Chapter 1


    Consciousness slowly returned to David. Oddly. It had been years since he had woken slowly. It had been burned out of him during his service as an Infantryman during Operation Iraqi Freedom and the Afghan War. Sleep had remained elusive even into his 50s.


    He became alert inside.


    Something was wrong.


    The ever-present smell of his farm, that mix of animals, sweat, and dirt was absent. He couldn’t hear the movement of his daughter and her husband, or his grandchildren moving about handling their early morning chores was missing. There was no scent of woodsmoke, but he also was not cold.


    Fear gripped his chest.


    He remembered the fucking androids. He saw flashes of every person he cared for mowed down in front of him by cold, ruthless machines. Tears began to dribble from his closed eyes.


    They died. They died and he survived.


    Again.


    David heard movement. There was someone else nearby.


    Multiple someones.


    Had he been captured?


    Trying not to move too quickly, David lifted his legs slightly testing for bindings.


    Nothing.


    He checked his wrists.


    Also nothing.


    He tensed his core and the expected pain from being shot last night was missing entirely.


    His eyes flew open.


    He was in a room. A familiar room. A disturbingly familiar room with a pile of cardboard boxes piled against one wall. There was a light tan wooden dresser next to the matching twin bed he was on. Weak, early morning light was filtering in through the wide window above his head.


    “There’s no fucking way…” David mumbled. He heard a door open outside his closed room. Heavy footsteps receded down what he knew was the hallway. David was fairly sure who that was, provided that the impossible situation was real. David swung his feet on to the floor and stood, nearly toppling over as his legs did not shoot pain this time. He looked down to see soft, smooth skin with only a fuzz of hair on his chest, stomach, and legs. His legs were thick, but devoid of the scars marring their shape. He reached to twist his beard, but his hand touched nothing but a sandy stubble. A quiet grunt and a thud sounded from the front hall. David moved toward the door of his old room. The cool handle filled his hand, smooth metal giving off the tangy smell of brass as his hand warmed it slightly. Carefully, quietly David pulled the door inward.


    “Dad?” he softly called.


    “Huh? Dave? You actually got up without help today?” his Dad chuckled.


    David’s mind went blank. He had watched his Old Man die. He died in one of the riots back in 2025. Brick to his head.


    Shit.


    He was dead, too, wasn’t he. He didn’t make it and his heaven was his childhood home. The last place where he wasn’t trying to survive. The last place where he wasn’t responsible for someone else’s life.


    “Dave?” his Dad walked back up the hall, “You nervous? I know the school is new, but you’ll be ok.” He reached out and squeezed David’s shoulder. “Your mom said you woke up yelling last night. Nightmare?”


    David looked up into his much younger father’s face. The greying hadn’t even started. His dad’s shaggy black hair fell across his forehead. His dad wasn’t hunched with age.


    David reached up and pulled his dad in to a hug.


    This felt too real.


    “Yeah dad, one hell of a nightmare.” A very, very long nightmare.


    “Well kid, at least you’re a teenager now. So suck it up. Men don’t have time to cry.” His dad chuckled while ruffling his hair.


    David’s head was spinning. He vaguely remembered transferring to a new school at the end of eighth grade, shortly after his 13^th birthday due to some problems between himself and classmates from his old school. Something about a fight or argument and the new Zero Tolerance policies in the aftermath of the Columbine Shooting. If this was real, and he wasn’t dead, then he seemed to somehow be 13 again. His life he remembered, hadn’t happened yet.


    In a startling flash, David realized that he could change how everything went. He could get out a head of the Global Unification. He could be ready this time. And he knew who the enemies are. Cold fire began to burn in his guts. There are people who needed saving. He was at the beginning, and he made an oath before he died. Those evil Fucks would pay, even though they had not been exposed for what they are yet.


    “Dave? I have to get to work, but are you ok? Really?” David’s dad appeared genuinely perturbed by David’s behavior.


    “Yeah dad, I’m good. Sorry.” David peeled back away from the embrace. “I’m going to get ready. It’s a whole new life, now.”A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    “Alright. Just don’t let that temper get the better of you this time.” David’s dad gave him one last pat, pulled on his Carhart and headed out to his truck.


    David stood in the front hall. Just staring ahead out the old-fashioned window by the front door.


    This can’t be real.


    David spun back to his room and grabbed a hoodie and sweats. He was yanking on his shoes and out the door before he had time to dwell on what he was doing. He started to run. That steady shuffle run that let him go for miles, back before he had messed up his legs. Nothing hurt. And so he pushed. His stride lengthened out and he didn’t hurt. There was no feeling of crunching in his knee, his hip didn’t feel like it was going to slide out of place every other step and his back wasn’t a mass of ever tightening knots. He could breathe and the persistent phlegmy tar taste from years of smoking was no where in sight.


    How did this happen? I mean thank God it did, but how? This is crazy!


    David slowed back to the Airborne Shuffle as he turned his thoughts over.


    It doesn’t matter how, does it? I have a chance to live differently. I need a plan. Something actionable. I know that if nothing is done, everything I fought bleed and worked for my last life ends with a pile of meat in a partially hidden farm that just kept me and mine surviving. Hiding from traitors and turncoats who demolished the Republic that my friends died for. Ok, step one is get through the day to day. I’m just an ill-tempered punk right now. To soft for my own good. Hell, I didn’t even know who the Bilderburgers were last time around. Or what was happening on Little Saint James. But I do now. And that means I can’t sit idle.


