Fire Island: Book 3 of The Chatterre Trilody (Chatterre Trilogy)

by Jeanne Foguth

  "That program was not built solely on the spoken word. Nimri had a collection of ancient books, which the initial language lesson was built on, then I was able to add to this by listening to conversations."

  "So you are saying that you are currently trying to do this in reverse."

  "Negative. I am searching for books, which will give me a better idea of the proper language."

  Tem-aki blinked, and reminded herself to be patient. "Does that mean that you don't believe verbal language is proper language?"

  "Affirmative." The sweet boy with freckles, began painting the huge paper and glue dragon head sulphur yellow.

  Tem-aki looked at the ceiling. "Why?"

  "Written language, when used in non-fiction utilizes proper grammar and words. Spoken language utilizes slang and is often spoken using improper grammar."

  Tem-aki hated to admit it, but the droid had a valid point. "I appreciate that, but I would really like to be able to begin communicating with them, even if it is with improper grammar. Perhaps we could ask them if there is a library here or something."

  GEA-4's attention remained on the skull, which was starting to glow. Tem-aki closed her eyes and reminded herself to be patient. "Do you think you can do that instead of stare at that thing?" When she opened her eyes, the skull was dark.

  "I am trying to decipher its frequency, to determine if this is some form of data storage device." Outside, a strong gust of wind created a flurry of activity, as the yellow-robed people grabbed supplies and paper projects.

  "Why would you believe that?"

  "Bubble technology."

  "What is that?"

  "Bubble memory is a type of computer memory that uses magnetized areas, known as bubbles for storing data."

  Now that GEA-4 mentioned it, she had heard about some cultures mining quartz crystals to use for some sort of data storage, so perhaps the droid was onto something. "And you think it might be possible for you to access this data, assuming this is some form of storage device?" She eyed the sinister looking thing and wondered what sort of person would keep information on such a thing. "How certain are you that it could have books?"

  "Fifty-fifty."

  "Have you had any luck accessing anything like data?"

  "Possibly, by transmitting this frequency," GEA-4 paused and though Tem-aki couldn't hear anything, the skull began to glow. "There is a resonate reaction."

  "And this indicates that your theory is correct about it being a storage device?"

  "Negative, but it does corroborate that the material is compatible with use of wave-technology."

  Outside, shouts of laughter broke out. Tem-aki looked and saw that someone had put the huge dragon head over their own and was running around the patio like a demented, sightless bird.

  She shook her head at the antics and wondered if there was data on the skull, and how useful it could be.

  Tem-aki took a deep breath and told herself that if there was information there, it would be valuable as long as GEA-4 could use it as a base for a language program.

  ~o~

  As Nimri carried Mica into her bedroom, she noticed the skull was beginning to glow. She quickly tucked Mica into his sleeping basket for his nap, and went to study the fading light.

  Why had it done that?

  Did the light mean something? And if so, what?

  Had the skull always done this? It was impossible to know, since her great-grandfather had always kept it in his room – an area that children were forbidden to enter. By the time she was able to talk, she knew better than to invade Rolf's personal space.

  Now, Rolf was dead and she had the responsibility to protect The Chosen, as Tramontains had for over a millennium. Unfortunately, her grandfather had made this very difficult, because he had only allowed her to learn the healing powers of plants. Since his death, she had made a lot of progress, learning to manage myst-energy and using that to both heal and protect her tribe, but still, she had not learned a fraction of the knowledge Rolf had known and she still did not feel completely worthy of being her tribe's Keeper of the Peace.

  She stared at the back of the skull, as it sat on its special table and its sightless eye sockets starring at Sacred Mountain's peak. Why had this been one of her great-grandfather's special things? Why hadn't he explained what it was used for? All she knew about it was that one day, her great-grandfather had been angry at Bryta for moving it from its place looking out the window.

  With many apologies and tears, Bryta had promised never to touch it, again.

