The Benders: Part II

            After fighting for over fifty years, the rebels lost to the tenth emperor, Kundun.  In his old age the emperor became wise and brought peace to his country so that another civil war would not happen, ever again. 

            When Emperor Kundun died, his son Yoshi became emperor but he was not like his father.  Emperor Yoshi saw that the majority of the rebels were benders, people who could control one of the four elements by the time they reach thirteen.  Emperor Yoshi feared and persecuted benders.  He passed a law that every bender had to be register and shortly after that, many benders were executed.  Many men, women, and children died and villagers disappeared from the map.  Non-benders joined the Emperor out of the fear of how much power the benders had. 

            After twenty years of ruling, not a single bender was left or known.  However there were some benders who were yet to be discovered and take their place in the world.

            In a small village, very far away from the capital lived a newly wed couple.  The children grew up as poor farmers in their village and as children became best friends.  When the two got married, they became happy and became happier when they were expecting their first child. 

“It’s a girl,” said the local doctor.  The husband and wife rejoiced for their healthy child and finally became a family of three. 

“Is the priest here?” asked the wife and just when she said that, the priest entered their small hut.  The priest walked over to the newborn and placed her hand on the child’s forehead. 

“This child will be gifted with strengths and kindness.  She will become a great person and everyone will know her name,” said the priest. 

“She needs a name,” said the doctor who got out the birth certificate. 

“Hope,” said the wife and the child smiled up through the small hole in the hut, staring at the bright blue sky as if being amazed by the happiness and wonders of the world. 

            “Hope!” yelled the wife and the girl poke her head from the top of the tree with a huge grin.

“Up here!” she exclaimed and jumped down.  She ran to her mother’s side and helped her with the work on the farm. 

“Pick those carrots, they are ready to be cooked,”

“Yes, mommy,” but the girl became distracted by a rabbit and held the rabbit in her hand.  She smiled at it and petted it as if it was her best friend.  Then she saw a bigger rabbit near a tree.

“Go home little guy,” she said as she placed the rabbit down to return to its mother.  Unknown to the girl, her own mother was watching her and smiled.  Although her daughter was always on the move, she had her moments to be still and kind.  Her parents became proud of her. 

            The girl grew quickly as the years passed.  She became strong and could easily fight with the boys in the village, which often made them jealous.  However she helped everyone even if they did not ask for it.  The people of the village including the priest became very proud of her and many couples with young males saw her as a very potential wife for their sons due to her strengths and kindness.  Despite being strong and kind, she was also a great cook, worker, and sewer.  She was also very beautiful and many families would like her to be married into their families.  She was perfect in many ways except that she was often a tomboy. 

            Starting as a child she got into fights with the boys, came home bruised or muddy from playing, and sometimes her strength got the better of her.  Sometimes you could see her temper and she never wanted to be a proper young lady.  Hope was often alone in the trees, wondering about the world and her own future. 

“Hope!  Hope!  It’s time,” said her mother and Hope jumped out of the tree just like she did when she was a young child. 

“Wash up and get ready,” her mother said and Hope gave her a look.  A look that said she did not want to participate in the ceremony but her mother knew she would do it anyway. 

            Hope washed up and dressed in her finest clothes.  She walked with her mother to the center of the village.  She stood in line with a boy in front and behind her.  The line went boy girl boy girl and so on.  Then on her right was her father just as the boys had their mother’s on their right. 

“I’m proud of you,” her father said and gave her a kiss.  Hope smiled and when the drum sounded, the whole village came out and gathered around the young teenagers.  The first teen and his mother walked up to the priest, bowed, and the boy was blessed.  Then a girl and her father went up and then the next pair and the next.  Eventually Hope and her father walked up to the priest. 

“I bless thee, Hope,”

“Amen,” and the priest put holy water on her head.  She walked away with her father and found her mother in the crowd.  The three of them hugged and returned to their hut where a feast was waiting for the three of them. 

“Thirteen is a huge step,” said her mother. 

“Remember Hope, you are no longer a child.  You are now a young lady.  Although you will always be my little girl,” said her father with a big smile. 

“I know,” said Hope smiling back. 

“Eat up you two.  Hope I made your favorite dish,” said her mother and Hope dropped her mouth when she saw the cook duck.  She hugged her mother and gave her kisses on the cheek. 

“I love you guys!” exclaimed Hope. 

            After the feast Hope returned to her tree.  She sat on a branch and stared at the sky.  She knew she was not really thirteen.  She would be thirteen when the sun was higher in the sky and she waited till the sun was higher up in the sky to consider her self thirteen.  She waited for the sun and was both anxious and excited.  As a thirteen year old she would have more power in the village, but she would also have many responsibilities.  But she believed that she was ready. 

“Now I’m thirteen,” she told her self and then she felt something.  It was inside her body but it was not painful but it felt uncomfortable.  She did not know what the feeling was and at first she thought she was just nervous.  Then it happened.

            She opened the palm of her hand and in her palm was something hot but it was not burning her.  In her palm was a flame.  She closed her palm and the flame went away.  She opened her palm again and the flame was there.

“Stay calm,” she told her self and she closed her eyes.  With her palm still open, she was able to get rid of the flame. 

“Stay calm,” she told her self again. 

            Hope did not understand what was going on with her body but she knew whatever the flame was, it was nothing that she was taught in school.  They told her what to expect as a young lady, but flames were not part of it.  She kept her powers a secret and started to teach her self-how to control her flames.  After a few months she was able to blast the flames from her palms, fists, and feet.  Then she got the courage to (sort of) tell her parents.

“Mom, were there ever fire people?” she asked during dinner. Her mother gave a worried look to her father.  Her father looked back at her mother with a pale face with the same worried look. 

“What do you mean dear?” asked her father joining in the conversation. 

“Well, were there ever people who could, I don’t know, summon flames?” and by the looked on her parent’s faces, she hit a soft spot. 

“Hope, did someone talk to you about this?  One of your friends?” asked her father.

“It was a story I heard from the other kids.  They said that there were once people who could control fire.  Is it true?” she said lying to them. 

“No,” said her mother and Hope looked down at her dish.

“Sophia, she will learn sooner or later,” said her father and Hope quickly raised her head.  Sooner or later? 

“She’s too young,” her mother said quickly to her father. 

“Mom, I want to know.  Was it true?” she asked and everything went quiet.  Then her mother waved her hand, giving her father permission to tell her. 

“A long time ago, there was a civil war in our country.  I’m sure you now this,”

“Yes,”

“Well, there were gifted people.  These people could control one of four elements, water, earth, fire, and wind.  They were called benders,”

“What side did they fight on?”

“Both sides,”

“What happened to them?”

“Emperor Yoshi felt that they had too much power.  Once he became Emperor he got rid of them all,”

“But these people did exist?”

“Yes,” replied her father.

