Chapter 46

Burton met me when I got to the other side. He looked rough, but in one piece. We hugged each other in greeting, as did Dunbar and Kim. Then he slapped me on the shoulder and told me that I was a sight for sore eyes, and was grinning when he said it. I smiled back warmly in reply, and told him the same.

With greetings exchanged and heads counted, Burton turned and led us off towards his encampment. He guided us up a hill and through the trees for about half a mile. He explained as he went that he and his team had been working their way south for the past week hoping to meet up with us as had been previously planned. I’d given him an estimated date of departure, back before we flew him and his team down, and well over a month and a half ago, advising him to look for us south of Winslow’s base when the time came around. Obviously he had and here we were together again.

The walk didn’t take that much time and to be truthful I was surprised when we did come upon it. It was in a shallow, oblong hollow that was situated between two small hills with a small stream winding through it. It wasn’t huge, although it was big enough for an overnight camp, even for the force I had with me. The problem was that there were other people here as well as it turned out that Burton and the others had been very successful in their mission.

“There are about fifty locals in our group,” Burton announced as I gazed down into the hollow counting lean-tos and tepees. “Most of them are women and children, but we’ve got a dozen hunters as well. I’ve introduced them to the crossbows as you suggested, and they’re happy as can be with the weapons. We’ve been here a couple of days now, doing a little scouting and some hunting to replenish our food stocks, but now that you’re here we can start thinking about heading back up north and kicking some Quantum butt.”

My first concern, once we’d gotten to the camp, was to get my people settled. My second was to put out sentries to ensure we didn’t get any unwanted visitors.

I knew that Burton already had sentries posted. We’d passed one on the way into camp and Burton had pointed the youth out to me. He’d been well hidden just off the track we were following. I saw that he was armed with a crossbow and I had smiled on seeing that. He’d also informed me that they were stationed about two hundred yards out from the camp at all the cardinal points of the compass. I told him that I was impressed and then I told him to pull his people in as my people would relieve them, at least for tonight.

It wasn’t a preference of my people over his. I wanted his people in so I could meet them and talk to them so they would know me and I would know them. I also wanted my people to keep their edge so long as we were in enemy territory. Once I’d conversed with Burton’s recruits, and hopefully found out their strengths and weaknesses, I’d sit down with Burton and Kim and the three of us would figure out a way to integrate the two groups into a single fighting force.

I quickly learned that Sygor, Ozmat, and Holgar were out hunting. It took some effort to feed so many people and in all honesty, the River People were better fishermen than they were hunters. Sygor had picked the best of the young men that they’d pulled together and he’d been teaching them everything he knew. Ozmat and Holgar had helped him out. So far they’d always returned with a kill, although at times it had taken them a good trek through the hills to get the job done. Game was scarce in this region as Winslow’s own hunters had been out slaughtering anything they could find, wherever they could find it.

“So how has it been?” I ended up asking Burton a little later on, while my people settled in. “You seem to be doing okay.”

“We’re doing better than I would have expected,” Burton admitted freely. “We ran into a couple of survivors from a village about an hour after you’d taken off. They’d actually seen us deal with the Humvee that showed up when the helicopter landed. They’d been out hunting when we’d shown up, and after seeing what we’d done to the bad guys’ vehicle, they were anxious to speak with us. They made their presence known once they overheard Ozmat and Holgar chattering away in the River dialect. Once contact was made, life got easy for us. The two locals took us to a cave they’d been hiding in with their mates and children. Within a few hours we had two recruits and a bucketful of intelligence.”

“Good,” I murmured approvingly when Burton paused. I noted him looking across the camp as he spoke, eyeing people as they went about their business; both his own people and mine. I also noted him glancing occasionally towards where Helen was helping set up a temporary shelter for us, just in case it rained. Whenever he caught her eye, he would smile. I just smiled inwardly at that and then continued with my queries. “So tell me, have Winslow and his people proven to be a problem for you?”

