Part 316: The People of The Hatch

The darkness echoed a horror movie, showing an unseen level of Hell. For the occupants of the Hatch, it was hell. The lights flickered because they were over 50 years old. The electricity still pumped into their circuits but the lights flickered nonetheless. The people of the Hatch were called Jaeger Units; promised to become super soldiers fighting for their country. But they were unaware that the process was flawed. Not all of them became super soldiers; others became the only word they new to describe themselves.

Freaks.

The large group that was rejects in the process were forced into the hatch and then sealed from the outside. They were tricked; the soldiers who guarded them told them a disease was sweeping the world and they would be safe in the Hatch; marking the outside door by Quarentine. That was forty years ago.

The process was to hold the genetic makeup for the enhancements had one process that it was able to beat; death. The cells became self replicating at 100 times their normal speed. Human being shed and re-grow cells daily; wounds take longer to heal. For a Jaeger Unit, a wound would heal in under seconds. But the drawback was the skin didn’t know when to stop healing. It left most with constant pain. And it kept them from starving to death, despite the fact that the food ran out 29 years ago.

Priest slowly moved the arms of the man he found a few minutes ago. The Unit had the designation of Monarch but he did not die a king. His body had finally burned out and a blood vessel in his brain popped. Priest made a cross across his forehead, removing the dirt in the process. “Blessed be the father, the son and the Holy Spirit, Amen,” the man whispered, “Ashes to ashes, Dust to Dust.”

“Save your prayers, Priest,” Arthur whispered, “God doesn’t live down here.”

“I will not ignore my teachings, despite what has been done to me. Monarch is dead, Arthur. He is one of the lucky ones.”

Then a group of Jaegers came down the long hallway. They were led by the one called Blaster. The large man with no hair on his body whatsoever stopped in front of the Priest. “Hand him over.” He grunted.

“No,” the Priest replied.

“I don’t want to hurt you, Priest but I will if I have too . . .now give me Monarch’s body.”

“I thought we agreed not to eat our kind?” the Priest said, wrapping the dead body up in plastic.

“WE’RE STARVING!!!” Princess screamed in tears, “Monarch would understand.”

“We are not going down that route, child,” Priest replied as he picked up the body, “That way lies damnation.”

“Open your eyes, Priest!!” Blaster screamed, “We are already damned!!”

The one called Priest ignored there screams. It wasn’t the first time they demanded one of the dead and it won’t be the last. The small group that was led by Blaster even attacked on of their own and feasted on his corpse for food. The stronger ones who were left fought back and they agreed that no longer would they feast on the living. The Priest didn’t approve of them feasting on the dead either. In fact, he disapproved completely.

The half-man/half hybrid walked down and made it to the underground well. The area was circular in nature, with their only source of water. No one knew how long it would last or how even long they had been there. Priest paused for a second when he noticed someone alone down in the well area. He relaxed his fears when he saw it was one of the stronger ones left; the one called Raven. “Hello, my friend.” Priest whispered.

Raven looked at him. He wanted to tell him Hello. He wanted to tell the Priest many thing but he could no longer; the procedure to make him a Jaeger unit replaced his human vocal cords with that of a raven’s. He made a chirping sound toward the Priest. “Why are you all alone?” he asked.

Raven made a motion toward his ears and then motioned for a sign, meaning nothing. “Ah, it’s quiet,” the Priest smiled, “Yes, I can sympathize. The constant sounds of death and dying can do a number on one’s mind yes. In fact, Blaster requested that he eat Monarch.”

Raven then stood up abruptly and looked down the tunnel leading back up to the main shaft. “No, no, no,” Priest said as he walked over to a sliding door, “Blaster is mostly all talk. It’s not like the Pegasus incident.”

Raven then walked over toward the Priest, knowing full well what he was planning. He strode past him and then opened the sliding door, the access to one of the man silos in the area. “Thank you for your help, Raven,” Priest sighed as he dumped the body into the giant shaft, “I only wish more of them were like you.”

