Chapter Three

"Shall we assist them?" Marina's question jarred Peter out of his stupor. He confronted her as though she'd flowered three heads.

“What are you talking about? Have you really gone insane? We can't help them with anything that is going on over there."

He slid into a seated position by reclining against the elevator facade, burying his head in his palms, his forearms lounging on his thighs. After a few nervous minutes, Peter groaned and lifted his head, his eyes overflowing with rage as he scowled at the three of us.

Marina frowned. “What do you mean by that?”

"Now wait for a second," Daniel interjected. 

"Die?" I asked, effectively cutting Daniel off. 

It seemed like horrible things were going on, however it appeared exaggerated.

Are people really dying? 

"Yeah, drop dead. Those screams aren't generated by people who are watching a scary movie. Something else is occurring, and individuals are dying. That noise out there is complete annihilation," Peter said harshly.

At the time, I was inclined to have faith in him. I'd never heard anything similar before, and I hoped I wouldn't hear it again. It was too terrifying. I wrapped my arms over my torso and kept myself together, trying to be calm. That flooring was clogged with frightening folks outdoors. But everything appeared to be in order on my floor. Does this imply that the entire structure had not yet been infested by the weirdos?

I now remember hearing those two girls earlier, and from what I've heard about their talk, the other girl appeared to be terrified, as though she had just seen a phantom or some mad creature right out of a nightmare. She mentioned something about it not being a human or being immortal. So, what exactly could it be? Was he an alien? Could he be a walking corpse?

Oh, God. I must be really tired.

Marina's voice trembled as she said, "I don't hear firearms," she attempted again, having cleared her throat. "If people are getting killed, wouldn't they be fired or maybe something? Of course, I mean if this is another type of mass killing."

This appeared to perplex us all. If people were dying, then something was bound to be shooting them. We didn't really hear any loud booms or bangs, and all we could smell was Marina's heavy perfume. I gazed upward at the ceiling, trying to figure out exactly how we were supposed to escape this situation.

Peter’s brows creased. “A mass shooting?”

"That is a possibility. The election was approaching. I heard Rockstone was considering running for president. Perhaps it's part of his strategy to restrict the population of humans and deliver it to a halt, given that poverty and population have been growing," Justine said.

Daniel gave a nod. "Well, it makes perfect sense. Or even the entire government? It's the equivalent of a contingency strategy to remove bulk and manpower."

“Oh, God. I hate the world!” Marina shrieked in stress.

A thunderous crash on the upper half of the automatic doors caught us all off guard. That at least verifies that the lift could reach the offices. I was terrified that the elevator might become stuck between levels and we'd be trapped, but the sounds proved that we were near the north tower. The thump returned. There appeared like a scuffle literally up to the doorway. Whatever was going on was taking place just where the upper part of our elevator was stalled.

Peter growled at the loudness and moved back, putting himself next to Marina. We sat stiffly against the elevator's rear wall, bracing for whatever would happen afterward.

"Could... Uh," Daniel began. He paused for a bit before trying once more, this time whispering. "Will they be able to get in?"

Everyone went completely silent. Undoubtedly, none of us were aware. We just sat there gazing at the doorways, anticipating for another pounding. A portion of me found myself wondering if we'd be damned for our inactivity. We were stranded, yet we weren't even attempting to assist. I never saw myself as someone who could linger by and do nothing whilst others were suffering.

Then again, I'd never imagined this situation. Can I live with myself after this? 

"I think we should contact our relatives," I said gently.

I was apprehensive about speaking louder than a murmur in the event whatever was creating the noises was still out there, but I doubted anybody could hear us above the screaming.

Except perhaps Daniel, who reddened when he recognized he wasn't on him, the others nodded in accord and started to bring out their phones.

"I'll allow you to utilize mine when I'm finished," Marina said quietly to him.

He offered her a modest grin of appreciation, and I took out my phone and sent a mass message to my mom and sister, and for the very first time in a very long time, I felt relieved that I just had a few individuals to be concerned about.

Clementia

Something has occurred. I'm locked in an elevator with my colleagues, and something awful was happening outside. We attempted to contact the police, but it was unsuccessful, so perhaps that implies they seemed to be also aware of what was going on. I'll phone each of you as soon as I finish this. I adore both of you.

Trying to read it again, I realized it ended up sounding like a farewell. I didn't want to worry them, but I wasn't sure whether I'd be able to walk away from this situation.

“Now what?" Marina asked as she passed her phone to Daniel. 

Peter drew his arms across his chest and gave us three a punitive expression.

"All we need to do right now is sit tight and wait."

It ended up taking twenty-eight minutes for the screaming to end, and by then, my mind had barely registered that it had been already finished, yet the noises were still resounding in my ears. We had all decided to sit by and endured it out, without hearing a single word from our near and dear ones outside the building.

