by Chogan Swan
HumanaH waved her other hand. “Of course the two of them were also in a running fight with the niiaH who had been lurking about for a century, waiting for Tiana to come out of the crèche. But thanks to Jonah, the niiaH bungled their first chance to kill Tiana … though they came close.”
She paused for a few moments, distracted by the memories.
“At any rate, Tiana and Jonah had a lot on their plate with the niaaH, and it kept them from beginning a full-on attack directed at the purely human conspiracy until they—we that is—could wrap up things with that. It took a couple of years. Then, they moved on to working against the human apex parasites.”
“When was that, exactly?” said Kaitlin.
“August 2017.”
“Thank you.”
HumanaH nodded. “They set up disruptive models to counteract incumbent economic systems—models that focused on cooperation and alternative business opportunities. The plan was to set up ways to bypass all monetary input possible into systems controlled by the apex parasites, keeping money out of the stock market and corporate channels. At the same time, they were trying to counter the forces dividing people, dynamics that were being fomented by the power elite. First, they built models that demonstrated workable long-term strategies for dealing with problems and resources. Ayleana and Kest began touring as Nighthawk and Windhover to promote the cooperative nature of the movement.”
“That was in early 2021, right?”
“Correct,” HumanaH agreed. “But that was also when things started to get really ugly. Certain parties among the apex parasites sent assassins to kill Kestrel. We backtracked them and took down the financial empire of the one who had given the order. Then we used his own resources to attack his partners. Shortly thereafter, Nighthawk and Windhover released Fight for the Future. The huge response to the video combined with simultaneous financial devastation to a handful of the elite, caused them to ‘pull up the drawbridges’. Evidently, it seemed to them a full-blown peasant uprising … one that was well-armed and organized with the ability to strike back. The cyber retaliation they'd suffered caused them to panic. Someone in their camp had the brilliant idea to scorch the data web where we had shown overwhelming superiority then blame it on us. With the typical arrogance of aristocracy, they decided to bring down the US power grid to do it. They must have thought all our organization and weapons were US-based and dependent on the grid.”
HumanaH's grim expression revealed the sharp points of her teeth. “They were wrong. The parties damaged most were their own serfs. Our people had support places to fall back to. A few families, like yours I understand, had members far from home when it happened. That required some scrambling on our part.”
Kaitlin nodded. “Yeah. I'm feeling far from home now, too.”
HumanaH regarded her, silently for a few moments. “I know the feeling …”
Kaitlin felt her skin heat up on her neck and face. Considering the distance HumanaH had been from home—for an extremely long time—Kaitlin’s own dislocation seemed comparatively small.
“There are times,” HumanaH said, “when we have to carry home with us. And make families among people we've just met.”
Kaitlin's lips twitched. “So, what else is for lunch, mom?”
“Just finish your snake, dear,” said HumanaH. “I slaved over hot coals for almost a minute to cook it for you. You know there are children in New York who’d love to have snake for lunch.”
CHAPTER 8 – HOMING
Sand whispered from the tread of one’s light boots as they wound with cautious steps through the watercourse that now held occasional puddles. But even more important than water were the scattered trees providing overhead cover from satellite and drone surveillance in the pre-dawn darkness. The mylar blanket one had traded for sex four days ago rustled gently across one’s shoulders. It helped to obscure the heat output that one already controlled with Riniana Tiana's training as a nii infantry scout. With Tiana’s training, one could scatter heat from with periodic spurts while passing through areas with rocks still warm from yesterday's sun.
It had amused one when the youngest of a group of three men encountered in a tiny, nearly abandoned, town had offered the blanket and some dried meat if one would relieve his sexual tension. One had accepted the blanket, but declined the meat, still holding to nii strictures. It was just easier to get along with the Riniana Tiana side of one’s mind. And—so far—finding enough high-quality protein and calories to satisfy one’s requirements had been no trouble, especially when human males were willing to part with it and shower one with gifts in the bargain.
ShwydH had shared sexual pleasure with human females during his experiments building a human team for his struggle to be free of DuGwaedH's leash. But one hadn’t yet dabbled with sexual pleasure across species lines since inhabiting a female body.
HumanaH's speculation about how the bond of sexual attraction had formed between Tiana and Jonah had indicated caution would be wise. And evidently, finding a human with the required length of sexual equipment was rare. So far, the opportunity had yet to present itself.
But the pleasure derived from subsuming inside the life canal was strong even away from the pleasure nodes, and each night, dreams added to the memories from Riniana Tiana's sexual history.
The memories were totally unlike ShwydH's experience among the niiaH.
Whether female or male, the niiaH custom was only to take pleasure. Giving it on purpose would have been a sign of weakness.
