18 Years (WORK IN PROGRESS)

Chapter 1

I couldn't see anything at first, and there was no sound. There was only darkness and, at times, flashes of whatever images decided it would be fun to cross through my brain while I slept. It stayed like this for a long time, longer than I could count. It was a night without nightmares, so sleeping wasn't a bad thing at the moment. The nights with nightmares lasted longer, and it was impossible to wake up and escape them. I hated when I slept like that. Sleeping was when I could escape the world and make something new from scratch. It was a realm where whatever I wanted could happen. Besides, tonight was peaceful, and I was enjoying the rest it was providing me.
         Despite the lack of nightmares, there had been other odd dreams that I had been having. They made me feel like I was on a different planet, a different universe entirely almost. It was never in the exact same place, but it was the same general area, that much was noticeable. However, every night the dreams happened, there was always one man. Clothed in white, he would always be there, talking to me like an old friend. By the time I woke up, I would forget most of it, but a few words stuck with me.
         Because I thought of these dreams often throughout the day, I could recite some of it by memory almost. It bugged me that they kept happening. Tonight, he was back again, and I was ready for him.
         There was one thing that bugged me more than anything else: I could never speak on my own. Other dreams, I could speak and cause it to be somewhat of a lucid dream, and I was getting better at it, able to make nightmares go away entirely. No more need for that old dream catcher, I guess. Tonight, he stared me in the face, grinning. Piercing blue eyes locked onto mine, and black hair poked out from beneath his white cap, turning gray a bit near the ends. Stress lines would mar his face every few inches, and he had faint laugh lines around the corner of his mouth.
         His white jacket held several rows of rainbow colored ribbons, sitting on the left side, just above a pocket with a golden button. The same pocket was on the other side, a black nameplate that read “Addler” sitting in the center of the flap. Plain, white pants coated his legs, and despite him being fairly tall, I still dwarfed him. Plastic black shoes covered his feet, completing the entourage.
         “What about a vacation, General?” He asked, smiling a bit. I seemed to mull it over for a few seconds.
         “How long?” Came the reply. It wasn't my voice. It was too deep, and it was scratchier, like I had gravel stuck in my throat. This couldn't be me, could it? There had been dreams where I was someone else, but who knew?
         “18 years, sir.” The man in white was serious. An 18 year vacation? That was more a retirement than anything.
         The response was even more delayed this time, and I could feel my mouth beginning to move as I responded, but before I could hear the rest, a blinding white light filled the view, and a crack came through the center.
         My eyes opened slowly, filled with brown as I looked at the dresser beside my bed. Everything was a bit blurry, but I had gone through this routine many times already. A feminine voice came through.
         “Hey, get up! It's already 7:30.” I groaned quietly and forced myself to sit up, swinging my legs off of the comfortable mattress I had been sleeping on. I yawned and stretched a bit, feeling my arms, legs, back, and more various joints begin to pop as they were relieved from the cramped ball like position I slept in.
         As the door to my room was left cracked, foot steps could be heard crossing the tile floor. Mother had been like this since I started high school, four years ago. She used to stand there and force me up, but now I was able to sit up on my own.
         Standing up and going to my closet, I rifled through my clothes, finding a dark pair of jeans and a black shirt, I sat back down on my bed and lazily began to shrug out of my pajama clothes. Sliding the shirt on, I tugged it down to where it lay against my body. The front had a small, five pointed white star with gold trim, sitting above the left side of my chest, reading “US Army” in bold letters beneath it. The back was basically the same thing, but much larger. It was always fun to talk to military recruiters when they came in. You'd usually get free stuff. I mean, it wasn't that I only did it for the stuff, I was also in the process of enlisting with the United States Army, so I figured it was worth it.
         The jeans went on next, covering the obscenely long legs I had developed over the years, leaving me standing at 5'7.  Pulling the pants legs up, I grabbed a pair of socks from the dresser top, having laid them there the previous night. Pulling them on, they came up to about halfway up my leg. Boot socks. They were much warmer than normal socks, and covered more of my leg. Reaching out to the side of my bed, I felt my hand brush against something leathery. Grabbing onto the items I felt, I pulled them out. Desert tan colored boots. They were boots worn by soldiers in the US Army, along with ACU's, the Army Combat Uniform. Having gone to a summer camp two years prior on a military base, I had worn the ACU each day, along with the boots. While I had turned the ACU's back in, the boots had been somewhat old, and I had managed to get the Sergeant Major at the school to part ways with them, due to us being on better terms than most.
         Sliding them on and lacing them up, I managed to put them on just as fast as a set of tennis shoes. Pull the laces tight, make an x, pull one through, yank it tight, go around the lower calf where my foot went in, repeat the earlier process, loop, and double knot. It took a few seconds, but it was quick, considering they were boots.
