Z2012SITECORRESEDENTIALAREARESEDNTIALRAIDS



A monotonous resonance of energy flows above the leaflet of of a nearby sycamore tree. By the same energy source, a low hum and short vibrant bursts of light are witnessed by the mustard foliage below. This energy is viewed as a lost part of hope. It is viewed as life in an ocean comprised of death. When this hum provides inspiration to those locally, to a stranger they are nothing more than rusting power lines. The lone buzzing in the dead of night is only accompanied by the shrill warble of garden grasshoppers in a nearby yard. No garden gnomes, no pruned roses, no laughter inhibits this yard. The only clamor arises from a single tone of the energy source above. This energy source was considered impractical and outdated. The concept of electricity traveling through rubber glazed metal was dated and dying. That entire era was dying out. Now was a time of change. Army vehicles now take the place that chevrolet el camino vans were once situated. The faded camouflage design on the vehicles is unnecessary and almost comic considering there is hardly any forest left for the monstrous trucks to be concealed. Instead of the thick woodland that the original inventors pictured, these vehicles now rest in a sea broken homes and naval yards. Currently it is the early morning. Five o clock approximately. Slowly as the sun ascends from underneath the horizon line, the sky is lit blue. As the tinge of color got bluer and bluer, rows of plastic street lamps deactivate their light for the day time only to be reactivated at six o clock the following evening. The blue slowly fades to a dull yellow, and then gets more pronounced. Life begins to hum in the residential sector as army vehicles move back and forth. Slowly the community awakens to the sounds of shouts. Shouts of despair. Shouts of pain. But no, not that of suffrage, that of the youth. The last stronghold on hope. The future lies in the youth and their actions. And yet, the actions and responsibilities of the mature abuse and traumatize the worlds of the youth. Men shot down in the streets where there first words were muttered, caught on camera, only to be lost, and found years later. Late night house searches with warrants like imaginary friends of sleeping seven years olds, grasping onto their mother for prosperity. The youth of course, are oblivious. Faint sepia-tic images and memories of a better time are the only grasp they have on hope. And yet they are controlling the future.

SECTION 2: “Come at me! Do it. Chicken!” The redheaded boy, John, coaxed. “Leave him alone, John. You're being an asshole.” I retorted. “I won’t hurt him, just take a swing at me. One little shot to the ribs.” All of a sudden a car halted and the door opened slowly. Worried we had been caught trespassing, we all cringed. “Are you guys really play-fighting? Ugh what has this world come to. Were supposed to be out drinking and stupid teenagery stuff. ” Smirked Ashlyn. John and Sam knew she was kidding, considering there really was nothing more to do in at the time. "Buy us some alcohol then--oh wait, it's a tad illegal" Joked Sam. "Don't be a dick, Sam, even if we could buy beer, fifty bucks you'd drink the lame light beer" Smirked Winter. Winter was a tall boy with long straight brown hair and bright blue eyes. He always wore the same grey beanie that made his aqua blue eyes stand out, and tight shirts to show off his slim body. He was watching the play-fight in humorous shame until his girlfriend, Ashlyn arrived. Ashlyn was a skinny girl with dark brunette hair, and bright green eyes. Although the times were tough, she always managed to dress attractively and always had the smoothest long curls in her neatly parted hair. Her dark denim skinny jeans were typical of the time, and the soft green shirt she wore made her eyes glint. “You can drive!?” exclaimed Winter. “The military patrols haven't been car searching as nearly as they used to, and this part of town is almost completely abandoned now, so drive I shall! “Sick ride, although I think beige went out of style in the early 1800s.” Said Winter as he walked up and embraced her. “I knew it was your taste. I love you” She giggled as he hugged her tighter. Winter and Ashlyn had started dating at the beginning of the first military raid on the suburbs and navy yard. They were both military residents at the Navy yard. In fact, they only lived a few doors from each other when both of their parents were killed in the first attacks. I lived on the street over, close to the mansion. They escaped together and pledged to never leave until the occurrence had subsided. She was the only female out of us. We all thought she was attractive, but almost instantly Winter and herself fell for each other and they honor their pledge to this day. “You guys need to quit messing around in this stupid yard and come for a ride!” They drove off, unaware the situation that they were in. Unaware that hope was just a four letter word strung together by rotten laces and hung on a dysfunctional telephone wire forever emitting electrical pulses to the concrete underfoot.

