If you haven't already you should read version one first.
So I stripped the Bridge down to its most basic plot and began a rewrite of the whole story. While there are some sentences lifted from the first version verbatim, it is for all intents and purposes a new version. Do you have any preferences?
I am also giving some thought towards rewriting it again by starting over from the basic plot with no/very little repetition from either version.
I may be overthinking this one. I like the basic concept. It is in the expression of my intentions where the issue lies.
The Bridge
It could have been a rhetorical question but I asked it anyway. “What are you doing?”
“The tracks?” I thought to myself. There are no tracks up here. What is she talking about? I walk this ancient bridge every day. I have never seen train tracks up here. “Are you sure there are tracks?” I asked. “This old bridge has never had a train on it,” I replied.
She gave me a funny look. “All I know is that there is a train coming in this afternoon so I have to clean off the tracks,” she said pointing to the rusty piece of steel she had just uncovered. I quickly walked over and bent down.
“There is a track there,” I said with some consternation. I poked the rail with my toe. “I have crossed this bridge for most of my life and have never, ever seen a train track up here.”
The bridge sat between two very high hills and looked out across the valley below it. The bridge used to be a road between a town that was many miles away and the town down below. What was once a full fledged well used bridge had turned into disuse when the powers that be decided to build a highway along the river’s edge that wound its way up a hill to replace this one. No one got around to tearing it down so now it is a walking path for some and forgotten by most. It provided spectacular views of the town with the river flowing though it for as far as the eye could see. This would be why it was one of my favourite places to walk. The bridge itself was so old I questioned whether a train could even touch the bridge without knocking it down. I shuddered at the thought.
She looked at me with her rather large eyes and smiled. “It is quite beautiful up here,” she said, echoing my thoughts.
“I love it. That’s why I walk here. It is especially pretty in the fall” I replied with a puzzled look and then remembered my manners. “ I am…..” I began.
“Robert Smith,” she said finishing my sentence. I looked at her with surprise. “How..”
“I live not too far from you. I just bought the old Danford farm. We are neighbours!” she replied with glee. She rose from the ground where she was kneeling. “I am Christine, Christine Deville, " she replied as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear then touched her ear. “Pleased to meet you, at last” she reflected with a hint of happiness in her tone.
I had known about the sale of the farm. It was quite a loss to our community to have the Danfords move away but I was glad that someone who appeared to be industrious had purchased it. “I am pleased to meet you too. You bought the Danford place. Have you done much farming?
“Not a lick of farming in my life.”
“Why the farm then?” I asked, realizing I was probably being a bit nosy.
“Well, I had a hunch that it was the place to be when I saw it. It just felt like home,” she replied with a big smile. The light was reflecting off her pendant.
“You have a nice pendant there,” I reflected.
“This old thing I have had forever.” she said as she tucked it back into her blouse.
“It looked like a train. Does it have a special meaning?” I asked, realizing again that I probably was over stepping with my question.
“It’s a long story,” she replied. “I have to get this track cleared off. Would you like to help me?” she asked with a smile.
I spent a couple of seconds looking at her as I thought about my answer. While I didn’t buy the train angle, I could see that she could use some help clearing the track for whatever purpose that was needed. I could also spend some time getting to know her better since she seemed to live around here. It seemed like the neighbourly thing to do.
“Let’s get at her,” I replied.
She clapped her hands and laughed. “Thank you. You won’t be sorry.”
A bit of puzzlement at that statement left my mind as I stepped forward and moved a large limb out of the way, tossing it near the edge of the bridge. I moved towards the next large limb to help Christine lift it but before I got there she had not only lifted it but heaved it a fair distance away.
“Nice throw,” I intoned.
“Thanks,” she replied. "I've been working up to that one.” Her pendant had fallen out of her blouse so she placed a hand on it and moved to behind her as she bent over to pick another branch. There was a reflection of light from it as it fell over her shoulder tangling itself in the branch she was working on.
We worked for a few minutes clearing branches and pulling rather large wild plants from between the rails. I turned to pick up another branch whe a rip sound, then the sputter, and then the roar of a chainsaw caught my attention. Quickly I turned towards the distraction only to discover that Christine was walking past me towards the tree where she began ripping into the long body of it. She was very adept at using the chainsaw. She de-limbed the tree and began to cut up the log sending showers of wood chips flying through the air. Soon her clothing was covered with them. After she finished the last cut she flipped the switch and shut off the chainsaw.
Christine looked up with a grin. “I‘ve been waiting for that. It feels so good,” and with that statement out of the way she began brushing the wood chips off her clothing and out of her hair.
As she took the chainsaw over to its case I continued clearing the brush she had cut, tossing them off the side of the bridge. While I was working I spent some time thinking about what she had said. The only thing I could accept is that there are train tracks, rails, here on the bridge.
After a bit she indicated we needed to rest. I wandered over and sat on a stump. She offered me a bottle of water which I gratefully accepted. I noticed her pendant again. It was shining brightly even though we were sitting in the shade.
