Whakahapa, 9

(Wasn't going to stop there - honest! But that's as far as I've got typed & i've got a new game to play.)

Amos sat up and looked around. Esther was still sleeping, the candle had burnt-out and daylight was coming through the window. He looked at his watch and it was a quarter to six. There were no cows to milk, it was much too early! He lay down again and went back to sleep.

Next time he woke, he was alone in the room. Esther had gone and he didn't hear her leave. She hadn't disappeared too, had she?

No, probably not. The covers on the bed were thrown to one side and he couldn't see any sign of her clothes and boots.

He stood and opened the drapes on the window. It was still grey and overcast out there, but at least it had stopped raining. For now. Good job too, it was rough weather last night. The street of shops and businesses out there was quiet and peaceful. It all looked nice and normal except for one thing – there were no people.

Ah. Not quite no people. There was one – Esther was out there, coming back towards the hotel with her arms full of something. He put his jacket on, slid his feet into the shoes, grabbed the gun and left the room. With barely a glance along the corridor, he ran down the stairs to the front door to meet Esther there. She might have locked herself out.

He needn't have worried, the front door was propped open with a chair. Once again, he was impressed with how capable Esther was. That didn't stop her being grumpy though.

She frowned and growled as she walked in the door. “So you're awake at last! I thought you were going to sleep all day. I've got some coffee and things for breakfast. Bring some water upstairs and we'll get it started.”

“Yes, of course. Good morning to you too.”

“Yeah, yeah. It'll be better when I've had my coffee. Come on and be quick about it.”

Breakfast was good, he was hungry and he really enjoyed it. They had muffins, toasted over the gas flame and covered with strawberry jam and mock cream. Good stuff! Esther moaned that the coffee was only 'instant', but he wasn't complaining. He didn't like perked coffee, it was much too strong for him.

Breakfast over, Esther stood, stretched and said, “Right then, time to go 'shopping'. We'll stock up on food for a decent meal or two. I could do with something stronger than your sugary 'pop' to drink and we'll get some torches, lamps and other gear.

Also, take my advice and get yourself some better, hardier clothes than that silly churchy uniform that you're wearing. You need some decent boots too, those shoes might be good for ballroom dancing, but not much else.”

“Are we going to stay another night here? I'd really rather not.”

“That so? Go if you want to, but I'll be staying here for a day or two. This is as good a place as any to stop, get supplies and work out a plan. I may have to drive back to Hebron, to the airfield there, to get another microlight.”

“You're going to carry on searching then?”

“Of course. There's a lot of country I haven't covered yet.”

“Oh. And you're still going alone?”

“I am.”

“Crap!” Amos expostulated and Esther looked at him, surprised.

She grinned, and then she laughed aloud. “There's hope for you yet, My Young Friend! I'm getting a microlight and I'm flying alone, but I will come back. Before I go, we'll find somewhere suitable to establish a base camp and you can spend the time sorting that out and collecting food, fuel and supplies.”

“Including guns?”

“Yes, if that's what you want, but you'd better not go shooting at me when I come back. I'll bloody kill you if you try that.”

“I won't. I wouldn't do that to you.”

“I know you wouldn't do it on purpose, but you're a bit of a Nervous Nellie and that worries me, a little.”

“You should carry a gun too, Esther.”

“So we can shoot each other? That'd be intelligent, wouldn't it?”

“No, but you should have something to protect yourself if you have to.”

“I'll think about it. Come with me. We'll check out at the back and see if we can find any clues about what you saw last night.”

On the way down to the kitchen, Amos said, “I like the idea of a base camp, that makes good sense to have somewhere secure to work from.”

“Of course it makes sense. That's why I thought of it.” Esther tried to growl but had to grin.

There was nothing out in the backyard and no signs that anything had been there in the night. A gateway-sized gap in the wall allowed anyone, or anything, to come and go as they pleased. Amos thought that, if they were staying there permanently, which they were not, a barricade across that gap would be the first thing he'd build.

Back through the hotel, they went out to the street at the front and Amos looked anxiously to his car. He was a bit worried that the car and all his treasures in it would've been interfered with during the night.

But, it hadn't. Everything was fine there, as far as he could see. Nothing was broken, the doors hadn't been wrenched open and the tyres weren't all flat. What did he think the Abomination was going to do – bite them? He had to stop his imagination getting carried away. Things were bad enough as they were.

Esther kept him busy all day, they didn't stop once – not even to eat! They went first to the local Council Offices, and then to the police station. Breaking into a police station was a strange thing to do; it just didn't seem right. Both places were a waste of time and they learned nothing from them.

However, there was a big map, on a billboard outside the Council Offices and that was a big help. They studied it to learn where to go around the town and how to get there.

They checked out the hospital. That was a waste of time too, there was nothing there. Well, nothing except for a dead body, some old lady lying, very dead in a bed. That was gross.

Then they went shopping. Amos thoroughly enjoyed that and he suspected that Esther did too even though she wouldn't admit it. First, from a car-sales yard, they got two, almost new, 4 wheel drive utes with twin cabs and fibre-glass canopies covering the decks at the rear.

Amos couldn't see why they needed a vehicle each, he'd prefer it if they travelled together, but Esther didn't agree. She said that if one of them broke down or got stuck somewhere, the other one would be able to pull them free. He, reluctantly, agreed and, anyway, they'd be able to carry twice as much food and stuff. So that was good.

Next, they broke into a menswear clothing store. Esther was happy with the clothes she had, but she did take a good Swandri for when the weather was not so good. Amos chose and dressed in a complete new outfit, hard-wearing warm and dry weatherproof clothes, including top-quality leather boots.

They took a good stock of food and seasonings from the Supermarket, tools and supplies from a Hardware Store and from a Sports and Recreation Superstore.

Back at the hotel, they took the food and lights upstairs. Esther came back down to get more water and cooking utensils, then she went back upstairs to start on their evening meal. Amos went out to the street at the front and restowed the food and gear from the car into his new vehicle.

The car had served him well, but he wasn't sorry to leave it. The ute was much better, bigger and more powerful. He finished his chore, picked up the gun and was about to head inside but stopped when he saw something.

There was a bug, a beetle of some sort, flattened and dead on the windscreen of Esther's vehicle. It might've been the last bug left in the world and she'd killed it!

He ran upstairs to tell her so, taking a perverse delight in what she'd done. She always made him feel so incomptent, but she wasn't perfect either.

Here reaction was disappointing, she didn't care. “Huh, so I killed a bug! So? If there was one, there'll probably be more. Their eggs might be hatching and it's bad news if they are. With no spiders or birds to eat them, they'll take over the world.”

“Oh. Maybe we should kill every bug we see then.”

“Maybe we should, but it wouldn't make much difference. Have you seen how many they hatch at a time? Hundreds!”

Amos sat and watched and learned while Esther cooked a meal for them. At least she wasn't growling so much this time. She couldn't really, anything that she didn't have was her fault, not his.

He had a bright idea and he took one of the containers down to the kitchen to fill it with water. He took his gun and a torch with him. That wasn't needed, it wasn't dark yet.

When Esther was done they sat on the floor and ate - chili con carne with rice and a coleslaw on the side. There was even desert to finish with – canned fruit salad and a banana flavoured instant pudding, topped with mock cream from the can. The pudding was made with powdered milk, not fresh, but you'd never know the difference. He learnt something there and that was good to know because he liked instant puddings.

He had water on heating while they were eating and Esther made two instant coffees as soon as it boiled. (His one was later quietly tipped down the hand-basin when she wasn't looking.)

She leaned back against the wall, smiled at him over her coffee and said, “Now then, Church Boy, tell me about your love life.”

“My love life?”

“Yes. What sexual experience have you had?”

“Oh, sex! Nothing really.”

“Nothing at all?”

“No. Except for my dreams.”

“Your dreams. So you have thought about it?”

“Oh, yes! All the time. I know that I shouldn't, but I do.”

“Of course you do, “ she smiled. “You're a teenage boy, young and healthy and your body has got needs that demand to be satisfied. It's perfectly natural, no matter what they tried to tell you, and you know it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Perfectly sure. You said something about liking boys?”

“Yes, I did. I do. That's not natural is it?”

“It is so! It might not be the norm, but it's perfectly natural for some people.”

“Really?”

“Really. Are you attracted to boys in general, or is it some special person?”

“Both.”

“Both?”

“Yes. I was attracted to lots of boys, but mostly one special one.”

“And who would that be?”

“It doesn't matter now, does it? He's gone, like everyone's gone.”

“Almost everyone. We are still here. Tell me about him, what made him special?”

“Why do you want to know?”

“Because I'm a nosy old woman and I'm bored.”

“You want me to talk about my most personal stuff just because you're bored?”

“No, not at all. I was joking, kind of. I want to know because I want to know you, to understand you, if I can.”

“You'll be lucky! I don't understand me.”

“Hahaha!” Esther laughed aloud. “Okay, fair enough, but let's try. Tell me about your boy.”

“He's not my boy. I wished that he was, but he wasn't.”

“Amos!” She growled, exasperated. “You've got a real talent for avoiding the point. Who was he and what was he like?”

Whakahapa, 8

Down at the car, they sorted through his supplies, selected some and moved stuff around so that it could be carried inside in a box.

Amos took a shotgun and some cartridges from the box on the front floor. He put the cartridghes into his jacket pockets and laid the gun on the box of groceries. “There's another gun, a rifle, if you want it.”

“A rifle?” Esther shook her head. “I don't want a gun. Who would we shoot, each other?”

“No, of course not. We probably won't shoot anything. I just feel safer if I've got a gun.”

“But you don't . . oh, okay. Whatever makes you happy. Just see that you don't point it in my direction and I don't want the other one.”

“Are you sure? It's just there.”

“Yes, I'm sure. I've got you to protect me, haven't I?”

“Yes, you have!” Amos beamed. He wasn't sure if she was being sarcastic or not. He hoped not.

A wind was blowing, whipping the kerbside trees around and temperatures were dropping. There was definitely rain coming. He put the windows up, closed the car up and they went back inside.

