Gregor's Run: The Universe is too Small to Hide

by Saxon Andrew

  • • •

  The canoe started moving toward the right side of the river and Gregor saw hundreds of structures under the trees. They had finally arrived and he saw the community was located at the mouth of the river where it ran into the ocean. He knew that he could board his ship here if it came to that; there was enough room at the shoreline for it to come down and move under the canopy to pick him up on the beach. He relaxed and saw the canoe moving quickly toward the shoreline. A crowd was gathering and he wondered what awaited him. He noticed that Anderson and Ellie were looking at him and their concern was obvious.

  As they exited the canoe, Anderson gripped the Leaders upper arm and said, “Ellie and I wish to speak in his defense.”

  The Leader stared at Anderson with lowered eyebrows, glanced at Gregor, and relaxed his expression as he said, “I will pass ye request on to the Clan Leader.”

  Anderson smiled slightly and nodded, “Thank ye, William.” The leader nodded and walked off the canoe toward the community.

  Chapter Nine

  Anderson and Ellie stood up and he looked down at Gregor, “Stay in the canoe until ye are summoned.” Gregor nodded and they jumped out of the canoe. They walked through the crowd and ignored the people speaking to them. The crowd remained about fifty yards from the shoreline and moved no closer. Gregor waited and then saw a young girl come out of the crowd carrying a leather pouch. She climbed on the canoe and held it out to him, “Ye must be thirsty!”

  Gregor looked up into her bright blue eyes surrounded by a gold circle and smiled, “Thank Ye, I am.” The girl’s eyes went wide as Gregor took a long drink from the pouch and handed it back to her. Her blonde hair was tied in a long braid behind her and it spun around her head as she turned and leapt off the canoe and headed back toward the crowd. Gregor saw her run to a woman and start talking to her. The crowd gathered around them to hear what was being said. Gregor saw all of them turn and stare at him.

  “Well…bout…yo…showed up.”

  Gregor heard the words in his link and thought, “Where are you?”

  “I’m moving down over the ocean over the horizon from your location. I lost contact with your link and was worried that the inhabitants might have killed you.”

  “The trees have some kind of metal in them that must block the link.”

  “I only picked up your signal when you arrived at your current location. What’s going on?”

  “I’m going to be questioned by the Clan Leader of the community where my mother came from. Stay where you can listen in but don’t show yourself.”

  “There is another ship in orbit above the planet and I can’t stay here without being seen.”

  “WHAT?!”

  “It doesn’t appear to be occupied and I have no idea how long it’s been here. Its scanners are inactive and it has not responded to my presence. I didn’t see it when I came in to the planet because it was on the other side. I’m currently keeping the planet between us. I will check in with you this time tomorrow.”

  “Ok, have you found anything moving this way on the filament?”

  “There is no traffic on it. It appears the universe at large has learned to avoid this planet.”

  “I’ll talk with you tomorrow.” The contact with the link stopped and Gregor wondered where the other ship had come from. He sat in the canoe and finally, the sun set and he was left alone in the darkness.

  • • •

  Gregor thought about the long walk and canoe ride to arrive at the community and knew he was glad he had made the decision to come. Somewhere between the times he landed on this planet at and his current location, the constant longing for a brew had gone away. He looked at his fingers and saw that most of the fat had been burned away over the previous few weeks. He felt good, and that was a rare feeling for him. He looked up at the canopy extending out over the canoe and saw flashing insects in the branches high overhead. He chuckled, they were this planet’s equivalent of stars. He went to the rear of the canoe, leaned back against the rail, and continued to stare at the flashing bugs high overhead.

  He closed his eyes and saw his mother’s frightened face again as she pulled him toward the cave. Her long blonde hair was tied in a braid, like the little girl who had brought him water. She was young. He suddenly realized that she was in her early twenties and her life was ended far too quickly. The Wise One was going to answer for that one day.

  He opened his eyes and felt at peace with the world around him. For the first time he could remember, he felt like he was…home. He heard something coming from the community and it sounded like a large animal was dying or issuing some sort of long mating call. What sort of animal could make that sound? He saw a light appear moving toward him and he sat up straight. Soon the light resolved itself into a torch with two people walking under it. A moment later, he recognized Ellie. She had a unique way of walking and constantly turning her head in all directions. He knew the tall shadow next to her had to be Anderson.

  They arrived at the Canoe and Anderson said, “The Clan Leader will see ye now. Please, follow us.” Gregor walked to the bow of the canoe and jumped out onto the riverbank. Ellie looked at him and smiled, “Ye may not speak until you are directed to do so, Gregory MacGregor.” Gregor nodded as they turned and he followed them up the slope. They led him through the dark buildings and he began to see a glow ahead of them. After three minutes, the glow resolved itself into a fire. The screeching, wavering sound was coming from that direction and grew louder as they moved closer to the fire. Soon, Gregor saw hundreds of people sitting among the trees watching the three pass. The density of the crowd grew larger as they drew close to the fire and Gregor estimated that there had to be more than three thousand people gathered in the trees sitting on the ground. He looked to his left and saw six men holding some sort of bag under their arms that had a piece of wood running from the bag to their mouths. They were blowing on the piece of wood and the screeching and howling came out of the top of the bag.

