Tales of the Oppressed

by Terran34

2. The End of Humanity (rw)

Rather than all at once, Consciousness returns to me a little at a time. The first thing I become aware of is the cold floor pressing against my cheek. The chill seeps through my clothes and causes me to shiver. My eyes blink several times as I return to consciousness.

A groan leaves me when feeling returns to my limbs. There's a dull pain permeating throughout my whole body, such that I start to wonder if I'd been run over by a truck. I try to move, but my muscles feel stiff, making even that extremely difficult. I close my eyes and remain still in an attempt to give my body time to wake up.

I try to remember what exactly I was doing last night that caused me to wake up in such a miserable state. I don't drink, so I can't have done anything too stupid...unless Amaryllis had spiked my drink with something. I wouldn't put it past her to do so for a prank. Before I start to go down that line of thought, I remember with a start exactly what had happened before I passed out.

Against my better judgment, I lurch upright, forcing my body into a sitting position. Immediately my body screams in protest. I let out a curse and clamp my hand around the nearest solid object to keep me upright. “Ah...bad idea...” I grunt. Once I'm sitting up straight, I look around to get a sense of my surroundings.

At first it's too dark to see anything, so I trace my hands around. I feel a cold, dusty floor beneath my fingertips. There are bits of what feel like rock scattered about as well. The grime sticks to my fingers, causing me to brush them together in distaste. This is confusing; wherever I am is filthy, and I can't come up with any reason why I would be here. I collapsed in the science building, so wouldn't someone have picked me up by then?

When my eyes adjust to the darkness, I can make a vague outline of my surroundings. I can make out the stairwell in which I collapsed, but not much else beyond its outline. That doesn't make any sense...for it to be this dark, they would have had to shut down the building for the night. I can't believe that nobody would have noticed me lying here.

I cast my hand around in the darkness, and eventually my fingers come into contact with my phone. A quick click later, and the screen comes to life. I shield my eyes at first so that the sudden contrast in the level of light doesn't blind me. With the new source of light, I get a better look at the area I'm sitting in. No, this is definitely the science building stairwell.

Bitterness overcomes me as I jump to the first available conclusion. Did everyone really just walk right on by me, leaving me collapsed in the middle of the school? Did no one even think to lift a hand to help me, when I might have been hurt? Why the hell did nobody try to help me when I've been lying here for hours!? Are people really that spiteful and cruel?

I need to call Amaryllis. I left her at quite an inopportune moment, so no doubt she's worried sick about me. That leads me to my next discovery; upon trying to access my contact list on the phone, I notice that in place of the signal strength indicator are the words “no service.”

“No service...?” I whisper to myself as if reaffirming that I was actually seeing this correctly. Why wouldn't my phone have service? I have a decent plan and plenty of data, as well as a notable provider that's not known for having that many dead zones. Actually, that in and of itself doesn't make sense, because I've never been denied service in this building before. My brow wrinkles with frustration upon realizing that my phone is practically useless. “Just great...useless piece of garbage.”

It appears I'm on my own until I get back outside. Gripping the railing of the stairwell, I painstakingly force myself to my feet. As my weight is redistributed on the platform, the metal creaks and groans. Then, I stretch out my limbs in an attempt to alleviate the stiffness I'm feeling, but it's slow going. It feels like I haven't used my muscles for days.

Grasping my phone, I turn on the flashlight on the back of the device. With it, I get a better look at what's around me. The first thing I notice is the debris lying all over the place. I can see shards of metal, bits of concrete, and strips of plastic littering the platform and stairs. To top it all off, a fine layer of dust coats every visible surface.

Casting the beam around the stairwell reveals a bewildering sight. The place appears ancient and decrepit everywhere I look. The water and heating pipes that covered the walls appeared rusted and filthy, and there are even sections where the pipes themselves are missing. In fact, I even see one of them lying on the floor down a level from me. The electrical wires that usually convey power to and from the different levels are frayed and torn, yet none of them appear to be live. Come to think of it, I don't even think I hear the constant hum of the air conditioning in the background. There's nothing but complete silence...a silence so oppressive that I feel as though the air is pressing down around my skin.

“What the hell?” My voice echoes in the empty stairwell. I'm starting to get the feeling that something is very wrong. My heartbeat quickens and puts me on edge, even though there's no sign of any exterior threat. The only conclusion I can arrive at is that the building must have lost power...but even as sensible as that sounds, it doesn't explain the mess, or why everything appears so old. In fact...it was almost as if everything had aged by at least a hundred years.

“Come on, that's ridiculous. This has to be some kind of prank,” I surmise, as the alternative conclusion was so far out there that that it wasn't even worth considering. If it really was a prank, I intend to give the perpetrator a piece of my mind as soon as I get out of here.

I guess there's nothing I can really do except leave. Once I get outside, I'll find the nearest person and make them tell me just what was going on. Then I'll go back to my dorm and see if I can't get cell service long enough to call Amaryllis.

Now that I have a plan of action, my confidence rises. I lift my computer bag off of the ground and sling it over my shoulder. Then, keeping my phone out in front of me, I start to descend the stairs. The metal construct groans beneath the weight, causing my heart to pound in my chest. I quicken my pace.

I don't get more than a few steps before the staircase shudders. With a colossal crash, the metal gives way before my feet, unable to withstand my weight. A cry tears loose from my throat as the ground disappears beneath me and sends me plummeting. Acting on reflex, I shoot out my hands and grasp onto the nearest surface. The staircase completely collapses below, the metal disintegrating upon itself, unable to even sustain its own weight. The impact sends of a cloud of dust and concrete, causing me to cough and choke.

Thanks to my quick save, I am hanging from the edge of the steps close to the foyer. Looking down, I notice that it's a three meter drop, which could be very nasty if I fell. To add to the danger, the debris from the shattered staircase littered the bottom, making it a very hazardous drop. I'm not going to risk that. Clenching the ledge tightly, I heft my computer bag up and onto the foyer, hoping that it would make it easier to pull myself up.

Just as I start to do so, the steps to which I'm clinging bends downwards with a screech of metal. My eyes widen and I try to shoot out a hand to a more sturdy area, but doing so only causes the force of my weight to be focused entirely on the other hand. “Oh shi...” the curse hardly leaves my mouth before the metal tears itself loose and sends me hurtling to the floor three meters below.

Just before I hit the ground, I hear a tearing sound, and then a line of white hot agony shoots across my right side. I slam into the floor and bounce, causing pain to explode throughout my entire body. A helpless moan of pain escapes me as I lie there and attempt to catch my breath.

“How the hell...?” I groan. The staircase has completely given way and is in pieces, the remains surrounding me. This is getting to be too much for me. Those stairs were made of concrete and metal, and were designed with structural integrity in mind. They wouldn't just break like that. None of this is making any sense to me.

My side feels as though it's on fire. Doing my best to ignore the pain, I reach over and press my hand against my side. I immediately recoil my hand, a burning pain erupting at the simple touch. To my horror, my hand comes away wet with blood. “Oh...that's not good,” I utter weakly.

Acting quickly, I inspect the damage to my skin, using a free hand to hold my phone above the wound. I inhale with a worried hiss after seeing the thin gash that's oozing with my blood. I'm no doctor, but it doesn't look that deep. Even so, I can't just leave it alone.

My shirt was torn from whatever injured me, so I finish tearing off a thin strip of cloth long enough to encompass my ribs. I tie it around the wound and fasten it tight with a double knot, gritting my teeth against the pain. I don't know if I'm doing this right, but it's better than nothing.

Now I have two reasons to get out of here. I wipe the blood left on my hand on my shirt as best I can, no doubt staining the material irreparably. I get to my feet and grasp my phone with my clean hand, using it to light the way forward. I should be on the first level, where there's several exits out onto campus. It won't be long before I can get some answers.

I take a look around in an attempt to determine what injured me, but when the source isn't apparent among the metallic debris, I decide to move on. Thank my lucky stars that I had my tetanus shots recently, otherwise I would have been doomed to a very painful death. My computer bag is still up on the foyer, but it's too high for me to get back up to it, so I make the difficult decision to leave it. Once I get out of here and find out what the hell is going on, I'll come back for it with some help.

With every step, my side twinges painfully, making it very difficult to put all of my weight on that side of my body. I adjust my gait and limp towards the door that exits out onto the first floor classroom hallway.

The doors that separate the classroom hallways from the stairwells are made of solid metal several inches thick, and are present on each floor. They had no windows on them, so it was always impossible to tell if someone was on the other side trying to get through. I remember always getting annoyed when the door would open in my face, nearly hitting me.

As the light from my phone illuminates the doorway, I'm shocked to find that the door for this floor is missing. A glance around the frame reveals damaged hinges with rusted screws still hanging from the holes. When I take a step forward to get a closer look, my foot lands upon something metallic.

Angling the light down reveals the remains of the door, which is now rusted and degrading. The metal has been dented heavily and rent with gashes, as though something from the hallway had forced its way through.

