Beyond: Book Four of the State Series

by M. J. Kaestli

  They had figured out how to position their heads so they could sleep in the truck. Every time the truck went over the slightest bump it would jostle their heads just enough from that sweet spot to disrupt them. As the scenery had become rather dull to look at, they had found resting or simply daydreaming the best way to pass the time.

  Hope nodded off a few times before they reached their test site. The main road was made of concrete until they turned off onto a side gravel clearing. The gravel was one kilometer in circumference, the State’s way of preventing fires. They had carved out the area to be relatively flat. During the winter, they couldn’t travel out to this area due to heavy snowfall, but during the summer the ground was scorched and brown, making it a fire hazard. It was now spring when the snow was almost all melted and the green was beginning to break through the yellow and brown hues.

  Once the truck was parked, the four of them unpacked their equipment. The military personnel were great muscle to have on the job. They did most of the heavy lifting while Hope and Weston set up and connected the more intricate parts of the device and testing equipment. It took a solid thirty minutes to unload everything from the truck and set up.

  “Base, this is the test site, do you copy?”

  The transmitter cracked in Hope’s ear and she heard her colleagues reply. “This is base, we hear you loud and clear.”

  “Are all systems a go?”

  “We are on-line and can see the data being transmitted from your site.”

  “Perfect,” Hope replied. “We are all systems go.”

  Weston leaned forward and switched on the device. It was almost strange to look at how something the size of a chair could make so much noise and give off so much light. The device began to warm up, and the base recorded the data.

  “Site, this is base. We are experiencing some type of disturbance. Can you confirm the transmitter is fully functional?”

  “I’ll confirm,” Hope said and walked towards the truck.

  The truck contained the transmitter through which the data was sent. She walked around to the opposing side, opened the driver's side door and tinkered with the antenna.

  “Base, tell me when you get a clear signal.” She fiddled with the device.

  “Site, we have a clear signal. Proceed when ready.”

  “Copy,” Weston said and stepped toward the device.

  Hope wasn’t entirely sure what she had done to make it work. It could have been something to do with the satellite or sudden gust of wind, but decided to stand by in case the signal cut out again.

  “The device is fully charged and ready. Activating in three, two, one—” Weston flipped the switch.

  “That is a high reading we are getting over here. Maybe you should shut—”

  A bright light was the only thing Hope could see. Her mind couldn’t comprehend what was happening before she was thrown backwards, body flung into the air.

  Hope hit the ground hard, and everything went black.

  Chapter 9

  Hope struggled to open her eyes; a blinding pain pressed against the back of her head while someone kept shaking her shoulder. She opened her eyes for a brief moment and then pressed them shut again as an intense pressure made everything appear blurry. A ringing sound filled her ears and her head felt as though it was being squeezed. The shaking persisted even though she kept her eyes closed, wishing they would stop. She simply wanted to sleep, but this person kept trying to wake her. She heard a muffled voice calling out so she tried to open her eyes once again.

  Everything was blurry. The pain intensified behind her eyes and at the back of her neck. As she struggled to focus, she realized her vision wasn’t just blurred, a layer of fog shielded her view. She reached up to touch her face and it struck some sort of barrier instead. As she tapped around her head trying to comprehend what was resting on top, a pair of hands assisted her. There was a lot of fumbling from this unknown set of hands while they removed the obstruction, but the two of them managed. She looked at them the moment they lifted the obstruction off her head. Her vision was still rather blurry, but it seemed to get clearer.

  The source of the hands came into focus. At first it was just an outline; the head and shoulders followed by a pair of eyes and lips. She noticed this man appeared to have a layer of something on his face, making it look dirty.

  “Are you alright?”

  She stared at him for a moment, not quite sure how to answer his question. “I think so. My head hurts; my eyes hurt.”

  His face became clearer to her and as she sat she marveled at him, taking in his appearance. His hair was light containing golden streaks that reminded her of the sun’s rays. His skin was pink and rosy in the cheeks with a bronzed hue which made his skin appear to glow. The strangest and most unique trait that captured her attention was his eyes: a crystal clear blue.

  She realized his face wasn’t dirty; it contained a strange layer of hair around his chin and mouth. His hair was long and unkempt with a few hints of copper around his ears and continued into the hair on his face. She sat and simply stared at him, completely mesmerized. Even though she couldn’t put her finger on what was so special about him, looking at him filled her with a strange excitement.

  “What’s your name? And where do you come from?”

  She shrugged. “I am not sure. I can’t seem to remember right now. Who are you? And where do you come from?”

  He held out his hand, and she wasn’t certain what to do with his offering. “Name’s Joshua. Or some people call me Josh for short. Are you one of them dome people?”

