"The Center Pointe" Chapter 15

Chapter 15

She was nameless, unknown, just another face in the crowd before the fall.  So many in the world are unknown, just faces, but she still had a good life.  A loving husband, a beautiful daughter and a decent job keep her occupied and content.  That was before the fall, before the arrival of that planet in the sky that sent the world over the edge and into hell.  On that day her world like so many nameless faces was shattered, she was not essential to the planet, her life did not make a deep impact in the global community.  But her life was hers, her family were hers.  Her experiences were hers.  Now it was all gone. 

The one thing she had in this world was her daughter, they had survived together.  But now even her daughter was gone, murdered by men, men who use their power to destroy rather than to build.  Why was the world like this?  One would hope that human society was evolved enough to act rational in any catastrophe, but this was not the case.  As in all of history the strong and the evil see any crisis as an opportunity, an opportunity to gain for themselves what they could not before.  This is the action of dictators and politicians.  "Never let a crisis go to waste."  She would hear them say on the news.  The sad thing is she would be agreeing with them.  She was the good citizen, who was anti-gun and had faith in her government.  But where did they go when the world fell apart?  They ran and hid leaving the rest of the people who were not elite to fend for themselves.  Her faith in her government had went unrewarded when the faithful had needed them the most. 

She and her daughter had sought help at National Guard stations and military outposts but were turned away at every place.  They were left alone in a hostile alien world.  No one was going to help them, they would have to survive on their own.  If she and her daughter wanted to survive it would have to be by their own sweat and will.  Trust was no longer a thing given without merit, it was earned.  She trusted no one.  But even such extreme measures to protect her and her daughter failed in the end.  they were captured and her daughter was used as leverage against her while she submitted to rape and torture to try and protect her but in the end it was to no avail and her daughter was murdered and fed to her in a stew.  It was a horror this woman could not have imagined, then the very next day she was strapped with a bomb alongside several other woman and young girls and told to run at a building full of what she knew were innocent people.

          This is where she finally took the opportunity to escape, in the wild confusion of them running at the hospital she knew the soldiers would be hiding to escape the blast.  That was her chance to slip away undetected.  She made it into the woods and was able to slip out of the bomb, it dropped to the ground with a clank.  She didn't care if it had exploded, at this point that would have been a godsend, a reprieve from her suffering.  But it did not go off and soon she had disappeared unnoticed into the thick wood.

          She wandered the entire day and into the night, silence finally came as the sun went down, the fighting had ended and she assumed the general and his men had taken the hospital and now a whole new group of innocent men women and children would be victimized by these savages.  She wished she had the strength to have stopped that but she was just a woman in a world of barbarians.  At least now she would have time to grieve for her daughter.  She climbed a tree and wedged her body between a couple of branches.  She drifted off to sleep with memories of a better world running through her mind.

          The woman awoke with a start a few hours later, the tortured face of her daughter jerking her from sleep.  It was now morning, the sun was rising through the trees cast a golden hue on the deep green of the oak leaves and branches she had nestled herself between.  The beauty of a new day, a beauty she could no longer feel,  she used to sit on her porch in the morning as the sun rose, she would sip coffee and feel the warmth of rays of light.  It was heaven for her, now all it reminded her of was another day, another day trying to survive in a world she desperately wished would kill her, and she didn't understand why she was even trying to survive.  What was driving her?  Try as she might she couldn’t explain it.

          She was about to climb down from the tree and use the light to search for food when she halted her descent and remained as still as she could.  The rustling she heard was faint but close, it sounded like something dragging itself through the underbrush.  Straining her eyes through the dense leaves and branches of the oak she could just make out movement coming toward her hiding spot, she was relieved that it would be extremely difficult to spot her in the tree so it would be better if she just kept silent and allowed whoever or whatever it was to pass her.

          Of course that is what she would have liked to happen.  But it seems fate had finally decided to throw her a bone, when the figure finally came into view her surprise almost gave her away but she was able to cover her mouth to keep from crying out.  The figure was definitely human and injured, they dragged themselves through the underbrush and came to rest at the base of the very oak where the woman had hid herself.  She watched the person intently hoping the recognition of the person was a reality and not a figment of her imagination but after some time observing them she was sure it was real.  At the base of the oak severely injured and unarmed was the General himself.

          He had done it!  He had survived Hal’s attack, but he awoke with severe pain in the back of his head, his face and hands were caked in his own blood and the ground was still wet with it, but he was alive and they thought he was dead.  “They think they defeated me!” the General thought to himself as the fog cleared from his eyes and head and he was able to take in his surroundings.  He was in the same spot he had dropped obviously, he guessed they thought he was dead or that the Static would get him.  Whatever the reason, he was alive.  When he was healed and strong enough he would take that place and make them pay for what they did.  He had to admit to himself he was overzealous in his campaign against the hospital and in his vain he had underestimated its inhabitants.  He would not make the same mistake again, He still had more men back at the camp if he could get back there he could strategize a better assault and avenge his defeat.  But for now he had to survive.

          When the haze finally faded he was able to begin moving, walking was out of the question.  The sun was setting and walking would make noise that could attract unwanted attention from the Static or other animals that may be looking for a quick meal.  He would have to move a bit at a time crouched or on his belly, it would take the better part of two days to get back to his encampment but at least he would survive.  His head was pounding, he knew he had to fight through the pain, he most likely had a concussion and the fact he had been unconscious did not help his position, he would have to stay awake.  If he blacked out again he may never wake up.

          He dragged himself for hours through the mud and muck of the forest floor, pine needles, leaves and bugs got into his clothing digging into his skin and causing more pain and discomfort, but he was determined.  He had a goal and he would see it through.  These would not be his last days.  Finally after a long night of dragging himself through the underbrush, the rays of the morning sun began to poke through the trees and penetrate to the ground warming hi body.  The night had been so long and dragging himself through the wet underbrush had left him soaked and chilled to the bone.  He had to rest.  He could see a small clearing up ahead where a giant oak dominated the forest, he pulled himself up to the tree and finally was able to rest his sore bones against the large trunk.  He drank in the morning rays and could not stop himself from drifting off into sleep, his last thought was.  "This is gonna cost me but I'm too tired to care."  Within seconds he was out.  He was completely unaware of the woman hiding in the tree above him.  He did not see her descend, he did not hear her run away.  He did not hear her come back.  He did not know who she was or what was about to happen.  But he would.

          General Washington awoke to darkness.  He tried to move but found his arms to be tied behind his back.  He struggled for a moment before settling down to take in what was happening.  The darkness wasn't from night it was from a blindfold that had been applied while he was sleeping.  At this point he was sure he had been captured by the people inhabiting the hospital.  He strained to listen for any sound that might betray who was around or who may have taken him.  In his fatigue he did not remember the woman who had descended from the tree as he had passed out.    The General had been too exhausted from his crawl through the woods to have remembered anything that happened after he had stopped at the tree.  The blindfold had been affixed securely to his head and try as he might he could not see the slightest sliver of light.  He was bound tight, he knew he was going nowhere and if he wanted to get out of this alive he had to know who his captor was and what they wanted.

          “Is anyone there?”  He called out.

          “Yes.”  A voice said quietly, it was a female voice but her tone was almost like a low growl as if the Static had achieved speech but the General knew better.  Whoever this woman was her tone told him she was one not to be trifled with.  He could hear her moving around messing with sticks and leaves as if clearing the area to make a fire.

