Human Nature (Book 4): Human Nature IV Read online

  © Finlay Borthwick 2021

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or modified in any form, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  © Finlay Borthwick 2021

  Human Nature IV

  Contents

  Chapter 1: Forgotten

  Chapter 2: Memory Lane

  Chapter 3: New Arrivals

  Chapter 4: You’ll Find It

  Chapter 5: Followers

  Chapter 6: Going Back

  Chapter 7: Reunion

  Chapter 8: It’s Oh, So Quiet

  Chapter 9: The Eye Of The Storm

  Chapter 10: Natural Causes

  Interlude

  Chapter 11: Journey To The Centre Of The City

  Chapter 12: Danny

  Chapter 13: Every Nook And Cranny

  Chapter 14: What’s What

  Chapter 15: The Martyr

  Chapter 16: Spoken Secrets

  Chapter 17: Sitting Ducks

  Chapter 18: Turf War

  Chapter 19: Recrudescence

  Chapter 20: One Bullet

  Interlude

  Chapter 21: Left Behind

  Chapter 22: Another Time

  Chapter 23: The Party

  Chapter 24: The Zodiac

  Chapter 25: Mayday

  About the Author

  Chapter 1: Forgotten

  The bathroom of the terminal was disgusting. The sinks had been chipped away, the cubicle doors were all either scratched or hanging by a single hinge, and the wallpaper had large tears in it.

  Naomi was chained up to the sink furthest away from the door, slouching against the dirty old wall.

  She was still unconscious and had a million thoughts racing through her dreams.

  ‘Why this? Why me? Why this place?’

  ‘The boat…’

  ‘Forgive Worm, forgive yourself.’

  ‘Polaris?’

  Then, her thoughts awoke her. She rubbed her eyes as she came around, and quickly realised she was in cuffs, and then traced the chain back to the sink.

  “Tanika!” She yelled out desperately. “Let me go, Tanika!” She strained her vocal cords as she cried out, yanking forcefully at the chains. “Crap!” She mumbled to herself, realising that her efforts were in vain.

  Thinking fast, she looked around the bathroom for any objects that could help free her; but the only useful thing in sight was a faucet on the floor which had broken from one of the sinks above. She reached over and gripped it firmly before pulling back and using the tap to bash her restraints.

  Then, the restroom door creaked open.

  For a very short second, Naomi had subconsciously dismissed the sound, before ceasing to try and escape. She looked up at the doorway, prompting her face to devolve into sheer horror.

  A mysterious and significantly tall figure stood looming over her, dressed in black robes and wearing a masquerade mask to conceal their face.

  Naomi glared back; she was too scared to break eye-contact.

  The figure reached into one of its’ deep pockets and produced an energy bar, which was then thrown across the floor towards Naomi.

  She looked down at the consumable, moving her expression from terrified to confused. “Who are you?” She asked, looking back up.

  Naturally, her captor did not respond.

  “What have you done with my friends?”

  Still, he watched her in complete eerie silence.

  Fed up with this one-sided exchange, Naomi grunted and threw the tap at the figure with strength, but her aim was slightly off.

  Clearly, her captor was not fazed by her desperation; the throwing of the tap had only decreased her chances of escaping, if anything.

  Giving in, Naomi sighed and reached for the energy bar with her cuffed hands. She unwrapped it and took a bite.

  Satisfied, the figure stepped back out of the restroom and closed the door on her. Then, Naomi spat out what she had bitten off; for all she knew, the bar could have been poisoned.

  THE NEXT DAY

  ‘Why this? Why me? Why this place?’

  ‘The robes… Who is it? Why the robes?’

  ‘Forgive Worm, forgive yourself’

  ‘Polaris?’

  Once again, her thoughts awoke her. After already spending a day locked up in the dark and decaying room, her eyes had adjusted to the lack of light.

  The door creaked open, followed by the robe figure stepping in once again.

  They stared at each other; this time however, Naomi had a sterner expression rather than a terrified one.

  Just as with the previous day, the figure then produced an energy bar and slid it across to her.

  She took a bite and pretended to swallow it, prompting her captor to exit the room again.

  Spitting what she had bitten off back out again, she then slid the bar across to the nearest cubicle, just as she had done with the first one.

  She was absolutely starving, but she refused to give in. The thing that pained her the most however was that the sinks were just out of reach of her chains, preventing her from cupping water in her hands.

  THE NEXT DAY

  ‘Why this? Why me? Why this place?’

  ‘The robes… Who is it? Why the robes?’

  ‘Just eat something. If they wanted you dead, you’d be dead.’

  ‘Polaris?’

  Her eyes shot open as she woke up in the same bathroom for the third time. Her face was becoming rather pale now.

  As with before, the door creaked open, and her captor stepped into the restroom once again.

  This time however, he held a water bottle in his hand. Following their daily stare-off, he tossed the bottle over to her.

  Slightly giving in, she unscrewed the lid and guzzled more than half of the liquid inside; it was cold, fresh, and mineral.

  Satisfied once again, the figure stepped back out of the room.

  “Oh, that’s it?” Naomi called out. “No breakfast today?”

