“You don’t know what that is?” Miss Davis asked. Everyone shook their heads slowly. “That is popcorn. It’s a treat. We like to eat it as we watch movies.”
The doctor reached over to Winter’s bucket and took a small handful and stuffed the still-warm kernels into his mouth. He smiled as he savored the salty treat.
“Try some, Winter. Everyone, try some. It is very enjoyable.”
Everyone did as requested, grabbing some with their hands, and cautiously putting a couple pieces into their mouths. They all crunched away, slowly at first, and then they began smiling and looking at the others. It didn’t take long before they all were helping themselves to handfuls of popcorn, chomping away with vigor.
The lights in the theater dimmed, and soon the screen came to life.
“We put this together just for you. It is about the way the world was before the apocalypse, before the Great Cloud.”
The screen showed a sunrise in the distance, and music, unlike any music they had ever heard, before rose to a crescendo then faded slightly as the screen cut to show landscapes of various places on the earth. There was no narration on the movie, but the images told their own story. The Blackhorn watched in awe as the images moved and danced on the screen, and the music carried them along for the ride.
Next were images of animals of the Earth before many became extinct. There were large cats and small rodents. There were great birds flying high above trees, then mountains. There were great fish in endless lakes of water, some as big as ten blackber. There we giant creatures that looked like chideer but much larger. There were large beasts that people were riding as easy as walking, and other great beasts pulling large tools in fields of dirt.
Then the images changed to a small town with pretty houses and the people coming and going, driving automobiles and motorcycles. kDira remarked that the iron carts she’d seen in the Valley of Death and Karn City were much like the ones she was now watching move about in the movie.
“Then the movie took them into a large city with bright lights and buildings that reached into the sky. On the ground, there were thousands of cars trying to move about, and many thousands of people walking on the pathways along the buildings. Suddenly the image changed to an image of a giant bird with fire shooting out of its wings, pointing skyward and rising into the air. Now the view was from within the giant bird, and there were rows and rows of people sitting calmly. The images moved to show the world below, clouds drifting between the earth and their point of view.
Miss Davis looked back at the Blackhorn, each of them seemed to have forgotten about the popcorn, and maybe even forgotten about breathing. They all sat there, mouths agape, eyes fixed unblinkingly at the images they were seeing.
Then, the images took them into the night sky. They could see so many stars clearly that they almost felt as though it had turned night. But then the images turned downward, and they could see the Earth, a giant blue ball, clouds now only wisps of white across the surface of the globe.
Again, the point of view rotated, and they could see a massive structure, floating among the stars. It was not built like any building they had ever seen before, but they could feel the size. They could see a small object getting closer to the structure, and within a short amount of time it mated up with the structure. And then, as the music started to fade, the viewpoint turned back again to the stars then faded out completely.
Then the lights came back on. kDira and her friends sat silently, still in awe over what they had seen. Miss Davis got up out of her seat, turned around and looked at her mesmerized guests.
“Any questions?”
cHAPTER 33
“All those people. There were so many. They are all gone now?”
“Yes, kDira,” the director answered. “Very few of us survived. Some of us hid away underground. Others, like your tribe, managed to survive because of a thin line of breeders that managed to keep the tribes alive.”
“And they could fly in the sky in great birds?”
“That’s right. They were called airplanes. It was done all the time. People didn’t even think twice about it.”
“Amazing. Are there any of those air-things around anymore?”
“Not that we know of. Most likely all were destroyed in the apocalypse. We no longer have the ability to produce the fuels to operate the aircraft, even if we did find one intact. Same for the automobiles, we can’t operate those either, not without gasoline, at least.” The director realized she’d spoken over the Blackhorn heads again by the look of confusion on their faces. “The metal carts. We don’t have the fuel they need to operate.”
“I see,” kDira said. “So why have you all stayed below ground for all these years, and just now decided to meet with us?”
“kDira, we saw that you and your tribe have a lot of potential. The Blackhorn have a larger-than-average amount of fertile females… breeders… and you have a style of leadership that shows that you care about your people. You have brought tribes together; that is a strong quality to have.”
kDira blushed at the compliments. She never really intended to become the leader of the Blackhorn, it had just happened.
“And, we saw that you and your party were in trouble and needed help. We made the decision then and there to introduce ourselves, so-to-speak.”
“We are glad you did. Agis and I will be leaving for Blackhorn tomorrow. Do we have to wait for you to contact us again, or can we come and go freely?”
“We will show you the way to activate the elevators. We have a smaller trolley system that uses a side track that can take two people back and forth almost as fast as the large railcar, but it’s not as comfortable. We will show you how to use that as well.”
“So… what do we do now?”
“Well, it is getting late. Maybe we should turn in. It’s been a busy few days.”
“Turn in?”
“Go to bed. To turn in means to go to bed.”
“Would it not have been just as easy to say go to bed?” Agis asked.
“You are right. It probably would have.”
