Descending Road - TI'ANN by Dana W. Paxson

TI’ANN

1544 4D

The relief train arrived late that day with reinforcements. The able ones helped carry the bodies and the wounded onto the train. Nexi went back to the City with Nurumin‘s body; Alliji stayed. After Andrew ate a sparse meal, he went alone to a corner of the deck under the upthrust north rock face and pulled out the datasheet.

He flicked idly through its contents, finding only brief personal notes detailing needed supplies, instructions describing tools and weapons and their quirks, line-drawn maps of the area, and three image-letters. None of it was passworded.

He pressed on the sheet’s upper left corner, turning to the first of the letters. A woman’s face appeared; it was the woman they had killed. Her short tousle of dark hair framed her pale face, oval, large-eyed, full-lipped; its beauty was marred only by the tiny dark moles spangling her cheeks.

Frowning, earnest, her image spoke. “Linderus, it’s been eleven days since you sent word, and I’m worried. We’re expecting another assault here, and we’re in good shape, but I think of you every day. Why did they send you west with the second company? Was it us? I know Dann didn’t like to see us together, but she’s not nasty about it.

“We’ve got to get more food for the villages. The corps have put extra guards on the convoys, and they send outriders ahead and on flank. It’s getting harder every time.

“Send me a note when you can. I’ll comm you if they open up some channels. We’re setting camp further up in Delta, and I’ve got to go. Here.” The face pressed its full lips against the datasheet‘s display in a farewell smooch.

Andrew flicked to the next letter. A man’s face appeared; he was no andro, but a dark-faced human man with a deep voice. “Ti’Ann, we’re doing all right. I’m sorry I couldn’t contact you, but some strange things have happened.” The face looked away, then continued in a low tone, “The Regionals have been hunting for aliens out here. That’s aliens, like non-humans, from some other world, you believe it? The Novander Wye warned us about the Regional sweep, so we got down just in time, nobody lost, nothing taken.

“We managed a raid on some stores several kilometers off the rail line. Now there’s food and some medicine, and we’re shipping them east to your sector. I hope they get through. It wasn’t Dann who sent us out here. We had to find a depot to raid.

“Ti’Ann, I think it might be true about the aliens. We hit the tunnels when the Regionals sent the recruits out, and I was in this one burrow three levels down, and Gurgias, you know him? He was taking a nap while those idiots were wandering around in the grass overhead, and he had this big pet cat of his sleeping with him, it stands about two feet high? The cat starts nosing at his face, and Gurgias swats at it slow like he’s dreaming, and the cat sort of kisses him. Then the cat cuddles up and goes to sleep on the guy’s arm. Gurgias never moves.

“I’m sitting there dozing and waiting when I wake up and Gurgias is talking to himself. I just keep my eyes shut and listen. He’s talking nonsense, like, words I don’t understand, and you know him, he’s just an ordinary guy. But the words are so clear, like he’s used them all his life.

“I just wait a while and he goes back to sleep, and when he wakes up an hour or so later he doesn’t remember a thing. I asked him if he had any dreams, and he looks at me and he frowns and then he looks sleepy again and he says, ‘No, I was out cold.’ So I forgot about it until the regionals showed up. But I’m keeping an eye on him now.”

The face drew closer to the screen, and smiled. “Ti’Ann, I want to wake up all your body again like you did mine, back in Drevill. I can’t say it on this thing, if anyone cuts in. You know, sweet one.” The letter ended.

Andrew felt a pang of longing for Leil. He pressed again for the next and final letter.

Ti’Ann‘s face appeared, with a haunted and desperate expression. “Linderus, we’ve lost a third of our people. The Regionals and the UniCorp dropped in a batch of raiders, not the usual beginners, but top-class. They had every piece of tech you could think of: counterfire, speedsnakes, groundhogs, warhelms, everything. They blew into Delta at night, in aircars, silent, and they almost wiped us off. We got out with almost nothing. We’re back in Ferris now above the Abridor station, where they won’t expect us.”

