Hardin's Dilemma Read online

was in much better health now and I knew that I was the only one in danger this time.

  The hallways looked different that early in the morning. I don’t know what it was, perhaps just my perception of them. I took the elevator down and stepped out of the building into the cold morning air. I zipped my jacket up and walked straight for the dome.

  I saw Orin studying the wall as I approached. He had a bag slung across his shoulder and reached into it when he turned to see me come up.

  “Here, put this on real quick.” He tossed me a blue uniform similar to the one he wore when we found him, which he was wearing again now.

  “Out here?” My teeth were already chattering in the cold.

  “Yes, I didn’t know where your room was so I couldn’t give it to you this morning like I had wanted to.”

  I attempted to quickly change from my warm jacket into the thin blue uniform, but I ended up going very slowly. I hadn’t realized just how cold it was until I took my jacket off.

  “Where did you get this?” I asked while shivering uncontrollably.

  “It wasn’t too hard to find blue pants and a blue shirt in the laundry room, it’s a simple uniform. Oh and here’s your bracelet. And take this pill also. Calrus said that you knew what to do with it if you needed it.”

  He took a bracelet and pill out of the bag and tossed it to me. I quickly put the bracelet on my wrist and struggled to put the blue shirt on. I put the pill in my pocket. He told me the plan as I finished getting ready.

  “Considering how our last encounter with the wall almost killed us, I don’t want to leave the area right on the other side until we are sure there is no one there. If there is even the slightest noise come right back here and we’ll try a few miles down. The only reason we’re not doing that now is because from here it’s a straight shot to Bozlin.”

  “Got it.” I quickly tossed my clothes under the bridge connecting the platform we were on with the city, hoping nobody would take them.

  Despite my complaining the day before about not being in control anymore, I liked Orin being in charge. He knew the best way to Bozlin and probably wandered through that forest many times in his life so I felt safe with him leading the way.

  “Let’s go.” He said with an air of finality.

  We put our wrists up to the wall and instantly felt the warm air of the forest. I opened my eyes to see mostly darkness, with faint outlines of trees all around. We dared not to move until we were certain there was no one else there. For long minutes on end we stood completely still, listening intently to the silence all around. I heard him move forward slowly. I followed close behind. I wished we had guns.

  Our feet crunched the leaves on the ground and we moved even slower. There wasn’t a sound. I wanted very much to be able to just run straight through the trees and be done with the fear but I knew I couldn’t.

  “There doesn’t seem to be anyone around.” Orin whispered as quietly as he could.

  “It always seems that way. It’s impossible to know if they are about to attack.”

  “We should be quiet nonetheless.”

  The sun began to rise somewhere beyond the dome. The way in front of us went from almost impossible to see to gradually lighter before our eyes. We looked in all directions on the ground and even into the trees to try and find if anyone was hiding. No one could be seen. The longer we walked the more it seemed that we were really alone. We walked with increasing ease and speed.

  “You know what I’ve been wondering?” I murmured.

  “What?”

  “Why do you think they didn’t come on through the wall and finish us off?”

  “May have had orders not to or they didn’t want their presence known that obviously to Azureland.”

  “What do you think of Azureland?” I asked him. “I never get to talk to you and ask you things like that.”

  He gave a big smile. “I can’t believe any of it. I’ve been living every day in a state of bliss. In a weird way I’m glad to be back here. Of course I’m glad to try and get my dad and the others out, but I’m also happy to remember what it’s like in here so that when I get back to Wall City I can experience the excitement all over again.”

  For the first time I really saw how young Orin was. He was only about fourteen years old, but presented himself to be much older. I wonder how old he saw me.

  “There’s another thing that’s been bothering me.” I said. “Why do the Bozlins build towns in the open?”

