April 14, 2025 6:00 AM

Let him join, flee into the mountains, 68%

Elliot had his fair share of unpleasant drives. But few of those ever combined as many awful things together as their trip into the mountains. First, there were his fingers, getting stiffer and less useful by the minute. By the time they were winding back and forth through the mountains, he could only grip the wheel with simple pressure, and had to use the cruise control to keep his speed.

But the others were in even worse shape, so he was the one at the wheel.

His little sedan might not be the best choice for the long drive, but there was no doubt it would start when they turned the key, which they couldn’t say for Sam’s truck. Besides, the notebook was hidden inside, and they didn’t want to linger. Peter thought the city was going to be bombed, maybe even with a nuclear device. The farther they could get from that, the better.

Even with passengers needing less space than average, it was still a tight fit. All those camping supplies didn’t fit in the trunk, so the backseat was packed pretty tight with everything that didn’t fit.

The former captive spent most of the drive sleeping, curled up in one of the many sleeping bags and filling the back seat with snores. Sam wasn’t much better, though he spent most of the trip with his hand on the side of an old handgun. There wasn’t a lot of ammo for that thing, and Elliot didn’t even know for sure if it worked. But better to have it and not need it…

Getting out of town was a challenge: the highway was deliberately destroyed, with craters ripped into the pavement and chunks of metal dropped into the road.

They found similar barricades on side roads, with vehicles deliberately towed across the road, then burned.

None had people guarding them, though. Once they passed a checkpoint, complete with booth, fancy box of electronics, and lots of razor wire. But the APCs sat empty, and not a soul stepped out to question them.

Not a good sign.

Elliot knew his way around the town, though. He took them to a fire road, then drove down a dry riverbed until they were out of the city. Once they got some distance, there was little to obstruct their route.

With no one else to talk to for most of the trip, Elliot listened to the radio. He tried, anyway; most of what they heard were emergency broadcasts, warning them of stiff punishment if they did exactly what they were doing.

“You think maybe they have a point?” Sam asked, poking his head up from behind. “We’re obviously infected. I don’t wanna be the one responsible for screwing up someone else’s life.”

Elliot shrugged. “Cabin is remote, completely off-grid. Means we’ve got a cistern, a little solar, and… not a lot to eat there, but we’ve got what we brought. Maybe we can forage for more, stretch supplies through winter. Or as soon as someone smart figures out what to do about this.”

Sam reached into the backpack of his stuff he’d brought, then held something forward. His hands were different now, hard and dark and ending in sharp points. Claws. “Plug this into your aux. We might get something better than radio.”

Elliot was hardly sitting properly anyway, but the road was straight enough, and without a lot of other traffic. “The heck is this thing?”

“Satellite radio receiver. If I’m gonna pay for the damn thing, I wanted to be able to listen at work. There’s a lot less advertising. Should be charged.”

It took a minute, but Elliot got it connected. After another minute or so, it started working. Not just blaring emergency signals–there was music here. He handed it back, letting the aux cable trail to where Sam perched. “Go ahead.”

He did. A few minutes of shuffling, and they had a news broadcast.

“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has elevated the Colorado Anomalous Pathogen Event to Threat Level Red. Mandatory evacuation orders remain in effect for all counties within a seventy-five mile radius of Central City, Colorado. Citizens are reminded that the minimum safe distance protocol of one quarter mile must be maintained between all individuals not residing in the same household prior to the outbreak.

“The Department of Health and Human Services reports that standard biohazard containment protocols have proven ineffective against this pathogen. The World Health Organization has classified this as a “novel transmission vector of unknown origin” and warns that conventional personal protective equipment does not prevent infection.

“International response teams from the CDC, WHO, and ECDC are collaborating on containment strategies. All commercial flights to and from the United States have been suspended for the next seventy-two hours as the International Air Transport Association coordinates with global health authorities.

“Reports of cases have now been confirmed in states neighboring Colorado. The National Guard has been deployed to establish quarantine zones along state borders. Citizens are advised that cellular networks may be unreliable due to infrastructure strain.

“Stay in your current shelter location unless directed otherwise by emergency personnel. Do not attempt to approach or provide aid to individuals exhibiting unusual behavior…”

It continued, but didn’t have anything interesting or novel to say. More of the same vein, though nothing new. No confirmation of how it worked, how to stop it, or whether there was a treatment or cure.

“It’s out of the state,” Sam muttered, slumping backward against his seat. He slid one clawed hand through the feathers on his strange head. “That’s… so bad. It’s already out. Like I said, all those idiots running away brought it. Selfish pricks.”

Elliot returned her focus to the wheel. She still wore only the hoodie–it was easy, and loose enough that it didn’t get in the way of that stupid tail now falling to her ankles. Besides, Ruby wasn’t even awake in the seat next to her. She wasn’t going to look.

“We won’t talk to anyone who looks normal,” Elliot said. “The cabin is in this tiny town… Granite Bluff. Barely has anyone outside of ski season. And we’re already up a mountain road ten miles from town. We won’t infect anyone.”

“The ship has sailed on that one,” Peter said. He sat up in his seat, shaking away the sleeping bag. “You said it was out of state?”

