Dwelling on the Future

Petra winced as the crumbling brick wall scraped the caramel skin from her knuckles. Quickly darting her long fingers between the cracks, she snatched the tail of the fat papa rat she’d seen the night before, during her shift. She clasped her middle and pointer fingers together tightly, knowing this could be the last chance to eat any protein for a while. Petra slowly extracted her hand as the strong fat rat daddy tried to wiggle free. Plucking him from the crumbling mortar and holding him up, she looked into his lone dark black eye and exclaimed, “Sorry buddy, better you than me!” Petra dropped him in a bag, cinched the end shut and slammed it hard and fast into the wall, euthanizing and tenderizing her meal all at once. Quickly glancing over her shoulder through her greasy raven locks, Petra began expertly ducking and dodging her way through the obstacle course of fallen debris that laid between her and safety. She reached the blue wall with the huge tattered Plaig Flag hanging down its length. The grandiosity seemed ridiculous and some days Petra’s anger would flood in and she would dream of leaping, grabbing, and ripping it from its smug perch. Slinking slowly along the wall, she stopped about 6 yards from the end and laying flat on her stomach, began inching and slithering toward the edge of the wall. At 4 yards a blinding light panned down, searching for scavenging Dwellers who were using the darkness as cover. Quickly, closing her eyes to avoid being blinded, this Dweller knew a secret and continued slithering, stopping, and squinting, until the cold metal grate was below her hands and chest. Grabbing the multi-tool in her pocket she started working on removing the bolts to the grate, while still avoiding being blinded and being seen by the Plaigs. Once the screws were all out she waited…1…2..the 3rd time the light neared her she closed her eyes, felt the heat of the glow on her cheeks and in one smooth motion she lifted the grate, rolled beneath it and dropped hard into the hole below, hitting the hard cinder bottom.

Oolie(Oh-Lee) could be heard trying to convince Heylo of something as Petra neared their camp at the curve in the tunnel. She rounded the corner and smacked hard into something, Petra looked down and two big red eyes with grey centers stared up at her. A little girl about 5 stood before her sporting a head full of matted dark brown hair and covered in dirt, except for the ring around her mouth that was clean because she kept licking her lips. Petra looked at Heylo and Oolie with angry-fear, “What the Hell you guys?...Where did she come from?...What are you doing?...And why the HELL won’t she stop licking her lips?” Petra rant-questioned her traveling companions. Then turning to the little one, “STOP LICKING YOUR LIPS!” She screeched. “Whoa, Lil Pet, chill. It’s all good!” Oolie crooned. Spinning around Petra lunged toward Oolie punching him hard in the ribs. “I TOLD YOU NEVER TO CALL ME THAT AGAIN” Petra growled through clenched teeth. Oolie hung his head and a long silver streaked piece of hair slipped from his top knot and swung down across his eyes. “Sorry Petey, I forgot. I won’t do it again,” Oolie said quietly as he peered at her from behind the streak. Studying Oolie’s stocky frame, her gaze softened. How could she stay mad at him? He had been her brother’s best friend most of her life and he was the only one left from life before the Plaigs murdered and enslaved everyone. Oolie half-bravely spoke up once more “Wwwe have to help her, she’s all ALONE!” Glaring at the little red eyed monster, “Grrrrrr”, Petra growled under her breath. “FINE! We can help her, but she is all yours to manage, Oolie”, she grumbled, “We HAVE to find the entrance to the mines! SERIOUSLY, WHY WON’T SHE STOP LICKING HER LIPS?”

Heylo giggled, and stepping forward she exclaimed “Petey you HAVE GOT to chill! I think she is licking her lips because Oolie shared his rations with her and I don’t thinks she’s eaten in a while so she keeps licking the left over flavor on her lips” Heylo looked down, released an annoyed gasp, grabbed Petra’s hand and whined, “Peeeetraaaa! WHAT did you DO? We don’t have anything to clean it. What if you get an infection? What happened?” Petra proudly held up the bag of treasures. “I got dinner!”

