Under The Cities' Shadow Part 2/2
Part two of my dual narrative sci-fi short story
Mira
Ma, as she had insisted I call her, was as kind a woman as I could imagine. She listened to our story carefully, and intently, I doubt a word was wasted on her. Everything about her had a comforting air, but it had scared me, the way she reacted when I mentioned Prospice. I think she knew it too because she was extra careful to be more casual when she mentioned it later. Kavi had told his part of the story, then I, mine, ending with a plea for her to help me get home.
“Of course we’ll get you home, child.” She told me. “ But that is a task for tomorrow. It’s far too late to be travelling now, and the nearest person who can help you is a long walk away. You can stay the night here, and Kavi and I can take you in the morning. Now you best get some fresh clothes on before dinner.”
Ma gave me a stack of fresh clothes, I could see why she wanted me changed, there was still the remains of a squashed banana peel left on me from the dumpster.
Kavi
Mira emerged from the bathroom a half-hour later, her wet hair hanging down to her waste, and dripping all over the floor. She offered to help Ma with the laundry, but she wound up being more of a hindrance than a help.
“I’m really sorry,” she said, as she tried to fold the pair of my pants she had been mangling “It’s just, this is my first time doing laundry, and it’s so hard making sure to tuck in the arms and legs!”
I wondered how it was possible to go your whole life and never fold laundry, but I suppose that’s how it is in the sky cities, with either automatons or servants washing, folding, and pressing your clothing for you. Eventually voices came to the door. My brother, Drallen, his wife, Sophie, and my two younger siblings, Billy and Martha, burst through the door bearing pots of stew, and baskets of bread. In their excitement at seeing me, Billy and Martha nearly dropped the baskets they had been carrying — Thankfully Ma caught them before they hit the ground. Billy scurried like a squirrel up my back, and I swung Martha into the air.
“Kavi! Kavi!” They squealed in unison.
“Did you bring us anything?” Martha asked
“Oh no! I completely forgot about you two!— I'm kidding, I'm kidding!” I defended myself, as Billy began to swat me around my ears. Then I produced two candy bars, still in the wrapper, from Mr. Cortavian’s shop. Their eyes went wide as saucers and they ran off to show Ma what they had gotten. It wasn’t often that they saw something as expensive as candy. Sophie gave me a quick hug and a remark on how tall I’d gotten, before she ran off to help set the table. Drallen punched me on the arm, we talked for a few minutes before he proclaimed “I best say hello to Ma, or she’ll have my hide for it.”
He walked off toward Ma and the rest, doing a quick double take at the sight of Mira, then continuing on.
Mira
Everyone was very nice, if not a little on the crude side. They all did their best to make me feel at home, and, though I could tell they were dying to ask, suppress their questions about Prospice. They were all smiles and warm words, that is everyone except Drallen. The whole night he hardly spoke to me, and when he did it was with a cold reserve that set my teeth on edge.
After I had eaten dinner, a rich stew served with buttered roles almost as good as the stuff on Prospice, Billy and Martha pulled me off to play some silly game with them, where everyone would hide and one person would have to find them all. They even managed to get Kavi to play, but they could probably make him do anything he adored them so much. After much laughter and fun, and discussion of things I did not understand we all headed off to bed. Ma had given me the bed she had made for Kavi, in between Billy and Martha, and Kavi had been sent to stay with Drallen and Sophie. The day had been so Long and full of surprises, I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
Kavi
The walk through the crisp night air felt incredible after the stuffiness of Ma’s place, unfortunately it only lasted for a block before we were at Drallen’s. Inside it was still the same, only on a small table in the corner, there was a stack of papers with the words “RISE UP!” Printed in big black letters. I sighed.
When Drallen was fourteen we had gone into the city to buy some fabric for Ma. We meandered through crowded streets looking for a fabric vendor, after some searching we found what Ma had sent us for. On the way back Drallen told me about a shortcut he knew, that would shave three clicks off of our walk. My eleven-year-old legs were already beginning to hurt so I hastily agreed. The ‘shortcut’ turned out to be a narrow abandoned alleyway, when we were there we met with some of Drallen’s ‘friends’. They had always scared me out of my wits, so when I saw them I quickly ducked behind a stack of rotting boxes. It had turned out that Drallen owed them money but hadn’t paid up, so they beat him bloody. Drallen could fight better than anyone I knew, and if there were only two or three of them he probably could have held his own, but with six it wasn’t long before he was crumpled on the ground. They almost killed him when one of them swung a broken pipe into his head. I had never seen so much blood in my whole life, I stayed behind the boxes too paralyzed with fear to even move. Figuring they had killed him they left. I still don’t know how he survived, but he did, barely.
