Chapter 10 #2
“I have the tool in my pack here, brought it for old times sake I guess. We don’t do branding like they did in the old, barbaric days.
The marker gets pressed to their flank and it leaves a permanent symbol in the hide.
” Tamsyn rode on to the cabin and dismounted, looping the reins over the hitching post. She opened her pack as Cody arrived and got out of the saddle, turning to show him the piece of equipment.
It was a slender metallic wand, with a tip glowing purple.
“See, touch this to the skin and the Double Comets mark is set.” She demonstrated on the wooden stair, leaving a bright purple logo of the twinned comets.
“You’ve yet to see what a cyborg can do,” he said, extending his hand. “Give me the marker and step back.”
She let him take the instrument but asked, “What are you planning to do? You can’t walk around in the herd—not only will Fury take exception once he notices you, but the mama cows are also going to get upset if you approach their babies.”
“You haven’t seen anything yet.” He gave her a cocky salute and started walking toward the grazing cattle.
As he got closer he shifted into cyborg mode and moved faster than the human—or bovine—eye could track.
He wove in and out of the herd, startling a few animals but for the most part swooping in on each calf, touching them with the marker and moving on.
He brought a couple of his drones down to eye level and coordinated with them on identifying the calves in need of ‘branding’.
It took him less than ten minutes and he was out the other side of the herd, jogging at a human pace to the cabin where an open-mouthed Tamsyn waited.
“What I did would be a top secret demonstration under normal circumstances,” he told her as he got closer. “Cyborg capabilities are a highly classified Sectors secret.”
“I won’t tell anyone. I couldn’t even see you myself but the calves are marked so you must have done it.” Her voice was full of awe.
“It does take a toll on my reserves,” he admitted as he handed her the marker. Sinking onto the stair, he said, “Gonna need a few minutes for the nanos to eliminate the toxic byproducts and rebuild my reserves. I’ll admit I can’t do that often.”
She sat next to him on the riser and he slung his arm over her shoulder to pull her close.
“I’m honored you chose to do it for me. It’s reassuring to have this year’s crop of calves marked at least. I guess I’ve got to let go of a lot of things that were so important to me now and recognize if we manage to get a handle on the infected issues, which is a monumental if, we’re in for rebuilding in so many ways. ”
“Probably a good way to look at it.” He took a deep breath, testing his reflexes and checking the status of the nanobots. “We’d better get moving on shifting the herd before it gets dark.”
“How precisely can you control your drones?” she asked.
“They’re not tactical, all they can do is observe.” He was mystified by the question.
“I know they’re tiny but could they maybe buzz by Fury’s ear, for instance? Annoy him, not enough to send him into a rampage or a stampede but enough to want to move away from the nuisance?”
Cody caught her drift and was enthusiastic. “Sure. They can be mini ranch hands for you. But I only brought a few with me. I kept the majority flying perimeter on the ranch to protect the others at the house.”
“I think a few would do it with you and me riding on the flanks. We only have to motivate Fury and Bossy and the rest of the herd will follow them.” She pointed at the loosely gathered animals.
“We’ll ride at the rear of the herd, slowly and calmly, no shouting or rapid moves.
The horses know the proper gait. We’ll go in a big zigzag, kind of pushing the cattle to want to be somewhere else.
Once we get the leaders to the spot where we removed the fences, our work is done.
They’ll be drawn to the abundant grazing in the lower pasture. ”
“All right, I’ll wait for your signal to deploy the drones.
” Cody wasn’t sure he wanted to be in the saddle again so soon.
He wouldn’t admit it to Tamsyn, who rode like a centaurette and never seemed tired.
He’d be happy to stick to motorized transport after this trip.
Primarily anyway. He’d miss Mercury and the closeness to nature accompanying the act of riding through the terrain on a horse.
As Tamsyn had predicted, once Cody rode him into position behind the herd and Mercury figured out what was up, the horse swung right into the zigzag pattern .
Cody and Tamsyn crisscrossed in their routes and Cody could see the cattle slowly deciding to move on from this spot.
He deployed his small contingent of drones to ‘bug’ Fury and Bossy, which helped accelerate the transition from a grazing herd to one on the move at an ambling pace.
No stampede. He didn’t even want to think about what would happen if these horned behemoths ran mindlessly.
When Tamsyn decided they’d nudged the herd far enough, she brought Blaze to a halt and Cody rode Mercury up next to her. “We’re good now,” she said. “We’ve done all we can for them. One more night at the cabin and tomorrow we can leave early for the ride home.”
“I think we can put our last evening at the cabin to good use,” he said with a suggestive wink as they turned their horses and set out for the shelter.
“What’s it going to be like,” she asked, “Traveling in the APC’s cross country?”
“Crowded. The vehicles weren’t built for civilian comfort.
They’re designed for military efficiency.
We take breaks fairly often though, since Buddy needs to be walked.
We’ve been staying in abandoned houses for the most part but occasionally we’ve had to camp out overnight.
The captain posts extra guards for those occasions. ”
“So, not much privacy?” she said.
“Are you embarrassed about what we’ve been sharing?” He was surprised. Tamsyn seemed like such a confident woman, one who knew what she wanted and didn’t care what the world thought.
Sure enough she gave him a startled look and shook her head. “Not at all. Of course not. I’m merely trying to set my expectations for the trip.”
“Wherever we bed down for the nights, you and I’ll be together,” Cody said, determined to establish the boundaries now and not later when they’d be among his team, Melly and Mike.
He chuckled. “I wouldn’t be too surprised if that’s why Jeff agreed to send me up here with you instead of Zach, who’s probably done cattle drives or what-have-you in the past on his agri planet. ”
“What do you mean?”
“Sweetheart, the fact there was a growing connection between us must have been obvious to everyone.” He was matter of fact. “I’m guessing Jeff was hoping we’d figure it out up here, in private. The APC’s are a tight little world, not a good place for dealing with repressed emotions.”
“Repressed?” He thought she’d fall out of her saddle because she laughed so hard. “Do I strike you as repressed in any way?”
“Not at all, thank goodness. Quite the opposite,” he said with a chuckle, thinking of their times in bed. “But it’s better for the team if we’re sure of what we’re doing with each other before we set off in the APC’s.”
Now they were at the cabin and Tamsyn dismounted. “I’m sure.”
Hearing the unspoken question in her voice, he hastened to swing from the saddle and catch her close with his free arm. “Good, because I’m all in, you’re it for me, sweetheart.”
They kissed while their horses stood by, placidly swiping mouthfuls of the lush grass. Cody couldn’t get enough of being with Tamsyn and he thanked the Lords of Space for putting her in his path and for allowing him to survive the infected bite so he could claim this amazing woman.