It has something to do with Silvia's story, so sorry if it doesn't fit. I can take out the part about the spies. I just wanted to do a short Howard Windstorm story, I'll continue Storm and Fire at the same time.
94
Chapter 1:
Howard Windstorm stood at the gate of his Sierra Leone palace. Buying this place had been a real bargain. Promise to better the lives of the people of a poor, war-torn country and it doesn’t take much to buy it. With this many people working for free; it wouldn’t take much more until the next phase of Martian terraforming could be complete.
Howard walked back into his palace. The OPEC was meeting soon, and he needed to be there. If plans were to be completed, the spies had to be out of the way. With overpopulation a problem in third world countries, Mars needed to be terraformed now. Besides, he didn’t see the problem in buying countries. The US government had no right to eliminate communism.
He didn’t like the OPEC meetings. Windstorm Industries wasn’t well represented in them. They made him feel unimportant and useless, and that was something he really didn’t like one bit. At least they would help him defeat the US spy organization.
Now, Howard didn’t hold any grudge against the spies. They just got in the way of his plans too often. The US government was a broken system that needed reform. The spies were there to stop that from happening. The US’s Declaration of Independence told of people’s unalienable rights, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Well, over population was killing of hundreds of thousands each year, that many people couldn’t have liberty as work was cheap enough that if they didn’t do as they were told then others could replace them. Happiness? Happiness was a concept known only to the richest one percent of humans, maybe twenty percent in the US, and thirty in the European Union.
Howard had a plan to stop overpopulation. If he had control of all the third world countries, he could get their rapidly growing population to stabilize and decrease. It worked with Sierra Leone, making the country where only 0.96 percent of the population knew happiness to a point where forty percent did. That percentage was the highest in the world except for Jaeger Industries’ holdings in Southeast Asia. And the US government thought it was in violation of their rights.
Oh well, the spies would be gone soon enough and he could continue unhindered. No reason to worry! As he increased the amount of land he controlled, it would allow him to gain the wealth needed to complete his mission. It would allow him to have even more than the greedy US government. With it he could terraform Mars.
Good thing there were already 10,000 people on Mars. They should be able to complete it with these ten thousand to help. The more people brought there, the more help gained. Soon he would send the rest of the people needed to get the population below his goal: only one billion of the current twelve and a half.
It had been fourteen billion before his coalition with Jaeger Industries started bringing the population down. The problem was the US government had a stable population, even growing slightly. His was shrinking. If the US were to invade, it probably wouldn’t be enough to hold them off. Good thing the PRC would help.
Originally, the People’s Republic of China criticized his capitalist ways. They called him the very thing they were trying to avoid. He convinced them, though, that he was actually governing the countries with a communist rule. They soon withdrew the previous criticism and began encouraging this new super-capitalism. They offered their support and military power in case of invasion. With China’s technological advancement and their selective breeding programs’ 800 million superhumans, there was little fear of military invasion.
A servant ran up. “Sir,” they announced, “The next meeting is scheduled for tomorrow. Would you like your airship refueled?”
“Yes.”
The servant ran off. Howard sighed. He didn’t want to go to this meeting. The leaders of OPEC were always such violent people. What did these crazed fools want, World War Three? Actually, maybe so. He’d have to be careful not to end up on anyone’s enemy list.
He got a call on his graphing calculator. It was Jaeger Industries’ CEO, Isaac Jaeger. He was known to be one of the sneakiest businessmen alive, which explains how he managed to own as much land as the country of Mexico. He was an old acquaintance of Howard’s, and they had an alliance between the two corporations. He was anxious as to the content of this call.
“Howard,” the voice said, “It’s time to take over Mars. My army’s set up the bomb at NASA. You have a few minutes out of surveillance. It had better be enough time.”
The connection ended. “Well,” Howard said, “So much for no World War Three.”
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
baby, what if?
if this isn't supposed to be on here, sorry!
but i have a question - why are your guys' stories about each other? hahaha.
and the title. just a little something.
but i have a question - why are your guys' stories about each other? hahaha.
and the title. just a little something.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Storm and Fire Chapter 12
Note: I switched between Silvia and Paul's perspectives in this chapter, do you like it or not?
Super-Long Chapter 12:
Interview and Jobs
“Can you tell me why you want to become a guard?”
Was there any way to answer the question without giving it away that she was a bandit experienced with fighting? Would they make her answer that? She decided on the answer.
Well, I’ve been looking for a job and I’d like to help the people of the town. I met a few guards, and it sounds like a great job from what I’ve heard!”
The interviewer nodded without writing anything down. “You think you have the skills required to be a guard? We do not have the time or money to provide training. We expect you to have the necessary abilities right now. Also”
This one would be even harder to answer. It was entirely possible this man could detect lies and they had hired him for this. She decided to not give any more away than she had to. “What skills do I need to have?” she asked.
The man started at her with the same blank stare. His face was thin and pale; his cheek bones visible. “We require skills in tracking, use of guns, and hand to hand fighting. We also expect you to be able to negotiate with any enemies and help people who are in danger or require assistance.”
“Yes, I have those skills.”
“Really? What training have you had?”
“My parents used to take me hunting, and so I am an expert at tracking and good with guns.”
It was true, her parents had taken her on hunting trips, but that was not all of it. The interview didn’t seem to notice. “Really? Well, to prove your skills, your requirement is to either capture or kill a bandit and bring me their badge.”
Silvia blinked. A badge? She had one during her membership in North Columbia! They were considered the most important object a bandit could have! They were instructed they would be treated as worthless if they lost it. Silvia had hers taken away when she left North Columbia. She wished she’d kept it now.
“You seem to know what I’m talking about. Maybe you’re more experienced than I thought. You have two weeks to do it. If you don’t make it back in time, even if you have a badge, you will fail and may re-take the test. I would advise you start today,” he said, with his emotionless look on his lean face, “You may go.”
She got up and left the room. Walking out the hallway, she saw Nathan had left just before her. “Goodbye!” said the woman at the reception desk, “We hope to see you soon!” Silvia hoped so too. If she didn’t, she would likely be dead. Now to look for the bandits. She smiled. This would be easy. She could tell where a bandit hideout was from miles away. In fact, she already knew where one was. She saw it when she when she was in the room at the inn. “Sure, I guess. There’s probably someone in the town with work to be done. Look at the town,” she waved her arm at the expanse of buildings out the window, “I’m sure there’s something,”
That phrase had another meaning. Silvia thought that she would be able to point that out as a guard and make money. It would help her even more now that she had this test. She smiled. This would be a fun job!
Paul walked down the main road. People rode a variety of vehicles in this town, many walking, but some rode horses, horse-drawn carriages, a few even rode cars. With electric car’s popularity rising in 2011 and 2012, it was no wonder a few were still around. Washington didn’t have oil fields, so gasoline cars were useless, unless someone could convert it into an electric car. Paul doubted even here many people knew how to do that.
He couldn’t find many jobs that would both pay well and he knew how to do. He didn’t want to be a laborer either, that sounded boring and difficult. There were few jobs other than that he could do; the few that did had low pay. He wished he could remember the things he was taught a while ago. Simply being born before the war and knowing what the technology was like back then could be an advantage over the younger people.
He wondered if Silvia had any better luck. He doubted they would let her be a guard without knowing her past, and if they wanted that she would have to make some pretty elaborate lies. She could probably do that, though.
As he was walking something caught his attention. It was a poster advertising a job! Though he doubted he could do it, Paul decided to read the poster anyway. As he skimmed over the lines, a smile spread across his face. Free training, good pay, and something he could do! It was on the outskirts of East Wenatchee, on the other side of the Columbia River. It would only take half an hour to walk there, so Paul set off in that direction.
Silvia went back to the hotel room to get the gun and took a few other supplies that could be useful: a knife, a flashlight from Paul’s backpack, a jacket because it could get cold at night, and some food. Paul wouldn’t be needing his shotgun today, so she took that too. She checked out the window, making sure of the location of the hideaway. It was so blatantly obvious; she was surprised Paul didn’t notice it. Well, she was a bandit and knew what a hideout looks like, so she did have an advantage. Paul should have noticed it anyway.
She started walking toward the bridges. The hills the hideout was in were in the other side of the Columbia River, so she’d take the bridge. She planned to buy a tent in town, and go to the hills and set up camp that night. A few days and one would get separated from the rest and she could kill them and hide the body. It would only take a few days. Bandits were supposed to be able to defend themselves; the “buddy system” was just an excuse for the weak to stay in the group.
“Excuse me,” said a voice. Nathan stepped out from behind a building. He looked bizarre because of his wearing a large pack while he still wore his suit. “I noticed you seem to know where you are going. Would you mind if I came with?”
One person missing could be an unfortunate accident, thought Silvia, but two is a suspicious event. If he comes and kills another they could realize we’re there! Still, it would be nice to have an acquaintance with the guards. I might as well take him along; we’ll be out of there well before they realize anyone is missing.
“Fine,” she said, smiling to show that it was in fact fine, and that he was certainly not ruining any of her well-thought-of plans at all, “I know where one of their hideouts are.”
“Oh, wonderful,” Nathan said. “Are you ready to go there now?”
“I am,” she said. She hoped he was more useful than he looked. Wearing a suit with a backpack showed a level of stupidity. Even if he was useless, killing two unaware people wouldn’t be too hard for just her. It would also be better not to make enemies with someone who might be her co-worker soon.
They made it to the bridge quickly. It was a very large bridge, positioned high above the river. Though made for mainly car travel, few cars now went over it. The river below flowed by slowly, its smooth surface looking like glass. It had steel poles running in different directions above it, some straight, others in giant arches. The bridge itself was made of concrete, with a scratchy surface. It was a whole mile across, and amazed Silvia.
“Are you not used to Wenatchee? I know several people like you who are amazed by things from the past like this.”
“Yeah, I’m from a rural place.”
Nathan nodded, “So am I. I remember my amazement at the city. Quite astonishing, isn’t it.”
Partway across the bridge, Silvia saw Paul. “Hey Paul!” she shouted to get his attention. He stopped and turned around.
“You’re on your first mission already?” he said, noticing the pack.
“No, only a test to see if I’m experienced enough. Hey, say hello to Nathan! He’s coming with me.”
Nathan shook his hand. “Hello, nice to meet you. You are Silvia’s friend, correct? I’m sorry, but Silvia and I really must be going. I hope to see you again,” and waved goodbye.
“Bye, Paul!” said Silvia.
After a few more hours of walking they left the town. The land here was barren. There were no trees, and only a few dead-looking shrubs. There were patches of dry grasses, not looking too well. The ground was dry and sandy, with rocks scattered about. Some hills in the distance had rock faces. Here and there was an abandoned building.
It was nearly 40 degrees Celsius. They had been walking at a brisk pace for a few hours. Silvia was beginning to feel tired. Strangely enough, even in his heavy suit, Nathan didn’t seem to be tired, or even show signs of sweating. Silvia decided that if he was fine in a suit, then she didn’t really need to stop.
It was only going to be a few hours until they reached the base. Silvia couldn’t quite see it from where she was, but she knew it was there. It was about 4:00 now. Silvia was starving and her thought was parched! She hadn’t eaten lunch and was walking in 40 degree weather for hours! I can make it to the camping area. Only another hour. If Nathan doesn’t need to rest, I don’t either! However, it was pretty obvious she did. Nathan was beginning to look concerned, but she ignored him. He wasn’t going to say anything, but then thought otherwise.
“Pardon me, but you look tired. Why don’t we take a short rest?” Silvia looked at him, irritated. “We might be able to get there quicker if you rest,” he added, realizing she didn’t want him to worry about her, “and make plans there.”
Silvia relented. She sat down. “You’re right. I brought some food and water, do you want any?”
“No thank you. I think that I can manage until we get there,” he said, sitting down.
Silvia drank her water and ate enough food to make her full. She decided to rest a bit longer. It had only been a few minutes, so it was fine. She only wondered how Nathan could go so far in his suit without getting tired. Eventually her curiosity got the better of her and she decided to ask him. “Hey, Nathan, won’t you get hot in that suit? It is a difficult walk, did you bring anything else to wear?”
He laughed. “I was wondering if you’d ask that. Actually, this suit isn’t very normal at all. It is insulated, so it can keep me cool in the summer and warm in the winter, as well as being bullet-proof. It’s quite rare to find bullet-proof clothes around here, so I decided that it would be the best choice to wear on this trip.”
Silvia nodded. “So, why did you decide to become a guard?”
Nathan thought for a moment. “Most of my family has government jobs, my mother and father being a rare exception and it is easier to get other jobs in the government after being a guard. They encouraged me to get a job as a guard. What about you?”
“Well, after Paul and I decided to move east, we were led here by a guard. From the stories he told me, I gathered that the job is really fun (NOTE: These stories were cut out from the compressed Chapter 10 because I was bored).”
“Well, I’m glad to hear that. Who is Paul, anyway?”
“Oh, he’s my friend that I met after the war. My parents died when I was not very old, and he helped me. We’ll I’m not tired now, we should get going.”
“Okay,” said Nathan, though he seemed to realize that Silvia was lying, or at least not telling the whole truth. He decided not to ask about it.
They soon reached a steep incline, looking like it was carved by glaciers when they came through this part of Washington, much too steep to try walking up it. Nathan thought he knew where they could get up, though it was a ways away. They soon did find a way up, though it was steep and the sandy ground cause both of them to slip several time. As the sun got lower in the sky, Silvia set up camp.
Soon the tents were set up and they ate a dinner of cold food. The temperature was dropping quickly as the sun sank lower. Silvia put on her jacket, but Nathan was just fine in his suit. Silvia pointed out the hideaway, though Nathan could barely see it in the fading light. They began to make plans to kill the bandits. Nathan had several weapons, guns, knives, even some poison darts. Those will be useful, thought Silvia. With a comprehensive plan made, they fell asleep. With their plan, they thought they should be able to get back to Wenatchee with the badges by tomorrow night.
Super-Long Chapter 12:
Interview and Jobs
“Can you tell me why you want to become a guard?”
Was there any way to answer the question without giving it away that she was a bandit experienced with fighting? Would they make her answer that? She decided on the answer.
Well, I’ve been looking for a job and I’d like to help the people of the town. I met a few guards, and it sounds like a great job from what I’ve heard!”
The interviewer nodded without writing anything down. “You think you have the skills required to be a guard? We do not have the time or money to provide training. We expect you to have the necessary abilities right now. Also”
This one would be even harder to answer. It was entirely possible this man could detect lies and they had hired him for this. She decided to not give any more away than she had to. “What skills do I need to have?” she asked.
The man started at her with the same blank stare. His face was thin and pale; his cheek bones visible. “We require skills in tracking, use of guns, and hand to hand fighting. We also expect you to be able to negotiate with any enemies and help people who are in danger or require assistance.”
“Yes, I have those skills.”
“Really? What training have you had?”
“My parents used to take me hunting, and so I am an expert at tracking and good with guns.”
It was true, her parents had taken her on hunting trips, but that was not all of it. The interview didn’t seem to notice. “Really? Well, to prove your skills, your requirement is to either capture or kill a bandit and bring me their badge.”
Silvia blinked. A badge? She had one during her membership in North Columbia! They were considered the most important object a bandit could have! They were instructed they would be treated as worthless if they lost it. Silvia had hers taken away when she left North Columbia. She wished she’d kept it now.
“You seem to know what I’m talking about. Maybe you’re more experienced than I thought. You have two weeks to do it. If you don’t make it back in time, even if you have a badge, you will fail and may re-take the test. I would advise you start today,” he said, with his emotionless look on his lean face, “You may go.”
She got up and left the room. Walking out the hallway, she saw Nathan had left just before her. “Goodbye!” said the woman at the reception desk, “We hope to see you soon!” Silvia hoped so too. If she didn’t, she would likely be dead. Now to look for the bandits. She smiled. This would be easy. She could tell where a bandit hideout was from miles away. In fact, she already knew where one was. She saw it when she when she was in the room at the inn. “Sure, I guess. There’s probably someone in the town with work to be done. Look at the town,” she waved her arm at the expanse of buildings out the window, “I’m sure there’s something,”
That phrase had another meaning. Silvia thought that she would be able to point that out as a guard and make money. It would help her even more now that she had this test. She smiled. This would be a fun job!
Paul walked down the main road. People rode a variety of vehicles in this town, many walking, but some rode horses, horse-drawn carriages, a few even rode cars. With electric car’s popularity rising in 2011 and 2012, it was no wonder a few were still around. Washington didn’t have oil fields, so gasoline cars were useless, unless someone could convert it into an electric car. Paul doubted even here many people knew how to do that.
He couldn’t find many jobs that would both pay well and he knew how to do. He didn’t want to be a laborer either, that sounded boring and difficult. There were few jobs other than that he could do; the few that did had low pay. He wished he could remember the things he was taught a while ago. Simply being born before the war and knowing what the technology was like back then could be an advantage over the younger people.
He wondered if Silvia had any better luck. He doubted they would let her be a guard without knowing her past, and if they wanted that she would have to make some pretty elaborate lies. She could probably do that, though.
As he was walking something caught his attention. It was a poster advertising a job! Though he doubted he could do it, Paul decided to read the poster anyway. As he skimmed over the lines, a smile spread across his face. Free training, good pay, and something he could do! It was on the outskirts of East Wenatchee, on the other side of the Columbia River. It would only take half an hour to walk there, so Paul set off in that direction.
Silvia went back to the hotel room to get the gun and took a few other supplies that could be useful: a knife, a flashlight from Paul’s backpack, a jacket because it could get cold at night, and some food. Paul wouldn’t be needing his shotgun today, so she took that too. She checked out the window, making sure of the location of the hideaway. It was so blatantly obvious; she was surprised Paul didn’t notice it. Well, she was a bandit and knew what a hideout looks like, so she did have an advantage. Paul should have noticed it anyway.
She started walking toward the bridges. The hills the hideout was in were in the other side of the Columbia River, so she’d take the bridge. She planned to buy a tent in town, and go to the hills and set up camp that night. A few days and one would get separated from the rest and she could kill them and hide the body. It would only take a few days. Bandits were supposed to be able to defend themselves; the “buddy system” was just an excuse for the weak to stay in the group.
“Excuse me,” said a voice. Nathan stepped out from behind a building. He looked bizarre because of his wearing a large pack while he still wore his suit. “I noticed you seem to know where you are going. Would you mind if I came with?”
One person missing could be an unfortunate accident, thought Silvia, but two is a suspicious event. If he comes and kills another they could realize we’re there! Still, it would be nice to have an acquaintance with the guards. I might as well take him along; we’ll be out of there well before they realize anyone is missing.
