Matthen Kyle

A Science-Fiction Action-Adventure Adult Novel

Inspired By “Element 92” By Andi Brit

By: Andi Brit (Andrea Britanik)

1/30/2025

Chapter 1

There were good days and there were bad days. To Matthen, they kind of just blended together. In fact, he just wasn’t sure of what was reality anymore and he was having his doubts. He kept getting visions inside of his head and not only that, but visions that he could see right in front of his face. They were always of people, and people that he had never seen before. There was always a woman, with dark brown hair, and she was always smiling in a gentle way towards him. She was in front of him down in the subway just the other day. She was sitting on a seat in the subway car, and she was always only looking at him and smiling and that was why she always had his full attention. It wasn’t a ghost, however, because he could tell that it was clearly a vision because, there was always a green static that was going on and off all over her body, and there was always a black void behind her. So she was popping in and out of his realm and that was obvious, but not as a ghost but as a vision for reasons that he did not know why. And of course, the subway was out of commission and it was never moving, at least not its natural way. Sometimes him and his friends would push them and it was great exercise. Anyway, the others that he saw were a man, and he had blonde hair and was always smiling too, but in a way that didn’t show his teeth, and he would pop up with the same green static as the woman did. He would always see him in the tunnels, for some reason. The other person that he saw was a young girl, about his age, that had a lighter brown hair and she had bright green eyes. She would never smile but with her eyes. They looked so familiar, but he could never quite put a finger on it. He would always see her in a sundress and he would always see her in his abandoned sewer system that was now his main home. Her dress was always that light blue, just like Cinderella.

He was beginning to think that these visions were not just visions, but memories of something that actually happened. And he wasn’t sure exactly what that was. But he knew for sure that it was memories now, although he couldn’t explain it any further, it was just something that he somehow knew and it had happened just recently. It was driving him crazy though. Who were these mysterious people of his visions? Were they long lost family? Were they his friends at one point? And why had he forgotten? How had he forgotten? Ever since the day of his reckoning, these were the several questions that kept plaguing him every single day of his life.

But in reality, his life was pretty grim. There had been a 99% nuclear apocalypse on planet Earth, his own home planet. Meaning, that 99% of life on Earth had been wiped out by, basically, a single element, and that element was Element 92. Uranium was its other name. The periodic chart will show you. But Matthen had survived, however, his family had not. And his entire family for that matter had been a part of that 99% factor. And this had made him nothing but mad, sad and then repeat on a vicious cycle for a very long time now. Well, it had been several weeks. But it had felt like eternity.

Matthen had survived by pure circumstance, or luck have you. Matthen wasn’t really certain that it was luck exactly, but something had made him survive that day. That day of December 14th, 1994. It was an early morning, too. Matthen had hated early mornings and still did to this very day. It was about 6:30 in the morning, and Matthen was on his way to fixing something in one of the sewer system’s utility passages. And in those days, the sewers were actually running. The smell had been unpleasant at times, but he wouldn’t have chosen any other job, if he was being honest. He liked fixing things. He liked fixing problems. And there was always a solution to everything, and that’s what his mom always told him growing up.

He was about half way down the utility tunnel, when suddenly, he heard the alarms blasting from up above. He had known exactly what that meant. It was a sign of a nuclear war attack. He immediately thought of his family and had worried about where they were and if they were going to make it. There was no time to go back up to the surface. If he was going to survive this thing, he was going to have to go down to the utility closet that was not much farther up ahead. There was a yellow HAZMAT suit inside of there and he could put that on and he would go from there. Depending on where the blast was, he could survive this. But only if he could have his suit on. He ran down the tunnel and towards the closet.

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He swung the door open, ran inside and then slammed the door shut. He quickly found the HAZMAT, ran over to that and put it on himself as quickly as he possibly could. He then ran over to the corner and sat down, putting his hands over his head. The entire tunnel could collapse on top of him, and he was aware of that. But still, he held onto hope that it wouldn’t. But if it did, he could be crushed from the debris and instantly be dead, but that was the preferable way, as the other way of death could be suffocation. But again, he held on to that hope. That was all that he had. And dammit, he was going to survive, and so was his family.

