We're the Last

by G Sasaki

  Nicole sprinted to Tolrik and yelled over the loud shrieks. “What’s happening?”

  His eyes grew as he shouted, “She’s absorbing the energy!”

  Nicole stepped forward to help her when Tolrik gripped her shoulders and stopped her. “It’s too late! You can’t help her! She will become a Ropen!”

  “What!?”

  “If her hand leaves the Heart, the energy might leak!”

  Nicole’s hair blew back and her eyes squinted as she stared at the sight of Courtney’s pulsating body surrounded by darting white lights. “I have to do something!” Nicole brushed off Tolrik and rushed to Courtney. Next to the Heart, the piercing whistling deafened her. Over it, she shouted, “Courtney!”

  Courtney’s hand left the Heart and collided into Nicole’s face. The backhanded slap hit so hard, Nicole fell back and stumbled to the ground. With Courtney’s hand off the Heart, the winds subsided and the cave returned to its calm red. Courtney looked at Nicole with a heinous glow in her eye and said, “Shut your mouth.”

  A sharp tingle from the slap pounded at Nicole’s jaw. “What?”

  Courtney reached into her jeans pocket and pulled out her pocketknife. She looked at the heart and whispered, “Don’t look at me like that.” Courtney raised the knife high above her head. Nicole watched helplessly and held out her hand, somehow hoping it would make her stop. But Courtney whipped it down and dug the blade into the Heart. The shriek from before returned again, but this time with ferocity. Nicole thought her head would fly right off. She withered on the ground until everything fell silent. The cave was now pitch-black and a slight sizzling noise hissed from the direction of the Heart.

  Now on her knees, Nicole waited. She couldn’t see anything and the strange hissing sound was all she could make out. Her senses were rendered useless. “Courtney?” No response. Nicole crawled toward the outer walls of the cave, dashing her hands through the air to feel her way. When her hands reached the smooth rock she turned and leaned her back against it.

  Thump. For a less than a second, the cave filled with the familiar dim red light. Nicole took a snapshot with her mind and remembered what she’d seen. An odd black cloudlike web shifted toward the ceiling. Courtney stood at the opposite side of the cave facing Tolrik, who stood against the wall.

  “Courtney? What are you doing? Tolrik?”

  As the words left her mouth, a petrified scream echoed in the cave. It was a male voice and presumably came from Tolrik. Nicole yelled, “What’s happening!?” Fear throbbed through her. The sound of her panting breath was too loud. She closed her mouth and breathed through her nostrils, quieting her efforts. Seconds passed and nothing happened. Now, Nicole could hear her own heart racing. A pained moan emerged from Tolrik.

  Thump. For another half-second, the cave illuminated. Above, the bizarre fraying lines continued to razzle through the air. This time, Nicole saw Courtney wearing a horrific smile in the process of stepping toward her. Something small dangled from her hand. The knife. Courtney said, “Don’t move.”

  Nicole slid her hands against the wall and scrambled away. The smooth surface guided her. From where Nicole just left, Courtney yelled, “I told you to stay put! Where are you?!” Nicole trampled along the ground, using her hands and feet to move as swiftly as she could. Luckily, the buzzing noise provided enough cover to keep her from being heard. She kept circling around until she collided into Tolrik, who rested against the wall. Nicole whispered, “What’s happening?”

  “Your friend is becoming a Ropen.”

  Thump. As the light flashed, Nicole saw a large dark stain on Tolrik’s shirt. She shifted in front of him and asked, “Are you bleeding?”

  “I’ve been stabbed.”

  “By who?”

  “Courtney.”

  “That can’t be.” Nicole stared ahead, where, for a flash, she had seen Tolrik. Everything happened so fast, she couldn’t digest it all. Just minutes ago, she and Courtney thought they were going to come across the greatest treasure find of their lives. In an instant, everything fell apart.

  Suddenly, Tolrik’s hands gripped Nicole’s shoulders and tossed her body aside. As she fell over, Tolrik reached for Nicole’s pocketknife that he’d located on the trek over. He snapped the blade free and thrust it forward, right into Courtney, who was at the end of an attacking motion where Nicole just rested.

  With his hand sporting the blade that pierced her ribcage, Tolrik said, “Because you did not listen, because you could not handle who you are, you have damned the entire world.” Courtney flopped to her side, paralyzed with pain.

