\"Writing.Com
*Magnify*
Path to this Chapter:
SPONSORED LINKS
BY ONLINE AUTHORS
Printed from https://shop.writing.com/main/interactive-story/item_id/2281311-Not-Alone/cid/DPD92DFQS-A-woman-in-her-thirties
Image Protector
\"Reading Printer Friendly Page Tell A Friend
Rated: 18+ · Interactive · Fantasy · #2281311
What if homo sapiens sapiens weren't the only hominids on the planet?
This choice: A woman in her thirties  •  Go Back...
Chapter #6

A woman in her thirties

    by: Sung'manitu Author IconMail Icon
Her name is Janet Barlow and, at age thirty-nine, she’s considered the top expert on the Raptha, in or out of the government.

Make that the top practical expert on the Raptha. There are probably academicians across the world who are considered the leading experts on various aspects of Raptha culture and history. But when it comes to actually dealing with the Raptha, there’s no one better than Janet. You know you’re incredibly lucky to have her escorting you.

You climb into the passenger’s seat of Janet’s vehicle and she gives you a warm, motherly smile. She then begins giving you a rundown about what to expect during your first encounter with the Raptha.

Janet is halfway through her explanation of the traditional Raptha greeting ritual when her jaw suddenly juts out. She has a confused look in her eyes. Her lips move, but no sound comes out of her mouth.

Suddenly her eyes rolls back into her head and she falls sideways, her head landing in your lap, drool running from her mouth.

* * * * * * *


The good news is, thanks to you and the extensive first aid kit in her vehicle, Janet was able to get helicoptered to a hospital in time. She’s doing great, and is very thankful to you, as is the entire BGA.

The bad news is, Janet contracted what is called Raptha fever. It’s a common virus among the Raptha, equivalent to the common cold among humans. It very rarely jumps the species boundary between Raptha and humans.

When it does, the results can be serious, though very seldom as severe a reaction as Janet suffered. It’s almost impossible for one human to catch it from another human. Transmission of Raptha fever between humans requires sustained, close interaction.

Such as rendering first aid in the field.

You contracted Raptha fever from Janet, but have been preemptively treated, so you won’t suffer any ill effects.

That’s the good news.

The bad news is tge version of Raptha fever carried in the human body is highly contagious to the Raptha, with the results being like The Plague among the Raptha population. Humans who have had Raotha fever are banned from ever going onto the reservation again.

Janey will spend the next few years teaching rookie BGA agents everything she knows about the Raptha. She’ll take an early retirement and write a best selling book about her experiences among the Raptha and become moderately wealthy. She keeps in contact with a few of the Raptha elders via modern technology, and even gets married to a professor of Raptha linguistics. All in all, she leads a fulfilling life.

You, however, will never get to fulfill your life’s ambition of personally encountering a Raptha.

THE END.

You've come to the end of the story. You can:

  1. Step back to the previous chapter.

  2. Start reading the story from the beginning.

Printed from https://shop.writing.com/main/interactive-story/item_id/2281311-Not-Alone/cid/DPD92DFQS-A-woman-in-her-thirties