“Were they born with these abilities?”

“Yes, however their abilities did not take form until their thirteenth birthday,” 

“But Emperor Yoshi got rid of them?”

“Yes,”

“Good riddance,” said her mother with an angry look on her face. 

“Was anyone in our family…benders?” Hope asked her parents.

“My grandfather was a fire bender.  Your mother’s parents were also fire benders,” and when her father said that Hope’s mother got up and walked out of the hut. 

“Why does mom not like them?” asked Hope.

“It’s not that she does not like them.  Because her parents were fire benders, your mother’s childhood was not easy.  During most of her childhood she lived in a lock down facility in the city.  She never met her parents; the government got rid of them when she was a few days old.  Once your mother was thirteen and proved to not be a bender, she was sent to our village.  The priests took her in and the rest is history,”

“Dad, do you believe there are benders today?”

“Oh, no.  The government created a cure so that no one can become a bender.  You got the vaccinated when you were only an infant.  There are no more benders so there is nothing to fear, sweet heart,”

            Hope did not say anything that night and could not fall asleep.  The government hated benders and she knew that if they found out she was one, they would kill her.  Then she thought that if she had a child and the government discovered she was a bender, then the first thirteen years of her child’s life would be horrible and in the end the child might die by his or her thirteenth birthday.  Hope did not know weather to tell or not tell her parents. 

            It was late and Hope knew she could not hide the secret from her parents.  She also knew that she could not tell them the truth for their own safety.  She was afraid that she would have to live her whole life in secret and that her parents would keep a constant eye on her and her mother would hate her.  Hope quietly got out of her bed and packed the few belongings she had.  She walked out of the hut and into the village; there she found a horse that was owned by the priest.  Hope was about to steal it when she heard someone behind her. 

“I know what you are,” said the priest.  Hope turned to see the elder woman standing with her walking stick but she had a huge smile on her face. 

“I do not understand,” Hope said.

“I am a old woman.  I’ve lived a long life and I know when I see a bender.  Even if you were just an infant.  I knew from the beginning that you were special and that you might leave someday,” Then the priest lifted her hand up and water from the water jugs started to rise.  They started to twist and bend by the control of the priest. 

“You’re a water bender,” Hope said amazed.  Then the priest stopped bending and return the water to their jugs. 

“Yes.  I’m the first water bender in my family since my great grandmother and I know that you are a fire bender.  Listen to me Hope.  Take my horse and leave.  I know that your destiny is not here.  I’ve known since the day you were born that you had a role to play,”

“I do not understand,”

“You will, my child.  Get on and leave.  Hurry before the villagers wake up,” Hope climbed onto the horse and thank the priest and was off.  She knew where she had to go.  She was heading towards the capital. 

            Hope was amazed by the capital.  The buildings were tall and the rich people had cars.  There were a lot of people and stores.  There were no farmers or traveling merchants.  There were parks, trolleys, food stands, and lots of noise.  Hope did not have any money so she sold the horse and used the money for food.  Eventually night fell and Hope found a place were many people were sleeping in the ally. 

            Hope woke up to a loud noise.  A man was crying and he was on the ground.  Standing on top of him were three thugs.  Hope rushed to the man and bend down to make sure he was all right. 
“Get away from here little girl.  You have no business here.  If you get in our way, we’ll kill you too!” said one thug.  One of them grabbed Hope by the arm, but Hope was able to flip him over her solders.  Then Hope realized that she had got her self into a street fight.  Then she accidentally used her fire bending to scare them because she got angry at them for hurting a defenseless man.  The thugs could not believe their eyes and ran off.

“We’re going to tell the cops on you!” one of them yelled. 

“You’re a fire bender!” exclaimed the man on the ground.  The man became so afraid of her that he pushed her aside and wobbled away. 

“Don’t come near me ever again!” he yelled back as he disappeared.  Hope then realized that she had to leave the ally before the cops found her. 

“Hey, over here,” said a voice.  Hope looked towards the shadows and could make out the shape of a human.

“Whose there?” Hope asked.

“My name is Gerald.  I’m almost sixteen.  I’m an earth bender,” he said. 

“Yeah?  Prove it,” Hope said and the boy showed his skills to her. 

“Come with me, I know a safe place,” he said and that was when the two of them heard the police alarms.

“Hurry!” he said and he started to run and Hope followed. 

            The two ran down into the sewers and watch the police run above ground looking for them.  Once the police were gone, Hope thanked Gerald for saving her. 

“We benders have to watch out for each other, this way,” he said and after turning many corners and walking down many dark tunnels, Hope started to see a light near the end.  When Hope got closer to the light she was amazed to see an underground community!

“What is this?” she asked.

“Benders.  All of us or at least most of us are benders, except the children.  They’re just children of benders,” and many children ran to Gerald once they saw him.  The adults were also happy to see him and gave Hope smiles too. 

“Who is this?” asked an elderly man. 

“Hope,” she said and shook his hand. 

“Welcome to the secret underground society of benders.  I am Mr. Chu.  I am the leader of this community and an air bender,”

“Do all benders live here?” asked Hope.

“We have many other communities in the other cities and out in the wood areas and deserts,”

“Mr. Chu.  It’s almost time,” said a man behind him and Mr. Chu nodded. 

“Excuse me, young ones,” said Mr. Chu and he walked away with the man into a backroom. 

“Time for what?” asked Hope as she faced Gerald.

“To show the world that we benders are still here.  We are going to start a second civil war.  Not to destroy the non-benders but to bring peace back to our country,” 

The Benders: Part I

            There is a place where the people live in harmony and peace with one another.  They respect all life and many seek a spiritual path to find enlightenment.  There are some people who are gifted with powers to bend one of the four elements: earth, fire, water, or air.  However one can only discover if he or she is a bender once he or she turns thirteen.  In this world benders and non benders live in harmony and realize that one can not exist without the other.  But that is all about to change because of a revolution. 

            During the tenth year of the Emperor Kundun in one of the countries, many citizens were upset with the social class system.  No one could move or up or down in the class system, not even through marriage.  A couple was executed because they were in love but no in the same social class, this was a spark to the revolution.  The people started to go against their Emperor and thus a revolution was born. 

            My father woke me up before the sun came up.  My mother was also awake and I rubbed my eyes and my father tried to wake up my younger brother.  I put a blanket around me since it was a cold morning. 

“I will have breakfast ready when you return,” my mother told us.  My father, brother, and I left the hut to go to our farm.  It was a small plot, but it was big enough to feed four people.  We made little holes in the ground to plant the seeds.  We grew vegetables such as squash, pumpkin, corn, lettuce, tomatoes, and more.  The farm helped us pay our taxes and bring food to our home.  We did not have enough money to have cattle so we did everything by hand.  The planting, plowing, picking, and so on, but every year I realized that I got stronger. 