“Not at all,” Burton confessed as I pulled his attention back to me. “We’ve encountered a couple of patrols since we arrived here. Both patrols were Humvees out pissing off the locals just for the hell of it. We actually captured both vehicles. I’ve got them stashed in a hide about fifteen miles from here, along with everything else that we’ve picked up along the way. As for the men driving the vehicles, they ended up dead.”

I found it all interesting. I was pleased that Burton had made it okay through his time in the south and that he’d been able to rally some of the locals to him. I certainly wanted to hear more, but that possibility was put off by the arrival of Sygor and his hunting party.

“Jake,” the young hunter called out in greeting upon seeing me. Smiling he came over to greet me. He looked a little leaner than I remembered him to be and he definitely needed a bath, but all in all Sygor looked well. I extended my arm in greetings and he took it.

“I’m pleased to see you,” I told Sygor warmly, smiling as I did. “I can now breathe again. Tisa and Sapha told me that they would skin me alive if I got down here and found you dead. By the way; your wives are fine, although slightly pregnant when I left. You’re going to be a father again.”

My news pleased Sygor. He asked about his family and I told him everything he wanted to know. He asked about his sister as well. I told him that she’d given birth to a son just before I left. That put a smile on his face and he congratulated me on fathering another hunter for our tribe. The news did however leave Burton speechless for a bit. He’d slept with her a few times back when her pregnancy hadn’t been so noticeable and when he hadn’t realized who the father of the child was. His relationship with her had tapered off a bit after Helen had shown up, much to my regret. From the expression on his face I couldn’t tell if he was happy for the birth or upset about having not spent more time with the woman. He did however recover a moment or two later and he congratulated me as well.

Once family news was over, Sygor waved to Ozmat and Holgar. I smiled warmly at the two youths. They looked healthy, a bit older, and definitely were more serious in their expression. They both greeted me as Sygor had, speaking to me enthusiastically and with courtesy.

“These two have worked hard, Jake,” Sygor declared once hellos had been said. “They have acted as intermediaries as we moved about speaking to the people in this region, and they have proven to be skilled hunters. They have even been blooded in battle. You should be proud of them.”

I assured Sygor and at the same time the two youths that I was indeed proud of all of them. I did state that I wanted to hear all about what had happened to them while I’d sat on my butt back up at the settlement. That put a smile on the youths’ faces. I did however suggest that such a conversation should be held later. For now I needed to speak with the people gathered there, to let them know who I was and what was about to happen. Burton agreed.

By now it was time to eat. To my surprise most of the people in Burton’s band were tending their own campfires and cooking their own meals. I knew it made sense; even my people had once upon a time seen to their own needs in that manner. The thing was that I’d just become used to seeing my people huddled about a communal fire, or more commonly now, a communal oven or grill, preparing the food for our entire community that it took me by surprise. I actually had to bite my tongue and keep from saying something stupid. Even so, Kim noted my look of disbelief.

“You’re going to have to get used to that sight in the future,” Kim warned me as she came up beside me and she handed me a bowl of stew to eat. “The way things are going for you, particularly if we defeat Winslow and his gang, and whoever else is backing him, you’re going to end up with a hell of a lot of people joining your tribe. Communal kitchens are good to a point, but eventually people are going to want to eat in their own home. Think about it.”

I did think about it and Kim was right. Depending on what happened in the next week or so, I was looking at acquiring several hundred new members to my tribe. I’d have to house them and feed them, and most likely our current set up wouldn’t work. In fact we might actually have to move out of our current valley. There was no way that valley could support any more people than it was already supporting. It meant finding another home for everyone to live.

I addressed the gathered group once Burton had introduced me to them. He made it clear that I was the tribal chief and the man who’d sent him down south to help them and deal with the bad men, while I gathered hunters together to come help as well. I was received well.

I kept my discussion short. I made it clear that my goal was to put an end to the evil ways of the bad men. That statement garnered approving nods. I also pointed out that my people would not abandon the River People who’d come to live with my hunters. If they wished, when the bad men had been dealt with and all had been resolved, they could join my tribe. That statement garnered a mix of responses. Some were happy with my offer, but some were not.

