There was a chill in the air as a Hydrena, a four-foot tall bird that looked like a cross between a condor and a pterodactyl, greeted the morning suns with an elk like call. It nested near the top of the trees in the orchard and called out each morning before it flew out to hunt its breakfast.

Like responding to a rooster's morning crow, Roy awoke and stowed his gear in the corner of the barn, like he had done every morning for the past week.  He assumed the day would be ...