Hell is a Post-Apocalyptic World

Chapter 4: The Only Way Out

Back in Miami. 

After finding Yeltsa's body,the staff immediately called the authorities. Thirty minutes later, five police officers and a detective arrived at the scene. They immediately examined it, trying to find clues. The detective approached the staff and questioned her. 

"How did you find the body?" the detective asked.  

"I came  to the room to do some cleaning. I thought he had already checked out but then I went to the shower room and I found him there," the staff explained. 

"Is he alone in this room?" the detective asked.

"Yes! As far as I remember he checked in alone," the lady replied. 

"Did he show any signs of health issues when he checked in?" the detective asked. 

"No," the staff replied. 

A police officer called out the detective, interrupting his conversation with the staff. 

"I found something!" says the police. He showed him a pack  of plastic that has three white medical  capsules  inside. 

The detective approached him to check it. 

"Mordephus, Hallucinatory drugs," says the detective. 

"Conclusion?" the police officer asked. 

"He died due to cardiac arrest in relation to over consumption of this drug," the detective replied. 

Back at the shore, 

After a day of waiting, Daniel had enough. His patience reached its peak. He got tired of waiting. He realized something must be wrong. He clenched his fists. His fingers made a cracking sound. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. 

"That fucking old man. He's hiding something from me."  

Infuriated, Daniel marched towards the cabin. He banged on the door repeatedly. His force is almost breaking the door into splinters . 

"Old man! Let me in! I'm tired of your guessing games!" he yelled. 

Alcharon opened the door. 

"Do you need something?" He asked. 

"I need you to answer me properly." Daniel raised his voice. 

 "Can you talk to me in a respective manner?" Alcharon requested calmly. 

Daniel took a deep breath. "I need to know what this place is." He took another deep breath. 

"You need to explore this place firsthand." Alcharon replied. 

"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Don't bullshit me! I've been staying here for days, I waited for a rescue to arrive but no one came and all I have here is an old fucking man who couldn't answer an easy question!" Daniel yelled. 

"Why don't you go back to your tent for a while. Just collect your thoughts first. Come back here when you're calm," Alcharon suggested. He closed the door. Daniel went back to his temporary settlement. He stared at the empty sea. The sea looks beautiful but he is not in the mood to admire it. He looked into the horizon while collecting his thoughts. He tried to remember the last moments before he got to that island. 

"Am I dead? Is this the after life? What if I'm in hell and my punishment is being trapped here with an old man who constantly pushes my buttons?" 

Daniel lets out a deep sigh. 

"Whatever is happening to me right now, I'm pretty sure  Alcharon has an idea and he is keeping it from me."

Hours have passed. Daniel decided to go back to the cabin. He knocked at the door and this time he did it calmly. 

"Alcharon! I'm sorry about what happened earlier," Daniel apologized." Can I talk to you now?" he asked. 

Alcharon opened the door. He lets Daniel in. He lets him sit in the long chair. 

"What do you want to talk about?" Alcharon asked. 

"I am hoping for concrete details about this island. I mean isn't it my right to have an idea about where I am right now?" Daniel replied. 

"You're still persevering huh?" Alcharon chuckled lightly. 

"Can you please at least tell me how to get out of here?" Daniel asked. 

"I'll tell you but you have to be prepared," Alcharon replied. 

"Prepare for what?" Daniel asked. 

"Haven't I told you before that the only way out of here is a tunnel of pandemonium?" Alcharon raised an eyebrow. 

"What do you mean by that?" Daniel questioned. 

"Try to break down the phrase, tunnel of pandemonium," Alcharon suggested. 

"Tunnel of pandemonium," Daniel repeated. "I don't get it." He scratched his head. 

"That's why  you're not yet prepared." says Alcharon. "The way out of here is difficult. On your way, you'll encounter a lot of hardships. It's not as easy as waiting for a ship." He explained. 

"What kind of challenges should I expect?" Daniel asked. 

"You'll know when you encounter them," Alcharon replied. "For now let me just hunt for our food." Alcharon stood up.

"Can I come with you?" Daniel asked. 

Alcharon smiled. "Of course you can," he replied. 

Armed with axes, the two of them went to the woods. Alcharon found a trail of footprints. It is headed towards the deeper parts of the woods. 

"Follow me, and try not to make any sound,"  Alcharon whispered. 

Daniel nodded. 

They followed the trail of footprints. 

"So what are we expecting?" Daniel asked. 

Alcharon made a shushing sound. "Be quiet!" he demanded. 

"Sorry" Daniel puts one of his hands in his mouth.

Seconds later Alcharon spotted something. He saw the same kind of boar they'd hunted down, a few days prior. Daniel is about to throw his axe but he was stopped by the old man. 

"We must leave this animal alone," Alcharon whispered. 

"Why?" Daniel scratched his head. 

"She's bearing another life," Alcharon replied. 

'What do you mean?" Daniel asked. 

"The animal is pregnant." Alcharon kept his gaze at the animal. 

"How did you know?" Daniel asked. 

"Her belly is more boated," Alcharon explained. 

"Why can't we kill it? It's like hitting a jackpot."  Daniel looked at the animal, trying to see what Alcharon had noticed. 

"No. We must consider the life of the little one she is bearing. We must allow the animal to live a  longer life before we  kill it for consumption," Alcharon explained. 

"Okay. So what's our plan now?"  Daniel asked. 

"Let's look for another animal. We have to leave this one alone," Alcharon replied. 

