“No. Your shoes would never hold up there. I’m
surprised they still stick to your feet.” Edward then pulled a book out of the
bag and sat down. With nothing else to do, I rolled over and daydreamed.
The ship ride was interesting. I had never been on a ship; Mother was
sure I would fall off. Edward and Divina decided to take turns babysitting me
in our little compartment to avoid any unnecessary problems with language.
As there were only three languages on Duran, none of
which were anything like English, Edward suggested I played mute. They both
argued over whether or not I should play deaf or mute or both. Playing deaf
could end badly if I accidently reacted to a noise, but playing mute could go
down the same way if I accidently said something.
They decided to hide me instead.
Divina spent most of the time reading a book from her
backpack, while Edward spent most of his time sharpening his daggers and
twitching at every unexpected sound. In a ship full of people, there were a lot
of unexpected sounds.
“What was Ronez like? Where did he work and live?” I
asked Edward when I couldn’t take the quiet scratching anymore.
Edward frowned for a second but stopped his
sharpening. “His hobbies and talents were very diverse. Ronez was the kind of
man who had a three-car garage next to the trailer he lived in. He had a 1980
Corvette, 1967 CougarXR7-GT, and a 1952 Studebaker Commander Regal Coup. He
went to Oxford University, Tokyo University, Ritsumeikan University, and a
bunch of other ones I can’t recall; those three were his favorite. In just a
few years, he collected three doctorates’, five masters’, four bachelors’, and
several associates’ degrees, yet he worked at a small shop where he fixed up
cars for people. He wore clothes that make yours look fancy, which usually
consisted of grime and rips, and liked to change his hair color when he got
bored.
“He owned a large black dog named Cutie, and a little
toy munchkin named Cujo, both of which are long dead. Several times he told me
that if he died before me, he wanted to be mummified. That’s not an option
because of… the way he was killed. He had started several cults and convinced
many people that he was the god who made food in the icebox get moldy. My
brother had the tendency to be very persuasive.”
“Were you?”
“I’ve had my moments, but mostly, I just intimidate people
into doing or believing what I want. He’s gotten us both into a lot of trouble,
which he always got out of by fooling everyone involved, on his side or against
him. Nobody could stay mad at him. He liked to gamble and try everything. He
was a fantastic cook, oddly enough. Everyone thought he lived only in the
moment, but I could see that, while he was very spontaneous, he was always
planning and working for a better future. He knew more Earth languages than all
the languages I know, of all the different worlds. Ronez was very unique.”
“He sounds awesome. What was his favorite food?” He
rolled his eyes, though at me or the memory, I’m not sure.
“Pizza. He liked pizza and a certain soda I can’t
recall. The older he got, the younger he was until he reentered the teenage
stage. When he actually was a teenager, he was a hardworking, wealthy, family
man. When he died, he was a single, soda addict living paycheck to paycheck
with his guitar and cars, who spent his weekends playing video games on a
television set that had to stay in his garage because it wouldn’t fit in his
house. He was always very fun and uplifting to be around. In his entire life,
he never once said goodbye.”
“And Divina was friends with him?”
“Yes. Why?”
“I think I upset her by bringing him up on the way
here.”
“Divina and Ronez were somewhat friends, but if his
death has upset her, it’s not very much. She never considered death to be
anything more than a long period of absence. Even when a very good friend died,
she always acted like that person had just moved away and they could hang out
if that person ever decided to come and visit. I told her what happened to
Ronez before I left for Earth. She clearly felt sorry for me, but didn’t know
why I was so upset. I’m not sure if she even gets it or knows that he is not
coming back.” After that, he went back to his knife sharpening, but I kept
thinking about it.
What if she does know?
I had read about so
many types of defense mechanisms, several that involved the death of loved
ones. Denial was a bad way to cope with a pain.
What if she misses him, and
I did make her upset?
Neither seemed interested in talking, and soon their
brooding preparation rubbed off and I lay there, imagining how bad the Aradlin
was going to be. Then I remembered that I had no breakfast and probably
wouldn’t get any until we got to Anoshii… in several days.
