A Democracy Fallen

by Matthew Savage

  In a somber voice, Captain Underwood said, “Potentially, yes.”

  Chapter Nine

  The Training

   Nolan sat in shock at what he heard. ‘They would let him just rot in a prison?’ he thought to himself. Nolan knew how the government was working now, he knew there was a good chance his father would be tortured to give up information about the Insurgents. One day ago they were told how important their father was to the Democratic Insurgency. Now they were just letting him go and giving up on him. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

  “I understand this is hard to take in but-” Senator Powell started. He was interrupted by Nolan.

  “I understand you aren’t willing to do whatever it takes to get him back! We don’t mean anything to you people! We are easily forgotten.” Nolan roared.

  “Now that is out of line!” General Wilkins yelled. “Have you forgotten who you are talking too?”

  “Does it matter?” Nolan stood and yelled back. “If I get shot in combat, you would probably just leave me to die. We are all so easily forgotten now!”

  This must have hit a nerve in General Wilkins because his face turned red. Sarah stood and put her hand on his shoulder to try to calm him down and get him to sit.

  “Don’t tell me you are taking their side?” Nolan said rounding on her.

  “General I need the room,” The Senator said standing. “Give us a minute. That is an order, General.”

  General Wilkins stormed out of the room. Captain Underwood and Stefan Moore followed him. Nolan sat and took a deep breath to control his anger. Senator Powell was sitting watching him and waiting for him to calm down before speaking. “Nothing is set in stone yet,” The Senator said. “I meant what I said. I want to get your father back. You need to understand that in war, we need to pick our battles. The country is in chaos at the moment so there is a good chance we can get him back.” The Senator stood and looked out the window at the mountains. “I will not make unnecessary risks, though. We are too important to the future of this country. If we fail, there might not be another chance for a long time, if ever. We are on the brink of civil war.”

  “We understand that,” Sarah said. “We won’t let our father die in prison, though.”

  The Senator turned and smiled at them. “I admire your spirit, both of yours. I have recruited many people. I think you two are my most passionate. I don’t want your father to die in prison but we have to make smart moves.” He walked over and knelt in front of them. “Can you two trust me to do that?”

  Nolan thought about it for a moment. There was something about the Senator that made Nolan want to follow him. He thought it might have been the kind nature of his voice or the way he would take control of a room.

  “We can try and trust you,” Nolan said. Sarah shook her head in agreement

  “I guess that is the best I can do for now.” The Senator stood and smiled. “Now I will advise you don’t talk to the General like that again. If so I will not be able to stop whatever punishment he gives you. You both are getting used to how things are here and we gave you some terrible news. I would think this is a good time for a get-out-of-jail-free-card. Fair enough?”

  “Yes sir,” Nolan and Sarah replied.

  “I would recommend a quick apology to the General on your way out,” He said standing and showing them to the door. “I will let you know any updates as they come.”

  “Thank you.” Nolan and Sarah both said as they left the room.

  Nolan apologized to General Wilkins as they left. The General was going to say something but bit his lip after looking at Senator Powell. He accepted the apology and Nolan and Sarah went into the elevator. The doors shut and Sarah rounded on Nolan and gave him a hard hit in the arm.

  “You can’t yell at these people. We are not even Privates yet and he is a General!” Sarah roared.

  “I don’t give a shit who he is or what his rank is. I am not going to stand by and let dad sit in a cell.” Nolan said and looked her in the eyes. “They are willing to accept what happened. I am not. We didn’t join this group to accept when things go bad. We came here to fight for what is right and it is not right to give up on someone who is captured.”

  “What are you saying?” Sarah took a step back looking at Nolan and he could tell she knew what he was going to say.

  “I say that if they don’t do something. We do. We use their training get as prepared as we can. If they don’t save him then we do.”

  Nolan stood staring at Sarah who was looking right back at him not breaking her gaze. Nolan couldn’t tell how she was reacting to him saying he would be willing to break into a prison and save his father.

  “After all these years,” She started. Sarah held his gaze “all that resentment for him making us work. When we could have been in school or doing something we wanted. You still want to save him?”

  Nolan couldn’t believe what she was saying. Did she mean that she didn’t want to save her father? He was shocked. He would be lying if he said he didn’t resent his father a little. He didn't let them go to college, see their friends, or be normal kids. Nolan at times was so angry at his father for that. “He is our dad. He would do anything to save us.” Nolan paused and the elevator stopped and the doors opened. “So I would do anything to save him.”

  Nolan left the elevator and headed towards the classroom. He entered the room and the class was already in there waiting to get started. Evan and Aaron were talking to each other. Karli was reading a communications book. Ian was eavesdropping on the conversation between Aaron and Evan. The class looked at them as they entered the room. He tried to hide the anger on his face when they looked at him. He took a seat at the back of the classroom and Sarah walked in and sat towards the front. Nolan could tell everyone suspected something was wrong but he didn’t want to talk about it. He wanted to learn as much as he could to be prepared if he had to be the only one to rescue his father.

