# Foreword

A virus has decimated the entire planet's human population. No treatment or vaccine could be found, and so contraction meant death.

Humanity was forced to seek refuge in hermetically-sealed, self-sustaining bunkers, commonly referred to as "biospheres." After the world's power grid failed, survivors managed to establish a global satellite communications network, which allowed them to weave together a digital facsimile of their once thriving, now extinct, way of life.

The disease, however, remained active and continued to spread, despite the survivor's best intentions and inexhaustible precautions. It was therefore commonplace for connections to become broken. The people of the network began to call the silence that inevitably came at the end of the line: _The Darkness_.

No one ever returned when _The Darkness_ came to call.

Until now...

# Scientific Fact:

The origin of the AIDS virus has been traced back to two separate Simian Immunodeficiency Viruses (or SIVs). A single chimpanzee killed and ate two different species of monkey who were both infected with their individual species version of SIVs. Neither version of the virus was harmful to the chimp on its own, but those viruses, called lentiviruses, were retroviruses. Hence, they have a notoriously slow and sloppy replication process, which take place in the nucleus of a host cell. They use the host cell's own genetic material to replicate, which allows for frequent mutations over a short period of time. One such mutation combined chimp's DNA with parts of the two other viruses DNA. This new virus fooled the immune system into thinking it was, in fact, a part of the chimp's own physiology. From that humble beginning, the virus spread throughout the chimp population much the same way HIV has moved through our own culture, with the exchange of bodily fluids. The trafficking of bushmeat (wild animal meat in Africa) is believed to be the cause of the transmission of SIVs to the human population, where it used the same melding process to transform itself into HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus). Experts refer to this phenomenon as "viral sex." It is believed this genetic melding is how retroviruses have made the jump from one species to another since the beginning of time.

# CHAPTER ONE

_A horrifying smell chokes the air from my lungs as I step over the putrefying bodies littering the street under my feet. Everywhere I look, the dead are piled on top of each other. I pinch my nose, but the stench is so strong it penetrates through the skin and bone of my skull and goes straight to my brain. It's so dense I can even taste the miasma of rotting flesh, decomposing garbage, and mold._

_I keep stumbling around until I spot an office building on my right, with a lobby that looks completely clear of the dead. I step over a pregnant lady and my foot lands on what looks like her 12-year-old daughter. Both corpses are still holding hands. I've been saying I'm sorry under my breath to all the dead people I've been stepping on, but as I get a look at the little girl's gaunt face, the tears begin to roll down my face._

_I reach the door and try the handle, but it's locked. I start banging on it and try to scream, but the sound is trapped in my throat. The aroma of decomposing flesh has sent my vocal chords into spasm. Through the glass, I can see not only is the lobby free of the dead, but there are a bunch of canned goods and even ramen noodles on a table just inside. My mouth starts to water and I bang harder._

_Behind me I hear a faint voice croak, "Help me."_

_I turn and the pregnant lady is staring at me with her hand out. I start to move towards her when her daughter looks at me and raises her hand as well. One by one all the dead surrounding the office-building door begin to open their eyes and reach out for me as well._

_There are way too many to count. I start to panic._

_Then, as if all on cue, they begin to stand and stumble towards me. The office building entrance, which seemed like a refuge a minute ago, is now caging me in._

_I spin back to the door and whale on it like_ _there is no tomorrow._

_My mother and father walk out from the back of the building and wave at me. I scream for them, but again nothing comes out of my mouth. They embrace each other and my mom rests her head on my dad's chest, smiling at me._

_I turn back to the dead just as they reach me. They are all croaking out, "Help me."_

_The 12-year-old grabs my arm and sinks her teeth into my wrist._

***

I snap awake, breathless, and plastered to my sheets. Leaping from the warmth of my bed and into the frozen wasteland of the strange room I find myself in.

I grab for the Louisville slugger I always keep right next to my bed and come up empty. I spin around desperately searching the pitch-blackness for some sanctuary from the horror I haven't figured out I've left far behind in my dream yet. The numberless hordes of the sick and the dying all clawing at me, desperate for the salvation I could never hope to give, and leaving behind their rotting flesh and promises of certain death. As the reality of my situation begins to works its way through my sleep-ravaged brain, the air starts to flow into my lungs and my knees become rubbery and weak from the sudden burst of oxygen. I have to bend at the waist and grab my knees to keep from hyperventilating.

I bump into the chair by the bed and collapse into it. By instinct my hand reaches out for the glass of water that isn't there, which I usually leave on the dresser for this very moment. Adrenaline, after all, robs moisture from one's mouth. The nightmares haunt my dreams like my dead parents do my every waking moment.

_Where am I again?_

I look at my dad's watch. The glow-in-the-dark hands show that it's 10 a.m. and the hour shocks me awake. I curse myself for oversleeping again. I should have been on the road three hours ago. I jump out of the chair and fumble around for the light next to the bed. Suddenly the room is filled with a horrible alarm and a red light I have never noticed before begins flashing over the door. I find the lamp in the dim red light and switch it on.

I grab my shoes, sit back in the chair and stare at the red light wondering what it means. I shake my head and start to put my shoes on when the door slams open and Lyssa shouts at me, "Move it! We have a perimeter breach! Didn't you see the light?"

I know it's rude, but I can't help but stare. Every time I saw her before she was wearing that stupid baggy coat of hers, a ridiculously giant scarf, and that silly hunting hat with the earflaps. And if she wasn't barking orders at me, it was because she was making fun of me for something stupid I did. So, truth be told, I kind of hated her and so I barely looked twice. But now she is standing in the doorframe of my room and she's only wearing thigh high (and skin tight) shorts, an oversized white t-shirt with the neck cut away, and nothing else.

My breath literally catches in my throat.

The only girl I'm used to seeing on a regular basis is Ellie, and she's a waifish girl, who never had enough to eat and hardly ever smiled. And she was also trapped in a bunker, so, like me, she's pale and has dark circles under her eyes. I always thought she was beautiful, but other than my mother, she's actually the only other girl I had really seen for a prolonged period of time.

_Until now._

Lyssa has a subtly pointed chin, with a very enchanting softened cleft. Her chest is heaving a bit because of nerves and I can see her pulse clearly beating along her neck. My eyes follow along her pulse back to the source of the rhythm and I see that God was kind to her and that she was a very healthy girl. My breathing is shallow and rapid. Not wanting to linger too long on parts of her body that would make both of us blush, I shift quickly back to her eyes. They are this deep, rich chocolate-brown that seem to go on forever, shimmering and twinkling in the dim light of my room. She is, honestly, the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Her cheeks are flush and her skin is slightly tanned and radiant. Even her eyebrows seem feminine and dainty. Yet there is a toughness behind her eyes that gives her softened features an edge that is palpable and overwhelming. Which makes sense, since she did survive here on her own for the last year.

_Just like me._

When she notices my attention, her demeanor suddenly changes. It's as if she suddenly sees herself through my eyes and the reality of it is confusing and clearly unnerving. She awkwardly folds her arms across her chest and slowly backs away.

"I told you when that light flashes we have to hide! Didn't I? From the look on your face I can see that you forgot. Well, anyways when that light flashes we have to hide, so hurry up and get in the bathroom." She cringes. "Okay, that sounded really weird too, but it'll make sense after you come with me to the bathroom—oh just forget it and follow me!"

With that said, she dashes out of sight.

I stumble out the door and drop my shoes and coat to the floor as I go.

She begins to put on the normal attire I am used to, complete with scarf and floppy hat.

She spins, and sees me staring again. "Come on idiot! We have to go!"

She hits a switch beside the couch, which causes it to spin into the floor. A wall slides into place, hiding the kitchen from view, and her bedroom lowers itself into the floor.

"Holy crap!"

Lyssa races back and smacks me in my arm. "Will you shut up, stop ogling me and get in the bathroom! You're really creeping me out."

I barely have time to grab my coat and shoes before she drags me out of my room and into the bathroom. She slams the door behind us, and then moves a towel on the rack out of the way to hit a hidden switch. I hear another wall sliding into place, along with a loud BOOM.

"What was that?"

"You really don't know how to follow instructions, do you? Shut up!" She pushes past me to the corner and opens up a cabinet; there are several military-style rifles and plenty of magazines. She throws a rifle to me, followed by a magazine. "Load it like I showed you!"

Then she hits another switch and the wall opposite the tub slides down into the floor, exposing a staircase that leads down a few steps into a room full of television screens all stacked on top of each other, along with a keyboard and a joystick sitting on top of a desk.

"Whoa!"

Lyssa shakes her head and quickly punches a few keys and all the screens come to life. It looks like a video security system. I can easily pick out several buildings from the compound. She types a few more buttons and the scenes change.

There isn't much to see for a while because the snow is still really coming down, but then finally, on one of the screens, we see two figures step into view. She types a few buttons and another scene appears. In the distance, we see three men on horseback, with two other men walking in snowshoes behind them.

All of them appear heavily armed.

"Wait, where is this?" I ask Lyssa.

"Relax. They're still miles from the compound. There's no way they could've seen the lights or heard you snore with the wind and snow blowing like it is. So, we're good."

"Wait, I snore? Nevermind, why are we hiding? Shouldn't we try to make contact?"

Lyssa snorts. "Were you born this stupid or did you fall on your head or something as a baby?"

"So we're just going to automatically assume they're bad guys? It's a blizzard, we should try to help them."

She laughs. "Dude, you really need to go back to the bunker. You aren't going to last ten seconds out here!"

I really hate it when she talks about the biosphere like that. They are a heck of a lot more than just a stupid bunker. I roll my eyes. "Why, because I don't want to assume everyone is trying to kill me?"

She gets serious. "Look, don't get me wrong, I don't hide like this from everyone. I helped you, didn't I? But you have to understand, most folks that are left, if they aren't trying to kill you and take what you have, it's because they haven't seen you yet."

I shake my head. "I can't let myself believe that."

She sighs. "Well, you're going to have to take my word for it then. You see that road they're on? Well, it leads to a village not far from here. Last year, these model citizens of yours passed by along the same road. They went to that hamlet and found Mrs. Johnson. A nice old lady my father and I used to take care of. They raped her, and then cut her up and ate her."

I'm instantly nauseated, which is exactly the reaction Lyssa's looking for.

She spins back to the screen. "I could smell her burning flesh from here. You never forget a smell like that, I can promise you that."

I'm speechless, which is rare for me. My whole life I never heard anything as horrible as that. Not so long ago, a bad day for me was when I couldn't get a clear signal out to get to the Nexus. Well, that's not true. I mean, I lost my parents, but other than having to deal with their deaths on my own, my life has been relatively tame. I definitely didn't have any friends cannibalized and cooked so close to me that I had to smell their burning flesh. The suddenness of just how little I understood the world around me stuns me into silence. My appreciation of her resiliency and her heart grows by about a factor of ten.

"How can you be so sure these are the same men?" I ask tentatively.

"Slick, has anyone ever brutally killed and raped a friend of yours? Someone you've had dinner with a million times? No? Well, I'll tell ya, that kind of event has a way imprinting certain things into your memory. I saw them pass this way last year, just like we're seeing them now. Trust me, those are the same butchering bastards and every single one of them deserves to rot in hell! But due to some weird twist of fate, they just keep existing. If I weren't such a coward, I'd kill them myself. But I saw what happened to Mrs. Johnson when they were done with her and I don't want any part of them, thank you very much."

I walk back and sit on the toilet just at the top of the stairs. I don't like this, but maybe she's right. I put the rifle in the tub and as I lean over I feel a distinctive pressure in my abdomen that can mean only one thing. "Um, I have some bad news."

Lyssa doesn't take her eyes off the screen. "What?"

"I have to go to the bathroom."

"Go, I won't look."

I look at the tiny room and back to her. "Um, I have to um..."

She spins and looks at me in disbelief, "Seriously? Now? Of all times now? What are you, like, five?"

"I know. I'm really sorry. But I haven't gone in a couple of days."

She rolls her eyes. "Great! So you've been saving it up for just the right moment? Nice. I'm sure the smell is going to make me vomit, but go ahead."

She then spins back to the monitors. I'm stunned. "What? You expect me to go here? With you right there?"

"Trust me, I don't like it anymore than you do, but we don't have a choice. It's the protocol. When bad guys are in the area, we go on lockdown. There could be scouts out looking around that I haven't found on the cameras yet. Maybe, they even spotted the cameras and are avoiding them altogether. In fact, like I told you ten minutes ago, we need to go silent from here on out."

"But what about the toilet?"

"True, the flush might be too loud. I guess we'll just wait to flush until they leave."

"You mean sit here with the smell? No way!"

"Yeah, you're right. You need to hold it," she says, and then spins back to the screens.

"Look, I don't know how much longer I can."

"Shh!" Lyssa gets real tense. "Oh no!"

I look at the screens and I see a figure behind the men walking, waving his arms and signaling them to return. "What's going on? Who's that guy?"

Lyssa shakes her head. "Trouble."

I see that the men move back to the guy waving his arms. When they reach him, he seems to shout at them and keeps pointing to his right.

"Shoot."

"What's the matter?"

Lyssa spins back to face me. "That road he's pointing at leads right here."

"Are you sure?"

She spins back to the screens. "Positive."

"Well, what do we do?"

"Well normally I'd say we stay in here. But now..." She trails off.

"I don't understand why now is any different?"

She spins and looks at me like I'm the biggest idiot ever. "Moron, we were out walking around leaving tracks in the snow yesterday and I even backed out the snowcat. I don't know if bunker babies have heard of the concept of tracks, but we left a butt-load of them out there in the snow!"

"Crap!"

She spins back to the monitors. "Exactly."

She switches camera views, following the men walking in the snow and leaving huge a trail behind them.

"Man, I really hope they take the bait," she says.

"What bait?"

"Well, my mother and father changed the layout and planted a bunch of trees to hide the entrance to the compound. It's hard to spot, but not impossible. You see, the road used to fork right there, but now it doesn't. If they keep to the road, I think we'll be okay. But if they turn right—"

Almost as soon as she points this out, they veer right.

"Crap!"

"What do we do?"

"We have to abandon the post. We lock it down, and then get out of dodge. In a few months maybe, I can come back. I have a remote base not far from here which is tied into the security feed. I can monitor the base from there."

I'm staring at the huge trail they're leaving. "How do we get there without leading them right to us?"

She spins back at me. "Does it look like my father was the type of guy to leave anything to chance?"

With that she hits a switch. A doorway opens to the left of the screens and reveals a set of spiraling stairs going down. She stands up and moves through the door. "Do me a favor, grab the guns and some more ammo."

"Wait, everything I own is in that snowcat. And so is the .22 you gave me."

"Don't worry, I'll give you more stuff. This place is my home, but it's not where I keep everything I own. I have twenty-five caches. You'll be fine. But we should head out. This tunnel leads straight to the power station and to my boat."

My head is spinning. "Your what? Wait, I don't just up and run without knowing what's going on."

She sighs. "Look slick, you're coming with me and I'm getting us to safety. Once we get there, we'll get you another pack."

"But my mother's hard drive with all of her work is in that pack."

She rolls her eyes. "Sorry, but we have to go now!"

I spot the button behind the towel rack that raised the wall opposite the tub, and move my hand towards it. "Hey, how does this wall work? Seems dangerous to have a door right here that opens up to the house. What if someone finds the tunnel and tries to use it?"

She sighs. "It only opens from in there."

I look her dead in the eye. "Good."

Then I hit the button and the wall closes in a blur before she can step back inside. She starts banging on the wall and yelling, but all I can do is say, "Sorry Lyssa, but I need ten minutes, well maybe fifteen."

She stops pounding and yells, "For what? Hello? For what?"

I unbuckle my pants and lift the toilet seat, drop my pants and sit. I'm way too preoccupied to answer; besides, I'm trying to block her out. I'm not used to performing for an audience and I really have to go.

# CHAPTER TWO

It takes me five minutes to figure out which combination of controls lifts the wall to get out the bathroom door. Lyssa was, of course, no help. She didn't want me to go outside and refused to listen when I told her every second I wasted, the greater the chance I'd get caught. And I was going no matter what. Regardless about how I feel about my mom, I can't let her life's work go as if it was nothing. I have to get it. It's the only thing I have left of my parents and I'm not letting it go.

Well, that and the note from my dad in my pocket.

I'm not an idiot though. Before I leave I check the security feeds and see no sign of human life anywhere in the compound. Well, to be honest, I'm not entirely sure I saw all of the compound mostly because I'm not really a hundred percent sure I know how many buildings there are. But I looked long enough to ease my nerves.

I race out the door of the bathroom and across the now empty darkened room. I move the curtain aside and open the door in one fluid motion. I dash out into the snow and race to the garage. I easily open the door and jump inside. I freeze when I realize that the snowcat is gone. I almost in panic-mode, when I remember Lyssa hit something just inside the door before she closed the garage last night. I turn and look in the same area, but I don't see anything except a pipe running up to the ceiling along the wall in the corner. I'm about to give up the search, when I decide to try and move the pipe. A lengthy section gives easily and then the floor where the snowcat once sat splits open. Some kind of elevator system raises the snowcat up to floor level.

After I get over my shock of the power behind the lift, I race to the door of the snowcat, grab my backpack and the .22 rifle I stashed, and slam the door shut. I race to the door and push the pipe back in place and the snowcat lowers itself back into the floor. I close the garage door and turn to head back to the hangar, but I stop in my tracks.

_There's a man walking out of one of the buildings 300 yards to the north of my position._

He is dressed just like the other men on the security feed. Clearly Lyssa was right and they had a scout neither of us had seen. I shake my head when I realize she is never going to let me live this down. If I survive, that is.

From where I'm standing, the man seems to be moving in the opposite direction from the hangar and I let out a silent sigh of relief. He must be reconnoitering the compound, taking the logical progression from one building to the other. If he stays on his current path, he'll end up hitting the big main building and once he's inside, I'll be able to get back to the hangar. It was one of the first buildings I looked in myself when I got here, so it makes sense he'd want to check it out. But at the last moment he stops and eyes the main building up and down. He reaches up and scratches his chin and then looks at the smaller outbuildings. Then back at the main building. He shakes his head and begins walking straight for me.

My stomach shifts violently in my gut.

This isn't a video game. If he sees me, two things are gonna happen and both of them are bad. Either I kill him or he kills me. I do the math in my head and it doesn't look so hot for me. This guy is basically an experienced serial killer. He actually eats people for a living. He won't hesitate. As for me?

_I'm screwed!_

I clutch my rifle and then slowly pull back the bolt and slide a bullet into the chamber, just like Lyssa taught me. The wind is howling so hard that I know there's no way he could hear the tiny clicks that it makes from this distance, but I cringe anyway. I curse myself for not having a bullet chambered already and vow never to hold a gun that isn't ready to fire again.

He's closed the distance between us to around three hundred feet. With the driving wind in my face I know I'm no threat at all to him. Before yesterday, I'd never even held a real gun. So hitting a person from 300 feet in the driving wind is impossible. I'll just have to wait till he gets closer. I know the closer he gets the likelier it becomes that he'll see me. Catch-22, but there's nothing I can do.

But instead of continuing towards me, he changes direction and walks towards Lyssa's hangar. If he rounds the corner and sees my track, the element of surprise is over.

It suddenly hits me that I'm actually thinking about shooting someone. This isn't a video game and he won't get a second life. I'm planning on shooting a man I have never met before and who has not injured me personally at all.

_What planet is this?_

When he reaches the shed, he tries the fake front door. I know it's fake because I did the same thing when I first arrived. He cups his hand over his eyes and tries to peer in through the dusty window. He must have seen all he wants to see because he spins around and starts walking back towards me.

_I think I'm going to puke._

He's going to have to get so close to me, that I'll be able to see the look in his face when I shoot. _This is so surreal._

He stops again, and shakes his head. Then he walks back and stands in front of the door, giving it a strong kick. When he does, all the snow that was on the roof above the fake door gives way, and a tidal wave of snow hits him dead in the face, knocking him to the ground.

I almost jump out from m cover, either to rush in to attack him or perhaps to dash into the hangar, I'm not sure which, but he jumps back to his feet faster than I would have thought possible, and so I stay put. He trains his gun at the shed, chambers a bullet, but stops short of firing.

I'm close enough so I can hear him say, "Screw this! If Jacques wants this place searched, he can come here and do it his damn self, he can, eh!"

Then he spins and begins trudging off in the direction he came from. I lean back on the door, breathe a sigh of relief, and switch the safety back on. I can't believe what I had been just about to do.

When he is out of sight, I dash back to the hangar and grab a broom. Then I go outside and cover all our tracks as best as I can. I'm hoping the constant snowfall will hide my efforts even more.

By the time I'm back in the bathroom, hitting the switch to open the panel so I can join Lyssa, I'm exhausted. That's probably why I didn't see her fist coming before she hit me dead on the chin. I fall like a sack of potatoes.

Lyssa stands over me and kicks me in the ribs a few times before I manage to grab her leg and take her down.

"Hey, it's me! It's only me!"

"Why do you think I'm hitting so hard?"

I finally grab her arms, roll her over on her back, and pin her to the ground, "Look, stop! I'm sorry, but I couldn't leave my mother's hard drive behind and hope they didn't find it!"

Lyssa spits in my face and knees me in a place it never occurred to me to protect. I instantly double over in pain and curl up into a fetal position. I can quite honestly tell you from experience, it hurt way worse than getting _The Darkness_ did.

You know, the plague that killed everyone? That's what we call it anyway: _The Darkness_.

I don't know how much history you've had, but the plague isn't just one virus—it's actually three. No one I've talked to (including my parents, which says a lot) could explain to me exactly how it works, but somehow the genes of three completely different viruses ended up melding together inside a human host. You can catch two of the strains, but not all three. Like, I had one—the measles. The other is a simple foamy virus that scientists used for gene therapy. It's nothing special really. In fact, on its own, it isn't even harmful to humans, but as a retrovirus it's the force that makes the darkness tick. It was released by accident when some technician messed up and got infected back in 2013. Believe it or not, the third one isn't even a human virus at all, but rather a bacteriophage, which is a virus that only attacks bacteria. Unfortunately for humans, this one infects the most common species of bacteria on the planet—that crap is literally everywhere.

At first, the outbreaks were isolated. It was a lot like the SARS epidemic and the West Nile virus outbreaks of the early twenty-first century. There were a few fatalities, but the World Health Organization (WHO) was more than ready for the outbreak and started an aggressive isolation and treatment regiment.

They even attempted to quell the spread of virus by re-inoculating folks for rubella because, before we understood the melding, doctors had made the connection that only those who had contracted German measles seemed affected, at first.

But then get this, some nutcase in Hollywood said the vaccines were actually the cause of the mutation, not the solution; which was a _brilliant_ deduction since the vaccines were started _after_ the outbreak had already begun. Anyway, she claimed that some additive in the vaccine caused the mutation in the strain, not to mention it had horrible side effects. All total bull of course, but it led to this huge revolt against the mandatory immunization process.

If it weren't for that twit, there's no telling what might have happened. Maybe everyone would all still be alive today. I wish I could remember her name, but then again who cares! No need to glorify that reckless idiot. She died in the first outbreak, so there was at least _some_ justice left in the universe.

My mother would never say one way or the other if the vaccine could have avoided a worldwide epidemic; after all, it wasn't a cure. It just slowed the spread of the virus down. But she did think it would have allowed more people to reach safety. You see, according to my mom, the vaccine put inert antigens of the rubella in your system. These antigens forced the body to make antibodies to prepare for an infection, should it attempt to assert itself. But according to her research, it was these antibodies that were crucial in the melding. Something about a special protein or something in the antibodies, I don't know. My mother insisted that since the amount of antigens were so miniscule in the vaccines, if the person then got the foamy virus and bacteriophage, the development of the darkness would be considerably slower and might even burn itself out before total infection occurred and more antibodies were made. It had something to do with competition for resources with the healthy cells and evolution or something.

I dunno, I can't remember why exactly. It never made sense to me.

Keep in mind though, the darkness, can also be contracted without the melding. If you come in contact with someone who has it, then you're dead.

Crazy, _huh_?

Lyssa stands and grabs her assault rifle, "You ever do anything like that again, you won't have to worry about those monsters out there!" She kicks me in the ribs, "Because I'll kill you myself! Now, get up! Because of you, we don't have much time."

With that she dashes down the stairs in the opening in the wall. I, on the other hand, do not move. I'm afraid to do anything actually. I can't help but feel moving will make the pain in my stomach and crotch worse somehow. I'm not sure how, but I know deep down inside that staying completely still in this position is my only chance to avoid further agony and eventual death.

Lyssa pokes her head back. "If you don't come now, I'm leaving without you."

I manage to just groan out, "Go ahead. I'll just lay here and die."

Lyssa rolls her eyes. "Aww, come on! Don't be such a wuss. I can't hurt that bad."

I glare at her. "I only wish I could put them on you and kick them again so you would know just how wrong you are!"

Lyssa smiles and sits. "Look, it's possible I over reacted."

I snap, "Ya think?"

She smirks. "I don't take well to people taking control. I even hated it when my dad would do it, but he was my dad. He was allowed."

"Well, that goes for me too. I needed my pack. I wasn't leaving without it. I've been calling the shots for myself for three years and I've been doing just fine. You want me to do something. I would appreciate it if you ask. And be prepared for me to say no if so I choose. Just like I'm saying no now. Just leave me to die."

Lyssa clearly didn't like that statement but nodded her head. "Fine, you're right. I'm sorry for not listening to you. I'm also sorry for kneeing you."

"Well, I'm sorry for locking you in the dark tunnel."

She stands. "All right, enough pleasantries! Get your ass up off the floor already and let's go!"

I begrudgingly start to move and learn that I was absolutely correct about it hurting way worse to move. Somehow I get to my feet and carefully stumble after Lyssa.

The stone stairs leading down spiral like the old turrets in those medieval movies I used to watch. I can barely see anything. The light coming from upstairs is dim and getting dimmer.

"Hold on." I reach into my pack and feel around for my matches. I light a candle and hand it to Lyssa, fetching another for myself. And we continue on.

It feels like we have been going down forever. I lose count of how many steps we take. But there are only two options, up and down. We know what's up, so down is the only other option. Besides, Lyssa must know where we're going.

Finally, we reach the bottom of the steps, it feels like we dropped three hundred feet or more, but it could just as easily have only been thirty. At the bottom there is chamber and big doorway, with a heavy chain and lock on it.

"Man! How are we supposed to get through that?"

Lyssa smiles. "That's the decoy dummy. Over here."

She turns and walks behind the stairs we just came down and I see a narrow opening behind them. She disappears under them and I can clearly see a passageway. She beckons me to follow. Once I climb through, she pulls a stone door closed that I hadn't noticed before.

Lyssa passes by me. "It won't lock, but if you don't know it's there, it's hard to find. It was dad's idea to make our escape a bit more secure. He figured it would take them ten to fifteen minutes to open that big door and find nothing but solid rock behind it. Then maybe, depending on how smart they were, fifteen minutes to find the other doorway. Heck, if they're stupid enough, they might not find it at all."

Her dad and sounded a lot like mine. Again, I'm not surprised. As I've said, you had to be crafty and smart to survive the darkness. And they didn't just survive, they thrived!

The tunnel is short, just barely high enough for me to walk bent over. I have no idea how long it is, because the candlelight only goes so far. But it feels very confining. I'm tempted to mention my recent bout of claustrophobia, but I don't want to come off like even more of a wimp than I already have, not to mention I'm a little worried about it taking hold of me if I talk about it.

So instead, I grit my teeth and follow.

After two or three hundred feet, the tunnel starts to slope downhill a bit dramatically. I'm almost afraid it's going to drop off completely. The tunnel goes on like this for about two hundred and fifty feet and then levels off. I start to think about how far under the ground we are and feel a bit of panic well up in my chest. Sweat starts rolling off my brow in streams. Just when I'm about to shout out in terror to let me out, we emerge from the tunnel into a big room filled with seven or eight big turbines.

"Is this the damn?"

Lyssa shakes her head, "No, this is a power plant downstream. Come on, we have to get to the boat and then to the bridge before they find the surveillance room."

"Why, what would finding the control room do?"

Lyssa starts running. "It would lead them right to us stupid! We don't have any cameras past the bridge. But we have a long way to go before we get there."

I try to keep up, but really, I'm in horrible physical condition. Again, I curse myself for not following my father's exercise routines. At one point, she gets so far ahead I lose her altogether. I keep running, but it's no good. I'm totally lost.

I stop, and just manage to wheeze out, "LYSSA! Wait up! I don't know which way you went!"

All I hear is silence.

Great.

I start jogging again in the direction I think she was heading and see a long passage that leads to a big door that is part way open. She must have gone through there. I race down the passageway and nearly fall into a raging river below me. The doorway goes to nowhere.

