Vanya's Journals, Part 40: Urist An idea drifts into your mind, and you look up at the woman across from you, studying her again. The eyes, a silver-green, aren't quite as Vanya had described them, but the woman's wavy brown hair matches almost perfectly. You wish Vanya had provided pictures, but as it stands...
"Are you Katie?" you ask cautiously.
The woman offers you a mildly amused smirk. "Of course I am."
Unfortunately, from the tone in her voice, her response seems as likely to be sarcasm as truth, only making you more confused.
"I told you," the woman says in a more serious tone. "Your guessing is only going to get both of us into trouble. Please, just keep reading. "
With a disappointed nod, you press the button to record and continue reading. After dinner, Katie sent me on ahead to my room while she cleaned up after dinner. I wanted to help, but Almory said I needed as much sleep as possible for the next day.
"They always give me this kind of job, don't worry about it!" Katie told me. "I'd love to fight battles with everyone else, but they won't let me. I always get stuck with things like this. You go on ahead!"
"Where do I go?"
She laughed lightheartedly. "It's simple! Just leave the mess hall and head towards the armory, then take the second set of stairs on your right after you pass the latrines, turn right and take the first door on your left."
My mind soon managed to jumble her instructions into a meaningless mess. Fifteen minutes later, she found me wandering the wrong end of the trench, completely lost, and peeking into every door in frustration as I passed.
"Come on!" Katie said as she led me back. She always seemed to be in a good mood, but I could tell she was tired. "I told you to go the
other direction! Why were you at
that end of the camp?"
"I got lost," I tried to explain. "I've never been here before."
She laughed. "How do you get lost? There are only two directions you can go!"
"It's a big trench!" I protested, smiling in spite of myself.
Katie only laughed again in response, and continued leading me forwards. "Here are the latrines," she said, pointing at a door as we passed. "Here's the stairs to the generator, shields, computers and comm systems." She gestured at a flight of stairs on our right. "Don't ever go up there, or the Captain will get mad. She only lets me go in there because I'm good with computers. And here's the stairs to the barracks," she added as we began climbing them. "Usually everyone gets their own room, but you'll have to bunk with me tonight. We don’t have any more spare rooms." She gave an apologetic frown.
"That isn't so bad," I noted. It was better than bunking with Reudh.
Reaching the top, she opened the first door, explaining, "You have to turn the doorknob, because they're not automatic. You get to pick any bed you want! Well, except for the one on the end, because that's mine."
Walking inside, I looked around, and heard her close the door behind us. The room was dimly lit, and a lot bigger than I'd expected it to be. There were at least sixteen beds in eight stacks, four up against each sidewall, with chairs in between. It was a typical barracks dorm, but the beds drew my attention. "They're stacked on top of each other!" I exclaimed, walking over to the nearest and climbing up the ladder enough to see the one on top.
Katie laughed. "You haven't seen bunk beds before?"
I hopped back down and shook my head. "Dwarves only have single beds. I have no idea why they've never thought about it before!"
"Maybe because they like a more solid feel?" Katie suggested, pushing on the top bunk of the nearest. It wobbled back and forth slightly. "But what about you?" she asked. "Don't you feel better higher up? You're all elf, you said."
"I was raised by dwarves," I said thoughtfully. "I grew up around them... I like most of the things that dwarves like, but there are some things I like that they don't... like the stars."
She smiled, tilting her head at me with an impish smile and shaking it from side to side. "Then how can you say you're all elf?" she asked. "I'm half human, but I spent so much time with my mother that I feel I'm an equal part of elf and dwarf, too." Katie walked over to her side of the room, motioning for me to follow. "You can sleep on the top bunk of my bed," she offered.
"I'd love to," I breathed happily, and I meant it. I felt drawn almost irresistibly to the new experience of a bed so far above the ground. "It must be like sleeping in the clouds."
She found my musings hilarious. "It's not nearly as dandy as you think," she giggled, and changed the subject. "Do you see the box at the foot of each bed?"
I looked. At the base of each bunk, top and bottom, was a chest with a lid.
