Whole New World
Chapter 6
Arrival

Dano awoke to a comfortable bed and a pleasantly lit room, but he wasn’t happy at all. He sat up and grumbled as the dream he had that night flooded into his mind.

“God damned women and their secrets.”

He sighed, they had him by the balls. Dano had nowhere to go, or people to live with. The feeling made him a little scared. He had no idea what was in front of him, and the women had not given him any information. Dano knew that he was supposed to fight, and his military knowledge kicked him. Information was key to surviving a battle, it was a lesson proven in millions of wars and conflicts. Dano rubbed his face with his hands and dismissed his worries. They aren’t going to help me now.

Dano got out of bed and scanned his new room. The two windows on opposite walls pointed east and west, allowing maximum sunlight even with their small size. The hard wood floor under his feet was cool and refreshing. Dano’s curiosity peaked when he looked at the trunk at the foot of his bed, he had neglected to search the room when he moved in.

Dano opened the trunk, and found an extra set of sheets, an extra comforter, extra pillow cases and beach towels. He closed the chest, happy that he wouldn’t have to wash his sheets so often. Dano moved across the room to his desk. The papers he had seen earlier strewn across the space were actually maps. He looked through them with vigor. One was just of the immediate area, and Dano noticed a red line that ran along the opposite shore of the lake. There was no key, so he didn’t know what it meant. The next map covered a larger area, and showed where the road to get here was. This map had green circles surrounding the clearing, and the key in the bottom right of the map stated that they were the locations of tree stands. The red line was present again, and snaked its way through the forest and by the lake. They key said it was a trail used by a local coyote pack. Their territory was on the other side of the lake.

Dano cringed a bit. He didn’t want to go out and kill the animals, and he didn’t know if he stayed on his side of the lake that he would be safe. Fine place to send me.

The last map was blown up enough to encompass the town of Delhi. Dano looked all three maps over one last time before setting them back down on the desk. There were two drawers to the right of the area where the chair was pushed in. Dano opened the top drawer and found a stack of papers and some pens. Dano ignored them as he closed the drawer. The next one down was deeper and heavier. When Dano opened it he found a large pair of binoculars, he guessed a ten times zoom, in a leather case. There was also a compass, matches, some manila folders and more paper. Dano pulled the compass, binoculars and matches out and set them on the desk. He would need them later.

Dano turned around and wandered over to the short book shelf. The entire piece of furniture was full of old, large tomes. Dano read the spines of some. The Odyssey, The Iliad, War and Peace. Damn, that’s some heavy reading. Dano contemplated using the books as kindling, but put the thought aside. He didn’t know how long he would be here, and he may need to use them as a fire starter in an emergency.

Dano finished his familiarization and got dressed. He stripped down and put on an entirely new uniform. The clean clothes felt good, and smelled a lot better. Dano threw the old clothes onto the floor at the foot of his bed, he didn’t have a hamper or anything to store them. Dano strapped on his boots, and decided against a bullet proof vest. He stepped out of his cabin, after brushing his teeth and eating an MRE for breakfast, with his three weapons, a canteen, his knife and no clue on what he needed to do. Dano looked around, half expecting something to call to him or catch his attention, but no such thing appeared. He sighed and decided to finish unpacking the truck.

Dano had run out of time yesterday before he brought in the ten boxes of jerky, his two cases of water and the sewing kit. Shouldering his rifle Dano went to work. His bed was quite large, probably a queen size, and had enough room underneath it to slide a box. Dano managed to fit all ten boxes and the pair of crates of water under the bed, and placed the sewing kit on top of the desk.

With the truck empty Dano tried to think what he needed to do next. He half wished he took a survival course or something in college. Dano was thinking for about a minute before he gave up, he wasn’t cut out for this survival thing. Dano sighed and thought about his nearby resources. He knew that there were smaller, nimbler vehicles back at the farm house. I could use those. Dano began to walk to the truck but stopped short. How was he supposed to get a quad bike into the bed if there weren’t any ramps? Dano grumbled as he realized he was going to have to walk. He sighed and set off down the road.

