The Colony Ship Conestoga : The Complete Series: All Eight Books

by John Thornton

  Thunk!

  An arrow struck into the ground right next to Khin. Khin quickly flipped over and tried to stand up, but an attacker slammed into his body. Khin went face down in the mud, and the person began viciously hitting him on the back and head. Khin covered his head with his hands and rolled over and over, seeking to escape from the blows that were raining down on him.

  With mud covering his goggles, and trying to get away, Khin got only rare glimpses of who was smacking and kicking him. It was a person wearing almost no clothing. Pale skin, long shaggy head of hair, and scraggily beard, the person was making odd noises as he pummeled Khin.

  Kersmack!

  “Leave my Khin alone!” Vesna yelled as she finished striking the attacker with the butt of her rifle.

  Khin leapt to his feet, pulling the soaked goggles down to around his neck, and drawing out his knife. However, the fight was finished.

  Vesna stood over the attacker, who was lying on his side in the mud. His arm was twisted under him and toward his back. It was obviously broken somewhere in the shoulder blade area. Vesna raised the rifle to slam its butt down on the attacker’s head.

  “Wait!” Khin said and stepped toward her. “The Wizard Cammarry wants them alive. This is a rescue mission.”

  “He tried to kill you,” Vesna said and switched the rifle around and pointed its muzzle toward the attacker. “We finish this one and take back the next.”

  “No! No! This one tells us where the others are! Maybe?” Khin was insistent. “Then we find them all, and go home.” He grabbed the wire off the rabbit trap snare and bound the attacker’s arms together behind his back. There were some groans and moans as Khin moved the fractured arm, but the attacker said nothing more.

  Vesna looked all around for other attackers, but no one was seen anywhere. Although the forest was so thick and overgrown it was hard to tell. She had only seen this attacker when he rushed out of hiding and assaulted Khin.

  Khin sat the attacker up and looked closely at him. Mud caked his body and hair. His malicious green eyes blinked in menace and hatred. He snarled with a mouth whose front teeth were missing. He had a vulpine face which radiated meanness.

  “Who are you?” Khin asked.

  The man spat at Khin.

  Vesna clubbed him with the butt of her rifle, this time crushing one of his hands to the ground. It was the hand on the other arm from the one she had broken before. Her choice of which hand to crush was deliberate.

  “Who are you?” Khin asked again.

  “Tun. Me Tun.” His words were slurred and difficult to understand. He may have said his name was Tune, or Tone, or Tom, but Tun was what it sounded like to Khin. He was the dirtiest person Khin had ever seen. His odor was also pungent.

  “Tun, where are the rest of your people?” Khin asked. “Are they called the Mud People, Eta People, or the Naked People?”

  “Huh?” Tun replied. “You talk funny!”

  “We will now take him back to Wizard Cammarry,” Khin said. “She will know what to do.”

  While Khin pulled the man up to a standing position, Vesna grabbed the crude bow he had dropped. There were three other arrows with it. She slung it over her shoulder, just as the man kicked at Khin and stumbled away. He could not run very well, and that was due only partially to the binding of his arms, and his injuries. His coordination was off in some way. Khin darted after him and knocked him down.

  “You are coming with us,” Khin said. “Do not fight, just make it right.”

  Tun lay on the ground, glaring at them with his green eyes. He snapped his jaws at them.

  Vesna took one of her straps off her pack and tied it to the wire Khin had wrapped around the man’s arms. The injured man’s right arm was swelling at the shoulder, and the left hand was enlarging as they watched.

  “Get up and do not give me a reason to hit you again,” Vesna ordered and raised the rifle butt.

  Their prisoner flinched and muttered, “No club me. Tun go.”

  Khin grabbed the strap and led the man, while Vesna followed behind, rifle at the ready. Even with the general rotten odor which permeated the forest, she could still smell Tun’s own foul stench. Tapping the com-link, Khin called for Cammarry. There was no answer.

  “Others might have attacked that town,” Vesna said. “This one does not look more than about fifteen years old, although he is so filthy it is hard to tell.”

  “Tun a man. Eaten three!” Tun said with a strange smile. He licked his lips but that did not clean anything off his soiled face.

  They hurried back along paths that Khin and Vesna had made while hunting. As they walked, Khin tried again to connect with Cammarry, but then tapped the com-link and said, “Alizon?”

  “I am here Khin. Please come back to the inn,” Alizon’s voice was filled with mourning. “If you can make haste, that would be helpful.”

  “Are you under attack?” Vesna asked tapping in on her own com-link.

  “No. But Cammarry is in need,” Alizon stated. “I am here with her. No physical attacks.”

  “We have a person with us!” Khin said triumphantly and with a chuckle.

  “We will discuss it when you arrive,” Alizon said and ended the link.

  Khin watched carefully for other attackers as they progressed toward Edinburg. Vesna too kept alert, but saw nothing else which was threatening.

  As they stepped out of the forest and onto the road which led to the town’s buildings, Tun pulled back a bit.

  “What is your problem?” Vesna asked and jabbed the rifle’s barrel into Tun’s back.

