Date: Wed, 7 Feb 1996 16:07:49 -0500 Reply-To: LGreeneyes@AOL.COM Sender: Highlander TV show stories From: Laura Schomberg Subject: New: First Time Out part 4 X-To: dok@falcon.cc.ukans.edu Here's part four. As before all the usual disclaimers apply. Send all replies to LGreeneyes@aol.com. WARNING: This part is pretty grim. Not gory or violent but grim. ***************************************************************** ************ First Time Out Part 4 by Laura Schomberg Somewhere in Seacover 12:30 pm Richie had more than enough of his wild ride with Ellie. He thought about his days racing bikes and the fiery crash that ended that career. That ride was tame compared to what Ellie was putting him through. He watched in horror as Ellie raced the bike thru a red light narrowly missing several cars, again. She had not slowed down much less stopped once since they left the dojo. Richie had to admit, though, that he was impressed with her skill handling the bike. It was beginning to rain as Ellie finally slowed the bike. Richie looked around and realized that they were heading toward the lighthouse where he had once fought Annie Devlon. Ellie stopped the bike and used her foot to knock down the kickstand. Before getting off the bike she reached back and untied the knot in her hair. Finger combing her hair she started to head thru the rain to the lighthouse. Richie took off his helmet before following her. Richie didn't catch up with Ellie until she had already reached the metal platform below the outer revolving light. She was standing at the railing looking out over the ocean. To Richie's surprise she suddenly climbed over the railing, sat down on the top rail, and wrapped her bare feet back over a lower rail. "Aren't you worried about falling off? It's pretty wet." Ellie turned around to look at Richie, "Why? It wouldn't be permanent." "I know that. I just don't think that even a short death will help you out." Ellie just shrugged and turned back to contemplating the ocean. Richie stood behind her trying to decide what Mac would do in this situation. He couldn't come up with anything so he decided to join Ellie on the rail. "Sorry, Richie," Ellie said quietly. Richie turned toward her, "For what?" "The ride." "Oh that," Richie said shrugging. "That was pretty tame." Ellie turned to look at Richie, chuckling, "Tame? So why were you holding on so tight? I thought you'd squeeze me in two." Richie blushed. "Don't worry. Your secret is safe with me." They looked at each other for a few seconds, laughing quietly. Richie thought. Suddenly Ellie shook her head before turning back to the ocean. Richie was confused but decided to wait for Ellie to do or say something. They were both soaked when Ellie started talking again. "Have you ever known anyone who you felt that you could trust completely?" "Yeah, Duncan MacLeod." "Anyone else?" "Tessa." "Who?" "She was Mac's girlfriend when I met him. They were together for 12 years. She died when at the same time that I was first killed." "I didn't know. I've spent too much time trying to avenge a dead friend." "Danka?" Ellie sighed as she got off of the railing. Richie climbed off the rail while she walked over to lean against the metal. Richie leaned against the railing, his arms crossed. He decided to wait for Ellie to start talking again. After all it had worked the last time. "No," she finally said. "Then this isn't about Danka?" "No," she said before lapsing into silence. Richie thought. Ellie's eyes locked onto Richie's as she said, "Richie I'm going to tell you something that I have NEVER told anyone else. If you tell anyone, including Mac, I'll take your head." Suddenly Richie wasn't so sure he wanted to hear what she was about to say. "My best friend ever was an immortal, Rabbi Abram Yahil. I met him shortly after his first death 273 years ago. He refused my offer to teach what he needed to know to survive our little "Game". Instead he insisted that he would be safe in his temple. Over the years I told him everything there was to know about me. My real age. My first name. Everything." Richie interrupted her, "Wait, your name isn't Ellianna?" "I took that name when I was 500 or so years old. Don't bother to ask. I firmly believe that not letting people know much about me has kept me alive all these years." He nodded and then asked, "Were you lovers?" Choking back laughter, Ellie answered, "No. Even though I was a lot older than him he was more like a father to me. Well, at least what I always thought a father was." "In 1931 he told me about a baby that he had recently had a naming ceremony for. He thought she would become one of us and wanted me to check. The baby was Danka. Abram took it upon himself to keep an eye on her. At the same time I started to quietly help Jewish families get out of Europe. Abram would tell me about a family that needed help and I would approach them a few days later. It worked great until 1943. One night I got caught. Do you know what they did to people