Survival: The Survival Series, #1

By Chris Wright

It was just a normal week for Danny. At least it was, until Olivia disappeared. His friends have no memory of her, leaving Danny to start doubting his sanity. Did he imagine her? Was she ever real? One by one, his friends become hunted by something terrifying and Danny is helpless to stop it. What follows is a mind-bending chain of events that cast Danny's view of the world into question, as he struggles to survive, all the while questioning what his reality really is.

 

★Survival is the first in a the trilogy of fast-paced and inventive Sci-Fi Horror, where not only genres become blurred, but so does the fabric of what makes up the characters reality. Expect the unexpected and take nothing for granted in the multi-dimensional world these three books portray.

★What starts out a Mystery/Horror soon flips to a new set of events that fling the tale into inventive Science-Fiction, so expect the unexpected.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chris Wright
• Release date: Jan 2, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393310235

Chris Wright

Chris Wright is a young author who enjoys reading and is keen to share this joy with others. He lives in England, but he grew up in a small village in Hampshire. He wants to inspire young readers with his tales of a simpler time, outside among nature.

Book preview

Prologue

Dream #1

Danny took a deep breath as his surroundings suddenly changed. He was no longer deep below ground in their hideout, he was above ground, standing in a sprawling metropolis; one he didn't recognize. Everything around him seemed to appear normal, the buildings, the vehicles, the bustling streets, but at the same time they seemed soulless; like they had been stripped of any individuality.  Is this the future again? He thought. He took his time as he wandered around, trying to find any clues to understand why he was here.

Everybody else seemed to be walking methodically, almost robot-like. Were they robots? If he was somehow glimpsing the future then that could be possible. Everyone else continued their routines, resembling a nest of worker ants, blindly following patterns that appeared to have already been laid out for them when all of a sudden there was a loud explosion. Danny looked over shocked and confused as he witnessed a building bursting into flames, spewing forth shrapnel indiscriminately. Shards of metal and glass showered the passers-by, whose robotic behavior was suddenly thrust to the side as they ran away in terror. He looked around horrified at the innocent victims, helpless casualties lying lifeless on the pavement; their bodies ravaged by the explosive projectiles. Sirens began to erupt in the distance, as panicked cars chaotically tried to steer away from danger; the streets now resembling a war zone. Danny felt a forceful tug and the view before him started to quickly dissolve away.

Chapter 1 – The Vanishing

Wednesday

It was his usual Wednesday morning, sitting at his favorite table, sipping his coffee, as he waited for Olivia to arrive. The hustle and bustle of the coffee shop was always a nice gentle break in to any day, as the caffeine slowly dripped into his blood and cleared his foggy morning mind. She was a little later than normal, which although unusual, wasn’t alarming. They always met for a quick pre-work coffee just to see how each other had been; it was a little routine that they both liked in their day. They’d been friends for a long time and their relationship was as close as a platonic friendship could be. They had once spent a drunken night together in college, just the one, and had managed to move past that a long time ago.

He glanced out the window, to see if she was striding up the street but there was no sign of her, so he took another sip from his cup. His thoughts returned to the strange dream that he had been recalling, burning buildings, charred bodies; it was so vivid that it stuck in his mind. He glanced around at the décor; the modern chic design was a blend of colors that recently was the coffee shop template throughout the country. But something seemed slightly different to how he remembered it being; he couldn’t shake off the feeling that the walls used to be a different shade. He stared deeply at them, his gaze transfixed as the wall opposite him seeming to ripple the more he stared at it. He quickly pulled himself away from his impromptu trance, quickly shrugging everything off as a product of still tired eyes. As his gaze turned back towards his own table, he caught eyes with a blonde-haired woman, whose own eyes were fixed in his direction, smiling sweetly at him. He didn't know who she was, but felt an urge to smile back.

His attention was quickly whisked away from the attractive woman across the room as the front door clattered open with Olivia stumbling through it in a rush. She waved at Danny and mouthed the word 'sorry', before running to the counter to grab her morning fix. He took the opportunity to glance back towards the woman again and they caught eyes once more, before she looked across to Olivia and then down at her own coffee. Olivia jumped into her seat looking flustered.

Sorry I'm late

No worries, is everything okay? You’re a little late

Yeah I'm fine, it was weird She said, glancing away from Danny's gaze briefly before looking back to him, It's hard to explain, but don't worry about it, it's probably nothing

Are you sure? You look a little stressed

Yeah, you wouldn't believe me if I told you She replied, I think I'm just imaging things

Okay, fair enough, are you ready for your big meeting?

As ready as I was yesterday She laughed nervously.