It took Dano an hour and a half to get back to the farm house. He judged that the road was about five miles long, and since he drove extremely slow in the truck to get there the distance seemed about right. Dano entered the shed through the door he had left open. He looked at both the quad bike and the MULE, and was trying to decide which one to take first. He picked the quad and began to search the shed for keys. Dano found them hanging on a peg on the wall, as well as the MULE’s keys.

Dano was about to start up the quad and leave when he noticed a hatch in the ceiling. He stood on the quad bike’s seat, and pushed the hatch open. There was a small attic above the shed proper which was empty except for a half dozen wood backed foam targets, that looked like the ones people used for archery practice. They were about two feet wide, a foot thick and two feet tall, and some had small holes where an arrow had pierced it.

Dano pulled himself into the attic and inspected the targets. It dawned on him that he was here to train, and that he had very limited experience with firing his weapons. Dano grabbed the foam squares and threw them down into the shed. Once he cleared the attic he slid out of the hatch and back on top of the quad bike. The targets were scattered around the area.

It didn’t take long for Dano to pick up all of the targets and stack them outside the shed. He couldn’t fit them all on the quad bike, or in the bed of the MULE. Dano sighed, he was going to have to take multiple trips. Good thing he had nothing else planned today. Dano stacked three in the back of the MULE and then strapped the other three onto the back of the quad using some bungee cords he had found lying around.

Dano started the quad bike and it came to life, spewing a thick black cloud of exhaust out its tailpipe. The engine hummed nicely as Dano pressed the accelerator with his thumb, and pulled the quad out of the shed slowly. Once Dano was sure the four-wheeler wasn’t going to explode Dano increased the pressure on the gas, and turned down the road.

It didn’t take Dano very long to get back to camp. He sped down the trail a lot faster than he did in the truck. The quad bike handled the corners and relatively thin trail well, so Dano decided to make it his primary transportation.

Dano parked the quad to the left of the truck and shut it off. He sat on the four-wheeler for a bit. He really didn’t want to walk back to the shed and grab the MULE. Dano sighed and threw his will into the mix, and eventually came out on top. Dano slid off of the quad, and turned to leave the clearing once again. He stopped when he spotted the three gas cans sitting in the back of the truck. He could use the shed tank as a gas station when he came and left, but what happens if he went into the woods? Dano grabbed the three cans and began the walk back to the farm house.

Another hour and a half long walk later Dano was leaning on the tank as he filled up the gas cans. His feet hurt from walking so much, and was happy this was his last trip. As Dan waited for the cans to fill he looked around the room. His eyes fell of the assorted yard tools hanging on the walls. He didn’t have anything like that back at the camp. He could use the axes to get fire wood so he could have warm food, or for heating the water from the lake when his own water supply ran out. Dano agreed with himself, he was going to need the tools.

After filling the gas cans and throwing them into the passenger’s seat of the MULE Dano went around the shed and picked out what tools he thought he would need. He grabbed an a pair of axes, one that was a double header, a special axe with a head that doubled as a wedge, a sledge hammer, a shovel and a tool that was designed to sharpen blades. Dano had no idea how to use a whet stone, so the small, green plastic handled tool with what looked like metal in the shape of a V jutting out of it would prove to be invaluable. Dano threw the tools into the bed of the MULE, hopped into the driver’s seat and started the engine. Just like the quad bike, the MULE’s engine started rather well, albeit the smog that came out of the exhaust. Dano drove the ATV out of the shed and sped off down the trail.

It took Dano a little longer to get home on the MULE than the four-wheeler, but he didn’t mind. The MULE was more comfortable to drive, and had more storage space than the quad. Dano moved the bike into the ‘for tight quarters’ role and placed the MULE in the ‘go into town’ slot.

Dano parked the MULE to the left of the quad and climbed out. He went to the left side of the cabin and picked up one of the two empty crates that he threw there yesterday after he finished moving in. Dano dragged the crate over to the MULE and placed all of the tools inside. He then carried the crate into the cabin and placed it under the left side window, between the bookshelf and the trunk.

