Dreams of a Lost Tribe by Vicky Seleya

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Dreams of a Lost Tribe (Part 3)
by Seleya889

Julia watched expectantly as they sped toward the imposing wall. Above, as they neared, she could see the cliffs that curled hundreds of feet over the plateau floor in a very convincing approximation of a koba's paw. She scanned the area under the formation expectantly, first unaided, then with the jumpers Danziger handed her. Less than a half kilometer from the rockface, she spied two legs in the dirt stretching from behind a boulder. At Julia's urgent wave, Danziger accelerated the DuneRail, turning it toward the spot she indicated. He skidded it to a stop several meters from where Alonzo lay. Julia sprang from her seat and ran to the pilot. Danziger followed, his mag-pro whining. He crouched across from the doctor and glanced down at Alonzo. Alonzo was unconscious, his limbs askew. Cuts and bruises were apparent on his face and arms.

Danziger watched Julia grimly scan the pilot. "How is he?" "Unconscious with a high fever and numerous cuts and contusions. His respiration is fine and there are no broken bones. He'll be happy about that, anyway. Let's move him out of these rocks. We can put him next to the DuneRail."

Julia took Alonzo's legs as Danziger lifted him by the armpits. As they lay him in the soft sand next to the vehicle, Danziger's gear chirped. He sat back on his heels watching Julia work while he activated his video receiver. Devon's face came into view as he swung the eyepiece into position.

"Danziger, we're just about ready to get going. Have you found Alonzo yet?"

"Yes, we just got to him. He's in rough shape. Julia's working on him right now."

"What's wrong? What happened?" Devon asked worriedly. At a sound from Julia, Danziger looked at Alonzo. His body had noticeably stiffened. With a start, he began to convulse uncontrollably.

"What should I do?" Danziger anxiously asked the doctor. "Nothing. He's not in danger of injuring himself against anything here. All we can do is wait the seizure out. This may be how he amassed those superficial injuries. Considering the position we found him in, it is possible he had a seizure in those rocks."

"What is happening?" Devon repeated in Danziger's ear. "We're kinda busy, Adair. Alonzo's having a seizure. I'll fill you in as soon as I can."

Alonzo's body stilled, his limbs occasionally twitching reflexively, his breath coming in gasps. Julia examined him thoroughly, occasionally pausing to seal a cut or inject medication. Gradually, his breathing slowed and steadied. Julia finished her ministrations and looked over at Danziger.

"Devon's on the line. Do you want to explain everything to her now, too?" he asked gently.

Julia nodded but did not move. Danziger went to the DuneRail for a second set of gear for the doctor. When he returned, he noticed that she had taken the time to compose herself. Her continued scrutiny of Alonzo belied her apparent clinical detachment. She took the gear from Danziger without a word and put it on. Danziger reactivated his, as well, and joined the two women in conference.

"How is Alonzo?" Devon asked.
"He's resting quietly now. He has apparently taken a considerable electrical charge to the head."

"The Terrians did this?" Devon interjected worriedly. "I really don't know, Devon. From what we've seen so far, it is possible. I have not seen this amount of energy retained after the fact in anyone else, though."

"I heard you tell Danziger that he may have had another seizure." "From his injuries and position when we found him, I would say it's quite likely. I also would not be surprised if he had more. I have very little in the way of anti-convulsants so the most we can do now is keep him restrained so he cannot injure himself further. He is running a fever and is severely dehydrated. I administered some rehydrating caps, but his fever spiked after the seizure and he's burning fluids off as fast as I can infuse them."

"You're saying he needs water." Danziger stated grimly. "Our supplies are getting low and there's no telling when we'll come across water again. I hate to say it but, we should really put this situation before the group for discussion. Don't worry, Julia. He needs water, he'll get it. Adair, you'd better let the others know now. We'll talk when we get back."

"Should we come meet you there?" Devon asked "I'd advise against bringing the caravan here. If the Terrians would hurt Alonzo, there's no telling what else they might do." Danziger pointed out. "We'll figure out some way of transporting him."

"OK. I'd better go talk to the others. Be careful." Danziger turned to the doctor as he slipped his gear onto his neck. "Well, Doc, how do you want to do this?"

Julia knelt next to Alonzo with her hands on her knees, watching him as she mulled her options. "Is there still a sleeping bag in the DuneRail?"

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure there is. Let me go look." Danziger rummaged in the backseat of the vehicle, emerging triumphantly moments later with a bulky sleeping bag.

