Chapter One is on the April 6, 2006 entry... following chapters can be found in the diary calendar index. Just scroll over the dates and look for Chapter numbers.
Abe woke up completely disoriented. He was looking at a ceiling, but it looked like some kind of tree without bark. It was veined and lumpy and a rich ruddy brown color. His mouth was dry and his head muzzy. He reached for his companel and encountered instead his swollen and painful arm wrapped in thick bandages. Everything came back to him in a flood.
The enormity of the loss of all that was familiar descended on him like a heavy weight. His mind raced over all his misfortunes. When he thought of all the information that used to be at his disposal it made him grit his teeth. There was no way to gather data. No answers to his myriad questions. It had become second nature to have his every curiosity satisfied almost instantly. Or if not satisfied, at least referred to an outside source that would get back to him promptly. It was a habit that was going to be hard to break.
For so long the first thing upon awaking was to connect to the network and see what was going on in the world and also tobegin to configure his own environment to suit his mood of the day. Sometimes when he was not at work, he would listen to operas all day long. And only his favorite parts too. None of those overtures and intermezzos for him, he arranged things exactly ashe wanted them. And for the past three days nothing had gone exactly as he wanted.
He knew he was being ungrateful. At least he was alive. He could be out there on the plateau dead as a doornail. Or someplace even scarier. Who knows where the relentlessroots took their prey? But he felt peevish and grouchy. He was going to have to get up soon and face these people who obviously were masters of their own environment and he was going to look like a dolt. A feeling he was not used to.
All his life he had been considered the wunderkind. The whiz kid. Then the brilliant adult, and finally with the chemical modifications, the companel and all its interfaces, he had felt almost clairvoyant, with a certain kind of cognitive euphoria that was addicting to say the least. In any event he was stuck in slow gear at the very moment when he wanted to appear.... Impressive, educated, informed and on top of things. Great. Just great.
From the shadows of the room, someone walked toward his bed. Must be the doctor. He looked pleased that Abe was awake. The room was growing lighter by the minute.
The man spoke to him, but Abe didn't understand a word. Instead he smiled weakly in apology. The doctor went off and came back presently with a pottery basin and a little trolleywith pots and bandages on it. It all looked so rustic that it made Abe nervous. Was that stuff hygienic?
The man sat down on a stool next to the bed and began to unwrap the dressing on Abes arm. He winced a few times when they got down to the last layer. The doctor was incredibly tender and skilled and had the old one off quickly.
What he saw seemed to please him and he made satisfied sounding conversation that was reassuring to hear. Though after getting a good look at his swollen and bruised arm, Abe found he liked the view of the ceiling better. The doctor bathed the area with warm water scented with something Abe could not identify. It looked like green tea to him. Then he opened one of the little ceramic pots and poured a thin salve-like substance over the wounds. It felt like cool honey and was soothing. Abe held his arm up as best he could while the doctor bandaged it expertly in linen strips.
Thank you. Abe said simply, and meant it. His arm did feel better with the new dressing on it. The doctor spoke again smiling and nodding sagely giving him the impression that all would be well soon. He then helped Abe out of bed and showed him to what turned out to be the bathroom, and left him to his own devices, closing the door behind him.
Here was a spacious room with a skylight. All the accouterments looked like they were made of wood. But they were also built in. Abe looked closer at the sink and decided either these people were incredibly skilled wood carvers, or this stuff actually grew this way. An idea that seemed too incredible to be entertained. The sink had a two little spout- like protuberances with wooden plugs in them. Abe pulled the plug out of the right hand one and cool water flowed over his hands. He tried the other one and quite warm water came out. Where it went when it flowed down the drain, he hadnt a clue. There was a bar of soap in a little holder that smelled of some kind of herb, and several linen towels hanging on a rack nearby. He peeled off the simple tunic he was wearing and spent quite some time giving himself a wash trying not to move his left arm too much.
There was a toilet in the corner that when he lifted the lid saw that there was water flowing continuously by below. He relieved himself and then felt odd notflushing. There was a bathtub in here too. He stood in the middle of the room stark naked looking around until he noticed a neatly folded pile of clothes waiting for him in a little alcove that was just right for sitting down to dress.
