Chapter 2

The sun was shining through the window and into Chris’ eyes. He sat up and rubbed his eyes.

“Good morning!” yelled Heather from across the room.

Chris focused his vision. Heather was sitting on her bed looking at her phone.

“You know you could have gone to the dining room. Francis probably has breakfast prepared and is waiting for us,” Chris said.

“Yeah, I know, but I wanted to wait for you,” Heather replied with a smile.

Chris rolled himself out of bed and walked out of the door with Heather by his side. Chris noticed Heather was walking closer to him than she normally does.

“Did you sleep well?” Heather asked cheerfully.

“Yeah,” Chris replied. “You seem quite happy today. Did something happen?”

“Nothing in particular, just a good day.”

Chris continued walking. Now he could feel the energy radiating off of Heather and couldn’t help but put a smile on his face. Chris led Heather into the kitchen. Francis was standing next to the stove, wearing a white apron overtop of his clothes. He picked up a pan and flicked it upwards, sending a pancake flying towards the ceiling, then falling down and landing back on the pan.

“Don’t you think you’re being a little overdramatic?” Chris asked.

“Nope, not at all,” Francis replied, shrugging his shoulders. “Heather, since you’re here. Do you want anything in your pancakes?”

“Chocolate chips, if you have any,” Heather answered excitedly.

“Yes, ma’am, I get those ready for you. You two can wait out at the table. Food will be out shortly.”

“How come you didn’t ask what I wanted?” Chris growled.

“Because I know what you like,” Francis replied, still focused on the stove. “Plain as usual with syrup, correct.”

Chris nodded and walked into the dining room. He sat down in his usual spot. Francis had set a glass of water at each of the spots on the table. Heather walked out of the kitchen carrying three plates. She carefully sat them down in each of the places.

Just then, the smoke detector went off, followed by yelling and banging. Chris jumped from his seat and ran into the kitchen. Francis had grabbed the fire extinguisher and was dowsing a small flame on the stove.

“You ok back here?” Chris asked, coughing.

“Yeah, I’m fine. A piece of paper caught on fire, I think,” said Francis, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

“I think you’re done cooking now.”

“What happened?” Heather asked, as Chris and Francis walked into the dining room.

“This dunce lit a piece of paper on fire,” Chis said, laughing.

Heather let out a small chuckle as Chris sat Francis down at his end of the table and the three began eating.

“So, is there anything you guys want to do today?” Francis asked.

“I don’t think so,” said Chris with his mouth full of food. 

“Chris showed me this room with a lot of swords in it yesterday,” said Heather. “I was wondering if you’ve ever used them to fight before?”

“Yeah, we have!” Chris exclaimed with an enormous smile on his face. “In fact, I’m the reigning champ in this house.”

“I’m the only person you fought against. You can’t really call yourself a champion,” remarked Francis, putting a large piece of pancake into his mouth.

“Well, I’ve beaten everyone I’ve fought against; therefore, I am the champion,” Chris replied, raising his voice.

“Well, why don’t you two have a dual and I will dub the winner, the champion,” said Heather.

“Deal!” shouted Chris and Francis.

Chris, Heather, and Francis finished eating and made their way to the arena. On the way, Heather asked if she could fight one round against Chris. Despite his concern for her safety, he allowed it. They got to the room and went in. Francis dug a key out of his pocket and unlocked the door leading to a locker room. Francis took Heather to the back to help her get fitted with proper protection. Chris picked up his gear and put it on. He overheard Francis warning Heather about getting hit. To him, it almost sounded like he was trying to persuade her not to fight him.

Chris finished putting on his gear and grabbed a sword. He walked out of the locker room and leaned against the wall farthest from the door. Chris looked down at his sword. The light reflected off the black and crimson sheath and into his eyes. A few minutes later Francis and Heather walked out, both wearing white padded suits.

“So, you’re my first match,” Chris said.

“I believe so,” Heather replied.