They began walking and headed to another part of the woods. Before they can get to a further side of the shady forest, Daniel stepped on a dried leaf. It made a crunching sound that alerts the pregnant boar. The animal directed her attention towards them. It looks furious. 

"Run!" Alcharon commanded. 

Both of them ran as fast as they could. The wild boar is behind them, trying to catch up but her enlarged belly is slowing her down.  They've reached a deeper part of the woods. They stopped running for a little while.  Daniel is panting, while Alcharon isn't showing any sign of exhaustion. 

"We're lost, aren't we?" Daniel continued panting.  

"No we're not. I can navigate this entire woods," Alcharon responded. 

"I don't doubt that, considering how wise you are." Daniel smiled at Alcharon. The old man smiled back. 

"I think I'm starting to like you." Alcharon tapped Daniel's shoulder. 

They started walking back to the area of the forest that is closer to the shore. Alcharon paid close attention to their surroundings. He looked around, trying to find an animal. Few minutes later he spotted a huge turkey. He threw his axe towards the bird, hitting its neck. The turkey suddenly collapsed to the floor, decapitated. 

"You have precise axe throwing skills," Daniel complimented. 

"Thanks for the compliment. When you hunt long enough you'll learn some skills too," Alcharon replied. 

"I wish I could do that, but I can't stay on this island for good," said Daniel. 

"I'm aware of that. That's why you have to be prepared to navigate the way out of here," Alcharon replied. 

"Preparing? How?" Daniel asked. 

Alcharon did not respond. 

"You're not gonna answer that question, are you?" Daniel looked at the old man. 

"Sometimes son, you have to  use your observation and analytical skills in order for you to get the answers you are looking for," Alcharon advised. 

"Will I do a lot of hunts on my way out of here?" Daniel asked. 

"Probably. But most of the time you will be the prey," Alcharon replied. 

"So I'm gonna meet a lot of cannibals," Daniel scratched his head. 

"Not necessarily, but a lot of people will hunt you down for sure," Says Alcharon. 

Both of them remained silent. Daniel tried to imagine a scenario in his head in regards to what Alcharon had told him. 

"Being hunted down? Wait. Am I an Illegal immigrant? That's why Alcharon is keeping me on this island so I will be safe from the authorities. That tunnel of pandemonium shit. I think I'm getting it now. That old man loves to play with words." 

Alcharon picked up the decapitated remains of the turkey. 

"Looks like we're going to have a Christmas dinner tonight," Daniel joked. 

"Christmas is taboo here. Any kind of holiday is taboo here." Alcharon responded. 

"I don't celebrate Christmas either. I don't celebrate any holidays. My wife does though." Daniel smiled for a moment. His smile suddenly turned into a lonely expression. Tears build up at the corner of his eyes. 

"I miss Beatrice. I miss the way she smiles every time we go to her favorite place. The times we spent on a holiday. Wherever she is, I hope she's fine." 

"Wherever your wife is. I know she misses you too," Alcharon said. 

Daniel wiped away the tears from his eyes. 

"I know . That woman couldn't sleep without me by her side. Even when we had fights she still sleeps beside me," Daniel explained. 

"I know you'll see her again. Once the both of you reunited, you'll be together forever for good," Says Alcharon. 

"I hope so," Alcharon replied. 

"Don't hope. Believe," Alcharon advised. 

Both of them smiled. Acharon tapped Daniel's shoulder. 

They head back to the cabin. Daniel immediately sat in the long chair. Alcharon cleaned the turkey meat. 

"Aren't you going to prepare the fire?" Alcharon asked. 

"Wait a second. I'm just going to catch my breath." Daniel is panting. 

Alcharon smiled. "Take  a rest for now. I'll take care of our meal," He continued cleaning the fowl.  

"Aren't you tired?" Daniel asked. 

Alcharon shook his head. "I don't get tired. My endurance is strong," He replied. 

"How old are you? It seems like you're not an old man at all."  Daniel looked at the old man, trying to examine him. 

"I don't count my age so I have no idea," Alcharon replied. 

"I'm getting the impression that you're not that old. Maybe you're just around 50 or 60 years old," Daniel assumed. 

"Possibly" says Alcharon. 

The scene remained silent for a couple of minutes. 

"We ran out of things to talk about. Maybe this is a perfect time to ask Alcharon to finally talk about this place. " 

Daniel cleared his throat. "It seems like we ran out of topics to talk about," He chuckled awkwardly. 

"Don't even think about it," Alcharon warned. 

"Think about what?" Daniel asked. 

"I already told you, this place is beyond your understanding. I'll tell you things when you're ready. Just be patient," says Alcharon. 

"I'm fucking tired of waiting! I'm fucking tired of waiting! My wife is out there probably suffering or dead while I'm here in this Island because some fucking old man won't tell me where am I and how to get out! I need to look for my wife, mother fucking old man!" Daniel raised his voice. 

"Calm down son," Alcharon advised. 

"I don't need to fucking calm down! I need answers to my fucking questions!" Daniel yelled. 

Alcharon took a deep breath. "If you really want to know where you are you have to explore this place for yourself, " he explained. 

"Don't bullshit me,"Danel replied. 

"I am not giving you a nonsense answer," says Alcharon. 

"Can you  please at least tell me how to get out of here? Daniel asked. 

"The only way you can get out of here is by going further," Alcharon replied. 

"Further? What do you mean?" Daniel asked. 

Alcharon looked at him. "Spend a night here. You will begin your journey tomorrow," he instructed.