            We returned home shortly after dawn and my mother had corn bread ready for us to eat.  I sat down on the ground next to my mother and father and across from my younger brother.  I ate only the one corn bread but it was enough to make me feel full. 

“Drink some water,” my father told me as he handed me the cup.  He also handed a cup to my brother. 

            Although we were poor and lived in a one-room hut that was always either too cold or too hot, we were happy.  It’s true that we had nothing and relied on our farm but as long as we had each other that was all that matter.  My parents were always happy even when the hurricanes ruined our farm.  One year we only had enough crops to pay the taxes but not to feed us.  My father found work but it only brought food to our table once a day and some days we did not get any food.  Although we were starving that year and my brother and I cried my parents were still happy. 

            Since I was four I spent a lot of time with my father on the farm.  My father was also a bender.  He could bend fire and he was able to set up the fire in the fireplace when it got cold.  He also helped keep our neighbors warm as well.  He told me that he never had to use it for evil purposes and those that do uses it for evil purposes are not men but monsters.  He told my brother and I that monsters will never find peace and happiness and will never enter Paradise. 

            After we ate our breakfast my family and I went into the village.  It was a nice long walk but I loved passing the trees and seeing them bend and sway in the wind.  I also loved feeling the dirt underneath my feet because it reminded me of how God created the Earth out of love for his people.  Sometimes my younger brother complained about the walking and one of my parents would carry him.  Unlike him, I enjoyed the walk.  I remembered that on that day the sky was blue without any clouds in the sky.  The sun was hot and I felt it’s heat on the top of my head but the wind helped cool down my body in the sun.  Sometimes I purposely walked under the trees to be in the shades.  It was a perfect day, not too hot and yet not too cold. 

            The village was busy with traders and merchants.  My parents told me to ignore the tents that were set up because we had no money.  As farmers we had very little money and could not afford luxurious things such as vases, plates, statues, etc.  We walked passed the merchants and to the temple.  We walked through the gates and stood in the courtyard.  Around us were different temples, each containing a different God. 

“Come,” said my mother and my family and I walked into the temple of the God of the Harvest.  We sat on the ground, cross our legs and prayed to him.  I prayed for a good harvest with lots of food to pay taxes and eat.  When I was done praying I waited for my family and when they were done we walked up to the front of the altar and burned incense.  Then we walked to the main temple that was at the far end on the opposite side of the gate where the temple the supreme God was. 

            Many people were in the temple and at the end of the room there was no altar because this God had no face or any features.  No one knew what he looked like and some people say he is invisible.  This God is the God that created everything including the minor Gods.  This God created humans, the Earth, and controlled everything.  My family found a place to sit and we sat down to pray.  I prayed for God to watch over my family and bring us happiness and peace. 

            After praying to him, we walked up to his altar to burn incense.  Unlike the other temples this God was the only God who received offerings besides incense such as food, water, juice, wine, flowers, vases, toys, etc. 

            When we left God’s temple we sat in the center of the courtyard to meditate.  Everyday we had to clean our body and mind both physically and non physically.  This was hard on my younger brother since his patience was very short and found this trip to be boring.  He was just a normal eight year old.  I remembered that he started to cry because he wanted to go home and take a nap.  He was getting restless and started to pull on our parent’s arms to try to get them to pay attention to him.  I knew that he was ready to scream however when he screamed I heard something else. 

            Right when my brother screamed, I heard what sounded like an explosion.  Everyone in the temples became frighten and earth started to shake.  Some people ran to get out of the temples and other stayed to pray. 

“What’s going on?” my mother asked but my father could not answer. 

“We’re leaving,” he told her and my mother picked up my younger brother and my father picked me up.  We left the temple grounds and I closed my eyes and clung to my father.  I heard people screaming and what sounded like buildings falling.  I was wondering if it was an earthquake but then I remembered that we never got earth quakes.  I opened my eyes to look over my father’s shoulder. 

            People were running and screaming.  Buildings were falling and every building was on fire!  I then saw who was responsible.  I saw men, women, and children dressed in a uniform that I never seen before.  I saw benders using their bending to hurt others.  Earth benders were making the ground shake, fire benders were setting places on fire, air benders were creating small tornadoes, and water benders were drowning people.  There were even nonbenders using guns to guns to kill people.  My village became a battleground. 

            I was too scared to talk, walk, and cry.  I was shocked and did not understand what was happening.  My family and I were able to return to our small hut on the outskirts of the village.  I saw a huge smoke cloud in the distance.  

“Will they come here?” my mother asked my father as we entered the hut. 

“I do not know,” my father replied.  My father looked at all of us and we looked back at him. 

“Pack as much as you can, we need to leave.  If they come here they will destroy this hut and hurt all of us.  I will not let them hurt my family,” my father said.  I listened to my father and started to pack.  My brother wanted to bring a lot of stuff with him such as his cups, plates, pillows, blankets, but I had to remind him that we could only take what we could carry and he started to through a tantrum.  My mother had to calm him down.  While my mother was calming my brother down she gasped as she looked through a hole in our wall. 

“There here!” she said looking at my father.  My father was very stilled and looked at us. 

“Set,” he said looking at me, “I need you to take Anubis and go into the high grass.  I want you to stay there and hide.  If they come after you I want you to run and hide in the woods.  If they find you in the woods I want you to keep running to keep your brother safe,”

“What about you and mother?” I asked him.  I did not want to be separated from my family.  Especially my mother and father. 

“Listen to me, Set.  Your brother and you are small enough to hide in the tall grass.  They will spot your mother and I and then we will all be in danger.  Your mother and I will find another place to hide.  I promise you, but you and Anubis must go.  Promise me that you’ll look after your younger brother,” I looked at my father straight in the eye and I stood tall so he could see that I was a man. 

“I will see you again?”

“Yes,” he replied.

“Where?”

“You know how to get to the capital city?  Go to the capital city and wait by a huge fountain that has the statue of the first Emperor, your mother and I will meet you there by the time of the full moon.  Set, you must go.  Hurry,” I grabbed my stuff and I looked at my mother and brother.  My brother did not understand what was happening and my mother started to cry.  I walked to my mother and gave her a hug. 

“I will protect him, mother.  I promise you,” and she gave me a hug and kiss. 

“I love you,” she said to me and I took my brother by the hand and before we left my mother kissed him too and told him the same thing.  She said that we would all be together again very soon.  After saying good-bye my brother and I left into the tall grass.

            I disobeyed my father.  We hid in the tall grass but we did run off.  I kept an eye on the hut to make sure my parents were safe.  But I saw the soldiers arrive and enter the hut.  I was too scared to move and I told my brother to lay down so that he could not see what was happening.  I watched as the soldiers took my mother and father out of the hut and a fire bender burnt our hut to the ground. 