         Standing up from my bed, I grabbed my phone from my dresser, pulling the charger cord out and dropping it. I thumbed the power button, revealing a lock screen. White numbers met my gaze. 7:40 AM, Monday, February 14, 2014. That was the date and time.
         Pocketing my phone and grabbing a pen and pencil off of my desk, I left my room, the two writing utensils entering the opposite pocket from my phone. Trudging to the bathroom, I went through the process of personal grooming, as always. Brushing my teeth, I looked over my appearance while I went through the process. My skin was slightly tan, despite me never leaving my house unless it was for school or to go somewhere like a store and get something. Purple semi circles lay under my eyes, indicating a lack of sleep. Lack of sleep? I got plenty of it. 6 hours was enough, right? Above them, my own eyes stared back at me, greenish-hazel irises floating in a sea of white. My brown hair was sticking up a bit, despite it being fairly short. I needed to trim it up again...or convince mom to shave it all off until it grew back in about a month. Black stubble coated my jawline and chin, some of it leading up past the corners of my mouth and into a faint mustache. I'd have to shave it off tomorrow night anyway, uniform inspections were always on Wednesdays.
         I was in decent shape, I guess. Broad shoulders, and a bit of muscle showing through the shirt. I wasn't exactly ripped, but I wasn't a pencil either. I guess I had an athletic build, even though I was far from athletic.
         Leaning down, I spit out the overpowered mint toothpaste into the sink, washing it out and turning the lights off, going back to my room. Grabbing a stick of deodorant and applying it, I looked around for anything I missed, and seeing nothing, I shut my door a bit.
         On it, there was a rack for stuff like hats and whatnot. On the left side, a black belt and a tan belt sat hung over one rack, both of them being uniform belts for a dress uniform and a work uniform, respectively. Two racks over sat a medal, reading “Cadet of the Month.” It was nice to have, but not to wear. It chafed too much. One rack over to the right sat a small, silver ring.
         I had never been one for wearing rings or jewelery, but this was my class ring, and it was almost always on when I left the house, but came back off and set back onto the rack when I came home.
         Pulling it off the rack and onto my right ring finger, I reached down to my dresser, grabbing my backpack that sat next to it, slinging it over my shoulders and grabbing a pair of ear buds off of the dresser, as well as grabbing my wallet and sliding it into my back left pocket.
         Sliding the ear buds into my ear, I cut the lights and shut my door, stepping out into the hallway. Entering the kitchen, where my mother sat looking at some bills, I stepped over and put one arm around her, my chin going to rest on top of her head. Her arm circled my abdomen, giving me a slight pull as she returned the gesture.
         “I'm out” I said, nodding towards the door. “I'll see ya when I get home, love you.” I said.
         “Alright, love you too.” Came the reply. This was how every morning went. We were far form distant, but it didn't take more than a short good bye to tell my mother I was going to school.
         Opening the door and stepping out into the cold air, I pulled my phone back out, checking the time. 7:50. The bus would run in ten minutes, and I'd be at the bus stop in five. The door to the house closed behind me, and the music began to play.
         My phone was filled with songs from all the different genres, but it mostly stuck to things more like rock and heavy metal, stuff like Clutch, Metallica, Dethklok, and more. It let my wandering daydreams get a surge of adrenaline. Call me odd, but it felt great, like having my own background music
         Turning two corners, I saw a group of people standing around about a hundred meters away. It didn't take long to get there, and almost as soon as I stepped foot in the group, the bus rolled into my neighborhood, stopping in front of us and letting us all file on, saving me from any possible interaction with people I wasn't too fond of knowing. Antisocial? Maybe.
         The next half hour was a blur, just like it always was. As soon as I got on the bus, I picked a seat, put my book bag between my legs in case anybody needed to sit with me later because of crowded seats, hooked one of the straps onto my leg so it didn't slide away, and leaned my head against the window. After that, the music playing against my eardrums kept me from paying any attention to the outside world.
         The next time I opened my eyes, the bus had stopped in the school's bus loading area, and people were standing up to get off. I grabbed my bag and hoisted myself to my feet, slinging it over my shoulder and merging into the aisle before too many people could get up and block me, forcing me to wait until the last people were off or someone let me into the line. Nobody had sat with me today, so it was easier to get out.
         The walk to class mirrored the bus ride. I went around the school, instead of through it. I never went into the main building. There was always one area I spent most of my time in in the mornings.
         My school had a JROTC battalion in it, and I had spent most of my time there since joining as a freshman. It was where most of my friends were, and it was my first class anyway, so I normally went in there to wait for school to begin.
         The moment my hand grabbed onto the handle, I heard the bell ring and pulled the cord to my ear buds out of my phone, the music pausing as I did.
         Stepping inside, people were already leaving. Some of them I would see later in the day, and some of them I wouldn't. Most of them greeted me, and I returned it. While they were leaving through the door across the room, heading into the hallway, I turned right, entering another room.
