1Chapter 2: Family Tree
The sun had set by the time the camp was established. Daniel had led them in the right direction, and they were easily able to pick up the Outsider's trail, marked by deep tire tracks and horse manure.
"What are you doing?" Daniel asked, lying on top of Law's sleeping bag.
"Starting a campfire so we can have dinner," Law replied, not looking away from the bundles of sticks and kindling as he started to build the fire.
"But why has it been buried?" Daniel asked. Law turned and saw that the boy's eyes were fully captured by his actions, as he watched every minor twitch
"This way, we can hide the light from the fire since we are close, and I would rather not risk being spotted," Law said. He then turned to Daniel and motioned towards his bag.
The boy fumbled to open the straps before digging in and pulling out a pack of matches. He shuffled over and handed Law the matches. Law struck the match, it hissed and sparked to life, filling the air with the acrid scent of sulfur. Daniel winced in momentary fear. Law paused at that reaction before continuing, lowering the match, lighting the kindling, and starting the fire.
The crackling flames cast a warm orange glow that illuminated their faces and sent shadows dancing across the ground. The scent of burning wood mingled with the cool night air, and the occasional pop of a log echoed through the silence. All the while Daniel stared at it, still frozen in fear.
"It seems like there are wounds that I cannot heal," Law thought before placing his hand on Daniel's shoulders, breaking him from his paralysis.
Law stood beside him, watching the fire grow slowly within the pit. They stood there, transfixed by the flickering flames as they danced and swayed in the gentle breeze. The smoke curled and twirled, its tendrils reaching up towards the starry sky, but stifled by the makeshift lid above the pit.
aw was the first to break the peace and walked away to retrieve his pack. He dragged the object over and sat it down beside the pit. Daniel took notice and stepped aside, giving him ample room. Law took a minute to dig in his bag, sorting through various small bags of powders, vials of liquids, and cans. A grin crossed his face as he found what he was looking for: a gallon bag containing a few bouillon cubes, salted meat, and a few herbs, which he raised to show Daniel.
"How long until food will be ready?" Daniel asked, drooling at the sight of the meat.
Law had suppressed a chuckle and retorted, "It will take a little over half an hour. Just sit there and..." He was interrupted by the sound of the young boy's stomach growling.
The boy looked embarrassed, and Law realized that the boy most likely hadn't eaten in days, yet kept up with him on this long trek into the wilderness. Only asking for the occasional water and jerky.
"How about I tell a story in the meantime?" Law offered, and he saw Daniel light up in excitement, immediately plopping down in anticipation.
"This is a story my Uncle once told me, one that takes place before the war," Law said, sitting down beside the pot and beginning to cook. His voice took on a soft, storytelling tone as he wove his tale.
"There was once a man named Sam. Now, Sam was a chemist, a job that allowed him to make all sorts of medicine for a wide variety of people. While others in the same field made a lot of money working the large guilds, Sam did not. He worked for a charity group that sold the same drugs for discounted prices. Though, due to the limitations of that organization, oftentimes Sam had to use his own money and work with very few supplies. Despite this, Sam enjoyed his work.
It probably helped that he quickly became well-liked in the community. Everyone knew his name and offered him food anytime he was around. Sam enjoyed the praise and love from the community, but inside, he was still sad. While he was able to help some, he also got to see how much people truly suffered in those times.
While times are rough currently, we know what to expect. During that time, the future was uncertain, with crisis after crisis leaving a deepening scar on society. Communities were forced to rely on themselves, as roads degraded, electricity became as scarce as it is now, medicines became inaccessible, and with the continuing droughts, so was food.
My uncle used to tell me that he didn't know which was worse, the present or the past. Is it better to live in hell and know what to expect, or to watch everything you know fall apart and those who are supposed to help abandon you? Honestly, I don't know either. Watching your heroes embrace the chaos to increase their own power, power that they used to separate themselves further from you and ignore the world's problems, is disgraceful.
"The houses with the big walls!" Daniel interjected into the story, excited by his own discovery.
"Indeed, but before the walls were torn down for building material and the houses picked clean, during those times, they were still vibrant with opulent life," Law replied, all while he stirred the bubbling pot, the aroma of simmering herbs and salted meat wafting through the air. He carefully added a pinch of dried thyme, watching as it dissolved into the broth and infused the liquid with its earthy flavor
Sam was around during the time the bombs finally dropped. The people had feared that this day would come: humanity's grand suicide. In a single day, massive cities were wiped out, communities collapsed, and electronics stopped working. Those who remained were forced to start over again.