    David slowed to a stop across from the big catholic church in town.


    “Who the hell is even going to believe any of this shit…” David grumbled. “I got to get this crapfest squared away. I need a notebook…” David turned back to his old home at a relaxed jog. He had calmed down a bit. The overwhelmed feeling, a mix of fear, disbelief, hope, and deeply quiet sadness. The family he hadn’t seen in years were around him, and the family he built, he had just seen decimated to him not even hours prior. The pain nearly broke him as it crashed over him. With a gasp and a groan David grabbed hold of those memories and smashed them down.


    They don’t exist now. Their souls will exist again. Hopefully I can pick a better mother for my daughter this time around. And I will not bring her to a world that crumbles away from her before she can finish growing up. This isn’t helpful. I’m 13. I need to focus on what is within my control as a 13 year old.


    David slowed to a walk as he turned on to his old, new street. As he came up the driveway, his mom was at the front door.


    “Where have you been young man? I can’t believe y- Whoa! Put me down! Put me down this instant!” his mom’s tiny form struggled as he grinned at her dangling in his arms. The tiny Italian lady was drumming her fists on his shoulders ineffectually.


    “Sorry Ma, I needed to be alone for a bit. Just had to blow off some steam and Dad told me I needed to keep my temper in check, especially with the new school and everything.” David grinned as he continued to hug his mom.


    With a suspicious glower, David’s mom slowly stopped struggling and he slowly set her on her feet again.


    “I told you to stop picking people up. You’re going to hurt people doing that.”


    “Aw Ma, I just wanted to give you a big hug, but I’ll never hug you again if that’s what you want…” David’s sarcastic response earned him an immediate swat.


    “Go get ready for school, you stink.”


    “Yes ma’am”


    David headed back to his room to find clean clothes. It really was weird being back here. The old digital alarm clock on the dresser read 6:27 on its glowing red face. His old Casio watch laid next to it, its plastic band still attached. He knew that made it into high school before it got caught on something and ripped off. He couldn’t recall exactly when or what he was doing when it broke, but he recalled a fabric replacement band that he used during the last year of school and at Basic. Jeans, belt, and a green t-shirt were found in a messy pile because he had just dumped out one of the moving boxes while looking for sweats. Apparently, he hadn’t reached the level of maturity yesterday to just put his clothes away properly. That was going to change, for sure. He knew already that he functioned and planned better in clean, clutter free places. But he also remembered that he didn’t go out of his way to keep his spaces clutter free until his time serving. Something about getting screamed at and only having moments to find what you need makes you learn that clear spaces are good quickly. Resignedly, David grabbed up his gear and headed to the shower. If he had to guess, his little brother would sleep in until their mother dragged him out of bed. Tom was like that all the way into their 20s. David was on autopilot right up until he realized that he was under actual hot water. He sighed in relief, he hadn’t had a hot shower in years. Not since the “Unification”. His peace broke at the sound of someone pounding on the door.


    “Daaaave! It’s my turn! Mom said we’re going to be late.”


    “Yeah, Tommy, just a sec.”


    David toweled off quickly and got dressed. He grabbed his toothbrush as he let his brother past him.


    “Little Shit,” David heckled Tom without any malice.


    The next thing he knew he was seeing stars and the bathroom door slammed shut. Once the door was closed, he heard his brother cackling as he yelled “Taper!”


    David groaned, doubled over in pain.


    I forgot about this. Fuck. This is going to keep happening until I hit Sargent. Fuuuuck.


    No one had given him a taper, on purpose in years, but at 13, he was going to have to keep his guard up. He wandered into the kitchen once the pain subsided. Mom was making toast and peanut butter sandwiches and wrapped them in paper towels.


    “Here, eat. Where did you put your book bag, David? Are you ready to go?”


    “Yes Ma, I’m ready, but I don’t know what I did with my bag…”


    David’s Mom rolled her eyes. Looking around the kitchen David saw when she spotted it sitting not even 4 feet away from him.


    “It’s right there. Davey, you’re acting strange. First you were up and about so early, then you had a strange look in your eye, like you were excited to see me when you came up the driveway. Now you are standing next to your bag and it did not look like you were joking when you said you didn’t know where it was. What is going on with you?”


    David looked away from his mom. He couldn’t meet her eyes and lie. Never could, really. “I’m fine Ma. Just a lot on my mind.” He then looked straight at her.


    David’s mom sucked in a breath. Her stern little face morphed into a strange scared sad expression, like she saw something in that look that broke her heart. She reached up and pulled David to her. “I know things are not the easiest, but you’ll be ok sweetheart. It’s a new school, and as long as you keep your temper, everything will be ok.” Reaching up, she ran her fingers through his hair. Then her lips pressed into a line again. “And you didn’t shave.”


    David rolled his eyes, “I dunno Ma, I think I’d look fine with at least a little beard.”


    “Not yet. You’re still my little boy. Maybe once you’re in high school.”


    And with that she returned to wrapping up breakfast to go.


    A minute later, Tom was out of the bathroom and had joined them in the kitchen. David noticed his had hovering in a blocking position to his belt. Shortly, their mom had chivied them both out to her car. 5 minutes later they had pulled up to David and Tom’s new school. David got out of the car, a wave of nostalgia washed over him.


    Ok, second try at the new life, new school. “Let’s see how this goes.” David grumbled under his breath.