Peter released his fingers from around Jenny’s hand and gently shook his right hand free so he could push himself a little bit higher on the couch.
“Let me help,” Jenny offered as she moved the pillow behind him to give him a better angle.
The pain in his left arm screamed and shouted with every movement. He tried to conceal it, but it showed on his face.
“Why don’t you let Orb heal that for you?” Eli offered as he sat down on the coffee table next to Jenny. Peter saw Matt and Irene standing on the other side of the table. Irene looked sad, concerned. Matt looked bored. Peter tried to catch Matt’s eye and see if the rowdy playfulness he was known for still existed. Based on the look on Matt’s face, playfulness had taken the day off.
“Yes, Peter, now that you are conscious, we can discuss your hand. I can make it better than ever,” Orb said as he drifted into view above Matt and Irene.
“I…I need a minute. Thank you,” Peter stammered as he tried to catch up with current events. He looked over to Eli. “I guess I made it home from Japan?”
“Barely. I heard something outside and found you bleeding out by Dad’s truck.”
“Young ears,” Big Ed called out. “If Eli hadn’t heard you, that might have been it. I didn’t hear a peep.”
Eli shared a quick look and Peter understood that the less said on this front, the better.
“What happened to your hand, Peter? You yelled a bunch of things that didn’t make a lot of sense.”
Peter looked over at Eli and wondered what he should say. “I don’t know exactly. I remember going to see something the district leader wanted to show me, and then…”
Everyone waited for Peter to finish. When that did not happen, Orb chimed in.
“Peter had an unfortunate encounter with some of my new guardians. As I already told most of you, the situation was made worse by the fact that I had just exhausted my strength removing thousands and thousands of tons of garbage and sludge from the ocean floor. The source was the place formerly known as New York City, which had long dumped trash and sewage sludge anywhere from twelve to one hundred and six miles from shore. The debris shifted in the currents, of course, and wedged itself into every possible spot. I was in the final part of the process, sending the garbage from where I held it atop the waves to the portal I had established to receive it, when I became aware of Peter’s situation.”
Everyone stared at Orb, eager to hear the rest of the story.
“Fortunately, he was able to teleport back here, and, thanks to Eli’s remarkable hearing, Big Ed was able to apply a tourniquet and cauterize the wound while I finished processing the remaining garbage and then recharged sufficiently.”
Peter turned to look at Orb. “So, you waited until you were done with your project?”
“As I said, I was holding close to a half million tons of garbage, sludge and debris at the surface of the ocean. I had to complete my task or face a bigger problem when the unprocessed garbage slid back down into the deep and covered an even larger area.”
No one responded to Orb’s explanation, which prompted him to add, “Peter was never in any serious danger.”
Eli turned to stare at Orb too. “No serious danger? He nearly bled out in our yard. And what exactly happened to him anyway?” Eli turned back to Peter. “You were mumbling things about dinosaurs and a lot of other stuff that didn’t make any sense.”
Peter used his right hand to cradle his left arm and was about to answer when Orb volunteered, “I reintroduced native animal species in several spots around the planet. Peter encountered what you might know as a velociraptor pack. It was not my intention to place you in contact with these new guardians.”
“Not your intention,” Eli mumbled as Jenny gently rubbed his back trying to soothe him.
“I’m so sorry, Peter!” said Irene. “Is there anything that I can get you?” Irene wrung her hands together in front of her, obviously very upset.
“Thanks, Irene, no, I’m ok,” Peter said softly as he tried to think through what all of this meant.
Am I the only one who wants to know why Orb has resurrected man-eating monsters that died out long ago?
Easy, Eli. I don’t know what is happening, but this doesn’t feel like the time to push it.
“Did I do ok with the cauterization, Orb?” Big Ed asked out of the blue.
“Perfectly done, Big Ed,” Orb replied.
Peter and Eli both gave their father questioning looks. Big Ed interpreted that as curiosity, so he added, “Peter, I heated up the spatula on the stove so there might be some weird-looking lines from the open grooves in the spatula.”
