Apocalypse: The Dead Lives
Chapter 32: The Fallen City

Chapter 32: The Fallen City

Two Weeks Later...

Tiny and Marco left the bunker at 5AM. We haven’t seen or heard from them ever since. It was 10AM now.

I leaned back into Ronan’s chest and he wrapped his arms around me. I instantly warmed up against the low temperatures in the room and let out a soft sigh of contentment.

"We need to get the hell out of here!" Cooper angrily uttered while furiously rubbing his hands together.

"Cooper, sit down," Ellie uttered in annoyance.

"And go where?" I tiredly asked him.

I swear we’ve done this song and dance about a thousand times before. I mean, I don’t blame him, we’re running out of supplies, and we haven’t done anything productive while being down here.

"Outside! Up! Anywhere but here! I need to get the hell out of here!" Cooper burst out. "If I stay in this fucking room, one more day. I am going to lose my shit, okay?" He uttered in frustration.

"I think you’re way past losing your shit," Ellie told him and he shot her a dismissive look.

"I agree with Cooper," Ronan said from behind me. A deep frown settled on my forehead. I sat upright before turning around to face him.

"You do?" Ellie and I asked him in unison.

"Yes. If I hear my little brother bitch about getting out of here, one more time. I might lose my shit." He explained and Ellie glared over at Cooper.

"Let’s be real, Ronan. That can’t be the only reason why you want to get out of here." Ellie knowingly told him.

"Correct." Ronan blankly stated.

"It’s been a week and there hasn’t been any signs of the colossus horde. The earth was shaking when they were around, remember?" He asked us.

Then I was hit with a wave of realization.

"Exactly, that dick has been lying to us this whole time! I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re the only people left down here." Cooper angrily added.

"Right; I mean, where else would they go every day except up?" Ronan asked us. "They’ve been leaving the bunker every morning at 5AM only to return late every night. Cooper’s right." Ronan told us.

"Holy fuck! So, you’re saying that we’ve been down here for no reason? All thanks to that asshole?" Ellie wildly asked us in disbelief.

"I’m not even surprised. I mean we should’ve seen this coming. Marco has been out to get us right from the start." I uttered in frustration.

"So what’s the game plan?" Ellie asked and Cooper broadly smiled at her.

"Because they’ve been feeding us dogshit, made us shower in disgusting recyclable water. I need a warm shower, better clothes, socks on my feet, to wash my hair, and brush my teeth with quality toothpaste." She burst out and I felt for her because I wanted the same things.

"Please tell me you have a plan," I told Ronan and he nodded at me.

"One of us will have to go outside first. Check if it’s safe outside and if we’re actively being watched. I volunteer." Ronan calmly told me.

"Okay and what about us? What are we supposed to do?" I asked him in confusion.

"Wait here. I won’t be long." He told me in a gentle tone before placing a kiss on my lips. He got up from where we were sitting before shrugging his coat on.

"Okay, but at least let Cooper go with you," I told Ronan, and he nodded at me before looking over at Cooper.

"Fine, he can come," Ronan uttered before scratching his forehead with his thumb.

Cooper placed a kiss on my cheek before wrapping his arms around me from behind. "I can’t thank you enough, Hailey-Jade," Cooper told me before going over to place a kiss on Ellie’s forehead.

"If I die, tell my story." He told Ellie and me. Ronan laughed before wrapping an arm around his brother’s shoulder. Ronan grabbed his machete, Cooper his gun, and together they quietly left the bunker.

Ellie rested her head against mine. We patiently waited for them to return to the bunker. We stood in front of the door, unmoving.

We all knew what the risks were but this needed to be done. Ronan and Cooper needed to go out there to see if our suspicions were right.

Ellie gently pulled me away from the door. We sat down at an old wooden table centered in the room. Ellie placed her hand on mine so I smiled up at her, trying my best to mask my worry.

"They’ll come back and get us out of here. Then we’ll find a safe place to stay. Finding Oliver will be the next thing on our list. We have to find him, Hailey." She told me.

"I really hope he’s still out there. I hope he’s safe." I softly uttered.

I grabbed the small SD card from my jacket pocket before curiously staring at it.

"Do you know what’s on it?" Ellie asked me.

"No, I never got the chance to look at it," I responded to her question.

"It’s the first thing I’m gonna do once everything has settled down," I told her.

"As you should. I think Luke left that behind for a reason." She softly smiled at me.

"Yeah. It might have useful information about the virus on it."

What else are you gonna do when we get out of here?" She asked.

"I’d like to go to the beach one last time. What about you?" I asked her.

"I’d like to see my parents again but that sounds so depressing. So I’ll say, listening to Vienna by Billy Joel, one last time." She told me with a smile on her face.

"Oh, that’s a good song, Ellie."

"I know, I miss music." She whined out.

The doors to the bunker suddenly burst open again, revealing Ronan and Cooper. They seemed out of breath as they shut the door behind them.

Ellie frowned over at me and I lightly shrugged at her, not knowing why it seemed as if they just finished running a marathon.

"And?" Ellie impatiently asked them.

"What? Did they see you?" I asked Ronan and Cooper but they shook their heads at me.

"We need to leave, right now," Cooper uttered in panic.

"The city has fallen. The colossus horde that passed through the city, destroyed everything. They’re gone and so are all the civilians." Ronan explained.

"How do you know that?" Ellie asked while watching them through narrowed eyes. "Is that snow on your clothes?"

"Yeah, it’s pretty cold outside. The streets were filled with warning signs. No, civilians are allowed in the city anymore. Only the military. Everyone has left except us." Cooper uttered before handing our coats over to us.

I shrugged my coat on before going over to where they were standing.

"What about Marco and his soldiers?" Ellie asked with a worried look on her face.

"They’re patrolling the area in army tanks. It’s too cold for them to move around on foot. So it’ll be easy for us to hide from them." Ronan assured her.

Cooper clapped his hands together. "Alright then, let’s do this."

I glanced toward the bunker door, my heartbeat picking up speed. But I wasn’t about to back down.

We weren’t Marco’s prisoners. And I refused to die in this underground hellhole.