Ocean of Blood and Tears
Characters for chapter #1:
Amy Anderson : 16
Kelly Howard : 17
Jason Howard : 13
Lauren Stradly : 44 (mother of Kelly and Jason)
Steven Howard : deceased at the age of 36 (father of Kelly and Jason)
Hadn't we learned our lesson with the 20th century's World Wars? Hadn't we realized the death and pain they brought to the world's population? Could we really promise a war-free future to our kids and grandkids? Or were we just giving them false hopes and dreams through our fancy words... Can we really say that now in the 21st century, what has happened is for the best? To all these questions, the answer is "no". Humanity was foolish enough to bring its own devastation and extermination... Too proud to understand and respect its own limits and they were broken in ways that now... can never be fixed.
Here we are now. The year is 2087 and the time is one that could be called the "Era of Doom" or in simple terms the end of the human race. The last century had seen incredible wars, many new weapons such as the atomic bomb, a huge leap in technology was lived and for some reason, humans started to think they were Gods, capable of doing anything and everything. This century had come as a promise of peace to the World, people made the solemn vow that never again would wars such as the ones lived would be repeated. A vow that now proves to have been nothing more than an illusion...
The planet Earth as we knew it was dead and so were its inhabitants... From the billions of people that used to live on it not even 10 years ago, now only remained a small percentage... Struggling to survive and rebuild what was lost...
In September of 2077, for no other reason then the desire for power and world domination, all the worlds biggest and most powerful nations began a war. One that is considered to have been a hundred times worse than World War II with Hitler and his followers. This had been the Earth's final conflict.
Many countries never got to see the end of this bloodbath. Countries such as China along with the Philippines, India and all the Muslim countries that just didn't stand a chance against the superior forces. Africa had been the main battlefield and now it was nothing more then an immense cemetery. A mass grave reuniting all the nations together and marking the place where they destroyed themselves. The African people were executed and slaughtered without even getting chance to defend their homeland and their families.
Central and South America were used by the Unites States to build and test nuclear weapons and other arsenals of mass destruction. Too proud and blind the United States brought their own end. Pushing too far with the experiments and tests, it all blew up right in their faces... In a matter of days, the biggest atomic explosion in all of history sent radio active waves over hundreds of miles of land, killing instantly those too close and slowly poisoning the others. The lucky ones who survived had nothing to hope for other then death to take them out of their misery. Central America vanished in the ocean by the force of the explosion that had caused an immense earthquake. South America was nothing more than a lifeless island.
After the explosion, the Hispanic people still living in America rebelled against the United States. Accusing them of forced and abusive labor, manipulation and suppression for too long. Unprepared, the United States received the blow of a nation's fury. A nation ready to fight until the last second where no man would be standing. It brought its own annihilation but with a glorious ending. Its people had taken their revenge. During that assault, the United States suffered great damages and loss. The accumulated anger of one nation proved to have been stronger than all the arsenals and advanced technology of another. What remained were nothing more then disorganized states and a leader unable to bring the stability back between them. Each took their own ways, believing they were the right ones to follow, and they divided from the others. Slowly but surely, the once powerful USA fell into darkness...
As for the island of Australia, it was forgotten... Planes and boats going there ceased to travel when the war began and when it ended in 2082 no one bothered to go back. Only planes leaving the island were still active for those seeking a new home elsewhere. Little do we know about the population still living there, if there is still any...?
The remaining great forced are Europe, Russian and Canada, but even then the picture isn't perfect...
Europe is the most stable place to live in along with Canada; the war hadn't affected it that much. The continent had seen best to stay neutral during the clash and that decision is what made it survive in the end. The harm that it may have suffered was because of its position on the map. Being in between everything was a big disadvantage. Also being neighbors with Africa, this caused the European countries to receive the overlooked shots by the opposing countries, which were originally expected to land on the African continent.
Russia is now a never ending war zone. Its cities are continuously attacking one another for no valid reason other then the desire to see blood spilled and to see who is strongest. Yet in all it's disturbance it is endlessly becoming more and more powerful. Creating new weapons, each more powerful than the previous once. And this is what causes the worries in the other two continents...
