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Welcome to Percotran -Part XXX By: Richard Davidson on 3/5/2003; 5:38 PM The Shaman had always made Alexander just a bit uneasy. Every time he thought hed gotten used to the Shamans brooding presence, Alexander would suddenly find himself getting just a bit of a chill. He remembered a night hed been standing on the front porch of the tragically beautiful white and grey farmhouse hed been renting for some time. None of the cats who usually surrounded him, begging for food were there. It was only he and the wild, cool breeze; the darkness of the night only matched by its wicked stillness; a stillness that couldnt be broken by the shrill, wintry breath that mounted its sporadic, sneak attacks. He stood out there for quite awhile, the occasional car making its way along the dusty road at the end of the drive; and imagined one of them being his wife, coming home from work, ready for a nice supper. Hed made more than enough spaghetti for two, since the cats would enjoy whatever he didnt eat, but in his heart the table would always be set for two. He was almost crippled by a sense of desperate loneliness, when he saw the little people run by in the cornfield. That was weird, Alexander thought to himself, wondering what in the hell he just saw. Maybe some of the cats were running through the field, to circle behind the trees before making their approach to the house. Wouldnt that be convenient? after all, he thought, since he had some food for them, and their presence would insure that no intruders could sneak up on him, in his suddenly panicky mood. But if it had been the cats, and hed only suffered some strange visual hallucination, due to the darkness of the night, and the haziness of the air, they would have been here by now, he reasoned, and yet no felines were forthcoming. He ran through a mental list of animals that ran freely through the area, trying to imagine which of them looked like three or four foot human beings, who may or may not have circled around to the back of the house, and could easily be lurking by that bush hed been meaning to trim, due to its unruly and somewhat sinister appearance. How clearly he could remember all that, as he stood leaning against the iron rail running around the deck, watching the Shaman gesture wildly at the Chief Naval Officer, near the bow. The words were lost in the wind, of course, and Alexander liked that just fine, for the moment. The Shaman made him see visions of little people frolicking across his farm on a horribly lonely winters night; and Alexander wasnt prone to think something like that was a coincidence. Alexander loved the feel of the wind, on such a perfect day, staring into the open ocean, which stretched farther than Alexander could possibly imagine. Youre loving all this, arent you? asked Kasheeba, who he hadnt noticed behind him. Yes, I suppose I am, Alexander sighed, hardly able to explain the life hed left behind the day hed been sucked into some corporate nightmare. Its beautiful out here, he said, and really meant it. She almost told him right there that Swig was following the ship in the torpedo sub, but thought better of it, and then scolded herself for having been tempted. Swig was the Ace up her sleeve. If these fools couldnt handle a situation, she was quite sure that she could. Swig was traveling only a few feet under the water, and due to this, the occasional surprised dolphin would jump, adding to Alexanders intense rapture. He wondered how his friend, Leviticus was doing; wondering if he had indeed ever met such a creature, or merely been dreaming, as hed done so often lately. He was tempted to ask Kasheeba about Autrioselons, and the words were almost on his lips when she said, look! She was pointing to something off the bow, but Alexander didnt see anything, and couldnt have known she was merely distracting his attention from the sub, which had popped out of the water momentarily, making her wonder if Swig was asleep. When Alexander turned back around, she grabbed him, and kissed him passionately, leaning him backwards against the iron railing. Her breath was slightly fishy, but Alexander had to admit he was almost knocked unconscious by the sheer power of the hormonal rush it gave him. Wow! She stopped, as rapidly as shed started, and then leaned back and gave him a smile. I can do that whenever I want, you know, she laughed dangerously. Id say thats right, he answered, surprised he could talk at all, and not realizing hed said it in Bahinian. That only made her smile wider, and her eyes sparkled with a magic that hed remember for the rest of his life. She appeared playful; girlish; with no hint at all of the cold killer shed been trained