“I can’t help but compliment you on your pendant. It looks like it is almost alive.”
“It is an amulet,” she replied. “An amulet is more special than a pendant. It has some magical engravings on it to help protect me.”
“Why do you need protection?” I inquired.
“In this world there are many things we need protection from,” she replied with a smile and large saucer-like eyes. Tell me how you came to be walking on the bridge this morning?” she inquired.
“I often walk across the bridge later in the day but this morning something said I should take my walk now so here I am. How about you?”
She looked at me carefully. “As I said earlier I had to clear this bridge for the train.”
I looked at both ends of the bridge. We had cleared about 30 feet of track. The rail began abruptly and ended equally abruptly. “I am not sure a train could get here, even if it wanted to,” I intoned. “The track is too short and it goes nowhere.”
“I hear you,” she reflected. “All I know is the train is coming, probably before too long.”
I looked at her with disbelief. “Is it just going to magically appear?” I jokingly questioned.
She laughed along with me and then said, “exactly.”
“Exactly what?” I replied
“It will just magically appear.”
I looked at her and saw no jokes. She reflected a smiling, amused face that was filled with a strong belief in her statement. “It will magically appear? There is no such thing as magic.” I stated confidently.
She looked at me calmly. “Oh Robert, but there is. This amulet that you have been admiring,” she started as she lifted the amulet from where it hung between her breasts, “is my early warning signal about the train appearing.” I must have reflected disbelief on my face when she continued. She held her amulet up to the sunlight. It had a train design surrounded by space except where it met the circle. It was lit up by the bright light of the sun but there was something else about it.
“Are those headlights shining?” I asked with curiosity.
“Indeed they are,” she replied. “The headlights light up 24 hours before the train arrives. It also shakes as a train would shake the ground therefore if you are sleeping or are busy it reminds you of its presence.”
I thought about this for a minute. There was something in her tone of voice and sincerity in her words that had me leaning towards believing her. “Do you know why it is appearing here?” I asked.
“Here, as on the bridge?” she asked. I nodded vigorously.
“I believe that it is because I have chosen to live near the bridge. The bridge is private and a great starting point for my journey. I have loved this spot for a while now and have finally settled here. When I lived in other places the train found me somehow. I had to find the tracks though.”
I was becoming a bit uncomfortable but intensely curious with the conversation.
“Your journey? Other places?” I floundered. It isn’t everyday a beautiful woman tells you she is involved in magic.
“My journey. Yes. I have had many in my life.” Christine paused looking down as if she had to make up her mind about something. “You see Robert, I am a time traveler,” she said looking into my eyes as if she was willing me to believe her. And I was pretty close to doing just that. “There is something about you that has me convinced that telling you my secret is a good thing,” she continued as she glanced at me and then away quickly. “I feel comfortable sharing this information with you.”
“Interesting,” I thought to myself. “I’m not sure what to say to that.” I replied. “Thank you I guess, but it doesn’t quite seem right.”
“I understand,” she replied. “I really haven’t told anyone else about this part of my life.” she said with both eagerness and concern. “I hope you understand.”
I really didn’t but was unsure what to say next. “So,” I began slowly to give myself time to think. “How does this train appear?”
“Well, it just does. I have never really seen it. I just look up or turn around and there it is.”
“You move back and forth in time?” I said, stating the obvious hoping she didn’t misinterpret my thoughts.
“I travel to where I am needed and then I return home.”
“What is it that you do in time?” I asked carefully.
“If I am lucky as little as possible, especially in the past. In the future there is a little more leeway.”I looked at her incredulously. “I know it sounds bizarre,” she continued, “but it is the truth. There is a tipping point in history where the decisions made could go either way. It is my job to ensure that they go the way that history indicates. It is also my job to help preserve the direction that the people indicate the future should be like. It is hard to not interfere but it is essential to reserve the direction the world should take.”
“You can change history?” I asked.
“Not change history. Just to make sure it follows the prescribed path. There are times it needs a slight nudge.”
“Where are you traveling to today?”
She gave me another rather large smile. “I never know. I don’t have any say. I just board the train and then woosh, we are off. All I know is it is an adventure and someone needs my help. People are full of such doubts in their abilities.There is always a chance the person will not follow my advice or nudges that push them where they should go.”
“You have been to the future?” I asked with disbelief.
“I have,” she replied with a twinkle in her eye. She looked away quickly, staring at the ground for a few seconds before looking back up. “You should turn around,” she stated.
Turn around? I looked at her smiling face and realized she wasn’t joking. I turned my head slowly, did a double take and then turned my whole body. My eyes widened as I took in the sight. There stood a gleaming steam engine, complete with a coal car and a passenger car. It was just like her amulet. “How?” I sputtered.
“Magic,” she replied as she rose from her seat on the log. “Now I have to go to work,” she said as she picked up her chainsaw and started walking towards the train.
My wide eyes followed her as she boarded the passenger car. She paused in the doorway, her eyes wide with a knowing smile and said, ”Would you like to join me?”
I reflected on her traveling to the future before replying.
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