  He laughed. “We are a stubborn bunch. There was no restriction on having kids, as there probably should have been, so the population grew to be pretty large. Once we found out that there was no danger of radiation we started settling outside. That’s when we saw the wall. One of the older people that I knew said that when the wall was first discovered they thought it was a wall to keep us out.” He paused. “Many were killed by the suspected Hums, but we had very stubborn leaders who refused to listen to reason and continued to go out. They hoped that eventually it would stop, or at least they would be able to fight back.”

  I grunted. “I wish the Hums felt that way. Our leader refused to let anybody out and we had to sneak out.”

  “Let’s hope things are better now.”

  I nodded vigorously. “I hope for their sake it is.”

  The large cage thing came and went and pretty soon we were out of the forest. I thanked everything I knew to thank for our getting that far alive. Bozlin wouldn’t be too far. Orin crept stealthily around the grass, now growing tall. I could tell he was looking for one of those grates.

  “Aha.” He suddenly exclaimed, sending me into a defensive stance. “Here we are. Are you ready?”

  The anxiety of being an outsider engulfed me. “If you are sure I’ll be alright.”

  “You’re wearing the uniform, you’ll be fine.”

  He twisted the center of the grate counterclockwise until there was a small mechanical noise and it shot down into the ground. He lowered himself into the hole and dropped down. I heard him hit somewhere below.

  “Come on in.”

  I lowered myself in and let go. I fell with a thud some seven feet down onto the hard floor. My feet crumpled under me and my back hit the ground hard.

  “Sorry about that. I should have warned you it was a bit of a drop.” He helped me up.

  We were in what appeared to be a very long and very dark hallway. It was lit every fifty feet or so by other grates in the ceiling. The walls were brown and metal. Orin twisted the grate on the floor and it shot back up to fill the hole as it did before. It was connected to the ground by a pipe several inches wide. Before I had time to look around too much he was off. I quickly caught up and stayed close.

  “I want to stop by security first to see my dad.”

  Our footsteps echoed loudly in the seemingly endless tunnel we were in. It must have taken us back under the forest, though my sense of direction was lost before too long. The hall ended of a sudden. Orin took a right turn, a left, and another right. Each led to more corridors that looked exactly the same.

  “How do you find your way around down here?” I asked, my voice echoing off the walls.

  “It takes a while to figure out where everything is, but it’s not too bad once you get used to it.”

  We turned down several more hallways before coming out into a larger one with doors on either side. He stopped and threw out his arm. He backed up slowly and went back around the corner.

  “I don’t want anyone to see me yet. We’ll have to take this part cautiously.”

  Together we tiptoed out from behind the corner and made our way into the open. There was no one out at the moment but he seemed to think that there could be soon. Halfway down this area was a metal staircase that went down to a floor below. I looked down and saw several people walking about, all with the same blue uniforms that we wore.

  Orin went to a door on the left side and opened it. It squeaked loudl
y. He slipped inside and motioned for me to do the same. We were now in a very small corridor that extended to a lit room up ahead. He turned to me and mouthed security and continued on.

  I could hear someone talking in the room we were heading towards. It sounded as if they were talking to themselves.

  “No, no, that won’t do.” The voice said. This was followed by a scratching sound of a pencil striking through something.

  The man came into view. He was around forty and had short black hair with gray on the sides. He seemed very tired as he scratched out several more things on the paper he was looking at. He noticed someone was there and looked up. His eyes opened wide, his mouth dropped open, and he dropped his pencil.

  “Orin? You’re alive! How – where were you?”

  “I got out of the wall.” Orin said simply.

  “You what?”

  His father jumped up from his desk and went straight to his son. They embraced for what seemed like a long time.

  “This is Hardin.” Orin said, pointing to me once free of his father’s hug. “He got me through and back.”

  His father came up to me and gave me a hug as well. “Thank you very much, Hardin.”

  He let me go and went back to his son.

  Orin gave me a nod. “He’s a Hum.”

  I wasn’t prepared for that. His dad gave me the most peculiar look that seemed to show that he wasn’t sure if he should be angry or not.

  “He’s a what?”

