The Fallout

by Knox, J. C.

  George looks at Sarah whose interest has picked up at what Connor has just said.

  ‘You have, see Connor I knew he knew more than he was letting on,’

  George is unsure how much to tell them, but decides to tell them everything they know,

  ‘Yes, we picked up some chatter just after we were across the water, I believe it’s Icelandic. We were going to try to sail across, but Sarah suffers terrible sea sickness. We had no other option but to return.’

  ‘Could you make out what was being said?’

  ‘Not much, but from what I could gather, it would seem that most of the world has been affected. The west coast of North and South America are unaffected along with the two polar regions and central Africa. We were going to try to get to Iceland to see what life is left. To see if there was a chance of having a normal life there.’

  ‘Do you think that’s possible, that there may be places where we could live a normal life?’ Connor asks.

  ‘We won’t know until we investigate, Sarah will stay here, and I will head out in the morning.’

  ‘We can come with you; it would be easier with more hands?’ Seamus said, glancing at Connor.

  George doesn’t want Seamus and Connor, but he can see the benefit of having them with him. Especially when they are crossing the Atlantic Ocean.

  ‘Okay, you can come, but you have to bring your own supplies. Make sure to bring enough food and water to do at least a week I would suggest ten days to be safe. Be here first thing, if the boat is still here you can come with me. Oh, and make sure to shower.’

  George is curious as he walks the men back to their boat, moored on the other side of the island out of sight.

  ‘Why’d you moor here?’

  ‘In case you tried to shoot us again,’ Seamus said, grinning as they push off into the darkness.

  ‘Remember as dawn is breaking, if you’re not here I’m leaving without you.’

  He watches until the boat is just a dot before returning to Sarah in the house.

  ‘Do you think it’s a good idea bringing Seamus and Connor?’ Sarah asks when he returns.

  ‘Probably not, but it will help to have extra hands when it gets stormy, you know how quick it can happen. Also, they’re just trying to survive like us! Right?’

  ‘Suppose… Come on let’s get a bite to eat and get some sleep.’

  George wakes early the following morning, after scrubbing himself raw, he makes himself a large bowl of porridge, and sits at the table in front of the window. Glancing up from his breakfast, he spots lights in the water, watching as they get closer and closer. The lights are almost at the island as he shovels the last of the porridge down, he washes the bowl and adds more ration packs, water and rehydration tablets to his supplies, he doesn’t know how the three of them will fare out in the Atlantic. As the lights look as if they are about to dock, he heads to the bedroom and gently shakes Sarah’s shoulder,

  ‘Sarah…! Sarah…! I’m leaving soon, Seamus and Connor are nearly here, you remember where everything is, all the emergency stuff if you need it?’

  ‘Yes, I know where everything is! Please, promise me you will be careful and keep in contact,’ Sarah said kissing her husband afraid this will be the last time she will see him.

  ‘We checked everything is working and you know what station to get me on, we can only pray the ocean will be kind,’ he said, pulling her into a deep hug.

  Downstairs, George turns off all the lights, he’s uneasy at leaving his wife alone, but grabs the bag he’d packed the previous night and heads down to the water watching Seamus and Conner pull in. Grateful that the water is calm, George finds comfort as he listens to the water lapping against the rocks. Boarding his fishing boat, he checks the fuel, as expected, the tank is full, but he heads back to the shed, grabbing a container of fuel, stashing it with fuel he already had onboard.

  ‘George are you ready?’ he hears Seamus calling as Connor ties their boat to the jetty.

  ‘Yes, have you brought supplies?’

  ‘We’ve only got a weeks’ worth; we didn’t want to leave everyone else short,’ Connor said. ‘It shouldn’t take longer than a week should it? He asks.

  ‘Wait there, I’ll get some more ration packs, better to be safe than sorry, out there, we only have what’s on board,’ George said, marching back to the house, lifting six more 24-hour ration packs.

  ‘There’s three 24-hour ration packs each hopefully you won’t need them.’

