(no subject)
[From here]
Challenger pulls a dart out of Malone’s neck and gives it a sniff. “It’s curare,” he says grimly, holding it up so Roxton can see. For a moment, just a moment, Roxton flashes back to his brother. But this is no errant bullet. This was a trap set to kill. He glares at the man in front of him, furiously angry, finger tightening on the trigger.
“I can save him,” the man says calmly. Save him? Malone’s already dead. Roxton chances another glance to Challenger. “There’s not much time.”
“Then get to it!” Challenger snaps, throwing the dart down.
“Challenger!” Roxton growls a warning. Malone’s dead. Wishing him back to life, no matter how fervently, won’t accomplish anything. This man is up to something.
Challenger stands to talk into his ear. “There’s nothing we can do. If there’s any chance…” And he’s right. He can let this stranger try. It’s not as though it will do Malone any harm. Not any more.
He jabs the point of the rifle into the man’s chest. “If he dies, you die.” The man swallows, but nods and moves past Roxton to Malone. The hunter watches like a hawk as Challenger helps the man, Lento, move Malone to the altar. Then he orders them to stand back as he places one hand over Malone’s heart and the other over the wound in his neck. Roxton doesn’t expect anything to happen, but he’s regretting his ultimatum already. Killing Lento won’t bring Malone back.
But then the air around the two men starts to glow and a wind starts to blow from nowhere. Lento grunts in pain, once, twice, and then both men jump as though a jolt passed through them.
And Malone sits up.
He falls back to the altar, pale and feverish, but breathing. He’s breathing.
“I can’t believe it,” Challenger says, sounding almost gleeful.
How…that’s not possible. Not if Malone was dead. The only other possibility is that he wasn’t and something else is going on here. Malone’s alive, but Lento’s a liar.
Right?
“I can do no more for him now,” Lento speaks up, leaning against a pillar and massaging his hands. He looks more tired than he did a moment ago, and Roxton frowns. “We must take him to the village.”
Roxton’s too confused to argue and the nursemaids offer the stretcher they carried Asu there with and before he knows it, they’ve collected Summerlee and are following Lento down an unknown trail. He keeps turning it over in his head, but it still doesn’t make sense to him. He’s missing something.
Summerlee’s walking with Lento, keeping him distracted with questions, and Roxton drops back so he and Challenger can have a conversation of their own.
“Relax,” Challenger says in an undertone. “It makes no sense for him to revive Malone and then try to kill us.”
Roxton frowns. “What doesn’t make sense is Malone rising from the dead,” he grumbles.
“Well. You have a better explanation?”
“Maybe the darts were only a tranquillizer.”
Challenger’s quiet at that. “You think he’s leading us into an ambush.”
“Our hands are on the stretcher instead of our guns,” Roxton points out.
“We’re here,” Lento interrupts from up ahead and Roxton looks around for any tents or dwellings.
“I don’t see any village,” he says, the uneasy feeling spiking into one of warning. Lento smiles at him.
“You know how to look, but you don’t yet know how to see.” The man looks up and the explorers follow his gaze. It puts Veronica’s Treehouse to shame, the dwellings assembled in the trees, with bridges everywhere to connect one tree to another.
“My word,” says Summerlee, voicing what they’re all feeling.
The awe, at least, is dimmed a bit when they realize they will have to climb to reach it. Lento’s people don’t have a lift like Veronica does, making their homes even more difficult to reach, particularly for Summerlee. Malone’s stretcher has to be pulled up, but at least the villagers help with that. They’re brought to one of the open platforms and they rest Malone’s stretcher between two benches.
“An entire village within the trees,” Challenger says, taking a moment to look over the treetops and the villagers with the leaf decorated clothing. Obviously a tree culture.
“And the only way out is fifty feet straight down.” Roxton’s standing near the railing, trying to keep an eye on Malone and the villagers all at once.
“It was an accident,” Challenger chides him gently.
“Was it?”
Challenger doesn’t answer, instead asking Summerlee how Malone is doing.
“Pale, feverish,” the older man answers, sounding as worried as Roxton feels. Whether Malone was dead or not before, he’s still poisoned now. “I can hardly feel a pulse.”
Challenger looks grim and kneels by the young man’s head, slapping him lightly. “Malone?” Earlier that got a response. Now…nothing.
“And you say all Lento did was lay hands on him?”
“There was a strange light,” Challenger admits, looking thoughtful.
“An aura…”
Roxton frowns, looking between the two of them. They look like they have an idea as to what’s really going on here. “What are you two talking about?”
“The body’s electrical charge,” Challenger explains, hurried, the way he always does when he thinks he’s figured something out. It’s been bothering him as much as its been bothering Roxton, the hunter realizes. “Perhaps Lento manipulated it in some way, changed the polarity of the neural endings.”
“He’s fading,” Summerlee speaks up, one hand on Malone’s pulse.
“Do something, Summerlee!” Challenger demands.