Priest looked like he was going to collapse. Raven grabbed him by the arm and proceeded to help him up the ramp. “I’m so tired, Raven,” he coughed, “So . .tired.”

Raven made a chirping sound. He wanted to tell the Priest he was tired too but he couldn’t form the words.


How long had it been? Weeks? Months? Years? The passage of time wasn’t immaterial down the Hatch. A few of them would make markers on wall, signaling the passage of time but people were unsure what date it was. Some would celebrate their birthdays or Christmas without ever knowing the actual date.

Raven laid on the ground like he had done so many times. He couldn’t remember the last time he ate; nor what that particular food was. He wondered if he had a stomach left at all. Was that the reason hunger pains didn’t effect him? The masked man curled up in his makeshift bed with the others in the hallway with him. Most of them just stopped moving; they sat down and never got up. Raven often looked to Helen. She stopped moving a few years ago; just sat in the corner. One time a rat came out of the woodworks, taking a small chunk out of her leg and leaving. She never moved a muscle.

The masked man then shifted over on his back, reaching into the back pocket of his pants. The one piece of himself he managed to keep, and it was also one of the few things that kept him sane. He slowly unfolded the picture and looked at it. It was the picture of a young girl, running along a peer. Her blonde flowing hair looked like streaks of gold, even though it was a black and white photograph. She was looking back at whoever took the picture with such a bright smile, emitting so much joy. On the back of the photo, it read in scribbled letters I will wait for you.

Raven knew this girl meant something to him. But what would destroy his happiness and make him anger was that for the death of him, he could not remember her name. It made him even more upset when he couldn’t remember his own name. She said she would wait for him. But how long ago was that?

Raven.

The masked man then jolted as he felt a stinging sensation in his brain and realized someone was calling his name.

Raven.

Raven looked up and understood that it was Helen. The old woman was looking at him with such sadness. She was crying but no tears were in her body. Then she looked to her left, meaning Raven’s right. The masked man looked toward the right, seeing that she was pointing toward one of the adjacent rooms. The warrior stood up, placed his picture back into his back pocket and walked toward the room. He looked back toward Helen and she motioned gently with her head, pointing toward the room.

Raven walked into the hallway and then turned toward his left. He slowly opened the rusted metal door and looked inward. The light fell upon the face of Princess and judging by her eyes, she was clearly dead. Someone was kneeling over the side of her legs and what made Raven disgusted was that it was a munching sound. The masked man then clicked on the lights into the room, making the culprit turn around; blood caked on his cheeks. “Raven!” gasped The Priest.

The masked man squinted his eyes; this was the man who preached about not eating their own kind less than two weeks ago. Raven’s eyes slowly bent inward at the man. He wanted to scream at him; call him a hypocrite. Priest began to cower back behind the body of Princess. “Please, Raven, it’s not what you think.” He begged.

Raven slowly began to walk over to him, pulling out his silver nunchuks from his back belt. Priest began to crawl backward toward the other door. “Raven, don’t do this!” he begged, “I don’t want to die . .not like this . . .I’m not a monster, I . .”

By the time the Priest stood up, he felt his jaw break as Raven slammed his weapon into his face. The super soldier reject fell onto the ground, coughing up his own blood. He jerked when he felt the nunchuks hit him the back of the head. Raven pressed his hand against his shoulder blades and continued to beat him.

All that could be heard was the hard, wet packing sounds of Raven’s assault down the hallway. The creatures and freaks gathered together listening to the sounds of the attack. Then it stopped; filling the shaft with an eerie silence. Helen slowly closed her eyes and smiled, as tears finally dropped from her eyes. Raven slowly emerged from the room, his right hand and nunchuks dripping in blood. The freaks just stared at him as he slowly approached them. They quickly backed off, scurrying down the hallways. A few of the stronger ones left like Blaster and Yosemite stood their ground. Raven then turned toward his left and proceeded to write on the wall in Priest’s blood. He stayed there for a few seconds, then when he was done; he turned and pushed past them. Blaster looked back at him and then toward the wall with the words dripping in blood.

