“It’s morning,” Ethan announced as he gently nudged each of the men with his foot. The men dusted the snow off of their sleeping bags, and slowly got up. It was cold, but the morning sun warmed them as they ate breakfast.
“How much further is it to the headwaters of the Sun River?” Matt asked after finishing a meal of dried berries and flat bread.
“Four days,” Richard replied without even looking at the map.
“That’s not too bad. If all goes well, we should be back home in a couple of weeks,” Matt exclaimed.
“That’s what I’m hoping for,” Richard replied.
“What’s your plan once we reach the production facility?” Matt asked.
“We all know that when Augs are threatened, they instinctively retreat out of self-preservation. So, when we bust into the production facility, I want everyone to shoot anything that moves, or looks important, to maximize the shock and awe of the attack. The more damage we do the better. The instant the Augs realize we are there to kill the parent worms, they will do everything in their power to stop us. Just as worker bees are willing to die trying to protect their queen, I believe the Augs will do the same for their parent worms. Preservation of the species trumps self-preservation every time, and there is no reason to believe that won’t be true for the Augs as well. It’s also imperative that we find and kill Dr. Stone, otherwise he can create new parent worms for them,” Richard emphasized.
“So it’s do or die?” Ethan asked.
“I’m afraid so. If you’re not up to the task, then feel free to go back now,” Richard offered.
“I’m not a coward,” Ethan replied indignantly.
“The fact that you have come this far already proves you are not. I just want every one to understand that we must kill the parent worms, and Dr. Stone, to end their reign. Anything less means their retched species continues on, and ours does not. This is truly a fight to determine who is the dominant species,” Richard insisted.
Chapter 6
Four days after crossing Marias Pass, the men dropped down into an expansive valley that stretched eastward towards the high plains.
“Where are we now?” Matt asked as he knelt down to refill his hydration pack in the creek.
“We’re at the north fork of the Sun River,” Richard replied.
“Not much of a river,” Matt said as he tried not to laugh at the pitiful little stream that was only a few inches deep and less than a foot wide.
“I know it doesn’t look like much, but it will take us all the way to Great Falls. When we reach the plains, in another thirty miles or so, we’ll need to be extra cautious. Down there, we will have to avoid inhabitants around the small towns and watch for patrols. If an Aug sees us, we have to make sure it doesn’t get away, otherwise the whole mission could be blown,” Richard insisted. Everyone nodded in agreement, but the warning was primarily directly at Ethan. Richard was pretty sure that his youthful exuberance was indicative of someone who had never killed an Aug. It wasn’t a prerequisite to be an assassin, but Richard wanted to make sure that everyone understood what was expected of them. He knew that regardless of the mission’s outcome, they would all have blood on their hands before it was over.
The gentle slope of the river valley was a welcome change from traversing the high mountain passes. As they continued along, small streams would join into Sun River, and before long it had grown from a trickle barely worthy of a name, into a fast flowing torrent of water. At times it flowed along silently, and in other places it roared like a lion as it jutted down through rocky crags or over large boulders. It was a picturesque river, the kind that made Montana seem wild and free. When they stopped for the night, Mitch fashioned a spear out of an aspen branch, and used it to catch a couple of small brown trout. The fresh fish was a welcome change from the dried elk and mealy grains that they had brought along.
Over the next few days the men continued down the river covering twenty or more miles each day. The river eventually slowed and broadened as it flowed into Gibson Reservoir. Richard and the others followed along the northern edge of the reservoir until they reached the dam on the eastern side.
“Any sign of the enemy?” Ethan asked as Richard paused near the spillway to survey the area below with his binoculars.
“No, it looks clear to me, but after we drop down out of the foothills, we’ll be out on the plains where we’ll be more exposed. I think we should cut down across the hill adjacent to the spillway, and then rejoin the river at the base of the dam,” he suggested.
The men cautiously shuffled down the hill single-file careful not to slip and fall on the steep incline. No one wanted to be responsible for the failure of the mission by getting injured before they reached their target. As they descended, the trees thinned out, and were replaced by a thick prickly brush, that made it hard to reach the riverbank. Richard could hear the men cursing as the thorns cut into their exposed flesh.
“Use your rifle to push back the limbs,” he said, while demonstrating it with the rifle Josephine had lent him. He felt bad scratching it up, but every cut or injury could spell disaster if it became infected.
By midday, they came across a smaller second reservoir and Richard paused to inspect the map.
“What’s up?” Mitch asked after seeing the perplexed look on his face.
“This reservoir is not even on the map,” he remarked.
“Would you like me to go on ahead and check it out?” Mitch offered.
“Sure,” Richard replied. A few minutes later, Mitch returned to report what he saw.
“There’s a steep drop off at the spillway. Beyond that it’s all farmland. The Augs have cleared everything right up to the base of the mountains. I guess they are trying to produce as much food as possible for their bloated population,” Mitch said with a frown.
“Great, they’re reproducing even faster than we expected.” Richard remarked. “Did you happen to see if there is an easy way down from here?”
“Yeah, on the left side of the reservoir there is a cluster of crags and boulders that we can use to reach the bottom. After that we will be out in the open until we cut back over to the river,” Mitch reported.
“Alright, let’s head down and see how much further we can go before nightfall.” Richard led the way followed by Mitch, Ethan, and Matt. The crags were narrow and steep, and the rocks were covered with a slimy green moss that made the descent especially tricky. Each man stayed several feet apart so that if one of them slipped, it wouldn’t result in a chain reaction. Richard and Mitch emerged first, followed shortly after by Ethan.
“Where’s Matt?” Richard asked.
“I think he’s having some trouble getting through the patchwork of boulders below the crags. Some of the openings between them are pretty tight,” Ethan replied.
“Does he need help?” Richard asked.