Since that day Drallen had hated the sky cities with a passion. He somehow blamed them for our sorry situation. A couple of times Ma lost her temper with him when he wouldn’t shut up about how we were oppressed, and how we needed to free ourselves from the sky cities. Ma worries that someday Drallen’s gonna take it too far and get arrested or something. And here he was, back at it again. I decided to keep quiet about it, no point in getting him fired up, when nothing I could do or say would change his mind.
All the time we talked round the overturned crate that served as a dining table, Drallen hardly met my eyes. After a while Sophie gave a luxurious stretch, and excused herself to head to bed.
“So,” Drallen broke the silence “what are you gonna do about the girl?”
“Her name’s Mira” I said
“I know, and I asked what are you going to do about her?”
It was my turn not to meet his eyes. “Ma and I were gonna take her into town tomorrow, see if we can help her get back home.” I knew this answer would hardly satisfy him.
Drallen scoffed, then spoke again. “Are you really so naive that you can’t see the possibilities?”
“What possibilities?” I asked, I could feel the steel in my voice
“She’s from Prospice—“
“She’s hardly more than a kid!” I burst out.
“Yes! A kid with a family who wants their daughter back. A wealthy and important family.”
Silently he slid a piece of paper across the crate. Immediately my eyes were drawn to the seal. The seal of a dignitary. Then I saw the photograph, Mira stood in a long blue dress. I was momentarily shocked, before everything became clear.
Mira was no ordinary citizen from Prospice, she was the daughter of someone important, very important.
“This only shows why I’m right!” Drallen shook his head, like he couldn’t believe that I still didn’t understand.
“She could be the thing that gives us power, Kavi. They'll have to listen to us.”
“You're crazy! You're stark, raving mad! You can’t take her hostage, I won’t let you.” Why I thought I would ever stand a chance against Drallen, I don’t know.
“I won’t hurt her Kavi, but I can’t let her go either.”
I didn’t even have time to flinch when the fist collided with the side of my head. I didn’t pass out not fully anyway, but I was too dazed to do anything but lie on the floor, and watch the door thud shut behind Drallen.
Mira
The slow creek of an opening door woke me from my slumber. I sat up to see both Martha and Billy fast asleep. Cautiously I crept from my bed and into the main area,
The front door creaked open and closed in the shuttle breeze of the night. I went to close it, but waiting for me, on the other side, silhouetted by moonlight, was the tall Muscular shape of Drallen. He looked menacing in the dark.
“Hello.” He said. I tried to scream, but there was already a hand over my mouth, and my feet were off the ground. I kicked and squirmed trying to get free.
“Calm down! I’m trying not to hurt you!” he said. I stopped struggling, and his grip relaxed. Despite my best effort, I began to quake uncontrollably, and hot tears made pathways on my face.
“I said I'm not going to hurt you, damn it!” Suddenly he jerked me backwards and we fell in a pile on the ground
Kavi
I sprinted through the night. It had taken a moment or two for my vision to clear, and even now my head was still pounding. I kept running, each step seemed to be happening in slow-motion. I cursed my slow legs. If he had harmed one hair on her head I’d— well I wasn’t sure what I’d do, but I’d do something. I came out in front of the house, and sure enough, there he was. Drallen had his back to me, but in the stillness of the night I could hear Mira’s muffled Sobs. As quickly, and as quietly as I could, I crept up behind Drallen and leaped onto his back, hooking my arm around his throat. Drallen let out a strangled cry, and toppled backwards, crushing me beneath him, and knocking the wind out of me. Mira was gone from his hold, I was too caught up in the struggle to find out where. I kept my arm round his throat, pressing hard enough to eventually knock him out, but not to kill him. His hands grasped at my arm, his fingernails dug into my skin till I could feel blood on my arm. It was curious, before I had gone to the city I would never have been able to stand a chance against Drallen. But the city had toughened me in ways I never would have thought possible, and before long I felt Drallen’s fingers release my arm, and his body go limp. I rose. My heart stopped cold, for a moment he looked like he was dead, but then I saw the slow rise and fall of his chest.
