Night of the Aurora (Salmon Run - Book 1)

by J.A. Marlow

  A snow machine entered the terminal parking lot in a sliding curve. A dark blue four-wheel vehicle with oversized tires and the passenger area covered in canvas entered after her. The snow machine stopped in front of them and the moment the engine shut off, the visor of the helmet went up to reveal a grinning Sasha.

  Zach left the bags to stand next to her. "I thought you went to school this morning."

  "Nope, just my brother." She hopped off while the buggy parked next to her. "I got to stay home and help out with a few things."

  McRoyal opened the driver's door. Darnit jumped out behind him and began racing around the vehicle, barking at everyone. The narrow and short vehicle looked like a toy next to the big truck getting loaded with boxes on the other side of the porch. With the canvas roof, Hawk couldn't imagine it would be very warm inside.

  And by the way McRoyal was grinning, he guessed the thing now belonged to him. "Does this mean what I think it does?"

  Sasha's grin grew even bigger. "You bet it does!"

  Darnit ran past, making him flinch.

  McRoyal joined them on the porch. "The Buggy, as George called it. You have a few snow machines at the lodge but this is what you'll use for regular runs."

  "And there's a little trailer you can tow, too, if you have a lot of supplies," Sasha added. "Isn't it cute?"

  The word 'cute' might be stretching it, but at least it wasn't a snow machine. He didn't feel ready to tackle one of them.

  McRoyal gestured towards the luggage. "Load up. Time for a trip!"

  The luggage and bags took up the small space behind the back bench, as well as one side of the back seat. Zach squeezed into one side. To Hawk's horror, McRoyal sat in the passenger seat.

  With no choice but to get behind the wheel Hawk moved to the other side of the Buggy. He closed the door, feeling streams of cold air coming at him from the edges of the canvas roof.

  "Are you sure you want me to drive?"

  "Sure, nothing complicated about the Buggy. Ignition, dials, turn signals, pedals, all the same as a truck."

  Hawk didn't mention he'd never driven a truck. Only small cars so he could easily find a place to park in the city.

  Under McRoyal's guidance, he backed the Buggy out and turned to head out of the parking area to the clapping of several locals who had gathered on the porch. He had a feeling they were the most exciting thing to happen all winter in Salmon Run.

  Sasha zipped by them on her snow machine with Darnit riding on the seat behind her. Good grief, the dog looked like he was having the ride of his life.

  "Now, to the end of town, past the General Store. Take the road to the left. See the road?" McRoyal pointed.

  "The same one that crosses the railroad tracks that we came over last night?" Hawk asked.

  "Good man. You are already picking up the lay of the land."

  A land of rolling hills and dense pine and spruce stands. The road out of town narrowed, but he was pleased to note that it had been graded. He allowed himself to pick up the speed.

  "Slow down for the curves. If you start slipping, turn in the direction of the slip, not against it." McRoyal pointed at a road branching off to the right. "The hydro-electric plant is down there. Closed off to the public, of course. Too valuable to the community to have anything happen to it."

  And when he wasn't concentrating on driving on winter roads, he would like to know more about it.

  The road turned towards the mountains, moving into higher ground. Homes grew further and farther between. Roads branched off from the main one to twist and turn into the hills. At a "Y" in the road, they kept with the one on the right.

  At a sudden sharp turn to the left Hawk put his foot on the brake.

  "No brake! That's how you lose control!"

  Hawk's foot came up at the shout, his fingers gripping the steering wheel so tight they were going numb.

  "Let it coast. The snow will slow you down anyway." McRoyal said, his voice calmer.

  "When can I drive it?" Zach asked from the back seat.

  "When you're twenty-five," Hawk bit out.

  McRoyal laughed, "Don't worry, you'll have it down in no time. Key is no sudden moves. The snow and ice under you only feel solid, but they aren't. Expect yourself to lose traction at any time and you'll be fine."

  "Great, we've gone from driving defensively to driving paranoid."