I did make it clear that no one would be forced to come with us when we left; however I also promised that regardless of who stayed and who came with us, my tribe would remain their friends, and we would trade with them as best we could, whenever we returned south. That declaration put smiles back on everyone’s face.

Finally I told them what would be happening in the morning. I intended to head to where Burton had hidden the vehicles he’d captured and whatever gear he’d acquired over the months as well. From there we’d move against the bad men and their evil village. I left everyone thinking about that.

I’d brought coffee with me, packing it in especially for Burton who’d lived on the stuff back in our days together. I had a pot brewed and waiting for him once my chat was over and we had some time to talk. He showed up with Helen on his arm. I welcomed her politely, although I’d actually wanted to chat with Burton alone. However, by the time they were seated, others had joined us as well. Dunbar and Kim showed up, as did Penny, Monty, and Carmen. I guess the smell of coffee drew them in.

“Did you get onto Winslow’s base?” I asked Burton bluntly as I handed him a mug of coffee just the way he liked it; black.

“I got there about three weeks ago,” Burton admitted with a grin after having sipped some of his coffee. “I took the boys with me, while Sygor stood watch with a few of our recruits. It was a bit of a cake walk actually. Winslow’s security is crap, anyway. To be honest, we’ve thinned his manpower severely, between what we did up north and what I’ve been doing down here. He just doesn’t have enough trained personnel to keep anybody out.”

I shook my head at that piece of information, half wondering just how stupid Winslow was. I knew the man was smart as I’d spoken to him a number of times back before passing through the Gateway. I did find him pompous and arrogant, but I had thought he was a good businessman and reasonably intelligent. Since getting here I’d started rethinking my evaluation. He obviously had money and resources to throw at his schemes, but that wasn’t enough. The people he hired were a mix of cold blooded killers and incompetent week-end warriors. In a way I got the feeling that Winslow wasn’t a successful businessman at all, but just a very lucky conman whose luck had finally run out.

Burton went on to explain that much of the security on the base was electronic. The place was fenced in just like Gus and the others had told me, with wire strung along the top to keep people from climbing over it. There were cameras posted along it, to watch all the obvious approaches to the base, but there weren’t enough to cover the whole length of the fence-line. To make matters worse, from Quantum’s perspective, while they’d strung wire to keep people from going over the fence, they hadn’t done anything to keep people from going under it or through it. The fence wasn’t hot and there were no defensive devices at all.

“It turned out to be easy to get in,” Burton expounded as he continued his tale. “Sygor found a track through a wooded acreage that led right up to the fence. There was actually a dip in the earth already that went under the fence. We didn’t even have to dig it out. I went first. We waited a couple of minutes afterwards to make certain that no alarms had been set off. When I felt we were good, I had Ozmat and Holgar join me. I left Sygor outside the wire to cover us, with the assistance of a few of our local recruits. He pushed our gear through to us and we headed off to have a look around and to cause a little havoc. We went in around midnight and we were back under the fence, safe and undetected just before dawn.”

“Did you get to the drones or the helicopter?” I eventually asked, once I’d heard about Burton and the youths slipping in and around the buildings, container units, and other structures that made up the lower base.

“Yeah,” Burton acknowledge with a satisfied smile etched upon his face. “We made our way to the air pad that Lottie and Helen had told us about. The helicopter was there as were the drones. The whole area was left unattended and essentially unsecured so I was able to slip about without a problem. I pulled a couple of circuits out of the control panel of the Huey and I did the same with the drones that Winslow had. I doubt any of them will be getting off the ground any time soon, unless Quantum packed replacement parts. The good news is, all the drones were industrial and not military. Oh, I’m sure that someone could load a bomb into one of them and then guide it into a target, but doing something like that would be an act of desperation at best, and personally I don’t think Winslow is that desperate, yet.”