  George helps the men load their stuff onto his boat and starts the engine while Connor lifts the anchor, it’s still dark as the men set off on the treacherous journey but the water is calm.

  George has been navigating the boat for an hour and no one has spoken, he wonders if the other men have fallen asleep as he slows the engine eventually cutting it and lowering the anchor, ready for some food.

  ‘Is there a problem?’ he hears Seamus call from the rear.

  ‘No, I just need to eat, I want to stop for a while, it will be getting bright soon and it would be best if we keep moving when we might be seen.’

  The men are careful to keep their torches dim while they eat their porridge. The sun is starting to rise above the horizon.

  ‘What do you expect to find in Iceland?’ Seamus asks.

  ‘I don’t know, but I think they may be unaffected, the radio was playing heavy metal music, would a country play heavy metal music if they were living in bunkers or like us?’

  ‘You think that we might have a chance of a normal life,’ Connor said.

  ‘If we’re allowed to stay,’ George said.

  His words hang heavy in the air as the men contemplate their futures.

  ‘Fucking Soviets’ Seamus said.

  ‘Indeed, before everything went quiet, one of the reactors at Chernobyl was thought to have exploded, however there’s no way one reactor exploding would have caused all this damage. But it may have caused a chain reaction,’ George said, looking at the two men. ‘I think we should get to know each other, what did you do? Before all this?’

  ‘I’m a carpenter and I have an Irish wolfhound called Toby, I’ve had him from a pup, I brought him with me into the bunker, some complained but he is my family,’ Connor said.

  ‘I’m a farmer, my wife died with radiation poisoning, she was always up early before everyone else and was out working in the fields after the blast, she didn’t know what had happened. As soon as I got up, I knew something was wrong and called Conner who told me to get to the bunker in the village. I got my two girls up and went to the field to get Orlagh, we packed a suitcase each thinking it would be for a day or two. But she started vomiting that night and was admitted to the hospital wing, we weren’t allowed to see her, she improved a day later, then deteriorated overnight and died the following morning. It was such a shock,’ Seamus said.

  ‘What about your girls?’ George asks.

  ‘They survived, I’ve got Niamh who’s 13, she’s the image of her mother and Saoirse whose 5 she was only 2 when we went into the bunker, she’s spent most of her life underground.’

  ‘So, you knew each other before the disaster?’

  ‘Yeah, we started primary school together and stayed friends all the way through school, I went to college to do my carpentry apprenticeship and Seamus took over the running of his family farm after his dad died,’ Conner said smiling.

  By the time they’ve finished eating the night has gone, and the sun is beginning to shine on the calm water.

  ‘We should push on, do either of you know how to navigate?’

  ‘Yep, we both do, don’t worry we can take turns navigating your pride and joy,’ Conner said.

  ‘In that case, one of you can take over the navigation, I need to get some sleep, wake me in a couple of hours and I can take over.’

  George is more relaxed now he knows Seamus and Conner a little better, they are just normal guys trying to survive this horrific atrocity. He wakes with a start and checks the clock, it can’t
be right! It said, it’s almost 5pm, ‘That would mean I’ve slept most of the day,’ he thought.

  Sitting up George looks around finding Connor asleep on the other bunk. Standing up he stretches and heads up the stairs, it feels choppier than earlier and the wind blasts into his face as he steps out onto the deck.

  ‘Well, finally! Sleeping beauty is awake,’ Seamus calls.

  ‘Is it really almost 5?’ George asks, unable to believe he’s slept so long.

  ‘It is, you wanna take over for a bit? I could do with a break,’

  ‘No worries, But Seamus… Over there in Donegal is where we saw other survivors,’ George said realising where they are.

  ‘Do you think they’re trouble?’

  ‘I do! I didn’t tell Sarah, but when we were heading out, I saw them signaling for help, but when we were coming back, the men met us in their boats they said they had doctors, nurses and medicine. Why were they signaling for help and why didn’t the men mention they were in trouble?’

  ‘I don’t want to draw their attention and want to get past before we’re seen.’