  She looked down at his outreached hand, still unsure of what to do with it. “It’s nice to meet you Joshua.” She paused. “I don’t understand your dome question, so I don’t think so.”

  His hand fell to his lap. “You don’t know what the dome is? How about this funny thing you are wearing? Why have you got this on?”

  Hope looked down at herself and at her hands, which seem to be included in what was covering her body. She looked over to the obstruction which had been covering her head, instantly recognizing it as a part of her ensemble.

  “I’m not sure. What does it look like to you? I see I am dressed differently then you are. Is your clothing normal and mine is not?”

  He hesitated for a moment before responding. “I think I need to check your head. You might have hit it pretty hard.”

  “Okay.”

  Hope sat and patiently waited for his examination. Joshua took both of his hands and began to gently press on different areas. As his fingers probed, she winced in pain. Her vision blurred once again when he got too close to the spot where her head had impacted the ground.

  “Yup, you definitely smacked your head pretty good. I’m no healer but I remember one boy a year older than me horsing around and falling off a chair. He landed right on his head and couldn’t remember his own name.”

  Hope shook her head. “Did I fall off a chair?”

  Joshua’s face fell and she could see the tension behind his eyes. “No, I don’t think you fell off a chair. It looks like there was some kind of accident. I heard a loud noise and came to look. I think you got hurt by that.”

  “I got hurt by a noise? I don’t think that’s possible.”

  “Well, I don’t know what you would call it where you are from, but something went wrong and you hit your head pretty hard.” He scratched the hair on his chin. “I’m not sure what to do with you. Will your people come and find you?”

  “My people? I don’t know. Should I have people who will come to find me?”

  Joshua sighed and looked around again. “I just don’t know what to do. I’m afraid that if I leave you here, no one will come for you and you’ll die. But I’m also afraid that if I take you with me, I’ll get into trouble.”

  “Why would you get in trouble?”

  “Because I think you are one of those dome people. You just got to be. My people have spent their entire lives hiding from yours. If I take you with me, how
do I know your people won’t come and kill us after I show you where we live?”

  Hope tried to think for a moment and looked around. She didn’t know who either one of their people were, but it didn’t compute in her mind they should be enemies. She took notice she was lying on the ground in a clearing of gravel. There was a large kind of machine beside her. It looked like it might be used to transport people or items.

  “I don’t understand why you think my people want to hurt yours, but I don’t want to hurt you. If you take me with you, I won’t tell anyone where you are. I promise.”

  He stared at her. She could see his mind turning as he calculated and weighed his options. He looked at her sideways, half-squinting. “Are you married?”

  “I don’t know what that is.”

  He let out a relieved breath and looked off to the side. “How old are you?”

  She shrugged and shook her head.

  A soft smile crept on his face. “Well, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to just spend a bit of time with you and see what happens. My Maw always says, ‘the Lord works in mysterious ways.’”

  “Oh please, take me with you, if you are going somewhere. I don’t know who the people are that you speak of or if they are coming for me. I don’t want to be alone.”

  Joshua stood and reached down to assist her. She got up but wasn’t completely steady on her feet. He put his arm around her back to stabilize her while she wobbled and teetered. Once she had her footing, he leaned down and grabbed her helmet.

  “Best we take this with us. If your people do come, you know.”

  “No. I don’t know. Why do we need that?”

  “If we leave it, they will know you wandered off. But if we take it, they won’t know you are still alive.”

  “Still alive.” She gasped. “Why would they think I’m dead?”

  Joshua hesitated briefly, put his arm around her once again and moved her to the other side of the large mechanism. She couldn’t quite comprehend what she was looking at except for the color: red. She could equate red to blood and understand there was some kind of incident which had killed the people here—her people.

  She looked at the large mechanism and back at the bodies—or at least she assumed there were multiple bodies. She couldn’t decipher how many bodies lay in the sea of red, with the occasional shards of the same blue color she was wearing. She couldn’t bear to look at the blood and tissue masses any longer even though her mind had no recollection of who her companions had been. Josh showing her the terrible scene had already landed its mark, and there was no purpose to look any longer; she understood why her people might assume she was a part of the red masses—if she had any people left to come for her.

  “You found me on the other side of this large mechanism.”

  He nodded.

  “It shielded me. Something exploded and killed my companions, but I was spared because of where I was standing.” She looked at the large mechanism and saw an incredible amount of damage to the opposing side. There were tracks in the rocks which led her to conclude that the explosion pushed the mechanism at least a meter from its original position. It dented the side as though something large and cylindrical collided with it. “Even with the shielding, it threw me back and I hit my head which is why I don’t remember anything?”

  “Yup. That’s what it looks like to me.”

