by Rick Kueber
A third of the way through the journey a massive alligator erupted from its invisible hiding spot beneath the muddy, reed filled waters and grabbed one of the travelers. Elle didn’t know if it was a person or a Taker, but she didn’t care. The explosive ruckus and the shrill scream of the victim, only a few yards from where she stood, took her breath. The gator’s randomly sized and dull teeth punctured the legs of one of the men who was only a few steps ahead of everyone else. Its vise-like jaws snapped his tibia and fibula bones as effortlessly as breaking a pencil. While blood-curdling screams filled the wilderness, the gator thrashed about and spun into a death roll, flipping the man face first into the water.
Her first instinct was to protect little ‘Nix but her second thought was to protect her people, her tribe. She grabbed the pistol from the holster under her arm and in one fluid motion she drew, aimed and fired three shots into the alligator’s head. The sharp sound of the shots rang out and the scent of spent gunpowder drifted into the air. The dark brown waters turned a cinnamon in color as it mixed with a copious amount of blood. Neither the body of the man, nor the alligator surfaced. All those who saw the horrific attack stood frozen except Elle. Though her feet were motionless and sinking in the decaying leaves and mud beneath the thigh deep water, from the waist up, she trembled in fear. Her teeth chattered and the heavy handgun shook in her hand.
“What the actual fuck?!” Maya finally broke the silence. “What the fuck are we supposed to do now?” Her voice quivered.
“We continue on.” Tory said cold and calmly as she turned to face the crowd of terrified onlookers. “With the size of our group, almost every animal, including alligators and snakes, will keep out of our way. Our best move will be to stay on land as much as possible. Pass this on to those behind you and tell them to pass it on too. Everyone is important. Every life is sacred and will have a purpose in our cause.” She raised her hands towards the sky and then pointed northward. “The Titan is just ahead. Soon you will see it through the trees. Do not panic and scatter. We must stay united.” And with that, she turned away and strode into the bloody waters fearlessly.
Tory’s comment about how close they were to seeing the Titan was somewhat of an exaggeration, but mostly it was a blatant lie. It did, however, get the mass of people moving forward again. As they walked. Elle thought about the size of their group, she wondered how many others had been bitten by poisonous water moccasins and copperheads or alligators. Of the thousands that were in their group, how many had died on their trip. There was no way to know what all was happening throughout the ranks and Elle could only hope this was an isolated incident, or at worst one of only a few. She didn’t know the man who was killed and she wasn’t even sure if he was human or a Taker, but this was the third death she had seen since they had left the Titan and not a single one of them had anything to do with the aliens. Death, she had come to realize, was an inevitable experience in life, but she was so tired of the experience that if it weren’t for her child, she would have given up long ago.
Little Phoenix was quiet as always, but Maya had closed in and was tightly hugging Elle’s backside.
“You know if you were any closer behind me, you’d be in front of me, right?” Elle seemed annoyed.
“Sorry.” Maya bit her lip but didn’t back off. “I’m just scared, that’s all,”
“I know.” Elle said apologetically. “I am too. I’m sure everyone is, but we still gotta go on. We can’t just stop and sit here in the swamp and wait for prince charming to come rescue us. Prince charming is dead. We have to save ourselves now.”
“Ouch. That was harsh.” Maya snapped back and all eyes within earshot were on the two of them. The crowds of travelers parted around them like waters flowing around an island of chaos. Most everyone just walked by, but even the nearby Takers stared, wondering what would be said next. Maya’s voice grew louder as she spoke. “So what you’re saying is that since we can’t give up and you’re pissed that your baby-daddy left you in the desert, that we all just have to be islands. Nobody can help anybody else. Be strong and independent like you or lay down and die?”
“What the hell crawled up your ass?” Elle shot back at her. “You think this shit’s easy for me? What if you had a baby and you didn’t know whether or not you were going to have enough food for the day, or maybe you would... Maybe you’ll have enough or find enough food and water to keep him alive for a year, maybe two... Maybe one day you find yourself cut off from civilization for a few weeks and you have to watch your only child slowly starve to death... Do you kill them to stop their pain or in case you die of starvation, or do you watch them wither away and listen to their cries of hunger as they get weaker and weaker until finally they give up and their body fails them... HUH!” She shouted “WHAT DO YOU DO THEN?”
“How the hell am I supposed to know?” Maya sneered back at her as the masses hiked past them, some staring intentionally and others pretending not to notice. “All I was saying, before you went full on ‘bitch mode’ was that if two people can comfort each other in any way... WHAT THE FUCK’S WRONG WITH THAT?”
“They keep telling me I’m important, like I’m supposed to help save the world or something, so I have to be strong and I had to have my baby and be a single parent during the apocalypse and you ask WHAT’S WRONG?...” Elle shouted and then sucked in a deep breath and exhaled through her nose forcefully. “What’s wrong with that...” Her posture changed noticeably and her shoulders slumped forward. Under her breath she muttered, “...nothin.”
“FINE!” Maya snapped, crossed her arms and stomped off splashing through the muck.
“Fine.” Elle made an ugly face, mocking her and hugged ‘Nix.