  ‘Hear ya skipper, let’s get out of here,’ Seamus said, studying the map ‘George… We could just turn out into the Atlantic now, it’ll be choppier, but we’ll be less likely to be seen and we’re going that way, anyway. What do you think?’

  George studies the map, Seamus is right.

  ‘Okay, let’s do this’ George said, steering the boat into the waves.

  The vessel is immediately dwarfed with the waves, riding up and down the mighty swelling sea like a child’s toy. Inside the ship there’s no staying still both George and Seamus cling onto the deck trying to hold their position. As the waves rock the boat almost to a tipping point Connor appears clinging on as best, he can until he’s in the cabin.

  ‘What the fuck happened?’ Connor calls.

  ‘We turned into the waves to stay hidden from the survivors in Donegal,’ Seamus calls over the noise of the waves crashing against the boat.

  The three men battle against the waves until darkness surrounds them.

  ‘Are you both up for an all-nighter?’ George calls.

  ‘No choice about it, we have to stay up or we’ll die,’ Seamus calls, ‘Give me the wheel, you need a break George.’

  George steps aside to allow Seamus to take over, Conner is looking decidedly green as the stormy clouds continue to roll in, the wind is strong enough to lift a man. Every muscle in George’s body is at full capacity and there’s no end in sight, there will be at least four more hours of darkness before dawn will break. He doesn’t know how long it will take them to get across to Iceland, but he knows the rest of the journey will be like this.

  George is exhausted, and knows Seamus and Conner are the same, they’ve been battling for three days now but the waves have calmed somewhat in the past hour. George doesn’t know if it is delirium, but he thinks he can see land.

  ‘Seamus, Connor, across the way there, is that land?’

  The two men follow where he is pointing, a grin spreads across Connors face ‘I think you could be right captain,’ he said cutting the engine.

  ‘It’s calmed a little, I think we should rest, it’ll take at least a couple of hours before we’ll reach the land,’ Connor said.

  ‘Yeah, I’m ready to drop,’ Seamus calls, lowering the anchor for the first time in three days.

  At the start of the journey all three men were clean shaven and tidy in appearance but three days without sleep and food they’re disheveled their faces covered with bristles. George descends the stairs to get some much-needed nourishment, he returns to the deck with three ration packs and a gas cooker. Sitting bleary-eyed and unshaven on the deck floor alongside a similar looking Seamus and Conner, he’s not even aware of what it is he is eating but continues to lift his spoon to his mouth.

  ‘I think I might be dead,’ Seamus said.

  ‘Me too,’

  ‘Me three,’ George said raising his bottle of water, ‘Cheers,’

  ‘Cheers’

  ‘We need to get some rest before trying to go any further, we can take shifts in sleeping,’ Connor said, ‘I’m happy to stay up, if you two want to get some shut eye, I’m feeling better after getting a bite to eat and taking those rehydration tablets, what would we have done without those for the past three days?’

  ‘What time is it?’ George interrupts.

  ‘Just after 6am.’

  ‘Okay, wake us in two hours then you can get some sleep and we’ll make a move, hopefully we will be on dry land by this evening.’

  George doesn’t remember lying down, but he’s shocked when he’s woken by Conner telling him it’s time to get up. Glancing at the clock on the wall, its nearly 9am.

  ‘I thought it would do you both good to get some extra sleep, but I need some now,’ Connor said, climbing into the bed behind George before he’s had time to get out.

  George follows Seamus out onto the deck, the sun is shining even though it’s cold and the waves are still choppy but manageable. The two men sit on the deck floor, George fires up the gas stove, he pours some water into the mess tin and boils two foil ration packs without checking what it is he is cooking. He’s pleasantly surprised when he opens his pack to find jam Roly Poly and custard.

  ‘Nice, what did you get?’ Seamus said, showing him his pudding.

  ‘Same’ George said, grinning as the two men begin laughing, the laughter becomes hysterical neither can stop until Seamus starts coughing. He coughs until a handful of blood spills out of his mouth.

  ‘Susan thinks if life is normal in Iceland, we may get some medical treatment,’ George said, noticing Seamus’s worried face.

