The Visitor Read Online Free PDF Page A

burning thirst.
    But only one thing counted: find him and have the courage to save him to be able to tell him that he would soon be a father. She felt it in her womb for some time, but she waited to be certain before revealing it to him. Was Etos already dead? She couldn’t bring herself to believe it. Her feet were hurting and her legs were out of strength, but she couldn’t give up. The tracks were almost invisible, but an increasingly clear path appeared. In fact, there were not one, but two narrow parallel paths of hard-packed earth, separated by a strip of grass. She assumed that there was one for the monsters’ left rotating legs and one for the right rotating legs. Walking on the greenery between the two, because it was more comfortable for her aching feet, she wept again and prayed that the forest’s God would lead her to the one she loved.
     
    *
     
    Akkaliza passed a small bowl containing three boiled potatoes and a paper bag between the bars and said:
    “ I hope you're feeling better. In any case, I’m pleased to see that you ate everything that I had left. See, I’ve brought you more.”  
    The bov grunted. In fact, he bovgrunted, which was the word used by Akkaliza and her kind to refer to these animals’ very deep cry.
    “ Aha!... You’re trying to talk to me, it seems. That makes me very happy, you know! I’m sure that ultimately, we’ll get to understand each other, despite the species barrier. I know I'm much more verbose than you, but I'll let you have speaking time as soon as you decide to express yourself more. For now, I’ll fill the silence so that you get used to my voice.”  
    Holding a bar in each hand, the bov emitted a second bovgrunt. She poured water from a bottle to top off the container he used for drinking and said:
    “ Wow, you'll soon be chatting much more than me! Okay... I'll have to leave you to go to school, but I’ll come back to see you at noon, don't worry. I’m studying ethology. I'll tell you more about it later. Other than that, don’t tell anyone, but I’ll let you go once you are healed, you know. I gave you a painkiller while you slept. That's why you feel less pain. But try to take it easy because as soon as it wears off, you’ll risk the return of more pain. Okay, I’m leaving. You have to eat and drink. See you later.”  
    Reluctantly, Akkaliza walked away, but it was late and she couldn't afford to miss her class. Her father would know and that would put him in a bad mood. It was bad enough that the conversation last night about his sister had put his nerves on edge! She quickened her step on the grass towards the house. As soon as she entered the living room, his mother called to her:
    “ You’re not gone yet! You're going to be late!”  
    Akkaliza didn’t answer. She grabbed her bag on the sofa and crossed the floor to other side of the house. Her scooter was waiting under a lean-to.
    A quarter of an hour later, Akkaliza left her vehicle under the shelter for two wheelers at the center for the study of psychology and ethology. Just as she was going to climb the stairs of the establishment, she saw her aunt approaching, with a broad smile on her ever cordial face. They kissed.
    “ I’m so happy to see you," said Akkaliza, “but unfortunately, I’m very late. It’s such a pity, I so wanted to talk to you of the bov!”  
    “ I know. You'll be able to do so. I just saw your professor for today.”  
    “ Akkaron?”  
    “ Yes. He’s a member of Two One Four. So he’s a good acquaintance. I asked him if he could overlook your absence for this half-day. He assured me that there’ll be no problem, that your parents won’t know anything.”  

Etos Mahisa Loves
     
    Milk production was obtained from fifty thousand dairy bovs, fifty rows of one thousand. Genetically selected, crossbred and modified to produce the most milk possible, their teats were so huge that it would be difficult for them to move around without support. But anyway,