They hunted out on the rim as much as possible. They wanted the domestic and wild herds to remain healthy in the valley. They knew the animals were contaminated, but they reasoned that over time they were becoming accustomed to the side effects as their numbers had reversed their previous decline. The communities followed basic guidelines in behavior. If someone was determined to be a threat to the community itself, they were brought before the residents as a whole, and their fate was voted on. In most cases, they were simply banished. People worked together to ensure survival. They were really one family with one goal. Weston and Dr. Ramirez functioned as the leaders in the two remaining villages. It was not a position of prestige, simply one of responsibility.
Bishop was surprised by the variety of wild life they saw. He too explained what he could about his journey before entering their valley. Sasha was interested in every detail, often interrupting when he did not fully understand. Bishop thought he had probably made a fine officer with such an attitude for detail. Either that or his experience here facilitated an attitude to learn everything possible.
As the sun began its fade, they encountered people working in the fields. Structures could be seen; many of which looked similar to those in Gateway. He heard the name for the first time that morning. Now they were entering Mezzo. As they drew close, it was evident that they all knew who Sasha was, and no one knew who he was. They stared at him as he walked by, and he nodded and spoke a few unanswered greetings as they went. Sasha led them to the largest structure and walked inside with Bishop trailing close behind.
Bishop was introduced to Dr. Ramirez and his staff. A few others made their way to meet the stranger; the rest would do so at tomorrow’s afternoon meal. Bishop noticed that this village ran almost identically to the other. If it isn’t broke, don’t try to fix it, he reasoned.
After Bishop had answered, or at least tried to, every conceivable question they could think of, Sasha took him to his friend’s house to stay the night. He was a former shipmate from the Nevsky. They had a light dinner, and some homemade wine, while sharing stories.
As the shock of surveying their valley, and the life in it, dissipated, Bishop became more aware of the physical effects on the people it contained. Even the ones who had adapted were affected. He did not know how long they could continue, but if they had overcome the worst, they had passed the threat of extinction, and were in fact making gains in their population, their future here was likely secure.
Shortly before they were ready to bed down for the night, Dr. Ramirez knocked on their door, “I don’t mean to disturb you so late, but I thought you should know that professor Bayek and Stephan never returned from their trip today.”
Sasha and his friend had concerned looks on their faces.
Bishop said, “Trip? Trip to where?”
“Once a month professor Bayek goes out on the rim to find medicinal supplies. There is not much threat in the daytime, but the nighttime is different. They are always back before nightfall. I thought they might just be running a little late, but they are still not here.”
“Will you send someone out to look for them?” asked Bishop.
“No,” Sasha said, “Everyone knows we don’t leave the valley in darkness. There are those of us who see just as well at night, as we do in the day, but there is too much danger at night. We will wait until morning.”
“If something happens to the professor, it will be a great loss to us here,” Ramirez added.
Bishop looked at him with a degree of contempt. Ramirez understood the look. “Don’t misunderstand me,” he said to Bishop, “Everyone is important here. Professor Bayek is the one who has been responsible for much of our survival. What he has contributed has prevented many deaths, and allowed others to continue when they should not have.”
Bishop nodded in understanding, and silently berated himself for jumping to a conclusion when he had little understanding of life as it was here.
“We’ll go out in the morning,” Sasha said to Dr. Ramirez.
“I’ll go with you,” Bishop offered.
The search team had little trouble following the trail. There were eight in all. Keith noticed they were solid looking men, no doubt somewhat immune to the environment; one was a giant. Bishop had learned that some of the people had been affected with a second period of growth as a side effect, similar to an adolescent growth spurt, and thus became as giants among the rest. When they arrived at the scene, they saw boot prints in addition to the soft shoes made by the villagers. These prints led to tracks made by motorized vehicles. When they spotted these, they turned to Bishop.
“It could be a scouting party from the mountain. It is quite a distance from here, but they must have found a way to make it,” he said before he paused in thought, “If they have your men, which seems likely, there is nothing we can do.”
The other men were not happy, but they understood. All but one of their group had served in the military, and they knew what they would be facing if they continued in pursuit. They searched the area for other signs suggesting they had made an escape, but it was clear what had happened. They returned to Mezzo before nightfall and reported their findings.
The next day, as Bishop and Sasha were about to leave for Gateway, there was excitement on the path leading out to the rim, as professor Bayek made his return. The two men followed Dr. Ramirez, and a host of others, as they went to meet him.
The doctor walked up to his friend and embraced him. While Bayek reciprocated, it was clear that he was uncomfortable with that type of affection. “What happened to you my friend,” Ramirez asked.
“We were captured, I guess you could say,” Bayek said while taking notice of the stranger who accompanied them.
He turned back to Dr. Ramirez, “Four men, soldiers, in protective suits, came upon us as we were about to leave. They took us on their ATV’s and we headed north. We reached a heavily wooded area with dense thickets. One of the vehicles broke down so we stopped while they repaired it. They must not have thought we were that much of a threat because they didn’t pay close attention to us while they fixed the machine. We were able to make it a hundred yards or so before one of them noticed we were gone; Stephan went one way, and I went another. I saw them catch Stephan, but when they couldn’t find me, I think they gave up so they would make it to where they were going in time. It took me this long to make it back,” he said in a desperate tone.
“So they have Stephan. Did they try to hurt either of you in anyway? Did they say where they were taking you?”
“No, they didn’t hurt us, and they didn’t say where we were going.”
“Who is he,” Bayek asked as he looked at Bishop suspiciously.
“He is a friend who escaped from the same people who took Stephan,” Sasha said.
Bishop knew that was not the unadulterated truth, but he left it go. Bayek continued to stare at him with concern until his attention was diverted by the others who were leading him away while still posing questions.
“We should get back. I need to talk to Weston,” Bishop said to Sasha.
“It will only take us a few hours if we move quickly,” Sasha replied.
Bishop followed as Sasha led the way.
As soon as they reached Gateway, they informed Weston about what had taken place. “What will they do with him,” Weston asked Bishop.
“Study him, run tests on him, learn everything they can about him.”
“Will they hurt him? Is there a chance we could get him?”