BOGUS. Jill Ganger
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men in army uniforms appeared in front of the truck. They motioned for the boys to follow them. The boys had expected help with their things, but when it didn’t come they struggled on their own. They followed one of the men, and the other two men followed behind the boys. As they walked to the front of the jeep, they realized that there was a huge opening in the mountain. The three men and the boys went inside. As quiet as it had been outside with no visible life around, in the cave even small sounds echoed off the walls of the large cavern. Abby whispered to Amad, “Where is that noise coming from?” Amad shrugged as he looked around the cave while they walked. There were hollows in the walls with lighted candles. The noise was coming from somewhere up ahead. The temperature here was already cooling down, away from the sun. The cave was curving into the mountain, and even though there were not many of them they couldn’t see the front of their group. Amad thought that’s why the two soldiers were in the rear. They didn’t want us to get lost. Everyone walked through the cave until they got to a huge room with round hanging lights suspended overhead that must have been lit by a generator.
Amad and Abby slowly looked around this giant cave. They saw what appeared to be smaller caves opening into this empty space. Amad wondered whether the small caves were formed naturally or were man-made. Abby turned to Amad and shrugged his shoulders wondering what lay ahead of them.
The soldiers stopped at the entrance to one of these smaller caves. The group of boys were directed inside. After walking only a very short distance, the boys discovered what appeared to be carved away sections on either side of this smaller cave. In each of the carved areas were two boards, one above the other. On each board was a very thin mattress. This must be where they would sleep.
"Choose your space gentlemen," said the closest soldier to the bunk beds with a laugh and an emphasis on the word "gentlemen", as all the boys rushed to find a space. "No fighting, at least not yet". Amad and Abby ran for the beds deepest into the cave and the only discussion between the two of them was who would have the top bunk. Amad scampered up to the top and claimed it as his. He liked the feeling of looking down on his friend, and of being able to observe the others in the room.
The boys had left a pile of their belongings in the middle of the sleeping cave. "Now that your spaces are chosen, come back to get your belongings," the smaller of the soldiers told the boys. On the sides of these sleeping areas were small holes carved into the sides of the cave. The boys were told to put their personal items into the hole closest to their sleeping space.
When everything was stowed, the boys were told to line up in the entrance of this sleeping cave, and then they would march back into the main cave. As they exited the sleeping cave, Amad noticed the letters "Hyaya" carved into the side of the entrance to their sleeping cave. They turned left in the main cave and discovered another small cave. They were directed inside. As they stood at the entrance they saw a large hole filled with water. They were told that his was for the ritual daily soaking of the trainees. Not necessarily to cleanse their bodies, but to cleanse their minds, they were informed. Amad and Abby looked at each other with a building fear of the unknown and what was in store for them.
The soldiers then told the boys that they would have to go outside of the cave in order to relieve themselves and they followed the soldiers outside of the main cave. They were shown the designated area and warned that they would be under constant surveillance - as if they could go anywhere!
Morning and evening prayers would be held in the main hall, and meals would be had either at the end of the main hall in the meeting cave, or outside when they were out on their daily maneuvers.
The boys were taken to the back of the main cave for a snack before retiring to their sleeping cave "Hyaya", Once in for the evening they were not allowed anywhere in the depths of the cave. The only place they could go was outside. This was a strict rule - not ever to be disobeyed, they were advised.
Amad went to the hole by the side of his space and pulled out his journal. He told Abby that he planned on keeping daily notes of his time here. He wrote for a short time, then placed the journal under the mattress ignoring Abby. He fell into a restless sleep thinking about what was in store for him.
The shouts woke them up. Amad sat up on his mattress with a jolt, suddenly remembering where he was. The soldiers were standing in the mouth of cave shouting "Get up! Get up! It's time to begin your first day at the camp!” One soldier continued to shout, “You have ten minutes to grab something to eat. Then you will assemble for morning prayers. At the completion of prayers we will file into the meeting room for the orientation. Go to it boys!"
Amad looked down at Abby. They both jumped out of their spaces and ran out to be first in line for food. They were very hungry this morning, because they had been given only a small snack last evening. They thought of the morning ahead of them as they gobbled down their food without a word wondering what was required of them here - what would they have to do to become men?
The boys all marched into the meeting room as they were directed. Paper and pencils were laid out systematically across the floor. The boys were instructed to sit behind a piece of paper.
When all the boys were in the meeting alcove, a soldier stood up in front of them. "I am Jazir," he said. "I am in charge of your instruction. My job is to ensure that when your year here is complete, you will be walking out of these caves as men. Some of you may not make it - you may not last the full year. Those of you who fail will be going home to your families in shame. Do you understand?". Every boy in the room nodded their head. You could almost feel the building sense of fear in the room.
"You will learn many skills here. To learn them well will keep you
alive until you succeed with the tasks that Allah has asked of you.
First you must be proficient in multiple languages. Your dialects
must be perfect to avoid detection. Don't just stare at me boys - take
notes - that's why there is paper.
You must be skilled marksmen and munitions experts. You may not
understand this now, but believe me you will in a very short time.
You must have planning skills. You must be able to work within a
team and complete your tasks with perfection and without
argument.
You must be physically ready to endure whatever is asked of you.
This means athletic prowess and it also means pain. It could mean
death!
Keep writing boys!”
Amad watched Abby without turning his head. Abby was furiously taking notes as the leader had ordered. Abby was worried; Amad could tell by the look on his face. Amad sat up in a more confident position as he pretended to write. Maybe his father wasn't so bad after all. He had demanded that Amad learn to perfection. Amad already knew English and Spanish, but he wasn't sure that he wanted anyone to know this. Perhaps it should just seem that he was a quick learner. Maybe his father had told them about how he had prepared Amad for this experience, but probably not. His father would have known that Amad would figure out his own way to succeed. Maybe they would test them on their language skills before the classes began. If they did, he would make his decision at that point. But for now, he would tell no one, not even his new friend Abby.
At twelve years old he was already a skilled marksman, but his father had taken away his gun and knives before he left for camp. Again he thought about all the promise he would show when he learned so quickly. At this thought he held in a smile. He was bright, educated far beyond his years, and nobody here knew. What a game he would play!
The officer had completed his instructions, and Abby was pulling on Amad's arm. "Classes in the morning starting at 5 AM, do you believe it," Abby said. "Wow, learning other languages should be fun! I don't know about all that physical exercise in the evening though. Won't we be too tired?”"We are here to learn to be men, we should not show that we are tired,” Amad said with a half smile. Of course the exercise had to be in the evening. It was too hot here during the day.