Civilization

by Stephen Drake

  The followers of Raymond Tutt had been those who had followed Emily Brooks and Keith Rogers to the huge cave a couple of miles from the river. They were also the majority of the metal workers. They had brought most of the smelting and metal working tools with them when they left. Tutt, remembering the nightmares from violating Murdock’s edict, had convinced the rest that Declan had caused the nightmares that still plagued him, from time to time. He had warned everyone that associating with Declan could cause them to live through the hell of horrific nightmares every night.

  Wagner didn’t buy into Tutt’s nightmare theory. He had steered clear whenever Tutt went into one of his many rants. Wagner figured that the nightmares were the by-product of a guilty conscience and were not attributable to someone else. He couldn’t even imagine someone being able to — through sheer concentration or force of will — cause someone else to have a nightmare. To him, the notion was laughable.

  The tunnels that Tutt’s crew found were deep, and in the frigid cold of winter, very warm. They had found plenty of iron ore, coal, copper, silver, nickel, and gold. In fact, the bow he carried out on hunting trips had wooden limbs attached to a metal riser and was one of the first things they manufactured. They were also trying to perfect large copper kettles and a pan that resembled a wok. I think someone is going to try to build a still, with the copper kettles, in the next year, he thought. I know I could use a stiff drink.

  Some of the deep tunnels emptied into great pools of melted snow and was warmed by the heat generated far below the surface. These pools had a large fish species that tasted like cod or tilapia. There were hot pools in some of the lowest chambers and everyone made use of them as often as possible. I just wish there were more free females, he thought whenever he thought of the pools and bathing. There’s nothing better than a wet, naked female for scenery. This thought caused him to chuckle to himself.

  Wagner’s current task was hunting for something other than fish, as the residents were tired of it. It was frigid and Wagner had to be mindful of the cold before he was frost-bitten. We have no medicos, if something happens, he thought, so, easy does it. He was currently crouched behind some of the bare bushes close to the path leading to the mine entrance looking out across the open plain. He noticed that the clouds were coming in and would probably snow more before day’s end. We really need a deer, he wished. There aren’t that many of us and we can’t have that much of winter left. As he watched, an older buck was meandering toward his position.

  He had seen deer wander toward this particular spot before, but before they got into his range, something would startle them and they would run off. He had selected his current position because it was the only hidden position anywhere close to the mine entrance and he wasn’t dressed for prolonged exposure. As the deer came closer, Wagner noticed the brief gusts of wind were hitting his face, making his ears and cheeks burn from the cold. Periodically, the buck would look around. On one of the buck’s scans for threats, Wagner pulled out and nocked an arrow. As he held the bow and arrow, his fingers seemed to be going numb from contact with the metal. Just keep coming. A little further.

  As the buck took a few more steps toward him, he suddenly stopped to look around. Seeing nothing, he pawed the ground looking for something to eat. While the buck’s head was down, Wagner pulled the bow back and let the arrow fly. Please hit. Please hit. Please — the arrow missed, hitting the ground between the buck’s front and back legs, and Wagner’s confidence was crushed.

  24

  Murdock, Mei Lee, Declan, Emily, Doctor Harris, and Annie were all sitting in the longhouse. They had all just returned from the spring rite that Murdock and Mei Lee had attended since their arrival. The first-timers were still excited at observing the Oomah and their acceptance, by the Oomah, by being associated with Murdock as being part of his family.

  “I have a question,” Emily piped up. “What about Heather? How long will we leave her on the outside?” She was frowning as she was rubbing her swollen belly.

  “Are you okay, Em?” Declan quietly asked seeing his wife’s discomfort.

  “I’ll be fine,” Emily said to her husband and then to the others: “Heather helped clean up the mess in Murdock’s cabin. She helped with the kids while Mei was recovering, and she has gone out of her way to help us all anyway she can. I think we need to vote her in.”

  Everyone looked to Murdock and waited for his response.

  “It isn’t quite that easy,” Murdock said looking at everyone present. “Yes, she’s earned a place with us, but is that what she wants? She really hasn’t had a choice, so far. Don’t you think we need to find out if that’s something she’d be interested in?”

  “I’m voting for her to be included,” Declan said raising his hand.

  “So, who’s going to talk to her to find out if she wants to be one of us?” Murdock asked.

  #

  Elizabeth Reyes was standing in one of the guard towers watching the rest of her charges bury the dead from the long winter. Her clothes hung on her. She had lost considerably more weight than she had intended. Everyone is close to starving, she thought as she watched the others. Thank god we caught quite a number of fish since the thaw. It’ll take a little time to get us built back up. “What was our final count?” Reyes asked without turning around.

  “Thirteen,” Bass Heartly responded behind her. “It could’ve been worse.”

  “It could’ve been better, too. If it wasn’t for Murdock, the insufferable, maybe more would’ve survived. He should’ve helped!”

  “But he did ask before winter and we told him where to stick it.”

  “He should have come to check on us more often! Once, in all the months of winter, is not enough!”

  “But he did bring us half a deer and it did see us through. At least we didn’t have to resort to the other alternative.”