Up in what had been decided was his room, he put the food on the table and tried to set the cooker up and attach the gas bottle. He was having trouble and couldn't figure out how it was meant to go.

Esther pushed him out of the way. “For goodness sake! You're all thumbs, Boy; it's has probably got a reverse-thread don't you know? I'll fix this, you go and find some water.”

He stood back and looked around. “There's hand-basins and taps in the rooms here.”

“There are, and there's no water in them. I checked. Go and see if there's any in the bathroom or, failing that, in the kitchen downstairs. It will be out at the back somewhere, probably behind the dining-room.”

“Okay, sure.”

He went out to the corridor, it looked very dark after the well-lit room, so he returned and got a candle to light his way. Back to the corridor, and then returned again, sheepishly, to get a pot to carry water in. Esther said nothing, just raised her eyebrows and turned her back on him.

He took the pot and left, peeved.

He was glad, very glad, to have company but he had been coping on his own. Esther made him feel like such a klutz and a child.

There was no water in the bathroom, not even a trickle, so he went down to the ground floor and to the kitchen. The cold taps there had no water, but the hot taps did – a slow flow of cold water.

He filled the pot and returned to the room where Esther was waiting, feeling absurdly proud of having accomplished his mission. He tripped over nothing in the upstairs corridor and almost dropped the water. Darnit.

Esther took the pot, without a smile. “At last!” she said. “I'm hanging out for a coffee here. We have got coffee I hope?”

“Ah, no. Sorry. I don't drink coffee, but there's herbal tea-bags.”

“Herbal tea? Haven't you got any proper tea?”

“No, just herbal. There's no milk either. I guess that we'll have to get used to that.”

“Of having no milk? No we won't. There'll still be milk-powder and that keeps forever if it's dry.”

“Right! There will be milk then. That's good.”

“That is good. We're not going to starve anyway.”

“We're not and that's good because I'm hungry!”

“Me too,” Esther grinned. “So get on with it.”

Amos set-up and lit the small gas cooker and put some water on to heat. Esther sat watching quietly until she could take no more.

“Typical bloody male! You're no cook are you? You haven't got a clue what you're doing.”

“Hey,” he protested. “I can cook, basically anyway.”

“Very basically by the look of it. Get out of the way, Boy, and I'll do it. You can do the cleaning up after.”

He moved back and watched for a while, but soon got sick of that. Esther seemed to know what she was doing, but she spent most of the time growling and complaining about his provisions. He had a whole town out there, a whole country full of supplies and this was all he'd got? It would do for one night, she supposed, but it was nothing but “boy food”.

Tomorrow, in the daylight, they'd go shopping for some proper food. They needed herbs, spices, sauces and seasonings and meat of some sort if they were going to have a decent meal.

Amos soon 'switched off' and stopped listening and turned his mind to other things. He was good at that, he'd had a lot of practice. All of his life he'd been lectured at while he wasn't listening. Great wasn't it? Now there was just Esther and him and he was still being lectured at! But, he was used to it and it was better than being alone.

He lit some more candles and stood them on surfaces around the room. There was no real need to, there was plenty of light, but it was something to do. He half expected Esther to growl about his wasting candles, but she didn't. It didn't matter anyhow, there were plenty more were they came from.

Outside, the rain had arrived with a vengance. They were safely inside and upstairs with the windows closed and covered, but he could still hear the belts of rain lashing out there. It would not be nice out in a tent in that – they'd probably be floating.

How long would it be before fallen leaves and other rubbish blocked the drains and flooded the roads and washed them out? Probably not long if that sort of weather kept up. He'd have to be even more careful on the roads.

Esther finished cooking, and grumbling, and they sat and ate together in silence. Mostly in silence. Amos was curious and he asked her what her life was like as an unbeliever. He'd never had a conversation with an unbeliever and couldn't imagine how they lived.

However, Esther wasn't at all interested in his erstwhile life, and not in hers either. As far as she was concerned, that was all over and done with and all that mattered was the future, if they had one.

They finished eating and washed it down with fruit juice, which was something else for her to grumble about.

Why in the world didn't he have any coffee? She liked her coffee , she needed it and that was going to be the first thing on the shopping list tomorrow. Amos didn't approve of coffee and he told her so. Coffeee contained an addictive drug and it was very bad for people's systems, especially the urinary tract.

Esther didn't want to know about that, 'Thank you very much'. She rose and stretched, reaching for the ceiling, and then relaxed. “Okay, time for bed I think. Cleaning-up is your department, but I'd leave it until the morning when it's light and you can see what you're doing, if I was you.”

“I would rather do them now. By the morning they'll just be harder to clean.”

“Please yourself, but I'm not helping. I've done my bit and now I'm going to bed. I'm knackered. Take the lamp so you can see.”

“I will, thanks. And thanks for cooking dinner, it was great.”

“It was adequate. When we get some proper provisions, you'll see what I really can do. G'night, Boy.”

“Goodnight, Esther. Goodnight and God Bless.”

“Can it!” She left for her room.

Amos reheated the water that was left. Once it was boiling, he gathered up the pot, their, (few), dirty dishes and utensils, hung the lamp on the pot handle and went downstairs. It made no sense really, he just wanted to clean up. It wouldn't matter if dishes and stuff never got cleaned, they could throw them away and get new ones, but that'd be wasteful.

Besides, he was not a bit tired, he was so happy that he was no longer all alone and he wanted something to do. So, in a happy wide-awake mood he was in the kitchen with the lamp up on the sill of the window in front of him and scrubbing in the sink.

His thoughts wandered as they tended to do whenever he was doing a mindless chore. He began re-living the high points of his day and planning what he'd like for tomorrow. He really hoped that Esther wouldn't go off and leave him. It was so good to have someone to . . . well, to just be with really.

He'd have to try harder; she didn't seem to like him very much. She'd been searching too and all she'd found, so far, was him and it looked like she was disappointed. Esther seemed to be very capable and good at whatever she did. He knew that he wasn't that good at anything really, but she made him feel totally useless and such a child.

Maybe it was just an age thing, Esther was older than him. How old was she again?

“Whoah! What was that? What the HELL is that?”

Something, some creature was outside the window. It moved into the finger of light from his lamp and sat there staring, with blood-red eyes, grimacing with a big mouth full of pointed teeth.

It was about the size of a large dog, deformed and twisted with one shoulder higher than the other and the head held at a strange angle. It was a sickly-white colour and glistening, shining like it was all wet and slimy. Slobber dripped from its open mouth and it was the ugliest and most frightening thing he'd seen in his life. Hideous and menacing, it was a monster out there in the dark.

All he could think was, 'Abomination!' He had seen the Abomination of Desolation.

Snarling and spitting, the horrible undead thing rose unevenly to its four feet and lurched away into the darkness. It moved like a broken zombie would and one leg dragged behind it.

Where had it gone? Where was it going? Oh, Hell! It wasn't coming in after him, was it? Scared and shaking he reached out to grab the lamp and, stupidly, knocked it over. It fell from the window sill to the bench, bounced and rolled and crashed to the floor. The light was out and he was left in total darkness. Not good.

“Oh! Oh, no. No, no, no!”

Startled, terrified, he dropped to the floor, fingers searching around until he found the lamp. It was hot! He recoiled, shaking his scalded fingers in the air. He realised what the strange noise was – it was himself, gibbering in his terror.

He clenched his teeth and willed himself to shut up. That thing out there in the dark might, or might not, be able to see him, but it could surely hear him if he wasn't quiet. “Oh, Damm!”

Matches! He still had the matches didn't he? Yes! They were in his pocket. He dragged them out and struck a match, blinking at the burst of light. Nothing. There was nothing there. The door hadn't opened and the creature hadn't come inside. Yet.

The match burnt down, he shook it out and lit another one, then picked up the lamp and sat it on the bench. He pumped the plunger and tried to light it again, but couldn't.

He lit a third match and looked closely at the lamp. The glass was cracked, that was not a big problem, but the mantle was broken and that was a problem. The lamp couldn't be lit without a mantle.

He wished that he had a candle, but he didn't. All he had was the matches. He didn't have his gun either. Dumb Kid! The gun was still up in the bedroom and that was, yet another, stupid mistake. Anyone would think he had a death-wish.

He left everything where it was and, lighting his way with matches, made his way back upstairs as fast as he dared go. The sight of that, that thing had seriously shaken him. It was like looking at pure evil. He'd never seen anything so menacing.

What sort of idiot would come downstairs in the dark, alone and with no protection? ('Clue – one whose initials are AS.') He so wanted to get back up to where his gun was; he needed it.

Actually, he wasn't quite sure if shooting that abomination would do any good. You can't kill something that's already dead and that's what it looked like – dead. Nasty. Still, he'd feel better with the shotgun in his hands. Dead or not, he'd blow it to bits! It'd have trouble walking with no legs.

At the top of the stairs, light was shining from the open door of his room along the corridor. He ran to it, dived through the door and slammed it shut behind him. He grabbed the shotgun and stood holding it up, panting, with his back against the wall and staring at the door as if he expected the Abomination to burst through itafter him.

The handle turned and the door opened. Amos stifled a scream, raised the gun and sighted along it, trying to stop his hands shaking.

“What the hell?” Esther walked in. “Put that thing down before you hurt someone.”

“Sorry.” He shrugged and lowered the gun. “I wasn't sure that it was you who was coming in.”

“Not sure? Who else would it be? Last time I looked, you and I were all there was.”

“Maybe we're not. I, ah, I saw something, in the dark outside the kitchen window.”

“You did? Was there someone out there?”

“No, not a person. It was an animal, I think. I'm not sure what it was.”

“What? Did you see something or not, and if you did, what was it?”

“I saw something. I don't know what it was, but something was out there. It moved into the light and sat there looking at me, and then it moved away again, like a dead thing walking.”

“Dead things don't walk. If you did see something and it wasn't just an over-active imagination, what did it look like?”

“Like nothing I've ever seen. It was just pure evil.”

“That's telling me nothing. Watch my lips – what did it look like? How big? How many legs? What colour? Describe it to me, Boy.”

“Oh. Right. I do wish you'd stop calling me 'Boy'. I'm not a child.”

“Stop acting like one then. Tell me about this creature of yours.”

