Aaron Ackles (wanderingaaron) wrote in thefield, @ 2009-05-04 23:42:00 |
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Entry tags: | aaron, bazzer, z - 1st tribe - day 18 |
Two Sure Things In Life
Who: Aaron and Bazzer
When: Dawn on Day 18
Where: The Field
What: A New Arrival
Rating: PG? Maybe?
No one would ever say that Aaron Ackles was not meticulous in his work. Even though he had only arrived back at base camp a scant thirty minutes before, he could be found sitting at his work desk in the lab, the muddy toes of his brown hiking boots tucked around the steel legs of his stool. His broad shoulders were hunched forward as he careful labeled each of the tree core samples he'd taken on his two day hike with his team into the deep woods north of base camp. As he neatly stacked the reports his mind wandered to his parents. He's spoken to his mother before he'd left a couple of days ago and she'd told him her daffodils were blooming in her gardens. After so long tromping through the snowy woods, he certainly did miss the warm and damp spring days of Southern Ontario. He pushed his homesickness out of his mind though as he stood to slide the pvc encased core samples into the shelves in the correct cubbies. He'd be able to take a break to go home in a couple of weeks. By the time he made it there, he knew his mother's garden would be well-greened and he could wear his shorts and wrestle with the dogs in the grass. Those thoughts were enough to stave off the last of the chill from his extended walk and bring him back to his work.
He was so intent on his note translations that he didn't hear the door open behind him. Aaron nearly jumped out of his skin when someone touched his shoulder. His pen clattered to the desk and rolled to the edge before rattling against the floorboards. Whipping his face to the side his tension leaked away as warm lips brushed his stubbly cheek near his chin. "Hey, Janine..." he sighed as he recognized the scent of her soap - a smell he'd almost forgotten out in the woods and it was then that he remembered that he'd meant to grab a shower before venturing out to find Dr. Largose's research assistant. Janine with the long ginger hair. She wasn't the most beautiful girl in the research camp but she was one hundred percent into the more rustic lifestyle and their research. It hadn't taken them long to hook up out here. They'd been dating for almost six weeks now. He hoped he didn't smell too ripe, but as her arms wrapped around him, he thought it must not be too bad.
"Hey you," she said as she pressed another kiss to the top of his close-cut curly hair. "You smell like pine sap. Think you got some on the hood of your hoodie." She picked at a lump of concealed sap. Aaron had to smile. He liked that she was so casually affectionate, especially when they were alone. When surrounded by the other researchers they tended to be much more standoffish but when they were alone... Yes, Aaron felt that a shower was probably in order and maybe he could drag her into the bath shed.
Janine, it seemed, had other plans. "I have some pizza in the oven. Have you eaten yet?" She pulled back enough to level the full force of her warm brown eyes on him. He was powerless to admit that he'd scarfed down two power bars not fifteen minutes ago.
"Uh, yeah, I could eat." He even managed to say it without sounding a tiny bit disappointed that the shower would have to wait. "Can you give me about ten minutes to finish up here and call my parents?" He watched her smile and reluctantly leave him to his work. Once alone, Aaron scrubbed his hands through his hair and heaved a sigh. He pushed himself up to his feet with a groan. He was in great shape but even so he could feel the effect of the long hike in his thighs and calves. He stretched his arms way above his head,fingertips brushing the ceiling, and his spine popped like a string of Chinese firecrackers. That brought a sigh from the soles of his feet as he scuffed his boats across the worn natural floorboards over to the cubicle that served as his desk. There was a sheaf of pink message slips on his desk and he flipped through them. A call from his mom, a call from his brother Tim and one from Dr. Green, his mentor back at the University of Toronto. Worry warts, all of them. It had just been a two day hike! The fourth message brought him up short even as he had picked up the receiver of his desk phone and started to dial the number at his parent's place. "What the....? " he checked the date on the message and depressed the hook on the phone to bring up dial tone.
He stabbed a well known number into the phone even as his temper started to simmer, on it's way to a boil. "Gloria," he said to the grant coordinator at the campus in Toronto. "It's Aaron Ackles. Is Mahammud Fahir there?" He was shifting his weight from foot to foot faster and faster, trying to keep his tone professional. "Thanks Gloria," he said as she put him on hold and tried to reach his coordinator. For a full three minutes (he had his eyes locked to the clock on the wall, counting the seconds to distract himself) he waited in tense-jawed silence.
