The compass

It’s the year is unknown

He stood at the end of the broken road half ripped bag and the heart shaped locket hanging on his jacket.

The metal that hangs around the neck has broken so bad it was mostly string. He opens it and it has a picture of his wife and his dog he looks at it before looking at the door piece of the locket that had a cracked compass built into it.

He was heading south west to a dam with hopefully fresh water that he heard from a girls voice on the radio North was filled with constant nuclear winter, south was a dead zone completely waste land so what was said on the now broken radio, west was unknown but the amount of sick animals and insane people he hid through this insanity of land. He forgot how far he has walked or stayed in places that he for got time not sure if he can trust the radio people either but the picture in his locket helps him remember a but more and helps him remember where the compass is pointing. There was no sense in remembering the old world the fear of finding someone or something he shouldn’t is makes him forget the hunger and the almost dissolved water and pop he was lucky to find was enough. Days without food to keep moving is tough but without water is tougher. So he camps in the forest praying for water from the sky not the acids that fall at times. He wasn’t much of a hunter but got very good at catching bugs.

As he walks in the forest getting used to the sounds around him the trees pretty much darken the sky he sees a light at the edge of the tree line there is a road walking too it he sees a car not very far up the road but see a tree fallen in front of it. So he walks close to the tree line very cautious never knowing. As he get to the car he inspects the tree first and it has been saw dust around it. It seemed to be cut with a hand saw. He walks to the car looking everywhere for traps or people but the sun was almost down and the trees covered most of the light. Very tired and thirsty he walks to the car as it seemed to be there for along time the windows were pretty dusty but mostly broken the gas tank was open so it’s all but useless no doubt the engine was striped but the tires were flat he checked the car fast looking all over and found nothing but a small bottle of vodka under the seat with couple broken cigarettes and garbage in the back seat. Tired he sat his head on the seat sighing. He hurt a crack of a tree branch

He got up as fast as he could but his locket got caught in the seat and broke off his person running but falling down trying to run back to grab it he hurt foot steps running to him he struggles to take the heart shaped locket off but hears guns around him he stops and get thrown to the grown turning around he managed to get the locket into his chest pocket they grab his back pack off him and check his person. They find his metal box of bugs, his small amount of water, one dull knife, the broken cigarettes he found in the car and the locket. Drinking his water the held him down with one of their boots only grunting they turn him over and the older thug asks how he gotten on of the heart shaped lockets and how did he break it.

He says “it’s mine for as long as I can remember”

The older thug asks “how long have you been here”

The younger thug confused at his question looks at them and turns his flashlight on to see they have too see him as the sunset was covered by mist and trees

He answers “I don’t know not very long”

Before the old thug hits him with his nearly usable gun he sees headlights over the fallen tree on the road the flashlight must have been a signal.

He wakes up in a cage in what looks like to be a factory floor dark and cold he looks to see the old thug at a table looking at his locket with only a candlelight. He hears some talking upstairs. The old thug asks again “how long have you been here”?

Rubbing his head he says “not very long”

The old thug asks if he knows the people in the photo but he doesn’t answer.

So he asked “how did you brake your compass”

And he says “he doesn’t remember”

The old guy says “this time zone will do that too you, so what year did you travel from”?

He looks up at him as he stand in front of the cage with the the candlelight in front of his face he has a mostly whitish bread very broken clothes and the same heart shaped locket around his neck the the door with the compass is missing he stands up thinking he broke it notices that it’s has a picture of a women and two kids.

He’s confused as the old man tells him the compass helps you fly in time and space and the picture of family helps you remember why your there tells him how he has been stuck in the time period for decades and forgot why and that his compass as broken.

The old man tells him “my name is Jade and I’m not really even sure that is my real family anymore, Time can take a hold of you from years but this place will make you insane”

He asks him “can you fix my locket”?

Jade says “I might know someone who can but you can not tell anyone why”

Jade gives him the locket back with water and food and asks his name.

He tells him his name is Tommy eating so fast and staring at the picture in the locket

Tommy try’s to ask him questions but Jade leaves the candle goes out and some lights shine out the window and disappear he sips on the warm water and the food he wasn’t sure what he ate but did not care as he never ate in days.

More days go by Jade feeds and gives him water every couple days empty’s his bucket and leaves again more and more days goes by and he wonders if he was telling the truth or he was insane Jade stayed his him for some hours but didn’t say much never answered why he can’t leave. One day jade gives him a big Meal and water not saying a word he walks out. He came back after close to a week

Tommy is very weak at this point the whole place and cage smell very much can barely move he sees lights in the window he watches almost as much as the locket. Jade walks down stairs with someone else

They pick him up lays him down in a truck he watches the sky but falls asleep. He wakes up on a bed with an ivy in his arm and people around him very weak they give him food and water he feels the heart shaped locket on his chest and hears a familiar voice it was the girls voice on the radio and he squeezes the heart shaped locket.