Lightship Chronicles Chapter 2 : Rescue Hoppers

he isn't a man yet. Just a little sixteen year old boy." Nayaa mocks him displeased.

  "Seventeen, and you know it. You threw my birthday party." Andee smiles. "I know what you're doing and it won't work. You can't rattle me... little girl." Andee finishes his statement with a pout.

  Furious, Nayaa jumps off the wall into her yard, grabs a little stone, and throws it at Andee but he swiftly swings out of the way avoiding it.

  "Weak. You throw like a little girl."

  "OK, fine!. I'll show you what this girl can do." Nayaa replies as she squats down behind the wall and starts gathering all the rocks she can. Andee calmly looks through his basket and picks out the ripest, reddest, biggest berryfruit he can find. He gently tosses the fist sized fruit up in the air, then catches it, and gently bounces it in his hand judging its mass and softness. He looks past the wall. Nayaa starts rising. Andee quickly launches the berryfruit with an expert toss. Nayaa's head rises up from behind the wall, and... BAM! The fleshy ripe fruit smashes into her forehead squishing and squirting juice and soft white pulp all over her face.

  Nayaa freezes in mid motion, hunched forward, her eyes round as rolls from shock and rage.

  "You... you... Punk!" And she hurls her fist full of stones at Andee. Then grabs more from her left hand and starts pelting him.

  "Am I throwing like a girl now?" Girl or not, Nayaa can throw. She is quick, agile, and accurate. She nails Andee with almost every single toss. He leaps away and abandons the basket swiftly running up the center stone stairs to the next level terrace. Equally agile, Nayaa leaps over the wall while at the same time tossing her last stones, but then bounds to the basket, grabs a ripe berryfruit, and then following Andee swiftly leaps up the stairs.

  Andee slams the door locking himself in the house. Andee's mother is to the right of the door, by the sink, cleaning some jars.

  "What are you doing?" Mom asks looking over her shoulder.

  "Nothing." Andee responds with his back against the door forcibly holding it closed. Suddenly loud banging forcers the door to shake in its frame and bounce against Andee's back.

  "Open up! Open up little boy! I've got some delicious fruit for you." Nayaa's muffled voice permeates through the wooden the door.

  "Is that Nayaa?" Mom turns and looks at Andee with his back against the door.

  "Yeah, she's crazy."

  "I don't know what you two are up to but you need to stop it."

  Nayaa is still banging on the door teasing 'the little boy' with fruit. Andee's holding it forcefully shut.

  "Andee, didn't you hear me. Get away from the door and let her in." Mom snaps at him.

  "I can't, she's crazy. She's trying to hit me with berryfruit."

  "Now why would she do that?"

  Andee just shrugs his shoulders.

  "If you're not going to let her in I will." And with that Andee's Mom places the jar she was drying down, rushes up and pushes him out of the way, to which Andee gives and steps aside. Mom grabs the handle and opens the door. At that instant a hand with a berryfruit flies directly at her face, but manages to stop a bare centimeter from Mom's nose. Nayaa's eyes once again go round as rolls while her jaw drops.

  "Oh God! Sorry-sorry-sorry, I'm so sorry Ms. Star. I though it was Andee. Sorry, so sorry. I didn't mean to..."

  "Whatever you two are doing, not with my fruit. That's credits. Either eat it, or save it for the market, but don't play childish games. You're both young adults now. Act like it."

  "Ha!" Nayaa snaps a hard satisfied look to Andy. "Listen to your mom." Then looking back to her; "You know Ms. Star, I was just telling him that, to grow up and be mature, well... that's after he hit me in the face with a berryfruit."

  "Andee, you didn't hit her in the face with a fruit did you?" Mom looks disapprovingly to Andee.

  "It wasn't my fault she was throwing rocks at me."

  With big innocent eyes, Nayaa is vigorously shaking her head; "no" as Mom turns to look at her.

  "Seriously, both of you need to grow up. Andee?"

  "Yes Mom."

  "Did you finish picking all the ripe fruit?"

  "Yes."

  "Then don't waste any more time. I want you to take them to market now, and don't come back until you sold them all."

  "Ms. Star, lets be honest. We both know Andee couldn't give them away for free if he tried. But don't worry, I'll sell them for you. I'm going with him."

  "No you're not." Andee replies sternly.

  "I am."

  "I don't want you to."

  "What difference does that make?" Nayaa shakes her head dismissively.

  "Great. Just what I need. An unpaid babysitting job."

