Day After Forever

Day After Forever (complete)







He could feel the water touch his feet and the sand below him wash back out to sea disoriented and weak he was afraid to open his eyes to see. The water was taking more of the sand. He could feel it against his hand. Had to get up had to get to safety .Slowly he opened his eyes, they were gritty from lying face down on the beach .It was high tide and the water was going to reach him. Where was he, had the machine had a brea? Slowly he raised his head to look .The place looked like a picture from a book .Blue water, gently rising.  He couldn’t think .White sand, white as snow .Why was he here , why had they let him go? Funny, the sea looked as if it would reach forever .

Behind him a stand of trees so thick he couldn’t see through them. High tide should be early morning or night but here was day light all around him .No sun, maybe a sliver of moon, the light should be getting dim. Where was he, how did he get to this place It was like an island in some tropical out of sight vacation place .What clothes was he wearing were these really clothes looked as if made from a water hose .He heard some strange sound coming from the sea .Was there something out there waiting for him .Then he saw movement as close in as they could get ,dolphins leaping and in their own way talking waving their tails at him .Had Dolphins brought him to this place .?What kind of disaster was he about to face And what was this place? Nothing but blue water, sand and trees .As far as his eyes could see.

He got himself up, some bags had come in with the surf .Opening the first one he found packaged food and bottled water, He was afraid to go any further .Maybe there were some clothes in the other .He opened one more and found clothes. For a moment he could hardly draw air through his nose .He recognized the clothes they were his .May be he would find the whole thing a crazy quiz .


Later that day another man came in,he was dazed and disoriented as much as Mark had been.He introduced himself as Deven, he had been recruited 2090 when the world was sain. His thoughts were like Marks, they had been in storage so long they had been forgotten, some natural desaster had turned the whole world on it's head and the old doplins had brought them to the designated place. They exchanged ideas and adventures. Each hopping some more would wash in, this was big country working every way against the known laws of nature. The sea wasn't salty, the waves were gentle, there were no sea shells on the beach, and no foot prints except for theirs.They wondered if they were the only two people in the world.? Only time would tell.

It felt as if darkness was on it's way, but there was no change in the sky,the thin sliver of moon stayed at the same place in the sky.Both men had grown wery weak, they knew they needed to make camp and work on thier legs and lungs before they started out in any direction. While they shoveled sand out to make a sleeping nest a third man came in. He seemed to be angry with the whole world, demanded to know where they were and why they had been brought out now,his time wasn't nearly up. Mark tryed to tell him there must have been a natural disaster to send them out with out life support.

He said they called him the Joker, all touched hands as was the costom. When his bags came washing in he was ready to leave. Dev told him they had thought the same at first , then realized how weak they were. Their legs and lungs needed a good work out before taking an expended trip to who knows where. But Joker could not wait, he set of in the distance they thought was south, and they never saw him again.

The next morning three more came in. Like all the rest they were confused and amazed at the world they awakened to. So glad to find some one . They were two women and one man ,glad to hit surface even if it was sand. They were in good physical shape.Couldn’t make heads or tails out of how the land lay. Mark and Dev explained what little they had come to know .The places they had been and the big trees in the sand. Three days of rest and exercising the three new ones were ready to began the journey to the mountains. The compass went wild, they had to depend on their own sense of navigation. They packed up every thing and left a message in the sand.

They found groves of trees of fruit and manna along the way, one thing for sure they wouldn’t be hungry. Water falls and streams were all along the way. They saw no signs of habitation or decay. In the foot hills they heard a familiar sound,the whistling of birds all around, they were flying with the sound.

All of the Parrot family were in sight and even in the mountain there was no dark night. That sliver of moon was in sight. They rested often on this long journey and learned about each other. Some thoroughly.The women were Cassey, age 25 from Memphis, Tn.,The other was Lorene from New Mexico.The third woman was a doctor of medicine,called herself Megan, she was from New Orleans.The man was older and had little to add when ask his name he acted mad.Mark told him to let it out, being frustrated he sure knew about. His name was Keith, from Washington State,.He had joined up a little late,.His tag said 2300AD, he didn’t know the real date.Hopefully some one in the Mountains had kept a slate.,Fourteen days they did walk seeing more birds and wild life.,Made the trip worth while, the sound cut like a knife.

