Hardin's War

by A.S. Morrison

XVII

  The sight and smell was too familiar to me, I couldn’t stand it. I started off slowly, my ears picking up the tiniest sounds. I was more scared than I had been on the first trip through that forest. The trees proved to be good hiding places. I took advantage of each one I came to by hiding behind it. My mind sharpened to the world around me, despite how hard I tried to keep it dull. I didn’t want to feel the nerves and dread that had begun to overwhelm me.

  The sun quickly lit up the dome in a grayish light. I was still wearing the gray clothes that were given to me on my first night in Wall City. They had been washed once. I shed the jacket; it was much too warm for it. I came to the spot where we had been attacked within minutes. There was no sign of our past confrontation save for a few holes in the ground. Shortly after that I came to the cage. Its purpose was still unknown, but I had a sneaking suspicion that it might somehow be related to the bracelets.

  Every step was one more towards home, but also one more towards a possible attack. I was less conspicuous than a five person team, and that improved my chances of survival. The forest ended abruptly several hours later. The open fields were next. I boldly stepped out and walked, without looking anywhere but forward. I was nearing the area where we first saw the Cityers pop out of the ground. Sweat poured down my body as I approached. As I passed the square patches on the ground nothing happened. Before I knew it I was quite a ways away. I suppose I should have been happy, but there was a small part of me that actually wanted to get captured; to know the truth of the Cityers once and for all.

  The most important priority was still ahead, and so I continued. My initial fear subsided as fear sometimes will if kept unchecked. It was hard to say if I was even heading in the right direction. There was so much open space that I could have easily left the unmarked trail home behind in favor of a new route to nowhere. There was only grass as far as I could see. I wished for a Journey Train. I could have easily made a bad cake in the amount of time needed to get home. Or maybe I might have finally caught a butterfly. I imagined Nara walking beside me, telling me valuable information. And of course I wouldn’t be paying attention. If only she was there; I needed the company.

  All of the sudden I felt that someone was watching me. I couldn’t see anyone, and it may have been my imagination; but there was no point in taking chances. I dropped to the ground and was partially hidden by the grass. I listened hard for any sign of movement. There was no breeze; no noise or movement at all. I stayed down for the better part of the day, thinking it better to travel by night.

  The sun took its time to cross the sky that day. Eventually it did turn night. I got up slowly in the late twilight to see the field just as empty as it had been before. That feeling of being watched must have been unwarranted. I was used to being paranoid, but now it was different. It used to be constant, I always knew something was about to go wrong. Azureland changed that. That day in the field the paranoia came and went, allowing me some time to think everything was all right, before plunging me back into anxiety. I mention that feeling a lot, but that’s because it was so strong. It dominated my mind and body, putting me on edge.

  I couldn’t see where I was going. Not that I needed it, there was nothing to walk into, and as far as I knew I was going in a straight line. I grew tired and stopped to sleep. I was too tired to care where I was, but I was confident that no one would see me. I woke at first light, ready to go. There’s not much to say about the morning. I ate some bread for breakfast, hoping I had enough so I wouldn’t have to eat Nutrition again. By midday I found the burnt town. After everything I learned in Azureland I still had no answers. It could have been the Humurom’s who were responsible. I wasn’t convinced anymore, but still thought it probably was them. I took a long loop around the area, not wanting to see what I had seen before.

  Why would the Cityers want to live above ground at all? They must have felt safe enough to attempt it. Compared to the strict rules of Humurom, the Cityers must have been lax. I wanted to confront Matilik about it; to get as much information as possible. I was not sure if he knew anything or not. As leader he might have been passed information that could help fill the holes in my existing “history of Humurom”. What I had so far wasn’t holding very much water.

  One hundred fifty years before I entered Azureland there was a war between two countries: Bozlin and Humurom. The war escalated dangerously and threatened to spill into bordering countries. So those countries got together and voted to lace a giant dome over Humurom and Bozlin until the fighting was over. The discovery of nuclear bombs caused the wall to go up before it was ready. Nobody could get in, no one could get out. The nuclear bombs went off; destroying the two countries and lighting up the dome for hours.

  Humurom was survived by the people who made it into a bomb shelter, constructed inside of a mountain. For the first one hundred years the people inside the shelter ate canned food, afraid to go out because of the radiation left after the nuclear explosions. Soon the population increased and the food started to run out, forcing the inhabitants into a corner. The Hunting Office was created and the door was opened for the first time, revealing a world vastly different than the ones their ancestors knew. Somehow deer survived the nuclear blasts, and were hunted. But it wasn’t enough to feed everyone. Drastic measures were put into place, known as Nutrition. Bits of the deceased would be put into machines and come out as food. I almost threw up just thinking about it. It kept them alive, and that’s all that mattered to them. Things got even worse when the hunters began to be killed off by the Cityers, the new name for the Bozlins. It was assumed that they were responsible because they hated the Humuroms so much.

  The deer ran out and the leaders were too scared to let people leave, forcing the close of the Hunting Office. That’s when I took a team to seek out the Cityers. I found Azureland instead and discovered the history that I was never taught. A few questions remained. How did the deer survive? Why were the Cityers hunting hunters? Who created the Bracelets? I doubted Matilik knew all the answers, but I hoped he could help with at least one.

  By night I arrived at the ruins of the church. I found a hiding place between two pieces of fallen roof and ate some more bread. I thought about spending the night there as the light was quickly disappearing, but was strangely excited to get back home. My old mat would be more comfortable than the hard ground. I set off on the final leg of the journey. I knew it so well that I didn’t need to see where I was going. I made it to the mountain a few minutes later, climbed up the side, and arrived at the door. I knocked, no one answered. I continued knocking but to no avail. I shouldn’t have expected anyone to answer. The ground wasn’t so bad. I curled up and used my bag as a pillow, hoping someone would eventually open the door.

  I made it back with a lot more ease then I thought it would take. But I was only half done. The hard part would be getting back to Azureland with Mama. I closed my eyes, promising myself that it would be just as easy.