I own NOTHING but the idea for this story.
A State of Emergency, Lester's liquor collection, and nothing but time.
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The world ends on a Thursday.
At least, according to Douglas Adams's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
The last book Jess Parker remembers reading before this morning, which, coincidentally happened to be a Thursday.
Lester was out of the building on business with the Minister for the next few days.
Phillip had more important things to be doing at Prospero today and had confined Connor to his lab.
Abby, Becker, and Matt had left quarter of an hour ago to deal with an anomaly alert.
The trouble had begun when anomalies started appearing everywhere and Jess was forced to send every available ARC unit out to deal with the problem.
"There's—there's too many. We're outnumb—" One of the groups transmitted before the signal went dead.
"Alpha Team One. Come in. Alpha Team One. Do you read me?" Jess spoke frantically, fingers flying across the keyboard.
"Two more just opened up two blocks so—" Another group was overrun.
"Jess," Becker's voice came through the haze of pandemonium. "Look, everything will—"
"Becker?" Jess said in a frenzy, trying to enhance the signal.
"Becker can you hear me?" She asked the crackling signal.
"There's—over.—Storm.—Stay—"
Silence.
"Becker?"
Jess pounded at the keys.
"Can anyone hear me?" She tried to keep her voice level. "Anyone in the field, do you copy?"
Nothing.
Things could only get worse as another anomaly had opened in the ARC, coupled with an electrical storm raging outside.
Connor had left his lab to see what was happening at the hub.
"Jess, what's going on?" He asked, running up to the terminal with an EMD in his hand.
"There's—" She couldn't find the words to describe the chaos unfolding outside.
"Lockdown initiating." The computer announced as the ARC proceeding to seal itself and anyone not running for the nearest exits inside.
"We have a massive problem." Jess corrected herself as she and Connor watched the researchers and other various non-military members of the ARC running for their lives.
Connor moved forward to try and make sense of what he was seeing.
Scenes from various CCTV footage of creatures destroying things, people dying, fires, explosions, the massive storm to add to the destructiveness of it all.
He tried to find Abby and the team; but couldn't locate them.
"Need to get a message to the others before—"
Lockdown had finished; effectively cutting off all means of communications via the terminal.
"Great." Connor threw his hands up in the air.
The lights flickered several times before going out.
"One of those days where I wish I hadn't put my purse in my locker." Jess huffed. "My phone was in there."
"Forgot my phone on my desk in my lab." Connor spoke, as he moved about the room, looking for some way out, using the torch on the EMD.
"Well, on the sort-of-bright-side, we're safe-er." Jess stated as she strained to see as Connor gave up his futile search.
"But the others aren't." Connor retorted darkly, shutting the torch off.
"We need to find torches." Jess pointed out.
"Isn't there an emergency kit around here somewhere?" Connor inquired.
"Yes," Jess got to her feet; her eyes beginning to adjust to the darkness.
"I think there's an emergency pack near the station back that way." Jess pointed before realizing Connor probably couldn't see her finger in the first place.
Connor switched the torch back on. "Where?"
Jess pointed again and he followed the direction she was pointing.
Connor returned with a small lantern and the emergency pack.
"There's a first aid, a couple of protein bars, batteries for the lantern, and a few other things." He explained.
"Well, it's a start."
"It's all we have." Connor stated with finality.
Jess tried to sum up today in her mind the events of today as Connor's words sunk in.
No authoritative figurehead of the ARC would be around for a few days.
An anomaly that called out Abby, Becker, and Matt had only heralded more anomalies than the ARC was ever prepared to deal with at one time.
An anomaly had opened in the ARC initiating lockdown.
A storm cut the power totally just as lockdown had completed and had cut them off from everything and everyone.
However, their current predicament was small compared to the war being raged outside.
Outside people were dying.
Possibly people they loved.
And here, the pair of them would probably die of starvation.
That is, if whatever emerged from the anomaly couldn't make it to them first.
For now, she needed to find some way of keeping her head on and focusing on staying alive.
She was vaguely aware of Connor shining the lantern near her; studying her facial expressions.
"I'm fine." She tried to assure him.
"I'm not." He admitted.
She gave him a confused look.
Connor was the one to always try and maintain a positive attitude, but why wasn't he now?
Jess mentally scolded herself.
It was the same reason she was trying to assure him she was alright.
Her fiancé and his fiancée were both out in the field fighting for their lives to try and survive what very well may be the apocalypse.
And here she was trying to lie about her current feelings on the situation to try and keep things positive.
"Come on," Connor spoke.
"Where?" Jess inquired quizzically.
"Lester's office, we need somewhere to sit and come up with some sort of plan." He explained as he walked toward the doorway of the sub-office at the end of the room on the right.
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More soon, though it will probably only a two-chapter thing unless people like this. It was inspired by my recent endeavor in reading The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, which is a really awesome series so far!
Anyway, let me know your thoughts please!