“Aron, those flying machines are going to drop a poison on Black Water. We can stop them, but we’ve got to get back to the Center.”
“I told you!” Mark added, pointing to the tank on his back. Aron frowned. “But the Advent-“
“The Advent is what they’ve been waiting for,” Bobby interrupted. “They want you all in one place.”
“Please, Aron,” Gunny begged. “You’ve got to let us go back.”
The gars looked nervous. They shuffled back and forth, not sure of what to do. Hearing that Black Water was about to be poisoned wasn’t exactly a comforting piece of news. They looked to Aron, waiting for his response. Aron looked to the sky, watching the gigs disappear in the distance.
“They’ll be back,” Gunny said. “And they’ll rain death on Black Water. The Advent will forever be known as the day that gars became extinct.”
Aron shot a look at Gunny. “I have trusted you from the moment I met you, Gunny,” he said. “Do not make me regret it.”
“You won’t,” Gunny said with absolute confidence.
“Then go,” Aron said. “Escort them back, hurry!” he ordered the gars.
The gars went from pursuers to protectors. They sprinted back along the path, running interference for the band of Travelers and acolytes who now had their last chance to save Eelong.
They ran quickly through the village, back toward the Center. Each stole nervous glances to the sky, expecting to see the gigs flying on their final, deadly pass. When they were nearly at the Center, they heard a huge cheer go up in the distance.
“It has begun,” Aron announced with pride. “The first gars have arrived.”
It was a moment of triumph. The gars had come home.
Generations of horror and oppression were at an end. No one yet knew how final that end was going to be.
Outside the Center, Courtney paced anxiously while Fayne relaxed against the building.
“You’re making me nervous,” Fayne said.
“That’s the least of your problems,” Courtney said.
Before Fayne could ask what she meant, the others ran up. Gunny quickly took the tank from Mark and handed it to Fayne. “Hook it upnow!”he ordered.
Fayne looked to Aron. Aron nodded his approval. Fayne shrugged and headed inside. Courtney followed her, just to be sure nothing went wrong.
“Look!” Mark said, pointing toward the side of town that held the entrance to Black Water. In the distance they saw a steady stream of gars emerging from the tunnel. They were getting their first look at Black Water. Home. Greeting them were the gars of Black Water, cheering them like conquering heroes. It was a triumphant sight. Bobby stole a quick look at Aron to see his eyes were tearing up.
“Hobey!” Spader shouted. Everyone looked to him. Spader pointed to the sky. “Here they come!”
They all turned their attention to the mountains above the tunnel entryway to Black Water. Like an ominous dark cloud, the formation of gigs appeared. They were much lower this time, barely clearing the craggy peaks.
“We’re too late,” Boon cried.
“No we’re not,” Kasha declared. “They’re still too high. And they’re flying with the wind. They’ll pass over once more then turn and head back. That’ll be the killer run.”
“Then let’s be ready for ‘em,” Gunny declared, and led them all inside.
Inside the greenhouse Fayne was quickly and expertly hooking up the third and final tank of antidote. The others stood watching. The tension was enormous, but nobody said anything for fear of distracting Fayne. The woman finally looked up at them and frowned. “You’re all making me nervous, you know,” she said shakily. “I don’t usually work with an audience.”
“You’re doing fine,” Gunny said. “Do we know if this tank is full?”
Fayne threw a lever on the control panel and one of the gauges shot all the way from left to right.
“To the top,” Fayne answered. “I can’t believe it’s so light, but it’s full.”
Everyone let out a relieved breath.
Courtney put her arm around Mark and gave him a quick hug. “You did it, man,” she said.
Fayne reached for the lever that would release the antidote into the system and said, “Should I?…”
“No!” everyone shouted at once.
Fayne jumped back in surprise. “All right, all right!”
“We have to wait until the right moment,” Gunny explained.
“And when is that?” Fayne asked.
