When they finally secure the guns, Sam becomes happier. He knows those guns will go a long way in helping them reach their goal. Which is to become wealthy through arms sales and get to revamp the economy of Smallsville. He went with Lailan to Fifth Alley and on their way, he saw lots of sinkholes. He paid attention to them. Lillian was all about the terrain but he never got carried away from looking at the sinkholes. He knew somehow that that might be of help.
"That builder over there wasn't there before and now it's been there for over a million years."
"This world is full of strange things. That's basically how mountain ranges formed, right?"
"Yeah and that's why people like me keep trying to solve the universal equation. It's hard though but the discoveries are going to be mind-blowing."
"Yeah, I can see that too. So when do we get to bring Aiden back?"
"Yeah, soon. The charts are coming up closer to where the sinkhole might be located."
"He could have told us."
"Yeah, but he doesn't know if he's in a sinkhole or not. It's harder being in that realm and trying to connect to the next one."
"So we'll have to wait to get more clarity."
"Exactly. And Damien is burning out. We need to do things fast."
"You are right. You lead the train. Let's get him out."
When they entered the last rocky terrain leading to the cave they were going to, they saw werewolves walking around in their wolf form. Mating outside and going through life most naturally. Sam was surprised. Though he has travelled, he hadn't been to this part of Smallsville.
"The werewolves here are the poorest on the island. They are the purest form too."
"I see."
"They have their ways of not interacting with the civilised world. They are trying to improve Earth by not bringing more chaos. But these folks we are meeting, they are rebels. They care about the values but they still want to make money."
"They are smarter."
"I still think those living naturally are smarter. It's just what I think, away from science. I might have missed that though."
They entered the place and found lots of men seated all around on dirty floors scavenging at squirrels roasting over a fire. They were doing something else. They were thinking about life. One of them, a man with a walrus beard, who wore only trousers with his chest opened to the world, was talking to them. It was just like everything was happening for them just like that and they loved the gist. They love the good hoping to make sure they enjoy what they are doing. There wasn't any woman among them and a lot of them had Walrus beards.
When they entered, the light fell on them. The yellow light comes from a lamp placed close to the entrance. Sam was full of questions, his mind was running races. He wanted to know more about them. He felt like he belonged with them.
"Now don't say a word to them. I run the show. If they know you can talk, they might cut out your tongue. I'm not new here. Been here with my father several times."
"Alright." He kept quiet and followed Lailan as they entered deeper into the darker rooms.
He wanted to know more. He wanted to ask the pack questions but he couldn't. He knows fully this is a place for him to learn more about life. More things that he doesn't know.
"Oh!" He thought in his mind. "Now we are in a place to learn a lot of things I don't know before reaching the world of these people.
"Hey, what do you want?" Some werewolves spoke in the wolf voice. Lillian answered them and they laughed and waved at them.
Sam walked closely with Lillian. She thought about what they said again and told the men to fuck off before she blew their heads out.
They ran into alleys with darker red-light grinning as they went.
"Don't mind them," she said. "Those are kids. They asked If they could eat you."
"What?" Sam said.
"Don't worry, that's not going to happen when I'm here. Come with me."
They entered a darker alley now. It's like darkness, twilight and dawn merged and the world stopped moving. The place was silent and one could hear sounds of hearts beating. A voice yelled at them. They get startled by it.
"What do you want?" And the light came on. "State what you want quickly before.."
"It's me, Lillian. I don't need to state to you the daughter of who I'm."
"Lillian," the voice changed into that of a woman. And a lady reached out to them. She is a damsel and wore a gown reaching the floor and flowing like a wedding gown. Sam couldn't take his eyes off her. He's never been engrossed before.
"Lillian, it's been ages. Where have you been?"
"I have been fine. Work and you know development. I have been busy lately."
"Oh, and you didn't invite me to your wedding. But never mind I sent my men to you."
"Thank you, Whitney. "
"Who is this man with you? I know he's not your husband."
"Clearly. He is accompanying me here. Found him on the road loitering about. You heard of the recent attack on Smallavile?"
"Yes. He must be an orphan then. Can't he talk?"
"He's deaf and dumb."
"Oh, that's why he's looking at me like a zombie. Sit down. Lash, bring some drinks."