They rolled the unconscious man into the bag and secured him into it. They then stretched him across the rear seats and sped across the barrens toward their rendezvous with the main group.

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'As we approached our rendezvous, my trepidation grew. Danziger was right, our water supply was getting low and we did not know how long it would take to find more. Additionally, most of our food was dried, not allowing much moisture to be derived from that source. Alonzo's demands were unclear but certainly considerable. Sufficiently considerable for us to feel that the group should be involved in the decision of how we were going to manage what little water we had. While Baines and I unbundled Alonzo preparing him for travel, Devon and Danziger formally presented our dilemma for consideration. The discussion was relatively brief, the few critics promptly silenced when Alonzo had another seizure. By the time he had again stabilized, the decision was made. We would all go on half rations with Alonzo's intake purely at my discretion. That decided, some of the men lifted Alonzo into one of the TransRover's side baskets which had been prepared for him before our arrival.'

'Constant sitings of Terrians along the cliffs drove us on, stopping only to switch drivers, recharge the vehicles, or tend to Alonzo. The first night we did not camp. We merely slowed the vehicles to a crawl and nearly everyone rode through the night. By the second evening, we reached the plateau's edge. With the uneven edge and the dizzying height, we opted to camp rather than travel in the dark for our remaining time on the plateau. We were disappointed to find that the first possible exit was a ravine filled with large boulders. We continued south along the edge to the next site. Two days later, on our way to the fourth potential site, we found our eventual exit. Where the plateau's edge took a sharp turn, the edge had degraded, allowing sediment to build a long terrace that sloped to the ground below. We repacked the vehicles and eased them down the unstable ramp, breathing a great sigh of relief when we all reached the ground safely. The wastelands continued for several more kilometers leading to a great forest in the rolling hills beyond. Scans for water have been inconclusive, the surveys vague. Upon leaving the plateau, Danziger turned the TransRover toward the most promising water reading. Since we reached the forest, the trees have provided us with much appreciated shade, the flora affording some moisture.' 'Despite my best efforts, Alonzo's seizures have not abated, nor has his fever. He has remained unconscious since Danziger and I found him. True joined me on the TransRover that day and has been a constant presence quietly perched by his shoulder since. Devon and Bess have taken turns assisting me, allowing for brief naps between his crises. With his fever so high and spiking after each seizure, his demand for fluids has remained high. As a result, our water supply has dwindled to an alarmingly low amount. The lone condenser can not satisfy a group our size and the remaining stores have rapidly depleted.'

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Danziger checked for clearance in the starboard rearview mirror. The TransRover barely skimmed between the two great trees. In the reflection he could see True perched next to Alonzo, wiping his brow, and grinned with pride. He had had his doubts when True first insisted on helping, but they were all dismissed when he overheard Julia tell Devon what help his little girl had been. When True moved back slightly, Danziger could see the doctor riding on a board laid across the top of the basket over the pilot's ankles, her feet straddling the stretcher. She was speaking to True who occasionally nodded and answered her. Danziger shook his head bemusedly. Everything was so different here. There was no class structure that kept anyone down. His daughter could be a doctor if she chose and no one would question it. Here a person's abilities decided their importance to the group. It was so different but also so dangerous he thought with a frown as he watched Julia scan her patient. It had been six days since they found Alonzo unconscious and he had yet to awaken. Danziger paused in his ruminations to stop the TransRover. The smaller vehicles were stopped in front of him. Ahead, several of the men busily worked to clear a path through the underbrush. Danziger grumbled to himself. The forest was so incredibly thick that their progress had slowed to a crawl. He chafed at the delays. Waiting out winter was one thing, this was entirely another. With a sigh, he grabbed a scanner and climbed into the observation deck on top of the TransRover.

"Anything yet, John?"
Danziger looked down to see Yale peering up at him. Watching the monitor's display he replied, "Actually, I'm getting a reading directly west of here. Looks good. Where's Adair?"

"I believe she's helping Bess distribute water rations. She should be back here soon."

Danziger climbed down to the ground. He moaned and stretched as his body protested.

"Are you all right, John?" Yale asked concernedly. "I'm fine. With all this driving, I think I'd better stretch my legs a little." Danziger stomped his feet and trotted around the TransRover. When he came alongside True, he stretched backwards until his back made a satisfying pop. She looked up in surprise.

"Hey, True-Girl. How's the patient? We haven't stopped for him yet today."

