by Christi Snow
“In the ES, the government doesn’t disclose anything about what really happened after the Veil. Has Malcolm ever studied the sterility? Does he know why no one can conceive any longer?” She wanted to believe that maybe she could still hope to someday have kids, a family, a legacy to leave behind.
“Yeah, he has. Actually, that’s one of the things that he’s really focused on. He says that everyone appears to have working parts, but something is naturally blocking reproduction. In the same way that we all still have germs and viruses, but no one ever gets sick anymore. Bethany attributes it to Mother Earth and that somehow she’s put us in a sort of stasis while she recovers from the damage that man has done to her.”
Lori had never been exposed to a religion based on the earth before so it seemed a bit bizarre to think of the earth exerting her power. “What do you think? Do you believe that?” she asked him.
Marcus shrugged. “Honestly, I have no idea. Can anyone explain what happened when the Veil fell? When it happened, the natural order of things completely changed. Adults died, but left no bodies. No one gets sick anymore, but we don’t have the ability to create a future generation.” As he became more worked up, he talked more and more using his hands and arms to gesture. “If there’s some entity in the earth manipulating it all, why wouldn’t she just kill us all when the Veil fell? As it is now, humanity will die out over time anyway.”
“Did you ever wonder what it would be like to have children?”
His expression completely shut down and his shoulders stiffened.
“Children would be nice,” his voice lowered. “But I accepted a long time ago that a family wasn’t in the cards for me.”
Obviously not wanting to discuss it anymore, he kicked his horse into a faster pace. “Come on. We need to speed up a bit if we want to arrive before nightfall.”
They settled into a faster pace along a well-traveled forest path. Eventually Marcus relaxed back into their easy comradery and Lori was careful to stay away from the subject of families. The Veil had left many people scarred. It was better not to pick at those scabs because in the end, they could talk it to death, but that didn’t change the fact that they’d all lost a lot.
The day provided for a quiet, comfortable ride and they took the time to exchange stories about their lives. Marcus stopped every forty-five minutes or so to let her stretch her legs, always staying vigilant about their surroundings. She knew he worried about another Predator coming upon them, but the ride remained Predator-free.
They stopped for a picnic lunch which they ate in a forest glade filled with wildflowers and a babbling brook. The mist still hung above them, but it just added a mystical, fairy tale-like layer to the scenery. Lori wouldn’t have blinked an eye at finding a twinkling fairy floating around her head.
Instead, she found her purple winged, full-sized Warrior who decided that their picnic presented the perfect time for a little romance. It didn’t go beyond heavy kissing because of the threat of Predators, but as she lay on the blanket underneath the weeping willow tree looking up at his beautiful face, she decided she’d much rather have this winged fantasy any day.
They passed another village that afternoon, but only stopped briefly since they needed to get on to their final destination. Like Marcus’s village, tree houses provided the main source of shelter for the villagers there.
They were surprised to meet up with Brooklyn and Garrison on the road late in the day. They were returning from checking the outlying families who hadn’t responded when the issues with the Predators arose.
Brooklyn paced as she explained, “They’ve just disappeared. No signs of them anywhere. No blood. No indication that anything’s gone wrong. They’ve all just gone. The refrigerators are still stocked. Clothing is still in the drawers. It’s the most bizarre thing and I don’t think it’s good.” She’d stopped pacing and cast a worried glance at Garrison.
He looked serious too. It didn’t fit with his normal personality. “How do thirteen people just disappear like that? We couldn’t find any Predator tracks, but something happened to those people. We can’t find any trace of them telepathically either. It’s completely bizarre.”
Marcus nodded. “Something isn’t right in all this. Get back and report it to Bethany. And be careful. Watch your backs.”
“You, too.” Everyone jumped on their horses and they continued toward their individual destinations.
* * *
When they arrived at Cottonwood late that evening, Lori had expected it to be in the trees like the other two villages, but it wasn’t. Like they’d done in the ES, this village had taken advantage of an existing structure on the ground to create their manufacturing system. As Lori looked out over the valley below them, she tried to place where they were at in the old United States.
Cottonwood was much larger than either of the two villages she’d been exposed to so far. They were obviously on the edge of an old town, although with the new moist environment, almost every building had been overtaken by deep green foliage. Even more overgrown structures rose in the distance.
They’d built a wall similar to what surrounded the farm to protect the village from the Predators. A large structure dominated the middle of it which had to be the manufacturing facility. “What town did this used to be?”
“Johnson City, Tennessee.”
From their perch above the city, Lori could see quite a few people bustling around the town. “How many people live here?”
“There are approximately 250 who work within the clothing manufacturing plant, but there’s another 500 who work the cotton fields along with managing the silkworm and wool ventures.”
“All of that is done here? That’s a lot of different fabrics made at one place.”
He nodded. “With so many fewer people, we’ve learned to streamline and simplify so we don’t overwork them.”