  Tolrik said, “Nicole, take my hand.”

  Nicole swiped through the air, trying to locate his hand. Their hands met and she and Tolrik stumbled out of Endless Life. As they left, Nicole looked back.

  Thump. The air danced a mysterious darkness just below the ceiling. On the ground, where she had just left, Courtney lay limp.

  Tolrik led Nicole out of the cave. As they emerged from the rock, the sun blinded them. Nicole turned and looked at the solid rock they had walked through. A giant black web seeped through the stone and spilled into the sky. It was what had been dancing at the ceiling inside the cave. The lines rapidly scurried around, shooting like fireworks in every direction. The black web practically draped the sky and stopped the sun’s rays from reaching them. The web expanded as far and high as they could see.

  Although fatally injured, Tolrik used his remaining energy and calmly removed a necklace from around his neck and fidgeted with it. At the center of the necklace, Nicole saw a tiny leather pouch held together by twine, just big enough to hold a few drops of water. Nicole asked, “Are you okay? What are you doing?”

  “The Heart Of Man is bleeding. Luckily, she didn’t kill it. It will heal. Your friend’s heart is filled with darkness.” Tolrik continued to fidget with his leather pouch until finally, a small cap came off the top. “I do not have much time.” He placed a hand on his wound and whimpered as he slowly straightened his knees and stood tall. His other hand held the pouch and he extended it into the air. “What you see in the sky is the energy escaping. It will not stop. It will spread through the entire world. Every person will change into a Ropen. It will happen swiftly, in an instant, and everything will turn to madness. Now you see why this cave needed to be kept secret.” He held the leather pouch into the middle of the escaping black web, allowing it to seep inside. Tolrik lowered the pouch and placed the cap on top. He extended it to Nicole and waited for her to take it. “This is your task to finish now.”

  As soon as she grabbed it, Tolrik’s injuries stifled him and he collapsed to the ground. Nicole, still immensely confused, kneeled next to him, eager for further instructions. Tolrik’s face struggled; he breathed heavily, combating death. He said, “In my necklace is the power to reverse it, to re-balance black and white. You will need to find someone who is still human, someone who won’t be affected.”

  “How do I do that?”

  “They will already have beast inside them. They will not change.”

  With every word that left Tolrik’s mouth, Nicole grew more flabbergasted. Would everyone really turn into Ropens? And her partner! Was Courtney alright? Tolrik wearily spoke, “Listen to me. The only way to make it right is to find someone not affected, and when the sun is exactly even with the horizon, cut open their heart while it still beats… and pour this inside.” He tapped on the leather pouch.

  Cut open someone’s beating heart?! This entered a new level of insanity with every breath. Nicole looked at the sky. The black web that extended forever dissolved into the endless blue. “This can’t be real,” Nicole mumbled to herself.

  Tolrik’s eyes grew heavy. “It is real. I am sorry for taking you here. This should be my burden…” his mouth continued to move but the words stopped coming out. He closed his eyes. Tolrik was dead.

  Nicole stared at his frozen face. She waited for it to come back and tell her more about what was happening. None of this made any sense.
“Shit,” Nicole mumbled. She tied the heavy twine of the necklace around her neck and rose to her feet. She turned and rushed to the rocks she originally traveled through but as she extended her hand and tried to place it through, the solid rock stopped her. “What?” Up and down the jagged rocks, Nicole pushed, kicked, and pounded, trying to get back into Endless Life. “Courtney!”

  From behind, Nicole heard a light female cough.

  She darted around. She couldn’t believe it. Tolrik’s body was gone. Instead, Courtney lied on her stomach and coughed. Nicole shuffled and knelt to her side. “What happened? Are you alright, Courtney?”

  As Nicole helped her sit up, she saw no blood, no wound. Courtney seemed fine. It was as if Tolrik never stabbed her at all. Courtney mumbled, “Did we get to Endless Life yet?”

  “You don’t remember what just happened?”

