Page 15 of The General's Captive
The soldiers instantly ran to the Chimera, checking for any signs of life. But the one thing I hadn’t noticed that day in the store was the way the darkness lifted from it. The smoky trails leaving the body before evaporating in the air above it. Of course, this was a sight I was now used to, because the same thing happened with every kill I made. Yet I still didn’t know why. It was like some dark soul was leaving the body after death.
Plain clothed civilians came out of hiding instantly, hushed whispers filling the after-battle silence, all of them looking at me. I walked over to the teen who had been stupid enough to try and fight the Chimera, pulling him up by his hand first, before I then cuffed him across the head which silenced the growing crowd.
“Stupidity will get you killed!”
Then I threw the fire extinguisher down and the new civilians jumped and cowered. I looked each one of them in the eye before turning away and heading back to my dorm. My anger poured out of me in what felt like waves as I thought back to my first foolish months trying to survive on my own.
Which was why I called back…
“But trying to be a hero will get you killed quicker.”
The base.
Jerome County jail.
Location – 2151 S Tiger Dr, Jerome,
ID 83338, United States.
Strengths – Barbed wire fencing and security gates. Lockdown protocol in place. Watch tower erected. Alarms installed.
Weaknesses – Wall within the fence needs completion. Second watch tower needed. Needs extra generators.
Notes – Next meeting, mention the need to double up on security detail for night shifts. Kevin no longer on watch tower duty, as I will kick his ass the next time I catch him sleeping!
“Fear will get you killed…”
I awoke with a start, my breathing coming fast, sweat trickling down my back, and my uncle’s words echoing in my head.
Words I had once ignored before the Rift, probably because my life used to be so sheltered. Back when I didn’t really know what real fear was. Most of my anxiety had once centered around whether my high school crush was going to ask me to prom or if I was going to get invited to the after party. Whether my gradeswere high enough to get me into my school of choice or if I would make any friends on campus when I started.
Pointless shit like that.
The thought of being killed, eaten, or maimed weren’t really on my radar. And like so many others my age, before the Rift, I had thought I was invincible. Nobody wakes up every day expecting to die. Well, that was until the Myths arrived, which meant every day after was one you were grateful for surviving.
I hated it when my mind went back to those days. The first months had been the most brutal. Algebra, a fucking pointless place taken up in my mind, where I soon wished I had learned useful stuff instead. Just something as simple as making a fire, building shelter, hot wiring a car. Okay, so I couldn’t exactly see them teaching that at girl scouts but still, I would have googled that shit and a million things after it.
There wasn’t much chance of me getting back to sleep now, so I sat up in bed and turned my battery powered bedside lamp on. The base had power, but it was from generators and those needed fuel. Fuel we didn’t waste for frivolous shit.
The dim light didn’t disturb anyone, and I had no one bunking with me in this jail cell, for now. Over the last two and half years I had been here, I had lost count of how many had come and gone. How many hadn’t survived. Some I mourned, some I didn’t have long enough with them to mourn. A lot of the time, I hated myself for how hardened to it all I had become. Then I remembered all the times I had silently cried myself to sleep after losing someone.
I shifted to sit up on the lumpy mattress, ignoring the way it groaned. Then I did what I always did when I was restless, I picked up my journal and smiled to myself. Three years ago, this was supposed to be pages filled with memories of my last summer of freedom. Before I poured all my energy into studyingto become a veterinarian and putting a childhood dream into motion.
And now, it was nothing more than a book documenting every strange creature I had faced on my journey here, and since then. It was the only thing that centered me. That, and putting my skill with a pencil to good use and drawing the details of each Myth I had encountered.
I recorded detailed descriptions of the creatures and how I had managed to either kill them or escape them. And as the years went by, the quicker these pages filled. Not just aiding me to survive, but now others here at the base, because I shared everything I knew.
Now, nearly every day, I would read the field guide from cover to cover so I could confidently continue to save those around me…like they had saved me.But right now, because my heart ached, I opened the book to the one Myth that had changed my life forever…
Two and half years earlier…
Time had lost all meaning. I slept when I had to, and continued my journey when I had enough strength. Eventually, I had no idea where to even try and get to anymore. What with all the barricades and fences the government had put up, it was like they weren’t trying to help us at all!
Any hope of trying to make it back to my parents was diminishing by the day. I had tried to keep track of the days and weeks, but they quickly turned into months until, finally, I stopped counting. At a rough estimate, I would say it had been at least five months, maybe six. And in all that time, I was still no closer to making it out of here. I wasn’t sure I even would.
Then I came across a couple, who, thankfully, hadn’t been out to rob me or worse, and they told me where they were headed. That there was a place where people were finding sanctuary in a town called Jerome. By this point, I wasn’t even offended that they hadn’t suggested I travel with them, because I didn’t blame them. These days, it was difficult to know who to trust, because that could get you killed quicker than a Myth.
The sun rose above Costco as I crossed over the abandoned parking lot, trying to duck down between the discarded cars. The Five Guys restaurant I passed had been totally ransacked and stripped of anything useful. I was in the town of Pocatello and, usually, I would stay away from populated places like this, because that was where the most Myths would hunt. But there was also more chance at finding supplies here, and it was likely that Costco hadn’t been stripped bare like most of the smaller stores. That was because nobody liked the big, open spaces because there were more places for Myths to hide. No, usually, it was a run in, grab what you need, and get the hell out to safety type of gig.
