August 1st, 2030, 7:21 am

My main plan to get back to the Manchester household consists of one rule; don't cross the creek again. All I have to do is walk straight, and hopefully, it will lead me back to where I need to be. The early morning sunlight is enough for me to see where I am going. It doesn't help that I actually haven't eaten in a whole day, though. I'll get something to eat when I return.

I don't even know how Celestine and her dad are going to react to what happened to me. Should I even tell them about who I saw out there? Those people were psychopaths; killing their families for some kind of initiation into their cult or whatever. I don't even think the Captain is going to give a shit that I almost died out here. He'll probably just yell at me and tell me that I'm an idiot and remind me about the OLC. Whatever.

While walking, I remember something that happened last night that confused me and made me wonder. When one of the cultists shone his flashlight on me in the water, he didn't shoot, or maybe, he didn't see me. Lanela has very clear water, so there shouldn't be any problem seeing anyone with a flashlight. Come to think of it, it did rain the night I was arrested. Maybe the water was murky and dirty. It's all just weird.

Today is a new day. I am alive, and I can't dwell on what happened last night. That was all a wake-up call to me. I'm going to make sure that I make the most of the OLC and listen to what the Captain has to tell me. I need to focus now. This is the rest of my life, after all.

There is an opening way up ahead. A part of me wishes that is my destination, and another part of me is holding back. I'm not ready to face the Manchesters about my night, but I really need someone right now. I need to be around someone to isn't going to try to kill me at first sight. They'll be really critical and all. "They" being the Captain, of course. Celestine will just tell me that she was right and I was an idiot, which I was. I should have listened to her.

As I approach the edge of the trees, I notice someone sitting on a raised stool, facing the woods. The one sitting there is wearing a white, short-sleeved shirt and black slacks. It looks like the first person I'll talk to is the Captain. He also seems to be holding something across his lap. I think I know what it is, but I won't know unless I keep moving forward. I'm too nervous to face him, but I have to. I need to be an adult about this. It's time to own up to what I did.

I brush off the last shrub and stand in front of the Captain in the grass. The object in his hands is a long shotgun, pointing toward the ground. I don't think he was really planning on using that on me, was he? Either way, he is emotionless as he stares at me.

The Captain lays the gun on the ground beside his stool and rubs something off his pants. "Did you have fun out there last night, Slater?" He points to my face. "I'm sure you made plenty of friends out there, huh? It also looks like you went for a swim. Isn't the West Forest just a blast?" How does he know that I saw people? Are there scratches on my face? Those are from running away from them, not given to me by them. Nonetheless, he still knows people are out there.

"I met these people out there. They were really weird; they killed their families for their cult or whatever, and-"

He chuckles and hops off the stool. "I don't care what happened to you, if I'm going to be honest. You shouldn't even have been in there." The Captain picks up the chair and his gun and starts walking over to his garage to the left.

"I almost died out there," I say, trying to retain his attention. Maybe he'll actually care if my life was on the line.

He freezes, and twists back to me. "Almost. Not close enough, I guess."

"Wait, are you kidding me? I say that I almost died and you're saying that you wanted them to kill me? You know, my mom was right about you. You're a dick."

The Captain slams both the shotgun and the stool into the grass and retracts back to me. Here we go again. "I fucking told you not to go into the woods at all yesterday. What did you do? You nearly got yourself killed because you were disobedient. I didn't say that I wished they killed you. I'm glad that those assholes out there taught you a lesson." He pauses and puts a hand on my shoulder. "Look at me; I'm going to teach you something really important."

I bring my eyes up to him to see a mix of anger and sympathy in his face. "What?"