The clothes were rust colored linen, with subtle brown embroidery along the neck and cuffs. He had to admit, they looked like they had been made with great skill, but at the same time, the style was very simple.
There was a pair of boxer shorts, only with longer legs than he was used to, with a little wooden button at the waist. He looked closely at it and found there were intricate carvings all over it. It reminded him of those carvings he had seen that were made in ivory. Then there were loose pants with a drawstring and a loose fitting shirt. There was a pair of felted slippers that were actually too large for him but he slipped into them anyway. Finally a long vest that was clasped in the front with coiled braiding in the shape of vines.
He walked out of the bathroom feeling much better.
The doctor was waiting for him. He had set up a table near the head of Abes bed and it was spread with an enticing assortment of food.
There were bowls filled with small fruits and nuts. Something that looked like oatmeal, bread, butter, and a mug with some steaming liquid and one with what looked very much like good old-fashioned milk. He decided to try that and gave it a taste. It was ice cold and sweet. He had never tasted anything better. He downed the whole thing and wiped his upper lip. The doctor beamed at him and motioned for him to sit down and eat. It was a wonderful meal, although he ate sparingly of everything as it had been a long time since he had eaten real food and knew he should take it easy. It was hard to do though, as these humble foods tasted wonderful. He couldnt decide if it was just his recent deprivations, or the food itself, but everything was delicious.
After he had eaten, the doctor motioned for him to follow. They walked over to an archway on the other side of the room and after walking through a very short passageway they came out onto a balcony that looked out into the branches of the tree. Abe looked down over the edge and saw people walking and talking far below. The leaves rustled on the branches and the air was fresh and cool. He spent the rest of the morning resting in an alcove with a padded seat long enough to lay down on. After a while he stretched out on it and fell asleep.
Later, he ate another meal, this time out on the balcony. Followed by some kind of tea the doctor gave him that didnt really taste all that great, but he knew the look one was given when it was time to take your medicine. He dutifully drank the stuff and made a face about it too.
About four hours later, he had a visitor.
The older man that seemed to be the head honcho around here came out onto the balcony. He spoke to Abe with a warm smile and a welcoming tone. Abe nodded at him and patted his arm showing that it was less painful. He was starting to feel like a puppy, only being able to make doe eyes at people. At least if he had a tail he could wag it. He hated not being able to communicate properly. He would just have to start looking at this as a scientific adventure, more like Lewis and Clark and a lot less like Talbot and The TransHuman Project.
The man motioned to Abe to come with him, and Abe eagerly followed, welcoming any excuse to do something besides sit around. They entered the large hall outside of the infirmary and went up several flights of stairs. The elder, opened a door to his office. There were large windows made of something that looked like pale amber glass. But it was not completely clear. It had irregular patterns in it and was of an uneven texture. There was a huge desk that again looked like it had grown in place. There were several chairs pulled up to it and sitting in one of them was a painfully thin man, who was fidgeting with the braiding on his blue gray tunic embroidered with purple thread. He jumped up as they entered the room.
The elder held out his arms to both of them, and spoke in his own language.
"Our stranger, this is Doven. He is our resident language professor.
We are going to see what we can do about this language barrier. He is very happy to meet you and looks forward to learning all about you and your native tongue."
Abe of course did not understand a word, but knew an introduction when he heard one and reached out his hand, the anxious fellow took it with both of his hands and pumped Abes good arm vigorously, putting his weight on one foot and then the other and bobbing his head.
Despite his stressed out feelings and chagrin at knowing he was most likely about to enter into some kind of uncomfortable learning curve without an ounce of help from technology, he could not help but laugh out loud at this nervous fellow before him. Doven reacted to Abe's laughter by first running his hand through his hair, covering his mouth briefly, then folding his arms over his chest. Looking at Doven's eager face, an image from an old video archive that he used to watch with his grandmother came to him. This guy could have been Barney Fife's twin brother. Abe laughed again shaking his head. This seemed to please the two men enormously.
The elder spoke to him briefly and Barney left the room. He escorted Abe back to his bed where the doctor was waiting to change his dressing once more. Abe was astonished at how much better his arm looked and felt already. As he watched the shadows grow long through the gently swaying branches of the tree, he wondered what other surprises awaited him in this place.