The birds were the common every day ones, red birds ,blue jays, Doves white and gray ,Robins and Finches of every color.,On the sixteenth day they made contact with real live folks. They were frightened and the language had broken. But they were not a dangerous lot .The travlers, as they would be known made their way up a walk of solid rock. There were houses of a sort .They must be the third generation they spoke so short. Much like the pilgrim had when the country was first settled.

They had built a community center, a large fire,a well for water and a meeting place. The seven journeymen were taken to the center .Soon an old man and women came out. They kissed each one on the forehead and motioned to the center. The old couple were the last of the old world. The rest were older, and some young boys and girls. Once on the move they talked among them self. And marvel how the water had made a shelf .Just wide enough to walk on. Water was all they could see below. Mark thought on what the Joker had said. The same thing had happened in every land. Afghanistan, Baghdad, Iraq, Iran, were now nothing but sand,as was Israel, the Holy Land.

Maybe in the Mountain some one had a plan. The radio, they needed to take out time tomarrow and make it work ,for some reason in the last camp it bothered his mind. He just didn’t want to show it at that time. Were they being followed, he wondered about a sign. There had been something about that camp that did really bother his mind. They took down some of the wild life he saw the bones and hide .The meat they cooked was half a deers side. But wild life was in abundance and they used for food and shoes. It must be OK to kill and use .The people looked healthy, no abuse. Women and children stayed back until introduced. The frontier way of life had returned here .Those people in the camps were pioneers. Persons of a new world. There couldn’t be any government to rule. It would turn into a place like the old west. When people choose a man to handle the rest .Once more the world was starting over .

Just like the days of Adam and Eve. Every day was a wonder they needed something to believe in. God had communicated with Adam and Eve. Even after the Garden of Eden they had to leave. And there had to have been more people any way. What did the Bible say? Cain was marked for all the world to see. And was sent away to the Land of Nod where people had to be. Else they would have come to a sorry pass. With kin having children like in the first place. They sure needed some new blood if they were going to last.The travlers reached another camp. These people were different, several families there. Their homes were better, their way of life was more compact. They had faced the fact that there was no going back. Megan the doctor had checked out the children and found nothing wrong, and talked to the men and women about incest and what could go wrong. Three weeks later the travelers came to another camp. It was a working camp.

Land had been cleared all about stumps and rocks removed. They were planting grain for food. The Priest met them and opened the gate. About twenty people did a dance around the fire.Their curiosity was like a sharp brier. The travelers were welcome .Other travelers there had been none.The head of the village said there were folks on the next mountain but they never met .No one had the courage to leave their own camp. From the very top of the mountain smoke had been seen. But as far as visitors none had been seen .In their village all were kin. Three generations and the blood line was getting thin .Cousins married cousins, no other but kin. Where had the old ones been when the sand came? Here in the mountain they had always lived.

No one in all these years had come didn’t know who was to blame. When ask about the change in the sun and the moon they said they were just doomed. The great waves had come from the ocean on each side of the states,time after time until the world looked like a lake. Scouts had gone out to bring back news. Every place they went was covered with sand, no clues . Any survivers had been like them self. Living in the mountains, they were all that was left. The travelers stayed only a short time in the village. The people were kind but feared for their linage. They shared what they had. All in all it wasn’t too bad. The children were showing the intermarriage, it was sad.

They left the village with fresh food and water. Was warned about the guarded border. Yes, there were Army machines at the foot of the mountain. Two of their scouts had gone that way and found them. Among them self they talked of the possibilities .An Army camp for sure.But for how long could machines and ammunition still be in working order? They thought not, between them there were no weapons. Mark devised a bow from a hickory limb, using a piece of raw hide for the string, the men spent hours cutting and sharpening arrows. Some how having a weapon made them feel better. Keith crafted a flute from a bamboo cane, he made beautiful music as they made their way to the next camp. The women were, very weary, and some even home sick for the life they would never see again .They would be happy to see some more survivors from the pods, but when?
If the second mountain was hostel. They would have attacked.

If it was as it seemed ,left they would live their life out there by them self. Days and days it took to reach the other mountain. There was water and food a plenty. Water from the ground spurting. The ground was rich dirt, the crops were sensational and the wild life was in abundance. Had any one tried to cross the water, some tried and failed.? To this new camp their welcome was hailed. Their story made the travelers pale. Some had gone out on rafts made of cane . They had looked sturdy but apart they came . Canoes they had made from dead fall ,scooped out in the center. But the log was decaying and the water they were afraid to enter. All their attempts , there had been no winner .