I look below and see Lyssa struggling with a canoe below me. I scream to her, but the water is so loud she obviously can't hear. I look back and see some stairs going down. I hope her plan is not to hop into that river because that would be the dumbest idea ever.

I run down the stairs and find the door out to where she is with the canoe.

"Are you kidding me? This water is way too crazy to get in that canoe!"

She frowns. "We're not getting in the water. Come on, help me!"

I help her drag the canoe into the building and then down another set of stairs to a landing next to a really calm canal.

"Oh crap, we forgot the paddles! Go back up and get them, I'll put this baby in the water."

By the time I get back with the paddles she's already launched the canoe, loaded my gear and the guns, and is sitting inside.

Lyssa rolls her eyes and shouts, "Look, don't just stand there looking stupid, give me the paddles and get in!"

I hand her the paddles and jump in the front of the canoe (well, to be honest I carefully and awkwardly board). I kneel down just like Lyssa and she hits me on my shoulder with one of the paddles and yells for me to grab it. She pushes us away from the building and starts paddling like crazy, yelling, "Paddle, you moron!"

I'm paddling as fast as I can. It amazes me how quickly we move through the water. I guess, I always thought canoes were really slow. But once you get a good pace going with the paddles, it almost glides along the water.

We round a bend and enter into the part of the canal that has sheer walls, at least forty feet on both sides. Way down at the end of the canal I see a bridge. "Is that it?" I ask. "The bridge you were telling me about?"

"I wish, no we have a bunch more like that one before we're safe. But we'll hit the river there."

I stop paddling and spin around. "Are you crazy? That river is way too wild!"

Lyssa smiles. "Don't worry ya nancy, the river up there moves, yes, but not like back at the plant. It's just a river. Once we get there, you'll see what I mean. The good news is we won't have to paddle as much, which I know you'll like. You know, since you're so out of shape and everything."

Why does she always do that? It's not like I'm a complete loser. I mean, I carried a sixty-pound backpack twenty miles! Well, it was probably closer to ten miles, okay, maybe eight... but still!

"Look, I would really appreciate it if you stopped giving me crap."

Lyssa laughs. "I would, if you'd just stop being so pathetic."

I splash her with my paddle. I thought we'd get into a nice little war of splashing each other, at least that was my intent. But apparently Lyssa had never seen those romantic comedies where couples would play around, splashing each other with water while the soft music played.

No, she just hit me in the back of my head with her paddle. Hard.

Everything turns black. Just as I'm sliding into the abyss of unconsciousness, it reminds me of _The Darkness_ , and how it felt to die.

# CHAPTER THREE

The blackness engulfs me like a blanket. There's no sound, no thought, and no pain. Just nothingness and cold.

An image of my mother pops into my brain from the ether.

It strikes me as odd, because I kind of hate my mother, but there she is. Young and beautiful. She is smiling at me and gently raking her fingers through my hair. I'm lying with my head in her lap and she's looking down at me. And I feel safe. Safer than I have felt in a very long time. Not since I was four or five and I felt like my mother could protect me from anything. She is so beautiful I almost forget that I hate her.

Suddenly my brain is flooded with images of her doing things like wiping my face/hands free of chocolate cake and frosting. And other images of her smiling at me because I'd just drawn a picture and was showing it to her. I had forgotten how beautiful her smile was. It emanated from every cell in her body. And her laugh! Oh god, did she have a great laugh. It sort of took hold her whole body and she would do this bouncing, shaking thing till she finally had to collapse at the waist in a desperate attempt to get oxygenated blood up to her brain. But the best part about making her laugh was that she would always pull me into a hug and kiss me on top of my head, then lean my head back and tell me she never loved anyone or anything as much as she loved me.

I almost forgot about that.

It's funny what you forget about when someone abandons you to absolute solitude and loneliness for the rest of your life. Because no matter how you look at it, that's what her suicide did. She left me on this miserable rock and doomed me to a life where the nearest human being was 3,000 miles away. Actually, to be completely honest, the biospheres weren't that bad. Mine used to feel more like a security blanket than it did anything else. It gave me three square meals a day and I didn't even have to smell my own farts for more than just a few seconds. Dad and I used to call the biosphere a womb away from home.

He was a genius, did I mention that? (My head is kind of fuzzy so I hope I'm not rambling or repeating myself.)

This isn't your typical "kid idolizing his father" kind of genius. My dad was legit. He graduated from MIT with a dual Masters in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering when he was only seventeen years old. Then, instead of getting rich in the high-tech world of the 21st century, he went back to college to become a doctor.

You know, so he could really make the rest of the planet feel like chimps.

He told me once that the medical degree was much harder for him and so it took a bit longer. Well, longer for him. He started his residency when he was twenty-one. Yeah, you heard me right, twenty-one.

Did you do the math yet?

 _Genius_.

You know, time is crazy. I have zero idea how long I've been knocked out. Could be ten minutes, could be ten hours. But it's weird, even when I'm out cold my mind still occupies itself by thinking about my parents.

They met during his residency at the Vancouver General Hospital. My mom was a virologist and was a bit paranoid about her work. She began to see the steady increase of drug resistant strains of lethal bugs and got a little bit panicky. She convinced my father to build the biospheres as a safety net. Originally, the idea was to seal themselves up inside, as a worst case scenario solution kind of thing. That way they could live out the remainder of their years safely tucked away from harm. Though that was long before we ever heard of _The Darkness_ or _The Melding_. It just never occurred to them that surviving the plague meant that they would end up being completely shut off from everything and everyone they ever loved—including each other. My mother used to tell me it felt like she was living in a snow globe.

I lost my dad first.

Did I already tell you that? I'm sorry, I just I can't seem to concentrate while I'm unconscious. I guess that's normal, I don't know.

But what I meant was, I lost him before my mom. It was inevitable I guess; I mean we all die, but for him it was destined to be sooner rather than later. You see, he insisted on being the _only_ one who went outside to make repairs. He caught his biosuit on the metal door latch to the airlock. He lasted three whole days. Back in those days, the strain was still in its infancy, evolutionarily speaking that is. Now, it's evolved to the point where it is lethal in just six hours. The UNN (United Nations Network) claims in its online news bulletins that according to its data the strain is becoming more deadly by the day. It's too bad Dad couldn't have waited till when Mom got sick.

She was gone in just twelve hours.

She claimed there was a malfunction in her biosphere's filtration system, but I checked the logs. There was no malfunction. She opened the air divertors manually. I guess she just couldn't handle the isolation, at least not after we lost Dad. Some days I feel sorry for her. Others I wish she was still here so I could kill her myself.

It _was_ tough watching her go though. I felt so powerless. If I'd had a gun or something, maybe I could have ended her suffering. I mean, I probably wouldn't have done anything. She was my mom and all. But Tylenol was the strongest thing we had for God's sake and she was in so much pain. It wouldn't have mattered though, because when the end came I couldn't risk getting close enough to do anything. I had to seal them both up in their biospheres. Mom was just too broken up to do it for Dad.

They're still in them right now. Their refuge became their tomb.

I feel a wave of nausea hit me. My eyes flutter open but the light is too strong and hurts my brain, so I close them again and slip back into the blessed darkness of sleep.

My mind drifts back to the day I died.

I remember I woke plastered to my sheets and jumped out of bed swinging, like I always do. I've had that same dream for as long as I can remember. The location changes and so do some of the characters, but it always ends with that little girl biting me. It's all so vivid, I can even smell that little girl's strawberry scented shampoo. Well, that's a little carry over from my mother I guess, she had this strawberry scented shampoo and conditioner. I always liked that smell.

Anyway, that morning I woke to find I had lost my signal to the Nexus. That's the game zone the survivors of the plague had created. It was this huge multi-user online universe and it took the place of our daily human interactions. Some of us Skyped and stuff, but we all just mostly met up on the Nexus. But that day I had no signal. After checking the external cameras I saw what looked to be a tree branch lying on top of the dish. Which was by far the worst news I could possibly have gotten—nobody died till they went outside.

By the time I had finally got outside, most of that day had gone and I only had a few hours of daylight left. But even in the evening light, I could see that the branch was actually an entire tree. I had no tools to deal with a tree. No saws or anything. I knew I'd have to go back and climb all the way up to the storage closet to see if I had anything that could help me. And I knew at that stage it meant I wouldn't get it fixed that day.

Then I'd remembered Ellie.

I knew I had to let Ellie know I was fine or she'd freak out. I was pissed. It was a nightmare. So like an idiot, I started breaking branches with my wrench, the only tool I had. The branches came off easy enough, but it had taken too long and I was getting real mad at this stage. So I ended up just forcing my way under the tree, loosening the bolts holding my dish in place, and yanking it free from the trees vice-like grip. Then I mounted it against a shed nearby.

Walking back to the biosphere, I remember I was still so mad I couldn't see straight. I kept throwing my wrench and running up to it and either picking it up and throwing it again or kicking it.

Anyway, when I finally got back to the airlock, I slammed the door release back into the locked position so hard that I almost broke it off. Which would have been tragic since I didn't have a replacement for it. The disinfectant shower had activated automatically once the lock engaged, just like it was programmed to do. But instead of the cool waters drumming against my biosuit, calming my nerves, I feel wetness. It starts on my shoulder blade and then begins to spread out down my back.

There was only one reason I knew that could explain that sensation—my suit was torn. I was going to die.

# CHAPTER FOUR

I remember the steady stream of water splashing all over me, the wetness spreading out all over my back and running down my legs. Even after years of reading Stephen King novels and watching horror movies, it took that sensation for me to finally understand what true terror felt like. My father always told me, I'd have to wait until something I truly loved was threatened for me to really get it. Funny, I never in a million years thought it would be my own life.

I remember thinking, clear as day: "This is it. I'm dead. I just killed myself."

I ripped off the helmet, suit, and the rest of my clothes as fast as I could. The disinfectant liquid stung my eyes and my sinuses instantly felt like they burst into flames, but I didn't have a choice. The suit's integrity had been compromised—I needed to be cleansed.

That's when I noticed the burning sensation coming from my shoulder blade. The same area where I first felt the wetness.

I had no way to check myself in the airlock, but I knew that pain couldn't be good.

I remember I grabbed the suit and clothes and helmet and dumped them in the incinerator. It was more of a bittersweet moment than I expected it to be. I know it all had to burn, but part of me had hoped I could hang on to that suit. After all, it was one of the few things my parents ever touched that I still had left.

I hit the extended clean button, which meant I'd get disinfected again and then rinsed thoroughly with water. The fluid was cold as ice, but I had to let it run over every part of me. When the water mercifully stopped flowing, I hit the airlock release button and dashed out the door. I remember racing over to a mirror that was built into one of the locker doors, and for the first time seeing the injury on my shoulder. A three-inch long gash started at the top of my shoulder blade and sliced down to just below the bone. I'll never forget the way the blood was gushing out. So not only had the integrity of my suit been compromised, but my skin as well.

I threw on a pair of my emergency surgical greens that I kept in the lockers and my shoes and raced down the ladder. When I got to the bottom I stumbled into my room, grabbing a bottle of iodine to pour over my shoulder. I remember I was wholly unprepared for the pain. It felt like I just poured molten metal or sulfuric acid all over my back. I'm not sure how loud I screamed, but I wouldn't be surprised if my parents had heard me in the afterlife.

Once the burning subsided, I wrapped up the wound with an ace bandage and put a surgical scrub back on. I tried to convince myself that everything was going to be fine. That it was just a scratch and nothing to worry about.

But I didn't believe it.

I went into my bathroom and popped the last of the penicillin I had. For all I knew, it could have been the last bottle on the planet, because no one else I knew could get the recipe right. My mom, being the genius that she was, had taught me well. Not that penicillin would do a thing against _The Darkness._ But it would have killed any bacteria in the wound. If I were lucky, it would kill them before they had the chance to spread. There's no guarantee the bacteria wriggling in the wound had the bacteriophage, but I was taking no chances. Plus, I'd always been slightly allergic to the stuff, so I knew once I took it I'd be out like a light.

And it worked, because my head barely hit the pillow before I was asleep.

***

It's weird how you remember the worst days of your life for ever and yet lose all the little details. Maybe it's a survival instinct to dump the really difficult moments, or maybe our brains just don't have the ability to store that much data—I don't know. But all I really remember about the day I tore my suit was that it was a Tuesday. All the details of what happened after I got infected are so fuzzy I barely remember anything. For example, I have no idea how long I was unconscious—I mean it could've been a couple of minutes or several days. All I know is that when I did open my eyes I was completely plastered to the sheets and, oh yeah, my mouth was dry.

No, not just dry, but totally devoid of all moisture.

I remember that the crazy thing was, even in that cloudy state of mind, I still recognized that symptom for what it was. I'd seen it a thousand times. First came the fever and then came the thirst. Thirst so intense that I'd drink till my need was sated, which was the tragedy of it all. Because the need could never possibly be satisfied. I'd just keep drinking till I either drowned or started convulsing.

Then—I'd be dead.

There's a certain level of calmness that takes over when you face your own mortality. My whole life I fought every day to stay alive, but when I was faced with the knowledge that my time was short, the end certain, I wasn't scared or desperate. I was almost relieved. Life had always been so hard, so the idea that I'd finally get to rest was actually comforting.

But even through the haze of sickness I knew I couldn't just roll over and die. There was no way I was going into _The Darkness_ like a wuss, I had to connect the uplink and talk to Ellie. I just couldn't let the question burn in her mind forever about what happened to me.

I owed her that. I owe everyone that.

But in order to do that I had to warm up the server and I couldn't do that from my bed. I remember I even toyed with the idea of stopping by the bathroom for a drink of water from the tap on my way. But luckily I snapped out of it. I couldn't let myself drink. It just sped everything up, that was the last thing my mother learned before my father died.

_Water equals death._

Of course, no water equaled death too, but I never would have had time to get the uplink connection ready if _The Darkness_ progressed too quickly.

I just needed a little more time, a precious commodity.

Somehow I rolled out of bed. I don't know how, all I know is I found myself on the floor and in pain. My bed was really far off the ground and I remember telling myself that in my next life I had to remember to make my bed lower. I dragged myself along the floor and every inch was like a dagger jabbing into my brain. At first, all I felt was the pain, but with each wiggle, the dizziness and nausea hit me like a hammer.

I was too late. I knew by that stage that _The Darkness_ had me.

My last thought before I drifted into the abyss was of Ellie. How she'd never know for sure what happened to me. There were hundreds reasons to lose contact, after all. She might waste years hoping I was still alive, never letting herself consider the truth. But there wasn't anything I could do about it.

I was just dead.

* * *

But I hadn't died just then. Instead, I'd woken up on the floor to the sound of my alarm clock ringing in my ears.

My head was on fire. I grabbed the cord to my clock and ripped it out of the wall. At first, I wasn't entirely sure where I was. The confusion must have started, another symptom of the fever.

I didn't have much time.

I crawled towards my server and hit the emergency power button. I dragged the keyboard off my desk to the floor by the cord. When I heard the distinctive ping of my cursor appearing on the monitor above me, I typed my macro and hit enter. I knew I only had a few minutes to complete the uplink and get through to Ellie, but I didn't have the strength to panic. I just lay my head on the cool floor and closed my eyes.

My room is suddenly filled with light, as all eighteen screens switch on at once. I heard my CPU whir and buzz. I heard a few screens sync up. Probably New Zealand, those bastards always pop up first. They must have the most powerful antenna array on the planet—at least the biggest one that's still online.

Finally, I heard _So Says I_ softly playing through my speakers. Ellie had started playing The Shins non-stop since we found an old archive of music files in the UNN mainframe. I remember I instantly wished I had an emergency monitor at floor level, so I could see her just one more time. I had been, however, clever enough to activate the text-to-speech software with my macro.

I heard the distinctive sound of my monitor coming up and I knew the text session was active. I struggled to look at the keys on my keyboard, the letters kept going in and out of focus. Finally, I gave up trying to look at the keys and typed what I hoped was at least a version of English.

DorianOne: Ellie, ru watching ur screen?

Ellie4Ever: Of course.

Last year, I programmed Ellie's actual voice into the speech software and installed it on my machine for her birthday. She's very shy and doesn't like the sound of her own voice. So I had her read this passage from a book she had. I checked it out and knew it that had all the different sounds in the English language and had her record it. The program I wrote, took those sounds and matched them with the words she typed. That way I could hear her voice and she'd get to remain comfortably silent.

DorianOne: Ellie, listen to me.

Ellie4Ever: Always.

DorianOne: Ellie, I know I've said this before, but this is really happening.

Ellie4Ever: What is?

DorianOne: Ellie, I've got it.

Ellie4Ever: Dorian. Stop please.

I wish I had programmed some emotion recognition algorithms into the program. Because I know she's mad, but her voice sounded all carefree and happy.

DorianOne: I wish I could.

Ellie4Ever: Dorian, this isn't funny you know. You've already done this to me twice.

DorianOne: I know and I'm sorry.

Ellie4Ever: Dorian, you told me you would never do this again.

DorianOne: I know and I'm not doing it now. I really have it.

Ellie4Ever: Where are you? If you're sick, then let me see you.

DorianOne: I'm on the floor Ellie. Look, I don't have much time.

Ellie4Ever: Well, how can I see you?

DorianOne: I hit the macro Ellie, everyone has control of my feed. Just spin the camera.

I heard the robocam swivel and settled into place. I looked up in its direction and waved.

Ellie4Ever: Dorian, this going too far! You can get kicked out for a public prank like this.

DorianOne: Ellie, it's not a prank. Look at my bio-readout. I'm dying baby.

Ellie4Ever: Oh my god, Dorian, you have a 106 degree temperature!

DorianOne: I know, the fever hit me a little while ago and I passed out. I barely got the macro running.

Ellie4Ever: Dorian, do you mean that this is the last time we get to talk to each other?

God I remember how I had wished I'd programmed some emoticons or something. But who needed it when we always Skyped.

DorianOne: I just want you to know I love you. I always have. I felt it the moment I met you.

Ellie4Ever: Oh Dorian, how am I gonna do this without you?

I'm losing my focus, I don't have much time. The keyboard is getting blurry.

DorianOne: Ellie, I need you to shut off my feed. Don't watch me die. Don't do that to yourself.

Ellie4Ever: No! No, I'm not leaving you alone.

Why wouldn't she listen? I knew what it would do to her to watch me go. I couldn't let that happen to her.

DorianOne: Been alone for a long time.

Ellie4Ever: Maybe, but you're not dying alone.

DorianOne: Of course I am.

Ellie4Ever: No.

I might not have been able to hear the emotion that was in that no, but I felt it in every bone of my body.

DorianOne: Promise me. Shut me off. I don't want you to watch.

Ellie4Ever: Too bad. I'm not going anywhere.

DorianOne: Ellie, I'm so sorry I'm going first...I kknnnwo iaprmisedddd.

I'm not even sure what I was trying to type. I couldn't think anymore. I'd barely been holding onto consciousness and I was about to totally lose my battle.

Ellie4Ever: Dorian?

Ellie4Ever: Dorian? Don't you dare!

Ellie4Ever: Dorian?

Ellie4Ever: Dorian, I—I'm sorry.

The last thing I heard before _The Darkness_ took me was Ellie's voice saying, "End of transmission."

I could barely find the strength to breathe.

I knew any moment the convulsions would start. My only hope was that they'd snap my spine in the first wave. I've seen some tweakers last for hours. Of course, I knew I could have been one of the lucky ones. The high temperature could have turned my brain to jelly before the convulsions even started. After all, I've seen that before too. May not sound pleasant, but trust me, it's much better than the alternative.

But before any of that could happen, I blacked out.

And then, I died.

# CHAPTER FIVE

I hear the distinct sound of water sloshing in a bathtub.

But it's far away, like at the end of a really long hallway. I try to focus on the sound, but it's so far away, I'm not sure which is sound and which is echo. It's difficult to focus because all I really want to do is block it out and go back to the silence. Finally, I decide to give up the fight and just let the silence take me again.

But the pain hits me before I can slip into its cold embrace.

My head feels like it was a watermelon after it was thrown off the top of a cliff. I groan and try to roll over, but it's like I'm wedged into an envelope. My back is soaking wet with frigid water and I definitely think I'm going to puke everywhere. I crack my eyes open and squint to try to figure out where I am.

It looks like I'm still in the canoe. There is barely any light at all, which based on the throbbing in my head, is probably a good thing. Based on the movement of the canoe, I know I'm in the water. I feel for my gear and nothing is there. I take a good long look at the walls and ceiling, which seem to be poured concrete. I lift my head for a second and am awash with dizziness so I gently lower my head back down to the soft material it was resting on. From the feel, I'd say it was some kind of floatation device. But I could care less, it was soft and horizontal.

After a minute, the world stops spinning and I risk another peek. I see a landing spot covered with sand and pebbles and the canoe is tied to a log that's sitting on it. My stuff is lying next to the log. It's weird that there is this sandy looking beach in this manmade tunnel, but at the moment architectural design is furthest from my mind.

Okay, so I figure all I have to do is get to the landing, wiggle out of the boat, and not puke all over myself in the process. Oh and try to not get completely soaked at the same time.

_How hard could that be?_

Luckily, the rope tying me to shore is next to my hand, so I pull on it and get the canoe as close to the shore as I can, which sadly isn't as close as I'd like. In my weakened state, pulling the canoe on the sand just isn't an option, but I do manage to get it relatively stabile. I lay back for a moment to rest and gather the will to do what needs to be done. My head is still throbbing and I feel like the boat is slowly spinning around, even though I know it's resting on the sandy bottom.

I roll over on my side and push myself up to all fours. The boat starts to rock and get tippy, so in an effort to stabilize myself, I put my hand on the side and throw a leg out of the canoe, hoping for ground.

The water is cold.

_So damn cold._

My foot finds the bottom and the boat stops rocking. Unfortunately, it also instantly starts pushing away from my foot on the sandy bottom. My foot is firmly planted and I'm just not coordinated enough to pull it back in the boat. So just like in the cartoons I used to watch the boat moves away from me and I go into a split, that is until I can't keep my balance enough and fall into the water.

The cold instantly hits my heart. The jolt of electricity from my main engine, gives me the clarity and strength necessary to make it up the shore.

I'd love to tell you, I made it to shore calmly and changed my clothes and no one was the wiser. But that isn't what happened.

The second my head cleared the surface of the water I started screaming in agony, even before my mad dash to the shore. This of course brought Lyssa running back in a panic. When she sees me, she starts laughing and turns and walks back in the direction she came from.

I am shivering so bad. I don't even have time to feel embarrassed. I just strip out of my clothes and dive into my pack for dry replacements. Just putting on dry underwear is so warm and it almost feels like it's burning my skin. This is where keeping those hiking boots comes in handy. The snowmobile boots are now soaked, inside and out.

Once I'm dressed, I go in the direction Lyssa just went.

I'm starting to warm up and because of that, get more than a little pissed. Not only did she hit me in the head with a paddle and knock me out, giving me a huge lump, a headache, and vertigo, but she is also indirectly responsible for me falling in freezing cold water.

Lyssa is not my favorite person anymore. In fact, whatever love-sick crush I might of have felt for her is now completely gone. As I walk I decide I'm going to figure out where I am and then I'm leaving within the hour. I begin to sincerely hope she chokes on her corned beef hash.

I head down the passageway I saw Lyssa take with a purpose no other wobbly human ever had before. There are several caged light bulbs built into the ceiling. This whole place is obviously manmade, but for what purpose I have no idea. The floor, ceiling and walls look like they are poured concrete. I rub my hand along the surface and the dense smoothness makes me think it is of the finest quality and probably several feet thick. Whatever this place is, it was built to last, that's for sure. The tunnel I'm walking in stretches for sixty feet, before it looks like it turns to the right.

As I stumble down the hallway I remember when my father got sick he told me the world would spin out of control whenever he tried to stand up. At first, he'd macho his way to his feet anyway. My mother used to say it was because he watched too many John Wayne movies. He felt he had to be stronger than human, even though he really should have been trying to conserve his strength. But it wasn't delusions of John Wayne that drove him, it was just pride. He didn't want the love of his life carrying his sewage to the bathroom for him. He needed to try to retain that dignity for as long as he could. Not for her, but for him.

In the end though, it was unwarranted valor.

My mother never treated it like a burden. It was almost like she relished it. Maybe because taking his crap filled bedpan to the bathroom meant he was still alive. I don't know and she never said.

I mean I don't know that for certain you understand. But I watched the two most amazing people in the world kick and scream and claw for every breath they could. Even my mother.

You know, in the end, no matter what you thought before you get sick, life is just always better than alternative. I could see it in her eyes.

The terror.

The absolute unbearable and unrelenting horror of what was happening and what was going to happen to her soon. She was a doctor, man. She knew damn well what was happening to her every moment.

_Imagine that?_

Knowing what every pain means. And what you can expect next and what that means when it happens. I kept hoping that eventually, when we finally got her to the end, that she would become peaceful and reach that acceptance stage I've heard so much about. If she got there, I never saw it.

But then I have no idea what the end was like for her. She wouldn't let me in and she even switched off all her cameras. All I had was her weakened voice coming through the intercom to go by. But it was always there, that lilt. It was subtle sure, but I knew what it meant.

_I knew._

I stumble through the passageway and reach the end. And as I turn the corner I see a big door, slightly ajar. I push it open and see a huge room.

The room is probably the size of a small warehouse. Maybe two or three hundred feet long, with a fifty-foot ceiling. The shear size of the room startles me. It's completely jammed full of crap, not unlike the storage closet in the biosphere, but of a scale I never would have imagined. There are shelving units with shelves full of crap stacked thirty feet in the air. I can't believe she has all this stuff.

I see Lyssa sitting at a desk and staring at a bunch of screens in the far corner.

I'm actually standing on a catwalk about thirty-five feet up. I see a spiral staircase going down, just to my right. I move towards it, but my wobbly legs aren't too thrilled with the prospect of navigating those steps.

Lyssa yells, without looking up, "Close the door and lock it idiot. If a miracle happens and they find us, that door is strong enough to withstand just about any kind of explosive, but only when it's locked."

Well, idiot is better than Nancy I guess.

I close the door and lock the three locks I see. Then I move to the stairs.

The buzzing in my skull forces me to rethink my initial plan of leaving within the hour. Tomorrow my head will most likely be a lot clearer. So I'll leave tomorrow.

I stumble and slide down two steps and think maybe the day after that would be just as good.

I get to where Lyssa is sitting at her desk and I fall into a nearby couch.

"How's your head?"

"Well, all except for the major headache I have, the dizzy spells and nausea, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"Yeah, I didn't think I hit you that hard."

"Well, I think I can say with absolute confidence, I severely doubt you could have hit me any harder."

"Well, you might be right about that. One thing for sure though."

"Oh yeah, what's that?"

Lyssa spins towards me smiling. "You certainly won't be splashing me with water again."

It was suddenly hard for me to be mad at her, her smiling face and the fact that her joke really was funny, not to mention the gleam in her eyes, made it nearly impossible. I almost started to laugh and joke with her about still seeing stars everywhere I looked, but I suddenly realized that she didn't apologize. In fact, I don't even get the sense she's regretful at all. In fact, from her attitude, I'm pretty sure she feels blameless. That by splashing her I crossed the line, that I actually deserved to have my brains bashed in!

This realization of course, instantly made me so furious that I thought I could literally kill her. "Or maybe the next time I do, I'll be sure to bring that paddle all the way around."

Lyssa stops smiling. "Look Nancy, it's not my fault you can't take a hit."

I can't even believe this is happening. She hit me with a paddle. Not by accident, not in the natural course of the motion of paddling, but full on, hard as she could, on purpose. And she has the audacity to not only fail to apologize, but insinuate that I am a weakling because of it!

I jump to my wobbly feet. "You know what?"

She looks at me smugly. "What?"

I didn't even know what I was going to say, at the time, at least not until the words flowed out of my mouth. "I think I've had just about enough of your company, abuse and your insults. Kindly show me the way to surface and point me in the direction to Vancouver."

I can tell by her reaction, that my words were totally unexpected.

# CHAPTER SIX

Lyssa looks around and then stands up and begins to storm away. She turns back and looks like she is about to speak, but instead spins away again and darts off. Then she stops, spins back quickly and marches right back to me waving a finger in the air and again looks like she is about to speak, but nothing comes out. She turns back around and sits back in her chair with a thud. She puts her head in her hands, as if she is in deep contemplation.

