Liberating Barriers

Liberating Barriers Page 13

by Roman Shepp

  She watched as some men tried fighting Matthias, but he was pumped up with adrenaline and nothing would have been able to stop him. The only time Jane had seen anything comparable to this was the masked man who had hunted them. She didn’t know which of the two were worse.

  “Let’s go, quickly,” she said, and the three of them went to walk away from Hugo.

  Jane just hoped she remembered how to get back to that other camp, where she could rescue Rosa and Phil. But as they moved, they heard something through the air, like a whistle. Then a loud thunk. Jane skipped back as she saw dozens of arrows fly through the community, puncturing tents, lodging themselves in the ground, and piercing flesh.

  “Oh my God,” she gasped, stepping back, hoping they were safe within the walls of the cabin.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “You think we can do this?” Phil asked.

  “We have to give it a try. They’ve come a long way in such a short time,” Rosa said.

  “Haven’t we all?” Phil replied, glancing at his arm.

  “You’re becoming an expert with that thing.”

  “Yeah, well, sometimes I wish I didn’t have to be. I wish we’d have found some sign of the others.”

  “Me too. It’s a big forest, though. Hell, it’s a big world. Maybe we’ll come across them eventually.”

  “I can’t believe she left us like that.”

  “I can. People will do anything to survive.”

  “I thought I knew her better than that.”

  “But how well did you really know her? You weren’t with her for that long in the grand scheme of things. Sometimes I don’t know if you ever really can know someone, even if you spend your whole lives together.”

  “It’s good to know that thoughts of romance still are alive.”

  Rosa smirked and pushed his shoulder. Both of them chuckled as they shared a drink before the bonfire.

  “I never thought my life would lead me out here, ready and willing to stop some crazy community from invading the city.” Phil said.

  “Me neither. Then again, I didn’t really know what would happen. I just was trying to do my job and take one day at a time.”

  “You never had any ambitions other than that?”

  “Nope,” Rosa said, shaking her head. “All I wanted was to make sure I had a roof over my head every night and to not have to worry about money. Guess one of those things is true now.”

  “I would have thought a soldier like you would have been patriotic, ready to do the right thing and join a noble cause.”

  “Hell no, that stuff is for people like Steve. I just wanted a decent job. I wanted to do my time, earn my pension, then get out of here. I never believed in any cause.”

  “What made you change?”

  “Who says I have?”

  “I’ve seen you with these people, Rosa. The way you’ve been training them, helping them, guiding them. Before we came along they were just a scattered group of people wanting to stop Hugo, not having any real idea to go about it. You’ve turned them into something more than that. You’ve made them into an army.”

  “I don’t think I’d go that far.”

  “I would. You shouldn’t be modest when it comes to stuff like this. Not everyone could do it.”

  “Steve could. He’d be better at it than I am. Sometimes I think he should have been the one to survive rather than me.”

  “I think we all feel like that at some point or another. I had to listen to the others talk about all the people dead in the city, and then there were Tara’s parents too. I mean, how many other children have been orphaned by this? Why have I survived when there are others who had more important responsibilities? It’s hard to wrap your head around the fact that there’s no meaning to any of this.”

  “All we can do is carry on and try to make a difference,” Rosa said, then chuckled to herself. “God, I’m starting to sound like him.”

  “Steve?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What was he like? I never really got a chance to know him.”

  “He was damned annoying, but only because I knew I never could live up to him. He was one of those people who never seemed to struggle through life, or with doing the right thing.”

  “Oh yeah, I hate those people,” Phil said, laughing. “Do you ever think we’ll see the others again?”

  “I don’t even know if I want to. If I see Jane, I’m going to throttle her for what she did to us. I don’t care if Frank threatened her, she never should have left us.”

  “There has to be something else going on with her. I think she took Tony’s death pretty hard. The two of them had become close.”

  “That still doesn’t excuse it. Man, we’ve seen a lot of things, haven’t we? What do you think we’ll do after all this?” Rosa asked.

  “I wouldn’t mind staying out here, actually. It’s quite peaceful, and by all accounts I don’t think we should head back to the city. There seems nothing waiting for us there apart from violence and death. I think it’s probably better to stay out of harm’s way with a small group of people, start a new tribe, and live our lives.”

  “It sounds so simple when you say it like that.”

  “It’s the hardest thing in the world. Can I be honest with you?”

  “Always.”

  Phil set his drink down on the ground. “Sometimes I find it hard to grasp the magnitude of what’s happened, of all we’ve lost. It’s like it still hasn’t sunk in yet. While we’ve been running around out here, people have been dying. People who can’t get the right medication or medical care, people who can’t find enough food. And the worst thing is that I don’t see a way out of it. How are we going to come back from this?”

  “I don’t think we are,” Rosa said bluntly. “The world has changed, and we have to change with it. The only thing we can do is honor the memories of those who have gone before us and try finding some peace. I still can’t believe I’m saying things like this.”

