“I don’t know your name,” she finally said. It was lame, but she couldn’t think of anything else to ask.
“Daniel.”
She wasn’t surprised. He looked just like she’d expect a Daniel to look.
“I’m Aries. You know, like the horoscope. But I’m actually a Gemini.” It was the standard speech she gave people when introducing herself. Normally she thought it was rather witty, but tonight it sounded stupid. It wasn’t the right time to try and make little jokes.
“How ironic.”
She couldn’t tell if he was mocking her or being clever himself. It was hard to read his expression. His face was unmoving; he didn’t seem to have any emotions at all.
A thought occurred to her. There was no one else around. Alive at least. Who knew where Colin ran off to? Probably cowering somewhere, he’d be useless if she needed him anyway. Suddenly she was aware of just how unsafe the situation was. Though she wasn’t scared. For some reason her body remained strangely calm. Somehow Daniel made her feel safe even though she knew he could be a threat himself. Maybe it was because he’d already pulled her out from the mountain of bodies. He’d been there for her when she needed it. He seemed truly concerned for her.
The thought made her realize there were others probably worrying about her. Her parents. She reached inside her jacket and clenched her fingers around her useless phone. Were they frantically trying to call her right now? Were they hurt? What if the house hadn’t survived the earthquake?
“I should get home and check on my parents,” she said. “I need to contact Sara’s mom too.”
“Do you live far from here?”
“About five miles. But I can walk.”
“You’ll never make it.”
She involuntarily took a step backward.
Daniel was fast. He reached out and grabbed her before she could defend herself. She didn’t even get a chance to scream.
“Listen to me, Aries. Something bad is about to happen. Worse than this.” He waved his arm around at all the destruction. “It’ll make this look like a walk in the park. Don’t ask me how I know, I just do. If you don’t take cover now, you won’t live to see morning. Hell, you probably won’t live to see midnight.”
“How do you know—”
“Didn’t I just tell you not to ask?” He shook his head slightly. “A lot of people are going to die, and it’s only the beginning.”
Somewhere off in the distance there were screams. Daniel stiffened and Aries turned around to try and see where the sound was coming from. The sun had almost completely disappeared into the west. The roads were dark; there were no streetlights. Through the twilight she could make out the shapes of people running. They were several blocks away. There were more screams, the sounds of people in agony. One of the shadows stumbled and hit the cement. Others descended on it in a frenzy.
“They’re attacking that person.”
“They’ll come after you, too.”
“What? Can’t we do something? Call the police?”
“The police can’t stop it. No one can. It’s too late for that.”
“But—”
“Enough. I need you to trust me. I know that’s asking for a lot, but you’ll have to take a leap of faith. Let me help you.”
“Why?”
“Why not?”
“That’s not enough of a reason.”
“We’re beyond reasoning.”
“That’s not an answer.”
Daniel frowned at her. Turning on his heels, he walked a few feet away and then promptly came back. “You’re infuriating. Did you know that? Can’t you just stop thinking for one second and let me help?”
“Why are you telling me all this?”
“Because I have to tell someone. I can’t keep it inside of me. I may not get a second chance.”
She almost made a sharp retort but paused. He was scared. Why didn’t she see that before? The wideness of his eyes frightened her too, at least enough to stop talking. Behind her, another scream rang out, loud and angry, almost a weird victory shriek. The group of attackers was getting closer. How long before they reached her? She nodded at him, dumbly. She would go along with him for now, while it was still dark and unsafe. She could give him the slip later if she needed to. It might take a few extra hours to get home, but it wasn’t like anyone was going anywhere. Hopefully her parents were at home and waiting for her. Mom had told her they had nothing planned. When she didn’t show up, surely they’d assume she’d contact them as soon as she could, and at least wait for a while before going out to search for her. If only she could call them. Maybe the landlines were still working. She’d have to find a phone and try.
“Okay.” He reached out and took her hand. “Let’s find you someplace to hide.”
They checked the grocery store first but quickly agreed that it wasn’t viable. The front doors were caved in, leaving splinters of glass and rubble. Anyone inside was probably dead or trapped. Even if she did manage to crawl in, she might not be able to get back out. The thought was enough to drive her into a panic.
“There’s not much else here,” he said. “You need someplace with shelter and food. You might be there for a while.”
“We could try the school,” she offered.
“Where?”
“A block away,” she said. “We were headed there. We had rehearsal. Alice in Wonderland. Sara was the Queen of Hearts. She was so excited about it.”
A loud bang made her yelp. Gunshots. The group of attackers had reached the accident. They had circled the bus, outnumbering those too injured to run. Through the dimming light, Aries could see the remaining victims trying to get free. One of the men—the bus driver, she thought but wasn’t too sure—had a gun. He waved it blindly, sending shots into the air. Two men came at him from behind, bringing him to the ground. Even at a distance she could hear the sound as his head smashed into the pavement. Beyond that, the pregnant woman tried to crawl away until she was dragged back by her hair.
“They’re killing them.”
