A wolf in human's clothing

Chapter 8: The heartbreaking truth (part 1)

Outside the bunker...

Still sitting on the front porch, Colonel Martinson tearfully stared at the picture of him and his son. My son... He thought, tears dripping from his eyes. You meant everything to me.... You still do. I never forgot you...

London, England,
3rd Military base of the United States Army...

March 21, 3005,
War of the Unions era...

Colonel Martinson sat down at his boss's desk where he waited for him. It's a small room with a large window at the end. Messy shelves are against the left and right walls. "Thanks for taking your time to see me, Martinson." Martinson's boss said. "I know I'm too busy to schedule any meetings, but I needed to speak to you in private." "You're welcome, General." Colonel Martinson said kindly. "I respect your busyness, but I needed to talk to you sooner. It's important." "I understand." The General said sternly. "But, we're at war here! We're fighting against several countries with heavily armed forces!" "I know, sir!" Colonel Martinson cried. "But, I need to spend more time with my son, Jim! We haven't talked since I was stationed here! Don't you understand, General?!" "Enough!!" The General bellowed. "You will continue to fight for America! That's an order!" "......Yes, sir." Colonel Martinson said reluctantly. "And besides, Jim won't live to see you again if we lose." The General said, more calm. "He is counting on you to save our country. President Jonas is counting on you. The whole country is counting on you." "...I understand, General." Colonel Martinson said, also calm. "But..." "No buts! That's an order!" The General ordered. "Sir, yes, sir." Colonel Martinson said, as he nodded. "I accept fully responsibility of leading my soldiers to victory, sir." "Good." The General said, satisfied. "I'm glad we agreed on something. Carry on."

Several hours later...

Colonel Martinson laid on his bed in his tent, his eyes wide open. Jim... He thought. My beloved son... I don't wanna fail you. You're all I have since I lost my wife. Your Mother. He tried to close his eyes, but his small television automatically turned on. Colonel Martinson sat up and saw his son smiling at him. "Dad..." He said, his voice breaking. "J-J-Jim...!" Colonel Martinson cried, his voice also breaking. "My s-son! You're..here!" "Dad.... How are..you?" Jim asked, his voice still breaking. "Everything's fine, Jim." Colonel Martinson said, calming down. "I was stationed in London and I've.....fought against a lot of soldiers. It's.....awful. But, I continue to pray that God will guide us to victory and to save our people." "Oh, Dad. I hope you do great..." Jim said. "I don't wanna lose you." "...I don't wanna lose you either." Colonel Martinson said, his voice breaking even more. "I don't know what I'd do without you...!"

Colonel Martinson, still staring at the picture, wiped the tears from his eyes. Then, he removed his peaked cap and held it against his chest. Son... He thought tearfully. I'll never forget y... "Sir!" A voice said, coming from Colonel Martinson's walkie-talkie. "We found some footage of someone sneaking into the U.M.F.U.'s American offices in the security room." Colonel Martinson pulled the walkie-talkie from his belt and asked, "Who was it, sergeant?" "....Aris, sir." The voice said. "It was Aris."

Meanwhile at the bunker...

