by SD Tanner
“Yeah, of course it is. I’ll bring Ted back, and he’ll set up a search team. Easy peasey, lemon squeezy.”
Now he worried he might be over reacting. What if everything was okay? Pax would be furious with him. “But what if they find him and he’s okay.”
“Then Ted can smack him in the head for not stayin’ in contact like he should.”
Hatch’s steadiness was getting to him and he blew out a long, deep breath. “Thank you, Hatch.”
“Never a problem, Gerry,” Hatch replied confidently, as he picked up speed and began to fly in a direct route to the Marine supply base.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN: I see with my little eye (Hull)
Lying on his stomach, he peered through his binoculars at the peaceful scene that was less than a thousand yards from his position. As they were moving around the Ranch doing their daily chores, the people were dressed in comfortable and casual clothes. To his right there was a row of small trailer homes, each neatly lined up next to other, and some were bordered with little paths leading to their front door. Directly in front of him was a large two-story house, complete with a wooden porch and stairs that led to a large gravel-filled driveway. Next to the homestead were three glass greenhouses. The glass was misted by the heat and moisture within and he couldn’t see what they were growing in there. In front of the house were several barns, a stable, and four beautifully kept horses. Next to the barns, he saw pigs, sheep and cattle, and behind the barn was a large, well-protected chicken coop.
Scanning further out he looked for defenses, but there was nothing more than low fences to keep the animals in. Other than a few men and women dressed in ACUs and carrying M4s, he saw nothing that reflected any serious attempt to defend the Ranch. If anything it looked like an idyllic hippy commune, but he very much doubted they were growing anything other than food there.
Sounding as annoyed and frustrated as he felt, he quietly muttered, “What the hell?”
Ruler had diverted him from his main mission to take control of the bases in Jacksonville so he could destroy this Ranch. He was brutally clear about his priorities, the Ranch was now his number one target and he wanted it obliterated. It didn’t make sense to him, the place was unprotected, the people unarmed and, if anything, it was worth taking over. From what he could see, it clearly had a good supply of food and water and a ready-made group of slaves to continue running the farm.
The young man next to him had a strong chiseled jawline and a mop of sandy blond hair. For some reason he’d nicknamed the young man, Spud.
Looking over at Spud, he asked, “Why does he want this place destroyed?”
Spud languidly blinked his blue on blue eyes. “Why do you care?”
Quietly and angrily, he replied, “Because I have better things to do and there are better uses for a place like this.”
“What would you use it for?”
“Food, supplies, slaves.”
“We do not need those things.”
“What? You don’t eat? You don’t need people to work for you?” He asked in disbelief.
“We already have slaves like you.”
He didn’t like being seen as a slave. In his mind he was the General of Hull’s Army and not some lackey.
Not being human, the super hunters could be wildly manic or completely unemotional, and he found them unpredictable. They certainly had their pleasures, but none that he could relate to. They weren’t cruel exactly, that would imply they understood right from wrong. In his experience they were cruel by accident, taking whatever they wanted without any awareness of the cost. Much like Ruler the super hunters lived to amuse themselves, and they were entertained by watching anything suffer. He supposed they were like a kid killing ants with a magnifying glass. To them, watching the ants scurry for safety while slowly burning to death was like a night out at the movies with a box of popcorn. Where Ruler wanted control, the super hunters only wanted to be amused. Like their hunter brothers the super hunters enjoyed feasting on living flesh, and he supposed they probably didn’t have much use for this idyllic Ranch.
With a disgusted expression on his face, he resumed his observation of the Ranch and saw a heavily pregnant woman walking towards the conservatory.
Spud said blandly, “A pregnant one. They’re hard to find.”
Lowering his binoculars again, he asked in disgust, “Why would you want a pregnant woman?”