She glanced around at a darkened sky, a few peaks silhouetted behind her. “We’re low on ammunition, so we’re going to do the rockfall traps. Burdill‘s father wants to take a bomb into their camp, but we’re trying to talk him out of it. We think if we blow the tracks instead, they’ll stop coming, but he says they’ll just rebuild and send more people. They’ve got so damn many. Either way it’ll take all the explosives we’ve got.

“Damn them! Your shipment hasn’t made it through yet, and it probably won’t. There’s no food supplies now, and the corps have taken the grain silos down in Ringville. If we don’t cut them off from the farms up higher, the smaller places won’t make it through the winter.

“Sweet, sweet man, stay there for me. We’ll pull out after we get done here and I’ll look for you out in Purusil City, and then I’ll turn you inside out and I’ll roast you with love. And we’ll sit where we sat last year, where the chisernari trees wind the deep city struts there, and we’ll listen to the thousand-colored riaviti birds, and suck black sugar and laugh.

“I hope, oh I hope this gets through to you soon, Linderus. I have to wait to send it until after the ambushes. Call on Huruishen for me. She’ll protect us both.” And Ti’Ann‘s once-generous lips pressed against the screen again, ending the letter and clearing the display.

Andrew flicked the sheet off and put it back in his thighpack. He debated giving it to Mentrius or Yuss; there was some information on it that might be useful, but there were no secrets or intelligence, or so he thought. He remembered the words from early militia training: Turn over all information. You have no way to know how it fits in. He wavered.

But if he turned it in, he would have to explain to Mentrius why he hadn’t done so when he’d searched the body. Then it would be erased, and that didn’t seem right. This once-lovely, now-dead andro woman had just tried to kill him, but she had loved her man, and she was trying to find food for others, and Andrew felt sad for the two lovers.

For now, he would keep the datasheet.

Story List	SURPRISE ME	Author Page
USER SURVEY	PUZZLE ME	MAKE ELM MARK

HOVER Lucida Bright BARE	HOVER Lucida Bright FULL	HOVER Palatino Linotype BARE
HOVER Palatino Linotype FULL	HOVER Times New Roman BARE	HOVER Times New Roman FULL
PAD Arial BARE	PAD Arial FULL	PAD Lucida Bright BARE
PAD Lucida Bright FULL	PAD Times New Roman BARE	PAD Times New Roman FULL