          “Are you from the hospital?  What do you want?’  Only silence greeted his query and after a moment his captor began moving around again clearing brush and debris from the immediate area of the tree.  Why were they playing the silent game?  What did she want he thought to himself and for the first time since the world went to shit Washington was scared.  He had no idea what this woman wanted but it was nothing good.  General Washington sat in silence for the next hour not daring to ask any questions that might provoke a violent response from his captor.  He sat quietly listening as she finished clearing away the debris, after this she moved many rocks, he guessed she had made a fire pit.  He was soon validated as he heard the clicking of a lighter and the light burst of the flame catching the kindling and then growing to a bigger fire, he could soon feel the warmth on the front of his body.  It felt good for he was still damp from the long nights crawl.  He was content at least for a bit to sit quietly soaking up the warmth.   The numbness of his arms had given way to a sore pain, he had not been able to feel his hands since he awoke do to the tight binding holding them together.  There was no wiggle room in his bindings, she had done well.

  The woman finally broke her silence after the fire had been going for a while and she had accumulated a good amount of branches to keep it going for the night.  The General could feel the chill of the night descending.  “I want to thank you.”  She began in a low voice he could feel her breath on his face, she was inches from him. 

                   “You coming to me was a gift from god, I thought I would ever see you again, I had hoped they had killed you but this is better.”

          “Who are you?  What do you want from me?”  He said now beginning for the first time to panic.  Who was this woman and how did she know him?  “Whoever you are you must know I can give you anything you want.”

          “What I want you don’t have the power to give.”  She said a distinct tone of anger now entering he voice.  “But we’ll have a lot of time together to discuss what you can do for me in the future.”  With that he could feel her move away back toward the fire, she began to fiddle with something and a few minutes later he could smell the roasting of meat over the flames.

          “Soon I will remove your blindfold and we can get reacquainted, after that we will discuss what I want from you.  If you do as I say I will let you live.”  She moved back over to him and put something hot against his lips.  The smell entered his nostrils and he opened his mouth to receive the meat she was offering.   It tasted good, and he was hungry.  He gobbled as much meat down as she was willing to give.

          “You need your strength for what we’re going to be doing so get your fill.”  With this she fed him a good amount of meat filling his belly.  Soon he felt a bit better and more aware.  The heat of the fire combined with the meal had rejuvenated him, he was ready to meet this woman who knew him now.

          “It’s time to remove the blindfold, I am also going to unbind your hands so you can move a bit.”  She moved behind him and he could feel the bins being cut, soon the feeling would return, and when he had regained his strength he would take her for his own. 

          She sat down in front of him ready to remove the blindfold.  “Before you see who I am.”  Came the low guttural voice again.  “It is weird how when your hands are bound tight enough you lose all feeling in them, they become as if they were dead and you cannot even feel if they are still there or not.”

          Washington was confused at this remark.  He was beginning to feel the blood returning to his extremities.  But then it dawned on him, he did not feel his hands, the numbness had not subsided.  But a low throbbing pain was beginning to reveal itself. Then she removed his blindfold and as his eyes adjusted to the dim night and the light of the fire.  When he face came into focus he knew all too well the woman who now had him captive.  It was the same woman who he had served dinner to a couple of nights ago.  The dinner in his delight had been the woman own daughter.  At the time it was a rush of power control and lust that had motivated him to do such a horrible act.  He loved the way it made him feel, and now he was at the mercy of the very woman who he had committed such a heinous crime against.  He knew at that moment if he didn’t take advantage of his loosened bonds he would die at her hands.   She stared him down as if daring him to make a move.  She turned back toward the fire and he took his moment.  He reached for her, but he could not grasp her.  The pain in his wrists now became as clear and intense and one could imagine.  He now saw why she had loosened his bonds.  She wanted him to feel it.  She wanted him to experience the horror and the fear and the loss of control.  To feel hopeless and weak.  He could see now.  His hands were gone and as she turned back to him she held in her hands his own hand charred by the heat of the fire.  She looked him dead in the eyes and raised his former hand to her mouth and began to strip the flesh from the bones.  Over her shoulder he could see what she had fed him.  Hanging on a stick over the fire were the skeletal remains of his other hand, He had eaten himself.  General Washington began to scream.  The woman looked at him with amusement and a moment later she raised her head to the night sky and joined him in his screams of agony.

          The woman had lost everything to the rapists and murders that now inhabited this new Earth.  She had done everything she could to protect her daughter from what society had collapsed into.  But in the end she could not protect her and her daughter had been fed to her unknowingly by the very man who was now at her mercy.  It had given her great pleasure to cut his hands off and feed it to him, eating his other one in front of him. Seeing, feeling his screams of terror had awakened an animal urge inside her, a primal instinct that took over her very soul and drove her to heights of rage and strength she had previously thought unimaginable.  In the old world she had been a simple wife and mother.  A soccer mom opposed to guns and violence.  But when the world had turned and her husband became feral she was forced to take her daughter and flee.  She never looked back to see if he was chasing her, she ran clutching her daughter in her arms.  She had had no idea where she was going.  At long last when she could run no more and her legs were as two stalks of rubber, her breast heaving with exhaustion she was forced to stop and take measure of her surroundings.

          She stood alone in a field, the grass shielded her from anyone who might be chasing or following her.  She held her daughter tight to her breast shielding her eyes from the breaking world. She raised her head to catch her breath, and that’s when she saw it.  Hanging in the sky like a dim second sun.  A planet that had not been there the night before was now partnered with the rising sun.  In the distance she could hear the chaos the world was descending into.  Screams, moan and the unique sound of twisting metal filled the air like something out of an apocalyptic movie.  Society was falling apart.  Half the population had gone feral and her husband was one of them.  There was no reasoning with them, no talking, just run or kill.  In her retreat she had seen neighbors whom she had known for many years chasing and attacking each other.  They were taking chunks out of each other with their teeth like crazed zombies.  The scene was horrific, the once peaceful and vibrant look of her tiny suburban neighborhood was now like a scene out of Hollywood.  What were once good neighbors were now eating and tearing each other apart.  She had shielded her daughter's eyes from the horror so she would not have to witness people whom she trusted killing each other and chasing them in an attempt to make them the next meal. 

          This whole experience had been too much and the woman slinked to her knees in the field clutching her daughter to her breast, she closed her eyes and just listened to the sound of their hearts beating and their chests rising and falling in unison as if they had become one being.  In all the chaos she knew that least at this moment the most precious thing in her life was safe.  For the moment.

          She has lost everything that day except her daughter.  She had done everything to keep her safe but in the end she did not have the strength to protect her from the chaos and evil that had infected the world.  She lost the only thing left in this world that mattered to her and the one who had taken that from her was now at her mercy.  He had broken her mind and her heart.  She would take so much more from him.  As she looked to the night sky and joined her screams with his she took a new name, a new identity. She was Lilith, the woman who would not be a slave to Adam.  She would never be a slave again.  She was the master now and General Washington was the slave.  The irony did not escape her notice.

"The Center Pointe" Chapter 14

Chapter 14

 General Washington was a man not accustomed to any form of resistance in this new world and he was confident in the ability of his army to take the hospital and the people inside with ease. He already was making his plans for what they could use their new headquarters for as they began their march that day.  He looked out over his men.  A loose conflagration of thugs and criminals that he had been able to convince to fight for him, they enjoyed much power in this world and he was like a drunk with the personal power he had accumulated but it was not enough, he wanted more, he wanted to rule this new world and he would plow over anyone who stood in his way.

His men took the most direct route to the hospital, a direct full force assault to overwhelm the people in the building was the best plan he thought to show the power and might of his army.  General Washington loved to inspire fear and he wanted these people to see the power of what was coming for them.

