Date: Fri, 8 Sep 1995 01:33:20 -0400 Reply-To: GrinnyP@AOL.COM Sender: Highlander TV show stories From: Carol Ann Liddiard Subject: "Origins", chapter 4, part 1 Thanks to everyone for their kind words, I hope you still have them for me after this chapter. This is where things start to get, well, strange . . . ------------------------- "Origins" c. 1995 C. A. Liddiard Chapter 4 "And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword." _Revelations 6:3-4_ --------------------- Seattle, 1995 Carol looked down at her ruined sweater in disgust. She looked up and down the street before heading quickly for Duncan's car. She arrived at the car and quickly exchanged her sweater for another one in her knapsack. She returned to the second sniper's hideout and found the gunman still unconscious. Levering him over her shoulder, she was headed for the first man's position when the Highlander appeared. "Good, Duncan, I could use some help getting the other one." Duncan looked at her with a slightly dazed look. "Doesn't look like you need any help." Carol smiled as she staggered slightly under the heavy weight. "Trust me, I could use some assistance. Could you grab the other one for me, please?" Duncan followed her to the other sniper. She couldn't help notice he seemed a little wary around her. "Something bothering you?" "No, I'm just in awe of your prowess." "Well don't worry, I won't turn it in your direction," she joked as they reached the first gunman's location. "I only beat up . . ." She turned to Duncan and lost her smile at his solemn expression. "Duncan, you're not really worried that I'll . . ." "No, no," he forced a smile, more like a grimace. "It's just been a very strange day." Wordlessly, he picked up the other would-be assassin and followed her to Joe's house. They deposited the men in the living room and said their good-byes to Joe. Duncan still looked solemn. As they exited the house she said, "Duncan, we need to talk. Would you mind coming to my house?" "No problem," his gaze suddenly became alert. "Where do you live?" She smiled ruefully. "Actually, a few blocks down the street." A reluctant chuckle burst from Duncan. "Who watches the Watcher, eh?" "Indeed." They continued to walk in companionable silence until they reached a modest two-story house. "Here we are, home sweet home. Or at least one of them." Duncan gazed around in earnest as she led him through the front door. She watched him wordlessly take in the decor and wondered what he thought of her antiques. When he apparently finished assessing the furnishings, she led him through to the kitchen. "Would you like some coffee?" "Well, I would love some coffee, but I left Richie watching Joe's house. I think I should go back and check on him." Duncan looked as if he were going to ask something, then obviously changed his mind. "Good plan," she said as she bustled around the kitchen. "However, I don't think the Watchers will be going anywhere tonight. Do you want to go get him and bring him here? We need to plan what we're going to do tomorrow." "Yeah, yeah, I'll do that." Duncan cleared his throat and looked around, seemingly ill at ease. "Well, um, I'll just be off then." He turned and started for the door His behavior was getting more bizarre by the minute, and Carol knew something was amiss. "Duncan, tell me what's wrong." She reached over and laid a hand on his arm, then froze. Duncan stopped but wouldn't look in her direction. "Maybe we should discuss this when I get back with Richie." Carol nodded and lifted her hand, too stunned to speak. She silently watched Duncan leave, then sat down heavily in one of the chairs. *He's gone.* A few minutes later a figure emerged from the shadows near the stairs. The man walked across the kitchen to where Carol sat slumped at the table and laid his hands tenderly on her shoulders. "What's wrong?" She leaned her head back, basking in his unique warmth as he slowly massaged the tension out of her shoulders. *What would I do without you?* After a few moments she finally answered his query. She stared with sightless eyes out one of the windows and said quietly, "He saw, Adam. He knows." --------------------- Southwestern North America, @9,500 BCE Lehenseme lifted his head, basking in the sun's warmth. he thought to himself as he gazed over the mountainous landscape. Game was in abundance, and he could just sense some of his companions stalking a large antelope. He smiled and went back to admiring the scenery, thinking back to what had brought them here. Lehenseme and his friends were on a long journey, which many of the younger of the Herrialdaketa went on before settling down. Their group had wandered farther than most, heading east and north from Berri Egoitza until reaching a land of cold and ice. They had proceeded eastward across the ocean until they had reached this vast new land. Since the crossing they had been making their way south, at first staying close to the shoreline, then eventually striking out for the interior. His musings were interrupted by the joyous shouts of the successful hunting party. Lehenseme smiled and nudged his friend Ttipi, a giant of a man who was napping in the warm sunshine. "Wake up, Ttipi, it seems like they found something." Ttipi just snorted, rolled over, and went back to sleep. Lehenseme decided, indulgently watching his best friend snooze. He smiled and decided that Ttipi needed a little more incentive. *WAKE UP.* The mental shout had Ttipi leaping straight to his feet. Disoriented, he rubbed his eyes and jerked his head from side to side. "What's going on?" he asked, puzzled. "It sounds as if they got something, Ttipi," Lehenseme said and watched in amusement as the large man slowly realized there was no emergency. "Aren't you hungry?" he asked in an innocent tone of voice. "You're dead," Ttipi declared and threw himself at Lehenseme. They wrestled companionably for a few moments, but the outcome was never in doubt. Ttipi pinned his friend to the ground and said, "Now apologize for waking me like that." *You should have seen the expression on your face.* Lehenseme started laughing so hard he could barely breath. *Let me show you.