The Time of The Cat 55

SPLITTING UP

We drove the VW out of Estes on North St. Vrain Avenue. When we reached the edge of the city, it became Highway 36. I fended off possible Pug-bear encounters mentally as we drove, and the drive was almost peaceful. After the majority of an hour on 36, we pulled into a town called Lyons, which is roughly midway between Boulder and Estes Park. Rudy intended to turn off 36 there and continue on Highway 66, heading east. It was a smaller highway and less likely to be quickly overwhelmed with refugees. We thought it would probably stay clear for several days.

Rudy wasn’t going to head into the Denver area. It was going to be a death zone there in a couple of days. It was probably already suffering from mass looting. The power would be off, and the unprepared populace would be trying to get as much food and water as fast as they could.

We reckoned that the only people who would be moving around right now were ones who had access to antique vehicles and maybe some military units. Even the military would find that it had trouble since the temptation for members to desert and attempt to reach their families would lead to poor morale. It’s pretty difficult to stay focused on unrelated tasks when you know in your heart that your children are in danger.

Rudy figured that traveling through the relatively underpopulated areas of Kansas and Oklahoma would be the best route to start, but I was pretty pessimistic when I considered his probability of reaching Miami. It made me sad to think of them leaving on what I viewed as a wild goose chase. I practically begged him not to go, pointing out that our chances of survival were much higher if we stuck together.

He listened to me carefully and told me that he agreed with what I said, but he then threw it back in my face by pointing out that our loyalty to each other was the key factor. He had promised Colin that he’d take care of his sister, and he had to try to fulfill that promise. If he didn’t try, he said, then what good was loyalty or his word on something?

I was still unhappy about it, but I couldn’t think of any argument that would influence him. His mind was made up, and I realized that I had to respect his decision, even though it was a terrible idea. In all likelihood, he wouldn’t get more than the few hundred miles he’d be able to drive in the next twenty-four hours. After that, people would start to get desperate and would be looking to hijack anyone coming down the road.

Of course, they’d find that they had a real task hijacking those three. They were experienced fighters and not likely to go down easily, but still, anyone can be shot by a sniper. There’s no good defense against that first shot.

That’s when I got another idea. It was paired with me sighting another antique vehicle. This time it was a partly restored ‘48 Chevy pickup. I only hoped that it had the original electrical system in it.

“Pull over by that truck,” I pointed.

Rudy did so without question.

“Liz and I are going to take it, provided the owner doesn’t pitch too much of a fit,” I said.

Stealing the truck didn’t feel quite right since it represented a considerable resource in this emergency. I’d done worse, though, and we needed it for what I had in mind. There was no way I was going to risk my woman on a hair-brained attempt for Miami. We were in Colorado, and I figured we’d find someplace to hole up in the mountains until the country got through at least the first phases of the die-off that was inevitably coming.

I paused and thought for a moment. I was still worried about the poor chances of the guys on their trip to Miami. I wondered if there wasn’t something I could do to help them. After considering what the Ancient One had done to me, I realized that at least some of the knowledge of how to establish mental contact with another human was available in my memory. I might be able to give others at least a portion of my gift, and that would definitely improve their chances.

“Look. My mind is different because of the Pug-bear forcing his communications on me. We’ve seen that I have the ability to fend off attacks. If I could somehow transfer even a bit of my ability to you guys, you’d be a lot safer,” I started.

“That would be nice, paleface, but don’t think I’m going to kiss you or anything. I don’t get intimate with other men,” Stormbreaker was only half joking.

“OK. Let me try with Liz first,” I responded.

She looked into my eyes in perfect trust and took my hand, smiling.

We sat there in the VW, and I looked into her eyes. At first, it was distracting, I found her extremely easy to look at, and my heart rate started to increase. It didn’t help to see her mouth open a little as she looked at me. For a moment, the urge for physical contact overwhelmed me, and I had to tell myself to calm down. This was not the time or place for that.

I took a deep breath, and then something clicked. I found my mind merging with hers. There was no sensation of pressure or force involved. It was far different from the struggle and pain I’d had when the Ancient One ripped my defenses down. Instead, it was as if I were sliding a key into a well-lubricated lock.

As I felt our minds reach total synchronicity, I did something I don’t know how to describe clearly. It was kind of like reaching through a window and arranging a puzzle into the form that it was supposed to be. I understood that there was a part of her mind that was disorganized. It seemed like it was isolated around the concept of individuality. I knew that discrete, individual minds were the way we normally saw ourselves, but on another level, we weren’t individuals. Deep underneath, we are all connected. As John Donne said, “No man is an island.”

Donne’s words were true. Once linked fully, I found a way to reshape the blockage in her mind. This resulted in our suddenly becoming closer than had previously seemed possible. I could communicate with her, and she with me, but on a level far deeper than merely speaking. Her thoughts were mine, and mine were hers. We were, in a sense, the same person.

