Marked

by Penelope Scott

  Everything was very organized. Echo was flabbergasted. To think that the Chosen had built all this in secret! Not just one, either. There were probably dozens of them in North America alone, each of them equipped to house the Chosen through the end of the world.

  The group crowded out and met someone with a clipboard who was very efficient and business like.

  "You guys cut it pretty close. Don't worry though, there's still room for everyone. We'll get you settled in no time. Is there a leader to your little group?"

  "That'd be me," Maddox stepped forward and excepted a big bundle of pamphlets and books and information.

  "We don't have enough, you'll have to share. There are maps of the bunker and some vital informations inside. Usually I'd explain all this myself but..." He sighed heavily, "We're closing up tomorrow and there's still so much to be done."

  "Tommorow?" Maddox asked. He sounded a little bit sad.

  "That's the longest we can wait," The efficient man apologized. "Go in, find Emma, she'll get you settled. Take the girl to the infirmary," He nodded at Ro, who was looking much better. Her face even had colour again. "Once you're settled in, we'd appreciate it if you could lend a hand."

  "Of course," Maddox said agreeably. He thanked the efficient man and just like that there were walking to the side of the garage where there was a heavy-duty metal door propped open that led into a stairwell.

  Echo clutched Lys' hand nervously as they walked down the stairs. Ro and Loch were allowed to use the freight elevator to get down with Ro on her gurney, but everyone else had to take the stairs.

  The went down what seemed like ten or twenty stories until they finally found themselves in a long hallway. They walked another twenty minutes before they finally emerged into a cavernous room with high ceilings and lots of flood lights to keep it bright. It was just as chaotic down here as it was outside. A plump black woman stood in the middle of it all, frantically checking notes and giving instructions. She must have been Emma, the one they were told to find. Echo shouldered the heavy backpack of stuff she'd carried off the bus and followed Maddox as he went to greet her.

  Despite her frazzled appearance, the woman was pleasant and probably twice as efficient as the man in the garage.

  "You must be the new ones I was radioed about." She smiled, showing off her perfect white teeth. "My name is Emma, I'll help you get settled around here. If you have any questions, just ask."

  Shy had about a million questions, and once she got the ball rolling, Athena joined in. Emma answered them all patiently. Yes, you could share a room with your families. Yes they could grow their own food down their with the aid of UV lights and enormous stores of fresh water. Everything was recycled, nothing was wasted. The bunker could remain self-sufficient for close to a century, but no, she didn't think they would be down there that long.

  "Probably closer to about five or six decades." Emma said with much more cheer than Echo thought was appropriate. She helped them find rooms, which were small but practical. The bunker had several areas. Public areas where they could eat, hang out, relax or have meetings between the whole of bunker #201-8's population, which was about five hundred or so Chosen. Then there were the private areas - the dorms and bathrooms. The dorms were divided up into apartment style living quarters with four tiny rooms, a bathroom and a small common area with a tiny fridge and some cupboards. They had closed circuit TV's for announcments but most recreation would probably happen in the public areas.

  Then, of course, there were the working areas. Places where engineers could monitor the conditions outside and fix problems inside. Where meetings for the higher-ups in charge of the bunker could make plans and whatever else. Emma explained everything to them in a quick and precise manner and then allowed them all to find a room.

  Echo ended up in an apartment with Lys and Athena in tow. Lys said he'd save the last room for Loch and Ro and gave her a little wink as he settled in the tiny room that was right next to hers. Everything seemed so surreal. She couldn't believe that this was actually going on. tomorrow she would be locked up in here, probably until she was an old woman. The thought sent shivers down her spine.

  When they had chosen rooms Emma put them all to work, except the kids, who were told to play quietly and stay out of the way. Andrew was placed in the care of a charming woman who ran the bunker's nursery and Echo was sent to lug boxes around outside.

  She enjoyed the work, actually. The physical exercise kept her mind off what was really going on. She liked being able to work her muscles again. She worked hard until the sun went down and the lights outside were turned on before she even took a break. She was too nervous to sleep anyway. She wondered what had happened to Angel and Bambi.

  The bunker was closing up the next day and then everything would end. She sat on a rock where she could see the gate ahead of her and sighed. Lys sat down next to her and gave her a much-needed hug.

  "Our new lives start tomorrow," he said, "Are you ready?"

  Echo shook her head and laughed, "I think even a year from now I'll still be wondering what the hell I'm doing here." She sighed and leaned against Lys, looking up at the clear sky. There looked to be a hundred thousand stars up in the sky tht night, twinkling like nothing was wrong. "I'm going to miss the sky," She admitted. "It's scary,"

  "We'll be okay," Lys promised her. "You'll see."

  Chapter Thirty

  ~*I Feel Fine*~

  The twinkling stars were not very comforting, Echo thought after she'd spent a long time staring up at them. She wondered if there was more work for her to do. Looking up at the sky that she might never see again was making her depressed.

  Across the dirt and gravel covered way Echo could see Maddox still moving things around, ordering people about in that commanding voice of his. Somehow he had found himself in charge of moving foodstuffs into the bunker. Echo wasn't all that surprised. Maddox just fell into a leadership role naturally.

  "Do you think we'll ever see the stars again?" Echo wondered aloud.

