eMpTy

“No time for me. No place for me…”

Yesterday morning, just after sunrise, Liana realized this was the end. There were no wars, asteroids, or aliens. But humanity had irrevocably reached the period at the end of its sentence. She’d always thought that the apocalypse would be quick, brutal, and loud. But it wasn’t. The universe never gave you what you expected. It gave you what it had.

“Just this moment set aside…”

The newly risen sun burned off the fog, leaving behind a light blanket of dew promising blue skies and no rain. A perfect spring day. But her son-in-law sat where she’d left him the night before, staring silently out the living room window, his skin a pallid imitation of the lustrous color of life. Fading away. Empty, they called it. This thing that had taken hold and was squeezing the life from humanity. An Emptiness that was so complete, nothing remained. Odd that the weather was so perfect when the world ended.

“No chance… no chance. It’s already decided…”

Liana had seen the gentle rise and fall of his chest and blinked away her tears. He wasn’t a large man, so his body had little fat to cannibalize in the swift march to his doom. A pointless observation, since she needed to get to work, even though work felt futile. What good was a cure when those left were killing each other?

“I’m leaving, Beth.” She called over her shoulder as she picked up her purse and keys. The lack of response stopped her in her tracks.

No.

“Touch my tears… your lips. Your lips…”

She’d dropped her belongings onto the table again and raced up the stairs two at a time to her daughter’s bedroom, not bothering to knock before opening the door. Beth had kissed him every night. Long lingering kisses she’d hoped would bring him back from wherever it was he’d gone. They couldn’t prove that it could pass from the exchange of bodily fluids, although it clearly survived just fine in inhospitable conditions. Hadn’t her team proven that it resisted removal no matter how many times you ran the contaminated water through a filter?

“Her lips…”

Beth sat in front of her bedroom window. Her body half swathed in the clothing she’d obviously tried to don before her brain stopped functioning. One arm lay bare, her bra strap on her biceps instead of her shoulder, the adjacent breast as bare as her arm. The nipple was a lurid, stubby point that screamed 'look at me'. Liana moved over to her and peered into her eyes. The look of terror was fading. It was always the same. First the fear, and then nothing. Empty. She pulled the bra and blouse into place. She wouldn't want anyone to see her like this. Her precious baby girl. She smoothed her hair once before leaving her there, trudging downstairs filled with a bitterness that wanted to bubble out and over the land in a chorus of screams.

“I dare… touch my world with…” What was the line?

Liana closed her eyes and stopped singing. Allowing the memories to drift away as she took deep breaths to calm her racing heart. The old Queen song had played in a loop in her head for days, ever since Damon Emptied. It was pointless to remember. Pointless to worry. A loud clang made her jump, so she wrapped her arms around her legs and buried her head in her lap. Rocking herself for comfort, swaying as she sat waiting for what came next.

Liana had climbed onto her Vespa and pulled on her helmet, her eyes stinging with the need to let loose. It only took two days and now most of the city was burning. Fires set by the mad few remaining who hadn’t succumbed. The sight of the flames had frightened her and made her sad, but time was too short for a crying jag, so she’d blinked back tears and focused on what came next. She couldn’t help wondering if everyone felt the same. Surrounded by emptiness and moving through the deserted streets two seconds from meltdown.

The lights were on in the lab, the low hum of the generator and HVAC units were the only mechanical sound for blocks. A high makeshift wall of cars and dumpsters hid the building from the street. She’d slipped through the cleverly disguised hole in the barricade and parked her Vespa next to the door, not bothering with the lock. Once inside, she’d moved through the hallways to the lab, where light shone like the beacons of Gondor. Fitting, the world had cried out for help, and they were rushing to answer the call.

Liana had pushed open the door and looked around at the half-dozen people working at the sterile metal tables. Speaking in low voices, as if reluctant to be the one to pierce the silence with sound.

“Hi guys.” Liana had called as she moved over to grab her lab coat. A couple of people waved, but no one stopped what they were doing to talk as she walked over to her station. Her assistant stood there, swaying with exhaustion as she recorded what she saw under her microscope. Most of them hadn’t left, hadn’t bothered to go home because it was Empty.

“What is this thing? That… that…” her throat felt raw. Because she’d screamed. Couldn’t help it. No. Better to think of something else. Even if it was remembering.

“This new version works even better.” Jacob had said as he walked over to where they stood. Doctor Jacob Goldman was 65 and mostly bald, but you couldn’t tell because of the yarmulke he wore. She’d never seen him wear the same one twice, and they’d worked together now for close to 40 years. ALZ 220 had worked so well for him he’d said he felt half his age. Unfortunately, it left anyone under the age of 60 Empty.

“Does that mean we’re closer to a vaccine?” Liana asked, and he shook his head. A vaccine and a neutralizing agent might save us. That was what she’d hoped.

“It still defies our attempts because it isn’t a virus, or an illness, remember? It’s a side effect. Like the stomachache you get when you take aspirin on an empty stomach.” Liana hadn’t replied. She’d despaired at success until last week. The additive they’d designed neutralized the drug in liquids. Hopefully, it was enough. They’d make it enough.

“Who wants to live forever?” she whispered, remembering the way they’d shifted gears, focusing on distribution. An easier problem than Emptiness.

There hadn’t been a warning. One moment, she was working to stop the spread, to figure out how to distribute the additive fast enough to keep more people from dying. The next she was screaming as the world exploded around her.

“No chance for me… for love. Love must die.”

We will not survive this. Humanity. She knew this in her soul. Mere months after solving one of the greatest problems of our age. AZ220 reversed brain damage and extended life. Theoretically, humans could live to be 300. Without fear of the insanity that comes from so many years of experiences. That’s what they’d said when they’d advertised the drug, not knowing how it affected the larger population. The swift and deadly spread of the Emptiness had surprised them. No one tested for that during their trials. Or started trials for anyone under 65. No one planned for it to leak into the water supply and wipe out humanity.

“What makes me… what makes my dreams slip away?”

It wasn’t quiet now. She could hear the shouting and screaming above her as the insane mob of uninfected people rampaged through the building, killing anyone in their path. Why should the old get to live while everyone else dies? What good was a world full of old men and women wandering around while everyone young and fertile withered away? Better to burn them, burn everything.

“Who wants to live… live forever?”

It was stupid to hide. In destroying the lab, they’d destroyed any chance of stopping this before it was too late. Honestly, months ago was too late, but she hadn’t realized it. Or maybe she had and hadn’t wanted to admit it. Liana didn’t move. Making herself smaller. Pressing her back into the wall of the utility closet she’d found in the basement. The vial of additive was heavy in her pocket. A lead weight reminding her they might have a chance if humans weren’t so… human. Hiding just prolonged the inevitable. She would not live forever. She wasn’t even going to live another week. 8 billion humans on the planet who’d be dead in a matter of days, hours maybe. Sure, people over age 60 didn’t Empty, but the elderly can’t rebuild the world alone. Assuming they survived the mobs.

“Who wants to live forever?”

The sounds moved closer. Liana heard someone in the hallway. Running feet and laughter, jeers. Liana didn’t want to hide anymore. She wished she could have what her daughter had. The blessed silence and unconcern of the Emptiness as it cut off her neural pathways and left her unable to move. Just breathe and stare while dying of starvation and dehydration. She couldn’t have that. She was too old, but this was the end.

If she was going to die, she’d go as she’d lived. Unafraid and fighting. The footsteps came closer. She could hear panicked screams and pleading. Liana stood and picked up a mop, unscrewing the head so she only held the handle like a majorette in front of a marching band. One last song.

“Forever is our today. Who waits forever… who waits?” she sang.

And opened the door.