“Fine,” she said, smiling to show that it was in fact fine, and that he was certainly not ruining any of her well-thought-of plans at all, “I know where one of their hideouts are.”
“Oh, wonderful,” Nathan said. “Are you ready to go there now?”
“I am,” she said. She hoped he was more useful than he looked. Wearing a suit with a backpack showed a level of stupidity. Even if he was useless, killing two unaware people wouldn’t be too hard for just her. It would also be better not to make enemies with someone who might be her co-worker soon.
They made it to the bridge quickly. It was a very large bridge, positioned high above the river. Though made for mainly car travel, few cars now went over it. The river below flowed by slowly, its smooth surface looking like glass. It had steel poles running in different directions above it, some straight, others in giant arches. The bridge itself was made of concrete, with a scratchy surface. It was a whole mile across, and amazed Silvia.
“Are you not used to Wenatchee? I know several people like you who are amazed by things from the past like this.”
“Yeah, I’m from a rural place.”
Nathan nodded, “So am I. I remember my amazement at the city. Quite astonishing, isn’t it.”
Partway across the bridge, Silvia saw Paul. “Hey Paul!” she shouted to get his attention. He stopped and turned around.
“You’re on your first mission already?” he said, noticing the pack.
“No, only a test to see if I’m experienced enough. Hey, say hello to Nathan! He’s coming with me.”
Nathan shook his hand. “Hello, nice to meet you. You are Silvia’s friend, correct? I’m sorry, but Silvia and I really must be going. I hope to see you again,” and waved goodbye.
“Bye, Paul!” said Silvia.
After a few more hours of walking they left the town. The land here was barren. There were no trees, and only a few dead-looking shrubs. There were patches of dry grasses, not looking too well. The ground was dry and sandy, with rocks scattered about. Some hills in the distance had rock faces. Here and there was an abandoned building.
It was nearly 40 degrees Celsius. They had been walking at a brisk pace for a few hours. Silvia was beginning to feel tired. Strangely enough, even in his heavy suit, Nathan didn’t seem to be tired, or even show signs of sweating. Silvia decided that if he was fine in a suit, then she didn’t really need to stop.
It was only going to be a few hours until they reached the base. Silvia couldn’t quite see it from where she was, but she knew it was there. It was about 4:00 now. Silvia was starving and her thought was parched! She hadn’t eaten lunch and was walking in 40 degree weather for hours! I can make it to the camping area. Only another hour. If Nathan doesn’t need to rest, I don’t either! However, it was pretty obvious she did. Nathan was beginning to look concerned, but she ignored him. He wasn’t going to say anything, but then thought otherwise.
“Pardon me, but you look tired. Why don’t we take a short rest?” Silvia looked at him, irritated. “We might be able to get there quicker if you rest,” he added, realizing she didn’t want him to worry about her, “and make plans there.”
Silvia relented. She sat down. “You’re right. I brought some food and water, do you want any?”
“No thank you. I think that I can manage until we get there,” he said, sitting down.
Silvia drank her water and ate enough food to make her full. She decided to rest a bit longer. It had only been a few minutes, so it was fine. She only wondered how Nathan could go so far in his suit without getting tired. Eventually her curiosity got the better of her and she decided to ask him. “Hey, Nathan, won’t you get hot in that suit? It is a difficult walk, did you bring anything else to wear?”
He laughed. “I was wondering if you’d ask that. Actually, this suit isn’t very normal at all. It is insulated, so it can keep me cool in the summer and warm in the winter, as well as being bullet-proof. It’s quite rare to find bullet-proof clothes around here, so I decided that it would be the best choice to wear on this trip.”
Silvia nodded. “So, why did you decide to become a guard?”
Nathan thought for a moment. “Most of my family has government jobs, my mother and father being a rare exception and it is easier to get other jobs in the government after being a guard. They encouraged me to get a job as a guard. What about you?”
“Well, after Paul and I decided to move east, we were led here by a guard. From the stories he told me, I gathered that the job is really fun (NOTE: These stories were cut out from the compressed Chapter 10 because I was bored).”
“Well, I’m glad to hear that. Who is Paul, anyway?”
“Oh, he’s my friend that I met after the war. My parents died when I was not very old, and he helped me. We’ll I’m not tired now, we should get going.”
“Okay,” said Nathan, though he seemed to realize that Silvia was lying, or at least not telling the whole truth. He decided not to ask about it.
They soon reached a steep incline, looking like it was carved by glaciers when they came through this part of Washington, much too steep to try walking up it. Nathan thought he knew where they could get up, though it was a ways away. They soon did find a way up, though it was steep and the sandy ground cause both of them to slip several time. As the sun got lower in the sky, Silvia set up camp.
Soon the tents were set up and they ate a dinner of cold food. The temperature was dropping quickly as the sun sank lower. Silvia put on her jacket, but Nathan was just fine in his suit. Silvia pointed out the hideaway, though Nathan could barely see it in the fading light. They began to make plans to kill the bandits. Nathan had several weapons, guns, knives, even some poison darts. Those will be useful, thought Silvia. With a comprehensive plan made, they fell asleep. With their plan, they thought they should be able to get back to Wenatchee with the badges by tomorrow night.
Now Named: Whispers Of Voice
Howard, and all the people around him, flinched away from the yelling man standing behind the podium. He was their leader and he was very angry. So far non of the group had managed to catch more than one spy all together. And he hadn't said a word. They had killed him without the whereabouts of any more spies. This job was harder than most of them had realized. It's worth it though! Howard told himself. Taking over the government and letting us rule. We will find more spies. We just need to work harder. The large man at the podium was still screaming. Finally he stopped, using a threat to make them hop out of their chairs and race for their stations to get back to work. Maybe this isn't such a good idea... Howard thought.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Storm and Fire Chapter 11
By far the longest chapter I have written at three and a half pages on Word. This is the first chapter of Part Two. Enjoy!
Part Two:
Chapter Eleven:
Wenatchee
Paul looked over the hill in shock with the others. The city was glowing. It wasn’t a dim, orange fire glow, it was bright light! Even in the dark of night. It really was electricity! And the city, it stretched in all directions! Houses going up and down, reaching to border of a river… that’s the Columbia! The mile-wide Columbia River! There were even house on the other side.
And the buildings were so big! Not the giant skyscrapers of the former city of Seattle, but they were big. Eight stories tall, some of them! Some windows glowing, some windows dark! It was like stars on the ground! Real electricity. There were advertisements on buildings, people walking pets down the streets, the streets themselves in perfect condition. Everyone around him was in awe; their mouths hung open. It was a complete shock to everyone, no matter if they were born before or after the war. The guide was smiling an exhausted but happy smile. “I do this job just to see this moment,” he said.
Everyone in the group walked quickly toward the town. They already were passing a few houses when they crossed the Wenatchee River by bridge and entered the main town. The bridge was in excellent condition. Even this late there were shops open. They danced around on the clean, paved streets, and stared at the buildings. It was civilization again!
The guide led them through town, past people just walking down the street. Night wasn’t really night when there was electricity. People stared at their torn and muddy clothes, giant packs and uncombed hair. Paul felt a bit ridiculous. For him, fashion hadn’t been around for nearly 30 years. Mostly, it was have practical clothing or die. It didn’t look like these people walking by knew that.
The guide let them walk around town for a while and meet with him an hour later. Paul and Silvia went off to some of the shops. It seemed like gold was a perfectly acceptable currency, which made Paul glad. Currency that was useless would not get very far for buying. Paul decided to buy some clothes, and Silvia, even more irritated at the looks than he was, agreed. They found a good clothes store. Paul thought the clothing was useless and would not let one survive for very long, but it looked interesting so he bought it and changed into them at a changing room in the back of the store. His hair was still a problem, but he ignored that for the time being. Silvia managed to find city clothes to and they set off to look for other shops. They found a bakery and ate the best dinner they had in a while there, though it was so expensive they used up most of their money. It was hard to get used to the bright lights and smooth floor everywhere, but Paul’s eyes adjusted soon enough. He looked at a clock – “Strange,” he thought, “No pendulum!” – and saw it was time to go back to the guide.
The guide took them to a large park near the center of the town. There were large stone buildings in it, one of them looking like a capital building. Paul asked the guide about that.
“Oh, yes, that is the Wenatchee Senate building. The senators from the surrounding towns come here to vote on new laws. You were born before the war, weren’t you? You should know how it works.”
“Wenatchee has its own government? What?!”
“You didn’t know? That’s the only way to keep order around here. We’re not doing that good a job of it though; you saw how lawless Sultan was!”
“Its own government? How does that work?”
“After news came that Seattle was bombed, we decided to organize a strong town council to help protect the people until the federal government restored order. But when the Chinese army destroyed the federal government and most other cities disappeared, we decided that it was best to make the town council into a permanent government, for most of the surrounding area. We call this the Democratic Republic of Wenatchee.”
“How come there was this advanced a civilization and I didn’t know about it?!” Paul shouted, annoyed
“Over across the mountains where you are from, and further east from here, there are large bandit organizations. If we let anyone know about our town then the bandits would soon find out and pillage the entire around here. That’s why there is such a high guard on Sultan.”
“Amazing…” said Paul. He was getting more and more interested as he learned more. He wondered how he could live in a town like this. He didn’t know much to let him survive in this town. Hunting would not work as well here; much of the area around was farms. He vaguely remembered getting good grades in school up until eighth grade when the war started and most schools were shut down. He was fairly good at math and science, but his memory was rusty from not doing either for twenty eight years.
He mentioned this to Silvia but she was yawning. She nodded sleepily. He doubted she even knew what he said. The group was following a path up to a large white building that looked to be an inn, a very big inn. A hotel? The guide led them up the steps into the lobby. Paul’s eyes hurt. Too much light! It was night, after all. How could one get used to all this bright light after walking through the dark? Did there really need to be that much light?
“People get three days free in this hotel per month,” said the guide, “I’ll give you a slip with your room number on it. Please enjoy your stay.”
Paul looked at the slip with half closed eyes. It was nearly twelve. He started walking up several flights of stairs. His eyes drooped and he tripped on the stairs several times. His arms hung at his sides. He was tired. He walked up to his room and tried opening the door. It wouldn’t budge. “Locked?” he thought. There was a key to the door attached to the piece of paper Paul was holding, though he didn’t find it for a few minutes. He twisted the key in the lock and tried to walk in. He hadn’t successfully opened the door, and crashed into it. He tried again and was able to walk in. The room smelled a bit musty, but better than most inns he had been at. There was even furniture. He thought it seemed a bit excess for being free. He dropped on the bed, slipped off, but fell asleep anyway.
The next morning he got up and stretched. Silvia seemed to have found her way to the room to but had fallen asleep in the doorway. He thought it would be best to let her sleep more. Looking out the window, he could see the fast expanse of the town clearly, and saw the Columbia River with the Wenatchee River flowing into it. Wenatchee had crept over the rivers and now there were building on the opposite banks. Beyond the river were dry, orange, dusty hills that had a few shrubs here and there. The hills were split by the Columbia River running through them. The sun shone high above them. He thought it odd that he had slept this late. The hotel blinds probably blocked the light.
Silvia began to twitch. Paul looked over at her. She mumbled, “Why am I here…?” He opened the door and dragged her out of the way. It slammed shut. She woke up.
“Ow… my sides hurt…”
“You fell asleep in the door way.”
“Oh.”
She walked up to the window and looked out at the view. “That’s a good view, isn’t it? We’re up high in this hotel.”
“Yeah, I noticed that too.”
“Are you ready to have breakfast?” she asked.
“Yeah. Should we try to find work today?”
She thought about it. “Sure, I guess. There’s probably someone in the town with work to be done. Look at the town,” she waved her arm at the expanse of buildings out the window, “I’m sure there’s something.”
“I might like a job with the guards. Patrolling the border areas would be helpful.”
“Yeah, but did you see that place? You’d rather work in Sultan than here?”
Paul shrugged. “I don’t know.”
They left the room and locked the door. “I don’t see what the big deal is. It’s easy to get free rooms anyway. Why lock them?” Paul complained. They found this inn offered more than a few vegetables for breakfast. The breakfast was not only free, but it looked delicious. Pork and eggs from the nearby farms, apples, and bread! Paul and Silvia hadn’t had bread in years. Western Washington isn’t known for having a large wheat production. Paul savored the taste of the bread while Silvia ravenously ate it in a few bites. Paul stared at her like eating such a delicacy so quickly was a waste but she ignored him.
With breakfast gone, Paul and Silvia set out to find jobs. Their guide told them that there would be plenty of jobs in town, and no one he had taken here before had much trouble finding one. “Let’s look separately,” said Paul, “We might have better luck.” They wished each other luck in the job hunting. Paul set off toward the main street, Route 2. Silvia decided to look to see if there were any government jobs near Wenatchee.
Silvia walked toward the main government buildings. She thought that a government job would be fun. The government employment building was across the government park from the inn. It was a large building and was the center of all government hiring and training. Even with the small region the Dem. Rep. of Wenatchee held, the government still had over 100,000 people in the workforce. Silvia wanted to join the guards. There were some openings for jobs right across the river. The guards were the only thing the Dem. Rep. of Wenatchee had that resembled an army. There was no conventional army; anything like that made it clear there was a civilization. The DRW wanted to keep its existence hidden. Silvia liked that kind of job.
She walked through the door of the employment building and up to the registration desk. The room was large and had wide windows that let in a lot of light. There was comfortable-looking furniture in the room. The carpet was a plain grey color. At the front of the room was the registration desk, behind which was the only other door. Only two other people were in the room, one was a woman behind the desk and the other was sitting in a comfortable-looking chair, reading a book.
“I’d like a job,” Silvia said.
“Yes?” said the woman, “What job?”
“I’d like a job as a guard here in Wenatchee.”
“Very well. Sit down; we’ll call for you in a minute. What was your name?”
“Silvia.”
“Alright. Sit down; it should only be a few minutes.”
Silvia sat down in a comfortable-looking chair, taking a glance at the other person. He was dressed in a suit, and had a red tie. He had short black hair and grey glasses. He looked like a business, more likely to be in the Senate building than getting a job with the government. At least he had something to do.
Since she had nothing to do, she just thought. What would a job as a guard be like? Would it be anything like her job as a bandit, with fighting and death commonplace? Their guide did not seem like the kind of person who would have that kind of job. Maybe all guards were different. She certainly did not want to walk back and forth between Sultan and Wenatchee with a bunch of people following her, not matter how happy they were at the end. But she didn’t want to kill hundreds of people either.
This was the first day she would be away from Paul for a few months, and with her job probably even longer. He was a nice person, though was a bit too serious and conceited. He thought too much about his goals to do anything else. He was kind to people, but just hard to talk to. She hoped he would find a good job.
“Nathan, please come to room 127 for your interview. Silvia, please come to room 101 for your interview.”
Silvia got up and saw the book-reader get up as well. She went through the now opened door behind the registration desk. The book-reader followed. On the other side was a hallway with rooms starting from one. She walked down the hallway until she got to 101. She knocked on the door. She was nervous. She hoped they wouldn’t inquire too much about her past. He heart was beating faster.
“Come in.”
The room was very plain, with white tile floor and smooth walls. In the room there was a plain table. Behind the table there was a plain looking man, her interview. He had a sheet of paper before him.
“Please, take a seat.”
She sat down. The chair was uncomfortable. She could hear her heart beating louder. The room was too warm, or maybe it was only her. The interview seemed to not notice any of this. He only sat there with a blank look and a piece of paper in his hand.
“Can you tell me why you want to become a guard?”
Part Two:
Chapter Eleven:
Wenatchee
Paul looked over the hill in shock with the others. The city was glowing. It wasn’t a dim, orange fire glow, it was bright light! Even in the dark of night. It really was electricity! And the city, it stretched in all directions! Houses going up and down, reaching to border of a river… that’s the Columbia! The mile-wide Columbia River! There were even house on the other side.
And the buildings were so big! Not the giant skyscrapers of the former city of Seattle, but they were big. Eight stories tall, some of them! Some windows glowing, some windows dark! It was like stars on the ground! Real electricity. There were advertisements on buildings, people walking pets down the streets, the streets themselves in perfect condition. Everyone around him was in awe; their mouths hung open. It was a complete shock to everyone, no matter if they were born before or after the war. The guide was smiling an exhausted but happy smile. “I do this job just to see this moment,” he said.
Everyone in the group walked quickly toward the town. They already were passing a few houses when they crossed the Wenatchee River by bridge and entered the main town. The bridge was in excellent condition. Even this late there were shops open. They danced around on the clean, paved streets, and stared at the buildings. It was civilization again!
The guide led them through town, past people just walking down the street. Night wasn’t really night when there was electricity. People stared at their torn and muddy clothes, giant packs and uncombed hair. Paul felt a bit ridiculous. For him, fashion hadn’t been around for nearly 30 years. Mostly, it was have practical clothing or die. It didn’t look like these people walking by knew that.
The guide let them walk around town for a while and meet with him an hour later. Paul and Silvia went off to some of the shops. It seemed like gold was a perfectly acceptable currency, which made Paul glad. Currency that was useless would not get very far for buying. Paul decided to buy some clothes, and Silvia, even more irritated at the looks than he was, agreed. They found a good clothes store. Paul thought the clothing was useless and would not let one survive for very long, but it looked interesting so he bought it and changed into them at a changing room in the back of the store. His hair was still a problem, but he ignored that for the time being. Silvia managed to find city clothes to and they set off to look for other shops. They found a bakery and ate the best dinner they had in a while there, though it was so expensive they used up most of their money. It was hard to get used to the bright lights and smooth floor everywhere, but Paul’s eyes adjusted soon enough. He looked at a clock – “Strange,” he thought, “No pendulum!” – and saw it was time to go back to the guide.
The guide took them to a large park near the center of the town. There were large stone buildings in it, one of them looking like a capital building. Paul asked the guide about that.
“Oh, yes, that is the Wenatchee Senate building. The senators from the surrounding towns come here to vote on new laws. You were born before the war, weren’t you? You should know how it works.”
“Wenatchee has its own government? What?!”
“You didn’t know? That’s the only way to keep order around here. We’re not doing that good a job of it though; you saw how lawless Sultan was!”
“Its own government? How does that work?”
“After news came that Seattle was bombed, we decided to organize a strong town council to help protect the people until the federal government restored order. But when the Chinese army destroyed the federal government and most other cities disappeared, we decided that it was best to make the town council into a permanent government, for most of the surrounding area. We call this the Democratic Republic of Wenatchee.”
“How come there was this advanced a civilization and I didn’t know about it?!” Paul shouted, annoyed
“Over across the mountains where you are from, and further east from here, there are large bandit organizations. If we let anyone know about our town then the bandits would soon find out and pillage the entire around here. That’s why there is such a high guard on Sultan.”
