Fear
He wouldn't find them. How could he, in this human mess?
Impossible, in this wretched sea of the sick and dying. Body after body, cot upon cot, death upon death. Voices - none he recognized.
Frantic, his footsteps quickened, his pulse desperate, his breath shallow in his chest. Peering through shadows, he searched faces - vacant, frightened eyes and sunken souls, finding nothing - and nobody - familiar.
Another aisle, and then another. His boots thudded against the floor, his heart against his sternum. Bile burned acidic in his throat, his head throbbed from the meaningless noise around him.
Cries. Crying. Nothing. Until -
"Daddy?"