To Wake the Living (The Time Stone Trilogy Book 2)

by Robert F Hays

  “Got them,” Chris said as he walked up with two figures following.

  “That guy said that President Sam was here,” the female said. “Is that true?”

  “Yes, ah am hear, and it’s jest Sam. Ah has been impeached by them there fellahs.”

  “Oh thank heavens. We thought they’d got you. You’re still President Sam to us.”

  “Earl would you take them back to the cave,” Jim said. “We have to slowly filter back. When we’re sure that the equipment works and Peter’s safe, I want everyone out of here.”

  “Come on,” Earl said beckoning with a wave of the hand. “We have to get behind this hill before the sun comes up.”

  They watched as the three walked down the slope then returned to the dugout as the light increased.

  “Why do they keep on a callin’ me President. Ah am really jest a corporal. Ah ain’t nothin’ special.”

  “To them you are,” Chris said. “To them you’re a symbol of hope and you’re just going to have to put up with it.”

  Chapter 13

  The deck two corridor of the Lydia looked somehow different. It was only a matter of days since the last time Jim had walked its length, but the foreign occupation had, sort of, changed the shape of things. Jim couldn’t remember the original color of the bulkheads, but he was sure they had repainted them.

  Jim looked over his shoulder at Chris following close behind. “Don’t you think you should have your pistol out of its holster?”

  Chris smiled and shrugged. “I will when it’s necessary.”

  “Where are Sam and Earl,” Jim asked, looking past Chris down the corridor in the direction they had come from. The normal soft illumination was out and he strained his eyes to see in the dim light.

  “They’re back in the hold. Earl wanted to get something he left there a few days ago and Sam’s helping him look.”

  Jim gripped the butt of his pistol in frustration. “What’s this? Can’t I get any cooperation? We’ve got to stay together. Would you go back and tell them to get here in a hurry.”

  Chris’ expression turned to a scowl. “It must be important, whatever they’re looking for, or they wouldn’t be doing it. I’m not going back to interrupt them. We’ll just have to go on alone. They can catch up later.”

  “Damn,” Jim said looking back in the direction of travel.

  A few paces further and a cabin door on the left hand side opened with its usual swishing sound. Karla stuck her head into the hallway and looked Jim in the eyes as if she had known he was there before the door opened. She smiled and gave a slight wave.

  “Karla, they told us you were dead.”

  “No, just waiting for you to come back.”

  “I can’t do this,” the voice of Celia said from behind him. “My earrings are all wrong for the occasion. They have to be bigger and more ornate”

  Jim turned. It was confusing. He had never seen her wearing earrings before. The figure he saw behind him was obviously Celia, but it wasn’t her. It was a brightly colored cartoon image of the woman. Jim ducked as a gigantic pencil appeared over his head, eraser first. It pushed forward and rapidly erased the earrings from the cartoon, then flipped around quickly and skillfully re drawing larger ones.”

  “Ah... This isn’t quite right,” Jim said, closing his eyes and shaking his head. “Wake up stupid, wake up.”

  He slowly opened his eyes again to see Carol’s backside as she leaned over the main control of her communications module. It was the third morning at their observation post and the uncomfortable conditions were affecting everyone’s sleep.

  “What the hell?” Jim said trying to fully wake up.

  “What’s the problem?” Chris asked, stirring the steaming breakfast of mulch weed.

  “Weird dream, but something else is definitely wrong. I don’t know what it is, but something’s wrong.”

  “No wind?” Chris said with a smile.

  Jim paused to listen to the silence then smiled to himself over the irony. “That’s it. What happened?”

  “They had to let a giant storm go over, so the weather modifiers created a cool moist layer at ground level. That produced a buffer to protect the settlement. Eight thousand meters up, the wind is over three hundred kilometers per hour. The colonies weather experts are getting quite proficient.”

  Jim flipped aside his blanket. “So we finally have a nice day on this planet.”

  “Not quite,” Chris said lifting the flap on their cover. “I did say cool and moist.”

  Jim looked out into a wall of dull gray fog. “Well, looks like an opportunity for a little close inspection of the settlement.”

  “No,” Chris said while slopping an unappetizing looking portion of weed in a bowl and handing it to Jim. “The Stutchmans have just about everyone in the settlement out on perimeter guard. There was a rather furious argument up there last night. They anticipated our sneaking in and the playboy wanted to let the storm hit rather than give us the extra cover. Jennifer talked him out of it saying that it may delay the work on their new villa by the lake. It was good she did, the storm would have killed hundreds.”

  “That’s good”

  “We could walk up and have a chat with the colonists,” Chris said. “There are hundreds of them for every one guard. The chances are good that we won’t run into one.”

  “Negative,” Peter mumbled over the radio. “A warning’s in affect that a thousand colonists on the main ship will die if one incident is detected. The general consensus is reluctant cooperation.”

  “There is a survey team stranded about six kilometers away,” Herb said from Pellan. “They’re afraid of moving in the fog in case they drive off a cliff or something. We’re monitoring their radio transmissions.”