“Amazing…” said Paul. He was getting more and more interested as he learned more. He wondered how he could live in a town like this. He didn’t know much to let him survive in this town. Hunting would not work as well here; much of the area around was farms. He vaguely remembered getting good grades in school up until eighth grade when the war started and most schools were shut down. He was fairly good at math and science, but his memory was rusty from not doing either for twenty eight years.
He mentioned this to Silvia but she was yawning. She nodded sleepily. He doubted she even knew what he said. The group was following a path up to a large white building that looked to be an inn, a very big inn. A hotel? The guide led them up the steps into the lobby. Paul’s eyes hurt. Too much light! It was night, after all. How could one get used to all this bright light after walking through the dark? Did there really need to be that much light?
“People get three days free in this hotel per month,” said the guide, “I’ll give you a slip with your room number on it. Please enjoy your stay.”
Paul looked at the slip with half closed eyes. It was nearly twelve. He started walking up several flights of stairs. His eyes drooped and he tripped on the stairs several times. His arms hung at his sides. He was tired. He walked up to his room and tried opening the door. It wouldn’t budge. “Locked?” he thought. There was a key to the door attached to the piece of paper Paul was holding, though he didn’t find it for a few minutes. He twisted the key in the lock and tried to walk in. He hadn’t successfully opened the door, and crashed into it. He tried again and was able to walk in. The room smelled a bit musty, but better than most inns he had been at. There was even furniture. He thought it seemed a bit excess for being free. He dropped on the bed, slipped off, but fell asleep anyway.
The next morning he got up and stretched. Silvia seemed to have found her way to the room to but had fallen asleep in the doorway. He thought it would be best to let her sleep more. Looking out the window, he could see the fast expanse of the town clearly, and saw the Columbia River with the Wenatchee River flowing into it. Wenatchee had crept over the rivers and now there were building on the opposite banks. Beyond the river were dry, orange, dusty hills that had a few shrubs here and there. The hills were split by the Columbia River running through them. The sun shone high above them. He thought it odd that he had slept this late. The hotel blinds probably blocked the light.
Silvia began to twitch. Paul looked over at her. She mumbled, “Why am I here…?” He opened the door and dragged her out of the way. It slammed shut. She woke up.
“Ow… my sides hurt…”
“You fell asleep in the door way.”
“Oh.”
She walked up to the window and looked out at the view. “That’s a good view, isn’t it? We’re up high in this hotel.”
“Yeah, I noticed that too.”
“Are you ready to have breakfast?” she asked.
“Yeah. Should we try to find work today?”
She thought about it. “Sure, I guess. There’s probably someone in the town with work to be done. Look at the town,” she waved her arm at the expanse of buildings out the window, “I’m sure there’s something.”
“I might like a job with the guards. Patrolling the border areas would be helpful.”
“Yeah, but did you see that place? You’d rather work in Sultan than here?”
Paul shrugged. “I don’t know.”
They left the room and locked the door. “I don’t see what the big deal is. It’s easy to get free rooms anyway. Why lock them?” Paul complained. They found this inn offered more than a few vegetables for breakfast. The breakfast was not only free, but it looked delicious. Pork and eggs from the nearby farms, apples, and bread! Paul and Silvia hadn’t had bread in years. Western Washington isn’t known for having a large wheat production. Paul savored the taste of the bread while Silvia ravenously ate it in a few bites. Paul stared at her like eating such a delicacy so quickly was a waste but she ignored him.
With breakfast gone, Paul and Silvia set out to find jobs. Their guide told them that there would be plenty of jobs in town, and no one he had taken here before had much trouble finding one. “Let’s look separately,” said Paul, “We might have better luck.” They wished each other luck in the job hunting. Paul set off toward the main street, Route 2. Silvia decided to look to see if there were any government jobs near Wenatchee.
Silvia walked toward the main government buildings. She thought that a government job would be fun. The government employment building was across the government park from the inn. It was a large building and was the center of all government hiring and training. Even with the small region the Dem. Rep. of Wenatchee held, the government still had over 100,000 people in the workforce. Silvia wanted to join the guards. There were some openings for jobs right across the river. The guards were the only thing the Dem. Rep. of Wenatchee had that resembled an army. There was no conventional army; anything like that made it clear there was a civilization. The DRW wanted to keep its existence hidden. Silvia liked that kind of job.
She walked through the door of the employment building and up to the registration desk. The room was large and had wide windows that let in a lot of light. There was comfortable-looking furniture in the room. The carpet was a plain grey color. At the front of the room was the registration desk, behind which was the only other door. Only two other people were in the room, one was a woman behind the desk and the other was sitting in a comfortable-looking chair, reading a book.
“I’d like a job,” Silvia said.
“Yes?” said the woman, “What job?”
“I’d like a job as a guard here in Wenatchee.”
“Very well. Sit down; we’ll call for you in a minute. What was your name?”
“Silvia.”
“Alright. Sit down; it should only be a few minutes.”
Silvia sat down in a comfortable-looking chair, taking a glance at the other person. He was dressed in a suit, and had a red tie. He had short black hair and grey glasses. He looked like a business, more likely to be in the Senate building than getting a job with the government. At least he had something to do.
Since she had nothing to do, she just thought. What would a job as a guard be like? Would it be anything like her job as a bandit, with fighting and death commonplace? Their guide did not seem like the kind of person who would have that kind of job. Maybe all guards were different. She certainly did not want to walk back and forth between Sultan and Wenatchee with a bunch of people following her, not matter how happy they were at the end. But she didn’t want to kill hundreds of people either.
This was the first day she would be away from Paul for a few months, and with her job probably even longer. He was a nice person, though was a bit too serious and conceited. He thought too much about his goals to do anything else. He was kind to people, but just hard to talk to. She hoped he would find a good job.
“Nathan, please come to room 127 for your interview. Silvia, please come to room 101 for your interview.”
Silvia got up and saw the book-reader get up as well. She went through the now opened door behind the registration desk. The book-reader followed. On the other side was a hallway with rooms starting from one. She walked down the hallway until she got to 101. She knocked on the door. She was nervous. She hoped they wouldn’t inquire too much about her past. He heart was beating faster.
“Come in.”
The room was very plain, with white tile floor and smooth walls. In the room there was a plain table. Behind the table there was a plain looking man, her interview. He had a sheet of paper before him.
“Please, take a seat.”
She sat down. The chair was uncomfortable. She could hear her heart beating louder. The room was too warm, or maybe it was only her. The interview seemed to not notice any of this. He only sat there with a blank look and a piece of paper in his hand.
“Can you tell me why you want to become a guard?”
Friday, March 27, 2009
Storm and Fire Part Ten
NOTICE: I was tired of going so slow and decided to get to a different part of the story. Not wanting to skip any and confuse the readers, I decided to include the section anyway. However, I did condense it all, about three to four chapter's worth, into one chapter. About half the size of normal, too. Hope you enjoy it anyway. If there isn't enough action for you, be glad the little bit of exitement there is -- if, in fact, there is any -- is condensed and not eight pages long.
Chapter Ten:
I want to get this story going!
Paul got up early, the rising sun shining in his face. He woke Silvia up and they went to the lobby of the inn, where they got free vegetables from the owner. Having nothing else to eat, they had their vegetable breakfast. They promptly left the hotel and met up with the guide and the others. “Let’s go, none else are arriving.”
They walked for days. There was enough food for the trip that they could walk on without needing to hunt. This allowed them to cover much more ground. They past many houses, most abandoned, some villages abandoned. They also found several thriving villages. The bandits have been pushed out of this area, it seemed. Besides local crime, the towns were safe.
It was still dry because it was summer, but as they climbed it began to get colder. The snowy mountains appeared larger before them. When there were forests, it was especially cold in the shade. People shivered and needed to rest. The whole group had to wait for them. The road was in worse condition in some parts and were hard to walk on. One person sprained their ankle. Their friend carried them for days.
The eventually reached a lodge. “This place was once known as Stevens Pass,” the guide said. It was immense for an inn. There was room to fit nearly one thousand people. The injured ankle healed and everyone rested and within a few days they continued. The passed through the populous town of Leavenworth were they spent the night. It was a nice town, with good shops. It seemed very orderly compared to the other town.
Walking was easier downhill, and they covered more ground in a day. They soon were only a day away from Wenatchee. “What do you think it will be like,” asked someone, “I heard they even have electricity,” said another. “Nonsense! There isn’t any electricity and there hasn’t been for near 30 years!” With these remarks of technological marvels, Paul found himself exited. It’s going to be just like before the war. The remarks got more exited with each step toward Wenatchee.
Soon Wenatchee would be in sight. Paul’s heart was beating quickly. He heard Silvia’s was too. The guide smiled as if he had seen many like them, and knew they would be joyous when they got there. “Just a few more minutes,” he told them, “You’ll see the city soon enough.”
Chapter Ten:
I want to get this story going!
Paul got up early, the rising sun shining in his face. He woke Silvia up and they went to the lobby of the inn, where they got free vegetables from the owner. Having nothing else to eat, they had their vegetable breakfast. They promptly left the hotel and met up with the guide and the others. “Let’s go, none else are arriving.”
They walked for days. There was enough food for the trip that they could walk on without needing to hunt. This allowed them to cover much more ground. They past many houses, most abandoned, some villages abandoned. They also found several thriving villages. The bandits have been pushed out of this area, it seemed. Besides local crime, the towns were safe.
It was still dry because it was summer, but as they climbed it began to get colder. The snowy mountains appeared larger before them. When there were forests, it was especially cold in the shade. People shivered and needed to rest. The whole group had to wait for them. The road was in worse condition in some parts and were hard to walk on. One person sprained their ankle. Their friend carried them for days.
The eventually reached a lodge. “This place was once known as Stevens Pass,” the guide said. It was immense for an inn. There was room to fit nearly one thousand people. The injured ankle healed and everyone rested and within a few days they continued. The passed through the populous town of Leavenworth were they spent the night. It was a nice town, with good shops. It seemed very orderly compared to the other town.
Walking was easier downhill, and they covered more ground in a day. They soon were only a day away from Wenatchee. “What do you think it will be like,” asked someone, “I heard they even have electricity,” said another. “Nonsense! There isn’t any electricity and there hasn’t been for near 30 years!” With these remarks of technological marvels, Paul found himself exited. It’s going to be just like before the war. The remarks got more exited with each step toward Wenatchee.
Soon Wenatchee would be in sight. Paul’s heart was beating quickly. He heard Silvia’s was too. The guide smiled as if he had seen many like them, and knew they would be joyous when they got there. “Just a few more minutes,” he told them, “You’ll see the city soon enough.”
Storm and Fire Part Nine
Chapter Nine:
The Road
Silvia and Paul packed their packs the next day and set out with the rising of the sun. The air was cool, and the dew made the ground moist. The sun’s rays shone through the trees, patches of sun here and there. The distant mountains had snow on them, and clouds blew through the passes. The wind wasn’t as strong where they were. A gentle wind blew by, blowing the grass. Chirps could be heard from up in the trees, and every once in a while a startled bird flew out, squawking. Sticks cracked under their feet. It was very peaceful.
They weren’t talking much since they were tired. Without imports of coffee beans from distant tropical places, it was hard to wake up. Few people born after the war even believed in the tropics, thinking them a legend cooked up to make them wish for the pre-war times. This generation was very often irritated they had been born in this dark age, and any attempt to make the pre-war times sound even better, they often ignored.
After a few hours of walking, the air was now dry and the temperature warm. They stopped for a quick meal – “How do you want your deer?” asked Paul for the third meal in a row – which they quickly devoured and continued on walking. The road wound through the valley below them, the Skykomish River running beside it. It looked like the remnants of a few houses were next to it.
Paul announced, “We’ll probably see Sultan and Gold Bar in another few hours. Maybe only one hour. We have been walking for a while.”
Sure enough, by only 3:00 they saw on one side of the road the town of Sultan. What they saw gladdened them. People were walking through the streets. The houses were still standing. There were lights coming from some of the windows. Not a gunshot to be heard. The sound of people could be heard even from where they were, half a mile away. Keeping their guns ready in case of trouble, they ran to the town.
When they got there, the town didn’t look as friendly as it did from half a mile away. It looked like everyone had a gun in case of trouble. That, or a gun to cause trouble. It was just a lawless town, probably full of bandits. You could say the town was well guarded, or that it had nothing to guard against. The houses looked old and weathered. The road was old and worn. Shrubs and thorn bushes had grown where yards once were.
Paul was hungry and tired, hoping to stay at an inn. He had the deer to sell, that which he still had. It was impossible to bring two whole deer along. Seeing a butcher shop, he walked over there. He motioned for Silvia to follow.
“So, how much are you willing to sell that for?”
“Four dollars,” Paul said.
“Dollars? You mean old money? Who uses that?”
“Most people around Snohomish do,” Paul said, confused about the butcher’s lack of understanding.
“Well, now, this isn’t Snohomish. Around here, we use gold,” he held up a few vaguely round gold coins, to prove that they actually did use gold.
“Well, how much you willing to buy it for?”
“Oh, does three gold coins sound reasonable?” the butcher said, holding up three fairly large gold coins.
“Of course!” said Paul, amazed that he could get that much for just cured deer meat.
A man stepped into the shop. “He’s lying, you know.”
“What?!” spluttered the butcher, “This is real gold!”
The man had dirty, ragged clothes, the sleeves of his shirt torn and his hair was long and uncombed. “That is only eight carat gold. It is cheap. The real price should be around ten coins.”
The butcher scowled. “Why don’t you mind your own business, if you want to keep your head. What goes on between a customer and a salesman is not for everyone to hear. Why do you care if someone gets cheated or not?!” His face was turning red.
“I just don’t like seeing someone cheated. Now, pay him what he deserves.”
“Fine,” spat the butcher, “I’ll pay him his ten coins.”
The butcher snatched the meat and threw the coins out the door. “If I count to five and you’re not out, the lot of you, I’ll throw this knife,” and held up a knife. Paul rushed out in a hurry, followed by Silvia. He picked the coins up off the ground and dusted them off.
“Thank you,” he muttered at the man, though frankly he liked to as few enemies as he could in this town.
“Now I’m sure who you are,” he said to Silvia, “You’re the traitor!”
He pulled out his gun and fired at her, but missed. Silvia quickly brought out her gun and fired several times at him. He quickly bled to death and dropped to the ground. Silvia looked little affected by the death, nor did anyone else around. Paul, however, did.
“What?! He only helped us to see if you were the same person as the one who left the bandit organization? I didn’t know they were after you!”
“They just said if I ever met them, they would not show me mercy. I didn’t know that meant they would try to kill me.”
“Well, just be careful. There may be more around.”
Another person walked up to them. He looked remarkably clean and shaven, with expensive looking clothes. “Nice work on killing him. He’d been evading us for quite some time.”
“And you are…?” said Paul, suspicious after the last person they met.
“I’m from Wenatchee, making sure those bandit’s don’t take control of the town. You see all the guns these people have? It is nothing compared to the number they used to have. There are barely any bandits here, but we keep everyone from knowing that they are not here. So that the people feel natural and in their own hands, not being protected.”
“Wait, you’re from Wenatchee? Is it still around?”
“Around? It’s that largest city in Washington! There’s a population of five hundred thousand. Don’t you know?”
Paul’s head swam at that. A city? There were no cities anymore! They had guards patrolling the surrounding area? How could he not have known? Silvia looked equally surprised.
“What, you didn’t know? Well, if you’re from the west, you probably wouldn’t. We don’t want bandits knowing our location. If you’re interested, I could take you there. I am a guide as well as a guard, and am taking a few others as well.”
“It would be appreciated. We are setting out tomorrow. Where will you be?”
The guard explained the location and what the trip would be like, and then they said their goodbyes. Paul and Silvia went back to find an inn, amazed by the news. Civilization seemed like a distant past. It was here now. Paul was smiling the rest of the evening. After getting a room, they decided to look for a restaurant. Paul hadn’t been to one in ages, and was eagerly wondering what it would be like. He walked up to one restaurant that looked fairly good.
The diner was plain. The furniture was nice, though. All of it was hand-carved by the manager. He did a very good job. The plates, cups, and eating utensils were even carved out of wood. The food was nicely cooked, though it was not the best meat. It tasted good anyway, and Paul thought it was much better than cured deer meat.
During dinner they discussed what would happen when they got to the city. Paul expressed his concern about not being important, but Silvia assured him that he would find something to do. He asked her what she planned on doing. She told him she would wait to get to the city to decide. She smiled when she thought of getting a job as a guard. She was hating the gang of bandits more and more. Paul thought that was a good idea, but knew he was only good with hunting, not battling.
They got back to the inn and fell asleep quickly. Walking for seven hours could make a person tired. Paul wondered how Silvia could be so calm after someone attempted to murder her. Well, she used to be a bandit, she must face death well. Hopefully no one else tried to kill them. Their trip should be safe with the guard. Paul was happy. He was eager for tomorrow to come.
The Road
Silvia and Paul packed their packs the next day and set out with the rising of the sun. The air was cool, and the dew made the ground moist. The sun’s rays shone through the trees, patches of sun here and there. The distant mountains had snow on them, and clouds blew through the passes. The wind wasn’t as strong where they were. A gentle wind blew by, blowing the grass. Chirps could be heard from up in the trees, and every once in a while a startled bird flew out, squawking. Sticks cracked under their feet. It was very peaceful.
They weren’t talking much since they were tired. Without imports of coffee beans from distant tropical places, it was hard to wake up. Few people born after the war even believed in the tropics, thinking them a legend cooked up to make them wish for the pre-war times. This generation was very often irritated they had been born in this dark age, and any attempt to make the pre-war times sound even better, they often ignored.
After a few hours of walking, the air was now dry and the temperature warm. They stopped for a quick meal – “How do you want your deer?” asked Paul for the third meal in a row – which they quickly devoured and continued on walking. The road wound through the valley below them, the Skykomish River running beside it. It looked like the remnants of a few houses were next to it.
Paul announced, “We’ll probably see Sultan and Gold Bar in another few hours. Maybe only one hour. We have been walking for a while.”
Sure enough, by only 3:00 they saw on one side of the road the town of Sultan. What they saw gladdened them. People were walking through the streets. The houses were still standing. There were lights coming from some of the windows. Not a gunshot to be heard. The sound of people could be heard even from where they were, half a mile away. Keeping their guns ready in case of trouble, they ran to the town.
When they got there, the town didn’t look as friendly as it did from half a mile away. It looked like everyone had a gun in case of trouble. That, or a gun to cause trouble. It was just a lawless town, probably full of bandits. You could say the town was well guarded, or that it had nothing to guard against. The houses looked old and weathered. The road was old and worn. Shrubs and thorn bushes had grown where yards once were.