  Nayaa grits her teeth and stomps her right foot. "I'm going to annoy you all day for that."

  "OK, that's enough." Mom jumps in. "Nayaa, you know I can't pay you to help him sell fruit."

  "I don't need help." Andee protests loudly.

  "Quiet boy. Adults are talking business here." Nayaa retorts dismissively to Andee. "Don't worry Ms. Star. You don't have to pay me. I'm doing it because I'm mature... and I want to help your little boy here learn how to grow up and be a man." Ending her statement with a hard cocky look to Andee.

  Andee is both rolling his eyes and shaking his head as he turns away.

  "OK, but you two better behave."

  "Me?" Nayaa feigns exaggerated shock. "I'm the mature one. I always behave."

  This time it's Ms. Star who rolls her eyes with a slight hint of a smile as she walks away.

  With a quick turn and intense look to Andee; "Ha, I win."

  "Day's not over yet."

  Ricio is attached to a futuristic looking respirator in a beautiful white spotless hospital room. Its walls are lined with large rectangular and near translucent glossy tiles. One wall has huge vertical windows, from ceiling to ground, with long drapes gently flowing in a breeze. There is no glass or apparent window frames just the opening overlooking a beautiful white sandy beach. The water in the nearby lagoon is crystal clear, azure blue, and the hills around the lagoon are covered in green vegetation. Palms and ferns of all kinds, swaying in the gentle warm breeze.

  The automatic doors silently slide open on the opposite wall. A female doctor walks in along with the bearded man from the videodrome pictures.

  "Why is it so hot in here?" The bearded man asks.

  "It's the standard temperature we keep for recovering patients." The doctor responds.

  "Can you please change the atmosphere to something cooler. We are Brets, we don't tolerate this kind of heat."

  "Yes of course Governor." She responds and turns to the glossy white wall by the entrance. When she touches one of the large tiles it turns into a light display like a computer screen. She touches some of the digital display buttons and the exterior changes. The former tropical atmosphere and warm breeze fade into a green Alpine view with snow capped mountains in the distance. The breeze changes from warm to a gentle cool still flowing through the open 'windows' and fluttering the drapes.

  "How is he?" The Governor asks the doctor as she steps back up next to him.

  "He is doing very well Governor Bret. We repaired all the damage very successfully and he should heal without any scarring or complications."

  "Good. How long?"

  "A couple of weeks, and he should be fine."

  "Why so long?"

  The doctor slightly taken aback responds; "His internal injuries were quite severe. He had a punctured lung, nine broken ribs, bruised liver, but worst of all a severed artery. Had he been exposed out there only minutes longer he would have died. He was fortunate to be found by that boy. If not..."

  "I know, I saw the footage." Governor Bret responds dismissively interrupting the doctor. "How long before he is awake and speaking?"

  "Four to five days at least."

  "That's too long. I need to nip this in the bud now."

  "I'm sorry Governor, but we are dealing here with a literally broken heart. Until that tor
n artery is perfectly healed he can't move."

  "I understand, I understand. I'm just concerned what he may have said to that boy. He could be dangerous."

  "Politics aren't my game, but Governor, I think you're misdirecting your energy. I think you should be grateful not suspicious. Your son is here, alive, and soon to be well because of that boy."

  "Doctor, you've done great work, and I appreciate that, but keep your opinions to yourself." The Governor shuts her down with the cockiness and arrogance of a well healed politician.

  "He is in good hands here, but now I will leave you with you son." And the doctor, clearly displeased, briskly turns away and rushes out of the room.

  The Governor stands over his son's bed staring at his unconscious and injured body lying under a series of very clean and futuristic machines.

  It's a busy market down in the Flatlands. There are rows and rows of stalls, some built in, some out of the back of alcama drawn wooden wagons, and some no more than a wooden table under an umbrella. Between each row of stalls there are broad dusty paths with people milling back and forth. Andee and Nayaa are behind one such wooden table selling their fruit under the shade of an umbrella.

  "That's a woman." Andee blurts out, than points to the right with his chin.

  "Her? She's an old lady." Nayaa responds disapprovingly.

  "I don't even think she is 25. An old lady. You're pathetic." Andee counters shaking his head.

  "Please, she's shorter than me, and look how skinny she is. You just like her because she's blond. You've got a thing for blond girls."

  "No I don't."

  "Angie Noor."

  "What about her?"

  "Oh don't even pretend you didn't have a massive crush on her?"

  "I'm not