Changer's Blood (Balancer's Soul cycle)

by Lee Morgan

  It took Sarah a moment for her to regain her composure. Sarah looked at Connor with a tightlipped smile. He entered her mind once she became unsure of how to respond. “Oh go ahead, Princess.” She replied to his grandmother sarcastically saying “He sure hasn’t. I don’t know what to do about it though. Not much can get through that skull of his.” She playfully crossed her arms, pretending to be upset.

  Rhoda stood fully erect to look at him, wearing a one sided smile and one eyebrow raised that meant trouble neared. She turned, leaned down and whispered in his wife’s ear. It was too faint for even Connor to hear, but Sarah’s face looked appalled and shocked. When his grandmother leaned away and saw her expression she started laughing. “Oh Sweetie, it always works for me. Put your own spin on it and see if it works. All men can feel it if you do it just right.”

  David elbowed his grandson saying quietly “Boy, you should be prepared for anything because your grandma is a devious old woman. Trust me, she’s been the same way for over fifty years and I still can’t get away with nothing.”

  Sarah looked at him and telepathically said “Your grandmother is something else. I haven’t met anyone in a long time who had her spunk at this age.”

  “Granddaddy says that when she was younger, that she used to be exactly like Kara.” Connor thought back at her.

  “Two Kara’s?” She said and the mental picture she made sent a chill down both of their spines. “Talk about a scary thought.”

  David patted Connor on the back. Connor looked down as he said. “The way you two look at each other… it looks like you are having a conversation with your eyes.” He scratched his head while grinning. “It’s almost like you can read each other’s thoughts.”

  Sarah and Connor couldn’t hold in the short burst of laughter. Rhoda looked between them with confused, dark brown eyes. Sarah said when she could breathe again “Sorry, but my dad and sister say the exact same thing about us.”

  They bought it and they soon went into the house. They sat down in the entertainment room and enjoyed the company. After a nice two hour conversation his grandfather asked “Do you need anything for tomorrow’s seminar?”

  Connor thought about it. “Yes sir. Can I have some flashlights just incase?”

  “Is that all?” he nodded. “I have all kinds, what would you like?”

  He let Connor have twelve flashlights of different sizes. Six needed new batteries and the other six you needed to simply shake to keep charged.

  Before they left, Rhoda asked “Where are you going?”

  Sarah retorted with “Shopping for some last minute supplies.”

  Sarah and Connor left their property and went by the hardware store first and bought rechargeable batteries, new rope, ten new canteens, fishing line and a large tackle box that will be utilized for housing the first aid supplies.

  They left the establishment and went to the Medical Shop and filled the tackle box with first aid supplies. Connor bought antihistamines, peroxide swabs, several rolls of gauze, ten sterile twine packages, stitching needles, alcohol, a CPR mask, Snapping ice packs, tape, non-latex gloves, adhesive patches, cue tips, cotton balls, sterile water and an electric thermometer.

  They all fit perfectly in the box.

  When they arrived at the Branderson residence again Connor parked the truck in their driveway and made sure that it didn’t block them from being able to pull out. He looked across the street at his mom’s house and saw that no one made it home yet because the lights were off and all the cars were still gone. It was strange, but he was relieved for some relaxation.

  When they cut through the woods and made it home to the cottage in the woods they had a surprise waiting. Connor’s relaxation had to wait until later.

  “SURPRISE!!!” Everyone yelled. Before Connor and Sarah stood Jenny, Kara, Mark, David, Rhoda, Jillian and Jack. They were all standing in front of his home. They took the dining room table and pulled it outside and it was completely filled with food and an assortment of drinks. Connor knew he might need to change the locks to his home one day if they ever tried this again.

  Sarah asked in as much shock as he was in “What is all this?”

  Jenny stepped up. “This is a party to celebrate the start of Connor’s new business. We wanted to wish you good luck.”

