by Roman Shepp
There were more people swarming around now as they made their way back to the comic book store. Most of them didn't pay them any mind. They probably were dealing with many of the same things as Tony and Saeed.
“We'd better grab some food,” Tony said.
There were only unhealthy snacks at the store and they wouldn't last long. Tony already was feeling his stomach growling and he wanted something substantial. It was important that Saeed ate as well. In his condition he needed to keep up his strength until he got back to normal, if that day ever would come. On the other side of the street was a small general store, so the three of them headed that way. It was dim inside.
Tony walked in warily, afraid that people may think he was coming in to attack. After a cursory glance it didn't seem as though anyone else was in there. He and Saeed moved through the aisles and looked at various cans of food. Tony went behind the counter to grab a bag and then started filling it up with as much as possible. Then he heard the door open, along with loud voices. He peered between the shelves and saw a group of people entering the store, pushing over displays and laughing loudly.
“I'm telling you, this is the best thing that ever has happened. You think the world actually was getting better? Now it's like we get a fresh start! We can do anything we want, and we don't have to worry about anyone getting in our way,” one of them said.
Tony ducked down and put his finger to his lips, warning Saeed to be quiet. They moved toward the back of the store. Tony had to leave the bag where it was, afraid of making the slightest sound. He had seen firsthand the violence that had seized people in this new state of the world and he didn't want to put himself in another conflict. He looked at the end of the bat, stained darkly by the blood of the robed figures. He hoped he wouldn't have to resort to those measures any more than necessary. He held Groot close to his chest and prayed the dog wouldn't make any noise to give them away.
The looters had little regard for the property. They pushed things off shelves, opened packets of food and tossed them on the floor, walking through the store as though they owned it.
“We should think of something epic to do, something to really mark the occasion. This is a time when we should be able to be a part of history. Before we were just nobodies, but now we can be somebody! We don't have to be lost in the slums anymore. Let's go to Hollywood or something and just crash into all the mansions there. Or we could go to the White House!”
“Then what are we doing wasting our time in this store?” another one of them asked.
At that point Tony leaned against a shelf. Unbeknownst to him a jar was tilting on the edge. It fell to the floor and smashed. The looters instantly were on the defensive. They called out, but Tony did not respond.
“If you don't come out, we'll just be angry, and you won't like us when we're angry. Better that you just tell us who you are now,” they said. Tony shook his head. He could hear their footsteps coming up the aisle. They saw the jar on the floor.
“Ha! Come on Jamie! It was just a jar that fell off a shelf. You're getting spooked.”
“No way! I ain't scared.”
“Come on,” another voice said. “I'm getting bored here. Let's go somewhere more fun than this. We can go anywhere we want and we're spending our time in a general store. I'm sure we can have a little more imagination than that.”
They had been moments away from coming upon Tony. They turned and left, but Tony did not breathe until he heard the door shut behind them.
“That was close,” he said, and peered around the corner to make sure they were indeed gone. He rose and continued filling the bag, moving more quickly now to ensure they did not get disturbed by any other looters. As soon as the bag was filled he offered Saeed a choice, the bag or the dog. Saeed chose the bag.
Now that he was surrounded by food Tony was unable to resist his hunger. He opened a bottle of water and a bag of chips and gorged on them, offering some to Saeed as well. Saeed shook his head though. Tony was about to insist he have something but stopped himself. It wouldn't do either of them any good if he became that person. Saeed was a grown man, some years older than Tony, by what Tony could tell, and if he didn't want to eat yet then he didn't have to do so. But Tony made sure to keep enough for him in case he wanted some later.
Tony decided to keep to the back alleys, figuring it would be easier to avoid dangerous people that way. They probably were attracted to the places with larger populations and more valuables. Tony wanted to get back to the store and then figure out where to go from there.
On the way back, however, they heard frantic footsteps approaching. A woman, hair matted to her face, limping and with only one shoe, staggered forward and reached out her hand to them. Her eyes were filled with desperation. Her skin was scratched. Her clothes were torn.
“Help me! Help me, please!” she said, but then reeled back in horror. Tony looked down and saw Saeed had drawn his knife.
“I don't want any trouble. Just leave me alone,” she said, her voice trembling.
She backed up against a wall, holding her hands in the air. Before Tony could reassure her, he heard other footsteps. The woman twisted her neck around, her face wincing in the anticipation of pain. A man appeared, his grin almost a snarl, his hair grayed at the temples. When he turned to face her, Tony saw the dried blood on the back of his head.
“That was a hell of a chase, but you've finally reached the end of the line, Jane. I told you that you wouldn't be able to escape me,” he said, leaning against the wall beside the woman. He wiped sweat from his brow and chuckled to himself as he tried catching his breath. He glanced toward Tony and Saeed.
“She's mine first, but when I'm done with her I'll happily let you two have your turns,” he said. Then he moved in front of the woman. Tony set Groot down. His hands gripped the baseball bat tightly and he got ready to swing.
