“Quiet,” a voice hissed. “The test is starting.”
Adam startled. Had he been day dreaming again? He shook the thought away. It was only a few hours till end of shift.
“Do you ever watch the birds, Adam,” Mrs. Conway inquired, gazing out towards the lake. She observed a large formation of birds gathered over the water. “Noah loves the birds.”
A small smile formed on Adam’s face. “Of course, Mrs. Conway,” he responded. Some patients preferred their first name, but Mrs. Conway always went by Mrs. Conway.
Adam pushed the elder woman’s wheel chair along the lakefront trail. His pale blue nurse’s scrubs were short at the sleeves. A weak wind chilled his exposed forearms. Adam kept his gaze focused on the path ahead – careful to avoid any trouble. He was too focused to look anywhere else.
“I love how they fly together,” she elaborated. “It looks random, but it’s far from it.”
Like an infant tornado, the formation of birds swirled and bulged. The light of the setting sun gleamed across the still water. Adam, however, was concerned with the danger on the path ahead.
“Noah loves the birds,” Mrs. Conway stated. “He’s in University you know?”
“I am sure Noah loves the birds,” Adam remarked, not paying particular attention to Mrs. Conway.
“They follow rules,” Mrs. Conway explained. “All they have to do is flap their wings and keep distance from their neighbors. It’s very elegant.”
“Uh huh,” Adam nodded along – not quite paying attention. Something ahead was bothering him.
Marching towards Adam, in common rhythm and fatigues, a group of masked men walked four abreast and 5 deep. They spread across the entire width of the path.
“Move, worm!” one of the men ordered.
Alarmed, Adam took Mrs. Conway off to the side and well into the grass.
With black pants and long-sleeve shirt, each man had the same bright red gator pulled over their face. A pair of dark sunglasses hid their eyes. Each was identical in height and build. They even had the same hair color - a dark brown. Adam fumed, but Mrs. Conway seemed unbothered.
Adam waited until the group was out of earshot. “Shit,” he swore under his breath. “Fucking Vultures.”
Adam tried to avoid interacting with those misguided young men as much as possible. Even still, they had the habit of causing trouble.
“Language,” Mrs. Conway chided.
“Sorry,” Adam apologized, wiping the sweat from his brow. “I just hate those…fascists.”
“Oh,” Mrs. Conway teased. “Always looking at the negative, Adam?”
“Those…” Adam hesitated, searching for a word besides asshole, “jerks did just force us off the road, Mrs. Conway.”
Mrs. Conway glanced down. “Oh Adam!” She squeaked. “You know I don’t follow Politics.”
Adam sighed. Adam knew Mrs. Conway was very smart. He just couldn’t stand how ‘go with the flow’ she was sometimes. Adam attempting to pull the wheelchair, but it didn’t budge. Moving to the front of the chair, he began to push.
Again, the chair didn’t even shift.
“Now my grandson Noah,” Mrs. Conway expounded, “he is very politically minded.”
“Please Mrs. Conway, we’re stuck and I gotta get us out of here.”
Mrs. Conway, ignoring Adam, gazed upon the birds with a mixture of admiration and comprehension, while Adam’s frustration was evident in his furrowed brow and tightened grip on the wheelchair.
Adam tried to push again, but it was if the earth had clamped the wheels in place.
“It’s ok Adam,” Mrs. Conway reassured, laying her feeble hand on top of Adam’s. “Please, watch the birds.”
Adam felt the wind pick up, and then the sky darken. Startled, he noticed that Mrs. Conway was looking over his shoulder – teeth exposed under a wide smile. He turned around.
The swarm of birds now flew directly ahead. Not so close that he could reach out and touch them, but enough to feel the air off their wings. Despite the gale, they flew completely silently. The mass of flyers shimmered and twisted.
Adam basked in the glory of the organism before him.
“Each of those birds,” Mrs. Conway explained, “are very simple. Dumb even. But together, they elevate the whole.”
The rumble of feet running broke through the silence. Adam turned to face the threat. The Vultures, the group of masked fascists, were now running straight for him.
Adam thought of running, but could he leave Mrs. Conway behind? They were too close and too fast anyways. What was this?
Their red masks became sharp and pointy. Their hair grew – not in length, but rough in texture. Their arms, bouncing in the runners cycle, slung out and flapped. Just feet away from Adam, they jumped into the air in concert. Their legs flattened into a bundle of long feathers. Their arms stretched into wide wings.
