"Ten!"

  "Eleven!"

  "Twelve!"

  With every swing of the axe, the crowd shouted, until finally, with a crack, the tree Ben had been working on fell.

  Looking at Adam, who was only halfway through his tree, Allison shouted, "Yeah, Ben is the winner!"

  "I'm not sure you should be cheering, as you're the referee for this little competition today," Ben said, laughing as he gave his mother a hug.

  He went over to Adam, his best friend since middle school, and shook his hand. "Not bad for a robot, heh?" he said with a smile.

  Adam just laughed. "You wish you were a robot! That exoskeleton makes you a half-robot at best. But anyway, I don't know why I even participate in this. This ax almost weighs more than me, and since the accident you have only gained muscle."

  Ben gave him a clap on the shoulder. "I have gained quite a bit of weight since then, haven't I?" he said with a smile and patted the slim exoskeleton that allowed him to walk without any other aid. "And besides, the reason you're doing this is because it's fun, and because the rest of the team gets to see you as something other than just the bean counter."

  “I like being the bean counter, thank you very much," Adam replied. "But I guess you're not completely wrong. It was fun."

  Ben turned to the fifteen or so lumberjacks that made up his small company—standing with them in the clearing in the Blue Mountain Forest, their home and workplace in equal measure—and raised his voice slightly: "Now that I've proven I can still hit a tree, let the barbecue begin!"

  That sparked general cheer, and people got busy heating the grill and getting the steaks ready.

  Ben and Adam slowly walked over to join Ben’s mother.

  "You know, Mom, this was really a good idea. I have to admit, we should have done this sooner."

  "Indeed. The last few months have been tough on all of us. This will help people get into a different mindset. Your father would have loved this." She laughed. "And he would’ve still kicked your butt in taking down those trees."

  Ben pulled her into a side hug. "You're right on all accounts, as always."

  Adam cut in with a wink: "As your accountant, I can assure you that she has been wrong plenty of times."

  "Ooh, please don't remind me. You know that numbers have never been my thing. I just did this to help the family business. Bringing you in was one of many good decisions that Ben has made since he took over," Allison said. She turned to Ben. "Now go and have some fun and make a round so people can see their boss not just being stressed all the time."

  "I will, Mom. But everybody knows you’re still the boss."

  The smile faded from Allison’s face as she looked at him, eyes serious.

  "Your father and I decided you would inherit the business. Nobody but you doubts that decision. You are the boss, and you are doing a great job. I am just here to help as long as you want me to."

  "Thanks, Mom. I appreciate it more than you will ever know. These people are our family, and this forest is home—more than any house could ever be."

  Adam fake coughed. "Sentimental SOB."

  Allison laughed and shoved both of them in the direction of the barbecue. "Go now."

  Ben spent the next couple of hours having a great time. Since taking over the business a few months ago, he had been so busy keeping it afloat, taking on new responsibilities, and getting comfortable with his physical limitations and the exoskeleton that supported him, that this was the first chance he’d had to step back, relax, and simply enjoy the company of the people he'd grown up with.

  While he didn’t drink, he enjoyed the boisterous atmosphere of the rowdy crowd—drinking beer and devouring steak after steak.

  Good-natured competition was everywhere. Whenever things threatened to get out of hand, he could spot his mother stepping in with a joke or a playful wag of her finger to bring everyone back in line.

  Though Ben stayed sober, he didn’t begrudge his team their fun. They had all been working hard, and part of the reason for today’s celebration was that they had finally finished the site they'd been working on for weeks. Soon, they would move on to another part of the forest to continue the business of harvesting old, high-value trees—just as his father and grandfather had done before him.

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  As lunch wound down and the sun began to inch toward the horizon, Ben made his way over to his mother.

  "People seem to be having a great time."

  "Indeed. I hope you are too."

  "It was a lot of fun," Ben said, then glanced toward the trees. "But the forest is calling. I want to check out Old Man’s Hill. It's just a few kilometers from here, and it'll help me sleep better tonight if I can get a short survey in and make sure that the Kavortniks have finished the gravel road before we start the next phase on Monday."

  Allison raised an eyebrow.

  "Oh, Ben... You know, it’s okay to take a break from time to time. But if you really feel it’s necessary, don’t worry. Go ahead."

  "Thanks. Will you organize everyone and get them home safe?"

  "Yes. I’m sure Adam and the others will help. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve had to drag drunk bodies over these hills," she said, laughing. "But I always make them pay for it."

  He laughed. "Very well. I think it’s best if I just leave. I’ll see you tomorrow morning."

  Ben grabbed his lean backpack, a water bottle, and made his way toward the edge of the clearing.

