The Fallen World Part II

Chapter 4: Painful Memories

I slowly open my eyes, I see Frank and a few guards barge into the room, "Darwin! Are you okay?" Frank said, I see him look at Kieran, "Shit... hold on, I'm gonna bring you to the clinic!" Frank checks Kieran's head, I slowly close my eyes again.

I wake up in the clinic room, the light coming from the window hurt my eyes a little, it's also raining outside. I sigh and sniff, what is going on here? "Chase... Chase!" I quickly got up but my head stings, "Fuck!" I cover my forehead and shut my eyes. I see Frank sitting on a chair beside me, frustrated. "Frank?" I said, "Those newcomers... they took her." He shed some tears. "Why does this keep happening to her? Was it because of Oregon?" He asked.

"I..." I stammered, but out of nowhere he slammed the table and shouted: "They fucking got away with it!" He then covered his face and sob. My eyes shed some tears, "Even I don't know what's going on, but I need to find out. Frank, where's Kieran?" I asked, "He's..." He sniffed, my heartbeat immediately rises. "He's in room 237." I got a sigh of relief knowing that he's okay.

After I recovered for a few hours, Frank and I visit my boy—he was devastated as us. He cried for so long and I tried my best to comfort him. Kieran and I stayed at my house, not knowing what to do, Frank's in his office full of rage and broke his legs from falling down the stairs, that's what the settlers here told me. "Darwin, who were those guys?" Kieran asked, "I don't know, kid." I said, "What should we do now?" He asked for the second time, I sighed. "Even I don't know, I need some time to think...".

My head's getting hot and my chest is pounding, it's like that same feeling when I'm from the outside world. I haven't had that feeling since five years ago. "I think they're from Colorado," I explained to him, "But I don't know which part." "Colorado?" He asked, "Yeah, I think it's not that far from here.".

"What should we do?" He asked, even I asked to myself. My paws are shaking and turned into a fist, my eyes are watery knowing that I might have to go outside again. "I'm... afraid." I stammered. Kieran stares at me with confusion, I look at his eyepatch—it reminds me of all the ruthlessness out there, what they would do to a boy like him. "I need to take a minute," I said, I take a deep breath and head upstairs.

I enter the bathroom, I look at myself in the mirror—I look like a mess. That wolf hit me hard last night, I look like a guy who hasn't slept for weeks, I wash my face for a long period, I sometimes sniff or sob. 'Have you ever risked your own life to save someone else's?' That's what Chase told me five years ago, I still remember every word she said to me.

After wiping my face with a towel, I look at the mirror again. My sad, depressing-looking face turned into a growling mad wolf. I walk downstairs and look at him, "I'm... I'm going to find her." I said, "What? Wait but that means you have to go out there again!" He exclaimed, "I know! But we can't just leave her there!".

"Can we just call out the guards to come and get her?" He asked, "No, they don't have that much experience as I do when it comes to the outside—and besides, you're telling them to risk their lives for her, you want that?" I said, Kieran shook his head. "I'm sorry.".

"I know you're afraid of losing me, I understand that—but please have faith okay?" I said, his eyes are starting to get watery. "But at least let me come with you!" He said in a heightened tone, "You want to kill people?" I asked, he went silent for a moment and shook his head. "Just trust me on this one, I'll come back with Chase beside me, okay?", "Okay..." Kieran seems to be more upset than before.

Early in the evening, I enter my shed and turn on the faint yellow lights. I hid my old guns here and no one knows I still have them, but I only have my pistol and shotgun. They're found under the boarded floor, I pull the board up and found them. My body's starting to shake, I don't want to kill people again, but I have no choice. I'm starting to hyperventilate, I can't do this... I can't.

I placed my shotgun on the table and placed the pistol on the workbench. "I can improve this one." I turn on the lamp, picked up some parts, and ready to upgrade my gun.

I grab some tools and ready to start. After a few minutes I turned junk into a very reliable piece of accessory—I made a compensator, I insert the compensator into the pistol and it got a perfect fit. I grab a cloth and a bottle of oil to polish the pistol, it looks brand new. That's all I can think of, for now. I kept my pistol in my back pocket and store my shotgun at the side strap of the backpack. I wore my backpack and grab some food in the kitchen inside my house, I then wrote a note on the table.

'Kieran, I'm heading to Colorado, whatever you do, don't try to call anyone for help. Just stay calm and trust me, I can handle this and bring Chase home. Please be a good and brave boy and always keep your chin up, don't let those assholes mess with you, take care now. —Darwin'