GAIA: Rogue State (A Girl Power Novella) Read online

  “Me tired of talk,” Garlak grumbles. For emphasis she turns a pew over. The woman screams and then presses herself tight to Mom.

  “It’s all right, young lady,” Mom says as if she’s talking to Melanie. “Miss Garlak isn’t as mean as she likes to appear. You should see her with her children; they’re so darling.”

  Garlak growls something under her breath at this. The woman turns to face Mom. “I can’t betray Miss Moon. They’ll kill me.”

  “Sunny Moon is involved in this?”

  The woman puts a hand to her mouth, realizing her mistake. “I’m a dead woman now!” she shouts and then begins to sob into Mom’s shoulder.

  Melanie shakes her head. “Keep her here. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  Kila follows Melanie down the hallway. “Who is this Sunny Moon?”

  “She’s the head of the church. She contacted me about those disappearances.”

  “That seems an odd thing for her to do if she is involved in this.”

  “I know.” Melanie shakes her head. “This whole thing is beginning to smell.”

  “I do not smell anything out of the ordinary.”

  “Oh, that’s an expression we use here. It’s a figurative bad smell.”

  “I see. Your human languages are quite interesting.”

  “I’m sure.”

  Melanie sees a door marked “Office” and opens it. As she suspected, this is the office for the head of this branch, probably the woman at the altar. There’s a computer terminal on the desk, probably the one with the camera feed.

  Melanie sits at the chair and then begins to poke around the computer’s files. As she expected, there’s a link to the feed from the video camera. There’s also an archive for each day’s recordings. “This looks like it,” Melanie says.

  She starts to go through the most recent feeds. She has to go back two days to find Dward still alive. Then she begins to fast-forward to find the instant of the murder. What must be a few minutes before, a woman in a pink robe with the hood up steps into the office. “What are you doing here?” Dward rumbles through his translator.

  The woman says nothing. From her robe she produces a Peacekeeper staff. Lightning bursts from this to fry the alien. He screams for a few seconds as his body starts turning to liquid from the heat. Melanie fast-forwards this to when the killer turns to leave. She’s wearing a black mask to obscure most of her face. Then she’s gone.

  “Great. That’s not much help.”

  “But it is more than we had before,” Kila says.

  Melanie hears a crash from down the hall. “We should go check on the others.”

  “That is a good idea.”

  They hurry back to the chapel to find Garlak smashing pews into kindling while the woman cries into Mom’s shoulder. Mom is stroking her hair as if the woman is her actual daughter. Mom looks up at Melanie and smiles. “I think you should hear what Miss O’Brien was telling me. Go on, sweetheart. Tell them.”

  O’Brien looks up, her face red and lined with tears. In a tiny voice she says, “There’s a town to the north of here. Sunny hired some mercenaries to take the place over. There’s a factory there. That’s where they’re making the staffs.”

  “Peacekeeper staffs?”

  “Yes.”

  “What for?”

  “I don’t know. She didn’t tell us that.”

  “Can you take us to this place?” The woman nods in response. “All right, then let’s go. Garlak, come on.”

  “Not finished bashing yet.”

  “There’s going to be plenty of stuff for you to bash where we’re going.”

  “Good. Me getting bored.”

  Mom helps O’Brien walk all the way back to the plane. On a map in the plane, the woman indicates where this town is located. Melanie isn’t surprised to see it’s located not far from where Diane landed. Now it makes a little more sense what happened to her. But if Sunny Moon has a Peacekeeper sex-changing machine in addition to Peacekeeper staffs, they could be in for a lot of trouble.

  Chapter 19

  They put Tonya on the machines. Not as a worker, but as a mechanic. Dr. Pierce keeps a close eye on the girl the same way Tikembe has kept a close eye on her. She supposes in a place like this all they have is each other. A guard nudges her in the back to remind her Tikembe’s not the only one watching her. She shuffles along with her broom.

