Warzone: Nemesis: A Novel of Mars

by Morris Graham

  I spent time with my dog, played poker and read books. MAJ Ripsnort was a challenging chess player, and we got together at least once a day for a couple of games. After the often fast-paced action of the battlefield, these long trips were often boring and gave way too much time for reflection. Most men who’ve seen a lot of death don’t want to spend a great deal of time with reflection. There was too much time to feel guilty about the ones who died and too much time to ask why you didn’t.

  We arrived at the ASDC Academy three months later, and both Blaze and I were more than ready. A leased Dodge pickup that I’d requested and a roadmap of the southwestern United States were waiting for me. I left the secret training facility and took an unmarked dirt road to the public road, heading east to Mexican Hat, Utah. From there I drove north until I could hit a main highway going east.

  It was mid-May and not too hot yet, so I rolled the window down and let Blaze stick her head out of the window. She seemed to be on sensory overload, and was overjoyed to see hawks, rabbits, grass, sagebrush and cactus. All of the training in the world can’t erase the fact that there is a wild heart in every dog that has to be able to run free every now and then. Now was that time. I stopped the truck just to let her loose. This stretch of highway was deserted anyway, so I took off her leash. I smiled and admitted to myself that the same thing that was true about dogs was true about men. Retrieving my pistols and a couple of boxes of shells, I made a target out of an old dead mesquite branch. After firing two boxes of shells, I was satisfied that I was able to shoot in Earth’s gravity and air density. Blaze looked and sniffed at everything while I walked a little and stretched my legs. She seemed to be very excited about the smells. There were no Martian life smells, except for the soldiers and some of our agricultural projects. This was absolutely making her day. After we both had spent more than an hour exploring and stretching our legs, I called Blaze to heel. This was the first time I’d ever seen her balk at a heel command. I forcefully had to pick her up and put her in the truck. After the initial whine in protest, we took off. Her mood quickly improved when she saw that she was able to stick her head out of the window again. She had the biggest doggy smile I’d ever seen that seemed to border on ecstasy.

  We proceeded north until I caught an eastward highway and traveled just a few miles to Tierra Amarillo. I was hungry by then and what looked like an authentic Mexican restaurant called La Hacienda caught my attention. I couldn’t bring Blaze inside, so I got a couple of steaks “to go” and we traveled about ten miles outside of town and found a place to pull over to eat.

  Afterward, I took out a canteen I’d packed and watered Blaze. She was still stimulated by her surroundings, but a big, juicy steak calmed her down a bit. We continued east and arrived in Taos by fourteen hundred. I already had reservations at the San Geronimo Lodge, mostly because they had a single room where my dog was allowed. It was just south of Taos and just off HWY 64 on Witt Rd. I thought I’d go to church tonight and in the morning stop by the business operated by COL SEAL’s sister’s family.

  The room I rented not only allowed my dog, but also had a small kitchenette with a microwave and coffeepot. After unpacking my luggage, I took Blaze for a long walk. She was still very stimulated by her surroundings, but was beginning to calm down. We hopped back in the truck and went back to town to a supermarket to pick up some groceries for our stay here. I had to lock her up in the truck and crack the window. It was a good thing it was only May and the cool of the morning. As long as my dog could stay at this hotel with a kitchenette, there was no need for a kennel. I could care for her without any assistance. However, I wouldn’t be able to take Blaze to church. Upon returning, I called the main desk. They graciously arranged for one of their staff to keep her entertained until I got back. I had long since decided where I’d go to church. I’d made a search through phone directories on our company website and made inquiries through an ASDC agent to check a couple of possibilities before I left Mars. I’d decided to go to a Baptist church in town. I had two hours until church so I made a couple of dinners for me and Blaze, took a shower and changed.

  After we ate, I called the desk and requested that Blaze be picked up. A few minutes later there was a knock at my door. I answered to find an older Spanish man named Alejandro reporting to take Blaze into his care. He had a humble, gentle bearing and Blaze took to him immediately, as though she’d known him forever. I was relieved and thanked him as they left for the evening.

