Kyle West - Darkness

I raised my eyes to see everything Augustus described. Gilgamesh lay twisted, yet mostly intact. A deep scar in the fungus revealed where the ship had slid upon impact. The fungus might have broken Gilgamesh’s fall a bit. Hope swelled in my chest as I tried to force it down. A fierce fire burned within the ship, smoke pouring from every orifice, especially the open cargo bay aft. Somehow, that had been forced open in the crash.

We approached the ship. As we drew closer, the outlook grew bleaker. I saw just how thick the smoke was. The twisted hull crushed my hope.

There was no way anyone was getting in there to recon. The fire and smoke were too thick, and if there were bodies, we’d have to wait until the fire petered out. There would only be ashes and bone remaining.

“I hope this is enough to persuade you,” Augustus said. “I am truly sorry your friends died. I came here first, but the fires were already raging. There is no evidence suggesting anyone escaped.”

Anna watched the fire, frozen. Ashton’s face remained impassive. Neither said anything at all.

“We must now return to Los Angeles,” Augustus said. “It is time to gather what forces we can — including everyone from Las Vegas, the Raiders, and others — to plan an attack. The time for petty differences is over.” Augustus gestured toward the downed ship. “That is all of our fates should we not band together.”

Anna made a fist as Ashton looked at Augustus with loathing.

“Why the anger? Have I said anything that’s not true? Come; the world needs us. We must work together. I need your advice on how to carry out the upcoming battle. Obviously, I must bow to your expertise in many areas…”

“Do you mind?” Anna asked. “We just lost our friends here and you’re giving us a sales pitch.”

Augustus lifted his hands, backing away. “You are right. Take your time.”

As Augustus and his Praetorians retreated, the three of us walked closer to the ship. We could only trust ourselves to investigate this closely, and none of us would be satisfied until we had a final answer. It wasn’t likely, but if there was any chance they were alive, we had to make absolutely sure. Losing those four would be the biggest blow imaginable. Such a loss was incomprehensible.

I stared into the yawning entrance of the cargo bay, out of which black smoke belched. It was impossible to see within. As smoke poured out, I felt a sense of defeat.

They couldn’t be alive. It was just what I wanted to believe.

“Maybe,” Ashton said. “Maybe it’s time we faced facts.”

Anna grabbed my hand. With her other, she grabbed Ashton’s. We continued to look into the ship, as if Makara, Samuel, Michael, and Julian would walk out unscathed.

I felt my heart sink further.

“They’re…really dead.”

My words faded as we just stared, unwilling to yield our hope. I thought about how ridiculous we must look to the others doing this, but I didn’t care. I just wanted Makara back. Samuel. All of them.

We stood there for fifteen minutes. Augustus did nothing to interrupt us from our stance, giving us the time we needed. The smoke thinned, but it was still hard to see inside. There was nothing we could do.

“There might be tracks or something,” Anna said.

“On this fungus?” I asked.

“It’s worth a try, isn’t it?”

We left our spot, scanning the ground for tracks. The problem was that the fungus already had so many natural imprints that nothing stuck out. We went along the whole length of the ship — the other side leaned against a mountain, making it impossible to look over there.

We found ourselves once again in front of the cargo bay, maybe fifty feet distant.

Augustus and his Praetorians came over to get us.

“We must leave,” Augustus said. “There is nothing else to be done here.”

A single tear coursed down my face. I felt it should have been more given the circumstances, but I had reached my end. Without Makara or Samuel, I didn’t know what I would do. I had been through so much with both. It was bound to happen, sooner or later — if not here, it would have happened at Ragnarok. At least Anna was alive. I squeezed her hand. She didn’t respond.

Ashton was the first to start heading back for the ship. Anna remained beside me. I stood rooted, staring into the cargo bay.

“Come on,” she said, her voice thick.

The smoke was all but gone. Gazing into the shadow of the bay, I noticed something that set my heart racing.

“Wait.”

Anna paused, recognizing hope in my voice.

“The bay is empty,” I said.

I looked at Anna, trying to communicate the importance of this news with only my eyes. Augustus couldn’t know. He needed to think…

“…the Recon,” Anna said. She faced away from Augustus, smiling. “They’re alive!”

After Gilgamesh had landed, they must have hurried to the cargo bay to drive the Recon off the ship. It was the only thing they could have done. The first order Samuel would have given. I knew the Recon was on there when they had taken off from Bunker 84.

But where were they headed?

Ashton came back to join us. Instantly, he saw the empty bay’s significance.

He tried to hide his smile. He looked from one of us, to the other. “You can’t let him know. When you walk back onto that ship, you are in mourning. You understand?”

With that, the three of us turned back to Orion.

I tried to suppress the thrill of knowing that, somewhere out there, they were alive. That even now, they might be watching us.

If so…

No. They wouldn’t attempt a rescue with such poor odds. They’d be against a spaceship and at least fifteen armed guards.

Besides, they were probably on their way back…

…back to where? The Wasteland? Bunker 84? I had no idea.

I saw the fate of the Exodus laid out. Without any spaceship, they were stranded in Bunker 84. They would all starve unless Orion or Perseus rescued them. Augustus probably knew 84’s location because he had been watching Gilgamesh. It would be easy to figure out that there was something important in Northern California from the way we kept visiting it.

Anna and I walked up the boarding ramp and into Orion. As the door shut behind, even if we were hopelessly outgunned, hope was alive. We knew we could still succeed in our mission.

All because of an empty cargo bay.

Kyle West is a science fiction author living in Oklahoma City. He is currently working on The Wasteland Chronicles series, of which there will be seven installments. Find out immediately when his next book is released by signing up for The Wasteland Chronicles Mailing List. The sixth book, Extinction, will be released Spring 2014. After that is Xenofall, the conclusion of the saga.

10,000, The:This refers to the 10,000 citizens who were selected in 2029 to enter Bunker One. This group included the best America had to offer, people who were masters in the fields of science, engineering, medicine, and security. President Garland and all the U.S. Congress, as well as essential staff and their families, were chosen.

Alpha:“Alpha” is the title given to the recognized head of the Raiders. In the beginning, it was merely a titular role that only had as much power as the Alpha was able to enforce. But as Raider Bluff grew in size and complexity, the Alpha took on a more meaningful role. Typically, Alphas do not remain so for long — they are assassinated by rivals who rise to take their place. In some years, there can be as many as four Alphas — though powerful Alphas, like Char, can reign for many years.