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They first saw the dogs three days after the local Blowup which destroyed their home and threw them out into the scarred land. It would have destroyed them too but for the fact that they happened to be in a hollow some miles away eating their lunch and thus missed the main force of the blast. Strange time for a picnic with the world falling to pieces around them. But, as David said, why not when you never knew whether it was going to be your last picnic, or your last day, for that matter. There was nothing else to do.
There was a pile of tumbled earth and cement lying in a depression where the house had been. The house had been pulled violently up like some giant's tooth from its socket. The woods around were flattened as if something huge had rolled over them. They stared in silence for a moment then Sheila began to cry very softly. David out his arm round her. He wanted to say something but he didn't know what to say.
There was no point in staying. He pulled his wife away gently. They turned their steps in the direction of the main road. A few paces then he realized that something was missing. Bayard. He looked back. It was sitting with its back to them, its nose turned towards where the house had been. He called it. It didn't move. He repeated the command more sharply. It came trotting to his side, looking up at him. He fondled one of its ears. 'Don't stray away again.'
They had examined their bodies minutely but so far there were no signs of anything, no burns, no spots at all. And they felt all right themselves, no feeling of lassitude. They seemed to have escaped the radiation while getting their full share of the blast. David felt there was a good chance that the town had survived. It was only fifteen miles away, less as the crow flies. Quite a big town, almost two thousand people. One of the biggest left in the world, he supposed. A dangerous spot to live near, yet what was the use of running? The days of running away were over. With luck they should reach it in a few hours.
It took them longer than they had expected. Every so often they had piles of debris to negotiate, and in some places the road was made completely impassable by mounds of trees, and they had to make long and tiring detours down slopes and across ditches. There was no hint of life. There were, or had been, a few cottages scattered along the roadside but they saw no signs of these, and didn't know were to look for them since all the familiar landmarks had gone. Once they lost the road altogether.
Late in the afternoon David called a halt. They sat on the grass verge with their backs against a tree-trunk. He took off his wife's shoes and began to massage her feet methodically. He'd noticed she had begun to limp a little. The light sandals were not made for such rough wear. Afterwards they ate a little. Sheila had stocked the hamper well. Food was quite plentiful as yet. There weren't many people to eat it. But they had to be careful, until they knew about the town.
They lay for a time on their backs, saying nothing. They let the hot August sun burn their faces. They drank in the blueness of the sky. Empty of cloud. Empty. The peacefulness of the earth around them. The silence. The emptiness and the silence where birds should have specked the blueness and a myriad earthy sounds shattered the stillness.
They came to their feet simultaneously, looking at each other with horror in their eyes. 'We'll have to keep going if we want to reach the town before dark' David said. She nodded without saying anything, though she knew that despite the state of the road they would make it easily before the long summer evening came to an end. The terrier, reluctantly dragged from its doze, trailed behind them.
They found the first bodies in a field on the outskirts of the town. A young boy and girl, lying with their arms entwined. They didn't appear to have suffered much. Their faces were still gentle, just as they had been looking at each other at the end, and there were no marks or burns on their bodies. David was glad about that, somehow, though it made no difference.
At first glance the town seemed to have suffered little. Only here and there was there a collapsed wall or a shattered roof. David entered the first house they came to. A few seconds later he reappeared, his face devoid of expression. 'Dead' he said briefly 'All dead.'
They passed on. Behind them Bayard trotted into the house then came out, his tail wagging indifferently.
The rest of the town was the same except that some of the people had been standing near their gates chatting or walking down the streets when death had greeted them. They lay in grotesque heaps, some with expressions like those of the boy and girl in the field. Others were more gruesome, and some had lost all semblance to humanity. But apart from an occasional shudder Sheila gave no sign. One got used even to things like this.
After a time Bayard gave up following the two and went off on his own course, dashing in and out of houses, rooting around gardens with an air of resolute urgency unusual in a dog of his placid nature. He gave an effect of searching ...
After a time the two humans gave it up. There was a fairly steep hill not far from the town, and David suggested they climb it and see what was to be seen. There surely must be someone left alive somewhere: they couldn't all have perished.
