Lost in the Red Hills of Mars

by Jackie Hunter

  She had crossed miles of inhospitable terrain to find her dad and had expected a joyous reunion after completing her mission. She would’ve never imagined that she’d find him sick and incapable of traveling with her. She assumed he’d be strong and wise and able to solve all of the problems that lay ahead of them. Then she realized…Even if he had been well, she and Alex hadn’t brought any provisions for him whatsoever: no climbing gear, no extra food rations—nothing. How could he have made it back with us anyway? What were we thinking?

  She studied the landscape and noticed the shifted dunes. After two days inside the caves, the terrain seems different. From her position, she could see long vertical scratches from a sandstorm along the eastern side of the canyon. She thought about how she would navigate around the immense amount of sand. The gullies, the place where she fell, would have to be climbed tomorrow morning if she wanted to keep to her schedule. From afar, she could see the shiny hooks she and Alex had used during their climb, still embedded in its wall. Having this ridiculously good vision isn’t half bad.

  Other than the scratches on its eastern side, the canyon looked scooped out and perfectly concave. Celine remembered the cluster of small hills in the center of the canyon. Now she noticed a small opening in one of the hills. It looked like an animal had tunneled into it. She studied the opening but saw no movements or heat signatures. She reached in her backpack and removed the bag of worms. After examining its contents, she placed it in the hip pocket of her radiation suit. “They’re holding up nicely,” she mumbled.

  She traveled at a steady pace. She would reach the gullies before the gales. At the bottom of the gullies, she would set up camp, have her meal, and rest. She began her descent, which she found to be surprisingly easy, despite the fact that some of the slopes were so steep that she had to run downward rather than walk. As she got closer to the floor of the canyon, she could feel its warmth, and she appreciated it wholeheartedly.

  Moving across the canyon floor would be a breeze. Finally out of the Chaos Region and on my way home! She found herself racing toward the eastern ridge, jumping over rocks and moving like someone on a mission (which she was).

  She sprinted past the small hills in the center of the canyon floor and felt great. She had made it to the halfway mark across the canyon floor! As she passed the opening in the hill, she heard underground movements. She had heard these same sounds when she and Alex were together. She continued at a fast pace, hoping whatever she heard would remain underground.

  Racing toward the eastern wall, she did not bother to look back until she heard something moving very quickly on the surface, coming in her direction. Though unlikely, she hoped to turn back and see Morg or his crew. She paused. Cupping her gloved hands to block the sunlight, she turned around and squinted her eyes to get a better look through the trail of dust behind her. In the midst of a large cloud of red dust, three large doglike creatures were gaining on her. With their long thick fur and leather-covered noses, they reminded her of the large wolves on Earth she had seen in photos. She could see their long canine teeth and yellow eyes. She wasn’t far from the eastern ridge where she had planned to camp. Now, hopes of a quiet reprieve were null. She would have to climb the gullies today, without rest, and she’d have to do it fast.

  She began sprinting. By the time she reached the wall, she was exhausted and gasping for breath. She had taken her O2 pill for the day, but the chase and the fear caused her to use up much more oxygen than normal. She found herself feeling light-headed and weak. She could barely see the shiny hooks embedded in the cliff’s wall. She took out her rope; it felt much heavier than usual. After making a loop in one end, she threw the loop several times before it caught over the closest shiny hook.

  It was here where she had fallen but been saved by her harness. Now she didn’t have time to take out any safety gear. She simply wrapped the rope around her waist twice and began climbing. Her arms trembled as she strained to lift herself upward. She could hear the animals racing toward her. They were getting closer. Their long teeth and large drooling mouths could be seen through the clouds of dust that surrounded them as they neared her. Every cell in her body was heightened with fear. She was only six feet above the pack when they reached her and one began snapping at her boot. She screamed and drew her legs up toward her chest. She began fumbling with her backpack pocket. Where is it? Her elbow banged against the wall as she struggled. She was in pain, but she maintained a tight grip on the rope. Feeling woozy, she found it difficult to think. She wrapped the rope twice around her wrist and with her free hand reached into her hip pocket where she felt the wrapped worms.

  Glancing down she could see the three large beasts clawing and trying to reach her. Their large red auras extended from their woolly bodies into Celine’s orange aura. Their yellow eyes showed hunger, but Celine was determined to not be their meal. She slung the pack of worms as hard as she could at the leathery nose of the lead dog. It yapped, but it was the first to gobble a mouth full of worms.

  Straining her muscles to hold on with one hand, she grabbed the end of her rope, made another loop, and threw it to the next hook. She unhooked the first loop and climbed up just as the beasts could find no more worms on the ground to eat. They were too late, and now she was out of their reach. She couldn’t rest where she hung though, as she knew she might faint and fall into the pack. She continued to climb slowly and methodically. She was too fearful to look back until she had reached the rim of the eastern ridge and had flung herself over it. The two larger animals were lying still. A smaller one and a young pup she had initially not noticed were nudging the still animals. She had guessed correctly that eating the worms caused sleepiness. She hoped the animals would sleep for a while, or at least until she could get far away from them.

