“Sure, suit yourselves,” was my reply.
After a few minutes they, it was a male voice who had spoken, were settled in. Being so dark I could not make out features so I was not sure who had joined me, but I guessed it was a couple based on the whispers.
We sat quiet for a while, just the waves, I think they might be getting bigger because they seemed a little louder, but then it might have been the tide coming in.
“Did you ever wonder?” he asked.
“About what?”
“Well, what happened to them?”
I was a little confused, “What happened to who.” Or should it be whom.
“Whom, it should be whom, but them, the little green men.”
I turned to look at the speaker, it was dark but now I could see a little, one’s eyes do adjust, and saw that it was not the form of a human. It was ……. they were……. All I could think of was a large version of the Geico gecko.
I waited for a minute and then said, “But I thought you knew. I had a visit from KHriz, and HYlon, I told them that they were able to fix the engines and escape orbit, they were going home.”
“Ah, yes, and RRqil and I know that part, but what we wanted you to tell us was about our lives, what happened to us.” There was no anger in that voice, but then the QUalz were not an outwardly emotional species
“So you are Krezz.” I said.
A hiccupping sound followed, and after a bit it subsided, “I’m sorry, yes I am. And RRqil and I are curious, what happened to us. We bonded, but we never really found out how we fared in the end.”
I sat for a moment, stared into space, as a meteor streaked across the sky, and then I said, “You were important to the story while Tom and Asuna were on the ship and after, but in the books your characters sort of….well, you were on the ship and the ship was gone.”
A female voice joined in, “But we raised the young’ens, the clones. I think we did a good job, we prepared them to bring life back to your planet.”
“It was the least we could do after we failed you. I was to blame, I was to fix it.” exclaimed the male, Krezz with both pride and sorrow in his voice
“Yes, you di fix it, and I think that part was told in the story.” I replied.
“True dat……is that how you would say it?” Krezz, the male said.
I smiled, “Close enough, you know what happened in the books so I am guessing what you really want to know is what happened to you both after the ship escaped and headed back home.”
“Yes please,” said the female.
I was at a loss and really had never thought about it, they did their part for the story and I left them hanging. I had done that to other characters, left them incomplete or forgotten.
“I’m sorry, I guess in a way I abandoned you both, in fact all of the QUalzians.” I said, “I didn’t think about that when I did it.”
“It is okay,” said Krezz, “But can you get us to our end now?”
“Yes, I can do that for you. I t may not be in print, but I will give you a sort of peace.” I replied.
I went on to tell them about how they were able to escape the eminent crashing into the sun by getting the engines fixed and restarted. I told them that it was Krezz who had actually been the one responsible by leading the science and engineering crews that to the fix that saved them.
Once out of trouble it took them years to get back to their home, and in those years, generation upon generation of QUalz were hatched and went to sleep. About a thousand or twelve hundred years into the trek back home KHriz and HYlon went to sleep. And it was time for a new leader, a new top QUalz.
“Because of your saving the ship and all those on board you were made the new captain of the ship, the Sky Crystal,” I said.
At first the pair was silent, and then some hiccups, and finally a new funny sound, it was like ort sneezing, repeated sneezing.
“We are sorry, you have overcome us with emotion, forgive our tears, what is your term, crying, it is of joy.” said Krezz.
“Well, your ascension to command, it seemed the natural thing to do, although you were not the captain when the Sky Crystal finally made it home to QUalz. But it was your hatchlings or line of hatchlings that finally completed the journey.”
“What do you mean?” asked RRqil.
“The trip took almost eighteen thousand years, and you both lived to be in the five thousands. It was your hatchling, TAsun and his hatchling KRqil that finally brought your ship home. KRqil was the first female to ever hold that position of captain,” I told them.
Again, hiccups and sneezes.
“You have honored us; you have made us very happy. We like this ending for us. You are a kind human, in ways like the Tom we knew. Perhaps you could tell the tale of TAsun and KRqil in one of your future writings.”
I was at a loss but managed to mutter a thank you. Perhaps it would be a good story, perhaps an epic.
It was the gulls that woke me, screaming close by as the waves now were crashing in. The tide had turned and was on its way back out. I rubbed my eyes, and remembered the visit. I looked at the sand around my chair, I had been alone.
The Shower
There were two places that many of ideas for my story would pop into my head. The first was while I would be out walking at Bolton Notch. I have mentioned that to you earlier on in this book. While I would be walking my mind would be unfocused and things would just bubble up. Seeds for a third of the stories came to mind as I walked along. I am not sure which ones they were specifically but they popped up.
The other place was in the shower. I think of that now because I am in the shower. I remember ideas would just kind of wash over me as I applied the soap, shampoo or shaved with warm water running down my back and….
“Shit would just came to yo mind?’ said a female voice laughingly.
I looked and there leaning against the sink was a black woman in military pants, military t-shirt, and short hair. At first I was, well uncomfortable about my being naked. Then I pushed it aside, this was a visitor, one of my book characters.
“Sergeant Brown,” I said.
