Episode 309: In The Bayou, Part Three

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Arden: Will Reverend Jim try to contact people tonight? Do we have to go back to the settlement tonight?

Nika explains that the Reverend has a transmitter that works better on the full moon, which is still a week away. She explains that there are apparently a couple of large towns that might have what we need or at least be in communication with yet larger towns that might have what we need. The other option, and it’s not a great one, is actually lifting off from here and set off in the general direction of the settlements and put down somewhere outside it. It’s navigating by the seat of your pants, by sight, but not like she can’t do it.

Joshua: What do they want to trade?
Nika: They’d really like ammo and explosives—
Rina: So would I.
Nika: Knives.
Rick: I suppose they’d like medical supplies and knives. Or anything knife-like.
Rina: I could craft up a whole ton of knives.
Rick: Well, that’s maybe one of the things we can do.
Rina: I think I have some carbon steel…
Joshua: So, a basic sort of village. A small village?
Nika: Yeah. An average little village. One that apparently has a voodoo queen.
Joshua: A … voodoo queen….
Rina: A what?!

Yeah. With zombies. Zombies! Which Rick is willing to say are simply people affected by the TSE.

Nika: Walkin’ dead people.
Rina: What?!

They give her and Joshua the short version. The village has a voodoo queen named Queenie. She has zombies who could merely be people infected by the TSE. She had left the town and traveled to the Core and by all accounts came back changed. Corrupted and ooky and all. She takes the young girls once they reach womanhood age for a short period of time and they return different, too. Rina wants to know what the woman is doing to them. The Reverend has the only working transmitter. Oh, yeah and the Reverend thinks Rick is an instrument of God’s will.

Oh, is that all? How nice.

Fine. Rina just hopes these people don’t play banjos. That’s all she’s sayin’. Arden just wants to know if the Reverend and Queenie both worship a Power higher than they are, is the Power they both worship the same Power, the same thing? Rina begs him not to go there, she has a headache.

Joshua: Can we meet this voodoo queen?
Rina: What?!
Joshua: Listen to me. Somebody who went to the Core and came back with powers? I want to meet her. I want to know if I’m like, you know…

Like her.

Nika: You’re just not pretty enough to be a queen, I’m sorry.
Rina: I can tell you his man parts work just fine.
Nika: Oh, thank you for sharing. And oversharing.

This is the first time Rick’s heard of this and he shakes his head, not quite able to picture it. Joshua eyerolls and shakes his head, too. And of course, Rick has to cover his embarrassment by suggesting Rina and Queenie getting it on, which only brings Joshua back to meeting Queenie.

Joshua: I would like to meet her, though. I think it would be…um…

Nika’s quick to point out that despite her reputation, Queenie might very well be sane. Or at least not any more sane or insane than the people hereabouts. Nika also suggests that she may be treating people with TSE, which might explain the presence of so-called zombies in her company. Rina asks if Queenie is gaslighting the rest of the inhabitants into thinking she’s a voodoo queen. It’s not certain but it does get people to leave her alone, don’t it? At which point Arden insists that these people have their own lives and their own culture and we cannot impose our values on theirs. Rina opines they’re welcome to it, thanks, while the rest insist we’re not out to impose anything. Rick says he’s interested in meeting Queenie too. Not because he wants to overthrow Queenie and her powerful voodoo magic. He just wants to know what’s going on. Okay, granted. Arden ventures if she does have a way of treating TSE, then he’s interested. Rick adds that for all we know Queenie might have a way to communicate with a full-blown city—not just the little villages in the immediate area. Why not explore the options?

Besides, Arden adds. It’s been three months since we’ve seen a Companion. We’re due.

Which completely throws Joshua. What? Is there some, like, quota we have to meet or something? Queenie? A Companion? Really? Nika reminds all of us that Queenie went to the Core and came back changed. In addition to all of that, she’s taking the women and may in fact be teaching them things like birth control. After all, a Companion wouldn’t go ignorant about such things and such knowledge might very well be sufficient to earn her the label of ‘strange’, ‘changed’ and ‘corrupted’ by the locals.

By this point we’ve settled in the near-dark passenger lounge and Arden wonders why we haven’t turned the power back on? Nika 86’s the idea, stating that as long as we’re in the neighborhood, we’re following the rules. Rules state no power, to avoid the plague. Joshua asks if the plague is ants, and if so, then we got them. Rina backs him up, saying they’re already all over the ship, that the ants like anything that holds a charge.

