The World's Last Breaths: Final Winter, Animal Kingdom, and The Peeling

by Iain Rob Wright

  “It’s dead,” said Mason. “But you probably already knew that.”

  Joe panted, struggled to get his words out. “Can I please…get…that first aid kit now?”

  Joe’s body collapsed onto the floor, spilling fresh blood onto the tiles.

  8

  “It’s time to start planning, my friends.” Randall had perched himself down on the edge of a desk as he addressed those present in the room. “It took me a little time,” he said. “I’ll admit that now. But I’ve finally come to understand the situation we are in. It will take organisation and planning to survive. We all need to be moving in the same direction, scribbling on the same page.”

  Cosby folded his arms. “What do you suggest?”

  “That we act now rather than later. We need to find food, blankets, water. The building needs to be secured – at least our part of it. A strategy has to be in place if we are to get through this together. We don’t know how long rescue might take.”

  “Where do we start?” asked the brunette girl, Grace. She was young and attractive, if a little plain. Randall noticed that her fingernails were chipped. It made her look cheap – and so did the many faint scars that lined her arms.

  One of those self-harming misfits by the looks of things.

  Randall grinned at the girl. He intended to look charming. “We start in order of priority, my dear. We need to secure this floor as much as possible, windows as well as doors. Then we need to find food and water. Once we’ve got those we can concentrate on settling in and waiting for help. I think we should split into two teams.” Everyone seemed to be in agreement, so he continued. “Victor, you take Bill and Shirley. I’ll take Grace and Mr. Mason. That is, whenever he returns from whatever it is that he’s doing.”

  “What about Joe?” Grace asked.

  Randall thought about it for a moment before answering her. “I was assuming that he could actually look after his son for once. I know he seems to prefer that you look after him, my dear, but right now the group needs you.”

  Grace looked down at the little boy asleep in her arms. “I’ll just look after him until his dad gets back, then.”

  “Where is the big lummox anyway?” Victor asked.

  Cosby answered. “He stayed behind in the lab with Mason. I think they’re bandaging his wounds up.”

  Randall sighed. “Let’s hope he hurries up and makes some use of himself.”

  “I think Joe has proven himself on a number of occasions.”

  Victor sniggered. “Sounds like you wanna bum the guy? Big dumb blonds your type?”

  “Screw you!”

  “You wish, poofter.”

  Randall put a stop to things before they could go any further. Childishness was not of benefit right now. “Gentlemen, please remember that you will be working together. Try to behave like adults.”

  Victor put his hands up, a wide grin on his broad, cat-like face. “I’m just fooling around. He knows I don’t mean it.”

  Cosby glared at the other man. “Yeah right.”

  Randall waved a hand dismissively. “Okay, you two take Shirley and begin checking for any areas that need securing. It wouldn’t hurt to seek out weapons too. See what you can find.”

  Victor nodded and took off immediately. After a short while, Shirley and Bill followed after him. That left Randall and Grace alone.

  Along with the brat, of course. Where the hell is his deadbeat father gotten to? Maybe those animals have escaped their cages and torn him apart. One can only hope...

  Randall scolded himself for such an ill-natured thought. Such a harsh attitude was not the way to proceed in the current situation. A certain amount of tact would be needed. He sat down next to Grace and smiled. “I guess we should get started then, sweetheart?”

  Grace frowned and Randall made a mental note: She doesn’t like ‘sweetheart’. Don’t use it again. He smiled at her. “I thought we could check each room for a water cooler. Office buildings always have them, do you agree?”

  “Okay. Should I bring Danny with us or find Joe first?”

  Randall thought about it. Guess it couldn’t hurt to come across as child-friendly. “Yes,” he said. “We can take the little sprog along. Perhaps we’ll bump into his father along the way.”

  Grace seemed confused. “Your attitude has changed.”

  “I think the stress of this situation affected me worse than I first realised. I’m prone to making harsh judgements. A defence mechanism, I guess.”

