Forgotten Liberty

by Alessio Cala

  The scribbled illustration revealed a room filled with people. To one side there was a figure that knelt beside a smaller figure. Next to it was a standing figure with a book in its hands. Finally, on the other side of the page, were two figures being held back on their knees by what could only be perceived as guards.

  It was them. It was all of them at this precise moment in time. He didn't know what to say. Sam hadn't taken the book out since they left it out to dry by the river. Then it hit him. He remembered the drawings before, the one with the gun. It was a near identical depiction of their first encounter with Kara. These were two occasions he had sketched something before it had actually happened. The boy had illustrated events prior to the time they had truly taken place.

  The room lay still, stunned in utter silence. Although they saw it, felt it, no one was prepared to accept the wave of supernaturalism that lingered in the atmosphere around them.

  SEVEN

  Later that evening, Annie, Sam and Max had returned to their assigned quarters for the night. Javier had asked Frank if they could speak privately. They sat down at the table where the guards had played poker earlier that day, cards still strewn across the table.

  A luminous silver sheen casted over the two men beneath the moonlight. They sat across the small round table from one another. Javier offered him a drink which he kindly accepted, but Frank wasn't really there for the drink. He watched Javier swig the warm whiskey around his glass in a circular motion as he leaned back, crossing one leg over the other.

  "Frank, I apologise for the way you were mistreated today. I shall be blunt with you as I sense you prefer a direct to-the-point approach."

  Frank took a gentle sip of the whiskey and also leaned back in his seat. "All right."

  "The truth is I have no leadership experience, but these people have always looked to me for answers. I have managed to band together the remaining settlers of this island and bring them hope, hope that they can conquer these demons that torment our land.”

  "Hope is a dangerous thing, Javier. You’ve got these innocent hard working people under your spell. You’ve made them believe that you can save them from what’s coming their way. You and I both know that as soon as the first shot is fired, that spell will be broken.”

  "You know what? You are absolutely right. But what can I do?"

  "That's not my problem."

  "I never asked to be their leader. I was appointed this position. I was okay with running a village, not an army, Frank. After two months these raiders have nearly engulfed our land and claimed it as their own."

  "What do they want?"

  "The same as everybody else, freedom, but their idea of freedom is riddled with a selfish and twisted ideology that only those with poisoned minds can comprehend. They know these lands are not governed. The British want to wash their hands of the situation. There is too much political backlash for them to reveal what is really going on. If the U.N. truly found out, the only thing they would have to say is, 'we told you so.' Politics are fickle, Frank."

  "You mean to tell me that the reason there hasn't been any basic supply shipments over the past few years is because the Brits have turned their back on Autark? The rest of the world doesn't know about all this?"

  "They know nothing. No governing body is sending help, Frank, which is why I had to send for help myself."

  "What do you mean?"

  "I sent my last party of fishermen out west to deliver a message to my contacts in Costa Rica. When they received word of our attacks, a group of individuals formed an assembly of freedom fighters known as ‘Libertad Para Autark,’ or, ‘Freedom for Autark,’ as you would say in English. These fighters have managed to recruit people from all over the globe, not just soldiers, but citizens looking to make a difference. I received word this evening that the LPA forces have landed on Autark's shores. They entered in the south west through Merribank village and are heading north to aid in the defence of Elkford as we speak."

  "I was in Merribank when it happened."

  "Then you know what these people are capable of. They've been robbing us and kidnapping our people for years, but in the space of just a few months they've overrun the military base; run down the eastern industrial town of Wolvendale, across the south through Merribank and are finally circulating towards the last village in Autark: Elkford."

  "Why are you telling me all of this?"

  "Because I need your help. I have spoken with Annabel and she is eager to partake but she wanted to discuss it with you first."

  Frank sat up and brushed the dirt from his jeans. "I'm listening."

  Javier pushed the bottle of whiskey and glasses aside and removed a tatty piece of stained paper from his pocket. He unfolded it over the table to reveal a hand-drawn map of Autark with a red circle in the north east corner. It circled the military base.

  "I have lost contact with my scouts at the military base. It is said that the raiders have up to one thousand people under suppression working as slaves, women and children included."

  "They're moulding children into soldiers, Javier. The kids I saw could barely carry the damn rifles in their arms."

  "Which is why I need you to escort some of my people there to find out what is going on."

  Frank sat quietly for a moment, ingesting the revolutionary figure's proposal. "Forgive me for saying so, but have you completely lost your mind? I'm an old man for Christ sake, I mean do I need to remind you what is out there? What could I possibly offer your people?"

  "The boy, Frank. The boy. He needs to be kept safe. He has been there himself. He will know the layout."

  "That doesn't mean he–"

  "Frank, listen to me, please. In just a few days, Elkford will be lost. I am being realistic with you now because I see that you yourself are a realist. In the past four years the raiders have completely overrun the east of Autark. Nobody believed the rumours and now we a paying for it with our lives. Nowhere is safe anymore. The LPA can only do so much. We both know what the child is capable of. We both saw it."

