by Nathan Ward
“Me also, there’s no point us backtracking” Sasha agreed.
By this time, Josh was finding it extremely difficult to remain silent over what felt like a sharp betrayal.
“You’ve all shocked me, I’m speechless, utterly fucking speechless!” he fumed.
“Obviously not – in fact, it sounds like you’ve got plenty to say to us,” replied Murdock.
Josh glared at him.
“Well, you know what? I’m not going to sit on my ass and keep quiet! I am the leader of this group and if you want to fuck off to the middle of nowhere, good fucking luck! This creates the perfect divide doesn’t it, look at you all! I have a daughter back there!”
“And you were pretty happy to leave her there,” Murdock yelled, “You’ve been happily marching your people forward in to what could have been their untimely deaths for the past few years, why is this any different, eh? Oh, you got your family back. We can all go fuck ourselves now can't we, but no, that’s not what we’re here for, I suggested this expedition as it seemed like the only option, the only way of saving those poor souls that have been crammed inside a claustrophobic underground tin!”
Josh glared back at him.
“So you want us to abandon them, is that what you’re saying, Murdock?”
Sasha felt the need to step in.
“They have plenty of water to last them a lot longer than it lasted us, we all made sure of it, why have you now decided to become so arrogant, Josh?” she said angrily.
Josh shot her a furious glare.
“I’m done here, come if you want to. We’re heading back to our people, where our priorities lie!”
Josh, Steph, Thomas and Henry all begin to turn back. Murdock just stood there sweating in the heat, anger burning in his eyes as he fixed his gaze on Josh.
Enrique and Sasha took a glimpse at the retreating group, but kept a keen eye on Murdock who was shaking in frustration, his face was flushed as his patience slipping away as if slipping through his wet clammy hands that were encased in thick white leather. He couldn’t hold it in any longer.
“Yeah, you keep fucking walking! We’ll just slave away putting our lives at risk in hope of finding a solution to your problems. We don’t have families and that makes us the perfect team, able to relate to one another, so why I’d want to be around you really defeats me. We’re going to leave now, Josh… in search of water and food for YOUR daughter!”
Josh continued to walk in the opposite direction, but had heard everything Murdock had said. Thomas placed his hand on his shoulder to show his support in the decision, and to try and silently convey that everything would be okay.
Murdock continued to rant, while Sasha tried her hardest to get him to stop, thinking of anything that would distract him from his train of thought, and then as he kept on yelling she raised her hand to cover his mouth but he shoved it aside.
“You hear me, mate?” Murdock called to him, “Or maybe we’ll keep it, see how much of a heartless bastard you’d be dealing with then, one who’d happily sit back and watch as your kid dies of dehydration, eh? How about it, big man?”
Josh had tried to keep it in, but his anger had risen more and more as sure as his hands had balled into fists on hearing those words. Despite the heat and his exhaustion, he drew up a reserve of energy made of pure anger and turned back, his sights set on the Captain, who seemed like he had been waiting for this turn of action. Josh felt sure he had never responded so quickly and with such rage in his life, stampeding across the ground leaving dust trails in his wake like a snake hunting its prey.
As he entered reaching distance he let out a roar of anger and then Josh threw himself at Murdock, knocking him off his feet and pinning him to the ground, knocking the breath from his lungs as dust kicked up around them. .Josh slammed his fist into Murdock's face, one blow after another making perfect connection as the hardest blow slammed his head against the ground. There was only so much he could take, a raw red burn of friction on his brow had started to form and the smallest of cuts on his inflamed cheek. Sasha and Enrique latched on and tried to pull Josh away, but were launched across the ground as Josh shoved them both aside, still caught up in pure rage.
The blows continued painfully until Murdock found the strength to move his head avoiding another punch, but Josh aimed again, and this time his fist slammed into bed of concrete where Murdock was flat on his back. Josh withdrew his clenched hand disregarding the fact that deep crimson was pouring from his knuckles, he instead begun another throw but this time it met with Murdock's forearm, he then countered Josh with a hard jab to the nose, followed by a right hook that sent Josh tumbling over, giving Murdock the perfect opportunity to get back on to his feet but the two men rose together almost instantly, facing off against one another like gladiators in a coliseum, just without the coliseum and the cheering audience – Sasha, Enrique, Steph, Thomas and Henry would have to do.
The two were locked in a gaze, not breaking eye contact nor blinking. Josh had a bloody nose and Murdock was glad to see he had left his mark, but so was Josh, his only regret being the fact he was unable to open up that beaten raw brow.
“You, go home now!”Murdock said.
His words had confused him.
“Home?”Josh repeated.
“To your daughter,” added Murdock.
Still holding a bitter gaze, Josh made a subtle nod to confirm he understood the Captain, but Murdock remained motionless, unnerved and as solid as a brick wall.
Josh willingly broke eye contact and turned, continuing his retreat back in the direction they had come.
Murdock watched, but then he realized something that completely altered his expression.
“Josh!” Murdock yelled.
Josh turned again.
“We’ve all used up the last of our oxygen, the radiation is going to kill you!”
