The Fern Tender (17 page)

     “I need to take a reading Director.” Ellen spoke in a firm voice.

     Looking at her with bewilderment the Director shot back. “A reading, what is that?”

     “Lillian and I need to be outside in order to measure the energy of the moon. We are of no use to you down here in this bunker thing. At a minimum we need to pop outside for a few minutes, feel the air, feel the sky. Get a feel for cosmos. Then we’ll report back our thoughts. Send a guard if you want. Deal?”

     He complied, “Fine. Do what you need to. Just hurry. I need to update the president but then let’s all meet back here in 30 minutes for your thoughts.”

     They made their way to the first elevator then the next followed by the guard the director had assigned.. As they exited the building, the electricity began to flicker on and off.  Lillian muttered low to Ellen, “Measure the energy of the moon? You are convincing, I’ll give you that. We’re outside. Now what?”

     “Now this. Here comes my son. Hang on. Let’s do this.” Just as Ellen finished speaking, a car came screeching to a stop directly in front of both them. The driver's side door flew open, and the man from the car jumped out and knocked the guard out with a pistol to the head. It was all a flash, and it took a few seconds for Lillian to comprehend what she was seeing. She then stood paralyzed after she realized who this man was. “Get in Lillian! Get in!” Ellen yelled.

     Ellen pushed Lillian into the back seat of the car, and they began driving out of the complex. “Good job AJ” Ellen remarked.

     Lillian shouted, “AJ! Andrew! Oh My God again! What the fuck! Andrew, you are Ellen’s son?”

     Andrew, keeping his eyes on the road and foot on the accelerator, shot back, “Who are you Lillian. I had no idea I was picking you up. Mother, you know her?”

     “Yes, children. I know you both very well. Now drive Andrew James. Move it. Get on the freeway and head to the mountains. We’re going to the home of your Mother and your ancestors and leaving this shithole to burn in its own erectile juices. Haul ass boy!”

     Unable to speak, Lillian twisted her hair with her fingers and sat in the back watching as the Capital flew by. Ellen was right, there were fires burning, cars wrecked, people walking with guns. It was a horrible scene. The place was unraveling before their eyes. Still, no one was following them. They had a good head start.

     Lillian finally spoke. “So, Andrew that’s why you wouldn’t drink iced tea yesterday. You only drink boiled water, like coffee.”

     “Yes, I still listen to my mother sometimes. How do you two know each other?” Andrew asked.

     Ellen responded, “It's a long story, but we’re both Fern Tenders from the Colony. Lillian is the current Fern Tender, son. “

     Trying to digest the whole thing too, Andrew responded “So those fairy tales you told me when I was little about the place called the Colony are true?”

     “Yes, AJ. All of it. There is a place that exists, with magic, beauty, peace, and independence. We’re going there now if you can keep us from getting caught.” Ellen said.

     Ellen turned back to Lillian,  “Lillian let me finish my explanation for the my alchemy hocus pocus stuff at the CDC. This may be hard to believe, but I have been a spy. That’s why I left the Colony. Regina and the board have known what you knew all along too, that the wheel would stop on your tour of duty in the Ferns. I agreed to be sent to the Capitol long ago in order to monitor the idiots through the slowdown of the wheel, but ultimately I’ve been here to protect you. Exhibit A - Today and you’re on your way out and you’re safe.”

     Just as Lillian was about to respond, Andrew whispered, “Oh shit. Oh shit.There’s a roadblock.”

     The city was behind them now. Instead of parked cars and looters there were woods and fields on both sides of them. If you didn’t know better you’d think this was a normal day. The marines at the roadblock looked as if they may not know what was happening. As Andrew slowed the car, there were a couple of cars in front. One marine checked licenses calmly while the others were joking around with each other.

     Ellen stepped into the tension with a request, “Let’s all just be calm. OK? We have to get past these guys.”

     The first marine walked up to the car, “I need to see your license please.”

     Andrew provided it. Then the man took a hard look around the car. His eyes stopping and gazing at Lillian. Not only had her beauty had caught his eye something else did as well.

     He motioned to the other two joking around, “Captain can you show me those photos again? We may have a match here.”

     The captain walked to the car looked at the photos, then again at the passengers. “No private, that’s not them.”

     “I swear that’s her, sir may I see the photos again Captain.” The private politely requested.

     “I’m sorry private you cannot see the photos again and step aside and walk back to the truck for a minute. That’s an order.” The Captain commanded.

     Waiting for the private to be out of earshot and out of sight, the Captain poked his hand through the driver’s seat and grabbed Andrew’s hand, “AJ my man. You look as ugly as you did back in the shit. I have no idea why these beauties are with you. Good to see you though. Don’t say a word. I didn’t see you or them. Now move your ass out of here. Go! Move it!”

     With their hearts about to pump from the chests and with sweat on Andrew’s brow they drove through the roadblock, an accelerated towards the Colony.

     “I saved his life in the war. He’s a good man” was all Andrew said.

     Again they all rode in silence. The events of the day were too much for words. Lillian stared out the window, wondering what was next. Time was running short, she had to get back to the Ferns and wheel for the final reading.

     The peaks of the mountains in front of them marking the only entrance to the Colony from the Capitol were growing as the car approached the boundary. in the late afternoon light they looked purple. Quietly Lillian now thought, what was next? These people were desperate, could they get into the Colony? The ridge of the mountains stood at 36,000 feet above the gulf making the thin air at that level impossible for helicopters to penetrate the natural barrier and there were no air strips inside the mountains.

