Behjopiray
Xanadu story universe |
This story is part of a series | |
Preceded by: | Dragon Dancer |
Behjopiray
Behjopiray is weirdly easy to write, compared to other characters... it's a nice change now and again.
Bored.
<<Nothing to do.>>
<Eat seagrass, chase fish, chase simple swimmers, eat small shelled ones, lie in sun…>
[And spy on the humans around Lake.]
Many humans. Many structures, structures ring Lake, shore sand spills into Lake, humans swim. Humans everywhere.
<Why hide? Could have fun with humans.>
<<Humans could build temple-home. Give offerings. Nectar, company, music. Could also play with Behjopiray? Young. Need entertainment.>>
[That could be fun. But these aren’t Home humans. They would probably just start screaming, and running, and then they would call for a sorcerer to kick me out…]
<Could move to different lake. Maybe similar lake, maybe big lake, maybe Okeechobee lake. Don’t want to yet.>
Humans here… much time in wheeled metal boxes. Boxes make poison filth in air. Home humans walk, use carts, ride simple ones.
[Even if these are like Home humans and can entertain… there are no my-kind here.]
<<False. My-kind elsewhere, distant, some back at Bad Place with bird-not-bird man-not-man god-not-god.>>
Won’t go back to Bad Place. Scary.
<My-kind also elsewhere. Scattered. But… do not feel like Home my-kind. Different. Strange.>
[They feel… sort of like humans. Very strange.]
<Yes. Strange. Might also scream, and run, and be bad. Do not want.>
<<Behjopiray is lonely.>>
True. Change that?
[How?!]
<<Simple swimming ones->>
[Alligators.]
<<-‘gators too simple, can’t play. Small shelled ones even simpler. Fishes, same. Humans… not Home humans.>>
[I could make friends with someone from the Bad Place, maybe. But… that place scares me. If I call for one, bad things might come instead. If I go there-]
Won’t. Bird-not-bird man-not-man god-not-god maybe get mad, peck out eyes.
<Not want. Still hide.>
Could make friends. Out of not-friends. Out of simple ones, out of humans.
<<Can Behjopiray do that?>>
[N- wait, actually… actually, I think I can. Huh. Well, I might as well. Otherwise I might start finding out what's in those human's structures. They're smaller than the ones near the Bad Place.]
<Biggest ‘gator… where?>
There. Sunning. Closer-
Lunge! Grasp! Struggling! Pain, bite!
<’Gator, be still! ‘Gator, quiet!>
<<Bleeding! Pain!>>
Change that.
[Much better. This is starting to look like something that’ll be a lot of trouble… still, it’s better than being bored.]
‘Gator big, still too small for old enough my-kind. Too small, shape too… gator-ish. Change that.
Hold in claws, careful.
<<Was-gator still too simple for friend. Can’t change that… can, but takes too long, too like raising young.>>
[I’m waaay too young to have a kid. Is anything smarter in the water? I don’t want to fly around looking for stuff. Not carrying this was-gator.]
<Human. There. Jumped off boat, swimming. Not Home-human. Too blobby, too pale. Doesn’t matter.>
Hold was-‘gator in six limbs, leave front arms free. Swim slow, swim careful.
[I’d rather not get bitten again.]
Swim under human. Does not see.
<<Problem. Front arms shortish. Awkward, grabbing up.>>
Problem? Not. Wait… wait…
<Behjopiray is patient. Not yet… wait… NOW!>
Lunge, up! Jaws gentle, careful around legs, feelers wrap around rest of body. Quick, sink down!
[Oops. Someone else was on that boat. Maybe they saw, maybe they didn’t. It doesn’t matter anyway.]
Ow - OW! Pain! Kicking, struggling. Ungrateful human. Might make bad friend. Will change that.
<<Must work fast. Humans not my-kind or gator, must breathe more often. Might drown. Do not want.>>
Human breathes out many bubbles, screams. Put feeler tip in human’s mouth. Human’s lungs filling with water. Change that.
<Now Behjopiray can take longer. Human, be still! Human, quiet!>
Carry away from boat. Center of lake. Can work now.
[This will be fun.]
<First, Behjopiray needs air. Human needs air. Was-gator needs air.>
Up… breathe. Move human’s mouth to surface, take feeler out.
Human breathes. Put feeler back in, move was-gator nose to surface.
Was-gator breathes. Sink. Down, down… center.
<<Human, one. Was-gator, other. Two, different.>>
Change that.
[Ew. That’s really ugly. Mismatched skin, layers of thick fat, patchy hair and scales, four asymmetrical bulging eyes, and that mouth… It looks nothing like my-kind. And its hearts and blood don’t work well together or with its body.]
Change that. Better.
Looks more like human-gator than like Behjopiray. Change that?
<A little bit. Make hair into mane, make limbs thinner, longer. Small horns, prettier snout, better tail. No feelers, no hair-tufts.>
Done. Better. Has eight limbs. Four arms, four legs. Change that?
<<Change that. Smaller than Behjopiray, only needs six limbs to walk.>
Done. Four arms, two legs. New friend starting to look better.
[The ‘gator was male, and the human was not. What’s a better friend, male or female?]
<Male.>
<<Female.>>
Neither. Won’t change that. Works fine as is.
<<New friend feels like two. Gator, human. Separate.>>
Change that. Better. Tiring… must rest soon.
<New friend not Chosen like Behjopiray, can’t change or hover. Still, every foot, five claws.>
[That’s not right. Only Chosen like me, gifted, should have five on a limb.]
Change that… smallest claw, gone. So tired.
Ah! New friend pulled away, swimming away fast. Too weary to chase.
<Oops. Forgot to make new friend feel friendly.>
<<Can find new friend, do that later. Rest now.>>
[That was fun. Tomorrow, after we’ve made friends, I should try again.]