August 2nd, 2030, 8:27 pm

As soon as the Captain and I emerged from the backwoods restaurant, rain began to fall lightly upon the windshield of his car. After what had just happened, we were silent. The only thing we heard was the rolling tires against the wet pavement and the tapping of raindrops on the car. I had nothing to say, but I'm sure that he did.

We got kicked out of Bellamy's restaurant because the owner is too much of an asshole to realize that I did nothing to stir the pot with those kids. Okay, maybe I did knee Patty in the crotch after he beat up that kid, Anthony. No one deserves to get jumped by someone twice their size, and that's what happened to Anthony. I taught Patty a lesson about what's fair and unfair, yet Scott Bellamy thinks it's all my fault.

After that incident, him and his goons approached my table as I was minding my own business. They were going to beat me up until they saw that I had the Medo's mark, more commonly known as Jennings' mark. Why didn't they want to fight me? That mark does nothing other than make me look like the next person to go missing.

"Why do they call it Jennings' mark? He wasn't the only victim, was he?" I question, rubbing my fingers over my mark.

"He was the first victim that we found. We have no other name for it, so that's what we'll refer to it as. It's very likely that the other missing people have this same brand." The Captain keeps his eyes from wavering off the dark forest road. "You can call it whatever you want, at this point."

My mark is jagged and sharp. I stop touching it. "Doesn't that just make one guy's life more important than the rest of the victims? What if there are people who died before Jennings?"

"If you put it that way, I guess it kinda does."

"Who started calling it that?"

"Jameson."

I watch as we dash by the oak trees. Along my right side, a guard rail begins beside the road. Past the steel rail is a huge, steep drop off into the forest. That's probably why there are no stagnant puddles on the side of the road; it's all flowing down. I can only see what the headlights of the car illuminates in front of us.

"He's an asshole."

"I know."

"You know, I would probably be more willing to give blood for study if it wasn't in the middle of your driveway. If he didn't grab my arm like he was going to rip it off, and if he didn't pull a dirty syringe out of his back pocket, I might have said yes. How the hell does he keep it back there, anyway?" I lean my head against the window beside me. "He doesn't respect anyone's privacy, does he?"

The Captain sighs. "You might be able to conclude this already, but Jameson voted to execute you after you were in our custody. He wasn't happy when you got the OLC just handed to you. It doesn't help that the one who voted it is his worst rival. He hates you because MacTavish likes you, or at least sees something good in you."

"Do you?"

He pauses. "Do I, what?"

"Do you see something good in me, like he does?"

He says nothing. My heart drops, and I close my eyes. He doesn't see any good in me. He never did. I knew it. My mom was right about him.

"Yes, I do."

I blink my eyes open and turn to him. "You really do?"

"You are willing to stand up for yourself in tough situations. Not a lot of people can do the same. You also care about other people. You went up to help Anthony without even thinking about the consequences. There was nothing in it for you to go stop those kids, but you did it anyway. That is selfless. That is, unfortunately, a trait that is sometimes hard to come by in the Imperial Guard. I'm glad you showed me that you can be human, after everything that happened in these past five months."

I never considered myself to be selfless. It didn't occur to me that what I did for Anthony said something about me in the Captain's eyes. I just kinda did it. It was the right thing to do. I didn't care what Patty would do to me, as long as I showed Anthony that I tried to save him. So, it turns out that the Captain does see some light in me.

"Thank you, Captain." I mumble, fixing my gaze on the road.

He glances at me for a split second and smiles. "Brian. You don't have to call me Captain anymore if you don't want to." His eyes light up as we go around a bend, and he slowly puts his foot on the brake. "Woah, what happened here?"

The car drifts to the side of the road, next to the guard rail. The steel has been bashed into, and there is a gaping hole in the rail. I sit up and crane my head to get a better look, to see if anything was at the bottom of the steep hill. Nothing. The rain also obstructs most of my vision, making it difficult to determine what object is past the guard rail.