SECTION 3: The car stopped abruptly and the brakes squeaked slightly as we stopped in front of a large barbed wire fences, surrounded by camouflaged guards. "License and passport please. Is there anything in the vehicle that you don't want us to know about? If so, confess it now, or be prepared to search under federal search warrant. Any crime or sins you admit to during this search will be used against you. Do you understand ma'am?" "Of course." Her maroon thin lips reflected the bitter white light projected by the soldier's flashlight in contrast to the cool night. John, Sam, Winter and I were staring with glazed expressions at the back of the velvet seat covers, avoiding any eye contact. Ashlyn muttered words silently, petrified by his empty yet menacing brown eyes. "You do realize that trespassing out of your designated sector is illegal at this time?" "Of course." "Are you aware that your neighborhood is being raided by the military currently, and you are under attack from your neighboring sect, sector E-12?" "Yes." "Ma'am, i suggest you turn the car around and head back to where you came from. Find a place to seek refuge for the night, but if you are raided, just know that we have full authority to search and imprison you under appropriate circumstances." He said in an exasperated manner. "Thank you officer." Ashlyn mumbled. She slowly backed away from the rusty barbed wire gate. In the distance, we heard gunshots, and saw plumes of smoke against to the clear autumn night. Winter stared, eyes encrusted, at the glove compartment for at least the next thirty minutes, not even noticing the thin tear running down Ashlyn's left cheek. Something was torn apart in her. She didn't know what it was until she recognized the empty brown eyes in the officer, which she recalled were once lifelike and playful, just like her brothers. We stormed a abandoned home that night close to the mansion. We went to sleep.

SECTION 4: I awoke with a shock. I'd never heard a more menacing noise before in my life. The shriek of teeth on concrete erupted from outside. Frozen in space, I checked my wristwatch, being extremely diligent to make no noise at all. Two forty-three AM, it blinked persistently. I looked over to my side. I saw Winter and Ashlyn. They had both fallen asleep on a broken floral patterned sofa. On the floor near them was John, and Sam. Sam's brunette hair draped over his pillow and reflected the moonlight. I took a second to examine Sam. He never really talked much. All i know is that he's a drifter like the rest of us. His parents must've been killed in the raids. Even though he was described by his comic character and ability to crack a joke at anything, he always had this depressed look in his eyes. Like the eyes of a lover before a permanent goodbye. Or those of a cow before slaughter. The only thing I knew about Samuel Edwards, was that he was alone, like the rest of us. Lost and hardly noticed. My eyes then glanced out the open door of the house we had taken temporary command. A dark shadow skidded along the tree-line. As it crunched through the autumn forest, i could hear another screech, this one less of anger and irritation, and more of longing and sorrow. Petrified, i sulked under the thin cotton blanket, and forced myself to sleep. We are lost and hardly noticed.