I start to breathe faster, a sense of panic threatening to overtake me. I have no earthly idea what's going on. My only theories don't make any logical sense, and everything I see just makes things more confusing. I need to get out of here. It's all I can think about. I need to get out and find someone. Find Amaryllis. I need her to tell me what to think about all of this.

Looking out into the hallway, I notice that this entire floor seems to be in the same state as the stairwell. The building is completely abandoned and covered in dust and debris. If I didn't know better, I'd say that I am the first human to inhabit this place in a long, long time.

Fallen ceiling tiles litter the floor ahead as I turn to the right and limp down the hallway. There's an exit at the end of this hall; if I can just get out and get in contact with someone, I'll be safe. I'll be able to get some help.

I notice power cords hanging from the ceiling where the tiles have fallen, completely inert and devoid of any power at all. The classrooms themselves are in equally bad shape; some of the doors have been blocked off from the other side by boards and nails, while others were lying on the floor in the middle of the hallway, shattered to pieces by an unknown force.

Ahead, there are rusty metal tables and chairs turned on their sides and lashed together with decaying rope to make makeshift barricades. If that had been the case, they hadn't been effective; there was a massive hole in the center of the barricade where tables had been rent in half and chairs had been shattered. Looking down, I notice cylindrical objects scattered about the base of the barricades. They look almost like...

“S-Shell casings?” My voice comes out as a high pitched squeak, lacking any sense of dignity. Everything up to now I've been doing my best to ignore, but...these are empty shell casings. This tells me that beyond the shadow of a doubt, there had been a firefight here. “How...but when...”

If these were all shell casings, then these tables really were barricades, and there had been a battle here. Just what in the hell happened while I was unconscious? I desperately search my mind for possible explanations and theories, but I'm coming up completely blank. While there are these casings, there no sign of the weapons that fired them, or any bodies to suggest the outcome of the battle, if there really had been a battle. This is way beyond a simple prank at this point.

I let out a cry and push forward, the exit only a few feet away from me. I extend my hands and push against the door handle, only for the door to remain stubbornly shut. I don't even stop to think about why this could be. I shut my eyes and try again, using as much strength as I can muster given my injury. It's only when dirt spills in from the top of the door frame that I actually look to see what's blocking the door.

Through the window and on the other side of the door is a solid wall of earth and rock. Thick tree roots trace through the dirt, and I can even see what looks like the den of a small animal, although its inhabitant was not currently present.

I take a step back, my heart pounding loudly in my chest. I'm completely speechless. Every defense and placating reassurance that I've been repeating to myself this whole time are rendered completely useless. My jaw falls open and I take another few steps back, unable to form a coherent thought to describe what I was seeing.

I let out a scream and back away from the door, falling on my butt in the process. Unwilling to stop, I back myself into the corner made between the barricade and the wall and curl up with my knees pressed against my chest. I can't believe this is happening. I'm underground. The building is underground. How can it be underground? This is impossible. What's happening? Where's Amaryllis? I just want to go home.

I can't bring myself to move. No, I don't want to move. This can't be real. I can't be underground. This building is situated atop a hill at a higher elevation than the rest of campus. There wasn't even the possibility of a flood, much less a landslide. If...if this building is underground...then that means that the rest of campus is...oh god, I'm not making myself feel any better.

Eventually I come to the conclusion that this has to be real. I can still feel the waves of stinging pain emanating from the gash in my side. If I focus on that, I can ground myself and remember where I am. I don't know what's happened. But I do know that I can't stay here. If I don't get some proper first aid, this injury could spell the end of me.

I slap myself a few times and get to my feet. I don't know what's going on, but I need to focus on a goal. Looking around with the light from my camera, I find that the building still looks as though it's been through an apocalypse. First things first, I need a goal. I have to get to safety and get this injury treated. I'll be okay; there's several exits to this building. I just have to find them and get out.

There's another exit back down the hallway, but it's likely buried as well, as it's lower in elevation than the rest of the building. Nevertheless, I feel the need to see for myself. Turning back down the hallway, I limp until I reach the end, where the hall opens up into a large study area that divides the math and science sections of the building.

To my left, there should have been a long glass wall that separated this section of the building from the science study area, which had access to the science labs and storage areas if you went all the way down. However, the glass had long since shattered, and now littered the floor of the study area on this side. Looking through it reveals the remains of the larger study area, where the tables and chairs had collapsed. The hanging televisions were shattered on the floor and looked as though they'd been scavenged for parts. I can't help but let out a whimpering sigh. Those television sets used to display the school news and tell us of upcoming events...and now they were destroyed, just like the rest of this building.

There's a set of metal stairs in the larger study area leading to the upper floors, but there's no way out up there as far as I remember. Even if there were, I'm not going to risk climbing those stairs to reach it; my side throbs painfully as a reminder of the dangers of such a course of action.

I move through the smaller study room towards the carpeted staircase that I had climbed not too long ago. It was from here that the majority of student traffic would enter the building and climb the stairs to reach the first level.

I don't trust these stairs. Rather than attempting to climb down, I approach the edge and gaze down, hoping that I can see the doors from here. Sure enough, there's no exit down there either. The multiple sets of double doors are now broken or missing; instead a huge wave of earth had cascaded through the entrance.

More than ever, I wish I knew what was happening. The observations that I've made so far aren't adding up in my head. So far all I have is that there was a battle, we're underground, and everything looks far older than it should be. There has to be something I'm missing that can connect those three theories together into a cohesive whole.

Putting those thoughts away, I focus back on finding a way out of here. Logically speaking, if we're underground and there's no way out down here, then going up is the only solution left to me. If I remember correctly, there's a roof access hatch on the top floor of this building; with luck, it'll lead me out onto the surface.

However, that plan comes with complications of its own. The stairwells are clearly too dangerous, so getting to the upper levels will be a problem. Glancing over to the side of the room opposite the hallway I came in from, I determine that the automatic doors are still standing, although busted. If the walls were still intact, those would bar my passage due to the power being out. There was a staircase over that way at the far end of the science wing, if I remember correctly....but who knows how stable that one will be.

“Come on, there has to be a way up somehow,” I assert, casting my gaze around the area. I let out a colorful string of curses underneath my breath at this whole situation. My side is still paining me; I need to clean it somehow before it gets infected.

My gaze falls upon the elevator situated just beyond the automatic doors. While there are stairs everywhere, this elevator was installed by order of the school administrators so that the handicapped could still reach the upper floors. Granted, you had lazy people use it all the time, but that was its intended purpose. If I'm lucky, there will be a maintenance ladder in the shaft that will help me get further up. It's a long shot, but right now, it might just be my salvation.

I step over the shattered glass walls and walk around the automatic doors until I'm standing in front of the elevator. The doors are shut and there's no power, so they won't open on their own. That means I have to do things manually. I check the bandage at my side to see how well it's doing. Thankfully, it doesn't seem to have soaked through yet, but I think it's only a matter of time.

I clip my phone to my belt such that the flashlight faces outwards, lighting up the path before me while leaving my hands free. Attempting to open the elevator doors with my hands hardly does anything, so I adjust my stance to give myself as much leverage as possible. With my fingers hooked into the tiny gap between the doors, I strain my shoulders, using as much strength as I can muster. The doors move very slowly, the rusty metal grinding along the floor.

Once the gap is large enough, I wedge my body between the doors and use my newfound leverage to get it the rest of the way open. I gasp and brace myself against the wall, my side throbbing from the exertion. This is not how I expected to be spending my evening.

“You've got to be fucking kidding,” I groan upon seeing the elevator car just inside. Just my luck that the car would be parked on this floor in particular. I was hoping it would be on a higher floor so I could get a few floors up, but this is the worst case scenario.

I step inside the car and look around. If I recall correcting, all these elevators have an exit hatch in place in case of an emergency. If I'm lucky, there will be one in here. A few moments of searching later, and I discover the hatch on the roof of the elevator. Thank god...if it had been on the bottom, I'd have been out of options. I put on a grin and grasp the handle of the hatch and pull down...only to find that the hatch is locked. I heave an annoyed sigh; I just can't catch a break.

The hatch looks to be locked shut by a simple deadbolt, which has long since rusted. With a little force, I think I'll be able to bust my way through. The only issue is that the hatch is high up, leaving me without much leverage. I'm going to need to get creative.

The sides of the elevator car are lined with railings. After testing their durability with some of my weight, I use them to get up higher, bracing myself against the wall in the process. I can't help but notice the sound of the elevator car creaking. I gulp nervously, breaking out into a cold sweat. I need to get out of here fast.

Now that I'm up here, I give the hatch a good punch, making sure to hit with my knuckles to keep from breaking my hand. Unfortunately, the hatch resists the hit, but I can see that I had some effect. A few good hits later, and the deadbolt breaks to pieces, allowing the hatch to swing open.

With a leap, I grasp the edges of the square hole and pull myself up, straining my muscles as hard as I can. I do my best to ignore the pain and hoist myself out onto the top of the elevator car, where I can see the cables keeping it suspended.

