Exiled to a Lesser World Ch. 04-10

EXILED TO A LESSER WORLD 4-10

EXILED TO A LESSER WORLD 4

When I woke next it was early morning, with the sun just starting thru the opposite wall slit. I saw Anita across the way asleep wrapped up on a couch. I wondered if I needed it to get up until I looked under the cover and saw I was hooked up to take care of bodily needs. I guess my stirring woke Anita.

She quickly got up and checked on me. After she asked how I felt, she ran a few checks and tests on me. As she finished, she announced, "You are healing well, but Dr. Creeds will be here today to check on you and he planned on reinstalling your BMID today".

After she checked the condition of my arm and leg she told me we had time to eat before the doctor got here.

"Before I cook something would you like to move to a different position or a chair?" she asked. "Yes, I would like to be in the chair if I can. Would it be safe?" I asked.

"There is no reason for you not to. The more you move the faster you heal and the fewer side effects you have later. Why most of my patients are up roving around as soon as the anesthesia wears off." she said with a smile.

"Your patients are up roving around as soon as the anesthesia wears off. You said. What is roving? I don't remember what that is?" I asked confused. "I'm beginning to believe you don't remember much at all. I'm a Veterinarian trainee in my last year. I'm in my surgical rotation right now. So my patents do get up as soon as they can. So you understand roving now?" she said with a gleeful laugh.

"Yes, I understand now. Ah ah is Dr. Creeds your Veterinary instructor?" I asked hesitantly.

Laughing again, she said, "No, he's the doctor over this area around the village. Luckily he was here as quickly as he was. Let's move you to the chair."

With quite a little to-do I was helped to move to a chair with an improvised arm and leg rest installed. The chair had large locking wheels on it. After I was seated Anita rolled me over by the door. As she was rolling me she said, "I'll dilate the door so you can get a little sun, but till we get a way down to the ground you can't go out."

But when the door opened, there was a new-looking ramp stretching to the ground with an intertwined vine-looking wooden handrail on the side away from my bad arm. "Did you contact Drago yesterday?" she asked, but when she saw my confusion she added, "Drago, is your "Tree's" name.

"No, he contacted me and we did have a mental conversation after the "Tree" explained what he was, but I wasn't told his name." as I said this I heard in my head "Sorry!" "It was very simple as I didn't know about him and we said our manners to each other. We didn't talk about anything like this." I waved at the ramp with my good arm.

"Well, he must have talked to the other "Trees" to have the information about how to help you to have made this ramp for you. And you had said you just coexisted, before when I asked about him. But that was long before the accident too." she softly informed me.

"When we brought you here after the accident he wasn't very hospitable to us, you included. Maybe you worked out things while you were under. The drugs didn't stop you from thinking and understanding commands and conversations." she wondered thoughtfully out loud.

With that, she rolled me outside onto the shaded lawn and asks "you think you'll be OK out here, while I fix us something to eat?'

"Yes, I can look around and see if I see anything to jog my memory," I said and then asked, "I can call you if I need anything, can't I?"

"Yes, you can just holler if you need me" as she went up the ramp into Drago.

I started looking at the view. Part of it was mostly normal from what I had seen before, but the rest wasn't anything like I'd seen or heard about before.

Drago stood on top of a wide multi-terraced hill with cliffs on either side. Looking to the bottom of the hill was a small waterfall tumbling over a seemingly naturally dammed river, about 50 feet wide, on the right. The river was pooled at the edge of my vision on the left, where its view was blocked by one of the other cliffs. In the middle area was the purplish-blue running water of the river.

The terraces were planted with different crops and small trees. I didn't know what they were. Scattered thru the fields were clumps of flowering plants and vines in arbores. There were also pens of animals I had never seen before; there were also pigs, sheep, and pairs of oxen.

There were no flowers close to Drago, just a low ground cover or grass, I noted.

Closer to Drago backed up to the cliff on the right that rose about 65' were coops of squawking birds. There was also what was like a barn front coming out of the hillside.

This would have been like a thousand other pictures of old-time farms I had seen in books, videos, or pictures, but the colors and shades of everything and some of the animals in sight were very different.

