The Reluctant Warrior Read Online Free PDF Page B

this natural beauty there was something decidedly unnatural going on. That was the point when his fear had really kicked in. That very moment he realized that if this oasis could exist in an impossibly hostile landscape then what else could he expect to encounter up ahead? Anything, he now decided, was possible.
     
    Emerging from the canopy of trees they set foot upon a huge grassy plain that stretched away before them as far as the eye could see.
    “Some type of primitive prairie grass,” Jonathon commented, reaching down and plucking up a handful to examine it.
    “I don’t believe it.” Rex was staring intently into the knee high grass. “Come and look at this.”
    The two men strolled over and gazed down at a huge pile of animal dung.
    “Elephant, if I’m not mistaken,” Rex said. “Only, it’s a big pile even for an elephant.”
    Jonathon snatched something from the grass and handed it to Rex to inspect. “Might not be an elephant after all.”
    Rex examined the long course hair Jonathon had found. “I could be wrong, but I think this might be mammoth hair.”
    “You’re kidding me?” Jed took the evidence from Rex’s hand and checked it out for himself. “This is crazy, how can something that large exist here?”
    “It appears Antarctica is not all snow and ice like we’ve been led to believe.” Rex pointed down at the dung heap. “We’ve stumbled upon a temperate region that can sustain creatures as large as that, and where there are large animals there will also be smaller ones.”
    “But how, even intense volcanic activity couldn’t create an environment suitable for such large creatures to thrive?”
    “I’ve no idea. All I know is that it’s here, and it’s real, and we’ve been blessed with the opportunity to explore it.” Rex looked from one to the other. “I think we should press on. If there’s more to see we won’t see it by standing around here.”
    The plain was sparsely dotted with prehistoric looking trees, but even after three hours of slogging their way through the tundra they hadn’t come across a mammoth, or any other animal for that matter.
    “Hang on a minute,” Rex said in a puzzled tone. “If that’s the sun,” he pointed up at the ancient globe, “then would someone please tell me what that is?” His companions locked their eyes onto the object of Rex’s concern. A dull red ball hung in the sky like a well lit Chinese lantern.
    “How can there be two suns?” Rex asked.
    “Might be a reflection of the real sun,” Jonathon suggested.
    “But it’s actually giving off heat,” Jed postulated. “Even the real sun isn’t as warm as this one.”
    “How can there be two suns?” Rex said again.
    “Nothing here is making any sense,” Jed said. “I suggest we stop and sleep. We’ve travelled far enough for the time being, and who knows what dangers lurk out here.”
“Or how cold it’ll get,” Jonathon chipped in. He squinted at the sky. “That new sun looks to be getting a little dimmer as we speak.”
    “Good point,” Rex said. “How about we collect some wood from around a few of these dead trees and get ourselves a fire going?” He playfully tossed a lighter in the air before catching it. “Bet you two are glad you brought a smoker along with you, aren’t you?”
    By the time they realized the new sun wasn’t going to disappear but had merely grown dimmer they had a reasonable fire going. Although, with the weird sun still perched up in the sky the air did have a nip to it. Jed figured it must have something to do with the smoky haze that had developed around it. Somehow this smoke, or whatever it was, was blocking out some of the sun’s heat. As he cocooned himself in his thermal sleeping bag and lay back staring up at the new sun he accepted that by all accounts he should be dead by now. That blizzard left them hopelessly lost in the most inhospitable place on earth. And yet, here they were, not exactly breaking out in a sweat, but