The explosion happened moments later. And the entire tunnel shook, it seemed. Rubble was already beginning to come down from the ceilings and the walls. And just a few smaller pieces hit Matthen on his hands. He screwed his eyes shut. Come on, come on!

After a few moments, and just as quickly as it had happened, it was all over and it was silent.

Matthen had gotten out of the tunnel, through one of his manholes, and he returned to the surface. He looked around.

His beloved area of the Flatiron District, New York City, was severely damaged. The blast must have happened somewhere nearby, but not too close. Buildings and skyscrapers had been blown apart from the blast, and some of them were completely blown in half, including one that was iron shaped. There were bodies everywhere. Some of them were hanging over their balcony railings, while others were lying on the street, and some of the sidewalk. Matthen was trying to not throw up inside of his suit. He quickly thought about his parents. Where were they? Did they survive this blast? As they, too, lived in the Flatiron District, Matthen was very worried that maybe they hadn’t made it. He started to run towards their apartment, which wasn’t very far away.

He arrived to their skyscraper apartment building. To his horror, the entire top of the building had been torn off. And that was where they lived, right up at the top. But maybe they hadn’t been in there during the blast. They were retired, so they could have been anywhere. But they did like to stay at home a lot. Matthen was very worried. Even if they did survive what were the chances of them having a HAZMAT, for the radiation? Just about zero. And they could have made it to an air raid shelter, and one that also happened to be a nuclear fallout modified one. But what if they didn’t make it? Matthen started to sweat. Then, Matthen suddenly remembered that they were going to go to a café that morning, and one that was open that early. Because they had a very early doctor’s appointment that morning. Matthen ran towards the café. He knew exactly where it was, it was not very far from their apartment and it was on Fifth Avenue.

Once he made it there, he looked in horror as there was a lot of damage and destruction and even more death on this street. And based on the angle of the blast, which made it look like it came from the north, it made sense that this street too would be heavily damaged. Matthen’s stomach started to hurt and to churn. He walked down the street, amongst the bodies and the debris and glass from the buildings. He saw the clock that was down the street and in the center of Fifth Avenue. It was completely shattered and the inside was completely destroyed.

Matthen walked down further and reached the Café. It was the Midnight Café and he had gone there often during high school to do his homework. He never thought that he would see it like this. It was severely damaged on the outside. But what was it like on the inside? And Oh God, were his parents inside? Matthen stepped through the glass door, carefully avoiding the shards of glass and had to slink in like a cat. The windows were way too risky.

Inside, it wasn’t good. There were bodies everywhere, and the inside was severely damaged. Booths had been ripped apart, and so had the ceiling. There were plates and cups and silverware everywhere. Food was spread out in lumps. Matthen saw them right away.

His parents were both slumped over in a booth. He could see the face of his father, but had assumed that the other woman was in fact, his mother. He slowly walked over to them, knowing that they were both already dead. There was nothing he could do. Both of their necks were clearly broken from the force of the blast. Matthen ran out of the café, he slinked back out of the door as fast as he could but still being careful. He kept running down the street. He wouldn’t stop. He couldn’t stop.

Matthen eventually had to stop, as he was so out of breath that he couldn’t stand it any longer. And he was no track athlete. He bent over and grabbed his knees. He let out a huge, primal scream.

He checked the ground to make sure there was no glass, and he plopped down onto the cement sidewalk. As he sat there, regaining his breath, looking around at the damaged street, he slowly started to realize something. For all of the blocks that he ran down. There were no survivors, like not one. And he thought that was strange. How could there be no survivors? How could that possibly be?

Perhaps reading his mind, he suddenly heard a voice from behind him.

Matthen jerked around, and he saw a man walking towards him. He was young, and about Matthen’s age. He had no HAZMAT on and a bandage on his forehead that was soaked in blood. He reached out his hand towards Matthen. Matthen stared at his hand.

Later, Matthen was following this young man through an alley way and they walked towards a low rise that was at the end of it. It had wrought iron railings and a round arched door.

Matthen shook his head.

“Hey, man, we need to get you to a shelter. The radiation...” said Matthen.

The young man put his hand up and Matthen stopped.

“There’s no reason to worry. Trust me.” he said.