This camp was more modern than the first. It had wells for washing and satisfying their thirst. A great fire burned in the bare ground center. The camp was laid out in sections. In the North ,East,South and West. Near the front of the rows the homes were the best. The houses has good roofs of cedar chip, they were made like steeples,so snow and rains would shift. Porches wrapped around the houses, they were mostly the same sizes. Windows and doors fire places, brick ovens , hand sanded floors. Furniture made by hand, chairs with handwoven seats looms and spinning wheels from the pioneer days ,used for making cloth for covers and sheet.

Clothes were modest but well made, a work house built of logs under the shade. Women and men worked there making shoes and other things folks had to use, Word of mouth carried the news. The women were called to a house, a young woman, gray as a mouse, was trying to give birth. The midwife had her pushing for all she was worth. Meg the doctor jumped right in, the punishment the girl was taking was a sin. She pulled back the covers to let air and light in, labor had just began . She told the girl to get up and move around, she said her name was Lynn he husband wasn't to be found. For the birthing he had to be around, if the Father tied the cord it was better bound.

Their men had gone looking, while the community meal was cooking, a deer had been brought in,they ate the meat, tanned the skin. Every one joined in. At times their food was quiet thin, they thought eating the wild hogs would be as sin. Kieth told them the law on eating pork was lifted religiously in the old Testament times. Had a copy of the Bible he carried around for the ease of minds .They studied in the evening sitting around the fire. Their exposure to God's word lifted their minds higher. Of hearing the words from the Bible the people never tired.

No one could read or write, although they had their own code. How to make their named and number the working load. There were some books there from the 2000's from slate and soft rock Casey said she could teach, learning was not out of their reach. There had been an old man in the camp .Who could read the stars and make a map. Could they be ttaught that?, With a book there was no doubt. Casey ask Dev if he could help her out. They set up classes for young and old , no one would be left out.

From the birthing house came a familiar shout, Meg was bringing out he baby, the mother was worn out. The midwife had an old leather bag found long ago, what the things in it were for no one did know. The instruments had been preserved, the forceps, and lances worked fine, it took Meg a moment to catch up with the time.

In the mean time the father, just a stapling young man, came into the camp with a baby bed in his hand. He was sent right to his wife, sympathized , told her he had a plan. Had the bed made by a craftsman, of course by hand. The girl Lynn was still hurting said "I have had all I can stand, this doctor said she could fix you, you would still be a man." The husband Johnny said " what will she do?" Meg answered"I won't make a baby out of you, just cut a few veins in your scrotum so you can't get her pregnant again, Yes you will still be a red bloodied man. She can't have another birth and I might not be a round. This is the best child prevention , do you understand?"He bowed his head and said "Yes Mum" Meg said" go to the creek use what ever you use for soap, scrub your self good, don't act like a dolt, you are as antsy as a young colt.". Johnny did as he was told, his heart was a quiver but he didn't bolt. The surgery was simple, over in a minuet, she hadn't broke it, but she sure did bend it .Lynn was so excited she was up off the bed, the baby was crying had to be fed. Meg felt good over her hour of work, she had made sure the surgery had really took.

Darkness was was coming on, they decided to camp together didn't want to be alone. The head man Luther, told them there was something going on which they could never understand. Upon the nearest mountain at night there glowed a light. When the daylight came it went out until the next night .Candles made from fat was their only light. The Travelers went to a clearing where they also saw the light shine. The glow was yellow as the Harvest Moon light was at one time.

In the camp they talked about it, couldn't wait for the dawn, an other mystery they had come upon. Weary and travel sore they went into deep sleep, before their slumber Keith prayed God their souls to keep. It was fall in the mountains, the trees were turning to bright yellows, red and golds .The travelers could hear the rustle of the animals gathering up food before the cold . The men killed the smaller animals for food, with the reassurance it wasn't a sin to eat pork they could even eat better on the wild hogs which which in times did intrude. Some children had disappeared over the past year,lost to wild game they thought.

The mountain people were friendly, very interested in the things the Travelers brought. The kind of clothes they wore, their back packs, their shoes and the way they talked. The next morning the heads of the village approached the Travelers to find out the answers to their questions and get their opinion of the haunted cabin on the side of the mountain .No one had been up there in years, they were very frightened of any strange light in the mountains, light could mean fire, there had been a fire years ago, there had been a storm, lightning had struck some dry corn stalks. Started a fire which burned many acres of land, they had no way to put it out, It had burned a community, killed many of their kin. They had no written history, only word of mouth from the old ones of past years.

