Excelsior (16 page)

She turned the handle. The door groaned, and the hinges squealed. A crack of sunlight appeared, blinding in its intensity. She opened the door further and squinted against the glare, her eyes watering from a month of living in a windowless basement. The air was cool, but reeking with smoke. Caty coughed and sneezed at the same time. She blinked her eyes wide and forced herself to look into the light. She saw a nest of wooden beams and other debris lying at the top of the stairs, but she spied a hole big enough to crawl out.

“Hello!” she tried, coughing again.

No answer. Wind whistled down the stairs. Caty started climbing. Soon she was forced to crawl on her hands and knees because of all the debris. Her pack caught on something and she removed it, dragging it behind her instead. Caty reached the hole in the debris and struggled through. Her back brushed an exposed nail and a stinging pain erupted where it had scratched her. She winced and bit her lip, tears coming to her eyes.

That’s what the first aid kit is for.

Caty crawled out into daylight, dragging her pack after her. She found herself at the top of the stairs, her head poking out just above a big pile of debris that used to be her house. The sky was clogged with smoke, turning the sun into a hazy red-orange ball. Everything as far as she could see was a crazy rat’s nest of ruins. Fat black ashes fell like snowflakes. The silence was desolate and terrifying. A wind thundered by. Charred debris and ashes rolled like tumbleweed in the street. She couldn’t see anyone walking through the ruins. Catalina felt a sharp stab of panic, and she swayed dizzily on her feet. She was the only survivor. This was it. The end of the world.

Then a bird chirped and flitted by overhead. Catalina watched it, her eyes wide and mouth agape, as if she’d never seen a bird before in her life.

If birds could still survive out here then so could she.

It took a lot of effort to climb out above the debris, but eventually Caty found herself standing on the street in front of her home. The streets were strewn with debris, too, but they were easier to negotiate and still mostly intact under all the rubble.

Another bird flew by, chirping out a cheerful song. Catalina turned to follow it and withdrew the compass from her bag, trying to track its course. No doubt it was looking for the same things she was—water, food, shelter.

The bird was headed northeast.

Caty nodded to herself. Northeast it was.

Chapter 13

Four Days Later - April 10th, 2790

(Earth’s Frame of Reference)

Catalina tapped the bottom of her water bottle, trying to knock out the last stubborn drops, but nothing came out. She lowered the bottle from her lips, frowned, and scanned the landscape. She was far enough from the ruins of LA that she’d begun to encounter skeletal forests of burned and blackened trees rather than mountains of rubble, but she had yet to find a river or lake. At this point she’d settle for a dirty puddle. She’d run out of water more than six hours ago, and she’d been rationing herself for the past two days, so she was already dehydrated.

Her thoughts did a lazy dance in her head, going in nonsensical circles.

Caty stumbled out of the trees onto something firm and hard. She blinked bleary sleep-deprived eyes and stared at the ground under her feet for a long moment, wondering what it was. Then she recognized it.

A road. Roads lead to civilization.

This was exactly what she needed. Maybe she’d wind up at a fueling station. Or a town sitting outside LA’s blast radius.

They had to have water there, right?

Caty stumbled along, forcing one foot in front of the other. A long time passed. She began to see the blacktop as a giant slithering snake. It went on and on without end, and soon she could almost see it slither. A snake. A woman. Cast out of paradise, waiting for Death to find her. The garden of Eden came to mind.

Was this the road to hell? Caty looked at the flanking rows of blackened trees and she recalled all the rubble and ruins where she’d come from—everything dead and gone. The road wasn’t leading her to hell. She was already there.

Her eyes began to itch, and Caty coughed weakly. She wondered if it was the smoke that made her eyes itch, or if it was the persistent lump in her throat. Lately, whenever she felt like crying, the tears refused to come; instead her eyes would itch like they were two giant mosquito bites. It was all she could do not to scratch them out of her head.

Alexander had left her. He’d promised to stay with her forever, to save her! Where was he now when she needed him the most? Her thoughts took a dark turn, whispering to her about where he must be, but she refused to accept it. No, she shook her head. He’s on his way to some far off world, and it’ll be ten years before he comes back!

He knew. He ran away on purpose.

Maybe he hadn’t been assigned to Operation Alice. Maybe he’d volunteered. He ran with his tail between his legs and left me here to die! Coward!

Catalina’s knees buckled and she hit the asphalt with a numb jolt. Her mouth was so dry… her head so thick. How much longer till she died of thirst? Caty turned her head back and forth, scanning the trees for some shimmer of water, but all was ash and dust.

Then she saw something. Green, white, red—a sign. A big fat seven in a clearing on the side of the road, not far from where she sat.

It was a mirage. It had to be.

Catalina sat for long seconds, waiting for the mirage to disappear, but it didn’t even shimmer. She blinked. It was real. A Seven Eleven. Not the ruins of one, but a real, in-tact store, and what looked like a fueling station, too.

She tried pushing off the ground, but her pack was too heavy. Shrugging out of the straps, she left it on the roadside and rose on sore, shaking legs. Catalina cast a glance behind her to her pack, her lifeline. There was no way she could lift it anymore. Not until she regained her strength. She could come back for it later. What she needed right now was water. Turning, she stumbled toward the fuel station and convenience store. She wanted to run, but she didn’t trust herself not to trip over her own feet.

By the time she reached the Seven Eleven and pushed open the doors, Catalina was gasping for air and her heart was pounding in her chest. She hadn’t run, but that was the fastest she’d ever walked in her life.

Her eyes flicked over the aisles. The store was dark inside and it took a moment for her eyes to adjust. Some of the aisles had been scavenged already, but there was still a ton of food, and drinks were everywhere. Caty spied warm cans of soda and this time she did run. She snatched a Coca-Cola from the shelf and pulled the tab right off. Her hands shook violently, spilling soda everywhere. Grabbing the can in both hands she managed to steady it and lift it to her lips. She guzzled. Coke streamed around her lips and down her neck, soaking her shirt. It was wet. She’d almost forgotten what wet was.