Though male and female niiaH came together for sex consensually at times, the actual mating was like two parties trying to rape each other simultaneously, both focused on their own pleasure.
The first time HumanaH had come to SwydH's bed, she’d made it clear right away that such behavior was unacceptable. After giving him some practical coaching on several occasions, she allowed as how there might be some hope for him as a sex partner. For himself, ShwydH had never imagined the heights of pleasure possible between two cooperating parties until HumanaH.
It gave one the perspective of both sides.
One paused to judge the terrain ahead. It would be difficult to reach the tree line ahead before dawn. An overhanging ledge just passed would be a suitable location to spend the day. One took a long drink from the canteen then refilled it from a nearby pool among the rocks before turning back toward the ledge.
As one slipped through the shadows toward the ledge, an odor that had been hovering in the distance since dusk slid closer on a trailing breeze.
Two men on dirt bikes and a dog.
What's more, the dog was a Malinois like Jonah's dog, Bandit.
A Belgian Malinois was a smart, active dog with a very sensitive nose. They were popular with the US military. One turned back, picking up the pace. No time to rest now. Chances were just too good it was the military on one’s track.
The last his ShwydH memories could recall, the US military forces had been concentrating around the areas with a high Native American population.
One scrambled out of the creek bed then froze, thinking. If it were the military, it would be more than one team. They might be using drones to spot and leap frog each other. One needed to slow the dog. Tiana the infantry scout had some tricks that might help.
Spotting a mesquite thicket, one set a springing trap with a thorn treated with a knockout compound. It had to be fast and impossible to detect. One only hoped the theory translated to the materials at hand. It wasn't as if one had time to practice.
When the sprint to the treeline began, the sky to the east was entirely too light for one’s comfort. One folded the Mylar cloak into a tiny bundle and shoved it into the pack. At this speed, the shadow it cast would only make one’s progress easier to spot. Instead, one focused on the ground ahead and adjusted the heat signature from one’s body to match the best one could. It wasn't easy at this level of exertion; the heat from the calories burning wanted to go somewhere. Luckily, there was plenty of fluid in one’s system fo
r cooling, and the desert pre-dawn chill meant the air was cooler than the terrain.
One’s body was performing well, it had responded to the last seven days of strenuous exercise and strong food. Matching body heat to the surroundings was possible … barely.
When one slid into cover on the edge of the rocky slope a hundred meters above and half a kilometer away from where one had set the trap, the sun had just peeked over the eastern horizon. With the sun backlighting everything one wanted to see, it wasn't a perfect set up for observing, but it would have to do.
The muffled snarl of the dirt bikes working through the creek bed drifted up the side of the hill. One laid the canvas food bag full of pine nuts and green cholla buds on the rock and placed the barrel of the BAR on it. The scope on the BAR was something HumanaH must have had custom made, possibly with her own hands. The optics and design were far ahead of any of the best human-made scopes of the 1920s. It even had a reticle design that made setting up a shot out to 600 meters straightforward. One only wished there’d been a chance to practice since coming out of the crèche. The only use the scope had seen so far was for spotting.
One brought the focus clear on the trap set for the dog. A few minutes later, the Malinois trotted into view and followed the trail right into the springing thorn. One could see the dog recoil as the trap snapped into its side, and the sound of the far-off yip of pain followed 1.5 seconds later. The Malinois was already sprawled in an unmoving heap by the time the sound reached one’s ears.
The bikes came into view, and one of the two soldiers rushed to check on the dog. One wished there’d been time to set follow-up traps for the humans. The idea that they might rush into an obvious trap had not even occurred.
It made one think better of their character, but less of their intelligence. ShwydH had also had a soft spot for Jonah's dog. Bandit didn't seem to care that ShwydH was an evil niiaH tyrant. So one targeted the drone strapped in front of the bike rather than the soldier who'd just rushed into danger to rescue the dog.
One lined up the shot, making sure the rifle was on single-fire. At the moment, the air was still. It was possible the shot could take out the gas tank and damage the engine after passing through the drone. The trigger travel was flawlessly smooth; the shot was away, and a follow-up shot following it before the soldiers had reacted to the first one. Both soldiers took cover an instant after the drone exploded in a shower of plastic splinters. The other bike also had a drone strapped in plain view, and one sent another pair of shots downhill in search of it as well. The resulting shower of plastic, followed by the gas tank blossoming into flames, was extremely satisfying. It was obvious someone had taken the time to get the scope zeroed in.
One picked up the four spent shells and dropped them into a pocket. The rifle slid into place with the strap across one’s chest. The trackers might be operating without air cover, but one couldn’t count on that. One needed to be far away and under cover before a backup chopper could arrive. But the forest was much thicker here. As long as the overhead cover was available—one could run.