"Aaron?" the familiar accented voice of Mr. Fahir came across the line and Aaron relaxed a moment. "Did you get my message?" The man sounded a little bit anxious. No doubt he had heard from Aaron's previous coordinator that Mr. Ackles could be a bit passionate when it came to hiccoughs in his work.
"I did Mr. Fahir. Do you want to explain to me why you have asked me to shut down my lab here and return to Whitehorse until further notice?" It took a very conscious effort to pry his teeth apart and relax the muscles in his face.
"Mr. Ackles," One could almost hear Fahir gathering all of the authority (which wasn't much) and self-importance (which was considerable) around himself all the way down in Ontario. "As you know your facility is on county land, not crown land. The local government has opted to sell that land to the Delry Logging Company. They have requested the immediate dismantlement of the land. Since we were there at their discretion and without cost, we have no right to contest this. Your grant is intact, we simply have to locate a new site for - " His mouth slammed shut at the blatantly frustrated sigh that Aaron couldn't hold back.
"That could take months," Aaron insisted sharply. It could take years, if he was honest. "And this sit is perfect. There aren't many sites of ancient forest left in Canada that don't sit on treaty land." The last thing he wanted to dabble with was trying to negotiate terms with a Native tribe, even if it was a sympathetic one. In his experience, sympathy ran out when his needs became an inconvenience. He didn't need that can of worms when he was so close to being able to defend his doctorate.
There was a heartbeat of silence on the other end of the phone. "I'm sorry Mr. Ackles but the deal is already done. A crew will arrive within the week to move the lab equipment. I suggest you secure your research and head to Whitehorse." Aaron barely noticed his terse farewell as he hung up the phone. For a few minutes he just stood there, staring at nothing, before his shoulders slumped. He stomped to the door and out into the brisk evening. Overhead, the many hues of Aurora Borealis swirled and shifted, painting disco lights on the snow drifts but he barely noticed. He glanced at the common cabin, where the lights glowed warmly out of the windows and he could hear Janine's laugh. All thoughts of faking hunger chased any considerations for some intimate time with her right out of his head. Stiffly, he turned toward the men's cabin. He clomped up the steps and knocked his boots on the lintel before pushing his way inside.
There was no one there and so he wasn't pressed into making conversation or explanations. Ordinarily he was considerate of the space he shared with the other male researchers but not tonight. His cot was the closest one to the door, a chilly spot but Aaron didn't mind. He slept warm. Today he didn't even bother to toe off his boots when he flopped down onto his back. Why bother? He wasn't going to sleep here again. In a few months the beautiful, majestic woods he'd walked through early would be nothing but a memory. On their way to become someones new home. Someones newspaper. Toilet paper. Yup, he thought as he tucked his hands under his pillow beneath his head. We all just flushed it away. Didn't even think about it.
That was his last angry thought in his world. He didn't even notice the transition from a fume into the blackness and timelessness of dreamless sleep. His only vague memory of the night was to wonder if he'd fallen asleep on the couch and if his brother Tim was watching Discovery Channel again. What was that? Hyenas? He did notice immediately when his shoulders stopped sinking into the overly soft cot mattress and found solid earth. Groggily, he opened his eyes and blinked up at a faint gray sky. There was the sound of wind in the trees and he could feel a cool breeze on his cheek. Not as cool as it should be, however. He reached down and flipped his sleeping bag off of his legs. He'd somehow gotten tangled up in them in the night. After jacking himself up on his elbows, he blinked sleepily across a field of gently swaying grass. "Hello?" he said, wondering if he was having trouble waking up out of a dream. Aaron had never really been much of a vivid dreamer so he thought it was unlikely. "Anyone there?" he asked hopefully. Maybe something had happened to him. Exposed to chemicals in the lab for too long? He hoped his bunk mates could hear him and help him out. "Anyone?" he asked a little louder as he pushed himself up to a full sit.