Brian puts his truck in park, and reaches into the center console. After a few seconds of sifting through various items, he pulls out a navy blue, metallic flashlight and clicks it on. A large, pale yellow circle emerges on the ceiling above us. He switches it off, and exits the car. I watch him walk in front of his headlights and over to the edge of the hill, farther than what I can see from my seat. In the next moment, he twists to me and motions for me to follow him. His request seems urgent. Something isn't right.

"Slater, come here!" He shouts as I hop out of the car. I pick up my pace afterwards. When I'm standing right beside him, he shines the flashlight to the bottom of the hill. The light illuminates a red sedan trapped at the base. The entire front of the car is caved in around a thick oak tree. Smoke billows out from the engine, and the rear lights are still on. This wasn't here when we were on our way to the restaurant.

"Follow me, and watch your step. The hill is slippery." Brian takes slow steps down, sloshing his boots in flowing rivers. I follow his lead, making sure to be cautious. I wouldn't want to lose my footing and get my shorts all muddy. I might slide tackle and take out Brian in the process.

We jog over to the wrecked car and investigate the accident. I can smell gas, which is definitely not a good sign. There is a leak somewhere. We shouldn't be around the vehicle for long; it may not end up well. The windshield is absolutely shattered, and shards of glass decorate the whole front of the car, inside and out. The back door on the passenger's side is open slightly ajar. There is a booster seat next to that door. Was there a toddler here, and did they escape? Great, now we have an accident and a missing child. 

The driver is still seated in the front, with her seatbelt strapped over body. She appears to be a middle-aged woman, like the same age as my mom. Her eyes are shut, and blood drools all down her face from her hairline. Tiny pieces of glass pierce her legs, torso, and chest, covered by a black, casual dress. She isn't breathing, and if she is, I can't tell.

Brian clicks off his flashlight and exhales. "This is just a big fucking mess. Driver is unconscious, the car is completely totaled, and who knows how long this has been here. It could've been hours. I don't think the guard rail was smashed when we drove to Bellamy's earlier."

The scent of the gasoline is stronger over by the driver's door. It's making my stomach whirl after eating those wings earlier. "Don't you smell the gas? We're literally standing right on top of it. The rain is spreading it around, so if the car catches fire, we're caught right in the middle of the explosion. We need to get out of here, now. I don't think it's safe."

Lightning cracks above. Brian starts walking past me. "You have a point. I'll give the Stanville station a call. They need to get down here, as soon as possible. Come on, let's go."

Before we can trek back up the hill, I hear someone take a huge breath. It wasn't the Captain in front of me. He didn't catch wind of it, so I pull him back to listen again. Instead of a big breath, there are many quick ones. It sounds like the howling wind, but it could also be mistaken for a human breath.

We bolt back to the driver's window and see the woman heaving in air. Her head bounces in every direction before Brian turns the flashlight on and shines half of it into the car. She grabs his soaked shirt collar from the destroyed window and starts crying in desperation. Her breaths creak and turn into a whimper instead. Can she speak?

"Ma'am, are you all right? Do you need help?" Brian asks, rummaging away from her grasp. He reaches into the car and pulls the handle to open the door, which happened to be unlocked. Her entire legs are caked in blood and sharp glass. The left foot is twisted outward farther than it should be. I doubt she'll be able to even twitch her legs.

"I can't feel my legs," She moans, swinging for Brian again. When he persists with escaping her hold, she gives up and turns her head to the passenger's seat and gasps. Nothing is there. "Where is he?" She goes back to him. "Is he okay?"

"Is who okay?" I inquire, examining the passenger's side. Nobody is sitting there, but the window is cracked open slightly. There are crimson stains on the door handle and the headrest, as well as a clear handprint on the dashboard.

The woman attempts to swing her legs out of the car. "My son. He was here when we crashed. I think." As she continues to speak to the Captain, I pace around to the other side of the wrecked vehicle to look in at the passenger's seat. I still just see all the blood on the seat and door.