Joshua: It’s really weird, actually. Nika: Why?
Joshua: I mean, do ants usually go after electronics? Or like electricity?
Nika: Well, do turtles sit around with sugar cane on their back?
Joshua: They’re kinda cool.

---

OOC INFORMATION: Yes. A variety called Crazy Raspberry Ants actually do go after power sources and have already infested around eleven counties in Texas, USA. They are named after Tom Raspberry, an exterminator who originally discovered them.

---

As far as contacting Queenie….

Joshua: Do we have a plan? We should have a plan.
Nika: We’ve always done better without one.
Joshua: (extremely doubtful) Really.
Nika: (affirmative) Hmm-mmm
Rina: What do you need?
Joshua: To be honest? I’d say that, from what you’re saying, our goal is to contact some town down the way. And we should not be talking to this Queenie person because all that’s gonna do is piss off the Reverend and piss off the villagers, which would screw our communication line.
Nika: Assuming—
Joshua: Uh-huh.
Nika: That we want to head for a larger town.
Joshua: Uh-huh.
Nika: You want to go see Queenie but, you know, assuming really that our goal is to get out of here, I could just lift off.
Joshua: Really?
Nika: Yeah, really.
Rina: All you need to do is fly in atmo and we’ll be fine. See and avoid.
Joshua: You’re the pilot. You know better than I do.
Nika: As long as we take off in the daylight, we’ll be mostly okay, but...it’s gonna be ugly. If we do that.

The conversation drifts to the bridge and looking out the windows we can see what appears to be the light off a torch approaching our ship. It’s on top of one of the turtles. Nika sees, sighs, and turns around for the passenger lounge.

Nika: Who wants to go outside and investigate the turtle with the torch.

She gets several immediate answers.

Rick: (serious) I will.
Rina: (resigned) I’ll go.
Joshua: Oh, I gotta see this.
Arden: Investigate a turtle with a torch? Uhmmmmm…..everybody wants to see the turtle with the torch.
Joshua: The turtles were pretty cool to begin with. Now they’ve got a torch. There’s no way that that’s not cool.
Arden: Yes, the turtles are the true masters of the planet.
Joshua: Why not?

Rick is first out the top hatch and turning around to help the next person up, he gets the sense that there’s someone else already on top of our ship. It’s full dark and it’s hard to see and Rick has to call out:

Rick: Queenie. It that you?

Looking down the length of the ship, standing between the two engines, practically on top of our radio transmitter is the figure of a man. He appears to be almost glowing in the moonlight, covered in a light-colored paint or clay, with other markings superimposed on top. He’s holding what appears to be a machete. Nika comments as she pokes her head through the hatch.

Nika: Tell me again why we came out here without rifles?
Rina: Speak for yourself.

Because Rina’s always wearing her pistol, Rina’s next out the hatch to back-up Rick and Nika’s ducking back down two decks and going to the arms’ locker. Joshua joins us on the hull.

The ghostly painted man just stands there. Arden’s up next. With all three of us up there we’ve got three pairs of eyes to look around. Rina eyes the man on our hull, not liking the fact this stranger is practically on top of our comm equipment. Arden and Rick cast their eyes outward and see that the turtle with a torch had come closer, close enough to make out another male figure like the one on our hull is actually holding the torch. Another figure, smaller and female stands beside him and from what she’s wearing and made up with, there’s no doubt in anyone’s minds that Queenie has come to pay us a visit.

Arden shines his flashlight over and Rick calls out to her.

Rick: Hello…!

The sound of a rattle travels clearly across the water. The zombie, for want of a better word, standing on our hull does not react.

Joshua: That’s awesome. This is the best time—this is the kind of trip I’d wanted to make the last time…

The flashlight seems to hurt the eyes of the zombie on the turtle—not surprising: it’s full dark and anyone would flinch, zombie or not. Arden addresses the zombie and Queenie.

Arden: I…guess you’re welcome to come aboard. Do you want us to throw you a rope?

Queenie and her attendant do not answer but get into a small flatboat tied alongside the turtle and take themselves off to a bit of dry land a little ways off. Their intention is clear: we’ll meet you here.

