The Gifters

Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

I feel a pair of soft hands shaking me awake. I open my eyes and see the blurry sight of Emery standing above me. 

“Wake up sleepy head. Sage, Edel, and I formed a plan for the war! We also gathered people here who are willing to help fight Naturistica.”

I sit up and realize I’m lying on an old, makeshift cot. I observe my surroundings and notice we are back in Sage’s home. I smile as I peer through a window on the opposite side of the room. Hundreds of people sit in groups on the brown lawn. I suspect all the survivors in Assiduous are here to fight.

“Sage thought it was best to let you sleep. We knew you wanted to help form the war plan, but she said you needed rest. You’re going to lead Assiduous’s troops to victory!” explains Emery.  

I nod and try to look confident, but deep down, I am nervous about being the leader. I have no experience being leader, I have always been at the back of the pack.  I have never held a weapon of any kind before and the only person I’ve ever hurt was Hallie. Might as well say I’m an underdog. An underdog who is about to lead a troop of at least five hundred people.

Emery leads me out of Sage’s shack where I greet Leanora and hear the plan of action. It takes a few minutes of rearranging small details, but I finally agree. Hundreds of people cheer my name as I walk back inside the shelter to help hand out the advanced weapons. We will leave tomorrow morning, at sunrise. 

I wake up to the sound of Leanora talking into what looks like a microphone. 

“Everybody up! Gather your things and head to one of the many Transportation Tubes we put on the edge of the lawn. The time has come to go.”

I grab the technologically advanced gun and the flag with the colors green and purple. The symbol of a lightbulb for intelligence is printed on the flag, inside a white circle dividing the two colors. When we were going over our war strategy, Sage told me to carry the flag when we entered Naturistica. 

Emery, Edel, Sage and I gather near the edge of the lawn.

“You ready for this?” Edel asks me. He looks concerned.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I reply.

Leanora announces that everyone may now start using the Transportation Tubes. 

“Is Leanora fighting in the war?” I ask Sage.

“Yes, she wants to support Assiduous and fight for its chance to be reborn,” Sage answers.

“No, but she can’t. She might not make it. Leanora isn’t physically capable of defending herself like we are,” I exclaim with worry.

“Cara, honey, no one in the war is going to be safe. We all have the risk of dying.  Leanora’s risk is bigger than yours, so let luck and good fortune be with her today,” Sage sheds a few tears.

I let out a shaky breath. I will not cry in front of all these people before the war. I will not let Edel and Emery see that I am weak. I know that in order to make it out of this alive and successful, I need to believe in myself. And for once, I do. I believe I am capable of leading hundreds of people into war. I can save Assiduous. I just have to believe, and I do. Nothing can stop me now until I succeed. Nothing will get in my way.

Edel, Emery, Sage, and I join hands. We walk fearlessly into the Transportation Tube, ready to fight. With great confidence, Sage pushes the black button. This time, we leave Assiduous with a deathly plan to fight Naturistica, until they give us nature.