The Road Not Chosen (1/11)
by Joan Powers
Chapter 1
His surroundings felt familiar to him, almost as if he'd been in that place before. He was alone, wandering along a dank, dimly lit cavern which was most likely a Terrian dwelling. Only the muffled sound of his footsteps accompanied him. The corridor was steeply pitched, angling downwards as he followed it. Though he was uncertain of his ultimate destination, he felt as if with each step he was crawling deeper into the bowels of the planet.
A sense of deja-vu overwhelmed him, he was convinced that he'd explored that tunnel before. Yet something different was happening this time. A bright pin-point of light reflected off the walls in the distance ahead of him. Like a ship's tractor beam offered to an ailing space craft, he was drawn to it.
As he rounded the corner, he approached the source of the light, which resembled a glowing, pulsating soap bubble. It floated freely in the air and was no larger than the palm of his hand. The illumination it offered became brighter and he could discern brilliant shades of gold within it. He stared at the fragile object, captivated by its beauty.
Unable to resist his compelling urge, he lifted his hand to gently lay his finger against the side of the shimmering bubble. Before he could complete the motion, the entire scene faded before his eyes.
(Bess Martin)
After several weeks on the road, we finally crossed the vast desert region and entered more mountainous territory. While the scenery was gorgeous and game more abundant, traveling had become difficult due to the steep, narrow paths which were challenging for the vehicles to negotiate. Almost once a day we had to detour or hack away at unexpected obstacles which blocked our progress. The monotonous routine of backtracking, chopping down tree branches, and moving rocks , was time consuming and produced several minor injuries, as well as fostered disagreements and grumbling among us.
Yet, despite our complaints about these inconveniences, Eden Advance was faring well. Our supplies were holding up. Devon Adair had almost fully recovered from her mysterious illness, and we hadn't encountered any signs of the Council, ZED's or penal colonists. Slowly but surely, we were making our way across the continent towards our new home.
At that point, I wasn't overly concerned about low group morale. After all, in the last few months we'd been through some terrible experiences together but we'd survived to tell about them. Life on this planet had changed us, refined our survival skills. Like a well oiled machine, we'd learned to work as a team to face adversity.
I guess I was feeling optimistic, encouraged that we could take on any of the challenges waiting to present themselves to us as we continued our journey. I'd forgotten that regardless of our common goal of reaching New Pacifica, our group was composed of individuals, each with his own priorities, beliefs and dreams. In the days to come, we would be reminded how many differences still lay between us.
"Great, just great!" Morgan scowled as he slammed the side of his hand against the console of the Transrover. After flinging open the passenger side door of the motionless vehicle, he hopped out and stormed directly towards the cluster of individuals congregated by the protruding rock formation which blocked its path. Without breaking his stride, the government liaison located Alonzo. "I thought this way was supposed to be clear." His sarcastic tone left no doubts in his audience regarding his feelings.
Conversation between Baines, Walman, Alonzo and Julia abruptly ceased as the pilot stiffened and sharply replied, "It was the best route I could find. I thought we had plenty of room to clear this. I didn't realize that it was so steep on the other side."
"Maybe if you paid as much attention to your scouting as you do to your girlfriend you would've realized that the Transrover couldn't possibly squeeze past these rocks." Morgan gestured to the outcrops in the surrounding terrain as he spoke. "What now? Are we supposed to blow this stuff up to get it out of our way? Or do we backtrack -- again? Now it's gonna take the rest of the day to get back in motion. Gee, did we manage to cover even five clicks today?"
Julia, close by Alonzo's side, gritted her teeth and directed a seething glance towards Morgan.
"Shut up Morgan. I don't like it any more than you do. I'd like to see you do a better job!" Alonzo angrily replied.
"Maybe I could." The government liaison replied with uncharacteristic fervor, actually stepping forward to meet the pilot's eyes without flinching.
"Oh yeah?" Alonzo's lips twisted with amusement while Baines and Walman chuckled loudly. "Love to see that."
Instead of backing down, Morgan squared his shoulders and with determination, began to approach the ATV. "Just watch me."
Alonzo pivoted to block his way, laying a hand on the other man's forearm. He warned, "Don't bother. I'm too tired to rescue you when you get in trouble."
The government liaison whirled about and sarcastically replied, "Oh, I see. Then what do you suggest? Maybe you can do a better job if you take a nap to supposedly ask the Terrains to show you the location of a decent trail?"
"Shut it Martin. Or I'll do it for you." The handsome young pilot's features tightened with rage and his right hand clenched into a fist.
Before Morgan could respond, Julia interceded, stepping between the men. As she pushed the two of them apart, she impatiently yelled, "Enough of this! We have work to do." She turned to grab Alonzo's arm and the two walked away from the others.
