OFF:
request for a dialog on establishing a communications protocol.
I believe it would benefit the story if we can all agree on a set of procedures for establishing communications between our characters....we are for the most part separated in the story, not only by distance but by time as well. We each have our independent story-lines going and are on "different" days.

Live Communication: voice, phone, radio<<seems to me this would require for both characters to be on the same day. Or the character that's most current..farther ahead in the time line should be doing the "writing" of the communication...(writers should communicate behind the scenes and agree on the content of the dialog) then when the other character reaches that day...simply reference it happening.

PM's and E' and Notes/letters/recordings: these can be invented by a character that's on say the 25th....but of course they can't be received before they're written..
so for ex> person on 25th writes pm>>.to someone who's on the 30th...the person on the 30th would have to do a flash-back or the old "look what I found that I must have missed" thing<<which will become a cliche after the second or third time around. So I propose we agree to have whoever is "in the future" do the writing..and then send it then..unless it's a very urgent thing

September 30th
07:00- I find myself setting here at my sister's breakfast table with a bowl of frosted flakes soaked in 'Pet' milk...yuck...guess I better get used to it. Been here now 4 days...didn't find anyone. We've been going thru the different Post stores, warehouses, armory, ordnance. We gathered up an assortment of equipment, supples and I'm getting restless again. I've been reading this flight manual on the UH-60 in secret now for the past 3 days...each day we drive by the Air Field and see them setting there...we could sure cover a lot more ground with one of those. Weareborg is getting better and better with his driving..and I've almost gotten used to DL6's. Aside from the bad food...crashing here at the General's house hasn't been bad.....[attachmentid=1780]but I can remember all the kids and the back-yard barbeques...it will never be the same. DL6 has been working on her tan in her "daisy dukes" and Weareborg...Weareborg is always disappearing on us...playing video games and in the pool mostly...the heat and bugs are horrible around here.

September 30th, 2004

10:00 A.M. I gather up some pictures and personal items of my sister's and stuff them in a duffel. It's time to 'blow this joint' . I slide open the patio door and step into the back yard were DL6 and WAB have been 'relaxing' this early morning. Before I can speak, DL6 raise the 'hat' and lowered her shades an inch down her nose, looking up at me from the patio lounger and inquires: "are we done here, HB, it's a real nice place to visit but we weren't planning on living here! We all lost people we love...but we got to go on." Just then as I stopped in my tracks..WAB chimed in from the floating lounger in the pool, "yea, we need to go check on those astronauts...remember, Hey guys, I've been meaning to tell ya'll I got a plan. DL6 and I together said: "Shut up, WAB!"
WAB:"But...."
HB (I adjust my SG-1 cap, don my shades) :"I was just about to say...let's load 'em up"

DL6 and WAB begin running for there rooms....obviously more that ready to "get out of Dodge"

Like all good house guests we had trashed the place, emptied the Fridge/Freezer/ Cabinets, left a lot of dirty dishes everywhere. I had sent WAB to "break' the fence and let the General's Prize horses have 'free range' the day we arrived. It was 2 p.m. before we were 'good to go' and the Hummer convoy of two pulled out the driveway. Weareborg insisted on driving 'his' Hummer, and we make him promise not to stay behind us and not to wonder off.

The hours seemed only to pass like minutes as I sat cross legged on the floor in front of the shower's mirrored panel looking at and talking to Daniel. I was wrapped only in a towel and I was weary from the excitement and shock of seeing Daniel. I looked into his eyes, oh those eyes, how I remember the time he was on his knees looking up at me with those blue eyes pleading that I agree to a marriage with him. How could I refuse his request or anything with those blue eyes pulling me to his will. Daniel encouraged me to get my clothes and dress as there were thing that had to be done. I begged him not to have me leave the room and the mirror behind fearing that if I left he would be lost to me again. He was firm in his demand and I weakly yielded to his request. I pressed my hands to the mirror looking at him as I kissed him through the glass and reluntantly left for my clothes.

As I entered the laundry mat and walked to my dryer in the glass on the door was a faint reflection of Daniel. Daniel laughed and asked what took me so long. After that I had no fear of ever losing Daniel again. I dressed and listened as Daniel told me his plans for us, actually me, as he was limited to the things he could do. He said turning the CD player on in his truck was easy and it was just a matter of using his energy rather than his hands. Turning his truck off proved impossible as it was a fuel hauler and nothing within the engine could spark or ignite. He did notice that he could turn other machines on and off with little trouble.

During our chatting I went throughout the truck stop collecting the things Daniel was listing as he spoke. He wanted us to leave the stop and journey homeward but first I had to learn to drive his truck. I thought it was silly to have me driving the thing. Daniel was persistent in his demand that I drive his truck and finally I agreed to try to learn.

On a bright sunny day I walked out to the truck to see Daniel's reflection in the left wing mirror watching me approach. He instructed me to release the haul of gasoline and climb aboard in the drivers seat. I sat there with Daniel absent from my view then realized I had to turn the right wing mirror in to see the passenger seat. There Daniel appeared in the mirror. I giggled an apology to him. Daniel gave me a stern look and then instructed me to start the truck. It's engine roared alive and I listened to the instructions as Daniel explained the clutch and the dreaded double clutching. It must of been a sight if there would of been anyone there to watch as that handsome Peterbilt truck took the blunt of my learning to drive. It shimmied in the lot moving forward then having it's brake slammed down, the gears grinded then and Daniel voicing outrage at the top of his lungs to my attempts to control the truck. Finally after a few more attempts I had the truck going through the lot smoothly. I pulled in front of the truck stops door, gathered the supplies, and stored them on the top bunk of the sleeper in the truck. I was about to call the dogs when Daniel shook his head no. "We're not ready for the boys yet Pretty One." I looked curiously at his reflection as he nodded to the haul of another truck, "we need to find an empty one." I shook my head no. "Daniel, I learned to drive a bobtail and maybe I could drive a step-van but a 18 wheeler? No way!" It took me most of the day of finding keys opening the back of the trucks and looking for a empty truck or one that I could empty with not too much work. It was around 4 in the morning I had found a truck with half a loaded of 'White Cloud'. If anyone ever said toilet paper wasn't heavy they were lying. By 7:30 I had the toilet paper unloaded and the truck pulled out of the way. I sat in the drivers seat of Daniel's truck carefully backing it to the trailer watching the reflection of Daniel as we hook his truck to the haul.

Sept. 20-
Well, it did take longer…darkness, combined with fog & abandoned vehicles was not a good combination for driving. We spent the night in a Holiday Inn Express, but Killer Jones didn’t seem any smarter, only more irritating. He woke me up bright & early, scratching at the door.
“OK, Jones…just let me get my pants on, will ya…hold on!” When I opened the door, he made a mad dash across the parking lot and out into the street. “At least I won’t have to worry about him getting hit by a car,” I thought to myself. He stood there, looking up & down the street, as though searching for something. He must have made up his mind, for all of a sudden, he raced away, barking happily.
“Jones…Get Back Here…come on, boy…we don’t have time for this…Stupid Dog…Stupid #%!* Dog!!!” I grumbled as I went to retrieve my shoes.
Back outside, I could still hear him, so I started to follow…”Haven’t even had my coffee yet…Dumb Mutt!”
When I finally caught up to him, he was scratching away at the door to the Police Station. “What could you possibly need in here?…Come on fella, I need my coffee…” He wouldn’t budge. “Well, alright, if you must insist.” As I started to open the door, he squeezed in through the crack, and started sniffing around the room. Then he sat down and looked at me, ears perked up and eyes alert. “Satisfied?” I growled. He looked over his shoulder, down a long hallway. Just then, I heard a strange, barely audible noise….