Chapter 5
Abe woke up completely disoriented. He was looking at a ceiling, but it looked like some kind of tree without bark. It was veined and lumpy and a rich ruddy brown color. His mouth was dry and his head muzzy. He reached for his companel and encountered instead his swollen and painful arm wrapped in thick bandages. Everything came back to him in a flood.
The enormity of the loss of all that was familiar descended on him like a heavy weight. His mind raced over all his misfortunes. When he thought of all the information that used to be at his disposal it made him grit his teeth. There was no way to gather data. No answers to his myriad questions. It had become second nature to have his every curiosity satisfied almost instantly. Or if not satisfied, at least referred to an outside source that would get back to him promptly. It was a habit that was going to be hard to break.
For so long the first thing upon awaking was to connect to the network and see what was going on in the world and also tobegin to configure his own environment to suit his mood of the day. Sometimes when he was not at work, he would listen to operas all day long. And only his favorite parts too. None of those overtures and intermezzos for him, he arranged things exactly ashe wanted them. And for the past three days nothing had gone exactly as he wanted.
He knew he was being ungrateful. At least he was alive. He could be out there on the plateau dead as a doornail. Or someplace even scarier. Who knows where the relentlessroots took their prey? But he felt peevish and grouchy. He was going to have to get up soon and face these people who obviously were masters of their own environment and he was going to look like a dolt. A feeling he was not used to.
All his life he had been considered the wunderkind. The whiz kid. Then the brilliant adult, and finally with the chemical modifications, the companel and all its interfaces, he had felt almost clairvoyant, with a certain kind of cognitive euphoria that was addicting to say the least. In any event he was stuck in slow gear at the very moment when he wanted to appear.... Impressive, educated, informed and on top of things. Great. Just great.
From the shadows of the room, someone walked toward his bed. Must be the doctor. He looked pleased that Abe was awake. The room was growing lighter by the minute.
The man spoke to him, but Abe didn't understand a word. Instead he smiled weakly in apology. The doctor went off and came back presently with a pottery basin and a little trolleywith pots and bandages on it. It all looked so rustic that it made Abe nervous. Was that stuff hygienic?
The man sat down on a stool next to the bed and began to unwrap the dressing on Abes arm. He winced a few times when they got down to the last layer. The doctor was incredibly tender and skilled and had the old one off quickly.
What he saw seemed to please him and he made satisfied sounding conversation that was reassuring to hear. Though after getting a good look at his swollen and bruised arm, Abe found he liked the view of the ceiling better. The doctor bathed the area with warm water scented with something Abe could not identify. It looked like green tea to him. Then he opened one of the little ceramic pots and poured a thin salve-like substance over the wounds. It felt like cool honey and was soothing. Abe held his arm up as best he could while the doctor bandaged it expertly in linen strips.
Thank you. Abe said simply, and meant it. His arm did feel better with the new dressing on it. The doctor spoke again smiling and nodding sagely giving him the impression that all would be well soon. He then helped Abe out of bed and showed him to what turned out to be the bathroom, and left him to his own devices, closing the door behind him.
Here was a spacious room with a skylight. All the accouterments looked like they were made of wood. But they were also built in. Abe looked closer at the sink and decided either these people were incredibly skilled wood carvers, or this stuff actually grew this way. An idea that seemed too incredible to be entertained. The sink had a two little spout- like protuberances with wooden plugs in them. Abe pulled the plug out of the right hand one and cool water flowed over his hands. He tried the other one and quite warm water came out. Where it went when it flowed down the drain, he hadnt a clue. There was a bar of soap in a little holder that smelled of some kind of herb, and several linen towels hanging on a rack nearby. He peeled off the simple tunic he was wearing and spent quite some time giving himself a wash trying not to move his left arm too much.
There was a toilet in the corner that when he lifted the lid saw that there was water flowing continuously by below. He relieved himself and then felt odd notflushing. There was a bathtub in here too. He stood in the middle of the room stark naked looking around until he noticed a neatly folded pile of clothes waiting for him in a little alcove that was just right for sitting down to dress.
