Village E3: Survival of the Human Spirit (5 page)

"I'm Hailey, from California.
Where are we?" the one who had hit him said, while taking a few more steps
back from John. "I don't know, let me guess. You both just woke up on the
beach here. Right?" said John. The two women looked at each other.
"Same thing happened to me," said John, hoping to gain their trust.
"What's your name?" asked John, looking at the one who had bitten
him. "Katie, I'm from Florida," she responded. John felt moisture
trickle from his nose. He rubbed it with the back of his hand, confirming that
his nose was bleeding, as he suspected.

John already had an idea why the
women were here, and he didn't like what he was thinking.
How much should I
tell them, and how soon,
he wondered.
One thing is for sure, I have to
break the news to them before the moon comes out tonight.
John was feeling
genuine empathy for these women, because he had been in their shoes just months
before.
This is going to be hard for them to hear, and it will be hard for
me to tell them,
he thought.

"Was that your signal fire, and
arrow in the sand, back where we came from?" Hailey asked. "Yes, I
set that up a while back," said John. "Do you know how we got
here?" asked Katie. "Nope, don't have a clue," said John.
"Look, if you two are half as thirsty as I am, then I know you could use
some water. Why don't we go to my camp and get some," he said, trying to
avoid more questions. "I guess we don't really have another option right
now," Hailey said, looking at Katie.

"Let me get my shirt
first," said John, as he jogged over to where he left it. Not wanting to
worry his new guests, he kept his knife carefully wrapped, and out of sight.
"Listen, I've got a lot to tell you two, but I'd rather not get started in
a long question and answer session until we get something to drink. Then I'll
explain everything," said John, taking a few steps in the direction they
had just come from.

Katie couldn't wait for answers.
"Do you have any idea where we are?" she asked John. "Not really,"
he answered. "I'll tell you what I know, and what I don't know, when we
get back to my camp." He intentionally didn't call it home, because he
didn't want them to know yet that this was now their home too. John felt
relieved and happy that he wasn't alone anymore. Any positive feelings he had
though, were dampened by the guilt he felt for having them.

The end of his solitude came at the
cost of Katie's and Hailey's freedom. They didn't know yet that they would never
be going home, or that life as they once knew it ended today. Giving up on
getting any answers, Hailey and Katie kept silent, except to ask how much
farther it was. On the way back, John tried to go over in his mind how he would
break the bad news to them, but decided there wasn't a good way. With all the
added walking, the three had built up a serious thirst. "Let's get some
water," said John, as his hut came into sight.

The water was still in his pot, just
as he had left it that morning. Picking up his drinking cup, he poured from the
pot till the cup was full. He handed the cup to Katie, then he handed what was
left in the pot to Hailey, and said, "Go ahead
and drink out of the pot."

Katie had hers gone in seconds.
Hailey, aware that John was probably thirsty too, drank about half of what was
in the pot, and then handed the rest to John. John filled Katie's cup again,
then drank what was left in the pot. Between the three of them, the water in
the pot wasn't enough to quench their thirst. John walked over and got his
plastic water container and they continued to drink until they were all
satisfied.

"We better get some more water
going," said John, as he threw his shirt down and walked toward the pool.
When the shirt hit the ground, the knife rolled out. Both women noticed it, and
glanced at each other to see if the other had seen it too. After filling the
pot with water, John checked for hot embers in the fire, and found none. He was
gone much longer than he planned, so the wood he put on the fire when he left
wasn't enough to keep it going.

He went into his hut for some fire
starting material. This was a special occasion, so he would use one of his
remaining matches to get the fire going again. In a few minutes he had it
going, and positioned his newly filled pot over the edge.

He had an overwhelming feeling of
self-consciousness. Before the women arrived, it never mattered that he hadn't
taken a bath since he woke up on the beach, or that the back of his boxers were
badly soiled from sitting in the dirt. He thought back to the day when he
looked at his reflection in the pool, and realized, that was the image they
were seeing now. He felt embarrassed and ashamed.

It seemed like an eternity since he
had seen a woman. He was trying not to stare at them, but couldn't help
himself. They both looked like they just dropped in from a trip to the mall.
They were both pretty, and it took all the willpower that he had to keep from
being mesmerized.

"OK, now that we have that
going, I will fill you in on what I know, and what I don't," said John, looking
at his guests. Eager for answers, they both listened intently. "Months
ago, I went to sleep in Colorado, and woke up here. I have no idea how I got
here, where we are, or who is behind this. I haven't seen another person since
I've been here, until today, when you arrived. There is a pretty good reason
why I haven't seen anyone here. You are going to think I'm nuts when I tell you
this, but we aren't on earth anymore," said John. Katie and Hailey looked
at each other. John could tell by their expressions that they thought he was
insane, or lying.

"I know what you are probably
thinking. You will see tonight when the moon comes out. It will convince
you," said John. "How will the moon convince us?" asked Hailey.
"It's huge," said John. "Much bigger than the moon you are used
to seeing." Again the women looked at each other. "Do you remember
how far the water was from the tree line?" asked John, looking at Hailey,
and then Katie. They both nodded. "I think that is because of the big moon.
There is a huge difference between high tide, and low tide," said John.
"Oh, that makes sense," Hailey said, trying her best to convince John
that she believed him, even though she didn't.

"Is that where you always get
your water," Hailey asked John. "Yes, it's the only place I know
of," he replied. "Let's take a look," Hailey said to Katie,
motioning for her to come with her. The two women walked over to the pool of
water. Looking back, to see if they were far enough away from John, so he
wouldn't hear, Hailey said, "We can't stay here, this guy is crazy. As
soon as he goes to sleep tonight, we'll get the hell out of here. For now
though, we'll play along with him, so he won't go off or something." Katie
nodded in agreement. "If he tries anything crazy, I'll distract him, and
you go for his knife. Let's get back, before he gets suspicious," said
Katie, as she began to walk back to where John was seated.