Finally, she looks up at me and I can see a single hot tear running out of the corner of her eye and racing down her cheek. "Look, I'm sorry! I am a total bitch okay! I'm just a horrible human being! There should be laws preventing me from being around people and I know that! I totally suck! And I'm not trying to make excuses, but I've been on my own for a really long time with little to no hope of that ever changing and I guess I went a little more crazy than I thought I did. But like I said, that's no excuse. I definitely should not have hit you. Well, at least not that hard anyway. I mean, you startled me with the splash and I just reacted. But again, not saying it was your fault, because it wasn't. I was way out of line and I'm really sick about it. But look, this is not easy for me."

"What's not easy?"

Another tear blazes a new trail out of her other eye. "You. Being here. Alive. It's not easy. The only person I've really ever been around was my dad and that was easy. He was my dad. He was just there and was always going to be there. Until he wasn't." Her sobbing begins to border on hysterical and she just manages to sob out, "And then there was no one and it was... hard. Really, really hard. And finally one day, it was- eas-easier. But n-n-now, it's hard again. Well, not n-now, but it will be soon. Do you understand?"

"No," I say, only because nothing she just said even remotely made sense to me.

So she jumps up, and shouts, "You're the only person I've got, you idiot!"

_Here we go with idiot again!_

Now I'm an idiot because she is completely hysterical and isn't making any sense. I am so frustrated that I want to scream at her and smash things against the wall. I want to call her a Nancy, a wimp, a crybaby or worse! But then I remember what my mom would always say to me when my temper would flare.

" _Oh, I'm sorry! Is the universe not co-operating with you today? Are all your dreams about this moment smashing themselves to pieces on the ground in front you? Well, boo hoo! Get a grip! The universe doesn't give a damn about how you or anyone thinks it should unfold! And getting upset over things you can't control is stupid! And you, my friend, are not stupid! So stop acting like a spoiled child and get over yourself!_ "

My mom just had an amazing way of disarming me, and boiling it all down to an easy-to-digest truism. I don't control my fate. No one does, so to get upset about something I don't control, is just stupid.

So, for the first time in months ( _years_ , if I'm really honest), instead of blowing up and making an ass out of myself to the entire universe I sit down on the nearby couch and sigh.

I feel like I have the weight of the whole world resting on my shoulders, even if most of the world doesn't have a clue what I'm doing. And as if that were not enough responsibility for me, now I am being told I have unwillingly and unknowingly adopted a stray—or rather, she adopted me.

Suddenly, her insistence on driving me to Vancouver makes total sense. She wasn't saving me time like she said was doing, she had no plans to ever go back. She was going to stick with me. She must have had a stash of supplies somewhere along the road. She was probably going to try to figure out a way to tell me on the road or maybe even had some elaborate story about how she couldn't go back because it was too dangerous.

Could my life get any weirder?

I sigh again. "Well, if that's the way you feel, can you at least stop calling me idiot? And Nancy?"

She laughs through her tears, and just manages to say, "I would, if you would just stop acting like one."

Suddenly, we're both laughing.

And crying.

But mostly laughing.

_Mostly._

Through my own tears and laughter, I just manage to say, "So, I'm the only person you have?"

She suddenly stops laughing. "Yes."

"So then you're coming with me?"

She looks terrified.

I look her in the eyes and maybe for the first time I actually see her. She's just a kid. She puts on this front like she's this invincible superhero, but the truth is she's practically a baby. She's like this scared little girl who got lost in a department store or maybe in a forest and doesn't have the slightest clue as to how to find her way back home.

_Just like me._

"You think I want to be alone any more than you do? If it were up to me, I'd go back to my biosphere and we'd be neighbors forever. But I have all these people counting on me. I have to get to San Francisco. I knew that leaving you behind was going to be tough, but I didn't think there was any way around it since I figured there was no way I could convince you to come with me."

She wipes a tear away. "But you didn't even ask."

I sigh. "So you're really coming with me then?"

She looks at me through her tears. "I can't go back to that place. Not alone. I just can't."

"Then you're coming with me to San Francisco? I just want to be clear."

She sighs. "Yes, I am going with you. But please just keep in mind from now on, that wherever you go, I'm going too. So just accept it right here and now. No more drama. No more threats of leaving me behind or splitting up. I can't be alone anymore, so you are stuck with me. Just accept it."

This is getting a little weird now.

She senses my recoil. "Look, I'm not saying we're engaged or anything."

"It's just that... Ellie..." I trail off.

She rolls her eyes. "Look, I get it. You have a girlfriend. Good for you. I'm not offering my undying love or anything. But like it or not, you're the only family I have right now. I know that's crazy since we only met a week ago, but it's true. Partly, because you remind me of my father. But also, honestly, mostly because of my fundamental lack of options. I cannot go back to doing the solitary person thing again. In fact, it scares the ever living crap out of me just thinking about it."

I look in those sad puppy dog eyes and my heart completely melts. She is so vulnerable right now, I want to hug her and rub her back and pat her head and tell her everything's going to be all right. Which is crazy, because ten minutes ago I wanted to strangle the life from her.

_People are weird._

But instead of doing either, I just say, "Yeah, it scares me too."

* * *

We both agree that leaving right away is just not an option. For one, those guys are out there and they're probably searching for us by now and leaving would mean increasing the odds that they'll find us exponentially. Which is so awful to think about, I try to banish it from my thoughts.

But evading capture isn't the real reason we decide to stay: My brain is.

You see, the concussion I got from Lyssa's paddle needs time to heal. I remember reading once that a concussion can take several days to heal, and once you have one, if you don't let it heal properly, you are ten times more likely to re-injure it. The worst part is that all I really want to do is sleep, which, of course, is the last thing I get to do for at least for six hours. You see, according to the first aid section in my Army Survival Manual, a person with a concussion shouldn't be allowed to sleep for the first six hours after a head injury. According to the manual, people with head injuries might have a brain bleed and could slip into a coma in that time period. So it recommended watching them and staying awake until the window has passed.

So, after much discussion, we decide that if I have to stay up for a day then I'll need at least a week before I'm rested and fully recuperated for travel.

Lyssa follows the instructions in the manual, softening the lights and laying me down with a wet towel on my forehead. She keeps talking to me and making me answer questions every few minutes in an effort to keep me awake, but it's no good. Some time after an hour or so, I drift off.

* * *

_I'm walking down a deserted street in Vancouver. There are dead and decaying bodies everywhere. And I don't know how I know this next part, but I am absolutely sure it is exactly twenty-three days after The Darkness has reached the city limits._

_Everywhere I look, death is staring me in the face._

_It's too horrible to behold, all the pain and misery these poor souls must have suffered through, before they were mercifully allowed to take their exit from this world. I didn't see a single body that wasn't positioned like my mother, obviously writhing in agony when they died. I saw several people trapped under cars and I wondered if they had died and were run over, or if they had thrown themselves in harm's way, looking for an early release._

_I finally understood why Lyssa was so dead set against my coming here. It was horrific. It was like confronting the worst nightmare you've ever had, and then never being able to wake again._

_I turn a corner and walk under a tree, which startles a murder of crows who fly off in a cacophony of caws and beating wings. Once my heart restarts, an eerie unease, which only a murder of crows calling out their chilling cries could set in, creeps through my body, and I really begin to panic._

_I start to run. I have no idea where I'm going, but I know anywhere must be much better than right here. As I trip and stumble and kick rocks and cans and sticks, in my mad dash for the safety of some unknown sanctuary, I hear a noise I shouldn't have._

_It's the unmistakable sound of a can being kicked by a careless individual, who is not me._

_I stop running, hold my breath, and listen as closely as I can._

_Nothing._

I must have imagi— _A new sound erupts from the dead silence, cutting off the thought._

_The unmistakable sound of a metal trashcan being knocked over is heard somewhere off in the distance. When the sound fades, I begin to tell myself that it must have been an animal. A raccoon or a stray dog. Maybe even a rat._

_Then I hear a twig snap. Then a car door slam shut. Suddenly, I'm hearing noise all around me, but I don't see anything._

_I feel two hands grip my shoulder tightly and I spin around to see the chomping decayed jaws of a zombified Lyssa struggling to close her rotten fangs around my throat._

* * *

I snap awake and Lyssa is gently rocking my shoulders. I scream, struggling to get away from her.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to scare you, but you were asleep and I got scared! I should have been here to keep you up. I'm sorry!"

I try to catch my breath, struggling to come back to reality. A reality where Lyssa is not trying to bite my throat out, but it's difficult.

It was so... so, real.

"You were so weak, I just thought you needed some food. Here, I made you soup. Campbell's Chicken Noodle. It's really good, my dad used to make it for me when I was sick. I knew I had some, but I couldn't find it at first. I'm sorry, I messed up. I was supposed to be watching."

I am finally starting to lose the disjointed cloud that's been engulfing me the past few seconds, and as a result I'm starting to see things a bit clearer. "Soup? You made me soup? That's what my mother always made me. Only, we didn't have canned soup."

"So, what? Warm water?"

I chuckle. "No, she'd kill one of the chickens and cook it up. She never did teach me how to do it. I guess she'd thought I'd freak out over the butchering of the chicken."

She laughs. "Smart woman. Here, try some."

She is holding the steaming bowl and spoon feeds me. Not as good as my mom's, but, like the corned beef hash, the new tastes exploding in my mouth are exhilarating! I sit up and take the bowl from her, and then I begin to shovel it into my mouth, just as fast as I can.

She steps back quickly. "Jeez, don't eat my hand!"

I chuckle. "Sorry, it's just so good!"

She shakes her head and goes back to the desk. "Obviously."

"Aren't you going to have any?"

She shakes her head, and sighs, "Last can. Sorry. Maybe the last can on the planet for all I know. So enjoy it, champ. It's not everyday you get to enjoy the last thing ever made."

I look down at my dinner in absolute horror, how could such a devilish prank like this ever be played on me? The thought that I will never know this taste again, this taste that I scoffed down so quickly, hits my damaged brain like an anvil. Guilt begins washing over me. I robbed the world of this delicacy!

"Are you serious?"

"Of course I'm not, I have truck-load of it. I only eat it when I'm sick. I have some corned beef hash simmering. You know, you do make it hard not to insult you."

_I really do._

After the soup, I fight the good fight to stay awake, but the combination of exhaustion and head injury is winning the war. Lyssa stops trying to keep me up, after putting up a valiant effort, partly because my symptoms aren't that bad, but mostly because there is no possible way to stop me. I am just too tired to be awake any longer.

Just before I slip away, I notice how similar this feeling is to how I felt when I died on my bedroom floor.

# CHAPTER SEVEN

Almost as soon as I had closed my eyes, the night I died, I was back in the biosphere.

Was I still alive? I was so cold I remember I hadn't been sure.

That was the really strange part: where was the fever? I remember I curled into a ball shoved my hands into my armpits to try to warm them, but it was no good because I was far too cold. My head felt a bit clearer as well, though the fog had been replaced by a dull aching throb in the center of my skull, so it wasn't exactly a win.

I rolled over on my side and pain shot through just about every muscle in my body. I had felt like I'd been hit by a truck. I remember the wall clock was showing 4:18 am, which didn't seem right to me. It just hadn't seemed possible my fever could have broken in a couple of hours.

The fever never breaks. Like, at all.

I couldn't have had _The Darkness._ It must have been a really bad cold or something.

I started to get up to crawl into bed when I noticed how full my bladder was. At first, I contemplated just going in my pants, but the thought of cleaning up afterwards just wasn't even remotely appealing. So the only option left was to try for the bathroom. I reached up and grabbed the arm of my desk chair and used it to pull myself up to my knees. Then I somehow managed to get myself to sit down in its faux-leather comfort. Rather than get up from there, I used the castors to wheel myself to the bathroom. I didn't have the strength to stand up to pee, so I squeezed past the sink and sat it out on the porcelain throne and got it done with.

When I finished, I collapsed back into my chair and rolled myself over to the bed and dove in. I was out almost as soon as my head hit the pillow.

I remember feeling like I had just closed my eyes when I heard a voice speaking in the distance. "Dorian? Dorian Whitney? Mr. Whitney? Turn up the volume would you Gerry? Thank you. MR. WHITNEY, PLEASE WAKE UP!"

The incredibly loud voice stirred me from my deep slumber. The loud squelching sound the feedback made, was so intense I could actually feel it in my mitochondria.

"What the hell? Who is that?"

The loud voice screamed, "OH THANK GOD! DORIAN, MY NAME IS DR. FRANCIS SANDERSON AND I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW NICE IT IS TO TALK TO YOU!"

"I don't care who you are, my head's killing me, could you please be quiet!"

"GERRY?" the squelching sound mercifully disappeared, and he said, "There is that better Dorian? Can I call you Dorian?"

"No."

"Very well, Mr. Whitney, I have been waiting a very long time to speak with you! You wouldn't believe how long!"

"What are you talking about," I asked and put my pillow over my head to try and drown out the noise.

"Well, Mr. Whitney, for all intents and purposes, you were dead two days ago."

I sat bolt upright after he said that. I was blown away that there was a man on all my screens. "Hey, how'd you jack into all my screens?"

The man was in his fifties, which also blew me away, because I didn't think anyone that old was even alive anymore. He looked nice enough, but then again there really isn't very much you can tell about a person from a TV screen. He was balding and was wearing a tie. I'd forgotten all about ties. Seeing one made me feel a bit nostalgic.

"Well, I wish I could answer that Mr. Whitney, but that's not really my area of expertise."

That wasn't good. I could tell he knew very well how they were doing it, but he wasn't talking. I didn't like that at all.

"Look, Dr. whatever—"

"Dr. Sanderson," he offered politely.

"Sanderson, the door of information swings both ways or my door closes, comprende?"

"I don't know what you mean Mr. Whitney? I'm being perfectly—"

I moved my finger to the on-off switch on the power strip next to my desk which powered my server. "Doc, one more lie and I disconnect."

"Wait! Mr. Whitney, please. You have to give me a minute of your time!" He looked desperate.

"Quite frankly Doc, I don't have to do anything. I just had a wicked flu and I need some rest. So if you'll excuse me—Hey did I hear you say I died two days ago?"

He suddenly looked very pleased with himself. "Yes. Yes I did."

"Well, then how long was I out?"

"Well, according to our records, you slipped into a coma two days ago. You had zero brain function at that time, other than the typical autonomic functions expected. Then this morning, for no reason we can tell, you simply just woke up. It's really quite remarkable! And by the way, you are most definitely mistaken. According to your bio-readouts you had the melding and not the flu. Of that there is no question."

Even though my head was still throbbing, I got out of bed and sat in my chair and rolled closer to my screens. "How can that be Doc?"

"Well, that very question has us all very excited over here!"

"Who's us, Doc?"

Doctor Sanderson looked both ways and cleared his throat. "Well, I'm not really at liberty to tell you Mr. Whitney. That information must remain classified. At least for the moment. This line is most definitely not the most secure we could have found."

I didn't like the secrets. "Doc, I'm getting that desire to pull the plug again."

"Mr. Whitney, I'm being told, that it won't do you any good," Dr. Sanderson said. He picked up a piece of paper and recited it to me, "While you were unconscious, we have taken control of your CPU. You are completely locked out and would need a supercomputer to break the encryption code." Doctor Sanderson put the paper down. "I'm sorry about that by the way."

"Doc, I have back ups."

He raised a hand to his left ear. "Yes, I'm also being told that any computer you try to connect to the network will automatically be infected by the virus they've planted and will be re-imaged immediately. Again I'm sorry about all this. It's not my area and I'm not sure what this all means entirely, but it doesn't sound very friendly."

"You don't get it Doc, I have a secondary server. I can isolate this server and disconnect it from my system. My alternate server is firewalled like you read about. There is no way you could get through."

Doctor Sanderson sighed. "I'm sorry Dorian, but I'm being told the moment you try to connect to a satellite to access the game network, your system would be compromised. I know this sounds incredibly hostile."

I pushed myself away from my desk and began to examine my server. "Ya think?"

"I begged them to let me just try to speak with you first, but they can be very insistent when they want to be."

"Who exactly are _they_ again?"

Doctor Sanderson looked both ways again. "As I said, I'm not at liberty to share that information at this time. Suffice it to say, they control things. But what we need from you goes beyond who they are or who I am."

I just didn't understand how they could have done what he said they did. I threw my hands up in the air, and said, "Okay, I'll play along. For the moment anyways. What do you want from me?"

"We need your blood."

I snorted to myself. "Is that a joke?"

"Not even remotely."

I looked behind me, in case there were people there ready to jump out and shout, _Surprise!_

"You want my _blood_?"

"Very much so."

"Well, I don't see how that's possible. As I'm here, and you're not."

"Very true, which is why we'd need you to come to us in San Francisco."

A smile spread across my lips. At that moment it all became clear. I had been thinking that this had to be a prank, but that last bit had just sealed it for me. It had to be Zack messing with me. How he had managed to animate the old dude was beyond me, but I was impressed!

"Alright, I think we've talked enough. Zack, this is a stupid joke by the way and I'm not buying it anymore."

Doctor Sanderson looked around a bit confused. "I'm sorry, my name is Doctor Sanderson, I'm not sure who this Zack person is that you're referring to, but I can assure you that this is no joke."

"Now I know it's you Zack. Look man, I just got over the flu dude. Not cool to play a prank now."

Doctor Sanderson got a very serious look on his face, and leaned in closer to his camera. "Perhaps you need a bit more proof we are who we say we are. I'm sorry about this. I'm told it will only be temporary, so try to remain calm."

And just as he said that, all the screens went black, as well as all my lights. I was sitting in absolute darkness.

I had never been in the pitch black dark before and I didn't like it at all. I started breathing heavy and jumped to my feet. I'd never felt that kind of panic before. I followed along the wall, frantically searching for the vent. I needed more air. I must have passed it twenty times before I found it. I was sure I'd have felt the air blowing on me, but there was absolutely nothing.

No wind meant no air. No air meant _death_.

They must have cut all the power. And I thought I was panicked before.

I flailed for the door, because I needed to get out, I needed air. I had to get to the airlock to get to a biosuit. But the door wouldn't open. Because just like the fan it required power. I was trapped. No air. And very soon no food and no water. The biosphere relied on an aquifer a thousand feet below my feet for water, and without the electric pump I was as good as dead.

_Buried alive._

For the first time since I was a little boy, waking from some diabolical nightmare, pure terror boiled up from my belly and exploded out of my mouth. And once it started, there was no stopping it. The scream that came with it, seemed to come from somewhere outside of my body rather than from within. Like I was connected to it, but not all of it. It was like all the fears I'd been keeping in check for the last fifteen years finally burst past the damn I'd constructed and there was no stopping them.

In other words, I totally lost it.

I began blasting my fists against my hermetically sealed door, in a foolish attempt to break through the stainless steel and one inch thick safety glass. I felt the skin on my knuckles shred and my blood began to make the door damp against my constant assault. I felt the pain, but it was nothing compared to my horror. If I thought it would get me out, I would've gladly ripped off my own leg and beat the glass with it.

Then, as suddenly as the lights went out, they came back on.

A moment later Doctor Sanderson appeared back on the video screen and looked very concerned. "Mr. Whitney! Please, calm down! It's all right! I begged them not to do that. It must have been horrifying. I'm sorry. It's over now. They just wanted to show you that they were in control of not only me, but of you as well."

I was panting and found myself on my knees, I look up at him and stare him in the eye. "Doc—goodbye."

I hit the switch on the power strip, which immediately not only cuts their access to my system but shuts the automated system down, too. My biosphere's controls were designed to operate at the last settings until the end of time or until I brought my server and operating system back up, whichever came first. I crawled over to my bed and curled into a ball and started to sob. My tears didn't last, as I thankfully drifted off to sleep.

That was the day I died. I bet you thought coming back to life would have been a bit lighter and happier, but that is how it happened.

# CHAPTER EIGHT

I woke up dying of thirst.

I got up and stumbled into the bathroom. I wasted no time and just stuck my head under the faucet and began to take in as much water as I could. In the back of my mind, I realized I might have been falling into the trap of the drinking, but the thirst was so intense and my throat was so dry, I didn't care. I had to get water.

I got as much in me as I could, which didn't turn out to be that much, as it felt like a knife in my stomach. I forgot I hadn't any water for a few days and needed to go a lot slower.

My head was throbbing, not from sickness, but dehydration. My eyelids felt like I had sand under them. Since I couldn't drink, I splashed water on my face and it felt good. Some of the water found its way into my eyes and the stinging was both torturous and a relief. I splashed more water on my face, focusing mostly on my eyes. The pain was intense, but it felt so therapeutic, I couldn't bring myself to stop.

I ripped off my surgical greens and jumped in the shower. I turned on the water and stuck my head under the streaming ice that was pretending to be water. It may have been cold, but it was exactly what I craved. It was like the freezing water was waking up nerves that had been turned off for days.

When the water finally warmed up, the steam gratefully found its way up into my sinuses, which I hadn't even realized were cracked and bleeding. So much so, that the water coming from my face was pink with blood. I tilted my head back and allowed the water to splash up my nose, it burned a bit, like smelling strong ammonia, but I could feel the water racing through desiccated tissue in my sinuses and the pleasure far outweighed the pain.

I grabbed the bar of soap and I started to lather up. In a few minutes I was so clean, that it was almost as if the last several days never even happened.

I stepped out of the shower and walked into the bedroom naked. I grabbed a towel and dried myself off and put on some clean clothes. Even though I felt refreshed, I was exhausted from the effort it took to do all that and I dropped into my chair with a thump.

If it had been a normal day, I would've checked the signal strength after I drank my morning coffee. But this day was anything but normal. There was half a week of overdue maintenance to the biosphere to deal with, not to mention that I had to re-image my server and CPU. And true to form, the grand sum total of the work I was facing, overwhelmed me.

So like the true procrastinator I was, I went to the kitchen and made breakfast.

However, my stomach was still gurgling from the water. So I only grabbed a banana; my father used to say that it was the one food that tasted the same coming back up as it did going down. It made me feel a little better, but it was sitting in my stomach like a lead weight. So I didn't push my luck with anything else. I did, however, make myself a cup of instant coffee.

I went back to my bedroom and sat in my chair at my desk. My coffee was steaming on the desktop, as I stared at the screens.

How had they done that?

Got past the firewall and took total control of my whole system like that. My macro was very specific about what powers outside parties would have and not have. Those guys had to be good.

_I mean, very good._

Way better than me, because I couldn't even begin to understand how they did it. Maybe it was a good thing it happened, in a way. It opened my eyes to just how lazy it was having the biosphere's controls and gaming software running on the same system. I had to isolate the biosphere controls completely from the main server. It still needed to be automated, which meant I'd need a new CPU for it.

I sighed.

I knew exactly where a perfectly good CPU was. One that was currently set up for the exact automation I needed. In fact, I knew where two were.

One was in my mom's biosphere and the other was in my dad's.

* * *

It took me four hours to setup the airlock outside my parent's biospheres. It was always a pain rigging up the decontamination shower and filters. When I was a kid, the door was always up, since we never knew when we'd need to get out. But my dad used to make me take it down and put it back up all the time. He'd say he needed a part, so he could fix it, but I knew better. He just wanted me to know how to set it up.

You know, for when he was gone.

Actually, the hard part wasn't the work. That was mindless. It was thinking about what I was going to do when I finished that got me. I may be a moron compared to my parents, but I'm not a total idiot. Even I know you aren't supposed to disturb your dead father's eternal rest, no matter how good the reason.

Before I started assembling the shower and filters, I had to go up to the airlock to grab a biosuit and helmet. I needed one but really I was just looking for a way to take my mind off of everything.

Needless to say, with all the work and barely any food for three days I was pooped.

I remember chuckling at how Zack must feel like that all the time.

I plopped down on my bed and shut my eyes. I figured a little nap was definitely in order. After all, I was practically dead for three days and rest seemed like the smart thing to do.

But as soon as my eyes closed, I saw Ellie's tear ridden face staring back at me.

There was no way I could sleep knowing she was suffering. So I opened my eyes and got out of bed and put on the biosuit.

At first, I headed for the kitchen to get something to eat. I was going into my father's tomb, so I was going to be shaky. No reason to add a healthy dose of malnutrition to the ever-growing list of concerns. But, since that banana hadn't sat so well, I decided to pass. I didn't care what it tasted like coming back up, puking with my helmet on was not an option.

My hands were trembling as I fastened my helmet securely into place.

I had always hoped the need to do this would never come. That my father's biosphere would remain sealed forever. I used to wonder what alien archeologists in the future would think when they found all of us, each safely tucked away in our own private tombs. Would they think we were royalty? Like the pharaohs? Or just deranged lunatics?

A chill washed over me as I stepped into the temporary airlock and closed the door behind me and lowered the locking mechanism into place. I moved to the front of my father's biosphere and froze.

I kicked myself for not taking the CPU when I sealed him up in there five years ago. I remembered that day like it had just happened.

My mother was totally catatonic.

She had stopped responding to me after Dad died. She did her best to take care of him, but it all happened so fast and there wasn't much she could do. I think the shock forced her to work mostly on instinct. He forbade us from going into his biosphere but she didn't listen. When he finally slipped into the coma we both knew it for the end that it was. When she left him, she shut herself off from the rest of the world—including me.

He died a couple of hours later.

Like I said, I sealed his biosphere myself. My mother was—just gone.

She sort of hung in there for a while, though I'm not sure why or how. Maybe she felt obligated to me, or something. But whatever kept her going just ran out of steam.

Sealing up her biosphere was the loneliest thing I've ever done.

I had to make myself stop thinking about that day. After all, there was no way to wipe tears away with the biosuit helmet on, so I needed to get a grip. Without thinking I punched in the security code and I heard the distinctive whoosh of the internal airlock depressurize. A few seconds later the door to my father's biosphere opened a few inches and I felt a rush of air ripple across my suit.

My heart was racing so fast that I was afraid if I moved I might have blacked out. But somehow I reached out my trembling hand and grasped the icy cold handle, as much to steady myself as anything else.

I stood at the door for what felt like an hour, but it was probably just a few seconds.

I closed my eyes and issued a quiet apology to my father for disturbing his rest, then in one motion I opened the door, took a step inside and closed it behind me. I wanted to try to minimize any accidental contamination possibilities as much as I could.

I tried to convince myself my father would want me to do this. That he would want me to take everything I needed to survive. But it was a lie and I knew it. I was trespassing and he would have killed me for even trying something that idiotic, especially just so I could play a stupid game.

But the damage was done and I had a job to do.

Everything was covered with a thick layer of dust. Which I tried not to think about it, because being a scientist's kid, I knew the dust was the remnants of my father. His dead skin cells anyway. It was one of the first things he taught me in my biology lessons. Most dust was just dead skin cells that flaked off our bodies everyday.

I was really starting to panic and almost left. Not for good, but just for a minute so I could clear my head. But I knew that getting to that point took everything I had and I didn't know if I could go through it again.

I needed to try to calm down.

I knew exactly where my dad kept his CPU and thankfully it wasn't in his bedroom. Because he's in there and I just couldn't bring myself to see that.

No child should ever have to see that.

My mother told me before she died where she left him. She knew she'd never see him alive again, even if she couldn't admit it to herself at that time. After all she told herself she was only going to get some more water and maybe something to eat. But in her heart she knew. He was about to leave our lives and there wasn't anything anyone could do about it. And the tears streaming down her face told me everything I needed to know. The last thing she wanted to do was watch it happen.

So she left.

But before she did, she brushed his hair away from his face, tucked in his blanket and laid his arms across his chest. After he died she told me she had never wanted to take her helmet off as much as she did at that moment. She said it was like his forehead and lips were just screaming to be kissed. One last time before all the life was cruelly sucked from of them.

But she couldn't bring herself to do it. Instead she turned and walked out of his room and closed the door. It wasn't even a full hour before we heard the alarm sound on his monitor.

She didn't speak a word to me for three months.

As far as I knew, he was still lying in the exact same position that she so carefully left him in, resting peacefully. But there was no way to be sure. The blanket could have rotted off by now or he might have gone into convulsions and been thrown off the bed or worse. Like my mother, I don't want to know what happened after she left.

Not ever.

I read this article once about the incorruptibles when I was just a kid. According to the Catholic Church, for some reason no one quite understood, certain folks just never rotted. Saint Bernadette is said to have been one, one of the incorruptibles, I mean. The Catholics believed that they were so revered in the eyes of God, that he couldn't bring himself to allow them to rot. I don't know if I buy that, but if it was true, then as far as I'm concerned, both my parents are incorruptibles.

I don't care what anyone says.

After what felt like an eternity, I forced myself to move. I crossed the room to my dad's workstation. Behind a curtain under his desk was the stainless steel wheeled cart he built which held all his technology. He designed it to be hermetically sealed, that way its internal structures would never be exposed to germs or contaminants and thereby reusable by my mom and me.

Like I said before, my dad was a genius and thought of everything.

