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i-am-the-doctor · 8 months

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Red Tides a' Rollin CHAPTER 2 //TW: Graverobbing, violence, animal attacks, mention of suicide, funeral

CHAPTER 2

“Friends and Family, We are gathered here today to celebrate the life of Olivia Moira Johanneson, who was born on September 30th, 2023, and tragically passed away on January 1st, 2042, in the Woodfork Spiker Massacre. May we forever remember her smile and her willingness to help others, May we lift her name up to the heavens, and may we keep her memory in our hearts, lest she be forgotten. Let us pray..”

As Fredrick and the rest of the congregation of friends and survivors and family bowed their heads, he pondered his plan that he and Jonathan agreed upon that very night. When he first entered the funeral home’s gates, he surveyed his surroundings, as it would be imperative to remember where everything was for tonight. The only noise in the solemn graveyard now was the director reciting a prayer for Olivia’s soul, but such prayers aren’t needed, Fredrick thought to himself. After all, she will be back, better than ever, practically immortal to do whatever she pleased, to live the adulthood that was stolen from her at 18, to have a spouse or kids if she wanted. They rose their heads afterwards, clean-bandaged survivors and friends came up to read their eulogies and kind words about their friend, and after that, a final prayer was said for her, and her casket was lowered into a shallow grave and covered with gravel.

After the funeral had ended, the two men briskly walked back to Fredrick’s truck, a maroon 1998 Chevy Blazer, and as Fredrick approached the driver’s door, he felt a wave of drowsiness overcome him from his lack of sleep. He attempted to shake himself awake, but it was futile. Jonathan then tapped him on his shoulder, jolting him awake.

“Fredrick, are you alright? Maybe you should let me drive!” “No no, Jonathan, I’m perfectly fi-” Fredrick mumbled before getting cut off by jonathan, whose eyes were wide with worry. “I Insist! You look like you’re about to fall over!”

“...Agh, Fine. Heres the keys.” He muttered, handing him the keys to the truck before walking over to the passenger’s side and opening the door to hop in, to which Jonathan followed suit.

“So, now we go to my place to get that ice-chest and the shovels?” Jonathan asked, making sure he was correct, to which Fredrick nodded, struggling to keep his eyes open.

“Yeah, thats right. You still have that ice-chest in your garage, huh?”

“I should, Last time we ever used it was when we had that barbeque back in July…” Jonathan replied as he started the engine to the truck and began backing out of the parking lot and onto the road. No more words were said, as Fredrick leaned onto the door, looking out the window and into the vastly varying scenery, between graffiti-abundant ghost towns, abandoned farmlands void of animals and crops, and woods and swamps abuzz with rabbits hopping along ditches, and foxes leaping across logs. As he gazed upon the everchanging environment moving by, he allowed himself to close his eyes and relax as his breathing slowed. After all, he was exhausted, both physically and emotionally, maybe a little nap would help him…

…

When we finally awoke from his dreamless sleep, he found himself in the dark interior of his truck, parked in front of a house , with dark blue and white paint, flowerbeds on either side of the door, and a statue of the Virgin Mary in the front yard. He then sat up in his seat, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He looked out the window once again to find that it was nighttime now. Where was Jonathan, he asked himself, but it was quickly answered by Jonathan opening the driver’s door, visibly sweating, and out of breath.

“H-Hey, Fredrick! You’ve been out for quite awhile! I finally found my shovels and ice-chest! I… Oh god.. I thought i would never find it- I need to clean my garage out!” he huffed, leaning on top of the seat.

“Well why didn’t you wake me up? I would’ve helped you!”

“You hadn’t slept a wink since last night! You would’ve probably passed out while standing and fall into some of the bullcrap I have stashed in there and lose an eye!”

“Yeah, thats probably true!” He chuckled, stretching his back. “So, wheres the chest and shovels now?” “I went ahead and put them in the trunk while you were asleep!” “Well good! Now, we just need to pick up some ice from the gas station and head on back to the gas station! ….What was that gas station called again?”