  After a few hours, Dr. Pierce notices Tonya motion to her. She makes her way over and then discreetly turns away so no one will think they’re talking. “I’ve got something for you. Can you keep it safe?”

  “I’ll try.”

  “Great.”

  Dr. Pierce feels something heavy drop into a pocket. She nods slightly before she continues her rounds. Later, during a rare break, she notes the object in her pocket is a piece of machinery. She has no idea what it actually is, not until Tonya eases over to her. “Did you ever see Iron Man?” she asks.

  “What is that?”

  “A movie from a few years ago.”

  “I’m afraid I didn’t get to many pictures.”

  “OK, well, this rich scientist guy is locked in a cave by terrorists and he uses components from around the cave to make a weapon so he can escape.”

  “Oh. I see.” Dr. Pierce isn’t a spy like Diane, but she understands this is a code for what Tonya plans to do.

  “I’ve talked to the other girls. None of them have seen it either. I guess there’s not a burgeoning film industry in central Africa yet.”

  “That’s very unfortunate,” Dr. Pierce says. From what Tonya said, she gathers that the girl has given the others a piece of machinery as well. Tonight they can gather up the pieces to perhaps build something to help them escape. She doubts the plan will work, but it’s the best idea they have at the moment.

  A guard comes over to loom over them, rapping his billy club gently against his palm to indicate they should go back to work. Dr. Pierce is quick to comply, not wanting another beating. The guard doesn’t seem to notice the piece of machinery in her pocket; she hopes they don’t try to search her before she’s put into the pen to sleep.

  As she resumes work, she hears what she hoped never to hear: young Khala wailing. “Oh no,” she whispers.

  “What the bloody hell is this?” a guard roars. Dr. Pierce hears another wail that comes from the baby’s mother. No longer caring what the guards do to her, Dr. Pierce hurries towards the pen where they’d left the baby. As she feared the guard dangles the baby in the air by its feet while the girl’s mother can only plead in her native tongue.

  “You monster!” Dr. Pierce shouts. “That is an innocent child.”

  “Mind your business, kaffer,” the guard growls at her. He motions with his baton to some of his fellow guards.

  “Khala, do not interfere,” Tikembe whispers into her ear.

  “You people get back to work,” the guard says. “And someone get me a trash bag.”

  “She is not trash you can throw away!” Dr. Pierce shouts, ignoring Tikembe’s attempts to pull her back. “She is a living human being.”

  “Not much longer.”

  The guard cocks his arm back as if to hurl the baby into a wall, which will surely cripple if not kill the child. Dr. Pierce has never felt the rage that flows through her. Her entire body trembles; her hands curl into fists. Everything turns to a red haze while around her she hears crates and bits of loose machinery rattling as if in an earthquake.

  “You leave her alone!” Dr. Pierce screams. Something strange happens then: the guard is flung across the pen, into the barbed wire. His body is turned so that while he’s driven into the fence, the baby is unharmed. It’s the guard’s turn to scream now from the multiple lacerations that are probably quite deep given the speed at which he flew into the fence.

  His grip is weakened enough that young Khala’s mother can snatch her away. Seeing the baby safe again, Dr. Pierce’s rage ebbs. Her body continues to tremble, but now it’s from weakness. “Khala!” Tikembe
shouts a moment before Dr. Pierce pitches forward.

  ***

  Melanie hasn’t ridden in a Peacekeeper bubble before. It’s an odd experience to be going faster than the speed of sound while having no walls or floors around her, only Kila and Garlak next to her. “Does this come with a barf bag?” she asks, putting a hand to her stomach.

  ‘“Barf bag?’” Kila asks.

  “I need to vomit,” Melanie says, her last meal already rising up into her throat.

  “The bubble will filter out any organic material you expel,” Kila says.

  “Good.” Melanie squats down to throw up onto the African jungle. As Kila said, the puke goes through the bubble without even a flicker. She hears Garlak rumble with laughter at this display. Kila stares down at Melanie as if studying her; it’s probably the first time she’s ever seen a human throw up.

