by David Kersey
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
A white van bearing the Agrapest Chemical Company lettering and logo was parked between the car park and the wheat field. Two men were offloading fifty-five gallon drums that also bore the same logo. John was at the front door and on his cell phone. I sat at the bottom of the steps and overheard that John was talking with Loman. "They'll be over there in less than twenty minutes with the specialized miticide the lab produced, and the insecticide. The miticide is designed to work on the altered spider mites, but will not kill the beneficial mites. It is biodegradable and is safe to handle. You'll need an all-terrain trailer sprayer with attachable boom for open spaces. 110 gallon capacity at a minimum. You'll need a crew of four or more with backpack sprayers for your crops. And you'll need to do two applications, one with the miticide and the other with the insecticide. I'd start with the insecticide and use the miticide second, but spray the ants with both. The equipment and manpower I need should arrive here within the hour. If you need me to bring over that equipment when I'm done let me know. Good luck, I think we might just win this."
After the call was over John waved for me to follow him into the house. "Got a little surprise for you Buck." I walked through the foyer and peaked inside the drawing room. Cassie was not where I last saw her.
"Buck?" Oh how my heart raced. It was Cassie's voice. And there she was, laying on the leather couch. I sped to her so fast that my paws slipped on the hardwood floor. I jumped on the couch and muzzled my snout over her torso. "Careful Buck, I'm sore," she said with a slur and partially opened eyes. I saw that her smitten leg was twice the size of the other hind leg.
"Cassie, I thought I'd lost you. I haven't been able to think straight ever since you were stung."
"It was strange Buck. I could hear what you were saying and I was trying to talk but I couldn't. I was paralyzed, I guess. I couldn't move a muscle except for my leg twitching. I was aware that John took me to the basement and gave me a shot. And I knew you were there. I tried to tell you, but I couldn't. I don't feel all that well and I am sore all over but Buck, I'm back. I have nine lives you know!"
I told her that Oliver had seen it happen and while I was bringing her here he swooped down and killed all three ants. I also told her about the animals in the clearing, that everyone was there and that our members were teaching the newcomers. I told her I took John there to show him which I could tell surprised her.
"Cassie, there are pest control people outside right now and they have delivered a bunch of drums, probably over a hundred of them. All of a sudden I'm feeling optimistic, and the real reason for that is I'm sitting here talking with you. I honestly didn't think you would make it."
"Buck, I thought I'd lost you too. I'm not going to be much good for you in the next day or so. I will need to take it easy and not try to overdo my recovery. There is a lot of pain in my leg like it’s on fire. I hope you understand."
"Of course I do. That's what I want you to do. I will keep coming back here to give you updates. Cassie?"
"Shush Buck. I love you too. Now go out there and be my king. I need to sleep some more but I was waiting for you. Be careful, Buck."
I reluctantly left and made my way to the car park. Another truck had arrived and was unloading the spraying equipment.
There were four men dressed in protective spray clothing, which uniform bore the ACC logo. John said, "Buck, we're going to spray in sections. We will spray everything, including the meadow and clearing. I want you to move the animals out of the way of the equipment and don't occupy a sprayed area for at least two hours after application. Since I am only spraying the perimeter of the pasture, go round up your group and move to the middle of the pasture in the next few minutes. Don't come out of the pasture until I come get you. Buck, there may be ants in the pasture and they won't want to leave that area after we've boxed them in. If they are there they are going to be very agitated and angry. Do the best you can with the stomp method. Now go, time is a wasting."
The animals were still trying to learn but it looked like a lot more time would be needed after seeing the spastic efforts, especially by the pigs. The Klein animals were already spooked, so I wondered if they would fight or flee, as Cassie had said could happen. I called a meeting and the circle took their places while the Klein animals looked on. "We're going to move to the pasture," I explained, and told them why. "And Cassie is doing very well, it looks like a total recovery but she's not well enough to be with us. Now let's get on the move, this is going to happen fast."