The damage Canada suffered during the war was the loss of a great number of people. The country had assisted the United States in all their battles, supporting them as best it could. The population of the 13 provinces was now the total of only 3...
The northern territories were deserted, now being nothing more than frozen lands. The central provinces of Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta were emptied out in the years that followed the war. Their population saw nothing profitable coming from the fields anymore and for their own survival moved out towards the seaboard provinces. Those who remained were those faithful to their homeland and family heritage. The biggest part of the population was now regrouped throughout Vancouver, Ontario and Quebec where the story begins...
Wednesday, August 27th 2087
It was a fairly warm summer day, for the past two weeks we had had nothing but bad weather, clouds and rain every day on the island of Montreal. But finally we were rewarded with a bit of sunshine. Downtown was as crowded as ever; the morning rush was clearly lived by anyone walking the streets and boulevards.
As for me, I am getting ready to go back to the institution where I have spent the last 5 years of my life. My name is Amy Anderson. I was born on September 25th 2070, 7 years before the war. I lost both my parents during this warfare, my mother was shot and my father tried in vain to protect her only to become a target himself. I am a typical girl, I guess... Green eyes, mid-length brown hair and the average body size. My friends say I'm stubborn and I tend to believe it, but I'm also a very dedicated and caring person. Like many other orphans I was placed in an institution that had the single purpose of giving us the basic education and shipping us out through the country with the mission to rebuild everything that was lost. This is going to be my last year in that frigid institution. I can't complain too much, after all it had given me a home and a possibility for a future.
In the 5 years I've been there, I can't say I made any close friends, not that I didn't try. People there just seem to be so depressed because of the loss of their families and they just keep to themselves all the time. It's incredibly hard to start conversations with most, because you have to watch everything coming out of your mouth just in case you'd bring up something that could remind them about the war and their lost loved-ones. My social life is summarized by the rare talks we have in class and the very exceptional conversations in the lounge after class where even then the dialogues are of school matters only. But in all this, I was still able to become friends with a few students, not because we talk a lot, but because we've been here since the beginning and we're kind of the first generation of scholars, we have come to respect eachother. We are, in total, about 400 students and the ages vary between 6 and 18. The institution is divided into three buildings; the elementary, the high school and the residence where the dormitory and lounge are.
The good side of being part of a government protected establishment was that we, as students, would get clued-in with some of the governmental plans thanks to the personnel that can't seem to keep their mouths shut.
Some of the plans were pretty basic and boring, but last year as I was walking down the hall I happened to hear two of the institute's instructors talking about some kind of battle suits. I don't know if it's true or not, but the laughs heard through the conversation pulled me to believe it was foolish talking. After all, there's only so much the government can keep secret.
You would wonder why in all this I'm not like the other students, all depressed and sad. Well, I've always been told to be optimistic and that even if one door closes and I end up losing a person in my life, another door will open and I will meet someone new, who will come to fill the void of the one lost. I did and do still love my parents dearly and I do miss them, but I'm not willing to say they're totally gone, I know they're watching over me and I also know they wouldn't want to see me gloomy all the time.
This morning, as I was on my way to the institution, I decided to take a shortcut through my childhood neighborhood. It has changed a lot since the war but when I walk through it, I see everything as it was in the past. I see my house, I see the park that was on the other side of the street and I see the life that once was. Memories of my father playing with me in the street as my mother would watch us from the living room window. I remember the memorable and unique moments of my life that I could never forget. Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if there had been no war. What my parents would look like now, what would have been different; would we have moved somewhere else or stayed in LaSalle where I was born, would I have a younger sibling, would I be the person I've become today...?
After about 45 minutes of walk, I finally arrive to those tall, sinister gates that from the outside seem to illustrate the doorway to a rich and luxurious home but from the inside it's more like a penitentiary. Of course, to know this, you have to experience it first hand.
