Our Undead

by Theo Vigo

  Sector333-3: ***…THREE… TWO… ONE…***

  Zero is never called out. In its place, an inferno fills the airspace in every room, corner, and crevice of the Sector. The self-destruction sequence initiated by the good Doctor Alyster, comes to fruition and red-orange flames engulf the old man's slouched over body when his lab goes up. Still vertically suspended in Laboratory D-9, his head hanging slack, Abe as well, begins his own cremation process.

  Far above the ones who burn, Gwen has almost made it to the escape hatch. She, as well as all of those following under her on the ladder, feels the rumble of the eruptions going on below. They cause Gwen to hesitate, and she hugs the ladder as to not plummet.

  Sharp: MOVE!!

  His loud bark doesn't work, but a little encouragement from Billy, who is just under her on the ladder, gets Professor Gwen moving again. A few seconds later and Gwen's head breaks through to the surface. She climbs out and looks around. The ground under her feet is shaking, making it difficult to stand as she searches the landscape, but she manages to spot Holden and Feleider's figures off in the distance getting further and further away. Billy hops out right behind her and stands waiting at the hatch's opening, looking down to see if everyone is making it up all right. He is shocked when he glances up and finds Professor Gwen still standing there.

  Billy: WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! RUN!! GO!!

  She does as the young boy says and starts running in the same direction as the ones already ahead of her. Erika Blaze jumps out a couple of seconds after Billy.

  Erika: What are you doing?!

  Billy: Waiting for Margaret!!

  Erika: She's fine!! Come on!!

  Kerrick jumps out while Erika is trying to convince Billy to move.

  Kerrick: Uh guys, we should be running!!!

  He doesn't stop to chat, but yells the obvious as he chases down Gwen. Erika grabs Billy by the hand and yanks him away from the hole. He tries to resist, but only for a second. There's no way he would ever be able to over power Erika, but he sees Sharp and Margaret as they are just climbing out, so he does what the super soldier commands and starts running. He is right to not worry. Sharp and Margaret exit through the escape hatch safely and are soon right behind everyone.

  Her head bounces up and down on Sharp's left shoulder, and her chin knocks into it over and over. This time, instead of feeling annoyed about it, Margaret holds on tighter to avoid it. She presses her cheek hard into his shoulder and waits for things to run their course. Before closing her eyes, for a minute she looks off into the golden sky. The sun has just started to set, and it looks beautiful. If it is the last sight she gets to take in, that would be just fine.

  But it wouldn't be, not if Sharp has anything to do with it. He carries both her and a duffel bag heavy with guns and ammo, but runs at the pace of an Olympic sprinter. Even with the tremors becoming stronger by the second, his feet guide him accurately and effectively forward, as do Erika's and Kerrick's. Billy and Gwen are having a bit of trouble, but Billy soon gets the hang of it, the key being to run with quicker steps and longer strides. The group of five are quickly catching up to the professor, who is trying her best. She runs as fast as her legs can go, but as a hematologist, she never did find time to become physically astute.

  When they had all emerged from the escape hatch and felt the ground trembling, it came accompanied by a low growling, a resonance from the explosions going on below. As they have been running, that growling has gradually become louder and soon turns into a loud cracking noise, as if lightning is striking non-stop. A trained ear can tell that the cracking is coming from behind them, and Kerrick takes a second to look over his shoulder while running.

  Kerrick: WE'VE GOT FRACTURING!!!

  Erika: I KNOW! KEEP GOING!!!

  When he looks back, Kerrick sees the ground beginning to split apart. Multitudes of cracks begin to appear, becoming larger, and soon the ground behind them begins to cave in on itself. All the land has begun caving in, starting from the center point where they had come out from the escape hatch, and unfurling outward from it in a circular formation. From an aerial perspective, the avalanche looks rather breathtaking. From on high, one can see the interior of the circle, the falling dirt and gravel causing plumes of dust to shoot up from the ground as the cracks at the avalanche's edge draw themselves unsystematically on to the unmarked desert floor. There are five little dots just ahead of the materializing cracks, Sharp and the rest. Just a little ahead of those five dots are two more small dots, Holden and Feleider.

  At ground level, the view isn't as pleasant. The cracks are inevitably catching up to the lagging group. Some cracks even start to form ahead of them on the running path. Gwen is on her last few breaths. She doesn't know how much longer she can keep up the pace, and then loses all hope when one particularly strong tremor is too much for her. She makes a misstep and falls hard to the desert floor. She hits the side of her face on the ground and spits out the dirt that winds up getting into her mouth. At this point, she knows her life is over. There is no point in getting up, because there is no way she can outrun the falling ground. She accepts her fate, but too early. An angel appears, stopping down at her side.

  Kerrick: This is no place for a lie down, professor! Up, on my back!

  Gwen: Thank you.