“She will serve as a sort of warm-up match for you,” said Francis.

Chris pulled his face protector down over his head and walked to his end of the arena. Heather did the same and walked to her end. Chis thrusted his sword to the side, letting the sheath fly off and hit the ground. The crimson red blade shone brightly in the sun coming through the small window in the top of the wall. Heather carefully removed her sword from its sheath. She had a silver rapier with a golden guard and handle.

“Dang! I didn’t know your tactic to defeat me was to blind me with that,” Chris exclaimed.

“Hey, you gotta do whatever it takes to beat someone with a reputation like yours,” Heather said.

“Shut up and let me read out the rules!” Francis yelled, walking to the edge of the arena in the middle of Chris and Heather. “This is a first strike match. If your opponent’s sword hits you, you are out. If your opponent is disabled, to prevent injury, you may end the match with a stop short. One more thing, no stabbing. Anything else is fair game.”

Chris and Heather readied their sword and waited for Francis’s signal for the match to start. Chris noticed that Heather’s hands were shaking. He could tell whether it was from the weight of the sword or if she was nervous.

“Are you sure you want to do this? I won’t be upset if you back down,” Chris asked.

“I’ve come this far. I’m not giving up,” Heather replied.

Francis dropped his hand, and immediately Heather launched into a full sprint towards Chris. Chris stepped back and brought his sword back and swung upwards at Heather’s shoulder, hitting her sword. She jumped backward out of fear and the sword flew out of her hands. Chris brought his sword back around and swung at Heather’s neck. He stopped just short of hitting her.

“This match is over. Chris is the winner!” Francis exclaimed.

Chris outstretched his hand and helped Heather to her feet.

“That was fast, and a little scary,” Heather said, standing brushing herself off.

“You’re next,” said Chris, turning to Francis. “Heather, do you have any hair ties on you right now?”

“Yeah, I do,” Heather said, removing the one from her hair. “Why do you need one?”

Chris grabbed the hair tie and removed his face protection. “Damn hair’s too long and I can’t see sometimes,” replied Chris, tying his hair back.

“Not gonna lie, you look good with your hair pulled back,” Heather said.

“Quit lying. I know it looks ridiculous.” Chris pulled the mask over his head again and walked to his spot in the arena.

Heather walked to the edge of the arena towards the middle of where they were standing and raised one hand. After a few seconds, she quickly threw her hand down, signaling the start of the match.

Immediately Francis lunged forward, swinging his sword in a downward motion, aiming for Chris’ right shoulder. Chris responded with an upward motion, blocking the blow, sending a few sparks to the ground. He re-angled his sword, now aiming for Francis’ hip. Francis jumped back, using his sword to push Chris’ sword past him. Using the momentum he gained from Francis’ block, Chris spun around to strike Francis in the same spot. Francis moved his sword to intercept the strike, sending more sparks shooting from the swords. 

Chris and Francis continued striking at each other and blocking every strike. The sound of metal clashing rang out. The rhythmic dances of the swords continued for minutes with no side showing any weaknesses. When one boy looked like he had an advantage, the other would power through. Heather watched in amazement, hypnotized by the boys’ elegant style of fighting.

Two loud shouts came from each boy. The two swords met, spewing sparks. The two swords seemed inseparable. Chris’ serious attitude has now changed back to his old cocky attitude. He slid his right foot around the back of his left foot. With a loud yell, he pushed back Francis’ blade, stepped back with his left foot rotating his body swinging his sword into the side of Francis’ stomach.

Francis fell to the ground, clutching his side. Heather ran over to him and tried to assess the damage. She immediately turned around and scolded Chris. “Why did you hit him so hard?” she screamed.

“It’s not like I tried to hurt him. And for your information I didn’t hit him hard, I hit him fast,” Chris replied.

“Yeah, yeah, same difference,” Heather remarked.

“It’s fine, you guys,” Francis said, coughing. “I guess that makes you the champion, Congratulations.”