  “You live with ghosts and demons?” Tun asked in awe. “Metal ogres here too?”

  “There are no other things here,” Vesna answered. “A rare bird, a few of those rabbits, and some bugs.”

  “Maybe he means spirit-ghosts like Sandie?” Khin asked.

  Vesna shrugged her shoulders. “I doubt it. He is hardly a man.” Vesna’s nose crinkled as she got another whiff of Tun’s body order. “A dirty, foul-smelling one. Shall we get him to Cammarry and then decide what else to do? I suggest bathing him in a river or a salt sea.”

  “Mostly mud here. Water tastes funny.” Khin pulled on the strap, but Tun resisted as they walked him along. He did not put up a huge amount of fight. His arm and other hand were purple and large. As they got to the Albatross Inn, Khin opened the door and called out, “We found one of them!”

  Cammarry was sitting at the table in the kitchen area, holding her head in her hands. Her com-link was on the table in front of her, deactivated. Alizon was standing behind her gently rubbing her neck and shoulders. When he saw Tun his eyes grew wide. A stern look of disapproval was on his face.

  “Do not glare at me. This filthy man attacked my Khin. I wanted to kill him, but Khin insisted he be brought here,” Vesna said.

  “Bring Tun here to eat?”

  “Shut up, you,” Vesna barked. “Do not ask for anything, you are lucky to be alive.”

  “Eat! Tun eat!”

  Alizon stated carefully, “I do not understand what he said. However, those injuries must be very painful for him.”

  Sandie spoke out though Khin’s com-link. “Cammarry’s medical kit can assist that man.”

  “Good idea, Sandie! Thank you!” Khin led Tun to a chair where he sat him down. It was one of the few wooden chairs which had not been broken apart when they arrived. Tun slid deliberately off the chair and laid out on the floor. Khin asked, “Wizard Cammarry may I use your tools?”

  Cammarry did not respond, but Alizon nodded to Khin.

  Khin grabbed Cammarry’s backpack which was sitting beside the door and carefully sorted through it. He got the medical kit out and then walked over to Tun.

  “Demon tools!” Tun said as he glared at the medical kit.

  Khin looked it over, he had seen Jerome and Cammarry use the medical kit many times, so he thought he knew how to operate it. He wanted to make sure it was used properly.

  Sandie then spoke, �
�Khin, just pull out the leads and attach them to a clean part of this person’s body. Then press the button on the medical kit.”

  Vesna brought over a water container, and she squatted down and splashed off part of Tun’s chest. She was hesitant to touch him for all the filth. He lay there staring up at the ceiling, trying hard to avoid looking at the medical kit.

  “That is cleaner! Thanks!” Khin said and attached the wires.

  The whole time, Cammarry just sat at the table with her head in her hands.

  Khin pressed the button.

  The small display on the screen scrolled with letters. Khin could not read them, but Vesna was looking on. ‘Diagnosis underway. Unidentified adolescent male in poor health. Diagnosis underway. Reassessing. Unidentified adolescent male in poor health, suffering from acute non-accidental blunt-force trauma. Fractures in left hand of three metacarpals and four proximal phalanges. Multiple fractures of right scapula. Inappropriate splinting of arms. Immediately remove inappropriate wire splint. Reassessing. Prognosis regarding fractures conditional due to systemic disease. Reassessing. Reassessing. Unknown variant of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy, Kuru Prion Disease, detected. Prognosis very poor. Palliative treatment only option. Orthopedic trauma can be corrected, but will not alter mortality. Variant Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy has no known treatment. Prions have permanently degraded patient’s neurological function. Death will occur within three months. For symptomatic relief of trauma, inject into any large muscle. Euthanasia and end of life discussion strongly suggested.’

  A syringe slid out from the medical kit.

  Vesna read the scroll again. “Sandie, I do not understand all these words. What does this mean?”

  Through a private channel Sandie spoke quietly to Vesna. “The medical kit has found a sickness in this man which has no cure. It is a strangely curious and tragic case. I am conjecturing the ramifications of this finding.”

  “So do I give this to him?” Vesna asked. She was careful in what she said next, as she wanted to ask about the euthanasia, a term she recognized, but did not know how to phrase it in front of Tun. “That last discussion part? Is this medicine for that?”

  “No. The medicine you hold will help fix his broken bones, and reduce his pain. It will not alter the bad disease. You will not be killing him with this,” Sandie answered.

  Vesna took the syringe and injected the medicine into Tun’s thigh.

  “You kill me now?” Tun asked in his broken and heavily accented language.

  “No, but you are very sick,” Vesna replied. She also unwrapped the wire which was biting into his swollen arm and hand. “Where are the rest of your people? Your tribe? Others like you?”

  “They run from metal demon ogres,” Tun replied. “Hide in caves.” The medical kit was stimulating his own muscles to align the fractures in his shoulder and hand. His face relaxed visibly as the medication soothed his pain.

  “Metal demon ogres?” Khin asked. “What is that? Monsters?”

  Cammarry finally spoke, but her voice was low with a sharp edge to it. “Traitor Sandie, project an image of a Crock tank and something harmless…say an automobile from before the Great Event. That person will tell us which is which. Unless, Shadow is preventing you from actually helping me.”