  She sputters and spits some more as she gets back up to her feet and on to Kerrick's back. Stopping to pick Gwen up allows Erika and Billy to pass Matthew, and Sharp is just catching up to him as he starts running again. It also gives the cracks time to catch up as well. Running is a little more difficult than he remembers it being, but he keeps a good and steady pace. He and Sharp both run with a person on their back, and Kerrick proves himself to be just as physically fit as his friend. He even starts to pull away from Sharp when he gets used to the tremors with the addition of Gwen's weight.

  The professor holds on for the ride, eyes open unlike the seventeen-year-old rider. She may have given up when she had fallen, but given this second chance at life, closing her eyes seems like it would be discourteous to life itself. She looks ahead and prays that Kerrick can catch up, not with Bill and Erika who she can still see, but with the other two bodies much farther out in front.

  After five minutes of full on sprinting with a young girl on his back, Sharp begins to feel the fatigue. The five minutes feel more like thirty, and he can feel the avalanche beginning to catch up to him. He can feel the ground literally sinking under his feet. The more the falling ground gains on him, the more he feels like he is running uphill, or up a never-ending staircase. Looking to each side of himself, he can see the desert turf breaking up and caving in.

  Margaret still has her eyes closed, holding on tightly to his back. She doesn't see how close they are to plummeting to their death, but there is no escape from the tumultuous roar of the cascading land. It booms mercilessly in her ears, and she tries to become one with the last sound she will ever hear. Sharp digs deep and bursts forth with every ounce of energy he has left, and for a moment he feels the ground begin to level out again. They might just make it. If only they can get out of the range of the underground explosions. They had to be close.

  Ten more minutes go by, but there is no sign of slowing down from the advancing, ever extending mouth of the pit. Sharp has had to find hidden reservoirs of strength and use numerous amounts of reserved energy to keep up with Kerrick, but he can tell that Matthew is peeling away from him again, ever so slightly. And again, he feels the ground under his feet sink before he can make each of his leaping steps. He gets the sensation of running uphill again, and he can again see the large slabs of desert falling away on each of his sides. With every step he seems to lose more and more ground. Just a few more, and he and Margaret will certainly be falling to their deaths. He does the only thing he can think to do. He takes three more powerful strides and makes a Hail Mary leap, reaching out as far as his arms can stretch while the ground falls away from under him and his passenger.

  About half a minute passes w
hen Erika notices that she is catching up to the previously tiny figures of Holden and the General. It appears they have stopped running. She wonders why. Why would they stop when the thunderous sound of a crumbling landscape is still resonating in the air? Then she looks back and sees why. The ground behind them has stopped breaking apart. They aren't being pursued by cracks anymore. The sound she is hearing is the residual landslides caused by the explosions. Who knows how long they would last. No matter. At least they could finally stop running. She prances to a stop, calling out to her team as she does.

  Erika: THAT'S IT, GUYS!!! WE MADE IT!!!

  Kerrick and Billy hear her and put their breaks on, coming to an eventual stop. Both of them are heaving from exhaustion, and with his adrenaline lowering itself back to its normal level, Billy's legs give out, and he collapses. Being more mastered than the fifteen year old, Kerrick's legs hold up. He stoops down to let Professor Gwen off of his back and makes sure she is seated safely on the ground. He asks her if she is okay, and she nods affirming. Then he gets back up to his feet to check on the others. He sees Billy already sitting on the ground trying to catch his breath, and then Erika Blaze standing with her hands on her hips, head to the sky, eyes closed, also trying to catch hers. The one person he doesn't see is his long time partner and best friend, and the injured girl he had been piggybacking.

  Kerrick: Hey!… HEY!! Where's Denver and Margaret!?

  Erika opens her eyes and looks around, as does Billy. He lifts his tired head and searches for any sign of them, but both Sharp and Margaret are nowhere to be found. They immediately start to worry.

  Erika: He was right here with us!

  Kerrick: We have to go back! Gwen, are you okay to walk?

  Gwen: Yes... Yes, I am. Thank you. I owe you my life.

  Kerrick: Don't mention it. We're going back to look for the others. Follow at your own pace. Erika, I'm going!

  With that, Kerrick starts running back to the giant brownish beige dust cloud he had been trying to outrun.

  Erika: Billy, are you all right?

  Billy: Yes! I'm coming back with you!

  Erika nods. She looks to the professor, and Gwen is already standing on her feet, dusting herself off.

  Erika: All right, you two follow when you can!

  Erika leaves Billy and Gwen to rest and follows Kerrick back to the demolition site. Gwen watches her run off and sees how dirty the sky has become because of the compound's self-destruction. She thinks about all the people that have all surely succumb to it. All of those innocent people have now either been crushed or burned alive, and none of them deserved to be. Perhaps an equally devastating loss is the fact that they were actually beginning to make some headway in their research. They had just begun to make some major breakthroughs in the production of a cure and now, all of that is lost. All that remains is what her memory has been able to hold on to. Hopefully, it would be enough.

