A/N: I have a very frustrating issue with google docs and this site working together. And when i type dirrectly on the documents on this site, it always crashes and i constantly have to save.
The compound of New Haven was emerging upon them. Courage's paws were warm from the black asphalted roadway that led them towards the brown, rusting structure. It felt nice. John could just barely make out basic details, such as the gate or some kind of tower just off to the side of it. They had made it, he promised the dog he'd get him there and he did. With their arrival, Courage's uncertainty was finally disappearing. He was finally feeling a sort of relief, for he reached the distress beacon the Computer had shown him.
He finally left the mountain behind, and with it, the worst fear he had ever known. The cave and its darkness and monsters were even more heavy than the death of Muriel. Now he was eager, excited, and nervous. But he wasn't scared. There were people in that structure up the road. They'd help him. He knew they would.
But John was obviously skeptical. The last time he trusted, he lost. People attacked and forced bad things to happen. Red filled his vision, and his fists were bruised when he got away from those demons. The overwhelming sensation of relying upon another being's mercy was too much. He was regretful to tell Courage that they were in their last few hours together.
"What?"
"I can't go there. If you're willing to trust those people, go for it. But I won't."
"But I like you."
John was annoyed that he had to say this, the dog already knew this was coming.
"This is survival, and I'm not putting my life in danger anymore. I like you too, Courage. you're now my only friend. I'm about to lose you because you're too fucking optimistic! God damn, I'll send you well on your way with some berries, but if those people are who you think they are, they will feed you." He crossed his arms and huffed as he walked faster.
Courage was rejected and felt his gut drop. A shadow passed over him. Then another. He looked up and saw a pair of vultures circling above him. The sun silhouetted the birds, they were just glimpses of chaos ready to swoop down at any moment. They were waiting, watching for their victim to take the plunge into the unknown. They needed him vulnerable, and he was feeling vulnerable. Why were they not attacking?
Courage suddenly knew something was very wrong. They were swooping down! He closed his eyes and winched. They'd peck and scratch at his face, his thoughts, his plans, until there was nothing. He was prey, food for the haunting and wicked. John was right.
"What are you doing?"
"Huh?"
He opened his eyes and looked passed his trembling arms. John tapped him and asked again-
"Do you have a headache again?"
"No. I don't know."
Courage was shaken and confused, and he looked up at a very clear blue sky. He shook his head, and refused to believe John's cynicalism. There were good people just up the road. They were not going to harm him.
John squinted at him. "I have to piss." He then stepped over the hump on the side of the road, walking past things awkwardly and not saying much. There was an abundance of cacti and other plants overgrowing off to the side, and he walked into it, leaving Courage.
The sun, the heat, and the releasing sensation made him a little dizzy. He watched the urine splash around in the dry sand. A thought struck him as he stood there peeing. He could take refuge in one of the many farmhouses around the area, while Courage took his chances at that place. He could remain close to the dog incase he needed him. A farm could make for a good long-term stay. Anywhere worked, really. He could live under a rock. But winter was due in the later months of the year, and he needed a solid area to call safe.
Courage was waiting patiently with his back turned, fiddling with something. He had the backpack in his paws and he was rummaging through it for berries. The kid didn't feel comfortable with him digging around in there. He was relieved when he pulled out the berries and not the psilocybin.
C ate the berries, waiting for the kid to finish peeing. The dog was stupid. He was stupid for daring to go inside that place. He was probably going to die. Who would want some mut to feed? He'd be shot before the door was done opening. It was a real shame.
Courage was a good friend to have been made, he felt real bad that he was about to lose him. But he was rewired into a solitary existence a long time ago, and he was about to return to it. Courage was nothing, he had to be for his own psyche. He'd forget about him. But he could try and save him until he was behind those walls. He could try.
After urinating, he stretched back to the road while Courage eyed the compound in the distance, chewing slowly. John frowned down at him and gestured him to walk with him once more.
"Don't go there. I'm warning you, right now."
The dog swallowed the last of the berries. He was walking faster now.
"But they have technology, it could lead to something more than just getting by." He was determined to get there before something else changed his mind. Those things in the sky, those demonic shadows, were not about to deter his will for a better life. He will not be alone again, and John was either coming with him, or ditching him.
"It could also lead to your grave. It could be a trap for supplies, or even slaves, for all we know. Come with me, it's not too late to stop this."
'Stop'? He didn't want to admit it. Was he to stay with the kid that used him as bait to take out all threats to himself? He looked onward at the hazing and bending road and sky, at the waving building. It was a very hot day. He wanted more water, as his head was feeling too warm again. He asked for some.
"If you don't come with me, where are you going to go?" Courage asked between sips of water. He rocked back and forth a little on his feet, not wanting to think about John's thinking, but he had a point.
But John wasn't willing to risk anymore. To him, that's a big mistake and it deprives the chance for change, which is what John was preaching to him just a few nights ago.
John lit a cigarette while the dog was sipping the water, scowling around, and sometimes getting stuck on the tower next to the building. He could have swore he saw a flicker of light.
Binoculars?
"I'll bring you no further than the front door. After that, you're on your own." He took a long drag and exhaled smoked through his nostrils.
Courage continued to push forward.
THIS STRUCTURE HAS BEEN CLEARED OF ALL RESOURCES BY THE NEW HAVEN SURVIVORS. WE HAVE FOOD AND SECURITY. FOLLOW THE ROAD TO OUR SANCTUARY AND WE WILL HELP ALL THAT ARE NOT A THREAT.
John and Courage were reading a sign on a door. They decided to stray off the main road just before reaching the compound, and investigate one of the many farms. The windows were boarded up and the door was nailed shut. He had to assume all the houses in the area were thoroughly investigated by those people.
"It's picked dry, obviously." He kicked at the old, dilapidated door lightly.
"Well, this is it. I told you I'd get you here. I'm sure we're being watched as I say this." he knelt down and pet Courage.
"Let's get you where you need to be. I'll stick around for a while, but I won't really know if you're okay or not."
They walked in silence until the rusty doors and gate of the compound were just a few steps away. Courage clenched his fist and John looked up at the towering gate. A sign of some sort was embedded into the metal work, glimmering in the sunlight. It was a symbol, but John wasn't sure for what.
The dog jumped as something made noise far above them. It came from the tower, off to the left. There was a huge patch of shrubs and vegetation growing around the base of the tower, and they had to squint past the leaves.
"What do you want, kid?" A woman called out.
John's mouthy fell open and he couldn't say anything/
"Christ, is that one of those things? I'm about to shoot you, so speak."
"I c-come with good intention. I'm not here to steal."
"As if you could, kid. We have a lot of things here, things that you wouldn't want to see the other end of. What do you want?" She spoke with massive authority, and the sun blacked out her form. Her face. He couldn't see her face.
"I don't like it." He said to Courage, who was staring up at her. She was very high up.
"I don't want anything from you. My friend here, though, does." He gestured to the little pink dog standing next to him.
"Is that right? Is he sick?"
"No." Courage spoke up.
"Hmmm, well we don't lie here. We take in anyone who isn't a threat. Stand back you two, I'm opening the gate."
John felt an immense threat to his safety and well-being, and he started to sweat and breath fast. Courage took notice and tapped at his leg to try and calm him. The door was slowly hinging open, and he looked straight ahead as his eyes felt heavy. A shadow was moving over him. The door and the blackness behind it was openning.
'You know the birds were right, dog.'
The rusty metal grinded and grated until it became still, and Courage stepped behind John. He changed his mind, he didn't want to be at New Haven Compound.
'Fuck this.'