  The gale winds began to blow. She knew that the gales meant the sun would be going down shortly, and the temperature would be dropping below zero immediately after. She felt too weak to walk, and she was still light-headed. She rolled away from the ledge and slipped off her backpack. She fumbled with the zipper until she could get it opened completely. She could not risk getting a tear in her folded tent, so, despite how overwhelmingly tired she was, she pulled it out with care. After what felt like an eternity, she smoothed it on the ground, pulled its tab, and watched it pop up like a small turtle shell. On her arms and elbows, she dragged her body and backpack into her tent. With her last ounce of strength, she pressed down the magnetic flap for a complete seal. There wasn’t much room to move around, but she didn’t need it. She lay on her side in a fetal position waiting for her heart to stop racing. She listened to the sad howls of the dog and pup in the distance. Night was falling. She knew even wild dogs wouldn’t travel at night. With that in mind, she drifted to sleep.

  During the night, a sense of being watched caused her to awaken. She rolled over and looked into the yellow eyes of a hairy animal. It wasn’t the beast that had chased her. This creature seemed almost human. She screamed, and so did the animal. It sounded like an alternation of piercing screams and insane laughter. Finally, the animal seemed to calm down. It moved a few feet farther from her, then sat on its haunches and continued to watch her. What kind of animal could tolerate such cold?

  Celine could not sleep. She and the animal watched each other all night. It had an orange aura around it like hers. A few times she’d doze off and awake quickly to the yellow eyes peering through the orange glow. She kept her hands on her ray gun, set high though she knew using it would destroy her tent and cause a disaster for her. Celine’s stomach knotted up.

  Finally, the sun rose. The temperature rose to a comfortable three degrees Celsius. It was bright enough to get a good look at the animal and warm enough for Celine to break camp. However, fearing she might agitate the animal, she was in no hurry to break camp. She studied the animal, and it appeared to study her. It moved its wide lips into a grin, exposing long fangs, nearly five centimeters long. Celine immediately looked down. She didn’t want it t
o see the fear in her eyes.

  Celine noticed its reddish-brown humanlike hands were sticking out from what appeared to be thick and tightly matted fur. Its barrel chest expanded, and its gills pulsated beneath large ears. It’s some kind of engineered monkey. For some reason, maybe because the animal was alone, it didn’t frighten her as much as the pack of wild dogs did. She hoped she could shoo it away.

  She put on her helmet while watching the animal. Then she slipped her feet into her boots. The animal tilted its head right then left, curiously watching her every move. Celine took her tent down and stuffed it into her backpack.

  Suddenly, the animal stood up. It was as tall as Celine. Long arms dangled from its broad shoulders. It walked upright toward Celine.

  “Leave me alone!” Celine yelled. The monkey stopped and seemed confused. Celine reached down in the dirt and wrapped her fingers around a small volcanic rock. She hurled it at the animal. She thought she might frighten it away. The animal caught the rock and flung it back at her, barely missing her fragile helmet.

  “Dang!” Celine threw her backpack over her shoulders and ran down the hill. She heard one of the wild dogs howl. She turned back and saw the monkey creature run to the ledge and look down to where the dogs lay at the bottom of the cliff. It bared its fangs and growled.

  “My God! Great Spirit, help me get home alive.” Celine continued down the hill. She was relieved the monkey creature did not follow.

  ◆ ◆ ◆

  Celine hadn’t noticed the ape make its way down to the two dead dogs; they had remained unconscious throughout the night and had frozen to death. The ape dragged the two frozen creatures into its underground den.

  Celine moved quickly. She wanted to put as much distance between her and the animals as possible. She continued eastward.

  She looked for signs of body heat and auras radiating on the horizon but saw nothing. She hung the Navi on the clip outside of her radiation suit. Maybe it’ll charge in the sunlight. She felt her forearm. I really hope Mom or even Morg will see my body signature on the Watch Computer.

  She started her journey eastward with strong winds out of the west blowing forcefully and pushing her forward. It’s extremely windy for the second week of May. There’s even more of a chill in the air than usual. She stopped to observe a dust devil in the distance and was relieved to see that it was headed south.

  Suddenly she found herself lifted by a gust of wind and slammed a few yards forward. She landed on her buttocks. While she wasn’t actually injured, she was a little shaken. Brushing the dust from her bottom, she decided to change the setting on her graviton boots to Earth’s gravitational pull. It would make her heavier and less likely to be lifted by the wind, but it would also make walking more challenging. When she stood up and began walking forward, she found it harder to lift her feet. She decided she had to make do with the slower pace. When it came down to it, she’d rather carry a little bit of extra weight rather than encounter another gust of wind that might not be so forgiving.

  When the gale winds returned, as they always did at dusk, Celine was disappointed with the distance she had covered. Having the boots set for Earth’s gravity had slowed her down significantly. There were no signs of the Compound when she decided to set camp. There was no buzzing chatter, no rising heat waves, just Celine and the silence. She had never felt so alone.