         Pictures of former battalion commanders lined the wall to my right, an American and South Carolina State flag sat on each end, and a large table graced the center, several comfortable chairs lining the edges. A compute and projector system sat at the other end of the room, and to my left sat a closed door and several appliances, like a coffee maker and microwave, sinks, and generally supplies used when staff had a party. Instead of the normal tiled floor, carpet covered the room, leading into the door to the left.
         Next to the computer table, there was another door, leading into the staff box room, where both battalion and company staff had inboxes for notices in case information was sent out to us. Finally, one more door to the exact opposite of where I came in led into another class room. In the room I had come from was the beginner class, the LET 1 area. In the next room was the LET 2 class, the squad and fireteam leaders. I ignored both, heading back through the LET 1 room and across the hall, to the LET 3's and 4's, who were squad and platoon leadership. My domain.
         As I entered, the class quieted down, the bell not having rung yet. Nodding to one of the males, Sean, I set the day into motion. The other teenager moved to the back of the room, beginning the process of getting ready.
         “Platoon, fall, in.” He commanded, pausing between fall and in. The people in the room moved to form squads, standing still and remaining quiet. Moving to a podium near the door, I opened a small red book, revealing the names of all of them and the rest of Alpha Company's senior leadership. As I finished reading, the bell rang and a man in an ACU walked in, his bald head shining.
         He was by no means old, but the Lieutenant Colonel stood next to the door, shutting it as he did. The pledge of allegiance began, followed by a moment of silence, and then the cadet creed. I spent the next few moments taking roll, calling names and receiving answers. It didn't take long to get the roll to the Colonel, and afterwards, I moved back into the LET 1 room, informing the Company Commander on the leaders being ready.
         Ten minutes later, the company was out on the field, broken into platoons, and then squads, doing what they always did: Drill. It was tedious, but it was necessary. I walked around, watching the members of each squad perform their tasks, as well as offering advice to any of the leaders. I had been in their shoes once, but not anymore.
         I couldn't help but feel like something was either watching me, or following me. Looking around, I saw nothing. The Company Commander wasn't too far away, moving towards me. He put a hand on my shoulder, shaking me a bit.
         “Hey, you alright?” He asked. Brandon Leopold was a few months younger than me, but he and I worked closely as an Executive Officer and Commander at the Company level. We talked outside of school, and we had been LET 1's together, almost four years ago. First semester had kind of made things sour between us, as his decisions were almost never solid. However, by the time second semester began, we were a well oiled machine, working much better than before.
         I nodded. “Yeah...I just feel weird, like there's something following me.” I replied. I didn't think he'd understand, but it was worth a shot.
         “You sure you're not just tired?” He asked. Of course I was sure. I was groggy and easily annoyed, not hallucinating.
         “Yeah, yeah. I'm sure.” I said. Looking around again, I noticed we were in the middle of the field. I stood there, crossing my arms against my chest, watching all of the different squads as they did their thing. Brandon walked off soon after, having other things to attend to. That's when I felt it again.
         Turning around, I thought I saw a shimmer in the air. Blinking, it was gone. I sighed, chalking it up to a lack of sleep, but it happened again, and this time, when I turned, I heard it. A faint whoosh, and when I turned to investigate the origin, I'd wished I hadn't.
         By the time I finished, my head was thrown forward, catching sight of a boot being thrusted into my chest.
         It only lasted a second. I left the boot, launched off towards a tree not too far from my position,  a few meters away from where I had been standing before. My back came into contact with the tree with a loud snapping noise, and in that instant, everything below my bottom set of ribs went cold. I couldn't move my legs, and I felt a searing pain at the epicenter of where my back had hit.
         My eyes grit shut as I almost lost consciousness from the pain, but I kept myself awake, barely. Gritting my teeth until my jaw muscles looked to be on the verge of popping out of my skin, I opened one eye, looking up to see nothing. Nobody was there anymore, and almost everybody on the field had turned to see what had happened.
         Nobody moved, too shocked at what they had just seen. Something appearing out of nowhere, kicking their Executive Officer into a tree, and dissolving before he even landed? The snapping sound had been one of the biggest fear factors. None of them knew what to make of it, and none of them dared to come near me, probably thinking that they would be next.
         Out of the corner of my eye, I could see several fireballs in the sky, heading straight for my area. Several seconds passed as I looked on, the sound in my ears closing off as I began to see black on the outside of my vision.
         Right before I blacked out, I saw the fireballs impact, spread out over a few dozen meters. Black figures emerged from the pods, running towards me. What was happening? I couldn't even ask before one of them took a hold of my chin, pointing a flashlight into my darkening eyes. His helmet's visor depolarized, allowing me to see a panicked face behind it. His mouth was moving, but there was no sound anymore.
         Finally, my vision darkened completely, and I lost consciousness, the pain in my back ebbing away as I did so.