“There’s gotta be,” Ben replied.

The sun sank behind the horizon, leaving only the reddish orange glow to cover the sky. The cracks from the fire lit up some of their campsite. It was quieter now, you could hear anything out in the wildlands.

“Ben, did you see that?” Dan asked, taken back.

“See what?” Ben replied.

“That bird, it looked like it just crashed into the horizon. Right as the sun faded, I saw it fall. It didn’t dive, and it didn’t sink. It fell,” Dan responded.

“Do you think a hunter got it?” Ben asked.

“Wouldn’t we have heard them? Horizon is only a few miles off. Couldn’t have been that far,” Dan replied.

“Let’s check it out,” Ben replied.

“In the dark? I’ve always thought that was dangerous,” Dan responded.

“The bands and gangs died out years ago, no one is hunting us now. Small parties at best, scattered in the wild. Plus, night gives us cover if we’re quiet,” Ben replied.

Ben and Dan grabbed their gear, mostly survival equipment to boil water, cook food, and get some reasonable sleep. Without the light pollution of the cities and with some decent vision, the two of them didn’t need torches to transverse the landscape – just the bright light of the full moon.

“You ready?” Ben asked.

“Let’s go. I wanna find out why that bird fell,” Dan replied.

The roads were badly beaten and typically covered with the dirt or foliage of the biome. This one was closer to a blast site, so it was mostly desert with some returning greenery around disparate oasis.

Ben and Dan typically walked in this area since they knew it well, and walking didn’t draw much attention.

Each step they took gave way to a crunching of the sand and their military boots. Sounds of the desert at night came through, bugs chirping in spots and rodents scurrying along.

As they approached where Dan thought he saw the bird, they started to hear what seemed like the hum of generator. Ben signaled for Dan to be quiet and vigilant as they searched for the source and any people attached. They also knew that whoever had this generator likely had a better set-up than them and was likely well-armed. Even still, they persisted.

Now walking more slowly, the crunches of the boots became softer. Blenting in more naturally with the sounds of the desert.

Clunk. Ben’s boot stepped on something metallic.

“Metal container? A bunker?” Dan whispered.

“Gotta find an opening,” Ben said in agreement.

“Should we even be doing this? I value my life, and I’ve spent 13 years surviving in this apocalypse,” Dan replied.

“What are we even living for? What future do we have to look forward to other than the present moment? Other than the mysteries of our home? I can’t think of anything I’m waiting around for,” Ben replied.

“I like the peacefulness of the wildlands,” Dan replied.

“Then stay here. I want to see what it is,” Ben replied.

“Well, I can’t just let you go in alone. Might need some back-up,” Dan replied.

Feeling the metallic surface with their hands, they searched for anything that wasn’t smooth. A door, a bolt, a hatch, a window. Anything to take them from this world into the one under the surface of the desert.

Finally, Dan found something. Seemed like a slightly raised and perforated piece of metal. He ran his hand around it to try and see what it was. Even with the moonlight, it was hard to make out the specifics. Then, his fingers slipped into an opening.

“Ben!” Dan said in hushed but stern tone. He signaled and Ben made his way over. This time, Ben’s footsteps barely made a sound – a quiet scrape over the metal. Each step giving them a hint of anxiety, now that they knew they were going in.

As Ben reached Dan and the supposed bunker hatch, they both took a brief pause, holstered their firearms, and took a few deep breaths.

These breaths could be some of our last. Ben thought to himself.

Either that, or the start of a new adventure.

In a hushed tone, the two of them counted down to signal Dan to open the hatch.

“Three, two, one – open!”

Dan cranked the handle of the hatch and pulled. To both of their surprise, it opened. As the door opened the light from the inside blinded them and they immediately scurried backwards – shielding their eyes.

Focusing, they saw mostly normal people. The shapes and outlines were the same, but something was off.

“I’m surprised there’s anyone left,” the woman said as she greeted them, “You’ll have to excuse us, it’s been 16 years since most of us have seen a human from the outside.”

“16 years? I thought everything went down 13 years ago?” Dan replied.

“Must be hard to keep track out there. I’m sure the days blend. I’m Isabel, and we are the remains of Mexico City,” Isabel said as she introduced herself.

As Dan spoke to this new woman, Ben surveyed the background. Clearly, they had a market system in this metallic bunker with fruits, vegetables, all sorts of carbohydrates and even meat.

“Can we have some food? Some meat?” Ben asked, “It’s been so long since I’ve had some non-tampered rodent.”

“Rodent? Gross.” Isabel replied, “This is manufactured cow meat. Steaks at the ready from our system.”

“Manufactured? Is it normal meat or not?” Ben asked.

“It tastes normal,” she replied.

“Can we come in?” Ben asked.

“Yes, but you must use our showing system and get some new clothes. We’ll keep your bags safe and wash your clothes if you still want them afterwards,” Isabel replied.

Dan and Ben looked at each other and shrugged, it seemed safe enough to them.

“So, how’d you get this all set up?” Dan asked Isabel as she took them to the showers.

“It’s always been here, or at least, at long as I’ve been alive,” She replied.

“I hope it’s not rude, but how old are you?” Ben asked.

“27,” She replied.

“Why did Mexico City have an underground bunker outside the city?” Ben asked.

“Wasn’t always fully underground. It didn’t need to be. But as things started to decline in the outside world, we started to dig deeper underground and expand our habitats. That way, we were protected from most things on the outside. Fires, floods, famine or nuclear weapons. They seem much different, but they really aren’t in our world. They can all lead to disaster,” Isabel replied.