"Now let's see. Columbian Park Zoo. Where is that street? AHA! Here it is!" Lida said to herself as she traced the street on the map with her finger. Just then a ray of sun caught the pink diamond that sparkeled on her finger. One of the gifts Aaron had sent her for her birthday. She looked at it and thought it was time to go wake him.

She walked back to her room and she "tap, tap, tapped" on the door. "HUH!" She heard him say like she had awoken him. "It's me. You decent? Can I come in?" She called through the closed door. "Sure, come on in. I'm awake." Lida went in. "You hungry? I made breakfast. Yours in down in the kitchen whenever you want to eat. But we need to get going." She said. "Get going? He asked "Where are we going?" Since she had made this plan after he had fallen asleep he had no idea what she was talking about. "To the ZOO!" She told him. "What?" He asked. "WHY??" He said in a moaning voice. "We have to set the animals free. If we don't the ones that haven't already straved to death in there will die. We have to do this Aaron. Either you come with me or I'll go by myself. It's your choice. Now what will it be?" She said angrily. But I just spent the last two days driving, I'm tired Lida." He whined. She stood there with her arms folded arcoss her chest and tapped her foot on the carpet, waiting.

Aaron flopped back down on the bed. "Do I have time for a shower?" He asked. Lida answered. "Yes, just hurry will you Please?" Lida left the room saying I'll meet you down in the kitchen. "K, Sweetie." He answered.

After Aaron ate, he and Lida went out to the parking lot to look for a new vehicle. The UPS truck she had driven loaded with the animals smelled so bad she had to park it away from the front door, way in back of the hotel. "Can you hot wire a car Aaron?" She asked him. "We don't have any keys you know." She told him. "No problem." He answered. They walked the lot for a minute until Lida spotted a little Miata Rag-top. "Oh, this will get us there quick. How about this one?" Aaron gave it a quick look. "Yea, ok, get in and pop the hood, let me take a look." Lida got behind the wheel and popped the hood. Aaron leaned in and fumbled around for a minute then it started. "Let's go." He said as he jumped over the door and into the seat beside her.

They headed out of town towards the Zoo.

According to the map they had about a half hour drive to the zoo. About 15 minutes after they left the hotel lot, up ahead on the road, in the distance they could see something moving along the road ahead of them. "Look Aaron." Lida said as she pointed. Aaron had dozed off and she had to give him a shake. "LOOK AARON!" She yelled at him. "HUH? What?" He said. They both kept their eyes fixed on this odd looking vehicle up ahead of them. They could see it was being pulled by a horse. Lida downshifted and rolled up next to it and they both looked over to see an older bearded man dressed in a white shirt looking back at them. The man waved them over to the side of the road where he was stopping. Lida pulled up in front of the buggy and stopped. They both got out and walked back to the buggy.

Lida said to Aaron quietly as they approached him. "I thought only STF.Net members were the only people left. This doesn't look right, does it?" She asked him. "Sussh now, let me do the talking, ok?" Lida nodded in agreement.

"Hello" Aaron said to the man. "I'm Aaron and this is Lida. We were on our way to the zoo." The man didn't say anything right off he just sat there. He cleared his throat. " My name is Abraham. Nice to meet you both." He answered. "You folks from around here?" He asked. "No, I'm up here from Kentucky and Lida here is from Wisconsin. Let me ask you something, Abraham, have you noticed anything strange around here in the past 4 or 5 days?" Abraham look relieved and said. "Golly, gracious young man, I thought we were going through the Rapture and everyone was gone except me and my family. They are all back at the farm." Aaron thought for a minute then asked him. "Are you Amish, Abraham?" "Why yes, yes I am." He answered. "Becka won't believe this when I tell her there are still people here besides us. Come on back to the farm with me and show her and my younguns." He asked. Lida spoke up. "Abraham, we have urgent business at the zoo, can we come to your place on our way back?" She asked him. 'Sure, I'll show ya where it is then you just come back down this same road and you'll remember where it is, that alright?" Aaron agreed and so did Lida. They followed Abraham in his buggy to his farm. Then waved good-bye and continued towards the zoo.



[attachmentid=1797]

"Well, what do you make of that?" Aaron asked Lida. "Well, Sweetie, the only logical answer would be that they are STF.Net members too. The whole family."
Lida thought for a second then said. "Well, it IS a family site, isn't it?" They both laughed.

"There it is!" Aaron said as they approached the Zoo entrance. They drove in through the arch in down the pavement towards the enclosures and pens. Slowly they observed some dead or dying animals laying on the ground. A Peacock ran in front of the car an Lida almost hit it. "He must have flown over the fence." She said. Lida stopped the car and they both got out. "O.K., you go down that side of the walk-way and try whatever you have to do to free every animal you can and get those hoses going, fill up the water troughs and try to find the food, alright?" They set about for the next few hours releasing the smaller animals first making sure they ate something and drank before the gates were opened. The monkeys scattered in every direction. The goats, rams and elk rans like they were being chased. The giraffs and lemmings took off like a shot across a field. The Giant Apes were next . After the least dangerous animals were free they back tracked in the order of the least to the most dangerous and proceded to free them. The lions, bears and the tigers were the last to be let out. "Get the car running now and bring it here so we can get away quick, one of them might try to attack us." Lida told Aaron. He got the car started and drove over to the Polar Bear Pen and waited. Then around one side Lida came running like her pants were on fire. She jumped in the car and said "GO!" They took off out of there in a streak and a flash.

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WOW that was fun!!!
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Can't wait til we do this again
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[attachmentid=1798]

September 30th, 2004
14:30 hours

We round the corner, and I take a left onto the air field, as DL6’s eyes start to get big...”oh no! You ant thinking what I think you’re thinking….are you?”

HB: “well…..their here….we’re here….it’s a bright sunny day….sometimes you just got to say…..what the f#$%!”
DL6 (looks at me with a ’ no’ look on her face shaking her head):”….. mmmmmm, what the !@#$, yea…right!"
We get out of the Hummer as Weareborg pulls up in the Best Buy Hummer.
HB: (grins at DL6): ‘come on….how hard can it be?….I just won’t be able to live with myself if I don’t at least try!”
DL6:”yea, it’s the ‘living’ part that’s got me worried…..no Hb!...it’s not worth it...come on now…”stomps her foot.
WAB (walks up): “kool guys…just…”
HB &DL6: “shut up, WAB!”
WAB: ”But…but…”
DL6:” hb, do you know anything about flying?”
Hb: “I got 16 hrs on a single engine piper. Here, hold on to ‘ditto’."
I hand the little dog to DL6. Start toward a UH-60a.
WAB: “guys…”
DL6( passes the dog on to WAB): "shut up WAB and hold this…hay…mister not so fast….I got friends that fly…I’ve got a better chance of handling that thing than you.”

