Fianna Kelly Versus the Jeebees: A Collection of Steampunk Stories (18 page)

I
sat down by Eric, smoothed out my skirt, and placed his head on my lap. When I
felt him stirring, I bent over and kissed him.

"Doesn't
the story go that the handsome prince kissed the beautiful princess to awaken
her from her forced slumber?"

"Sometimes
the stories get it wrong," I replied. "I was overconfident and I'm
sorry you were shot."

"It's
not all your fault. After hearing the tales from the soldiers, I figured that
seven jeebees were merely target practice."

"Could
you drag the one below us outside so Bradan can bury it and bring back
something to tie this one up with?"

"I
have the worst headache ever. Can it wait a few minutes?"

"They
aren't getting up and walking away. I can promise you that."

"I
know you detest them, but you sound more upset than usual."

"Would
you be upset if I was shot and fell at your feet?"

"Without
a doubt I would be angry enough to rend one apart limb from limb from limb with
my bare hands."

"I
love you too," I said.

If
it had been some other time and place, I would have enjoyed this closeness, but
I had to keep my eyes on the jeebee. A few minutes later Eric got up, careful
not to get between me and the live jeebee. He brought back some heavy chains
and bound it so it could not move.

Bradan
was burying the dead ones, but the wind was blowing in the wrong direction. I
hurried off as far as I could manage, hoping it was far enough that Eric did
not see me. I used my skirts to clean off again before coming back. In that
short time, Eric had chosen a large tree and chained the jeebee to it.

"What
was that about?" he asked.

"It
all about the jeebees. Seeing them close up makes me nauseous. The reek of a
dead one upsets me so much that I cannot keep my lunch inside of me. I prefer
to shoot them when they are far away. Bradan has his own reasons for burying
them and I'm thankful that he does."

"If
they make you sick with every encounter, why do you hunt them?"

I
said, "I feel that I have to. It has to be done and I don't know of anyone
else."

"I
won't say that I understand, but I would like to help you regardless."

"It
would be for the best if you questioned it here. If we take it back on the next
train, people will see it and ask embarrassing questions."

"And
when I finish, you will kill it and let your automaton bury it with the
rest?"

"I
will and without the slightest hesitation... If you don't mind, I'd like to sit
upwind of it."

I
found a nice spot where I could neither see nor smell it while Eric had his
conversation.

Eric
walked over to me and said, "It told me to send my officer over. Seeing as
there are only two of us, that must be you."

Begrudgingly,
I went over to it. I gave it another kick in a leg because I felt like it.

I
asked it. "Why won't you talk with him?"

It
said, "It is a waste of time to talk with Lowers. They have no minds of
their own."

I
had to think fast. My next question could determine their opinion of us. It
might have gotten the impression that men were inferior to women. Perhaps it
concluded that I was royalty and Eric was common. I decided not to contradict
it, but let it tell me why it thought the way it did.

I
asked, "How did you determine he was a Lower?"

It
said, "You tried to fool us by covering your Lowers, but we are smarter
than that. Just like us, you provide your Lowers with weapons inferior than
your own. You send them out into battle in advance of yourself. We could also
tell you were an officer like myself by your appearance."

So
he considered me to be his equal. We were like two generals from opposing
armies. If I was careful with this conversation, I could learn much about them
while continuing their misconceptions about us.

"I
see I have not fooled you in the slightest... What were you doing here?"

"Why
do you ask questions that you already know the answers?"

"I
need to see if you will answer my questions truthfully."

"Only
those I choose."

"Are
there more of you in this country?"

"Sadly,
I am the last officer here."

"Do
you have more Lowers here?"

"I
only grew one batch. You ruined them."

"I've
noticed most raids are one batch. Are they easier for you to control?"

"You
have seen the more Lowers we control, the less we can get them to do. We have
seen that you have exceptional control over your Lowers. You seem able to
control as few as one to as many as fifty with equal skill."

I
was trying to figure them out. It must think that we were almost like them.
Since I looked different from the soldiers, I had to be an officer and they had
to be my servants.

"Do
you know how many of your kind I have killed?"

"Yes,
you have killed two of us."

"Are
you sure of that number?"

"Yes,
we sense each other."

"What
were those two that I first encountered. They looked like Lowers, but thought
for themselves."

"That
is what we call them: Lowers that think. They occur when two grow near each
other. We send them away from the rest."

I
asked, "Do you know how many Lowers I have killed?"

"They
do not matter. We can grow many more."

"Let's
get to the important questions. Where do you come from?"

"That
does not matter. We are the last and we cannot return there."

"How
many more of you are on my world?"

It
was silent.

"What
do you do with those you abduct?"

It
stayed silent.

"It
appears the only questions you'll answer are those I know the answer to. What
do you think I'll do to you if you don't answer my questions?"

It
said, "You will kill me like you did my two fellow officers."

"Do
you want to die?"

"No."

"Then
tell me what I want to know. I am going to walk away for a moment to give you
time to think. Perhaps you'll be more talkative when I return."

I
walked over to Eric. He said, "I'm not sure what you were
discussing."

"That's
because you are only my mindless drone. It thinks you are like the six jeebees
that we shot."

"Why
would it think that?"

"Because
it can see who is giving the orders and who is following them. Now be a good
servant and reload my pistol while I think of more questions that it might
answer."

We
returned to it and I resumed my questions. "I will not enjoy seeing you
suffer. Tell me how to kill you quickly so it does not hurt."

