| General Fiction posted April 7, 2014 | Chapters: |
...40 41 -42- 43... 
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The ecosystem in Yosemite and the world continues to change
A chapter in the book Yosemite
Kodiak Bears and Debates
by michaelcahill
| Background The world is almost destroyed. Yosemite has a livable habitat with a number of survivors. They fight for survival and the establishment of a new world. |
Previously, discussions continued in earnest. The approaching armada appeared in great distress due to unpredictable weather. Edward's Air Force Base reported possible problems with a timely air strike due to weather as well. They planned to be ready, but might get delayed by weather. It was snowing in the desert while we enjoyed relatively warm days. We pick up as Johnny listens to discussion from the group as to course of action concerning the armada. The military types want to blow it up. They more moderate of the group, including Johnny, want to attempt a peacful outcome. The story continues as the debate goes on:
Lacci seldom spoke out publicly. She voiced her opinion in small private groups. She had grown considerably. The young unsure girl had become a strong willed opinionated woman. She had gained the respect of all of us. She stayed seated as she spoke in a firm but soft voice. We were silent so that we could hear every word. "I have no love for the world that once was. It was a world that told me what I should weigh and what type of nose I should have. You say that I am beautiful. The world found every flaw and offered every remedy. It left nothing inside of me. All that I was could be found on the surface. I have found myself here with these people."
Lacci slowly looked from Jen to Annie and then to Linda. She smiled at me and finally looked and gave a little head nod to Christine. Christine returned the gesture acknowledging who she had become. Lacci continued, "I see a lot of people sitting around this campfire enjoying coffee and more importantly enjoying friendship. I recall a time when more than one of you were, as Tom put it, hell bent on our destruction. We decided to make every effort to allow you to make a decision to choose a different path. Given the choice, you all did. I cannot support any action that does not include that choice."
A young lady stood near the campfire. I didn't recognize her. She stepped forward. "May I say something?"
A warmth, similar to what passed between Christine and I, drifted over me. "Yes, all may speak their mind."
She appeared shy, but determined speak. "I'm Fortunada Esquievel. I came to this camp with my mother and two children. I had packed up my family for rescue when the new message came. I was confused and did not know what to do. But, then this woman spoke to me." She stood by Christine and acknowledged her with a slight smile.
She continued, "Until then, I was confused and unsure. She spoke no language. She spoke to my feelings. I cannot explain it any differently. She brushed by my confusion and softly reassured me that I would be safe with the people here. She didn't speak, but I knew that she spoke the truth. I joined others that traveled towards the beacon. Those that received the message shared those feelings with each other without speaking words. We share them still. The people that come will hear the message and share it as we have. That is all."
The discussion continued for some time uninterrupted. The need for my intervention passed as the overwhelming consensus backed my plan of rescue as opposed to destruction. Complete readiness for battle had to be maintained, I knew that. We may yet see stealth bombers fly overhead and drop the lot of em into the briny deep. We might see them hit the shore like army ants wiping us out too. Peace was like a butterfly when it came to mankind. It looked pretty flying by, and delighted us for a moment. But, it never remained in our thoughts once it left our garden.
Turner wandered up to me, white as a sheet.
"What is it? I want to say you look like you've seen a ghost. But, you look like you've become one. What the hell happened?"
Turner managed to blurt out a response, "Kodiak bear. Kodiak bear."
He pointed over to a spot beyond Half-Dome, but nowhere specific.
"What? What the hell are you talking about? You're saying you saw a Kodiak Bear? Aren't you a little far south for that? I mean, like a thousand miles or so too far south?"
He just stood there looking like he saw a Kodiak bear in the middle of Yosemite.
"Lester." Lester sat over by a group of Russian soldiers chatting and drinking coffee. I wondered, for a moment, what that conversation must sound like. But, that could wait.
Lester came over and eyed Turner with an amused smirk. "Seen bigfoot, huh?"
I smiled at how close he came. "Pretty close. He said he saw a Kodiak bear over by that stand of trees."
Lester scratched at the beard that used to be there. (Ma found it squirrely lookin') "Don't surprise me none. Ya ain't been a noticin' a lot a steak on the menu? There's more game here than ever there was. Critters that was never here afor too. Must be they's a likin' it here better too."
I hadn't thought of that. "Spread the word, Lester. Get Linda and some of the others on it. God only knows what may have migrated here. No more strolls in the forest." Lions and tigers and Kodiak bears, oh my!
