The Gift of Volkeye (47 page)

Now, the skin had sunken backwards with a black metallic skeleton taking its place. Similarly clawed hands had emerged before Teshunua’s eyes. He yanked off his coat (nearly ripping it to pieces in the process) to fully inspect his body. His legs were changed all the way up to the knee area, and his arms did so just beneath the elbow. Ignoring the freezing cold wind, Teshunua followed his instincts, knowing what he could do. He hastily walked to the wall of the castle and began scaling upwards like a spider.

This time it was Zynathian who shouted with applause. “Impressive, Nephew!”

“My God, I’ve dreamt of this!” Teshunua yelled excitedly, looking down at his applauding family as he made it about fifty feet up. Even Jalum had woken and was squawking at him.

Lyn Sha had just made it outdoors. “Holy shit!” she bellowed.

Whack!

“Ouch! Sorry, Daddy,” she said, still gawking at Teshunua. “Oh my goodness, Tesh, you’re awake…and
you’ve got knew talents—cool!”

Lyn leapt in the air and grabbed hold around his middle. “Damn, you look scary! What the hell is that mask for?” she asked, giggling as she clung to him. Teshunua just laughed, looking below at the others as he got an idea for how strong the grip of his claws was. Lyn’s weight didn’t loosen him a bit.

“I’m so glad you’re feeling better! We all missed you! Man, have we got stories to tell you! The last couple of weeks have been crazy! Hurry up and get back down below, will ya’…it’s time for bed! We’re leaving for the Igloo tomorrow morning,” she said, kissing his cheek and dropping back to the platform.

Teshunua let go with one hand and one foot, seeing how strong he was. Nothing. His grip was firm as it was in the beginning. Swelling with pride, he looked down at the family and waved.

“Uncle, look…only one hand and one foot!” he boasted.

“Let go with your other hand,” Zynathian yelled up to him.

What? How will I…?
Scared as he was, Teshunua obeyed.

As he released the grip of his right hand, Tesh felt his body fall backwards into the stone wall. He swung back and forth like a pendulum and swelled with jubilance. Teshunua’s head began to ache as gravity shifted its pull on the blood in his body, making it all rush backward. His face became a deep shade of purple. He looked up (which was really down) and found Zynathian giving him more instructions.

“Now, with that one leg gripping the wall, let yourself back down here, slowly…but don’t let go of the wall!”

Teshunua focused. He felt the parts of his skeleton begin to shift back and forth and then, suddenly, his leg was lowering him to the ground! Teshunua was amazed, as he couldn’t possibly see how so much of that metal skeleton could be stored in such a small portion of his body.

“Uncle, this is brilliant!”

When he was more than halfway down, Tesh stopped and righted himself. Curious as to how far away he could latch onto something, he mightily slung his arm above. He caught hold of something that was much too distant to even make out but yanked himself up anyway. Of course, now he was howling in fear, for he hadn’t gotten used to his abilities, and the ride was far speedier than he’d counted on! As he smacked into the ledge of one of the castle’s spires, he clung for dear life, panting, as he looked below at the cloudy abyss, which longed to swallow him whole.

“Teshunua…get your ass back down here on the double, boy! You scared us half to death!” Zynathian scolded, his voice echoing up the distance.

Teshunua ignored Zynathian, as he wasn’t quite ready to get moving yet. He needed to gather his wits once more.

Finally, the scare had worn off, and he began to notice the cold again. He heard thunder in the distance and knew that, at this altitude, rainwater would turn to ice quickly. Teshunua was apprehensive, as he didn’t yet know how well his claws would do in certain elements. Just then, lighting ripped throughout the sky, and thunder clapped so loudly this time, he felt the castle vibrate. Teshunua got moving.

As he began to descend, he heard the high-pitched cry of something, echoing in the wind around him. Teshunua turned to find a large mass of blackbirds, trying to escape the storm, headed right at him. Although they weren’t planning to attack him, he instinctively raised his arms and began swatting at the air, so the birds had no choice. They started batting him over the head with their wings and cutting him with their beaks. At the height of his emotion, with fear overwhelming him, Teshunua accidentally lashed out.

The sound was so deafening, he at first thought a bolt of lightening had struck a tower nearby. Then he opened his eyes and found red lasers firing from mini cannons, which had surprisingly appeared on both arms. Teshunua watched in horror, as the birds burst into soft black clouds of feathers (mixed with a hint of blood), whilst he cut the beautiful creatures to pieces. He was appalled at his actions, but yet he couldn’t stop firing, for they were still swarming him!