The clothes were rust colored linen, with subtle brown embroidery along the neck and cuffs. He had to admit, they looked like they had been made with great skill, but at the same time, the style was very simple.
There was a pair of boxer shorts, only with longer legs than he was used to, with a little wooden button at the waist. He looked closely at it and found there were intricate carvings all over it. It reminded him of those carvings he had seen that were made in ivory. Then there were loose pants with a drawstring and a loose fitting shirt. There was a pair of felted slippers that were actually too large for him but he slipped into them anyway. Finally a long vest that was clasped in the front with coiled braiding in the shape of vines.
He walked out of the bathroom feeling much better.
The doctor was waiting for him. He had set up a table near the head of Abes bed and it was spread with an enticing assortment of food.
There were bowls filled with small fruits and nuts. Something that looked like oatmeal, bread, butter, and a mug with some steaming liquid and one with what looked very much like good old-fashioned milk. He decided to try that and gave it a taste. It was ice cold and sweet. He had never tasted anything better. He downed the whole thing and wiped his upper lip. The doctor beamed at him and motioned for him to sit down and eat. It was a wonderful meal, although he ate sparingly of everything as it had been a long time since he had eaten real food and knew he should take it easy. It was hard to do though, as these humble foods tasted wonderful. He couldnt decide if it was just his recent deprivations, or the food itself, but everything was delicious.
After he had eaten, the doctor motioned for him to follow. They walked over to an archway on the other side of the room and after walking through a very short passageway they came out onto a balcony that looked out into the branches of the tree. Abe looked down over the edge and saw people walking and talking far below. The leaves rustled on the branches and the air was fresh and cool. He spent the rest of the morning resting in an alcove with a padded seat long enough to lay down on. After a while he stretched out on it and fell asleep.
Later, he ate another meal, this time out on the balcony. Followed by some kind of tea the doctor gave him that didnt really taste all that great, but he knew the look one was given when it was time to take your medicine. He dutifully drank the stuff and made a face about it too.
About four hours later, he had a visitor.
The older man that seemed to be the head honcho around here came out onto the balcony. He spoke to Abe with a warm smile and a welcoming tone. Abe nodded at him and patted his arm showing that it was less painful. He was starting to feel like a puppy, only being able to make doe eyes at people. At least if he had a tail he could wag it. He hated not being able to communicate properly. He would just have to start looking at this as a scientific adventure, more like Lewis and Clark and a lot less like Talbot and The TransHuman Project.
The man motioned to Abe to come with him, and Abe eagerly followed, welcoming any excuse to do something besides sit around. They entered the large hall outside of the infirmary and went up several flights of stairs. The elder, opened a door to his office. There were large windows made of something that looked like pale amber glass. But it was not completely clear. It had irregular patterns in it and was of an uneven texture. There was a huge desk that again looked like it had grown in place. There were several chairs pulled up to it and sitting in one of them was a painfully thin man, who was fidgeting with the braiding on his blue gray tunic embroidered with purple thread. He jumped up as they entered the room.
The elder held out his arms to both of them, and spoke in his own language.
"Our stranger, this is Doven. He is our resident language professor.
We are going to see what we can do about this language barrier. He is very happy to meet you and looks forward to learning all about you and your native tongue."
Abe of course did not understand a word, but knew an introduction when he heard one and reached out his hand, the anxious fellow took it with both of his hands and pumped Abes good arm vigorously, putting his weight on one foot and then the other and bobbing his head.
Despite his stressed out feelings and chagrin at knowing he was most likely about to enter into some kind of uncomfortable learning curve without an ounce of help from technology, he could not help but laugh out loud at this nervous fellow before him. Doven reacted to Abe's laughter by first running his hand through his hair, covering his mouth briefly, then folding his arms over his chest. Looking at Doven's eager face, an image from an old video archive that he used to watch with his grandmother came to him. This guy could have been Barney Fife's twin brother. Abe laughed again shaking his head. This seemed to please the two men enormously.
The elder spoke to him briefly and Barney left the room. He escorted Abe back to his bed where the doctor was waiting to change his dressing once more. Abe was astonished at how much better his arm looked and felt already. As he watched the shadows grow long through the gently swaying branches of the tree, he wondered what other surprises awaited him in this place.