BEYOND THE PALE: ( The Outlander ) (32 page)

River and Isa both
looked on transfixed by a growing sense of disbelief. Isa felt trapped and
desperately searched the scene for an exit option. River on the other hand was
lost deep in thought. He wondered if there was some measure of collusion and
co-operation between the two cultures. But on closer observation he noticed how
the sauroids appeared in charge. Even those men and women below wearing the
markings of governmental responsibility seemed subservient to the sauroid
lizard featured men. He considered the hundreds of encapsulated humanoids
immersed in the tubes of fluid, which they had seen in the viewing chamber.
Perhaps these men mingling with the sauroids below them were not even real
humans but some kind of hybrids bred in those tubes. The thought crossed his
mind that the whole power structure of the elite in the Metropolis was being
directed from here. Maybe it was like a tier structure of a pyramid, except
inverted. He realised that these entities and hybrids down here were the elite
that managed their controlled closed world above ground.

The strangest thing was
that at the precise moment that River had this lucid realisation, one of the
lizard-men immediately looked up. This sauroid who was in the company of some
important looking patrons of New Denver, appeared to be aware of River’s
thoughts up above. It had locked his attention on River alone who felt a spine
tingling sensation as if he was being mentally scanned and searched. The
feeling was familiar to River and he wondered if he was being probed by the
same entity that had invaded his mind before. The sauroid then turned and
gestured to another, who in turn seemed to authorise a militarised response. A
number of human looking guards along with a smaller number of sauroids appeared
from an obscured entrance and were running to take a form of travelator to the
mezzanine floor. River and Isa decided that their best option was to run. They
ran back to the steps, and back down to the passage way that they had recently
left, and then continued to run along its path. With Isa on point, they ran
fast and for a long time mustering all their endurance. They followed the
continuous path of passageway until they came across options. Then every turn
or junction they came across they would take blindly hoping that it might lead
them somewhere that made sense to them. They were not even sure whether they were
still being chased. Eventually one particular turn took them to a space that
seemed friendlier. It was a smaller annex that had familiar walls of rock
rather than ceramic. They ran as far as they could and stooped down to pass
through a low section which then opened out in to the more familiar environment
of an underground cave. There were stalactites hanging down from the ceiling
and a still plunge pool near the cave wall which they jumped into in order to
hide. They were both breathless from exhaustion but alert with fear. As he
crouched at the side of the cave pool and tried to catch his breath, River
started feeling that same spine tingling sensation that warned him that the
sauroid was remotely seeking him and searching his mind for clues as to his
whereabouts. He felt a growing sense of panic and fear overcoming him, but it
seemed like his fear and adrenalin were being stimulated intentionally by the
sauroid who was using his fear to track him. He realised that there was little
point in hiding if his mind could be read, and he warned Isa that their
pursuers would soon know where they were, and that the game was probably up for
them.

Isa had other ideas and
implored his brother, “River; find your animal spirit. It will disguise and
protect you. Quickly! I will become the coyote.” He then began slipping into an
alpha trance state. River soon realised that Isa’s spirit was no longer there.
He knew that in his mind, Isa was now a coyote wandering the lowlands up above
to the west of New Denver. River adopted a similar mind set and soon began
slipping into his own trance state as he imagined himself a river otter. The
otter was an animal that he strongly related to and it felt natural to assume
its identity. The feeling of his mind being remotely scanned slowly faded away.
It was replaced by an instinctive desire to explore his locality. In his remote
imaginative state, he swam along the floor of the cave pool searching for an
exit which he found in a narrow submerged channel which he swam down. It was
long and narrow but he had amazing lungs to last the distance. Then he swam up
and found himself in a small underground cavern. There were underground streams
and waterways running in different directions but his super sense of smell knew
which one would lead to an exit above ground. He scampered across the bedrock
floor but felt at home in the water and swam rapidly for many miles and with
easy agility through a set of shallow underground streams, then climbed rocky
slopes until he found more waterways leading him always in the direction of the
early evening fresh air.

River opened his eyes,
and shook Isa once to bring him back to a full state of consciousness. The mind
link was broken, they had evaded capture and now he knew the way out. This time
he told Isa to follow him, and he took some very deep breaths to oxygenate his
lungs and swam to the bottom of the shallow pool and found and swam into the
submerged channel. He looked back to confirm that Isa was following him.