Please let this be over!
he silently prayed.

No sooner than the thought leaving his mind did a small barrel rise from the top of his left gun. A minute pulse of red light projected, and the next thing Teshunua knew there was an explosion that not only killed all the birds, but destroyed the steeple he’d been resting on!

He was thrown into the distance.

As he noticed the castle getting farther and farther away from him, Teshunua reached out with all his might, trying to catch hold of something. Though he had no idea what he was grabbing, when he felt his claw scrape the surface of the castle, he clutched it instantly, swinging himself inward.

It all happened so fast that Teshunua didn’t realize he’d saved himself. For a second, he looked at the grayish-black sky, expecting to see the face of God, thinking that he’d died. But as he noticed the patio floor beneath him and the worried faces surrounding him, he realized that everything was fine. He even saw Jalum hovering in the air, obviously prepared to dive after him if he’d fallen.

Sorry, Jay…beat you to it!
he thought, smiling.

The experience was quite surreal. There were all these voices speaking to him simultaneously, but being so happy to be alive, he didn’t really
hear them. Bahzee appeared to be scolding him like a mother, and he vaguely noticed her throw his coat over him, rubbing his arms, which had reverted to their original state. The others gave him a piece of their minds as well, but all Teshunua could make out from the jumble of noisy voices and Jalum’s squawking, was the hyper ranting of a highly ecstatic Khyeryn:

“Dude, you musta’ been, like, seventy feet out...you should’ve seen yourself! Holy shit on a damn Popsicle stick, that was totally wicked, you sick bastard!”

Whack!

“Owww…shit, Dad!”

Whack! Whack! Whack!

As Khyeryn walked away, rubbing the back of his head, Tesh couldn’t help but grin. His aching body begged for rest, as the exhaustion suddenly hit him. As Maugrimm lifted him from the patio floor, Teshunua had but one thing to say.

“Somebody wake me when we get to the Igloo.”

1

O
h my goodness, this turned out quite nice!
Zynathian said to himself, gazing at the massive complex, as their ship auto-piloted over the new storage bay. It was meant for very large ships, like this one, that couldn’t fit inside the smaller dock.

This time, Zynathian had brought along the largest ship he’d ever constructed. Like his others, he kept it attached to the bottom side of the castle. It was equipped with all the features of his smaller vessels, plus a hospital wing with duplicate supplies of everything he had at home in the lab. There was close to two hundred beds and operating tables if needed, and he had a nauseating feeling that he’d soon be using many of them. There was no way that they’d be able to get through the next confrontation with Phyllamon without casualties or severe injuries. He only hoped that he’d not be using the beds for anyone close to him.

The night before, immediately following his second near-death experience, Teshunua had passed out. While he slept, Zynathian nursed his cuts and bruises and then turned in himself, as did the others. The family slept aboard the ship and left at first light this morning, auto-piloting the majority of the way down.

“You’ve arrived at the Igloo,”
the ship’s computer said in a soft feminine voice over the intercom.

Everyone bustled about, rushing to the windows and rubbing their eyes to make sure they were seeing things properly. Even Toodles had run to Zynathian to lift him up, so he could see. They were aghast at the spectacle.

What was once the entire complex of the Igloo was now just the center with massive expansions stemming from all sides. It looked far bigger than Zynathian thought it would be. In haste of the situation, he’d only thought of the essential needs in the expansions: new apartments; the armoury; and the medical wing (which would eventually become a fully staffed hospital with Mechs and those refugees that possessed a natural disposition for the medical craft). This was a small list of things that he and Asha had deemed a priority. However, now that he looked at it, Zynathian had a feeling that there was far more to the Igloo than he’d imagined.

Belch was left to oversee the construction of the new Igloo with orders over the Mechs to follow his lead. Zynathian was quite excited to get inside and see what he’d came up with, as Belch’s frame of mind was that of an artist, just like he and Asha. He took great pride in any project he took up, even if it was only serving superb food at his restaurant.

“Wow.”

“That is nuts!”

“It’s beautiful.”

The family expressed their awe continuously until the complex fell from sight, as the ship slowly lowered itself through the open shield of the massive storage facility. As they landed at the back end, they were astonished at the great number of ships in the room. Most were medium sized to small, indicating that the majority of the refugees were households with only one child or none at all. However, despite the fact that the families weren’t very big, all the ships took up more than three quarters of the space, and Zynathian found himself wishing he’d instructed the Mechs to make the docking bay twice the size of the two hundred yards he’d initially specified.