In sudden realization, the colour drained from Joshes face, he looked down at the ground in a moment of thought and then met Murdock's gaze.
“Don’t worry about us,” replied Josh.
“Don’t be stupid, I know you’re not a fool, Josh!”
“Well, you could have fooled me,” he replied.
Josh continued to make his way back to Steph and his group who were anxiously waiting for him in the distance. Sasha shook her head in disbelief at what she was seeing, she then took a step towards Murdock, taking a quick glance over his light wounds.
“Please tell me it’s not just me who’s seeing this? He is going to get them all killed!” Murdock muttered.
“You cannot argue with someone like him, he knows what he wants and he will not change that” Sasha replied.
“The man has an open mind but he is too overwhelmed by fear, he has already lived a life of loss. He hasn’t got it in him to relive that,” added Enrique.
“So he’s giving up?”Asked Murdock.
“He is acknowledging that you are correct, Captain.”
Murdock turned to look at Enrique, and now he got it – Josh was throwing in the towel, wanting someone to become the man he once was, to take his place...
“Whatever way you want to look at it, he’s a crazy son of a bitch,” Murdock replied, shaking his head as he repeated it again, “Crazy son of a bitch,” he muttered.
Then he, Sasha and Enrique looked towards the unforgiving glare of the sun, watching the silhouetted figures of their comrades fading into the horizon.
Chapter 3: The Railroad Altercation
The sun had risen so high on this day that all life inhabiting the baron land was beginning to rack up immeasurable fear, a fear of dying in one of the worst ways possible: Death by dehydration, a prolonged and painful departure from existence.
Josh, Steph, Henry and Thomas continued their trek back, using the roof of the underground tunnel as a path way. The sand and soil had reached such a high temperature that all four of them could now feel the warmth inside their boots, when usually the suit would circulate cold air in these situations - but all sources of pow
er had just about given up on them.
Slowly, they dragged their bodies to the end of the tunnel. Josh still had blood stains smeared on his skin where he had wiped it away from his bloody nose, he stood leaning forward, fighting exhaustion that was threatening to fight back and claim him and he was about ready to give up when Steph crouched beside him, pushing her shoulder against his chest as a means of support.
“We have to take it slow,” she said.
“But while we remain in this heat, our life counter is rapidly falling,” Josh explained, struggling to get his words out. His throat was inflamed, dry and rough as sand paper and speaking was almost as painful as swallowing.
“We… just have to… keep ourselves moving, in that direction” muttered Josh, who was now in a rapidly worsening bad way.
Thomas looked over his shoulder, hoping he would see the reassuring silhouettes of his friends - but they were long gone. He couldn’t grasp in his mind if he was doing the right thing, knowing how far they had come and the resources they had to consume to get this far - but he didn’t want to let Josh down. He was also feeling more concerned after seeing how Josh reacted to Murdock's choices. They had all seen a side to Josh they didn’t like, a side that had been very carefully contained for a considerable amount of time, until now...
Henry just didn’t know what to do with himself, he also didn’t want to get his head knocked off too, so he kept his mouth shut and minded his own business – but his own business was everyone's, they were all just about ready to fall where they stood and let the scorched earth where they fell become their exposed graves.
Josh had his head arched over and held between his knees, his whole body felt as if it was about to dismantle, there was an invisible, heavy weight at the back of his skull that was threatening to force his eyes shut and make him give into be swallowed up by darkness. The shut down procedure had well and truly begun. A look of dread had painted itself upon Steph’s face, she didn’t know what to do, none of them did.
All josh could do was stare at the crisp soil beneath him, he watched as faint streaks of vapor rose. He aggressively inhaled the fumes through his nostrils and in this moment it seemed as if time had begun to slow, then his mind felt like it had entered a place of calmness where he could relax and feel far away from the harsh conditions of the real world. He was there and yet not, he was ready to drift. Steph looked down at him, his eyes were now closed and his body looked as if perhaps all life had slipped away.
“Josh, can you hear me?” Steph said anxiously.
She paused to await his response, looking at him with eyes wide with fear.
Was he even still conscious?
“Josh!” she said again, and she placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a gentle shake. A moment later his eye lid began to twitch, then his eyes opened, but remained staring at the ground.
“You’re worrying me, I don’t know what to do Josh!” said Steph as tears slowly formed in her eyes.
“I’m...okay...” replied Josh in a roughened voice.
He slowly rose his head until his gaze met clear blue skies.
A look of curiosity had appeared upon Thomas’s face, he looked over at Henry who also wore the same expression. They both looked in the same direction as Josh, who was staring in the direction of which they were headed.
Then he suddenly raised his arm and pointed, as everyone looked to where he indicated. Their eyes lit up at once, and Thomas’s jaw dropped in surprise. What they had seen in the skies was something they never thought they would see again, and now it was something to be excited about, too. In the distance a dark, bullish cloud had begun to form - which only meant a small number of things - but the most important one was that water would be on its way.
Deep down, Josh knew that there was a high chance it had come through the miles of radiated land - but to him, any form of liquid was going down his throat to kill his thirst, even if it was going to kill him.
“That’s what’s going to keep us fighting, if that’s not a reason to get us off our asses I don’t know what is!” yelled Thomas.