“Elbertsons.” Jonathan pipped as he hopped back into the truck and started the engine once again, setting back out on the roads. “Hopefully they’re still open!” “I hope so too! Ugh, I hate time changes..”

“Me too..”

After 10 minutes of driving along, they finally arrived at the Elbertson’s Gas station, a homely little mom-and-pop buisness in the middle of an old community, with old-fashion gas pumps, and a big “ICE-2-GO” Ice machine to the front-left of the lot. Jonathan parked the truck in front of the building, and unbuckled his seatbelt.

“Alright, I’ll be back, i’m going to go ask if they have change for a dollar. Need anything?” “No, not at the moment.”

Jonathan nodded, and hopped out, and made his way towards the establishment. When he made it, he attempted to open the door, but it only rattled, as the door was locked. He then checked his wallet to see if he had any change, and he felt his chest tighten when he realized that he had no change, and had to ask Fredrick. What kind of moron doesn’t have change nowdays, he panicked to himself. ‘Now I’ll look like an idiot in front of my best friend!’. He then trudged back to the truck, red in the face, and opened the door once again.

“Hey.. Fredrick? They’re closed, and i just checked, and i…. Uh..” “Don’t have any change?” Fredrick asked, confused on why he was so visibly embarassed about something as trivial as a lack of change.

“....Yeah.” “Hey, it happens. I got some here in the center console.” He chuckled as he opened up the center console and gave him four shiny quarters and an oxidised penny. “Here. let me know if you need more.” “Thank you Fredrick. I’ll be back!” He said with a slight grin as he closed the door once again, grabbing the ice chest and swiftly sprinting to the ice machine, which was lit with a singular streetlamp hanging above jonathan’s head. He then put the coins into the slot, and within minutes, the ice poured into the ice chest, filling it up halfway. He then picked it up, the weight of it almost popping Jonathan’s shoulders out of place, but instead of crying out in pain like he oh so wanted to, he sucked it up, and slowly made his way back to the truck. Afterwards, he popped the trunk open, and pushed it in, huffing and puffing, clutching his chest to feel his heartbeat. He opened the door to the truck once more, his face as red as a can of strawberry soda.

“I… I got the ice!” he wheezed.

“Jonathan, Are you alright?!” “I… I’m okay, i think! I… I think you should probably drive now, I can barely move my arms, I-I’m sorry, Fredrick!”

“Hey, don’t apoligize, you’re doing a lot- take a rest!” Fredrick said as he hopped out of the passenger’s seat, allowing Jonathan to take his place as he jumped into the driver’s seat, starting the truck once again, and finally driving back to the graveyard, passing by the same landmarks that he fell asleep watching.

…

When they finally reached the graveyard, Fredrick found that the area was silent. Eerily silent, with the only light being the full moon above and the headlights from Fredrick’s truck-- which were quickly turned off after they had parked as to not bring attention to themselves.

“Are you ready, Jonathan?” Fredrick asked, getting out of the truck to fetch the Ice-chest and shovels.

“Yeah, i am. but.. What what if people notice the gravel got moved around or something? I don’t think graverobbing carries a light sentence, Fredrick!” “Relax, Jonathan. I don’t think they’ll notice- theres hundreds of graves here! And besides, sometimes spikers dig up the gravel sometimes and eat people- thats why Chris Morales had to be creamated! they’ll just think that a spiker tried to get in… Don’t worry, no one will notice a thing..”

Jonathan nodded, wanting to believe what Fredrick was saying.

“Here, you take the shovels, they’re lighter.”, Fredrick said as he handed Jonathan the shovels while he lugged the Ice-chest out of the trunk. They then slowly entered through the gates of the graveyard, silent and cold as death itself, in fact, it felt like the spdead were scowling at them as they made the walk, judging them from beyond the grave. Fredrick however, shook off the feeling. He was already so close, and he wasn’t about to let the feeling of paranoia overtake him. After a minute or so of passing the quiet mausoleums and shallow graves from years and decades before, they finally made it to Olivia’s gravesite once again. Jonathan looked up at Fredrick as he handed him a shovel, and finally, he asked in a hushed voice:

“Fredrick, I know I have asked this countless times, and forgive me, but are you sure you want to do this? After we start digging, theres no going back.”

