Shadowfall, p.21
Shadowfall, page 21
part #2 of Amalie Noether Chronicles Series
Kulvinder’s face lit up at the suggestion, then fell at Arne’s hardly concealed huff of laughter. “Easier said than done. We have no idea where Elle and her plucky band of trekkers may be.”
Nkombe turned and put his hands on his hips, frowning at this piece of information. “Really? And this doesn’t trouble you, Mr. Holt?”
Arne shrugged. “Elle has extraordinary instincts. I might worry if it were anyone else out there. But Elle Silver is like a cat. She always seems to land on her feet.”
Nkombe studied the bit of moss and murmured, “We must hope that holds true for the trekkers she’s guiding as well then, Mr. Holt.” He looked up at Arne and Kulvinder. “Every smidgeon of information you feed me makes Elle Silver seem ever more important to survival here—and mysterious.”
TWENTY-SIX
Little Blue was setting, its long blue rays just barely above the horizon, as Elle called her raucous trekkers to order. They had all taken up residence inside the cavern, where they had bathed and eaten copious amounts of new moss. To all intents and purposes, they seemed riotously drunk. Serge watched them from the safety of a hammock he had arranged for himself to be in the party but not ensconced on the moss. He took his role of “experiment control” quite seriously.
“Everyone, your attention please.” Elle stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at the festive scientists who continued to babble around her. Suddenly she cried out in obvious pain and grasped her stomach as if in agony, bending over double. Silence descended on the cavern immediately. All eyes were riveted on Elle as she raised herself slowly, a wide grin on her face. “Really, do I have to go into labor to get your attention?”
Nearby, Dov burst out laughing. “Well, you certainly stopped me in my tracks.” Low chuckles followed his remark.
“Fine, then. Ooh, ah. I may be dying.” Elle clutched her stomach again. She swung her gaze to the hammock. “Serge, can you please attend to me? I’m feeling faint.”
Serge scratched his chin, then eased himself out of the swing. “Don’t nobody take that.” He pointed to the hammock. “Make yer own if you want one.” He moved across the cavern to stand by Elle’s side and whispered loudly, “Are you really feeling the onset of labor?”
Elle whispered back just as loudly, “No, I just needed to get their attention. Although I should, just to teach them a lesson. They’re like children tonight.”
Dov pointed out quite candidly, “You know we can hear you. We’re all right here.”
Elle smiled. “Okay, very short ceremony and then you can get back to frolicking. Okay?” Everyone murmured their assent and sobered quite quickly into the attentive audience Elle had hoped to find. She turned and gently pulled Serge closer and held his arm, standing just a bit behind him as she presented him to the assembled trekkers. “We all owe this man a debt of gratitude tonight and for the remainder of our lives.” Serge tried to tug away from her, but Elle held him fast. “Because of his dogged persistence on our behalf, we stand here tonight cupped in one of the wonders of this world.”
Dov shouted and started clapping loudly. Everyone followed suit. Serge squirmed in the face of it all. Still Elle held him. As the applause died away, Elle continued. “Forthwith, this cavern shall bear the name Serge’s Green Grotto. What say all of you?”
Thunderous applause erupted, echoing off the cavern walls. Abashed, Serge hung his head, attempting to deflect the torrent of goodwill that assailed him from the cheering trekkers.
As the crowd quieted again, Elle swooped down and picked a fistful of bright green moss. She bundled several fronds into a small, tight ball and used it to mark two long, iridescent green stripes across the muscle at the top of Serge’s arm. “I name you Friend of Amalie Noether, Sergio Metier, and call you ‘shepherd.’ And all your descendants shall henceforth be known as shepherds, from this day forward.”
The sound of water dripping, tok—pause—tok—pause, was the only sound for a long moment in the huge cavern. Serge reached up and ran his fingers down the two iridescent stripes on his upper arm. A slow, sweet smile appeared on his face and he reached out and touched Elle’s cheek with his fingers. She took his hand and raised it over both of their heads. “Our shepherd, fellow trekkers—honor him with your cheers.” And they did for many long, riotous moments welcome the man into their midst who had held himself aloof for so long.