They took the side road that stemmed from the main road that lead straight to the main emergency room doors of the building when they were about one-hundred yards away he ordered his men to halt so he could take in the environment.  He expected to see a bunch of people with guns but all that met his eyes were two men standing next to a couple of old oil barrels staring at the approaching force.

They didn’t appear to be armed and the General thought this was a mistake, if it was peace these people were looking for they would be disappointed.

He called his two main commanders to the front.  “I want you to go and ask those two what they want.  If it’s to talk, kill them and return to me.” 

“Understood General.”  The two commanders drew their guns and walked the length of the road until they came upon the two men standing at the barrels.

At this point the men were out of earshot and the General could not hear the conversation between them but when he saw his men put their hands on their guns he raised his hand ready to give the signal for the rest of his forces to advance on the hospital.  He watched the two men begin to turn as his men’s weapons were withdrawn from their holsters, then all of the sudden his men froze for a moment and slumped forward falling to the ground and smacking their heads on the pavement with such force it was audible to the general even being so far away.  Washington was stunned and for a moment the quiet chattering among his men had fallen to deadly silence.  They all just stood there trying to comprehend what had just happened.  The two men had not moved and had turned their backs to the commanders, there was no gunshot nor the appearance of an arrow.  He was not sure what had just happened.  He stood there for a moment just staring at the unmoving figures down the road from him not sure how to proceed.

General Washington was not expecting this but it did not deter him from the assault, he ordered four of his men to take their rifles and kill the men from here avoiding any other casualties.  The men took their position in front of the General and took aim at the two men who were still standing there staring at the army who were just a hundred yards from them.  As the Generals men were about to fire there were four small wisps of pink mist and the men fell to the ground, the whole army without waiting for orders took cover in the trees on the side of the road with the General in close pursuit.  It was obvious now they were dealing with a very capable sniper hidden somewhere and from the lack of gunshots they had be a distance from them.  It dawned on Washington that the men had been set there in order for the sniper to get an better idea of the distance of their target, he knew only sending more men would result in too many casualties, if he was going to do a forward assault then he would have to use the forest as cover on the side of the road for the approach, this would make it difficult for the sniper to target them and when they got to the building they would no longer be in a position for the sniper to hit.

He looked back at his men who had a look of disillusionment, he knew they thought this would be much easier than it was turning out to be.  He ordered another of his commanders to the front.  “It is time to send in the bait.”  The man nodded in acknowledgement and disappeared to the back to see to his task.  The General turned back to where the bodies of his men were still lying motionless on the ground.  From the tree line he could not see the two men in the rush to get to cover he did not see whether or not they had fled.  This assault was not going the way he had planned.  This made the General happy because it would give him the opportunity to really test the strength of his army.  He had no doubt in his mind he would be victorious.  They may have made a cunning opening move but the battle was far from over.

Brain and Rich quickly made for the tree line on the opposite side of the road that the invaders had ducked into for cover from Karen’s onslaught.  They were pleased that the ruse they had planned had worked but if they wanted to survive this day they would need some of Brian’s luck on their side.  The two friends raced through the woods to get to the small clearing near the hospital they knew they could move faster than the invading force because they knew the terrain and the invaders would take it slower to keep an eye out for any more traps.  They made it to the clearing fairly quickly and dropped down in the dense brown grass for cover.  Rich reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small mirror.  With it he sent a signal to Karen in the hill above the hospital, a moment later two quiet shots rang out and then almost instantly two loud explosions filled the air.  It was they had hoped to hear.  Karen had shot the two barrels they had been standing beside, Rich hoped the explosions would push the advancing men faster through the woods exposing them to more of the traps they had set up the previous day.  It was going to take a lot of luck for this to go just right.  It was their hope they could get through this day without losing one life in the hospital.  More to the point they prayed they could win this battle.  After the two explosions rang out the two men made a mad dash for the hospital to get inside before the invaders could get there, when they finally made it to the doors Shrapnel and two others threw the doors open for them to get inside then slammed them shut before they were exposed for too long.

General Washington was attempting to chase his men through the woods, they had begun running and scattering themselves throughout the woods when the two explosions had erupted behind them.  The general may not have been a terribly bright human being but he could tell when he was being directed into a trap.  He chased after his men screaming at them to stop and regroup but his screams fell on deaf ears and from his position he could see a few of his men succumbing to spiked traps and pitfalls that had been strategically placed throughout the woods.

When at last his voice was able to carry and the remainder of his men had calmed down realizing that they were running headlong into traps the General was able to get them to carefully double back to him and regroup.  “What the hell are you running from?” He screamed at them in white hot anger.  “You hear explosions and you run the exact way they want you to, I thought I trained you better than to wet your pants at the first sign of trouble.  We’re the predators here not them.  They go lucky, that’s it.  They’re not gonna get lucky again so stop being pussies and think before you move.”

The men hearing the fearlessness of their commander calmed down, pulled themselves together and waited for their leader’s orders.  When everyone was finally calmed down and attentive Washington called the only remaining commander, the he had asked to prepare the bait.  The man came forward wading through the mass of men who had a hard time parting for his movements through the dense forest.  When at last he had made it to the Washington, the General was not happy.  “We have wasted too much, this will have allowed them to prepare more.  I want you to move the bait in close enough, when the trap is sprung we will move in the rest of the troops.”

“Yes, Sir!”  The man said and began again moving through the crowd to the back where he had a group of women and children dressed in baggy disheveled rags.  He pulled out his gun and told them to get moving.  He knew they would be wasting good slaves in this move but at least there would be plenty to replace them when they took the hospital which meant new toys for them to play with which was just as well because he and the men had become bored with the beat up and bruised toys they had now, so at least they would be put to good use in their final moments.

“All right people let’s move it forward!”  The commander yelled.

These people knew what they were being used for but they were so broken marching to their deaths was a relief not a fear.  In this unfortunate new world death was an escape not punishment and General Washington and his men knew this and loved to tease their victims with the promise of death.  At least this time the commander would follow through on his promise. He began moving the group forward slowly through the trees to avoid any more traps or surprises.  The group consisted of women and young girls as was the practice to kill off any men or boys that could be a threat to the General’s army.  For the first time the commander noticed there were no tear or low sobs in the group, they knew what was to become of them but still they marched head uplifted as if marching to their freedom.  He never thought that he would see a world where imminent death was actually considered a means of relief.  He had joined up with the General the day after this all started and had never lived happier.  He was a sick man inside and he knew it was only a matter of time in the old world before he would have ended up in prison or dead so this was a welcome situation for him, a place where he could do what he liked without the fear of consequences.

He marched them forward at a slightly quicker pace through the tree, the plan was to have them run to the building, and upon reaching there the commander had a detonator that would detonate explosives that had been strapped beneath the billowy clothing of the women.  The General and he thought this was a marvelous plan that would play on the sympathies of the occupants inside the building.  They didn’t think that anyone would fire on a group of people screaming for help acting like they are fleeing, or at least they would hesitate long enough for the bombs to get within striking distance.  The new guy had told them the people inside just wanted peace so this ruse should be enough to play on their weakness.

Rich and Brian saw the group of people emerging from the woods adjacent to the entrance of the emergency room, through the rifle scope they could see they were all women and young girls.  Brian gave Rich a look of disappointment.  “They are all wearing baggy clothing from head to toes, I think it’s pretty obvious what these people plan to use them for.

“Suicide bombs to breach the main doors in the E.R.” Rich said giving his friend a look of disgust indicating his anger with people who would use innocents in this way. “We stick to the plan, we can’t sacrifice the lives of those in here for the lives of those out there.  It is a terrible situation but we have to make the right choice.” With this he turned around and spoke a command into the radio to Karen, who was situated in the hills above the hospital about eighty years away.