"Is it over?" Marina asked in a faint whisper.

I was the first to stand up, my limbs sluggish from staying in the same posture for so lengthy. I walked toward the doors and pressed my ear against them, listening. Hardly anything.

"I do not even hear anything," I said as I backed away from the doorway.

"We should try to get out now."

"What? Are you crazy? What if it isn't over yet?" Daniel hadn't handled the last half-hour very well.

I couldn't exactly say I blame him. I believe it altered us all, however, he was trembling and appeared to be sick.

"We must try. We can't just remain here indefinitely, and I honestly believe that if we were destined to be rescued, it ought to have occurred already by this time."

We couldn't keep on waiting anymore for the aid that wouldn't be forthcoming, so Peter acknowledged and rose from his seat on the floor.

He did not even look in my way as he took a posture at the opposite section of the automatic door. I assumed he was still attempting to make sense of things.

"You're absolutely correct, and I can't handle it any longer," Marina murmured, untangling her hands from Daniel's clasp and fumbling her way to something like a standing posture, tugging at her skirt.

"It's Daniel and Peter. Stand up," Justine said.

"Alright," Daniel said as he and Peter stood and reluctantly followed me to the door.

"Fully prepared? Marina, you and I will take this side, and you two will consider taking the other," Justine remarked, motioning to Peter and me.

"One, two, three..." we slipped our fingers through the doors, grabbing a solid grip on either side.

The initial warping only pushed the doors a little bit open about four and a half inches. It took us about five minutes and the majority of our strength to crack the first set of shutters open.

"Oh, holy shit!" I cursed in frustration.

The excellent news was that the bottom of the fourth-floor entryway was actually much closer to our elevator than we had initially imagined. The bottom of the entrance doors was at my waist level, and also being a five-seven in my one-inch kitten stiletto heels meant the situation could have been worse. The unfortunate thing, however, was that there was a chasm.

The gap between the bottom part of our lift and the facade was wide enough just to trap a foot. Worst-case scenario...

"Don't look down; simply do this movement while maintaining a close eye on your shoes."

Peter nearly snarled at us. To get to the entryway, we all gravitated out of the elevator. We strained to hold our separate doors while maintaining our feet as far away from the border as feasible. Marina was also too petite to acquire any traction and therefore had to step on her toes all the time.

"One, and two, keep on doing, and three..." we wrenched on the doorknobs, but still nothing transpired. Justine made a curse. This time, we were unable to get our fingertips between the panels.

"What's this slick?" Marina murmured, moving her hands away from the bit she could grasp. Her fingertips were scarlet as she returned her hands to the elevator light sources. "Oh, God! Oh, Universe Creator!"

Marina attempted to brush her hands on the sidewalls of the elevator, smearing blood stains on the stainless. When it didn't work, she proceeded to clean it off with the hem of her skirt.

"Oh my dear Lord," she continued saying, wiping her face repeatedly and again.

"Marina, stop doing that," Justine said as he grabbed for her.

She took a step away from him, withdrawing to the elevator shaft rear. She was still brushing her hands on the hem of her skirt when she glanced up at us, terrified.

"Would have been that blood?" she questioned, her voice shaking as she tried to gather herself.

"Don't think about it," I replied.

"Just don't go there right now. Let's get out of here first, okay?"

Marina flashed me a curt nod and took a long breath before trying the doors again. Even as she stepped back into place, she kept brushing her hands on her garment.

"Hold on a minute," I said as I crouched down and removed one of my heels, passing it to Justine.

"What are you doing?" he inquired, his eyebrow arched at my stilettos.

"Try using the stiletto to squeeze a crack sufficiently for our fingers to penetrate. You're the tallest among us," he nodded and proceeded to move the narrow heel between the panels until there was just about enough room for us to maneuver with.

"Thanks," Justine said, passing me back my shoe.

"No worries," I said, slipping it back on and resuming my stance. Don't ponder about it.

"One, two, three..."

We were fortunate to pry the door open just a few inches at this moment.

"Alright. Let's do it again one more time. One, two, yeah, once more, three," my right hand slipped down on the automatic door by yet another two inches. There was something moist on my skin.

Don't even consider it. Just yank. We yanked and wrenched until the doors opened wide sufficient for us to fit in. I took a breather and brushed my hands on my jeans without even glancing at them. Instead, my gaze was drawn to the corridor ahead of us.

We could only see the off-white divider of the corridor just a few feet ahead of us from where we were standing. The puddle of blood covering the floor at the elevator doorway was the sole indication that something terrible had occurred. The blood flowed across the pavement, out of visibility to the left.

"Who would like to go outside first?"