349.15.34 NAD (New A. D)
Alice’s face was hard to see.
She was in a deep crouch, hair like a deep and thick auburn veil over her face. Her fingers traced outlines in the dirt in front of her.
“Oi!” I called out, waving my bag of goodies over my head.
She looked up and smiled that lost and dazzling smile. “‘Oi’ yourself, mister.” Pushing herself back to her feet, she was at once as graceful as a kitten but somehow also as clumsy as a newborn fawn. It never ceased to amaze me that she’d made it this far.
“Not much luck today,” I offered as I held out the bag, “The pickin’s are getting slim.”
“We’ll make do, we always do.” Alice play-nudged my shoulder with hers as she peered into the bag I held open for her.
349.15.35 NAD (New A. D)
It was another dry, dusty day. Hot.
The seasons had changed since The Event. No more separation of seasons; instead, just one long, murky spell that seemed to have lasted forever.
I don’t know what happened, but it seemed like the number of full moons had increased in a year’s time. Weird but true.
The days and nights both seemed longer as well.
Or maybe we’re slowing down. Haha. Wouldn’t that be clever?
Alice never laughs when I joke about that.
349.15.40 NAD (New A. D)
Alice greeted me as I came back to the camp, excited and flushed.
“Hey guess what?” I heard drifting over the gritty wind.
As i came closer I feigned surprise, “Uhhh, chickenbutt?”
“O stop, you…” she fake punched at me in her playful way, then continued, “I got a message from my parents today. They’re stopping by.”
O froze.
“What did you say?” I asked quietly.
“You heard me, so we’ve got a lot to do!” She chirped at me.
“How…” I started to ask.
“I don’t know what they’ll think of us though, shacking up like this…” her voice trailed off as she gestured to the sand-blown hulks of wood and stone that used to be proper houses.
My mind could scarcely take it all in. A message, after all this time? We had been maintaining our communications equipment, but honestly I hadn’t expected to get any response.
350.1.15 NAD (New A. D)
It’s been fifteen days since the New Year. Or at least what we think is the new year. Hard to tell.
We ran across this shelter ages ago. The calendar and timepieces were already in place, already intact. Just no one home to explain what they represented.
I guessed ‘350’ is the number of years since something happened, but it can’t be from The Event. That had happened in our own lifetimes. And we aren’t 350 years old. Or at least we don’t think we are.
Time is odd for us. But still, it seems it’s been a long time to have had no word back from Alice’s parents, after her initial contact with them.
“Are you sure they’re ok?” I asked nervously.
“They’ll reach out again,” came her answer, calm as the lazy summer wind.
350.2.17 NAD (New A. D)
I returned, bloodied and bruised from the excursion out in the City.
It wasn’t people I ran across – Lord, I wished to see people again! But it was the wolf-hounds that caused such pain.
We battled over the scraps of food containers and creatures that found homes in the metal and plastic shells of my peoples’ monuments. Those things were built to last. Well, parts of them were, at least.
“Ah! You missed them!” Alice exclaimed, completely ignoring my battered state.
“Missed what? And help me with this please.” I grumbled at her, wondering what could have gripped her interest to the point where she didn’t notice the bloody scrapes along my arms.
“My PARENTS.” Alice stomped her foot. Ah. I’d forgotten about that.
“They contacted you again?” I wondered aloud.
“YES! Of course! Come quickly!” Like a schoolgirl she grabbed my forearm, ignoring the dust and dirt that caked over the wounds I had acquired just recently. Damn that hurt, but her enthusiasm was catching.
She led me to the equipment bay, slapped on the headset, pushed the transmitter button and began chattering away.
“Yes, I’m back…” she was quiet for a bit, them cut in suddenly, “no, no it’s not like that – yes, we’re fine. We escaped it by being underground, then found some places to live. You’ll like it here, really you will.”
Quiet again as she listened intently. Her mouth curled upwards and she laughed that room-filling laugh. “Yes, he’s taking care of me. Actually we’re looking out for EACH OTHER.” She made wide, silly eyes at me with the last two words and I couldn’t help but snicker in response.
“Yes, he’s older… but don’t worry about that, he’s nice. You’ll like him when you two meet.”
She went on, and I started to look around as I saw I wasn’t the focus of attention.
Then I saw something that froze my blood.
350.2.18 NAD (New A. D)
The next morning, as I was preparing to head out again, I checked in on Alice.
She was observing the trail again, head down, intense as she frequently was.
“Hey,” I called out.
“Hey” came the playful reply. She didn’t look up.
“I’m heading out. Will be back soon.”
“”K, be careful.”
I headed out as usual, but doubled back. I HAD to be certain I was right.
She’d left the trail, and had made her inside to the communicator again – headset on, chattering away, happily visiting with family.
I could hear her voice chirping away as I quietly headed to the power station area. A quiet click, and I was inside the door.
The place was silent inside, silent as a tomb. Dust and grit had formed on the coils and relays.
This was Alice’s domain and I felt like an intruder. But I needed to see this for myself.
This place was dead. Un-maintained.
I wasn’t into electronics much – outdoors is what appealed to me, and what kept me alive after The Event. But even I know this room that used to be humming with activity and purpose was only a shell now, filling with muffled sound and dirt. And spiders, and things that scurried as I made my way out of there.
That visit also confirmed something for me as well.
“Alice?” I called out as I headed back inside the shelter.
“O hey what are you doing back so soon?” came the wide-eyed reply.
“What’s this?” I asked, pointing to the communicator and the equipment surrounding it. Pointing to the unlit power indicator.
“Silly. It’s our equipment.” She smiled, but not as deeply as before.
“Alice.”
Her smile stayed painted on.
“Alice, there’s no POWER. No power for the equipment.”
She looked away.
“Alice, who are you talking to?”
Still looking away, she rubbed her right forearm gently, as she often did when she was frightened. I’ve seen her do that often.
“I..” she started to speak, then stopped speaking.
“Alice, they’re not REAL. I know it’s hard. I know.” The last bit gripped my heart as I went to her. She comforted herself in my chest, sobbing and gently grabbing my shirt for comfort.
How to console her? I wondered. How do you counsel someone who’s slowly going insane?
She ceased crying, then groaned, “I can’t do this. They’re gone. Everyone’s gone.”
I gently rubbed her back as I knew it soothed her in times of stress. “We’ll get through this.”
She continued, her voice piercing in an accusatory tone, “Even YOU. I almost died when you died.”
I halted, froze. What?
She continued, louder this time, with anger flaring in her voice husky with tears, as she started to strike my chest, “What were you THINKING, going into the city?” Her pounding became weaker as her crying increased.
I had no response. I couldn’t respond, even if I wished.
That wouldn’t be proper, what with me being just a figment in the imagination of a woman slowly and surely going mad in isolation.
352.8.27 NAD (New A. D)
Alice was excited. She was going to have visitors today. Not many people came to visit the last person alive on the planet.
She started to prepare the dinner table while humming her favourite tune. It was going to be a delightful evening.
Photo credit: Some rights reserved by jbdodane
