by Casey, Ryan
For the first time, anyway.
He could hear things, too. The echoing of his footsteps. The sound of water dripping from somewhere. And every now and then, creaking. Which just made him all the more uncertain about being down here.
Because it felt like something was following them.
Like something was watching them.
“So this is it?” Riley asked.
Peter Hillson caught his breath and smiled. “Here it is, in all its glory.”
Riley looked up at it. The large, circular metal gate.
And to its side, other gates. But they were closed off. Red marks painted across them.
Riley thought about all the people who must’ve lived through those other gates. All the communities, like his, with no knowledge of why they were here, or what their purpose was.
All fallen, now.
Riley shook his head. “How does a thing like this even come into being?”
“As you’re no doubt well aware already… there have been safeguards in place for many years in case of an outbreak. We didn’t know it would have the impact it has had. But we knew we had to prepare. We knew we had to be ready. The world’s great forces have been working to make sure there’s some kind of safeguard in place for a long, long time before the outbreak. But these places. These communities. They once stood strong. Tall. But all of them fell. All of them, including District 63. Only something is different with District 63. Something is radically different.”
Riley looked at those large metal doors. He pictured what might be behind them. Who might be hiding behind there.
“It’s not safe,” Peter said. “Far from it, in fact. The question is… are you sure you’re ready?”
Riley scratched the back of his neck. He looked over his shoulder, into the darkness. Then ahead at the door again. “I’ve come this far. No point turning back now.”
“There’s something else you should know about District 63. About… about the reason I haven’t been back there yet.”
Riley rolled his eyes. “Here we go. The catch.”
“Inside District 63,” Peter said. “I… I can’t make any promises about how you’ll react.”
“I’ve seen enough over the years. Sure I’ll handle it.”
“I’m not talking about how you’ll react mentally, Riley. I’m talking how you’ll react physically.”
Riley narrowed his eyes. “What exactly is this place?”
“Like I said. District 63 is different. A radically different strain of the virus. It took on a different form. An even less static form than the one we are used to. Affected people in radically different ways.”
“Even less static than the one we’re used to? What’s that supposed to mean?”
Peter opened his mouth. Then closed it. Half-smiled. “I really think it’s better if you just see for yourself. Only… Well. Just brace yourself. It’s really not something I can just explain. But you’ll see.”
He turned around, then. Went over to the large door.
“This district,” Riley said. “Is there a reason you haven’t been through there yet? Even when you know this Rhubi was so important?”
Peter looked at him then. “Like I said. It’s not the sort of place I’d go voluntarily. Besides. I didn’t think I’d find a chance of seeing you or Kesha ever again. But when I saw you… I realised there was hope, after all. A second chance. I’ve got to take it. And I want you to be by my side.”
“And if something happens to me in there?”
“What?”
“If I’m so important, then surely I should just be waiting behind, right? I mean, if you really had my best interests at heart, you’d lock me away and wrap me in cotton wool so nothing happened to me, wouldn’t you?”
Peter smiled. “You’re right. I could do that. But then I’d be going in here alone, and quite frankly, I’ve seen how you work. How you fire a rifle. How you move. I kind of want you by my side. Let’s call it an insurance policy, of sorts.”
Riley whistled. “Charming. Good to see your true colours.”
“I never said I wasn’t self-interested,” Peter said. “Only that ultimately, my self-interest is for the good of everyone. And I believe that with you beside me, we have a better chance of getting what we want. Now. Are you ready?”
Riley looked at Ted. Saw him shrug. “Guess we don’t have a choice now mate. Right?”
He looked back at Peter again as he stood by that door.
Looked at the rifle in his hands. The one in Ted’s and the one in Peter’s.
Then he took a deep breath.
Nodded.
“Good,” Peter said. “Because everything depends on this journey. Everything.”
He saw Peter key something in to the pad beside the large metal doors, then.
Nothing happened. Not at first.
And then there was a large creaking noise, and the doors began to shift open.
Peter stepped back. Riley stood there. Heart racing. Watched as this new world revealed itself. As this new district opened up right before his eyes.
When the door had opened, Riley could only stare into what was beyond.
A tear rolled down his cheek.
Eyes wide.
Mouth dry.
Totally still.
“Welcome to District 63,” Peter said. “I’m sorry to say it really isn’t as beautiful as it looks.”
But all Riley could do was stand there.
All he could do was stare.
Stare at what was in front of him.
Stare at what was waiting for him.
In all its staggering glory.
And only one word occupied his mind.
Only one.
“Beautiful,” he said.
Chapter Four
Anna watched the blood drip down Xanthe’s chin and felt the tension in her body rising.
It was the way she was staring at Kesha that did it. Those wide eyes. That focused gaze. Enough to make the hairs on the back of Anna’s neck rise; to make the crippling nauseous grip of tension tighten even more.
Because that stare said something. Something unspoken, sure. But something that Anna felt like she understood, intuitively.
Xanthe wanted Kesha.