  Sergeant Wolf came in the room. He gave them instructions about taking apart and cleaning their weapons. Nolan was practicing putting it together and taking part as fast as he could. He made sure it was clean and paid attention knowing how to tell if something was broke. Sergeant Wolf was keeping a close eye on Sarah and him as the class went out. Nolan figured when Mary Underwood came to talk to him that she let him know what was going on. He tried not to think about it but focused on working on his gun. He pictured his father in a prison cell and he worked on his gun faster. He kept thinking about how he couldn’t wait to get back to the shooting range.

  After class, the Sergeant pulled Sarah and Nolan aside to let them know he heard about their father. He expressed his condolences for what happened. This made Nolan feel a little better. Nolan and Sarah didn’t talk at all as they walked to the mess hall. They both grabbed their food and sat across from one another. The rest of their class came and sat next to them. Nolan couldn’t help but feel guilty eating knowing his father was captured and maybe not being fed. He didn’t eat very much and Karli was watching him move his food around on his plate.

  “It won’t change anything, just pushing your food around.” She said. It took Nolan a second to comprehend what she had said because he was lost in thought. “It won’t change anything.” She repeated “Eat your food. Starving yourself will not help anyone.”

  “I feel guilty,” Nolan confessed.

  “I understand but that doesn’t mean you have to stop eating.”

  “I feel guilty. I am pissed and want to get him back.”

  “We are all pissed,” Karli said slamming her hands on the table. “You don’t think the rest of us are pissed. We all lost stuff. We are all fighting for something. I know your dad is captured. The Sergeant told us not to bring it up but you need to eat if you want to get him back.” Nolan was taken aback by this outburst. “Get through training and if he isn’t back by then you’ll be able to go on the mission to get him,” Karli said looking at him. “If you want to starve, fine. I’ll eat your food them.�
� Before Nolan could stop her she grabbed his bread roll and put it in her mouth. Through stuffed cheeks, she said, “Feel guilty, more food for me.”

  Nolan couldn’t help but smile. Karli went to take another piece of his food but he pulled his tray away before she could get anything else. He couldn’t help but smile at her mouth being stuffed with bread. She swallowed the food stuck her tongue out at him and then continued eating.

  “Thanks,” Nolan said

  “Someone needed to give you some perspective,” Karli said and finished eating.

  After dinner, Nolan and Sarah headed back to their room. They notice more people were staying on their floor now and he figured they must be getting more recruits since President Marshal’s take over. People seemed to be intimidated by Nolan and Sarah. Nolan figured this was their first day here which was why they saw the uniforms and figure that they have been with the D.I for some time. Nolan and Sarah acknowledged the new people as they walked past the rooms to their room. They entered and Nolan fell onto his bed. He was exhausted from the day. He felt like so much had happened since waking up this morning. Sarah changed in the bathroom before coming out and kicking his foot, which was hanging off of the bed.

  “I have been thinking.” She said and Nolan sat up looking at her. He didn’t want to get into another argument at the moment. “Dad would try and save us. I think he didn’t tell us because he didn’t want us getting involved with this because it is going to be dangerous.”

  “Your point?” Nolan replied wondering where this was going.

  “My point is he would do anything to protect us. You are right we should do what we can to get him.”

  “So-”

  “I am in. We do what we can to get him back.”

  Nolan nodded his head and lay back on the bed. “Do you think he is alright?”

  “I hope so. I know we aren’t kind to people we consider traitors. He hasn’t been executed which I think is surprising to Command.”

  “It is surprising considering what they did to everyone else who was caught.”

  Nolan looked at the ceiling, wondering where his father was. He knew that they had to get through training and he had no idea how long it would take. He hoped that the D.I would be able to rescue him before he finished. Nolan was worried about his father lasting a long period of time in a military prison. He remembered in the school learning about POW camps during the war. Though it was always enemy camps, he knew that American military camps couldn’t be too much better. With the constitution meaning nothing anymore, he hoped that his father wasn’t being tortured. Nolan closed his eyes and tried to force out the images of his father having water poured over his face, things being shoved under his nails, and people asking questions about the Democratic Insurgence.

  Over the next several weeks Nolan and Sarah became the top students in their class. The training was intense. Nolan and Sarah both felt themselves getting stronger mentally and physically. They would get visits from Captain Underwood about their father. He would sometimes tell them where they thought he might be. These leads never seemed to go anywhere. Nolan and Sarah were becoming frustrated with the lack of information about their father. Steven would come and share what he knew. Which always seemed to be more than Captain Underwood would give to them. Maybe the Captain didn’t trust them because they were still training?

  On the weekends or at night Sarah and Nolan would watch television. It was scary to them, how much things had changed following President Marshal’s speech. Senator Powell was being hunted by every agency in the government. It seemed like every other time they watched there were more hints about where he could be hiding. The news didn’t have any information about him leading the Democratic Insurgency. When the media would try and guess where he was or what he was doing. It was always entertaining for everyone at the base. ‘It is believed Senator Powell, is running the terrorist group from his home in Northern Canada. Canadian officials have made it very clear that they are not keeping the Senator from the US’. Nolan found these stories particularly funny. He would say that it went to show how little the US Government knew.

