Outsider

[Laowai]

He gripped her face and kissed her, "It worked, it worked - you're here.... you're real!"
She looked around the room hurriedly, disoriented and afraid, he steadied her, putting a hand on her back and holding her hand with the other. "It's OK" he said, "Its OK, you're safe, you're here; with me..."
She looked up at him directly for the first time, "B... Ben?" she muttered. She was breathing quickly, "I... I can't... move... my...." She looked down at her arms and at her body "It... its... real?"
He smiled at her again "Yes, its real, we did it, you're out - you're in the land of the living again!!"

He moved back slightly "Can you move? Can you move your arms and legs?"

She looked down at herself, "I... I don't.... I...." Her words slurred slightly and a concerned expression crossed Laowai's brow, "What's wrong?"

Looking confused she tried to speak again, "It... I... not used to speaking..."

"Can you move?" he asked again. She tried once more, her arms shifting only slightly, she tried her legs, which only trembled "I... I don't I... think... so" She said.

Ben moved now to cradle her closely and take some more of her weight, "I should have expected this" he said to her. "Its been a long time since you have had any physical body, and this one isn't exactly... human."

At that she looked at him, fear clearly present in her eyes. "Don't worry he reassured her again, It will probably take you time to get used to it, controlling it and make it do what you want."

"Come on" he said, he bent down and scooped her up in his arms, lifting her up he carried there to where he had entered the room.

There was some kind of entrance here he said, "I'll need to get my crystal and....."

There was a sudden hum and the wall in front of him began to shift and dissolve as it had done when he first entered the room, in moments it had vanished leaving the entrance to the crystal chamber open.
"How... Did you do that?" He looked down at her. A confused expression crossed her face, "I don't... Don't know... I just thought....."

Ben looked concerned but left the room, "Ill get the crystals" he said. He placed her gently on the ground leaning against the wall and went back into the other chamber. He found his crystal on the floor and began to look for Zarita's. He found it on the floor underneath one of the monoliths and as he stooped to pick it up a warning crossed his mind: ***Ben.... Help...***

He dashed quickly from the room and into the main chamber. Zarita lay on the floor where he had left her, standing close by - staring in shock, were several Tangier Corsairs.

A man and several others stood in the room, staring in shock at Zarita as she lay, propped up and struggling to move.
One of them, a young man looked up at Ben incredulously; "What.... What have you done?"

Moving to stand protectively by Zarita, Ben answered "I've got her out.... nothing more... now.. back away..."
The man hadn't moved. "How? He said How did you....?" turning quickly to the woman beside him he blurted: "quickly Get the Elders... get the guards go, go!!"

The woman dashed off our of the chamber and the man turned round again, a mixture of fear and hope in his eyes.
"She... She was gone... with the ancestors... how can she be here?"

Ben stood ready to pounce, he had hoped he would be able to get her out of here with a minimum of trouble, at least with enough time to come up with some kind of explanation for these people. These were good people, Corsairs yes, but simple, passive in a way that the wider Corsair community in Sirius was not, and yet - this chamber, the preservation of the spirits of their dead was central to their identity as a people, and he had just brought someone back.
He knew they could never know how, he knew they could never know exactly what she was. He looked at the man and spoke as firmly, but as calmly as he could.

"All these things will be discussed in time, but for now, I need to get her out of here, I need to get her to where I can take care of her and that isn't on Tangier."

He bent down and picked her up "Ben...?" she whispered

"Its Ok"... He stood up and carried her towards the door. He could feel her hands trying to grip his shirt but opening and closing as if she was trying to get used to moving them... which, he thought, she probably was.
The young Tangier Corsair however, made no move to get out of the way. "You can't leave" he said, "The Elders need to be told about this."

Laowai scowled, "The Elders will be told but right now I need to get her to where I can take care of her."
He made to move again when several large guards entered the room followed by a perplexed looking Tangier Elder, one that Ben had not met before. The Elder looked at Laowai standing there with the newly reborn Zarita in his arms. Recognising her, a look of astonishment crossed his face - "By Crete... how did you...."

Ben was growing impatient, he had no idea what Zarita's medical condition was, what physical sensations she would be undergoing and he needed to get her to a secure location where he could watch her and allow her to adapt away from prying eyes... "I don't have time Elder, I need to get her to suitable medical facilities, they do not exist here on Tangier."

"Ill reveal everything to you", he lied... "just let me get her out of here."

The Elder shook his head slowly, and then with more certainty as he realised the gravity of what he was looking at.
"No....." he said "No I don't think you will be taking her from here... not..." he looked at her again, completely unsure of what to make of the situation. "Not until we have looked into this."

