Cyber Doomsday

CYBER DOOMSDAY

by Garth Wilcox

Copyright 2016

Chapter 1

As Montana rancher Matthew Dillon saddled his horse on a crisp September morning, his thoughts were focused on the upcoming activities of the day. As always he had more tasks on his priority list than time would allow. But the first priority of the day was to ride up to the summer pasture where his 400 cow herd was grazing.

He hadn't checked on the herd for more than a week and he wanted to make sure there was no sickness among the calves, check the fences, and see how the feed was holding out. There had been a significant amount of rain in the past couple months to keep the grass green, but now that it started freezing at night in the high country, the grass tends to stop growing. If the cows were running short on feed, they would need to be moved to the lower grazing unit to finish out the season.

The lower unit had an ample amount of feed as there had been no cows in the pasture since they went to the high country in early June. That amount of feed would certainly keep the bovine critters happy until the snow flies (which could happen almost any time in western Montana). According to the long range forecast on weather.com, there was no early snowfall on the horizon, so Matt wanted to utilize the upper pasture for as long as possible.

As Matt saddled his horse, he thought about how fortunate he was to have an occupation he loved so much. It's what he was born to do. It was a noble way to make a living. He looked forward to getting up before the crack of dawn each morning to get the day started. And though there were some hard times along the way, things were really going well for the 60 year old cowboy. Cattle prices were at record highs and this would be the year he could make up for prior year losses in which cattle prices stayed depressed while the production costs soared. There were times along the way when he wondered how long he would be able to keep his dream job. But for now, life was good.

Nevertheless, Matt had awakened that morning with a gut feeling that something just wasn't right. At breakfast, his wife, Ann, had also mentioned that she had a premonition that something wasn't quite right.

Matt loaded his horse into the trailer in preparation for the 10 mile drive to the trailhead where he would ride the next 5 miles on horseback to reach the upper pasture. Then he went back into the house to get his lunch and saddlebags. As he kissed Ann goodbye, she once again reminded him to be careful and vigilant because she still had a feeling that something was wrong.

Matt assured her that everything would be alright. He had his cell phone fully charged and although service was somewhat sketchy on the mountain, he could usually find a high spot to call out for help if needed.

Matt grabbed his dusty old Stetson cowboy hat and stepped out the door, but then he hesitated. He went back into the utility room, opened the gun closet, and pulled out his .270 caliber Winchester rifle and a box of bullets. It was normal for Ann to worry. She hated to see him go to the mountain alone. But today was different. Not only because Ann was more worried than usual, but this time, Matt, too, had a bad feeling in his gut.

He walked briskly out to his truck and lowered the tailgate so Old Toro could jump in. There was a day when the Blue Heeler could have jumped in with the tailgate up, but age was starting to catch up with him, too. Matt had gotten Toro from a friend 12 years ago as a puppy and they had been almost inseparable ever since. Today his companionship was comforting. Matt figured that if anything went wrong, he'd be glad to have Toro there.

The drive was absolutely beautiful that morning. The fall colors were in full swing. As they passed through the meadow near Medicine Lodge Creek in Beaverhead County, Matt noticed the steam rising off the creek in the cool fall morning. As the sun's rays filtered through the trees and the mist, the scene was almost heavenly. It reminded him why he loved this part of the world so much. It truly is God's country.

Soon the truck pulled into the parking lot at the trailhead with the trailer in tow. Matt unloaded and bridled his horse in preparation for the 5 mile ride. He grabbed the rifle out of his truck, loaded it, and carefully slid it into the gun scabbard on the saddle. He put his lunch into one side of the saddlebags along with extra bullets, and then put the fencing tools and calf vaccine in the other side. He liked to be prepared for any potential problem because if he got up on the mountain without proper supplies, it would take most of the day to go back to the ranch to get what he needed.

He mounted his horse, Apache, and soon he was on his way up the trail. It followed Rock Creek through the tall pines for the first half mile. Then the trail would cross the creek a couple of times before heading up the steep hillside to the top of Windy Ridge. Then the trail dropped into Grizzly Gulch where Matt expected to find most of the herd.

Apache was a beautiful sorrel gelding with flaxen mane and tail. He was sure-footed and gentle with a smooth gait. He was a combination of speed and agility. He was so familiar with the trail, he could practically find the way in pitch black darkness. Matt didn't even need to guide the horse with the reins. It was like auto-pilot for cowboys. All Matt needed to do is relax and let his body move in sync as one with the horse beneath. It gave him a lot of time to think.

Toro followed along dutifully like a bodyguard watching his back.

As the trail meandered lazily alongside the creek, Matt noticed a cloud of dust rising above the trees from a clearing up ahead. He wondered what could possibly be causing the ruckus. As he drew closer to the clearing, he could hear an awful crashing noise. He stopped the horse to listen carefully. Instinctively he reached for his rifle. There was grunting and snorting and then another big crash. He proceeded carefully.

The noises continued to get louder as he approached the clearing. Suddenly as he came out of the trees he saw exactly what was going on.

It was breeding season for the wild elk as the females were in the rut. Two big bull elk were competing to win the right to hang out with the harem. This is nature’s way of ensuring that the most dominant male passes his genes to the next generation.

There, in the middle of the clearing, two gigantic bulls were going at it. The two huge racks of antlers came together in a thunderous crash. The bulls were pretty evenly matched which means the battle could go on for hours. Sometimes it is a fight to the death. It's Mother Nature’s cruel way of ensuring survival of the fittest. There have even been cases where the two animals will get their antlers locked together and both will die before getting untangled.