Spud licked his perfect lips and he caught sight of the sharpened teeth. That was another one of their disgusting habits. Once they possessed a human the super hunters always sharpen their teeth to points. At first he hadn’t understood why, but later he learned it made it easier to tear human flesh. He’d only had to witness the sight of them eating a woman alive once, and he’d learned to walk away when they started on a victim.
Sounding almost innocent, Spud asked, “Why does anyone eat the young?”
Deciding not to answer the question, he resumed his observation of the Ranch. Prior to leaving the camp he’d set up the convoy and it was on route to the Ranch. It would take the convoy three days to make their way to the location and he wished he’d sent less people and vehicles. With Gray’s warning ringing in his ears, he’d organized three super hunters, seventy men, and seven vehicles to make their way here. It was ridiculous, the Ranch had no more than a few hundred people, virtually no defenses and he was rolling in an armed convoy. He and Spud could practically take the Ranch alone, and he didn’t need anywhere near the firepower he had coming.
Cursing, he hoped the engagement would be brief, and providing they killed everyone there, Gears wouldn’t gain any insight into his capabilities. He wasn’t building Hull’s Army to take on a bunch of hippies, and he didn’t want Gears to gain any knowledge that might diminish his chances of taking the bases.
Putting his binoculars down, and looking at Spud, he asked, “Do you know what Ruler doesn’t like about this Ranch?”
Sounding bored, Spud replied, “It doesn’t belong in hell.”
It was a typically meaningless answer and he asked irritably, “What does that mean?”
“It’s a place of hope. It doesn’t belong in our home.”
“Hope? For whom?”
“For life. For humans. It’s a place of hope for humans. It must be destroyed and everyone in it must die.”
“I think you guys focus on the wrong problems. Gears has all the cards right now. He’s got more people, he’d better organized, and he’s growing more powerful by the day, but you’ve got me stuck out here wasting time and resources on a hippy commune. You’re a bunch of morons.”
“It is you that does not understand. You feed us with your pain. Even now you feed us with your anger. You think power is in the things and not in the feelings. Humans waste their power and we use it wisely.”
He was about to question Spud further when he heard a helicopter in the distance. Flattening himself against the slight incline and burying his body into the grass, he indicated to Spud he should do the same. Spud obliged and they both watched while the helicopter landed in the field in front of them. A short man wearing spectacles scrambled awkwardly out of the co-pilot door, while the pilot casually dropped out from his side of the cockpit. Their landing didn’t go unnoticed, and as they walked towards the house, a man with a Marine style haircut and wearing ACUs walked over to them. He’d watched that man earlier, and judging by his manner, he guessed he was the leader of the other people wearing ACUs.
The heavily pregnant woman walked over from the greenhouse, and the four of them were clearly having an intense discussion. An older woman wearing an apron came out of the house and joined their conversation. They made an odd group, the man in ACUs, a pregnant woman and an older woman, all gathered around the funny little man with spectacles and the pilot. He wondered what could bring this odd collection of men and women together. The discussion appeared to become more animated, and through his high-powered binoculars, he focused on the pregnant woman’s face. She was crying and gesturing
angrily at the man dressed in the ACUs. After a few minutes the older woman put her arms around the pregnant woman’s shoulders, and led her away saying something over her shoulder as she left.
The man in the ACUs spoke briefly to the two men from the helicopter, and then he stalked over to another man and woman, also in ACUs, and said something to them. They both nodded and he walked with them towards one of the trailer houses. Briefly disappearing into a house, the man returned holding a pack, and with his two companions, headed towards the helicopter. The pilot and his co-pilot, along with the man in ACUs climbed into the helicopter, and they were clearly preparing to leave. Before they could take off, the pregnant woman and the older woman came out of the house and walked towards the helicopter. The man in the ACUs climbed out, making his way towards the pregnant woman, they stood talking and then they hugged. It was a long hug. The kind of hug between two people who knew one another well, and even from his distance, he could tell there was a genuine affection between them.