Looking out across the land he blinked. None of the tall trees he saw looked at all familiar. If there was one thing that Aaron could identify it was trees for Christ's sake! He worked with them every day! Plus...Yes, it was certain that he wasn't still in the Yukon. There had been snow on the ground last night, swelling into drifts beside the cabins. This place was full of life, not sleeping in the long winter of the north. It was almost too warm here for all of the clothes he was wearing. Confused, he pushed himself to his feet and turned in a slow circle, shock settling into his nerves.
Bazzer was on field-duty this morning, checking for new people. "Hey!" he called, hearing a voice, "Stay there and I'll come to you," he called, moving out of the forest and into the field with sure footsteps despite his lack of shoes. His feet had quickly begun developing calluses and despite his nervous awkwardness with most people, he was becoming adept at moving and working in this new world. He was even becoming in better shape than he had probably ever been in his life. He wouldn't win Mr. Universe or any sort of confidence courses, but he was improving.
Emerging from the forest and cutting through the quickly disseminating haze, Bazzer came upon a man slightly taller than he was and definitely more dressed. Bazzer wore his sweat shirt wrapped around his waist as he was going to work on hides later. "Hi," Bazzer said. What did one say to a person who suddenly found themselves on a strange new planet and hadn't yet realized it? "I'm Bazzer," he pushed his hair out of his face and offered his hand.
Aaron had found himself in the company of all sorts of people in his travels and work. He'd been to every continent and made a point while visiting to see the wildest places and talk to the people there if he could. Still, he couldn't help the widening of his eyes when a man who was more than a little scruffy but completely undressed for walking around in the wild. Especially since this Bazzer guy was clearly American and barefoot. "Um...hi. I'm Aaron." Politeness always won out with him and so he grasped the offered hand in a firm but not overbearing handshake. "Aaron Ackles. I don't really know how I got her. Where are we?" Definitely not in the Yukon, he knew that much.
"We're in Wonderland, Alice and you fell down the rabbit hole," Bazzer grinned, thinking he was witty, "Aaron. Truthfully, we don't know how we got here or where we are, but I've been calling it Wonderland after Alice in Wonderland. This place is beautiful and will try to take off your head if you let it," he turned and indicated the forest, "People arrive here on and off. Always in the mornings and always having fallen asleep somewhere else, like you," he gestured to the sleeping bag. "Judging what we know from astronomy...we think we're on another planet. The stars aren't right and more than that does any of this look normal to you?"
Always one to listen before speaking, a line was slowly carving it's way between Aaron's brows. Nothing that this guy was saying made any sense to him and he liked when things made sense. "Any wilderness will do that," he said distantly as he turned to take in the nearby treeline. No, the trees were definitely not shaped like anything that was familiar. "I was in the Yukon Territory. Where are we now? Someplace in the south?" Not the Southern States, no the trees were too weird for that. Brazil maybe? The mention of the stars had Aaron looking up overhead. No moon to speak of and the stars were already too dim to really account for. Another planet? That was absurd. "This can't be another planet," he said as he looked back at Bazzer. "How did we get here? Did someone drop me off?"
The Yukon Territory? That may as well have been another planet as far as Bazzer was concerned, but regardless, he at least knew it wasn't. "Don't know. There's not quite 20 of us total. There were more..." he didn't need to say what had happened to them, "None of us are from the same place or country, almost all of us speak English at least. I was a librarian," he grinned lopsidedly and pushed his hair out of his face again, "in Kansas City. We have a priest from Boston. A marine stationed in Iraq. A preschool teacher from New York," he shrugged, "And you're from the Yukon. Ready?"
Still frowning, obviously having a hard time following all of this, Aaron didn't budge. "No, I'm from Toronto originally, I was just working in the Yukon. Working on my doctoral thesis," He glanced around them, still seeing no evidence of other people and yet as the breeze shifted a bit he could smell a camp fire. "Where are we going?" Hopefully wherever it was, he could find a phone and get the hell out of this strange place. Maybe the news that his work had been set back had sent him over the edge? Had he suffered a psychotic break of some kind and ran for Central America?
