This Mad Melody

1

Metallic nails rapped on the window pane of a small pay phone box. She was spending the last of her money; but she was desperate. In one hand she clutched the receiver to her ear, with the other she punched in the numbers. It rang and she held her breath. Four times it rang through, no answer came from anyone helpful. Just an automated response.

No one is available to take your call, if urgent type in your service code and you will be directed to the necessary department. Thank you. 

"Shit." Kate cursed, as she rubbed her forehead.  She didn't exactly have a service number, even if she had got a response from a human being she wasn't sure what she was going to say. All she had was a note, in terrible handwriting, from August. Given to her the day she left. And it had stayed, crumpled up in the front pocket of her bag, untouched, for six months. And now, it seemed, it was totally useless. 

The buzz was still there from the other side of the line, waiting for some numbers to be punched in at Kate's end. What could she do? She could make up a number, then waffle her way when she spoke to a someone. But how could she know how many numbers there were, was it a mix of numbers and letters? No, there was too much at stake for her simply to make up a story. She didn't need to talk to August. 

She needed to see him.

Leather shoes scraped the stone outside the Flynn Task Force compound.  August, although strong, was struggling to bare the weight of an FTF general by himself. He was aiming on getting him inside, into the lift and up to floor 19. "The morgue floor". But when he got inside he struggled to find a clear pathway through the mass of injured and medical staff swarming about the floor.

Three brave FTF men were attempting to get a path of some sorts cleared, or at least move people to lower levels. Where they would be somewhat safer. However more and more people were pouring in as the seconds went by and the light faded.
The only place that was thought safe in the whole of Verity, not just the South, was thought to be the Flynn compound.

And it probably was. Although a few hundred humans and one lone Sunai was not enough to defend off an entire army of Malachai and Corsai indefinitely, even if they had survived up until now.

The Seam had been doing its job for the past five months. A few teams of FTF members had gone into the North to settle the streets, with Callum Harker now dead and his heir vanished, people began to panic. Many people in the North sought refuge in the South, pleased their money was not going to a dead man, but not so happy with the idea of a Sunai in charge. (Although August always argued against that.  Henry was the leader. Not him. He would not be his brother.)

But the few teams gradually grew into a hundred; the monsters grew restless and with no Harker for them to bow to, they began to see a whole world on which to feed on. And so they began.

That was the collapse of the Seam. People flocked in their masses. They didn't know where, some ran away - towards the compound and relative safety- while others ran towards the darkness.

Kate couldn't believe her eyes as she drove into the South City, something she hadn't done often, at first she thought she was in the North. She would understand if she saw panic there. But panic in the South worried her. Immediately her thoughts went to August. Something must have happened to him if there was this much panic. Last time she checked it was half four in the afternoon, but there was far too much darkness for that to be right. A tight ball of worry appeared in her chest. Which made her want to see August more.

She abandoned the Sudan she was driving. As she didn't really know where she was going, she figured a big car wasn't going to get anywhere fast amongst this amount of people. So she left the car, jumping onto the ground, she followed the swarm of men, women and children, hoping they were going where she needed to be. She was right

All around her people were crying, screaming. Her bad ear hummed, as if the noise wanted to break through so her brain could be overpowered by the fear that surrounded her. Another reason she wanted to find the compound quickly, fear was growing. And Corsai fed on fear.

August stayed calm. He had learnt that from Kate. Calmness was key. Especially in situations like this. He glanced over to Ilsa, who was working on stitching wounds not too far away from him, she met his gaze and smiled the smallest of smiles. She was tired and looked hungry; the smallest of red grazed her cheeks as her temperature began to rise, her muscles tensed around her throat and her eyes darkened.  But finding a way to satisfy the hunger was difficult at that present moment. At any moment it seemed.

 A woman's scream rose up from the noise. 

Like a bad chord it stood out.

 August's gaze was transferred to the doors. The woman's child had run underneath the FTF's human barrier to keep people out, the compound was filling up, they wanted people to be safe-but not so safe that being inside meant becoming a risk - the mother was crying as more FTF soldiers appeared to push the crowd back. Now the child began to cry as he saw his mother fading away, swallowed up by the bodies.

A man's voice broke over the noise; 

"Take them to the barracks.  The wounded stay here." 

Henry's voice was calm but authoritative. The soldiers opened the doors, the child was swept up by his mother as the crowd made its way up the back stairs (to use the lift would have been stupid), then August spotted a blonde haired girl, who looked as lost as the others as she gazed at the injured around her; the blood, wails and stench of antiseptic overwhelming her. 

"Kate" August muttered, almost out of relief, before he began to walk towards her. His walk gaining speed as she closed in on the stairwell.

Kate felt a hand pull her to the side, she was about to jerk away when she felt the warmness radiating off her skin, she almost didn't have time to register the face opposite her as she was pulled into a tight hug. And suddenly, as quick as a touch, all the noise went away, it was just August and her. She could hear nothing else but the sound of their breathing. 

But she didn't allow herself to feel safe.

Not yet.