Paul was hungry and tired, hoping to stay at an inn. He had the deer to sell, that which he still had. It was impossible to bring two whole deer along. Seeing a butcher shop, he walked over there. He motioned for Silvia to follow.
“So, how much are you willing to sell that for?”
“Four dollars,” Paul said.
“Dollars? You mean old money? Who uses that?”
“Most people around Snohomish do,” Paul said, confused about the butcher’s lack of understanding.
“Well, now, this isn’t Snohomish. Around here, we use gold,” he held up a few vaguely round gold coins, to prove that they actually did use gold.
“Well, how much you willing to buy it for?”
“Oh, does three gold coins sound reasonable?” the butcher said, holding up three fairly large gold coins.
“Of course!” said Paul, amazed that he could get that much for just cured deer meat.
A man stepped into the shop. “He’s lying, you know.”
“What?!” spluttered the butcher, “This is real gold!”
The man had dirty, ragged clothes, the sleeves of his shirt torn and his hair was long and uncombed. “That is only eight carat gold. It is cheap. The real price should be around ten coins.”
The butcher scowled. “Why don’t you mind your own business, if you want to keep your head. What goes on between a customer and a salesman is not for everyone to hear. Why do you care if someone gets cheated or not?!” His face was turning red.
“I just don’t like seeing someone cheated. Now, pay him what he deserves.”
“Fine,” spat the butcher, “I’ll pay him his ten coins.”
The butcher snatched the meat and threw the coins out the door. “If I count to five and you’re not out, the lot of you, I’ll throw this knife,” and held up a knife. Paul rushed out in a hurry, followed by Silvia. He picked the coins up off the ground and dusted them off.
“Thank you,” he muttered at the man, though frankly he liked to as few enemies as he could in this town.
“Now I’m sure who you are,” he said to Silvia, “You’re the traitor!”
He pulled out his gun and fired at her, but missed. Silvia quickly brought out her gun and fired several times at him. He quickly bled to death and dropped to the ground. Silvia looked little affected by the death, nor did anyone else around. Paul, however, did.
“What?! He only helped us to see if you were the same person as the one who left the bandit organization? I didn’t know they were after you!”
“They just said if I ever met them, they would not show me mercy. I didn’t know that meant they would try to kill me.”
“Well, just be careful. There may be more around.”
Another person walked up to them. He looked remarkably clean and shaven, with expensive looking clothes. “Nice work on killing him. He’d been evading us for quite some time.”
“And you are…?” said Paul, suspicious after the last person they met.
“I’m from Wenatchee, making sure those bandit’s don’t take control of the town. You see all the guns these people have? It is nothing compared to the number they used to have. There are barely any bandits here, but we keep everyone from knowing that they are not here. So that the people feel natural and in their own hands, not being protected.”
“Wait, you’re from Wenatchee? Is it still around?”
“Around? It’s that largest city in Washington! There’s a population of five hundred thousand. Don’t you know?”
Paul’s head swam at that. A city? There were no cities anymore! They had guards patrolling the surrounding area? How could he not have known? Silvia looked equally surprised.
“What, you didn’t know? Well, if you’re from the west, you probably wouldn’t. We don’t want bandits knowing our location. If you’re interested, I could take you there. I am a guide as well as a guard, and am taking a few others as well.”
“It would be appreciated. We are setting out tomorrow. Where will you be?”
The guard explained the location and what the trip would be like, and then they said their goodbyes. Paul and Silvia went back to find an inn, amazed by the news. Civilization seemed like a distant past. It was here now. Paul was smiling the rest of the evening. After getting a room, they decided to look for a restaurant. Paul hadn’t been to one in ages, and was eagerly wondering what it would be like. He walked up to one restaurant that looked fairly good.
The diner was plain. The furniture was nice, though. All of it was hand-carved by the manager. He did a very good job. The plates, cups, and eating utensils were even carved out of wood. The food was nicely cooked, though it was not the best meat. It tasted good anyway, and Paul thought it was much better than cured deer meat.
During dinner they discussed what would happen when they got to the city. Paul expressed his concern about not being important, but Silvia assured him that he would find something to do. He asked her what she planned on doing. She told him she would wait to get to the city to decide. She smiled when she thought of getting a job as a guard. She was hating the gang of bandits more and more. Paul thought that was a good idea, but knew he was only good with hunting, not battling.
They got back to the inn and fell asleep quickly. Walking for seven hours could make a person tired. Paul wondered how Silvia could be so calm after someone attempted to murder her. Well, she used to be a bandit, she must face death well. Hopefully no one else tried to kill them. Their trip should be safe with the guard. Paul was happy. He was eager for tomorrow to come.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Now Named: Whispers Of Voice
"Will you help me? Please? If we have two people was can show more thing. You don't have to. I know most people don't like Mrs. Hill or etiquette much." I jabbered as Evan and I walked up the stair to the class room."Sure I'll help you. Nothing better to do and one can never have too much extra credit." Evan told me.We walked into the etiquette classroom. "Mrs. Hill, sorry I'm late! I ran into trouble walking back. I do have a partner though." I told her, as she turned to us."Alright. Thank you for coming Gabriella, Evan." She turned back to the new kids in the room. "Go in order and call out something for them to do, if you wish." The first student asked me to set the table, which I promptly did. I also showed how you switch the silverware in your hands and where to place your napkin and silverware when you're done. While the new kids called out, Evan and I greeted, excused ourselves, spoke, danced, and more, all properly. Note to self: Do something nice for Evan. He's being a really big help! I thought to myself.Finally the dinner bell rang so Evan and I headed down the grand staircase to the dinning hall."I'm sorry you had to do that, I didn't know the new kids could come up with so much stuff for us to do." I said as we walked."It's OK," Evan replied, "I had fun. It was better than studying too. Max, Tilly, Jules, and Gordy at at the table. Matt and Lizzy must be in line. Let's go." Evan escorted me to the end of the line. "I hope the others had a good time and didn't get bothered when they walked back." I worried, frowning. "I doubt they got bothered. Who would want to bother Matthew? Evan countered. "Yeah. I guess you're right. You and Matt need service dog vests now. I'll hack into the service dog website and get some sent over A.S.A.P. Oh....Lizzy needs help again...Tutoring at.....Probably right after classes are done." I began to talk to myself. Evan and I went through the lone and eventually got back to our table. "Hey guys!" I said. "Have fun?" I sat down. "Yeah. The dogs ran for a while." Matt answered. "Hey Evan, pass the salt."
Monday, March 23, 2009
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Problems with Silvia's story, and a couple of afternotes.
Silvia the main problem I see with your story is the switching of tenses. You have first and third and it can really throw off the reader. If I can I may go back and edit them myself. also please soon choose a title. We held a pull to help you so please get a tile soon. Same with you Howard, you didn't like dark washington so please change soon. Also can everyone please try and find a way to build are popularity,a nd ben if you dont post soon you will be axed.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Still Still Unnamed....
"Hey guys, I gotta head back early. I'm doing extra credit." I said, flexing my toes in the sand to make it squeeze up between them. "For what class? Etiquette?" Matthew teased me. "Ummmm......" I stuttered, my complexion turning that of a cherry tomato. "Alright, cya later then, Gabby!" Lizzy said, waving me away. I threw my socks and shoes on and headed up the big hill to the entrance of Fort Warden. Max, you can stay here if you want. "Hey Liz, can you watch Max? I want him to run a bit more. Take him home, will you?" I called over my shoulder. "Sure!" Was the muted reply.
After walking for 20 minutes, I felt like I was being followed. I pretended to tie my shoe and did a 360 sweep with my eyes. I didn't see or hear anything from my supposed follower, so I began to walk again. After another 5 minutes I saw a two men come around a corner. Well, I thought, I can take one. I can take both of them I just hope-Aw crap. I started to swear under my breath. Four guys. I can't take them all. Two behind, two ahead. Maybe they're just meeting. "Hey babe." The tallest guy in front of me said. You really gotta stop jinxing it, moron. If they try anything, I'll take as many as I can down. The other guy in from of me said, "What's up, little girl? Too scared to talk? Come 'ere little one. I don't bite." Maybe not, I thought, But I do. I smiled at my jest and kept walking. Don't let them-aw. You did it again! Now they have you boxed in. Way to go! I walked towards the two front guys and they didn't move. I spun myself like I was looking for an exit and round housed a guy in the chest, following through with a fist to his cheek bone. I ducked out of the was of a guys tyring to grab me and I kicked him behind the knee so e fell on the pavement. Another guy lunged for me and I bit him until he pulled back. I tasted blood. Two of the guys got back up and grabbed me, but the other two were occupied. They were getting beaten around by a boy. I managed to shake the guys off and then I felt one's nose break under my knuckles. The guys decided that they didn't like an almost fair fight and hightailed it away from us. I turned to my helper. "Thanks a lo-Oh hey Evan! What are you doing?" "I was following you and it looked like you could use help, so I cam. I didn't want you to walk all the way to the school alone." He said matter-of-factly. "Oh. Thanks again!" I said, blushing. I should have know he was following me! What if he wasn't a friend?! I berated myself. "Come on," he said, "Let's get back to the school. I'll make sure no more bad guys come get you." He laughed, but his eyes were serious. "Let's go to the school." I agreed.
After walking for 20 minutes, I felt like I was being followed. I pretended to tie my shoe and did a 360 sweep with my eyes. I didn't see or hear anything from my supposed follower, so I began to walk again. After another 5 minutes I saw a two men come around a corner. Well, I thought, I can take one. I can take both of them I just hope-Aw crap. I started to swear under my breath. Four guys. I can't take them all. Two behind, two ahead. Maybe they're just meeting. "Hey babe." The tallest guy in front of me said. You really gotta stop jinxing it, moron. If they try anything, I'll take as many as I can down. The other guy in from of me said, "What's up, little girl? Too scared to talk? Come 'ere little one. I don't bite." Maybe not, I thought, But I do. I smiled at my jest and kept walking. Don't let them-aw. You did it again! Now they have you boxed in. Way to go! I walked towards the two front guys and they didn't move. I spun myself like I was looking for an exit and round housed a guy in the chest, following through with a fist to his cheek bone. I ducked out of the was of a guys tyring to grab me and I kicked him behind the knee so e fell on the pavement. Another guy lunged for me and I bit him until he pulled back. I tasted blood. Two of the guys got back up and grabbed me, but the other two were occupied. They were getting beaten around by a boy. I managed to shake the guys off and then I felt one's nose break under my knuckles. The guys decided that they didn't like an almost fair fight and hightailed it away from us. I turned to my helper. "Thanks a lo-Oh hey Evan! What are you doing?" "I was following you and it looked like you could use help, so I cam. I didn't want you to walk all the way to the school alone." He said matter-of-factly. "Oh. Thanks again!" I said, blushing. I should have know he was following me! What if he wasn't a friend?! I berated myself. "Come on," he said, "Let's get back to the school. I'll make sure no more bad guys come get you." He laughed, but his eyes were serious. "Let's go to the school." I agreed.
Dark Washington Part Seven
And even more!
Chapter 7:
The Fog of Monroe
Paul was having increasingly strange dreams. The dead innkeeper stood up, blood flowing from his wound. He held up a pocketwatch, showing the time 11:53. There was the click, click, click, of the gears. “How many minutes to midnight,” he asked, “until all who have memories of the culture before the war have died? The dark age will begin when there are none left who remember the past.” Click, click, click. “You have little time,” he said, holding it as it showed the time 11:54, “You cannot delay and wait. Head to the east, and beware the southwesterly wind. Go now, for you can spend little time here.” Click, click, click.
Silvia strode into the room. “What’s that sound? I can’t sleep with it.”
The dead innkeeper held it at her, click, click, click, but she did not respond. “Hey, Paul, get up. Can you find that source of the noise? I think it’s your Geiger Counter. I wish I had one…”
Paul jolted awake. Click, click, click came from the pack. The frequency of the clicks seemed to be increasing. Radiation? Yes, the wind was coming from the Seattle. The southwest. He opened his pack and looked at the Geiger counter. It was the source of the noise. Click, click, click click, click click.
Silvia looked fairly calm, “It’s the Geiger Counter? We should be able to stay here with only that much, right?”
“No,” said Paul, “I don’t think we will. The levels of radiation are rather high. The fallout seems to be blowing into this valley; I suggest we go into the mountains for now. I don’t know when we will get to Monroe. They could have a method of protection against it. Most communities do have at least one shelter. What time is it? I feel well rested, at least there’s that.”
“I think it should be 5 AM,” said Silvia, “If Monroe has shelter, why don’t we go there?”
“One, we will not make it soon enough, and two, there is a chance it may not be there. It looks like there is fog coming it. There’s a good chance it is radioactive. I think we should get to high ground before it gets here.”
Paul packed up the materials and put out the embers of the fire. Little wisps of fogs drifted up. It looked very scenic and calm, yet at the same time ominous. They set out at about 5:30 AM, the sun having just risen. The Cascades could be seen, with snow on the caps, and it was a forested area. Some of the trees looked like they had just grown after the war, but a few where old and hundreds of feet tall. Sunlight shone through the branches, making the dew on the leaves glitter. It was about a 5 degree morning but heating up. The trail they took was not too strenuous, but Paul led the way at a fast pace. They were sweating quite a bit, and Silvia began to get tired and complain, but Paul only needed look at the fog and dust behind them, and the click click, click click of the Counter to silence her. Talk between the two travelers was minimal as they were still tired and too exhausted to talk.
There was a bit of uphill climb, which gladdened Paul. The fog had made it nearly half of the way to them. It was odd that there would be this much radiation, but it was known to happen. A bit of radiation stored in the soil kicked up by high winds, or even a nuclear reactor shutting melting down. This level of radioactivity in the air was already dangerous, and the fog was sure to be extremely dense with radioactive particles. Paul decided to walk faster, seeing the click frequency beginning to increase.
“What?” cried Silvia in disdain, “We’re already practically running! Do we need to walk faster? I don’t see what you’re worried about, that fog is moving so slow.”
“Yes, do you see the elevation the top of the fog is at? We need to be there in about 1 hour. I took us 2 hours to get here. We need to go much faster.”
“Humph. Well, I’m tired.”
“Radiation sickness is much worse than being tired. I’m sure you’ve heard stories of what has happened.”
Silvia looked worried at this. They continued on for another hour, passing streams, meadows, even a few decaying houses. Though it would be nice to loot the supplies, Paul found that it often showed remnants of the tragic tales of those living in the wartime. Paul avoided them, as he sometimes thought he saw eyes staring out the broken windows. Silvia seemed equally cautious.
The clicking began to decrease as they reached the top of the ridge. The fog would clearly go under them at the elevation they were at. Paul smiled for the first time that day and cheered. He saw Silvia pointing down at the bottom of the ridge. There was the black line of Route 2 passing through a cluster of buildings, just about to be swallowed in fog. There were no lights, but smoke was rising from some of the buildings. It didn’t appear to be populated.
The town became completely enshrouded in the fallout fog. The trees Paul and Silvia had been walking through minutes ago where lost in the blank fog. From the ridge they were standing on to a distant rising on the other side of Route 2, the entire valley was covered in what looked like a giant cloud, moving up the valley into the mountains. The wind was strong.
Click…click…click… The Geiger Counter slowed its clicks. Paul sat down, breathing a sigh of relief. They had made it. Now, what of Monroe?
“The town down there looks like it has been abandoned for a while,” said Silvia, “What should we do now? I don’t suppose you have a remarkable back up plan to save our lives, now, do you?”
“Not really,” Paul said, deeply disappointed, “I expected it to be here.”
“I don’t care what you expected, I care what we do now,” she said dryly, “Or am I going to have to beg the bandits to re-hire me?”
Paul cast an angry glare at Silvia. “We have guns. If I kill a large animal we can eat the meat and I can tan the skin to make it into leather and use it as a tent.”
“You know how to do that?”
“Yeah, I’ve lived in the wilderness most of my life. I’m experienced in living without much support.”
“It seems that would get lonely.”
“It can be. It’s peaceful though, and I use the time to think. It’s not as bad as it would seem. Eventually I do go into towns, mostly just to see people.”
“It is nice, the wilderness. Unlike before the war. There were hardly any forests around!”
“That is one of the few good things brought by the war. It isn’t that lonely out here, and very peaceful and scenic. Much like how people before the war took nature walks, only longer. Though length doesn’t matter after a while,” said Paul. “Since the fog is covering Monroe, I suggest we head east along this ridge. I think there are smaller towns farther up Route 2. Do you think we should go?”
“Sure,” Silvia said, “No reason why not to. I would suspect some of them would have lasted a while, if there were enough farms around to keep the people fed.”
Paul and Silvia headed east along the ridge. Hoping to find a few small towns that are still around, they travelled all day. The deadly fog began to fade in the valley below. Silvia was reluctant to go down; she heard that a bandit group that once joined with her on a raid patrolled the road. Paul, hearing this, feared that several of the towns may have been burned down. How powerful are the forces in the east, he wondered. He was very anxious to find out.
Chapter 7:
The Fog of Monroe
Paul was having increasingly strange dreams. The dead innkeeper stood up, blood flowing from his wound. He held up a pocketwatch, showing the time 11:53. There was the click, click, click, of the gears. “How many minutes to midnight,” he asked, “until all who have memories of the culture before the war have died? The dark age will begin when there are none left who remember the past.” Click, click, click. “You have little time,” he said, holding it as it showed the time 11:54, “You cannot delay and wait. Head to the east, and beware the southwesterly wind. Go now, for you can spend little time here.” Click, click, click.
Silvia strode into the room. “What’s that sound? I can’t sleep with it.”
The dead innkeeper held it at her, click, click, click, but she did not respond. “Hey, Paul, get up. Can you find that source of the noise? I think it’s your Geiger Counter. I wish I had one…”
Paul jolted awake. Click, click, click came from the pack. The frequency of the clicks seemed to be increasing. Radiation? Yes, the wind was coming from the Seattle. The southwest. He opened his pack and looked at the Geiger counter. It was the source of the noise. Click, click, click click, click click.
Silvia looked fairly calm, “It’s the Geiger Counter? We should be able to stay here with only that much, right?”
“No,” said Paul, “I don’t think we will. The levels of radiation are rather high. The fallout seems to be blowing into this valley; I suggest we go into the mountains for now. I don’t know when we will get to Monroe. They could have a method of protection against it. Most communities do have at least one shelter. What time is it? I feel well rested, at least there’s that.”
“I think it should be 5 AM,” said Silvia, “If Monroe has shelter, why don’t we go there?”
