by Lizzy Ford
I ran a radio into the break room quickly before racing into the forest.
In all my feats at the Olympics, I had never felt the need to move as fast as I did now. I tore through underbrush, vaulted over logs close to my height, scaled the dirt walls of ravines, and sloshed through streams as I headed to the nearest point of the perimeter. By the time I was a few meters out, I was panting and dripping with sweat – and I’d broken my own record of the fastest time I’d run through the forest by nearly half.
The scene before me held me mesmerized. I didn’t need a flashlight to find the rope perimeter. On my side, all was quiet and dark. On the other side, brilliant white light had created a wall that prevented me from seeing anything beyond it.
I stood, awed and fearful of the display, and finally believing the priests that their red ropes actually did something I could explain only as magic.
Rather than feel relieved to know the fireballs couldn’t reach us, new urgency sent adrenaline spiking through me, as I realized what would happen if any of the ropes along the perimeter were damaged or missing. The girls knew better than to mess with them, and I checked them routinely every week. Sometimes, during a rainy spring like this one, heavy downpours would push them out of place or animals drawn by the color would try to take the bright cords to their dens or nests.
I moved along the edges of the woods making up our home. The wall of light remained just outside the boundaries. I drew as close to it as I dared. Expecting the brilliant white light to be hot, I was surprised not to feel heat radiating off it. When I was close enough, I could almost see what lay on the other side of the light, as if I were peering through an opaque curtain. Morbid curiosity about what was happening outside our protected home made me want to step through the wall, but my primary priority was ensuring we all survived.
Setting aside my intrigue, I spent the next twelve hours racing along the perimeter. The western, northern and eastern boundaries were all secure, all hedged by brilliant white light.
But at the southern boundary … no wall of light, and no fireballs, as far as I could see. I ventured past the rope perimeter, past a small lake and into the campground adjacent to our land, and paused, listening. Fireballs didn’t streak across the night sky here either. The orphanage’s grounds were protected by the priests’ magic, though I couldn’t explain why no fire fell south of our home. The newscasters claimed the fireballs were everywhere in the world, so how did none touch the quiet forest before me?
Unable to explain it, I shivered and stepped back inside the boundaries.
I radioed in my latest observations, lingered, and then turned away.
I returned to my starting point, at the western boundary. Only then did I wriggle out of the rucksack and drop to my knees, thoroughly exhausted from the pace I’d forced myself to endure.
The wall of light remained despite the light of dawn overtaking the skies above. The sun rose, and the fire continued to fall. Fatigued, I pulled out my canteens and downed the contents one of them before I ate half a dozen energy bars.
“Herakles?” Father Cristopolos called over the radio I’d slid into my cargo pocket. “Are you well?”
I pulled the radio free and sat with my back to a tree truck, eyes on the wall of white surrounding the forest. “Here,” I said into the receiver. “Perimeter is intact.”
I expected him to make a remark about the magic of the ropes that I’d openly criticized for years. The priests had steadily refused my insistence we emplace a legitimate security system. I understood why now.
“We may have another problem,” Father Cristopolos said instead.
I tensed, alert and ready to run back to protect the girls.
“Artemis contacted us and said we’re in a safe zone that extends down through southern Maryland. She also said she won’t be able to contact us again for some time,” the priest said.
“Is that such a bad thing, since her kind did this?” I responded.
There was a long pause before Father Cristopolos spoke again. “I can’t see her doing this,” he said quietly. “There must be another explanation.”
I rolled my eyes. “Is that the problem or is there another one?”
“Our boundaries stop supernatural discovery and creatures from entering. They don’t stop animals. We’ve had five cougars and a bear cross through the greens this morning.”
I hadn’t paid any attention to the wildlife during my mad run around the perimeter. Suddenly, I wished I’d taken notice of any unusual activity among the wild animals inhabiting our forest. It made perfect sense for animals to flee the fiery territory towards us. They had the instincts to guide them to safety.
“Four-legged refugees,” I said. “Are the girls okay?”
“We’re keeping them inside today,” Father Cristopolos replied. “Our generators are down. Our weapons of choice are faith in the Old Ways and civil unrest. No one is volunteering to face bears to reset the generators manually.”
I snorted, amused at how he chose to describe their intent of overthrowing the gods one day. Men as devoted as they were to their cause would do whatever it took to see their purpose through. No part of me doubted the priests would use the weapons they scorned, if their cause were threatened. “I’ll go now,” I said. “Keep everyone inside until I clear the area. Lock the doors.”
“Understood.”
Tucking the radio away, I stood. For the first time since arriving to the forest refuge, I didn’t feel safe, despite the magic boundaries repelling the gods’ wrath. I pulled out two hunting knives from my pack and placed one at my waist and the other at my thigh.
After downing another canteen of water, I adjusted my pack on my back and set off at another hard run. I reached the manor and stopped inside the greens – the vast lawns surrounding the mansion – to look for animal paw prints. Sure enough, I spotted the evidence of the visitors Father Cristopolos had spotted and quite a few more. An entire herd of deer had moved through the greens, along with a dozen predatory animals as well as squirrels and rabbits.