  Nimri had been afraid to touch it, too, yet now, she might need to.

  The skull might be a key to solving Tem-aki's disappearance, so she needed to figure out how it worked. She wondered if it could reveal where GEA-4 and Tem-aki were, and if they were alive and well. Nimri frowned and wondered if those terms were even valid for something like GEA-4.

  Mica murmured in his sleep. Nimri went to him, knelt by his basket and stared at the beautiful miracle that was her son.

  Larwin entered the chamber and briefly stood behind her, sharing the wonder of Mica, then he went to the window and took his lumpy black box out of his tunic's pocket. Soon, the skull began to glow.

  Nimri scrambled to her feet and went to stand beside Larwin. "How did you do that?"

  "I haven't done anything, yet."

  "Then how?"

  Larwin shrugged, as he punched some of the black box's lumps and pointed the thing at the skull. The light was different than it had been when she woke to see it; this time, instead of a bright light, as if someone had lit a small candle inside or perhaps like pulses of sunlight on a hazy day. Some white symbols flashed across the smooth black part of the box.

  "What does that mean?" Nimri asked.

  "I don't know. At least not yet," Larwin said. "It would be a lot easier to figure this thing out if GEA-4 was here to help analyze it."

  "If she's alive, maybe she is somehow trying to send a message to us."

  "Perhaps." Larwin tapped some more buttons, but Nimri doubted that he had actually heard her. Still, it would be nice if GEA-4 was attempting to contact them. Nimri sighed and told herself not to get her hopes up. After assuring herself that Mica was sleeping soundly, she went down to weed the garden.

  ~o~

  GEA-4's hands clamped on either side of Tem-aki's head and the rudimentary language program began. It was quickly over.

  As GEA-4's hands dropped back to her sides, Tem-aki said, "Keep compiling this program and plan for daily updates. We need to begin communicating with these people as soon as possible."

  "Understood."

  Tem-aki sighed, knowing that the android was simply following some cultural protocol for polite verbal discourse and could never understand how frustrating it was to need to find a loved one and not be able to ask where they were.

  Now that the language transfer had been made, GEA-4 returned her attention to the skull.

  What was that thing's attraction? If Tem-aki didn't know that 'droids were incapable of obsessing over things, she would think that was exactly what she was seeing. So what if GEA-4 knew of other cultures who used bubble technologies to store information? She was supposed to be a logical machine, couldn't she look around and see that this culture was so primitive that they used feathers and berry juice to write on primitive leaf-pulp paper?

  Tem-aki blew out a breath and then went outside to listen to the conversation surrounding the work tables on the patio and see if she could understand anything they were saying.

  As she casually moved around the tables, she understood random words like, candle, dragon and eat, but the majority was still gibberish.

  And she was still lost.

  Jaws clenched and eyes watering, she went to the sea-side railing and looked out over the magnificent view. "Harbor," someone said, and she knew he was talking about the water she was looking at. The blues of the water and sky seemed infinite as they receded into the distance. In fact, it was difficult to see where the water en
ded and the sky began.

  Closer in, arms of land jutted into the water and of course, there were some large rocks in the smooth water near shore. The ship, which they had arrived on was tied to the long, thin wooden platform, which jutted into the large, roundish water, and while it was the largest boat, it wasn't the only one. Hundreds of the tiny type of boats could be seen around what the locals called the harbor, while many of them were pulled onto the beach, others were moving across the water, as if on some unidentifiable, and random mission. Farther out, four more big ships sat alone in the water, almost as this one had seemed, when she first saw it.

  Tem-aki had never seen a more alien landscape or one quite so beautiful.

  "But she is a woman!" an angry voice said. Tem-aki blinked in surprise at knowing a complete sentence. Unfortunately, she didn't understand the rest of the speaker's angry rant and she resisted the urge to look behind.