Dano went back outside and pulled the foam targets off of his ATVs, and placed them by the cabin. He wasn’t sure where to set them up yet, so resting against the cabin would have to do. Dano looked at his watch, it was only midafternoon, and he had run out of things to do. Dano sighed and tried to think. I could modify my rifle, and find a place for my knife. Dano nodded and entered the cabin.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in the cabin. Dano played around with his rifle until he found a combination of modifications he liked. Dano was happy that his Mk 14 came with a rail system that surrounded the barrel, it made putting on and taking off attachments much easier.

He eventually ended up placing a bipod on the bottom rail as far away from the user as possible, and attached it so the legs of the stand folded forward. With the rest of the bottom rail open Dano put a front pistol grip on the rifle, and made a note to adjust it when he finally started practicing. On the two side rails rested a pair of flashlights, one on each side, at the end of the rails. Dano looked over the lights before he attached them, and found that the outer jacket of the flashlights was made from the same material as his watch strap. The two lights were solar powered, making batteries obsolete. Dano was happy he didn’t have to go searching for batteries when he wanted to move around at night. The top rail was occupied by an ACOG scope, which had a zoom of times four. The scope was attached to a base that had a small button on it. When Dano pressed the button the scope snapped to the side, allowing the soldier to used iron sights. This flexibility would come in handy when Dano was engaged in close quarters and needed his peripherals more. Dano was content with his modifications, and found out that he wasted some time tinkering with the accessories.

Dano spent the rest of the day modifying his tactical vest to incorporate his knife. He had decided to attach the blade to the empty part, above the breast pockets, on his left shoulder. Dano used the sewing kit to attach the leather sheath to the synthetic vest with the knife blade pointing up and to the left. With its configuration Dano could quick draw the knife with a sweep of his right hand. At first Dano was concerned that the blade would slide out, but after a few test jumps the blade held its place in the sheath. Confident that the knife was secure Dano quick drew the knife, and the motion was fluid and comfortable. The ridged leather sheath held is position and didn’t move, and Dano felt pride in his sewing skills.

Dano still had around an hour of sunlight to waste. As he walked out of the door to try and find something to do he eyed the lake. I haven’t bathed in a while… Dano shrugged and went back into the cabin, grabbed a whole new set of clothes from the wardrobe and a towel from the trunk and headed over to the lake.

Once by the water Dano stripped down and walked down the slight incline of the grassy beach into the water. The lake was warmed from the sun till about three feet deep. Dano sat in the shallow warm water and let it clean and sooth him. It felt good to just sit in the lake and watch the sun set in front of him. After a good while Dano cleaned up by rubbing a wet hand all over his body and splashing himself. Once clean Dano got out of the water, dried himself and put on his new clothes he walked back to the cabin. Dano was refreshed and ready for a good night’s sleep.

The next day started the same as it usually did, but about a half an hour earlier than when he usually woke up in the hospital. Dano had been waking up steadily earlier, and chalked it up to his body acclimating to the rising and setting of the sun. He bet he would soon be getting up and going to bed with the celestial body.

After his routine of eating, dressing and brushing his teeth Dano set out. He decided to only go in his t-shirt, pants and boots, and the only weapon he brought was his M9. Dano knew that today was going to be strenuous.

Dano walked out of the cabin with his axe slung over his shoulder, he had decided to get started on gathering fire wood. He wandered into the woods a few yards before he found a couple trees suitable for his level of technology. They weren’t the largest trees, only being about a foot in diameter, but they were perfect for the axe toting survivalist. The trees were large enough to be split, but not to big that it would take Dano forever to chop it down. Dano strode up to his first tree and sized it up. He took a step back and swung the axe horizontally, and the pleasant sound of the tool biting deep into plants flesh returned to Dano’s ears. He swung again, but a slight downward angle. A piece of wood fell out as the result of the change in direction, and the beginnings of a wedge could be seen.

