Time Waltz Essay, Research Paper

Oriana walked down the hallway, her mind back in a time about a millennium

ago. Her people had learned much about the past from historic documents and

paleontologists? findings, and now, through technology, she was going to

witness it live. Her people had built a time slider. Now she could go back in

time and learn the truth about the North American Indians.

She mentally went through her list…?Let?s see…I?ve taken my hair

and skin pigmentation pills, and had my eyes colored…I have my clothes

waiting, my pouch with my time remote, my taser, and my communicator. All I need

now is the languagechip.?

Oriana walked into the equipment room, and Erel jumped. ?I am not used to

seeing you in Native American pigmentation!?

He debriefed her once more about her mission, as he set her down and slipped

the languagechip in the facilitator and then used it to put the chip in her

brain. Then she changed into an authentic buffalo hide dress and boots. She

fastened a bone knife to her boot, and added some rope to her pouch.

?There. Now you are all set.?

?Thanks, chief.?

They walked to the time slider?s warping chamber, silent, both a little

nervous. Erel reminded her to be careful, and what not to do, and what to do.

They shut the door behind them and then Oriana walked into the portal. Everyone

else, already stationed, began to get ready.

?Ready, Riana??

?Yes, Erel. Fire it up.?

The time keeper began the count down. ?10…9….8?

Oriana swallowed. Erel wiped the sweat from his brow.

?5..4…3?

The lights around the portal began to glow. The base began to vibrate.

?2….1! GO!?

The lights flickered, the room shook, and the air seemed to erupt with the

sound of roaring engines. Oriana screamed, Erel yelled, the other operators

struggled to stay calm. Suddenly the lights got bright, then totally dark. The

room seemed to rumble and shake. Then it was over. Oriana was gone. Erel

switched the communicator on and called to her frantically.

?Oriana! Come in! Did you make it all right??

?Erel? Yes…I?m fine. I am not sure where I am, though. I am going to

explore a little. I will be back in a little.? She switched off her

communicator excitedly and started to look around.

After about an hour, she came to a stream. It was almost dark, so she caught

some fish and made a fire. Then she spread out some grasses as the fish cooked.

She ate the fish, then drank from the stream and washed, and settled down to

sleep for the night, but not before reporting in to Erel….

?Erel…Come in…Erel??

?Oriana? What?s going on? Where are you??

?I?m by a river. I just settled down for the night.?

Erel breathed a sigh of relief that she was unharmed. ?Is everything going

ok??

She laughed to herself over her chief?s protectiveness. ?Yes, I am

fine….? She gave him the rest of her report and then went to sleep to the

sounds of owls and crickets.

Oriana awoke in the morning to a group of painted men staring at her. She

jumped up and shouted something in English, then remembered her whereabouts and

engaged the language chip. She waited for one of them to say something so the

chip could identify the language. That done, she spoke, for the first time, in

tribal language.

?Hello…I am lost. My family was all killed by a group of white men. I was

away at the river, and was not found. Now I am all alone, and hungry, and tired.?

The tallest one spoke. ?I am Cloud Stalker. We will take you in if you can

do your share of the work. Perhaps one of the warriors will make you his wife.

What is your name??

Oriana thought quickly. She looked around for inspiration. ?River…River…River

Dancer!? She looked up sheepishly.

?Well, River Dancer, follow us and we will take you back to the grounds.?

Cloud Stalker helped her up and the group began to walk to the camp.

It had been five years since that had happened. River Dancer looked at her

husband, Cloud Stalker, as he carved and finished an arrowhead. She held her

child to her bosom, and continued cleaning a buffalo hide, remembering….she

had lived with the Indians, first as a slave, then as a full fledged member,

after Cloud Stalker took her as his first wife. She fell in love with him, and

bore him a son. She had become a very respected member of the tribe, due to her

extensive knowledge. Then one day, she informed Erel, during there secret

sessions, that she was never coming back, was destroying her communicator and

time remote, and that she didn?t want anyone to come get her. Amid Erel?s

frantic protests and orders, she smashed the communicator, the remote, and never

used taser, with a rock, and threw them into the river. She explained her secret

to Cloud Stalker, but that did not change his feelings at all, not even when her

hair and skin lost the Indian pigmentation. He said she was still the same

person, no matter what colors she was.

River Dancer spent the rest of her life being the chief?s wife, and had

many lovely daughters and strong warriors. Utilizing her knowledge of plant life

that she had learned in the future, she became a medicine woman for the tribe,

astounding the all the shamans, men, of course, with her ?predictions.?

While her hides weren?t always the best, and her skin and hair were fair,

River Dancer lived a long, happy, healthy life, in the past, with her Cloud

Stalker and children, living off buffalo and the land, like she had always

wanted….

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