“You should probably put some ice on it, Francis, and go lay down,” said Heather, helping Francis sit up.

Chris ran over and helped Heather lift Francis to his feet. They walked him back to his room and laid him down on his bed. Chris got him some ice, and they left him alone to get some sleep.

“Don’t think I’m not still mad at you about what you did to Francis,” scolded Heather.

“I don’t blame you. I’m not happy with my actions either,” replied Chris. “However, you can’t engage in a fight and not expect someone to get hurt.”

“Anyway, I’m going to go take a shower and wash this used gear smell off of me.”

“Ok,” Chris answered. He remembered he still had her hair tie. “Oh, and here’s your hair tie back. Thanks for letting me use it.”

Heather grabbed it from Chris and walked into their bedroom and immediately walked out with a change of clothes and a small bag.

Chris’ body was sore. He had used muscles he had not used in a while. Chris remembered that the pool was ice cold this time of the year. He quickly changed into a pair of mesh shorts and ran to the pool.

Once he got there, he carefully lowered himself into the icy water so that the water came up to his neck. He could feel the pain slowly easing away. Chris usually hated being in cold water, but today it felt good. Chris used a small pool inflatable and rested his head on it. He slowly felt himself drifting off, and soon enough, he found himself asleep in the pool.

An hour later Chris was woken up by a hand tapping him on the shoulder. Chris shook his head to wake himself up the rest of the way. He spun around and his eyes scanned from the hand up the arm to the head of a teenage girl who looked ready to murder him at a moment’s notice.

“Oh, hi Heather, I didn’t see you there,” Chris said sheepishly.

“That might be because you were too busy relaxing in the pool you told me we weren’t allowed to use!” screamed Heather.

Heather promptly grabbed Chris by his hair and pulled him to the pool stairs. Chris was released so he could walk up the stairs on his own.

“I never said we weren’t allowed to use the pool. I only said it’s not ideal right now,” Chris said, trying to reconcile with her.

Chris walked over to the deep end of the pool to grab his towel and shirt. Heather grabbed his shoulder and spun him around.

“I’m not done talking to you yet!” she exclaimed. “If it’s not ideal, then why were you using it?”

“Because right now the water is ice cold, so I used it to help with the soreness,” Chris answered.

“It didn’t look cold.”

“Then why don’t you see for yourself!” Chris yelled as he pushed Heather into the icy water. As she fell, she grabbed Chris’ hand and pulled him in as well. “Is it cold?” Chris asked.

“Yes,” Heather said, shivering. She continued to tread water. Heather didn’t seem like she had any ambition to get out of the pool, but she looked incredibly uncomfortable.

“You can get out,” Chris said. “No one is making you stay in here.”

“No. I said I wanted to go swimming so I’ll stay here.”

“How long will that last?” Chris asked.

“I don’t know, but look at it this way; I don’t have to strip down to go swimming now thanks to you.”

“You’re welcome, I guess.”

They stayed in the pool for hours. The water no longer felt cold to them.

Chris and Heather made their way to the steps of the pool and got out. The air felt warm compared to the water. Chris threw a towel over his shoulders and walked back to his room. He gathered clothes and left to go take a shower.

…

Later that night, Chris was lying on his bed. He kept glancing over at Heather. He noticed her phone kept ringing and she would immediately hang up. She looked worried and scared.

“Is something bothering you?” Chris asked. “You keep looking at your phone and you have this look on your face.”

“I’m fine,” Heather replied.

“Like hell you are!” Chris responded. “I know you well enough to know when something isn’t right, and right now, something is going on.”

“It’s my parents,” Heather explained. “They don’t know I’m here.”

“You never told them!” Chris exclaimed in shock.

“No, we both know if I did, they would have stopped me from coming at all costs. The good news is that they are too afraid to get the police involved. Right now, I’m afraid to return home,” sobbed Heather. She was hunched over, sobbing.

