by Phil Maxey
Abbey wanted to agree, but right now all she wanted to do was sleep. She almost didn’t have the energy to eat the food and drink the water she knew she had to, to stay alive.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
As the shadows started to grow long, and day gave way to the evening, the convoy approached the outskirts of Jackson, Mississippi. For most of the journey they had managed to avoid E.L.F’s due to Cal’s sense of them being close or far. As they moved along the tree lined highway, he started to feel uneasy.
He furrowed his brow and squeezed his forehead. “I’m picking up that same feeling again.”
“The same feeling you had in Monroe?” said Zach.
“Yes, I think so. It’s almost… the best way I can describe it, is each E.L.F ‘sounds’ different to me, when there are lots of types close by, it sounds like that sound orchestra’s make when they are just starting up, I can’t make one from the other, but I know they are there.”
“And now you’re starting to recognize individual instruments?” said Raj.
“Yeah I guess, but I don’t actually hear them, it’s like a sensation. Anyway, I picked up something in Monroe which was different to anything else I’ve felt before, and I’m feeling it again now, the weird thing is, it feels like it’s the same, like it’s the same E.L.F.”
“Like we are being tracked.” Zach said in a deadpan tone while driving.
“Yeah.”
“Great,” said Fiona.
“Do you think it could be human?” said Zach.
“It’s not human.”
Fiona looked upwards to see as much of the sky as she could. “So a monster has tracked us for a hundred miles.”
“I think so.”
Zach clicked on the radio and informed the rest of the convoy that there might be something following them.
Raj leaned closer to Cal. “Your abilities seem to be improving.”
Cal gave a quick smile, but he wasn’t sure if he was happy about that.
“Bass, we will leave the highway at the next exit and then head into the suburbs, see where there is to hold up for the night. Over.”
Bass acknowledged, and they left the highway passing back under it, and then moving onto a wide deserted road which led towards the heart of the city. Overhead the sky was gray and filled with formless clouds refusing to let any direct sunlight hit the ground. Passing a college and a clock tower they were soon surrounded by numerous hotels and stores, most of which looked undamaged.
“Might be a good place to check out in the morning,” said Fiona.
Zach pointed to his left, up ahead. “There, let’s check out that place,” he informed Bass, and they pulled up out front of a large brick pharmacy building. A few cars sat in the parking lot, but there was no sign of any people or creatures having been there.
The convoy sat for a moment, all their engines turning over in the stillness of the early evening. The fumes from their exhausts turned to a thin mist as the temperature continued dropping.
Zach studied the building in front of him. “Good line of sight, and the building doesn’t have many windows, apart from the entrance it looks pretty secure. Cal stay out here, if you sense anything get on the radio,” Zach then left the Humvee, walking up to the tank, where Bass had already popped open the turret hatch.
Soldiers jumped down from the truck, and joined Zach as he walked inside through the already open glass doors.
Cal reached forward and put his hand on Fiona’s shoulder, which she covered with her own hand.
Raj stretched out. “I’ll be glad to get out of his Humvee, even if it is on a cold, tiled floor!”
Micheal banged on the Humvee’s side window, making them all jump. Fiona swore.
He pointed to the building. “I’m going inside.”
“I’ll think I’ll join him,” said Raj, who then got out.
Fiona sighed. “Been a crazy few days.”
Cal moved forward, between the front seats, pulled her towards him and kissed her. “You don’t have to worry about me, I’m okay.”
“It’s just…”
“You’re worried about what I can do, that it’s making me someone different?”
“We don’t know what’s happening from one day to the next. Back at the camp, it started to feel…”
“Normal?”
“Yeah, well as much as it can do.”
“We get Abbey back, then we can decide where we want to go. Back to the camp, or maybe somewhere else, who knows what other communities survived.”
“I don’t think they will want to let you go, you’re too useful to them.”
Cal smiled. “That’s our choice and anyway there will be others that can work with them.”
Fiona’s radio cracked then Zach’s voice came through. “Looks all clear in here, bring the supplies in. Back up the vehicles as close as you can to the main entrance, we will use the tank as a barricade.”
As Cal, Fiona and the rest left their vehicles, the gloomy sun had passed below the horizon, and the rain started to fall again. High above in the gray heavens a shadow moved and swayed, watching.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
A man in eighties heavy metal leather clothes screamed, and a stadium full of creatures responded, laughing and making unrecognizable sounds of joy. Abbey had almost gotten used to the dream she was repeatedly having. This time she thought she would do something different. Standing, she moved up the aisle and walked under a bright green neon sign that said “Cascade.” She continued through a dark shadow infested hallway until she came out into a deserted lobby only half lit. Everywhere she looked where placards and posters. “Tickets to the Cascade, brought to you by Arclight! One night only!” She started to feel uneasy. Her face was sweating. She needed to get some air. Walking down some impressive stairs, she ran across the plush carpet, and through ornate glass doors, into… a jungle.
