by Elin Wyn
“Sir,” Sk’lar spoke up. “Do you really anticipate us being able to act in non-deadly fashion?”
Rouhr looked older than I remembered. He was not dealing with the stress of everything so well, I thought, quietly, to myself. He ran a hand through his hair and leaned back in his desk chair. “I anticipate you following orders, Sk’lar. But, if things get out of control, I want you to do what’s necessary to get out of there, but try not to make a mess of things.”
“Understood, sir. Is there any more intel about the compound?”
“No. We do have satellite imagery that confirms there are people out there, but our information comes from unsubstantiated reports that they’re anti-alien. Since they haven’t deigned to check in with anyone or ask for assistance, there is some validity to the reports.”
“Okay.” With that, we exited the General’s office and made our way to the armory where Phin was in charge that day.
“Non-lethal rounds? Are you sure?” he asked when Sk’lar asked for them.
He nodded. “It’s required. We’re not to kill, just in case.”
Phin shook his head in disbelief. “Okay. Non-lethal rounds, coming up. You,” he said pointing at me. “Help me load the clips. The rest of you can grab your weapons.”
I spent the next ten minutes helping Phin load up the clips with non-lethal rounds while the others retrieved their weapons, checked them, and armored up. Jalok took over for me so I could do the same. He tossed me my bag of clips as I finished strapping on my armor. “Ready?” he asked.
“Let’s do it,” I answered.
We made our way to the airfield and then to the shuttle where Navat and Cazak got into the cockpit and started the launch procedures.
“So, how are you and Maki holding up?” Sk’lar asked.
I shot my head up to look at him.
He had never asked me anything personal before. While the five of us were a team, Sk’lar wasn’t the type to fraternize with us.
He had gotten a little better since his relationship with Phryne, but in general he was still aloof and separated.
“Uh, we’re, uh, we’re doing good, I think,” I answered.
Jalok snorted. “That means he doesn’t have a recking clue. It’s too new for him to know anything.”
He wasn’t wrong. We had only been officially together for a few days, and I wasn’t certain that we were anything more than just two people that had slept together and shared a few laughs.
“He’ll get there. Remember how our relationships started? We weren’t terribly sure at the beginning either,” Sk’lar commented. “Now, at least for me, I’m pretty sure that Phryne and I are doing well. What about you and Dottie?”
“We’re still good, but she’s dealing with some people still looking at her as if she’s violating some sort of code or something.”
“How is she dealing with that?” I asked.
“She’s essentially telling them all to go reck themselves. She’s enjoying her time with me, at least that’s what she tells me all the time,” Jalok said with a devilish grin.
He didn’t know how to keep his private life private sometimes.
We all cracked jokes and told stories as we flew, enjoying one another’s company for the three hour flight far out into the mountains. “Three minutes,” Navat called from the front.
We were instantly serious, ready for anything that could come our way.
Except, we weren’t.
The shuttle landed and we came out, weapons ready, but pointed down to avoid any confusion. Coming towards us were ten people, five men and five women. One man in particular stepped forward.
“Hello. My name is Logan. Might I ask who you are?” He was a middle aged man with a balding head, light gray hair on the sides, but still physically imposing.
His short sleeve shirt revealed muscles that were not for show, as well as a deep tan that showed he worked a lot outside.
His clean cut face held a smile that seemed genuine while his voice carried a deep bass that seemed as if it would shake the bones if he ever got loud.
Sk’lar stepped forward, his weapon dangling from his shoulder. “My name is Sk’lar. I am commander of this strike team. My men are Jalok, Cazak, Navat, and Tyehn,” he introduced each of us and pointed us out. We all stepped forward at the mention of our names, putting us a step closer to Sk’lar in case anything happened.
“Pleasure meeting you,” Logan said with a friendly nod and wave. “Now, if you would be so kind as to explain why you are here.”
“Well, we’ve received reports of a settlement being made out here and we were curious as to whether or not you needed any assistance, supplies, or anything else to help you in the establishment of your home.”
“Ah. Well, thank you for your offers. However, we are not inclined to accept help from you.”
“And why is that, Logan?” Sk’lar asked.
Logan looked around and so did I. We weren’t alone.
We were surrounded by several dozen men and women, each one looking like they were armed. I coughed quietly and motioned around. While we didn’t reach for our weapons, we did move our hands closer to them.
“I see,” Sk’lar said in resignation. “So, this is an anti-alien establishment.”
“In a sense,” said Logan. “But not in the way that you think. We’re not hostile, simply wish to be left alone is all. You see, Mr. Sk’lar, we’re not particularly comfortable around your kind. Not that we wish you harm or anything like that. We just want to be on our own, is all.”
“So, you’re not out here plotting our deaths or coming up with ways to drive us off the planet?” Navat asked.
Logan looked past Sk’lar at Navat, who was standing right next to me. “Navat, correct?”
He nodded.