Oh well, I can’t be right all the time,
he thought.

They gathered their belongings and began to disembark. Teshunua was so in love with his new talents that he saw no reason to ever wear shoes again. He jumped off the ship in his bare feet, transforming them as they touched the frigid floor of the arena. Everyone looked at him, wondering if he was so proud of himself that he’d waltz in there with his strange looking legs exposed, which were bound to make strangers feel uncomfortable. He saw their expressions and wished there were something he could do about it, other than put on shoes.

Luckily, Asha shook her head and said, “No, Tesh...use the boots. Focus.”

At this, Teshunua looked to his feet, concentrating.
Transform…transform…

The change started at the top, above the knee, circling all the way down until his legs no longer resembled a black, metal skeleton. They now appeared as fashionable, heavy-looking boots, lavishly decorated with metal.

Excellent!
Teshunua thought as he let his pants legs down. Though his feet made loud clunking sounds with every step, eliminating all possibilities of stealth, he didn’t mind. He knew that if he ever needed to sneak up on anyone, he’d scale a wall towards them, or simply reach one hundred feet into the distance, and snap their neck from behind. Simple as that.

“Thank you, Asha. You’ve got quite the imagination…you’re as talented as Zynathian!”

“Hah!” Zynathian yelled, disputing the statement. “Woman, don’t you dare think of agreeing with him!”

“I may not be as smart, but I’m definitely better looking, you old beastly fart!”

“I second that motion!” Khyetarah Vyx Mune spoke up, defending her. Everyone laughed.

They wove their way through the ships in the arena, finally making it to the exit. The shield rose and, before them, was an immensely long hallway, enclosed in weatherproof glass. As they entered, they looked through the glass into the distance, finding Mechs still working on projects on either side.

They walked along, pulling off their winter garments, as they were now unnecessary it was so warm here. Over the last couple of weeks, Maugrimm had learned to deal with the warmer temperatures when up and about during the day. He was glad, too, as it appeared that Belch had modified the temperature of the entire complex to match that of human’s taste. Now he merely needed frigid temperatures in his private quarters in order to sleep well. Maugrimm supposed he’d have to sleep outside while they were here, unless Belch kept accommodations for him in mind.

They came to the shield that would bid them entrance to the new Igloo. It slid upwards, and no one could withhold his or her awe. They had entered a plush sitting room with a bar, several couches, reclining chairs, and tables. There was over a dozen people playing cards, smoking cigars, or enjoying their drinks. For the first time ever, they could see the ceiling. There were no ice stalactites, but thousands upon thousands of colourful rocks, which Zynathian knew were natural stones. He was curious as to where the Mechs had traveled to find such pieces.

The bartender stared at them. “My god, have you all escaped from Mashyuvah?” he asked in a panicking voice.

“No, not quite. However, we do know all about the situation,” Zynathian answered him. “I’m Zynathian Volkeye.”

The entire room went silent, and one man even dropped his glass of whiskey in surprise. He and the
other two
at his table watched everyone rise to shake Zynathian’s hand. Even the bartender came from the around the counter to greet him.

“Bless you, man! You’re a god amongst us humans, and we’re all deeply in your debt!”

“I’ve been wondering for years whether or not you were real…it’s a blessing to see that you do exist. I’m honored, Master Volkeye…we all are.”

“I merely did for you what was important to me as a human being, that’s all,” Zynathian answered, looking about the room and nodding with satisfaction. “I’m pleased that you all find these living arrangements to your liking. It’s our first time seeing it anew.”

“Well, we must show you the place then, eh?” the bartender said. “Somebody give ‘em a tour!”

They all jumped at the idea. Zynathian was flattered. “I take it you all are from the Trio? Which towns?”

“I’m Sundry, from Dohrm.”

“Elliot, of
Mheep.”

“I’m Bobo, the bus driver…
Rhylix. I transported some from my town to these parts, including Annie and her mother, Sam.” He looked to the girls, giving his unforgettable, toothless smile. “How you ladies doing? Remember me?” They each came forward and gave him a warm hug. “The trip wasn’t easy, but we made it all right.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Bobo,” Zynathian said.

They’d now met everyone in the room, except three standing off to the side. The man who’d dropped his whiskey came forward. He was young, perhaps only mid-thirties.