Now, Sam survived this mess, and despite losing everything, he continued to work and supply medicine, replacing them all he could with natural alternatives. It was hard work, but he endured.
He passed on his knowledge to anyone who cared to learn, and over time he had a small following. Now being the man who saved countless lives makes you quite popular, so Sam easily had a number of children, not all from the same mother.
"Oh," Daniel calls, his eyes captured on Law's face.
Sam passed down his knowledge and teachings to his children. Teaching them all about his craft until they were as good as him. Some did not take well to the lesson, but he forced his will. He could be quite brutal when it came to this, and as a result, a number of his children grew resentful of him. Upon adulthood, a number had parted ways from Sam and his group, going their own route, but some stayed close to their father, further expanding the group.
One of his children rejected everything he and his group stood for, a young teenage girl named Veronica. Her hatred only grew as she aged, and one night she decided she had enough and left, trading the life of a healer for that of a raider.
"How cruel," Daniel states in mild disgust. Yet Law does not respond, he just continues the story.
Eventually, she grew bored with being a raider and turned to become a mercenary. Until eventually she was well-known enough that she was approached by another faction, the military. Now the military had regained control of what remained of Atlanta and was recruiting survivors into their forces.
These people saw she had value and immediately attempted to recruit her. At first, she refused, but age has a way of wearing you down, the writings on the walls were obvious. Her time as a mercenary was coming to an end, and if she wasn't smart, it would be a fatal ending. So soon enough, she accepted their offer.
She grew within the ranks and was even in the running to take a high-ranking position. However, she got pregnant, and after a rough delivery, she was never the same. Even years later, she wasn't as mobile as before. Still, she was desperate to prove her worth, so she turned to something she had long sworn off: the skill her father once taught her, chemistry. However, instead of making medicine, she turned to making bombs, poisons, and more unsavory things.
Law pours the soup into cups and hands one to Daniel. "Eat slowly."
Daniel nods but immediately tilts the cup up and slurps the liquid down, only to be hit in the head by Law.
"Slowly." Daniel winces in pain, looking at him in mild anger, but nods and with caution slowly sips from the cup.
Law smiles and continues the story, "They appreciated her efforts greatly, and she knew that this skill would secure her family forever. So once more, it became a family business. The Family of Sam, whether from the Veronica branch or the main branch, it did not matter, as throughout the south, everyone knew them as the best chemists. Their knowledge was valuable as it could help you save countless lives or win wars, making it also dangerous if it fell into the hands of your enemies. This eventually led to the desolation of this family as, over the course of decades, they were killed, tortured, and sold off into slavery. No one knows of a single survivor."
Daniel lowers the cup and looks at him in stout confusion, "How did your Uncle know this story if the family vanished?"
Law smiles and begins cleaning the pot out, placing any additional food into Daniel's cup. "That is a good question indeed. But I have a better one. Do you know how to make a smoke bomb?"
Daniel looks confused, "No?"
Law motions for him to move closer as he dims down the flame to a few embers. "All it takes...," he digs in his bag, "...is some sugar and saltpeter." He takes the ingredients and dumps them into the pot. "You stir it until it's a nice sticky syrup, and..." He scoops the globs, placing them in a small glass vase, handing them to Daniel to hold, and then reaches over to the box of matches still resting a few feet away from the campfire.
Law sticks several matchsticks into the vase until the entire entryway is packed with matches. "Add a few matchsticks like so, and you have smoke bombs."
Daniel looks at the vase in confusion before giving way to surprise and excitement, "You are..."
"I am a descendant of Sam," Law finishes, proceeding to place the remains of the syrup into more vases. "Alright, that's it for tonight. Time for you to head to bed."
Daniel looks annoyed but relents as he watches Law proceed to take down the rest of his gear, packing them back into his bag.
"When are we leaving in the morning?"
Law looks at him and replies, "At dawn, so get a good night's rest." Daniel nods and slowly over the course of ten minutes falls asleep.
Law smiles, seeing the boy finally at peace, though the image of how he initially found him crawls out from his memory and taints the peaceful scene. Law frowns, turning away completely in an attempt to dispel the thought from his mind. He rests himself on a neighboring tree and gives himself a couple of hours of sleep, enough to recharge his battery but nothing more.
Law awakens in the dead of night, the moon still hanging high. He takes only a few minutes to prepare himself, grabbing onto his rifle and bag. He heads away from the camp only to stop and turn, calling out in a hushed tone, "I shall return by noon." Hearing no response, he turns and leaves.