“No, friend Navat. While I’m sure some of us might be, because I can’t read everyone’s minds, but no, we’re not here trying to build an army to drive you away,” he answered. “I can promise you that. We are here simply to be on our own, to raise our families and to live in peace. Maybe someday we can come back down and learn to live in tandem with you, or at least as friendly neighbors, but today is not that day.”
Sk’lar stepped forward, his hands far away from his weapon. “Then, may I extend an official offer of assistance, if you were to ever need it, and a sincere hope that one day we will be able to speak again, as friends.” He extended his hand out.
Logan stepped forward, a smile on his face and accepted Sk’lar’s handshake. “Perhaps one day, we can do this in friendly greeting.” They shook hands and parted, both turning around at the same time. Logan raised a hand and I watched as the people around us seemingly vanished, several of them coming out from behind rock outcroppings and bushes a minute later.
Sk’lar walked up to us. “Let’s go. They’re not bad people, and they were simply prepared to defend themselves is all. Move.”
We turned around and made our way back to the shuttle, Navat and Cazak jogging ahead to prep the shuttle. “Tyehn, bring up the rear, just in case.”
“Aye,” I said. I turned around and backed my way towards the shuttle, making sure that no one was going to try anything. I spotted a few people watching us, but they all waved as I began to board. I gave a slight wave in return and kept an eye on things as the shuttle door closed.
“That was interesting,” Cazak called back from the cockpit.
“A little more than interesting,” Jalok said. “Want to lay down odds that they were lying?”
“Stop it,” Sk’lar ordered. “We have to at least attempt to trust them. Not everyone is automatically evil.”
“Really?”
“Come on, Jalok,” I stepped in. “You really think that they’re bad people? Our respective species hated one another before the Xathi. We learned to trust one another to the point that we’ve become friends. Why not them?”
Jalok opened his mouth to respond, then stopped. “Okay. You’re right. Maybe they are just wanting to be o
n their own. We should try to respect that, I guess.” He sat down. “I just don’t think we should blindly believe in their words, though.”
“And we won’t,” I said. “We’ll be careful. But, we can’t just automatically think that everyone is immediately an enemy just because they say they don’t like us. I still don’t like our command structure back home, but I trust in them to fight the Xathi.”
“Good words, Tyehn,” Sk’lar said.
It was a bit disheartening to know that these people didn’t like us, but it was encouraging that they were willing to accept us as a part of life, and instead of fighting us, they simply moved away so they could come to grips with us as part of their reality.
Maybe things weren’t going to be as bad as we had once thought.
But I wouldn’t bet on it.
Maki
I can’t see with my own eyes. I know that they’re mine, attached to me, yet what I’m seeing isn’t through my pupils but ones governed by someone else.
All that’s before me is familiar, yet I’m unable to break through the barriers inside my own mind. I see faces staring, they seem to know me, but I’m acting against my will.
I’m not in control anymore. My hands flex to the command of someone else, my body starting to transition… Somewhere inside of me demands that I fight, fight until I can’t stand it any longer.
“Oh my god,” I breathed, my eyes snapping open.
I was back with the Puppet Master, its tendrils curling around me, tentatively trying to soothe me as I became aware of my surroundings.
It had been a dream. No, a memory. Even though I’d lived it, and had just seen it for myself, it still didn’t seem real.
“Memory retrieval can be difficult, the transition into one’s deepest thoughts often causes discomfort. I’m sorry.”
The sincerity I felt from such a brief and simple sentence was incredibly overwhelming; I’d conversed with people for much of my life and never felt genuine empathy from them.
Yet this gigantic plant oozed understanding from every vine that grew and stretched away from its body.
A lot of the human population could stand to gain a great deal from listening to the teachings of this wise creature.
And yet few of them would ever come to bask in the formidable serenity of his presence.
I absentmindedly brushed my hand along one of its vines, the need to be physically connected to one another difficult to ignore.
I knew Tyehn would still prefer caution from me, but considering all that the Puppet Master was helping me accomplish, I lacked the reservations he still held.
“There’s no need to apologize, I knew it would be an experience, I just appreciate your help.” It was my turn for sincerity now.
“Helping you realize your past helps me as much as it does you, it’s a mutual partnership.”
I gave an empty laugh, though I didn’t mean it sound as careless as it did. It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate the Puppet Master’s honesty, just that it would have been nicer if he’d been more pragmatic with it.
Sometimes he oozed it, others he was nothing save a logical, all knowing entity. The two were interchangeable and deeply connected, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t switch from one to the other.
Much like many other living creatures, the Puppet Master had multiple facets to his personality.
“I promised myself I wouldn’t do this,” I began to explain, rather unnecessarily, seeing as how nobody was there to scold me. “but I have questions about your past… and about who you are.”
“You who know I am.”
“Okay, poor wording on my part — I mean, is it weird to think of you as a ‘he’ or are you more an ‘it’? Just the latter sounds really mean, as if I don’t see you as a living creature, which you most definitely are.” My shoulders shrugged as I spoke, my body trying to pass off my inquisitiveness as unimportant; it could be answered or ignored, I was cool with it either way. Except I wasn’t because I needed to know more.
