It was the Saturday after Thanksgiving, a cold day and drizzly day, and Bruce was not having a lot of luck at deer hunting. He was just about to give up, when spotted a big 12-point buck, standing very still, only a few yards away! The buck was a beautiful sight, he was standing tall and proud like something out of an advertisement. What made the Buck even more beautiful is that Bruce had him in the crosshairs! He had his finger on the trigger and was about to let the arrow fly, when their eyes met, as they looked into the eyes of the Buck, Bruce sensed a warmth there, and could not bring himself to pull the trigger, instead, he decided to let the Buck go!
Disappointed, Bruce was about to turn away, when he heard the deer cry out. He then saw that the Buck was stuck on some barbwire! After a moment of hesitation, he put down the bow and carefully walked up to the Buck, “It’s okay buddy, I’m just going to help you.” Then he reached out and carefully began to untangle the wire that was wrapped around his leg. Fortunately, he had some wire clippers in his bag (Bruce always came prepared) and he used these to cut the wire. Once freed, the Buck stopped and seemed to nod to Bruce before running off into the woods!
Bruce actually felt moved by his encounter with the Buck, and a tear rolled down his cheek. When he wiped it away, he noticed some blood! It seems that while he was cutting the wires, he cut himself! He only bled a little bit, but as it turned out, some of the blood got into the deer’s wounds…usually, this would not really be a big deal, but this time, somehow, Bruce’s DNA became intermingled with the deer’s!
This DNA would eventually be passed on to his progeny, causing them to evolve over many generations. The deer’s front hooves became more like claws and then hands, including thumbs, they developed a higher intelligence and eventually gained the ability to speak…not only in their own language, but they also learned English so they could interact with humans.
Of course, Bruce knew nothing about this, as he lived his life happily, with his wife, kids and later, grandkids, and several dogs. There were many other hunting trips, and some were successful, but he never saw that Buck again, although he did spare a few more deer and some foxes. In due time, he and his wife retired to the mountains and lived out the rest of their long lives in peace.
However, another thing Bruce didn’t know, is that the deer he saved, checked in on him now and then, until the end of his long life…looking through his windows late at night, and even approaching Bruce and his wife as they rocked together on the porch of their cabin.
While a thousand generations went by and the deer rose to ascendency, humanity’s fortunes ebbed and flowed…mostly ebbed. Climate change became undeniable, the ice caps continued to melt, the water levels rose, and new viruses were released into the world. This led to food shortages, new and more deadly pandemics, riots and wars that left large parts of the United States, all of Russia and huge sections of Iraq and Iran nuclear wastelands!
For the first time since the great Black Death of the Middle-Ages, the human race was on the decline, and in danger of becoming extinct! The only reason that humanity survived was that they were needed by the deer, who put human to work as manual laborers and then…as slaves.
As the new and improved deer rose to prominence, the regular deer either interbred or began to over populate and die off. The more intelligent deer found new ways to survive, and eventually replaced the regular deer. In some cases, though it was rarely spoken of…the new deer hunted the old ones in order to manage their population and ensure that new deer survived! As if that was not bad enough, there were rumors that some of the hunter deer developed a taste for venison!
But these were just rumors.
When the deer finally gained prominence over humanity, all deer hunting was banned, and treated as murder; however, by that time most of the non-advanced deer had died off or had become assimilated.
It was about this time that the new deer began taking over what was left of the human cities, though many were little more than ruins. They cleared out the remaining humans, and either put them to work rebuilding, or sent them out to wilderness to fend for themselves. In no time at all, the deer had these cities vibrant and alive again, with new buildings rising, as well as electricity and running water.
In other parts of the country, the deer scouted out areas unaffected by the radiation, that were suitable to build their own deer-centered communities, filled with trees, meadows and lakes!
As they evolved, the deer developed their own literature, arts and music, and even religion. The latter was based on the ancient tales of the great Buck, and of Bruce the Merciful, who spared his life on that long-ago November day! Although many of the deer looked down on the remnants of humanity, they revered the memory of Bruce and his great act of mercy, because they knew that was the turning point, when the deer began on their path to enlightenment!
It was this tale of Bruce’s mercy that saved the human race from total extinction, as through this story, the deer came to believe that there was something redeemable about humanity, that there was some potential for good. This prevented an all-out eradication of the race, although some wanted to start hunting the humans, they were declared an endangered species and off limits for hunting, but not for hard labor or slavery.
Those humans not fit to be slaves, servants or laborers were supported through hand-outs, some of the deer felt an obligation to care for them because of the great act of mercy committed by Bruce.
The deer themselves had all but deified Bruce, there were temples and shrines built to him and many of the deer’s homes had pictures of him. Often there were little altars where the deer said their prayers to him, or at least to the idea of who Bruce was, lighting candles as a way of reflecting the light of his act of compassion that led to the rise of the deer society.
As the deer civilization continued to grow, so did their faith in Bruce. At first, they saw him a human who was inspired by the spirit of the Great Buck. In time however; a faction came to believe that Bruce was, in fact, an avatar of the Great Buck, and then divine in his own right, sent to change the destiny of the deer, and set them on the path to greatness! For generations, the debate raged, there were even some minor wars fought among the deer over the true nature of Bruce the Merciful!
Dynasties grew powerful and were then usurped by others, as a great religious fervor swept the lands, and in time the belief that Bruce was Divine, won out, as the true believers defeated those who believed that it was evolution that caused the deer to thrive, and not the power of any Divine being.
This is not to say that the deer eschewed science, and after generations of belief in deeply religious mysticism, a great leader emerged who embraced Science and religion! She called herself Clarice I, and she rose up to create the greatest of the deer empires, one that covered most of the known world! It was an empire to rival ancient Rome, the only area that was left unconquered were the nuclear wastelands, which were still radioactive, even 2500 years after the wars had ended!
This is where the last free remnants of humanity survived, just barely holding on, they had fallen into a primitive lifestyle of scavenging the ruins, and living off of the deer’s garbage dumps. The deer left them there, as it served their purpose, they would often go into the wastelands to capture humans to use as slaves. Most were put to work building their great cities and erecting monuments to celebrate the glory of their empire! Others were made servants to the wealthy deer, taking care of their homes and estates, or acting as butlers, cooks and maids.
However, this is also where the resistance came from, as the humans were tired of being used as slaves and began to fight back against the deer. “We used to hunt them…now they capture us and make us their slaves!” the leader of the humans, known at the Lieutenant, said as he rallied others to the cause, “We will not be their slaves any more, when they come into our lands, we’ll be hunting them again!” This was met with cheers, and not long after, the deer raiding parties began to disappear! At the same time, many of the humans found themselves with plenty of meat for their tables. Many for the first time in their lives!
Not surprisingly, the deer were horrified by this, and began to fight back, by sending shock troops with their raiding parties, and instead of just taking slaves, they would level any village or settlement where they found evidence of venison, hides or antlers! This led to more unrest, and this was not okay with the Imperial government, who wanted to re-establish peace, by force if necessary!
“Let’s just wipe out all the free humans, we have enough laborers and slaves!” General Thumper exclaimed, “They hunted us for generations, now they are hunting and eating us again…they are irredeemable!” he added. “Here, here!” cried many of the other deer gathered to discuss the problem. The uproar grew and there were calls for an immediate genocide! Plans were drawn up and within a few weeks, the troops had been gathered, the jets and tanks were warming up and an all-out assault on the wastelands was about to be launched!
