“Oh god no.” Zoe groaned, looking out the windshield. “Please, no, no, no.” She covered her mouth with her hand squeezed her eyes shut.
In the distance a monstrous glow emanated from where Neverland used to be. Flames twisted up and snatched at the shadows as the home we knew burned into nothing more than a memory. Dread began to crawl up my spine as I thought of those we still had at the bunker.
"Stop the car!" Glitch yelled from the back.
"We don't have time!" Tracy called back in answer.
"Stop the car!" Dom and Glitch yelled in unison.
I turned backwards as Tracy slammed on the brakes. Dom pointed to our left and I could see faint lights creeping through the darkness. Hope surged like sunlight breaking through a blackened window.
"That's us." Dom said. "Emergency glow sticks, they must have made it out."
Tracy cursed and hit the brake, spinning towards the lights, slamming the brake again a few minutes later when Rec and Brandon ran into the headlights. With Nep between them, hobbling on his good leg and the makeshift peg on his other, they looked appropriately haggard. The others came into view behind them.
"What the hell happened?" Zoe demanded getting out of the car. "Is everyone okay?" She pulled Rec's head down to inspect a gash on his temple that ran back to the top of his ear.
"We're fine. Bullet grazed me."
"Been there." She said gesturing to her cheek.
"Glad you guys made it." Dom slapped Rec's shoulder.
"We were trying to bury the guys. Rat bastards crashed a god damned funeral!" Neptune seethed.
"They're on the ground." Viktor sobbed.
Cer took Viktor's hand and pulled him to the jeep where Ria helped him in next to Len. Cer's face went ashen when he saw Neffery on the other side of him and he faltered getting into the jeep. The four of them crammed in, Len pulling Nef into his lap, and Ria glanced back at Glitch.
"Those are your people!" Abe yelled at Tracy. "Is this what you live for? To watch us all suffer?" He pushed him backwards and got in his face. "Does it make you happy to know the pain is unbearable?" He screamed as tears sprung from his eyes.
I stepped over to separate them, but Tracy held his hand out. He grabbed Abe by the shoulders and gave him a shake. When Abe settled and backed off a little, Tracy spoke.
"I am not them. I won't tell any of you again." He turned to look everyone outside of the car in the eyes. "Brandon and I aren't perfect, but we aren't monsters. Staying with Antrim kept us alive. You can't say what you are, and are not willing to do until you've done more than toe the line." He faced Abe again.
"We couldn't even...bury them." Abe whispered on a choked sob.
"And that might be the easiest hardship you face with those people. There's blood in the water, and we can't just float." Tracy stalked back to the jeep and got behind the wheel.
"We need a bigger vehicle." Brandon said, adjusting Nep on his shoulder.
"We need my damn truck. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get clean water?" Neptune grumbled.
"Not as hard as going against fifty-one armed men?" Brandon answered.
"We killed sixteen." Neptune corrected.
"So thirty-five." Brandon sighed and pinched his nose.
"There were over eighty yesterday." Rec mentioned.
"They have numbers, but we have unity." I said, nodding in agreement.
"At least we got Neffery back." Nep said rubbing his temple.
Zoe, Dom, and I went still. Zoe's eyes shifted and Dom lifted his chin. Neptune's shoulders sank and he swallowed.
"Right?"
"He's gone." Zoe whispered.
Rec released Nep and went over to the jeep. Rec opened Len's door and Len glanced up at him. His face was anguished for a moment and then it matched Rec's rage. Rec pulled him and Neffery's body into a fierce hug. Rec spoke words for only Len to hear and Len nodded.
"We need to go wherever we're going. They seemed content wrecking the place, but they could still end up coming for us." Brandon looked at the ground while he spoke.
"We really aren't going back for Boe?" Abe spoke, aghast.
"Tom is there too." Zoe snapped. "And Bud, Mer? Remember them?"
Abe said nothing, but held Zoe's challenging stare. There was movement from the jeep and we looked aver. Glitch got in the back with Ria on his lap and Rec stepped back over to us.
"Zo', you and I are taking the trigger seats. Dom, think you can hang on back there with us? You can see in the dark better than any of us."
