The Colony Ship Conestoga : The Complete Series: All Eight Books

by John Thornton

  “Bigelow? You know I am right about that place back there,” Jerome said. “Why do you think it has happened?”

  “I am not even sure what has happened. We saw a melanistic leopard, and a buck nyala. You killed the nyala. That I know.”

  “That is not all that happened!” Jerome raged.

  “Cool down rube! Steady yourself. Yes, it looked like something odd was happening. But illusions are not truth. You can ride the carousel until you are dizzy and the whole world feels like it is spinning, but the world is the same. You think gravity was different there, but maybe a less extreme answer is correct?” Bigelow drank even more from his bottle than he usually did.

  “I do wish I could ask Sandie about it. We do not have any way to detect a gravity sink hole except to watch for some signs of heavy gravity,” Jerome looked at the roadway. “Would heavy gravity crack or break the road?”

  Bigelow screwed up his face. Then between mocking lips he said, “A gravity sink hole? Is that what you are calling that?”

  Jerome replied, “The precision of naming crystalizes the uniqueness of seeing. We need to understand what we are talking about.”

  “Like you named some bizarre thing in outer space the Cosmic Crinkle?” Bigelow chucked a mirthless laugh.

  “Mock all you want, but you know I am right. Yes. Naming is a privilege of reason and the province of science. We name to tame, claim, maim, and understand. So would heavy gravity break the road?”

  “A strong enough pull on anything will make it break,” Bigelow relied. “Water coming back can undermine the ground beneath things. Then a road would cave in, but that does not mean gravity is different. The road would just be caved in.”

  “I see what you mean. But erosion did not cause that nyala to get trapped in the gravity sink hole back there. I know that is true.”

  “Keep telling yourself that. I have seen weird and strange things, but never had an explanation for some of them.” Bigelow whistled a bit. “The road ahead looks smooth and stable. We should be reaching Seron before nightfall. There will be a few hours of light left when we reach there.”

  “So if we stay on the road, well, doing that may give us some protection from other gravity sink holes.” Jerome rubbed his hair. “Why did the nyala run into the gravity sink hole, yet the big cat did not?”

  “Have you ever been chased by a big cat?”

  “Of course not.”

  “Then you do not understand the fear that was driving the nyala. Fear limits your thinking and clouds your vision. The big cat had the leisure of assessing the area after it saw the nyala fall.” Bigelow quaffed some more from his bottle. “That is assuming your idea of a gravity sink hole existed, which I guess could be an answer.” He rolled his eyes and snorted. “Are you implying there might be more.”

  “Where one thing exists, I suspect others exist as well.” Jerome looked at the horses as they trotted along. “Few phenomena are totally unique in the universe. However, some have said we live as we dream, alone.”

  Bigelow looked at Jerome who met his gave and then looked back to the horses. The three horses pulled the troika along and seemed to have forgotten the incident with the big cat. Jerome’s lips were tight, his back rigid.

  They rode in silence for a while.

  “You got that far-away look again. Look rube, put that weird incident behind you. Like seeing a melanistic leopard, it may have been a once in a lifetime event.” He reached over and patted Jerome’s leg. “I will help you find Cammarry and your other friend, Khin.” Bigelow swallowed a gulp again.

  “Khin may be dead. I saw that man die outside, and it might have been Khin. All alone in a foreign world. Toxic air around, and nothing I could do to stop it.”

  Bigelow nodded. “Project Angel Food is a really horrible thing. I know that is right. So we must know it is shut down permanently. So we enter into Terraforming and…”

  “Can we wait till we get there to discuss options?” Jerome interrupted. “Much will depend on what we find, and I looked and looked but could locate no way to reenter Terraforming and Restoration.”

  “Sure rube, we can wait. We cannot make much of a plan beyond going to check out the situation anyway. Sorry I tried to offer you comfort and compassion.”

  After that they rode on again in silence. Every so often they stopped to water the horses, and relieve themselves and stretch their legs. They spoke very little. The streams they came upon were flowing with clear water. The trees were fuller and more green. Leaves were sprouting and recovering from the long drought. Insects were abundant, especially around the water. Each man was locked in his own memories, thoughts, and concerns. They ate in silence from food supplies Bigelow had packed and which he carried in the back of the wagon.

  Three times they saw herds of nyala grazing in the distance. Most often the herds were females or young animals with a single male. The male animal seemed to watch over the herd with an alertness and attention. Once a small herd of what Bigelow named as meat cattle roamed across the road. Those animals were some of the biggest Jerome had seen in the habitat. They were as tall as a man, and very stout. They were a speckled white and rusty color, with short horns on the sides of their heads. There were three sets of what looked like identical triplets, as seen by their distinct markings. A man riding a deep chestnut colored horse was driving them along, and a beast was helping him. Bigelow called the beast a red heeler, but to Jerome it looked much like the wolf statue he had seen in Habitat Alpha. Jerome understood the appropriateness of the name, red heeler, after he saw the much smaller, four footed animal using its sharp teeth to nip and snap at the back legs of the meat cattle. That snipping caused the cattle to move in the direction the horseman desired.