who were helping the Jews?" Richie shook his head. She looked away before speaking again, "It wasn't pretty. I was taken to a SS building were I was interrogated. That's what they called torture. They wanted to know who was working with me. Every bone in my right hand was broken. Luckily for me they decided that I was telling the truth after that. I still had to keep breaking the bones in my hand until they sent me away." "Why?" Ellie was incredulous, "Do you know what they would have done if they found out I was immortal?" Richie didn't know but he could imagine. He remembered what Mac went through when a doctor found out that he could heal so quickly. "Finally they sent me away to...." ***************************************************************** ********** Auschwitz July 1943 Ellie spent her first 10 days at the camp trying to find a way out. She explored everything she could usually at night. The other women in her building warned her that the only way out was death. They thought she was crazy when she just shrugged and snuck out. What she saw on her 10th day ended her search. And her plans to escape. She had learned about the showers on her second day at the camp. That night she found out that the bodies were taken to be incinerated in a row of large ovens. The ovens made Ellie nervous. Burning was not a pleasant way to die but she figured that she could probably sneak into the showers easily enough and avoid that option. She wasn't Jewish but that wouldn't matter. The guards were more concerned about people getting out of line then into line. She had already come up with a rough plan when she realized that she didn't know what was done with the bodies after they were burned. That was an important consideration. If the remains of her body were never taken out of the camp there wasn't much point in going forward with her plans. She waited until the ninth day before the guards finally shut off the ovens. It took a day and a half for them to cool off enough for the workers to clean them. Ellie managed to get herself on that detail. It wasn't pleasant but it was eye opening. The first thing Ellie noticed was that there were very few bones left. And most of those weren't attached to other bones. They few that were attached to other bones were separated by the prisoners and thrown into different piles depending on their size and type. Ellie didn't see any skulls attached to neck bones. Ellie quickly realized that she wouldn't be able to get out of the camp. She didn't want to take a chance with the ovens. She couldn't make herself believe that her immortality would protect her from fires that burned as hot and as long as the fires in those ovens. Two weeks after her plans were shattered she felt the presence of another immortal. Her blood ran cold as she thought about her sword and knife buried in Abram's temple. She relaxed when she realized that the feeling was coming from the train that was pulling into the camp. It took over an hour for all the prisoners to get off the train. It only took 10 minutes for Ellie to find the slim older looking immortal, her old friend, Rabbi Abram Yahil. They embraced each other, both saying that they had hoped not to find the other in this place. It wasn't until they pulled apart that Ellie saw the child hiding behind Abram. Ellie took a guess at the child's name. "Danka?" The girl looked around the Rabbi before pulling back and then moving closer to a teenager standing on her right. "Come here Danka and meet Helena. You too, Janek. I've told both of you about her." The children came out and stood looking at Ellie. She knew that Danka had to be 12 years old but she looked only about 10. Her dark hair hung limply around her face and she was much too thin. Janek looked like he was about 13 or 15 years old. He stood straight, holding Danka's hand tightly in his own. They looked like they could be siblings but Ellie knew that they weren't. "Hello, Danka. Janek." "Hello," they replied in quiet voices. Abram took Ellie to the side before telling her, "You've got to hid these children." "I know of a place." Ellie looked around, noticing that the guards were busy trying to round up the prisoners near the front of the train. "Come with me," she said as she took their hands. She pulled the children along behind her as she turned back to look at Abram. He raised a hand and waved them off before turning to keep an eye on the guards near the front of the train. Ellie wasn't happy that Abram wasn't following them but she knew that she stood a better chance of hiding the kids with him keeping watch. It didn't take long to get the children into a small open area in her building. There was no room for them to move around but they wouldn't have to be there long. Just until the prisoners from the train were sorted. Ellie pulled the panel back into place before heading back to check on Abram. She shoved her way through the crowd of people who had come to see if they could find any friends or family on