Dano kept swinging until the tree began to creak and list. His eye’s immediately shot upward to the top of the tree to try and see which direction it was falling. Thankfully the tree was falling away from Dano, and fell to the ground with a large thud, breaking several branches off other trees. Dano wiped the sweat off of his brow, and climbed on top of the trunk. He measured about a foot from where the tree had separated from its stump with his eyes and began to hack downwards, switching sides from left to right, making another wedge. The log eventually separated from the rest of the trunk and Dano looked it over. It was his first log, and it filled him with a bit of pride. I can do this.

The rest of the day went on like it started, with Dano cutting wood. He had managed to cut down two trees and process one and a half of them. When he finished with a piece of the plant he moved the logs to the stump where he felled his first tree. There he would begin to split the wood when he got around to it.

Dano stopped cutting wood with around an hour of light left so he could take a bath in the lake. Once he cleaned himself he went back to the cabin and laid in bed. His hands were covered in blisters. He made a mental note to cover them when he woke up the next morning so he could keep chopping wood. He prayed that they would callous up sooner rather than later. Sleep found Dano quickly, and he was out before the moon graced the world with its presence.

The rest of the week and the one following continued like the first day. Dano would rise, get ready, go out, chop and split wood, stack it by the cabin, take a bath and fall asleep. His hands and muscles killed him, but Dano began to see the callouses developing on his hands, and strength growing in his arms and legs. He knew he had to keep going through the pain.

Dano had amassed a large amount of wood, and decided he needed to do something else for a bit. He checked the date on his watch when he woke and noted that it was June 26th, and it was a Saturday. He went through his routine after waking up then gathered his three main weapons with a couple clips for each, and put on all of his armor and clothing. He needed to practice shooting in as realistic an environment as possible.

Dano exited his cabin and moved around the building. He grabbed a pair of targets. They had weight to them, but Dano had grown in strength since the last time he moved the foam blocks. He took the two targets to the other side of the lake, making sure to look out for the coyotes that supposedly occupied the area. Dano scurried back to his side of the lake and unslung his rifle. He laid down in the grass on the edge of the lake, extended the bipod and took aim.

The targets were large and clear in his scope as he sighted in. He fired a round and the rifle kicked back. Dano watched a hole appear in the foam target just below the center. The rifle had a little more kick than Dano had anticipated, and his shoulder hurt a bit. He ignored the pain, adjusted the scope a bit then fired again.

Dano emptied the clip on the target, all twenty rounds impacting in a cluster around the center. He felt some pride as he examined the area of missing foam. Maybe I have a knack for this. Dano switched targets, reloaded and pressed the button to make the scope shift out of his line of sight. He adjusted the iron sights of his rifle for two hundred yards and fired. After firing all his rounds Dano pushed the scope back onto the bottom of its stand, and heard a satisfying click. He peered through the optic and was a little disheartened at the sight of a not so tight cluster of rounds a little lower than the center. Even with his iron sights zeroed Dano wasn’t the most accurate. Well, I am new to this…

Next Dano fired ten rounds with each optical choice while kneeling, then standing. The clusters got less and less focused, but he knew that was supposed to happen. Dano adjusted his front grip at least a dozen times while he fired till he found the sweet spot where he could hold the weapon comfortably. He felt pretty good about his accuracy, since it was his first time using the rifle. Dano folded the bipod and slung the rifle over his shoulder, he had to go practice with his other weapons.

Dano grabbed another two targets and placed them at the edge of the clearing, one on top of the other and their backs to the forest. Dano counted out fifteen yards and turned. His back was to the cabin, and the outhouse rested a dozen feet to the right of the targets. Dano removed his pistol from its holster and took aim with both hands, like you’re supposed to. He emptied the clip on the top target, and was surprised to find the cluster pretty tight, except for a few outliers where he found himself firing to fast.