  Grace’s demeanour softened and she nodded. “Okay. Let’s get going.”

  “Great!” Randall stood up and offered a hand. “Wake the young man and we’ll make a start.”

  Grace rubbed Danny’s shoulders. “Time to wake up, honey.”

  The boy stirred slowly. Too slowly, and Randall became impatient. “Come on now, lad. We’re going to go and find your father.”

  The boy opened his eyes and looked around in a daze. “Where’s Dad?”

  “We’re going to find him now,” Grace answered.

  The boy nodded and finally woke up fully. Randall forced himself to smile. “That’s a good lad. You hold on to Grace’s hand now, you hear?”

  The three of them headed for the door and stepped out into the corridor. Randall couldn’t be certain, but he thought he could still hear the riotous shrieking of the monkeys downstairs. Not to mention the rattling cages in the lab up ahead. He wondered if Joe and Mason were still inside.

  “We should check the lab,” said Grace, obviously wondering the same thing he was. “They’re probably still in there.”

  Randall nodded. He put a hand out in front of Grace to stop her. “I’ll go, but you stay here just in case there’s any danger.”

  The boy whimpered and Grace stroked his head. “Daddy is okay, honey. We just need to check that there’s nothing a little boy like you shouldn’t see.”

  “I’m not little. I’m big and strong like the British Bulldog.”

  British Bulldog? The kid has a screw loose.

  Randall didn’t have time for this. “Wait here,” he said. “I’ll be right back.”

  He padded along the blue carpet and headed for the door. When he got there, he placed a hand around the long silver handle. Thoughts filled his mind about what he might find inside. His earlier notion of the animals escaping their cages now seemed quite plausible. The image of Joe and Mason ripped to shreds and lying in a pool of their own blood filled his mind. He almost turned back, but he had to do this, or else he’d lose face in front of the girl.

  Slowly, Randall pushed down the handle.

  When the door opened, the hinges squeaked. Randall hoped it wouldn’t alert anything dangerous to his presence.

  There was chaos inside the room. Randall immediately saw trails of blood – and what seemed to be a dead ferret. Amongst it all was Mason, kneeling over the body of Joe.

  Is he dead? What the hell happened in here?

  Randall was just about to burst into the room and offer his assistance, but he quickly reconsidered. Instead, he closed the door quietly and turned back into the corridor.

  Grace was looking at him expectantly. “Well?” she asked.

  Randall shook his head. “No one in there. They must have gone somewhere else.”

  Grace bit at her lower lip. The gesture suggested vulnerability and made her more attractive. “Why would they have gone someplace else?”

  “I guess we’ll know when we find them.”

  “We should probably keep on, then.”

  “Yes,” said Randall. “Let’s go see what else we can find.”

  9

  The pinprick of light gradually widened until Joe’s vision returned. He found himself staring at the ceiling, his head throbbing like a drum beat, but the worst pain was in his leg. It felt like it was being held over a flame.

  “Are you okay?” asked a voice from somewhere in the room.

  Joe didn’t reply for a few moments, and at first didn’t even know who the other person was.
Then, as he continued staring at the blank white ceiling and listening to the chaotic sound of rattling cages in the room, everything came flooding back.

  He tried to sit up, but Mason held him down. “Wait a few minutes. Catch your breath.”

  “The animals, they’ve gone mad. I need to find Danny.”

  Mason shushed him. “Danny is fine. He’s with Grace. You’ve been out for almost ten minutes.”

  Joe remembered passing out because of the pain. “My leg? How is it?”

  “I think you’ll be okay. You’ve got a pretty deep gash, but I stopped the bleeding. I bandaged it while you were out. Your arm too.”

  Joe examined himself and allowed himself a small laugh at the absurdity of what he looked like – a mummy in training. “I feel like a train hit me.”