  He had barely reached the first trees when two large, hulking figures intercepted him.

  Ben looked at them and smiled.

  "Hey, Jamal. Michael. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were stalking me. What can I do for you?"

  "Nothing, boss. We just thought we’d come along," Jamal said.

  "Jamal, we’ve been over this. There’s no need. I’m perfectly capable of doing this little survey on my own. I really want you and the others to have a great time and enjoy yourselves."

  "Yes, boss. Appreciated. But I think it’d be better if we came with you. For protection."

  As always, Michael stood mute in the background while Jamal did all the talking.

  "But Jamal, protection from what? I grew up in these forests. There’s nothing I need protecting from."

  "Boss, you never know. It could be anything. It could be wolves."

  Ben raised an eyebrow.

  "How long have you been with us now, Jamal?"

  "I want to say... two and a half years now."

  "And how many times have you seen—or even heard about—wolves in that time?"

  Jamal, a huge, heavily muscled man with more tattoos than you could count, some from his time in prison, looked at him with big, almost puppy-dog eyes. Michael stood silently beside him, stoic as ever.

  "There’s always a first time," Jamal said.

  Ben chuckled.

  "I do appreciate your concern. But I’ll be fine. Why don’t you go back, enjoy the afternoon, and help my mother make sure everyone gets home safe? If things keep going the way they are, she might really need help carrying people."

  It was clear Jamal wasn’t happy, but he relented.

  "Boss, at least take your axe with you."

  "My axe?"

  "You never know. Maybe there is a wolf. And even if there’s not, carrying it around can count as upper body strength training."

  Ben laughed.

  "Okay, you got me. I’ll take the damn axe. And should I be attacked by the first wolf in the Blue Mountain Forest in 150 years, I’ll be well prepared."

  Without a word, Michael handed him the axe—as if that had been the plan all along.

  Ben shook his head, waved at the two of them, and continued on his way into the forest.

  Ben made his way through the tall oak trees in this part of the forest, the quiet whirring of his exoskeleton a constant companion.

  The great thing about your team being family is that you always have your family with you.

  The bad thing about your team being family is that you always have your family with you.

  Especially since the accident, people had become a bit overprotective. But in fairness, without them, he wasn’t sure he would have had the motivation—or the strength—to get back on the horse.

  The fact that he could walk with almost no impediment, despite the damage to his spinal cord, was a wonder. It was owed in part to cutting-edge technology, but even more so to the dedication of his team. Instead of spending months in a rehabilitation facility, he had returned to the camp they called home, where he’d spent his mornings and evenings training on a rigorous schedule designed by his mother, Adam, and others like Jamal and Michael.

  During the day, while the rest of the crew were out in the forest cutting down trees, Ben had taken over the administrative side of the business—slowly beginning to understand what his father had left behind.

  As the trees in this part of the forest were quite old and tall, they weren’t particularly dense. Still, the thick foliage above allowed only a few stray rays of sunlight to reach the forest floor, casting the woods in a dark, almost foreboding atmosphere.

  Despite that, Ben made good progress on his way to Old Man’s Hill.

  The hill wasn’t far—just a few kilometers—but the terrain was uneven and occasionally difficult. Another small rise blocked his path, and as he walked, his mind drifted.

  He truly did enjoy the time spent with his friends and family, but there was something comforting about being alone in the forest. It was something he had missed deeply during his time in the hospital and those early months of recovery. Out here, surrounded by trees older than any living memory, he felt grounded. Free.

  Something pulled him out of his thoughts.

  It was subtle—something he couldn’t quite put his finger on at first. A faint tension in the air.

  He slowed his pace, his senses sharpening. The trees still stood tall. The little undergrowth was undisturbed. The soft, dark earth looked as it always had.

  But then he realized what it was: silence.

  No birds. No insects. No distant rustles from squirrels or foxes. Just the quiet rustling of leaves stirred by the breeze.

  He stopped.

  The silence pressed in, unnatural. Oppressive.

  Maybe Jamal had been right. Maybe there was something out here. A wolf, or a bear. Or a bird of prey that had silenced the forest.

  He barely finished the thought when it hit.

  An overwhelming pressure slammed into him out of nowhere. The trees around him shuddered, leaves vibrating violently as if caught in a storm. The pressure was both hot and cold at once—something that made no logical sense—and his body reacted before his mind could catch up.

  He dropped to one knee, skin tingling with sharp, rapid pinpricks, like a thousand tattoo needles working in unison.

  Everything around him—leaves, trees, the ground beneath his feet—began to glow.

  A faint golden hue.

  And it was growing brighter.

  What the hell... is this a nuke?