ANYBODY WHO WANTS TO DIE A MONSTER,
COME SEE ME.

Raven walked back down the ramp toward the well where it was quiet. No one followed him. And after his threat, there were no more incidents of cannibalism. Raven wasn’t sure if they wanted to hold onto to their humanity. However, he knew for a fact he wanted to hold onto his.


Raven opened his eyes, wondering how much time had past. Was it a week or a year? He honestly didn’t care anymore. He knew was going to die in this Hatch. Eventually he would grow too weak to defend himself and the need for food will overdrive his fellow reject’s common sense. He gently felt of the photo in his jacket, making sure it was still there. As along as she was with him, he knew he could survive. Raven also knew if they did come for him, they wouldn’t take her. The only source of purity left in his life.

Raven then blinked when someone came scurrying down the ramp; his first visit since the Priest incident. The small man stopped as he approached the warrior. Raven only knew him as Squeak, one of the ones that was like him; combined with animal DNA. In this case, Squeak was infused with rat DNA. He looked like a small dwarf man with whiskers like a rat and his ears even grew outward. “Raven,” he twitched his mouth,” Helen says it is time for your release.”

Raven gave him a confused look.

“Come, come,” he motioned, “Follow Squeak.”

The rat man scurried back up the ramp. Raven paused for a second, then followed him. He walked up the ramp and looked around, noticing most of the specimens were asleep or dying. Squeak walked over to Helen and sat down next to her for a brief second, then ran off. Raven walked over to her and kneeled down, looking at her in the face. He slowly took her limp, rotting hand and held it in his own. “Raven,” she whispered inside his head, “You are a kind soul. Everyone else has succumbed to their fate but you . . you have fought it. You are the only one strong enough to do what is needed.”

Raven shook his head in confusion.

“You must kill us.” Helen said, psychically.

Squeak then came back into the room with an old army backpack. He sat it down and pulled out a book. He then handed it to Raven and pointed toward the scribble at the bottom. “Raven read, Raven read,” he squeaked.

Raven looked it over. It read, “The Jaeger Units expiration date will be set in place. Commence with the reset code to . . and then it stopped. Raven shrugged his shoulders.

“The reset code must be locked into our cyanide capsules in our bodies,” Helen whispered, “It’s the only logical explanation. Find it, Raven. Please.”

“Squeak learned that the book talks of a being called Watchman,” the rat man pointed, “Find the Watchman and find the code, Raven.”

Raven put the book into the backpack and then placed it on his shoulders. He motioned with his hands, using sign language and stated the obvious question; how was he going to get out of the Hatch? “In a moment,” Helen whispered psychically, “There are . .soldiers that have arrived on the Island. They have discovered the Hatch. In five minutes, an arc welder will open it. Only you, Raven . ..have the agility and the strength to get up the Hatch. Squeak will show you.”

“Raven follow Squeak.” The rat man jumped past him and skipped down the hallway.

Raven gently touched Helen’s cheek. She smiled and managed to cry again. “End our suffering, Raven,” she whispered, “Please . . . . . “

The masked man then got to his feet and ran off down the hallway. His boots splashed on the collection of water as he ran past all the pylons that ordained the large hallway. Squeak continued to run until he stopped at the Hatch exit. He quickly pulled out a flare and ignited it, looking upward. Raven stopped and looked upward. “Soldiers should be here any minute,” the rat man peeped, “ Then Raven escape through exit they make.”

Raven shook his head, understanding what he had to do.

“All freaks in Hatch want to die, “ Squeak pointed out, “Priest wanted to die. Helen wants to die. Even Squeak want to die, so Squeak can join family in heaven.”

Raven gave him a look as if he was saying why are you tell me that?

“Helen said she chose Raven cause Raven wants to live. Squeak wanted to know why?”

Raven paused for a second, then kneeled down and removed the picture from his back pocket. He unfolded it and handed it to the rat man. Squeak looked it over and read it, then handed it back to him. “Raven believes pretty lady is still waiting for him?” he asked.