  "Definitely," Lys said. Echo didn't know where he got his confidence from. Emma had said fifty or sixty years would be spent underground. She would be an old woman by then. She might not even be alive.

  "We'll bust outta here with a hundred grandbabies all eager to get to work and rebuild. And we'll be so old we won't have to lift a finger."

  "Grandbabies?" Echo questioned, raising an eyebrow at the boy. "Getting a little ahead of yourself, aren't you?"

  "I don't think so," Lys grinned and kissed her neck, making her giggle. He loved it when she laughed. "I want a hundred of them!" Lys joked, "All with auburn hair and green eyes." He winked at her and she blushed furiously, but she liked that Lys was talking about having a future with her. She snuggled up against his arm comfortably.

  "I guess if I'm with you, it won't be so bad." Echo said. Now it was Lys' turn to blush.

  "You are a shameless flatterer," he chuckled. Smiling, Echo kissed him hard on the mouth, surprising him. He was grinning and moving to kiss her again when the sound of a car horn broke through the silence of the night.

  The guards at the gate perked up and started yelling to one another, getting ready to meet whomever was coming down the road.

  A black car was screeching down the gravel road, it's headlights the only thing really visible in the darkness of the night.

  "Newcomers?" Lys wondered out loud.

  "Probably," Echo agreed, watching with interest as the newcomers were greeted at the gate. Even Maddox and his crew were watching it.

  The car swerved around the bend and the brakes screeched and it jerked to a stop in front of the gate.

  "Jeez," Lys laughed, "They drive like Angel!"

  Jack waved the gate open and the car lurched forward driving much faster than was safe down the road. Then the person slammed on the brakes again, stopping the car dead. Echo was curious to see what exactly was going on. The engine was still running when the car door opened and a long, brown leg swung out of the
driver's seat.

  "Holy shit..." Lys gaped.

  Echo could hardly believe her eyes as the person climbed out of the car. Angel's beautiful face appeared out the door, and soon after Bambi exited as well.

  Angel was looking off towards where Maddox was, and Echo could tell she was grinning. Angel hadn't seen Echo or Lys yet, but Echo shot up to her feet and started running towards her anyway. "Angel!" She screamed. "Bambi! You're alive!"

  Angel jerked and swung around, and her smiled grew even wider. "Kiddo!" She greeted, "You didn't really think those coppers could get the best of us, did you?" She laughed as Echo threw her arms around the woman's neck and crushed her in a bear hug. Echo could feel tears gathering up in her eyes. She had thought the two women were goners for sure. That even if they escaped they would never make it to the shelters in time. It was like a mircale to see them again.

  Echo released Angel and gave Bambi a similar hug. Lys even hugged the two women and greeted them like old friends, however briefly they had known each other.

  "Angel?" Maddox's voice could be heard behind them. They all turned to see the man stalking towards them, looking angry.

  "Maddox," Angel smile was soft as she saw the man approaching. Maddox didn't even give her time to finish her sentence. With a low growl he had swept the woman up in his arms and was kissing her furiously.

  Echo felt her mouth fall open. She looked to Lys to see if he had known, but he looked just as surprised as she was. Bambi hid a small smile behind her mouth and was polite enough to avert her eyes while the couple kissed.

  Echo had no idea that...Maddox and Angel! When did they become a couple?

  "Well, that was unexpected." Angel gasped as Maddox finally released her.

  "I thought you were dead!" Maddox snapped at her. "Damned woman! What the hell took you so long?"

  Angel looked amused. "It's nice to see you, too, Maddox." She laughed and slapped his shoulder. "That was the best greeting I've ever gotten in my life."

  Maddox seemed to not know whether to be flattered or furious, so he somehow managed to be both and launched into a stream of curses, waving his hand around but still looking deleriously happy while he did so.

  Echo couldn't help but giggle at the two. Maddox had been more worried than he'd let on about the woman. If he'd cared about her so much then why did he let her go on a suicide mission?

  As soon as the question popped into her head, Echo knew the answer. Maddox may have felt something for Angel, he may have wanted to keep her safe, but Maddox, like Angel, was a self-sacrificing kind of person. What he did and what Angel and Bambi did was for the best interests of the whole group. They really had been prepared to give up everything for the rest of them.

  Echo felt a sudden wave of affection for the gruff man and the military women who had risked so much. "I'm so glad to see you guys here," she confessed. "Thank you," Now tears really were filling her eyes, "We never would have made it here if it weren't for you." She hastily wiped her face. Now was not the time for crying. Angel and Bambi were alive! She should have been cheering.

  Angel grinned and ruffled her hair, and Bambi put a friendly hand on her back. "Don't cry, sweetie," the red-headed woman said comfortingly, "Everything will be okay."

  Echo nodded, and this time she really felt it was true. She looked at Lys and smiled brightly at him. "You're right, we'll be okay." She may not see the sky again in her lifetime, but someone would. In fifty or sixty years, or however long it took to wait out the apocolypse, they would emerge from their shelters and rebuild.

  "Let's get inside," Lys suggested, "It's getting cold out here."

  With one last look up at the sky, Echo agreed. Lys smiled and pulled her in for one last kiss under the moonlight. His lips were cool and comforting on hers. Echo felt the electricity run down her spine again as they kissed. The world was ending, but she was here with people who loved her and cared about her, and despite everything, the future looked hopeful.