by Kip Nelson
Nick breathed a sigh of relief when he reached the station. He flung open the door, expecting to see a legion of firefighters ready to save the day, but there was only John.
“Am I glad to see you,” John said. Nick approached him, and they clapped their hands together.
“Where is everyone?” Nick asked, looking around to check if he had missed something obvious.
“I have no idea. I thought everyone would be trying to get here. Figured this was the best play. What the hell happened? Did you see that flash?”
“Yeah, I was at home, and then all my electronics exploded. It's gotta be an EMP.”
“Damn. The city is going crazy.”
“I know, I just ran here. Everyone is rioting. I don't like it, John. We've gotta do something.”
“But what? There's only two of us. I don't know how to get hold of the other guys. We can't even take the engines out.”
“Maybe we should get to the police station? There might be more people there.”
“I really thought everyone else would be here,” John said. There was a sadness in his eyes. Nick didn't want to think about everyone else. There was only one reason they wouldn't have heeded their call of duty, and that was too grim a thought to bear.
“The important thing is the two of us are together, and we can make a difference here. We just need to come up with a plan.”
“Yeah, well, I don't know what the hell you're thinking about doing. It's all I can do not to freak out.”
“John, we don't have the freedom to freak out. Everyone else is freaking out, which means you and I must stay level-headed. We must keep it together because we're the only ones who can. Come on, this is what our training is for. I think we should give people a little more time to get here, and then we'll make our way out. We'll try getting to the cops or the hospital. There's gotta be some kind of coordinated effort out there.”
They waited for a little while. Nick had plenty on his mind. John walked over to the message board. “I guess I won't be going for this after all,” he said, ripping the job posting off the wall. “It's crazy, isn't it? You think they would have warned us or something.”
“I think they tried to. I saw something on the news. Didn't really pay attention, though.”
“You think there's any way back from this?”
“There's always a way back,” Nick growled. That was something he had to believe. Backdraft had been lying at his feet, but the dog perked up. He looked toward the door. Nick heard a noise. His and John's eyes lit up, for they anticipated it was one of their brothers, but then Backdraft started growling.
“I've always wanted to play on these things,” a voice said as five men sauntered into the fire station. They were joking, and it took them a few minutes to realize they weren't alone. Nick instantly took a dislike to them. They were disheveled, and some of them had shaved heads. They wore leather jackets. Some of them had blood stains on their clothes. Others were holding bottles.
“Well, well, what do we have here?” one of them said.
He looked to be the leader. He had a narrow face with a pierced eyebrow. Nick and John glanced at each other. They already were forming a plan to take them all out, even though they were outnumbered. John moved closer to the fire engine. Nick watched him reach behind it for a tool. Nick knew he couldn't do the same without drawing attention to himself. He'd have to rely on his fists.
“Just leave now before you get hurt,” Nick warned.
“That's rich. If I've got my math right, there's more of us than there are of you,” the leader said. The others cackled as though it was the funniest joke they ever had heard.
“This is your last warning,” Nick said.
The smiles fell from their faces. The other men charged instantly. Nick yelled at Backdraft to attack. One of the men barreled into Nick. He took the momentum and flipped the guy over his back, sending him crashing into the engine with a clang. When Nick rose, he swung his fist into another man's chest, feeling the air rush out of his lungs. He brought his knee up and heard the sickening crack of a jaw. Nick grabbed his neck and flung him next to his comrade. John already had knocked out another man with a wrench. The sound of metal on flesh rang out. Suddenly, it was two against two, three if you counted Backdraft, and Nick certainly did.
“You should have listened to me,” Nick said.
The leader snarled and ran forward. He grabbed a bottle from the floor and smashed it, swinging the jagged edges wildly at John. John tried backing away and dodging the flailing bottle, but one of the edges caught him on the arm, tearing his flesh. Blood trickled down John’s arm, but Nick knew it could have been a lot worse. Backdraft ran forward and nipped at the leader's leg, which gave John the opportunity he needed to swing his wrench again, catching the leader across the face. He yelled in pain and the bottle dropped to the floor. Nick glared at the one man remaining. He stepped forward, flanked by John and Backdraft.
“I think you'd better leave,” Nick said.
The man's eyes darted to his companions, who all were lying broken on the floor. He turned and fled. Nick glanced at John and the two of them flashed wicked smiles. They picked up the leader and dragged him out of the station. Nobody attacked the fire station and got away with it. They threw him outside, but stopped. Another dozen men were standing outside in a semi-circle.
“I think it's you who had better run,” the man said to Nick.
He glanced at John and Backdraft. Maybe if he was on his own he would have fought, but there was no way the three of them could take on so many men, especially since these ones were prepared. They had their knives drawn already and were advancing on Nick and John. Nick looked desperately for a way out, but there was none. The circle closed in on them and they were taken captive.
Chapter Seven
Cosmo stared up at the ceiling of the tent. It was nice of Mikey to let him and Nick use his tent while Mikey and David shared the other one. Although Cosmo still wasn't sure what to make of them. It was cramped in the tent, and he was uncomfortably close to Nick. Cosmo angled his body away to make sure no sensitive parts were touching. Nick seemed like a good sort, apart from all that bother with the men chasing him. Cosmo still was curious about what that was about. It would just be his luck that the one man he trusted turned out to be in trouble.