            I watch one of the soldiers ask my parents questions but they only looked down and said nothing.  Then I watched them tie my parents together to a tree.  My father whispered something to my mother and I think he said to her, “I love you,” and my mother started to cry.  I thought that the soldiers were going to leave them there to die and that once they left I would untie them, but I was wrong.  When it seemed as if the soldiers were leaving, one of them turned around and shot a gigantic wave of fire to the tree.  My parents died instantly and I came out of hiding yelling “no!” but the soldier did not hear me or see me since his back was turned.  Once he was done with his fire bending, he left without turning around to see me. 

            I waited for what felt like forever until I approach the tree.  I told Anubis to stay where he was and that I was not going far.  I walked up to the ashes where the tree once stood but there was no longer a tree and the bodies of my parents were gone.  I knelt down next to the ashes and cried.  I lost my home and my parents.  I turned around to face the tall grass where Anubis was still lying. 

“I will protect him.  Whatever the cost is I will protect Anubis,” I told my parents. 

            “Set!  Set!  Set wake up!” yelled a voice and then I felt a blow into the side of my stomach and I rolled over in pain.  I looked up to see Ubi, a ten-year-old street kid and five years younger then me. 

“What?” I asked him with anger in my voice. 

“You owe Mr. D money.  He sent me to get the money,” said Ubi.

“I will have it by tonight once I am done with work,”

“I need it now!  Or I’ll get punish,” said Ubi.  Although Ubi was standing tall and showed no fear I knew that deep down he was shaking.  If he did not get the money I knew that Mr. D and his thugs would probably kill him.  No one was safe from Mr. D’s thugs or any other thugs in the city. 

“Here,” I said to him as I gave him all my money.  He grabbed it and ran off. 

            I got up from behind the waterfall at the park and sat up.  Most of the other kids were still sleeping.  All of us have a story, some kids lost their parents to the revolutionist or the Republic’s army, others became orphan from natural causes, others are runaways, and some are runaways but stay in contact with their parents.  Ubi had been living on the streets with the kids since he was five because his father was always away working for Mr. D.  Once Ubi was old enough, he joined Mr. D’s group but every now and then I’ll see him sleeping behind the waterfall with the rest of us. 

            I walked outside and right away I saw Anubis doing circus tricks to try and get money.  I walked over to him and watch.  When he was done performing, I clapped and he turned around with a big smile on. 

“Set, you’re awake!  Come join me!  Look!  I’ve made twenty cents!” he said with a huge grin on.  I patted him on the head and told him to keep up the good work.  I told him that I had to go off to work and he assured me that I would see him later that night for dinner.  Although we both knew that we were probably not going to eat that night.

            It had been five years since our parent’s death.  Anubis once told me that he had forgotten their faces and felt guilty about it.  Unlike Anubis who seemed to have forgotten the whole event, I remember everything.  I remembered the village being burnt down and I remembered our parents being burned.  I hated the revolutionist but I kept my father’s principle alive.  Those who became monsters were no longer men.  I had been able to pass on this teaching to Anubis who is kind hearted and believed in the good of people.  Anubis was a dreamer, but I was a realists.  It was my job to get money and protect him while he did his circus tricks and hung out with the other street kids.  I was too old to go around playing. 

            The war seemed so far away.  The capital was the most protected city and every day more and more people arrived from far away places to find safety here.  However some just end up in District 20, which is where we live.  District 20 is the poorest and most dangerous district in the city.  Every night there were gunshots, gangs, dead bodies, rats, and someone screaming and crying. 

            I went to the factory and used my fire bending skills to get the water boiling.  Other fire benders also helped.  Besides us, other benders and helped along with normal people.  It was tough being in a dark place with very little light and getting paid too little.  When my shift ended I got five dollars. 

            When I returned I found Anubis playing soccer with two kids.  Anubis taught them tricks but the kids were struggling with their balance.  When Anubis saw me he said good-bye to his friends and ran over to greet me.  I was able to buy some candy for him and that was our dinner. 

“Don’t eat too fast or you’ll get sick,” I told him.  After eating our dinner Anubis went back to the streets to do more tricks to earn more money.  Every now and then we had to be careful of someone trying to steal our money.  There were always thieves around the city who stole purses, pick pocket, or threaten you with a knife.  Everyone in District 20 was desperate to survive. 

When night fell Anubis and I went behind the waterfall in the park where all the other orphans were.  Very few of them were sleeping, most of the kids were getting high on glue they found.  Just sitting there, laying on the ground, laughing their heads off for no reason except for being high.  They smelled of glue and avoided sharing with anyone. 

            One kid walked over to Anubis and I, putting his hands in our pockets.  Right away I smelled the glue on him and I could tell that he had no idea what he was doing.  I slowly took his hand out of my pocket and when I did he pulled back and walked away.  The kid was no more than ten years old.  Eventually, all the kids who were high went to sleep and by midnight you could hear snoring everywhere. 

            I laid down next to Anubis.  It was starting to get cold since we lived behind a small waterfall in the park.  We had no pillows to put our heads down, we had no mattress to give us soft bedding, and we had no blankets to keep us warm.  A few kids had blankets or pillows but they always lost them to a bigger kid. 

“Set, I love you,” said Anubis before he fell asleep.  I told him the same thing but I could not fall asleep.  Our lives were miserable without a home or adults to take care of us.  I did everything I could to protect my brother.  I taught him where he should not go to avoid the gangs, I taught him not to drink alcohol or sniff glue, and I taught him what to do if he was ever in danger.  I did everything to keep my brother safe and ever since our parents died he never disobeyed me.  I loved him and I wished I could give him a room, a bed, a warm place to stay, and a family.  There was a time when I left him at an orphanage, but that same night he escaped and found me and I promised him that I would never do that again.  I promised him that we would always be together.  There was also another thing I was worried about.  Anubis was thirteen and unlike me, he was not a bender. 

            We woke up to sound of an explosion.  Everyone got up and ran from behind the waterfall.  I made sure that Anubis was with me and above us we saw air benders.  They were dropping something and that was when we realized it.  They were dropping bombs on to the capital city.  Although a few bombs landed in District 20, most landed in Districts 1 to 15, the richest districts.  Only thirteen bombs landed in district 20 but that was because district 20 was small and most populated. 

            The park did not get bomb but many people died.  Some runaways who kept in contact with their parents lost them in the bombing.   Some orphans lost their friends or siblings.  Everywhere you looked, someone was crying.  No one ever saw this coming.  The war made it to the capital city! 

            The United Countries arrived with food, water, and clothing for the survivors of the bombing.  They wore light blue uniforms and were peacekeepers.  The U.C. was made up of many countries around the world and always arrived to give help.  Anubis and I stayed at a local shelter that the U.C. set up.  They gave us a bed, clothing, food, and even schooling.  I was having difficulties learning my alphabet but Anubis learned quickly.  Within a week he could read a children’s book and within another week he could read short chapter books.  Our teacher said that he was a prodigy and besides reading and writing, he excelled at math and science.  Our teacher discovered that his IQ was way above average.  Apparently Anubis was gifted and a genius. 