The armada had come into better view now. We were able to make out what kind of vessels where coming and how many of them there were. The sight transcended imagination. War ships of every shape and size led the way. Aircraft carriers, battleships and smaller military-looking craft. I honestly knew little about such things. Many of them looked to be severely damaged, but many more looked sleek and ready for battle.
The rest of the armada couldn't be dreamed up by a drunken storyteller itching for a keep-the-shakes-away drink. There were boats of every shape and size. There where floating structures that looked like run-down cities undulating on the water. They were ridiculous in size, perhaps measured in acres, as opposed to yards. It fell nothing short of miraculous that this armada remained afloat. It chilled me to think of how many vessels had been lost along the way. We could see vessels in grave distress even from out vantage point still miles away.
"Johnny. Are you okay?" Christine had tears in her eyes.
I realized that I did too. "Yes. It just hits home. What we have done to ourselves. How foolish we are. Here comes what's left of humanity, guns drawn, even as the people sink to the bottom of the abyss."
"I know, Johnny, I can feel it from here. Despair and desperation. There is no hope coming from that armada. It is all the same to them. The bottom of the ocean, the onslaught they fear may come…they feel helpless. It is instinct that drives them forward. Oppression takes their hope away. I know you think we can return it. I don't know, Johnny. Nobody here is trying to replace true hope with false hope. Hatred, greed, power…those are strong and intense feelings, Johnny. They bring forth destructive senseless actions. Look at the world. It is the result. People that speak about love to predators end up being eaten by them."
Christine didn't look defeated or even unhappy. She looked truthful. I can't say confidence overwhelmed me, but I couldn't deny the feeling inside of me and there was no doubt of its source.
Lacci ran up to me with news. She looked so young. Hell, she was young. Twenty years old. She made Christine at twenty-six seem old in comparison. I could be her father if I was capable of seeing myself objectively. I wasn't. How she had grown. "Yes, my friend."
She smiled, acknowledging my sincerity. "There's news at the command center."
The command center. We had come a long distance from the campfire days that were only a few weeks past. "Awesome! The Academy has called. I can feel it! This is long overdue."
Lacci laughed. I looked at her as though she were crazy. She laughed louder. The three of us hurried to the bunker.
Christine said, as we entered the doorway, "They don't give best acting awards for documentaries, you know."
I could feel war in the air. It would be waged on two fronts. There could be no guarantee that we stood much of a chance in an armed conflict. It would take some lucky breaks and a fleet of stealth bombers to turn the tide in our favor. That was by no means something we could count on.
We had the second method of attack also. We would be sending a signal of welcome. A welcome to all who wished to come in peace and join our community. I feared that the men with the guns would rather see the world end than accept peace with us, their sworn enemy.
Lacci slowly looked from Jen to Annie and then to Linda. She smiled at me and finally looked and gave a little head nod to Christine. Christine returned the gesture acknowledging who she had become. Lacci continued, "I see a lot of people sitting around this campfire enjoying coffee and more importantly enjoying friendship. I recall a time when more than one of you were, as Tom put it, hell bent on our destruction. We decided to make every effort to allow you to make a decision to choose a different path. Given the choice, you all did. I cannot support any action that does not include that choice."
A young lady stood near the campfire. I didn't recognize her. She stepped forward. "May I say something?"
A warmth, similar to what passed between Christine and I, drifted over me. "Yes, all may speak their mind."
She appeared shy, but determined speak. "I'm Fortunada Esquievel. I came to this camp with my mother and two children. I had packed up my family for rescue when the new message came. I was confused and did not know what to do. But, then this woman spoke to me." She stood by Christine and acknowledged her with a slight smile.
She continued, "Until then, I was confused and unsure. She spoke no language. She spoke to my feelings. I cannot explain it any differently. She brushed by my confusion and softly reassured me that I would be safe with the people here. She didn't speak, but I knew that she spoke the truth. I joined others that traveled towards the beacon. Those that received the message shared those feelings with each other without speaking words. We share them still. The people that come will hear the message and share it as we have. That is all."
The discussion continued for some time uninterrupted. The need for my intervention passed as the overwhelming consensus backed my plan of rescue as opposed to destruction. Complete readiness for battle had to be maintained, I knew that. We may yet see stealth bombers fly overhead and drop the lot of em into the briny deep. We might see them hit the shore like army ants wiping us out too. Peace was like a butterfly when it came to mankind. It looked pretty flying by, and delighted us for a moment. But, it never remained in our thoughts once it left our garden.