As the creaking and groaning of metal intensifies, I look at the cables and notice with horror that they're nearly rusted through. I quickly spot the ladder on the edge of the shaft and make a running jump towards it, just as the cables snap with a horrendous screech and the elevator plummets down into the depths of the lower levels.

I reach out a hand and grab onto the nearest rung, but it snaps beneath my weight. Adrenaline surges through me as my hands scrabble against the wall, looking for something...anything to grab onto. I fall for several feet until my hands catch on a lower, more stable rung. Dust and bits of rock shower over me from the damaged wall above.

Moments later, I hear the elevator car land onto the bottom of the shaft far below with a tremendous crash, sending vibrations up through the walls. All I can do is hold myself still against the wall, breathing quickly and heavily. The adrenaline still surges through my body, causing my heart to feel as though it's beating against my rib cage. That was too close. A second later, and I'd be dead.

I close my eyes, trying not to let out the feelings of fear and hopeless I'm feeling. I've never had to face my mortality this close before...hell, I've never even had to think about dying...but I have to admit that there's a very real chance that I could die down here.

Once I catch my breath, I begin to climb the ladder. There's a long way to go until I reach the top and my body is aching all over, so I can't afford to remain in one place for too long. When I reach the gap in the ladder created by my desperate jump, I'm forced to balance on the lower rung and leap up to the next stable rung. It's not easy, and my limbs feel as though they're creaking with protest as I continue my slow progress upwards.

I stop a moment, clinging to the wall and panting heavily. I need to give my limbs a chance to rest; I feel as though they're on fire. I regret more than ever not taking Amaryllis up on her invitations to work out with her at the gym; that extra muscle would have come in real handy right about now.

Against my better judgment, I look down towards the bottom of the shaft. To my curiosity, I notice that the shaft extends past the first level, going even further down into the darkness. I wasn't aware this place had a basement level...or more than one, considering the depth of the shaft. There isn't a button for one in the elevator in the car.

As I look down in the darkness, the hairs on the back of my neck prickle and stand up on end. I feel as though something is down there, staring back up at me. In the dead silence, I even start to think that I hear something whispering in the darkness.

No. Screw this. Unsettled, I go back to climbing, anxious to get to the top of the shaft, where hopefully I'll be able to get onto the roof. Rung after rung after rung I climb, my limbs burning with every moment. Over time, I start to mutter under my breath, expressing my pain in the form of colorful curse words that would make anyone blush.

The seconds seem to blur together, making me feel as though I've been climbing this ladder for hours, even though I know it hasn't been more than a few minutes. Along the way, I pass the closed doors that exit out onto the second and third floors. There's no way I could get through them even if I wanted to, so I push forward, hoping beyond hope that I can find a way through into the fourth floor at the top.

I praise my lucky stars once the fourth door comes into view. The shaft doors are partially open...open wide enough for somebody as skinny as me to get through. The ledge leading out onto it is incredibly tiny; it's too small for me to stand on. I'll have to jump...and if I mess this up...I'm dead.

“Here goes,” I whisper to psyche myself up. I force myself to ignore everything around me except for the door in front of me. There's no elevator shaft, no several story drop, and no chance of an untimely death from a fall. Just focus on the goal, Seth, or you'll never make it.

With a shout, I propel myself from the wall, stretching out my hands for the gap in the shaft doors ahead of me. I managed to get one leg through the door, but my head hits the side of the door, causing me to see stars and nearly fall over backwards, but I have the presence of mind to hook my arms through the gap and anchor myself. Holy...that's the third time today I've nearly died...this is crazy. I need to get out of here.

I stumble into the fourth floor, nursing the affected spot on my head. Goddammit, that hurt. Just by rubbing my head, I can already feel the forming lump. As much as it hurts, it's mostly an annoyance. It could have been much worse, so I guess I should be grateful I got away with just that.

This fourth floor hallway contains the offices of the various professors, administration, and other various faculty members that spend the majority of their time in this building. For example, the professor whose class I had attended right before meeting that strange armored man had his office right around...here. My hand scrapes off the dust on the brass nameplate beside one of the office doors to reveal the professor's name. It's barely legible due to rust, but it's definitely there.

The roof access should be at the end of this hallway at the top of the stairwell. However, I've never been to this portion of the building before. Combined with the fact that I've lost my bearings due to my long climb in the elevator shaft, and I'm not entirely sure which direction the stairwell is in.

There's another brass panel affixed to the wall in front of me. It's coated in dust, but brushing it away with my hands reveals directions, much to my good fortune. Hm, according to what I'm seeing, the top floor covers the entirety of the math and science wings, and as such the main stairwell should be in the center near where I am.

Before I leave, however, I notice that there's a security room on this floor, at the opposite end of the hallway. There are cameras all over the building, so it makes sense that there would be a central location from which to access to the footage in the case of emergencies. I hesitate, wondering if I should visit the room or not.

There's no power, so I doubt I'll get anything from visiting the room, but usually in important locations such as this, there tend to be backup generators in the case of catastrophic power failures. As one of the most important rooms in the entire building, there may be such a generator in the security room.

On the other hand, I'm running out of time and I should get out out of here as soon as I can for the sake of my own well-being. If I do that, however, I'll be missing out on the albeit very slim chance there is to find out what happened here, and why everything looks as ancient as it does.

“To hell with it,” I eventually grunt and turn towards the direction of the security room. My search there may be fruitless, but it's at least worth a cursory look. The roof access isn't going anywhere, and I think I have time.

Immediately after turning the corner, I notice a lump of something I can't make out lying against the wall near the far end of the hall. It doesn't look like any other debris I've seen so far. It's not furniture; I can tell because the outline is too curved and irregular.

I squint my eyes and draw closer, curiosity getting the better of me. The light from my phone traces across the ground, revealing multiple bullet casings, as well as the first signs of a real struggle that I've seen. The floor is covered in dark stains from a source I can't identify. In addition, the carpeting is shredded and torn up all over the place. My breathing quickens once again at the implications of such a sight.

Once the light from my phone alights upon the large debris, I stop cold, my eyes widening. Lying on the ground, with its back braced against the wall, is a mummified human corpse.

Bile immediately rises in my throat and I gag, turning away from the grotesque sight and retching on the carpet nearby. There's been signs of battle all over the place, but never have I seen any actual bodies...maybe that's what's allowed me to keep continuing on in denial like this. Something huge happened when I was out, and I was unconscious long enough for a body to end up in this shape.

“Oh god,” I choke, wiping my mouth. I can't get around it now. I've really been out for a very long time, though I can't seem to make sense of that conclusion. Even unconscious, the human body still needs nutrition, and if I've been out long enough for the building to end up in this shape, I would have withered away and died. Something I can't understand is happening and I don't even have a clue how to piece it all together.

I force myself to look back at the body. As horrible as it is, analyzing it is the only way I can get another clue to this mystery. The body won't hurt me now...but that doesn't mean it doesn't freak me out.

The body itself is clad in the ragged remains of a military outfit, judging from the faded camouflage design. This isn't just a police outfit...this was once a member of the full U.S. Armed Forces. There's an ammunition and utility belt wrapped around its waist, stocked fully with decrepit ammunition and other utilities. Whatever happened here, whoever this was must never have had a chance to reload his weapon.

Speaking of weapon, the corpse is holding a fully equipped military assault rifle. I'm no expert on guns, so I can't tell what model it is, nor do I particularly care. I reach out my hands and gingerly clasp the haft of the rifle in an attempt to take it from the corpse.

The corpse's dried out fingers are clenched tightly around the handle of the rifle. I shut my eyes and cringe as I tug against its death grip. I doubt this thing still works, but it seems sturdy enough to at least use as a makeshift club. Plus, it's a weapon; even if it doesn't work, it'll do wonders for my peace of mind.

With a sickening crack, the gun comes free. I stagger backwards and shudder. I've never touched a dead body before, and I've no intention to start now. I open my eyes and glance down at the gun, noticing that it's in relatively decent condition considering its age. It is abnormally cold and arid down here, so I'm guessing that contributed to the condition of this weapon. If this place really is fully underground, there must be a layer of rock or something over everything to keep any rainwater from getting down here.

I don't know how to use a gun. Apart from pointing and pulling the trigger that you learn from reading any basic book involving guns, I know absolutely nothing. If it still worked and I tried to use it, I'd likely hurt myself. However, I do know enough from reading and playing games what certain parts of the gun are. There's a magazine fitted into the weapon, though I don't know how much ammunition it has.

I'm getting really scared; battles need two sides to be in conflict by definition. If I assume that the U.S. Armed Forces was one side, then what was the other? First of all, what the hell was the UAF doing here in the first place? It must have been a serious threat if they were called in to protect a college.

I've only seen hints of the other side. The dented doorways, the destroyed barricades, and the gouges scored into the carpet and doors...whatever they were fighting, it must have been bestial in nature...but that doesn't make any sense. We live near a nature reserve, yes, and there are dangerous animals such as bears there, but even if a bear or two were to come near campus (which they never do), the Wildlife Services would have been called in, not the UAF.