  “It’s alright. They’re not the ones killing everyone. That’s actually a small country outside the wall.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, dad.”

  His face showed confusion as he attempted to look past forty or so years of teachings. “I welcome you here then.”

  “Now I need your help.” Orin said to his father. “Is there any way that you can get me in to see Ret?”

  Orin’s father didn’t take his eyes off of me. “Yes, I think this is important enough.”

  He pulled his eyes from me with some difficulty and led us from the room. We went down the staircase that I had seen and were amongst others for the first time. Orin kept his head down, not wanting to be noticed. Not that it was too difficult. Nobody even looked our way. Most were also staring at the floor, mumbling to themselves. I sensed an undertone of misery that reminded me of Humurom. I was basically in the same place, an underground bunker full of people who had given up hope years before.

  Orin’s father took us down another level. This place was much bigger than Humurom. After turning down several corners we made it to a door with the word leader on it. He led us inside and down another hallway to the room at the end. A man older than Orin’s father sat behind the desk. He looked as though he could have been seventy, but it was hard to tell in a place like Bozlin. The walls were covered with pencil drawings of all sorts of things, most just interesting designs.

  “What’s this? You’re alive?” The man said when he saw Orin.

  Orin stepped forward. “I can explain everything, Ret, but first I need to tell you what we need to do. We have a way to leave Bozlin forever, and not come back.”

  Ret scoffed. “We’ve tried everything. I don’t think it’s possible.”

  Orin held up his wrist to show the gold bracelet. “It is, with this.”

  “And that is?”

  “The way out through the wall.”

  Ret came forward and grabbed Orin’s wrist. He was so amazed he forgot there was a person attached. “It can’t be.”

  “It is, Hardin here found me and invited me through with him.”

  That’s not exactly how I remember it, but I appreciated that he didn’t say we kidnapped him.

  “And there are no Hums involved?” Ret asked.

  I could feel Orin’s father staring at me.

  “Not a one.” Orin lied.

  “And you are positive it is safe?” Ret inquired, his face full of awe.

  “Yes.”

  “All right then, when do we leave?”

  My mouth dropped open. I never would have thought it could be that easy to convince someone, particularly a leader, to leave their home so easily.

  “Very soon,” Orin said, “but first is there any way that I can let Hardin stay the night?”

  “He isn’t from here?” Ret looked at me as if for the first time.

  “No, I’ll explain tomorrow.”

  Ret continued to look suspiciously at me. “All right, I trust you, Orin.”

  With that obstacle out of the way Orin thanked Ret and we went out to let him organize the exodus. Orin told his father that he would see him later and took me to find their Residence. It was two levels below the Leader Office. I was starting to believe that Bozlin went all the way to the center of the Earth.

  There were two rooms in the apartment. One was his and one was his father’s. There were two hard beds with one blanket a piece and an uncomfortable wooden chair. I tried to take the chair but Orin wouldn’t let me. He put down an extra blanket he got somewhere and I sat on it. I was surprised at how comfortable the blanket made the floor. He left to find something to eat, no longer afraid to be seen.

  I sat on my blanket and looked around the little apartment. I wondered how my life would have been different if I had been born there, with a friend like Orin and a leader willing to leave his home behind for a better one. I put my head back onto the blanket and imagined how great everything would have been. I didn’t know for sure that it would be any different, but as a visitor it seemed like a much better place.

  Orin came back and gave me an orange and some bread to eat. He also gave me several more oranges, some extra bread, and a glass jar of water to take with me. He told me about fruit trees that grew in a special room. They really did have everything to survive. I thought about telling him about Nutrition, but I saw no need to make him think any less of Humurom than he already did.

  I went to sleep a little while later. I didn’t know what time it was but it felt late. My anxiety about not being a Bozlin was gone. In fact it was one of the nicer nights I had had. The hope of getting everyone out of Humurom returned, and I was certain I could accomplish it.

  Orin woke me early. I had gotten so used to being able to see outside when I woke that it was strange not knowing what time it was.

