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Escape From Manitou Island: Part 200 |
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(DISCLAIMER: This part, and all parts hereafter, are works in progress (WIPs) and have not been proofread or checked for plot inconsistencies. I've decided to present them "as is" for now, as there is a significant amount of unfinished material; yet this story has been on hiatus for a long while, I've forgotten certain details, and I have no plans to resume work on it any time soon. Please keep in mind while reading that details may change in the future. Should you spot an inconsistency, however, please feel free to point it out to me for possible correction.)
TWO HALVES, SAME WHOLE THE RED SWAN lifted her hand and with a startled cry Geezhigo-Quae was hurled across the room and slammed against the wall. Charmian gasped and ducked, but the Red Swan didn't even look her way as she stepped past, the look on her face distant and drowsy as if she were sleepwalking, which, Charmian realized, was pretty much right. Geezhigo-Quae had fallen at the bottom of the opposite wall; she was pushing herself up now, grimacing and putting a hand to her back, and Charmian wanted nothing more than to help her up, but the Red Swan was directly between them now and the two of them looked at each other, the sky manitou's eyes widening. "The reason why I am here," the Red Swan murmured sleepily. "The reason why I am imprisoned." She lifted her hand again. "You are the reason." Crap! Charmian hesitated only a split second before launching herself across the room; she flung up her own hand and tried to hurl fire at the Red Swan, but it seemed to bounce off some barrier around her and evaporate into a watery haze; that confused her until she remembered they were in a dream and she wasn't sure if her powers worked the same here. She landed on her elbow just as the Red Swan flicked her hand at Geezhigo-Quae and Geezhigo-Quae let out a very undignified yelp before slamming into the wall again. Charmian grimaced, but could see that she'd at least managed to prepare herself this time, not hitting the earth as hard as before, her arms bearing the brunt of the attack; when the Red Swan drew her hand back a third time, Geezhigo-Quae attacked instead, swinging her own hands forward in a sort of graceful half-circle and then drawing them up and back toward her as if beckoning the Red Swan to come closer. The air vibrated so hard that Charmian's teeth rattled and she clenched them and put her hands to her head; the Red Swan hesitated, blinking a bit, then with a gasp drew in on herself, arms going down to her sides and her wings flattening against her back. She twitched and jerked in an odd manner and it took Charmian a moment or two to realize that she'd been bound, somehow; in fact, now she could feel it herself, strange thickenings in the air, like invisible cords spanning the room in every direction. She had to be careful where she moved else she would run into them, and she half-shimmied, half-crawled her way closer to the others, sensing out the bands the best she could. Geezhigo-Quae still stood with her hands up in front of her, holding the invisible cords tight. "Are you all right?" she called out, her voice shaky. "Y--yeah!" Charmian replied, pushing herself up. "I'm worried about you! She must think you're Megissogwun with what you just said. If that's the case--" Blue flashed around the Red Swan and with a heave she threw the invisible bonds loose--Geezhigo-Quae gasped and stumbled backwards when they drew back into her hands. Charmian glanced at the Red Swan and shivered--her eyes had turned malevolent blue and the look on her face had changed, her lip slightly curling back and her nose wrinkling--the expression was so bizarre on her. When she spoke her voice was like rocks grinding together, flinty and harsh. "I've never told even the Canoe," she grated, stalking forward, "but from the moment I found out who did this, I vowed I would make them suffer for it, no matter who they are, no matter what their reasons." Geezhigo-Quae seemed put off by this--Charmian could imagine what she must be thinking, having to fend off a part of herself--but held up her hands again, her eyes darkening. "You were too powerful, and you needed to be contained," she said. "I'm sorry it had to be done, but it had to be done. You don't even know what you're capable of." The Red Swan halted and held up her hand. "You aren't the one to tell me what has to be done or what I do and don't know. If you shut somebody away for something they haven't even done yet, it shows how little you know." Charmian's muscles tensed. She's becoming self-aware. I honestly can't tell if she thinks she's talking to Megissogwun or Geezhigo-Quae! If she's self-aware, that means she's waking up. If she's waking up, then this all goes nowhere. If she's waking up, then I have to get her