Bess Martin opened her eyes to see morning sunbeams streaming into her tent. Pleased by the sight, she smiled and took a deep breath, filling her lungs with crisp fresh air and the fragrant aroma of pine needles. She thought this was a wonderful area, and its cooler climate was much more comfortable to travel in. She rolled over to nudge Morgan but strangely enough, he wasn't there.
That wasn't like him. Typically she was the early riser while her husband chose to stay underneath his covers for as long as he could. She sat up and began to brush out her long, chestnut colored hair as she wondered where he'd gone.
A few minutes later, after she finished fixing her hair and putting on a clean shirt and pair of pants, Morgan entered their tent. He was already dressed for the day but his appearance was haphazard. The tail of his shirt wasn't fully tucked into his trousers and some strands of his hair stuck out wildly from his pony tail. She stifled a giggle. Her father wouldn't have recognized this man, her husband looked quite unlike the polished professional lawyer she'd originally presented to him.
"Hi honey. Where you been?" Bess beamed pleasantly at her husband.
"Couldn't sleep any longer." He sank down onto their cot beside his wife then he sprang up almost immediately as if filled with nervous energy. "Thought I'd volunteer to go on one of the scouts today but of all people - Devon insists on going herself."
"Honey, are you okay?" Bess's eyes widened and she leaned forward to examine her husband. She was worried. For the past week Morgan had been complaining incessantly. That in itself wasn't entirely unusual so she wasn't surprised that Morgan had accused Alonzo of not doing his job yesterday. However, her mouth had fallen open when it was evident that her husband wasn't going to back down from the pilot's challenge. Unless her eyes had been playing tricks on her, she thought she'd actually seen him preparing to return Alonzo's punch. And the grim determination that had glimmered within his eyes at that moment...She'd never seen that side of her husband before. She didn't think that it had existed. Silently she thanked Julia for her quick reflexes, stepping in before any damage was done.
And now Morgan was volunteering? To go scouting ? "You seem...tense."
He began to pace back and forth in the tent, "Bess, do you realize that we've been on this God forsaken planet for almost a year?"
She thought a moment, "I guess you're right." With eagerness she added, "But look at the progress we're making. Devon thinks it'll only take a few more months to reach New Pacifica. We're more than half-way there."
Morgan spoke firmly, "I don't care. I'm sick of the great outdoors. The lousy food. The lack of privacy. The abysmal bathroom conditions. I want this camping trip from hell to end. Now!"
Bess sighed, she'd heard this tirade too many times. She bent her head and scolded him, "Morgan, calm down. You're making too much of things. It's not all that bad."
"Maybe not compared to living on Earth. But I'm used to order. And cleanliness. I don't know how much more I can take of this." Morgan gestured dramatically with his hands and a hint of desperation was in his voice.
"So we don't have some of the conveniences that we were used to. Do you honestly think you're the only one who misses them? But we have advantages that we didn't have before. Just smell the air - you can actually take a deep breath and it won't irritate your lungs. Look at all the fresh water streams and ponds we've found. The only kind of swimming you could do on Earth was in a concrete hole. And we'll have new opportunities for our future. An important position for you, our own land. For now we have to make the best of things."
Morgan whined, "But you're good at that. Maybe it's because you grew up on Earth."
Always the practical person in their marriage, she evenly responded, "Morgan, we don't have any other choices at the moment." She rose from her seat on the cot then knelt to throw some items into a backpack. "C'mon, after we take care of our chores, let's go exploring and find some nice spot where we can be alone."
Morgan sank down onto the edge of the cot and lowered his head into his hands to sulk.
After she finished her packing, Bess crept up beside him to brush her thigh against his shoulder. Sensing that she'd engaged his attention, she lowered her voice to suggestively add, "We could play in VR."
His expression brightened as he looked up to meet his wife's eyes. "Well, okay. Only if you insist."
Devon Adair stepped cautiously, studiously avoiding any rocks along her path as she wandered about the wooded area. Her eyes automatically registered the presence of small bushes and shrubs amidst taller trees, but clearly her thoughts were somewhere else. She bit her lip as she knelt, automatically selecting a small brown speckled specimen which resembled a mushroom. After labeling then depositing her sample into her pack, she brought her arms closer to her chest as she rose, glad she'd brought her jacket for the air was becoming cooler. Though she hoped this might be due to the higher altitude rather than the onset of fall.
While Eden Advance paused to rest, several scouting parties were busily exploring different directions, searching for food to replenish supplies - but most importantly, trying to pinpoint the precise location of the wide valley indicated by Yale's aerial maps which would allow them to travel safely through these mountains. Devon and Danziger had taken the ATV to investigate the northwest while Alonzo and Julia took the Dunerail to check out the southwest.
She suspected the young couple had other motives in mind when they eagerly volunteered for their extended scouting tour. But she couldn't fault them for she had a hidden agenda of her own.
