“These are the portals to my home worlds,” he said, emotionally, “and everything seems to be in order. My probe detected no life signs, but all other factors are normal.”
He pointed at the first portal. “This one will take us to the planet of my birth—the planet where I lived until I left for Earth.”
Alice asked him if it had a name that we could pronounce.
“I am sorry, no,” he replied, “nor do any of the other four.”
She turned to Amy. “Any inspirations for names?”
Amy, who had been very quiet, said nothing, but walked trance like past Moses to stand facing the first portal. We knew something was up so we waited to see what would happen. Moments later, her arms stiffen and her fingers splayed. When she turned around the imp smile was on full display.
“I just figured it out,” she said.
She spun around and raised both arms. “I name the first planet, ‘Omaha’.”
“Omaha?” we all repeated.
“Why Omaha?” Alice asked.
“You’ll know real soon,” she replied, “and I do this to honor my Grandfather, Lieutenant David George Bassett.”
Our girl had a very attentive audience as she turned to look down the row of remaining portals and raised her arms once more. “Planet number two, I name thee, ‘Utah’. Planet number three, I name thee, ‘Juno’. Planet number four, I name thee, ‘Gold’ and planet number five, I name thee, ‘Sword’. We are the Pathfinders,” she said, while moving toward us. “The scouts if you will. We are the advance party, sent to gather information about what we may face. There may be an invasion, but Earth’s position can only be defensive at this time because we don’t know what lies ahead. Maybe it’s an overwhelming hostile force, or maybe the remnants of Moses’ civilization. The Nazis are a new question mark. Was there a plan for more to follow? Did Moses closing the Earth portal prevent that maneuver? Where are they now and what are they up to? The third thing is to find Mary. Our plate is very full.”
Alice broke the silence by saying in her perfect English accent, “I think she’s got it. By George, I think she’s got it.”
“Are preparations underway back on Earth?” M1 asked Moses.
“Of course,” he replied. “I gave the Director the technology for a planetary defense system, universal translators and some other items. Special forces are in training.”
“Hey fellas,” Harry said, “I see a little scrap of red cloth, sticking out from that pile of rubble.” He picked it up and shook off the dust. “Here you go M1—another piece of that flag for your collection.” He kicked aside more of the bricks. “Aha, look at this.” He bent down and picked up a small wad of the red scraps.
“That’s a great find, Harry,” Alice said. “That they no longer needed the trail markers means that the two groups were together. Problem is that we don’t have any more of these crumbs to follow, but at least we know.”
“All right!” M2 said, doing an Irish jig. “All the lights are green.”
M1 clapped his hands together. “So now we go. Remember, Nazis excluded, the last thing we want to do is antagonize any potentially hostile alien force. Shan, step outside and tell Arnold to return to the farm. YDRII provided him with several bushels of high-energy feed for the morse’s trip through Sequoia. Make sure he has his radio and extra batteries. Moses, please check the Omaha portal and see if the coast is clear.”
Moses entered the chamber and closed the door. When he returned, he said, “The dome on Omaha is twice the size of those we have used and is quite empty. It rests on the shore of a large body of water. There is a wide strip of sand directly in front. I saw no signs of life. It is nighttime on Omaha and rain is falling.”
“That’s it then,” said M1. “Anything before we go?”
“Amy has named this planet Paradise,” Alice said, “but based on what we saw today, I need to ask her if the name sticks. How about it kiddo.”
Amy didn’t hesitate. “Paradise it is,” she said. “Today was a worm in the golden apple. We’ll just spit it out and carry on.”
We all agreed.
“Anything more?” M1 asked.
