The Dark Days Series | Book 2 | Sanctuary

by Cole, Christopher

  “That’s well put. I’m afraid I can’t understand at present how anyone could consider forced military training of children a favored path,” Father Aberforth added.

  Of course, Father Lawrence and Father Aberforth were against the Black Shadow program. I wondered how other kids feel about being conscripted to the Black Shadow program. There are probably hundreds to maybe thousands that must be terrified of what they are facing. I had hoped that we would make it here, but I never expected that we would be conscripted to military training and inherit the responsibility to defend it before we were adults.

  Before I could say anything, Father Lawrence said, “I joined the Black Shadow.”

  I turned to him surprised and almost exclaimed, “What?! Why did you do that?”

  “You know why. It’s my mission to rid the world of this demon plague and protect those that are still not infected.”

  I turned to Father Aberforth and he shook his head, “Don’t look at me, I already tried to talk him out of it. If he believes that God is telling him to do this, I can’t deny him that.”

  “Are you sure about this?” I asked.

  “The Lord will be with me. I must protect mankind from this evil in any way I can. Especially now with child-soldier conscription,” Father Lawrence answered.

  “Do Will and Kayley know?”

  “Not yet, but I’ll tell them.”

  “Father Lawrence . . . do you think God really has a purpose for all of us? Even me?”

  Father Lawrence looked me in the eye and said very clearly, “Yes my son. We’ve all been given the greatest gift the Lord can possibly give, life. With this gift, I believe God has a path for us, and it’s up to us to make choices along the way – life is precious, we must choose wisely.”

  “You seem to know your purpose. What’s mine?” I asked.

  Father Lawrence smiled and explained, “Oh now, that’s something you’re gonna have to figure out for yourself. The Lord can’t do everything for you. As much as some of us wish for a predetermined destiny, there are some things that we have to figure out on our own. I didn’t know it at first, but my purpose in life was to protect life – including you and your friends – I’m going to continue that for the rest of my days here on earth.”

  “You have a good soul, my boy. Don’t let this Black Shadow thing turn your good heart into a dark one. There’s always hope, never lose your hope,” Father Aberforth said.

  I nodded in understanding and stayed for a little while longer until I had to go back home – I even prayed a little though I don’t think I’m a confident believer.

  As I left through the doors, a familiar deep voice spoke, “Come to confess your sins . . . or pray for safety for you and your friends?”

  I turned around to see the soldier again leaning against the wall next to the front doors with his arms crossed. I still couldn’t get over how big he is, well over 6 feet tall. With those big arms and hands, he could probably strangle a bear. His voice was deep, distinct, and a little raspy, and it gave me goosebumps. Though his eyes masked emotion, they were sharp.

  “Not a bad idea . . . not sure if it’s worth it though,” the soldier said.

  “What do you want? Why are you following me?” I demanded, calmly.

  “Yeah, you’re welcome. Glad I was able to help when you were being mugged. Your gratitude is overwhelming.”

  I crossed my arms and asked, “Did you really have to kill them?”

  The soldier got off the wall and answered, “I’m afraid so; they would certainly assault and steal from others – they’re like a cancer, and something told me they would probably rape someone as well. I’m afraid my conscience wouldn’t let me wait to find out – I prefer certainty,” and his granite face almost smiled – but not quite.

  “So, why not kick them out?”

  “Some things you gotta finish yourself . . . Nathan. Anyway, I don’t think you would want them to take that fancy watch or those key chains.”

  Of course, he knows my name, my fake name, what else? I looked at my watch and wound it unconsciously. My Tree of Life keychain and my alien Toy Story keychain were clipped together to one of the belt loops of my pants – they were sentimental value to me, but they seemed trivial and childlike in front of this man to whom very little would ever be sentimental.

  “Well thanks . . . I guess. Should I be afraid of you?” I asked.

  “That depends, are you evil?” the soldier asked, looking me hard in the eye.

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Then you don’t have to fear me, boy. It’s all the monsters out there and in this city that you should fear . . . and prepare for.”

  That response gave me a shiver – like he was talking about ghosts only he could see. I wasn’t as scared of what’s out there as I was of this man. Standing in his presence, felt like being in front of a tiger – you keep your guard up and expect it to pounce at any moment – and you know it’s lethal and you’d be helpless against it. His eyes and his face may look old, but he was still fierce . . . and very dangerous.

  “I’m not afraid of zombies,” I said, before walking away.

  “I’m not talking about zombies. I’m talking about the other form of predator – humans,” the soldier said, stopping me.

  I stopped and waited for him to continue.

  “Zombies are . . . just mad dogs on hind legs. They neither think nor feel, but humans, on the other hand, they have always been and remain the real danger in this world. Thus, it has always been, thus it always shall be.”

  “Yeah, I think I knew that.”

  “No, you don’t, not like you should. I think you know there are evil people, but you don’t know how dangerous people are or how to spot them. You got it right with zombies, but I think you got a blind side, a soft side with humans – it makes you vulnerable.”

  I gave a small look of confusion and asked, “Are you saying that because I have friends, I’m vulnerable?”

