“It was one of those…things that got him, wasn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“I knew that it was possible for those creatures to follow us out here but I…I never…” She reached out and touched her son’s chest.
“Ma’am, do you have any rites or rituals you’d like us to perform?” Eliza and I stood back from the grieving mother and her son, giving them space.
“No, no, our family wasn’t very religious.”
“We’ll bury him with dignity, then.”
The burial was simple. Eliza, Dad, and I took turns digging the grave as deeply as we could. It was essential to keep the boy’s remains away from the surface. Though we might never return to this place, it would give his mother peace to know that her son would remain at rest forever. Others brought rocks of any size they could find. One by one, they placed the stones in the grave carefully, offering a murmured word to Mrs. Tolland before returning to their duties. I was shocked at how quickly she had gathered herself. She and I had convalesced in the field hospital together but we didn’t have a lot of contact. To have survived that illness and recovered enough to go on this journey meant that the woman had some serious fortitude.
We marched in silence that day. There wasn’t a single person who set out on this journey who didn’t understand the risks but the reality of a young life cut down its prime rippled through the group. Dad made a special point of checking in multiple times, sometimes pulling his sled near ours, sometimes striking up meaningless conversations, seemingly just to hear my voice. The light in the sky stood as a constant beacon. It might have been my imagination, but it looked like the light was getting bigger as we moved.
When the group broke for their midday meal, I made an executive decision. Someone needed to address the events of the night before, if only to publicly acknowledge the loss. I stacked a couple of crates together and climbed them. My whistle cut through the air and suddenly a hundred pairs of eyes were on me. I cleared my throat.
“Last night we had a life stolen from us. A life cut short by an horrific accident that should never happen to any of us. We all knew the risks of coming out here but I think it’s important that we…” We what, Fiona? Almost every person in the group had participated in that boy’s burial. They already knew the loss. But they couldn’t lose the promise of what was to come. “I think it’s important that we understand the sacrifice Paul Tolland made. Not just for us, but for the nine hundred people back at that shelter, awaiting our return. The nine hundred who will forever remember Paul as a hero, not as a tragedy. We will continue on, and our efforts will ensure that Paul will not have died in vain.”
There were a few nods, and a smile from Dad. That was enough. Words said, job done. Time to keep moving. I handed my sled off to the next person for their shift and jogged to catch up with Alan, one of the expedition team that elected to come with us. He turned a piece of gleaming stone over and over in his palm. “I’m trying flint knapping.” He handed the stone to me. The edges had been sharpened, pitted marks that ringed the entire outline. “Seeing as we don’t have any 3D printing out here, I thought it might be a good idea to learn how to fashion a weapon or two.” I pulled the stone close to my eyes and rubbed the pad of my thumb across one of the chipped edges.
“Ouch!” The edges were sharp enough to cut. I could only imagine what they would do against a deer…or another human. It was a good point; we would start running low on food in the next couple of days and we could start to hunt if everyone produced even just a single arrowhead.
“I made a point of studying the survival handbooks before we started out.” He grinned with pride.
“You sir, are a very smart man. How are you doing?”
“I’m all right, I suppose. I was right there with your father when we set the mice out into the real world. I certainly wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe in his mission. And your wife’s, of course. It’s a shame about the boy.”
“Yes, absolutely.” An image of Paul’s mangled corpse flashed through my mind and I waved it away.
“Do you really think this beacon is going to lead us to other humans?” Alan kept up the smile, but I didn’t miss the worry that touched his eyes. After last night I realized that it was no longer solely Eliza’s responsibility to lead. The charge of leadership attended to me, too.
“I don’t know.” It was better to be honest, wasn’t it? “What I do know is that we were stuck in an untenable situation and this is a way forward. No matter what we find at the source of that beam, I think it is going to be something that can help us. If nothing else, there has to be some kind of power source for it, right? I don’t know about you but I’d gift my left thumb to have a hot shower again.” Alan laughed. “Listen, I better get back to Eliza and the others, but I’ll be consulting you on hunting techniques in the near future, all right?”
“Sure.” He placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed gently. Something told me that my father had talked about me more than I thought. I used the remaining time until I would cycle through my next shift with the sleds to make the rounds. Though I had anticipated an interrogation, most of what I ended up doing was listening. The mood within the group ranged from anticipation, to fear,