She was going for a promotion, it wasn't the first time she’d tried, and the scars from her previous rejections were still fresh in her mind. She was confident she could do her very best to ignore any doubts this time and demonstrate her skills to her manager. They continued their morning pick me up as Danny gave her one motivational speech after another, every now and then glancing behind Olivia towards the woman behind, who caught eye contact with him again every so often. There was something so intriguing about her, something familiar, but that was ludicrous as he had no idea who this woman was. They gulped down the last of their coffee as they realized what the time was and stood up to leave the shop. As they neared the door, Olivia turned to Danny.

You should go and speak to her

Who? Danny replied coyly.

You know who, the woman that you couldn't take your eyes off Olivia said with a wink, Promise me you'll speak to her next time; you know you need to start dating again     

Danny looked over towards the woman, who was once again trying to hide the fact that she was looking at him.

Maybe I will He said, as he gave the woman another smile before closing the door behind them.     

They both went their separate ways after a quick goodbye and a peck on the cheek. They worked in adjacent buildings, which is why it was so convenient to have a morning catch up each day. Danny's day was as exhausting and simple as they normally were. He was a statistician and spent his days pouring through and analyzing data for a Tech Development company; one reason his morning caffeine dose was so important. There was nothing eventful to speak of, a short lunch with his colleagues, followed by another afternoon of analysis. It was a short commute home where he would grab his microwaved dinner and relax in front of the TV before sleeping it off overnight, to reboot for the next morning and start all over again.

––––––––

Thursday

Danny noticed that he was taking longer to get going that morning, which he found unusual. He was following his usual routine and hadn’t been going any slower showering or grabbing his toast; but the clocks told him otherwise, so he found himself suddenly in a rush to get ready for work. He noticed an envelope that had been pushed underneath his door and picked it up. It was an invitation to a small gathering at a friends' house that evening for Samir's birthday. Samir was a friend that he knew from University, a Doctor, born and raised with an Indian family before relocating countries to study and eventually work there. They both got on well, and they had a large group of friends that were all very close-knit. The invitation said from 7pm, so he decided he'd make an appearance for a few hours. He placed the invitation on the table top and slipped on his jacket. He looked down at his watch to find that he was now five minutes late. It looked like it was his turn to show up just in the nick of time for his morning catch up with Olivia.

He quickly arrived at the coffee shop, glancing around for Olivia, but she wasn't there yet. Two days in a row? This was unprecedented. He noticed the attractive woman from yesterday sat in the corner and as he looked over, she lifted her head and smiled at him, to which he smiled back. He really wanted to go over and talk to her, but couldn’t strike up the confidence to. He paid for his coffee and sat down in his usual seat as he patiently waited for Olivia to arrive. Where was she? He checked his watch and noticed that she was even later than yesterday. He'd been late himself, so perhaps she had come and gone already, he thought. Again, it was unusual, but there could be any number of reasons why she couldn't stay long. Perhaps she got the promotion she deserved and had to start earlier than normal. But why hadn’t she sent him a message to tell him how it went? Danny had been so tired the evening before that he fell asleep in front of the TV and hadn’t thought to ring her, but he did expect a missed call or text message; but she hadn’t left him either.

After five minutes, he began to worry a little. Maybe she was sick? He thought. But normally she’d send him a message if that was the case, so he quickly dismissed that. He pulled out his phone and dialed her number, but it didn't seem to connect. He tried it a few more times, but there was still no connection. This had never happened before, and it was now beginning to give him a sense of unease. Something just didn't feel quite right. He looked up, surprised, to see that the woman from the corner was standing in front of his table, smiling down at him.

Hi She said.

Oh, err, Hi

May I sit down? She asked.

Danny was a little taken aback, but didn't hesitate in pointing to the empty seat and gesturing for her to sit down.

I'm sorry to be so upfront, it's just that I noticed you yesterday and, err, my name is Julie

I'm Danny, and there's no need to apologize. I noticed you too He said, glancing out the window briefly.

Is everything okay? You seem a bit worried Julie asked, as she placed her coffee down on the table.

I'm just looking for my friend; she was sat here yesterday with me. Have you seen her in here today? He asked.

No, I've not seen her; is something wrong?

I don't know, it's unusual for her not to show and I can't seem to get through to her on her phone He said worried, Excuse me one second

He picked up his phone again and tried once more. Still nothing, and this time it didn't even ring. Thoughts began running through his mind, panicked thoughts that seemed to well up from somewhere deep down. He had to calm himself down; his panic causing him to imagine the worst. She was either at work, he told himself, as she had to get there earlier and had to turn her phone off, or she was in bed sick and perhaps hadn't realized her phone battery had died. It was simple, there was nothing to worry about, he convinced himself.