            One day our teacher called for me and I went to speak with him privately.  Our teacher informed me that the U.C. was going to take some children to a group home in another country where they would be safe and far away from the war.  However they were only going to take children who were thirteen or under, they had no room for another else at the time.  He wanted me to think about sending Anubis away for his safety.  At first I was furious because I thought he wanted to split up my brother and I and that they were going to use Anubis and not care for him.  I ran away from my teacher crying because deep down I was upset.  I was not jealous of Anubis I was just upset that they would take him to safety and not me. 

            That night I sat down with Anubis and told him what our teacher told us.  I told Anubis that he would be safe and that we would see each other again.  I told him that once I got enough money with the help of the U.C. I would find him and we could live with each other again.  Anubis at first disagreed with me but I kept trying to get him to change his mind because I knew it was the only way to keep him safe from the war.  Eventually Anubis agreed. 

“Even though we will be separated, I will find you,” I told him. 

“Don’t worry.  The U.C. told me that I could write letters to you.  They promise me that they will send you over in less than a year,”

“Anubis, promise me you’ll be good.  Listen to the adults and be respectful,”

“I know.  I’ll write to you every day,”

“Anubis, it’s time to go,” an adult said.  Anubis and I gave each other one last hug and then Anubis went on the boat with the other children.  Once everyone was on board, the boat started to set off towards the sea. 

            Then out of the sky I saw air benders and on the water I saw water benders!  I saw each one wearing a different uniform.  The revolutionists and the Republic Army.  They started a battle on the ocean!  I watched and the waves caused the U.C. boat to turn from side to side until it flipped over.  Everyone on land screamed and I yelled my brother’s name.  I watch helplessly as the boat started to sink.  I got on my knees and cried.  I knew that my brother was gone.

            I was on the streets when they found me.  A man in a uniform picked me up and dragged me to his leader.  Men, women, and children who were also picked up from the streets surrounded me.  Everyone had his or her heads down in shame and without hope.  The war took its toll on the people in the country.  The soldiers started to grab us one by one.  I felt someone grabbed my arm and took me to a room where a man was sitting behind his desk with paper work. 

“My name is General Yeggar.  You, my young boy, will join the Republic’s Army.  You will serve your country and be proud of it.  Welcome to the military.  What is your name?” I said nothing.  I could not speak and I could not look up.  I had nothing and I felt as if I had no soul. 

“Fine, I’ll give you a new name.  Your name will be Chaos.  I can see that you will be a great soldier,” Chaos became my new name and once I earned that name, I knew that I was no longer a man.  I joined the Republic’s Army and became a monster.  

Malik

            I opened my eyes to nothing but darkness until my mother turned on my light.  I sat up in bed and opened the curtains.  It was too early for the sun to be up and I stared at my clothes at the end of my bed.  My mother picked out my clothes the day before because that day was a very special day. 

            I put on my clothes and I made sure that I wore a belt and a tie.   I walked down stairs with my parents smiling at me and telling me how proud they were.  My father took me into the bathroom and started to paint my face for the ceremony.  My father painted the top half of my face black and the bottom part red.  He got out a comb and fixed my hair although my hair was so short I thought there was no need. 

            We left our house and headed for the center of town where our place of worship was located.  There were no cars in town because it was against the law to have a car or any type of vehicle.  The town was small enough and that anyone located anywhere to walk to the center of town.  My family walked a block until we saw other families gathering at the center of town.  We walked into Town Hall and inside there were about ten elevators.  Each elevator could hold about thirteen to fifteen people.  My family and I squeezed into one with other townspeople. 

“Eli, are you nervous?” someone behind me asked.  I turned around to see a boy and a girl about my height.  The boy had the same hairstyle as I had except it seemed as if his hair was starting to grow and he too wore a shirt, pants, and tie.  The girl next to him had black hair that was tied back and she was wearing a nice dress with flowers on it.  Their faces were also painted the same.  The boy had a black handprint on his left cheek, while his sister had hers on her right cheek.  The top part of their faces were painted red. 

“No,” I replied to the question. 

“Scared?” asked the boy.  I shook my head and turned around.  I did not want to think about the ceremony.  I had been looking forward to it like any other child.  But I also knew that after this ceremony, my life would be different.  I closed my eyes and meditated.  Change was a part of life and our beliefs told us that we had to prepare for it. 

            When the doors opened, everyone walked to the underground temple.  The altar was in the front and on each side of the altar including the front were the pews.  Before I sat down my parents looked at me, one last time.  My father shook my hand and my mother kissed me.

“We are proud of you,” my father told me. 

“And we love you,” my mother said and then urged me to join the other children in the front pews.  I noticed a few tears going down my mother’s face but I knew they were not sad tears but tears of joy.

            When the gong rang everyone went silent.  Everyone faced the pews and watch as the priests came out in their black, hooded robes.  The head priest wore a red slash.  When they stood, we stood.  When they sat, we sat.  First we sang chants about our God and read from our holy book. 

“Now, we will ask all those turning ten today to stand,” the head priest said.  Everyone in the front pews, including me stood.  There were no such things as birthdays in our community.  Everyone turned the next age on the same date they enter the community when they were infants.  When I stood, I stared at the altar.

            The altar was a scary one, but we were told to not fear it.  It was a skeleton, wearing a black hooded similar to the priests but it was decorated with patterns and foreign letters.  The God had a necklace around his neck, which was made out of human fingers.  Fingers of those who betrayed him and tried to destroy our way of living.  In one hand, the God held a globe and in the other a scythe.  At the bottom of the feet was blood from the priests to show their loyalty along with red candles that were burning.  All around the room were burning candles.  There was light from electricity and light bulbs, but most our light came from the candles.  The candles represented the community’s loyalty to the God.  The God we called Malik. 

“My children,” started the head priest, “today is a special day.  When you were young, before you could walk and talk you became a part of this community.  This community promised to raise you under the teachings of Malik.  All of you are aware that you do not become full members until the age of twenty, however ten is a special number.  It was the tenth day that Malik was halfway finished with his holy book, it was the tenth follower who became the first priest of Malik, and it was a ten year old child who converted over one hundred adults in an outside community.  In this ceremony, we, as a community, acknowledge you for being half finish with your education and learning.  In another ten years you will be full members and you will be able to participate in activities that you cannot be a part of as a child.  However, at the age of ten, the first leader of our religion discovered Malik and gave him his loyalty.  Today, you will show your loyalty to Malik and learn what our first leader learned.  And that is to be independent on yourselves and the community.  Parents of these children please come up to the altar to prepare,”

            I did not turn around to watch the parents get up.  I stood with the other ten year olds facing the altar.  The parents got up on the altar and stood in a straight line, as if they had been practicing where to stand.  My parents stood side by side at the far end of the line.  They were holding hands and my father kissed my mother on her head.  I watched as other parents did the same.  One of the priests then handed the head priest a knife. 

