by Chogan Swan
Kaitlin could see well enough with the light from the tunnel entrance to see that HumanaH was unpacking all the luggage compartments of her bike. “Get everything not specific to the bikes out of the luggage compartments,” HumanaH said. “We need to switch with our decoys. So they can do their job.”
“What job?” Calypso said.
“That's a straight line if I ever heard one,” Kaitlin said with a laugh.
“Just bein' helpful. It's not my fault nobody wants to be funny.” Calypso groused, unfastening the tops of the luggage containers on her bike. “Just thought everyone could use some of the best medicine.”
Kaitlin just shook her head. She'd never heard HumanaH or ShwydH actually laugh. Though ShwydH's dry and lethal wit could cut like a razor, he never actually laughed at anything. HumanaH had a nice smile. It seldom showed itself, but that didn’t really surprise Kaitlin.
∆ ∆ ∆
Before they'd left on the mission, Tiana had briefed her on HumanaH and ShwydH—as well as you could brief anyone on people who'd been alive as long as they had. The summary only covered the last two centuries with a couple of decades thrown in for small change.
That part had been mind-bending enough, but when Tiana had recounted the events of four years ago when the two branch sisters and their security team had finally caught up with the niiaH.
At the end, Kaitlin felt like her mind had been twisted and squeezed like a dishrag.
No stranger to abuse herself, Kaitlin had literally vibrated with the horror of what had happened to HumanaH … to be aware as a monster replaced your life memories—erasing you in an attempt to steal your body. Before Tiana and ShwydH found her and stopped it. The niiaH had taken 2 years of her life. The experience had caused HumanaH incredible dissociative pain and prompted her to change her name to HumanaH.
Kaitlin flinched as her eyes passed over HumanaH's detached countenance. It was hard to believe she’d once been as full of life as Tiana. They’d started out as almost the same person.
Could I survive if someone erased my most precious memories?
Her memories of Brian who'd rescued her when she was alone in the world? Marlee who’d become her sister? Or Marian who'd become like her own child? How could you even know who you were? Even her memory of Bernice throwing her own body in front of a bullet, though it had been a horror and the thought of it could still make her weep, had been a precious gift of love from Bernice. How could she ever part with that?
Kaitlin hadn't been able to sleep for three nights until Tiana had sedated her and flown Marlee to Puerto Peñasco by helicopter to sing away the nightmares.
“How can you want me for this mission when just knowing what happened puts me out of commission for days?” Kaitlin had asked Tiana.
Tiana had stepped close. Her dark lustrous eyes looked deep into Kaitlin's, and she put her hand on Kaitlin's cheek with a touch soft as a breeze. “I've lived with the horrors of war for almost 2,000 years, Kaitlin. Yet nothing has disturbed me more. Do you think I don't still have nightmares? I don't see your empathy as a weakness. It only confirms what I already knew.”
∆ ∆ ∆
“So where are these decoys, then?” Caly said.
Kaitlin blinked, bringing herself back to the present.
“They have been here two days,” ShwydH said. “They are at the other end of the tunnel. I would guess they are concerned about venturing through it in the dark, possibly because they don't have flashlights.” He turned his eyes to regard HumanaH. “Shall I bring them flashlights or shall we push the bikes to the other end of the tunnel for them?”
HumanaH looked up, taking a moment to consider. It wasn't unusual for ShwydH to ask her for direction. Kaitlin suspected he did it to keep her focused. HumanaH was prone to letting her attention drift. Kaitlin could almost see the light switch click on in her head. Kaitlin couldn't fault HumanaH's leadership decisions, when she made them. But it would be more reassuring if her attention didn't need prompting so often.
But it hadn't been a problem … so far.
HumanaH waved ShwydH toward the far end of the tunnel. “It will be easier for the girls to push their bikes unloaded. When we finish that we'll take them to the other end, but our decoys have the backpacks we need for hiking, so go get those.
ShwydH pushed his own bike down the tunnel into the darkness without hesitation. He didn't need to unload his bike to push it nor a light to see where he was going for that matter. Kaitlin snorted in envy.
Kaitlin's bike was unloaded in a few minutes. She put it in neutral, turned on the headlight and started pushing the bike down the tracks. “I'm guessing we don't want the motor noise dislodging loose rocks in the roof, right?” she said.
“Yes. Leave your riding gear at the other end, of course,” HumanaH said. “One of the decoys should be about your size.”
“Sure,” Kaitlin said.
Maybe she just hasn't figured out what's obvious to us yet.
By the time she'd reached the far end of the tunnel, Kaitlin was more than glad the bike was lightweight and maneuverable. Especially since she almost had to carry it over a rockfall near the end.
“If you'd waited, I could have helped with that,” said ShwydH on his way back. His own gear was already packed on his back, and he carried the three empty one’s in a bundle.
Kaitlin snorted. “I'd have waited if I needed help. Did you and your alien appendage scare off our decoys? I didn't hear any screams of horror, but I suppose they might have been too busy running away.”
“No, they just did their screaming on the inside.”