“One, we will not make it soon enough, and two, there is a chance it may not be there. It looks like there is fog coming it. There’s a good chance it is radioactive. I think we should get to high ground before it gets here.”
Paul packed up the materials and put out the embers of the fire. Little wisps of fogs drifted up. It looked very scenic and calm, yet at the same time ominous. They set out at about 5:30 AM, the sun having just risen. The Cascades could be seen, with snow on the caps, and it was a forested area. Some of the trees looked like they had just grown after the war, but a few where old and hundreds of feet tall. Sunlight shone through the branches, making the dew on the leaves glitter. It was about a 5 degree morning but heating up. The trail they took was not too strenuous, but Paul led the way at a fast pace. They were sweating quite a bit, and Silvia began to get tired and complain, but Paul only needed look at the fog and dust behind them, and the click click, click click of the Counter to silence her. Talk between the two travelers was minimal as they were still tired and too exhausted to talk.
There was a bit of uphill climb, which gladdened Paul. The fog had made it nearly half of the way to them. It was odd that there would be this much radiation, but it was known to happen. A bit of radiation stored in the soil kicked up by high winds, or even a nuclear reactor shutting melting down. This level of radioactivity in the air was already dangerous, and the fog was sure to be extremely dense with radioactive particles. Paul decided to walk faster, seeing the click frequency beginning to increase.
“What?” cried Silvia in disdain, “We’re already practically running! Do we need to walk faster? I don’t see what you’re worried about, that fog is moving so slow.”
“Yes, do you see the elevation the top of the fog is at? We need to be there in about 1 hour. I took us 2 hours to get here. We need to go much faster.”
“Humph. Well, I’m tired.”
“Radiation sickness is much worse than being tired. I’m sure you’ve heard stories of what has happened.”
Silvia looked worried at this. They continued on for another hour, passing streams, meadows, even a few decaying houses. Though it would be nice to loot the supplies, Paul found that it often showed remnants of the tragic tales of those living in the wartime. Paul avoided them, as he sometimes thought he saw eyes staring out the broken windows. Silvia seemed equally cautious.
The clicking began to decrease as they reached the top of the ridge. The fog would clearly go under them at the elevation they were at. Paul smiled for the first time that day and cheered. He saw Silvia pointing down at the bottom of the ridge. There was the black line of Route 2 passing through a cluster of buildings, just about to be swallowed in fog. There were no lights, but smoke was rising from some of the buildings. It didn’t appear to be populated.
The town became completely enshrouded in the fallout fog. The trees Paul and Silvia had been walking through minutes ago where lost in the blank fog. From the ridge they were standing on to a distant rising on the other side of Route 2, the entire valley was covered in what looked like a giant cloud, moving up the valley into the mountains. The wind was strong.
Click…click…click… The Geiger Counter slowed its clicks. Paul sat down, breathing a sigh of relief. They had made it. Now, what of Monroe?
“The town down there looks like it has been abandoned for a while,” said Silvia, “What should we do now? I don’t suppose you have a remarkable back up plan to save our lives, now, do you?”
“Not really,” Paul said, deeply disappointed, “I expected it to be here.”
“I don’t care what you expected, I care what we do now,” she said dryly, “Or am I going to have to beg the bandits to re-hire me?”
Paul cast an angry glare at Silvia. “We have guns. If I kill a large animal we can eat the meat and I can tan the skin to make it into leather and use it as a tent.”
“You know how to do that?”
“Yeah, I’ve lived in the wilderness most of my life. I’m experienced in living without much support.”
“It seems that would get lonely.”
“It can be. It’s peaceful though, and I use the time to think. It’s not as bad as it would seem. Eventually I do go into towns, mostly just to see people.”
“It is nice, the wilderness. Unlike before the war. There were hardly any forests around!”
“That is one of the few good things brought by the war. It isn’t that lonely out here, and very peaceful and scenic. Much like how people before the war took nature walks, only longer. Though length doesn’t matter after a while,” said Paul. “Since the fog is covering Monroe, I suggest we head east along this ridge. I think there are smaller towns farther up Route 2. Do you think we should go?”
“Sure,” Silvia said, “No reason why not to. I would suspect some of them would have lasted a while, if there were enough farms around to keep the people fed.”
Paul and Silvia headed east along the ridge. Hoping to find a few small towns that are still around, they travelled all day. The deadly fog began to fade in the valley below. Silvia was reluctant to go down; she heard that a bandit group that once joined with her on a raid patrolled the road. Paul, hearing this, feared that several of the towns may have been burned down. How powerful are the forces in the east, he wondered. He was very anxious to find out.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Eternal Feather 3
Freedom was sweet while others were in school. Never mind the sharp eyes that followed. Chihiro was able to spread her wings and soar. Fly all the way to the park where Hirono would meet her. Looking down at her watch it said 3:20, still plenty of time to get ready. But minutes kept ticking by and no one approached her. "Geez , I must rember to lecture him about not making the girl wait", chihiro muttered under her breath, but the time still moved on and by 3:40 Chihiro decided to call. All that came up was Hirono's answering machine.
"Beep-Hello, Hirono? Have you possibly mistaken our meeting place? It's by the bench infront of the fountain. You should know,right? If your lost call me. I'll come pick you up."
"Beep-This is Chihiro. Are you all right Hirono ou didn't have a accident on the way over, did you? Contact me right after you hear this."
"Beep-Enough of this! At least contact me! You can at least give me a call! I'm worried about you!"
"Beep-This is Chihiro. Hirono? Please pick up the phone. You're there, right? You're actually listening to this right? Pick up mthe phone. Let's have a talk. Talk to me."
"Beep-Why don't you come? Why don't you pick up the phone? Why don't you answer my calls? Why? Why are you silent? Why?"
"Beep-Hirono? Please contact me. I'm not really mad or anything. I'll wait till we meet. I'll keep waiting till I hear your voice!"
"Beep-Please, I beg you... Come and see me. I just need to see your face. I just need to hear your voice. Please..."
"Beep-Hirono, you will come right...? I... should keep waiting, right...? I believe you... I believe you..."
"Beep-Please... Answer me... You can answer by mail too... even a single word is fine... Please... Don't leave me alone... I'll wait for you... I'll keep waiting for you...!"
"Beep-Why... Why...? Even though you promised me... Even though I believe you... Why...?"
"Beep-Am I no good...? Am I no good perhaps...? Do you hate me...? If thats the case, please tell me so...! If you hate me, just say it! Don't stay silent! Say something! I beg you! I beg you, please say something!"
"Beep-... I'm sorry... I'm sorry that I said something weird... Are you mad...? You're mad, right...? I always have things of my own... Say things I like... abuse you... I'm sorry... I'm sorry...!"
"Beep-I didn't manage to fall asleep. I was looking forward to today's date. When I thought about you, my heart kept pounding... This is my first time having this feeling... I didn't know what to do... I wanted to see you... I wanted to see you..."
" Beep-Help me, Hirono... Help me...! I don't want to disappear...! I don't want to disappear from your heart...!
"Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep-..."
Tears flooded down Chihiro's cheeks as a clock somewhere chimed 10:00. "I... I have vanished..." and suddenly her arm shot up, the cell phone flying through the air and with a splash sending droplets of water scattering around landed in the pool.
"Beep-Hello, Hirono? Have you possibly mistaken our meeting place? It's by the bench infront of the fountain. You should know,right? If your lost call me. I'll come pick you up."
"Beep-This is Chihiro. Are you all right Hirono ou didn't have a accident on the way over, did you? Contact me right after you hear this."
"Beep-Enough of this! At least contact me! You can at least give me a call! I'm worried about you!"
"Beep-This is Chihiro. Hirono? Please pick up the phone. You're there, right? You're actually listening to this right? Pick up mthe phone. Let's have a talk. Talk to me."
"Beep-Why don't you come? Why don't you pick up the phone? Why don't you answer my calls? Why? Why are you silent? Why?"
"Beep-Hirono? Please contact me. I'm not really mad or anything. I'll wait till we meet. I'll keep waiting till I hear your voice!"
"Beep-Please, I beg you... Come and see me. I just need to see your face. I just need to hear your voice. Please..."
"Beep-Hirono, you will come right...? I... should keep waiting, right...? I believe you... I believe you..."
"Beep-Please... Answer me... You can answer by mail too... even a single word is fine... Please... Don't leave me alone... I'll wait for you... I'll keep waiting for you...!"
"Beep-Why... Why...? Even though you promised me... Even though I believe you... Why...?"
"Beep-Am I no good...? Am I no good perhaps...? Do you hate me...? If thats the case, please tell me so...! If you hate me, just say it! Don't stay silent! Say something! I beg you! I beg you, please say something!"
"Beep-... I'm sorry... I'm sorry that I said something weird... Are you mad...? You're mad, right...? I always have things of my own... Say things I like... abuse you... I'm sorry... I'm sorry...!"
"Beep-I didn't manage to fall asleep. I was looking forward to today's date. When I thought about you, my heart kept pounding... This is my first time having this feeling... I didn't know what to do... I wanted to see you... I wanted to see you..."
" Beep-Help me, Hirono... Help me...! I don't want to disappear...! I don't want to disappear from your heart...!
"Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep-..."
Tears flooded down Chihiro's cheeks as a clock somewhere chimed 10:00. "I... I have vanished..." and suddenly her arm shot up, the cell phone flying through the air and with a splash sending droplets of water scattering around landed in the pool.
Eternal Feather 2
Shcool the next day was awkard for Hirono. Although she had acted like everything was fine the mines were still in the field, and it took a braver man then him to cross. Chihiro on the other hand was seemingly free. Gliding about life she had experianced the best thing in the world. And in some ways Hirono felt that as well. It had been truely the first time that anyone had truely wanted him, but he did not want to risk destroying that feeling. So avoidance for a couple of days was the best thing. It would be painful now that he had experianced this feeling, malnourishing. Still though he had to do it.
When Hirono got home though his plans suddenly changed. His phone suddenly went off and the caller ID showed up as the person he want'd to avoid. "H-hello?" Hirono answered a cave of fear opening up and swallowing him. "Hey, Hey Hirono!", came the chirpy voice from the other side. "Let's go on another date." "Why, I bought you your bike". "We kissed, that means were lovers, and lovers go on dates." "PLease not now I am... um..." "don't worry, I'll even forgive you if you flip my skirt." "Nock it off! I'm not that kind of guy!" "hee -hee, your're so funny when your angry." "Fine, anyway when shall we go on this 'date'." "Let's skip school tomarrow, kay? My parents are out of town." "skipping? Are you sure that is a good idea?" "Both are grades are low, so what does it matter! I'll meet you at the fountain at the park at 3:00, do you promise...?" "Yeah I do." "Good." 'Click' the phone went dead, but Hirono's spirits soared. She wasn' mad, contrary she seemed to be the happiest she'd ever been. Suddenly the phone rang again. "Hello?" "Hello, son." "Dad!" I'm flying in tomarrow come and pick me up." "wait, why are you here!?" I'll answer your questions tomarrow, be there a 3:30. Bye."
Note: First bit undergoing serious reconstruction and modification. Deleting Hirono being picked on and supposed theft!
When Hirono got home though his plans suddenly changed. His phone suddenly went off and the caller ID showed up as the person he want'd to avoid. "H-hello?" Hirono answered a cave of fear opening up and swallowing him. "Hey, Hey Hirono!", came the chirpy voice from the other side. "Let's go on another date." "Why, I bought you your bike". "We kissed, that means were lovers, and lovers go on dates." "PLease not now I am... um..." "don't worry, I'll even forgive you if you flip my skirt." "Nock it off! I'm not that kind of guy!" "hee -hee, your're so funny when your angry." "Fine, anyway when shall we go on this 'date'." "Let's skip school tomarrow, kay? My parents are out of town." "skipping? Are you sure that is a good idea?" "Both are grades are low, so what does it matter! I'll meet you at the fountain at the park at 3:00, do you promise...?" "Yeah I do." "Good." 'Click' the phone went dead, but Hirono's spirits soared. She wasn' mad, contrary she seemed to be the happiest she'd ever been. Suddenly the phone rang again. "Hello?" "Hello, son." "Dad!" I'm flying in tomarrow come and pick me up." "wait, why are you here!?" I'll answer your questions tomarrow, be there a 3:30. Bye."
Note: First bit undergoing serious reconstruction and modification. Deleting Hirono being picked on and supposed theft!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Dark Washington Part 6 and 1/2
Chapter 6.5
In Which the Author Desperatly Tries to Develop The Main Character's Personalities
“Your name is Silvia, right?” asked Paul
“Is that all you have to say to me after two hours of walking?” Silvia said, irritated by the silence of her comrade.
“I’m just travelling with you to have your experience in fighting, not to talk to you. Isn’t that all you came along for? To get help going to the next town.”
“You don’t need to be so anti-social. Do you really hate me this much? I quit the bandit organization after all.”
Paul stood there, silent. “Why did you do that, anyway?”
“Just an impulse, I guess. I wanted to see things from a different angle.”
“Really? You didn’t care at all about what I said?”
Silvia shrugged. “That may have been part of it,” she said, “but I was getting tired of those people anyway. I just want to go places that bandits don’t go to.”
“Because people don’t like bandits, bandits threaten them and burn their towns. Either way, it still comes down to a moral issue,” Paul stated, “What you seem to want to see is societies, the exact thing you said didn’t exist and what bandits are constantly destroying with every single burglary they commit.”
“Well, your little lecture did get me interested in the technology and town feel. I don’t care about these confusing and useless moral issues you talk about.”
“Fine, fine, but do you care about contributing something? To help people?”
“If it earns me fame and money, sure. I don’t care much about the people, though.”
“You don’t? You don’t care about making people’s lives better?”
“Well, maybe a bit, but only if it’s going to get me money anyway. I wouldn’t do it only to make them happy while at my expense.”
Paul realized the sun had already gone down. It was really dark. His eyes had adjusted to it quickly enough that he hadn’t noticed it. It had been a long walk. Monroe lay just on the other side of some hills. It would be in view by tomorrow. He was a bit glad to have someone to talk to, even if they were a former bandit. He had travelled alone for years, only stopping into town every few months. She seemed to be a nicer person than back when she had was threatening him. Or maybe it was only because she wasn’t threatening him. Either way, it felt safer to travel this way too.
Paul started a camp fire fairly quickly. He used some matches, but would be able to start one anyway with a fire bow. It would have been nice to cook something, but all he had was canned food. He didn’t think cooking the nasty, stale canned food would make it taste better. However, with a lack of anything else to do, he tried it anyway. It ended up with just nasty, stale, burnt canned food.
It was early summer and it was a warm, clear night, so the camp fire would be enough to keep them warm. Paul checked his pack, and there were three sleeping pads. They would at least provide some comfort. As a precaution, a common one of those times, Paul stacked branches and one of the pads around the edges of their camp. It should keep the fire hidden from any thieves lurking around. The smoke would be hard to see, as the moon was nearly fully dark.
“What do you want to talk about?”
“Do we really need to talk about anything? I’m tired. If you don’t recall, I spent most of last night running from your bandit friends. I’m going to sleep now, you do what you want. Just don’t let the fire get large enough to give away our location.”
“Can I borrow that graphing calculator? I’m curious about a few things, and it has internet…” she said, reaching for the calculator lying on the ground.
“NO! My graphing calculator!” said Paul, snatching it away, “I found it. It’s mine, my own. It’s much too valuable to me to be letting anyone use it.”
“Fine. I guess I’m going to sleep now to. Night… wait, what’s your name? You never told me.”
Paul thought for a second, wondering if it would be fine to tell someone his name, in case others had heard of him before, but decided giving away his real name would be fine. “I’m Paul Roberts. Now be quiet so I can sleep.”
Paul fell asleep a few minutes later, despite the uncomfortable pads. The fire slowly burned out. Tomorrow could be a turning point in both of their lives. Monroe, a large town, did it exist? Paul’s dreams where filled with hope it was. He secretly thought, though, that no town that large could survive. Tomorrow: what would it hold?
In Which the Author Desperatly Tries to Develop The Main Character's Personalities
“Your name is Silvia, right?” asked Paul
“Is that all you have to say to me after two hours of walking?” Silvia said, irritated by the silence of her comrade.
“I’m just travelling with you to have your experience in fighting, not to talk to you. Isn’t that all you came along for? To get help going to the next town.”
“You don’t need to be so anti-social. Do you really hate me this much? I quit the bandit organization after all.”
Paul stood there, silent. “Why did you do that, anyway?”
“Just an impulse, I guess. I wanted to see things from a different angle.”
“Really? You didn’t care at all about what I said?”
Silvia shrugged. “That may have been part of it,” she said, “but I was getting tired of those people anyway. I just want to go places that bandits don’t go to.”
“Because people don’t like bandits, bandits threaten them and burn their towns. Either way, it still comes down to a moral issue,” Paul stated, “What you seem to want to see is societies, the exact thing you said didn’t exist and what bandits are constantly destroying with every single burglary they commit.”
“Well, your little lecture did get me interested in the technology and town feel. I don’t care about these confusing and useless moral issues you talk about.”
“Fine, fine, but do you care about contributing something? To help people?”
“If it earns me fame and money, sure. I don’t care much about the people, though.”
“You don’t? You don’t care about making people’s lives better?”
“Well, maybe a bit, but only if it’s going to get me money anyway. I wouldn’t do it only to make them happy while at my expense.”
Paul realized the sun had already gone down. It was really dark. His eyes had adjusted to it quickly enough that he hadn’t noticed it. It had been a long walk. Monroe lay just on the other side of some hills. It would be in view by tomorrow. He was a bit glad to have someone to talk to, even if they were a former bandit. He had travelled alone for years, only stopping into town every few months. She seemed to be a nicer person than back when she had was threatening him. Or maybe it was only because she wasn’t threatening him. Either way, it felt safer to travel this way too.
Paul started a camp fire fairly quickly. He used some matches, but would be able to start one anyway with a fire bow. It would have been nice to cook something, but all he had was canned food. He didn’t think cooking the nasty, stale canned food would make it taste better. However, with a lack of anything else to do, he tried it anyway. It ended up with just nasty, stale, burnt canned food.
It was early summer and it was a warm, clear night, so the camp fire would be enough to keep them warm. Paul checked his pack, and there were three sleeping pads. They would at least provide some comfort. As a precaution, a common one of those times, Paul stacked branches and one of the pads around the edges of their camp. It should keep the fire hidden from any thieves lurking around. The smoke would be hard to see, as the moon was nearly fully dark.
“What do you want to talk about?”
“Do we really need to talk about anything? I’m tired. If you don’t recall, I spent most of last night running from your bandit friends. I’m going to sleep now, you do what you want. Just don’t let the fire get large enough to give away our location.”