all her life to be, and be well. This is a suicide mission, he said, seriously. Kasheeba laughed. It is for him. Who? That Bogotron spy, of course, she said lightly, waving in the general direction of the brig. I think Ill live a bit longer, how about you? she asked, her eyes still brilliant; full of mirth. Hey, Im game, he answered, Ive been though quite a lot already, you know. Yes, I suppose you have, she said quietly. I suppose you have. Kasheeba liked this pitiful man. Shed though him a worthless corporate drone, but he wasnt like the corporate drones of today. Theyre nothing but scared peasants, who would die of a heart attack if your sword got within three feet of them. Shed seen Alexander on the end of Captain Pearsons sword, and instead of fear, shed seen sarcastic anger. Kasheeba really enjoyed that. But he was no warrior, she reasoned, and probably broke pretty easily, physically speaking. Hed never survive the full onslaught of her unbridled passion; even if he were twice as big and strong. Maybe even three times. Which was probably just as well, because this very well might be a suicide mission for him, the Bahini, and those stupid Puali Lizards, that were trying to blend in with the garish green paint of the inner deck wall, that had mercifully faded years ago. She could easily have them for dinner, but why bother, when she knew the Bahinian Chef below was cooking up a feast of Puango and Rum soaked Gagliobine. Alexander was extremely smitten with her, of course, and although he had no idea shed been specially bred for hundreds of generations to emit bone crushing pheromones, something made that little voice in his head scream Run! RUN! This could be called logic, or good sense. Kasheeba was very much her own woman, and could easily kill a thousand men, on a good day. The Chef blew the whistle, and in only a few moments they were gathered around a big table; The Chief Medical Warrior; the Chief Medical Warriors daughter; the Chief Naval Officer; the Shaman, the Ships Oracle; the Nuclear Technician; Kasheeba and Alexander. It was a Bahinian custom to always serve the Nuclear Technician first, since his job was to watch the reactor, monitoring it ever twenty minutes, with five minute naps twice a day. He had over thirty seven tests to run during each check, and besides, he was slightly radioactive, and would curdle the cream-based Corinthan Sauce. Arent you going to feed me? growled Badson from the brig, and the Bahini laughed, and threw handfuls of Pumpai Rice Pudding at him. They were all quite fluent at the ridiculous barking dog language by now, and were actually better conversationalists than most Pirates, or corporate drones. The Ships Oracle told a very funny story about spirits tricking Data Entry Workers into giving up their souls, and when he got to the puncline, Hows THAT for a productive worker? several of the Bahini dribbled Kuiwrat down their faces, pointing at each other, and laughing all the more. Kasheeba was guffawing excitedly, and began making snorting noises, that only made the Bahini laugh harder. Alexander wondered if hed ever had so much fun in his life, and started to notice just how drunk the Kuiwrat was making him. He asked the Chief Medical Warrior how the Bahini knew so much about corporate culture, and the Chief Medical Warrior scowled and said, what, do you think we are stupid? The Bahini all turned deadly serious, leaving only Kasheeba chuckling and snorting, unaware of the sudden tension. We know many things, said the Shaman, in a deep, powerful voice. We know wherever the islands move; we know when the Pirate ships pass stealthily by; we know who is on the Board of Directors for all three major corporations; and we know youve consorted with our enemy. Your enemy? Alexander asked, puzzled. The Autrioselon. the Shaman said, and fire was in his eyes. What did it tell you of our people? So it was real! Alexander stammered, shocked. You know an Autrioselon? It was Kasheebas turn to be amazed. Autrioselons were legendary among Pirates. Only a true leader, anointed by the Gods could ever speak with the powerful and elusive creature. Most dared not even speak of them. One well trained Autrioselon could wipe out an entire fleet, without even batting an eye. They were quick, and intensively cunning, not to mention quite big. Quiet, Pirate Queen, roared the Shaman, making her wonder if she would have to kill him. This little man has ridden the mighty Whale, and has lived to tell about it... I thought I was dreaming, interrupted Alexander, only to be met with an icy stare. We know about more than Autrioselons, the Shaman said, curling his lip. We also know about the little people.
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