“Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of this prosper community. Bless you, my friends.” The Minister started. “It’s a great pleasure to be with you in this very special day. First of all, I’d like to thank you, for we know that this city would have never flourished without your courageous efforts. And what better way to show our gratitude than giving you this unique opportunity to join eternity.”
While he spoke, a woman in tunic walked among the crowd, filling the glasses with a purple liquid. George, Beatriz and Jill watched as she passed. Little Daisy rested peacefully, her little body compressed against Beatriz’s chest. Other women had babies in their arms, too. Another woman in a white robe moistened the babies’ lips with the same fluid of the glasses. After a cough or two, Daisy embarked on her final sleep. Tears welled up in the mother’s eyes.
“Your posterity is our strength, your legacy our prosperity!” Hedgiest continued. “This is a moment for joy, not mourning. In the middle of destruction, you rose to the challenge, conquered your space and finally achieve victory. You earned your place in here today.”
Beyond the park fences, a large group of women carrying young infants could be seen walking into trucks.
In the field, all glasses had already been filled.
“I assure you that your departure will not be in vain!” The Minister went on. “Now that you rose to the occasion, raise your glasses.”
The crowd did it.
“Now, drink to your health.”
The people brought the glasses to their mouths in a paced rhythm. The purple liquid was consumed. When the poison kicked in, the population slowly choked to death. In all the commotion, nobody noticed little Jill running and hiding behind some shrubs nearby.
She reached deep into her throat with a forefinger and vomited.
While Hedgiest and his group left the platform, employees dressing heavy protective apparel walked the field cleaning the mess and carrying the bodies to trucks nearby, where the corpses would have their heads properly destroyed, so they would not rise again as living dead.
In the meantime, little Jill ran like never before.
“Well, another day, another dollar.” The Secretary spoke to the Minister in an outdoor restaurant, already with glasses of wine in hand and a banquet waiting to be devoured.
“Yes, I surely love the speech part.” Hedgiest replied. “It’s amazing how nice and easy they killed themselves after we feed them with the cult bullshit talk.”
“It’s the power of propaganda. It always worked.”
“If all wars could be fought like this…”
“A lot of mess would’ve been avoided.”
“Are your men ready to bring the new batch?”
“They are as usual, Robert. I just hope this one is better than the last. Not many viable women and children are going to the processing center.”
“Then, we just have to bring more people.”
“The pure are a dying breed.”
“Not on my watch they are not.”
Jill turned around some alleys and corners toward the edge of town. She knew she had to be extra-careful not to expose herself to… A powerful siren screamed its alert all over town. Too late for cautiousness, the girl ran like crazy again.
“We have a breach, sector 2.” The lead-man said.
“I have it.” Mike spoke, looking at the screen of a tablet. “It’s a small girl, heading south.”
“It shouldn’t be hard to catch. Alright, get busy!”
Jill reached a barbed-wire fence indicating the city limits. As her body was small, she managed to pass between wires without hurting herself.
Six men in black suits entered three limousines, two men per vehicle. And they sped away in pursuit of the little girl.
Jill could not stop. Running was her only and last resource. But she knew there was no escape. Even hopelessly, she did not stop. The vehicles were coming fast. In an abandoned terrain, a van materialized before her eyes, after a very thick smokescreen dispersed. Jill had no choice.
With the last energy her lungs could produce, she reached the vehicle, opened the door and jumped inside, not knowing what kind of weirdoes she might find in there.
4th MOVEMENT
“Name’s Ike and this is Ivy.”
“I’m Jill.” The little girl answered.
“So… Why are you running?” Ivy asked. “Who are you running from?”
Jill lowered her head.
“Where are your mom and dad?” Ivy asked.
The girl did not answer.
“You must have somebody.” Ivy said.
“They are dead.” Jill replied.
“Your mom and dad?” Ivy asked.
“Yes.”
“Oh… Sorry to hear that.”
“Dead as in dead-dead, or in eating-you-dead?”
“Ike!” Girlfriend scolded him.
“Sorry. It came out wrong!”
“The city killed them.” Jill said.
“City killed them?” Ivy frowned. “How’s that possible?”
“They were not perfect.” Jill said. “I’m not perfect.”
“Nobody is perfect, little one.” Ike spoke.
“No!” Jill retorted in a reproaching tone. “There are perfect people. In town, they go to Ethereal while the imperfect go to Eternity.”
“Hey Ivy…” Ike whispered. “I think this girl has been smoking some grass.”
“Oh, don’t be ridiculous.”
“But there is no Eternity!” Jill continued. “There can’t be! They die and that’s it!”
“I’m sure they’ve gone to a better place.” Ivy spoke.
“Is there a heaven for babies, too?” Jill asked.
“I guess.” Ivy answered.
“Why? Does this city kill babies also?” Ike queried.