* The large man laughed at the image of himself leaping straight into the air. He got off Lehenseme and held out a hand to help him up. "Just don't do that again, or I'll really squash you. There is a limit to friendship." Ttipi broadcast a general friendliness that took the sting out of his words. Suddenly he whirled around and looked to the east. *What was that?* *I didn't feel anything,* Lehenseme replied, scanning the horizon along with his friend. Aloud he said, "What's wrong?" His big friend continued to look eastward. His brow wrinkled, and Lehenseme could feel him begin a mental sweep of the area. "I just can't feel the rest of them anymore." He stopped and looked at Lehenseme. "Can you?" Lehenseme closed his eyes and concentrated. After a minute he opened his eyes and looked at his friend in dismay. "I can't sense any of them! Where could they be?" "With the Mother," came a reply from behind him. Lehenseme whirled in time to see his large companion struck by a spear, thrown by one of the people who had snuck up on them. He recognized a few of the Herrialdaketa who had left with Sagu 900 years before. The rest were total strangers. One of the strangers stepped forward and decapitated Ttipi before he could pull the spear out of his chest. Lehenseme watched in shock as the stranger calmly absorbed Ttipi's oroimentza, then tossed the corpse down the hill. The man then turned and asked another, "Are we taking this one back?" Another of the strangers nodded. "He wants to interrogate this one, find out how they found us." The first stranger grabbed Lehenseme roughly, shoving him ahead as the group turned to go. "Come on then, let's get a move on." "What's happening, why did you kill him?" He looked wildly around the group. "Did you kill the others?" "Yes, and we'll kill you too if you don't start walking." The leader pushed Lehenseme harder, nearly causing him to lose his balance and fall. With a bewildered look Lehenseme began to walk in the direction indicated. He felt curiously numb. some clinical portion of his brain observed. As they walked towards their destination, he frantically racked his brain for a way to get away. When he realized that there was no way he could escape, icy tendrils of panic snaked their way down his spine. Mired in his own misery, Lehenseme didn't notice the settlement until he felt the soothing emanations from the spirit site. He began to come out of his panic-induced fog and began to notice his surroundings. What he saw and felt sickened him. The party came to a halt in front of one of the more ornate residences. When the leader of the group went into the hut, one of the others turned to Lehenseme. "You're lucky he's here for an inspection. Otherwise you would have had to travel many more miles." Lehenseme didn't feel so lucky. He knew he had to somehow get information about these people back home, but he was sure he would be stopped if he tried to communicate with anyone. Then he remembered the private mental channel he and his older sister had used when they were children. Bonded as they were, no one had ever been able to intercept their messages to each other. Saying a short prayer to the Mother, Lehenseme tried the contact for the first time in years. *Song, can you hear me?* --------------------- Seattle, 1995 Richie shuffled his feet, not because it was cold but because he was bored. The Watchers had arrived, then they had all gone down into the basement of Joe's house. Since then there had been nothing to watch. He amused himself by speculating as to what, exactly, was in the basement. His speculations were interrupted by the sensation of another immortal coming into range and the sound of approaching footsteps. Not wanting to take chances after all that had happened, Richie quickly drew his sword. "Mac, is that you?" A voice came out of the darkness. "Yes, Richie, it's me." Richie relaxed and headed towards the voice. "Well, Mac, there's not much to report. They all went in I saw them go into the basement." He stopped and put away his sword when Duncan came into view. "What now?" "Good question, Richie." Now that Duncan was closer, Richie could see that he appeared troubled. "Let's go get the car." Richie followed Duncan quietly as he headed back down the street. When they neared the convertible, he spoke up. "Mac, when are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" "I've been trying to figure out where to start, Richie." He crossed his arms and leaned back against the car, staring off into the distance. "Have you noticed anything, well, strange about Carol?" His hands in his pockets, Richie shrugged. "Strange, not really. Other than the fact that she can leap tall buildings with a single bound and take out assassins with one hand tied behind her back. Why do you ask?" The older immortal shook his head, then pinned the youngster with his gaze. "Because, Richie, when I looked through those night binoculars I saw her take three hits to the chest and not even pause." Richie shrugged again. "So, she was wearing a bulletproof vest." He didn't understand what was bothering his friend. "No, Richie, she wasn't. I saw her take it off on the way to your place. And I could _see_ skin and blood through those goggles. She was shot and healed almost instantly." Duncan began pacing up and down in front of the car. Richie stood up straight, in shock. "No way, Mac. If she was immortal, wouldn't we have sensed her?" He looked at the Highlander for some sign he was joking, or insane, "I don't know how she did it, just that she did. I know what I saw." Richie could see Duncan was getting agitated. "Don't you think I had second thoughts about my own sanity?" he questioned. "When I caught up with her, she was wearing a different sweater than earlier. Obviously, she didn't want me to see the bullet holes." "Wait a minute," Richie recalled, "what about that Garrick guy?" That was enough to stop Duncan in his tracks. He whirled around and confronted Richie, "What do you mean?" "Well, Mac, maybe she's like Garrick and has powers like he did. Maybe she's found some way to hide the fact she's like us." --------------------- (to be continued . . .) =========================================================================