  "Best way. See the big stand of birch trees?" McRoyal pointed down the road. The bare limbs of the birch trees stood out against the dark green of the pine trees around it. "That's your turn-off. The main trail continues up into the mountains, but it's mostly used in the summer for hunting or fishing parties. In the winter, there's no reason to maintain the road further."

  As he turned into the drive Hawk noted that the plowing abruptly ended just past the entrance. "Have a map of the road so I can find my way back to town?"

  "Follow the main power lines and you'll be fine. George had it run out here at his expense." He chuckled, "For which everyone else along the route was thankful, as it meant they could tie in."

  Good, at least they had dependable power. That would help with the transition into a different lifestyle. The long driveway concerned him. How could he and Zach possibly shovel it after a snow?

  Then he caught sight of a building among the trees.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  ZACH EXPECTED A slightly larger version of the log cabins in town. Low to the ground with steep roofs, no more than a few rooms.

  But the Salmon Run Lodge was a castle compared to them. Two stories in the center portion, with two small expansions on either side. The center section jutted forward, at the middle of which stood a wide centered recessed entryway.

  The wood still glowed with dark brown of stain. Multiple paned windows glittered from their settings among the large logs. Smoke lazily drifted up from the single story addition to the left, a breeze at the top of the trees taking it away.

  Sasha stood with Grandpa Neeley under the grand porch waving furiously at them with a big grin.

  Darnit jumped off the porch and ran around the buggy as it came to a stop, barking furiously while his tail wagged so vigorously that it threatened to knock him off balance. McRoyal slipped out of the passenger seat and grabbed Darnit's collar to stop the antics.

  With a flourish of his arm he announced, "Welcome to the Salmon Run Lodge!"

  Zach climbed out of the back seat, his eyes glued to the structure.

  Sasha ran up and hugged him from the side, shifting to stand behind him as he looked up at the roof-line. "Isn't it great?"

  He cleared his throat. "It's bigger than I thought it would be."

  "It has to be big. A lot of guests once came here every summer," Sasha said.

  "I didn't know log cabins could get this big," his father said weakly.

  "Crazy George designed it well," McRoyal said. He pointed further down the drive. "Garage down there. I'll put the buggy away for you while you go inside."

  Zach glanced in the direction seeing tracks leading around the far end of the house. But his eyes immediately returned to what was in front of him.

  Their new home. He'd been waiting for this moment ever since his father had told him of the odd inheritance. The new adventure standing in front of him, as real as the snow he stood on and the cold air biting at his face.

  And yet he couldn't make himself step forward, afraid it might all evaporate away.

  Sasha started laughing. "Zach, you should see your face. No, it isn't a dream."

  The comment brought a chuckle from his father. Zach turned his attention to him, to find him smiling sheepishly. "I was doing the same thing."

  "No more procrastination," Grandpa Neeley said, gesturing from the porch. "Time to face the future."

  His father put a hand on his back, and together they mounted the steps one by one. The double entry provided a place to sit down and remove boots and shoes. Zach hung up his coat in the closet before going through the second set of the door
s.

  The first thing he noticed was how warm the place was. The second was the height of the ceilings, glowing of golden polished pine. Straight in front of him sat a grand room with a huge fireplace to his left. Padded wood chairs and couches filled the space, set up into three conversation areas with one of them facing the fireplace.

  Towards the front of the lodge on the opposite side from the grand room was a dining area with one long table and three smaller ones scattered around the large space. Along one wall of the dining area sat a long table with cups and bowls still sitting on it.

  So airy with so much light coming in through the windows. It didn't look like a dark shadowy haunted house at all.

  Even if some of the surfaces had a thin coating of dust.

  "When was the last time this place was open for business?" Zach asked.

  "About three years," Grandpa Neeley said from behind him. "Look past the surface. This place has a solid heart."

  Zach heard a door close somewhere to the left, appearing through a wide door between the dining room and the great room.

  Sasha pointed to the stairs to the right and the hallway next to it, "Plenty of bedrooms on the ground floor and then upstairs. Thanks to the electricity you have hot water. Well, you would have had it anyway. Wait till you see the boiler in the kitchen."

