The two women watched in subdued silence as the globe in front of them turned with increased speed. It was their position in space that was changing now, because more and more of the parts of the planet currently in daylight were quickly being revealed.
Jenny wished it could have all stayed unseen.
A huge swathe of the surface of the earth was now almost completely covered by the Bleed, a vast and uninterrupted spill of blood. Oceans and seas had become indistinguishable from land, the planet perhaps two-thirds gone. The infection had devoured everything as far as Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Japan, Antarctica, and half of the South Pacific Ocean. Just Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, the Philippines, and a few other countries in the region remained as yet untouched.
For now.
Because the Bleed was still advancing.
“We’re so screwed,” Maddie said.
5
SURFERS PARADISE, AUSTRALIA
Even though Armageddon was sitting on their shoulders, Jenny and Maddie still needed to eat. Maddie had stolen a phone while they’d been out earlier, then hotwired it. Jenny watched her cannibalize the gadget, in awe of her skills. “How do you know how to do all that? I thought you said you were a mechanic.”
“Machines need electronics, and thanks to the war, there’s been an ongoing shortage of useful electrical stuff for decades. You have to make do with what you can lay your hands on and adapt it.”
“I’m impressed.”
“To be honest, I’ve always had a thing about messing with antiques,” she said, dismissive, and she handed the phone to Jenny. “This should let us pay for stuff now.”
“Great. There’s a lot we need. Not just food…fresh clothes, water…this is literally the fight of our lives we’re facing. We need to be prepared.”
“And sleep,” Maddie said. “I’m exhausted. I’m going to need to rest at some point.”
“It’s jet-lag. It’s late here, but my body still thinks it’s earlier. The world feels out of sync with my brain.”
“Yeah, try being from another planet.”
They kept away from major outlets and instead used little convenience stores where there were fewer people. The prices were sky-high, but they were more concerned by the gaps on the shelves than the cost. There was more empty space than food. Anything that was sourced from outside Australia was out of stock, the economics of the dying world grinding to a halt. Panic buying had become the norm. There wasn’t a single toilet roll to be found.
“Just get whatever you can,” Maddie suggested as they entered a third store and split up. “If it’s edible, buy it.”
While they were away from the room and each other in their own little bubbles—Jenny thinking about the life she’d lost ten thousand miles away, Maddie trying to work out if she’d ever make it back to the moon—neither of them gave much thought to how people would be preparing for the inevitable arrival of the Bleed. Fortunately, most people seemed to be equally wrapped in their own problems.
Most people.
They caught up with each other at the counter of the store. Maddie was bagging up the few useful things they’d managed to find when Jenny nudged her in the ribs. She pointed up at a convex mirror mounted high so the shopkeeper could see down the aisles of his store from his till.
“Trouble,” she whispered.
“I see it.”
A man and a woman were watching the two of them intently, and if they were trying not to look suspicious, they were failing miserably. They were whispering to each other and pointing. “Just act calm,” Jenny said under her breath. “It’s probably nothing. The hotel’s not far. We’ll be fine once we get back to the room.”
“It’s getting there I’m worried about.”
“Why?”
“I know you told me you were on TV with a god, but I didn’t fully appreciate how much of a celebrity you actually are.”
“What?”
“Look!”
The cashier had a muted TV on the desk alongside his checkout, and Jenny’s picture was all over the news. The news ticker headlines which scrolled along under her photo were clear and damning. In her three-week (or not) absence, it seemed those news agencies still managing to function had decided to lay the blame for the Bleed’s devastating incursion squarely at Jenny’s door. That wasn’t such a surprise. What really concerned her, though, was the photograph itself and the nature of the bulletin’s lead story. The picture had been taken here, on the Gold Coast, when she’d first emerged from the clockwork room earlier today.
“Shit, they know I’m here,” she said, stating the obvious.
Maddie was not impressed. “I stand corrected. You’re not a celebrity, you’re a liability.”
“I’m sorry…I didn’t know, I swear.”
“You didn’t realize you’re public enemy number one.”
“I think you’re right.”
“Think? I thought that surfer guy earlier had just taken a shine to you. Didn’t realize you’d managed to offend the whole planet!”
Between them they scooped up their bags. “Your receipt?” the cashier asked, but neither of them answered. A final quick glance up at the mirror again revealed the woman who’d been watching them was now on her phone.
Out on the street, Jenny put her head down and marched away, but she’d only gone a few steps when she heard Maddie calling her. “Stop. It’s too late.”
Jenny looked up. “Fuck.”
Two police cars were hurtling down the road in their direction. She looked around but there were more cops blocking the other end of the street. And it wasn’t just the police who were getting involved—she and Maddie were already surrounded by a ring of onlookers. There was no easy way through. Jenny started to move in one direction, but the people closed ranks and prevented her getting past.
“Bitch,” someone shouted at her.
“Fucking traitor,” yelled another.
“Devil lover,” spat a third.
Jenny looked back for Maddie, but she was busy distancing herself from the scene. She’d eased herself back into the crowd, one of their number now, one of the faceless masses, leaving Jenny alone and completely exposed in a shrinking bubble of space.
There was no way out of this.
Someone