back to sleep. If I have to get her back to sleep... She saw the blue flare around the Red Swan again, her hand tensing, and launched herself at her, grabbing her other arm. As she did, she shut her eyes and brought up every pertinent image she could think of--the Stone Canoe--the great lake--the cave deep beneath the earth--the feeling of floating upon the water--the stream of dream memories that weren't quite dreams and weren't quite memories, either. She mentally went over every interaction she'd had with the Red Swan so far, their conversations and even their arguments, but the thing she thought about hardest was how real the Red Swan seemed, how complex, how individual. This wasn't that hard to do, considering that she was holding onto her, but she knew it had to be done--the barrage of images couldn't have lasted more than a second or so, but the blue glow around the Red Swan abruptly died down, and Charmian felt her muscles untensing, her hand lowering a fraction as her wings fluttered. A charge in the air that she hadn't even noticed previously died down as well, and the dangerous blue glint that had started to appear in Geezhigo-Quae's eyes as she prepared herself faded, the manitou woman also untensing slightly as she noticed the change. The Red Swan stared at her for a moment, then, first glancing down at her arm which Charmian held, looked back at Charmian herself. She blinked and her eyes shifted from blue to black. "Charmian...?" she said softly, seeming confused. Charmian let out a breath and sank to one knee, her arms and legs feeling like water. The Red Swan furrowed her brow, then looked about at her surroundings. Her confusion seemed to grow when she saw Geezhigo-Quae standing before her, her hands up and her clothing mussed and dirty; "Who...who are you?" she asked, and looked again around the cave. "Where am I?" "You don't remember how you got here?" Charmian asked. The Red Swan looked at her. "I came here myself? Then this isn't my cave?" Another look at Geezhigo-Quae and back again. "How did I leave my cave? I didn't think it was possible!" "You're still in your cave...sort of. This is just a dream in a dream, or a vision in a dream, or...whatever." Charmian shook her head. "Do you remember what you were last doing? Anything at all?" "I was...I was in my cave and I felt you pass by," she said, frowning. "That's right...you were in my dream. I thought you didn't see me at first. Then..." She trailed off. "I thought he'd come for me again!" she exclaimed suddenly, her wings shooting up and the air crackling around her. Charmian squeezed her wrist. "It's okay--he's not here. You took care of him the last time just fine." "I--I did?" "Yeah, Chakenapok told me.* He said the Stone Canoe saw it. I don't think you have to worry, you threw him out like it was nothing!" She loosened her grip, noticing how the Red Swan squirmed a little, and at last let go so she could rub her wrist. "That's the reason why you're here, why I wanted to talk with you, because I couldn't quite get to you in your cave." "Why not? You could before. And--how did I get in here without remembering it? And attack him without remembering it? What's going on?" She turned in a bewildered circle, examining the walls and ceiling. "What happened to my cave?" Charmian opened her mouth just as Geezhigo-Quae thought, Be careful what you tell her. You said you needed to speak to her while she sleeps, did you not? If she realizes exactly what and who she is, who is to say she won't wake up? You saw what just happened. If she finds out too much too soon, I do not know what use she could be to you. Crap, that's right, Charmian thought back, wincing. "Red Swan," she said aloud. "There's some stuff you'll need to know, about who you are and how you got here and what's going on and everything, but I can't tell you just now. It's too early for you to find out. You'll have to wait a little bit, is all." "Wait--?" An aggrieved look came to the Red Swan's face. "You mean you know what I am? When I've been trying to figure this out for ages? Why is it that you can't tell me now that you know? I thought that's what you were trying to do--you promised that you would find out what you could--and now you won't tell me--?" "I will tell you," Charmian said hastily, waving her hands, "just not right now! You have to trust me. That's all I can say." The Red Swan stared at her for a moment, then her eyes started to darken. "Why should I trust you?" she demanded. "When you promise something and then go back on it, and treat me like I've done something wrong? When all I've tried to do all along is help you out? Right now you seem no better than that wabano and his island, and whoever put me in that place! The only one who's ever been honest with me is the Stone Canoe, and he's not here--" she turned in a circle "--wherever this place is, it looks no better than the last. So now I'm trapped even when