“I didn't say that it was mine.”

“Amos!” she growled a warning and he grinned in apology.

“Sorry. Okay, so I saw this thing outside the window. It looked like it had crawled out of a grave. It was about as big as a big dog, but it was no dog's head on it – it was round, like a man's and it had no ears that I could see.

Its skin, if that's what it was, was all sickly-white and wet looking, slimy. It had no hair, it was all totally white, except for the eyes, they were red, like blood. The teeth were all pointed and sharp-looking and it was slobbering and drooling while it stared at me – like I was a lump of meat.

It was all sort-of twisted and higher on one side than the other and skinny – all skin and bones. When it moved, it lurched like the legs weren't working together.

Esther, it was awful, really, really horrible and threatening, like something out of a nightmare. If I had this gun I would have blown it away. I'm not moving again without it.

“Hmm,” she said. “You've had a fright. Something has definitely scared you.”

“It did!” he agreed. “It would scare anyone who saw it.”

“It does sound like something from a nightmare. Are you sure that you didn't drift off to sleep?”

“I did not. I was standing up, at the sink, washing the dishes, and it was out there. Don't you believe me?”

“I believe that you think you saw something. What it was, I wouldn't have a clue. It could've been a dog, injured and starving maybe. There's not much out there for a dog to eat. And, of course it was wet, it's bloody raining, isn't it?”

“Well, yes, it is now, but I don't think it was then. That could be why it looked wet, but it was shiny, sort of.”

“It would be in the light. No, Boy, I don't believe you saw a monster. I think you saw something, you were already in an emotional state and your imagination made it more than it was. Call it an hallucination, that could be all that it was. I'll tell you one thing though – I'm not going out looking for it, not in the dark. Tomorrow, we'll have a look around.”

A gust of wind and rain belted against the window. They both looked over, thinking the same thing. There was not much chance of any signs of anything being left out there. No matter how big they were, footprints would be washed away by the morning.

“Tomorrow,” Esther nodded. “So where is the lamp?”

“Down in the kitchen, I broke it. I reached out to grab it, knocked it over and it smashed.”

“We're down to candles then? No matter. Tomorrow we'll get another one, or two. We'd better go to bed and stop wasting candles before they're all gone too.”

“Yes, but I'll keep one burning so that there's some light. Can I sleep with you tonight?”

“You certainly can not. I told you, we're having none of that. Anyway, we're not that close as friends.” She grinned as she refused him. “Didn't your Elders tell you, no sex until you're married?”

“Every day,” he sighed. “But that's not what I meant. I just meant to sleep together in the same room. I really don't want to be alone tonight.”

“Because of what you saw? I hope you don't think that I'm going to save you from monsters.”

“No, but. I just don't want to be all by myself. I probably won't sleep anyway, so I'll keep watching.”

“Well . . . yeah, okay. You're not sleeping in my bed though. Drag your mattress through and you can sleep on that on the floor. One warning, you keep me awake and you're out of there. I need my sleep.”

“I'll try not to disturb you.”

“Try very hard. Come on then, and don't you dare point that gun in my direction.”

“I won't. I knew that we should've brought the other one up for you.”

“But we didn't and it's too late now.”

Sleep was a long time coming but it did come. Amos lay for what seemed like hours on his mattress on the floor, trying not to make a sound while Esrther slept peacefully above him. It was all right for her, she hadn't seen what he saw and she was not so worried.

Somewhere, close by, a door or a window or something was banging in the wind. It scared him when he first heard it, but once he realised what it was, it was just annoying. Very annoying because he nothing to do but to lie there listening to it.

Someone braver might have gone and found it and stopped it banging. Amos was not the someone. He'd stay right where he was!

He did drift off to sleep sometime, because he opened his eyes and the room was full of a grayish light.

Whakahapa, 7

They drove into the town. Shadows were getting longer, the day was dying. It felt later, but his watch claimed that it was only just after 4pm. Maybe he didn't have the right time after all?

“You, umm, you haven't told me your name.”

“Haven't I? It doesn't matter much, but it's Esther. Esther Hope actually.”

“Oh. Hello Esther, I am Amos.”

“Yes. I know that, you told me.”

“Did I? Right. Anyway, Esther, I was wondering, do you know what thew right time is?”

“The time? Good Lord, Boy. Haven't you worked that out yet?”

“I thought I had, but I must be wrong. My watch says it's only 4 o'clock, but it feels much later than that.”

“What a clever watch,” she grinned. “My one can't talk to me. No, seriously, you're about right. I've got 4.20pm, so we nearly agree.”

“It still feels later.”

“Not to me, it doesn't. I grew up around here. It's the hills, they make the day shorter when the sun drops behind them. It'll still be sunny down by the sea.”

“I see. That makes sense, I think. Where are we going to stay for the night, one of these motels here?”

The road that they were on, the main road into town, had a series of motel blocks along it, each with big signs trying to lure-in the passing traveller.

Esther frowned. “No, I don't think so. We're still too far out of town here. Keep going and we'll stop in a hotel in the centre of the main street. We might as well have the best, so pick the flashest, newest one you can find.”

“Okay, but I haven't got any money. Can you afford to stay in a place like that?”

“Money?” she snorted. “Who are you going to pay – me? There's no-one else. Times have changed and the whole world is there for the taking. Get used to it.”

“I'll never get used to that. It doesn't seem right to take things and not pay for them.”

“Seems right to me. Seems like a bloody good deal actually. If you've got no money, how did you pay for everything that you've got in this car?”

“I had some money, but I've run out. I haven't paid for everything yet, but I will. I left IOU's and I'll settle-up later when things get back to normal. Well, sometimes I left IOU's, sometimes I forgot, but I meant to. That's the honest thing to do.”

“Just live in your little dream world, don't you? Amos, you don't have to pay for anything – nothing at all! The world we knew has gone and nobody owns anything now. If you want or need something, take it, its yours. I don't what, but something's happened. Everyone has gone and the world is ours now – all of it and everything in it.”

“I just – no! I can't accept that. It's too much, too big a thing to believe. What would we do if all of the people came back and we'd been helping ourselves to everything? We'd be in huge trouble. They might even cut our hands off.”

“That's not going to happen and they're not coming back, ever.”

“You don't know that!” he wailed., really upset now. “They all disappeared at once, they might all come back the same way.”

“Hardly likely, is it? It's not a play, they're not standing quietly waiting off-stage in the wings you know. Anyway, think on this. The food is already starting to go off. Freezers are thawing and fresh food is going to go rotten. Whatever you and I eat for the rest of our lives is not going to make much difference. It won't be a fraction of all that is wasted.

Same thing goes for anything we use. Everything is going to decay. Spontaneous fires are already breaking out, I've seen several today. As time goes on, storm damage will happen, fallen leaves will block drains and cause flooding. Buildings will leak, rot and collapse. Everything's going downhill and there's no-one to fix it. What we take will make no difference.”

“That's only true if they don't come back.”

“No-one's coming back. Forget what your religion told you. People don't get undead.”

“We don't know if they're dead.”

“Of course they are! There's a hotel, stop down there.”

Amos pulled over to the kerb by what looked to be the biggest building in the street – the New World Hotel. The front of the car clipped a metal rubbish bin as he stopped with a jerk, and it rolled noisily out into the street, sounding shockingly loud in the silence.

The noise faded, Amos shrugged and grinned. “Oops”

“Indeed. How long have you been driving?”

“Two days”

“That long? You're not doing too bad, I guess. Didn't kill us anyway. Come inside and we'll find rooms for the night before it gets dark.”

“Do we just leave the car here?”

“Yes. Why not? Are you worried about someone stealing it?”

“No. You're right, that's not going to happen.”

“It's not and I'm always right. Anyway, if you did lose it, you could just pick another. There's plenty to choose from.”

“I suppose so, but I have got all this food and stuff in here.”

“And the shops are full of more. Don't worry about it.”

“I'll try not to, but I worry – that's what I do best.”

“Stop it then. Come on, we've got to figure out how to get into this place.”

They got out and Esther tried the hotel doors, they were locked and wouldn't open. “We need a bar or something to break in here. What tools have you got in the car?”

“There's some in the boot, buried under everything else.”

“That's not very well organised. Much easier to keep your tools with you in the front. Give me the keys and I'll dig them out.”

While she rummaged around in the boot, Amos backed out into the street to look up at the building towering over them. The hotel was 6, no, it was 7 storeys high. Was that what he thought it was? Yes, it was. “Esther, I think I know how to get inside without breaking-in. There's an open window up there by the fire-escape.”

She stopped what she was doing, joined him in the middle of the street and looked up.

“I see it. Okay, I'll give you 5 minutes, and then I'm breaking the doors.”

Five minutes is not very long.”

“Stop wasting time then.”

“Okay, I'm hurrying!”

He scrambled up the fire escape ladder, in the window and through the vacant room. The big bed had been slept in and left unmade, with the covers disturbed but pulled-up and he was sure that he could see impressions left where two bodies had been. There was no time to worry about that now, he ran along the dark corridor to the stair-well, where the light the light was coming up from the ground floor, and ran 2 flights of stairs down to the bottom.

He stopped, grinning triumphantly at Esther through the glass doors. She was saying something. He couldn't hear what it was, but from the way she was gesturing with the hammer and wrecking bar, she was probably telling him to hurry up.

There were bolts fastened at the bottoms of both of the double doors. He lifted them and tried the handles – nothing happened, they were still locked. Why? Ah! Bolts at the top as well. He undid them and the doors easily opened inwards.

“Welcome to our hotel,” he smiled.

“Yes, well done. I still think it would've been easier to break in. One whack with the hammer and the door would be gone.”

“It would've, but there was no need to smash anything. Broken doors wouldn't keep the weather out.”

“Weather? What weather?” she frowned.

“That weather.” He pointed and she looked back at where a big black bank of clouds was coming up the valley.

“Oh. That weather. We're in for rain. It still wouldn't matter much, we're not sleeping in the lobby and tomorrow we'll be gone. I'll be gone anyway, you can please yourself what you do.