The oak trees begin to whirl back and forth, and the rain comes down harder and harder by the second. Brian needs to make that call to the local Guard station sooner rather than later. We could get trapped out here in the midst of a storm. There's no way that we could bring medical help to this woman and find her son before the squall gets far worse. I don't even know where her son could be. Man, being in the Imperial Guard really sucks. We could've just walked away from the scene if the Captain didn't have a duty to fulfill.

On the floor of the passenger's seat, there are what looks like cotton balls scattered about. I try to pull the door open, but unlike the others, it's strangely jammed. The window isn't lowered enough for me to reach in and open it from the inside. In the small crack between the hood and the glass, I peer into the interior to investigate the supposed cotton balls.

"Do you need something, Slater?" The Captain asks, staring at me from over the top of the car.

I glance up at him. "Nah, nothing," I lie. The cotton balls aren't what I originally thought they were, because they are thinner than they are supposed to be. One end of each white tissue is balled up and dark red, like they were used to stop a small cut or something. They must be the driver's; she used tissues to try to prevent bleeding from one of her wounds. It clearly didn't work.

I return to the other side of the car to witness the Captain helping the woman rise out of the car slowly. Her body is denying any movement, as she winces with every jolt and turn. When she is on her feet, he asks her if she can walk. She shakes her head definitely.

I tilt my head upward at the rain. The water drips down my neck and soaks my t-shirt. The air has cooled from sundown, uncharacteristically for a late summer night. White veins bleed out across the black sky, and the wind swirls leaves sporadically throughout the edge of the forest. We haven't had many storms this summer, so this one has got to be the worst yet.

I follow the Captain as he hikes up the hill, with his arms under the woman. Her ankle really is crooked from where I'm walking, so I don't blame her for not going herself. I open the passenger's side door, and he sets her down in the seat. She shivers, shuffling forward.

"Slater, I have a coat in the back seat, could you grab it for her?" The Captain requests, pointing to the door beside us. "There should also be an umbrella on the floor."

I slosh over to the door to retrieve the items he asked for. The coat is quite heavy, almost like one you would wear in the winter. It would definitely do the trick, helping her warm up. The umbrella is thick, probably one that was designed to repel a torrent like this. I hand both things to the Captain. He drapes the coat over the woman, and she wraps it around herself immediately. The umbrella springs open and hangs over the three of us.

"How did you get yourselves into this mess, anyway?" He asks over the rain. "Were you distracted? Swerved off the road?"

"I was driving along with my boys, when my eldest started to panic in the front seat. Nothing was going wrong, so I didn't look over until he was nearly crying. That's when I saw," She can hardly get her words out. Her breathing heightens.

The Captain reaches for her arm, gently. "Ma'am, I need you to calm down. What did you see?"

She gasps, and I think it took all the breath out of her. "That," Her finger dances in my direction. "That mark. But it was glowing blue, I think. Or orange. I had never seen it on him before. I heard the news reports from today and what it means, and I was so scared. In my panic, I hit the guardrail and went over the edge. And now, they're gone. They could be anywhere right now. Do you think they went to go look for help? Oh, I hope little Noah is okay. Anthony probably-"

The Captain and I exchange glances. "I'm sorry, did you say Anthony?"

She nods. "Yes, that is my eldest son. The one with Jennings' mark." Tears start streaming down her face, making webs in the blood. "This is all my fault. Noah is probably really hurt, him being so little. I hope Anthony took him to go get help or something. If I didn't look away for one second, we could be home right now."

He continues to talk to her and soothe her as I turn toward the woods. Anthony had the mark the whole time, and I didn't even see it. Did he notice mine? He might've, and probably didn't say anything. Then again, his mom is saying that she never noticed it on his arm before. If her testimony is true about the accident, then Anthony was quite shocked to see the M glow.

"Like that!" Anthony's mom cries out. "His arm lit up, just like your's is."