"Being a part of the Imperial Guard isn't easy, and it isn't just how well you can do something. It takes character, a real man, to do your job well. Good character comes from listening to what others tell you and, also, thinking for yourself. With good character, you can succeed in anything this world throws at you. That's not to say that you won't find yourself in difficult situations. I know that, deep down, there is a part of you with this good character. I just need to make sure that my conscience is right, and that's where I need you to help me. Only you can show me this hidden side of you, and it starts with all this training that we're doing. When I tell you to do something, you do it. When I say not to do something, don't do it. I still want you to be able to do what you want, but I need you to cooperate with me for now. Trust me, I know that I can do better at helping you succeed. All I ask from you is your best and your full effort. Do you understand what I'm trying to tell you?"

I nod. "Yes, sir. I understand."

He releases my shoulder and grins. "Good, I'm glad. And, hey, I didn't mean to ignore the fact that you almost died out there, but I did warn you. At least now, you know to avoid the woods, right? Come on, let's go inside."

I'm relieved that went better than I expected it to. I was worried that I was going to get my ass beat, but I can take a lecture any day. Now is the time that I have to really start to focus myself in what I'm doing. Listen to what he says, but follow my heart at the same time. I hope that it's as easy as it sounds. None of this is worse than dying in prison or taking a bullet to the brain.

Celestine is in the same spot on the staircase that I saw her last night. She raises her eyebrow and laughs to herself. "You actually made it back? I thought that was the last time I would hear from you, but I guess not. What happened to your face?"

"Yeah, I was going to ask you about that. You did mention some people out in the woods earlier. Did they attack you?" Captain stops in the foyer and leans against the railing.

"Yes and no," I say, feeling my temples for the scratches. "I snuck by their camp, and they were talking about some kind of initiation into their organization where they kill their whole family to please their leader. Their dog saw me, so I ran back, but they chased me. These are from tree branches as I was running. They were shooting at me, though."

"Well, how did you get away? They didn't follow you back here, did they?" Celestine questions, tensing up. She might really think that they know where I am now.

"I fell into the Lanela and sank to the bottom. I waited for them to leave." My clothes are still somewhat damp, but my socks in my sneakers are mushy. "I don't know how they didn't see me. One of the guys shined his flashlight right over top of me, but walked away. I guess I got pretty lucky."

The Captain scans me from top to bottom. "You should really change out of those clothes. God knows how long you've worn that." He turns to his daughter, who is observing me, too. "Could you go grab some of Hayes'? Maybe just a couple t-shirts and pairs of basketball shorts would be fine." Celestine looks back at him like there is a problem. He sighs. "Slater's just going to borrow them, Celeste, it's fine."

She rises to her feet and skips steps as she prances upstairs. What was she worried about? I wasn't going to damage Hayes' clothes, whoever that is. It sure is nice of them to let me borrow some, though. I've sweated through this gray shirt and my pants won't stop sticking to my legs in this heat. I haven't showered in God knows how long, which is disgusting.

"Is she okay?" I ask the Captain.

He shrugs and itches his neck. "I'm sure she's fine. I know why she'd be reluctant to share her brother's clothing, but it's not like you'll do anything bad to them. Follow me, we'll talk in the kitchen."

There is a third member of the family? I wonder how old Hayes is. He must be old enough to have clothes for me to fit into. Where is he, anyway? He probably lives on his own. Speaking of unknown family members, where is the mom? Divorced, maybe?

The Captain pulls a chair out from the table. "Here, sit. I learned something from my meeting last night that may change the way all this goes." He proceeds around the counter and to the stove over by the refrigerator. As he shuffles items around by one of the pans, I place my head on the table and wrap my arm around it. I had plenty of sleep, but I don't know why I'm tired.

I hear something clink against the table in front of where my face is. My eyes rise up to observe a plate of sizzling fried eggs and crispy bacon on the side. I haven't eaten in a day, and my mouth waters just looking at it. I swipe the additional fork, carve part of one of the eggs, and stab it. I shovel the portion into my mouth. My right hand grasps one of the bacon strips, and my teeth rip of a part of it off. I chew that piece quickly before returning to the eggs.