  THE NEXT DAY

  ‘Is this what it feels like to be tortured?’

  ‘The robes… Who is it? Why the robes?’

  ‘Just eat the next time you’re given something edible. If they wanted you dead, you’d be dead.’

  ‘What’s Tanika’s role in all of this?’

  “Polaris!” She distressfully cried out as she woke up from bad thoughts intertwined with a nightmare.

  Due to her malnourishment, it took her a few moments to remember where she was and what was going. She was looking very ill now indeed.

  This time, however, the door did not creak open; for the robed figure was already in the restroom, watching over her as she slept.

  Her vision was blurry, but eventually she was able to fixate on her captor.

  Then, the figure pulled down their hood, and removed their mask.

  Naomi was too weak to properly decipher the facial features, but she could clearly tell that it was a man.

  He cleared his throat. “To answer your first question,” he spoke with a Canadian accent as well, “Who am I? My name is Gale.” He addressed the question from days prior. “I’m a friend of Tanika’s and a crew member of the S.S. Aquarius…”

  SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, USA

  DAY ZERO: THE BEGINNING OF THE APOCALYPSE

  “Is everything alright sir? You sound very… Oh… What? Seriously? As in…? Yes sir, I understand.” Gale put down his cell phone. He was sat in his car, suspiciously watching a single coffee shop. Through the window, he could see several customers and staff alike all collapsing and spitting blood out of their mouths. Upon seeing
this, he began to breathe hysterically, thrown completely off balance by what his boss had just told him. Picking up his cell phone again, he dialled his top contact.

  “Tanika, have you heard about this?” He questioned whilst gripping his chest.

  “Uh… Heard what?”

  “I just got a call from The Director! He wants us on board the Aquarius and away from mainland in fifteen minutes. What’s going on?” He began to sway, his breathing becoming more and more irregular.

  “I…” Tanika stuttered over the phone. “Christ!”

  “Tanika? Hello? Are you still there?”

  “Yes! Yes, I’m here…” She sounded just as distressed as Gale felt, “Look, I don’t know what’s going on. I’ve been told what you’ve presumably been told; that a virus is breaking out, and it’s going to do considerable damage to the world.”

  “Considerable?!” Gale squeaked, his knees trembling and his forehead sweating, “People are literally coughing up their own insides! Is this really what Zodiac has been about this whole time? Has this all also been planned?”

  Tanika sighed. “No, Gale. Don’t be ridiculous… Oh shit!”

  Gale could hear the car tyres screech, as though Tanika had slammed on the brakes.

  “What is it? Are you alright?” He said rather breathily.

  “It just happened… Right in front of me…”

  “Calm down, Tanika. Just meet me on the Aquarius and we’ll be fine.” He focused his remaining energy onto calming down his friend, despite how alarmed he himself was. “I’ve tried calling the rest of the team, but nobody else answered--”

  “—Because they’re dead.” She interrupted.

  They argued about this notion, but this stress only worsened Gale’s condition.

  “I…” He tried to speak, but then he vomited on his dashboard. “Tanika...” He mumbled inaudibly before collapsing hard against the car door.

  “Gale! Please, Gale!” Tanika begged as the phone call continued. “Don’t do this to me! Gale!”

  Vomit began to cover the phone as it slid across the dashboard. The substance disfigured the device, causing the call to end abruptly…

  Some time later, Gale woke up again. His arm was dead from where his entire body had leant on it.

  Before he was even fully conscious, he reached for his phone from the dash and spammed the buttons; but it was completely fried.

  Needing something to pick himself up, he pried open the car door with a struggle, and staggered towards the coffee shop, faithful that he could still get a brew.

  Stepping inside, he was greeted with blood and corpses scattered around the place.

  “Fuck…” He mumbled and covered his nose, completely overpowered by the scene.

  Feeling himself about to throw up a second time, he backed up outside and wretched. Then, he noticed a payphone across the road, and now staggered towards that target instead.

  Using up his last quarters, he dialled Tanika’s number. It rang out for some time. “Come on!” He groaned.

  Much to his surprise, the call was answered.

  “Hello?” Tanika was both confused and happy to hear from another survivor.

  “Tanika,” Gale began droopily, “Come and get me…”

  She paused, “…Gale? Is that you?”

  “Yes.” He answered bluntly.

  “You’re alive? But how?”

  “It takes more than a panic attack to kill me,” he joked unenthusiastically, still feeling extremely hot and overwhelmed.

  “That’s amazing! It really is!” She affirmed. “But… It’s nearly been a whole day, Gale. You realise that, right?”

  “W-what?” He asked in confusion. “But the sun is still rising!” He looked up at the celestial object, not caring about the damage to his eyes.

  “No… It’s setting. Gale, I’m sorry, but I’m already way out into the ocean. I simply just can’t come back.” Tanika said empathetically.

  “Damn Pacific.” He jeered.

  “I should’ve gone for you the moment the call went dead… I’m sorry.” She blamed herself.

  “Don’t sweat it.” He forgave her.

  “What will you do?” She asked.