  Though it wasn’t their intention Nolan and Sarah grew very close to their class. Many times people would ask them for help. Once, Evan wanted more practice with the mixed martial arts this meant Sarah, Nolan, and Evan would spend time in the gym practicing on the mats. If the gym was occupied or they were being yelled at for being in there, they would go to the living area on their floor and move furniture around. Steven seemed to come around more often, he would have to leave on missions every now and again but he would be gone for several days. Sarah and Nolan would always be the first people he would say hi to when he arrived back at the base. Nolan suspected he wanted to spend more time with Sarah than him. Either way, Steven put up with Nolan and Sarah spending so much time together. Sarah and Nolan both had their goals, they wanted to finish training.

  It was around December when the class was informed that by the end of the month they would be allowed to graduate. They were told that they would be given their assignments which would tell them where they would be placed. Nolan and Sarah hadn’t given this much thought until Sergeant Wolf brought it up. They both wondered where they would be placed and they hoped it would be placed together somewhere. Most of the class had already started talking about where they want to be. Only Karli knew for sure, where she was going. She would be working in communications. Some of it was listening in on calls, translating people speaking, or code breaking. All of which, was something Karli was very good at. She had even started doing some work at night with the communications department. It wasn’t anything interesting. Mostly secretary stuff but she was excited none the less to get started.

  It had been several months and the D.I still had not made any major moves. Many people around the base wondered what command was waiting for. Nolan suspected that they were waiting for a good target, Senator Powell kept telling them that he did not want to be a terrorist group that spread fear. Many people heard that he wanted something with no civilian casualties. The Senator would make speeches occasionally over the P.A system in the base, they were about progress and getting more recruits. Though people believed it Nolan could tell that people wanted to do more than just train and prepare. They wanted to fight. Many people had been with the group for years and had little to show for all the work they had done. Evan and Aaron would talk about how they wanted to fight and Nolan had the same feelings. He knew that as soon as the fighting started there would be no end to it until it was finished. Nolan would look around and think to himself. 'Everyone was not ready for war.' Judging by the Senator’s lack of moves against the government. He must have been thinking along the same lines. During meals, people would discuss this. Nolan would always defend waiting to attack for the right moment. Steven would always tell him that he is a strategist. Many people laughed at this but Nolan took it as a compliment. By the end of December Nolan and Sarah were at the top of their class. They felt ready to graduate. When they did they would become official Privates for the Democratic Insurgence.

  Chapter Ten

  New Assignments

  Sarah woke up and felt excitement explode in her. It was the day before graduation. Since her time in the Democratic Insurgence, she had witnessed several graduation ceremonies. Sarah and Nolan weren’t people of rank in the D.I so they were always in the back. It was encouraged that everyone does their best to show up to graduation ceremonies. It helped inspire camaraderie. At least that is what Sergeant Wolf told them. He forced his class to go to at least one graduation together.

  Early in the week, Corporal Clearwater told them early how the day would go. This was to avoid questions when everyone arrived. The plan was to do PT much like every morning had been, then they would then have a short classroom period in which they are told how the ceremony works. They would then be handed assignments, this was the part Sarah was nervous about. She hadn’t given much thought to where she would go. Nolan and Sarah had talked for
so long about trying to save their father. She wondered how easy it would be when they get assignments. They would break for lunch then and after the break, they would practice the ceremony. After that, they would be given the night off. This was something she was most excited for. They hadn’t had much time off since they had arrived. It seemed like they were due for a night to hang out much like the first night.

  Sarah and Nolan got ready and made their way to the mess hall. Their floor had become full since their first week with the D.I. They didn’t know everyone’s name on their floor but Sarah and Nolan were familiar with many people who were on their way to get food. Many of their neighbors congratulated them for graduating. Nolan and Sarah had the same response. "Don’t congratulate us until it is over." They still seemed to have this feeling like it still might not happen. Sarah knew this was an irrational thought considering her and her brother were at the top of the class. Nevertheless she still worried it wouldn’t happen.

  After breakfast, the class went down to do PT and Sarah could tell everyone was excited to finish. Even Corporal Clearwater seemed excited. She had everyone line up so she could address the class before starting.

  “I made sure not to tell you all this until now but this was my first time helping to train a new class of soldiers. I have to say I am so pleased with all of your progress. You will all be great soldiers and assets to winning this coming war. I want you all to know I am proud of you.” She then saluted the class and the class saluted in return.

  She then ordered everyone to start PT. Sarah realized how much improvement she had made since the first time they did this. The class was running much faster than before. It had always been Karli in the front and though it was still like this Ian followed very close behind her and right behind, was everyone else in the class. They all ran around the same pace changing who lead and who followed. They worked much more as a team than before.