“Well, you could wait for Caly. She'll be along in a minute, and I'm sure, she'll appreciate a big, strong male like you who's willing to flex his muscles for her. I'll even pretend I don't see anything if she gets really appreciative.”
ShwydH's sharp, white smile gleamed in the wash of her headlights as he passed. But as usual, she couldn't tell if he was actually amused or just playing along. Kaitlin knew he didn't care a bit what she noticed.
His voice floated back to her as he went on—not taking the bait. “I drew a line at the far end on the ground. You'll need to stay behind it. The enemy satellite overhead is the issue.”
Kaitlin decided to stop for a minute to catch her breath. From the sounds behind her, Caly would be along in a few moments. Kaitlin could help her get the other bike over the rock pile, and they could continue together. If there were more obstacles, two people lifting one bike was more than twice as easy. She turned off the headlight to save the battery and leaned against the wall, enjoying the coolness of the stone.
When Caly reached the pile, she stopped and whistled low. “What did you do, pick it up and carry it?”
“It wasn't pretty,” Kaitlin admitted. “I stayed to help you. If there are more tank traps like that, I'm not too proud to consider it a team challenge.”
“Wait, let me try,” said Caly. Ten she laughed. “Just kidding. Get over here and push.”
Kaitlin grinned and stepped carefully back across the tumble of rocks.
At the far end of the tunnel, the entrance widened to a generous open space. Kaitlin paused to take in the scene of four young men, one of them donning ShwydH's motorcycle gear, two others examining the bike he'd left, and the fourth crouched beside a bed of hot coals. The last was skinning one of three huge western diamondback rattlesnakes. Kaitlin could tell from the way the carcass reacted to the knife that the snake had died within the last few minutes. She suspected ShwydH had cleared the tunnel of them on his way through.
Though the three examining the bike and gear scarcely seemed to notice them, a casual wave from the snake skinner acknowledged their arrival. Kaitlin nodded in return, leaned her bike on its kickstand, and unbuckled the helmet strap.
The relief of taking off the helmet—uncomfortably hot even in the shade—occupied her attention for a moment as she placed it on the luggage rack. Then, eager to shed the rest of her gear, she hung Promisekeeper and her gunbe
lt on the handlebars and worked her way out of the armor, relishing the cooling touch of the air as it evaporated the perspiration on her skin and breezed through the wicking material of her halter top and compression shorts.
“Camaronchas! Mamacita, tienes pelo de fuego!”
Kaitlin glanced over her shoulder where the snake-skinning guy now stood, wide-eyed and smiling, while he reviewed her assets with obvious approval.
They didn't know we were girls.
Maybe she'd been expecting the professionalism of the ambassador's regular security people, but it seemed these were local hires for a 'one-off' operation. While she was still working out what to do or say, his eyes slid past her.
“Chocolate dulce!”
Kaitlin followed where his eyes had been pulled like iron filings to a magnet. Calypso, still removing bike armor, never wore a halter under her gear—or anything at all besides a thong. Kaitlin couldn't blame the guy for staring. Calypso's statuesque height, flawless skin over smooth muscle—topped with firm, generous breasts—always turned heads, even when it wasn't so clearly on display as now.
Kaitlin removed Promisekeeper from the handlebars and buckled her in place with automatic, practiced economy.
You're never underdressed wearing a .45-caliber death sentence.
It wasn't exactly how Amber had put it when she'd introduced Kaitlin to her first single-action Colt, but the sentiment was the same.
All four of the decoys had their eyes glued to Calypso as she finished removing the gear covering her body, apparently unaware of the excitement she was creating. When she finished, Calypso slid her arms back into the shoulder holster of her Glock 17. “Are we through here?” she said, looking to Kaitlin then, noticing her four newest fans. “Damn! Is it just me, or do you feel like a dish of cream at a cat convention too?”
“Buenas tardes, caballeros.”
Kaitlin turned to see HumanaH standing behind her. She lowered her bike to the ground with the shoulder strap suspension installed on anchor points welded to the frame. It was a handy, quiet way to maneuver a motorcycle if you couldn't ride it for one reason or another. All it required was the ability to lift the 300-pound bike like a suitcase.
HumanaH removed her helmet, revealing sculpted cheekbones and facial features that would blend in with many human cultures. The nii, given some time, could alter their appearance and skin coloration, and HumanaH had lived among humans since the beginning of the 19th century. As she removed her motorcycle gear—all the while watching the four young men with a deliberate consideration that might have held a touch of amusement—every part of her body revealed a light mocha skin that only reverted to the nii vivid red-swirled chocolate at her hips and tail, spilling down her long graceful legs to her feet. Above the waist, no one would have been able to tell she wasn't human without examining her skin under magnification.
When she finished, she bowed to the four captivated young men. “Gracias por su ayuda a la federacion.” she said.
“De nada,” they all replied.
HumanaH glanced at Kaitlin. “I will be back later. Thank you both for getting things warmed up for me.” Her right eyelid flickered.
She turned back to the eager young men. “Caballeros, vamos a conocernos mejor.”
