Chapter Two- Adam He was so damned small when I found him, all huddled up inside this old iron pipe, wet and shivering, muttering things I don't even think he understood. The rest of our gathering party was carrying food, and I was on guard duty, but I didn't see any problem with bringing this one child along. What harm could it do? At first, he wouldn't even let me touch him. It got to the point where I had to take some of our food and practically bribe him to leave the safety of his little hole. Hmm.. what was it... An old granola bar, I think. Yeah. I held it out to him like you would hold a piece of meat to a tiger, and was surprised at how gently he took ahold of it. Gone in seconds of course, but it got me the trust I needed to talk him out of staying and into walking back with us. I remember seeing such an odd strength in his eyes... A resolve and will to survive that could only have been caused by something that had happened to him before we came along. I found out what that was after I got to know him better. He was only able to walk about half way with us before he fell over. God, I couldn't get past how thin he was. No muscle on him anywhere, no anything. Hah, only clothing he had was this tiny pair of shorts that had just about fallen apart. His hair was all a mess, and he looked like he might be real sick, but I picked him up and carried him the rest of the way, despite the constant complaining of my comrades. The boy slept for two days, and we had Sarah look after him. She was only nineteen, but she was the best nurse we had, and gladly took to helping him eat, getting him clothes... They bonded pretty quick. Took the kid another week to say his first word, which happened to be 'stop.' Seems a couple boys were picking on one of the younger kids, and he had happened across it. They just tossed him in with the other, and beat them both. I visited him in the ' hospital wing' for the second time, though this time I was smiling. He had started to fill out, and his lanky black hair had been cut short and messy-like. Sarah had gotten him some pretty nice clothing, and started him on the road of talking again. I was able to actually sit down and have a conversation with him for the first time, and I took that opportunity. “Hey, buddy...You ever think of taking on kids your own size?” I chuckled then, but his facial expression never changed. The one thing about the boy that unnerved me... His emotions could be going a thousand miles per hour, and you would never know it. He'd just look at you with those gray/green eyes, and not let anything show. He talked alright, though. “Yeah. Couldn't help it.” “Couldn't help it, huh? Well, looks like you got beat up, too. Was it worth it?” I looked at him, and tried my hardest to put on a proper 'adult' attitude, but I couldn't. This situation just seemed comical to me. He nodded, though. “Yeah, it was. I made a friend.” Huh. I was curious. “What's his name?” I knew the boy the others were beating up was incredibly young, so I was wondering if this kid had actually befriended someone that young. “Nail.” Well damn. Nail had been found only a few months before I'd come across this one. He had gotten his name because of the one thing we had been able to find on him. A single nail, clutched in one tiny hand. “Well then...I suppose that's a good thing. Could you tell me something though?” I raised a hand a little...almost pleading. “What?” Still that uncaring voice. This kid scared me. “What's your name, boy?” No hesitation. “Adam.” Huh. Adam. A strong name... “How old are you?” “Fifteen.” “You know where you were born?” “No.” “Where are your parents?” He looked down at the floor then, and I instantly knew what a sensitive subject I had stumbled upon. So this was what kept him alive for so long. “I'm sorry, Adam... You don't have to talk about it if you don't-” “Dead.” “I'm sorry. “ “Don't.” Huh. I still wanted to know more. “Well... you have any sibl-...Oh.. “ Adam had slipped back onto his cot, and was facing away from me. It seemed he wanted this little talk to be over. I chuckled to myself, and stood, knowing I’d hit something of a soft spot, and probably pissed him off a bit. Teenagers are always angry about something. It was coming back from my next gathering mission that Adam showed interest in becoming a member of our little ragtag military. He ran up to me as soon as we got back, and said just a few words. “I want to join.” I couldn't help but be surprised. Adam had only a few months ago come to the little underground 'village' we all call home, and now he thought he was ready to play soldier with the big boys. I decided to play along for awhile. “Alright... You need to go to the training areas tomorrow as soon as you wake up.” Yeah. I know most places would say something like '0900 hours' or something cheesy like that, but we don't really like to put more stress on everyone than they already have. I was amazed that he was so eager. “Alright!” Heh.. If only everyone here was like him. He took off back into the underground city, and Sarah told me he went straight to sleep, saying that tomorrow couldn't come soon enough. I thought just the opposite. Tomorrow, though, did come, and when I got to the training area, dubbed 'Tiara' ( I've no clue why..) he was waiting for me, excitement practically coming off him in waves. I opened the gate calmly, and stepped inside, Adam tailing me the entire way. “When do we get started? What do I learn first?” Whens my first mission?” I had to stop him there. “Look. You need to calm down, take the classes that are required before you even touch your first weapon, or see your first few minutes outside the safety of this place.” I pointed to an average-sized building, trying to sound stoic. “Go there, and learn everything they have to teach you. Commit it to memory, and eventually you'll be able to train under me.” ** ** ** “That's exactly what he said?” Nail sounded excited. He hadn't been able to sit still since I'd told him, and now he was jumping up and down on my bed, making it hard for me to sit still. I laughed a little, and grabbed his ankle, tripping him up just enough to get him to sit still. “Yep.” I nodded. “That's what he said. My first day is tomorrow. I'm kind of nervous.” He stood again before he spoke to me. “Adam, you have to tell me everything they teach you so I can get big and strong like you!” Hah. He was only five... I was already made fun of by everyone for being his friend, since I was ten years his elder. I grinned, and nodded. The kid had grown on