Esther's Hope

 When the world of technology fell, so did the world of men.

When money was lost forever in scrambled bank files, and power loss plunged the modern world into darkness, the abhorrent riots began. Individuals plundered shops and valuables with no consequence, and eliminated those who dared to oppose them; while families fled in the hopes they could find somewhere free of the violence and panic.

Fights for the remaining resources sparked, groups formed and wars began, and soon in the desolation, arsonists spread fires across the Amazon rainforests and African savannas; creating scars so severe against the Earth's surface, that those who did survive the global apocalypse could never hope to repair it.

Major cities slowly succumbed to the underbelly of mother nature, as weeds and vines infested buildings. Concrete crumbled under the force of harsh weather, crippling the supports for buildings with no human attendance to maintain its well being. Smog caused the sky to be an eye numbing slate grey, casting a shadow upon the world that was null of color, or hope.

There were still signs of life… from the cockroaches that skuddled out from rocks to the occasional crow looking to pick up an easy meal. Cold winds visited the vacant buildings, filling the void with whistles between pillars and rustles from blowing trash. Once streets filled with people, food stands, cars; was now just a place of decay and shrouded with the fumes of burning sewage.

A brave soul walked the sidewalks that day, a bold drop of color in the middle of a terrain of fading greys. A child with a pink shirt that was torn had dirt plastered to it as if it were trying to drown out the brightness the fabric held. Little flowers on her battered shorts had been replaced by grease stains, and the edges held dried blood from the scrapes on both of her knees. She looked around her surroundings desperately, strands of hair free from her messy bun sitting disobediently on her face and curving over her ears. One of her hands sat wrapped around her middle, as if she were expecting to be sick. The other clung to a golden heart locket draped around her neck.

It was her prize - and her final - possession. It was given to her by her mother, the parent that she now wandered aimlessly in search of. She couldn’t quite remember where they had been separated during their flight, and she couldn’t be sure if she was even in the right area. There would never be a way for her to know that the one she searched for was forever lost under the rubble of collapsed debris.

The quiet made her uneasy, dark corners and unseen roads ahead filled her with dread. Anyone could be anywhere at any time. Or anything could be. Her shuffling footsteps made her feel like she was a target, with invisible eyes watching from the broken windows, or ears listening from the drains that lined the curbs. Her eyes shakily scanned up and down the way, her voice caught in her throat and unable to call out.

A slab of rock fell, sending a scream to rupture through her, adrenaline kicking in and making her legs move. She tore down the street, one hand still holding onto her necklace, while her other swung wildly to help with her momentum. Vision blurred, she saw things that she hadn’t before. Phantom shadows danced on the pavement, while steam leapt out at her from the grates below her feet. Bricks contained bats that swayed and threatened to unleash their wings to come at her, and the breeze howled with laughter.

In desperation she rounded a turn into an alley, and wiggled her way through a broken, jagged hole in the wooden fence. Her pace had slowed into a jog upon coming out the other side , but she stopped suddenly when bright light blinded her eyes.

“Good God, there’s another one.”

On impulse she ran back the way she came, missing the shouts and plees that encouraged her to wait. Footsteps pounded behind her, the heavy booms of boots causing echos to chase her and vibrate in her ears. She hit the cement a little harder than intended, yelping out in pain and cradling her legs before trying to scramble forwards to the hole.

However in her moment of hesitation, her chaser had managed to catch up to her, a strong hand latching onto the underside of her arm to pull her back. Her chest managed another scream as she fought to wiggle free from getting tugged towards someone’s chest, before she bumped into the cold barrel of a gun.

She cried and shouted, between her ‘nos’ was her begging to be let go. The man above her didn’t release her, but he made no move to harm her, his words soft and calming. “No one’s gonna hurt you. Relax for me alright? We’re not gonna hurt you.”

Others came around the corner, holstering their weapons and calming their stance upon seeing the child their friend had nabbed. They respected the silence, remembering all the times they had done this before, and the gut awful feeling that came with it.

“We’re going to take you back with us, okay? We have food, water, and we can make up a place for you to sleep,” the gentleman continued to soothe, the girls' outbursts having subsided into sobs.

From her hiccups and quivering he made out the word “mother”, and as he scooped her up from her feet he said, “We’ll look for your mom too. Who knows maybe she’s already at homebase. If you know her name we’ll put out a search for her, alright?”

The girl attempted a nod, but her head fell into his chest as he began to carry her down the alley and back towards the others, leaving the damp place far behind.

She awoke, not knowing how much time had passed. Suddenly ridged and very afraid, she sat up, her locket swinging and hitting her on the chest. The space she was in was small, a potential bunk above her bed and a wall only a foot away, which left little space to get in and out.

Footsteps came near, and a head poked in, giving her a fright.

“Hey, you’re up! It's about time. Come on, I’ll show you around!”

She didn’t know this other girl above her, but she looked cheerful, happy. As if the weight of the destroyed world wasn’t weighing down on her. “I’m Hanna, come on don’t be shy!"

Hanna reached down and took the girl's arm, yanking her from the plain sheets and wool blankets to drag her down the space between the beds and the wall. Escaping out into the hallway, a sight laid out before them, a sight unlike any the girl had ever seen before.

Glass made up one entire side of the hallway wall, overlooking a gigantic compound descending down several stories. There were platforms raised that contained mis-matched wooden tables and plastic chairs, while other platforms contained old vehicles that looked like they weren’t fit to drive. Light from giant industrial lamps hung from above, fabricating fake sunlight to beam down on a series of crop beds on the ground floor. Bridges were strung across the casam, people in dark clothes walking across them precariously. More men with guns paced around the edges, watching over the people as groups poured out soup from rusting pots, or sat down to sew what could have been new clothes.

The girl jerked her head to the side to watch a flock of birds go soaring by, settling up in the roof rafters. It was there she could see vines seeping in from the cracks in the ceiling, a group of adults suddenly sliding down them to descend from one platform to another below. Some of the walls contained moss and other creeping vines, yellow flowers blooming from them and adding some color to the pasty surroundings. Glass on the far side showed her there were real animals alive- cows and a few pigs grazing on unmaintained grass while pacing around their fairly limited room. More windows showed signs for bathrooms, and even a colorful “play zone,” telling her more kids must live down here.

“Welcome to New Brooklyn,” Hanna said, arms crossed and watching the new girl’s fascination, “A total of 3,687 of us live down here. We grow our own food, and scavenge what we need from up above. There are a couple of rules: like no running on the platforms, any medicine found is to be given to the clinic center, ration out the food accordingly, no going to the surface without a trained guard, or lights out at 10:30. But we get by, and most people are friendly so that helps.”

Hanna tilted her head, “You know, I don’t know your name.”

The girl turned back to look at her, fingers tracing up to hold her necklace. She clutched the heart pendent, and for the first time in a long time she uttered her own name.

“Esther.”

Hanna nodded, before clapping Esther on the back, “Alrighty then. Well, we shouldn’t linger. Come on, I’ll show you where the stairs are to go down. We would have elevators, but we gotta reserve power for the overhead lights and charge the electric cars. Say, did you know that...”

Hanna continued to ramble on as the two made their way down the curved hall, their footsteps making soft echoes. Upon reaching the stairwell, children’s laughter rang up the corridors, filling Esther with the hope that her days of wandering alone were over.