Date: Thu, 14 Sep 1995 02:29:48 -0400 Reply-To: GrinnyP@AOL.COM Sender: Highlander TV show stories From: Carol Ann Liddiard Subject: "Origins" Chapter 9, Part 1 Here's chapter 9 ----------------- "Origins" c. 1995 C. A. Liddiard Chapter 9 "And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour." _Revelations 8:1_ --------------------- Washington State, 1995 Methos paused at the sight that greeted him in the bedroom. Carol was seated in the Lotus position, her hands tightly clasped around a glowing crystal. He recognized the glow as coming from one of her 'memory' rocks. Quietly, so as not to disturb her, he shed his shoes, coat and sweatshirt. Barefoot, he lowered himself down to sit directly across from her, knees nearly touching. Gently he reached out and clasped her hands. Light flashed, momentarily blinding him. When he could see, he found himself standing on a rocky cliff. Carol also stood nearby, gazing down at a settlement alive with the sounds of celebration. "I wanted to visit one last time," she said without turning around. "It seemed appropriate." She gestured in the direction of the settlement, where an adulthood ceremony was being performed. Methos moved forward and wrapped his arms around her. He knew the significance of the ceremony they were witnessing, as well as her urge to visit her memories of Berri Egoitza. "You'll come here again," he tried to reassure her while tamping down his own fears. "Perhaps when this is all over, you will finally go down and join the celebration." She sighed. "I cannot face them until he is dead." She leaned back for a moment, luxuriating in his warmth. "Adam, I need you to promise me something . . ." she began. "No," he interrupted, "don't start with that." He took a deep breath. "Besides, we have other problems." "What now?" "Horton has kidnapped Duncan's pregnant lady friend." "What?!" Light flashed and a disoriented Methos found himself once again sitting on the floor of his bedroom, holding Carol's hands. *Sorry,* was her absentminded reply. "You mean the woman who left him in Paris? The doctor?" she asked. He nodded. "Apparently she didn't feel like she could handle the life." His mouth quirked in a half smile. "Some can't, you know." "Yes, well, she knew what she was getting into." Methos shook his head. They'd had this argument many times before. "You know, you used to have more tolerance for human failings. I can remember when . . ." She crossed her arms and faced him. "Don't give me that, Adam. She should have thought it through more carefully before she got his hopes up. It's like deciding to have a child. Once you have that child, you can't decide it's too much for you and abandon it. So if you think that you can't handle being a parent, you'd better decide that before you get pregnant." Her chin lifted in a stubborn gesture that Methos knew well. "She got his hopes up and crashed them when she decided to leave. You know he didn't need that at that particular time." "I know, I know, we needed him to be in better mental shape when Kalas came after him again." He looked at her curiously. "Since when did you become his champion? When you found out he told Joe who I was, it was all I could do to keep you from killing him." "No one deserves to be jerked around like that, not even MacLeod. Especially not when they're going to have to face someone who delights in tormenting their victims, like Kalas." "Well it all worked out, didn't it?" He watched her walk over to the bed and sit down. Cradling her head in her hands she said, "Barely. It barely worked out. I haven't forgotten how close it came. And don't think I've forgotten your idiotic offer of your head to help him against Kalas." "Meanwhile . . ." He walked over and crouched in front of her, changing the subject quickly. "Meanwhile, he's going to stay awake all night worrying, and be useless tomorrow." She closed her eyes and concentrated. "Well, at least he'll sleep now." Methos frowned as he realized what she'd done. "I wish we didn't need to bring them tomorrow. I don't like using him and Richie this way." Carol finally raised her head and looked at him. "We do what we have to." --------------------- Egoitza, @9,400 BCE The Seer stood at the headland of their old island home, watching the survivors working at making abandoned buildings livable again. Sadly, she looked at a small group of children sitting in a circle, loosely supervised by the workers. These children had been too young and untrained to receive quickenings, and the shock of the disaster and multiple deaths by drowning had driven them into deep catatonia. A familiar presence had her turning away from the village. *Song?* "Yes, Seer," came a voice from her left. There Song and her youngest brother scrambled across the rocks to where she stood. The Seer abandoned her post and ran to Song. "I thought you had perished in the eruption!" she exclaimed as she enthusiastically hugged her former student. "How did you survive? Were there any others?" "Gaztetxo and I went over the cliffs at the southern end of the island," Song began. The Seer winced in sympathy at the thought of the horrific fall it must have been. "The only other people on the island to survive were the two evil ones who had been left to guard the boats." "How do you know that?" the Seer asked curiously. "On our way here we nearly ran into a nest of them," Song replied tonelessly. "Sagu left a contingent of men at their camp in case anyone made it off the island, or in case the attack failed." "You mean some of them survived?" the Seer was aghast. "Yes, but luckily they have been infected by the disease. And Sagu was not among them." Song watched as her brother scrambled further down the beach, curious about everything he found. She appeared to come to a decision. "Seer, I'm leaving Gaztetxo here with you." The Seer had seen this possibility in her dreams, which had come with depressing regularity since the disaster which destroyed Berri Egoitza. "Song, no, you cannot do this. You are not meant for this." Song whirled around and confronted the Seer angrily. "I _know_ what you meant for me. It's useless now. I won't rest until the last one is dead." The Seer tried to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder, but Song shrugged it off. Without another word, she