Twisting to squint in the direction they’d gone, I realized all of them were headed south.
They sense the safe zone, I thought to myself. If that were the case, then we weren’t likely to see any of the dangerous animals hanging out around the manor, a threat to the girls. But, the migration might also take a while. I respected wildlife more than I did the gods, and I understood animals better than humans. They operated out of instinct. Rarely did that instinct tell them to attack humans if they weren’t being threatened.
I stood, pensive, and gazed towards the south for a moment. The wildlife right now was feeling threatened, which made them dangerous. A curfew would be in order for the girls until the forest creatures settled, which could take a week or more, depending on how long the fireballs fell. Fortunately, the animals appeared to be taking a direct route and following a set path past the manor house. As long as everyone in the orphanage knew to avoid this path, they would hopefully be safe.
I finished circling the greens to ensure my initial theory was correct and found a second, well-trodden path along the eastern side, opposite the first. The animals were making an effort to avoid people, which was a good sign.
When satisfied with what I’d learned, I radioed the information to Father Cristopolos and then continued on my mission of returning power to the orphanage. The hidden generators and underground power station were located on the southeast corner and the lake where we drew our drinking water on the southwest.
I kept my distance from the path the wildlife followed while walking in the same general direction towards the southeast corner of our property. Originally, when we arrived, the orphanage had been connected to the public grid. In an effort to remain hidden from everyone, the priests created an off-grid electrical system relying on a combination of sunlight, water, and backup generators for those rough days in winter when neither light nor water was enough. We pumped our own water and brought in a private waste management c
ompany to tend the septic system as needed. We bought our food from a local farmer and maintained a two-year supply of food and fresh water for emergencies. We were completely self-sufficient.
A mama bear and two cubs loped down the path towards the south, their fur singed by fire. I relaxed after they’d passed me. Birds seemed content to remain in their trees and sing, but the chatter of chipmunks and other small animals was missing.
I spotted the southeastern corner of the property long before I reached it. The wall of light remained on the eastern boundary. As I watched, five deer darted through the curtain of light and raced towards the south. Aware I wouldn’t see the animals until they ran me over, I quickened my jog to a run and did my best to stay alert for the sounds of anything approaching the other side of the wall of light.
I stopped at the tree marked by one of the red ropes. It stood over the entrance to the underground facility, and I bent to grab the metal doors and fling them open.
Except … the doors were already open to reveal the dark space beneath them. It was unlikely that animals had done this. In the seven years I’d been in the forest, no animal had yet to disturb the entrance or the generator room. The hum and sounds the underground facility usually made was enough to drive off most wildlife.
Frowning, I paused and then drew one of my knives. Had one of the priests made it down there despite my instructions to remain inside?
“Thiebald?” I called out to the priest most likely to rebel as I started down the stairs. “Are you here?”
No answer. The generator room was utterly quiet, an indication none of the systems were working at all. The manor house probably didn’t have water either, if the pump wasn’t thumping.
My feet settled on the concrete flooring, and I stretched for the flashlight kept on the wall beside the light switch for emergency situations like this one. Light in one hand and knife in the other, I started forward into the cool cellar. My senses picked up on nothing out of the ordinary, and I shifted to the main control station. Several lights glowed on the panel’s face.
The priests had taped picture instructions on the wall above the panel when they realized how poor my reading skills were. I lifted the flashlight to the wall and quickly reviewed the illustrations for resetting the power. Logging into the computer, I clicked the buttons to start a reset of the system then left to manually adjust the individual generators and water pump. Working down the line of bulky equipment, I was soon immersed in quick inspections of the equipment before deliberately initiating the reset sequence for each one.
I took a side step towards the final generator – and froze. My foot didn’t land on the solid ground but on something that felt distinctly like I was stepping on a person.
Snatching my knife, I yanked my leg back and shone the flashlight down on the ground.
The crumpled form of a man was on the cement, partially tucked behind the final generator, as if he sought to hide. With clothing that was burnt in several places, he lay with his back to me. I’d stepped on his arm.
“Hey,” I said in a low voice. “Get up!” I nudged him with my foot.
He didn’t move.
Wary, I knelt and leaned forward far enough to snatch his other arm and pull him onto his back. Recoiling, I gazed from his open, empty eyes, to the severe burns down the side of his face, deep enough to expose the milky white of his skeleton beneath. Only when I was this close could I pick up the scent of charred flesh and hair, otherwise hidden by the smells of oil and machinery around me.
I released my breath and tucked my knife away. Until this moment, I hadn’t considered the idea that the gods’ wrath might drive more than animals into our domain. I stood and searched the rest of the generator room before returning to the dead man. Hefting him onto my shoulder, I exited the cellar and took him above ground, walking twenty meters before setting him down. I pulled my radio out.
“Father Cristopolos,” I said and glanced around, looking for more refugees of the human category.