  A sound brings her mind back from wandering, the sound of frustration and a body hitting the floor. She turns around and sees Billy trying to stand. He is able to get to his feet, but falls right back down after taking a few steps. It reminds Gwen of a baby deer learning how to walk. The boy must have given it his all. There is no way she would have made it had Kerrick not stopped to help her. It isn't as dire a situation, but now, she would help Billy. She walks up to him as he attempts to stand one more time.

  Gwen: Hey, hey. Take it easy. Let me help you.

  He falls down again with a plop.

  Billy: Ugh, I not even tired. It's just… my legs.

  Gwen: You've over worked your muscles. Just sit for a moment.

  Billy: No… I have to go back.

  Gwen: (sighs) All right… Here.

  She helps him to his feet, and they start back.

  Kerrick is first to arrive at the edge of the great hole. The air is still laced with a thin drizzle of dust, and it causes him to cough when he approaches the fringe. He covers his mouth with the pit of his elbow and looks over the smoldering cliff side. The crater's depth drops down hundreds of feet, and the edge runs for miles on both sides. The crater itself spans for miles. Even if the large collection of dust floating around in the atmosphere were absent, he still wouldn't be able to see the other side. Nevertheless, there is no sign of Sharp or Margaret.

  Kerrick: DENVER!!!

  His voice echoes out into the vast cavity of earth.

  Kerrick: DENVERRR!!!

  Still, there is no response but the sound of his own voice, and then he hears footsteps approaching from behind. They are Erika's.

  Erika: Nothing?

  Kerrick: No.

  Erika: You check the left. I'll go this way.

  Kerrick: All right.

  They split up, heading in opposite directions along the cliff's border, calling out for Margaret and their lost teammate.

  <><><>

  Everything has gone calm now. She had just undergone some serious turbulence on her piggyback ride, but with her eyes closed, she hadn't seen all that had transpired. All she knows is that they aren't moving anymore, and hears grunting coming from the soldier she is still attached to, as if he is struggling with something. No matter, they had survived.

  Margaret opens her eyes, but instantly regrets making the decision. She is still hanging on to the soldier's back, but the soldier is now hanging off the edge of a cliff, with a fall under them that would surely turn them into pancakes if Sharp's grip should fail. She gasps and clutches desperately to his neck, trying her best to get a better hold on him. This is not good for the man, who has already had his energy thoroughly drained. All of her floundering about causes his left hand to slip off.

  Sharp: (chokes) Relax! (chokes) S-stop moving! (chokes)

  The frightened girl settles herself, but her arms maintain firmly pressed around Sharp's neck. He attempts to communicate that fact.

  Sharp: …Y-.. ch-.. g-- .. ch--…

  Margaret: What?! Oh...

  She loosens her hold, but only slightly. It's just enough for him to throw his left hand back over the edge and catch some breath.

  Sharp: Thank you.

  Margaret: What the hell is going on?!

  Sharp: Well,… we're hanging off the side of a cliff.

  Margaret: What the hell are we doing here?!

  Sharp: Surviving… Look, do you think you can climb up? Give me a little bit of a break?

  She tries to reach for the edge, but her fingers can only just barely reach over the precipice.

  Margaret: I can't. It's too far.

  Sharp: Damn… Okay, lemme think.

  Margaret looks down at the drop again. Now that she has had time to calm down and absorb the situation they are in, her recently felt emotions begin to return. The fear dissipates, and hopelessness finds its way back into her heart. Everything she had loved and had grown to love has been pointlessly destroyed. With the exception of Billy, but Billy is strong. If she died, Billy would move on much sooner than later, and he would probably make more progress without her. After all, her cast has turned her into a certified gimp. She would be doing her last friend a favor if she just took herself out of the equation. She looks down at the drop again, and it doesn't look so bad.

  Margaret: I'm going to fall.

  Sharp: What?!

  Margaret: I'm going to fall. If I fall, you'll be able to pull yourself up.

  Sharp: Don't say that garbage. Don't even think it. Me not being able to pull myself up has nothing to do with you. This bag of guns weighs twice as much as you. Just sit tight. We'll get out of this.

  Margaret: I don't know if I want to.

  Sharp: Why.. ugh.. would you say that?

  Margaret: I have nothing left to live for.

  Sharp: That's bullshit. There's... always something to live for.

  Margaret: Not for me.

  Sharp: Ugh… What about your friend?! Ugh..

  Margaret: We've only known each other for a short time. He's strong. He'll get over it, and he'll be better off.
>
  Sharp: I highly doubt he would see it that way… Ugh… Shit… Listen, sometimes life keeps us in the dark, in the most hopeless places for a reason. Sometimes we're not supposed to know what comes next… The fact that you're still here is proof that you have something to live for. The only thing you have to do is hang on, in life, ugh… and right now.

  Margaret: Yea... I've heard something like that somewhere before.

  She listens to Sharp's words of support, but the clichés go in one ear and out the other. She takes one more look at the fall, at her inevitability, and begins to weep while loosening her hold around Sharp even more.

  Margaret: (sniffs) Just.. tell Billy.. (sniffs) … Tell him I couldn't hold on.

  Sharp: Margaret, don't do it! Don't!