The Sands of Borrowed Time

by Jeffry Winters

  “Keep going, we're losing them, but you need to keep going.”

  “I am, I’m doing the best I can,” Hayley cried out in tears. “There's no grip!”

  “Take it up a gear, but don’t stall it, ride the clutch.” Hayley grabbed the gear stick, slamming the clutch down and flung it up a gear. The wheels stopped spinning as the engine began to growl, Hayley releasing the clutch slowly as the buggy gained more speed, it's growl turning into a snarl.

  “That's it, my girl, that's it, keep our baby going!” Kyla cried out.

  “I still see them, but they’re losing ground,” Demelza cried out. “Shit, duck! Kyla turned to see a stream of smoke come rapidly towards them. She held her head in her hands as a piercing shriek followed by a thunderous roar passed her side of her buggy, the smell of kerosene filling her lungs as a wave of nausea ran through her body. She wanted to vomit but held it down as the dune in front of them exploded in a flash of flames, black smoke and sand billowing up into the air, sand raining down on them, filling their hair, laps and seats in a golden charred mess. Another missile screamed its presence as a trail of black smoke whizzed by close above them, exploding out of sight ahead, shaking the ground in a dizzying rumble of thunder.

  “Use the dunes Hayley!” Kyla shouted out. “Use the dunes for cover.” Hayley shook the sand out of her hair as she swung the buggy round a large dune, driving straight ahead of it, looking in her mirrors to orientate herself but seeing only sand.

  “What now?” Hayley cried out.

  “Keep her going, nice and steady,” Kyla replied, her head thumping with pain. “That’s it, nice and steady,” as the buggy weaved onwards through the desert. There was an uncomfortable silence in the air, the drone of the buggy’s engine suddenly sounding lonely, the blaze of the setting Sun looking distant and unreal to Kyla's eyes.

  Fuck, I feel so faint. Keep it nice and steady, girl. Nice and steady, and we will wake to see another day; another Sun high in the air, shining down rays of love, rays of warmth and forgiveness, Kyla thought as her head spun round and round, the Sun painfully bright to her eyes, the sky turning from blue to black. She vomited across the dashboard and then it was gone, her sickliness exorcised in one violent heave of acidic gunk. She gathered her breath.

  “Sorry,” she spluttered as see wiped away the stringy puke dangling from her mouth.

  “Here,” Demelza said, tugging her shoulder as she passed her a bottle of water. “Take a few swigs.” Kyla gladly drunk from the bottle as she thought about the shit they were in.

  She started to giggle hysterically as she looked at the sticker of the Earth on the dashboard and remembered what Cain used to say when he held a globe high in his hands, his eyes looking dreamy yet full of ambition, “One day all this will be mine.” We'll never mind Cain; dreams turn to ashes, and ashes to dust, consumed back into the Earth at her pleasure to rise again as another shitty maggot, on and on until the sky grows old and cold until there is nothing left to say or do, and the chessboard and its pieces go back into the drawing board, to be forgotten forever, lost in the eternity of time, until time itself exists no more.

  “Where are we, are they gone?” Hayley asked, looking calmer. Demelza and Kyla both turned seeing nothing but mounds of sand and towering dunes in the clear evening air.

  Looks so beautiful, Kyla thought, looking up at the sky. The dark sky to the east blending to a blue, high above us, and then to a pale yellow to the western horizon.

  “Fuck that’s bad,” Hayley remarked, “It's revolting, and it stinks.

  “What?” Kyla asked.

  “Your digestive juices that you’ve sprayed across the dashboard. If it's not cleaned up quick, you might see mine there sooner than you think.”

  Kyla giggled, “Looks rather beautiful; I can see all the colours of the rainbow.” Demelza shook her head as Hayley put her hand over her nose as they continued their wanderings ever northwards towards the snow-capped mountains.

  Ever Onwards North

  “Do you think they will have the Internet up north?” Jeff shouted through Skylar’s hair as it billowed and wavered across his face, Skylar releasing the throttle a little as she tried to hear him over the thunder of the V8 engine.

  “What?” she shouted back.

  “The Internet? Do you think they have it back up and running in the north?”