At the final planning meeting before the attack, General Thumper gathered his Captains together to make sure everyone knew their roles. “General, we have several nuclear war-heads, that have been kept in a sealed, air-tight vault, even though they are over 2500 years old, they are only 20% degraded, we could set a few of them off in the wastelands, with limited danger of fallout.” Major Odo offered. “Excellent thinking, make preparations immediately!” the General replied. Just then, the whole room got quiet as everyone stood to attention!
Thumper turned to see Prime Minister Cervidae walking into the command center. “Leave those nukes alone, I don’t know why we keep them anyway, we’ll probably blow ourselves up with them one day! he announced to the room. “So, what do you propose sir?” the General asked. “We need to work with these humans, give them some dignity back, so that they will want to become part of the Empire!” “What does the Emperor think of all this?” “This is coming straight from Emperor Clarice III herself!” The Prime Minister said, “We are not to engage in genocide, that is the human way, and that is what led them down the path to their destruction, we are better than that!”
The General and his followers did not agree, “This is a travesty, all of these barbarians need to be expunged from the wastelands!” cried Thumper! “This is the decision of the Emperor, that we will reach out to the humans with the offer them peace and a place in the Empire…if they want it.” The Prime Minister announced.
While many of the deer were not happy with the plan, the humans weren’t very excited about working with the deer either! After so many years of oppression, including killing, kidnapping and slavery, there was a certain lack of trust between the deer and humanity. This would need to be overcome in order for the deer to convince the humans that they were welcome as citizens of the Empire, not just as slaves or servants! Many of the humans wanted to continue the insurrection, even though they knew that they had no hope of regaining control of the planet, their numbers and resources were just too small, but their guerilla attacks would be a major disruption to the deer’s way of life!
The deer sent messages to the humans over the radio, but they went unanswered. Leaflets were dropped from air transports, but were not responded too, finally, emissaries were sent to deliver a message of peace, asking for a parlay. They never returned…not in one piece any way!
There were renewed calls from the hardliners to go scorched earth on the humans…to leave nothing standing and no one alive in the wastelands. General Thumper took matters into his own hands, and was preparing his shock-troops to go in, when the Prime Minister ordered them to stand down “This is from the Emperor herself!” he told them. “We will still use the shock-troops, but only as protection, not as an assault force…we are sending a peace delegation in to talk to the humans!”
A convoy of troops and diplomats were organized, complete with air-support! Prior to going in, more leaflets were dropped over the main settlement, letting the humans know that the deer were coming in peace, but were also prepared to protect themselves if needed!
Dan Dryberg was from a long line of watchmen, and was on the fences that morning. He knew that the deer had been reaching out, offering peace, it was something he and many others hoped for, but at what price? The humans did not want to trade what little freedom they had for slavery, even if it meant, staying in this toxic wasteland! Like many other humans, he wondered if the deer could be trusted.
The deer not only had numbers, but technology on their side, and truth be told, they had done a better job of living with the environment that humanity had when it was their turn. The deer were caring for the planet in ways that the humans never did, and because of this, they had become a success in only about a thousand years!
Dan didn’t know any of the deer personally, other than those who had ‘hired’ him (as if he had a choice) for day labor, worked him hard, and then paid him in a few food credits that never got him more than a few oats, apples and a rough bread made out of hay. He had heard plenty about the deer’s culture and society, but nothing that filled him with hope for any real partnership with them.
As he stood on guard duty, high on top of the town wall, he read the leaflet which had been dropped the previous morning, it called for a peaceful meeting between man and deer. These notices had everyone on edge, as the deer’s promises had been broken before. Suddenly, he heard the sound of transports coming across the barren plains. He could see dust on the horizon, and he knew that the deer were coming. Dan picked up the phone and notified headquarters, then he put on his face mask just as the dust cloud rolled in!
Then, out of the dust came a helicopter! It hovered overhead, blowing away the cloud and making a hell of a lot of noise! Suddenly there was a lot of confusion, on each side of the wall, with humans running forward towards the gates, and the deer pulling up in their transports, guns at the ready! Dan watched as one of the deer got out of his transport and waved at the helicopter, which flew off and took up position a few hundred yards away!
Things quieted for a moment, and as the dust settled, Dan could see the deer standing by their vehicles. The deer who seemed to be in charge, the one who had sent the helicopter away, was wearing the typical uniform of the ruling class, a black suit, with a white shirt and a blue tie, identifying him a member of the more liberal Labor party. They were supposed to represent the common deer…but Dan suspected that, just like with the humans, those in power cared little about the ‘commoners’. Like all the deer, this one stood upright, and even covered with dust, he looked important, in charge. The deer shook off the dust, and bent his head to clear off his antlers. This one had a large rack, signifying his age and wisdom. Many of the deer kept their antlers polished and honed, a source of pride and vanity, but not this one, he left them natural, a message that that he was beyond trying to make a good impression.
“That’s the Prime Minister himself!” said Jack, who was stationed on the wall next to Dan. “This really must be a big deal for the deer!” he added. Clearly, this was a significant visit, not just a typical raiding party of deer looking for more cheap labor!
“Look alive there, Dan!” yelled his supervisor. “We need to keep alert…these deer may be up to something!” “Yes sir!” “Watch the perimeter, that’s where the trouble usually comes from!” Dan nodded and watched, many of the deer were out of their vehicles, including the shock-troops, who stood at the ready, in case the visit did not work out the way the deer intended.
Fortunately, there was no trouble, the delegation of deer met with the humans at the gate, and the Prime Minister and his team were escorted inside along with a few of his protective detail. Dan had to stay on the wall, to ensure that the deer in the parking lot were not up to anything. However, if he turned to the side, he could also keep his eye on the meeting, which was being held at a big table, right inside of the gates.
The Prime Minister was seated at the table with key members of his team. They wore suits and had brought gifts of food, tools and clothing for the humans. Seated across the table from him was the “Lieutenant” he was wearing his usual attire, work clothes and boots and was joined by members of the ruling council. Behind them, were other humans, all friends of Dan, and all were armed as well, a few with scavenged guns, and the rest with clubs.
It did not look like the conversation was going well. While he could make out the words, “peace” and “trust us!” he could see the doubt on the faces of his people and the frustration of the deer! Dan watched as the Lieutenant put up his hands, pounded the table, pushed deer’s gifts off of the table, yelled “You try to bribe us with trinkets!”, and then pointed towards the gates and shouted “Get out!” The Prime Minister got up, looked pleadingly at the Lieutenant, and said “Please, we can work this out!” but the Lieutenant kept pointing to the exit! The deer behind him came attention, and brought up their weapons! The humans did the same, but the Prime Minister ordered his troops to “Stand down!” “We’re leaving but we’re not giving up!” He said to the Lieutenant, and he tried to put his hand out but was rebuffed!
Then, the deer turned, walked through the gates and returned to their vehicles. Before he closed the door to his transport, the Prime Minister called out “Remember, Bruce the Merciful showed compassion for deer, he is the reason why we are here today, surely there must be some reason for hope, that we too can find compassion for each other!” “Bruce the Merciful was a traitor to his own kind!” one of the humans shouted! The Prime Minister looked at the crowd and said, “I believe that Bruce the Merciful wanted us to live together in peace, if only there was some way to prove that to you!” When they heard this, both deer and humans looked doubtful! “We don’t even know if he was even a real person…maybe he was something you deer just made up!” another human said. “There is no way to tell for certain, but we deer have faith!” said the Prime Minister’s assistant, a doe named Tabitha.