The women and girls were now being pushed forward toward the hospital they had just come out of the woods, the commander was close behind them with a gun to their backs, anyone who didn’t move forward would be shot in the head right then and there.  On his command they were to all run to the door of the hospital screaming and pleading for help at which point the commander would detonate them blowing open the doors and allowing the rest of the troops to move in.  It was a good idea he and the General thought, well planned and now about to executed.  The people inside may have pulled some tricks on them but there is no way they were going to walk away from this day alive.  He moved them into position, then gave the order.  The women and young girls ran screaming toward the door of the hospital.  They all got about ten paces from the commander before a huge explosion tore them all apart including the commander and half the woods that the General and the remainder of his men were hiding in. There was nothing General Washington could do except watch his men that were too close to the explosion burn.  Their screams echoed in his ears, they sounded like a rabbit dying in in the woods.  He could smell the burning flesh and hear the light cracks when the bones of the deceased got to hot.  With that single explosion he watched his carefully executed plan literally go up in smoke and ash.  He could not fathom that the people in the hospital that the new guy Hal had described would be capable of the cold hearted action he had just witnessed.  All the sounds around him were hushed to a whisper the explosion still rang in his ears and he was disoriented.  He just stood there looking at the trees.  The fire was spreading from one to another coming closer and closer to the remaining men. It was almost beautiful in the whisper of the moment, you could get lost in the dancing flames licking around the branches.

It took a moment for him to pull himself together, he had forty men left and he was determined to take that damn building, and when he did whoever was inside was going to feel the entirety of his wrath.  He would make them suffer beyond what any person though one was capable of suffering. General Washington pulled himself up, and moved through the huddled crowd of men trying to move back, but the previous explosion had ignited the forest behind them and now the new one was in front of them. They were trapped, if they did not find a way out they would all follow their comrades. They would burn.

“Get up and move across the street where there isn’t any fire!”  The General screamed at his men.

“But the sniper will get us if we go that way!”

The General took his pistol out and aimed it at the man’s head.  “If you don’t go I’ll shoot you here and now, think of it as motivation.”  Upon seeing this threat the remaining men scampered across the road and into the field.  They attempted to hide themselves from the sniper in the high grass.  The General waited until the last of the men had crossed and then went himself, when he got to the other side he used his men as a shield from any attack,  the men recognized this and looks of  disgust were traded secretly among them.  They just realized their leader was a coward, but they were too entrenched in this fight to abandon it now, they have lost too much.  They would have to recoup their losses after taking the hospital.

There was silence in the air, the puffs of smoke and crackling of the fire left by the explosions were the only sounds that filled the silence.  The general strained his ears listening for any signs of sniper fire or approaching foot falls, but there was nothing.  He was sure that his commander had perished with the suicide bombers.  They had not even gotten close enough to the hospital to do any damage.  He knew that if he did not capture this hospital he would no longer be the general by the time they got back to their own encampment.  A failure like this.  Being beaten by a bunch of men women and children would be suicide for his position as the leader of these men.

Hal watched in amazement as the events unfolded.  He could not believe that the people inside had been able to fend off the attack to this point.  He was wrong about them.  He could have joined them.  There was no time for his regret now.  As soon as the second bomb had gone off Hal had taken refuge with the remaining men in the field, he knew they were sitting ducks here but there was nowhere else to go.  The people in the hospital had planned it this way and the General had walked right into their trap like a bear to honey.  He could not believe these people were capable of this level of strategy.  If they wanted to at this point they could kill the remainder of them and not even have taken a single casualty.  The general’s men had not even gotten a shot off.  Things had happened so fast there had been no time to think. 

Hal just laid there for a moment observing the fear and confusion in the remainder of the group, he saw the looks of disgust exchanged when the general hid behind them, if they survived this he knew the Generals rule was over.  He had bet on the wrong horse and now Hal would pay the consequences for his mistake.  It was so quiet now, there was no move made by the inhabitants of the hospital.  If they were determined to finish them off they would have done so by now.  Hal could not believe they had killed the women and children strapped with the bombs but he understood their reasoning there were so many other lives inside to be thought of they had  made the decision not to risk it.  They knew what was about to happen and they had taken the only choice available.  He hoped they would be able to live with that decision.

Rich watched the events unfold from the roof of the hospital, he and Brian had made a difficult decision and he knew it would weigh heavily on them in the future, as the smoke cleared he could see the shredded bodies of the women and young girls lying on the ground, his heart stung in his chest.  He wished desperately he would have had another choice.  He knew when he saw them running what was about to happen and he could not allow the people here to suffer as the torn bodies on the field had.  He was determined to finish this today so no one would ever have to be victimized by these men again.  The atrocities these innocent people in the building and lying dead in the fields have had to endure would end today, this will be the end of the savagery Rich thought to himself.  This would be the beginning of a new world, a world where rationality and wisdom ruled, not brute force and animal savagery. No one should have to experience the horrors that had been witnessed today and Rich was determined to make this the last day these horrors would be seen by his people.

Rich could see the general and his remaining men cowering in the field unaware of what was about to happen next.  From this vantage point Rich and Brian could see what was about to happen.  Off at the far end of the field there was movement in the tall grass, rustling of the long strands moving toward the defeated men taking shelter from Karen in the field.  It would be a minute or two before the screams of the Static would be heard moving toward the men in the field and by the time they did hear them it would be too late for them to get away.  There was not just one or two static coming toward them, the explosions and commotion had attracted a horde of them and they were coming at full speed right for the cowering soldiers.

Hal continued to sit in the field but instead of his eyes darting around in fear he was watching the people on the roof of the hospital intently, although they were very small he could make out the familiar people he had met while being held prisoner there.  Then he noticed something that he would remember all his days as the turning point in his life.   While everyone around him was in a state of panic he was able to make out what they were doing on the roof of the hospital, he could make out Rich and Brian not looking in their direction but farther afield.  At this point Hal realized that they did not consider the general and the remaining men a threat and were now focused on something more interesting.  Hal immediately knew what it was and a moment later his fears were confirmed.  They all in unison heard the first of the piercing shrieks from the opposite side of the field.  It dawned on them all at this moment they were herded into this field and the noise of the explosions attracted the attention of the Static.  They could already hear the crazed infected people racing through the field toward their location.  The men looked to their leader for what to do but when they turned their attention to him he was gone, the only thing they could see was the flattened grass leading into the woods from his hasty retreat.  After seeing their leader flee like a coward the men tried to beat a hasty retreat but it was too late and before they could move the static were upon them. 

Hal had been the only one of the men to see the General sneak away, he should have known this would happen as soon as Hal noticed they were out- matched.  When Hal saw the General disappear he knew it was time for him to make his own hasty exit.  While the men were panicking about the approach of the Static Hal was able to slip away the same route the General took.  By the time he was clear he could hear the screaming of the men being torn apart by the savages. He had just made it beyond their sight and down a small embankment landing in a muddy creek bed.  He lay there silently for the next few minutes waiting for the screams to die down so he could get away while the Static we busy eating.  While he laid there he took the time to look around to see where the General had scampered off to.  He could see a faint boot impressions that were quickly being washed away by the creek, if he wanted to follow where the General was going he would have to be quick before his tracks were gone. 