Once I wheeled the cart to the airlock, all I had to do was hose it down with the decontamination fluid and everything it contained would be free of disease carrying life forms and viruses.

Now, it had been four years since my dad died, so the idea that a virus would still be lurking anywhere inside it was remote to say the least. But fungi have been known to thrive for a long, long time in hermetically-sealed vessels. In fact, a harmful fungus had long ago been discovered in the tombs of the pharaohs.

So since anything was possible I took no chances.

It took several tries before I got my dad's CPU out of his biosphere and into the airlock. Once there, I quickly closed the door and through a quiet tear said, "Bye Dad. I love you. And thanks."

I punched the code into the door panel and I heard the airlock whirr and hiss. Then came the first blast of cold water. I turned and watched as my dad's dust got washed off the CPU cart. I wish I had thought to clean it off inside his biosphere. Maybe I wouldn't have gotten it all off, but I felt bad that his dust was being washed down the drain.

Once the shower shut off, the room was blasted by a disinfectant spray. I raised my arms and spun slowly in a circle, letting the disinfectant liquid cover me entirely. The liquid was so thick, that I couldn't see my hand in front of my face. Then the second bath began and I'm thoroughly doused with freezing ice-cold water again.

When the water stopped, the air lock door opened and I pushed the cart down the hall and into my room. I took off the biosuit and hung it from a hook on the wall and sat with a thud into my chair. My mind was reeling, because at that moment I was now closer to something my father touched then I have been in a long, long time. I reached out and traced the smooth metal that was still wet from its bath with my fingers.

My father touched that cabinet. With his skin. His hand might have rested right where my hand was at one point.

Suddenly I thought of what that doctor said. That my blood had antibodies to fight off _The Darkness_. Which meant, maybe, if I could have just contracted it earlier, both my parents might be alive. Which meant that my father's insistence on being the only one to go outside was the worst and only bad decision he ever made in his life.

But I just didn't buy it.

It just seemed ridiculous to me that my body evolved a way to defeat the disease that virtually destroyed the entire planet. I'd been locked up in a bubble my whole life. A bad cold could have killed me, well in theory anyway!

Besides, my father always told me that evolution took eons to make its changes. It just didn't make sense. I wasn't even convinced I had _The Darkness_ in the first place.

No one comes back from that— _no one._

I attached my dad's computer to one of my screens and I began to reprogram it. I only had to change a few settings and recode a few macros to adapt it to my biosphere. The whole thing took about twenty minutes and I was back in control of my biosphere. It was a bit of a relief, but bittersweet. This CPU belonged to my father—I shouldn't have had it.

I felt dirty.

I spun around and manually disconnected my CPU from the dish and powered it up. Nothing strange happened, the computer seems to go through a normal startup procedure and I'm left at the desktop. I don't know what I was expecting, but that definitely wasn't it. I assumed they'd have changed something so big that I would have noticed, but everything looked fine. I just knew I couldn't be that lucky. People who could take over your computer so completely shouldn't be thwarted by the simple act of powering down a CPU. So I started digging. I opened up the startup register and everything looked good at first. But then I discovered my hard drive was now partitioned into two drives. One I had access to, but the other I did not. In fact, I didn't even know the name of this secret partition. The only reason I knew it was there was because I only had access to half of my memory and the other was hidden from view.

Sadly, there was no other option, I had to re-image. I'd lose some files, but nothing irreplaceable. Besides, I had backups of my backups. So I took my external reimaging hard drive out of the lower drawer of my desk, shut down my CPU, plugged my reimaging hard drive in and powered it back up.

Everything seemed to go as it was supposed to. My reimage drive took control of the startup and halted it. I selected re-image and hit the enter key and then all hell broke loose.

I got a warning message that I did not have the necessary clearance to re-image the machine and a bunch of code started streaming through the screen. I'd never seen anything like it before, it moved so fast, it made me think of The Matrix movie. A message box popped up that said a foreign drive had been detected and the system was attempting purge it. So I killed the power; after all, I didn't want my re-imaging drive voodooed.

I decided the drive wasn't worth the hassle, I had hundreds of them. So I stripped my machine and dumped the hard drive in the recycling shoot. Then I pulled a spare from my electronics storage closet. Well, I call it a closet, but it was really just a cheap white particleboard bookshelf with two doors. I hooked up the hard drive, plugged in my re-imaging drive, restarted the computer and hit re-image.

I probably should have done this the first time, but I had no way of knowing what those guys did to my system while I was unconscious. Suddenly, the same code started streaming across my screen again and the same message about a foreign hard drive was detected as well. I pulled the new hard drive and killed the CPU.

What the hell?

That was a brand new hard drive, there was no way those bastards laid a finger on it. Then it hit me: they must have programmed a sentinel into the firmware. But how? I mean, if they rebooted, they would need to be here to reposition the satellite? Then I realized, they didn't do anything, I did. By restarting the system, I must have launched all their code. That's when the partition was set up and when the sentinel program was coded into one of the components.

Smart.

Which of course meant that the whole CPU was junk. I had to replace every component, because there's just no telling where they hid that sentinel, if it even stayed in the same place. Which meant only one thing and it made me want to puke.

I had to get my mom's CPU if I was going to get back on the network.

I spun around in my chair and leaned back, resting my head on the tall backrest. At least I didn't have to setup the airlock again. My dad was pretty smart about that. He designed all of our biospheres with a central access point. That way only one airlock door needed to be installed and the filtration and fire suppression system altered. I wish I was half as smart as he was. That way, maybe I could've found the sentinel code and wipe it out. My dad taught me a lot about computers and he gave me an extensive library of books on things like systems administration and even software design. But I guess he thought I wouldn't have any use for firmware programing. Besides, I always thought you needed special equipment to rewrite firmware.

I stood up with my shoulders hunched and my head held low. When I grabbed the biosuit and pull it back on my hands were visibly shaking. I did remember to tuck a towel into my belt before I shuffled out of my biosphere.

My mother's death was so fast, it scared the hell out of me.

So when she forbade me from going into her biosphere, like the coward I was, I didn't put up a fight. She died totally alone. I wasn't there for her at all. Nobody laid her down in bed or combed her hair away from her eyes or folded her arms in place on her chest.

She would have been there for me, I'm sure. In fact, based on the fact that she offed herself, I'm sure she would have taken off her helmet and kissed my forehead.

But as a result, I had absolutely no idea where she was in there. All I knew for sure was that I had killed the cameras and locked her door. Then, just like I did for Dad, I covered the glass up on the airlock door with a black sheet of plastic.

In my defense, she was really convincing. She told me that the strain she had was different, faster, more virulent than any we had seen before. I knew she was just trying to scare me when she told me that but it worked. She died in just twelve hours. In fact, I couldn't believe I was even considering going in there. But I didn't see any other option. It would have taken me at least six months or more to build a new CPU from scratch. And in the end, I'm not entirely sure I even had all the parts I needed.

And Ellie couldn't wait six more hours, nevermind six months. I needed to get to her ASAP.

I closed the airlock door behind me and lowered the locking mechanism into place. Then I punched in her security code. I heard her biosphere pressurize itself to the hall. I clutched the towel I grabbed when I left my room tightly. I needed it to clean the CPU before I wheeled it out. I didn't want to lose part of my mom to the drain like I did with Dad.

I might not be as smart as my father, but I rarely made the same mistake twice.

The door opened and I felt the whoosh of air rush past me. I took a deep breath and made a solemn promise to be fast and respectful. No long walks down memory lane. After all, I grew up in this biosphere; I knew every nook and cranny.

I grabbed the handle and pulled the door out at me. I stepped out of the way and then dashed inside and there she was, on the floor by the door to the bedroom.

Not comfortably lying in her bed or even on the couch.

_I wasn't that lucky._

She was lying on the floor. Her face was in a dried up crusty puddle of what I can only assume is her own vomit. Her spine looked like it snapped from the convulsions, leaving her in an awkward position. And I might have been wrong, but it looked like she defecated herself before she died.

I couldn't get enough air.

I was sucking in so hard and getting almost nothing into my lungs. I almost took my helmet off in desperation. I couldn't think. I tried to look away but my eyes were glued on her, soaking up every horrible detail. You know, that way I would be able to relive it over and over again in my nightmares for the rest of my life.

She was definitely not an incorruptible.

Her skin was almost translucent in some places and black in others. And through her matted hair, I could see that her scalp had turned a bluish-green color that was so disgusting I almost puked on the spot. Fortunately, she was lying on her stomach so I couldn't see her face. I could only imagine what horror awaited me in those eyeless sockets and shrunken lips. Her skin looked like leather. My only solace was that the suit was protecting me from the smell.

I was absolutely frozen in horror.

I tried to convince myself, that I was in a different room. That the corpse on the floor wasn't the woman who tucked me into bed every night and kissed me on my forehead. She wasn't the woman who used to cuddle me when I was scared or who would kiss my bruises when I fell. I told myself that I could still remember her face and so the corpse that was before me just couldn't have been her. That had to be a different person.

But it didn't work.

The tears were streaming down my face and were blurring my vision, which was a relief. Through my fogged up visor and soggy vision I could just make out the CPU in the corner. Like my dad's, it was in a stainless steel cabinet on wheels. So I collected what little courage I had left and slowly made my way over. I took the towel I've been clutching in my right hand and started to clear the dust off of the CPU in between sobs. I couldn't bring myself to clean it as thoroughly as I would have liked, I just didn't have the strength to stay there long enough to get it done. I had to get out. I summoned whatever willpower I had left, gently laid the towel on her desk and wheeled the unit into the hallway, slamming her door behind me.

I leaned against the door and tried to forget what I just saw. But there was no way. There was just no way. Some things cannot be unseen.

As I slid down the wall, sobbing, I tried to convince myself to go back in there. I wanted to pick her up off the floor, put her in her bed and cross her arms on her chest. At least throw a blanket over her. I know that I should have done that. That a good son would have, but I was just too terrified that I would flip her over and see her face, complete with empty soulless eye sockets—I just couldn't bring myself to go back.

I'm sorry, Mom. I just couldn't do it.

So, I did the only thing I could do. I relocked her door and started the decontamination protocol.

I fell back to my knees. The sobs were so overwhelming, that I just couldn't stay on my feet. I curled into a fetal position as the water pelted my biosuit. I wish I'd had the courage to do what needed to be done. I cursed myself for being so weak. When the disinfectant began coating me, I forced myself up. I had to let it cover my whole body. When the cold water kicked back on, I was a little calmer. I moved the CPU to the door and lifted the locking mechanism.

Why did I listen to her?

I should have gone in there and put her in bed. I should have covered her like she did for Dad. I should have done something. There's no way he would have just left her lying on the floor.

I sat on the floor and sobbed for over an hour. I would have stayed there for days, but stray thoughts of Ellie brought me to my feet.

I wheeled the CPU into my room and connected my re-imaging hard drive to it, but I stopped short of starting it up. That hard drive was all I had left of my mother. All of her work was there and I hadn't looked at it. No one had. There could be a journal. I couldn't bring myself wipe it. For some reason I couldn't understand, I needed to save what I could. I felt like I owed it to her after failing her when she died. I disconnected my re-imaging drive and started her computer up. I decided to migrate all her files to an external drive and then re-image her machine. As much as I would love to leave her machine exactly as it was, forever, I had to get my communication software on her computer and she wasn't running the proper OS.

I opened my desk and pulled out a spare external hard drive. Her home screen appeared and I plugged in an external drive. It would take several hours to copy her files. While I waited, I did my laundry, cleaned the dishes and even made my bed.

Anything I could think of to keep my mind occupied.

After the files transferred, I shut down her machine. Then I plugged in my re-imaging hard drive and rebooted. After I hit re-image, I walked into the hallway to break down the temporary airlock. It took about four hours to re-image, which would give me just enough time to tear it all down and take care of some other maintenance issues.

I couldn't just sit there. Sitting meant being drowned by guilt.

* * *

After my chores, I was amazed that I able to eat somehow. I had an apple, oatmeal with raisins, and a bowl of ramen noodles with an egg dropped in. It felt good to eat. It felt good to cook, too.

After I cleaned up, I walked into my room to check see if the re-imaging was done and it was. I rebooted the CPU and my home screen appeared on the machine, which was the first thing today that had brought a smile to my face.

I changed my admin password and beefed up my firewall. No outside queries would be able to get past my security measures now. Any attempt to break through, would trigger an alert and automatically cut the link.

With a deep sigh, and a shaky hand, I connected my system to the dish and began searching for non-UNN satellites. I wanted to keep a low profile, and a non-UNN connection was just the thing. If I used a non-standard uplink, it might fool them. Even if it didn't, it should take them a while before they notice my connection to the nexus. Which should have given me the time I needed to talk to Ellie. Or at least get word to her. I couldn't risk reaching out to her directly; I knew they'd be looking for that.

I've got to be smarter than them.

My search found an old weather satellite that used to belong to the old Soviet Union. Most of them weren't functioning, but I had used this one plenty of times. It had a much higher orbit, so the signal was a bit weaker, but I wouldn't need much. I was just going to the Nexus, not gaming.

I grabbed my goggles and put them on, but stopped short of pulling them over my eyes. Once I got connected to the satellite, I began to hack into the Nexus. Only UNN satellites are approved to access the Nexus, but when I didn't want Ellie to know I was gaming (she got really weird about gaming too much) I went in through non-sanctioned satellites. I had a million pseudo accounts, but she had that whole network wired and knew every time I logged in anyway. She had no way to track hackers, not even the UNN could. So, for a bit of privacy, I learned how to do it. My buddy Zack taught me.

It took me about ten minutes get on. Finally, I slid the goggles down and hit "Enter".

# CHAPTER NINE

I wake up on the uncomfortable cot in Lyssa's lair and lifted my head.

My head movement was egged on because my brain didn't feel as fuzzy as it did after Lyssa hit me. I know, really descriptive word, fuzzy. But honestly, that's the only way I can describe the way it felt. Everything was slightly out of focus. And everywhere I looked, there was this shadowy spider-web haze on everything. So when I woke with clear vision and not even a smidgen of a headache, I take it as a good sign.

Gently, I slide my legs over the side of the bed I'd been sleeping on and slowly sit up. I think for a second that the dizziness is going to overtake me again, but after experiencing only a few seconds of worrying lightheadedness, my mind clears and I feel fine. So, I stand up to test my sea legs and I'm amazed to find that for the first time in days I don't feel like I'm standing with someone else's feet under me.

I stumble to the bathroom and relieve the pressure boiling over in my bladder and splash some cold water on my face. It feels so good, I strip and jump in the shower and wash away the last four days of sweat and boredom.

When I walk out of the bathroom I see Lyssa sitting at the desk with all the TVs and she's staring at all the screens and tapping buttons. I stumble in her direction drying my hair with a damp towel and plop in the chair next to her. I'm still a little dizzy, but I can't tell if my head is the cause or the extreme lack of exercise the last few days.

"What are you doing out of bed?" she asks.

I smile. "Oh, you worrying about me?"

Without taking her eyes off the screens. "Not really, just wondering why you suddenly decided to stop being such a pansy."

I get a little defensive. "Right about the time the swelling began to go down on my head, after you brained me."

She smiles. "As you have no brain, it is not even remotely conceivable that I brained you."

I don't know why I bother to try to banter with her; she is just way better at it than me.

I suck.

I look at the screens and in a lame attempt to change the subject. "What are you looking for?"

She instantly rolls her eyes. "You see? No brains, I told you. I'm looking for the murdering psychopaths who were hunting us! What did you think I was doing, a bird study?"

How do I keep walking into these things?

"No I mean, where is this? I don't recognize this place."

"It's down river from the power plant. I've been scouring the cameras and I haven't found a single sign of them. It's got me really worried."

"Why?"

Because you know, I wanted to know why.

She rolled her eyes and spoke to me like a baby. "Because moron, if I can't find them, I have no idea where they are. Which means they could be right outside that door and I wouldn't know it."

"But if you can't find them, couldn't it also mean that they left?"

"No, because I'd be able to find signs."

Now, I know I have her, "Maybe, but the blizzard might have covered all the signs they left."

She sighs, "I know, but that doesn't make me feel any better. It just means they could be anywhere."

Small victory, which is better than none, but it's one that leaves me feeling more scared and less satisfied than I would have liked. I change the subject instead. "Well, anywhere but here is better. We having lunch soon?"

* * *

After we eat, we start planning our departure, because I don't want to lose any more time.

We pack our gear, which is brand new all state-of-the-art stuff. All lightweight and easy to haul. Only the bare necessities, of course, but it still put my original equipment to shame. I left Lyssa in charge of deciding what we needed. I didn't know what half the stuff was and since she'd been out camping with her folks a zillion times, she was the expert.

In the end, she settled on more stuff than we could carry in our packs, but she also had a plan. She had a sled we could use while the snow held up and when we finally reached a place where the snow was gone, she had wheels she could attach to it. She said her dad designed it and they'd used it a bunch of times.

It took us more than a day to get everything together and to decide on a route. I tried to convince her we should stick to the river, since it flowed right to the harbor, but she outright dismissed the idea. She said it was suicide. I deferred to her knowledge, since she has some and I don't have any, but I was so hoping I could float the rest of the way and not have to walk.

I guess being alive and tired is better than well rested and dead.

Besides, she has an escape hatch that leads to a secret trail she and her father blazed years ago and it was deep in the forest. Which according to the map we have, will allow us to stay off the beaten path eighty percent of the way. At first I was worried about the path she chose, what with all the snow, I thought it would be hard to follow. But then she showed me that she actually had a working GPS device. I explained that the UNN shut off every satellite I ever heard about, so I made her prove to me that it worked. She thought that if they were really watching us, and truly wanted us to reach the harbor, they'd make triple sure our GPS functioned just as it did when it came off the factory floor.

She also insisted that we spend two more days scanning every camera in her system. Which is what I'm doing now. I must admit, I don't see the point. It's been a week and we haven't seen a squirrel nevermind any dangerous cannibals. But I've never been one to laugh in the face of safety either. My father used to say a cautious mind is capable of error, but rarely catastrophes.

So, I'm cautiously scanning video surveillance screens for cannibals and keeping an eye peeled for sasquatches at the same time.

You know, just to be safe.

"Hey, what was that?"

I didn't hear her walk up behind me and the sudden appearance of her voice made me jump. "Jeez, I need to put a bell on you!" I say.

She smacks me on the shoulder, pushes me out of the way and steers the camera over to left, zooming in on a black spot that looks to be about the size of thimble to me.

"Is that a squatch?" I ask.

She elbows me and refocuses the camera and we clearly see the obscure dark object. "You and those stupid squatches! Look, right there! I told you they were out there!"

"Who? The shadowy blob people?"

She elbows me again and this time catches me off guard in the stomach and I double over in pain. "Are you kidding me? You can't see that's a blanket?"

I struggle to lift my head to the screen and really squint my eyes. If I'm being honest, it could be a blanket, but it might only look like that because she just said it. At first, I really just thought it was a wet boulder.

"Honestly, it might be, but it could be anything."

"Look, I knew you were a moron, but I didn't know you were also blind! That is clearly a blanket!"

I'm a bit bored with this conversation, "Okay, so what if it is?"

"Come on, you can't be that stupid! I mean, if your brain is strong enough to keep your heart beating and everything, you should be able to figure this out!"

I sigh. "First of all, pacemaker cells in my heart are the ones keeping time, not my brain. Second of all, a blanket on the side of the road means nothing to me."

She sighs and shakes her head, "It proves, they were just there."

"How?"

"Because it wasn't there yesterday!"

"Oh come on! You really expect me to believe that you know for a fact it wasn't there yesterday? With all the other junk laying around in every camera?"

She looks at me incredulously, then taps a few buttons and a picture shows up on the screen. "What's that?"

She leans back and puts her hands behind her head. "That is an image I captured yesterday at 4:50 p.m. You know, like you were supposed to have been doing every time you changed cameras! You know, like we agreed to do!"

I stare at the picture and sure enough, she is absolutely correct, there is no blankety-blob thingy.

"Okay, then where is this?"

She spins around and grabs the map and points to an area up near the dam, "Well, that's no problem then! That's at least a day and a half's walk from here. We can leave now and be ahead of them the whole time."

She punches me. Hard.

And man, I mean, _hard_.

I whine, "Hey!"

"Look, you can be a stupid, reckless, bunker baby when it's just you, but not when I'm with you! They had horses genius! We can't stay ahead of horses! If they find our trail, they will unleash the hounds and we'll be screwed!"

I forgot about them. Why is it, no matter the situation, I always end up looking like a buffoon in front of Lyssa. Just once I'd like to avoid looking like a total fool.

"Okay, good point. So, what? The river?"

"Right, the house is on fire, so let's throw gasoline on it!"

"Okay, Hannibal, you got any elephants in your pocket?"

She sighs. "I'm afraid I do, but you're not going to like it. I know I don't."

"What? We tunnel to Vancouver? Because I think that'll take way too long!"

She smiles, "Man, you don't know how close you are."

She taps a few more keys and a digital map of the Greater Vancouver area pops up on the screen. Just like any other map I've seen, which had streets and landmarks on it, this one had a bunch of red, green, gray, orange, and blue lines running through it everywhere.

"Okay, I'll bite. What am I looking at?"

"This is a utility map of the entire Vancouver area."

"Oh! Great! So what?"

"Your attempt at sarcasm, while pathetic, amuses me, so I'll tell you. The green lines are gas lines. The red lines are electric lines. And the blue lines are water main lines."

"Fantastic! Again, so what?"

"Well, you see all those gray lines?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Those are the sewer lines."

"So freaking what! I'm not walking through a sewer!"

"Right, me neither, but do you see those orange lines?"

"No, I'm color blind."

"Funny. Well genius, those are the storm drains. In fact, the storm drains were designed to be employed as an emergency runoff for the dam. That orange line there, runs all the way from the dam to the bay."

"You're saying in lieu of sitting in a canoe and floating down a picturesque river, we should instead wiggle through a claustrophobic's worst nightmare, because you think you see a blanket by the side of the road?"

Lyssa puts her feet on the floor and spins to face me. The look in her eyes is pure evil incarnate. "Yes. Yes I do."

So like the true coward I am, I say, "Okay, I was just making sure we were on the same page is all."

"We leave first thing in the morning. So be sure to get a good night's sleep Nancy, because you are going to need it."

_Man, I do hate it when she calls me Nancy!_

# CHAPTER TEN

I knew I didn't have a choice in the matter, Lyssa made the decision to take the storm drain and that was that. It took us five and a half hours of walking through a maze of the narrowest hallways, stairs, and tunnels mankind ever conceived of, before we finally reached the dam's runoff pipe.

It's huge.

I mean, _gigantic_.

But still as large as it is, the light that leaks in from the storm drains isn't enough for me to see my hand in front of my face. Unfortunately, it is enough to see the tiny specks of light stretch out for miles. I mean, we could walk for hours and not feel like we made any progress.

It's a depressing thought.

I had to argue for half an hour to go first because she was adamant that she would lead the way. But I just couldn't have that. I mean, if she fell in a giant hole in the ground, I'd be dead anyway. There was no way I'd find my way out. But if I fell in, she'd still be able to make it to safety. She argued that the map didn't show any dry wells, but my point was that the map was incredibly vague. An orange line, after all, doesn't explain anything but general direction.

I impressed myself, mostly because I won.

I like winning.

Though I'm not used to it, actually; to be honest, I never win arguments.

Which sort of tells me, she really wanted me to go first. Which makes this a hollow victory.

So what, I'll take it.

I start out walking down the tunnel with a single candle lighting my way. We actually have these hand-cranking flashlights, but Lyssa was worried that the light might carry too far and be seen from above through the storm-drain grates. She thought the candles would be so dim we'd see the light from the grates before we got to them and we could blow them out.

At the time, I thought it was a good idea, but now that I'm baby stepping a twenty mile walk through a drain pipe and barely seeing the ground where I'm placing my feet, I'm reconsidering. Lyssa is hanging back just far enough where she said her eyes adjusted to the light the candle made without making her blind.

Like me.

I thought this route was stupid before, I'm beginning to think it's the biggest mistake I've ever made. At this rate, I would be lucky to get to Vancouver by the spring.

I stop walking.

It takes about five minutes for Lyssa to reach me.

"What's the matter? Why did you stop?"

I sigh and turn to face her. "This is crazy! We 've walked about two hundred and fifty yards in the last two hours. At this rate, it's going to take a month to get there!"

Lyssa does not like being second-guessed. She snaps at me, "Well, what do you think we should do?"

I didn't have a plan. I never really plan anything. I just sort of react to things. It's at times like this that I really wish I did plan things.

All I know is what I see. An endless blackness heading down a seemingly endless slope.

Suddenly, I knew just what we should do. It came to me in a flash. I wonder if that's how everything worked for my father. One second there is no answer in sight and then suddenly it was just right in front of his eyes.

"You said this tunnel leads all the way to bay right?"

Lyssa rolls her eyes. "I've told you that I thousand times genius."

"Good, then let's ride the sled."

Lyssa stares at me for a moment, staring at me like she didn't hear me and then says, "What?"

"We ride the sled. The whole tunnel has to run downhill the whole way or the water would pool. The tunnel is bone dry right now, because it's winter. We get a good running start we should roll the whole way."

"Genius, we were walking really slowly because we can't see. How is going faster going to improve that?"

"Well, since we're going faster, we can afford to use the lights. Even if those killers see the light and I'm still not convinced they will, we'll be going too fast to catch. And there is no way for them to get the horses down here. So they'll have no idea what direction we are heading, unless they have the utility map. And since they are traveling over land, there's no reason they would. Trust me, it's a good plan."

She looks at me like I have ten heads. "It most definitely is not anything even remotely like a good plan!"

I get defensive. "Why because you didn't think of it?"

"Not at all. I'm open to ideas, just not suicide."

I raise my voice a little. "Will you, for this one time, try something new and stop talking and listen for a change! We need to get to the bay. And what's more, we need to get there faster than the guys who may very well be hunting us right this very minute. Besides, we can steer the sled easily with the leader, your dad definitely looked like he had that in mind when he designed it, if you ask me. And as long as we are pointing both the lights ahead of us, we should see any dry wells or obstructions long before we get to them."

Lyssa stamps her foot, "There is no way I'm riding that thing down a tunnel I have never even walked down! It is stupid, reckless, and crazy! Absolutely not!"

"You can drive."

"Okay then."

* * *

It takes us ten minutes to get the flashlights out and to rig the sled so Lyssa can steer it. She insists we practice braking and emergency steering techniques. It's probably a good idea, but I just want to get going.

I feel like a sitting duck in this tunnel. I don't know if there is anything down here, that might be hunting us, but I don't want to stick around to find out.

After like a hundred drills, we finally get in position.

Lyssa sits at the front even though it's actually easier for her to steer if she sits in the back, but she can't see around me. Besides, with me in the back, I can kneel on the sled so that every once in a while, I can jump out and push us along or even just use my leg to give us a shove. You know, if we hit a flat spot.

So we get in position. "I'm just gonna give us a few running steps and then jump on the back," I say.

"Okay, but only a few. Let's take things really slow for a while."

I sigh. "You're the boss."

I grab the sled by the rails and start to push it, running two steps, then jumping in. I barely make it. The sled shoots off with such force, it takes me off guard. Not careening to our deaths out of control fast, just faster than I thought we'd go.

"Man, I almost didn't make it on! I didn't think we'd go that quick."

"I know I'm probably imagining it, but are we speeding up?"

It certainly felt that way to me, but I took that as a good thing. I knew Lyssa wouldn't. "Not to me."

We're only going about eight to nine miles an hour, but in the small tunnel with the lights in front, it feels like we are going much faster. Besides, I've never moved faster than human speed before, so nine miles an hour feels like a hundred!

"Hey, does it look like the tunnel ends up ahead?"

I look and it does. "Shoot, yeah, I'll hit the brakes."

I reach down for the brakes, but never make it.

The tunnel's angle radically shifts from a gentle six-degree slope, to a breakneck seventeen-degree slope in a fraction of a second. We instantly speed up from a not so comfortable nine miles an hour to thirty-five in a heartbeat.

I'm bouncing all around; this sled is not designed to move this fast and unlike Lyssa, I'm not sitting down. I was barely on one knee and the other slid over the rail when I jumped in. I am barely able to hold on.

Lyssa is screaming out, "BRAKE! BRAKE!"

I'm screaming, "HELP, I'M FALLING OFF!"

Then up ahead in the beam of the lights, I see what looks like a dry well.

_We're dead._

# CHAPTER ELEVEN

I've never seen Lyssa move faster, as she grips the reins tightly and screams out, "HOLD ON!"