Fredrick Nodded.

“Of course. We’re already so close.. But when we get her, we’re not going to immediately start working on her… No, we need a subject, maybe two, because if I mess something up and i can’t get her back, I won’t forgive myself.” He explained. They then prepared their shovels to dig.

“On a count of three… one… two.. Three.” They then began digging, with Fredrick doing most of the heavy lifting while Jonathan routinely checked to see if there were any strangers or spikers about. 15 minutes would go by, and when all was said and done, the grave would be uncovered, revealing a polished wood casket with Olivia’s initials engraved into the upper lid. Fredrick held his breath, preparing himself for what he was about to see, while Jonathan looked away. Fredrick noticed.

“Jonathan, are you alright?”

“I-Its just that… well, she’s your daughter, and uh.. I thought you might like some privacy.” he mumbled nervously. Fredrick shook his head. “Jonathan, You were like an uncle to her, this is your moment too!” he whispered, briskly looking around to make sure no one overheard them. Jonathan said not a word, but nodded, taking a glance at the casket. This would mark the very moment that Fredrick’s project would start. A project that would test his hypothesis of whether the dead can be brought back.

“Jonathan… I’m going to open up the casket.. And when I open up the casket, we’re going to gently pick her up and put her in the ice-chest, and rebury the casket, understand?” Fredrick instructed as he crouched to grab a hold of the heavy lid.

“Got it.” “Good.. now on a count of three… One.. Two..”

And on the count of three, he opened the lid, closing his eyes tightly. After a minute or so, he finally opened his eyes once more, and within the casket was none other than Olivia, cold and lifeless, yet she looked like she was sleeping, with her arms draped over her stomach, cane in both hands, still wearing her new-years outfit , except for her blouse, which was replaced with a black blouse. As Fredrick looked on, he found every emotion one could experience rushing towards him like a freight truck. Rage, sorrow, guilt, disgust with what he was doing filled his thoughts as he clenched his jaw together. He wanted to scream, He wanted to cry. He wanted to dig his own grave beside her and plunge his shovel through his heart and never feel anything ever again, but he knew he couldn’t do that. Not to Olivia, and not to Jonathan. He looked up at Jonathan, and even though shadows were cast over his eyes and glasses as he stood above the crouched Fredrick, you could tell that he too was processing the sorrowful sight. Fredrick then picked Olivia up gently, as if he were handling a delicate flower with white gloves, cradling her in his arms.

“....I’ve got her, Jonathan…” He whispered through tear-choked vocal chords. Jonathan nodded, not saying anything, and opened the lid to the frigid ice-chest, where Olivia would rest until they got to the lab in Baton Rouge. Afterwards, they closed the lid to the casket, and reburied it, making sure not to leave a single piece of gravel out of place. Now, all they have to do is put the ice-chest in the back seat, and make way to Baton Rouge.

“Alright, next stop, Baton Rouge.” Fredrick grunted as he picked up the ice-chest, using his chest and stomach to carry it as Jonathan carried the shovels back to Fredrick’s truck. Afterwards, they popped the trunk and set the shovels and the chest containing Olivia in the back seat, and they both got back in the truck, started the engine, and headed on the road towards Baton Rouge. 30 minutes would pass where they did not say a word to each other, and instead gave each other quick glances, and listened to the radio. It was only after a commercial for Aximin, a meal-replacement pill turned highly addictive drug, came on the radio, that Jonathan spoke up.