As is always the case with humans who have narrowly escaped death, the trekkers sang and danced and made merry until the night was well advanced. And then in twos and threes they stole off into the night to begin a new generation that would be born from the narrow escape of their own. Elle watched them go, knowing what was afoot and smiling with satisfaction. They had survived their first real trial and Serge had been the key. She lay back in the deep luxury of the moss bed she had chosen and gazed up at the ceiling over her head. By day the ceiling of the cavern was porous enough that sunlight filtered through. By night, there was still an unmistakable aura of light that softly permeated the utter darkness. After some moments, she shook her head in wonder. It would likely take more than her one lifetime to reveal all the secrets of the moss on this world.
“Is this a private reverie, or would you like company?”
Elle turned her head—it was just too much trouble to turn her whole enormous pregnant body. Dov stood quietly a few feet away, eyes questioning. Elle met his eyes for a long moment and then a smile curled the corners of her mouth. “Come. Sit.”
Dov took his place next to her with a fluid grace that she instantly admired. And he remained quietly attentive. Elle reached out and grasped the hand nearest to her. Dov smiled at her touch. They sat in silence for the space of a few heartbeats.
“This is really nice. Thank you for joining me.”
Dov cocked his head at her. “Thank you for inviting me. I would have understood if you had said no.”
Elle grinned back. “I honestly believe you might have. I just feel so enormously pregnant. And yet…” She lost whatever she had been going to say and lapsed into silence.
“And yet, you too feel the compulsion to sit and howl at the moon in celebration?” Dov phrased it as a question, but they both knew the answer.
“Well, maybe we could just lie here together and hold hands and pretend to howl at the moon, eh?”
Dov grinned at her and she was reminded of that first meeting on the flat plains beyond Azure Lake, when he had grinned that same grin that held such assurance and indecision too. It was a very nice grin. He lay down next to her on his side and slipped his free arm beneath her shoulders, cradling her head on his arm. Elle curled in next to him, never letting go of his hand, and slowly closed her eyes. She felt his gaze upon her face, but it was a gentle scrutiny that seemed like the touch of bright sun on a cold winter day.
It was perhaps hours later—surely more than mere minutes—when she felt the first contraction. It woke her with a start, unmistakable as a broken bone, but not yet as intense. Elle made up her mind to sleep through it. She had nearly regained sleep when the next contraction struck. This came like a kick, from deep in her abdomen, a jolt determined to get her attention. She moaned and snuggled in closer to Dov. She felt more than saw his one eye open, assessing her.
“Elle?”
“Yes, yes, yes.” She was suddenly so tired. She wanted to be where she was right now, nestled in next to Dov and nowhere else. She definitely did not want to be on the threshold of labor. Maybe it’s false…that sometimes happens several times before actual labor sets in, if I remember correctly. She sighed heavily and slowly sat up. She turned a mournful face to Dov. “I think I’m going into labor, dammit.”
Dov continued to eye her speculatively. “Has your water broken? How many contractions have you had?”
Elle couldn’t help the petulant tone to her voice. “I’ve had two…the last more pronounced than the first. Maybe fifteen minutes apart. And no, my water hasn’t broken.”
Dov reached up and took her by the shoulders and helped her lie back down. “Okay, then. Let’s cuddle for a few more minutes until something more definitive evolves. You know it’s likely we have hours.”
Elle punched his arm gently. “You could have gone all night without putting that out there.” But she did place her hand in his again and nestle it between her breasts.
Minutes later Elle was twisted by another stabbing contraction. She moaned out loud, gritting her teeth as she did. In a far corner of the cavern, another trekker moaned aloud for a completely different reason. The echo of the second moan hung in the air as Dov’s and Elle’s eyes met. Quite suddenly they burst out laughing.
Dov giggled. “Gads, I hope they know what they’re getting themselves into over there.”
Both laughed again and then Elle gasped with the intensity of the next contraction. This time Dov sat up. “Okay, little miss. I’d say you are progressing rapidly enough that we should give some thought to getting you up and walking a bit.”
