September 14, 2017

MARTIAN HOLIDAY 110: DaneelAH & Company in Burroughs

On a well-settled Mars, the five major city Council regimes struggle to meld into a stable, working government. Embracing an official Unified Faith In Humanity, the Councils are teetering on the verge of pogrom directed against Christians, Molesters, Jews, Rapists, Buddhists, Murderers, Muslims, Thieves, Hindu, Embezzlers and Artificial Humans – anyone who threatens the official Faith and the consolidating power of the Councils. It makes good sense, right – get rid of religion and Human divisiveness on a societal level will disappear? An instrument of such a pogrom might just be a Roman holiday...To see the rest of the chapters and I’m sorry, but a number of them got deleted from the blog – go to SCIENCE FICTION: Martian Holiday on the right and scroll to the bottom for the first story. They are HanAH, the security expert (m); DaneelAH, xenoarchaeologist (m); AzAH, language expert (f); MishAH, pattern recognition (f).

After grabbing the Artificial Human boy, she released him into HanAH’s tender embrace – a solid grip on the boy’s upper arm. “Are you an agent of Paolo Marcillon?”

“Who?”

“Paolo – an underground Christian agitator who’s wanted for sedition and terroristic actions.”

“No! I ain’t heard a no Polo! I work with the Rim Preacher!”

DaneelAH stepped up, gesturing HanAH to release the boy. Squatting down, he took the boy by both shoulders and said, “Your master…former master!” he said when the boy’s shoulders tensed. He loosened his grip. “Your former master is a Christian?”

The boy twisted free and DaneelAH let him go. HanAH and MishAH were close by. He glanced at them then shook his torso. “I guess, ‘cept I don’t know what that means. Zactly. I just know he natural born, but he ain’t like all the others. He’s good. All them others is bad.”

"Not every natural born is bad," DaneelAH muttered, looking down at the blue boy.

"Yeah. Stepan ain't. He's just sorta like a babe out where I live. But he do have connections in the HOD,” said the boy.

"The HOD?" HanAH said. “And you’re rather free with a Natural Born’s name.” He scowled down at the boy.

"Stepan calls me Quinn. If he do it, he don’t mind if I do.” He shrugged and continued, “Yeah, we was in the Home Owner's District. We were there 'cause he had to meet with some old guy." He shrugged. "That was weird. They chased him out 'cause he wasn't someone they expected him to be."

"What's that supposed to mean?" AzAH said.

"When we was there, they kept calling him somebody named ‘Natan Wallach.’"

The vat mates looked to each other, then down at the boy, stunned. DaneelAH finally managed, "Can you take us to your preacher friend?"

He shrugged again, “Sure. He be happy to see more of us at his roof farm.” He looked up at them, scowling, “Why do you want to see him?” His gaze narrowed to suspicion, “You gonna do something to him? ‘Cuz if that’s what you’re plannin’, I’ll make sure something happens to you – now, on our way there, or after you hurt him. He’s my…” he paused. “He’s my pastor. You mess with him and you mess with me.”

For an instant, the four vat mates looked at each other, tempted to laugh. Then Quinn stomped on HanAH’s instep. He drew back to strike the boy, but before DaneelAH could grab his wrist, the boy dropped to the floor, scampered between MishAH’s legs, biting her ankle; he swept his leg under AzAH, making his stumble and before he could move, DaneelAH found the boy holding a shard of glass against his anterior trial artery.

“If I push this just hard enough,” he said without any trace of a burr or street-talk, “You’ll bleed to death in five minutes.”

DaneelAH was careful not to move a muscle as he said, “We have no interest in hurting your pastor nor of exposing him. We want to find out if he knows where we can contact a man named Paolo Marcillon, who is also a Christian…”

“You mean like my pastor?”

DaneelAH raised an eyebrow. “You believe that your pastor is one of those?” He lowered his voice, “That’s illegal you know.”

The boy pricked DaneelAH’s foot, making him yelp as AzAH said, “Quit teasing him!”

Quinn stood up and said, “So being one of these Christian things is illegal?”

“Yes, it is,” said HanAH gruffly. “And being a Christian inti is more illegal, still! So don’t go getting ideas!”

MishAH smiled and said, “I think he’s just gone way past getting ideas, brother.”

HanAH grunted as Quinn said, “So, you guys Christians, too?”

“I’m not,” said HanAH.

MishAH and AzAH looked at each other and said, “Undecided,” in unison.

Quinn looked up at DaneelAH, “You ain’t sayin’ much, mister.”

“I’m not a ‘mister’, I’m a heyou!” He twisted his mouth to one side, sighed and said, “I suppose I may nearly be one.”

“Yeah,” said Quinn matter-of-factly, “I’m mostly pretty close, too.”

The sisters laughed. Quinn bristled which made them laugh harder. Finally AzAH said, “No disrespect meant, young Quinn.”

“Disrespect taken!”

MishAH said, “It’s just that you sound like we do when we talk about these Christians. We never meant to attach ourselves to one – and now we find we’re entangled with two.”

“I ain’t never seen no one named like you said, that Paul Oh. Stepan never said nothin’ about him, neither.”

“Who’s Stepan?” HanAH said.

“That ain’t important no more.”

“Why?” DaneelAH said.

“‘Cause he gone be dead if you don’t come with me.”

“What?”

“A monster in the warehouse done eat him!” and with that blurt, Quinn broke down, weeping.


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