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Although the
stretch could be covered just under three hours, it would take them more than four and a half to complete it, as when being close to destiny they would leave the vehicle identification system at a predetermined point to then continue at low speed from there, so that enemy’s satellite detection systems would take them for some farm machinery, which abounded in the region. The border areas of the territory were watched for any activity out of the ordinary in an effort to prevent unwanted incursions.

As they rolled toward the gate
they spotted Control, standing at one end of the esplanade, waving her right hand in farewell. Her hand’s movement was drawing a red line, letting guess that she was holding something. Mole did not have to speculate upon what it was. He knew in her fingers was the floret he had left on her desk. Suddenly his joy was back. He had recovered his good mood, lost a while back.

The squeaky gate opened before them, freeing
them from the field with its creak. Mole counted the days that had elapsed since his defection. This Friday the sixth week was starting, but it felt like a lifetime had passed since then.

The journey was marked by the silence
into which they all had fallen. They just exchanged the words indispensable for the connivance they had been forced into. Mole noticed the resemblance between the driver and Voice, though the former looked younger and in better physical condition. They could have been brothers. He was amused thinking that this might actually be, even though definitely the second one seemed to be much nicer than the first one, because the man in charge of the vehicle was in a continuous bad mood.

Near destination the car left the main road to
go on along a dirt road. The first rains of the season had come to the region and puddles and mud were hampering the progress of the car, making it skid and jump. The splashing of mud on the windshield at times hindered visibility.

The drizzle that had been present during the last half hour threatened to
go on all night, portending them a wet and cold ride, and the overcast sky had brought darkness, lessening the daylight hours of this summer day.

The
20 minutes it took to go the rugged route let them finally meet with the rest of the party. The venue was a farm abandoned years before which looked ruinous and dark, and drew a baleful silhouette in the dim evening light. The trailer that had left earlier from the camp had arrived on time. The horses were tied under the remains of an old roof to keep them from the rainy weather, and were zealously guarded by the boy and the driver in charge of the delivery.

As they saw
them approaching, the driver came out to meet them while his partner stayed back in attentive attitude, and thus he stood until having become sure of the identity of those who were coming. Everything was in order. They would return to their base as soon as the expedition had been dispatched. The inclement weather would not bother them, though it certainly would make things harder to the riders.

It j
ust took them 15 minutes to be ready to go. They said goodbye to the three men without any ceremony. Then they began their way with a calm step, as if trying to get acquainted with the rugged landscape they were about to cruise.

The cloudy sky and
the absence of visual landmarks in the limits of the territory were forcing Guide to use ancient positioning methods. A compass was no more than a curiosity; however, under the circumstances it was the best option for someone wishing to go unnoticed by electronic surveillance systems, so it was precisely one of these the leader of the expedition was holding in his right hand.

After
sunset, the little light of the first few miles of their journey was over, giving way to the dazzling thunderbolts that were lighting the landscape in flashes amid an uproar. The riders’ silhouettes against such an illuminated sky evoked an image of the past, as if they had been taken from an old western, one of those that had seen their best years more than a century before.

When they reached the mountains, leaving
behind the easy ride of the valley, the tenacious rain finally stopped and the lightning faded, giving way to the croaking of frogs and the sound of raindrops dripping from the treetops that now were all around them. The aromas of wet forest at night were brought by the wind, inviting them to breathe deeply to delight their noses, while some of the inhabitants of the mountain had begun to show.

The chanting
of an owl, the race of a rodent to hide, the nervous steps of a fleeing deer, and even the distant roar of a mountain lion, who had come back to inhabit the woods, were bringing back  to the intruders the feel of being a part of nature that modern life so easily takes away.

“
It seems it’s not raining anymore,” Guide said, breaking a silence that had lasted for more than two hours.

“
This air is incredible,” said Mole. “I don’t remember feeling such an intense night for a long time. It makes me feel alive.”

“
It’s a nice night,” replied Guide, minimizing the excitement of his companion. “We’ll have to go slowly for some time, this slippery ground will not let us move faster.”

T
he conversation went no further. The rhythmic sound from the horses while moving prevailed again, gradually numbing the perception of the horsemen, till they fell into a kind of hypnotic state that would last until dawn.