As soon as the screams had finally dies down and the tearing of the flesh began Hal made his break for it moving as silently as he could along the muddy and rocky bank of the creek on his hands and knees tearing the fabric of his pants and ripping into the tender flesh leaving a small trickle trail of wet blood behind him.  When he was finally far enough away he jumped to his feet and bolted following the Generals boot treads from the river bed to a thick undergrowth he seems to have wriggled his way through in an attempt to make following him more difficult.  “Done like a true coward.”  Hal thought to himself as he followed the low path through the thicket.  It was a long grueling crawl but eventually he found himself on the other end of the thicket and in a small clearing, but the sound of voices made Hal stop short and hide behind a tree.  He needed to scope things out before he made his presence known, who knows what the mindset of the General was at this point.  Hal did not want to get his head shot off for startling him.  He crouched behind the tree and began to listen intently to the voices just a few yards from him.

“You people think you’ve won, I’ll return with more men and make your people wish they had never tried to stand up to me.”  Hal recognized the voice of the General.  But who was he talking to?  Hal had to see, he decided to peek his head around the tree just enough to see what was going on.  What he saw made him cringe, and hold his position.  The General had a woman and gunpoint, she was down on her knees with him standing behind her a gun pushed into the back of her head and a rifle on the ground a few feet from her. Hal was in a position to catch this scene from the side view and he instantly recognized the woman that was kneeling on the ground in front of General Washington.  The woman was no other than Karen, the same woman who had showed Hal kindness and had escorted him around the hospital.  “She must have been the sniper.”  He thought to himself.

“Go ahead and kill me if you’re going to.”  Karen said defiantly as she knelt there without fear.  There was no tell-tale shaking or heavy breathing to indicate fear, even in the face of death this woman was courageous and without fear.  Hal instantly gained vast admiration for this woman.  Upon this he realized he had a choice to make in this matter.  The General had the gun and he could shoot her at any moment, Hal had no weapon but did possess the element of surprise.  But if he failed he was dead.  “Gotta’ go sometime.” He said resolutely as he moved to the other side of the tree and began to move to a position behind the General.

“Oh hon, you have no idea what I’m gonna do to ya.  I have no intention of killing ya, yer comin with me and we're gonna get to know one another better.  But I can’t have you squirmin so we're gonna have to do something to make ya more compliant.”  With that he rose the butt of his gun behind her ready to knock her unconscious, this was Hal’s chance.  The General was distracted and he was in position but if he didn’t do this right the game was over, he was dead and Karen was a slave.  He would not be able to stomach the idea.  He had to win this fight.  He picked up a rock behind the general's foot and silently rose behind him, the general heard this and began to turn.  But Hal, in a swift motion the knockout game would be proud of belted general Washington in the back of the head with the stone.  The sound made by the stone hitting his head was like a hammer hitting a side of ribs, there was a dull thud followed by a faint cracking sound, with a grunt he fell to the ground, blood pouring from the gash on the back of his head.  The General was down and Karen was safe, Hal fell to the ground in a sitting position amazed that had worked and he was still alive. 

For a moment Karen just kept where she was until she knew the danger had passed but before Hal could react Karen rolled and grabbed the rifle, Hal was too tired from crawling through the underbrush and knocking the General out to even move.  In a moment Karen had the gun trained on him, Hal just looked at her until the recognition of who he was and what he had just done for her registered in her eyes, when it finally did and she lowered the gun Hal let his body fall back on the ground in exhaustion staring at the blue sky where Nibiru still hung like a dance partner entangled with the sun.         Hal just wanted to drift off under this beautiful alien sky and forget about the world, if he died right now it would be with perfect contentment.  He felt for the first time he could be redeemed.  Soon after he was jerked out of his reverie when Karen’s face blocked out the beauty of the sky with the softness of the feminine face.  Even after the hell this woman had lived through she still looked lovely.

“Well.” She said, taking Hal by hand and helping him up.  “This is not how I saw that situation going. 

“I didn’t expect it either I just wanted to see where he was going.”  He looked at Karen, trying to see in her eyes what she may be thinking.  “Look.”  He said hoping to explain his position.  “I don’t…”

Karen raised her hand in a gesture of silence.  “There’s no need to explain Hal, we understood the predicament you were in, that is why we planned this.  But maybe next time you won’t underestimate people.  If you come with me we’ll see what Brian and Rich have to say.”

Karen slung the rifle over her shoulder and started toward the hospital.  Hal briefly checked the General’s body before following Karen, there were no signs of life.  Hal ran to catch up to Karen and they disappeared into the woods.

The battle had been quick, much quicker than Rich would have thought it could go.  The final tally at the end was fifty dead invaders and zero dead allies.  He never thought he would have been unable to pull this off, but he could not help feeling an overwhelming sense of pride in the people of his community.  If they could continue to work together like that then there would be a bright future for this hospital.  Rich had dreams of growing this place into a real thriving community where they could start anew and bring back the old world.  A better version of the old world.

Rich wished they could bury the dead but the Static had gotten to them, so what was left they decided they would burn so the smell would not overwhelm the hospital, the last thing they needed was a constant reminder of what had taken place here.  Although Rich would make sure this battle was never forgotten he understood that people shouldn’t have to be reminded every second of what they had had to do to survive.  The bodies of the women and young girls were a memory that would haunt Rich until the day he died.  He and Brian took it upon themselves to clean up the remains of their bodies so no one else would have to be haunted by that memory.  Brain and Rich solemnly collected the dismembered parts of the women and young girls and put them in a pile, they felt compelled to say a prayer over the bodies before dropping a match on them setting them alight.

“That is something I hope we never have to do again, do you think we made the right decision?”  Rich said second guessing himself to his friend.

“Yes we made the right decision although it wasn’t an easy one, we can rest easy knowing the decision we made saved the lives of everyone in here, if they had been successful in blowing themselves up here this day would have gone very different.”  Brian rested his hand on his friend's shoulder in a gesture of sympathy.  “So have you given any thought about what we want to do about Hal?  Karen is on her way back with him now.”

Rich stood there staring at the flames that were now engulfing the corpses of the women and girls.  He acted as though he had not heard Brian.  Rich started a bit when Brian again placed his hand on Rich’s shoulder, it brought him out of his thoughts and back to the world.  “I don’t know.”  He said turning and starting back toward the emergency room entrance.  “He saved Karen’s life.  Everyone should get a second chance."

A Stranger to My Daughter's

To me there has been no greater loss or sadness in my life than when I made the fateful decision to approve the adoption of my daughter's.  When you are young it is difficult to conceptualize the long term repercussions of your current decisions. You convince yourself you are doing the right thing and what is best for all.  But as you grow and mature the loss you feel grows ever wider.  The time between holding the laughing bubbling little girls in my arms has slipped through my fingers like so much sand in the wind.  They are teens now and although I knew them but yesterday it has been a span of years.  They do not know me, to them I am a stranger.

I have been a lucky father though, my daughter's found my wife and I quite randomly online and contacted us.  One has no desire and no question while the other is full of love and curiosity about us. The hole in our hearts is much smaller but not quite gone,  We have two daughter's and without the other that hole will forever remain.  But they are young and there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.

Adoption had been such a positive and uplifting experience for so many.  While I am grateful that I was adopted and had the opportunity to grow up in a home wanting for nothing I could never shake the feeling there was something missing.  When I was much younger I had no real desire to know my family but as I aged I began to realize the missing piece of the puzzle was my biological family and I began to experience an insatiable longing to know them.  I pray one day my own daughter will feel the same.

In one conversation I had quite recently with the daughter who does want to know us she compared me to a stranger.  This upset me greatly but I did not let on that I was bothered.  I understood her feelings having experienced them myself at one point.  But her words got me thinking.  Am I just a stranger?  Or is there a deeper bond that transcends time and separation?  Can we truly ever have the relationship with one another that each of us desires?  It is a frightening thought.  While I have spent these many years with them never far from my thoughts in my mind they are still children, just little girls I once held in my arms.  Now they are young ladies with experiences that were never shared with us but some other parents.  Are they also strangers to me?  Is there a familial bond that will inevitably show itself?  Can we build a serious relationship without the constant reminder of what we lost?