Yukon, Toronto, whatever. "Camp. Unless you have somewhere else to be?" he inquired arching an eyebrow over his glasses. They hadn't named the camp yet, other than 'home.' "We've set up a camp inside the forest. There are nocturnal creatures called 'laughers' they'll eat you if they can, but they can't climb so we're sleeping in the trees. You'll find out why we call them laughers tonight. Infernal beasts. And smart. What's your thesis on?" he asked, genuinely interested. It was the librarian in him. It wasn't gone, it was just...used differently now.
Yup. He was definitely in shock. Aaron bent down to scoop up his belongings. Had this guy kidnapped him while he was sleeping? No, that seemed unlikely. He eyed the ribs along Bazzer's sides and thought he'd have to outweigh the guy by about forty pounds. There was no way he could have dragged him anywhere, especially when he was unconscious dead weight. He ran his tongue around his mouth but didn't note any chemical after tastes. Nor did he have a headache of any kind. He didn't feel groggy either now that he'd cleared his head. Unlikely that he'd been drugged, he decided. "Ok," he said as agreeably as possible. "Um, it's on interactions between climate and ground cover changes below the frost line in Canada." He wasn't sure if a librarian would find that all that interesting, but that was the least of Aaron's concerns at the moment.
What Aaron hadn't learned yet was that Bazzer thought almost everything was interesting, from American Idol to interactions between climate and ground cover changes in Canada. Bazzer paused, giving Aaron a sympathetic and assessing look, "It's a lot, yes," he said slowly, "But I can assure you, you're not insane. And you're not alone," it wasn't perhaps much, but it was what he could give. "And how do you analyze that?" he asked, headed towards the trees again, "Sounds useful. Rowan's a botanist, might want to talk to her. Can't miss her, she's pregnant."
Aaron managed a tight and rather ironic smile since Bazzer had correctly plucked his worries right out of his mind. He wondered if his face was that transparent. Then again, in this situation, it was hard not to wear your thoughts on your sleeve. Once his sleeping bag was bundled, his slightly flattened pillow shoved down inside of it, Aaron fell into step beside Bazzer. "I was coring trees in a section of ancient forest not too far away from Whitehorse. Um, you can learn a lot about the climate of years gone by from the rings in a tree." He glanced at Bazzer and then checked his footing again. There was some kind of...melon or pumpkin vine growing thickly over the ground as they approached a stream. "A pregnant botanist? This isn't really the best place to be pregnant." He wasn't speaking of an alien planet, just camping rough.
Rolling his eyes, Bazzer resisted the urge to say 'no shit, Sherlock.' "That goes back to the whole not asking to come here bit. And the random," because Aaron was right, this really wasn't the best place, "Thorne is a doctor, and herbalist, but there's no OBGYN. Even if there was, we're lacking in things like hospitals and electricity so I don't know what he'd be able to do anyways," fortunately, she wasn't due quite yet. She was getting closer though. It was scary. Bazzer really didn't want to be there when it happened, especially if it was in the middle of the night. That would be horrible.
Aaron nodded, suitably chastised. A doctor and herbalist and a botanist? That was interesting. "Is everyone here into the sciences of academia of some sort?" That would be curious wouldn't it? Maybe someone unnamed was putting together a research group without bothering to go through official channels. That cast suspicion on Bazzer for the moment since he'd been the one to come out and find him. Aaron kept his face worried and not accusing, however. It was still pretty correct, regardless.
"What? No!" Bazzer shook his head, "There's been a couple kids, a preschool teacher," well, maybe that's sort of academic too, "An artist, a girl with no job I know about, a long distance runner person," he didn't quite understand what Jasper's career was exactly, other than she ran and was useful like that, "A whole bunch of randomness really. An auto mechanic. There hasn't been any rhyme or reason that we can figure, but maybe you can," they passed the tanning pit and he went to go look at how things were coming. So far, he had a few skins to work with, but nothing substantial. Well, one day he would get the hang of it and really be able to do something. The time factor was still the biggest mystery to him - how long were they supposed to soak?
When Bazzer veered away and peered down into a revolting pit, Aaron naturally gravitated after him. He had to stop himself from gagging when the smell hit him like a wave. "Ugh, god," Ok so he couldn't stop himself from gagging the second time. "What is that?" It smelled like rotten meat soup made in an ammonia broth. Awful. He took a few steps backward to catch a more refreshing breeze.