“Two things,” Harry said. First, something’s bugging me about this Nazi business. Our attitude needs some adjusting. We wondered about the first clues and they became a bit worrisome. Okay, cause we had no idea that they made it past Ganymede, but at the cemetery, where we picked up some solid evidence, it became a bigger worry. Here’s the thing—it shouldn’t be a worry for us. It should be a worry for the Nazis, if only they knew.” Harry fairly bristled with anger. “They did things to my family. Now we hunt the bastards along with our other tasks. Me, I’m jazzed up about the whole thing.” We all were. Our energy level had shot up. “Second thing—a toast,” he said, as he held up his magic flask and some shot sized paper cups, “and I think Amy should be the toastmaster.”
He passed around the little cups and quickly poured a generous dollop in each.
“First,” she said, “I would like to make a mark on this podium that will tell of our passing through this place.” She took a marker from her vest pocket and squatted in front of the podium. “This is also for my Grandpa.” When she stood up and moved aside, there was the Kilroy cartoon. “Now, the toast,” she said, while raising her cup. “First, to a rainy night on Omaha, may it be as fortunate for us as that rainy night in Upstate New York. Finally, to this special day, which is our own personal D-Day. Only this time the D stands for Dance.”
I swear that I heard Alice sniffle, but I said nothing.
We drank up, threw our cups at the wall and went quickly through the portal.
The Dance Band was landing on Omaha Beach.
Part 3
CHAPTER 33
It was a dark and rainy night on Omaha Beach. I remembered the many times on Nexus, after our evening meal, when we would sit together and plan for this moment. The “what ifs” were legion, but in the end we knew we faced the same situation Lieutenant Basset faced a lifetime ago. For all of the training and exercises, when at last he stepped onto the sand of that long ago beach, all he had were his wits. Like him, we too were walking into the unknown.
The visibility was marginal. I could see that the shoreline was continuous to the left, but a close-by dome limited my sight to the beach and the water. To the right there was a long causeway built straight out, far enough to reach deep water. There were no ships tied up there, but I could just make out the skeletal outlines of large cranes that spoke of a commercial dock.
“Just look at the size of that sucker,” M2 said. “It’s big enough to handle all of the produce that arrived here from Paradise and then some.”
“Take a look over here,” Harry said from near a window at the right. “There’s a whole city behind us, but for sure there’s no hot time in the old town tonight. The entire place looks deserted. Even those tall building in the distance have only a few lights here and there.”
“I only see two working streetlights on that big road leading away from the dock,” M1 said. “I guess somebody forgot to pay the electric bill. Say, Moses, can YDRII get an electronic reading from inside this dome?”
“It would be more accurate from outside and at some altitude,” he said.
He told us earlier that YDRII would lose many of his abilities on any of the five home worlds due to his initial programming. He could still seek out and identify electronic sources, but he could no longer detect humanoids nor could he extract memories from them. The original creators must have had concerns about mind control within the ruling population. Fortunately, he could still provide instant translation.
“Heads up and freeze,” Alice said, in a hoarse whisper, while pointing out of the left window.
We all watched motionless as three tall figures in robes or ponchos walked slowly toward the dock area. They reminded me of weary soldiers returning from the front except that instead of rifles on their shoulders, they carried shovels. Once they were well out of sight, I poi
nted to a selection of shovels, rakes and brooms leaning against the back wall. “All we need do,” I said, “is to put on our ponchos with the hoods up, pick up the tools over there and pretend we’re a work crew.”
“What about our backpacks?” Amy asked. “They may be suspicious—should we leave them here?”
“I don’t think so,” M1 said. “It’s very dark, very wet and there’s a good chance that no one will notice. We may need the packs and I don’t want to be running back here for supplies.” He asked Moses if he was ready to leave the dome.
“I think so,” he said. “Right now I have no idea where we are on the planet. I’m familiar with most of the major cities, but I need to orient myself.”
