The Frozen Earth 4

Humanity's quest for knowledge and power devastated Earth's surface, and those that could fled to the ocean depths. Others were forced to survive in what remained of habitable land, and then, after many generations passed, ocean and surface dwellers meet anew.
Sequel to The Frozen Earth 3. The story was dropped here, might hopefully be finished later.

Read The Frozen Earth 4

Disclaimer: Nothing much to disclaim. I got stuck on the fourth part so it is yet unfinished, but I hope to correct that one day.



The Frozen Earth 4
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by Carola “Ryûchan” Eriksson





The movement of time sometimes seems quite erratic. Some moments drag on forever while entire days pass in the blink of an eye.

Like when waiting for someone to die.

For those aboard the surface exploration shuttle the journey back down to their underwater home took forever, each agonized sound from their wounded guardsman resounding in the shuttle and in their minds ten times over. The docking procedure seemed impossibly slow and lengthy as well, but then medical science staff took over and all happened in a blur of activity. Swiftly taken to the high-risk decontamination chamber and then forcibly cleaned, the rattled Lori had barely the opportunity to get her bearings back before a grim faced scientist informed them all that their fellow was beyond their ability to save. All that could be done for him was to give him a quick and painless death.

By the time Lori had the opportunity to sit down, waiting to be ordered to give her report, the man was already dead. Presumably his remains were cremated, but she supposed the scientists might find a reason to keep some tissue samples for study as well. It seemed to her that was what most scientists did – not help, not save, but study things. Thoughts like these made Lori all the more grateful for exceptions like Melisande.

When Lori, tired like never before, was able to at long last be reunited with her scientist friend, Melisande had spent hours in both frantic activity and frantic worry. The creatures gathered had been secured away in her section until a better facility would be arranged for them, meaning that Melisande herself, as a Research Assistant in the Bio-logistic department, would be working a lot with these new... samples.

Creatures whose violence had already caused the death of one citizen of their dome... Lori found the thought terrifying that her precious friend would be exposed to a potentially dangerous situation. Perhaps Lori could manage to convince Researcher Maxima to assign her to guard duty? At least that way Lori might be permitted to protect her friend, she reasoned.

She was partly right. The department head Cornelius summoned her to him, and, with some reluctance, assigned her as the new commander of a group of guards that would be stationed to protect the scientists from these primitive animals. Lori’s actions while on the surface, how she had not hesitated to kill the creature that wounded her superior and how she had taken command, convinced those in charge that she was right for the job despite her youth and gender.

Only Melisande knew how the memory of that event haunted Lori’s dreams, how the athlete would come to her in the middle of the night, shaking and upset. How Lori could not sleep some nights unless she was curled up next to the other woman on her small bed, one hand holding a tight grip on Melisande’s sleeping gown. Only Melisande knew.

To all others the newly minted captain of the guard was all brisk business, and her efficiency and accommodating nature in aiding scientists and engineers to build the new containment area for the specimens made those in charge re-evaluate the success of her creation as a Ten. Apparently there could be other uses for a citizen of a dome than scientist or engineer that were still of value, as inconceivable as this concept seemed.

A routine was worked out then, and after a sufficient bacterial flora had been culled from the captured specimens, the creatures were forcibly cleaned and put in their new pen. The scientists were able to discern that both adults were female as was the older child, and the infant male. Physical samples aplenty were harvested, mostly while the specimens where kept sedated, then as the senior researchers worked with these, junior researchers and assistants were put on a rotation to simply observe the creatures.

Melisande’s job consisted of simply keeping watch over the creatures and monitoring their behaviour for most of the time. It was a task she did gladly, as she found the creatures fascinating, but at the same time something about them made her feel sad. Especially the little girl that clung to the adults, probably frightened she reasoned, staring listlessly at her surroundings made Melisande’s heart ache. Remembering the children in their cubicles, an idea came to Melisande’s mind.

It took some convincing her superiors that it would do no harm, but finally she was allowed to bring a small silvery ball with her during observation duty. As most times when Melisande was there, Lori was the guard on hand by the doorway, watching over her friend with vigilance.

Melisande went about it slowly so she would not alarm the creatures. She sat simply holding the ball for some time, waiting until its shiny surface and her smiling had managed to draw the attention of the small child. When the child’s eyes were firmly attached to the ball, Melisande held it up in plain view.

Slowly she squeezed the ball carefully and bounced it against the floor while smiling encouragingly at the wide-eyed child. Then, very carefully and with slow, non-threatening movements, she put it in the nearest deposit hatch, allowing the child to reach it.

The adults stiffened and the taller one rushed forward, but not before the little girl had picked the ball up, turned it in her hands and squeezed it. The tiny face turned towards Melisande with such bright and happy smile that Melisande found herself mirroring it without conscious thought.

