by R. Malak
“Wait, before, you start lecturing me, could you please help me?”
Her mouth snapped shut, her purple eyes shining hotly, but she moved to take one arm and slide it over her shoulder. Together they lifted the man up carrying him in between them.
“Dad, is that you?” Tears welled up in the man’s flame colored eyes. “I’m so sorry Dad. I didn’t mean to run away.”
Not sure what to say to him, he looked over towards Lucy, but she raised her chin refusing to speak to him.
Shrugging his shoulders, Rollo patted the man on the shoulder comfortingly. “Ahh, it’s okay son, we’re going to help you feel much better.”
“I knew… I knew you’d come…” With that, the man closed his eyes and fell asleep.
~ * ~
Talmen, awoken by a pinprick of light, tiredly opened his eyes and saw his father sitting by his bedside reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. In disbelief, he watched from behind half-closed eyelids as his father flipped through the pages. This is a dream. It has to be a dream. Father was…father is dead. As if hearing his thoughts, his father lowered the book and smiled warmly.
“You’re finally awake. Good, it’s time for you to get up. We have a long journey ahead of us.”
Without meaning to he blurted out, “Your dead, I saw you die.”
Jay, startled at the outburst, peered down at him curiously, before chuckling and tugging the bed sheets off of him. “Did I now? You have quite the imagination.”
Talmen, confused closed his eyes firmly shut, then opened them, but he was still there. “Am I dead too then?”
Jay raised an eyebrow at that and walked away to open the curtains to let in the soft morning light. The light gave everything in the room a strangely golden hue, giving it an unearthly beauty. He got out of bed and went to look out the window and swallowed back tears of joy as he saw his brother and mother playing in the garden. The scene was so beautiful it brought tears to his eyes. If this was dream, or he was dead, he prayed it would not end.
Finished folding, his father came and placed an arm around his shoulders. “It’s good you’re here Tally, we were afraid, we would have to leave without you.”
Talmen gazed up at his father to ask, “Where they were going?” but he was no longer there.
He searched the room for him, but he was gone. Heart clenching in his chest, he looked out the window, praying his mother and brother were still there and breathed in a sigh of relief. They were still in the garden digging holes to plant seeds. His little brother was happily playing with the wet mud and chatting away excitedly.
A dark shadow grew in the corner of his eye and formed into the nightmarish creature that had haunted his dreams. Lava dripped off its molten skin body and turned the ground beneath into molten lava. It stalked forward, its red lips curling into a feral smile and eyes flaring a bright blue. Mouth dry with fear he screamed for them to run, but they couldn’t hear him. He pounded on the window; trying to shatter the glass, but the glass refused to break…the fiend raised its arms slowly and stared directly at him, as it burnt his family alive…
~ * ~
“Stop! Stop! Leave them alone!”
And strangely enough a friendly voice replied, “You sure? That wound needs stitching up or it will get infected again.”
Bewildered, he opened his tear-stained eyes and found a young teenage boy in t-shirt and jeans with curly brown hair and brown hazelnut eyes standing over him, holding a needle and thread.
“Who are you?”
The young man grinned, showing off his dimples. “I’m Rollo.”
Talmen tried to twist his head around to see where he was and winced with pain. “Where am I?”
Concern flashed across Rollo’s face. “Easy there, your neck wound needs more time to heal.” The boy leaned over him to re-adjust the pillow beneath his head. “Where we are? Well, to be honest, I haven’t got a clue.”
Talmen grinned wearily at the comment, not that it was funny. Guess what his father had said about survivors being cunning and resourceful, didn’t apply to everyone. Yet, it was nice to see there was still good left in the world.
Rollo’s grin widened. “Yeah, I know, I probably should pay more attention, anyway can I finish stitching your shoulder up?”
After a brief pause, Talmen gazed into the boy’s eyes. “Thank you.”
The boy smiled abashedly and brushed it off. “Think nothing of it my friend we roamers have to stick together.”