the train. Many were already turning away but some where crying and hugging onto someone who had recently been taken off the train. These were the lucky ones. They would get to live another day. Other people were calling after people they knew who were being prodded to the showers. These were the unlucky ones. Those prisoners who had been here for any amount of time knew that these people had been chosen to die. When Ellie saw Abram being herded to the showers her heart sank. She ran forward, trying to reach him before it was too late. "Abram, no! Don't go with them!" Abram turned back. "Don't worry about me," he called. "I'll be free." "No! You'll be dead! Forever!" Abram shrugged. "Then you'll have to keep me inside you. Watch the children!" Abram waved to her one last time before walking into the showers. Ellie watched him disappear as she sunk to her knees. She stayed that way for a long time, sobbing. Ellie looked around, certain she had heard someone talking to her but no one was nearby. Ellie realized that the voice was inside her head. It was her own voice. She jumped to her feet and started to quickly walk away from the showers. She needed to get to the farthest point from the ovens. Ellie didn't know what she would do but she knew she couldn't take Abram's Quickening. She didn't know if she would be successful but she had to try. Ellie had made it to the other side of the camp when she remembered the children. She couldn't leave them where they were. She turned and ran back to her building. Once she got there she practically flew past the other women and to the children's hiding place. Everyone watched her pull the panel away. Janek was the first to come out still tightly holding on to Danka's hand. Ellie turned to look at the other women and pulled the children in front of her. "We've got to hid them." Several women came forward pledging to help Ellie protect her new wards. Ellie felt extremely grateful. She knew the children would be safe for the next few hours while she tried to avoid Abram's Quickening. She told the women that she had to leave for a bit claiming that she was looking for the man who had come with the children. As she turned away they were discussing ways to shave the children's heads. Ellie stole out of the building and headed back to the other side of the camp. She knew that Abram's body would already be in the ovens. All the way to the other side she waited for the feeling of Abram's presence to disappear. Finally it did. She just hoped that it meant she was far enough away. Ellie reached the spot she planned to hide in and waited. And watched. Several hours later she saw what she was looking for and held her breath. Abram's Quickening. The white cloud slowly rose above the ovens. It seemed to hover there for a few minutes before slowly dissipating into the night sky. When it was finally gone Ellie started to breath again. "I'm sorry Abram. I'm so sorry. I promise you I'll keep Danka safe." There was no time for tears. Ellie slowly made her way back to her building. Five days later she managed to smuggle herself and the children on to a train for Stutthof. ***************************************************************** ************* Richie was quiet for a long time before saying, "You let his Quickening be lost?" Ellie nodded. She hadn't been able to look at Richie once while she spoke. When she did turn back to look at him he noticed that her eyes were filled with tears. She turned away again, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy I let happen to my best friend. And then I wasn't able to protect Danka. I failed Abram twice." Richie walked up behind Ellie and slid his arms around her shoulders. She tensed then relaxed in his grip. "You can't blame yourself," he whispered in her ear. "What would have happened if you had taken his Quickening?" "I would have been discovered," she finally answered, quietly. "Then what would have happened to Danka? And Janek?" Ellie turned in Richie's arms but didn't answer. "They would have both died a long time ago. And Danka would have been found out. You know that." Ellie looked at Richie for a long time before finally nodding. "I think I was wrong about your age, Richie. Are you sure you aren't at least 1,000?" Richie grinned, "I have my moments. Come on. The guys are probably wondering what happened to us. Besides, you still don't have shoes on." Ellie took a deep breath and allowed Richie to lead her out of the lighthouse and back to his bike. "I have one request." "What, Richie?" "Can I drive back?" Ellie let out a soft laugh as she handed him his keys. End of Part 4 Author's note: I know that HL has never mentioned if it is possible to get far enough away to avoid a Quickening. However, it seems logial to me that an immortal who is too far away to feel the presence of another immortal is also too far away to take their Quickening. Agree? Disagree? Let me know. =========================================================================