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- Signature Author
- 08/15/2019
- 720 Words
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Promptings from Valhalla - 34. Abandoned Stacks
“C’mon! Let’s check it out!”
I scowled as Wendy elbowed me out of the way to peer through the thick layer of leaves. I grabbed her arm. “It could be a trap! We need to be patient and observe it first. See if anyone comes to check it.”
She snorted. “A trap. This far out? The Rover stick to the city. It’s not worth their time to travel out this far for a couple of stray humans.”
“Don’t be so sure. I heard there’s a new initiative to capture outliers. They’ve got the cities under control, so now it’s time to conquer the rest. They don’t want to give us a chance to organize and form alliances.”
“Where do you hear this shit, Kevin? Seriously. We’ve seen no one in weeks. I think you’re just making it up.” She moved to leave the safety of the woods surrounding the clearing.
“Stop! You’d really risk both our lives by being reckless?” I stared at her, incredulous.
“Books contain knowledge. They banned books because they want to keep us stupid and ignorant. Maybe there’s something in there that will help us defeat them.”
“Like what?”
She huffed out her breath. “Well if I knew that, we wouldn’t need the books now, would we?”
I rolled my eyes. “Look. I understand the importance of books. But c’mon… this doesn’t look like the ruins of a library or anything. It’s just bookcases with old books in a circle. Very random, but deliberate. Something doesn’t feel right to me.”
“Fine. We’ll wait, then. But only till morning. Then we’ll see what treasures are waiting for us.”
“They might not even be readable. They look like they’re in pretty bad shape.”
“Well anything’s better than nothing.”
“Let’s settle down here and see if anything happens.” I sat with my back against a tall tree. Wendy joined me, stretching her bad leg out in front of her, and leaned against me.
The thought of the circle of books being a trap filled me with dread. The Rovers weren’t something to fuck around with. They were the ‘enforcers of peace’ after World War Three ended with the world in ruins. A new world order had formed, with troops of Rovers keeping the populace dependent on them for survival. Education was nonexistent and books were forbidden. Books spurred ideas and imagination… two things the Rovers didn’t want.
Wendy had been injured fleeing a Rover raid in the city. I found her, half dead, and saved her life. I needed someone to help with the small area I lived in—a sort of farm, although I had to be careful to make it look like no one lived there, or else we’d be found and brought to the city detainment centers to essentially work as slaves.
I had Billy before I met Wendy, but my love had died while hunting a wild boar so we could have a rare feast of precious meat. I swallowed and wiped away a tear. I didn’t want to go there. It still hurt like hell to think of him. I closed my eyes, needing to rest for just a minute.
“Told you it wouldn’t work. There’s no one in this area. Destroy the trap and let’s move on.”
I sat upright, my heart pounding as I heard the Rover’s words and the crushing footsteps as they trooped around the circle of books. Through the branches in front of us, I could see three armed Rovers scoping out the area. I hoped like hell they didn’t decide to check the woods. Wendy was rigid next to me, her eyes wide with fear.
We sat stock-still and waited as the small regiment set fire to their trap, then mounted their horses and rode off in the direction of the city.
“Maybe we can save some!” Wendy said, and stood. She cried out as her bad leg gave way, and she fell to the ground.
“Stay here. I’ll take a look.” I stayed at the wood’s edge, still afraid to venture into the clearing, despite the Rovers being gone. The fire blazed brightly, engulfing the entire circle of dry wood and musty pages. There was nothing to salvage.
I returned to Wendy and held out my hand. “It’s all gone. C’mon. Let’s go home.”
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
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