The End

The story is set several years after the world has already been taken over.

In this world, death is the more merciful of the two ends humans face. Death is inevitable, it’s natural. But the other… is anything but. It’s an end no human wants. And yet, it seems as inevitable as the first.

And that fear was truly starting to register as I ran from my pursuers. I was spotted. I had been careless, and that could cost me everything.

“Come on, Velise. Keep moving. Think ahead. Get out of sight.”

I kept chanting those words to myself again and again. My breathing was matching my pace: a frantic, panicked, rhythmic chaos. I was panting harder and harder, my chest tight, my lungs spasming from forced control. And yet I couldn’t stop. Wouldn’t. Giving in wasn’t an option, because I wasn’t a survivor in name alone. I’d managed to endure seven years of utter hell from this world’s descent into madness, and it wasn’t from accepting my circumstances how they were.

And yet, how the hell was a human supposed to outrun a Patroller? Legs weren’t exactly equal in speed and force to wheels.

I exhaled slowly, ignoring the way my lungs shuddered from the strain. I couldn’t keep this up for much longer. Speed wasn’t my way out here. Not in this situation. With the average Enforcer or Repairer, I could easily outpace them long enough to find something to climb, but Patroller’s were designed for this chase. I wasn’t.

No, I needed to hide. I needed to get out of the open.

Trees. Where can I find some trees? Need cover.

My eyes were sharp, analyzing my surroundings even as they whirled by. This wasn’t an advantageous sort of environment for me. I’d been making a food run, and stopped at an old gas station abandoned on my route back home. It had been sloppy. A decision born of hunger and desperation I thought I had learned to be above by now. I hadn’t even checked for cameras when I went in…

I shook the thought from my mind, no point dwelling. I couldn’t afford that mental detour.

Everything around me was a blur of colors, but none were the green I needed. It was all a collage of the grays, whites, and tans that came from the abandoned suburbs I was running through. I was completely out in the open. In my desperation, I even debated risking it and running into one of the houses, but I wasn’t that dumb, I knew that would be a mistake. Possibly the last I ever made. This was an old neighborhood, one overtaken at least four years prior. The whole place would be crawling with alarms and cameras.

Gods, this was an awful play. What was I thinking? Of all the places I could’ve picked, I chose to stop in a Marked area? I know better than that! Stupid, stupid, stupid!

I ignored the way my heart leapt in my throat as I heard the familiar whirling behind me. It was louder. Which meant it was closer. I needed to get a grip.

“Calm down. Analyze. Adjust.”

I reminded myself, muttering softly. I scanned the dilapidated sign as I passed it, though I didn’t need to read it to know what it said. It was the old welcome sign, half submerged in soil and roots as the earth tried to reclaim it, pulling it down slowly into its depths. Though a depressing sight, it was also an important one. I was out of the neighborhood now. Things got easier from this point. I could think clearer, my mind sharpening with familiar precision. The panic was doing less to blind me.

Okay, the Patroller came from the east, I dove west. I’ve been running for… ten minutes now? Maybe fifteen. At my pace, that means if I start to head north, I’ll start to hit the trees again. The woods are too thick for a Patroller to access, terrain too rough. It’ll be smooth sailing from there.

My confidence was returning, the jarring nature of today’s scare fading back into my usual quick thinking and practiced maneuvering. I slowed a bit, knowing I’d need to build up some tolerance again for the last part of my escape.

The only nerve-racking stretch left before the safety of the trees, was the empty plain between the neighborhood I’d just left and the woods up ahead about a mile out. That was roughly an eight minute run for me. And normally that was manageable. I was in excellent shape from my usual scouts and runs for food. But the run itself wasn’t the concern. It was the fact that cutting straight across rather than my usual back way had some… risks.

There were no trees, no houses, no grass, no cover. It was completely open. And that was seven minutes of running where anything could come from any angle. Something I’d normally avoid through back roads and shortcuts. But, I didn’t exactly have the luxury of taking a detour right now.