  She set up camp next to a large cropping of rocks. The rocks seemed familiar, and this gave her some sense of comfort. Inside the small tent, she lay cramped on her back with her knees bent. She took her flute from her bag. She blew in it once and was relieved to find that it was not damaged. She wanted to play an old Cherokee melody her father had taught her, but she decided to hum it instead. She couldn’t afford to waste precious oxygen.

  She continued to hum and gazed at the blue planet until one of the dog creatures howled in the distance. She peered in the direction of the howl. She could not see anything, but she knew there were at least two of them out there, a large one and a puppy. Hours ago, when she was a few kilometers from the canyon she noticed the larger one coming in her direction. However, the animal went back for the puppy, and she assumed that, together, they went after slower prey. Maybe I am the slow prey.

  Suddenly she saw a shooting star streak across the sky. “I wish I was home in my compartment,” she said in the tradition of wishing upon a star. Then a barrage of shooting stars brightened the sky. Celine’s heart began racing. Though she was not cold, she shivered. She stared at the meteor shower in disbelief. It’s the second week of November! Nearly half a Martian year has passed!

  CHAPTER 20

  Meteors

  ◆ ◆ ◆

  How could this have happened? Celine chuckled. She had gotten so worked up over nothing. The comet must have moved a little closer to the planet. Yes, that’s it. That’s why the meteor shower came early. It was the only thing that made sense to her. The thought of not being able to account for half a year was unthinkable. After all, she’d been in the cave for four days. Once she had made sense of seeing the meteor shower, she was able to rest.

  The next morning, Celine felt refreshed. She looked out over the terrain and saw no signs of the dogs. Even though she saw no signs of the Compound, she was confident she would come across something soon. I’m sleeping in my bed tonight if it’s the last thing I do. Wild dogs, you’ll have to find something else to eat.

  The wind wasn’t boisterous, but the air was still chilly. She reset her boots to Martian gravity. I’ve got to make up for lost time. She took a few practice steps. Now that’s more like it. The airiness of her steps was soothing to say the least.

  The extra burst of physical strength courtesy of the Martian setting on her boots made Celine feel more energized than ever. She checked the Navi. It still wasn’t charged, and she thought it might have been damaged during the flood. She looked toward the rising sun and began her journey home, headed eastward with much more bounce in her steps.

  Chanting a rhythmic beat kept her moving forward at a relatively quick pace. “I can do this, I can do this, I can do this,” she chanted as she maneuvered over rocks. She chanted tirelessly for nearly two hours until finally she saw a small low cloud.

  Heat waves were rising above the Compound. They were invisible to others, but to Celine they appeared as a foggy mist. She couldn’t see the Compound yet; most of it was underground. The radiating heat waves gave her an overwhelming sense of accomplishment and comfort. “Home,” she sighed. Her journey was not over though. Although she could see the heat waves, there was still distance she needed to cover before the evening gales came. She was determined to make it home before she needed another O2 pill. She wondered if Morg would be a part of her aid team when she arrived. Regardless, she would say nothing about finding her dad until she could speak with Mr. Rittenhouse. Mom will be so happy. Now she won’t have to marry Morg. I can’t believe I did it. I found Dad. Celine paused for a moment and wondered if her dad would ever be the same. I won’t ever be the same, but that might not be so bad. Then her thoughts shifted. And I’m never taking another Brain Booster either. Why did I even need them in the first place? Mom, you have a lot of explaining to do.

  Celine then thought about the beautiful smiling alien from the cave. The time she had spent with her was so calm and peaceful. She felt like she had been in some kind of utopia or dream world. Come to think of it, she looked like Mom. Maybe it was just a dream…Or a nightmare—who knows? Recalling her supernatural experience in the caves made her think of her father and Alex. They’ll be home soon, recovering from this awful ordeal. Dad will be safe with Mom and me, and Alex’s dad will take care of him. Everything’s going to be all right.

  ◆ ◆ ◆

  The drone flew above the half-buried Compound and as far as twenty kilometers from its perimeters. It collected data that fed to the Monitored Computer. While no colonist had to endure time on the cold surface guarding the Compound from dangers, some unlucky soul had to monitor the computer
inside a small room next to Morg’s quarters. In the event that something out of the ordinary was discovered, a human, rather than a drone, was preferred to make the necessary decisions.

  The data from the drone was usually monitored by one of the protectors: Morg or one of his crewmembers. Morg had reported that wild dogs had killed two members of his crew. Also, he had been unable to find the teens, and he didn’t return to the Compound after his search for them. So since the protection crew was shorthanded, one of Mr. Rittenhouse’s private protectors, Stan, was now manning the computer. He despised sitting in front of a computer, watching and waiting like an uneducated guard; he was a trained protector. He had been through years of training in both karate and jujitsu. He cringed at the thought of his beautiful, defined muscles wasting away while he spent his time monitoring the computer. So Stan devised a plan. He would check the computer several times a day but spend the majority of his time in the exercise room doing what he loved.

  As he did several push-ups, he mumbled about his boss leaving him on Mars. “How could anyone volunteer to live on such a boring planet? Rittenhouse better get a replacement soon, or I’m quitting. I didn’t sign on for this. Now, if he wants me to work on the moon, I might consider it. The nightlife there is out of this world.”