She isn't kidding. I gaze down at my forearm, and the M is pulsing a tangerine color. The strange part is that it's not like the mark is burning my skin. There is a tingle, but it doesn't hurt at all. Through the rain, it won't stop illuminating.

As I turn back to her and the Captain, he blinks. "Wow, that's bright. I can see why you might have swerved off the road. It's nearly blinding." He adjusts his eyes to the light and examines it again. His face is not shining anymore. "What happened? It just turned off."

Just like that, it's gone. Why? Why, why, why? Is it something about the area? Oh well. I'm not the one controlling it, so I should just let it do its own thing. Roarke is behind this, and I'm not about to get in front of him.

I face the woods again, studying the bleak sky. The Captain goes back to speaking to Anthony's mom, something about how bad her injuries are. If he has eyes, I'm sure it's not hard to tell that she's in a lot of pain. Hopefully he called for that ambulance like he said he was going to, because she can't keep going on like this.

"The mark," The Captain mutters. "It's back, Slater." Sure enough, it is. I hold it in front of my face and stare at it, watching for it to burn out. It tugs me toward the edge of the hill, but I resist the pull. It wants me.

I walk forward, starting down the grassy waterfall. My eyes don't waver from the depths of the woods, to the point where everything around becomes black. In the center of my vision is a hot flame, hidden through the darkness. The rain repels off my body from the mark. I can't hear the lightning as it's drowned out by the voices.

Over there. A blood brother. Go to him, Slater.

"No, Roarke. You can't make me," I respond to the command aloud. My sight has not returned to being clear, but I continue pressing ahead. My legs are not listening to my brain.

He needs you. He is lost.

"I don't care. Stop trying to control me."

Slater.

I don't respond.

Slater!

I feel a hand press on my shoulder, and I spin around abruptly. The darkness drains out of my vision and the world is crystalline again. The rain drips off my skin and streams down my face. The Captain stands behind me, with the dying glow of the mark illuminating his eyes.

"What's wrong?" He asks, with his gaze bouncing back and forth between the light and I. "Did you see something?"

I point to the tree line with the arm possessing the mark. It gleams back to life in the same direction of the internal blaze. "In there. Something is in there. Calling to me. Roarke said so."

"Who?" He shakes his head. "Nevermind. You need to stay up here with us. You shouldn't go wandering in the woods again after what happened last time." He starts back up the hill, to the car. I'm not following him. I have to see what's out there.

I take off in the other direction, into the endless array of monotonous trees. My arm tickles, and the path becomes brightened ahead of me. The thicket surrounds my body, yet I press through it all. I remember what happened two nights ago, when I ran away from the Medo. Branches that poke out scratch and tear at my skin, but I don't mind it. I've been there.

The Captain yells out behind me, but it won't stop me from following the aquamarine flame. Roarke tells me what to do, and I listen. If he says there is a blood brother in the forest, then I must obey that command. There is nothing more important than the Medo.

My lungs ache, but I emerge into an opening. The flame is overwhelming in front of me, so I blink to adjust to the light. The fire disappears, and a figure stands in the dim moonlight, far from where I am. He is just a silhouette surrounded by a gust of leaves and rustling trees. In the distance, the moon just barely sneaks through the harsh storm cloud that looms overhead.

You found him, Slater. You now see how important your blood brothers are.

I approach the silhouette from his back until I am interrupted by shrill whining. My first instinct is to duck next to a nearby shrub. My knees are caked in soggy mud, what I avoided from the start, when we first arrived to the scene of the accident.

Wait, the accident. Anthony's mom. The Captain. I pause, glaring at the raging storm past the figure. I need to snap out of it. Roarke is trying to take over my mind by talking to me. What am I thinking, with all this "blood brother" bullshit? This is just how Roarke is making me run away from the Imperial Guard to join the Medo instead.

It was worth a try, at least. One day, Slater. You'll see.

