Final Challenge (20 page)

 
After a few seconds
s
he saw as another human figure entered the hut. As he approached her bed, she could get only some details, because she still had trouble to see well. It was a mature man, white, tall, slim and with a lon
g beard that covered much of his
face. When reached next her, put his
hand on Kelly's forehead, as
to m
ake sure she had no fever.

-Who are you? - Barely stammered Kelly, who surprised herself from her slurred speech -

- Quiet, you're in good hands and should rest - whispered that voice that she perceived as warm and welcoming - 

Kelly made
a superhum
an effort and tried to sit. Then came to her mind images of their peers and their thoughts flew beside them.

- Hanson? Marvin? Souza? ... What ... what happened to them? ... -
She a
sked him showing her concern.

The man took her gently, letting that Kelly's head rested on his arm and reclined  her slowly until she was lying down again
–

- Your friends? ... Do not worry, they are well.

- Where ... am I? Who are you? ...

- Too many questions for your state, I'll try to answer them tomorrow. - Responded with polite but firm tone -

The man motioned to the indigenous woman who left the hut and returned a little later with a bowl of water that offered Kelly, who accepted it willingly to notice that her mouth and throat were dry. The woman helped her to sit up slightly, just enough to drink and to realize her host woman was visibly pregnant. The man followed the scene from a distance, then headed out of the hut.

- Please do not
go! Wait a minute - Kelly claimed him, slightly recuperated - 

The man turned around, walking slowly toward her, stared at her and when got back to her side, smiled broadly.

- I knew you were an eminence Doctor - he paused. That voice was familiar to Kelly, but the image of that individual didn't agree with any of the stored in her memory. Seeing the reaction of Kelly, waited a few seconds and then continued - But I could not imagine that you were more beautiful than ever.

- Do you know me?

- I don't
think that
there
is
anyone within the scientific community that is not aware about your progress, Miss Adams.

- More strange is that those stories have come down here at the end of the world - Kelly replied, smiling -   He chose to sit beside her, then said.

- I am more informed of the latest scienti
fic advances that many of your
colleagues, I assure you.

  In analyzing the content of those words, and cross it with his tone of vo
ice, a chill ran through Kelly,
that was increasing to see that, beneath that bushy beard, still could be seen traits that were familiar for her.

- Please don't leave me with this doubt! The truth is that your voice and face are familiar to me. Tell me
,
who are you? ...

- I am glad that almost six years in this paradise and my beard does not lead to not recognize me.

It was then when the chill turned into a cold sweat to find that her hunches were beginning to be realized. He sat up slightly, just enough to look him face to face.

- My God - threw her hands to her head - No, can not be ... Are really you? ... Tell me, are you ... professor ... Clerigan?

- Yes, Kelly, for some time that we met for last time, right?

- I knew you weren't dead, I knew it!

- Welcome to my little kingdom in this world.

- Tell me ... what are you doing here?
Why
all
this mystery? ...

- Too many questions, don't you think
so
? Tomorrow
some of them will be answered
. Mea
nwhile, rest. - He replied as he
stood up  -

As
Clerigan went out the door of the hut, Kelly fell on the bed of straw. She had to admit that she had always hoped to find him, long before the expedition got under way or she had had opportunity to read the report of Hanson and Marvin. But now everything seemed unreal, dreamlike, just as coming from her imagination. Before being overcome by sleep, she tweaked herself to make sure her destiny, aided by her stubbornness, had taken her to that place unknown and lost in the middle of nowhere.

XXXI

Marvin raised his hands to his head, his head hurt so much it looked like it was going to explode, and ever
ything was spinning. As he
tried to get up he was forced to withdraw because his legs refused to follow his wishes. He began to do a damage assessm
ent and agreed that there wasn’
t a part of his body that didn't hurt, except, perhaps, ears and hair. To make matters worse had heartburn that reminded him of the last indigestion that had suffered
in many years
, when he had exceeded for the baptism of
Billy, but the truth was he had not eaten nothing at all for a long time
. He checked his watch, it
was how little of what still could trust. It marked the thirteen hours and thirty minutes, which meant it had spent
nearly twenty-four hours from
the attack. Twenty-four hours after whi
ch he was still alive. Under such circumstances, he fell
satisfied.

Finally, with some difficulty, managed to stan
d up and headed Souza, who lay
sprawled to only
a
few feet from
him. He knew that he was alive,
because from the first moment
that
he had opened his eyes could see h
ow Souza turned on himself and
babbled nonsense words. He found a bowl of water beside and tried to refresh him.
After a while, he could see as
Souza opened his eyes throwing him a smile of satisfaction, which Marvin interpreted as a sign that he was well enough under the circumstances.

