The Bone Inventory
1. Six Underground
Chapter one
Six Underground
T he moon did not sing tonight. It shone fiercely, piercing his eyes against the thick darkness of night. He stumbled again as he made his way through the deteriorating and overgrown graveyard. The crumbling stone and weeds that seemed to want to devour him were like a living breathing creature; ready and waiting to pull him past this side of the dirt to the place where the dead lived.
A shiver ran down his spine as he continued along what he thought was the path. Cold mist floated in slowly at first, covering his sneakers, until finally the heavy fog had risen to his knees, creating soft waves of cloud with every step. His breathing increased and ears strained. It was too quiet. He froze, listening to the sound of his own beating heart. Before him, there came a silhouette of a tall slowly moving figure.
What was it his learner had told him about this place? Be bigger, be louder than the beasts. Swallowing his fear, he spread his shoulders puffing his chest out and shouted the first thing that came to mind.
“What the fuck!” He shouted into the shadows.
But the figure didn’t even twitch as it continued to move toward him. He swallowed hard and tried to think of what a bear might sound like.
“Rar, RAR RAR RAR!” He growled as best he could, but the dark shadow kept crawling toward him.
The shape began to clear, and he was finally able to make out the shape of a face with sparkling blue eyes, crinkled at the corner from holding back laughter.
He took a deep breath. “What in the actual fuckity of fucketry is this fucking bullshit!” He shouted.
His oldest friend stood before him and could no longer hold back. His laughs bellowed out, echoing into the night.
His friend continued to laugh at him as he ground his teeth and crossed his arms. He ignored the laughter and said. “This place gives me the creeps. These humans bury their dead bodies, like keepsakes. ” He cringed. “Give me the automated inventory rows any day of the week over this. You know-”
He was about to say his friends true name, but his friend held up a hand. “Stop, you know that’s not my name on this planet, Brad. ”
Brad rolled his eyes. “I hate these stupid names, Spencer .” He whispered under his breath. “Fucking goodie two-shoes.” He held out his arms and spun in a half circle like he was trying to look at his own ass. “And I hate these bodies, their so.. so.. I don’t know, bulbous .”
Spencer looked down at his own body. “They aren’t exactly flattering, are they?” He lifted his shirt and stared at the six ropes of solid muscle. “So bland, typically only one color per body. Too bad more humans don’t have Vitiligo, such a beautiful coloring comes with it. What a shame.” He put his shirt back down and shook his head. “But that’s beside the point. We have a role to play, data to collect. These were deemed to be the most likely forms able to gather the intel we need. Young white attractive adult males. People tend to trust them, listen to them, no matter how many red flags they may have. A convenient body choice.”
Brad huffed and rolled his eyes. “Whatever.” He said.
Spencer started to walk away back down the path. He spoke over his shoulder to Brad. “And watch your language, too many crude words can be off-putting, especially to the females.”
Brad groaned and dragged his feet as he followed Spencer. “But they’re the most colorful! They’re so sharp and fun to say.”
Spencer chuckled. “You do have a point.” He paused. “Okay, one more time, and then lock it up, Brad.”
Brad stopped and smiled wide, flashing a perfect row a brilliant white teeth. “I hate your stupid fucking face.” He said to Spencer. Then he dropped his arms behind him and shouted to the sky. “Fuck this place!”
Spencer shot him a playful grin. “Are you done now?”
“Yeah, I’m done.” His momentarily forgotten unease came flooding back with the oppressive silence of the night. The dead bodies under the Earthen floor were like imaginary tentacles rising up to pull him under. “Can we get out of here now? Please?”
“I wish.” Spencer wiggled as though he were shaking off a hoard of bugs. “This place gives me the heebie jeebies. But we haven’t found what we’re looking for yet.”
“It should be about here.” Brad swayed his arms out in front of him trying to clear away the rolling moist fog, staring at one headstone, and then the next. They had been searching for so long that his back hurt from being bent over and his eyes were tired from the strain, when finally, Spencer shouted in the distance.
“Here! I found her!”
Brad hurried over to where Spencer waited and halted to a stop by his side. In front of them stood a large statue of an angel illuminated from the moonlight. She had a chunk of one wing missing and her grey stone face was mostly sanded down from the ravages of time, she had only one eye left.
Spencer pointed to a bronze plate below her feet, the edges corroded green by nature.
Here lies Elizabet
The best among us, taken too soon.
1826-1854
Spencer gestured to the ground. “The honor is all yours, friend.”
Brad’s stomach turned at the thought of the worms just below his feet, no doubt devouring whatever organic matter they could and a sour taste at the back of his throat brought an abundance of saliva to his mouth. He pushed the feeling aside and kneeled down, placed a fist flat against the dirt, pulled back, and slammed his knuckles through the ground causing a thunderous explosion of flying debris. Where there was solid ground moments before, there was now a crater six feet down. Brad hopped and landed lightly on the balls of his feet. He easily ripped away the heavy slab to Elizabet’s coffin, the sound of stone smashing somewhere above him drifted to where he crouched. He sifted around until he found what he was looking for. The Stapes bone. The smallest bone in the human body residing in the middle ear, responsible for transmitting sound waves from the air outside to the fluid-filled labyrinth of the human brain.
Brad held it on the tip of his finger, then dropped it down into the center of his palm. He took one last look before tilting his head back and opening his jaw wide, it stretched unnaturally so, and he swallowed the fragment whole. He clamped his jaw shut then stood and shook off a layer of dust. With the strength and grace of a gazelle, Brad jumped out of the crater in one leap to where Spencer waited for him.
“It’s done.” Brad said.
“Was it her?” Spencer asked.
Brad rolled his tongue around his teeth before answering. “Yes.” Brad replied.
“Good. Now let’s get out of here, shall we?”
“Yes, please!” Brad said dramatically.
Brad’s mind was instantaneously overwhelmed with memories of Elizbet’s life as they walked. Soon, her mind would be more present than his. Until every flash of life she had lived was done flowing through Brad’s consciousness, she would be a part of him. She was powerful, it would take at least two sunrises before he would have clarity back.
“Want to get something to eat?” Spencer asked.
“No. This one is strong. I’m going to go home, sleep it off.”
Spencer nodded. When they reached the cemetery’s wrought iron gates, they faced each other and leaned forward until their foreheads touched.
“We fight for the stars.” Spencer said.
“And the stars for us.” Brad replied.
They pulled apart and walked away from each other, Brad went right while Spencer went left. Hints of the morning sun rose over the tip of a mountain as Brad made his way home. Flower gardens spread their scent as bees worked away. A rabbit fled from one side of the street to the other and a bird tweeted through the air. This planet does have its perks.
When Brad arrived at the large three-story red brick building, he paused and took a deep breath. Must not forget who I am. Brad Baker, frat boy, senior at LaPorte University. He pushed one of the large front doors open and was greeted with the foul scent of old beer and skunk of the ganja. College boys were slumped over couches and on top of the pool table. Last night’s rager had been one for the ages. The perfect opportunity for him to sneak out and collect Elizabet’s data. His limbs felt heavy as he hauled himself up the three flights of stairs to his room. He entered and shut the door behind him, shrugged off his shoes and fell face first onto his bed before promptly passing out.