Matt carefully moved off the trail to the edge of the clearing to make his way past the distracted battling buckskins. He kept his gun drawn just in case they turned their aggression toward the trio of man, horse, and dog. Toro let out a whiney growl. Easy boy Matt spoke softly. He hoped to skirt around the commotion totally unnoticed. The trio moved stealthily out of harm’s way, always looking for an escape route if something were to happen.

Then as they were passing the elk, Matt got an idea. He put away the rifle and pulled out his iPhone to capture some video footage of the epic battle. He figured it would make an interesting upload to YouTube. The elk didn't even suspect they had company. They were way too busy proving their dominance. It looked like the battle would continue for quite some time. After a few minutes of video, Matt put the phone back in his pocket and proceeded up the trail. He loved having a camera with him at all times.

Matt suddenly realized that he had just made it past a potentially dangerous situation. Maybe this is what gave him and Ann a feeling of uneasiness. But no, it was still there. Only now it was combined with a sense of urgency. He nudged Apache in the flanks with his spurs. Apache knew exactly what that meant and he picked up the pace. Toro trotted right behind.

When the trio started to climb out of the heavily wooded canyon, Matt checked his cell phone to see if there was enough service to run the AgWeb app. He wanted to check the commodity markets. Real-time information is essential for decision making for the modern day cattle producer. Matt was trying to develop a marketing strategy for this year's calf crop. He could either sell them soon after weaning, or feed them through the winter and sell them in the spring. Cattle prices were excellent, and there was a chance that they would stay strong for the foreseeable future. If the cost of feed continued to decline, it might pay to put some more weight on them. After all, every pound they gain is worth even more in the current market conditions.

The cattle market was up again. The futures had hit new contract highs on Friday and the momentum continued into Monday morning.

Matt loved his iPhone. He knew for quite some time that the day would come when a single device would serve as a phone, a calculator, a personal organizer, a camera, and a GPS. But he didn't realize that it would also play music, be a flashlight, a compass, a carpenter’s level, an alarm clock, a voice recorder, a reader, an internet browser, a game boy, and a myriad of other applications. It was great. He had always loved technology even though he didn't grow up in the Google generation. From the time he learned to use a HAM radio, electronics were fascinating to him. He had a general class amateur radio license and enjoyed communicating with people around the world.

The view from the top of Windy Ridge was breathtaking. The beautiful blue sky was the perfect backdrop for the jagged mountain range with a mixture of evergreen and aspen. The fall colors were out in full. Matt pulled his iPhone out of his pocket, took a picture, and posted it to his FaceBook page.

As the trail crested the ridge, it gradually started down into Grizzly Gulch. Apache was still on a brisk pace and Matt was still on heightened alert. Suddenly Apache stopped and slowly went into reverse. As he took a few steps backward up the trail, Matt just let him take over. He knew there had to be a reason for the hesitation. Then he saw the rattle snake slither across the trail up ahead. Now Matt was glad he had an experienced old steed. A younger horse probably would have come apart at the seams at the sight of a rattler. There could have been some bucking and running and twirling about. And a cowboy could have been hiking back to the truck. The sight of a rattle snake could turn gentle pony into a rough stock rodeo bronco. Another potentially dangerous situation averted.

Maybe Ann had a good reason to be extra worried. Although she never liked to see him go to the mountain alone, today things were happening that seemed to give credence to her concerns. She liked to ride with him whenever she wasn't scheduled to work. She took a job as a dental hygienist after their two sons were raised. There were times when they really relied on Ann's income to pay the bills. The cattle business has not always been fun and games. There had been some real financial challenges along the way. Although they had built some equity in the business, cash flow was always tight. Maybe this would be the year they'd have a little extra cash.

In the past Matt’s two sons would accompany him to the mountain when they were younger. They both loved the cowboy way of life. They could have easily chosen it as a career because they enjoyed it so much. But they also noticed the financial struggles and the stress that came with. Matt encouraged them to go to college, get a degree, and then if they decided to get into the business, he would help them get a start. They had learned the value of hard work from an early age. They had chores and responsibilities around the ranch with very little idle time. If the family wasn't working hard, they were playing hard. They loved camping and fishing, snowmobiling, skiing and almost anything outdoors. Of course they lived in an area where outdoor activities were almost endless. But work always came first. The boys felt like they were needed. They loved learning new things and they felt a great sense of accomplishment when they finished a task.

Because of the great work ethic, the boys had both done exceedingly well in school. So well that they received good job offers right after graduation. They were lured away by a steady paycheck with benefits. Matt was happy for them. So now they were married and started families of their own. And they both lived close enough that they could come and help out on the ranch on occasion. They even took vacation time to help with the branding in the spring and the roundup in the fall. But today Matt was working alone--except for the companionship of his trusty cow dog Toro and Apache the wonder horse. Maybe someday he would be able to purchase a drone with enough range so he could check the cows on his laptop from the comfort of his easy chair.

By now Matt was getting anxious to check on the herd. He still had a feeling that something was wrong. Maybe some of the calves had developed pneumonia or some other respiratory illness during the recent stormy weather. Or maybe the fence was down and some were missing. Or perhaps there were predators in the area.

As the trio descended into Grizzly Gulch the forest became thick again. The trees were so thick in places that there was barely enough room to squeeze through on horseback. Matt had to be on the lookout for low hanging branches. The lodge poles were tall and straight and the canopy was so thick it barely let any sunlight through.

He loved the sights, the sounds, and the smells of the forest. As that thought crossed his mind, he suddenly realized that the sights and smells were there, but the forest was suddenly silent. It was eerie. He carefully reached for his rifle. The silence was an indication there was a predator in the area. It was probably a mountain lion or a bobcat because even the birds and the squirrels had gone into hiding. While big cats were generally not