By the end of their argument, they were lost in the middle of the roaming masses. There was no one around them that they recognized, but that did not make them desire each other’s company. Maya made small talk with random strangers who wandered by in the crowd and Elle, who couldn’t even get anyone to make eye contact with her, held entire conversations with Phoenix, who was less than a year old. They walked the rest of the way not speaking a word to each other.
When Elle’s incredibly long and lonely walk ended at the base of the stranded Titan, she wandered through the crowd until she met up with several of her friends waiting to board the gigantic beast.
“Hey, look! It’s Elle!” Dillon pointed her out to the huddled group.
“Anybody seen Tory?” Elle asked.
“Hi Phoenix!” Dillon gently touched the child’s cheek.
“Don’t touch him.” Lilly raised her eyebrows and spoke out of the side of her taut mouth. She had the most brilliant, pale blue eyes and a pixie like nose that gave her an elf like appearance. She was tall and thin (except for her possibly fake boobs) and even though her jeans were dirty and damp, they hugged her every curve just like the once white tank top she wore that left very little to the imagination. Even though Elle’s first impressions of Lilly were that she was unlikable, she still respected the fact that she had survived this long as a human.
“It’s okay Dillon, really.” Elle didn’t like the way the ditsy blonde, Lilly, talked about not touching ‘Nix like he had alien cooties. “Anyway... Has anybody seen Tory, I need to talk to her.
“This way...” The deep voice of a very tall stranger caught Elle’s attention. “Victoria, Irene and Bailey are awaiting your arrival. Come with me.”
The dark skinned giant of a man stood at least six foot five inches, maybe taller and was built like a pro football player. Even though the sun was quickly sinking behind the tree line, the handsome stranger wore mirrored glasses. His face and head were clean shaven and his jaw line was chiseled and as manly as a girl could imagine. He took her by the arm and pulled Elle from her friends.
“Hey! Where are you going?” A familiar voice called from the crowd. “Where are you taking her?”
Elle looked and saw the distressed face of Maya trying to push her way through the plethora of bodies. Elle
shrugged her shoulders and raised her brow, giving her alienated friend a look of submission. “It’s okay. I’ll see you soon.” Elle’s word triggered the memory of little Maddie again and she wondered if she truly would see her Maya again or have the chance to apologize to her friend.
Chapter 11
Harboring
Fugitives
I awoke with the fog of a headache and wrapped in the naked beauty of Mariah. Sunlight beamed in through the porthole windows of our small sailing vessel and I knew we had at least survived the storm. I tried to remember the events of the night, but it was all a bit of a blur. The fact that we had not indulged in any adult beverages was my only consolation. I could only imagine how horrible I might have felt had that been added to the equation. One thing that remained a vivid memory was what seemed like hours of incredibly intense intimacy that Mariah and I had shared. The rhythmic rocking of the boat on the tide and the smell of the fishy and salty ocean air filled me with an urge to get myself topside out of a fear of vomiting. I removed myself from under the clinging arm and leg of Mariah and stood up. My head swam and I caught myself just before I toppled over. Grabbing up my shorts from the night before, I crawled up the steps to the open air of the sailboat deck.
“Where you going so quick?” Mariah moaned out as she stretched and tossed the sheets off of her flawless body.
“Gotta get some air.” It was all I could muster before giving the railing a white knuckled grip, hanging my head over and heaving until there was nothing left in my stomach to lose.
“Awww, babe.” The tender voice sadly did not make me feel any less sick.
My stomach clenched again and again as disgusting vomit spewed from me like chemical powders from a fire extinguisher until there was nothing left but dribbles of sour, stinging puke. I spat the foul taste from my mouth over and over, but every time I thought it was over, my stomach tightened again forcing even the tiniest bits out. When I could take no more and my abdominal muscles ached, I let go of the rail and rolled onto my back, moaning in despair.
I laid there rocking on the relentless ocean waves while the sky above me spun in the most nauseating way. Mariah took a couple of steps up and when her head and shoulders broke the plane of the boat’s deck, she called my name softly. “Tanner.”
I rolled my head sideways and our eyes met. Resting her elbows and chin on the hot wooden deck, wrapping one hand behind her head, she offered a red plastic cup of water to me with the other. Moving in staggered, slow motion, I took the cup and downed a big gulp of the tepid liquid. My body immediately rejected it and regurgitated it along with random leftovers that had somehow not already exited.
“No!” She exclaimed sympathetically. “Just rinse your mouth out.”
“Uhhhh...” I moaned.
“My poor puggly wuggly” She said as if she were talking to a sick pet.
The minutes passed slowly but before long the world stopped spinning, well... not literally, but I did begin to feel much better. When I could stand without feeling dizzy, Mariah put me to work readying our boat for sailing. Our pace was slow and steady. It was a beautiful morning without a cloud in the sky and there was no rush. Peering across the distant coast, I noticed the absence of the Titans, which calmed my fears and also relaxed my nerves.
“The coast is clear.” I said and was shot of look of ‘seriously?’ and a well-deserved eye-roll. “Sorry, but I’ve always wanted to say that.” I mustered a smile. I felt like a true pirate, or a fugitive on the lam, waiting for the ‘coppers’ to leave so we could make our getaway.
