The Getaway

He ran through the rocky terrain with his pursuers close behind. Sweat dripped down his face as he forced himself to an even faster pace.

He must not let them capture him. They would never let him explain that he meant them no harm. They had been suspicious of him from the minute he had been discovered on the beach unconscious and unable to tell them where he had come from. Their suspicions grew as they studied his garment of silver with the eagle insignia on the sleeve.

They had spoken to him in a language that he did not understand but he could read their actions and thoughts clear enough. They meant to imprison and interrogate him as a spy. He was not a spy but an unwitting visitor to this god-forsaken region. While they stood there arguing among themselves, he had escaped.

Ahead, he spied a small gully. He jumped down into and ran the opposite of the direction he had been running. He passed the men hunting him and ran on to the north. At last he climbed out of the gully. He stopped and listened. He could not hear them. He ran on.

After what seemed like an eternity, he came upon a small cave in the side of a hill. He entered cautiously, but his senses told him there was no danger here. He sank down on the floor of the cave; grateful for respite from his flight. He fell asleep almost immediately. He dreamed of his home where mountains soared and cool streams beckoned. He sighed in his sleep and murmured wistfully.

He woke as the sun sat and discovered he was both hungry and thirsty. From a pouch in his shirt, he drew out two small tubes. He bit into the first and drank deeply. As his thirst abated, he opened the remaining tube and consumed the contents quickly.

With his hunger and thirst taken care of he left the shadows of the cave, and began to walk north again stopping only long enough to put on his infrared goggles. In spite of the dark and unfamiliar terrain lying before him, he made steady progress. He had been walking for about an hour when he heard footsteps and the voices of his pursuers. He looked around and found a small pile of rocks and took refuge. They walked past him, unaware that he watched from the darkness. This time they were armed with lethal looking curved swords-blades shining wickedly in the dim light.

He knew he was taking a big risk but he reached inside his shirt and took out a small object studded with raised circles on its surface. He touched the largest of the circles, and within seconds a glow appeared in the northern sky. Another second and a small vehicle hovered above his hiding spot and to the hunters astonished glances within another second both the man and the craft were gone!

A full minute later, the small craft flew inside the USS Freedom and docked. He got out and went through a hatch and was greeted warmly by his shipmates.

“We thought we had lost another friend to those fiends down there�? the captain said.

“No, it just took me a little while to remember who I was and what I was doing there. Let’s go home now.�?/P>

He stepped to the porthole and watched as the surface of Mars faded from view.

Anita Callender2005

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