  “It suits you. I think you’d make a good leader.”

  “I don’t know about that.”

  “You pretty much are one already,” Phil said.

  Rosa considered his words for a few moments and decided that he was probably right. During her time with these people she had taken on the duties of training them and forming them into small groups who had hunted Hugo’s patrols. So far, they had been quite successful and had developed far more quickly than Rosa could have foreseen.

  She was beginning to question her own attitude toward life as well. For so long she had turned away from any human attachments, figuring it was easier to live life by herself. Yet now that she was a part of this group, she found she was enjoying it. She liked helping people discover new skills. There was nothing more wonderful to her than seeing someone’s face light up after they had hit the target with a bow and arrow for the first time.

  The camp had been busy making weapons such as bows and arrows and javelins, getting ready for the attack on Hugo’s community. As far as Rosa was aware they were the last defense against Hugo, and if they weren’t successful, then war would be waged in the city and more people would die. It should have been time for the fighting to be over, but she wasn’t sure if that time ever would come.

  At least she had Phil. The two of them had become good friends. Rosa liked how he still kept a positive attitude despite all that had happened to him. He didn’t like talking about what had happened to his arm, but Rosa had gathered a few things, and she was impressed that he had managed to endure such hardship. She didn’t have much love left for Jane, though. That woman had betrayed them by going off with a man she claimed to hate, and there was nothing that could redeem her in Rosa’s eyes. Phil was convinced Jane had been forced to
leave, even though that seemed like the sort of lie someone would tell themselves instead facing the truth about someone they knew.

  Rosa had been sure that as they scoured the forest they would have come across some sign of Jane or Saeed and the others, but there hadn’t been anything. She hoped the others had found safety somewhere.

  Adam came over to them, looking sheepish.

  “Rosa, I was wondering if you’d like to say something to everyone before we leave tomorrow morning?”

  Rosa almost spat out her drink. She’d never been the person people turned to give inspiring speeches, but the encouraging look Phil gave her made her nod and she rose to her feet. Adam cried out that Rosa was going to say something, and all eyes turned to her. She started to think about what Adam would say.

  “I know that none of you wanted this. That you all devoted your lives to non-violence, and I’m sorry that you have to break your vows. I wish things could be different, but sometimes to be strong we have to adapt ourselves for the greater good. You all have shown great strides, and I hope that when this is all over you can go back to living the lives you want. I’m not going to stand here and tell you that this is going to be some glorious fight, because war is never clean or majestic. We’ve all lost people in this world. We’ve seen things that we never should have seen, but it’s time to reclaim this world as our own.

  “You had a home, and this man has taken it from you. He twisted the meaning and vision for the community and now he wants to march into the city and cause havoc. We’re going to stop him. It’s going to hurt some of you. There’s a good chance that not all of us are going to make it back, but we have to keep fighting for each other. We have to show this man the strength of our honor and prove to him that he can’t get away with what he’s done.”

  Rosa took a moment to breathe and think of her next words. She scanned the faces looking up at her, the flames of the bonfire being reflected in their eyes. In them she saw the same thing she had seen in Don’s eyes whenever he spoke about the chance that he would not see his child.

  “I know plenty of you are scared right now because we don’t know what is going to happen. This is all uncharted water for most of you. It’s natural to be scared. Just do your best and try to keep your head. Remember your training and take things one moment at a time, one breath at a time. If you do that, then we can get through this and we all can come back here and celebrate.”

  “Can you go through the plan one more time?” a voice shouted out to her, followed by nods of approval. It wouldn’t hurt to go over things one last time. The more times they went over it, the more likely it was that people wouldn’t lose their heads.

  “The archers are going to go in first. Try taking out as many dangerous people as you can. Fire all you have. Shower the camp with arrows. Cause panic and disarray. If they’re surprised, then it will be harder for them to organize themselves, and the quicker we attack the harder it’s going to be for them to get to their weapons. We want to make sure they’re at a disadvantage to improve our chances. After our first attack we’ll move in on the camp, and we’ll try to take Hugo captive. I’m assuming there will be people, you know. It’s important not to hesitate, because that will get you killed. Once we have Hugo and anyone else who is trouble, we can try ending the fighting. Maybe the community can go back to the way it was, the way you want it to be.”

  When she said it like that it sounded so simple, but Rosa wasn’t naïve. She knew it was going to be hard work. It was going to take every ounce of blood, sweat, and strength that these people had. They began talking among themselves, telling each other that they could do this, that they could take back their home. Rosa hoped the positive attitude would persist through tomorrow and would help combat their nerves.

  Shortly after giving her speech, Rosa excused herself and returned to the small hut that had become her shelter. Stretching out her body, thought about the following day, and hoped it all would go according to plan. She had worked hard to train these people, although training and being in the middle of a war zone were two different things entirely. She was disturbed from her thoughts by a soft knock at her door. Rosa knew it was Phil as he cleared his throat. She pulled back the sheet that served as a door and leaned against the wall, folding her arms across her chest.

