Vanessa

Tuesday, March 22nd, 2022 (The day of the Shutdown)

“What the hell…” Vanessa muttered, unable to tear her eyes away from the spectacle above her.

One moment she was inside, idly tending the cash register, and the next, a red veil was growing over her city.

Dropping her cigarette, she pulled out her phone to call her roommate but the moment she turned it on her phone screen glitched and went dark.

Gritting her teeth in frustration, she put it back in her pocket, reminding herself to invest in a new one.

The battery must’ve drained during work.

Though no one ever called her, this had been the third time this week alone. It was starting to get on her nerves.

Going back into the convenience store, she decided to close up early. Technically she was obligated to stay for another 4 hours but… who was there to stop her?

Flipping the sign on the front to “CLOSED”, she locked up everything else and left through the back door. On her way back to the apartment, people were still frozen in shock, heads turned up to watch the phenomenon.

Maybe I should’ve pulled down the shutters…

Navigating the winding streets of the South Shore district, the deeper she went in, the darker it got as the larger residential complexes towered over her. She walked past an elderly couple who, despite their old age, were pushing their haggard bodies to move faster.

Passing by them, the husband glanced at her, his body tensing up as if he was expecting a confrontation. Vanessa watched them until they scurried out of view.

Taking that as a sign to hurry up, she hastened towards her apartment complex. The glass entry doors of the West Wind Apartments were locked when she arrived. Pounding on it, she watched the portly security guard come lumbering out of his office.

“Alright, alright, stop your pounding! Please show proof of residency, ma’am,” he candidly declared through the glass, taking another bite out of his bagel while looking her up and down through his heavily lidded eyes.

“Phil, you know who it is. Let me in or I swear I’ll find a way in and castrate you.”

“And there’s the signature threat of violence. My apologies, I couldn’t tell. Did you do something with the lighting?” he dryly remarked, taking a key off his chain and unlocking the door. “Typical precautions. Oh, I’m supposed to warn you that the power is down so the elevators don’t work. You’re going to have to take the stairs.”

Great, more cardio.

Without any stairwell lights, she gripped the railings to navigate to the 10th floor. Raising her hand to knock on the door, it flew inwards and a petite girl with orange braids stared at her.

With a half-eaten granola bar hanging from her mouth, her eyes fell on Vanessa’s perpetual scowl and she jumped on her, wrapping her thin arms around Vanessa.

“You can get off me now,” Vanessa protested, trying to break out of her friend’s vice-like grip.

Unable to do so, she resigned herself to her fate and waited in the doorway until her friend finally peeled herself off.

“Hey, why are you back already? I thought your shift finished at 8.”

“Nice to see you too, Aaliyah. What happened here?” Vanessa queried, shrugging off her bag.

“Beats me. I’ve got a midterm coming up so I’ll be in my room if you need anything,” Aaliyah replied, bumping into the kitchen table on her way back to her room.

Closing the door behind her, Vanessa looked at the flat she’d been living in for the past four years. It was worn out with the termite problem under the kitchen floorboards, the toilet that backed up every few days, and the peeling wallpaper.

Yet, compared to the rest of the building, it was a luxury suite. Even the neighborhood was worse for wear but it was the only affordable option near her college.

Former college.

She dropped out in the second year after growing tired of her arduous curriculum, and since then, her parents cut off all communication. So taking up a job had been her only option and after four years of the lifestyle, she couldn’t tell if she made the right decision.

Taking off her shoes, she found her way to her room. Until she joined the leasing agreement, it had been a storage space mostly for Aaliyah’s random accessories and now it was a room for hers. There wasn’t anything noteworthy but it still held a few of her prized possessions.

An arrow from an archery competition from middle school and a picture of her baby brother who she hadn’t seen in 6 years. From her college days, there was a small desk shoved in the corner. Her lip curled back in disgust as she remembered the number of tests and assignments she pulled all-nighters for.

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Dropping her keys off, she went to grab something from the fridge. Amidst the electricity outage, the drinks had started to grow warm. Here’s to hoping the electricity comes on before everything spoils, she mused, cracking open the top of a soda.

She took a deep sip and exhaled in pleasure as the carbonation tickled the lining of her throat.

Leaning against the windowsill, she was surprised to see that despite the commotion outside her shop, the street in front of the apartment building was empty.

The only thing of interest was one of the streetlights on the side of the road was shooting out sparks. Staring at it until it finally stopped, she gave one last glance at the sky before going back to her room.

“Red sky, huh? Well at least today might be interesting,” she half-heartedly whispered.

