Chapter 2

I said, "Do you understand me?"

"Yes," she said, "Who are you?"

"My name is Sal. I would like to help you if I can. Would you like some water?"

"Please," she responded in a friendly voice, "I was hit and it got worse. I have powder in my pack but it must be crushed into hot water and applied as a paste. Beware, there is a big cat looking for me."

"Okay, let's make you more comfortable." I saw her pack and went to it. Taking it up, I said, "How about I carry you over to that tree." I was pointing at a tree which would give good sight in all directions and be close to water. She nodded.

I carried her pack over and came back. I gently lifted her up in my arms and carried her to the tree. I got some more water and left it for her. I went after some branches and kindling wood for a fire. I arranged it and, taking my lighter, lit it. Her eyes were very wide at seeing my lighter. It was like she had never seen one before.

As the water heated, I asked her name and found that she was Jennifer. I asked about her people hoping that there were friendly people somewhere around. She looked troubled and replied, "I am outcast because I refused to marry my father's choice for me and had none of my own. When he came for me, I had left. To return, I must have a husband though then I will become a part of his people. Who are your people?"

"I'm not sure how to answer that. Yesterday afternoon, I was at a house closing and then I was suddenly face down in the sand of a beach. I have found that I was moved somehow across the country from Florida to California."

"I have so many questions about almost everything you do and say." She said, "Please put on water to heat. There is a cooking pot for that in my pack. If you will hand me my pack, I will get it and the powder." I handed her the pack and she extracted a small metal pot and a packet. "Please fill the pot to here," she requested. I went to the pond and scooped water as clean as possible to the level she wanted and returned. I placed the pot close to the fire so the water would warm. "Would you like some food?"

"Yes, I haven't eaten in a day."

"Here are some dried grains and fruits. After my wound is treated, we can search out more that is fresh. Tell me, what is that fire starter you used? Are you a magician?"

"The fire starter is called a lighter and I'm not a magician. Many people carry them even if they don't smoke."

"Why would someone smoke? Do they get hot somehow? Are they people?"

"They are people and they don't get hot. The smoking is for cigarette smoking."

"What is a cigarette?"

"It's a small paper tube into which tobacco is stuffed and lighted. People who smoke inhale the smoke."

"What is tobacco?"

"Before this goes any further, please tell me some things. It will help me to know what are things that are unfamiliar to you. What is this land called?"

"It is called Sandy and covers a large area from the ocean many miles inland."

"Is there a name for a bigger area than Sandy?"

"No, should there?"

"I don't know. In my world, San Diego is part of California which is part of the United States."

"I have never heard of those."

"Okay. What year is it?"

"I'm not sure of the month or day but it is the year, one hundred, from the Destruction."

"You say that like it was a big event?"

"Yes, the biggest. In year zero, most of the land was destroyed and many people were killed."

"Do you know what caused the Destruction?"

"No. It was long ago and just was."

That meant that it may have been one hundred years ago that I closed on my house! I sat down suddenly. "That is not good news. It means that my world is gone because the Destruction had not occurred in my life. So much lost. Humankind had solved a lot of problems but something must have caused the Destruction without warning because, had there been warning, I would have heard."

"How would you have heard?"

"It would have been news on radio or television. Those are devices by which people's voices are sent from one machine to another invisibly through the air. They had a long range. It would have been sent to my Blackberry."

"Is a Blackberry like a radio?"

"Yes, in a way. It does not matter now because none of those machines will work in this time. I had checked my Blackberry and it did not receive any signal."

"What of your people?"

"I'm not sure how to answer that. My time is from before the Destruction. My parents lived north of here in L. A. but would be dead now. My sister and brother would also likely be dead from old age but their descendents may still live. I won't know until I go there and see what may be left." The water was heating and starting to boil. I took the powder and placed it in one of my plastic bowls and, with a clean stick for a stirrer, slowly added water stirring as I did until Jennifer said it was right. She bared her leg by ripping the fabric, which I realized was tanned leather, a little more. I took a cloth and dampened it and rubbed her leg carefully to clean the area of the wound and the area around it. She winced when I rubbed a bit hard on the scratch itself. I then took the paste and began to spread it on her leg with my hand. I used it all and made it thick. She lay back and I took my bowl and my hand to the water and rinsed them thoroughly.

When finished, I noticed that she had a packet of food lying out for us. We ate casually with her continuing to lay back and I sitting cross legged. She looked at me and said, "My people are south of here. If you can wait until my leg heals a bit, I would go north with you and explore. There is nothing here for me that I want."

"I would be glad to have you along. I know the geography from before the Destruction but you know more about this time and its people and animals. Plus, it would be nice to have someone to talk to."

We lapsed into quiet punctuated by questions on her part about machines from my time and questions on my part about what we might expect as we went north. I also asked her about the big cat. She said that they are the primary predator in the area, were fearless and went after any animal or person until they found they were able to fight them off or they were able to kill and then eat the animal or person.

The paste had dried on her leg. Jennifer told me that she shouldn't move for a day. For a day after that, she would be sore but would need to exercise the leg. Then, she would be able to get around reasonably well and would be better every day. We waited out the day and I brought her water and we shared her little bit of food. She suggested that I go catch a couple of rabbits and I laughed telling her that I had never hunted and would have no idea how to go about hunting. Also, I did not have a weapon for hunting or defense. She told me I could use her bow and arrows. When I looked at her like she had two heads, she realized with a giggle that a bow and arrows wouldn't do me much good. She decided that I should learn how to shoot since we were here anyway.

She then led me through the rudiments of archery. I set up a target on a tree and shot at it. After an hour, my arms were exhausted and the target was still pretty safe. I could usually hit the tree. She laughed and said, "With your abilities, most of the forest and its inhabitants are safe."

When I started to protest, she told me to practice some more. I put the bow down because my arms were really aching and I couldn't draw the bow. I asked her to tell me of the history of the area, her people and herself.

"My people, the Sandy's, lived in this area before the Destruction. When it occurred, the survivors gathered together. They set certain rules. Women were valued because only they could bear children. Because of that fact, it wax also required that women have mates. A woman without a mate and thereby no children had no status. We count descent through mothers because the father may be in doubt but the mother never is. Some women have two mates and thereby much status. My mother had one mate and my father wanted me to mate a friend of his. I didn't want to mate an older man and had no younger men who were interested in me. Being unmated at my age meant I had not status and my father's attempt to mate me to a friend could be required by our group.