“We broke free of the forest and I saw the wave receding into the distance to the west. I knew if we didn’t find an anchor, we’d be swept away when the water receded. The mountaintop stood alone in the boiling sea, the land beneath our feet slipping into the depths. We reached a thick chestnut tree, its lower trunk a spider-work of raised roots. We scrambled into the tree canopy, Gary lifting you as the water rose to his chest. Like an incredible tide the ocean withdrew, and sea water surged over the chestnut’s lower limbs. We climbed into that tree as high as we could.
“Until that moment I thought we’d make it. Everything wasn’t lost. We’d rebuild, bring the world back, but as the sea pulled everything into its depths, leaving nothing but a torn wasteland behind, I admit I didn’t know how we’d survive. Nothing remained, Milly. We were in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with no food or supplies. The rest of humanity had checked out, which left us among the last humans left alive on Earth.”
“Do you think it’s that way still?” Milly said.
“There are bound to be pockets of survivors running from the virals. Humans are a fungus. Give them a little sun and water and they’ll grow back, but who knows when or in what form?”
Milly squeezed her mother tight.
“I held you in that tree and caressed your head. I was Milly’s mother. I kept telling myself that over and over. I knew you would forget, and that’s what I wanted. For you to never relive the pain of The Day until you were old enough to understand.
“The water drained away and solid ground was beneath us once again. We stayed in that tree long into the night, and only climbed down when I heard the call of our people, and saw the glow of the Perpetual Flame spark to life.”
Chapter Three
Year 2051, Respite
Shadows danced on the infirmary walls, a single torch at the entrance filling the cave with flickering orange light. Tye watched from the shadows as Doc Hampton adjusted stones on the pillar at the center of the chamber. He pushed rocks into place and looked over his shoulder several times as he worked, grunting and sighing. When he was done, he stood up straight, cracked his back and groaned.
“You OK, Doc?” Tye said.
Doc almost jumped out of his skin. “You startled me.”
“Sorry. What were you doing?” Tye asked.
“Just straightening up,” Doc said. “What brings you here on this fine night? Are you feeling OK?” Doc walked past him and headed for the exit.
“I’m fine. Just fine.” Tye wore his red polyester t-shirt and woven palm frond shorts. The shirt had darkened with time, and several small holes ran across the chest like he’d been shot with a machinegun.
“Good. For a second I thought there might be something wrong with your teeth. I’m all for good dental hygiene, but you might want to give it a rest,” Doc said.
Tye chuckled. He was constantly scraping his teeth with a sliver of bamboo and sand, and this coupled with the lack of sugar in his diet had left his old teeth in good condition. He’d been lucky. Bad cavities and more serious issues had one remedy: extraction. As if he’d just noticed the shard of bamboo in his mouth, he tossed it. “Just wanted to chat is all,” Tye said.
“Sure, let’s walk.” Doc took the torch from its holder and the infirmary went black.
Out in the Womb, a crowd sat before the Perpetual Flame, enraptured with Tara’s reading of the sacred text The Lord of the Rings. Water trickled into the stone basin, and the air carried the scent of basil and tomato vine.
“Do you remember the other books on your shelf?” Tye said.
Doc laughed. “I’ve thought about that a lot over the years. What would Respite be like if I’d grabbed Brave New World or The Art of War.”
The Remembrance Wall loomed to their left as they walked to the water basin. Doc paused, looking at the wall of three hundred and sixty-four names. “Sometimes I wish this wasn’t here,” he said.
“But it’s important we remember the people we’ve lost along the way,” Tye said.
“For you maybe,” Doc said. He traced Rocco Sereggio’s name, then Helena, his wife. A section of the wall was labeled Angels, and it was reserved for infants. Doc stared at the names, all the lives cut short. “So many died young back then.”
“I remember the baby boom after the dust settled. That must have been hard for you,” Tye said.
Doc chuckled. “I delivered most of them. Then to see them die of problems I could have easily fixed with the right drugs and equipment. I just…”
“I know. Don’t forget that’s why we both supported Sarah’s rules. Without drugs, birth control, medical equipment, power… what could you do?” Tye said.
Doc said nothing.
“I’ll tell you what you did. You saved the ones you could and Respite is alive now because of it,” Tye said.
“This way,” Doc said. He nodded toward the crowd in the Womb. “Some folks got big ears.”
They walked around the mountain to the livestock area that housed native boar and the ancestors of chickens and goats kept by the resort staff before The Day. The pens were on the opposite side of the mountain, away from the Womb to keep any unpleasant smells from invading the cooking area.