Daybreak took them by surprise when they were reaching the top of the mountains. Their continued ascent of the previous hours had put them above the clouds already, which now had turned into the fog that covered the lowlands. The light of dawn was finally allowing them to get a clear view, in which the red horizon tinged the landscape in a thousand hues.

After a
turn of the path a small hollow suddenly got in sight. The rain had created a lagoon on its bottom and it was surrounded by abundant tall grass. Guide came to a stop and dismounted while making a sign to Mole to do the same.

“
This is a good place to stay for a while. The horses can rest and feed while we take a nap. I estimate that we have done about half of the way, since we are in the highest part of the mountain. We will continue in the evening.”

“
Glad to hear this,” said Mole. “I need the break, my back is hurting.”

The morning was cold and the
merciless mountain wind was beating their faces, although deep down the hollow this condition became less intense.

“You b
etter stay in the shade and avoid the sun on your face because you should not look particularly sunned when we get there; you might attract attention.”

“I understand. You’
re right. As soon as I have 28 unsaddled and tied near the water I will find shelter under the trees.”

Minutes later they were
having their rations, covered under an awning of thin fabric that stretched between two trees. They would have to spend the rest of the day right there; until sunlight had faded by the evening marking the time to resume the trip.

Mole
was exhausted. He could not understand how it could be that Guide was looking as brisk as when they left, still moving nimbly, while he was suffering from pains throughout his body; and the funny thing was that every time that they had ridden together, the same thing had happened.

Anyway,
he would rest as much as he could, because the next stage of the trip promised to be as strenuous as the one they were just concluding.

The sight of the sun approaching the horizon put them into action again. The stretch scheduled for the upcoming night was longer than the former one. It would comprise around 40 miles, of which slightly fewer than 30 would be steep slopes, so Guide was in doubt that he dark hours would be enough to cover them. He decided to take advantage of the last hour of daylight.

Although they had
been in enemy territory since the last hours of the previous stage, the surveillance of this remote region was not as intense as what they would find once being close to their destination. A little ahead they would enter an area regularly patrolled by rangers, which would increase the risk of being spotted. This, added to the difficulties of traveling a rugged terrain, would continuously keep their adrenaline high.

Luckily the weather had improved. The sky was clear of clouds in the direction they intended to take
and the wind was feeling a little warmer, helping the ground not to be as slippery as the previous night, when they had had some tough times.

They picked up the
camp and saddled their horses, which after the break and food were once more ready for the heavy work of the day.

They resumed the march with the same calm
step of the former night, trying to save their horses’ energies to meet the challenges that the route would impose them later on.

This time
Guide’s explicit instruction had been to refrain from speaking or producing any sound different from those unavoidable when horseback riding. They could not guess who might be listening or when could this happen.

By
midnight the waning moon came out in the clear sky, illuminating the way just enough to let them put away the night vision devices. The horses could go more safely and the riders somewhat relax from the stress of having to accurately handle the reins.

Near dawn Guide
ordered to halt. Thanks to the providential appearance of the moon in a clear sky they had managed to speed up their pace enough to comply with the program. They were on the side of a mountain when they dismounted. Having secured the horses to a tree, they walked to the top.

Day
light let them see a valley covered with short grass, which brought a smile of satisfaction on the face of Guide.

“
We have arrived,” he said triumphantly. “For a moment I thought we would not be fulfilling the schedule. We must find the cave where they will meet us later. Follow me!”

They
went back to the place where the beasts had begun to nibble on the vegetation and taking them by the reins walked along the slope to find the entrance to a cave hidden by bushes.

They
separated the branches obstructing the access and entered. Inside they found a pile of pasture and two buckets with water.

“
I see they have done their part. Let’s unsaddle the horses to let them rest. We must wait a few hours.”

“
I am tired,” said Mole. “I think I will take a nap.”

After a while
both of them were sleeping in a corner of the dark enclosure, waiting for their contacts to come.

It was noon and now the cave’s inside was illuminated by green light filtering through the thick foliage that hid the entrance. Those inside this uncomfortable space were eating one more of their rations when a shaking of the foliage that guarded the entrance made them stay still.