  “The Internet? No!” she yelled, shaking her head.

  “Really! Then why we going north? If there's no Internet, why bother? No YouTube, films, news, shopping…”

  “I can’t hear you, Jeff,” Skylar screamed back at him as she manoeuvred the bike through the haze of fine dust. Things are getting better, she thought, the Sun is not so fierce, no gales, whirlwinds. I can see the Sun through the haze as she glanced upwards. It actually feels like day.

  Jeff held on tighter to Skylar’s waist as she pulled back on the throttle, sending the pistons into a healthy growl. He rested his head sideways onto her back, looking out through the misty dust and into the prairies, remembering Callee’s face.

  So pale, like her blood had drained away, a ghost telling me to leave her. Those green eyes that were once so beautiful and vibrant; so tired looking, so lifeless. How could she look dead when she was breathing? She told me to go, but I should have stayed. If I had known that we were so close, I would have dragged her, and Laren, carried them both, but she told me to go. Why did I listen? Why did I go and leave them there to die? We were so close, so close!

  Skylar pulled back on the throttle a little more as the dusty air cleared, the blue sky breaking through.

  Wow, it's mid-afternoon, and I can see the sky. I can actually see the sky!

  Jeff tapped on Skylar’s shoulder, their agreed call if Jeff wanted to stop for a break. Skylar gently slowed the bike until they came to rest at the side of the road.

  “Sorry, busting for a pee,” Jeff said as he got off the bike and ran into the prairie. “No peeking now!” Skylar took a gulp of water as Jeff did his business.

  So much cooler here, she thought. She looked at the snow-capped mountains ahead of her and smiled. How beautiful, fingers crossed that life will be a little easier from now on. Skylar jumped out of fright as Jeff suddenly started talking, not realising he was back.

  “So how come no Internet, that’s insane?”

  “Come on Jeff, there’s not going to be anything like that up north,” Skylar replied almost laughing.” Jeff looked at her face for a long while without saying anything, making Skylar feel uncomfortable.

  “You ok Jeff, your acting a bit peculiar?”

  “Just checking, just checking.”

  “Checking what?”

  “That you’re not a ghost.”

  Skylar was surprised at the remark, but then remembered his talk of her being an angel and the ethereal bird he saw in the caves. Maybe the other girls were ghosts, girls he had imagined to make up for his loss? “I assure you that I am of this earth, a fully alive human being, not a ghost, angel, or anything else.”

  “There must be loads, though, the prairies and deserts full of them, all drifting around aimlessly, wondering whether they’re alive or not, wondering why they feel no thirst, no more hunger, why they never rest or sleep, lingering, not knowing what to do.”

  “Or maybe they’ve gone to heaven?”

  “No! Jeff sharply replied, “I can tell by the look in their eyes when they’re dying, they’re eyes give them away. They stay here to wander the desert, to wonder for eternity who wronged them, plotting their revenge, raising the wind and blowing the sand about in spite.”

  “Jeff, Jeff, stop this nonsense!” Skylar insisted, shaking him. “You’re scaring me with your ghost stories.” Your friends died. It was tough on them, on you, but you weren't responsible Jeff. You have to let it go, let them go, or their ghosts will exist, haunt you, live in your head, driving you insane until the person inside, you, becomes the ghost.”

  “I think they already do,” Jeff replied, looking solemn.
“I see their faces all the time; in my mind, when I’m awake, when I’m asleep, worst of all when the sands swirl around in the gales I see their faces emerge from the patterns. They look so real, dancing around viciously in the howling wind, the wind their screams of despair. Skylar looked at Jeff sympathetically, not knowing what to say, the memories of her parents now so distant, almost forgotten.

  Those ghosts were slain a long time ago, she thought, or maybe, more accurately, forced into a dark corner of my mind that they can't escape from. It's not that time heals, it’s that it makes us numb to the constant pain, the suffering sliding under a thick, impenetrable crust of emotions, unable to surface again.

  “The winds and sands are almost gone, and with time Jeff, so will the ghosts. They will grow tired, get bored and move on.”

  Jeff smiled and nodded, “Shame there’s not going to be no internet, was looking forward to that at least.”