The sky was a pale light peach or orange hue. The sun was the same color, but slightly darker.

All the plants were all colors of reddish-brown or with a few shaded blue-green plants. Drago's colors were shades of honey from deep dark to pale golden.

Flying overhead was reddish-orange birds, about the size of buzzards, but with elongated bodies with 4 wings. They were trying to catch smaller golden birds, which darted out of the way at the last second to evade them.

From one of the terraced areas, I could see short 4 legged creatures moving thru, but sometimes I would see them stand upright and look around mostly my way. I didn't feel a threat from them at all, but maybe a sense of confusion.

It didn't look close to normal to me, but it felt like it was normal here. I wondered what colors the clouds were, what a storm would be like here, and also what rain or snow would look like.

I continued to look around at my new home and tried to understand what I was seeing. Besides being so open and clean, both in the view and the smells, there weren't any signs of civilization on the land or sky.

Looking at everything engrossed with what I was seeing, my stomach rumbled loudly and I realized that food smells were now coming from Drago's direction. When I turned I saw Anita standing on the top of the ramp with a tray full of bowls and a pitcher watching me. She walked down the ramp and deposited it on a table behind me and started back of the ramp as she said, "I'll be right back and we can eat." She shortly returned with another tray, which she laid out on the table, and then moved me to the table.

On the table were dishes of an extensive breakfast. There was what looked like scrambled eggs, some grilled meat, reddish cottage cheese, sliced fruits, and a loaf of sliced baked bread with a pot on its plate. "I think you can eat everything here, but the meat may give you a little trouble if it pulls too much on your face. Would you like me to fix you a plate or do it yourself?" She asked.

"Would you, it all looks good. Thank you for fixing it." I said. She made me a plate, which she cut up as she dished it up, with too much food I thought till I tasted it. She also poured a large mug of yellowish fluid from the pitcher, which when I tried was a form of tea. We ate in silence for a while till I started to finish my plate.

"This is very good. You're a very good cook" I said, which was not the right thing to say from the look on her face. "That's not what you told your cronies at the pub. "QUOTE Anita should stick to feeding her animals. They don't know any better what good food is and isn't. END QUOTE." Or don't you remember saying that?

"No! I don't remember saying something so hateful about you. I also don't remember a pub or cronies. But I'm sorry I did." I spoke as clearly as I could. Then added, "If I do in the future you whack me upside the head, Good side only, as I owe you at least that much."

After staring at me for a long minute, Anita laughing said, "If I only knew you would start acting human I'd have dragged you out to a kitten Snuffle-Ripper and let it wake you up and not be the so-and-so that you were. I'll give you that."

EXILED TO A LESSER WORLD 5

Behind me, I heard, "I didn't expect laughter here, more like an armed truce at best with your histories." "How is my patent doing Anita?" asked Dr. Creeds, smiling, as he walked into my sight.

"Steve is doing well with no problems or setbacks, but his memory is not returning. I think he is ready to start doing more. I told him what you wanted to do today." answered Anita

Dr. Creeds asked me if we could do his examination here or go inside. I told him here was fine.

He checked my leg first and he told me it was healing well and with the "Bone Knitter" he had injected into me the first night it should be healed to where I could walk on it unaided in about a week, but he was putting a light cast on it that would open and come off in about 7 days by its self.

Checking my head and face for a long time, he stated "Steve, I like the healing I'm seeing here. We got the bleeding stopped and you stitched up quickly, so there shouldn't be any lasting problems. However, the saliva you put on your head, neck, and side stopped or slowed the bleeding and caused minor changes in your features, voice, and your side. Your face and throat have stabilized into a new pattern and they will never be like they were before. I'm not going to bandage it again. A little salve would be better for it now. Have you seen your new face yet?"

"No, I didn't know anything had changed, but I don't think I remember my face from before," I answered. "So I guess this will be something else I have to learn." I continued.

"You're taking this well, so far", Said Dr. Creeds. Then he said," Let's take you inside and check everything else".