I'm in a dream. I don't know why I thought this would be any different, but it doesn't seem to be." "If Charmian has made you a promise," Geezhigo-Quae said, earning her attention, "then she will keep it, if she can. Whatever it takes. She has her reasons for not telling you everything just yet, and despite what you think those reasons are in your own best interests. You can see how much keeping this from you pains her, can you not? Has she ever been anything but forthright with you? When I know that you yourself have not always been so with her." The Red Swan glanced at Charmian, as if searching her, and Charmian fought not to squirm under her scrutiny. "This doesn't explain who you are and what you have to do with any of this!" she retorted at Geezhigo-Quae. "Nor what business you have judging how I do things! If I ever keep a secret, it's because it's in my best interests, just like you said--do you see what asking for her help got me? Another cave! At least before I knew where I stood, but now I have no idea where I am!" "You are under the Sky Tree," Geezhigo-Quae said, "inside my vision. And I am Geezhigo-Quae. I asked you here and you came. This is all." The Red Swan blinked on hearing her name. "The...the Sky Mother...?" she whispered, and then wrapped her arms around herself, shivering. "Under the ground? Things aren't right! What am I doing here? How do I get back?" Charmian pushed herself up and reached out to touch her arm and calm her; the questions were more frightened now than accusatory, so she knew the Red Swan's anger must be fading, though her confusion wasn't. "It's okay," she said. "I know it sounds weird but this is actually one of the safest places you can be right now. She's right, you know, have I lied to you yet? About anything this big, at least? You said you felt me in your dream; I used that to get here, so you helped me out, and thanks for that. I couldn't have gotten here without you. And I know you don't remember it but you did come here when she called you. I can't tell you how it all went because if you find out too much too soon, you won't be able to help me anymore. Do you know that you're asleep?" she asked at last, fearing that it could be a dreadful mistake to say it, but needing to know exactly where things stood just the same. "Of course I'm asleep," the Red Swan said, as if she thought she'd lost her senses. "I've always been asleep! At least--I think I have..." Geezhigo-Quae glanced upward sharply. Charmian peered up as well. She took in a breath, seeing how the ceiling had disappeared; it wasn't just that she couldn't see it, it simply wasn't there anymore. Remembering what had happened with Winter Born's dream of the Island*, she squeezed the Red Swan's wrist again to draw her back. "You have! You're right. I'm sorry I sound so stupid, but I had to make sure. I need you to stay asleep for now, because if you wake up, I won't be able to reach you or the others anymore." "Wake up...?" The Red Swan stared at her for a few moments. "You mean that I could?" she asked at last. "Wake up, I mean? It's possible?" Charmian fell silent, not sure how to answer. "It has always been possible," Geezhigo-Quae said at last. "And it will happen, I promise it. But first you must let Charmian do what she needs to do, in order for you to get there." The Red Swan looked between the two of them once or twice, then seemed to relax, just slightly. "What about the Stone Canoe?" she asked, anxiety coming to her face. "If I wake up then where will he be?" "He'll still be right there with you, I promise," Charmian reassured her. "Maybe not in the same way--but I know he'd hardly allow us to pry you two apart! You know how hardheaded he is, being a rock and all." She'd hoped for a tiny smile at least, but the Red Swan seemed too anxious to manage one. Still, at least it was better than being attacked. "So...if I go along with this, then what do I do? You said I fought Megissogwun off? Is that what you need me to do?" Relief flooded through Charmian that she wouldn't have to explain the situation any further, and she opened her mouth to answer. "Right now," Geezhigo-Quae said, before she could speak, and she frowned a little, glancing at her and wondering why she was being so rude, "you help us by returning to your dream, and staying there. Do not attempt to wake up, and do not attempt to seek anyone out, unless Charmian should ask you to. The more you cast about the easier you make it for him to find you. Fend him off only if he comes to you directly as he did before--but aside from that, just stay where you are and stay safe. This is how you can help us the most. As long as you are safe, Charmian can stay connected to us all, and bring this that much closer to being over." "And then you'll tell me what you know?" the Red Swan asked, turning to Charmian. Charmian blinked--she'd been so caught up in getting ready to demand what Geezhigo-Quae