I reached the next intersection. Part of the street was flooded near ankle deep. The reservoirs were backed up nowadays, so when it rained some of the streets turned into rivers. The flooded street carried on the rest of the way down Washington. It was cold, too. The water stood still, not running toward the storm drains like it should have been. Some red glare reflected off the windows and off the water, just like Glasses had predicted.
“Yes, yes…” I said and kicked through the water. I wasn’t going to chance a look backwards, but at least I was moving in the right direction. If Glasses’ instructions were correct, then I should see it soon enough: that theater. It was no wonder people refused to live down here. The buildings were soaked in this toxic water, sitting still, decaying. The atmosphere reeked, evidence that the world here was beyond restoration.
Water splashed behind me. Evidently I was still in the wrong territory, I’d possibly been recognized. If I was caught, I’d be beaten, torn to pieces, and displayed as a trophy. I wasn’t going to let that happen; there was still too much to do, too many people to help, to save. I needed to figure this out, and for whatever reason I was closer to it than ever before.
A display jutted out of a building, a yellow marquee with lettering pronouncing shows and times. Most of the building was falling apart, its glass doors shattered, and old movie posters were still displayed in cases covered in moss and grit. Vines hung out of the second story windows, busted open from weather and time, and water flowed through the front, directing me onward.
I passed through the entrance and entered a world thick with flora, more overgrown than I’d ever seen before. Standing water swirled in the middle of the floor, with part of the flooring just above water level creating a sort of pool. Stalks of vegetation grew around the pond with lily pads floating, and frogs croaking at my sudden arrival.
The stairs on the left slanted upwards, and more vegetation grew around the handrails. Vines reached for the rafters. Off to the right was the counter where refreshments were sold, popcorn popped for waiting movie-goers. The movies were one of the first memories I gained after the forgetting. I remembered going to the movies once or twice when I was younger, but never remembered a movie theater quite like this.
My pursuers started shouting outside. Some declared I’d gone into the theatre. I didn’t have much time.
I tucked the handgun into my belt, making sure the safety was on, as I climbed the stairs. I hardly made it to the second story before the first person entered. The flora was thick enough to hide behind so I ducked along the side of the railing as.
“Where’d he go?” a voice echoed through the overgrown theatre.
“Why are we even chasing him? He doesn’t even look like one of them. He looked fucking normal, didn’t he?” another voice asked. “I didn’t think they could had guns either.”
“Better safe than sorry, I always say,” a third, female voice interjected. “Spread out, groups of three, move slow and steady. Find him, but don’t kill him. Got it?”
I didn’t understand. How was looking normal a reason not to be chased? Why was I being chased in the first place? I glided along the railing, keeping silent as possible. There were several doors that led to other theatres or projection rooms. I chose one at random and tried to open it, struggling with all the vegetation that covered the door. I passed through the door and entered a hallway, sliding carefully before shooting out of the hall and into the seating area.
A stream of light shot through a hole in the ceiling. A large screen that would have displayed the films was set against the far wall. Rows of seats were covered in moss and algae-soaked cushions, aged the color of dirt, and dust hung in the air. I moved towards the screen and stepped through a rip in the material onto the other side. There was an exit over to the right. I opened the door and nearly fell over the side of the building. Something had ripped the entire half of this building off, and a straight drop onto bricks below awaited my exit.
“Shit,” I whispered.
The drop was too far. I’d break my leg, if not worse, trying to jump to the ground. There wasn’t exactly a ledge to grasp or an easy way to get out of this. I thought maybe I could hide, wait for a moment to leave, and pray no one would find me.
Suddenly, like I hadn’t noticed it initially, my head tilted upwards against my will. Slightly bending my head, I squinted against the rays of sunlight that assaulted my vision. The structure I was staring at was still a few blocks away, but it was one of the biggest buildings in this city so it was as clear as day. It was a broken tower, leaning against another. The mass of clouds was so close, so black and spiteful. Yet it was the numbers that kept me fixated.
This was what everyone was talking about, what Kelly was shouting about and what Glasses wanted me to see: a timer, ticking backwards with deep, red numbers.
“What do you think?” Kelly’s voice echoed in my head.
“I have no idea,” I answered my imagination. I knew the numbers wouldn’t be stationary, but I didn’t think they’d be ticking backwards either. I had only seen a timer like this on my digital wristwatch, before it ran out of battery, but that one ticked forward. Therein was the other question: just how the hell was it being powered? Why did it exist? This was more bizarre than anything else in this already bizarre world.
“Any thoughts?” Glasses’ voice said, adding his voice to Kelly’s in my mind.
“Not exactly,” I whispered. My attention remained absorbed with the approaching mob that was seeking me out. There was something interesting about this clock, something I couldn’t exactly put a finger on. Then it hit me. “You’ve got to be shitting me,” I blurted out.
29:16:04:59 blared in deep crimson.
“What is it?” a million voices asked in my mind. Kelly raged. Glasses demanded. Kyle and Susan gasped in distress. Ricky held his snide comment back. Jamie said nothing. The Pamlers cried. And Olivia watched in silent admiration, wishing she was there.
“What is it?” they repeated.
“It’s my birthday, my twenty-sixth. My turning,” I answered. The timer aligned to the exact second, or so I assumed. I knew it was only a month away for sure, but this was irrational. The world went black. I slid into inaction, losing any ability to remain standing. My feet slipped from the ledge, and I flew down head first.
Chapter 8: A Party for Someone we once knew
My head was pounding before I even opened my eyes. When I did, a starry night awaited. My body ached abnormally. Not like it hurt from a two-story fall, but ached like I had been lying in bed for days. My back was stiff and my neck was cinched, but nothing was broken. I laid atop a pile of bricks covered by a tarp. Looking up and behind myself, I saw the theatre doorway I’d fallen through.
I pushed myself up on my elbows. The red timer in the distance continued its pursuit of reminding me my time was short. How the heck the others hadn’t found me on the side of the theater fully comatose was beyond me. How no bones were broken was even stranger. Even the door above was still wide open, begging to be looked out.
Down this side of the building, the standing water still circled around, but the pile of bricks was large enough to at least keep me dry. I pushed myself upright and brushed off the dirt while twisting and cracking my back.