He started rolling me inside thru the open doorway. Once inside he carefully removed the bandage from my arm and tested it. "The arm is healing well too. I'm going to do 3 things to it today.

First, we're going to put the BMID back into your arm before you heal too much for me to do it without too much pain.

Second I will re-inject you with a new dose of "Bone Knitter" to be sure that your arm isn't weaker than before the accident and it will help with your rehab.

Third I brought a harness for you to wear that will allow movement, but protect the arm. I want you to wear it for at least 2 weeks and then you can try working without it slowly and carefully. Any questions before I start?

Isn't everything moving at an awfully fast pace? I've only been a little over a week since the accident and already it seems like I'm almost healed so far. Why so quick? "I questioned.

"Yes, your right. Normally your healing would take much longer, but the saliva and the drugs we quickly gave you have sped up your healing to an amazing rate. I don't know why, but I am happy about it and I will be checking to see if this is an unknown fact about the saliva or a fluke with you. In two months you should be back to your pre-accident health barring unseen problems."

"OK, what about my side? I asked. "I will do your side after I can get your arm moved out of the way to better examine it. OK?" the doctor answered. "Yes, go ahead. I just wondered. Thank you." I said.

After a shot, which cooled my entire arm and left it feeling like it wasn't there anymore. The Doctor and Anita worked on me for the next 45 minutes. Part way thru Dr. Creeds told me I would feel a little pulling on my side. My side went cool too. In the end, they sat me up fully and worked at putting me in a t-shirt with one long-sleeve-like brace.

"Well, we're all done and everything went great. I checked your side and it is healing very well too. By the way, as I checked you I checked all your stitches and they are starting to show signs of dissolving too. They should be entirely gone in about three weeks both the inside and outside stitches"

"I put a special bandage on your side. It has a chemical sensor in it, if the area started to heat up from an infection it will let you know. It doesn't need to be changed again. In about 4 weeks it will slough off by its self.

Showers, baths, quite calm working out, and some sun light would be helpful and won't cause any problems. Your arm is in the special harness, which has the same limitations as the bandage IE none. Work with it, but don't push it too much." He explained to me.

"One last thing I'm going to do for you. I'm going to remove all the excess plumbing you're hooked up to and give you a crutch. Take it easy. You are healing fast; don't mess up all our hard work. OK? He said as he worked under the bottom covers. He was quickly finished, but not without a few tugs and pulls.

"Try moving around in here or just outside today. Do more every day. You'll heal faster that way." he stated.

"One last thing, I want to see you in the village on Friday next week in the morning, and then you'll pay for my lunch plus my bill. That is 10 days from now. If something happens send a message with Drago to Wilhelmina she will let me know and I'll be here ASAP.

Before he walked out the door he turned and said "You've had what the Elders would have called a "Reboot". Don't mess it up and make us sad about all we did for you. Also, everyone close to you knows you've lost your memory." He turned again and left.

After he left I sat thinking about what he and Anita had said about "my" past. What I could do to make life more workable.

Quite a while later Anita returned and asked, "How are you doing after the doctor's full-body assault?" "Physically I think I feel better, but mentally I feel beat up." I answered and added, "The doctor and you both have referred to my past not being that good and I heard things from Drago. She nodded in agreement.

"How about continuing the 5 W's," I asked.

"After you walk around the house as much as you can take. I'll help you up now," she answered. It wasn't as hard to get up and move around as I feared. The hardest part was using the crutch, but I quickly mastered that. I went around inside the house about three times before stopping.

I was even able to use the bathroom. It wasn't what I expected, which was a one-hole outside toilet. There was a wide niche cut "grown" I heard in my head" into the wall with a door that dilated open and closed. A wide wooden knob coming from the floor dilated open for my use and then closed. Afterward a flow of fluid started over in a basin in the wall for me to clean up. Looking at the mirror showed my puffy face reddened around the stitches and scrapes but mostly it was my face with a beard.

When I came out of the bathroom Anita invited me to sit on the couch and to put up my leg on a footstool. After I got comfortable she asked, "What do you want to know now?" "Everyone so far as I've seen doesn't seem to care for me or what I had done. Why?" I asked.