She steers us to the right of the tunnel. We ride up the side, but there is no way we can stay up there and we start sliding back down towards the middle. Lyssa steers us right past the middle and up the left side of the tunnel. For a minute, I think it might work, but she instantly steers us back to the middle. "HOLD ON!" she screams.

We race towards the dry well, which is a hole in the floor, about five meters wide and ten meters long. It just looks like a pit; I can only imagine what horrors are waiting for us at the bottom.

But Lyssa steers us right, passing the front lip of the pit, and up the right wall of the tunnel, just missing the bottomless blackness.

I'm screaming my head off now, but she keeps climbing the wall. But we have only halfway passed the pit when we start to go back down again. By some stretch of good luck, and the fearless skill of Lyssa, we zip back towards the middle, just clearing the pit.

But sadly, there is another pit right in front of us.

Lyssa and I both scream, but she manages to steer us up the left wall and we narrowly miss that pit as well. When we come back to the middle, I can see that for the next 200 meters, there is one dry well after another.

Lyssa steers us like she has been doing this for years. We zip in and out of the dark abysses with such skill I eventually manage to stop screaming. We hit the bottom of the hill with a top speed somewhere around fifty miles an hour. Lyssa is still crisscrossing the tunnel, even though there aren't any dry wells in sight. And thankfully, we begin to slow down. Enough so that I feel able to let go of the death grip I have on the rail and grab the brake.

We slowly come to a complete stop and neither of us move a muscle.

At first I'd had all these wonderful visions of how that ride would go. That I would be sitting behind Lyssa, with the fragrance of her hair wafting in my nose, as we slowly rolled along till we hit the bay. We'd laugh and tell stories. We'd both agree that riding the sled was the best idea anyone ever had.

But that was all before we'd set off.

Now, I'm scared for my life. Not because I think the tunnel will hurt me anymore since we're sitting still, but I am terrified of what Lyssa is going to do to me.

So I say nothing.

I want to give her the time to process and decompress. And hopefully calm down.

But she starts shaking in front of me. I start to panic. I think maybe she might be slipping into shock. I don't know what to do, so put my hand on her shoulder in a comforting gesture and I gently pat her back.

But she spins and throws her arms around me and buries her face in my neck. I can feel the tears moisten my neck. She is uncontrollably sobbing now. I awkwardly place my arms around her. I can feel her hands gripping my jacket tightly behind my back. I put my left hand on her shoulder blade and the other I clumsily place on the back of her head. And almost without thinking, I start rocking her.

It's weird, like all those hugs my mother gave me when I was scared come rushing back to me. It just feels natural to hold her. I just want to soothe her and make her feel safe. I would give anything to make her feel safe.

I begin a steady stream of whispers, saying, "It's okay. I've got you. We're safe. You saved us. We're safe."

God she smells so good and she's so warm. I begin to hate myself, because it's not cool to take so much pleasure from comforting someone. But I can't help myself. She feels so good in my arms. She lifts her head and looks at me and her eyes are just so deep brown and vulnerable and beautiful.

I can honestly say, I have never seen anyone look more beautiful than Lyssa does at this moment.

So I kiss her.

I know. I'm such an _ass_.

I don't know where it came from, the desire to kiss her was suddenly just so overpowering. When my lips meet hers, there is this spark that seizes me in my stomach. I've never done this before and I have to admit, I had been sort of dreading it. I was terrified I'd stink at it. That whatever passion might have been there, my lack of skill would squash it. But it just feels so natural to kiss her that I can't stop. And she is kissing me back with just as much passion as I'm kissing her.

And I was so afraid Ellie would k—oh my god, Ellie!

I jump back. "I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have done that."

Lyssa is clearly embarrassed and emotional and I took advantage of the situation. I'm _such_ an _ass_.

"Lyssa, I'm so sorry. I—I mean, you just looked so—I mean, I don't know what I—That's not true, I totally knew, but—"

Lyssa finally stands and walks into the shadows. "Don't."

The tension between us now is so thick, I'm not sure I can stand it.

_What was I thinking?_

After a few minutes, we silently decide we both need to move on. We climb on the sled and hang our legs over the sides, so we can drag our feet to help us stop. No more running starts.

We start gently, by pushing off with our feet, and then pick them up. We travel swiftly and silently. She is like a block of steel in front of me. It's hard to believe she's the same person.

I have completely ruined our friendship.

After a few hours I can't stand the silence. "Can we stop? I have to pee and I'm starving."

Lyssa nods but says nothing. We stop, and Lyssa leaps up from the sled so fast, she nearly knocks me over. I get up and we turn the sled sideways so it doesn't roll down the tunnel. We unpack the portable stove and Lyssa begins to heat us up some soup.

I can't stand the silence. It's so overpowering, it's hurting my ears.

I'm about to speak and Lyssa stops me. "Don't."

"Don't what?"

She sighs, and stirs the pot, saying "Just don't."

I stand up and begin to pace. "This is crazy! I can't take this silence!"

She stops stirring and looks at me. "I'm sorry, but I don't remember asking you to kiss me."

"I know that."

"And I definitely didn't ask you to stop."

I shove my hands in my pockets, feeling even more guilty than I did before. "I know."

She beings stirring again. "So you'll have to excuse me if I don't care if you're uncomfortable with my silence. I'm processing things. I do that with my brain and not my mouth."

She serves the soup and we eat in silence.

So unfortunately, all I'm left with are my own thoughts and feelings of guilt. I have never been more confused about anything in my life. My dad's logic problems would be a welcome distraction right now. I have these intense feelings for Ellie. I have a connection with her that few of my friends understand. And I know it's not perfect, but it is what it is. She's been there for me, as long as I can remember. There are precious few people I can say that about.

I mean, there are so many amazing things about Ellie it's hard to list them. Her sense of humor is so dry it always takes me a minute to figure out she just told a joke. But when I do get them, they are hilarious. She's brilliant. I mean, mad scientist brilliant. There hasn't been a logic problem written that Ellie can't demolish in seconds. Her coding is legendary in the Nexus.

She is one of a kind.

But then there's Lyssa.

Oh my god, she is _so_ beautiful. And she smells _so_ good. And she has these chocolate-brown eyes that just kill me. And she, like just about everyone else who survived _The Darkness_ , is way smarter than me. The way she steered the sled through the tunnel was nothing short of amazing.

_And her voice!_

Oh my god, that is truly the worst part about her silence, I just love the sound of her voice. It's so melodic and raspy. I imagine that she would have been a really good jazz singer if the end of the world didn't happen. I can totally picture her on stage, with a glittery blue dress, singing standards to a smoky crowd.

Even now, layered with the same crummy clothes that I have and wearing that gigantic winter coat and the over sized goofy hat, she is the most beautiful creature I have ever seen. And what's worst, is that ever since I kissed her, it's all I can think about. The feel of her lips and the warmth of her breath. Her taste. The deep felt connection.

_God, I want that so bad again it hurts._

But I do nothing. Even though every fiber of my being is telling me to race over to her, stand her up look her in the eyes and say, "I'm so sorry I hurt you. It will never happen again." And then kiss her, like I did before, but more so.

But I don't.

I just sit here and eat my soup and look stupid.

I'm good at that.

# CHAPTER TWELVE

After we eat, we get back on the sled and travel in silence.

We ride for hours without saying a word. Finally, out of exhaustion, Lyssa tells me to stop so we can make camp for the night. Lyssa makes a bed out of the sled and I curl up into a ball on the ground. I haven't felt this alone since I was in the biosphere the day my mother died.

It takes me awhile, but I finally fall asleep. All I keep thinking about while I lay on the cold rock hard ground is why I was so stupid to ever leave the biosphere. I missed the Nexus and all my friends. I know they were just voices in the ether and weren't really there, but I feel so alone now.

I would have killed to have them.

I finally fall asleep thinking about my last visit to the Nexus.

* * *

It was always startling to me, logging into the Nexus I mean.

I got that I was really just sitting at my desk, but with the goggles on and the earphones jacked in, it was like being Jeannie on that old TV show _I Dream of Jeannie_.

You ever watch that show?

The one with the blonde lady with the long ponytail, who wore extremely revealing outfits and called her live-in boyfriend Master? Well it was just like when Jeannie would pop in, one second you're sitting on the couch, then with a flick of your ponytail, you're standing in the drop-off point in the Nexus.

It was just jarring is all. Only way to explain it.

Every time a new user account logged in, they started out at the drop-off point. Since I hacked into the system, I got dumped there. I was expecting it. Sure, it's annoying, but it wasn't the worst thing that could have happened.

At least I was close to Central Perk.

I walked out the door and I found myself standing in the middle of a busy square. It was night and yet there had to be two- or three-thousand people bustling past me through the streets of the city. The Nexus drop-off area was designed to look like a busy neighborhood in Hong Kong at rush hour. Most of the people you saw there were fake, they were just bots trolling around. You learned to avoid them pretty fast. Of course, when you were new to the game, the bots were harder to spot. More times than I care to admit, I spent entire evenings trying to convince a bunch of code into a date.

Embarrassing. But it's happened to everyone.

I raced up Main Street and made a beeline to the coffee shop. It was where all of our friends hung out. It was set up to look just like Central Perk, the coffee shop the cast of Friends hung out at on their show.

Okay, I know what you're thinking. Another TV show? Really?

You see, a few years ago, Zack and I found this server that had every TV show that's ever aired. It was a treasure trove of entertainment and fun. That server got me through some pretty lonely nights. Anyway, I think it was Zack's idea, or maybe mine, to make the coffee shop from the show. Anyway, we ran the place as a side business. Ellie and I spent months coding the place. We didn't get rich from it, but it was a nice steady stream of creds.

When I walked in, Ellie wasn't there, but luckily Zack was. I grabbed him by his arm and pulled him over to the couch. He had no clue who I was, because when you're new to the Nexus you get a generic avatar.

"Dude, you have like zero seconds to get the heck away from me or I'm gonna brain you!"

"Zack, shut up and sit down. Don't make a scene, but it's me, Dorian."

Zack leaped to his feet and grabbed my shirt collar and pulled me to my feet, "Dude, now I'm definitely gonna brain you! Dorian was my best friend till he died and thanks to that stupid joke, in a minute, you're going to join him!"

I grab his wrists. "Zack, you had a fire last year. Did you eat today, or is this a fasting day? You have three of those a month, right?"

Zack lets me go and backs away. "Dude, you're really freaking me out here."

Encouraged, I say, "Your dad didn't properly vent the methane out of the recycler and it caught fire."

Zack grabbed my shoulders, and shouts, "Dorian? For real?"

I rolled my eyes. "Zack, lower your voice and just so you know, if you try to hug me or make a scene, I'm punching you in the face."

Zack instantly hugged me tightly, "Holy crap! It really is you! Dorian, what the heck's going on? Are you like a ghost in the machine?"

It had to be a fast day. Zack got really stupid on the fast days.

I grabbed Zack and pulled him down to the couch and looked around to make sure no one was paying attention. "Zack, you know for a brilliant guy, you can really be a moron! No, I'm not a ghost. We're in the Nexus idiot."

Zack shook his head. "I know, but you're dead dude?"

I kept looking around to make sure no one was paying attention. "Jeez, will you keep your voice down? I didn't die. I almost died, but I pulled through. Don't ask me how, because I haven't a clue."

Zack smiled. "Hey, that rhymed!"

I sighed, sometimes I forgot he was slowly starving to death. "Where's Ellie?" I asked.

Zack shook his head. "Dude, she is hurting man. I haven't seen her since your broadcast. She just went radio silent. She hasn't responded to my texts or anything. You really need to think things through before you die man. You know, for next time and all."

I loved Zack, but he really needed to fix his food situation. "Look Zack, I don't have time to explain. I need you to a get a scrambled message to her, telling her I'm alive and to meet me at Central Perk at nine tonight, Nexus time."

Zack looked unsure. "Dude, if you're Dorian, why can't you do that yourself?"

I looked around; I knew my time was short. I had to log off and fast. "No time to explain man. Someone is looking for me and they cannot find me."

Zack collapsed back into the chair. "Dude, this is so weird. I mean, I always figured that if I was talking to your double, he'd at least look like you. I don't know what to do man. Are you sure you're Dorian?"

I smiled, sometimes the similarities between the character Joey on that show Friends and fasting Zack were just eerie. "Zack, it's me. You have a picture of Ingrid Bergman beside your bed and dream about her on a nightly basis."

Zack sat bolt upright and dove into my arms hugging me again. "Holy moly! It really is you!"

I looked around, hoping his affections weren't attracting too much attention. But after a minute, I didn't care if anyone saw us, I just wanted him to let me go, "Zack, we can have the warm reception you want another time my friend. But right now, I really need you to log off and get the message to Ellie. Can you do that for me?"

Zack jumped to his feet, "Right, I'll be right back! Man, I can't believe you're still alive!"

I pulled him back to the couch, and said softly, "Zack, if you don't keep your voice down, I won't be! I will see you soon, but get her the message."

I reached out with my real hands, hit the "Escape" key and Zack and Central Perk vanished from sight.

I took off my goggles and disconnected from the satellite. I sighed as I had forty-five minutes to kill. I couldn't believe I had to count on Zack during a fasting day. I hoped he picked up on the fact that I told him to scramble the message. Which was a code we came up with to use this clandestine communication network Ellie invented. It spread a signal out over fifteen satellites, so if you didn't have the proper software to merge the data, there was no way you'd be able to detect it, nevermind read it. It was the most secure form of communication ever thought of by anyone—ever!

Just my opinion—but I was bias.

Did I mention Ellie was genius?

This is a common thread with survivors, that genius trait. You had to be smart to both foresee the plague and then build a biosphere. Anyone incapable of reading a wiring diagram was just no longer among the living.

After my busy day, I was completely exhausted. So I set the alarm for 8:45 p.m., which should have given me plenty of time to reconnect to the satellite and hack my way back in. I jumped into bed.

I remember I was asleep before I even closed my eyes.

* * *

_I hear a loud noise and jump out of bed. My heart is racing._

_I never hear noises. I don't even know what to do with noises._

_So, I creep to the door and peer out. There isn't anything there, but I don't like it. It's just too quiet. So I grab the hammer sitting on my desk and dash out into the hallway, hammer raised to kill. I curse my parents for not believing in weapons, because a shotgun right now would be very comforting._

_I look all over, trying desperately to discover the source of the sound when I hear it again behind me._

_Screeeeeeeeeech!_

_The sound hits my nervous system with the collected force of ten thousand fingernails scraping a chalkboard. Which is bad enough, but isn't the worst part. The worst part is that it seems to be coming from one of my parent's rooms._

_I'm terrified. My hands are shaking and sweating. My mouth is completely dry. I slowly walk towards my mother's door, despite my every instinct telling me to run the other way, I just have to know._

_When I get to her door I slowly peel back the black plastic sheeting and look through the window and I see her. She's lying in the exact same spot I left her in. I turn around and my rotting zombie father reaches out and grabs me by my throat and growls, "How could you have just left her on the floor!"_

* * *

I snapped awake and jumped from the bed screaming. I brushed off my clothes with abandon, as I remember I could still feel my father's slimy hands on me, not to mention the horrible stench. The alarm suddenly went off and I jumped nearly as badly as I did when I thought my dead father was coming to wreak vengeance on me. I shook the willies out of my skin and sat on the edge of the bed. After a moment I reached over and shut off the alarm.

Is there any sound more awful than that of an alarm clock? Who invented them anyway, Marat Sade?

I remember I was so shaken I had to sit at my desk for a minute before I reached down to turn on my CPU. After the screen turned on, I connected my server to the Soviet weather satellite and within minutes I was logging back into the Nexus. I put on my goggles and headphones and hit "Enter".

* * *

I was once again standing in the drop-off point in the Nexus.

It would have been easier to just log in as myself, but I know they were hoping I'd make a mistake like that. I dashed out the front door to race down Main Street and something stopped me in my tracks.

No one was here.

I've never seen this before. There was always a thousand bots and people milling all around. Not to mention the zillion conversations happening in the cacophony of rush hour.

The silence was just weird.

If it weren't for the fact that I was quickly running out of time and had to get to the Perk, I would have looked into things. But I just didn't have the time; I had to see Ellie. If there was one person in the world who could hack into the Nexus when nobody else could, that would be Ellie. I knew she'd be there. So I raced off down Main Street. When I got there, I could only see one person inside—and it wasn't Ellie. I was tempted to wait across the street till she got there, but something told me I needed to check that person out.

So I stepped inside and tapped the dude on the shoulder and asked him where everyone was. Doctor Sanderson turned around. I stumbled backwards a few steps and fell over the back of the armchair, plopping down into the seat.

Doctor Sanderson lunged forward to try to catch me. "Please, don't be alarmed Mr. Whitney. You do remember me, correct?"

I stared at him and didn't believe what I was seeing. "Yeah Doc, I remember you. I made precautions. You won't be able to control my biosphere controls again."

He stood up straighter and adjusted his suit and then he looked at me, "Yes, we assumed you would make alterations. I feel you should know they were all very impressed with the speed of your return. It took them quite by surprise. But once we intercepted your friend Zack's scrambled communication, we thought your little meeting would be the perfect opportunity to talk."

I froze. "What message?"

Doctor Sanderson sat in the chair facing me. "Mr. Whitney, I told you these men are very accomplished. I was speaking of the message you asked him to send Ellie, telling her you wished to meet her here at this time. We, of course, couldn't allow that message to get through."

I was visibly shaken by his statement.

Ellie didn't know I was alive.

Doctor Sanderson stood up and strode over to the other arm chair that faced mine and sat down. He rested his chin on his thumb, extended both of his index fingers up to his cheeks and covered his mouth with his other crossed fingers. "Mr. Whitney, because of your excursion this afternoon, we've been forced to shut down all satellite communication... Globally."

I jumped to my feet. "That's impossible!"

Doctor Sanderson barely moved. "I assure you it most assuredly is. It's bad enough that Zack knows of your survival, but we can't let that intelligence get into the wrong hands."

I began pacing. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. How was something like that even remotely possible? How could one organization shut down all satellite communication? I mean, no one even controlled them anymore, so it couldn't be possible to block _everyone's_ access, this guy had to have been lying—right?

But then again, no one was there, and that in itself was impossible.

Poor Zack, all he had these days was the Nexus. And Ellie, oh my god, Ellie was all alone. All alone and thinking I'm dead.

I thought of my mom, and in a panic, said, "Doc, you're saying the reason no one is here, is because you're denying them access?"

Doctor Sanderson crossed his legs and brought his hands together in front of him in the typical church-and-steeple grasp. I've seen these kinds of gestures before. The doc clearly has never been to the Nexus or gamed before. The neuro-reader is picking up impulses he doesn't even know he's giving and he has no idea how to control them.

"I'm afraid so. We recognize the potential for worldwide catastrophic mental health collapse, but your actions have left us little choice."

"Doc, you can't just shut everyone out! I mean, the Nexus isn't on just one machine, it's all over the planet."

Doctor Sanderson nodded. "This is very true, we do not control what happens in the Nexus. As you can see, everything is still here exactly as it was. But we do control the satellite communication network. And we can shut those off to whomever we want."

"We are talking about the best hackers in the world Doc. How long do you really think you'll be able to keep them out?"

He didn't even hesitate. "Forever."

I laughed, totally fake, but he didn't know that. "Doc, I'm shocked half the people aren't back already!"

He stood slowly. "You don't understand. We have shut off the satellites. Only the one you are currently using is functioning at the moment."

I stared at him blankly. "That's impossible."

He walked to a mirror on the wall and adjusted his tie. "Well, did you think it would be possible for us to take control of your biosphere before yesterday?"

I marched over to him, so I could look him straight in the eye. "That was different, I gave up access to you. Now that I think of it, it was pretty stupid, but I did it nonetheless. I just followed the UNN protocols when I built my macro. But that doesn't even matter! You can't shut them down because you need the satellites, just like the rest of us."

He turned and smiled at me. "Well, that is not entirely accurate. We have a network of low altitude, solar-powered drones that we can continue to use for our communication needs. Their frequency is classified and quite impossible for someone like yourself to duplicate, I'm sorry to say. They told me it had something to do with you not having the hardware necessary to build the descrambler or process power to make the necessary calculations, I forget. And you're a confirmed genius! If you weren't able to do it, it most likely can't be done. Unless, I was told to ask, you have a military-grade server in your biosphere? So, are you prepared to listen to us now?"

I hated his smugness. "Doc, I'm three seconds away from leaving."

He turned and walked back to his chair and sat. "Please, feel free to do so. But know this, if you take that action, you will never speak to any of your friends ever again, and they themselves will all be isolated and alone, forever. Fortunately, for most of them, forever won't be that long. Total isolation has a way of making one—how do I put this nicely—a little mad. We are social creatures after all. Just remember your recent experience in the dark."

The reality of what he told me filled me with horror. I think of Zack all alone, how long would it take him to give up. A year? A month? A week?

"What do you want from me?"

He crossed his legs again and puts his hands back in the church and steeple position. "I told you already. We want your blood."

I sat down on the couch. "Doc, I'm in Vancouver and you're in San Francisco? Can't you see the inherent flaw with your request?"

He leaned forward and placed his elbows on his knees. "We have a boat en route. It should reach the harbor in Vancouver in eleven days—if the weather holds out and the tides cooperate. Once you're onboard, the boat will automatically depart and navigate you here. From Vancouver, as you are precious cargo, the return trip will take a bit longer. I'd say somewhere in the two week range."

I was blown away that he actually thought that this plan was even remotely possible. "Doc, this is crazy. There is no way I can walk that far, I've lived in a bubble my entire life! So, A, I'm not strong enough, and B, I don't have the kind of food stores to make it that far, and C, I have no weapons of any kind."

He sat back, resting his hands on the armrests. "Well, the boat has all the equipment you'll need. We've seen to that."

"Doc, don't you get it? It's an impossible journey just getting to the boat, nevermind lasting two weeks at sea!"

"The ship has enough fuel to return to San Francisco and enough food stores to circumvent the globe three times over. You'll be just fine."

"How did you even get it here? Who's driving it... Casper the ghost?"

He placed his hands back in the church-and-steeple position again. "Piloting."

"What?"

"One pilots a boat, one doesn't drive a boat."

I looked at Doctor Sanderson incredulously. "Really?"

Doctor Sanderson rolled his eyes. "Sorry, the boat is piloted remotely using the solar-powered drone system we have in place. Once you're onboard, we will be able to track your progress and provide you with air protection. The drones double as an air fighting force."

I was both frustrated and terrified. And worse, I was running out of arguments.

"Doc, the only reason I know that I'm in Vancouver is that's what my parents told me. I have never been further than just beyond the entrance to our mine. I have no skills to survive out there. Besides, how will I go to the bathroom? I can't very well wear a biosuit for three weeks!"

Doctor Sanderson looked very serious. "Why would you need a biosuit?"

I was taken off guard by that remark. "Of course I'll need a biosuit! I'll die without one."

Doctor Sanderson calmly said, "Now, if I were walking outside, I would need a biosuit. As I have no antibodies to fight off the melding. But you have no such issue."

Panicked, I stood up. "You expect me to go outside without a biosuit?"

Doctor Sanderson stood too. "Why not? I've read your medical records, you've had all the necessary inoculations. In fact, you've had substantially more than most. Your mother had them all on hand, so she could continue her work. Why, you've even been inoculated for smallpox."

I was totally freaking out now and I backed away. "No way! Doc, outside is dangerous! People who go out there die! Period!"

Doctor Sanderson slowly walked with me as I backed away towards the door. "Everyone but you it would seem."

I stopped dead in my tracks.

"But how can you be sure I won't get sick again?"

Doctor Sanderson looked down at his shoes. "I can't be a hundred percent certain you understand, but I do know you had enough antibodies in your body to fight off _The Darkness_ once already, which according to all we know about medical science is completely impossible. The fact that you are standing here talking to me is proof enough. But as I've said, there's no way I can be one hundred percent certain. Not without running a series of tests, which are just not possible from a distance. But I will say, you wouldn't be here if you couldn't survive exposure."

I turned away. "I don't know what to do."

He reached out and placed a hand on my shoulder. I couldn't feel his hand, but I did see it and I couldn't deny its comfort, "You have twelve hours to decide. In twelve hours we will cut your satellite access and at that point there will be no turning back. Go get some sleep. Think it over. But not too long."

With that he disappeared and so did the Nexus.

 _I can't believe it, they booted me out. How did they even find me?_ I thought. Well, I was the only one there. I supposed that narrowed down the search code a bit.

I took off my goggles and sat in a stupor in my chair.

What had I done?

How long could everyone survive without the Nexus? I might have been able to go a year without it, maybe two. But I had my mom for my first seven years giving me kisses and hugs. I had two geniuses who designed my biosphere so I'd have enough work to keep me busy and, more importantly, enough food to keep me alive. Zack had nothing.

Oh my god, what have I done?

Suddenly it hit me. Twelve hours. That was plenty of time.

I could go outside without the biosuit. If I got _The Darkness_ , then I'd just have to log back on and they'd see I'm not who they think I am. Maybe then they'd give everyone the satellites back.

But what would I do if I didn't get sick?

Could I really do that? The thought filled me with both anxiety and dread. Sweat formed on my brow and my heart fell in my stomach. I didn't have a mirror but I'm quite certain all the color was drained from my face.

_Holy crap._

* * *

I snap awake.

The moment I had to decide to go outside was terrifying for me. On the off nights where I didn't dream about zombie-like half dead _Darkness_ victims biting me, I dreamed about that. It's hard to tell which was worse.

But now that I'm awake, all I can think about is Lyssa and how I ruined everything.

I feel so awful that I hurt her. I would rather cut off my own hand rather than hurt her, but I did and I don't know how to fix it. I wish I could go back in time and stop myself from kissing her.

But even if I could, I know I never would.

Finally, I sit up and stare off into the distance. It's the first time I've been in absolute darkness in the tunnel. Usually I have a candle or something. But right now, the blackness is so dense, I can feel it breathing all around me.

But then I notice something. About thirty feet down the tunnel there is a pale light. It almost looks blue. I quietly get up and start walking towards it. It's weird, there is barely any light, but compared to the absolute blackness in the other direction, there's just enough light for me to see where I'm going.

When I get right under the light, I see a ladder of metal rungs cemented in place. I don't know why, but I'm curious about the light, so I start climbing. It's so beautiful, I just have to see what's causing it.

When I get to the top, I see I'm looking out of a storm drain and the blue light is coming from the moon. It's totally full and absolutely gorgeous. I never knew the full moon would be like this. I can see everything. The trees, the bushes, the snow, some broken down cars... And five men sitting around a campfire.

"Jacques, I'm not complaining, eh, but what's with this kid? Why we runnin' all over da place, lookin' for him, eh?"

"Philippe, don't you worry about that, eh. You let me worry about the why, eh?"

"I know it ain't my place, eh, but we been out two weeks now. We ain't never looked this hard before, eh?"

"Just do what I tell you and you'll be fine, eh?"

Another man spoke, "He's got a point Jacques. We been looking everywhere, eh? I don't think this kid, he is out here."

Jacques stands up and ferociously grabs the last man to speak and drags him up to his feet and punches him in the face. Then he stands over the man on the ground. "Whoa, I was just sayin' it's been weeks, but okay, eh? You win. We keeps lookin', eh?"

Jacques says, "Listen, this here ain't no democracy, eh? None of this is, eh? Back home, the commander, he's the law eh? But here, it's me. If I say we look for the kid, we look. When I think we stop, we stop. Okay, eh?"

Philippe says, "Jeez, I was just wonderin' why he was important is all, eh? No need to get all riled, eh."

Jacques spins and kicks the man in the leg. "Because I say, is all you get! Besides, we know where he's goin', we'll catch him sooner or later. It's just a matter of time, eh?"

I slowly and silently climb down the ladder and hurry back to Lyssa. I realize we need to move... And now. We'll walk for a couple of hundred feet before we turn on the lights. We need to move silently. I don't know who those men are, but whoever they are, they're looking for me and that makes me want to run. I have to somehow wake Lyssa without making a lot of noise, which is not a sure thing, since I've never woken her up before.

I get down to the bottom and turn back to Lyssa, and I can't see a single thing. My eyes adjusted to the light topside so now I can't see anything at all.

_Which sucks._

I drop to my hands and knees and crawl towards Lyssa. When my hand hits the sled, I whisper frantically, "Lyssa! Lyssa, you have to get up! Lyssa!"

But she doesn't budge.

So I reach out and shake her a little and again whisper, "Lyssa!"

She turns and starts to speak loudly, so I clamp my hand over her mouth and she starts to struggle, audibly with me. I whisper, "Quiet! Those men are right above us!"

She instantly stops struggling and nods.

