A chorus of anguish resounds throughout the retirement home, throwing the staff into a chaotic state. Before they understand what is transpiring, they begin to harmonize with the rest of the choir, screaming and writhing upon the floor; all of them, but one. One nurse remains set apart from the rest. Perhaps the choir was full and had no need for her anguish, or maybe something else was needed of her. She runs down a hallway in desperation as she witnesses a co-worker fall to the ground in a screaming tantrum. When she reaches her friend, she falls to her knees beside her. The countless screams pierce her ears from all directions as she attempts to assist her friend who continues to cry out, ignoring her efforts completely. She yells her name and tries to hold her in place, but her efforts prove to be in vain. After multiple failed attempts to help her in any way, the nurse takes notice of yet another strange occurrence. Her friend’s mouth seems to be opening wider, and wider, and wider. She can’t help but intently observe this until she flinches when her friend’s jaw makes a distinct popping noise. Horrified, she desperately tries to look her friend in the eyes while yelling her name. That’s when she witnesses the eyes widen as well, widening to the point where anyone would believe they’re going to detach.
In perfect unison the screaming stops, even from her friend who now lies limp upon the ground with her mouth still agape and with her eyes nearly unseating themselves from their sockets. The nurse carefully puts her ear to her friend’s chest and listens for a breath or a heartbeat, but her body is as silent and still as the rest of the building. She rises from the floor and gazes at the lifeless body as tears run down her face. She cautiously walks down the rest of the hallway and pulls out her phone with trembling hands. She locates the nearest stairwell and closes the doors behind her. The call is made, officers are on their way, and fear takes hold of her as she curls up in the corner at the bottom of the stairs. Poor little thing, a shame you must live through this.
A cold, empty silence dominates the corridors of the building. The lone nurse dares not make a sound or move; she remains, she remains. Two police officers arrive and enter the building to discover a rather uninspiring scene: no one greets them, no sounds to be heard, and no signs of the panicked caller. They begin their search and discover the aftermath of the tragedy. All they find are corpses until they come upon the nurse curled up upon the floor at the foot of the main staircase.
“Ma’am?” The officer questions. “Ma’am, are you injured?” The officer carefully approaches her and reaches to help the frightened creature. She recoils as he makes his first attempt to help her up, but when he tries again she slowly unravels herself and allows the officer to help. The officer assists the nurse out of the building and radios that he found the caller. “What’s your name?”
The nurse quietly answers, “Avery.” The cool evening breeze of summer caresses her as she speaks her name.
“Can you tell me what happened, Avery?” The officer calmly asks.
In a trembling voice, she answers, “I… I’m not sure what happened. Just that it was bad, very bad.”
He nods, “Okay, okay. Is there anyone else we can speak to?”
“I don’t know.” She answers before choking up some more.
“Okay, well you’re safe now. Someone will be here soon that can help you.” She nods as he helps her into his squad car, and then he returns to the building.
Police continue to discover disturbing scenes as they enter each room of the retirement home. Every corpse they find possesses the same characteristics as the last. Mouths so agape the jaws are dislocated. Eyes held open at their widest points, giving the false impression of their imminent detachment from their sockets. Each victim, each human being, staring intently into the unknown, searching; searching for the answer to the age old question, “Why are we here?” Except this time, they received an answer and it horrified them.
An ambulance arrives, and EMTs bring the nurse to it to ensure she is physically unharmed. While she is examined, she struggles to hold back tears. An EMT reassures her with kind soft spoken words, but they know not what she has seen. Even a legion of comforts could not heal her mind of its scars. Two detectives approach her as she sits on the back end of the ambulance. One bald and stocky and the other tall and built. She dreads every step they make towards her knowing she must live through her recent experience again.
The bald one speaks first in a professional manner accompanied by his penetrating voice, “Ma’am, I know this is difficult for you, but as of right now you are the only one who can tell us what happened.”
After a few seconds she composes herself. “I… I was… Switching a load of sheets from the washer, and… I heard a noise, it was quiet at first, so I began to walk towards it. Then, I found myself walking down one of the hallways next to the rooms, and the sound began to grow louder, and louder.” Her trembling intensifies as she reveals what happened. “I stopped walking once I realized what the sound was.” She breaks into more tears when she says, “And where it was coming from!”
She pauses for a moment and rests her head in the palm of her hands, and then with her head still lowered, resumes the retelling of her experience. However, this muffles her words as she continues, and the bald detective says, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t understand you. Could you please look at me and speak clearly?”
Almost angrily, she lifts her head and raises her voice, “It was coming from the rooms! All of them!” She waves her arms through the air, “They started with quiet sounds of pain, and then all at once everyone in the building was screaming! Screaming! They were like screams I’ve never heard! Especially for screams coming from them!”
“Was there anything else you saw? Your co-workers, did you see any of them?” She nods while breaking down completely, unable to speak. The taller detective places a hand on the bald detective’s shoulder as he takes a few steps away from the ambulance.
They both walk out of earshot of Avery before the taller one begins to speak, “Tom, she needs time to recover before we throw any more questions at her.”
Tom rubs a hand over his naked scalp and objects to his colleagues’ statement. “She is the last remaining staff member still breathing. In fact, the only living person that was here when all the residents and staff died simultaneously!”
James remains silent for a moment, and then says, “Alright.” He returns to Avery and resumes with the questions, “What happened after you realized everyone was screaming?”
She does her best to speak clearly, but her voice wavers as she walks the investigators through her unsettling experience; stumbling through the memories of her friend’s death. “I panicked, a million thoughts were going through my mind, I just didn’t know what to do. I was so afraid, I’ve never been so afraid. I’m still afraid.”