“Can I borrow that graphing calculator? I’m curious about a few things, and it has internet…” she said, reaching for the calculator lying on the ground.
“NO! My graphing calculator!” said Paul, snatching it away, “I found it. It’s mine, my own. It’s much too valuable to me to be letting anyone use it.”
“Fine. I guess I’m going to sleep now to. Night… wait, what’s your name? You never told me.”
Paul thought for a second, wondering if it would be fine to tell someone his name, in case others had heard of him before, but decided giving away his real name would be fine. “I’m Paul Roberts. Now be quiet so I can sleep.”
Paul fell asleep a few minutes later, despite the uncomfortable pads. The fire slowly burned out. Tomorrow could be a turning point in both of their lives. Monroe, a large town, did it exist? Paul’s dreams where filled with hope it was. He secretly thought, though, that no town that large could survive. Tomorrow: what would it hold?
Monday, March 16, 2009
Still Unnamed....
As the boys walked us to our dorm I asked if they were doing the Animals class. "Yeah. We both are." Said Evan. "Where are you animals then?" I asked, mystified. "We couldn't find a good enough dog." Matthew told me sheepishly. "OK. Guess you'll have to use the school's animals, huh? That's not good!" Lizzy said, looking worried. "Well, we gotta go. Night Matt, Evan." I said, stoping at our door. We waved and went inside. Lizzy closed the door and i got in the computer. Almost everyone at the school has a lap top. "Liz, do you have paper? Like Newspaper?" I asked, still looking at the screen. "Yeah. Here." She said, handing me the paper. My fingers drummed across the keys quickly. I paused to look at the ads in the paper and made mental notes before I went back to the lap top. After I searched a few hits I closed the computer and grabbed my PJ's. "I'm going to bed, Lizzy. Night." I walked into the bathroom to brush my teeth and shower. When I came out Lizzy had changed and Stacy was back. She was changing into her night gown. Stacy said goodnight to me and I waved back at her. I got onto my bed and looked outside to watch the stars. Come on Max. Up Up. He lept up onto the bed and snuggled next to me. I hugged him close and stroked him until i fell asleep.The next morning Lizzy and I walked to breakfast with Max and Tilly. "I have planned today, Liz. It'll be boring today while the new kids are on tours, wanna hang out?" I asked Lizzy as we go into line. We had left Max and Tilly at the same table. "Sure! I know it'll be fun so I'm in!" Lizzy replied enthusiastically. We went through the line and got our food and the dog's. When we got back to the table, Matthew and Evan were already there. "Hey Guys! I have a great idea for today! And you guys are a key part. Can you come?" I spoke rapidly, smiling at them. "Uh huh. I can. I have nothing better to do. What say you Evan?" Matt replied, poking Evan in the ribs. "Sure, I can come." Evan flinched from the poke while he agreed.Later that morning many of the older students walked out to Port Townsend. Most would go to Fort Warden and spend the day at the beach. "Come on! We're going on errands, not lolly gagging at the beach!" I called to my group. "Aw come on!" Matthew whined, teasingly. "OK, so no beach, then where?" He continued. "Somewhere." I laughed. "This way. I know where I'm going, don't worry." We walked up the hill into the neighbor hoods. I found the address i had noted and gave Lizzy a paper with writing on it. Then i knocked and backed up behind the others. A lady answered the door in a dirty shirt. "Hi!" Lizzy said to the woman, drawing her attention. "We wanted to see the dog you wanted to give away. May we?" "Sure." the woman said. She disappeared into the house and returned walking a Beagle on a leash. "Be careful! He bites." Hey I thought to the beagle, Why do you bite people? These people scare me. They hit me. I want out! The beagle whimpered at me. I signed to Lizzy and she got it. "Excuse me ma'am, we'll take the dog to a good home and make sure he doesn't bite anyone." "Uh....OK. Bye." She said, closing the door. Don't worry, we'll help you. What's you name? And what boy do you want to be yours? I asked the beagle. My name's Gordy. And I want the not so big one. "Hey Evan, the beagle is yours. His name is Gordy." I handed him the leash. We walked to the next address i had noted and i knocked again before moving behind them. When a man answered the door, Lizzy repeated the request. "Oh thank goodness! He's much too rambunctious for us and we just had a baby. Please take him to a good home!" The man said before bringing the dog out. He was about a year old and a golden retriever. "Thanks!" Lizzy said, flashing the man an angelic smile. Here puppy. I thought at him. He walked over to me. Don't worry, we'll take good care of you. You belong to the really tall guy. He's really nice though. I told him. Max, please explain to the new dogs what we're going to do. "Let's go to the beach now!" I said skipping away. We walked down the road to the Fort and put Max and Tilly on leash so we could walk into it. We all walked down the big hill to the beach to spend the rest of the day lazily.
The Enclosed Instruction Book:
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By posting you also agree that you must pay $100 to Mason within a year unless you are Mason or Carl.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Dark Washington Part 6-6.5
Chapter 6 continues in the next post.
Chapter 6:
To Monroe
Paul ran for about twenty minutes. He eventually collapsed to the ground, exhausted. Hiding in a cluster of bushes, he relaxed. He couldn’t see anyone after him. He must have lost them. Or did the bandit come alone? That wouldn’t make sense. It could have been, though. “Did they underestimate me this much?” he thought, irritated.
Paul was hungry, and sat down to eat. They canned food was tasting worse as he ate more of it. It could have been there ever since the start of the war. Even before that, perhaps. Could canned food still be good after this long? It still sustained him, but he doubted he was eating enough nutrients. It wasn’t really the time to worry about a balanced diet. He had to keep moving to get to Monroe. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too far.
Monroe might be gone, though. Possibly even a hideout for thieves. What would he do then? His supplies couldn’t sustain him much longer than that. It was unlikely he could find anymore. Bandits had looted most of the food in the area. However, there was the bandit he shot… could she have any supplies? Maybe even a better gun. His was too weak to be trustworthy. It would be a risk, if any other bandits were still around. They probably would have even looted their unconscious companion for supplies, and left her to die. But from the fact he hadn’t been followed, he guessed there were not any.
Walking back, Paul realized his legs were bleeding from being scraped on branches and weeds during his running. It didn’t matter too much, as they were only minor cuts. However, the wound in his side was a problem. After the war, though, many of the doctors had died treating the troops. With the destruction of most modern technology, modern medicine had also vanished. If a cut got infected, death was a likely result. The sooner he got to Monroe, the sooner he could wrap it in cloth to prevent infection.
Paul quickly recognized the area he had shot the bandit. He would have to be careful; other bandits could be nearby or the bandit he shot could have woken up by now. No one was around, and he soon spotted the unconscious bandit.
The bandit was carrying a powerful rifle. She had a good amount of supplies in her backpack. There was food, ammunition, and some medical supplies. Paul rejoiced at this, especially the two bottles of disinfectant. That was getting rarer as time went on. Paul used some of the disinfectant, a Hydrogen Peroxide/water mixture, and wrapped his wound and scratches in the linen.
Now, what to do about the bandit? Without the supplies she wouldn’t last long. The wounds the shot had given her looked like they were getting worse. Paul decided to pour some of the H2O2 disinfectant on her wounds. They could get infected, too, and then she would stand an even lower chance of surviving. The pain from the chemical seemed to startle her.
“Ow…” she mumbled, still barely conscious. Paul jumped back, startled. What would he do if she woke up? Would she yell for help to the other bandits? Should he knock her unconscious again? It would be rather cruel to kill her; after all, she did let him live. To his distress, she sat up, regaining consciousness.
“Ow… where am I?” she asked. She looked up at Paul, confused.
“You’re that guy I found from under the bridge. Did you come to help me? Who injured me?”
Paul felt guilty for shooting her. She didn’t seem to even intend to capture him. She could have left on her own. Not wanting her to know he had shot her, Paul said, “It must have been one of the other bandits. I just saw you here…”
The bandit sprang up and kicked him before he could react. He fell to the ground. “Liar!” she shouted, “you were the one who shot me! I saw! At least take responsibility for your actions!” She kicked him in the side again.
Paul shouted, surprised at the unexpected attack. “So you knew all along! You fooled me!” he accused, “I was only trying to defend myself! Last time you saw me you were threatening me with a gun!”
“I understand what you did. I just don’t like people who lie. And I’m getting revenge,” she grinned.
“What do you want, then!?” Paul shouted.
“I want my food and supplies back,” she replied, “and I thought I was the bandit. Aren’t the bandits supposed to be the ones doing the stealing?”
“Fine, take it, and go back to your thief friends!”
“Actually, I’m not part of the North Columbia bandits anymore. I decided to go off on my own,” she said, “I’m not really a bandit now.”
Paul looked puzzled. “Fine, do what you want, just go.”
“Actually, I was wondering if you wanted to travel with me. I don’t know where any towns are.”
“Why would I want to travel with a person like you?!” Paul shouted.
“Because I have a gun and experience. Besides, don’t you owe me for letting you live?”
“Fine, but only until I get to Monroe.
“That’s fine.
Paul stood up and brushed the dirt off of his jeans. He still didn’t trust the bandit, especially after what just happened, but help is always a good thing. Paul gave the supplies back to the bandit, though he didn’t know if the supplies he had were enough to make it past Monroe if it no longer existed. If they didn’t, he could still hunt. Or steal the needed supplies from the bandit.
The sun was beginning to sink lower in the sky. It looked as if they could get to Monroe by tomorrow.
CHAPTER 6 CONTINUES IN THE NEXT POST
Chapter 6:
To Monroe
Paul ran for about twenty minutes. He eventually collapsed to the ground, exhausted. Hiding in a cluster of bushes, he relaxed. He couldn’t see anyone after him. He must have lost them. Or did the bandit come alone? That wouldn’t make sense. It could have been, though. “Did they underestimate me this much?” he thought, irritated.
Paul was hungry, and sat down to eat. They canned food was tasting worse as he ate more of it. It could have been there ever since the start of the war. Even before that, perhaps. Could canned food still be good after this long? It still sustained him, but he doubted he was eating enough nutrients. It wasn’t really the time to worry about a balanced diet. He had to keep moving to get to Monroe. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too far.
Monroe might be gone, though. Possibly even a hideout for thieves. What would he do then? His supplies couldn’t sustain him much longer than that. It was unlikely he could find anymore. Bandits had looted most of the food in the area. However, there was the bandit he shot… could she have any supplies? Maybe even a better gun. His was too weak to be trustworthy. It would be a risk, if any other bandits were still around. They probably would have even looted their unconscious companion for supplies, and left her to die. But from the fact he hadn’t been followed, he guessed there were not any.
Walking back, Paul realized his legs were bleeding from being scraped on branches and weeds during his running. It didn’t matter too much, as they were only minor cuts. However, the wound in his side was a problem. After the war, though, many of the doctors had died treating the troops. With the destruction of most modern technology, modern medicine had also vanished. If a cut got infected, death was a likely result. The sooner he got to Monroe, the sooner he could wrap it in cloth to prevent infection.
Paul quickly recognized the area he had shot the bandit. He would have to be careful; other bandits could be nearby or the bandit he shot could have woken up by now. No one was around, and he soon spotted the unconscious bandit.
The bandit was carrying a powerful rifle. She had a good amount of supplies in her backpack. There was food, ammunition, and some medical supplies. Paul rejoiced at this, especially the two bottles of disinfectant. That was getting rarer as time went on. Paul used some of the disinfectant, a Hydrogen Peroxide/water mixture, and wrapped his wound and scratches in the linen.
Now, what to do about the bandit? Without the supplies she wouldn’t last long. The wounds the shot had given her looked like they were getting worse. Paul decided to pour some of the H2O2 disinfectant on her wounds. They could get infected, too, and then she would stand an even lower chance of surviving. The pain from the chemical seemed to startle her.
“Ow…” she mumbled, still barely conscious. Paul jumped back, startled. What would he do if she woke up? Would she yell for help to the other bandits? Should he knock her unconscious again? It would be rather cruel to kill her; after all, she did let him live. To his distress, she sat up, regaining consciousness.
“Ow… where am I?” she asked. She looked up at Paul, confused.
“You’re that guy I found from under the bridge. Did you come to help me? Who injured me?”
Paul felt guilty for shooting her. She didn’t seem to even intend to capture him. She could have left on her own. Not wanting her to know he had shot her, Paul said, “It must have been one of the other bandits. I just saw you here…”
The bandit sprang up and kicked him before he could react. He fell to the ground. “Liar!” she shouted, “you were the one who shot me! I saw! At least take responsibility for your actions!” She kicked him in the side again.
Paul shouted, surprised at the unexpected attack. “So you knew all along! You fooled me!” he accused, “I was only trying to defend myself! Last time you saw me you were threatening me with a gun!”
“I understand what you did. I just don’t like people who lie. And I’m getting revenge,” she grinned.
“What do you want, then!?” Paul shouted.
“I want my food and supplies back,” she replied, “and I thought I was the bandit. Aren’t the bandits supposed to be the ones doing the stealing?”
“Fine, take it, and go back to your thief friends!”
“Actually, I’m not part of the North Columbia bandits anymore. I decided to go off on my own,” she said, “I’m not really a bandit now.”
Paul looked puzzled. “Fine, do what you want, just go.”
“Actually, I was wondering if you wanted to travel with me. I don’t know where any towns are.”
“Why would I want to travel with a person like you?!” Paul shouted.
“Because I have a gun and experience. Besides, don’t you owe me for letting you live?”
“Fine, but only until I get to Monroe.
“That’s fine.
Paul stood up and brushed the dirt off of his jeans. He still didn’t trust the bandit, especially after what just happened, but help is always a good thing. Paul gave the supplies back to the bandit, though he didn’t know if the supplies he had were enough to make it past Monroe if it no longer existed. If they didn’t, he could still hunt. Or steal the needed supplies from the bandit.
The sun was beginning to sink lower in the sky. It looked as if they could get to Monroe by tomorrow.
CHAPTER 6 CONTINUES IN THE NEXT POST
Dark Washington Part Five
Chapter 5:
Looking for a New Home
Paul decided by noon that he should set out again toward any civilized areas. He began to scour the cabin for any items he would need. It ended up fairly successful, as he found a large backpack to hold his supplies; a shotgun and ammunition; enough food to last for nearly a week; a few lithium batteries with miniature solar panels to charge them, and a flashlight to go with them; a few maps of the area, which could end up very useful; but the best find of all had to be the graphing calculator.
It was a TI-176 Gold, one of the best models you could get. It could store data and to almost any math problem one could think up. The main thing that was great about this was that it came with the capability to connect to internet as well. It was said a few communities still had servers that could transmit data, and the calculator had a browser. It could run on the lithium batteries as well.
Putting the items in his backpack and checking the map – which was highly outdated, being from 2010, and some of the towns may not be there anymore. What was most amusing to Paul was the word “Seattle” in large letters, and showed it covering a large area. There was no Seattle anymore. The Chinese bombed it in 2012, at the very beginning of the war. It was the first to go.
Still, to the east was a town called Monroe. It seemed small enough to be ignored by the Chinese, and big enough to keep the people safe from rouges and hoarders. Paul decided to set off that way. Looking up at the old farmhouse that had saved his life he thought, “Someday, I’m sure, I will see this land cultivated, and the farmhouse lived in.” With that he turned east and headed to Monroe. Route 2, a road to eastern Washington passed through it. Maybe in the east things would be better and they could restore peace. Paul Roberts shook his head. He doubted it.
Silvia took a bridge over the Snohomish River. She kept her guard up, as without the symbol of the North Columbia Bandits, she doubted she would be let through security. She realized something she hadn’t before: without her badge, she doubted even the people she called her friends would let her pass. Thinking about it, she realized they wouldn’t hesitate to rob and kill her. What kind of organization had she gotten into? At least she was out now out of it. Would she be able to survive?
Route 2 was to the south. It would only take less than an hour to get there. It was known to be fairly intact, and should provide easy transportation by foot. Maybe she would even find the strange man who was under the bridge. She would have liked to talk to him as person rather than a prisoner. He seemed like an interesting person. But the chance of finding a person in the ruined world seemed unlikely. It wasn’t as if you could get their phone number. The space war wiped out all communications satellites, and there were no phone lines. Everyone knew in the Third World War the strategy was to destroy the infrastructure. Without factories and roads, an army couldn’t function. It caused more devastation to the world than the first two world wars combined.
Even though it was a low chance, she still wanted to make a new life in some kind of society. She could vaguely spot the stripe through the trees that was Route 2, once a major highway. Everything will be fine, she assured herself.
Paul was walking parallel to Route 2. He was sure that it was unsafe to walk on it. He always kept low and behind the bushes and trees that had sprouted up in the farms. His shotgun he kept strapped to his back. If there were bandits in the town, more were sure to come and leave by the road. He checked his graphing calculator internet for information about Monroe. There didn’t seem to be much except a Wikipedia entry. Wikipedia had successfully hidden it’s servers at the start of the war, and had a secret way of transmitting the signals that made it impossible to find them.
He looked at the Wikipedia entry. “Monroe: a small town in the former US state of Washington. The US army was successful in defending this city from the Chinese army. After the collapse of the US government in 2017 a group of citizens helped unite the people in an effort to keep the city alive. The city’s new government was attacked by bandits several times. With the stockpiling of weapons the bandits were defeated each time without much damage to the city. This effort continues to today [citation needed]. It is on one side of the only remaining pass through Washington, Stevens Pass, on Route 2.”
The fact it was uncertain if the city was still thriving made it sound as if no one was sure what was going on. Paul had a good feeling, though, and closed down his graphing calculator. He checked to see if anyone was around. “Damn,” he said, “It’s that thief from before! Probably sent after looking for me.” Despite his dislike of violence, he would have to deal with her. He took his shotgun in hand and readied it. It probably wouldn’t kill her, but at least it would give him the time to escape. The blood loss, though, would be dangerous. He aimed it and fired. She screamed once before falling to the ground. Anyone nearby would have heard. Any bandits travelling with her in a group will have found me, thought Paul. He turned and sprinted away.
Looking for a New Home
Paul decided by noon that he should set out again toward any civilized areas. He began to scour the cabin for any items he would need. It ended up fairly successful, as he found a large backpack to hold his supplies; a shotgun and ammunition; enough food to last for nearly a week; a few lithium batteries with miniature solar panels to charge them, and a flashlight to go with them; a few maps of the area, which could end up very useful; but the best find of all had to be the graphing calculator.
It was a TI-176 Gold, one of the best models you could get. It could store data and to almost any math problem one could think up. The main thing that was great about this was that it came with the capability to connect to internet as well. It was said a few communities still had servers that could transmit data, and the calculator had a browser. It could run on the lithium batteries as well.