I let go and we gather everything that we can find in the dark and put it back in the sled. I know we're most likely going to leave something behind, but we just can't risk the light. If they see us, we're doomed. We have two .22 rifles and they looked like they all had automatic rifles and pistols.

We decide to pick up the sled, because the wheels have been known to squeak. Both our eyes have adjusted to the dark, so we can see pretty well in the low light; especially while we are walking in the moonlight coming through the storm drain in front of us.

We carefully shuffle past the ladder and I gesture to Lyssa that they are right up there. She nods. As we waddle past, we can clearly hear the men laughing and joking. We keep moving down the tunnel for about a hundred yards and then finally place the sled down gently and start rolling, much faster than earlier.

After an hour, I ask her to stop.

I stand up, and she spins., saying, "Holy crap! That was too close."

"It's me. They are after me."

Lyssa looks at me in disbelief, "You really do have a messiah complex don't you?"

"You don't get it, they said they were looking for me! And what's worse, they said they know where I'm going!"

"They said that?"

I nod.

"Okay, then we have to be extremely careful from here on out. They are camping. So we keep going all night. We don't stop till we hit the bay. If we hurry, we can probably be there by tomorrow. That's assuming we don't hit any more obstacles."

"What day is it?"

"Well, that's a little tough to say, I kind of relied on other people to keep calendars. But as far as I know, it's the twenty-fifth of January. Why?"

"I don't think the boat is scheduled to arrive till sometime on the twenty-seventh."

"You mean it's not already there?"

I shake my head, "No. It was on autopilot en route from San Francisco."

"Well, what if it sinks?"

I drop to the floor and lean against the sled. "Then we're screwed."

"I have to tell you something... You see those numbers on the wall over there?"

We are stopped near a drain so the light is clearly revealing some painted numbers on the wall. I nod.

"Well, those are coordinates of some sort. Based on those numbers we are about eighteen miles from the city. That means those bastards are also that close. They can probably make it in half a day if they leave the men on foot behind, or make them run alongside them. If that boat isn't there when we get there, we're dead."

"Well, let's hope you're really bad at keeping track of a calendar," I say.

# CHAPTER THIRTEEN

We ride all night. And of course, like a child, because I was on the back, I fell asleep. I just couldn't help it. I was just sitting there. I had no job. There was nothing to look at; the tunnel was nearly completely dark. It was bound to happen.

With the cold air blowing on my face as we slowly roll down the tunnel, I dream of the first time I stepped out of the airlock and felt fresh air on my skin.

***

I stood in front of the airlock for what felt like an eternity. I was wearing every warm article of clothing I could find in my closet (so, you know, practically nothing) because I just figured it was going to be freezing outside.

Outside?

I tried to imagine what the world would be like on the other side of that door. You know, the actual outside. No biosuit. No worries about sickness. No fear of death. But I just couldn't get my mind around it.

I thought about the tastes and the smells my mother used to describe to me.

And the way she said it felt.

My heart was beating faster than I was comfortable with. My hands felt like swamps attached to the ends of my arms. My stomach was tying itself into Gordian knots. And if I wiped any more sweat from my brow, I swear, I was going to have to wring out my shirt.

The truth was I'd never been more terrified in my life.

Not even when I tore the suit. Sure I was panicked, but it had actually helped me build up a heavy dose of denial.

As I stood there, I didn't know if I could go through with it.

I reached down without thinking and punched in the code to open the airlock door. It opened and I stepped past the threshold and into in the airlock. My knees were shaking uncontrollably, and my hands were so damp. I started to worry about touching the security pad. Who knew, maybe the moisture would short it out. In fact, I was amazed I didn't short out the release.

I walked up to the exit and peered out through the glass.

My breathing was so shallow and so fast that I was afraid I was going to pass out.

I knew I shouldn't have been doing what I was about to do. That I should go back downstairs and tell them that if they don't let everyone back on the satellite network, I'd just slit my wrists or something. Because obviously there was no way I was even going to make it out my airlock door, forget about me walking all the way to Vancouver.

But I reached down with a shaky hand and punched in the code to open the airlock door. My finger hovered over the "Enter" key. My hand was trembling so hard that I wasn't sure I'd be able to hit the right button. I pulled my hand back, turned around and walked back to the airlock chamber door and closed it, which pressurized the room.

Then I walked back and stared at the keypad. There was a message blinking that read, "Press Enter to Continue."

I sighed and moved my finger over to the "Cancel" button.

But then I thought of Ellie and Zack. They were cut off from everyone they had ever cared about and sealed up in biological specimen jars. Totally alone. Forever. My mom only lasted a year without my dad and she had me.

But none of that eased the terror in my chest, because I was just a coward at heart. It was what had been keeping me alive all these years. No matter what happened in my shiny tomb in the ground, it was far less scary than being dead.

I knew I needed to hit "Cancel", go back downstairs and figure something else out. They couldn't be so psychotic that they'd actually permanently cut off humanity from one another? Our whole species would be gone in a year. No one was that crazy. So that's all there is to it, I can't do this.

But instead I hit "Enter".

The door instantly swung in and I felt the whoosh of extremely cold, but fresh, air.

I'd never experienced that before. My mother told me there was a difference, but honestly, I thought she was delusional. How could air be fresher? It didn't make sense, after all the molecules were all exactly the same. But after breathing it for myself, I had to give it to her, she was right.

I took a moment and breathed in a deep lung full of fresh air through my nose. It felt so good that I nearly fell over. It was like there were some minerals dissolved in the atmosphere that my body had desperately needed my entire life, but they had been filtered out by the bio-filters and CO2 scrubbers in the biosphere. And the sudden rush of them into my bloodstream left me a little light headed.

I waited for a moment, hoping the dizziness would fade. All those new sensations, the cold air directly upon my skin and the fresh air in my lungs, were a lot to take in. Plus, there was a dampness to the air that I wasn't used to, and it made the air seem colder somehow.

I stood there, frozen, staring at the open door in disbelief. I couldn't believe what I was seeing was actually happening.

But the damage was done. I pulled the door open the rest of the way and stepped out into the mine. The air was cool and refreshing, but there was a funny smell I hadn't noticed before and I didn't much like it. I could see the entrance to the mine in the distance and the light coming from it was just about the most appealing thing I'd ever seen. For the first time, I actually began to feel a bit giddy inside.

I was about to feel the sun directly on my skin for the first time in my life!

No plastic shield. No pane of glass, just the sun and its warm embrace. My heartbeat instantly stepped it up a few notches and my breathing quickened to keep up.

I chuckled to myself as I thought I wouldn't need my vitamin D supplement. I couldn't stand the taste of that crap.

Of course, the chuckle was short lived when I remembered that the last time I was out here, a tiny bit of my suit was torn and I nearly died. I tried to swallow the non-existent saliva in my mouth, and started walking towards the light.

My legs felt like I had two of the fifty-pound lead weights fastened tightly to my ankles and I could barely muster the strength necessary to lift them high enough to clear each of the railroad ties. I must have looked like a zombie. If I had walked into that mine right then, and saw me coming my way, I'm pretty sure I'd have screamed my head off and bolted for the exit.

It didn't take very long to reach the entrance—just an eternity of dread.

I hit the entrance like it was a brick wall. The line in the sand, where the shadow met the light, formed an impassable barrier that my subconscious self just couldn't seem to find a way around. Instead of stepping over the line, like anyone would have, I dropped to the ground, crossed my legs in front of me and sat.

I had gone as far as I could go for that moment.

All I could do was stare at the ground. It didn't make much sense, but the closeness of the ground somehow made it feel a bit more real to me. At least, more real than everything else that was around me. If I needed to, I could have reached down and touched it. That made it safer somehow, even reassuring. The whole way down the tunnel I was afraid to look around too much. I was afraid I'd be paralyzed by the diseases I would see everywhere I went. But finally the fact that I was actually sitting on the ground got through the panic and it did seem a bit silly not to at least take a look around.

I took a deep breath and slowly lifted my gaze from the pebbles and dirt on the ground, taking a good long look around me.

The out buildings around the mine entrance weren't anything to look at really. Mostly just metal shacks that were in various states of disrepair and rust. The tree that was laying over the fenced-in area that used to hold my satellite dish, (that's right, I said tree) was obviously still there. But in the immediate area, there really wasn't much else to take in and look at. In fact, it was so bleak if I really looked at it all, it most definitely would have made me feel even more isolated and alone.

But honestly, I didn't see any of it. Because my attention was totally transfixed on what was beyond all that crap, on what can only be described as the most breathtaking spectacle I had ever seen to that date.

Now, I have been outside more times than I care to remember, whether it was clearing the dish of snow, ice, and other debris or some other vital task. But every single time I went out, I was so terrified of being there, that I had to completely immerse myself into a task-oriented mindset. Otherwise I could never have managed to even walk out the door. I was so petrified that if I allowed myself to really think about where I was and what I was doing, I would have sent myself spiraling into a full-fledged panic attack.

But that was before. When a single bacterium could have killed me.

Things were different at that moment. I got to look at the world with freer eyes and while I expected not wearing my helmet would give everything a bit more luster, I was wholly unprepared for the sheer volume of its brilliance.

I can honestly tell you, that I don't know what I was expecting to see, but I can tell you I wasn't expecting to find myself way up in a mountain range, with an absolutely spectacular view of a majestic valley below.

I could tell you that I had no idea that the mine's entrance sat near the peak of a mountain, that belonged to a range that stretched out for as far as the eye could see, but I'd doubt you'd believe me. But it was the truth. Mom and Dad never really talked about where we were, I think they were afraid I might get curious to see the world for myself. But I wasn't crazy.

I was wholly unprepared for the vastness of the world that spread out all around me. It gave me a glimpse of just how insignificant I was and that knowledge forced a tear to begin to trickle down my cheek. The hills and the valleys and the other mountains in the distance were so beautiful, that soon that initial trickle quickly turned into a steady stream. I could see the valley below had a beautiful lake, which instantly became the single largest body of water I had ever seen. Not much of a contest though, because the tiny frog pond in my oxygen garden was the biggest before it.

 _And the trees! Oh my god, the trees_!

They were absolutely everywhere! Pine trees and oak trees and conifers and black cherry. Every kind of tree imaginable.

The sheer volume of leaves boggled my mind.

Now, I had trees in my oxygen garden in the biosphere—one hundred and forty-three to be exact. Trees are nothing new to me. I've been composting their leaves for soil and using the heat from their decomposition for hot water my whole life. But it just never occurred to me that there could be that many trees anywhere.

It was like the whole world was nothing but trees

We were so high up, that even from my seat on the ground I could see the city of Vancouver in the distance. At least, I _assumed_ it had to have been Vancouver, because it was so gigantic that it looked like it took up the whole horizon. And if the world was made up of small "towns" the size of that place, there'd be no room for anything or anyone else. I swear I could even make out the bay just beyond the city, but it could have just been the horizon playing tricks on my eyes.

I felt myself getting a little dizzy, it might have been the thin air or the fact that I was hyperventilating, so I decided to let myself fall backwards, before I fell over. I closed my eyes for a minute, just so I could wait until the universe stopped spinning around in my brain. When I finally opened my eyes and I looked straight up at the sky, I literally gasped.

I would never in my wildest of imaginations have ever thought anything could have been as beautiful as that crystal-blue sky over my head. The brilliance of the sky's sparking blue color and the bright sunlight bouncing off the billowy white, gold and red clouds were quite simply the most beautiful things I had ever seen. In the biosphere, I've had glimpsed millions of pictures of the sky, but to actually see the late afternoon sky with my own eyes...

I was completely speechless.

I wish I were a poet. A poet could tell you what they were seeing and feeling at the same time. But sadly, I'm no poet, but I could tell you with authority, that absolutely no one had ever felt the way I did at that moment.

Not. Ever.

I heard birds chirping in the small trees that surrounded the mine and I saw some larger birds soaring through the sky above. I think they were seagulls, but they could just as easily have been pterodactyls for all I know. I'd never actually seen any birds fly before, but they were white, and as they soared their wings formed the rounded shape of two lowercase letter "u"'s. Something I'd always associated with gulls.

It's hard to describe the emotions that flooded through me when I saw all of those things. I guess, in a way, I felt like a blind person who was suddenly able to see for the first time. How I managed to avoid seeing all this before, was beyond me. I know I was wearing the biosuit, and that I was scared, but I still had eyes? I still had ears?

Tears were flowing down my cheeks now and I couldn't stop them. I thought of my mother and I wished she were here so I could hold her again and tell her I was sorry, that she was right, the outside world was an amazing place. How could I go back to living in the ground like a mole again? How did she manage do it for so long?

I climbed to my feet and stumbled out into the sun; the warmth was unbelievable. I hadn't even noticed how cold the ground was until I felt the warmth of the sun's heavenly embrace on my face. I started to walk down the hill in front of the mine's entrance, towards the compound, but after only a couple of steps it turned into a slow clumsy run. By the time I was at the bottom of the hill, I was bolting as fast as I could go. I raced past the fenced-in area where the dish used to be that was covered up by the fallen tree, and past the shed where I moved it to, and then climbed up a little rise just beyond. I skidded to a stop, as my toes were dangling over the edge of a series of cliff faces that dropped at least a hundred feet or so below me. Only I couldn't quite see the bottom, because for every twenty feet it dropped, it shot out ten or fifteen.

From there, I could clearly see that the mining compound was at the very end of a horseshoe-shaped valley, with the lake at its center. If you were superman flying above the valley floor, staring down at it with the opening of the valley at your feet, the mine would be on the lower-left end of the horseshoe. I could also see a winding road that snaked along the shore of the lake, all the way up to somewhere just below where I was standing, past a world below our little slice of heaven. I couldn't quite see where the road passed because the cliff faces below were obscuring my view.

I was panting, as much from the exercise as I was from exhilaration. I reached down and grabbed a rock at my feet, throwing it as far as I could over the side. As I watched, the rock fell, and I saw it bounce off of several ledges below. I noticed a structure that looked like it was built directly into the side of the cliff below me. I spun around and looked at the shed directly behind me. It seemed to be situated in the exact opposite direction as the structure, but perfectly lined up with it.

I jogged over to the other side of the shed and threw open the doors. I was greeted by what looked like an elevator shaft. I've seen a bunch of movies on mining, well, to be honest, a heck of a lot of movies in general, who hasn't. Mining movies in particular were always a charmer. I don't know, I guess I just really identified with miners. You know, seeing as they spent so much of their lives underground, just like me. Anyway, this shed looked just like the kind of elevator a modern mine would have had, totally industrial and powerful enough to lift almost anything.

I slid the gate up and gazed down the shaft to see what I could see. It was dry and sturdy looking and totally made from metal. The whole contraption looked like it ran on electricity. I peered down the shaft again but I just couldn't see more than a few dozen feet or so. I reached over and tested the control buttons but there didn't seem to be any power.

My dad must have hoped that one day there'd be a cure and we could leave, so he'd have wanted this thing to work again. I walked around to the back of the shed and I saw a great big door. Inside was this big generator. I saw a door on the right side that had "Control" written on it, so I opened it. On the back of the door there was a startup procedure for the generator printed by hand:

  1. Check oil, by pulling dipstick, marked dipstick. (If low, get oil from cave and fill, there is a case of oil just past the airlock. It is hidden under a green tarp.)
  2. Pull out the choke.
  3. Prime the system, by pushing and holding primer for five seconds and then release.
  4. Turn key to start.
  5. When engine starts, release key and shut off choke.

 _Love, Dad_

My heart sank.

_He left me a note._

He knew that if he or my mom weren't here, I'd have to know how to turn on the generator. I wanted to rip the instructions off and hold them, but I figured I'd need them later and didn't want to lose them. So instead I just ripped off the part that said, "Love Dad" on it. I brought the slip of paper close to my teary eyes and kissed it. I put it into my pocket after I made a solemn promise to make something worthy of preserving that paper when I went back inside.

The instructions seemed simple enough. The oil was low, but there was a case of oil next to the generator, so I filled it. I then primed the system and turned the key. It revved to life after turning over a couple heart-wrenching moments of not starting, and thick black smoke belched out of the exhaust. The engine sputtered for a few seconds and then evened out. I shut off the choke and stepped back so I could properly admire an engine that was so well made that it could sit for fifteen to twenty years and still run.

They don't make 'em like that anymore. Well, they don't make _anything_ I guess.

I closed the control panel and walked back around to the front of the shed. I hit the "Up" button and the elevator came to life. I could see a big heavy chain start cranking and I heard something coming closer in the dimness of the shaft below me. I peeked my head over and I could just make out a passenger car, slowly climbing. It wasn't setting any speed records, but it was moving, so I wasn't about to start complaining. In a few minutes, I'd actually be walking around down on the valley floor.

That's when I thought of Ellie and Zack. And more tears started come.

They'd never be able to do what I was doing. Never be able to leave the coffins they were living in. I knew I could never go back to living like I had been. Not in a million years. So that meant that I'd never be able to share this with the people I loved. Which meant that I'd lost them all over again. The certainty of that epiphany was stunning. I felt more alone now than I ever had before, like I was the last man standing. Even if the satellite coverage came back up, no matter what, I just might be alone forever.

My old friend rage began boiling up inside me.

And just like always, I was pretty much powerless to stop it. It just built and built and built, until it literally exploded out of me in the form of a primal yell, the likes of which I didn't even know I was capable of. I was screaming at the top of my lungs, so loud and so long, that I ran out of air. I reached down and grabbed some rocks and started throwing them. Not at anything in particular, but I just needed to fling something, with the hopes that I could expel some of the anger that was currently eating me from the inside out. If I had a baseball bat or crowbar, I would use it to destroy everything I saw, the shed, the fence, the generator, everything.

But luckily, I didn't have anything. So I just grabbed handfuls of tiny pebbles and dirt, and I flung them in every direction. I throw them at the fence, at the dish, at the shed and even over the side of the cliff.

Finally, I collapsed to the ground in a wheezing and heaving mess of sweat and frustration. I wasn't used to that much physical activity. Dirt was caked under my nails and I was covered head to toe with dust and debris. I leaned against the shed and tried to catch my breath to stop myself from sobbing. Just then, the elevator reached the top and the doors slid open.

I just stared at the empty space inside the car for the longest time. Somewhere my friends were suffering... And I couldn't get to them.

Clarity suddenly washed over me and I got up and dusted myself off. I shut off the generator and started walking back to the mine. Before I knew it, I was running.

I dashed into the airlock and didn't bother to close the door before opening the other pressure door. I did close the second one behind me, it was January after all and there was no need to let all that cold air in. I raced down the ladder as fast as I could. When I was back in my room I jumped in my chair and fired up the network, I linked up to the satellite and started to hacking my way into the Nexus before I even stopped sweating. Suddenly all my screens showed Doctor Sanderson again.

"We were tracking you outside. You need to work on your temper young man. A temper like that can get you into a lot of trouble."

I can't help myself, I'm still mad. "Shut up! I'll do it! Send me what I'll need to get to the boat. Then make sure you have everything ready for when I get to San Francisco!"

Doctor Sanderson is so excited he can barely contain himself. "Oh my, I wasn't expecting that, I must say. Um, of course. We're sending everything to your Nexus account now."

"I just need one thing."

Doctor Sanderson suddenly gets serious. "Um well, I'll do what I can, what is it?"

"You'll do better than that. I'm not going anywhere unless I can talk to Zack and Ellie. You should have no trouble with setting that up, after all, since you're the ones blocking them from the rest of the world. If I'm going to help you, I need to know, they'll be all right. I can't go through all this, without knowing that. They need to know that an end is possible and I'm fighting for them. But what's the point, if they get so depressed they kill themselves before I can save them..." Tears began to stream down my face again. I hated myself for crying, but I just couldn't stop myself. "They need to be outside. They have to know! Everyone has to know!"

Doctor Sanderson nodded. "Oh, well, I'll see what I can do."

I slammed my fist down on my desk, "No! You will let me talk to them now or so help me, I will get a knife and slit my throat!"

Doctor Sanderson looked at me in disbelief. "Look, Mr. Whitney, there's no need to be melodramatic. I told you, I'll look into it. And I will. We should figure out a way to get you in contact with them by the time you reach to the boat. If not, I know we'll have it figured out—wait, where are you going?"

While he was talking I got up and left the room. I went to the kitchen and grabbed the sharpest knife I had, walking back to my room with a resolve I had never felt before. I sat in my chair. "You see this?"

I held up the knife.

Doctor Sanderson's smirk washed away from his face. "Mr. Whitney, let's not do anything rash. You are extremely emotional right now and I can see that. But decisions like this shouldn't be made when one is so emotionally unstable."

"WRONG! That is the only time decisions like this can be made! Now, I warned you once, I won't do it again. Let me talk to them or I'm slitting my throat or my wrists, I haven't quite made up my mind which yet."

Doctor Sanderson was standing now and frantically looking towards people that I couldn't see and then back to me. "Please, we must be rational about this."

Tears are streaming down my face. "Stop looking at them, they can't help you right now. You need to look at me. I am the one shot you have, maybe the only one that you will EVER find and I have a knife and I'm irrational. I'm going to count to three. When I reach three, Zack and Ellie had better be on this screen."

Doctor Sanderson tried to calm me. "Mr. Whitn—Dorian, you can't do this. Think of Ellie? What will she do without you?"

Wrong tactic mentioning her name, it only made the tears stream even more.

"You idiot, she thinks I'm already dead! That's why I need to talk to her! She needs to know I'm alive and that there's a chance everyone can be saved. So if I die now, it's not like I'm hurting her any more than you already have. One!"

Doctor Sanderson was scrambling for anything to talk me off the ledge with. "Look, I don't have the power! You can't do this! It's out of my hands, if I had the power, I'd give you whatever you want! But I'm just a physician and a scientist!"

"Then you better find the person who has the power, fast. Two!"

"You have no idea what you're doing! You could save the world!"

"Doc, without my friends, for me, there is no world. Thr—"

I don't get to finish. Doctor Sanderson was gone and the screen scrambled and Ellie was there. She was sitting on her bed, with her knees pulled up to her chest and she was rocking back and forth. I dropped the knife to the desk. "Ellie!"

A voice I swear I've heard before but can't quite place because of the echo, said, "She can't hear or see you—yet."

I slam my hand on the desk. "You son of a—, put her on or I swear I'll—"

"I believe you, that's why you're seeing her now. I merely needed to set a few ground rules."

Still furious, I managed to say, "What ground rules?"

"You can tell her almost everything. Tell her you survived, hell, even tell her about us, but no details. Nothing about where you are going or about the boat. Just tell her there's a chance your blood holds the key to saving us and letting us out of the prisons we all put ourselves in. That's all. Agreed?"

If that smug bastard had been in the room with me right then I would have driven my knife right through his forehead, but instead of telling him to stick his ground rules where the sun don't shine, I simply agreed.

Suddenly, I could hear The Shins. She was rocking and sobbing and singing. It was kind of disturbing. I wasn't sure I could even talk to her, she might have gone too far. This one time during a blizzard she lost connection for a week. When she finally came back online, she didn't speak for a year. I was almost tempted to tell the voice I changed my mind. "Ellie? Ellie, honey, look at the screen. Ellie, please look at the screen?"

She slowly raised her head and saw me. I could tell she was not sure I was really there.

"Ellie, it's me. It's really me. I didn't die."

After a long drawn out pause she just managed to stammer, "You mean it was a joke?"

"No, no it wasn't a joke! I was really sick, but I got better."

She was breathing heavy now, "How the heck did you do it? Huh? How did you shut me out? You think this is funny? You pretend to be dead and then cut me off from the universe! HOW IS THAT FUNNY YOU—"

"Ellie! I swear on my mother's grave, this was not a prank. I went outside and my biosuit tore because I got mad and I scraped my shoulder blade on a tree branch. I was sick by the time I got back down stairs. When I finally managed to text you, I was on death's door. I swear it. I was told I went into a coma for three days. But for some crazy reason, I didn't die."

She just sat there and listened, feigning patience. And then she leapt to her feet and stormed the camera. She was furious, I have never seen her that mad.

"You really expect me to believe that crap?"

I held up my hands, they were still covered with dirt. "Look, this is dirt! From outside!"

"Oh, like you couldn't get dirt from your oxygen garden?"

I hadn't thought of that. "Ellie, please, you have to believe me. This is not a joke! Everyone, I mean, EVER-REEE-ONE, is locked out of the Nexus."

"By who?"

"From what I can gather, the UNN."

She laughs, "Are you kidding me? It's a bunch of computer geeks who also just happened to be preppers!"

"Yeah, well, from what I've seen, they're a bit more than that."

A message popped across my screen that read: No more about us or this conversation is over.

I coughed a little. "Look, you have to listen. They're afraid others will find out about my survival. Apparently, there are more people left. Like bad people. Anyway, they're afraid if my survival gets out there, I'll be in danger."

"Why?"

"Ellie? I lived! My blood might have antibodies that can fight off _The Darkness_!"

She seemed calmer now. I'm not sure she believed me, but she clearly isn't sure either way.

"Look, they want me to go to them, so they can confirm it. I mean, if I have the cure inside me. It could save us all!"

She got real quiet. I didn't know what to do.

"I think I'm hallucinating."

"No, you most definitely are not hallucinating!"

She shook her head, "Yes I am, you just said you're going outside. Outside. I must be hallucinating. You would never say that."

"I've already been outside! I'm not sick! Look at me Ellie, I'm telling the truth."

But she wouldn't talk; she just kept shaking her head. I didn't know what to do.

"Ellie, look at me. Please?"

She slowly raised her eyes.

I continued, "Ellie, I'm alive. You're alive. We're both alive! And I need you to stay that way. I'm gonna save us all Ellie, I swear to you I am. But you can't do this! You can't shut down! You have to fight!"

"How do I know I'm not just going crazy?"

She looked so pathetic and she was right. How could she know? I wracked my brain, but I couldn't come up with a single argument that made any sense. Suddenly I had an idea. "Wait, wait, I have an idea. Ellie, I'm hanging up and I'll be back in a minute."

She lowered her head. "Yeah, you have fun with that."

I disconnected, and then reconnected to the satellite, and there was Doctor Sanderson. "Doc, I need something else and it is non-negotiable."

Doctor Sanderson doesn't look pleased. "What is it?"

"I want to have a three way conversation with Zack and Ellie. And then I'm going to leave. And I want you to keep their conversation going until I get back. If they can't have the Nexus, they're going to need each other. And since they both know about what's happening anyway, we're not hurting anyone by letting them talk. Besides all they'll know is I'm alive. Nothing else."

Doctor Sanderson looked off camera. "I'm not sure that's going to be possible."

I picked up the knife from the floor and placed it against my throat. "I said it's non-negotiable. The way she is now, she won't last more than a few days. They need each other. And unless you bring them both up on the screen right now, we'll be right back where we started."

I started slicing through my neck, grimacing at the pain.

The screen went blank, and then a screen appeared with Zack on one side and Ellie on the other. I dropped the knife. "Zack, it's me. Ellie! Ellie, come around, will ya!"

"Holy cow! Man I've been trying to find a satellite forever! How'd you get one?"

"Zack, shut up a minute. Ellie, can you hear us?"

Ellie looked up, "Zack, is that you?"

"Yeah, I'm not sure how, but I'm here."

Ellie moved off her bed and sat in her chair, "Is this really happening?"

"Yes, that's what I've been trying to tell you."

Ellie started to breathe a bit faster and color was coming back into her cheeks, tears were streaming down her face, "You two are really here? I'm not alone anymore?"

"Yeah, we're here. Tell her Zack."

Zack looked like he was ready to cry as well, but he sucked it back. "Yeah, we're really here Ellie. You're not alone anymore."

Ellie was crying so hard I'm not sure she was really hearing us. "Then you're not dead?"

I have never wished I was with her more than I did at that moment. I wanted to throw my arms around her and rock her gently in my arms and tell her everything was going to be all right. "That's right kiddo. I'm still alive."

Ellie was inconsolable.

"Ellie, I'm sorry, but I have to go soon."

She jumped to her feet and stopped sobbing, yelling out, "NO!"

Which was like a dagger through my heart.

"I know you want me to stay. But I told you... I survived. I have to go. They need my blood. It might save us all."

"No way! Dude! Are you serious?"

I turn to Zack. "Dude, in a minute okay? Can't you see she needs our attention a little bit more than you do right now?"

Zack shook his head. "Sorry man, you're right."

I turned back to Ellie. "If I go, and they find the cure Ellie, we can actually be in the same room with one another."

"IRLLOT."

I smile, "Yes, in real life like old times."

Ellie was still crying, but she was coming back to earth. She just sat in her chair, and pondered what I had said. "I still don't want you to go."

I cringed. "But I have to."

"But we don't even know who these people are?"

"They're what's left of the government."