  With Bible in hand, I left to go to the First Baptist Church of Taos. It was my first civilian church service since I was last on leave, although we do get some services via satellite. It was refreshing to worship with people that didn’t have to kill their enemies as part of their job description. As I looked at these people, I was reminded for whom I was fighting for. It was enough to keep serving my country. The regulars greeted me warmly and made feel welcome. This was a friendly place, and the people were sincere. After the service, Deacon Jim Duncan invited me to have coffee and dessert at his house and I accepted. We had a fabulous time. I made a new friend and picked up a new pen pal. He invited me back to church the next time I was in Taos, and I promised I would be back.

  I picked Blaze up at twenty-one thirty from Alejandro. He reported that he’d let her chase rabbits at a nearby field and take a swim at a nearby creek. She looked extremely happy. I took her back to our room and gave her a bath in the bathtub and rubbed her down with a towel, followed by a good brushing. Afterward I gave her some doggy treats and took my Bible out to read a bit. Blaze and I concluded the evening watching some old Gunsmoke episodes, and turned in at twenty-three hundred.

  COL SEAL’S FAMILY

  The desk gave me my wake-up call at zero six hundred. Blaze and I ate a breakfast of ham and eggs in our room. I polished my shoes and put on my navy dress whites to go see COL SEAL’s family. This was appropriate for a call like this as most of my men are either presumed by their family to be sailors or marines. Blaze looked great after her bath.

  Ben’s maternal grandmother, Mary Yazzie had died the previous year, and Ben’s father had been dead for over five years. Uncle George’s family elected to remain on the mountain. In Navajo tradition, his grandmother had owned the flocks, and when she died, what they owned was divided between her two daughters. Ben’s mother Tashina decided it was time to seek the family’s livelihood outside of her beloved four corners reservation. Along with the money she had saved from her husband’s working for the white ranchers in Colorado, and her share of the flocks, they had enough to move to Taos, NM and buy an old adobe building to open a shop to sell Navajo art, rugs, blankets, and jewelry.

  We loaded up and drove to downtown Taos to an adobe building called the Taos Trading Post, which COL SEAL’s family owned. Parking the truck, Blaze and I got out and picked up the footlocker I’d packed with COL SEAL’s personal effects and some other things I was bringing. Closing the door behind us, the sound of a cowbell above the door clanked it report announcing that the business had new customers. The whole room was filled with Indian art, rugs, blankets, pottery, and display cases of silver and turquoise jewelry. A woman with long, black hair and dark eyes entered from a back room.

  “Can I help you find something?” she asked.

  “I’m looking for Tashina Begay, Victoria Tso and Jannalee Bluehorse.”

  “I’m Victoria Tso,” she answered, studying me like a textbook the night before a test.

  “I’ve brought the personal effects of CMDR Benjamin Begay, as well as some letters from him.”

  She looked evenly at me and said, “You are Cowboy, and he said that if he died you would come, in time.” I had no idea that my trip would be told to them before I even knew. I was caught off-balance, and found it useless to deny.

  “I go by the call sign Kahless now. Is Ben’s mother, Jannalee or either of your husbands here?”

  “No, I’m here alone. Jannalee took our mother and our children shopping and the men are out buying some silver. Pleas
e come to our house tonight at seven o’clock for supper. We live in the back.”

  “Thank you, I will.”

  “Bring your dog. I have children who will love her.”

  I took the footlocker back with me to the truck. She obviously wanted the contents opened in front of the whole family.

  Blaze and I took a ride to some back roads outside of town where I was told we could take a long walk and maybe see some wildlife. We got a nice surprise right away, when Blaze flushed some grouse. Blaze went wild and tried to catch them all, but they got away. It was a beautiful day. For once, I had nothing to do but just enjoy a walk with my dog. Blaze chased a couple more jackrabbits, and we caught sight of a doe mule deer. After exploring the trail for a few hours, I was getting hungry so we headed back.

  We got back about fourteen hundred and had a light meal in our room, making sure we didn’t stuff ourselves before dinner at nineteen hundred. I took one liberty, which I never did at home. After asking the front desk for a wake-up call at seventeen thirty, I stretched out for a midday nap.