“So, I guess we make for the coast?” Mariah was still confused by the whole ‘alien invasion, post-apocalyptic’ protocol.”
“Any better suggestions?” My monotone voice should have clued her in to my apathy, but apparently it did not.
“We could find a port and restock and then head to the Caribbean islands.” It almost sounded like she was still stuck in her ‘trust fund’ world.
“Head for the coast and we’ll play it by ear from there.” It was an epiphany for me when the words left my mouth. My entire existence had been ‘played by ear’ as far as I knew, but I was beginning to think the spur of the moment, random and impulsive life I had lived was actually, meticulously planned by someone else.
“Alrighty... Weigh the anchor.” She said as she adjusted the sails to catch the wind and dislodge our anchor.
“Aye aye Cap’n!” I said in my best pirate voice. “Arrrrrg!”
“Yo-ho, blow the man...down.” She said in a loud yet sultry and provocative voice as she cut the wheel to the right and with an abrupt jerk to the left, the vessel caught hard and then the anchor broke free.
“Later, definitely later.” I grinned a devilish grin. “For now, I’ll stick with: Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of Tums.”
It was a short journey to the coast and Mariah steered our sailboat following the shoreline for a while. I watched the water’s edge looking for wandering Takers or signs of them. I saw none, but I did notice something odd. Every few hundred feet or so, the blackened and charred remains of a campfire dotted the coast, until we came across an inlet. A weathered and faded sign with a chalky red arrow pointed up the waterway with the name “Estuary Pointe Marina” caught Mariah’s attention and she steered our sailboat into the fingered cove. It wasn’t without difficulty that we slowly moored our way up to a nearly empty harbor. Over one hundred slips harbored less than two dozen boats and not a single sailboat. Mariah chose to dock the sailboat at the end instead of winding her way up nearer to the shore. I sprang from the side of the boat and onto the wooden planks with the bow line in one hand and a tight grip on the railing with the other. I held the craft against the dock and wrapped the rope around the cleat on the dock. Mariah tossed two foam boat fenders, or bumpers, over the side rail and quickly hopped from the rear of the vessel and tied the stern line to a second cleat.
“It might be a walk to the shore, but if we need to get out of here quicker, it’ll be easier. “ She said as we climbed back into the boat and we finished dropping the sails and readying it to remain docked for an indefinite length of time.
“Good thinking.” I knew the odds were against us ever making it back to the sailboat and leaving dry land, but it did seem to offer some clear protection from the Takers and even the Titans, once out into the deeper waters.
Mariah had found a canvas duffle bag and packed it with some clothes, but mostly snacks and water. I grabbed the pistol from the cabinet where Mariah had stowed it and even though there was only a partial clip of live ammo left, it was better than none at all. We abandoned the security and shelter of the sailboat for land and I knew that I alone would be our only defense now. The sound of our soft soled shoes on the wooden planks was minimal, but aside from a random gull, the lapping of the waters against the piers, or the breeze through the grasses, it was the only sound we could hear. Just beyond the marina was a parking lot filled with bicycles, little wagons and shopping carts. There was also a gas station and convenience store, which we found to be completely emptied of everything. Even some of the shelves and stainless soda cooler racks had been taken. Taking two of the nicer mountain bikes, we followed the road inland for the rest of the day. We did pass many houses and a few bait shops and souvenir type shops. Mostly we ignored these places, but we did stop in at one of the shops and swapped our dirty clothes for brand new, fresh touristy t-shirts and swim suits. I had almost forgotten how nearly perfect Mariah’s body was until I watched her strip down right in the shop to put on an extremely revealing bikini and slip an over-sized cotton T on as a ‘cover-up’.
When the daylight faded, we decided to choose one of the empty homes to take refuge in for the night. I had learned that it was best to choose the home wisely. A large extravagant home would be more likely to have already been looted whereas a small home was less likely to have a stockpile of canned goods and bottled water or guns and ammunition. There was one thing I was searching for that I learned from my time with E
lle; a home with a built in generator. Eventually we found a nice, middle of the road, middle class home. It didn’t have a generator, but one thing that caught my eye from a distance was the solar panels that lined the southern side of the roof. We searched it for an unlocked door or open window. I would assume that the family who had lived there must have been away when the invasion happened due to the fact that the house was locked up and there were no signs of disarray when we peeked through the windows.
“Now what?” She asked innocently.
“Breaking and entering isn’t really a crime if there aren’t citizens or police.” I stated the harsh truth. “We break a window and I’ll climb in and unlock the back door.”
I did exactly that and was both amazed and thankful when a blast of cool air rushed through the broken window. Reaching in, I unlocked the window, opened it up and climbed through. When I unlocked the backdoor and opened it, the A/C unit kicked on, catching Mariah off guard.
“Relax.” I laughed. “The air conditioner won’t hurt you.”
“I don’t suppose the ‘fridge still works?” She half asked, half thought out loud.
“Oh, hey... I didn’t think about that, but yeah, maybe.” The thought of there being something cold to drink and possibly even something still edible in the freezer filled me with childish excitement.