2199 Extinction

The Funeral

The cool breeze blows across the surface of the water and into my face, almost as if it were trying to cool my temper as well as my body. I take a deep breath in; the smell of salt water and flowers fill my nose. I can hear the calling of a lone legov and look up to watch it soaring above the lake. That's when I notice that the setting sun has colored the sky a deep shade of orange. It will be starting any moment now.

A red legov, figures I would see one of those, today. I sink back against the rock and let my feet go out from under me and slide down into a sitting position. To my left is the lake, to my right is the woods, my cover and safety net. I think back to the conversation my mother and I had about legovs. I must have been four or five years old, at the time.

"Black legovs are normal but red ones are extra rare. When are people first arrived on this planet, they were very superstitious." mother said.

"What does superstitious mean?" I ask.

"It means that our people didn't understand the laws of nature on this planet. Instead, they believed in magic."

"But magic isn't real, momma."

"I know that, and you do too, but they didn't understand that, back then. Instead, they told stories that the appearance of a red legov meant someone was going to die, soon." she explains.

"But why did they blame the birdie?"

"Well, apparently, someone saw a red legov and a few days later a loved one died. And then the same thing happened to a few other people."

"Did the birdie kill those people?" I ask.

"Of course not, honey. People talk amongst their selves and somehow or another it was blamed on the birds, because that was the one thing, they all had in common. Before you know it, all of the red legovs were hunted down and killed. That was supposed to stop all of the bad luck."

"Well, that's just silly."

"I agree. But recently, thanks to breeding programs, the red legov gene has been identified and several Talfarians are in the process of bringing that color line back to life, again. Even with all of breeding experiments, it's still rare to run across a red legov."

"Are they still bad luck?" I ask.

"No, honey, they are just birds. There is no such thing as luck. Your life is what you make of it, remember that."

"I will momma."

I'm starting to get restless; I have been hiding behind this large rocky outcrop for a few hours now; waiting for the funeral to start. After mine and Amlican's discussion on time travel, and our short kissing intermission, we started discussing the inevitable funeral. I told him I was going, and like a good friend, he insisted on coming with me. That, of course, was impossible. Being the child of a Talfarian diplomat, he was expected at the funeral. His absence would have been noticed and would have cast a lot of suspicion on him and his family. He reluctantly agreed but then promised to help in any way he could, including distracting anyone who may get close to my hiding place.

I quietly get up to a crouching position and look out from behind the rocks to find out what's going on. Luckily for me, I can see them but where I'm looking out, I can't be easily spotted. Amlican and I checked to make sure, before he returned to his room to get ready. I can see many Talfarians and a few other races, sitting in chairs facing the lake. No sign of Malum, yet. On the sandy, shore, sits a small wooden boat, the waves lap at it every few seconds, causing the slightest movement.

The boat is full of kindling, and on top of that, is something wrapped in a white sheet. That something, being the body of my mother. Fragrant flowers were laid all over her body, before being wrapped, to prevent the smell of death and decay. Prayers would have been offered over her body as it was wrapped. Not a single drop of blood would have been spilled as she was prepared, because the blood is life and sacred. This is the Talfarian way.

Anger warms my blood as I think about how Malum cheated me out of my goodbye. It is the duty of the children to lay the flowers, wrap the body, and offer the prayers. The only time the husband is involved in the practice is if the children are too young or if there aren't any children at all. I look and see Malum heading my way. I duck back behind the rocks and wait. You won't get away with this. You'll pay for what you did! Suddenly Malum's voice fills the air and I look out from the rocks, again.

"It is with a heavy heart that I thank everyone for coming today. We will go ahead and begin the ceremony and then I have something to share with you all." Malum says.

I scan the crowd, looking for Amlican, wishing he were right beside me, for comfort. There he is. I spot him in the front row, next to his father, sitting straight as a stick, his eyes looking straight ahead.

"Amlican." I whisper. "I really need you."

Almost as if he heard me, he turns his head and looks my way. Our eyes lock for a moment before he turns back toward the lake. But that quick moment is all that I needed to feel the strength of his friendship. I gaze back toward the boat that holds my mother's body, and I can hear Amlican's father reciting the history of our people on this planet and their reasoning behind the lighting of bodies on fire. I duck back down again, not wanting to expose my hiding place, even though the light is growing dimmer by the minute. I wonder why Amlican didn't tell me his father was chosen to give the history? Guess it really doesn't matter.

I listen as he talks about the early days, when the Talfarians would bury their dead. Apparently, this was common practice until people started finding dead, rotting, half eaten corpses laying around the woods and sometimes even in the villages. At first, the ancient Talfarians thought the dead were coming back to life and wanted revenge on the living. Lots of panic ensued and to combat this, someone came up with the idea of burning the bodies.

But where would they burn them? In the villages was a bad idea, the stench was horrific. In the woods was also a bad idea, the grass easily caught on fire, almost burning down their homes, before being put out. That's when the idea of placing the bodies on small wooden boats came about. The boats would be loaded down with kindling and the easy to burn grass; before being pushed out into the lake. Later on, it was discovered that a creature, native to this planet, called a Slaphner was the culprit behind the dug-up bodies. The large black, lizard-like creature had a taste for flesh and was a sneaky, opportunistic, hunter.

I realize that it has gone silent, so I pop my head back out and look around. I see Malum and a young boy walking and watch as they drop a handful of the easy burning grass, into the boat. Malum bends down and picks the small boy up, hugging him tight. This sight might have brought a tear to my eye, if I didn't know that Malum was the one who murdered my mother. I turn away from the scene. I look around behind me and find a tuft of the same grass. I pick up a handful and slowly sprinkle it on the ground, while I recite the traditional goodbye prayer. It's not the same as being able to do it over my mother's body, but it will have to do, for now. I look back out, between the rocks, again.

I watch as two of Malum's guards push the boat into the water, the gentle waves lapping at their feet, and then their knees. They give one big shove and the boat heads further onto the lake. The guards slowly make their way back to shore.

"Ready. Aim. Fire!" I hear the head guard shout.

Tears run down my cheeks as I watch the first arrow hit the boat, followed quickly by two more arrows. I see a small glow, near the back, that grows until the whole boat is a raging inferno. She's gone. Officially gone now. The fire burns for a while until the boat and its contents are all completely gone. One of the guards turns on some portable lights, and the shoreline is lit up.

"Now for the announcement, I promised you." Malum says, clearing his throat.