Chapter Ten
They'd taken her away from him. What right did they have to do that? Maybe every right. Maybe they were right, and he was bringing her down. Carol had told him she loved him. She had done everything for him, and what had he done for her? He'd only brought her life pain and misery. When they first had met he had told her that he was messed up and she smiled, seeing it as more of a challenge. She'd gone home with him that night and experienced first-hand the horrors he was plagued with.
After making love he tried falling asleep, hoping the bliss of human contact would have dulled the pain inside him, would have helped pull him back from the brink of the abyss. However, it only had offered a momentary respite, just like everything else. The pain always was there. No matter how much he tried he always was tethered to his past. It was a labyrinth in his mind and every path led him back to where he had started. He wanted to scream and shout, but it did no good. All the rage and frustration were left simmering inside him, a violent cocktail that one day would explode. Carol was putting herself in the firing line.
He had tried telling her that she should leave. When he woke up that night he went to the living room and curled his arms around himself, shaking, sobbing, not acting like a man should have. Carol had heard him and come out. She'd seen him at his weakest, at his ugliest, and she had stayed with him. Holding him. Soothing him. From that moment on she never had left his side and she was the only thing that had kept him alive. He was sure he would have killed himself a long time ago if it hadn't been for her. He didn't know why she loved him, but she did. Now her brothers had taken her away from him.
Quentin clenched his hands into fists, pressing them so tightly together that his knuckles turned white. He'd always known they didn't like him. They always looked at him as if he was a freak. He'd overheard some of the arguments Carol had had with them. She'd always stuck up for him. What had Quentin done to deserve her? She was an angel and he had failed to protect her. He was alone now, outside in the cool, dark night. The forest was so tempting. It would be so easy to disappear.
Maybe this was the reason why it all had happened. It gave t
hem a chance to separate. Gave Carol a chance for freedom. She never would leave him and never would accept him leaving her, but this way...it would give her a chance for a normal life, to have the family she always wanted. It would give her a chance to have a normal man who wasn't plagued by night terrors and didn't need to lose himself in stupid shows, just so he could cope with living in a world that was growing more alien to him all the time.
He stared into the darkness. The trees beckoned. Their leaves wafted slightly in the soft breeze. In the distance the city lit up with bright orange flames. A huge boom went off as something crashed from the sky. It was a sight all too familiar for Quentin. Gunfire echoed in his mind. He turned around, almost expecting to see enemy soldiers. There was nobody there. He tried telling himself he was all alone. He had to breathe. Deeply. In and out. But without Carol there it wasn't as easy to hold onto all the things that made him human. His chest heaved. His head pounded. He slammed the heel of his hand against his forehead, trying to force out the anguished thoughts.
No. Carol always said he shouldn't hurt himself. He looked down at the long scars on his hands. That had been a dark moment. He couldn't be kept from her. He couldn't be alone. He walked up to the building and stood in the doorway. Everyone was talking loudly. There were so many of them. Why were there so many of them? They should just be quiet, so Quentin could think. He tried calling out for Carol, but his words were lost in the cacophony. He searched the sea of faces for his beloved Carol or her brothers, but they did not present themselves. There was someone else speaking, though. Someone louder. He managed to calm the crowd. Quentin smiled. It was one of the actors from his favorite show, Dominic Lillie. Everyone would listen to him.
“Now then, panicking isn't going to get us anywhere. Obviously, something bad has happened and the best thing to do is just to wait for things to blow over. We'll stay here tonight, and in the morning, we'll go looking for help. We can't do anything here in the darkness, so we all should try getting some rest and see how things look tomorrow. I'm sure this is just some kind of really bad power outage and we'll all be okay in the morning. Just settle down and try getting some rest. Remember the message of the shows that you all watch and love, of the things that have brought us together here. We believe in the spirit of cooperation and that people are greater than the sum of their parts. Let's put those beliefs into action!”
Dominic's rousing words were met with an enthusiastic round of applause and he left the stage smiling. Quentin smiled too. It was good to know there were people out there who still believed in good things, who still could inspire others. It reminded him of some of the officers who had inspired him when he had been a young soldier. In some ways he still was a young man, looking to others for guidance and inspiration. When he first had joined the army, he had seen his future as an officer, but his mind hadn't been able to cope with the rigors of combat. Ever since then he had been lost, drifting through the world, living yet not being a part of it fully. Only Carol made him feel as if he truly were alive. As though he truly mattered.
He had to get back to her.
People pushed past him, staring at him as though he was just in the way. Quentin tried apologizing, but as soon as he moved to try getting out of their way he bumped into another person. He ended up causing quite a disturbance and received a number of scolding looks. People seemed to be going outside and starting fires to keep warm. The crowd thinned, although the building still was filled with those who were panicked.
Quentin made his way through the crowd, trying to find Carol and her brothers, but he kept getting turned around this way and that. In the darkness he didn't know where he was going. In his raspy voice he asked people if they knew were Carol was, but they looked at him as though he was a bum. Other people were standing by the stalls, guarding their property. He overheard snippets of conversation, some of them arguments. Quentin didn't have any time for those.
Most people swarmed around Dominic Lillie and the other actors, who seemed happy enough to entertain them with some stories about their careers and their shows. Quentin moved through the crowd, eyes always searching for Carol, and then he found her. She was lying on the floor. Her brothers were standing over her. Quentin rushed forward and knelt by her side.