  Courtney tilted her head like a confused puppy and squinted at Nicole. “Huh?” Nicole glanced at the sky: clear blue; without sign of black webs shooting in every direction. Did what just happened really… happen? Nicole’s hand clutched for her chest. The necklace with the pouch still sat there. That represented the only piece of evidence that anything had happened at all. Nicole’s baffled eyes shot around. Courtney looked at her without the fire that swallowed her in the cave. Nicole took a deep breath and said, “Let’s go. Endless Life is just a myth. We’ve been had.”

  Nicole didn’t believe that. Did she think the entire population would cease to be human? It wasn’t likely, that was for sure. But this was the most bizarre day of her life. Who knows, maybe I was drugged. Nicole tightened the cap on the tiny pouch on her necklace. She would hold onto it. Just in case.

  Nicole offered her hand to Courtney, and as she obliged, Nicole was surprised to see the color of Courtney’s fingernails: pure black.

  42

  The open cave echoed the crashing waves and gently streaming water. The sun had begun its long descent and peeked in to see Hailey nervously wrinkle the pages. Hailey, Grace, Mike, and Jeremy hid in the crevice of rock like crabs. They stared at each other, each looking at the other for answers. Hailey pierced the air first. “Do you think this is all true?”

  Jeremy said, “She only wrote the most important parts of her life in that journal. She wouldn’t have made something up.”

  After Mike translated, he added, “I’m willing to believe anything at this point. It’s weird but, I mean, look at what’s happened.”

  Grace nodded. “If the answer is cutting open a person’s heart, then me and you are targets.”

  “Is your sister capable of that?”

  Jeremy’s head shook.

  Those pages crammed so much information, Hailey didn’t even know what to talk about next. But one thing in particular bothered her. “We didn’t change because we ‘already have beast’ in us. What does that mean?” She looked to Grace’s baffled blue eyes for answers.

  Grace held out her hands in defiance. “How should I know? What… are you saying my parents were animals or something?”

  Normally, Hailey would laugh. But she sensed Grace legitimately asking that question. “…No…”

  Grace stared at the stream of water splitting through the rocks. Then… she remembered something. “Wait.” Hailey, Mike, and Jeremy simultaneously turned their heads to Grace, who continued, “That couldn’t be it...”

  Hailey asked, “What?”

  “When I was three years old, it was really cold outside. And windy. A bat was flying around and got stuck in the chimney. So it was forced into our house. It hid in my room and one night while I was sleeping, it bit me. I didn’t even know it. We didn’t find out until a day later that it was even there, in my room. Once they captured it, they found out it was rabid. I had to get shots and thanks to that I didn’t get rabies. Since I was so small, it would have infected me fast and I would have died. Ever since then, I’ve been terrified of anything with wings… especially bats… But you don’t think that could be it, do you? Have you been bitten by an animal, Hailey?”

  Hailey thought. She wanted the answer to be yes, just so everything could make sense. But she’d never been bitten by anything. “I haven’t…” If that was why Grace didn’t change, there had to be a reason why Hailey didn’t either. She paused and listened to the cave. Drip. Drip. “Why is it so quiet?” Considering there was a fierce battle being waged, they should have been able to hear at least some of that residue. But the sound of the ocean and dripping water was all that teased her ears. “Mike, Jeremy, do you hear any of the fighting?”

  Mike and Jeremy focused on their ears. “No.” Jeremy shook his head.

  “Maybe the battle’s over…” Hailey pushed herself off the rock and stood up. It felt good to get off the hard surface. “I’m going to take a quick look.”

  Mike stood up. “I’ll come with you.”

  Grace rose. “Me too.”

  Jeremy, with conviction, also stood.

  Hailey smiled. Their faces scrunched with determination as they stood tall. “I can’t go anywhere by myself anymore can I?”

  The three smiled back, even Jeremy, whose sliver of a mouth pulled back. A dose of confidence rested in Jeremy’s eyes. Since he escaped the confines of the hospital, his entire demeanor had slowly evolved. He didn’t seem as scared anymore. And now that they all knew how the world had been changed, everything seemed different. While they had no plans to slice open anyone’s heart, it was comforting to know there was at least hope things could one day go back to the way they used to be.

  As they inched out of their hidden nook, the pages of the journal stayed behind, folded on rock. They nudged with the gentle breeze as water seeped toward them. After years of delicate work, this was where the pages would stay.