I snapped from my thoughts by the sound of the Patroller getting closer. Its wheels were screaming like a tea kettle. Obnoxious, and a clear warning to move faster.

And so, I took a deep, full breath and started to pick up the pace, I’d need to sprint through this part. So, I shut everything down. My thoughts, my fears, my discomfort, my fatigue. All I focused on was the rhythm of my breathing- steady, sure, quick- and the pace of my sprint.

A minute passed and I did okay, though I had to focus hard to keep my breathing from changing.

Three minutes came and went and the burn was really getting bad. Uncomfortable enough to make me want to slow, but I resisted. I knew it would pass.

Five minutes and the second wind kicked in, adrenaline numbing the pain enough to keep going without stopping. I was almost there now. I could see the woods up ahead. Dark, full, green trees that were the only reason I’d lasted seven years.

Six minutes and I heard the Patroller pick up the pace. Apparently it had come to the same conclusion as me and was rushing to get to me before I reached terrain it couldn’t access. Though, I was still in a good lead.

And then, finally, a few minutes later I felt the crunch of leaves and fresh grass underneath my feet. I felt the air thicken with the weight of my secluded haven. Heavy with the scent of soil and bark and sap. Once I was positive I was in too deep for the Patroller to follow, I turned to look at it, leaning against a tree as I fought to catch my breath.

It was the same as all the others of its kind. A boxy little thing with a sleek, pearly white design, and large wheels designed to help it navigate quickly when chasing after the humans it was designed to procure. This one was clearly newer. No signs of the usual wear and tear. No scrapes or dents or cracks. I decided I’d change that.

I looked down at my feet for something to throw, something nice and heavy, so it would do some damage. It was a stupid thing to do. Merely a petty slight. After all, there wasn’t anything I could do with my limited capabilities that would truly hurt this thing. But, well, the act itself was rather satisfying, and that was enough for me. So, as the Patroller tried to scramble towards me- backtracking or getting stuck and retreating from every bump and crack in the dirt- I grabbed a big, hefty, rock. Roughly the size of my hand. And I hurled it with every bit of strength in my arms.

Thunk.

A big grin split my face as I watched it scramble around in circles for a second, as if trying to assess where the hit had come from. Patrollers weren’t very intimidating when out of their range. They didn’t have the intelligence or mock-human features that the Enforcers had. Or the precision and efficiency of the Repairers. They were like animals, really. Trained with one purpose, and given only what would help it. Speed, numbers, and tasers. None of which did them any good out here in my domain.

I turned to leave after the satisfaction wore off. The sight of it scrambling around with a big dent on its clunky frame only made me smile for so long. It was a fleeting joy, but one I’d probably partake in again sometime in the future. Though, I definitely didn’t intend on doing something as stupid as my little stunt today the next time I needed supplies. Routine had made me reckless. Well, even more reckless than normal.

The gas station I had stopped in was a place I frequently looted. It was just outside the range of the Marked neighborhood, and the location was isolated enough that the Enforcers hadn’t bothered with securing it. At least… until now. I wasn’t sure why they’d suddenly decided to mark it, filling it up with their cameras and alarms, but… well, they had. I’d learned that the hard way, and I almost hadn’t made it out. If I hadn’t seen the camera and realized the Patrollers had been signaled… I’d be a goner. Or well, I’d be chipped. But in my book, the two meant the same thing. Because in a world where the only privilege left was freedom, having that taken was basically a death sentence, but without the relief of an end.

No, being chipped meant being dumped in a Facility. A settlement of buildings that millions- likely even billions- of the human population had been placed in, and yet, none had ever left. Ever. The Facilities were so closely guarded that being thrown in there was a sign for the family to go ahead and buy the candles and say their respective goodbyes, because they’d never see the caught individual again.

At least… those that had families would do that. Probably. If families were even still a thing in this fucked up world. I honestly wasn’t sure. Any other survivors I came across, I avoided. And… my own experience wasn’t anything to go off of. My family was the first thing I lost during the Uprising. Why? Because they couldn’t do what I could. Run. And they knew it.