"Yeah, so they say, but how do we know that for sure?"

I hadn't actually thought of that before. I'm sort of taking a lot on faith. I mean, seizing control of the world's satellite network, while impressive, does not necessarily mean they are running everything. If they were really so large, wouldn't they just fly a helicopter to me, or something? What's with the long solo trek? But then I remembered they aren't immune and I am. They can't risk infecting themselves, they still have doctors who might be able to find the cure.

"I just know Ellie. They are for real and need my help. Do you understand? I could actually save the world. I don't think you get it... I was outside! The sun was shining on me. Me! Not on some suit, but on my skin. I was digging in the dirt and throwing rocks! The world is so gorgeous! I know you must be thinking I've lost it, because I used to be so afraid of the outside, but believe me, you have to see it for yourself! And feel it! I mean, the air, it feels so different! It's so fresh and it's wet, well, not wet, it just feels like it is. You know, damp somehow. I gotta tell you since I felt it, all I can think about is how much you need to feel it, too! Everyone needs to feel it. I know what my mom was talking about now. I see what she was trying to tell me! But you just can't explain the outside to someone. You just have to feel it for yourself!"

Ellie listened, and stood up. "Don't go!"

I sighed. "I get it. It's scary. Outside is scary. It's always meant death. But it doesn't have to be that way. And I can't just sit here knowing I could be doing something about it and do nothing. I just can't."

Ellie sat down. She volunteered nothing else. I could tell she said her peace and was going into her silent place. That was why we text. She just doesn't like to speak. She told me once the sound of her voice bothered her. You see, her parents died when she was only seven. And she used to fill the void by talking to herself and hearing her voice just reminds her of that misery. She was completely on her own for two years before she finally made contact with the outside. She taught herself everything. And all that solitude had other consequences as well. When she was on the Nexus, she almost never wore the headphones. She typed everything and had a voice-to-text translator programed to communicate to everyone. It was a bit annoying at first, but since I built my translator, it was almost like talking. Just a bit slower.

"I'm sorry, but I have to go, I don't have a choice. Zack, they're going to keep this channel open between you two at all times. Keep talking to her. Keep each other company, keep each other sane and alive."

Zack nodded. "You got it." Then he smiled at me. "Man, I can't believe you're doing this! You're going to leave the biosphere, maybe forever!"

Ellie's eyes popped out of her head and she stared right at me in a total panic. I remember thinking. "Thanks Zack, I knew I could count on you to be a complete ass, man." Sometimes I wondered why I was even friends with him.

"Easy killer, I'm coming back and when I do, I'm taking you all with me."

Zack jumped from his chair. "For real?"

"You know it."

Zack jumped in the air, and voiced a primal scream, "Dude, I can't believe it!"

Ellie still looked panicked. "Ellie, I will be back. They're just going to take my blood and then I'm coming right back!"

Ellie turned, walked away and sat on her bed. "Do what you want. I don't care. This isn't even real."

I really had to go. "Zack, you have to work on her. You have to get her to understand!"

Zack waved me off. "Dude, don't even worry about it! I got this!"

Don't get me wrong, Zack is one of the best engineers I've ever met. I'm pretty sure he could design a tank out of bathtub and some spare pinball machine parts. But he is a social moron and a bit of an airhead. I have no choice but to trust him, but I have no reason to believe he'll do much good.

"Ellie, I'll be gone a month—two at the most. You'll see. I'll be back."

"You're already dead."

Zack brightened, and said, "That's where you're wrong Ellie and I can prove it!"

Ellie looked up with skepticism on her face that would have rivaled my dad, "How?"

"You may not believe your eyes, but you have always believed your technology. Go to your computer, run a search. You'll see, the signals are coming from our biospheres. Go on."

I could have kissed Zack!

Ellie slowly got up, sat at her desk and punched a few buttons. Slowly she increased her speed until she was typing like mad. Suddenly she got really angry and began typing faster than I had ever seen her type before.

Finally she said, "There. Take that!"

Suddenly a message came through on my screen, it read:

"No one can see this but you. I sent it to you in a way I never told anyone about. I doubt any human being could figure out what I did, even if they were looking directly at my keystrokes. I knew I was being shut out by some really smart people before you came on my screen. I tried everything to get a signal out, and you know me, everything is a lot! So I just piggybacked a signal onto yours. No one will pick it up. It's hidden in my search query. You can't trust these people. I get you want to save the world and maybe you can. But they are definitely trying to control you. What happens to you when they get what they want? Your blood? Then what? If you do have the cure in you, do you know how much that would be worth? Play along, but do not let them take you. If you do, I doubt they will ever let you go. I love and trust you. I know you're real. I know Zack is real. I kept waiting for one of you two idiots to pick up on my strategy. Thankfully Zack did. Just so you know, Zack and I have been communicating using the HAM radios our parents had. He told me you were alive. I was never so happy! It was just Morse, but it was enough. I will be here when you get back, but I'm playing the crazy card for now. Never let your opponent know how strong you are, till it's too late. Hit the spacebar to erase all evidence of this message from your computer."

I finished reading, hit the spacebar and the screen went completely blank.

"So did you find us?"

She pushed away. "So what, if I were hallucinating, wouldn't I see what I want? This proves nothing!"

She got up and went back to her bed.

"Dude, don't worry. I'll get her through this. You just be careful!"

I have never loved or respected these two people more than I did right then.

"I hope so buddy. And don't worry. I will be. And Ellie, I will be back."

Ellie shifted a little. "Whatever."

I shut down my connection to them. Even if they shut off the connection between the two of them, I know Ellie will be all right. She and Zack have the HAM radios. I forgot about them. That's how Ellie first communicated with the outside world. She found people who taught her things. It was her internet for a long time.

I logged back in, and Doctor Sanderson was there.

"I need to know how far I'm walking and how long it will take me. I'm thinking I can find some warm clothes in the big closet that'll fit. And I can get my dad's old coat and boots. I think I even have a backpack. If not, I can figure something out. So I'm signing out for two hours. When I come back on, have the details ready. Don't send them to my Nexus account. Send them directly to me."

Doctor Sanderson looked confused. "Well, how do we do that?"

"You shut down the world's satellite system. Figure it out."

And I signed out.

# CHAPTER FOURTEEN

I almost fall out of the sled and I snap out of my deep and ill advised sleep with a jerk.

I'm such a loser. Here it is my mission and I'm the one who falls asleep and nearly crashes us.

_Pathetic._

We'd gone almost sixteen miles when we start to see the sun shining through the storm drains above. Well, the light anyway. We must be close to Vancouver! My skin is tingling with anticipation. I'd never been to the city before and the excitement is overwhelming. I mean, I'm not a total idiot. So part of me is frightened. You know, the part that believes the stories of Lyssa's dad. Those horrible tales of cannibalism and murder. But the rest of me yearns to see the giant buildings, the parks, the architecture.

You know, everything.

Even if her dad was telling her the truth, which I'm not sure he was mind you. After all, I have no doubt her mom was killed by cut throats, but a pack of organized cannibals seemed a bit of a stretch to me. Besides, I doubt the cannibals could have lasted that long, just living off people. First of all, they'd run out of people—fast. Secondly, I read an article once that said a tribe in South America died out because it practiced cannibalism. They got this disease called Kuru. It mentioned something about prions, I didn't really understand it, so I don't know if it's true. I mean, I only read about it on Wikipedia and you just can't trust anything written on that place.

Especially not these days!

"Dorian, stop!"

I slam my feet down and pull on the brake as hard as I can and we come screeching to a halt. And there in front of me is a giant wall of debris. It looks like the ceiling collapsed ahead of us and the building that was above the pipe came crashing through the hole it left.

"What do we do?"

She sighs, "The only thing we can. We go topside and try to make it past the cave in I guess."

I swear under my breath, "How? The last storm drain we saw was a mile back."

"Exactly. Wait, let's look at the map, what does that number say?"

I spin my light to the orange lettering, "C35-41b in Section thirteen. Thirteen, bad luck."

Lyssa groans, "Don't be such a ninny, my map says there is an access pipe over to the rest of the drain system, about three hundred feet back on the right."

I frown, "I don't remember an access pipe."

Lyssa huffs, "Well, it's there. I'm sure you were too busy falling asleep to see it."

I totally deserve that, but I get defensive anyway, "I only did that once!"

Lyssa laughs out loud, "I felt you fall asleep at least four times!"

"No way I fell asleep more than three times!"

"Ah ha! A minute ago you only fell asleep once. Which is it, enquiring minds want to know."

I glare at her, "You know, nobody likes you." It's something I've heard her say a million times now.

She turns, "Well, your tongue said otherwise."

"My tongue didn't say anything!"

She turns and looks at me seriously, "I wasn't talking about your words, I was talking about how it kissed."

And that was that.

_End of discussion._

Man, she was really good at ending those. My mother was too. Is that like a genetic thing with women? Like, do they just instinctively know how to put an end to any conversation without even breaking a sweat? Because Ellie was a freaking champion at it, as well.

Of course, maybe it's just that I'm stupid.

Yeah, that's probably it, now that I think about it.

Lyssa walks back towards the bypass and I grab the lead rope on the sled and follow with my tail planted firmly between my legs. It is becoming clear to me that Lyssa is not going to forgive me. Suddenly a bolt of fear strikes me, what is Ellie going to do if she finds out?

Holy crap! I'm dead.

I mean, Lyssa is totally going to tell her. I just know it. She's probably counting the seconds before she can tell her.

Or will she?

She might want me to do it. In fact, I'll bet she is certain I'll do the right thing and tell her myself. So if I don't I'll disappoint her again. Yeah, I'll bet that's it.

I shake my head. I have to stop thinking about this! I mean, I'm going to drive myself crazy.

Of course, maybe that's what Lyssa is really after—

I walk right into her back, "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

She shakes her head walks to the wall where there is a hatch recessed. It was difficult to see, unless you were looking for it. She walks over and spins the release and pulls the door open. There is a dark passageway beyond the opening, that stretches on for what looks like infinity.

Did I mention it smelled? Well, there was horrible smell. It was like a doorway opening into hell.

There was no way I was going down that hallway.

Lyssa stepped right through the door and started down the passageway before I could protest. So now I'm stuck. There is no way a girl is going to out bravado me. She's walking down this passageway, then so am I.

"There is no way I'm walking down that tunnel."

_I'm such a loser._

Lyssa's hand reaches through the doorway and grabs my jacket and pulls me in. I have to tell you, I thought it smelled bad from the doorway. But that was nothing to what it smelled like on the inside. The light from our flashlights barely penetrated the blackness in front of us. The ground under my feet felt gooey. It felt like every step took more effort than the last.

"What is that sticking to my boots?"

"Not sure, it smells like it's poop. But it can't be. The bacteria would have eaten it already. So it's probably some kind of slime mold."

"What's a slime mold?"

"It's a mold that oozes around."

"Oh my god that's disgusting!"

Lyssa rolls her eyes, "Look, would you stop whining! Honestly, you're so annoying! Do you think I want to be here? If it weren't for you, I'd be in a nice warm bed. I'd be just waking up right about now and probably reaching for a book. But no! I'm stuck in a sewer pipe with my legs ankle deep in sludge! And if the toxic smell weren't bad enough, I have to listen to the constant complaining of the most arrogant moron I've ever met! Just suck it up and be a man, for once in your miserable life!"

Okay, so even I could hear the difference between our normal banter and that rant.

So I say nothing. Not out of respect, but rather fear. We trudge through the muck in silence.

We reach a junction point, our tunnel moves onward in the same direction we were going. And other takes a hard right and looks to go on forever. There is a right turn as well, but I can clearly see that it ends in rubble like the last one. But there is a ladder that go up to what looks like a manhole cover above our heads. I can see light coming in through the tiny round holes.

Lyssa looks up, "Look, these collapses, they're beginning to look way too strategic to me. I don't think we should move forward till we know what topside looks like. It feels like we're being funneled in one direction. I don't want to go any further. In fact, I think we should we should go back. We walk to the last drainpipe and then approach this area with some stealth."

I sigh, "What can it hurt to climb the ladder here and see what we can see, right?"

"It might not. Of course it could be the worst thing we could ever possibly do. There's no way to know. The point is, we should approach this whole area as hostile and go back to move forward."

"Yeah, but I mean if a sinkhole developed at the other tunnel, it might have been big enough to cause damage this far away as well."

"You're right, but let's be sure. It's the smart play."

"Look, let me climb up, if there is nothing to see, I'll come back down and we go back. Or if it looks hostile, we go back. But if it looks clear, why wouldn't we go ahead?"

"Because, if I were going to lay a trap. I'd make sure it'd look clear as I could."

That made sense. But we were here and I'd kill myself if we went the long way for nothing. Actually, those men probably would.

"Worth a look. Be right back."

Lyssa crosses her arms and looks really annoyed, but she doesn't stop me. I climb the ladder, it's covered in gooey stuff, but not nearly as bad as the ground. When I reach the top, I see there is a storm drain and grate that I can peer through. I'm blown away. There is what looks like a wall, that is made out of buildings that have been knocked over. There is rubble everywhere. I don't see any people, but there is a clear divide between this side of the rubble and the other side, which I cannot see any of. I can't tell if the rubble was put there as a barrier, or the result of a massive explosion. In fact, I can't even tell if there is any rubble on top of the manhole cover. Just for the sake of argument, I try to give it a push, but I can't make it budge.

So I swear under my breath and climb back down.

"So?"

"I dunno, looks like a bomb went off. Rubble is everywhere. Buildings are knocked down in a line, stretching as far as I could see, which wasn't far. And that manhole must be covered up, either that or it is way too heavy to move."

"So, in other words, big waste of time?"

"Only if you consider valuable intel about what it looks like topside a waste of time. Let's go, we should backtrack to the last drain."

And I walk away.

Wait, if I'm not mistaken, I just ended that discussion. I'm not quite sure though, since I've never done that before. It feels kind of good actually. I wonder if this is how Ellie and Lyssa feel all the time?

We trudge through the muck, till we reach the hatch. Then we walk back up the tunnel, which after the muck and stink, is a relief. I have to tell you, I'm beginning to think my initial view of the outside was right.

It stinks out here.

I have never smelled anything as revolting as that passageway. In fact, I can say without any hesitation, I would rather dunk my head in a bucket of chicken poop, rather than walk down that hallway again.

It takes us about a half hour to reach the ladder up to the drain, that's when I realized that we have the sled and we'll never be able to take it with us. So we divvy up as much of our stuff as we can, then start climbing. When we get to the top, we're in luck, the storm drain is huge. Plus, there are several cars giving us immediate cover. We easily get our backpacks through it and then scamper out ourselves.

Lyssa is the first to her feet and she peers over the hood of one of the cars and pans around. Then she freezes and drops to the ground for cover.

I whisper, "What is it?"

Lyssa looks like she saw a ghost whispers, " They're here."

# CHAPTER FIFTEEN

I freeze.

Lyssa didn't say, but I knew who she meant. The men who've been hunting us for days are here.

I'm screwed.

We look each other in the eye and then scramble back down the drain. We hit the bottom and throw our bags on the sled and start running back to the blockage. We have no plan. We just started running without thinking. But Lyssa stops.

I turn back, and whisper, "No, don't stop! We have to move!"

Lyssa whispers, "No, I think I have an idea! Give me the map!"

I roll my eyes and give her the map from my pocket. She takes it and quickly scans it. Then she finds where we are and gets really excited, and whispers, "Quick, follow me!"

She instantly takes off back in the direction of the bad guys, I try to protest, but it's no use, and so I follow, dragging the sled behind me, cursing under my breath.

She passes the ladder we just climbed and keeps going. I have no idea where we are going, but I'm getting a little upset now. We need to be going back to the hatch and trying to find another way to the harbor—not wasting time going in the wrong direction.

Besides, the tunnel goes uphill and I'm really out of shape.

We keep running for about ten or fifteen minutes and finally Lyssa stops and looks around. I nearly drop to my knees; after all, I'm not used to running. Then she bolts off to the right of the tunnel and starts heading back up the tunnel, but along the side. I feel like my lungs are on fire. I'm beginning to think Lyssa is doing this just to get back at me. I grab the sled and follow.

Finally, I see a hatch on the right. Lyssa reaches it, spins the release and pulls it open. Then she darts in. As I approach, a light appears from the opening and I almost stop out of fear. But curiosity wins out and I open the door and slip in. I see a short passageway ahead of me that leads to another door that is now open. Beyond that is a room filled with light.

Lyssa shouts from within, "Close and secure both doors! And hurry up!"

Even though all I really want to do is collapse into a wheezing mess, I manage to yank the sled through the first door and secure the first hatch. Then I turn and pull the sled through the second door and secure it as well. The room is huge and filled with electric lights, though I have no idea where the power is coming from. I see an opening that leads to a ladder. I walk to it.

I see Lyssa clear the top and disappear over the edge.

I don't care what she says, there is no way I'm going to lug that sled up there by myself. I drop the rope, grab the ladder and start to climb. Slowly. As every muscle in my body is screaming out for rest right now.

When I reach the top, I see Lyssa through big glass window staring at something on some kind of control board. I see a door to my left, which enters the room, but it doesn't give me the motivation to move. But when I see the chair behind Lyssa, I move as fast as I can towards the door. I stumble into the room completely out of breath and energy, then fall into the chair. I'm totally spent. I really have to start exercising more.

In between gasps, I say, "Hey, what are you doing?"

"My dad showed me how to do this. He called it a weapon of last resort. There are these control rooms all along the spillway. They were built as emergency shelters, you know, in case workers were trapped in the tunnel when the dam let loose. But each one also doubles as a control room. If the main control room was ever compromised, workers could get to one of these and release the overspill valve. Which is exactly what I'm going to do!"

I jump to my feet, shouting, "You're going to do what?"

"Calm down, we're safe in here. Besides, if the doors fail, behind you is an escape hatch."

I close in on her. "Then why are you doing this?"

"Trust me."

I grab her arms. "Stop! Explain this to me first!"

Lyssa rips her hands away from me. "I know what I'm doing!"

"I don't doubt that, but I don't know what you're doing and I need to know."

Lyssa looks at me and shakes her head. "I'm sorry. I'm just not used to having someone to—" She pauses, before continuing, "Look, I'm releasing the water to blow through the rubble out to the bay and clear a path right through to the harbor."

I think about what she said—it sounds feasible. "What if the blockage just gets wedged in more. Then all that pressure is going to hit that door down there, right?"

"Two doors."

I roll my eyes. "Sorry, two doors! Are you nuts! We would definitely drown!"

Lyssa sighs. "Look, we're forty feet from the floor. If those doors blow, it'll take thirty seconds for the room to fill up to our level. That'll give us plenty of time to use the escape hatch."

"Well, where is the escape hatch?"

"It's usually a manhole or something like that. But it's on the other side of that pressure door. We can't open it unless the other doors are decompressed."

"Well, can't you just depressurize them so I can make sure it's a viable escape path?"

"Yes, but we don't have time."

She hits a button and an alarm starts to ring.

"What did you do?"

Lyssa says calmly. "Relax, we're perfectly safe. The spillway emergency valve is opening. Water is now racing the thirty-eight miles toward the blockage."

"How much time do we have?"

Lyssa shrugs. "Twenty minutes, maybe less."

"Then depressurize the door so I can check the escape hatch."

"No way, I—"

I scream out, "DO IT YOU CRAZY BITCH!"

Lyssa cringes, "Hey, just because a woman takes a leadership role, does not make her—"

"DO IT NOW!"

"Okay, jeez, calm down. I told you we're safe."

She hits a switch and I feel the room depressurize, I grab the escape hatch release and spin it. I pull open the door and there is nothing but rubble behind it.

"Oh my god! I had no idea! I mean... I don't know how that could have happened!"

I grab her hand. "Come on!" And pull her towards the door.

Lyssa yanks free. "Where? We're screwed!"

I grab her this time more forcefully. "Come on! We have to get to the ladder!"

"We can'! The bad guys are there!"

"Then we jump on the sled and race to the other door. It might buy us some time before find another way up."

I grab the sides of the ladder and slide down to the bottom, and Lyssa does the same. We grab the sled and race to the door. We rip it open, both of us barely slowing down. We throw the sled on the ground and then we both run alongside it. When we are running as fast as we can, we jump on. Both of us are using our legs to push it on faster. We just about reach the ladder topside when we first start to hear the rushing water.

"Faster!"

We frantically begin driving the sled on with our feet, I see the rubble wall first and yell out, "STOP!"

I slam my feet down and yank on the brake, but we crash into the wall of rubble anyway.

Lyssa is a bit shaken and tries to grab the sled. I grab one of the backpacks for her, then make towards the door. I throw her through it and slam the door, spinning the lock just as the water hits.

Both .22's were on the sled, but there was nothing I could do. At least I still have the revolver.

I can hear the door groaning. I grab Lyssa and we start to run. We pass the ladder I climbed and couldn't move the manhole cover, because I know that's a dead end. We never could have squeezed through the storm drain or budge the thing. So we run on. We hit another ladder going up and I'm tempted to skip it, because it looks exactly the same as the other ladder did from below.

But I hear the door burst behind us. "Up, let's go!"

I send Lyssa up first and I bring up the rear. The water is close; I can feel the air rushing past my ear. I see Lyssa above me trying the manhole to no avail.

"Try to squeeze through the storm drain!"

"But you'll never fit!"

"But maybe you can clear the crap covering the manhole!"

She scrambles out the tiny hole and then sticks her head back through. "There's nothing there! It just won't move!"

I climb up and hand her the pack I grabbed, and try to wiggle through the storm drain. But it's no good. Even though I am a skinny little twit, I'm just too big.

I grab the manhole cover and push as hard as I can with my arms and legs. It doesn't move an inch.

I scream at Lyssa, "LOOK FOR SOMETHING TO PRY IT WITH!"

I climb higher and slam my shoulder into it, I'm hoping the combined strength of my legs and arms can move it. That's when I feel the water.

It rushes up at me like a bullet in a gun. In a flash, I'm totally submerged in water. But, miraculously, I can see the force of the water is lifting the manhole cover a bit. So I push up with all my strength and it moves enough for me to begin to slide it out of the way. Suddenly, it is ripped from my hand and moves off to the side and I feel two hands grab me by my collar and pull me to safety.

Next thing I know, I'm lying on the ground, panting and coughing up water at the same time. It takes me a few moments to look up to thank Lyssa for saving me. I can't believe how strong she is. I have to remember to not get her too angry with me.

I turn and see Jacques standing there, looking down at me, smiling.

# CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Jacques smiles. "Hey there, I been all over looking for you, eh?"

"I'm flattered. How'd you know I was here?"

My finger begins itching to grab my revolver. There's no way he knows I'm armed. It might just be the advantage I need. Of course, I'd be completely screwed if the gun misfired because the bullets got wet.

I wish I hadn't just thought that last part.

"Oh, I saw that little girl, eh? She ran off that way though. When I saw the cover move I knew you needed help boy, eh? Good thing I was here, I think."

"I couldn't agree more. So what now?"

"Ah yes, straight to the point. I like that, eh? Okay, I have some folks who want to talk to ya, eh?"

"Well, I already have a pressing engagement."

"Yeah, we know, eh? A boat I think."

"Okay, not at all creepy that you know that." I begin to slowly move my hand towards my gun.

"Look, you are not going to believe this, but I work for UNN, eh?"

"What?"

Jacques falls flat on his face.

Standing behind him is Lyssa holding a tire iron. She rushes forward and drops to her knees by my side, "Oh my god are you alright?"

I smile. "I'm fine, thanks to him. He saved me."

She looks at Jacques. "Who cares about him, can you move? Because, believe it or not, according to my map, the dock you wanted to reach is five blocks that way!"

I smile even broader. "Well, let's hope that you somehow suck more at keeping track of time than you do clearing spillways."

Lyssa smiles. "Sure, I almost kill us one time and you're never going to let me live it down, are you?"

"Would you?"

"Good point, let's go before he wakes up."

She extends her hand and we start running down the street. It's weird. Nothing is as I expected it would be. The city isn't wonderful. There is dirt and mold everywhere. Buildings have fallen down everywhere. By its condition, I wouldn't be shocked if in ten years not one would even be standing. Everywhere I look, I see the products of neglect and the devastation of vermin. It seems like the city's only living inhabitants are the rats.

We run the five blocks and again I'm about to pass out. I grab my knees and try to catch my breath and calm my nerves. You see, we can clearly see the end of the dock, and there is absolutely no ship is there.

Which is really bad news.

We look at each other for a moment of collective panic and then look back at the end of the dock. Suddenly, slicing through the fog we can see a catamaran, racing towards the dock. We instantly look at each other and high five. We start walking towards the boat, but a moment of giddiness takes us over and before we know it, we start running.

We are halfway to the end of the dock, when we hear the sound of horses behind us.

I spin around and I see that about three blocks behind us, Jacques is charging at us on his horse.

"Dammit! Run as fast as you can."

We kick it into high gear. We are about two hundred meters from the end of the dock when we see the boat turn and long a gangway lower itself down. I look behind me and Jacques has halved the distance between us.

"Man, I don't think we're going to make it!"

"We will if you'd stop whining and start running!"

The mad dash for the boat is quickly sucking my strength, but the terror of being caught is driving me on. My lungs are on fire and the muscles in my legs and arms hurt so much it feels like they are about to rip off the bone at any second. I can hear the click-clack of the horses hooves on the ground. They are close. But I don't look back, I push on harder. I pass Lyssa and she yelps, trying to keep up. We reach the plank of the boat, and the moment we set a foot on it, the gang way raises itself up and the boat pulls away from the dock and heads offshore. As I turn back to shore, the horse has come to a rest at the edge. It's too late for them to jump aboard.

We beat him.

But Jacques isn't looking at us; he's pulling something up from his saddle. At first, I assume it must be a pair of binoculars. But when he spins around, he places a rocket launcher on his shoulder.

I grab Lyssa and press her down on the deck, covering her body. I don't see what happens next, but there is a high-pitched whistling noise followed by an explosion, which rocks the whole boat. I stay down on top of Lyssa for about five minutes. Finally she elbows me in the ribs and I roll off her. When we stand up and look back, I can see the boat has put enough distance between us and the shore, so the fear of further attack has passed.

I sit on a nearby bench, completely out of breath. "I can't believe we made it!"

Lyssa sits next to me, collapses against me and rests her on my shoulder. "Yeah, you run pretty fast when you're running for your life. I mean, I knew you were a pansy, but you really impressed me with the depth of your cowardice."

I laugh, and put my arm around her. "Yeah, well anything worth doing—"

The air is suddenly filled with the extremely loud voice of Doctor Sanderson. "MR. WHITNEY, WOULD YOU MIND STEPPING INSIDE THE BRIDGE? WE WOULD LIKE TO DEBRIEF YOU ON THE SITUATION. OH, YOUR FRIEND SHOULD PROBABLY COME AS WELL."

Lyssa spins away from me and gets in a really defensive posture, I smile, "Don't worry, the Doc isn't here. He's in San Francisco. Come on, let's see what he has to say."

# CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

As we make our way around the big boat and try to figure out a way onto the bridge, I feel safe for the first time in days. I can't tell you how that feels in a world so out of control. The last time I felt this way, was when I first met Lyssa.

***

I remember I had walked for hours on the second morning after I left the biosphere and hadn't see anything but trees and snow. The night before, during a snowstorm, I slept in a shack by the side of the road. I would have frozen my butt off but there was a tiny wood burning stove in there that kept me nice and warm. I ransacked the place and found some kitchen matches and some candles and a crap load of paper. I couldn't believe it! Real paper! All we had was the synthetic plastic sheets in the biosphere.

Anyway, the next morning as I was walking, I saw what looked like a small village across a pretty sizable valley. I was tempted to go explore, but in order to reach it I would have had to walk through a bunch of fields covered with god knows how much snow. In the end, I decided to stick to the road and trust that I would eventually get somewhere I could navigate from.

Just when I began to doubt that decision, the road veered sharply to the east and, as I rounded the bend, the space between the road and the trees suddenly opened up to a large open area where something else caused me to freeze in my tracks—a rather large complex of buildings.

Now keep in mind, I'd never seen a place like that before, but to a kid who grew up in a fishbowl, the compound looked like Manhattan and Chicago merged into one. I had no clue what the place was used for before the plague, but whatever it was, they had valued it enough to build a metal chain-link fence around it, with barbed wire coiled at the top. If the place had a huge surplus of food and weapons, from the size of it, a hundred people could have easily called it home. Not that I really thought anyone was alive, mind you, but the last time I talked to the Doc he said something that really got to me.

Just before we were disconnected, he'd said, "We advise that you avoid any contact with anyone you find on the road."