SECTION 5: "Hey, wake up, we've got to move before the military invades this part of the neighborhood. Hey Wake up! Goddammit wake up, we've got to go." My eyes slitted open and examined, the panicked face of John as he persuaded Winter, Sam, and I to wake up. Ashlyn was awake too, fully dressed, and peering out the front window. "I think i heard something last night," she mumbled. "It sounded ferocious. Like a large bear. Or a small dinosaur." "Theses biological military experiments are getting more ridiculous every day. Regardless we have to leave. Staying here could be dangerous. The military could arrive at any minute." Explained John We all slowly arose, in opposition to John's wishes, and rationed out the small amount of coffee we'd found in the kitchen cabinet. Winter was especially slow, which matched his very laid back and easy going personality. I started to understand why Ashlyn liked Winter so much. Needless, to say, he was a pretty boy. He had dark brown hair flowing down right above his eyelashes, which reflected his harsh ice blue eyes. His figure was perfect, despite the physical and emotional pain his parents put him through when he was younger. From bits of what i've heard from him, his parents were mildly abusive. Sometimes i wondered if he was happy to see them go. I dismissed this thought immediately and followed the others into the cool morning air. We stepped out onto broken pavement. After a short argument of interests we headed north on the broken road, passing half built homes. The road slowly narrowed, and curved around to an overpass. As we climbed the hot road, i noticed there wasn't a cloud in the light blue autumn sky, and the mild sunlight illuminated the golden overgrowth around the overpass. We climbed to the top, and stood on a broken highway. A red, white, and blue marker glinted in the sun. I could barely make out the words it said. "I-26" The combination of letter and numbers seemed familiar. I moved on. On the far side of the structure, there was a tall fence, bordered with barbed wire. On the other side we glanced down at an old gas station. Cars passed by, driving normally. Men strolled in and out of the rusty red and yellow station. Police cars speed on the small road below. The only thing that separated us from this more normal world was a series of locks on a gate, all marked with the military's insignia. We were at the sect line. Down below were members of the neighborhood that was attacking ours. "John, hand me your airsoft gun." Stated Sam, smiling wide. All of us knew what that meant and we all were suddenly focused on a fat man standing by the gas pump. He looked like the type who would drive his jacked up truck, hunt, and shower in his free time which averaged out to be once every week. "Go for his back instead of his head. He looks like a decent fellow," said Winter with a sarcastic tone. "Nah way dude, you know what my mom always said..." "Don't drop the soap?" smirked Ashlyn? Sam's deep resonant laugh emerged from his small stature. "Regardless of what my mom said, i'm gonna shoot this guy in the back of the head. Just be ready to run." We all backed up a few steps, giggled, and prepared to sprint as soon as the small plastic pellet hit the mans head. "3.....2......1.....FIRE." The pellet zoomed right past the man's head, and collided with the low carb beer in his left hand, knocking it to the ground. "What the fuck was that." He bellowed. "Shit, shit, he's pissed." Laughed John. Of course we didn't actually feel in any danger due to the monstrous barbed wire fence between us and the intoxicated hick. "You kids! You bitches!" He yelled as he began to walk swiftly with large strides toward the fence. "Go get drunk at some other gas station, you red-neck" Shouted Sam. "Thats it, you bitches. Get over here!" "Oh god, he's running, c'mon RUN RUN!" I glanced back and saw the man's camouflage hat fall behind him as he advanced into a sprint. We sprinted across the cracked concrete road of the overpass, attempting to distance ourselves from the man, even though the fence was protecting us. We were sprinting, dodging chunks of broken asphalt and patches of thorny overgrowth... "HOLY SHIT!" VVVOOOOOM PFTSHFHHHHHHHH Blackness took over my vision. The next thing i noticed, i was on my back staring up at the sky. A large hum penetrated my senses causing me to go deaf in my right ear. Black and red emerged from the harsh blue sky, filling my entire perception. The moment seemed to last forever. Red sparks descended down on me igniting the grass around me. Metal pieces fell with large thumps on the overpass top. As the blue sky started to return i noticed what had just happened and it made my blood thin, and my eyes cringe. My heart raced, and my mind burst. My nervous system overloaded. I could not believe what i was looking at. A large military helicopter had flown out of control and swooped up from underneath the overpass. The helicopter hung in the air briefly and then followed over us. Bits of the propellers flew off. I shielded my face. I lost track of the others. The large helicopter collided into the rusty gas station. In one large explosion, the entire station erupted into white flame, and shrapnel flew into the air. Smoke billowed upwards, as i caught the eye of the man who'd we'd been taunting before. The eruption followed him and the slow motion dash of fire was catching up to him. He looked at me with a slow motion gaze. Our eyes were connected until the mass of flame devoured him too, causing his flesh to turn to sand and his blood to evaporate. His mangled body laid motionless at the fence. His hat was all that remained. At this sight, i put my head down, and shut my eyes. Silence is all the ensued.

SECTION 6: Plume's of thick ultraviolet smoke drifted into the sky, and scraped the blue infinity above. Black hawk helicopters raced overhead, not carrying cargo or troops, but water from the harbor to but out the gas station inferno that blazed long into the mid-afternoon. We all sat atop a small hill, overseeing the scene. The hill was cool and crisp and scattered with fresh fallen golden leaves. Thick scents of gasoline percolated in our nostrils between the brown limbs of leaf-barren treetops. The sun was three fourths of the way through the sky. The breeze in the trees above caused the branches to dance, casting slits of sunlight to fall on our heads. Winter and Ashlyn sat in a small clearing. John and Sam sat near them. I sat back up against an oak draped with Spanish moss. As i laid there, i recalled an old story that my mother told me about the moss coming to life and consuming children in the moonlight. I was terrified at the time, but as we laid there that day, i didn't think it would be all that tragic to be consumed by a carnivorous bushel of Spanish moss. There are much more terrifying things that are my own species.

