Before We Die Alone

by Ike Hamill

  “Age is just a number,” a voice says from behind me. I’m almost all the way turned around before I figure out who it is. Time has been gentle with Adam. Either that, or I’ve caught him soon after he came here. It’s impossible to tell with all these twists and turns of the timeline.

  “How would you know? You never stayed put long enough to actually age,” I say.

  He approaches slowly and sits his naked ass down on the leaves next to me. He moves well. He didn’t fall the last six inches, like I did when I sat down.

  “You would be amazed how much better the body works when it’s in the proper setting and has the right inputs,” he says.

  “I eat well.”

  “Perhaps, but the food is all wrong. Everything is interdependent, you know. You can’t plant acres and acres of the same crop and expect the food to be the same as if it grew naturally. Cultivating takes something out of the plant. It’s like comparing a Chihuahua to a wolf.”

  “Uh huh,” I say.

  For clarity—back in my time, there was regular food and then Organic food. Supposedly, the Organic stuff was grown in a much more healthy way. Supposedly, they used fewer chemical fertilizers, and less pesticides. In reality, I think they just used different fertilizers and different pesticides. Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t think there were long-term studies that showed Organic foods were more nutritious. Maybe they had less of an impact on the environment. I’m not even sure of that. One thing for sure, they cost more.

  “Since I came here, moving around has been less and less painful. I think I have less inflammation in my joints.”

  “I’ve made a mistake,” I say. “I shouldn’t have come. I guess I was curious, but I shouldn’t have come.”

  “I suppose it could be sleeping on the ground though. The youngsters spent a while trying to make soft beds. They referenced chimps, who create a nest each night that they sleep in. They thought it pointed to the idea that great apes need a soft place to rest. Eventually, everyone resolved to sleep on the ground. It seems to act like a deep-tissue massage. The first week is brutal, but then you feel much better.”

  “Do you know how I can get back?” I ask. “How did you even find me?”

  “We didn’t find you,” he says. “You found us. Our camp is right over that hill,” he points behind us.

  “Is there a twist, or a fold, or a portal around here somewhere that I could use? Can you point me in the right direction?”

  Adam stands up and offers me a hand.

  “Why don’t you come meet everyone,” he says.

  I take his hand and he hauls me to my feet. He seems so spry, but I can see the lines near his eyes. He has aged, but the years have been kind to his body.

  “Okay,” I say.

  Adam leads the way and I follow. We start up the little hill.

  I don’t know if I’ll join him or not, but I have to admit, I’m intrigued. It would be nice to be surrounded by people again, and I like the idea of a little tribe. In my world, I was the only one aware of the countdown to the end of everything, and that was an isolating feeling. Here, I suspect that everything is fresh and new. There’s nothing predestined in a place like this. Living until sunset is the only goal, and there are no guarantees.

  If I stay, I could tell everyone my story. Some children have grown up in this world, and they know nothing about what came before. For clarity, I could give them a picture of what it was like.

  I wonder how Vanessa is doing in that big concrete structure. Maybe one day I’ll find that place again and beat my fists against the walls until they let me in. Of course, that assumes that I make it to sunset tonight.

  There are no guarantees.

  ---- * ----

  Ike Hamill

  Topsham, Maine

  February 22, 2015

  About Before We Die Alone

  About a million years ago, I read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I would have killed to be that funny or that clever. Then, as I found my way deeper into science fiction—Heinlein, Asimov, Clarke, and even Piers Anthony—I left some of that whimsy behind. This book has been my attempt to put an engineer into a whimsical adventure. When I explored science fiction in my writing before, it was always with a horror slant.

  My thought is that Dennis wrote this book as a memoir to some future generation. Maybe he put it somewhere for his grandniece to eventually find. I really hope you enjoyed reading this book as much as I did writing it. If you made it this far, you’ll know that I took quite a few leaps in these pages. Sometimes I landed on solid ground, and other times the landing was a bit shaky. That said, I’m very pleased with where it ended up.