He felt he owed it to Nick for saving his life, but it wasn't easy for Cosmo to trust. That's why he couldn't sleep. Mikey and David could have been anyone. Maybe this entire campsite was a trap for naive wanderers to find. They play the good cop/bad cop, pretending to be nice, then in the middle of the night Cosmo would find himself being cut up and cooked. He'd heard enough stories of cannibals, and knew what life in the wild could do to men.
“What do you make of them?” he asked.
“Fine,” Nick said gruffly, burying his head against his hands, which he was using as a pillow. Cosmo rolled his eyes.
“I'm not sure myself. I don't think we should be too trusting of them. Maybe we should set up a watch system, just to make sure we're not caught unaware.”
“They're probably thinking the same about us,” Nick said sleepily. “But if you want to start a watch, then go ahead. You can go first. Wake me up when you want me to take over.”
Cosmo sighed. All he wanted was someone to talk to. It wasn't that difficult to have a nighttime conversation, was it? The tent flap was zipped shut, but as he looked at it he thought he saw movement. His body tensed and his breath caught in his throat.
“What's that?” he gasped. Nick didn't respond. Cosmo prodded him in the side. Nick jerked up and looked at him angrily.
“What?” he snapped.
“I thought I saw something moving outside,” Cosmo said, nodding toward the flap. Nick shook his head.
“It's probably just the shadows from the trees,” he said. “Go to sleep and stop worrying.”
As if it was that easy. How could Cosmo stop worrying when everything in the world was out to get him? He'd seen enough bad t
hings, even before the solar flare hit, to know that life wasn't all sunshine and roses, at least not for him. Some people had it easy. They could breeze through life without a second thought. Maybe Nick was one of those people. Not Cosmo, though. Everyone had a hidden agenda, and Cosmo knew that people only ever were looking look out for themselves. There was no true selfless act in the world. Everything was done with a certain perspective in mind. Still, it would have been nice to talk to Nick and get a better sense of who the man was.
Cosmo never had owed anyone his life before, and it was a debt he intended to carry until Nick said it wasn't necessary any longer. Nobody ever could say that Cosmo was a man who did not pay his debts. He was an honorable man, from honorable stock. His family had worked the land, and now the land had to repay Cosmo, not that he had gone into the family business. He used to be a tutor, helping to coach small businesses on how to run themselves efficiently. It wasn't exactly what his parents had had in mind for him when he was growing up, but he never had been the type to get his hands dirty.
Cosmo's main asset was his mind. Oh yes, he was quite an astute person who was well-read, and he considered himself an expert on many things, including this apocalypse. It was strange to think of that word. Over the years there always had been threats to civilization, but most of them had been crackpot theories, like that silly Mayan end-of-the-world legend a few years back. This one most certainly was real, though, and it wasn't going anywhere.
He tried to close his eyes and get some sleep. Nick already was dozing beside him. How could he sleep when those men still were out there? Cosmo wasn't just thinking about Mikey and David, but also those other men, the ones who had been chasing Nick. Cosmo shuddered. He dreaded to think what would have happened had they been caught, although it couldn’t have been much worse than having to dunk himself in that sewage lake. He shuddered again. Thankfully, after dinner Mikey had shown him to the stream where he and Nick had been able to bathe, although he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to get the stench off him. Thinking about it made him gag, and he had to swallow the nausea that rose through his throat. He tapped his fingers on his stomach, trying to think about the last time he had had a decent night's sleep. It had to have been before the solar flare hit.
He'd been at home, enjoying an early departure from work. He was catching up on some reading when a bright light flooded the room. It finally was happening, he thought to himself. He knew that something big was going down. Then everything started sparking and exploding. He gathered up as much food as he could and then went to his basement, figuring that was the safest place to be. Nothing electrical worked, and outside he could hear people shouting. It was clear to him that nobody was going to work together, and the best thing he could do was to stay by himself. He heard windows being smashed and the yelling of people hurting each other.
That wasn't what Cosmo wanted from life. He'd seen enough movies to know how these things went. It was easy to be by himself. He also knew that it only would be a matter of time before they started coming into his home looking for food and other supplies. Cosmo glanced around. There weren't many things he could use as weapons. He'd never been much of a fighter either. He'd always intended to bulk up, but whenever he exercised he got to a point where his muscles started to ache really bad. So he rested them, but then fell out of the habit.
There was only one choice. He'd have to leave his home. It was sad, but there was no other option. It's not like it mattered anyway. Nothing mattered anymore. Not his job, not his friends, not his hopes or dreams. As long as he still was breathing, he was alive, and that was a damned sight more than a lot of other people got.
