Tunnels

I wiped the sweat from my forehead with my dirt-crusted hand leaving a streak of mud on my forehead. I sighed with satisfaction as I took a step back to survey my work. Never thought I would be spending my life tending to a garden, but that was the necessity of my life now. I reached across the planter box to even the soil around one of the sprouts that would one day be carrots.

"It looks good Matthew," said a booming voice from behind me that made me jump. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"No worries Jayson." I said with a smile.

"Unfortunately, I don't think Paul has quite the green thumb you seem to have."

I sighed, knowing what was coming next and dreading it.

"Our bean crop has all but died off at this point. We have done what we can with it. Yourself included. You can only do so much. I'm afraid that after that last collapsed tunnel we lost some of our best growers." He groaned and shook his head at the thought. "I know I should be mourning the dead, but I'm more concerned with what is left..." Jayson burst into a fit of coughing. The cold damp air had that effect, even if you didn't breathe too deeply. "Sorry about that. As I was saying, I'm just more concerned about the living right now."

I nodded grimly, "I hear you. I'm worried too. This isn't enough food to last us, even if it does grow in time. Which, by the way, will take a miracle."

"Which is exactly why we think someone needs to go up and gather some supplies."

"Who's we Jayson? You and?"

"Well, mostly me. But, we really should. There are only fifty of us left and we have no crops to show for our work. The only thing that really grew was the potatoes and those supplies are thinning by the minute. Feeding 50 people day in and day out is too demanding. You and two others will go to the last store in the area for supplies. There might not be anything left, but we have to try.”

I reached into my pocket and grabbed my sister’s heart-shaped locket. I had made a habit of holding onto it whenever I needed a reminder to be brave. I’d been too much of a coward to come out of hiding to stop those animals from raping, killing, and then eating her. I had promised myself that I would never give in to my fear again. Six months later I still wake every night from that nightmare. I was getting sick to my stomach just thinking about it. I must have turned pale too because Jayson had a concerned look on his face.

“You okay son? You should sit down. Here…”

I swatted his hand away and at first, there was confusion on his face, but it quickly turned to understanding.

“Ahhh. Still blaming yourself for what happened. It’s not your fault. If you had done anything, your fate would have been the same. Those monsters chose self-preservation instead of the preservation of their fellow man. You can’t keep..”

“I KNOW! I DON’T WANT TO HEAR IT!”I slid down the side of the planter box to the dirt ground and wept.

Jayson sighed and squatted down in front of me. “We have all lost many, but many have not lost in the way that you have. I know your heart is heavy with pain, but those of us left still need you. Get some rest, you have a long day ahead of you tomorrow.” With that, he patted my shoulder and left me be.

I cried myself to sleep and woke up to the sound of something rustling. I sat up and rubbed my eyes and saw that Jayson was getting together my suit. He made a few of these after the first time we went above ground. They weren’t much, but they offered at least some protection from the UV rays and radiation.

He turned and saw that I was up, “Good morning. How’d you sleep?”

I forced a smile and said, “Fine.” I rolled my shoulders trying to get the large knot out of my left shoulder blade.

Jayson helped me up and into my suit, then handed me my backpack, “Remember,” he said looking square into my eyes, “This is for all of us. You can do this. We believe in you. Use that pain that you hold to remember there is always hope.”

I shook my head with a smirk, “Then why doesn’t it feel like it?”

We locked eyes for a few moments, he frowned, nodded, and then led the way to the escape ladder.

Vinnie and John were already waiting for me at the bottom, both of their faces grim and covered in the dust that surrounded us daily. John was a few years older than me at 22 with a bright orange crop of hair and freckles to match on his face. Vinnie was younger than both of us at 16, but built like a Greek god.

I nodded to both of them. They nodded back.

“Alright men,” Jayson said. “It’s time. Thomas, I placed the supply list in your pack. Do your best to stick to it. Try not to bring back anything we don’t need. Hopefully, you can find some antibiotics as well, Mona has a fever and we suspect it’s from that cut she got last week when we were trying to rebuild one of the tunnels. Stay safe. If one of you goes down, try to at least recover their pack. Don’t be heroes. Just get the supplies.”

None of us spoke, just stared silently.

“Right… Off you go then.” Jayson said.

