THE DAWNING

Chapter three

Mrs. V: I'll start with your father. He actually was born in the US where he's parents lived. Your grandparents were in the business industry hence were always travelling so they decided to take your father to boarding school. While out they had an accident and died, when he finished he's education he found that they just died a few days ago. He decided to go into business school where he graduated top of he's class, back then it was hard to get jobs so he moved into Europe got a few deals and then that's where we met. He was always clumsy with everything......

Mariana: [laughs]

Mrs. V: he went into the army for four years because he was trying to impress me. I already had the dream of doing what I'm doing now and he wanted to help, so him having training, he'd be able to move with me to places. When he got back we got married and had you [points her on the nose and she smiles]. Then you know the rest. Then my story; I was born in Spain, lived in Spain and my schools all in Spain. I graduated and went into linguistics for three years while in med school with your father and that's how we know all the languages we do. After that I worked for two years in Madrid then started this missionary work, I joined your father who already started.

Mariana: how were you able to afford that house back home?
Mrs. V: your father has many running businesses and I also started one hence everything we own.
Mariana: okay........
Mr. V: [comes to them] what are you both doing here?
Mariana: we all have insomnia
Mrs. V: where did you......
Mariana: I read a lot of books at home when I'm bored.
Mr. V: [surprised] anyway, time for bed now
Mrs. V: yes please take her.

Mr. V: [while walking her to the tent] you didn't have friends, why were you reading books?
Mariana: the only friends I have are in school and remember we stay far from civilisation
Mr. V: from civilisation huh? [Tucks her into bed and pecks her] goodnight.

Mr. V: our daughter knows civilisation [laughs]
Mrs. V: she's smart
Mr. V: indeed she is. [Holds her by the waist from the back] now its your turn to go to bed
Mrs. V: no, I have to.....
Mr. V: I can watch over them, you get some rest. I'll wake you up if anything happens.
Mrs. V: okay.

The next morning Mr and Mrs. Volcano are up really early while Aamiina wakes up about two hours later.

Aamiina: wow, you're already up. I left you awake and found you awake, wait did you even sleep?
Mrs. V: actually I did. For three spaced hours that's enough, medicine never sleeps. If anything I shouldn't have, but with a husband like mine who pushes me to bed, I had to.
Aamiina: I'm sorry, you could have woken me up, you know
Mrs. V: yeah, but you just arrived yesterday after a really long trip and tiresome experience you needed the sleep.
Aamiina: but so did you.
Mrs. V: I left camp a few hours before they arrived to secure this place so I didn't have a tiresome experience, you did.
Aamiina: anyway, I'm well rested. You can take the day off, I do everything besides its just vitals and food all day which if you think about it is a nurse's job. Those requiring medications, I know them I was with you all day yesterday. If an urgent matter is needed, I'll call for you.
Mrs. V: [smiles] okay, okay I'll not pass up such an opportunity. In fact I'll use this time to teach my daughter some languages.

She began teaching her Somali which she partly learnt through her environment then she taught her Arabic. A few months later the patients all got better and Mariana was learning quickly, she even started learning Farsi and Kurdish, since they're of same origin she easily grasped them. Over the next year in late 1998, she continued reading through books, manuals or newspapers in these languages just to get a better understanding. She constantly said she wants to grow up like her parents.

One fateful day when all was peace, the Volcanos had just received a box from Thomas.

Nagredi: after so long he finally sends something
Mrs. V: looking at these dates he wrote them months ago
Mr. V: how did you get these?
Man: he saved my life from them, I was a captive
Nagredi: but you don't look African
Man: yes, I'm Spanish like them, you must be.....
Nagredi: I'm American. How did you find yourself in Iraq?
Man: I was in Iran, captives are kept in Iran, Iraq is where they meet to plan their attacks and in Afghanistan is the headquarters, that's where the executive members meet. Everything is written in that box with extra details which I don't know because I didn't open it. Didn't get the time to, and he emphasized I shouldn't, anyone who knows is always hunted down and killed.

Mrs. V: in that case why don't you send it home, my place not here, these people have been through so much already.
Man: okay.
Mrs V: so we were right Mr. Nagredi, they're all working together.
Nagredi: and that's probably where they'll build it.
Mrs. V: I hope he gets there in time.

A few hours later the terrorists arrived in Germany shooting and killing everyone. Mariana was with her friend Casho by the nearby river fetching water. Casho was the first to see the fire and immediately took off, Mariana tried catching up but she couldn't. Eventually she got to the scene and found a lot of women and many of her friends shot dead, she cried out. She ran around looking for her parents when she saw Casho get shot and her mothers throat cut out. She felt lightheaded, weak and cried out bitterly, finally she saw her mother.......

Mrs. V: [screamed] RUN! Don't look back!
Mariana: [shakes her head meaning no]
Mr. V: [shouts for Aamiina] take her and go!

Aamina in pain and tears after mourning her mother who was one of the first to be killed, gathered the little bravery and strength, takes Mariana and runs deep in the woods. A man follows them, Aamiina sees him.
Aamiina: hide in there [pointing in a huge tree fallen-off bark]
She fights him.

Man: (in Iraqi accent in English) you've got skill. I'd love to play but, no time.

Then he gets he's gun and shoots her.

Mariana: [screams] Ahhh!!!

She runs towards him with a huge stick hits him on the hand having the gun, he drops it and then she hits him in he's nuts. She gets he's gun and shoots him four times in the head, gets afraid and throws it down. The man dies. She goes to Aamiina who's so weak and close to death, her breathing even gets weaker.

Mariana: [pulls her] let's go
Aamiina: [with a low struggling voice] it's over go and run.
Mariana: [cries] no!
Aamiina: you have a warriors heart you can do it. Mariana Guerrero Volcano, go. Go!
Mariana: [runs in tears towards the camp and sees many people lined up with a man holding a golden gun wearing a black hat and jacket. He shoots everyone in that line. Her parents were the last two he killed intentionally].

Everyone was dead, she was the only survivor. She ran into the woods cried out loudly and just right on the ground she fell asleep. The next morning she went back to the camp site and cried on her parents bodies then she dug a huge hole for a week and put everyone in it, but put her parents separately in a corner. For four days she closed that hole, walked to the rail line afterwards and waited a day for the train to pass. She jumped into it after two tries of failing, falling and hurting herself.