Tom picks up where James left off, “Then you called 911 and now we’re here, is that right?” She nods. “Okay, well your mother is on her way to pick you up. Now we most likely will have more questions for you in the future, so expect a visit from us tomorrow, okay? Get some rest tonight, and call us if you need anything.”
The detectives leave Avery and enter the building. They begin their search for answers in the first room they set their eyes upon. A small old woman, tangled in her sheets, lies in bed. Her arms rest in awkward positions while her facial expression leaves them feeling very uncomfortable, which must be unusual for such seasoned officers. James immediately takes notice of her excessively opened mouth. He looks closer, and sees that the skin on the corners of her mouth were beginning to tear, “Tom, look at this, her mouth was opened so wide it tore the sides of her mouth.” Tom leans in with a flashlight and grimaces at the sight.
Another police officer enters the room. A young rookie who’s struggling to hide his nervousness as he notifies the detectives of their findings. “We’ve checked most of the rooms, and they all share the same traits, all of ‘em. All their mouths are left hanging open as if they died in the middle of a scream. The same goes for their eyes as well. Even the staff.”
James backs away from the bed and begins examining the rest of the room while speaking, “Are there any signs of a gas leak? Or any airborne substances that could’ve caused this?”
“None. So far all we have are bodies.”
James turns to Tom, “If Avery is telling the truth, then everyone in this building died from the same thing, otherwise they wouldn’t have all reacted in the same way.”
“What about Avery? Why is she still alive?” Tom questions.
“We need more information. Have the crime scene investigators check the air in the rooms, hallways, everywhere for anything that may have caused this. Maybe Avery was immune to whatever was released in the building.” The police officer leaves the room to relay James’ instructions.
While the authorities continue investigating, Avery’s mother arrives to bring her daughter home. Her mother finds a parking spot among the multiple police cars in the parking lot, and then quickly exits her car to locate her daughter. Once Avery and her mother lock eyes, they both run to each other and embrace.
“Are you okay? I came as soon as they called me.”
Her mother’s words immediately soothe her soul as she clings to her with no intention of letting go. “I am, I’m not hurt or anything, just scared.”
Her mother holds onto her and does her best to calm her weeping child, “Okay, okay, I’m here now, I’m here.” Here they stand, both full of fear; one fears for the other, and the other fears her own memory. The memory of the sounds, and the sights she witnessed this night. “I’ll take you home with me, okay?”
Avery relaxes her arms and looks into her mother’s loving eyes, and nods.
“Alright, let’s go.” With one arm wrapped around her daughter, Avery’s mother walks her to the car, and takes her away from what Avery will now label as the birthplace of her worst nightmares.
Once at home, Avery’s mother prepares the guest bedroom, while Avery changes her clothes. The healing of the mind sometimes requires silence, Avery’s mother knows this. She prepares some tea, and offers it to her daughter without speaking. Her daughter receives it, sitting on the living room couch under some blankets. As she takes a sip, her mother seats herself next to her on the couch and cuddles up beside her.
She feels how much her daughter is shaking and no longer can keep silent, “You’re shaking, are you cold? Are you still scared?” Avery barely makes an effort to nod in response. “Can you tell me anything yet? Or do you need more time?”
After taking another sip of tea, Avery looks over to her mother, “I’m afraid time will never be enough.”
Her mother proceeds to comfort her, “Well, if time won’t help then perhaps talking will. Can you try? For me?”
“I’m afraid I’ll just make you as afraid as I am, and I don’t want that.”
“Mothers are always afraid for their children, you should know that already, but I can leave you be if that’s what you want.”
Avery manages a small smile, and takes another sip of the warm soothing tea her mother made her; this was enough comfort alone. A small one, but one that she will never take for granted. A comfort that always takes her back years, to the days of her childhood, to the days where her family was still whole. Her mother gets up to get ready for bed, leaving Avery to enjoy her tea in silence in the warming atmosphere of the home she grew up in. Upon finishing her tea, she decides to sleep on the couch, and prepares to fall asleep while she still feels safe and warm.
“Avery.” A male voice, soft and clear, enters her ears, with no discernable direction of origin. She sits up, her heart racing, and her eyes dart in every direction. “Don’t be afraid, shhh. Please, calm yourself, relax.” Strangely, she suddenly begins to feel herself calm, and no longer fear the disembodied voice. “Your mind is not being tricked nor tricking you. I am real, you are hearing my voice. Please, listen to what I have to say; much depends on you to listen, so please, hear my voice.” Avery remains silent, and gently lays back down on the couch, and listens. “I am speaking to you now because you have witnessed what is to come. The future is filled with dark times, times of hunger, sickness, and madness. Yes, these are common predictions spoken of by those who stray from sanity, which is why most are not prepared for these times when they come to pass. I need you to be my voice, I need you to relay this warning. They must know what you saw, before it is too late. Yes, they may doubt you at first, until the things you warn of come to pass. They will see you as a prophet, and together we will save the human race from itself. That is, if you decide to act.”
Avery then abruptly wakes up, sweating, and breathing heavily. She sits up and notices a picture on the wall, and wonders why her mother has the same picture as her. Then she looks down and sees her own bed sheets, then her own bed, and realizes she’s still in her own home. She scrambles out of bed and checks the date on her phone. Relief and terror both occupy her mind as she comes to a troubling conclusion. None of what she experienced last night has taken place, yet.
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Chapter 2 releases on January 21st.