by Starr West
I turned to Phoenix. “Is this true, a horse will have us home in one day?”
“Yes, but if you thought your feet were sore, you’re about to experience pain in a whole new way. You might wish we had walked.”
Surely, nothing could be as bad as the blisters on my feet. “I doubt that.” I smiled, happy to accept Fallon’s offer.
We helped Fallon round up the horses from the eastern paddock, not that she couldn’t have done it alone. She gave us saddles, bridles, and anything else she thought we might need. When it became obvious that Phoenix knew his way around a horse, she told him to rest his wounds while she gave me riding lessons.
It wasn’t as easy as I had hoped, but it beat walking, at least, until I tried to walk. Even an hour on horseback made my legs ache and my backside feel bruised. I hobbled back to the homestead beside Fallon, smiling all the way.
Chapter 30 ~ VISIONS OF THE APOCALYPSE
Fallon was a mother and a grandmother, but her family was torn apart and there was no way to find out who had survived and who hadn’t. It was heartbreaking to hear her story and together we cried and laughed and cried some more. Her loneliness lingered in my mind for a long time after her story ended.
“What are you two doing all the way out here anyway? I haven’t seen another human for months.” Fallon was serving dinner. She’d made stew from some meat she caught that morning, but refused to tell us exactly what it was.
“I don’t think you’d believe us if we told you,” I replied.
“These days, I’d believe just about anything.”
“Well,” said Phoenix, “would you believe that Psyche has been entrusted with a task that will save the earth?”
She stopped serving, looked at me and adjusted her glasses. “I’d like to believe that it’s a possibility. I only wished we could have done something sooner.” She smiled and carried our plates to the table.
“Me too!” I said. She didn’t question us any further. I didn’t want to lie to Fallon, but I didn’t know if this was still a secret that we needed to keep.
During dinner, we told Fallon about the valley and our tribe. We explained that lots of people had known that something was coming and there were probably pockets of survivors all over the world.
“Yes, yes, I know. Even after the Seven Nations War, there were survivors. Refugees came out of the Middle East in droves. Most of us thought there would be no survivors after all the bombing, but there were. It was a bloody mess when they began showing up in Pakistan.”
“How do you know all this?” We’d all heard about the Seven Nations War, but there were few images and even less news reports that told us what actually happened. It was crazy; the war began and ended in a single day. We started getting reports when the first bombs were dropped, but as the day progressed, fewer and fewer reporters were alive to relay the news. By lunchtime, it was a dead zone. We watched the evening news, hoping for some good reports, but the war didn’t even get a mention. On the same day, some old movie star died; a war couldn’t compete against that.
“Well it seems that I had the internet long after you townsfolk lost all communication services. We have a satellite dish here and it just kept working,” Fallon shrugged.
“Tell us what happened? Is there still a government? What about the people overseas, is anyone still alive over there?” I had a dozen more questions. Phoenix asked to be excused, and I could see the pain in his face caused by the wounds from Volante and the hellhound. Fallon helped me redress it after breakfast and gave him some real antibiotics. She had the most amazing first aid kit, courtesy of the Flying Doctors.
Fallon smiled, “Australia was one of the first to go under, I believe. At least it seemed like that from where I was watching. After the flu pandemic and then the green plague, Australia’s resources were really stretched. But you must know this, we still had news reports back then. ”
“Yeh, we heard some of this when Mum and I were travelling north to be with Libby, but we were only getting local radio by then. That was just before Christmas.”
“Not long after Christmas, there was a huge uprising in the US. A bunch of survivors marched on Washington and broke into the White House – there was no one there. They had this live streaming thing set up; Just amazing! England went much the same as we did, and just about the same time. I heard a bit about Russia and France, but not a lot.” Fallon brought a scrapbook to the table. “Here, take a look at this. I printed some of the most amazing shots and news stories off the net.”
Fallon had printed pages and pages of information and images. It was an astonishing collection, demonstrating how humans had suffered in the final days.
“Of course, the major news channels went down first, but there were plenty of independent news services online that kept reporting long after everyone else had run for the hills.”
“I can’t believe you still had the internet,” I said.
“Me neither, but there wasn’t anything else to do, so I just stayed online and watched it all go under. I was hoping to get an email from my daughter, but it never came.”
“Where is this?” the image was of a group of people locked behind a fence. Most looked to be starving and their desperation was evident in their dirty, tear-stained faces.
“That was taken near Brisbane at a survivors camp. Looks more like a World War II concentration camp without the gas chambers,’” she said.
“Oh my God, we were told to go there! When we drove up the inland highway, there were roadblocks everywhere. The soldiers told us to head to Brisbane to the survivors camp. Mum told them we were heading home, eventually we were allowed to travel north.” It made me sick to think my life could have ended in this camp.
“Makes you wonder how many actually survived the ‘survivors camp’, doesn’t it?”
“I wonder how many of these the government set up.” I said. “It looks as if the people are locked in behind the fences.”