The heat was more intense than before, more stifling. Turning around she looked back at the lobby she just came from to see nothing but just a mass of bright green leaves and branches. Trunks covered with lichen reached skywards into a canopy so thick no sky could be seen, but yet there was light enough for her to see a path crawling through the undergrowth ahead of her. Feeling worse she looked down at her left arm. There was no hand, not even a tentacle. She screamed.
“Abbey!” Daisy tried to hold her hand over Abbey’s mouth, trying to stifle her scream. “Abbey, it’s a dream.”
Abbey flicked her head left and right, and then intense pain shot up her arm from her hand, forcing her eyes open wide. “Where am I…”
“In a warehouse, I’m Daisy, remember? From earlier?”
Abbey breathed heavily. “Yes, sorry, I remember. Do you have any water?”
Daisy opened the bottle, and held it up to her mouth so she wouldn’t need to lift her hands. She drunk a little. “Thank you,” she then realized Daisy's hands and feet were not tied anymore.
Daisy anxiously looked at the office door. “You began to scream, I think I woke you before anyone heard.”
“Sorry. It’s just I keep having this dream, a dream where I’m someone… or something I’m not, and I’m in this weird stadium, or theater, and then there was a jungle…”
A noise echoed around the large open area beyond the office and they both froze. Only silence followed.
“Okay I think we’re alone.” Daisy sat back against the filing cabinet. Something just outside their room provided just enough light for them to see each other and the furniture but not much else. “That sounds like the kind of dream you might have if you had been kidnapped by crazy freaks.”
Abbey smiled, and even though it was hard to see, thought Daisy was as well. “I hope that’s what it is… have you thought about a plan to get us out of here? What if they find you untied? What time is it? How long was I asleep?”
“In reverse order. About four hours. I think it’s around ten, I can put the cord back on quickly if I need to and yes I have.” Daisy moved close to Abbey.
“The windows in the room outside the office, they are only ten or so feet from the sidewalk.”
“Okay?”
“We’re going to open one, and then I’m going to lower you down, with this.”
Daisy picked up plastic cabling, it looked twisted and was wrapped around into loops.
“You’ve been busy.”
“I’m going to help you free your legs and hands. It’s going to hurt, but you have to not scream out, if you do no one’s going anywhere.”
“Any idea what way to go when we touchdown? This is my first time in Atlanta for many years.”
“We just get as far away as we can, as quickly as we can.” Daisy pulled her shirt off, twisting it tight, then placed it near her mouth. “Bite down on this.”
Abbey did so, then Daisy set about untying her hands. It took longer than she wished, and on more than one occasion Abbey thought she would bite right through her friend’s shirt, but eventually her hands were free. The throbbing though had intensified, and made her feel light headed.
“I… I don’t know if I can do this, the pain in my wrist…”
Daisy continued untying her feet. “That’s why I’m lowering you down, we will tie the cord around under your shoulders. You shouldn’t have to use your left hand at all. Right, are you ready? Let’s see if you can stand.”
Abbey blinked but didn’t respond. She started to put pressure on her thighs, then calfs then ankles, all of which hurt, but compared to her wrist it was manageable. Eventually she was sitting on the nearby chair and could see into the large empty space just beyond the thin walls of the room they were in. Daisy quickly put her shirt back on, picked up the rope she created and walked to the door, crouching. She then slowly put her hand on the cold rusted metal door handle, and turned. There was a loud click, and both of their hearts missed a beat, but she continued turning and then pulled the door open a few inches.
A waft of cool air brushed over them, and along with it came the sound of distance voices.
“They’re not far away!” said Abbey disturbed by the new sounds.
Daisy put her hand up. They both sat waiting for the distant din of chatter to quieten. After what seemed like hours but was in fact only a few minutes, only silence came from the rooms neighboring them. The light coming from the room with the noises also disappeared, plunging them both into complete darkness.
“Fuck. Okay I think they’re gone or asleep.” she whispered.
“I can’t see my hand in front of my face!” whispered Abbey in reply.
Abbey gingerly got to her aching feet, and walked, keeping herself low and stopped just behind Daisy. Abbey knew that at any moment someone could enter the room, walk across the open space to the office and they wouldn’t be able to tie themselves up quickly enough in the darkness. But she didn’t care. If there was a chance to escape she was going to take it.
Daisy pulled the door open a few feet and waited. Still no sounds. She then moved out of the room trying to remember which direction she needed to move in. Luckily the night sky though the windows was slightly less dark than the space around her and her eyes begun to adjust. She was soon below the window.
“Come on,” she threw her voice best she could while keeping it low in the direction she just came from. She felt a presence behind her.
“I’m here.”
They both crouched below the window and looked in the direction they thought the door was, the same door which many times during the previous day people had come through.
Daisy stood up slowly and looked out the window. Light from somewhere behind the clouds above, gave just enough light for her to make out the sidewalk below. “I think it’s about ten feet, but I can’t be sure,” she then felt around the window frame until her fingers caught on a latch, which she pulled on. There was a creak, and the window opened a few inches. She then pushed it further. She then ducked back down and pushed her hands out until they came into contact with Abbey.