  “Yeah . . . and it’s because of your preoccupation with those friends that you got mugged. You let your guard down. If you didn’t, you probably would have noticed those guys behind you.”

  “Maybe.”

  “You need to— “

  “Well, I didn’t. It’s easy for zombies because all of them are bad, but humans are different. I can’t tell which ones are good or bad just by looking at them like you can. Evil doesn’t have a face, so it can look like anyone. You might be able to tell, but I can’t,” I replied.

  It was quiet for about half a minute and then I started to walk away.

  “What if I teach you?” the soldier asked.

  I stopped and turned to him, “What?”

  “What if I teach you about the dangers of humans as well as zombies? What if I teach you how to survive in that kind of wilderness? How to hunt and to harvest plants? How to be an elite fighter?”

  I stared at him and was a little stunned by his offer.

  “The Black Shadow isn’t going to teach us those things?” I asked.

  “They’ll teach you the basics and enough where you’ll be capable of some defense techniques like any regular soldier in the army, and maybe . . . just maybe, like a Marine. What I’m offering is what they teach Rangers, and with Shepard’s okay, give you Delta Force and SEAL training. Though I’m one of the DI’s, they won’t let me teach you what they won’t. I’m willing to give you some shadow training, things that they won’t teach you.”

  “You mean . . . you’ll teach me to be an elite fighter?”

  “Exactly.”

  “But they said they’ll train us like Marines, isn’t that good enough?”

  “I can make you better than that. What I can offer will guarantee you a fighting chance.”

  I stood in silence, not knowing what to say. This soldier, this man, is offering to teach me valuable skills that are probably very rare nowadays. Captain Noir and Corporal Wade are the only Marines that I know of and Captain Benson and his men are the only Navy SEALs t
hat I knew. For all I knew, they were the only ones left in all of the U.S. or maybe in the entire world with that kind of training. However, I barely know this man or why he’s offering to help me. Was this some kind of trick? I couldn’t think of an angle or reason why.

  “Why would you help me?” I asked.

  He took a few moments before answering, “I have my reasons.”

  As much as I kept reminding myself of the stranger danger rule, my instincts were telling me to listen to him. Compared to everyone in this Fort, I’m nobody – just a boy among people who are still alive and yet he’s making this offer to me. I’ve got nothing special or unique to offer, so why would he give such an offer to me?

  The soldier held out one of his big hands, “Do we have a deal?”

  I hesitantly shook his hand and he handed me a folded piece of paper. It had a location with a time and date written on it. He’d known he was going to offer me this deal before he started the conversation.

  “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, all I ask is that you give me 100% every time we train. Don’t tell anyone about this or the deal is off,” the soldier said.

  Then suddenly, both of our attentions were caught when a stack of boxes fell in an alleyway next to the church. When I looked closer, I saw a little dog crawl out of a box – it was a little German Shepherd puppy. It had mostly black fur with some light brown fur and golden-brown eyes. It was very young, maybe a month old.

  I approached slowly and carefully so I wouldn’t scare him away. When I got close, the puppy turned around and looked at me right in my eyes. He looked a little scared and backed away as I got closer.

  The soldier placed his hand on my shoulder to stop me, “Hold up. I got this.”

  He bent down and pulled a small bag out of his chest pocket. He reached inside and got a few small carrots in a plastic bag. He carefully placed his hand on the ground and made a soft kissing sound. The puppy slowly approached the soldier while sniffing his hand and then he ate the little carrots. The soldier then started rubbing the puppy’s ears and petting his chin. The puppy made a happy sound and started licking his hands.

  “Good boy,” the soldier said, as he picked the puppy up.

  The puppy looked really happy in his arms and started licking my hands when I petted his little furry head – his fur was soft.

  “You’ve had a tough road so far, haven’t ya little guy? I think I’ll keep you. My place is better than this box, what do you say?” the soldier asked, as he petted the puppy.

  The puppy licked his beard and made a cute little bark.

  “Yeah?”

  The puppy barked again.

  “Alright.”

  “What are you going to name him?” I asked.

  He thought for a moment and answered, “Nicky. I had a dog like this named Nicky once. He was a great dog. If he’s smart, this one can be a good hunting dog.”

  As he walked away, I called, “Wait!”

  He stopped and turned around.

  “I don’t even know your name.”

  The soldier answered, “It’s Grim, Grim Harvard.”

  ****

  I headed to Will and Kayley’s apartment to watch the sunset go down together, and even Captain Noir and Corporal Wade came to visit – they brought a bottle of wine for the adults. Kayley and Faith cooked some stew for everyone – the food, the chatter, and all of us here almost made this look like a dinner party or . . . maybe a farewell party. They wanted to make it special before we had to go – a happy memory.

  “Wow, I’ve seen some great photos in my time, but these are the best,” Captain Noir said, looking at the photo album.

  “So, Son-uh-Nathan gave you that camera?” Corporal Wade asked.

  “Yeah he did,” Kayley smiled.

  “Hard to believe this is our last day before they send us to the training camps,” Jess said.

