The Defenders

The rain continued to pound the pavement. It never stopped, and Eve had almost forgotten what the sun looked like at all. She stared out the window, and watched the small rivulets make their way down the glass. That’s what her life had become. A dark little winding road, and she never knew which way to turn. In the background the news broadcast was a dreary as the view, and she wondered why she kept it on at all. It was so she didn’t have to be alone. She didn’t care anymore about what was going on in the world, because hers had fallen apart. Her entire family was gone, and she knew they were dead. She was fifteen years old, for God’s sake. But she didn’t feel fifteen anymore. She used to go to parties. She used to date boys. She used to eat hamburgers and French fries. She used to run on the track team. And then one day it all ended. And now she didn’t know where to turn for her next meal. She had succumbed to hunger, and had started eating things that crawled. It made her stomach churn to think of it.

She rested her head against the cold glass, and closed her eyes. She remembered what it had been like, before the rain. The sun was shining, the grass was green. She had people around to talk to, and even her little brother Joey was being nice for once. He offered her a piece of chocolate, and she smiled, remembering his chubby little fingers. Eve’s eyes filled with tears. He had been too young. What was happening? She remembered how the clouds had gathered, and they all moved inside for the storm. But the storm never stopped. It never, ever stopped. It started to rain, and then the mudslides started. People’s houses were just falling into the earth. Everything was getting eaten up. Why hadn’t she been eaten up too? She almost wished she had been. But she had to keep going. She had to keep going, because there was something important she had to do. They had had one of their stupid “family meetings”, and her parents talked about the things that were going to happen. They talked about the storms, and they talked about the government, and they talked about God. She didn’t know what the hell they were getting at. But she knew she had to keep going, because if she didn’t, who else would? Who else was even left? Nobody she knew, that was for sure. She didn’t know how she had escaped when their house had started to slide. All she remembered was mud coming in the doors and windows. And she crawled towards the sun. All she could think was to go to the light. And now here she was, stuck in a never-ending rain from hell.

She drifted off to sleep, and woke up with a crook in her neck. It was light outside, but gray, and the rain kept coming down. It was time to get started, and she put on a yellow raincoat. It was ridiculous, but it’s all she could find. She would have preferred to be in something dark colored – better to blend. Hopefully nobody would pay any attention, if there was anyone. She paused as her hand touched the doorknob – she didn’t know exactly what she was facing, but she knew it was bigger than she realized. She tried to remember what her parents had said during that family meeting. Something about the government wanting to take over. Something about experiments taking place, and people hiding. God, she wished she had paid attention. What experiments? Is that what caused the storms? Who was hiding, and was anybody even alive anymore? She had to find someone, and she had to figure out what was going on. She had found a house that was still above ground, but where were the people? The food was running out. She could hear sirens, and voices over loudspeakers telling everyone to stay calm. She could hear them telling people to go to the local shelter. But one thing she did remember, was not to go. Not to trust the people who were supposed to be in charge. Because something was very wrong. Something was terribly wrong.

She stepped outside and looked up and down the street. There wasn’t any movement – no cars, nobody walking. Not even any stray dogs or cats. She tried to stay out of sight as she headed towards the center of town. That’s where the shelter was located, and that’s where she would find her answer. She ducked out of sight as a black sedan came down the street. The recording was getting louder and louder, and she realized it was coming from the car. They were telling everyone to get inside the shelter. They were rounding up all the people who were left. She stayed as still as she could, and cursed the yellow raincoat. But the clouds and the rain kept everything a dull gray, and the car passed by without noticing she was there. Once it was out of sight she started moving again, watching for the car and listening for the hollow voice that sent shivers up her spine.

Ten more minutes, and she could make out the dull pink stucco of the building up ahead. She needed to get inside and see what was happening. She needed to see if anyone was there, and if anyone was alive. She worked her way through the streets, and came up on the back of the building. She saw a service entrance, but the door was locked. She could hear the faint cry of a baby, and knew that people were inside. There was a dumpster with a window above it, and she searched the gray one last time for the black sedan. She listened, and couldn’t hear the mesmerizing voice. She closed her eyes and said a prayer, and her hand folded around the locket her mother had put around her neck during that last meeting. Inside it was a picture of her family, but it was more than that. Much more. Enough that it would get her killed if They found it. It held a secret, and one that not even she totally understood. It had to do with experiments. What was it? It would protect her, she knew that. She remembered her mother telling her not to take it off. It was an answer. But to what?

She looked up at the window, afraid to look in, and afraid to stay where she was. Suddenly she heard the handle of the service door, and she jumped into the shadow of the trash bin. It smelled awful, and she tried to keep herself from gagging. Someone came out the door and went around the other corner of the building. She ran towards the light, and caught the door just before it closed completely. She was inside, and it was bright. It took a minute for her eyes to adjust. She was in a long hallway, and the pink stucco had given way to gray concrete walls that looked like cell blocks. She moved to the right, towards the still-small voice of the infant. The baby that might never grow up. This is why I’m here, she thought. No one else knows, and someone has to save him. The crying grew louder, and the hallway grew more dim. She peeked into a window and had to stifle a scream. Dead bodies covered the floor, and in the midst the baby cried. Somehow he had survived. She made the decision in an instant, and couldn’t stop to think about it or she would have turned back. She opened the door and moved as quickly as she could through the bodies, trying not to touch anything. Her flesh crawled, and she made her way to the baby in the middle of the room. She didn’t know how he could have survived when no one else did. And then she saw it – the tiny little locket that was an exact replica of the one she wore. It was oval, with a little gold cross and an amethyst protection stone. And for the first time since the rain began she felt a glimmer of hope.