Monday, March 28, 2011

From the diary of Lyta Lassander (Summer-Autumn 1916)

18 Summer, 1916

Lukas is awake. I thought it would be more exciting, but it's not. He woke up and was confused for a while and then went back to sleep. I guess I'd be confused too if the last thing I remembered was leaving Baja and then I was in a tent in the middle of the desert. He seemed pretty angry too, even when I told him that Jonas saved his life.

Jonas says I have to be quiet when I'm in Lukas' tent, even now that he's awake. So now I only whisper to Lukas when he's asleep. But Jonas says he'll be functional soon, and then I can introduce him to Bestha and Amaraa. When Lukas is awake for real, he'll know what to do. I bet he'll know how to get home.

Lyta

*****

22 Summer, 1916

We ran away. Lukas said that the Sand People kidnapped us and we have to get back to Baja. He said Bestha and Amaraa aren't my real parents and I don't owe them anything. He had a good plan. He sent some animals away so that the tribe would follow them when we went away by foot. I don't know how far we are from the end of the desert, though. I hope that we have enough food.

I'm getting thirsty. I don't think Lukas brought enough water. I hope we reach the end of the desert soon, because I'm so tired of walking. I don't know what we're going to do when we get out of the desert because we don't have any money anymore. I'm trying not to cry because Lukas is so brave and leading us back home, but I still want to cry all the time. I try not to, though. I have to be strong so that we can survive.

Lyta

*****

24 Summer, 1916

They brought us back. We were all really thirsty and tired and dehydrated. Jonas said that the desert is so huge that we'd never have made it out on foot and that our food and water would have run out long before we got close. He says it's lucky they found us because there's a sandstorm coming and if it hit us we'd be dead.

Bestha and Amaraa hugged me and kissed me like they were my real parents, but they're not. My real parents are dead. But I'm glad me and Lukas and Todd didn't die in the desert.

Lyta

*****

5 Autumn, 1916

There's an obstacle course here made all out of jungle. It's called the B'ti. Amaraa showed it to me today. I thought it was pretty easy until Amaraa told me the qual time is only 7 minutes, which is like half my time. But Amaraa said he did it and that people who are really good can do it in 4, so it can't be impossible. And then there are more after that one! Amaraa says there are 21 courses, but that even people who are really good can't do them all anymore.

I'm so out of practice! That's one reason I'm so slow. I haven't trained since we left Baja and Father died and Lukas went into the coma. But I can train and get better again. Amaraa says that he'll take me back to the B'ti course tomorrow. There's a part in the middle where I kept tripping on the vines, but there are branches way high overhead that I bet I could run across if they support my weight. I'll have to try that tomorrow. Amaraa says he'll show me some tricks.

I was SO HUNGRY tonight! I ate and ate and ate! I thought Bestha would be mad because I was eating so much, but she wasn't. She just kept giving me more food and looking funny at Amaraa and smiling. It was really weird.

Lyta

*****

8 Autumn, 1916

Amaraa walked the whole course with me today and showed me some tricks. I never thought about looping the vine around the rock outcropping so that you can use it to swing across the pit! That's so cool! I was trying to just jump across and kept needing to scramble up the edge. Amaraa says he doesn't know all the really good tricks, though. He says the people that compete are called B'timasti and that I can compete for the Bathani next cycle if I train hard. He says the competition is called the Imti'qhaan. I think it's like the Sand Rider Olympics.

Lukas is brooding and he's still angry. I told him about the B'ti but he didn't care. He says that it's beneath me to run the B'ti but I don't think it is. I think it's fun and it's the only fun I've had since before the CEF came to Baja. I wish he'd come watch me, but he says he doesn't want to have anything to do with it.