Early next morning an old man came into camp. He was greeted as well known and a favorite of the group, he hailed the new comers gladly. "Said he had been scouting, had picked up their tracks many times, knew they were not to harm any one by the straight line they took from the other mountain,the fold there had given a good report of them, he knew the community was not in any danger." Mark ask his name, which was freely given" Sailor is the only name I answer to, came in here on a broken down sail boat, many years ago, still have the sail , made a tent of it, a table from the only solid part of the boat I could salvage. Stayed at sea many a month I did, he declared. The water came out of no where, I was on the sea at the time, washed me all the way up here,giant waves ,first reports said all around the world, Europe, Africa, Russia, the entire world, even Australia, soon took out all communication, except for satellite, then there were no places left to receive messages.Don't have any idea how many survived, how many of them are left, or where they are, got a radio?"Mark said yes they had a radio, couldn't pick anything up , wasn't high enough,Sailor said they should go up to the haunted place see what they could find there.

After a make shift breakfast the Travelers went up the winding path to the cabin, the view was spectacular. The water went on as far as the eye could see, as did the range of mountains. The cabin was unlocked ,there was a big front porch. The door was a double door, a Dutch door, closed bottom or top. They entered a large great room with furniture made of rough wood couches rocking chairs,tables with candle stands, the roof had windows. Solar windows Keith said, took light from the sun in the day time to use as light and heat in the night. Great invention, used when he was in the real world .The others knew nothing about them, they had gone into hibernation before this fantastic way of getting light came along, there was a huge walk in fire place with a mantel stocked with candle holders and flint for making fire.

There was plenty of dry fall around ,enough dry wood for a generation. There were four bed rooms with two beds in each, tables by each bed, chairs places to hang clothes, empty. A kitchen and dinning room, huge cast iron stove, brick fire place with an oven for cooking. Even a place on the side to warm water. Dishes from long ago, forks, spoons, knives, cooking utensils, iron skillets and large pots, even an iron warmed on the stove. Also preserved food in strange bags, still fresh enough to cook and eat, a room with hundreds of boxes of the food. Plenty wild food in the forest, berry's, nuts, fresh water in a stream near by, easily piped to the back of the house into the empty sink, out side bathroom as well as a modern water closet.

Tank empty of water, easily fixed. A great place for them to camp, beds to sleep in, good enough food and water for consumption and bathing, all wanted warm water as soon as could be arranged , old books by the dozens, fiction, Bibles and maps, dictionary s, encyclopedias, biography's up to the time of the great wash out, 2300. for the most part these people had been in their capsules two hundred ninety three years . The pods had been washed out of storage after the people were entombed as early as 2000, full grown adults, probably just over looked or forgotten, found by the old whales and opened up then moved to the beach. The old whales were over three hundred years old, had taught their young as they had been taught to save humans.

Keith took the bow and one arrow out in the woods brought back a young buck, nice and fat, had him skinned and dressed for dinner, the women were in their orbit, opening preserved veges, to mix with the deer meat, which Keith had used his magic to drain and tenderize,by dark the Travelers had baths, the women from hot water the men from water falls behind the cabin, and the first hot meal they could remember. Discussing their state of near death for so many years gave them cold chills. In their minds they were born on the beach weeks ago, they made a pact, brother and sister they would always be, forget the world as they knew it, help any way they could to get this one up and running.There was no chance any of their family's had survived the flood, they were as far as they knew the only people left from the old world as it was day after forever, time enough to get busy.

Kieth took the radio to the front of the porch, first time it had been turned on sense leaving the beach, at first there was no sound, then a buzzing like a honey bee on the air.He gave the Universal SOS several times before a voice came on, "Rocky Mountain Resort no vacancy" was the address. Keith ,"Come in Rock Mountain Resort, this is the Travelers. location unknown." The voice filled with glee" Rocky here Travelers,where you be?" Keith," come in Rocky, we are some where in North America, probably in the Smoky Mountains, no way to tell, what are your conditions?" Rocky" Travelers, we are in a bad way, many sick, no medicine woman.". Kieth"We have a doctor here, talk to her, reply "Rocky here put her on".