This is just getting more complicated with every clue I find. For every question I answer, more questions arise to which I just don't have the answers. This whole situation is impossible to begin with. There's no way I could have been unconscious long enough for the school to degrade to this degree. I would have died.

I shoulder my worries and advance towards the security room, carrying the rifle with me. Upon reaching the security room, the first thing I notice is that area around the door is damaged. The carpet is completely missing in an area around the door, and the fringes of the carpet that's still there are blackened, as if burnt. The bare floor is also scorched black.

The door to the security room is utterly destroyed, the shrapnel scattered over the inside of the room. That tells me that whatever broke it down did so from outside, likely with explosives. Or maybe those explosives were thrown after the door was broken. That has to be the case; from what I see from the mostly intact pieces of the door, there are more gashes, like claw marks.

I can't help it. I've come this far without panicking, but there's only so much I can take before I lose it. I start to hyperventilate, my chest heaving. I can't seem to get enough air, causing me to stumble against the frame of the door, a hand on my chest. If there was just someone else here with me, I would feel so much better. I'm strong enough to get by on my own, but...this is just not normal. I shouldn't have to face this by myself.

I calm myself down by taking several deep breaths, my vision flashing a few times as my body pulls in as much oxygen as it can. The air down here is choked with dust, so I cough violently several times to clear my airway. Okay, I think I'm okay now....or as close to okay as I can get. Come on, Seth, shape up. Something like this wouldn't phase Amaryllis. What would she do in this situation?

She would continue on. I can't stop here. I push into the small security room. Inside, there are a variety of security consoles arrayed against the wall. Some of the monitors are cracked and damaged, while others seem better preserved. If luck holds, some of these should work...though I guess that depends on how long I've been down here.

Much to my good fortune, there's what looks like a generator at the far side of the room, connected to the computers by way of thick cords. Judging by the state of the other cords in the building, I'd have thought that these would be damaged as well, but these look very well preserved. They don't look the same as the other cords; these appear more...advanced somehow. So does the generator, now that I think about it. Maybe that has something to do with why they're in better condition than everything else.

Glancing over the generator doesn't give me any more clues, but I do discover a power button, an intake port for fuel, and a hand crank at the bottom. So the fuel must be the primary source of power, and should fuel run out, there's a hand crank in the case of emergencies.

I tentatively hit the power button, but nothing happens. Figures. It's either out of gas, or the gas is too diluted to be of any use. Resigning myself, I get down on my knees and start to work the hand crank.

After a few seconds of cranking, the generator starts to hum and some of the indicator lights on top flicker to life. Hallelujah...some good luck at last. No doubt I have to crank this thing for several minutes until I can power those computers over there. I don't know how much power they draw, but it's probably a lot.

Eventually, some of the screens behind me sputter to life. Many of them are in bad shape and are flicking or corrupted by static. I keep cranking for another few minutes before I go to check out the monitors.

The first thing I notice is that I don't recognize the operating system. It looks similar to Windows like I'm used to, but the user interface is different. Like the generator and wires, it looks more advanced than Windows 7, which was what our school used.

There's no login screen, nor is there any sort of dialogue box asking me for authentication. The first screen I'm brought to is one that shows me a list of logged security footage. That's really strange. My college is strict on security protocols, and I'd imagine the UAF would be even more so. So was this battle that occurred really so dire that security protocols were completely bypassed?

Either way, I can access the footage, so I'd better act fast before the power I've accumulated runs out. My eyes move to the most recent video in the list, and then I stop cold. That date...that date doesn't make any sense. It's dated February 12th, 2083. I have to rub my eyes and look again, but that's definitely what I read. Okay, judging from the state of this place, that would make sense, but I'm here, and I definitely haven't been in a coma for over 70 years. That's just impossible. I'd have died of malnutrition a long time ago.

But what if it wasn't a mistake? What if that was really the date? That would mean...that would mean...no, it's a mistake. It has to be. There has to be something else on here that can tell me what's really going on. I refuse to accept that I've been out for over 70 years. That's just too fantastic, even given everything I've seen so far.

I scroll down the list of videos until I come across one marked with an exclamation point.

02/27/2014 Southern Stairwell: Math Wing: Concerning Priority Alpha

The 27th? I glance at my phone, noting that the date on the monitor matches the date on my phone. That's today, or it should be. All of this decay and destruction couldn't have happened in one day. Either way, that has to tell me something about what happened. Considering the military-esque label, the military must have found that day to be important.

There's no mouse, so I hesitantly tap on the file with my finger. The main monitor stutters, and then the video opens up on the screen, immediately starting to play. The stairwell in which I'd awoken is the first thing I see, only now it's exactly as I remember it, complete with students moving to and from their classes.

Then, I see myself walk on screen through the bottom door. Just as my past self does so, a circular icon appears around my body, complete with a line of text that labels me as “Priority Alpha.” Wait, I'm Priority Alpha? I'm confused. Just what happened that day that caused the military to take an interest in me of all people? Granted, my father was in the military, but nowhere near the rank necessary for me to become important.

The label follows me until I exit the stairwell onto the second floor, on my way to class. Then it disappears. Hm, this means I won't re-enter the stairwell for another hour. I look back down at the touch-pad and tap the fast-forward button, causing the video to speed up rapidly. I watch the time counter until it reaches the time when my class lets out, and then I let the video resume its normal speed.

The stairwell is now empty, as not many students have late classes. The bottom door opens, and in strides the tall armored man, looking every bit as terrifying as I remember. The man's gait is confident and he held himself like someone sure of his own authority, or self-importance. Now that I'm seeing him from here, his demeanor seems almost kingly.

Much to my surprise, another label appears atop the man, naming him as “King Sombra.” That's his name? It has to be, there's no other explanation. However, that title confuses me. Was he really a king? I don't recall there being that many countries left with monarchies, and certainly none that wore that sort of attire.

King Sombra comes to a halt halfway up the stairs. His eyes flash, and to my shock, his corneas turn a bright green, and a trail of purple light emanates from the corner of his eyes. He raises his hands and a glowing emerald orb appears there from nothing, steadily growing in size until it reaches the size of a soccer ball.

What am I seeing? He just created something from nothing, though I have no idea exactly what it is he created. That's impossible. The very laws of physics dictate that you can't create something from nothing, not even light. Everything comes from somewhere; that's why we have the laws for the conservation of matter and energy. So for him to do that...he's breaking every law that I've ever studied. The only thing I can call it...is magic.

I watch breathlessly as the video continues. Soon, my past self re-enters the stairwell and the label reappears. I was just walking down the stairs, listening to my music, unwittingly walking myself right into this inexplicable situation. If I'd have just known this would happen, I'd have used the other stairwell.

Just as I remember, my past self runs right into Sombra's shoulder, taking the king by surprise and spinning him right around, such that his hands...as well as the glowing orb he had been creating, go right onto my chest. It happens so fast that I have to rewind and watch it several times; the glowing green orb sinks right into my chest and disappears.

I immediately pause the video and look down at my chest and press my hands against it, but I can't find any evidence of any changes. There's nothing to indicate there's anything wrong with me at all. So then what exactly just happened to me? Was that orb the “spell” Sombra had been angry about losing?

If that's the case, then the only conclusion I can make is that he really had been using magic. Except everybody knows that magic doesn't exist. Magic, sorcery, wizardry, or whatever other names there are for such things are merely the creations of medieval humans that didn't understand how the world worked, and was later romanticized into popular fiction. But there's no other explanation for what Sombra had done; the evidence fits the hypothesis, as impossible as the hypothesis is.

This can't be happening. If I admit that King Sombra was really using magic, then not only will I have to admit that my preconceptions of the world are wrong, but also that the preconceptions of every scientist worthy of the name are also wrong, and that magic really does exist.

I press the play button again with a trembling finger. King Sombra is just as enraged as I remember, and I watch him manhandle my past self as though I weighed no more than a feather. For a human, Sombra appears impossibly strong. The amount of force necessary to throw a full grown man like me uphill over half a staircase and all the way to the back of the foyer (for a total of 2 and a half meters) while overcoming the force of gravity is ridiculous, yet Sombra does it on camera for me to see without expending any effort. I'm extremely lucky that he didn't break my back.

Eventually, Sombra leaves me behind just as inexplicably as he arrived, leaving me alone in the stairwell. My past self pulls out his phone and dials Amaryllis...this is it. I'm going to fall unconscious soon, and then I'll figure out exactly what happened.

Once I watch myself fall, I narrow my eyes and lean in to get a better look. The second after my past self loses consciousness, that same green glow from before appears right on his chest and flares brightly. I watch with disbelieving eyes as my body rises into the air, my limbs flopping around like a ragdoll. That glowing green light suddenly expands to encompass my entire body, and then it, me, and everything with a short radius of me completely winks out of existence.

As the video keeps playing, I look down at myself with shock. “What the hell did he do to me?” I question, running my hands over my chest. If I disappeared, where did I go? I awoke in the same place, so I can't have disappeared completely. Dammit, this doesn't answer anything! It just gives me even more questions that I can't answer!

