After 4364 BC on the Plains of Thera. Kairos 12: Dallah

Recording …

“Another one.” Alexis pointed. Lieutenant Harper trained her rifle in the general direction, but it was hard to pinpoint, whatever it was, since it kept going invisible. They were the color of the sand, the main part of the landscape. The rest of the scenery was not much to look at. The trees, what there were of them, seemed just sticks, short, stunted, and dry, like they baked too long in the oven. The clumps of grass that stubbornly refused to give up looked burnt yellow and brown. The sun felt relentless.

A dog howled in the distance, but Alexis shook her head. “They aren’t dogs,” she said. “What we are seeing,” she clarified.

“A mirage in this heat?” Lincoln wiped the sweat from Alexis’ brow. The sun itself appeared to be sweating from its own heat.

“Not a mirage,” Lockhart answered. “With mirages you see things. All we are seeing is occasional movement and glimpses of figures that vanish in the heat.”

“And not enough of glimpses to make out shape and size,” Roland added.

Lockhart and Captain Decker set down the stretcher. Doctor Procter kept mumbling that he would be all right, but Alexis was not so sure. Lincoln needed to take a turn carrying the stretcher, and Roland, though it would be his second turn. Mingus said he would be there to help if needed.

Poor Doctor Procter stayed delirious most of the time. The only time he came awake was when someone reached for him. Then his words sounded clear and sharp. “Don’t touch me.” And they got spoken with such vehemence, no one dared to disobey.

“At least it is not the bokarus,” Boston pointed out. “There is only one bokarus.”

“This is no terrain for a bokarus,” Mingus assured them.

“Or ghouls,” Alexis said. “If they sent out a second group after the first stopped reporting, they would not be nearly this far along yet.”

“Whatever it is, it is a wild one.” Roland suggested, as he sipped some water. Lockhart had already started watching their water supply, carefully. No telling how long it might be in that environment before they found more water. Captain Decker also seemed to have gotten the idea, but neither said a word.

“Wild ones, I think.” Mingus responded. He gave them the impression that he might be seeing a bit more than the others, but he did not let on yet about what he was seeing or thinking.

Alexis bent down toward Doctor Procter. The man sat straight up. “Don’t!” Alexis paused.

“It is just some water.”

Doctor Procter reached for the cup, carefully, to not touch the woman. He drank greedily and when he handed the empty cup back so she could take it by the handle, he added a word. “Don’t let anyone else drink from that cup.” His words were stern as he began to shake his head. He closed his eyes, fell back, and mumbled “no, no, no.”

~~~*~~~

Dallah walked out from the camp. She needed some alone time. Her daughter, Korah would be married in the afternoon and in her world, the mother-in-law made all the arrangements, not the mother. She supposed that was only right since Korah would go and live with her husband and his family. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law needed to form a relationship to carry them through the rest of their lives—hopefully a good one. To be sure, she had a wonderful time when Mya married her son, Reneus. Still, she had to think about it.

Dallah had too many cultures in her head. She imagined it might be best if she did not think about it at all, but lately she could not seem to help it. She turned forty-three or forty-four years old. She was not sure, but at her age, and given her life circumstances, there seemed little for her to do but sit and think.

Godus, her husband, stayed away for days at a time. He always came home with food for the fire, but the absences were hard. Her nine-year-old, Andor, the love of her old age kept the sheep, what remained of them. Her son, Reneus, stubbornly tried to bring grain out of the soil. Mya had taken over most of the cooking and cleaning duties for the family, and Dallah had no complaints, but it gave her too much time to think and worry.

Somehow, she made an enemy of the sun god Dayus when she was a child. She could not imagine anything she said or did. Dayus simply did not want her to be born in his world. His advisors warned against killing her outright as a child, but that did not stop him from ruining the world around her, thus killing her slowly. They moved and migrated and moved again to greener pastures, only to find those pastures dry up under the incessant sun. The people swore the rains would come again. They can’t stay away forever. But Dallah knew it was more complicated than that.

She had no doubt Korah would move away with her new family once the marriage was consummated. Dallah would cry but pray for her. Korah would do well away from Dallah and the ruination that surrounded her life. She might even be happy.

Dallah looked up at the sun and squinted. “Is it enough?” she asked. “Are you satisfied?” She knew the sun god was not yet satisfied. After all, she still lived.

“Mother!” Reneus called. He followed her out into the wilderness. She had an empty water skin with her, but she walked, in no hurry to get to the stream. “Mother. You don’t need to be wandering out here alone.”

“Well, there does not seem much for me to do back in the camp,” Dallah said. “I thought I could fetch some water and at least and make myself useful, somehow.”

Reneus took the water skin from her hands. “No need for that,” he said. “Father is looking for you.”

“Is he?” Dallah looked back once, but she only saw Mya chasing after Andor.

“Mama!” Andor ran up to her. “Help me! Help! Mya is going to make me take a bath.”

Mya arrived with a stern look on her face directed at the boy that hid behind Dallah’s dress.

“There is time for that,” Dallah assured her daughter-in-law. “Reneus and I were headed to the stream. Maybe Andor would like to splash in the water while we are there.” She winked at Mya, who understood what Dallah suggested, but had a strong-willed streak that did not like to be disobeyed by a certain nine-year-old boy. Andor knew the dynamics well. He stuck his tongue out at Mya before he took his mother’s hand.

“Why you.”

Dallah put her hand up to stop them both. “I really came out here to be alone for a while. I don’t mind you coming along, but please keep your thoughts to yourselves. And that goes for you, too.” She poked Reneus in the chest. He backed up in innocence to say, “Me?” But he did not actually say anything out loud.

~~~*~~~

Boston stepped back. Something moved ahead, just around the edge of the rock. “Did you see that?” She turned her head and asked. Captain Decker already moved out into the brush to get an angle on it. Roland made his way quietly around the far side of the rock. Lieutenant Harper had her rifle ready, and Alexis had her wand in her hand. Lincoln and Lockhart had already put Doctor Procter on the ground. Mingus responded.

“Yes,” he said and raised his voice. “And they better all come out of hiding if they know what is good for them!”

A face popped up from the ground, not far from Boston’s feet. She might have stepped on it, but instead she jumped back though it hurt her muscles to move like that. He had not been invisible, but perfectly colored to blend in with the desert floor, and he spoke with a sandy rasp in his voice.

“Look, Itchy, it’s human beans.”

A second came from behind the rock. “Yeah, Dwizzle, and they got elves. ‘bout the worst case of elves I’ve ever seen. What do you think, Crusty?”

A third stepped from behind a skinny tree. No one saw him there but could not imagine why. He looked much fatter than the tree. He clicked his tongue a couple of times before he spoke. “Domesticated elves no less.” He clicked his tongue some more.

“Imps.” Mingus identified the creatures with some disgust in his voice.

************************

FOUR part episode this week so it will conclude with a post on Thursday.

Dom’t miss it.

*