***

A knock interrupted her sleep.

Remembering what Aaliyah had said about not wanting to be disturbed, Vanessa resigned herself to her fate and went to answer it.

She wasn’t sure how much time had passed since she’d dozed off, but the crimson light outside had been replaced with curtains of pitch black.

Grabbing the flashlight off the kitchen counter, she cracked open the door to see who it was.

It was Janet and Maurice, neighbors that had lived on their floor for as long as Vanessa could remember.

“Vanessa, how are you?” the slim woman greeted her, shying away from the flashlight shining directly into her eyes.

Redirecting it to shine above them, Vanessa replied, “Sorry ‘bout that. Yeah, uhh… I’m good, thank you for asking. What’s this about?”

“The building’s landlord is calling for a meeting and wants us to convene in front of the elevators in” — she checked her smartwatch — “Ah right, it’s dead. Do you guys have a regular clock?”

Turning around to look above the oven in the kitchen, she watched the second hand of the clock tick away.

"Yeah, when were we supposed to convene?" Vanessa inquired.

Sticking her head into the room, she followed Vanessa's eyes to the clock. “In about 15 minutes. Can I count on your attendance?”

“... sure, I’ll join you guys now. Just give me a second.”

She quickly splashed water on her face to wash away her drowsiness, and then left the flat, double-checking that she locked the door behind her. The trio descended the flight of stairs. Walking in awkward silence, Maurice, a typically jovial man, noisily coughed to break the ice.

“Why do you guys think the lights are out this time? Any guesses?”

"Dunno, but I guess we'll find out soon," Vanessa mutedly responded as they arrived in the foyer.

Lanterns and flashlights dangled around the walls, lighting up the place like it was New Year’s Eve.

The foyer should've had enough space for everyone to comfortably settle in but Vanessa was surprised to see that there was barely enough space for them. Squeezing in where she could, she attentively waited for the briefing to start.

Around 9:15 p.m. a well-dressed man approached the front where an elevated podium had been set up. Two large bodyguards dressed in black suits flanked him.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, may I have your attention please?" he announced, running a hand through his flaxen hair.

It took multiple requests for silence, but the crowd eventually settled down.

"First, I would like to thank everyone for attending this meeting. Given the difficulty in communicating, I am pleasantly surprised to see this many people attend, and I believe that this says a great deal about the community that has been built in this apartment building.”

Huh… he speaks like a natural politician.

“His boys wouldn’t let us go upstairs until he spoke,” whispered a woman Vanessa recognized from the floor below her’s.

In the closed space, it carried across the crowd and many of them turned to see who’d spoken. Vanessa glanced at the building owner's reaction.

For a fraction of a second, the corner of his eyes hardened before they returned to their usual cheerful self.

“I apologize for those who didn’t wish to attend and were asked to stay. Nevertheless, you’ve been called here so I can easily deliver news that impacts everyone in this room.”

The owner flashed the woman an attractive smile who turned beet red in embarrassment.

“The world has stopped working and we don't know for how long,” he said, raising his arms dramatically.

“I believe that honesty is the best policy and if this policy is to work, it has to be mutual. For those who don't understand what mutual means, it means both sides have to cooperate. Now I'll start telling you what I know so far. The backup generators that were supposed to supply this building with electricity in the case of a power cut, have stopped working. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, but our phones and other electronic devices have died,” he informed them.

The crowd had grown silent, attentively waiting for him to continue and dispel some of the uncertainty of the past few hours.

“I don’t warrant a guess because clearly, I’m not an expert. Still, I am sure that many have already drawn a relationship between the incident that happened this afternoon and our current circumstances.”

Pointing towards the rows of lanterns, he added, “As to why these lanterns work when your smartwatches don’t, I am afraid that I’ll have to disappoint you. Personally, I think the red sky acted like an EM pulse and took down satellites and cell towers.”

Taking a sip of water, he left the spellbound crowd pondering his words.

The metal shutters had been rolled over the entrance, and as midnight rolled around, it proved its purpose.

A sole beacon of light in a lightless world, the lanterns had attracted people like moths to a flame and multiple times the men in black suits had to send them on their way. Each time it happened, it reinforced the impression that within the apartment building, they were shielded from the growing unrest outside.

Glancing over at the building owner talking to others, Vanessa saw smiles but none that reached his eyes.

Taking a deep breath in, she smiled when it came to her turn to shake his hand. His brown eyes stared into hers and she couldn’t help but wonder if this was how her new life started.

The night sky had never looked so cold.