We both climb in, and don’t notice WAB has climbed in too, taking up a position at one of the waist M-60 machine guns….where he proceeds to load it all without any notice from us as we fight over the correct ‘start up” procedure. We must have ‘accidentally” got it right, cause the chopper came to life.. I pulled back on the collective and increased rotor speed and the chopper began to lift off the ground…then we ran into a little trouble…the chopper began to “turn’ around in circles...and I noticed DL6 had her foot on one of the pedals.
HB: ”Do you mine?”
DL6:” Shut up, Hb, I’m driving!”
HB: ”like hell”
Just then, WAB decided to “get our attention” by clearing the chamber of the machine gun. The sudden sound made me glance back over my shoulder toward the sound of the machine gun fire but I glanced over the wrong shoulder and saw nothing but empty helicopter…and my foot hit the right pedal. The nose of the chopper made a sudden turn to the right…the aft section suddenly displacing to the left…WAB flew out of the chopper managing to just barely grab hold of the machine gun barrel and was holding on for dear life…we were about a 100 feet off the ground. There was no way of hearing Weareborg’s frantic screams of panic over the sound of the rotors.
HB to DL6: “Did you hear that? Sounded like someone shooting at us.” The chopper continued to spin and dip around…DL6 glanced back over her left shoulder and saw Weareborg dangling from the machine gun barrel. And directed my attention over my other shoulder.

HB: “WAB, get your rear back in here…stop clowning around” I yell over the com.
WAB( continues to scream in terror)
HB to DL6: “ go back there and get him in here”
DL6: “you go back there….why you always giving orders… you do it…I’m flying!”
Hb: get your !@# back there now!
DL6: "all right!" (she shoves the control stick to the left as she’s heading back there. And the chopper banks back to the left while spinning around .
Hb:" whoa..…horsey"

DL6 had the good sense to fasten a safety strap to the roof of the chopper but as she approaches WAB to help him back inside she grabs the machine gun by the pistol grip….Weareborg noticing this and the fact that the muzzle of the gun was aimed at his nose…..lets out a wild scream of “Nooooo” manages to land a kick of the bottom of his right foot squarely against DL6’s face, and simultaneously manages to remove his head out of the front of the muzzle just as DL6 accidentally squeezes the trigger. The blow to the face knocks DL6 unconscious and she slumps over the machine gun dangling from the safety strap, with her finger caught on the trigger. Weareborg continues to hang precariously from the barrel of a now firing wildly machine gun, screaming his head off trying to keep vital parts of his anatomy from being shot off while the chopper spins, and the machine gun swings around. The bullets meanwhile have found their mark in the gas tank of the Best Buy ‘geek mobile’- it explodes as the trail of bullets continue to strafe along the concrete and strike a stack of fuel drums near-by which begin to leak fuel which in turn begins to spill out on the ground and run towards the now burning Hummer. Meanwhile, I am busy trying to get the chopper under control and notice nothing but the sound of the machine gun fire.
HB:” Knock it off back there, this isn’t the time for target……..” I turn and see that Weareborg is now hanging head first out of the chopper with one leg tangled in the machine gun belt. Then I notice my little dog “ditto” dancing around on the pavement barking wildly as bullets impact all around her.
HB to DL6: “Don’t shoot my dog!”
Just then DL6 is coming to, and the machine gun jams as WAB’s ankle wedges itself against the feed port of the weapon. DL6 begins to drag the little guy in as I see his eyes get big again…there’s a pause in his screaming….then the start of huge scream of holy terror. I turn and look as the tail rotor dips inside a hanger and shears off the tail of the helicopter…I drop the collective…and the power…and we drop the last dozen feet like a rock…a landing gear is driven threw the floor, the chopper lays over to that side as the rotor blades strike the pad and come to a stop . This Blackhawk is down!

" "

We're all dazed, but ok as the smell of fuel brings us all around, we all evac the wrecked chopper and run toward a near-by ditch at the edge of the pad near the hanger and dive in as the whole mess explodes. My dog was already there waiting for us.

HB:"everyone o.k?"
DL6: O.K.!!???...o.k.??!!!
WAB: "wow...what a rush!"

DL6 pounced on me while I lay there in the grass, and began to slap me repeatedly, beating on me, and cursing like a sailer. Again, WAB got up and ran off without our notice....till we heard the sound of another 'Blackhawk' coming to life. DL6 stopped slapping me, and exclaimed "no way! you got to go stop him HB-he'll get himself killed." But it was too late by the time I got to my feet, crossed the field....WAB had lifted off and was starting to make his first circle of the field, somewhat ugly flying, but he was flying...I stood there waving my arms for him to bring it down....he just made low passes...buzzing me and forcing me to dive for cover. It was clear after the first 10 minutes....this kid couldn't drive...but he sure could fly.
DL6 had retreated to the tail of a nearby Army hummer, where she had broke out the camping stove and was grilling the last of our hot dogs and bologna..We set there watching WAB showing off for 10 minutes or so..then the smell or sight of 'food' brought him down...he landed the chopper smoothly in front of us...powered down, climbed out and started to swagger over toward us with a bemused look on his face. As he approached, I gathered my duffle and walked toward him...as he opened his mouth to speak...I shoved a hot dog in his hole and continued toward the chopper and began loading our supplies.
WAB(when he could talk with a mouthful of hot dog): "Thanks! May I have extra mustard?"
DL6 began squeezing the mustard all over him...still not over the kick to the face.
DL6:" when were you gonna tell us...you could fly that thing?...when did you learn?"
WAB: "I tried to tell y'all, but you wouldn't listen..l've been sneaking off practicing on the Simulator for 3 days now.
HB & DL6: "simulator???"

Backtracking now towards Lafayette, Aaron was watching for a landmark to the farm. "Wasn't there a windmill or something near the entrance to the dirt road?" He asked Lida. "Yea, there was." She answered. "There it is." She said as she pointed to the turning paddles of the windmill off in the distance. Taking the turn they headed towards the farm house and free standing buildings that surrounded it. A large barn with an attatched silo. Many out-buildings and an out-house. Apparently Abraham told his family about them as they all stood out on the front porch looking up the road as Aaron and Lida approached. There stood Abraham and his wife Becka. Three long haired girls flanked Abe and three tall boys Becka. They all came down the steps to greet their guests. "Hello." Abe said as they walked up the front walk. "Hi.' Lida and Aaron said together. "Becka, these are the people I met on the road. Introductions began. Becka said "Nice to meet you, I'm Becka. and these are my daughters. Abigail, Beth and Calliope. And these are my sons. Abel, Bart, short for Bartholomew, and Cain." She said. "Nice to meet you all." Lida said. "Yes, very nice." Aaron added. "Come on in. We've got a nice supper ready, you must be hungry. Becka said. "Yes, that would be lovely, thank you." Lida answered. They all went into the house.

As the girls brought steaming bowls to the table everyone waited. Abe began to speak. "Shall we say the blessing Mother?" They all joined hands and one by one each said a short blessing. Aaron and Lida did as well in their turn.

"So tell us, why did you need to go to the zoo with such urgency Lida?" Abe asked. "I want to free all the animals, Abe. They won't have a chance if they are all locked up, understand?" She asked. "Ah yes, you are taking good care of the animals, truly good work my dear." He smiled at Lida as did the rest of the family.
"You have animals here Abe?" Lida asked. " Ahh yes, out in the barn, we have many. I will show you after we eat." He answered. The meal was delicious. They all ate and chatted like they were old friends. A very pleasant time for all.