∆ ∆ ∆
The moonless sky above Phoenix was a star-spangled glory. One had heard from civilians in the area that the military presence in the city had a modest flow of electric power routed here from Havasu Dam. But the blackout procedures in force kept the windows from competing with the night sky.
One kept up the steady fifteen KPH trot, staying below the trees near the Gila River. The whirring sound of a drone caused one to pause beneath a rare cottonwood tree and focus on matching heat output to the surroundings.
Most of the overhead cover still consisted of the invasive tamarisk trees, but before the failure of the power grid, some progress had been made in eradicating the Asian invader by introducing tamarisk beetles and cut and replace programs.
With the current situation being what it was, the tamarisk population would recover. HumanaH had pointed out the dynamic to ShwydH when the two of them had scouted the area north of Sun Sea Farm. As one recalled, ShwydH hadn't been concerned about the trees at the time. He'd still been processing his own shortened lifespan. One couldn't really blame him. ShwydH wouldn't be leaving behind any descendants to suffer, and odds were good that humans would probably wipe themselves out in the next couple of centuries anyway.
One might not like what the tamarisk trees were doing to the watershed—salting and changing the ph of the soil—but cover was cover, and at this rate, one would be in Yuma in two days.
The increased human population along the river had made it easier to travel, blending in with the locals during the day and running after sun down. Even with living conditions thrown back 200 years, plenty of men would still choose sex over food. One smiled. As the nii body responded to nutrition and exercise, the distance one could travel in a day had increased dramatically.
∆ ∆ ∆
The crossing into Mexico at Yuma was almost a non-event. On the US side, Yuma was deserted. The day was hot, and everyone had either fled the town for cooler climate or somehow gotten into Mexico. There was a small staff at the border on the Mexican side, but the US side—all without power—had been abandoned.
One took off all concealing clothing and walked up to the border with hands raised then turned a full circle, to display one’s tail. When the border guards approached, one requested they call the Nii Federation embassy. Without cooperation from the Mexican side, crossing the hundreds of kilometers of sand north of the Gulf of California would have been impossible for a human. One could have done it, but didn't really see any advantage to the exercise. Even north of the border, news traveled, and now it was well-known near the border that the aliens had landed.
After a short phone conversation between the guards, someone on the embassy staff transferred the call to Jonah. One spoke with Jonah who asked a few questions in Nii. Then he spoke to the border guards again. One could overhear his assurances that a chopper would be dispatched with a valid passport to relieve them of the burden of protecting or transporting the ambajadora's sister to Puerto Peñasco.
One passed a pleasant hour in the shade chatting with the guards. One of them had done research on local foods that nii could eat and called a local restaurant to order a platter of vegetables.
The guards had assured one that many of Yuma citizens had been offered work visas within Mexico. ShwydH had paid little attention to international politics, but it seemed Mexico now had many projects underway that needed workers. They weren't hoarding the jobs for their own citizens either. Mexico understood the benefits of immigration. They repatriated nearly a thousand a week who were still trickling back from the US, and now they were accepting refugees as quickly as they could find jobs for them.
Since they’d been conversing in Spanish, the staff had all been addressing one as Senora Una. In response, one decided on using the Hispanic article as a name going forward. It was time for a less confusing name.
In one’s head, Tiana the infantry scout personality spoke up….
Your body is obviously female, so own it. There's no point in fighting it. Today, you are female, a young female. That doesn’t change who you are; only time and how you choose to spend it does that.
Una shrugged. It was true enough. After she examined both memory tracks, she couldn’t find any evidence to the contrary.
∆ ∆ ∆
Una was still sampling from the platter when the soft rustle of distant helicopter rotors announced that the embassy's stealth Bell chopper was incoming. She ignored the sound until the guards announced that her transportation had arrived. She needed to make sure she remembered her back-story. Since HumanaH had said she’d told no one that she’d updated the crèche memories, she’d need to play along to avoid discrepancies.
First helicopter flight 1939. Check.
When the chopper settled on the tarmac and Jonah got out, Una picked up her pack, slung the BAR across her shoulder and walked toward him. She adjusted the strap where it chafed her left nipple then reached
out to shake Jonah's hand.
“Buenas Tardes, senor. “Mi nombre es Una.”
Jonah shook her hand with a smile. “Una? Like Una Persson from the Michael Moorcock science fiction books?”
Una shook her head. “I'm sorry. When I woke, the last year I remembered was 1927. I can tell you that the model-A Ford was the bee's knees, though.”
“Of course. I'm sure Tiana would have loved to be here to meet you, but she's in Switzerland addressing the United Nations General Assembly this afternoon.”
“Is that what they call the League of Nations now?”