First things first. We'll choose rooms to sleep in – separate rooms, and then we'll have something to eat. It will soon be dark, have you got lamps in the car?”

“I've got a kerosene lantern and a box of candles.”

“That's good. Bring them in, we're going to need them. I'll be upstairs, on the first floor.”

He found the lantern, the candles and the matches to light them. Also, he pulled out the small gas cooker, the gas bottle and pots. Well, they'd need to eat. He carried them inside and up to the first floor.

It was really dark up there now, so he put everything down on the floor, sat at the top of the stairs and lit the kerosene lamp. Once it heated up, the mantle glowed as brightly as any electric light.

Esther came out of a room along the corridor. “Oh. What've you got there? I thought you'd turned the power on.”

“I wish I could This is my lamp, it's fueled by kerosene and I got it from a Hunting, Camping and Sportsgoods store.”

“Of course you did. Well done. Bring your junk down here. This is my room and you can have the one across the corridor.”

“Aren't we going to share a room? I'd feel safer if we did.”

“We're not. Toughen up, Boy. I'm not sitting holding your hand all night, I need my sleep. Anyway, what is there to be afraid of? Nothing, that's what.”

“Doesn't that worry you at all?”

“What, that there's nothing to be afraid of? Why would it?”

“I mean, doesn't it worry you that everyone has disappeared, and all of the birds and animals too?”

“Why worry? It's happened. Now we have to live with it. Is there food in the car?”

“Yes, there is. Lots of it and drinks too.”

“Good. We'll eat that then and tomorrow we'll get some more. All the shops out there are full of goods just waiting for us.”

“Yes. I suppose that what we don't use will be wasted.”

“It will. Come down and we'll get your food before it gets dark.”

Whakahapa, 6

(Might change the title to 'Left Behind')

Sure he knew what a micro-light was, of course he did. He'd never flown in one but the lightweight, miniature aircraft were a common sight in the sky, they were the cheapest way to fly.

Usually, microlights carried only the pilot, but sometimes they could take a passenger as well. This one up there looked like it might be big enough for two people, but he wasn't sure. It didn't have a passenger now, just the pilot, he thought. It was hard to tell, it was flying high-up.

Most of the valley was in shadow by then but the micro-light's wide-spread nylon-covered wings caught the afternoon sun and glowed brightly, it was a beautiful sight. Beautiful and really welcome!

He jammed on the brakes, leapt out of the car and danced around shouting and waving. The pilot didn't see him, didn't stop and sailed smoothly, and noisily, away. He'd already turned towards the closer fire and Amos was behind it now and being left behind. No! It had to stop. It had to! What could he do to catch his attention?

'Aha, yes!' He slapped his pockets, and then clambered over the fence and ran to the nearest windbreak – a long line of close-together pine trees stretching across the valley. Pines always had lots of detrius under them and it hadn't rained for days, so it'd all be tinder dry and would quickly flare-up as a huge fire. The pilot wouldn't miss that, hopefully.

The matches were still in his pocket from lighting the fire up on the hill. Using his outstretched fingers, he quickly raked together some fallen pine needles and set fire to them. When it caught, he threw on more and more and bigger fuel until there was a good-sized fire going. Then there was a small problem.

The fire wasn't spreading because he'd cleared the ground around it. That was easily fixed. Using a fallen branch, he scattered the fire around in a wide arc. Flames spread through the fallen needles and branches, ran across the ground and, suddenly, up into the trees.

Burning bits dropped to the ground and the fire-front grew rapidly. Now would be a good time to get out of there. He went back out to the road and the car.

It was scary how fast the fire was exploding. The whole of the windbreak would be totally munted, which was a shame but it'd grow again. He needed to stop that pilot.

But, it wasn't working. The micro-light had circled the hill where the grass fire was and, aparently seeing that there was no-one there, was now heading back up the valley to the other fire and he was not looking back. Dammit. Damm, damm, dammit!

He screamed his frustration but, of course, wasn't heard. What was wrong with the guy? There was this huge pall of smoke and flames and he wasn't seeing it? Was he blind or something.

That'd be a worry, a blind guy flying a plane! He grinned at the thought.

But, dammit! What was he going to do? He wanted to meet-up with that guy, whoever it was. He needed to. But how? He couldn't fly after him, he wasn't that clever.

He guessed that he'd just have to follow where it went and hope that he found where it came down. There couldn't be that many places where it could land safely and refuel. It was travelling back in the direction he'd come from. It'd be funny, and frustrating, if it landed on the air-strip back on his home farm.

So, he'd follow. That wasn't much of a plan, but it was all that he had. He turned the car to head back to where he'd come from. Dammit.

Then, at last, something went right. The micro-light circled around the hilltop and must've seen the new fire's smoke because it was coming back to where he was. Yes!

He stopped and got out again. He needed something to catch the pilot's attention, but what? He stripped his light-blue shirt off and waved that frantically, screaming and yelling as he did.

Did he see him? Yes, he did. He must have because it was now coming straight towards him. It came down really low and slow as it flew past over him.

He yelled and yelled and hurt his throat and yelled again. Yes, he'd definitely seen him. The micro-light turned in a sweeping circle and came back again, even lower. He wasn't going to try to land here, was he?

That wingspan was far too wide for it to fit on the road. He could not land here. But, he did. The wheels barely cleared the roof of Amos' car and it touched-down on the road shortly after. He was right, the road was too narrow and the wingspan was too wide – not by much but enough to be too much.

The wing on the right crumpled when it struck a power-pole, the micro-light spun around and was all-but shredded as it crashed through a hedge of trees. Whoah! Amos was not the only one yelling.

It stopped crashing and everything was quiet. His first thought was that he had no first-aid kit in the car – nothing! He'd had some first-aid training, all boys did, but that was no use without any gear. If the pilot was seriously injured, then he was in serious trouble and all because Amos Steadfast was incredibly stupid. Poor man.

He wasn't dead; maybe not even injured, not much anyway. The micro-light's wings were crumpled like paper, ripped off and left behind. The landing wheels were gone and so was the propellor, but the framework of the machine was still more-or-less intyact and sitting at a skewed angle a few feet off the ground, caught in the lower branches of a tree.

The pilot swung down from his crooked seat, landed lightly on the ground, turned and grinned at Amos. “I do make a grand entrance, don't I?” he said.

He turned, looked at the wreck and shook his head. “Can't see that ever flying again. I've made better landings, my old instructor would not be impressed. Still, he was the one who said that any landing you walk away from is a a good landing.”

Amos, all excited, was tongue-tied and staring. All he could see of the pilot was his smile. He was clad in heavy-looking brown leathers with matching boots and mittens and a close-fitting leather helmet. His eyes were covered by large tinted-lensed goggles.

Amos wondered about the voice, it was soft and high-pitched like a girl's. He soon saw why that was when the pilot pulled the goggles and helmet off and shook-out her long brown hair. Her hair – it was a girl, well an older girl, a woman, aged about 30ish.

“Aren't you a sight for sore eyes? Aren't you going to say something, Darlin'? You may be the only boy in the world and I may be the only girl, but if you say, 'Madam, I'm Adam', I'll hit you. We're not starting all that again.

“No. Yes. Ah, I mean, yes we're not. Definitely not. Hello. I am Amos and it is so good to see you! Are we the only ones left?”

“I don't know that for sure, but it seems that we are. I've been searching for days and seen no-one. Have you?”

“I haven't and I've been searching too. There no people anywhere and no animals either, not even any insects. Oh, there are fish; I've seen lots of fish, alive and swimming.”

“They are. I've seen fish too and the plants haven't died, they're all alive.”

“How do you know? Plants could take weeks to die off, they do when you spray them.”

“True, but they're not dead. Haven't you noticed the flowers, Silly Boy?”

“What about the flowers?”

“They close when the sun goes down and open again next morning. They're alive.”

“Oh, right. That's good. I hadn't noticed that. Why do you think we are left when everyone else has gone?”

“Sunshine, I wouldn't have a clue but I'm glad to be here.”

“You are? I'm not so sure. Are you a True Believer?”

“Am I a what?”

“A True Believer. A real Christian.”

“Oh. I'm not sure if I'm Christian, but I'm a True Believer all right. I truly believe that the Church is full of crap.”

“Oh. You are an Unbeliever then. One of the godless.”

“Yes, that'd be me, in their eyes anyway. You're a God-Gobbler?”

“I don't know. I might be, but not a very good one.”

“And why is that? No, don't bother. I don't give a stuff what the Church thinks of you, I'll form my own opinion. Your name is Amos? How old are you and where are you from?”

“I am Amos Steadfast. I am 16 years old and I'm from Joppa Community, about a hundred miles back there.”

“Joppa? Never heard of it, I'm from Hebron., which is empty. You're a long way from home. I presume Joppa is empty too?”

“It's empty, they've all gone. There's nobody anywhere.”

“Almost nobody. I haven't found any yet, except you.”

“And I found no-one except you. Maybe we are the only ones. Do you think that we are in Hell?”

“What? Don't talk bloody nonsense, Boy. We're not in any mythical hell.”

“Oh, good. What are we going to do now?”

“Do? Well . . .”She considered the wreckage of the micro-light. “Looks like the transport is well and truly rooted. I'll need to find another one. I'll go up to that town up the valley, get myself a car and I'll keep on searching. I'm not ready to give up yet.

If you'll give me a lift back there, that'll be good. Otherwise, it's a bloody long walk, but I'll get there.”

“You don't have to walk. I'll take you there. The car is very full, but if we move things around we can fit you in.”

“Right, let's do that then. The day is getting on and I need to find somewhere to sleep. The town will have lots of somewheres.”

“It will, it's a big town. We will find a motel or something, eat and sleep and tomorrow find a bigger car. A van might be better , or even a bus. No, a bus to be too hard to get around in and we don't know where we might finish up. Where will we go?” He was chattering away as they went to the car and started rearranging things. She paused and looked at him.

“We? Sunshine, I don't know where you're going but I'm going to find an air-strip, get myself another microlight and keep on searching. I haven't covered the whole country yet, far from it.”

“Can we find a microlight big enough for two?”

“Two people? You're not coming with me; I'll go on my own.”