was doing that she hadn't expected to be addressed again. "Er--yeah, we will," she stuttered. "Promise. I said I'd figure it out and let you know, and I will." This time she made herself remain still as she was stared at, then the Red Swan relaxed again. "All right," she said finally, though she fiddled with the fringe on her dress. "I'll stay in my cave. I'm sure the Stone Canoe can tell me if something important happens." She turned and stepped toward the wall she'd emerged from--Charmian noticed now that it was solid again, as if nothing had even happened earlier--but cast them a final glance as she reached out for it. "You'll come get me when it's over?" she asked, her voice plaintive. The other two nodded. "Promise," Charmian said, feeling her throat stick a little, realizing what it would mean when they would go to "get" her. Another brief stare. The Red Swan turned once more and stepped into the wall--Charmian worried that she would have no idea how to return to where she'd come from, seeing as she had no memory of getting there, but the answer had apparently come to her as she vanished from sight. Geezhigo-Quae stepped forward and touched the wall; they both stared at the faint image that appeared, the Red Swan again seated in her cave. She was peering upward tentatively, as if waiting for something to happen; when nothing did, she shut her eyes and settled herself, though it was a while before the tense look on her face softened and she appeared to be sleeping peacefully once again. "Why did you do that?" Charmian said quietly. She saw Geezhigo-Quae turn her head, but didn't look at her. "Why did you tell her all that, to just go back and sit tight? I was going to ask her if she would help us fight off Megissogwun." She did turn now, unable to hide her frustration. "She's the best and only chance we have left. He's on his way back to the Island right this minute. Why are you stalling us like this? After everything we went through to get her here why did you send her back?" "Because I know it is of no use," Geezhigo-Quae replied. Charmian furrowed her brow. "Huh? What the heck does THAT mean? You did hear everything we just said, didn't you? She kicked Megissogwun's ass! Twice! She was so frigging powerful even YOU got so worried you locked her away! How the heck is that of no use?" "If it had occurred to me to realize it sooner," Geezhigo-Quae said, "I would have, and would have spared you all this trouble. But I told you my thoughts were not clear before this. And we had already called her here before I understood it." "Understood what?" "That despite how powerful she is, she is not strong enough to defeat him. Think of it. She fought him off twice--but did not defeat him either time." "Well, maybe if she just tries harder--" "It still will not matter. Think of it. I was not strong enough to defeat him, was I?" Charmian opened her mouth. Then shut it. Then blinked. "...Huh?" she said at last, but a terrible realization was already starting to seep through. "When I did not realize she is the same as me," Geezhigo-Quae said, "then I too thought she stood some chance. But we are the same...and on our own, neither of us is strong enough to defeat him. Even if we were joined together again...which would mean you would lose your connection to the Island...I do not believe we could do it. We were one when we first attacked him...and he came back for us. We are not strong enough. She is not strong enough." Charmian said nothing; she could think of nothing to say. The crushing feeling that had settled upon her was almost more than she could bear--Manabozho not being strong enough, Winter Born not being strong enough, the Red Swan not being strong enough--if no one was strong enough... I can't think that way. I CAN'T! If I think that way it means the Island is gone. I CAN'T think that way...I can't live without the Island... I helped it twice before, I should do it again! But the other times there was always somebody strong enough...I can't just give it up, not after all this...but I can't think of anything else, there's nothing else left... "This is my fault," Geezhigo-Quae murmured, staring at the wall. "Perhaps if I had kept her with me--kept us whole--instead of casting her off, I could have grown to understand and control this, and I could have fought him off. Without Kabeyun or anyone else. This was the lesson the Nathali taught you, after all, that when you push such things away it only makes you weaker. If I had grown up with her then perhaps we would not even be in this situation...after all, if I had been stronger, he likely would never have even been able to destroy the first Island much less this one...perhaps I am even the reason why he is as strong as he is today." Chakenapok was only as strong as he was because his brothers rejected him, Charmian thought, but bit her lip. It's not the same thing--Chakenapok and them, they were part of the