The Encounter

by Norman Fitts

  The entire herd moved at once. In a thunderous sound of hooves they broke for the tree line, the stallion in front.

  Riding at a full gallop through a stand of trees was difficult enough. Trying to stay even with a herd of stampeding horses was down right dangerous. He had to be in position at the front, when they neared the draw. His father would come in from the side and go for the stallion. The horse's instinct to survive would separate him from the rest. Joseph would turn the others into the draw. After that they'd take turns running him off until they had what they wanted.

  Martin was in position. He could hear them, and feel them, in the ground under him. His horse jumped a little. He opened the loop on his rope.

  The horses exploded from the trees. The stallion was ten yards in front. Joseph was right with them. The stallion veered left to lead them away from the natural trap on the right. Martin spurred his horse. The stallion spotted him and accelerated putting more distance between himself and the herd. Joseph was there to take over. The plan worked again. Joseph turned the herd into the draw.

  Martin had no intention of roping the horse, but there he was in easy reach of his loop. Tied off to a tree, the stallion would be out of the way until they finished. With more time to work the herd he might find two or three more he could use. He released the rope. It settled around the stallion's neck. Martin looped his rope around the saddle horn and reined in on his horse.

  Joseph was driving the herd. He looked back just as his father's rope went taut.

  The chinch on Martin's saddle held for a moment, then it slipped. The sudden shift in weight caused his horse to go down. Martin's head hit a rock. His horse rolled on him, and then stepped on him getting up. It all happened before Joseph could come to a stop.

  ***

  Sarah was sweeping the porch. A sudden chill went up her back. She shuddered. She walked to the steps and stood watching the hills beyond the corral. It was late in the day. They should be back soon. She went back to her sweeping. She couldn't seem to lose the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach.

  ***

  Joseph had reined in his horse so quickly he almost went down himself. He turned the animal and dug in his spurs. The horse had barely reached full stride before it was being pulled in again. Joseph was out of the saddle on the run. He stumbled forward to his knees beside his father.

  The left side of Martin's head, above the ear, was oozing blood. A small puddle had already formed on the ground. Martin's eyes were closed. A bloodied rock lay nearby.

  Joseph froze for a moment, and then he touched his father's chest. "Dad..." His voice shuddered and seemed far away. He shook him slightly. "Come on wake up... Please wake up."

  Martin didn't move. Joseph watched his chest. He could see it rise and fall with each breath. At least he was alive. His next thought was of Sarah. She'd know what to do. He had to get his father home.

  Joseph stood up and glanced around. Martin's horse stood a few yards away the saddle hanging to one side. He needed what was in his father's saddlebags. He picked up the reins to his horse and swung into the saddle. He had to be careful. The other animal was still nervous. There wasn't time to chase him down. As he got close the other horse moved away. He had to have those saddlebags. He reached back and drew out his rifle. He placed the butt against his thigh. He started toward the horse again. If the horse bolted he'd shoot it. The other animal stood its ground.

  He was only a foot away. "Easy boy... That's it just stay put." He reached over and took hold of the bridle. "Gotcha..."

  He placed the rifle across the saddle in front of him, leaned across, took the reins with his other hand and led the horse back to his father.

  Martin hadn't moved. Joseph ground tied both horses with a rock. He took the food sack, and a canteen, and knelt beside his father. He emptied the sack and wet it down. He slowly turned his father's head to the side and wiped some of the blood off his face. He placed the wet sack over the head wound to try and stop the bleeding.

  He had to get home. He stood and walked to his father's horse. In the saddlebag was a small hatchet. He took the hatchet and ran for the tree line.

  ***

  Margaret leaned against a deadfall. Lawrence was off taking care of his business. He had insisted on providing lunch. She'd insisted he not shoot it. The berries, wild onions and deer cabbage weren't bad. She was sure Lawrence would have preferred to have something dripping grease into a fire. It made her feel good that he tried to do it her way just to please her. She picked up the canteen and took a drink.

  "What're you thinking about?" His voice came from behind her.

  She lowered the canteen and looked back. "The road..." She lied.

  He joined her and reached for the canteen, "How far?"

  She handed him the canteen. "Not too far."

  He took a drink.

  She continued. "I was thinking. With the moon almost full maybe we should try and make the town tonight. The sooner we get in and get out the better. If you think you can make it."

  Lawrence capped the canteen. Hiking through a mountain forest was very tiring. He resented the insinuation, but the truth was he was beginning to feel it. He didn't want to appear weak in her eyes. Besides, the thought of a bed instead of the ground really appealed to him.

  "If we're talking a room and a bed, I'm game if you are", he answered.

  "It'll take a day or so to get what we need and something to carry it, and us."

  He shouldered the canteen. "Let's go." He said and walked away from her, then stopped and looked back when she didn't follow.

  She was standing where he'd left her. She pointed to her right. "That way..."

  She walked away from the deadfall. He joined her. A funny thought occurred to him. She was cute, really different, liked the woods and her mother lived on the other side of the universe. What more could a man want?