At my nod, she explained, "You put your clothes – or armor – in there when you go to sleep, and it's clean the next morning."
"That's a lot faster than washing them by hand," I whispered, opening mine and peeking at the inside. The walls of the chest were thick, but the inside looked like smooth, silver plastic.
"You really
have lived in dwarven fortresses your whole life, haven't you?" Katie asked thoughtfully, studying me through her dark bangs. "For most of my life I've lived at Parasol. You see this kind of thing every day there!" Suddenly her eyes took on a mischievous gleam. "Did you ever meet anybody you really liked?" she whispered with a gossip-like air.
My excitement slowly faded, and I turned away, sitting down on the edge of a bed. "I don't want to think about men anymore," I replied quietly. Suddenly, I remembered Urist's package and took it out of my pouch.
Katie sat down next to me, leaning forwards and peering at the brown wrapping curiously before looking up at me, her blue eyes almost seeming to glow in the dim light. "What is it?" she asked, worried. "Is something wrong?
I started to shake my head, but stopped. I really didn't know the answer. "It's from Urist... He's the... he's an old friend."
A corner of her mouth tweaked downwards. "A friend?" She didn't seem to buy it.
"He used to be," I said quietly, turning the package over in my hands. "But that was all we were. He never wanted anything more. I don't know why he sent this with Reudh... or why he sent me anything at all."
She and I looked it over carefully. Urist had wrapped the package in dried rope reed paper, thickly enough that I couldn't really make out the shape of whatever was inside. "If he thinks sending me something will make it any better –"
"Make what any better?" Katie asked innocently.
I frowned. Now that I was holding something from him, he seemed more difficult to speak about. "He killed my sister," I whispered.
"What?!" Her face twisted into a horrified expression, which soon merged into confusion. "But... How..." She seemed almost as if she was about to ask a question, but she shook her head and brushed it away. "Did he do it on purpose?"
With a sigh, I shook my head. "He didn't know it was her... He was trying to protect me."
"Open it," Katie urged.
On her prompting, I did, removing one layer of wrapping after another and letting them flutter to the floor beside my bloodstained boots. The parchment was so thin, and Urist had wrapped it so tightly, that it seemed to take forever before we finally reached a hand-sized box, with a folded note attached to the outside. Setting the package down, I unfolded the note and began to read aloud:
"Vanya,
Four years ago, the day you saved Talvi's life and mine, I rediscovered you in the courtyard following a Holistic Spawn attack and requested Urist's location. It was the first occasion on which you heard his name, but I withheld information regarding the events that occurred immediately following. A rogue agent from Parasol was attempting to release demonic forces upon the fortress by Urist's hand, fooling him through the overuse of hallucinogenics. His name was Iohanne. Iohanne and I fought, deep beneath even the magma forges, and so exhausted was I from the battle I had shared with you that I would have definitely faced an inescapable failure, if Urist not saved my life, and by extension, the fortress, by killing the agent as he strangled me. Though I passed out, Urist received a vision from Armok, wherein the immortal etched a message on the head of Urist's broken spear.
Though I am against it, he cares for you, Vanya. He foolishly squandered a fortune commissioning a number of these, and sent an identical package with every merchant-infested caravan that has passed through Spearbreakers in hopes of reaching you. This particular package goes with Reudh, a former overseer.
Despite my reassurances that it is pointless and the probability that you survived the fall is extremely miniscule, Urist persists in his illogical delusions and believes you did not perish.
Talvi admitted that she attempted to murder you. Tomio, the current overseer, mandated her imprisonment, and she therefore no longer presents any threat to your livelihood. I would appreciate your prompt return.
Signed, Mr Frog
PS, I write this only at Urist's insistence. He has become my personal assistant in your absence." "You were friends with Mr Frog?" Katie asked suddenly, looking up at my face. She quieted when she noticed the moisture in my eyes.
I bit my lip, shaking my head. "I wouldn't say 'friends'," I whispered, and then an invading smile twisted against my frown; I felt caught between tears and laughter. "He always called me 'stupid girl'... I was his assistant. I don't think he ever thought much of me."
"He thought enough to ask you to come home..."