“Very soon,” Kasha said, pointing up. “They’re coming back.”
Through the crystal ceiling they could see all the way to the mountains on the far side of Black Water. The formation of gigs had returned once again. They were so far away that they looked like flying ants. But there was no mistake. This time, when they cleared the mountain top, the angels of death dipped down into the valley. At the same time, they spread out quickly, opening up huge gaps between each gig to cover as much ground as possible.
“This is it,” Kasha announced. “This is the run.”
“Do it!” Courtney shouted.
Fayne reached for the lever and was ready to throw it when…
“Stop!” Bobby shouted.
Everyone whipped a disbelieving look at him.
“Shorty, it’s now or never,” Gunny warned.
Bobby walked to the irrigation control and stood by the lever.
“What are you doing, Bobby?” Courtney asked nervously.
Bobby looked at the group and said, “I don’t believe this was the way it was meant to be. But it’s the way it is. This may be the totally wrong thing to do, but since it’s going to happen, I’ll be the one to do it.” He reached up for the lever and wrapped his fingers around it. He looked back to the group and said, “I don’t think the rules have changed. But we have.”
Bobby pulled the lever.
EELONG
(CONTINUED)
The gigs flewtheir attack run with perfect precision. The moment they crested the mountain into Black Water, they spread their formation out wide to cover as much ground as possible. At the same time they swooped down quickly and turned their side rotors parallel to reduce their speed. The klee pilots knew exactly what they were doing. They had made this kind of run many times to drop fertilizer over the vast farms of Eelong. This time they weren’t dropping fertilizer.
At the entrance to Black Water jubilant gars flooded into the secret valley. The line of gars stretched back through the tunnel, out from under the waterfall and all the way through the crater to the fissure through the mountain. The line continued past the spot where the tang’s avalanche ambush had been cleared, out the other side and halfway down the steep switchback trail. Thousands more made their way through the rocky valley beyond to join the long line that would bring them home.
Inside Black Water the atmosphere was carnival-like. There was music playing and long tables loaded with fruit and bread to feed the hungry arrivals. As the gars entered with their link cubes glowing, they were greeted with warm hugs and tears. It was like a long-awaited reunion of a huge family. They were weary from the long journey, but reenergized by the thought of beginning a new and better life. Some of the incoming gars were tentative-after all they had lived their entire lives being treated like animals. But their fears were soon erased when they experienced the wonderful reception and learned that the promise of Black Water was a reality.
The klee pilots looked left and right to be sure they were spaced correctly. The pilot flying at the point of the arrow was in charge of coordinating the assault. He raised his furry hand over his head. The pilots on either side of him saw this and did the same. The pilots just outside of them followed, as did the next pilots out, and finally the pilots flying on the far edge of the formation. They were ready.
The lead pilot dropped his hand to give the signal, and the attack began.
Each of the pilots flipped the valve in his gig to release the Cloral poison. The deadly liquid shot f
rom the tanks in the form of a heavy, green gas. It came first from the lead gig, followed quickly by the others. The gas from each gig trailed behind to join with the gas from the other gigs, until it formed a dense, green cloud that grew larger as they flew on. The deadly cloud hovered, barely moving, for it wasn’t much heavier than air. The poison gas from all nine gigs drifted together, growing thicker by the second. When the cloud grew so thick that it blocked nearly all the light from the sunbelt, it began to slowly settle toward the ground.
The Black Water gars began to lead the first arrivals down into the village. They needed to keep the crowd moving to make room for the multitude of gars who were still to come. As they walked along the path, they spotted a curious sight on the far horizon. It looked to them like a small flock of birds. The surprising thing was that these birds seemed to be dragging a green cloud behind them. The Black Water gars watched in wonder, glancing to one another to see if anyone else might know what this strange event was all about.
The newly arrived gars laughed and pointed. Since everything for them was a new and exciting experience, this was simply another marvel of Black Water.
