Chapter 1

My body hurts everywhere there is a place. I even hurt in places that had never hurt before and I didn't know that were places! However, as I slowly moved parts of my body, I found nothing broken though I have a suspicion that some interesting bruises might appear later. I didn't know why I hurt or what could have happened.

That something had happened was undeniable. The last thing I knew before waking up hurting was that I had been driving on the Interstate on a normal, clear day with minimal traffic. Georgia's Interstate 16 never seems busy. I had stopped at the rest stop and pulled out, setting the cruise control. I was thinking more of my destination in Pooler than anything else.

Now, I was in the dark, literally and figuratively.

The last thing I really remembered was a blinding flash of light. Except that the bed wasn't soft, I could picture being in the darkened room of a hospital. Except I had never been in a hospital room that was so totally dark and quiet. It was like the inside of a tomb. My alter ego hoped that it wasn't mine!

I slowly moved my arms. They weren't bound nor did they touch anything beside me on either side that I might expect. No rails or sheets could be felt. The car seat, console, and door were gone. What I touched and felt was dirt! I decided to sit up very slowly waving my arms to prevent hitting my head on anything that might be present. Nothing was and I slowly sat up, braced on my hands and leaning back.

It was very quiet and I could hear what I thought might be a sound as I breathed. Very softly, I whispered, "Hello?" My echoing voice replied equally softly. Other than that, it was totally silent. This wasn't fun.

I looked to the right and saw a tiny pinhole of light. It drew my eyes because there was nothing else for them to focus upon. If there had been any other light, that pinhole would have been too small to notice.

It didn't move and I decided to crawl toward it carefully. I had been taught that when I was down to stay down. I crawled slowly and carefully. I met no obstructions and the ground was smooth and level. I decided that I just didn't understand the situation.

As I crawled, the spot of light slowly became larger and I could get some idea of where I was. This was a cave or cavern. As I went further, I saw signs that the walls had been worked by tools! I stood because I now knew that this cave or passageway was big. My body still ached but standing and walking did work my muscles in a good way. I jerked mentally to realize that my muscles hurt like I hadn't moved in a long, long time. That worried me but I couldn't think of anything that I could do about it.

I became cautious as I approached the opening. I didn't know how I arrived wherever I was or who did it to me. I hoped they were friendly though I wasn't optimistic. I had been slow enough that my eyes had adjusted to the light as I got closer to it. I looked outside the mouth of the cave or passageway and saw nothing but strange trees. This was making less sense each moment. My worry was not abating.

I crouched at a corner of the cave mouth and continued to look around. The trees were fern-like. They weren't even the hardwoods of northern America much less the pines I expected to see in the south part of the United States, namely Georgia. That's where I had been. I continued to squat at the same spot for most of an hour watching for anything. Other than a very slight breeze and the buzz of insects, there wasn't a sound. I saw no animals, not even a bird.

According to my watch, it was nine o'clock in the morning. That worried me because it had been shortly after one in the afternoon when the flash of light happened. The other thing that worried me was the warmth. It had been early November and, if not cold, cool by any reasonable standard. I quickly decided that this wasn't Georgia any more or at least not my Georgia.

I had been alone for much of my life and had developed the habit of talking to myself silently. I had almost been killed once. That lesson taught me to be silent in these discussions with my self and my other self or my alter ego. That doesn't sound sane but I don't know any good way to explain it. It was a wordless method of thinking a situation through without anyone around. I sort of bounced my thinking off me. Crazy or not, it seemed to work for me.

I continued to crouch in the cave mouth comfortably in the shadows. I didn't know why but I decided that I wanted to see and not be seen. I was a Marine though no longer active. I had learned to sit motionless and watch my surroundings. Those who weren't as patient died all too frequently.

I glanced at my watch. It was now a few minutes after eleven and no animal or human had passed within my sight. I was thirsty and there was no water in sight. That meant to find water, I must move. I would have to traverse an open area of about twenty yards to get into the trees. I decided that it was time to move.

I was glad I was wearing jeans and sneakers for traveling. I tied my long sleeved shirt around my waist and moved out. I made the trees without incident. I followed along an old game trail for almost a mile before seeing a creek ahead. The trail crossed it. My already slow pace slowed even further because animals and people came to creeks to drink. I circled around up the stream to find as safe a place as possible to drink. I had nothing on me that would hold water except my skin so I drank as much as I could, stopping to frequently look around. I still saw and heard nothing. The water tasted good but was warm. That didn't compute well because the creek was shaded upstream for as far as I could see. This spot was shaded, too. I felt the bed of the creek but the rocks and soil didn't feel very warm. Volcanic activity, I wondered.