  ***

  Joseph had worked feverishly to cut what he needed out of the woods. After dragging an armload of limbs back to the horses he checked his father. Nothing had changed. He didn't seem to be bleeding as much. He used the rope to assemble a platform between two poles. He discarded his father's saddle, but kept the blanket. He used the rope to harness the poles to the horse. He picked up the saddle blanket and spread it across the platform, now for his dad. He carefully moved Martin to the platform and secured him with more rope. He was ready.

  He stepped into the saddle and picked up the reins to the other horse. He couldn't move very fast. Home was at least two hours away. He thought about Sarah and what she'd said. He'd assured her he'd take care of things. Would she ever forgive him for letting this happen? Could he ever forgive himself? One thing he was sure of, when he'd done all he could for his father he'd find and kill that horse.

  ***

  Space was particularly black in the shadow of Earth's moon. The view of the stars began to ripple slightly. A vortex formed and an Intergalactic Class Starship emerged. The vortex closed and the vessel took up station keeping out of Earth's view.

  The warship was the size of an aircraft carrier and performed a similar function. Its basic hull design was similar to Margaret's smaller ship. Its current orders were to retrieve and return the Chancellor’s daughter.

  The ship's Commander had remained at the rendezvous point until her encrypted distress signal came through. She was being pursued by the Vergon. The portal was her only escape route. The message ended abruptly. He broke communications silence but got no response.

  The hanger bay was filled with ships of various sizes. An opening appeared in the hanger wall. Seven men entered the bay. The opening closed behind them. They crossed the hanger. Two stopped, while the others continued on. The Battle Cruiser Commander handed a PDA like device to Ahthra, Margaret’s older brother.

  The Commander watched while Ahthra viewed his orders. “Those orders come from the Chancellor himself. But we have another problem. Something may have altered the time line. According to the chronicles, this was a thr
iving world with a human population in the billions. Scanning the planet now shows a third of the population, gone. Monitored broadcast indicate it was intentional and it happened the day after your sister disappeared. Nothing was going on before that to indicate this might happen. We lost people down there.”

  Ahthra glanced up, “they think she’s responsible?”

  “Don’t know. It’s fortunate that Earth has had no contact with the universe around it.”

  Ahthra finished and handed back the device.

  “Do you understand the orders?”

  “Yes sir... It’s also possible that those chasing her may have caused a change in the time line.”

  “She led them there.” The Commander studied him for a moment. “Your father prefers you lead this mission for obvious reasons, but he’s given me the authority to replace you if I see a problem.”

  “I’m an officer. I’ll carry out my orders. My father knows this, but only if there’s no other choice.”

  “With what’s happened, your orders are amended. If you recover your sister alive, she’s to be turned over to the Council... Are you clear on this?”

  “Yes sir, but first I have to find her.”

  The Commander pondered the situation for a moment. “Very well... Carry on, Captain.

  Everyone knew about the bounty on his sister. He had spoken to his family before they left for the rendezvous point. His mother wouldn't let him go until he'd promised to get her back, safe. He also knew what had been offered to the Vergon. Keeping that promise would require a lot of luck.

  ***

  Sarah stoked the fire in the stove. Dinner was almost ready. She heard her name called from outside. She closed the stove, set down the poker and started across the room. It was about time. It was almost dark. If they had decided to camp out, with her expecting them back, they would have never heard the end of it.

  She stepped out on the porch. The sun was just above the mountains. She shaded her eyes. Her heart sank. Joseph was passing the corral. He was leading her father's horse.

  "Oh god, no," she said to herself as she ran to meet him. She stopped at the front of her father's horse. She looked at Joseph. His face was flushed. Her heart was in her throat. She walked around to her father and looked at him. Her hand came up to her mouth. The sack was soaked with blood. There was a small trail of blood coming from his nose and mouth. She knelt beside him and carefully looked under the sack. The blood had dried and the cloth was stuck. She had to peel it back. His hair was matted and the skin around his ear was badly discolored. He was still breathing.

  She looked up. "Give me the canteen and go hitch the wagon. We gotta get him to town."

  Joseph didn't move right away. He wanted to say it wasn't his fault, but that wasn't the way he felt.

  Sarah lost her temper. "Now", she yelled. "Get the wagon."

  Her tone startled him. It surprised her a little as well. He dropped the canteen, untied the reins from his saddle horn, and then used his spurs.

  She got the canteen and returned to her father. She started loosening the ropes. She poured a little water on his lips. He wasn't going to die. She wouldn't let him. God wouldn't do this to her. She wanted to cry, but she managed to hold it in. She had to be strong. She looked at the barn and shouted, "Hurry Joseph."

  CHAPTER TEN

  It was late afternoon. The sun had settled to just above the tops of the trees. Lawrence and Margaret walked together. He had found himself a walking stick.

  He shaded his eyes and looked at the sunset. "I hope we hit the road before we lose the light."

  "It's not far." She paused for a moment. "Do you have a family? I know you said you have parents. I mean brothers and sisters."

  "Two brothers and two sisters..."

  "Older, younger, what", she asked?

  "I'm in the middle, an older brother and sister and a younger brother and sister. Why?"

  "No particular reason. We've talked about me so much, I was just curious... a girl friend?"

  That took him by surprise. "What?"