The tall, imposing figure of John Danziger stood ahead of her, poised near the edge of the gorge. With jumpers in hand, he scanned the horizon. Several rocky mountains dotted with towering evergreens greeted him. "No sign of a wide pass around here," he grumbled to her as he shook his head. "Terrain just gets steeper."
His blond, curly locks were still long, almost shoulder length, and a thin stubble of beard covered his jaw. At one point in her life, his bohemian appearance would've repelled the refined and sophisticated Devon Adair. But under current circumstances, she found his looks very appealing and oddly comforting.
The two moved on in silence, each preoccupied by his own thoughts. Since Devon continued to lag behind him, John turned to ask, "You tired?"
For the most part, Devon had kept her promise to take better care of herself. Since her health was improving, she no longer required afternoon naps. However John insisted that she only walk during part of those days that they traveled. Sometimes she resented the restrictions he tried to impose on her so she'd protest -- loudly. Yet, they'd been managing to get along well with one another for, though he'd never said so, she was fully aware that his actions were motivated by his feelings towards her. She was surprised that he'd allowed her to go - no - that he'd agreed to accompany her on this short trip, due to his over-zealousness where her health was concerned.
"I'm fine," she blandly replied as she stopped, noticing some small red berries on a bush. She plucked a few, placed them into a sample bag then added it to the rest of her collection.
He paused, waiting for her to catch up to him. While Devon appeared to be okay, just as she claimed, he didn't believe her. He knew her too well. He could readily discern the tension in her jaw. And the fact that she didn't snap at him for inquiring about her health lead him to think otherwise. Trying to catch her eye, he probed, "Really?"
She didn't respond. Though she was looking directly at him, her eyes seemed veiled, not focusing on what was before them.
With concern he asked, "What's wrong?"
She shrugged her shoulders, "Nothing. I just wish we could find that pass."
"Me too." They continued to walk along the edge of the ravine. They'd hiked up to higher ground hoping they could get a better vantage point of their surroundings. "This is so aggravating. We should've stumbled right onto it. The valley is huge - we couldn't have missed it."
"Unless our data is old and it's closed over, or God only knows what happened to it." Devon sighed dejectedly as she scanned the horizon.
John stopped in his tracks and turned to face her. "Excuse me? You're the optimist. Remember? I need you to do your job Adair." He playfully teased her, his blue eyes meeting her brown ones.
She smiled weakly towards him, slightly flustered, "I'm sorry. I'm just a little preoccupied."
"With what?" His eyebrow raised.
"I don't know." She took a breath then continued, "I'm worried that we haven't found that passage. The vehicles are taking a lot of abuse on this rugged terrain." She fiddled with the zipper on her jacket as she spoke.
John rolled his eyes, "You're telling me. But that's my department, not yours."
His expression told her that he knew she was hiding something so she tried to ease herself into the issue. Mentally she chided herself for being such a coward. The direct approach usually worked best for her, but she was having trouble managing that. "Aren't you concerned that group morale hasn't been the greatest lately? Yesterday Alonzo almost hit Morgan, and Baines and Walman practically had a shouting match the other afternoon over how to hook up the winch on the Transrover."
"They're just tired. I wouldn't worry about that." His gaze firmly held hers.
She brushed her bangs out of her eyes with her fingertips, "But what about the Martins? They've been behaving more aggressively. This morning Morgan insisted that he should be on this scout instead of you and me."
Danziger gave her a puzzled look. "That's odd. But why would you worry about that?" he half-joked. Since Devon didn't respond in kind, he added, "Maybe he's still a little mad at you for disappearing that day while you were sick. I did come down pretty hard on Bess. I don't know. Whatever it is, he'll get over it. Since when have you been paranoid? You've dealt with worse than this, especially as the head of your own firm on the Stations."
When he noticed that she was staring off into the distance, his tone became gruffer, "Devon, I'm not a mind reader. Either you're either gonna tell me what's really bothering you or let's end this conversation."
"Okay." She turned her head to face him once again, and nervously swallowed to still the butterflies in her stomach. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you about which I've been putting off. I haven't wanted to talk with anybody about it." She spoke slowly, as if forcing the words out of her throat.
"You wanna sit down?" She nodded so they moved towards a grassy clearing. After brushing aside rocks and debris, they sat on the ground. "Go ahead Devon." His terse expression indicated that she had his complete attention.
She took a breath, "Has Julia told you what caused my illness?"
He had to think a minute, "Some kind of poison - right."
She nodded. "Did she mention where this came from?"
"Julia said you'd run into some strange plant." It had taken the young doctor a while to convince him that it wasn't a risk for the others at camp. She'd argued that they were no longer in the area where the plant grew.
"That's what she told everyone, because she didn't want to upset you. But she actually thinks that the Council planted it in me."
"What?"
John seemed confused so she tried to elaborate, "Julia says the compound wasn't native to G889, it was synthesized by Council scientists. She and Yale found it listed in the Independence computer data base. They think before we left the Stations, a device may have been implanted in my body which would've slowly released the toxin into my system."
