Fallen

Like Lord of the Flies

Chapter One

For a moment I could see through the ice. People were here. People were talking. If my rage were heat it would snuff the air from the sun, but I watched as if in a frozen dream.
They were in yellow hazmats but one carried a folded rifle on the back of his shoulder. That one peered at me but continued on. Others followed and one was typing at something on his wrist.

"This one."

The typer clicked a key and one of the pods opened near me.

"This one."

A click and one opened in the corner of my vision.

"Guys!" They turned to who was speaking, "their sobering up."
"Tie 'em and gag 'em you insolent idiot." The gunman said.

They have others. They're taking the others. This dream is becoming a nightmare.

"What about the six year old?"

"The girl should suffice."

They looked down at the woman, I saw them dragging Sara, Hope's sister, crying and helpless. They were thinking about dragging Wane away the same way. The rage was inexplicable, like a bear having her cubs taken away but she's frozen in place like some soldier.
"Kill the woman, we have no use for her."

There was some fumbling and then she was trying to scream but her voice was fighting the vomiting of earlier. Silence followed the gunshot reverberating in my brain. The last I saw before being refrozen was the man with the rifle. He glanced at me and I remembered what I could of his face. He took a step back...

I was glowering now...

❧

I heard a lowing sound the next time I was gaining consciousness. The sound was getting louder and louder as everything became... colder. No, I was getting warmer; I was so cold I didn't feel it at first but I was feeling it now! I was getting warmer!

I realized that the sound getting louder was actually my hearing coming back. I struggled, tried to move! Only a finger moved...

"Decompression commencing."

Air began hitting my skin from hissing blowers. I tried to scream but only a groan escaped; if that. The blowing stopped as air escaped the pod.

"Decompression complete."

Once the door opened I crashed on the hot floor. No, I thought, it's room temperature but my body temperature hasn't equalized. The two others next to me popped open as well and one to my left fell to the floor.

"Scanning for assistant staff."

I began thawing and regaining movement more rapidly. The first thing I tasted was my vomit. Humans weren't made to be like frozen slushes. I was coughing when the computer said,
"Staff absent. Loading emergency protocols." It finished and something next to us popped from the cryogenic chambers. The huge doors to my left opened to lockers which also automatically opened in the short (but SO far away) distance.

"You are advised to apply the stimulator shot to your heart and proceed to the lockers for the handheld thawers. Once thawed, proceeded to apply stimulator shots to the other cryogenic-wakers." I groaned; I had taken these before in the War. "If you do not take the stimulator shot you will not overcome the complex de thawing of your internal organs."

I struggled to my knees, hobbled 180 degrees, and took the shot in my freezing and burning hands. I tried to sigh the best I could because these things suck. I stabbed it to my heart...
And when I tried to scream from the pain my legs kicked out from under me even though I was on my knees. Rainbows filled the corners of my eyes as I shook and seized. I had to wait until I stopped and then proceeded to try and get up.

I found my footing and leaned heavily on the pods closest to me to the lockers and de-thawers. I held one, they were much like pistols, but I felt positive that these could barely light a cigarette. The thawers weren't blow torches by any means.

I glanced at another man who used the stimulator shot. I watched him scream and wreath a moment but then began using the thawer. It acted like some strange microwave vacuum dryer that dried my skin with no heat. Very strange...

"Help-" The man groaned.
I shuffled to him and kicked up something...

Human bones...

"Holy sh-"

I observed it, distracted, but turned to continued on,

"Help me!"

I went to him and began thawing him. He got up and began helping the others who were vomiting or groaning.

Everyone was moving...

Except Hope...

"God no," I went to her and she wasn't moving. I took the stimulator shot and gave it to her. I steadied her with my left hand and injected her with my right. Once it pierced her heart it felt so much like a knife instead and hissed when I removed it.

"Veteran!" The man called, "they have smaller pods for kids..." he had a stim-shot in his hands over my brother, "does that mean they have smaller shots?"

"C'mon!" I shook her lightly and the man called with more urgency,

"Veteran!"

I glanced at him and the shots, and said with unintended harshness,

"Those will work! They're milder!"

He gave me a look and stabbed  the shot into my brother with a little bit of frustration. I checked Hope's pulse and began CPR. I wasn't far in when her eyes shot open and I instinctively turned her head as she vomited. (Vomiting is common from CPR alone... add that to being like a chocolate phosphate...) Then she reared back and slapped me.

"I'm glad that you're alive," I said sappily, "I didn't know what I would have done without you."

"You," the man said, "would have been helping ME!"

"Get off me!" She croaked, pushing me away, "Where's my sister!"

"Where's everyone?!" Someone bellowed (before he threw up).

"Hell do I know," I muttered and my brother sat up with a start.

"Holy sh-" he barfed and I looked away.
I coughed and spat, "Everyone done?" I stretched my creaky legs and  walked to the lockers and started passing out the thawing guns.

"That everyone?" The man who mentioned the 33rd said.

I looked over the small sea of faces and didn't see my brother. I called his name but to no avail. I cussed and asked,

"Anyone see my brother?"

"Where's my sister!?" Hope said.
A cacophony of worrying chatter followed and I yelled, "Shut up!"

Everyone died down and listened, "We all know who did this. BADS are the only ones who control this bunker. It's probable they kept us as frozen guinea pigs for their corporate experiments."

"My sister is out there! I volunteered for the War to protect her Nate-" Hope teared up but I said,

"We gotta think rationally and work as a team-"

A gun cocked and we all turned towards the noise. Wane waddled up with a oversized guard helmet and Kevlar vest on and a 8mm in his hand. He also had a duffle filled to the brim with weapons and armor. He observed the pistol in fascination and I said,

"PUT. THE GUN. DOWN!"

"C'mon," he whined, "this'll help, and you taught me to shoot."

"Wh-what the hell were you doing?!"

"Trying to find Sarah and the others." He quipped and everyone fell silent,

"Already 'hacked' a terminal."

"You-you what?"

"They had hidden reminders in the drawer and I decoded them." He turned, walked back and then added,

"Well? Are you going to stand around and argue like the bad-guys did on Lord of The Flies or do something?"