  “Extra people would help,” Jim said.

  “They also have a lot of modern electronics that would be useful.”

  “Any guards?” Jim asked.

  “Just one. We can guide you most of the way, but the last two kilometers are out of range of the accurate sensors. All we can advise you on is vague directions.”

  “That’ll have to do. Sam, Chris, when you’ve finished eating, grab your stuff.”

  “We’ve already eaten,” Sam said.

  “Serves me right for sleeping. Anything else happen while I was out to it?”

  “Yep,” Sam said. “Herb done had his baby.”

  “Congratulations Herb.”

  “Thank you, and thank you for the present.”

  “Ah... what present?”

  “Dr. Redmond had me send one dad,” Colin said. “I got your company on Pellan to send over a set of the replicas of our baby toys, you know, those dangly things you hang from the ceiling.”

  “Colin? Have you been listening in all this time?”

  “Off and on,” Redmond said. “Only when there’s nothing of a violent or hazardous nature going on. They just got home from school.”

  “Yeah dad, when are you going to blast someone?”

  “At the moment the whole mission is to avoid being blasted. For the time being we spend most of the day just sitting.”

  “That weed stuff sounds like yeucky shit. Could you bring some home so I can taste it?”

  “Yeah, some for me too,” Michael added.

  “If I can remember it. I have a lot to think about at the moment,” Jim said while undoing the front of his suit to enable himself to eat the slop in question.

  “I’ll get some from the university bio lab,” Redmond said with an understanding chuckle. “We can have a feast tomorrow. Give us a list of what else you’re eating too.”

  Jim chuckled then reached into his suit to hold his nose while eating.

  * * *

  The party stood and exited their hiding place. They started down the hill toward the east with the ever present controllers warning them of rocks, ditches and other obstacles.

  “Three, left ten degrees. You’re wandering away from the rest.”

  “Well, ah cai
n’t see Jim. He’s a walkin’ too fast. Got away from me in this here fog.”

  “Slowing down now, tell me when you’re in sight, Sam.”

  “Just a minute,” Chris said, “who’s that in front of me?”

  “Four, that’s one in front of you,” another controller said.

  “Should I stop and wait for three,” Jim asked.

  “Negative, the correction I gave three was to intersect your path fifteen meters ahead.”

  “Ah sees the two of ya now. Walkin’ like this is plumb confusin’.”

  “You’re all doing just fine,” Herb said. “It takes the Rangers weeks to learn what you’re doing.”

  “How long until we’re out of range,” Jim asked.

  “About twenty minutes,” Herb said, “and I have an interesting turn of events for you. Charles Stutchman is on the public V phone and trying to contact you. Our tac psych team recommends talking to him but be careful what you say.”

  “Wonder what he wants. I take it that all he’ll hear is my voice and you can talk to me without him knowing.”

  “Correct, and change course ten right. There is a small gully up ahead. A voice analysis team will advise you.”

  “Voice analyst team online,” another voice said.

  “I’ll take the lead,” Chris said as he broke into a fast walk. “All directions go to me alone. Just follow close, Jim.”

  “Put him through,” Jim said, turning slightly to the right and slowing for Chris to pass.

  “Connecting now.”

  “Ah... Mr. Young?” came the voice of the elder Stutchman.

  “That’s my name, what do you want Stutchman?”

  “Well.. Ah.. I’m calling because I’m quite sorry to have put you to such an inconvenience...”

  “Insincere,” a voice said.

  “...So I thought that if we talked we could come to some sort of agreement.”

  “Sincere with undertone.”

  “Agreement? How about you and your idiot son go to jail and leave the colony alone?”

  “Now, now, you are not in a position to dictate the terms. It won’t be long until we catch up with you.”

  “Statement made with confidence,” the voice said.

  “So, tell us your terms.”

  “That’s better,” Stutchman said with a smirk in his voice. “I have been watching those three dimensional shows in the 3V room on the ship. Such marvelous advancements mankind has made. I was most impressed by an add for a retirement city in orbit around that planet La Raza. The one where the units are in pairs tethered together and revolving around each other to create a gravity. I kind of like the larger ones that give you about ten hectares of lawn and garden under a large bubble. That would suit me just fine. I used to grow roses back on Earth until the weather went bad and it was hard to grow anything. I would love to experiment with the new varieties they have now.”

  Jim noticed Chris change course once again and followed. “Is that all?”

  “That and about fifty million of those units of money they now use so I can play the stock market. I have to have something to amuse myself in my old age. Oh yes, and complete amnesty by President Sam.”

  “Statement sincere.”

  “I’ll give him amnesty with a mini ball up his ass,” Sam said.

  “Mr. Stutchman, I just got a rather negative reaction from the President.”

  “Well then I’ll have to petition the Commonwealth for a condition of sanction as a political refugee. You see, I have been studying your laws on that marvelous communications system. The C.S.A. government couldn’t touch me if I stayed away from this planet.”

  “Statement made with full confidence.”

  “Commonwealth condition null and void if made under threat,” another voice said.

