Chapter Two - Heat

Caleb looked around for a moment, stumbling across the sand as he clutched his jacket tightly.

The heat was unbearable. Seriously unbearable. It beat down against him like rain, tearing at his skin with invisible hands, then digging deep into his muscle and bone. He was lucky he only had light clothes, and he was even luckier he’d walked in the right direction.

He couldn’t tell how long it had taken him, the heat had already distorted his sense of time, but he’d found a large rock formation. In the middle of the endless sand, he’d found a twisted mound of rock. It was hard to gauge how close it was or its size given the lack of reference points, but it’s existence meant shade. And shade meant rest from this unbearable heat.

Because the heat was seriously unbearable. Another hour like this and he’d pretty sure he’d just keel over.

He took another sip of his sprite finishing off the final drops, before wiping the sweat off his forehead as he adjusted his top, which covered the his head and the back of his neck. He took a moment to stop and take a few deep breaths. But it didn't help. There was no reprieve from the sheer heat of the desert. It was nightmarish.

He stood straight, wheezing, and looked toward the rock formation again.

“Geez” he mumbled. It seemed to be getting bigger and bigger, and further and further away. He hopped it wasn’t a mirage. He didn’t need false hopes and empty promises right now. He just needed shade.

He looked around again, before pausing as he stared out. He could see something in the distance. A small human-like figure clad in black. They moved slowly but purposefully toward the rock formation.

It was hard to tell in the wafting heat of the desert, but when the air stilled, it was easy to see it was probably a person, just shielding themselves with a jacket just like him. The knowledge brought a calming sense of relief. The screen had said there’d be two million people in this trial, but the desert seemed pretty big.

[Look! There’s another!] a voice echoed out. Caleb jumped, caught off guard by the sudden shout. It came from the rock formation ahead, a distant echoey voice, but a voice nonetheless. Suddenly he heard more shouts, cheers of encouragement from the rocks.

“Come on mate! Come on!”

[Come on you can do it!]

He looked back to the figure, and watched as they shifted, a change in demeanour. They’d heard the people too. There were already people beyond those rocks in the shade. If he could hear them, it couldn’t be that much further.

“Thank god” he mumbled to himself. He picked up the pace slightly, ignoring the heat of the sand within his shoes. He could empty them once he reached the shade. As he drew closer, the sand underfoot began to change, becoming harder, more packed, and denser.

The rock formation extended further than what he could see, under the sand too. He was already walking on it. He picked up the pace, jogging easily now, despite his tiredness.

He slowed as his chest began to hurt, the feeling of coughs incoming calming him slightly. But he’d sped up enough and was close enough now to get a better look at the large rock formation. It was really multiple stones, chalk, a harder grey rock, and smooth sandstone, all beaten into shape by time.

He made his way around the structure, before finally finding a small crevice that split between two larger rocks. He breathed a sigh of relief and slipped into the shade, grateful. He slumped against the wall, letting his arms fall to his side as he breathed desperately for air.

He took a few moments to catch his breath, the task a huge effort within itself. But eventually he calmed down, and wiped the sweat off his face, before glancing out at the endless sand dunes and pale blue sky.

“Geez” he mumbled to himself. He hung his head, the sound of a soft wind blowing at his ears at it cooled him slightly, despite still being hot in its own right. The sound of cheers and excited chatter further into the rock sounded and he was reminded of the other people.

He forced himself up, poking at his still throbbing side before making his way forward.

His steps were slow and careful, an edge of anxiety cutting through him as he made his way through the crevice, nearing the voices. He slowed as he came to an opening, the voices clearer to him now. He paused at the end of the path he’d taken and listened closely to the others.

[Where are you from?]

“Detroit” someone said, nearly breathless.

[Grandpa, give her a moment]

[Right. Sorry dear, sorry]

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The voices fell silent and he frowned. There was a grandpa and what had sounded like a granddaughter here? He didn’t understand how that worked, but there wasn’t exactly a lot he was understanding right now.

He peeked past the corner. An older south-east Asian man, girl, and a white guy all stood around a black girl who lay on the floor panting heavily.

[Would you like a drink?] the Asian man said, offering a thermos flask he held.

“Yeah” the girl said still breathless. She sat up, took the drink, unscrewed the cap and gulped down on it gratefully. “Thanks”

She handed the older man the flask back and wiped her mouth as she looked forward, eyes locking with Caleb’s. He darted back but it was too late, she’d already seen him.

“H-hello?” the girl called out. He hesitated, then peeked his head out from the crevice to find the entire group looking at him.

“H-hi” he said awkwardly, stepping out onto the ledge they all stood on. The others all gave wary nods of acknowledgement, clearly spooked by the fact he’d been hiding. “Sorry about that. I heard you guys shouting, then you got all quiet and… yeah” he mumbled, nodding awkwardly.

The old man offered a knowing smile, as he nodded leaning forward.

[Of course, of course. It’s important to be wary in strange situations]

His granddaughter who stood next to him tapped him lightly, and gave him a look.