"Shut up! Shut up or I'll kill you!" A young voice shouts. The crying continues from what is definitely a child, despite the voice's threat. "I'll take you right back to that hell if you don't shut up. I'm doing this for your sake, you piece of-"

There is rustling from where I entered the opening as the boy curses at the baby. The Captain shuffles into the scene, and I watch from the outskirts. His hardy flashlight is clipped to his belt loop, by his hip. I try my best to cover my glowing mark with my hand to remain hidden from the three of them. I'm just going to watch what happens between them, even though I can hardly see a thing, with it being so windy. I could just listen instead, over the torrential downpour.

I hear a clink of some kind of metal, over by the blood brother. "Get the hell out of here, old man. Can't you see that my brother and I trying to spend some quality time with each other?"

"Put the gun down, right now, Anthony. You're making a big mistake," The Captain requests.

Anthony laughs. It doesn't even sound like the same kid we met at the restaurant. "You wouldn't shoot me. You don't have the guts." He looks down at his brother, Noah, along the bushes near him. The end of the gun drifts over his head. "I'll shoot him if you don't leave."

Noah starts shrieking, unfortunately being able to comprehend what is all going on around him. I can't let him kill his younger brother like this. The kid doesn't even have a chance to defend himself. I need to be the one to stop Anthony. The Captain would shoot him in an instant. As sadistic as he is, he's still a kid. He can receive help like I did, and I can make sure that he gets it.

I don't observe the altercation as I sneak amongst the trees along the clearing. I need to focus on reaching Anthony and not what's going on around me. No, I'm going to take Noah away from his brother before I go after him. I should make sure that he's safe before I deal with Anthony personally. Noah is my first priority.

"Put the gun down, Anthony. You don't want to do this, trust me. If you do what I tell you, I can take you and your brother back to your mother."

My foot snaps a branch, but they don't stop bickering. "My mom is dead. I already mourned her. I've said my goodbyes." Anthony explains back to the Captain. He's twisted. "Now, you heard me. Leave."

"Look," The Captain says, farther away than before. I peek my head over the bushes, behind a tree so that Anthony cannot see me. Through the bleak light from his belt, I watch as the Captain removes his pistol from his side, and lays down softly on the wet grass. He stands back up straight, with his hands facing the kid. "There. See, I won't hurt you. We can talk this out."

I continue down the path to Noah and Anthony as they still argue. I don't know if I could have the same patience that my mentor has right now, dealing with this kid. I would want to shoot him, to be honest. I couldn't watch him point a gun at a toddler like he did without doing something about it. It's sick; I had no idea that he was like this. I should've just let Patty beat him up at Bellamy's. He deserved it then, and he definitely deserves it now.

Soon, I'm crouching right next to where Noah is seated in the grass. Five feet behind him and his brother, the dark world drops off. I crane my head over a shrub to observe the edge. It's Tyson's Gorge, and it starts right here. Three hundred feet to the bottom. Not far from where we are now, a waterfall spills over the side into the canyon. I've never been to the base of the gorge, and I don't intend to be there in the near future. Mind the gap.

Noah springs to his feet and bolts toward the Captain. I wasn't paying attention to their conversation. I think that Brian successfully convinced Anthony to let his brother free, until he lifts his gun out and it clicks. No pierce or bang. That psycho asshole tried to shoot his younger brother.

"Fucking piece of shit gun!" Anthony growls, swirling to the gorge and chucking his weapon as far as he can into the open air. He is now mumbling to himself, still facing the deep crevice. I can't hear what he's saying exactly, but it soon turns into something other than English, like something else from another region of the Empire.

While his back is turned to the three of us, I step over the bush between him and I. The rain hammers down on the canopy, and lightning cracks over the ravine. Thunder rolls through the trees like a gust of wind. I can't hear my own footsteps underneath me. As I approach Anthony, his unintelligible muttering has become far more intricate, yet audible.