Dano slid another clip into his pistol and returned it to his holster. Dano let his hand hover over his piece, waiting for an imaginary cue. He stared at his target, as if he could see eyes peering back at him. Dano quick drew his weapon and fired from the hip. The round was low, impacting into the top of the bottom target. He cursed at his bad aim. Dano tried this again and again until he finished off the clip. His aim was atrocious. How I killed Flim and Flam I will never know… He slipped his pistol back into his holster and sighed.

After the pistol came the Magnum, and Dano was nervous. He remembered the shock to his body when he fired the weapon last. Dano took a deep breath and aimed the gun, both hands on the grip. He pulled the trigger and felt his arms buckle from the recoil. It wasn’t as bad as when he fired it with one hand, but it still hurt. Dano finished the cylinder, and he found his aim was pretty good, but his rate of fire was slow. He knew one of the biggest reasons he carried the weapon was intimidation, but he would eventually have to back up his bark with a bite.

Dano reloaded the revolver, which took a long time, since each round needed to be fed in individually. Once the cylinder was back in place Dano put the Magnum back into its holster and prepared to quick draw it. He didn’t waste time, and immediately pulled the weapon out, aimed it and fired. The recoil knocked the barrel vertical and nearly out of Dano’s hand, but the round was near the center of the target. Despite the pain in his arm Dano quick drew five more times, and finished off the cylinder then holstered the Magnum. The draw was a lot slower than the M9s, but it was still quicker than reloading either his EBR or M9, making it an effective secondary backup.

Dano had wasted an hour or two shooting his weapons, and set off to go clean them in the cabin. The whole process was new and took a while to get done right, so the rest of the day went by peacefully. Dano went to bed after his first day of practice shooting with confidence. He had done pretty well for his first try, and was looking forward to more practice. Dano fell asleep content that the only thing he could do now was get better.

The months of June and August went by in a routine. Every Sunday through Friday Dano would maintain his home. He would gather fire wood, clean his clothes and sheets in the lake, go wandering through the surrounding forest to get the lay of the land, hunted a bit and even tried to fish in the lake. Saturday was spent shooting, cleaning and resting. Dano had been getting better with his weapons, and felt confident that his training was nearing completion. He eagerly awaited the women in his dreams so they could give him a new direction, but they never came.

Dano laid sprawled out on the grassy beach of the lake in his underwear, letting the sun dance over his body. It was a Wednesday, but he was feeling lazy and decided to take a day off. He was happy as he could be, even though a worry was tugging on his brain. What’s my next move. Dano tried his best to dismiss the thought and enjoy his sun bathing, but it persisted. Frustrated Dano sat up and stared at the lake. His gaze eventually drifted to his reflection, and his eyes took in himself.

Gone was the scrawny person he saw in the hospital window, his eyes sunken into his head. Before Dano was a man who was fit, muscles contracting and loosing under tight skin. His brown hair had grown out to the point where it could cover his eyes, and he had stubble all over his face. Dano had learned how to shave with his knife, after dozens of cuts. He stared at the clear blue eyes in the water, and they stared back. Dano closed his eyes, shook his head, and tried to relax. He had to be patient, the women would eventually give him his next order. Dano laid back down, and soon fell asleep.

After his nice nap Dano wandered around the clearing not doing much on anything. He had gotten dressed and stacked wood for the fire tonight. He also cleaned out the fire pit he had built out of stray flat stones once he had compiled enough wood to last him a while. Dano enjoyed sitting by the fire at night and watching the stars and moon drift across the sky. Tonight was going to be one of those nights.

Eventually the day crept by and Dano found himself watching the sunset. The hues of red, orange and yellow made the world look soft and inviting. Long shadows moved through the clearing as the sun’s angle became more and more shallow. Times like this made Dano forget about the world outside of his clearing, of the decaying cities and the feral dogs. He was at peace.

The sun set and Dano started a fire. He sat on a log which he had dragged out of the forest on a whim, and enjoyed the heat emanating from the flame in front of him. The night was cool on his back, and the sounds and worries of the day melted into nothing as he stared into the ever shifting fire.