“I was just about ready to drink my own piss!” said Henry
Thomas and Steph looked across at Henry and didn't say a word.
“Lets get moving,” Josh said, his eyes still fixed on the looming clouds in the distance.
The four fighters one by one threw their bodies off the top edge of the tunnel, falling heavily, plunging to the ground and landing at the foot of the entrance. None of them had the energy to perform a perfect maneuver, so they managed in whatever way they could. Thomas, who was last to make the jump, scrambled to his feet and found whatever reserve he still had to sprint a few paces forward and rejoin with the group, and then the journey went on towards the storm clouds, where their people were anxiously awaiting their return.
Their exhausted bodies traipsed along the long and bleak rail road, their heavy boots dragging with every painful step. Unbelievably, their heads remained held high, their eyes locked in a gaze with the brutally blackened clouds that were fast approaching.
Josh could feel the sweat creeping down every inch of his body, his feet could have organized their very own pool party in the mass of sweat that had built up. With every step, every body movement the suit would regurgitate a pocket of air and in every burst he was reminded of the vile stench he had cooked up – but this no longer bothered him. They all stank; they were all starving and suffering from dehydration. Their muscles had started to feel tender and heavy, but the urge to continue was too strong the will to move forward was something that came from deep inside, calling back to basic instincts every human being possessed in times of dire need – the will to survive no matter what...
The raging ball of fire in the sky had started to descend, it had been stalking the group all afternoon and now its glare shone into the eyes of the four survivors.
Josh lifted his dead weight arm, trying to block out the rays from his eyes. Visibility had become a problem; they were now moving blind, occasionally tripping on the ascended metal of the rail track. As long as they kept to that track and didn’t deviate they knew they would be able to make it back, so they continued to stumble forward with the burning light on their faces.
Their basic instinct to simply survive had driven them so far, they were running on empty, any second now it felt for all of them that they could fall flat on their faces - but a strong force was coming between that, lifting them in every stride, that force being a rising hope as they all focused on the approaching rain clouds.
“I must keep moving, we must keep moving” Josh muttered to himself repeatedly.
As the sun slowly dipped even further it begun its journey behind a spindly tall tree that was parked beside the railroad like a passenger waiting to board a train - one that would never arrive.
The sun rays begun to break in every passing step, giving the group an occasional moment of visibility but they preferred neither the break of being blind nor the halt of the operation to burn them alive, both brought with it equal pain.
The thought of how far was left to travel looped back and forth in all of their minds, along with how many more steps were left to be made, how many more seconds would they have to endure these conditions.
“A shower, an ice cold shower... what would you do for it?” asked Thomas.
“I’d kill for it!” replied Josh.
“I’d kill two times over for it!” added Steph.
“I’d kill everyone in my way for a chance of a cold shower!” Henry exclaimed.
They all burst out in manic laughter, verging on complete hysterics as one by one they all wondered if Henry’s remark would be the last funny line they ever heard, and if this would be the last time they ever laughed again, as the heat and the torment of thirst and the weakness brought with it felt as if the only respite they would ever know from this pain would be the long, tall, cooling shadow cast by death itself, which didn't seem so far behind them.
Stephanie put her a
rm around Josh and Josh pulled Thomas in close, Henry decided to be included and jumped on the end. They were all moving as one now, carrying one another like family. Nothing could damage this moment they were having, they felt invincible, united in one last push to reach the rain, a fountain of life about to over flow from an angry sky. Not even the sunlight’s harsh gaze could finish them off this day, but it wasn’t until a moment too late, when Josh noticed it wasn’t the suns rays shining against his face any more.
They stopped in their tracks.
“Stop, stop, something is not right...”stated Josh.
A sharp light was shining into his eyes, it looked almost like a reflection from a mirror. None of them could identify what it was, but it was definitely something up ahead and fast approaching...
They stood with their knees trembling in total silence, all they could hear was the subtle sound of the light wind that had swept in with the aggressive storm clouds that were now just above them.
Suddenly a sound broke the barrier, the roar of a V8 engine. Josh could now make out the shape of a large vehicle charging towards them at a high speed. It’s silhouette began to expand as it came closer to the four of them who stood frozen as they watched and waited.
'Are you friendly? Or... Who could it possibly be, coming from the direction we already travelled. Is it someone coming to rescue us and take us back?' Josh thought to himself as he desperately hoped this would signal some kind of rescue.
“We’re saved, this fucking nightmare is over!”Henry said hopefully.
The vehicle was now just meters away, advancing towards them almost as if it might not stop in time and run them down, but right at the last second the handbrake was engaged, sending the large military grade automobile in to a drift followed by an abrupt halt, followed by a storm of dust kicked up by the tires.
Then the clouds swept across the vehicle so Josh and his team couldn’t get a clear sight on the occupants.
They waited, cowering slightly, taking a small step back to put distance between them, then slowly but surely the dust clouds began to ease and the shape of the vehicle became more recognizable, this was something they had all seen before and now they all wore an expression of fear: The beveled metal bodywork had something inscribed in to it, a form of text that could only be one thing. The UNA.