  "Which provides the heat in the floor. Makes for a comfortable place in the winter," McRoyal said. "I wish my cabin had it."

  "Generator out back if the electric goes out, coal for the secondary boiler if you need it," McRoyal said.

  "Does the power go out often?" His father asked. Good, he was worried, too.

  "It happens," Grandpa Neeley said, leading his father through the door into the kitchen. "Best to be prepared. With any luck you won't have to use it, but if the power does go out you'll be glad to have it."

  Sasha elbowed Zach, "You don't look happy."

  He startled, standing up straight. "I'm not unhappy. I was just thinking."

  "About the possibilities?" She asked, a dimple showing in her left cheek.

  More like how he couldn't picture the place as a haunted house, but he didn't say that out loud. Why did people keep saying that? "No, about how much cleaning needs to be done."

  She rolled her eyes. "Really, Zach. Cleaning is no big deal. Look beyond that."

  "Beyond that? I can see that I'm personally going to be doing a lot of it." But he said it with a smile.

  She shook her head at him. "Boys."

  "Girls," he mimicked.

  "Zach, come in here and see this boiler," his father called from the direction of the kitchen, his voice excited.

  Zach took a deep breath and felt himself relax. The lodge was all he'd hoped it would be. He already had a friend in town to go to school with and they'd been accepted by the townsfolk immediately. He turned towards the kitchen with a smile on his face.

  Life in Salmon Run was looking up. His new life had begun.

  ***

  The End

  Other Salmon Run Titles

  Alien Winter

  The Singing Lakes

  Salmon Run Collection #1 (Books 1-3 - Bargain Bundle)

  Secret Illusions

  Specter of the White Death

  Aurora Equinox

  Breakup - Alaska Style

  The Great Salmon Run Cake Fiasco (A Salmon Run Short Story)

  About the Story

  This story had a long and varied incubation.

  There are some ideas that come out fully formed, like Athena from Zeus' head. These ideas are ready to become writing projects immediately. Others need to stew for years. Most are somewhere in-between.

  Ideas are great, but only useful if they are readily available when you need them. That means time and effort to gather them. The memory can be a faulty sieve, leaking the contents when you aren't looking. I have a bad memory, thanks to health problems. Because of this, I don't take memory for granted. It affects every aspect of my writing life.

  It also affects ideas. I cannot trust myself to remember them when the time comes.

  Welcome "The Idea File."

  This isn't a new concept. Authors have been using variations of it for ages. It's sometimes called something else; it's sometimes formal and sometimes very informal.

  Basically it's a place to gather the ideas, inspirations, and tidbits into one place, waiting for the day it may be retrieved and used in a project.

  An idea has been lurking in The Idea File for years. I'm from Alaska, and I love it and miss it dearly. The scenery and people are truly inspirational.

  I also love science fiction. Not necessarily what is published out there now, but the potential of what it could be. The kinds of books I want to write. Inspirational, adventurous, entertaining, with wonderful characters and a sense of wonder.

  Wouldn't it be amazing to somehow bring those two things together? Yes, a great idea, but not a simple thing to create. "Alaska Science Fiction" has been lurking in the Idea File for years, but nothing happened.

  The big breakthrough came at a Chinese buffet during which Jan Sophia Grace (a mystery writer) and I drank copious amounts of fantastic Chinese tea. I described the basic idea and that I thought it might be ready to be developed. She recalled reading a story published in the 1950's called "The Strangest Tale Ever Told." I recalled reading it when I was really young at the local public library.

  And the story started to flow.

  Over tea, up popped the idea of some of the Native Alaskan tales coming to life in an explainable manner. Of aliens, spaceships and inter-galactic conflicts. Of new arrivals to a small Alaskan town in the middle of winter, finding Alaska not at all what they expected. And definitely not boring.

  A problem very quickly arose. There was too much inspiration, too many ideas to stuff into one book. As a long-time writer, I know this can be the kiss of death for books. This was a dilemma. How could I sort through all this to pick only a few things to touch on in one book?

  The answer became obvious. This planning wasn't just for one book. It was for a series.

  Oh, and the name?

