Air Locked

Prelude to the Outcries

"We have fallen a long way, that is true. But that is not a reason for us to completely fall apart. Humanity will stand together as we push through these times of grieving and long afterword. Never again shall we bend our knees to the forces of fate!" -First Premier of Earth, during first official address to the newly formed Empire of Accord.

Year 2022- Then. Hospital, location unknown.

The chants and thuds coming from the door made them waver.

"Make it stop. Oh, god, make it stop."

A tall woman curled into herself, unable to take the horror.

"I... I... have to let them in."

One male nurse stood up.

"NO! You can't!"

A patient pulled at his arm.

"Dammit! We have to leave!"

Sirens filled the hallway contemporaneously to the corpses.

"Seal off the doors, we can't have it spread."

The director of the hospital said, pushing away the sympathy that he couldn't afford.

"Please... Please... Let me out..."

Nurses and patients alike dropped like flies- flailing without breath.

Year 2222- Then. Cabeza City, capital of European Providence.

The steps came slow to him as if the stream of time was passing through a narrow pipe. He knew that his actions in the past months had been irrational. Hell, his next decision was most likely to be his worst idea yet. But this grand scheme had a purpose, albeit with consequences of death.

He found himself on the verge of stepping out unto the world outside the safe, sealed halls. The plaza waited ahead of him. His chest rose slowly before falling all too quickly. Panic had been absent from his presence for these past few months, but he couldn't help the fear that settled like a small stone in his chest. Sweat gathered in his thin gloves, his fingers twitching as he pressed a small blue button on the wall.

The hall behind him was sealed off by an off-white door and the wall in front of him disappeared. A thin sheet of plastic fluttered with a wind from the plaza. As per usual, a sense of foreboding overcame him. And, as was the norm, he ignored it to take the leap. That he did as he stepped out into the light.

Step. Step. Step... Pause. Tense.

By the time he had reached the middle of the plaza, his hands had found their way to the helmet he wore on his head- as everyone does. Not a soul seemed to notice as they filtered by; all dressed identically in white bio-hazard suits, yet going about individual schedules. He hated the aloof nature that the protection provided. It distanced and limited humanity.

With that thought in his head, he undid the latches and removed his mask- both figurative and literal. Breathing became hard and frantic. Then, in his last moments before crumpling to the ground,  his visage was the world's to behold.