“I’m Alex, and I’m not from the Trio. I’m actually from Mashyuvah. Before leaving the city, I sent a message to my cousins to let them know of everything that was happening.” He paused a moment, smiling and scratching his head. “It’s funny how small the world is…turns out, they know you,” Alex said, motioning his cousins forward.

Tears welled up in Zynathian’s eyes as he saw the first of them. The life changing events that day at Beazul’s market quickly flashed before his eyes.

“Nigel!” Zynathian said, embracing him. “My god, it’s been twenty years, mate! I thought I’d
never see you again!”

“I told you if I ever found out you needed me, I would come running. Here I am,” Nigel said. He looked over and found Maugrimm twenty years older, yet he hadn’t aged a day!

“How ya’ doing there, matey?” Maugrimm scooped him up in his arms, cradling him. “I’ve missed you all this time. Where ya’ been?”

“We settled far across the Mashyuvian Ocean…the other side of the world. I wanted to be someplace where I could watch over my daughter and never be bothered again. I did well enough, selling my share of the market to my partners. We’ve had more than enough to live on ever since.”

They all turned and found Reena (now thirty-two-years-old) and Zynathian staring at each other. He was overwhelmed to see how well she looked after nearly dying on him. However, he was slightly nervous to ask about her spirits, as he didn’t want to be improper. Exactly how do you ask a woman how she’s coped with life after having her vagina split open by creatures?

“How are things? Are you well?” Zynathian asked tactfully.

“I’m well enough,” Reena answered, sobbing.

From her vague answer, Zynathian concluded that although he’d healed her body, he could never heal Reena emotionally.

He was right. Never in her life had Reena taken a male lover, though she’d had many pursue her. She wanted nothing at all to do with the male species, being distant with most of them, except for her father and Zynathian, of course. It was female lovers that suited her. In fact, Reena was engaged to one, a woman named Lux, who trained her in medicine. (Lux was presently looking to the man that lost his arm to a Karnov in the attack on Mashyuvah.)

Reena was still sobbing as she embraced Zynathian, never having forgotten his kindness to her. “I’ve missed you so much,” she said.

“You look wonderful,” Zynathian replied.

“I am wonderful. I’m with a beautiful woman, who takes good care of me and even trained me in medicine.”

“Your field is medicine? Good! I have great need of people like you!”

“That’s why I’m here. I am no warrior, but if it comes down to a fight with Phyllamon, Lux and I can help take care of the wounded. Father has given his word that he’ll lend a hand with the patients as well.”

“Excellent!”

“So where’s Ya Minj?” Nigel asked from behind. “God, I miss that woman! Smart as whip, she was!”

Zynathian’s head fell slightly. “She passed.”

Nigel and Reena’s mouths dropped open, gasping in horror. “I’m so sorry to hear that, friend,” Nigel said, as his heart sunk.

“It’s all right…she died of a worthy cause. It happened while she was giving birth to that good looking, little rock head there,” Zynathian said, pointing out Khyeryn.

Khye’s ears and cheeks flushed red.

“Bloody hell, ya’ look just like your mother, come to think of it! It’s a pleasure to meet you!” Nigel said.

“Likewise…I’m Khyeryn,” he replied.

Alex, Nigel, and Reena introduced themselves to the rest of the family and led them from the room to explore the many wonders of the complex. The place was buzzing with life, with strangers greeting them everywhere they looked. They found that in addition to the things that Zynathian had ordered, the Igloo housed: a magnificent nursery; a giant playroom with a jungle gym; smoking rooms; several lounges; soundproof studies and music rooms; a library; art studios; classrooms; and other wonders that were far too numerous to count.

They’d now come upon what would be their favourite addition to the Igloo, and the family burst into laughter when the host spun around to greet them.

“Hi, welcome to the Igloo Cafe! My name is Belch, and I’ll be your host. How may I be of service?”

“Hah, hah…excellent!” Zynathian exclaimed.

“Belch, you devil, this place is brilliant!” Asha said.

“Why thank you, Asha.”

“You really have done a hell of a job. What did you do…sit down and write a list of all the cool things I forgot as soon as I left?” Zynathian laughed.

Belch looked undeniably guilty and shrugged. “Well…yes,” he said, smiling. “You’re all looking quite well.”

“We’ll look even better once we have some food in our bellies!” Zynathian said.

“Say no more…right this way!”

Belch seated them at a large table with the best view of the restaurant. He set their plates and utensils down then poured them all large glasses of water. Alex, Nigel, and Reena declined to eat with them.