  She studied the scene of the accident again and realized just how lucky she was to still be alive. Why she was using the mechanism as a shield, she did not understand. One thing was for certain, she fully comprehended just how close she had come to her own death. She turned to Joshua, feeling the need to flee from the horrific sight. “You absolutely must take me with you. How can my people come for me when they are all dead? I don’t know if I can survive on my own.”

  A soft smile came over Joshua’s face. His eyes sparkled, and he tightened his grip around her waist. “I can do that.” He studied her; his entire face lit up. “I think you were delivered to me; my own personal miracle. Don’t you worry bout a thing. I’ll take care of you and provide for you. I’ll even give you a name if you like.”

  She nodded. A fluttering feeling manifested in her core, nearly causing her to lose her breath. “I think I would like that very much.”

  He looked deeply into her eyes. “Me too,” he breathed out heavily, “me too.”

  ***

  It was slow moving for the pair. Hope would do her best to walk but was often overtaken with dizziness. Josh kept a supportive arm around her, continually stopping to stabilize her until he simply swept her into his arms. He was strong, making her feel as though she weighed only a feather. Her body relaxed as he carried her. Through the fog in her mind and the pain in her head, she somehow felt she could trust him. He would protect her and bring her to safety.

  As they neared the top of the hill, without a word or warning, Joshua suddenly broke into a run. He ran until they crossed the peak of the hill and he set her down. Joshua grabbed her hand sharply and pulled her to the ground. He laid flat in the grass and watched the vehicle approaching.

  “Is that the same thing that saved me?” She pointed off to the distance. “Are they used to transport people?”

  “Yes. I believe that is what it’s for. I think your people were coming for you.”

  “Should we tell them we are here then?”

  Joshua’s eyes fell and a pink hue radiated throughout his face, neck, and ears. “I don’t think we should do that. You see, the people you come from, they are bad people. I reckon they would try to hurt me and the rest of my village if they knew I was here.”

  The information made her head throb again as she tried to process. “My people are bad? Am I bad?”

  “Your people are bad, but that doesn’t mean you are. The Lord led me to find you for a reason, you see. If you were bad, then he wouldn’t have guided me to you. I think you were born into sin. You need me and my people to introduce you to Jesus so he can save your soul.”

  She studied him for a time, unsure of what to make of his words.

  “You think we should hide from those transporting mechanisms?”

  “I do. Especially for right now. Let’s just watch them and see what they do. That can help us to figure out what they are after and if we are in trouble.”

  She nodded and rolled onto her back. The stabbing pain in her eyes made her want to sleep. Josh seemed to have a good understanding of what to watch for. Besides, she didn’t remember enough to be of service. She didn’t even know if she was really one of them. If they were her people, then how come she didn’t recognize the craft they were traveling in? She suspected that Joshua was wrong. He seemed to think she was one of them, but what if she wasn’t? What if she was innocently passing by just like he was? Would the equipment and tools not look more familiar to her if they were hers?

  “It looks like they want to take that vehicle with them, the one that shielded you.”

  She looked up to see the people he was referring to, who were dressed just like her. They were attaching the mechanism which shielded her to the one which had delivered the new arrivals. She immediately recognized their clothing matched hers, confirming Joshua’s theory. Although she couldn’t remember why she was wearing this strange suit or what its purpose was, it was enough evidence to force her to accept her origins. Their clothing seemed bulky and cumbersome—what Joshua wore looked more practical.

  She witnessed their transport craft slowly pull forward, dragging the damaged one behind. In her logical mind, she knew she should go with them, but she didn’t possess a shred of desire to match her logic. She didn’t know who she was or who her people were, but Joshua seemed to think they were bad. Joshua seemed really nice—he had rescued her, after all. He would probably know what kind of people were good and bad.

  She had to admit, she also enjoyed looking at him. His sparkling eyes were the most interesting part of him, yet were not the only trait which kept her attention. She noticed her eyes lingered on his lips
as he spoke. Although she once thought his face looked dirty, she was currently finding the hair on his face appealing. He may have been unkempt with his shaggy hair but he had large strong shoulders and was fairly tall. She continued to gaze at him, watching him watch as her people vacated, without her.

  “I think if we had left your helmet, they would come looking for you. They think you’re in that pile of body parts; they think you’re dead.”

  “What did they do with the deceased?”

  “Looks like they poured something on them and just left them there.”

  Her jaw clenched involuntarily and her temperature rose. She couldn’t explain why she was angry at her people’s behavior. She didn’t know what the appropriate action was at a time of death, yet she didn’t feel as though they followed it. They should have done something with those bodies, she thought. Brought them home, buried them, cremated them, or at the very least covered them. They deserved more respect than just leaving them there. She couldn’t understand why, but thinking of how those people met such a cruel and undignified end filled her with sorrow.