Chapter One ~ Sandra
It’s been years since anything was normal. Some woke each day, hoping that it was all just a dream. Others just wished every night that they wouldn’t wake up at all. But the facts were, that the world which all the survivors had been born into, simply didn’t exist anymore. The group of about 50 had once been larger, but some thought that they would do better if they were further south, had left. Some had died, because of starvation, but most of the original 472 had died of the epidemic that had swept through just after the nightmare had begun.
Sandra was one of the lucky ones. She did get sick, but she was able to fight back and she survived and was able to live on the meager rations that the group shared. They had been able to find cans of food, early on, and they had gathered enough of them that when the perishable food was gone they still had plenty, and they could always get more. Many abandoned houses had at least some stores of food in the cabinets and basements. They just went around collecting what they could. They would send out groups to find and collect the stores. But canned food was just not the same as having a nice roast chicken or barbequed steak, thought Sandra as she dipped the ladle into the big pot that had been cooking on the main fire.
Sure, you could live on canned chili…but who would want to. She moved back to her blankets and started to eat. Today had been much like all the others. She awoke, praying that she would find herself in her apartment, wrapped in her warm blankets. But no, as she opened her eyes, she saw the roof of the cave that they were all now living. Funny, this cave was really famous, people used to pay a lot of money to explore its depths. Sandra had gone further inside a couple times, passed where they stored the food. But the batteries had since run out and now fire was the only source of light. And torches didn’t get you very far along, before you had to go back to the living area.
Sandra had been out of the cave earlier today, but it was really cold. Surprising since, they were now living where Tennessee used to be, and if they had calculated right, this was the middle of July. Holidays didn’t seem important any longer, birthdays were celebrated, but they didn’t hold much joy anymore. When Sandra left the cave that morning, she looked to the sky, as she usually did. It was still cloudy. She thought about the programs she had watched on TV before…the ones about the Mega Disasters. The ones that said that all that had happened could happen, but it wasn’t likely. Who could have guessed that everything would happen all at once?
Scientists had warned that global warming would melt the icecaps and that the oceans would rise, but that never really had a chance. The comet that headed straight for earth made sure of that. The oceans did rise alright; the tsunami took back what land it could from the continents. Sandra often wondered how they could miss seeing that big old rock headed straight for them. But she also wondered if the scientists and government had kept that little secret to themselves. They knew that the death toll would have been huge, why cause a panic.
But the comet was the least of their problems. Once the comet hit, those on really high ground grouped together. When the water receded, that was when they were able to search for survivors and scavenge for food. But one morning, the earth started to shake. No one knew what was happening, and many were forced from whatever shelter that they had taken. It wasn’t until days later that the ash started to fall. Electricity had all but stopped flowing, so there was no news to watch, to find out what had happened. They could only guess that a volcano had blown its top. But which one? How bad? Some thought that one of the Cascade volcano’s had erupted, but the volcano was much bigger than that. The comet had caused cracks in the earths crust all over the planet and weakened the crust over what used to be Yellowstone. When Yellowstone blew it was devastating. Tennessee was just far enough away that the ash covered the land with about 3 foot. The remaining houses were destroyed, as roofs collapsed from the weight of the ash and the group was forced to look for a stronger home. Several of the group knew of this cave. It wasn’t to close to any settlements, but they had managed to get there without to many problems. Getting their stores there was a bigger problem. The Ash was like a fluffy snow, so they had a difficult time bringing the supplies in. They tried to use sleds that they made out of the remnants of the houses, but they often sank into the ash and were difficult to pull. So they resorted to backpacking the much needed food in on everyone’s backs. Some of the oldest of the group, only carried a couple cans, the younger ones carried much more. Everyone took what they could. You would think that there would be some of those who would have been unwilling, but everyone seemed to step up.
With no roads or compass to guide them, they had wandered for days, eventually finding the top of a National Parks sign sticking out of the ash. Once cleared away, so that they could read the sign, they knew that they were on the right track. They found the main building, with the roof partially collapsed, and soon found the entrance to the cave. The cave was massive enough to hold the whole group, now it seemed like it was too big, with most of their numbers gone. But with the extra space, they were able to set up little houses. They were not much, walls made of blankets that had been found and used to carry back food. But they gave a little more privacy to the inhabitants of the cave.
