Chapter 2: Aftermath
"Oh, finally, back to civilisation!" Josh declared, looking at his phone as it finally found connection.
They had almost reached the main roads, and the girl's condition had changed little, though she was breathing deeper, as if now soundly asleep rather than knocked out. A moment later, both of the men's mobiles lit up, and a torrent of messages and alerts flooded in.
"Jesus, I have, like, twenty missed calls. Why are my parents calling me?" Josh began scrolling through messages not unlike the ones they had seen on Matt's phone. He reached over to where Aaron's phone was, and saw that it was the same story. His face became more and more contorted with confusion and a unsettling anxiety. "Something's off, something is really not right, Aaron."
"What is it? What do they say?" Aaron spoke evenly but was very much on edge, glancing over his shoulder at the girl.
They approached the dual carriageway a little fast, as they tried to gather what was going on.
" 'Police and military down, don't trust anyone'." Josh read, his eyes skipping between the screens. "I tried replying but the message won't send."
"What the fuck does that mean? Try calling someone."
"Alright!" Josh fumbled with his own phone before dialing his parents. The phone went directly to an automated message, saying that whoever he was trying to reach was disconnected. "It's not working, says they're cut off."
"Has my family contacted me? Josh, give it here-" Aaron was trying to peek at the messages for himself, and as he was distracted, the car emerged from the side road too fast and he saw the carriageway late. "Shit!"
He slammed down on the brakes, skidding to the left to avoid going straight onto the main road. A huge armoured truck was on its side, blocking the slip road, surrounded by large debris. The letters S.W.A.T were just distinguishable on the body of the vehicle, which had been almost completely destroyed. The men sat for a moment, tense, staring out at the mess that was now directly in front of them.
"Shit. I'm sorry, are you alright?" Aaron turned off the engine, glancing over to Josh, who had dropped the phones and was clutching the door bar.
"Yeah, I'm - I'm fine. You?" He managed. Aaron nodded.
They got slowly out of the car to see what was going on and walked carefully towards the truck, scanning up and down the road.
A small blue car was lying upside down, balanced over the central reservation, the wheels twisted out of place. Near it, a jeep with the two doors on its left side missing and the roof caved in, and further down the road were more abandoned and wrecked vehicles. Aaron walked over to the Swat Van, but what caught his attention was lying on the ground a few feet from it. A figure, strangely limp, lying on its back. It must have been one of the Swat Team, head to toe in strong black armour and a large helmet.
"Hey, careful." Josh gave a hushed call, staying a little back as he continued looking at the cars further down the road.
"I am." Aaron kept level-headed, approaching the figure with clenched fists, slightly hunched over, poised. But what he saw was unexpected and he didn't know what to make of it.
"...What the hell? Hey, look at this."
Josh came over to stand next to his friend, and peered down at the figure. It soon became clear that the armoured suit was badly damaged. The tough exterior had been warped by the heat of a fire, but what was most unusual was the fact that there was a neat rupture all the way down the front of the suit, from the top of the chest to the legs. Even the helmet had been completely split down the middle. Whoever had been wearing the suit was gone, it was nothing but an empty shell.
"What do you think happened? Someone saved him from the fire?" Josh wondered, looking at the armoured truck, which still had a few areas still burning steadily.
"Looks like it, but how exactly do you split open armour like that? It would take a normal person ages to hack through, and it looks like whatever happened here was chaos, not the kind of time when you can wait around." Aaron was thinking things through logically, but both of the men were deeply unsettled by what was around them. They still had no idea what was going on, and might well be stranded with a stranger in the back of their car.
After searching the truck they moved down the road a little, until Josh spotted an ambulance that had run into a ditch on the right hand side of the road. Aaron climbed dexterously in through the open back doors, balancing carefully against the awkward angle, grabbing anything that looked useful. Unfortunately it seemed that someone else had already done the same, and it was slim pickings. Unable to get anything that could help the girl,they eventually returned to their own car. No other people were in sight.
"She's still out. But breathing." Josh bentover the girl, holding two fingers to her neck and listening for her breaths.
"Good. I guess we should try to get closer to the city? I mean, there could be people there who could help her." Aaron leant on the bonnet of the car, turning away from Josh, beginning to feel overwhelmed. He closed his eyes for a moment.
"I don't see what else we can do." Josh rubbed his face, trying to wake himself up from the haze that had been keeping him from panicking. But now the numbness was beginning to lift, and he couldn't keep calm any longer. His voice was tense. "Aaron, what the fuck is going on? This," he gestured wildly at the cluttered road, "this isn't right, this isn't something that just happens! There should be police sectioning it off, there should be people everywhere! I don't get it! ...HEY!" He slammed his hand down on the car to snap his friend out of it.
Aaron was taken aback, but he too was losing his composure. He turned, taking a couple of steps back. "You think I know any more than you? Look around, mate, that was the police! And they got blown to pieces!" He pointed at the armoured truck.
"I'm not saying you would know, I'm just saying don't try and block it out. It's ok to be scared, cause I'm freaking out too, we just need to figure out what to do without-" Josh rushed his words, unsure of what he was even trying to say.
"I'm fine! We'll think of a plan!" Aaron's voice became more strained.
"You don't have to be fine! That's what I'm trying to say. You don't have to play it cool and know exactly what to do next. I know how much you'd love it but you can't always be like Batman, because we're just normal people! We'll figure things out. Ok? We will. Just work with me here." Josh surprised even himself with these words, driven by a genuine caring for his best friend.
Aaron was breathing heavily. After a long pause, he walked slowly to the car and rested his elbows on the roof, running his hands through his hair. "I know. I know, I'm sorry. It's just... this is so messed up. I'm worried."
"Yeah, it is. But we're not gonna find any answers here. We should still head for the city, right?" Josh asked cautiously.
"It's our only option really." Aaron stood upright, seemingly more self-assured. "I can drive. Maybe we'll find people who can help the girl."
As they got into the car, Josh checked their mobiles again. Still no luck.
"And hey, thanks. We'll be alright." Aaron gave a smile, which Josh returned, relieved that things were less tense.
Aaron drove slowly around the truck, edging down the side until it was clear, when he sped up to reach the city as soon as possible. Josh watched the overturned truck disappear behind them. Along the road into the city were a few more cars damaged or crashed. Most of them were on the other side, suggesting they had been driving out of the city at the time. But apart from those it was fairly clear, and they still hadn't bumped into anyone else.
They were an hours drive from the city when the girl, who was still lying across the back seats, woke up.