Conquest

by Silena Buckelew

4: The One Who Walked Upon the Dead

  Though I had told myself that I was going to divulge my feelings after my last meeting with the girl, I chose not to. I really didn't have anything definitive to say about the encounters right away. I had my doubts and all but that wasn't any reason for me to just go and cause a panic during out dire times.

  Yet it always weighed on my soul so I strove to better myself regardless. I worked hard to build up our farms and trained hard to help defend out claim that once was our city. I forged a spear out of salvage from buildings we chose to dismantle to build walls.

  Out situation was looking up; at least for us. News from radio told a different tale from far areas. It was this that caused us to make defensive pacts with neighboring towns and such.

  And on one day, we were called to honor that. The radio call came in a panic, calling forth any aid as quickly; people were being killed in a nearby town. We had to hurry, we had to help.

  So, gathing ourselves, myself and some of the best trained headed out using an old truck we had fitted to run off of solar batteries. It had limited charge but it worked well for missions such as this.

  We had set out just as promised by our defensive pact even though promised a lot of chaos waited for us by the radio call. And upon our arrival, the call…

  It did not lie…

  The gate that had been made for the town's wall had been completely destroyed and beyond we could see corpses just beyond. Leaving our vehicle behind, we rushed in to stop the bloodshed from continuing.

  The very bloodshed we witnessed as we entered the towns hub. A man with dark hair, black clothes, swung his weapon which was a blackened metal scythe, and sliced a man's head clean off. The body fell partially on his foot and he calmly kicked it aside.

  It was a shocking scene before us, the man standing in front of corpses… Yet that wasn't the only disturbing part. Just partially behind him sat upon horseback the girl and the two strange men I had encountered. The dark feeling in my soul was there again; I was at a loss of words and action that very moment.

  The girl did not look up at me, instead she looked towards the scythe wielder and held out reigns to a beige colored horse she had been keeping.

  It was the red haired man who looked up towards us, "Look; sheep have come." He said in his intoxicating voice.

  The heavyweight man fell his eyes upon me, "Oh look it's that one again."

  "Shall I dispatch of them?" the newest stranger, the one with blackened hair and robes, inquired.

  It was then that the girl looked up and locked eyes with me, "Hello again." She said to me.

  "Do you know this sheep?" the dark haired one asked.

  "Yes he is good; he spoke with me four hours one day." She replied. "He is not our concern."

  "What on earth is going on!" I demanded. "How are you involved in all of this… I've had my suspicion but never had I believed I would witness this…!"

  "What? You never imagined you would witness the end?" she asked of me; leaving me confused but my crew even more confused.

  "I implore you to leave this place." she spoke with a calm voice. "The time is not for you to become involved in all of this."

  I was angry by her dismissing me so easily. I wanted answers and I wanted them now. "Are you behind all of this? Are you behind this war? What is your intent."

  "My intent?" she asked just before she laughed, "For the world to belong to us!" she said as she motioned to herself and the three others. "You hold no chance to me; nothing can stop me from obtaining such."

  That explained enough. It meant that she was truly behind all that was occurring. And, though I had fancied her, I could not let her get away with any of this. I needed to, along with my crew take the four down. And I would not allow them the first strike.

  With a heavy heart, I tossed my spear. I had actually become excellent at hitting any target with such a toss. And my aim was her. However, I never expected the spear to be batted away. The red haired man had swung out a sword, which he still held out in front of the girl, to knock the spear away.

  The girl didn't recoil; the horses didn't flinch. Everything was calm; and silence fell to the area. The only should was that of my weapon embedding in a nearby corpse upon the ground.

  "You cannot kill me in such a way." She stated. "Even if he had not deflected as I knew he would, I could have just as well. This is not the time."

  "Do you wish to leave it at this, lady?" the red haired one asked.

  "Yes, come, let us return to the base." She replied as she led the turn leading the others away and towards the exit of the town.

  My crew and myself were left in shock. Once my attack had been knocked away any home of us combating the four was knocked away just as my spear. There was nothing we could have done in that moment and there would be nothing that could have been done if we had followed the four to deal with them.

  Our only problem then lay… What would we tell the others upon our return?

  5: The Apocalypse They Kept

  The scene we had seen was something we did not wish to speak about. But I was the one who knew most about the girl and strangers so it fell to me to inform the others of what we had witnessed.

  The fact that we had come back alive and unscathed confused the others especially after hearing the horror story I was to give. To be honest I didn't understand it myself.

  Yet it had happened and we had returned and we had to decide what to do next. It was time to compile everyone that was in our pact.

  That was needed... it was time to call upon everyone that had made agreement that we had responded to for that destroyed town.

  It was to be done and had to. We did indeed call upon all the we could and indeed they had come. It seemed that the news of the fallen town had reached their ears and knowing we had responded, they had come to hear from us what had happened.