Petra dumped the fat dead rat out on to the floor and reached in her pocket for the multi tool, but her pocket was empty. “Oh no!” Petra felt all her other pockets, pulling each one out individually, then frantically turning the bag inside out. “It’s gone, but I just used it. Maybe I dropped it when I jumped down the grate?!” her voice sounded frantic and went up an octave as she searched. Oolie jogged back down the tunnel shining his head lamp in every corner, looking for her most prized possession. He is the only one that knew her brother,Nick, had given it to her with specific instructions to take care of it until he returned. That was 5 years ago. Rounding the corner of the tunnel Oolie hung his head as he neared their camp. When he saw Petey he dropped his gaze to the floor. “I couldn’t find it. I looked everywhere” he sadly mumbled. Swallowing hard Petra just looked at him through huge salty tears, but she did not dare let one fall. She nodded and looked back down at the plump rodent. “OK” she exclaimed loudly “I guess we need to figure out how we are going to skin this guy!” The Dweller trio started searching all their belongings and pockets for something sharp. “Oh, I know!” Heylo squealed and started digging in her bag. The platinum curls that named her sprung out from the edges of her head wrap as she fetched something from the bottom of her satchel and started scraping it against the hard cement floor before presenting it to Petra. Looking at Heylo’s palm Petra could see the gold locket they’d found one day while scavenging. She noticed one of it’s flat edges was now sharpened from being rubbed forcefully against the concrete floor. She plucked it up and used the newly sharpened edges to slice open the papa’s fat belly, allowing the guts to burst out. Petra made quick work of it, removing some of the innards, then skinning that fat rat daddy so they could roast him up for dinner. Helyo shoved a stick down it’s throat and started turning it over slowly, only a couple inches above the chafing candle. When she was sure he was cooked through Heylo divied up the portions and the new foursome sat silently as they sucked the meat from every bone.

After relishing that this was the best dinner she has had since leaving the Dweller Refuge Hub more than a week ago, the little foundling had fallen fast asleep in a ball in the corner near the bend of the tunnel. Oolie had volunteered to take the first look-out shift while his two traveling buddies tried to get a bit of rest. Petra and Heylo laid head to head on the pebble covered concrete floor, staring up at the large circular hole where a manhole cover once rested. They could see that the sky was still a hazy red from the Plaigs bombing the Crows two nights ago with Cicada Gas. The Plaigs’ best scientists and executioners created it shortly after the Great Conquering ended, to rid the tunnels of the original Dwellers that had gone underground seeking sanctuary. This silent killer was given the name Cicada Gas because it was intended to drive the Dwellers from underground out into the open where they could be enslaved or killed. Like the bugs it was named after, the individuals lucky enough to survive the gas would have the whites of their eyes stained crimson for more than 6 months after exposure. Firey, blood laden tears would seep from their eyes for almost half of the month. Their muscles would seize up and they would be petrified alive - mind still in tack, but unable to move at all until the poison started to clear from their system. Then, day by day, the victims’ muscles would relax until they were back to what would now be their new normal. If someone survives the Cada gas they are never the same, they will never run, they will never fight, they will never survive without help from the non-affected. This is what sent the trio on their mission to the borders of the city. Heylo ask Petra how much longer the journey would be to the outer boundaries of the city? Petra’s heart raced and mouth became dry, making it hard to swallow, as she considered the distance they still needed to cover to reach their destination. Her mind became her enemy as concerned questions flooded her thoughts, giving her doubts: Why would I volunteer to make this trip? Who do you think you are? You’re barely 19, you’ve lost your entire family, and nothing you have ever tried has worked out the way you planned? Petra slapped herself in the face and declared loudly so her words reverberated off the cement walls “SHUT YER MOUTH!” Heylo’s pixie like frame trembled against her back in the dark. Lil’ Pet closed her eyes, took in a long deep breath then slowly exhaled till her lungs were empty. She repeated this 3 more times until her mind settled and her body was steady. Remembering what Mama G used to tell her, “Oh, My Sweet girl…You are in control of you, your thoughts, your actions, and your reactions. The only one that can stop you beside you is Death.” Laying silently for many minutes just breathing, Petra watched the red Plaig fog as it formed odd cloud shapes in the sky…her eyes got heavy and fluttered closed as the words “beautiful death” floated thru her mind and into her dreams.