I’m going to die at sea by starvation.
With
that thought, I lapsed into depression.
* * *
After about five hours of boredom, during which I
played Sudoku in my head, Edward entered the room and Divina stood. “They’re
serving dinner now,” Edward declared. I jumped up and he frowned. “Perhaps I
should bring yours to you.”
I shook my head suddenly enough to make it hurt.
“Boredom causes bad things to happen around me. I have to get out of this room
before I start seeing things. I have to eat before I shrivel up and die. I have
to---”
“Okay! Just don’t say anything to anyone. If someone
asks you a question, look down or pretend you didn’t hear them. I mean it- not
a word, not a sound. Got it?”
“Uh,” I said wisely. Divina grabbed my arm to turn me
to face her. She raised a dark blue, round, glass squirt bottle, about three
inches tall and an inch in diameter.
“Hold still and open your mouth,” she said.
I had a really, really bad feeling about it, but
since it was Divina, I did what any good dog would do. She sprayed the ice-cold
liquid, which had the consistency of water, down my throat carefully. The small
amount that touched my tongue was about the worst thing I had ever tasted. I
coughed and choked, but the foul liquid seemed to stick to the lining of my
throat.
“What is that?” I coughed.
Edward did the most frightful thing so far; he
started counting down.
“Just a little home mixture,” Divina said cheerfully.
It was a potion. Nothing except forcing her control down a man’s throat can
make a girl that happy.
Edward looked at Divina when he finished counting.
“How long does it last?” he asked her.
She smiled. “Until I give him the antidote.” Her
smile faltered and she glanced at her bag next to the bed. “I’m sure I brought
it.”
I opened my mouth to demand what she did, but nothing
came out. My voice wouldn’t work! While I could breathe and hyperventilate
(which I did plenty of), I couldn’t make a sound, not even a whine.
Edward shrugged. “If you didn’t, I’m sure it won’t
hurt him to go a while without asking a question.”
I nodded violently that it would, yet neither took
any notice of me. Edward left and Divina wrapped her arm around mine. I tried
to be angry, but I failed when she gave me her unnaturally beautiful smile.
“I was just cheering Edward up; I did bring the
antidote. This is just so nothing will slip out. Come on.”
With great relief, I followed her. We found our way
back on deck, where there was already a crowd of twenty men, half who were
twice my size and all who were at least twice my age. There were no lamps
because the sun was still up. Divina pulled me along to sit beside Edward and
then sat on the other side of me like protective parents. It was very frustrating,
but I couldn’t complain… I mean, I was physically unable to complain.
Everyone was speaking either a language that was
smooth and delicate, which I was sure was Sudo, or something that sounded
harsher, like German. I recognized a few of the Sudo words that Edward taught
me, but other than that, it was impossible to guess what they were saying.
Their body language was odd, too. None of them
touched each other. No one was left out of anything, except me, who couldn’t be
in any proper conversation even if I could talk. The men didn’t strike me as
the rough sailors I saw in movies; they were more polite. If one would raise
his voice too loud, he would give Divina an apologetic look before continuing
quieter.
However, the biggest difference I saw between them
and humans was their appearance. While they were all humanoid, I noticed some
people had odd coloring, such as the three people with white hair. They didn’t
look old enough to have pure white hair, so it occurred to me that white hair
could be a natural color on Duran. Another odd appearance was purple eyes,
which several people had. Though I expected beings to look different on other
planets, I never expected to see a young alien that looked human with purple
eyes and white hair.
“Yatunus.” I noticed a man arrive as he called out
Edward’s last name. I was surprised when everyone fell silent and Edward stood
up with a bright smile. This man was a few inches larger in every direction
than Edward. While the majority of the men on the ship looked to be no more
than working men, Edward had a predatory look to him. The man standing in front
of us looked like a bodyguard.
