Abel sat stoically on Hyde's back as they rode beside the seemingly calmer river. Art and Ari sat with their heads bowed in a deep slumber. The night air was cool and calm. The gentle breeze brushed against Abel's face, his hands grew tired from gripping Hyde's fur and his butt began to go numb.
"It's a lot more peaceful at night now, isn't it?" He asked, scratching behind Hyde's ear.
"Yeah, I guess I never enjoyed city life. Just never realized it until it was gone," He finished, chuckling to himself. As they continued forward his mind filled with thoughts of his mother. Was she one of the people in the shelter or was she somewhere out there, waiting to be found? The idea of finding her alive soothed his mind but the knowledge that she most likely wasn't still lingered like a sneeze stuck in the back of his nose. He looked at the path ahead of him as the light from the setting sun dwindled further.
The world around him grew cold and quiet as Hyde continued along the winding path. He could hear the gentle breeze ripple through the blades of grass around them. The twigs beneath Hyde's monstrous feet crunched with each step, a somewhat peaceful mixture of sounds created a white noise effect. Abel's eyes grew heavy as Hyde's subtle movements mixed with the sounds of nature calming him like a restless newborn snuggled into his mother's bosom. Even with the world as quiet as it was and knowing he was safe as long as he and Hyde were together, Abel worried about letting his guard down. He feared the unsolicited comments and opinions of those around him and used that fear to create a barrier between himself and them.
He dragged his fingers across his damaged face, feeling the shredded skin ripple across it. He pulled his hand away and realized his wound had started bleeding again. He fumbled around checking his pockets for anything he could use to dress his eye. As he patted his nearly empty pockets repeatedly he felt a gentle touch on his shoulder.
"Everything okay?" Ari whispered, holding his shoulder gently and leaning in close to his ear.
"My eyes bleeding, but I'm okay. Just looking for something to cover it," He replied, now checking the pockets hidden on the inside of his coat. Ari searched herself for a moment looking for anything she could use to help. Her eyes lingered as she noticed her white long-sleeved t-shirt poking out from under her jacket. An idea formed in her mind as she began removing her coat. Under her coat was a thin white shirt, that she had recently bought at the mall. She remembered when she bought it her mom warned her to be careful because the fabric was very fragile and could easily tear.
An idea sparked in her mind and she gripped the sleeve halfway up her arm in her teeth. She grabbed the other part of the sleeve with two fingers and pulled her neck aggressively. Just as her mom had said, the fabric tore very easily, leaving a decent-sized hole where her teeth had been holding. She stuck two fingers in the hole and began stretching it wider until the sleeve was no longer connected.
She removed the lower half of the sleeve and gripped it in both hands.
"Hold still," She whispered, pulling her torn sleeve diagonally across Abel's damaged eye. She pulled the fabric tight and tied it firmly behind his head.
"Okay, look at me," She said. Abel turned and looked at her with his eye now patched.
"Honestly, you might look better with one eye. Very mysterious," She said, chuckling softly.
"Well, you look better with the drunken bar fight look," He replied, gesturing down to her now half-torn sleeve. The two of them laughed softly in an attempt not to wake Art. Relief washed over him as he chuckled. It had felt like forever since the last time he felt comfortable enough to let his guard down like this and enjoy someone else's company.
"Thank you," He said, curling his lip slightly.
"Oh come on, you would've done the same thing for me," She replied.
"Well I don't know about all of that, I like my shirts intact," He said, attempting to keep his composure.
"Oh ha ha very funny jerk," She said, rolling her eyes and shoving him playfully.
"In all seriousness, can I ask you something?" She asked, changing her demeanor slightly.
"Shoot," He said, shrugging his shoulders.
"What is it you're hoping we find?" She asked, tilting her head in curiosity.
"It isn't what I'm hoping to find. It's what I hope I don't find," He replied, rotating back around and facing the path in front of them. An awkward silence filled the air as Ari thought of ways to resurrect their conversation. She hadn't meant anything by what she asked, she was just curious about Abel's expectations.
"I...I'm sorry I didn't-"
"I know, I'm not upset. I just hope I don't find my mom," He said softly as a tear trickled down his cheek slowly. He stared down at the ground below no longer attempting to stop the tears. He watched as the grass and flowers below slowly moved underneath Hyde's massive physique. Suddenly the grass was no longer moving, they were stopped.
"Oh my god," Ari said. Abel cleared the tears from his eye and wiped his face dry before looking up. In front of him stood a large pillar from the bridge towering above them. It was destroyed. The two halves were no longer connected. Both large structures swayed and creaked with each small gust of wind. They could hear the cracking of the stones above them as pieces tumbled and crashed into the water below. Ari knew what this meant. The thing she had been dreading since she volunteered to go with Abel in the first place, getting there.
"It's just beyond here," She said, dreading the path ahead. Abel thought back to the moment on the bridge. He remembered watching Miles climb onto the ledge and risking everything to keep him and Amanda safe. Until now, he believed Miles had put them all in danger, but after seeing the bridge now, he knew Miles saved his life.
