Defiance of the Fall

Author TheFirstDefier

Defiance of the fall

Prologue - Welcome to the Multi-Verse , v . 2

Information was power . It could both be the sword with which you impale your enemy , or the sword you impale yourself upon . That was what was going through Zac’s head as he walked through the woods with a small hatchet in his hand , his face glowing with a sheen of perspiration and irritation .

He was still unsure of how a short mention about spending time in his family’s cabin as a child turned into him being tasked with bringing firewood back to the campsite? He pushed some intrusive shrubbery out of the way , as he ventured further into the woods . Maybe his friends were laughing it up as they stayed by the fire in their cozy chairs with a few beers , while he was living the age-old scenario of man versus nature .

He swung his hatchet and chopped off a small twig , but immediately saw that it would make terrible firewood from how fresh it was . What the hell did he know about gathering firewood anyhow? It had always been his dad getting it for their cabin , and Zac was pretty sure that he had actually bought them rather than cutting down trees .

It was a sweltering day in May , with high humidity even though not a cloud was in sight , probably from yesterday’s drizzle . This , along with it being spring , made Zac seriously doubt whether any of these trees made for a decent fire if chopped down . The humidity and moisture in the wood would turn the campsite into an inferno of tear-inducing smoke at the first lick of fire . If it even was possible to light the fire at all .

Besides , this whole area was part of a nature reserve , and he was not really sure if there were legal ramifications to cutting anything down . Still , he trudged on , dragging his now sticky hair out of his face as he surveyed the surroundings .

For exactly what , Zac still didn’t know . He was still half-hoping to run into a neatly stacked pile of firewood secured under a tarp , left behind by some more adroit forester . Zac had been walking around aimlessly now for 15 minutes , and he wasn’t really cut out for this so he could really use the backup .

Which is sort of ironic , as his appearance would usually indicate someone who has a good command of the great outdoors . Standing at 5’11 with a set of broad shoulders , sporting a flannel shirt with the arms rolled up to his elbows , he at least somewhat looked the part . But the slightly too even beard , the pudge at his belly , and the lack of wiry muscles coming from manual labor were signs of a far more sedentary lifestyle .

He was actually just a marketing consultant who jumped onto the bandwagon and got the slightly grizzly look as it seemed pretty popular at the moment . And it did actually pay dividends , as this trip was arranged with his new girlfriend Hannah and three of her friends .

Truth be told , had it not been for the heat and the humidity , he wouldn’t really have minded this solo trip into the woods . It was always a weird situation , being a new addition to a group that has years of history together . To figure out the dynamics and personalities of everyone , while keeping up with conversations where half the content are inside jokes and stories from before you were in the picture .

Of course , they mostly seemed like decent people . David was open and cheerful , and the trip would likely have lost much of its energy had he not been there . Unfortunately , David’s interests diverged with his , him being into Soccer and Hockey and Zac into video games and art . This made it a bit harder to find things to talk about during the long trip up into the woods . But he’s still a guy one wouldn’t mind having a beer with .

David's girlfriend Izzie was a harder pill to swallow , with her unceasing grandstanding about whatever issue she could insert into the conversation , be it veganism , environmental conservation or social issues . Of course , Zac generally agreed with her points of view , but it did get tiring to be constantly preached to .

It’s ironic , ’ he thought , - it’s often the kids of the elite who gets like this . ’ He had heard from Hannah that Izzie’s father was some sort of manager at a hedge fund , and her mother was a Partner at some high-end law firm . Apparently , a complete lack of supervision and unlimited funds leaves one with a surplus of energy that needs to be directed somewhere . And in her case , it was usually a crusade against - The Man’ and the corporate machine . Still , it was hard to stay annoyed forever with her , as her bubbling energy was somewhat infectious .