I nodded wordlessly, opening the little box. Inside was a crystal jade spearhead, shaped just like the one Urist had always carried with him; shaped just like the one that had guided Urist and I through the caverns with a glowing light, that day he'd risked his life to rescue me from prison. Tears pooled in my eyes as I read the single page that was laid on top of it.
"Vanya, this is a copy of my most prized possession. I would send you the original, but I save that for the day I find you. I am sorry for what I did to your sister. Indeed, I did not know it was her until Mr Frog and Wari informed me, but I have carried a heavy weight on my shoulders ever since. Although almost everyone believes you to be dead, I know in my heart that you are still alive. Please come home, Vanya. Even if you never speak to me again... even if you are only here for a day... please come home. I will await you always." "He loves you," Katie whispered, but I hardly heard her as I broke down, tossing the package aside, holding my head in my hands as I shook with silent sobs. Putting her arm around me, she sat by my side, holding my hand in hers. I was grateful for it, and together we sat there until the pain in my heart started to fade, and the tears began to subside.
~~~
The next morning at dawn, Katie stood beside the bed and shook the top bunk gently back and forth. "Wake up, sleepy!" she called.
Slowly I awoke, rubbing at my eyes with my fingertips to clear them.
"How did you sleep?" she laughed. "Was it really like a cloud?"
As groggy as I was, I couldn't help but smile at what I'd said the night before. "It wasn't quite like a cloud, but it was still nice," I said, sitting up and holding the blanket close to my skin to keep it wrapped around me. I still felt tired, but it had been a while since I'd gotten such a good night's sleep. ""It's been a while since I slept on a mattress... I've slept in the dirt for the past year."
She grinned. "Come on, get up and get into your clothes. I already made breakfast. I'll see you downstairs, okay?" With that, she spun around on her heel and walked light-footedly out the door. She was already wearing her Parasol uniform.
I let the blanket fall from me and crawled cautiously to the foot of the bed, half-expecting to fall at any second. It felt a little unsafe, but last night I'd been so tired I hadn't cared. I lifted the lid of the cleaning chest, and was pleased to find that my clothes were clean. There was still a slash on one upper arm from where my sister had cut through the carbon fiber padding, but I was fine with it, and put them on quickly; being winter, it was cold. Afterwards, using Reudh’s comb, I brushed out my hair – it was just getting to where it had been before Mr Frog had cut it.
As I entered the mess hall, Reudh rose from his seat respectfully. Behind him, Trebor leaned back in his chair, talking around a mouthful of food. "Hey, Hotlips! We weren't sure if you'd gotten lost again! Tames told us all about your little adventure last night." I decided to ignore him.
"You look beautiful this morning, Vanya!" Reudh declared as I approached.
It made me smile. "Thank you, Reudh," I said softly. "Your comb works wonders."
Pleased, he pulled out my chair for me to sit down.
"Wow, a gentleman," Trebor laughed. "I thought they died out with the dinosaurs."
"Only where you come from," Jonah said, nodding to me politely before turning back to Hawkins, attempting to continue his conversation.
Trebor feigned indignation. "I'll have you know I come from a very long line of gentlemen, Jonah," he said, regaining the other's attention. "I simply skipped in line, that's all, and they were too polite to put me in my place." Saying this, he got up, headed for the door to the trench.
As Trebor walked around the table, Hawkins called, "Or perhaps they considered you a lost cause?"
It wasn't until then that I noticed the railgun was regularly firing rounds. "Hawkins, if you're here, then... who's firing the railgun?" I asked curiously.
"Oh, that's Saemin," Hawkins answered, popping a bit of salted pork into his mouth with his fingers. "He takes the night shift. If he didn't, they'd probably already have that portal open."
I nodded, thinking. "That explains why he's gone... Where's everyone else? John is here, and Tedaz and Strohe are too..." At their names, they nodded and waved, though Strohe seemed more absorbed in his drink than his food. "...but where are Lieutenant Almory and Katie? And Tames?"
"I'm here!" Katie called through the kitchen window. "I'll be out in just a moment. Tames monitors the power, shields and communications; he'll probably be up there most of the day. He doesn't like helping with other stuff anyway."