Kaitlin turned. Grabbing Caly's hand, she headed back down the tunnel.
“Did she just wink at you?” whispered Caly.
Kaitlin took her flashlight from the utility pouch on her gunbelt. “That was my distinct impression.”
“Can't we stay and watch?”
“I don't think it would be polite.”
“Pfah! HumanaH wouldn't mind.”
“I wasn't talking about her.”
Caly pouted. “You are such a stick-in-the-mud sometimes.”
∆ ∆ ∆
The air in the tunnel was still, but sounds carried easily from the far end. Kaitlin, alone in the dark, stood in a relaxed balance pose—palms together, the bottom of her right foot resting against the inside of her left thigh. The rising and falling, inarticulate chorus from the four decoys—in appreciation of HumanaH's hospitality—had come to an end some forty minutes ago. Since then, low voices and the sounds of motorbikes being prepared for departure had melded with the nearer whisper of soft moans and sighs from Calypso and the soft rhythm of her body moving in counterpoint to ShwydH's as they shared the dance that exchanged pleasure and sustenance.
Kaitlin inhaled as she pressed her palms tight and raised them together above her head then exhaled as she brought them down in a pressing motion, letting go of tension, pressing it away with her mind as she envisioned it gathered beneath her hands.
The soft susurrus of footfalls as HumanaH returned from the other side caused no interruption of the dance.
Kaitlin let herself continue sinking into the meditation. She felt HumanaH's hands correct her position and smooth away the knots of tension she'd been fighting in her shoulders. The assist pushed her into the state of rest she'd been working toward, and time faded into the dark.
Kaitlin stayed there, aware but unconcerned, as HumanaH dipped filaments into her bloodstream to monitor and adjust or eradicate whatever toxins or germs she found.
HumanaH never took much nourishment from Kaitlin, and ShwydH took none at all. HumanaH said that—at Kaitlin's age and with her high metabolism—she needed every calorie she could get. Instead, Humanah worked to direct nutrients where they needed to go and brought her food Kaitlin would never have considered trying—even after years of hunting and gathering for herself.
The arrangement meant Caly ended up providing most of the supplements for their nourishing their companions. The arrangement worked fine as far as Caly was concerned. Caly seemed to love everything HumanaH and ShwydH brought her to eat. If anything, she’d gained weight, and most of the gain was muscle.
Kaitlin took a final deep breath and lowered her right foot to the ground, leaning back against HumanaH's solid support.
“I brought some protein … roasted rattlesnake, a local delicacy. They say it tastes like chicken.”
“I’m well-acquainted with the dish,” Kaitlin said. “So it's ok for me to eat meat from things ShwydH kills because they're a threat?”
“Of course. No one expects you to live by the nii pledge. You can hunt as well, if we ever have time … as long as you don't use a gun.”
“Why the rule against a gun? Is it considered cheating?”
“We’re trying to stay hidden. Hunting with a gun makes that difficult.”
Kaitlin chuckled and stepped away from her resting place to where the smoky snake meat, sealed in a ziploc bag, sat on top of her backpack. She opened the bag and took a large helping. “Needs hot sauce,” she said, chewing the first bite. “Do you have any of the really hot green sauce you made two days ago?”
“No, Calypso finished it yesterday with the eggs.”
Kaitlin shrugged. “So we’re here until full dark, right?”
HumanaH nodded.
“Then which way?”
“East about 200 kilometers. Our timetable has moved up. We'll be catching a helicopter ride from there.”
Kaitlin nodded and sat next to her pack then stood again. The chance to walk again for a while would be a relief—and not just to her rear end. She hadn't had time to talk much to her companions since they'd been riding. “HumanaH, where were you and ShwydH when the power grid went down?”
“We were already in Arizona guarding Sun Sea from trespassers.”
“Did you make the map of the blindspots on the hill north of the base?”
HumanaH nodded.
Kaitlin grinned.
Another mystery solved.
She moved on. “Another question. I know Tiana and Jonah are certain the EMP attack came from a US military satellite launch, but I'm still having trouble understanding it. Who was responsible, and what did they have to gain? Brian said it was a faction of the Deep State, but I don't get why they would have done it. It seems crazy. Self-defeating. It
damaged their resources.”
HumanaH came to sit next to Kaitlin. “I have the advantage of having been involved in the early moves of that phase of the conflict, so I think I can make it clearer.”
HumanaH put her hand on Kaitlin's leg, causing a tingle as her filaments dipped in to monitor Kaitlin's reactions. Kaitlin knew it was a thing she did to improve communication, so she could know how Kaitlin was reacting to her words.
HumanaH began: “When Tiana awakened from her crèche hibernation during the summer of 2015, she immediately formed a pair-bond with Jonah—who had already been analyzing the manipulations of society by the Deep State. At that time, Jonah was still unsure if the data pointed to deliberate and specific conspiracy or if it was simply many similar parties pursuing a common self-interest. If Jonah and Tiana had never met … things might have been much different. With the resources from the foundation, they soon uncovered evidence that made it clear it was more than coincidence. The manipulation of society was orchestrated.”