  I’ve gotten into a bad habit of telling really long stories lately. My Madelyn story had to be broken into three books in order to keep the books a reasonable length. This story will be continued soon in another volume entitled, “After We Live Forever.” Well, perhaps “continued” is the wrong word. This was Dennis’ book, and his part of the tale ends here. The next volume is its own thing. It has a different tone and new characters.

  As always, please tell a friend about my books. Or leave a review. Or both.

  Take care,

  Ike

  Madelyn’s Nephew

  After the sun turned, Madelyn fled north to escape the riots and the encroaching glaciers. As long as the world was ending, she wanted to live her final days in the one place she had always been happy—her grandmother's cabin. She survived the Roamers, the scavengers, and the wildlife, but she can't escape her fear of dying alone.

  She left behind this note:

  “Gather my bones, if you find them. If a bear hasn’t dragged them off, or a wolf cracked them for my marrow. My skull goes on the wall with the others. Any other remains can be planted near Sacrifice Rock. That’s where my grandfather is buried, and where I dug up the skull of my beloved grandmother.

  Her sweet eyes were still wise and kind, even when I only imagined them from their hollow sockets. She taught us so many things—how to hunt, trap, and fish. She should have taught me how to live alone. I never learned the trick of scaring away the ghosts. They won’t shut up and leave me in peace. I guess it's time to join them.”

  —Madelyn

  Kill Cycle

  The town I grew up in is dying, and I know who’s killing it. At least I think I do. But he’s a master manipulator and nobody will believe me. It’s up to me to prove that he’s the serial killer who has been stalking the streets. I have to stop him before he targets me, or worse, my family.

  Super Apex

  As a species, people have tamed the Earth. Individually, in the face of a superior predator, we’re all just as helpless as the day we were born.

  And a superior predator is out there.

  Humans may be the Apex predator, but there’s something even more deadly. It’s the Super Apex.

  Inhabited

  They were looking for an adventure—a night of harmless fun. Miguel has a map. Kristin’s friend has the equipment. The mine leads to the cave, and the cave is where they’ll find their fortune.

  But down in the darkness, something waits.

  It needs them.

  The caves hold a secret. They’re Inhabited.

  The Claiming

  It wasn't her fault.

  It wasn't Lizzy's fault that she saw the cloaked people out in the yard. It wasn't her fault that she was drawn by the moonlight to watch them as they advanced on the house. And it definitely wasn't her fault when people began to die. Lizzy didn't want the strange dreams where she saw how they were killed. Even her sister was starting to suspect her.

  It wasn't fair because it wasn't her fault.

  Lizzy was claimed.

  Extinct

  Channel Two predicted a blanket of snow for Thanksgiving weekend—unusual, but not alarming for the little Maine island. What comes is a blinding blizzard, and a mass disappearance of nearly every person Robby Pierce knows. He and his family flee, trying to escape the snow and the invi
sible forces stealing people right from the street.

  Miles away, Brad Jenkins battles the same storm. Alone, he attempts to survive as snow envelops his house. When the storm breaks, Brad makes his way south to where the snow ends and the world lies empty. Join Brad, Robby, and the other survivors as they fight to find the truth about the apocalypse and discover how to live in their new world.

  Migrators

  Do not speak of them. Your words leave a scent. They will come. Somewhere in the middle of Maine, one of the world's darkest secrets has been called to the surface. Alan and Liz just wanted a better life for themselves and their son. They decided to move to the country to rescue the home of Liz's grandfather, so it would stay in the family. Now, they find themselves directly in the path of a dangerous ritual. No one can help them. Nothing can stop the danger they face. To save themselves and their home, they have to learn the secrets of the MIGRATORS.

  Accidental Evil

  Kingston Lakes is a quiet town. During long summer days, the residents barely have a care. They almost never have to worry about the rise of a bloodthirsty demon who wants to feast on their flesh and enslave their immortal souls.

  Almost never.

  The Hunting Tree

  For thousands of years a supernatural killer has slept in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. An amateur ghost hunter has just woken him up. Now that he stalks the night once more, he's traveling east. Although the monster's actions are pure evil, he may be the only thing that can save humanity from extinction.

