Science, Eternal Life, and a Traveling Circus 2

Chapter Six

Drew Hughes, in those excruciating hours that passed him by, felt nothing but dread. It was sinking sense of 'the worst to come' that set his teeth on edge. But, he was unaware of his teeth, and even further unaware that he was sleeping in a pool of sweat on a moth-eaten mattress in a hidden place that deep down—somewhere—meant a great deal to him. He was aware of only this; he saw two boys that he remembered. One from the mirror, one from the heart. He relived memories that had tortured him so much in his life that he had chosen to forget them. And finally, after all the years of wondering who he was, he remembered.

***

Recorded in select books was the name that a powerful family had once tried to erase. It could be found in stray travel journals from visitors to Ban-Ken in the eventful year 2753, or in news articles and historical records from surrounding town libraries, or, most notably, in the anonymous accounts of those that Ban-Ken's hero had touched. Infamous, it was recognized across the country, but frowned upon in the state of Kentucky. A name, that when uttered in the presence of the great city's lord or lady could warrant dire punishment.

Berthold Shir.

Born in the early 50's to Lady Elaine, as her second son, it was well known that he was not like the average infant. The Lady was ruthless in her efforts to preserve herself, and when she and her golden child—the ever-surprisingly-bright and at the time problematic Pallis—were taken ill by Ban-Ken's rapidly increasing level of radiation, every and any method at acquiring a cure was desperately attempted. Young lord Pallis, six years old, faded faster by the month, then by the day, and by the time his brother arrived, he seemed no longer living at all. His skin was gray and snaked with dull and struggling veins, his eyes yellow and red and glazed when he found the strength to open them. The boy wanted to die. He could not walk, nor chew his food. He had given up months ago, kept alive by the force of his fierce mother and her abundant servants.

He slouched in a soft leather wheelchair, oblivious to the doctors and the nurses, and the howls of his mother in labor. She was stronger than him, but still dying. It had been a year and a half since the plague had been detected in her system, and if it weren't for the frequent care and the LifePreserver™ (an unsold and heavily patented and protected device of her laboratories' invention) on her wrist, she would have passed long before even reaching mid-term.

If the new son could not cure them, then he could at least act as heir to their family's grand business kingdom when Pallis inevitably ceased, and she followed.

He came into the world crying. A soft, bleating cry that, if there had been time or a caring mother, would have melted hearts. Lady Elaine barked and shook her fists at the private nurses and the head doctor to take the newborn away immediately and test its blood. It. It was an experiment, and long after its birth, nurses whispered of how Lady Shir did not hold the child the way a mother would, the way a mother should. The father, the faceless unknown whom no-one dared speak of in fear of punishment, had held the infant and smiled and wept, until a blow to his head knocked the smile from his face and he fell. Dragged out by guards after a blow to his head, the nurses never saw him again. The public never saw him at all.

The infant's blood was tested right away, and the Lady's eyes gleamed at receiving the results that she had wanted. The first cure for Ban-Ken's plague thrived in his veins, and she took it.

The Lady ordered that Pallis be injected first. The syringe went in, and Pallis shivered when it withdrew. His eyes opened, his head raised. He peered meekly at his trembling self, then smiled.

"Warm," he said. Then, in the blink of an eye, his demeanor changed drastically. He gripped the arms of his wheelchair and, as though struck from behind, jolted forward in his seat. His hands shook fervently and his teeth chattered. "Mother!" he cried.