"I can." He said simply walking to the back of the jeep, Zoe and Rec following.
Wordlessly, Abe walked over and got in, sitting on the floor in front of Len. Brandon stepped away from Nep and climbed in behind Tracy, smiling his dopey smile at Viktor as he sat on the floor in front of him. The corner of Viktor's mouth lifted and he nodded back.
"This is beyond damaged." Nep said on wobbly legs.
His drawn expression was lit by the faint dome light from the jeep. He crossed his arms and shifted on his still shaky legs. I didn't have a counter for his statement so I just nodded, seeing that he needed me there.
"A funeral." He spat and shook his head. "They've always been this nasty, but they've never been this aggressive. They've never come at us this hard." He looked at me like I would have all the answers.
"We have to go." I didn't have any answers.
He scoffed and nodded with his mouth twisted. He took a breath and placed his hand on my shoulder, allowing me to walk him over to the car. He got in on the floor in front of Cer and I took shotgun.
Lost Boys couldn't be more fitting.
Chapter 11
Comfortably Numb
NEVADA JUNE 14TH 2029
All the way to wherever Tracy was driving, we were silent. No one asked where he was taking us. No one complained. We were all along for the ride. Appropriately, Pink Floyd's 'Comfortably Numb', was playing quietly from Brandon's headphones.
Sunrise was approaching and there had been no sign of the cannibals. Len had stopped crying hours ago and even everyone's rage seemed depleted. When Tracy started driving much slower I finally focused out the window and was about to ask where we were when he spoke.
"Eyes open. Munchers all over the place here." He shifted in the driver’s seat and flipped a switch under the console.
UV lights from the top of the jeep shone into the dark and a few aggs’ screeched from the contact. Brandon crawled to the back, leaning through the open window past Dom and flipped another switch then returned to his seat on the floor. Light flooded the back and Zoe pulled her legs to her chest just before a passive had latched onto her ankle as we crept by.
There were dilapidated buildings and a few abandoned ATVs along the road. Everyone started craning their heads to look out the windows. Rec and Zoe readied their weapons and looked on edge. Dom peered into the night seeming to see something no one else did.
"What is it?" Zoe said, glancing at Dom. "What do you see?"
"The blood." Tracy said with his eyes forward.
Now I could see it. Blood everywhere. Like rust, it coated the walls. Thick in all the doorways, it painted the town. The place was steeped in death.
Aggs’ jumped into and lurched out of the UV lights. Their screams and growls were like a horror movie soundtrack, but they weren't what had us on edge. The passives coming out of the shadows to stand and line the road were what had us sinking into our seats.
"Where are we?" Cer said, barely above a whisper.
"Briar Town." Tracy said, almost sounding sad.
"What the hell is Briar Town?" Nep asked.
"Murderville?" Len slowly became more alert. "Like where the Wraith is from?"
"And me." Tracy said nodding.
"The what?" Glitch said turning to Len.
"Some guy back in 2019." Tracy spoke first. "Detective on a case with two serial killers before the world fell to apart." He scoffed. "Completely." He added.
"Vegetarian from Br
iar Town. Peter makes sense now." Brandon chuckled. "How did Phyn know that and not me?" He slapped Tracy's shoulder.
"Because she was here."
"When?" Brandon asked with suspicion in his voice.
"When they killed all these people." Tracy tilted his head to lock eyes with Brandon in the rearview mirror.
"You mean-"
"They decimated the town. We didn't stand a chance. Antrim and his men came in with three-hundred plus and a pack of munchers. Only a handful of us were granted sanctuary. He turned it into a dumping ground for traitors after that."
"Jesus Christ." Ria cursed.
"Was absent." Tracy muttered.
"Who's that?" Viktor asked with a reserved whisper, pointing ahead.
There was a small two-story building ahead a little ways, off to the side of the road, with light coming from a large picture window upstairs. Shadows moved past the window cutting off the light as someone moved inside. Tracy glanced up to the window and furrowed his brow.
"No idea, Bats." He pulled the jeep to the front of the building and leaned forward to look around.
"Someone's home." Brandon leaned in between us. "We gonna knock?"
