It's fine, everything is fine

215. My blood sugar is spiking.

The normal range is supposed to be between 80-110, but without my regular insulin shots my normal range had began to climb. Six months ago, the power grids in all of North America completely shut down. There is speculation it was a cyber attack, some claim it was aliens, and most have no idea. Without any power, or technology, communication is sparse.

"Lana, what is your blood sugar," my brother Josh asks plopping down next to me outside of our building.

"It's fine, everything is fine…but we need to find medication, fast. Do you know if all of the hospital's are still on lock down?"

"They are, but I found an in," he said smiling.

"Do I even want to know?"

He popped up from the ground, grabbed my hand, and we started running towards the forest that bordered the abandoned building we have been hiding in. After the power grid went out, everything went to crap. People lost their minds, chaos ensued, and a lot of lives were lost. We haven't been able to find or locate my parents since we separated a month ago to look for medication. When the grid went out, I had accepted my fate as a type 1 diabetic, to not survive the outage, but my family would not allow it. My dad and mom went to a neighboring state to find more insulin, while my brother stayed with me to make sure I would survive. Our hope is that the government will figure out what is happening, and the power will magically start working again, but so far- radio silence.

"Is this going to be Illegal?"

"Of course it is, but do you want to live?"

"Only if I can eat some pizza. That is what I really want to do."

I remember years ago watching TV shows about the apocalypse and always thought, that wont be me, we would never allow that to happen. Zombies? Yeah right. The problem is, we had become zombies and didn't even know it- we were so stuck on technology and power that we don't know how to survive without it. The first thing they locked down after it went dark, were the hospitals. Medication has stopped being produced until they can figure out how to fix the grid. Currently the government is giving out coupons for prescriptions, and once your 1 coupon is up- you basically die. Tragic I know, but I've been having these blunt conversations with myself to prepare for what is to come.

"Josh..."

"Hm.." he slowed down as we reached his destination.

"What in the world?"

Looking around, it is one of the many homeless camps that have been formed throughout our city. Tents, tarps, and a lot of unshowered people are scattered throughout the wooded area. Josh goes up to what appears to be a leader, and gives him a bro hug. He has long dark dreadlocks, and some sort of beige smock. In front of them, there is a group of people around a huge ring in the middle of the dirt, drawn there with spray paint.

"This looks like fight club."

"It is," Josh smirks.

"It is the most fair way that we have found to divvy up the goods we find," dreadlocks said.

"No. Just no. Josh we can find another way." I grab his arm away from the group of suspicious looking people. "Who is fighting, because it is not going to be you. You don't even know how to fight."

"Of course I know how to fight, you just have never seen me fight. Also the loot is 10 bottles of insulin, and a box of syringes Lana. That could help you survive until after the grid comes back."

"Josh, you could die. What if the grid never comes back, maybe we should just accept my fate."

"No, that is not what brothers do. Here." He takes mom's silver heart shaped locket out of his pocket and hands it to me. A tear slides down my face. "Hold this, but I want it back when I win."

"This is a terrible idea. Mom is going to kill you if you don't die first."

"You don't think she wouldn't get in the middle of this ring and do the same thing I am right now?"

"She may have a better chance of winning." We both laughed.

"No one messes with my babies," we say together as if she were here speaking to us.

I put the locket around my neck and hug him. I can feel my blood sugar getting higher, and my hands start to shake. If I didn't get insulin soon it was going to get even worse. He knew it. I knew it. I looked behind him and saw a dad get into the ring drawn in the dirt. His kid was standing on the sidelines, looking as pale and awful as I felt. There was no winner of this fight. My brother put his backpack on the ground and looked at dreadlocks.

"OK, we fight fair here. They have taken a lot from us, but we will not be taking any lives. No weapons, no biting, no breaking. It will be first to pin their opponent. Winner takes... these 10 vials of insulin, and box of syringes. The next fight will follow for blood pressure medication, and two inhaler's."