Not long after my disappearance, I see Amaryllis running into the stairwell at her top speed. However, the video ends as she reaches the foyer. Despite not seeing anything else, I can't help but feel relieved. So the reason nobody found me was because they couldn't find me, and Amaryllis was damn quick on the scene. A feeling of warmth fills my chest as I realize just how much she must have been worried to run that fast to me. I need to get out of here and find her. I need to tell her just how much I appreciate her.

The computer soon dies from a lack of power, and the hum from the generator dies as well. However, I haven't seen enough. After checking over my wound and binding it with another strip of clothing, I return to the generator and return to cranking it back to life with a quiet determination. I need to see more. I need to understand more. I have too many questions that don't have answers, and it's driving me crazy.

This time, the generator makes a strange grinding and clunking sound as it powers up, making me rather anxious. No matter how advanced the craftsmanship, it's been a long time and the device is falling apart. I don't know how much longer it will last. By the time I finish cranking, the generator emits a shower of sparks, causing me to curse and back away. Nevermind, I think I have enough power.

When the computer comes back alive, I return to the console and click the first video on the list; the one dated in 2083. If anything will give me some answers, this one will. The video comes up on screen, and the speakers come to life, albeit with a great deal of crackling and static. The fact that they work at all is a miracle.

The video is of this own room. The first thing I notice are all the soldiers inside. These are definitely members of the UAF, dressed in full military body armor and armed to the teeth with all sorts of weapons. Some seem to be setting up a barricade a few feet away from the door, as if attempting to keep something out. Others are tending or reloading their weapons. None of them are smiling; they all look as though death is staring them in the face, and they’re cornered.

Standing in front of the camera is an elderly woman of around sixty or so years old, dressed in similar clothing with a combat shotgun resting against the console at her side. Her hair is a wispy blond, tied up in a bun on the back of her head to keep it from interfering with her vision. Her vivid green eyes stare directly at the camera, such that I start to feel uncomfortable, as if they’re staring right at me.

Strangely enough, she seems familiar to me. She almost looks like she could be related to me due to her eye color, the shade of her hair, and the structure of her face, but that wouldn't make any sense...unless the date on this video really is right. My blood starts to run cold at the possibility.

When the video plays, the audio and video is corrupted. Every so often, the frame will pause momentarily and skip ahead, frustrating me. I have no doubt that I'm being robbed of potentially useful information every time this happens.

“This --- final report of Acting-General Maka Rogers,” the woman states in a shaking, yet firm voice. In the background, I can hear the sounds of faint gunfire and yells. Whatever's going on has her shaken, but she doesn't look as though she's panicking. She looks almost as though she's resigned herself. “Today's date is February 12, 2083.”

That name. From the moment I saw her, I thought she could be related to me, but that confirms it. Come to think of it, she looks very similar to my brother; she has his hair and eyes. But...that would mean...that this really is 2083...

Despite the video corruption, the realizations start to collapse upon me at once, and I finally start to connect the dots. My body starts to shake as I work through the clues I've found so far. After seeing the video with Sombra, I discovered that I disappeared due to an unknown force...and if this really is 2083, then the only way for me to survive such a long extended sleep is if I disappeared from 2014 entirely...putting me in the future. This hypothesis is so beyond the limitations of reality, but there's no other explanation that thoroughly fits all of the evidence that I've seen so far.

The video continues before I can finish thinking, causing me to suspend my thought process and keep watching.

“We've ---- merry chase, but their commander is shrewd ---- there's no way out now,” Maka reveals with a rueful smile. She looks rather proud of the effort she's put in, even though her words indicate she's in a hopeless situation. “The Oppressed are here, and there's ---- against a force that renders all ---- heaviest of ammunition useless.”

“General! Our front line reports ---- out of HE rounds!” A soldier interrupts, running in from the hallway. His face and outfit are streaked with blood, and his expression is haggard, but filled with respect for the woman standing at the console.

Maka lets a small flicker of annoyance cross her face at being interrupted, but doesn't let it get to her. She immediately turns to the soldier and snaps out her orders. “Bring them our reserves! When you run out, switch to normal rounds ---- concentrate your fire! Aim for the ---- their movement!”

“Yes, ma'am!” the soldier salutes and rushes to do as he's told. It isn't long before he leaves the room carrying a box filled with the reserve ammunition.

Maka sighs and turns back to the console, looking tired. “Listen closely. Our struggle has ended, and I leave this message ---- may find it,” she says to the computer. “The one who has defeated the human race ---- King Sombra and possess untold power of an ---- that has rendered all of our defenses ineffective. He and his servants ---- ability to twist human flesh into grotesque quadruped forms ---- call the Oppressed, and can ---- this power remotely. Soldiers ---- no signs of corruption will change ---- warning, often within our defenses.”

Suddenly, several soldiers run in from the hallway and shut the door, locking it tightly. They immediately start to board it shut by grabbing wooden blanks from a stack nearby. The sound of hammering nails gets Maka's attention.

“Why are you here? What of the front lines ---- hallway?” Maka snaps out with alarm. Of the working soldiers turns and salutes, a grim expression on his face.

“Wasted or turned, general. We're...we're the only ones left...” the soldier answers, choking with despair. Maka's face falls, and a bitter smile crosses her face, as if she knew this was coming. She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a strange stick, upon which a red button is blinking. Perhaps it's a detonator?

“I see. I suppose ---- only a matter of time,” Maka says with a sigh. Seeing that look on her face makes my heart hurt within my chest. I never knew her before today...but she's my family. I don't have proof, but I feel it. The way she carries herself, the expressions she makes...she's related to my brother somehow. Seeing her so resigned to death makes my eyes water with emotion.

“Soldiers!” Maka calls out to the soldiers situated throughout the room. Upon her shout, they all turn to face her. She gives them all a salute. “It's been a ride, everyone. This end ---- regrettable, but I don't regret ---- time we've spent together.”

Maka lifts up her shotgun and loads with with multiple shells, preparing for battle. “The preparations have been made, and our end approaches,” she states to them all. She turns to the soldier that had reported the deaths of the front line. “Where is their commander, Grant?”

“He's here, general. I saw him ---- numbers, leading from the back,” Grant responds, looking surprised at being addressed by his name without his rank.

Maka gives a grin. “Then for better or worse, this invasion of theirs ends today,” she asserts with confidence. “We may die, but we'll die knowing that we took the bastards ----. Stand strong, men, and make yourselves proud!”

The soldiers cheer loudly, saluting her with smiles on their faces. Immediately after that, the door leading to the hallway splinters as something heavy rams into it.

Maka returns to the console, her face grim. “To whomever --- message may reach, I give you one last ---- of advice. King Sombra has already returned to the future, but he did not come here ---- a goal. Our intelligence is limited, but it is clear he ---- objective. Whatever happens, you MUST not let him find ---- Alpha...my uncle. If he does...”

Before she can finish her explanation, the door breaks down entirely, and a veritable swarm of twisted, grotesque...things that disturbingly resemble broken humans charge through the door like the coming of the tide, roaring and attacking anything in range.

Maka curses and pivots on her right heel, firing her shotgun towards the nearest monster, blowing its legs off. The first soldiers behind the barricade lift detonators and activate them. The hallway explodes with fire and shrapnel, blowing apart several of the Oppressed and slowing their advance.

“Grenades, now!” Maka commands her men, pulling the pin off a grenade of her own. Under her command, the remaining soldiers manage to deal significant damage to the front lines of the monsters, but soon...they run out of explosives. There's nothing they can do to stop the tide of death that approaches them.

I cover my mouth in horror, choking as I watch all of those brave soldiers die en masse. There's nothing they can do; the monsters soak up their bullets like sponges and swarm over them like water on rock, cutting through their body armor like butter and tearing them to bloody shreds.

Maka manages to deal serious damage to them with her heavy shotgun, but then...something happens. I hear a sickening crack, and Maka cries out in pain. She bends over, and it seems like something inside of her is shifting, causing her immense pain. “No... not me too...” Maka grunts, hardly able to stand. While this is happening, the Oppressed curiously ignore her and strike at the other soldiers instead.

“You won't have ----...not before I take you ---- down!” Maka grunts. Several more cracks are heard, and she's forced down onto her knees. She lifts up the flashing button and mashes it with her thumb.

The video ends abruptly as power dies, but I don't want to see any more. My mental strength fails, and I stagger backwards until my back hits the wall. I slide to the ground and hug my knees, tears rolling down my cheeks. I let out a choking sob as realizations start to crash down upon me, the dots connecting to tell me exactly what happened.

King Sombra. That man came from the future with the power of magic on his side. I can't deny the existence of magic anymore...not after Maka confirmed it and I saw its use for myself. With his power he...twisted or destroyed humanity over the course of eighty years. For some reason, I'm very important to him...and it has something to do with that spell he used on me, intentionally or not.

But...if I accept all of this...then...I have to accept that I'm in the future...and...the realization crashes down upon me, and my cries only intensify. My hands reach up to my hair and tear at the strands in my desperation.

