The After-Life

The Future of Nature Series

“The Future of Nature” is an Earth Day community writing project for fiction writers to explore the human-nature relationship in a short story or poem. It was organized by

Claudia Befu

and

Julie Gabrielli

, and supported with brilliant advice from scientists

Jonathan Tonkin

and

rebecca hooper

. The story you’re about to read is from this project. You can find all the stories as a special

Top In Fiction

Disruption edition, with thanks to publisher

The Happy Place

.

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Her truck came to a crawling stop at the edge of civilization. It was the end of the road before the swathes of trees and the only thing found venturing forth would be uninterrupted landscape, bustling waterways, and weather cycles indifferent to her survival. She could pave the way, but nature won’t stop. It never will.

That’s what she loved about it. Closing the door of the truck and grabbing her rucksack, she abandoned the vehicle with the keys visible on the seat. The truck would not be found linked to her and she had made sure of that. The map she had used to find this particular spot pointed to the base of a known mountain and met a river. Beyond it stretched a complete range; too much for one person to explore. She would be testing that statement.

For days, she walked. She climbed over ridges, trudged through untouched riverbeds, watched wildlife carry all while foraging for herself. She could feel the weight of society dissipating from her shoulders, her back, her mind. Life felt lighter and the freedom and inherent danger of this decision incidentally put her at ease. Leaving a troubled life behind for being close to the all-powerful forces of nature felt right. Relieving. She was reaching the halfway point on her meticulously balanced food supply and looking out at the sunbeams creasing the horizon, she could see her goal. A flat plain nestled inbetween a thick outcrop of trees. Putting the binoculars back in her bag, she set out to make it there before complete sunset.

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It’s been almost a year since she had built the camoflaged, half-submerged cabin. This place has been good to her. The rainwaters flow downward and the cabin stays warm even in the coldest of winter. Her rule to remain undetected comes from only keeping a fire at night. Once a week, she smokes the catch. The features of society are gone. She is one with the deep forest now.

The area around her home is one of careful planning, deep obscurity, and numerous fallbacks should she ever receive unwanted visitors of any kind. She feels a deep sense of accomplishment and confidence over what she has achieved since entering the range.

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Reaching the river, she settles in for the haul. It’s late autumn and the temperature is waning deeper every day. She can see her breath in the mornings and the heat retention of her thick wool outfit works wonders on days like this. Checking the traps, she finds a couple fish and preps them quickly. This isn’t the season to loiter as she isn’t the only hungry one.

As if by requirement, her thoughts meet reality. Looking across the river, there stands a dark brown hulk with a whitish glow and its breathing fogs out deep and wide. It sees her, but she stays incredibly low to the ground in a crouched position while prepping her departure. No direct eye contact, but never out of sight, she stands with rucksack and starts backing away from the riverbed. There is still a good distance between the two of them, but if enticed, it won’t be enough. She calls out calmly, with hands available to prevent alarm. She brought a gun that she has, to this day, never used. Resources are understandably sparse and they draw lots of unwanted circumstances. Last resort. As she has backed deep into the trees on a familiar path back to her cabin, she puts some pep in the step. This portion of river will be on the avoid list until deep winter. She jots a note on her map in pencil to document the reminder. Her map is almost less map and more scribblings of the past months.

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Arriving home and watching the sun set, she preps the smoker and gets the fish underway. Prepping other items foraged from around her cabin will make a nice meal to ease off the stress of this day. Smoked fish, foraged greens, and a nice arrangement of carefully scrutinized wild mushrooms — “A queen’s feast,” she chuckles. As she settles into bed, she wonders if she would ever be able to go back to the society she once obsessed over. Not a chance.

~Thank you for reading. If you made it this far, please check out all the other authors in the Future of Nature series. I will be doing just that, so join me in celebrating an Earth Day project and ultimately: Nature. It is a beautiful necessity that many take for granted. She is here to stay, with or without us, that much is guaranteed. Cheers.