‘Well then, don’t give me a reason to accidentally shoot you,’ she said.
It passed between them like a joke would friends. But I could tell the subtle threats in both their voices. We left the room and everyone behind, and Chris made his way through a different set of tunnels, practically identical to the first. We were silent, the air and dimness pressed in on me, and my chest started to itch.
It was a short journey compared to our earlier venture, Chris stopped under another ladder and offered Anna the chance to go first, but neither of them budged. Against the feeling building in my stomach, I grabbed the ladder and made my ascent. I pushed the cover from its place and climbed onto Main Street.
I gasped. I’d noticed the chaos when I’d stumbled through the empty streets, back when everything had just started, but the destruction I saw was terrifying. Cars lay on their sides, dented and broken, like dozens of accidents had happened at once. I remembered that before going underground, the cars weren’t like this, and I wondered who was responsible; the monsters that used to own them or the people responsible for said monsters’ creation. Glass lay strewn everywhere, and blood coated the ground like a second skin.
The sky finally fitted the season as grey clouds blanketed it and a cold wind blew. I thought of how lucky the tunnels were, with pipes that gave enough heat to keep the place from turning into an ice box, when Anna and Chris came through the hole. Chris pointed at some shops and mouthed that we should stay together.
‘Leave it,’ he whispered to Anna, as she went about closing the hole in the ground. ‘If we need a hasty retreat, we don’t have time to waste opening it again.’
No one spoke as we gathered food and water. We worked as fast as we could without making much noise, and I constantly looked over my shoulder. I wanted to ask Chris where all the creatures that attacked us were, but I kept my mouth shut. It didn’t take long, twenty minutes and we were packed and ready, when an alarm filled the air.
We all jumped, my heart picked up speed and my chest ached. It was a car alarm, and we left the shop fast. The car sat on its side not far from the hole, but that wasn’t what struck us. Chris had left the hole to the tunnels open and it was closed. I was almost positive that it couldn’t have moved itself, but with reality being broken the way it was, I wasn’t about to dismiss anything.
‘Get to the-’ Chris started.
He never finished, raging screams filled the air, screams that didn’t belong to people anymore.
They were close.
The Choice
We ran. After the screams erupted, one of the creatures turned the corner a few metres away, looking around for the source of noise. Detached, I had found myself marvelling over the man. Apart from the blood, he was unremarkable. For all we called them monsters, some looked no different from us, but their bloodlust, their sudden impulse to kill; the strength and speed they possessed showed they weren’t the people they used to be.
We turned corners as fast as we could, but our hunters were gaining on us. Our speed was no match for theirs, and soon they would be on top of us. A few caught up, but Chris and Anna turned, and opened fire. They toppled to the ground only to rise again. Shots flew into their legs, their chests, and it became hauntingly clear they wouldn’t go down easily. It bought enough time though, and we turned a few more corners onto an empty street, the carnage there less.
Most of the houses had sale signs in their gardens, newly renovated three bedroom houses for those with the money to stay. We were out of sight for a second, and Chris sprinted for one of the houses. Luckily, the door was open, and we barrelled inside.
Apart from a shiny gleam, Chris looked his usual calm self, but Anna and I could hardly breathe. I clutched the stitch in my side and followed them upstairs. The sounds of the creatures seemed endless outside, and our hearts were in our mouths. I was also angry. I grew tired of being and acting like a broken little boy. If it wasn’t for my two companions, no doubt I would be dead.
‘In here,’ Chris whispered as he ushered us into the farthest away bedroom and closed the door.
He checked quickly around the room. The walls were bare and white, the floor a soft cream-coloured carpet. There were no windows bar the one on the ceiling. It slanted with the roof and gazed out into the heavens. Surprisingly, Chris pushed us into a small wardrobe and shut the door. My instincts prickled, this was the worst place we could hide.
My skin itched with uncertainty as the screams grew louder and louder, until I was ready to join them. But no sound echoed from the house. The three of us crouched in anticipation and waited to see if we’d been seen. Finally, they passed, and the blood chilling sounds receded into the distance.