Kesha was the one she was here for.
She held Kesha close. Tightened her grip. Tried to stop her turning, stop her looking over at Xanthe, as eager as she was to see her; as eager as she was to figure out what was going on.
Anna wanted to protect her from the world. Even though she knew there was only so much she could do to stop her seeing what was ahead.
Xanthe had her rifle raised. Pointed right at Anna. Alison was right by her side.
And Anna didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know how to bargain with a woman who was something beyond what she first thought she was.
Who was infected.
But also fully conscious.
Also fully aware.
“Step back,” Anna said. She gripped hold of her rifle. Alison stood there holding hers, too.
Xanthe looked at those rifles, and she smirked. Tilted her head. Then she tutted. “What a shame. I mean, it’s cute, really. The damage you think you could do. The problems you think you could cause.”
She stepped forward, just a couple of steps.
Anna tightened her grip on the rifle. Alison lifted hers, too. “Not another step.”
But it didn’t seem to faze Xanthe. She just kept on moving. Kept on walking forward. “See, I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
Anna held her ground. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t gun you down right now.”
Xanthe kept on walking. That cockiness about her. That confidence about her.
She stopped. Right in front of Anna. So close that her rifle was practically touching Xanthe’s chest. “I found something out, back in Britain. Something very important.”
“You killed my friend,” Anna said, the reality of what had happened to Melissa in such a moment
of cold-bloodedness finally rearing its head. “You… you ripped out her throat. A pregnant woman. You murdered her. You’d better have something damned important—”
“See that’s the thing,” Xanthe said. “That’s what you’re just not understanding. I didn’t do that.”
“I saw you—”
“For one, I wasn’t in control of what I did. Just like the undead aren’t in control of what they do. I’m infected. A higher form of the virus, sure. Still able to function. Still able to act. But… those violent urges. They’re still in control. They run the show.”
“Then as far as I see it, you’re really no different to the rest of the monsters in this world.”
“And two,” she continued, ignoring what Anna said. “Why are you so certain Melissa is gone?”
Anna looked at her. The way she smiled. She didn’t like it. Something discomforting about it. Something that suggested worse was to come. Another dark secret.
“As for those urges I told you about… Well, wouldn’t it be wonderful if Peter could change them?”
Anna stopped, then. She saw Kesha was looking around at Xanthe. Staring into her eyes.
“What are you talking about?”
“Three people,” Xanthe said. “That’s what Peter told me. A combination of the DNA of three people—three people here on this island. He said he could change this virus. He said he could eradicate this level of it, make sure it never affects people in the same way again. Wipe it out, once and for all.”
“I’m sensing a ‘but’ here.”
Xanthe smiled. “You’d be right to say that. Because what Peter is proposing isn’t a cure, so to speak. It’s something different entirely.”
Anna’s stomach sank. She had a bad feeling about where this was going.
“What are you here for?” she asked.
Xanthe smiled. Blood between her lips. “You’ll see. In time, you’ll see.”
Anna found herself grinding her teeth again. She found herself tightening her grip on that rifle, Kesha standing behind her now. “You still haven’t answered my question,” Anna said.
Xanthe nodded. “And what’s that?”
“Why the hell shouldn’t I finish you off, right here?”
Xanthe sighed. She dropped her rifle. Then put her hands on her hips. “Good question. Why don’t you give it a shot?”
Anna felt tension. She felt her sweaty palms shaking as she held the rifle. She sensed she didn’t have the upper hand. Even though she was holding a rifle. Even though she was pointing it at Xanthe.
She sensed a catch.
A trap.
She held her breath.
Watched Xanthe as she scanned her face, searched her eyes.
And then she tightened her grip on the trigger.
Before she could even think about what she was doing, Xanthe grabbed the rifle and pointed it over her shoulder.
She yanked it from Anna’s arm so hard that it felt like it was going to burst out of its socket.
And then she tossed it to the floor.
Alison went to fire.
But the same thing happened again.
Xanthe ducked it.
Then she head butted Alison.
Sent her flying across the room.
And then she sunk her teeth into Alison’s arm.
Alison cried out. And all Anna could do was stand there. All she could do was watch.
She’d come so far.
She’d come all this way.
And she was going to fall, too.
Fall, just like everyone else.
Xanthe stood up, then. Wiped her hands together. That smile on her face. “Don’t you see now?” she said. “Don’t you see?”
Anna stood there. Suddenly feeling very defenceless. Suddenly feeling very weak. Very exposed.
She watched as Xanthe walked around the room. The strength she’d shown. The skill she’d displayed. It was unlike anything she’d ever seen.
“Now you’re going to hand her over,” Xanthe said. “You’re going to hand her over. Because she’s the first one. The first piece of the puzzle. I can just feel it.”
Anna stood there, heart racing. She looked at Alison lying there on the floor, eyes closed, bleeding from her head. And then she saw movement across the room. She saw movement outside the window. Then walking over to the door.