So, they didn’t. And I did.

And I kept going. Running and running. I’ve been running for seven years now. It was the last command my dad gave me, after all. “Run Velise! Get out of here! We’re right behind you!” And though the second part had been a lie, the first was the only lifeline I had left in this world, the only thing that kept my freedom from being stolen like the rest. I could run, and I found that to be a blessing and a curse.

Because when the day came that my body couldn’t handle running anymore, I’d lose my only advantage. My only skill.

But, that day wasn’t here yet, so I pushed that cheery thought back down to the depths of my consciousness. No point in dwelling on any of it. My parents were always going to be dead, whether I cried or moped about it or not, and my feet weren’t going to function any better or worse if I worried about the inevitable day they’d give out on me.

I yawned, feeling a bit tired as the sun beat down on me. I’d have to find a good tree to sleep in for a while. I was still hungry, after all. I’d only managed to shovel one protein bar into my mouth before realizing I needed to hightail it out of there. And wasn’t sleep the best cheat code for that? Maybe I’d get lucky and dream of a cheeseburger or something.

I was wandering aimlessly in the woods now, not really worried about being on guard in a place like this. I was deep enough in the forest to feel at ease. Everything here was so perfectly dense that Enforcers skipped it on their rounds, and Patrollers tried to avoid it since the overgrown forest could damage them, which meant I was out of harm’s way.

At least, that’s what I thought until I heard a loud snap behind me. I whipped around quickly and froze. I didn’t move, didn’t even breathe. My every sense was honed in on that one sound. I looked for any motion, any indicator that I wasn’t safe, that I needed to run again. And that’s when I heard it.

A scream.

No. An alarm.

I’d never heard that sound before. Not out here. Not in the woods. That high pitched screeching sound was saved exclusively for Facilities. I’d heard it go off a few times when something went wrong at one of the locations nearby, but it was always corrected within a minute or two.

But this sound went on and on and on. Louder and louder and louder.

No. Not louder. Closer.

I turned on my heels and ran as fast as I could, ignoring everything but the blinding command screaming in my mind.

Run! Run Velise!

It was my dad’s voice in my head, an echo of my past coming back to aid me in the present. And it was loud. Oh so loud. Louder than my rapid heartbeat, louder than the alarm, louder than the wind hissing as I moved, and the trees making a thwack! sound every time a branch made contact with my skin.

But the booming command wasn’t enough.

I felt a hot, blinding, pain jolt into my leg, and a second later the world seemed to spin as I fell on my back. Hard.

The air was knocked out of me in a heavy whoosh, and I wheezed for a second as my lungs locked up, refusing to let the air back in.

“Human 1974332997. Do not resist. We do not wish to harm you. Put your hands to your sides and do not move until we retrieve you.”

It was an automated message, one every human heard before the chipping. One every Enforcer repeated to their next victim.

When I could finally breathe again, I sucked in gulp after gulp of air greedily. It cleared the fog from my mind some, the daze fizzling out to make room for my panic. Then, I turned onto my side, trying to stand up. I needed to get up. It was the one coherent thought left in my mind. Get. Up.

But the second I managed to stagger to my feet, my foot gave out again and I yelped. The pain was fiery this time. Like fire ants had crawled into my very veins and were chewing through them mercilessly. I almost fell over again, my leg entirely unable to support even the slightest weight. But I didn’t. Instead, I flopped heavily against a tree, letting it substitute my one leg as I precariously balanced my weight on the other. The panic was growing as the automated message repeated, closer now. The rustling and crunching nearby showed me exactly where my pursuer was coming from. And yet, I couldn’t run. I couldn’t even climb, which would’ve been my next pick. I was trapped, and I hadn’t even been caught yet.