  Sandie did not respond, but a projection beam came from Khin’s com-link, and another from Vesna’s. A Crock tank was rendered in front of the man Tun. Next to that was the image of a shiny blue four-door hatchback.

  “Hey you!” Cammarry called out. “Which one is the metal demon ogre?”

  Tun gawked at the two three-dimensional renderings. Then his focus was set upon the camouflaged Crock tank. He did not look again at the blue car. “A smaller metal demon ogre.”

  Cammarry spoke again. “Traitor Sandie, are there Crock tanks in this habitat? Is that the salvage team you spoke about?”

  “Yes.” Sandie answered tersely.

  “Beautiful woman, how can I help you. I am not sure what you mean exactly,” Alizon said and continued to massage Cammarry’s shoulders. “What does this mean?”

  “It means we were sent here to die. Sandie is a traitor, and I am not sure we will ever be allowed to leave. We will end up like that.” Cammarry pointed to Tun. “Both Shadow and the Crocks, and we were sent here.”

  Sandie spoke via the area audio through Khin’s and Vesna’s and Alizon’s com-links, for Cammarry had shut hers off. “There is no longer a reason for you to stay here. You are free to use the teleporter to depart.”

  “So we were never to rescue the habitat dwellers here?” Vesna asked. Her face was twisted in a puzzled frown.

  “The situation has…” Sandie started to reply, but Cammarry interrupted.

  “This was just another scheme! Traitor! Conspirator Sandie!”

  “Tun, what kind of food, meat, does your people eat?” Sandie spoke through the area audio.

  Tun rolled his eyes around, looking for the source of the voice. His arm was much less swollen, but he still could not move it. His hand too was nearly normal size, as the muscles were pulling it into alignment, and the medicine was working. However, he could not get to his feet. He then rested his head back on the floor. “Eat what I catch.”

  “What do you catch?” Sandie pressed.

  “Traitor Sandie? What does this man’s dietary customs have to do with you betraying me, us?” Cammarry snarled. “Just a Shadow trick or a deception?”

  “Tun, what is the best meat?” Sandie asked, ignoring Cammarry’s outburst.

  “Meat. Head meat,” Tun replied. “I hunt. I kill. I eat head meat, get strong. No more jerking arms and legs.” Tun looked at Khin and licked his lips. “I would get strong if I killed you.”

  Khin’s smile dropped. “You did not get me.”

  “No. Now you eat me,” Tun said and looked down. “I not get strong.”

  “Eat you?” Khin laughed and laughed and laughed.

  “You die soon!” Tun glared at Khin. “Chuckling come before death. Too late to stop now. Jerks first, then falls, then chuckling. You die soon.”

  “You will not hurt my Khin! Quit threatening him,” Vesna stated forcefully and aimed the rifle at Tun.

  “You eat him then, after eat me?” Tun looked confused. “You get strong. Smash open head, eat good meat.”

  The others stared at Tun, comprehension registering in their minds that he was serious about what he claimed. Vesna’s fingers twitched as she gripped the rifle. She was worried Tun would attack again, even though he was barely mobile because of his arm injuries.

  “Tun, do all your people eat human brains?” Sandie asked.

  “What hu-man? What bray-in?” Tun’s face twisted in bafflement.

  Sandie replied, “Man.” A light shined over Khin. “Woman.” The light shined from the com-link and lit up Vesna. “People.” The com-links shined on all four of them, excluding Tun. “That is human. Meat inside head is brain.”

  Tun grinned. “Ya, ya. Man bray-in good. Smash open, scoop out. Give some to little ones, stop the shaking and jerking. Woman bray-in good too. All eat head meat.”

  “That confirms my conjectures,” Sandie stated. “This previously unknown variant form of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy, Kuru Prion Disease is transmitted by the consumption of human flesh, especially neurological tissue. The medical kit showed an evolution of at least twenty-three generations in the prions infecting Tun’s brain. The pathogenic evolution is far faster than is human evolution, which here in Eta would be roughly three generations. This indicates wide spread prion contagion. Because of that, I conjecture a 99.3% probability that all habitat dwellers in Eta are already infected by these pathogens.”

  Cammarry sucked in a breath, and shook her arms. Then she quickly stood up and began to draw out her revolver. “Traitor Sandie? Can you shut down an antique chemical-powered explosive slug thrower?”

  Before she could draw the revolver all the way out, Alizon grabbed her wrist. “Beautif
ul woman, you must not act rashly. That wretched youth is repugnant, I agree, but you are not. Think on what you are doing. Is your anger honestly toward that pitiable creature, or toward something else?”

  “But he eats people! And Traitor Sandie put us here! Locked us in with him. With cannibals!” Cammarry argued and shifted around to look into Alizon’s eyes. “He eats people!”

  Alizon met her gaze, and his eyes were sympathetic and kind. “So I heard, but…”

  Bang!

  Cammarry and Alizon jumped. They turned to see Vesna standing over the now dead Tun. She had shot him in the chest. Blood poured out from his back where the rifle bullet had exited.