Daniel ignored her. “It’s time to go.” He grabbed her arm. “Show me where the school is.”
“It’s a block over. That way.” She pointed toward the alley behind the grocery store. “But those people need help.”
“If you try to help them, you’ll die too.”
The path before them was pitch-black. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out the miniature flashlight Dad gave her to put on her key chain.
“Here.” She removed it and handed it over. “Maybe this will help.”
He accepted the tiny metal object, turning it over in his hands before testing the light on the ground between them. “Thanks, but we’d still better stick to the shadows.”
Easy enough directions.
The school was dark. She’d never seen it without any lights before. The building rose before them, three stories of eerie silence. She could smell the freshly cut grass; earlier that day she’d seen the gardener riding the mower.
It remained miraculously intact—a bit surprising considering the store beside it was a pile of rubble and the road looked like a construction crew had taken several jackhammers to it. There were five cars in the parking lot, all of them with shattered windows. Whoever owned them wouldn’t be driving away anytime soon.
“Why didn’t it get destroyed?” she wondered out loud.
“Is it new?” Daniel’s voice was calmer than before. Even the tenseness in his shoulders had eased up a bit.
“The school? Yeah, about ten years, I think.”
“Earthquake regulations. It’s probably reinforced.”
“Still. It’s creepy.”
“But it’ll keep you safe. Come on.”
They crossed the lawn and headed over to the side where Aries knew the entrance would be unlocked. Just around the corner were the doors that led to the theater. They were supposed to be having rehearsals. There was a good chance that some of her friends would be there. Right about now she could use
a familiar face.
As they moved closer she could see that some of the windows were shattered. Bits of grass lay in the flower beds below. Still, there was very little damage considering the quake was so massive.
“Maybe we’ll find Colin,” she said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the coward came here. I hope he did. I really want to have a word with him.”
“You’d be better off if it’s empty,” Daniel said. “Groups are bad. People do stupid things when they’re together.”
“But you’re here,” she said.
“Not for long.”
She paused, her hand on the door. “What do you mean? Are you taking off?”
“You’ll be safer without me.”
Her stomach lurched and ice shot up along her spine. The thought of being alone in the school was enough to bring tears to her eyes. She didn’t want to be on her own. She’d freak out. She grabbed hold of his arm, holding on tightly.
“You can’t leave me. I need you.”
She peered into his eyes, but it was impossible to read his expression in the darkness. Did he really think his being there was going to be dangerous? She couldn’t imagine why he believed this. People worked better in pairs, didn’t they? Two sets of eyes were better than one. She thought of being alone in the school, in the darkness where anyone would be able to effortlessly sneak up on her. The same panic she’d felt outside the grocery store coated her body, forcing her to shudder involuntarily.
“Please don’t leave me,” she finally said.
“Fine,” he said.
“Promise?”
“Sure.”
The school was dark and the silence was heavy in the air. Up ahead she could see that the emergency lights were on in the hallways, so at least there would be a small amount of light. It would help; at least they wouldn’t be groping at the walls blindly to try and find the theater.
“It’s so quiet,” she said.
“That’s a good sign,” Daniel said.
“We should check the theater first,” she said. “There might be people there.”
“Where is it?”
“Just down the hall on the right. Follow me.”
As they walked, Aries continued to talk. She’d never experienced the school so quiet before, and it creeped her out. At least by talking she could almost block out the eerie silence that was louder than any of the words that escaped her lips.
“Maybe Ms. Darcy will be there,” she said. “She’s really cool for a teacher. I get good marks in her class. She’s the one who’s directing Alice in Wonderland. Colin was against it, but that’s only because there’s no male lead. He always wants to be the center of attention. You’ll like her. She’ll probably know what to do. Not because she’s an adult but because she’s pretty smart.”
She paused when she realized she could hear her own footsteps on the tiled floor but nothing else.
Turning around quickly, she saw nothing but empty hallway.
Daniel was gone.
NOTHING
They know we’re here. They’re coming for us. What lies beneath has pushed its way to the surface once again. Time to get away while there is still air left in our lungs.
But they will still come.
No matter how much we run and jump and hide.
They’ve known all along.
It’s a game, you see. A simple ploy. If they were to get rid of all of us, then it would be Game Over for all eternity. What fun would that be?
So they will keep some of us alive. Let us breathe and eat and hide. Every now and then they will even let us breed. Then they hunt us anyway. But make no mistake, this is a calculated plot. They will take the ones they need for their future and destroy those they see as worthless.
They have plans for us.
They’ve already won.
They will remain smart during the annihilation their rage brings.
They walk the riverbed in their fancy clothes and diamond rings. They slouch through the streets with their shopping carts and mismatched shoes. They walk among us, which makes them especially hard to find. A family member perhaps. A lover. A child. This is how they survive and we die out. They are much cleverer than us.
They’ve been here for a very long time.