same thing. Megissogwun isn't part of Geezhigo-Quae, is he? The Red Swan is the one who should be stronger...and she is...but it isn't enough...Geezhigo-Quae doesn't hate her the way Manabozho hated Chakenapok, and I doubt she ever could...even if she did, the Red Swan never learned to control her power like Chakenapok did... This is all pointless anyway. None of it helps any. "How close I am to the Island," Geezhigo-Quae said. "A good enemy always knows how to use your greatest weaknesses against you, and in this case, that is exactly what it is, my greatest weakness, how much I love that Island. If I did not love it so much then he would not bother destroying it. I didn't even realize I was dooming the second Island just as surely as I doomed the first." "It doesn't matter," Charmian said flatly. "Even if it were all your fault, just thinking about that doesn't help things any. You're talking like the Island's already gone!" "And you are talking like you have a plan," Geezhigo-Quae replied. "Well..." Charmian flushed. "I'll have one. I just need to think. Mishosha and Augwak are both slowing Megissogwun down, don't ask, I don't really get it myself but they are. They'll buy us time and the Animiki will too. I'll think of something. There has to be something." Geezhigo-Quae said nothing; Charmian knew what she must be thinking, the very same thing she herself was thinking--what was left?--but she didn't voice this aloud. Charmian didn't know if she could have handled it if she had. "If I think of something..." she said, then, "When I think of something--I have to ask you. What happens to Megissogwun? I don't know if we can kill him or not. It might be that we can only put him down for a while, or put him to sleep or lock him away like Ocryana or Chakenapok or Malsum. I want to make sure this never happens again. I don't want to make the same stupid mistake Kabeyun made." "I fully plan to figure out how to bring the Red Swan back to me," Geezhigo-Quae said, "whether your plan goes through or not. It's the least I can do, considering how I've treated her. I'm certain that once we are whole again, I will be stronger, and perhaps this will help prevent this from happening a third time." "You mean the Red Swan will make you strong enough to keep him from destroying the Island again? You really think this?" "I will not say I am positive about something for which I have no proof, Mainlander, but at least my chances will be greater than the last time. I remember how much stronger it made you when you accepted the power that Red Bird and Ocryana gave you." "Well..." Charmian glanced at the wall. "It's enough, I guess. I have to get back to the others. And think of something." She bit her lip again. "I'm not sure when I'll be talking to you again," she said hesitantly. Geezhigo-Quae shook her head. "Do not worry about me. Do what you can. I will still be here, though I believe I should rest briefly, if only to let poor Cheengwun know I'm still alive..." "Cheengwun!" Charmian gasped and hopped back around. "If you do talk with him, please tell him his gift came in useful--he'll know what you mean--and that Niskigwun is just fine, and I'm doing everything I can. Can you tell him this? Please?" The manitou woman nodded, her mouth twitching just slightly. Charmian let out a breath, wanting to thank her, but it sounded too trite; she wanted to say goodbye, but it sounded too final. She hesitated for a moment or two, unable to think of anything to say, but the look in Geezhigo-Quae's eyes told her that she understood; so, instead of wasting any more time, she turned to the wall and put her hands against it, shutting her eyes. She felt a slight pressure as she passed through it, back into the Red Swan's dream; the Red Swan mentally reached out for her again, and Charmian reached back, and within a heartbeat she was traveling back along the stream of vague memories to where she'd started out from. She didn't see the Red Swan or the Stone Canoe as she had before, but she did glimpse a vast expanse of dark water, just fleetingly, and sensed Chakenapok drawing her through; this sensation faded and blackness surrounded her, and she lay still within it for a few moments, trying to clear the fogginess from her brain. "Charmian...?" a faraway voice called. Charmian winced and reached up to rub her head--she felt her fingers, her forehead, her skin, everything real and solid now--and blinked her eyes open. Hazy shapes appeared, hovering over her; she frowned, struggling to make them come in clearer, but it was like staring up from underwater. Something flared brighter than the other shapes, like a small sun just inches from her face, and one of the shapes leaned down close. Charmian blinked--Mishosha's face appeared, as clear and sharp as everything else remained strangely murky, and he gave her a gracious smile. "Well, little girl?" he said. "Find out everything you wanted to?" |