So as I’m settling down to, I dunno, sleep or some shit, the room phases out and this miniature horse-locust-wasp thing the size of my hand buzzes in and sits on my shoulder with no fucks given. It wipes its mini-horse head and scrubs down its antenna while I’m sitting physically still but mentally wondering if I can summon a nuke and worry about regrowing my body later.
“Ah. Thanks so much for holding still, mate. The last Seeing human I dropped in on had a helluva fright. Poor lass. I don’t think her vocal range will ever be the same. M’antenna were fouled, and too many predators out tonight. Figured I’d be safe with a Seer while I cleaned them.
My fears fell with my pride. “Eh. You’re welcome. But I must admit, you just scared the fuck out of me too.”
“Christian past, I take it?” I nodded. “Ugh. Since m’kin were described in that damn book, anyone taught about Abaddon thinks the worst of me’n’mine.”
“It doesn’t help you have the lower body of a wasp, and we quickly learn that wasps fucking hate anything warm-blooded simply because we exist.”
To my surprise, the creature laughed. And by laughing, I mean braying. “Yea. They still tell the stories of when insects were the apex predators. Millions of years and they still hold a grudge for losing out.” I chuckled while it made another sweep of its antenna. “Hey, you’re a talkative lass. Mebbe ya can tell me a thing. Why do so many human seers ask me what do I do? I understand y’society has a lot of idle folk now, and not everyone works directly with food and survival. So why this emphasis on ‘doing’? Like I’m some great guardian of some secret knowledge or something? Why do I hafta do anything? What ever happened to just being?”
That’s… a good question. It cleaned its miniature equine head, opening its mouth just enough to floss spiky jagged teeth. “Because we don’t hunt, and we don’t worry about predators, and we don’t fear the night. Because we’re taught that we have to be something, that what we do is what defines us, that just being isn’t enough because animals be, but humans do. So we assume that since human do, then anything else sentient also do, and that anything else sentient must be important. Because we’re taught to be afraid to be lest we become as insignificant as animals in a zoo.”
It watched me silently for a few moments. “Ya just pulled that out yer ass, didn’t ya.” I nodded. “It sounds good. Like you’ve been thinking about this long before I asked ya.” I nodded again. “But you don’t like that answer. Why?”
“Because of how I formulated it. It’s a lot of personal and family shit. Boring stuff really. Short version is I was raised to be a walking encyclopedia. Full of trivial information, and unable to use it for myself.”
“Ugh. That’s unpleasant.” I nodded. “I wish I was leaving ya in better spirits, Miss. But I do need to get a-going now.” It buzzed its wings. The sound of giant mutant wasp wings almost sent me out the room, but I forced myself to remain still. “Eh, you’re still afraid?” It stopped buzzing.
“The sound. Instinctive fears and such.”
“But ya made yourself sit still.”
“You’re not threatening me. So why flee? I can’t let my fears rule me.”
“Remember what you just said, next time you have a choice between doing and being. Thank ye, Miss. Have a good night.” Instead of flying off my shoulder, it jumped down and skittered down the blanket to the foot of the bed. It unfolded the large wings and jumped into flight. It left my room, and I phased back into the world again.
…
I think I’m going to swear off hamburgers.