Black (18 page)

“It should be.”

They looked at each other for a moment.

“He lavishes,” cried Palus.

“This, my dear Thomas, is what you should do to win Rachelle's heart.”

“Elyon does all this?”

“Yes, of course. You've forgotten him as well?” This seemed to astound both of them.

“No, not entirely. It's coming back, you know.” He quickly diverted the discussion back to Rachelle. “Forgive my” —he tapped his head—“density here, but exactly what does a woman need rescuing from? There is no evil this side of the black forest. Right?”

Again, they stared at each other.

“My, my, it is strange, this memory loss of yours,” Tanis said. “It's a game, man! A play! Something to take pleasure in. You give a flower to a maiden, why? Because she
needs
nourishment? No, because she
wants
it.”

“What's that got to do with rescuing? What would she need rescuing from?”

“Because she wants to
feel
rescued, Thomas. And she wants to
feel
chosen. As much as you are desperate to be chosen. We all are. Elyon chooses us. He rescues us and protects us and woos us and, yes, lavishes love on us. This is the Great Romance. And this is how you will win Rachelle's heart.”

Tom wasn't sure he wanted to ask again, but honestly he still didn't understand their concept of rescuing.

“Tell him, Palus,” Tanis said. “I think maybe a story would be a good idea here. I could write it for you to read before you go into battle for this love.”

“Battle?” Tom said. “Now it's a battle?”

“Figuratively,” Palus said. “You know, you win a woman's heart as you would win a battle. Not as if you were fighting the Shataiki in flesh and blood, of course, because we never do that.”

“Not yet we don't ,” Tanis said. “But there may come a time. Very soon, even. We've been thinking of an expedition to teach those terrible bats a lesson or two.”

Michal's concern.

“They are confined to the black forest,” Tom said. “Why not just leave them there to rot?”

“Because of what they have done!” Tanis cried. “They are evil, despicable creatures who need a lesson teaching, I'm telling you! We know from the histories what they are capable of. Do you think I'm content to just sit back and let them plot their way across the river? Then you don't know me, Thomas Hunter. I have been working on a way to finish them for good!”

There was no lack of passion in his diatribe. Even Palus seemed slightly taken aback. There was something amiss in his reasoning, but Tom couldn't put his finger on it.

“Either way, we often pretend to fight with the same kind of passion and vigor we would in a real fight with the Shataiki,” Palus said. “Show him, Tanis. Just show him.”

Tanis made a stance similar to those of the martial arts from Tom's dreams of the histories. “Okay then—”

“You know martial arts?” Tom asked.

Tanis stood up. “That's what they called it in the histories. You know the histories?”

“Well, I'm dreaming of them. In my dreams I know the martial arts.”

“You're dreaming of the histories, but you forget everything here because you hit your head,” Palus said. “Now, that is something.”

“That's what Michal thinks.”

“And Michal is very wise.” Tanis glanced around, as if checking for the white furry. “How much detail do you dream about? How much do you know?”

“I don't know what happens after the Raison Strain, but before then, I know quite a bit.”

“You can tell me how Napoleon won his wars? What strategy he used?”

Thomas tried to think. “No, I don't know that I ever studied Napoleon. But I suppose I could find out. I could read a history book in my dreams.”

The notion seemed to stun Tanis. “My, my. You can do that?”

“Actually, I've never tried. But I'm doing it the other way.” He shifted on his feet. “What I mean is, it's occurred to me. Do you know anything about the Great Deception? The virus?”

“Not enough. Not nearly enough, but more than most. It happened before the great tribulations, I do know that. The only two around these parts who would know all the histories are the wise ones. Michal and Teeleh, though Teeleh is no longer a wise one. Michal is convinced the histories are a distraction that could lead us down the wrong path. And Teeleh . . . If I ever were so fortunate as to lay my eyes on Teeleh, I would tear him limb from limb and burn the parts!”

“Michal is right,” Tom said. “An expedition would be pointless. I've been in the black forest and I can tell you, the Shataiki are wicked. They very nearly killed me.”