I sometimes feel I am a fool to hope for these things, but I have to say it is hope that has sustained me these long years and motivated my writing.  In their absence I have made them the main characters in so many of my stories in an attempt to feel closer to them.  But is it the memory of what we had or the hope of things to come?

Man in the Wood part 6

The concepts my friend was introducing me to were so foreign in understanding I had difficulty accepting the reality of our predicament.  I was a wayward traveler in an unknown land trying to grasp the meaning of my appearance.  The man in the wood had not struck me as an omnipotent being but in my limited understanding of existence would I really have known what he was?  His appearance was not that of a divine being but of a lost and angry gnome.  What was the point of his return and what could we expect?  And what does it all have to do with me?  At first I thought my being sent to Bimini was an act of punishment but upon experiencing this new world it was obvious it was a place of peace and knowledge.  If this had been a punishment it was a terrible example of one.  If the Man in the Wood was indeed the manifestation of the almighty then I truly believe there was a reason I was sent here.  One fact was obvious, the people of Bimini feared him.

In our world the days of the angry and jealous God were over, humanity revered God as a wise and all-knowing deity.  It was hard to understand the view the people of Bimini had of God.  Here God was angry and feared, I could feel the fear wash over the village as my friend and I spoke.  All feelings were one.  What we knew, all knew.  But there was something else I felt then, a feeling I had not felt since I awoke in this new world. Uncertainty.  It was a feeling I could tell was foreign to these people.  The fear of the unknown, the monster in the darkness.  I could feel it deep in my brain clawing at my heart.  In my world the fear of uncertainty was a common fear, something humanity has had to deal with since the dawn of time and we have created coping mechanisms to deal with these fears.  I had the distinct feeling that this emotion was unknown to them and I could feel the anxiety of the town rise as it took hold in their bodies.

If our worlds were indeed so intimately connected it would stand to reason there must be something more than science at work here.  Although it was difficult for me to understand the man in the wood, I could not shake that feeling there was indeed a reason for his madness, he words were that of punishment but his actions were that of compassion.  What did he want?  What was the purpose of all of this?

My thought were interrupted when a tremendous vibration overtook the rock building we were sitting in.  It increased to an almost intolerable level and we both dashed from our seats and from the building back to the center of the village just in time to see it.  The rest of the villagers had gathered as well.  We all looked to the sky, the fear, the utter terror I felt emanating from the villagers overwhelmed me. I looked to the sky to see an all too familiar sight.  A sight one should only see in a picture or in orbit.  There it was hanging in the sky for all to see.  My home.  My Earth. 

As I looked to the sky, it looked different.  There was now a familiarity to the constellations, things no longer felt as ethereal as they initially had.  I don’t know how I could understand it but somehow I knew I was back in my own universe.  I looked the other direction and could see the remnant of a vortex diminishing over the horizon.  We had been pulled through, from one plane to the next.  That was the vibration we felt.  The veil had been lifted.  Our two worlds now danced among the stars together locked in a dance of tidal forces and gravity.

The Earth looked so large in the sky.  A behemoth threatening to tear us apart.  But there was something odd about the familiar planet.  All over I could see abnormal streaks of electricity sparking from one side of the planet to the other.  I began to again become aware of what the villagers were thinking.  Their initial terror had subsided and now felt as a dull thud in my chest.  I could sense a rising curiosity, a desire to understand and to solve this dilemma.  They were intrigued by the streaks of lightning across the surface of the planet.  One word continued to echo in my head, the hive mind agreed in unison.

                                                                    

    “The Static has Arisen”

The Woes of Adoption and Genetic Entanglement

I post this as a thought, a thought that has been with me since the day I made the difficult and unfortunate decision to adopt out those whom I loved most in the world.  It's is a common misconception that parents give their children up for adoption because they are unwanted or unloved. While sometimes this can be the case most often times it is because the biological parents love their children so much they understand they cannot be the parents the child needs. In their love for their child they make a sacrifice that will affect the lives of their children the adoptive family and themselves. Often times it is their desire to act in the best interests of the child.

I am an adopted child myself and have given my children up for adoption.  It was the hardest decision my wife and I ever had to make.  We were very young and there was tremendous pressure on us from both of our families.  Families who were unwilling to be part of our children's lives felt it was acceptable to try and dictate the course of all of our lives.  I am much older now and my wife and I have realized the tremendous mistake we made.  We lost a family because we listened to those who thought they knew what was best for us.  We have had a hole in our hearts since that day that nothing has been able to fill.  Being an adopted child myself I understand what it is like to be on the other side of the equation.  Growing up I had a loving family but I always felt a part of me was missing.  There was a piece of the puzzle that had no been placed among the others and even at a young age I understood this. Parents who have adopted children never underestimate the biological bond that will always be in the heart of your child.

Recently one of my daughters whom we had given up for adoption contacted us.  She is a beautiful and loving 15 year old girl with a huge heart and a smile that melts a fathers heart.  She said she felt something missing her whole life and she felt in talking to us she had finally found that missing piece of herself.  I instantly knew to what she was referring because I experienced the same thing.  But as we talked more and more of her and who she was became apparent to me.  She has had the same struggles I had as a child with the same emotional and anger issues I myself had to overcome.  It pains me that I cannot be there for her to help her through it.  I have told her to talk to her adoptive parents about it but as was with me she says they do not understand her or how to handle the issues she has.  I experienced all of these things as well and have a unique insight into what she has to go through in her life.  Seeing her struggles only makes my wife and I regret our decision all the more. I have great faith in the adoptive process but we were made to believe several things in the course of the adoption process that turned out to be untrue in the end.

Adoptive parents I am eternally grateful for the role you play in giving a child a home and love and shelter but never underestimate the love of the biological parents and their love for their children.  Many of us have had no choice in the matter, we were young and we all know young people do not always make the best decisions and decisions of adoption are some the biggest decision a parent can make and when your young you do not understand the full impact of these decisions or how it will affect all those involved.  If you are going to adopt children understand that although we may have given up our legal rights the ties that bind us are eternal.  I thank you for all you have done and will continue to do for children in need.

Our other daughter is another story, she is 13 and has no interest in getting to know us and while we understand and respect her decision or hearts break with this knowledge and we pray one day to hold her in our arms again.  But she is becoming a child that is foreign to us and it can be disconcerting to see what your children become with the guidance of another hand.  As a biological parent sometimes you scream in your head "Wait, you don't understand them, please just listen."  But alas it is no longer your right and you must live with that mistake.

I speak from my own personal feelings on this topic, there have been many happy adoptions but sadly ours was not one of them.  To this day we feel as though we were cheated by the system and by those we loved and trusted.  So this I say to potential biological parents and adoptive parents.  "Understand where your child came from and where they are going,  the subject of adoption especially in the age of social media can be a daunting proposition.  Understand there are those that are left behind and those that mourn and those that dream."

One thing that consistently breaks my heart about our adoption is the one request we made that the adoptive parents assured us on.  We asked that their names not be changed.  we understood the necessity of changing the last name but we felt the rest of their name was special and to change it was to wipe away a part of who they were.  We were promised that only their last names would be changed but sadly they lied to us.  They changed everything but their first names and changed the pronunciation of one of their names.  This hurt beyond all comparison.  It was something that was promised, a promise that was broken.  Adoptive parents, don't make a promise you have no intention of keeping.  This hurts all parties in the end.  We still feel a connection with our children please don't wipe away a piece of their identity to suit your own egos, adoption is about the child not about you.

Thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts.  I hope you may learn something about adoption from what I have written.

"The Center Pointe" Chapter 13

Chapter 13

                                                                                                                                                      It is not often that one as young as I was at that time to have witnessed the purest form of war and military strategy.  I want to start this chapter by talking directly you my dear readers about the experiences I was about to have that day at such a young age, no child should have to see the things that I saw that day, things that would haunt me for the rest of my life and make me the person that I am today.  Although this world was new to all of the adults that surrounded me, it was the only world I knew, I was too young to remember anything different.  A world where this kind of brutality was not an everyday occurrence was unknown to me at the time.  I could not understand a world where things were not insane.  But for all the horror that had been presented to me, today would be an awakening to my young mind.  It was a world no child should have to ever experience or see, innocence was lost that day, and it was not just the innocence of children that would perish,  it was the innocence of humanity in general that would fall.  The knowledge that what even the best of us can be pushed to do.

          I was in the cafeteria when I saw Karen take Hal under her arm and I secretly followed them listening to their conversation and her attempts to sway this man to keep their secret. I had a deep respect even at my young age for the woman who had taken me in and treated me like her own daughter.  To this day I will never forget the example she had set for me and how I endeavor every day to become the woman she was.  She was as strong as she was gentle a fierce woman but a gentle and concerned mother.  I only hope that I will be able to maintain that kind of balance for my own children.

I spent the time watching them like a fly on the wall prideful in my own sneakiness.  I listened intently to their conversation and could not understand how anyone could deny Karen anything she wanted.  Eventually the pair made their way back to the main foyer at the entrance to the emergency room where Rich and Brian were waiting with supplies for Hal.  They spoke briefly to him and opened the door so he could leave.  As soon as the door closed behind Hal the two men were busy securing the locks on the door and barricading it. At this point the adults took no notice of me and I was able to hear everything that was said, I followed Karen around like a lost puppy as she went from person to person explaining what Rich and Brian had told her.

“Rich and Brian are sure that no matter how he may feel about us it is inevitable that he will tell whoever sent him about us.”  She told everyone who had gathered in the cafeteria to listen about what the man had been doing lurking outside the hospital.

          “If he’s dangerous then why did Rich and Brian let him leave?”  The voice was Shrapnel the old man and Iraq war veteran.

Karen looked at the man, a look of agreement and understanding at the wisdom of the man’s words.  “In a perfect world I would agree with you but the moment we begin to act like those we would fight against nothing would separate them from us and we would be no different than them.” “If we are to die then let it be standing for a world where we have mercy on a stranger and care more about helping them survive than treating them as an automatic enemy,  yes we could have killed him but that would have only delayed the inevitable.  Whoever sent him would come looking for him when he did not come back.  Rich and Brian thought it might be better if we showed kindness.  Maybe then Hal might decide to keep what he knew to himself.  But we have to prepare for the chance that whoever sent him will be coming and soon.  If we are going to live in this world then we have to fight for what we want and the way we want to live.”

          Everyone was silent after Karen’s speech.  She was right, if they began acting like bad people then then the world that they loved that had been lost would be lost forever, but if they fought for what they believed in then if they were to die at least they would have died for something they believed in.  The people at the hospital wanted to hold onto the values of the world that had been lost.  It may not have been perfect but there was potential in a future that world could have provided.  There was no future in a world of violence and death and slavery.

          I spent the day following my new mother Karen around as the hospital came alive with the activity of the adults preparing for what might come.  When we would see Rich or Brian the conversation would be less hopeful and enthusiastic than Karen’s speech had been to everyone else.  They were sure that whoever had sent Hal would be coming the next day.  They would want to take advantage of an attack before the people in the hospital had adequate time to prepare for the attack. From what other survivors had said at the meeting that the people who were most likely coming were well armed and anything but friendly.  Rich and Brian knew that if they came they were coming to kill and enslave. There would be no negotiation there would only be slaughter.  Rich told Karen that he would do everything within his power to protect the people that had come to see this place as home and he would be damned if some wanna be thugs were going to come and destroy his hard work.  He would laugh although I could tell it was not a laugh of humor but of worry over what was to come.

          At some point in the night I fell asleep and did not awake till the early morning the following day.  I was in my bed but Karen and Rich were not in theirs.  I had become used to being awake before them it gave me comfort to see them sleeping.  A kind of peace would come over me as I would watch the rise and fall of their chests.  It was the only time I really ever felt truly safe from the world.  When I made my way down to the cafeteria many of the adults were busy at work.  At my young age I had no idea what they were up to.  So many of them had materials and weapons in their hands and were bustling to and fro.  I tried to find Karen and Rich but before I could make my way around the building I was accosted by the old man who babysat the kids.  He grabbed me by the hand and said I had to follow him and the other children to the basement where we would be safe.  I said I wanted to see my mom and dad but he said there was no time they were busy and the bad people were on their way.  At this I was sufficiently afraid and I allowed him to escort me to the other children.  I had never been to the basement of the hospital.  The concrete stairs down to the dark basement were creepy and frightening for the kids.  We did not understand the magnitude of the situation upstairs and many of us were crying. I have to be honest at this point and admit I was one of the children crying.  I would love to take some artistic license and say that I had been brave but let’s be honest not many children could be brave at such a dramatic series of events.  

          Karen took to helping Rich, Brian and John board up the windows of the hospital while the children were being ushered down to safety in the cellar.  She desperately wanted to take Sati into her arms before they took them down but she had to keep her mind on the task at hand.  Rich had formulated a plan but in order for it to work Karen had to be extremely mindful of her task.  There was no room for error in what she was doing and she was the only one available to do it.  Karen holstered her sidearm and slung her rifle over her shoulder and made her way outside. “Now for the difficult part.” She thought to herself as she disappeared into the woods.

          While Karen was setting about accomplishing her task Rich, Brian and John were busy making their way around the hospital looking for any weak points that may give the enemy access to the hospital.  It was John’s idea to close everything off and try and create a chokepoint in the main entrance to the building.  If the enemy were forced through only one point of access they would be easier to cut down.  That was assuming the enemy did not have access to explosives and could make their own door.

          When all the preparations had been made for the battle Rich and Brian were sure was coming they had a moment to gather everyone in the cafeteria for a briefing about what was likely to happen.  When they entered everyone was seated nervously, quiet, waiting for Rich to speak.  For a moment Rich stood there looking everyone over and he thought to himself that it was not fair that these people who only wanted peace had to defend themselves like this.

          “My friends.” He began.  “We believe that there will be a group of people here sometime today to try and take this building away from us and I want to stress that they have no intention of making a peaceful play for it.  When they come and we are fairly certain they will, they will come to take and destroy everything we have built.  Today is a day like no other that we have faced.  The Static may be a formidable enemy but they lack the cunning of a thinking human being.  Today we will have to defend the way of life that we have built for ourselves.  Now we have an option to abandon the building before they get here or we can fight for what we have built.  This place has become more than just a safe haven for the people here.  It has become a home and a place where our children can grow and learn to survive in the harsh world that has presented itself to us.  In this situation it would be easy to cut and run and I would blame no one for doing so but if you believe as I believe that what we built here is worth defending then join us in this fight and defend our home.”

          There was silence after Rich’s speech and for a moment he feared he had not been able to reach these people.  He was about to say something else when the whole room burst into applause and cheering.  These people wanted to fight.  They had worked hard to build this place and they were not going to let some thugs take their home away.