  The sound of the wake-up call roused me from sleep. I took the time to brush Blaze down real good. She’d gotten a few thistles and burrs in her fur during our outing. Once I had Blaze squared away, I grabbed a quick shower, dried off with a thick towel and put on my dress whites. Since I had a little time to kill before going, I poured Blaze a bowl of milk, and made a cup of hot tea. Sipping the hot liquid, I prayed for the right words to console COL SEAL’s family. COL SEAL had been officially pronounced dead many years ago, and he never visited his family here. He’d always arranged to meet them privately on the Navajo reservation. It seemed tribal members didn’t care much to discuss family matters with outsiders, particularly white people. It was never a security problem to meet his family there. His mother and sisters had just moved to Taos last year, and he’d never had a chance to visit them here.

  We arrived just before nineteen hundred and parked around the back. Victoria had opened the door before I had a chance to knock. Two wide-eyed children clung to her skirt, eyeing the strange white man dressed in white with a white, yellow-eyed wolfdog.

  “My husband and Jannalee’s husband are waiting in the living room, Ben’s mother and my sister are helping me with supper.” Victoria husband’s name was Joseph Tso; Jannalee’s husband’s name was Jimmy Bluehorse. Both men rose to greet me and offered me a chair. We visited until Victoria announced dinner was ready.

  A second table was placed to the side for the children. The two families had a total of seven kids: four girls and three boys, ranging from ages three to fourteen. Jannalee’s daughter Anna Mae fed Blaze. Jannalee seated me at the head of the table next to Ben’s mother, Tashina Begay. Clearly my visit was important to the family. I was asked to say the blessing before the food was served.

  Ben’s mother in particular and the family in general treated me fondly, noting that I was esteemed by her beloved son as his closest friend. She was in her early fifties, erect and straight, with beautiful jet-black hair, captivating dark eyes and high cheekbones that spoke of a timeless beauty. There was none of the harshness that I was warned that some of the Navajo mother-in-laws possessed.

  The matriarch thought that life was indeed very strange, for her son to die so far from the Dinétah, with a bilagaana as dear to him as any kinsman.

  After grace, the women served roast mutton, fried Navajo flatbread, beans and rice with guacamole on the side. While everyone else was drinking red punch, Jannalee set before me a hot cup of black pekoe and black currant tea, with a touch of cinnamon. My favorite blend of tea must no doubt have been told them by Ben long before I came here. He must have prepared them in case I’d come to them after his death. The adults all conversed with me in warm and friendly tones, waiting patiently until I was ready to speak of the reason for my visit. We had sopapillas with honey for dessert, and my cup was filled a second time. Afterward the women cleared the table, while the men sent the children to play. Blaze raised herself up, looked first at the children, and then to me with imploring eyes.

  I ruffled the fur on her head and laughed. “Go play.”

  She didn't hesitate a bit. She’d never seen kids before, and she loved them.

  I was led back into the living room. “So, you served with Ben?” Jimmy Bluehorse asked. I knew it was time.

  “Please permit me to get his footlocker out of my truck. Many of the answers are there.”

  “No, I’ll get it,” Jimmy said. “You sit there.” He left and returned with COL SEAL’s footlocker. Just then the women joined us. I opened the footlocker and took out the knives and pistols.

  “These are from Ben’s collection. He would want you to have them.” I handed the German Luger and Sgin Dubh boot knife to Jimmy Bluehorse. The Highlander Bowie and the nickel-plated Colt forty-five automatic I gave to Joseph Tso. Both men were quite pleased. I handed the personal letters from the colonel each to his mother and two sisters. Next I presented his mother with COL SEAL’s dress uniform and all the medals that he had, save the Purple Heart the ASDC officer representing the Navy gave them.

  Finally, Ben’s mother asked the question on everyone’s mind. “How did he die?”

  “Five assault crafts attacked the two of us, three of them had singled out Ben, and the other two attacked me. He fought valiantly. All of the men who attacked us, as well as the one who ordered the attack, are dead. I’m not permitted to reveal any more details. I’m sorry.”

  The shroud of sadness lifted from Ben’s mother when she reflected on his legacy. Oral history for Navajos is very important. “Do you have any stories you can tell about his courage and honor for the children?”