On the anniversary of
the day that he entered the tunnels and left behind the metropolis of New
Denver, River visited Lizard Ridge on his own. He had brought a horse along
this time as long distance running had lost its appeal for him since his days
inside the citadel. He had also come here without Isa knowing, because there
was the possibility that Nathan would join him. He wondered if Nathan had
remembered his pledge to meet him here, a year from the day that they last
parted. He hoped he would come; he missed his old friend and looked forward to
the possibility of spending some quality time with him. Strangely as the time
passed, he realised that he missed many of the people and friends that he had
come to know in the citadel; but much of his affection for life in the
metropolis had disappeared. Isa was right; He was not meant to live there. He
would have become someone different; a twisted contorted version of his true
self. He also knew that he would never have left New Denver as long as his son
and her mother lived there. However if he could have returned, he would have.
The problem was that the only feasible way back in was through the ‘twisted’
underground complex that he and his brother had narrowly escaped from. Of
course he knew how Isa had managed to trick the Rangers into opening a Tunnel
escape hatch. But in truth he knew that he could not similarly succeed at
obtaining entry into the tunnels undetected. He just didn’t have Isa’s stealth,
and nor could he ask Isa to help him gain entry because Isa would only refuse.
No one at Avana was willing to countenance him going back into the Blue Horse
City. He had to accept his loss and realise that he was probably repeating the
karmic odyssey of his own birth father Eli whom also had to leave his young family
behind.

River sat in a
ponderous mood stirring a pot of stew he was cooking on the heat of a fire
which he had built in the same large cave where Ishtur had cooked before for
Nathan, himself and the others. He had rummaged around in the dark recesses at
the rear of the cave and he had found the litters which Isa had made which had
served as beds too. Not only that but the suede and furs had also been left
behind. He was carrying a full load to set up near the wide mouth of the cave
when he first heard the unmistakable sound of a catalytic repel drive powering
down. He almost stumbled and dropped his bulky load in excitement; Nathan had
come. He stumbled forward looking for a clean spot to drop the hides and
bedding; however wherever they landed when he discarded them, mattered not one
iota to him. The only thing which mattered was the silhouette of Audrina
holding his six month old son appearing against the bright backdrop of the
cave’s entrance. He never imagined that he would get to see them again, but he
had wished for it so badly, and events are born out of a well of desire. As he
ran to hold them both, he caught a glimpse of both Nathan and Anton waiting
patiently outside. They saw River too, but held back awhile wanting to allow
them some private time together.

“How long are you
staying?” was the first question to which River needed an answer.

“A lifetime” she
replied.

It was a perfect day
for a family outing and picnic. They hadn’t travelled very far, maybe less than
five miles to a beautiful meadow next to a river. It was only a small tributary
and quite easy to ford across. The source of the tributary was a nearby small
lake which was really just a large plunge pool at the base of a waterfall.
Audrina had travelled there on a pony & trap. Isa had built this for her as
a present to honour the birth of her daughter who was now a few months old.
They had sat in comfort as the pony trotted to this location. River, Isa and
Hassun had run along side and enjoyed the exercise on this pleasant day. Their
respective families were already setting up the picnic site at a designated
spot near the plunge pool. River had taken Audrina here once before and it had
amused her greatly. It was practically the same environment in which she caught
out River cavorting with her topless avatar in Anton’s virtual simulator all
those years ago. They had re-enacted the scene then, and she thought that he
might even get to see her topless here again today, but it would more likely be
due to her breastfeeding her little princess Sira. Her sweet boy Ethan was here
already and was probably with one of his grandmothers. Her mother doted on him
now that she had grown out of her contempt for River. As this was only her
second visit to Avana, she was very possessive of her grandson’s company but
perhaps that would change now that she had a granddaughter.

Her father Nathan was
here too and Audrina was excited at the prospect of seeing him. As usual, he
chose not to visit or stay at Avana. He didn’t totally trust the stealth
programmes that Anton had programmed to camouflage his visits. He was still a
Major in the CPS, but he had since been removed from the organised crime
department. He didn’t want to compromise his daughter or Avana, so he had
camped here all of yesterday while Anton and his mother visited and stayed the
night in Avana. Audrina knew that her father loved camping, and this was such
an idyllic spot.

Tonight he was going to
have some company; a lot of it. Some of the tepees and tents were already going
up. Everyone was staying here tonight, and the naming ceremony would be held
here for his benefit. Little Ethan who was three years old was going to be
given his Hopi name. This was years ahead of usual practice, but the boy was
quite precocious anyway and recently had exhibited some extraordinary
tendencies and abilities. She was his mother and so she naturally felt that he
was special, but she felt that for the most part, the older indigenous Hopi and
their fellow tribesmen were a bit superstitious and had made up their mind that
he was different, and were now seeking to find examples of extraordinary feats.
They had already picked out a Hopi name which they wanted to bestow. It was
‘Sikhchic’ which meant seed of hope. They could call him that if they wanted, but
River felt the same way as she did and they were determined to continue using
Ethan as his name.

 When Nathan saw his
daughter arrive he ran over to meet her and almost lifted her and Sira up in
his warmest embrace. Putting her back down on the ground he remarked how she
looked like a queen swaddling her newborn whilst her warriors ran beside her
chariot. The image appealed to Audrina, and she told River and Isa that they
were going to be running beside the pony trap on the way back too.

Everybody was in fine
form. Yesterday had been a day for reunions, and today was a day for
celebration and party. River didn’t forget that it was really Ethan’s day and
he looked around for him. He had a surprise for him. His search was not that
difficult. He found him with Valerie who had him sitting on her lap whilst she
talked with Ishtur.