“Hey, Frank Kemper was the guy that made Aximin, right? Whatever happened to him?” “Well, they say that he was getting reports that when you bit into the pill, it released a sort of smoke or steam that made you… well, h1gh, and he didn’t believe it until he tried it for himself, and got addicted. According to some people who knew him, he went insane and ran into the woods!” Fredrick huffed, keeping his eyes on the road to make sure no spikers or robbers would grab them. “Its a dang shame, too! He was a good guy, we worked with him! “Oh yeah, thats right! He wasn’t really all that involved in Prometheus though, was he?” “No, not really. He knew more about medicine and brains than cybernetics anyway.” Fredrick shrugged. A couple of minutes later, Fredrick saw a sign riddled with bull3t holes that read:

Baton Rouge 2

“Hey, We’re almost there!” Fredrick beamed as he looked over at Jonathan, to which he also smiled.

“Good! I hope the power is still on there!” “It should, it’s powered by Korsa! No power bills here, Gomez made sure of that!”

Two miles later, they arrived in what was once Baton Rouge. Icicles hanged from abandoned houses and buildings, rubble scattered every which way, the city was barely recognizable. Now all it was was a place for rebellious teenagers to group up and chew Aximin, raiders to rob people or for wild animals to hunt for prey.

“Are you sure the Lab is still here?” Jonathan whispered as he looked around the place, to which Fredrick nodded.

“Yes, of course it is! It has to be! See? There it is!” he announced as he pointed to a grey building with a flat roof, high windows, and scuffed paint, most likely from rocks hitting it or shrapnel. Jonathan raised his eyebrows, surprised that the building was even standing after all these years.

“Wow, you were right! I’m sorry I ever doubted you, Fredrick!”

As they pulled into the parking lot and got out, Fredrick scanned the locked building, noticing a broken window that was just out of his reach, and even if he could get up to that window, he wouldn’t be able to fit, as the window was a bit too small around for man to squeeze through.

“....Hey Jonathan!” “Hm?”

“You think I could give you a boost and you could go through that window and unlock the door?” “Hell, Probably! Looks big enough!” Jonathan pipped as he walked towards Fredrick and the window. Fredrick then found a stick to break the rest of the glass so that Jonathan would not get cut, and afterwards, Fredrick boosted Jonathan up to the window, to which Jonathan successfully crawled through, entering the same building he used to work at all those years ago.

“Do you see anything, Jonathan?” Fredrick called out through the other side of the window.

“Thats the thing- I can’t see a thing!” Jonathan yelled back, choking down a cough as he looked around for the power closet.

“It should be somewhere near the door, I think! Glass Doors, can’t miss ‘em!”

Jonathan then made his way into the lobby where sure enough, the glass doors were, and next to the doors-- or more accurately, adjacent to the doors, was the electrical closet.

“Which ones do i flip?”

“You flip all of them!” Jonathan then flipped all 10 of the switches, and within seconds, the flourescent lights lit up, revealing white tables, shelves with solutions of every kind, and dark malachite tiled floors, riddled with dust.

“Got it!” As soon as Jonathan got the words out of his mouth, he heard a low gutteral growl from farther into the facility that echoed off of the walls..

“...Hello?” Jonathan called out, which would soon prove to be a mistake, for as soon as he finished his sentence, two spikers lunged out of the darkness towards Jonathan, sending him running back toward the window he came out of.

“SPIKERS! SPIKERS! FREDRICK, THERES TWO SPIKERS IN HERE!”

Fredrick froze when he heard Jonathan’s scream the name of those monsters. No, No! This can’t be happening again, He thought to himself frantically. He tried his best to jump through the window to help him, but it was no use. It was then that Fredrick remembered that he had his favorite p1st0l with him in case of raiders or spikers, and he immediately drew it out of his holster, trying his best to aim it through the window, sending a few sh0ts towards the spikers that unfortunately missed. Realizing that his position would only result in him wasting amm0, he threw the p1stol to Jonathan, who caught it mid-air.

“SH00T, JON, SH00T! AIM FOR THE EYES!” He yelled, his voice momentarily distracting the spikers as Jonathan aimed into their cold unforgiving white eyes…

POP! POP-POP! POP-POP POP!