Rollo leaned forward once more with needle and thread and took hold of his shoulder. “This is going to hurt.”
Talmen nodded and took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He felt the cold prick of the needle dig into his skin and bit down on his tongue to stop himself from screaming, as he felt it slide all the way through. After repeating the process several times, Rollo leaned back and wiped the sweat beading on his forehead.
“There, all done.”
Worried his body had lost too much strength he tried to get out of bed and noticed he was wearing a pink t-shirt over his bandages with a rabbit sewn onto the chest.
“Whose clothes am I wearing?”
Rollo cringed slightly, his cheeks becoming a bright red and rubbed the back of his neck worriedly. “Ahh, well you see, none of my clothes fit you, and the only thing we had to spare was this t-shirt.”
Talmen sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “I guess it doesn’t matter, at least it’s warm and clean, thanks.”
With some effort and some help from Rollo he pulled his feet out from underneath the bed sheets and onto the soft carpeted floor. He sat there on the edge of the bed exhausted and out of breath. He felt so weak and helpless.
“How long have I been in bed?”
Rollo stared up at the roof, thinking. “Umm, let’s see, three days I think.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Truth be told, I don’t really see the point in keeping track of time anymore.” Rollo walked off towards the kitchen. “You want something to eat? You must be starving.” Talmen’s stomach grumbled in response and Rollo laughed, “I can’t believe I heard that from here, I thought stomach growls were a myth.”
Talmen’s face flooded red with embarrassment.
The door creaked open behind him. Without thought, he instinctively scanned the room for a weapon and picked up a set of pliers from the bedside table and shoved them into his pocket. A woman around his age with messy brown hair and violet colored eyes stormed into the room to point her gun at him.
“Rollo! I told you watch him and tell me when he was awake.”
Rollo supplied an embarrassed grin. “I know sis, I know, but we’ve talked and I think he’s an alright sort.”
Talmen shook his head in surprise, this was Rollo’s sister? She looked nothing like him and she certainly didn’t act like him. She was all hard edges and ridges, and kind of scrawny too.
Lucy glared at him and kept the gun aimed at his chest. “Then answer me this Rolly? Why the fuck did your friend shove something into his pocket, when I walked into the room.”
Rollo’s cheerful face darkened into a frown and he turned to look at him.
Sighing regretfully, Talmen dropped the pair of pliers on the bed beside him. “Sorry, I didn’t know you had someone with you, I thought… well I don’t know…”
Rollo stared at him for a few minutes, chewing his lips before his mouth curled once more into a grin. “Sis you are always saying to be more careful, and it looks like he was just being extra careful.”
Lucy snorted at that, but lowered her weapon. “You’re far too trusting, Rollo.”
“And you are far too cynical,” he said with a smile.
Rollo came back over to join him, handing him a spoon and can of dog food with a faded image of a dog printed on the front. He stared into the can of dog meat and tried to gather the courage to put a spoonful in his mouth. But all he could think of was how the meat oddly enough looked like mashed up poop, which nearly caused him gag. Rollo pulled a stool from the kitchen ta
ble and sat across from him.
“Well, eat up.”
Taking in a few quick breaths to brace himself, Talmen filled his spoon and shoveled into his mouth. He chewed and swallowed.
“Well, that wasn’t as bad as I thought it’d be, it tastes like slightly undercooked meat.”
Rollo stood up and slapped him on the back chuckling. “I was the same way, before sis convinced me to try the stuff. Anyway, you’d better eat up. We’re already late enough as it is…”
Lucy’s mouth widened in surprise exclaiming, “You want to bring him with us? Are you nuts?”
Rollo shrugged. “We have to take a chance sometime sis, and we could use the extra help.”
Talmen, seeing the stubborn set of her jaw, stood while gingerly holding his bandaged chest. “I promise I won’t try anything with you guys. I’ll even walk out in front of you, if that will make you feel better,” he pleaded, “Please… I don’t want to be alone again.”