This seemed to stir up the crowd, and was the cue for the deer to leave. They got into their transports and headed back to the city, with the helicopter following overhead.
Once they were gone, the Lieutenant called Dan over to talk. “We need you to go to the deer, go to them as a slave, ingratiate yourself to them, so you can spy on them!” “Spy…me? Oh, I’m not sure I can…” “You can and you will Dan, we need you, humanity is counting on you!” the Lieutenant told him, “We’re counting on you!”
That evening, Jack pulled up the village’s vehicle, a rusting old 2006 Ford F-150, that had been modified to run on steam power, with a boiler, smokestack and everything. Dan got in and was driven to the outskirts of the deer’s capitol, in what was once Allentown, PA. “Good luck Dan, hope to see you on the other side…of whatever this is.” “Me too Jack, me too…maybe Bruce the Merciful will watch over me too!” Dan said, managing a faint smile, adding. “Hoping he’ll be merciful to you too Jack.”
Dan waved as Jack drove off. Then Dan walked the last few miles to the slave compound, and was able to get in under the fence, and slip into the barracks. It was pretty easy because most humans were trying to get out of the slave camp, so they didn’t have a lot of safeguards against people breaking INTO slavery! The other slaves gave him little notice as he found an empty bunk, and staked it out for his own. The guy in the next bunk, looked over at Dan, nodded at him and said, “Welcome to paradise, get some rest, we have to be up a 4am for work.” Dan thanked him, curled himself up into a ball for warmth, and eventually fell asleep. The next morning, he got in line with the other slaves and followed them onto a truck that took them all to a factory where he spent his day working on an assembly line building transports and keeping his eyes and ears open.
During his first few weeks as a slave, he made connections, and got a line on one of the slaves who served as janitor in the big government building a few blocks from the slave quarters. After gaining his trust, Dan finally took the man aside, “Mike, I need your help…I was sent her to get the lay of the land with the deer, to see if they are serious about wanting to find peace.” “Sounds dangerous, I really don’t want…” Dan held up his hand, silencing Mike. “You really don’t have to do anything, I just want to be able to join your crew, I need to get into your building, to see what I can find out.” Mike looked at Dan, and said, “I can’t just add you to my team, the deer tell us who to work with, if you get caught tagging along, we’ll all be in trouble!” Dan nodded, “They won’t even notice, I’ll do the work, that’s all they care about…that we do the work, I just need to get in there, to see what I can find out.” Mike was hesitant, but agreed to help. “Tomorrow morning, just get in line with us, we all leave together any way, and we look the same to the deer, so I think we can pull it off.”
Mike was right, the next day went off without a hitch, instead of walking off with the factory workers, Dan got in line with the janitors, and soon found himself mopping the halls of the government building.
One day, while mopping the Prime Minister arrived for a meeting about how to get the humans on board with the peace plan. Dan watch has he and his entourage walked past him and went into a conference room. It was one of those rooms with glass walls, that could turn opaque for privacy, but this did not make the room soundproof. This made it perfect for Dan to hear everything that was said inside. Not for the first time, Dan felt grateful for being invisible to the deer, as he paid extra attention to cleaning the floor outside the room, while he listened.
“Maybe, we could emancipate the slaves, and turn them into low-wage workers, that might make them happier.” said Chip, one of the Prime Minister’s advisors. “That would be great, we could save a lot of money by not having to house and feed them…and still pay them shit wages!” said Tabitha, the Prime Minister’s Assistant. “Good thinking!” Chip said. “I was being sarcastic.” Tabitha told him. “The way to peace is by making the humans truly part of our society, not as slaves, not as underpaid labor but as true partners with us!” she added. The Prime Minister then said, “We can and we must do this, in order for our Empire to be great!” “Ha, I wonder what the Emperor thinks of your wild ideas?” Major Odo asked him. “I agree with the Prime Minister, we are better than this, better than being slaver owners and the oppressors…we were the oppressed, the hunted, for generations, we cannot thrive by the same!” Everyone assembled froze and looked up as the Emperor’s hologram walked out of the shadows!
Even though the Emperor was only present virtually, the deer showed her respect, by getting down on one knee, and bowing their heads. The Emperor motioned for them to rise up, “Thank you, but we have little time for formality, we need to address this human problem, before it gets out of hand.” she told them. “Out of hand, how would that even be possible?” asked Major Odo. “The humans are growing restless, they are getting tired of being turned into slaves, and of being hunted and abused!” she said. “They did the same to us once!” Odo pointed out vehemently. Chip, reached out and touched his shoulder, “Remember…she’s the Emperor.” He whispered. Odo, took a breath, and stepped back from the hologram. The Emperor ignored this, and answered, “True, but we had not yet ascended to our higher station, there is some evidence to suggest that we were over-populating, and in danger of killing ourselves off…when Bruce the Merciful, a human, did his great act of compassion, which eventually us to dominance.” “Emperor, I know the story of how he saved the Great Buck…but you speak as if there is more.” “Yes, Odo, there are stories that suggest that his blood became intermingled with that of the Great Buck, if true, this means that we are also part human!”
Odo exclaimed, “Inconceivable!” “I believe it!” Tabitha said, as she looked to the Prime Minister, who nodded in agreement. Odo turned to the Emperor’s hologram, for her opinion, “Testing has shown that there is human DNA in all of us, and our scientists think, this is why we have evolved so quickly.” she said. “This is the truth that can bring us all together as one, and bring us peace!” “They’ll never believe it!” Odo told her. The Prime Minister, nodded in agreement, and told him, “We have a plan, a way to get proof, that the deer and humans are related…by blood!” “What plan, what is it?” asked Odo. “You’ll see soon enough.” The Emperor said, as her hologram faded out. Odo watched her go, and then turned to the Prime Minister, who said “Walk with me.” and motioned him to follow.
Odo and Tabitha followed the Prime Minister, out of the room and down the hall, right past Dan, who was still cleaning…and they walked down to the end of the hall, where the Prime Minister swiped his card, which allowed them into the lab. Inside were several scientists and technicians working on a medium sized shipping container, which was sitting in the middle of the room. The container was attached to several computer servers by heavy cables. Across the room, there were several technicians who were monitoring the activity on multiple screens. “What is it?” asked Odo. “It’s a time machine.” one of the technicians told him. “A…what?” “You heard him correctly, it IS a time machine, and we’re going to use it to go back and meet Bruce the Merciful, to prove he was real, and get a sample of his DNA…to prove that his blood flows through us all!” The Prime Minister told him.
“How is this even possible?” Odo asked. “We found some very old writings, from when the humans were dominant.” One of the Scientist said. “The human’s name was Hawkin, and he was working from discoveries made other humans, with names like Poincaré, Einstein, Lorentz and Bohr…all these men wrote theories about time and space.” “Humans came up with time travel…humans?” Odo asked. “They got most of the way, we closed the gap, by building upon their work.” The scientist told him. “Does it work?” Tabitha asked. “Yes, it does, the machine generates a field that can bend time and space, to connect us with another moment from the past, the connection caused pressure and when it snaps back, it catapults us across the abyss!” “How do you get back?” asked Odo. “We use this return pad, based on a design by another human, Stewart Griffin, it captures the original bending of time, recreates it, and then sends us right back to where we began!” “Sounds so simple!” Tabitha said, with a note of sarcasm. “Once the field is generated, it is pretty simple…although there were some misfires at first.” “Misfires?” “Well, we did lose a few of our early ‘volunteers’, all humans of course; we’re not quite sure where they wound up…we lost a young man named Elon, that way…but I’m sure he made out just fine, he probably just didn’t want to come back…can’t say I blame him!” Tabitha was not comforted by this news, and the tech saw that, “Oh, but we’ve worked out the kinks now, not to worry!”