Nika scrambles up through the hatch and we quickly agree that some folk have to stay and keep an eye on the ship and the zombie on her hull while others go and parlay with Queenie. Rina speaks right up that she’s staying—because, hello! Zombie on the hull! Nika isn’t willing to leave the twitchiest crewmember alone and armed and confronting a zombie—she elects to stay behind. That leaves the menfolk to parlay—which suits them fine. All are eager to go.

Rina: Okay. Boys, go play.
Rick: Nika, I recommend closing the hatch when we leave.
Rina: (muttering) Damn straight, yeah.

The men get down to the water and slosh forward toward Queenie and her attendant. The water gets chest high at one point but the men plow on. On dry land, Queenie starts a small fire burning and throws something on it that makes it sparkle in different colors. The zombie on the hull just watches the events unfold with a slack jaw, Nika watches along with him, and Rina watches everything she can slap her eyes on.

Queenie is vocalizing in a strange language. Joshua catches some Creole, but nothing much else.

The men drag up onto her shore. The zombie with Queenie is armed with a pole hook. Queenie doesn’t seem to be armed at all—but as a voodoo Queen, does she really need to be packing?

She cuts a strange figure. Her hair is straggling over her shoulders in semi-dreds, with things stuck through them here and there. She’s wearing a loose dress. She’s semi-crouching and she looks up at Arden as he draws near.

Arden: (politely) You must be Queenie.

No response. Not polite enough?

Arden: Um…Ms. Queenie? Madame Queenie?

Queenie cuts him a look, an animalistic gonna-eat-you-for-dinner look. When she finally speaks, her voice is quiet and thready and barely rises above the ambient noise of the swamp.

Queenie: Ahhhhh….. Back from the White Sun….the White Sun reveals much, but the shadows of the White Sun hide even more…..

She moves with sinuous serpentine grace and tilts her head, lizard-like, at Arden.

Queenie: A man…hiding from his own people….
Arden: O-kay….

And Arden takes a cautious step back, now, thank you. Queenie eases forward and takes up Arden’s hand. She examines it closely, as if gauging how much flesh Arden has on his bones. While she’s so close, Arden does a visual sweep of her, checking for signs of TSE. She does appear to have some symptoms. She hums her next word musingly, her verbal expression almost dreamy, yet faintly menacing.

Queenie: Hmmmm. Are you a cutter of flesh and bone?

Odd description. Arden’s not quite sure how to take that.

Arden: Um, I am a doctor…?
Queenie: Hmmmm. And they told you that would work, didn’t they? But there’s some things that can’t be fixed that way.

Her tone is almost amused. Almost. And then it becomes assertive.

Queenie: Aren’t there?

It’s less a question and more a challenge.

Arden: (drawing it out) Yeah…? ….Why…?

She goes soft again.

Queenie: Don’t be afraid.
Arden: You’re pretty scary.
Queenie: You shouldn’t be afraid of me.
Arden: Okay.
Queenie: (whispers) They can’t find you here.
Arden: Good to know. ( A beat) Who are ‘they’?
Queenie: Ones who are trying to kill you.

AWKWEIRD!

Arden: Okay. (points to Joshua and Rick) You need to talk to this person over here, now.
Queenie: But it’s safe to stay here. My medicines, my magic is better. Better for us all.
Arden: (backing off) Okay. Lovely.

Queenie looks over at Rick and Joshua and puzzles for a minute. She hums her ‘hmmmm’ again, speculatively. Her gaze sharpens on Joshua.

Queenie: Hmmmm. Was it an accident that you crashed your ship here?
Joshua: I wasn’t the one driving.
Queenie: Hmmmm.
Joshua: You’ve got fantastic technique.
Queenie: What do you mean?
Joshua: I wish I could do it like you could.

Joshua’s frankly admiring, his voice almost hushed with awe. Fascinated. And Queenie looks at him.

Joshua: Where in the Core?
Queenie: Where…?
Joshua: Where.
Queenie: Hmmmm. I was at… the Seat of Isis. To learn my craft. (A beat) But I learned more here.
Joshua: (quietly) What did you learn?
Queenie: I learned…the names of the Orishas…the Loa…the way that…energy flows. It is better this way.
Joshua: Than what?
Queenie: Hmmmm. Clean. Sterile. Mental and plastic. Slicing through sinew and flesh. You can’t carve out the good and the bad.
Joshua: Some would think they could.
Queenie: Ahmmmmmm….Just carve out more space for both.
Joshua: You really should talk to Faria.

