The Earthrise Trilogy Part 22

"Wow, this sure is weird, I guess the climate has been messed up by the war." Martha said.

"Global warming!" they said, in unison and laughed.

It was then that it dawned on Martha that they were not out of breath.

"Hey, have you noticed?"

"Noticed what?" he asked.

"Well, we've just run a mile or so with the wind against us, and with these heavy packs on our backs, and we're not even puffing."

The look on his face told her that he hadn't realised it.

"I didn't even think about being tired," he said, "I could have run on for miles. I wonder what else we can do?" he said, smiling.

"Come on Superman," she said, "let's go home."

Zeek awoke bright and early. "Boy I feel great," he said, out loud.

"Wh...What's that?" Betty said, half asleep. "Is it really morning already?"

"I'm afraid so, would madam care for some breakfast?"

"Yes, she would," Betty replied, turning over.

Zeek was up in a flash, and making coffee and toast in minutes. The aroma became too much for her so she got up and stretched.

"And how are you feeling today young sir?"

"To be honest, I've never felt better, I feel so full of life."

He stopped, remembering what had happened the evening before.

"Yesterday I nearly died, and today I'm bursting with life. It's true Betts, it really is the tree of life."

He paused as it dawned on him, "Then there really is a G.o.d! Only G.o.d could create something like this."

He began to smile widely as though a weight had been taken from his shoulders. Betty just looked at him and said, "Welcome to the family."

"How long have you known Him Betts?"

"Since I was little, my mom and dad taught me, but I discovered Him for myself a long time ago. Since then, we've never been apart."

Breakfast was brilliant. After, they packed up the camp.

"Today," Zeek announced, "I will even enjoy trudging through the trees."

And he was as good as his word, so much so, that Betty had trouble keeping up with him.

They had been travelling for a couple of hours when Zeek suddenly stopped.

"What is it?" Betty asked him.

"I'm not sure, but I think we're being watched."

He stood for a few more seconds and then moved on again. Betty became a little uneasy, and began looking around. This slowed her down and she began to fall behind. Zeek didn't notice and so marched steadily on.

It was some minutes later when he asked, "Is everything all right back there?" He got no answer and so turned to find her gone. A sudden wave of panic hit him. "BETTS," he shouted, "BETTS WHERE ARE YOU!"

There was no answer. He started back the way he had come, walking quickly at first, but then breaking into a run.

He ran some distance without seeing her, and then fell over her backpack. It was laying on its side, the straps had been cut. Now he was really panicked. This could only mean one thing, though he didn't want to admit it. He tried to calm down and think more clearly. 'Look for tracks,' he said to himself, 'there must be tracks.' He systematically looked all around, but there didn't appear to be any tracks. He looked up in case they were above him, but saw nothing. He was looking for the most likely route to take when a blow came from behind.

Jake let Martha take the lead, he had some thinking to do and it was easier for him to do this whilst following in her footsteps. She set quite a pace, and he was having more than a little trouble keeping up.

"Ouch!"

"Are you all right back there?" She asked him.

"Yes, I just hit my s.h.i.+n on a branch."

"You should watch where you are going," she said, with a smile, "and keep your mind on the journey instead of fanaticising about Clark Kent."

"OK Lois," he replied, knowing she was right.

They set off again, and this time he did keep his mind on the journey. They moved through the trees so easily that they reached their first campsite in half the time it had taken them to do the outward-bound trek.

"Shall we stop here for the night?" Martha asked, "It's almost dark."

"Nah, let's go on a bit further, I'm not tired at all."

"OK," she said, "on it is."

Again they set off, and, if anything, they went quicker. Jake became lost in thought again, and wasn't really paying attention to the task at hand, when he b.u.mped straight into Martha who had suddenly stopped walking.

"Oops, erm, sorry about that. What did you stop for?"

"Haven't you noticed? It's dark. Look up at the sky."

He looked up and the stars were out against a black sky.

"So it is," he said, "but I can see just fine."

The penny dropped, "How come I can see so well in the dark, and what time is it?"

"It's after midnight," she answered, "and we've been travelling for eight hours."

"EIGHT HOURS!" he yelled, "It only seems like five minutes."