  Turns out Jan Sophia had an answer to that. You see, we've started collaboration on a Family Adventure Science Fiction Mystery Cozy series (That's a mouthful!). We brought in a lot of characters and ideas from a mystery series she'd started planning decades before. The setting she'd developed no longer applied, as our story is set on the imaginary human colony world of Kalowna, and not Alaska, as she'd originally planned (And yes, she accuses me of corrupting her to the dark side of science fiction. Hehe.).

  A name was sitting there unused. A perfect name. Not only for the town but for the series.

  And the idea of "Salmon Run" came into the world!

  About the Author

  J.A. Marlow writes across many genres, including science fiction, young adult, romance, and others. A private pilot with several years of flying experience in Alaska, J.A. Marlow enjoys adding to stories a touch of the mystery and exotic nature of the land sometimes called "the last frontier." Popular series include "The String Weavers," "Salmon Run," and "Redpoint One."

  Publisher Homepage: https://starcatcherpub.com

  Author Homepage: JAMarlow.com

  Author Newsletter: JAMarlow.com/newsletter-signup/

  Twitter ID: jamarlow_sf

  Email: jamarlow.sf@gmail.com

  Other Titles From J.A. Marlow

  Where the Purple Grass Grows: Reporter Steve Gortney hates his assignment of following a senator on a re-election tour. The arrival of a pirate spaceship at the space-elevator changes that viewpoint, and maybe the trajectory of his failing career. The thrill fades when he finds his life in danger from a secret the pirates are willing to kill to keep hidden.

  Meanwhile, the space-elevator hides a few deadly secrets of its own.

  Children of Jad Omnibus: After accidentally discovering an ancient crashed spaceship, Elvy Akuma, Pelik, and Tiver's lives change forever. They must come together to protect themselv
es, the unique artifacts, the peace of the joint Human-Chion colony world? and a piece of history that history forgot. This science fiction Omnibus collects: Glint of a Suncatcher, Glint of a Ring, Glint of an Artifact, Glint of a Tower

  Into the Forest Shadows: Grandmother's house, a red cape, a planet-wide conspiracy. Kate welcomes the chance to visit Grandmother's house among the renowned giant trees of the planet. After Grandma goes missing Kate learns just how little she knows the forests. She joins forces with a local Gatherer boy to confront a deadly threat to the entire world including the human colony.

  Before the conspiracy kills them all.

  A Science Fiction novel retelling of the fairy tale "Little Red Riding Hood."

  Flying Dutchman of the Spacelanes: The cursed Flying Dutchman returns to the spacelanes... While busy with repairs, Sora Anali gets the surprise of her life: a real cursed ghost ship docking to Langdon Space Station. Then the Flying Dutchman triggers the servicing robots into delivering expensive and rare items needed for the station. Items she needs to get back.

  But, the legends say to board her is to die on her...

  Sample - Alien Winter (Salmon Run - Book 2)

  A haunted lodge and lurking aliens?

  The Salmon Run Lodge needs a good cleaning. Hard to accomplish with the plumbing and power constantly going out. Then there are the strange unexplained noises. When Zack heads for school for the first time he discovers that the local kids are as crazy as the other inhabitants of Salmon Run.

  Problems abound for the local aliens, as well. Nanuk wants to continue his scientific human observations. Hard to do when the Admiral insists he take along a new arrival to the Earth mission. The only one doing well is Yenni, who heads out with new equipment to use in his studies.

  How can alien and human worlds not collide?

  Alien Winter (Salmon Run - Book 2) available now!

  NOTE: This book is included in the Salmon Run Collection #1 (Books 1-3 - Bargain Bundle)

  ***

  Hawk Callahan's hands were chapped, his nose clogged with dust, and his muscles ached. The air smelled like vinegar, bleach and soap, and all his work-clothes needed to be washed.

  Yet, he was happy.

  The lower level of the lodge grew cleaner with each passing day. The varnished wood glowed warmly in the light of the colored-glass and wrought-iron light fixtures. Dust no longer swirled up when they walked down the hallway to the bedrooms or into the kitchen.