Not Just Minds

It’s my yearly spooky story! I’m pretending I’ve deliberately timed it late, for Halloween. It was originally one of the most miserable things I’ve ever written, specially aimed to bring fear to the post-2020 heart. I am always a little disturbed by my own glee at writing my yearly horror story and this year it seemed a little excessive.

There’s certainly nothing wrong with portraying horror and evil in a visceral, memorable way. But it seemed like instead of portraying truth through horror, this year I was just aiming to creep people out and possibly depress them. My solution: I talked about the horror genre with someone else who doesn’t read horror (great idea, right?). But she had the genius idea of talking to someone who actually reads and enjoys horror! I ended up with some good ideas about morally compromised characters and survival and gained a better appreciation of a genre I don’t really read. Who knows if my revised story is better than the original or if it fully fits the horror genre in the end, but it at least fits my purposes better as a writer!

They tell me I’m a genius, and I suppose they’re right, but for the life of me I can’t think without my—my thingagummy…Give me a second…Ah, here it is. My notebook. I keep lists. And the lists help keep my brain straight. See, here I have today, March 18th, 3020.

Breakfast—sausage biscuit from freezer—which now that I think of it, I’m pretty sure I left that in the microwave…Darn. Anyway:

Don’t forget to brush your teeth. Check.

Trim beard and mustache. Check.

Recharge the car on the way to work. Check. –It was mighty deserted on the roadways today. Lots of people walking, actually. Perhaps I’ve missed a national holiday? Whatever we’re celebrating, I think it’s irresponsible to leave cars stopped in the middle of the road, no matter how excited you are to celebrate. I nearly wrecked twice. And I don’t think there was anybody manning the electric station when I stopped to recharge, either. But that’s besides the point. The point is my list.

And here’s the best bit, the part I’m really excited about: Complete nano-testing of final serum sample! Check and check!

Now there’s still more to go, but this is the final process that has to be completed before we can begin testing. I’ve been working on this serum for decades, you know. It’s my life’s work and I’m finally finishing it today. They should have it in production sometime in the next six months! I’m hoping to get a call from the Nobel Peace committee…but now, I don’t want to get a swelled head. They’ll probably give it to another vegan actress-activist again. A completely useful person, I’m sure. …Oh, don’t listen to an old man’s grumblings. I’m not bitter. Because in the end, it doesn’t matter who gets what prize and who pats who on the back—with this serum, I have saved the world!

Ever since the last pandemic, we knew another one was coming. The problem is, you don’t know what the disease or virus or superbug or what-have-you is going to do. So what you need is a cure-all. And this—this, my magnum opus, is my cure-all. It cures every disease, no matter the cause, no matter the mechanism. Typhoid. Smallpox. Whooping Cough. Dysentery. Ebola. Covid-19. The common cold!

Ah, there’s someone pounding at the door. I’ll be there in a minute! Keep your hair on! I can’t just walk away from this…the nerve of some people…Coming in late and expecting me to drop everything to open the door. Where is the security guard, anyway?…I’ll just finish this final reading of the serum before I put the tubes in cold storage…I would have thought at least my assistant Ryan might have bothered to come in today. That’s the problem with interns, they just don’t understand the gravity of our work here. Except…you know, I really thought they did. It’s a great group of minds—not just minds—coworkers—friends—that we gathered her to collaborate on this. I have come to think of them as family, and I’m honestly quite saddened. This is so important and there really is nobody here.

Well now whoever it was at the door must have gone away. It’s quite silent—or—no—are those footsteps?

There, the testing is done. There it is, the world’s first cure-all, sitting in eighteen sterilized test tubes right in front of me.

Oh! Jim! You startled me—good heavens, man, what’s wrong?! You’re drooling and bloody! Did you…break through a window?! W-what are you doing? No, I don’t think I want you coming over here. Stop! Please, Jim, I don’t appreciate the joke—stop where you are! Stop right now, or—or I will hit you, and this pan is iron—I’m not afraid to use it! Get back! Get back!

Oh no. Jim! Jim Garrows, can you hear me? I smashed his face in. No! Why did I swing so hard—now I’m on my knees on the floor—there’s so much blood. I’ve–his face… I’m going to be sick… Jim! …Your eyes just opened. You can’t—can’t be alive…

AAUGH! GET OFF! GET YOUR HANDS—

Whatever has him…he was trying to bite my throat out. He didn’t get to me. I hit him again. And again…and again…and again. He won’t be coming back. There’s noises at the door. If this is what I’ve been preparing for…there’s going to be more of them. I’ve got to get the serum to a safe place. The closet. I’ve got to get to the hazardous materials closet. It’s reinforced steel. It means I’ll have to get past the front door. There’s nothing for it. I’m going. Here we go—I’ll sprint past the glass windows, hopefully I’ll not attract too much attention—

Oh good Lord.