John swallowed and stopped eating for a moment. "The scythods already ate. The Captain is with them, getting the tunnel started." He paused, confused. "Why do you call her 'Lieutenant', anyway? Isn't she a captain?"
"Not exactly," Jonah said, sighing.
Katie came out from the kitchen with three trays of food. "She's a lieutenant, but some stuff happened before I knew her and... well..." She appeared at a loss for words, and sat one in front of me, one in front of herself, and another across from us. "Trebor could tell the story best, but he just left, so..." She appeared uncomfortable, and made several false attempts to start before finally saying, "I'm no good at telling stories."
"Don't worry yourself," Jonah laughed. "I'll tell it. Hawkins' version would be biased, so you don't want it."
"Hey!" Hawkins protested, openmouthed. "It wouldn't be biased!"
Tedaz chuckled, staring at his food. "After seeing the way you were looking at her last night, I'd say maybe."
This forbidden topic brought on an uncomfortable silence, which Jonah hurried to break. "Lieutenant Almory rose through the ranks pretty quickly. She's a
real soldier, unlike us, and she strikes like a cobra with her twin blades, which she always keeps handy, if you've noticed. Apart from Tames and Gearbox, the rest of us were part of the squad they reassigned her to command, almost as a bizarre form of punishment.
"During her impressive tour of duty, she attained the rank of admiral, which she soon resigned from – she couldn't stand a desk job. Back at captain, she remained there for a long time, up until about three years ago. Her superiors ordered her to sacrifice her squad as a diversion, so Parasol could take back the region. She knew if she openly refused, they'd just send someone else, so she said nothing to them and tried to create the diversion on her own."
"She disobeyed?" John asked, unimpressed.
Jonah held up his hands over his empty plate. "You haven't heard all of it yet," he chuckled. "She couldn't stand to lose her people, and though her diversion might've been a success, she would've died. It would've worked, but her superiors demoted her as a result of her disobeying orders."
"It was Tames that saved her," Katie pitched in.
Nodding, Jonah went on, "Yes it was. Tames was of the opinion that her diversion wouldn't work, and betrayed her trust to save her life, and, as he thought, the life of her squad, which he was part of. He was the one who reported her. We all owe him a great debt of gratitude. Without him, we wouldn't have our Captain. We still call her 'Captain' out of respect. "
"You're all very close..." John said wonderingly, almost as if he felt it contradictory.
"We are at that," Trebor said, thumping him on the back as he walked back to his seat. "Not many squads are like this. Oh, and Reudh, you'll be pleased to hear that Lurit's awake, eating, and healthy. He should be up tomorrow, but he won't be moving today."
"Like hell I won't!" a voice roared from the doorway. It was Lurit himself, using a metal pole as a makeshift crutch as he wobbled forwards unsteadily. "I'm fit as a lute, just missing a foot!" His eyes shifted around and finally came to rest on Katie. "Hey, Reudh, boy, is this your girl? Fits the description. Pretty little thing, ain't she?"
I leaned out from behind Katie to get a better look at him.
"Whoa, I'm seeing
double!" he exclaimed, clutching at the wall. "Doc, maybe you better get me back to bed..."
Trebor was already to him. "Armok's beard... Come on, let's go! The drugs I gave you are making you unsteady, and you're still suffering from severe blood loss."
"We're in the blood plains, aren't we?" Lurit roared. "Leave a few mugs outside and gimme some of that!"
Trebor carefully helped him turn around. "That's from a different species, and it's the wrong blood type besides. I get the feeling you're more hot-blooded than most."
"Like hell I am!" the heavyset man shouted. "Whoa, doc... Steady the walls for me, will you?"
Trebor turned his head towards us. "Could I please get some help? He'll have to regenerate most of his blood on his own; I don't have any remaining in storage. There was a plague of wounded a couple months ago, and it's all used up."
Strohe, Reudh and Tedaz jumped up from their chairs and rushed over, helping Trebor lead Lurit back to the infirmary.
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Topic: [34.11] Spearbreakers - It shudders and begins to move (Read 2195868 times)