"So the Council tried to kill you?" John asked with disbelief.
"That's Yale and Julia's theory. So far, they haven't been able to find any proof. Julia hasn't found any evidence of such a device which would've delivered the substance in my body, but she didn't think that disproved her idea."
Slightly indignant, he replied, "Why didn't they bother to tell the rest of us about this? Why did she lie to us?"
"Julia claimed she didn't want to bring down group morale."
He rubbed his chin as he thought, "After all we've been through, I wouldn't put this type of plot past the Council. Even if it is true, I guess we can't change anything now. It's over and done with - isn't it?"
Her heart began to beat faster as he voiced one of the other fears that'd been slowly gnawing at her for the past weeks. "I'm not sure." Before she could lose her nerve, she began to speak rapidly, "We have another idea. I wanted to get your insight. Frankly I hope this sounds absolutely ludicrous to you. What if...the poison was administered by someone in our group? Around the time we all started getting sick, or just after Eve's programming was fixed."
John tried to interrupt but she cut him off, "Think about it. The bomb or the crash should've killed me, along with everybody else. Why would the Council go to all this additional trouble of specifically targeting me? I became much more attractive to them once we landed on this planet and learned that Uly's healing might be the key to relating to the Terrians and controlling the planet. But back on the Stations, when this poison was supposedly implanted in my body, they wouldn't have known this. Whoever did this may be planning to eventually take over leadership of the group and the colony."
"Whoa. Sorry, I don't buy this at all. Frankly I'd love to accuse good ol' Morgan of doing the deed and lock him up forever, but I just don't think it's him. Or anyone else in the group. I think you're barking up the wrong tree. Devon, you weren't there. Those days after we put you in that chamber, we were like the walking dead. Part of all us was in there with you. Talk about being vulnerable, that would've been the ideal opportunity for someone to take charge of the group. But no one did. Not a single person challenged me." He grasped her hand as he spoke and squeezed it gently.
Devon was touched by the raw emotion in his voice and softly replied, "I know that. Julia and Yale have told me the same. But they aren't fully convinced."
"What are they basing their suspicions on?" John demanded.
"Julia knows how the Council works. She believes it's entirely possible that our encounter with Eve may've been a signal that this person was waiting for. Getting rid of me could've been his part of their plan and some other group of operatives may be waiting to complete the task."
"Devon, other than Elizabeth and Franklin, we haven't run into anyone but penal colonists and a ZED. And we haven't seen those in over two hundred kilometers."
"Maybe we haven't reached the rendezvous point yet," she countered.
"Sounds shaky to me. What else?"
"Julia says although she keeps the medical equipment under close scrutiny, someone could've easily borrowed a hypodermic syringe to administer the poison to me while I was sleeping. During those first months on the planet, just before we discovered that Julia worked for the Council, Bess somehow managed to grab one to sedate her - remember?"
"So what." The mechanic remained unconvinced.
"What about that day I got lost?" She blushed and tilted her head to examine her boot laces as she spoke, embarrassed by her foolishness. Frustrated by her physical weakness caused by the poison, once she'd started feeling slightly better, in her typical headstrong fashion, she'd circumvented Dr. Heller's orders and insisted on going swimming by herself. While that in itself hadn't been a bad idea, once at the pond she'd discovered a Grendler whom she'd proceeded to chase after in hopes of locating food stocks. Needless to say, the Grendler moved much faster than she had and she'd only managed to get herself lost in the process.
During her misadventure, she'd fallen and injured herself. Though she'd sustained mostly minor cuts, her weakened immune system wasn't able to combat the ensuing infection. Since her gear, which had been supposedly fixed the evening before, had malfunctioned, she'd spent the better part of the night in a feverish state, alone in the woods. Luckily, Eden Advance had been able to locate her in time to contain her infection. Yet her actions had impeded her overall physical recovery by over four weeks.
"C'mon, how would any one know that you were gonna pull such a stupid stunt?" Noticing her offended expression he added, "Sorry, I tell it like I see it. Diplomacy was never one of my skills." She softened. "As far as I can tell, the set probably broke when you fell. No big mystery there. Any other evidence ?"
She paused. "No. I guess it does seem paranoid. I'm just having trouble keeping these kind of thoughts out of my head. Still, there's really no proof for either of these ideas. Maybe we'll never know." She sighed with frustration.
John leaned closer to put his arm around her shoulder, "Let's take this one day at a time, Devon. Whatever happened, we're gonna get through each day. Together."
Her breath caught in her throat as she instinctively leaned against the curve of his shoulder. It'd been over a month since his body was this close to her. Even though over two months had passed since the Terrians had healed her and her physical health was almost restored, John had treated her as if she were some fragile flower. While he hadn't been avoiding her company, he'd kept his distance, almost as if he were afraid of losing control if he came too close to her. That night several weeks ago when they'd first kissed, flames of desire immediately sparked within them. They'd almost recklessly given in to their passion.