I wrap my arms around his slender body and pull him away from the edge of the fissure. He plants his feet in the mud, and resists the movement by going forward. I'm larger and stronger than him, so it is beyond me why it is so difficult to hold him back. Somehow, he is able to squirm his way near the drop off again.

"Let me go!" He booms, freeing his arms and attempting to pry mine off of him. For a moment, I release him, but I link my arms together again. The rain allows him to maneuver in my grasp as much as he wants without me letting go of him. My legs are slipping out from under me, but I just need to hold on to Anthony until he gives up. If he starts going over the edge, I don't know if I'd be able to follow him into the gorge. I think I would have to let him drop. Let's hope it won't come to that, though.

"Slater!" He cries out, swinging his arms desperately. "Let me die!"

That is when I see it. His left arm is lit up with the token of the Medo in a warm, ocean color. As his arms sway in a flurry, I catch a glimpse of it every time his underarm faces me. It's just as bright as mine was when I was up by the car. It's parallel to my own mark.

Blood brother.

We slowly press toward the edge of the cliff, and Anthony's attempts to flee are becoming much more difficult to hold back. He's now scratching my hands, like searing into them with hot claws. I can't hold onto him much longer.

"Let me go!"

Light erupts from his arm, shining harshly into my eyes. I don't know what happens after that, but I remember being separated from Anthony by a small explosion of some kind between the both of us. As I fly through the air, back toward the Captain and Noah, I witness Anthony's body collapse lifelessly into Tyson's Gorge.

I land on my back, skidding backwards after impact. I can't feel the wet grass underneath me, or the wind along my fingertips. My upper appendages lay beside me, limp. I can't so much as twitch them. Something is running out of my nose, and it isn't the rainwater. In the Captain's flashlight, I'm seeing double the amount of leaves circulating under the canopy. My head feels like a weight has replaced my brain. A bell is ringing nearby.

The Captain and his clone kneel beside me. My eyes feel like they're rolling around like marbles in my head. I can't focus on his face, even though he hovers over me, frozen. The most I can see is his graying beard, covering the bottom half of his shifting head.

"Slater, look at me," He gently reaches across my body and places his hand on my right shoulder. I can't feel the pressure at all. His voice is muffled by the bell. "You're okay, kid. It's a miracle that you're still conscious. Try to stay-"

"Captain?" My eyes fill up, and my lip quivers. I know that's the Captain, but my brain hasn't caught up to recognizing that fact. I'm so scared. I've never been in this much pain before. I've never been immobilized like this. I've never felt so vulnerable in my entire life. The rain masks my tears as they pour over my eyelids.

"Shh, it's okay. It's me; I'm here. You're going to be okay." My vision is dimming, even with the flashlight only a few inches from my body. "What hurts? Can you move your head?"

"Ev-everything," I struggle to get out. My eyelids are trying to zip themselves shut, but I resist them as much as I can. I can taste iron on my tongue. "Captain, I can't-"

My head tilts to the side, and everything goes black. I hear my name ring as clear as day.

"-so the car went over the guardrail on Stanville Pike. The driver is responsive, yet in need of medical attention. Her son has a gash on his forehead, and her other - I couldn't tell you exactly where, Watson. Like five minutes from the high school, kind of near the shopping center. I don't know. We're in the middle of nowhere."

I inhale sharply and force my eyes open. My neck is stiff, as is my entire upper body. I turn my head to look around. I'm staring at the black ceiling of a car, with the only light being the rear ones along the back of the vehicle. The tailgate is up, with waterfalls cascading over the sides of it. The rain hammers against the roof of the car, but I don't hear any thunder or feel the wind. The storm must have died down.

Quick footsteps splash behind my head soon after I regain full consciousness. The Captain appears under the metal umbrella, with his hair laying flat on his head. His shirt sticks to his chest and drips off of the bottom. His flashlight is still attached to his belt, yet the shine isn't as strong as it was. His eyes go to me immediately upon arrival.

