Buried: A Tale of Two Souls

“Do you think rain is real?”

Jean gave Alexis a perturbed stare. “Of course not. It’s been hypothesised, but there’s no proof of it. Why would you think that?”

“All the stories talk about it. Stories came from people, and those people must have seen it from somewhere.”

“Alexis, we’re eighteen. We’re not supposed to believe in childish fantasies.”

She gave him a smug stare. “Except it isn’t a fantasy. I spoke with Rosenburg. He said his grandfather saw rain.”

Jean rolled his eyes. “Rosenburg’s a ranger. They’ll tell all kinds of crazy stories to attract new recruits,” he paused, a sudden realisation dawning on him. “You’re joining the rangers?!”

Alexis didn’t reply. She walked down the corridors of the residential bunk, forcing Jean to trail after her. They were about to turn eighteen. It was supposed to be a day of celebration, a day where they would choose their paths in life. Why did Alexis talk of the rangers so close to graduation?

Alexis went to her bunk, leaving the door unlocked for Jean to follow. As he shut the door behind them, Alexis pulled out an old book. She sat in on her desk with a thud, waving Jean to come over.

As he walked closer, he took a closer look at the book. It was a large, ancient piece of text. Its pages were brittle and yellow, ready to crumble to dust at the mere suggestion of a breeze.

“What is this?” Jean asked.

“A book.”

Jean gave Alexis an exasperated stare.

“Fine. It’s an encyclopaedia. It indexes and compiles general information from before the great collapse.”

“Alright, so?”

“It claims rain does exist. In fact, it goes into detail over its formation and effects,” Alexis turned to a specific page of the book. “It’s called the water cycle,” she said as she held up the book for Jean.

He gave her a flat stare. “Alright, I’ve had enough. What’s gotten into you lately?”

“What?” Alexis said as she set the book down.

“The way you’re acting, asking all these questions about the outside, chatting up ex-rangers. We’re graduating in a week, and now you’re talking about water that falls from the sky! Hell, you blew off your hydroponics exam to hang out with Damien’s gang of ranger wannabes!”

“Are you jealous? Is that it?”

“I’m worried. You’re a top scorer, even after nearly flunking food sciences. You could easily score a job as an engineer. Imagine! five-minute daily showers, Sundays off in the rec room, and your weekly canned meat ration will go up from one to three!”

Alexis folded her arms. “So?”

“So?” Jean echoed back. “You’re going to throw all that away to be a ranger. The kind of work only failures and no-scorers do.”

“Ugh, look. I’m not definitely going to be a ranger. I just want to know about our past. Is that so much to ask?”

“Yes!” Jean said, exasperated. “I’m not an idiot. You’re going to try and learn the past at home, then when you realise it’s not enough, you’ll give up everything and sign up with the rangers.”

“That’s one way of interpreting it…”

Jean gave her a knowing glare.

“Fine. Maybe I’ll join the rangers. So what?”

“I already told you!”

“Ok, who cares about extra water and canned meat? There’s more to life than luxury, you know!”

“Yeah, there’s safety, security, and-” Jean was cut off as the lights in the bunker turned red. In the distance, sirens started blaring. The humour of the irony was overshadowed by the cold chill that ran down his spine.

It was a raid.

Every member of the bunker, no matter their score, knew the drill. Jean and Alexis were no different. In a flash, they were out of the bunk and made their way to the closest armoury, pushing past the throngs of people that filled the tight hallways.

Like they had practised dozens of times before, Jean and Alexis armed themselves with simple rifles and made their way to their mustering stations. As fresh cadets, they would be positioned in safer areas at the bunker’s rear, ready to intercept anyone that broke through the frontline.

They took positions overlooking a corridor, using an overturned metal table as cover, their rifles trained at the door at the end of the hallway. In the distance, they could hear the distinct sound of gunfire. If they heard sounds this far back, it meant the reception area had likely been overrun.

Thankfully, the sounds of fighting didn’t grow louder. Perhaps the raiders had been contained at the bunker’s many chokepoints, much like many of their past assaults. Then out of nowhere, Jean heard a loud explosion in the distance, followed by far louder sounds of shooting. Jean glanced over at Alexis, a cold chill running down his spine.

The explosions continued, each time growing louder and closer than the last. Then in a flash of fire and light, the door ahead of them suddenly blew open. Raiders wearing scrap metal armour and carrying makeshift weapons charged single file down the narrow hallway.

Jean and Alexis both fired without hesitation, dropping the first man. The bullets ricocheted down the hall, eliciting cries of pain and panic from the rest of his comrades. The rest of the raiders took cover in empty rooms, returning fire with their foreign scattershot guns.

Jean cursed. There had to be at least half a dozen of them, if not more. A pair of cadets would not hold against them. “Go,” he commanded Alexis. “I’ll hold them off. Find help.”

“Are you crazy? I’m staying! You go!”

Jean mustered the best disapproving glare he could, but he was interrupted by a small cylindrical object that clattered beside them. Time slowed. One moment, he was staring at Alexis. The next, he was blinded by a flash of light. He heard footsteps charging down the corridor. In a panic, he blindly fired his rifle at the raider’s direction.

