Made a thread on here a while ago about this short story I'm working on. Just finished up chapter one, would post on AO3 but I'm waiting for my invite Email. Anyways let me know what yall think, this is my first time writing anything so bear with me.
Breach and Clear
Chapter 1
*From the Library of Sandlewood, year 2020*
*A memoir of the people of Sandlewood Village about the partial collapse of American society, as condensed by Dr. Fhars.*
"A war older than anyone still living had ruined most of what the world once was. Unfortunately, no one in the village knows what it originally began for. We were all taught in our early schooling that it was simply a war of survival, and the history books we have found offer no unbiased explanation.
What is known is that the war ended in 2005, with a nuclear detonation occurring in Washington D.C. By that time, most of the population had already been drained. Every man, woman, and eventually child had been prepared to lay down their life for their country. The detonation was the final nail in the coffin.
An engineer by the name of Henry R. Lemonson, who worked at a power plant in Illinois, told me: “Fuel stopped coming in soon after D.C. was blown. No work could be done. We stopped going. The rolling blackouts stopped — no one had power at that point. Without power, everyone did their own thing, for better… or worse.”
His story is echoed across what was once the country. For ten years, the remnants of the population formed factions in its carcass. Recently, however, in the past five years, we have made radio contact with several cities that have begun functioning once again.
A city called GateWater Passage, in what was once Mississippi, contacted us two years ago. Shortly after, communication ceased. One of the last transmissions contained a single word: “beasts.” We do not know what to make of it, but the town watches have since been properly armed.
The history of raider activity in the area h—"
A rock caught the lip of my boot and I went down hard, flat on my face. Fortunately, my nose broke the fall of the forty pounds of ruck on my back, so nothing in the pack was damaged. Unfortunately, my nose refused to stop pouring blood, for whatever reason.
“Fuck.”
The page I had been reading was now soaked in blood. The Doctor would scold me for that one. The collar of my shirt was beginning to dampen too, starting to betray my appearance in favor of something closer to a murderer’s.
I pinched the bridge of my nose and swung my pack around for the medkit — a relic from my formative years in the military. A strip of gauze and a pressure clip later, and at least the bleeding had stopped. I wouldn’t have to use any more of my own supplies. The village was only a few miles out, and I could get proper treatment there.
I continued along the dilapidated old-world road. It had been destroyed long before the collapse, from what I could remember. Small craters pockmarked the path but at least it wasn't forest. Eventually I reached the main gate of the village and saw the gate guard.
"Evening there Mays, how was t-"
"..."
"Who'd you fight?"
I replied in a nasally tone. "The ground."
"Well, did'ja win?"
"Almost."
"Ya know, Doc won't be happy with you."
I handed over my ID. "Yeah, he'll like the good news though."
The guard scanned the card and handed it back over.
"Which is?"
"I'll have to figure that one out. I'll see you around Joseph."
"Stay safe and don't lose any more fights, man."
I started down the road. This one was actually maintained and comfortable to traverse. It was about another 10 minutes until I reached village proper and made my way toward the clinic where I'd be expected some time soon. I passed a bakery and took a peek over. The lights were on. Powered light. Open bakery. Bakery treats...
I started towards the bakery. It was one of the few luxuries this village was able to spare. I entered and was struck with the scent of flour and baked bread and blood. Usually I just get a loaf or two from here for me and the Doctor, but today I'm thinking a sweet treat could maybe distract him enough from the ruined book and nose. Strolling to the cloudy glass case, I took a peek at my options.
Sweet bread, sour dough bread, sweet and sour dough bread... maybe... here! a lemon pound cake. I ripped my eyes away and saw that a woman, not much older than me, was standing behind the counter looking at me with a slight smile.
"Mays! друг! What luck you have— Catching us just before closure! Your face seems to be worse than before. The doctor will not take kindly to that.
"Natalya! Yes, so Iv heard-"
I thought for a moment.
"Then before?"
She let out a hearty laugh and pointed a finger at me.
"Slow on the uptake, you are."
Her face fading to a simple grin, she pulled out the tray with the pound cake on it.
"This is what you want I assume? You seemed to be imagining how it would taste 50 times over with just your eyes alone!"
"It would of been 51 hadn't you interrupted me."
She rolled her eyes and wrote up the transaction on a note.
"Barter or cash today?"
"I uhh, can pay half in cash. I got this antimicrobial poultice. Would that work."
"Mmm... yes, it would."
She bagged it up in paper and handed it over.
"Run along now, Котик!"
I smiled at her. She's a nice woman, foreigner from what I remember. I think, maybe, I should hang around her shop more often.
"Thanks Natalya, I'll get this to the doc."
I took my leave and made my way down the road to the clinic, which wasn't too far a walk. The village is small, last census was about 1000 or so people. Mainly those from the nearby town and the military camp, what was left of the population. I remember when me and the Doc took off from the camp, that was a long time ago. Don't really remember much of what was what at the time, I was only 10 and had barely gotten there. Though I do remember everyone had expressions of stone, no one was happy during that time.
------
The sun dipped below the horizon.
I walked into the clinic, past the empty waiting room, and into the back office.
A man called out from a desk in the corner.
"Is that you, Mays?"
"It is, Doc."
He put down his notes and looked over.
"Took you long enough. You where gone almost a wee- what happened to your nose?"