“Our first leader learned that he had to be independent to follow Malik.  Thus, on the night of his tenth birthday, he made sure that they did not get in the way.  And you, my children, will do the same,” he said.  I watched as the head priest went down the row.  Slitting the necks of each parent.  There was no noise except the noise of the knife cutting their throats.  No one cried, or screamed, or laugh, or yell.  It was quiet.  There were no emotions on any one’s face.  Eventually the priest got to my parents and I stared at each of them in the face.  I saw one thing on their faces: pride.  They were proud of me and I was proud of them.  Then before I knew it, they were gone. 

            My house was given away to a newly wed couple, which was custom.  I packed my stuff and donated my old toys to families with young children.  The other children and I were given two hours to pack and arrive at the education building, which was to become our new home.  I carried one bag and one suitcase.  It was filled with mostly clothes along with my praying beads, a symbol of our religion, and our holy book.  I took anything that was important to me including my journals, which I occasionally wrote in so that maybe one day I could share the beliefs of our religion to the outside world like our first leader. 

            I arrived at the education building with ten minutes left.  Most of the other ten year olds were already there.  When it was time, the principal came in and called us up one by one.  We were each given a key to our new room in the dormitory.  My key had the number 1-13 on it to represent the first floor, door 13. 

            When I got to my room, I met my roommate, Samuel.  Samuel was the smallest ten year old that I knew.  He still had some paint left on his face and he left his good clothes on.  I was guessing that he had trouble trying to get out of them and his eyes were puffy.  I knew he cried, he was a wimp and a mommy’s boy.  He probably missed her already, although his mother was extremely strict. 

            At noontime we all gathered in the main room that was filled with folding chairs for us to sit in.  They principal told us the rules.  We were not allowed outside the school grounds without an adult, we had to earn money by getting a job either at school or in town, and our school days were going to be different.  We were no longer going to learn math, reading, writing, and children songs about Malik.  In our new environment we were always going to learn about Malik, our religion, and learn how to fight with weapons which included swords, knives, and of course, guns.  This was one of our unique laws in our religion.  Killing those who do not believe in Malik is not a sin, it is righteous.  I’ve heard that since I could remember. 

            During my third year at school, I was working at the post office.  My job was to deliver mail to a certain section in our town.  Sometimes I was asked to sit at the front desk and help people with their letters and give them stamps.  Very few times there were letters that went outside our community, but that was not my job, that job was left to the full members of the community.  But one deliveryman changed my life and the life of my community. 

            The man walked into the building and right away I knew he was not from our community.  Sometimes a deliveryman from outside the community arrived with packages and letters but I only saw a few on rare occasions.  This man was dressed in all brown, including a brown hat, and was bleeding all over.  He had only one letter in his hand and he was shaking.  His eyes showed me fear. 

“Excuse me?” I asked surprised by his condition.  It looked like he was protecting that letter with his life. 

“To the leader of this community,” he said and he collapsed.  I hurried over to him and yelled for help.  I watched as three men came inside and saw the man.  They asked me what the letter was in his hand I told them that it had to go to the head priest, our leader.  The three men stared down at the deliveryman and ignored that he was barely breathing and struggling to stay alive.

“What’s your religion?” asked one of the men.

“I’m a Catholic,” the man struggle to say. 

“How long has it been?” asked one of the men to the other two. 

“For me, about a month, you?”

“I can’t remember, about the same,”

“Last week for me, remembered that drunk guy on the property?” and the two men nodded. 

“You can do it, I’ll get the next one,” said one of them and the three started to look around. 

“You got any weapons in here?” the biggest man asked, looking straight at me. 

“Scissors,” I replied.

“Good enough.  Get them,” and I went into the back room and grabbed the pair and gave it to the man who handed to the guy on his left.  The deliveryman put up his hands but could barely keep them up. 

“Please,” he said but the men ignored him.  Without a second thought, the man with the scissors stabbed him and after a few more stabs, the deliveryman was dead. 

“We’ll take the body.  You’re a delivery boy, right?” the biggest man asked me and I nodded.

“Take the letter to the head priests,” and without a second thought I grabbed the letter and ran into the underground temple.  I found the priests praying in front of the altar.  Some were sitting, some were standing, and some were laying face down on the floor.  They heard my footsteps walking in because a few of them turned around. 

“Boy, you should not be here unless it is an emergency,” said one of the priests.

“I have a letter for the head priests,” I said and then they all looked at me.

“The head priest does not receive letters.  Whoever it is from must come here in person,” said a female priest. 

“The deliveryman from the outside world said it can only be read by the head priests,” and I continued to tell them what had happened at the post office.  When I was done they all looked at each other with surprises on their faces. 

“I will get the head priest,” said the eldest priest and he walked through a door that was behind the altar.  I knew that the door lead to the living quarters of the priests because I took a field trip there with my class during one of our religion classes. After about five minutes, the head priest came out and I handed him the letter. 

“Leave,” he told me and I left without looking back. 

            I knew whatever the letter said, it was bad.  Just as quickly as I got back to the post office, I quickly went back to the temple when a town meeting was called.  It was an emergency.  We all gathered in the temple, waiting for the head priest to speak about the emergency.  When all the priests came out, the head priest gave us terrible news.  A few of the towns that surrounded our area wanted us to leave and our country wants to arrest us for a religion that was not approve by the state, which was a lie because we all knew that our religion was approve in the 1950’s.  When the head priest said this, there was uproar among the adults.  When the head priest raised his hand, everything went quiet. 

“I have a solution for these, non-believers,” said the head priests.  He asked anyone under the age of ten to leave.  We all sat and listened to his plan and it was perfected.

            At nine at night we all gathered in the main room.  We all wore black sweats and black T-shirts along with black shoes.  Some even wore black headgear such as bandanas, hats, and visors.  We lined up from the oldest which were the nineteen year olds to the youngest.  When I walked up to the principal he handed me my gear.  A gun, bullets, and a knife.  Since we were short on weapons, the ten year olds were each given a knife and nothing else.  They were disappointed and to encourage them not to whine, the principal gave each of them a scary face. 

“Are you all aware of the plan?” he asked us and we all answered, “yes” in unison.  We then left the education building with the principal and into the center of town where the adults were. 

“We bless you all,” said the priests.  Only the youngest priest was going to lead us and the rest of them were going to stay in the underground temple with the children.  With our military leader, we left in the dead of night towards the towns that surrounded our community. 

