Deluge: The Conqueror Worms II

CHAPTER 77

Sarah and Henry both slept for most of a day, and when they awoke, both were momentarily confused as to their surroundings. Sarah found herself tearing up when she looked at Henry, overwhelmed with affection and gratitude for everything he’d done. During their time together in the forest ranger station, she’d begun to think of him as a little brother. Since Kevin’s death, he’d been the only other voice she heard, with the exception of Sylva’s last few increasingly crazed broadcasts.

She kissed him on the forehead. “Thanks.”

“What for?” Henry’s ears turned scarlet. A moment later, his cheeks followed suit.

“For helping. For not giving up on me. I really lost it back there, Henry. I can only imagine what it was like, dealing with me. I’m not a person who likes to lose control—of anything, but least of all myself. Thanks for being there for me when I couldn’t be.”

“No problem. You’ve been there for me, too.”

“You miss your family?”

He nodded. “Still. I keep thinking it’s been long enough, and so much has happened, that I just ought to be numb by now, but I ain’t.”

“Neither am I. I think that’s why I… got like I was. I miss Kevin and Teddy and Carl, but I miss the people before this. Before the rain started. My Mom and my girlfriend.”

“Perhaps you will find them again,” said a voice behind them.

Sarah and Henry glanced up to find Simon standing in the hatchway to the berthing area.

“What do you mean?” Sarah asked.

“What do either of you know about string theory? Alternate realities and universes?”

“I used to watch Star Trek,” Sarah replied.

“Well, I’m sure you are both hungry. Come up to the galley. Lets get you something to eat. And while you do, I’ll explain our plan. You might feel incredulous at first, but I assure you it is the truth.”

He beckoned for them to follow. After a moment’s hesitation, they did.

“Perhaps you’d like a quick tour of the vessel on our way to the galley?” Simon suggested.

Sarah shrugged. “Why not? I guess this is our home for now.”

“Merely temporary,” Simon said. “So don’t get too comfortable.”

He led them topside. The wind and rain pelted them the moment they stepped out onto the deck, and Sarah shivered. For the brief period she’d been asleep below, she’d felt warm and dry, and hadn’t realized how much she’d missed both sensations until that moment. She glanced down at the churning water below.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“Mr. Novak says we are somewhere over the border between West Virginia and Virginia, on a northeast course.”

Sarah frowned. “Well, then where are the mountains? There should be mountain peaks sticking up above the surface.”

Simon shook his head. “Not anymore, I’m afraid. Bald Knob was the last, and soon, it will vanish beneath the waves, as well. It is fortuitous we came across the two of you when we did.”

“There ain’t as much junk floating in the water, either,” Henry said. “I mean, I reckon them things in the water have eaten all the dead folks by now, but where’s all the trees and cars and other stuff that’s been floating around?”

“It’s liquefied,” Simon said, opening a hatch and stepping back inside the ship. “The debris. The mountains. Everything is liquefying.”

Sarah shut the hatch behind them and latched it. She wiped rain from her eyes. “The White Fuzz?”

“Indeed,” Simon said. “All matter on this planet is being turned into water. The planet still has a core, and is still rotating on its axis, so gravity still exists. Sooner or later though, even the planet’s core will begin to liquefy. As all this occurs, the Earth is being absorbed into another dimension called the Great Deep. I’ll explain in detail while we eat.”

Sarah wasn’t sure what to think as Simon led them into the galley. She glanced at Henry. The boy’s expression seemed to mirror her own confusion.

Caterina and Mylon, who were just coming off watch, were also eating in the galley. Gail was present, as well. Sarah, Henry and Simon took seats next to them. Sarah thanked Gail again for rescuing them. The ship rolled slowly back and forth beneath their feet.

“I trust the night passed uneventfully?” Simon asked Mylon.

“Heard some big splashes out there in the dark,” Mylon said. “And at one point, Caterina thought she heard singing. But other than that, no.”

Sarah had been eating a dry Saltine cracker. When Mylon mentioned the singing, she choked on it, startled and remembering what had happened in Baltimore. It seemed so long ago, now, but the fear was still very real. Henry clapped her on the back and handed her a small juice box. Sarah sipped from the straw and then gasped.

“You okay?” Henry asked.

She nodded, but before she could reply, Caterina spoke up.

“It sounded like a woman. I’m sure I must have imagined it, though.”

Simon frowned. “I’ll have to ask Mr. Novak to go faster. And we need to start doubling the watches.”

“Why’s that?” Mylon asked.

“Because we are being followed.”

“By who?”

“An entity known as Leviathan.”

Sarah choked on her juice.