  Once her stomach has settled, Melanie wipes her mouth with the back of her hand. “I’m sorry about that. I don’t fly well.”

  “Ah, yes. I have heard some human suffer from ‘motion sickness.’”

  “Unfortunately I’m one of them.”

  The bubble slows down. “I will be cognizant of that in the future, General.”

  “Thanks,” Melanie says, but she hopes she won’t need to ride this way for some time. Now that her stomach isn’t rebelling, she notes the view up here is impressive. It’s almost like being a bird, soaring high above the lush canopy of the jungle without anything to obstruct her vision.

  Garlak is less interested in the view than the bubble itself. She pokes it again and again with one meaty finger. Then she sticks one hand through the bubble and waggles her fingers. “Be careful,” Melanie warns. “You hit something and you might lose that hand.”

  “Me careful,” Garlak grumbles.

  “It is best to keep your body inside the bubble,” Kila says.

  Garlak only snuffles, but she pulls her hand back. Then she starts to tap her foot on the bubble to test its solidity. Melanie is so caught up in the cavewoman’s antics she doesn’t see their destination until the bubble starts to descend. “I will put us down outside the city so we can ascertain the situation first,” Kila says.

  “That’s a good idea.” Melanie focuses her attention on the town ahead of them. It’s not much to look at, more of a village really. Half of the town seems taken up by a factory that at the moment is belching black clouds. That must be what O’Brien had referred to.

  The bubble descends gently to the edge of the jungle. Melanie feels another queasy rumble in her stomach during this long elevator ride down, but she manages not to throw up again. Garlak of course takes this far better, letting out a rumble of laughter.

  “That fun,” she says as the bubble touches down and then disappears.

  “I’m glad you enjoyed it,” Melanie says. She takes a moment to hurry over to the bushes to let out what she’d held back during the landing. Now that they’re on solid ground, she should start to feel better again, which is good, because she’s sure things are going to get rough.

  She takes out her miniature binoculars so she can get a better look at the town. As she figured, the situation is not good. Everywhere she looks, she sees burly men in camouflage, armed with machine guns. Worse yet, she sees civilians among them, all plodding along with the same look of fear on their faces. They probably aren’t hostages, more like slaves. Do they work at the factory?

  As she continues to survey the scene, she hears the rumble of an engine. A school bus painted bright pink rolls onto the main street. Melanie has an idea who this belongs to even before the bus stops and women in pink robes begin pouring out.

  The last one off is Sunny Moon herself.

  Chapter 20

  Khala sits by the fire, forcing herself not to run away from the woman in the scary mask. The old woman is the high priestess of the village; Mother has said it’s a great honor to have a meeting with her. Khala doesn’t see what’s so great about having a scary old woman in a mask shove a poisonous snake at you.

  “There is great power in you, little one,” the priestess says. “But you do not use it.”

  “What power?” she asks before she can remember Mother said it’s impolite to speak to the high priestess unless she asks you a question.

  “The power of the ancients flows through you. Once you have learned to harness it, you will take my place.”

  Khala’s nose wrinkles at this. She doesn’t want to end up a wrinkly old woman in a mask holding snakes. “Do I have to?”

  “You must. It is tradition.”

  Khala’s nose wrinkles again. Her parents are always talking about ‘tradition,’ usually when they’re punishing her for doing something they don’t like. She doesn’t see what’s so great about tradition if it means you can’t have any fun.

  “You do not yet understand the burden, child. The priestess protects the village. It is she who drives away those who would harm us.”

  That sounds like a big job, much too big for Khala. Mother and Father won’t even let her go to the river by herself. How could she look after the whole village? Khala curls up into a ball and whimpers. She wants to go back to her parents. She wants Mother to sing to her and then kiss her on the forehead before she goes to sleep.

  “You may go, child. We will talk more later. I will show you how to unlock your destiny.”

