Flashf0rward

Chapter 16: Ghost Town

Ivy

After another night of rest, we'd finally made it to the outskirts of the city just as the sun was coming up. We stopped our horses right next to the sign which read: "Welcome to Seattle!" On the horizon, glimmering in the reflections of the sunrise, I could see the metallic spires of buildings that had once been a part of a bustling metropolis. Now, they were dilapidated and crumbling.

The Space Needle, surprisingly enough, was still standing, although it looked like it was on its last legs. The foundation looked worn and withered, most likely from the decade of being left alone and uncared for. If whoever sent the distress signal was really up there, it would be tough to get them down. "Let's go." I heard Connor say as we rode off.

Once we were on the actual streets, the feeling of being alone was even worse. I'd never been to a city outside of the small town we used to go to when Wren and I were on our own. This was everything I used to feel in that city tenfold. The wind whistled gently through the large empty buildings, sounding like whispers.

Looking around, I could see all kinds of signs that the apocalypse had come. Wrecked cars, broken windows, smashed lampposts, and corpses. Lots and lots of corpses. Those who hadn't turned into hypermorphs had been made food for the slaughter, or had simply just offed themselves in place of facing the end. I honestly couldn't blame them.

The hooves of our horses made echoing clopping noises that bounced across the streets, the noise now amplified by the fact that we were the only living beings in this entire city. Well, I hoped that there was more than two of us, otherwise we would have come all this way for nothing. Sighing, I tried to keep my eyes forwards, but I found myself hesitating to breathe in fear of breaking the silence.

As we passed a department store that seemed totally abandoned, I thought back to when the first wave happened, and all of humanity was in panic and chaos. Wren had run with me away from home, and we had passed through a mall. I didn't remember most of it, but I saw what humanity was capable of that day. Looking at the store, however, something caught my eye.

It could have been anything, a small speck of dust or something falling over, but something in the corner of my eye made a big enough move to make me stop. Connor noticed, and he looked at me confused. "What?" He said quietly. I raised my hand and pointed towards the department store window, which was shattered.

Getting off of his horse, Connor took out a rifle from our bag of weapons and cocked it. "Stay here. I'll check it out." I sighed and shook my head. "Hell no. You're not leaving without me." Jumping off Fred, I pulled out my pistol and followed him. Knowing we had no time to argue, Connor walked over the broken glass and into the store.

Looking around, I could see several mannequins that had been broken or fallen over in the initial panic, as well as clothes that had been torn to shreds, left to rot, or stained with blood. The electricity had died long ago, so the only thing lighting up the place was the daylight coming from the window. Beyond the front of the store, we only had a very small glimpse.

Connor turned on the small flashlight on the barrel of his gun, moving it around and trying to see if anything was about to jump out at us. I kept my head on a swivel, doing the same. Then, to both of our surprises, every single light in the place went on, casting a harsh fluorescent glow down on us, making us shield our eyes.

Adjusting to the light, I groaned, then I heard slow muzak playing through the speakers. Looking over at Connor, his one eye was wide as he looked back at me. Neither of us had been expecting this. Then, a thought occurred to me. I stood up. "Hello?" I said out loud, and Connor grabbed my arm, shocked. "What are you doing?! Do you want to get us killed?" He hissed, and I whispered back. "C'mon, you think those things did that? Whoever it is, maybe it's the person who radioed."

Connor let go and kept his gun raised as I continued talking out loud. "We heard your distress call! We're from a nearby village! We have food, water, and shelter. We came to help you!" I said into the store, then the muzak abruptly cut off. Suddenly, we heard a gun cock behind us. "Drop your guns, and turn around, slowly." A deep, gravelly voice said.

Looking at Connor, I motioned for him to drop his rifle, and he begrudgingly did. Doing the same with my pistol, I raised my hands and slowly turned around. My eyes widened as I saw a small Asian girl with short black hair, who looked no older than I was, wearing a tattered hooded jacket with goggles and a strange-looking respirator over her mouth, the kind they would use for spray-painting.

Placing the goggles on her head, she lowered the Uzi submachine gun that she was holding and pulled off the respirator, letting it hang around her neck. "Who the hell are you?" She said, in what appeared to be her much higher and more feminine normal voice. The respirator must have been modded to artificially deepen her voice.

Keeping my hands up, I spoke. "I'm Ivy. This is Connor. We're from a place called Sanctuary. We're a group of survivors that lives just outside of Seattle. You're the one who sent the distress call, aren't you?" The girl's eyes widened. "You...you actually heard it?" I nodded. "We just couldn't respond, but we came as soon as we got it."

The gun fell limply to her side, and her eyes brimmed with tears. She rushed forwards and hugged me tightly, and I could feel her crying into my chest. I held her back, and I could see that Connor was as surprised as I was. We clearly hadn't been expecting this. She pulled back and wiped her eyes. "Thank God...I thought no one was out there...and that I was the only one left..."

I shook my head. "You're not alone, I promise. We're gonna get you out of here. Is there anyone else with you?" She shook her head. "No, just me...it's been that way for...I don't even know...8 years now?" Connor's eye widened in surprise. "You've been by yourself for 8 years? How'd you survive?"

She looked down sheepishly as she let go. "Well...you see...I'm kind of...different. You don't really understand what I mean." I realized what she was saying in an instant. "Yes we do..." Turning to Connor, I motioned to him. "Show her." It clicked for him too, then he nodded, and raised his hand towards a clothing rack. A strong gust of wind blew in from the front entrance and knocked it over.

The girl's eyes were wide with awe. "But...but...how did you do that?" I smiled. "Like I said, you're not alone." Connor motioned to the lights that were still on. "Was that you? Did you do that?" The girl nodded. "It's like...I can talk to machines. Tell them what to do. I understand their language, y'know? I powered everything from fridges, microwaves, lightbulbs, radios..."

I faintly remembered reading about that kind of power in Reservoir's leftover files. They called those kinds of metahumans technopaths. Metahumans with the ability to communicate and reprogram technology. I placed my hand on her shoulder. "Well, you don't have to live alone anymore, ok? What's your name?" The girl looked up at me and smiled. "I'm Yuko."