I mused over my mug of coffee for a moment or two, reflecting on what Burton had said. The coffee was getting cold so I finished it off before saying another thing.

“What about Winslow?” I asked when I was finally done my drink. “Did you see him at all?”

“Once,” Burton admitted with a shrug of his shoulders. “The man keeps himself locked up in the interior compound most of the time. That area is a little better protected. It has more cameras watching the approaches, there are guards patrolling occasionally, and they’ve dogs with them. I decided it was too risky to try to get into the place.”

“Tell me about the inner base,” I told Burton after a moment. “What’s it like?”

Burton spent the next fifteen minutes telling me and the other people with us about the campfire all he knew about the inner base. For the most part it wasn’t much. The buildings and structures within it were better than the buildings outside where most of the support people lived and where most of Winslow’s supplies were stored. He did say that there were a couple of ‘Sprung’ tent type shelters there ... large warehouse type temporary structures that seemed to get a lot of traffic coming and going from them on a daily basis. In fact, that was where Burton had seen Winslow the one time. Burton had been hidden in a blind on a knoll, situated inside of the outer base perimeter. He’d spent the day observing through a pair of binoculars and gathering intelligence. He’d seen enough to know that the two shelters were important, and that most of the people working there looked to be either scientific personnel or technical staff.

I nodded thoughtfully about what Burton had just said. I’d already heard the rumour that Winslow was looking to open another Gateway, hopefully into our Earth’s past so he could wreak havoc there and establish his vision of the future on our Earth and on this Earth as well. Burton’s tale certainly gave me something to think about that night, once our discussion was over. __________________________________________________

By the time I’d finished my morning coffee and I’d eaten my breakfast, the encampment had been torn down and packed up. The people with Burton had plenty of travois to help them haul what they had. These were all loaded, even before they stopped to eat. As for Burton’s gear, he still had his mounts and his packhorses. What spare room he had on them was used to haul any extra food.

We headed out an hour after dawn. Sygor picked a man from his group to go with Gort. They headed off first, leaving the rest of us to follow on behind them at a leisurely pace. Now that we’d found Burton there wasn’t really any hurry. Dunbar put out flankers and a rear guard, and Burton got his people together in the middle. In no time we were on our way, heading towards the northeast and the spot where Burton had hid the stuff.

The trek took us two days even though the distance was only fifteen miles away, as we didn’t push our progress. Instead we kept to the woods and to the hollows between the hills in an effort to keep our party hidden and safe. It also allowed me ample time to speak with Burton about what he’d learnt about Winslow’s operations in the region. I recognised that the more I knew, the better we would be, once it was time to confront the man.

We reached the hide by the middle of the afternoon on the second day. The hiding place was in a cul-de-sac. The cul-de-sac stood to the northeast of Winslow’s base and it was part of an escarpment of land that ran from the southeast to the northwest and the coast. The escarpment wasn’t more than fifty feet high at the highest point, but it did stretch for miles and it was very wide. The top of the escarpment was covered in tall pines and about the escarpment’s base there were tree-covered hillocks, small clearings, narrow defiles and passes that led to the top of the formation ... and a few caves. The majority of these caves were well hidden by heavy brush. It was in one of these caves at the back end of the cul-de-sac that Burton had hidden his captured goods.

To my surprise Burton had captured more than the two Humvees that he’d told me about. The man had also captured four 6x6 ATVs and a commercial five-ton stake truck. The ATVs were all solar powered just like the ones we’d already captured up north. In addition to the vehicles, Burton had accumulated a small arsenal of M16 rifles and M4 carbines, automatic pistols, grenades, packs filled with kit, and radios. What prisoners Burton had taken in obtaining these items were all now dead.

“I’m impressed,” I muttered aloud as I walked about the pile of weapons and stores, taking in what I was looking at. “You’ve done me proud. Good work!”

We didn’t talk much right then and there. The cave was large enough that everyone could stay in it. Burton got his civilians settled while Dunbar saw to our troops and Kim posted guards. Only later, when everyone had settled, did we all sit down to a council of war.

