Disconnect

Day 530, Morning

The strains of an old song my parents always loved wafts in from a nearby window.

"We three, we're all alone. Living in a memory. My echo, my shadow, and me."

Soon the music distorts, then fades. Gusts of wind kick up and blow through, causing my dress to flutter. It draws my attention to the partially opened front door. A shock wave knocks me off course on my way over to it. Now fully open, I look beyond my porch. The streets are empty. All the neighbor's driveways are too.

Where is everyone?

I venture out, running down the steps in a rush. Once I'm in the yard, the reason for the wind and shock wave stares me in the face. A mushroom cloud looms in the distance. This can't be happening. Wake up, idiot. I slap my face, but nothing works to remove me from this place.

Another bomb goes off much closer to me and I countdown my last seconds on Earth. The blast radiates such a powerful force that I tremble. Suddenly the air becomes thick and my last breaths are taken. Moments later, heat sears the flesh from my bones. Agonizing pain washes over me, but all too soon it's gone, replaced by stifling heat and the chirping of insects. I'm no longer in my old neighborhood. Reality sets in that world is gone. A quick look around brings the new one into focus.

My chest is heaving. The heart-shaped locket hanging around my neck weighs heavily on me. Sweat trickles down my forehead into my eyes, burning them until I wipe it away.

"It's just a dream, Yara. Don't be silly."

Light peeks out between the crevice in these rocks as I sit up. I slept longer than I intended. The cool of the early morning helps me travel and now I fear I've wasted it. While rolling up my sleeping bag, a yawn escapes. Sleep hasn’t come easily for me since my parents have died, leaving me alone. My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth when it closes, reminding me it's dry.

Water...

If I don't find more soon, getting enough sleep will be the least of my worries. The last of my rations ran out yesterday just as I set up camp. My food lasted longer and I'm thankful that someone abandoned that box of granola bars. Unwrapping one, I begin my journey forward.

Day 547, Afternoon

Weeks, I've been walking for weeks. I'm outside of the new cities. The last thing I need is to be found. I stupidly thought seeking civilization would be the answer. How quickly I learned otherwise. So when voices talking over the next ridge reach me, I freeze.

Looking around for a place to hide, I barely conceal myself when booted feet come close, crunching the leaves in front of me. It's a man holding a walkie-talkie. Whoever he was talking to, I can't see. If I wait to make a run for it, maybe I can escape. When he turns, then walks a few steps away, I take my chance. Quick breaths fuel me to run harder. Just when I think I've made it, a sturdy pair of hands grip my arms.

"And where do you think you're going?"

"Let me go!"

"Not a chance, princess. It's in your best interest if you don't fight me."

He must've known I was ready to elbow him in the ribs. The smirk on his lips makes me roll my eyes. When he has the nerve to scan my body and wink, my eyes almost roll out of my head.

Who does this guy think he is? A post-apocalyptic playboy?

His friend joins us on the walk to their camp. I say camp, but it's more like a compound. They have guard post stations at each corner. My attention immediately falls on the automatic rifles they have. Both men I'm with merely nod and the doors are unlocked. As we cross the courtyard, I hear yelling from training.

Do they have an army here?

One man breaks off and disappears inside a room. Playboy tugs me in the opposite direction. While I'm annoyed by him, it feels good to be inside from the heat. He takes me past a few closed doors to a stairway. When he stops to pull out a key and unlocks the door, all I get is a gesture before he too disappears on me. As soon as I enter, I catch an eye full. Playboy is taking his clothes off.

"Um...can you not?"

"What's a matter, princess? Never seen a guy naked before?"

I'm trying my best not to take the bait. If he thinks I'm going to stare at his junk, then he's got another thing coming. I just really wish my parents hadn't taught me to look people in the eye when I speak to them.

"That's none of your business...whoever the hell you are!"

"Name's Reed. You're welcome, by the way."

"For what?"

"For saving your ass. If any of the other rebel groups in this area had found you first, it wouldn't have been pretty."

"Is that supposed to scare me?"

"Nope. Just telling it like it is. Come on. You should meet the elders."

Finally, he puts on clothes, then holds the door open for me. Such a gentleman. The halls are quiet until we reach the top of another staircase. Below us sits a large room full of people. Six chairs sit on a raised platform, but only four of them are occupied.

An elderly man sitting in the middle calls out to us.

"Come, my dear. No need to be afraid. I am Locklin."

Well, that explains everything...not. Even though a voice inside my head is screaming for me to run, I don't. As I approach him, a girl steps up with a chair. I guess that's my cue to sit.

