Descended (22 page)

Carter peered out from behind the tree and saw a mama bear and her three tiny cubs up on ridge of the heavy
rim rock
ledge feeding off the berry bushes. He motioned for Vie to come and take a look and quietly she leaned over Carter’s shoulder to see nature at its finest. Vie could smell his earthy scent that was intoxicating her senses. Carter gently moved his hand down the small of her back, guiding her closer to him to view the bear cubs. Vie was amazed as she looked at the tiny cubs playfully climbing on each other.

Just then there was another snap of a branch and the mama bear looked alarmed. Suddenly, there were sounds alive all around them in the forest. There were leaves rustling, animals rooting in the underbrush, squawking birds, and hostile screeches from the animals in the distance. The mama bear nudged her bear cubs with her nose alerting them of the danger that was coming. Then the sounds of the danger grew closer when Vie and Carter heard clattering of leaves underfoot and feet shuffling through the detritus. Carter looked at Vie and whispered, “
unwanted
guests.”

Carter grabbed
Vie’s
hand again and led her blindly around the forest. They traveled so fast Vie could not see anything but the branches breaking on Carter’s hand as he plowed through them. The wind whistled around the trunks, disturbing the leaves as they ran faster and faster toward the sounds of danger. Suddenly Carter stopped, directing Vie to wait there while he went on. Of course, that was not going to happen. Vie spoke out, “Oh, no you don’t cowboy!” she said.

“Vie don’t argue with me,” he scolded her.

“I’m coming with you and that is that,” she said folding her arms showing her objection and anger.

“Fine, I don’t have time to argue with you,” he said giving in to the beautiful Guardian.

They both peered out from the thicket that they hid behind and then they saw three men carrying rifles. Carter told Vie they were poachers and they were here to hunt the bears. Vie questioned the “why” behind it and Carter explained that the black bear in North America has become the victim of evil poachers looking to turn a quick profit in the Asian medicine market. He went on to say they sell them to bear farms and use their bile and gall bladders inhumanely to make products. “It is a very lucrative trade for hunters in the U.S. and one that must end,” Carter said sadly.

Vie became instantly angered and overcome by her feelings of rage and before Carter could stop her, she stepped out from the thicket and yelled, “We know you are here….show yourself cowards!”  Carter was stunned. He jumped out grabbing Vie and tried to move her back out of sight, but she did not move, not even an inch. She looked at Carter and smiled, holding her hand out for him to join her. Carter was again mesmerized by her actions and suddenly felt a jolt of
strength empowering his entire body. They stood side by side waiting for the poachers to show themselves.

They were too late. One of the poachers had his rifle cocked and aimed straight at the mama bear. Carter saw the gun and turned to look at the target and yelled out, “
Nooooooo
!” charging at lightning speed in the direction of the poacher. Vie quickly reacted. With Carter distracted, she ran in the direction of the fired bullet so fast she disappeared from sight. Vie raced against the lead bullet with the copper jacket, meeting it at the head of the huge black bear. She put her hand up and squeezed as it hit her palm, saving the mama bear from an untimely death. The bear looked at Vie, somehow knowing that she had saved her and nestled her nose to her cheek to say thank you. Vie scratched her nose and returned for the fight, no doubt underway on the ground.

“Carter?” Vie called out standing in the spot where she last saw him.

“Looking for this?” a creepy dirty voice asked, shoving Carter out in the open.

He was badly beaten and restrained by the other two men who were laughing as they kicked him to the ground.

“Is this the boy you are looking for? Not much to look at I have to say. Say, I have an idea.  Why don’t you trade up for a real man?” the smug man offered with a hideous grin.

“
Hmmmm
….let me think about this for a minute?” Vie said pondering the offer.

“I’m sorry, I don’t believe I am going to take you up on your generous offer,” Vie said.

“And why is that?” he asked curiously.

“It’s really quite simple, you see you offered me something you don’t actually have,” Vie said.

Confused by her reply the poacher played along and responded, “What don’t we have?”

“A real man among you!” she said coyly.

“Oh, is that right? Look boys we have a regular Pocahontas amongst us,” he laughed, exposing the missing teeth in his mouth. You could smell the stench of beer on his breath and the musk of dirty sweat soaked in his skin.

“If you were a real man you would release my friend and discard your weapons and fight like one. Unless of course you are afraid… to fight like a man that is,” she finished her taunt with a raised eyebrow.

The man’s face turned red and you could see his blood beginning to boil. Vie had challenged his patience and embarrassed him in front of his men. If he did as she said then she was in control, but if he didn’t, then he was a coward. Vie was betting his ego was larger than his brain and that he would do exactly as she predicted and try to fight like a man.
Well, three against two with one
being a woman would not constitute a fair fight with real men, but these were not real men and Vie would take whatever she could get to free Carter.

“So what’s it
gonna
be boys?” Vie asked, looking at Carter’s scraped up face, wanting so badly to even the score.

She could almost hear Carter’s thoughts formulating a plan to use his technique of distraction combined with her element of surprise to overpower the goons. She kept her eyes affixed on him, awaiting his signal. While Vie did not know what his signal would be, she felt so connected to Carter that she was sure when the time was right she could read any signal transmitted. Just then, she saw the poacher nod his head signaling his men to release Carter and drop their weapons.

