I wake to the sound of Peter ringing the bell and making the morning announcement. "Up, up, up, let's go people. I'm hungry," he shouts.
Morning has come too soon. This fact is driven home when the moment I start moving I am all too aware of my head. I feel like someone is striking a gong inside my head. I attempt to mask my headache and pull myself together but apparently, my headache is written all over my face.
Peter walks over to my section and leans in close. His sandy brown hair brushes my cheek. "Are you okay?" he says almost under his breath.
"I'll be fine. Just a headache". I reply quietly.
"I can manage things at breakfast if you need to see a medic," Peter offers.
"I'll stop in and get something for my headache on the way to breakfast. I won't be long. Thank you, Peter."
Peter steps away from me and announces, "Let's go people breakfast is waiting."
Even though the barracks are empty I draw the privacy curtain around my section. Dressing as quickly as I can. I can't help but replay the conversation I had with Shimmer. Comforted by the thought of her having a plan I headed for the hospital.
Luckily Shaneel has not left for breakfast. As I walk through the front door, I can see Shaneel leaning over her paperwork. Her black hair is in a pair of braids that wrap around her head in a halo design.
Looking up from her paperwork she asks, "Bad night Aurora?"
"I barely slept," I reply.
"Ah, I have just the thing." With that, she stood up and went over to the medication cabinet. She took out several items and came back towards me.
"Have a seat," she instructed as her hand full of medication pointed to a cot-style bed against the wall. I did as she said.
Shaneel pushed a stool on wheels over with her leg and took a seat on it next to the bed. After placing the medications next to me she went to work.
She started by handing me what looked like a thin piece of rectangular paper about an inch square. "Place this on your tongue. It should provide pain relief."
To my amazement, it melted almost immediately but it left an unusual texture and taste on my tongue. An almost sticky peppermint aftertaste.
Then she proceeded to apply a clear gel on my forehead from temple to temple with the fingers on her right hand. The gel was really cold but in a soothing kind of way.
Last she handed me a bottle of green liquid. "Drink every last drop with breakfast. It will help replace some of the energy you are lacking because of your restless night."
"Aurora do eat something even though you don't feel like it. It's important."
How Shaneel always seems to know how to help me is awesome, but how she sometimes seems to read my mind is a little creepy. In a good way, I guess. I didn't tell her I wasn't hungry, but she knew just the same. She probably knew I had a headache and how to fix it when she glanced up from her paperwork upon my entry. I guess that is why Shimmer made her the head medic.
Shaneel stands and cleans everything up including returning the stool to its spot near her workstation. "Let's go eat," she says way too enthusiastically for me this morning.
We walk to the pavilion together.
When we entered the pavilion, I noticed that Shimmer's table had been moved away from everyone else's. All of the other leaders are having breakfast with Shimmer at her table.
Shimmer is sitting alone on the bench at the back side of the table facing all of the sector leaders who are seated across from her. She is wearing her field clothes which consist of a t-shirt, khakis, and boots. The traditional field clothing for everyone. She must plan on getting her hands 'dirty' today I deduce. I catch Shimmer's eye and she motions for us to join her.
There are two seats open to Einstein's left. Einstein is the lead creator. He spends his days in the workshop designing and building everything from gadgets to large machines. He has thin wispy brown hair that I'm not sure ever looks combed and olive skin. I sit next to Einstein and Shaneel sits to my left.
"Okay, now that everyone is here, we can begin. I'm sure each of you is wondering why I asked you to join me this morning." In a calm even voice Shimmer continues "Yesterday Aurora discovered a footprint in the southern forest while she was hunting. It was located a few hours south of Community in a grouping of bushes. This is not an area to her knowledge that has ever been hunted by us before yesterday. Also, the sole print from the shoe did not come from any of our footwear. This leads me to conclude that there was someone in the southern forest who did not come from our colony."
I could tell that everyone thought the same thing at once as their eyes opened wider and they looked at each other in disbelief. Shimmer put everyone's thoughts into words. "Yes, this is evidence that others must have survived."
"There is another more disturbing matter. Aurora also found tracks that she believed came from a large raptor (bird of prey) like an eagle or a hawk. This is cause for concern. A large predatory bird could not only deplete our food sources, but it could pose a danger to us if it decides we are a threat or a food source. Particularly because I doubt it is alone."
I don't think anyone knew quite what to say. Everyone looked at me, then at each other, and then at Shimmer. She waited until she had our full attention again and then she continued. "The hunters will go into the forests today, but not to hunt. They will scout for any signs of other bi-peds or these raptors."
"Upon their return home Aurora and Peter will report the hunters' findings to me. Nothing is to be mentioned to the other sector residents by anyone."
Shimmer's gaze passed to each of us as she stared very seriously. "We do not need rumors, here say, and panic to spread through Community before we even have the facts."
"I will inform the cooks that no game will be delivered by the hunters today. Everyone eat now. It's going to be a long day."
With that Shimmer directed me to get my food and follow her. Shimmer and I walked just outside the pavilion and sat on a bench.
"I want you to take your hunting party back into the woods and comb the area for any other proof it has to offer. Search the area around where you discovered the prints very thoroughly. Send Peter and his hunting party deeper into the eastern forest to ensure there is nothing out of the ordinary taking place there. Both of you report to my barracks tonight after dinner."
"Yes, ma'am." Shimmer nodded as she rose and went back into the pavilion.
I took this opportunity to eat what I could of my omelet and swallow the green liquid. The liquid was sweet but somehow left a sour aftertaste in my mouth.
I re-entered the pavilion and took a seat next to Peter. "We need to gather the hunters and report to the barracks right away. I have orders from Shimmer."