Elle glared at him. “Easy for you to say.”
Dov held a hand down to her and waited for her to grasp it. “I don’t know. Given the size of you, it may be easier said than done. Maybe I should call for backup.”
Elle grabbed Dov’s outstretched hand with both of hers. “Shut up and pull, mister.”
Dov leaned back on his heels and levered Elle upright in one smooth motion. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and helped her move forward a step or two. “Is there anyone in particular you want to have nearby to help?”
Elle looked up at him, gritting her teeth as another wracking contraction bent her double in pain. “You’ll do for now. But it would be great if we could find Achebe too.”
“Done.” They passed close enough to Serge’s hammock that Dov could give it a hefty shove with his foot. Serge nearly tumbled onto the moss. He woke up instantly, fists ready. Then his eyes focused on Elle, who was doubled over in pain, and Dov holding her upright. “Serge, can you go find Achebe and Ashok? I think they went out to look at the stars.”
Serge rolled to his feet. “She’s okay, right? It’s not the friggin moss she ate.”
Elle huffed. “No, it’s not the friggin moss, Serge. It’s the friggin twins.”
“Just checking. I’ll go find Achebe. And I’ll track down the first-aid kit too. How far apart are her contractions?” He looked to Dov for the answer.
Elle grimaced. “Hello, I am still conscious. It’s proceeding pretty quickly. In the last twenty minutes there were one or two and now we’re nearing every five minutes.”
Serge raised his eyebrows. “What’s the duration of the contractions, missy?”
Elle nodded and frowned. “Right now, only about fifteen seconds long.”
“Okay. We got some time. But I’ll get everything together as quick as I can.”
Elle waved weakly at him. “Tra-la. Don’t forget to come back. Don’t leave me alone with this oaf.” Dov grinned oafishly in response.
Serge grinned back. “I wouldn’t miss this for the world, Elle.”
Elle whispered, “Easy for you to say, bucko.”
Another contraction gripped her and Elle sucked in her breath. Now she was only concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, and although no one could see it, her face was screwed up in pain. “Focus on your breath. Breathe, breathe, breathe,” she chanted to herself.
Elle again reclined on the moss, still reminding herself to breathe. There was water at hand, and fresh clippings to nibble on, but mostly there was the intense pain. Achebe had come running and hovered, trying really hard not to act like she was hovering. She had propped Elle up so she could bear down and push once it became necessary, but right now Elle had to simply ride out the pain. It was clear that the children had decided it was time to be born; nothing would stop them, but nothing would hurry them, either.
Achebe had badgered Ashok to use a couple of the travois struts and drapery to create a bit of privacy for Elle as she struggled through the waves of contractions. Dov leapt in and helped, and at least there was the idea of privacy in their little corner of the cavern. But of course, every moaning groan echoed through the camp; in the end, the privacy really was only psychic. But it meant something to Elle, each time she opened her eyes, that there was only Achebe’s face, or Ashok’s and Dov’s sometimes, and Serge’s—all trying not to look anxious.
In her heart of hearts, Elle wished she had given birth weeks ago, when she was alone with just the stars and Azure Lake at hand. That said, this quite public childbirth was how it was going to be for every pregnant woman on their trek. They would give birth out in the open, amongst their tribe, just as women had for eons before the medicalization of childbirth.
Elle groaned again as a new contraction began, and then howled bloody murder as she felt real movement in her womb this time. Achebe gently widened Elle’s legs and murmured in delight, “I see the crown. I see the crown of the head, Elle.” Achebe patted Elle absently. “Okay girl, you’re nearly done now. As soon as you feel the urge, push like crazy and don’t stop.”
Panting, Elle grimaced as a new contraction began. “Yeah, right. Wait till it’s your turn.”
Elle pushed with a guttural roar, and Achebe crowed, “Good, good; don’t stop! I’ve got the head, now push the shoulders through, Elle. Push.”
The baby’s shoulders slipped through, then her hips and legs followed. Ashok handed Achebe a sterile cloth from the first-aid kit and she expertly wiped the child free of most of the blood and vernix before she draped a clean cloth over her and lay her on Elle’s chest.