  Hailey led the way as they left their hiding spot and emerged into the open view of the beach. She hopped from the boulders to the sand and walked along the coastline. Grace, Mike, and Jeremy followed behind. They needed to find out what happened with the Washington High bats and the Unstables. They could only hope their side emerged victorious. As they walked, Hailey peered at the ocean. The water traveled as far as she could see. She took a deep breath and the fresh air rushed through her body.

  Jeremy watched his feet dip into the sand with every step, leaving his prints behind. Weeks before, there was no chance he’d ever be able to do something like this again. The first thing he wanted to do was find his sister, who apparently played a major role in changing people, allowing him to keep his life.

  The ocean breeze tickled against Grace’s fingers. But then, a soft warm feeling hugged around them. When she looked at her hand, she saw it joined by Mike’s. His fingertips rested along the back of her hand. She looked at his eyes, expecting them to be gazing back at her, but they looked straight ahead, ignoring her altogether. A slight smirk rested on his face and she couldn’t help but smile back to herself.

  Jeremy planted his feet and shot his eyes toward the edge of the cliffs above. The peace in his heart fled. Distinct noises rocked the sky: the sound of flapping wings. The bats were coming!

  Like a tidal wave, hundreds of bats soared over the cliff. Bodies packed tightly, like they’d formed a solid wall. They moved in unison like a school of thousands of fish. One glance was all it took for Hailey to realize their intentions weren’t friendly. With every passing second, countless of them poured over, flying straight toward them.

  “Run!”

  Hailey, Grace, Mike, and Jeremy sprinted ahead with nowhere to hide. The bats screeched and howled, eager to catch them. Hailey pushed her legs with all her might but the flimsy sand made it hard to move. Her shoes couldn’t get any traction. Each step barely pushed her anywhere. She lowered her head and throttled forward, arms pumping and sand furiously flinging behind. It was like she had been caught in a whirlwind and had to force her way out.

  Behind her, Grace and Mike’s hands detached and they ran side by side. A bat flew overhead and grabbed Grace from under her shoulders. Effortlessly
, it snatched her off the ground. She kicked her feet but connected with nothing but air. “No!” Mike’s hand barely managed to grip her ankle and desperately tried to pull her back. Grace screamed in agony. Both sides of her were being yanked and something had to give. Mike looked at the despair withered on her face. He didn’t want to let go. But he had no choice. As his hand loosened, the bat flew away with her and blended in with the others that whizzed by, blocking Mike’s view. “Grace!”

  Hailey halted and turned around. To her horror, Grace flew through the air in the arms of one of them. The bat rose above the water, easily gripping Grace as she flailed and struggled to escape. Bats flew around and dashed just above Hailey, strangely not bothering her. She struggled to stay on her feet as the furious winds from the wings of the bats blasted at her. She ran toward Mike, who frantically flapped his undeveloped wings in a futile attempt to chase after Grace.

  Jeremy yelled, “I got it!” His majestic wings shot out from his shoulders. He dipped a knee into the sand and leapt into the air. His furless body flung into action, swooping through the area littered with bats. The sky looked like thousands of bees protecting their beehive. The wind blared at Jeremy’s face and his feet floated freely. Though he had just learned to fly, he could catch up with her. “Hold on, Grace!” he yelled to her unhearing ears. Only yards away, he could see the terror in her eyes as the assailant hung on. Jeremy angled his body and chased him down.

  “What’s happening?” Hailey shouted over the relentless sound of shrieks and flapping wings. As she and Mike helplessly watched, the ground next to them rumbled. A bat slammed to its feet right next to them. As it rose from its landing position and stood tall, Hailey looked with awe, stunned at his stature. She could hear its bones creak as it stretched. This particular bat’s frame dwarfed her dad’s. He stood at least 10 feet tall and overloaded with bulky tank muscles. He had to weigh at least 500 pounds. His wings spread out like a jet. Hailey had to pull her neck all the way back just to see his face. The features she had grown used to seeing were terrifyingly enlarged. Each strand of fur stuck out like a thick rope. The size of his hand was almost the size of Hailey’s torso. His mouth opened and spoke, and unlike the shrieks they’d heard before, his thick voice sent shockwaves past them. His teeth were large knives and spit left his mouth like rain. Hailey stared at him with a dropped jaw. This giant was going to kill them.