They smelled Centralia before they ever saw it.
They smelled Centralia before they ever saw it. It started as an acrid tickle at the back of their throats, with the reek of sulfur and other gases growing stronger as they came closer. The sky was clear, but the stench of rotten eggs was unmistakable, especially to enhanced noses.
They had made travel into an endurance contest, speeding along on deserted roads, stopping only for fuel, food and occasionally to rest. Zack learned that Sephiroth could be a serious speed demon. As a result of his companion's efforts, they'd reached their destination in three days, instead of the expected four.
Thankfully, Angeal had been relatively silent for most of the journey, which allowed Zack to calm down and get his trepidation under control.
Zack assumed Angeal offered some chitchat to Sephiroth, who made the occasional side comment to the specimen container. As always, Zack only heard Sephiroth's half the conversation. He didn't have any more dreams of Angeal, either, and was grateful. He didn't think he could handle the kind of immersion Sephiroth seemed to take for granted. Hearing the occasional disembodied remark was more than enough for Zack, and he really hoped he'd never have another nightmare.
Sephiroth's theory that the frequency and depth of those experiences would keep increasing didn't agree with Zack at all. It was too weird and frightening. He couldn't stop wondering where it would lead, and kept telling himself that if only Angeal could be human again, everything would settle down and be okay. Maybe Hollander could even get rid of those Reunion instincts. That would be awesome.
The scenery they passed consisted of gently rolling hills covered in short, twisted trees, low scrub, and pale brown dirt. At least much of the vegetation was green. The road ahead grew broken, crumbling along the shoulders; clearly it hadn't been maintained in many years.
A large white sign came into view. Sephiroth stopped the truck in front of it. Zack read the red block script aloud, "'Danger - Underground Mine Fire.'"
Sephiroth snorted.
Zack continued, "'Walking or driving in this area could result in serious injury or death. Dangerous gases are present.'"
That time Sephiroth laughed. "We've been smelling those dangerous gases for miles now. They aren't that hazardous for us, not with our enhancements."
"Aside from smelling terrible," Zack said, wrinkling his nose. He read, "'Ground is prone to sudden collapse.' So I guess we should be on the lookout for sinkholes."
"All of this is expected." Sephiroth started driving, only to stop again.
Ahead of them, blocking the entire road, was a huge berm, piled high with dirt and rocks. It had been there a long time; plants were well established on its packed surface.
"Genesis and Hollander really don't want anyone going into the area, do they?" Zack quipped.
"Genesis couldn't have put this here. It looks too old," Sephiroth said with a frown. "Probably the townsfolk built it before they abandoned their homes entirely. Either that or the town council hired someone to do it. It might have been their last official act."
"That's kind of sad." Zack was quiet a moment, contemplating the desperation the townspeople must have experienced as they slowly realized they couldn't save their way of life. How depressing. "The sign did warn against visiting. I suppose we can walk over it."
"I don't want to lose the truck, the motorcycle, and all our supplies. We'll carry the truck to the other side."
Zack groaned, but opened his door and got out.
Sephiroth took the front of the truck and Zack hefted the back. "On three," Sephiroth said. "One, two, three—" Together, they lifted their truck so that its wheels cleared the ground.
"All right, over the berm," Zack grunted. It wasn't the first time his SOLDIER strength had been needed for manual labor, particularly in Wutai, but he'd never been asked to carry a vehicle before. He was glad his civilian jeans and shoes were rugged enough to survive the work. "This isn't too bad, but it's awkward."
Sephiroth said, "Walking forward now," and started moving. He issued instructions for Zack to stay in sync with him as they reached the berm and started up. At the top, he stopped. "Zack, wait. Quit pushing."
"What's the matter?" Zack's breath hissed out. The damn truck was heavy! "C'mon, don't dawdle like that."
"There is a series of more berms down the road."
Zack's heart sank. "How many?"
"Five so far."
That "five so far" turned out to be eleven. They were spaced so that it wasn't worth the trouble to drive between them. Zack caught sight of more berms on side roads and turnoffs. He suspected that most, perhaps all, access roads had been blocked. The town really was closed for business. No vehicles that couldn't be flown or carried were getting in. Well, maybe the Shin-Ra army's tanks and all-terrain vehicles could get through, Zack thought, or recreational dirt bikes. Too bad he and Sephiroth just had a beat-up old truck and a motorcycle lashed in the cargo bed. Neither would get over the berms without assistance.
So they hauled the truck over every single berm on the main road.
"Man, my arms are so tired," he complained when they set the truck down after the last berm. He heaved out a breath and stretched his arms overhead. "Genesis better really be here."