Turner wandered up to me, white as a sheet.
"What is it? I want to say you look like you've seen a ghost. But, you look like you've become one. What the hell happened?"
Turner managed to blurt out a response, "Kodiak bear. Kodiak bear."
He pointed over to a spot beyond Half-Dome, but nowhere specific.
"What? What the hell are you talking about? You're saying you saw a Kodiak Bear? Aren't you a little far south for that? I mean, like a thousand miles or so too far south?"
He just stood there looking like he saw a Kodiak bear in the middle of Yosemite.
"Lester." Lester sat over by a group of Russian soldiers chatting and drinking coffee. I wondered, for a moment, what that conversation must sound like. But, that could wait.
Lester came over and eyed Turner with an amused smirk. "Seen bigfoot, huh?"
I smiled at how close he came. "Pretty close. He said he saw a Kodiak bear over by that stand of trees."
Lester scratched at the beard that used to be there. (Ma found it squirrely lookin') "Don't surprise me none. Ya ain't been a noticin' a lot a steak on the menu? There's more game here than ever there was. Critters that was never here afor too. Must be they's a likin' it here better too."
I hadn't thought of that. "Spread the word, Lester. Get Linda and some of the others on it. God only knows what may have migrated here. No more strolls in the forest." Lions and tigers and Kodiak bears, oh my!
The armada had come into better view now. We were able to make out what kind of vessels where coming and how many of them there were. The sight transcended imagination. War ships of every shape and size led the way. Aircraft carriers, battleships and smaller military-looking craft. I honestly knew little about such things. Many of them looked to be severely damaged, but many more looked sleek and ready for battle.
The rest of the armada couldn't be dreamed up by a drunken storyteller itching for a keep-the-shakes-away drink. There were boats of every shape and size. There where floating structures that looked like run-down cities undulating on the water. They were ridiculous in size, perhaps measured in acres, as opposed to yards. It fell nothing short of miraculous that this armada remained afloat. It chilled me to think of how many vessels had been lost along the way. We could see vessels in grave distress even from out vantage point still miles away.
"Johnny. Are you okay?" Christine had tears in her eyes.
I realized that I did too. "Yes. It just hits home. What we have done to ourselves. How foolish we are. Here comes what's left of humanity, guns drawn, even as the people sink to the bottom of the abyss."
"I know, Johnny, I can feel it from here. Despair and desperation. There is no hope coming from that armada. It is all the same to them. The bottom of the ocean, the onslaught they fear may come…they feel helpless. It is instinct that drives them forward. Oppression takes their hope away. I know you think we can return it. I don't know, Johnny. Nobody here is trying to replace true hope with false hope. Hatred, greed, power…those are strong and intense feelings, Johnny. They bring forth destructive senseless actions. Look at the world. It is the result. People that speak about love to predators end up being eaten by them."
Christine didn't look defeated or even unhappy. She looked truthful. I can't say confidence overwhelmed me, but I couldn't deny the feeling inside of me and there was no doubt of its source.
Lacci ran up to me with news. She looked so young. Hell, she was young. Twenty years old. She made Christine at twenty-six seem old in comparison. I could be her father if I was capable of seeing myself objectively. I wasn't. How she had grown. "Yes, my friend."
She smiled, acknowledging my sincerity. "There's news at the command center."
The command center. We had come a long distance from the campfire days that were only a few weeks past. "Awesome! The Academy has called. I can feel it! This is long overdue."
Lacci laughed. I looked at her as though she were crazy. She laughed louder. The three of us hurried to the bunker.
Christine said, as we entered the doorway, "They don't give best acting awards for documentaries, you know."
I could feel war in the air. It would be waged on two fronts. There could be no guarantee that we stood much of a chance in an armed conflict. It would take some lucky breaks and a fleet of stealth bombers to turn the tide in our favor. That was by no means something we could count on.
We had the second method of attack also. We would be sending a signal of welcome. A welcome to all who wished to come in peace and join our community. I feared that the men with the guns would rather see the world end than accept peace with us, their sworn enemy.
 Recognized |
Getting to a point where the end could be in sight. Have I missed anything? I have lots to consider during editing. Any other suggestions? Your input has been tremendous. I apologize again for my late responses. I promise that I read every word and copy to word most of your reviews to consider when I go to edit. I have limited internet. So, I have time to write, but limited time on site. Posting takes very little time. Then I review and finally try to get to responses. Thanks for everything. mikey
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