The older woman waited nearby while the man and pregnant woman shared a moment. Eventually the man in the ACUs broke away and he and the older woman went to the helicopter. He helped the older woman onto the platform and then climbed on board himself. As the helicopter took off, they again flattened themselves to the ground to conceal their presence. By the time he looked up, the pregnant woman was gone and the Ranch was peaceful once more.
“We should head out and wait for the convoy. They’ll be here in a day or so, but I want to meet them on route.”
Spud flashed his fangs as he licked his lips. “I want the one with child.
Ignoring Spud, he rolled onto his back, skidded down the small incline, and moving low, he and Spud quickly went behind a cluster of rocks where they couldn’t be seen from the Ranch. They’d parked their truck two miles away and made their way to the Ranch on foot. Putting his binoculars back in his pack, he started walking towards the truck. Spud ambled with him and they walked in silence. His plan was to recon the Ranch and then meet up with the convoy about fifty miles away. The convoy wouldn’t be in position for a few days and he set a comfortable pace. As they drew closer to their truck, half a dozen hunters joined them and trudged by their side.
Even in the open air, the stench of the hunters invaded his senses, and he asked, “Why are they here?”
“To hunt.”
“Hunt?”
“Yes, we will hunt for food.”
“Well, stay the fuck away from that Ranch. I don’t want them forewarned.”
“You must come with me or you will not be safe from the hunters.”
He knew when they hunted, they would capture a victim and eat them alive. Not wanting to witness that again, he said, “I’m not going.”
“Then you’ll die.”
“You’re supposed to follow my orders,” he replied angrily.
Spud laughed cynically. “Your relevance to Ruler is brief. You are not one of our kind.”
“Our kind? What does that mean?”
Spud blinked slowly and in a desperate and panicked voice, he said, “Help me. Please help me.” As his face crumpled, Spud leapt for the gun he was holding and he pulled it away sharply.
“What the hell!”
“Shoot me. Please. Kill me,” Spud begged. Just as quickly as his face had crumpled it became calm again and he said, “That is your kind. Like this one that lives with me. He does not enjoy it.”
He knew they possessed the living, but until they allowed their victims to speak, it was easy to forget there was anyone else living inside them. It both horrified and fascinated him and he asked, “Can Ruler make me the same as you?”
They’d reached their truck and Spud leaned back against it looking relaxed. Placing one leg over the other so one ankle rested lightly, he gave him a wide grin. His handsome and relaxed demeanor, momentarily hid his deeply corrupted mind.
Giving him a charming smile, Spud asked, “Have you ever wondered about the difference between a damned soul and a demon?”
“Explain it to me.”
“You don’t understand the universe you live in. You think you know how it functions, but man can only grasp what he sees. The universe was built to be in perpetual motion for all eternity. To create perpetual motion you need an endless source of energy, so the universe was designed to have an endless cycle of life and death, but it needed more. It needed the energy of perpetual conflict. An argument that can never be resolved. Man is that argument. The universe needs his energy to maintain its existence. Without it, the universe would eventually cease to move.”
Part of him wanted to be annoyed by the lack of sense Spud was making, but a more instinctive part of him knew he was telling the truth.
“How is man the argument that fuels the universe?”
“The universe has two opposing sides and man decides which side wins.”
“You mean good versus evil?”
“Call each side whatever you want. The point is, they’re opposing sides, but man’s behavior decides which side has the most power.”
“And which side has the most power now?”
Spud smiled again, flashing his sharpened teeth and turning his face from handsome to gruesome. “That’s what’s being decided now.”
“What happens when a side wins?”