  "A girl friend... Do you have a girl friend?"

  He watched her for a second. Where was this going? "I've dated someone a couple of times recently nothing special... how about you, a steady boy friend?"

  She had started something she wasn't sure she wanted to finish. "Me... We... my people, don't have boy friends and girl friends like you do here."

  He wanted her to continue. It was something he wanted to know about. "Well, what do you have? I mean, do you have a third choice?"

  Oh well, what the hell, she thought. She was in about as deep as she could get already. "There's not much difference in our family structure. Our ties to each other are much stronger."

  "Stronger? How do you mean stronger?"

  "I mean, the bond is never broken. The children grow up find a mate and have children, but the intra-structure always stays in tact."

  He kicked a rock. "You mean you never fight about anything. Nobody ever gets mad and walks out."

  "Divorce, No. We only have one mate unless someone dies."

  "That's some kinda law?"

  "It has nothing to do with the law. Well, maybe the law of nature. It's part of our physical being that hasn't changed since the beginning of our evolution... You sure you want to hear this?"

  "Are you kidding?" She had his attention.

  She took a deep breath and let it out. "When I, or any female, meet someone they can bond with, mate with, something happens inside. Changes take place. The urge to mate with the male becomes so strong she has to approach him."

  "She's horny. That means...”

  "I know what that means. That word doesn't even come close to describing it. Anyway, if he agrees, they bond. The physical act causes chemical changes in both of them. They never separate unless one dies."

  "What if he turns her down? You know, what if she's ugly or has a rotten personality."

  "Well, physical appearance doesn't really concern us, but at that point it becomes a little one sided. He just goes his own way. She tries to avoid him till it's brought under control. Once she does, he's missed his chance."

  So that's why she hadn't come on to him, he thought. She suddenly stopped walking. He looked at her. He'd seen that look before. "What is it? You hear something."

  "A wagon and horses, on the road," she took his arm and pulled him.

  He dropped his stick and ran after her. "Maybe we can get a ride?"

  By the time he'd caught up she was standing above the road.

  Lawrence stepped up beside her and put his hands on his knees to catch his breath, "Which way?"

  She looked to her right, "That way."

  He could hear it now. The clatter of wood and metal mixed in with hooves on the rocky, mountain road.

  They stood above a curve in the road. The sound of the wagon was close.

  "I don't think they're gonna stop", she said.

  "Not if we're up here."

  He took a step and slid a couple of feet down the embankment. The wagon whipped around the curve. Joseph was slapping the two-horse team with the reins. They came very close to going over the edge. Sarah was lying with her father. She held him trying to smooth out the ride. By the time Lawrence was in a position to be seen, they were gone.

  Lawrence looked back at her. She started down. "I don't think we wanted to ride with that guy anyway”, he said. “The light’s goin' and the way he's pushin' that team they'll be lucky to stay on the road."

  They both stepped onto the road.

  "This is the only road into the valley", she said. "It's all down hill from here."

  “Well then, a hot meal and a warm bed await.” He did a skip, a glide step, and then quick stepped down the road whistling, "We're Off To See The Wizard". She laughed and ran to catch up.

  ***

  The way Joseph was pushing the horses scared Sarah. But the thought of her father dying before they could get him to town scared her more. She'd made a place for him in the
wagon with blankets and quilts from the house. She had her hand under his head trying to keep it from moving too much. She felt a change in the wagon bed. She rose up. The right, rear wheel was beginning to wobble.

  She looked at Joseph, "Joseph, the wheel." He couldn't hear her. She yelled, "Joseph, the wheel... Look at the wheel." She laid down her father's head and pulled herself to the back of the seat. She touched her brother. He glanced back.

  Before she could say anything, the wheel came off. The right rear of the wagon dropped down. She fell. She caught herself with her hands, holding herself off her father. With the sudden extra drag the horses broke their stride and slowed. Joseph reined them in and applied the wheel brake. Everything came to a stop.

  He locked the brake in place and swung his feet into the wagon box behind the seat. "Are you alright? Is dad alright?"

  Sarah pushed herself back up. "I'm fine." She looked at her father. "He's okay," looking at her brother, "what happened to the wheel?"

  Joseph climbed down. "I hope we just lost the wheel and didn't break the axle."

  He stopped to check the axle. It looked okay. He started back for the wheel. Fortunately it had remained on the road. Sarah watched him for a moment. She picked up a canteen and took a drink. She poured a little in her hand and let it run onto her father's face. The head wound had bled through the fresh bandage she'd made from a bed sheet. She went about changing it.

  Margaret and Lawrence moved along at an easy pace. They were still poking fun at each other like two kids on a nature hike. All that remained of the sunset was a pale yellow-orange glow at the top of the trees. Stars were beginning to show. The moon hung in the sky. With the road to follow, making it to town would be a chinch. She had night vision equipment in her bag, but with the moonlight it wasn’t needed. As the road straightened out in front of them, they both spotted the wagon at the same time.

  Joseph had managed to recover the wheel. They were lucky the axle hub hadn't broken some of the spokes when it came loose. The bad luck was, no axle nut. Joseph looked, but having no idea where it came off made finding it next to impossible.