The klee pilot on point looked back to see the vast, green cloud that he and his team were laying down. He didn’t see a single break in the dense gas. He quickly estimated that it was spread wide enough to cover all of Black Water. They couldn’t have done a better job. He smiled in victory.
The Black Water gars experienced yet another surprise. A loudhissingsound could be heard that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. It was a familiar sound, but not one they expected. Normally it was only heard at night. Never in the middle of the day, especially on such an important day as this. But as strange as it may have been, the sound was real.
The central irrigation system was coming to life.
The sprinklers were everywhere. On light poles along the streets, on the farms that surrounded the village, even on the trees in the forests. The water was released in the form of a mist that spewed so much moisture into the air, the gars were soon soaked to the skin.
The new gars treated this as yet another marvelous treat. They cried for joy as the water washed away so many horrible memories. They danced, they splashed in the puddles, some even fell to their knees and scooped up handfuls of water to quench their thirst.
At the Center, Bobby and the others ran outside to learn that the sprinklers were working. They were instantly soaked by the heavy mist. It was like a rainstorm that began twenty feet above their heads.
“If this doesn’t work, isn’t it safer to stay inside?” Mark asked.
“If this doesn’t work, being inside will only delay things,” Gunny answered. “I’d rather get it over quick.”
“This is a lot of water,” Bobby said to Spader. “That antidote is going to be spread pretty thin.”
“No worries, Pendragon,” Spader answered with confidence. “Manoo told me it wouldn’t take much to stop the poison.”
“And you trust him?” Bobby asked.
“Well,” Spader said with a sly smile. “Not much I can do about it now.”
“We’ll find out soon,” Boon announced. “Look!”
He pointed to the sky as the nine gigs sailed directly overhead, spewing their poison, turning the sky as green as if they were dragging a carpet of artificial turf over their heads. Everyone stared up at the dark ceiling of poison that was slowly falling toward them.
“Is this g-gonna hurt?” Mark said, barely above a whisper.
“If it gets us,” Bobby answered, “it’ll be fast.”
“Gunny,” Aron said, visibly frightened. “I don’t understand what is happening.”
“I’ll explain it all in a couple of minutes,” Gunny answered. “If we’re still around.”
As the formation of gigs passed over the giant crowd, the happy gars cheered and waved at them, as if to thank them for the spectacular air show welcome.
“Look,” Kasha announced. “Their tanks are nearly empty.”
A quick look up at the formation of gigs showed that the stream of gas coming from the lead gig was thinning out. So too was the gas coming from the others. The noxious cloud was as big as it was going to get, which was plenty big enough. The gigs had reached the far side of Black Water. As soon as the gas from the outermost gigs was spent, they rose together, flying up and over the mountain, leaving Black Water behind. Their evil mission was complete.
“That’s good news,” Kasha said. “They won’t be able to target the gars outside.”
“It would be better news if the antidote worked in here,” Courtney said.
All eyes went back up to the green cloud that was dropping ever closer. Boon stood near Kasha. The two exchanged nervous looks. Courtney walked to Bobby and took his hand. Bobby gave her a weak smile and squeezed. Mark stood on Bobby’s other side.
“We tried,” he said.
“I know,” Bobby agreed.
The group continued to stare up at the sky. It was an eerie feeling, since the joyous sounds of the celebrating gars acted as a backdrop. The happy music didn’t fit with the reality that every living being in Black Water was seconds away from death.
The green cloud fell gently toward the ground. The Travelers and the acolytes waited. And waited.
“Breathe deep,” Gunny said somberly. “The faster the better.”
Gunny’s suggestion had the opposite effect. Everybody held their breaths. The water from the misters dripped into their upturned eyes, but nobody looked away. If these were their final moments of life, they wanted to make them last.
Mark said softly, “Is… is it getting brighter?” Nobody reacted.
Above them the green blanket seemed to be a bit less dense.
“It is!” Courtney shouted.
