and suddenly wondered what they didn't know. He'd never met another alien so perceptive, so willing to work within his own parameters to understand him.
Perhaps the important thing about that damn dog wasn't about dogs a
t all, but the kind of beings who valued such partnership enough to bring it with them into space.
"As you know, Liaison Seung, my Triad remains in charge of the most significant Hoveny find ever made on Aeande XII, possibly anywhere," Sai Vasilo Aris said in his even, unemotional voice. "We lost our Analyst in the tragedy. Do you have a qualified Analyst available for the coming field season? One who can climb?"
After a shocked pause, they both spoke at once: "What—What did you say? Pardon? Are you serious?" Then, Seung, almost angrily: "You want a Human Analyst?"
"A Human." Vasi didn't know how to show he shared their astonished pleasure, but opened his flaps a trifle and sent out a scent of pleased anticipation for himself. "I think I'll enjoy the company."
~~~~~~~~~~
Return to Table of Contents
~~~~~~~~~~
Totally Devoted 2 U
By John Zakour
Dogs are so cool because they seem to actually like and understand humans better than any other animal and in fact better than a lot of humans. They are always there when we need them.
----------
It was beautiful summer day. The sky was blue, the sun was shining, birds were chirping away like they didn't have a care in the world. Tina should have been happy. Only she wasn't. She was frustrated over her man. Tina and Jerry had been going out for over three years now and he still wasn't nearly as devoted to her as she wanted.
Tina didn't know why. It couldn't have been her. After all, she kept herself in good shape. She went to the gym if not every other day then every other, other day. She was still pleasant on the eyes. She may have been thirty-one, but her friends insisted she didn't look a day over twenty-eight. Not a week went by when she didn't catch at least one guy checking her out as she walked by. Tina wasn't just a pretty face, she had a great job bringing in solid money as one of Buffalo New York's leading fashion designers. To top it off she had a winning personality and a great sense of humor.
Yet all of that wasn't good enough for Jerry. Tina couldn't shake the feeling that even when they were together, that they weren't really together. Jerry was always off somewhere else. He never looked her lovingly in the eyes, claiming it wasn't that he didn't love her but it wasn't manly. Whenever they were in a bar, restaurant or just walking down the street, Tina would catch him not so subtly checking out all the other women. She was sure this meant Jerry wasn't happy with her. He would leave the second somebody better came along.
Sure it may have been her imagination, but it probably wasn't. Nah, it couldn't be. She had a good sense for judging people. If Tina didn't do something fast, Jerry and she would be history. She knew it and dreaded it. The problem was, Tina didn't know what she could do.
Then Tina walked by Madam Marla's Magic Boutique. It was funny—Tina had walked down this street hundreds of times before during her lunch break and never noticed this strange little shop. She shrugged. It had to be fate. That meant she needed to check the place out. Tina wasn't one to tempt fate.
Tina opened the door and peeked her head in. The place was small and not much to look at. There was a table with a velvet tapestry draped over it and a young lady sitting behind it. The lady was a pretty little thing with dark wavy hair and a dark complexion, and she was intently concentrating on a notebook computer. Tina felt she made a mistake.
"Oh, sorry," Tina said to the young lady. "Wrong building." Tina slowly backed out the door.
The young lady smiled. "Please come in, Tina," she said. "There is more here than meets the eye, mind, and the heart."
Tina stopped her retreat and stuck her head back into the shop. "How do you know my name?"
"I know all and tell even more," the lady said in a quivering voice. She smiled and pointed to Tina's lapel. "Plus you're wearing your ID tag from work."
"Oh right," Tina said with a weak grin.
"I am Madam Marla," the lady said. She motioned for Tina to come in. "Please sit. I sense you need my special help."
"You look pretty young to be a madam," Tina said walking up to the table.
Marla looked at her and winked. "You'd be surprised how old I really am," she said.
"I'd guess, twenty-five," Tina said sitting down.
"Okay maybe you wouldn't be surprised," Marla conceded. "Still, they've been a really full twenty-five years." Marla looked Tina in the eyes. "I take it you're having trouble with your man Jerry."
Tina sat back in her chair. "How did you know that?" she asked.
Marla grinned. "Honey, when you're your age it's always about man troubles."
"But how did you know my man's name was Jerry?"
"I googled you and came up with this picture of you and Jerry at your friend Kathy's wedding."
Marla turned her notebook to face Tina. Sure enough, there on the screen was a picture of Tina and Jerry sharing a token kiss for the camera. Tina was wearing an orange taffeta bridesmaid dress she simply hated. There was also another picture of Tina glaring at Jerry as he was checking out the other bridesmaids. Tina had never noticed that picture or the look on her face before.