strode off, ignoring her brother's call. --------------------- Washington State, 1995 Duncan awoke disoriented and fully clothed. he wondered fuzzily as he took in his unfamiliar surroundings. He reviewed his memories of the drink Carol served him the night before, but he hadn't seen her slip anything into it. Deciding to take some action, he rose and went looking for Methos. As he walked down the hall, the faint sound of sitar music drew Duncan to what turned out to be a large workout room. There -- in the center of the room -- was Methos, wearing a pair of black lycra shorts, working out. It took Duncan a moment to recognize what he was performing as an advanced Pranayam yoga routine. Fascinated, he watched the older immortal work through the grueling set of poses and stretches with grace and strength. Muscles hardened by thousands of years of fighting rippled as Methos moved to the music. So fascinated was he by what he was witnessing, it took Duncan several minutes to notice the rows of small, parallel lines on Methos' back. he wondered as he continued to watch. Methos moved smoothly into the next pose, which Duncan realized was a variation of the 'mountain pose', an inverted position which afforded him a clear look at the lines. A few minutes later Methos finished his routine and looked up. "I'm glad you're awake, Duncan. We need to get moving." "What was in the drink last night?" Duncan asked bluntly. "Nothing but single malt, MacLeod." Methos fetched a towel hanging on a barre nearby and proceeded to wipe his face. "Then why did I go out like a light?" Methos continued to towel off sweat as he headed for the door that led to the showers. "Carol did that to make sure you didn't stay awake all night worrying about Anne." He raised his hand to forestall more questions. "Ask Carol if you want to know how that particular trick is done. We're leaving for Idaho in an hour, and Carol wants to stop by Anne's place on the way. Are you still coming with us?" Duncan nodded and left the room in search of Carol, and answers. --------------------- Jericho, @9,000 BCE Song waited patiently, away from the city walls. She knew the woman she had been tracking for the last three hundred years was within. She also knew, from weeks of observation, that the woman had a habit of leaving the settlement in the early mornings to practice her fighting alone. Song was, in fact, hiding at the spot where the woman usually practiced. she prayed as she waited. she paused, then went on. Song knew that by doing this she would be considered outcast by her people, few though they were. This was why she left her little brother with Seer. A noise drove all other thoughts out of her head. Song cautiously peered around the rock and saw that her quarry was in place, beginning her practice. She gripped her spear tightly and began to rise when a sense of recognition struck her. she wondered. A memory found its way to the surface . . . Suddenly Song found herself lying on her back in a dark hut, tied down hand and foot. Pain racked her body as she looked up and saw the female immortal swinging a club, breaking her legs over and over and over . . . Song flinched at the flashback. Shaking with a combination of fear, loathing, and rage, she stood up and screamed a challenge to the woman. The woman spun around and tried to defend herself, but was unable to block Song's attack. Driven by her slain brother's memory, she covered the distance in a few quick strides and plunged the spear deep into the chest of the evil one. She smiled savagely as the woman was lifted off the ground by the force of the thrust and hung, writhing, for interminable minutes until Song dropped her to the ground. *I did not want this for you, my sister,* came a voice from deep within. Suddenly Song's perspective shifted, and she saw the scene as through the eyes of another person. Saw what she had done and what she had become. Song dropped to her knees beside the body and closed her eyes, but she could still see the sightless eyes staring accusingly at her, could feel the slippery blood on her hands. She opened her eyes and saw the 'body' jerk and twitch. But it was. She could sense the power, could see the electrical discharge as the woman began to recover. Without thinking, Song pulled the spear out of the woman's chest and began to hack frantically at her neck with the flint tip. The woman fought hard, and Song was forced to smother her struggles by kneeling on her chest until the head separated from the body. Sobbing, Song crawled away from the gory mess and knelt a few feet away, waiting for the quickening. When it came, she shuddered under the onslaught of images . . . . . . holding down the men of the hunting party as, one by one, they were beheaded, then tossing the heads into a pile . . . . . . swinging a club and breaking the legs of the last weakling hunter, laughing with her fellow torturers as she did so . . . . . . storming through a mortal village on the long march towards Berri Egoitza, impaling two children who'd tried to get away . . . . . . slitting the man's throat as he slept, sated, after their lovemaking . . . . . . and on it went, scene after scene of killing, maiming, destroying, and through it all, the enjoyment of feeling the spirit slip away . . . Song's awareness came back slowly. She found herself curled tightly in a ball, covered with blood and dirt. Tiredly she sat up and concentrated on contacting her old teacher. *Seer, can you hear me?* *Yes Song?* came the reply. *I have to tell you about the evil ones,* Song paused, dreading how Seer would react to the news. *Killing them only makes them immortal again, I know,* the Seer interrupted before she could impart the information. *I saw it in my vision.* *Why didn't you warn me?* Song cried, betrayed. *You knew this was going to happen?* *I told you, they will fight through the ages until there is only one . . .* *Not if I get to them first!* Song replied angrily, cutting the connection. She sat there in stunned silence, until the revelation of the Seer and the memories of the evil one overcame her. Heaving and retching, she spilled the contents of her stomach onto the bloody dirt. --------------------- (to be continued . . .) =========================================================================