  Mason smiled in a reassuring manner. It was surprising how much the curator’s dry personality and lack of social skills could still be such a comfort. “No, it was just a little ferret. You certainly have been in the wars. Come on, I think you’re okay to get up now.”

  Joe took Mason’s arm and heaved himself up onto one knee. After a couple of laboured breaths he struggled to his feet. Pain stabbed through the bite-mark on his right thigh, but he fought it to the back of his mind. He had to get back to Danny.

  “Easy there,” said Mason, steadying him.

  “I’m okay. Let’s just get out of here.”

  The two of them headed back out into the corridor and crossed over to the other side. Mason opened the door to the seminar room and stepped inside. Joe followed, limping and wincing.

  “Where is everyone?” Mason asked.

  Joe’s stomach rolled and a lightning spark shot up his spine. “Where’s Danny? Where’s my son?”

  “I’m sure it’s nothing. Let’s just go look for them before jumping to any unhelpful conclusions.”

  Joe clenched his giant fists and felt himself tremble. They had no right to move Danny without informing him first. He stormed out of the room. If it were not for the agony in his leg he would have run.

  “Slow down,” Mason shouted from behind him.

  But Joe did the opposite. He sped up, zigzagging the corridor from door to door and checking behind each one. Every room was empty.

  “Danny!” he shouted.

  Somewhere up ahead, a voice shouted back. Joe finally managed to run, ignoring the pain in his leg. Up ahead on the left was a room with the label: WAREHOUSE MEZZANINE.

  “Dad, I’m here.”

  Joe pulled down the handle and pushed open the door. Inside was a cavernous room that stretched down to an open space at ground-level. It looked like a storage space for the zoo, a warehouse full of random crates and boxes. Joe was standing on a metal walkway that towered above. It led to a flight of stairs on the right and a small, windowed cubicle-office on the left. Danny was inside the office.

  Randall was with him.

  “Son of a bitch!” Joe sprinted into the office just as Randall turned around to face him. The punch caught the man square in his flabby jaw, knocking him to the floor. Joe stood over him. “What the hell are you doing with my son?”

  Randall scooted back on his rear and rubbed his chin. “Are you insane?”

  Joe noticed his son, shaking in the corner, and put an arm out. “Danny, come here.”

  Danny ran over to his father, buried his face in his stomach, and wrapped his arms around him. Joe turned his stare back to Randall. “Why were you alone with my son?”

  “He wasn’t alone,” said a voice behind Joe.

  He turned around to find Grace coming up the metal staircase from the warehouse floor. He raised his eyebrows at her. “What?”

  Grace was shaking her head and seemed angry. “I told Danny to wait in the office with Randall while I looked downstairs for supplies. He wasn’t doing anything wrong.”

  “Why did you all run off without telling me? What was I supposed to think?”

  Grace laughed. It was an unpleasant sound. “You were the one that ran off. We didn’t know where you were. We were hoping we’d find you on our way.”

  “What?” Joe stepped towards her, shaking his head. “You couldn’t have looked very hard. I was still in the lab.”

  Grace seemed confused for a moment and Joe caught her glancing past him towards Randall. “But we looked there,” she said. “Randall said the room was empty.”

  Joe turned around. Randall had gotten back to his feet and had plonked himself down on an office chair. The man was rubbing his chin and wheezed slightly as he spoke. “It was empty. It was a bit of a mess in there, but I didn’t see you.”

  Joe didn’t buy it, but, before he had chance to say as much, Mason came up behind and placed a hand on his back. “You were unconscious, Joe, and I was kneeling on the floor. It’s quite possible that he didn’t see us.”

  “Right,” said Randall. “I only poked my head in – granted – but it looked to me like the room was empty. I’m very sorry, my friend.”

  “No,” said Grace. “It’s Joe that should be apologising to you.”

  Everyone looked at Joe and he suddenly felt like a misbehaved child. Reluctantly he accepted his error. “I’m sorry, Randall. I…acted badly.”

  “Yes, you did.” Randall offered his hand out. “But we have bigger fish to fillet right now so let’s just forget about it.”