Without dwelling on the consequences, she shifted her position to rest her back more comfortably against John's chest, and he wrapped his arms firmly around her waist. She could feel the warmth emanating from him, it was wonderful. Her instincts warned her to pull away before this led to something she wasn't ready for. But it'd been such a long time since she had a lover. Someone to hold her and comfort her. Someone she felt safe with. It'd been too long. She closed her eyes as she nestled against him, simply enjoying his nearness.
John interrupted her thoughts, "Is there any other information we can get to explore either of those possibilities? Did Julia do every possible test on you that she could think of?"
She straightened up as she remembered, "She's done peripheral scans, but she wanted to put off doing more invasive ones until I was stronger. I'll have to talk with her about that."
He objected, "Wait a minute. Don't push her to do the tests until she's certain you're strong enough."
With exasperation she turned to face him and exclaimed, "John, in case you hadn't noticed, I'm practically back to normal. Julia says so."
At that point, her face was only inches away from his. She began to breath more rapidly as her urge to touch to him grew more intense. She wanted to run her fingers through those tangled blond curls; to feel his body pressed up against hers; to pull his face towards her so she could kiss him --- now. Looking into his eyes, she could tell that he felt the same way.
Unable to resist, she leaned towards him, closing the gap between them. "I'm not gonna break," she whispered as she impulsively brushed her lips against his.
John responded warmly to her overture, wrapping his arm about her shoulder as they deepened the kiss. Those sensations, which they'd discovered several weeks ago and had been unable to completely forget, were immediately reawakened.
However, as they began to explore one another's bodies, this time neither one pulled away.
A year, it'd been almost a year since they'd crashed onto this supposedly uninhabited planet, G889. All that time spent in the company of complete strangers, many whom had now become close companions. Approximately three hundred sixty Station days since the Terrians had entered his dreams.
Had the dreaming changed him? Julia was concerned about the effects of these communications on his physiology so she faithfully examined him. Though he'd never admit it to her, he was grateful for her precautions. While she hadn't detected any biochemical changes in him, he wasn't the same as the man who'd arrived here.
He almost cringed as he recalled how he'd wallowed in self-pity after they'd crash landed in the escape pod, whining about the pain of his injured leg and stubbornly refusing to cope with day to day life. No wonder Julia'd lost her temper with him when he pleaded with her to put him in a cryochamber and cart him across the planet.
He leaned forward to glance at the woman sitting in the passenger seat of the Dunerail. The wind was whipping her blonde locks across her face, which was apparently irritating her. He laughed. Julia was quite a woman. More complex than any other he'd known. Initially, her beauty and aloofness challenged him. She'd been a conquest to be taken, a night of passion with her would've been another notch on his belt. But somewhere along the line, his attitude had changed. Julia became more than just a prize to be enjoyed for the moment. Perhaps it grew from his respect for her as she diligently treated his injuries; or maybe it stemmed from that fact that despite their adverse circumstances, Julia always did her part without complaint.
Regardless, once he'd fallen in love with Julia, all the rules had changed for him. Forever. Once he was the king of casual flings, relationships were merely a game to him. Not anymore. Suddenly he was the vulnerable one and he wasn't sure that he liked that feeling. After their first intimate night together, he'd been deeply hurt when Julia claimed that she couldn't remember a thing about the evening. When they discovered she was a Council spy, he was overwhelmed by his emotions; he felt angry and betrayed. In fact, he'd been so angry he'd been one of the first to vote to leave her behind. Yet the next day as their caravan moved on, he knew in his heart that he couldn't abandon her. He had to give her another chance.
"Nothing yet," Julia flatly relayed to Alonzo as she used the jumpers to scan the terrain.
"You all right Julia? You sound tired," the pilot asked, with concern.
She curtly replied, "I'm fine. Just impatient to continue moving on. I'm tired of all these delays."
"We all are. I don't understand it. We've been through worse than this. The weather in these mountains is better than that desert we just crossed. For once, we have plenty of sources for food and water. So why does traveling seem so difficult now? The entire group is tense."
Slipping into her professional guise, Julia commented, "It's a documented fact that the human body can respond to stressful conditions over limited periods of time. But as that time period becomes prolonged, it takes our minds and bodies longer to recover. We've been traveling so long that a day or two of rest is no longer sufficient time for us to 'recharge our batteries' - I think in our minds, we're geared up to find that pass so we can overcome the next obstacle in our journey. Once we locate it, maybe then we'll allow ourselves to relax. As you said, these delays are minor, it's just the timing. It's the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back."
The pilot nodded, "I'll agree there."
"Have the Terrians told you anything about this area?" Julia asked tentatively as she turned to glance at Alonzo. Immediately he became withdrawn, focusing his attention on their surroundings as they drove through the forest.
