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

by Saxon Andrew

  Gregor stared at her and then said, “I was one of them.”

  The woman sighed, “Yes, you were. But a problem ensued. Your mother refused to allow them to take you without her being allowed to go with you.”

  “What about my father?”

  “Your father was killed before you were born by a pack of predators in the forest. You and your mother were alone.” The woman paused and then said, “It took more than a month before the Traders finally agreed to take her with them. It seems your mother carried quite a bit of respect from the clans. The trade was made and you left Bellingham with your mother.”

  Gregor looked at the floor of the canoe, “That’s why that Leader challenged me saying that I was another’s property.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Did the seeds make a difference?”

  The woman tilted her head, “Have you taken a good look at the people here?” Gregor nodded. “Before those seeds arrived, most of the population died before they were fifty years old. Their hair fell out early, they were thin and looked almost emaciated, and the Predators were too fast to be stopped without large numbers to hold them off. The food that this planet provided just didn’t have the needed vitamins and nutrients needed to give the population what their bodies were craving. Within ten years, all of that turned around and within fifteen years, the people looked like you see them now. For the people on Bellingham, the trade was a good one.”

  Gregor sighed, “I can see why that challenge was issued. I made it appear that the Clans had not acted in good faith by coming back here.”

  “Yes, that’s how they saw it. But you didn’t break the contract, the Traders sent you away which freed you to go where you chose.”

  “I did deceive them about what I remembered.”

  The woman shrugged, “There is that; however, the contract was not made in good faith by the Traders.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “They said that they were going to return Earth to its previous condition before it was attacked. I suspect that is not what they’re planning at all.”

  “Me, either,” Gregor said absently while looking at the floor of the canoe. He looked up at her, “I thought you were one of the Movement’s Leaders. I really find it hard to believe you are now working against them.”

  “I looked at the information you sent me from Emmett’s link and it became clear rather quickly that there is an unknown agenda going on behind the scenes in the Movement that I was not aware of. I suspect Emmett’s friend, Jimmy, got wind of it and tried to contact Emmett to let him know something wasn’t as it seemed,” she said.

  “Where do you get that?”

  “He kept asking Emmett if he was ok. He told Emmett he stayed in trouble and Emmett knew that was a lie. Jimmy was trying to tell Emmett he was in trouble without being obvious. Emmett didn’t get it then but figured it out when the Movement asked if anyone had spoken to Jimmy. Jimmy must have found out something that frightened him into hiding. I would still be working with them if not for your sending me the contents of Emmett’s link.”

  Gregor’s expression turned hard, “They also killed Emmett.” The Woman nodded. Gregor continued, “From the moment Jimmy was killed, Emmett avoided the Movement and I believe they began to suspect he knew more than he should and decided to eliminate him. We should have never remained on that planet for our dinner.”

  “I might have not believed that Jimmy was killed by the Movement but after Emmett’s assassination, it was clear they were trying to prevent something from getting out. That’s when I started planning my escape.”

  Gregor looked at the woman, “You said there were two children taken by the orange robed traders.”

  The Woman nodded and reached up. She put her fingers in her eyes and removed a pair of contacts. She looked at Gregor and he saw blue eyes with a gold ring around them, “I was the second child taken, Gregor, and the Traders didn’t release me; I left them! It appears that those on Bellingham with blue and gold eyes have some quality they need.”

  “Are we related?”

  “No, Gregor, we are not. I was taken from the Connor Clan. Taking me was not an issue; both of my parents were killed on an expedition into the forest and there was no one to protest my leaving.”

  “Why did you come to the MacGregor Clan instead of your own?”

  The woman sighed, “I can’t explain how it happens but occasionally I have visions of future events. After I left the movement, I had a vision of you sitting in front of the MacGregor Clan Leader. I requested to be taken to them and was here before you arrived.”

  “Why weren’t you challenged?”

  “Women are treated differently in this society. They’re given much more honor and their decisions are not often questioned. I told them you were coming and they withheld challenging me until both of us were here. Unfortunately, the Clearing Community didn’t receive word about your coming and that prompted the attack on you when you landed.”

  “How did you manage to escape with a ship?” Gregor asked with his brow furrowed.

  “I programed a hidden program in my ship’s computer and it helped me ditch the tracking transponders and now follows my orders.” Gregor stared at her in silence and she said, “What?”

  Gregor shook his head as he said, “Emmett removed the computer that was originally in the ship the Movement convinced him to buy. He was never challenged for doing that and I suspect he wasn’t because the Movement didn’t want him to know they were keeping an eye on his movements. I guess they thought if he became an issue they could just remove him, which they ultimately did. After the computer and I determined that Emmett was assassinated by the Movement, the computer stopped reporting our position to them and performed a thorough scan of the ship, including what was inside the outer hull.”

  “And?”

  “Does your ship have the two areas in the upper and lower hull surrounded by thick metal walls?”

  “It does.”

  “Do you know what’s inside them?”