“So, have we been able to send someone on a round trip?” Tabitha asked the tech. “We’ve had some recent success.” He said, handing Tabitha a newspaper. “What’s this?” she asked, handing the paper to Odo. “It was one of the ways that the ancient humans got their news…look at the date.” “October 3, 1984?” Odo said. “Yes, it caused quite a stir when one of our techs went back and found this…at that time, there were no deer that wore clothing, walked on their hind legs and talked!” the tech said, with a slight chuckle. “The next time trip we took was more subtle, and worked a lot better.” He said, “We went in undercover, as regular deer, and this way we could walk right up to their houses, and people even gave us salt and oats, and took their pictures with us…never suspecting a thing!” “Amazing” Tabitha said. “So, who gets to go back, to make this miracle happen?” she asked the Prime Minister.
“Major Odo, this is why you’re here, we want you to lead an infiltration team to get a sample of Bruce the Merciful’s DNA, and to also get video of him, to prove he was a real person, in addition, we also going to make sure he’s kept safe.” The Prime Minister said. “Safe?” Tabitha asked. “We have reason to believe that General Thumper is also planning to send a team back, to eliminate Bruce, so they can justify the genocide of humanity!” The Prime Minister looked to Tabitha and said “I want you to go as my personal representative.” She looked at him, anxiously and said “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid, but I am honored to be selected for this mission.” “Good, I need deer I can trust on this mission, thank you both!” The Prime Minister told them. “What if we screw things up and we wind up changing history, so that Bruce never saves the Great Buck?” Tabitha asked. “We thought of that…” said a scientist. “…this is why we’re sending you back AFTER the salvation!” “Good idea, but what if Thumper sends someone back to kill Bruce as a child?” Odo asked. “Thumper can only piggyback off of our signal, he can only go where we go…at least for now.” The scientist said, as the Prime Minister nodded in agreement, and said “I’m going to leave you both with the scientific team, to learn the details of the mission, God’s speed to you both!”
After the Prime Minister left, Odo and Tabitha met with the rest of the team and began training, time was of the essence as General Thumper was already gathering his forces, not only to wipe out humanity, but to over-throw the Emperor! Odo’s team had only one week to train before being deployed to the past.
Through this all, Dan had continued to mop the hallway, thoroughly ignored by all, but he hung on every word. Hearing that the Prime Minister and Emperor were on their side, gave him hope. However, he was worried about the General’s plans, and knew he had to report back to the Lieutenant right away. As he was thinking of how best to share his intel, Major Odo walked past him and slipped into an empty office. Dan paused by the door and heard Odo on the phone with someone, telling them everything, and promising to do his best to put an end to the “human menace” once and for all!
Dan was alarmed, but tried not to show it, as office workers filed past him at the end of their shift. As calmly as possible, he wrapped up his work and filed back onto the transport back to the barracks, with the rest of his crews. When Dan got back, he retrieved his phone from its hiding place, and called the Lieutenant and told him everything. “I can’t believe that I’m saying this Dan, but we need to ensure that the Prime Minister’s mission is a success!” “We can just tell him what I heard…” “No, he’d never believe you, instead, you have to find a way to go back with them, talk to that Tabitha, she may believe you, and if so, she can suggest you go as a guide or an ally!” “I’ll do what I can, sir.” Dan told him and then said “I gotta go, I don’t want to attract too much attention!” The Lieutenant agreed, “Godspeed to you Dan, and God help us all!”
Meanwhile, General Thumper was also planning. He had paid off a scientist, who was working for the Prime Minister, to set up an identical time machine for Thumper and his team to go back. He would like to do as Odo suggested and just kill Bruce as a child. He begged the scientist to make it so; however, because they were using the same technology, the scientist explained that they had to use the same field to make the jump as the Prime Minister’s team. This meant they had to go at the same time and arrive on the same date! This frustrated General Thumper, but he knew there was no choice.
Instead, the General’s plan was to make Bruce the Merciful look more like Bruce the Merciless…a brutal killer and devourer of deer, who was simply having a bad day and missed his shot at the Great Buck. A human who wanted nothing more than to hunt and eat dear! “Then, once we have proof that Bruce was far from merciful, we will kill him.” The General told his team. “Yeah, then we get to kill all the humans we can!” said one of his team members, a deer named “Kansas”. “Yes, once we get back, we’ll be able to topple the Emperor for her lies and then begin the extermination of the last of humanity!” Thumper told them. “I was thinking of taking a few of them out BEFORE we come back!” Kansas said. The General smiled, but said “I appreciate the enthusiasm, but we need to be careful, not to attract too much attention, we don’t want to do anything to change the course of history!” Kansas and the other deer on the team looked disappointed, “Why not, if we can end the human menace with one trip!” “It wouldn’t be that easy, and we also don’t want to make a mistake that would have us coming back to a wasteland…or maybe have us just disappear altogether!” the General explained. Kansas and the other deer told him that they understood their orders, but Thumper felt he needed to reiterate, “No unnecessary deaths in the past, we’ll save that for our future…our near future!” Thumper told his team. They all applauded, and then they continued their training for the mission!
The next day found Dan working in the government building once again. While there, he made a point of tracking down Tabitha. After a few missteps, he found her office, and came in under the guise of emptying the trash case and wiping down her desk. This gave him the chance to be along with her! Even alone, he approached her carefully, “Excuse me, Miss Tabitha?” “Yes?” she answered, looking up. Tabitha saw a human in work clothes, he was a bit disheveled, had brown hair and green eyes, and a nice smile. There was nothing that set him apart from the other human workers she’s seen, but yet…he did seem different, at least to her. As she was trying to figure out what set him apart, the human spoke to her again. Dan took a deep breath and proceeded to tell her the whole story, of how he was sent as a spy, and what he had overheard Odo saying on the phone. Tabitha looked at him dubiously. “Why are you telling me all this, you could be imprisoned for life, or even executed…at the very least you will be tortured if General Thumper ever gets a hold of you!” “I’m telling you this, because I want us to work together, we want the Prime Minister to succeed, it is the only way we will all survive!” Dan told her. “So, say I believe you…what do you want from me?” Tabitha asked him. “I want to go with you, as your support person, as a guide to the humans.” “Why don’t I just go to the Prime Minister with you and…” “He won’t believe me, and I’ll probably wind up in custody, in fact, the more who know what I know, the more dangerous it will be, Odo is bound to find out!”
After more discussion and convincing, Tabitha agreed to the plan, but cautiously. “I’m not happy about this, but I will request that we bring you along…it’s dangerous for me too, but you have a good point, we don’t want to fail!” “Thank you, Miss Tabitha, this is too important for us all!” Tabitha nodded, “I agree, the Great Buck protect us all!” “And Bruce the Merciful…can’t believe we’ll be meeting him soon!” “Hopefully we’ll all survive this meeting!” Tabitha said, looking troubled. Dan thanked Tabitha, reached out and took her hand, and their eyes met…for just a moment, and then he left to return to work.