After they finished Abe slid his chair back and said. "Well, to the barn? Shall we?" They all went out to the barn. It was a huge building. The huge beams criss-crossed the roof on the inside and pidgeons flew around inside as they walked through. "These are our cows. And down at the end we have the horses and the buggy. Over on one side was a wall of nests, each with a chicken sitting on her nest. The rooster pranced around like he owned the place. A group of cats roamed freely, one with a dead mouse in it's jaws. A special stall was at the end for the goats. A male and female with two babies. 'Come, I have a surprise for you." Abe said as he lead them out the back door towards another smaller building. The children giggled and followed. As they approached this other building, Lida and Aaron heard and unfamiliar sound coming from inside. "OH, My, I can't hardly wait for this one." Lida said. At the double door now Abe lifted off the post that laid across them and set it on the ground. He opened one of the doors. "Come" He told them as he waved them on.

A deafening wailing scream came from inside the building. Then in the dark barn the dust began to fly around and everyone coughed. Lida was eager to see, Aaron, ahhh, not so much. He hung back a little. Lida walked behind Abe and she saw this massive animal before her. A large linked chain attached to a post in the floor. and next to it was a smaller version of it, obviously a baby.

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"Where in the world did you get them?" Lida asked excitedly. "Well, a few months back, the circus was here. After they left town I found "Ella" here wandering around out in the field. I brought her in and the next day she had little "Ephram". her son. We couldn't contact the authorities because being Amish, we don't have telephones. So I decided she was a gift to us from God and we have had her ever since." Abe explained. " She's wonderful." Lida said as she walked around her sliding her hand over her leathery hide. "And little Ephram, your so cute." Lida said as she held the baby's head between her hands and bent over and kissed him. Ella lifted her trunk and roared. As did the baby, imitating his mother.

The powerful avionics modifications on the NASA shuttle transport craft made it quite easy to identify and track the phantom craft heading to New England. As well, the completly empty cabin and cargo area made the plane lighter for a little extra speed - not to mention providing enough space for the Kawasaki Ninja Nik borrowed from a dealership in Houston.

Having gotten used to using the ECIS system, Nik was able to monitor and control most of the craft's functions from the center console. Using the NAV map with radar information and transponder pickup, Nik tracked the craft and its heading. As the plane was on approach to Albany, Nik decided to break the silence. Putting on his headset, he set his frequency for the Albany airport transmission code and spoke.

"Unidentified craft on approach for Albany, this is November-Alpha - two-three-five-zero heavy out of Houston on heading zero-one-niner at three-five-three knots. I'm picking you up on transponder one-four-eight-six at five-four-one knots and heading zero-three-five. I copy your ELT beacon. Do you require assistance?"

Nik heard what sounded like a small scuffle on the other end from what sounded like two people fighting over the comm switch. After several seconds, he received a reply from a somewhat deep and rather dry sounding voice. The surprise was unmistakable.


"This is private craft Challenger 300. We're going to Albany." The man didn't appear to know what to say. Nik checked the course radar on the center panel and thought for a few minutes. If he landed at Albany, he probably wouldn't be able to take off again - even with the plane completely stripped as it was.

"Challenger three-zero-zero, are you alone?" Nik was surprised himself to know that there were other people on the planet. This time a different voice answered. It was a bit faster, somewhat boyish sounding, and the speaker sounded like he was eating.

"It's just me and Lenny here." The voice said. "We have friends back at Lafayette. What is your business."

"Challenger three-zero-zero, intended destination is Kennedy Space Center. I changed course when I picked up your ELT."

After several minutes, we exchanged stories. I was somewhat relieved to find that there were actually hundreds of people left on the planet - maybe more. I discussed my plan to attempt to rescue the astronauts stranded on the ISS. After a few seconds of silence, my thoughts returned to the strip at Albany.

"Challenger three-zero-zero, will you divert course to zero-niner-eight for approach to Juliet-Foxtrot-Kilo? Alpha-Lima-Bravo will not handle my rollout. Please respond."

I made out a few minutes of arguing on the other end, only picking up a couple of recognizable words.

"..... no, I wanna turn the wheel....."

"..... but it's MY turn..... said we could trade...."

"..... expect to do this..... YOU do the map......"

"...... did the map last time......."

As I waited, I looked up the VOR code and checked the approach vectors for JFK airport. Finally, I got an answer.

"We will meet you at JFK."

"Copy that three-zero-zero. I have ETA of one-four-one-two hours. Please be sure to clear the runway when you touchdown."

Yesterday, I was the only person on the planet. Now, I was about to meet a few of hundreds.

As Lida and Aaron and the children played with Ephram an idea occured to Lida.
She walked over to Abe and Becka. "I need to ask you something Abe." She began. "I have some animals at the hotel. They will need tending and someone to look after them. A hotel conference room is no place for them. Could you take them?" She pleaded. "Sure, no problem Lida. Just bring them. We will care for the animals." He said with a smile. "Oh, that's wonderful, thank you. We will bring them tomorrow, will that be alright Abe?" She asked. "Bring them, yes, bring them tomorrow. We look forward to adding to the flock." Abe answered.

As they walked back through the larger barn towards the house the three boys hussled up a ladder to the loft. Abe looked up at them and put his finger up to his pursed lips signaling them to be quiet. A few seconds later Lida and Aaron could hear the sound of an engine running above them. "What is that?" Aaron asked. "Is that a generator up there Abe?" Abe unaccustomed to any sort of deception answered, 'Yes it is." Aaron looked puzzeled and asked. "why would you keep a generator up there?" Suddenly the sound of whisteling came from above. A familiar whisteling. "That's the Andy Griffith Show" Aaron said. "Ah, you've discovered our little secret, I fear." Abe said. "What else you got up there?" Aaron asked. Resigned now that their secret was exposed and not feeling any trepidation he said. "Come, come on up. I will show you."

Lida followed Abe up the ladder. Followed by Aaron who kept his eyes right on Lida's behind the whole way. Becka followed him, then the girls. When they all got up there Aaron said in a loud voice. "WOW! Abe, this looks like Radio Shack up here." Abe then explained. 'With three boys nagging at you day and night about such things I guess I relented and they took over. They love these electonics and such. Me, I don't understand any of this." Aaron walked around the loft. There were T.V.s, CB radios, Ham Radios, computers. Just about everything a growing Einstien could want. The boys all had head-phones on by now and were either on the computer or at one of the microphones trying to get anything. When to Lida and Aaron's amazement what did they see on the computer screen?? The 'StarTrekFans.Net' HomePage!!!! They looked at each other then at Abe and Becka and the children. They all had big smiles on their faces. "Your ALL members, aren't you?" Aaron asked. They all began to laugh. 'That's why your all still here isn't it?"

Lida and Aaron stood there for a second in amazement. It look like Mission Control in Houston up there. Cain and Able had both logged onto the site and were both laughing as they read down the active thread list. Typing madly they both roaring in hysterics.

People on the site were talking now, more freely about the simpler things in life. Like hemmoriods and childbirth and sex. VBG had apparently suspended all the site rules in light of the current situation.

There was an image on the screen of Alterego in a hula skirt and two coconuts on his chest doing the hula. While on the other computer screen Able watched a video of a live human birth.

Bart was doing something over in the corner out of sight. The light from the monitor shining in his face, he looked very intense. "Bart! Stop that!" Abe yelled over to him.

I was tired and wanted to get the journey home underway. I called for the dogs to come aboard the truck. They sat obediently beside a mirrored sunglass display that held for the moment Daniel's reflection. "One more thing for us, you to take Pretty One." Daniel said as he glanced towards a laptop that a trucker had on a table. "I can't that belonged to someone." I said softly. "Crystal, honey he's not coming back for it." Daniel said as I felt the temperature around me grow warm, I realize then that Daniel had hugged me.