It
was silent. It knew I was asking for a vulnerable spot.

"Will
the other officers feel your suffering?"

"No,
they have deserted me. I am less than a Lower now."

"How
long does it take you to grow one of your Lowers?"

It
was silent again. I was doing this the wrong way. I took off its helmet.
"If you are less than a Lower, you do not deserve this."

It
screamed and yelled and made strange noises that I could not understand. I
shouted over its wailing, "If you want to die wearing this, then answer my
questions!"

It
said, "I cannot answer your questions. I want to very much so you will
kill me with my helmet on. The others have taken my memories. I no longer know
the answers you seek. Please give back to me what is mine."

"Why
should I do this for you? You can't give me what is mine. Your kind has taken
my kind."

"It
does not matter to you how I die; just that I do. It matters to me that I am
not seen as a Lower when I go before my god."

"If
your god is the same as my God, he will see beyond your coverings and send your
soul to Hell. If it makes you feel better, I will allow you to be buried
wearing your helmet."

"You
are a merciful being."

Eric
handed my pistol to me and I shot it like I had the first of their officers. He
said, "I shouldn't have asked you to spare it and you shouldn't have had
to talk to it."

I
said, "I feel like I did something wrong, but it knew that I was going to
kill it." I tossed its helmet at its feet so Bradan could bury them
together. About an hour later, we flagged down the next train and returned to
Amsterdam.

Today
we were going to take one of the longest train routes out from Amsterdam and
back. I sought to blend in with the women who lived here and planned my dress
accordingly. When I arrived at the castle, Major Meyers was astonished by the
way I looked.

He
said, "Eric is expected back shortly. Sit quietly over there and don't let
him see your face. We shall see if he can recognise you."

As
usual, when one is waiting for another, the time goes by very slowly. The Major
had work to occupy his time, but I had none. My Mother would quietly knit in these
situations, but I found knitting tedious and repetitive. Eric came striding in,
obviously pleased about something. He just glanced in my direction and
continued to where he usually sat.

Eric
asked, "Who is that you have waiting?"

The
Major replied, "She is a good friend; a comrade in arms if you get my
meaning."

"Ah.
I believe I have said before that you have a good eye when it come to the
fairer sex."

"Yes,
you have. I think this one has eyes for you instead of me."

I
could see out of the corner of my eye that he was taking another look at me. He
said, "Though she is quite attractive, my eye is on another."

"Are
you speaking of that young Irish woman? I have heard stories being passed
around this morning of you two dancing late into the night. "

"Yes,
Fianna is the one I speak of. Have you seen her this morning?"

The
Major said, "You are a lucky man; twice so today."

I
turned toward him and said, "And to think that yesterday I was
unforgettable. The Major has seen me today, and like you, he approves of my
appearance."

Eric
turned a deep shade of red. "Were you two working together?" he
asked?

"He
directed me to sit quietly and shield my face from you. Had I known his plans,
I would have been a willing accomplice though."

He
said, "I knew it was you all along."

"'Tis
good for you or I might become jealous of myself; that you prefer me more today
compared to me yesterday."

"There
are some qualities of you today that are desirable. Especially if the basket
you carry contains a pie."

I
laughed. "You have talked to my cousin and learned how to make me laugh,
haven't you?"

"I
admit only to paying attention to the way you two talk, not to taking him into
a secluded area and asking about you at length."

"There
is a pie in this basket and we should make haste to the railway station so we
will be at our destination by lunchtime. Otherwise, you must wait until dinner
for it... If the jeebee was not truthful with us, God only knows when we will
share it."

I
tried to run out to the wagon and found that wooden shoes were awkward to run
in. They kept sliding around. Eric laughed at me and said, "We normally
wear two or more pairs of thick socks with those. I'd also be careful about how
you step. It is not uncommon for wooden shoes to shatter if abused and they
frequently do during klompen dances."

We
boarded our train and I was thankful I was with someone who spoke the local
language. Around the exhibition everything was printed in multiple ones and
most people, if not fluent in English, spoke enough to get their meaning across.

I
cannot say if it was good or bad luck that we did not locate any jeebees today.
I can say it was a pleasant ride, a relaxing lunch, and a nice return trip. The
highlight of the day being that I finally was given a tour of a working
windmill. This particular one was turning grain into flour. At Eric's
suggestion, the miller showed me how everything connected from the sails down
to the grindstone. I was as fascinated as a little girl and Eric just smiled
while watching me.

While
walking me back to the guest house, Eric said, "I believe the jeebee was
telling us the truth and it was the last one in my country."

I
said, "It might be a good idea to talk with the people at your defence
posts more often lest they sneak into one again."

"I
was thinking of something similar, but more extensive."

"How
extensive?" I asked.

"There
is a new device being shown at the exhibition called a telephone. People can
talk with each other at any time and any distance."

"I
haven't seen that yet and you have made me curious." I stood in one spot
staring at him while swinging my dress back and forth. It took him some time
before he understood.

He
asked, "Would you like to accompany me to the exhibition tomorrow and see
this marvellous invention?"

I
replied, "'Tis so kind of you to ask. I would love that."

"Shall
we say eleven o'clock?"

I
asked, "Eleven is wonderful... Did you invite the Dutch-looking woman or
the Irish one?"

"I
believe I invited both and I will surely be perplexed if they are both waiting
for me in the morning."

"I
promise you that come tomorrow, I will be unforgettable again.