Over the next few days, both of the teams got ready for the mission, Tabitha was able to get Dan included on the team, convincing the Prime Minister that it would be valuable to a have a human along, to provide cover for the deer. Major Odo viewed this addition with some suspicion as he struggled with working both sides…not sure that he fully supported either effort. In the meantime, General Thumper drilled his team for action. Each team was focused on their own success, but that success was not guaranteed for any of them.
“You are about to embark on a great journey, it will be a trip like none you’ve ever taken before, and it will be dangerous, but it will also be important, if we are successful, it will bring us all peace, and usher in a new age.” The Prime Minister said to the team, before they entered the shipping container. The team listened to his words and looked down at the floor when the Prime Ministers continued with “Let us pray to the Great Buck for his guidance and protection on our journey.” The group paused and gathered in prayer, for a moment, ending in “Amen.” Then they entered the container together.
Once inside, they stood together, looking nervously at each other as the machinery began to hum and the lights dimmed. “Alright you deer, it’s pucker time!” Ono told his team, who gave a slight chuckle, just as all went dark!
Across town, General Thumper and his team were in their identical container, waiting to depart. “Let’s get ready to ride the lightning.” He told them, as their box also went dark.
Dan was scared, not only did he have some trust issues with the deer he was traveling with, but also he didn’t have much confidence in this time travel thing, he was afraid they would wind up in some distant past without a way to get back. He was also afraid, that they would wind up nowhere at all! Then, when the lights went out, he found himself feeling dizzy and disorientated! He couldn’t even feel the floor, and his anxiety was going through the roof! Then, just as he felt he couldn’t handle it any longer, he felt a furry hand in his! It was Tabitha, she took his hand and moved closer to him, Dan could feel her shaking, and as he turned to her, the box stopped moving, and the lights came back on!
The door slid open, and the container was filled with light. The deer peer outside and all they could see were trees and grass, although they could smell that there was water nearby. Odo turned to the team and said “We have to be careful, we’re not sure what we’ll encounter out there, it may not be safe.” Then he looked at Dan and said “You go first!” Dan hesitated for a moment, and looked at Tabitha, she put her hand on his shoulder and nodded. Dan then walked out of the container and found that they were in some woods behind a low group of buildings. He looked around and saw that it was safe, there was no one around, and he motioned the deer to come out.
Odo walked up and stood beside him and said “This should be an office park.” As he pointed to the buildings. “We believe that Bruce the Merciful is working in that office building right now…according to the date, we are in the midst of the great pandemic of 2021, that makes it easier track him down, as travel was restricted during this time.” “Pandemic, what hell?” said one of the team, a deer named Rambler, looking shocked and uncertain. “It’s okay, deer are immune, always have been!” Odo told them. “What about me?” asked Dan. “Who cares, human?” said another deer, named Stormy. “I care, I don’t need to get infected with some ancient plague that killed millions!” “It’s okay Dan, one of the shots we gave you was for the virus…you’re safe!” Tabitha told him, once again putting her hand on his shoulder!
“We need to get into character, deer of this age didn’t wear clothes, or walk on two legs!” Odo told them. The deer, looking embarrassed, began to strip down, and they practiced walking on all fours. Dan had to stifle a laugh, as he watched Stormy stumble around, as if he was drunk. Then, he found himself turning away as Tabitha took off her coveralls. She noticed him looking, and felt herself blushing!
Soon the deer were prancing around the forest, trying to act like their more primitive cousins. They even had a chance to meet up with the local deer, who did not know what to make of these strange, super smart deer! The two groups stopped and looked at each other, sniffed the air, and then the local deer, lowered their heads. Tabitha then made a series of squeaks and grunts, which were answered by the other deer. In their ancient language the future deer and the locals exchanged information. It seems that Bruce the Merciful often came out to walk the small patch of wood, every day when the sun was at the top of the sky, all the new deer needed to do was wait for him to come out!
In the meantime, Tabitha took Dan aside. “We know that during this time, many humans over-used alcohol and other medicines, and that Bruce was working with these people at this time in his life.” “Okay…and how does that come into play here, almost no one drinks alcohol anymore! Dan pointed out. Tabitha gave him whiskey, “This is from our finest reserves, drink this.” Dan looked at her and he took a big swig! “Wow, that stuff is nasty!” he said, handing the bottle back. Tabitha then took the bottle and splashed it on him! “Hey, what was that for?” “I need you to go inside tell them you can’t stop drinking alcohol, and I need you to be convincing!” “Once I go in and tell them this, then what?” “Ask to speak to Bruce.” She told him. “We know he’s in there, and you can make contact easier than we can…he’ll want to help!” Tabitha then attached a micro camera to Dan’s lapel and pushed him in the direction of the building.
At the same time, about fifteen miles away, Thumper’s team had landed. They were in a park that was only a short walk from where Bruce lived, right near the lake. “Okay, team, four of you will come with me to the house, we’ll stake it out, and wait for Bruce…maybe we can even take his wife hostage, that can give us leverage.” Kansas looked excited, and said “Let’s get ‘em, let’s just wipe they all out, filthy humans!” “You’ll get your chance Kansas, just be patient, once we make sure that Bruce is safely in his house, you’ll have plenty of time to make him pay for his sins!” The General told him. Then he turned to the other members of the team, “You two stay here and guard the area, you’ll be our back-up.” The two deer nodded in agreement.
“Alright, all those with me, let’s head up to Bruce’s house!” Kansas started to run up trail that led to Bruce’s neighborhood when Thumper reached out and grabbed him! “On all fours…these deer didn’t walk on two legs!” “Oh yeah, I forgot.” Kansas said, sheepishly. Then he got down on all fours and awkwardly began to run towards Bruce’s house. “Wait for me!” called Thumper, but it was too late, Kansas was galloping full speed towards the house! The General and the rest of the team tried to keep up, but Kansas was fast! Then just as he cleared the woods, and dropped out of sight, the other deer heard the sound of a horn and squealing tires, followed by a loud thud!
It was Blitzen who found him! Kansas had been hit by a truck, as he was crossing the street in front of Bruce’s house! “Kansas was a brave warrior, he gave his life for a great cause, let us bow our heads and commend him to the care of the Great Buck!” The General told his team. It was clear that the team was shook up, Blitzen was angry that his friend had died so needlessly. “Those humans, I will make them pay!” he told the team. Once again, the General called for calm, and patience.
Then, after a moment of silence for their fallen comrade, the four remaining deer dispersed around the neighborhood, so they could keep an eye on Bruce’s house and wait for him to return…or his wife to appear. “Remember, if we find her, don’t hurt her, just take her as a hostage.” Thumper told his team. They all appeared to agree, but the General was not sure that he could trust his entire team, and told himself to keep an eye on them.
Miles away, Odo and his team were on the edge of the parking lot to Bruce’s building. They watched as Dan put on his virus mask, and walked inside the building, looking a bit unsteady on his feet! Once inside, he stumbled to the reception desk and told them he needed help for his drinking problem. After an evaluation, Dan asked to speak with Bruce, and then waited nervously for him to come out to the lobby to meet him. Dan was not sure what to expect, his whole life, he had heard about Bruce the Merciful, and his great deeds of compassion. His heart was racing as he watched the door, waiting for Bruce…and then, it opened, and a very ordinary man walked through! He walked up to Dan and said “Hi Dan, I’m Bruce, nice to meet you, I’m here to help!” At first Dan had trouble finding his voice, but when he did, finally said “Hi Bruce, my name is Dan and I need help!”
