Lindi's Lament

Lindi snuggled down between her parents and looked up in the sky amazed at the millions of specs of light sprinkled across the black. At 12 she was probably a bit old to be sharing a bed with her parents, but here is where she felt comfort, especially camped out in the open. It was not just the animals she feared, but the armies that marched across the land and the bombs that rained down from the heavens. Here though, between her mother and father she felt like everything was going to be fine.

She rolled onto her side propping her head up with one hand and reaching towards her mother with the other. She gently picked up the little gold heart shaped locket loving how the decorative bumps and the tiny chained bow above the heart felt. Inside this precious locket were two pictures one of her parents and one of her and her older brother. She missed Lyon so much, how many times in these past seven months had she turned fully expecting him to be there by her side or thought to herself “Lyon will love this, I can’t wait to tell him,” only to remember he was dead and she could never talk to him again. Tears spilled out as she silently thanked him again for saving her life. Why did we have to go to the store that day she questioned for the millionth time. It had been a beautiful autumn day though and with some money in their pockets and news from friends that the store actually got a supply of candy, a long lost treat, they skipped off to buy some. Standing there debating which of the three treats offered they would like the sirens blared out, but they had heard those nearly everyday of their life, they hadn’t let them stop fun in the past and it was no different now. The next thing she knew though, she was blown over by some unseen force. Stupidly her first thought was, “dang, I’m not going to get some candy now.” Then the pain took over and the fear of not being able to move. Lyon was calling her name and she finally squeaked out, “I’m here.”

“You’re stuck under shelves! Are you ok?”

“I think so,” she said as he put all his strength into lifting the shelf enough for her to slide out.

“Hurry, it’s heavy.”

“I’m trying, everything hurts though!”

He reached with one arm and helped her, then they made their way with others towards daylight unsure if it was a door or a hole. They were close when someone yelled, “it’s coming down!” Lyon pushed her out into the daylight right before the building collapsed.

Her mom reached up and gave her hand a squeeze, bringing her mind back to the present. She set the locket down on her mom’s chest knowing that with the pictures was also a small paper folded to fit inside. That paper held the information to their survival.

“Mom, tell me about where we are going again.”

“Oh, it’s a beautiful place Tani. You’ve been there before, but it was a long time ago. There are gorgeous mountains and beautiful valleys with streams and lakes filled with fish. Rich farm land and orchards for miles and miles. The most beautiful part though will be the shield they have developed. It’s going to keep all of the fighting out, so we can live in peace again and go back to a normal life. That’s why they have started calling it Harmony. It will be wonderful Lindi, there will be so many things we can do without the fear of constant death hanging over us.”

“I hate that we have to leave our home. Why is the world even at war? Why can’t everyone be nice?”

Lindi’s dad pulled her closer and began, “I don’t even remember how it all got started, some simple thing and it escalated quickly. The various nations around the world were like little kids on the school yard playground who after the build up of small upsets, ‘he took my ball, I called the swing first, you promised to play with me, that’s not how you play it, my game is better,’ one kid finally tips over the edge and bam a fight breaks out. All the other kids join in or egg one kid or another on. Normally a teacher or parent steps in and helps resolve the issue nicely, only this time the bigger ones started fighting about who was right and wrong as well. Like a wildfire it spread fast and furious, every nation joining in the fight to make sure they got what they wanted, then in revenge for something they lost. No one is willing to step back and risk losing even a small amount, but in reality we are all losing everything. So many have died, and all the fighting is destroying the resources of the world. Soon there will be nothing left for anyone to fight over. That is why we are going to Harmony, we want a better life for you. We want you to live a life without fear and where you can learn and grow and experience freedom from bombs and bullets. We have a long ways to go still, especially since the car broke down, and not much time before the shield goes active. We need our rest so we can keep going.” He continued as he ran his hand over her eyes making them blink closed, “so, silly girl of mine, close those eyes and get some sleep instead of trying to solve the issues of our world.”

She giggled and wanted to keep talking, but exhaustion from the days long walk won and in a moment or two she was sound asleep.