I set down my bags by his table and sat on a nearby chair.
"I fell down right outside the city. I don't think it's broke, but it sure down hurt."
"Must of been that dense head of yours that dragged you down to the ground."
He sighed
"Whatever, you can take care of it yourself. Did you manage to find that book I needed?"
I opened up my pack and dug through it, pulling out a book. *textbook of Medical Physiology.* was its title. I slid it over. Thing was about 8 pounds of pure paper.
"I don't get it, Doc. Didn't you go to school for this stuff? Don't you already know it?"
“Yes, Mays. I did. But the mind falters and memories fade. Especially with something as complex as the human body. It’s good to keep myself studied.”
He glanced around the office.
"You should really start studying these books aswell. You help me with the clinic, but there will be a time when I am no longer of this world. When that time comes, you will be the only one running this clinic."
I shifted in my chair.
"You are by all practical measures, already a nurse. But at some point, you'll have to learn complex diagnosis and making a plan of care."
He was right, as always, but I didn't like the impending sense of responsibility it came with. Helping someone with a broken foot was one thing. Watching someone gasp for air on their deathbed was another. Doc always told me our goal was to prevent them from getting to that point. The backup plan was to just try and keep them alive. It's not like I was going to back down from it, I would never do that. But a stone formed in my stomach every time I thought about it. The wrong diagnosis, the wrong medication, and the patient could die quickly.
The Doctor sensed my unease.
"Speaking of studying, did you get a chance to read over that memoir I wrote up? Do you think it's ready for copying?"
My heart sped up. He had to have a backup copy somewhere. Or a rough draft? Something?... right?
"Y-yeah uh. It looked great! I got a nice and close look at it all!
"Splendid, I'll send it over to a workshop so they can make copies. Where did you place it?"
I gulped. Pulling out the book and sliding it over, I awaited his reaction. He took it and flipped through a few of the blood soaked pages, then closed the book. He sighed, furled his brow, and placed his fingers on his forehead. I quickly reached for the paper bag on the floor and got out the wrapped pound cake then slid it over as well. He stared.
"You think you can buy me over with... this?"
"Uhm... yes?"
He stared for a moment longer.
"What flavor is it?"
"Lemon" I replied.
He accepted the peace offering and took a small bite. I breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed a bit.
towards the stairs to my room on the second floor.
"Goodnight it is then, Doc!"
I quickly started up the stairs.
"Wait."
I froze.
"Tomorrow, after clinic, there's a early version of the memoir in my desk. Go ahead and scribe it down onto a new book and clean up all the old mistakes. They're already marked. Other then that, goodnight."
Damn. I couldn't get away fast enough.
"Yes doctor." I replied, defeated.
I headed up to my room for the night, glad to finally rest on a bed again.
-------
*on a nearby hill, overlooking the village.*
A soldier in gray fatigues flicked open her MRE heater. Her tail twitched irritably in the air. She removed her blouse and looked up at the sky.
"Gosh, it's really fuckin' humid out here."
A voice replied. It came from a wolf who was laid on the ground with a pair of binoculars, observing the village below.
"Maybe it's just all that *water weight* you say you have."
A laugh rose from a coyote who was in her sleeping bag behind the pair.
"Fuck you, Chelsey. And quit yer laughing over there Miya. This is all just pure muscle and curve on me. You WISH you had my body."
The vulpine stared down at her MRE, self conscious now.
"Chelsey you're doin tha' report in now because of that."
The wolf looked back, her tail curling up.
"Ah what? Damn. Cmon Lieutenant, you know I'm not good at those."
"Which is all tha' better, ya' need that practice. It's nothin Chelsey. Just a sitrep an' what we saw the guy doin."
The wolf huffed and made a few micro expressions towards the Lieutenant, which she obviously didn't get.
Chelsey grabbed her radio and stated the report.
"Outpost viper, Foxtrot 2, over."
The radio crackles and bounds to life.
"Go ahead Foxtrot 2, over."
"Message, male tracked along route designated 52 traveling east at TIME 1324. SITREP follows, over."
"Go ahead, over."
"Size, one male. Actions, scavenging. Returned to previously unidentified settlement. Location, town along route 52, now designated POI Bayleaf. Identified civilian. Time, now. Equipment, hiking gear, no visible weapons. Read back, Over."
"Roger, Size, one male. Actions, scavenging. Returned to previously unidentified settlement. Location, town along route 52, now designated POI Bayleaf. Identified civilian. Time, now. Equipment, hiking gear, no visible weapons. Verify, over."
"Correct. Requesting instruction, over."
"Roger, wait."
The radio paused for a bit. The operator on the other side gathering instructions from command on their next steps.
"Foxtrot 2 instructions as follows, gather information on POI Bayleaf including strength, defenses, weaknesses, and estimated force for occupation, then return by the end of the week. Acknowledge, over."
"Acknowledged, out."
Chelsey groaned and let out a low howl.
"Lieutenant, we gotta be out here fo-"
"I already heard." The vulpine interrupted.
"Jus' get me my bag an' I'll take over the watch an' start jottin down all that stuff command wanted."
Her watch beeped and she looked down at her MRE. It had been heated long enough to warm atleast half of it.
"Yeah I'll go ahead an' do that after I'm done eatin here. You go ahead and keep lookin at all them nice males down there."
The wolf rolled her eyes.
*end chapter one*