After talking with him for an hour, Dan saw that Bruce’s title was well earned, as he was truly merciful and compassionate. Dan thought Bruce was far from ordinary, and found himself liking him! Dan knew he had to keep Bruce safe from the deer that wanted to hurt him! Before they parted, Dan reached out and shook Bruce’s hand, and put his other hand on Bruce’s shoulder, where he managed to snag one of his stray hairs…for DNA testing! As he walked out of the room, Dan took the hair and put it in a small collection bag. He then left the building and made his way back to the deer waiting in the woods.
One of those deer who was having conflicting thoughts about his mission was Major Odo! He had been listening into the conversation between Dan and Bruce, and while he had originally intended upon killing him, and then going home to join Thumper in the destruction of humanity, and in taking over the empire! However, Odo had been moved by Bruce’s compassion, and he had changed his mind about the humans. Odo now wanted to tell the truth about Bruce, the truth that would bring the deer and the humans together in peace. Unfortunately, Odo still had to report to General Thumper, otherwise the General would know that Odo had changed his mind. This would be very dangerous to Odo and the other deer, as he knew that the General would stop at nothing to achieve his goal of total human genocide!
So, Odo found himself playing both ends, leaving himself in an uncomfortable middle. Tabitha sensed the conflict within Odo, she had known him for years, and while she never quite trusted him, she knew something was even more off with him than usual, but didn’t know what it was. What she did know is that she had to keep on her guard around Odo, now…in this strange past, more than ever!
Tabitha’s revelry was then disturbed by a sound overhead, as an airplane took off from the local airfield! She was shocked, she had heard that humans once knew how to fly, but was still surprised to see the fragile looking craft fly by, she had not realized how common flight was in the past. The deer did not fly much, they had large air transports, used when needed, but preferred travel on the land or sea, and they were experimenting with teleportation (although the results of these few experiments were kinda messy).
Tabitha then cautiously walked over to the building, still getting used to walking on all fours. She managed to put her face up to the window of Bruce’s office. She could not hear what was being said, but saw him smile and laugh, and realized that he was no divine creature, but also was not the epitome of evil; he was simply a kind and compassionate human being…which is exactly as she had hoped. This is the Bruce that Tabitha wanted to show to her world, this was the Bruce that could bring them all unity!
Thinking quickly, Tabitha pulled out her camera and began to film, hoping to show the humanity of Bruce the Merciful. As she filmed, she saw Bruce get up and look to the window, and for a moment their eyes met! Tabitha ducked down, and could hear as Bruce exclaimed, “That deer, it was just looking at me!” That was when Tabitha ran back into the small copse of trees, just off of the parking lot. There Tabitha joined two other members of her team, Goliath and Darby. “He’s coming out.” She said to them. “Be on guard.” The other two deer nodded in agreement. They all watched as Bruce and another person came outside, into the sunshine and began walking towards them. “I swear the deer was right outside the window, and was looking right at me!” Tabitha and the others kept hidden, quietly watched as he passed right by them. They froze, as Bruce stopped and looked at them, curiously. “Hi guys, so weird that you don’t run away from me, you must be too used to humans.” Then he asked them, “You weren’t looking at me, just now, were you?” In response, the deer bowed their heads. Bruce stared at them for a moment and said, “Wow, just…wow!” before walking away from them.
While Tabitha stayed where she was, Darby followed Bruce into the trees, though she made sure to keep her distance. Darby watched as Bruce walked along the path, and then froze whenever he turned to look at her. Bruce noticed, and while he thought it was kind of strange, especially after seeing the deer bow their heads. However, he continued on his walk, until he made his whole circuit and got back to the front door of the office building. Before going inside, Bruce gave one last look to the deer, and then went back inside. Once he was gone, the deer retreated further back to the trees, where they met up with Odo and Dan.
“We got a lot of good footage, showing that Bruce is a real person, and is certainly a good and merciful person!” Tabitha told Odo. “We need to keep following him for the next few days, to get more evidence.” Odo said. Then he added, “We need to proceed with caution, there is reason to believe that General Thumper is also here, and looking to not only destroy Bruce’s legacy, but to also hurt Bruce, maybe even kill him!” “Why would anyone want to do that, he’s one of the good ones!” Goliath said. “That’s why we need to make sure he and his family are kept safe…it’s the right thing to do, and we don’t know how his death might change our timeline.” Odo said. “True, we might wind up going back to a completely different reality, or we could even cease to exist.” Tabitha said.
Odo then asked Goliath and Darby to stand by, and watch the site, while “…Tabitha, Dan and I will travel to Bruce’s house, and make sure things are secure there…for when he gets home!” Goliath and Darby agreed and promised to wait in the trees until Bruce left for home. “We’ll let you know when he leaves, but his house is about 25 kilometers away, how will you get there?” Darby asked. “These smaller transports won’t work for us, but there’s a bigger vehicle across the street, it says “FedEx”, we’ll take that one.” Odo said, and then he turned to Dan and said, “You get to drive, go across the street, take the truck and bring it over here, Tabitha and I will get in the back!” Dan agreed, glanced at Tabitha, who looked over to him, smiled and then turned away.
With that, Dan crossed the street, and cautiously approached the van. Fortunately, the driver had left it running, so it was easy to steal. Dan just slipped behind the wheel, and drove it back by the trees, where Odo and Tabitha got in through the big back doors, and they all headed off towards Bruce’s before the driver even knew his truck was gone!
With the van, it was a relatively quick trip, Odo and Tabitha were riding in the back, and had a hold on a few times, as Dan was not used to driving such a big vehicle. Tabitha sat right behind Dan’s seat and occasionally had to hold onto him to stop from sliding across the back of the truck. Odo noticed their closeness, and felt a pang of jealousy. Odo, like most of the deer, were not in favor of humans and deer getting too close to each other, and he wanted Tabitha for his own…but he knew that what was most important was the mission. He knew that if General Thumper got his way, that the deer were doomed to years of guerilla warfare with the humans, and that if he allowed this to happen, the blood would be on his hands as well as Thumper’s. Odo, knew he needed to act to stop Thumper; however, at the same time, he didn’t see the harm of leaving Dan behind when they all went home…and he could be left behind either dead or alive.
They parked the van in the High School parking lot about a mile from Bruce’s house. Odo told Dan to wait in the van while he and Tabitha trotted over to Bruce’s house. They were approaching the house when Darby radioed to tell them that Bruce was on his way home! Tabitha and Odo hid behind his house, to stay out of sight, and that’s when they saw General Thumper and Blitzen! “I knew they were up to something!” Tabitha said to Odo. Odo looked at her, but said nothing, and instead, he left Tabitha and went to talk to Thumper. “Sir, we need to go, Bruce is good, he’s everything we always thought he was…he does not need to die!” Tabitha ran over to them, “What’s going on here!” but Blitzen blocked her, saying “Stay out of this, female!” pushing her back, and away from Thumper. “Get off of me!” she cried, but then, the two other deer, Roscoe and Buster, came over and retrained her! “Leave her alone!” yelled Odo. “Be quiet, you’re attracting too much attention!” Blitzen said. “Major Odo, I don’t think we can trust you any longer, you’ve lost sight of our true mission!” General Thumper said! “Bruce will be here any minute, we don’t have time for this!” Blitzen said. “True, Roscoe and Buster, you watch these two, and keep on the lookout for that human they brought with them!” Thumper ordered. “Blitzen, come with me, once Bruce and his wife are asleep, we’ll set some charges and take care of our problem once and for all…then we’ll be back home in time for breakfast!”