  I decided to indulge them, everyone on everything that I knew about what had been happening. Even my knowledge was lacking but I told what I could. Yes, I told them all I knew of the girl and the brief encounters I had with the strange men who appeared alongside her.

  We concluded, as we had seen, that they were behind all that had been occurring. And we decided that something had to be done to stop it. We had to take the fight to them, it would seem, and to take down the one that appeared to be their leader: that girl whom I had once been so intrigued by. And where would we take such a fight? Well, thanks to my information we concluded the location of their assumed base were to be. Where else would it be other than that location near that field.

  So, it was with duty that we all set off to the location; ready to end all that had begun… Ready for war and death to welcome.

  I never wanted to be there, on that field, the very field that I had met with her and talked with her for hours. How had it come to this…? How had it come to the point that we were facing off for the sake of everyone? I wanted to ask her why and to talk with her one more time, but I could not.

  I could not let her see me; I had to have the element of surprise. While the others did their best to hold off the dangerous trio that were the strange men that had shown up around her, I went around behind.

  I came up behind the girl, whom held no weapon of her own. With little more hesitation, I thought of everything that was at stake, and drove my spear up through her back.

  It penetrated her chest. She gasped, her head tossed back, arms out. The shock was evident.

  The next thing I heard was the red-haired man yelling, "Lady…!" he had shouted. Noticing his move was to rush to her side, I quickly withdrew my spear and jumped back and away.

  He was there to catch her before she hit the ground. It was then that everything seemed to freeze.... The battle froze and all eyes turned towards the fallen girl.

  Was it over? Was the end to all our strife so simple as felling her?

  "It will happen," She muttered.

/>   The man with black hair went to her side kneeled down and placed his hand over the wound. She shook her head, "No, this is fine. Go now, the three of you."

  With a slight nod from the red-haired man, the men stood, gathered, and left the area. None pursued them. Yet, it was clear that the battle was done. None truly wanted to push the fight if it was over.

  "Seems like…we won't get to chat again…" She muttered before laughing slightly before bursting into a coughing fit. "Don't worry… it's over;" she said, smiling slightly as she placed a hand on the wound on her chest, "I wish to speak with you just a moment, John, before any time that has been granted to me is up…."

  I nodded to those that had followed him there and in a simple couple of moments they exited. I then went to the side of the girl; her wound seemed somewhat healed from the initial strike. Was it the touch of that dark haired man that had done so?

  "I haven't long," she said to me. "I suppose that you realize I'm not normal…nor were they… The war brought, the starvation that fell, and the death that followed…all that is done… However…the worse is yet to fall upon humanity. Though the war will no longer bring death in its wake… Yet…death will come…as is inevitable." She stated. "In my pocket is a key…it’s a stronghold underneath these grounds…You must gather all those strong for the future…and go there. Soon…disease will claim the lives of humanity. Soon…all of humanity will fall prey to such; I am giving you this last chance….to keep and protect."

  The chat was cryptic, even as short as it was. Would I believe her? How could I believe her? She stood right next to those that had crippled humanity; seemingly led them… Yet, knowing that…how could I not believe her?

  6: The Loss we Wept

  Had I chosen to believe those words she had told me on that field that day? Yes…yes I did. And I was no fool for believing her cryptic words. Just as she had told me I gathered up the strong and needed and took them down below into the facility that she had given me with that key.

  It was a large bunker stocked with supplies; it was a place set-up to remain and survive within for quite a while. And the coming days proved why to me. Whilst we continued to have some contact with the outside for a short while, we, those who claimed the bunker, noticed that, just as she had promised, disease was beginning to fell humanity.

  Soon, it seemed that the diseases of humanity would become its plague and destroy it. We took it as time and we sealed the bunker.

  It was a sad feeling for all of us, especially for me. Having knowing what was going on; having known the girl whom had led the charge of what was clearly the apocalypse; and having been given the key to the bunker weighed heavily on me.

  Yet, I knew that there was nothing more that I could have done. The girl had given us a chance to survive when she clearly did not have to. Did that mean that not everything she did was evil? No…and yes. She destroyed that world of ours; it would never return. Those of the bunker and I had accepted that fact; yet, we were the birth of a new world, a new age…and a new civilization.

  And it was such truth that allowed us to use the bunker to begin our new lives. We had to leave the past behind us and push forward; we had to begin our new civilization using the supplies of the bunker before we would venture forth again.

  We mourned for the past, but as years passed, we healed. And time came that our supplies were dwindling in the bunker. Twenty years did so pass in that place, in our lovely facility; we had grown, lived, loved, and birthed a generation that had never seen the outside world.

  Yet, it was time for us to go back to our world and heal it. I was there to guide those I had taken in the bunker and their children back into the light of day. Upon exiting the world was there waiting for us. Challenges would face us in establishing a new age for humanity, but that was just what had to be done.

  (End)