Ricky sat on one of the benches reading his Grandparents' book with Aris sitting next to him, her paws on her lap. "I had no idea that my Grandparents were famous Christian authors." Ricky said in amazement. "Or that they had this book published." "It sounded like you said the same thing twice." Aris giggled. "Are ya trying to make me laugh? Because it worked." "......How old are you?" Ricky asked randomly. "How old am I?" Aris asked, giggling again. "21 years old." "What, in human years or wolf years?" Ricky asked jokingly. "Come on. Tell me." "Human years, you goofball!" Aris laughed heartedly. "I'm not older than you think I am!" "I didn't say you were old, Aris!" Ricky laughed. ".....Hey, Aris? I..........I am very grateful that you've shown me this amazing bunker. It must've been fun to teach everyone the word of God." "Yes, it was." Aris said happily. "And, I'm glad you're enjoying our time together in the bunker. I really wanted to save your Grandparents. I'm sorry if I couldn't make it on time..." "You didn't kill my Grandparents." Ricky said. "You aren't responsible for their deaths, so you don't need to apologize." A tear rolled down Aris' eye. "R-Ricky?" She said. "I..." "Besides," Ricky interrupted unselfishly, "it's MY fault for letting them face the U.M.F.U. alone. I should've revealed myself to their Military. If they were gonna die, I wanna come with them." Aris placed her paw on Ricky's shoulder. "I know you miss them." She said softly. "But, God would want you to try to live your life freely. He doesn't want you to take your own life." Ricky slowly closed the book and didn't look up. "Hey." Aris said softly. "Do you wanna see something cool?" "What is it?" Ricky asked, looking at Aris. "Is it a flying pig?" Aris giggled. "No." She laughed. "I'll show you. Follow me." Aris got up and, followed by Ricky, walked towards the wall across from the chapel stage. On the wall is a futuristic television screen. "It's.....just a television screen." Ricky said, unimpressed. "What good is it." "You haven't seen nothing yet." Aris said with a smile. "Watch." She walked over towards the nearest bench on the left and pulled out a remote with an on/off button from under it. She aimed it at the screen and turned it on. "HELLO." A computerized voice said, coming from the television screen. "YOU HAVE JUST TURNED ON THE WORLDWIDE TRACKER. WITH THE TRACKER, YOU CAN KEEP TRACK OF ALL YOUR FAVORITE MOVIES, SONGS, TV SHOWS, AND ALL YOUR FAVORITE TYPES OF MEDIA, ESPECIALLY ONES THAT HAVE BEEN BANNED BY THE UNITED MOTHERS AND FATHERS OF UNIONISM." Ricky made an astonished, wide-eyed expression. "....Amazing!" He exclaimed. "What else can it do?" "I CAN ALSO KEEP TRACK OF THE EXECUTIONS, SANCTIONED BY THE UNITED MOTHERS AND FATHERS OF UNIONISM." The Worldwide tracker said. "WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO TELL YOU ABOUT THE EXECUTION OF JEFF AND JULICIA LONDON?" "No thanks." Ricky said, as Aris stood behind him and placed her paw on his shoulder. "I already know how it happened. You don't need to tell me, Tracker." "AS YOU WISH, MASTER LONDON." The tracker said, causing Aris to giggle. "WOULD YOU LIKE A COOKIE?" "Uh, no?" Ricky said. "And, how do you know my...?" "I AM THE WORLDWIDE TRACKER, REMEMBER?" The tracker said. "I KEEP TRACK OF EVERYTHING." "Creepy and snarky computer..." Ricky muttered, causing Aris to giggle again. "What else can it do?" "Hey, Ricky?" Aris said. "Yes?" Ricky replied. "What is it?" "You've gotten more....happier since I last saw you." Aris said kindly. "I know you miss Jeff and Julicia, but they would've wanted you to enjoy life. God wants you to enjoy it too." "GOD MEANS EVERYTHING TO ME TOO." The tracker said. "HE IS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. THE VOICE FOR ALL. THE KING OF ALL KINGS." "So true." Aris said, nodding with her arms crossed. "God is the light of our dark times. He loves us all." Ricky turned to Aris and said, "This tracker is pretty cool, Aris. Thanks for showing it to me." "You're welcome!" Aris said happily. "I'm glad you like it." "I RESENT THAT." The tracked said. "I'M A HIM. NOT AN IT." Aris and Ricky started laughing. "Hey, Ricky? I have to take care of another errand." Aris said politely. "Make sure you stay here and don't let any soldiers see you, okay?" "...Okay, Aris." Ricky said. "Goodbye." "I'll have the doors locked again." Aris said politely. "Goodbye!" She walked up towards the chapel stage and walked down the cellar, closing the door behind her.

An hour later...

Ricky sat on the ground against one of the benches watching his favorite show. "This show was banned by the U.M.F.U.." He whispered. "I can't believe they don't know about this. Amazing..." As the show ended, the tracker asked, "ARE YOU SURE YOU DON'T WANT A COOKIE, MASTER LONDON?" "I'm sure." Ricky said, rolling his eyes. "....Actually, yeah. I'd like one please?" "CHOCOLATE OR PEANUT BUTTER?" The tracker asked. "Chocolate please?" Ricky asked. "CHOCOLATE ACCEPTED." The tracker said. "HEATED OR COOLED?" "Uh, heated." Ricky said. "Please?" "PROCESSING..." The tracker said. Ricky waited for 5 minutes. Then, a disc drive stuck out of the wall under the screen, but had a cookie on a flat plate instead of a disc. "COOKIE DRIVE 5000 HAS FINISHED YOUR CHOCOLATE COOKIE PIZZA." The tracker said. "ENJOY." Ricky got up, walked towards the tracker, and picked up the plate. "How is it possible?" Ricky asked. "This is amazing." "THANK YOU FOR YOUR FEEDBACK, MASTER LONDON." The tracker said thankfully. "I DO HOPE YOU ENJOY YOUR COOKIE PIZZA." A few minutes after he ate the cookie pizza, Ricky sat against the chair and rested his eyes. "Sooooooo gooooood." He sighed. "What a cookie..." "ANYTHING ELSE, MASTER LONDON?" The tracker asked. "No, I think I'm good." Ricky replied. ".....Actually, I wanna know something." "I CAN TELL YOU ANYTHING." The tracker said. "LIST OF COUNTRIES THE UNITED MOTHERS AND FATHERS OF UNIONISM HAS TAKEN OVER, THE LAWS THEY ESTABLISHED FOR AMERICA, THE LIST OF EXECUTIONS THEY SANCTIONED..." "You know what?" Ricky interrupted. "Tell me about the execution of my Grandparents, Jeff and Julicia London." "AS YOU WISH, MASTER LONDON." The tracker said. "JEFF LONDON AND JULICIA LONDON WERE EXECUTED BY ORDER OF THE UNITED MOTHERS AND FATHERS OF UNIONISM." Ricky looked down in sadness as the tracker continued, "THEY WERE EXECUTED FOR CRIMES AGAINST THE UNITED MOTHERS AND FATHERS OF UNIONISM, WHO ORDERED COLONEL JOHNSON T. MARTINSON TO HAVE THEM EXECUTED. THEY WERE ACCUSED OF COMMITTING TREASON AND, BECAUSE OF THIS, FACED A DEATH PENALTY: THE RUSSIAN CAMPS IN MOSCOW. HOWEVER, INFORMATION OF THEIR CRIMES WAS GIVEN TO THE UNITED MOTHERS AND FATHERS OF UNIONISM'S MILITARY BY A WITNESS NAMED ARIS."