SandScript 2023 [Digital Exclusive]

place will wither. There will be no food or water. There will be no one. What will you do then in
the face of utter darkness?”
“I will not give up.”
Sheila sighed. “Maybe. If you wish to outlive us all to face it alone, you could eat your mother.
She must have more protein than the scraps some have left. She has flesh and has recently
grown comatose. Maybe we can get water from her in some way. They tried that in 2A, and
it worked for a time.” She pointed to the half-dead woman beside him. “What will you do to
survive? Will you become like them, or die like your father, protecting those you love?”
The doors creaked as another solar wind beat against the door. New moisture appeared on
their foreheads, and the people moaned. The rotten stink of the piled dead festered in the air.
Sheila leaned back and closed her eyes. “Soon it won’t matter what we want. This sun will kill
us, and we’ll float away to oblivion. Let us sit here quietly until our time comes.”
Elijah looked at his mother’s wandering eyes. He pulled her close. “We will be okay, Mom. We will.”
The sun pulsed. Earth’s time went down from four minutes to three.
Solar Bunker 7F- 2:33
A woman’s pained cry echoed down the way. Her lover gripped her hand. “Deep breaths. It
will pass, Victoria. You will feel better soon.”
She looked at him with a red face and a scowl. Victoria pushed his hand away. “Shut up. You
said that you had a plan, and now I am sick because of your stupidity. You said the water was
clean, and now I may die feeling this way. I shouldn’t have listened to your words.”
Carter shook his head. “I told you, I’m sorry. That's all I could do. I had to exchange it for my clothes.”
She laughed sarcastically. “That’s all you have– your words. I should have been with
Derick. I could have let him touch me until he died, and then I would have had some good
water at least.” He sighed as the person beside him dry-heaved. “I thought you were a
stronger man. At least once, your family had power in this place. Why’d you give that up,
so others could have their share?”
He snorted. “It doesn’t matter. You’d never understand. Maybe we’ll die from the disease
before the end. Soon it will be over, and I won’t have to hear your cruel words.”
Rising to her side, Victoria opened her eyes wide in disbelief. Before she could open her
mouth, Carter slapped her across the face. “Let me die in peace.”
The sirens sounded and the pair looked at the doorway. It shuttered as the sandstorms battered
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