Big Ed then mumbled to himself as if taking internal notes, “Remind me that we need a new spatula.”
Matt then volunteered, “If he’s ok and it’s all good I’ll go home and get some rest. I’ve got a big day tomorrow.” Before anyone could say anything in reply, Matt winked out as he teleported home.
Irene’s face twisted in anger. “He’s been so weird lately!” No one challenged her on that point. Her face softened and she added, “I’m sorry, Peter, he does care. Deep down. Somewhere.”
Peter thought about how Matt had been acting lately. He was definitely off, different. Peter looked over to his father and wondered if the same could be said of Big Ed. In the past, Big Ed would have pushed anyone, including a powerful alien entity, into a corner and read them the riot act if something they had done, or failed to do, harmed a member of his family. Instead, Big Ed was seeking compliments from Orb for his redneck chef approach to cauterizing Peter’s arm. He continued to stare at Big Ed, wondering how someone’s personality could change so much.
Maybe I’m being too hard on him. He knew that Orb was going to heal me. Maybe he just doesn’t realize how serious it was?
“Peter?” Irene asked softly. “Are you okay?”
Am I okay? How long has it been since I’ve been ok? Since before mom got sick?
“I’m fine,” he lied. “I think I just need to get some rest.”
“I can enhance your new hand in any way you wish,” Orb offered. “We can also make other adjustments and improvements to your form. Anything you desire.”
Peter thought again about Matt and his father. “No, I think for now I’ll just sleep. Maybe I can skip tomorrow’s district meetings and we can talk more tomorrow?”
Orb pulsed as he drew closer to Peter. “You are refusing my aid?”
“No. I just don’t want to make any decisions right now. I need to sleep.”
Orb shimmered but did not reply.
“But you’re in pain, Peter,” Jenny said as she reached over to put her hand on the part of the blanket covering his knee.
“I’m ok, promise.”
Jenny held his gaze for a moment then, sensing there was more going on than she could see, nodded and stood. “Okay, but I’m going to sleep on the floor on the other side of this coffee table. If there is anything you need tell me and I’ll get it for you.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“Yes, I do.”
“I’ll sleep out here too,” Eli added softly. “We’ve got plenty of blankets and pillows.”
“Count me in too,” said Irene, who walked over and brushed a strand of hair out of Peter’s eyes. “We’ve got to take care of our lead Disciple, no matter how stubborn he is.”
Big Ed grabbed the big toe on Peter’s right foot, which stuck out the end of the blanket, and he gave it a gentle tug. “I don’t know why you won’t let Orb heal you, but I’ll be right here too.”
Peter smiled at his father. Was I wrong, Dad? Are you the same and I’m the one who’s changed?
Eli stood up, and with a look that expressed a lot of relief and more than a little bit of doubt, said, “I’ll go get the extra blankets from the linen closet. We can use the pillows off my bed, and Peter’s.”
“I’ve seen the way you do laundry, Eli. I think I’ll just use one of the pillows from the couch,” said Jenny.
“Me too,” said Irene, wrinkling her nose.
“I hope you realize that all of our dirtiness that you hate has been baked into this couch,” said Peter with the beginnings of a grin.
A look of doubt crossed Jenny’s face.
“We’ve got clean pillowcases and sheets in the linen closet too. I washed them so you know they’re ok,” Big Ed said with confidence, “but I don’t know if we’re going to have enough room for all of us to sleep on this floor.”
“You’re sleeping in your room, Dad,” Eli quickly countered.
“I am not!” Big Ed huffed. “I’ll be here with all of you, and Peter.”
“You’ll still be with us if you’re in your own bed, Dad,” said Peter softly, “but I won’t be able to sleep if you’re snoring a couple of feet away.”
“I do not snore, Peter!”
Everyone in the room found something in a corner to look at. Even Orb, who had no eyes as far as they knew, seemed to shift and look elsewhere.
“Dad, I love you, but your snoring, even behind your closed door, can wake the dead.”
