“Another fence,” she said. “I was at the front of the line, so I felt it first.” She looked at him. “I didn’t want to spook the others this close to dark.”
He patted her on the shoulder the way Raines did to him, but quickly realized how awkward it felt. “You did the right thing by stopping us,” he said.
She raised an eyebrow. “Of course I did,”
He looked back at the clearing she had chosen. “Still doesn’t seem like the best place to camp.”
“And you would know that because of all of your wilderness camping experience?”
He nodded as if he really did have experience. “There was a pretty good-sized park in Capitol City. My friends and I used to spend nights there when my aunt had to work the late shift.”
“Not the same thing, you realize,” she said.
“Maybe not, but I do think we should camp near tall trees if we can.” He pointed to a small stand off to the north.
“Why?” she asked. “So a limb can fall off and crush us during the night?”
“No,” he said, “so that we can climb up them if there is danger.”
“Danger? Your mother’s people have been here over fifteen years. I think if there was anything dangerous in Eden, it would have been discovered by now.”
“They haven’t been in this part of Eden,” he corrected.
“Fine,” she said. “We’ll camp by those trees, but you’ll understand if I don’t sleep directly under one.”
He smiled. “I understand. Let’s tell the others before they get too far into setting up camp.”
Fortunately, no one had actually started anything, mainly because no one had any idea what “setting up camp” meant. When they relocated to the stand of trees, Jake picked a large one with branches low enough to use for climbing. He didn’t tell anyone his reason for choosing it, because the last thing he wanted on their first night out was worrying about a danger that probably only existed in his mind.
AJ sent everyone off to gather food while she and Vee used the embers they carried to start a small fire. Since they had nothing to cook and the evening air was warm, the fire was more for boosting morale than anything else was. Jake put himself in charge of building a makeshift fire pit, with a large pile of dead branches to keep the fire going all night and four large logs surrounding it for people to sit on.
He also grabbed a number of longer branches and made makeshift spears out of them. Again, he didn’t explain his actions to anyone, and placed them along the backside of the logs, where they wouldn’t be noticed, but at the same time would be within easy reach. He knew his concerns were probably just the result of being so close to the invisible fence, but he felt a bit more at ease knowing he had done something to protect his people.
Just after dinner, when everyone was sitting around the fire, relaxing from the long day’s walk, Raines began one of his many stories about life as a young boy in the days before Civica Colony sealed its borders. Life seemed so carefree back then, and Jake began to daydream about his own childhood, when he heard a familiar sound off to the south. He had heard it a few times before, sitting next to his mother at the village fire pit, and she had described it as “wind howling through a distant tree.” Back in the village, it was a soothing sound, but so far from the village, it sounded more ominous.
Maybe it was a single tree that made the sound, and maybe they just happened to be closer to that tree. Then again, maybe it was the proximity to the fence that made the sound seem almost menacing. On the other hand, perhaps it was the fact that there was no wind that night. The air was as calm as the park in Capitol City. When it sounded again, everyone else heard it.
“What was that?” Jessie asked, sliding closer to Vee.
“The wind,” Jake said, though he wasn’t sure himself.
Again it came, this time a bit louder and more to the south. If it were a tree, it wouldn’t be moving. Again, they heard it.
“That’s not the wind,” Dr. Wood said as he stood up. Jake didn’t even pause to think when he reached behind his log and grabbed three spears. He tossed one to Wood then handed another to AJ.
Two more howls came at once from opposite sides. Everyone jumped up and put their backs to the fire, facing the darkness, fists raised in self-defense. “Got any more of those?” Raines asked.
Jake quickly circled the group, pulling out his hidden stash of spears and handing one to each of his crew.
“How many are there?” AJ asked.
“How would I know?” Jake replied.
“I mean, based on the direction of the howls. How many do you think?”
“Four,” Jessie said. When Jake glanced at her, she added, “I’m good with sounds, remember?”
Something howled directly in front of Jake’s position, and it was close. “Make that five,” he said.
“There are still four more out there,” Jessie said, turning her head back and forth and cupping a hand over one ear. “They’re not speaking, but I can hear them moving through the dead leaves.”
“That’s five of them against seven of us,” Vee whispered. “That’s not too bad, right? Plus we have spears.”
“And they probably have teeth,” AJ said, “and I wouldn’t exactly call these sticks ‘spears.’”
“We also have fire,” Raines said, glancing back at the small fire behind them. “Most animals instinctively fear fire. If we had only thought to make torches.”
“I think we’re lucky to have these sticks,” Jessie said. “You’re always looking out for us, aren’t you, Captain?”
Jake started to answer, when the bushes in front of him moved. Low growls could be heard all around them.
“Here they come,” AJ warned.
“Everyone stay calm,” Jake said. “Keep your spears raised and your backs to the fire.” He paused. “We’ll get through this together.”
As he looked around the fire, he realized that they probably wouldn’t get through it. In fact, they were all going to be dead, or dying, in the next few seconds if he didn’t come up with something quickly. Something brilliant. Or else, something obvious, he thought as he looked up at the tree next to the fire—the tree he had picked out specifically because it would be easy to climb in an emergency.