“Here we are,” she said as they reached the showers, “Please remove your clothes in the changing room and go to the shower system. Each of your belongings will be tagged and stored in the circumstance you would like to leave.”

“If we would like to leave? We just got here. Haven’t made up my mind to stay. Didn’t even know that was really an option – despite your hospitality,” Ben replied.

“I’m not sure if I want to be part of a system again. I’ve spent so much time outside of one, and you have your society here, it’d be like going back to work,” Dan said.

“Take your time, but your bags will be tagged – whatever your decision,” Isabel replied.

Ben and Dan walked through the entryway of the vault towards the shower system. There was a white hallway with metallic lights and floor to ceiling height doors lining the opposing sides of the hallway. Ben and Dan took separate shower stalls and lay their clothes out for pick-up in the changing area.

The showers were closer to a scientific research facility, rather than a typical overhead shower. They were both sprayed from all sides above their shoulders. Then the soap – assumedly a mix of shampoo, conditioner, and other chemicals sprayed them from the same places as the water. Then, as the shower concluded, they re-clothed with their new attire and met back in the hallway.

Interestingly, the hallway was now a dark grey, with cracks in the cement like surface. The overhead lights stayed the same, but the shadows along the walls grew.

“That was a weird shower, right? Wasn’t what I was expecting,” Dan asked Ben.

“Agreed, and what about these walls? Are they a different color or am I seeing things?” Ben replied.

“No, they’re different. What did we get ourselves into?” Dan replied.

“What about these clothes? When I looked at them before the shower, they seemed normal – underwear, socks, shirts and some sweats with sandals. But now it kind of looks like a dark green jumpsuit,” Ben said.

“What were those chemicals?” Dan asked.

“Do you two feel better after the shower?” Isabel asked as she entered the cleaning facility.

“It was nice to have a shower, but what’s going on with the hallways? We’re seeing things differently than when we entered,” Ben asked.

“Oh, you just went out the other side of the shower system. It’s more like a drive thru car wash rather than a typical shower. I should’ve warned you, but I’m so used to it I forgot,” Isabel replied in a nonchalant manner.

“But our clothes are different too,” Dan responded, still confused.

“No, I don’t think so. In fact, we’re wearing the same thing. It’s just our typical green jumpsuits,” Isabel replied.

“I swear it was a t-shirt and sweats,” Dan said.

“Me too,” Ben said in agreement.

“Must have looked different in the lighting. But anyway, you’re all sanitized from the outside world. Let me take you to back to the main area,” Isabel replied.

Stepping through the cement hallway left a bad feeling in both Dan and Ben’s stomach. Each step towards the door began to hollow out the inside of their torso until they reached the door and there was nothing left in them but anxiety and fear.

Before opening the door, Isabel’s eyes darted sharply towards them and then back to the door as the metal handle creaked downward and the door slid outward.

The town was different this time around, it resembled more of a cave like structure with hollowed out concrete, each of the stations for food and supplies were like merchant tents in a bazaar rather than a neatly refined and developed system.

Both Dan and Ben briefly looked at each other, not understanding the scene that lay in front of them.

“I’d like my gear back, please. You have been very hospitable, but I think it’s time to go. Ben, what do you say?” Dan asked Isabel.

“I’d at least like to take a look around and see what’s here,” Ben replied.

“Ben, I think we should go,” Dan replied sternly.

“Sure, no problem. We can grab your gear. You sure you don’t want to at least wait until morning? We can give you food, water, and a place to sleep for the rest of the night,” Isabel replied.

“Dan, let’s just see this through. I don’t see the harm,” Ben replied.

“Are you not seeing this? I don’t understand what this is. And frankly, if I don’t understand it, I don’t want a part of it. I didn’t mind the life on the outside – grimy as it could be. It was a quiet life. It was mostly peaceful,” Dan replied.

“I’m sorry to interject but life here is safe. No one will harm you,” Isabel replied to Dan.

As Isabel replied, both Ben and Dan saw a strange creature come out from behind one of the tents. It walked on two legs like a human, but its skin was a yellowy orange and was peeling off all over the parts of its unclothed body.

Then, the two of them looked back at Isabel, and the woman that they had conversed with throughout their time in the bunker didn’t exist. She too was rotting from the outside in.

At first, it seemed like she was subjected to radiation poisoning. But then, as the seconds passed, she started changing right before their eyes. Her skin fully molted to reveal a new, grey skinned figure with a bulbous head and large black eyes.

“An alien?” Ben and Dan said in unison, “Let’s get out of here!!”

As the two of them ran through the bazaar, the creatures did not follow or try to capture them. They just observed their frantic movements, searching for their gear and staying away from all of the creatures.

“Isabel, I don’t know what the hell you are, but please let us leave!” Dan pleaded.

“Like I said, you are not prisoners. Your bags are by the door,” Isabel replied.

“Where is the door?” Ben asked with a wild look in his eyes.

“Back through the showers,” Isabel replied.

Both Ben and Dan ran back through the shower system, but this time they didn’t stop for a cleaning. Running to the end of the shower, they were hit with a dead end.

“Dan. Dan, what the hell are we gonna do. I’m sorry we ever came down here. You were right, we should’ve just enjoyed the quiet life,” Ben said, his eyes terrified but also apologetic.

“Well, to be fair,” Isabel said at the other end of the shower system, “I did say you weren’t prisoners, and you’re not. You’re actually part of our new historical exhibit for the biome of Earth.”