Flight of the Golden Harpy (2 page)

Her only relief from despair and homesickness had been a weekly visit to a small solarium. Sitting under the modest trees, she told an elderly gardener about Dora, a small planet similar to Earth during the Jurassic period, when giant reptiles and colossal ferns and trees ruled the landscape. And, of course, she talked about the harpies, and the stunning teenage golden who had rescued her.

The gardener would always end their visit by saying, “If I was young and had the credits, I’d move to your home, Kari.”

The old guy was her only friend and reminded her of Charlie, her grandfatherly Indian companion on Dora. During her last week on Earth, she went to the solarium to say good-bye but learned the gardener had passed away in his sleep. Perhaps he had needed her as much as she needed him.

*   *   *

Kari now gazed out the window at the twinkling stars as the mammoth starship made a path through the deep void in space. She pressed her forehead against the cool window, feeling the vibration of the vessel’s engines. “Five more days,” she sighed. “Just five more, and I’ll finally be home.”

Still thinking about the golden, she reached in her handbag for a small box. Opening the plastic lid, she took out a strip of tattered material and carefully twisted it through her fingers before bringing it to her nose and lips. His sweet, kittenish scent still lingered. The web linen from the golden’s sash had sustained her on many a lonely and desperate night. Gazing at the insect material, she still saw the faint bloodstains from the mogel wound. “I’m coming back to you.”

Her thoughts drifted to her father. After all these years, she remained bitter toward him and his decision to banish her to an Earthly prison. She had refused his trans-planet com calls and tossed away his gifts, but she’d soon have to face him. During the five-month space voyage, the meeting with her father lay heavy on her mind. Could she control her anger to even say hello to him?

She glanced out the window at the approach of Duran, Dora’s sun, and smiled. Sitting at a stainless-steel table, she took a few raisins out of a bowl, popped them in her mouth, and gazed at the empty dining room. She heard the muffled laugh of a kitchen cook through the closed door. Shortly, this large room would fill with hungry passengers, and Kari would slip out, seeking solitude in her cramped cabin. She twisted her long blond hair, dreading her confined quarters, but she dreaded people more. Her lonely existence on Earth had turned her into a recluse.

The dimly lit dining room flooded with bright lights, Kari’s cue to leave before the other passengers arrived and filled the vacant seats. She stood as several people entered the room, laughing and plainly happy that the voyage was ending.

“More colonists,” she grumbled to herself, “to destroy the jungle, hunt the animals and kill my harpies.”

“Harpies?” said a man’s booming voice. Kari turned and saw a tubby, balding man and a woman as they seated themselves at a table. “If you want to see one, there’s a few at Hampton Zoo, but the wild ones have been exterminated. And good riddance to those thieving, raping pests.”

“Rape?” the woman exclaimed.

The man grinned. “Yeah, male harpies use to raid towns and steal women. Even if a poor girl was found, she was suicidal or her mind was gone. But like I said, most of the flocks have been wiped out.”

Kari sank back into her seat and listened to the man ramble as others joined his table. Was he telling the truth? She closed her eyes and felt ill. Over the last decade could the harpies have been so hunted that they were on the brink of extinction? Was he dead—her majestic golden whose image had kept her from going crazy all this time?

She wondered about the man’s accusation that harpies were thieves and rapists. Her father apparently believed these allegations. The mere mention of a harpy had sent him into a rage, cursing them as his worst nemesis and often calling them monsters or thieving winged devils. She glanced at the linen strip still in her hand. The golden would never harm me. She straightened. And he just can’t be dead.

She stood to leave as the man talked about the gruesome harpy hunts. “Hunters hang the wounded ones from trees,” he said, “so the wings bleed out before they’re cut off. Amazingly, those ugly beasts don’t make a peep while they’re being dressed out.”

Kari could handle no more. On her way to the exit, she stopped at his table. “I heard you talking about the harpies,” she said politely.

The man gazed up with a looming grin. “Aren’t you a pretty thing? What would you like to know about them, honey?”

“I am not your ‘honey,’” Kari said. “And, sir, you’re lying to these people about the harpies.” She turned to the woman. “I’ve seen them. Harpies are harmless and resemble a gorgeous angel. It’s criminal they are hunted and killed.” She turned and glared at the crude man. “The only beast I see is one you’ll find in a mirror.”

