The Malaise by David Turton

Author:David Turton [Turton, David]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-78535-903-3
Publisher: John Hunt Publishing
Published: 2018-12-14T00:00:00+00:00

13

Three hours of cycling, in which barely a word passed between them went by before Mike spotted the airplane in the distance. It had landed square on the road, cutting across the tarmac like a huge barrier, hunks of debris scattered in the area around the place where the plane had made its impact.

It was Zara who saw the first sign of death. A woman’s skeletal remains lay thirty yards in front of her. The skeleton was still strapped to the airplane seat, its lower half completely missing.

The belongings of passengers were everywhere, along with their bones. And the shoes. So many shoes, thought Zara. She felt these were more upsetting than the bodies and the bones. More personal somehow. They approached the plane and Zara noticed how the crash had actually scorched the entire road, turning it a deep black color. Going around the plane would be impossible, there were deep ravines either side of the wreckage. They would have to go through the plane to continue their journey, boarding through a large crater in one side of the vehicle and hoping there was an exit point at the other side.

Johnny led the way, climbing up and over into the long body of the plane, hoisting his bike onto his shoulders. He signaled to the others that it was safe. Once Zara and Mike had climbed up, they assessed their surroundings. There were more corpses in the passenger seats and smashed glass littered the aisles. Dried blood covered the seats and the floor. Zara noticed a skeleton with a plastic knife buried into its eye socket. They all turned around, wide eyed and alert.

There was a rustling noise coming from the far end of the airplane.

Johnny approached carefully and drew his handgun. Mike and Zara watched on, holding their breath, not wanting to make a sound. Feelings of excitement and anxiety filled the air. Would it be a survivor? Someone, like them, who had come aboard the plane, looking to make their way across this ruined world? Would they be friendly? Or would they be wild and violent, not used to interactions with other humans. The few seconds of wonder felt like hours as they waited to see what the cause of the rustling noise was.

Johnny made it halfway down the aisle when he saw what had caused the movement. There were two green eyes, sparkling between two seats, eyeing him warily. Johnny craned his neck to see more. His body relaxed and he turned to Mike and Zara. “It’s a dog! A German Shepherd! I used to have one when I was little. Tex, he—”

Johnny was cut off by the dog bounding towards him, its sharp teeth exposed within its snarling, angry mouth.

“Johnny, look out!” shouted Mike, but it was too late. The dog knocked Johnny over and was snarling in his face. The handgun flew under one of the seats. Johnny had just managed to push his hands out in time, holding the dog’s face six inches from his own.

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