Episode 2 of Broken Chains

Departure

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(The main deck, AI Generated photo, owned by Flaat Library)

Day one on the ship. Things seem to be going well. My room is on the seventh floor of the ship close to the cafeteria. It’s small, with a twin bed, a dresser, and a bathroom WITH a shower! I took the longest shower of my life the second I arrived. The soap didn't have a scent, but I didn't mind. Then I got a glimpse of myself in the mirror. My hair had become a brown shaggy mess. My beard is coming in nicely though! That was something I wish I had gotten from my dad, he always had a thick, long, dark beard. My hair had the same curl as his, but I could never grow a beard until now.

Anyway, I decided to keep my hair long, it's about shoulder length now. I combed it back, which makes me feel like one of those guys from the mafia movies my Uncle Jim used to watch all the time. I only had one outfit, but luckily one of the guest service ladies showed me a shop on the map where I could get more clothes. She said you didnt have to pay for anything on the ship, which is pretty cool.

The ship is massive with over a hundred floors and millions of rooms. Only six of us are on the seventh floor, all ages 16-20. Two girls arrived last night from Seattle, one reminded me of Victoria with long blonde hair pulled back in a braid, her eyes were more blue than Victoria’s were, and she had pale white skin that reminded me of the albino kid that lived down the street from us, before the end of the world. She is beautiful, I feel bad for saying that, but Victoria ended our relationship before she left, so I guess I shouldn't feel too bad. I think the girls name was Emily, but I wasn’t wanting it to be obvious that I was eves dropping.

I plan on getting to the store today, but I also want to try and find Sean. I miss having a friendly face to talk to.

Sincerely,

Carter

___________

The door to Carter’s room slid open and fit into the wall like magic. It opened to a brightly light hallway, with white walls, and a ceramic floor that reflected the light. There were doors on both sides of the hallway and expanded left and right for as far as he could see.

He looked at his map to locate the shop, it was circled in red pen, on the main deck of the ship surrounded by other shops and restaurants. He didn't feel like he was in space, but rather back on Earth at the mall, before the apocalypse. A smile stretched across his face at the memory of the street he grew up on, lined with different colored houses and small shops, where mother would go to buy crystals and get her fortune read. Carter never believe in any of the, “voodoo stuff”, as his grandma used to call it, but mother swore by it.

His family was small, he never knew his father's parents, but his mother's parents lived with them in New York. They owned the biggest farming company in the States and were retired, leaving the company to mother and father, it was Carters birthright.

The thoughts of his family lingered on his mind as he stepped into the elevator and pushed to button for the main floor. He was lost in thought, not realizing Emily was already in the elevator.

“Good morning.” She spoke in a small cheerful voice. Carter jumped, startled. “Oh! Im sorry, I thought you saw me.” She giggled.

Carter laughed a breathy laugh, “that’s okay. Good morning to you too.” He grinned, and folded the map and shoved it into his pocket.

“Where are you headed?” She asked, still smiling.

“A store.” He looked down at his very disgustingly dirty shirt stained with sweat, blood, and mud. Embarrassed he zipped up his hoodie.

Emily laughed and looked down at her own clothes, “mine aren’t much better.” Carter looked at her shirt. It had a large flower on the front, although most of it had been worn off. Hers was similarly stained with mud and blood, but had small holes all throughout. “My mom gave me this shirt before she was taken by the plague. She was a hairdresser.” The smile faded from Emily’s face. “That was a long time ago though.” She sighed, looked at Carter who was intently staring at the flower, and smiled. “Time for a new one I suppose. Can I join you?”

It took a second for Carter to realize what she had asked, “of course you can.” He smiled back, just as the doors opened onto the main floor. A flood of people tried to enter the elevator as Carter and Emily were leaving. “It’s a lot different than how things were back on Earth.” Carter mumbled to Emily.

“Yeah, but Seattle was hell.” Emily mumbled back.

“How so?” Carter pried.

“Things had gotten pretty bad once the government said we were cut off from supplies. People going crazy, hunting anything that had legs. My father and I fled to the woods, built a cabin, but soon we had to go back to the city for the choosing.” She paused to think. “It was horrific.”

“I’m sorry…” Carter tried to sympathize with her, but he knew how hard time were once the government stopped sending food. “It was similar in New York.” Emily stopped walking, mouth gapped open staring at Carter. “What?” He asked as if he had said something wrong.

“You’re from New York?” She whispered.

“Yeah?” Carter couldn't figure out why she was acting strange.

“And you survived.” Tears filled her eyes. She grabbed Carter and hugged him around the arms and waist. She was about a foot or more shorter than his 6’3”. “I am so glad you survived.” She whispered.

“I don't understand what you mean.” Carter looked around at everyone staring at them, “New York is just as bad as everywhere else.”

Emily pulled away, holding him at arms length. “No, it wasn’t. You guys were the first hit in America, the first to be left out of rations, and the first case of…” she paused and looked around to make sure no more people were listening, “cannibalism in America it was chaos there…” She whispered.

Carter raised an eyebrow. “I don't understand.” He mumbled. He never left New York, but from the reports on the radio, and Sean’s stories after he got back from a hunting trip, everywhere had cannibalism, no one had water, and the government took rations from everywhere around the world. He couldn’t comprehend why Emily was acting as if it was the worst.

“We should talk about this later. Not so…” She waved her arm in a half circle, pointing to the deck they stood on, and the expansive size of the ship, “public.” She hugged him again, and started towards the shop. Carter took a second to take in what she had just told him. New York couldn't have been that bad… right?