“On your own? But I thought we'd travel together now.”

“You thought wrong then. Look, Amos whatever-your-name-is, you are not what I'm looking for. That's why I'm still looking.”

“That's why? But why don't you want to travel with me? What's wrong with me?”

“What's right with you? I'm old enough to be your mother, nearly old enough. I need a companion who knows something of the world not some prissy little churchy boy still wet behind the ears.”

“Hey!” he protested. “Do you really think that's what I am?”

“Just calling it like I see it.”

“There's something wrong with your eyes then, I'm not like that.”

“Nothing wrong with my eyes, I see very well. This Joppa Community that you're from, it's a church community, isn't it?”

“Yes it is. Joppa is a farming commune of about 400 people and we, they, have, had, lots of smaller industries as sidelines.”

“Like what?”

“Like making fertiliser, baking bread, making cheese, lots of things.”

“And you were born and raised there? It's the only world you knew?”

“Well, yes, it was.”

“Well then,” she shrugged. “Got a lot to learn, haven't you?”

“I don't know, have I?”

“You certainly have. There's a lot more to the world than your churchy stuff. Well there was a lot more. If all of your church have disappeared the world will be a better place.”

“How can you say that? It was the Church who started New Salem. There'd be nobody here if it wasn't for them.”

“There's no-one here anyway, except for us, one religious, one not.”

“I'm not so sure that I am religious. I was probably going to be excommunicated before long.”

“Oh? Maybe there's hope for you yet. Why were they going to kick you out?”

“They might not have, but they probably were going to. After what I've seen now, I think I'd leave anyway.”

“Oh? This is getting interesting. First, why would they probably boot you out?”

“Because I came to notice and I was under investigation.”

“Investigation for what?”

“For, well, being different I suppose. I can't fully accept all of the Church's teaching.”

“Is that all? You be out for thinking for yourself and disagreeing with what they told you?”

“Well, yes. But mostly for disobedience. Nobody can tell what I'm think, and that's good.”

“They probably couldn't, unless you were stupid enough to tell them.”

“I, ah – I might have done that, a little.”

“You did? You are stupid then.”

“Maybe. The Elders, they have ways of getting a person to talk. All of my life, I've always been under their authority.”

“So you talked? It's hard to kick against the pricks. That's in your bible, you know.”

“Kicking against . . It is not! The Bible doesn't say that.”

“It bloody does – Book of Acts, chapter 26, verse 14, look it up. I'm not completely ignorant of the bible. You can't live 31 years on New Salem and not pick up some of it.”

“Thirty-one years. Is that how old you are?”

“Didn't they tell you that it's rude to ask a lady's age? But, yes I'm 31.”

“You are old enough to be my mother. Some girls have babies at 13 and 14.”

“Far too young. Your church has got some perverted practices. Making girls have babies that young is just tragic. They're still babies themselves.”

“Well, not babies, but they are young mothers. They are physically mature so they are women, and a woman's first duty is to submit to her husband and to have children. That is in the Bible too, we are commanded to be fruitful and multiply and to fill the world.”

“That command is often quoted. Did you know that it is quoted wrongly? In the creation story, in the first chapter of Genesis, God created animals, fish and birds and told them to be fruitful and multiply.”

“He told Adam and Eve to do the same thing.”

“He did not. He told them to be fruitful and multiply, to replenish the earth and subdue it.”

“That's the same thing, isn't it?'

“It is not. You're not listening. He said to replenish which means to refill it. Re, as in do it again, so it must've been filled up previously. Who by?”

“But . . He . . I – does it really say that?”

“It does. Read it and see for yourself.”

“But why didn't the Elders say something about that?”

“Because it doesn't suit their little mind games and power trips. Enough of that. The Lesson endeth here. Are we going to that town or not?”

“Yes we are. We're going now.”

Amos started the car, turned and drove back up the road.

Whakahapa, 5

The rooms were all different, but all the same. So much softness, richness and luxury. He'd never seen anything like it, except in pictures of the old-time palaces of kings and queens. There were no kings here, or, there wasn't supposed to be – it looked like the Elders didn't know that.

How did they get away with living like this? Amos had never dreamed that their lives up here were anything like this. It was a whole different world. How had they kept it secret?

All the 'little' people, like his mother, worked so hard for so little reward and the Elders lived like kings.

There were rooms full of electronic gear, computers even. There was even a small cinema with a huge tv screen – the biggest he'd ever seen. He didn't know tv's were made that big. There were hundreds of dvd's and they were not the wholesome uplifting teaching tools that everyone else watched. Ssme of the people in the cover pictures had very few clothes on.

And, the poses! They were all very immodest, the Elders would not approve. And yet, it seemed, they did when in private!

There was a separate dining-room too, with a polished-wood table and an attached kitchen and store-rooms. Shelves in there were bulging with food, the likes of which he'd never seen.

He was intrigued and fascinated and a little disgusted. How many people knew about all this? The Elders did, obviously, but someone had done all of the cooking and cleaning for them. He couldn't see them doing that themselves. That would be too far below them.

They lived like this and leeched on the Community. Unbelievable! The Dirty Pigs.

“Rotten Bastards!”

Where had that come from? Somewhere deep in his memory, but it fitted – the Bastards!

It had taken a while, but his temper had finally boiled-up and surfaced and he was mad! How dare these bludging, leeching thieves sit in judgement on him? Or on anyone? How dare they!

He roared around, venting his temper and yelling as if they could hear him, which they couldn't. He flung chairs over, flipped tables, threw and smashed ornaments and generally made a huge mess in several rooms. It was a lot of work though, a lot of effort, and he soon tired of it and stopped.

He stopped to wash his face and cool down a bit in a bathroom. Every bedroom had its own individual bathroom. Every one of them did! He was amazed. They had toilets too.

The water ran strongly, as it would – the community's water supply was gravity-fed from a dammed up creek high on the hill behind them.

The running water gave him a wicked idea and he left the taps running, put the plug in the sink-hole and clogged up the overflow with a face-cloth. The hand-basin soon filled and overflowed, water ran out on to the floor.

“There. Clean that up, Bastards!” he yelled at the absent elders.

That was a much better idea. He could really mess up their palace with no effort at all. Hah!

'If a job is worth doing, it is worth doing well' or so he'd always been told. Okay then, he would do it well. He went along the corridor, into room after room, started water overflowing and left it running.

It would take a while, but the water would run down and flood the whole building. And make a mess of everything. The Elders would have to fix it themselves or everyone would know just exactly how those thieves lived off them.

Downstairs and outside, it was getting dark and he still hadn't found anywhere to sleep. It was time that he did. Okay, he decided, he'd sleep in the car again. That was safe and secure, he could lock himself in there.

He needed a pillow though. In fact, he could have have two or even three pillows, so he would. Every dormitory bed had one, there were lots of them and no-one else was using them.

Next morning, he sat up, looked out and grinned. A small stream of water was pouring out of the front door and cascading down the steps, like miniature waterfalls.

However, it was running across the road and down to the dormitory buildings. That wasn't part of his plan, he wasn't going to flood them too. The people down there weren't the ones who'd been stealing from him. Or, were they?

No, they weren't. He went inside the Community Building, paddling in his bare feet. The water wasn't even ankle deep but it was cold. He went up to the top floor and got some duvets off the beds up there. They were still dry, but they wouldn't be for long.

Back down at the front entrance, he closed the doors and laid the duvets across them to stop the water and damm and divert it into the main hall. It would run through there, into the dining-room and out through the kitchen. Hah!

It'd be a while before it got there, so he went and cooked some breakfast before it did. He ate in the kitchen and walked out leaving more dirty dishes and utensils. He was leaving, so it wasn't his problem.

The car was still loaded up with food and drink. He hadn't used any of it yet, so he didn't bother taking any more. All that he took was some more containers of petrol, from the car sheds.

He drove away and didn't look back. If they all came back or not didn't matter, he was done with the place forever. He wouldn't miss it at all and they probably wouldn't miss him either.

He exited the property, crossed the bridge and back to the main road where he stopped. Where was he going? He had no plan now and he needed one.

Hebron! He'd head north to Hebron. Hebron was the capital city and was the only real city on the New Salem. All the other so-called cities were just over-grown towns, or they used to be. There was nearly a million people living in the Capital and that was where the Temple was. There must be someone left there out of all those people, they couldn't all be gone. Besides, anyone else in the country would most likely head for there too.

So, Hebron was where he was going. Which way was it? North, of course. He turned right and headed north. There were more and more towns along the way, all empty. Most of the people lived in the north of the country, when there were people.

Early afternoon, he turned off the road and stopped in a picnic/lookout area where a couple of tables under shingled, peaked rooves looked down the hill, down the long valley and all the way to the sea in the distance.

The sun shone, the air was clear and it was an impressive view. Hebron was not far along the coast there. He'd been there once, when he was little. He thought that it was further away. He might even get there by nightfall if he hurried, but why bother?

There was a big town just down at the foot of the hill, that would be Bethel. He'd get some fuel there and check the place out.

A stone fireplace had a stack of dry firewood next to it , so he lit a fire. He couldn't cook anything for lunch, he hadn't brought any pots or pans. That was yet another mistake. How long was it going to be before some stupid mistake got him in real trouble? Like he wasn't already in trouble?

Once the fire was burning well, he heaped lots of green foilage on to make it smoke.

He ate some snack food for lunch, washing it down with a soda, and he decided that he needed to get some fresh fruit, he liked fruit – some of it. Should've thought of that sooner.

The fire was now pushing a tall column of gray smoke up in to the windess air, which was good. That would be easily visible for miles if someone was out there searching like he was. He hoped that there was. He loaded the fire up again and covered it with more smoky green stuff. He got back into the car and continued on down the hill.

The town at the bottom spread part-way up the hill, as towns below hills often seem to do. The highway morphed into a town street as he went down and into the business district and the 'high-risers'. (The buildings were about 4 storeys at the most, but that's high. It's all relative).

He stopped and sounded the car horn, over and over. It sounded very loud in the quiet street. Then he got out, stood and looked around – nothing!

Behind him, back at the top of the hill, a pall of smoke still rose from his fire. It could be seen for miles and miles and that was good.