Following the gasping sobs, I found Mira curled up in the narrow passage between Ma’s and the neighbour’s. She looked so small and pitiful, that my heart gave a twinge. She would hold her breath for four or five seconds, then let it out in a burst of sobs. When I tried to approach her she shied away from me, the poor kid was probably scared half to death.
“It’s Ok,” I said “I’m not going to hurt you, ever.” Hesitantly she took my hand, and I helped her out from the passage. When she saw Drallen, I heard a sharp intake of breath.
“Did you...is he...dead?” her voice was hushed and her eyes were wide as saucers.
I shook my head. “No. Just unconscious,” She nodded, but her eyes stayed locked on Drallen. “But soon he’s gonna wake up, so we have to go now, alright?” Wiping away her tears, she agreed and we started off.
Mira
It took a little for me to fully regain control of myself, but eventually I managed to stem the endless flow of snot. Now as I walked down the abandoned streets, I felt that every shadow housed someone waiting to leap out at me. I stayed right behind Kavi, hardly daring to lag behind by more than a foot. By the time we reached the outer edge of the buildings, my legs were in agony, so Kavi had to carry me again. The city end was so abrupt and beautiful it took my breath away. The world was split in two, one half towering makeshift buildings, the other open sky and rolling farmland. Off in the distance some sort of bladed machine rotated through the fields, letting out little puffs of smoke as it went. We had been walking for a while when I finally fell asleep.
Kavi
Her breath tickled my ear. It had been nearly three hours since her breathing had lost its edge. As I walked along I thought about what I was doing, or rather what I had done. I hadn’t meant to, and I was acting purely on instinct, but I had come this close to killing my own brother. Drallen had his flaws, sure, but don’t we all? He had taught me everything that Ma had been too busy to. He was my brother, but he was also my best friend. Hell, I would’ve been dead my first day in the city if he hadn’t forced me to learn to fight. I may not have wanted to join his little ‘revolution’ but he had always been there for me, and I had turned on him. I wondered if he would ever forgive me. Probably not.
I turned a bend in the road, and there it was. Niodar. It was the closest city to the farm house, and one of the biggest on Earth. Just as we entered the city I felt the throbbing pulses that told me a migraine was coming on. oh damn, not now! I thought. Trying to ignore it I pushed through the city streets. We were accosted along the way by people trying to sell me strange drinks that supposedly ‘took everything away’, and a couple of amateurs who tried to mug me, one flash of my knife was enough to scare them away. As the pounding in my head intensified, the streets seemed to get louder, and the whole world seemed to be pressing in on me. It was a wonder that no one noticed Mira, every building had her image projected on it.
minutes later the building loomed up in front of me, The peace-delegate — As the law enforcement that the sky cities sent to earth were called — headquarters. Peace-delegates busily hurried in and out of tall metal doors. One of them saw me and froze. And that’s when it hit. The Migraine hit me like a ton of bricks, you’d think it’s a pain that you have to build up to, but no, it’s a pain that comes out of nowhere and wallops you. I crumpled to the ground clasping my head, of all the times why did it have to come now!? I thought someone lifted Mira off of me, but it seemed like it was happening in another world. A hand gripped my arm and yanked me to my feet. The pain was too much, and the world went dark around me.
I opened my eyes to a dark world. A world that consisted of only one room, and held only one thing. Me. Me and a toilet, that is. The first thing I noticed was that I was over my Migraine, the second was that Mira was gone. I waited in the dark cell for what seemed like days, but was in reality more like hours, before the door swung open. A peace-delegate, dressed in the typical blood red uniform, stepped in. The door shut behind him with a noise that made it feel like it wasn’t ever going to open again.
“sir,” I began “sir, there must be some sort of mistake.” my voice cracked from dehydration.
“Oh?” said the man, his voice was deep and smooth in a way that set me on edge. “Is that so? Well, we’ll have to sort that out, now won’t we? why don’t you start by telling me exactly why you shouldn’t be here?”