The baby still had not opened her eyes, nor, apparently, had she taken a breath. Elle met Achebe’s eyes. “She’s not breathing.”
Ashok had immediately gone to relay the news of the birth to the others. Dov squatted close to Elle, concern lining his face.
Achebe leaned over and stroked the baby’s arm. “C’mon, little one. Take a breath.” She looked at Elle. “Try putting a bit of breast milk on your finger and rubbing it on her lips.”
Elle looked down at the tiny, beautiful, stubborn little face. The baby was snuggled up against one breast, and Elle was already leaking milk. She used her forefinger to capture a drop, and gently coated the baby’s mouth with it. Dov and Achebe both leaned in closer to see if there was any reaction. The baby actually seemed to frown more intensely. She still hadn’t breathed.
“Oh, she is a stubborn one, Elle,” Achebe whispered with something like awe.
Elle whispered to her child, “Aliyah, listen to your mother. Whatever you have dreamed about this world, it is not all so dire that you should reject it completely.” Elle added another drop of milk to her baby’s lips. “Come on, sweet thing, breathe with me. Taste the milk, grow strong, have hope, Aliyah. Choose life.” Tears began to trickle down Elle’s cheeks.
All three adults were holding their breath as Elle continued to apply milk to the baby’s lips and whisper to it. The child’s color had gone from rosy pink to dusky blue in the space of a minute or so that it had held its breath. Elle looked up to Achebe, hopelessness in her eyes. Then suddenly the baby gasped. She coughed and breathed again, then cried as if her world had come to an end, instead of having just begun.
Elle ducked her head and showered kisses on the crying baby. Achebe and Dov reached for each other and hugged, then got up and danced around the birthing area. Elle looked up at their antics and couldn’t help but grin. She smoothed Aliyah’s soft russet hair, and offered her the breast. The baby latched on and suckled with determination. Elle laughed out loud. “Well, I guess it’s clear she’s decided to stay in this world after all.”
Dov reached over and grabbed his data pad and snapped a picture of mother and daughter. “For posterity, Elle.” He grinned like a maniac.
Suddenly, Elle was racked by another contraction. Achebe immediately knelt, back to business as a midwife. The afterbirth was delivered in one contraction. And then another started, this one again a long, agonizing ripple of pain. Elle waved frantically at Dov. “Take Aliyah. I think her brother’s almost home too.”
Dov gingerly took Aliyah from Elle’s arms and snuggled her next to his chest. The baby fell asleep immediately. He gazed down at the tiny infant, a silly grin spread across his face.
Appreciation for Aliyah was cut short by the arrival of her brother. He slid into the world as silently and serenely as Aliyah had been dramatic. The moment Achebe helped him slip into the world and turned him over to wipe him off, he took a deep breath.
Presenting him to his mother, Achebe uttered, “I have never seen such a beautiful baby, Elle.” Achebe wiped him down, then covered him with a clean cloth and handed him to Elle. “This one…this one is a Buddha. I swear he’s already smiling at the world that awaits him.”
Elle took the boy in her arms and leaned over to really look at him. “Rashi, my little love, welcome to the world we will share. I’m so glad you’re here.” Elle kissed him gently on one soft cheek and then held her breast to his lips so he could suckle. Rashi fed for a few brief moments, then slipped into sleep. Elle brought his tiny fist to her lips and kissed him again. When she lifted her head and looked at Dov and Achebe, she was beaming, and exhausted.
“You and the babies should sleep, Elle,” Dov whispered gently.
Elle nodded, then shifted her position slightly, so she was more upright. “In a minute. First we must do the introductions. Dov, can you pull aside the curtain? I want the tribe to meet Amalie Noether’s first children.”
“Now?”
Elle was adamant. “Yes, now. And Ashok, could you do me a favor and make sure that Serge is in attendance, please?”
Dov and Ashok exchanged glances, but Ashok willingly hurried off to find Serge. Dov handed Aliyah to Achebe and rummaged around to find something to tie back the curtain.