***
After they met with her, Sam knew they were in a different world and because of that you just have to come down and listen to everything she has to say. Her voice was like serenity. The wisdom in her words was like strength. She said facing Sam.
"When you are in a world, learn to live simpler. With that, you'll get to see things for what they are."
"But we need the guns to make things simpler, " Lillian told her.
"I understand, Lillian. And at the same time, I'm talking from experience. You know I've been here more than 200 years."
"Of course, I know. My dad told me."
At that point, Sam nearly spoke but he quickly controlled himself.
"You can have the guns, but I don't want to have anything to do with the outside world. Guns are toys here. We have no use for them."
They got the guns and she allowed them to stay for the night. They stood outside for a while to get to see the stars and everything seems different from what it used to be in Smallsville.
But then some thought about it came to his mind. He really loves to leave there forever. He wants to be part of the progress people are making there and somehow he has been offered the fullest. He couldn't say anything to the people, he couldn't ask them questions, and he couldn't tell them he wanted to be part of them.
The stars in the night sky look amazing and the underline that comes between them and the Moon makes the world look like it's not going to end forever. It makes everything look like the chaos everyone is running away from is just another exposure to all our life that we need to explore.
It dawns on Sam deep down thinking about all these, he doesn't know what to think or rather how to understand what is happening. He knew somehow that he Is going to be part of the change, part of everything that will bring back his friends Damien even though they were not really friends. He wants them to be friends, a close ones. He wants Catherine and Alpha to be together forever but things are different smallsville is rotting.
The world itself has forgotten about them, but here they are in a blissful world where people mind their business and go about things gentler, enjoying and growing themselves and love music, dancing and are under the moon basking in the bliss of what everything has to offer to them.
***********
On their way back to Smallsville, the next day, Sam couldn't stop thinking about everything they have seen in the little world of those amazing werewolves and she-wolves. He thought about it for a while and then looked around because they went on the broken bike they found close to the bower. It was repaired by Lillian and because of that they had to be fast and we're not talking much about it while going back home to Smallsville from Fifth Alley. A lovely place he will like to be forever.
Smallsville would have been that simple too if not for what has been happening.
"Though Fifth Alley and those particular cases are part of Smallsville at the same time they are detached from it."
"I can see that, " Sam said. "I have been to the other part of Fifth Alley before, things are so much difference where we just left."
"Lovely place. I know you like it there. I heard Smallsville was peaceful before too."
"It was really peaceful. I grew up seeing Alex Guero ruling well. Things just change suddenly."
"You couldn't pin it right?"
"Yeah. People have versions of the stories. You will hardly find who to believe."
"That is it. But then a whole lot more has happened that has destroyed the focal point of smallsville because if those caves couldn't fair well then I think the focal should solve its problems."
"You are right. We will get there too. We have guns now. What are we going to use them for, Lillian?"
"We don't have to stop our plans. We will go ahead with them and see what comes next."
"Alright," Sam said.
"If that's the case we need to do it fast because the earlier we bring back Alpha the better for Damien."
"Sure," Sam said.
Though Lillian barely knows Alpha. She only came to Smallsville when Fifth Alley's labs were destroyed.
"When everything starts we have to be smarter about intel."
"Sure," Sam said. "If that's the case then we have to be faster about how we understand where the sinkhole is," Sam added.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. We have to do that to be sure. That we should do faster because it's necessary we know where the sinkhole is before we can bring him back and also you can see that Damien is dying if we don't bring Alpha back faster. If Damien dies everything will stop. Alpha will not come back."
"I don't want that to happen, so I'm set."
"It's better that way, Sam."
"Those guys mean so much to me. You might not know it, though we are not really close that much someone I have come to admire. So, I don't want him to die."
"Alright. We shall see with that lets too. Let's get back to the bower first and see what we can do."
They continued moving on the road. They saw a lot of things. Dead bodies, animals, and burnt down houses that look like high-end bones fed to the broken roads.
Smallsville, which once had a booming economy, that once flourished with flowers, has now been turned into the past. Into something unrecognisable. Most of the trees are gone.
The very few that remained looked blind and poor. People hardly come. Most of them stay indoors and most are dead.