“We told you to stay away from her,” Harry said.
“You can't keep us apart. We love each other,” Quentin replied. He clasped Carol's hand and looked down at her. “Come on, Carol. You'll be okay, just hold on. We'll be able to get help for you soon.”
There were wounded people all over the place. The most severely injured had been moved to the back of the hall and some people were seeing to them. Others, such as Carol, were being cared for by the people who knew them.
“I don't give a crap if you love each other. I don't know why she thinks she loves you in the first place. It's not like you've ever done anything for her. You're worthless, Quentin. I'm telling you right now you should leave before she wakes up. It's the best thing for you. You really think she's happy caring for you every minute of the day? I've had to see her crying. I bet you didn't know that, did you? She came to me in tears and I had to hold her. She didn't know how she would be able to go on. She wanted to leave you, Quentin, but she was too afraid because she didn't know what you would do. The only reason she's stayed with you is because she knows you wouldn't be able to handle life without her. You've basically been keeping her prisoner.”
The venomous words poisoned Quentin's mind. He shook his head, not wanting to believe what he was hearing. Carol never would think that. She was pure, she was good, she loved him, and if that was a lie, then there truly was no point in living. “No,” Quentin said. Tears began stinging his eyes. His hands started shaking, and he realized he was holding onto Carol too tightly. He let go of her hands. Could it be true? Had he hurt her?
He rose to his feet. Harry was telling him that he should go, leave, and never come back. Quentin couldn't leave. He couldn't believe what Harry was trying to tell him. Perhaps it was something about the evening, perhaps the entire world had lost its mind, but people seemed to be angry. Behind him people around the stalls were starting to argue. Some of them were trying to grab things without asking. The vendors were telling them to stop. Other people were becoming irascible as well, arguing about the minutia of the shows. Real life fights began breaking out between people dressed as Batman and Superman, although the brutal punches were not as glossy as they looked in the CGI-enhanced world of the silver screen. One fight seemed to roll into another and outside there were more cries. Quentin didn't care about any of that, though. He was focused on Harry, who stood between him and the woman he loved.
“She loves me, Harry. I'm good to her. I promise I'll be better.”
“You've wasted all your chances, Quentin. I didn't even want to bring her here, but she insisted. I'll tell her that you went willingly, I'll tell her that you died if you want. It might be easier on her. I just want what's best for my sister. If you truly love her, then you'll want the same thing.”
Quentin's brain boiled. A red mist descended over his eyes. Nobody ever would tell him that his love for Carol wasn't true. Harry implied that he merely was using Carol to take care of himself, when there was nothing further from the truth. He would have done anything for Carol, anything...like rescuing her from her manipulative brothers. His fists clenched in anger, and before he knew it, he had punched Harry in the jaw. The shock had hurt him more than the punch, and he reeled back, holding his nose. The other brothers didn't know what to do. Harry stood back up.
“You're making a mistake, Quentin, but to tell you the truth, I've been waiting a long time for this.”
He went to punch Quentin, but Quentin dodged and thrust a fist into Harry's stomach. Harry grunted in pain and continued to try battering Quentin. The two of them moved through the hall. More fights began breaking out among the other attendees. Others tried yelling at them to stop, but the anger was toxic and soon had infected everyone. Quentin was aware o
f nothing but the anger. The army had trained him to lose himself in that dark part of his soul where the devil lived. He had tried so hard over the years to bury it deep down inside of himself until it was unreachable, but it never completely had gone away. The daggers were stabbing his mind and his fists flew in a furious flurry, hammering at Harry.
Yells and panicked screams erupted around him. For a moment he was shaken out of his daze and looked down. Harry's body was limp. His face was a pulpy mess. Quentin's hands were covered in blood. He looked across the hall and saw people from outside throwing fire into the hall. He didn't know why. Soon the fire took hold, licking at the wooden stands, crackling against the wires, taking hold of the banners and flags that were hanging from the ceilings. Soon Quentin was trapped in an inferno. He was knocked back as people rushed to get out of the hall, a repeat of what had happened earlier. Quentin was filled with one drive, to get back to Carol. He fought his way through the surging throng and tried ignoring the heat that rose around him until he was at her feet.
She was alone. A stall had fallen over her, trapping her. Her face was covered in smoke, and even Quentin was finding it difficult to breathe. Tears ran down his face as he went to her and tried pulling away the stall that laid on top of her. She looked so peaceful. Quentin didn't notice a piece of material that had caught fire. The flame quickly spread over Carol. He tried leaning over her to wrench her away, but the flames leaped up and kissed his skin. He reeled back in horror and then screamed, but it was not due to his physical pain. He watched as the flames engulfed Carol's body and took her from him. Her flesh sagged as it disappeared behind the orange glow. Quentin was helpless to do anything about it as he watched her die, just as he had been all those years ago in the arid desert, so far from the home he had sworn to defend.
He moaned in anguish and sat in the flames of hell. He'd lost everything he ever had cared about. They would pay. They all would pay.