Big Ed started to argue but saw the sheepish looks on everyone’s face, and decided that he did not need to fight this battle. “Fine, but if you need me call out. If nothing else, Eli will hear you and come get me.”
Eli cracked a smile, as did Peter.
Peter looked over to Orb, who had drifted over to the corner as if about to leave. He remembered Bartholomew’s advice about how to treat and respect Orb, and realized that his refusal of help had likely not been well-received. “Orb, thank you for coming and for offering to help. I’m sure I’ll feel up for talking more tomorrow.”
Orb’s red color dulled to that of a brick. “You are welcome. I will handle all your tasks tomorrow so that you may rest and recuperate with your friends. All except Matt, who I believe prefers to work.”
Peter looked over to Irene, who frowned. It felt like they, as a group, were losing Matt, but Peter had no idea what to do about it.
“I will also post an emissary outside your house tonight to immediately inform me if there are any problems.”
“Uh, it’s not a velociraptor, is it?” asked Jenny.
“No, I believe a squirrel is sufficient for this task just in case Eli’s ears fail to hear Peter.”
Peter forced himself not to wince at the not-so-subtle jab Orb just delivered. He also deliberately avoided looking at either Eli or Jenny, and hoped that they too had managed to avoid reacting to Orb.
“I will return tomorrow evening so we can discuss your healing and enhancements,” Orb continued.
“Thank you again. We can please also talk about these new guardians, and when I’ll be trained in the other powers of the Disciple team.”
“There is little to discuss. I will continue to distribute new guardians throughout the world. Your training is not required unless an accident were to happen and, if you were thinking of it, none of the powers shared by the Disciples will have any impact on the guardians. My word is my bond.”
With that, Orb disappeared, and Peter was left cradling his wounded arm on his old, somewhat smelly couch as the rest of the Disciples, minus Matt but plus his father, continued to stare at the spot Orb had occupied.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
A New Day
The next morning Peter awoke to the sound of his father boiling water in the kitchen for his coffee. It had been a long night for Peter, for everyone. The pain kept Peter awake most of the time. When he did manage to doze off for a while, he inevitably shifted and caused his arm to send more alarms throughout his system.
Peter looked down and saw that the coffee table had been moved off to the far wall to make space for Jenny, Eli and Irene to lie parallel to Peter on separate blankets with sheets on top to guard against the chill which crept in at night. Jenny had a couch cushion over her head, which may have been a defense against the snoring of Big Ed—which was definitely loud—as well as the almost equally loud snoring of Irene. Peter had very little experience with teenage girls, but it seemed odd that someone so young and thin could make noises that rivaled those of Big Ed.
Eli’s head was fully covered by his sheet, while Irene lay flat on her back with her mouth slightly open, ready to deliver another round of snores.
Big Ed, already dressed in a denim, button-down work shirt and jeans, saw that Peter was awake and slowly walked over from the kitchen.
“How did you sleep?” whispered Big Ed.
Peter rubbed the corners of his eyes with the thumb and index finger of his remaining hand. “Ok, mostly. I’m just achy,” Peter whispered back.
“Pancakes?” Big Ed asked.
“Yes,” Eli answered as he threw the sheet off of his head, “please.”
“Coming right up. There’ll be coffee too in just a minute.”
“I’m thirteen, Dad.”
Without turning back around, Big Ed, speaking quietly—for him—said, “They don’t make Mountain Dew anymore, so you’ll have to go with the original caffeine recipe.”
Jenny stirred under the couch cushion, which Eli lifted off her head. Her hair was an amazing collection of tangles which pointed in every direction. She looked over to Peter, who forced himself not to laugh, and she asked, “How are you feeling? Are you ok?”
Peter used his right arm to swing the cover off him, and realized that Eli and Big Ed must have changed him out of his bloody jeans before they put him on the couch. All he had on was an old t-shirt, and boxers, which was not exactly attire suitable for company. He quickly swung the cover back over himself and blushed.
“I’m ok, thanks.”
“It’s ok,” Jenny said, reaching up to try and pat down some of the wilder strands of her hair, “I’ve got two older brothers, one of whom doesn’t believe in underwear.”
