• Days passed uneventfully. The power would flicker on and off from time to time. The two friends couldn’t get any real news, although they did try. David told Elizabeth it would be wise to see if they could get a hold of other people, so they tried on a regular basis, but it was all in vain. There wasn’t anyone out there, at least no one that they could reach.

    35221: David, it’s been a week.
    10482: I know.
    35221: Does that mean we’re going to try to escape?
    10482: Yes.
    35221: You act so calmly about it. You said our chance of survival is only 49%!!
    10482: That is not what I said. I said that out chances of being the only people left on earth is now 51%. Our chance of survival in these rooms, is an inevitable 0%. Our chances of survival outside… cannot be calculated because we haven’t had news from outside in over a week. We have no idea what’s out there.
    35221: Ok.. ok.. you’re right. I’m sorry. What’s our plan?
    10482: Do you have a fire extinguisher in your room?
    35221: Yes.
    10482: Good. First, pack up your things and put the mask on. Then, when you’re ready, use the fire extinguisher to bash to doorknob loose.
    35221: Ok. Where are we meeting?
    10482: We’ll meet at the 9/11 Twin Towers Memorial. It’s roughly in about the center of the city. If you can get your hands on a car, use it.
    35221: Ok, I’ll see you soon.
    10482: Stay safe. I greatly want to meet you in person Miss Black.
    35221: I want to meet you too.
    10482: I fear you’ll be… a little disappointed when you meet me.
    35221: I don’t care. I’ve grown to like you a lot. Even though you are a bit rude.
    10482: That is a very kind thing to say. Thank you.
    35221: I’ll see you as soon as I can.
    10482: Without a transport it will be hours before we meet. Not to mention we have no idea if it is light or dark outside. Please make sure you have some kind of weapon… just in case.
    35221: Ok.

    Elizabeth left the screen on. She packed up whatever might be useful into her backpack. She wasn’t so impractical as to carry a purse with all the stuff she lugged around for work. She packed the food and water that was left. There was enough for two more weeks, maybe a little more. She had some gum and a granola bar as well. She had been saving the granola bar, and the gum might help with dehydration. She put on her mask and picked up the fire extinguisher. With all of her might she bashed it against the doorknob. It flew from its spot in the door and the door swung open.
    Elizabeth cautiously made her way down the hall. She just realized… How was she going to get out of the building? She went back and took the fire extinguisher with her. She might need it. She walked up the flight of stairs to the main floor. Everything was deserted. She frowned a little. This was definitely not a good sign. She checked around for her co-workers but found none. That was either very good or very bad and somehow she really didn’t think it was good.
    Elizabeth took the extinguisher and threw it at the window in the lobby. It crashed through, the glass splintering and scattering everywhere. Carefully she climbed through, but ended up cutting her leg on the broken glass. She hissed in pain and swore quietly.
    As cautiously as before, she looked around the street. There was no one about, but there were obvious signs of panic; crashed cars and such. She walked down the street towards the memorial where she was supposed to meet David. The only things she could find for “weapons” were a broom, an umbrella, and several pairs of scissors. She brandished the broom at the moment, having stashed the rest of it in her backpack. She heard scuffling across the street and jumped, shakily holding the broom in front of her. She didn’t want to fight… whatever it was, so she began to walk more quickly. As David had told her, she searched for an undamaged car that would run, but thus far she was unsuccessful. The scuffling sounds were getting louder. Her heart was beginning to race. She screamed as a hideous creature jumped out at her. It was humanoid, pale, hairless, and ran with a hunch. It’s teeth did not seem like human-teeth but rather like fangs which it gnashed at her, trying to sink them into her soft flesh. It made hideous noises, like the sickening sound of an overly sloppy eater.
    Elizabeth freaked out. She hit it with the broom as many times as she could and to her fortune and surprise, she scared it off, but now she was terrified. Were there more of them out there? She began to run, as fast as her high-heel clad feet would carry her.
    New York City is a huge place, and to make matters worse there was a dense fog that had settled in. Elizabeth could not see if those monsters were just around the corner or not. She just kept running. She knew the way to the Memorial. She forgot about a vehicle, she just wanted to get there and get to David who might know what was going on.