Dano was knocked out of his trance by a loud crash coming from the forest. Dano remained sitting, but his pistol was already out and pointing toward the sound. He had gotten better at his quick draw. Dano scanned the forest for movement, his M9 following his eyes.

There was a rustle, and Dano trained his weapon on it. He made out the outline of a four legged animal push out of the brush and towards him. Dano resisted the urge to shoot, there was something strange going on. The beast entered the glow of the fire, and Dano recognized it as a wolf. In the low light he couldn’t recognize any other discerning features of the animal. It was looking at Dano with curious eyes, and didn’t seem aggressive. None the less Dano didn’t lower his weapon, he kept it aimed right at the snout of the K9.

The wolf stared at Dano for a few more seconds before it barked. Dano had to restrain a laugh as the curiosity in its eyes changed into disbelief and confusion. It barked again then took off towards the lake. Dano followed the wolf as it ran by with his pistol and eyes, a little confused.

The wolf reached the lake and stared into the water for a while before howling. It struck Dano as a scream in frustration more than a call for family. The wolf turned and walked back to the fire, its head hung low and tail dragging on the ground. This only peaked Dano’s curiosity, the wolf seemed to be exhibiting a lot of human traits.

Dano lowered his weapon finally as the wolf stepped over the log bench to Dano’s right and laid down by the fire. It looked confused and a little scared. Dano didn’t know what to do, but the wolf’s expression was tugging on his heart strings. He turned to his left and pulled out one of the strips of jerky he was going to eat for dinner and tossed it in front of the wolf. It looked up at Dano, and he motioned for it to eat with his hand. Dano had never seen a wolf smile, but the contortions of the animal’s mouth looked like its version of one.

The wolf dove into the meat and devoured it quickly. When it was done the wolf stood and began pawing at the ground. Dano didn’t know what it was up to, so he watched as the dog went along. He seemed to be writing something in the dirt around the fire pit, but in glyphs he couldn’t understand. When it was done the wolf looked at Dano and barked.

“I can’t read that buddy.” Dano responded while shrugging.

The wolf phased out for a bit, staring into nothing before it returned to the world. It scribbled the glyphs out and started over. This time Dano could make out words, in English. His jaw dropped when he read ‘where am I?’ The dog barked to bring Dano back to life, he looked a little annoyed.

“You are in a forest.”

The wolf growled at the response, it wanted more.

“In New York State.”

The wolf phased out again, its jaw dropped. He scribbled out the words and wrote another line. ‘What year is it?’

“2032.”

The wolf looked like he was going to have an aneurism. Its face contorted with a mix of confusion and distress. It quickly scribbled out the words and pawed another question. ‘What country is this?’

“The United States of America.”

The wolf slumped to the ground, looking defeated. Dano tentatively reached out a hand and pet the wolf, trying to console him.

“What’s your name buddy?”

The wolf stood slowly, still looking upset and wrote out a single word. ‘Echo’. Dano offered a hand.

“Nice to meet you Echo, I’m Dano.”

The wolf reached a paw up and Dano shook it. Echo scribbled out his previous line and name and wrote, ‘looks like I’m stuck with you then.’ Dano nodded.

“Looks like it.”

Echo nodded, understanding the situation. He pawed another line in the dirt. ‘Can I have more to eat? I’m starving.’

Dano laughed and offered him another piece of jerky, which Echo ate just as fast as he did the first one. Dano patted Echo on the head, and it seemed to calm both of them down. Echo laid back down and stared at the fire, a sigh escaping his jowls. Dano returned his gaze to the fire, and the two just sat there staring at the flickering flame letting their worries escape into the dark night that surrounded them.

Well, another chapter done
yes, yes it is
have you noticed they seem to be getting longer?
yes, the word count has increased, probably because you feel pressure from yourself to finally get the meeting with fluttershy over with
wow logic, i didn't know you had feelings
i dont
that what was all that?
im logic, it was the logical answer
fuck you...

lol
heres another one for you guys
hope you enjoy
dont forget to comment
that is all
kthanxbai