“Yup, dat right Tom, and I got some questions for you. See, I was elected to haunt you by a few of us from the Archive. The ones dat you brought back from Cheyenne and Fort Knox,” she replied.
“Okay, I will try to answer them for you.” I told her, I guess I am getting used to this.
“Wait, is dat a warm shower or a cold shower?” she asked.
“Warm, why?”
“Damn, you know how long it been since I had a warm shower? Imma join you?” she said as she pulled the t-shirt over her head. Her breasts were kind of on the large size, but firm, firm enough that she did not wear a bra. As she proceeded to strip down, she showed, displayed a body that was tight and muscled. But then all the characters in the books except for Grace were pretty much free of extra body fat.
The glass door to the shower slid open and she stepped in. As the warm water hit her there was an ‘AHHHH’ that escaped her lips.
I looked at her and said, “I am done, I can get out of your way.”
“No, is okay, we needs to talk and shit. Can you hand me the soap?” came the reply.
I passed her the plastic bottle of Irish Spring. As I looked at her I realized that she was not an unattractive woman. I had kind of talked about her in the story but never really thought about her in an aesthetic sense.
“You checkin’ out my ass?” she said, then laughed, it was a kind of deep and delightful laugh.
“I, ah, well sort of, I never, in the book really got into what you looked like,” I replied.
“True dat, and now, you finished the painting, and I think you kind of like it,’ she said looking down at, well, let us just leave it at that and say that guys are guys.
“Ah, so er, what was it that you wanted to ask about, or tell me about the story,” I nervously tried to change the subject.
“Oh, Dat, well we were wondering what happened to us
, was der special stuff dat happened? I mean Gillie and Taylor did hook up, you killed off Mills, what an asshole he was. McManus, he kind of became a father figure for Molly, but what about me. What happened to me?”
I stood, thinking for a few minutes, what did I do with Sergeant Brown, Washa, her name was Washa. And the answer was really not much. I mean she had her role in the story, she was the information specialist regarding the Archive, but I never really followed up on that character.
“Washa, I’m sorry, but I never…..” I began.
“I know, and well, I guess I am here to ask you, if, maybe you could?”
“Complete your life?”
“Yeah, tell me what happened to me in the end.” We were facing each other now, naked, in the shower, maybe it was just the water from the shower, or maybe tears, and then there was a sob. “I want to know.”
I put my arms around her, and hugged her, the warm wet body drew close. “Yes, I can do that.”
But I knew that the options were very limited. Most everyone was bonded with someone else and it wouldn’t be possible to bring in a new player. Really there were only two options. The first was that she just lived with the group, alone, helping out with Akiri and Augustus, kind of a babysitter / nanny for them. The other was that somehow she and McManus would pair and be Molly’s parents or protectors.
“Well, I have a couple ideas on that, but let’s get out of the shower and we can sit and talk about it.”
“Sounds good” she replied.
I was relieved because I was thinking lustful thoughts, as Washa had already noticed. And with the hug and contact the level arose a little further.
We dried off and went into the bedroom, it was right off of the master bath. She went into my closet and borrowed a white button down collar shirt. I slipped on a pair of boxers and we sat on the bed. I laid back on the bed and she laid next to me.
“Well?” she said.
I thought to myself, I wish she would button that shirt up a little. Then snapped out of my thoughts, “Oh, yeah, what happened to you, well, let me ask you a couple of questions and then we can go from there.”
“Okay, shoot away.”
“Did you want to remain alone to the end of time? Or would you like a companion?”
“Gimme a companion”
“Alright, to start, ah, which side of the plate do you swing from?” I asked.
“Huh?”
“Ah, do you go for men, or women?”
She smiled and placed her hand on the boxers.
I cleared my throat, “Okay.”
I sat for a minute or two and collected my thoughts then finally I began ‘the Tale of Washa at the End of Time’. It was probably clichéd, and over simple but it would work. As I began the tale she snuggled closer like a little girl hearing a bedtime story from her dad.
I told her that as time went on there were many pair bonds that developed in the group. At one point she and Lance become very close and despite the 10 year age difference she had found him very ‘interesting’. On a couple of occasions she tried to subtly initiate something. But he did not seem to get it. She even tried a little less subtly, tried by putting his hands on her breasts and laying a big old wet kiss on him. But he was lost in Delaney and was a pretty straight-up guy, so well, he didn’t go for it.
She was torn by the rejection and yet respected him for his commitment to Delaney. She briefly toyed with the idea that if Delaney was removed from the picture, perhaps an ‘accident’ then things could be different. But like him, she had her morals too.
It was about a month after Tom was found at the bottom on the cliff that McManus had come to her. It seems that Molly was entering an area that was outside his knowledge, girl, actually woman stuff and he needed help. So Washa helped him and in doing so saw a side of McManus that few saw. Bit by bit they spent more and more time together. But it was Molly who really pushed it over the edge.
Molly had gotten sick, a flu or something and was running a fever. Doc Barkley had checked her out and knew it was just a minor thing. But both McManus and Washa were worried and watching over her. Molly lived in the same room as McManus. One night Molly in her fever referred to Washa as Momma. And that was the start. Then later that same night she begged ‘Momma’ to stay.