"Julia says he's stable." True glanced over to the doctor who nodded then, concentrating, continued, "His last seizure was 10 hours ago, his temperature is beginning to drop and we've kept him hydrated all day today."

"Sounds good." he smiled up at True proudly. "It is." the doctor noted. "Up to now, he hasn't gone more than five hours between seizures and his average has been two and a half. As far as I can tell, his fever is a direct result of them so the fewer seizures he has, the greater the possibility his temperature will stabilize as well."

"So it is good news."
The doctor shrugged, "The residual energy is dissipating, but it is still present. He could seize again at any moment. He needs more fluids than I can give him. And, while it has abated somewhat, his fever is much too high. I suppose, all things considered, it is an improvement but I would not get my hopes too high yet."

Devon and Bess approached carrying cups and a small jug. As they joined the others at the side of the TransRover, they parceled out each person's water allotment.

"Danziger, Yale said you had some good news for me." "I scanned for water just now and got a pretty strong read due west. I couldn't get a fix on range but it should be within ten kilometers of us. If this forest wasn't so thick we could already be there." he complained.

"Let's just hope it's water we can use." Devon pointed out. "Don't forget that canteen we dissolved... Maybe we should send a scouting party ahead to check it out."

Danziger grimaced at the memory, "You don't have to remind me. Problem is, we can't afford to send anyone ahead. As it is we're slowed to a crawl getting the vehicles through. We need everyone right here."

"Julia, he did it again." True looked at the doctor then back to the pilot.

Julia leaned forward watching Alonzo as she scanned him. "What is he doing?" Devon asked as the doctor and True concentrated on the pilot.

As she adjusted the settings on her dia-glove, Julia answered, "He has squeezed True's hand several times today. It's probably just a reflex but it seems more conscious than most of his other spasms. He may be coming around." She read her dia-glove and addressed the pilot, "Alonzo, if you can hear me, squeeze True's hand... Anything, True?"

True somberly shook her head. Julia sat back on her perch, the others watching her expectantly.

"I'm sorry, Julia."
"It's not your fault, True. Just keep as good an eye on him as you have. The residual energy is interfering with my scanners." she explained to the adults with a frown.

Bess rested her hand on Julia's knee. Smiling up to the doctor encouragingly, she said, "Don't worry, Julia, everything will be OK. We're all praying for him. Think only happy thoughts."

Julia's expression softened as she nodded to Bess. "Julia, he did it again."
Julia's attention snapped back to Alonzo. She leaned over him, foregoing her scanners for more old-fashioned, low-tech techniques. She watched him closely as she spoke. "Alonzo? Alonzo, squeeze True's hand."

"He did it again! Harder this time!" True exclaimed excitedly. "Come on, Alonzo. Time to wake up. Open your eyes," Julia urged expectantly.

Devon, Danziger and Bess inched closer to see the pilot. "Alonzo? Come on, wake up." Julia coaxed. She watched as Alonzo's eyes fluttered then opened. He looked around blindly for a moment until his eyes focused on her. Concentrating on Julia, he weakly struggled to speak. Julia gently restrained Alonzo and put one finger on his lips.

"Shh... Relax. You're safe, Alonzo." As she removed her finger, he licked his lips and tried to speak again.

"Is it important you say something now?" Julia asked softly. He shook his head weakly.
"Then please save your strength. You've been very sick. Would you like some water?" she offered.

Alonzo closed his eyes and nodded a silent 'yes'. Julia eased his head up and carefully helped him drink from the cup Bess presented. After a few sips, Alonzo glanced up at Julia then relaxed with a weak moan. She eased his head back onto the pillow and arranged his blankets.

"Are you comfortable?" the doctor asked. He grimaced in reply.
"You're going to be sore for a while. You've had multiple grand-mal seizures of varying severity. I'll give you a mild pain-block." She turned to rummage in her packs.

Alonzo grunted as he shifted his weight and dizzily glanced around. Finding himself restrained, he looked down to his wrists. As he drowsily tested his tethers he noticed the small, cool hand in his. His eyes slowly followed the arm up to find True's luminous eyes looking down into his. He groggily grinned at her as Julia administered the medication. His feverish gaze drifted back to Julia as his tenuous grip on consciousness slipped and he relaxed into sleep.

Julia sat back onto her board contemplating her patient as he slept. Devon's voice broke her reverie.

"Julia?'
She looked up to find the entire group clustered around, their work forgotten with the pilot's revival. They looked to the doctor expectantly, eagerly awaiting her prognosis.

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