We didn't encounter any ants on the migration. Once in the middle of the pasture, I told them to relax, wait for the perimeter spraying to happen, but be on the lookout because if there were ants trying to escape the treatment they may well come our way. I said we should form a circle spaced evenly apart and look outward for any approaching ants. And if you see them come close be ready to stomp. I told our own soft footed members to remain inside the circle, and that Mort will be there in the middle with them, and that Orville will be doing aerial recon and let us know if he sees ants on the march.
The tractor and the hitched sprayer arrived shortly thereafter. Once inside the fence, the boom was set in place and the spraying began with approximately a twenty feet spread in an even, calibrated spray. The entire perimeter was covered in less than fifteen minutes, then the equipment disappeared en route to the next section. We waited, but not for long.
Orville gave out the screech.
"Circle up.", I shouted, "they're on the move.” Six pigs which included Penny and Candy, Harold the horse, and four cows formed the perimeter. Orville flew our way and lit on Mort's back. "There are not that many so far, but they keep coming up out of the sprayed soil. They are not organized and moving around helter-skelter. It won't be long before some of them find their way to here." Then Oliver flew away to continue the reconnaissance. I told Methusaleh to climb up my leg and ride on my back. He wasted no time getting that job done.
One ant appeared, stopped short about three feet in front of Harold, and remained there, staring, frantically waving his antennae, calculating. A second, then third, joined the first. Staring at us, and obviously laying down pheromones for it was not long before there were ten, then twenty, and more kept coming, all remaining three feet away from our perimeter and glaring at us. Dark, determined eyes too large for an insect, I thought, like a pea painted jet black, divided in two, and glued to the sides of their heads. They were obviously organizing, and I started to have doubts that we had nearly enough preparation. I began digging a trench beneath me in order to shelter the small animals.
Dorcas started to panic. She grabbed my leg so tightly I couldn’t be mobile enough. I needed to be nimble, and I needed to dig a depression for the little ones to lay under my body in case the ants broke through the front line.
“Buck, we’re going to die, aren’t we?”
“Dorcas, no, we’re not going to die. We’re going to keep a cool head and beat these little guys.”
"Don't break ranks," I shouted, "they may give up and move on. Practice you’re stomps, maybe you’ll intimidate them and they’ll give up.” I was wrong about that. When they in unison made their charge there were at least fifty of them, maybe more, coming at us from every position around the perimeter of the circle.
The heavy animals rose on their hind legs, screaming, then crashed down on the invaders. The squeals of the six pigs was deafening. I saw one of the ants jump onto a cow’s leg, and it wasn’t but a second later that cow ran away at full speed. Some of the ants, who were so much quicker than I had imagined, broke through our front line, then.............darkness.
Ringing, loud, both ears, deafening. A slow, gradual feeling of tingling began a soothing inspection of my body, starting with my legs and taking a cell by cell journey northward to my nine year old gut. I knew it was the Reaper preparing to claim me. It was pleasant and it completely overruled the initial pain, and the ringing, and the hundred swirling silver Ninja stars that poked holes
in the darkness. So this was going to be it. I can tell you there was remorse for not having completed my life as I had it fashioned. Most of all, I wanted to say to anyone who would listen that I loved them, especially John, Cassie, Mort, and…….
A feeling of tightness gripped me, an embrace that engulfed my entire being, squeezing the pleasantness away, like a soaked washrag being wrung. And then a hushed whisper. “I won’t let it happen, Buck, John will need you and you have much more to do.” It was Beverly’s voice. “I love you, Buck, it’s not your time. I’m giving you life, which is what you gave to me. It is your destiny to give it again to another. You will know when it’s your time because I will visit you one more time and bring you to where I am.” Her warm breath pressed close to my ear and defeated the tingling the Reaper had purchased. It left in an instant. The pain returned, and the ringing, but the silver stars were gone. Total black. Welcome back to life. It is what it is, pain, but I did get a momentary glimpse of a beauty beyond the spectrum of life as I had ever known it. A brief glimpse of a spectrum of color unimaginable in the mortal existence. The meadow would never look the same to me. I would live again yet I knew my life would be forever changed. I had received The Promise.
I heard squealing, yet I could not see, or move.