Before he got more than a few shots off, someone punched him in the face. The hit threw him off balance, dropping him to the floor as his rifle clattered out of reach. He heard Alexis scream as he saw her faint outline get tackled to the ground.

Another second passed, and his vision finally cleared. Standing over him was a raider, a buxom female not much older than he was. She held a jagged sabre in one hand while blood seeped from a bullet wound in her shoulder. She rested the tip of her blade on his chest, speaking in a foreign tongue as her face contorted between a mixture of pain and rage.

Jean swallowed, refusing to whimper. The girl sheathed her blade and picked up his rifle. She brought the gun to his temple, speaking words he could not understand. He shut his eyes. So, this is how it ends, huh?

A single shot rang out across the hallway. Alexis screamed. Jean felt a distinct lack of pain. He looked up at the girl. Blood flowed from her head, trickling down her curves as she stared at him with lifeless eyes. As she fell on him, more shots rang out, eliciting panicked cries from the rest of the raiders.

Once he pushed off her corpse, the raiders were all dead. Alexis was sitting on the floor, eyes wide with shock. A cloaked figure wearing a patchy dark-brown uniform and gas mask walked from where the raiders came from. He emptied the chambers of his revolver, letting the empty shells fall to the ground. Jean stared at the man, noting his aged, hard eyes. A ranger, he thought, dazed. We’re safe.

Jean had been put on clean-up duty after the raid, with explicit instructions to ‘avoid repetitive negative thought cycles’. In compliance with those orders, he pushed his mind away from the dead raider girl and instead focused on Alexis in more ways than one. He was sweeping charred debris off the floors when a single long chime sounded throughout the bunker, followed by a monotonous announcement. “Team B proceed for recess. Twenty-five-minute lunch.”

The communal canteen was the main hub of the bunker. Apart from being where most people ate, many groups often spent their downtime here, relaxing in the open space and telling stories. Though gambling was prohibited, groups of no-scorers always had a game or two running. He picked up a tray of bitter greens, mashed potatoes, and a colourful variety of vitamin pills. He scanned the room for Alexis. They needed to talk.

He saw her sitting by the same corner where they had always eaten. She was picking at her spinach while half-listening to another marriage proposal from a high scorer. As Jean approached, she flashed him a smile and softly spoke with the proposer.

The man gave him an angry glare before rising and leaving. Alexis had been refusing proposals left and right. If she didn’t accept one soon, she was going to get in trouble with the administrators. Good scorers were expected to marry other good scorers and have children once they came of age.

This was one thing Alexis couldn’t get away with. She had to marry. End of story. Unless… Was Alexis expecting him to propose to her? Was he her escape plan? That thought troubled him. He did feel something, but was it the fire of a lifelong friendship or something more?

Jean sat his tray down and took a seat opposite her. Like a well-rehearsed play, Alexis stabbed a forkful of greens while Jean scooped a generous spoonful of mashed potatoes. They hastily dumped the food on each other’s trays and started eating like nothing had happened.

“Any sign of Mama Gram?” Jean asked as he stuffed his mouth with vegetables.

Alexis was already shovelling mashed potatoes into her mouth, but she shook her head. She quickly chewed and swallowed. “We’re getting good at this.”

“Only took us about twelve years.”

“Yeah…”

“What?”

“I’m just surprised. I assumed you would be trying to talk me out of joining the rangers, not making small talk.”

Jean was immediately reminded of the raider that nearly killed him. Why did he keep thinking about her? Was he grieving for her? They were the enemy. They were the ones that invaded in the first place.

“What else can I say? Logic certainly didn’t work.”

“You only tried once. Normally, you would have plotted and executed your next move by now.”

Jean’s thoughts once again returned to the dead raiders. The girl, there was something off about her. Why did his thoughts keep drifting to her? He spent a moment to let the idea run its course. Alexis, well accustomed to Jean’s periods of silence, simply watched as she ate. Jean closed his eyes. He pictured the female raider. Then he thought of Alexis’ lithe form.

Then it hit him all at once.

“That girl was curvaceous.”

 Alexis frowned, raising an eyebrow. “What?” She was trying to sound nonchalant, but it barely hid a tinge of confusion and jealousy in her voice.

‘The raider that nearly killed me. She was more curvaceous than you.”

Alexis’ eye twitched. She set down her cutlery and folded her arms, her tiny reservoir of patience running dry. “Ok. You have exactly fifteen seconds to explain yourself before I slap you in the face.”

“Why do raiders attack the bunker?”

“For our resources.”

“Right, but the girl had curves, which meant fat. Which meant she was eating. That means they have food.”

“Five seconds left.”

“Food means hydroponics, hydroponics means water, so that means they have water reclamation as well.”

She brought up a hand, ready to slap.

“If they have both food and water, then why are they attacking us?”

Alexis paused, cocking her head. “They might be greedy for more. Or perhaps they were looking to expand. Grow some primitive empire like in the old histories.”