The room was small and Washa and McManus shared his bunk while Molly slept.
“Washa, are you ever lonely?” asked McManus.
“Wait, can you give him a name, I want a name for him,” said Washa excitedly.
“Ah name, ah, okay, well, how about Stanley?” I offered
“Stanley, are you shitting me, I want something dope.”
“Dope, well, how about Shane?”
“Shane……Shane, yeah, I like it.”
So as they were there on the cot, Shane asked, “Do you ever get lonely?”
“Yeah, not alone, that is different, but I do get lonely” she replied.
“Yeah, me too, I mean I have Molly to look out for, but ……..”
“There are moments in every relationship that for lack of a better term starts the fire. That night, that moment they, Washa and Shane had found an ember and together they nursed it, fed it and very soon the flame burst out bright and warm.”
“I likes it!” squealed Washa.
I smiled and felt good.
“But wait, did we live happily ever after?” she asked.
“Yes, yes you did.”
“Good, and now I don’ts even want to know how we died as long as we were happy until the end.” She said.
“You both were” I added.
She scrunched over close to me and she kissed me on the cheek and said, “Thank you”, then settle back in with her head on my shoulder.
When I awoke a little later she was gone, the white shirt still hung in the closet.
Acorns
I was out walking the notch today, Bolton Notch, it was a crisp autumn afternoon and the sun was sending its rays through the leaves, the fall leaves as they turned colors. It was kind of fun because about half of the maple leaves have already fallen and little the path. I felt like a kid as I kicked through them.
Off to my right I saw a squirrel as it scurried thought the leaves stopping once and again to grab an acorn. There were also oaks in the forest. And as I watch him, I guess it was a ‘him’, I thought about the little nuts that he picked up to nibble on, or hide away.
As I walked, I heard another set of footfalls moving behind me and catching me. I did not think much of it at first, I just moved to the side of the trail to let the walker pass.
“One of the things that has happened since the end of society as we knew it is that we no longer had the standard grocery stores or places to just go and pick up a few things for dinner. It was a case of scavenging and living off of what we could find out on the road (literally) or the canned good that we came upon.” It was Nick, alive, robust and doing well. He was exactly as I had pictured him in the book, my heights and although we were only a year apart in age he seemed older. I think it was the grey ponytail that looked so odd with top of his head that was bald.
I felt good about it, his visit, I always hated killing his character off in the story, but it was needed.
“So why did you take on the cooking duties?” I asked
“Well, it just seemed to fit me; after all, I was always the one who had the innovative cooking ideas for the holidays, and special picnics.” he chuckled.
He went on to say that for whatever reason he had taken the task of feeding our group, that we all had things we were good at. He said that he saw this as a task he liked. It was challenging to feed the 20 people each day using the goods we have found, grown, or killed.
He told me that he had wanted to help anyone who found our camp, if things went wrong that he had put together a little recipe book that could keep them alive and help take some pretty bad sounding combinations of ingredients and make them presentable. He said he set the portions for 4-6 servings because it is easy
to expand the quantities to feed, 10 or 20 by doubling (and doubling again) the ingredients.
“One of the things that we have to remember is that we are or had been used to the nice civilized foods like beef, and pork and chicken.” He told me. “Now we are looking at deer, possum, and even skunk, almost any form of protein that we could come upon or gather. Some of these concoctions may seem unappealing, but in starvation mode, they will get you through the thin, sorry, bad pun time.”
He continued on that most of all, for survival, one shouldn’t be afraid to try some things, but to trust your nose and your feelings; there is some stuff out there that is bad (spoiled) or down right poisonous. For that he had raided the local bookstore for some field guide type books.
As we crunched along, we talked about some of the meals that he was able to put together, the way he creatively put together a wedding spread, a buffet, the holiday picnics and meals using what we had found in store and in the forest. He admitted that the store found foods were easy, although he did have to work on stretching the mixes a little. We tended to use less of certain things, canned meats for example.
“Remember when your dad used to tell you about how your grandparents would have a Sunday dinner for 6 and use a single can of Spam as the meat source. It was more potatoes, rice and vegetables back then,” he reminded me.
“Yeah that is true, I remember, and ironically I could down a can of Spam myself sometimes,” I replied with a sheepish grin.
We walked along in silence for a little bit. A squirrel with an acorn ran across the path ahead of us.
“That for example became an important part of our meals,” he said pointing at the squirrel.
“What, what? I know we eat them once in a while, but I don’t remember the squirrel being written in the dinners that much, it was mostly rabbits that Margo and Delany brought back for us.”
“No, not the squirrel, I was talking about the acorns.” He replied.
“Ah, yeah, I remember that, it is funny I never thought of them as food, people food, and then I was doing a little research for the book and found out different. In fact, there were a lot of food out there that we could eat. But we have become too civilized to exploit it.”
The Event Series (Book 4): Filling in the Cracks Page 7