  “You know that, as a Navy SEAL, much of what he had done and where it was done is classified. But, yes, I can eliminate the classified parts and tell of his courage.”

  “Good,” she said and called the children.

  The children all came in and sat on the floor in a row, as the adults either stood up against the wall or sat on the living room sofas and chairs, seating Ben’s mother in a place of honor. “Kids, would you like to hear stories about your Uncle Ben’s battles and his courage?” The children all enthusiastically said yes, their eyes gleaming with anticipation. “In a land far away in a war that cannot be spoken of with man’s lips, there was a brave warrior named Benjamin Begay…”

  I told modified stories of his Navy SEAL career and more stories of his tours on Mars but always leaving the where and who out. It didn’t matter to the children, or the adults, either, for that matter. I told stories until about twenty-two hundred. The children were getting sleepy; it was time to call it a night.

  As I was about to leave, Victoria stopped me. “What’s the name Kahless?”

  “It is just a fictional Klingon warrior from Star Trek, who fought with great courage and skill.”

  “What does he look like?”

  “He’s actually quite ugly. Here’s a picture.” I’d kept a picture of the character because I had intended to do an oil painting of the Klingon.

  “He’s not ugly; he’s fierce looking, like a warrior god,” she said, smiling. “May I have this picture?”

  “Sure, why not?” I was beginning to feel as though I was being adopted.

  “Can you come back again tomorrow night?” Ben’s mother asked.

  “Sure, I can stay in Taos another day.”

  I bade them all goodnight and called Blaze to heel and we drove back to the Lodge. Once we were settled in, I slept like a log.

  I didn’t leave a wake-up call and decided that if I didn’t get up at the usual zero six hundred, it would be okay. The morning light streaming through the curtains woke me. It was now zero seven ten. All too easily, I could get used to this, I thought. Oh, well, that’s what vacations were for.

  Blaze and I ate breakfast and headed back out into the mid-morning sun on our nature hike. We caught sight of a prong-horned antelope but no closer than three hundred meters. The walk was something that I was alr
eady looking forward to each and every day. Some of the terrain reminded me of Mars, except here there was plant and wildlife. Blaze, as usual, investigated everything with her nose. She chased some coyotes and jackrabbits but didn’t catch either. I called her to heel, but she wouldn’t oblige me. It seemed that her natural urges were stronger than her training. A male gray wolf was covering her. Uh oh, I never prepared for this. She was the only dog on Mars, and I never thought to have her spayed. Oh well, it’s done now.

  We got hungry just before noon, and stopped at the McDonald’s drive-up and got some burgers and fries. After lunch, we went downtown to an art store where I purchased some canvas, oils, brushes and other art supplies, and drove back to the lodge. Taking out the supplies, I opened the drapes widely to lighten the room. This would have to be painted entirely by memory. Putting the finishing touches on the painting at about fifteen thirty, I examined my handiwork in the light. Satisfied, I left it to dry. Nothing was interesting on TV at this hour, but I found a radio clock and listened to some music while I brushed the burrs out of Blaze’s fur. I put on a teakettle to boil. Within minutes, I heard the whistling report of the teakettle, poured a cup and waited for it to steep.

  After finishing my hot cup of tea, I called Soke Marx and my brother Roger. Soke Marx agreed to meet me in New Orleans as usual for three days of advanced keichu-ryu karate training. Roger and his two sons would arrive the day after my training sessions were over for some deep-sea fishing.

  I’d long ago established with my brother and Soke Marx that I couldn’t discuss where I was posted or what I did. They both assumed I was some kind of CIA spook or secret military adviser, but honored my request to keep the details private. Anxious to see them both, I decided that tonight would be my last night in Taos. My painting was drying nicely, and I would be able to give it to COL SEAL’s mother and sisters tonight. The painting was a portrait of COL SEAL in his navy dress whites. Later that afternoon, I framed the painting and wrapped it, making sure the cloth covering didn’t touch the surface. It was mostly dry, but still tacky and I didn’t want to ruin it. It was time to go. Sensing that COL SEAL’s family preferred me to dress in a naval uniform; I wore my khakis, not my dress whites this time.