Jean shook his head. “Every attempt they made to breach the bunker failed. Today was their most successful attempt, and they still got massacred. Tens of thousands of them must have died in the attacks. I can’t see how greed would drive them to this.”

“Desperation?”

“Like I said, there were no signs of starvation or dehydration in the dead raiders. If they lacked supplies, they would have instituted some form of rationing. We would have seen evidence of desperation. No. They weren’t pushed to attack us. Something is pulling them to us.”

“So they want to make periodic, suicidal attacks against the bunker?”

Jean looked Alexis in the eye. “Yes.”

“And what does that have to do with you not persuading me to not join the rangers?”

Jean took a moment to process her words. He cleared his throat, swallowing his pride. “I understand why you want to become a ranger. You want answers. You can’t stand not knowing. It demands your attention. I think it’s happening to me too.

“I don’t want to stop you from joining the rangers because I know sooner or later, I’ll join. Just like you.”

“You would rather be a ranger than a botanist?” Alexis gasped. “I’m supposed to be crazy loose cannon! You’re supposed to reign me in!”

“Well, maybe your idea isn’t so crazy after all,” Jean replied, finishing up his greens. ‘Why are you so opposed to this? I actually agree with you for once.”

Alexis let out a frustrated sigh. She stuffed the rest of the food in her mouth and stormed off, chewing. Jean started after her, confused. What was that about?

He finished the last of his meal and followed her. Although she long vanished from view, he knew where she would go when she got mad. Or mildly annoyed. It was sometimes hard to tell the difference between the two. He made his way to maintenance shaft 14B.

Maintenance shaft 14B was a short vertical tunnel with a ladder. At its bottom was a maintenance closet with an unopenable door. When Alexis found the place, they had no idea why it was abandoned, but it served as a great hideout for them both, especially when the bunker felt too crowded.

He made sure nobody was looking before opening an unassuming grate and squeezing his way down the shaft. The muscles he built in the mandatory fitness classes made it a tight squeeze, but he managed.

He found Alexis sitting on the floor, her back leaning against a dusty shelf. She gave him a weird stare as he landed, though she made no comment.

“What was that all about?” Jean asked as he settled down beside her.

“I just…” Alexis sighed. “How can I explain this?”

“You remember advanced communications class, right? Polite honesty is the perfect policy.”

“We both know it’s not perfect.”

Jean rolled his eyes. “Of course not, but it rhymes way better than ‘polite honesty is generally the least ineffective form of communication in managing interpersonal conflicts’.”

Alexis smiled but couldn’t bring herself to laugh. Her mood quickly dropped as she stared at the door melodramatically.

“Come on,” Jean prodded. “Just tell me, and we can work through this.”

‘I wanted you to talk me out of joining the rangers.”

Jean stared at her, confusion written across his face. “So, you don’t want to join the rangers?”

“Oh, I do want to join the rangers, but I was hoping… I was hoping you would use a proposal to try and make me stay.”

Jean’s confusion grew further. “Those two things aren’t mutually exclusive, Alex. Married rangers are rare, but it’s not prohibited.”

“I know. I was hoping you wouldn’t know. I mean, you were so against the rangers that I figured you didn’t do any research into them.”

“And you wanted to marry me? Alexis, I’m sorry, but I don’t know about that. I’m just-”

“Confused, right?” Alexis interjected, looking Jean in the eye. “You like me as a friend, but you don’t know if you like me as anything more than that.”

Jean nodded, surprised.

“I feel the same way too. We clearly need more time to figure this out, but we don’t have that luxury. We’re both high enough scorers that we are required to marry soon,” Alexis blushed. “And have kids.”

Jean didn’t say anything. He just stared at Alexis in shock.

“And you haven’t proposed to any girls, so I thought maybe…” Alexis paused. “Ugh, never mind. Telling you this was a terrible idea.”

“Come on,” Jean whispered. “You already said this much. Keep going.”

Alexis hesitated but soon relented. “I thought maybe you were afraid of finding a partner too. But we know each other. We’ve known each other for as long as we can remember. So…”

“Alexis, are you proposing to me?”

Alexis’ face grew redder. She looked away and nodded.

“You realise we’ll both be joining the rangers, right?”

Alexis nodded again. “Fifty per cent mortality rate in the first seven years of duty. But after twenty-five, we become fully matured rangers. Their mortality rate is only thirty per cent.”

Jean sighed. He already knew the numbers but hearing them again served as a grim reminder to him. “Alexis, I’ll marry you, but on one condition. We need to promise each other something.”

“What?”

“Statistically speaking, at least one of us will die before we become full-time rangers. If anything happens to either of us, whoever is left must keep moving forward. No matter what.”

“Alright, I promise.”

Jean cupped her cheek. “Do you really promise? You can’t lie to me on this. Don’t betray my trust on this.”

“I promise.”

Jean stared deep into her eyes. He held the gaze for what felt like hours before finally letting go. “Then I promise the same to you as well,” Jean reached out and held Alexis’ hand. “Alexis, do you take me as your partner, now and forever?”

Her face grew as red as a beetroot. She tightened her grip on Jean’s hand. “I do.”