SECTION 7: We had hardly spoken all day. Things begun to warm up. I complimented Ashlyn's idea which entailed an attempts at completely forgetting what had happened that day. "Do you have the food?" Questioned John. We settled down for the night in my old home. It was a small brick apartment, with wrought iron railings going halfway up the staircase. The home was unorganized, but clean. The blinds were drawn up and a bright green lamp illuminated the dusty airflow overhead. "Check the kitchen, we probably have cereal...maybe some meals in the fridge." I responded. We had all calmed down and started to recover from the incident. None of us were injured except for a shallow gash on Winter's inner thigh caused by a bit of extraneous propeller ruble. We bandaged him up and provided him with some medications to ease the pain. We all sat in the cramped space and talked. "When was the last party you went to?" Asked Ashlyn "A long, long time ago. Before the secession threats. Before all this suburban warfare broke out." I replied "Maybe we can have our own party. Right here. Right now" "That's be nice." Said Winter surprisingly happily. "People will talk about this party for years." I joked. "This is the ultimate party experience." stated Ashlyn. "Of course." And in order to celebrate our survival, our friendship, and our brief happiness, we listened to some warped cassette tape of some Nirvana and opened a small bottle of stale wine. Kurt Cobain's voice drifted through my ears and saturated my brain. I drifted to sleep, glad to be happy, and glad to be with the friends that i have. But mostly, glad to exist. The last words i head that night:
 * "Im so happy, cause today i found my friends...they're in my head."**

SECTION 8: Ice water dripped through my veins and eventually reached my head when i heard another clatter from outside. This time louder than the one the night before. It woke me immediately. The hairs on the back of my neck stood erect. I sat petrified and slowly scanned the rooms and made eye contact which each of the others. They were awoken and appeared petrified as well. I whispered something to Winter. I don't think he heard me, so i whispered again, but this time a noise from outside muffled my whisper. A large slam of a metal door resonated through the empty apartment building. I sulked down into my sheets. After several minutes of the noise continuing, we all huddled together, fearful of what was outside. The clamor seemed to be on some sort of tempo. Some terrifying, demonic tempo. We were still. The noise halted. Silence ensued. Bleak Silence. Bare Silence. distorted silence. Empty silence. ...