“The universe changes forever.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Another future is foretold (Lydia)
Stirring in her sleep, she rolled onto her side and felt her round belly pressing against the hard bed. Now I have to pee, she thought, irritated at having to get up. Struggling to sit, she flicked the covers from her body and stared down at her legs. They felt and looked puffy and heavy. Groaning, she clumsily swung one leg over the edge and followed it with the other. Moving was exhausting. She found once she got going she could walk, but getting started was a challenge. She pushed herself off the bed and waddled gracelessly out of the door and into the bathroom opposite her room. Luckily, she shared a room with Mom and she’d banned everyone from using the bathroom nearest their room. Mom was a clean freak and the bathroom was always spotless and smelt fresh. Not wearing any underwear beneath her loose cotton nightdress, she eased herself down onto the toilet and relieved her aching bladder.
When she’d finished, she flushed the toilet and walked to the sink. Pop had done an amazing job rebuilding the Ranch, and with the use of various pumps, there was a water supply to the house providing them with water to wash and working toilets. They couldn’t drink the water from the tap, apparently the filtering system wasn’t good enough, but running water was still a touch of civilization she enjoyed. Wiping her damp hands dry, she stared at herself in the mirror. Her long dark hair, always thick and glossy, was now even more striking. As a doctor she knew pregnancy often caused a woman’s hair to thicken, but she would lose more hair than she gained once the baby was born.
Lifting her gown she inspected her round belly in the full-length mirror. Her breasts were almost twice the size they usually were and looked rounded and heavy. Her stomach was distended and stretched tight over the round center. Running her hands over the taut skin, she noticed her belly button had popped and was barely visible. I’m a turkey, she thought, my belly button has popped and I’m close to cooked. Even with such a dim view of her own condition, she smiled lovingly as she ran her hand over her stomach, and imagined the curled fetus inside her. Hello baby, she thought, and as she said it a golden star appear in her mind. Frowning, she blinked as if the star was in front of her eyes, but the image remained fixed firmly in her mind. What is that, she wondered, what am I seeing? How am I seeing it? Feeling alarmed, she hastily dropped her gown so it draped over her belly and headed towards the kitchen.
She and Mom shared a small room on the ground floor next to the lounge and kitchen. Mom decided stairs weren’t good for her and happily relocated to share the room. Finding Georgia in the kitchen, she sat heavily at the kitchen table.
“Good morning,” Georgia said cheerfully. “Did
you sleep well?”
“Yes I did. I woke up a few times and then the baby decided I needed to pee.”
“You’re lucky there’ll be so many extra hands to take care of the baby once it’s born. You’ll get more sleep than most new mothers.”
Everyone at the Ranch was excited about the impending birth. She hadn’t been the only pregnant woman there, but one by one they’d all given birth. As their doctor she’d successfully delivered every single baby, and to date, that was three births and counting. Her greatest fear was she couldn’t be her own doctor and deliver her own baby. She was determined to go to the CDC where they could give her and her baby the medical care they needed. Once the baby was born she fully intended to return to the Ranch, where she knew her baby had an abundance of pseudo uncles and aunts eager to take care of it.
Yesterday Hatch and Gerry had arrived and told them they thought Pax was missing. When TL left for the UK she’d felt quite abandoned, but Ted’s presence at the Ranch cheered her considerably. He hadn’t wanted to leave to look for Pax, but she’d insisted. They’d argued and in the end he’d agreed to go. For as much as Pax annoyed her with his childish behavior, she hoped for his sake that he was safe and well.
On hearing Pax was missing, Mom wanted to leave and be with Pop. Mom said if there was bad news about Pax she wanted to be by Pop’s side. Sharing a room had brought the two women closer and Mom had adopted her like a daughter-in-law, as if she and TL were married. She appreciated Mom’s generosity of spirit and her seemingly endless kindness. TL was a lucky man to have been raised by such a warm and loving woman, but she knew he was well aware of that. She missed Mom and reminded herself she would be back as soon as they found Pax. For some reason she felt sure Pax was alright.
The bright star was still in her mind, and she rubbed her forehead trying to dispel the image. Instantly concerned, Georgia asked, “Are you alright?”
Shaking her head, she said vaguely, “I think so.”