“Yes, apparently they needed to control the surviving masses. I just hope they unlocked the gates when they stopped bringing food.”
“That’s just horrible.” It was more than horrible, but I couldn’t think of a suitable word for how disgusted I felt.
“Well, that’s probably not the worst of it. It turns out the green plague was caused by that genetically modified crap they sold us. Some genius figured out that if you splice the genes of a glow-in-the-dark fish, a pig and corn, you create a food source that can’t be identified or digested by the human body. Apparently, this is what caused the green plague.”
“Mum always said the GM food would cause trouble. How did they manage to keep that a secret?”
“Money!” Fallon spat. “It was such a joke. We’d been having problems with cattle that ate genetically modified feed for years before the green plague outbreak. A bunch of scientists came here a few years back. They did all sorts of tests, but we never received any results. I did a bit of digging around and found similar symptoms in cattle fed the same corn as we were getting in our processed foods. Then I just put two and two together. With cattle, we didn’t get the psychotic mania we saw in humans, but I saw evidence of the same glowing skin and blood in cows, pigs and sheep. The iridescence gave it away.” She paused and then said, “I have this theory that the green plague was probably caused by the flu virus reacting to our mutant genes, but I can’t be sure.”
“Why didn’t they stop feeding it to people, if they knew?” If Fallon had figured this out, I couldn’t understand how the government didn’t know this and why they didn’t even try to stop it.
“Again, I would think money! Lots and lots of money!” she said. “They fed it to all those people in the survivor camps. Remember when the last wheat crop failed and they made that grain substitute, the stuff that looked like cornflakes on steroids?”
“Yes, Mum wouldn’t buy any; it smelt really funky.”
“Well, that was the greatest mistake our governments ever made. They just handed the famine crisis o
ver to a few big corporations and washed their hands of the problem. That was when we saw a huge influx of the plague. If the food shortages and the resulting famine wasn’t an international problem, we may have had more survivors, but almost every country distributed that crap and pretty soon, there was no going back.”
I wished I could take Fallon back to the valley with all her images and stories, to show everyone what really happened. I continued to turn the pages, but couldn’t bring myself to ask about the other images pasted into her scrapbook. They were of mass graves; and in another, there were no graves, just bodies piled high. Then there were shots of people under a sign that read, “We are the survivors”, they were punching their fists in the air and shouting.
“Where is this?” I asked.
Fallon looked at the picture and adjusted her reading glasses. “I have no idea, but there are a pile of those.” She dragged a box over to the table, “Here, hundreds of them. Some guy started a blog for survivor photos and this is the result. I tried to print as many as I could in case anyone recognised someone they knew. I knew I wouldn’t have internet forever, so I did as many as I could. There are quite a few from Australia, but most are from the United States.”
“This is excellent, but I only know one person who is missing from our valley. His father died recently, but he said his son was overseas, trying to get home.”
“They did send a few Navy boats over to pick up stranded Aussies when the Seven Nation War ended. Not sure what happened to those folk, but they were trying to get most people home. Remember that “Take Care of Your Own” agreement, between the UN and our government?”
“Sort of, that was about foreigners causing a burden on other countries.”
“Yes, that’s right. Most governments provided free transport to get their citizens home. If you didn’t have a national card to say you belonged to that country, you couldn’t get food.”
“Maybe Basil’s son made it back to Australia after all,” I yawned.
“Well, my dear, you have a big day ahead of you tomorrow and Phoenix will be up at the crack of dawn, so you’d better get some sleep.”
~~~
Fallon stood on her veranda and waved as we rode away. I felt sad leaving her alone like this. We asked her to come with us, but she refused. This was her home and her responsibilities didn’t end because the world had. We made sure Fallon knew the way to our valley and she promised to visit soon.
Fallon had given us two beautiful horses. Mine was a chestnut mare called Petal. She was Fallon’s favourite mare and the only one she trusted to take me home safely. Phoenix rode a huge, stocky, bay gelding that danced all over the place when Phoenix first got on his back. Apparently, he was excited to be going on an adventure. The mare was a bit shorter than the gelding, fourteen hands high, Fallon said, but I felt safer being closer to the ground.
When I was growing up, I wanted a pony just like a million other girls. It was totally impractical while we lived in the bus and travelled around, but I nagged Mum anyway. That year, she bought me a Barbie horse for my birthday. I am pretty sure I snapped her legs off trying to ride the golden filly to town!
“I wish you had seen all Fallon’s photos last night. It was amazing. Ruben would have loved to see what really happened in the end.”
“It’s probably better if most people don’t get to see it,” Phoenix rode ahead of me and had to turn in the saddle to talk to me. “Fallon said you were pretty upset.”
“Not so much, shocked, but not sad. I guess I was more horrified than anything else.”
“Catch up if you want to talk to me, I’ll have a crooked back if I keep turning around like this.” I was not sure I could catch up. I just let the mare go wherever she wanted and focused on staying on her back. “Come on Petal,” I thought, “Catch up to Phoenix.” Immediately, the mare increased her pace and slowed when we were shoulder to shoulder. “Happy now?” I heard in my head.