They flew.
Joining the rest, the group disappeared – indistinguishable.
He could hardly believe what he had seen.
“Beautiful,” Mrs. Conway declared. “Noah would love this.”
Adam wiped his eyes. He was lost in the moment.
“Where is Noah,” Mrs. Conway inquired. “I need Noah.”
Adam felt a pain filled the base of his skull. It felt a deep rumble in his bones. He tried to remember if he hit his head when he fell.
“Please Adam,” she begged. “When did you see Noah?”
Adam cringed. The pain bore deep within him now.
“My head,” Adam cried, bringing both hands behind him. Nothing was there.
Mrs. Conway’s face fell flat.
“When did you see Noah?” Mrs. Conway demanded, with a voice too stern for her age.
Adam couldn’t think. He fell to the ground in agony. Some part of him commanded he resist Mrs. Conway, but another felt compelled. The pain clouded his judgment.
“Do you ever watch the birds, Adam?”
The pain ceased. Like a puppet commanded to rise by its master, Adam erupted to his feet. The flock above him was clear now. They weren’t magpies, or starlings. Instead, a riling mass of vultures filled the sky. Their eyes affixed to Adam with a peckish debauchery.
At once, the formation’s flow changed. Instead of circling above, they turned directly for Adam. He fell onto his back once more, gripping at the grass in terror.
“When did you see Noah?” Mrs. Conway demanded.
Adam felt as though he had moments to live. It was now or never.
“This morning,” Adam shrieked. “We saw him this morning.”
All together, the scene went still. Adam felt as though a second had been stretched into hours. What was once a summer day, and then a nightmare, became neither. The world was black. He tried to lift his arms, but it was though he was cemented into place.
A brightness pierced his vision.
“It’s over,” a voice hissed. “The findings are definitive.”
A rabble of bickering responded in agreement.
Adam opened his eye’s wide. The scene was blurry. He tried to move his head, but it was strapped tight against a chair.
“Your honor,” the voice announced. “A thought in a dream is as good as one awake. The defendant has admitted his guilt.”
The crowd jeered, thirsting for blood.
Adam blinked. He could just make out the Judge sitting high above him on an elevated desk. The seal of the party affixed to the front. To each side, he could see a Vulture standing at attention - hiding their faces behind dark glasses and a red gator. He felt someone retract the probe from his head. Adam’s body rattled against the restraints.
“Adam Harding,” The judge proclaimed. “You are accused of reactionary thought and associating with a known criminal. How do you plead?”
“I,” Adam croaked, “I don’t … Where is Mrs. Conway”
“Your honor,” the prosecutor interceded. “The defendant is clearly attempting to stall. This is not only a waste of the court’s time, but a further act of subversive…”
The Judge raised his hand to interrupt the prosecutor.
“You,” the Judge sneered, pointing at Adam. “Have been charged with very serious infractions.”
“Where,” Adam stumbled his words. “I was at a lake…”
“A dream, Mr. Harding,” the Judge chuckled. “One that we gave you. That is over now. You are accused of associating with one Noah Conway - a known criminal in possession of reactionary and subversive materials.”
“Possession of a single non-party approved book,” the Prosecutor joined in, “is already a class 3 felony - let alone collection of them!”
Adam blinked - hopelessly lost and confused.
“As we determined from examining Mrs. Conway,” the Prosecutor continued, “it is clear that Noah received some of these materials from his Grandmother - under the direct care of the defendant.”
“This court is tasked with maintaining social order above all else,” the Judge announced.
“ORDER! ORDER!” The crowd chanted, somewhere behind Adam.
The Judge raised his hand to settle down the crowd.
“I ask one last time,” the Judge demanded. “What is your plea?”
Adam gulped. “Innocent,” he declared.
The judge released a sadistic smile. “Let the court reporter note that the defendant’s charges be amended to include that of denial.”
“What?” Adam shouted. “You can’t do that!”
The crowd behind him erupted with chaos.
“Bailiff, remand the defendant to await his execution,” the Judge ordered. The two Vultures standing behind him rushed to grab Adam.
Adam shouted curses and insults. As he was wheeled away, he passed a draped figure laying still on a gurney. A small elderly hand peaked out from beneath the cloth.
“Well,” the Judge chuckled, “please bring out the next defendant from holding.”