Quietly I took the laptop and hurried out the door. Daniel whistled and the dogs immediately responded by following me. I placed the laptop on the passenger seat and then notice Daniel looking down towards it in the mirror. I pulled it off the seat and apologized for being rude to him. Normally both he and I wouldn't have been so sensitive about carrying things for each other but this was not a normal time for either of us.

I topped off the fuel tank and took a few more turns around the lot before starting to head out. Daniel smile at me and nodded. "Go ahead," he said teasingly at me, "I know you want to." "Really?" I questioned. "Yes, it's okay." Daniel answered. With that I headed straight for the 'White Cloud' toilet paper and dozed it. The tissue when high into the air catching the breeze and rolls of the fluffy stuff fell unfurrowed over the lot and part of the truck stop itself. I cried out in pleasure, Daniel gasped stunned by my actions and then explained that he was saying it was okay to blow the horn of the massive truck.

Throughout our journey Daniel and I stopped at malls and stores taking mostly large mirrors some of which barely fill within the trailer. Radio equipment was on the list too but try as I might, I couldn't seem to get Daniel to understand that their wasn't anyone around left to talk to. We rode for hours and stopped at another truck stop as the sun was setting and as it faded behind the hills and trees to the west the image of Daniel was fading in the mirror. I went in only to use the restroom and grab a soda, upon returning I found only my own reflection in the mirror of our sleep cab. I was frightened and then the thought that Daniel might be asleep occurred to me. I angled a small compact mirror from my purse to the bed and found Daniel there soundly sleeping.

Quietly I took the laptop, laid on the bed beside Daniel and flipped open the case. I felt a warm spot on my back and realized that Daniel and I were touching one another. The internet was deathly still and, of course, I didn't bother checking my email, their was no one left to write to me. I thought of my favorite site and typed in www.startrekfans.net. The site was alive and several people were PMing me at the same time. Some were glad I was okay, others wanted to know where I was, and a few inquired about others that had still not been heard from and wanted to know if I have any information. I was overwhelmed by everyone and thankful to know that I wasn't alone in the world like I had thought before. During the PMing I related to everyone that I found my husband and we were returning home. Some were curious to know who on here was my husband and when I explained that he wasn't a member there was what seemed to be agonizing silence before the next PM came. After that gentle loving PMs were sent to me with invitations to visit this member or that member. I realized though not one of my dear friends on here said it to me, that they thought my losing Daniel had caused me to go insane.

Cain and Able reliquished their seats to Lida and Aaron at the computers. They both sat down on the rush-seat chairs and began to type. "OH look Aaron, BlueCrystal is here. I'm going to PM her and see what's going on with her." Lida PMed BlueCrystal and waited for a reply. Aaron PMed a few of his friends too, even though their names weren't up on the Active User list. "We should be getting back soon Lida." Aaron said. "You lose Kes and Baby Tongue in that huge hotel, you'll never find them." He said "Oh, that's right." She answered. They climbed down the ladder followed by Abe and Becka. The children stayed up in the loft.

"Thank you so much for a lovely supper, Becka. And we loved metting your children and Ella and Ephram. We'll come by in the morning with the van and all the animals. Is that alright?" She asked. "That'll be fine dear, anytime you can bring them will be fine." Abe said. They walked to the car and Becka ran into the house and came running back out a moment later with a handful of homemade candles and a box of matches. "Here, in case you don't have electricity at the hotel, these will help." She said as she handed them to Lida. "Thank you Becka, I never thought of that til now." Lida said.

They got in the car, Aaron drove. As they pulled away from the farm they both looked back, then looked at each other. "Nice family." Lida said to Aaron. "Yea, the best kind of people." Aaron answered.

September 30th, 2004

16:00 hours

We have succeeded in completely fueling one of the UH-60L choppers and have began the job of loading it.
HB:"....are you sure WAB?"
WAB:"...yes , says right here in the specs 150 kt...whatever a kt is...I don't know...range 306 nautical miles ...operating time 2.1 hrs ...so my guess a kt must be close to a mile per hour
DL6: " well I'm sure the darn thing has a gas gauge!"
HB: " ok..my pc miler trucking software says it's 200 miles to Houston from here...so we should be ok as long as we don't mess around and get lost."
WAB: "guys I can fly it...I just don't know "which way is to Houston"
DL6:" I'll find some maps and help..this part is easy...my friends showed me this...and how to read the compass instuments...now what do we do about the "useful" supples." she pointed to the burning Hummer. "you loaded WAB down with all the food, and practical stuff...and now all we got are your TOYS." she picked up the M-50 .50 cal anti-material sniper rifle.
HB: "hay, that might come in useful .....at some point...and at least we'll have it...you can't just go down the street and pick one of those up...now can you? Besides you didn't think I'd let 'him'( I glanced at WAB as I loaded up one of the cases of explosives) drive around with this stuff in his Hummer did you?"
DL6:" yes ..exactly....hello...now we are gonna let him fly us...with 400 lbs of C-4 exploses on board!"
HB(as I set the case right behind the pilots seat): "that's why the c-4 is gonna set right here....incentive for him to fly smoothly."
DL6: "we don't even need it...."
HB: "maybe not 'now' but haven't you ever heard ' there's no situtaion that can't be resolved with an approiate charge of C-4?'
WAB:(laughs) "let's see here.....400 lbs of c-4 explosive, 3 mp-5's, 3 9mm pistols, 3 M-16's each with a M-203 40 mm granade launcher, 1- M-249 SAW"
HB( I interrupt his laundry list): that's my SAW..hands off"
WAB(continues): 1 -.50 anti-material rifle, 1- psg1 sniper rifle, 3 LAW rocket launchers, 1-shoulder fired Stinger Missle system, 6 claymore mines, A FlameThrower"
HB: "see right there...a thousand and one uses" I point to the flame-thrower
DL6: ohh...yeah.....I know...I know..."it's a tool"......yeah...like a leaf blower, right!" she picks up a 5 gallon bucket full of assorted grenades..."I suppose the Army packaged these like this..."
HB:" no, but I just wanted some variety...didn't think we'd need whole cases..
WAB: " a fruit basket concept..see "pineapple"...holds up an old Mk-2...and lets see here...phosphorus, tear-gas, flash-bang, incenary, where's the frags Hb?"
HB: ohh...got a whole case of them...
WAB: "and a NBC warfare kit...nice.."
DL6 (asks jokenly): "where's the nerve gas?"
WAB: "he sent me looking for some, but I couldn't find any"
DL6: what??
HB: "he's joking, I'd never send him after anything like that" (then give WAB a hidden look-of quiet) Why don't the two of you grab one of those hummers and run down to were we got the 'useful' stuff and grab us some more MRE's and "useful" stuff to replace what "you" blew up, I'll finish loading my 'toys' be back before dark....."
WAB: "cried...I'll drive...and ran toward the nearest hummer."
DL6: "guess it beats going hungry"
HB(yells to WAB): "and bring back more 7.62 mm for the two M-60's."
WAB: "Still think we should take the one with the mini-gun and rocket pod"
HB & DL6: "No....Shut up...WAB"

^
^
WHEW!!!! AND

Back at the hotel now, Lida went to the kitchen to find Kes and Baby Tongue still laying on the table near the window. BT had climbed up on Kes's back and they were both asleep. She picked them up and brought them to her room and put them in her bed for the night.

Aaron had gone to the conferrence room to get the empty punch bowls to refill them with water and food from the kitchen. The hungry animals pounced on him as soon as he opened the door. He had to fight his way out, being carful not to drop the large glass bowls he had stacked inside each other. Not eager to go back in there again he went to look for Lida so she could help him.