“Sylys Malak, this is Jasney,” Nonham said, walking a slightly-older girl over to the king. The girl, dressed in a well-worn tan vest and a brown wrap skirt, was taller than the previous girls, well-rounded but heavier set. She had dark brown hair and brown eyes. Her face was well-chiseled but still showing a bit of youthful glow.
“Is she not a bit old?” Malak said from his throne, looking the girl up and down.
“My King, she is but a few years older than you. But she is more experienced; she can show you things that you only dreamed about.”
“I’ve seen her. Doesn’t she have a younger sister?”
Nonham paused and looked at the Jasney. “Yes, Sylys, but Jasney has offered to be with you willingly so that her younger sister, who is only fifteen seasons old, could mature a bit more before trying to please someone as skilled as you.”
“I see, but this one does not excite me.”
Nonham nudged the girl, and she seemed to understand what to do. Jasney opened her vest and pulled it from her shoulders, letting it drop to the floor. She took several steps toward Malak, and crossed her arms in front of her, heaving her breasts upward as she neared him. She bent forward, presenting her cleavage to the king in close proximity to his face.
“Feel anything now, my King?” Jasney whispered.
“Perhaps I could get used to this one. But if she disappoints, I will send for her sister. Maybe the two of them together could do what this one might not. We shall see.”
“Yes, my King,” Nonham said, backing out of the room.
“So, Jasney, show me what you can do.”
kDira and Agis were relaxing in their room, trying to digest all they had seen and learned since they had been guests in the complex. Agis lay on the bed looking at the ceiling and studying the textured pattern of the strange tiles above him. kDira sat in one the comfortable chairs in the room, her head back and her eyes closed.
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“I will be anxious to get back to Blackhorn and tell Charlomine and Star of our adventures,” kDira said. “I miss my girls, but I will certainly miss Winter when we leave.”
“I feel the same. The images of that… movie… keep going through my mind. How did all those people let the entire world die like that?”
“According to Elick, it was a war of the great nations of the world. Things got out of hand, and before anyone could stop it, the damage was done.”
“What a waste it was. All those magic powers… to fly, to zoom around in carts with no animals pulling it, to go up to the stars and see the world as a blue ball, all these things they had, and now, this place is all there is to show for it.”
“Do you think it will ever be what it once was?”
“Not with woodpigs like Malak loose in the world.”
The seriousness of the situation rushed back to kDira. She felt an urgency to get back to her tribe and her other two girls. She didn’t know why, but she felt that while she was enjoying her stay here in the complex, the world outside was growing dark and dangerous.
“I will be glad to get back to Blackhorn tomorrow.”
“Agreed”
Malak rested on his back, looking upward at nothing. He thought about Dahlah and how his future, in his mind, rested upon her coming back and showing him the way to the outsiders. Certainly, he hadn’t beaten her so badly that she died before she could be helped back to health. Surely, she wouldn’t turn on him and not come back. He would have to kill her if he ever caught her if she did disobey him. He cannot have someone disrespecting him like that and living to tell about it. She must die, and painfully. Like that other girl. The one that dropped his chair. I told her to be careful with my chair, he thought to himself. And she broke it. No punishment is too severe for those that do not abide by the King’s wishes. If I could, I would go back and beat her some more. Stupid girl.
His anger began to grow as his eyes came back into focus. He realized he had worked himself up and made a concerted effort to pull back his hateful, hurtful desires. Then he focused his attention on the girl squatting on top of him, working diligently to satisfy him.
“Get off me now. You bore me.”
Winter was busy exploring places in her living quarters that she had yet to explore. She managed to limp around without her crutch, as long as there were furnishings or countertops to steady her. Casey had just retired for the night to her own living space, and Winter was not yet ready to go to sleep. The images from the movie had her mind racing, and she felt the need to rummage around and explore her little part of the complex. Then a knock came at the door.
Winter hobbled to the door and opened it to find the doctor patiently waiting outside.
“Doctor Philantry, what are you doing here so late?”
“I just thought I would come by and look at your foot to see how it is healing.”
“Oh,” Winter said, with a little bit of disappointment. She had discovered she had developed feelings for him in the few days she had known him, and she thought he might have feelings for her also. The formal visit came as a disappointment. “Sure, please come in.”
The doctor helped Winter over into a reclining chair and raised the footrest. He gently picked up her injured foot, removed the boot, and examined his stitch work.
“It’s healing very nicely. Does it still hurt a lot?”
“Not with the pills you gave me, but they make my stomach uneasy.”
“They will do that. In a few more weeks we can try to take this boot off permanently and start trying to get you walking again. But it will be many months… half a season, before you can walk and run like you used to. The Achilles tendon is a bad thing to have severed.”
“What is the Achilles tendon?”
“That is this strip behind your ankle,” the doctor said, gently running his hand along the back of her heel and partway up her leg, “that connects the heel to the back of your leg, here.”