“Move aside,” she said kneeling down to Carter and untying him. “Are you okay Carter?” she asked looking over the blood on his face. Seeing Carter like this enraged Vie and she wanted them to pay for hurting him. Carter spit the gag out of his mouth that they stuffed into it to keep him quiet. His eyes grew large when he looked behind Vie and saw the dark headed villain coming at her enraged. Carter looked into her eyes signaling his upcoming distraction and hoping she was ready for the surprise attack he prompted to follow.

“Oh my god….what is that?” Carter said loudly pointing to the sky.

Of course the three men took the bait, all stopping in their tracks and turning to look to the sky. In a flash, Vie grabbed Carter by the arm to help him up and they stood together ready for their fight. She turned and kicked the man behind her so hard he went full throttle into one of the pine trees, knocking him out cold. Carter looked at her and smiled enthusiastically as he took out poacher number two with a nice defensive duck to his swing, followed by a very impressive and powerful thrust to his jaw. Carter hit him so hard you could hear the bones in his jaw shatter on impact. Then they heard the sound that froze them in their tracks. It was the sound of the rifle cocking again and this time the barrel of the gun was in
Vie’s
back.

“I would stop right there if I were you,” he warned Carter.

“If you hurt one hair on her head…I swear to God…”

“You’ll what? You are powerless against me now boy!
Ha
ha
ha
.”
He belted out a sinister laugh that seemed to echo through the forest.

“You’re not so smart now are you Pocahontas? You see, real men use real weapons, not their fists,” he said still laughing.

Vie knew she was going to have to expose herself to Carter to get them out of this mess safely. She really did not want to do this here and now but she felt she had no choice. She watched Carter growing wearier with the loaded gun pointing at her back. She prepared to show herself in Guardian form and hoped Carter would not turn away. Just as she was about to take flight, the man leaned in to her and whispered heavily into her ear.

“He will be back for you princess, and your precious chosen one too. You won’t be so lucky the next time we meet.” The poacher pushed Vie hard into Carter and disappeared into the woods. Vie tried to run after him but Carter grabbed her and pulled her forcibly back to him.

“Are you crazy?” he asked wondering why she would try to catch him.

“Carter…we can’t let him get away!” she said frantically.

“He knows where…” she stopped herself from blurting out the rest of her sentence. But Vie knew all too well that this poacher knew where Lucian was.

“Who knows what Vie? Come here,” Carter said pulling her arm and bringing her in close to him. “Stay here with me where you are safe,” he said hugging her tightly and staring off into the woods thinking about the revenge he would have on the men that tried to hurt her. The vision of their faces was etched permanently in his brain and their heinous actions housed in his soul. The only thing Carter wanted more than revenge….was Vie to be safe and sound.

“Come on Vie….let’s get you home!”

When they reached the ranch, the Stone’s swarmed around them wanting to know what had happened to Carter’s face. They felt horrible that Vie was put in such danger while visiting their home. The Stone’s wanted to call the Ranger Station, but of course Carter objected. It seemed that Carter had his own plan for revenge on the three poachers and he would not budge. Gabriel knew, just by looking into
Vie’s
eyes,
who
the visitors were and exactly what they wanted. These were not poachers at all.   They were Lucian’s henchmen and they were here for Carter.

Suddenly, they heard a cry from the field.  It was the voice of a man and he was screaming in pain. The agony in his pitch told Gabriel this human was in trouble and without hesitation, he was off and running. The Stone’s watched him run toward the field and they were in shock by his speed. But the chaos of the situation distracted them when the workers came running in hysterically shouting.

“It’s
Enapay
, he is trapped under the plow!” a man shouted at the Stone’s.

Carter’s face turned white and he took off swift and fast after Gabriel. In seconds they were all running to the field hoping for the best. Carter arrived and he heard Gabriel speaking to the young man. Carter couldn’t believe his
ears,
Gabriel was speaking in a language very few people knew.  It was Lakota, an American Indian language.  It was
Enapay’s
language. Carter stayed out of sight for the moment, just watching Gabe. Gabriel stood up and looked around, checking to make sure he was alone. Then he lifted the two-ton plow off
Enapay
as Carter stepped out, astonished by what he was seeing.

Carter stared and Gabe stared back.  Both were in shock, but for very different reasons. Gabe knew he was caught doing something that could only be perceived as super human in this world and Carter was shocked after witnessing the superhuman strength. There was no time to waste so Gabe said, “Well don’t just stand there….pull him out!” he said, ordering Carter to move.

Carter ran to
Enapay
and dragged him out as Gabe dropped the plow back to the ground. They looked at the young man who was bleeding profusely and semi-conscious. His body quivered in shock. His leg was completely severed with only a small piece of skin still attached. Gabe knew this young man was going to lose his leg and possibly his life before they could get him to a hospital. Carter begged Gabe to save him, telling him he was like a brother to him. It seemed as though Carter knew Gabe had the power to do so. It would be breaking the rules to save his life and Gabe was not an advocate of interfering in this world, but for some reason he felt compelled to answer Carter’s request.

Gabe took Carter’s hand and placed it over
Enapay’s
severed leg. Carter focused on Gabriel’s eyes.  The men were locked in a deep trance or more like a state of meditation. Carter could feel Gabe speaking to him.  Not out loud but inside of him. The wind picked up and began to swirl around them. Carter followed Gabe’s lead and both men closed their eyes. Carter could hear Gabe say, “
focus
my son” and Carter did just that. He went to a place deep inside of him, a place he had never gone before. He could see
Enapay’s
body floating away and he commanded it to return. A bright light flashed and both Gabe and Carter were jolted flat on their backs. Carter opened his eyes and there lay
Enapay
- quiet, still, and lifeless.