And? Was that what he thought it was? Yes! It was. Another column of smoke was was building and climbing from the top of the hills down the valley and to the left. Another fire! Another person?
More excited than he'd been for days, he jumped back in the car and roared off down the street.

'Wait up.' After a couple of blocks, he stopped again. Exactly where did he think he was going? Well, to the fire,of course. He was going to the hill where the fire was. But he had to figure out how to get there. Was there a road up there? Where was that book of maps?

It was not in the glovebox where it should have been. He searched frantically through the car but couldn't find it anywhere. There was so much stuff in there! Maybe he should think about getting a bigger vehicle? Yes, but not now. This wasn't the time to be worrying about cars.

Where were those blasted maps? When did he get so untidy?

'Aha!' He spotted a sevice station along the street. He didn't have to find the maps, he'd just get some more. Easy.

He walked along there, prised the door open and took another book of maps, identical to the one he'd lost. This one would stay in the glovebox!

He opened the maps on the front seat of his car, studied the local one and worked out how to get up that hill. There was a secondary road all the way up there, so that was good. All he had to do was to find it and follow it. He would've walked up there if he had to, but was glad that he didn't.

After back-tracking on a couple of wrong turns he got on to the right road and wound his way up to the top of the hill. The further up he went the bigger the fire seemed to be. He soon saw why.

This was not contained like the fire that he lit, this was a grass fire, out of control and spreading rapidly. The road went past below the burning area; he drove along slowly, sounding the horn again and searching anxiously.

No-one around. Blast it!

He finally had to admit defeat and drove away, back down the hill leaving the fire burning and spreading, there was nothing he could do about it. Another sunshine through a glass fire? Probably.

Back in the town, constantly checking the map beside him, he found the way back to the highway and continued north through the town and was soon back in empty countryside.

The smoke from the fire he'd lit was still visible, away back in the distance, and that from the other fire was behind him too. A Micro-light suddenly appeared over the valley. Wow!

Whakahapa, 4

He woke early in the morning, the sun hadn't lifted over the hills yet. Out of the car, he stood stretching his cramped muscles. That was not the most comfortable bed he'd ever slept in, but it was okay.

He peed on the grass, then washed his face and hands in the clear, cold water and sat watching the busy creek.. It was quiet in the valley, very quiet. The dawn chorus was missing. Usually at this time of day he'd be getting the cows in and listening to the birds singing about whatever it was that they sang about. Complaining about being woken up maybe?

He'd always enjoyed the dawn chorus, now there were no birds and no cows to milk either. Depressing thought. He wasn't thinking about that.

He didn't know that anyway. For all he knew, somewhere along the road he might suddenly come out to where everything was the same as it always was and there were birds and cows and people and everything. He wouldn't know for sure until he got there.

He ate the last of his sandwiches – hard and dry but still edible washed down with juice. Maybe, that was it – no more bread – ever! No, he couldn't believe that. That was too big to be true. Everyone at home might still be there. Anyway, flour and salt and stuff was around and somewhere there'd be an instruction book for baking bread.

He could always pray, 'Give us this day our daily bread.' No, wouldn't work. There was no 'us', there was just him.

If there was no bread, shame, but there'd be plenty of other things to eat. Heaps of them. In an empty world there were lots of things that he might die of, but starving was not one of them.

A car crash could get him though. He looked back up the hill where he'd had the near miss. He really had to be careful. Any accident could kill him. There were no doctors or nurses or anyone at all to help him if he was injured.

'Physician heal thyself'. Pity he wasn't a physician then. He didn't even know anything about first-aid. He had to be careful and take it slow when he couldn't see the road ahead. It was time he was going down the road ahead. There was still a long way to go but, all going well, he'd be there late today.

He scouted around and made sure that there was no rubbish around the site. There was no need to really, but he was basically a tidy person and old habits die hard.

It was only just after 7am when he got moving. There was a couple of minutes worry when the car was slow to start and it was a great relief when it finally did.. If it broke down, what was he going to do about it?

Not a lot. He wasn't mechanical at all, he couldn't fix anything. It shouldn't be a huge problem anyway, either there would be someone who could fix it or else there'd be no-one and hundreds of abandonded cars. He could just get another one. No worries.

He was covering the miles quite fast. It was flat(ish) open country he was travelling through now and he could go at a reasonable speed when he could see that the road ahead was clear.

There were farms along the way, all empty and dead-looking. There were still no animals in the fields and there should've been by then. Still no birds anywhere either.

He'd miss the birds. They weren't much good for anything, but they sounded good. They must have some uses though or the Elders wouldn't have brought them all the way from Earth. Like, what uses? Oh, yes. They ate insects, didn't they? Insects and spiders and things.

Bugs had hundreds of babies at a time and the birds ate them and kept the population under control. They'd over-run the world if there were no birds. Just as well there were no insects too then.

Thinking about things helped to pass the time. The radio didn't work, he'd tried the one in the car and it picked-up nothing.

Down a hill, he went into Bethel, a big town spread along both banks of a river. He slowed right down and crawled along through there, sounding the car's horn, over and over.

There was no response and no signs of life anywhere; it didn't look good. Then he saw it – a column of dirty black smoke in the distance to his right.

He turned off the highway and found his way through the maze of suburban streets until he came to the source of the smoke. It was a huge fire, a whole street of houses were aflame. Crackling flames reached high and the pillar of smoke billowed above them.

He got up close, stopped and sounded the horn loud and long, and got out, looking around. If there was anyone at all, anywhere in the town, the fire would've brought them here to check it out. There was no-one.

There was nothing he could do about the fire, even if he had a fire-engine, which he didn't. It would just have to burn itself out. The way it was going, that wouldn't take long. What had started it?

Nobody lit it and it couldn't have been an electrical fault with no power, but there had to be some reason for it? It was a bright sunny day. It could've been something as simple as the sun shining through a magnifying glass. Even a clear-glass bottle of water could do that. Unlikely, but it could! They did that in science class in school one time. Something started it.

He waited, but was only wasting time, no-one was here, so he got back into the car and found his way back to the highway. He was almost out of the other end of the town when it occurred to him that he should get some more petrol and some more food too, while he could.

He stopped on the forecourt of the service station in a small suburban shopping centre. He heard, somewhere, that petrol pumps had handles in them so that they could be worked by hand when the power was off. So he unscrewed and removed the panel on the front of a bowser and, sure enough, there was a handle in there.

There was a small padlock on it which he whipped off with his hammer and wrecking bar – easy! He pulled the handle down, lifted it back up and down a couple of times and petrol started dribbling out of the the hose.

He put the hose into the car's tank inlet and pumped until it was full. He put the hose back where it was, closed up the bowser and put his tools back in the boot.

A couple of minutes later, the tools came out again because he needed them to break into the grocer's shop. In there, he collected food that would keep awhile, canned, dried and preserved stuff, and filled a couple of boxes that he put on the back seat of the car, also a box full of bottles of drink, both fruit juices and sugary soda-pop. Fruit juice was healthy, sodas were not but they taste good!

He closed the shop door, sort of, got back in the car and drove away. The town was soon behind him and he'd been going past empty farmland for half an hour when he realised that he hadn't left any IOU's for the stuff he took, or the locks he'd broken.

Oh, well! He wasn't going all the way back. If people ever returned, they'd sort it out then, if not then it didn't matter.

It was not quite 4pm when he spotted his home in the distance, over at the other side of the valley. He stopped and looked. It had only been a couple of days since he left there, it seemed like ages ago.The big communal buildings, small in the distance, stood in the middle of well-tended green pastures and the sun behind him lit them so they glowed like jewels.

There were no jewels there really, they weren't rich, it was just a big home and a hard-working farm. He had no great love for the place but this was his home, it was the only world that he knew. He was born here, grew here and it was all that he had.

Or, it was all that he had, now he'd see if he still did. He started again, carried on up the side road, over the bridge and through the wide-open entrance gates. Home.

It was a long, long driveway, winding up to the dwelling places at the foot of the hills. As a boy, he'd often stood up there watching cars approaching and he'd wondered if the lay-out of the property was a form of defence. No-one came in here without the community being well aware of their arrival.

Maybe the lay-out was a memory, a hang-over from the first communes back in the bad old days? Many stories were told of how the First-Called were persecuted, shunned and ostracised by the ungodly majority there on Earth.

Here on New Salem it was the other way around. The ungodly were the minority, but it was a growing minority, maybe even a majority now – a majority of one. Him.

There were no animals in the fields at all, there should have been. The cows, hundreds of them, should be coming in for milking at this time of day. They weren't. The herd of deer were not in the lower paddocks, the flock of ostriches were not in their pens, no pigs, no poultry – nothing!

He drove straight up and stopped outside the main entrance of the Community Hall, got out of the car and looked around. The big dormitory buildings, the kitchens and dining halls, the school and playgrounds, everything was quiet and deserted.

It was like a dream. He'd never, ever seen his home looking so empty. Over 400 people lived, worked, played and prayed here and it was always busy, until now. Where were they? Where had they gone?

He shed a tear, standing there all alone. He wanted his family, he needed them. Why would they go and not take him? Where? His Blood brothers and sisters, his always-tired and hard-working mother, his stern but loving father, his rigid and unbending grandparents. Uncles, Aunties, cousins, Brother, Sisters, all of his huge extended family.

He grinned ruefully, he'd even be happy to see the Elders, any of them. That was a first! He'd learnt long ago to avoid the authority figures as much as possible. Now it seemed like they were avoiding him. They were doing a very good job of it too.

His gaze settled on the Community's airstrip and the big hangar where their three planes were kept. That'd be the perfect way to search all of the country in a hurry, by flying high above it. Could he fly a plane? Not likely. That was ridiculous.

He might've figured out how to drive a car on the empty roads, getting a plane up and off the ground and safely back down again would be impossible He'd be mad to even think about it.

Inside the Community Hall, in the Meeting Room, it was quiet, dark and empty. Up at the front, on the raised platform, he sat in the Senior's chair! He stood at the pulpit, looked up at the tiers of empty seats, slammed the big preaching bible shut and proclaimed, “God has gone. There is no god here!”

