Day 354: 5 Minute Freewrite: Tuesday - Prompt: not smart

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Book-smart, common-sense stupid,

the neighbors called her, even to her face, even in front of her parents--and even Mom and Dad laughed it off. Ennis knew in her head that it didn't matter what they said or thought of her, but in her heart, she could never shake that yearning to fit in. To be treasured and loved was a dream she wouldn't indulge in. Mere approval was elusive, subjective, temporal. Ennis knew these things at a young age, and she didn't learn any of it from people in her world. She learned it in fairy tales, legends, history books, art, and music.

"Not Smart" -- in code, N.S.--morphed into Ennis,

and Ennis was so slow, it took years before she realized how she'd come by the nickname.

No matter. She came when called, whatever they called her, if she came at all, but it was never an act of rebellion if she didn't. She'd get so lost in her books, lost at museums, lost in thought wherever she went. Only Ennis could go on a field trip and come home without having seen the geysers shoot off at Yellowstone because she was engrossed in the rocks and trees.

Like a little mountain goat she'd climb up cliffs and stare at the night sky, dreaming of other worlds. When the time came for her people to relocate on a newly discovered planet because Earth was overpopulated and space colonies were a feasible solution at last, Ennis was the only happy camper. Of course she would miss the world of blue sky, green grass, trees and native flora and fauna, but uncharted realms beckoned.

The long, long journey through the stars

was possible thanks to cryo tanks, and for those who didn't sleep straight through, implants filled with information kept them from going crazy. Ennis read everything that could be downloaded and embedded in her brain. When their ship landed on a rocky vista that looked a lot like the emerald isles of the Celts, Ennis knew the landmarks already. She was among the first to step out of the decontamination units and run barefoot over the mossy stones.

Not smart, she heard them say, but not for long. She skipped ahead and explored, taking in the lavender sky and golden sun, studying the new constellations in the night sky and gazing at the twin moons, and cataloguing the plants and animals, at least those that didn't run and hide from the newcomers. Snakes, lizards, and spiders here were similar to those on Earth, and they were more fearless than the furry mammals and feathered birds.

Ennis did all her chores and ducked the disapproving stares of her siblings, classmates, neighbors, and--well, friends, no, those existed only in books or in feathered, scaled, or furry forms. When the first expedition was launched, she had already familiarized herself with every inch of the meadow and mountainside.

Or almost every inch. She'd been climbing farther each day since their arrival, and now she could run up the steep slopes as effortlessly as a bird soaring overhead. Ennis hadn't explored much at the very top of the mountain, because she had to factor in the time to get down again, but this day she was ready. She shot to the top so fast, shouts of "No, don't go there" barely reached her ears.

A slender portal, little more than a crack, not even visible from below, led into a cave. Ennis gasped at the wonder of it all. Drawings appeared when she flashed a light over the walls, and she knew an intelligent people had lived here before, long ago, judging from the silence and the layers of dust.

She had to tell the others. Ennis started out the portal, caught sight of her people below, and waved. A wireless radio vibrated in her pierced ear, and an urgent message: Storm coming! Come down!

Sighing, Ennis started skipping down the slope, when a tremendous fork of lightning tore open the sky and lifted her off the ground. She came down with a tingle and a stinging in her fingers. A thunderous boom followed, and the mountainside split open. Frozen in shock and awe, Ennis saw her people fall like ants into the crevasse that opened up. The clouds unleashed their fury, and a river came rushing from what had been a little stream.

Rain turned to hail, the ground grew slippery, and Ennis could do nothing but race back to the portal and the sanctuary of the cave. Assuming the whole mountain wouldn't crumble.

Not smart,

coming up alone to explore.

Alone, alone, alone she waited out the storm, wondering who she might find when the rain passed, when the ground held still long enough for her to walk back down the mountain.

They had come so far, on such a long, long journey, it made no sense that she, the daydreaming idiot of the community, could be the last one standing.

When her tears subsided, she found more than drawings on the cave walls. There were signs and artifacts, there was information to unravel, and no one was more qualified to sift through it all.

Book-smart, common-sense stupid.

And alive, alive on the mountaintop, ready to face the aftermath of the storm.

(End of Part One)

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Thank you, @mariannewest and @freewritehouse,

for the daily 5 minute #freewrite. To find out what freewriting is all about, go here.

Until next time,

Keangaroo

because Kean sounds like Kane (not keen, hint, hint)

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