Just after arriving at the cave, some started falling ill. At first it was thought that it was just the elderly, succumbing to old age. But when some of the younger of the group, otherwise healthy adults, started getting sick, a panic swept through the group. They started to put the sick further down into the cave. There, they would care for those who were sick. Away from the entrance of the cave, it actually seemed warmer and it was hoped that many would pull through. But the group of 472 was whittled down to about 250. Those who didn’t make it through were brought out of the cave and buried in the ash up near the main building, their names marked on one of the walls of building, so that they would be remembered.
Then they started to run low on food. With the epidemic, came a need to keep the healthy members of the group strong, which meant that they increased the rations that all were able to eat. Soon the stores were depleted and small groups of about 10 left the cave. They searched for houses under the ash, where they might be able to find food stores. They were successful for the most part. Many people kept pantries and food stores in there homes that could be used by the group. While there, they would also look for clothing, blankets, wood; anything that they could carry, which would make the groups life a little more bearable. In the beginning, each trip, would take about a week or so, but soon the trips took longer and longer as the houses and food stores were further and further away.
The walk got easier though, at least for a little while. With clear paths being cut through the ash, they could tell where they had been and where they had not. That was…until the snow fell. The temperatures really started dropping after the comet hit, but when the volcano erupted, it seemed to be cold all the time. The first winter, snow fell almost all the time, covering the paths with more and more snow. They tried to keep the paths to and from the cave clear by walking the paths everyday, packing down the snow, but soon the ash and snow was well above there heads…well above where they could climb safely. They used the wood from their foraging trips, and started making a wall, to keep the snow from coming into the cave to far. They also fashioned a set of stairs so that they could walk up to the surface of the snow. With the wall of snow and wood, the cave became warmer and it didn’t take as much to keep them warm.
Life carried on much in this way for months. They tried to keep a calendar, but it was several days off. Day and night seemed to merge into one. But it didn’t seem to get any warmer in the spring. Soon, smaller groups decided that they should try to head south. They thought that it might be warmer closer to the equator. The first group of 63 left. They packed what they could, taking rations of food, clothing and blankets, and set out. About 2 months later another group of 42 headed south, again, packing what they could carry. And finally the last group of 50 set out. None were ever heard from again. Those that stayed hoped that they made it safely. But in reality, they only found themselves in an unforgiving world. Most didn’t make it to far, though a few stragglers found new groups to stay with, but the conditions were really no better than where they had left.
Now the small group of 59 lived day-to-day, hoping one day to leave their prehistoric lifestyle behind and live like they used to, before the comet. Many of their number had fallen in love and so small family units were formed. A few babies had been born, and a few of their number had died. But for Sandra, life felt like it would never get better. When Sandra and Mark had decided to start a relationship, she held out hope for her future. She had met someone who made her smile, though there was not much to smile about. And when she got pregnant, she hoped that she would be able to raise her baby, and someday the child would grow and be able to see the blue sky again. But the baby did not come. Sandra miscarried about 3 months into her pregnancy and she never felt worse. Mark tried to cheer her up, but soon grew frustrated. Sandra finally suggested that Mark move from their little house of blankets. Mark did move, but soon got sick and about 3 years ago, he died. Sandra blamed herself. If only she had let him stay, he might still be with them. Some said that Mark died of a broken heart, which made Sandra feel even worse…if that were possible.
She pushed people away, afraid that if she cared for them, she would hurt them or worse, they would die. At 20, Sandra is still one of the younger members of the group. She did have a friend, and older woman, who also lived by herself. Sandra visited with Mandy on most days. Mandy became a mother to Sandra who had lost both her parents when the comet had hit. Her mother had been in New York on business and was most likely killed by the huge wave that crashed into the doomed city. Her father had been in Nashville on business. She didn’t know if he had survived, but as they had never found each other, she considered him to be lost as well.
Mandy had been married, but was unable to find her husband after the disaster. She hadn’t been able to have any children, so she knew the pain that Sandra felt. Mandy just listened to Sandra most days, the best type of friend for Sandra to have.
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