Just like animals can sense an earthquake, they felt it coming. They could taste the fear on their lips. It ignited a spark inside of them. Chaos. Perfect, lovable, candy-coated, goes-down-oh-so-sweet anarchy. A time to surge forth. Arrange their massacre. Send out their messengers. Plenty of time for preparation. They gathered their numbers and organized their attack. They didn’t even need to RSVP.
It was the perfect plan, and they are the weapons that our leaders keep warning us about. They are the things that hide in your closet and fuel your fear. They lurk in both alleyways and living rooms. They sit across from you at restaurants and push past you to ride the bus.
They are the dark thoughts inside of us we pretend we don’t hear. We ignored them but they didn’t go away. They grew stronger. Louder. They began to make sense.
I can feel them inside me. The voices are tonguing secrets in my ears that travel down my vertebrae. A thousand squirming insects are chewing on my stomach lining. Mice crawl around inside my intestines. Cockroaches pick at the veins behind my eyes. The voices scream inside my head, but yet they never say more than a whisper. I can’t breathe. I can’t think.
I’m being eaten alive.
I look forward to death. It will be peaceful compared to this.
MASON
Sometime after two in the morning, Mason’s mother drew her last breath. No one noticed or bothered to come. They probably wouldn’t know what to do anyway; the morgue was filled to maximum capacity. He hadn’t seen a doctor or even an orderly in over six hours. The hospital was in chaos.
Mason was holding her hand when she went. He’d been sitting by her bedside all night, unable to do anything except watch the rise and fall of her chest as the machines helped her breathe.
Thousands of people had died in the past twenty-four hours. Maybe even more—he’d heard nurses talking in the halls about the earthquakes. But he didn’t know anyone on the West Coast. Besides, there were more important things on his mind. Hearing about the deaths of strangers didn’t fill him with a lot of sadness.
But the bottom dropped out of his world when his mother joined them.
Earlier he’d had the television on to try to gain some understanding. The media was reporting that 123 schools had been bombed. People were screaming words like “terrorism,” “mass suicide,” and “organized plots,” but so far there was nothing to show that the attacks were anything but random.
Then there were the earthquakes, six of them all over the world. Each of them measured at least 9.5 on the Richter scale. The West Coast was utterly destroyed. The quakes caused tsunamis. Rumor had it that most of Hawaii was gone and the casualties in Asia were in the millions.
The television networks were no longer scheduling regular programming. A thousand channels around the world were broadcasting nothing but news.
None of that mattered to Mason as he clung tightly to the cooling hand of his mother.
His friends were all dead. Only a handful had made it out of the school alive. His teachers were dead, even Mr. Yan with his dented Honda Civic.
Something horrible was happening, but Mason was too numb to truly care.
Earlier the taxi dropped him off by the 7-Eleven and he walked over to the school. The situation was surreal; he spent a bit of time wondering if he’d stumbled into someone else’s dream. The sky overhead was thick and dark. Above his school was a continuous murky mountain of ash and smoke that sucked up all the scenery. The air burned his throat when he inhaled. It made him light-headed and he tripped over the sidewalk twice until his lungs and brain grew accustomed to the lack of oxygen.
The remains of his high school lay out before him, a pile of rubble and fire. No one even noticed as he crossed over the barriers set out for crowd co
ntrol and moved toward the gymnasium. The firemen were busy and the police officers were over by the growing crowd of panicky parents and curious onlookers. Ambulances and paramedics rushed about, but there didn’t seem to be many survivors left to take to the overcrowded hospital.
Chaos.
There was already a memorial section, and he moved among the lit candles, flowers, and pictures of his former fellow students and friends. He saw Tom’s dad talking to another parent while his mother sobbed uncontrollably. Quickly, he moved on before anyone noticed him. He didn’t want to have to explain why he was still alive.
The gymnasium was at the rear of the building, and Mason slipped away from the noise, ignoring the heat waves cascading from the destruction. What was he looking for? He couldn’t answer that. Maybe there was some tiny bit of hope that a few of his friends might have escaped. But was he really expecting to see them being pulled, miraculously alive, from the rubble?
“I just need to see,” he spoke out loud.
The parking lot at the back of the building was eerily empty of people. Hundreds of cars, his own somewhere in that sea of metal and concrete. If someone stopped him he’d say he was there to pick it up. Holding his car keys in the open for evidence, he moved as close to the school as possible, searching for any signs of life.
There were no bloodstains on the sidewalks. No bodies piled on one another for morgue removal. No half-burned books or personal items that might have been thrown through the air during the explosion. Had he been expecting that?
There was nothing to suggest that beneath the debris, hundreds of bodies waited. No proof at all that his school had become a tomb.
He methodically checked around the gymnasium doors to see if there might be a way to slip inside and take a look. But the entire back wall had collapsed, and the only way in were a few cracks big enough for a small animal. Heat poured off the building, burning his face, and the back of his neck grew wet with sweat. Getting down on his knees, he poked through the remains, hoping to find something that might have belonged to one of his friends. Eventually he found a pencil case, bright blue with pink flowers, that looked familiar. Inside were a few pens, an eraser, and a folded note. He opened it.