“Let’s go, you two!” Roscoe said to Odo and Tabitha, as Buster pulled out a gun and pointed it Tabitha’s head. “You give us any trouble, and we’ll take her out first Odo…you cooperate, and maybe we’ll just leave you here…alive, and not on some butcher’s block!” Buster told them, as they moved them back down toward the boat launch.
Meanwhile, General Thumper and Blitzen watched as Bruce arrived home. “Let’s just take them both out now!” said Blitzen, who began to move towards Bruce as he got out of his pickup truck. Thumper reached out to hold him back, but they both stopped, when the door to the house opened and a dog ran out. It jumped up on Bruce, but then stopped and turned to bark in their direction! “It saw us!” Blitzen said, as the dog charged towards them, only to be pulled back by Bruce! “Good boy, let them be, let’s go inside!” “That was close!” Thumper told Blitzen. “Now we wait, once we’re sure they’re in for the night, we’ll set the charges and blow the house, then we’ll go back down to the boat launch and go home!” “What about the traitors?” “Roscoe and Buster are dealing with them now…they can’t come back with us, and we can’t leave them to mess up the timeline…they’ll be the victims of poachers!” “Out of season hunting eh?” Blitzen said, winking. Thumper smiled and told him, “They will be honored as heroes of the new order!”
Dan was waiting near the high school, keeping his eye on the stolen van, when he saw the police pull up to check it out. That’s when he decided that it was best to fall back into the woods between the High School and the boat launch area. He figured that the van was a lost cause, and planned on circling around to meet up with Tabitha and Odo at Bruce’s house, but as he was walking through the woods, he saw Roscoe and Buster leading Odo and Tabitha down toward the water, at gunpoint! Dan ducked behind a tree and watched as his two partners were marched past him. After a moment of thought…not a long moment, he jumped out from behind the tree and tackled Buster, knocking the gun from his hand. Seizing the moment, Major Odo body-slammed Roscoe, knocking him down and causing him to drop his gun. Odo than stood over Roscoe, pinning him to the ground.
Tabitha then ran over to help Dan, while he was putting up a good fight, Buster was stronger than he was, and was winning! Tabitha head-butted Buster, making him let go of Dan, as he fell to the ground! Dan immediately jumped on him, but Buster rolled over and found the gun that Roscoe had dropped! “Run!” Tabitha yelled, as Buster turned to shoot! Dan did as he was told, and ran towards the lake, Buster turned to chase but was suddenly frozen, his face grimacing in pain! An arrow had appeared in his side, and he fell over breathing heavily! Dan stopped and ran back over to him, and watched as Buster breathed his last!
Tabitha saw a man coming out of the woods, and she ran off! “I got him, a big buck too!” the man exclaimed. Dan looked at him and said “Thanks, he was charging me!” “No problem, let me get him out of here before the rangers catch me…out of season and all that you know!” “I won’t tell…but you better get out of here!” Dan said as turned to go after Tabitha. As he ran away, he heard the man say “This deer has weird hooves!”
Dan found Tabitha and Odo down by the water. Tabitha hugged him impulsively, “Oh thank goodness you’re safe, that was so brave of you!” Dan found himself hugging her back, and they held on for few moments, as Odo gave them both a sour look, “You too seem very close!” “Shut up, he saved your life too!” Tabitha told him, as she stepped away from Dan. “Where’s Buster?” Odo asked. “Hunter got him!” Dan said. “Out of season…my guess is that he’ll be marinating soon!” “Not funny!” Odo replied. “Where’s the other deer?” Dan asked. “Right here!” Roscoe said, stepping out from behind the trees, pointing his gun at Dan. “I am so sick and tired of you humans…I’ve lost two friends today because of you filthy creatures!” Roscoe said, and then turned to Odo and told him, “Take out Tabitha, I’ll take care of this one, and then we’ll go help the General with Bruce and get the hell back home!” Odo pulled his weapon, pointed it at Tabitha and looked like he was about to pull the trigger, when Dan lunged at Roscoe, biting his leg and making him scream! At the commotion, Odo turned and shot Roscoe, who collapsed on the ground!
Tabitha said, “Oh Odo, thank you…I thought for a minute…” “It could have gone either way, but this is the right choice, let’s go get General Thumper and save Bruce!” “How can we trust you?” Dan asked him. “Dan, we really don’t have a choice…if he wanted us dead, we’d be gone by now!” Tabitha said, as she reached out and took Dan’s hand. “I trust him…now, and that’s going to have to be enough for you!” Dan reluctantly agreed, and then the three of them began to make their way towards Bruce’s house!
All the while, they had been watched by the two deer left behind by General Thumper. They looked at each other, and decided that it was time for them to go, so they triggered the return pad, and leapt back home, stranding the General and what was left of his team!
General Thumper and Blitzen were getting ready to set the charges around Bruce’s house, they were just waiting for Bruce and his wife to go to bed. Bruce had gone out once, and then his wife came home late from work, but now they were settling in, and the plan was about to come to fruition. “The humans will think it was a gas leak!” Thumper said, smiling. “I’d much rather take matters into my own hands!” Blitzen replied, “I hate humans, and I would love to go in there and kill them myself…before blowing up the house!” “You’ll have your fill of human blood, but when we get back home!” Thumper said, patting Blitzen on the back. “Now let’s blow this house, meet up with Roscoe, Buster and those other two, and go home!” Blitzen nodded in agreement and started taking the explosives out of his bag, he set the timers, and placed them at all four corners of the house!
Just as he was finishing up, Odo ran up to him and said “Nice work!” The General looked up, more annoyed than surprised “Major, what are you doing here, I told Roscoe and Buster to take care of you!” “Hunter got Buster, the human got Roscoe, but then I took out the human, and Tabitha.” “It a shame about Tabitha, I know you liked her, but I guess I misjudged you, I thought you had changed sides!” “I should change side, after you tried to have me killed, but right now, I’m all you got left…those other two deer saw what happened to Buster and Roscoe and they took off with your return pad!” “Shit, how are we going to get back?” Thumper asked. “I have my return pad, and as it’s just the three of us left, we should be able get home safely…although I should leave you hear, you’re lucky I agree with you about the humans!” Thumper patted Odo on the back, “You will have a high place in my government!” “I still don’t trust him!” said Blitzen. “We have to trust him.” Thumper said, but Odo thought he saw a look passing between the two of them…a look he didn’t like. Odo saw that look, and realized that he never would have made it home.
“So, let’s get this over with, and go home guys!” Then Blitzen turned to Odo and said “I set four charges, one at each corner of the house, all you need to do is push the red button on each charge and that will start the timer, and 25 minutes to get out of here!” With that, Odo went to set the charges, but instead, he picked them up leaving the little red light behind, in case Thumper or Blitzen made one last check!
Odo put the charges in a bag, along with the return pad, and joined Thumper and Blitzen.