“It’s breaking up!” Boon shouted.
Seconds later the unmistakable shape of the sunbelt could once again be seen. And felt. Light was coming through.
“Hobey!” Spader declared. “The poison’s getting eaten up when it hits the mist!”
In a matter of seconds, the sky went from dark green, to lighter green, to vapor white, and finally… to blue.
“Hoooweeee!” Gunny shouted, and spun around in a little dance. It was the first time Bobby had seen him happy since they left the Earth territories. “We’re alive! Black Water is alive!”
Everyone had different reactions. Gunny danced in the rain like a happy scarecrow. Aron watched him with a frown of confusion. Fayne thought they were all crazy and left to go back to her post.
Spader ran to Courtney and gave her a big hug, spinning her off her feet. “We did it,” he shouted with joy. “We beat him!”
Mark finally let his guard down. Now that the pressure was off, he couldn’t help himself. He cried.
Boon and Kasha’s reactions weren’t as huge. The acolyte touched his Traveler on the shoulder and said, “Seegen was right. You were the one.”
Kasha gave him a sad smile.
Rather than joining in, Bobby chose to walk away from the group and watch the happy gars who continued streaming into Black Water. Their celebration continued at full throttle, getting bigger as more gars arrived.
Gunny approached Bobby and watched the festivities for a few moments, then said, “How does it feel to witness the birth of a new civilization?”
“It’s awesome,” Bobby answered. “I’m happy for them. I’m pretty happy for us, too. It’s good not being dead.”
The two chuckled.
“We did the right thing, Bobby. Especially after what happened on Veelox. Eelong is safe. Saint Dane won’t have his next territory.”
Bobby let that sink in a moment, then said, “You’re right. We didn’t have a choice. But this war isn’t over. I’m just worried about what we might have to do to beat him next time.”
Gunny nodded thoughtfully. “I better go inside and figure out how to explain this all to Aron.”
Gunny left Bobby alone with his thoughts. They had beaten Saint Dane. Ag
ain. Eelong had reached its turning point and all signs now indicated a bright future for the territory. There was still work to be done. The rift between the gars and the klees wouldn’t be mended easily, but Bobby felt sure that without Saint Dane around to mess things up, it would be possible. Yet Bobby was still troubled. Saint Dane had dared Bobby to stop him. He went so far as to tell Bobby exactly what his plan was for Eelong. That’s how confident he was that his evil plan would succeed.
But it didn’t. Bobby beat him. It took the help of Mark and Courtney, acolytes from a different territory, but they saved Eelong from destruction. Bobby asked himself if that was all there was to it. He wanted to believe it was true. Certainly there was plenty of proof in front of him. The oppressed race of gars was not only safe, they had the chance to save all of Eelong from starving. It seemed so right.
Yet Bobby didn’t feel right.
He watched the joyous gars, trying to draw proof from the scene that all was well. They were dancing in the jammed streets in the most amazing street party Bobby had ever seen. Everyone had a smile on his face and a happy tear in his eye. All but one person.
It was a little, blond girl who looked to be no more than five years old. She stood alone, on top of one of the huts. She stood out from the others in that she wasn’t dancing or singing or hugging any of the gars. She looked strangely familiar, but Bobby didn’t know why. He took a few steps closer to get a better look, when the little girl turned and stared at him.
Bobby stood stone still. He remembered her. She was the little girl who welcomed him when he returned to Black Water. She had stepped out from the crowd of gars arid handed him a white flower. Bobby remembered the flower, and he remembered her eyes. They were blue. Piercing blue. And as she looked at him now, her blue eyes seemed sharper than he remembered. More intense. It was like she was looking right through him.
A cold chill crept up Bobby’s spine. His mind went to a place he didn’t want it to go. But he had no choice, because a moment later the little girl started to laugh. It wasn’t a happy laugh. It had a touch of lunacy that cut through Bobby’s soul.
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