  “Maybe so, but now we have to deal with him lording it over us, that he saved us. Do you think he’ll let us forget that we survived because he helped? I don’t think so. This year, I want to prevent anything like that ever happening. I want multi-family structures built, properly chinked this time. We need smokehouses and before next winter we need to have plenty of food stored. I don’t want us to be caught short again.”

  “We have all that and planting some crops we brought and trying to find other foods we need,” Heartly added absentmindedly. “That is a lot to do in only the few months we have before winter comes again.”

  “Let’s get to it, then. Get everyone working on something, right after they’re finished with the burials.”

  #

  Keith Rogers, the newly elected leader of the group that lived in the big cave close to the river, was standing just inside the cave entrance taking in the fresh air that was gently wafting up from the forest floor. He could smell damp dirt and some pollen from the grasses and trees. There were no wildflowers, yet, but the promise was there.

  “How many winter casualties did we have?” he asked as Clifford Reed came up behind him.

  “We had no casualties from exposure, but we did have one from the fight that broke out,” Reed reported.

  “Cabin fever can really get to some people. How are you feeling, Cliff?” Rogers asked as he looked down and toward his back.

  “I’m glad it’s spring and let’s leave it at that.”

  “How’s Hornsby doing?”

  “He has some scars from his winter trek, but overall he seems to be okay.”

  “We need to have a meeting with him and a few of the other men. We made it through the winter, but something else needs to be done, before long, so we can be better prepared for the next one. Do we have any farmers?”

  “Not many. Most of them went with those that are waiting for Carter to return.”

  “Get Clem Adams to locate volunteers to help the farmers get what they need done. Has there been anything new from our weapons development group?”

  “Nothing, yet. None of them are engineers, by any stretch of
the imagination. Maybe we need to talk to Tutt’s people and work something out for weapons and tools?”

  Rogers turned with a dour look: “Do you really think that superstitious baboon would help us?”

  “What can it hurt to talk to him?” Reed asked with a shrug. “We aren’t out anything by trying and who knows, he might help us if we had something they wanted or needed.”

  “I already know we do. Not many of the women wanted to go with them, so they’ll want women.” Rogers exhaled loudly.

  “When was the last time you were outside the cave?” Reed asked.

  “I haven’t been outside since the altercation with Emily, Declan, and Murdock,” Rogers responded quietly. “Why do you ask?”

  “I’m thinking that you could use the fresh air. You could take three or four guards and go visit Tutt. Maybe you two could work something out for weapons and who knows what else.”

  #

  Alvin Jones sat in the corner of one of the community huts, feeding a small fire to warm his hands. He had followed the largest group here after helping Palmer take care of Freeman and after threatening Phylicia. It was wrong to threaten the women that way, he thought. And the way Palmer took out Freeman. His head shook side-to-side subconsciously. Murder is murder, no matter how you try to dress it up like something else.

  He was accepted into the group without questions. He had always been a loner and, for whatever reason, most people failed to see him or acknowledge him. He walked in, did his work with the farmers harvesting the wild barley-like grain, and kept to himself.

  When Osterlund showed up, just before winter, it caused him to panic a little. He went to great lengths to be elsewhere most of the time until winter forced them all indoors. It was then that he went out of his way to make sure he wasn’t in the same hut as Osterlund.

  By the time Hornsby had come to the camp, it had initially caused him some concern, but it passed when it became obvious that Hornsby hadn’t remembered him. Early in the winter, he had taken to shaving off his beard, with a sharp six-incher, and keeping his head shaved, from forehead to ears in the front, and letting the rest grow long so he could braid it in the back. He had hoped to have changed his appearance enough so no one would recognize him.

  During the long winter, everyone had survived by fishing as much as they could until the freeze and laying in a lot of grain. They were all served a little fish with a large portion of grain. It did get them through the winter, but Alvin had decided that they needed venison. He was sick of fish and barley soup.

  During the first big meeting, after the ground had started to thaw, a lot of ideas were bandied about. They had decided that they needed a mill, of some kind, to grind whatever grain they collected; they needed draft animals, and they needed other food sources and a means of preserving it all. That is too much for this small group, he thought. It would be nice, but it is a bit too ambitious. Do we have a plow, or a means for making one? I don’t know how to make one, but maybe they do. From what I’m hearing, we’re going to need some support from the other groups.

  #

  Heather was waiting outside Murdock’s cabin. She had been told that she was to report there, but wasn’t told the reason. She got to her feet when she saw Mei Lee coming toward her.

  “Hello, Heather. How are you doing today?” Mei Lee greeted her with a smile.

  “Fine, Ma’am,” Heather responded. Ma’am? Where did that come from? These people weren’t formal, she thought. I’d heard Murdock refer to Declan as ‘Hey You’.

  “Mei Lee is fine. We aren’t that formal,” Mei Lee responded with a slight chuckle. “You have been a great help to all of us here. Have you given any thought as to what you’d like to do or where you’d like to go?” she asked as she sat on a log close to the burn pit. She patted the log to indicate that Heather should sit.

  “What do you mean? I was of the impression that I wasn’t allowed to go anywhere else,” Heather said as she sat.