“My baby sister” Jill replied.
“Oh boy” Ivy said.
“Some crazy shit is going on in there.”
“Watch your language!” Ivy scolded him again. “There’s a child here!”
“Fine!”
“Can I stay with you?” Jill asked shyly.
“Well…” Ike replied. “There are several angles under which we can study this matter…”
“Of course you can!” Jill interrupted.
“Ah, Jeez!” Ike mumbled.
Ivy kicked his leg.
“Ouch!” Ike spoke. “Sure thing, darling, you go where we go.”
“That’s right.” Ivy agreed.
“Ivy…” Ike called.
“Yes…”
“Where’re we going?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged.
“Well, I know where we are not going to, back to baby killing town!”
And they drove along a road so covered in dust that it looked more like a dirt track.
“Are you aliens?” Jill asked.
“There are controversies about the subject.” Ike responded.
“Don’t listen to him.” Ivy said. “No, we are not aliens, honey. Why do you ask?”
Jill pointed a little finger at Ivy’s nose.
“Oh, this…” Ivy played with her piercing.
“She put that thing to fill a void in her soul.” Ike said.
“Shut up!” Ivy retorted. “This thing is a statement!”
“Why are you all painted?” Jill asked more impatiently, pointing at Ike’s arm.
“He ran out of canvas.” Ivy answered instead of him.
“Shut up!” Ike retorted. “And I believe the lady was talking to me.”
“Then tell her, Ike. Why do you have all the tattoos?”
“Well, hum… you see… the thing about that is…” He took a deep breath. “I needed to fill a void in my soul.”
“You see, dear, actually this comes with the territory.” Ivy clarified. “It is part of what we are and part of what we do.”
“And what do you do?” Jill queried.
“We are a rock ‘n’ roll band!” Ike proudly info
rmed.
“We also do hip-hop, new wave, jazz, rhythm and blues, heavy metal and an occasional polka.” Ivy completed.
“You should probably know some of our big hits,” Ike spoke “Granny’s Guitar, My Tummy is About to Blow…”
The girl frowned.
“Super Big Mamma Blues, Cafeteria of Horror, Mi kids, su Kids, My Breasts are Melting,” Ivy continued “I wrote that one myself!”
Jill was still frowning.
“Never mind” Ike whispered.
The road was bumpy and full of holes. The car shook real hard. Some signs could be seen along the old pavement, most of them bent to one side. They were so rusty that it was no longer possible to read the indications on them. Jill watched as they went. One particular sign caught her big rounded eyes.
“You’d better not go this way, mister.” The little girl said.
“Call me Ike, dear.”
“Why we should not go this way?” Ivy asked.
“My mommy said this road leads to Devasta Land.”
“Nice place?” Ike queried.
“I heard stories.” Jill replied.
“Nice stories?”
“They say that whoever goes there got swallowed and never, ever comes back.”
“We’d better not go there.” Ivy opined.
“Agreed.” Ike said. “I’ll take the next exit.”
And they did it. But Ike had to step on the brakes with both feet not to crash the limousine. The vehicle veered off harshly before coming to a halt.
“What the heck is that?” Ike asked.
“I know you meant that as a rhetorical question, but it does look like a bunch of cars side by side and on top of each other, completely blocking our way.” Ivy replied.
Ike stepped out of the limo to investigate.
“You stay here, peach.” Ivy said to Jill and followed her boyfriend.
Ike walked around the wall of vehicles, only to find out it was actually a pyramid built with all sorts of cars.
“Whoever did this surely went to a lot of trouble.” He observed.
“Yes, but… who could possibly…”
Loud moans and snarls from a very short distance interrupted Ivy’s divagations. An army of undead came from each and every possible side, even falling off the vehicles pile. And they looked hungry.
“Back to the limo!” Ike screamed.
He and Ivy ran back to the limousine and jumped inside.
Jill shrunk in the rear of the vehicle, arms crossed around her legs.
“Step on it, man!” Ivy spoke.
Ike put the car in reverse and drove. He then made a u-turn so he could drive straight ahead and away from the hungry mob.
“Are you alright, peach?” Ivy asked Jill.
She nodded.
“What was that?” Ike said.
“That’s another rhetorical question, babe. How can I possibly know?”
“Those are the monsters created by the inferior people.” Jill spoke.
“Who told you that?” Ivy queried.
“Missus Pulaski.”
“Who’s that?”
“One of my teachers.”
“It seems she is the one on dope.” Ike commented.
“What we do now?” Ivy asked.
“I don’t suppose this is a rhetorical question.” Ike said.
“You bet it’s not.”
“Well, we can’t go back to baby killing city!”
“But if we go to people swallowing city, we’re doomed!”
“And if we try that exit again, we’re grub!”
“Okay.” Ivy sighed. “Better doomed than grub, I guess.”