River didn’t want to
take Ethan away from his grandmother’s firm grip, so he invited Valerie to take
a walk with him. He suggested that they take a walk up to the hollow tree. It was
just an old tree stump near the base of the waterfall. The tree had been cut
down a long time ago, and so many years of water spray had rotted the inside of
the tall stump away. Now it was completely hollow and ever since he was a child
there had been a tradition of writing a wish on a piece of parchment or fabric
and binding it to some feathers and dropping it down the hollow. They called it
a wish arrow. For those children too young to write, they only had to draw a
pattern or a picture; it was the wish that was important.

River had come prepared
with some parchment, a crayon and even some feathers. Whilst they waited for
Ethan to draw something on the parchment which his father had set down on a
hard flat surface, Valerie enquired about the name change and what was Ethan
supposed to have done to warrant it.

“Nothing that can be
substantiated Valerie; it is just native superstitions and folklore. Isuzu is
convinced that Ethan is a horse whisperer. He says that horses act differently
around him. Toby has been teaching him to paint, and he says that when he asked
Ethan to explain a picture he had drawn of himself and his family under what
looked like a rainbow, Ethan told him that it wasn’t a rainbow but it was an
invisible protection which he was holding over us. Then my brother Isa is
convinced that he can cloud bust. Recently he brought Ethan along with him
fishing on a small lake. However the weather changed abruptly, and a strong
wind picked up, and hailstones lashed down. Isa said he was scared for Ethan’s
sake and was stressed out trying to paddle the boat to shore. He said then the
storm abruptly ended and Isa became convinced that Ethan had broken up the
storm cloud by staring at it.”

“Maybe it is simply one
tall story inspiring the next,” said Valerie astutely, and then looking towards
her grandson, “What has he drawn down there?”

“It looks like a Hopi
symbol,” said River checking his son’s work, “I will ask Geren; he probably
copied it from him anyway.”

River wrapped the
parchment around three long feathers and bound them with string, and then gave
the completed wish arrow to his son. Telling Ethan to hold on to it tightly, he
lifted him up so that he would have access to the tree hollow.

“Now hold it right in
the middle and make a wish Ethan, and then let the feathers go. When we see it
drop below, we know the wish will come true.”

Ethan let go of the
wish arrow, and both father and son both watched it fall. To there
disappointment, the loaded feathers coasted to the side and got stuck on a ridge
on the inside of the tree hollow. Ethan immediately started to cry, and River
kept reassuring him that he would get the feathers back and that they would do
it again. As Valerie held on to Ethan, River stretched his arm down the hollow
to its maximum extent, but the wish arrow remained out of reach. Ethan was
crying uncontrollably now, and Valerie had to crouch down near the base of the
tree and hug her grandson around his waist in a vain attempt to console him.
Meanwhile River had left the tree, and was manically searching around for some
more feathers to make a second wish arrow when he heard Valerie scream.
Startled himself by her outcry, he asked her if she was alright, but she said
nothing. Her pallor was pale and she was obviously in shock, so he ran over to
her and bent down to put a comforting arm around his mother in law and his son.
As he reached around to hug his son, he saw that Ethan was clutching the wish
arrow. Ethan would not let go of it, and was not content until his father had
held him up over the hollow and allowed him to drop it again. This time they
watched it course downwards in a straight path.

As they walked back to
the campsite, Ethan was once again his happy self. River was profoundly shocked
by what had just happened and he led them in a direct path to speak with his
uncle.

Geren listened to
Valerie explain how she had seen Ethan pass his hand through the tree as if it
was a hologram, and pull it back out clutching the wish arrow. Whilst those
present tried to overcome disbelief, Geren had provided Ethan with a small
stick and asked him to trace out the symbol he had drawn on the wish arrow
again, but this time on the ground. As the young boy slowly marked out the
symbol in the dusty topsoil, River confirmed it to be the same. Geren looked at
it knowingly as he recognised its meaning. 

“It is a very old Hopi
symbol which I haven’t seen for many years.”

“What does it mean?”
said River with fascination.

“It has no modern
translation. It refers to a time when the whole tribe was forced to travel; to
leave and move on to new pastures. It is something more like a migration or an
exodus.”

Then Geren turned to
Ethan and asked him what he had wished for. Ethan told his great uncle, that he
had wished to visit his other grandfather who lived in the blue horse city. The
adults were all stunned. They all assumed that he meant River’s father Eli, but
Geren simply asked Ethan, “Why?”

Ethan replied that his
grandfather needed to leave the blue horse city with him, and to also bring
along his friends.

River looked at his son
and wondered how he even knew, or why he cared about people that he had never
known, the preacher Eli and his congregation. He realised that his son was
prescient though, and he imagined that one day they would be travelling back to
New Denver together to help make a wish come true.

The
End