Inner Voices: The Awakening

by Barry Alder

  “We still need to complete the inventory before the Boss gets back,” he said softly.

  Sara nodded and walked away. Raphael looked out into the cave, wondering when his commander would return, and feeling a tightness in his chest. He took a deep breath, and turned from the door.

  “Rick, Pat,” he said. “Guard the entrance of this cave. Keep out of sight as much as possible. And let me know as soon as the Boss returns!”

  Rick and Pat nodded, and headed toward to the armory to get their weapons, while Raphael returned to the command console.

  “Tim, have you found anything else?” he asked.

  “Not much,” Tim replied with a frustrated sigh, “I’ve been going through the logs, but they’re incomplete. But, I think I know why we weren’t wakened.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “There are two log entries I’ve been able to decode. The first is dated two years after the stasis started. It’s from our sleeper. He says that the Mason Faction was a lot stronger than we realized. We weren’t able to stop them at the Montana border, and they completely overwhelmed us. We were forced to unconditionally surrender. He goes on to say that he’s turned off the wake-up timer and is waiting to see what develops, and will wake us when things are more settled. It seems there were a lot of resistance groups around and the Mason Faction was extremely brutal with them when they got captured. He doubted we would have lasted long if we had come out, and anything we would have done would have brought extreme repercussions for a lot of people, including civilians.”

  “Okay,” Raphael interjected. “That explains why we weren’t woken on schedule. What else?”

  “The next entry is dated about eight years after the first. Our friend has died and his daughter has made the entry. The oppression has lifted a bit, and everyone seems to have settled into a new “norm.” Her father had given her instructions to look after us until we could be “effective” in helping them; whatever that means. It seems that they didn’t trust us to be reasonable.”

  “Interesting,” Raphael commented roughly. “So they just left us to rot!”

  “Anything else?”

  Tim replied slowly. “There’s one more entry, but so far I haven’t been able to get much from it. It’s amazing the system lasted this long. The date stamp is another four years after the last one and it looks like a very short message, but it’s badly corrupted. I’m not sure we’ll ever get all of it, but it seems, and I’m guessing at parts of this, that there was a series of major environmental catastrophes and the world governments collapsed as a result.”

  “Say what?” Raphael exclaimed.

  “It looks like there were a whole series of disasters that destroyed a lot of the world,” replied Sean.

  The nightmare just keeps getting worse, Raphael thought as he noticed that everyone had stopped to listen to Tim’s report.

  “Okay,” he said loudly, hoping to dispel the unreality of the news and seeking solace in concrete action, “keep at it, and see if you can find anything else.”

  He looked around the room, seeing desperate faces that craved more information. He knew what they wanted, and knew his frustrations were matched in each and every one of the team, but there was nothing he could do to help. In time, the answers would come and they would just have to live with the situation until then.

  “Look,” he said angrily, “as soon as we find out anything else, I’ll let you know. Now, let’s get back to work.”

  * * *

  Jason hung back as they proceeded through the forest, continually scanning his surroundings for any sign of trouble, and carefully watching Lara and Louise. Lara appeared casual and relaxed as Louise tried to communicate with her, but he saw that Louise was frustrated. Nothing’s coming easily, he thought dejectedly, realizing that they would not be able to talk with these people soon.

  The path took a slow turn to the right and, shortly thereafter, deposited them on the beach. Louise had stopped, and was staring out over the expanse of water in front of them.

  “The ocean?” Louise exclaimed disbelievingly to Jason as he stopped beside her.

  “It can’t be,” Jason replied. “There’s no way the ocean could be here!”

  “Ocean?” said Lara, startling both of them.

  “Yes. Ocean,” said Louise slowly, pointing to the water.

  “Yes, ocean,” repeated Lara softly to herself.

  Louise turned to Jason, and saw a look of concern in his eyes.

  “Be careful what you say to them,” he said quietly. “At least for the time being.”