Peter stood immediately and rallied the hunters. Which was a good thing. Hearing him yell was still a bit uncomfortable. Yelling myself would have been much worse.
"All hunters report to the barracks now. If you're not done eating bring it with you."
We never brought food back to the barracks or cut breakfast short, so every hunter knew then, that today was not going to be business as usual.
Peter and I walked to the barracks ahead of the others. I proceeded to tell him Shimmer's task for the hunters today. "Why are we looking for other humans and giant birds?" He had a bewildered look on his face, and I realized at that moment that I had jumped to the solution without telling him how I knew there was a problem.
I began summarizing my hunting trip yesterday as the other hunters arrived at the barracks. Peter bowed his head and started fiddling with his fingers as he often did when he thought about or pondered something. At first, I thought he was pondering the information I had given him until he spoke without raising his head to look me in the eye.
"If this happened yesterday, why are you telling me today?" I hadn't thought about that. Why didn't I tell Peter yesterday? He wouldn't have told anyone. Normally I would have told Peter first before anyone, even Shimmer.
"Shimmer told me not to tell anyone," Is all I said.
In the back of my mind, I was wondering why I told Shimmer before Peter. I normally went to Peter when I needed someone to confide in.
"I understand Aurora. You did what you felt was best for everyone." His acceptance just makes me feel worse. I feel guilty because I have done what is best for myself, not really sure my decision had much to do with what was best for everyone else at all. My decision saved me from possibly appearing weak to my friends and others. Yesterday I told myself keeping information to myself was for the good of my colony. Now I realize it was also what was good for me.
Not able to contain my frustration I blurted out "Look Peter," I said quietly but rather harshly. I couldn't help it I was defensive now. "I didn't tell you because when I returned yesterday, I was scared. I couldn't believe what I had seen, and I was having trouble processing it all. It was just supposed to be another day of hunting not a day of life-altering discoveries. I felt almost betrayed by the forest. I was always so at home, so safe there. I didn't want you to see me and think I was a helpless little girl. Not worthy of leading the hunters or anyone."
"We all get scared," is all he said.
Peter turned to face the other hunters. We had been talking in the back corner of the room for privacy. "All right, listen up," Peter said with authority. He was always getting on with business. Making the necessary announcements. Supporting me at every turn. That's what made him a good friend and a good second in command. He didn't get caught up in the drama of the situation.
At this point, everyone was silent except Peter. "When Aurora was hunting yesterday, she found unusually large raptor tracks. We need to discover what made those tracks. Also, there were strange footprints. Human-like footprints. We need to know who made those as well."
Everyone stared in our direction. Clearly waiting for more information from one of us. Everyone looked like a herd of deer caught off guard by a bright light, dazed. "Like Peter said we have a different job to do today. I spoke with Shimmer this morning and her orders are to separate into our normal hunting parties and venture into the forest not as hunters but as trackers."
"My hunting party will follow me to where I found the prints. We will fan out from there and look for any clues that may be waiting for us. Peter's party will return to the eastern forest to scout as much area as they can cover in a day beyond their normal hunting boundaries."
"Since what I discovered was in previously unexplored territory we need to know if the eastern forest's unexplored territory is also hiding possible dangers to our colony. Make sure Peter and I are aware of everything you find so we can report it to Shimmer after dinner. Also, no one speaks to anyone who is not a hunter or around anyone who is not a hunter about this until Shimmer deems it okay. Any questions?"
No one said a word. We gathered our lunches, packs, weapons, and everything else in silence. "Let's move out," I announced when it appeared everyone was packed up for the day. "We have some tracking to do."
It didn't take but two hours to reach the area where I had seen the bushes move yesterday. You cover a lot of ground quickly when your adrenaline is pumping. "Everyone gather over here," I said. I started by showing them the human-like tracks by the bushes. They all agreed the soles on our shoes couldn't make those tracks. Then we looked at the bird tracks. It was decided the tracks were very comparable to a bird track yet different in subtle ways none of us could put our fingers on.
"Now that you know exactly what I've seen let's go find what other evidence is out there." With that, we all went in slightly different directions. Making sure no one was far from back-up if they needed it.
I chose to continue moving south in the same direction I traveled in yesterday. As I walk, I notice something lying in the sunlight on the path up ahead. As I approach the object it becomes clear I have never seen anything like it before. It is shaped almost like a large feather, a really large feather. How is this feather so large?
I spin a slow circle directing my attention to the nearby ground all around me. I spin another slow circle but this time I look up toward the treetops that surround me. There I see something. Could it be? A nest? A really big nest in the alcove on the side of the small mountain that had gone unnoticed until now even though it is right in front of me. The short mountain is very well hidden by the tree line. My curiosity gets the best of me. Maybe not the logical choice but I climb the tree closest to the alcove for a closer look.
From the treetop, I can see a very large nest of sorts. Apparent by the two eggs that occupy it. I know that means Mom is close. Time to be logical because it's better than being lunch so I vacate the tree as quickly as possible hoping I haven't already been spotted.
First, I hear it. The rapid movement of air by massive wings. Then I see it. A grey and white bird. A really large eagle, maybe. The bird appears to be on approach for the alcove so I'm hoping I have not been spotted.
Wrong! As it lands in its nest it turns and looks me straight in the eye. Then it turns to inspect its nest. Then back to me. It must have been satisfied that I had not been close to its young because it allowed me to retreat. Which I do quite hastily.
Just as I am reaching what I hope is a safe distance from the nest I have discovered, "Aurora, over here! Over here! Hurry!" Comes across the wind from my left.
I know that voice. It's Sunny. I take off running.