“We do have one problem,” Burton pointed out shortly after we’d all settled down to relax after eating our supper. His words were addressed to me, but we weren’t alone. Dunbar, Kim, Sygor, Tonko, Ruba, and Penny were with us. Everyone else from uptime was nearby, just in case I needed to speak to one of them. I was working on Sakkor’s bow. It was slowly taking shape.

“What’s the problem?” I asked as I looked up from what I was doing. The bow had been shaped as well as I could do it, with the tools at hand and with a couple of flint blades that I’d had Tonko make for me. Now I was trying to sand down the wood using a grit filled rawhide cloth. It was working, but it was taking time. Sakkor was watching me intently.

“We’ve thinned out most of the trained ground forces that Winslow brought with him through the Gateway to help protect his base of operations and to keep the locals in line while he rides roughshod over them,” Burton pointed out to me. “That has put a crimp in Winslow’s plans as he’d been using them to extort food from those locals he had left alive. To make up the losses in troops, Winslow’s security chief has been raising a local force of hired thugs to supplement what forces he has left. Mostly he’s been recruiting hunters from a nearby tribe of Forest People. They’ve been given steel knives, some pots and pans, and free rein to rape and pillage and do whatever they want in the region so long as the bulk of the food ends up back at Winslow’s base. These thugs have been mostly employed in the north and along the coastline. My men and I have encountered them a couple of times and we dealt with them harshly. From what my scouts can determine there are between thirty and forty hunters left in the group. I’d like to take them out first.”

“How are they getting the food they plunder to Winslow’s base?” I asked pointedly, rather than respond to Burton’s statement.

“Winslow’s got a man working with the local thugs,” Burton informed me in reply. “From what I could see, spying on him and the thugs from a distance, the man has a radio that he uses to keep in contact with the base. It appears that whenever the local troops have either gathered or hunted enough food to ship back to the base, they head towards the coast. My guess is that the guy with the local troops has spoken to the base and they’ve arranged a pick up. The local troops use the slaves they’ve taken to carry everything and the base usually sends the sloop to come and pick the stuff up.”

“The sloop?” I asked in a questioning manner, smiling broadly as I did.

“Yeah,” Burton responded smiling just as broadly in return. “It drops anchor offshore and the crew use a Zodiac to land and pick up whatever the local troops have gathered including any slaves they have that they’re not sending back to their village. Do you have a plan?”

“I most certainly do,” I stated, still grinning like the Cheshire cat. “Listen up!”

I quickly explained my plan to everyone. We’d head out and locate the local troops. We’d watch them until they headed towards the coast and then we’d trail them, tracking them to their rendezvous point. Once we were certain that they were where they were supposed to be, we would attack and take out the troops and the radio operator. We’d then wait for the ship to show up, and with luck we’d capture that as well. Hopefully we’d sever Winslow’s supply line in one fell swoop and at the same time provide us with a possible alternative route into the base to attack it.

“What if the crew on the sloop radios in before anchoring, just to make sure it’s safe to come in?” Kim asked. “Shouldn’t we at least try and take the radio operator alive.”

I said yes. With luck the man would see the wisdom of changing sides and joining my people. If he didn’t, I was certain that one of my people could persuade him to cooperate if only for an easy death.

It was a plan that everyone agreed upon, and then we headed off to sleep. Tomorrow would be another busy day.

“You made a hell of a lot of noise, last night,” Kim teased Burton and Helen over breakfast. Burton smiled at that. Helen on the other hand blushed. I just sighed.

“I thought I made it clear that there’d be no fraternization during this mission?” I enquired weakly, eyeing my old buddy from across the campfire we were sitting at.

“You might have,” Burton said with a shrug, “but the fact is that you’ve been up at the settlement knocking boots since you dropped me off here, and I haven’t. Now Helen is here and we’re getting reacquainted. Besides, I wasn’t the only one sharing my bedroll last night.”