  She nodded in reply, aware of Jason’s fear that their guides might be able to understand them long before they could understand their guides.

  Louise returned to Lara’s side, and the pair headed down the beach. Ka’tel followed, with Jason further back carefully surveying the area and his two guides.

  * * *

  The walk was uneventful. Lara and Louise spoke a number of times, but Jason couldn’t tell how much progress Louise was making. The older man turned around a few times to see if Jason was following, but otherwise continued to follow the two women. Despite the calmness of everything, Jason was still ill at ease.

  After walking about an hour, Jason saw something in the distance that looked like a village. A few minutes later Louise stopped, pointed to it, and waited for Jason to catch up with her.

  “Any progress?” he asked.

  “I think I’m beginning to get a handle on their language,” she said happily. “I think it’s a mixture of English, Spanish, and maybe Japanese, but not as I know it. I think it’s drifted. Kind of like how American English changed after we split from England. There appears to be a lot of new words as well, so it might be a while before I get up to a basic working level.”

  “Okay,” Jason replied glumly as they resumed their trek. “Keep at it. The sooner we can talk with them, the sooner we’ll get the information we need.”

  * * *

  As they got closer to the village, Jason saw that there were about fifty huts of various sizes. All the huts were constructed with wood poles and grass or leaf walls, similar to South Pacific native huts.

  He felt his tension increase as they entered the village. A crowd had come out to greet them, and even though he didn’t see anything threatening, the size of the gathering worried him.

  He saw that most of the people were curious and not showing any sign of fear, and soon realized that Lara was an important person in the village, perhaps even one of the leaders. If that’s the case, he thought, it should be easier to find out what we need to know.

  As they moved between the huts, he noted the absence of technology. Although everyone appeared well fed and happy, it seemed the people were living just one level above the Stone Age.

  Lara led them to a hut on the far side of the village, which, while similar to the other huts, stood apart and was much more decorated.

  * * *

  It was cool and dark inside. At first, Jason couldn’t see if anyone else was there, but his eyes soon adjusted to the reduced light. Two women rose to greet him, one young, one old. Despite her advanced age, the old woman moved easily, almost fluidly, toward them. She studied Jason’s face for a few moments, then turned and spoke with Lara and Ka’tel.

  “Do you understand what they’re saying?” Jason asked Louise.

  “No,” she replied hesitantly, “but they’re probably talking about us.”

  The discussion ended and the old woman went to the back of the hut, to a large storage box. He was about to move closer when she removed a single sheet of paper from it and handed it to Jason. He looked down, not knowing what to expect, and was shocked to see the words in English.

  October 10, 2046

  I will assume that this letter is now in the hands of the commander of the group that went into stasis in 2020. Undoubtedly, you are confused as to what went wrong with your mission. The short answer is that events moved in an unanticipated fashion. Basically, the world as
you knew it no longer exists. About eight years after you went into stasis, a series of major earthquakes destroyed the western part of the United States, leaving it submerged. Other earthquakes around the world had similar, devastating effects. And the effects of global warming continued with large parts of the Arctic and Antarctic icecaps melting faster than predicted. No part of the world was spared. Major areas of the continents you knew are now submerged, and we now have two new continents. All this caused a drastic rise in the sea level and almost all coastal areas were affected. Billions died in the three years of the greatest changes, and civilization collapsed. The survivors have been struggling to rebuild, but it has not been easy.

  We had thought of waking you earlier, but decided it was best for you to stay as you were. If that was wrong, then we are sorry. But we also decided not to abandon you. A group of us will continue to take care of you until the time is right for you to emerge.

  The people who have woken you have been given the task of ensuring your safety, and helping you once you emerge. I don’t know when that will be, or under what circumstances, but I fervently hope it will be because things have improved. If not, then I trust you will know what to do. Good luck.

  John Wilson.