"Now tell us who you are. Why were you found out in the wild alone?"

Taking a deep breath, I tell my story. Occasionally I am asked a question by one of the other elders. Mostly, they seem unaffected by my tale except for my name. Once that came out, they all sat perched on the edge of their seats, waiting to hear more. But unfortunately, there isn't more. When I'm finished they bunch together, talking in whispers. I only catch bits and pieces.

"Is it her?"

"The chosen one..."

"Now is the time!"

What are they talking about?

Suddenly I don't have time to find out. Locklin has waved for that same girl to step forward. She pulls me up, then removes my chair. Standing next to me with her head bowed, she waits for instructions.

"Irene, please take Yara to her room and see that she is taken care of. Tonight will be the feast, then tomorrow the crusade. Everything must be prepared. See to it."

"Yes, Locklin."

With nothing more than a yank on my arm, we're moving. The same stairs greet me again. This time I don't recognize the hallway we spill out into. Irene stops at the last door and unlocks it with a key. I'm shocked to see a tub inside. They have running water!

Not willing to let this luxury go to waste, I strip down, then step in. Warm water surrounds me and I'm in heaven. On the bed, Irene has laid clothes out for me. After my bath, I dress and collapse on the bed. In minutes, I'm fast asleep. It's not a peaceful sleep though. I have the same dream. When I wake up screaming, Irene is scrambling back.

"Sorry! Just had a bad dream. That's all."

"It's okay. They sent me to get you. The feast is ready."

Scrubbing the sleep from my eyes, I follow her down to the festivities. It's supposed to be a party, but joy is the last thing I feel. Later, when Locklin signals for everyone's attention, my anxiety reaches an all-time high. His booming voice relays the reason we're here. They have a plan and at its center: me. As the head of several rebel groups, they have been honing their skills to sneak into the United Nations. Like everyone else, they wish for the connect to stop.

What makes them think that we'll succeed where so many others have failed, though?

As the party winds down, I am taken to another room to prepare for the trip. Still unsure I should go through with this, a powerful jolt of nerves hits me. I'm just about to run out when Reed steps up beside me. His sly smirk grounds me and I'm too busy rolling my eyes at him to be scared.

After we go over the plan's steps, the elders take turns giving us their blessing. I'm just walking outside when Reed stops me. With no clue what he wants, I turn to get lippy with him, but he yanks me closer. Inches apart, his eyes sparkle mischievously before he lowers his lips to mine. Not counting being pecked on the lips by my junior prom date, this is the first time I've been kissed. I didn't think I was missing anything until now. His hands tighten on my waist for just a second, then he releases me. My hands reach out to steady myself, and he has the biggest grin on his face.

"What was that for?"

"Good luck. Come on, princess. You're with me."

Still slightly dazed, I manage a frown after pushing off the wall. No one that cocky should be that good of a kisser. I continue my mumbling out of the compound. We're several miles outside of it when I finally stop. Reed doesn't seem bothered in the slightest, walking along without a care in the world. When this is over, he's getting the world's biggest talking to, I swear.

Day 552, Evening

We're outside of the UN building waiting on the patrol to change. Locklin assured us we would have exactly seven minutes before the new guard was in place. Reed thought that was more than enough time in our briefing, but as he constantly urges me to speed up going down a long corridor, it seems he doesn't think that any longer. With just seconds to spare, both of us enter the mainframe room. I'm at a loss about what to do. The elders insisted that when the time came, I would know how to fix it.

Confusion must be all over my face because Reed speaks up.

"You've got this, princess. Just breathe."

Taking his advice, I walk forward. As I approach the console, my fingers skimming the buttons, my mother's words ring in my ears. I repeat them over and over. Looking down, I fidget with the heart-shaped locket around my neck. Instantly, Reed grips it too, interrupting my rhythmic chant. He opens it and peels back the worn picture to reveal a micro SD card.

Is this the answer?

I take the card from him, then carefully insert it. The words do you wish to proceed flash across the screen. After I click yes, the screen goes blank for a moment before a countdown begins. Once it finishes, the network will be disabled with one last command being issued: peace. I retrieve the micro SD card, placing it back into my locket.

With our work done, we sneak back out of the building according to plan. When we finally meet up with everyone else, I can hardly hear because of all the radios tuned into news broadcasts. Already failure of the network is being shouted from anyone with an audience. The only question that sits firmly in all the rebels' minds is, what happens if society tries to collapse again?

Reed shares a look with me that says he agrees. Holding his hand and rubbing my mother's locket with the other, I answer them all…

"Then we'll be there."