"You're awake. How are you feeling?" He unclips the flashlight from his hip and sets it on the floor of the trunk beside me.

I try my best to sit up, but my arms are far too weak to push my body. "I think I'm okay. How about you?"

The Captain laughs. "I'm doing alright, thanks, but I'm not the one who flew twenty or thirty feet through the air. Here," He offers his hands to me, and I reach out to grab them. He pulls me upright, and I lean back against the wall of the car. I swing my legs around to be straight across the floor, next to the rear passengers seats. "There. That should be better."

I peek over the seats and see a small boy laying on his back beside me. Through the shadows, I can make out a sliver of dried blood on his hairline. He is gazing back at me, attempting to smile. He springs to his feet and observes the scene at the trunk of the car.

"How can you sleep in the rain? I can't. It scares me." The boy says, running his fingers over the cut on his head. "What happened to your nose?"

I grin, finally recovering from the feeling of being unconscious. "I broke it, I think. I don't know, but it hurts. What about your head?"

Before he can answer me, the woman in the passenger's seat swivels around to him. "Noah, leave the poor boy alone. He isn't feeling well." Noah huffs, and lays back down, facing the ceiling again. His mother looks back at me. "I'm sorry about that, Slater. He's very talkative."

The Captain sits at the edge of the car, leaning on the other opposite wall that I am. His left leg is bent, and he rests his arm on the raised knee. His other hand is right near my right foot. His face is speckled with dark red and brown spots, even with the constant rain to wash them away. His eyes seem heavy, and refuse to remain open, like mine. He might still be getting over the exhaustion of the day before we saw each other earlier.

"I'm sorry," I say, breaking the silence.

The Captain raises an eyebrow, turning his attention to me. "What for?"

I stare at my feet, choosing my words. "I didn't save Anthony," I whisper, leaning in between us. "He trusted me back at Bellamy's, and I let him die."

He glances up at the front of the car. "Look, he didn't trust you. You heard him; you killed his cousin, or whoever. You shouldn't have felt obligated to save him. He was the one who lost his mind and threatened to kill his brother. As tragic as it is, I'm sorry to tell you that you can't save everyone." He averts his gaze out to the road and watches a car go by behind me. "Don't dwell on it."

He makes a fair point, yet I can't help but feel terrible. I didn't think that Anthony really hated me, though. Did he? He did say that he wanted to die. Did I do the right thing? Then again, I really didn't do anything. He was the one who imploded and sent him over the edge and me flying backward.

"And for everything else," I add. "I've been treating you like shit these past couple days. I was so caught up in what I was told about you, and I'm sorry."

The Captain shakes his head, smiling. "No need to apologize. I don't blame you for being tough on me. If my life were put into the hands of someone I hated, I don't know if I'd be able to handle it as well as you are. It's not like you've tried to kill me. Well, other than-"

"-other than yesterday morning." I conclude his sentence. We both laugh in agreement.

"Look, I know how teenagers are. I have two. I was there, too. I know that you guys like to complain about everything and fight over it. Hayes was in the same boat; well, not exactly, but the whole process of getting into the Imperial Guard, I mean. We had an entire summer to prepare, but it was every little thing with him. You've been given twelve days to get ready for this, and I promise you, you haven't complained as much as he did. I respect you a whole hell of a lot for that."

I look over at my knees, splattered in mud. "Thank you, Brian." I say under my breath.

Sirens wail over the pounding of the rain on the roof. The Captain cranes his head around me to glance out the window. Before he hops out of the car, he turns back to me. "I'll be there, every step of the way. I'm here for you, son." He walks out from under the lifted tailgate and into the storm.

I hear the tires of the vehicles screech to a halt along the puddled road, and I lay back down on the floor of the trunk. I'm so tired; I need to get some sleep. I don't think I have to go the hospital. I close my eyes, listening to the hum of the constant torrent above my head. Red and blue lights dance on the ceiling of the car as I drift off.

END OF PART ONE