  They all had a good time eating and laughing. They all ate outside because his home couldn’t hold a party inside due to the lack of space versus the amount who had gathered without warning. Connor looked at his mom and asked “Mom, where did everyone park? I didn’t see any vehicle’s at the house.”

  She looked up at him from the sink, along with Jillian and Jack who mirrored her. “We parked all of the vehicles behind the house. We all wanted to give you a Good Luck Surprise Party. We know how you can deduce things so we did our best to keep you from figuring out these plans. From the initial look on your face, it was all worth it.”

  Before everyone left they helped with the cleanup and put everything back inside. Mark and David led everyone back home safely through the forest just before it started to rain.

  Connor knew he had a big day ahead of him tomorrow and soon both he and Sarah went to bed early. The rain helped them fall asleep all the quicker.

  Mark awoke early the following morning and brought three changes of hiking clothes and the machete that Connor requested for him to bring. He walked outside the apartment and breathed in a breath of fresh air following the rain that had dropped during the night. Everything looked and felt so clean and refreshed. At least that doesn’t change in the wheels of time. And from the feel of the outside Mark’s animalistic instincts told him that they would be having a good day.

  Mark arrived at Kara and Jenny’s home and parked his jeep in the driveway and stepped out. He made it there thirty minutes before Connor said to and he looked across the street to the Branderson’s residence. In the driveway sat a new truck that had a lot muscle. It was confusing to see something that conspicuous around here, but it was a beautiful piece of machinery. He leaned against his jeep and studied it. It must be Jack’s. He surmised.

  Ten minutes later Mark focused his hearing and knew that Connor was coming quietly out of the woods. Only he could move without making nearly any noise. If it weren’t for the rustling of leaves created from him running Mark wouldn’t have realized he was coming. If Mark wasn’t used to it by now he’d swear his hearing was playing tricks. It was still unnerving.

  The moment Connor came out of the forest he instantly spotted Mark in the darkness of the night. He was wearing his black sleeveless shirt again and blue jeans along with Tool hanging at his hip. It’s still hard to see someone fit into their surroundings so effortlessly. The moon reflected off his silver armlet as he walked up to the new truck and waived Mark over.

  Mark walked up to the truck and Connor said “What do you think?” and tapped the hood of the green truck.

  Then it hit Mark. “This is your truck!” Connor nodded with a prideful smile. “Where did you get it?”

  He pointed over his shoulder with his thumb at the log cabin. “Jack built it for me as a late gift. Awesome isn’t it?” He then ran his fingers through his sandy blonde hair.

  “That’s an understatement.” Mark looked inside the passenger window, but he had to stand on his toes just to peek down inside. Everything looked so new and completely high tech.

  He then said calmly “You’re going to ride with me. We’ll only need to take one vehicle. I bet you want to see what this toy is capable of.”

  Taking the hint Mark walked over to the jeep and grabbed his bag of clothes and the sharpened blade. Walking back to the metal monster Mark saw that Connor was pulling Kara’s wagon from her garage and dragged it across the street. Mark understood the premise for it and opened the top of the bed and lowered the tailgate. A big tackle box by the rear wheel well had a red painted symbol, that made it the first aid kit. It was a red cross. He had a case of flashlights and other accessories inside a pack that laid beside
the first aid box. Mark tossed his bag in and asked as Connor easily put the wagon in the truck “Why are you going to need that?”

  He closed the bed of the truck and locked it. He looked at Mark and smiled. “We are going to have children that will be with their parents and they will get tired. I’m bringing the wagon along incase they want a ride.” Mark understood and hopped in the passenger side of the hulking truck.

  The engine fired up, but it was too quiet. “Is this thing even on?”

  Connor started laughing as he put it in gear and pulled onto the road. He explained what the truck ran on and why it drove so quietly, as they drove down the road. Mark couldn’t help but admire Jack’s knowhow.

  Thirty minutes later they pulled into the forest reserve and parked in the reserved parking lot. Together they walked over to pavilion nineteen and waited for the customers to arrive.

  Mark couldn’t help but admire the scenery.