The adult then took the ball from the child despite the little one’s protests, to examine it carefully. After a few long suspicious moments the toy was apparently found harmless, and it was given back to the little girl who immediately began playing with it. Melisande smiled as she watched the little girl play, thinking of Melantha for a moment. She didn’t notice the other adult as she moved in to sit close to the barrier next to Melisande herself.

She did feel the other creature’s eyes on her though, as the smaller adult studied her intently. It sent chills down Melisande’s spine, but she pretended not to notice the scrutiny, concentrating on the smiling child that was holding her new toy and grunting something. Melisande smiled, and for no reason she could quite explain, told the child “It’s a ball.”

“Baw?” The girl said and squeezed her toy. Melisande’s eyes grew wide with shock.

“Yes! Yes, a ball!” Melisande leaned in closer to hear. The child repeated. “Bawl.”

The adult next to Melisande on the other side of the glass tilted her head slightly, then said softly but clearly “Ballll.” The L sound was long, rolling and very similar to an R, but the word was still plain to hear. Melisande stared.

The woman pointed at the toy and repeated the word, slightly louder this time. Then she pointed at herself. “Tiam.”

Melisande swallowed hard and tried to get her pounding heart to calm, and thus took long enough in responding that Tiam repeated herself. Melisande pointed at her with a shaking finger and spoke. “T-tiam?”

Tiam smiled in satisfaction and nodded, then repeated her name. “Tiam!” Then one pale finger pointed at the child and the other adult in succession. “Enei. Alik.”

Melisande pointed at the child. “Eneii.” The child laughed and nodded enthusiastically, patting the transparent barrier with a tiny hand. Melisande looked at the foreboding taller adult. “Alieck?” The one called Tiam nodded with satisfaction, and then pointed one pale finger towards Melisande herself.

“I am Melisande.” Melisande replied. “Melisande.” The others looked as if the name was too difficult, so Melisande tried again. “Mel?”

“Meliss’d. Mel... Mel!” Tiam nodded and smiled, apparently happy about the shortened name. She then inclined her head slightly and put a hand in front of her chest, palm out, and repeated the name. The child did the same, and after a nudge from the smaller woman, Alik sketched the same gesture and grunted.

Melisande got the impression it was a greeting, and copied the move, saying the names as best she could. Another pleased smile from Tiam was her reward, and Melisande was just about to try communicating the names of other things when Lori stepped into the room fully, anxiously waving her weapon at the three gathered near the glass to make them move back. Alik sneered and moved in between her family and the threatening presence, while Tiam frowned and picked her children up out of harms way.

“Lori, stop!” Melisande intercepted immediately. “Put your weapon away, you are frightening them.”

Lori intended to persist, needing to keep Melisande safe, but one slender hand on her arm and the look in Melisande’s eyes made her reluctantly lower the weapon to the floor. After all, she reasoned, the pen should hold them, it was built sturdily enough. She had made sure of that.

Strangely as she looked up at the creatures in the pen, Lori got the impression that they were laughing at her. Even though Lori could not possibly have understood Tiam’s whispered joke about how Melisande was obviously a woman since she handled her hunter with such ease, but she still saw Alik and Tiam smirk at her. Lori shifted in place uncomfortably.

“Lori, this is Enei” Melisande pointed at the little girl. “Tiam” Tiam inclined her head as if knowing she was being introduced “and Alik.” Alik just stared at Lori, unmoving. Melisande then pointed at Lori and spoke to Tiam. “Lori.”

“Lorrri” Tiam spoke with a rolling R, and then inclined her head again. Lori stared at her in open-mouthed shock.

The little girl, peeking out from behind Tiam’s legs, saw Lori’s expression and giggled. Then, shyly, she held out her toy. “Bawl, Lorrri?”


It did not take long before Melisande was replaced by a senior researcher once the interaction with the creatures became apparent on the other end of the surveillance system in the pen. Reluctantly Melisande had to accept that her seniors were going to take over this part of the research despite the fact that it was she who had made the unexpected breakthrough, and that she was instead reassigned to examine the creatures’ behaviour through the surveillance material.

She spent a handful of days observing the way these... beings interacted, watching with some curious longing how Tiam and Alik treated both their children and one another with affection, not only comfortable with touching but appearing to revel in it. A hug to the little girl, a kiss upon the infant’s – Melisande had been told his name was Baran – brow, a caress across a pale cheek or over a mass of dark hair.

Melisande pictured herself doing these things, holding little Melantha and pressing a caring kiss upon the tiny head, or allowing herself to run her fingers gently across Lori’s tan cheek. The longing that bloomed in her at these thoughts led to Melisande daring to turn into Lori’s back one night when the other woman was tormented by bad dreams, fold her body close to the larger form, put one arm around Lori’s waist and rest her cheek upon the strong back. Lori stiffened in surprise at the unfamiliar sensation at first, but soon relaxed and, with a small contented if weary sigh, fell asleep.

From that night on Lori found that when Melisande’s arms were wrapped around her, nightmares rarely visited her at all.