Cosmo was sure he had made the right decision. When too many people got together it only proved that life was difficult. He was his own man, in charge of his own life. Leaving the city was good as well. The last thing he wanted was to be caught up in some kind of war between groups. As long as he was by himself he didn't need to get caught up in all those politics. Of course, he hadn't exactly planned to get himself trapped in the watermill either. Stupid idiot. He never was going to tell Nick what had started the fire, but he wished he hadn't just flicked that match so casually. He never expected the fire to take hold so quickly. There must have been something in the wood. Shoddy manufacturing really. It was a wonder it had stayed up for so long.
If it hadn't been for Nick...well, he didn't dare think about that reality. But now he was in another tricky situation. Mikey and David could be licking their chops, ready to skin them alive. He'd read a lot about cannibals. Sometimes it didn't take much for man to descend into the realm of beasts. With nobody to keep everyone in check people were free to explore their most savage desires. Maybe the reason Mikey and David were out here alone was so they could indulge their true natures. He wondered if the deer only had been hunted because there were no people to hunt. He hated the idea that he could be the next night's dinner.
A noise stirred outside, and he was sure it was the two of them coming to cut his skin off and cook him. They probably wouldn't even kill him first. How could anyone be so inhuman? Maybe he was being foolish. He probably just was tired. He tried remembering that all the things he had read were just stories, and if they had happened in real life, they were extreme cases. The chances of him actually running into cannibals out here were astronomical.
Then, a bad feeling surged through his body. He twisted his hips and clenched his muscles. It was the worst time to take a leak. He glanced over at Nick, and then quickly shook his head. The warmth probably would wake Nick up. Besides, Cosmo only recently had washed off the stench of sewage. The thought of going out into the forest was frightening. Anything could be out there. Maybe there were wild animals too, waiting for some prey. He clamped his eyes shut and tried not to think of relieving himself, but for some reason it was as though he was standing knee-deep in it. The pain started to ache, and he knew if he didn't do something soon he would burst.
Fiddling with the tent’s zipper, and making a mess of it, Cosmo finally flung open the tent flap. He gasped as he headed out into the darkness to find a tree. He pulled open his pants and then sighed with relief, tilting his head back as he let the warm stream flow against the tree’s rough bark. The release was immediate, and Cosmo instantly felt better. The relief wore off quickly, though, and he became acutely aware he was standing in the dark. The moonlight illuminated the trees in a silvery glow and the stars twinkled overhead. The wood seemed to whisper to him and Cosmo tried willing himself to finish peeing so he could return to the relative safety of the tent.
“So, you needed to come out for a midnight stroll too?” David said.
The man had crept up behind Cosmo, almost making him jump. The way David was standing was very eerie. The moonlight shone on his face, and Cosmo didn't like him at all. Cosmo tried to see if he was holding any weapons, but everything was so dark it was difficult to tell. Cosmo finished his business. He never liked talking to people while he was peeing. Then he turned to David.
“When nature calls you must call on nature,” he said. He eyed David suspiciously and wondered what he wanted. It seemed to Cosmo that it was more than a coincidence that David just happened to be out there when Cosmo had been taking a leak. He had to have been listening for movement.
“It's fortunate that we have nature to call on then.”
“Yes, it's quite lovely around here. How long have you and Mikey been out here?”
“Oh, for a while. We came out here after everything happened. The city seemed very noisy. It's peaceful out here.”
“Yes, I imagine that it's rare to be disturbed.”
“Until some strangers come along.”
“I didn't think we were strangers anymore,” Cosmo said, trying to smile in a friendly manner, even though he didn't trust David one iota.
“In some ways, aren't we all strangers? Can we ever truly know each other?”
“I didn't realize you were a philosopher too.”
“I have many interests.�
��
“I can see that,” Cosmo said, and wondered if eating human flesh was one of them. He leaned against the tree and, as he did so, reached around to grip a solid piece of bark in case he needed to use it as a weapon.
“So, what's the deal with the men who were chasing you? We need to know if we're in danger.”
Cosmo wasn't sure how much to tell him, but a good lie always contained threads of the truth.
“Just angry men. You know the way of the world. Some people aren't nice, and they want to cause chaos. They were chasing us for a while. We came across them under a bridge in the city. They just started harassing us for no reason. Frankly, I think they're bored.”
“It's quite a long way to come for boredom.”
Cosmo shrugged. “Well, like you said, how can you truly know anyone? I don't know what's going on in their minds. Either way, we're glad to be in a safe place now. Are you two staying here for long?”
“As long as it's safe,” David said tersely. Cosmo wanted to try finding out more about this man. Mikey seemed on the level, but there was something unsettling in David's eyes. Cosmo wasn't sure what to make of him.
“Did you have anything else you wanted to ask me?” Cosmo asked.
“Can he be trusted?” David said, tossing his head in the direction of where Nick was sleeping.
“He saved my life, that's more than I can say for a lot of people,” Cosmo replied.
David raised his head and then walked away in the darkness. He made no sound, which struck Cosmo as strange. Cosmo shivered and realized that goosebumps had risen on his skin. He let go of the bark, which had left a deep etching in his skin, and returned to his tent. He tried to peer through the darkness to see David, but the man had disappeared. Cosmo would have to keep a close eye on him for certain. He seemed to have it out for Nick as well. Yes, a very close eye indeed.