"Ben?" Zarita muttered.".. what's...?" The Elder made a nod and two guards approached, Laowai backed off slightly: "You cannot take her...." he said growing increasingly angry. One of the guards placed his hand over his blaster and said "You heard the Elder, you know we have to obey... you can do this quietly or it will be difficult.."
Ben scowled and the second guard drew his blaster and trained it at him. He knew however that they would not fire in here, they would not risk this place with a missed shot, that being said, he knew he probably couldn't physically overpower these men.
That was confirmed when another Elder and 2 more guards entered the room. The first Elder held up his hands "Senor Laowai - please... be reasonable here, you cannot leave this room... and let us not have violence here, in this our most sacred of places as you well know."

He was trapped, he looked down at Zarita trying to think of a way out, it was incredible! After all this effort and work, to be stopped by... this!?

***It's ok Ben*** he heard her voice in his mind suddenly. He looked at her, feeling both anger and helplessness ***leave me with them, they wont hurt me***.

His shoulders slumped and he gave in to the situation. The first guard approached, he placed his hands on Zarita and took her weight. "Be careful" Ben said anxiously, "She cant move". The guard, nodding, lifted her easily and turned towards the Elder who nodded in the direction of the entrance to the chamber. The guard, nodding in return walked out of the room - Laowai's angry and desperate glare following him.

He turned to one of the Tangier Elders - "So then.... What happens now?"

The Elder shook his head angrily; "What did you do here - how did you do... this?"

Ben looked at the man menacingly "The fact is I.. no... we did it, and you cannot understand, she needs to be supervised right now, cared for and I intend to do it."

The Tangier Elder looked to his colleague and then shook his head again "... No... you will not, we need to confer on these matters and you need to leave."

"Leave?" Ben said incredulously, "I cannot leave, I cant leave her... not now, you have no idea what you are dealing with here!"

The Elder whirled on him, "No! We don't, but we shall confer on these things and what you have brought upon us! No one has ever emerged from this chamber once they become part of it, we did not even think such things were possible.. and yet....."

He made a gesture with his hand and the two guards behind him moved closer, hands over their holsters. "You may go back to the Fes while we speak on this, and after we speak to her. We will contact you when the time is right for your return."

Ben was stupefied. The guards now gestured towards him and indicated the door. "Senor Laowai, you will come with us please, we'll take you back to your ship."

He ran possibilities though his mind rapidly, and yet all drew blank - He knew these people, he knew that they were good people, he did not want to bring the vengeance down upon them that he very much had it in his power to do so.... he scowled.. he needed to be patient, she was out now....

In a low voice he addressed the Elders. "Very well, I will do as you ask, I shall return to the Fes."
The Elder nodded but Ben continued, "But - I will remain there for no longer than two weeks, after that I will have to return to Crete. I expect to be contacted within that time, if I am not, I will be coming back here of my own accord."

"And my friends...." he added coldly, "If that happens you can be assured that I will not be coming alone."
The Elders tossed each other a nervous glance. "Watch her..." Ben said, "If there is any change in her physical condition, if she seems to suffer in any way while you are... deliberating I expect to be contacted, you do not have the facilities here to care for her that I do on Crete."

"Very well Senor", one of the Elders conceded, "We shall contact you in two weeks."


He walked out of the chamber with guards in tow, he did not really want to come to blows with these people, they had always welcomed him and they were Zarita's people, she loved all of them deeply and it was for this reason alone that he had conceded to giving them this time to consider what had happened. However, he had worked too hard, and risked too much to be separated from her now... and things were too uncertain, what if they discovered what she was?

There was too much at stake, he decided then as he walked back up through the winding tunnels and caves to his ship, he would be back well before the two weeks were out, he would not come alone and he would take her out of here.

***I'm ok Ben...***

He heard in his mind. It broke his heart to leave her, he put his hand inside his tunic to where his crystal rested, touching it he thought ***Be careful, they cannot know***

***they wont*** he heard back.

The Guards followed him to the hangar and waited as he strapped himself into his fighter and began to prepare it for flight. He lifted it off and out through the great timber gates up into the grey Tangier sky. He had a strike team on the Venganza in Omicron Gamma, a Core group of specially trained men and woman that he had chosen personally and had used on various covert operations. This would be a snatch and grab mission, She would be angry, he was sure, but he would not risk losing her. Not now.

"This is Elder Ben Laowai to the Fes", he spoke into his comm system, "Patch me through to the Venganza in Omicron Gamma....."

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