Alive

Chapter 7: Anomaly in the System

"Alright, here we are. I have calibrated the system to shut off the signal. Who knows what will happen after this," Barry said. He turned around to Ann and me. "Are you ready?"

"We're prepared," I said.

I swung my backpack for emphasis. Ann lifted her pistol.

"Yeah," she said.

"Okay, here we go," Barry said.

His finger hovered over the large red button on the panel and then pressed down. Immediately the ground rumbled with a current as the strange cylinder in the center of the room whirred to life. However, something seemed to go wrong.

"Barry, what will happen to you?" Ann asked suddenly.

The thought had amazingly never occurred to me to ask, but indeed Barry was one of the reanimated and so naturally, one would think that he would be affected in some way. Barry turned around again. He blinked.

"Huh, I'm okay," he said.

He smiled, as though he were surprised by this revelation. It then occurred to me that Barry thought that when he started up the signal or whatever it was that fed the thing keeping the ones who were supposed to be dead, alive, he too would pass on as was intended. That didn't happen. Barry was intent on sacrificing himself, but unfortunately, the evil force that controlled the world had other plans.

Ann put a hand to her forehead in a sort of salute to protect her eyes from the sun, as she peered out the window.

"What the hell?" she said.

I approached the window. A crowd of people was quickly approaching the building, arms outstretched. Barely, as quiet as a whisper, I could hear them screeching through the thick glass, through flights above them. It sent chills through my spine as my stomach dropped. They knew somehow that something was not right, and they were angry.

"Uh oh, I thought they would drop dead," I said.

Ann hyperventilate, dropping her arm and recoiling from the window.

"What's going to happen now?" she asked.

Our eyes both flew to Barry as if he held the key to the universe. He had already solved some of this mystery, but he appeared equally dumbfounded as the screams filtered upward through the window.

"Let me try something," Barry's voice wavered.

"I don't know if you should keep trying things at this rate," Ann said.

She pulled a cartridge box from her bag and reloaded her pistol.

Barry pushed a blue switch on the top left of the console. The far wall rumbled and then slowly split open. The sound was sort of like a garage door open. I had actually closed my eyes for a moment in fear of what I might see on the other side, not that I had even the faintest clue of what it could possibly be. Then I opened them after I heard no sounds of surprise from Ann and I saw what was inside.

I saw a dark room, lined on both sides evenly with cases the size of coffins. They were large enough to fit a human body, anyway. They were dark blue just like the rest of the room, with light blue lights inside of the glass that took up one-half of the top of the capsules. We went inside and then Barry closed the doors again by the switch on the wall, one that looked exactly like the blue one on the panel.

"We should be safe in here, for now," he said.

"Where are we? What is this place?" Ann asked bewildered.

It was clear from her tone and expression that unlike me, the more observant of the pair I would say, she had not seen the slight slit on the far end of the wall.