The Mutant World (73 page)

“Their women too!” snapped Andy jumping to his feet. “They raped her,” said Andy, sinking miserably back onto his stool. “They set a female shapeshifter to attack women in the guise of our lord to frame him. She…I didn’t know her very long but…From the moment I saw her I loved her. After what they did to her she changed completely. She wouldn’t see me again. Then she…She and the others, they mutilated my lord.” Vivian, knowing her part in those events couldn’t look at the two men.

“Goddess!” gasped the bartender.
“She
was one of the women who castrated King Barrat?”

“I never believed our lord had done those things,” said the Barratian. “But I also knew Vivian wouldn’t lie.” Cato looked at Vivian, realization now all over his face. Her appearance the moment she heard the Barratian’s name and voice, and her behavior after seeing him, made it clear that this name was no coincidence. But neither Andy nor Vivian was looking at him now. Both were in their own world reliving their painful memories. Vivian was even crying. “I knew that the queen mother was somehow behind it!” growled Andy. “Everyone knew that Mavie wasn’t pleased by the way things were changing. When our lord escaped, when we saw what they did to him and his son. When it was finally revealed who it was who raped my woman and the others, and who was behind it…I would have my vengeance. I never tired of fighting them. But
now
there is peace!” Andy spat the word “Peace” out like a bad tasting thing in his mouth.

“Whatever happened to the girl?” asked Cato, looking at the crying Vivian.

“Last I heard she had fled Mavieland after the truth about who really raped her, and who was behind it, was learned. I searched for her, but I never found her. I searched for a long time, but finally gave up. She wasn’t a very strong mutant. She was much like a human in many ways. She also didn’t have rapid healing ability. In all the years I looked for her she would probably have been an old crone or dead. In any case, I was probably forgotten even if she was alive by then.” Nearby, Cato saw Vivian crying and shaking her head. “My kin have been after me for years to find a mate and forget her,” continued Andy. “But…I just couldn’t. Fighting Mavie was the only thing that gave me purpose. But that’s over now. I didn’t even have the satisfaction of seeing Mavie’s head on my spear. Old Cato and a pack of folks a lot older than me showed up in Barratia along with the Bellasarian empress and more kings, queens and warriors than I could count if I lived to be five hundred thanks to that damned fool Stragg. We fought them, but the writing was on the wall when the dead King Roc’s bastard hit us in the rear with thousands of warriors from west of the mountains. Elder Terrence disgraced himself and Stragg was killed. He was a fool, but at least he died better than he lived.”

The Barratian made a face of disgust, downed his drink and continued. “I still fought the Bellasarians though. Not for any love of Terrence mind you, but because I hated the Mavie who were fighting with the empire. I expected to die well in battle and finally be free of my pain, but that didn’t happen. Peace was made and that bitch Mavie was let off from her crimes.”

“I don’t think letting Mavie live was mercy, Mr. Andy,” said the bartender.

The Barratian grunted and was silent for a moment. Then he said, “Excuse me. I need to piss!”

Andy stood up again, but all that ale must have finally hit him because he staggered, tripped over one of the chairs and fell hard.

“Andy!” cried Vivian, rushing over. “Andy! I…Goddess! Are you all right? Speak to me!”

It took a moment for Andy to register who the woman over him was. “Vivian?” he said uncertainly. The sobbing woman smiled and nodded. “Vivian…but
how?!”
cried Andy in disbelief.

“I never forgot!” she cried. “In all these years I’ve
never
forgotten you! I love you!”

The two embraced and cried for a moment. Then Andy said, “Vivian, I…”

“I know,” said Vivian. “I heard everything.”

“No,” said Andy. “I mean…I really do love you. But…”

“But what?” said Vivian, worry suddenly all over her face.

“I don’t want to ruin the moment,” said Andy, “but I’ve been drinking ale all night. I
really
need to pee.”

Vivian quickly helped Andy up and hurried him to the restroom. When he came out she told Cato and the other remaining staff they could leave, she’d lock up. Before leaving, Cato turned and looked at the two, now sitting close together at one of the low tables, and smiled. He’d hear an earful from his wife because of the time for sure, but the story he had to tell her would more than make up for it.