What would lead to the biggest change of all was when Melisande came to work to find several of her superiors and co-workers looking at surveillance material and discussing what exactly they were seeing. All seemed to agree that it was highly likely that what they had recorded was Alik and Tiam engaged in some mating activity, but for what purpose? It had been established in the initial examinations of the creatures that both adults were female and that neither of them possessed any means to impregnate the other. Why did they still engage in this activity? Was it perhaps of social importance, to establish rank within the flock? Or was it that one of them was in heat, and the altered surroundings wreaked havoc with their hormones and instincts?

Melisande was put to study this behaviour and cross-reference it to all viable information on primates in the pre-oceanic section of the science database. The necessary clearance to access the information was assigned her, and because the department was unusually noisy with all that was going on, the somewhat befuddled Melisande chose to work from her cubicle in the house.

The work was fascinating and confusing in equal measure. As the current revisions of old information proved to be unhelpful, Melisande instead accessed the old files upon which the new were based, and read what had been written on these subjects while her ancestors still lived on the surface. She discarded smaller primates as she searched, deciding she would concentrate on the larger ones to begin with as it was speculated the surface-dwelling species that Tiam and Alik belonged to must have evolved from one of these. It proved slightly difficult at times to process the archaic phrasing, but a few phrases in particular stood out.

Intrigued, and still slightly hesitant as to what she might find, Melisande accessed the old data files on humans as well.

When Lori came home from guard duty she found Melisande sitting on Lori’s bed, wide-eyed and clasping her knees with both arms, refusing to go to her own cubicle or tell Lori what was wrong. Lori did not press the issue and readied herself for bed, where Melisande surprised her by not waiting until Lori turned her back to her before curling up tight against the athlete. With hesitant words and quiet voice Melisande told Lori about her research while hiding her face in Lori’s sleeping garment.

Once Melisande had instructed the program to display data on humans, and expanded it to search for non-reproductive mating, the information stream that assaulted her had been immense... and confusing. Intriguing, enlightening, exhilarating, shocking, completely unexpected, yes... but mostly confusing. Melisande’s cheeks had burned so hotly that finally her head felt so light she feared she would faint, and abandoned her work to run to the safety of Lori’s cubicle.

As a scientist Melisande knew of course that mankind had, in the pre-oceanic days, been forced to rely on primitive and repulsive biological means to reproduce, before modern science and the Reproduction department. She knew the mechanics, of body parts and gender distinctions that for some reason lay the basis for so much else in society, and was fairly repulsed by what little she knew. What she had not know, what in fact she felt certain no-one knew anymore, was how small a part reproduction had played in... sex and love. Melisande had difficulty thinking the unfamiliar words, much less saying them out loud to Lori.

From what Melisande gathered, a shockingly large part of society was based around attaining sexual pleasure and love, childbearing and gender having surprisingly little to do with either, although Melisande admitted she had yet to grasp the difference between the two. She also admitted that there was much research left to be done on the matter, but... the discovery had rattled her to the core as it was.

By the time Melisande’s hesitant explanation wound down, Lori was quite stunned as well. Quietly they agreed that Melisande would show some of her research to Lori when the other scientists had left for work the following day, even though if it was discovered that Melisande showed data to someone without clearance she would be stripped of her scientist rank. Melisande was grateful that she would not have to tackle things alone, despite the risk, and hugged Lori slightly closer as finally her mind was quiet enough to fall asleep.


When Melisande approached Maxima with her findings, the older woman’s reaction was not quite as bad as her own. Maxima paled with the implications of Melisande’s findings and, after a moment of furious thinking, warned Melisande not to speak of it to anyone. Maxima would reassign Melisande to another part of research yet again and then take the accumulated data directly to Cornelius herself, knowing that her own high status as a scientist would provide more protection when presenting unpopular ideas than Melisande’s. Especially since the younger woman was already considered... unorthodox to say the least.

Maxima cared a great deal for Melisande and her friend Lori, as not only had she befriended the two despite the age difference and difference in social status, but Maxima had been Melisande’s age when the two Tens had been delivered to their building as toddlers. Being a junior researcher back then Maxima had spent a larger amount of time than most did caring for and teaching the two youngest members of their house, until such time as the two girls had grown old enough not to be assigned adult assistance anymore, and Maxima had been promoted to bigger and more demanding duties. But she never forgot the two tiny children that had looked to her with such trust.

In fact even before Melisande had approached her with her potentially dangerous findings, Maxima had been working on getting Melisande reassigned back to communicating with the creatures. It seemed clear to Maxima that though the creatures were intelligent enough that the senior researchers currently assigned the task of communication managed to teach them simple words and names for objects, Melisande had in her brief conversation displayed a unique talent for that very situation. Perhaps it was her breeding as a Ten that gave Melisande a particular gift for communication, but either way Maxima felt confident that the younger woman would make far greater breakthroughs in that field than her seniors and she had been discussing the matter with Cornelius.


--to be continued?--