The Nameless Survivor (Valkyrie)
Page 32
The GFS Medical Examiner with us that day had determined the cause of death was from a swift puncture wound at the base of her skull, and the lacerations around Mia's stomach were not only from the fingernails and teeth of the infected, but also a few clean and precise incisions that could only been made by a razor-sharp blade and a steady hand. After this nameless survivor ended the suffering of his one true love, he used his trusty blade and took it upon himself to ensure that he always carried a piece of her with him. A piece of them both.
One visage of that fateful day at Site 8-A will live with me for the rest of my life. It was unanimously decided that the area was a loss and too dangerous to reopen, and in response the GFS ordered the immediate evacuation and relocation of other coastal forts. Like the nameless survivor, we would learn from our failures and continue to push the ball further down the field.
As the EDS and GFS Team abandoned the fort, I looked back towards the calm bay. There, atop the granite slabs of the break-water stood a silhouette in the fading sun. Immediately I lifted my binoculars to get a better look, scrambling to focus them before we traveled out of view. It was a man with long dirty hair and a large bushy beard clad in a swath of animal furs. His shoulders were adorn with belts and an assortment of pouches and satchels. In one arm he held a shotgun which rested upon his burly shoulder and what appeared to be a large canvas pack strapped onto his back.
But what lay cradled within his other handle instantly caught my attention. A small bundle of bloody animal fur, the contents however, were hidden deep within. But I knew what he guarded, and as important as it was to that man, it was also important for mankind. What he held may have been the key to ending this war, to save our planet.
Quickly I turned and signaled the driver to stop the truck, however when I looked back the man had vanished from the rock-wall. Only a faint orange glow of the setting sun bled out over the bay, glistening upon the waves that crashed up over the granite slabs, and the pathetic cries of ferociously feeding seagulls echoed throughout the air. Disappointment washed over me, disappointment that we didn't arrive sooner. Disappointment to have never heard Mia's angelic voice, or even learn this man's name. And like most things, they will both be lost in history.
In the weeks after, I had ordered random scouting parties to search the neighboring areas; Camden, Owl’s Head, but to no avail. But there was just no sign of him, no trace of which direction he went. Of course, it is understandable that he did not come forward after the incursion, why would he? It was our invitation that brought him there, it was our calling that killed his only love. He was always better off on his own, better off in the arms of Mother Nature. Although I knew before we left Site 8-A that we would never find him, nothing could have held back my smile, the realization that I now had a face.
The face of an Unsung Survivor.
THE END