[Oh. Sorry, dear] he said before offering another nod back to Caleb.

“You got a name?” the white guy said suddenly. He looked to him, sparing a glance to the girl who still sat on the ground. The uneasy tone on the boys voice told him all he needed to know, but their gazes were similar too. They both looked to him somewhat warily, and he couldn’t exactly blame them. He had been hiding from them, even if it was a few seconds.

“Caleb” he mumbled back.

“Caleb” the boy nodded, repeating the word softly. He had an accent. Caleb couldn’t tell if it was British or Australian. “I’m Ryan” the boy said, before looking to the others.

[Ojiro, well Kana since Grandpa’s here] the south-east Asian girl said.

[You can call me Kenji] her grandpa added with a polite nod.

“Sierra” the other girl said, dusting herself off as she stood.

A silence descended on the group, a measure of awkwardness filling the space between them.

[Would you like a drink?] Kenji said, offering him the flask. He nodded thankfully and took a few sips of what was slightly warm tea before handing the flask back.

[Where are you from?] Kana asked.

“LA” he mumbled back.

[Oh wow. You must see lot’s of movie stars]

“Not exactly” he chuckled. “Where are you guys from?”

[Kyoto. It’s a prefecture in Japan] Kana said.

“I’m from Adelaide. It’s in Australia. You wouldn’t have heard of it” Ryan said.

“Detroit” Sierra said, voice detached, her gaze fixed on the endless dunes surrounding them.

[Did either of you see anyone else out there?] the older man asked, looking between him and Sierra.

He shook his head, then glanced to the girl. She wore an all black tracksuit, the jacket still draped over her head for shade. If her shoes were any indication, she’d probably been on a night time run when she’d been teleported away.

“I was with someone, but…” she shook her head, trailing off.

“Uh… what exactly is that supposed to mean?” Ryan said.

“They died” she said bitterly.

[They died?! How?] Kenji said, the old man’s demeanour shifting.

“It’s… probably best I don’t say how” she said, taking a deep breath.

“Too late for that” Ryan scoffed, oblivious.

“Ok, but… don’t throw up”

Ok then. I guess people are already dying gruesome deaths.

Sierra looked to the floor, then clutched her hands together tightly as she ground her teeth together, her eyes distant.

“There were these bug things. The sand was a bit different and… I don’t know. We were making our way towards this rock, there were other people there, then… the bug things attacked. They weren’t big, like two books maybe. But there were like twenty of them and… they cut through flesh like butter. They ate Andre alive, right in front of me. He was screaming and I just… I ran” she mumbled. She leant against the rock behind her, and slumped to the floor, pulling her knees to her chest as she buried her face between her own thighs.

Quiet sobs escaped her, and the others all looked to each other awkwardly. Caleb felt slightly sick.

They stood silent for a moment, before Kana started towards the crying teen. Her steps were slow and tentative, uncertain

[I-it’s ok] she said, awkwardly, putting a hand on Sierra’s shoulder.

Sierra didn’t seem to acknowledge the contact and continued crying, sniffing loudly now in between. Caleb glanced to Ryan who looked back at him uncertain and gave a small shrugged. The three guys stood still, then Kenji set forward, to comfort Sierra beside his granddaughter.

Caleb knew he should comfort her, but his mind was drawing blanks on what to do right now. He glanced to Ryan, who was looking out over the dunes, frowning.

“Do you hear that?” Ryan said.

“No?” Caleb responded, looking in the same direction. He listened closely, and his brow furrowed unable to tell if that high pitched whine was simply tinnitus, or actually a thing. As it grew louder second by second, and its bass increased Caleb knew it wasn’t in his ears.

Ryan moved further out on the ledge, down towards where the curve of the rock blocked their view away, and momentarily peeked his head into the sunlight to get a better look.

“I don’t- wait… what the hell is that?” he mumbled. Caleb’s worry grew and he started forward toward the edge, where Ryan stood.

Suddenly a deep rumbling echoed out from around them. The entire group went silent as the rumbling grew louder. Then Kenji was moving, pulling the group back, further into the ledge, underneath an outcropping of rock to hide them. They all remained silent, looking out, then they saw them.

Great swooping birds, with grey white scale like feathers, and wingspans at least fifteen feet. Their large teeth were sharp, and the ones that weren’t a pristine right were stained red with blood. They soared high in the sky, ridden by people clad head to toe in white, somehow glowing, armour on their backs.

The one leading the pack still had tatters of what looked like part of a ripped up Nike hoodie, and lots of stringy pieces of red flesh stuck between its teeth. They shot across the sky overhead the drone of the beasts tanking a pitch as they passed before steadily growing quieter and quieter as the trio faded off in the distance.

The others remained silent even after the large birds had disappeared, all staying underneath the rock. Caleb glanced to them, their faces marked by the same worry he held in his chest. He looked back into the sky, at the distant almost invisible specks.

“What the hell is going on?” he muttered to himself.