me. What could it hurt to talk to him about what I'd learned during the day? It'd be an interesting study method. I lay in my bed, fully aware of the boy that sat next to me, waiting for me to fall asleep, as if it were his sign that he, too, could allow his tired eyes to close... “Wake up, it's your first day! You gotta get up!” Nail was practically knocking the breath out of me before I could draw it into my lungs, but I still had to laugh at how eager he was. “Alright, Nail, lemme get up, okay?” I coughed, cleared my throat, and stood, reaching for the pants and shirt that normally sat atop the crate next to my bed, and coming up empty-handed. I heard shuffling behind me, and turned to see them in the hands of a certain little boy. “Here!” He giggled when he said it, apparently thinking he had helped me. Normally, I would have turned this into a game of tag, or a 'tickle war'. But I was in a hurry today, and really needed to get going. I grabbed the clothes, and threw them on, noticing in the back of my mind that Nail didn't seem at all hurt by the way I just pulled them away from him. I had a moment to think He might be more exited than I am. Huh... before I jumped up, and took off, Nail's excited 'goodbye!' and 'good luck!' following me down the tunnels that lead to the surface. I passed Sarah, too, but I didn't really have time to talk to her. She stopped me only for a moment. “Adam, aren't you going to eat before your first day?” ... She looked good, really, with her brown hair in a ponytail and her clothes fresh from the laundry. Her eyes almost sparkled sometimes when the light his them, and- “Adam?” ...Oh. I shook my head, feigning a small ' my mind was wandering' session. “Nah..” I smiled, “I have to get going. I'll eat when I get back.” Once again I was running down the tunnels, by now being able to get through without knocking into a single person. (Which really helped when I played tag with Nail.) My stomach was already complaining, and after getting used to eating every day for two months, I wasn't ready for the fuss that it put up. I stopped, and weighed the options of staying to eat versus getting to class on time. “I can't, I'll be late...” I growled at myself along with my stomach, and finished the last few feet to the door that lead outside. The light didn't bother me much, as I'd made the journey several times before, and everyone that worked out here knew me. One man waved, then pointed to where I was headed. “Get going!” He shouted, smiling. “Adam, you'll be late!” I only nodded and returned his smile, my brisk walk morphing into a jog. As the building inched closer to me, I wondered at all the support I had. Nail was so excited about it... Sarah supported me fully, and everyone I had met was ready to help me if I needed it. I tried to remember if I'd ever had friends like this before... If I had ever had a friend before. The door was right in front of me before I realized it, and I nearly ran into it. I had to stop and breathe before I could even touch the doorknob, I was shaking so badly. I chuckled nervously to myself. “Just breathe, Adam.. gosh, it's just a class.” “That's right!” I sighed. Griff. He walked up behind me, and opened the door, swinging it open with enough force that it bounced back and nearly closed again. “All ya gotta do is step in there and learn, kid.” He laid a hand on my back, and shoved lightly, causing me to stumble inside. It was less than I expected, just a big square room with two chalkboards in what I assumed was the front, and a large desk in back. There were about ten chairs with mix-n-match desks facing the boards, and all of them were full, save one. “Yes, that seat is yours, Adam. Please take it so we can begin.” The teacher was a stocky, well- muscled man that looked as if he were meant more for the scouting parties themselves, than teaching about them. The first thing I noticed about him after his body was his head. Bald? I've never seen a bald man around here. Where did he come from? Well... That and his freakishly light blue eyes. They almost looked white. I tore myself away from them, and sat down, trying to ignore the stressed creaking the chair emitted. The man in the front began speaking immediately. “You are all brave. You are all, also, stupid.” He smiled, and kept on talking. “You'll learn here what you are going to be going against in the search for food. You'll learn to identify each creature, and you'll be able to map the next ten miles around.” One massive hand picked up a twig of chalk, and used it to begin writing on the board. “Now.” He began. “You can call me Sky.” The three letters were now scrawled in the upper right corner of the board, and Adam committed it to memory immediately. “Now. I assume you all brought paper and a writing utensil to this class?” Damn. I raised my hand, my cheeks getting warm. “I didn't know what to bring, sir.” “Sky. And I suppose since it is your first day, that's alright. I'll give you paper and pencil for this lesson. But if you leave your things behind any day after, you're on your own.” Still blushing, I lowered my hand. “Thank you sir- I mean, Sky.” The man returned to me holding a notebook, and three pencils. “Here.” Sky raised his voice a little, allowing everyone to hear him as he moved to the front of the room. “Now, the first thing you need to learn about is the geography of the surrounding area.. What we have around here you can use as cover, and the things you should stay the hell away from.” He began writing on the board, and I opened up the notebook, and picked up the first pencil. It was the beginning of my first class. “Nail, I can't feel my hand. Ease up, will you?” He really had a grip for such a small kid, and he was using it to drag me to his room, spouting nonsensical words about me telling him everything I learned that day. ' Keeping my promise ', he called it. I wasn't really able to argue that, but I could at least walk on my own. I pulled my hand away from him, and smiled when he turned and frowned at me. “ I'm pretty sure my legs still work, buddy.” I said, slipping a convincing chuckle into my voice. “ Besides, I wasn't joking when I said my hand was really hurting. “ I really wasn't, either. I had the stumps to three pencils in my pocket, and a full notebook containing details of the surroundings and what I may find there. “ Okay, now you have to read your notebook to me!” “ Wha-?” Woah. I hadn't realized that we had already walked to his room. I smiled tiredly, and sat down, opening the notebook. “ Alright, then. Here we go.”