“Everyone up the tree!” he yelled. “Jessie, you’re closest, so you first. Everyone else keep your spear raised and back towards her.” When no one moved, he yelled, “Go now!”
Jessie grabbed Jane by the hand and pulled her towards the tree. When they reached the trunk, they both dropped their spears and shot up. As each member headed up the tree, Jake realized that he was the farthest one away and therefore would be the last one up. As he passed by the fire, he grabbed one burning branch and held it out in front of him.
The growling was all around them now. Why the creatures hadn’t yet attacked was anyone’s guess. He hoped that Raines was correct and that the fire was keeping them away. He glanced back and saw the engineer behind him. He was the only other person still on the ground. “What are you waiting for?” Jake asked.
“You first, Captain,” Raines said.
Jake saw two yellow eyes in the darkness ahead of him, and he backed up a step. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of heights,” he said.
“You’re the captain,” Raines said. “You’re needed more than me,”
“You’re right about one thing,” Jake said. “I am the captain, and I just gave you an order.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Norman. I’ll be right behind you.”
The attack came so swiftly and silently that Jake didn’t even know what happened until it was over. One moment he was facing his engineer, the next he was staring at the biggest dog he had ever imagined, lunging through the air, straight for his face. At the last moment, almost as if he were watching in slow motion, Raines dove his spear into the creature’s open mouth, impaling it.
The creature’s momentum completed its arc, landing on Jake’s lap. Blood and drool splattered his chest and f
ace, and the dog took its last painful breath. Around the fire, the bushes erupted with motion as the remainder of the dogs came for them. With strength that can only come from a rush of adrenalin, Jake jumped up, grabbed Raines by the arm, and scrambled for the tree. He pushed the older man ahead of him then climbed after him so fast it was as if he was still a child playing in the park. He didn’t stop until he reached the rest of his crew high in the tree.
“Are you all right?” AJ asked. “We couldn’t see anything. What happened down there?”
“They attacked,” Jake replied. “I really didn’t think we were going to make it.” He looked at Raines in the filtered light of the fire below. “You just saved my life.”
Raines nodded. “I rarely admit things like this, but I think I’m a little too old for this kind of adventure.”
Jake smiled and patted his shoulder. “You and me both.”
“What did they look like?” Vee asked. She was higher up in the tree than the rest.
“You probably don’t want to know the details,” he replied. “I don’t think you would be able to sleep tonight.”
“I don’t see how any of us are going to sleep tonight,” Jessie said. “Unless we find a way to tie ourselves to this tree.” Jake looked up at her and saw that she was crouching on a branch right next to Jane.
“Are you okay, Jane?” he asked. She just nodded her head. He wondered for a moment why she was the only one not talking but then remembered where she grew up. Maybe these dog-creatures reminded her of the huge cats that probably stalked her every night in her dome.
“I’m just glad those things can’t climb,” AJ said. As she said that, everyone looked down. The growling and hissing had vanished, and the only sound they heard was the crackling fire.
“Well, I think we just learned the real reason for the fences,” Raines said, breaking the silence. “We were wrong to assume the entire torus would be just as safe as the section we came from.”
“Thank goodness Captain had us camp next to this tree,” Jessie said.
As his crew nodded in agreement, he said, “Don’t thank me. I shouldn’t have brought you all out here with me. I...I thought it would be an easy trip.”
“You didn’t bring us anywhere,” AJ was quick to say. “We’re all adults, and since we’re no longer officially a crew, we didn’t have to come along.”
The words “no longer a crew” stung a bit, but he knew she was correct; without his ship, they were all just people. “I know, but—”
“No buts, Jake,” AJ said. “We all agreed—”
“Speaking of butts, yours is in my face, Jessie,” a voice said.
“Hey!” Jessie screamed as she turned around, nearly losing her grip on a branch.
Jake reached out a hand to steady her. “Calm down, Jessie. That was Dr. Wood.”
“No, it wasn’t,” Wood said from somewhere behind him.
Jake looked at the dark space behind Jessie. “Then who’s there?”
Ash’s face appeared out of the shadows. “It’s me, Captain. Sorry for startling you all.”
Vee gasped then grabbed Jessie and tried to pull her away from the newcomer. “Who are you?” she yelled.
Jessie reached out and touched the man’s face. “Is it really you, Ash?”
“It’s really me, little sister,” he said.
Jake leaned in close to try to get a better look, wishing he still had one of the spears. “I watched you die,” he said. “How can you be here?”
Ash shrugged. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m right here. How could I be dead?”
“That’s what we would like to know,” AJ said, positioning herself closer to the man. “How did you get here?”
He shook his head. “If you’re asking how I found you out here in the wilderness, well, your campfire was broadcasting your location for kilometers in all directions. Luckily I got here just before the dogs.”
AJ shook her head. “No, I mean how did you get here from the Wave? What exactly do you remember?”
He looked at her, and then at Jessie. “I remember hearing your voice in my headset while I was working outside on the ship. You were telling everyone that I was farting, or something like that. Then I woke up in a room here.” He looked back at the group. “You tell me what happened. You all were there.”
