SW10/HCC: New Bosnia #1: By Appointment To Their Majesties

[Scott Eiler]

NEW BOSNIA
Part 1:  By Appointment To Their Majesties

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What Has Gone Before:

The superhuman former basketball player Scott Stiles, also known as the 
Super Savior, has led 144,000 religious refugees from his 
famine-stricken Earth to an alternate Earth whose leading power is 
Turkey.  The Turks were ready for them.  The refugees had aimed for 
Montana, but they inexplicably landed near New York City without their 
baggage.  They were captured by the army of this universe's Sultan, Hope 
Springs VII.

A hermit wizard man-bee was thrown from yet a third universe into 
nothingness, then sucked along with the refugees.  He used his wizard 
powers to resist capture, then saved Scott Stiles and flew away.  The 
Sultan, along with the visiting Chancellor Wyatt Ferguson from yet a 
*fourth* universe, began planning against them.

Previous Episode:  The Gates of New Bosnia
(http://www.eilertech.com/stories/2011/newbosnia.txt)

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Tuesday 24 May 2011

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Scott Stiles woke up inside a glowing coffin-sized kind of cocoon.  Had 
he been captured?  He listened to find out.  All he heard was distant 
airplane noises - and buzzing.  Oh, right.  He'd been pierced through 
with arrows, but then saved from capture.  By a giant bee.  The arrows 
were gone.

Scott said, "Uh, hello?  I feel a lot better now.  Can I come out?"  No 
answer.  Of course.  Bees don't talk.  So he continued, "Uh, if you 
don't mind, I'm coming out now."  He tore the cocoon easily, and peeked 
out.  Two man-sized bees were watching him.

"What?  There's more than one of you?"

"There iszz now."

"Huh?  You *talk*!?"

"Ya.  I alwayszz did.  *Dat* one juszzt doeszz not know your language." 
  He pointed at the other bee.  "But we both szzpeak bee now."

"What do you mean, *now*?"

"We are new to be beeszz.  He made me one.  Szzomeone where he came from 
made him."

"Where'd he come from?"

"Beyond.  Like me.  Like you.  But beyond even uszz."

"Huh...  I know *I'm* from a long way away.  Giant bees probably come 
from farther than that.  What's that make *you*?"

"I come from Norway far.  I fight for the Chanczzelor Wyatt from Quebec 
closzzer.  I defend the Szzultan here.  Then I am szztung.  Now I am of 
*hiszz* hive."  The bee pointed at the other bee, who was crouching 
silently.  "And he iszz of yourszz."

"When you say you're of my hive, does that mean you work for me?"

"Yeszz.  My maszzter szzaved you.  He knowszz none higher than you."

"Okay.  Where are we?  And where are my people?"

---

The Turkish Embassy to the Free City of New York had moved into the 
midtown British Embassy building after King Charles pledged loyalty to 
the Sultan.  Now that New York City had pledged too, the former Embassy 
was the Sultanate building.  There the Sultan spoke in teleconference 
with his Grand Vizier.  "You have tracked the giant bees?"

"Of course, Defender of the Peoples.  They are inside a large abandoned 
building at the southern tip of New Bosnia, facing Staten Island.  They 
regularly cross the waters in between to graze at a botanical garden."

"My apologies, valued Vizier.  You know you may avoid using my 
honorifics, but I grant that permission again today.  Has anyone 
interfered with the bees?"

"None whom we know, Custodian of the Holy Cities."  The Sultan briefly 
sighed as the Grand Vizier continued.  "Our army has followed your 
orders to not engage, and has set up a security cordon around their 
range.  We know of none who crossed."

"Are they well-separated from the other new arrivals?"

"The captives are in the Meadow Stadium, Caesar of Rome.  That is thirty 
kilometers distant from the bee nest."

"But it is near the boundary of New Bosnia with the True United States. 
  Is it too near for security?"

"The garrison is strong and on highest alert, Khan of Khans.  The 
commanders swear they can repel an armored division and still shoot down 
a giant bee, no matter how strong its shields."

"Let us wait upon that.  When will the specialists arrive?"

"Tomorrow, Caliph-Commander of the Faithful.  They have many theories 
and many plans to try, of course."

"Of course.  But that's not a bad thing.  What do you think of their 
chances?"

"O Shah of Shahs, our people domesticated bees before anyone else.  We 
shall do it again."

---

Author's Notes:

I know I can't win this High Challenge Concept.  But I can still submit.

I used to sit down on Friday night and write notes for stories.  I 
intended to do that tonight, because I have three different stories I 
ought to be taking notes for:  New Bosnia; a Legion of Net.Heroes jam; 
and a nice big sequence for Superhuman World 2011, starting the day 
after Britannia Beach 
(http://www.eilertech.com/stories/2011/britannia_beach.txt).  Tonight I 
started with New Bosnia.  But Rec.Arts.Comics.Collective has trained me 
to write actual episodes.  This one is now big enough, eventful enough, 
and cliffhanger enough.  So I might as well take credit for it right 
now.  Now, now, now!

I hope to avoid the story trap where one side or the other says, Kill 
Them All.  So far, so good.

I tried to actually think of where bees would go when fleeing New York 
City and looking for sustenance.  Even a stellar energy bee likes 
pollen.  Hence, a nest near Staten Island, which is the start of the 
nearest green belt leading out of the metro area.  Earths may differ, 
but their terrain usually doesn't.

I actually researched how Turks might deal with invader bees, *other* 
than total annihilation which is such a predictable knee-jerk response. 
  Web searches indicate Turks (well, Anatolians, the ancient residents 
of modern Turkey) actually *did* domesticate bees before practically 
anywhere else.  And the Sultan really *did* have almost all of those 
outlandish titles, because he dominated a lot of other people who had 
cultural knowledge like how to dominate bees.

Gavrilo the Hermit Wizard Bee was created by Wil Alambre, and is used by 
permission.  (Gee, Wil, how did you tolerate writing bee dialog all 
those monthszz?)  All other characters and concepts in this fiction are 
copyright 2011 by Eiler Technical Enterprises.

(signed) Scott Eiler, 29 July 2011.