  Skylar burst out laughing, “You know there’s not going to be any Internet up north, there’s not going to be anything, the North took the full brunt of the blast, it's ground zero.

  “Really, tell me what it was like when it happened?” Jeff asked, sitting down and folding his arms, looking up expectantly.

  “Ok, but it might conjure up a few ghosts itself.”

  “The more, the merrier, join the party,” Jeff said, not sure whether it was in good taste.

  “There was no warning. No one told us it was going to happen. There were no signs, and just like that it did,” Skylar said, suddenly clicking her fingers in Jeff’s face, causing him to jump. “A bright white light came from the north, over the horizon until everything was blinded from view. Everything was bathed in pure, white light that lasted for a few, brief seconds. It was frighteningly beautiful. Then came a magnificent roar, like a rushing of wind, stripping the trees of their leaves, some toppling over, a few bursting into flames. Dust and rocks hurtled through the air like bullets, smashing anything they hit. People were screaming, windows were shattering while the ground was trembling, pavements and roads cracking. Then the light slowly ebbed away into an aurora of bright, swirling colours that remained for weeks, if not months. Then they too slowly faded away, appearing still now and again as if to remind us of that beautiful, awful day.”

  “Sounds awesome!” Jeff exclaimed.

  “It was, no one would deny how awesome it was, a strange, wonderful day, but then came the aftermath. The upper atmosphere had been stripped from the Earth. The ozone layer was gone. The Sun began to burn our skins. People, if not disfigured from the blast, got burnt badly by the Suns unrestrained rays. They went blind from cataracts, got skin cancers, plants withered away, and animals dropped dead in the fields. A powerful electromagnetic pulse that coincided with the flash disrupted the TVs, radios, and yes the Internet until they were no longer usable. Law and order collapsed in the ensuing panic; people preyed on one another until here we are today, fifteen years later,” Skylar said, looking towards the sky, pointing at the nebulous ring of colours above them.

  “Cool,” Jeff replied, looking up at the exploding star’s remnants, “and this thing called YouTube?”

  “I’m sad, but glad in a way to say, YouTube didn’t make it through the calamity,” both bursting into tears of laughter.

  Unwanted Guests

  “It’s decided then. They need to go, and go for good,” Kyla said with expectant eyes. A group of bandits had spotted them on their travels northwards and seemed to be following them, keeping their distance for now, but the girls were scared that they were biding their time, planning an attack on them when the time was right.

  “Well? she asked, looking at Hayley and Demelza in turn. They both agreed with slight nods of their heads. “But how's it to be done?” Kyla asked, looking up towards the dark evening sky as the fire blazed in front of them.

  “Not with guns, that’s for sure,” Demelza said nervously. “We have pistols, and they have rocket grenades!”

  “We need some sort of trap that’s quick and efficient,” Kyla added.

  “Quick and efficient?” Hayley asked with a wry smile, her long, brown hair looking like flames fluttering in the breeze as it reflected the golden light of the fire.

  “Yes, quick and efficient!” Kyla said with frustration. “And soon, before they will find us and goose us with their greasy, stinking pricks.”

  “Charming, no greasy bandit is going to get between my legs,” Demelza interrupted. Hayley looked at them both, her smile widening.

  “You have some sort of plan?” Kyla asked, narrowing her eyes at Hayley.

  “Perhaps, but it will involve some sacrifice,” she replied playfully, curling her lips, “sacrifice of resources.”

  “Go on,” Kyla replied, a smile also beginning to break across her sunburnt, fair skin, “before Demelza gets a good, hard goosing. You never know, she might enjoy it,” giving Hayley a playful wink. Demelza sighed with shock, breaking out into a nervous, uncontrollable giggle.

  “It's simple. We torch them,” Hayley said with a wicked look.

  “You mean, burn them?” Kyla asked, her glowing eyes fixated on Hayley's, searching, eager for her to continue.”

  “Yes, we burn them,” Hayley replied, matter of factly.

  “Go on,” Kyla said, “don’t keep a girl waiting, tell us more.” Demelza looked at Hayley, her hands cupped over her ears, tapping her foot nervously as if she did not want to know what was coming.