M1 gave the order to load up, put on our ponchos and grab a garden tool. As soon as we were ready, Moses closed the portal then opened the larger door and we stepped into the rain. YDRII, who had changed his color to our camouflage, immediately zoomed up and disappeared. I looked down the beach to the left and saw that our dome was the last of a line of perhaps ten similar structures. I wondered if each dome went to a separate planet or perhaps to domes elsewhere on Paradise. YDRII returned to report that there were some dead satellites overhead and minimal electronic activity on the ground. Most of what little there was in this area was basic illumination in the center of the city. There were no communication broadcasts of any kind.
“This is a very strange thing,” Shan said. “I was expecting a beautiful city, but this is ugly.”
At this stage, speculation was less important than information. Perhaps there was no threat, but to let our guard down would not be wise. At M1’s command through our ear radios, we moved toward the deserted dock.
“The dock looks lifeless and abandoned,” M1 said. “Unless Moses wants to investigate, we’ll turn right and head up the boulevard toward the city.”
Moses was silent, so that’s what we did. Just after we made the turn, I thought I saw a movement in the deep shadows of an alleyway to our right. I made a “SSST” sound in my radio and called their attention to what I might have seen.
“Blue does not smell anything,” Shan said, “but the wind is at our backs.”
“Maybe it’s nothing,” Alice said, “but then again, I’ll keep checking to our right as we go.”
These first buildings near the shore, made of more of the stained and pitted forever-material, were plain and undecorated. They were mostly one tall story with few doors and windows—all closed and dark. Tiny glints of reflected light from unknown sources wobbled through blobs of water pooled on the pavement, but the trip exhausted their ability to illuminate anything beyond their own passage.
“Must be the warehouse district,” M2 said, via my earpiece.
“I think it is,” Harry said. “Business must be lousy. The whole area looks abandoned. I see some trash, but where are the garbage cans?”
“Maybe business here is seasonal,” I said. “Could be that this place is only busy when stuff comes through the portals.”
“It’s just weird,” Amy said. “I don’t know what I expected, but not this. We are on a home world for God’s sake. Was there a great plague or something?”
The large warehouses soon gave way to a mix of smaller, but taller and silent buildings of three and four stories. They had much more in the way of windows and more ornate entrances. It was nighttime, yes, but the aura of abandonment permeated everything in sight. There were streetlights on poles every fifty yards, but all were weak, sputtering or dead, which only added to the gloom. Here and there patches of sickly weeds struggled up through the cracked and pitted roadway.
“This is worse than Nexus,” Amy exclaimed. “At least there we knew it had no population, but here we know there are people somewhere. Creepy, creepy, creepy.”
The roadway was wide and clear, so we were walking in casual formation, two and three abreast. I think we just felt more comfortable in a tight group. My left hand supported the rake slung over my shoulder while my right hand held my trusty pistol.
There was a dark alleyway between the next two buildings. We paused on our approach when two shadowy figures jumped out to confront us.
“With spears?” M2 said—much surprised.
The crouching pair was very short, but solidly built, like our blacksmith herd master. In the dim light we could see that their clothing was ragged, but their hoods hid their faces. It was impasse. Their threatening pose morphed to indecision.
Their indecision turned to flight when the air was pierced with the violent blast of an air horn.
“What the hell was that?” Alice asked.
M1 turned with a smile and held up the small device. “I wasn’t sure about bringing this, but I’m glad I did.” He picked up a small object. “I saw them drop this. It’s an old, German Luger—no bullets and very rusty.” He tossed it aside. “No room for souvenirs.”
“What is this Luger thing?” Shan asked.
M2 tried to explain the function of the pistol, but I don’t think she really got it until he said it was a small shotgun.
“Did you notice,” Harry said, “that one of them had a ratty old swastika armband? I’m thinking that those guys were working for or with the Nazis. Even if the black legs are gone, I’ll bet those rag bags have learned some nasty habits. If I had some way to communicate with Earth, I’d put in a call for the Marines. These locals need a stomping party.”
Alice moved to poke Harry in his chest. “I just pushed your stop button, cowboy. Information—we need more information. We’re not going to start an intergalactic war based on a seventy year old luger and a faded armband. I’m still hoping that the troops will be peacekeepers and negotiators.”