I'm sure it's nothing He said, backing up his thoughts, So, Julie, I can't recall seeing you here before yesterday; have you just moved here?

Yeah, I'm here for work; I'm not expecting to be here too long She said, Which is a shame as this place is nice

So, what do you do? He asked

I'm an investigator She smiled.

Sounds intriguing Danny replied, Anything you can tell me about it?

She smiled and looked deep into his eyes.

I'm afraid not, its top secret

He laughed. He wasn't sure if she was being truthful, but he decided to believe her anyway. They spoke for a few more minutes, small talk, just trying to gauge each other and see if they could pursue this further and before they knew it, they had both finished their coffees.

So Danny said, I'm going to be late for work, so I really should get going. Will you be here tomorrow?

I hope so She said, with an alluring grin.

Great, then I'll see you here He said, as he shook her hand.

Why was he shaking her hand? He figured he was nervous and his body was moving of its own free will. She shook his hand back and smiled again, before Danny turned and walked towards the door. There was something about the handshake that felt strange; it caused his nerves to tingle. It sounded completely crazy, but it felt like he already knew her. He quickly brushed the unusual feelings aside and stepped out the door. As soon as he had closed it behind him, he pulled out his phone, dialing Olivia once more. It was another call to nothing; this was now getting very strange. He convinced himself again that everything was okay and that he was simply overreacting, so put his phone back in his pocket. It was another usual and mundane day at work, an almost perfect replica of the day before. The only thing different was trying to contact Olivia every few hours, but with absolutely no luck. By the afternoon, any conviction that there was nothing to worry about was quickly starting to fade.

He decided to pass by her house on the way home; he needed to check if she was there and okay. He’d asked her workplace if she had been in that day, but was met with blank faces and eventually a ‘no’, which all felt incredibly peculiar. It was a short stroll from his own office to her neighborhood, a pleasant walk, with the fresh breeze sending floral scents through the air. He reached her house and approached the front door. The house looked different, as if it was completely unloved. Olivia had always taken great care of her home previously and prided herself on how inviting it looked, so to see it in a state like this was alarming. She was a micro-biologist by profession and her attention to detail with her garden landscaping and interior decoration mirrored her line of work. But something now seemed drastically wrong. Danny couldn't actually remember how long it had been since he last visited, but what was once a beautiful garden of ornamental flowers was now an overgrown jungle. The paint on the house was fading and there were patches of rotten wood dotted around the facade. What was going on?

He knocked at the front door frantically, hammering louder and louder, but there was no answer. He repeated this over and over, but still nothing. He walked towards the lounge window and peered through to find the inside completely empty, as if no one lived there. Had she moved and not mentioned it? He couldn't quite understand what was happening; everything was getting stranger as the day went on. He walked around the perimeter of the house, battling with the overgrown garden, stopping at each window to look for any sign of her inside. There seemed to be no furniture, absolutely nothing to suggest anyone had lived there for quite a while. He was now understandably worried and equally confused. He made his way back to the main road and dialed his childhood friend David. David and Olivia were good friends; they had been ever since their teens and he hoped he could shed some light on what was going on.

Hey Danny He shouted down the other end of the line, as a cacophony of noise enveloped his voice.

Hey Dave, have you seen Olivia today? I'm round her house now and it looks like she's moved out; there's absolutely nothing here 

Sorry Danny, I can't hear you properly. I'm here with Jim in the Stumble Inn He replied.

That would explain the noise; it was a nice bar with a great selection of beers, but terribly loud, terrible music. It was only two blocks from where Danny was, so he decided to walk over there and speak to him in person.

Okay, I'm going to pop over, I'll be there in five

And off he went, walking as quickly as he could, not that walking any quicker was going to make any difference to what David did or didn’t know, but Danny was deeply worried now and walking as fast as he could seemed to be involuntary. He arrived at the Stumble Inn, looked over at the bar and saw David and James perched on stools. David was a slight guy with Asian parentage, an Astrophysicist, someone Danny couldn't win an argument with. James was a Quantum Physicist, tall and blonde, slender but muscular, a guy who always got the best of everything, and someone else Danny couldn't win an argument with. They'd both met James at University, the place where most of the group of friends had met as each of their paths crossed.

Hey guys Danny said, as he approached.

He looked at the Bar Tender and asked for an IPA that was swiftly placed in front of him.

So, I can't seem to get hold of Olivia today, she didn't show up this morning and her phone isn't working

Eh? James uttered.

And I’ve just been to her house, but there's no furniture, the garden looked like a jungle and-

Whoa Danny, wait David butted in, Who's Olivia?

