Mermen by Mimi Jean Pamfiloff

Author:Mimi Jean Pamfiloff [Pamfiloff, Mimi Jean]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: P&S, Inc.
Published: 2015-05-09T23:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIX

Roen sat for over an hour while Naylor spoke of absolutely nothing. And when he said nothing, he meant nothing. Random garble about how certain plants obtain moisture by channeling the frost that forms on their leaves. That sports were theatrical events meant to fill a primal void created by the lack of bloodshed men craved. How Aphidius ervi, the parasitic wasp, had such a keen sense of smell that it could tell if a potential aphid host carried a certain bacteria that could harm its eggs.

“All very fascinating, Naylor. But what does any of this have to do with me?” Roen asked.

“The point, Roen, is that Mother Nature is not static. She is driven by the soul and life energy of this planet, and she will fight to survive just like any creature. She will kill to defend herself. She will adapt when necessary.”

“And?”

“And you are one of her adaptations, Roen. As are all of the men on this island. We were created for one specific purpose: to serve her, to protect her most precious possession.”

Roen gave him a slow nod. “I’m guessing you’re about to tell me what that is.”

“The island, Roen.”

Every time he thought this place couldn’t get more demented, it did.

“I see you still do not believe me.” Naylor’s voice crackled, and he hacked up a ball of phlegm, which he swallowed. “However, even you know the ocean is the source of all life. Without it, Earth would simply be a lifeless rock. But it is the ocean that brings us rain, that carries nutrients from one end to another, that breathes life into our world. It flows like a vast circulatory system similar to that of the human body. Even our very own veins carry the same solution of salt.”

Roen was quickly losing his patience with this pointless, abstract, nature lecture that reminded him of his father. All he could think about was Liv and not just because he felt concerned for her safety. That look on her face, when those men had attacked, wouldn’t stop gnawing at him.

“All right,” Roen said. “So the ocean is a big pool of earth blood. What do you want? Money to save the planet? Because if that’s what this is about, I can give you enough to hire an army of lawyers to stop whatever companies you’re after or to build a wildlife refuge or whatever the hell you crazy bastards like. But it is truly time for me to—”

“You’re missing the point, Roen. To keep breathing, to keep her blood flowing, she needs a heart. Just like you. She cannot survive without it.”

Roen stared blankly, knowing the punchline to this sci-fi fantasy was right around the corner.

“This island is her heart,” Naylor said. “And she has chosen our people to protect it.”

All right. I didn’t see that coming. These people were some sort of naturalist religious cult.

Naylor closed his eyes, tilted back his head, and inhaled deeply, seemingly in his own world. “If you quiet your mind, you can feel her pulse, her energy and life force beating all around us—inside us.

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