Putting the items in his backpack and checking the map – which was highly outdated, being from 2010, and some of the towns may not be there anymore. What was most amusing to Paul was the word “Seattle” in large letters, and showed it covering a large area. There was no Seattle anymore. The Chinese bombed it in 2012, at the very beginning of the war. It was the first to go.
Still, to the east was a town called Monroe. It seemed small enough to be ignored by the Chinese, and big enough to keep the people safe from rouges and hoarders. Paul decided to set off that way. Looking up at the old farmhouse that had saved his life he thought, “Someday, I’m sure, I will see this land cultivated, and the farmhouse lived in.” With that he turned east and headed to Monroe. Route 2, a road to eastern Washington passed through it. Maybe in the east things would be better and they could restore peace. Paul Roberts shook his head. He doubted it.
Silvia took a bridge over the Snohomish River. She kept her guard up, as without the symbol of the North Columbia Bandits, she doubted she would be let through security. She realized something she hadn’t before: without her badge, she doubted even the people she called her friends would let her pass. Thinking about it, she realized they wouldn’t hesitate to rob and kill her. What kind of organization had she gotten into? At least she was out now out of it. Would she be able to survive?
Route 2 was to the south. It would only take less than an hour to get there. It was known to be fairly intact, and should provide easy transportation by foot. Maybe she would even find the strange man who was under the bridge. She would have liked to talk to him as person rather than a prisoner. He seemed like an interesting person. But the chance of finding a person in the ruined world seemed unlikely. It wasn’t as if you could get their phone number. The space war wiped out all communications satellites, and there were no phone lines. Everyone knew in the Third World War the strategy was to destroy the infrastructure. Without factories and roads, an army couldn’t function. It caused more devastation to the world than the first two world wars combined.
Even though it was a low chance, she still wanted to make a new life in some kind of society. She could vaguely spot the stripe through the trees that was Route 2, once a major highway. Everything will be fine, she assured herself.
Paul was walking parallel to Route 2. He was sure that it was unsafe to walk on it. He always kept low and behind the bushes and trees that had sprouted up in the farms. His shotgun he kept strapped to his back. If there were bandits in the town, more were sure to come and leave by the road. He checked his graphing calculator internet for information about Monroe. There didn’t seem to be much except a Wikipedia entry. Wikipedia had successfully hidden it’s servers at the start of the war, and had a secret way of transmitting the signals that made it impossible to find them.
He looked at the Wikipedia entry. “Monroe: a small town in the former US state of Washington. The US army was successful in defending this city from the Chinese army. After the collapse of the US government in 2017 a group of citizens helped unite the people in an effort to keep the city alive. The city’s new government was attacked by bandits several times. With the stockpiling of weapons the bandits were defeated each time without much damage to the city. This effort continues to today [citation needed]. It is on one side of the only remaining pass through Washington, Stevens Pass, on Route 2.”
The fact it was uncertain if the city was still thriving made it sound as if no one was sure what was going on. Paul had a good feeling, though, and closed down his graphing calculator. He checked to see if anyone was around. “Damn,” he said, “It’s that thief from before! Probably sent after looking for me.” Despite his dislike of violence, he would have to deal with her. He took his shotgun in hand and readied it. It probably wouldn’t kill her, but at least it would give him the time to escape. The blood loss, though, would be dangerous. He aimed it and fired. She screamed once before falling to the ground. Anyone nearby would have heard. Any bandits travelling with her in a group will have found me, thought Paul. He turned and sprinted away.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Still Unnamed
Howard looked around the room at people he barely knew. Though he barely knew them, they were all working together. For the same cause. With their help we can bring down the spies. With no spies, the government will be ours. We can rule. It will take a while but we will be rewarded. The room was discussing how to best take out the spies. None of them knew about the Veronan Academy where the young spies were trained. They were talking about adult spies and taking them down one by one. Some would be hard to find, having years of experience. When asked about that, the superiors had said they would get information from the spies they did catch. "We won't fail." Is how they had ended the questions. No one wanted to lose their job or fight with the superiors so they gave up asking and went along for the ride.
I unpacked my suitcase in our dorm. Lizzy had let me get the bed next to the window because she knew I liked to look outside at night. "Come on, lets go let the dogs run. They're begging me to let them out." "Alright," Lizzy sighed, picking up a tennis ball. "Let's bring them a ball too." Then the foursome walked down the stairs and out to the grounds. Lizzy and I threw the ball a bit, but mostly the dogs just chased each other around. Finally we went inside again when the dogs were ready to collapse. When we got back to our dorm, I went to sit on my bed and look outside while Lizzy read a book on lock picking. After some time another girl walked into the room. "Hey Stacy!" Lizzy said, looking up from her book and smiling. "Hey Lizzy! Hey Gabby!" Stacy replied. I simply waved my hand at her then went back to watching the night. Then the dinner bell rang and we walked down the stairs to the big dining hall where everyone ate. Lizzy and I left Tilly and Max at a table by the door. We got in the line with our treys. We walked through mumbling pleases and thank yous to the cooks. We got to the pet food table and got 2 bowls of dog food from the cook supervising that table. She gave us each a dog treat and then we made our way back to the table. When we arrived we put the dog food on the ground and sat down to eat. Matthew, a very tall and muscular boy walked up and sat down with us. He's one of the only other people I talk to. His friend, Evan, walked up behind him. He's not as tall but just as muscular. He's also a year ahead of us. This is his eight year and Matthew, Lizzy, and my seventh. I talk to Evan too. All of them-Lizzy, Matthew, and Evan-are really nice. I like them. We talked about our summers until the head master stood up. The whole hall went silent in anticipation for his speech.
I unpacked my suitcase in our dorm. Lizzy had let me get the bed next to the window because she knew I liked to look outside at night. "Come on, lets go let the dogs run. They're begging me to let them out." "Alright," Lizzy sighed, picking up a tennis ball. "Let's bring them a ball too." Then the foursome walked down the stairs and out to the grounds. Lizzy and I threw the ball a bit, but mostly the dogs just chased each other around. Finally we went inside again when the dogs were ready to collapse. When we got back to our dorm, I went to sit on my bed and look outside while Lizzy read a book on lock picking. After some time another girl walked into the room. "Hey Stacy!" Lizzy said, looking up from her book and smiling. "Hey Lizzy! Hey Gabby!" Stacy replied. I simply waved my hand at her then went back to watching the night. Then the dinner bell rang and we walked down the stairs to the big dining hall where everyone ate. Lizzy and I left Tilly and Max at a table by the door. We got in the line with our treys. We walked through mumbling pleases and thank yous to the cooks. We got to the pet food table and got 2 bowls of dog food from the cook supervising that table. She gave us each a dog treat and then we made our way back to the table. When we arrived we put the dog food on the ground and sat down to eat. Matthew, a very tall and muscular boy walked up and sat down with us. He's one of the only other people I talk to. His friend, Evan, walked up behind him. He's not as tall but just as muscular. He's also a year ahead of us. This is his eight year and Matthew, Lizzy, and my seventh. I talk to Evan too. All of them-Lizzy, Matthew, and Evan-are really nice. I like them. We talked about our summers until the head master stood up. The whole hall went silent in anticipation for his speech.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Reflectia
A pool reflects rays of hope up into the sky,
They appear as columns appear and I reach out to grasp one,
It slips away like water in a cupped hand,
that is hope.
They appear as columns appear and I reach out to grasp one,
It slips away like water in a cupped hand,
that is hope.
Sitting by a jade colored pond
Sunlight glitters off koi,
Summer light brings jade color,
I wish to submerge.
Summer light brings jade color,
I wish to submerge.
Cherry blossons on a river stream
Little pink boats float,
Gliding down from huge trees,
Drifting along glass.
Gliding down from huge trees,
Drifting along glass.
My Pace
Time is only a illusion, a thing of the imagination that we con our selves into to believing. To give our lives a goal and purpose, but when we finally do reach that goal our "time" takes it away. If there were no time however then the world would be wondrous. No goals or anything planned ahead. Everything would be new and exciting.
Sunlight filled his eyes as he awoke, but opening his eyes and getting up were to completely different things. Suddenly shadows crowed around him blocking the light, and whispers filled his empty ears with sound. "how long have I been here?" he maneged to croak out, but all it got as a reply was a bunch of giggles. Annoyed that his simple question had been laughed at he assumed that they had mearly misunderstood him so this time he chose to spell it out to them."I want to now the time that I have been laying here", but this only brought around a fresh round of giggles and a innocent childs question."Papa what is time?" "Hush now child, he had quite a rough bump on the head but soon he will stop speaking nonsense." Stunned by this comment he fell back asleep, hoping this was some dream.
Sunlight filled his eyes as he awoke, but opening his eyes and getting up were to completely different things. Suddenly shadows crowed around him blocking the light, and whispers filled his empty ears with sound. "how long have I been here?" he maneged to croak out, but all it got as a reply was a bunch of giggles. Annoyed that his simple question had been laughed at he assumed that they had mearly misunderstood him so this time he chose to spell it out to them."I want to now the time that I have been laying here", but this only brought around a fresh round of giggles and a innocent childs question."Papa what is time?" "Hush now child, he had quite a rough bump on the head but soon he will stop speaking nonsense." Stunned by this comment he fell back asleep, hoping this was some dream.
Eternal Feather by Builderofhappines
This is part of the story that I am writing right now. Enjoy!
There had been something missing from his world for a long time, something that made it seem bland and two dimensional. To discribe it was to imagine a color missing from the world, a color you just could not see. The emptyness was unbarible and made him lose intrest in things that made almost everyone else happy, like Christmas, or birthdays. It was not that he was depressed he was simply like the cocoon that the Butterfly had left behind, missing that beauty. This was how it was for Hirono a feeling that left him as a dreamer, because since he did not know what was missing he could not make his life change and so remained. This continued on and on only getting worse and causing him to forget more and more of the things he held presise.In a paper he once wrote for school about what he wanted to grow up to dohe could not think of anything and because of this degletded to turn it in, but in his first year of high school Hirono's world was completly sawn apart.
The first day of High school was nothing to worry about for Hirono because he cared not what people thought of him having been alone for most of his life.Because of this one fact he had a mindset of I do not care as he got on the busto go to his new school. He looked around for a empty seat, but found none so sat next to a teen who looked about his age.This adolesent looked in Hirono's eyes to be one of those children who was very popular. Mostly though it was not as he looked at the boythat he decided this it was the fact that he felt lots of eyes staring at the back of his neck and a lotof sware words muttered under the breath of the new arrivals as they got on the bus. Nothing happened thoughthriugh the whole ride and it remained that way till after he got off of the bus. Hirono had taken a few steps away when suddenly the boy he had beensitting next to slammed into his back causing Hirono to reel forward and fall on the cement. "Sorry I didn't see you there scum" he said with asnobbish sound of supieriority. "No problem" said Hirono as he got and made to walk away, but the boy aparrently hadn't expected thisand so acted even more viciously by grsabbing Hirono's neck and throwing him down back onto the cement.It felt like a miniture sun had just been born in the back of his head and was burning him alive. "Never make me touch you againor you will find youself on the floor of the nurses office", and although pain was was rushing throughhis head the anger of that last comment made Hirono say "it was your choice to do this, and your ownstupid asshole reason to touch me just toget revenge for sitting next to you when you could have just asked me to move". "You dont know who I am do you?" said the boy" I am-" " you are shit" said Hirono and again stood up and was able to walk away.
From there school was just school as usual with the threats and sneering voices surrounding him,and on the bus ride back he got lucky with a empty seat, curtosey of his now horrible reputation.Then finally he was home. of course this meant very little because Hironon practically lived completely alone.His parents were always on trips, but not with each other, but with themselves. For they dispised each other.The first relization came to Hirono when he was quite young. " Mama look I made this for you" he siad proudly holding up a drawing of himself with his mother and father beside him his mother did not stop and kept on walking making not a sound as though she was a ghost.Curious Hirono follwed her carefully until a loud crash shattered the silence in the house. "Mother" he cried sprinting to where he heard the crash, but when he roundedthe corner he found only his mother taking each piece of china that had been a gift from Hirono's fatherand throwing it on the floor. "Mother what are you doing!" cried Hirono, but his mother did not stop rythmiclly throwing each one so it shatteredinto a cascade of beautiful crystals that glittered in the light pouring in from the window.This was the start of Hirono's troubles. He began to drift away from reality, submerge himself in books whilehis mother and father forgot each other in their hearts, and then began to forget Hirono. But for Hirono he had found new friends,friends that could, and would never betray him and so he forgot his troubles and just as he drifted out of his parent'shearts, he forgot about his friends. Of course this was fine with him, for he never payed attention to the world execpt for thoseinside his books. And then... everything changed. In Junior High when the horrible, and godly beastknown as puberty came and turned his head away from his books. He saw the beauty of the people of this world and wished to be among themhe longed for it as he had never longed before. Exept that he couldn't join it.After being along for so long he had become unresponsive and cold. Not unhumnan,for he had his books, and pets who adored him, but scared of other humans, not wantingto become friends in fear that they would also forget him as his parents had.Yet because of puberty he now wanted to be part of it for he found that,likea sheep tied to a stake he had eaten all of the grass up by its rootsand where he stood had become mostly a desert, and he was dieing from it.At this point in his life he realized that he had lost something, he had lost the colorthat he could not find, the color that would make him whole and be able to see the world.Yet from living along he was able to eat the dirt that had come from his desertand although he was dieng from it he could keep living searching for hope.So although only his animals and books were here, they acted like a pacifier, helping Hirono search for what was missing from his view.
And the rest of the evening preceded just as it had for years. He ate with his pets, his living friends that he could confide in.And after that even the week was normal, with bullying and again assuming his identityas a out cast. Then everything changed.End of Chaptrer 1
It was Sunday and had been nearly a week and a half since school had startedand Hirono wanted a new book to calm his mind. "not this one, or this one, or this one" he muttered under his breathas he ran his hand over the spines. He walked along the row of books when he brushed up against a girl he recognized from his school.Seeing her as only a tormentor he immediatly stared walkiing to a different aisle, when suddenly a shoutcame from behind him. whirling around on the balls of his feet he came nose to nose with the girl he had just passed. "Theif"she screamed in his face and the shock of it caused Hirono to back up into a shelf of books which immediatly tipped on him.And much as a drowning man would try and grab for the surface he used is arms as shovels to try and push the books away.Just as he freed himself however he saw that he was surronded by people staring down at him with faces full of loathing."you theif" the girl cried again " you stole my wallet when you bumped me, I knew the people at school were right to call you shit!"These words however just slid over his head, not mostly because he had heard them before, but his eyes itched and he was feeling dizy.However he noticed just befoRe he passed out, the glint of a studded purse umonst the crowd.
Sirens woke Hirono from his sleep. Where was he, how long had he been asleep. He tried to get upbut was thrust back down by a man dressed in white. Docters. " What happened" Hirono asked, slurring the words horribly."You have a minor concusion and a cut on your head, it is nothing major but we will have to stich it shut". Instinctively Hirono reached for his head, but the docter grabbed his hand and set it back down. Deciding there was nothing to do Hirono started thinking about what had happened.Suddenly he jerked up nearly throwing the docter who was trying to restrain him onto the floor. "What about the Woman" he stammered. "What woman?" "The woman with her purse stolen.""She is okay, but is blaming you for everything."I didn't do it though" shouted Hirono jerking forward again, but suddenly collapsed breathing heavily as a wave a pain swallowed his body.Again taking the time to think he rembered the purse under the man's jacket. "What happened to the other there" Hirono said in such a way that the docter tightened his grip on Hirono's shoulders."They were taken to the police for questioning.""All of them?""Yes."Good." and with that last word Hirono fell into a deep slumber.
When Hirono awoke it was just begginging to get dark. Turning his head to the left he saw his clothes bundled up and a note on top of them telling him to get dressed and come downstairs as soon as possible.He got up, stripped off the gown the quikly got dressed and headed down the stairs. As he was approaching the bottom of the stairs he spyeda cute girl looking around the corner. Not minding that he continued on, and just as he passed by, she let out a little squek of fright and hurridly triedto pretend to be tieing her shoe. Hirono just smiled and kept on walking. When he glanced forward again he saw only a police man. Puzzeled he walked over and sat down in the chairopposite him. " Can I help you?" he said in a kind voice, but Hirono mearly shrugged and said only if you can tell me what happened to the people at the book store.Realizing who this must be the police man flipped threw his note book, and stretched out his hand to shake Hirono's. "Hello I am Yuu Nagi, you must be Hirono"'yes""Now dont get allup tight now I just want to ask you a few questions" First can you answer one of mine""Sure""where did everyone go"" We let them go just before you got here""WHAT" "Yeah they just left threw the front doors."Knocking over the chair Hirono ran for the door. He heard the police man yell to him but ignored it, he had more important things to do.
Cold air blasted into Hirono's face as he entered the parking lot. Swinging his head left and right he spotted people walking left and right. The man he was looking for though was a man with a hat as Hirono remberedand just as he was about to go up to people and ask he saw him getting into a car. Running full speed he reached the car and began pounding on the windows yelling"hey open up!" But the man simply took one look and hit the gas throwing Hirono aside. Looking around for something he could use he saw a girl, the same girl he had seen in the lobby,getting on a bike. Hirono ran over, grabbed the handle bars and said to the girl, "I will be barrowing this". Hopping on the bike Hirono began to peddle furiously and shot forward towards the car he was tailing. Luck was on Hironos side thankfully, because to night there was a lot of traffic. The car slowed to a stop allowing Hirono to quikly reach it and begin pounding its side afresh.Sandwiched between to cars though there was very little the car could do, very little but crash into Hirono. And that is what it did.The screech of metal and the hiss of tires filled the air along with the honks of cars and the slamming of doors. Smoke rose from the car partly hiding the reckage, but it was was easy to tell that the bike had become one with the car. As for Hirono and the man they were both okay, execpt the man had been knocked out.Getting up Hirono walked over to the car and yanked open the door, bent over the man and reached under his coat to grab the purse. Turning around he searched the crowd and found who he was looking for, the girl the purse belonged to.Walking over Hirono dropped the purse into her hands, turned around and uttered " I believe that is yours", before walking away. He did not walk away from the accident though, he walked towards it, and with a sickening screech renched thenow mutilated bike apart from the car. Just as he was turning around however a hand came from just outside his range of vision and slapped him across the cheek."What have you done to my bike""sorry"sorry doesnt cut it, how will I get home?" "Here I will walk you home, and on friday we can go out and I will buy you a new bike, okay?" "But that would be a date and I dont even know your name."" It is Hirono, and you are..." "Chihiro" "Well Chihiro this is not a date this is simply me paying my dues okay?" "o... okay" "When do you want to meet Chihiro?" "Is eleven thirty ok?" "Sure we will meet right here" "Okay" "Well I guess you shouldget home now Chihiro, lead the way."