What do you mean 'Who's Olivia? Danny said frustrated. He didn't have time for ill-timed jokes; he was genuinely concerned about what was going on.

Is she a new girlfriend? James asked.

"Stop messing around guys, Olivia. I’m seriously confused about what’s going on Danny replied, Try phoning her cell and you'll see what I mean"

David and James looked at each other, both frowning.

I really don't know anyone called Olivia, Danny David said, "How do you know her?"

"What do you mean 'How do I know her'? We all went to college you asshole, stop messing around Danny retorted angrily, before turning to James, and you met us and her at Uni, which you damn well know, so quit playing games, this could be serious"

They both looked back at Danny, still completely confused.

Look man, I'm sorry, I don't know what to say David replied, We're heading over to Monique's soon for Samir's Birthday. Maybe someone there has seen this 'Olivia' you're talking about

Danny was getting angry with their childish games, so knocked back his drink in order to leave. He'd forgotten about Samir's little gathering and decided he should probably make the appearance he had planned to, if only to see if anyone there could at least shed some light on where Olivia was.

I'm going to go and freshen up, I'll be there later Danny said, as he threw the Bar Tender what he owed and turned away to leave.

Okay, see you later James said, by which time Danny had exited the front door, Jeez, what the heck is wrong with him today?

God knows. Who the hell is Olivia?

––––––––

Monique’s House

The doorbell rang and Monique dashed towards it excitedly. She opened it to find Samir, as expected, bottle of wine in hand.

"You didn't need to bring wine, it's your birthday, I've stocked up with plenty" Monique said.

Well I thought I'd bring a Merlot, you know how picky Emma is about her red wine He said laughing.

Monique joined in with the laughter and gestured him in. As she was about to shut the door, she saw Mike walking up the pathway waving to get her attention.

Mike, you made it She said, promptly greeting him with a kiss on the cheek.

Mike shook Samir's hand and wished him happy birthday as they all made their way towards the lounge. Monique reached into the cabinet, pulled out an assortment of wine glasses and handed them to her guests.  They had all known each other over fifteen years and had encountered lots of adventures together.

Monique was afro-Caribbean, a complete exercise freak and was always the life and soul of a party. She worked as a researcher into Artificial Intelligence, which she felt was the most exciting job to be in, as they were making progress daily. They all had very different jobs; their connection was their shared histories from College and University. 

Mike was the odd one out in this group of friends, a short dark-haired Caucasian; he’d been separated from the rest of them while they went to University, as he decided to go on a different path. While they were all sitting in exams, he was out in the wilderness, learning to survive in extreme environments. There was something about being in raw nature that excited him, a close connection to the planet that he was teaching himself to be in tune with. He stayed in touch with them all and they met up again after university and continued their friendships, as if they'd never been apart. He wasn't an academic, but he was skilled in his own way. Give him a box of matches, a hand towel and drop him in a desert and he'd survive, that's how he was.

There was another knock at the door, and Monique darted off to answer it. That's one thing she liked about this group of friends, they were all so punctual. She was greeted by James and David who were smiling wildly from ear to ear. It was clearly obvious that they’d just visited their usual watering hole.

You two look like you've had fun She said, smiling back at them, unable to quite match their maniacal grins.

Ha, well a couple of Session Ales does that for you James replied, as they entered.

Hey guys David shouted over to the others, as he entered the living room, How are you? Happy Birthday Chief

Samir thanked him and raised his wine glass in their direction.

Hey, maybe we should give them a heads up about Danny? James said to David.

David agreed, he had been acting strange and he would be heading over here soon, so it wouldn’t be long before talk of the fabled ‘Olivia’ started.

Yeah okay David replied, before he turned back to everyone else, "Guys, We just saw Danny while we were grabbing a couple of beers; he was acting weird. He ran in and started asking us where ‘Olivia’ was, like we were supposed to know her. He then started saying that we do know her and that she went to University with us all. Neither of us knows anyone called Olivia from University, so we really didn't know what to say, it was strange. Anyway, he's coming over here so he's probably going to bring it up with everyone here, so we thought we'd let you know in advance"

I don't know what he was smoking Laughed James, But he seemed so sure that we should know her. Maybe it’s a quick fling he had, one we weren’t even aware of maybe; that's my best guess

They changed the conversation quickly, discussing what they'd been doing, what films they'd seen at the cinema and so on, as the other guests slowly filtered through the door to join the party. They relayed the same information to each guest as they arrived, everyone agreeing that they didn’t know anyone called Olivia.