“I’m a botanist, for heaven sake, not a faith healer!”
“All right, take it easy,” Challenger says before the old man’s even finished speaking.
“Malone’s dying, and I haven’t a clue how to help him!” They’re all worried, turning frantic, but none of them can do what Lento did.
Which is when Roxton gets an idea. “I do.” Lento disappeared into his home soon after they arrived and Roxton heads there now. He pushes aside the heavy cloth door in time to hear Yura finish an angry sentence.
“We poisoned him, our dart, when all he wanted was to help Asu,” Lento replies, still sounding tired. “I can’t let him die.”
“Damn right you can’t,” Roxton snaps coming fully into the room.
Yura glares at them both. “As Village Elder, I forbid it.” Lento stands and sets his shoulders as he walks past the older man, but Yura grabs him. “Think of the village, think of the baby!”
“I do,” Lento snaps harshly before his face and tone soften. “You know as well as I. There must be harmony before the child enters the world. To let this man die, at our hands…” He shakes his head.
“If you can save him, you’d better be fast,” Roxton warns. “He won’t last much longer.”
“I’ll be fine,” Lento says to Yura. Then he turns to Roxton. “Your friend will be too.” He leaves his hut, moving quickly towards Malone. Yura shoots Roxton another glare, but follows, looking worried. Roxton doesn’t see what harm it’ll be to the shaman. So he’s a little tired after healing someone. It’s a small price to pay.
Lento crouches at the head of Malone’s stretcher, crossing his wrists over his chest. He closes his eyes. “Surrender your pain,” he says slowly, bring his hands together. The air starts to glow and a wind starts up from no where. “Now is not your time. Come back. Look at me! Look at me!”
Yura fidgets, finally springing forward to grab Lento. “Enough! You need to rest!”
“Not yet!” His hands. His hands are glowing white. ”Look.” The glow starts moving up his wrists. ”At.” His arms, and Malone’s face is just as bright. ”Me!” The glow snaps to Lento’s face and he falls back with a cry of pain even as Malone sits bolt upright.
“He saved Malone!” Summerlee yells. He steps forward to check on him as Yura dashes to Lento.
“And destroyed himself!” The Elder holds his friend as he starts convulsing. “You don’t know what you’ve done!” The villagers pull back as one from their shaman. Mesmerized, the explorers watch as Lento shakes, eyes wide open to show them all the moment they turn a diseased looking yellow and red. Then he collapses.
Yura seems on the verge of tears as he orders Lento taken away.
((Dialogue from The Lost World))
Challenger pulls a dart out of Malone’s neck and gives it a sniff. “It’s curare,” he says grimly, holding it up so Roxton can see. For a moment, just a moment, Roxton flashes back to his brother. But this is no errant bullet. This was a trap set to kill. He glares at the man in front of him, furiously angry, finger tightening on the trigger.
“I can save him,” the man says calmly. Save him? Malone’s already dead. Roxton chances another glance to Challenger. “There’s not much time.”
“Then get to it!” Challenger snaps, throwing the dart down.
“Challenger!” Roxton growls a warning. Malone’s dead. Wishing him back to life, no matter how fervently, won’t accomplish anything. This man is up to something.
Challenger stands to talk into his ear. “There’s nothing we can do. If there’s any chance…” And he’s right. He can let this stranger try. It’s not as though it will do Malone any harm. Not any more.
He jabs the point of the rifle into the man’s chest. “If he dies, you die.” The man swallows, but nods and moves past Roxton to Malone. The hunter watches like a hawk as Challenger helps the man, Lento, move Malone to the altar. Then he orders them to stand back as he places one hand over Malone’s heart and the other over the wound in his neck. Roxton doesn’t expect anything to happen, but he’s regretting his ultimatum already. Killing Lento won’t bring Malone back.
But then the air around the two men starts to glow and a wind starts to blow from nowhere. Lento grunts in pain, once, twice, and then both men jump as though a jolt passed through them.
And Malone sits up.
He falls back to the altar, pale and feverish, but breathing. He’s breathing.
“I can’t believe it,” Challenger says, sounding almost gleeful.
How…that’s not possible. Not if Malone was dead. The only other possibility is that he wasn’t and something else is going on here. Malone’s alive, but Lento’s a liar.
Right?
“I can do no more for him now,” Lento speaks up, leaning against a pillar and massaging his hands. He looks more tired than he did a moment ago, and Roxton frowns. “We must take him to the village.”
Roxton’s too confused to argue and the nursemaids offer the stretcher they carried Asu there with and before he knows it, they’ve collected Summerlee and are following Lento down an unknown trail. He keeps turning it over in his head, but it still doesn’t make sense to him. He’s missing something.
Summerlee’s walking with Lento, keeping him distracted with questions, and Roxton drops back so he and Challenger can have a conversation of their own.
“Relax,” Challenger says in an undertone. “It makes no sense for him to revive Malone and then try to kill us.”
