Alex Walker
Chapter 2: Underground
Disorientated and lying on his back, Alex cursed under his breath, before sitting up trying to make sense of what had just happened.
Noticing the welcoming site of light, he thought phew, for a moment then I thought I had fallen through the grou−. It all dawned on him at once as he discovered many things about his new found location. First and most plainly of all, he had fallen through the ground. The light he saw was from the hole he had made in his downward journey. Unfortunately though, it was at least two metres above his head.
Studying his surroundings, he noticed that the walls and what he was standing on were concrete. Not rock, but manmade concrete. It seemed harder than diamond, especially due to his recent speedy encounter with it. In fact it was miraculous that he hadn't broken any limbs. If it wasn't for the thin layer of grass and dirt that had fallen with him, he'd probably be dead.
He decided to explore his new found surroundings, because, compliments of gravity, he certainly wasn't going back to the surface the way he had came, and he was quite sure no one was around to see him fall.
Alex walked about ten metres along the concrete corridor, before coming to a thick iron door. Testing his luck, he soon discovered the door was firmly locked. The place was eerily silent, and if it wasn't then he may never have noticed the faint noise on the other side of the solid barrier. Putting his ear against the icy metal, he could make out a soft mechanical humming, accompanied by a conversation between to or more men. The language was unfamiliar to Alex, but he thought it sounded like Arabic.
He was about to yell out for help, but there was something tickling in the depths of his mind. Perhaps he was wondering why there were people speaking Arabic on an island where Tongan was the primary language. Perhaps it was that there was this underground array of tunnels which must be illegal.
He decided to explore further.
Travelling the other direction down the corridor, he came to a right turn followed by a small room, lit by a single florescent light mounted on the wall. In the centre of the room lay a table which dwarfed the rest of the room in size. Over it numerous wires and circuitry lay scattered.
He picked up a thick paper bag with a picture of grass on the front. Reading the ingredients, he noted ammonium nitrate. AKA fertiliser. A chill was sent down his back as he began to put together the pieces of this sinister and terrifying puzzle. Wires, circuitry, plus fertiliser with a hint of knowledge mixed together equals fertiliser bomb. Simple and crude, but very effective.
Perhaps he should have taken note of the warning earlier, but when he noticed the sudden cool breeze caused by a door somewhere opening, it was too late. Hearing the very unwelcoming noise of a gun glocking, Alex spun round, only to find he was staring down the barrel of a Russian semi-automatic rifle.
The gun wielder forced an ugly sadistic grin, showing yellow, crooked teeth, before signalling to stand against the icy concrete wall. Alex immediately obeyed, not wanting to provoke his attacker
The man fiddled with something on the side of the weapon near the trigger. Alex assumed he was releasing the safety lock. The man adopted a thinking expression on his grotesque face, scanning Alex with cold lifeless eyes. Alex could almost feel them penetrating his skin, searching one last time for anything that would provide reason to show mercy.
"Apparently not" Alex muttered, watching as the assailant relaxed his shoulders, then aimed the rifle right between Alex's eyes. He could actually see in his mind the small lead projectile hurtling out of the barrel.
Alex closed his eyes, reluctantly accepting defeat. He took one last deep breath, knowing the end was near.