He found her fast asleep with the two Iguanas laying on her stomach. He closed the light and the door and let her sleep. "Well, a mans gotta do what a man's gotta do." He said to himself as he rolled up his sleeves and headed back to the kitchen to get the food ready to go back into the conferrence room, alone.

~~~~~~~Since you've gone All that's left is a band of gold All that's left of the dream I hold Is a band of gold And the dream of what love could be ...~~~~~~~~

I woke up to the sun shining there the windshield and the '74 song 'Band Of Gold' playing on the CD player. Disoriented for a moment and looked about I noticed that Lida had PMed me. My eyes filled with tears and I sobbed silently for a moment as Daniel's image appeared in the mirror. I wiped away the tears and got up and looked in the mirror at him. "Why the tears my Pretty One?" He asked concerned. "It was the song Daniel, I know you hear the tune and you can't understand the words but..." I cut myself off not wanting to explain further as Daniel at times despite my love for him was not always a patient man with me. "It's not important." I said and smiled softly at him. Then curious I asked, "how could Freda Payne's song be playing when the Conway Twitty CD is in the player." Daniel laughed then CD player button seemed to be pushed by an unseen hand and the player was empty of any CDs. I wanted to question further but Daniel told me to get ready as we had a busy day ahead of us.

Taking a moment, I sat and wrote a PM to Lida.

Lida thanks for PMing me, I'm sure by now you know that Daniel is alive and we're headed home. I had to learn to drive Daniel's truck, that was hard work and he lost his temper a few times with me. It's a long story and difficult to explain but at this time Daniel is unable to drive. We also have been stopping and picking up mirrors and radio gear along the way. God only knows why but Daniel is insistant that we obtain the things. Peace be with you. Crystal

Covered with an assortment of animal excretions Aaron returned to his room for a shower and a good night's sleep.

In the morning Lida was awake with the chickens Now down in the conferrence room feeding them breakfast for the last time. "I'm gonna miss you guys." She said as she made the rounds of petting, scratching and nose and beak kisses. Then she went back to the lobby to take another look at the huge map of Indiana on the wall. This time they would venture out away East from the city in the direction of Abe's farm again and then go South to the zoos in the Central and Southern parts of the state. They may be gone overnight this time as there is alot of distance between them. "It's starting to get cooler out so the top on the Miata should be up today" She thought. "I'm going to bring the lizards with us in the car. Her plan is to load up the van with the animals to take to Abe's farm and have Aaron follow in the car. From the farm they will continue on and leave the truck at Abe's. Lida then scrolled a note on the hotel stationary and left it taped to the front door. It read:

To Bill and Lenny,

If you come back and I'm not here I've gone to Indianapolis with Aaron. We have already done a release of animals at one zoo and will be doing two more before we come back. We will be back tomorrow, the 25th, Please wait here for us. Signed, Your Friend, Lida.

I walked cautiously down the hall, scanning the rooms on either side…conference room, break room, interrogation rooms…. At the end of the hallway, I came to a desk beside another door. Killer Jones was waiting patiently for me. Again the sound came…like a low moan. I tried the door…locked, of course. I searched the desk, and finally came up with a set of keys. After trial & error, I managed to get the door unlocked…this must be the jail area. The sound was louder now. The second cell contained a person, stretched out on the floor!
“Hey, You Alive?”
“Hel…help me…”
I raced backed to the Break room and hurriedly located a bottle of water in the small refrigerator. I returned to the cell and tossed the bottle inside. It landed fairly close, but the figure just lay there….
“There’s some water…I’ll see what else I can find.”
As I rushed back down the hall, Killer Jones just sat there, staring intently at the figure. Meanwhile, my thoughts are in turmoil…
“I’m not alone…Thank Goodness…but a criminal?…guess beggars can’t be choosers…but still…do I let ‘em out or not?…better find out what they’re in for first…where did I see that candy machine…AHA, here it is!”
I ran back to the cell with my candy bars, but the figure still hadn’t moved.
“Hey, you’re not faking or anything, are you…cause if I unlock this door and you try to jump me…well, let’s just say you wouldn’t want to do that…Jones, keep a close eye out, will ya?”

Aaron, still asleep, Lida backs the UPS truck to the double doors of the conferrence room that lead to the parking lot. Opens the doors then backs the truck slightly into the room. The animals scatter as the sound of the engine bounces and echos off the walls of the huge room. She turns the engine off and jumps down.

It took her quite a while to round them all up and get them back in the truck. With each capture she had to wrestle with the door to get it open then closed quickly enough so the ones already inside wouldn't jump out again. Slowly but surely she got them all inside. "WHEW!" Lida said as she leaned on the door after the final chicken was rounded up and inside.

Just then Aaron entered the otherside of the room eating a sausage. "Need any help?" He asked. Lida just looked at him. "No, all done. You ready to go?" She asked him. 'Go? Go where? " He asked. "To Indianapolis after we drop off the truck and the animals at Abe's farm. Don't tell me you forgot?" She asked. "Hmm, guess it must have slipped my mind." He answered. "SLIPPED YOUR MIND???" She yelled. "Slipped your mind?? well, what else would we have planned, HUH Aaron?" She asked him. "I dunno, Lida, things just fly right out of my head sometimes. Don't be mad at me. I remember now." He said as he started walking towards her. When he stepped in a puddle of chicken-poop and his foot went flying up in the air and he went right down in it on his butt." Lida laughed. Lida wasn't mad now. "Oh, I'm sorry Aaron, I think I may have forgotten to mention this to you yesterday, didn't I?" Lida said as he lay on the floor. Aaron's face --->>

I had already programmed the ECIS flight computer with the final approach vector and landing cylinders. The VOR beacon was guiding me in, and the ILS system had already taken over - projecting a graphic image of the runway on the NAV screen and the heads-up display. Wind shear was negligible today, and visibility was great, so I was pretty confident that I might actually hit the runway today. My concentration was suddently interrupted by a loud beeping and a flashing red light on the center console - a red light I had never taken the time to familiarize myself with. I was surprised when I looked at the label on the light.

The collision alarm?

Craning my neck, I looked out the windows, but saw nothing. The plane rocked slightly in an updraft and tilted a little to the right turning off the autoguidance for the ILS. Looking out my left window, I saw the Challenger 300 come up from under me and to my side as it lined-up for the runway at JFK.

"What the hell is this?" I muttered to myself. I turned on my comm.

"Challenger three-zero-zero, this is November-Alpha-two-three-five-zero heavy on approach to Juliet-Foxtrot-Kilo runway four. I have you on visual on my left at two-seven-zero. Please pick up your visual at zero-niner-zero and divert course to two-seven-zero at zero-one thousand feet." The plane was close enough to see its occupants in the cabin - a tall thin man with a frown, and somewhat shorter, portly man eating a breakfast burrito. They both looked at me.

"Hey, let's cut the jet-jockey talk, fly-boy! I don't understand a thing you're saying!" Came the reply from the fat man.

I rolled my eyes as I replied. "Turn left and get the hell out of my way so I can land this pig!" I said into the microphone. At a few miles out and just over three thousand feet, now was not a time to waste any time.

"Screw you, rocket-boy! We were here first, so we get to land first!" Looking at the Lear, I could make out a middle finger held up in the right window. Silencing the incessant collision and stall alarms, I checked my fuel gauge and balance. Damn! Not enough for a go-around.