He waited, eyes closed, but nothing happened. No lightning bolts struck him and no Elders yelled. Now he knew that he really was all alone. If not, he'd be huge trouble by now.

He could do, or not do, absolutely anything he wanted to. All of his life, that had been a favourite dream. Now he could, but it was not so good, nowhere near as exciting as it should be.

He clutched the sides of the pulpit, scareamed the worst words he knew, “Tit-sucking Buggers! Pee off then.” He shoved and threw the pulpit down to the floor below the stage and walked out.

The kitchen was similar to the one at the motel, but much bigger. It was just as empty though. The gas stoves were working so he cooked up a feed – scrambled eggs and sausages. As another act of defiance, he took the plate through to sit and eat and the Elders' table in the dining room.

When finished. He drank the milk, which was warm and tasted a bit 'off'. Then he left his dirty dishes and cutlery and walked out. If anyone came back, they'd know that he was there, if they didn't, it didn't matter.

The second dormitory, across the road out at the front, was the one where he'd slept ever since he could remember. Over there, he went down the stairs to the ground-floor where the rooms for his extended blood family were.

Past the Family rooms in the front, where parents, babies and their two youngest children slept, he went to the teenage boys' dormitory at the back. In his own cubicle he sat on his own bed and looked at the familiar surroundings. Home? Not really.

It was just a room, bare and functional. He'd seen better now and if he never saw it again, he wouldn't miss it much. It was the people he missed.

'Oh, yes!' A happy, cheeky thought struck him. There was something that he'd always wanted to do but couldn't – now he could! He could do whatever he liked.

Across the corridor and a couple of doors along he went into another cubicle, a mirror image of his own one. Everything was reversed but otherwise identical, even the bedding was the same. The bedding!

He lifted the covers on the unmade single bed, and inhaled deeply. He ran a hand over the wrinkled bottom sheet. This was his bed, where he slept – Jeroboam!

Jeroboam, a distant cousin, was the source of his problems. He was not the only one, but he was the main one. Blond haired, blue eyed, long legs and smooth, young skin, Jeroboam was simply the most beautiful boy Amos had ever seen and he was very attracted to him in ways that he should not have been.

Even if he was a girl, which he obviously was not, it would still be wrong to have the sinful, lustful thoughts that he did. Those things were for man-woman couples and only after they were properly married. Two boys together? No! It couldn't, that had never happened on New Salem, as far as he knew.

But, that didn't stop him wanting Jeroboam, so bad. He had for years, but he had never dared tell him. Jeroboam was a good boy, not an evil one like Amos. Now it would never happen, he'd gone like everyone had.

Did he love Jeroboam? He wasn't sure. In a way he did, like he loved everyone else, like he was supposed to. But he wanted him, he lusted for him powerfully and he was not supposed to do that!

That was why he'd been sent away to make a solitary, prayerful retreat. He'd confessed some of what he was feeling to a couple of Elders. He didn't mean to, but Elders had ways of getting people to say more than they intended.

Even so, they hadn't learned everything. If they had, the only retreat he'd be making was a permanent one to exile.

Funny, he grinned, now it seemed that everyone except him had been exiled. It wasn't funny at all. He lay down and cried on Jeroboam's pillow, cried for all he'd lost, all that might have been and never was.

Eventually he calmed and pulled himself together. He was just being silly. Jeroboam was no sinner, he was never going to want to do any of that stuff. He was clean, pure and religious, and it was selfish to wish that he was anything else. But he did!

He was so lonely. He'd been lonely all his life, but now was the worst, he was alone and lonely now.

What was he going to do now? He'd come home and there was nothing here. So now? For once, he wished that there were orders to follow, but there weren't. He'd have to make his own decisions. What did he want? People! He wanted people to be with.

He'd search and he'd keep on searching however long it took. There had to be someone somewhere. There had to be!

First things first, he needed somewhere to sleep for the night. Where? Anywhere he chose. His own bed? Maybe. It was all very open in the dormitory, the cubicles had no ceilings and he wouldn't feel very safe and secure there.

Safe from who? He was being silly, but he couldn't help how he felt, he never could, that was how he got in trouble

He could sleep in a Family Room. They were bigger rooms with bigger beds and they had ceilings. But, did he want to sleep in someone else's bed, especially when he knew the couples that usually slept there? Well, no. It wouldn't be right. Apart from being bigger, Family Rooms were much the same as dormitory cubicles, only separate.

How about the Elders' bedrooms? The Elders had separate quarters up above the Community Buildings. It was said that they had offices, studys and living rooms up there too. He didn't know that for sure, it was just what he'd heard.

No-one but Elders and a few select older ladies were allowed up on the top floor. He'd always wondered what it was like up there, now he could find out. Who was going to stop him?

Back in the Hall, he went upstairs to the second floor where the meeting and teaching rooms were, and then, nervously, up the private stairs to the top floor. He opened the door at the top and all of his childhood illusions were shattered.

Somehow, maybe he'd been told it, he had the idea that the Elders were all simple-living godly men who had spartan quarters where they dedicated their lives to prayer, study and seeking God's guidance for the community. He was so wrong!

Through the door, it was like a palace. There was thick and soft carpet on the floor, framed, real, paintings on the tastefully papered walls and the light fittings were miniature chandeliers, all sparkling in gold and glass.

There was no power going, but still plenty of light from the high-up windows and skylights. Awestruck, he wandered down the long hallway, peering into rooms on either side.

Whakahapa, 3

He didn't imagine the fish, did he? He couldn't see them now, not a sign of them. He lay face-down looking over the end of the jetty and down into the water. At first, all he could see in there were the weeds. Then, flicking about amongst them, more fish, other fish.

These were not the ones he saw before, these were just little ones, like miniatures. They were only about half the length of his forefinger and there were dozens of them. They were everywhere. There were snails too, water snails gliding across the broad-leaf plants. There were other insects, the more he looked the more he saw.

The school of fish came back and swam past like they were in a parade. He felt like cheering, like it really was a parade.

There was a whole world down there in the water, a whole different world and it was teeming with life That was good, just a pity that he wasn't a fish. Oh well.

What about the other insects, the land-based ones? Were they still alive? He hadn't noticed any all day, but he wouldn't normally anyway. He got up and went back across the road to the small patch of green grass under the trees there.

He crawled around, searching carefully, but found no signs of life – no insects, ants, spiders or anything. They'd gone. Blast it!

What now? It was almost 3 o'clock. The bus that he'd arrived on came at a bit after 5, so he had a couple of hours before today's one would be due. So?

Food! Yes, food was always a good idea. He'd get some more to eat. It wouldn't hurt to stock-up on some for tomorrow too. He went back to the bakery where he'd been before. He knew how to get in there and it was full of food.

He'd closed the outside door when leaving before. He opened it again and went back in. Nothing had changed, the place looked exactly the same. The cash he'd left on the counter was still there. The price list was still on the wall. What could he afford? Not a lot actually.

He had money in the bank. He had enough to keep him going all week, but there was no way to get it out now. It didn't look like the bank would be opening anytime soon. Maybe it never would?

No. He didn't want to think like that; the people would be back. There were no dead bodies around, they weren't all dead. They'd be back.

He filled several bags with goodies, took some drinks from the cabinet and left an IOU with a list of all he'd taken, next to the cash-register. Back to the motel, he dropped everything off there, keeping just one small drink bottle and a pie and cake to eat while he sat and waited for the bus.

He sat in the small glass-walled shelter where he'd got off the bus the day before, and watched the shadows lengthen. The sun went down behind the hills across the lake, sunset faded and day turned into night.

There were no street-lights working, of course, and there was no moon either. It was dark, very dark, and he was all alone, defenceless and very small. He didn't want to, but he had to accept that there was no bus coming. Whatever had taken all the people must be wider-spread than just this town.

He went back to the motel unit and locked himself in there. It was pitch-dark inside, inky coal-face black and he had no light at all, not even any matches. He had no weapons to defend himself if he had to either. He was so dumb! He'd had all day and there was a whole town-full of stuff out there and he didn't even think about it.

Feeling his way, he climbed into bed and pulled the covers over his head, hiding from the world like he used to when he was a little kid. If nothing happened tonight, and if he was still all alone tomorrow, he'd be better prepared next time. He'd make sure of that!

Now, all he could do was to hope and pray that he survived the night. There was no way that he was going to go to sleep, he was much too nervous and worried for that to happen.

He went to sleep.

Amos woke in the morning and rolled onto his back. The room was full of light, and why wouldn't it be? He hadn't closed the drapes when he came back last night.

Whoah. Last night, yesterday, the empty town and all of the people gone – it all came flooding back as he woke properly. He sprang out of bed to go out and see if things were back to normal. Maybe yesterday was just a dream?

It wasn't. Nothing had changed, there was still no-one around and he was all alone. He wasn't scared like he was yesterday, he was over that now, but what the Hell was he going to do?

'What the Hell?' He didn't say that out loud, did he? He looked around guiltily, but, of course, no-one heard him if he did. He could actually say whatever he liked and there was nobody to stop him.

Like something clicked in his brain, he felt different – he felt free. He was free to say and do whatever he wanted to say and do. Anything! He stood, hands on hips, and defiantly yelled the worst words he could think of.

“Poos, no Shit! Shit and Piss and Bugger. Bugger the Elders. Bugger the lot of them!”

He closed his eyes and waited. Nothing happened. No-one whacked him around the ears. The sky didn't fall down. Nothing happened. All right then! He could do whatever he wanted to do. That was, well – different.

What did he want to do? Nothing really.

Standing there in the bright sunshine, (at 7.30am!), he felt a bit embarrassed about how scared and worried he was yesterday, especially after dark. It was all bit silly now and who was ever safe hiding under the bedclothes?

Whatever it was that had happened, had happened and he was going to have to deal with it. He wasn't used to thinking for himself, now he was going to have to. All of his controlling family and Elders had gone wherever they'd gone and he was all alone.

In a way, he wasn't all that sorry really. He still didn't like all this and some of them he would miss, but not all of them. Good riddance to most of them!

