The Shasta Caper, Chapter Sixty-Eight, Part One

               Chapter Sixty-Eight, Part One

Robin led his guests through the complicated path that went through Sherwood, helping them over and under the more difficult parts that he and Smarn too easily. 

"How much further?" Jimbo complained.

Samuel looked at him. "You're starting to sound like that little kid in the commercial."

"Yeah. Maybe. But he didn't almost get killed by snow monsters, Nazis and giant snakes either."

"Granted."

Nanny poked Jimbo. "Buckle up, the worst is over."

Samuel looked to his right where Al was shaking his head vigorously.

Samuel said nothing. He knew better. Sometimes it was just better to let the future happen, to unfold in the way the Creator designed it to, than to try and shortcut it. Not that he or anyone else could ever actually stop it, but sometimes humans and he, himself, did great jobs of making it harder.

Finally, Robin climbed to the top of a steep incline and stopped. It was a good thing too, because it was actually getting dark where they were going.

Samuel looked up and saw a great dark shape above them.

"It's where the City sleeps at night." Robin said, pointing to the gigantic shape hovering overhead.

"Gives me the creeps." Nanny said, shivering despite the fact that it was probably no more than 

seventy outside.

"If I had a nuke..." Jimbo growled.

Robin and Smarn both gave him angry glares. "Are you mad!"

Robin almost raised a hand, but stayed it. He could see Jimbo was just grousing. "Look, Jim, Jimmie, or Jimbo, whatever you call yourself.  This is not a joke. Your world above caused great damage to us when you were testing nukes."

Jimbo paled. "I'm sorry, man."

Robin relaxed. Smarn's fists relaxed into hands again.

"You didn't know."

Robin pointed below now and they could see all the islets of the lake lit up like a Christmas Tree.

"Isn't that dangerous?" Samuel asked.

"Probably. If they could see us."

"But how can they not?" Jimbo asked, puzzled by Robin's reply.

"Just because we look low tech, doesn't mean we are. We just don't exploit our world to get it."

Samuel felt his forehead tingling and went with it. His third eye opened up and he could see a screen of faint golden energies forming a gigantic dome over the lake and the islets. Robin turned to look at him and smiled. "You can see it, can't you?"

"Yes. It's beautiful."

Samuel looked down again and for a moment, he could see Methusaleh behind Robin. He couldn't understand what that meant at the time, but later on he would.

"You are a very advanced civilization down here."

"I consider us a very humble civilization down here. And modest to the point of cruelty to ourselves sometimes."

"Which is why you allow those ones to stay here?" Nanny asked.

Smarn answered. "Robin was not always so gentle."