Decisions, Decisions

Belboz's request for her blood raised a host of uncomfortable questions and contradictions for Checkers. The precepts of the Glider ideal and her experiences as a traveller cut off from home did give her any clear answers.

"Will giving up two measures of my blood do more harm than good? How do I minimize the harm? Is trying to save Fred's life the right thing to do?"

If she were going to go by the literal precepts of the Glider ideal, these was no question. As Fred was angliderim* she was under no obligation to take any extraordinary measures to save his life. It is not that Gliders were bloodthirsty - they hunted to feed and clothe themselves, and would defend themselves from predators and incursions into their territory, but the Gliders of that age would not hunt even dangerous prey without a compelling reason. However, if fate placed an animal in a life-threatening situation, then fate should take its course. Most Gliders would not examine the issue further.

"So why do I feel that I have to do something?" Checkers thought to herself, withdrawing into an impassive shell while she tried to find a solution to this difficult problem. She had some sound tactical reasons for giving up her blood. A healthy Fred would be a strong and valuable ally against the dragon. But, she had to admit to herself, she had adopted the slightly heretical belief during her travels, that creatures like Fred were something more than animals, and an obligation to do something was the logical cost of those beliefs. She saw signs of what she would consider "Glider-like" traits of courage and fidelity, and started to treat Fred like a Glider, and a friend at that. If he died, she would feel a loss that she did not feel when the goblin or the wallhugger died. So she felt that if giving her blood would help save Fred's life, then she should find a way to do so.

There were a number of Glider customs and taboos she had to work against. The first was that it was unseemly for civilized Gliders to partake in magic and superstition. Belboz's first suggestion, sucking the blood from her through some hocus-pocus movement of blood through the air, broke that taboo. So she flatly refused.

When she saw the hurt and angry look on Astra's face, and heard Astra's barbed question, Checkers heart sank. Not only was she crushing poor Astra's spirit by her refusal, but she was endangering her mission to kill the dragon. She would be blamed for Fred's death, and would probably lose the help of both Astra and Belboz. The mission was difficult enough as it was. Both her heart and her mind forced her to try again, and to find an alternative.

The knife and bag alternative sounded unsafe, and besides, violated another custom. Gliders from her land avoided marking, cutting, or otherwise mutilating their bodies. There were a number of reasons for the evolution of this custom, but one important one was that the Gliders believed that scars and marks should be won in battle or in the hunt. Artificial creation of scars was attempting to win undeserved glory. Checkers ruled out the knife-and-bag alternative on that basis - it would leave an artificial scar. The needle alternative looked promising - she could understand the concept of a 'needle', and therefore it was not magic. Just how the blood got from the needle to the bag was the key part. When Checkers saw the blood move from Astra's wrist into the funny bag, she looked at the crystal-like tube, and thought that it must move by some sort of tiny pump. She knew about pumps. Her people could not make them that small, but given time, she supposed that they could learn. It was not magic, and therefore 'safe.'

That obstacle having been overcome, there was still another question. The needle was tapping blood from Astra's wrist. Checkers knew her body better than Belboz did, and the wrist was not a good choice. The blood vessels of her arm and wing were spread out in a fine net, and there really was no easily accessible main vein to tap that would yield a rich flow of blood. Besides, she had been injured in her wing recently, and had an instinct that this would be a bad area to draw from. She would choose an inconspicuous place on the back of the leg.

And she would do it herself; she would just try to block out the pain. This decision was the result of yet another cultural peculiarity. Some societies, like the Geldans and Macinites, hugged, kissed, and patted each other on the back very freely, even with relative strangers. Allarians tended to be somewhat more reserved, preferring to shake hands with strangers, and other forms of contact such as pats on the back were restricted to special people at appropriate times. Those few outsiders that had any contact with the Gliders that did not involve the pointed end of a spear noted that they were squamish even by Allarian standards, especially concerning contact with angliderim. Even accidental contact with their wings** was likely to provoke at least a cold stare, and more probably the offended Glider would stiffen his body into a defense posture, ready to attack. Checkers had the usual Glider mindset concerning her body, and wanted to avoid having some animal rooting around her wings, even in a good cause.

Finally, there was the question as to whether Fred would want his life to be saved. The question seemed as silly to Checkers as it was to Astra, but human ways were still a puzzle to her, and she had heard accounts of nations where it was considered the highest honour to have died in battle. Taking extraordinary measures to save one's life in this circumstance might be regretted by the party that was being saved. However, Astra's plea and Checkers' sense of duty to kill the dragon on behalf of the Glideri overwhelmed any objections on that account.

As the second measure of blood was being drained, Checkers noted the devotion that Astra had shown to Fred. Astra was indeed very "Glider- like", even if the vow to become Belboz's slave sounded crude and overstated to her. Of course Belboz was going to release her from it if he could save Fred. Not to renounce that vow would be unthinkable, she thought. She still did not fully trust him and his so-called magic, but he had shown by frightening away that dragon that he was a good ally to have. In fact, rather than risk even the accidental blackening of his reputation by remaining silent, Checkers resolved that she herself would remind Belboz of Astra's vow if things worked out well, and give him a graceful way to dissolve the vow and save face.

*angliderim - Modern Dolomite. Literally, "non-flying", but with the connotations that "beast" and "barbarian" have in the common language.

**Certain types of contact of the wings by fellow Gliders can also provoke hostility. The upper part of the wings and hands being the most sensitive part of the Glider body, the Gliders have evolved an elaborate set of tactile rituals and gestures that are nearly incomprehensible to angliderim. Stokes, pats, and rubs of the wings, depending on length, pressure, area of application, and context, can signify, among other things, attempts by one Glider to show dominance over another, approval of an action, a desire to flirt, apparently meaningless playfulness, reverence to an elder or Burgess, or communal solidarity.

1. This episode, from Astra's point of view.
2. The results of Belboz's analysis.

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