And – foodtime. He was not having a morning shower today. He already had his clothes on, he'd slept in them, and he wasn't dirty anyway. He didn't smell, but if he did, what of it? Who was going to object? Nobody, that's who.

He went to the kitchen. No-one there to feed him so he had to feed himself. There was still no electric power going, but the gas stoves were working. So that was good.

There was a puddle of water around the big fridges, they were defrosting, but it was still cold inside and the food didn't stink yet.

He cooked ham and eggs. Choice. He quite liked this freedom business, it had advantages that he could get used to.

After eating, he cleaned-up and put everything away. He knew that he didn't have to, but he chose to. He didn't like mess. He was basically a tidy person.

Remembering last night's resolve to be better prepared next time, he walked back to the town area to see what he could find. There was a camping and hunting goods store, which was good. They should have everything he needed – firelighters, lamps, knives, maybe even guns and ammunition.

He looked all around the outside of the shop, as best as he could. It was in the middle of a block of others and all of the doors and windows were closed and locked. Nobody had conveniently driven a car through the front wall, so he couldn't get inside.

He thought about it, looked and searched. He prised a brick out of the edging on the kerb-side garden and he threw it through the glass door.

It was the single most rebellious thing he'd done in his life, and he wasn't sorry. He'd pay for it when the time came, if he had to, but for now he needed to get in there and he was not going to be stopped.

The glass was gone. The door was still closed and locked, but it didn't matter, he stepped through the hole in it. He stepped inside and looked around.

The next hour was one of the best hours ever. He searched the dark shop and found more and more things that he'd need if he was going to survive and live alone. He had every intention of surviving no matter what had happened to everyone else.

Everthing was there for the taking, so he took it. He couldn't just steal everything though. He left his name, home address and a list of all he'd taken. It was going to cost a fortune! Whatever, he needed it.

He probably should have, but he didn't mention the glass door and how it got broken. They could work that out for themselves.

He was going home, back to the farm that he'd grown up on. There might be no-one there too, but he had to go and see. And then? Don't know. One step at a time.

This here was a very nice little town, but he'd seen it now and there was nothing to keep him here. He had to leave, to go and find the people, or find what had happened to them all.

It was a long way home, he'd need transport. No buses, so he needed a car. He'd never driven, he was too young to drive yet and he hadn't even started to learn. But, how hard could it be? Lots of idiots drove everyday. He'd been watching drivers all of his life so he knew, he thought, what need to be done. He'd learn as he went and, at least he didn't have to worry about other traffic on the road.

He looked at the heap of gear he'd selected – camping, hunting and fishing equipment, including several guns and ammunition for them. It was all far too much to carry; he wasn't staggering around town with all of that. He'd get a car, bring it back here and load it up.

He went along the street looking at all of the parked cars and trucks. There were two basic types to choose from, electric ones and petrol-driven ones. Electric cars were out, there was no way to recharge their batteries when they were flat. He needed a simple petrol-driven car. That shouldn't be hard to find.

Unfortunately, nearly every vehicle along the main street was closed and locked. The few that didn't have the doors locked had no keys in the ignition anyway. Didn't people trust each other around here? Anyone would think that their cars might get stolen.

All he wanted was to borrow one. He couldn't afford to buy a car. He wasn't really an Elder.

He couldn't find what he needed and was getting frustrated when, (“Aha!”), he came across a car-sales yard. There were plenty to choose from in there.

He broke into the office by levering a door open – and breaking it, but whatever. The carefully labelled keys for all of the cars in the yard were on a board above the desk. That was good. He found the car he wanted, got in and started it, no trouble at all. Then there was a problem.

There was a chain across the way out of the yard and it was padlocked, so he couldn't drive out there. People really weren't very trusting. He couldn't find the key to open it, so he went to the Hardware and Building Supplies Store and got some tools, including a hacksaw. He was going to need tools anyway.

He cut the chain and got rid of it, threw the tools into the car and drove out to the street – jerking and jumping all the way, but no-one was watching and laughing. Back at the other shop, he loaded up al his gear, and then went back to the motel. He got his luggage and the bakery food from there.

What else? A map. He'd need a map so he didn't get lost.

He drove to the Service Station on the way into town, broke in there and got a book of road maps.

Then, seeing as he was there, he thought that he should make sure that his car was full of fuel, oil and water. Oil and water were not a problem, the water hose worked and there were bottles of oil everywhere. However, he couldn't get any petrol out of the pumps, they weren't working because the power was off. What to do?

Ah, yes. He got a piece of hose and some fuel containers and went back to the car-sales yard where he siphoned petrol out of the other cars there. He filled his car, as much as it would hold, and put the containers into the boot in case he ran out somewhere away from a town.

He looked around, said goodbye, got into the car and left. He was going home.

Driving was not too bad, he was enjoying it, but it was probably just as well there was no-one to see him as he jerked and crashed through the gear changes. He was doing okay, he told himself. He was mobile and he was going in the right direction. He'd learn and get better at driving as he went.

The car rolled smoothly along the empty highway, purring easily over the small hills. His speed increased as his confidence did.

Winding down a heavily-forested hill, he glided, too wide, around a tight curve and there was a truck, a huge double-decked stock-truck and it was blocking the road! Blast!!

He wrenched the wheel around as hard as he could and jammed on the brakes. He almost stood on the brake pedal and yelled at the top of his lungs. He closed his eyes and waited for the crash, but it didn't happen.

There was a screech of scraping metal. He peeked and, somehow, the car had missed and slid around the end of the trailer. It was now heading for a tree-covered cliff.

“Whoah!” He pulled the wheel around the other way and managed to get back on the road. The car stopped; he turned the engine off, got out and stood there shaking as he looked back at where he'd just come through.

He could not believe that he'd actually managed to get around there, it still didn't look like there'd be enough room. There was a long and wide scrape down the length of the left-hand side of the car. He had, literally, scraped through.

“Let that be a lesson to you, Young Man. Do not speed around blind corners. Also, stop talking to yourself!” He shrugged and grinned. Yes, he wouldn't get caught like that again. Why was the truck over the road like that?

He climbed up, opened the door and looked into the cab. There was no driver, of course. He shut the door and jumped back down, and then froze. He climbed back up and had another look.

Yes, he was right. The seat belt was buckled-up and lying empty on the driver's seat. That was odd, really odd.

It was unsual for someone to leave a belt fastened while empty, but it could happen, it takes all sorts. But he had just realised that every vehicle he'd seen in the last couple of days, not parked but on the road or crashed off it, had the driver's belt done up. Weird.

It was like they'd all been teleported out of them. That couldn't happen, could it? Something had happened, everyone except him was gone. What had happened?

“What the HELL happened?” He didn't know.

It was getting late in the day, the sun was low in the sky and shadowswere getting long. He didn't want to be driving after dark, not after that experience. It was time to stop somewhere for the night.

He'd have to get off the hill though. There were no flat spaces and he wasn't sleeping on an angle. Also, he'd had nothing to eat for hours. It was about time he did.

There was a farm at the foot of the hill, big silver-roofed buildings below the road on the right and house and other sheds above it on the left. He thought of stopping and looking around, but didn't. He just knew that it'd be lifeless and empty.

He carried on down the valley and stopped in the rest area by the bridge over a stream. There was an old fireplace there, which was good. He'd light a fire, eat and sleep here.

He got out, scouted around and gathered all the fallen wood he could find. A rubbish bin was overflowing, so he pulled some cardboard and paper out of there to get a fire going.

There was nowhere really suitable to put the tent up on the stony ground, so he wouldn't bother, he'd sleep in the car. He moved all of the gear off the backseat and spread the sleeping bag out on there.
He didn't have a pillow, which was a pain. He should've thought of that and he'd get one tomorrow.

He inspected his small stock of food and decided that he'd better eat the sandwiches. They were wrapped in plastic film but they'd be going stale. They wouldn't last forever.

There was a depressing thought – these might be the last sandwiches he ever ate. Bread didn't keep long and he didn't have a clue how to make any more. Bread making, cooking and stuff were women's work. He'd never had to learn about them. Now, he guessed, he probably should have.

Anyway, he was eating the sandwiches. He should have got more and put them in a chest with ice in it. How long would they last then? Not long anyway.

He lit the fire, keeping it small so as not to waste the wood, and sat by it, eating. Apart from the crackling of the fire the only sounds were of the stream bubbling and sloshing in its bed.

It was not a noise that'd be noticed much, but it sounded loud when there was nothing else. He didn't know what to expect when he arrived home tomnorrow, but he had to go there. He couldn't not go.

His last bread. He should be enjoying it, even though it was a bit dry already. He kept sipping on the bottled fruit juice. The creek water was probably okay to drink, but juice was better.

He couldn't make any fresh bread. What could he do? He milked cows, skimmed the milk and made cream, butter and cheese. But he'd need electricity to do that and there were no cows anyway. Not so far.

He wouldn't make a very good Adam, he couldn't do much of anything really. Plus – no way did he want to deal with an Eve and all of that. No, if the future of the human race depended on him, then it was in trouble!

Finished eating, he sat watching the flames and thinking. The car radio didn't work and there was nothing else to do. Was this what it all came down to?

It was not quite 200 years since the Ark, the colony ship, had arrived here on New Salem. 200 years of people breeding big families, raising them and working hard, trying to carve a new land, a new world, out of the wilderness.

God's first command to the first humans in the bible was to “Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it.” They'd certainly tried to do that here as well.

234 carefully selected, matched and paired colonists with the seeds of their livestock, were all landed here, In 200 years they had bred-up a population of over 3 million and the land they settled on, a large and isolated group of islands, was now subdued and terra-formed.

So ironic! Lately, Elders had been saying that the first settling work was done. Their base was well established with farms and industries, towns and cities and it was time to be moving out and taking the rest of the world.

Hah! That wouldn't be happening. He couldn't do it all on his own. What could he do on his own? Not much.

It was time to stop thinking about that before he got depressed. He'd go to sleep, go home tomorrow and see what was there. And then? He'd worry about that tomorrow.

He locked himself into the car, laid down in his sleeping bag, with a loaded gun below him on the floor, closed his eyes and, eventually, went to sleep. It'd been a big day.