Tracy shrugged and honked his horn. Zoe spun around and glared at him at the same time Nep slapped his arm. We held a collective breath and turned to the window.
A girl pulled the curtain aside and looked out. The light from behind her illuminating her pale blonde hair. She slowly raised her hand and gave a wave with a confused smile.
Someone else stepped over and joined her. A stout man with stubble on his face spoke to her and turned to someone behind them. Someone grabbed each of one of their shoulders and pulled them back, the curtain falling back into place.
"Huh. She was pretty." Brandon said.
I turned to him and sure enough, his grin was in place. He looked ridiculous. I rolled my eyes and faced the building again. A light came on in a lower floor and Tracy cut the engine.
"Shouldn't we be ready to drive off?" Cer asked, moving a few inches away from his door.
"I'm pretty sure I know who's here." Tracy answered.
He looked around the jeep and got out, careful to stay in the light. Another UV light came on outside the building and the door opened. A bearded man stood in the cover of the light with a shotgun trained on Tracy as he approached.
"Ed." Tracy nodded towards the man and smirked.
Slowly Ed lowered his gun. A look of recognition lit his face and he returned the smirk. He shook his head and stepped down to meet Tracy.
"I can't believe an asshole like you is still alive." Ed chuckled and took Tracy's hand, giving him a shake/hug. "Where the hell have you been? Who're those people?" Ed leaned around him to look into the windows of the jeep.
"Some strays. Got room for us?" Tracy asked with a look on his face that said he wouldn't take no for an answer.
Ed paused for a moment before answering. "Same rules as always." He slapped Tracy on the shoulder and turned back inside, passing the two from the window on his way.
"Hi." The girl said with a shy smile.
"Hi." Tracy said with a slow grin.
"Who are you?" The man beside her asked.
"Names Tracy." Tracy answered with his eyes still on the girl.
"I'm Dalli." She said, blushing under his gaze.
The man rolled his eyes and spoke again to Tracy. "I'm Eric."
"Good meeting." Tracy answered shortly. "Looks like we're staying here for a bit. That a problem?" He finally looked to the man.
"I'm not the boss. Ed is." He said matter of fact without any indication that he was bothered by it. "No one's allowed in the kitchen."
"Right." Tracy said turning back to the jeep. "Let’s go guys. We got a place to crash."
Slow and unsure, we all piled out. Eyes trained warily on the two and all around us. Eric chuckled and spoke.
"It's like a clown car. How many you got in there?" When no one answered he shifted his gaze and mumbled. "Jeeze, who died?"
Rec froze with Len's door open. Neffery's limp body still in Len's arms. Zoe glared at Eric and Dom tensed, looking ready to punch him.
"Did I say something?" Eric said quietly with genuine confusion.
"Is that boy-" Dalli started.
"Dead." Rec snapped. "He's dead." He snarled at Eric and Eric paled.
"Hey, I'm sorry." Eric started forward and Zoe stepped up.
"Save it. We lost six people today, we don't need it." Eric nodded and stepped back.
I stayed back with Rec, Len, and Tracy as everyone else went inside.
"Leonard." Tracy said with a gruff voice.
Len didn't move. His eyes were glued on Neffery's small hands. He gripped Nef tighter and gritted his teeth.
Tracy nodded and put his hands on his hips. He pulled his lips into his mouth and seemed to bite back frustration. He drew a deep breath and looked to Len again.
"I had a baby brother too." His statement about dying for the boy earlier came to my mind. "We were playing street hockey. Drunk driver plowed right over him." Tracy stooped to try and catch Len's eyes. "Five feet. I was five feet away and I couldn't stop it then either." His jaw set and he straightened again.
Len's grip loosened and he looked up at Tracy, his eyes soaked with a guilt matching Tracy's in that moment. Rec stepped forward and slowly reached for Neffery. Len swallowed and swiped his eyes as Rec stepped away with him.
I caught Tracy's eyes and nodded as I followed Rec, leaving Tracy to talk to Lenny. Rec stepped through the doorway and the voices ahead of him quieted. He moved aside for me and Zoe came over looking concerned.
"Where's Len?" She looked behind me. "Where's Tracy?" She sounded angry and tried to step past me.