Lucy locked eyes with his and stared deep into his soul. Reading the fear, pain, and worry written upon his face. After what felt like hours she reluctantly nodded her head and wandered away to collect their belongings. Rollo moved to help her. Sighing, he sat back down to finish eating the rest of the dog food. He was so famished he barely noticed the taste anymore. The pair of siblings seeing he was done eating walked to the front door with their backpacks. Together they left the motel room, and headed out into the car park. Rollo stayed close by his side, and Lucy as he expected was at his back with her desert eagle ready. As he gazed around at the houses on the streets he tried to imagine what it was like before the bombers blew the crap out of these houses to slow the monster’s advances. But he couldn’t see it; most of the buildings were far gone, with whole roofs blown off and walls destroyed. Even the road had its share of battle scars with craters the size of boulders and wide scorch marks.
The trio made their way down the street, sticking close to the houses in case they needed to duck inside to find cover. Rollo to his annoyance started whistling beside him as they walked along, acting like there was nothing out there hunting them for sport. Swallowing his irritation, he tried to focus on moving his legs and taking deep long breaths. Being in bed for three whole days had sapped much of his stamina. He struggled to keep up with Rollo’s leisurely pace, which he assumed was for his benefit. Refusing to be defeated so easily, he pushed himself. The wind blew harder, sending dirt and debris into the air, to smack against his bare arms and face. Crows and carrion birds circled the sky above them, watching them.
After what felt like an eternity of walking, Rollo stopped beside a huge house with broken windows and a missing door and handed him a bottle of water. Gasping for breath, he poured the water into his mouth, enjoying the feel of the cool liquid sliding down his throat, then handed it back to him.
“Where are we heading?”
Rollo took the bottle back and slipped it back into his backpack and pointed to the northwest.
“Me and Lucy come from a settlement not far from here called The Spire. We usually stop there to trade for supplies, before heading back out again.”
Lucy, who had been watching the birds above them while they spoke, suddenly hissed at them. Rollo immediately snapped his mouth shut and dipped his hand into his jacket and pulled out a 9mm Glock. Talmen catching sight of movement on opposite side of the street gestured in that direction. Lucy nodded her head and ran into the nearby house with her gun at the ready. She reappeared a few seconds later and motioned for them to come inside. Grunting he climbed up the steps onto the veranda and into the dry, musty old house. Panting he crouched down behind a window facing the street and looked out.
Six men in shabby grey military fatigues, wearing worn out Kevlar vests and carrying M16 rifles rolled out from between the building opposite them, their rifles aimed at the house.
“We know you’re in there! Come out or we will open fire!” shouted a gruff voice.
Talmen exchanged nervous glances with Rollo, whose face went a pasty white.
Lucy tightened her grip on her pistol and shouted back, “Leave us alone! We don’t want any trouble!”
The men outside chuckled and continued advancing casually towards the house their guns held at the ready. “Come on out! We promise we won’t hurt you.”
Talmen knew then that they were in trouble, these men were going to kill them. He had seen their type before, deserters, roamers and survivors all killing to take whatever they wanted. They had to act now or they would all be slaughtered. Adrenaline pumping, he snatched the gun out from Rollo’s sweaty grasp and stood up to look out the window. Breathing in, he took aim at the nearest fighter and fired. BANG! His target fell to the earth howling in pain and cursing.
He crouched back down behind the window. “That was a warning shot! Go away!”
The leader of the group shouted orders and the men fanned out, and started firing. The gunfire was deafening, ringing the ears and puncturing holes in the walls around him. Keeping low, he waited for their gunfire to slow down, before popping back up and firing again, this time aiming for the leader. The spry bastard however, saw him appear in the window and jumped to the side and returned fire. He quickly ducked back down, and realized Lucy and Rollo had both disappeared. Guess he couldn’t blame them for abandoning him here. Besides he was too weak to run anywhere. Keeping his head down he went to the kitchen, which had black scorch marks everywhere and searched the cabinets for anything useful. He grabbed the wine glasses, and headed upstairs. Hearing movement at the backdoor, he fired twice without looking and raced up the steps. Breathing harshly, he smashed the glass cups against the wall, showering the stairs in broken glass, and then hid in the alcove above to wait.