            I was sent to a town whose name I did not care to remember.  It was surrounded by woods so it was easy to sneak into.  We dodge their police cars and any pedestrian that was out.  When I saw them I grew with rage.  I hated how they did not acknowledge our wonderful religion and way of life.  They had ipods, computers, cars, and more unnecessary technology.  It was so sinful and I knew that many of them either did not believe in a God or did not practice their religion on a daily basis, unlike our community. 

            Samuel and I decided to target a house.  With our skills we were able to pick locket and enter.  We knew there might be hidden alarms so we attack quickly.  We went upstairs and opened the door to a room where a couple was sleeping.  We got out our knives and killed them in their sleep.  We checked other rooms for children, but the couple had no children. 

            We moved on to the next house that had two dogs which was dangerous for us.  Dogs easily barked at trespassers.  Samuel and I got out sleeping gas and threw it through the windows, which made the animals go to sleep.  Due to the windows breaking, the house lights went on and so did anyone inside.  Samuel and I climb through the window, ignoring the cuts by the glass.  When the man came down we shot him and then we heard screams upstairs.  We ran upstairs and found a woman with three children, including one that must had been fourteen.  I got even angrier because a fourteen should be able to be independent and not rely on his or her parents.  I aimed at the teenager first before firing at the mother and the children. 

            Police sirens started to go off.  We were no longer afraid of their cars and red and blue lights.  We know saw targets.  We shot at the cars before the policemen could get out of their cars.  One car I shot turned and hit a tree.  Samuel and I checked it to make sure that the driver died and his passenger.  We succeeded and that was when the town went in an uproar.  People started to leave their houses and get in their cars.  Cars were a number one target and sometime we found families trying to sneak out through the wood areas.  We were able to hear gun shots and screams everywhere.  After what felt like hours, the shots and screaming started to die down.  When the sun came up, we knew that we had to return to our community. 

            Although we succeeded in killing the people in the town, we were surprised to find the FBI surrounding our community.  They raised their guns to us and told us to drop them.  Instead we all yelled the name of Malik and ran at the FBI.  The squad opened fired at us but we kept running.  I felt a bullet go through my leg and I fell.  I realized I was in pain, but Malik taught us that pain is only an illusion.  I got back up with only a knife in my hand and dragged myself towards the FBI, which now became a hand-to-hand fight.  A hard object in the head hit me and I fell down, then I blacked out.

            “Hello there, sweet heart,” said the old lady who opened the door.  She looked at me in the face with a smile but I knew it was fake. 

“This is Michael,” said my caseworker but in my head I reminded myself that my name was Eli. 

“What a beautiful necklace,” the lady said and reached out to see it, but I backed away. 

“He won’t let anyone touch it and he won’t take it off.  We do not know what the symbol is,” said my caseworker.  I held on to my necklace in a tight fist.  They may had taken me away from my community, the people I knew and loved, and my holy place but I knew who my God was and I knew who I was and where I came from. 

            I walked up stairs to my new room and sat on my new bed.  I could hear the two adults talking down stairs.  Before they sent us to different locations we all made plans.  What to do and where to meet up. 

“You poor non believer,” I said softly, “I will return tonight and you will die,”

            In small communities that are spread out all across the world, children are turning ten and at this very moment their parents will die and their lives will never be the same.  These communities follow the teachings of a God name Malik.  They have a plan to destroy all other religions.  By the year 2020, their religion will be the only one standing and all others will fall. 

Man's Best Friend

            I don’t know when it happened, but she was huffing and puffing.  She could barely get up.  Because she was fourteen years old I thought that she was suffering from the hot weather, after all, it was starting to become spring and the heat wave had been horrible for the past few days.  Being a pug, she had too much fur around her. 

            I don’t remember what I was doing before I was picked up from the after school.  I was about to turn six and my birthday party was in about two weeks.  I remembered because the clown almost tripped over my dog’s bone on the porch.  Mom walked into the room and gave me a kiss and a big hug.  She told me that she had a surprise for me at home and that was why she was picking up earlier then usual.  I will never forget what I saw when I walked through our front door.  I open it and saw a cage in the kitchen and inside the cage was a cute puppy!  I opened the cage and the puppy ran towards me and started licking my face and running around her new surroundings. 

“She needs a name,” my mother told me. 

“Daisy,” I said because it was my favorite flower. 

            I told my mom I was taking Daisy to the vet.  My mother saw her condition and thought it was a good idea.  I wrapped her in a towel and my mother and I got into my car.  My mom drove and sat in the back, petting her.  But even though I was petting her, she seemed to not notice that I was there.  The ride was about fifteen minuets to the vet.  I was afraid she was having a heat stroke.  Mom could not find a parking spot so she dropped me off at the front.  I picked up Daisy and stood at the front door.  I could not open it, but luckily a nurse opened the door and grabbed a cart that I could place Daisy in.  The front desk called “the code” and took her away from me.  When my mom came in, I told her that they took Daisy into the back room and the front desk told us to wait in the waiting room.  I did not know what to expect, but I thought it was just a simple heating stroke.

            I was playing in the backyard when the accident happened.  I did not see two-year-old Daisy behind me and I swung the club behind me to hit the ball off the tee.  I accidentally hit her in the head!  She started to have a seizure and was foaming at the mouth.  My mom grabbed her and took her in the car.  I had to go too since I was too young to stay home alone.  The nurse carried her into the back room and my mom and I waited in the waiting room.  We were told that Daisy’s brain swelled and she was taken into surgery immediately however her chances of surviving her very slim.  I cried in my mom’s arm and we prayed to God, Jesus, Mary, and St. Francis, the saint of animals.  We sang songs and my mom told me stories.  Eventually we had to go home.  The next day we got a call that the surgery went well and that in a few days we would be able to take Daisy home.  She was a very tough girl!

            They called Daisy’s name and my mom and I were taken to one of the rooms.  The vet walked in with a folder with our dog’s name on it.  She told us that Daisy was in critical conditions and they put her in ICU.  She was dehydrated and had low blood pressure.  The vet said they were giving her fluids and sugar and that she would be watched twenty-four seven.  She was also upset that Daisy was not responding to any human interaction such as when a person pet her.  She told us what they could do but that if it got worse, then there was nothing else they could do.  My mom looked at me when the vet was done talking.  We asked the vet to leave us in private.

“Treatment.  We need to give her treatment,” I told my mom.

“We don’t have that much money, we can only go so far, sweet heart,” she told me.

“Let her stay tonight and we will see what happens tomorrow,” I told her.  My mother agreed.  She told the vet and gave her our phone number in case anything changed. 

            Before leaving, the vet took us into ICU to say good-bye to Daisy for the night.  She was in an oxygen tank so she could breathe and she was breathing perfectly.  She was sleeping too and looked all right and the vet opened the door so we could pet her.  I petted Daisy but she did not acknowledge that I was there.  Before leaving for the night, my tears started to come out.  Not because Daisy was in ICU or because she was not responding to me, but because the vet gave us her collar.  On her collar one of the tags was a tag I got for her for Christmas from a pet store.  The tag was in the shape of a small heart and it said her name, our address, and phone number.  Another tag was so that people knew she was up to date on her shots and the last and final tag got to me because it was a tag I got for her for her fourteenth birthday.  On one side was St. Francis with a dog and on the back was a short prayer for him to protect my dog.  That was what really made me cry. 

