Tales of Midbar: Secret Priest

We dropped about a meter, landed on concrete, instead of sand, and were bathed in the red light of Aleph, which had more star spots than it had had for a while. Cicadas were chirping. The disgusting smell was now very strong.

“This is about three in the morning on day three,” said Dwendra in Semic, looking sick.

I looked around. We were still in the car park outside the grotto but now it was empty and I could see the white streetlights of Siglanti in the distance and I noticed a number of plants growing around the car park’s edges.

“Can we hold this while I get cleaned up?” asked Dwendra, looking around.

“I think we’d better,” said Ice.

“Get a sample of that slime!” said Tom.

We started walking towards the toilets, which were in one of the buildings near the entrance.

“Hopefully the Monsters either won’t think of this or can’t time travel, at least not this far,” said Ice. “Now what have we learned?”

“I communicated with an ancient,” I said. “It knew we’re not supposed to fight at Holy Sites.”

“That’s common knowledge,” said Ice, dismissively.

I thought it interesting an ancient knew this or I’d actually done something that, as far as I knew, no human had achieved.

Dwendra went into the women’s toilet. The rest of us stayed outside. Without Dwendra, a smell of grass and earth wafted in.

“How did they know where the rallying point was?” asked Breeze. “Or the Benai Nibeyim meeting for that matter?”

“That’s a very good question,” said Ice. “That katchey ...”

“Narblo,” I said.

“... shouldn’t have known either. Feces, they can use him to infiltrate into our society! Did anybody see what happened to him?”

“He was on the stage last I saw,” I said. “When that thing fell.”

“I saw him being winched back up,” said Rilletteecket, “but I’m not sure if he was alive.”

“Do we have a traitor?” asked Ice.

Dwendra came out without her shirt, just a wet bra. She was holding the polymer bag with the blood stained bit of her wedding dress in it and a paper bag which she gave to Tom. “Have fun with that!”

“Why are you looking at me,” said Breeze. “I know how to keep a secret and they didn’t seem to know another secret I know.”

“Sorry,” said Ice. “Teenagers tend to be unreliable but you’re right. Most the emergency team were teenagers, sleggim mostly. Who was ..? A terrible thing about traitors is they have everybody suspecting each other. Without getting too paranoid, does anybody have any strong reason to suspect who leaked information about this?”

Nobody said anything.

“They could have found out by psychic means or some sort of surveillance,” said Ice.

“That flying anavah said they were trying to save us from the Prophesized Ruination,” said Tom, “but they couldn’t tell us their plan. She also said they could help me get off the planet to save my colony. I don’t know how she knew about that but I suspect they’re working with the wyoclug.”

I knew the wyoclug were the XT’s who’d destroyed his colony.

“Was she telling the truth?” asked Ice.

“It wasn’t the best circumstances for mind reading,” said Tom. “I think she believed it but my gut tells me it’s a lie.”

“None of them had any associates,” I said.

“I got a few of that anavah’s feathers,” said Tom, holding out his hand with a few bloody white feathers in them. “This should help us figure out what she is. I mean what sort of mod, if she is a mod. Mod’s are organisms, well autonomous entities, that have been made or modified by nanites. I’m a combination of one that makes humans bigger and stronger and another that gives us retractable wings and the ability to fly. I’m still human, my genome has only been slightly modified and I could impregnate a unmodded woman with a child who would be healthy and able to produce children.”

“You people have an obsession with that,” said Hubril.

“Two organisms are considered different species if they can’t interbreed to produce fertile, viable offspring,” said Tom.

“I couldn’t interbreed with you,” said Hubril.

“We could breed with each others’ sisters,” said Tom. “I think we all understand what I mean. In the Malchut universe most humans are mods of one sort or another. From what I’ve heard, that flying anavah doesn’t really fit any of the types of mod. She only has feathers on her wings, not her head or pubic areas.”

“You looked!” said Breeze.

“It wasn’t exactly difficult,” said Tom, “and I thought it would be useful to better understand her, she’s one of our enemies! Did anybody notice her feet?”

“You looked at those as well?” asked Breeze.

“Of course! They’re covered in cuts and blisters, horrible mess but she doesn’t have bandages or even shoes on them. The other enemy anavim wear clothing. The point is that virtually all human mods in Malchut have strong regenerative powers, I don’t think she has ...”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” said Breeze, “I think she’s been killed at least once.”

“Well maybe it doesn’t kick in unless she’s killed,” said Tom, “or it only regenerates major damage. I think she may have some problem with having things in contact with her skin, she could sleep in a flotation tank or zero gee or something but she can’t really avoid walking. Anyway, I strongly suspect she isn’t from the Malchut universe.”

“So you’ve found evidence to distance yourself from her,” said Hubril.

“I never believe you were associated with her,” said Breeze.

“Anyway,” said Ice, “perhaps we should figure out where we go from here. Benai Nibeyim’s suffered a decapitation attack. This tends to make diplomatic relations between groups impossible. Who’s in charge of Benai Nibeyim now?”

“In the event of a decapitation attack,” said Dwendra in Semic, “leadership elections will be deferred until security can be assured and leadership defaults to the Grand Vine Grower. If the Grand Vine Grower is dead, the position defaults to the senior anav or anavah or whoever’s in possession of the keys. Therefore, I think it’s either me or Miandri or possibly Garis. Miandri or Garis or both probably know where the keys are. I think Clindar’s now the head of the Rendamar Priestly chapter.”

“Then,” said Ice, “I think the next thing you’ve got to do is get the keys from Garis or Miandri.”

As soon as we materialized at Temple View Heights, I realized that, as an acolyte of Rendamar temple and the new Grand Priest of Benai Nibeyim, it was my job to tell Holmiath and Sanmino that Buxnir was dead. This wasn’t a job I found easy but I think Holmiath at least had foreseen it.

Sanmino kept repeating, “Everybody I love dies!”

Nobody seemed opposed to me being the new Grand Priest, I was actually told nobody wanted the job and I think they were totally awestruck by me being an anav descendant of the Yohoist priesthood and married to Sixteen. I probably should clarify I was only the Grand Priest as far as Benai Nibeyim were concerned. Flaannin took the position of Acting Acting High Priestess and I was officially still an acolyte.

We decided Miandri was probably a bit easier to deal with than Garis so we tracked her down. She was in a tent on a beach on Central Island, not far from Targrath. It was black night so we materialized near a ruined wall, not far from the tent. The tent was large and there was a lot of music and voices coming from it and people cooking things on small fires nearby.

We; Dwendra, Breeze and myself; approached. We’d taken the time to change into clean clothing and Miandri had left her blood stained bit of wedding dress at home. It was clear the tent was occupied, mostly by young people, so we wouldn’t look out of place. Then I noticed some people had gas balls.

“I don’t like the way Miandri seems to be spreading Old Magic,” I said.

“Do you know a way to stop her?” asked Breeze.

“Not a subtle one.”

Two young men screamed and ran away.

Inside we found a number of people gathered round a large gas ball and sitting on cushions. Miandri was sitting on a young man’s lap while kissing a young woman.