Thread: âOverexposureâ - Survivor00 & darkangel76

Danny walked with heavy footsteps onto the railcar and made her way to sit down on one of the wooden benches. She found an empty spot and sat down with a light thud, flanked by two salvagers she didnt know very well. Their faces seemed strangely blank as they stared ahead, eyes glazed, mouths closed saying nothing. She felt so small and alone all of a sudden, like mouse trapped in a lions den waiting to be pounced and eaten alive. Shivering, whether from the cold or from fear or from something else entirely it was hard to tell. Feeling like an outsider, she slumped against the back of the uncomfortable bench, her arms wrapped around herself, giving her the only comfort she knew she could find given the situation she now found herself in. The wood of the bench was hard, making her bones hurt with each and every bump the railcar passed over as they journeyed toward the surface. The tracks were rickety, old. It was amazing that theyd held up for this long really. Teeth chattering, Danny hugged her arms more tightly about herself. She wondered how long it would take before they reached their destination, how long theyd have to linger on the surface. A wave of nausea washed over her as she glanced at the two salvagers sitting on either side of her on the bench. Their empty stares made her wonder what evils their eyes had seen. From the looks of them, shed have guessed much more than several. And as far as she was concerned that was too much. Danny hoped that this particular expedition would be a fast one. She wasnt even sure what the salvagers were looking for, if anything in particular. But that wasnt her job. No. She was there for insurance, a mere crutch to help ease the minds of those who were lucky enough to have their role be what they were in this group she found herself surrounded by. Her parents had done well shielding her from ever having to go to the dreaded surface, the now frozen wastelands that used to run blue with water and brim green with life. But their protection only extended so far and shed finally reached the end of that rope. There was nothing left but fringe to hang on to now and even that was fraying terribly. Masks! a loud voice hissed from somewhere. Danny couldnt tell which side it had come from. All she knew was that hearing it boom above the deafening silence caused her to react almost immediately, grabbing at her mask and quickly placing it over her face. Breathing erratic, Dannys eyes skittered about, looking at everyone surrounding her in the railcar. For a moment, she caught glance of the rebellious salvager, Arthur, the only one of them to speak up and his mind, so it seemed. She tried to calm herself by focusing on her breathing, but it was hard, so very hard to push out what was going down. Because no matter how hard she tried, she knew the inevitable was going to happen. She, along with everyone else, would have to get out and make their way up into the desolate frozen world that had once been their peoples home. Danny grabbed her medi-pack, clutching it tightly against her body. A wave of panic coursed through her as a strange sort of fog began to swirl around everyone present. It was unnerving. This is suicide, Danny thought to herself. Im never going back, am I? she then silently asked. She could feel her eyes water and not from the poisonous vapors filling the railcar. A few long moments later and the railcar finally came to a screeching halt. Everyone, including Danny, seemed to hold their breath for a moment, anticipating and expecting the worst to happen. Danny watched Arthur get off the tram and head outside to do a sweep of the area, to make sure nothing dangerous stood in their way. Again she shivered, her body shaking, her stomach queasy. The day had gotten even worse, it was almot too mch to bear. Just then, she saw a blinding light stream into the tunnel. The light hurt her eyes, made the pain she felt stabbing through her skull even worse. She was going to throw up if she didnt get a grip on herself. Calm down, Danny, Danny mumbled to herself inaudibly. Just fucking fix whoever needs it and stay out of the way until you have to. Suddenly, Danny heard what she assumed was Arthurs voice over some sort of transmitter letting the rest of them know it was clear, a job she pitied him for having to do. At that, everyone stood up and reluctantly made their way out of the tram and onto a crumbling platform. She looked over toward the opened gate, which led to an old rundown escalator that led to the frozen surface. Terrified, she fell in line with the rest of the group and began the long trek up fearing that shed never see Mriya Station ever again.