The man was heavily built and had a rather flat head,
a square jaw, and small eyes the color of worn money. His nose was flattened
from being shattered several times and there was a scar above his lip, which
made his unshaven stubble look lopsided. He wore a closed gray leather vest, a
black sleeveless T-shirt underneath it, black denim-like pants, and black
boots. The overall effect was something like a retired or undercover mobster.
“Rhade. Nonjide imedae,” Edward said in greeting.
Rhade took a seat across from Edward. Everyone started talking again, even
quieter than before, but a few gave the man secretive glances. Edward said
something else and I heard, very clearly, my first name and Divina’s name.
As he introduced us, I noticed that he didn’t point
or indicate either of us. I was trying my best to soak up all the rules and
taboos, but they were all the same on Earth.
Rhade said something to Divina that she repeated back
to him. When he said the phrase to me, Edward leaned forward and quietly
explained my silence. Rhade nodded with a pitying expression and evidently
changed the subject. I was left out while everyone was enjoying themselves. I
only wanted dinner to come.
Finally, it did, and I stood when everyone else did
as three men about my age entered, carrying large bowls and plates of food.
They set them on the table and left, but everyone remained silent and standing.
The three men returned three more times to bring food before finally returning
with plates and other dining utensils. They distributed them and said a phrase
before leaving. Everyone sat and I examined what was in front of me.
The dark green plates were the same clay stuff that
Edward’s jars were made of. There was a tan cloth that looked like Edward’s bag
material, only thicker. The last object was a long, wooden spoon. On one end of
the straight handle was a wide, slightly curved, almost flat scoop. On the
other end, it was sharpened into a spike. I guessed that was in case the food
tried to sneak away.
The food itself was scary. One of the dishes
contained a thick brown paste with wiggling chunks. There were green things,
red things, black and blue things. The only thing that looked edible was a
plate piled with strips of meat.
They started passing the food around, very politely.
When Edward handed me the first thing to come my way, which was the dancing
brown paste, I quickly passed it to Divina before it could eat me. Divina used
the spatula-spoon and put some of it on my plate, despite my obvious fear. This
process repeated for several dishes until Edward stopped her from putting
something blue on my plate and I heard the word “milwyd”. She nodded, put some
on her own plate, and passed it on, saving me from its torture.
When all the food was served, I watched everyone
start eating. I tried to mimic the way the men were using the spoons, but it
was impossible. Divina used hers perfectly, whereas I couldn’t get anything on
it. I looked at Edward when I noticed she was glaring at him. He was using his
fingers, not his spoon for the dry meat, so I decided to mimic him. His way was
easier.
Using the meat as a scoop, I was able to sample the
more unrecognizable cuisine. It tasted like Chinese food- the American kind.
The chunks in the brown stuff were actually meat and the sauce was very sweet.
Most of the food was sweet or salty, yet there was nothing to drink. Divina
said something threatening to Edward, causing him to grin, and I was sure it
was about his eating manners or teaching me bad manners. I didn’t care; I was
just hungry.
Finally, when everyone was done eating, which was
soon because there was very little talk, the three men brought out drinks. I
was pleased to find that it was Kamitsue juice.
After a little while of friendly chat with Rhade,
Edward stood and said his goodbyes. Divina and I stood too, and followed them
back to the compartment. It was very cramped with all three of us.
“You are friends with Rhade-so Imo?” Divina asked
Edward. “Think he’ll play later?”
“I don’t think so.” He looked at me. “Rhade is famous
in Anoshii as a musician. You did better than I thought you would.”
I looked pleadingly at Divina. Taking mercy on me,
she dug through her bag for a second before holding up a bottle identical to
the blue one except it was dark red. The antidote tasted and felt the same as
the other potion did, but it washed away what was still in my throat.
I coughed and wheezed. “Never do that again!” My
voice was weak and broken.
“I liked you better when you couldn’t even talk to
me,” she said, unimpressed.
I glared at her as best as I could, which wasn’t
much. “You can’t use that on me again. I was just taken by surprise,” I said.