While Alonzo had grown to accept his unusual form of communications with the natives of G889, lately their lack of directness irritated him. Although the Terrians were sometimes blindingly clear in their intentions, other times they didn't make much sense at all. During his first few months on the planet, he'd learned that their conversation wasn't a two-way process. It didn't work that way. It irked him that certain members of their crew, such as Morgan Martin, still refused to acknowledge this. As if it were a situation he could somehow influence or change.
He took a breath then responded, "Not really. The past few nights on the Dream Plane, I keep finding myself exploring some cave. It looks just like any other Terrian cave to me. I can't figure out why they keep showing it to me."
"Have they ever done that before?" Julia asked with concern.
"Not really. I wish I could make sense of it. Since they keep repeating the image, it must be important to them, and to us." He rubbed his temple as he struggled to recall the details of the dream. Something different had happened last night, if only he could remember what it was.
"Wanna take a break?" Julia offered.
"Okay."
He stopped the Rail and the two climbed out of the vehicle. After drinking from her canteen, Julia motioned to a nearby ridge, "Why don't we hike up that way? Maybe we'll be able to see better. At the least, it'll probably have a great view." Alonzo nodded so she set a brisk pace towards the incline.
As he fell in behind her, he teased her. "You know Julia, I think you actually like all these mountains."
She smiled at him. "They are beautiful. I don't know what it is but something about them appeals to me. It's not the same as the recreational VR hiking programs I used on the Stations. C'mon!" She reached back and enthusiastically grabbed his hand to tug him along side of her.
He eagerly followed with a broad grin. Deviating from their prescribed mission, Julia was clearly doing this for him to distract him from his concerns about the Terrians. A fresh wave of love for her washed over him as he watched her shapely figure.
They tramped through the pine forest, underneath the canopy of needles towards a clearing. As Julia'd hoped, the ridge bordered a majestic canyon. Alonzo rushed towards the edge to get a better view. He excitedly exclaimed, "Julia, look! There's a lake down there."
The young doctor was close behind, "I see it. What a view." She brought up the jumpers to investigate further. As she scanned the area she bit her lip and frowned, "There's a river feeding into that lake."
"So?"
She pointed towards the left as she explained, "It looks pretty wide. It could effectively block our progress." As the doctor spoke, Alonzo knew in the pit of his stomach that she was right.
"Great. Let's hope Devon and Danziger had better luck," he grumbled. Julia continued to scrutinize the horizon with the jumpers. With a touch of irritation in his voice, he added, "You're right Julia, you don't have to convince me. That river's going to be a big problem."
She held up a hand as if asking not to be disturbed. After a moment, she grinned and exclaimed, "Look at this!" Then she transferred the glasses to him. It took him a few seconds to refocus the lenses in the direction she was gesturing to. Just north of the lake, the feeder river grew narrow. Alonzo's spirits began to revive. Now that they might be able to negotiate. Then he saw it. A pass wide enough to drive several Transrovers through. He threw his arms around Julia and they began to laugh.
"Yeah, Danziger here." He stood as he adjusted the visual feed of his gear and spoke into the transmitter.
"We found it! Alonzo and Julia found the pass." Magus's image greeted him with a gleeful grin.
He paused a moment before responding, "You're kidding? That's great. Is it far?"
"Not by Rail. It may be a little harder to find a level route for the Transrover but Julia and Alonzo are checking it out."
"Great news. How are the kids doing?"
Magus answered, "They're fine. They're with Yale now. You need to talk to them?"
"Nah. We'll be back in a few hours. I don't want to wear Devon out, so we're gonna take it slow."
"Okay. See ya later. Magus out."
Danziger tossed aside the gear set as he hurried back towards Devon who was sitting on the ground, struggling to button her shirt with trembling fingers. He knelt to assist her as she pointed out, "Your shirt's not tucked in."
"They couldn't tell."
"Do you think they know?" she asked nervously.
"Know what?"
"What we were doing."
He shrugged, "I don't know. Who cares?" Seeing her wounded expression, he quickly added, "I mean, it's none of their business. You're the one who insisted we had to answer the gear. You hear the good news?" She smiled awkwardly. After he finished assisting her with her blouse, he sat down beside her and grabbed one of her hands, "You okay with this?"
Devon paused before she thoughtfully responded, "Yes. It's just...been a long time." She took a breath before continuing. Lacking her usual confident demeanor, she hesitantly asked, "Um...John, I don't regret what just happened, but can we take this slowly? Keep this to ourselves for a while?"
"Okay, " he murmured, suddenly looking towards the ground.
He'd misunderstood her intention, so she pulled his hand closer to her and more intently explained, "I haven't felt this way about anybody for years. I feel a little like a teenager -- kind of awkward. With all the other issues facing us -- the kids, scouting routes, equipment failure, the Colony ship, -- I'd rather not rush into a relationship. Let's just take things one day at a time?"