******

Five Years Later

Heidi Perez had arrived in Bellasaria a day ago and had arrived in the town of Haller this morning. She couldn’t believe how quick it was to travel from someplace like Gath on the southeast coast, all the way to this place in the north. If she had traveled by means other than the air-shuttle it would have taken longer. If she had the clout, teleport would have gotten her there last night…or sooner.

Her younger brother, Carlos, had come to this world five years back to do volunteer work in Barratia and also to learn a bit about the Bellasarian people. Uncle Jorge was certain that Carlo’s real motivation for leaving the island and going to Bellasaria had less to do with humanitarian work or the pursuit of knowledge and more to do with those gorgeous, voluptuous, half naked and hot-blooded Bellasarian girls. Time would prove him right.

Then, about four and a half years ago, the family had gotten word that Carlos was getting married. When Uncle Jorge saw Carlo’s fiancées picture he roared with laughter.
“I told you!”
He had said. He put that woman’s picture in a frame right away and put it on his wall, all the men and boys drooling. Auntie Carol and the women quickly took it down. Heidi was sure he still had it though hidden away somewhere.

So here Heidi was at a shuttle terminal out in the boonies, waiting. Because she was a mutant with above human strength, she didn’t feel the difference in gravity as acutely as a human would, she barely noticed it.

Suddenly an air-car pulled up and she saw a Bellasarian youth at the wheel. She was liking this place even more. “Are you, Miss Perez, Carlos’s sister?” he asked.

“Yes,” she said.

The youth smiled again and got out. “My name is, Lycus,” he said. “I’ve been sent to pick you up. Here, let me take your things.”

Heidi numbly handed him her bags and he placed them into the vehicle. The kid looked like an underwear model. “Okay,” he said, “let’s go.”

Heidi looked around as they drove. The town was quite quaint. They were now leaving the so-called urban area and were heading to the outskirts of the town. The area was looking a little more country now, but still nice. When they pulled up to the tavern her brother was working and living in, she was impressed. The place was large with a fish-pond and garden. Her brother had told her this place was just a rustic tavern in some border town when he first wrote to them from Illyria. Oh, it was definitely still rustic, but
man
this place was cool. Obviously some serious work had been done to the place.

“How was your trip, Sis?” said a voice.

Heidi turned around and saw Carlos at the entrance to the inn, with him was his wife. The picture they’d received didn’t do the lady justice. Quickly they ran over and embraced her.

“You’re pretty,” said Katie. “Are you sure you don’t have Bellasarian blood?”

“I couldn’t get a better compliment,” said Heidi with a laugh. Then she looked at Carlos. “You said it was a tavern.”

“It was,” laughed Carlos, “but there were always some rooms here in case a traveler needed a place to crash for the night, right baby?”

The big woman giggled and said, “Some even stick around.” Then she winked at Heidi who laughed. “We’ve just expanded a little,” said Katie. “A lot of things changed here after the night this rascal and those Barratians happened to wander in here. Come on in. We’ll get you something to eat.”

When they entered the establishment they were spied out by a short attractive blond girl who smiled warmly and quickly waved over a large, red haired man. “Over here, honey!” she cried. With her was a little girl with red hair and blue eyes who looked to be about four years old. The woman was expecting again.

“You must be Carlos’s sister,” she said. “That means as far as I’m concerned, you’re family. My name is Vivian,” said the bubbly blond. “Welcome to Vivian’s Place!”

The big red haired man smiled and put his arm around the blond woman and said, “Yes, you are most welcome indeed!”

******

EPILOGUE

E
xploration of the lands to the west was slow and perilous. The empress didn’t want to alarm or even terrify people with airships. Furthermore, without roads, most Bellasarian vehicles were useless on wild forested terrain, so travel would have to be done the old fashioned way, by mounts, carts and one’s two (or four) feet. Flying mutants were very helpful, but it was still slow going and certain lessons were learned the hard way. As quickly discovered, those who had women and children in their parties were attacked less. Those that had only men in their group and numbered more than four or five men were often perceived as potential war parties and attacked on sight.

