Star Haven

Chapter 1.

She had been staring at the control screen in the Commander's office for hours. Three words blinked back at her no matter what code or simulation she tried. No longer viable.

Josephine knew that the bunker system was not a perfect solution- nor could it be a permanent one. But it should have lasted longer than five years... She braced herself against her desk, elbows pushing harshly into the cold aluminum, hands raking through her hair as fear and panic began to overtake her consciousness. Life support was failing, oxygen levels dropped every day. Water was depleting. The only thing left was food supply, but that too would only diminish.

Trying to breathe, she struggled to inhale deeply; Josephine had been living in the concrete prison of the bunker for five years now, after the world ended. She remembered the day the Earth died; but she couldn't remember what the sun felt like on her skin, just the bitter taste of the Vitamin D pills she took. She remembered the soft waves of the ocean lapping at the sandy shores, of the squawking seagulls and the beach's litter scattered across the sands. With a weak groan, Josephine rose from her seat, twisting in hopes of relaxing her tight back. Coffee mug in hand, Josephine hurried to pour herself a watered down cup.

"If we run out of coffee, I may die." She muttered under her breath, steam rolling off the mug. As the cup touched her lips, the PA system kicked in.

"All level A personnel report to the commander's office. Immediately."  Shit. Shit. Shit. She forgot to close her screen before leaving her desk. Rushing back to her desk, Josephine saw Commander Jarrod hunched in front of her computer, Advisers Jones and Chan standing shoulder to shoulder behind him, their necks craning to see the screen. Each trying to lean further in for a better view. 

"Jo, what is this?" Jarrod's steel eyes stared desperately at her. Alexander Jarrod had once been a prominent Chief of Police of the Boston Police Department. He never wanted to become Commander but when elected, he did his best to fill the shoes necessary to keep everyone alive.

Jo looked into her mug, unable to make eye contact with her colleagues and friends. "The bunker is failing, and we just barely have a year's worth of oxygen to sustain us now that the hydro-mill is out of commission. If we don't find a way to fix this, we all..." The words become lodged in her throat, making her gasp for air.

"We all die." Orion Musgrove cleared his throat. He was fresh faced and dressed in grey bunker standards which hung loosely from his thin shoulders. The deficiency in rations began to take its toll and the haunted look of malnutrition ghosted his face. He closed the distance between them, standing close enough to lightly grasp her forearm.

The silence was deafening. Josephine and many of the other scientists, engineers and doctors knew this was a possibility and did not take situations like this lightly. Humanity was resting on their shoulders.

"Orion, have you made contact with the other bunkers?" Jarrod finally spoke after what seemed like hours.

Orion shook his head.

"When was the last time we heard from D.C. or New York?"

"Sir, it has been three weeks since we last communicated with New York, and nearing two and a half months since D.C. last checked in" Orion whispered hoarsely, the words scraping against his throat. If they hadn't heard from the other bunkers, that meant they were facing the same issues. Or they were all dead. According to the Bunker system treaty, all commanding officers must communicate daily to ensure the health and safety of other systems; if communication is not returned, it is to be assumed the safety of that population had been compromised and death was imminent. Lately, many other bunkers have been failing to check in.