  Dawn just broke and the sky started brightening. Squirrels began scurrying through the trees. The birds were waking up and filling the morning with their music. There was a slow, crisp breeze pushing through the trees bringing the smell of morning dew. The grass and shrubbery showed to be freshly trimmed and cut. A variety of trash bins sat throughout the campgrounds and signs posted all over the park that explained the different rules.

  Connor explained why they waited on this bench. “I chose this pavilion because it would be big enough for a party of up to thirty people. I told the three customers to meet us here in another hour for their first lesson.”

  They were interrupted by a loud and deep voice that came from a distance. “Hey, Connor!”

  A slim man in a brown Park Rangers uniform approached the green pavilion. He had a wide rimmed, circular hat clutched in his left hand. He was just starting to go bald and he had a thick mustache keeping his upper lip company. He was middle aged and walked at a quick and measured pace as he came within conversation range.

  “Morning, Bill. I told you I would be here this morning.” Connor stood up from the bench and shook Bill’s hand. Connor towered over the leaner gentleman.

  “You sure did, son. By the way, can you get any bigger?” Bill stated.

  “Come again?” Connor asked.

  “Son, I just can’t believe how built you are. These arms look like tree trunks. You must beat women off with a stick.” He smiled up at Connor.

  Mark’s best friend laughed only twice, softy. “Sorry, but I forgot to tell you Bill that I’ve recently become married. She doesn’t like me for just my build.”

  Bill’s face was stunned at this latest news. Moments later he started to laugh. “We’ll if she agreed to marry you, she must be a great woman.” He scratched his scruffy jaw as he asked “What’s her name? Age? And what is she like?”

  Connor said proudly “Her name is Sarah. She is twenty two and quite shy usually.” He smiled at the ranger.

  “A winning combination if I ever heard one. Good for you! All I can say is good luck for the two of you.” The ranger placed a fatherly hand on Connor’s shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

  The ranger turned to look at the other body. Mark stood up and offered his hand saying “Hello, I’m Mark.”

  He shook the offered hand saying “Hey Mark, I’m Bill.” He released his hand and asked “So are you here to take lessons from my friend here?”

  Connor answered for Mark. “No Bill, he’s my associate. He will be working with me. An extra set of eyes will keep the patrons safer.” Bill nodded at Mark with a proud smile. Bill clasped his shoulder as well and gave it a gentle squeeze.

  The ranger got a call on his radio and turned to leave. He turned around saying “Sorry Connor, I almost forgot, but you know the rules.”

  “Oh right!” Connor quickly reached in his back pocket and pulled out his leather wallet. “Here you go.” He handed the park ranger a fifty dollar bill.

  The ranger stuffed it in his top pocket saying “I’ll give it back to you on Sunday when I stop by your campsite, if it’s clean that is.” Connor nodded in acknowledgement as the ranger hurried to the call he got.

  Reaching at his side, Connor adjusted Tool as he sat back down on the bench to wait and Mark followed his example.

  Forty minutes later the customers started arriving. The first to pull in at the pavilion was a young looking athletic couple. The man stood at Mark’s height and his girlfriend stood about two inches taller. They were both blond but her eyes were sky blue where as his were a rich brown. They greeted their instructors and sat down with their bags at a bench. They said their names were Janet and Ray.

  A family of two average looking parents and two young children walked up and greeted everyone kindly. The parents were nice and the young children asked Mark and Connor questions that didn’t pertain to the trip. The parents names were Jim and Brittany and the young boys were Tyler and Billy. The kids looked to be easily excited. As the boys spotted a squirrel and tried chasing it, it became a fact that they were. Mark knew these kids were going to make everything about this weekend a tad more exciting.

  The final family came up to the pavilion eyed the two instructors rather suspiciously. The father easily leaned on the husky side as did his wife. They had twin fraternal teenagers that followed behind their parents. Their names were Manny, Susan, Troy and Terri.

