The Simple Life

"Are things really going to get bad?"

Fry looked down at her empty plate and pushed it away. Jordan stood up and stacked the plates then took them to the kitchen.

Soren took a cigarette out and lit it, using the pause to gather his thoughts.

"There are a lot of unknowns so I can't say with certainty what will happen. I've given them the means to create a vaccine. With that they can keep people from mutating, thus stopping the disaster before it happens.

"But, even the best case scenario means thousands dead and mutated. I'd rather not think about the worst case scenario."

No, because that would mean he succeeded in destroying the world. I won't let him win.

Jordan returned and placed a glass bowl in front of Soren with a frown.

"We're going to hope for the best, and plan for the worst. I'd rather it all just blow over and end quickly but I keep thinking about what the doctor said when Ethan and I were at Monarch.

"They were focused on the mutated that they had quarantined, thinking it was contained, and bringing them back."

"Can't you bring them back like me and Fry?"

"I can, but at this point, it's advisable to just kill them."

~The longer they're mutated the more likely they are to completely lose what makes them human. Sure, you can bring them back, but they won't behave any differently.~

"And who would want to come back and remember that they killed and ate a loved one?"

Soren's words effectively silenced the group. He put out the remaining cigarette in the bowl and pulled out the phone that Agent Issac had left.

Going on the web browser he did a search for local news. It did not take long for him to come across strange stories.

A house had been broken into and it appeared as if the burglar had brought a large dog with them because the old couple in the house had been mauled to death. There were five recently reported cases of missing people of various ages.

The story that stood out to Soren was from two days ago, the morning after he had run into a mutated Fry. The grocery store owner had supposedly gotten into an argument with his neighbor and bit them, multiple times.

Soren slid the phone to Fry with the article pulled up. She read through it then pushed the phone away.

"Do you think Pete's ok?"

She asked, face buried in her hands. Soren shook his head, even though he knew she couldn't see it, and pushed the phone toward Jordan. It was important that all of them were aware of what was going on.

"I don't know, but it doesn't look good. I'm assuming that someone from the building where the lab exploded came to the store. Most likely right before they mutated and were taken in."

Fry moved her hands and looked over at Soren.

"There was an irate customer the day before you left early. You were in the back unloading a truck so you didn't see them.

"They had been in the day before and bought some food. When they came back that day they accused us of selling bad food, saying that what they had bought tasted weird.

"Normally I wouldn't have remembered them, but they looked off and kept coughing on everything, including me. I just happened to be working customer service that day. Pete was cashiering and was the one who got Mr. Meyers to deal with them."

"That could very well be it. That means it only took a day and a half for you to mutate after contact."

Fry slammed her fist on the table and leaned back in the chair.

"Damn it, Pete had as much contact as we did."

"The most we can do is head to town tomorrow and check on him."

"How are we going to do that, boss? Took us fifteen minutes to drive out here, it'll take three times as long just to reach the city limits."

Soren grinned and pointed at the phone Ethan was holding, it had been passed to him after Jordan read through the news reports.

"We have a ride. Agent Issac can take me and Fry to town and from there we can pick up her car and check on Pete. Your car should be ready, right Fry?"

"Yeah. It's probably been ready for a while, I just haven't had my phone. Damn suits took it away and refused to give it back."

"Then that's what we will do. Jordan, I'll have you and Ethan take inventory of the cooler. We need to know exactly what we have in there and how much of it we have. From there we can make a shopping list.

"I'll put together a list of non-food items that we will need. There is no way we will be able to get enough, but every little bit we can get now will save us from scavenging later if things get that bad."

Ethan laid the phone down on the table and gave it a push towards Soren. Soren caught it and pulled up the texting app. He wasted no time in texting Agent Issac

'Are you coming by tomorrow? I could use a ride into town.'

'Why?'

'Promise I'm not running. Fry wants to pick up her car.'

'We'll see.'

'See you tomorrow!'

Soren grinned and put the phone away.

"We should be good to go. Now, let's get everyone settled into their rooms. Jordan, let's move you upstairs, you deserve a room with a window."

~Haven't been back long and you're already becoming unbearably bossy.~

Soren stood and made a shooing motion towards the others. He wanted to give them something to take their mind off their current circumstances. Moving all of Jordan's things from the dungeon to the upstairs would keep them busy for a while.

The room that Jordan chose was next to the master bedroom and already had a dresser. While it had the necessary furniture and a premade bed, everything else was bare. The only room left empty upstairs was one that Soren avoided even looking at as he passed by it. It had been the room he was supposed to live in when they had visitors, though it had only been for appearances.

Down in the dungeon, his room was bare of everything but a bed and closet. He still had clothes in the closet, which he immediately took out and threw away. The bedding was generic and was left as it was.

Jordan's room, on the other hand, was a cluttered mess. He had a pile of dirty clothes, a dresser that was cluttered with action figures, and half nude catgirls. His wall was plastered, end to end, with posters of his favorite animated tv shows and movies. He had a small desk with a laptop and even more clutter.

~After you left he stopped experimenting and basically ignored me. I could order things and have them delivered, that never seemed to bother him. I just sort of made this space as much mine as I could.~

"No need to explain. I still wish I could have taken you with me then."

Jordan shook his head, ~How long would I have lasted out there? I can't pass as human and we both agreed on that. I knew that I had no chance of ever leaving the dungeon.~

"That's not true because today, you're leaving it. One day soon the shit out there will get to the point where no one will think twice at the sight of your ugly mug."

Jordan punched his arm and walked into the room. Soren laughed while rubbing his arm and followed, Ethan and Fry close behind them. It took them two hours to remove everything from Jordan's room and move it to his new room upstairs.

Soren made certain the two rooms in the dungeon were clear of all personal items and made Jordan's old bed with generic bedding. There was not a lot he could do to personalize the master bedroom, nor was he inclined to. He put the spare set of clothes from his backpack on top of the dresser.

He planned to drop by his old place and pack up the clothes there. His clothes, and an odd assortment of food, were the only things he had at the one bedroom apartment he had been living in for the past three years. He just did not see a reason to collect trinkets, survival did not rely on pretty things.