“There was a malfunction,” Raines said. “You were...stabbed in the back by a spike from the hull. It went all the way through your body.”
He touched his chest. “Well, I guess that explains it. I have a weird patch of what looks like new skin on my chest that doesn’t grow hair.”
Dr. Wood spoke up. “Your description sounds like some sort of dermal repair, but who would have performed the surgery? Certainly not one of the villagers.”
“It had to have been the isopods,” Raines said. “We saw one take you away. It must have brought you here and repaired you somehow.”
“How could one of those big things do a delicate surgery like that?” Vee asked.
Raines shook his head. “Perhaps there is another version, something we haven’t seen yet.”
Jessie finally gave in and hugged Ash. “I thought I lost you, big brother.” She sobbed. “I can’t believe you’re back.”
“I’m still not sure I believe it,” Ranes said.
“So, what part of his story don’t you believe, then?” Jessie asked.
“There was simply far too much damage to Ash’s body for him to have survived,” Raines answered.
“It was more than that,” AJ added. “We were very deep. The pressure would have turned his body into mush the moment his hardsuit was pierced.”
“But he’s right here,” Jessie said. “Don’t talk about him like he’s not here. It’s him. I can tell by the nuances in his voice. He’s real. He’s right here.”
“Listen, Captain. I understand how you feel,” Ash said. “I can’t explain what happened. Like I said, I woke up in a room here—”
“Wait a minute,” Dr. Wood interrupted. “You said a room. Not a hut?”
Ash looked at the man. “Hey, Doc. Good to see you again. Yeah, it was a good-sized room with a sort of medical bed in the middle. Kind of like the Wave’s medical bay, but a lot bigger and filled with a lot more gizmos.”
“Gizmos?” Wood asked. “You need to take me there.”
“That’s just a small part. Wait until you see. Actually, that’s why I came out here.”
“Why did you come here?” Jake asked.
“To lead you all inside.”
“Inside? Inside what?”
Ash wrapped his arms around his sister and said, “Your new home.” Jake and the others sat there in the tree, staring at Ash for what seemed like several minutes. “Was it something I said?” he finally asked.
“You’re going to take us to our new home?” Jake repeated. “I don’t think I can even count the number of questions that just popped up in my head. Like, why are you bringing us? Where are you bringing us? What makes you think we need a new home?”
“More importantly, is it a building?” Wood asked. “Preferably one with indoor plumbing and a proper shower.”
Ash addressed Wood first. “It has showers, Doc, several of them, in fact. All the comforts of home, including a full kitchen, and I’m talking a full-featured one like they probably have in Capitol City. Not a cramped little galley like the Wave.” He looked at Jake and AJ. “Sorry, no offence.”
“None taken,” Jake said. The man was obviously delusional. Maybe he was suffering brain damage from the accident. Even with the best medical facilities in Civica, he should not have survived his injuries. “So how far away is this new home of ours?” he asked, hoping that his first mate would catch on.
“Yes,” AJ said, perfectly mimicking Jake’s calm demeanor. “I’m anxious to see it.”
Ash looked up at the stars shining down through the upper branches. “It’s still a couple of hours until daylight,” he said. “Why don’t we go back down and
get some sleep? It’s a full day’s walk tomorrow, so we’ll need to get an early start if we want to get there before dark.”
“Sleep?” Vee asked. “Down there?”
Ash started down. “They were attracted to your fire,” he said. “Nothing here has ever seen fire before. Like I said, that’s how I found you.”
“Are you sure?” Jake asked. He was still going on the theory that Ash was crazy, but he knew that trying to sleep in the tree had its own risks. Like falling and breaking your neck.
“Those dogs live in the mountains to the south, or at least, in the foothills. They eat small things like rabbits there and mainly hunt at night. They have no reason to come down here unless someone invites them.”
“And we invited them,” Raines said. “Lesson learned.”
“They looked pretty hungry,” Ash continued, “which is why they were so angry. It also means they are probably running full tilt back to where the rabbits are to try to find dinner before daybreak.”
Jake nodded and followed him down. Crazy or not, he couldn’t deny the man’s logic.
By the time the last of his crew had finally climbed down from the tree, Ash and Raines had completely put the fire out. As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, Jake realized that they really didn’t need firelight to see. The world around him seemed to glow from the same starlight he had once condemned for being useless.
Within a few minutes, everyone began to relax a bit. Being able to see the area around them, rather than be blinded by the bright fire, as before, had a calming effect. One by one, his crew began to drift off to sleep. Jake overheard Ash telling his sister that he would stay awake and watch out for her. Soon, she was out.
As tired as he was, Jake forced himself to stay awake as well. He still didn’t trust Ash, but on top of that, the night sky was just too amazing to disregard. While he was looking up, he felt Jane crawl up beside him and put her head on his chest. He put his arm around her and felt her body relax. The sound of her breathing relaxed him as well, and soon he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Novum Chronicles: A Dystopian Undersea Saga Page 28