"Sure," he responded more confidently. Their eyes met and he began to caress her palm with his fingertips. With his other hand, he reached forward to tenderly touch her cheek. "You feeling okay? I didn't wanna wear you out," he sheepishly grinned.
"You're terrible -- I'm fine!" she laughed. "I wanna know what took you so long," she teased, with a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Flabbergasted, he sputtered, " Me? Look who's talking - the ultimate loner in the group. "
She blushed, "I guess I haven't given you much of a chance to get closer to me, have I?"
"Damn right."
More softly, she asked, "When did you...know?"
Trying to be casual but not succeeding, he explained, "I don't know. It's been...a while. At first, I tried to ignore it; I didn't think you were interested. Me being some drone mechanic. But, after you collapsed and we had to put you in that cryosleep chamber... then...leave you behind..." He was having difficulty continuing, his emotions were starting to choke him up; so Devon leaned forward to draw him into a hug. His voice wavered slightly as he almost whispered, "Christ, I had the most horrible nightmares that I'd never see you again."
"Shh. Don't think about that anymore. That's over." She kissed the top of his head, which was pressed against her shoulder. "What's important now is that we have each other. Along with some pretty wonderful kids, and a way to get out of these mountains." Regretfully she looked towards the sky as she spoke, "Damn, I guess we'd better go soon. They're probably looking for us to get back to camp."
"Not yet. I told them we'd be gone a while. We have plenty of time. The kids are fine, they're with Yale."
She responded, "But we better get moving so we can start planning tomorrow's route."
John tightened his grip around her, not allowing her to budge. "What's the rush Devon? 'Lonz and Julia are in the best position to get that information. You know, you don't have to be directly involved in all the decisions around here. Are you that anxious to get away from me?" He smiled and stroked her hair as he teased her.
She began to relax as she held his gaze, the tenderness in his voice allaying her concerns. Rather than protest, she joked back, "Don't remind me, you're the person who made all the decisions in my absence. I practically had to steal my group back from you."
He grinned naughtily, "I don't think it's your group anymore."
She reached up to push a few stray curls away from his eyes as he pulled her face closer to his. "As to wanting to get away from you--" He leaned forward to cover her mouth with his before she could protest.
Devon was lying on her cot, unable to sleep. Unfortunately, this was becoming routine. As her physical body grew stronger, her thoughts started to keep her awake at night. No matter how much she chided herself about her behavior, she couldn't keep those unbidden concerns out of her mind. It was driving her crazy. She didn't understand why this was happening to her for she'd never been one to dwell on circumstances she couldn't control. She'd considered that one of her strengths. So why was she now spending her evenings dwelling upon her fears?
Getting the group safely to New Pacifica to set up the colony, the arrival of the colony ship, and the identity of the person who had poisoned her were some of concerns which plagued her. She'd even had nightmares about them. In the most recent one, the colony ship miraculously appeared on the horizon above them. After a moment of jubilant cheering by the members of Eden Advance, the ship exploded in a sickening burst, casting debris all about.
Normally she could handle these types of situations. Any head of a multi-orbit firm knew that progress couldn't be made without venturing forth in this fashion. She'd even enjoyed ‘playing the game' for her instincts were finely honed and she usually came out on top. Perhaps it was the fact that the stakes were higher now; people's lives were involved rather than simply money or jobs.
However, the fact that someone had gotten so close to her, that they had tried to kill her, had ultimately dented her self-confidence. For once she felt vulnerable. This being new territory for her, she wasn't sure how to employ damage control. She became convinced that resolving this question would help her regain her equilibrium and allow her to sleep nights.
Telling John about their theories regarding her illness hadn't changed anything, but it had made her feel better. When Julia and Alonzo returned to camp the next day, she was going to consult with the doctor about other tests which could be performed. Surely there must be some sort of microscopic residue of the delivery system within her body which could be detected by more sensitive tests. She was more than willing to undergo the discomfort of the assays, since not knowing the truth had been slowly gnawing away at her. She'd been relieved by John's firm stance that no one in the group could've poisoned her. Now, if she could just completely convince herself of it, to get rid of that nagging feeling within her.
Of course, making love in the clearing with John hadn't been part of her plans. She was shocked by her behavior, normally she wasn't such an impulsive person. While she was allowing herself to admit to her feelings for John, a physical relationship between them was best put off, at least until they established the colony. Yet, today she couldn't help herself. Afterwards, warning bells had clanged loudly within her. She didn't need more things to worry about. Her experience with her former husband made her leery of romantic liaisons. But...it had been wonderful. So wonderful that they'd made love a second time in the meadow and she half wished she'd invited him to join her in her tent that evening, since for the duration of her illness, her son had been bunking with Yale.
She shook her head to clear her thoughts - what was she thinking? She wasn't some love struck teenager - was she? She didn't want to move that fast. She had many other responsibilities to take care of.