"Let's go," He said, jabbing Hyde softly. They began walking once more, the grass beneath Hyde's feet turned to water as they began passing through the rushing river. Even the fast-moving current wasn't enough to make Hyde even flinch. His body didn't move an inch downstream as they walked across. The sound of the river crashing against his legs was intense, but it seemed to just ripple around him. The river seemed a lot less menacing from on top of his back as Abel stared down at it. The memories of him and his siblings crashing through the river and being struck down repeatedly by the waves rushed their way through Abel's mind
"I'm sorry Miles," He whispered to himself. Ari stared at the sky above, the stars were partially visible behind the wine-red clouds that swam across the sky. They danced above her head and twinkled ever so slightly. She thought back to her first date with Ace, he had taken her to his family's cabin and surprised her with a late-night picnic in the woods followed by a night of stargazing. They didn't stay out very late because neither of them had prepared for the nearly negative five-degree weather that night, but it was a core memory she loved looking back on.
She smiled slightly as her memories overtook her. She knew she may never see Ace again but she knew she'd always have her memories. She twisted her rose locket between her index finger and thumb slightly and smiled as the clouds covered the stars once more. Hyde pulled himself from the river on the other side and gently shook himself dry. Art woke up in a rut and gripped Hyde's fur for dear life.
"Jesus Christ, you big buffoon!" He shouted, slapping Hyde's rear.
"Well, good morning to you too," Ari said, laughing at his distress.
"Fuck off. Where are we?"
"We're at the bridge," Abel said, staring at the hill in front of them. He knew that just over the hill was the dirt road leading to the shelter. His heart sank into his stomach at the mere idea of what he was going to find, but he knew he needed the answers. He took a deep breath and leaned down.
"C'mon boy," He whispered, kicking his heels once more. Hyde wasted no time, he broke into a run and cleared the hill swiftly. They made it to the top, in the distance behind them they could see Westbrooke. It was dark and uninviting and it looked menacing from a distance. After clearing the hill Hyde slowed his pace to a leisurely walk as they approached the dirt road.
As they walked the path husks of people fried by the blast were frozen in place. Mothers curled into balls holding their infants for dear life branded with an expression of terror and hopelessness. Military personnel frozen in time still barking out orders. Worst of all, children who were oblivious to what was happening were husked with confused expressions still plastered on their faces. Abel stared over the multitude of different expressions confused and uneasy.
"What the fuck is this?" He asked, holding his queasy stomach.
"The end of the world," Art said, looking down at a young kid, no older than ten holding a small tennis ball in his hand and staring at the city longingly.
"The end of the fucking world," He repeated.
"Whoa," Abel said, pulling back on Hyde's fur. He came to a stop as Abel began climbing down. He jumped down and started walking through the crowd of husked bodies. As he got a closer look he realized how much horror there was. He could see the terror branded in their eyes as their faces leaked with the tar-like ooze that encrusted their feet. In front of him stood a mountainside with a concrete wall in front of it. Between two points of the concrete wall was an open door, reinforced with steel rods and several locks.
Hyde crept up behind an obviously conflicted Abel and nuzzled his snout under his arm gently. He stayed frozen staring at the door and he gently rubbed Hyde's nose.
"You don't have to go in you know," Ari said.
"You could just forget all about it, we can turn around and never come back, pretend there was nothing to find," She finished hoping he'd take her offer.
"No, I have to go. I have to know," He said, taking a deep breath. He stayed frozen for a moment before walking forward. He approached the concrete wall slowly as his heart rate increased. He reached out his shaky hand to push the door open further. It was pitch black inside and his phone had been destroyed when he crashed into the river, so using his flashlight wasn't an option. He looked to his right and next to him stood the husk of a large soldier. He was husked while shouting orders and he was pointing toward the bridge in the direction of the other soldiers.
Abel looked down and noticed he had a blue plastic flashlight on his utility belt. He reached out slowly and grabbed it firmly and pulled. As he pulled the belt ripped through the soldier's torso and split him in half. His top half tumbled to the ground and scattered into ash. He stared in horror he quivered and stumbled backward staring at the legs that still stayed standing. He hunched over and vomited, his stomach couldn't handle what he had just witnessed as the last of the food in his system was quickly expelled.
After he finished puking, he stayed hunched over for a moment. He stared at the dirt floor as he caught his breath. He stood up and wiped his lip, he brought the plastic flashlight and utility belt up and removed the light from the metal clasp dropping the belt in the dirt. He placed his thumb against the black switch and slid up. The light shined bright and a small amount of relief eased his mind slightly.
He took a moment and prepared himself for the horror he was about to see. After a few deep breaths, he was ready he looked behind him at his friends and proceeded into the dark room. He shined his light around reading the small silver plaques drilled into the brick wall and seeing the different facilities within. He wasn't prepared for this and he knew that, but he also knew if he didn't find his mom he would never stop wondering.
He pushed on, his mind racing and his heart beating out of his chest. His flashlight flickered slightly every few minutes. He would gently tap the lens and it would go steady. He searched the bunker as it seemingly went on forever before he finally found the plaque labeled: Beds. The door was ajar and he could see someone's hand gripping it. He stared at it knowing what he had to do. He gripped the handle of the flashlight and smacked the wrist of the mystery arm. The arm crumbled to ash and the door creaked open slowly.