As we paused to peer into the dark alley, I heard a rusty squeak in another passage on our right. We turned and saw a flap open on a flickering lantern, held high by its owner to illuminate his face. He was not a twin to Bob, but they would look similar in a lineup.
“The night guards will return with many more,” he said, in a low but intense voice. “Come with me now or they will kill you.”
Without hesitation, M1 gave a command. “Follow that man.”
Before the vibrations from my ear radio died down, Moses called out to the man in the shadows, “Lead on friend, we will follow.”
Our new friend then took us at a semi trot down several narrow alleyways. As usual, I quickly became hopelessly lost, but I knew that YDRII and probably Blue could find the way back with no problem. Halfway down one of those nameless passageways our guide stopped and opened a rather decrepit wooden door. I did notice that the hinges had plenty of oil for we passed through in complete silence.
The lantern bounced around some, then landed on a solid surface. Our guide flipped open the top, which illuminated his face from below in the Frankenstein manner. He stuck the wick of a fat white candle into the flame, giving us a dim, but adequate view of our rescuer and our sanctuary. It was a very plain, windowless room with but a small table and four rough benches. Other than the door we had entered there was one smaller exit in the back wall.
Lantern Man peeled off his poncho and sat down on one of the benches. His clothing was simple and rustic; a wide belt provided support for a dagger on one side and a short sword on the other. The man could have just stepped out of Sherwood Forest.
We had thrown back our own poncho hoods and it was interesting to watch his face as he saw us in the candlelight. His eyes grew round with surprise at the sight of so many unusual features and skin colors. Soon the look of surprise gave way to curiosity. I knew then that we were in for some negotiations.
“I saw you come out of the first dome,” he said.
“Why don’t you handle this one?” M1 said to Moses.
Moses moved to the front and sat opposite Lantern Man. He must have decided that honesty was the best approach because he told him that we had just arrived from Paradise. Only he used a word we could not pronounce.
“How can that be?” Lantern Man asked. “The do
mes are used only at tax time, but not in recent years. No one can use them without permission.” He paused to point a finger at Blue. “Our kind may not possess this creature. Never have I seen one, but I have seen pictures. On this world only the gray men may possess them.”
“Our presence here has no simple answer,” Moses said. “I think it best that we make ourselves comfortable while I tell you our story.”
Lantern Man nodded and drew a bottle from a previously unseen drawer under the tabletop. Harry added his bottomless flask and a small stack of paper cups and we all gathered tight around our new acquaintance. Maybe I read too much into certain observations, but I noticed that as our little group formed, Shan wound up next to M2 and Amy found a spot next to M1. Then again, maybe I just read too much.
“Let me begin,” Moses said, “by telling you that this is the planet of my birth. I left here many lifetimes ago and come here from a place beyond the agricultural planets.”
Lantern Man paused, his cup halfway to his mouth. “If what you say is true, you are one of the ancient missionaries. I have heard the tales. I have seen some of the forbidden books. There are those who told me what each page was saying.” As he took a sip of his drink, I could see the gears whirling in his head. “If you are truly a missionary, you have many powers that those here that look like you no longer possess.”
At this point Moses explained that the Lantern Man was referring to the tall upper class, which apparently still existed here—even now.
“I live by my wits,” Lantern Man said, “and I hope that my asking for some small demonstration of your power is a reasonable request.”
Moses said nothing, but drew a laser pistol from under his poncho and aimed it at the back wall. A brilliant green dot appeared on that unlucky surface. The dot glowed a blinding white and blossomed into a fireworks display of sparks as the forever material turned to slag and fell to the floor. Moses ended the demonstration before the wall sustained any damage other than a small smoldering crater. Lantern Man’s eyes bulged and he spilled his drink.
LOST AND FORGOTTEN: Book 2 The Secret Path Page 23