The Eternal Child - Episode Five

1 

Barbara watched the red tunnel move towards her engulfing all in its wake. It was finally over, Barbara thought. She felt more arms come around her and start to pull her. Too late she thought, too late. You won’t have me before the flames do. 

Barbara closed her eyes, she could feel the heat on her face as the flames approached, and hear the screams of the Endless all around her as their bodies were eaten away.  Their hands upon her, pulling her this way and that.

No wait, they were pulling her backwards, away from the flames, down the corridor and out the door at the other end. Barbara opened her eyes and looked up. Betty, Christopher and David looked down at her, all smiling.

2

“I told you things would get complicated if we split up. No one listens to Barbara” was the first thing Barbara said when she was helped to her feet. 

“We’ll definitely stop listening to you if you’re going to start talking in the third person” replied David.

“Never a good sign” Betty added.

Barbara looked to Christopher to see what he would add. But he just looked at her. She wasn’t sure if he was scared or trying to stop crying. He just stared transfixed to the spot. Barbara walked up to him and without a word put her arms around him. Christopher put his head on her shoulder and started to weep uncontrollably.

“Shhh, it’s going to be alright.” Barbara finally said.

“I’m sorry” was Christopher’s muffled response.

“And I’m sorry. Sorry about Peter, about Adam and about getting all of you in this mess.”

“We asked for your help. We got you caught up in it. Peter was right, this is bigger than all of us.”

“You guys, we’ve got to get a move on.” David piped up. “Their coming, the fires coming and the house is falling. Take your pick on whatever reason will get you lot to MOVE!”

“Just down this corridor is the grand staircase, the exit isn’t far from there.” shouted Betty dashing off in front of them. They all followed.

Out the door where the seaside music had long since stopped, smoke bellowing out the opening behind them, the four ran straight in front of the staircase, and straight into the midst of a hungry hoard. 

The stairway had a line of corpses walking down, the remaining hallway with the exit they needed was also blocked. Predictably the doorway they just came out of was already spewing bodies, trying to get away from the fire in their slow meandering way. They were surrounded, again. But at least they were surrounded together.

A loud noise emanated from upstairs, everyone turned to look. Down the stairs came two unlikely heroes, the big silent guy and Red. The big guy charged straight through the bodies, sending them flying in all directions making a pathway through which Red could run.

“He’ll clear the way. We’ll all be saved” Hooted Red. However the big guy tripped on the final step and fell forward. Two corpses now sprawled on the ground, grabbed hold of him while a third grabbed his neck. With one flick of the wrist and a click, he was dead. The buggers were stronger then they looked.

The big guy’s body convulsed for a moment, arms and legs flapping about. Then his body calmed, twitched then started to rise up again.

“Of course” Barbara realised. “That’s what he meant. That’s what they’re doing. As soon as they kill you another one of them has a body. But there will never be enough bodies. He said their number never stops, he called them the Endless.”

“They’d take over the whole of East Sussex?” Betty sounded terrified.

“Betty love. Think bigger dear, much bigger”

Betty’s eyes widened, not that anyone would have noticed.

“But if we can just get out, the fire should take them all when the house falls.”

“The house is falling” Betty added helpfully.

Red looked at his friend horrified.

“I was going to escape with him, we were going to get a little place and we were going to drink tea” said Red. “He wasn't a bad man really. He had nothing else, like me. He did things, I know, and this is the price.”

“I don't think that's how it works deary” said Barbara, resting her hand on his shoulder. “But take heart that he tried to save you and us in the end.”

“And you’ve still made us an exit Red” Christopher added as he grabbed hold of Red and dragged him up the stairs, the rest followed.

The scattered corpses started to get up again and the fire had already started on the staircase. It creaked and groaned as the Endless climbed.

“Can the staircase manage our weight?” wondered Christopher.

“Yes” Barbara replied.

“What, all of our weight?” asked David.

“Yes” Barbara replied.

“What all our weight, and the corpses, and the fire?” asked Betty.

“Yes, well, maybe. Who am I kidding? We need to get up these stairs fastish.”

The faster they climbed the more the stairs groaned. Smoke was pouring out the door on the ground floor, rising to the second level to menace over them like rain clouds.

Once they reached the top they had a second to look back down. More and more of the endless poured in and up the stairs, fire was running up either banisters, and setting light to the carpet between. The groans and creaks and moans of the staircase meant only one thing. There was a final mighty crack and the whole staircase caved inwards.

“There goes another exit” said Barbara.

“We’re running out of exits” said Betty.

“We’re running out of house” replied Barbara

“Would this be a good time to tell you why I was running down the stairs to begin with?” asked Red.

“Don’t tell me” said David. “You were running away from another shit load of dead. Meaning this place is no safer than downstairs.”

“I didn’t think there would be any up here.” Barbara sounded surprised. “I thought it was all downstairs, you know, for show.”

“It is” Red smiled. “This is where he keeps his summer collection.”

As if on cue, the Endless stumbled into the hallway from various doors dotted around.

“Let’s get to a room at the end of the house, maybe there’s a window we can climb out” said Barbara as she darted towards any doorway not occupied by Endless. They all followed, managing to get past the ranks, through another room, and finally a door to arrive at where they wanted to be.

“Well” said Betty looking around. “You managed to get us to the end of the house.”

“Yes” said Barbara with a smile, also looking around.

“You also managed to choose probably the only room not to have any windows.”

“Ah” replied Barbara.

David noticed another door, probably and hopefully to an adjacent room with a window.

“Guys” he called as he pulled open the door and peered in. A room full of Endless stopped what they were doing, turned and peered back. “Shit”

“Right everyone back up, we’ll try another room” said Barbara leading them back out to the room before. All the exits from that room were now blocked too. They turned back to the end room. The Endless had already started following David back through.

They were surrounded and slowly being herded to the centre. As more Endless poured in and the space got smaller, they pushed themselves back to back in a tight circle. David raised his gun, Barbara got out her needles, Betty puffed on her joint, Red put up his claw like hands, and Christopher just tried to not look terrified. He also pretended not to hear the whole floor creak and groan as more Endless entered.

“Can you believe it Barbara?” said Betty. “Surely this counts. It’s got to count hasn’t it?”

Barbara didn’t reply.

“This time they’re not really robots or clones or parasites in the brain or children of the damned. They’re the walking dead aren’t they? There… ”

“Don’t say it. Don’t you dare say it.”

“But they are” Betty sounded really excited. “We’ve finally met Zombies!”

“So tacky” Barbara said rolling her eyes, “There not Zombies, they have a name. They’re The Endless, much more up market.”

“I hate ‘em” David added. “Zombies really freak me out.”

“They’re not Zombies” screamed Barbara.

The creaks under the floorboards were getting louder and the groans were getting longer. There was also definitely a few cracking sounds. More and more Endless stepped in and stepped over each other to get to circle of friends.

“This is definitely it then” said David

“Are we counting this as the definitely no way out of it final moment then Barbara.” Asked Betty

“It has all the hallmarks dear.”

“Well this is a marked improvement over being buried alive or dying at a game of hide and seek.”

“We can die with dignity here I think” Barbara nodded. “Yes I feel it, this is it. The official definitely no way out final moment.”

There was one more almighty crack from the ground beneath. The floor shock one terrifying final time then collapsed inwards and everyone and everything was swallowed into the baking hot darkness beneath....

Barbara and Betty Will Return in...

Origins Of A Smile