Rick inserts himself cautiously into the conversation.

Rick: So…
Joshua: (looking at Rick) What?
Rick: Ah…I’ve got….(A beat) Never mind.

Right. Joshua turns back to Queenie.

Joshua: (curious) What do you want from us?
Queenie: Hmm. Well, you are in my lands, so really….

She gestures with a twist of her wrist: turn the question around, little man.

Joshua: So, what do we want from you?
Queenie: You probably want to leave.
Rick: We’d like to repair our ship.

Rick’s found his tongue again. Queenie’s hum turns speculative again.

Queenie: Hmm.
Joshua: I want to know how you keep them from finding you.
Queenie: Keep… them? They’re not after me.
Joshua: But you told him—I know they’re not after you, but you told him…(points to Arden) … that they can’t, they can’t find him here. Like, uh, why is that?
Queenie: We’re….far away? (A beat) I have protected this area.
Rick: (quietly) How have you protected this area?
Queenie: Hmm. That would be telling. But….have you taken the steps to protect yourself. Do you wish me to protect you? If you seek my protection…

Queenie looks up at the big guy, the zombie, standing next to her. And then she looks back.

Queenie: …I can provide that for you. For you all, if you wish.
Joshua: I mean, we’d have to stay here.
Queenie: Have to…?
Joshua: In order to protect us.
Queenie: You may yet have to stay.
Rick: Would we have to be like…(gestures to zombie) …your servants?
Queenie: You may come to wish that.
Rick: How did you infect them with TSE.

Queenie draws herself up, a glint in her eye, an appreciative drawl in her hum.

Queenie: Ahhhhh…..TSE…..Ah. Are you all cutters of flesh? No.
Rick: No.
Queenie: But you speak of …viruses…bacteria…

She nearly spitting the words out now.

Queenie: ….prions…a textbook….
Rick: (very softly) Yes, we do.
Queenie: Ehh. Textbooks are not books of magic.
Rick: But we know the magic that created the TSE.

She goes speculative again.

Queenie: Hmmmmm….If you wish to seek that, you should speak to the old man. That is not my doing.
Arden: The ‘old man’?
Rick: We did see something that…a component that goes into the creation of the TSE.
Queenie: Hm?

Rick doesn’t answer. Queenie speaks.

Queenie: I protect the people as best I can. He infects them.
Rick: Hm.
Queenie: If you…well. You shouldn’t feel pity for my…friends. (gestures to the zombies) They are in many respects better off than they were before. And for a price I will protect you.
Rick: What do we need to be protected from?
Queenie: There is much to be protected from.

Queenie smiles.

Queenie: Me, for example. (A beat) But…
Rick: You seem like such a nice lady, But why would we need protection from you?
Queenie: Hmm.
Rick: We just want to be your friend and repair our ship.
Queenie: Yes. Your ship. Your ship, indeed. And what will you take this ship to do?
Rick: Continue with the work we …. normally do?
Queenie: Mm-hm. Which is…?
Rick: Transporting cargo.
Arden: Unraveling our pasts.
Joshua: Killing Blue Sun.

Queenie slides her gaze to Joshua.

Queenie: Uhnnnn. Blue Sun….Well. There is always the Devil behind… every evil. But…not every Devil is …the same.
Arden: The Reverend Jim said something about…the Devil.
Joshua: (to Queenie) Who’s your Devil? Is it the same as my Devil?
Arden: I thought there was only one Devil?
Joshua: Shush, Arden.

Arden draws breath to protest.

Joshua: Shush, Arden.
Queenie: Every man and woman might have their own Devil. I do not know. Yet. Though I may find out. I suspect that your…problems are linked in some way or another.

She’s looking at Arden and Joshua as she says this.

Arden: Let me see. I’m I surprised? (takes stock) No.
Joshua: (whispering) Politeness. Really.
Arden: (sighs) Um. Well. I’m very confused.
Joshua: Uh-huh.

Queenie inserts herself into the exchange.

Queenie: Perhaps for the first time you’re seeing things clearly. What have you learned here? Have you learned…

And Queenie puts her hand on Arden’s shoulder. It feels weirdly energetic.

