Nasferas: The Begotten

17

Aleese shrieked. The Banshee's howl drove Davidar's heart straight to his throat. He tried to stand but the room quelled over him as if the ship had imploded. His knees buckled, and his mother nearly toppled to the floor.

Fladir swept in, picked Tarisha's lifeless body out of his arms and rushed her to the Med Room. Ralia and Aleese followed.

Not Mother. First his father, then Moroo, and now this? He could hear Aleese's sobs and still couldn't bring himself to get up. If Ralia uttered those words to him, he'd be demolished. His mother had been his rock. The person he could talk to about the deepest topics. She'd composed herself and remained the leader of the family, even after his father died in battle. She had never compromised her self-worth, her integrity, or her passion and love for her four children. The script 'Family First' hung above the hovel door. And she stood by that mantra. Although, a pacifist, everyone knew she'd die for her family. But that's not what the people in town feared. They feared she'd also KILL for any member of her home. This bled into Moroo's family as well. She loved them as much as her own.

"Davidar."

Someone shook his arm. "Davidar!"

He looked up from the dark cloud in front of him. "Ranloo?"

"Yeah ... Cousin." Ranloo's hand rested on his back.

Here it comes. The worst news of your life. Pain. Anguish. His heart torn in half. This is what he expected in the next few seconds.

"She ... she's alive."

Davidar cocked his head to the side. What did he say? Did he say she's ...

"Alive?"

"Thank the Maker. Get up. Let's go see her." Ranloo reached for Davidar.

He took the outstretched hand. "Thanks for telling me."

"Anytime. You know I would have told you, either way, right?"

"Yeah." Ranloo would always tell him how it is. Straight up. No rocks.

From the moment Tarisha came around, Fladir started to bark orders at anyone he encountered. He'd left both of his younger sisters to tend to the sick. Alek had to scrub the floors in the Settle Room. Tranz kept to the computer systems in the Flight Room. And Davidar, with Ranloo's help, had the unconscionable task of mechanical and electrical cleanup duty. They had to seal up open-ended wires, move debris to secure locations and pound out dents in the ceiling. However, he'd made sure his mother's health had stabilized before he continued his duties.

Fladir's head popped into the Engine Room. "I'm going to check on the stores."

"It's unbearable in there," Davidar remembered how the stench ate at his insides. A quick warning seemed like the right thing to do. "At least wear a cover over your face."

"I think I can handle a little stink."

Davidar laughed. "You have no idea."

"Back to work." Fladir's eyes narrowed. Those dark-gray beads hadn't changed. Fladir had aged—but not as much. He looked younger and stronger than the rest. More so than even Ranloo. He'd already braided his silver hair, which hung in tendrils down to his waist. Not an unusual look for him. In the broadest terms, Davidar would classify his oldest cousin as a vagabond. No one knew exactly what he did for his vocation. Ralia told him once that her brother had been mentored by the Three. And when the scientists left Nasferas without him, Fladir had disappeared. But when Davidar's aunt became sick with the flu, he mysteriously returned.

Davidar caught Fladir by the elbow. "Your father didn't say anything in the logs about why we had to be force-fed?"

"No. He didn't."

"It's almost as if he didn't know."

"What's your point, Davidar." Fladir's normal flatlined mouth curled down.

"He told us about the brainwave machine, but not the feeding tubes ... why?"

"Get off me!" Fladir grumbled and pulled away.

The force jerked Davidar forward. He stumbled into the doorjamb and held on to keep his balance.

Behind him, Ranloo guffaw while he wrestled a snapping wire. "Give me a hand with this thing."

"Here." Davidar picked up a can of electrical salve and sprayed the black fluid on the wire, sealing the exposure.

"What was that all about?" Ranloo ducked under a countertop.

Davidar knelt and saw a jumble of wires snaked together. "I'm not sure. Don't you think it's strange that Fladir doesn't quite look like an elder? At least, not as old as we seem to be."

"Now that you mention it ... he's got a bit more pep than the rest of us. Maybe his settle didn't break when ours did?"

"I'll ask Tranz. A scan might turn something up?" The kid could ferret anything out of computer systems.

Ranloo nodded.

Davidar continued his work alongside Ranloo. Periodically he wandered to the Med Room and checked on his mother. Aleese, Ralia, and Misha hadn't left her side. Dram looked piqued about being laid up. He'd been given some fluids to keep him hydrated.

On his next visit, he stood in the doorway and watched as Ralia administered medications to his mother. Tarisha's eyes had black rings around them. Brown patches of dead skin had clasped to the bones over most of her body. She didn't have an ounce of muscle.

Davidar motioned for Ralia. It took a couple of times but she noticed and limped over.

"Are you, okay? Why are you limping?"

"I'm alright. I have a cramp in my leg." She rubbed her right calf.

"Sit. Take a break. You've been absolutely amazing." He hugged her, making sure not to put too much pressure on her right leg. "Thank you for saving my mother."

She pulled away and gave him a light peck on the lips. "I was so frightened. We almost lost her."

"You brought her back. She's alive because of you," he whispered in her ear.

Ralia nuzzled his neck. "She may be out of the woods but we're carrying her on a broken stretcher ... and it's still going to be an uphill climb."

"I'll let you get back to her then." He led Ralia over to his mother's bed.

Aleese bounced from her mother's side and into his arms. "Where were you?" She sobbed on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry. It was too much. I ... I lost it."

"You're here, now." Aleese's smile made him feel a little better. Still, he had deserted them. The thought weighed on him as if someone had dropped a Zylo on his head. How could he be so insensitive?

His mother's hand rubbed his arm lightly, though, she didn't open her eyes. Her gesture defrosted his heart which had started to ice over with the thought of losing another parent.

Ralia placed Tarisha's hand back on her stomach. "She knows you're here. But she needs her rest."

"I understand." Davidar hugged Ralia and Aleese. Then he kissed his mom's forehead. He gave Dram a pat on the shoulder and smiled at Misha. That's when he saw Fladir stalk by without even a glance in their direction. Davidar thought the intensity of his movement gave away more than what Fladir had in mind. He's headed straight to Tranz. Which is exactly where Davidar had wanted to start his investigation.

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