  Cameron's soothing voice began speaking and while Tem-aki couldn't translate what he had to say, she had the distinct impression that he was talking about her to someone – probably Varlet.

  Varlet was a tall, wide-shouldered man who might have been attractive, except he had shifty eyes and thin, angry lips. While she had not felt welcomed by several of the group, Varlet was the only one who had seemed outright hostile, at least toward her. Even though he seemed perfectly nice to the younger boys, and constantly seemed to smile at them, pat them on the butt or put his hand on their shoulders as he helped them with their projects. She did not like or trust the man and suspected the feeling was mutual.

  Tem-aki kept her attention on the horizon, but thought of the group behind her and frowned. She had not seen a single woman since her arrival on this planet. The men, at least she thought they were all men, didn't all seem to know how to act toward her. Some, like Cameron treated her very well, but others like Varlet made her wish she had eyes in the back of her head. Perhaps they were some unisex race. It was difficult to be sure, with the tent-like clothing they wore, but if they were unisex, that could explain a lot of the strange looks and most of the stares she and GEA-4 kept getting.

  Had they ever seen a woman before?

  Recalling the angry voice saying 'But she is a woman!', Tem-aki concluded that they must have or have had females. Why else would they have a word for her gender?

  Unfortunately, that did not explain why so many stared at her or why Varlet and a couple of others, who always seemed to be near him, acted like they hated her.

  She wasn't going to figure out where she was or find her brother by gazing at the magnificent horizon. Tem-aki straightened up and went to see if she could find any new information.

  Chapter 14

  Larwin plopped down at the dinner table, his posture so slumped that Nimri's stomach clenched in sympathy at his glum expression. She silently passed him the ceramic bowl of mixed vegetables. Larwin plunked a spoonful on his plate, then speared a piece of chicken and started cutting it into bite-size pieces with a determined vengeance Nimri hadn't seen since the madrox had broken through the Star Bridge and invaded their world.

  Bryta chewed her food thoughtfully. "No luck?"

  "No!" Larwin said.

  "Not surprising," Bryta said, even though Nimri signaled her to be quiet.

  "No!" he said, again.

  "Bryta, how is Tansy?" Nimri asked.

  "Fine."

  "So, she's over her head-cold?"

  "I would have said, if she wasn't." Bryta's eyes snapped with irritation and Nimri knew she wanted to continue pestering Larwin about his sister. Why did the woman poke at sore spots?

  "Well then, I imagine you will want to go visit her, soon."

  "What, me visit her on the other side?" Bryta half-stood at the idea of crossing the river to visit her granddaughter, who now lived on what had previously been called the side of the Lost.

  "Isn't it about time?" Nimri asked, keeping her tone mild. "You are one of the few who still holds to the old hostilities."

  "I do not!"

  Nimri raised a brow. "Really? Then why do you only see Tansy when she comes to Market Day?"

  "I am too busy, here to leave more than one day per week."

  "With what?" Nimri held up her hand. "Don't tell me cooking and cleaning because, while you do a wonderful job, you need to take time for yourself, too."

  "Are you going to sweep and polish?"

  "If that is what it takes," Nimri said, even though she privately thought that polishing the furniture once in every eight-day-week was enough and that Bryta's constant waxing was a waste of time and energy. Not that the scent of bee's wax didn't smell good, but it was a wonder that a colony of bees hadn't moved in, due to the mistaken belief that her home was a long lost hive.

  "Maybe I'll think about it."

  "Do more than that, pack a bag and go for a nice long visit."

  "And where would I stay?"

  "Thunder has a lovely guest room."

  Bryta's eyes widened at that thought and a great deal of the starch seemed to go out of her. "You said the climb up to his home was difficult."

  Nimri nodded. "Particularly in the dark, but not really worse than the one to get here and you do that once a week."

  "Have those bartons of his come back?

  "Not that I know of."

  "He doesn't have anyone to take care of him, I imagine his home is a disaster." Bryta's eyes began to gleam with a light Nimri hadn't seen since her great-grandfather died.