  “No! What’s inside them?”

  Gregor blew out a hard breath, “Your computer has been compromised. It is not loyal to you and I’m sure your location is being sent to the Movement.”

  The woman’s eyes widened and then narrowed, “I assure you that the Leaders of the Movement do not know where I am. Their attempts to capture me were genuine. Just how do you get off saying my computer is compromised?”

  “The leaders you know may not be aware of your location but I’m reasonably certain the ones in that temple on Earth know your whereabouts. They are the ones on top of the Movement’s Leadership. If your computer was completely loyal to you, it would have revealed that one of those compartments houses a modern blaster.” The woman’s face showed her shock and then Gregor said, “The lower compartment houses a working force field.”

  “That’s impossible!!” she said emphatically. “You must be mistaken and my computer is not what you say it is.”

  Gregor snorted, “You use the word impossible too easily. Your computer is connected to those weapons and it hasn’t told you of their existence. That tells me it is not loyal to you but to another. If it was loyal to you, it would have revealed those weapons. You are being tracked by someone that still controls your computer.”

  “Gregor, do you know what you’re saying? You’re saying that physics and the laws of science are wrong. Everyone knows a working force field is not possible. You must be mistaken.”

  “Even if you forget the force field, it still didn’t tell you about the blaster. However, I do know what I’m saying, we’ve activated the blaster and the force field and both of them are operational. By coming here, you have endangered the humans on this planet. I’ve seen the force field and it does function as a shield around the ship. You’re asking me if I believe my lying eyes and I must tell you that I do.”

  “It’s just not possible that I’m being tracked. If they knew where I was, they would have come here!”

&n
bsp; Gregor sighed, “My ship has kept the planet between it and your vessel. I suspect whoever is tracking your movements is waiting to see if I show up. That’s when they’ll show up to take us both. By the way, what’s your name?”

  “Kaylee.”

  Gregor watched her think about it and he said, “We had to reconnect the power lines to the blaster and force field after the original computer tripped the relays to them before it was removed. I can assure you that the blaster and force field are also on your ship if it has those two armored compartments. And your computer is still connected to them.”

  “But science says…”

  “You need to forget that mantra that a force field isn’t possible,” Gregor interrupted.

  “What do we do?” she said after a pause.

  “You’re going to have to leave and tell your computer that I haven’t shown up and you want to go look for me somewhere else. Tell it you saw me in another vision. Does the Movement know you have these visions?”

  “They do.”

  “And do they trust your visions are accurate?”

  “They’ve had enough examples to know they can be trusted to be accurate.”

  “Then you should take the filament out of here and go to a place where you can safely hit the computer shutdown button. Be careful and make sure the computer doesn’t catch you doing it.”

  “Gregor, are you certain about this?” Gregor looked into her eyes and nodded. Kaylee sighed and stood up, “We need to warn the Clan Leaders.”

  Gregor stood up and followed her back to the Clan meeting. The clearing was buzzing but grew silent when they entered the gathering. The five leaders looked at them and Kaylee said, “We must leave immediately.” Gregor saw surprise on the Leader’s faces and they struggled to ask why without using a question. Kaylee quickly said, “I’ve discovered that you are in danger of an attack from the men in orange robes. It’s become clear to me that they know I came here and will send warships once they determine that Gregor has arrived.”

  Colin sneered, “We will remove anyone that comes here to harm us!”

  Gregor stood up and looked around the gathering, “I have no doubt that the warriors in this room could remove any normal force that lands and tries to move through the forests. Ye’ve done it successfully in the past.” The gathering murmured agreement with Gregor’s remark. “But…this time ye attackers will be coming with technology that will defeat ye.”

  The gathering burst into outrage and Gregor waited in silence. The Clan Leader raised his arms and the clearing under the giant trees grew silent, “Ye say we will fail to turn them back.”

  Gregor nodded, “They have developed a force field and I believe they have portable devices that will put that force field around the ones they land here. Your arrows and swords will not penetrate it and their blasters will kill you.”

  The man sitting to the left of the Clan Leader said, “Force fields are an impossibility.”

  Gregor looked at the Leader, “I will show you one once Kaylee has left and ye will see that they are real and not impossible to create. But for the moment, she needs to leave to draw their attention elsewhere.” The five Leaders looked at each other and then heard Gregor say, “However, they will be coming back here soon even if we take their attention elsewhere.” Gregor saw the expressions on the five Leaders and quickly said, “I heard the Leader of the Orange Robes say that others like the two of us would have to be found and brought back to start their plans over. They will be coming back here to take some of your babies to complete their plan.”

  Kaylee looked at the Clan Leader, “I need to get back to the open Community as quickly as possible so I can leave with my ship.”

  The Clan Leader stared at Gregor, “Ye are certain they can defeat us?”

  Gregor nodded slowly, “They trained me to use a sword and you’ve seen what I’m capable of doing.” Gregor looked around the gathering and said loudly, “Some of you have trained your entire life in the use of the sword and I can defeat anyone here. The technology you’ll have to face when they arrive is beyond anything ye’ve ever had to deal with in the past.”