 
Marvin helped Souza to join him and, as if they were two old colleagues of raids
that had exceeded with drinking
, both were walking very slowly arm in arm, supporting each other, to the door of the hut. Just outside were intercepted by severa
l warriors, armed with spears,
preventing the passage of an intimidating manner. They heard a voice behind theirs, turned around and saw a white man, armed with a rifle, which sought to make understand natives something in their language. The warriors ended their attitude and lowered their lances under the watchful eye
of Marvin and
Souza, then that individual addressed them in perfect English.

- Mr. Clerigan wants to convey you his apologies and he would appreciate you don't  depart from the limits of the town - he warned them with a menacing aspect,  then he smiled in a sarcastic way and
said sententiously
- It's for your own safety.

- Clerigan? Stephen Clerigan
? ... - Marvin asked, surprised -

- Of course it's the only Clerigan around here - cunningly replied the mercenary-

- What the hell had those darts? - Souza asked while once again raised his hands to his head.

- It is a numbing and hallucinogen, native of course.
It l
eave
s
un
conscious for some time. It
still could take several hours for you recover.

- Where is Miss Kelly?
Hanson? Our guides? ...

- All in good time, gentlemen.

The mercenary beckoned to the warriors telling them to follow him. Marvin and Souza decided to get the opposite way and take a walk through the village, whose huts were arranged in an
closed oval
. They took a look at the activities of natives, in many ways not different from what they expected to find. Some came with fishes of considerable size at the waist. To satisfy the curiosity of Marvin, Souza said they used to employ some type of narcotic extracted fr
om plants to sedate fishes and
then captured them. Two men were skinning a mammal of considerable proportions, it seemed like a tapir. Much of the Indians were making blowguns, fixing their bows and sharpening their arrows. They saw four women, two of them visibly pregnant putting together baskets.

- This town was not among your pins - Marvin told -

- No, of course. It seems to be integrated into a ki
nd of colony, with white men -
he pointed to another mercenary who was to a few feet, without losing detail of their movements and armed with a rifle, then continued - We have many things to know, first if Clerigan is leading this, the number of white settlers there are, and what the hell they are doing.

- Well, at least we are alive. They could have killed us.

- I would not be so quiet. They had no objection killing to Ukekeni.

- We
don't know where there are our peers
, but more than likely they're in the same situation.
What interest could have to kill Ukekeni precisely?

- I've been thinking about it since I regained consciousness. I don't think it was coinciden
ce. Ukekeni was the only one who could identify the whites that captured him.
Someone recognized him.

Marvin pointed to another part of town, guarded by another thug, then he did
a comment.

- This is looking more and more like a prison. 

  They cross
ed paths with two indigenous pregnant who carried two baskets of fruit. Marvin looked at them by sheer curiosity. A little later they observed as another Indian, also visibly pregnant, left her hut. This time it was Souza who could not resist t
o
make an observation.

- Have you noticed? ... Not appear to have fertility problems.

- Of course. Another thing
that strikes me is that the village
seems pretty big, right?
At least
if
compared to the previous one.

-
Absolutely. But the most striking is that they aren't from the same ethnicity as our guides, or any that I know. From what I could hear they speak a strange dialect of the Tupi-Guarani.

- So you also speak it? I should congratulate you!

- I speak a bit the Tupi-Guarani, but
I
barely understand
this dialect.
- Souza replied with resigned face -

- Their huts are also different from the other villa
ge, and not just because their
disposal.

- Of course. They are much more primitive in their construction, and much smaller.

- I wonder if Kelly and Hanson could be in any of them.

Souza pointed with the index finger to a white that stood at the entrance of a hut, trying to understand by sign language with a native. Approaching it they could recognize to Hanson. Marvin ran to him and melted in an embrace, to which was added Souza. 

- I think Kelly was there. - Safely said Hanson -

- What leads you to think so? - Marvin asked -

- I saw the guard playing with this - Hanson responded by opening his right hand and teaching them a hair pin -

- And if not indiscreet, how have you got it? - Souza asked with curiosity -

- Simple, I was finishing the exchange with the sentry when you arrived. Bartering is as old as the world - Hanson replied with a knowing smile - fix discretely your attention on his wrist.- He made
a gesture with his head pointing to the Indian who was next. Marvin and Souza could not
avoid to
burst
out laughing as they noticed
that the native was wearing a wristwatch -

-
I think you
have
lost out in the change! - Marvin said with a laugh -

- Perha
ps Mr. Hanson is something fetishistic, especially coming from his lady - Sticking with fine irony Souz
a, while he put his hand on his
shoulder asking him to accompany them -

- Well, we're in the lion's den - Souza said -

- Yeah
, now we only need to examine their teeth! - Hanson joked -