He didn’t have to wait long, footsteps crunched into the shattered glass. He leapt out of his hiding spot and fired at the large man climbing up the steps. Hitting him in the shoulder and side of the head, he fell back with a gasp, blood fountaining out from his skull. Not sure how many rounds he had left, he decided to take a risk and carefully made his way back downstairs, and collected the man’s rifle before slipping out the back door. He scanned both ways to make sure he wasn’t spotted, stuffed the pistol into his back pocket and shouldered the rifle. He edged his way along the side of the house, his shoulder scraping the dry paint and tried to calm his ragged breathing.
Feeling eyes on the back of his neck, he dropped to the earth and twisted around. Gunshots tore into the house beside him, missing his face by mere inches. Adjusting his aim, he fired three shots in rapid succession, all three hitting the man in his chest and knocking him off his feet. A second man stepped into his line of sight firing his rifle, forcing Talmen to roll underneath the house and return fire. He got lucky and winged the man in the arm, who winced and nearly dropped his rifle. Wasting no time, he fired again killing the man with two shots to the heart.
Four down, two to go, he thought grimly. He rolled out from under the house and continued along the side of the house, his finger hanging above the trigger. Reaching the corner of the house, he paused and snatched a quick glance around the corner. It looked clear with no sign of the last two fighters. He kept moving along the house, making his way back towards the street, where the men had first appeared. Beginning to worry, the pair were flanking him, he searched for a good spot to hide, and found a hollow space between the neighbor’s stairs. He bent down and squeezed himself into the tiny cramped space. Time passed by, with no signs of them and no sound except for the moaning of the man he had shot earlier. Unsure, whether to move or not, he lay hidden.
“Listen, you little shit! We have your friends! Come out right now, or we will shoot them!”
The man with the gravelly voice sounded close, very close. Were they inside the house he was hiding beneath? He noiselessly stepped out from underneath the stairs, and moved to crouch down under the windowsill. Gritting his teeth, he peeked into the house. Two rugged men in blood stained uniforms stood over Lucy and Rollo with their hands ti
ed up behind their backs. Lucy had a bruise on her right cheek and blood dripping from a cut to her eyebrow. Rollo however looked unharmed, at least for now.
Well shit, what to do I now? Save them, after they abandoned me like that?
He knew exactly what his father would do, with that thought in mind, he set the rifle down and strode to the backdoor and threw it open with a loud bang, then rushed back to the window. The two men opened fire, and then split up, one heading to back door and the other to the front.
He quietly climbed in through the window and hid behind a filthy couch. Hearing no gunshots, he crawled over to Lucy. Her eyes widened in surprise. Cursing himself for not bringing a knife, he tried to loosen her bonds, when he heard returning footsteps. He whipped the pistol out of his back pocket and fired plucking the man appearing in front of him backwards. The leader a wiry man with a long scruffy beard threw himself behind the kitchen table and fired blindly. Praying Lucy and Rollo weren’t hit, he ran forward and leapt over the table to crash tackle into the man. Pistol still in hand, he fired directly into the man’s stomach repeatedly till he went still and his grey eyes went dark. Safe for now, his mind tried to come to grips with what he had done. He sat in the puddle of blood quivering uncontrollably, as the adrenaline rush faded away leaving him weak again.
Grunting with effort, he heaved himself back up onto his feet and walked back over to the pair, who gaped at him with open mouths. He dropped to his knees and went to work loosening the knots. Frustrated with how long it was taking, he swung his head side to side searching for something sharp. His eyes landed on one of the men he had shot in the chest; strapped to his thigh was a knife. Avoiding eye contact with the dead man, he unsheathed the knife and cut the ropes. Lucy and Rollo stood up rubbing their wrists and stared at him with a mixture of awe and fear. Too tired to really care what they thought of him, he sat down on the couch and promptly fell asleep.