A black chief of a tribe beyond Matabeland warned one Bellasarian party that anyone carrying weapons was not immediately perceived as a threat. But the sight of a man carrying a
shield
was almost certainly a sign that his intention was to fight men, not beasts. If he had no one to protect, like a woman or child with him, it was almost certain he was up to no good. This point was wisely heeded by most and those that didn’t lived to regret it…if they were lucky.

Well, despite the inconveniences, the empire was getting a good picture of what the lands and people were like beyond the Barratian Mountains. Also, many very old elders were having the time of their lives. Some had even dyed their hair and traveled with clueless youngsters several centuries younger than them. Drinking in new sights and enjoying the new adventures and peril, they were like children again and the images they sent back were amazing.

As far as religion went, Nana was practiced widely, but so was Christianity and to a lesser extent Islam. However, the original gods of many of these people were still worshiped as well. There even seemed to have been a bit of fusion of certain beliefs.

Cities were few, but they did exist. Some were moderately advanced in some areas, others less so. Some even had electricity. Nearly all depended on less sophisticated sources of fuel for heating and lighting, like coal, wood and methane. Of course, in more primitive cities, candles and oil lamps were used heavily. But even more advance cities used them to some extent as well to help conserve energy or in case of power outages. Windmills were used for energy in some places, but naturally they were not as efficient as the ones in the east and solar energy was beyond any of these peoples’ abilities. Transportation was simple; mounts, drawn carts or one’s own two feet.

Urban communities caused little damage to the surrounding land because both the cities and their populations were allowed to become only so big. Sanitation was done by slaves who, as in the empire, were people who had temporarily or permanently lost their freedom because of criminal offenses. Villages and towns were no different. The majority of the tribes however, lived in very simple villages made of very simple and abundant materials. People closer to the east that inhabited forested areas lived in houses ranging from bark, wood to wattle. Further west, traders from these regions told of earth lodges and sod houses. But on the Great Plains, tipis were the primary form of housing. Grass houses were used by the settled peoples of the southern plains as well as earth. Permanent villages and fortresses also provided a source of education and centralization for many peoples with kin living out in the wilderness. Farther west, nomadic hunters often had bases around or
in
major fortified towns closer to the east to winter in if needed or simply to stop and settle down from that lifestyle for a time. Naturally, these towns or cities were built by and populated by their own people who had chosen to live in a more comfortable environment and who saw to it that their wilder kin were educated and had a safe haven in times of trouble. Others were towns that were either allied to them or neutral to the tribal warfare that was everywhere. To the surprise of their kin from Earth, in the two thousand years since being brought to the Bellasarian lands beyond the forest Kingdom, the Amerindian population (mutant and human) had rapidly grown and expanded and several nations, both familiar and unfamiliar could be found there. Almost none were exactly what their ancestors were when they first arrived.

One mutant, an American Sioux adventurer from Earth, would later return to Earth and laughing tell his family of a settlement of Siouan speaking people in the country of Lakota he encountered and sojourned with.

“Long ago, Red Cloud and Crazy horse called Indians who camped around the white man’s forts
‘Loafers around the Forts’.
On Bellasaria, in
their
wild west, Indians in tipis are again seen loafing around forts. Only this time the people manning the forts and the loafers outside are all Indians.”

Of course, this was a little exaggerated. The fortified towns were populated by Indians in
Lakota
, but the people camped around them were of many races. Most of the tipi dwellers were wilder kin that had come from farther west from the great prairie to trade or live in safety. Indeed, like most of the more organized and advanced nations, the Lakotans were closer to the eastern woodlands and only lived on the fringe of the great prairie. Beyond that point, little was known by the empire of the central and northern plains except that the land was populated by fierce beasts and fiercer men. Bellasarian scanners picked up no signs of higher technology anywhere from that vast region. Bellasarian exploration so far had moved north to the great forests, west to the fringe of the Great Plains and southwest to the people of the southern grasslands. But the southern prairie was large and still unknown. The tribes and nations already encountered told tales of forests, deserts and people further west and south.

Yes, there was much adventure to be had still on Bellasaria for this was only just a
part
of the Illyrian Continent. An entire planet was still waiting to be explored.

******