If humanity is dead...then so is my family. My mother...Elaine...my father, Gerome...and my brother, Adam. It feels as a hole is physically being torn in my chest as I realize all of the things that I'll never get to do with them. I never told my family how much I really cared....all I ever did was yell at them, argue with them over stupid shit, and push them away.

All those late nights I spent with Adam, watching some silly anime he found on the internet...I'll never get to spend another night with him, nor argue over which character was stronger, nor go to another convention with him. All those times he stood by me, no matter what I said to him...and I can never tell him how much I appreciated that.

And...Amaryllis. This one really gets to me, causing me to yell out with furious despair and punch the ground, actually relishing the pain when the debris there cuts into my skin and draws blood. Compared to her loss...no amount of physical pain can ever compare. I don't believe in love...but I couldn't imagine a future in which she wasn't present. She was my closest friend...the only one that I could depend on.

“Goddammit, why!?” I yell helplessly at the ceiling. This isn't fair. In just a few short minutes, my entire life has come crashing down upon my head. Everyone...everyone I've ever cared about...is gone.

Even worse than that...something else clicks in my head. Maka Rogers. Acting General of the last defense of mankind. She was my family...family that I just now discovered that I had...and she's gone. She was Adam's daughter...she had to be. It's not just because they look similar; I knew from the moment I heard her name, whether I wanted to admit it or not, that she was his daughter. Adam named her Maka, after the main character of the first anime he and I ever watched together...the first time I ever let him share a part of my life.

“I'm so sorry...all of you...” I whisper. I can't do anything for them other than apologize...apologize that I couldn't have been there for any of them. I never got to tell any of them my true feelings...and as for Maka...I never even got a chance to know her...never got a chance to love her. Anger wells up within me at the injustice of this whole situation. “This just isn't fair!”

The urge to smash everything nearby comes to me, but I force myself to ignore it, instead taking out my anger and despair on myself, my nails digging into the skin of my arms and drawing blood. I won't let myself destroy what's left of mankind.

It's not fair. Why am I the only one to live through this catastrophe, while everyone else is dead? I don't even see the point in leaving here anymore. There's nothing out there for me...nowhere to go, nobody to see. There's just emptiness, a void that nothing in this world can fill. I sit down against the wall and sit there motionlessly, gazing with empty eyes at the floor.

I don't even know how long I sit there. It could have been hours, or even just a few minutes. At some point, however, a single thought enters my head. King Sombra. Maka said that he had returned to the future. That means that even though I don't know what will be outside when I go there...he'll be here.

With that realization comes a new resolve. If my family...if Amaryllis and everyone are all gone...then the only thing left for me is to find Sombra and kill him. I've never considered taking the life of another living thing before...but for that monster, I'll make an exception. Oh boy, will I make an exception. I'll make his end painful beyond painful, until he can feel the pain that I'm feeling right now.

I rise to my feet, grabbing the rifle from where I left it. I'm a mess; my side throbs, my head aches, and my arms sting from my own self-inflicted injuries. However, all of that pain feels as if it's sealed behind a wall in my mind. It's there, but it feels almost veiled. Or maybe it's because I've just stopped caring.

The moment I step towards the door, I hear something from the hallway. It sounds almost as if a horse is walking down the hallway, but instead of the clopping that I'd expect from hooves, it's making an odd clicking sound, followed by an extended scraping. Click-sccraaape. Click-sccraaape. The sounds are coming closer.

I freeze. That's the first sign of activity in this ruin ever since I woke up...yet I already know what it is. There's only one thing it can be. Maka spoke of taking them all down with her...which probably has something do with why this place is underground. It only stands to reason that there'd be at least one of those monsters still left.

Is this how I die? I don't see any way of getting out of this. The door is the only way out of the room, and every other door in this hallway is a dead end. I'm caught between the exit and the monster that's coming. My only weapon is the rifle at my side, and it probably doesn't even work.

There's nothing for it. I can't run and I can't hide. If I'm going to die, I'm going to face it like Maka did. I brazenly walk out into the hallway to get a look at the monster that's very likely going to kill me.

Just like I expected, there's one of the Oppressed ambling down the hall towards me. Even though I'm standing right here, it hasn't noticed me. This gives me enough time to get a good look at it.

The creature scraping towards me is an absolute mockery of a human being. If I didn't know it was once a human, I never would have come to that conclusion. It looks as though someone ripped the skin off of a living creature and wrapped it around the wire frame of a small horse, like a pony, and then sewed together the seams. The skin is too tight in some places, and too loose in others. What used to be the hands are now the forelegs, complete with twisted claws of enamel erupting from the fingertips large and sharp enough to rend flesh. Its mouth looks as though the jaw has been unhinged to make room for vicious teeth that never should be seen in a human mouth.

What's worse...is that I can tell who the Oppressed used to be. The creature's green eyes were now a milky and pale, no sign of life left in the once vibrant orbs. It's wizened blond hair hung by its sides in wisps, still tied up into a bun at the back. King Sombra hadn't just killed her, he ruined her.

I can't help it. A soft bitter chuckle escapes my lips. I raise a hand and rub my forehead, the chuckle turning into a full blown laugh that could have come from a psychopath. I can't help it; it's just ironically funny how life is turning out for me. It's as if some cosmic being chose me to be dealt the worst hand today. I'm in the future, the last of my kind, separated from everything I've ever known; I find that I have family that I never knew I had...only to find that very same family bringing to me the end that I've been narrowly avoiding ever since I woke up.

The remains of the once-proud Acting-General Maka finally notices me, having heard my bitter laughing. The Oppressed opens its mouth and roars a twisted, horrible roar that's vaguely reminiscent of what used to be a woman. With the scraping of enamel claws on plaster, the creature breaks into an inhumanly fast run, charging towards with me with the intent to rip me asunder.

I don't move, the rifle hanging limply from my grasp. What does it matter if I die here? I've lost everything; my family, my friend, my future...what's my life in comparison to all of that? My only regret is that I won't get to take revenge upon King Sombra.

As I gaze at the charging Maka, I start to wonder whether or not she's still alive in there, watching helplessly from inside the confines of her ruined mind. The camera footage showed me very clearly, so she must know what I look like. I grow angry at the thought; even if that was the case, there's nothing I can do to help her now. She's gone...replaced by this rampaging beast.

Just as the creature comes within a few meters from me, my stance suddenly changes. I start to run, determination and adrenaline in equal measures running through my veins. I don't know where this willpower is coming from...but I will not die here...not by what should have been my beloved niece. If she is still alive in there, I'm not going to make her live with the knowledge that she killed her only remaining family.

Maka and I streak across the hallway towards one another. I lift the rifle, clenching it with both hands. As we meet in the center of the hallway, Maka's lethal claws rise to deal me a killing blow. Her attack is met with the haft of my rifle, all of my strength put behind the blow.

My feet grind against the aged floor as I contend with the creature's unnatural strength. Maka's toothed mouth gnashes over the haft of the rifle as she relentlessly tries to reach me. With a grunt, I kick her ruthlessly in the stomach, attempting to force her back. While my attack does connect, she's barely affected by it all, driven back only enough for her to make her next charge.

Maka rears up on her back legs and swings her claws at me viciously, each attack filled with the intent to kill. I manage to block one attack with the rifle and dodge another, but I'm no fighter. I don't have the capability to read her movements. Maka pivots on her claws and bucks me right in the stomach with her back legs.

My breath whooshes out of my lungs and my stomach burns with pain. The impact sends me hurtling back into the wall, colliding with a burst of pain that causes me to cry out. Maka is upon me like a whirlwind, her claws whipping through the air and her jaws open wide.

I yelp and duck beneath her claws, which cut into the wooden walls as though they aren't even there. With no way out, I take the only remaining option and ram my shoulder into her chest, putting all of my body weight behind the attack. I manage to muster enough force to knock her backwards, but her claws rake across my shoulders, tearing my shirt further and cutting into my skin.

Maka hits the wall on the other side of the hallway and struggles to rise, but I don't let her. With rage burning throughout my body, I leap across the hall and land atop her, slamming my legs down on her forelegs and pinning her claws down. She shrieks and roars, flailing her back legs and attempting to bite at me, but she can't reach me.

I grasp the rifle tightly, and then with every bit of strength that I can muster, I bring it down on Maka's head with a sickening thump. A blow like that would have been enough to knock out or even kill an ordinary human, but the monster doesn't stop struggling. I bite my lip, tears rolling down my cheeks as I hit her again and again, her skull fracturing with every hit. Blackened blood soon stains the wall behind her. Eventually, Maka's roars die down and her body slowly ceases its movements, once there's nothing left of its head but a pulpy mass.

The danger passed, I rise from the twisted body of my dead niece, the tears dripping from my face. Now that she's gone, the rage fades away, to be replaced by emptiness. I'm sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't be here to stop this from happening. I'm sorry I had to do that to you, but it was the only way. Maybe now, wherever you are, you can rest in peace.

I stand there for a while, feeling as though I've already died. It wouldn't surprise me at this point; Hell can't be any worse than this.