  He looked past the men blowing on the bags and saw five men sitting beyond the fire with a giant tree trunk just behind them. It had to be a hundred feet across and may be the largest tree Gregor had ever seen on a planet filled with giant trees.

  The man in the center of the five was older than the rest. His hair was grey and his beard was even lighter in color. He wore the hat with the gold symbol on it along with the tartan plaid sash over his shoulder. His kilt was identical in pattern and color and he was staring at Gregor with a stern expression. Something was not right.

  He was led in front of the five men and Anderson pointed at a blanket on the ground, “Please sit here.” Gregor stared at him and saw Anderson was concerned. Gregor sat down and crossed his legs like the five men sitting in front of him. The Clan Leader raised his arm and brought it down. The screeching sound immediately stopped. Gregor was amazed at just how silent it was with so many gathered around him. Gregor sat as the Five Leaders of the Clan stared at him. For an hour, they said nothing and Gregor remembered that Anderson had cautioned him to be silent until directed otherwise. He sat in front of them and studied them as they stared at him. The man to the Clan Leader’s left on the end of the line was the Leader that came and picked him up in the boat. He was also the youngest of the five.

  The one on the opposite end of the line was staring at him with obvious contempt. He didn’t try to hide it, either. The three in the middle showed no emotion and simply stared at him. Gregor finally saw enough and closed his eyes as he silently said the chant in his mind. After a few minutes, he relaxed and thought about what he would learn from the men in front of him. Finally he heard, “Colin, state ye challenge.”

  Gregor opened his eyes and saw the Clan Leader speaking to the man who was contemptuous of him. The man said in a sneer, “This one has violated the oath we took with the Seed Givers. He was the price we paid and he has left them and come back here where he has no right to be!”

  Gregor saw Anderson lower his head. It appears
there was more going on than he knew. He looked back at the man who spoke and remained silent. He wondered why the leader hated him. The Clan Leader turned to Gregor and stared at him. Finally he said, “Ye may answer Colin’s Challenge.”

  “In order to answer a challenge, one must first understand it,” Gregor responded.

  The Leader named Colin sneered, “Don’t try to deceive us! You know you were sent away as payment!”

  Gregor remained silent and everyone waited for him to speak. Finally, the man sitting next to the Clan Leader said, “The Challenger is correct that you were sent away and you left those you were given to without permission.”

  Gregor looked at the man and said, “I didn’t leave anyone. The ones that I was with as a small child sent me away when I was four years old. I went back to them two weeks ago and was told to leave.”

  The five men stared at Gregor and the Clan Leader said, “The Seed Givers had reason to send ye away.”

  “I was traumatized by seeing my mother killed by a giant beast and they felt I could no longer meet their needs. They gave me to another man and ordered him to raise me.”

  Colin sneered again, “You left him without permission.”

  Gregor looked at Colin and everyone in the gathering could see the menace in his eyes. “Three years ago, the ones that send me to him had him killed. He was the only family I knew and they took him from me. You may be certain that I would have never left him for any reason.”

  Colin stared into Gregor’s eyes and saw something that he didn’t like. He averted his eyes from Gregor and looked at the Clan Leader, who said, “The Seed Givers killed him.”

  “They also killed my mother when she was trying to escape from them with me.”

  The entire gathering took a sudden breath at Gregor’s remark. The Clan Leader stared at him and said, “They killed her.”

  Gregor saw that the words could have been a question but were said as a statement. “I will tell you all that has happened since I discovered that I had an electronic device placed on me by someone that I thought was a friend.” Gregor stared at the Clan Leader and saw him nod. He started and told them everything that happened in detail leaving nothing out. At the end when he told them why he came to Bellingham he saw the five leaders looking at each other. Colin said, “Ye deceived them about how much ye remembered.” Gregor looked at him and nodded.

  The man beside the Clan Leader said, “You had a reason for doing that.”

  Gregor looked at him, “I saw that the people in the community they ruled feared them and held them in contempt. I remembered that they forced me to endure severe pain as a very young child as they experimented on me. I knew that the organization they lead killed my father, and I knew that my mother had tried to get away from them and was murdered. I didn’t need more than that to see that before I revealed anything I needed more information. They refused to give it and sent me away, where they sent an assassin to kill me just like they killed my mother.” Gregor turned to the Clan Leader and his eyes were almost slits, “You gave me and my mother to them!”

  The Clan Leader inhaled a deep breath and then slowly blew it out. “Your mother was not given to them, she chose to go with you.”

  “You sent her to her death!” Gregor said in slow deliberate words. The gathering was stunned at the lack of respect being shown to the Clan Leader. Several warriors stood up and the Clan Leader said, “Ye will remain seated!” The warriors sat down and the Clan Leader looked at Gregor, “Seeing you here has brought back the shame I’ve felt to the depths of my soul since the day I sold ye to them. I prayed they were not evil but had no way of knowing. I deserve your contempt.”

  The silence was deafening and the other four leaders at the front were stunned at the Clan Leader’s remarks. Gregor said with his eyes lowered, “I do hope the price was worth her life.”