As soon as the can was empty she reached for another and emptied that one, too. She was about to reach for a third when a sharp, stabbing pain erupted in her belly, and exploded upward, rising fast. A loud belch thundered from her lips, and she grimaced.

Leaving the sodas where they were, Catalina took an extra moment to search the aisle and find a bottle of water instead. She unscrewed the cap and sat down to drink it.

Another sharp pain erupted, and she belched again. At least there was no one around to hear. Catalina took another sip of water.

“Not very lady like.”

Catalina froze. Her eyes darted to the source of the sound. A hunched shape sat in a dark corner at the end of the aisle. “Hello?” she tried. Her heart began pounding again. She’d found another survivor! How long had it been since she’d heard another human voice? Maybe she was hallucinating.

When no answer came from the shadows, she began to see the hunched shape as a pile of blankets. She shivered. Thinking about blankets made Catalina realize how cold she was. She was wearing a windbreaker, but under that her shirt was soaked with Coca-Cola.

Catalina frowned. “Hello?” she tried again.

Still no answer.

Definitely a hallucination. Catalina stripped out of her jacket and then took off her soaked shirt. She was just about to go steal one of the blankets when she saw them move.

“You’re pretty,” the voice from before said.

Catalina snatched up her clothes and hugged them to her chest. “Who are you? Why didn’t you answer me?”

“Not used to talkin’. Been a while, a long while since anyone’s come through here.”

Catalina nodded uncertainly. “You’re the first person I’ve found since… it’s been a while for me, too,” she said.

The shadowy bundle of blankets moved again and a blinding light snapped on.

A flashlight. It shone on her face and she flinched away from the light, holding up a hand to shield her eyes.

“I was right. Very pretty.”

Catalina felt a chill run through her that had nothing to do with the cool air or the fact that she’d removed her jacket and shirt. “I need to get going,” she said, pushing off the ground to stand on her aching feet. “Long way to go still.”

“What’s the hurry? It’ll be dark soon. You might lose your way. Stay here. Plenty of food and water to share.” The shadowy mound moved again. “Besides, we have a responsibility now.”

Catalina began edging toward the door, still holding the bundle of clothes to her chest. She remembered the Berreta pistol in her bag, and suddenly she regretted leaving her pack on the roadside.

“A responsibility?” she asked, and then cursed herself for asking.

“To humanity. We have to repopulate the species.”

Caty nodded. “Oh. Yes, that’s true,” she said. “Maybe I should stay, but I left something outside. Let me just go out and get it first.”

“I’ll come with you.” The shadow kept advancing.

Caty backed away as fast as she could. Her legs trembled violently, and her heart thumped in her chest. She shook her head. “No, you need to stay here. Guard our supplies.”

“I already took care of the bugs. They won’t be comin’ back.”

“Bugs?” Caty’s mind spun and raced; she tripped over something, crying out as she fell. Thud. A painful jolt went up her spine. Then a rotten smell filled her nostrils, and she gagged. The flashlight skipped down to a big yellow mass at her feet. It took a second for her eyes to recognize the hazmat suit.

“Bug,” the shadowy man said, flicking his flashlight up and down the body. Caty caught a glimpse of a pool of red blood and she gasped.

“You killed him?” she shrieked, hugging her legs up to her chest.

“You takin’ their side, woman?”

“No, no,” Caty said quickly, trying to avoid provoking the man.

“Don’t let your eyes fool you, they ain’t human anymore. Space bugs infected ‘em all, got ‘em to start this war. Damn near killed us all! Hey… you ain’t with them, are ya? How do I know you’re human? Suppose you should convince me.”

Catalina couldn’t even speak. It was all too horrible. This person, whoever he was, had obviously lost his mind. He’d killed one of the rescue workers who’d come for him.

“Nothin’ to say? Well. I think I know a way to find out if you’re human or not. Come here, girl.”

Alarm bells sounded in Caty’s head. Something fierce and primal rose up in her. She shook her head and bounced to her feet, her blood buzzing with adrenaline. The shadowy form kept advancing.

“All right,” she said, trying to sound agreeable. “Come get me.”

“I will,” the shadow promised, reaching out for her.

She raced in past groping hands and kneed the man where she imagined his groin should be. The shadow cried out, and she turned and ran for her life. She burst through the doors and ran across the parking lot, back the way she’d come. It was almost perfectly dark now. Too dark to see more than fuzzy outlines of things. She couldn’t see her pack, but she took a guess and ran to where she thought it must be. The door chimes were her only warning.

“Fucking bitch!” the shadow roared. “I’ll kill you!”

Instinct tickled in the back of her head, and she dove, hitting the ground with a spray of gravel.

Boom!

The sound was deafening. The pellets in the shell went whistling by overhead.

“Where are you, bitch?”

Catalina’s lungs were burning, heaving for air, but she willed them to be still. Rolling onto her back she turned to see the shadowy figure scanning the ground with his flashlight. It wouldn’t be long before he found her like that.

Boom!

This time he shot one of the filling stations, and suddenly Catalina realized the danger she was in. A madman was chasing her, shooting a shotgun in a fuel station.

Chuk-chuk.

He’s reloading! Taking advantage of the brief respite, Catalina scrambled to her feet and ran. Gravel skittered underfoot.

“What was that? I know you’re out there! Just you wait you little bitch!”

Catalina sobbed and ran as fast as her tired, aching legs would carry her.

Boom! Then came the roar of an explosion and a sudden flash of heat and light.

“Oh, shit!” the man screamed.