    David may have predicted many hours of travel, but that is because he had feared the worst. It was pretty bad, but not the worst. Elizabeth was panting heavily as she reached her destination late that evening. In the fog, standing near the building, she thought she saw one of the monsters. She gripped her broom and raised it up to strike it, but when she brought it down a pale, firm hand caught it. She almost screamed but then blinked. A young, dark-haired man stood in front of her. He looked as though he could still be in high school.
    “You must be Elizabeth Black,” he said, “Glad to see you didn’t die.”
    “…David?” she asked hesitantly.
    “That is correct. I told you that you might be disappointed,” he said a bit awkwardly, “I am David Brown… or at least that is what you know me as.”
    “Are you serious??” Elizabeth was shocked. She had suspected David to be a good bit older than her, or at least the same age, “How old are you?!”
    “I am 19 years of age. You never asked me how old I was, so I never gave an answer to you. If you don’t ask you won’t know,” he replied, “I suppose you don’t really like me very much anymore do you?”
    “I… I still like you David,” Elizabeth said softly, “I’m just… surprised more than anything.”
    “Now is not the time for chitchat. New York City has never been so deserted. We need to get out of here and search for news,” David said.
    “David… you’ve met me now… will you tell me you’re actual name?” Elizabeth asked.
    “Miss Black, it’s really not the time for that,” he said with an exasperated sigh.
    “I’m not moving until you tell me,” she said stubbornly.
    “I’m Elyon,” he said, “Now let’s go.”
    “Elyon is not a name… it’s…” Elizabeth fell silent. Elyon… that wasn’t possible. Elyon was one of the modern world’s greatest men. He was practically immortalized. He was a man way ahead of his time and was said to have been sent by God himself.
    “You’re not Elyon…” Elizabeth said.
    “You don’t believe me?” the boy asked, raising an eyebrow, “Why do you think I live alone away from my parents? Why do you think I haven’t seen them in ten years? Why is a 19-year-old boy working in a high-tech facility?”
    “I want a real name or I’m not moving,” Elizabeth insisted, still in disbelief.
    “I cannot reveal my real name to anyone. Even knowing that I am Elyon has decreased your survival chance by nearly 20%,” he said firmly.
    “Tell me now or I’ll scream,” Elizabeth said, being very stubborn, but he shook his head. She took a deep breath and opened her mouth.
    “It’s Elliot!” he said, “Elliot Wysing…”
    The blond woman let the breath go and smiled.
    “Elliot suits you better than David,” she said as he grabbed her arm and pulled her inside the building all the while muttering angrily to himself.
    “I’m sure you’ve undoubtedly had a run-in with your new neighbors,” he said, “They’re easily frightened when they’re alone, but from what I’ve seen if they get into a pack they could be deadly. We’ll try to avoid them as much as possible.”
    “Right.”
    “The goal is to reach the harbor as quickly as possible.”
    “Ok.”
    “I wasn’t able to find a vehicle and obviously you weren’t either. It’s almost dark. We’ll stay inside the Memorial for the night. It would be suicide to try to travel in the dark with those things out there.”
    “Agreed.”
    “How much food do you have?” Elliot asked.
    “Enough for two weeks,” she replied, “You?”
    “Enough for two days,” he muttered.
    “How could you have rationed so poorly?” she asked in amazement.
    “I’m hypoglycemic,” he said, “I eat more than normal people.”
    “Fine. I’ll share my food with you. We’ll have to reach the harbor even more quickly now,” She grumbled, taking off the annoying mask, she had noticed that he wasn’t wearing one, so obviously it was safe. She blinked when she felt the young man’s lips against her own.
    “You’re the first person I’ve cared about in 10 years,” he whispered, “Do you care about me too?”
    “You know I do,” she said, “If I didn’t I wouldn’t be helping you.”
    “I’m glad,” he whispered. He wrapped his arms around her. She smiled and held him close. This was nice. Even though New York was in ruins, she was comfortable right there. That was how they drifted off.