I, Klado: Disgraced
After a close escape (i.e., kidnapping) from Gat Er, Thackau Ru, with Klado in tow, emerges on Fex Er to recharge their transponder.
If you haven’t had a chance to read If I Ruled the World, start here.
As soon as my head stopped spinning, the sulfurous air, thick with the smell of rotten eggs, made me retch. The blue stranger, still there, leaned over me, his face gaunt, giving way to his obvious displeasure. Of the vomit or something else, I was not sure. “We won’t be here long,” he said, patting my back. “Just long enough to recharge.”
His touch made my skin crawl, and his demeanor, cantankerous and crass, rankled my already frayed nerves. Furious, I balled up my fist and punched that retched old man as hard as I could. It was a classic uppercut. He tumbled back, hitting his head on the hard rock floor. It made an awful thud. Was he dead? It did not matter—I had to protect my people.
I ran in the opposite direction, but nothing looked familiar. Where was my compound? Where was the forest? I looked up. Smoke, the color of rust, filled the air.
There must have been an explosion.
I kept running under the fiery skies across great lengths of loose rock. I did not stop until a wide, flat pathway stretched out before me and disappeared into a broad burnished horizon. I walked a great distance on its smooth black surface before the skies cleared and I saw any people. They stumbled out like drunks from among the groves of trees and fields of grain that flanked the road on either side. Like frightened statues, they gawked at me as if I were the strange one. Their skin, brown like the trunks of trees, bronze like the loamy earth, and taupe like the centers of roots, was so odd. One dared to come close. Although his eyes appeared kind, the words that came out of his mouth made no sense, so I ran again. They chased after me, calling to me in their alien tongue, but I outran them.
Who knew that I, Klado, could be so strong?
I was not powerful enough, though, to outrun their motorized vehicles. They gouged the black surface as they skidded to a stop—two in front and one behind. They clamored out, hemming me in, but they too did not look angry. Exhausted, I held up my hands in surrender. One approaching cautiously, touched me with a silver disk.
I woke up alone in a room sterile and cold, with my clothes neatly folded on a chair beside the bed. With trembling hands, I raised the sheet and groaned.
Though my mother had warmed up to me, she was clueless about how to guide me and left me to learn life skills on my own. I had a hard time of it for our clan rituals were all based on sex. At only two or three cycles, children were already learning gender-specific tasks: girls gardening and cooking, boys hunting and fighting. I often wandered around my father’s compound, not knowing where to go. I would watch the boys until they threw rocks at me. Then, reluctantly, I followed the girls. They were more accepting, but I did not feel like a girl. I was taller than most of them. I did not feel like a boy either, especially when they made fun of me.
When I was about eight cycles and wearing the short breeches and cropped tunic of a youth, I watched at a distance as the older boys fought their mock battles. Their displays of strength captivated me. I admired the way their muscles bulged as they accomplished various feats. I envied their bodies that grew taller and stronger with each passing cycle.
My oldest brother took notice of my curiosity and sneered. “Do you want to learn how to fight?”
I nodded, then rushed to stand before him with fists balled and arms extended. Before I knew it, I was face down in the dirt.
The other boys, emboldened by my swift defeat, yanked off my breeches, exposing my sexless-ness for everyone to see. The entire village exploded in outrage and mockery.
That day, I vowed never to suffer such humiliation again.
Who in this strange territory had seen me and left me exposed?
The sting of their contempt and or indifference lingered long after I dressed. It followed me across the room to a window that looked out over rows and rows of magnificent green plants and multi-colored flowers. I took a breath and let my shoulders relax until a buzzing sound behind me, like the tiny birds from the treetops of my compound, sent shivers down my spine.
I spun around.
A person appeared out of thin air.
At first, they startled me. Then I realized it was only that annoying blue man, the one who brought me to this bewildering place. At least I had not killed him.
He moved towards me hesitantly, his frail hands lifted and outstretched.
I stepped back. Each time someone touched me, I ended up in some place I did not know.
He pulled an armband from his cloak and held it up. It resembled the one he had on, though thinner and less decorated. He gestured for me to put it on. I snatched it from him and snapped it into place. It made my head spin, but then I heard his words in my language.
“Son, are you okay? These damn fools sterilize first and ask questions later.” He glanced down at my groin. “Did they operate on you?”
Clenching my teeth, I shook my head. Then I glared at him. “I am not your son. I am Klado.”
He nodded, though surely not with full understanding. “I am Thackau Ru,” he said.
I sat listlessly on the side of the bed and listened to his crude yet remarkable tale. He said was a Traveler from a planet called Hermine Er, and that Travelers were exceptional humans charged with maintaining a delicate balance of justice within the Theda galaxy. He said my enslavement would have upset that balance and that is why he rescued me. Now I was free to live my life, not bound to another in slavery.
He reached for my shoulder. “We need to leave this place.”
I flinched, for though I had no choice but to believe him, I certainly did not trust him.
He withdrew. “I know I did not ask the first time, but will you come with me?” He looked around and wrinkled his nose. “Away from here. These people will not give you the freedom to be yourself.”
“And where do you intend to take me?”
“I promise,” he said as he placed his hand on my shoulder. “I will take you to a place where there is hope.”
What a fascinating character Klado is! It's wonderful to learn more about how he became a Traveller... 😎
Really captivating writing, Kim.