  "I'm not sure what I saw back there."

  "We saw the future, a living breathing prophecy."

  Frank knew what he saw. He just struggled to believe it. While the other children wielded arms, Sam wielded parchment. The boy was a diamond in the rough, and Frank wasn't sure he truly understood just how remarkable he was.

  "You want me to trek across two-hundred and sixty miles of raider infested territory to save a thousand slaves? What then? Free them into the wild to be re-captured again? This is absurd."

  "I'm not asking you to free them. I'm asking you to buy us time, time to regroup with the LPA. The raiders will think you are being held up here and by the time they've raided our village you will be miles ahead of them. If we win the fight it will scatter their forces and when the time comes, we shall meet you there and together we can put an end to all of this."

  "Even if you were to survive a fight, how are you going to free all those people?"

  "As a unit. We may not have many weapons and we may be outnumbered but I will do whatever I can for this land as I have done for the past eight years. Listen to me. The raiders have stolen our fishing boats; they've burnt our crops and fields and have kidnapped our farmers. There are many ways in, provided you have a boat, but there is only one way out of the island. Autark Harbour is on the other side of the base. Take the boy and your wife far from here to Newfoundland and send for help. It is only a few hundred miles north-west of the here. Autark isn't safe anymore. I will wait here and prepare for siege with my people. The LPA should be here soon. If we do not reach the military base by the time you are gone then we will wait for your return but your priority is the safety of that child."

  "This is not my fight, Javier. I want no part in this. I've lost my home, my livelihood, even watched my neighbour die by their hand. All I have left is my family. I'm not putting the only thing left in my life on the line. Get someone else to do it."

  "That boy has developed so
mething of a bond with you and your wife. You may not want to believe it but you know it to be true. You are the only ones he trusts, when you are not present, he does not speak. If the raiders are aware of his powers, they will no doubt be looking for him; and the first place they will search? Right here. He won't go with anyone else. It has to be you."

  Frank leant both elbows on the table, his head in his hands.

  "I never asked for this."

  "Look around you. You think any of us asked for any of this? These were the cards you were dealt." Javier held up the pack of playing cards and tossed them across the table in front of Frank.

  "This is our island, Frank. We, the people, we built it; and although you wish to cast yourself aside, whether you like it or not you too are a part of the people. When will you take responsibility and stand up, fight for what is yours?"

  "All I care about is my family."

  "Then will you go the distance to protect them?"

  Frank didn't reply. He sat quietly, defeated. He knew Javier spoke the truth. The island was being overrun and the settlers who built Autark were now forced to slave away for the raiders who took it from them. He could run, maybe go into hiding, but eventually the raiders would catch up with him and when they did, he knew that surrendering to them was a far worse fate than death itself. He sat up, confronting Javier's judgement head on.

  "You're saying Annie wanted to do this? My Annie?"

  "Yes. She wanted to discuss it with you first but she seemed willing."

  "If I do this, and we can restore Autark to what it was; I want you to make amends for what I've lost."

  Javier held out his hand, "consider it done."

  Frank took his hand and shook it firmly.

  He spoke with Annie upon his return. She was eating at the time, sharing her food with both Max and the boy. He watched her wipe the stains from the boy's mouth as though she had been doing it her whole life. Frank had second thoughts about their task. Annie would never place the boy's life in the hands of another, nor would Sam allow anyone else to take care of him. She knew that there was no home for them to return to, that Elkford would soon follow the harrowing fate of Merribank. All they could do was comply and hope that they would survive their journey to Autark Harbour.

  Frank sat at the end of the bed. He was grateful for the hospitality they had received from Javier's people. The room was basic but a warm bed was better than the cold hard floor of a cave.

  "How's your ankle?" Annie asked.

  "Better, thanks. Kara took a look at it."

  He caught a few hours sleep that night and had the whiskey to thank for it. For the rest of the night his mind was burdened with the images of Henry's death. The distant screams, gunshots, everything echoed in his mind like a recurring nightmare. It was maybe four or five o'clock in the morning, he had already packed their things the night before and was ready for the journey east.

  Since the roads were heavily patrolled by raiders, they would have to stray their course and use the forests as their means of navigation. It would surely double their time out in the wild with limited resources. Frank thought about Tracy. She was an emotional person. The reason she had managed to subdue her overwhelming emotions over the years was down to the care of her sister. She was okay for now but the extended pressure of travelling across Autark scared the hell out of him, not just for Tracy, but for himself.

  Later that morning an abrupt series of knocks struck the door. Annie opened the door to reveal Kara, the sling of her shotgun over one shoulder, her knapsack over the other.

  "You guys ready to go?"

  "You're coming with us?" Annie asked.

  "That's right."

  Tracy strapped on her backpack and Annie took a quick check to make sure they hadn't left anything behind. The people of Elkford had donated some equipment for their journey. They were provided with bedrolls, handcrafted by the settlers from the hide of the renowned elk that roamed the surrounding woodlands of the north. They re-stocked on water and were also supplied with some rations. The quantity was scarce but the people of Elkford were lacking in their usual numbers and the group was grateful for whatever they could spare.