EXILED TO A LESSER WORLD 6

"I'll start at the beginning then. I want you to know before I start that if this backfires on me telling you all this I'll make you pay.

"I grew up on a farm about 3 miles from here; your parents were our family's closest neighbors. My family was my Mom, Pop, Keith, my older brother, Danny, my younger brother, and me." "Your family was just the opposite; your Mom, Pop, older sister, Jennie, younger sister Colene, and you."

"Our families helped each other, spent time together, and were extended families for each other. We had just been Pledged by our families. You were 10 and I was 8. Everyone was happy till your little sister and my baby brother were killed in an accident."

"It was just that an accident, but you didn't see it that way. Before the accident, your baby sister was always at your side. You would get kidded about your shadow, but you didn't care. Colene could do nothing wrong in your eyes."

"When they died you slowly mentally moved away from everyone, till you went to school in town. You met your village cronies and turned hard. We didn't know you anymore. As you got older the drinking and such started. You would disappear for days."

"Jennie married a man, Ben Turtle, from about 20 miles away. His father hauled goods from different places to here and he was his helper. Jennie and Ben had been Pledged for a long time. They wanted to live there after going back and forth for a while."

"You were old enough to take over the farm and wanted to. Your parents wanted to spend time with their grandbabies, so they moved with them after a couple of years. Your sister already had 2 babies when they moved. They have 3 now, last I heard."

"What about you and your family," I asked. "Keith wasn't Pledged, when he was young because he didn't like anyone around here. He wanted to move to the village and work with a potter, and be a Ceramicist. He lives with the potter and is married to, Britain, his daughter. They are happy.

Mom and Dad still run our farm. My brother and I help them during the planting and harvesting seasons. I stay with them most weekends. During the weekdays I am learning to be a Vet in the village."

Are you getting tired of being up and all this background prattle?" She asked.

"No, but I have a few questions" I answered. "What?," she asked.

"I guess they are: How did your brother and my sister die? Why are we still Pledged, if we don't like each other?" I asked.

"OK, no pulled punches from you is there?" she stated and then answered; "Kurt and Colene died when something spooked the ox that was hooked up to the cart they were playing in. The cart turned over into a ravine and crushed them."

"Why are we still Pledged? Because neither of us wanted someone else, and if you let a sleeping dog lie, everyone doesn't try to be a matchmaker. We went out of our way to annoy each other and to mostly stay away from each other." she answered.

"That is enough info for now. Why don't you slowly go outside to the roll-around chair and relax there? I'll bring you a little lunch out in a while." she said.

Nodding, I slowly got up and walked out of the house and down the ramp. I started toward the table and rolling chair but thought of trying to walk the short distance to what looked like a barn. Walking there even with a crutch wasn't very hard, because of a wide flattened walkway of a grass-covered path, and I took my time to look around as I walked.

Opening the door I was surprised at the contents. It was a natural cave that must have gone into the hillside a very long way because you could only see down the center of the barn as far as the light extended inside. The left side was taken up with grain bens, hay bens, and stalls. The right side was taken up with areas seemingly delegated for different types of work and storage. Everything appeared neat and orderly but showed much usage.

I left the door open and slowly walked along the right checking out the different work areas and going into each. They were: Closest to a sharpening / grinding space from the tools and hunting items laid on a bench covered with rags, A tanning/leather working space for the skins, scrapers, and tools laying covered on the work bench. An area to repair larger farming tools with some pieces of equipment partly dismantled. The last was a large wood working area. After the wood working was an area of pulled farm equipment parked seemingly ready to be hitched and used.

A heavily loaded cart full of plants and a light two-person cart were parked in the middle. The cave extended farther, but there was not enough light to see back there. I leaned on the wagon for a short time to check myself and my breathing. I was doing OK. This must be the cart load of Feel-well plants because I did feel better and calmer after sitting there a minute.

So I started back along the other side. Of the eight stalls, three of them had oxen in them and the others were cleaned and setup for usage. One stall held tack and such. There were hay bens almost full of bales of hay and other types of bales, and grain bens were about 3/4 full, by the sight glasses in the walls.