  After everyone met, Connor and Mark stood and addressed the gathered group. Connor started the show by saying “Thank you for all coming this morning to take my class. I’m Connor and this is my associate Mark. We are going to show the ten of you how to survive this weekend. If anything unfortunate should ever happen in your lives and you become stranded or lost in the wilderness, you will all be prepared to survive in the wild after I’m done.” He took a breath to ask “Before we begin; I want to inquire if anyone has any questions they would like to ask us?” He looked pointedly at the suspicious parents. “We will answer anything within our power.”

  The husky man, Manny, stood up and sounded as suspicious as he looked. “I wanted a new change in my life, as does my family. We saw the flier in the paper and thought it would be interesting to give it a try. We get here and we find out that kids will be our instructors. What kinds of qualifications do you have, Boy?”

  Connor said politely “I have been an outdoorsman my entire life. I have survived over six months by myself and lived off the land, and I only carried this with me.” He brought Tool out to show everyone. “This is all I ever needed because to survive in the wild you don’t need more than one bladed weapon and your wits. Anything else is useless baggage that no one ever needs to carry.” Connor now addressed the man directly. “I am also an experienced tracker. I have never in my life had anyone hurt in the wild that was under my care.” The man smiled at the answer and Connor addressed the group again. “Any more fears you might have?”

  The pleasant looking mother, Brittany, of the excited young children stood and asked “Are there any dangerous animals around here?” She glanced worriedly for her children’s safety.

  Connor said honestly and clearly. “There is always a risk when entering a forest that you might come across animals that could be potentially dangerous. That’s life in the real world. There are bears, mountain lions and snakes aplenty in this forest.” Her eyes widened in fear. “That is why there are two of us here for your safety. If anything dangerous should cross our path, I will remove the threat personally. While I am dealing with it, Mark here will take the group to safety and I will catch up with the group once I’m finished. You need not worry for my safety either for I am well equipped to deter any threat that comes our way.”

  Mark stepped forward and said “Besides, wouldn’t you agree that you’d want to have Tyler and Billy to have the knowledge to survive long enough to be rescued. As they are now they are little more than fodder. If they learn the skills to hunt and not be eaten, wouldn’t you want them to live? We know what we are doing and we can promise that you and your children couldn’t be in better hand
s.”

  “I can second that!” A booming voice said from behind them. Mark turned to see Bill leaning against the pavilion post. He didn’t notice Bill had shown up because he approached from downwind. He walked forward and put his hand over Connor and Mark’s shoulder. “These boys here will not let anything hurt your children ma’am. Also, they are better than me out in the bush and I have worked out here for over twenty years. They might be young, but don’t let that fool you. These boys will do everything they need to ensure your safety. Just look at them, nothing smart would come near.”

  “That’s all I needed to hear.” Her husband Jim said in a calm voice and the nice lady sat down. Jim seemed like a calm and calculating gentleman.

  “Let’s get started if there aren’t any more questions.” Mark said, wanting to get a move on. The group looked to agree.

  “Before you do, I insist that all food and cell phones remain with me. Like Connor’s fliers and ad said ‘This is a Survival and outdoor seminar’.” Bill said taking his hand off their shoulder and walked forward.

  Bill sure smoothed out their transition, but something was off. The wind shifted as the groups opened their packs and Mark smelled food.

  The only people who didn’t pay heed for the no provisions or technology was the husky family. Their packs were full of processed food. Bill took it all without much fuss and said to them “When I come to check on you Sunday, you’ll get your things back.”

  Everyone reluctantly followed them to the truck and Connor took out the wagon, Machete blades, flashlights, rope and the first aid kit. He strapped the chest strap on and began pulling the wagon. All could see than in an emergency they would get treatment if anyone was harmed. They were well prepared and the groups now knew it.

  The entire group started walking down a widely used trail to the campsite. Connor led the group while he pulled the wagon, followed by the young athletic couple. Behind them was the family with the young children and behind them followed the grumbling husky family. Mark took the rear and made sure that no one fell behind.