“All the timers are set, we should go to the boat launch, trigger the escape pad and go home!” Odo said. Thumper and Blitzen agreed, “I want to check the charges one more time!” said Blitzen, who walked around the house and saw that all the lights were one the bombs. “Let me just examine this charge, it doesn’t look right.” He said as he leaned in, just then Odo ran up and said “We don’t have time, these charges are going to go in a about 15 minutes now, we have to run!” “I just want to make sure…” Blitzen started to say, when Thumper interrupted, “Odo is right, we need to go now!” and he pulled Blitzen away, and led them down to the boat launch.
Dan and Tabitha were waiting at the boat launch, hiding in the shadows, and they saw the three deer walking into the park. They stayed in trees, and watched as Thumper pulled out a gun and pointed it at Odo. “This is the end of the road for you Odo!” “Finally, are we going to kill him now?” Blitzen asked, with a wild look in his eye, “We should kill him!” “No, Blitzen, we won’t kill him, but we are going to leave him stranded in the past – we can’t trust him, so we’ll leave him to live life like the ancients!” Blitzen smiled, and said, “I’ll kill him if you want!” With that, Odo lunged at Blitzen, knocking him down! He was about to stomp on his head when Thumper put the gun in his face! “Don’t give me a reason!”
Dan and Tabitha watched from their hiding place, “We’ve got to help him!” Tabitha told Dan. “I’m on it!” he told her, as he moved to step out of the trees. Just then, Odo saw him and shook his head. “He wants you to stand down!” Tabitha told Dan. This didn’t make him happy, but he listened. “What is he up to?” Dan asked her. “I’m not sure, let’s watch for a minute.” “I don’t trust him!” “I don’t trust him completely either, but we’ve got no choice Dan.” Tabitha said, as she pulled him further into the shadows.
“Blitzen, take the return pad from Odo!” said Thumper. Blitzen smiled, pointed the gun at Odo and said “Give it up…and that bag too!” “Not the bag, I’m keeping this with me, I need it!” Odo said, reaching his hand inside the bag. “Not your choice!” Blitzen said, hitting Odo with his gun, and knocking him down this time! With a gun in his face, Odo handed over the return pad and the bag!
“Please General, let me kill him!” Blitzen said. “No, we’re leaving him here, that will be enough, he won’t last long in this world, and what’s left of his life will be lived in misery.” Thumper told him. “Now, Blitzen let’s activate that return pad and go home, before those charges go off!”
Dan and Tabitha watched as Thumper and Blitzen got on the return pad, keeping their guns trained on Odo the whole time. Suddenly, the two of them were surrounded by a swirl of light, and just as it reached the height of intensity, Thumper and Blitzen vanished in a flash, followed by a sound like distant thunder.
Dan and Tabitha ran up to Odo, “Are you okay…what happened?” Tabitha asked. “Thumper and Blitzen are gone.” “What about the thunder we heard, when they left…was that Bruce’s house?” Tabitha asked. Odo shook his head, and told her, those were the charges that were meant for Bruce, but Bruce is safe…Thumper and Blitzen, maybe not quite so much!” “They were in the bag that Blitzen took from you…wonder if they had any idea what hit them?” Dan said. “I wonder when then those charges went off…where their remains are.” Tabitha said. “It’s a mystery, lost to time.” Odo told her smiling. “Seems harsh!” Dan said. “Well, he was going to kill you, if he’d found you…and now, we’re all safe!” “So where does that leave us?” Dan asked. “It leaves us stuck here, with no way home.” Tabitha said.
“So, what now?” Dan asked. “I guess you’ll need to get a job and a place to live, and we’ll have to learn how to live in this world!” “I’ll do what I can to help you two.” Dan said looking at Tabitha. “Once I get a place, you can stay there with me…we’ll just need to be careful, these people are not ready for an advanced deer like you two!” “You wouldn’t abandon me?” Tabitha asked. “Of course not, I won’t leave either of you in this strange place!” Odo thanked Dan and said, “You should have
Just then, there was a flash in front of them, and another container appeared, and brining a new team of deer! The leader came out and walked over to Tabitha and Odo. “Thank God, we hoped the calculations were correct!” “You came back for us!” Tabitha said. “Yes, we came back for you two, but not for him!” the team leader said, pointing to Dan. “Thanks a lot, makes me feel pretty good about myself.” Dan replied. “According to our records, it seems like things worked out pretty well for you here…you’re better off staying.” The deer said to him. “As for you, Tabitha and Odo, you’re needed at home, there have been a lot of changes in the past few years, since you left!”
The team leader explained that General Thumper and Blitzen never made it back “…well not in one piece any way.” However, the video and audio he had recorded of Bruce, survived the jump. Without Thumper the coup failed to take place, the Emperor stayed in power and when the Prime Minister provided proof that Bruce was real and a truly compassionate human, this led the way to peace between the humans and deer, and to a new age for the deer society!
“Tabitha and Odo, we need you back at home, to help create the new republic.” “A republic?” she asked. “Yes, the Emperor wants to step down so that we can form a republic, with representation from both deer and humans, inspired by the example of Bruce the Merciful!” the leader explained. “We’re going to leave a team here, to make sure that Bruce is kept safe, and to protect our timeline.” Odo immediately agreed to return home, “Thank God, I was afraid I’d be left here in this godforsaken time!” Tabitha was a bit more reluctant, as she looked at Dan. “I’m not sure that I want to go, and leave Dan here alone.” “Dan won’t be alone, we’ll always be watching…and as I said, we already know that he’ll do well in this timeline, he is going to have success, and build a strong legacy of his own.” “See, I’ll be fine Tabitha, you should go, the other deer need you.” Dan said, trying not to look too sad. “And maybe you can come back to visit me from time to time…pun intended!”
Tabitha agreed to go back, and Dan stayed on in the past, found a good job, a nice place to live and eventually married and had a family. With some knowledge of the future, he was able to make some good investments and find a successful path in his new life. One he enjoyed so much more than his old life of slavery! Dan also had to admit that he enjoyed being a part of the dominant species on the planet for once…although he knew that things were going to be changing in the future, they were good for the time being. The truly devastating pandemic, and the war that would follow, which would lead to the fall of the human race, would not hit until after he was dead and gone.
While he loved his new life, Dan always kept in touch with the deer teams sent to watch Bruce, and never missed an opportunity to see Tabitha whenever she visited from the future. They would always find time together during her visits, often at one of the many deer safe-houses set up to keep the teams supplied and supported in their mission.
As for Bruce, he never knew how close he came to dying, and never knew how his act of kindness would lead to a new world. However, the deer would always keep tabs on him, and would offer their help whenever they could. In fact, there were many times, when Bruce found himself walking in the woods, and would run into a group of deer, who would stop for him and bow down. Bruce always thought this was strange…but never suspected that these were the deer assigned to keep him safe.
Dan also joined in to help, as he and Bruce built upon their initial meeting, where Dan asked for help, they began to go to meetings together, and later became close friends. there were times when Bruce would be walking in the woods and several deer would approach and seem to bow down to him. Bruce thought it was strange,
Thanks to the work of the dedicated deer teams, the future was secured…not only for the deer, but also for the humans, and the rest of the world. Odo and Tabitha helped to create a strong, new republic. When Odo produced the DNA to prove that all modern deer were related to Bruce, this cemented their resolve to learn to live together. In this new Republic the deer and humans built a new world, and found equality as their society flourished, bringing peace to the world at last.
And in the center of their capitol was a shrine, dedicated to the teachings of Bruce the Merciful, as passed down by St. Dan. It is the message that he shared with all, both deer and humans, that all life is valuable, the message that we should live those lives together.
Ordinary Adventures 