“You can refer to me however you wish, whatever helps make our time together easier for you to understand.”
It wasn’t what I was looking for, but I already felt my mind leaning toward addressing him as a person.
As a male. I didn’t know why I felt the need to gender a plant, however I was doing it whether I liked it or not. It was almost as if my mind couldn’t comprehend a sentient being of this magnitude without assigning it a gender—
And you just had to make it male. Nice one, Maki! I was full of sass today, and all of it was aimed at myself.
“So, my next question, what about your past — do you remember much of it, what was it like, has the world changed a lot since then?” I was speeding on ahead, as always.
However, I sensed that the Puppet Master was becoming used to my chaotic thought processes, much like a mentor does with their student. A steady rhythm is formed, one that both parties are able to follow.
“My past is almost forgotten to me now, much like yours was to you,” Began his explanation, the way he filled my head still a sensation I had yet to get used to. It wasn’t as shocking anymore, but I still found myself in awe of being able to hear him. “The centuries I’ve been alive, I slept through a lot of the civilizations that have lived here, using my subconscious to tend to the creation and sustainability of the world they inhabited.”
“That’s, well, that’s remarkable — you know that, right? I mean, you must do. To be able to do all of that and not even be awake. Wow, I’d get so much shit done if I could live like that.”
I was smiling at the Puppet Master then, amused by my own jokes, but I was also appreciative that he didn’t think me foolish for sharing them. His features formed a gentle, transcendent smile as he observed me.
“I suppose it is remarkable, though for me, it’s as natural as the air around us. I can’t do anything other than what I’ve been designed to do.”
“But how did you manage to keep track of everything? That’s a lot of balls to be juggling.”
“I can concentrate on several tasks at any one time, just as I’m doing right now. Even though I’m talking with you, I’m also holding a conversation with six other people.”
“Six? Seriously? Whoa.” I didn’t know any other phrase that could illustrate how amazed I was at the scope of his reach.
It seemed silly to be so surprised by the awesomeness of a creature as fantastical as this. Yet on the other hand, it was also easy to appreciate why most of us naturally reacted this was: it was abnormal to us.
An unknown.
Out of our predictable bubble of reality. Space travel, aliens, other worlds — they’d all seemed abnormal and otherworldly in the past, yet here we were, on a planet filled with humans and aliens, side by side. I mused whether one day people would think of the Puppet Master as normal, a part of the planet’s furnishings.
“Would you like to know a secret, Maki?”
I arched my brows, unsure of what he could possibly share with me that he felt it important to disclose now. Would it be a secret about his past, about the possessions and the Ancient Enemies?
The list was quite endless, my mind allowing the theories to snowball while I waited. I nodded my head, my breath catching in my throat as I froze on the spot. It was similar to readying yourself for an ascension, or so I imagined.
“Your relationship with Tyehn, it’s unique. Even in spite of the differences you two have, which at times can prove challenging to overcome, you’re now bonded together in a way you could never have imagined. And part of that is because of our interactions.” Something like a ripple of laughter flowed through me. “I rather like being a part of that.”
I became lost for words.
Not because I feared that I cared for Tyehn due to having met a plant, but because it made sense to me that it had changed our dynamic.
It wasn’t possible to stand in the presence of such a being and come out unchanged; if anyone was capable of doing that, I doubted they w
ere of this world.
Tyehn and I would have become close regardless of our coming here, of that I felt certain.
Nevertheless, we wouldn’t have been able to grow together, to be nurtured as a couple, without the connection of the Puppet Master. By bringing the two of us here, by needing to speak with us, he’d orchestrated a chain of events that couldn’t be undone.
He’d exposed my darkest secret, and Tyehn’s lingering fears about the hybrids, and made us lance the wound before it festered.
We were stronger because of it.
Turning my eyes down to the earthy, moss-covered ground, I was nervous to share my feelings. And yet, I needed to voice them. I wanted someone to know how I was feeling, how deeply my emotions had taken hold of me.
“I care for Tyehn so much, more than I thought I ever would. When I first met him, I’d expected us to get along, eventually, but never like this. Not to the point where I prefer my days and nights to be spent with him.” As I came to the end of my admission, it felt good to have it off of my chest. I felt unburdened.
“Your bond with him is permanent. Even if the hands of time change it, you’ll always be drawn to him the same way he is to you, your fates forever locked together. It’s woven into the fabric of the world.”
I shook my head, dismayed but entertained at the same time. “Tyehn will love hearing this if he ever finds out.”
My humor was a means for me to deflect, and it worked.
Kind of. Although I could pass my feelings off as casual to myself, doing so to the Puppet Master wasn’t so easy. I didn’t like the idea of lying to him, not when we’d started to form a bond of our own.
“I truly care for him,” I whispered, my eyes peering into the Puppet Master’s own reflective irises. “I care for him, and it scares me half to death.”