  “Once you’re gone I will tell Ret who you are, I can’t risk it while you are here.” He said as I ate an orange.

  “Thanks, how do I get back in?”

  “I’ll show you how to work the grates.”

  He showed be back through the confusing hallways to the grates that we came in on. He twisted the pipe until the grate came back down. It rested a few inches from the floor.

  “You see this knob?”

  I looked and saw a small metal knob in the center of the grate. “Yes.”

  “It’s clockwise halfway around to get out and counterclockwise halfway around to get back in.”

  “Got it.” I got onto the grate and kneeled down, putting my hand on the knob. “If I’m not back in a week then I’ll either be trapped in Humurom or dead so just go on.”

  “Got it.”

  V

  I twisted the knob clockwise and shot upwards out of Bozlin. The grate came to a jolting stop once back in place. I got up and checked my surroundings. As far as I could see I was alone. I started away from the forest towards Humurom.

  This was the first time I was truly alone since going this same route on the way to getting Mama two months earlier. This time felt different. I had been out so long that I grew soft to my current situation. The fear was present, but the needed sense of constant danger was missing. If Dizurians appeared at that moment I probably would have froze, waiting to be killed.

  The way back was forever engrained into my memory. I could have waited years and still made it without getting lost. There wasn’t much to look at for the rest of the day. There were just fie
lds all around. Once the trees disappeared from view behind me I could see as far as my eyes would let me and saw nothing but grass. As evening came the landscape began to change. Occasionally dead trees entered the mix. By nightfall I had made it a good distance. I wasn’t tired yet and continued on.

  My way was completely dark, and I took steps carefully. I could tell when I made it to the burnt town. I walked straight through it glad that I did not have to look at what was there. An hour after that I finally got to the ground to sleep. The silence was unnerving, but calming at the same time. As long as it stayed silent I knew I was safe.

  The morning dawned and I woke with the light. Without any thought I got up and started again. I ate an orange. It didn’t fill me up but I wanted to save the others in case I needed them to persuade the Hums to come with me.

  Within hours I could see the remains of the town surrounding the bunker. I was making better progress than ever before. I began to grow nervous again. I stepped carefully through the foundations of houses careful to remember that someone could be hiding anywhere. I came to the remains of the church before long. I found the cross in the same place I had put it to remember Milton. I passed with just one glance.

  The large bunker disguised as a mountain stood in the distance. The ladder which probably hadn’t been used in two months could be seen hidden as rock. Instead of taking it up I looked on the ground for the hole I had climbed out of after Matilik had tossed me down a slimy slide into the bomb room. I knew that nobody would ever open the door so my only chance of getting in rested on me being able to climb the slimy slide up to the old Hunting Office. I hoped that someone would hear the knocking and find it strange enough to pry the door open or get Matilik to open it with his key.

  Without intending to I had forgotten to come up with a concrete plan. My attention had been too focused on whether or not they would come with me that I forgot all about getting into the bunker in the first place.

  The hole was well hidden behind a dead tree but I finally found it. Very slowly and carefully I lowered myself down, hung by my fingers, and dropped. I landed better than I had the last time and came away with only slight pain in my legs.

  The six bombs that were said to have destroyed Humurom and Bozlin still sat in their places, unused but blamed for so much. I shook my head at the senselessness of it all and started towards the slide.

  My ears picked up a small noise in the darkness off to my left and I stopped, listening for more. Something was shifting around over there. I turned slowly to see but could not. With more courage than I knew I had, I started towards it. An outline of something long could be seen near the wall. An animal? I hoped so.

  I was not prepared for what happened next. The thing near the wall spoke. My breath caught somewhere in my lungs. The voice sounded hoarse and frail, but I knew exactly what it said, my name.

  I overcame my fear and got on my knees, getting closer to it. There was only one person I still cared about in Humurom, and I had a sinking feeling that this was him.

  “Stud?”

  It made another noise, this time a grunt I took to be a