"Mom! Mom!" Uly called as he ran into her tent and over to her cot. She sat up to hold her son.
"What's wrong, Uly?"
"It's the Terrians. They don't want us to take the pass."
She hesitated, hoping she misunderstood him. Assuming a soothing tone of voice, she asked, "What are you talking about Uly? What exactly did the Terrians say?"
He sat down on the edge of her cot, beside her. "Well, it was more like a feeling."
"I see," Devon replied as she put her arms around her son and began to stroke his hair. To calm him down, she asked gently, "Are you sure honey? I know sometimes the Terrians can be hard to understand. Why don't we check with Alonzo in the morning?"
Uly was still upset. "What are we gonna do Mom? The Terrians are our friends. I don't wanna do something that they don't want us to."
"I don't want to do anything like that either. Let's just calm down. We'll check with Alonzo as soon as we can, okay?" Judging his shaken appearance, she added, "Wanna stay with me tonight?"
He nodded vigorously and curled up beside her. After she covered him up with the blanket, he fell asleep within minutes. She held him closely, for she'd missed being this close to her son.
Had her son simply misunderstood the Terrians? Now she really wasn't going to be able to sleep.
Story Notes:
Hi everyone,
"The Road Not Chosen" is a story which continues some of the ideas I started in my earlier Earth 2 stories ("Grieving Time", "Stepping Stones", and "Boundaries"). I'm aware that some people may not have read these, or may not remember them, so if you need to be filled in on background details -- feel free to drop me a line, or check out Paula or Andy's websites for copies of those stories. I've tried to provide some more pertinent background information within the story itself.
I had several goals in mind while working on this piece. I wanted to tie up previous loose ends (mostly regarding how Devon was poisoned, and her lack of a bio-stat implant --which has always bugged me), take Devon and Danziger's relationship a tiny step forward, and have the colonists learn more about the unusual features of G889 during the course of their journey. Don't worry -- it's *not* just a Devon and Danziger story! There's *much* more to it!
I feel compelled to make the following acknowledgments. The title of this piece was loosely inspired by Robert Frost's poem, "The Road Not Taken", and Alonzo's plea to the Terrians was inspired by First Corinthians Chapter 12, verses 12-31. In addition, I want to thank Lynn Leaper for metaphysical and Gaian hypotheses discussions; Maxine McBrinn for insightful comments about the nature of relationships; and I need to acknowledge the Babylon 5 episode "The Soul Hunters" which furnished additional inspiration for this story. Finally I want to thank Tracy Taylor, and members of the fanfic critique group --especially Deb Franklin, Nicole Mayer, Maxine McBrinn, and Deb Wilson for their time and helpful comments.
Since this is a long story with 11 chapters, I'll be posting a chapter a day. I usually don't write such long author's notes but this will probably be the last story I'll be posting for a while. Not that I don't have more ideas for our intrepid band of colonist --- far from it. I'm starting a new life adventure, I'm having a baby in May -- wish me luck!
I'd *love* to hear your comments about the story and I hope you enjoy reading it.
Joan
"The Road Not Chosen" is a story which continues some of the ideas I started in my earlier Earth 2 stories ("Grieving Time", "Stepping Stones", and "Boundaries"). I'm aware that some people may not have read these, or may not remember them, so if you need to be filled in on background details -- feel free to drop me a line, or check out Paula or Andy's websites for copies of those stories. I've tried to provide some more pertinent background information within the story itself.
I had several goals in mind while working on this piece. I wanted to tie up previous loose ends (mostly regarding how Devon was poisoned, and her lack of a bio-stat implant --which has always bugged me), take Devon and Danziger's relationship a tiny step forward, and have the colonists learn more about the unusual features of G889 during the course of their journey. Don't worry -- it's *not* just a Devon and Danziger story! There's *much* more to it!
I feel compelled to make the following acknowledgments. The title of this piece was loosely inspired by Robert Frost's poem, "The Road Not Taken", and Alonzo's plea to the Terrians was inspired by First Corinthians Chapter 12, verses 12-31. In addition, I want to thank Lynn Leaper for metaphysical and Gaian hypotheses discussions; Maxine McBrinn for insightful comments about the nature of relationships; and I need to acknowledge the Babylon 5 episode "The Soul Hunters" which furnished additional inspiration for this story. Finally I want to thank Tracy Taylor, and members of the fanfic critique group --especially Deb Franklin, Nicole Mayer, Maxine McBrinn, and Deb Wilson for their time and helpful comments.
Since this is a long story with 11 chapters, I'll be posting a chapter a day. I usually don't write such long author's notes but this will probably be the last story I'll be posting for a while. Not that I don't have more ideas for our intrepid band of colonist --- far from it. I'm starting a new life adventure, I'm having a baby in May -- wish me luck!
I'd *love* to hear your comments about the story and I hope you enjoy reading it.
Joan