“I see, and it goes all the way up to the back of my knee?” Winter asked, noticing that the doctor’s hand was creeping up further than she thought necessary.
The doctor jerked his hand back. “I’m sorry, Winter. I got carried away.”
Winter grabbed his hand and placed it on her thigh, just above her knee. “You might need to check for other injuries, doctor.”
Doctor Philantry looked up into her eyes and could see desire in her expression.
“Please, call me Aaron,” he said, sliding his hand a little further up her leg, under her loose wrap skirt. “I do not mean to force myself on you.”
Winter grabbed the doctor by the collar and pulled him close to her face.
“If you think you have the ability to force yourself on me, you are mistaken,” she said, a bit of her warrior persona showing through. “You can only do to me what I allow.”
The doctor, taken completely by surprise, showed a bit of fear at Winter’s aggression. “Then, Winter, what do you allow?”
Winter pulled him toward her a few inches more, leaned forward, then kissed him softly on the lips.
cHAPTER 34
The next morning, kDira and Agis, accompanied by Winter, Dahlah, Doctor Philantry, and Director Davis, rode the railcar again to the end of the west tunnel. It was bittersweet for the two Blackhorn, as they would be leaving for a long time to allow others the chance to come down and experience the wonders of the Survivors.
After they exited the car, Miss Davis took them around to the other track to show them how to use the smaller trolleys should they wish to come back and visit on their own. The cars were compact, but there was only enough room for four people to sit in reasonable comfort for the three-hour trip back to the complex. There were four cars in all, and Miss Davis explained that if they meet someone coming at them head-on, they would stop and switch cars, then continue on in the direction they needed to go. This was rare, as the system was not used as much as it had been when the complex was at full capacity.
Then the director led them over to the elevator and instructed them on the use of the elevator. It was pretty basic, with only an up button and a down button. Everyone climbed into the lift, and it carried them to the surface in Lexton. They all exited the elevator, where the director showed them how to activate the doors in Lexton from a switch hidden behind a picture frame.
“It’s really that easy.”
“I guess we will be on our way,” kDira said. “Dahlah, you are welcome to come with us.”
Dahlah, her head hanging low, looked up and smiled. “Thank you, but I would feel safer with the Survivors. They have already helped me sleep better, knowing Malak cannot get me down there.”
“I understand. Winter, you have all my love, take care of yourself.”
“I will, mum. All my love to you and Agis.”
“I will see that she is well taken care of,” the doctor said, holding out his right hand. Agis and kDira looked at his hand and then at each other.
“Sorry,” the doctor said, retracting his hand. “Silly old ritual you are not familiar with.”
“I am pretty sure you understand this tradition,” kDira said, walking over to the doctor and giving him a hug. “If you hurt her,” she whispered into his ear, “I will hunt you down.” She pulled away from him and smiled. The doctor, unsure how to respond, just smiled a nervous smile.
And then she walked to Winter, embraced her firmly, and whispered into her ear, “Do not forget where home is.”
“I will not forget, mum.”
“Then we are off.” Releasing Winter, she turned and headed towards Blackhorn, Agis and Miss Davis following close on her heels. The director would be taking a few more Blackhorn back down to visit the complex, but she had planned on staying for a day to experience life in the Blackhorn village. She hoped it would offer her insight into what these more primitive cultures were like.
The railcar sped back to the main complex. Doctor Philantry and Winter sat together in one of the plush bench s
eats while Dahlah sat across from them looking out the window at the blackness of the tunnel they were speeding through.
“May I ask a question, doctor?” Dahlah asked, slowly turning her head toward the others.
“Of course, what would you like to know?”
“Are there other tunnels? Or is this the only one?”
“Oh. Well, yes, there are many tunnels. This one is the main one. There is a similar one going east towards Karn City, and one to the south as well. The tunnel to the north is not very long at all and has no railcar. The complex is almost directly underneath Midlandia.”
Dahlah’s expression turned to concern.
“Not to worry. We are safe from them ever finding us.”
Dahlah turned once again to watch the darkness go by outside.
“Dahlah,” Winter said, “we are safe down here. You know that, right?”
Dahlah nodded her head, not turning away from the window. The rest of the ride back to the complex was enjoyed in silence.
At about the same time the railcar made it back to the complex, kDira, Agis, and Miss Davis were walking into Blackhorn. Charlomine and Star ran to greet them, as did Ari and several others. They all went to sit at the Town Center to tell stories of all they had seen and heard. Often one of the Blackhorn would look at Miss Davis as if to ask is that true? And she would always nod in affirmation.
“We need to decide who will go back with the director tomorrow. Ari, would you like to go back down and spend some time down there?”
“Yes, Queen Mother, I dearly would.”
“Good. Charlomine and Star, I will take you down with me when I go next, but not this time.”
Charlomine and Star both looked dejected at the idea of having to wait, but they would not argue with their mother. Not in front of others, anyway.
The kDira's World Anthology Page 42