I stopped her and shook my head. "He's fine." She looked past me, but nodded and turned back into the room.
"I have a walk-in that's functional." Ed said awkwardly. "We can wait for daylight to take him to the cemetery."
"He'll be cold." Viktor said with sad eyes.
Zoe sighed and moved to sit in a chair, her eyes glistening. I looked around realizing we were inside of a restaurant. The chairs and tables were pristine, the floors clean. We looked out of place with our ragged and bloody clothes.
"The sun is starting to rise now, we don't have to wait long." I nodded to Ed. "Thank you."
"This way." He said quietly, turning down a hall.
Rec followed behind and Viktor's eyes followed him nervously until he finally moved to follow too. Zoe looked like she was going to stop him, but Abe put a hand on her shoulder and she sat back down.
"Is there somewhere we can clean up?" Dom asked Eric. "Some of us have wounds that risk infection." He nodded to Ria.
"There's a bathroom with a shower upstairs." Dalli said brightly. "I'll show you." She took Ria's hand and led her up the stairs.
Nep had stretched his bad leg out on a bench and groaned as he pulled off his makeshift prosthetic. He rubbed his leg and kicked the contraption away with his good leg. He leaned back and looked over at Glitch.
"That thing pinches." He said expectantly.
Glitch scoffed and shook his head. Then he stood and picked it up, looking it over. Eric, looking suddenly interested, stepped over and took it from him.
"You made this?" He started pulling on parts and tilting it in his hands.
"Yeah." Glitch said, taking it back. "I did."
"I might have some stuff in my shop you can fix it with."
"It's not broken."
"Right. Well, my shops next door. We can go through the side door. It's safe." Eric spoke enthusiastically like he was eager to work on the leg.
"Get on it then." Nep said, clapping his hands.
Eric stood a moment and then without making eye contact, again took the leg and walked quickly to a hallway at the back of the room. Glitch looked after him wide eyed then growled and followed. Brandon chuckled and stood also.
"I'll make sure he doesn't kill him." He stretched and f
ollowed too.
"I'm going to check on Len." Zoe stood abruptly and walked outside ignoring my suggestion to let them be.
"She knows what Len is going through." Dom said in her defense.
"So does Tracy." I said with a direct gaze.
"How could he?" Abe said bitterly.
"Do you really think you're the only one pissed off?" Cer said, un-characteristically sharp. "Len lost his brother, so did Zoe. Her twin brother. Bud was my best friend, even before all this. And Mer might have been an ass, but he was one of us!" A vein in his neck surged and his face seemed to pale even more than usual. "Stop trying making us feel like we lost less than you!"
"I loved him!" Abe screamed back.
"I know!" Cer's eyes were wild and he heaved breaths. "I know." He said quieter on a puff of air.
Abe's aggression drained away and he fell back in his seat, tears running down his face. Dom looked away uncomfortably and Nep's brows shot up as he whistled low. Cer seemed to shake himself and moved over to sit next to Abe.
"We can't fall apart." Cer said with his elbows on his knees. "We've always worked as one, you can't break away now."
"I know." Abe sniffed.
"He loved you too."
"I know."
"Good."
Chapter 12
A Sky Full Of Stars
NEVADA JUNE 14TH 2029
"Like a bolt of lightning, it hits us in the chest." Len stood at the head of Nefferey's fresh grave in the early morning sun with a piece of paper in his hands. "It goes from spark, to flame, and burns us from the inside. Standing at the edge of a battlefield with seeping wounds, it grips our hearts and squeezes.
On this day, we are survivors. On this day we are alive. This chance that we've been given, cannot pass us by. This hourglass is special. It keeps not only time, but smiles for dark places and secrets from the sky.
Death, fates shallow temptress a wretched evil thing, stretches claws to pull us from it. No temptress will destroy us, we shall overcome. Like lightning in a sky full of stars, it dances between us. Held in its embrace, until it lets us go, we breathe against words we'll never say. We hold back until we see the others, waiting for us, down the way." He clenched the paper in his hands and closed his eyes.
Apocalypse Chronicles (Book 1): SunDown, Part 1 Page 12