"He is," came the familiar, disembodied voice of Angeal.
"Damn it," Zack muttered. Angeal could pipe up at the most disconcerting times.
Sephiroth gave Zack a curious look, like he hadn't heard anything. He probably hadn't.
"We can drive now, though it will be rough going," Sephiroth said helpfully, misinterpreting the reason for Zack's cursing.
"Rough going" was an understatement. Directly in front of them, the asphalt was cracked and broken, riddled with potholes and occasionally split by a fissure. Brown and dingy-yellow stalks of dry grass poked through the openings, along with wisps of steam. Patchy areas of the ground were covered in fine white ash.
"That's smoke and ash from the fire, isn't it?" Zack said.
"You can see fissures over there, too," Sephiroth said, pointing off to the right. A few more thin, gray wisps rose from jagged holes in the land.
"Ugh. But it's not too bad. I kind of expected the place to have more fire and brimstone."
"We aren't into the town, yet."
The truck bumped and jolted along the deteriorated road, rattling all three of its occupants. Sephiroth drove slowly and steered around the gaps where the asphalt had broken apart too much. After a few minutes, the old town cemetery came into view. It had a sinkhole right in the middle, with many headstones broken and clinging to the sides of the ragged pit, stuck half in, half out forever—or at least until the earth crumbled beneath them.
"Bet this place is haunted," Zack muttered, then immediately wished he'd never said anything. He tugged the collar of his tee-shirt and looked down quickly at Angeal's container. He and Sephiroth were, in a way, already haunted. No sense asking for even more ghosts to show up.
They drove past the ruined graveyard and into a residential area, and the first abandoned buildings came into view. The homes were still standing, but filthy with dust and ash, and in a state of utter decrepitude. The paint was faded and peeling, and the windows broken. Doors hung open, some partially off their hinges. Zack wondered if the damage was from earth tremors or looters. Probably both, he decided.
Rot showed everywhere they looked. Nature had reclaimed much of the landscape. Thin, twiggy tree branches poked at the crumbling walls, and long overgrown weeds choked old flowerbeds. Many yards were veritable jungles.
They drove on.
Farther into town they saw old storefronts, also falling apart and abandoned. Potholes and the fine ash were everywhere. A great fissure ran down the center of the street. Hazy clouds of smoke wafted from it, fluttering in the breeze like filmy veils.
Half of one building had collapsed in a pile of dusty bricks. Weirdly, the other half still stood upright, as though untouched by the unstable ground. A sign proudly proclaimed it to be Jerry's Drug Store. The green and yellow colors, obviously once bright, had faded into dingy, dusty obscurity.
There weren't even any animal noises. Not one bird or insect chirped. The utter quiet, the desolate atmosphere, disturbed Zack on a fundamental level. He felt gooseflesh on his arms, and rubbed them to dispel an imaginary chill. To fill the silence, he said, "I've never been to a real ghost town before. It's creepy how deserted everything is."
Sephiroth only grunted in reply. He stopped the truck and they both got out to take a look. A giant sinkhole had opened up under one side of the drug store, causing the partial collapse. Zack felt warmth emanating from it. The scent of rotten eggs hung in the air.
"Damn," he said. "You can feel the heat even from here."
"The entire area is riddled with underground mine tunnels and coal seams. It's all smoldering or worse. We need to be careful. A sinkhole can open up at any time," Sephiroth said. He leaned against the truck and consulted his stolen book "Ultimate North Corel: History, Attractions, and Oddities," along with the paper map he'd taken from the hotel back in Pithole.
"There should be mine offices and processing sites that way," Sephiroth said, pointing down the main street. "They'll be outside of the town. Those are our best bets for finding Genesis and Hollander. There should be some decent infrastructure and housing."
"Assuming they haven't been swallowed up by sinkholes and other portals to the underworld," Zack grumbled. So many access roads had been blocked or destroyed, it was a wonder there was any traversable route to the old mines at all.
"That is a distinct possibility."
Sometimes Sephiroth had no sense of humor, Zack reflected.
They both climbed back into the truck and got moving. Sephiroth drove slowly and carefully, wary of disturbing the earth too much. Zack wondered if just the weight of the truck could trigger the ground to crack open beneath them and drop them into a burning hell.
He gripped the edges of his seat, bracing for the worst.
Notes:
The defunct town of Centralia and its forever-burning coal mine are based on a real place of the same name. As with Pithole, I stole Centralia's history and circumstances. If you're interested, you can read about it here:
https colon slash slash en dot wikipedia dot org slash wiki slash Centralia,_Pennsylvania
https colon slash slash en dot wikipedia dot org slash wiki slash Centralia_mine_fire