A Farmhouse in Lancaster County New Penn Colony
Someone was getting a bath and he was not very happy. "Jesus Christ Aunt Fran, can't a guy have some privacy, and ya know ya don't have to scrub so hard!"
"You watch your mouth, Henry Guarnere, or I will wash that out too. Besides, if you would do a half decent job of bathing, I wouldn't have to do this now would I?" Fran Paculo did not bother to wait for Henry's answer; instead, she dipped the washcloth back into the steaming hot water. "How on earth do you get so dirty? I bet we can grow a row of corn behind your ears."
"Aww, Aunt Fran, you're just bullshitting me." The minute he said it, nine year old Henry Guarnere knew he was in deep trouble. Glancing at the stony look on his aunt's usually warm pretty face, Henry, who preferred Hank, knew that he was not going to be able to talk himself out of this one, but he thought it was worth a try. "I'm sorry Aunt Fran. I'm really, really, truly sorry." Despite his somewhat pathetic pleas, his aunt seemed immune to his charm.
"Not half as sorry as you are going to be. Open up that filthy mouth of yours." Knowing that it was futile when Aunt Fran got riled, Henry opened his mouth and waited as she put bar of soap on his tongue. He held it between his teeth so the taste wouldn't be so bad. "There, chew on that awhile and see if you think swearing is worth it. It is clear that you have been watching too much history on the scope. Now lift up your arms please," and she began scrubbing vigorously. "I don't have all night to make sure you smell like something besides a puppy dog."
"Yeth m'am," said the boy meekly. Henry knew he had it coming. His Aunt Fran was all right, but it was times like this that he really missed his mom. She always laughed at his "shortcomings" as his grandmother, who never laughed about anything. At least I do not have to live with her, he thought. It is better here with Aunt Fran, where a guy can actually get as dirty as he likes as long as he takes a bath. Henry made a mental note to ask Aunt Fran if he could take showers instead of baths. At least, with the water running down his body, he stood a better chance of getting clean.
Half a mile away, Sarah Daniels was experiencing problems of a different kind with a young red head boy. "Lewis Winters, you have exactly two minutes to get out of that tub. How come it takes longer for you than it does your sister and she's only six? She had been waiting for her ten year old nephew to get ready for bed for almost forty-five minutes. His sister Gillian had already said her prayers and was sound asleep. That in itself was a miracle. Sarah sighed. She hated being hard on the boy. He was so serious these days. Sarah could hardly imagine what went on his mind these days. No child should have to go through what he and the other children in the community had gone through. When soldiers from the Aryan Army attacked their village near the caverns and slaughtered his parents along with most of the other community, most of the children stayed well hidden, but not her nephew. Knowing he saw his parents murdered before his eyes as well as one of his best friends, Johnny Guarnere brought tears to her eyes.
The loss of her sister still washed over from time to time. Her bereaved parents took it hard especially when both Lewis and Gilly, like most of the children, refused to return to Nouveau. Sarah had no choice but to honor their wishes, so along with thirty other women from various Earth colonies and space stations, she came here to build a new life for herself and the children.
The doorknob clicked and Lewis stood before her looking very contrite. He was tall for his age and soon he will be taller than me, she thought. "I am very sorry Aunt Sarah. I lost track of time playing with my boats. I cleaned up the bathroom for you."
Sarah quickly wiped her eyes. She rarely ever let the children to see her upset. Smiling she inspected the bathroom because that's what he expected. As usual, the wet towels and the dirty clothes were in the hamper. His toy boats were neatly stacked in a basket and what was left of the soap was in its dish.
"Thank you Lewis, it looks great. You are such a big help around here. I don't know what I would do without you." Sarah hugged him until she realized the boy was becoming embarrassed. "Are you ready for bed?"
"Yes m'am after I say my prayers." Sarah followed him into his bedroom, pulled back the covers and watched as Lewis got on his knees and silently prayed. She never asked him what he prayed for, but he was such a good boy, Sarah hoped he believed God would answer them in good time. When he finished and climbed into bed, she sat down next to him to tuck him and then ran her fingers through his hair. This ritual began on the night she first arrived from Oxford colony. It soothed him, and gave her some comfort that this simple gesture of love obviously meant so much to him.