“Do you have other facilities like this throughout the WS for different industries?” Lori asked.
Marcus nodded. “The substructure for an entire society is huge. It took us so long to figure out how to make it all work. Luckily, we had the supplies and the stock in stores left over from civilization from before while we figured it out to get us by. Otherwise we would have starved or died from exposure.” He shook his head. “Our system went through more than its share of hiccups, but I think we’ve learned and improved a lot over the years.”
“You were all just kids when you had to learn how to do all this. In the ES, within months we had the established government back. They were corrupt, but they already knew how to get things done within a society.” Honestly, she’d almost wished she’d grown up on this side of the Veil rather than in the ES. They had such a sense of community here, a mutual purpose. They’d all had to work together to make it work and that cooperation showed in everything they did. “You all had no clue and had to learn how to handle this the hard way. What you all have accomplished is nothing short of amazing.”
He nodded, a gleam of pride in his eyes, but then he glanced at the sky. “Come on. Dusk is coming.” He began to frown. “Does it seem colder to you?”
“I hadn’t noticed it, but you’re right.” She looked up at the mist hanging over them.
As they rode down into the valley, Marcus pulled a wrap out of his pack. He handed it to her and then put on a shirt for the first time that she’d ever seen.
Just like a medieval castle, walls surrounded Cottonwood and they were met by winged guards who gave them access to the interior through a door like the one at the farm.
As they rode through the gate, a man strode forward to meet them. He had long, dark, wavy red hair that rested on his shoulders and wings the color of clouds right before a rainstorm. Even from this distance, his grey eyes flashed with worry through his wire-rimmed glasses and his shoulders were stiff with tension. Like Marcus, he’d donned a shirt to ward off the sudden chill in the air.
Before they’d dismounted, he reported the news. “Marcus, we have a situatio
n up north. Something’s changed and snowstorms are coming.”
“Snowstorms?” Marcus’s brows flew up in shock. “How is that possible?”
“I don’t know. No one knows, but we’re getting reports that the northern villages are getting slammed by these storms and they’re moving south—fast. We predict the first wave of snow will be here within the next eight to twelve hours.”
They quickly dismounted from their horses, and two men took them away as the three of them entered a red brick office building covered in vines. As they entered into an inviting, very masculine office, the man turned to Lori and offered her his hand. “I’m so sorry for my rudeness. I’m assuming you must be Lori. I’m Samson, the one in charge of Cottonwood and all that we do here. I’m anxious to talk to you about the manufacturing and get your input, but right now this situation needs our attention more.”
“Of course. There’s absolutely no need to apologize. Please continue.”
All three of them sat down—Samson behind his desk, Marcus and Lori in the plush chairs in front of it. Everything here remained more traditional and reminded Lori more of the ES than what she’d seen of the WS so far. She wondered if that was because manufacturing provided the basis for everyday life in this settlement.
“Tell us what’s happening,” Marcus instructed.
Samson ran his hand through his hair and stood. He walked over to a map on the wall where there were various pins and flags sticking out of the paper. For Lori’s benefit, he explained the map. “This is the WS and all the villages so we can keep track of where all our deliveries are and need to be. This pin,” he pointed to the largest flag, “is Cottonwood. Two days ago, we sent out a delivery headed for here.” He pointed to the pin furthest north on the map.
“They made their six-hour check-in point just fine.” He pointed to another pin on the map. “At the ten-hour check-in point, they reported colder temperatures, but kept moving on. They stopped for the night here,” he pointed to another pin further north, “and woke up the next morning to snow. But because their delivery held a lot of linens, including wool blankets, they decided to continue on, knowing the villagers were going to need them because of the freezing temperatures. None of the villages are equipped to handle snow after all this time. That’s the last we heard from them. They didn’t make their destination and we have no idea what happened to them. The last reports we had from the northern villages say that a blizzard-like snowstorm is headed our way.”
Lori and Marcus exchanged a worried glance. The snowstorm just reinforced it. Things were changing in the WS because she’d altered something by coming across the Veil. Sudden awareness churned in her stomach. She had a limited timetable here with Marcus. Somehow she’d thrown off the natural balance of his world. She wasn’t meant to be part of his life.
Marcus turned back to Samson. “Do you need us here?”
Samson shook his head. “No, we’ve shut down all the production lines except the wool and blanket lines. We’re in the process of moving our clothing production to create warmer garments, but that’s going to take another eighteen hours to get on-line. Whoever isn’t working in the production plant is out gathering firewood and supplies. We already have a cart loaded up for you all to take back full of provisions for the southern villages. The trip home will take longer with the cart, but the southern villages are going to need the extra blankets. We have no idea how far south this storm is going to dip. I’m afraid that’s all we can offer right now. That’s the last of our stores.”
“You said eight to twelve hours, right?” Marcus glanced out the window to the darkening sky.