  “Brave animal, that red heeler,” Jerome commented as one of the meat cattle kicked with its rear legs. “Working alone against a herd of large beasts.”

  “Cattle ranchers often use red heelers to dive cattle,” Bigelow said simply. “Those heelers can get kicked in the head, and it barely slows them down. But the dog is not working alone. It is a teammate of the horseman.”

  Birds were also seen flying overhead, and they were of a wider variety than Jerome had yet experienced. Jerome was surprised at how many more creatures he saw on this journey than on his last trip. He recalled little of his flight out of Seron, but vividly recalled his trip to the town with Cammarry and Bigelow.

  “Are we on the same road where you rescued the children?” Jerome asked.

  Bigelow glanced at him out of the corner of his eyes. “Yes. Those children are doing fine now. Just fine.”

  “Have we passed that spot?”

  “I do not recall exactly where that was,” Bigelow hedged his comment. “It was just a small grove of sumac trees. Nothing to see there now anyway.”

  Jerome watched as the troika rolled along. He saw some places that might have been that site, the trees had deep maroon colored bark on gnarly and twisted trunks, and green leaves. Some groves had trees with white flowers scattered on them. He could not identify where exactly that incident had happened, as the watered foliage had changed the look of everything. “Did anyone ever tell people about the old woman?”

  Bigelow blew out a long breath. He looked up into the air and then finally answered, “I never said a word. Did you?”

  “No. Neither did Cammarry. Will the children remember what happened?”

  “They saw it. It is part of their life. The past is always remembered, but why talk about it? What good will that do? She wired those children there to die. Then she was killed.” Bigelow clicked to the horses an unnecessary command.

  “Cammarry did what…” Jerome halted. He was unsure what he was about to say. He thought to himself, ‘Do I want to defend Cammarry?’ and ‘I love Cammarry and believe in her.’ He could not make up his mind. Instead he said, “I thought maybe seeing where it happened would give me some perspective on it. This trip keep reminding me of riding to Seron before.”

  “No on
e is responsible for what she did.”

  Jerome wondered if Bigelow meant what Cammarry had done, or what the elderly woman had done, or perhaps both. He sat alone with his conflicted feeling and thoughts.

  After some time Bigelow said, “I hate to interrupt your faraway look, but some other travelers are approaching.”

  Jerome’s attention returned to the road, and indeed, some people were approaching from the direction of Seron. There were an adult man, an adult woman, and two children. The boy was roughly twelve and the girl was about eight years old. They were of all medium complexion, with dark hair. Their clothing was varied in shades with the man wearing a bright red shirt. The woman and man were each pulling a two wheeled jinricksha style cart which had boxes stacked on it. The carts had twin tongues which rode to either side of the person drawing it and were connected across the shoulders of the person by leather straps. Jerome thought of the horses’ harnesses as he watched the two adults pulling their own carts.”

  As the troika drew near to the walking people, Bigelow called out. “Hello friends! May your days be blessed and happy!” Bigelow had a lyrical tone in his voice. It reminded Jerome of when he had first met the man, near the carousel. Now to Jerome’s ears his words sounded rehearsed, scripted, and superficial. “What news can you share with your fellow travelers?”

  “Well met friend,” the man replied in a formal way. He let loose of one tongue and waved his hand. “It is a great day in Beata!” His voice then rose and excitement filled his words. “The water supply has returned, thanks be to the Kurent! We are heading back to our farm to resume our old lives.” As he walked closer, they could see in addition to the full jinricksha he carried some kind of long knife on his belt and had a rifle of sorts slung over his shoulder.

  “Yes, the water is back!” the woman added with a big smile. Her own cart was loaded much like her husband’s was. “The Unity of Beta is restored!” She too was packing a knife, and had a long gun of some kind slung across her back.

  “I see,” Bigelow said gently. “And how long will it take to reach your farm?”

  “Tomorrow we should get there,” the girl said. “Mother and father have seeds, and supplies, in their jinricksha and all that we will need to recreate the farm. I have never lived on the farm, but I am ever so eager to see it.”

  “I was tiny when we went to the city,” the boy added with a large smile. “I can barely remember the farm. Now I will get to see it.”

  “Mister Tate Willman has arrived,” the young girl interjected. “I only wish my sisters could have seen this.”

  “You two hush now,” the father said quickly. “No use bothering these fine people with all our life story.”

  “But father, I would have loved to have my three sisters,” the girl whined.

  Her brother walked over to her and placed his arm around her shoulders in a loving embrace. “I too miss the leftovers.”

  Both parents looked appalled. The father recovered quickly and said, “We will be on our way now. A good day to you both.”