"So last night, I met up with Colonel MacTavish, the one who wanted to keep you alive. You know, we talked about that a lot, but he made a suggestion about this training that we're doing. Due to the reduced time, he said that we should stick to doing your favorite thing; running. That, and basic combat, as well as other general topics. Nothing too in depth, though."

I swallow a sharp piece of bacon. "More running? Great."

"Trust me, it'll be no big deal. You have a lot to learn outside of the physical section, so we'll discuss all of that on the side. Once you're done eating, I'll tell you what we're doing today."

Behind me, there are small footsteps that stop not far from the back of my chair. I hear slight gagging and coughing, so I turn my head around to investigate. Celestine stands in front of the hallway with a load of clothing in her arms. She drops all of the shirts and shorts onto the kitchen's tile floor and twists away from me. Was it something I said?

"Dude, that smell is just horrid. Take a shower or something, please, for your own sake." Celestine begs, covering her nose with her hand. I guess I really do smell bad; I haven't showered or bathed in who knows how long. I think I've gotten so used to the stench that I just ignore it. I never knew that it was this bad.

The Captain chuckles. "After we're done with what we're doing today, I promise that he'll have the opportunity to clean up, Celeste."

"I'm going back to sleep. It's too early to be up," Celestine complains, trudging back toward the foyer. "Have fun, smelly."

I swivel back to my plate of food and continue wolfing all of it down my throat. I'm so thankful that I'm finally able to eat after everything that happened yesterday and last night. I hope that it also fills me up for what I have to do today, whatever that may be. Before long, the eggs and bacon are going to be gone from my plate, and -

They're gone. In my stomach, that is.

"Damn, you were hungry. That really took you no time at all to finish." The Captain maneuvers around the table to take a seat across from me. "I feel pretty bad, knowing that you probably haven't eaten until now. Either way, you're fed, and that's out of the way. We have other things to talk about."

"I'm well aware that running is a huge part of all this." I mumble, staring at the tiny bacon crumbs left behind on the plate. "Not saying I want to go through with it, though."

He smirks, shaking his head. "Today, I won't allow you to walk away from your training. You and I both need to be fully committed to making sure that you're prepared for the ranking. We just need to finish what we started yesterday, which was the two mile run. Don't get distracted; focus on where you need to go. Try to siphon some of your energy instead of using it all at once. It's only twelve minutes, but you'd be surprised how quickly it goes by."

"As if I didn't know all that already," I scoff.

"Listen, I've never had to do this whole recruit training shit with some kid that signs up for it. The only time I prepared someone for the Imperial Guard was," He pauses to ponder. Did he forget who he trained? "My son, Hayes. But he was smart and not in trouble with the law, unlike you. He understood what he had to do and didn't complain about it."

Great, now he's comparing me to his son, who is apparently so fantastic. There's no reason as to why I can't cooperate as well as he did, whenever that was. I'm sure that I can do ten times better than Hayes. I just have to focus on these next two weeks. Now, I have someone to look up to and beat, and it's the Captain's son. I want to prove this asshole wrong.

I grin softly. "Fine then. I'll go run. Just tell me where to go, and I'll do it." I push away from the kitchen table and march to the sliding door. "Let's go, I'm ready to run."

"Well, damn, okay. I didn't think you were going to be this willing to get started already. Whatever you say," He rises to his feet and follows behind me. "I hope you're actually ready for this run this time around."

The walk to the starting point is in complete silence, which helps me zone in on what I have to do. Two miles, back and forth from an old lighthouse on the coast. Yesterday, I finished with thirteen and a half. I can't pause at the lighthouse to breathe this time. I just have to keep running through it. Twelve minutes, no problem.

"Go ahead, Slater. Two miles, that's it. Good luck."

My cue to begin the test sets me forward in a swift jog. This won't be an issue at all; making it to that lighthouse. Something that I just acquired within the past twelve hours is a newfound determination to do my best and only settle for my best. Last night, I told myself that I wouldn't let this opportunity to turn my life around go to waste. It all starts with this run. My full effort is required for all of this, and no less than that.