I… I don’t understand. How the hell did this happen? They’ve never, never, come into the woods. Not this deep. I’ve been doing this for seven years, seven f*****g years and they’ve never done this before. What changed? What…

The thought trailed off as I got a look at the Enforcer. It’s face had broken through the bush, his body jerkily working to walk through the uneven terrain. I hadn’t seen one of these so close since… since my parent’s deaths…

The memory flooded back quickly, it only took me a second to recall, and yet, it felt like time slowed down and I was stuck in the worst moment of my life for hours, days. I was stuck. I was there.

“Human 3000459, 3000460, 30004561, Do not resist. We do not wish to harm you. Put your hands to your sides and do not move until we retrieve you.”

The second the door had been slammed off its hinges, those words had followed. So even. So monotone. The only hint of calm in the panic and hysteria that followed. I watched as my mother screamed bloody murder when it stepped inside. So realistic, those electric silver eyes glaring at us in a chilling glow, seeming even brighter in the night’s embrace. I took a step back, forgetting to breathe for a moment as my body started to shake uncontrollably. It felt like I had been disconnected. Forcefully removed from my body as I watched from outside myself. There were a few moments in my life up to this point that I had felt like this. When I saw my acceptance letter into my choice college, when I was given my first kiss, when my parents had announced their surprise pregnancy, only a month prior. Those moments all left me with this same feeling, and the same thought in my head. “My life will never be the same again. This moment changes everything.” And every time, I was right. This was certainly no exception. I was jolted from the daze by my father grabbing me by the shoulders, a wild look in his eyes as he shook me. “Velise, the back door. Now!” It took me a second to understand what he meant. What about the back door? It wasn’t until my mother elaborated that it clicked in my foggy state. “L-Listen to your father! Go out the back door Velise! Just like we planned for emergencies!” I blinked at her words, sensation returning to me in a rush. “W-What? No! I-I can’t-”

He shook me harder, his grip painful. “Listen to me, d****t! There’s no time for this!” I couldn’t process it. Couldn’t think straight. Especially not after I heard the click, click, click, sound of it walking up the stairs. Slow movements, jerky and controlled as it navigated each step.

His eyes darted to it, seeing it turn its mechanical neck to lock onto my mother. Her hazel eyes were wide with fear, her hand immediately going to her stomach in a poor attempt at shielding it. My dad snapped into action immediately, taking the baseball bat by the couch in his hands and slamming it down on the robot. Hard. The effect was loud, wood on metal in a powerful strike that rang throughout the house. And yet, that was about the extent of the damage. Not a dent. Not a pause. It kept climbing the stairs in slow, precise movements, almost at the top. Only now, its gaze was locked onto him. It grabbed the bat from him, barely using any strength to keep its grip as he fought to yank it away.

“JAMES!”

I’d never heard my mother scream like that, her eyes wide and filled with tears, her hands shaking as she gripped her stomach tighter.

He ignored the cry for his well being, turning his attention back to me, even as he grappled with the demonic machine in front of him.

“Run Velise! Get out of here! We’re right behind you!”

“Y-Yes, go! Go now!”

My mom echoed the command, and before I knew it, I was running. I ran out of the living room, away from the monster, away from my family. I ran through the hallway, full of all the photos that showed proof of our happiest moments, proof of the safety and warmth my childhood had given me. I ran past the bedroom I’d lived in since I was a baby, and made it to the basement door just in time to hear my father cry out, followed by a thunk that sounded suspiciously like something, or someone falling down a flight of stairs. Followed by my mother screaming like I’d never heard a human had before. It reminded me of the worst things in the world. Death, murder, anguish, and grief. It was the sound all of those represented. And it was then I should’ve turned back. It was then, that I should have realized my parents wouldn’t be following me in escape, and I should’ve gone back to share their fate. But I didn’t. And a second later, the sound went quiet. As quiet as death. And I knew in that moment, that I’d lost my mom, my dad, and the little sibling I’d never get to know.

And still, I didn’t turn back.

I slammed the basement door open, flew down the flight of stairs, feeling them rattle through my body from the force, and I ran to the back door. I ran away from my family, my home, the monster, and everything else. I ran into the woods to hide, and I didn’t come out for a very long time.