“We’re the future,” Xanthe said. “And there’s nothing you can do to change it. It’s already started.”
The door handle lowered.
“You’ll see just how many problems it will fix,” she said. “Suffering. The human condition. Every little problem. Fixed.”
She stood there and watched as the door opened.
When she saw who came to the door, her body filled with fear.
Melissa stood at the door. Pale. Gaping wound in her neck.
But not like the monsters.
Like the living.
“Hello, Anna,” she said. “I’m here. It’s okay. It’s—it’s really okay.”
Chapter Five
Riley looked around District 63 and tried to wrap his head around what he was seeing.
The morning sun shimmered on the horizon, casting a warming yellow glow over the landscape. There was an extra heat to this place, too. Not aggressively so, but just enough that it felt comfortable. That it felt… well, perfect.
But it wasn’t how this place felt that was different.
The lush greenery was unlike anything Riley had seen. It had worked its way up the buildings. Created patterns the likes of which he’d never seen from foliage before. And the flowers. The flowers bloomed in colours that Riley found both familiar and yet unrecognisable at the same time. The smells in the air were sweet. Took him back to childhood. The beach. Candy floss and toffee apples. Even the sounds here were soothing, crisp in his ears, instantly relaxing.
Everything here filled him with an unmistakable comfort.
With ease.
“What… How…”
Peter cleared his throat. “Like I said. Don’t be deceived by this place’s beauty. The virus. It took on radically different forms in here, based on our experiments. It worked its way into the ecosystem. Kept on morphing, kept on changing. But it’s still the virus, at its core. It’s still just as dangerous. Just as destructive.”
Riley’s mouth was totally dry. He didn’t know what to say. Only that he couldn’t believe what Peter was saying about this place being evil or diseased. Because this was beautiful. This was a beauty that would improve the world.
He looked at Ted and saw that his eyes were just as wide. That he was just as entranced by what he was seeing.
“Hey,” Peter said, clicking his fingers right in front of Riley’s face. “Got to keep moving. Don’t get distracted. It looks good, I know. But we’ve got a mission here. Get to Rhubi. Get her out of this place. And get you all back to the Main Building where we can work on ending this mess, once and for all.”
But as much as Riley felt committed to the task at hand, he couldn’t stop marvelling at his surroundings. He couldn’t just click his fingers and switch off like that. The colours he was seeing. The smells in the air—a sweetness, reminding him of artificial flavours from years gone by. Houses with pink flowers coating the doorway, slightly ajar, calling him inside…
“How can this…”
“The virus,” Peter said. “It’s far, far more adaptable than you ever imagined. And in a sense… virus is the wrong word for it, in all truth. I mean, if we’re being picky, it’s a whole bunch of viruses. A whole range of them, which is why curing one particular strain has previously not been enough to protect from the other strains. This range of viruses… some of us have developed a new name based on our updated research. We call it Narcissus. Narcissus was a proud hunter. He loved everything to be beautiful, everything to be perfect. He despised those who loved him. He wanted their absolute commitment, sometimes leading to their suicide.”
“I didn’t come here for a Greek mythology lesson
,” Riley said.
“The fact of the matter is… Narcissus fixes things. It looks for defects in whatever it infects. That’s why it brings back the dead. That’s why it takes over human consciousness. Because it sees them as flaws. Destructive flaws. And that’s why it targets its own kind, too. That’s why it targets humanity as a whole. Because it sees how destructive it has been. It sees how detrimental it is to the furthering of this planet—or rather, its own view of how beautiful and perfect and in its image the planet should be. It fixes death… and it fixes the destroyer, too.”
Riley felt his understanding of the virus growing as he walked through these streets. As he walked along the soft paving, the spongy grass. “So where does it all end up?”
“Where does what all end up?”
“The virus. Narcissus. If it’s the ultimate fixer, like you say. Where does it all end up? Where does it all lead?”
Peter sighed as he walked along. He seemed tense. Kept on looking over his shoulder. Scanning his surroundings. Like he knew something Riley didn’t. “That’s the big question. What does a fixer do when there’s nothing left to fix? What does the ultimate cleanser do when there’s nothing left to cleanse? What does the perfect do when it realises it cannot make anything more perfect than that it has already created?”
Riley thought about the world. All the problems he could think of in the world. All the problems that “the ultimate fixer” could find on this planet. Ecology. The animal kingdom. The very nature of Earth itself.
“It destroys,” Ted said.
Riley looked around at Ted. Saw the way he was gazing up ahead. Staring at something in the distance.
He looked where Ted was looking, and he saw something.
Something moving towards them.
Someone.
He couldn’t make out the figure. Not clearly. Only that it looked male. Well built. Walking slowly.
And he felt the hairs on his arms standing on end as he watched it close in. It creeped him out in the same way as when he’d first seen the parasitic humans. The variation of the virus. The way it morphed all those years ago.
Peter stopped. Lifted his gun. “Hold up.”
But Riley didn’t want Peter to shoot it.