I can't believe I didn't think about this before, but I sure had to sprint fast to get away from those crazy men last night. I wonder if I told the Captain that I ran to save my life and succeeded, he would let me skip out on running. That's what he said yesterday; I'd never know when I would need the ability to run, and I sure needed it with the encounter last night. I've already proved that I have the capabilities to survive when they are in high demand for me.

I really shouldn't get caught up thinking about what I could be doing instead of this or any other hypothetical situations. My main goal right now is to reach the lighthouse, no questions asked. Maybe my thoughts can take my mind off of the stress of the timing.

Yesterday, I was so worried about the task at hand that I had no interest in admiring the landscape around me. Of course, there is the forest to my far right, hiding something far more sinister than one could ever imagine. The initial tree line is mixed with lush oak trees and tall evergreens, and I know that past that line is a maze of what seems like every kind of tree fathomable. The hardest sight to miss on this trail is the ocean to the left, if you were to drop about fifty feet off a cliff. The seawater is dark blue and murky from where I'm running. From the Captain's house, I'm pretty sure a thin stretch of trees obstructs the view, but out here, it's wide open.

As I approach the lighthouse, something is different from yesterday. Is it that I'm actually on schedule? There actually appears to be a symbol plastered in black paint along the curved figure. Who in the world would put graffiti on such a nice building like this one? Maybe I'll get a better look at it when I touch the lighthouse, but I have to keep moving if I want to crack twelve minutes.

I press my hand on the lighthouse and spring off, observing the graffiti. My mind freezes as I continue to sprint the other way. I saw an M, just like the one on my left forearm, with the words "THE MARK IS WATCHING YOU" underneath. All this was wiped on the side of the lighthouse in a hellish red paint... or not. Just keep running. Whatever you do, don't turn around, don't think about it.

But how could I not think about it? There is no one else that could be targeted toward other than me. Nobody else has a mark, the mark, like I do. What does it mean, it's watching me? That means someone is actually spying on me and seeing every move I make. Why me? I'm not that important! I need to tell the Captain about this. This shit has gone too far for my comfort.

I'm watching your every move.

Who the hell said that? Now I'm hearing voices in my head. I need to keep running, and ignore this person.

You may not think so now, but you are very important, Slater.

I begin to breathe heavily and my legs churn quicker. It isn't my inner voice telling me these things. Someone is following me. My head is pounding, and my vision bobbles.

Ahead, I spot Captain, standing firm with a fixed gaze on his watch. I need him to know what's going on. He knows about the mark, and he might understand. It pains me to say it, but he's the only one I can truly trust around here.

I start waving my arms and jumping. "Captain! Help me! There's someone following me!"

"Slater! You're at eleven thirty! Hurry up!" He replies, disregarding my overwhelming problem. Maybe he didn't hear me. But hey, I'm thirty seconds from beating the time. I push out all of my lasting energy into the stretch, and finally pass him, tumbling into the high grass.

I hop back to my feet and stare back at the path I took. There is no second person behind me. All I see is the lighthouse. My head is now still, and I can see normally. I don't hear anyone talking to me other than the Captain. What the hell just happened?

"Captain, I don't know what's going on. I made it to the lighthouse, and there was a huge M, just like this one," I hold out my arm and point to the strange tattoo. "Under it were the words, "the mark is watching you". Who else could that be pointed toward? No one else has this thing! I think someone is spying on me, and I have no idea what they'd do with me. I'm useless to them."

Manchester raises and eyebrow and makes his way back to his house. "Yeah, that isn't random. Someone would have to know you were going there to put it up. Come on, let's talk inside."

It's just so weird, this whole thing. First I get this damn thing inked onto my arm, and ignore it, only for it to come up so suddenly like this. Who is watching me? What does the mark mean? Who put this thing on me, and why do they hate me so much to do it? It's no longer a gift, hell, when was it a gift? It was and always will be a liability, no matter what anyone says.