  “Well, enjoy it while you can, because tomorrow they will test you. They’ll try to break you down mentally at first, then it will get physically harder and harder as it goes on. You kids are gonna love waking up early every morning and taking five-mile-long hikes. Oh, and those drill sergeants are really peachy,” Corporal Wade said.

  “And listen to them. Everything they say and make you do is all part of your training to make you combat efficient,” Captain Noir said, sipping wine.

  “Listen? I’ll have to work on that,” Patch said.

  “You better.”

  I ate my chicken stew out on the balcony with Will, Jeff, and Tracy.

  “I worked a little bit with Clara today,” Tracy stated.

  “Oh really? How did that go?” Will asked.

  “She’s really nice. We chatted for a while – she’s a real Rolling Stones fan.”

  “Rolling Stones?” I asked.

  “Big rock band from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, and 2000’s – I guess they must be really old – that played before the outbreak. They’re probably the oldest rock band ever,” Will explained.

  “Really?”

  “Yeah, all the band members were older than dirt,” Jeff added.

  “Oh, cool. They good?”

  “Eh, yeah they’re good. Maybe not your type of music though,” Tracy said.

  “What’s your favorite band?” I asked all of them.

  “I’m more of an Alice in Chains fan,” Tracy answered.

  “Oh yeah, I love their song, ‘Rooster’,” Jeff said.

  “What’s yours?” I asked Will.

  Will thought for a moment and answered, “I mostly listened to Metallica and Alter Bridge.”

  “Yeah, I remember them. Turn the Page, Enter Sandman,” Jeff said.

  “Yeah, that’s my shit.”

  “Alter Bridge was pretty good. My favorite songs are definitely Broken Wings and Down To My Last,” Tracy said.

  “Me, too,” Will said.

  “What about you Jeff? Any favorite bands?” I asked.

  Jeff thought for a moment, “Well, I certainly listened to Volbeat more than anything else. I love that song Heaven Nor Hell.”

  “For real?” Tracy asked.

  “Yeah, it’s like the song is saying know who you are and don’t care what anyone else thinks. It’s like its saying, ‘I’m neither good nor evil. I’m me! Deal with it!’ You know what I mean?”

  Will and Tracy exchanged looks like they agreed, but all this made me wish I knew more about music so I would know what the songs and bands they were talking about. Most music I heard was country or country rock that my dad played from his iTouch. Will then talked about this song that he plays with Kayley called ‘Broken’ by Seether. It was an interesting love song that says they feel broken when they’re not together. Is that how Will and Kayley feel about each other? Somehow, this made me wonder if this was how Cole and Susan felt about each other. Just thinking about them makes my heart ache.

  When I finished my meal, I rejoined the others inside. The adults didn’t have enough wine glasses for everyone, so some of them had to use either mugs or glass cups. Captain Noir and Corporal Wade were sitting on the couch, so I took this chance to ask them about Grim.

  I sat next to them on the couch and greeted, “Hey.”

  “Hey kid,” Captain Noir greeted.

  “What’s up little man?” Corporal Wade said.

  “Is the Fort like you remember it before you went to Camp Jefferson?” I asked.

  “Pretty much. It’s been a while, so there’s one or two changes here and there,” Captain Noir answered.

  “Yeah, I think so, too,” Corporal Wade agreed.

  I asked, “They had all the defenses outside the wall too? All the mines and—?”

  “Yep, all that was there before we left, but the farm fields look bigger than I remember and there are more greenhouses too. So, maybe they extended it to grow more food,” Captain Noir answered.

  “I thought they’d find more people to bring in, but there aren’t very many,” Corporal Wade said.

  I nodded.

&
nbsp; After Captain Noir took a sip of wine I spoke again, “Can I ask you two something?”

  “Shoot,” Captain Noir said.

  “I don’t know if you know every single thing that goes on in this place, but is there a soldier here that everyone is afraid of? Even the other soldiers?”

  They both looked at me and Corporal Wade answered, “Yeah . . . me.”

  They chuckled a little and made some jokes, but I didn’t laugh.

  “Oh yeah, everyone’s scared now that the Trojan Devil Dog is back in town!” Captain Noir said.

  “Oorah Captain! Yeah, they best fear me!” Corporal said, confidently.

  They laughed some more until I broke the humor.

  “I’m serious. There are rumors going around,” I spoke.

  “What rumors?” Captain Noir asked.

  “I don’t know. It’s just every time they mention this guy’s name, people get scared.”

  “What’s his name?”

  As Corporal Wade took a sip of wine I answered clearly, “Grim Harvard.”

  Almost immediately after that name escaped my lips Captain Noir’s eyes widened, Corporal Wade gagged on his drink, and all the adults stopped talking. The two Marines stared at me for a few seconds – the shock and surprise was written all over their faces and just seeing them like that gave me chills.

  “Grim Harvard?” Captain Noir repeated.

  I nodded.

  “Are you sure?” Corporal Wade asked, wiping his mouth.

  “Yes, I’m positive.”

  Captain Noir got up while rubbing his head, “Oh God.”

  “Grim Harvard? The Grim Harvard? Here?!” Will almost exclaimed.

  “How the . . . fuck is he here?!” Kayley asked wide-eyed.