Chris got out of his bed and walked over to her. He wrapped his arms around her. “Don’t worry. If you need to hide somewhere, you know my family will take you in and let you stay with us as long as needed.”

 “Thank you,” she said, putting her arms around Chris. She wasn’t able to hold on. Her arms fell to her side. Heather fell forwards knocking Chris off balance causing them to both fall on the floor with Heather on top of Chris.

Chris carefully rolled her onto the floor and stood up. He pulled back the sheets on her bed and picked her up and set her down on the bed. Chris finished by placing the covers over top of her and turning off the light.

Chris ran into the bathroom and grabbed a forehead thermometer and checked her temperature. “98.5, normal enough.” He returned the thermometer and went to the kitchen and poured a glass of water and brought it back and placed it on the nightstand next to Heather.

“Busy day, I guess.” Chris thought.

Chris was now both emotionally and physically exhausted. He decided he had enough of today and went to bed.

Sunday: Project HLR launch -12:00:00

Chris woke up to an empty room. The time was 6:15. He was supposed to be awake fifteen minutes ago. He quickly got dressed and ran to the front of the house.

“Look who’s finally awake,” said Francis, carrying a large box. “We are leaving in five minutes. Lunch has been packed and we’ll stop somewhere to pick up some fast food for breakfast.”

“What’s that box for?” Chris asked.

“Father asked me to take this to the bunker,” Francis replied. “Something about him being in the area and he’ll stop by there and pick it up. He told me to leave it inside the bunker.”

“Hey, how’s your side doing?”

Francis lifted his shirt to reveal a large black and blue mark where Chris hit him. “It hurts like hell.”

Chris felt a tap on his shoulder. He spun around and saw Heather standing behind him.

“Thank you for everything last night,” said Heather.

“No problem, glad I could be of assistance,” replied Chris.

Heather opened the door and walked out to the car. Francis stayed back and leaned over to Chris. “What did you do last night?” asked Francis, as if was insinuating something.

“Nothing that concerns you,” Chris said.

Chris followed Francis out to the car. Heather was already sitting in the front seat. Chris reluctantly sat in the back and flicked Heather in the back of the head.

“Ow, what was that for?” asked Heather, holding the back of her head.

“You’re in my seat,” answered Chris.

“Well, I don’t see your name on it.”

“Whatever,” Chris huffed.

Chris jumped into the backseat of the car. Francis got in the driver’s side of the car, put the car into gear, and pulled out of the driveway to begin their three-hour journey. As they were driving, Francis turned on the radio. Chris could tell they were enjoying it, but because the top was down, Chris couldn’t hear any of it. He was still a little tired, because he wasn’t able to sleep well last night, and he was getting carsick. Chris closed his eyes and fell asleep.

The car came to a stop. Chris opened his eyes and the bright sunlight blinded him. He let his eyes adjust so that he could see that they were stopped at a gas station. The mounted GPS said they had thirty minutes left in their trip. Chris leaned forwards to Heather. “Do you think I could sit up there? The roads are going to get windy and I tend to get really sick from that.”

“Yeah, I guess I can do that,” Heather replied.

Chris and Heather switched places in the car. Shortly after, Francis got back in the car and raised the top up. Francis pulled out of the gas station and continued towards the bunker.

Twenty minutes later, Francis turned the car onto a dirt road. They were now in mountainous terrain. Chris looked out the window anxiously. He watched as the trees went past, being left in a large cloud of dust. As they continued, the road became narrower and narrower now, only having barely a wide enough road to fit their car.

The car rounded the bend and once narrow dirt road was now a freshly paved road that led straight to the side of a mountain. There was a fenced in parking lot that looked like it could hold twenty cars in it. A gate guarded the parking lot with a guard station next to it.

Francis pulled up to the station window, and a middle-aged woman leaned out the window. “Can I have your name, please?”

“Francis Shirker,” Francis replied.