Samson scowled. “Unfortunately, yes, and that’s just a guess. I know it’s not ideal with the danger from the Predators, but you all need to get back on the road tonight or you’re going to get trapped in this snowstorm with us. You should still have enough time so you and your horses can rest for a couple of hours before you have to head out.”
“Damn,” Marcus cursed and ran a frustrated hand through his hair as he scowled at the map.
“I’m sorry Marcus. If we weren’t already stretched so thin here, I would have sent word to you, but we simply didn’t have the manpower to send a messenger. With the storm coming, something seems off with the telepathy. Our reach isn’t as far as normal, but I also knew you would want these blankets headed south. The southern villages are going to need them.”
Marcus had explained to her how they used a telepathy chain to communicate long distances. It was curious that the weather could disturb that, but if that power came from within the Earth and the ley lines… Was this another sign that things were changing within the Earth?
“Don’t worry about it, Samson. Do you have a place where we can bunk down for a couple of hours and get some food?”
“Yes, come on and I’ll show you where you can rest.”
* * *
Two and a half hours later and they were back in Samson’s office. He stood in front of them looking grim. “I’m afraid we have a situation.”
Marcus didn’t like the sound of that. They didn’t need any more complications. “What’s happening?”
“There’s a group of nine Predators at the front gate, trying to get into the village compound.”
“There are nine of them? Together?” Things were becoming more and more bizarre. Predators never travelled together. On occasion they had seen two together, but never more than that.
Samson nodded and scowled. “Yes, and you’re not going to believe what they’re doing. Come with me so you can see.”
The three of them climbed the interior stairs of one of the buildings flanking the gate. Once they got to the roof, they joined half a dozen others watching the Predators below with morbid interest. Up here, the wind rushed bitterly cold, and Marcus shivered despite his double shirts. He drew Lori closer to share their warmth.
The exterior walls were lit, so they could see the Predators below. They growled and made unhappy noises as they pushed on the gate. When they weren’t trying to get in, they huddled together. He’d never seen anything like it. In fact, he’d never seen any sign of intelligence from these creatures at all. Before they’d only shown signs of madness.
“They’re cold,” Lori whispered. “They’re trying to get in for shelter and warmth.”
Samson nodded. “That’s what we think, too. We’ve never seen them work together as a group like this. Maybe it’s some sort of instinct for them. Maybe they can sense the storm coming. They obviously can already feel the cold.”
They watched the moaning Predators shiver. They were covered with fur, but like any animal, they’d grown accustomed to the normal temperature of their environment. They weren’t equipped to handle the drastic change in temperature.
Samson turned to Marcus. “There’s no way to get you out of here with them blocking the gate like that. You’d never make it through that many Predators without either you or your horses getting hurt.”
“Wait just a minute. I have an idea,” Marcus said. “We think they’re just here because they’re cold, right? Maybe we can lure them away with some heat. I know supplies are low, but it may be worth the sacrifice of a few blankets.”
Samson nodded. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
As Samson and Marcus worked out a plan, Lori watched the Predators. Besides the one at the waterfall, she hadn’t gotten to see any others. From everything she’d been told, they were mindless, crazed creatures, but the nine down below didn’t appear that way. They were definitely not happy, but they seemed more scared and worried, huddling together for warmth. Even though there were several different sizes within the group, they were all huge. Their fur was matted, and the colors of their fur ranged from light to dark shades of browns. But they didn’t have animal eyes. Their eyes had colored irises surrounded by white just like humans—blue, green, and brown.
Where did these creatures come from?
Marcus touched her shoulder, interrupting her musings. “Let’s moun
t up. We need to be ready to move as soon as they’re distracted.”
She nodded and joined him in his trek down the stairs to their horses, waiting for them. She looked over at the third horse, pulling a narrow trailer that would fit on the riding trails. These were the supplies they were supposed to deliver.
As they mounted up, three men flew over the wall carrying blankets to draw the Predators away.
Marcus looked at her for reassurance. “Are you ready?”
She gave a short nod and tried to quell her rolling stomach. The one thing she’d been told from her very first day here was never go out at night and here they were on the verge of doing that very thing, with a snowstorm barreling down on them and Predators outside the gates. Much too soon, the all-clear signal sounded and the gates began opening.
Marcus reached across to stroke her arm. “Stick close,” he instructed and then grabbed up the reins of both his horse and the one pulling the trailer. They took off out of the gate at a hard gallop.
They’d gone a couple of miles before he let up on their pace. Lori felt every one of those years she’d been off a horse through her already sore muscles.
The dark of the night pervaded her senses once they were away from Cottonwood. Because of the low-lying fog, no moonlight showed through to guide them. They had to rely solely on Marcus’s night-vision, memory, and instincts. Lori couldn’t be sure if she shivered because of the cold or the fear of what could be out there in the dark.
They’d been traveling quietly for some time when Lori heard the sound of a growl nearby which sounded like some sort of big cat. She fingered the sword strapped to her thigh. Marcus wore his the same way since they were both wrapped up in blankets.