And then he was gone. And so was the satellite link. I looked for it for hours, but found nothing. It just bugged me, because everyone was supposed to be dead and if they were, how would I run into anyone? It didn't make sense. Here was this giant complex and for all I knew it could have boarded a hundred people. And they might not welcome outsiders. It had been twenty years since there were civil societies, police and armies. There was no telling what kind of new orders had popped up if there really were survivors.

So I had decided to lean toward the side of caution and be wary.

I raced for the tree line and stashed my pack behind a pine tree. If there were people there and they weren't friendly, I didn't want them to get all my gear if I was caught. Plus, that way if I escaped, I'd have some food to get me to Vancouver.

I made my way along the tree line till I was right across from the main gate. I said a silent prayer to anyone who might have been listening, and dashed out of the woods. I ran as fast as I could in the six-inch snow and dove through the gate behind a big mound of snow. It provided adequate cover from the main building. I paused for a few seconds and listened to see if my entrance had raised any alarms.

But all I heard were the sounds of the wind and typical noises of winter forest.

I shifted around and accidentally knocked some snow off of a sign, which clearly read: "Vancouver Hydroelectric Power Plant Facility and Public Works."

Suddenly, I felt stupid. I doubted severely that a power plant would have the food stores necessary to support an army. I stood up and brushed the snow off my clothes as best as I could. Then I trudged through the ankle-deep snow back to my sheltering tree, fetched my pack and headed back to the main building.

The inside was dimly lit by sunlight creeping into the long hallway from all the open doors on both sides. There were at least twenty doors all together. The building was very long and narrow. I crept along the main hallway, making sure the floor was sturdy and that no one was hiding behind any doors in the offices before I moved on.

The offices themselves were in shambles. Drawers of filing cabinets laid open and empty. The desks looked to have been completely ransacked. I couldn't tell if they were searched or emptied in a hasty retreat, but whatever the reason they were void of salvageable stuff. So I decided to leave the main building and search the outer buildings. Anything had to be better than nothing.

I stepped outside and was temporarily blinded. The sun had come out from behind the clouds and the brightness of the snow was paralyzing. All those movies I watched about snow-covered places and not a one mentioned that fresh snow could be so bright. I would have given a million dollars for some sunglasses at that point.

I stumbled down the back steps only barely aware of where I was going. After a minute of squinting I finally managed to get a lay of the land. It looked like the nearest building to me was some kind of garage. I walked over and found it had a variety of tools, but no metal flashing I could use to make a stove or chimney. I knew I'd need heat to get through the night, so I was on the hunt for a way to safely have a fire.

The next outbuilding looked like a giant metal barrel cut in half and laid on its side. It had a big retractable door on the front that I couldn't figure out how to open. I did, however, spot a small door on the side and when I tried the knob, it opened easily. Behind the door was a couple of heavy looking black curtains with a split up the middle. I slowly moved them apart and stepped inside. Once past the threshold, I instantly sensed a problem.

There was absolutely no light inside at all.

Which was a godsend. The light outside was really hurting my eyes. So once I stepped inside, I closed the curtains behind me and just wallowed in the dark.

After a moment, I took off my pack and fumbled around for the matches and candles. Lighting one candle, I held it up, but the tiny flame offered barely enough light to see through the pitch-black space, and what it did light up was only the immediate area.

I felt like I was back in the biosphere and plunged into the dark by the Doc and I didn't like it much. The place was so big; I could literally have stumbled around in there for hours and never find anything but cobwebs. So I stepped backwards towards the door and freedom when something made me stop. I don't know how to explain it, but I got this strange feeling. I don't know how or why, but I just couldn't escape the feeling that I wasn't alone and it had totally crept me out. So I blew out my candle, moved to a different spot in the dark and froze in place.

I don't know how long I was standing there, but I heard nothing. Yet, I still couldn't get over the sensation I was being watched. I had finally made the decision to leave, when I heard a something shuffle in the dark.

I'm not sure what caused the noise or where it came from, because it only happened once and I had no sense of which direction it came from. It could have been the sound of a footstep or gravity finally winning out over a twig on the edge of a work bench. But I'd definitely heard something move.

I slowly drew my hammer from my belt. I suppose I could have drawn the machete, but the sound the snap made might have alerted whoever was here that I was arming myself. I slowly started moving away from the general direction of the noise and towards the door.

I stopped moving and listened. I strained my ears, hoping it would help me spot something— _anything_ —but I heard nothing. Finally, I decided whatever secrets this building held it could keep them and dashed for the door. I swear I heard something moving rapidly towards me in the dark but then again I could have just imagined it. I dashed out through the curtains and out the door and slammed it shut behind me.

As I stood outside and leaned my body against the door in a kind of panic. I wanted to run. But for some reason I was convinced holding the doorknob was the only thing that would keep me alive. My heart was racing and my breathing was rapid and shallow. I was absolutely terrified. I kept expecting something to slam into the door, but nothing did. Finally, I began to fuel the hope that I imagined everything. That my childish fear of the dark caused me to hear things and riled my nerves into full fledged panic attack. I started to laugh, even though I didn't remotely think anything was funny.

Then the door knob had started to _turn_.

# CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

My mind reeled and I reached out to grab the knob, but stopped short of taking it in my hand. If I did that, it might spoil my chance to surprise the aggressor. If I hid behind the door and jumped whoever it was once they stepped outside, I could surprise them before they knew what was happening.

I slowly backed away and raised my hammer. The door opened a crack and then stopped. I moved back a bit, but not far enough to reveal myself or make any noise.

A female voice came out of the doorway. "I know you're there, slick. Can you lower the hammer for a minute and let me come out and talk?"

I didn't know what to do, the voice didn't sound threatening, but it could have been a ploy.

"Dude, I can see you standing there through the crack at the hinge. Just back up and lower the hammer and we can chat. I'm not going to hurt you and you definitely aren't going to hurt me. So let's palaver."

I wasn't entirely sure what palaver meant, but I slowly moved away mostly because I couldn't think of anything else to do. I used to hate it when my dad and mom used words I didn't understand. They'd always tell me to look them up, but I never did. I figured if they didn't want to be understood that was their problem and not mine. I gotta tell you though at that minute I would have killed for a dictionary or even a thesaurus.

"I don't know you. How can I trust you?"

"Because if I wanted you dead, I'd have killed you inside. I am armed and I see really well in the dark with my night-vision goggles."

"Well, I heard you coming."

The voice laughed. "No, I let you hear me. I wanted to see if you had a gun, which obviously you don't. Which puts the odds slightly in my favor, as I have a twelve-gauge shot gun pointed right at the door."

"Prove it."

"I will, step away from the door and lower the hammer."

I didn't see that I had much of a choice, so I moved away and lowered the hammer to my side. The door slowly opened and the barrel of a shotgun slid out through the opening of the black curtains, just inside the open doorway.

"See, now drop the hammer."

"No thank you. I'll hang onto it just the same."

"Look, I'm only pointing this gun at you because you have the hammer. You drop the hammer, I'll lower the gun."

I thought over my options over for a moment. I really didn't like having a gun pointed at me and I really did want it pointed in another direction. In fact, every second it was pointed at me I literally felt my life force leaking out through my toes. But I also didn't want to lose my hammer in the snow. What if she was bluffing and had no ammunition? Then my hammer would become a bigger bargaining chip than it was at that moment. But seeing no other option, I tucked it in my belt.

"There! Good enough?"

The voice chuckled. "Yeah, I suppose."

The gun lowered away from me and my heart started beating normally again. I almost peed my pants, but luckily the presence of my youthful bladder and my near total dehydration took the day.

"Come on in, slick."

With that, the gun disappeared behind the curtains and I saw lights flicker just beyond them. I took a deep breath and stepped up to the doorway, parted the curtains and marveled at what I found.

The big metal shed was a house!

There was a kitchen, a couch, a dining room table and even what appeared to be a couple of bedroom doors at the back. There was carpeting all over the cold cement and it gave the place a real homey feel.

Standing by the couch was a teenage girl holding a double-barreled shotgun in her hands. She had night vision goggles turned up on her forehead. She was about five foot seven and was wearing snowmobile boots and a heavy winter coat that was about three sizes too big and went all the way down to her knees. She had this weird hat on that had furry earflaps and looked homemade. She had a knitted scarf wrapped around her face, so all I could see was her eyes, which were a deep chocolate brown.

I totally froze.

Not only was that the first time I was in the same room with another person since childhood, but this was the first girl, not counting my mother, that I had ever actually met in the flesh.

"So, who the hell are you? And where did you come from?"

I managed to stammer out, "I'm Dorian."

"Okay, that's nice. Hello Dorian. Now let's try that again, shall we? Who the hell are you and where did you come from?"

I swallowed hard. I felt like she was about to raise the rifle and shoot me at any second. I began to wonder how it was a teenage girl had managed to survive all this time up here on her own. Then I remembered she must be thinking the exact same thing about me. I must have looked scared, because she rolled her eyes and put the shotgun on the table.

"Better?"

I breathed a deep sigh of relief. "Much. Thanks."

She looked me up and down and I have never felt so conscious about my body in my entire life. I began kicking myself that I cut back on the exercise routine Dad used to make me do.

She smiled. "Dorian, Look, I'm sorry. You're obviously not here to do harm. I doubt you could have hit me with that hammer, even if I gave you the chance. So pointing my gun at you, well, it wasn't cool. So sorry. But these days, you just can't be too sure."

"No worries."

"Good. So, who the hell are you and where did you come from?"

I smiled and looked at the table and chairs. "Mind if I sit? It's been a very long day."

She looked at the table and chairs as well. "Where are my manners? Please, be my guest."

I walked over to the table and took off my pack and sat in the closest chair. She sat at the far end.

"Mind if I eat a banana?"

She smiled. "Not if you have two I don't."

I started to open my pack and she placed her hand on the gun. I jumped to my feet and pulled my hands away.

"Hey, I have an idea, why don't I move over there and you get the bananas."

"That's okay, you get them. But if anything other than a potassium boomerang comes out, I warn you. I'm pretty fast and will totally pull that trigger.

I sighed and cocked my head a bit. It was something I did when I was nervous—and I was definitely scared witless. I slowly reached into the pack and pulled out the last two bananas I had. I tore one off and tried to hand it to her, but she shook her head. "Just leave it on the table and back up a bit."

I placed it on the table and she fetched my offering.

She smelled it. "Holy crap! This is real!"

I smiled. "I know, you ever have one?"

She shook her head, and said, "How do you eat it?"

"Well, generally I use a knife to cut the top, but teeth work just as well."

I bit the top of the banana off and peeled down the sides to take a bite. She put the gun down and pulled her scarf off enough to bite the top. Almost as soon as her teeth sank in, she grimaced and tossed the banana down on the table.

"Oh right! Yeah, sorry I forgot to mention, the peel is really bitter. But the fruit is really good. Try it."

She looked at me in disbelief, but peeled down the sides and tentatively took a bite. She immediately lit up and kept chewing and chewing. Then in a moment of pure joy, I'd never seen before, she swallowed the bite.

"Oh my god that is good!"

"See, told you!"

I sat down and took another bite of my banana. She sat and we ate in silence.

When she finished, she looked at the peel. "Hey, if I plant this, will it—"

I shook my head. "No, that's not a seed. Just a wrapping. Bananas are perennials."

She frowned. "What's a perennials?"

I smirked. "A plant that lives for more than two years, it produces these bananas once, then the part that makes the fruit sort of dies. But not before the plant sends up a shoot for the next harvest."

"Huh." She nodded. "Where'd you get it?"

"Well, without going into the details. I grow them in the place I come from."

"And where is that?"

"In the mountains."

"A little vague don't ya think?"

"Yes."

"I see. Fair enough. Okay, your banana has purchased you a night in Shangri-Lyssa."

I frowned. "Uh, where?"

She smiled. "Here. Shangri-Lyssa. That's what I call my little hidey-hole."

I still felt confused. "But why?" I asked.

She looked disappointed. "Because Lyssa's my name, moron, and this is my home. My Shangri-La."

"Oh. Right." I had no idea what she was talking about, but pretending to understand seemed the proper choice.

"Look, don't get any ideas. I have enough food for me, and me alone. I can feed you tonight and give you breakfast, but then out you go, down the road."

"Look, I don't want to impose. I can always sleep in the main building in an office or something. I just need a stove and chimney."

"You really going to turn down a night's sleep in a bed?"

"Look, no offense. But I don't know you. And what with _The Darkness_ , and everything, I probably shouldn't be near you."

She frowned. "The what?"

I'm shocked, I had never met anyone who didn't know what _The Darkness_ was. "The plague? You know, the thing that killed everyone?" I said.

"Ahh, right. That. Well, I wouldn't worry about that."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, everyone who wasn't immune died long ago."

I froze at those words.

"What do you mean those who aren't immune?"

"Yeah, everyone who's dead isn't immune. People like you and me, we're good."

I'm shocked. I didn't know what to say.

"My dad was immune too, but he died of a heart attack last year. But that plague, as you call it, it's been over for a long time."

"But I thought—" I stopped short, changing my question instead. "How many people are left?"

"Not many. Pockets of people here and there. Most, well, let's just say they're not as nice as me."

"But I was always told that everyone was dead. And that I was the only one to show immunity—"

She then let out a big A-HAH sound. "You've been talking to the UNN, haven't you?"

"You know of the UNN?"

She laughed. "Sure, everyone does. They've tried to lure everybody in at one point or another. So you must be a bunker baby, huh?"

For some reason, I didn't like the tone in her voice and I got a bit defensive. "It's a biosphere," I said

She backpedaled. "No, hey, look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you, it's just, well that's what my dad and I called guys like you. Bunker babies. Most of the bunker babies didn't last long though. Most got sick."

"Well, I did get sick, but I recovered."

"Yeah, me too."

I brightened. "Oh my god, well then you have to come with me to San Francisco!"

She laughed. "You might as well have said the moon."

"Seriously, I'm heading there now. They might be able to cure _The Darkness_ or plague or whatever. Something in my blo—our blood, might hold the key. We could save what's left of humanity."

She rolled her eyes. "Honestly, it's like talking to a semi-trained chimp!"

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. If you believe that mumbo jumbo then you're an idiot. I told you, they've been trying to lure people there for years. But everyone I know was too smart to fall for their nonsense. You must have manure for brains to believe their story. Besides we don't need a cure, remember? We're immune."

I sighed. "I know, but there are hundreds of thousands of people trapped in their bunkers that those antibodies could save!"

"You really believe that crap don't you? What are you, like ten or something?"

"Look, don't you think it's a bit rude to make fun of me when I'm standing right here?"

"Yeah. So what's your point?"

I didn't have one besides what I had just said. "Nothing, just that it's rude."

"It's supposed to be rude, genius! That's why it's called an insult."

I tried to think of a way to save some of my dignity, but came up empty. My life didn't really prepare me for something like this. So like any other semi-intelligent human, I gave up. She seemed like she was far smarter than I was.

My dad would have liked her from the word, go.

She looked me up and down searching for a reaction.

I took offense to her words but swallowed my pride. "I just don't understand, how you can be so confident that you know all this—exactly?"

She slammed her hand on the table in anger, and shouted, "Because unlike a helpless bunker baby like you, I've seen what those psychos that call themselves the UNN actually do!"

"An what is that exactly?"

She stared at me. "Do you doubt me?"

"No, not at all! I just think it's funny that they told me told to avoid all people and the first person I meet says the same thing about them, is all."

It was clear she was not sure if she believed me. "Who told you that?"

"Doctor Sanderson from the UNN."

She smiled.

I stared at her, waiting for a response that didn't seem like is was ever going to arrive. "So you aren't going to tell me?"

"Doesn't look like it."

"Look, I know I'm imposing. I get that. You've been sort of hospitable and I have no business complaining. But if I'm in danger going to Vancouver—"

She immediately stopped laughing, "You're going where?"

"Vancouver, is that... is that bad?"

She cleared her throat and got very serious. "Look, I know you're stupid and it's not your fault, you were just born that way, but you need to listen to what I say. Under no circumstances can you go anywhere near Vancouver! Period. Wherever you came from, you need to go back there immediately. Hey, if you have more of the bananas we can trade, but you cannot go to Vancouver! Ever!"

I'd heard my last insult, "Okay, look you don't want to tell me what you know, that's fine. Thanks for the hospitality. Have a good life."

She dashed out of her chair, grabbed my wrist, and spun me around to face her. The sudden movement caused her scarf to fall away from her face and her hat to go flying. For the first time I got a clear view of her face.

She was beautiful. So much prettier than her words. And her chocolate colored eyes, they seemed like they were holding something back. Some mystery I just had to know the answer to. I just got lost staring at them.

But honestly, it was her touch that really threw me. When her hand grabbed my wrist, it was like an electric shock. We were connected in that second, like no other way I had ever known. All the flesh on my arm suddenly erupted into goose bumps and a tingling sensation shot up my spine, exploding in my brain. My whole body started vibrating and my face felt all flushed. Every intention I'd had of walking away and leaving her in my dust was gone. There was no way I was going anywhere.

At least not until I saw her without that coat.

Her demeanor suddenly changed and I knew then she'd felt it too. And unlike me, the reality of it was a bit too confusing and unnerving for her. She shoved me away and backed off. She started to speak, but stopped. Instead, she stormed away and dashed into her room, slamming the door. A split second later she opened it and poked her head out. "Stay as long as you like or go if that's what you really want. Though, I—I would really like you to stay. At least for the night. The weather—it just doesn't look good. I have that spare room over there. You're welcome to it."

Then she was gone and I fell back into my seat staring at her door completely breathless.

I remember there were about three or four minutes of pure bliss, before I thought of Ellie and was instantly thrown into maelstrom of guilt.

* * *

That was the first time I met Lyssa. And in the time I've known her, I've hated her, liked her, and hated her again so many times I can't even begin to keep track. But she is loyal, I have to give her that. She said it herself, wherever I go she's going with me, whether I like it or not.

There's a great deal of comfort in that. More than I care to admit.

# CHAPTER NINETEEN

Lyssa and I walk onto the bridge of the boat and gasp as we see the ship's controls moving by themselves, steering it. The automation is impressive and more than a little spooky. I can't help but feel like I'm on a ghost ship.

I stand in front of a big screen and see Doctor Sanderson sitting there.

"Hey Doc," I say.

Doctor Sanderson smiles from ear to ear. "Mr. Whitney, I must tell you, I'm delighted to see you. Once we spotted those men hunting for you, we were more than a little panicked. That's why we ordered the ship to increase its speed. Very fortunate we did."

I smile. "I'm really glad ya did Doc. Doc, this is Lyssa. She survived _The Darkness_ , too. I figured if one was good, two is even better."

He frowns a little. "Yes, well, since we don't have her medical records or scans, her presence, while useful, is not as vital as yours Mr. Whitney. Don't get me wrong, we'll certainly take samples from you both, but it's your antibodies that are the most valuable."

I chuckle. "Doc, all I care about, is getting into some clothes and taking a shower right now. Can this wait?"

Doctor Sanderson looks very serious. "I'm afraid not Mr. Whitney. There's been a complication."

I don't like the sound of that. "What sort of complication?"

He puts up his hands up to try to calm us. "Well, we don't want to panic you, but the boat is sinking."

I look at Lyssa and I can see she's feeling the same blind panic that I'm feeling in my heart. "Well, you failed doc!"

"Mr. Whitney, you are in no immediate danger. It's just, we no longer believe the boat will make it all the way to San Francisco... We'll have to alter our plans."

My heart begins beating a little slower. "Well, how much time do we have before we go down?"

Doctor Sanderson shifts a little. "Well, we're not entirely sure. But the waters offshore are especially rough this time of year and our engineers feel quite certain, that even if we can stay ahead of the leak, the damaged pontoon will not survive it."

"What happened?"

He sighs. "Unfortunately, that RPG knocked a huge hole in the pontoon. Who was that man?"

"All I know is his name is Jacques. I overheard some of his men call him that, last night."

I don't know why, but I omit the part about him claiming to work for the UNN. I'm not sure why, but there is something about all this that doesn't smell right. And I don't want to show my hand just yet.

Doctor Sanderson tries to stare me down to see if I'll flinch, but I don't. "What? That's all I know. Didn't you tell me to avoid people? I assume he was one of the people you meant."

I hope that takes him off the scent.

Doctor Sanderson sighs, and says, "Actually, I meant people like your friend. What is your name again?"

Lyssa clearly didn't like the way he said that, but she replies anyway, "It's Lyssa."

"Lyssa? Lyssa what?"

"Just Lyssa for now."

I try to change the subject. "Okay, so what is the new plan? You coming to get me with a plane or something?"

Doctor Sanderson is still staring at Lyssa with a look of mistrust. "I'm afraid not. We are limited in our ability to move around. None of us have what you have Mr. Whitney. I'm afraid the plan right now is to pilot the ship to Olympia. From there, you'll have to make your way to us over land. You'll have to get on highway five. We estimate that you're looking at a 700-mile journey. At the best case, it would take you over two hundred and seventy-five hours to reach us if you walked. Not a very promising situation. But our hands are tied I'm afraid. This ship, which we are about to lose, is all we have at the moment that is capable of transporting passengers."

The whole time Doctor Sanderson was speaking, I had been listening with rapt attention—until he said we had to walk to San Francisco. I stopped. Slowly turning to Lyssa, as she did me, our faces said it all.

"Wait, your brain trust's big idea is that I walk seven hundred miles to San Francisco?"

Doctor Sanderson sighs. "We had another plan, but it entailed docking and having you repair the ship. Sadly that won't work."

Lyssa jumps in, and says, "Hell yes it could! I can fix anything!"

"I wish it were simply just a question of ability, Lyssa. But the men on the dock are tracking this ship, and our drones are tracking them. They are coming after you. It would take several days to repair the vessel—and you just don't have the time."

"Doc, there is no way we can stay in front of them on foot! They have horses!"

Doctor Sanderson sighs again. "There I'm afraid you are also wrong. Our drones tracked them to a semi-tractor trailer, where they exchanged horses and met up with reinforcements. They are heading south. We are sailing at full speed so we should be able to give you a healthy head start. There are also two motorized vehicles on board. Well, they're actually called four wheelers, I think. Each has a trailer. We recommend limited equipment; just load it up with fuel. You might be able to stay ahead of them if—"

"Might?" I interrupt.

Doctor Sanderson sighed again. "Trust me, this is coming from someone who made a career out of telling people worst case scenarios. This is pretty much the lousiest news I've ever had to deliver."

I sigh and look at Lyssa. She nods. "When do we start?"

# CHAPTER TWENTY

I step out of the bathroom clean and shiny.

I keep drying my hair with a towel and sit on the couch. The Doc told us it would take a day at least to reach Olympia. So we've been assigned cabins and clothes. I stare at the screen in front of me, without moving. I have never dreaded anything in my short life more than what I am about to do. It was just a kiss? Ellie will understand, it's not like I planned it.

_She's gonna kill me!_

Look, there is no harm in _not_ telling her right? What she doesn't know won't hurt her. Telling her, now that would hurt her. In fact, there's no need for her to even know anything about Lyssa. I can just keep the whole subject to myself until we get to San Francisco and figure out how to cure everyone. Then when I go to give Ellie the treatment, I'll confess everything. Heck, she might be so happy about the cure that she just might forgive me about the whole stupid thing, but I doubt it.

I tap the keyboard, type in the code the Doc gave me, and my screen instantly changes. I see Zack and Ellie.

_Holy crap._

Ellie dashes to the desk and reaches out her left hand to me. "Oh, thank god!"

"Dude! Man, am I glad to see you!"

I smile. "Me too, pal. It's been quite a trip so far."

"Are you okay?"

I nod and smile warmly. I'm such a heel. Here she has been fretting about me for days and I'm off kissing girls.

_I suck so bad._

"I'm fine," I answer them, "don't worry."

"How's San Fran man?"

"I'm not there yet buddy, I only just got to the boat in Vancouver."

"Well, I'm glad you made it. I was beginning to think you got lost. We get to keep you for a while now, right?"

I swear I see Zack cringe at that, but I shake it off. "I'm afraid not. There was a problem with the ship. We're not in any danger, but they are telling me, it won't make it to San Francisco. So we're going to have to walk."

Ellie leans back and asks. "We?"

_Big mistake._

I squirm in my seat. "Yeah, I found a survivor on my way to Vancouver. A—um, a girl."

"Really? How's that possible?"

"She said she got sick like me and got better. Now, I don't want you to freak out, but she's not the only survivor I've found out here. There's way more than I thought. Way more than anyone thought. Some of them, well, they're not so nice."

Ellie folds her arms in front of her chest and doesn't blink. "What's her name?"

_I'm dead._

"Whose name? Oh, right! Her name is Lyssa. She's fifteen years old. She's been alone for more than a year. No Nexus, no UNN, nothing. She was a mess when I found her. Totally helpless. I have to take care of her Ellie."

Zack looks really happy. "Dude, you got a girl?"

I hate Zack so much right then. "No, it's not like that."

I know Ellie can see I'm lying. I have to come clean.

Before I can speak though, she says, "Liar."

"Dude, you lying to us?"

My mind is reeling. It's a good thing I just got out of the shower, otherwise they'd both see me sweating. Finally, I make a decision. "Ellie, look. There is absolutely nothing going on. She is just a stray kid, I swear. When I found her she was living in the mud. Might've been covered with her own feces, by the smell of her, I wouldn't have put it past her."

Ellie spins away.

But Zack has a big smile across his face. "So you got yourself a girl!"

_Friggin' Zack._

If he were in the room right now I would have kicked him in the balls repeatedly until he passed out. "No Zack. I told you she smelled like a pig farm when I found her."

Zack starts laughing. "Look at him squirm! He's got a girl!"

"Zack if you don't shut the hell up I'm cutting off your feed to Ellie and me. And you can spend the rest of your life counting dust mites till you slit your wrists."

Ellie spins back. "Dorian!"

I look at Ellie and then back at the horrified look in Zack's eyes.

"Man, I'm sorry, Zack."

Zack is white as a ghost, and spits back, "You're sorry? You're sorry, that's it? You threaten to sentence me to become death rolled over and I'm just supposed to say, 'No worries?' Good old reliable and lovable Zack, huh?"

I lower my head. "Look, this doesn't excuse what I said, but I've been through a lot the last couple of days and I'm not quite myself."

Zack laughs. "Really? Dude, I've been slowly starving to death for the last six months, so I'm not quite myself either! Or has it been nine months, I can't keep track."

I rest my head in my hands. Maybe I should just come clean. Just come right out and tell Ellie the truth. I've already dug myself a big enough hole trying to lie. Seems logical that the only way out is through the truth.

I sigh. "Look—" I start.

I raise my eyes and I see the anger and concern on Ellie's face and lose my resolve.

"Look, all I can say is I'm sorry. Not only would I not do that, but even if I wanted to, I wouldn't know how."

Zack folded his arms across his chest and spun so his back was facing the camera. Simple but effective.

"Ellie, I'm sorry. Can you talk to him. The Doc said I could only talk to you for a few minutes. Something about how redirecting coverage was challenging over water, I don't know what he meant. But I have to go now."

Ellie's eyes bug out of her head. "No!"

I sigh, feeling like a complete heel. The Doc didn't say anything about redirecting coverage. I needed to escape and it was the only thing I could think of.

_I keep telling you, I suck._

"Ellie I have to go. They're telling me to hang up. I love you. We'll be together soon baby, I know it."

Ellie's eyes were pleading as I hit the "Power" button. Then all I saw was my reflection in the blank screen. The guilt was leaking from my eyes and oozing from every pore on my face. I had never even thought to lie to Ellie before and now in the span of two minutes I lied to her twice. And it was easy. Much easier than the truth. Besides telling her the truth would only have made me feel better. It would have been selfish to tell her. If it truly meant nothing, then not telling her was the only option.

She just doesn't need to know.

It was only a kiss... _right_?

## To be continued...

# 
# Table of Contents

  1. Foreword
  2. Scientific Fact:
  3. CHAPTER ONE
  4. CHAPTER TWO
  5. CHAPTER THREE
  6. CHAPTER FOUR
  7. CHAPTER FIVE
  8. CHAPTER SIX
  9. CHAPTER SEVEN
  10. CHAPTER EIGHT
  11. CHAPTER NINE
  12. CHAPTER TEN
  13. CHAPTER ELEVEN
  14. CHAPTER TWELVE
  15. CHAPTER THIRTEEN
  16. CHAPTER FOURTEEN
  17. CHAPTER FIFTEEN
  18. CHAPTER SIXTEEN
  19. CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
  20. CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
  21. CHAPTER NINETEEN
  22. CHAPTER TWENTY
  23. b8d48e2c-c72b-4e65-bbc1-841848e36cab.xhtml