Raven shook his head in agreement.

“Squeak doesn’t know if anybody waits for him but if Raven believes in pretty lady’s promise, then that is all Squeak needs to know.”

Then sparks and a screeching sound began to erupt above. Raven looked up at the metal dome of the tunnel, seeing white and orange sparks falling from above. “Soldiers have come!” Squeak pointed, “Squeak leave now.”

Raven gently patted him on the head.

“Good luck, warrior,” he said as he left the flare and ran off into the distance.

Raven then looked skyward as the welding had already carved out half of the dome. He then placed his right hand on side and then his left hand on the other side. Using his skills of balance, he gently began to push himself up. One small scoot at a time, raising his right foot and hand, then his left foot and hand. Within minutes, he was already up toward the top of the shaft. He turned his head as the hot sparks bounced off of him. Then the welding at stopped. Raven looked up and saw that someone was prying off the rest of it with a crowbar. The masked warrior squatted down then thrust himself upward.

He collided with the dome, sending it to the side along with two soldiers. There were three more but by the look on their faces, they had no ideas there would be some alive down below. Raven rolled on the ground and the moment he found his footing, he ran into the jungle. “SHOOT HIM!!!” some one screamed.

Raven ran, hearing the bullets smack the trees as he escaped into the jungle. He was trying to stay focused without being intoxicated by the clean air. The masked man then looked up and saw the Moon for the first time in over 40 years. He remembered that they changed about him and decided to put it to use. He quickly grabbed a vine and scaled the tree with the grace of the raven that he got his namesake from. The soldiers down below fired at him until he disappeared into the darkness. One soldier lowered his rifle and looked back toward the soldier in command. “How do we explain this to Belmont, Frakes?” he asked.

Frakes looked into the night sky and took a deep breath. He gently pulled out a cigarette and lit up. “Re-seal it.” He ordered.

“What?” the arc welder gasped.

“We just saw a freak emerge from this hatch and fly through the damn trees like Tarzan!” Frakes pointed out, “we are not going back down there until we learn more. Belmont will understand.”

“Yeah, but will the Colonel?” asked another soldier.

“He’s got the computer. He ain’t gonna care,” Frakes tossed his cigarette inside, “Seal it.”

The soldiers moved it back into place and began to reseal. High above beyond their scope of hearing, Raven watched from above. They mentioned names that were associated with the military faction that ran them; Frakes, Belmont and the Colonel. They mentioned a computer and Helen mentioned a reset code. Is that possibly where he would find it? Raven didn’t know but he needed to get a better layout of the Island. He quickly soared through the trees to get faraway from them as possible.


The morning sun finally began to rise. The sky had stopped being dark and went to becoming a light blue. Raven’s clothes were swaying the breeze on the line of vines he fastened. The warrior sat in the sand alone and naked for the first time in a long time. The sunrise was probably the most beautiful thing he had seen since the moon last night. The little things he took for granted, he appreciate them with every single breath he took.

He looked at his scarred hands and then gently felt of his scarred face. He couldn’t change who he was but he knew Helen could have told anybody about the approaching soldiers but she told him. Raven slowly stood up and walked back over to his clothes. Near the bottom on the sand was the collection of coconuts he found along the way. He cracked one up and drank it’s precious milk. Raven felt a headache coming on cause it was the first nourishment he had had in so many years. After he finished his coconut, he then picked up his pants and began to place them on. Then his shirt and his jacket. He gently pulled the photo out and looked at it again. The lovely blonde stared back at him, reminding him of her words.

I will wait for you.

Raven tucked her back safely his pocket. She kept him going. He didn’t remember who she was but she kept him going. Helen gave him escape and at that moment, he knew his purpose. To find the reset code, find the being called Watchman and end their suffering once and for all.

Raven slowly donned his mask and tied it shut. Then he jumped up into the trees and proceeded to find a place he could call home, while he continued his search.