It’s Ryan. And Theresa. And Phil.

They are…they are not well.

Ryan—the dear boy. He’s bloody, he’s been bitten! And Theresa, she’s just screaming, it’s like she can’t even think anymore, and there’s blood all down the side of her neck… They’re going to break down the doors! This can’t be happening—I’m here! I’m across—slam the door, bar it, bar it—with what? What?! Is there nothing useful in this lab?! Here—the key, the lock—move the cabinet. Okay. Breathe. Make a list. A list. Block the entrances. First thing. Get to closet. Next thing. I’ll have to go down that hallway with all the windows. Surely, surely that’s strong enough to hold them out—

Oh heavens, the front door glass just broke. The whole front window must have caved in. They’re coming! They’re coming! If they can break that glass…I don’t have time to lock doors—what was that?! It’s Ryan he’s kicking down the door. What’s this? It’s acid. I’ll take that–they’ll regret ever coming in here, if I throw that on them. I’ll take it with me. …Nononono—–The windows! Augh, they’re—they’re climbing the walls! I’ll shove this—Ow! Ow, I’ve pinched my thumb—but the window’s blocked.

I have to go now, before they get further—where’s the serum? Where did I put it?! It’s—it’s not here. Where is it?! Where’s my list? Where did I put the serum? They’re coming! They want me! There it is! By the door! I got it—no, don’t break that door! Ryan, listen to me, please, Ryan, it’s me, Dr. Pinkard, it’s me—don’t…

…It’s on the floor. It’s smashed.

Dear Lord. Every. Single. One—but no! I have one in my hand! One in my hand! He’s here! I’ve got to get to the supply closet. Ryan, Ryan, no, stop, leave me alone—Get OUT! GET OUT! Augh!

Ooh, ouch. I’m in the closet. I made it.

He bit me.

 I can’t think. I can’t breathe. He’d grabbed me and I kicked him in the face, but he caught me—ooh it burns. My whole hand is on fire. He didn’t know me; you could see it in his eyes. But I got them back. I got them good. Maybe it’s not as fast as a headshot, but I bet that acid will do the trick. It’ll burn and burn until there’s nothing left…What am I saying? Those were my colleagues! My friends! What have I done? But I had to, I had to… I have to focus. I’ve done…what I’ve done. I can’t undo it, I don’t know what else I would have been able to do… I wish I had my notebook. I’d write a list.

I guess I should be glad we keep all the expensive and dangerous supplies in here behind this reinforced door. Oh, I have to catch my breath….Alright. One left. The first thing to do is obvious. I don’t need my lists for once, hah. Easy decision. I’ll get out a syringe, get my arm ready…

I can’t believe I’m here, about to do this, about to use my own serum. This isn’t what I imagined. I thought…I mean, Jim Garrows and I came up with this idea. Everybody thought we were crazy. We wanted to save people’s lives, and—and…I just beat his head in. I threw acid on Theresa, on everybody. I thought I wanted to save lives and now it turns out…

It’s quiet out there. I wonder if they’ve gone? The whole world diseased and I have one antidote left. Only one. I suppose it’s good that of the two people in the world who know how to make the antidote, I’m the one that has the last of the serum.

There’s still some noise out there. I’ll just climb up and look out the top window—oh, it’s Ryan. He’s alone now. He knocked my hand aside when I threw it…Everyone gave me all the credit, but a good half is due to him, too, the boy. He’s been with me from the beginning, just the irritating know-it-all homeschool kid who graduated from everything too early. He was more than just a mind. Creative, brilliant, never-ending energy. What would I have done without him? And look at him. His leg is broken and he doesn’t notice. He’s covered in blood. I think I must have broken his nose when I shoved at him. I’m sorry, so sorry, Ryan.

And I’m standing here holding the last syringe full of the antidote that could cure him. But my own hand is burning. It’s spreading up my arm; it’s not going to be long. –Am I really thinking this? Where is my notebook? If I wrote it down it would be clear, surely that I’m the rightful owner of this…Did I really spend my entire life working to save others only to keep it to myself?

But I couldn’t give it to Ryan. I couldn’t. Nobody would expect that kind of sacrifice from me, even if they knew it was an option. The world needs me….Except, he knows the way to produce the serum, too. And right here, in the lab, in the reinforced closet—he might just have a chance—No! I don’t have TIME for this! My arm! Augh! Forget this, I’m going to—is he talking? No, just groaning. The pain must not go away. The pain is awful. It would be easy to give it to him; he’d come straight for me and I could plunge it in before…before…I have to decide now. There’s no more time for lists. No more time…

I’m opening the door.

#scientist #apocalypse #pandemic #zombies #halloween