  Jason stared at the message, trying, but unable to absorb the magnitude of what had happened to the world. It was too unreal, too incredible. His mind went to the only concrete piece of information that the letter presented. Who was this John Wilson? Could he have been their sleeper? Jason wished his superiors had confided that information to him, but they hadn’t. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He still didn’t have a complete picture of what had happened since they had been placed in stasis, but at least now he knew why these people were aware of the existence of his group.

  Turning to Lara, he held up the paper.

  “I know you don’t understand me, but this message doesn’t answer the questions I have. I need more!”

  He paused, shaking his head at the futility of his action.

  “I feel like a fool talking to you.”

  Pointing to the letter, he continued.

  “In here it says you will help us. I hope that’s true because we could really use your help right now.”

  He pointed to himself and Louise and gesturing, indicated that his group would come to the village. Much to his surprise, Lara nodded and indicated that she understood him. She went to the door and motioned for Jason and Louise to follow her.

  Ka’tel followed, and Lara stopped to speak with him.

  “They want to come to the village, Father.”

  “That is good. I feel that they need our help. Yes, go back with them and bring the others. I will make preparations here.”

  He looked toward Jason, bowed, and left. Lara motioned for Louise and Jason to follow her, and she headed back through the village, back to the stasis complex.

  Dusk was falling and villagers had brought out torches for light. Expecting to pick up some torches for the trip back, Jason was surprised when Lara didn’t stop for any. He glanced at Louise, but she just shook her head and shrugged her shoulders, equally puzzled. Like it or not, they would have to trust Lara to get them back.

  * * *

  Raphael stood just inside the cave entrance, scanning the surrounding area. Darkness would fall soon, and there was still no sign of Jason and Louise. He was starting to worry that something might have happened to them, but knew it was still too soon to take any action. Besides, he had problems enough at hand. The inventory had been completed and the team was just milling around. He needed to keep them busy so they wouldn’t start worrying as he was.

  He returned to the stasis chamber and, from just outside the door, heard the low murmur of quiet talk. Not good, he thought. As he entered the chamber, the murmurs stopped and all eyes were on him.

  “Joe, Hong, Pete. I want you to scout around outside and see if you can find us some food. The rest of you, gather up whatever still works and bring it here.”

  The team quickly moved to their assigned tasks. The three scouts gathered their weapons and left the complex.

  “Where do you want us to put it?” asked Velma, returning with an armful of rifles.

  Raphael quickly scanned the room.

  “Ordinance to the right of the command console,” he instructed, raising his voice. “Electronics on the other side of the console, explosives beside the armory door, clothing, here where I’m standing, and the rest by the main door.”

  It didn’t take long for the working gear to be brought to the main room. All the clothing, and most of the weapons, had survived, even if their storage cases hadn’t. Only about half the explosives were salvageable, but most of the electronics were intact. As Raphael stared quietly at the pile, a fearful reality was thrust on him. If what Sean had found out was true, the two things that, in the long run, really mattered the most, were not there. Without food and medicine, they probably would not survive long enough to make use of any of the gear that had survived.

  * * *

  The sun was low in the sky when the Joe, Pete, and Hong reached the entrance of the cave. The long shadows indicated that they only had about an hour of sunlight left. They stopped and scanned the surrounding area. Familiar, but unexpected, smells came to them. The fresh scent of the sea was clearly evident, along with the lush fragrance of tropical growth. Looking around they saw an abundance of ferns, palm trees, and large colorful flowers. Surprised, they looked at each other silently.

  Joe closed his eyes, listening carefully. The rustling of plants and trees and a few distant songbirds was all he initially heard. As he focused more carefully, he could faintly hear the cries of seagulls and the crash of waves on rocks. They were too faint for him to determine which direction they came from, but he guessed that they came from his right, the same direction as the faint breeze.

  Hong too, was focusing, but more on the overall atmosphere of the place. It felt warm and comforting, like some of the meditation gardens he had visited as a child. There is peace here, he thought. It is a good place.