  “We burn them with a roadside booby-trap; multiple Molotov cocktails embedded into the roadside, hidden from view,” she continued with a subtle shrug of her shoulder. “They drive by, we ignite, and they ride into hell for eternity.” Kyla’s smile widened, becoming messy as her face broke out with excited ticks.

  “Hell yea, you're so wicked Hayley, that might just work. In fact, I’m sure it will!” She patted Hayley's cheeks, planting a hard kiss on her lips.

  “Their trip into hell would be well deserved,” Demelza said quietly as she waved a broken twig through the flames. “What if it goes tits up, though?” Demelza didn’t look too convinced, her tired, worried face looking up to Hayley for reassurance. Hayley grabbed Demelza and hugged her tightly.

  “Look, Demelza, you worry too much, we could ignite the cocktails through some kind of trip switch,” Kyla added.

  “Yes, like a wire across the road that the bikes hit, and bang!” Hayley said, continuing to squeeze Demelza tightly. “We could be tucked away, far up in the hills, watching from a safe distance. They won’t even know who or what hit them.”

  Demelza began to smile, nodding quietly, “That suits me fine then, let's incinerate these stinking freaks, their pricks and all.”

  “They always come back in the evening and make a turn onto the pike road, back to their camp,” Hayley said. “Here they slow, bunching up as they turn. I say we plant the petrol bombs there, get them all in one go. What do you think?”

  “I think you have it all worked out,” Kyla said, patting Hayley on the head as Demelza simply nodded.

  “Hope they burn good! There’s barely any skin left on my fingertips from digging those holes,” Demelza said, looking at her hands as they settled down on the rocky tops overlooking the prairie. “My palms are fucking raw.”

  “It sure was a bitch to dig those petrol bombs in. Just goes to show how baked the ground as become,” Hayley said as she looked east across the prairie, watching the hazy Sun as it dipped below the horizon.

  “Hopefully, our presence has been erased by the drifting dust,” she continued.

  Kyla looked through her scope, “It certainly has, I can barely see the road.” Kyla looked for the trip wire, finding it as a glint of Sunlight reflected off its golden copper surface. A wink of luck from God, she thought. He wants them gone more than anybody. “Everything looks good,” she said as she continued to look through the scope. “All we’re waiting for are the guests.”

  They all looked north; waiting, savouring the last warming rays of the Sun, it'
s red, pulsing orb sinking slowly but effortlessly behind the dark and brooding hills.

  “Hope no one nice rides down before them,” Demelza said sleepily.

  “Me too. Unlikely, though. I haven’t seen anybody but them for weeks,” Kyla said.

  “Seems the good have been weeded out,” Demelza replied.

  “Apart from us, Demelza. We are still good,” Hayley said.

  “We have killed a few lately, though,” Kyla cheekily replied as she quickly pulled her fingers from her pocket as if drawing a gun from its holster.

  “Yes, but only worthless scum,” Hayley objected.

  “Strange how the worst in some brings out the worst in others,” Demelza yawned.

  “What do you mean?” Hayley replied as she laid down on her stomach, looking north along the road for their guests.

  “Nothing,” Demelza replied, closing her eyes, feeling irritated.

  “There look! Here they come!” Hayley shouted, shaking Demelza back into life. Kyla handed the scope excitedly to Hayley, “There are six motorcycles and a van.”

  “Yes, I see,” Hayley replied as she eagerly focused the scope on the advancing motorcade. “You have no worries about these ones, Demelza; each and everyone is a filthy and perverted, murdering cunt, to put it nicely for your ears. All deserve to die!”

  “Couldn’t have put it more eloquently myself,” Kyla said with a wicked laugh.

  “Good to know,” Demelza responded, looking at the snaking trail of sand in the distance as the sound of V8s became audible across the once silent valley.

  “So easy to destroy,” Demelza continued.

  “And so fun too,” Kyla said.

  “Both in the preparation and in the execution,” Hayley added as she watched the progress of the motorcade towards the turnpike.

  “So blissfully unaware,” Kyla said sardonically. “They can't see us, but are probably dreaming of us. Nevertheless, they will soon feel the full wrath of our saddened hearts.”