          “Okay people then if we’re going to do this we are going to do it right.  Shrapnel has come up with a posting plan for everyone here.  We will need to move the medical services to the top floor to help the wounded and a roving medic team to aid anyone during the battle.  We will also need a small group of people that can keep track of enemy movements and report it to the main fighting force.  This is the real thing people if we want to live in peace then we will have to defend that.”  Everyone nodded in acknowledgement, they understood what the future could hold and they all wanted to defend what they had built they were not going to roll over for thugs and bullies they would defend this building and innocent people within.

Everyone immediately set about to their assigned tasks with Shrapnel taking the lead.  Barely a word was exchanged between the group as they were assigned their tasks and went about readying for the battle they knew was to come.  If you were to be an outside observer you would be astonished by the lack of fear and the incredible amount of control these people displayed in their preparation for what was certain to be a deadly event in the coming hours, if you were looking for those who would be fearful of the outcome you would not find anyone. Shrapnel looked on with pride as he watched these people who had no desire to fight ready themselves for a battle they did not want.  He felt for them.  He was a veteran of many battles and never had he seen a group of civilians acting in such a brave and strong manner.  These people were desperate to hold on to any semblance of normality and he knew they would fight to the death to ensure their survival, this made Shrapnel proud to be with these people. The time was soon to come where the true test of courage would be challenged and Shrapnel would be at the front lines.  He hoped what Rich was planning it would be a better plan that their enemies.

Feminisim and the Illusion of Empowerment

Feminism is an amazing premise that has been hijacked by regressive thinkers only interested in control and censorship to protect their own ego's and forcing their point of views on others.  This is no different than Nazism or Marxism.  When you begin to go down this path it is easy to lose control and travel down a road that will eventually lead to misery and suppression of altering points of view.  When you allow people who would willingly sensor free speech to attain any sort of power over others this can only result in tyranny.

Now were are being confronted with a form of censorship that laughingly calls itself feminism.  We have been inundated with troves of PC culture rules of conduct that has even the most notable comics and politicians running for cover afraid to express a joke or a view point that may trigger an avalanche of criticism and harassment from those that pride themselves on equality and free speech. I am all for honest critique. Argument of differing opinions and life styles is the cornerstone of a free society but when people start pushing for censorship because they have been quote “Triggered” then they are suppressing the freedom of others.  In a free society being offended is a positive thing because it opens up discussion and exposes us to new points of view, it is when we begin to censor ourselves and others that we begin to descend into tyranny. Ignoring trauma does not solve trauma.  A broken leg will always be a broken leg if it is not mended by the same example hiding from something disturbing doesn’t mend the problem.

I am a firm believer that all are equal but I do not fool myself into believing that a weak man is capable of defeating a strong man in a competition of strength.  Biology plays a big role in many aspects of life.  One thing that troubles me about Feminism is the absolute assertion that any woman should be able to do anything a man can do and while I do believe that if a woman is able to pass the same tests a man passes they should be absolutely able to get the same job opportunities as a man does.  I do not believe there is a mental difference when it come to the ability to perform a job but I do not feel the criteria to attain the job should change to make it more female friendly.  Case in point.  Pennsylvania State Police departments have been fighting pressure to ease their physical aptitude requirement so more women will be able to join the force.  My question on that would be.  What about all the women who have passed the tests and become state police officers?  Feminism shouldn’t be about making things easier on women when it comes to getting a job, they have the same right to apply for the job but special conditions should not be made for them just because they want it to be easier for them, that is not equality that is a form of tyranny that tries to force your beliefs on others.  Physical capability mandates have been set up in a whole range of jobs for specific reasons, they were set up because the job requires a certain amount of strength to accomplish and if you are not physically able to do the job whether you be a man or a woman then you should not be able to get the job, special conditions should not be made just for you and your ego.  It is a slap to the face of all the women who have passed these requirements.

I was using the previous example as a way to explain where we have gone in terms of the feminist and pc cultural movements.  It is no longer about equality it has now become about eroding away everything that makes us unique and different and trying to make us all the same.  It is about telling the weakest of us there is no need to better yourself, we will protect you with safe spaces, puppies and bubbles so you do not have to face the harsh reality of the world around you, there is no need to better yourself or work to overcome you deficiencies or understand your trauma, here you can hide.  This is not how the human mind works.  Hiding from reality and your problems will only exacerbate them.  It is a delusion.  A delusion that feminists and the PC culture are complicit in.

I say this in humor but also in fact. “If it does not offend my wife then it is not sexist.”  For this statement to be understood I will give a bit of background on my wife.  She was raised in a poor family in a redneck community where there was a great amount of sexism and racism but that never seemed to affect her outlook on life.  She found no difference in race other than appearance and no difference in the sexes other than biology and anatomy.  She is a firm believer that everyone should be treated equal and there is no excuse for anyone to be treated otherwise. No one is better than anyone else.  But she cannot understand the feminist movement.  She is a lover of what she calls true feminism, equal pay for equal work, the right to vote and the equal treatment of the sexes.  But she also feels that feminism has been high jacked.  A while back I showed her the whole Gamergate argument and her only response was laughter. When I asked her why she thought it was so funny she said.  “Of course the women in games are beautiful, in a game we always want to be the best aspect of ourselves.  I wouldn’t want to be a 300 lb. avatar (she only weighs 120 but I found this to be amusing) She has nothing against fat people in fact she married me and I am 300 lbs. and she has never even mentioned my weight and have always made me feel attractive.  And yes I did say “fat”, not weight challenged or plus size or curvy.  I will not live in a delusion or accept the delusions of others.  I am fat, obese and hefty.  It is my fault and mine alone.  It is not the society I live in but the choices I make and others should have no obligation to feed into a delusion that would falsely make me feel better about my condition and they have every right to say I am unhealthy.  I have already touched on obesity and fat shaming in a post on my blog called “Fat Shaming” fell free to read it.  My wife explained her view to me on gamergate like this.  “Everyone likes to look at beauty, When I play a game I like to look at the men same as the women, and there are many women out there that love it as well.  There is an equal amount of violence toward men and women in games and sometimes more violence against men than women.  But I have never been offended by the how women or men are dressed in a game because I understand that we are humans with natural attraction to beautiful things and I won’t apologize or demand an apology for the appreciation of beauty.  If this offends you then don’t play it.”

She is much more forgiving than myself on the issue because I do understand some of the complaints of the feminists but I do have to say that she is right, it should not be the domain of government or censors to make games friendlier toward a particular race or gender.  If it is offensive then that will be determined by those who do not buy it.  People tend to vote more with their wallets than words and when a developer makes a bad or offensive game they pay the price for it and their fans will let them know it.  But I hear no such complaints from avid female gamers (I do not accept Anita Sarkeesian as a gamer, she is not. She is using the gaming world as a means to push her own agenda and radical viewpoints)

There is an illusion going on here, it is an illusion brought on by radical ideologies.  Radicalism always leads to tyranny. It is a dangerous philosophy and when we begin to try and force our ideologies on others then we begin to slip down a slope we have little hope of crawling back up.  Feminism and PC culture alike have become a weapon against others in an attempt to force conformity.  Individualism is what makes us different and great as a species, it is a form of unofficial checks and balances by Mother Nature and when we allow radical ideologies to corrupt this then we regress rather than progress.  We need to have frank and real conversations about these real issues not shouting matches and hen pecking that remind us of our high school days.  There is no maturity or wisdom in finger pointing or labeling and creating a politically correct name for an illness or people is just dressing up the issue in nice packaging not addressing the issue itself.  Address the issues, be the change you want to see not the change others force you to be.