  “Not by us. It’s our opinion that you can go anywhere you like. Our concern is that the others may remember you . . . in a bad light and try to take out their frustrations on you. Like Reyes and some of her group did. Because of the . . . altercation and because winter is a time for hunkering down, you didn’t have much of a choice. It is spring and we want you to feel free to leave, if that is what you want, or you can stay.”

  While Mei Lee spoke, Heather had been listening and swinging her legs nervously.

  “Mei Lee, to be honest, I don’t know what I’d find away from here. I’ve felt safe and wanted here, but it has been lonely.”

  “I understand. I know Kevin is planning on going to check on the others tomorrow. It may turn into a burial detail, though. You’re free to accompany him to see what you can find, if you feel up to it since your miscarriage.”

  “Who will be going with him?” Heather asked.

  “Annie will probably be going, to aid those who need it. You’ve been trained to defend yourself since coming here, but you still need to be careful.”

  “I would’ve thought Declan would accompany him.”

  “Under normal circumstances, he would, but Emily is very close to her time and he needs to be here. I would go, but I have children to look after as well.”

  “I understand and I would like to accompany Kevin and Annie,” Heather said. Mei Lee had been studying her facial expressions and noticed there was something Heather wanted to say, but, so far, hadn’t found the words.

  “Was there something else you wanted to say?” Mei Lee asked.

  “Not to offend or imply anything,” Heather started hesitantly, “but did you know there may be a lot of things here that would help with our dietary needs?”

  “Such as?” Mei Lee asked, genuinely curious.

  “I’m not certain, but there appears to be a grain, of some sort, across the river. I’d be willing to bet there are more things, like carrots, potatoes, and onions growing wild over there, too. If we cultivated them more, they would help get us through the winters better, maybe?”

  Mei Lee grinned at Heather’s noncommittal attitude. “Yes, those things would be a great help. If you return, you can explore those possibilities. I was never a gardener and neither was Kevin, obviously. He is more of a hunter than a gatherer,” Mei Lee chuckled.

  #

  Early the next morning, Murdock, Heather, and Annie left the encampment and charted a course downriver. Murdock, pulling the cart loaded with hides, tools they thought they’d need, and venison. Heather walked along side with Annie. All three had their own water-skin, twelve-inch machete, and a six-inch skinning knife.

  “How are your levitation skills?” Murdock flashed to Annie.

  “I don’t know, for certain,” Annie answered. “I can manage myself, I think, in the transition to the bottom of the terrace coming up. Why do you ask?”

  “I was asking because of Heather,” Murdock flashed. “Should we allow her to see? Or should we trust her to keep her eyes closed?”

  “I’d say the latter. If she keeps her eyes closed, it will go a long way to being able to trust her more fully.”

  “I agree. When we stop, you explain it to her,” Murdock flashed with a grin. “Annie, grab a spear and take the lead,” he said aloud.

  “We aren’t going to cross the river, so go straight when you get to the river crossing,” Murdock flashed to Annie after several hours of walking in silence.

  “Where are we going to transition?” Annie flashed back.

  “We aren’t, just yet. I want to head in the general direction of Reye’s camp, but stay up here.”

  “Any particular reason why?”

  “I’m not going to place us in harm’s way unnecessarily. I’ve been thinking of a means to talk to her without her guards.”

  “So, you’re going to levitate her up the terrace to us? Is Beron going to knock her out?”

  “That would be the plan. Besides, I’ve wanted to explore that area anyway. We do have to be aware of wolves, thoug
h.”

  “Rest here,” Murdock said aloud when he could see the edge of the terrace in the distance.

  “How long are we going to be here?” Heather asked.

  “Not long,” Murdock said. “We’ll eat later, unless either of you can’t wait.” Murdock took a big draw on the water-skin. As he replaced it, he took up his bow and quiver of arrows from the cart. “I want Heather to pull the cart and Annie to bring up the rear. We’ll be going into an area that I’ve not been in, but I know there are wolves, so everyone needs to be aware and ready.”

  Neither of the women said anything. Both nodded that they understood. As Murdock strode off, Heather took up the cart and followed him. Annie took up her spear and followed. After several hours, the mountains seemed to push them toward the terrace edge. It wasn’t long before they found their path blocked by rock, but Murdock could hear the falls. He crept up close to the edge of the terrace so he could see over it. Below him was Reye’s camp.

  #

  It was late in the day when Liz Reyes left the cave that was her office and living area. Looking up at the sky, as she stretched her back muscles, she could tell the sun would go down soon. It was then that she became very dizzy and felt herself falling backwards. She waited to impact the ground, but it didn’t happen, for some reason.

  When she felt the ground, her hand was touching moist grass. It was then that she knew she wasn’t in the canyon. She sat up, startled.

  “Have a nice nap?” Murdock asked her with a toothy grin.

  “Where the hell am I?” Reyes demanded hotly. “How did you manage to kidnap me from inside the compound?” As Reyes looked around, she saw Annie Cooper and another strange female tending a fire. There were tents, made of skins, close by and she could smell the venison roasting, causing her to salivate.

  “I invited you to our camp to have a discussion,” Murdock said pleasantly.