"Did you see anyone walk into or out of the interrogation room before we talked yesterday? That person could have been the one to put this M on my arm." I question, slumping down in the seat where I ate eggs and bacon. The heap of Hayes' clothing still lays on the kitchen floor. I'm supposed to change into that, probably right after I get a shower.

The Captain shakes his head and leans against the countertop. "Can't say I did. I arrived at the headquarters at about nine thirty, and I didn't see anyone in the hallway with the interrogation room. And you say that you didn't have this mark in the four months that you were a fugitive, or you just didn't notice it?"

"No, I didn't have it at all. Someone had to have branded me when I was unconscious in that chair or something. What if it was one of the guards who handled me? Could they have done this?" If a member of the Imperial Guard did this to me, that would further prove how screwed up the organization is. There are no signs that point to an alternative.

"It's definitely possible, but I don't see it happening. The orders were to deliver you to the interrogation room unharmed. No one, if they valued their lives, would have hurt you, trust me."

"It just makes no sense, then," I sigh, burying my face into my arms on the table. "Someone might just like me a little bit too much, I guess."

There is a pause. I can feel my hands start twitching, and my head aches as it's face-down on the table. Who is the one who did this? I need a fucking answer.

"Was it you?"

I pick my face up to see the Captain glaring at me, disgusted. "You're joking, right? If I did it I would've told you, and you know that. Don't say such idiotic things, kid. Besides, you heard me, I said I was in your interrogation room, talking to you, only about ten minutes after I got to the headquarters."

I press myself to my feet, feeling the venom in my teeth. "Your last name starts with M, Brian! I don't know of anyone or anything else that it could be. And it's not like you don't hate me!" I maneuver around the chairs and table to approach the Captain with my hands in fists. "You fucking set me up! You did this to me!"

I draw my right arm back and swing forward, aiming for his jaw. He swiftly swipes my hand away, but I use my other arm to send an uppercut to his stomach. As he wheezes for a moment, I wrap my right arm over his shoulder, and connect my arms to make a tight circle around his neck. The Captain charges to the wall beside the hallway leading to the foyer, with me hitting it first. My left shoulder jams, and I release him to comfort myself.

He shoves me against the wall and sticks his index finger right in between my eyes. "Look, this is why I didn't want MacTavish to use the OLC. This shit isn't gonna cut it, kid. You fucking touch me again, I'll tear your fucking head off, you understand me? You have no right to attack me in my own damn house!" He clasps a clump of my sweaty shirt and digs me farther into the wall. "Don't think you're hot shit, because right now, you're nothing to the Imperial Guard. That mark doesn't make you any more special than the next person. You lay a hand on me, or my daughter, or God forbid, anybody else in the Imperial Guard, I'll end your fucking life. Take that advice for what it's worth."

I don't know what just happened. I attacked him, sure, but why? He denied branding me, although all signs point to him. What if he didn't do it? I mean, he seems sincere about not doing it, but I have my suspicions. He also mentioned that the mark doesn't make me special, so that probably indicates that he is most likely innocent. What is wrong with me? Why did I lash out like that? Was it the mark?

The Captain releases me and allows me to have breathing room. "I'm going to the headquarters. I need to talk to the Colonel."

I raise an eyebrow. "So you're just going to leave? What about me?"

"What about you? Do something productive in the meantime." He chuckles to himself and walks out to the foyer. "How about you get better at fighting? Or better yet, get a shower. I have no idea when I'll be back. Just don't expect it to be today, again. I know, I feel bad about saying I'll prepare you for the Imperial Guard and then I leave. Get used to it. I'm a Captain, Slater, I'm a busy man."

He opens the front door and looks back to me. "And, kid, promise me you won't go in the woods, okay?"

I glance down at my mysterious tattoo. That is a promise that I can keep, Captain.