Either way, now that the battle is over, my original goal returns. I need to get out of here, find King Sombra, and murder him in cold blood. However, I need to leave soon. I don't know if there are any more of those things around, but it's likely considering how many were in the recording. Even if I could get the generator working again, I don't have enough time to study anymore. After that battle, I'm losing even more blood.

I limp towards the stairwell listlessly, carrying the rifle in one hand and applying pressure to my side with the other. The roof access hatch is just inside the stairwell, consisting of a simple crimson ladder and a hatch to the rooftop. The hatch was designed in such a way that it could be easily opened in the case of an emergency. I think this qualifies.

Leaving the rifle on the ground for now, I climb up the ladder, noticing with satisfaction that the rungs are still somewhat sturdy. Upon reaching the hatch, I clamp my hands around the wheel and turn. I grunt and strain my aching muscles until the rusty wheel starts to turn.

The moment the hatch becomes loose enough to open, the thing slams open with a loud bang, and what seems to be a torrent of dark earth pours through the opening and cascades over me with enough force to knock me right off the ladder, taking me right down to the floor.

I cry out with pain and surprise as several pounds of earth flows down from the opening and covers me. I cover my eyes with an arm to keep them safe from the cloud of earth, but even then I can't keep it from covering my face and getting in my mouth, such that I hack and cough.

Eventually, the stream of earth dissipates, leaving me free to rise. I cough again and rise to a sitting position, dirt sliding down from my body in the process. I take my arm away from my face and notice that light is shining down from the hole. That has to be the light of the outside world. I need to get out and find someplace to get some water. With all the earth covering my body, I need to get clean or my wounds definitely will get infected.

I get to my feet and fish around in the dirt until I find the rifle. I toss it up the hole first, and then climb up the ladder after it. After ascending the ladder, I find myself in a narrow hole that leads up through the earth to what looks like leaves swaying in the night sky. I don't think I've ever been happier to see the sky in my entire life.

It takes some doing to get up through the hole, but with the help of embedded rocks and protruding tree roots, I manage to lever myself up and out of the hole into the fresh air. I gasp and breathe in as much of the outside air as I can, finding it much sweeter than I remember. The air down in the ruin was getting to be extremely stale...no doubt I would have suffocated if I stayed down there too long.

Casting my gaze around, I notice I'm in the midst of a thick green forest. The tree trunks are wide and the branches stretch up to nearly cover the sky with their wide leaves. Plants, brush, and tree roots cover the ground as far as I can see. Every direction looks the same as the last, letting me know that I'm completely lost. This area looks like nothing that I remember...though I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

This is probably fortunate. The area seems alive with wildlife activity just out of sight, letting me know that if it comes down to it, I can find and kill small animals for food. If I'm lucky, I can find a river to clean myself off and quench my thirst. I don't know the first thing about surviving in the wilderness, but at this point, I either adapt or I die. It's as simple as that.

I start to walk in a randomly chosen direction. If everything I heard in the footage is true, then everyone's dead. There's no human civilization remaining. I'm the only one. I'd be happy if just my family and Amaryllis could come back, but as it stands...I'm all on my own. It doesn't matter which direction I go. There's nowhere for me to go.

The bandage at my side is nearly soaked through, and blood is steadily trickling down my chest from the wounds on my shoulders. As everything about me is filthy, there's nothing else I can use to patch myself up. I let out another bitter laugh. After all this, blood loss may well be the end of me.

The further I go, the more I notice that this forest isn't normal. The plants are all twisted and climb up the trunks like parasites, and even the trees themselves appear twisted and gnarled. There were no forests like this in the area of our campus, so I've never seen anything like this. I feel something strange in the atmosphere around me that I can't quite place. It's like the air is constantly humming with something I can't see...but it makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

After a long period of walking, I hear a rustling in the brush near me. I've been hearing signs of life all over the place, but this is the closest any of the animals have ever been. I turn my head and raise my rifle to defend myself.

The first thing I see are two glowing green eyes emerging from the underbrush. “What now?” I say with a sigh. Whatever possesses eyes like that, it can't be good.

A wolf stalks out from the brush, growling angrily at me. I do a double-take when I realize that the wolf is unlike any wolf I've ever seen. It's made entirely out of wood, down to the very teeth in its mouth. Its pupil-less eyes are glowing green with malevolent intent, promising imminent death should I make any sudden moves.

A creature like this is impossible...but in the face of all of the revelations I've had today, it's no more impossible than everything else. Either way...it wants to kill me. That much I think I can be assured of.

I take a step back, but that's exactly the wrong thing to do. The moment the wolf sees me attempting to retreat, it lunges at me faster than I can react. Its claws slice into my chest even as I'm knocked completely off of my feet. My back skids against the ground and I shove my rifle up into the wolf's jaws to keep it from biting down on my throat.

The wolf is incredibly strong despite having such a thin frame. I have to use both hands to keep the rifle wedged into its mouth. However, keeping it from biting leaves both of my arms occupied, so its claws tear into my chest and arms, causing me to cry out in agony.

Thinking quickly, I kick the wolf in the chest multiple times until I hear something crack. The wolf lets out a whimpering cry and leaps back, nursing the wound on its chest. I leap to my feet, blood seeping from my wounds.

“I am not going to die today!” I yell at the wolf, brandishing the rifle before me. I am getting sick and tired of facing death. Everything I've seen since waking up has tried to kill me in some form or fashion, and I'm really losing my temper.

The wolf's whimpers turn into furious growls, and to my horror, more wolves emerge from the brush, each one identical in composition to the first. This situation just went from bad to worse. As a last-ditch effort, I angle the muzzle of my rifle and pull the trigger...but nothing sounds from the rifle except useless clicking and grinding. I guess I should have expected as much.

Faced with overwhelming numbers and bleeding heavily, there's really only one last course of action for me to take. I spin on one heel and break into a sprint, not caring what direction I'm running in as long as it was away from those wolves.

I can hear them behind me, barking and howling in anticipation of the hunt. They're fast and relentless; without muscles, I don't think they can get tired. That means that unless I find safety soon, they're going to catch me and tear me to ribbons.

A leafy bough that I push out of the way swipes back in my direction and slices my cheek, leaving behind a stinging gash. “Goddammit!” I curse loudly, wincing from the pain. I cast my gaze around as I run, hoping to find something...anything to offer me shelter.

As if answering my prayers, I see a light in the distance, piercing through the darkness of the forest and promising me safe haven. I don't care how improbable it is that it's coming from a civilized source. I don't care what it's coming from at this point. I change my course and head directly for it. It can't be any worse than what's chasing me.

The source of light soon reveals itself to be coming from a window carved into the side of an ornately carved tree. It's clearly not a naturally made structure; an assumption that is cemented when I see the door set into the trunk, with a menacing-looking mask hanging above it. Without heeding the implications of such décor, I pull open the door and dash inside, slamming it behind me.

I immediately turn and fiddle with the lock that's present on the other side of the door, fastening it tightly. Just in time too, as the door is soon impacted by the wolves on the other side, whining in frustration and tearing into the wood with their claws. Thankfully, the door is extremely thick and resists their efforts.

“Suck it! I'm not going to die to a bunch of wire frame phonies!” I shout back through the door, even though I know they can't understand me. Reveling in my newfound safety, I shut my eyes and let out a twisted laugh of relief. To anyone else, it would sound as if I had gone crazy. At this point, I think I am going crazy. It wouldn't surprise me.

“Well now, this is quite the unexpected surprise. What manner of being presents itself before my eyes?” I hear a deep female voice sound from further inside the tree home. Her tone was heavily accented, sounding almost tribalistic in nature.

I open my eyes to see the strangest creature walking towards me. The closest thing I can compare it to is a zebra, but it's much too small. Its eyes are too large and its face seems more expressive than any animal I've ever seen. That's not even counting the multitude of earrings and bracelets adorning its body, almost as if it had personalized its appearance. I attempt to look around the strange animal for the owner of the voice, but there's no one else here.

The zebra then starts to look impatient. “Come now, I know you can speak. Use your voice now, don't be meek.” My jaw drops as I see the creature's mouth moving its lips in time with the words I'm hearing. It...the zebra is talking to me.

I guess that settles it. I'm definitely going crazy.

Author's Note:

Now, I've finally gotten around to editing this chapter, which is what I consider to be one of the weakest points of this story. I don't really think I handled the emotions well, and I feel as though I rushed it. Even some of you told me that I rushed the scene too quickly.

Therefore, I kept the basis of the scene, because that part was solid, but this time I went out of my way to describe the scene better, add more imagery, add tie-ins to later parts of the plot to keep continuity straight, and other such mechanical changes. I also changed a bit of flavor. I removed the majority of the unnecessary swearing in the narrative except for when the situation called for it. I'm going to let Seth show his vulgarity through his dialogue and let narrative remain smooth and streamlined.

I wanted to make Seth show as less of a brat and more of a troubled human being, which is what he is. That being said, I went over the emotional breakdown and had him go through his thoughts better, without shoving cheese at you like "I'll never love again, waaaah!" Additionally, I stopped him shoving his misanthropy in your face. I'll let the readers figure that part out on their own.