It was an exhilarating sensation. We were the same, but we were also different. I was aware of her as a woman, and simultaneously, I was aware of her awareness of me as a man. It was extremely intimate and would have been embarrassing, save for the fact that we were deeply in love.

Yes, I could sense that in her also. She really loved me completely and without reservation. I understood that she could also feel my love for her to the same degree.

I moved my concentration to her... to a part of her mind that I have no name for but which controlled her ability to extend her perceptions. It, too, was blocked. I adjusted it.

It’s difficult to describe this mental action. Our normal language has no words for such things. In a way, it’s like trying to describe colors to someone who is blind. The only language that works is to describe the wavelengths of light that each color reflects and absorbs. The blind person may end up with a quantitative understanding, but they still won’t have an experiential knowledge of the subject. I can talk about mental contact, but the words really aren’t adequate.

We gazed into each others’ eyes for perhaps longer than was necessary. Rudy finally coughed under his breath, and we quickly separated and looked around in a little embarrassment. We were conscious that there was still a link between our minds. I thought that we would always know that the other was there, and I had no doubt that the connection would persist no matter how far apart we were.

I sighed and turned to Rudy, “It’s intense and emotional. For us, it was almost like having a sexual experience. It was so intimate.”

I could see him flinch. He’s decidedly heterosexual, and the idea of getting that close to me didn’t appeal to him much. He took a couple of deep breaths and looked out the window, thinking. I could see that he was considering the advantages and trying to overcome his resistance.

“Wait a minute,” he finally said. “Can we keep it at a buddies-in-war level?”

“That’s very emotionally close, too,” I responded.

“Yes, but that’s exactly what we are. I think I’m willing to do it if there aren’t sexual overtones to confuse the issue,” he said.

“No. Even with Liz, it wasn’t that way. We were aware of our attraction for each other, but it was on an idealistic level. There wasn’t really sex,” I dissembled, trying to convince him.

“OK,” he said, “do your worst.”

I took a deep breath and looked into his eyes. It was definitely more difficult. I’d thought that I could connect with him the same way I had with Liz, but it was sort of like trying to hold the north poles of two magnets together. The connection kept squirting off and away from the pressure. Just when I thought that I had everything ready for contact, the incipient link would break, and I’d have to start over again.

There was a lot more resistance than before, but engaging in communion with Liz taught me how to go through the process. I had to force through some barriers to reach his mind. He resisted. It was difficult but far easier than what I’d experienced at the mercy of the Pug-bear. There came a point where we connected. We were both relieved that it was on a deeply masculine level.

Soldiers in combat can develop a deep feeling of fraternal love for their fellows. It’s something that often lasts for the rest of their lives. When one of their close friends is killed, they’ll grieve nearly as strongly as if they’ve lost their spouse or children. Humans are amazing in the level of emotional bonds they can forge. The only tragedy is that many of us have lost the ability to empathize with others to any meaningful degree.

Rudy and I finally clicked together, and I adjusted his mind in the same way I’d adjusted Liz’s. When we parted, there was still the sensation of a link between us, though not as strong as between my intended and me.

I turned and looked at Joe and Stormbreaker, but both of them looked away. It was obvious that the thought was too overwhelming for them. I understood. It had been difficult for me to deal with connecting to Rudy, and I was much closer to him than to the other two.

“Maybe some other time,” Joe said. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to handle what happened between you guys.”

Rudy answered with more confidence than his limited mental experience really allowed, “That’s alright. You and I have been together longer than Dec’s been around. I think I can maybe work with you later.”

Joe let out a sigh of relief and nodded his head.

Stormbreaker looked out the window for a moment and then said, “I might get to that point, but right now, I’m going to stay happy, just being what I am. I can track and hunt fine without that mental stuff and... Well, I’ll think it over, and maybe someday I’ll be OK with the idea.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. I hadn’t realized it, but the mental contacts had left me exhausted. I was sweating and felt like I needed to sleep. Only there wasn’t time for that.

I looked at the old Chevy pickup and checked the street and houses. There didn’t seem to be anyone around. I extended my mind and didn’t find anyone. It was almost like Estes Park, where the Pug-bears had eliminated all of the humans.

I finally sensed a Pug-bear’s feral thought patterns, but it was a long way off. I didn’t have to look at Liz to know that she had gathered Jefferson into her arms. Together we got out of the van and approached the pickup.

I first looked under the hood and saw that the motor was original in all respects. I hoped that it would run. It did look as if it had been maintained in good condition.

The truck was a little harder to get into since I’d never practiced on such an old vehicle, but we managed to open the door without breaking anything. The ignition, on the other hand, was easy. I ducked under the dash and shorted the wires together, and it fired right up.

I rechecked the area for the mental emanations of humans, and the only people I could sense were my friends. The pickup’s owner was definitely gone, so I didn’t regret taking the vehicle.

I put it into reverse and backed out.