Read Online Essentially Human by Maureen O. Betita - Free Book Online
Authors: Maureen O. Betita
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have.”
Sam rose and went with her.
“Why drug her?” He wouldn’t mince words.
“Once she recovered enough to walk and listen, she seemed settled. Days would pass and she’d talk to us. Then one day, in the dining area, she grew angry, then frantic and violent. She ran and hid from us. We’d find her, asleep. She’d wake up and apologize, and couldn’t explain what drove her. The day I found her trying to hurt herself, I had to take action. I asked for permission and she not only granted it, she pled with me to assist her. I am pledged to heal. I synthesized a sedative of sorts and she gratefully took it.”
“She needed a therapist.” He shook his head, as the realization that he believed everything she’d told him. That woman was Rachel Inez Aster and she’d killed herself twenty six years ago. No wonder her brain was so fucked up.
“As I understand the concept, I’m certain you are right. We had no access to such a specialist. The Aleena do not suffer from strong emotions or complex relationships that muddle the mind. Ria told you we don’t lie. The concept is difficult for us to grasp. T’talin skirts the edge. He and I have debated the rational of hiding the truth for the greater good. Excuse me, I digress. Regarding Ria, the only information I have to work from regarding human psychology is in the books we recover. They are incomplete, I’m sure of this.”
He nodded, understanding the limitations. He’d seen the list of books the first Hammer gave them, then the next and now the current. They carefully kept the aliens ignorant of the world around them, shipping books on chemistry, language, science books, physics and human biology. Nothing on psychology, nothing on technology or the communication revolution. Nothing on modern history or environmental science. And nothing on modern psychology.
No wonder they were so ignorant and didn’t understand that Ria danced on the edge of emotional collapse.
“T’talin said she no longer receives the drugs.”
“It’s been nearly two years. There has been no reoccurrence of the panic, but she falls into exhaustion when upset. I’ve tested her and can find no physiological reason for it.”
“It’s called being human and denying herself the normal outlets left her with no recourse. I’ve seen the records, as you term it, of when she was this same age, before…” He stopped and turned to look at Milaar. “Why did you reverse her age? I’m not going to ask how, I’m sure I wouldn’t understand. I want to know why?”
“Part of the healing process included finding and restoring the physical balance of when her body reached the state between growing up and growing old. This decision wasn’t taken lightly, but she continued to fight the healing and I did what I felt was necessary to strengthen her. Since she accepted, she ages, albeit slower than she did.”
“How much slower?”
“Approximately one year for every three. At present, her body has aged five years in the fifteen since she recovered.” Milaar set a hand on his arm. “You have seen records?”
“Yes, those who loved and honored her put together a compilation of her life. I studied it as I tried to unravel who she was. She laughed, her eyes sparkled and she smiled often. She cried when receiving awards, danced with abandon. The woman lived each day. There are even encounters with people she disagreed with and her anger is easy to read. What I see now is blank. By stifling her emotions, you bottle them up. If she is anything like the woman she once was, it must be killing her, inside.” He surprised himself at what he remembered from those recordings.
His bluntness seemed to get through to Milaar, whose head bowed. “I see. I have much to consider.”
They walked in silence to the dining room, where he selected a bowl of cereal flavored squares and sat, eating them as he reflected again on what he’d learn. How much should he share with T’talin?
Not long after
Sam rose and went with her.
“Why drug her?” He wouldn’t mince words.
“Once she recovered enough to walk and listen, she seemed settled. Days would pass and she’d talk to us. Then one day, in the dining area, she grew angry, then frantic and violent. She ran and hid from us. We’d find her, asleep. She’d wake up and apologize, and couldn’t explain what drove her. The day I found her trying to hurt herself, I had to take action. I asked for permission and she not only granted it, she pled with me to assist her. I am pledged to heal. I synthesized a sedative of sorts and she gratefully took it.”
“She needed a therapist.” He shook his head, as the realization that he believed everything she’d told him. That woman was Rachel Inez Aster and she’d killed herself twenty six years ago. No wonder her brain was so fucked up.
“As I understand the concept, I’m certain you are right. We had no access to such a specialist. The Aleena do not suffer from strong emotions or complex relationships that muddle the mind. Ria told you we don’t lie. The concept is difficult for us to grasp. T’talin skirts the edge. He and I have debated the rational of hiding the truth for the greater good. Excuse me, I digress. Regarding Ria, the only information I have to work from regarding human psychology is in the books we recover. They are incomplete, I’m sure of this.”
He nodded, understanding the limitations. He’d seen the list of books the first Hammer gave them, then the next and now the current. They carefully kept the aliens ignorant of the world around them, shipping books on chemistry, language, science books, physics and human biology. Nothing on psychology, nothing on technology or the communication revolution. Nothing on modern history or environmental science. And nothing on modern psychology.
No wonder they were so ignorant and didn’t understand that Ria danced on the edge of emotional collapse.
“T’talin said she no longer receives the drugs.”
“It’s been nearly two years. There has been no reoccurrence of the panic, but she falls into exhaustion when upset. I’ve tested her and can find no physiological reason for it.”
“It’s called being human and denying herself the normal outlets left her with no recourse. I’ve seen the records, as you term it, of when she was this same age, before…” He stopped and turned to look at Milaar. “Why did you reverse her age? I’m not going to ask how, I’m sure I wouldn’t understand. I want to know why?”
“Part of the healing process included finding and restoring the physical balance of when her body reached the state between growing up and growing old. This decision wasn’t taken lightly, but she continued to fight the healing and I did what I felt was necessary to strengthen her. Since she accepted, she ages, albeit slower than she did.”
“How much slower?”
“Approximately one year for every three. At present, her body has aged five years in the fifteen since she recovered.” Milaar set a hand on his arm. “You have seen records?”
“Yes, those who loved and honored her put together a compilation of her life. I studied it as I tried to unravel who she was. She laughed, her eyes sparkled and she smiled often. She cried when receiving awards, danced with abandon. The woman lived each day. There are even encounters with people she disagreed with and her anger is easy to read. What I see now is blank. By stifling her emotions, you bottle them up. If she is anything like the woman she once was, it must be killing her, inside.” He surprised himself at what he remembered from those recordings.
His bluntness seemed to get through to Milaar, whose head bowed. “I see. I have much to consider.”
They walked in silence to the dining room, where he selected a bowl of cereal flavored squares and sat, eating them as he reflected again on what he’d learn. How much should he share with T’talin?
Not long after
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