I didn’t like the mocking sound of the man's voice. “I’ll tell you why, if you tell me why I’m here in the first place.”
“Bargaining, are we? Well, allow me to make you a counter-offer, if you answer all of my questions with any trouble then I’ll let you live...for now... Sounds fair?”
I nodded, I hated everything about the situation. I hated the man. I hated that I was trapped in a cell, when I hadn't done anything wrong. And most of all I hated how damn powerless I was, because there was nothing I could offer that this man could want. Except the truth, that is, and I’m not even wholly sure he actually wanted that.
“Now tell me, how exactly did you and Miss Rex become acquainted?” I told him about the dumpster, and made sure to include every detail I could remember. Except Mr. Cortavian’s name, I may not have had any leverage myself, but there was no point in giving him more.
When I finished, he said, “Don’t lie to me boy.” and struck me across the face. It didn’t hurt much, in fact it hardly felt like anything compared to some of the beatings I had taken in the city, where they were dished out like food. But it still had an effect, my blood began to boil, and I had to bite my tongue to keep from saying something I would regret.
No matter what I said, truth or not, the man would call me a liar and strike me. It went on like this for hours, until the man left, saying “perhaps some time for thought will loosen your tongue.” With that the door closed and I was plunged back into darkness.
After two days of stewing in the cell with no food and little water I was in a story state. So when the door next opened I was ready to do anything, even beg. None of that, it turned out, would be necessary, because standing before me was the last person I had expected.
I was in a plain room, with nothing but a table and two chairs. I sat in one, and across from me was a dignitary. I had already forgotten his name but I knew that he was Mira’s father. He was wearing a Genial smile, that was just a little bit too wide.
“I would like to thank you.” He said “If it wasn’t for you my daughter might not be alive today. Others, put in your shoes, may not have helped her, or even gone so far as to have harmed her, but you son made the right choice.” Something about the way he said the words made me straighten my back and push back my shoulders. “Now, Mira has been quite adamant that you should be in some way rewarded. And quite frankly I agree. So I would like to offer you a place on the sky city Prospice, as a servant to one of our doctors?”
“I would sir, more than anything. But I can’t.”
“why not?”
“You see, I get these terrible Migraines, and a servant has to be able bodied at all times. That’s why all my previous applications were turned down.”
Much to my surprise the president laughed.
“We can cure that on Prospice. Now what do you say?”
Prospice was magnificent. I had been placed on an aerocraft the next day and sent up.I was sent to work for one of Prospice’s doctors, running errands and such. I liked the Doc, as he let me call him when we were alone, he reminded me of a more timid Mr. Cortavian.
About a week after I arrived he performed the surgery which took away my migraines. He removed the piece of metal that Mira had seen, from my head.
I had asked him what it was, and he had told me that it was a computer chip. He had also told me that the implant was not something unique to me, that everyone had one. I had asked him if he had one, and he had told me he didn’t anymore, but that he had when he was a child. He told me a lot of other stuff, that Migraines like mine were not common, that most people went their whole lives without noticing them. I found out that on earth everyone had them, but in the sky cities they were removed when you turned eighteen. Even the president had had one when he was young, and Mira still had hers, and Mr. Cortavian had one too.
Although Doc never told me what they did I figured it out well enough, because when mine was removed everything changed. It was like my whole life I had been standing on my head, and suddenly someone flipped me over. Or maybe it would be better to compare it to being stuck in a dimly lit room and thinking that was all there is, and then someone turns on the light.
I began to see Earth and her people, not as something undeserving of the sky cities, something that had doomed itself, but as a product of the sky cities. Earth was their dumpster, a place to put all the people and things they didn’t want, but still needed. Anger was suddenly always a brush stroke away.
I saw Mira once after that, and it was terrible. I almost lost my head and yelled at her when she told me how lucky I was that I had been allowed to come to Prospice.
Then something occurred to me, something I had never noticed before. When Drallen had been hit in that alleyway, it had been on the exact spot where the implant is placed. Like me it had been only after losing it that he had changed, that the cover had been lifted off of his eyes. But the real question, the question both of us had been faced with was, what good is seeing when no one else can? Drallen had tried to show others, and I — well, I'm not sure what I’d do. But I’m gonna do something, mark my words, I’m gonna do something.