  “Probably head back to our home… Back to Newfoundland.” He said deludedly. “I take it you’re gonna roll over for The Director.”

  “Don’t say it like that.” She rebutted. “Look, what else am I going to do? There’s a plan, and even if it does indeed take years--” She ceased speaking after this slip-up.

  “Years? Tanika?” Gale caught on and became concerned about the future. “What are you talking about? Do you mean… That I was right? That this whole thing is staged?” He became weak with that last word and began to stagger away from the payphone.

  “Gale, please… Just listen.”

  But it was too late. Falling backwards, he passed out again…

  EIGHT YEARS LATER

  “…And to be fair, I did make it back to Newfoundland in the end. Much to my surprise, Tanika headed there as well. Then, reunited, we both sailed for this place on the Aquarius… I mean, there’s a little bit more to it than that, but never you mind!” Gale finished explaining his story to Naomi, who was barely processing anything which he had just said.

  Gale sighed sarcastically. “Alright fine. I guess you deserve it for behaving anyway.” He produced two energy bars from his robe and slid them both across the floor to Naomi.

  Without any hesitation, she immediately ripped into the first one.

  “And take this too.” He tossed her a packet of tablets, “You must have an awful headache.”

  Whilst Naomi was distracted with the energy bar, Gale quickly glanced over at the one mirror above the sinks which was still perfectly intact and present.

  Unknown to Naomi, the mirror was fake. There was a camera behind it that had been monitoring her every move.

  Though for some reason, it seemed as though Gale himself was unnerved by this, as though he were also under surveillance.

  Chapter 2: Memory Lane

  Gwen and Alek were beginning to lose consciousness.

  “It’s okay--” Alek tried to reassure her, still clenching her wound. “Whatever happens-- I’m here… Teacher.” He became nostalgic over their scouting trips.

  Gwen tried to smile, but this only pained her even further.

  “Hey!” One of the now-friendly men opened the front gate, “These two are still alive out here! Doc! They need you!” He shouted backwards into the courtyard.

  Three other men then came rushing through the open gate and circled around Gwen and Alek.

  “Jesus, these do not look good...” One of them assessed, briefly glancing over the two wounds.

  Unfazed by the people around him, Alek continued to focus on Gwen. He repeated, “It’s okay…” To her. Then, his eyelids fluttered, and finally closed, as he passed out.

  “Keep pressure on them!”

  “What’s her name?”

  “Gwen, if you can hear me, this is going to hurt.”

  “He’s not breathing!”

  “Got a pulse!”

  “We’re losing her!”

  “Come on! Don’t give up on me! Stay in there!”

  Nikola and Rubin waited outside the room in which their new allies were operating on Gwen and Alek. Then, a familiar face came their way.

  “Jázmin!” Nikola called out to her and caught her attention.

  “What’s happening in there? Are they alright?” She asked after Gwen and Alek.

  “It’s impossible to say right now.” Nikola commented.

  “Does Annabelle know?” Jázmin asked with seemingly genuine concern.

  “Yes. I radioed Petra myself.” She looked down at Rubin who was gripping the radio tightly.

  “And Elliot?”

  Nikola shrugged. “No idea. We’re not even sure where he is…”

  Elliot trod lightly throw the forest, feeling like he was floating. He admired everything happening around him; the sou
nd of the leaves crunching beneath his feet, the sound of the birds touching, and the warm hand of his lover intertwined with his own. The only drawback was that he felt rather light-headed, as though this entire experience was all a dream.

  With her freed hand, Olivia brushed Elliot’s cheek. They looked deeply into each other’s eyes.

  “Beautiful.” She remarked. “Your soft blue eyes… It’s just like looking out across the ocean.”

  Elliot felt as though something was inaccurate about that comment, though he felt ‘too good’ to enquire it any further than that.

  “You’re here.” Elliot repeated once again. “This is all that matters, right?”

  She nodded and moved her hand down to his chin. Gently, she kissed his lips.

  “Aw. How sweet!” A familiar yet unpleasant voice taunted from behind Elliot.

  Recognising it, he turned around, and suddenly, his feeling of freedom turned into fright. “Sonia?”

  She smiled evilly at him. “Hello again, Elliot. Nice to… Well, see you again.” She taunted.

  “Ignore her.” Olivia grabbed his cheek and turned his head back to face her. “She can’t hurt you, Elliot. Not anymore. Just look at me. Everything’s alright.”

  “Oh my, I really do admire the way that you lie to him.” Sonia stepped closer.

  “I love you.” Olivia told Elliot, desperate to keep his attention on her.

  But still, Sonia was set on ruining this ‘special’ moment. “I’m still alive, Elliot. Somewhere out there, I’m alive. I took away your sight, but you were unable to take away my life. Doesn’t seem fair, really, not even by my standards.”

  “Bitch!” Olivia drew her pistol out on Sonia.

  Elliot stood back, feeling completely helpless.

  “Go on then. Do it.” She taunted, glaring Olivia dead in the eyes.

  “Olivia, don’t!” Elliot begged. “We can still be better than her!”

  Sonia laughed. “Actually, I think it went something more like… This!” She lunged forward at Olivia and stabbed her.