  ‘Shit, George, is this the start of it, is this cancer?’

  ‘Most likely, everyone exposed to the radiation is likely to develop cancer at some point soon, but hopefully you will have time to get treatment.’

  ‘I can’t die, what about my girls?’

  ‘We can’t panic, we can only push on and hope that there is some normality in Iceland.’

  The two men sit in silence, eating their pudding, the wind has died down, but the boat is rocking with the fierce Atlantic undercurrent.

  Three hours later George heads down the stairs to wake Connor, ‘Connor wake up, it’s time to make a move,’ he calls, shaking the loudly snoring slumbering man’s leg. ‘Connor wake up, come on, we have to leave.’ He watches as Connor begins to rouse,

  ‘Fuck off George.’

  Satisfied Connor will be up soon. George heads back up to the deck and begins lifting the anchor as Seamus starts the engine. Studying the map using his compass, he plots a route.

  ‘If we head due north, I’m fairly certain that we will land in Iceland in about two hours,’ George said.

  ‘Yeah, but have you seen those chunks of ice floating in the water, we don’t want to do a Titanic,’ Seamus said, pointing out a large floating lump of ice.

  ‘Yeah, I hadn’t noticed before, probably because we’re being thrown all over,’ George said looking into the deep water.

  ‘What if one of us sits up front and pushes the ice out of the way using the fishing gaff?’ Connor calls.

  ‘Woo Hoo! Sleeping beauty is awake,’ Seamus calls.

  ‘I’ll do it,’ Connor said, ‘We can’t risk damaging the boat.’

  ‘You can go first, if you need a break before we get there we can swap,’ George said, tying a knot in the rope he’s placed around Connors waist.

  The two men walk unsteadily out onto the front of the boat, George hands Connor the gaff and brings the rope with him, tying it to the nearest loop hook.

  ‘You good Conner?’ Seamus calls

  ‘Yeah, let’s get going.’

  Restarting the engine Seamus pushes the boat forward into the icy water, George stands in the lookout watching for any extra-large pieces of ice to avoid. He doesn’t want to show weakness in front of the others, but heights are his weak point and he’s not happy up here. Adren
aline floods his system; it pumps and beats like it is trying to explode. Looking down everything swirls, he wants to jump rather than deal with this, but after taking several deep breaths he remains where he is, doing the job he’s been given. Beads of sweat trickle down his back and his hands tremble as he clings onto the thick pole, the rocking of the boat exaggerated up here, George knows he must remain still, but is terrified, one slight move and he could be thrown down into the icy waters below. Looking down he sees Connor pushing a lump of ice away from the boat, but he can also see as they get closer to land that the ice chunks are getting wider and more solid.

  ‘Seamus, slow down!’ he calls, but he can’t be heard which terrifies him.

  George scrambles as quick as he can down the pole, relief washing over him as he puts his foot on the deck. He takes a second to compose himself before joining Seamus at the steering wheel.

  ‘There’s thick ice up ahead, I don’t think we’ll be able to get the boat through,’ George said.

  Seamus slows the boat before cutting the engine and the two men help Conner get back in.

  ‘George said there’s thick ice up ahead,’ Seamus tells Conner.

  ‘We’re too far away, we’ll have to push forward just slower, what do you think George, what else can we do?’

  ‘I agree, there’s nothing else we can do…. Except maybe put out a mayday call,’

  ‘We can’t do that, are you crazy?’

  ‘We might have too. What if we get stuck in the ice, or the boat is damaged? If we put out a mayday call and there’s life here, they will rescue us.’

  ‘George you do understand how untrusting everyone is, what if they start shooting at us?’

  ‘Okay… We’ll push on as far as we can, but we have to consider the fact that we may have to let them know we are here. If worse comes to worst, I have two suicide capsules on board.’

  ‘Fucking hell George, you’re a mad man.’

  George doesn’t miss the look exchanged between Seamus and Connor, as he lifts the anchor. ‘We’re good to go Seamus, fire her up,’ he calls.