"Tanning pit," Bazzer replied, the smell not bothering him in the slightest. It had before, but he was used to it now, "I'm trying to cure hides for clothing and things. I'd give almost anything for a Target. Or even Walmart," he had never cared for Walmart, but was beginning to see its benefits now. "It's coming along, but it smells pretty foul," satisfied that it was going okay for the moment he continued to lead Aaron towards the tree they used as camp. It was well away from the smells of the tanning pit thankfully. "We have a stream too through there," he pointed, though it couldn't quite be seen. "And these pod things that are pretty good for soap."
Stream? Pod soap? Aaron's head was swimming and all he wanted to do was sit down on the spot and refuse to budge until someone started to make sense. They were tanning and sleeping in trees? Granted, some of the odd vine-strewn trees seemed to be enormously large. Almost rivaling the redwoods in size. It was just hard to imagine twenty humans from his own country living this rough. "And you're sure that we're..." He didn't want to even suggest out loud that they might be on another planet. Aaron wasn't ready to admit that yet. He'd have to look around and watch for a while before he decided that. It was only logical.
"Well, no," Bazzer was mostly a reasonable sort, when it came to things not of the romantic, interpersonal variety, "We're not positive, but it is the logical explanation. Occam's Razor and all, but...." he shrugged, "I'm willing to entertain other ideas," this didn't seem to fit with time travel, the vegetation and animals were too different even for prehistoric things that were extinct now and it didn't fit with some alternate Earth dimension where humans hadn't risen to dominance either. Bazzer had read enough sci-fi to have quite a few theories, but this one fit best. "And no, we don't know how to get home. Yet."
Aaron felt like he was sinking deeper and deeper into some kind of quicksand and so he just pressed his lips tightly into a firm line and nodded. They broke through the brush and there it was. The most immense tree he'd ever seen. You could park a volvo on some of those lower branches, he thought. Snakelike vines gracefully swayed in the breeze and yes, up in the higher branches there seemed to be hammocks and some sort of woven mats and cages made out of vines. The tree looked...well, habitable. In a brief instant, he remembered the amazing tree house he and his brother had built back when they were kids. It had sported platforms and ladders and multiple floors. They had utterly transformed the old oak in the back yard. This tree was way better. "Wow," he said, craning his neck to look up at the wide spread canopy a few stories above their heads.
"Not your average tree house," Bazzer agreed, going to the fire pit and getting a bowl of berries and things. They were more scarce, but there were there a little. Handing it to Aaron he took a peice of meat for his own breakfast, "And we're improving it. The resin from the trees hardens as it dries. So does the leaves and vines, combined they're strong enough to support us," he didn't know if they would end up as nomads or stay here, but regardless, they were outfitting this tree to be amazing. And they could move to other trees as needed, "Home sweet tree, I suppose."
That was...impressive. He'd heard of certain tribes in equatorial climes that used tree resin in tool making and such, but strong enough to support the wear and tear of constant human use? He was unsure about that. "It's certainly an impressive tree," and for a man who spent just about his every waking hour with trees? That was quite the compliment. He accepted the bowl of strange, plump berries that reminded him of slightly fatter Mike and Ike candies. He picked one up and tested it's firmness. "Smells like my mother's garden," he said more to himself than to Bazzer as he drew in a deep breath. His stomach rumbled in response.
Bazzer knew nothing of his mother's garden and didn't reply. He went looking to see if there was any water around still or not. No. "Well, if you want to come help me at the tanning pit, I need to get to work. Or you can stay here and explore, people are in and out all day and there's not much danger around here in the day," he didn't mention those awful plants deeper in the forrest, "There's a stream that way," he pointed through the trees.
Aaron nodded. "Think I'll...stay here. Put my sleeping bag up inthe tree." Finally, the stunned look faded off of his face and he offered his hand to Bazzer this time. "Thanks for walking me in Bazzer." He nodded to punctuate his appreciation. "I'll stick close." That was his plan, anyways. To wait out rescue since this place seemed safe enough. He stood and watched his rescuer head back the way that they had come before turning and contemplating how best to get up that massive tree.