Lewis could never tell his aunt the real reason he liked their nightly ritual was that it reminded him of his mom. His aunt looked so much like her that if he squinted hard, he could almost see his mom there instead of Sarah. Nights were always the hardest for him because that is when he missed his parents the most. He figured he was too busy during the day so when things settled down at bedtime, his mind was flooded with memories.
"Do you have a meeting tonight?" Although he knew the answer to that question, he still wanted to hear her say it. Aunt Sarah never glossed over the truth with him. Most of the time she treated him like a grownup, and he appreciated that.
"You know I do, but it doesn't start for awhile," she said softly. You will be asleep when I return or at least you should be." They smiled at each other. Sometime Lewis pulled out his father's flashlight and stayed up late to read. Sarah often found him asleep with the keepsake held tight in his hand. She never said anything, but he always found his flashlight on the nightstand the next morning.
"So they are really coming tomorrow," he asked? Everyone was talking about it. Members of the colony worked tirelessly to convert a very large building called a barn into a barracks. That was the word he found in the history books that his best friend, Dick Nixon loaned him.
"You know they are because you have only asked me one thousand times. Try to get some sleep. Even though Donna cancelled school, there will be a lot of activity tomorrow." Sarah leaned over and kissed his forehead.
"Aunt Sarah?"
"Yes, Lewis?"
"Do you think he will like me?" Lewis bit his lip, which was a sure sign to her that he had been worrying about this.
Sarah sat back down on the bed and smoothed back one of the boy's many cowlicks. "Yes, but I would not expect too much from him at first because he has been fighting in a war and that changes a person. He will be preoccupied until this mission is finished. None of us, including the elders, can truly comprehend what he and the other men have experienced. It is as foreign to us as our peaceful ways will be to them. In the beginning, it will be difficult for him to think about you or Gillian, but after he gets to know you; I believe he will love you as much as I do."
"Are you sure he is going to be leading them?"
"That is one thing I am absolutely, positively sure of," she said, "Now for the umpteenth time, go to sleep, love. That's an order." Sarah raised her eyebrow and tried to look very serious as she got up once more to leave the room.
"Yes, m'am." Lewis sat up, saluted his aunt and then fell back into bed. She saluted back although she was quite sure she was not supposed to smile when she did. Picking up the small oil lamp, she closed the door and quickly headed downstairs. Although the colonists installed temporary windmills to supply energy to New Penn, the community tried not to use it at night out of respect for its previous owners, who were Amish. They were gone now to another part of America where it was safer for them, but there is the hope, she thought that they could return soon.
Below, Sarah found her Ellen Mendenhall knitting away. It was early March so she sat near the fireplace to stay warm. In her sixties, Ellen was one of fourteen older caregivers who volunteered to help with the children. Ellen's husband Ralph died in an earlier attack by the Aryans. Like the children, she turned down the chance to return to Nouveau. It was a good thing too because Gillie often needed special attention. The trauma of loosing her parents had been too much for a child so young to comprehend. Often Sarah and Ellen took turns staying with Gillie at night when her nightmares made it hard for her to distinguish reality from fantasy. "Here is another lamp for your eyes Ellen."
"Thank you child, I understand we will have visitors by this time tomorrow?" She stopped knitting and sipped some tea.
"Yes, Friend, if they are careful and follow the instructions I mean orders they should reach New Penn sometime by midday. I really must run. Thank you so much for staying with the children. I think Gillian will sleep through the night. She was worn out when I put her to bed." Impulsively, she bent down, kissed Ellen on the cheek, and received one in return.
The older woman patted Sarah on the arm. The older woman appreciated Sarah's observant ways that made her so tenderhearted. She always seemed to know when Ellen felt lonely or something was wrong with the children. Picking up her needles she silently prayed for the safe arrival of the soldiers as well as for the community that placed so much hope in their abilities.
Sarah wondered what was going through Ellen's mind and made a mental note to ask her tomorrow as she grabbed her coat, rushed out the door and headed for the barn. Running towards her was Fran Paculo whom she shared this house with before Gillian's nightmares became so bad. Now Fran lived west of her niece and nephew along with three other women and five children. Sarah waved.