  “I liked your speech, Rosa.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Actually, I was wondering if I could ask you something.”

  “Go ahead, shoot,” Rosa said, smirking. Phil seemed a little more nervous than usual. He took a deep breath.

  “I thought that maybe when this battle is over we could go for a walk somewhere, spend some time alone?”

  “Like a date?”

  “Like a date.”

  Rosa pressed her lips together. “No, Phil,” she said, and watched his face fall for a moment before she spoke again.

  “No, it can’t wait until after the battle because it’s not guaranteed that either of us will make it back alive.” With that she grabbed his arm and pulled him into the hut then threw him down on the floor, and lost themselves in playful, intimate laughs.

  The following morning Rosa awoke feeling refreshed. She glanced down at Phil and smiled. For a one-armed man he certainly had a lot of tricks up his sleeve. She nudged him awake and the two of them went to get some breakfast.

  The mood around the camp was anxious, and the tension was palpable. Most people were quiet, unsure of what to talk about while on the cusp of something so important. They got underway as quickly as possible, moving through the forest like the wind toward Hugo’s community. They set up their positions as they had planned. This is where their intimate knowledge of the camp came in handy. Rosa glanced at Phil and found herself hoping that he had survived the day.

  Rosa gave the order to fire and a flurry of arrows flew through the air, peppering the community. They heard cries and shouts of anguish.

  “Attack!” Rosa said, leading the charge. Phil was beside her, his arm ready to be wielded. They ran into the camp screaming.

  “We’re here for the one who betrayed us! We’re here for Hugo!” Adam shouted.

  Arrows were littered around the community, as were bodies, but there still were plenty of people left to fight. To Rosa’s surprise the people there already were wielding weapons as though they were prepared for the attack, and then she saw why. At the far side of the camp was a huge man. She experienced flashbacks to the bunker where the masked man had taken control and killed Don and Steve without any struggle whatsoever. For a moment she thought it might be the same man. She shook her head.

  Focus.

  The huge man turned and roared. While he had seemed to be attacking the camp beforehand, he now was united with it in fighting Rosa’s forces. The two armies clashed on the battlefield, using whatever was at hand. The weapons consisted of knives, javelins, spears, daggers. Some people even picked up arrows from the ground and used them. Rosa yelled to her army to hold the line and keep their heads, but she could hear them crumbling. The pacifists weren’t used to war, and they were being scorched by the fires of combat.

  Suddenly there was a bright light. Rosa looked up and told people to move. Someone had set a piece of wood on fire and launched it into the middle of them. Agonizing screams pierced the air as the flames latched onto flesh and wouldn’t let go. The victims ran around in panic, throwing themselves to the ground in an effort to douse the flames.

  In the distance, Rosa saw the big man running forward, barreling through people and sending them toppling like bowling pins. She braced herself, ready to face him, even though she didn’t know how she was going to defeat a man like him. But she’d find a way. For Steve and Don and all the other people who had lost their lives.

  “We’ve lost too many!” Adam called out, his voice hoarse. Rosa glanced around and cursed when she saw the number of dead people lying on the ground. More than she had pl
anned for.

  “Should we retreat?” Adam added.

  “No. There’s no turning back now. This is a surprise attack. If we stop, we’ve lost all advantage we have,” Rosa said. There was only one option, and that was to continue the fight.

  “If we leave, we’ll just be hunted down, and we’re not going to die like that,” she said through gritted teeth.

  With Phil by her side, she charged forward, using all her training to take down the enemy. She fought hard, and with great determination, but it didn’t seem to be enough. There were just too many of them. Then she heard her name being called. Looking around, she saw Jane, Saeed, and Tara standing in the middle of the battlefield.

  Rosa called out for everyone to follow her and then sprinted toward Saeed and the others. Phil was the only one who managed to make it with her, though.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” Jane asked.

  “The people who captured us used to live here. They escaped. What are you doing here?” Rosa said, glaring at Jane. Jane glanced at Phil and looked ashamed.

  “I’m sorry for what happened. I was scared, confused. I shouldn’t have left. But these people have to be stopped. We have to do something,” she said.

  Rosa looked around. Recriminations could come later. There was still a war to be fought and the more she looked around the more she worried. It seemed as though the force she had been leading had been decimated, and they all were straggling, fighting for themselves, not as one unit. Rosa was prepared to fight some more, but death was closing around them all.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Matthias had been in a blind rage when the attack first had begun. He’d wanted to tear up everything because of Hugo. It was time for Matthias to take control. Then he looked around and saw that another enemy was daring to threaten his community, the one he was destined to lead. He roared and ran into the crowd, sending many of them flying. They were no match for his strength. Nobody was! He was going to show them all how he was the mightiest, and how he was the only one who deserved to lead them.

 

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