The PRL Event: Darker Resurrection 10
It is important to celebrate our differences. We are all the product of cultures that have been cultivated and passed down by our forebears who came to understand life through the lens of the knowledge that was gathered before them.
There is a beauty in coming together, though, the mash up of various rites and rituals create a tapestry of existence that is fuller as a result, capturing more of the human experience or strengthening our understanding of the world by recognizing our commonalities and establishing a dialogue.
Modern day Zimbabwe, like much of Africa, has enjoyed an influx of Chinese investment, so much so that some have accused the Chinese of stripping Zimbabwe of its resources. It’s delightful, though, to imagine the Chinese and Zimbabweans commingling and sharing their cultures as they work toward a more prosperous future.
This tenth installment of the adventures of the brave Chimutengwende sees Wendy with the spirit of a new friend’s deceased relative, and Wendy needs all the help she can get.
The Team Together Again
Hansberry worries about Wendy. It’s been months since they shared real intimacy, almost a year, and Wendy hasn’t been the socially generous person that Hansberry had come to know. It’s how they met when Wendy first started at the IBF and she wanted to know as many of the doctors who worked in the building as she could remember. She walked around the halls of the institute with a small notepad, writing down names and lab or office numbers, and she would shake hands and make eye contact with any doctor who was comfortable to return the gesture. She left an impression on most of the doctors and they generally talked about her pleasantly when they found time to be social.
For Hansberry, who had lived in rural Georgia for about a decade and had few close friends that she spent time with after work, it was an especially kind gesture because she was not used to pleasant social interaction at the IBF. Most of the doctors were easy enough to get along with, but they were all very focused on their work and usually short on words that did not pertain to it. Hansberry sought Wendy out, making sure to say hello every morning when she arrived and passed the receptionist desk. She invited Wendy for lunch one afternoon and they enjoyed one another’s company so much that they made it a regular thing. Hansberry, very uncharacteristically, was the first to be open about her sexuality, sensing a caring friend and open mind in Wendy. Hansberry talked about how hard, near impossible, it was for her to find potential partners with her hectic schedule and Wendy was honestly elated because Hansberry was very much her type; fiercely independent, extremely smart, and willing to help others.
That seems like so long ago now. Hansberry looks longingly at the lab table where Wendy normally sits since she came to work with her. She is a phenomenal assistant for sure, her bedside manner is unparalleled and the patients have shown great progress under her watch, but she has taken a lot of time off. It’s as though fate was punishing her for orchestrating their time together at work. She just hopes that Wendy is ok, and that things would return to their normal soon enough.
The drive to Clay’s house is a familiar one and that is lucky because Wendy can’t hold a connection to her ancestor Tendayi long enough to use her for communication with the Alia. She arrives in the middle of the week, and it feels like bad luck that it is rush hour as she drives through Charlotte, North Carolina. When she is north of the city, her tire explodes and she wobbles to the side of the road. The spirits of Great uncle and Stephanie, the now deceased sister of Aile who had sent her to retrieve Alia, are with her as she goes to work changing her spare. She learned over the years as she watched other people that she paid to help her and she realized that she could save money if she did it herself.
“This will only get worse,” Stephanie says ominously. “Your family has been hit particularly hard at the onset, but I feel my ancestors fading as well. Something has upset the balance and Aile knows that the doctor in the basement has something to do with it.” She looks to Great uncle and says earnestly, “We must work harder to shield her from bad luck.” Great uncle agrees as Wendy finishes up and starts toward Clay’s house where she hopes she will find Alia.
“Why are you two not affected?” Wendy asks, genuinely longing for her ancestors Anesuishe and Isheanesu who had started her on this journey months ago. Great uncle was always pleasant to be with, but he barely talked and he usually made Wendy feel like she was alone when she wielded his powers. Stephanie is a welcome addition, but things had happened really fast and now Wendy wonders why she seems to know so much.
“I don’t know,” Stephanie says, “but I imagine that our proximity to you has something to do with it. You are a very powerful medium, my sister can learn a lot from you.”
“Why are you visiting her?” Wendy asks.
“Like you, my family has a tradition of close connection to the afterlife, and also like you, we have ancient enemies who seek to exploit our knowledge. Aile is special, but reluctant to help.”
They arrive at Clay’s house and Wendy is very relieved to find Alia in the backyard, but she startles at the vision of a shirtless man with wings standing with Alia. She approaches cautiously and then the winged man waves at her when he notices her. Alia turns, excited to see her, and then she notices another gentleman next to her.
“You have really good timing, Anesu,” Alia says with a smile as they hug. She introduces Yuri as a friend, and the winged, shirtless man as John, her brother.
“I should be shocked that you have a brother with wings,” Wendy says, “but I’m not. I need you to come back to the IBF with me. Your friend Aile needs you and something is happening with the ghosts. They’re disappearing.”
“What did I tell you, Alia!?” John says, “it’s already happening. We have to find this doctor who can resurrect the dead and then kill whoever he resurrected.”
Wendy and Alia look at John with shock on their faces.
“What does your brother know about this?” Wendy asks. Before Alia can answer, Stephanie interrupts, though only Wendy is aware and she has to stop Alia so that she can hear her speak.
“That is not a man, Wendy, look closely. Do you see a soul in him?”
Wendy has never tried to see the souls of the living, it was not something that she ever thought to do, but she trains her eyes on John, then on the man Yuri, and she can see something very different about their spiritual forms.
“Does your brother have a soul?” Wendy asks bluntly.
“He’s not really my brother,” Alia says, “it seems like our things are connected. He’s on a mission to restore a balance that I couldn’t even begin to explain and you are missing your ghost relatives. Maybe it’s all related. And we all have the same idea, Eakran must be behind this. So let’s go.”
Wendy trusts Alia, but she does not know who this winged man is and he is obviously not human. If he has answers though, she will have to ignore her discomfort in his presence.
“Where’s Clay?” Wendy asks, remembering his strength from their confrontation with the red man.
“Busy, but I have other friends. We should go.”
Wendy drives her car with Alia, her friend Yuri, and the mystery man John as passengers, and she is followed by Alia’s friend Vita and her passenger Gertrude.
There is no plan, but Aile was sure that Alia could help and she had not let Wendy down before.
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