By One Drop of Blood

Part 3

We come back to the plantation. This time covered in the night's darkness. We climb over the fence creeping through the tall grass and tobacco field surrounding the mansion. Torches burn on posts alongside the walk ways. As long as we stay inside the field we are invisible to the guardsmen. Only because of our small squad size we can stay undetected. Quickly running across the small grass field we jump into the tobacco plants. Really is is fucking strange. Slavery has been banned two years ago. The new policy was not put in place for every state. The new law only takes jurisdiction over the 35 latitude in the northern hemisphere. That mean that the slave society in the south could not hold any slaves above that. The most radical decision was taken by the state (). The government just abandoned any territory of theirs above the 35 latitude and gave it to the surrounding states. The decision fell over the usefulness that the slaves on the land could provide rather than what the land on its own could provide. The economy in the south is that much more centred around farm work done by slaves than industry or anything else that the abolishment of slavery would cripple the regions economy into never recovering. Because the plantation owners would lose all their wealth, privilege and power they would never be willing to give that up.

The guards are not willing to talk to us so we are gonna talk to the only people left who can give us account of what really happened. The slaves inside the barns should know best what had happened. Cowering inside the high grass we whisper to each other on what we will do now. He have entered the property without any knowledge or intel on the layout. We basically act on improvisation. We could see the torches of the guards patrolling by us. Counting their numbers I would guess that their numbers add up to around fifteen to twenty people. I guess we could win a skirmish with them but would this only attract people from other farms in the surrounding. Across the tobacco fields I can see two of the barns that house the slave workers and the bright shining walls of the masters mansion. I will just try my best luck with the nearest barn. The large main door is to no avail for entering. Guards patrol regularly and the light of torches along the way shines bright. Sitting in the plants will not bring us further. We need to go into the open. Crouching we sneak in a line alongside the fields verge. Only a few yards to the first barn. Just as I should not have gone we got ourselves new problems. We are spotted by a guard! The man shouts at us:

"Hey, you there! Intruders!"

Fuck! We must take out the man but we can not shoot him either. The only option is to knock him out and hope for him to survive. Before he could raise his rifle I swing my rifle stock at his head, knocking him out on the spot. Now we got ourselves a big problem. The man will remember what he saw and will report back to his boss after he wakes up. The strike to his head has slapped away the cap he was wearing. Below it shows a nasty wound on his scalp. Did I inflict that wound by just hitting him with the wooden stock of my rifle? That can not be possible because the wound is much older. A few days at least. He took no effort in binding the wound or to stop the bleeding. Stained blood is already dried on his brows. I guess that the guards also live a life under slave-like circumstances. Enough for it now. I need to focus on the task at hand. We sneak around the wooden structure searching for a door. The barn got a second entrance on the side. Just as the main door this entrance is closed by a chain hanging. The lock for the door is inside the barn. We got no heavy tools to cut it open and shooting would only give away our position. There must be yet another entrance. Looking up I discover an open window. This will be our way in.

"Help me reach the window!" Two soldiers get into stance to boost me up to the window.

"I will climb inside and open the door from the inside." I reach for the ledge and climb through the window. On the inside is to space to stand upon and the strength in my arms fades away. From the movement I take to the inside fall right into the barn.