Hirono arrived ten mintutes late at 11:30 to the hospital. Glancing around he saw Chihiro waving to him on the ohter side. Jogging over hirono was about to apologize when Chihiro said
"On a date you should arrive ten minutes early so you don't make your girl wait"
"This is not a date I am simply going to buy you a new bike as a apology for the one I recked"
"Okay what ever you say now come along."
As they started walking into town Hirono noticed that even though the weather was cooling Chihiro was wearing short sleeve shirt, and a skirt that went down to around her knees. Glancing at his own jeans a coat he became self concious and slowed his step. Chihiro who was watching him saw this and turned around so they came face to face.
"Whats the matter silly, why are you slowing down?"
"Well it's just you dressed up so much while I..."
"Dont worry about it"
Hirono who had been looking at the ground the whole time glanced up to see her t-shirt was tight around her breasts, and blushed even more.
"Why are you blushing now?"
Following his gaze she looked down at her outfit and said teasingly
"Well big boy haven't had much expieriance with girls have you"
"n-no"
"well dont worry about it and come on"
Still avoiding eye contact with Chihiro he suddenly felt something warm and smooth grab his hand. Suddenly he was being pulled forward and he heard the annowed voice,
"Jeez are all boys like this?"
Gaining a bit of confidence Hirono replied,
"I can walk by myself"
"Well apperantly you cant because I have to drag you all the way, anyways here we are our first stop"
Infront of them was a restraunt.
"Wait why are we here I thought we were going to buy a bike"
"First lunch, come on you must be hungry"
"This isn't a date though how many times must I tell you that"
"Come on you owe me after crashing my bike"
"That is why I am buying you a new one"
"Come on not only did you crash it you pulled me off as well, it is just lunch"
"Fine"
Since it was a nice day Hirono and Chihiro chose to eat outside"
" I think I am going to get the salad, what about you Hirono?"
"Nothing for me"
"Why not?"
"Well I already am spending so much of my savings I can't afford to also eat out"
"Well if you aren't eating then I am not eating"
"Why aren't you hungry"
"Because if we both dont eat then it wont be a date now come on lets go"
"Fine fine I will eat"
"Really"
"Yes, I couldn't have you go hungry just because of me"
"Great"
After lunch the two of them continued on their "date"
"So what do you want to do now"
"Lets do what we came here for and get you a new bike"
"but there is still so much stuff to do"
"Don't worry after we get your bike we can go try it out in the park"
"and you will come with me?"
"Of course"
When Hirono and Chihiro reached the store they selected a bike with ease, the exact same model as her previous one.
With the bike bought, Hirono and Chihiro went to the nearest park to try it out. Hirono stepped out of the way as Chihiro mounted the bike and started to pedal down the path. He jogged behind her so as to make sure she didn't start to lose her balance.
"How's the bike feeling" He called to her
" Fine, execpt that it is hard to ride in a skirt"
Suddenly Chihiro veired off the path and tumbeled off her bike. Running forward Hirono bent down in front of her and said in a concerned voice
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah fine" Okay here let me help you out, and as Hirono stood up his gaze caught upon her underwear that was visible now that she was laying on the ground.
"Chihiro your skirt"
"What about it"
"It-it..."
Looking down Chihiro let out a squeek of surprise, and hurridly tried to stand up.
"Wait Chihiro, what if your leg is injured"
Just as he said this however Chihiro (who was fully standing up) slipped on the grass and started falling towards him. So trying to be the gentleman Hirono tried to catch her, slipped and fell to. A bone jaring thump rose into the quite of the park, and as their vision cleared Chihiro and Hirono found the were kissing each other. For a second each paused, and Hirono felt her heart beating against his cheast. Then it was over, and Chihiro scrambeled off of him. Getting up himself Hirono felt scared for it was his first time kissing a girl so the first words out of his muth were...
"'Im sorry it was all my fault"
"It's...fine"
"No really I'm sorry"
"I told you it was fine"
"How can I-"
Hirono could not tell if it was anger or embarresment that welled up inside of Chihiro.
"Look now I told you it was fine, and it was fine now drop it okay, I am going home"
"Sorry your right"
Taking a calmer tone that made Hirono think of angels Chihiro said,
"I was overreacting a bit, sorry. Look I will call you tonight so we can shedule our next date"
"But-"
"No buts since we kissed, for right now we are lovers and lovers go out on dates"
"Fine, I guess it is goodbye for now"
"Only until tonight"
"Do you need me to walk you home again"
No thanks I have this bike that is alnost as beautiful as the person who got it for me"
And with that she mounted the bike, and rode away.
There had been something missing from his world for a long time, something that made it seem bland and two dimensional. To discribe it was to imagine a color missing from the world, a color you just could not see. The emptyness was unbarible and made him lose intrest in things that made almost everyone else happy, like Christmas, or birthdays. It was not that he was depressed he was simply like the cocoon that the Butterfly had left behind, missing that beauty. This was how it was for Hirono a feeling that left him as a dreamer, because since he did not know what was missing he could not make his life change and so remained. This continued on and on only getting worse and causing him to forget more and more of the things he held presise.In a paper he once wrote for school about what he wanted to grow up to dohe could not think of anything and because of this degletded to turn it in, but in his first year of high school Hirono's world was completly sawn apart.
The first day of High school was nothing to worry about for Hirono because he cared not what people thought of him having been alone for most of his life.Because of this one fact he had a mindset of I do not care as he got on the busto go to his new school. He looked around for a empty seat, but found none so sat next to a teen who looked about his age.This adolesent looked in Hirono's eyes to be one of those children who was very popular. Mostly though it was not as he looked at the boythat he decided this it was the fact that he felt lots of eyes staring at the back of his neck and a lotof sware words muttered under the breath of the new arrivals as they got on the bus. Nothing happened thoughthriugh the whole ride and it remained that way till after he got off of the bus. Hirono had taken a few steps away when suddenly the boy he had beensitting next to slammed into his back causing Hirono to reel forward and fall on the cement. "Sorry I didn't see you there scum" he said with asnobbish sound of supieriority. "No problem" said Hirono as he got and made to walk away, but the boy aparrently hadn't expected thisand so acted even more viciously by grsabbing Hirono's neck and throwing him down back onto the cement.It felt like a miniture sun had just been born in the back of his head and was burning him alive. "Never make me touch you againor you will find youself on the floor of the nurses office", and although pain was was rushing throughhis head the anger of that last comment made Hirono say "it was your choice to do this, and your ownstupid asshole reason to touch me just toget revenge for sitting next to you when you could have just asked me to move". "You dont know who I am do you?" said the boy" I am-" " you are shit" said Hirono and again stood up and was able to walk away.
From there school was just school as usual with the threats and sneering voices surrounding him,and on the bus ride back he got lucky with a empty seat, curtosey of his now horrible reputation.Then finally he was home. of course this meant very little because Hironon practically lived completely alone.His parents were always on trips, but not with each other, but with themselves. For they dispised each other.The first relization came to Hirono when he was quite young. " Mama look I made this for you" he siad proudly holding up a drawing of himself with his mother and father beside him his mother did not stop and kept on walking making not a sound as though she was a ghost.Curious Hirono follwed her carefully until a loud crash shattered the silence in the house. "Mother" he cried sprinting to where he heard the crash, but when he roundedthe corner he found only his mother taking each piece of china that had been a gift from Hirono's fatherand throwing it on the floor. "Mother what are you doing!" cried Hirono, but his mother did not stop rythmiclly throwing each one so it shatteredinto a cascade of beautiful crystals that glittered in the light pouring in from the window.This was the start of Hirono's troubles. He began to drift away from reality, submerge himself in books whilehis mother and father forgot each other in their hearts, and then began to forget Hirono. But for Hirono he had found new friends,friends that could, and would never betray him and so he forgot his troubles and just as he drifted out of his parent'shearts, he forgot about his friends. Of course this was fine with him, for he never payed attention to the world execpt for thoseinside his books. And then... everything changed. In Junior High when the horrible, and godly beastknown as puberty came and turned his head away from his books. He saw the beauty of the people of this world and wished to be among themhe longed for it as he had never longed before. Exept that he couldn't join it.After being along for so long he had become unresponsive and cold. Not unhumnan,for he had his books, and pets who adored him, but scared of other humans, not wantingto become friends in fear that they would also forget him as his parents had.Yet because of puberty he now wanted to be part of it for he found that,likea sheep tied to a stake he had eaten all of the grass up by its rootsand where he stood had become mostly a desert, and he was dieing from it.At this point in his life he realized that he had lost something, he had lost the colorthat he could not find, the color that would make him whole and be able to see the world.Yet from living along he was able to eat the dirt that had come from his desertand although he was dieng from it he could keep living searching for hope.So although only his animals and books were here, they acted like a pacifier, helping Hirono search for what was missing from his view.
And the rest of the evening preceded just as it had for years. He ate with his pets, his living friends that he could confide in.And after that even the week was normal, with bullying and again assuming his identityas a out cast. Then everything changed.End of Chaptrer 1
It was Sunday and had been nearly a week and a half since school had startedand Hirono wanted a new book to calm his mind. "not this one, or this one, or this one" he muttered under his breathas he ran his hand over the spines. He walked along the row of books when he brushed up against a girl he recognized from his school.Seeing her as only a tormentor he immediatly stared walkiing to a different aisle, when suddenly a shoutcame from behind him. whirling around on the balls of his feet he came nose to nose with the girl he had just passed. "Theif"she screamed in his face and the shock of it caused Hirono to back up into a shelf of books which immediatly tipped on him.And much as a drowning man would try and grab for the surface he used is arms as shovels to try and push the books away.Just as he freed himself however he saw that he was surronded by people staring down at him with faces full of loathing."you theif" the girl cried again " you stole my wallet when you bumped me, I knew the people at school were right to call you shit!"These words however just slid over his head, not mostly because he had heard them before, but his eyes itched and he was feeling dizy.However he noticed just befoRe he passed out, the glint of a studded purse umonst the crowd.
Sirens woke Hirono from his sleep. Where was he, how long had he been asleep. He tried to get upbut was thrust back down by a man dressed in white. Docters. " What happened" Hirono asked, slurring the words horribly."You have a minor concusion and a cut on your head, it is nothing major but we will have to stich it shut". Instinctively Hirono reached for his head, but the docter grabbed his hand and set it back down. Deciding there was nothing to do Hirono started thinking about what had happened.Suddenly he jerked up nearly throwing the docter who was trying to restrain him onto the floor. "What about the Woman" he stammered. "What woman?" "The woman with her purse stolen.""She is okay, but is blaming you for everything."I didn't do it though" shouted Hirono jerking forward again, but suddenly collapsed breathing heavily as a wave a pain swallowed his body.Again taking the time to think he rembered the purse under the man's jacket. "What happened to the other there" Hirono said in such a way that the docter tightened his grip on Hirono's shoulders."They were taken to the police for questioning.""All of them?""Yes."Good." and with that last word Hirono fell into a deep slumber.
When Hirono awoke it was just begginging to get dark. Turning his head to the left he saw his clothes bundled up and a note on top of them telling him to get dressed and come downstairs as soon as possible.He got up, stripped off the gown the quikly got dressed and headed down the stairs. As he was approaching the bottom of the stairs he spyeda cute girl looking around the corner. Not minding that he continued on, and just as he passed by, she let out a little squek of fright and hurridly triedto pretend to be tieing her shoe. Hirono just smiled and kept on walking. When he glanced forward again he saw only a police man. Puzzeled he walked over and sat down in the chairopposite him. " Can I help you?" he said in a kind voice, but Hirono mearly shrugged and said only if you can tell me what happened to the people at the book store.Realizing who this must be the police man flipped threw his note book, and stretched out his hand to shake Hirono's. "Hello I am Yuu Nagi, you must be Hirono"'yes""Now dont get allup tight now I just want to ask you a few questions" First can you answer one of mine""Sure""where did everyone go"" We let them go just before you got here""WHAT" "Yeah they just left threw the front doors."Knocking over the chair Hirono ran for the door. He heard the police man yell to him but ignored it, he had more important things to do.
Cold air blasted into Hirono's face as he entered the parking lot. Swinging his head left and right he spotted people walking left and right. The man he was looking for though was a man with a hat as Hirono remberedand just as he was about to go up to people and ask he saw him getting into a car. Running full speed he reached the car and began pounding on the windows yelling"hey open up!" But the man simply took one look and hit the gas throwing Hirono aside. Looking around for something he could use he saw a girl, the same girl he had seen in the lobby,getting on a bike. Hirono ran over, grabbed the handle bars and said to the girl, "I will be barrowing this". Hopping on the bike Hirono began to peddle furiously and shot forward towards the car he was tailing. Luck was on Hironos side thankfully, because to night there was a lot of traffic. The car slowed to a stop allowing Hirono to quikly reach it and begin pounding its side afresh.Sandwiched between to cars though there was very little the car could do, very little but crash into Hirono. And that is what it did.The screech of metal and the hiss of tires filled the air along with the honks of cars and the slamming of doors. Smoke rose from the car partly hiding the reckage, but it was was easy to tell that the bike had become one with the car. As for Hirono and the man they were both okay, execpt the man had been knocked out.Getting up Hirono walked over to the car and yanked open the door, bent over the man and reached under his coat to grab the purse. Turning around he searched the crowd and found who he was looking for, the girl the purse belonged to.Walking over Hirono dropped the purse into her hands, turned around and uttered " I believe that is yours", before walking away. He did not walk away from the accident though, he walked towards it, and with a sickening screech renched thenow mutilated bike apart from the car. Just as he was turning around however a hand came from just outside his range of vision and slapped him across the cheek."What have you done to my bike""sorry"sorry doesnt cut it, how will I get home?" "Here I will walk you home, and on friday we can go out and I will buy you a new bike, okay?" "But that would be a date and I dont even know your name."" It is Hirono, and you are..." "Chihiro" "Well Chihiro this is not a date this is simply me paying my dues okay?" "o... okay" "When do you want to meet Chihiro?" "Is eleven thirty ok?" "Sure we will meet right here" "Okay" "Well I guess you shouldget home now Chihiro, lead the way."
Hirono arrived ten mintutes late at 11:30 to the hospital. Glancing around he saw Chihiro waving to him on the ohter side. Jogging over hirono was about to apologize when Chihiro said
"On a date you should arrive ten minutes early so you don't make your girl wait"
"This is not a date I am simply going to buy you a new bike as a apology for the one I recked"
"Okay what ever you say now come along."
As they started walking into town Hirono noticed that even though the weather was cooling Chihiro was wearing short sleeve shirt, and a skirt that went down to around her knees. Glancing at his own jeans a coat he became self concious and slowed his step. Chihiro who was watching him saw this and turned around so they came face to face.
"Whats the matter silly, why are you slowing down?"
"Well it's just you dressed up so much while I..."
"Dont worry about it"
Hirono who had been looking at the ground the whole time glanced up to see her t-shirt was tight around her breasts, and blushed even more.
"Why are you blushing now?"
Following his gaze she looked down at her outfit and said teasingly
"Well big boy haven't had much expieriance with girls have you"
"n-no"
"well dont worry about it and come on"
Still avoiding eye contact with Chihiro he suddenly felt something warm and smooth grab his hand. Suddenly he was being pulled forward and he heard the annowed voice,
"Jeez are all boys like this?"
Gaining a bit of confidence Hirono replied,
"I can walk by myself"
"Well apperantly you cant because I have to drag you all the way, anyways here we are our first stop"
Infront of them was a restraunt.
"Wait why are we here I thought we were going to buy a bike"
"First lunch, come on you must be hungry"
"This isn't a date though how many times must I tell you that"
"Come on you owe me after crashing my bike"
"That is why I am buying you a new one"
"Come on not only did you crash it you pulled me off as well, it is just lunch"
"Fine"
Since it was a nice day Hirono and Chihiro chose to eat outside"
" I think I am going to get the salad, what about you Hirono?"
"Nothing for me"
"Why not?"
"Well I already am spending so much of my savings I can't afford to also eat out"
"Well if you aren't eating then I am not eating"
"Why aren't you hungry"
"Because if we both dont eat then it wont be a date now come on lets go"
"Fine fine I will eat"
"Really"
"Yes, I couldn't have you go hungry just because of me"
"Great"
After lunch the two of them continued on their "date"
"So what do you want to do now"
"Lets do what we came here for and get you a new bike"
"but there is still so much stuff to do"
"Don't worry after we get your bike we can go try it out in the park"
"and you will come with me?"
"Of course"
When Hirono and Chihiro reached the store they selected a bike with ease, the exact same model as her previous one.
With the bike bought, Hirono and Chihiro went to the nearest park to try it out. Hirono stepped out of the way as Chihiro mounted the bike and started to pedal down the path. He jogged behind her so as to make sure she didn't start to lose her balance.
"How's the bike feeling" He called to her
" Fine, execpt that it is hard to ride in a skirt"
Suddenly Chihiro veired off the path and tumbeled off her bike. Running forward Hirono bent down in front of her and said in a concerned voice
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah fine" Okay here let me help you out, and as Hirono stood up his gaze caught upon her underwear that was visible now that she was laying on the ground.
"Chihiro your skirt"
"What about it"
"It-it..."
Looking down Chihiro let out a squeek of surprise, and hurridly tried to stand up.
"Wait Chihiro, what if your leg is injured"
Just as he said this however Chihiro (who was fully standing up) slipped on the grass and started falling towards him. So trying to be the gentleman Hirono tried to catch her, slipped and fell to. A bone jaring thump rose into the quite of the park, and as their vision cleared Chihiro and Hirono found the were kissing each other. For a second each paused, and Hirono felt her heart beating against his cheast. Then it was over, and Chihiro scrambeled off of him. Getting up himself Hirono felt scared for it was his first time kissing a girl so the first words out of his muth were...
"'Im sorry it was all my fault"
"It's...fine"
"No really I'm sorry"
"I told you it was fine"
"How can I-"
Hirono could not tell if it was anger or embarresment that welled up inside of Chihiro.
"Look now I told you it was fine, and it was fine now drop it okay, I am going home"
"Sorry your right"
Taking a calmer tone that made Hirono think of angels Chihiro said,
"I was overreacting a bit, sorry. Look I will call you tonight so we can shedule our next date"
"But-"
"No buts since we kissed, for right now we are lovers and lovers go out on dates"
"Fine, I guess it is goodbye for now"
"Only until tonight"
"Do you need me to walk you home again"
No thanks I have this bike that is alnost as beautiful as the person who got it for me"
And with that she mounted the bike, and rode away.
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