"Negative, three-zero-zero, I am way low on fuel, and need to land now. Please execute landing abort proceedure now." Looking over at the Lear, I could see the two men arguing and grappling for control of the yoke. The fat man reached down, pulled up a can of whipped topping, and sprayed the thin man in the face. The thin man grabbed his face and went to the rear of the plane. The fat man smirked at me as I saw the flaps of the Lear lower and the landing gear drop.

"Challenger three-zero-zero, you do realize the danger in engaging a seven-four-seven wide in a mid-air game of chicken?" I asked, my jaw set.

"Bring it on, space-man!" was the reply, and the game was afoot. As we approached the runway, the Lear attempted a sharp bank towards the 747 and was kicked aside in the tubulenced of the massive powerplants. Rocking heavily, the Lear regained control and attempted to move under and in front of the plane. I brought the nose up slightly and increased throttle to gain speed.

As the two approached the runway, I could feel a sharp bump and heard the screech of metal as the 747 sandwiched the Lear between the ground and itself. The two skidded across the runway as the 747 dragged the Lear under its belly. Sparks flew, and the 747 skidded to a stop - the tail of the Lear embedded in its belly like a knife. I felt the massive plane top to one side, as the landing gear of the Lear attempted to balance both planes. The 747 tipped to the left and was stopped by the left wingtip. I swored loudly at the thought of losing the well-equipped plane.

Moving to the rear, I exited the plane the same way I had on my previous two landings.

I opened the cell door cautiously. Killer Jones followed me in. I knelt beside the figure and carefully rolled it over…to my great surprise, I found myself staring at a female! Great……hope she isn’t a psycho! I opened the bottle of water and gave her one small sip, then another. Jones started licking her face as her eyes slowly fluttered open.
“Hi…want another drink?” Her hand came up to stop Jones’ affectionate attack. She nodded.
“What’s your name?”
“Call me Gwen,” she whispered.
“OK, Gwen…how about something to eat?” I handed her a candy bar.
“Slowly now…I assume you haven’t had anything to eat for a few days?”
“Yeah, kind of an enforced hunger strike,” she laughed weakly.
“Sooooo……what were you in for?”
“Nothing, really…”
“Well, obviously something…”
“I don’t want to talk about it!”
“We will talk about it, or I’m going to lock that door back up and leave you in here!”
“Okay………Okay……well, see, Sept. 14th was my birthday……and I kind of went out and partied, you know……and, well……I really drank too much……you know……and then my old boyfriend showed up with his new girlfriend………and, well……she was really being catty, so I popped her a good one……then the law showed up, and……well, here I still am,” she related haltingly.
“I see……………didn’t kill anyone, did you?”
“Nope, I just thumped her pretty good, and she needed it, too! So…like, where is everyone?”
“Well, now, that’s a question I don’t have an answer for. You‘re the first person I have found in 5 days…but, if you‘re here, maybe there‘s still hope. Let‘s get you to some better accommodations.”

[attachmentid=1849]Lida driving the UPS truck now down the road towards Abe's farm Aaron is following in the Miata with the "girls" { Kes and Baby Tongue} sitting on the dash looking out the windshield. They pull up to the barn and stop the engines and get out just as Abe is walking out of the barn door. Becka comes running out from the house followed by the three girls.

"Did you have breakfast you two?" Becka asked. "Mother, let them catch their breath before you start feeding them." Abe said to her. Everyone laughed. "So let's see what ya got in tha truck Lida." Abe asked as he walked towards the rear doors. He reached up and unlatched the doors and opened them. The animals hadn't been outside in 3 days and got very anxious. They all came out in a giant wave of fur and feathers, beaks and wings, claws and tails knocking Abe backwards onto the ground. The goats took off towards the barn. The dogs, eventhough they were mutts were very large. "Come on now, get off a me." Abe yelled as he pushed them off and tried to get up. 'Come on now, lets go get a drink, the water is ova here, come on ya bunch a monkeys." He said as he was laughing. Abe was busy now with the newest members of his flock and Becka took Lida and Aaron into the house for some tea and warm biscuits with honey and home churned butter.

Wore out and my nerves a bit on edge, I managed to shove the last mirror from the mall into the trailer. I found ways to move them with leverage and dollies but still it was un-nerving for me to have Daniel's reflection complaining at every bump or move he wasn't happy with. In the middle of one of his complaints I pushed the trailers door shut and breathed a sigh of relieve only to discover Daniel's angry reflection starring at me with it's arms folded across his chest in the window of a store. "Feel better now?" He questioned in a huff. I walked over to him, "Daniel, I'm sorry but it is a bit trying on my nerves and your not helping with the constant complaints. I'm doing the best I can!" "No," Daniel said as he shook his head, "you're not. You're doing all you can, but not your best." I walked back to the truck and climbed aboard the truck and slammed the door. "Isn't this like it use to be a few years ago Crystal?" Daniel said softly as his reflection appear in the right wing mirror of the truck. Tears stung my eyes, "Daniel, no not again. Please!" "It was one of the reasons why I became a truck driver. You were in pain and I couldn't help you." Daniel said as he looked down to where his feet might of been if the reflection carried that far. "But Daniel we found each other and we learned to be happy again. We didn't give up, we just changed our plans of the future." I whispered through my tears.

It was the same revolving door fight that brought me to tears and he with his self loathing. We wanted children in this life and due to a genetic flaw I couldn't have them. We build new lives for ourselves and for a while lived separate lives but one or the other would get sick or hurt and there we would find each other all over again. Forever intwined as if God, Himself wrote our names in the great book of 'Time and All Eternity' in indelible ink. You just can't give God an eraser, after all He doesn't make mistakes.

As the time past I watched the mile markers come and go the silence fell upon us and after a while I began to hum and then sing. Daniel smiled. "You always did sing when you were happy. I can remember when the song was gone and you were a shattered soul." I shot Daniel a quick glance and continued singing stopping only to say to him. " Well Daniel, maybe you gave me something to sing about." Then I smiled.

I helped Gwen outside. She shielded her eyes against the morning sunshine. She was so weak; I knew we could never walk all the way back to the Holiday Inn. I propped her up against the wall and said,” Wait here just a minute.”
I dashed back inside and started looking for keys to one of the police cars parked outside.
I felt kind of strange going through another man’s pockets, but fortunately, the pants were empty.
~~~
I got Gwen installed in her own room, along with a good supply of Coke and candy bars.
“This should tide you over until I get back.”
“Where are you going? You are coming back, aren’t you? I really don’t like being alone. I mean, you‘re not just dumping me here, are you?” I could see the panic in her bright blue eyes, so I gave her my best grin and tried to calm her down.
“I’m just going shopping…I’ll be back before you know it. I’ll leave Killer Jones here with you. I think I better go find us something better to eat…and a few other things. I may be gone a little while, but, I promise, I’ll be back. Why don‘t you grab a shower while I‘m gone…it‘ll make you feel a whole lot better”

~~~~

A few hours later, I was back… with groceries, some clothes for Gwen, a DVD player & several movies, and a computer. I figured it would be a few days before Gwen was up to traveling…that is, if she decided to go with me. At this point, that seemed like the only sensible option.

There was a microwave in the room, so I ‘nuked’ us some “Hungry Man XXL” TV dinners. Jones really enjoyed his. Gwen only ate a little of hers, before she drifted off to sleep. “Poor kid…heck, Poor Me…now it would be several days before I could check on Adam…she looks like she might be about his age.” I heard a soft snore and chuckled to myself as I turned off the light.