  Joe couldn’t be certain, but he thought he saw the beginning of a smirk on the other man’s face. Still – whether he trusted Randall or not – Joe was the one in the wrong. “I’m sorry,” he said begrudgingly.

  “Okay then,” said Grace. “Now that we’ve got that sorted, maybe Mason can tell us what’s what in here.”

  “Of course,” said Mason. “This is the zoo’s storage warehouse. It’s one of the places we keep dry animal feed, maintenance and landscaping tools, cafeteria supplies, et cetera. The cleaner’s station is also here”

  “Cafeteria supplies,” said Grace. “Excellent, that’s just what we need.”

  “Should we leave it here or gather it up?” Joe asked.

  “I think it would be best to split it,” Randall said. “If something happens to one stockpile then we will have a backup.”

  “Good idea,” Joe admitted, although he hoped the theory wouldn’t have to be tested. “Mason can show me where the supplies are and then we’ll bring some of them up. Where are we gonna camp out with the stuff?”

  “I think we should remain in the seminar room, for now,” said Mason. “It’s the only room with soft furnishings and it’s the closest to the stairwell, which will give us the quickest warning if anything gets through the barricade in the lower hallway.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” said Randall. “I’ll check on Victor and the others and bring them up to da--.”

  They all heard the shouting from across the corridor. Two male voices. Neither of them happy.

  Joe shook his head and sighed. “I think maybe we should all go and check on them.”

  10

  There were humans inside. He could smell their wretched fear. They hid inside their tower, their symbol of comfort and fearlessness. While he had spent his life inside a cage, held back from the world by unrelenting bars, the humans enjoyed a freedom that should have been a right of all living beings. The humans had taken his freedom away many years ago, but now he was going to take it back. He was going to take it back for every creature enslaved by man. Something had happened. Things had become unquestionably clear. Things that he had once not understood were now simple concepts that he had learned without even being aware of how. His mind had changed – he was no longer an animal content to be enslaved.

  The human’s time as masters was over. There were undeserving even to be slaves. They deserved only to be extinguished.

  He roared and assembled his troops.

  Joe and the others found Bill and Victor arguing in a cramped office at the end of the corridor. The conversation was heated and both men looked ready to get physical. Shirley stood nearby and s
eemed content to watch them.

  Bill squared up to Victor. “Call me that again. I’m begging you.”

  “I think once was enough for you to get the point, pal.”

  “I’m not your goddamn pal.”

  Joe got between the two men. “What’s happened?”

  Bill took a step back and seemed like he was trying to keep hold of himself. “Man here called me a queer.”

  Joe looked at Victor, shocked that the man was grinning with what looked like pride. “Is that true?”

  Victor nodded. “What’s the problem? That’s what he is, so where’s the harm in being honest about it?”

  “You’re vile,” said Grace.

  Victor shrugged. “Your opinion, lass.”

  “Actually,” Mason added. “I think you’ll find that it’s all decent people’s opinion. It is wholly unacceptable in this day and age to use language like that.”

  Victor stiffened up defensively. “Where I come from we call a spade a spade.”

  Randall stepped up to Victor and pulled him slightly aside. “But you’re not there now. You’re here, and need to respect other people’s feelings. When this is all over you can go home and think and say whatever you like.”

  “I’ll think and say what I want where I want.”

  Bill slapped his hands to his forehead. “I can’t believe I’m stuck with this homophobic fool.”

  “Look,” said Joe. “If you want to keep making yourself unpopular, Victor, then go right ahead. The rest of us will just ignore you for the closed-minded jerk that you are. What I want to know is why the hell you two got into this in the first place.”

  Everyone took a breath and seemed to calm down for a moment. Bill finally answered the question. “We saw something from the windows and I panicked. That’s when Victor decided to insult me.”

  “I just told you to calm down.”

  “What you actually said was, ‘Calm down, queer.’”