Queenie: …have you learned that no matter how much plastic or steel or electricity, a number is never a name.
Arden: Oh. Okay…..That’s true. But I’ve known that.
Joshua: (under his breath, to self) Ohh, she’s good.
Queenie: And yet, how have you?
Arden: Excuse me?
Queenie: Have you found your real name?

Arden really doesn’t know how to answer that one.

Arden: Ahhmmm….I didn’t know I had another name…other than the one I have. Unless I make one myself.
Queenie: And so..you’re still just a number aren’t you?
Arden: Um, no. But I think I get your point. (A beat) Okay. You can go back to talking to Joshua now.

Arden takes a deep breath and lets it go. Damn, this is weird and unsettling. Joshua, however, seems impressed more than anything.

Joshua: (to Queenie) You read masterfully. You really do.
Queenie: I….may be able to help you both.
Joshua: Go on.
Arden: I would be interested.
Queenie: What they have done to you cannot be undone without some pain. But it can be undone.
Arden: Um, first I’d what to know what they’ve done to me.
Queenie: When you are ready, I can cut the strings for you. But you have to be able to stand on your own before that happens.
Arden: How will I know if I’m ready?
Queenie: You may not.
Arden: I may not?
Queenie: Perhaps not.
Arden: So….can we cut the strings now?
Queenie: (judgingly) I don’t think you’re ready.
Arden: I don’t.
Joshua: I don’t know if I’m not.

A pause. Then:

Queenie: You know nowhere this is…
Arden: We know no….? (huh?)
Queenie: Your ship. It might be able to be repaired with what the old man has.
Rick: You think using parts from the shuttle.
Queenie: Will you…take it…from him?
Arden: No.
Rick: No.

We’re not thieves or brigands.

Queenie: Not yet. But….
Rick: I have a question. (A beat) We were told that you take young women away from the village.
Queenie: Yes, I do.
Rick: What do you teach them in that period of time that you have them separated from the village?
Queenie: (whispers) I teach them magic. Magic to protect them.
Arden: The magic that every woman knows?
Queenie: Perhaps. But. But perhaps they don’t know that they know it.
Arden: Um…yeah.
Rick: I was just curious. You said that the Reverend is the one who infecting the people with the Prion Disease. I’m assuming the old man is the Reverend. Besides that point I was wondering if you were warning the women to not take the TSE, the… whatever has the TSE. And do you know what has the TSE?
Queenie: At one point, that was how I dealt with things like this. Diagnose. Treat. That is…not what I do anymore. I got better. When you are ready to do what is necessary…when you’re not afraid of blood on your hands. I’m concerned you might have issues with my methods.
Arden: I’m…I mean….you know I’m a doctor. And I’m interested in—
Joshua: Whose blood?
Queenie: You would think a doctor would be used to blood on his hands.
Joshua: Whose blood?
Queenie: Certainly, not the blood of innocents. But that’s what doctors traffic in, isn’t it.
Arden: Innocents?
Queenie: (slyly) Isn’t it?
Arden: No.
Queenie: Hmmm.
Arden: Not that I’m aware of.
Queenie: Hmm. We are good at deceiving ourselves.
Arden: Okay. You got to meet this Faria. You have to.
Queenie: Go back to your women.
Arden: I have women?

Really?

Queenie: I can’t quite understand how, but….(lets it drop)
Joshua: (amused admiration) I really like you.

Queenie shakes her rattle and steps back. Her zombie attendant moves forward. The expression on his face is as if our crew is the alarm clock poised to wake him up and he’s ready to smack it into oblivion to keep it quiet. The interview, apparently, is over.

Arden: I do want to talk to you about treatments and stuff.

Rick, true to his nature, gives Queenie a wink as he leaves. She looks Rick over and then gives him a ‘perhaps’ kind of look. And Joshua comes to a decision of his own. He stops Rick with a hand on his arm.

Joshua: (quietly) You might need to carry me back, depending on what happens.

And Joshua tries to Read Queenie. He closes his eyes and Reaches out….

And suffers a seizure collapsing on the ground. The zombie attendant smiles a mere ghost of a smile and follows his mistress away from these foolish men. Arden forgets Queenie and rushes over to Joshua, yelling to Nika and Rina to get his bag.


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