“The news did,” Sam said, annoyed. He wasn’t happy to have Peter around. Though he also hadn’t put up a fight. They weren’t exactly drowning in choices.

“Then we’re golden.” He shifted into a more comfortable position, head against the window. “Take a deep breath up there, Blue. Can probably ease off the accelerator. No point bombing the place to keep things contained if it’s not contained. Just…” he trailed off, voice low. “Just the end of the world as we know it. Maybe the whole human race. Thank God Zalenka’s dead. He’d hate himself if he learned he caused the apocalypse.”

“Don’t be so dramatic,” Sam snapped. His voice was lower now, and frustration heavy in his tone. “You still act like a person. Maybe an asshole, but still a person. The human race isn’t over, even if there’s really no way to stop this.”

“No, it’s over because of the ones who don’t make it. If that’s too many–the things they become will make it hell on earth. You saw, you told me. You know what I mean.”

“I know I don’t want to think about it,” Elliot said, maybe a little too loudly. “We can’t change it, so shut up and let me focus.”

“As you command, princess,” Peter said. “Can see what you mean about the nickname, birdbrain. She does like making decrees.”

Definitely too loud, because Ruby stirred in her seat, and finally sat up. She glanced sideways at Elliot, then back into the car behind her.

Her face was different. Wisps of yellow peach fuzz clung to her skin. Her head was mostly bald now, except for a few thick orange curls down the front. She had a stub too, what might be a horn like Elliot and Peter had. For now, it just seemed like a deformity, bulging skin that hadn’t yet burst.

“Where are we? Sam?”

“Back here,” Sam said, before Elliot could open her mouth. “How are you feeling, Ruby?”

“Like a sack of burning shit,” she answered. “Guess Zalenka’s virus got me too?”

Peter perked up, leaning forward towards the opening in the seats. Sam was already doing that, and there wasn’t enough room for both. It meant they awkwardly crammed in there, with the bird’s larger size eventually winning out in the contest.

Peter spoke anyway, barely hiding his annoyance. “Not a virus, technically. We have no way of detecting the contagion directly. We observe it in the form of marker proteins that human cells produce when exposed. Just humans, not animal models. And if you give it more time, you don’t need a fancy test to see.” He held up one flat hoof, gesturing vaguely in her direction. “As you see.”

Elliot turned back to the road, still clutching the wheel awkwardly in her deforming hands. Though her fingers were barely stubs at this point, melting towards a single point at the center. She would have hooves too, before they arrived.

“Elliot?” Ruby asked, eyes fixed on Peter. “I didn’t think you had a head for biology. Did you get that from the notebook?”

“That’s not me,” Elliot said, raising her voice over whatever the horned horse thing tried to say. “I’m Elliot. That’s Peter, he’s a new addition. He came from the same base as that scientist, knows some stuff about the disease. And he owes us his life, so he’ll keep his damn mouth shut about me.”

Peter did shut up then, sinking back into the sleeping bag with a mumbled “whatever”.

Ruby sat up, reaching sideways to touch Elliot’s shoulder. The hoodie slipped off narrow shoulders halfway down her chest.

The breasts were gone, leaving only a thin layer of sky blue fur without features. “Elliot?”

“Yeah.” She nodded again, more slowly. “I’m not happy about it either, believe me.”

Ruby reached over again, like she were going to take a sip from the oversized water bottle. Instead, she nudged Elliot’s hoodie out of the way.

Not normally something Elliot would mind from his girlfriend–though maybe not while she was driving. But just now, her face turned bright red, and she felt something else move on her head. Those ears, folding backward into her long hair. “You’re a chick!”

“I had no fucking idea,” she yelled, her voice high and shrill. “Yeah, thanks for pointing it out. Sam’s got a dick by the way, guess he ended up with mine!”

“Pretty sure it’s bigger than yours,” Sam said, as casually as he might’ve corrected him on the wrong length of replacement windshield wiper blade. “Don’t have a lot of experience with dudes, but I’m pretty sure.”

“That is not helping!” She yelled, louder. Elliot tugged the hoodie down, leaning forward over the wheel. “I have no idea why it happened, Ruby. If you’re asking. Right now I’m just trying to pretend it didn’t. I just have to last until we cure this thing and I’m back to normal.”

Ruby held one hand flat, avoiding her eyes. “Sorry. I’m not–I’m okay not talking about it.” She took the bottle from the cupholder, and drained it in a few long sips. “Do I still call you Elliot?”

“I’m calling her Blue,” Sam supplied. “Or Princess, if I’m annoyed. She doesn’t like that one.”

“No, I do not.” She couldn’t squeeze the wheel, not without fingers. But her hands constricted around either side. Not hard enough to do anything, fortunately. She wasn’t strong enough for that anymore.

But she was strong enough to survive, and to get her friends to safety. “See up the hill? That’s Granite Bluff.”

“You mean by those flashing police lights?” Ruby asked. “Right on the road?”

Elliot glanced desperately to the side, panic rising in her chest. There was another way into town, through the winding backroads that eventually led to the cabin. But she couldn’t take those narrow mountain roads without real use of her hands.

She had to make a decision.

1. Head straight into town. Don’t get close to anyone, don’t stop.
2. Give up the driver’s seat and let Ruby take them up the backroads. She’s pretty sure the car will make it.