Where was Danny? He was normally the most punctual, but he was going to be the last one to arrive. It was fifteen minutes later before he finally knocked at the door. Monique opened it and embraced him with a big hug and a kiss on the cheek.

How are you Danny? She asked, We were getting worried, you're quite late

Sorry, I don't know what happened. I seem to keep missing five minutes here and there and then suddenly I'm running completely behind schedule. I must have too much on my mind, plus I keep noticing things that seem out of place, it's really strange He said, looking a little confused, But aside from that, I need to ask about Olivia, have you heard from her?

Here we go, thought Monique. He’d only just stepped in the door and he had started already. Danny approached the lounge and saw that everyone else was already there. Samir, David, James, Mike, Emma, Mateo, Gina, Jarrah and Brandon. It was quite a gathering, practically the whole group of friends, except for one person; Olivia. She should be here, Danny thought, she wouldn’t miss Samir’s birthday.

We know what you're going to ask David said, But we’ve discussed it with everyone already and none of us know anyone called Olivia

Danny was now seething; he didn’t have time for pathetic games, why weren’t they taking this seriously? He decided that David and James must be continuing their little charade as some kind of joke and told everyone here to go along with it. He needed to know where Olivia was and why her house was in the state that it was. He needed to stop this stupid joke first and foremost, before he could try and find out any more, so called over to Monique.

Have you got the old college yearbook? He asked.

He knew there was a picture of Olivia in there, with him, Monique, David, Brandon, Jarrah and Mateo. It was a group photo taken a few weeks before they all graduated and were sitting on a grassy bank. This would shut David and James and their pathetic little joke up once and for all he decided.

Of course Monique said, before disappearing into another room to look for it.

There was an uncomfortable silence while she was gone, no-one wanting to change the subject quite yet. In the silence, Brandon handed Danny a beer. Brandon and Danny were close friends in childhood, they had stayed friends since then, but they never quite reclaimed those glory days of being ten years old, playing out in the woods, pretending to be action stars and performing dangerous stunts from trees. Brandon was an athletic black guy, the hundred meter sprinting champion on any sports day, and the two hundred meter champion, or the champion of whatever distance you challenged him to run. Damn, this guy was fast.

He was also clever, after College he started studying cell Biology and ended up becoming a Cell Biologist. His research was cutting edge and he was well regarded as the top DNA/Cloning Expert in his field. They still shared a bond from those glory days, but it was something that just simmered underneath the surface. They weren't best friends; it was a mutual respect for the other, as they both shared parts of their life journey together.

Monique reappeared with the yearbook and began flicking through. She wasn't quite sure what this 'Olivia' was supposed to look like and was having to read the names on every page. This was going to take forever she thought, so she handed it to Danny. He flicked through himself, much quicker, as he knew where the photograph was. He got to the page with the photograph of them all sat on the grassy bank. Here it was he, thought, this will stop this silly game. But the picture was different; there was no Olivia. She should have been standing on the left right next to David, with her arm around his shoulder. But instead, there was no one there.

Have you found her? Emma asked.

Emma was white, with auburn hair, and was dressed more like she was going to a nightclub than a friend’s gathering with her short skirt, revealing top, and far too much make-up. This was Emma though, she liked to make a show and stand out however she could; she had always been this way. She was a cosmologist in her day job, which was complex and demanding work that required a lot of concentration, so her personal life was almost like a second life, the complete anti-version of her day role.

Danny was now completely bewildered and had to sit down.

What the hell? He said bemused, I don't understand

Monique put her hand on his shoulder to comfort him; she was concerned to see him like this. She told him to relax and whoever this ‘Olivia’ was, she must have been bad news as she’d really gotten under his skin. None of this was any comfort to Danny, as he was now wrestling with so many conflicting thoughts. He didn't know what to say other than to apologize to everyone, while he sifted through his memories; trying to figure out what could be happening.

He had looked at that picture a hundred times. She was always there, to the left of David, and he could even recall the day it was taken. Couldn't he? None of it made any sense.

Are you okay Dan? Samir asked.

Danny didn’t reply, he just sat there staring into space. The rest of them decided to strike up a new conversation, leaving him sitting there quietly as he digested his own thoughts. They were all concerned about him, but decided it was a good idea to leave him alone while he worked through whatever was going on with him.  Their conversation turned to topical news. Everyone liked to debate the issues of the day, it was a fun and sometimes frustrating part of the evening; depending on whether you could get your point of view accepted or not. Five minutes later, Danny abruptly stood up.

Sorry guys, I need to go. Have a great evening, and I hope you've had a great day Sam He said, as he strode towards the front door, Sorry again

He left, quietly closing the door behind him; leaving the others looking at each other in bewilderment.

"I've never seen him like