"GET DOWN ON THE GROUND NOW!" Troops wearing camouflage uniforms stormed into the room, with large machine guns and flashlights. The large thumps of the soldiers boots vibrated the floor and caused plaster to fall from the ceiling. "GET DOWN I SAID. YOU ALL ARE UNDER ARREST FOR THE TREASONOUS ACCOUNTS OF YOUR PROVINCE AGAINST THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA." Guns were pointed on us. "Hey who the hell do you think we are!?" Yelled Winter as he stood up. "Do we look like conspirators? I think....." he was stopped mid-sentace by the fist of one of the men. The blow was so hard that a line of drool dribbled out of his mouth and he fell on the sofa, still saying muffled obscenities. "Winter, No!" Ashlyn shrieked with a bloodcurdled expression. The men stood shining flashlights and gun muzzles directly into our faces. "STAND AND REMAIN SILENT, WALK STRAIGHT TO THE WALL, AND PUT YOUR HANDS BEHIND YOUR BACK." We all did as the officer said. I felt the cold clamps of handcuffs bind my arms together. I glanced over to see all others recieving the same treatment. "JOHN DON'T DO IT!" Winter screamed. I looked over just in time to see john remove his handcuffs and flail around in a desperate attempt to escape the grips of the soldier. I looked over just in time to also hear the piercing tone of a semi-automatic machine gun. The bullet's ripped johns body apart and passed through him into the floral sofa. Bits of drywall and couch cushion clouded the air around us. John's mangled body fell to the floor, motionless. At that point i was convinced that the only remedy was to cry. I glanced over and saw tears pour down the cheek of Ashlyn. Winter whispered to her, trying to calm her, but just at that moment the soldiers grabbed each of us by arms and shoved us through the small doorway and out into the blinding lights of the army vehicles that had gathered to aid our arrest. A helicopter buzzed overhead throwing a spotlight on us as we descended the stairs of the metal building. In my mind, i saw the families sitting down after their dinner, watching the face of a squemish news anchor, as he detailed the night time story about those kids who got arrested. As soon as we got to the bottom of the stairs six soldiers weilding mahince guns took Sam, Winter and I. Winter and Ashlyn were seperated. As we walked apart Ashlyn struggled and stared into Winter's eyes. With a small nod, he told her that everything would be alright. And that theyd get out alive. The single tear on her cheek signified to him that she understood. The guards grabbed us harshly now. Tearing us apart. I heard Ashlyn's weeping and shouts as we walked away. The men injected us with something, and i lost my balence. They shoved us up agaisnt a large metal fence, just outside of the building. Winter shrieked as the soldiers hands punched the back of his head causing his face to fall into the metal fence. "WHAT'S YOUR NAME!?" The officer bellowed. "WHAT'S YOUR NAME?!" Winter was silent. "I SAID WHAT YOUR NAME?" Winter was silent. The man smashed his face against the fence again. Blood started dripping out of Winter's mouth and collected on the ferns lining the barbs of the fence bottom. I feared i was next. "I hope you realize that im perfectly okay with beating you to death until you answer my questions, pretty boy!" "TELL ME YOUR NAME." The man kicked out his knee's and began to beat Winter violently. The back of his head cracked and blood poured out. "HIS NAMES WINTER, STOP, OH GOD STOP WINTER, HIS NAME'S WINTER" I shouted, tears rolling into my mouth. "Well then, Winter. Lets go see what the other soldiers feel about you." The officer shouted. He grabbed Winter and pulled him harshly by the cuffs away from the fence and into the searchlights. Right as he pulled from me, I saw his face and he glared at me. Although it was hardly the appreciative glare I expected. He stared right into my eyes with such distaste and hatred that all i could do was glance down. That was the last time I saw winter for a long time. It symoblized the end of something. Something significant. Something profound. And Something not replacable. The passion between Winter and Ashlyn had been forecefully diminished. Our loses had been cut, we were no more.


 * "Its better to burn out, than slowly fade away."**


 * Six**
 * monthes**
 * later:**

I walked the short brick pathway between the yellowing road, and the doormat. The sky was ice blue and the sun softly peered over the hilltops while it slowly descended. Shadows were cast all over, throwing an intricate maze on the drying, yet still pigmented grass. A soft breeze blew causing my hair to flow over my eyes. It was now spring time, and birds lined the power lines, watching my every move. I approached the maroon door and knocked three times. There was a shuffle from the inside but no clear sign of someone answering. Unexpectedly, i head the several locks click open and the door open just a crease and the sunlight poured from the outside inward. "Is Winter home?" I asked. "He just left, sorry." Said the man with an uninterested and monotonous voice. "Oh...will he back?" "Who's to know..." "Okay, thanks" I turned and the man shut the door slowly. I followed the brick pathway around to the back of the home. There were a few garden knomes, a clothes line and a thick woodern fence. There was one window open that i could see. A spring breezes blew and tousseled the curtains. I stood tall, and peered inside. I saw Winter. Sitting motionless, staring at a TV screen broadcasting some form of infomercial. "Winter..." I said. "If youre caught here, they won't be happy." He stated. "Why has this happened." "I dont know" "What happened" "Who's to care" "Why are you like this" "I am how I am. A lot has changed since then and its not fathomable." "What isnt" "Im not" "Youre not what, Winter?" "Im not whole." "Just because she's gone Winter..." "Let it go. If they catch you here, you'll be punished." "I can't see you like this. You're destorying yourself." "Im going to live im alright. Im going to die its alright. Im okay." "Why do you live on like this?" "Well, after a long time of pain and self disgust i've discorved something...Ive found my friends, theyre in my head." This petrified me. Winter shut the window, and i walked away. The sky seemed unusually blue that day. The birds chirped softly. The sun set. The day ended. And as i fell asleep that night, a single song lyric rung through my ears. We're lost and hardly noticed. Slight goodbye.

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