Kari bit her lip and hurriedly left, hearing chuckles in the dining room. Back in her cabin, she drifted to sleep still clutching the woven strip.

*   *   *

The following day Kari again sat in the deserted dining room. A young man with wavy brown hair entered and walked to her table. “Hi,” he said. “I had to meet you. One of the stewards said you come here when the place is empty. May I sit down?”

Reluctantly, Kari nodded.

He took the seat across from her. “I heard you last night.” He grinned. “You were terrific. You really put a gag in that windbag’s mouth. It was hilarious.”

She lowered her gaze. “It was impulsive and wrong. I shouldn’t have embarrassed that man and made him the brunt of a joke.”

“I see.” He raised his eyebrows. “Well, look. My name is Ted. I’m hoping you can tell me about Dora and its wildlife. Have you really seen them—the harpies?”

“Yes, I was born on Dora.”

“Wow, a real native,” Ted said, and leaned closer. “I didn’t know Dorians were so attractive.”

Kari blushed with the compliment, but it wasn’t her first. As a teenager, she had many boys ask her out, but the dates always ended uncomfortably. Years of seclusion had made her reserved, and she hid her true passions. Having no interest in their modern machine-run world, she ended the dating drudgery, declining their offers. She sensed that Ted was more interested in her than in Dora’s wildlife, but she tried to be courteous. “What do you want to know?”

“Well, everything,” said Ted. “Tell me about the harpies.”

“The harpies are very intelligent, but shy creatures. They have striking human bodies and large wings that—”

“I’ve heard their mounted wings are worth twenty-thousand credits,” Ted broke in. “That’s a year’s salary for me. Is that true?”

“I wouldn’t know,” she said, standing. “I have to go.”

“Wait a minute. Since you know Hampton, maybe you could show me around. I’d love to buy you dinner.”

“I don’t think so, but you’ll find plenty of Hampton girls who will give you a tour and tell you the price of a dead harpy’s wings.”

Kari left the dining room and walked down the long corridors that led to her cabin. Halfway down the empty hall, she stopped and leaned against a railing. A tear rolled down her face. “What is wrong with me?” she stammered. The friendly young man couldn’t have known that the subject of trophy wings repulsed her. She heard footsteps and glanced up. It was Ted.

“I’m sorry. I apparently upset you.” He kicked at the floor and shook his head. “I get so darned nervous around a pretty woman and always end up putting my foot in my mouth. You really care about harpies.”

“Now I feel ridiculous,” she said, wiping away the tears. “I should be apologizing to you. I don’t deal well with people, and become overly offensive when it comes to harpy hunting. I should’ve explained that I owe my life to a male harpy.”

“Really?” Ted leaned against the railing. “I can see why mounted wings would rub you wrong. Do you think you could give me another chance? I left everyone I knew back on Earth, and I’m rather lonely here. I’m hoping to make Dora my home, so I’d like to learn more about your planet.”

“Okay,” she said, and they walked back to the dining room. Sitting down at the table, Kari told Ted about her home. “Dora is half the size of Earth, but similar to Earth; it’s mostly a freshwater ocean with one large continent and hundreds of islands to the west. Except for the cold mountains, the tropical temperature doesn’t vary much, warm during the day and cool at night. There are two seasons, the wet and dry. The multicolor jungle trees are enormous. Timber is Dora’s main export. Like the harpies, half the animals have wings to navigate through the thick foliage. But Dora’s most notorious creatures are the large, warm-blooded reptiles.”

“Dora sounds like one great adventure,” said Ted.

Kari smiled. “It’s a dangerous adventure if you don’t know your way around. There’re man-eating plants, and the red dragons resemble a giant T. Rex. During the wet season, the torrential rains and storms are hurricane strength. That’s why you won’t find any high-rises on Dora. Even technology is limited due to the wet climate and since Dora is off the beaten path.”

She then talked about the harpies, and the young golden male who had risked his life to save hers.

“I always thought harpies were nasty female monsters.”

“That’s Earth’s old fabled definition, but it doesn’t apply to Dora’s harpies. In fact, I’ve never seen one of the females.”

Ted leaned back in the chair. “Fighting that eel creature, harpies must be pretty gutsy.”