“I’m going to wrap the cord around you, under your shoulders and tie it in a knot, then you climb and out. Try to use your good hand and your feet to support your weight if you can.”
Abbey for the first time since she entered prison, thought about her weight and tried not to giggle at the absurd notion of doing so in this moment.
It wasn’t long before the cord was secure around her, and she grabbed the window rim, pushing the window further open, and climbed onto the ledge, she then looked back at Daisy who she could now make out. “Are you ready?”
“Yes, quick.”
Abbey swung both legs around so they were dangling off the edge, then pivoted around, holding onto the frame of the window with her good hand.
“Go on.” Daisy’s voice came from inside, just a few feet away but she wasn’t sure from exactly where in the pervading dark.
Getting a good grip with her right hand, she prodded the brickwork with her boots trying to find a foothold but there weren’t any. She took a deep breath, and let herself down, just hanging from one hand. She instantly dropped a few inches and her heart leaped into her mouth. The ground might as well of been fifty feet below her because she couldn’t see it, and she would be falling not knowing when it would stop.
The cord tightened under shoulders, and she was dangling beside the wall. She then started to lower, a few inches at a time. She kicked out desperately hoping that her boots would hit the hardness of the alleyway ground, but instead she kept being lowered. Where’s this damn sidewalk!
Suddenly she dropped a foot and hit the ground, making sure she fell backwards against the wall.
“Hey I’m down…” She looked up and hope drained from her. The window above her head she had just been lowered from had the faintest of light coming from it. There must be someone in the room next door.
She quickly tried to untie the knot Daisy had tied, but it was too tight for her to loosen with one hand. Fuck. Come on.
She looked up at the window. Daisy was leaning out of it, but not pleading for the rope to be freed so she could climb down, instead her expression was sad. “Go!” Daisy’s voice echoed around the alleyway.
“No, I won’t leave you, come on! I just need to get this damn cord off,” just as Abbey finished her words, the rest of the cable fell from above, landing on the sidewalk. Abbey looked up, waiting for her friend to climb out, and jump, she now knew it wasn’t that far. The light from the window above intensified and Daisy was gone.
Abbey looked around herself. She was in an alleyway but she had no idea which way to go. A man shouted from the large room above her, and Daisy screamed. Abbey ran into the darkness.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Cal and Fiona lay on the tiled floor of the pharmacy huddled together in a double sleeping bag. Around them was a similar scene, but with single bags. A few candles produced flickering shadows against empty rows where pills would have been. After checking out the entire store, and the warehouse area outback, the pharmacy was chosen as the best place to bed down for the night, as it was enclosed on most sides, apart from the counter, but even that provided some cover if something attacked them from the front entrance direction.
Cal lay with his eyes open, trying to sleep.
Fiona’s eyes were closed but she was equally awake. “I can’t sleep.”
“You should try to get some, it’s a long journey tomorrow and at the end we will have to fight.”
“I know, I’m trying. What’s your excuse?”
“That… sensation I had earlier. I can’t shake how it made me feel.”
Fiona opened her eyes and blinked. “How did it make you feel?”
Cal swallowed. “Usually there’s not much of a pattern to what I feel. Different patterns sure, but the patterns themselves are chaotic, there’s no structure to them. But this was structured. Similar to what I felt with the guy from the bike gang, but different, richer.”
“Right.”
Cal smiled. “I know it must sound crazy.”
Fiona smiled and put he
r arm across his. “This world is crazy,” she paused as if deciding something. “Maybe talk to Raj about it in the morning.”
“Maybe.”
After doing a perimeter sweep Zach walked up to the two soldiers whose job it was to guard the entrance at the back of the warehouse. Over his shoulder was his sleeping bag and in his hand his flashlight. During the journey to Portland, some of the troops with him had died, men who he was hardly on a first name basis with. Since being back at the camp and meeting the grieving families, he had come to regret that.
“Private Brown is it?”
The young, blond haired man, got quickly to his feet and saluted, the other young man to his right, did the same. “At ease.”
“Yes, sir. My name I mean, it’s Brown.”
“What’s your first names?”
“I’m Randall, and this is Zane Sanders”
Zach stretched out his hand to both soldiers, which they awkwardly shook. “How did you end up in the camp?”
“Well I used to fix cars, and Zane here used to sell insurance,” he sniggered when talking about his friend.
“Oh hell, so you were drafted in the camp?”
“Sure was. We wanted to do something that would really help, and there wasn’t much call for insurance anymore,” said private Sanders.
“Well it’s appreciated. If you keep your wits about you out here, then you’ll do fine,” it was a lie, but one that had to be told. “And anyway we got a secret weapon, we got Corporal Rodriguez.”
Both the soldiers looked away uneasily.
“What is it? Speak up.”
Private Brown, shifted on his feet. “Some of the guys, they’re not sure about him. Like can we trust him?”
Zach resisted the anger that started to boil way down deep inside him, and smiled. “I trust him. The reason we have had so few run-ins with E.L.F’s is because of him, because of his abilities. We are all lucky to have him with us.”