“Straight ahead then” Ike decided.
5th MOVEMENT
A group of ten women sat quietly in the waiting room. Some of them read magazines to kill time and anxiety.
One door opened. Finally, a woman in white apron, blue shirt and green pants appeared before the ladies.
“Angela, Joana, you’re on.” She announced.
Two of the women placed magazines back in the basket and stood up. They followed the woman in apron and disappeared behind the mysterious door, leaving eight curious and anguished souls wondering what was lying in wait for them.
“Lie down, please.” said Doctor Piper Glory to Joana.
“Will that hurt?” The patient asked.
“Pain sometimes is a cleanser, my dear.” said Doctor Blake, the head-physician.
Joana was lying on her back. Her legs were spread wide open, supported by two straps attached to poles on each side of the hospital bed.
“Tie this thing up, please.” Doctor Blake ordered Piper.
“Is this really necessary?” She asked him.
“We need her legs to be completely still during collection and insertion. A single twitch and we may have to start all over again. I don’t believe Miss Warrens here would want to do this twice.”
“Collection? Insertion? Of what both of them?” Joana queried dragging her voice.
“Everything is going to be fine.” Piper tried to reassure the young woman.
Following the head-doctor’s instructions, Doctor Glory placed a semicircular ring around each of Joana’s legs and screwed the rings to the poles on the sides of the bed, so the legs would not move.
“It’s a little tight, don’t you think?” Joana complained. “Those things are cold.”
“That’ll be over soon.” Piper replied.
Doctor Blake pushed a red button on a panel attached to one of the rails connected to the bed. A cylinder rose from behind the bed. It moved up and stopped at the level of Joana’s genitals.
From inside the cylinder, a very thin tube protruded out toward the woman and into her vagina. A needle shaped like a drill bit came out of the tube.
“I think I need to pee.” Joana said almost in a whisper.
“Just relax, dear.” Doctor Glory replied.
The drill bit needle started to spin at a high speed. Joana got agitated on the bed, but could not move her legs.
“It hurts!” Joana sighed.
“The subject is ready.” Doctor Blake said.
“Don’t you mean patient?” Piper retorted.
“Yes, sure.”
“Don’t you think we should give her an epidural?”
“It may compromise the samples.”
Doctor Blake pressed a green button on the same panel and the spinning drill bit needle went forward.
Joana moaned in pain.
“Stop, please!” She begged.
“Okay, get the Luviximil ready.” Blake commanded.
“Yes, doctor.”
Piper walked to a cabinet and took a small flask with a thick liquid inside. She removed the cap and grabbed a syringe.
“Five-hundred milligrams” Blake instructed.
Doctor Glory introduced the liquid into the syringe in the quantity determined by the head-physician. She walked back to the bed and injected the whole content, but not in the patient. Doctor Blake fell on the floor.
“Damn it!” Blake cursed. “Why this keeps happening to me?” And he went into convulsions.
Piper pressed the emergency stop button on the bed control panel and the entire apparatus invading Joana’s body interrupted its work. Needle went back into the tube and then into the cylinder, and the set placed itself to rest in the compartment behind the hospital bed.
“That was the most violent sex I’ve ever had.” Joana said.
“Are you alright?” Piper asked her, while releasing her legs.
“I don’t feel so hot, in both senses of the word.”
“Can you walk?”
“I don’t think I have a choice, do I?”
“No, you don’t.”
Very slowly, Joana stood up feeling dizzy. She brought a hand to her forehead.
“I know you’re not feeling well,” Doctor Glory spoke “but I really need you to help me put the doctor on the bed.”
“Okay.” Joana whispered.
“We don’t have much time. Five-hundred milligrams is not that much. He will be back on his feet soon.”
Joana was feeling dreadfully nauseous, but resisted the urge to vomit. After some efforts, the women managed to place Doctor Blake on the bed Joana was lying before. Piper covered him with a white sheet. Blake was extremely drowsy, but still awake.
They heard loud footsteps.
“Hide!” Piper said.
A young woman wearing white shirt and green pants entered the operating room.
“What’s the meaning of this?” She asked surprised after seen Doctor Blake lying down on a hospital bed.
“He was attacked, Nurse Folsom!” Piper replied. “And a patient escaped!”
“Oh no, this is awful! I’ll sound the alarm.”
“I’ll do that. You check if that other patient over there is secured.”
Folsom walked to another hospital bed, where Angela was lying on. Doctor Piper went to the cabinet and took another flask and syringe.
Angela was strapped to the bed. The nurse checked the strap restraining the patient’s right wrist. It was tied up good. Taking advantage of such momentum, Angela suddenly rose her other arm and brought a scalpel to Folsom’s neck.
Apocalily Series (Book 2): The Almighty Lady of Tomorrow Page 5