Chapter 6
480words
Lila was pressing glowing moss against his nose and mouth.
"The mutated moss photosynthesizes... providing trace oxygen." Her voice was hoarse.
Cold wind rushed through the roof breach. The ethylene oxide had completely dissipated.
Buck slumped in the corner, blood seeping from his prosthetic interface. He avoided Kay's gaze. "Old wound acting up."
Kay didn't press further. He crawled toward the driver's seat.
The navigation screen showed only static, but the altimeter indicated they'd entered the Rocky Mountains. Outside temperature: -20°C.
"The water tank has frozen and cracked." Lila held up a handful of ice chips in despair. Their drinking water was rapidly escaping through floor cracks.
Kay grabbed bags of silica gel desiccant and frantically emptied them over the leaks.
The white particles expanded into a latex-like substance on contact with water, temporarily sealing the cracks. "We won't make it to the shelter." He glanced at the energy reserve—5%.
Buck suddenly pointed out the window. "Wind farm!"
Abandoned turbine clusters stood on the snowy slope like tombstones of giants. Hope flashed in Kay's eyes. "Dismantle the magnets! Fix the generators!"
The "Ark" plowed through deep snow. Lila suddenly grabbed Kay's hand. "Look at the ground."
In the snow, fresh footprints led to the largest turbine tower. At the trail's end lay a body, face down, with a charred bullet hole in the back of its skull.
"Looters." Buck quietly chambered a round in his 1911.
Kay killed the engine and lights. In the darkness, the sound of writhing mycelium outside became unnervingly clear. Flashlight beams danced in the distant tower, shadows moving.
"Abandon the vehicle?" Lila clutched the seed bank against her chest.
Kay shook his head. He opened the vertical farm compartment and dug out a handful of glowing moss. "Help me spread this on the roof."
"Are you insane? That'll make us a beacon!"
"Fungi hate strong light." Kay smeared the moss across the vehicle's metal body.
The soft blue light spread, and the "Ark" gradually blended into a wall of glowing moss-covered rocks.
The three held their breath. The tower door opened, and three armed figures emerged.
The bald leader suddenly stopped, twitching his nose. "Jasmine scent? Fresh meat..."
He abruptly raised his gun, aiming directly at the "Ark"!
The gun didn't fire. The bald man repeatedly pulled the trigger—it was jammed with fungal filaments. He looked down at his weapon, golden threads already crawling across his eyes.
"Now!" Kay fired up the engine.
The "Ark" burst through the snow and charged toward the tower. Buck leaned out, his prosthetic limb smashing against the tower door lock.
As the door swung open, Kay's blood turned to ice.
Inside the tower lay the looters' "spoils": boxes of canned food, fuel drums... and more than a dozen curled-up frozen corpses.
In the eye sockets of the corpses, glowing blue moss slowly squirmed.
