Chapter 429

James didn’t say anything as Zach sat there silently, seeming to prepare himself to continue the story. It was Zach’s story to tell, and James knew if he interrupted now, Zach might stop altogether. He’d dropped a bombshell, but it was one that needed further explaining. Especially because if James knew one thing about Zach, it was that the man would never, under any circumstance, let someone die without fighting for them.

After a few moments, during which time James silently ate his food, and scratched Dagger’s head absentmindedly, Zach continued. His eyes were bloodshot, and the way his body tremored, showed just how much emotion he was holding back.

“It all started when I came back from one of my tours.” Zach began. “It had been hard. They called us Darkhorse, and we lost many, many good men.” He shook his head. “Honestly, those of us that made it back, were beaten and broken. We had the ghosts of those we’d lost on our minds, and I’m not ashamed to admit, I was in a dark place.”

He paused, a small, sad smile, playing across his face. “But then, I found light. In my darkest hour, when the world seemed pointless, I found the love of my life.” The smile grew as the memory seemed to continue. “Her name was Amanda, and she rescued me from my inner demons.”

James smiled lightly at Zach. “How’d you two meet?” He questioned softly.

“Believe it or not.” Zach chuckled, “we met playing Pokemon Go.”

James had heard of the game. It was the forerunner for all augmented reality games. That had to be, what, forty years ago?

“I couldn’t sit still, you see,” Zach continued, “I was drifting in darkness. I left the service, and moved from job to job, engrossing myself in anything I could. My friends did the same. At least, those who didn’t find solace in the bottom of a bottle. We lost a few, you know, back home, to their inner demons.” He shook his head. “But, any ways. Pokemon Go got me out of the house. I’d go for long runs, go to all the meetups I could, anything, to just keep myself moving and active.”

“Amanda was another avid player. I saw her more than a few times at the raids, and then, funnily enough, found her trying to take one of the gyms I’d captured. We bonded over that, and it became our thing. Taking the gym from each other, confronting each other, and challenging each other. Over time, our rivalry turned to something more, and before I knew it, she was my everything.”

Zach took a drink. “For the first time, in a long time, the darkness left me. I saw the light clearly, and Amanda saved me. With her by my side, I was able to see the state of the world around me, and was able to not just see, but understand, something needed to change. Amanda made me who I am. She saved me, and with her help, I began my path towards saving others. She’s the one who supported, and encouraged me, to dive fully into the medical field.”

He looked at James, his eyes caught between the past and the present. “For the record, medical school was a bitch. Without Amanda, I would have dropped out for sure. I’d have relapsed. But she made me a better me, and she pushed me to greatness.”

“Then what happened.” James asked. He didn’t want to interrupt Zach, but he also wanted to make sure the man knew he was engaged fully in the story.

“Once I’d completed my training, Amanda and I got married. She’d always wanted a family, and while I hadn’t before, with her, I decided that maybe, just maybe, a family was worth it. Around that time though, I began to see the first of the major changes in the world. My fellow veterans were falling faster now, victims to the toxins, and who knows what else, that they’d been exposed to overseas. I turned my focus to that, trying to find a way to help them, while advocating for more veteran rights. Unfortunately, even as progress was made in that regard, the world was rocked by something bigger.”

James had been paying attention enough to guess what. He knew the 20s had seen a massive pandemic breakout, and he figured that had to be what Zach was referencing. The world, as far as he’d learned from his history books, began to crumble in the 20s.

“My research shifted, and I worked alongside some bright minds to fight the pandemic during the day, while still focusing on aiding my veteran brethren during the night. However, unbeknownst to me at the time, something more sinister was lurking. Even as I made ground in helping the world around me, the seed of depression was growing within.”

Zach sighed. “And it made itself known when Amanda and I had our first, and only, child in the late 20s. A mutation that not only took a huge toll on Amanda, but caused many, many, medical complications in our daughter.” Zach shook his head. “It became a sudden race against time. My previous focus was shattered. And all that mattered, was saving my family’s life.”

James was all ears now. What had happened? What was it? He wanted to know. He needed to know, what the darkness that haunted Zach, was.

“My daughter, was the first recorded case, though I knew there had to be others. Her bones were brittle, she was prone to fractures and breaks, and her immune system was through the rough. Any and all treatments in the modern world, failed, and there was nothing we could do, to stop as her body was constantly ravaged. Her cells replicated at an abnormal rate, and yet, it was almost as if they over worked themselves into a fragile state. The condition, unnamed at the time, became known as withering.”

James thought long and hard about that. He didn’t recall hearing about something like that. Then again, in his lifetime, medicine had progressed to such a degree that people rarely even got a common cold. With the advent of nanotechnology, and a further understanding of the human body, the world had become a place where humans could thrive.

“Withering?” James asked. “I’ve never heard of that.” He’d heard of things like Cancer, and allergies, and asthma, and even the pandemic and a few others. But withering, never. Yet, the way Zach described it, it had to be major.

“You wouldn’t.” Zach said darkly. “It didn’t affect many. It was a genetic mutation that occurred as a result to exposure to highly toxic chemicals and stressful conditions. Additionally, it could skip a generation, lingering in those who’d suffered and fought in wars for pointless causes, to be passed on to their children, or their children’s children. I helped identify the cause, and the identifying factors, and even developed a cure. But, it was too late.” Tears fell from Zach’s eyes. “I couldn’t save my daughter, and she died in agony.”

James opened his mouth to offer, what? Condolences, he didn’t know, but he wanted to say something. However, Zach stopped him from speaking, the man’s voice cracking.

“And as if that wasn’t bad enough. What came next, took Amanda from me, and all I had ever worked for.”