Marla swung the computer back towards herself. She shook her head. "It's amazing what people will put on myspace.com. Some people just have no shame." Marla looked up at Tina. "You know, I can help you."
Tina leaned forward. "You can."
"Of course I can. I'm a magical madam. It says so on my door, my card and my web site."
"I just want Jerry to be more devoted to me," Tina said.
Marla nodded. "That's what we all want, honey." She started typing away at her computer. "My rates are reasonable," she said without looking up. "Twenty-five dollars per spell. Each spell is guaranteed to work."
"I don't want to hurt Jerry," Tina said a bit nervously.
"Sure you don't," Marla said half-heartedly as she continued to type. She looked up at Tina. "Don't worry, this won't harm him at all. It will make him totally devoted to you." Marla stopped typing and smiled. "Done."
"Done?"
"Yep."
Tina looked at her. "So where is it?"
Marla shook her head. "It's in your email inbox, silly. Call in sick for the afternoon. Go home and relax a bit. Magic is always best done on a clear mind. When the clock reaches the specified time follow the directions and presto, your man will be totally devoted."
Tina just looked at her.
"Trust me," Marla said. "You can pay me online after it works. I accept all major forms of credit and PayPal."
"Oh, okay," Tina, said.
"If you don't pay me I'll either turn you into a newt or bombard you with filter-proof spam." Marla smiled. "Don't worry I'm kidding about the spam part. I'm not that mean." Marla motioned to the door. "Now go. Go. By tonight you'll be a much happier woman."
Tina decided to heed Marla's advice. After all, she had nothing to lose. She called the office from her cell phone and told them she was taking the rest of the day as personal time. Without the rush hour traffic it was a quick 20-minute drive home. Even if the magic mumble-jumble didn't work at least she'd have a little down time today.
When Tina arrived at her apartment she kicked off her shoes by the door then headed straight to her computer. She sat down and logged in. After filtering through a few Viagra ads there was an email from MagicMarla. It was simple enough:
To make your man totally devoted 2 U: at exactly 7 PM EST, put three candles in a north facing window of your bedroom, light the first and third candle, face south and spin around two times chanting (and sounding as much like Olivia Newton John as you can): Totally Devoted to Me. Totally Devoted to Me. Blow out the candle on the left, then the candle on the right. Facing north, light a new match and use it to ignite the middle candle and POOF your man is totally devoted.
Disclaimer: all magic is nonrefundable and irreversible. By casting this spell you agree to these terms.
Tina shook her head. No way that could work.
An instant message from MagicMarla popped open on her screen.
&n
bsp; Trust me. I designed the spell specially 4 U. It works. CU.
Tina typed back:
R U sure? Exactly 7PM?
To which MagicMarla responded:
LOL. Of course I'm sure. It doesn't have to be EXACTLY 7 you have a few minutes each way. Magic is precise but not inflexible. B2W.
The message window closed. Tina took a deep breath. She thought for a second. She had three candles. Her bedroom did have a nice window facing north. She even had matches left from her aromatherapy days. Of course the spell probably wouldn't work—it couldn't work. Still, more for fun than anything else Tina did set three candles on her bedroom's windowsill. She most likely wasn't going to go through with the spell, but just in case she did she wanted to be ready.
Tina passed the rest of the afternoon catching up on a few soap operas and watching Oprah. She used to love Oprah before she was a working girl. It was nice to be able to connect with her again. Sure, she could record Oprah's show on her DVR, but somehow she always preferred to watch Oprah "live" when the rest of her fellow females were tuned in. Tina didn't know why. She just did.
Jerry dragged himself into the apartment at around 6:30. As always he looked worn out. Apparently being a CPA was lot more physically demanding than most people realized. He gave Tina a nod of acknowledgement as he plopped down on the couch.
"How was your day, honey?" she asked.
He grabbed the remote and flipped on the TV. "Okay," he grunted. "Have you ordered the pizza yet?"
Tina shook her head. "I thought we could do something different and go out for dinner tonight."
Jerry shook his head. "It's Thursday. Pizza night. I look forward to my night of piazza, beer, and a ball game." He gave her a weak smile then added, "With my favorite girl."
"Oh, okay," Tina said weakly.
"Could you grab me a beer for the fridge?" He asked, focusing his attention on the TV.
"Sure," Tina said as she sulked towards the kitchen. She went to the fridge and grabbed a beer. If there had been any doubt in her mind it had now been obliterated. She walked into the living room and sat the beer down in front of Jerry.
The Heart of Dog Page 13