"Glad I'm not the only one late," said Fran. "Hank is becoming a handful these days, and the things that come out of that boy's mouth. He really needs a man around the house. Until then, I am going to put my foot down on his watching too much history from the scope. It is hard to believe people really swore that much." She ran her hand through her short, curly blonde hair.
"Yes, the culture then can seem uncivilized, but it does express honest emotions. As for my being late, I have a similar excuse. Lew is so excited, that he lost track of time. I had to actually raise my voice at him to get his attention to get him out of the tub."
"Consider yourself lucky that you don't have to practically wrestle the slippery bugger in the bath. Geez, that kid loves dirt, but I guess I would have too, but dirt was a luxury when we grew up." Sarah nodded her head and smiled. Before moving back to Earth, they had grown up in a space station miles above the earth. Clean soil was a precious commodity used only to sustain plant and animal life. "So, sweetie have you decided what you are going to do?"
"Yes, I'm staying. I haven't told anyone yet, not even the children." They stopped just outside the barn. Fran knew Sarah rarely confided in anyone. Sometimes the other women worried that Sarah held things inside too much.
"What about Nick?" Nicholas Jones was Sarah's fiancé who was still on Nouveau. He had backed out of this mission at the last minute. Sarah was disappointed, but she never said a word against him.
"He married someone else in Oxford. I got a letter from my mom today. I am not surprised, but it still hurts." Sarah exhaled heavy and saw her breath in the cold night air.
What a jerk, Fran thought. "Well you never know who you might meet around the corner kiddo as she opened the barn door. Ya might meet the love of your life."
Sarah smiled, but she couldn't think about men or romance now. All that mattered was getting the children to the new colony where they would be safe. There is plenty of time, she thought, to think about my personal life. Sarah observed that the other members of her team were already here. Some were checking the kitchen, while others admired the two pool tables and dartboards. She looked up and saw Faith Kasaka and Jennie Morrison inspecting the cubicles that they all hoped would give the men some privacy. Each one contained a bed, nightstand, a chair and a pillow. They used the colorful Amish quilts that the previous owners left behind, which brightened the space. Sarah noticed someone had placed wildflowers inside each cubicle. She later learned that the children, under the guidance of Danielle Chambray added the welcoming touch. Although Sarah was unsure how the men would react to the floral accessories. Grace and Jennie saw her and waved. They walked up to their friends while Sarah and Fran apologized for their lateness, but apparently, they were not the only ones who had trouble with their younger family members.
"I tell you it I practically had to wrestle Joey to bed," Rosie Goldstein. "I've never seen a child so excited. Now what exactly do they do with a pool table?"
"It was a popular game before computers," said Sarah. Large personal items such as furniture were not transported in the interest of space and were left behind when Nouveau was first founded. Centuries later those who returned to Earth to live re-discovered these pastimes.
Deborah Murray whose beautiful blonde hair was the envy of some of the other women, reported that her twin nephews, little Buck and little Skip were practically hanging from the ceiling. "Finally, I told them if they didn't get in the bed, I would ship them both back up to Nouveau and they could live with my parents. Well, they settled down soon after that, I tell you."
"It's odd that none of them want to return to Nouveau. They all want to continue with their parent's work," said Sarah. "Lewis is serious by nature, and the responsibility of establishing a new colony ways so heavy on his little shoulders. The only time he looks happy is when he plays with Dick, nodding at Faith, who just walked up to join the conversation, or Hank Guarnere. It's understandable, but I just wish for his sake things were different, but as Gilly reminds me, they are not."
All of the women, fourteen in all nodded sympathetically. They had all lost brothers or sisters during the attack on the Penn colony. Most of the survivors returned to Nouveau. However, the children who lost both their parents in the raid refused to leave Earth. They insisted upon staying so the colony could continue. Quickly, the Nouveau elders met with the relatives and children. After several hours of debate, the consensus was that if there were any relatives who agreed to care for them as well as join the establishment of this colony. This Amish community was selected as a safe haven in order to address any physical or mental disorders that the children might experience after witnessing such a harrowing attack that took the lives of not only their parents, but some of their friends as well. It had taken months of tender loving care, which their aunts generously provided. Thankfully, most of the children adjusted to the move. Recently half of the group moved to New Harmony in the Carolinas. Sarah and the other colonists would follow in the next couple of months.