This last admission proved to be nearly too much for Tanis. “You've been
in
the black forest? Over the Crossing?”

He was so excited that Tom wondered if he'd taken the wrong turn by telling him. But Michal had suggested it, hadn't he? How could he dissuade Tanis without this admission?

“Yes. But I barely survived.”

“Tell us, man! Tell us everything! I've seen the black forest from a distance and seen the black bats flying overhead, but I've never worked up the nerve to approach the river.”

“That's how I lost my memory. I fell in the black forest. Gabil led me out, but not before the bats had nearly chewed me to the bone.”

“That's it? I need more detail, man. More!”

“That's about it.”

Tanis eyed him in wonder. “I can see that you and I would make an excellent team,” he said. “I could teach you how to fight, and you could teach me the histories!”

“Rachelle is waiting,” Palus said patiently.

Although Tom wasn't altogether in sync with the Great Romance, it suddenly sounded far better than delving into details of the black forest or the histories with Tanis. Either way, Tanis knew less than Tom did about the virus. He would be no help in uncovering more detail.

Unless the answers were in the black forest, and Tanis could help him get those answers from the black forest.

“Yes, the Great Romance,” Tom said.

Tanis nodded. “Okay, but later we must talk. We must!” He spread his arms and looked up the hill. “Okay then, pretend that Palus is Rachelle. Just pretend now, it's only a story. There she is, and here you are.” He pointed to the ground by his feet. “First, I will say that you have given her many flowers and wooed her with many words, telling her precisely how she makes your heart melt and why her hair reminds you of waterfalls and . . . well, you get the idea.” He was still standing with arms spread, slightly crouched as if to receive an attack.

“You see, this will soften her heart. Whisper in her ear and keep your voice low so that she knows you are a strong man.” He stopped and considered Tom for a moment. “Perhaps later I can give you some of the right things to say. Would you like that? I am very good at romance.”

Tom was too far into their game to suggest anything but wholehearted endorsement now. “Yes,” he said.

“Okay, that's wooing. You will become very good at this activity. We woo our women every day. But back to the rescue.” He flexed his legs. “Now, as I was saying, Palus is Rachelle and you are here. Down the hill comes a flock of the black bats. The Shataiki. You can dispatch them easily
enough, of course, because you're a man of great might. The object here, though, isn't only to dispatch the vermin, but to rescue your beauty while you do so. Are you following me?”

“Yes, I think so. Dispatch the vermin and rescue the beauty.”

“Exactly. With your legs flexed as so, you throw one arm out to Rachelle and ready the other to beat back the bats. Then you cry in a loud voice, so that she knows everyone in the valley can hear your statement of valor.” And here Tanis thundered to Palus, “Come, my love, throw yourself into my arm of iron, and I will strike the withering beasts from the air with my other, a fist of stone.”

Tanis motioned to Palus with his hand.

“What?” Palus asked.

“Show him. Run and jump into my arm. You're Rachelle, remember? I won't drop you.”

“Jump? How?”

“I don't know, just run and jump. Make it look real, as a woman might jump. Perhaps feetfirst.”

“I don't think Rachelle would run and jump. She's quite a confident woman, you know. What do you think of sweeping me off my feet instead?” Palus asked. “You could strike a few of the bats that are diving in to eat me, then pluck me to safety while whispering wondrous words into my ear, then battle the beasts with your free arm.”

Tanis arched an eyebrow. “Very clever. How many beasts would you say I should fell before I sweep you off your feet?”

“If you were to send a hundred back to hell, she would be very impressed.”

“A hundred? Before I jump to her rescue? It seems over the top.”

“Then fifty. Fifty is plenty.”

Tanis seemed totally taken with the notion. “And what if we were to say that the big one, Teeleh himself, were leading the attack from two sides, leaving me no way for escape? I dispatch fifty easily enough, but then they are too many and all hope seems lost. At the last moment, Rachelle could direct my attack, and with a brilliant reversal I send the big one screeching for his life. The rest flee in disarray. Perfect!”