            For a surprise small vacation, my mom took me to the hotel that was three towns over.  They also allowed pets so we took Daisy too.  Our window in the hotel over looked the pool and as any little kid I wanted to go swimming, especially since it was an indoor pool and it was winter.  The next morning, right before breakfast, my mom and I went downstairs to go swimming and we looked up at our room and at the window we saw Daisy, staring down at us.  We waved to her and yelled her name. 

            After swimming for a while my mom and I returned to our room but there was no Daisy!  We thought she went under the bed or was stuck in the bathroom but she was not there.  Then we noticed that our beds were made and guessed that Daisy got out when room service came to clean.  We called the front desk and they told us where to find her.  She was in a room on a different floor.  We were amazed to find her in a room with two hotel workers and the room she was in was a suite!  She was being treated as a princess!  We thank them for everything and took Daisy back with us. 

            I held on to the collar during the ride home.  I cried and cried because I was worried about Daisy.  Once we got home, I could not keep my mind off Daisy and worrying about her.  To get my mind off about worrying about her my mom took me out.  At first we went shopping for stuff that my grandmother needed and afterwards we went out to dinner and then to a movie.  By the time we got home, it was almost one in the morning.  Then my mom’s cell phone rang and she answered it.  I was hoping for good news but at one in the morning, it could only be bad news.  When my mom was done she hung up and looked at me.

“What happened?” I asked, knowing that I was going to hear bad news.

“Daisy had a seizure and is not responding to the treatment.  We will go there tomorrow morning when they open, she’s not going to come home,” 

            I got scared when I watched Daisy walk into walls.  I did not understand why she was walking so funny.  My mom and I watched her and I told her that we had to take her to the vet.  Mom said she wasn’t sure if they were open during the holidays but I told her that they had to be for emergencies.  Daisy was now eleven, an old lady, and I was sixteen.  My mom had to drive us to the vet because I did not have a driver’s license, yet. The vet picked her up and examined her and then wanted to put her on the ground to see her walk.  Once Daisy’s paws it the ground, she ran towards us!  She did not like the vet or nurses.  She never did, not even as a puppy.  The vet could only conclude that Daisy had a stroke in the middle of the night and can now only move half her body.  After the visit we took Daisy home.  Although Daisy was now partly blind (due to her puppy accident when I hit her), partly deaf, and could only move half her body she could still walk, run (if she was up to it), and go up and down stairs.  Although she struggled but she always tried and could still do whatever she wanted if she put her mind to it.  She was a very tough dog, she never gave up. 

            My mom and I woke up at six and planned to be at the vet around six thirty.  During the ride I was preparing myself for our final decision.  I left her collar at home because I knew we were not going to need it.  When we arrived my mom and I were afraid to get out of our cars but we had to. 

            The nurse took us to a special room.  The room had two comfortable chairs, pamphlets, and wide open space.  The vet came in and asked us our final decision.  We told him and he said that it was for the best, especially since her body was now failing.  The vet left and then came back in with Daisy on a cart.  He said he gave Daisy a medication so she could at least lift her head.  Daisy lifted her head and looked at us with her big eyes.  I petted her and this time she responded, although I thought it was a miracle, I knew it was only the medication.  Mom signed a paper that said we approved the doctor tested the IV to make sure it was working and that nothing would go wrong.  Then he injected the special medicine into the IV. 

“I love you,” I told Daisy before her eyes started to close.  Once she closed her eyes my tears started to go down my cheek.  The clock said 6:45 in the morning.  In less than one minute I knew that she was gone.  The doctor checked and said one thing. 

“I’m sorry for your loss,”

            For a very long time I was afraid of the dark as a kid.  From when I was little until my final years in middle school.  Although mom did not like it, I allowed Daisy onto my bed so that something that was living could be next to me.  Sometimes I went into mom’s bed and slept with her, but when I was older I replaced her with Daisy.  Daisy snored a lot but I became so used to it as a little kid that it put me right to sleep although mom complained.  When I was a bit older, I kept Daisy on my bed not just because a living thing was near me but because I believe that animals have sixth sense, so I thought that if Daisy started to bark at a wall or shadow then I would know that something was wrong.  Although it never happen, but I knew that she was there and that I was safe.  She protected me.  Once I got into high school, Daisy started to have difficulty jumping onto my bed, so I got her dog bed that I placed next to my bed.  She no longer had to sleep in my bed to protect me and it still made me feel better since I could hear her snoring.  Then when I got into college, Daisy started to sleep in my mom’s room and she did not mind.  On vacations she slept back in my room.  Since I could remember she always comforted me when I was scared.  When I cried she came towards me as if telling me, “I’m here, don’t be afraid.  Don’t be sad.  I will always be here,”

            A week later we received her ashes and we put them on a shelf next to her collar.  No one would probably notice as ashes next to all the antiques and stuff that my mom had inheritated from dead relatives.  But I was very upset and sad.  I wanted my protector and friend back.  I wanted to know that she was okay, where ever she is.  I wanted to know if she knew that I really loved her and miss her terribly. 

            One night when mom was asleep, shortly after I came home for good from college after my first year I picked up Daisy’s ashes and held them as I sat on the couch.  I cried and my tears fell on her container.  I petted the container as if Daisy was on my lap.  I missed her fur and her shape, being a pug, she was really round.  I missed her round face looking at me and then laying it down on my lap.  I wish I could hold her and pet her body one last time, but instead I had a container, but it was good enough for me.  As long as her ashes were in there. 

            I started to talk to her and not just her, but to God too.  I told her that I missed her and that I hope she was okay and happy.  I told her we would be together again just not as soon.  I asked God, Jesus, Mary, and any saints I could think of to watch over her and give her love in heaven.  After talking to the air, I put the container back on the shelf and went to bed. 

            I had a dream that night that I could never forget.  I was sitting on my couch and Daisy was there.  I picked her up and put her on my lap and petted her.  I was so happy!  I did not believe it was a dream.  After petting her I put her down on the floor.  She looked at me as if telling me this was good-bye but that she was happy.  She started to walk away into the distance and she was gone.  And all I could do was yell at her one thing.

“I love you!” 

“You’ll be in my heart,

yes you’ll be in my heart,

from this day on, now and forever more,”

            - Phil Collins “You’ll Be in My Heart”

Dedicated to Pugsley: Feburary 28^th 1998 – April 22^nd 2012

- The best pug in the world who only wanted to make everyone happy.  I will miss you and God bless you.