She woke with a jerk when a hand gently covered her mouth and the whisper of her father’s stressed voice came into her ear. “Don’t make a sound, soliders are moving in. Be as quite as a mouse, get your supply bag and follow right behind me.”

She was shaking which made it more difficult to be quite, but she tried and remembered their plan. They knew this was a possibility when they set off, and her dad had gone over what to do many times. Get her things quickly then go right behind dad and mom would go behind her until they got to a safe location. She followed her dad for what seemed like hours and hours, stopping here and there as her dad heard a sound near by. She was thankful it was a full moon making it easier to see, but also terrified because that meant they were easier to spot. Eventually they came to the remains of an old home that nature was reclaiming. Her dad went inside then motioned for them to follow.

“Ok, we are safe for now, they have already been through here. The downside is we have lost access to the easier path. Let’s try to get some more rest before the sun comes up.”

They slept fitfully the few remaining hours of night and were awake with the first hint of dawn in the dark sky.

“Dad, is that army heading for Harmony?” Lindi asked when she was sure he was awake.

“I believe they are. It is supposed to be a secret, not even everyone within the shield range knows, but secrets always get out. That is how we learned about Harmony, you remember when my friend Jayden came?” Lindi nodded her head. “He wanted to make sure we knew what was happening and help make a plan for us to get to his home. I would not be the least bit surprised to find this army has found out and are making their way to the main command center to take it over, so they can use the shield for themselves. We better get moving sweet pea, we have a lot of rugged ground to cover.”

For weeks they climbed hills and made their way through thick brush and over wide streams, wishing the army had not taken over the old roadway they planned to follow.

Sitting on top of a hill they just summited her mom pointed to another one of in the distance, “You see that one there Lindi? That’s the one we are heading for, once we get in the valley on the other side we are in the safe zone. It won’t be too long now.”

Lindi stared in amazement; they were close enough to see it now!

They next day they started off as normal and were in high spirits. The descent down the hill proved to be more difficult than it looked. They were more than half way down when Lindi’s mom slipped and fell hard.

“I am fine,” she said, but the huge cut on her leg and scratches all down her side said otherwise. Lindi helped her dad and mom clean all the wounds, and had to turn away when her dad, using a needle, sewed the large cut together.

The injury slowed her mom down, but they still had time before the shield was supposed to activate, so they took it slow and easy. Each day her mom seemed to go even slower and the pain was getting worse instead of better. Her dad was concerned about the ring of redness that kept getting bigger and the slight fever her mom was starting to get. “I’ll be fine,” her mom reassured him. “We will make it inside the safe zone tomorrow, we can deal with it then.”

The next day they made it down the last hill. They came out of a tree line and were starting to cross a large open area. Lindi’s long blonde braids bounced as she skipped just ahead of her parents, excited they were almost there. She looked out at what was going to be their new home, and saw an odd bluish green line flicking in the sky. “What is that?” she asked pointing.

Her dad looked and his face went white, “It’s the shield, they are days early, RUN!”

Lindi took off going faster than she ever had in her life, they had to beat it, they just had to. She could see the line moving downward and she smiled realizing she was going faster. She crossed over where it would land and turned to jump into her mother and fathers arms and scream for joy! They were not there though; they were not right behind her like she thought. Panicked she saw them far behind, her dad trying hard to support her mom and move them quickly. Lindi could see they were not going to make it in time and she started to go back to them.

“NO” her parents both yelled so she hesitated torn between obeying and helping.

Her dad yanked the locket from her mom’s neck. She watched mesmerized as it flew through the sky the sun glinting off the gold. It landed just inside the shield line right before the shield came down completely. Lindi looked from the locket to her parents fear and anguish boiling under her skin. Why had she stopped instead of going to them, why had she run without even thinking of helping? They were right there, so close, but separated forever now. She went to reach out for them and saw the panic in their faces and knew it would mean her death if she tried touching the shield. Her parents looked at her, and with tears streaming down their face, pointed to the locket. Lindi knew exactly what they wanted her to do, find the address on the paper inside. They had given her the gift of life free from war and destruction, but was it really going to be worth it without them?

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Read more about Lindi’s life in my story “Lindi’s Longing,” just click on the link below!