  Nimri put down her fork and studied Bryta. Had her surrogate mother been suffering from depression for the past year and a half? If her present look of animation was any indication, it was likely. Self-doubt gnawed at Nimri as she wondered how many other obvious ailments and problems she was oblivious to. How could she have lived with someone for months and not noticed their unhappiness? Didn't Bryta realize that her brother and Raine could take care of themselves? Or did she need to believe she was needed by a Tramontain?

  What kind of a keeper of the peace was she, when she didn't see a problem right under her own nose?

  Nimri's attention turned to Larwin. While she saw her mate's pain, what was she doing to help him? Aside from trying to distract Bryta, nothing. Was that what a keeper of the peace should do?

  Probably not.

  Still, she didn't think it was her responsibility to try and make everyone happy. So, where was the balance?

  A large, warm hand covered hers, and gave it a quick, tender squeeze. She looked into Larwin's warm brown eyes. "I love you," he said. Another soft squeeze and he resumed eating, fortunately, with much less bottled frustration.

  Nimri smiled. "I love you, too."

  "Well!" Bryta snapped, as she got up, took her plate and left. "I can see when I'm not wanted." Head high she went toward the kitchen.

  "Bryta, that's not what I meant."

  The plump shoulders stiffened and she disappeared through the door. Nimri started to rise, but Larwin held her back. "Let her go and don't worry about her feelings."

  But-"

  He put a gentle finger on her lips. "Some people need to exhibit anger in order to do something new."

  Nimri blinked. Was Bryta that sort of person? Probably. She sighed. "Most of the time, I think you see things much better than I."

  Larwin shook his head. "I just have a different perspective."

  "How long have you realized she was depressed?"

  "About five seconds less than you."

  "Honestly?" He nodded. "Did you find out anything about the skull?"

  "I think it responds to thoughts."

  "Something like myst power?"

  "Rolf's other things work on myst, so it's logical." If it worked on myst, she might be able to figure out how it worked and help him find his sister.

  ~o~

  As she had done each morning since arriving, Tem-aki went down the steep steps from the cliffside house to the beach. Sitting on the next to the last step, she took off the leather and rope sandals Cameron had given her, and
put them on the stairs, then walked toward the lapping waves, until they caressed her toes and she needed to raise her robe to keep it dry.

  She had never imagined anything like this secluded beach, or the way that each receding wave took grains of sand from under her feet, so little by little she was buried up to her ankles.

  The first time this had happened, she had been terrified, fearing that she was being sucked into the earth and could not break free. But now, she was merely amused to feel hydro-power in action. Of course, she had also learned not to test the power of the water over her ankles.

  Pulling her feet from the sucking sand, she ventured down the shore to a boulder, which was bigger than the cubical she called her home. Carefully, she climbed the rough granite until she could sit on top of it. Lying back, she watched fluffy white clouds drift by. Some reminded her of the tasty grains Cameron had popped the night before. Others almost seemed like they were some sort of placid animal floating past. Thankfully, none of them looked like the terrifying images she had seen battling to the death in the crystal-quartz skull, which GEA-4 was preoccupied with.

  Until she had witnessed the android's fixation with the strange object, she would never have thought an android could act so obsessive, unless they were following a direct order.

  Was GEA-4 correct in her theory about the skull being some form of informational archive? She hoped so, but even if it was and she figured out how to access it, would it do them any good?

  Gradually, Tem-aki realized that in addition to soothing sounds of the water and the cries of the birds, she heard human voices, which were gradually getting louder. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the rhythm of the words.

  "I thought you said the golden-haired one came down here."

  "She did."

  "Well, then, where is she?"

  "She has to be here, somewhere."

  "Doesn't look like it."

  "Keep looking. There isn't another way up from this beach."

  "Only if you want to keep dry."

  "What's that supposed to mean?"