We gathered at an outdoor gazebo near the guardhouse to go over the plan in more detail. The idea was for Shawn and me to scout the area and see if we could access any nearby 7-Eleven. If we encountered anyone guarding it, we’d… handle the situation as needed.
Jess would stay behind in camp, doing double duty. In addition to working as a healer and doctor, she’d use her bedside manner training to gather information discreetly, feeling out the camp’s mood on the idea of fighting back. There was no way they could keep living like this, especially with the zone’s clearing condition of total control. Jess would also put out the word about finding Siva’s sister, either within this camp or at any of the other encampments.
Siva, on the other hand, had the hardest task. He had to learn how to ride the motorbike quickly and do it confidently. After that… well, we’d see how it went and adjust the plan if needed.
But first, we all had a side quest to tackle. The reason we’d chosen the west sector instead of heading into central Singapore was that Shawn and Jess both had family here. We needed to find them, or at the very least, get an answer on whether they were still alive. If we couldn’t locate them at their last known location, we’d have to spread the word to the other camps. I knew from experience that they wouldn’t be there. But I also knew that they’d need to see it with their own eyes. Shawn and Jess were both smart people. They knew it as well but sometimes; we just had to play it out as we clung onto hope.
We found Farah and Prema in the mess hall to let them know we’d be back soon. Prema just nodded and returned to running the kitchen, but Farah lingered. She seemed hesitant, like she was arguing with herself about whether or not she wanted to say something.
I did my best to reassure her and encouraged her to speak her mind.
“We’ve lost a lot of people who also said they’d be back soon. They never come back. They never do,” she said, locking eyes with me.
I sighed inwardly. The system had set this up like it was some medieval era, with us playing the part of the seven samurais. Well, more like four samurais walking into a village. But I reminded myself that these people hadn’t always been like this. They were former working professionals, people with careers, education, and lives before this mess. Some might have been business owners. They weren’t helpless villagers. I needed to remind them of that. The situation was tough, but it didn’t mean they had to accept it.
I stepped forward and placed my hands firmly on her shoulders. “Listen, we just got here. We need to see if our families are still alive. We’re only going for a recon, and we’ll be back.”
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Behind her, Shawn mimed playing a violin. Jess immediately smacked him in the arm.
“When we get back, we’ll help organize this place and prepare for whatever’s coming,” I continued. “We’ll help with that. But first, what were you working as in the old world?”
“I… was an account manager. For an export company,” she replied, still holding my gaze.
“Good. Hang on to that,” I said. “You’re a manager. Manage it. We’ll help when we get back.”
With a final nod to Farah and a wave to Prema, we left the packed mess hall and headed toward our truck. The party chat pinged as we walked.
Siva: How did they lose hope so fast?
Jess: We don’t really know what they’ve been through these last few weeks. Losing everything overnight and not having the chance to defend or upgrade themselves definitely didn’t help.
Shawn: If you ask me, it’s all programming. Something’s messing with their heads, making them play these roles. I’m surprised there isn’t an old man doom caller in here.
Just as Shawn sent that message, we turned the corner into the parking area and stopped dead in our tracks. There, standing on the bed of the Grave Digger, was an old man addressing a crowd of people.
I turned to Shawn and glared at him.
“See…” he said, gesturing toward the crowd, but more importantly, toward the man speaking to them.
The old Chinese man, who was in a ragged business suit, complete with a vest and loose necktie, was shouting at the crowd. He rambled about the end of the world and how this truck, our truck, had brought the four horsemen of the apocalypse with it.
“They’re here! They’re here!” he yelled, pointing at us as the crowd parted and they turned to look at us, murmuring among themselves. Most of them wore expressions of ridicule, but I noticed fear in a few eyes.
“War! Death! Pestilence! Famine! They walk amongst us!” he cried, pointing at each of us in turn, his voice cracking with emotion.
He pointed at Siva when he said War, at Shawn for Death, at Jess for Pestilence, and at me for Famine. I looked down at myself, took in my bulging stomach, then back at him, before addressing the crowd.
“Do I look like I’m famished?” I asked, exasperated. “For fuck’s sake, get off our truck.”
I started toward the truck, but the old man jumped off the bed, stumbled, and ran off, still yelling nonsense. The crowd began to thin, most of them giving us sheepish smiles or awkward nods.
I reached out to one of them and asked, “Hey, who was that idiot?”
“Ah, that’s just Mr. Lim,” the man replied, shrugging. “I knew him when we lived in the same block. He was a drunk back then, and he’s still a drunk now.” He shrugged again before walking away.
“How dare he,” Jess said testily. “I’m a doctor, and he called me Pestilence.”
“Hey, I’m a Necromancer, so Death kind of suits me. And look at Siva in his army getup, definitely looks like War to me,” Shawn replied, sliding into the driver’s seat. He eyed me up and down through the window before adding, “Yeah… we definitely need to work on that stomach first.”
I climbed into the passenger seat, exasperated but started to laugh as I began to see the humor in it. Siva was laughing from the backseat, while Jess scowled in indignation.
“Four Horsemen, riding out!” Shawn shouted, pressing the horn as he pulled the truck out of the BRTC.