     And on cue just as Lillian finished her thought a line of blackhawk helicopters appeared behind them. As they drove into the foothills and then into the gorge, the choppers thwacked the air buzzing up and down back and forth looking for a way to run the car off the road. Soon the gorge got too steep and narrow for them to follow Andrew’s driving any longer and they turned back.

     Assured they couldn’t get in with helicopters alone, Lillian barked at Andrew “There’s going to be a guard's house on the road up here on you’re right in a couple of miles. I want you to stop and let me out. Understand? Wait for me in the car.”

     Making their way around the bend to Chris the guard's house Andrew stopped the car as she requested. Lillian got out and ran into the house to talk to Chris. She emerged a minute later with a chainsaw. “Andrew get out I need your help. I don’t know anything about this machine. Start it for me and chop that tree there and that one there across the road.”

     “OK, but they’re huge.” She stopped him mid sentence. “We have to block the road. We’re safe from the choppers, but laying these two trees down will slow them enough for now. Once we’re in, I’ll have the men in the Colony chop more. There’s only 15 hours left anyway, with enough chopped trees should be able to stop anyone coming in from the road for that amount of time.”

     Fifteen minutes and one sore back later they were in the car with two huge sequoia trees laying on across the road. They sped on to the village.

Chapter 9

A New King

     “Wow. This is beautiful. This place is amazing.” Andrew remarked, as they drove deeper into the Colony. “I had no idea this was even here, its just stunning. It is a paradise.”

     Finally the road came to a stop at the foot of the village. The two Fern Tenders led Andrew out of the car and they walked into the village. With Andrew in tow, they knew they had some explaining to do with the board. Lillian was nervous. She didn’t want to think about what might happen if the board discarded their request to keep Andrew in the Colony and safe from the reset.

     Ellen looked at Lillian, “Let me handle the Andrew situation, OK?”

     “Sure. But I’d like to contribute. You’ve been gone a long time,” Lillian replied.

     Walking briskly together towards the village center, she answered with one word “Fine.”

     Ellen silently noted that the Colony hadn’t changed much in her absence. It had been twenty five years since she, Regina, and the board made the decision to put one of their own in the Capitol. During her tour as Fern Tender she like Lillian had seen the wheel slow dramatically. Back then Regina and Ellen became concerned and they thought through various scenarios regarding what looked to be a pending reset. In the end, they decided the best path would be to keep traditions and protocol as is with the exception of putting one of their own into the Capitol as a way to monitor and assist the next Fern Tender. Knowing the job for the next one would be excruciating and depressing, they felt Lillian would need some help from time to time and at a minimum a guardian angel. Times had changed in the thousands of years since the last reset and now the Capitol was full of technology and vice, ways to escape and ways to change sides if she wanted. They could not afford Lillian to crack up under the pressure or flip to the Capitol and put the Colony and its protector of the Ferns in jeopardy.

     Although Ellen’s role, basically a spy for the Colony, began in sacrifice as the years went by and she enjoyed her new freedom and indulged herself with her magic. However, despite the half blood child, the witches, the building full of sexual pleasure, she never wavered in her commitment to the board and to the Colony to help protect Lillian. Most times she never directly interfered with Lillian’s activities in the Capitol, mostly she just listened when Lillian needed to talk. Then there were other times, not many - but still enough times she could see Lillian through in her visions making reckless decisions in the Capitol and Ellen would send in one of her spirits to guide her to safety.

     Although she knew of it, Ellen also worked very hard on keeping her distance from Andrew and Lillian’s budding relationship. Ellen knew that if she meddled, then the magic of Lillian and Andrew together would become weak and could kill the relationship. That was perhaps the hardest part. Waiting and waiting for Lillian and Andrew’s own brand of magic to take hold. The frustration of watching them both vacillate about their love for each other and then waiting until the last minute for them to finally bring themselves together was excruciating. Having to trust fate, hoping that her son would make it out of the Capitol during the reset was the hardest thing she had ever done. They had made it, and to Ellen’s surprise Lillian was his savior, his ticket out. Despite all of her power and magic Ellen was always overwhelmed with joy and intrigue when the universe one upped her. And today getting both Lillian and Andrew out and to safety was one of those moments. She felt proud.

     But for now, she had one last hurdle. She had to have Regina and the board approve Andrew’s amnesty.

     As the three of them walked through the village, the women, men, and children stared. Some of the older ones recognized Ellen and came up to greet her. Andrew was on the receiving end of the most eyes, as they gazed at the darker skinned smaller much thinner man. Even Though the Colony was the most intellectual and intelligent communities on the planet, it was still very homogeneous. Having a skinny black man in the village was a first.

     The school children were finished with their lessons for the day, so the three went directly to Regina’s classroom. Regina greeted them all with warms hugs and tears in her eyes for Ellen.

     Regina drew back from her hug and held Ellen at arms length to see her better, silently noting how much she had aged she then spoke, “Ellen, it's been a long time. You’re home. You served us all well. Here we are in the eve of the reset with everyone from the Colony all in one place.”

     “Yes, Regina. It’s good to be here.” Ellen answered.

     Just as Ellen finished speaking, the other three board members appeared. All exchanging hugs and greetings with Ellen. She introduced Andrew to each one and then asked him to leave them and wait in the courtyard.

     Fat sloppy raindrops began to sprinkle the courtyard as the door to the classroom shut. Andrew sat in silence alone waiting for the vote. Regina wasted no time, “Ladies, the world is running out of time, the reset is at hand. We as souls have been both blessed and cursed to live through an interesting time. In a few minutes, as is custom, Ellen, Lillian, and I will leave for the wheel. When we reach the wheel we will take its final reading and we will obey its request.”