Roxton frowns. “What doesn’t make sense is Malone rising from the dead,” he grumbles.
“Well. You have a better explanation?”
“Maybe the darts were only a tranquillizer.”
Challenger’s quiet at that. “You think he’s leading us into an ambush.”
“Our hands are on the stretcher instead of our guns,” Roxton points out.
“We’re here,” Lento interrupts from up ahead and Roxton looks around for any tents or dwellings.
“I don’t see any village,” he says, the uneasy feeling spiking into one of warning. Lento smiles at him.
“You know how to look, but you don’t yet know how to see.” The man looks up and the explorers follow his gaze. It puts Veronica’s Treehouse to shame, the dwellings assembled in the trees, with bridges everywhere to connect one tree to another.
“My word,” says Summerlee, voicing what they’re all feeling.
The awe, at least, is dimmed a bit when they realize they will have to climb to reach it. Lento’s people don’t have a lift like Veronica does, making their homes even more difficult to reach, particularly for Summerlee. Malone’s stretcher has to be pulled up, but at least the villagers help with that. They’re brought to one of the open platforms and they rest Malone’s stretcher between two benches.
“An entire village within the trees,” Challenger says, taking a moment to look over the treetops and the villagers with the leaf decorated clothing. Obviously a tree culture.
“And the only way out is fifty feet straight down.” Roxton’s standing near the railing, trying to keep an eye on Malone and the villagers all at once.
“It was an accident,” Challenger chides him gently.
“Was it?”
Challenger doesn’t answer, instead asking Summerlee how Malone is doing.
“Pale, feverish,” the older man answers, sounding as worried as Roxton feels. Whether Malone was dead or not before, he’s still poisoned now. “I can hardly feel a pulse.”
Challenger looks grim and kneels by the young man’s head, slapping him lightly. “Malone?” Earlier that got a response. Now…nothing.
“And you say all Lento did was lay hands on him?”
“There was a strange light,” Challenger admits, looking thoughtful.
“An aura…”
Roxton frowns, looking between the two of them. They look like they have an idea as to what’s really going on here. “What are you two talking about?”
“The body’s electrical charge,” Challenger explains, hurried, the way he always does when he thinks he’s figured something out. It’s been bothering him as much as its been bothering Roxton, the hunter realizes. “Perhaps Lento manipulated it in some way, changed the polarity of the neural endings.”
“He’s fading,” Summerlee speaks up, one hand on Malone’s pulse.
“Do something, Summerlee!” Challenger demands.
“I’m a botanist, for heaven sake, not a faith healer!”
“All right, take it easy,” Challenger says before the old man’s even finished speaking.
“Malone’s dying, and I haven’t a clue how to help him!” They’re all worried, turning frantic, but none of them can do what Lento did.
Which is when Roxton gets an idea. “I do.” Lento disappeared into his home soon after they arrived and Roxton heads there now. He pushes aside the heavy cloth door in time to hear Yura finish an angry sentence.
“We poisoned him, our dart, when all he wanted was to help Asu,” Lento replies, still sounding tired. “I can’t let him die.”
“Damn right you can’t,” Roxton snaps coming fully into the room.
Yura glares at them both. “As Village Elder, I forbid it.” Lento stands and sets his shoulders as he walks past the older man, but Yura grabs him. “Think of the village, think of the baby!”
“I do,” Lento snaps harshly before his face and tone soften. “You know as well as I. There must be harmony before the child enters the world. To let this man die, at our hands…” He shakes his head.
“If you can save him, you’d better be fast,” Roxton warns. “He won’t last much longer.”
“I’ll be fine,” Lento says to Yura. Then he turns to Roxton. “Your friend will be too.” He leaves his hut, moving quickly towards Malone. Yura shoots Roxton another glare, but follows, looking worried. Roxton doesn’t see what harm it’ll be to the shaman. So he’s a little tired after healing someone. It’s a small price to pay.
Lento crouches at the head of Malone’s stretcher, crossing his wrists over his chest. He closes his eyes. “Surrender your pain,” he says slowly, bring his hands together. The air starts to glow and a wind starts up from no where. “Now is not your time. Come back. Look at me! Look at me!”
Yura fidgets, finally springing forward to grab Lento. “Enough! You need to rest!”
“Not yet!” His hands. His hands are glowing white. ”Look.” The glow starts moving up his wrists. ”At.” His arms, and Malone’s face is just as bright. ”Me!” The glow snaps to Lento’s face and he falls back with a cry of pain even as Malone sits bolt upright.
“He saved Malone!” Summerlee yells. He steps forward to check on him as Yura dashes to Lento.
“And destroyed himself!” The Elder holds his friend as he starts convulsing. “You don’t know what you’ve done!” The villagers pull back as one from their shaman. Mesmerized, the explorers watch as Lento shakes, eyes wide open to show them all the moment they turn a diseased looking yellow and red. Then he collapses.
Yura seems on the verge of tears as he orders Lento taken away.
((Dialogue from The Lost World))