  The room was silent and the Clan Leader said, “Ye have an idea of what we should do.”

  “Go into the forests and disappear. I know this goes against everything you believe in but ye have to do it to survive. The metal in the trees will prevent them from being able to see ye from above the planet and even surface scanners will not operate through the trees.”

  “And ye will be doing all you can to stop them.”

  “I will, Clan Leader, but I don’t know what that means right now. For the moment, we have to take their attention elsewhere.”

  The Clan Leader looked at the other Leaders and all of them nodded, “There is much I have to tell ye about ye mother.”

  “And I want to hear it. She must have learned something to convince her that those men are evil and that what they’re planning is not what we thought; that’s why she attempted to take me from them. You need to get Kaylee back to the open Community to get her off the planet as quickly as possible.”

  The Clan Leader looked at William, “Ye will take twelve rowers and take her back.”

  William looked at Kaylee, “Ye will have to slow down and not outrun your escort when we leave the canoe and move into the forest.” Kaylee looked at him and nodded.

  Gregor’s eyes widened and he looked at her, “Slow down?” he whispered.

  Kaylee smiled, “You left when you were four years old. They’ve been training me for more than twenty years and my body can do things most humans can’t. I can outrun them.”

  William walked up and heard her, “But ye cannot out run a pack of predators moving to surround you.” He turned to Gregor, “Show me ye sword’s hilt again, please.” Gregor took the sword out and presented it to William. “Notice that if ye turn the point of the sword toward the ground that the markings on the leather form the letter T with the legs of a K superimposed over it.” William looked Gregor in the eyes, “Your mother’s name was Tommie Katherine MacGregor. She was my sister.”

  Gregor saw the two letters instantly. He looked up and started to speak but the Clan Leader came forward with a scabbard. He held it out to Gregor and said, “When ye were born, like all males in the clan, a sword was started for ye. The swordsmiths continued to refine the metal in sword’s forging every year that ye have been away. It has hung on the wall in my home reminding me of my shame in giving you and your mother to the Traders. Please take it.”

  Gregor took the scabbard and pulled the sword out far enough to see part of the blade. It was so bright that it looked like it was made from sunlight. “I can’t take this!”

  “It was forged only for ye. I prayed that someday ye would come and claim it; my prayers have finally been answered.” Gregor looked at him and took the scabbard, removed the one over his shoulder and put the new sword over his left shoulder. He took his mother’s sword, put it back in its scabbard, and handed it to William, “Please put this in a place of honor.”

  William’s eyes moistened as he took the sword and nodded. Gregor looked at Kaylee, “Which way are you headed when you leave?”

  “Back to the 440 filament. I’ll drop off at exactly a billion light years toward the next sector.”

  William grabbed her arm, “We need to go!”

  Kaylee nodded but turned and hugged Gregor before she ran toward the river. Gregor watched her go and wondered what was happening next.

  Chapter Ten

  The Wise One was sitting at a stone table eating his evening meal when his Senior Priest approached. The Priest lowered his head and the Wise One looked at him, “You have something to report?”

  “The female is still on Bellingham and Gregory has not shown up yet. Should we report her location to her handlers?”

  “NO! If she has had a vision of him going there, then he will be there. It is more important to remove him from the game than capturing her.”

  “You stil
l believe he will be coming back to kill you?”

  “If he is not killed first, he will be coming here! I will not lose this opportunity to remove the threat he represents.”

  “I honestly don’t see any way he could get through our defenses to harm you, Master.”

  “That’s because his actions are outside your ability to see them. Fear him! If he now has access to the training we gave him as a child, he is more lethal than you can ever imagine. Do not notify her handlers and remind them that before they can go back to Bellingham to take two more children that she must be captured first.”

  “Having to start all over with children is causing a long delay in our plans.”

  “The plan is not something to be rushed. It is generational in its timeframe and the gifted children are essential to its completion. This time, we will not accept any adults being sent with them.”

  “I keep asking myself why the female turned on her handlers, Master.”

  “They probably did something to arouse her suspicions. They were careless. Once the new babies are four years old, the old handlers will be replaced.”

  “That is a wise decision, Master.”

  “Notify me if Gregory shows up.”

  “Yes, Master.” The Priest turned and left the room. The Wise One also had visions and the most recent one had Gregory standing in front of him with a drawn sword. He knew that visions could be prevented from happening and stopping this one required killing Gregory before he could come back to Earth. He shuddered and continued with his meal.

  • • •

  The morning after the Clan gathering, Gregor sat on the shoreline at the beach where the ocean washed on shore. He waited and after an hour heard, “Anything happening?”

  “Yes, there is. The ship orbiting the planet will be leaving in a few days and I need you to be extremely careful that it not detect you.”

  “Do you know which direction it will be leaving the planet?”

  “It is going out to the filament and head toward the 440.”