We all sighed in unison.
‘That,’ Chris finally panted, ‘was close.’
Anna nodded.
I said, ‘Why is it we’re followed whenever I’m out of the tunnels, because it sucks.’
I also thought of the closed entrance to the underground, the one Chris had made a point of telling Anna not to close, the one that had been shut right beside the car that had called Death. I kept my mouth shut. It wasn’t the time or place for that discussion.
Chris opened the door, gun drawn and ready. We slouched out and held our breaths, but the room was empty still. Chris visibly relaxed.
‘We’ll rest for a bit, wait for them to drift further off, then-’ but he never finished.
There was a crash like thunder and Anna screamed. Chris was on the floor with a gash on his head, unconscious. In his place, surrounded by shattered glass from the skylight was a woman dressed in red. An angry growl etched into her face. Anna raised her gun and fired. But she shot too quickly, and the bullet lodged itself in the attacker’s thigh. In a blink, the creature had crossed the room and shouldered Anna, who lifted from the floor and hit the wall behind her with a sickening crack. Two down.
The monster turned on me and my stomach churned. Her dress wasn’t red. There were white flecks here and there of its former colour, but blood had changed it. So far she was the most monstrous former town’s person I had seen. Blood dripped from an empty eye socket and her other eye was wide and angry. That wasn’t the worst of it. The realization crept up my spine: I knew the girl.
She charged and we hit the floor, her on top. I screamed, and brought my hands up to push her off. But she was stronger than me, her weight kept me pinned and her hands lashed at my face. My chest burned while blood from the girl stained my already soaked top.
‘Claire!’ I screamed her name. ‘Claire, it’s me, Lucas! Please!’
She ignored me and punched my face. It felt like my head collapsed, my nose broke and metallic tasting liquid filled my mouth. I choked, and in my daze, Claire wrapped her hands around my neck. I tried to gasp, but failed, my hands tried to pull her hands away, but the room was fading.
I’m going to die. I’m going to die.
Tears streaked my cheeks and I gave up trying to wrench her from my throat. My arms flailed and fell on Chris’s fallen gun. I panicked and brought the heavy metal up and slammed it against her head. Nothing, it only seemed to anger her and bright spots burst into my vision. I could feel my strength leaving, but I tried again and brought the gun back around.
The pressure around my throat lessened, and using my legs, I bucked her off. I gasped air in painfully, my lungs on fire, and tried to crawl away. I’d barely hurt her though, Claire rounded and stood. A cut on her forehead was all I had managed to accomplish. I was going to die, unless I acted against the screaming in my mind.
It’s you or them. You have to get that, or you’ll die.
‘I’m sorry,’ I whispered.
Claire charged, I aimed and fired.
The Confession
I sat in the middle of the room, the gun at my side and Claire in my arms. I couldn’t stop the onslaught of salty tears that poured down my cheeks. My heart broke. I had had enough of screams though, enough of their terror becoming second nature. When I’d aimed the gun, i
t was as if a fog had lifted from my brain, I knew what I had to do to survive, just like Chris had said.
Aim. Shoot.
But as soon as the bullet struck her forehead and she fell to the ground, the fog had returned. What did I do? The guilt was unstoppable. Claire’s face mixed with Amelia’s and Hannah’s, and to me it seemed, no matter what I did someone else died. I had taken a life and it would never affect the world again. I felt as if something had been ripped from inside. New tears slipped from my eyes and I almost wailed.
I closed Claire’s eyes through the blood staining her face, and I sobbed with how innocent and peaceful she looked. Her hair was red, but before it had been a murky blonde, her eyes a greyer shade of blue. I gripped her tight. My face throbbed and my chest pulsed in rhythm with the pain. I felt dirty, and not in the physical sense.
I wondered if this was what going into shock felt like. Anna and Chris still lay unconscious, I hadn’t even checked to see if they were okay. Before too long Chris’s eyes fluttered open and he groaned. As if his mind clicked, he flew to his feet and scanned the room wildly for the enemy. His eyes found me, his solid composure gone for an instant, but with a blink it was back. He lifted the gun at my side and went to where Anna lay and tried to rouse her.