“I’ll get you some clean shorts,” Eli volunteered as he pushed himself up off the floor. Eli was still wearing jeans but had undone the button at the waist and taken off his belt.
“I went in his room last night,” Irene said for her first words of the day. “Based on the piles I don’t know that he has any clean shorts.”
Peter, the object of this light-hearted ridicule, had the odd, warming sense that he was back with his whole family, his new family. That feeling quickly leaked away when he thought about all the other families waking up this morning in their tents and improvised shelters with nothing to wear but a rough, itchy tunic, and certainly no pancakes and coffee to consume.
A few minutes later, they all sat around the kitchen table, stuffing down pancakes as quickly as Big Ed made them. They had no syrup but made good use of butter and sugar. Once Peter put enough milk and sugar in his coffee, he was able to drink it without grimacing and did admit that it gave the caffeine jolt he used to enjoy with Mountain Dew.
Peter had to endure Jenny cutting his pancakes for him, and grudgingly accepted help from everyone to get through the meal.
“You’re tougher than I am,” Irene noted as she stared at the freshly changed chunk of t-shirt over his stump.
“No,” Big Ed answered as he put down another half dozen pancakes on the serving platter in the middle of the table, “you’re just not as stubborn as Peter.” Big Ed pulled out a chair for himself and used a fork to snare three of the pancakes. “You proved your point, Peter, whatever it was, but get Orb to fix you up this afternoon, ok?”
Peter looked down at his stump. A strange thought occurred to him.
“Dad, do you know how many people you’ve banished from our district?”
Big Ed, chewing on a fat wad of pancake, held up his finger for a moment, then asked, “What? Why do you ask?”
“Did Orb tell you about shrinking the districts? Is he going to shrink our district?”
Big Ed swallowed the rest of the food in his mouth and held his fork and knife clenched upright in his giant hands.
“No, I don’t know anything about the districts getting smaller. We’ve got kind of a special arrange
ment in our district because of all of you. And, no, I have no idea how many people have been banished but this place is running really pretty smoothly under Orb.”
Big Ed cut another tall, thick portion of pancakes and shoved it into his mouth.
“And these new guardians?” Eli prodded.
Big Ed continued to chew for a moment, his face thoughtful, and then replied, “Yes, I heard about that. That’s just to keep the districts running smoothly.”
Jenny put down her fork. “Mr.—”
“Big Ed, please.”
“Ok, Big Ed, what does the presence of man-eating dinosaurs have to do with how smoothly a district operates?”
Big Ed put his fork down on his plate and pushed it to the middle of the table. “I don’t like these questions, and I don’t know where all of you are going with this. Orb has changed our world for the better. Some of the things he does may not immediately make sense to us, but they will. That’s why he’s in charge.”
Jenny’s mouth opened and stayed that way. She had no idea what to say.
Let it go, Peter advised both her and Eli, there’s something going on with him. That’s not something Big Ed would say.
Jenny closed her mouth and returned to her pancakes. Eli shared a quick look with Peter and drank some coffee. Only Irene, who was not part of their telepathic connection, pressed the issue.
“I’m sorry, Mr., I mean Big Ed, and thank you for the delicious pancakes before I forget, but I don’t know why you aren’t more curious about all of this. I guess if you think the world is better with Orb you’re entitled to your opinion, but your son lost his hand yesterday to one of these new guardians.”
Irene pointed to Peter’s left arm, which he quickly, painfully moved under the table while gently shaking his head no.
“How are you not mad? How is this a good thing?”
Big Ed’s chair squealed as he slid it back from the table and stood, towering over everyone else. “Young lady, Disciple or not, you live in my district.” He wagged a large, hairy finger in her direction. “You will keep a civil tongue in your mouth, and you will show some appreciation for what Orb has given. You are one of the five luckiest people on the planet and you’re going to sit around and second-guess Orb? Really? Maybe you should think about living somewhere else if this is the way you’re going to carry on.”
The Disciples of the Orb Page 12
