Limited Access

Some dead bodies, severed body parts, and countless liters of blood marked this location. The bridge to escape from this city. We saw lots of potential loots on the road, but we managed to ignore it. Waste of time, obviously.

I look around and see some movement on the rooftop of a building nearby, probably the army snipers guarding the entrance of the bridge. I try to wave at the snipers, followed with Daniel, hoping that they don't shoot at us. We continue to walk, no matter what will happen to us. The sound of gunfights still echoing, mixed with the wind and the water below. Still, I can't forget it...

Daniel still beside me, ignoring the surrounding. Lots of vehicle remains can be seen everywhere, some trails of blood still visible, the air still reeks of rotting flesh, and more body parts and corpses scattered around left to right. Disgusting, but we got over it pretty quickly.

We see lots of huge concrete obstacles, barbed wires, and walls of sandbags. Behind it stands a huge gate with a concrete wall and two towers on both sides. Two soldiers stand guard at the forefront, looks tired but still tough. After we got across the obstacles, we approach one of the soldiers and talk to him.

"Excuse me, sir. We want to cross the bridge."

"What's your purpose to cross?" Asked the soldier, kinda disgusted.

"Umm, we need to go somewhere safer than in this city. I mean, it's already overrun by the insurgents, I guess…?" That was my only excuse in my mind right now.

"…Right. Yo, we got two refugees in here. Are we open?" He asked the other soldier.

"Yes, but it'll be a rough one. The bandits surrounded the entrance, we need a Humvee. A sturdy one."

"Alright, you two wait here. I will take the Humvee and bring both of you across." He said as he walks behind the gate's door.

We wait for several minutes. Daniel walks to the railing and looks down. I grabbed him before he leans down for a better look.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

He just points at the river below.

"I know you wanted to see it, but not at this height! You'll fall and even if you land at the river, you'll be dead straight away!"

I scolded him because of that, but he seems to be understood what I meant. I still aware of his safety because he's still a young boy (I still don't know how old is he) and we're in the middle of a war. After waiting for several minutes, a car horn sounded from behind the gate.

"That's your call. Better be quick! Those insurgents could be here anytime soon."

We quickly go to the Humvee and ride it. I'm riding shotgun, while Daniel is in the backseat. I, Daniel, and the soldier on the wheel are now crossing the bridge, still aware of the surrounding. The middle side of the bridge is not like what I have in mind. It's empty, filled with trash, some bombing craters, burn marks, and puddles of water. I think nobody has been crossed this bridge in a long time. I feel bad about the soldiers who guard the gate, but at least they did a good job.

"Is it really dangerous on the other side?" I asked the soldier.

"Not really, but bandits sometimes surround it for no apparent reason. They just gonna stand there, hanging around with other bandits, keeping their guns ready, and shoot at the road for target practice." He replied, almost in a straight tone.

"Okay… Anyway, how long have you and the other one been the gatekeepers?" I asked him again out of my curiosity.

"5 months. We live in there, changing shifts, receiving some supply, and waiting for anyone who wants to cross the bridge. You're lucky to be the one, we're really bored there." He answered with a relieved sigh.

"Okay…"

"How are you doing there, little fella?" He asked Daniel, which Daniel reply with a thumbs up.

"Is he like that to other people?"

"Oh, him? He's kinda shy to speak loudly, even with me. He enjoys communicating with hand signals."

"Ah, okay…"

Our conversation ends here. There's no more interesting topic in my mind, neither the soldier. Daniel obviously can't talk, so he just sitting there, admiring the view, and sometimes writing something on his book. Our journey didn't take so long, only about 10 minutes crossing the bridge.

On the other side, there's also a gate with concrete walls, but no obstacles. It's quiet here, too quiet. There are so many bullet holes and casings lying on the road. The gate is already open, waiting for anyone to pass it. The Humvee stops, and the soldier signaling us to be quiet and keep our heads down. And he continues to drive slowly to the gate. The sound of wheels crushing the dirt and bullet casings is the only sound we can listen to. My heart beats faster and faster when we reach the gate.

Nobody is present, but the ruins of the city are welcoming us. The wind hissing and roaring around the Humvee, sounds of cracking rocks and glass can be heard. We have arrived, in Brooklyn, NY.

****

It took us more minutes to reach the middle of Brooklyn. Everything is so barren in here. I didn't ask the soldier any questions again, afraid that it'll annoy him again. Daniel still writing some kind of phrases in his book. I don't think he will use that book for his communication assistance, because he will be running out of ink or paper for some sentences.

"Where are we going?" I asked the soldier.

"Somewhere safe, as you were asked?" Answered the soldier.

"Okay… But tell us, where?"

"Just keep your eyes on the road and you'll notice it."

Well, I hesitate and look around again. The neighborhood is still barren, with no activity around. Where are the people? Gunshots still can be heard from far away, which means the war is still going on. But when we arrived here, no sign of fighting or wrecks has been found.

More minutes passed, and I have no idea where are we going. I'm getting bored and my back hurts a lot. Suddenly, we stopped. The soldier gets out of the Humvee and heading to a building. I and Daniel watch him in the Humvee. He's doing some call on the radio, maybe status report. When he comes to the Humvee, we heard a gunshot and see his head exploded into pieces.

I quickly switch to the driver seat and step on the gas. Another 50 caliber shot can be heard, followed with lots of screams. It was an ambush. The Humvee's steering wheel is really hard to turn, but we managed to avoid the ambush. But unfortunately, my luck almost runs out when there's another shot hitting the Humvee's glass panel.

"Keep your head down, Daniel! This is gonna be a rough ride!"

I shouted to Daniel at the back, when another shot hitting the Humvee again. I turn the steering wheel left to right, managing to avoid the shooter's line of sight. After some miles, we saved after we reach the highway. Our Humvee is barely damaged. I'm glad those ambushers are slow and inexperienced.

"Hah… You okay, Daniel?"

Daniel smiles and gives a thumbs up.

"Thank God you're alright..."

I'm exhausted, I almost got shot in my head, and we lost our escort. What a tough day. I look at the damaged bulletproof glass. It busted up and I can see the bullet parts inside it. Suddenly, my left ear starts ringing and I feel something flowing out of it. When I touch it, I see a blood mark on my hand. The ringing is still happening and it hurts, but I cover it up by acting tough in front of Daniel.

"Nah, it's okay. Maybe just some shattered glass."

But I'm wrong…

After the ringing stops, I can't hear anything from my left ear. Crap, I'm going deaf on my left ear because of shattered glass. Daniel seems frightened, but he can't do anything from the backseat. I need to clean this before it gets infected. I grab my medical kit and try to clean the blood. Daniel gets up from the seat and helps me to clean and cover my wound.

"Oww, be careful. There might be some glass pieces on it."

Daniel still an amateur about treating wounds. At least, my wound is treated and covered. Daniel claps at my left ear, but I can't hear anything. Only my right ear can hear some of it.

"Sorry, Daniel. I can't hear it. But this means we're even again, right?" I mocked him again, which replied by a punch on my head.

"Oww! Okay, okay! No more mocking about you."

But I'm glad he didn't receive any wound after that ambush. I start the Humvee again and drive again on the highway. The highway is the same as before, nothing can be seen around except buildings and apartments. Is everyone in Brooklyn already evacuated before it got occupied by the insurgents? Well, I got a vehicle with a big machine gun. That's a big improvement, but also more effort to maintain it…