  Kara guided Frank and the others back out through the courtyard towards Elkford's main gateway. Frank spotted Javier and some others by the arched gateway. They were performing last checks on their equipment and weapons before their departure. Frank took hold of Annie's arm and stopped her. He looked over to Kara. "Can you give us a second?"

  "Sure, come on over when you're ready," she replied. Tracy and Annie stared back, he couldn't beat around the bush any longer.

  "What are we doing here, Annie?"

  "What?"

  "Listen, I get it."

  "I don't think you do."

  "You're worried about him," he said, gesturing to the child who was none the wiser, gazing out to the masses of people who waited by the gates of Elkford. Annie put the boy down and took his hand.

  "Tracy, you understand, don't you?" she said, turning to her sister.

  "Actually..." Tracy stammered. "Look, I was all for getting him to safety, but going along with this suicide mission? I have to side with Frank on this one."

  "This isn't us, Annie," said Frank. "We're not equipped to deal with this kind of thing."

  "That's exactly what I'm talking about," Annie continued.

  "If everyone thought like you then nothing would get done. Don't you see? We either get out there and do something to contribute or we sit on the fence and lose everything."

  As much as Frank didn't want to accept it, he knew that what she said was true. He didn't want to do this. He wanted to be at home, tending to his garden and shutting himself away from the world but that wasn't reality. His reality had been flipped upside down. This was reality, a threat to their land, their freedom. There was no way he could go back until this whole ordeal was over and done with.

  "Something doesn't sit right with me. I don't know if we can trust these people."

  "What makes you say that?"

  "Can't put my finger on it. I get the feeling they know more about what’s going on than we do. He knew to look for that marking on the boy, and he's got these settlers wrapped around his little finger. Let's just keep a close eye on these people. Autark isn't safe anymore, not whilst raiders are around. We get to the harbour, find a boat and get out of here until we know things have been sorted. Just promise me you'll both be careful."

  "Good morning," Javier interrupted from afar.

  Tracy waved back as the leader of Elkford walked over to them with open arms. He escorted them to the gate and introduced them to the volunteers who would escort them on their journey. Altogether there were four people who would lead them across the raider infested Autark.

  The first was Kara.

  Although they had gotten off to a rough start, Kara had a pureness to her that Frank couldn't describe. Maybe it was that she said everything as it was, a straight shooter with a fighter's spirit. In addition to Kara was another familiar face. The second person was Derek, the oaf that had manhandled him in the tavern the night before. Frank wasn't pleased to see Derek, and Derek made it all too clear that he was none too pleased to see him either. Derek’s shoulders slouched and his head hung low. Sweat patches seeped through his jumper around his armpits. Frank spotted a snub-nosed .38 revolver tucked diagonally into the oaf's belt. Frank was promised a refurbished home at the end of their voyage. He wondered what was in it for the others, especially Derek. Whatever it was, it must have been well worth their while.

  The third companion was a Hispanic man, somewhere in his late thirties who went by the name of Carlos. Javier sung Carlos' praises that day at the gate. He went on and on about how he personally selected Carlos to lead them on their journey and how he was a crack shot with a rifle. Carlos' predominant feature was his long straggly hair that he tied back into a bun. He wore a doeskin tunic and breeches and his boots were layered with a soft rabbit pelt. Rumour had it that Carlos was a
blood relative to Paraíso. Kara had briefly mentioned it the night before but it was something that the two men were never open about themselves.

  The fourth and final member of the group was quite the character at first glance. He was an older man, maybe even older than Frank, oozing remnants of a time period that the U.S. had fixated on for many years. He wore a long brown leather duster with a matching wide-brimmed hat. He sported some vintage leather boots and attached to his hip was a bandolier and holster. Inside the holster was a classic black single-action army revolver, a peacemaker that appeared to sustain a valuable history. His name was John. He tipped his hat, his smile barely visible beneath his valiant grey moustache that grew outwards and upwards.

  Curious settlers gathered around Elkford’s front gate. Strangers shook Frank's hand, even embraced him. He could hear the widows sobbing, begging the group of voyagers to bring back their lost sons and daughters. Frank felt the nerves tighten in the pit of his stomach, a mix of fear and anger. Javier had provided the settlers with false hope, made them believe that Frank and the others were off to free the slaves of the military base. That was the LPA’s job, not theirs, but Paraíso needed to keep morale up for the time being. Frank watched the people beg and grovel at their feet and the guilt of uncertainty riled up inside of him. He was anything but the right man for the job but now the people looked to him to grant them their redemption.

  "I wish you all the best," said Javier. "When you find the contact, he should guide you the rest of the way." Javier embraced Tracy and Annie. He turned to the gathered settlers and raised his fist in the name of revolution, chanting words of encouragement and justice. The guards opened the gates and Javier embraced Frank and whispered something into his ear. He didn’t quite catch it all over the masses of people congregating and rejoicing around them.