  “Well, well, that is a mighty fine plan. A right mighty fine plan. I wish you all the luck and may blessings be yours!” Again Bigelow sounded like he was reciting a liturgy.

  Jerome interjected, “We saw a big cat recently, very dark colored, nearly black. Also there are some places were gravity…”

  “Yes, thank you Jerome!” Bigelow interrupted. “The warning is well intended, but the gravity of the situation has been eased with the return of the water. My friend here is just so excited. Seeing that melanistic leopard was quite a sight. You children would have loved seeing that! The big cat was almost all black. He just raced across the road way out in front of us. First time I have ever seen one. He is many kilometers away from here by now. Those big cats can sure move fast!” Bigelow stated, in a voice loud enough to overcome Jerome’s objections. “Yes, my friends, we will probably never have another chance encounter like that at all.”

  “Leopards are a rare sight,” the father agreed.

  Jerome glared at Bigelow. He then spoke up. “My friend Cammarry is missing, she is my age, speaks like I do, has a medium muscular frame, and long, straight dark hair, slightly slanted brown eyes. She was wearing an unusual set of clothing, blue and gray in color. Have your seen her?”

  “Many people look that way,” the mother replied and started off, pulling her cart behind her. “Come along children. Hurry now.”

  “No we have not seen her. Clothing varies a lot and I pay little attention to it. Sorry,” the father replied hesitantly. “Many people are moving all over. Sorry to not be more help.”

  “She may have just gone home. Yes, many people are going back to their homes, ranches, and farms, now that the water has returned. Thanks be to the Kurent!” the mother said over her shoulder. “Come along everyone.”

  “She was taken….” Jerome began.

  “These people have been bothered long enough,” Bigelow said, and roughly put his arm across Jerome’s chest. “Curb your eagerness, these fine people said they did not see her. We will not interrogate them any further.”

  “But she may have been injured.” Jerome batted Bigelow’s arm away with a rough slap. “My other friend is named Khin and….”

  “We hear the Special Care Unit is operational again,” the father said, as he and the mother quickly led their children away. Their carts rolling along. “I wish you all the luck and may blessings be yours! Both of yours. Good day to you now.” The parents did not look back, and the boy and girl marched briskly along as they followed their parents. The girl was biting her fingernails as she hurried away.

  Jerome started to say more, but Bigelow punched him in the arm. “Just stop now. Say nothing more.”

  Jerome glared while he rubbed his shoulder, but stayed silent.

  Bigelow called to the horses and the troika rolled off at a fast trot. “Rube, you must shut up with the questions like that. Even if those people knew exactly where Cammarry was located. Say they had just seen her ten minutes ago up the road. They would never tell you. You are a stranger, and no one informs on anyone else’s location in a public place like this road. It is just not done. That is a violation of private lives. You could be a stalker, murderer, or other kind of villain. You could be an insurrectionist for all they know!”

  “Oh quit being a tyrant,” Jerome said and glared at Bigelow. “They told us they were going to their farm. They shared a location with us!”

  Jerome’s startled and angry look surprised Bigelow. “Now listen, did they really tell us where it was?”

  “Well, no. Not exactly.”

  “Right, and I did not ask them where it was located, did I? I know you are a stranger here.” Bigelow lowered his voice somewhat. “I know you came from that dome place on Earth. I know that, but few others do. Fewer still would even believe you if you told them. The roustabouts are not the typical people of Beta. But do not worry, I am trying to help you. I know a place where we can ask, and get some answers, maybe. But we must do it my way, and you will keep your mouth shut. Do you understand?”

  “No. I will ask whatever questions I want, to whomever I want, whenever I want. You have no authority over me.” Jerome crossed his arms over his chest.

  “Correct. Absolutely correct. I have no authority over you. That is fine with me, rube. Get out now.” Bigelow pulled the troika to the side of the road. “Go ask your questions to whatever, whoever, whenever and wherever.” He added much zeal to his comments by way of expletives and profanities. “Go. Your journey of going alone worked out so well last time. Please just head out. Be my guest. I have better things to do than get into trouble. Just take off and ignore Beta’s cultural practices which have been in place since planet-fall. No correct that, since launch. Just throw out social standards, and etiquette. Leave. See how well you do alone.”

  Jerome was tempted to leap down and run off, but he realized he had tried all he knew how to do, when he searched alone for Cammarry. That had been a failure
. His quest with Cammarry into terraforming had ended in a nightmare, when they were separated. To find Cammarry, he would need to trust Bigelow and follow his examples. It galled him to admit Bigelow was correct, but he swallowed hard and stayed in the troika.

  “Will your way work?” Jerome asked as he glared at Bigelow.

  “No guarantees. Although from my life experience, which you value so little, I know my way will work far better than what you were trying.” Bigelow took a long swig from his bottle. His eyes narrowed as he looked to the ground near the side of the road. He gestured with his head for Jerome to leave.