Sam thought about it for a while. He thought about this experience, he thought about how people could just continue living their life, how they are enjoying everything, then he recalled that he was a kid. He recalled he couldn't feel pain like he does now. He couldn't see what his parents were going through to make sure they made life easier for him. He just knows that now and he has to be there for some people too.
The children in the Bower, the Hound and everyone else in Smallsville. He's going to sacrifice himself for them.
"Your life depends on what you do now," Sam said. Lillian smiled.
"You memorised her words." She said retrospectively.
"Sort of. They are nice words. You are a very smart woman, Lillian. Don't know how many years it took you to learn everything that you know."
Lillian smiled. She seemed flattered but she's gotten lots of that from people.
"Why do you want to know? Like I thought it was so many years at the university and I work with my dad. Both my parents were scientists and I also Married a scientist, so everything seems to revolve around that. And at the same time, we didn't stop exploring other forms of science. like I told you Martha Steward was a friend of the family."
"That's great. I will make sure that I also achieve a lot of things before I move from this world."
Lillian smiled. "You are amazing, Sam and I know that you'll end up doing a lot of amazing things in this world. Look right now you are helping your friends and they are all good people. Look at Catherine and Sarah, they are good friends trying to help people bring things to life. Sometimes, I think goodness follows goodness but not always."
"Alright, if that's it then I will have to work harder to get there."
There was a silence between them and the journey continued. It was rickety but steadily just like everything one tries the first time.
They went deeper into Smallsville. It was getting tonight when they finally arrived and the bower was there just as it was. To Sam, everything seemed like they were not new but then at the same time, they seemed new. The cave has changed him and he knows he'll long to be there forever.
***
When they entered the bunker, they found Damien's friend with them. Sarah and Catherine sat across the table, he was reading a poem to Damien. His voice was a flower itself. And at first, nobody moved. They listened to him in silence.
"Amazing. You will read that to me again but not now," Sam said. "I am tired. Probably need to rest now."
"Hey," Catherine and Sarah said.
"How are you guys doing?" Lillian asked.
"Awesome! Damien said more words and you are the only ones that can read it." Catherine said.
"Oh, let me see it." She moved closer to her.
Sam went straight into the room and threw the bags of guns down beside him. It has been a journey full of experience. He knew something had shifted in him. He knew he needed to do things better. And now he knows they need to get to work faster and make sure they get Aiden and Damien back.
He shook his head and looked at the ceiling. They have been looking at the ceiling but there isn't anything there. He heard the ladies giggling but he shut it out to listen to his inner voice.
***
When the children ran into the room to greet him, he was sound asleep. They woke him up after pretending to be singing. He looked at them and smiled. They danced around him. One of them was pulling him.
Tina shouted. She is still pulling his left leg. "Sam has woken up. What did you bring for me?"
"You are asking for yours alone, Tina. What about the others?"
"I don't care about them. If they want candy they will come and ask for it. We don't get what we don't ask for." She giggled and continued pulling his left leg like she really wanted to remove it.
"I will bring you guys something soon. Can you go over to Catherine's?" He yawned and went back to bed.
"I need to sleep. Please, Tina, Sam needs to sleep."
"I won't allow you to sleep, Sam," Tina said. She jumped on the bed and started laughing.
"Sam will not sleep. Sam will not sleep. Wake up sleepy head.."
Sam covered his head with a pillow, Tina jumped on him laughing. The other children had already gone away. Tina is the most playful and happiest among them. She has been one since day one.
***
Boy, as Damien calls him, hasn't left. He told them he'll love to stay with them and help out. They agreed. He sat close to Damien and Sarah asked him his name.
"I'm Adam Tim. I already know all your names." He smiled and held the book in his hand tighter.
"I have to introduce myself then since you know me that much," Sarah said. Catherine and Lailain walked into the room.
"Not really. I only know you are Sarah. That's a lovely name. It sounds like Lalla and I heard people go to lalaland."
"Oh, that. You are funny."
"I get that a lot but not to my dad. He said my jokes are dry and he is hilarious but then I listened to them and found nothing special."
"Oops! Then you have a competition."
"The old man was only challenging me to encourage me but then I got pissed off when he thinks I am made for jokes later on. I mean then I already discovered poetry and words. You know..."