I also wanted to flesh out the Maka scene as well as the fight to make it more realistic.

Alright, I think I'm proud of this! I should have been writing chapter 7 of a Wilting Flower, but I didn't want to, so here I am. I definitely plan to edit more of this to make it more in line with what I had intended. Thanks to Schadenponi for editing this, and don't forget to leave a comment and tell me what you think of the changes!

Comments

[Shirohige]

Incredibly interesting.
This has really great potential. Don't fuck up.

[Terran34]

4015393

Haha, I'll do my best not to. If I do, make sure to tell me, and I'll endeavor to fix it.

[DezzarTac]

The story is moving a bit too fast. I mean, an underground building with an exit only intelligent beings can find, and he only meets ONE oppressed? Where'd the rest go, die off? Then the whole calm 'oh fuck it's a literal timber-wolf, I'd better run' thing. First chapter was wonderful, second chapter should've been third or forth to be honest.

[Terran34]

4022149

Thank you for the criticism! You bring up some very excellent points. This story is far from perfect, and I appreciate every bit of help.

If you wouldn't mind a PM conversation, how would you suggest I slow the pacing?

[DeepThought]

This story is definitely underrated. So far very impressive.

[Jack Kellar]

Mother of fuck, talk about taking a beating when a flick was enough. Seth had it BAD.

And no, I don't think this was rushed. The events connected well enough and with individual appreciation for each, which includes, surprisingly enough, Seth's self deprecation. Well done, mate.

[Mr_Moon]

Awesome

[Toobert]

Wow... I feel really bad for Seth. No wonder he's misanthropic. And anti-life. And an asshole.

[2x]

Jesus Christ I thought I was about to go insane when I read about the oppressed. Nasty as fuck JEEZUZ

[Loyalist]

Dunno if I can keep reading this. The extermination of humanity seems like nothing but a plot convenience here, and not even a beliveable one.

[Ominous Enigma]

6222611 If you continue reading, you can clearly see that this story is a great story and worth your time. Everything gets better over time.

[Exemter]

Oh, there's a guy lying in the stairwell? LET'S COMPLETELY IGNORE HIM! Gah, humanity pisses me off so much.

The last time someone tried to ask you for help you told them to piss off.

Ah, gotta love it when the main character doesn't bother to check for extra ammo anywhere. It happens everytime.

Don't take the harsh words personally. I actually love this story.

[Cereal-Killer]

Doing my first re-read

FINALLY FINISHED FIRST PAGE OF LONGEST FICS ON THE SITE

All 16 stories!

[Dreamclaw]

I grabbed a table nearby and threw it at the now useless computer monitors, shattering them. I stormed around the room, destroying anything I could find.

Being a complete idiot and destroying a terminal that definitely had some useful data and research on it concerning what happened in the past and what should have been done to stop Sombra... All he had to do is find some fuel for the generator and then he could study the logs left there all he wanted. Nice going... Destroying the final message of humanity that had something to do with him and what they fought for.

Also, I'm not going to point out typos, but I think this "I turn the corner and charge down" deserves to be fixed. This fragment has a link with a taken-down video.
"he wolf leaps at me with a snarl." Same here. You should probably check these regularly.

[Hoppa_21]

This is really fascinating! The music from Final Fantasy VIII also fits perfectly. Sooo mysterious!

[DerpedRainbow]

4022149 Hey, an Oppressed has to eat...

Probably. I personally doubt they could have done much for Maka considering she died Fragenhand.

[Truthseeker]

"I don't surprise you're friendly?" I ask it hopefully.

Round 2 of: Spot The Typo.

[Titan Commander Sebaste]

Merciful Throne, what created these monsters, these.... Oppressed?

[theMANEman]

Just started reading this, I respect the dragon age reference, so no bad in my eyes already

[Im Iteration]

Bitterness overcomes me as I jump to the first available conclusion. Did everyone really just walk right on by me, leaving me collapsed in the middle of the school? Did no one even think to lift a hand to help me, when I might have been hurt? Why the hell did nobody try to help me when I've been lying here for hours!? Are people really that spiteful and cruel?

well well. Looks like mister high and mighty is not only a dick head, but also an idiot! Treat people badly then they won't help you! Fucking dumbass.

[Srey]

Hmm, second chapter done!

no errors that I managed to spot, that's good.

You know, I don't remember much about when I first read this, but, I know it was not as... oppressing... as this. The atmosphere, the clues, the video. I'm getting pretty stressed out myself just sitting here and reading that. I'm both glad and disappointed he's left the compound.

At least I know he'll get there again, and it'll be just as oppressive despite his power ups. Oh joy!

[EverfreeSparkle]

I didn't consciously comprehend that this story was in present tense until halfway through this chapter. That's a sign that you did present tense correctly!

[Remnant Viscera]

Not gonna lie, still dislike Seth as a character. I was enjoying him being shit on by waking up in this new place, but since it's now been made clear that he is in some way important? Idk, the thing that made me happy about him being shit on is that he couldn't pretend to be so great anymore. Because, I mean he is insipid and annoying and pandered to in that first chapter. It's cathartic to see him torn down, but it seems premature to heap a "You're special" feel onto him with this Alpha thing when he doesn't really seem to have grown as a character yet.

Still, this was much better than chapter 1. It was grueling to spend time with this asshole in that. I will say you have good writing in general. You set a good scene. Just, christ this guy is irritating. I only kept reading because I know some fanfics get much better after the first chapter.

[Salespony]

Bitterness overcomes me as I jump to the first available conclusion. Did everyone really just walk right on by me, leaving me collapsed in the middle of the school? Did no one even think to lift a hand to help me, when I might have been hurt? Why the hell did nobody try to help me when I've been lying here for hours!? Are people really that spiteful and cruel?

I can't decide to either be angry or laugh because of this paragraph.

[Scornas]

Rather than all at once, Consciousness returns to me a little at a time.

because thats how it works in real life, you don’t just wake up immediately

[kotor511]

His reluctance to not touch the corpse is inane to say the least.
He was in a desperate situation of survival and all the signs of a firefight having taken place in those corridors should have made him realize that immediate danger could still be lurking around. Since he 'professionally' determined the rather good condition of the gun, why the heck would he not take of the ammunition belt as well?

Because he is stupid and has no idea how to operate guns? Because he is afraid of 'killing himself' with it?

Or the best reason yet, because the corpse is "eewww" and It's a dead person, so he doesn't want to be disrespectful and so on.
Pretty much every morale excuse not to touch a dead body which has wasted away a very long time ago.

This is an absolute emergency situation determining his survival. Having a functioning weapon to use would be essential to make sure he is prepared for dangers and eventual circumstances lying ahead.

Not taking the ammunition belt, which "private skeletor" would probably forgive him for since he can't use it anymore, is definitely moronic.

Looting is unavoidable in such a situation. Clearly this character has never played or watched any kind of survival series or game.
On the other hand, perhaps he just is a moron.

If he is careful enough with the gun, he won't just kill himself by "accident", at least if he isn't pointing the muzzle of the barrel straight between his eyes. Handling the gun can eventually be learned, over time and testing. Leaving equipment behind like that is just a waste.

[Shadowblade019]

another genocides story.

[CreativeSpark]

8699542
I agree, I did raise an eyebrow about leaving extra ammunition right where he found it. I feel like it would make much more sense if the belt was empty anyway, considering the amount of action the soldiers had seen in this battle. A quick edit to make, if the author deems it necessary

[Anigai]

Gonna have to give this one a miss, chapters are waaaaaaaaay too long and have too much detail that I'm not allowed any real mental liberties with my perception of the storys imagery because you're trying to hold my hand the entire time like a child.

[TranquilClaws]

The story should start with this chapter.

[Kitsune_Kenshi]

9687964
Ur just impatient

[Kitsune_Kenshi]

All the negative comments...

SHUT TIT!!!

[mustangdrew4]

I don't know what the story was like before the re-write, but after reading through this chapter I have to say, you did pretty good.

I've seen a lot of comments complaining about his decision regarding the rifle and not taking the ammo, but to be fair, the ammo probably degraded to being useless. Most, if not all, ammo have a shelf life. Meaning that they won't fire or could be potentially dangerous to the shooter to fire. Our protagonist here probably doesn't know that for sure but he seems to have a rough guess about it.

And that's not even considering that the gun itself has a bunch of very easy to break, moving internal components that are more than likely corroded, and not at all lubricated by this point. Not saying that the gun couldn't be salvaged but not without a decent amount of time and some advanced knowledge/experience.

I'll admit that Seth, as a character, has made some pretty bad decisions. However, having every character ever know and do exactly the right thing, the right way, at the right time, would make for an extremely boring story. So I applaud the author on sticking to his guns and keeping his character in character.

P.S. I was sure if i missed a detail about how long it took Sombra to kill of the human race, but if I didn't, the following probably needs to be edited. From what we know at this point is that he's been transported 69 or so years into the future. From 2014 to 2083. It might be even longer because we don't know how long it's been since that video was recorded.

With his power he...twisted or destroyed humanity over the course of eight years.