The spikers let out a horrid wretching scream as they collapsed to the floor, twitching as their last nerves die out. Finally, the two spikers that would’ve likely made Jonathan their meal were dead.

“I… I Got them, Fredrick! Thank you!” “Don’t mention it- Now, are you gonna open the doors?” Fredrick laughed nervously as he scanned the rubble to make sure no other spikers were lurking about.

“Of course! Let me go open the doors right quick!” Jonathan huffed as he ran back into the lobby to open the doors, finally letting Fredrick in.

“Wow… this place has been virtually untouched! I’m surprised that no-one has broken in besides those spikers!” Fredrick exclaimed as he noticed all of the dust and cobwebs on the shelfs and in the corners.

“Yeah, I’m amazed that this building is even standing after the cluster-bombings and for how long its been here unmaintained!”

Now that the two men were safe and sound, Fredrick brought the ice-chest containing Olivia inside, and gently placed her into a cryogenic pod for safe-keeping and preservation.

“Alright, now that she’s safe, we should clean this place up! If we’re going to be doing any science in this place, the last thing we want is dust and spiders getting in our work!” Fredrick declared as he picked up a broom from the closet and began to sweep the dust and dirt off of the floor. Jonathan agreed, and picked up a cloth to dust the rest of the things, like the beakers, the machinery, the tables, and any other things that need cleaning. 2 hours later, the lab was finally clean and presentable, and a wooden board was put over the broken window so that neither cold nor spikers would get in.

“Ha…. now this is a lot like how I remember it..” Fredrick sighed as he set down on one of the roller chairs next to the testing tables.

“Yeah, We did Project Prometheus in this very lab, didn’t we?” “Haha! We sure did! We were a lot younger, and I was a lot skinnier!”

“Fredrick, thats because you barely ate anything during the entirety of the project! You look a lot better now then you did back in the 2020’s!” Jonathan chuckled nervously as he brought out two cots out of the back room that were to be used in the event the lab became a fallout shelter.

“I forgot we even had those cots back there!” Fredrick exclaimed with a smile, to which Jonathan smiled back.

“Well, I didn’t think we’d wanna sleep out in the cold truck, huh? I even found some blankets and pillows.” “Well good deal! Here, i’ll get the other one!” Fredrick offered as he took one of the cots out of Jonathan’s arms and began unfolding it, snapping the bars that held it open in place. They then unfolded the blankets and put them over the cots, finishing the job by putting the pillows in place.

“Its not much, but its better then sleeping on the damn floor, eh Fredrick?” Jonathan laughed. Fredrick chuckled and nodded, stretching his back until it made a quiet pop.

“It sure is, Jon! It sure is. Y’know, it kinda reminds me of the sleepovers we used to have as kids!” Fredrick reminisced as he undid his necktie and unbuttoned his dress-shirt and took off his belt and shoes to get ready to go to sleep, leaving nothing but his tank-top undershirt, pants, and black socks.

“Oh, I remember those days! I remember we would hang out in your room playing video games, watching cartoons, and eating cheese balls and drinking root beer!” Jonathan said with a smile as he also took off his shoes and belt, trading in his periwinkle turtleneck for a baggy black t-shirt that he found while searching for the cots. Afterwards, Jonathan turned off the overhead lights, leaving one table lamp on so that he could see, and the two scientists entered their cots.

“....Hey, Jonathan?” Fredrick whispered to Jonathan as he stretched out on the cot, letting his forearms dangle on each side while his tired pine eyes looked over to him.

“Yeah, Fredrick?”

“...Thank you for helping me with this project so far. You’re probably one of the only people I can trust right now, and you being here to help me is just.. It helps more than you know.” He whispered, his voice nearly being choked over by tears.

“Hey, thats what best friends do. I want you to be happy again, and if it means that we go back to doing science in this old lab, then I’m gonna be with you each step of the way.” Jonathan whispered back with a warm smile. Fredrick smiled, and looked up at the ceiling as Jonathan pulled the covers over himself.

“.....Goodnight, Fredrick.”

“Goodnight, Jonathan.”

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