Making
their way inside, two men draw their silhouettes in the backlight of the opening. They were dressing like weekend hikers. Both of them seemed to be in their 40’s and were sweaty from the effort of climbing the opposite slope.

“
I see you have arrived on time,” said the first one.

“
As scheduled,” Guide answered in a proud tone.

“
Excellent!”

They sat
down and their faces finally came in sight.

The
one who had just spoken was a corpulent man about 5’ 5” tall wearing a gray bushy beard. His skin was furrowed by wrinkles, his prominent bulbous nose made his brown eyes look squinted, and the thick lips arising from the shrub of hair that covered his face looked particularly rosy.

The second
one was slender, slightly taller and looked well-kept. His skin, tanned from the sun, made his honey-colored eyes seem even clearer, and the lines of his mouth and nose were thin, matching perfectly with his sharp jaw. Unlike his companion, he was carrying a hiking backpack from which a sleeping bag hung.

“
Well!” said the man with the beard, “I am Mail and he is Decoy. Who here is Mole?”

“Guide and Mole,” answered the first one
pointing respectively.

“
I am one of the leaders of the resistance. So we like to call ourselves,” continued the man doing the speaking. “First I will explain to you the mechanics of your raid: Mole will go in carrying Decoy’s remote access unit while he stays with Guide in a cave that we have specially prepared a few miles away from here. This way the trackers will not detect the substitution. The valley across the top of this mountain has plenty of visitors at this time, who among other things ride horses; therefore, any traces of your animals will go unnoticed. Mole will go down with me at sunset, just when hiker’s activity reaches its peak. We will travel by train to the city and he will spend the night at Decoy’s house. Thus, for all trackers everything will seem to be in order. In the morning the team helping you with the substitution will pick you up. They will give you instructions further on. For obvious security reasons, nobody knows the details of the entire mission. Upon Mole’s return you will meet at a different point; Decoy will take Guide up there on Monday night. There you will give him back his remote access unit, as you will still be carrying it. Is everything clear?”

“
How will Decoy justify his absence?” Mole asked.

“
I am a supervisor at the vegetable production plant in which we both work, so I have scheduled him a vacation period for the upcoming week; this way we all are covered.”

“Am I expected at Decoy’s house?” h
e asked.

“Decoy
lives in the only company of his wife, who is also an active member of the resistance. When we tell her that you will be spending the night at home there will be no problem, but I have not told her yet. You must exchange clothes with him before leaving, so that if someone sees you entering his house it will be more likely that you get mistaken for him. In any case, we will go in together, which will make things easier and will look normal as I visit him often. This very morning I drove to pick him up.”

“
I see you have prepared a good plan,” said Mole. “We will make it work.”

“We better
do. Our lives depend on it.”

The evening came, putting an end to the confinement that had kept restless the four men in the cave. Dressing as Decoy, Mole came out accompanied by Mail, who took advantage of the walk to instruct him on some details:

“
You should not talk to me during the train ride nor while we are on board of my car or when we have people around us, as the corporation spies on all personnel not-required to undergo mental backups. We can never be sure that we are not being heard.”

“
I understand,” answered Mole.

“
We have traveled by train because my car is not in good condition to make a long journey, as is to be expected of a low-level worker. I have chosen to do my job in a mediocre way, giving up any chance of progress, so I do not have to become obliged to submit to the dreaded mental backups or to decline a promotion, which would be a suicide as things stand today. I decided to sacrifice my income in exchange for keeping my intellectual freedom. For the same reason I serve in the resistance. There are many of us who think this way. People interacting with you until your return will all be of this kind. I tell you all this so that you understand that you can and must trust those who will be supporting you. Our goal is to dismantle the corporations, and the only way we have is to convince the majority of people that they live in error. This might have been easier a few years ago, when many people still held religious beliefs and practiced some cult, but now, with the pretext of immortality, it has become increasingly complicated. Materialism has come to enslave the majority. Within the resistance we are still idealistic. We also need that the part of the world from where you are coming survive at any cost, as it is the living example that corporations are not invincible. We need you to succeed in your mission just as well as those who sent you.”

“I understand
, and to your relief I have to say that even at the highest levels of corporate power the true dimensions of the resistance are ignored, to the extent that everyone downplays your existence, which means that you have been successful in passing unnoticed.”