Martha thought for a moment and said, "I guess the berries have changed our bodies in some way-"

"More like they've fine-tuned us," he cut in, "or perhaps they've returned us to our original specifications. Maybe this is how the human race was meant to be."

"Wow," she said, "this is too wonderful for words."

Jake took his backpack off.

"What are you doing?" she asked. He didn't reply but leapt into the air. He jumped up to the lowest branch just above them, at least twice his own height. Martha did the same, but she didn't bother to take her pack off.

"Wee..." She said, as she came down. "This is fun, I wonder why we didn't notice this before?"

Jake answered, "Maybe this has only just developed, or maybe we just didn't need to, so we didn't try."

"Makes sense," she replied, "if it hadn't been for that snow storm, we wouldn't have known."

"Let's camp here then, as we've stopped anyway."

"All right," she said, "I could do with something to eat.

"Are you all right Zeek? Speak to me."

Zeek awoke to see Betty's face looking down at him. She had tears in her eyes as she patted the back of his hand.

"What hit me?" he said groggily.

"They did!" she said, pointing through the doorway to some very dirty looking people outside.

Betty and Zeek were in a makes.h.i.+ft hut with no door in the frame. Outside there were forty or so people sitting around a fire talking among them-selves. There were two guards at the door armed with clubs, and the smell was foul.

"Smells like death!" he said, trying to sit up. His backpack was in the corner and Betty had already retrieved some berries from it just in case.

"Here," she said, "eat these." She gave him a handful of fruit, which he ate.

"Boy that was good," he said when they'd gone down, "they're so refres.h.i.+ng."

"Shut up!" one of the guards shouted in a gruff voice. He was a big guy, dressed in filthy jeans and a torn leather jacket. The other guard didn't move.

"I think he's on something," she whispered, pointing to the stationary second guard at the door.

"I told you to shut up," the guard screamed aiming his club at her head.

Zeek moved like a cat and caught the club in mid air, stopping it dead in its tracks. The guard was stunned by Zeek's strength and pulled frantically to get his club back. Zeek let go, and the guard fell over from the force he was exerting.

"What just happened?"

"I don't know, but you just saved my life."

The floored guard got to his feet and called to the others around the fire. A big guy got to his feet and swaggered over to the hut. He grabbed the guard by the throat and almost lifted him off the ground.

"What's up with you?" he demanded. "Can't you even watch a woman and an unconscious man without falling over?"

"But Beast," the guard protested, "he's awake and he's as strong as an Ox."

"Was that Beast I heard?" Zeek asked.

"That's what it sounded like to me," Betty replied.

Beast threw the guard aside and entered the hut, "So, you're awake are you," he scowled at Zeek, his breath was rancid. Zeek just looked at him and stared him down. "Bah!" Beast said as he left.

"Did you see his forehead?" Betty asked, when he had gone.

"Not especially," Zeek answered, "why?"

"There was a mark on it, some intertwined lines. It looked like three sixes."

"Three sixes," Zeek said, looking puzzled, "isn't that in the Bible?"

"Exactly," she said, "The Bible speaks of a Beast with a mark, and he's not one of the good guys!"

Zeek turned to her saying, "I don't think it would be a good idea for them to get their hands on the berries."

"Me neither," she said, already reaching into the backpack for the rest of them. Between them, they ate the rest of the berries and felt much better for it.

"Look," he said to her, "its late, why don't you get some sleep. I'll keep watch."

"OK," she replied, with a softness in her voice he hadn't heard before. She snuggled into his chest and was sleeping in no time. Zeek kept watch.

It was mid morning when Jake and Martha arrived back at the cabins. The Thomas family were busy packing up their belongings ready for the forthcoming trip.

"Hey, back already?" Dave shouted, on seeing them.

"There was nothing but snow out there." Jake called back. "Any sign of the others yet?"

"No, not a word, but it's only been two days."

"That coffee smells good," Martha hinted, sitting down by Danny.

"OK, I can take a hint," he said, getting up to pour her some. Danny liked Martha and had done since she had arrived. Somehow, she reminded him of someone he once knew, but couldn't quite remember.

"Thanks," she said cheerily, as he pa.s.sed her the cup.

"You're welcome," he smiled.