Walking through the main entrance, you feel scanned in every way possible, almost as if every step you take is monitored and analyzed by people studying you through cameras hidden everywhere. Not the most comforting of feelings. I try to ignore it, but year after year I feel like the people running these establishments know more about me than I know about myself... The way they talk to you on those uncommon occasions, the way they stare at you when you walk down a hallway...
The only privacy you're given here is in the confinement of your room. Every student is assigned a room upon entry in this "school". Since day one, I've been in room 017; I consider it to be my "bubble". Nothing too fancy, there's a bed along with a desk and chair, a closet and of course a bathroom. Being part of the first generation of students, I have the pleasure of having a window in my room; the more recent students have rooms located in the center of the building.
My schedule for the year has already been placed on my desk; week after week I'll be repeating the same routine: 5 periods a day starting at 8:30 and finishing at 3:15. Tomorrow, August 28th 2087, is day one; I'll get to meet the new students, if there are any.
Tomorrow is also the day where the headmaster has all the students gathered in the auditorium to explain one by one all the rules and punishments related to any violation of the system. The groups will remain as they've been all these years; again I'll be with the same 14 people.
Thursday, August 28th 2087
Sitting on my bed, it's now 5:35 AM. It's the same every year, the first night back I always have a hard time sleeping. Instead of just sitting there I decided to get up and go see if Kelly is in her room.
Kelly Howard has been here for the same number of years as me, we're in the same group and she is as old as I am. She and her younger brother Jason lost their father during the war; he had been part of the military and lost his life in Africa. Their mother had seen best to send both her kids in this institution. She was a very kind woman who hid much sorrow behind her smiling mask, Lauren Stradly had married her husband the year Kelly was born and his loss changed her life greatly.
Kelly was probably the only girl in this place who was friendly and over the past 5 years we became fairly close. Her mother offered me to come to their home over the summers when the institution would close and in some way Kelly became my "sister". We had our bad days of course, but most of the time we get along very well. Seeing the two of us together was quite the contrast though, she was an African-American with the entire African look and I was French-Italian.
Walking towards her room, I'm feeling a little bad because I know yesterday when I left the house, I should have waited for her, I was wondering if she would be mad at me.
Room 023. I knock gently on the door, it is still a little early, I wouldn't want to wake anyone up and get in trouble; it wouldn't make a good impression on the first day. After a few seconds the door opens and Kelly in all her morning glory pokes her head out. It has always amused me to see her when she's still half asleep and zombie walking. When she sees me, both her eyes finally open.
"YOU!!! Where have you been?!? "
"Kelly!! Shhhhhh!! Not so loud."
Pushing her back in the room, I close the door quietly behind us. Sitting on her bed, Kelly looks around, almost like she's wondering where she is.
"What time is it??"
"Around 5:45 AM."
"WHAT?!?!?!?"
"Shut up!!! You'll get us in trouble!"
"You think I care?!? Hell no!!! What kind of time is this to wake me up?! You know how grumpy I am if I don't get my 10 hours of sleep."
"Always complaining..."
"Better believe it! This ain't no time to pull me out of bed!"
She falls back into bed and pulls the blankets over her head. Normal instinct tells me to jump on her, but due to the circumstances she would probably scream and we'd both get into hot water. So I choose to just sit on the chair and wait. From under the blankets I hear her mumbling:
"You're staring at me...You know I can't sleep when someone is staring at me!"
"Well then I guess you're not falling back to sleep."
"Why you......"
She sits up pushing all the blankets off of her in one swift motion and sighs in exasperation. She takes a deep breath and looks at her alarm clock.
"Well...I guess now we can say we're stuck here for another year..."
"Yeah...But think of it Kelly. It's our last year!"
"Maybe, but it's still a full year where we have to undergo painfully long classes with these arrogant instructors."
"You're so negative you know that?"
"Yeah I know. But you know you love me."
"Sometimes I wonder how I manage not to become as pessimistic as you."
"Easy. It's an art that not everyone has talent for."
"Thank god..."
As she hits me with her pillow, her alarm clock starts to beep. We both look at it; it's now 6 o'clock.
To Be Continued...