An insane anger burst into my chest. The earlier admiration I had had for Chris melted away and the obvious truth filled the void. He knew more than he was letting on. It had gone on for long enough. I waited as he surveyed Anna.
‘She’s breathing, but it looks like her arm is dislocated,’ he whispered, gazing around suspiciously as if more monsters waited to catch us off guard. ‘Anna, hey, Anna?’
He gave her a soft shake and patted her face lightly. She groaned and arduously opened her eyes. She looked around, and then tried to move.
‘Oh god,’ she gasped through clenched teeth. ‘My arm! My arm, I think it’s broken, oh god.’
Chris helped her sit up against the wall while he studied her arm.
‘No, Anna,’ he said. ‘It’s just dislocated.’
Anna’s eyes locked onto his and she winced.
‘Can you fix it?’ she asked.
‘Yes, but it’s gonna hurt. We should wait till we’re back in the tunnels before-’ he started.
‘No,’ Anna replied. ‘Now, do it now, please.’
Chris nodded but said, ‘Don’t scream.’
He took of his belt and told her to bite down on it. With a pop, he twisted her arm back into place. Tears rushed from Anna’s eyes, but she bit down on the belt hard, keeping her scream coiled away. After a few minutes of silence, she scanned the room. Her eyes fell onto the pool of blood on the cream carpet where it had poured from Claire’s head. Chris obscured her view of me.
‘Lucas, where’s Lucas? Is he alright?’ she asked flustered.
Chris shifted and her eyes caught mine. They both stayed silent, staring at the scene before them. Fresh tears sprung in Anna’s eyes and I put my hand up before she could say anything. I didn’t want her pity, I had my own. That and crippling guilt, someone else’s would be too much. A few more moments passed, and Chris moved.
His feet crunched on the broken glass as he made his way cautiously out of the room. He left to search the house, and Anna did her best to crawl over and take my hand. I would have shaken her off, but I held on as if my life depended on it. Chris returned.
‘The coast is clear. We have to move now,’ he ordered. His eyes avoided Claire.
I laughed, and both Chris and Anna jumped. I’d never been so angry. The fire in my stomach was unstoppable, and it spread quickly. It gave me courage, well, that or foolishness. My throat hurt and my voice rasped, but I fought the pain and spoke up.
‘She was sixteen last month,’ I whispered, and Chris dropped his gaze. ‘I went with my parents to her party down the road from my house. She was so happy, so full of life, with a future and dreams, and a family. She was loved.’
‘Lucas, we don’t have time for-’ Chris whispered.
‘MAKE. THE. TIME!’ I gasped. ‘She had her whole life ahead of her, and now she’s dead!’
Anna was silent. She stared at the wall she had been thrown into, but she listened with tears in her eyes, her strong façade put aside. I trembled, and with Claire’s death it was time to know why.
‘What do you know?’ I asked.
He did what he normally did when Anna posed these questions. He waved his hand, dismissed me, and moved to leave the room.
‘Don’t you DARE!’ I shouted and choked. I had to remember my throat had almost been crushed.
It was enough though. Chris hesitated in the doorway and turned. His eyes were wide and his jaw trembled, scared, but not of me. Everyone below might have been too afraid, too grateful to him for saving them to question. Anna tried, but short of causing a scene we didn’t need, she let it go. I was done with that.
‘For nearly two weeks we’ve followed you blindly. My Dad is probably dead and I have no idea what’s happened to my Mum,’ I whispered. ‘I’ve been shot, and thrown, and nearly blown up. Chased by people I have known almost all of my life, and I don’t know why!’
Chris stared at his shoes, struggling with words.
‘The guns, the tunnels, the creatures and the snipers and the saving the day,’ I said, my voice rising. ‘You know things that everyone else doesn’t! Now you’re gonna tell us why or I will scream until those things come back.’
Lie.
‘Lucas…’ he said.
‘Speak! Dammit!’ I screamed.