I took Jones back to my room and set up the DVD player. I guess I must have drifted off about halfway through the first movie.

Aaron and Lida said their good-byes to the family, got in the car and started up the dirt road that lead to the street. On one side was a field where one of the boys was behind a pair of donkeys pulling a mower[attachmentid=1860] On the other side of the road the field had already been mowed and the hay stood in rows like sentrys[attachmentid=1859]. The boys waved good-bye as they passed by.

When they reached the street they headed south toward the Interstate.

"Route 62 to 65 should take us right into Indianapolis Aaron." Lida said as she looked at the map she found in the glovey. Aaron barely took his eyes off the road as he had to weave and swerve around the pile-ups.

The girls seemed to be mezmerized on the dash. Watching the green fields wizz by them. Or else they were very frightened since they hadn't moved a muscle in the half hour they had been driving. Lida opened the lap-top and logged into the site. "You know Aaron, we never asked them what their user names on the site were, did we? Maybe we can guess. I'll write down who I think they might all be then check it out on the members list." She said. "Wouldn't it be easier to go down the members list first then something may be very obvious to you, I mean there are 8 of them. They all have to have user names because they are all still here." He told her. "Good thinking Sweetie, I'll do it that way then. You want me to read them out-loud to you, two heads are better than one you know." "O.K. That sounds a good idea, go ahead start reading." He said.

"Now let's see." Lida began:

"Now lets see" She said again. Then something occured to her. "You know something?" She asked him. " Aren't all their real names starting with A, B or C? Let me try to remember their real names. Um, there are Abe and Becka. Then the boys are Able, Bart and Cain and the girls are Abigail, Beth and Calliope. So wouldn't it maybe make sense they would all be A, B or C??" She asked him.
"Yea, that's right. Boy your observant." He said. "Try the A's, how many are there?" He asked. " OH My, there are 100 A's Aaron." "O.K. Just start, come on." He yelled, getting frustrated now. "K" She said.

She wrote them down on a piece of paper so she wouldn't forget anyone. And after going through a few hundred names, keeping in mind, the abc's, the simplicty of their life-styles. Their best guesses came up to these choices:

Abraham is Alterego
Abel is either Arms or Abakai
Abigail is most likely Abakai since it sounds female
Bart is Bateman
Becka is Bec
Beth is B'lanna Torres
Cain is Chapel and
Calliope is Cal

"By George, I think we've done it." Aaron said. "Sounds good to me. But we are probably all wrong. We have to ask them when we get back tomorrow." She said.
"Or maybe I could just PM them and ask them." "Brilliant Idea!" Aaron said.
"I know. I astound myself sometimes." Lida said faseciously.

[attachmentid=1869]Having had so much trouble on the roads before they prepared themselves for a long trip. Lida dozed briefly. Aaron was wide awake so she felt relaxed now. She placed her hand on his arm in her sleep and Aaron placed his hand over hers as he drove.

[attachmentid=1868][attachmentid=1867][attachmentid=1866]The trip to Indianapolis was quicker than they thought. And once reaching the city the signs directed them there quickly. Once parked at the entrance, they got out of the car and walked up to the building which housed the butterflys. They left the girls in the car, in the shade.

The butterflys covered the trees inside the huge glass dome. As they walked through they swarmed around them en mass. Landing on them as if they were glad to see them. A tangerine tree, dripping with fruit, was a welcome sight and Aaron reached up and picked an armful and handed them to Lida. Which she then began to peel and eat. Feeding sections to Aaron. Something they liked to do Lida squirted the juice around her and on the plants and the ground for the butterflys. Who promptly flocked to it. The aroma of sweet tangerine filled the air.

The water felt hot but sorely needed. Daniel's bunk was a little hard for me to get use to sleeping in. I liked it though, driving his rig and being with him. It almost seemed normal. The showers at this truck stop didn't have a floor to ceiling mirrored panel just a mirror over the sink in the lav part of the room. I finished rinsing my hair and then allowed the hot water to hit my back and the steam to rise up into the air. It was then that I heard it. Daniel's image appeared in the mirror and he wolf whistled. Startled I grabbed my towel and ran to the mirror. Daniel laughed as I fumbled to get the towel wrapped around me. "Don't you think after nearly 16 years of marriage that I know what you look like naked girl?"
"Sometimes Daniel you are not a gentleman." With that Daniel laughed again then he winked at me. "Are you gonna hang out in here all day? Come on we got to get on the hoof, we got a lot to do." I quickly dried off and dressed myself in my latest find at the last mall we visited, Daniel had assured me that taking what was needed wasn't actually stealing.

I hurried to the truck with hot chocolate and a box of donuts tucked under my arm to find an anxious Daniel awaiting me. I sat my drink on the console and held a donut in my teeth as I started the truck. Daniel look at me in shear disapproval but said nothing. Then for kicks I blew the horn. At that Daniel laughed, "Pretty One, you are something else." I smile and started to lean over to kiss him but as I looked to the seat rather than the reflection in the mirror Daniel was gone. It was then I felt the warm temperature touch my lips and I knew that Daniel had kissed me. "So is this the plan," I asked, "we collect mirrors from all over and I mirror the house from top to bottom?" Daniel laughed, "Good idea but not the one we're working on." "What are we going to do with all the mirrors and radio stuff Daniel?" "When the time comes, you'll know what to do. I won't leave you in the dark." With that Daniel started the CD player and the music filled the truck as we headed down the highway.

Aaron noticed a control panel on the far wall of the Butterfly Dome. He walked

over, opened the door and saw switches marked. " Doors, side, entrance, exit and

Roof ". He slid his finger down the rows and opened everything that was closed.

As the roof panels slid open and the open sky appeared above, every butterfly

and bird in the dome flew towards it. The light from the sun was hidden in the

flurry of wings as Lida and Aaron looked up and watched the mass

Exodus.

Zach noticed that a truck pulled up to the mall. "Interesting." he thought...

I slid down the emergency exit slide of the 747 (again) and turned around. The Lear was comfortably embedded underneath the large aircraft, looking very much like it belonged there. I watched in fury as the fat man and the slender man exited the Lear, coughing from the smoke of an onboard fire. Angrily, I walked up to the fat man. As I approached, I wound up and took a swing at him for destroying one of the most unique aircraft on the planet. He backed out of my punch as I spun around. Coming about, I saw him just in time to take a two-fisted crane shot right in the jaw. I fell to the ground, my mouth dripping blood and throbbing.

"Bill! Please!" The thin man - presumably Lenny - said.

Bill got a running start and launched into the air in a flying kick. I caught his foot and twisted it, sending him slamming into the ground. Jumping on him, we grappled, rolling around on the ground like schoolboys in a fight.

"You're damn lucky the shuttle is already at Kennedy! That plane is it's only transport!" I swung hard into Bill's back as we both stood up and faced off. Bill faked several lunges before charging. I caught him hard as we both fell to the ground again. Falling, I could see Lenny walking up to us. He placed a hand on each of our shoulders and squeezed hard. I winced as a shock of pain ran through my body.

My vision narrowed into a tunnel of light, and I passed out.

The Butterfly and Bird Dome now empty of it's inhabitants, Lida and Aaron exited into the zoo compound. Down the long ramp at the back of the building. The sounds of a laughing hyena and a lion were off in the distance. They walked the pathway under the overhanging trees. This time they walked together, not like the last time.