  Khala needs no further prompting to get to her feet and scurry away into her mother’s arms. Mother scoops her up and then smiles at her. “My special little girl. Someday you will be a great woman.” Khala says nothing; she only snuggles closer to her mother until she falls asleep.

  The next morning she’s at the river to bathe when Dinar, an older boy, races down the bank, waving his arms. “Strangers!” he shouts. “Strangers are here!”

  Mother grabs his arm to press him for details. From what Dinar says, these strangers have skin as pale as the moon and some with hair the color of the sun. They also carry metal sticks that can belch fire and sound like thunder.

  Before Mother can say anything, Khala races towards the village, excited to see these magic men. No one from outside the village has ever visited them before, though there have been tales of distant lands populated by strange people. Khala always thought them a story, something her parents made up to entertain her before bed.

  As she reaches the edge of the village she sees Dinar told the truth. There are pale-skinned men in the village with hair that shines like the sun. They hold tubes of metal and wood in their hands. One has a necklace made from teeth of a lion or some other scary animal.

  At the moment most are standing around while the one with the necklace talks to the chieftain. Khala can’t hear what they’re saying. She’s about to get closer when Mother scoops her up. “What are you doing? You could have been killed!”

  “I’m sorry, Mother. I wanted to see the strangers.”

  Mother carries her into the village, to where Father waits by their hut. He and the rest of the warriors are loitering around with their spears that look suddenly feeble compared to what the strangers carry. “Get inside and stay there,” Father snaps to them.

  Mother takes Khala into the hut. She lingers near the entrance to watch. There’s not much to see for a long time. Then there’s a high-pitched wail. Khala squirms away from Mother enough to see the priestess has appeared in full regalia. She levels her crooked wooden staff at the stranger with the necklace. “You will leave this place at once or perish.”

  The man has the audacity to laugh at her. He laughs even harder when she begins to chant an incantation. Khala presses close to her mother again, fearing the worst. The stranger ignores the priestess’s chant. He bats the staff from her hand. “Bloody savages,” he says in their language. “Your trinkets can’t bother us.”

  “You dare to defile our priestess?” the chieftain shouts. “Be gone from this place!”

  Though she’s a child, Khala knows this is foolish. These strangers obviously have magic far more powerful than anythin
g even the priestess possesses. It’s hopeless to try to fight them.

  As Khala feared, the strangers lower their metal tubes while the warriors of the village—including Father—bring their spears up. There’s a lot of shouting in their language and in the language of the strangers.

  Then Khala hears thunder and sees a flash from one of the metal tubes. A warrior falls backwards to collapse onto the ground. Mother tries to pull Khala back, but it’s too late. She’s seen blood before from dead animals, just never from a person.

  The warriors and strangers begin to fight while still shouting at each other. One of the strangers turns to Father, his magic stick pointed at Father’s chest. Khala breaks free from her mother and races out of the hut.

  “No!” she screams at the stranger. To her surprise, the man is thrown back all the way across the village. The other strangers are likewise thrown backwards. Khala throws herself against Father, who pats her back gently.

  The stranger with the necklace of teeth gets to his feet. He stares at Khala for a moment before he turns and flees. The others follow him into the jungle. A few of the more foolhardy warriors go after them.

  Later, after everything has settled, Mother and Father take Khala to the priestess’s hut. It’s as scary as Khala would have thought, with masks and dead animals all over the place. Khala snuggles closer to her parents.

  They didn’t punish her for what happened with the strangers. Mother did gently say it was a foolish thing to do, but that was all. Mostly she’s spent the day crying at the terrible things she’d witnessed. Perhaps her parents thought that was enough punishment—that and having to see the priestess again.

  “You are a brave child,” the priestess says.

  “They were going to hurt Father,” Khala mumbles.

  “As I said, you have great power within you. I fear it is too much power.” When Khala’s parents say nothing, the priestess continues, “Those demons will return. Perhaps not for some time, but they will come back for the child. You must take her far from this place, where they will not find her. When she is old enough, she may return to take her rightful place.”