"So, what have you been eating
around here," asked Katie, as the two women joined John by the fire.
"Mostly fruit and fish, but I did get one tiny deer," said John.
"I was going out for fruit today, when I found your footprints in the
sand, so I haven't had anything to eat yet. I still have three pieces of fruit
left, so we can each have one."

Going into his hut, he brought back
the fruit, and handed one to each of the women. John took a big bite out of
his, and the women followed his lead, although showing a little caution, by
nibbling first. After they had finished their meager meal, John broke the
awkward silence. "I still might have enough time to catch a fish or two
today, but by the time I got it cooked, I know it would be dark. Once you see
the moon, I'm pretty sure you won't feel like eating." Trying not to make
it obvious, Hailey and Katie snuck another look at each other.

"It will be dark soon
enough," said John. "I better fix a place for you two to sleep."
He walked into the jungle, and came back a few minutes later with an arm load
of large leaves. "Take my word for it. It's better than sleeping in the
dirt," said John, as he walked toward the hut. After placing the leaves
inside, he came out and motioned for the women to come over.

"I might as well give you two a
tour of my home," said John. Katie and Hailey reluctantly went over to the
hut. "This is where I've been living," said John, standing by the
doorway. Each of the two women took a short look inside, without entering,
trying not to get too close to John. "I need to get more leaves. You
ladies look around if you want," said John, as he walked off. After he got
a ways off, they both went inside.

Spotting John's bug out bag, Hailey
unzipped the top, to see what was inside. "We'll take this when we leave
tonight," said Hailey. Saying nothing, Katie checked to make sure John
wasn't coming, as Hailey looked around for anything else they might need. In
less time than it took for the first load, John had more leaves, and was coming
back. "Here he comes," said Katie.

Hailey quickly zipped up the bag, and
tried her best to place it just as she had found it. Katie walked out before
John entered and Hailey met John in the door, as she tried to get out.
"Oops, excuse me, I'm not used to company," said John. Smiling, he
stepped to the side, to allow Hailey to exit. After two more trips, John had
what he thought were enough leaves to make the night more comfortable for his
new roommates. The rest of the evening was spent boiling water, and refilling
the container.

As daylight slipped away, the two
newcomers mostly sat quietly looking at the fire. They didn't trust John, and
were mostly focused on the plan they had come up with earlier. Of the two
women, Hailey was much less comfortable in this jungle setting. As the noises
of the night began to increase, she started to look a little scared. The darker
it got, the closer she got to the fire, as she stayed close to Katie the entire
evening. Katie could see that Hailey was getting uneasy about the circumstances.

After a long period when none of them
spoke, Katie said, "We've had a long day Hailey, why don't we go to bed
and get some sleep." "Good idea," said Hailey, as they both
stood up. "I'll be there, in a little while. I have to get the fire built
up a little," said John. As the two women walked to the hut, John began
placing larger chunks of wood on the fire. After adding plenty of wood, John
grabbed the pot, the water container, and his knife and went to the hut. As he
entered the doorway, he placed the pot and the water container just inside the
door. "I'm going to put the water over here by the door, in case you get
thirsty in the night," he said, not knowing that they planned to steal
them later.

As John lay in the pitch blackness of
the night, he had a lot on his mind.
How will I feed three people, when I
can't find enough to eat for myself? How will they handle finding out that they
are never going home
, he wondered. Those and other questions were going
through his mind.
We were each chosen for a reason,
he thought.
Probably
genetic diversity.
Hailey is black, and Katie looks like she is part white,
and part something else.
I don't plan on being part of a lab experiment, or
part of a breeding group, like a farm animal,
he thought.
I'll have to
wake them up when the moon comes out later. That is the only way they will
believe me.

He had put out so much effort earlier
in the day that he was totally worn out. While
he was fighting sleep, Hailey and Katie were wide awake, waiting to implement
their plan. First though, they needed John to go to sleep.

Hailey reached out in the darkness
and found Katie's arm, located her shoulder, then placed her index finger
across her lips, signaling her not to make any noise. Hailey slid as close to
Katie as she could, then placing her mouth right next to Katie's ear, she
whispered "When we can tell by his breathing that he is asleep, I'll get
the bag, and you grab the water and pot."

It was so dark that neither of them
could see their hand in front of their face. Hailey scooted as close to John's
bed as she could, to better hear his breathing. As it gradually began to get
lighter in the hut, it became easier to see. Both of the women thought that
their eyes were adjusting to the darkness. John unknowingly cooperated with
their plan, by finally drifting off to sleep. His fatigue won over his desire
to stay awake. He began to snore, so both women knew right away when he was
asleep.

Hailey cautiously reached for the bag
and the knife, which was right next to it. Katie was already crawling toward
the door and picked up the pot with one hand and the water container with the
other. As soon as she had them in hand, she stepped out of the hut, with Hailey
right behind her.

They started in the direction of the
beach, but only took a few steps, when they both noticed the moon. It was
rising, and so large that it was even visible between the gaps between the trees.
It was massive compared to the moon they were used to seeing. "Oh my
God," Hailey said in a normal voice. "No! No!" shrieked Katie,
as they both dropped their loot. Like John had been, at seeing the same sight,
they were in shock. This was something that would take time to wrap their minds
around.

John hadn't been out long enough to
be in a sound sleep, so their voices woke him up. He joined them standing in
the moonlight, as they stood there in disbelief. They were both crying, Katie
much harder than Hailey. "I'm sorry," said John, in a tone that a
person would use when speaking to someone who was mourning a family member. He
knew exactly how they were feeling, because he was still feeling it a little
himself.