  A warrior had more than he could take with Gregor’s disrespect and he stood, snatched his sword out of its scabbard, and swung it at Gregor’s neck. The gathering would speak of what happened next for generations to come. Gregor moved so fast that one instant he was sitting on the ground and in the next he had his sword out countering the blade coming at his neck. An instant later the warrior’s sword was struck out of his hand and Gregor’s blade was at his throat.

  Gregor heard a female’s voice behind him shouting, “Ok, I think that’s my cue!” Gregor glanced over his shoulder and saw the woman from the tavern and cemetery walking through the gathering. She saw Gregor’s shocked expression and then turned to the stunned leaders, “I will take him out and explain all that has happened. I’ll bring him back once that’s done.”

  The Clan Leader stared at her and then nodded. The woman walked over and put her hand on Gregor’s shoulder, “Either kill him or put your sword away, hot shot!”

  Gregor looked at the Warrior standing motionless in front of him and in an instant the sword was back in the scabbard on his back. The woman smiled, “That’s good! Come with me, we have a lot to discuss.” Gregor looked defiantly around the gathering and then ran after the woman who had started walking quickly away. The warrior, who had attacked Gregor collapsed to the ground. His wife hit him in the head and started yelling at him.

  Ellie looked at Anderson sitting next to her on the ground and Anderson shook his head, “Like ye said, I was lucky.”

  “Yes, Ye were, Andy!”

  As the woman left the gathering, a warrior lit a torch and handed it to her, “Ye might need this.” The woman nodded and kept walking.

  Gregor caught up to her and she said, “Are you going to keep your promise and kill me?”

  “What are you doing here!?!”

  The woman laughed, “I have every right to be here.”

  “You’re one of them!”

  “If I were, there would be a lot more of them here to reclaim their property.”

  Gregor’s head went back as they arrived at the canoe, “What do you mean property?”

  The woman looked at Gregor and then tilted her head, “Do you have no manners?” Gregor stared at her and she nodded toward the canoe. Gregor rolled his eyes and gripped her at the waist and lifted her into the canoe. She walked to the rear and sat down. She nodded to the seat beside her. Gregor blew out a hard breath and leapt over the rail, walked to the rear, and sat down in the seat beside her. “It’s your ship orbiting the planet?”

  She nodded, “Yes it is.”

  “Why did you intervene?”

  If you killed that warrior, you would have died.”

  “I could have handled them!”

  “I assume you’re talking about the one’s using swords.” Gregor stared at her and then nodded. “How good are you at dodging arrows?” Gregor stared at her and she smiled, “You could probably stop five or ten with your sword but a hundred or more might have caused you some issues. I intervened to stop the confrontation from escalating into something that would cost you your life.”

  “Why would you care about my living or dying?”

  “Gregor, why don’t you sit here for the next few minutes and try hard to pretend you’re listening. Can you do that?” Gregor stared at her and then nodded. “The Clan is in a bad position. Twenty-four years ago a starship landed at the community you landed at and a man in an orange robe ran out, went to his knees, placed his head on the ground and extended his neck. Now the people here can be somewhat aggressive but they are not murderers. The crowd gathered around the man didn’t know what to do, so they sent for the Community’s Elder. When he arrived he looked at the man and said, ‘Ye should go back to ye ship and leave us.’ The man answered, ‘I have something to offer you in trade that you will want very much.’

  The Elder told him that there was nothing he had that he wanted at which point the man said he had seeds from Earth that had been modified to grow in low light conditions. The seeds were of foods that the Elder’s distant ancestors ate on their home world. The Elder was stunned by the comment and the man in the orange robe pulled severa
l bags out his pockets and put them in front of him. He told the Elder to plant them and he would be back in six months to see if there was interest in making a trade.”

  Gregor said, “The seeds grew.”

  The woman smiled, “Yes, they did. But none of the fruit they bore had seeds in them. The tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, or any of the other plants produced a product without seeds. The Council decided that the seeds could be a god send to their communities and they decided to trade with the orange robed trader.”

  “But the seeds bore no seeds. They would eventually run out.”

  “When the ship came back six months later, the trader ran back out and put his head in the dirt and yelled that the seeds they were given were modified to not produce more seeds. The ones they brought to trade would produce seeds so they could start growing crops into the distant future.

  “The Council Members were present and they desperately wanted the seeds to supplement the diet the communities had to live on. The Head of the Council asked the Trader what he wanted in trade for the seeds and was told that they required two young children to go back with them to assist them in a plan. The Leader was shocked at the suggestion and demanded to know what sort of plan the trader was talking about. The trader said that thousands of years ago, their home world, Earth, had been bombarded from space and the planet was heavily damaged. Their plan was to bring Earth back to the glory it had before it was attacked and damaged.”

  Gregor’s eyes narrowed, “On the surface that sounds innocent enough.”

  “You’re right and the Clans eventually agreed to allow the Traders to take two children back with them. That’s when the Traders said that they needed children that possess a certain ability. After much back and forth, the Traders said they had a device that would determine if any children possessed what they needed. It took six months but they finally found two young babies that had the required abilities they needed.”