I looked at Josh and he nodded. I felt like we were barbarians. I didn't even want to watch; either way one of us diabetics wasn't going to make it. By some draw of fate, Josh won in less than five minutes. Dreadlocks handed him the bag and he handed it to me. I took out two bottles of insulin, and two packages of needles, and brought them over to the dad and little girl.

"Here, I know these are hard to come by. The only way we can get through this is together."

The dad nodded, and took the medication. Before I even turned around I was thrown to the ground by a stampede of bodies. There was yelling everywhere, and as I looked up I saw terror dance across my brothers face. A group of men in masks charged at the community.

“Who is your leader,” the group demanded. As I looked around everyone is laying on the ground with their hands in the air. Raiders. They had become more prevalent. No one could do anything fairly anymore. We were all barbarians.

Dreadlocks got up slowly from the ground. “My name is Axel, I help keep the peace within the community.”

“We are looking for a Lana Granger.”

What. How in the world did they know my name.

“I’m sorry I do not know everyone’s name, is it ok for me to ask.”

The group in the masks nodded, and dreadlocks started asking around. Thankfully no one knew who I was, or what my name was, so I looked at Josh. He was trying to tell me something with his eyes, but our twin bond wasn’t working, must have been the guns pointed at our heads.

“AHHHH.”

I turned and saw one of the masked men grab the little girl from earlier, the one who was also a diabetic.

“Lana, come out. We know you are here.”

They put a gun to the little girls head, and I jumped up.

“STOP. I am here. What do you want?”

“Perfect.”

They grabbed my arm, dropped the girl and started pulling me away from the community. Josh followed, but they were too busy with me that they couldn’t see him. He was my twin; and I knew he was there without even looking.

“Where are you taking me?”

“Shut up, and stop asking questions.”

I looked around. 8. There were 8 men, 8 guns, and they were all bigger and taller than I was. I was too scared to turn around because I didn’t want them to know Josh was hiding in the trees behind us. We walked for about a mile and then came to what looked like a cave.

“When are you-“

“Shut up.” They shoved me forward and I almost fell. I was thankful I had brought the bag with my medication in it, but at this point, who knows if I would even live to be able to use it. We walked into the mouth of the cave and I saw a light glowing inside.

“What the-“

As we walked further inside, three glowing figures appeared. They were sitting in chairs around a campfire. They looked like humans, but they were glowing a light orange, almost as if they were on fire.

“Is this Lana?”

“Yes,” the masked man standing next to me said.

“Monak- go get her brother. He is outside of the cave.”

My eyes widened as one of the men left, and came back minutes later with my brother, tied up. What in the world was happening?

“You are probably wondering why you are here today. As you know, the power grid was taken out in all of North America a few months ago. We…” he motions to the other two glowing men, “did that. The government in the United States was getting too close to our secrets, so we decided to destroy them from the inside. Now, would you like to help us with part two of our plan?”

“Uh… to overthrow the government? Let me check my schedule…”

“Sarcasm is not needed young lady.”

“Why did you pick me.”

“That is for us to know, and you to figure out. The choice is yours, help us take down your government or…” he nods, and the masked man from earlier kicks Josh and he yelps. He points the gun at his head. “Well, you will no longer have a twin.”

“Are you going to tell me what I have to do.”

“Not until you say yes.”

I looked around, and pinched myself. Nope. Not a dream.

“Do I have to wear that ugly black mask?”

“We are asking you to take down your own government, and you are concerned about what you are wearing?”

I sighed, “No, I was just stalling for more time. Ok yes, I don’t want to wear that ugly mask, but yes I guess what choice do I have.”

“Perfect.”

The ground started to shake and I jumped. I spun around and saw that the cave, or what I thought was a cave, started to lift into the sky.

“Josh!”

I ran over to my brother and hugged him thankful I was not alone.

“Take your insulin shot you idiot, what the hell did you get us into.”

“ME! You are the one who joined a fight club.”

“Well it looks like my fight club may be more needed than we thought…”

The masked men had left us to our corner of the floating cave, and I tried to find a window.

“Uhm… Mister, glowing man. Where are we going?”

“Ohio.”

What the heck was in Ohio?