The Lesson
a work of fan fiction by:
Rebecca Yoo

The Eden camp was slow to rise that cold, cold morning. They had been somewhat sluggish since winter had set upon them, their daily travel suddenly halted. But now, after the troubles they had had with the Terrians and the Morganitte, the group was even a little more discouraged to get up each day and to see what the Terrians and the planet had in store for them yet another day.

Once everyone was up it went like any other morning. They rose, got washed and dressed, ate (well if you could call it that), then went to their daily chores, as usual, but something, not to big, something sutble was different that morning.

It was quiet.
Although this may sound like a blessing, it wasn't. It was disturbing. Besides the usual sound of quiet talk, the work sounds of checking supplies, going over maps, and fixing equipment, the sounds of Uly and True were absent. If it wasn't fast talking and laughing it was arguements and screams. Nothing. It was like the kids weren't even around.

"Uly, time to wake up sleepyhead," Devon called as she walk over to their tent.

Pushing the flap open she saw her son laying on his cot as she did every morning, but his usual cheery self wasn't painted on his face. His face was pale, washed out. It had an expression on it that was strangely familiar, so familiar it was frightening. Uly didn't have to say that he wasn't feeling well. The Syndrome was written across his face.

"Julia!" Devon cried as she picked up her frail son and hurried to the med tent.

"Julia!" Devon called again, tears flowing down her cheeks. *NOT again. This can't be happening. Uly doesn't have the Syndrome anymore. He was well.* her thoughts raced.

"Devon, what's wrong?" Julia asked as she approached Devon, but her question was answered before Devon could even part her lips.

"Bring him into the tent," Julia told Devon. Julia slipped on her diaglove and began scanning. His breathing was weak, his heartbeat was weak, as well as his blood pressure. It was a total relapse, maybe even worse than before.

"We need to get him back into his immunosuit and put him back on all his medication in addition to a few others," Julia explained, not wanting to look into Devon's eyes.

"Why the extra?" Devon asked, in an unusually strained voice.

"Devon, I'm not going to lie to you," Julia began as she rushed around the tent pulling out the immunosuit and the various drug capsules she needed, "He's worse than he was before he was healed by the Terrians.
I don't no why he's had such a turn in his health. I gave Uly a check up yesterday and he was in better health as ever."

"And Alonzo was just talking about how the Terrians had just contacted him early this morning about the path through the mountains," Devon replied.

"So it can't be that the Terrians are in trouble, like the last time Uly had a relapse."

*What could it be? Maybe it was something else, something new,* Julia thought, as she reached to do a second scan of the thin boy laying before her. The readings were the same. It was definately the Syndrome.

That evening Devon stood up after dinner to address her fellow colonist's questions and concerns about Uly. She also wanted to know if Alonzo had any ideas from the Terrians about the strange appearance of Uly's illness. She hadn't had a chance to talk to him earlier because he had just returned from a scouting trip.

"I just wanted to tell you all that Uly is sick again and it is indeed the Syndrome again," Devon said, her voice cracking halfway through the statement.

A murmur went through the small crowd of colonists. "I thought that the Syndrome was behind Uly. I thought the Terrians healed him," Bess said.

"Well, that's what we thought after the initial time Uly was healed, but we have to remember when he got sick again when the Terrians were in trouble," Julia added.

"What is that!?!" Morgan pipped up, "Every time that the Terrians have a problem or want something from us they're just going to make him sick?"

"Well, Morgan, considering how Uly has changed to resemble the Terrians, at least on the molecular level, yes, to answer your question," Julia replied.

"That's why I wanted to particularly talk to you, Alonzo," Devon began, "Have you heard anything from the Terrians? Are they in trouble?"

"Last night I was on the Dreamplane and they seemed fine. I had no problems communicating, not like the last time Uly got sick."

"I don't know how to explain Uly getting ill again. If it's not the Terrians, then what? Some other imbalance with the planet? A hostile Terrian tribe?" Julia went on.

Over the next few days Uly continued to get worse. Julia worked day and night trying to figure how to get Uly's health improving or least under control. Alonzo contact with the Terrians went on as usual, the Terrians not giving any clue about Uly. And Devon remained at her son's bedside, dry eyed, grim, and ever vigilant.

Four days after Uly fell sick, a horrible scream came from inside the dome. Everyone ran in, but only Julia, Danziger, and Yale went to the other room where Devon and Uly were. Devon was sprawled out across Uly, sobbing.