There was a weight in Chris’s eyes that I’d never seen before. His face wasn’t hiding his emotions, and he walked back into the room and shut the door. He was scared to tell us, but he looked resigned, like he wanted to. My anger flare had burned out and I shook, afraid to hear what Chris was about to say. I swallowed it. I couldn’t be the ignorant boy anymore. This was happening, this was real and it wasn’t going anywhere.
Stepping in front of us, and beside the door, he leaned against the wall and slid to the floor, his arms on his knees.
‘You’re not going to like it,’ Chris whispered.
He fell silent, waiting for us to urge him on, but I’d lost my voice. Anna squeezed my hand.
‘The situation’s already pretty fucked,’ I said. ‘But a little context might help. I mean, it’s not like it’ll make it any worse.’
Lie.
Chris glanced up, a pained expression in his eyes. I stared down at Claire’s lifeless body.
‘The ironic thing is, you already know whose behind all this,’ he sighed sadly. ‘But you’re human. We’re human. And when danger comes knocking, we rationalise, and twist the danger into something we can ignore.’
He took a breath and continued.
‘Does Fear of God mean anything to the two of you?’ he asked.
I racked my brain but shook my head. Anna however nodded slightly.
‘You mean the religious group that moved into town a few months back?’ she asked sceptically.
Chris nodded.
‘So, what?’ I said. ‘Religions the cause of this?’
‘No,’ his laugh was hollow. ‘It’s a smokescreen to ward suspicion. Their little name isn’t official, just a play on words, treat it like an acronym.’
‘FOG,’ I said as I began to feel like I was in a lesson, which technically I was. ‘I still don’t get it.’
‘Quite fitting, don’t you think? FOG,’ he spat. ‘Like how they descended upon the town without anyone caring or even watching, illusive and hidden.’
‘So they’re the group behind all this?’ Anna asked. ‘The ones causing all this death?’
‘Yes,’ Chris hesitated. ‘I used to work for them.’
Anna gasped. I had to replay what he’d said through my head, and then ice settled in my stomach. I noticed Anna had raised her gun and pointed it levelly at Chris. Why we were surprised I don’t know.
‘All this suspicion surrounding Lucas, and you’re the one working for
them!?’ Anna said.
Chris’s eyes bored into Anna’s. He looked sad and ashamed, but not angry.
‘Used to, Anna,’ he replied. ‘Not anymore. And the question of Lucas’s injuries is still up for debate. But no, as I agreed with you, I don’t think he works for them.’
Thanks.
‘Go on,’ Anna whispered.
‘No, FOG came into town as a religious movement, proclaiming to rally people to its cause. But it is not a religious body. In fact, it used to be a government one,’ Chris said. ‘Until they broke off that is. Well they got the boot.’
‘What kind of government group?’ I asked.
‘A science division,’ Chris answered, ‘operating on the fringe.’
‘What did they do?’ Anna asked. ‘What have they done to the people here?’
‘I don’t know,’ he said. Anna bristled, but he continued, ‘I don’t, Anna. I wasn’t part of the inner workings. They had me pulled from my position in the army, and placed me as their head of security. I worked to stop anyone from finding out about them or stumbling upon one of the entrances. I have no idea what they got up to.’
My mind reeled. It was proof, evidence that the force behind this mess existed, but Chris knew nothing.
‘What about this religious business?’ I said.
‘I told you. Most people ignore religious bodies like that, either because they have their own one, or because they don’t care. It’s perfect to get by without being noticed,’ he replied.
‘Why did you leave?’ Anna asked with a voice hitched with doubt.
Chris looked away from us, and I was surprised to see tears falling from his eyes. This had weighed on him, and the gates had opened, everything came flooding out.
‘One day around three weeks ago, I caught some snippets from a couple scientists,’ he said. ‘They were speaking of collateral damage, and the change, I don’t know. But one thing they said did make sense.’
He looked back at us.
‘They said the whole town would be dead when they had finished here,’ Chris whispered.
Fear of God (Trials of Strength Book 1) Page 6