In the past two years, new developments in what many hoped would be the last Earth War led many to believe that the end was insight. With great trepidation, an agreement of the elders of Nouveau called for the elimination of the Aryan Army. The concept of murder was nonexistent on Nouveau almost from its conception five hundred years ago. However, on Earth, there had been a series of wars after the establishment of the first space station. People in the New Order were so full of hate; there was no reasoning with them. A century of failed negotiations and violent assassinations of unarmed delegates forced Nouveau elders to reach the hardest decision in the station's history. The invention of portals enabled its passengers to cross all of the parallel universes that separate past and present. Recently, elders from all of the space stations agreed that in order to end this final war, it was necessary to transport men or soldiers from the past to the present in the hopes that they would agree to take on this final mission in order for Earth to be resettled once more.
The barn door opened and closed and the women turned around to see it was Albert or Albie, as he liked to be called. "Good evening ladies. I do apologize for my tardiness, but it was unavoidable. I just received word from our scouts that everything is going to plan and the soldiers will arrive in the morning." This good news received a hearty applause. The man with bushy grey hair and the kindest eyes anyone ever could remember raised his hands and they quickly quieted down. "Soon you must all make the decision whether to return to Nouveau or remain here where you will embark on the greatest experience of your lives. How or where it will end, I cannot say for although we travel easily through the past and the present, we have yet to devise away to do the same for the future. Perhaps that is just as well that our portals are unable to move beyond the current year or in this case 2645. "Now let us get down to the business that has brought all of you here tonight."
The next few hours the women made plans for the visitors who came from another span of time. None of them had ever participated in a portal transport, but they all had met those who had. In the beginning, portal transport was a primary tool in the teaching of history. Some of those who came through the portals remained while others never adjusted to a world without war. Sarah actually met Churchill once, but the poor man just refused to believe that human beings were capable of living in harmony with one another, and ask to return because his war was not yet over. However, Winston did hold out the possibility that he might like to return one day. Others missed their family and friends too much so they returned with no memory of Nouveau except maybe in their dreams. It was hard for them to accept a technology that could break through time and bring someone forward without them ever leaving their own time. Sarah did not really understand parallel universal transport either, that is why she was a historian and not a technician. It existed like the air she breathed, so she accepted it. She mulled all this over and wondered if the men who came tomorrow could or would be able to accept these explanations. Deep in thought, Albie called Sarah's name three times before nodding to Fran who nudged her friend to get her attention.
"I'm sorry. My mind was on how to explain portals to our guests and the concept of parallel universal travel," she said. Some laughed and others nodded their heads.
Albie's warm smile heartened Sarah. She often worried that Lewis and Gillian might be disappointed if things did not work out as she hoped and prayed they would. Somehow seeing Albie's calm demeanor put an end to that. "So, what's next," she asked.
"Have you decided to stay and help lead the expedition to New Harmony," asked Albie.
It grew very quiet. All of the women hoped she would agree to stay because she was strong and calm under pressure. Her knowledge of the Ancient American history proved invaluable from the very beginning, especially her practical knowledge of living on Earth. Sarah instinctively made good decisions and her diplomatic skills soothed many a ruffled feather as the women adapted to the rustic nature of this community.
Sarah stood up and the women could tell from the warm smile that she gave them that she would stay. "I decided that Earth is my home now and all of you are my sisters. This past year, we comforted one another as we worked through our grief and that of the children's. I am proud that we never lost focus on what is most important and that is the precious lives that are in our care. As Albie said, I have no idea what the future will bring but with God's help we will create in New Harmony what our forefathers established in Nouveau, Penzance, Rouse, Shanghai and the other space stations. By doing so, we give life to the dreams of our departed loved ones and now their children."
Tears streamed down Sarah's face as well as the other women. Even Albie took out his handkerchief and blew his nose. After everyone hugged one another, they settled down into some silent worship. For the next hour, they sat that way until Sarah took Fran's hand and gently squeezed it and the others followed suit. They left soon after that, bidding one another good night as took a variety of paths to the surrounding farmhouses where they hoped they would sleep because they would need all their wits about them in the morning. Unbeknownst to them, someone was observing them under the cover of darkness. He knew that their activities meant that reinforcements would soon be arriving, and he quickly retreated to report his findings to his superiors.