“Yes?” he answered.
“You’re keeping everyone inside, aren’t you?”
“Of course. How are things looking?”
“Did you check on Alessandra to make sure she’s in her room?” I asked, suspecting if anyone decided to break out, it was her.
“The doors are locked from the inside. No one has left.”
“Do me the favor of sending Renny or someone up to her room,” I said.
“Very well. What’s this about, Herakles?”
My eyes settled on the dead man. “There might be people in our forest as well as wildlife trying to escape the fires.”
Father Cristopolos murmured a curse. I heard him order someone to check on Lyssa before he spoke to me again. “How many people have you seen?” he asked.
“Just one. He’s dead,” I said.
“Good. You did what you had to.”
“He was dead when I found him,” I clarified, not expecting the peace-loving priest who doted over the girls as if they were his own to react so nonchalantly to the death of anyone.
“If we have any favor with the gods remaining, they will prevent more people from trespassing. Our secrets must remain secret.”
I frowned. “And if I run across more people?” I asked. “What do you want me to do?”
“I trust your judgment. You above all know how important it is that we protect Alessandra.”
Surprised he assumed I’d murdered someone, I didn’t know how to respond to this vague statement. It almost sounded as if he expected me to kill anyone whose path I crossed! He knew of my background. Perhaps he assumed I was still that man. I didn’t doubt my ability to kill, if Alessandra were in danger, but the idea Father Cristopolos assumed I’d do it no matter what the circumstances left me feeling … uncomfortable.
“All right,” I said finally. “I’ve got to get back to the generators. Should be up in twenty minutes.”
“Lyssa’s in her room,” he reported.
Thank the gods. “You might want to have someone stay with her. If she gets curious, she’ll find a way out.”
“Will do.”
Tucking the radio in my cargo pocket, I returned to the underground room.
I searched it again, not wanting any more unpleasant surprises, before I finished bringing all the generators and pump online.
Half an hour later, I left the generator room. We had no need for locks; no one had crossed into our isolated territory uninvited in all the time I’d been here. I covered the metal doors with leaves and brush to prevent anyone else from breaking in then returned to the body.
I stood over the corpse, uncertain how to handle it. I didn’t have time to dig a proper grave, and burying him too shallow would only invite the predators crossing through our forest to remain. And eventually, the girls would probably find the body, if the predators didn’t drag it out of the ground first.
My gaze flickered to the wall of light then to the fireballs overhead. I picked up the man and walked to the wall. When I was this close, I could see shapes through it. Heart pounding, I stepped closer and closer, until my toes hit the brilliant wall. Leaning forward enough for my face to pass through it, I gasped at what I saw on the other side.
How anyone or anything survived this, I couldn’t imagine. The world outside of our boundaries was fiery, barren, with all the trees for miles on fire or completely disintegrated. As I watched, another fireball landed several meters from the boundary in an explosion of dirt and fire. I stepped back instinctively, horrified by what was happening to the world.
Did the priests understand why this was happening? Did it have anything to do with Alessandra? The fact we were protected by the mass destruction by at least one god left me feeling embarrassed to have questioned the motives, and power, of our benefactors on multiple occasions.
I was not a man of deep thought. I couldn’t explain what I saw or why it happened, but I saw an opportunity to rid the forest of the corpse slung over my shoulder.
Wit
h a deep breath, I stepped through the protective curtain of light and into the scorching, barren zone outside the boundaries. Smaller fireballs rained down around me. I darted to the nearest fire and carefully threw the body into its center. Not about to be struck down, I raced back to the protection of the forest beyond the wall of light, visible from both sides of the boundary.
When I was safe again, I wiped the blood of the dead man on my pants and retrieved my backpack. Tired yet wired, I began to wonder how many more people would find seek refuge on our land. Rather than return to the orphanage, I struck off once more to check the perimeter.
Not long after depositing the corpse outside the boundaries, I ran across two more people hunkered just inside the wall of light, at the base of a tree. The young couple in their late teens both displayed the burnt clothing, skin and hair I expected. Dark circles shadowed wide eyes, and they were staring at the light barrier they’d just crossed through.
I lingered in the brush, studying them. They were a few years older than Alessandra with similar eyes and noses, indicating they could be brother and sister. Scared refugees posed no threat to my Lyssa, even if I didn’t like the idea of strangers passing through our forest. These kids were harmless.
“Thanatos has claimed us, Natalie,” the teen boy said.
I chuckled. “Unfortunately, that is not the case,” I said and stepped out from the brush. “Can you both walk?”
They leapt to their feet at the sound of my voice. The boy clutched one arm to his chest while the back of the girl’s body appeared as if a fireball had scraped her from head to foot.
“There’s a campground directly south,” I said and pointed. “You’ll be safe there.”
After a surprised pause, the girl spoke. “Which way is south?”
I twisted to visually locate the trail created by fleeing wildlife. “Follow that path. Beware of bears and wild cats. They’re all headed in the same direction.”