Everett: Revised edition

Chapter 14- Edited

Back at the camp I explained the situation.

"We arrived and were welcomed into the cabin. Not a warm welcome, but a welcome. Negotiations were underway when the cabin was surrounded. Some of us were able to get to the tree line and take cover. We fired. They fired. At one point I ran back towards the cabin and lost sight of Greg and the others. I waited for hours before trying to find my way back. Along the way I found one wounded, but no one else."

It was a quick story.

A council leader sat at the head of the table in the meeting room as she listened to each of us tell our tales of woe. She was long-haired, well-manicured.

Greg looked unconcerned. "We'll reevaluate. Hopefully this will get Kentucky Plains County on our side."

The council leader raised a skeptical eyebrow, "Perhaps." After a pause she continued, "I think we are done with the rest here. You all are excused. Greg, you and I will discuss our next move."

The meeting members shuffled in their seats getting ready to leave. Some pushed back their chairs. I sat in my chair dismayed. None of them had talked about our lost member.

"Are you going to go after Alis? She's one of our best," I said.

"I know you're concerned, Everett, but we can't go in and get her back with flaming swords; this isn't the Middle Ages," Greg said. "What I needed from you was everything you discussed in the meeting."

My face twisted in disgust at Greg's apathy.

Greg gave a flick of his fingers waving the others to leave.

I pushed my chair out and stood up as the council leader spoke up, " Perhaps I should leave too. Give you guys a moment."

"Everett, think about it this way. The more you tell me, the easier and quicker it will be to get Alis back. Although I don't know why you would get so attached to her."

My face contorted even more. "Shouldn't I get attached to her, or you? Aren't we all important here?" I finally exploded. "Why else are we doing this?" The many losses over the past year had gotten to me.

"Just like every generation, so that our children can have a better life!" Greg yelled.

"You don't have a child!" I yelled at him. After I raised my voice at him, he averted his eyes and looked at the ground and chewed his lip. Greg had never acted so sheepish. My brain began to spin with possibility until I felt a twinge of sheepishness when I figured out the answer. "Do you?"

"She's extremely young."

My anger turned to confusion. "You've been at the SchoolYard your whole life. When did you have a child?"

"She's not born yet. Her mother is in hiding. We met after I left the Yard," Greg said.

"The mother is only a few months along then."

"Yes."

"I wouldn't have taken you for the father type Greg," I said.

"Father or not I was always passionate about getting the Community to reform. We can't go on living like we are criminals," Greg said.

"I agree," Julien added. He had been fiddling around as most of the other soldiers and generals left. Greg and I both jumped. We had been burning with the heat of the argument and ignored our surroundings that were out of reach of our flames. "Sometimes that means moving on to move forward. We need to forget Alis for a moment and place the chips on our best bet."

Greg moved his fingers through his hair.

"But after they were attacked, don't you think they'd be more inclined to help us? We can already guarantee having our best bet. Now we can put that extra energy into saving Alis," I said.

"It's possible," Greg said.

"Or they'd be less inclined," said Julian.

"The Community could have asked them to give us up in exchange for a continued agreement that they wouldn't harm their town," Greg said.

It was hard to believe that the southern community could act in any other way but to help us. This outside community had a stake in this war now. I had more than one friend lost to this war. Greg had a young family wrapped up in this war.

Greg pushed open the exterior door to show me out. I exited the building and looked at the training yard as the sound of guns multiplied with the increase of recruitments [reached my ears. Prisoners' sentences and screenings were expedited to get them out in the yard with a weapon. The details of today's failed meeting began to spread across the chains of command like a piece of ivy intertwining in each link. Back at the meeting room, just outside the door, Julian stood to watch the practicing troops. At that moment, Julien's sleeve lifted, and one side of this neckline tightened. Greg pulled him back inside.

The door had not yet closed when I heard Greg say in a low voice, "I'd like to take Everett with me to the Shadow Council leaders."

"Why?" Julien asked.

"See if we can get more help. We're fumbling over here. And I'd like to see if they have any info on Alis."

"Good luck with that," Julien said. The door was just about to click shut when Julien grabbed the door and opened it wide. He strode outside into the daylight. Julien was going to be left to run the base while Greg took me along to the Shadow Council's top.

Time was no longer on our side. 

*How is everyone today? Are your stories/reading list going well? Hopefully they are going better than Everett's and Greg's day.