Reality shoved its way back into the moment. Forcing me to focus on it instead of the painful memories that mimicked current events. The Enforcer took a step closer, its movements still erratic and innately off, but much faster than they used to be. This was a newer model. I could tell by the sleeker design, the shine in its metallic body that mocked that of a human’s, and in the black, delicate, material at each of the joints. It’s something only the newer models had. Made the machine smoother, faster. The newer models could walk as fast as a human. And they could run, too. In the past, I’d always climb these trees when they got near, but… I couldn’t do that now.

I needed to move. Now.

A part of me recognized how pointless this was. My slow, awkward shuffling from tree to tree would do nothing to outrun an Enforcer, let alone a newer model. Not to mention, they couldn’t be dented or damaged like Patrollers could. And I’ve seen bullets bounce off of them like pebbles. My fist hitting its face would be a poor substitute for that. I couldn’t run from it, couldn’t hide from it, couldn’t fight it.

I was finished. And I knew it.

And yet, I still moved.

Maybe it was out of principle. A spiteful display of human’s survival instincts outweighing logic or the certainty of fate. Or maybe it was denial. A desperate last ditch effort where I hoped something would happen and stop this moment. An electrical surge or a malfunction. Or maybe, it was one final act of control. It was the only thing I could do in this situation other than simply give in. Move. It was all I was good at. All I knew how to do. I couldn’t just… be still. It wasn’t in my programming, just as mercy wasn’t in the machine’s.

My bad leg hit a root, and with a cry I fell back to the ground. My body was shaking. Whether from adrenaline, anger, or fear, I couldn’t tell. Maybe all three. But I still didn’t stop. I started crawling. Dragging my useless foot along as I shuffled away on my hands and knees. I couldn’t tell if this was faster or slower than walking in my current state, but I didn’t care. I knew I wasn’t getting away.

My mind went back to my mother’s scream. The last sound I ever heard from my parents. Would I get an end like theirs? Would their killer be mine? Or would I be put in the wretched facility no one ever left?

I almost hoped for death. At least then, I’d see my family again. The alternative felt worse. I heard the footsteps get closer, and felt a shiver run up my spine as the message repeated. It was right behind me.

“Human 1974332997. Do not resist. We do not wish to harm you. Put your hands to your sides and do not move until we retrieve you.”

“F**k off…”

I growled out the words with as much venom as possible, but it didn’t react. Not that the machine’s indifference really surprised me, but it felt like pouring salt on the wound. I was just another number. Another little human to add to their facility. I meant nothing to them. But that isn’t what hurt the worst. It was realizing that no one was going to set out the candles and take time to mourn me. I was alone.

I was just another number. Just another human. And… I meant nothing to anyone still alive.

I felt the cold steel of its hand on my back and yelped in surprise. I started thrashing as much as I could, hoping to somehow squirm free, or at the very least piss it off enough to have it put me out of my misery. But no. It simply pressed harder, hard enough for me to feel the metal digging into my spine as my lungs struggled to inhale with the pressure of my chest flush against the ground. I was pinned. And so I did the only thing I could. I screamed, cursed, and moved. Squirming like a bug between the fingers of a little kid examining it. I shouted every profanity I knew at it. Swearing and screaming until my throat was sore and raspy. In the back of my mind, I was sure that my parents were scolding me from the afterlife. My mother was probably shaking her head and tsking at me like I was a child throwing a tantrum. “Now, Lissy. That’s not how we talk to people,” she’d probably say. Or maybe, I’d get a free pass this time since it was one of these things that murdered my parents to begin with. Who knows. They were dead, and I… wasn’t. No. I was about to go through a hell far worse than death.

And as I felt the pressure of the chip gun against the point where my neck met my skull, I knew this really was the end.

The last thought I had before it fired, and everything went black.

Author's Note

Also, a little note, the thoughts should be in italic but it doesn't transfer to here when I copy and paste. ^^"