I was probably just imagining things, but it felt like the mare was talking to me.
Phoenix looked down, “That’s better, now you can talk.” But I didn’t have anything to say to him. I did, however, continue my conversation with the mare.
“Are you sad to leave Fallon and all your friends at the station?” It was silent for a moment and I was sure I was just imagining things.
“Not so much,” I heard, “Fallon said she would come and get us eventually and even if she doesn’t, I think you and I will become good friends.”
Holy crap, now I must be losing it. “Phoenix, I think the mare is talking to me.”
Phoenix looked at me for a few moments, “I guess anything is possible, who knows what gifts you have and what effect the stone will have on them,” he shrugged.
Phoenix was impossible. I never knew if he had the answer and was forbidden to tell me or if he really didn’t know.
I continued to talk to the mare as we plodded along. It didn’t really matter if the words in my head came from her or if it was my imagination. When I got home, I would try it with Pepper. That would be amazing!
“Do you want to stop?” Phoenix asked.
“No, how long do you think it will take to get home?”
“All day and then some. It will probably be quite dark by the time we arrive. It’s a good thing we have the horses; it will save a lot of time.” Phoenix handed me an orange. “By the way, when did you discover we needed to be home in two days?”
“After we found the stone, and I slept.” Sweet orange juice ran down my arms and dripped on Petal’s back, “I dreamt about what I had to do next.”
“And?”
“There are a heap of kids like me ready with their stones. Some are not far from here; there are hundreds of us, maybe even thousands. I got the impression they have been ready for a long time. We were born for this.”
“That’s what I have been trying to tell you. Destiny! There’s no escaping it.”
“I think this stone is the most important; it has been protected by the earth since the beginning of time, waiting for this day. It has to be the first stone that’s put in place so it’s important that I’m not late.”
“Do you know where you have to go?” Phoenix smiled.
“No, not yet, but I will, when it’s time,” I said. Phoenix was still smiling, “You know! You have known all along. This is so unfair!” I didn’t bother asking what else he knew, he wouldn’t tell me anyway.
Chapter 31 ~ DESTINY REVEALED
It was strange being back in the valley. The peaceful, simple life was a startling contrast to the world that surrounded us. The loneliness of Fallon and the poverty of the Sanctuary made me appreciate my life more than ever. The emptiness in Heather’s eyes and the blackness of Volante’s soul would forever haunt my dreams.
But the safety of the valley had been shattered during the raid and in a few short days, Ruben had transformed into the military man of his youth. He was paranoid and obsessed with security. It was impossible to guard the hundreds of acres maintained by the families in the valley and even harder to secure the thousands of acres of rainforest beyond that.
But he tried.
Lachlan and Seth were still recovering; so much of the maintenance fell to Ruben, Luke and the boys. But even with all the extra work, Ruben still managed to turn the little valley into a military encampment. A perimeter had been determined and a system created that kept everyone alert and prepared.
Phoenix slipped back into the daily routine as if he’d never left and accepted Ruben’s reaction to the raid without question. On the other hand, I struggled with even the simplest tasks and my mind wandered. The journey had been hard on my body. My feet throbbed from the walking and my legs ached from riding home. My bum felt bruised and the blisters on my feet were raw, but I gathered firewood and weeded gardens, prepared spring beds, carted mulch and planted seeds.
My mind, however, was on the stone that sat on the kitchen table. I could feel it throb with life even when I wasn’t in the house. In its
presence, I felt safe and it drew me in like a forbidden love and then played in my mind like an addiction, unsated.
It called me now.
The milky stone sat lopsided on the table, a flawless, uncut diamond, out of place in our imperfect world. No one else could feel it pulse the way I did or see the life that radiated within. To me it was alive. Libby could feel the heat, but to her it was still a stone.
Alone in the house, the stone called louder than before and I knew it was time.
I took the stone in my palm and felt the smoothness against my skin. The energy around me changed and everything became clear. It was as if I had always known the truth about me and the truth of the stone. Like a memory revealed. But I knew there was more.
I took the stone and walked the path to the bottom of the garden. Amongst all the beds of vegetables and herbs, there was a special garden, a secluded spot hidden from the daily hustle. A bed of chamomile rose in the centre, surrounded by flowers and scented plants. I rested on the camomile and placed the stone over my heart. I felt it pulse in time with my beating heart and the energy that coursed through me was pure and warmed me ‘til I was flushed and trembled.
But then the wind caught my hair and I was standing on a hilltop, looking down on the world below. The stone was in my hand. I saw it all, the truth, the knowledge, everything was revealed in a single moment. Events from the past linked together like a puzzle revealed. Some of the puzzle remained unsolved and pieces lay strewn across the table. I was confused. Was this my life to come or the pieces from the past that didn’t fit?
The image faded and the puzzle fell to my feet and became the earth. And so it went, until I was left with no doubt about the purpose of my life and my responsibility to the stone.