  Transcription

  Thomas has found the biggest story of his career, and he can’t believe his luck. He’s sitting in the prison cell that at one time housed each of The Big Four, the state’s most notorious murderers. There’s only one problem: he’s beginning to understand what drove them to commit their crimes. He’s beginning to feel their madness.

  Years later, his son suffers a curse. Every night, he’s compelled to transcribe his father’s stories. If he misses a single night, he’ll do something terrible. It has happened before. James has given up everything to his curse, and it controls every moment of his life. James can only imagine what will happen if one of the stories gets out. In the worst case, people will die.

  And the worst case is coming.

  Post Grace

  Grace Anne Orlov died peacefully in her home on Thursday, the 7th. Her husband, John, survives her in body if not in spirit. John studied killers and death, but failed to learn how to live alone after more than forty years of marriage.

  Along with two daughters, a son, two grandchildren, and a stray bastard, John has a lot to figure out.

  What he doesn’t know might kill him.

  Dug the Drummer

  My heart is pounding. The bar is packed. My hands are so sweaty that I can barely grip the sticks. It’s just me and the guys against a whole crowd of drunkards. It doesn’t feel like a calling, but it sure as hell doesn’t feel like a life I chose. I fell backwards into drumming. It’s all I’ve ever known.

  Camp Sacrifice

  Welcome to Camp Sacrifice.

  You’ll find your cabin clean and comfortable, but please bring the following items to get the most out of your vacation this summer:

  1 - personal story of bone-chilling fright

  1 - mirror for summoning spirits

  1 - sharp knife for things that stalk the night

  1 - shovel to dispatch the undead

  Oh, and be sure to cancel your autumn plans.

  The Vivisectionist

  The boys have the perfect summer planned. They’ll camp out in the back yard for their last vacation before high school. There’s only one problem—even though they're just a hundred feet from the safety of the house, they’re being hunted by a serial killer.

  Join Jack, Ben, and Stephen as they strap on their backpacks and go out looking for adventure. The woods behind Jack’s house contain endless trails to explore, and the boys have weeks to investigate them all. Their neighborhood finally seems at peace again, now that the man who snatched the kid from down the street has been caught. But there’s still danger in those woods, and the boys are about to stumble into it...

  Lies of the Prophet

  Gregory was the first to rise from the grave. With no organs and no pulse he burst from his coffin demanding to know why he’d been buried. His subsequent book made him a billionaire and encouraged others to follow in his footsteps. Unfortunately, the decayed, mindless undead who rose after him were nothing like him.

  Lynne, Carol, and Marta are on a collision course with the same goal: they must stop Gregory. Join these three women as they battle supernatural forces and discover their own paranormal powers. They each have their own reasons for fighting Gregory, but the fate of the world rests in their hands.

  Skillful Death

  Deep in an Old World forest, an unnamed village lies hidden. Decades pass as the village waits for its special son to return. The boy challenged the lion, bested the snake, and defeated the elephant. He possessed an unearthly skill. His return will bring back balance to the village.

  High in the Tibetan mountains, a monk waits for death behind a stone wall. For this last journey, he prepared his body over the course of one-hundred days. Outside his little tomb, another man is learning the secret of immortality.

  In Seattle, an old man learns a new skill and finds unimaginable fortune.

  It’s my job to document these lives, keep my boss safe, and find that unnamed village. At one of these tasks, I will fail.

  Punch List

  Jeff doesn’t want to think about the future. He’s not even sure he can deal with the present. High school, friends who aren’t friendly, and his crumbling family are hard enough. It’s time for him to make a change. Maybe, with a little luck, he’ll survive the summer.

  Wild Fyre

  The perfect technology would anticipate our every need, solve our problems, and answer questions we hadn’t thought to ask.

  The perfect technology would defend itself.

  It would spread everywhere.

  It would kill if it had to.

  In this unique blend of Sci-Fi and Horror, Ike Hamill will bring you into the world of Fyre. The question is, will she let you live?