“Actually, they’re terrified of people and very elusive, so little is known about them except they’re voiceless, tree-dwelling vegetarians. The brown-winged, dark-haired harpies are the most prevalent. The goldens were a rare subspecies, more aggressive, and known to dominate the flocks. Sadly, hunters want them the most. When I left, they were nearly wiped out.” She bit her lip, and said softly, “I hope the golden I met is still alive.”

Ted reached across the table and took her hand. “I hope so, too. I can tell you care about him.”

“Very much.” She smiled and changed the subject. “So, why are you going to Dora? You don’t look like a lumberjack or hunter.”

“Hardly.” Ted chuckled. “I’m afraid I’m your average city boy. I have a degree in computers and spacecraft repair, but jobs are scarce on Earth, so I answered a Dora ad for a job in Hampton Port. I hope it works out.”

Kari heard his uncertainty. “It will. And once you see Dora, you won’t have any regrets.”

“I don’t regret this trip. After all, I met you. I sure hope we can be friends, Kari.”

Kari stared into Ted’s brown eyes and had noticed his good looks. They were both the same age of twenty-one and recent college graduates. More important, she detected his sincerity and kindness. “Ted, I believe we are friends.”

“Then as a friend, Miss Kari Turner, I’ll make you a promise. I’ll do all I can to help your harpies.”

*   *   *

Ted was delighted to spend the next few days aboard the ship with the stunning blonde. His heart fluttered every time he gazed into Kari’s big blue eyes. The ship maneuvered into orbit around Dora, and they wandered to the crowded observatory to see the planet. “I need to start work as soon as we land,” he said, “since I’m low on credits.”

“You asked me to dinner when we met. How were you going to swing that?” Kari joked.

“If you had said yes to our date, I would have gladly spent my last credit and slept in the streets.”

Kari’s eyes brightened. “That’s sweet of you.”

A woman standing nearby talked to her small daughter about their new home on the planet.

Kari leaned toward Ted. “I wish I had known my mother.”

Ted had heard about Kari’s father and their rocky relationship. After all this time, she still resented him. But she had never mentioned her mother. Turning from the window, he asked, “Where is she?”

“She’s dead. She died when I was a baby—some kind of accident. My father refused to discuss it. I just wonder how my life might have been if she had lived. Would she have saved me … stopped him from sending me to Earth? Would she have understood my love for the harpies? Just questions I have.”

“Some questions are never answered.” Ted put his arm around her slender waist. “I don’t know your dad, but I think I know you. With your passion for nature, Earth must have been a living hell. Whatever his reasons, your father was wrong to send you to those schools.”

She put her arm around him, and they gazed at Dora in silence.

*   *   *

The following day, large shuttles pulled up alongside the spaceship to unload the passengers and cargo. Kari and Ted were among the first to board for the trip to the planet. An hour later, the shuttle descended and landed inside Hampton’s spacious domed port. They gathered their belongings, departed the shuttle, and walked past the huge off-loaded crates containing small hovercrafts, terrain vehicles, and even cattle fetuses. On the other side of the port stood towering stacks of Dora’s exotic timber that would make the return flight. The blue, red, yellow, and white colors displayed the variety of trees on the planet.

They walked to an information counter and got in line behind a few people. “Ted, you don’t have to wait with me,” said Kari.

“I’m not scheduled for work until tomorrow. I’ll wait and make sure you catch the next hover to Terrance.”

Kari smiled, happy for the first time not to be alone. Eventually, she approached the counter and a middle-aged woman. “I need a ticket for Terrance.”

“There are no more flights today,” said the woman. “The earliest one leaves at noon tomorrow.”

“I’ll take a one-way ticket on it,” Kari said, doling out her credits.

“We have one more night together. I’ll buy dinner if you show me around Hampton.”

“Don’t be absurd,” Kari said as they walked toward the exit. “I have more credits than you, and besides, I don’t know this city. I was here only once when I was a kid.”

“How about Dutch on dinner, and we’ll explore Hampton together, unless you’re tired of me.”

“Not yet.” She smiled.

“Great. Let me ask those cargo guys about a decent hotel. I’ve heard some places in Hampton are rough.” He jogged over to three men unloading crates and returned in minutes. “They say there’s one down the street that’s decent and reasonable. Prices are cheap here compared to Earth. I might also stay there.”