  “Do not agree yet,” Herb said. “Make it sound like you’re considering. We can get him when he gets to La Raza.”

  “So, after all the deaths and suffering you and that moronic son of yours spend the rest of your lives in luxury?”

  “Oh no, just me and my two grandchildren. You can have my son as part of the deal. He is a genuine embarrassment to me anyway.”

  “Statement sincere.”

  “Fun family,” Carol said from the observation post.

  “And the guards?”

  “You can have them too. I’ll not have any further use for them. I know you can tell I mean what I say. I saw one of those spy shows the other night. There are probably scores of government people listening in right now analyzing every word.”

  “How about hundreds,” Jim said.

  “So, what’s your decision?”

  “We’ll think about it.”

  “Remember I can always cut a deal with the Independent Alliance. They would welcome someone who’s being oppressed by the Commonwealth.”

  “Computer, disconnect line,” Jim said.

  “Accessing Commonwealth Law Library,” a voice said. “We can possibly get permission to temporarily delete all reference to voiding the condition of sanction from the libraries, just in case he gets further into it. We’ll also request the networks that they reschedule their programming to exclude all reference to the technical capabilities of a team such as ours.”

  “Permission granted under my emergency powers,” Rossetti said.

  “The tactical team are all in agreement that you should not rely on this one course of action,” Herb said.

  “We won’t. Continuing with the original plan. How long until we’re out of sensor range?”

  “You have been for the last couple of minutes,” Herb said.

  “That’s why we’ve slowed down,” Chris said. “They’re giving me a direct route but not the terrain details.”

  “One thing we did detect from the conversation,” Herb said. “There was someone else present at Charles’s end.”

  “Jennifer?”

  “No, the sounds of movement were definitely male. There is a ninety percent probability that the clothing he was wearing was Old Earth in origin. We cannot figure that out. The Stuchmans have all taken to wearing your cloths you left behind.”

  “You can tell all that from the sound?”

  “Oh yes, each type of material has its own peculiar sound when rustled. The weave on his was not tight enough to be modern.”

  The pace decrease to a craw as they continued. Deviations from the direct course were frequent. They had to avoid deep gullies and mud filled depressions. The group walked within an arm’s reach of one another as losing one member in the fog would possibly take hours to correct.

  “Where now?” Jim asked.

  “You should be there,” Herb said. “We can detect that the vehicles are within fifty meters of your location. I am sorry, that’s the best we can give you.”

  “Ah thainks ah heard somethin’ in that direction,” Sam said, raising an arm and pointing to the left.

  “We have to be careful. This fog will make things echo,” Jim said.

  They started out in the direction Sam had indicated, straining their ears as they walked.

  “What was that?” Chris whispered after a few minutes.

  “It was a vehicle door slamming,” Jim whispered. “Off to the right, there.”

  Jim took the lead as they changed direction. Without talking, they slowly walked drawing their laser pistols. Through the fog a few meters ahead Jim heard the sound of heavy footsteps on the soggy ground. The sound stopped as Jim edged forward.

  “Herb, I’ll turn on the external receivers so you can hear what they say.”

  “Check.”

  Moments later, a vague human outline appeared and Jim heard a familiar sound of running water.

  “I think we should wait until he finishes peeing before we introduce ourselves,” Jim whispered into his microphone. “I don’t want to be bad mannered.”

  The running water stopped and Jim took a pace forward. The figure looked up and stared in Jim’s direction. He was standing with his left arm held directl
y over his head.

  “Quiet,” Jim ordered in a whisper while stepping up to the figure.

  “Who the hell are you?” the man whispered.

  “I have the pistol, so you answer the same question.”

  “Tim Raphael, assistant to Dr. Cawthorn, the team’s head geologist.”

  “Where’s the guard?”

  “Two vehicles back,” Tim said, pointing to his left.

  “What on earth are you holding on to?” Jim asked looking up at the man’s left hand.

  “The vehicles radio antenna. I bent it down and followed it out here so I could find my way back in the fog.”

  “Who are you talking to Tim?” a female voice asked from a few meters away.

  “My pecker,” Tim snapped over his shoulder. “Get out the straight jacket, this fog has sent me off the deep end.”

  A number of quiet laughs came from the direction of the female voice as Tim turned back and leaned forward to look through Jim’s faceplate.

  “You’re Mr. Young, aren’t you,” Tim said in a whisper. “Where’s President Sam?”

  “Right behind me, or at least I think he is,” Jim said, glancing back. “Yep, he’s there. How did you know who I was? I don’t think we’ve met before.”

  “You’ve been described to me, and I can’t think of anyone else who would be wandering around in this stuff.”

  “You’re definitely talking to someone Tim,” the female voice asked again. “Who is it?”

  “Shut up,” Tim snapped over his shoulder then turned back to Jim. “Come on, you can trust them. We’ve all been plotting on how to do in old Rosco back there and make it look like an accident.”

  They heard the vehicle door open again. Tim turned and started to follow the antenna. Seconds later, a female figure appeared followed by two other males.

  “Who are they?” the female asked.