“Do you actually want to do it?” Palus asked.

In answer Tanis suddenly spun uphill. “Don't worry, my love! I will rescue you!” he thundered, looking at Palus.

He took three steps and then leaped into the air, executed a spectacular roundhouse, landed on his hands, rolled forward, and came up with two stunning kicks Tom wouldn't have thought possible in succession.

Tanis ended his first attack in a back handspring that placed him at Palus's side. He swept the man from his feet and struck out with another kick.

The momentum carried both off balance. They tumbled to the ground, rolled once, and came up laughing.

“Well, I suppose that one needs a bit of practice,” Tanis said. “But you do get the idea. I wouldn't suggest anything so extravagant with Rachelle the first time you see her. But she will want to be surprised by your inventiveness. To what lengths would you go to choose her, to save her, to love her?”

Tom couldn't remotely imagine doing anything bold. Whispering lavish words of woo could prove challenging enough. Had he ever done anything like this before his amnesia? Evidently not, or he would bear the mark of union on his forehead.

“How did you do that kick?” Tom asked.

Tanis bounded to his feet. “Which one?”

Palus held up his hand. “Forgive me, but I must take my leave. Karyl waits.” They bid him well and he headed for the village. The children were playing with several Roush on the other side of the valley, taking turns riding on a pair of the white creatures'backs as they locked wings and swooped down the hill.

“Which kick?” Tanis asked again.

“The first one. The one-two-back?”

“Show me what you mean,” Tanis said.

“Me? I can't kick like that.”

“Then I'll teach you. A woman loves a strong man. It was once the way men fought, you know. In the histories, I mean. I have created a whole system of hand-to-hand combat. Try the kick. Show me.”

“Now?”

“Of course.” Tanis clapped twice. “Show me.”

“Well, it was something like . . .” Tom stepped forward and executed a roundhouse with a second kick, somewhat similar to the one he'd seen Tanis do. Surprisingly the roundhouse felt . . . simple. He could execute it with far more ease here than in his dreams of the histories. The atmosphere?

Unfortunately the second kick came up short. He landed on his side and grunted.

“Excellent! We'll make a warrior of you yet. I think Rachelle will be very impressed. Would you like to be my apprentice?”

“At fighting?”

“Yes, of course! I could teach what very few have learned, even here. We could talk of the histories and discuss ways to deliver a crushing blow to the putrid bats of the black forest.”

“Well, I would like to learn from you—”

“Perfect! Come, let me show you the second kick.”

Tanis was gifted and spared no passion in explaining precisely how to move so as to maximize the number of moves in the air. When he took off, he used his arms as a counterbalance, allowing for surprising maneuvers. Within an hour, Tom was able to execute some of the moves without landing on his head. Short of the movies, no living person could move like this in the histories, surely. There had to be a difference in the atmospheres. Or was it the water?

The hour wore Tom weak.

“Enough! Now we talk,” Tanis finally announced, seeing Tom struggle for breath. “We will learn more fighting tomorrow. But now I want to know more about the histories. I would like to know, for example, what kind of weapons they had. I know some, devices that made large sounds and delivered terrible blows to hundreds at once. Have you ever heard of such a thing?”

“A gun?” Alarm rose through Tom's chest. Tanis really was seriously considering this expedition of his into the black forest. But he couldn't !It was far too dangerous.

“What is a gun?” Tanis asked. “I am considering an expedition, Thomas. Such weapons could be a great help. A very great help, indeed. You could go with me, since You've been there!”

He spoke with such enthusiasm and innocence.

“You don't know the black forest, Tanis. Entering would be the death of anyone who tried.”

“But you! You're alive!”

“I was lucky. And trust me, no swift kicks would have helped me any. There's way too many of them. Millions!”

“Exactly. Which is why they must be defeated!”

“You have agreed with the others not to cross the river.”

“A precaution. There are times to leave caution in the valley and strike out for the mountain.”