They started off. 'Where's Bayard?' said Sheila. She called his name. David whistled. There was no response. 'He'll be all right,' said David, 'We'll pick him up later on.'
They reached the top, panting. In silence they looked around. Then Sheila sat down suddenly, woodenly, like a puppet whose legs had given way, and buried her face in her hands. Her body shook but she made no sound. David lifted a hand and let it drop back to his side helplessly.
The girl took out a handkerchief and blew her nose. Her eyes were quite dry. She said, 'Is there anyone left in the world?'
'Don't be silly, dear! Of course there are, there must be many like us.'
'Is it the end?'
He came and stood beside her and fondled the blond curls dangling untidily over her temples. 'You mustn't speak like that, Sheila darling. Man has got himself into a mess, but he'll get out of it one day. He'll rise again like he has before. There have been Dark Ages before. Maybe this time things will be different, better. Maybe the ones who are left will make a better job.'
He felt confidence swinging back to him as he spoke. Yes, Mankind would rise again. He felt his back stiffen almost involuntarily. His wife's voice brought him back to earth.
'What?' he said.
She pointed. 'There. Can't you see?' She jumped to her feet and clung to his arm in her excitement. People! Thank Heaven they weren't alone! They gazed with shining eyes.
'Why, they're only ... dogs. Dogs', the man repeated lamely.
She tried to hide her disappointment. 'How many do you make?'
Pause. 'Twelve .. no, thirteen.'
'Might as well have a look. Where there are dogs ..'
When they got a little nearer Sheila gave a cry of surprise. 'Why, look! Bayard's amongst them! Here, boy. Here! Bay-a-a-ard!'
'Why are they sitting around like that?' said David. 'What are they doing? I've never seen dogs behaving like that before.'
The dogs, all shapes and sizes, were arranged in a neat circle, and in the middle sat a large collie. Amongst them was Bayard. At his mistress' call he turned his head reluctantly but made no move to approach. Apart from a few growls the rest of the dogs ignored the two humans.
'Come here at once, you bad dog,' said Sheila, 'Come here ..'
Her voice trailed off falteringly. She clutched the man's arm.
'What is wrong with him? Why does he not come?'
David held her tight, stifling her hysteria. He called the dog again, harshly. There was a breathless pause, then Bayard slowly got to his feet and ambled over to them. As he did so the collie turned its head with great dignity and gave them a brief glance full of disdain.
'Let's get out of this,' said David.
When they awoke the following day Bayard was gone. The man stood up, anger in his eyes. 'We know where to find him, anyway.'
'Don't go,' said Sheila.
'Silly!'
'Don't go ... I'm afraid.'
'Of a lot of dogs? Ridiculous.'
'Then I'm coming with you.'
At the top of the hill they both gasped in amazement, 'Why! There must be hundreds of them!' the girl said. The man felt a cold hand tighten round his heart. He didn't look at his wife. He didn't need to. He knew that he would see in her eyes the same dawning of understanding that now swept like fire through his brain. He remembered what he had told his wife yesterday and he gave a hoarse chuckle. It made a sound like the hand of death scratching at the window-pane. The wildness of the thought sobered him instantly. 'Come on!' he said.
They approached the circle of dogs. The outer circle now contained a smaller circle, comprised, David noticed, of the original dozen dogs of yesterday, among them Bayard, and in the centre as before the collie.
The man's steps slowed. On the verge of the outer circle he paused and called the dog's name. Bayard didn't even move.
The collie turned its head and looked straight at David, and there was no mistaking the expression of unutterable boredom on its face. It held his gaze for a time then turned and shot a quick glance in Bayard's direction.
Bayard rose at once and ambled slowly over to the two humans. A yard from them he stopped and looked up. He looked first at the man then at the woman, then he shook his head.
There was no mistaking the compassion in his eyes.
Then he turned his back on them and regained his place in the circle.
Data entry by Judy Bemis
Updated June 23, 2001. If you have a comment about these web pages please send a note to the Fanac Webmaster. Thank you.