After Sarra released me I went straight to Rissa and Moma Farina. Quickly I told them the whole story and warned them that we had to get our plans underway before the creature could understand what I was up to.
“If there are more of these things hiding up in Devil’s Rock,” said Moma Farina, “we must find them and destroy them. Also we need to find something that will poison them and not you. The poison that killed Bassa only hurt his spirit, but maybe some other poison …” The old woman trailed off into mutterings.
Rissa and I walked out and down by the river. I savored the soft air and the thin light filtering through the still-bare trees. Would I still enjoy this when the spirit had control? I gave Rissa a long kiss. I enjoyed that too. Rissa hugged back and gave a little sigh. How long could this last?
“I don’t know what I’m going to think of you soon,” I said. “If this spirit can control thoughts, will I think of you at all? I love you, Rissa. You know that, don’t you?”
“Yes, I know. I’ll know that if you don’t love me, it’s the spirit. I’ll know that if you love me too much, it will also be the spirit. I know you, Mikal. I’ll know when it’s you that’s kissing me.
“Moma Farina foretold disaster, but I will pray daily that this storm passes you over. Perhaps other more helpful spirits are listening and they’ll take notice.”
“I won’t see either of you again if I can help it,” I told her. “I don’t want to alert this creature to any hopes I have. But even when I’m not thinking of you, I’m counting on you and Moma to free me. Good luck, and hurry!”
We hugged once again, then finished our walk in silence as the sun set and the evening spring chill spread over the streets.
Day by day the creature’s voice got clearer and clearer, but even when I could understand him our relation was no marriage made in heaven. This spirit was a braggart and a complainer, always boasting about the great stuff he’d done for Bassa when he was living there and whining about how long it was going to take to get me in shape. He could control a lot of my emotions and physical functions now. He’d control when I got hungry and when I got mad or excited, and then he’d brag that this was kid’s stuff that anyone could do, and go into a lot of mumbo jumbo about nerves and glands explaining how he did it.
I dawdled as long as I dared. Finally, a week after Sarra had released me, I told her that I could understand the spirit and I moved in with her as planned. Thanks to the spirit that felt good, even though I didn’t really want it to.
The next couple of months were very intense. It was summer and the next campaign couldn’t start until after the harvest. These months were good and bad in ways I couldn’t have imagined and can’t really express now, friends. It was sort of like having a real strong conscience that made doing the right things always feel like the best things to do. I exercised regularly, I practiced combat, I ate well, but I got fitter and stronger a lot faster than just living right could explain. I made love to Sarra once every other day right at sundown. It always took exactly twenty minutes and we always had simultaneous orgasms. When we finished we’d roll over and let the spirits talk directly for a while by touching our marks together. I think those marks were their mouths or antennas or some such.
One time while the spirits were talking together I asked Sarra how she felt about her spirit.
She looked slowly and dully at me and said, “Why, it’s wonderful. It’s given me everything I wanted in life. I love it.”
“What about children? You wanted children.”
“That’s right … I do, don’t I?” She frowned and looked confused. “I’ll have to ask about that when they’re finished talking. It’s so hard to think when the spirit isn’t paying attention.
“I don’t have any children, do I?” Her confusion continued. “I do want them, though. I want them so.” She continued mumbling to herself. I actually saw a tear. Then the spirits stopped talking to each other, they paid attention to us, and we both felt much better. We rolled into each other’s arms and fell fast asleep. The question was forgotten.