  Joe motioned to the others, and pointed to the four sets of footprints a few yards from the cave. Pete threw a questioning look to Joe, as if asking, “Who was the fourth person, and should we follow them?” Joe shook his head, no, and indicated that they needed to continue their mission.

  About fifty yards away from the cave entrance they stopped, and Joe indicated that they should split up to cover more territory. They agreed to meet back at the cave in one hour. Pete went to the left of the path, and Hong to the right. Joe was alone as he continued forward, carefully keeping to one side to prevent detection.

  After another few yards, he stopped. Slowly turning, he tried to spot Pete and Hong, but couldn't. The combination of their training and the dense undergrowth on both sides of the path hid all traces of them, and he wondered how many more people might be out there right now, observing him, waiting for him to make a mistake. But there won’t be any mistakes, he told himself. His training would see to that, and he continued down the soft, sand path.

  * * *

  The breezes coming off the ocean were gentle and warm as Hong crested the ridge. From his vantage point he could see what he thought was an ocean, about a quarter of a mile distant. The beach at the ocean's edge stretched as far as he could see to his left, and about a mile to his right where it ended in a large rock outcropping that went far out into the water. The breeze easily carried the sound of waves crashing against the rocks. He saw the rock outcropping provided a break from the surf, and as a result, the waves were much gentler on the beach. Overhead, he saw a flock of gulls circling a spot on the beach. He took out his field glasses to see what their interest was. He had not seen any sign of people, and was surprised to see a large pile of seaweed too far up from the water’s edge to have gotten there by itself. I wonder if there’s anyone nearby right now, he thought, as he instinctively crouched down more.

  He turned around and scanned the area he had come from.
He could see the mountain range rising steeply, to what he estimated was over a thousand feet. It was a natural fortification. Only one part dipped low enough to be possibly passable, but the intervening trees blocked his view. Using his field glasses, he followed the range as far as he could, but couldn’t find any breaks. He was about to put them away when he noticed a faint trail of smoke. Following its path, he saw a small village near the ocean, about five miles down the coast. From this distance, he could not make out any details, but it didn’t look very big. He scanned the beach between the village and his position, but saw no sign of anyone else, only weeds and small bushes. So much for this, he thought. Time to find some food.

  * * *

  Pete was having a difficult time making his way through the underbrush. It was much denser than it appeared from the path, and seemed to become even more so the farther he progressed. The air was deadly still, with not even so much as the hint of a breeze. He could smell the pungent odor of decaying plant life all around him, mixed in with the almost overpowering fragrances of the multitude of flowers and other plants. Having grown up as a city boy, he found the effect was almost too much for him, and felt his stomach becoming very unsettled. He paused and took a few deep breaths through his mouth to avoid being washed away by the smells. That settled him somewhat, and he again moved forward slowly.

  He froze at the sound of a small rustle from the brush in front of him, unsure of its source. Again he heard the rustle, but this time closer. Slowly taking his knife from its sheath, he crouched and prepared to strike at whatever came out.

  The leaves of the bush directly in front of him parted, and a large rabbit crawled through. Pete held his breath, not wanting to startle the creature. The rabbit stopped and sniffed the air, and then looked in Pete's direction. Pete was sure the rabbit would bolt and was preparing to jump it when it hopped right up to him and placed its forepaws on his boot. There was something in its manner that made Pete feel like the rabbit was asking to be scratched, that not only was it not afraid of people, but that it considered people to be sources of pleasure. Too bad rabbit, he thought, and slashed his knife across the rabbit's neck, severing its head.

  The rabbit dropped, and almost immediately from directly overhead, easily within arm's reach, came a loud, almost violent cry from a very large crow. Pete jumped, startled by the cry, and quickly glanced around. Heart pounding, he saw the crow on a branch just above and to the left of him. The crow stared at him. Pete felt a shiver run up his spine, as though the crow was some sort of judge, and he had just been caught doing something unspeakable. He made a grab for the bird, but the crow easily avoided his hand and flew out of sight in a flash.