Lyta

*****

14 Autumn, 1916

Today we left Junira Loresh, which made me sad. I wanted to run the B'ti some more. Amaraa says I can still train, even in the desert. He says that most B'timasti don't train on the real B'ti course because they're travelling all the time. He says we do floor exercises and pole vaults and use a B'ti'atta, which is a bamboo thingy you break down and put up with the tents. He showed me how to set it up. It's like a jungle gym from the playgrounds at the academy back in Baja. I can't reach the top parts yet except by climbing, and Amaraa says it's dangerous to climb on the B'ti'atta before it's set up because it doesn't have structural integrity, so he says he'll help me set it up until I can reach it myself.

I'm still sad that I won't be able to run the B'ti anymore until we come back next cycle. I really wanted to try the second level before we left, but my best time is over ten minutes and that's way above qual time.

Todd Torgath is sad we're leaving Junira Loresh too, but Lukas doesn't care. He says he doesn't want to be anywhere near the Sand Riders.

Lyta

*****

25 Autumn, 1916

Lukas and I ran away again. He planned much better this time. We took more food and water. Todd didn't come with us, though. He says he likes the Sand Riders too much. But Lukas hates them because they kidnapped us from the bus. I told Lukas I didn't want to leave because I was training for the B'ti, but he said that was stupid. He said that I'm supposed to be a gymnast and compete in the Olympics, not some stupid sand rat competition. I told him not to call the Sand Riders sand rats, but he didn't listen to me.

So now we're gone again. I still don't know how far it is to the edge of the desert, but Lukas said he looked at some maps and knows. I hope Amaraa and Bestha aren't too mad that I left. They're really nice and Amaraa was coaching me for the B'ti, but Lukas says that they're brainwashing me. He says that they're trying to make me forget my real parents and I don't want to forget Mom and Father.

The desert is so big away from the Bathani. When you're in the tents, you can pretend that it's only as big as the tribe, but when you're by yourself it stretches all the way to the horizons. It's good that I have Luk because I'd never survive by myself.

Oh, yeah, it's my birthday today. Happy 15, Lyta. You've had better.

Lyta

*****

28 Autumn, 1916

They brought us back again. Jonas said they sent riders out when they realized we were missing. He said they didn't care so much that Lukas had gone but that they needed to bring me back because I'm Bachanned and that means I'm of the blood.

I thought Bestha and Amaraa would be so mad, but they weren't. They were sad. Bestha cried, and Amaraa didn't say anything, he just looked like Father after Mom died. I heard him talking to Bestha when they thought I couldn't hear them. He said that they failed because they weren't good enough parents for me. That made me want to throw up. I don't want them to fail. Even if they're not my real parents, they're nice people and they take care of me and I don't want Bestha to cry. I told them I'd never run away again even if Lukas asks me to.

Lyta

*****

31 Autumn, 1916

Amaraa says I need a better coach. He says that it's been too long since he used to do the B'ti and that he was never that great at it anyway. He said that Grenden used to be really good at the B'ti and won lots of honour for the Bathani and maybe he'll teach me. But I think really Amaraa is still sad than I ran away with Lukas and he doesn't want to teach me anymore. I'd still let Amaraa teach me if he wanted, even if he's not as good as Grenden. But he doesn't want to.

I'm trying to be a good student for Grenden, but he's not really used to coaching, so it's hard. But I train and train. If I keep working on the B'ti'atta, I can concentrate hard enough that I forget I ran away with Lukas and brought shame to Amaraa and Bestha.

My arms feel so tired. They never used to feel so tired when I was doing gymnastics. Jonas says it's because I let the muscles rest for too long and I need to train again to build them back up. I should never have stopped training. Stupid arms.

Lyta

*****

40 Autumn, 1916

We came to a city today that the Bathani used to trade with, but it's been completely destroyed by the CEF. There's no one there anymore at all. It looked like nobody lives there but ghosts. It was scary and sad all at the same time. I hope Baja doesn't look like that. Lukas says that of course it doesn't and that there are still people in Baja. I want the CEF to leave. I hate them.

Lyta





Heavy Gear Roleplaying Game

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