We zipped up our suits and headed up the ladder. Vinnie went first, wincing as he removed the cover. He looked around and then climbed out, waving for us to follow.

Once I reached the surface my jaw dropped at the devastation. The home we had dug underneath had been all but obliterated.

Only one wall to the home still stood, the rest lay in a heap of concrete, plaster, and wood scraps. We navigated swiftly through the rubble and scanned the horizon for any sign of the monsters. When we saw it was all clear we all gave a silent and approving nod at one another. We moved out past the wall into the blistering heat. We all put our heads to the ground as our faces felt burned already.

We made a beeline for the nearest building for some shade. All of us were already drenched in sweat and panting heavily. If possible, the heat had gotten worse. Fortunately, the store was only a street away. Or at least, what used to resemble a street. All that could be seen now was burnt foliage and the debris where homes and businesses used to reside.

“This sucks.” Vinnie said.

“Without a doubt.” Said John.

I nodded in agreement. “Any signs of those things lurking around?”

They took one last scan around.

“Nope.” Vinnie replied.

“Good. Are you guys ready?” I asked.

They both took a deep breath and nodded. The monsters typically waited until nightfall to do their hunting, but they could still be found during the day. Usually, they slept inside of stores like the one we were headed to.

We moved at a light jog the rest of the way to the store in an attempt to reduce our exposure to the sun. Once outside our target, we peered in through one of the broken windows. Silence returned our stare.

We crept around the perimeter following John’s lead until we came to the doorway. Looked as though the doors had been ripped off of the hinges a months ago. We crept inside trying to be as quiet as possible. I pulled the supply list out of my pack.

“Alright. John, looks like the pharmacy is straight back. We are looking for penicillin, Benadryl, and painkillers. Vinnie, it looks like first aid supplies are down what used to be aisle two. I’ll start down at the other end looking for dry goods. Sound good?”

“Whatever you say boss man.” Vinnie said as he walked away.

John gave a thumbs up and headed toward his mission as well.

My heart was practically beating out of my chest. Splitting up was how we lost Jake on that first run, but it was a necessity. It would take too long otherwise and we didn’t have time to be above ground any longer than needed.

I turned to my right and an old newspaper caught my eye as I moved forward. The headline read:

“Doomsday has Arrived!! Ozone Layer Departs and Radioactive Monsters Emerge!”

June 7th, 2065.

I shook my head realizing that it should be the dead of winter right now. Even in California, it shouldn’t be this hot. As I proceeded across the store I reached into the front pocket of my suit to grab my sister’s locket. This is for you, I thought as I went deeper into the store.

I reached the far end and looked to my left. Most of the aisles had been ransacked, but at the back was an entryway with a sign above that read, EMPLOYEES ONLY.

I scanned the area as I made my way through the open doors. I put away my sister’s locket and got to work. Mostly I found empty boxes of supplies, but there were so many I decided I better check them all just in case. I trifled through what felt like hundreds before I was about to give up.

I sighed and out of the corner of my eye saw a box wedged behind the trash compactor. I walked over and saw there were actually about seven boxes stuffed back there. Surprisingly they were still closed. I opened up the first and found packets of tuna.

Jackpot! I thought with a silent celebration. This would feed us until we could get our crops back on track.

I took off my pack and started loading up. Before I knew it, My pack was filled up with several hundred tuna packets. I zipped it up and went to get the guys.

As I turned the corner I saw it.

The monster stared right at me with the most devilish smirk I had ever seen. And it looked hungry. Its skin was bubbled all over like that of a burn victim. Part of the skin was missing around its mouth making its crooked and jagged teeth all the more menacing. Its fingers had grown pointed and sharp like daggers. I made the first move.

I took off through the employee doors and shouted for my friends, "Vinnie! John! Get out! They’re…” My words cut short by a sharp pain in my side that not only stopped me in my tracks but threw me to the ground.

I looked up and saw Vinnie staring back at me, eyes wide and jaw agape. I looked down and saw that I had a metal pole sticking out of me like it was a spear. I started having trouble breathing and felt the warmth of my blood spreading to the floor around me in a pool.

My vision started coming and going and the last thing I remember is the creature’s smile as it stood over me with pride and hunger. The fear of not knowing what would come next after death was there, but part of me also felt relief that I wouldn’t have to see what would happen to the world next. Everything went dark and my body finally relaxed for the first time in six months.