	TI’ANN 1544 4D The relief train arrived late that day with reinforcements. The able ones helped carry the bodies and the wounded onto the train. Nexi went back to the City with Nurumin‘s body; Alliji stayed. After Andrew ate a sparse meal, he went alone to a corner of the deck under the upthrust north rock face and pulled out the datasheet. He flicked idly through its contents, finding only brief personal notes detailing needed supplies, instructions describing tools and weapons and their quirks, line-drawn maps of the area, and three image-letters. None of it was passworded. He pressed on the sheet’s upper left corner, turning to the first of the letters. A woman’s face appeared; it was the woman they had killed. Her short tousle of dark hair framed her pale face, oval, large-eyed, full-lipped; its beauty was marred only by the tiny dark moles spangling her cheeks. Frowning, earnest, her image spoke. “Linderus, it’s been eleven days since you sent word, and I’m worried. We’re expecting another assault here, and we’re in good shape, but I think of you every day. Why did they send you west with the second company? Was it us? I know Dann didn’t like to see us together, but she’s not nasty about it. “We’ve got to get more food for the villages. The corps have put extra guards on the convoys, and they send outriders ahead and on flank. It’s getting harder every time. “Send me a note when you can. I’ll comm you if they open up some channels. We’re setting camp further up in Delta, and I’ve got to go. Here.” The face pressed its full lips against the datasheet‘s display in a farewell smooch. Andrew flicked to the next letter. A man’s face appeared; he was no andro, but a dark-faced human man with a deep voice. “Ti’Ann, we’re doing all right. I’m sorry I couldn’t contact you, but some strange things have happened.” The face looked away, then continued in a low tone, “The Regionals have been hunting for aliens out here. That’s aliens, like non-humans, from some other world, you believe it? The Novander Wye warned us about the Regional sweep, so we got down just in time, nobody lost, nothing taken. “We managed a raid on some stores several kilometers off the rail line. Now there’s food and some medicine, and we’re shipping them east to your sector. I hope they get through. It wasn’t Dann who sent us out here. We had to find a depot to raid. “Ti’Ann, I think it might be true about the aliens. We hit the tunnels when the Regionals sent the recruits out, and I was in this one burrow three levels down, and Gurgias, you know him? He was taking a nap while those idiots were wandering around in the grass overhead, and he had this big pet cat of his sleeping with him, it stands about two feet high? The cat starts nosing at his face, and Gurgias swats at it slow like he’s dreaming, and the cat sort of kisses him. Then the cat cuddles up and goes to sleep on the guy’s arm. Gurgias never moves. “I’m sitting there dozing and waiting when I wake up and Gurgias is talking to himself. I just keep my eyes shut and listen. He’s talking nonsense, like, words I don’t understand, and you know him, he’s just an ordinary guy. But the words are so clear, like he’s used them all his life. “I just wait a while and he goes back to sleep, and when he wakes up an hour or so later he doesn’t remember a thing. I asked him if he had any dreams, and he looks at me and he frowns and then he looks sleepy again and he says, ‘No, I was out cold.’ So I forgot about it until the regionals showed up. But I’m keeping an eye on him now.” The face drew closer to the screen, and smiled. “Ti’Ann, I want to wake up all your body again like you did mine, back in Drevill. I can’t say it on this thing, if anyone cuts in. You know, sweet one.” The letter ended. Andrew felt a pang of longing for Leil. He pressed again for the next and final letter. Ti’Ann‘s face appeared, with a haunted and desperate expression. “Linderus, we’ve lost a third of our people. The Regionals and the UniCorp dropped in a batch of raiders, not the usual beginners, but top-class. They had every piece of tech you could think of: counterfire, speedsnakes, groundhogs, warhelms, everything. They blew into Delta at night, in aircars, silent, and they almost wiped us off. We got out with almost nothing. We’re back in Ferris now above the Abridor station, where they won’t expect us.” She glanced around at a darkened sky, a few peaks silhouetted behind her. “We’re low on ammunition, so we’re going to do the rockfall traps. Burdill‘s father wants to take a bomb into their camp, but we’re trying to talk him out of it. We think if we blow the tracks instead, they’ll stop coming, but he says they’ll just rebuild and send more people. They’ve got so damn many. Either way it’ll take all the explosives we’ve got. “Damn them! Your shipment hasn’t made it through yet, and it probably won’t. There’s no food supplies now, and the corps have taken the grain silos down in Ringville. If we don’t cut them off from the farms up higher, the smaller places won’t make it through the winter. “Sweet, sweet man, stay there for me. We’ll pull out after we get done here and I’ll look for you out in Purusil City, and then I’ll turn you inside out and I’ll roast you with love. And we’ll sit where we sat last year, where the chisernari trees wind the deep city struts there, and we’ll listen to the thousand-colored riaviti birds, and suck black sugar and laugh. “I hope, oh I hope this gets through to you soon, Linderus. I have to wait to send it until after the ambushes. Call on Huruishen for me. She’ll protect us both.” And Ti’Ann‘s once-generous lips pressed against the screen again, ending the letter and clearing the display. Andrew flicked the sheet off and put it back in his thighpack. He debated giving it to Mentrius or Yuss; there was some information on it that might be useful, but there were no secrets or intelligence, or so he thought. He remembered the words from early militia training: Turn over all information. You have no way to know how it fits in. He wavered. But if he turned it in, he would have to explain to Mentrius why he hadn’t done so when he’d searched the body. Then it would be erased, and that didn’t seem right. This once-lovely, now-dead andro woman had just tried to kill him, but she had loved her man, and she was trying to find food for others, and Andrew felt sad for the two lovers. For now, he would keep the datasheet.