Megan took the hand mick. " Megan here Rocky give me the symptoms". Rocky" Many have died, they get dehydrated, drink much water, temperature goes up, feel it with the hand, no medicine to get it down." Megan" what is the source of the water supply and does every one use it?" Rocky" It comes from a cave, piped down to the camp, every one uses it," Megan "Rocky have you checked out the cave?" Rocky " The Safety patroll would do that if it was done, don't know if it has been checked in several years". Megan" sounds as if you have a contaminated water supply, have them change the source of the water, can you do that?" Rocky "All I can do is pass your info on to them they will want to talk with you" Megan " Fine I will talk with them any time, in the mean time do you have willow trees,? "Rocky yes mum plenty of willows," Megan"Skin the bark from a tree, cut it in strips then boil it in a pot of water, one foot of willow bark to a gallon of water, cool it and start with the children giving them a glass of it."" Yes Mum, will get right to it, you be there?" Megan " we will be here, just get as many busy as you can." "Over and out Rocky" Keith ," Thats the oldest medicine known to man you would think some of this stuff would be handed down from one age to the other" Megan " The generations would be over seven, I doubt they have kept any thing except the language, the old man had a strange sound to his speech ".

"The whole world will be this way, it is despairing to think of how depressed the human race has become, almost to cave man status, maybe even that in some places, if any one survived. An hour later the radio started it's bee sound, Keith picked up Traveler here, over." " Rocky Mountain security here over" Megan " go on Rocky." voice " are you the doctor? over" Megan "Yes, what can I tell you to help you?" voice" what is this concoction supposed to do?" Megan " Bring the fever down, sounds as if you have been drinking contaminated water, did you check the cave?" voice " Yes we found the source of the contamination, now changing the system, giving the willow water as said, any thing else we can do?" Megan just give the sick as much clean water as you can, and watch your site closely. Do you have any kind of medical trained people" voice " No, over and out".line dead.Keith "an ungrateful SOB I must say"" Megan well modern man wasn't much better, looks like the attitude remains even when all else is gone".

The radio came back on, it was" Rocky here, any one there ,over?' Keith "Yes this is Keith,Rocky" " Keith just wanted to thank you folks, people around here don't use manners, just wham bam thank you mum, hope your satisfied". Keith " Know the kind from the day". Rocky" over I will not be on again probably, it is about my time to be cycled out." Keith" Cycled out? what you mean man?" Rocky" After you past a certain number of years which the Security people keep record of, you have to leave. They believe when you become useless you should leave, and die.Leaving a place for a new baby, one is due soon, so I will be going .Keith"That is cold bloodied murder".Rocky " the rules mister just the rules voted on many generations ago and kept up. the law you know"? Keith "Rocky , what do you know from your history about what happened, we were in one of those life saving programs, got washed out and saved by the whales, our last communication was the year 2000, we figure it 2300 now" Rocky " That is about our reckoning, give a year or two. There is a station setting 0.123, the president at that time took cover in the mountains of Virginia, looks as if he should have come to the Rocky's. Any way in the end he made an address which plays over and over at that setting, I have to vacate now, happy journeymen,God bless" Keith " and you my friend" Keith told the others what he had learned, they gathered on the porch to hear the last broad cast of an American President.

Each apprehensive,each wanting to know what happened. Keith found the station, picked it up loud and clear, air clicked a few times, sweat broak out on every face, suddenly the air was full of humming, then a non familiar voice with a very familiar greeting. " My fellow Americans, where ever you are when you hear this address, it is the last you will hear from the government of the United States, our world as we know it and love it , is gone.Not only our North American continent, but around the world.We have made no contact in over a year, life is not worth living in this under world. Therefore in a matter of ten minutes we will expire. First, the earth is no longer rotating in it's intended way, we took care of that with our intent to rule the planets, a space explosion in the year 2000 rocked the world. It was seen from Australia space stations, the fall out dissipated some what on descending but much of it hit .Burning much forest , towns and cities all over the world. The ice caps melted, there is no more Greenland Antarctica, Alaska or the cold lands of Russia, Russia, China, the Philippines, Twian,Japan, all island country's are gone under. There are no seas or rivers, all are as one in the Mountains there is a chance of finding people alive, to those people let me say I am sorry, sorry the government's greed to rule every thing, destroyed what we held so dear. If you have Bibles or prayer books of any kind pass then down, it is your destiny to bring back a people of God to this ruined land, this is President Ronald D. Sanders checking out 2000,December 25th." with that the line went dead. Rewinding to play over and over for another hundred years or more, one thing they had done was to make good recorders and tapes, too bad they misused their technology, ending in infinity of 2000 years of progress and growth. From the Mountain top of the Smoky Mountains over and out.

This story will be followed by She Will Come Which Is Written.