"Devon, what's the matter," Julia said, rushing next to her, her diaglove ready.

"No, no, no." was all Devon said between sobs. Danziger gently pulled Devon away from Uly so that Julia could examine him. She resisted, but then collapsed into his arms, unconscience.

"She's probably in shock," Julia said as she scanned Uly's small body with the diaglove, "Wrap her in a blanket."

Danziger did as he was told and layed her on the other cot. Yale sat down next to her, clutching her hand in his.

"What's the matter, Julia?" John asked the doctor, moving next to her.

Julia leaned back on her heals and ceased the scanning. "He's dead," was all she said. The next morning the colonists gathered together on the hill overlooking their winter camp. Baines and Walman had gotten there earlier and dug a grave for the small boy in the hard, cold earth. The group was silent except for the sobs of Devon and the quiet crying of Bess and True.
Alonzo tried to comfort Devon, as Danziger and Morgan did the same with True and Bess. The rest of the group stood around the grave dumbstruck at the sudden death of the little boy.

Cameron and Matzle slowly lowered Uly's small body into the grave and covered it with a piece of sheet metal. Then they picked up shovels and began to fill the grave with soil as Yale began the eulogy, only to be interupted by Devon.

"No!" Devon screamed as she rushed towards the grave, "You can't take my little boy! You can't have him!"

Alonzo tried to pull her away, but with little success. Devon sat at the edge of the grave for the rest of the ceremony, in silence, and she remained there well into the night.

Danziger went out once she had fallen asleep and carried her back to the dome.

The days pasted slowly after the funeral. Camp was very quiet. Devon kept to her post at her son's grave during the daylight hours and then retreated to her tent, to be heard crying all night long. She hardly ate and she hardly slept. Twice already Julia had to sedate her so she could get some rest undisturbed and for the doctor to inject some food supplements.

Three days after her son died, Devon rose as usual, at dawn, and walked out of the dome, not noticing the sleeping figure that shared her tent. The rest of camp was still fast asleep as she walked up the hill to Uly's grave. As Devon got to the top of the hill, she noticed that something was different. Something out of place. The grave, it was gone.
Thinking that maybe because it was so early that she came up the hill at the wrong place, Devon walked along the ridge. Still, no grave. She turned around and went in the other direction, walking faster now.

*Had she gone mad? Was the whole trama of her son's death too much for her that she had now lost her mind?* Devon thought.

After fifteen minutes of walking back and forth the total length of the ridge, Devon gave up and went back to camp calling Danzigers name.

"John! John, I need you!" she yelled. Danziger sort of rushed, stumbled out of his tent and headed toward Devon.

"What is it Devon?" Danziger asked, still grogy. "Uly's grave," she began, "It's gone." "What do you mean it's gone?" Danziger asked, as the rest of the camp slowly walked out of their respective tents.

"Devon, what's wrong?" Julia questioned, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

But before she could answer there was a small tug on the back of her jacket. At first she ignored it and was beginning to answer, but then it tugged again. She turned around.

"Mom, what's going on?" Uly asked, still half asleep. "Uly!" was all Devon screamed. The colonists rushed around Devon and Uly, who was now up in her arms. Uly was so small that they had not seen him standing behind his mother.

"How's this possible?" Julia mumbled over Devon's tears and sighs of joy.

"Why's everyone acting so weird?" True and Uly answered simultaneously.

*Was it a dream? Mass hysteria among the adults of Eden Advance?* they all thought, only to be answered by Alonzo.

"I know what happened," Alonzo spoke up. "What?" Devon and Julia replied together. "Why don't you and True go get some breakfast?" Alonzo said to Uly, as he scruffed up the boy's hair.

"OK," Uly said, jumping out of his mother's arms. After the kids were back in the dome Alonzo began explaining, "The Terrians contacted me again last night."

"What did they say?" Julia asked. "We didn't go crazy. We weren't hallucinating. Uly did die a few days ago."

"I don't understand," Bess said. "The Terrians said that the caused Uly to become ill again and that the Syndrome did actually kill him, but they then restored his life.
Uly and True have no recollection of what happened in this past week."

"Did they say why they did this? Why did the put us through so much pain?" Devon asked, as she wiped her tears away from her face.

"They wanted to show us not to take anything for granted. Not the planet, not them, not each other. They wanted to teach us a lesson."

-The End-