Young Writers Society

Rated R for language, and excessive violence

PAMLOST - The Post Apocalyptic Major League of Softball Tournament.

As the alarm clock buzzed, a baseball glove slammed it off the bedside table.

“Seven thirty.” Said Pam with one of her eyes opened.

Pam liked routine and she had woken up at the same time every single day for seventeen years.

She swiveled over and placed her feet in her slippers. It was at that moment that she realized her queer attire.

She was startled to find herself wearing a baseball uniform, complete with white and red pants and a button up shirt with a team logo on the left breast. Pam stood up in front of her mirror and rotated around to get a good look at her self. She

noticed that the shirt had PAM stitched onto the back. Then, while she had her back to the mirror she saw the glove that flew off of her hand when she swung at the clock.

She picked the glove up off the ground and put it on her hand. It fit perfectly. Not just the glove. The whole ensemble. She felt stronger with it all on. Pam looked at herself once more, nodded approvingly, and left her bedroom.

“It’s about time you woke up.” A strange voice said. Pam stopped sharply as she passed the threshold into the living room. A stranger whom she’d never seen before sat in her vintage wicker chair, a chair that hadn’t had the graces of a human behind for quite some time.

“Who are you?” Pam asked. Not in a demanding tone, more of a curious tone. Inviting and harmless, as if she already knew the answer to her question.

“Pam, I’m Yobah. And please let me say what a pleasure it is to be in your presence. You have been such a great influence to my generation.” Yobah stood up and shook Pam’s hand.

“Well thank you Yobah, but I’m not sure I fully understand what it was that I did.” Pam responded confused.

“Sit down, I’ll tell you exactly what happened.” Yobah led Pam to a sofa and motioned for her to have a seat.

“It all started when America uncovered a spy who was leaking top secret military information to the Russian government. Upon investigation, America discovered the spy was using the information to bribe the Russian government. The Russian government would pay a lot because they wanted to develop this new form of germ warfare first. They succeeded in this. And the American’s response to this was: If the Russians used the leaked technology in any way publicly or privately, then they would be forced to declare war. Russia hoped for a bluff but America would not tolerate it.

“War ensued, and Russia unleashed a terrible germ that eradicated all America’s livestock. The birds were next, and slowly the human race was reduced to the pitiful form it is today. A disgusting species pre-occupied with degrading and defacing their fellow man for something as little as a stale loaf of bread.

“But eventually one thing did succeed in taming the chaos of our society, Pam. And that prophetic thing was Softball!” Yobah cheerfully stood up from his seat. “Well that about sums it up.” He added contently.

“So where is it that I fit in to all of this?” Pam seemed comfortable with Yobah’s story. She was just skeptical when it came to her actual roll in the travesty.

“You’re going to lead our softball team to victory.” Yobah’s eyes lit up as he said this and he offered Pam his hand to help her up.

“Fair enough.” Pam said as she put her hand in his and they walked out the door of Pam’s apartment.

----

The neighborhood Pam was so familiar with had disappeared. What was left was a wasteland barren of vegetation, organic life and water. It was just an expanse of dry dead land with remnants of a towering metropolis dusted in the horizon. Pam paused a moment.

“I remember this is where I would meet my best friend to walk to school. We had so many adventures each morning. We almost chose to chronicle our every action but neither of us had a pen at the time.” Pam looked at Yobah and chuckled quietly as they began to walk again.

“Do you remember the Wal-Mart on Maple St.?” Yobah asked.

“Yes of course,” Pam answered. “I used to do most of my shopping there as a matter of fact. Well practically all of it. That place is heaven.” Pam looked at Yobah and shielded her eyes from the sun with her hand. “Why?”

“That’s our destination, that’s where The Field is.” Yobah stopped on these words. “Just over this hill and we will be there. But first I wouldn’t mind stopping by The Pub for a pre-game quenching. Perhaps it will loosen you up a bit as well.” He led the way up the hill, along its crest, and down the other side to an old western style Pub.

The Pub only looked like it was from a western town because it was riddled with cracks and layered in dust. Pam swore she saw a tumbleweed roll by, but for all she knew it could have been a couple of fighting weasels. There were no doors on the Pub, nor were there any windows. Because of this, the inside of the place was almost as dirty as the outside.

Pam and Yobah entered through the ancient doorway and had a seat at the table nearest the bar. The bar only served one drink, which was simply called “Ale”. So they ordered a couple and the barkeep went to fetch them.

“It’s been a long while since I’ve gotten a customer in here,” the barkeep said as he set the pair of drinks on the dry, worn out table. “That’s a scrap of metal for each there, friend.”

Pam began to reach into her right front pant pocket, but Yobah quickly stopped her. “No no Pam, it’s on me. I insist,” he said. “Here you go sir, thank you so much.” Yobah handed the barkeep two shiny pieces of unidentified and unimportant metal. The barkeep smiled a smile that could lighten a thousand acres, and he plopped the metal shrapnel into his fanny pouch.

“So who are we playing?” Pam spoke up after she drank her first gulp of Ale. “These are the reigning champions right?”

Yobah looked up from his glass. “Yes they are, they are called the Silverbacks. They started out as a gang; they would terrorize what was left of the civilians every chance they had. Those bastards have no compassion.”

Yobah put down his drink and looked Pam in the eye. “This isn’t just a softball tournament. If we win this game it give us the motivation our people need to finally overcome the Silverbacks. It will be a glorious day indeed!” At that Yobah’s mood suddenly changed and he scooped up his Ale and finished it off quickly.

“Now let me brush you up on some of the loose rules there actually are in the game. First of all, there are only four innings, this being on account that often the teams are too battered to carry on any longer. Secondly, any attempt to bat that fails is an automatic out; whether it be from injury or a caught fly, it makes no difference. There are no balls in this game. Sometimes it may be the best strategy to take a player out instead of just getting them out, ya dig? Other than that the basics are there. You’ve got your pitcher, your back catcher, your umpire, your basemen, and your outfielders. I know you’ll fit in just fine.” He plastered on an encouraging smile.

“I’m ready, I have a good feeling about this.” Pam picked up her glove and slid it back onto her hand. The same warm sensation flowed over her entire body once again. She waved to the barkeep who was dusting of the bar for what Pam counted was the tenth time since they had arrived.

---

They ventured out into the plains again and down the other side of the hillcrest that the Pub straddled. The one remaining wall of the Wal Mart was clearly visible now. Only the W, and ART were left.

It was twenty minutes before they reached The Field. Over the span of the walk Yobah told jokes and shared stories about his time; some good, some bad. Pam enjoyed listening to him, and the stories caused her to increasingly despise the opposing team, the Silverbacks. She was even driven to throw a rock at a Silverback fan’s head as they got closer to the tournament.

It was known that any fan of the Silverbacks was in that way a member of the gang itself. Yobah laughed as the scrubby dirt covered man looked frantically around behind him to see whom his assailant was.

They arrived at the ticket taker’s booth. “If you want a seat they’re all taken buddy! Your only other option is the pit. It’s free to enter the pit, but we aren’t responsible for anything that goes down in there.” The man at the ticket booth was very large. One of his eyes doubled as a barcode reader. His face looked as if he had some sort of acid had been burning away at it for ages.

“But can’t you tell by the uniforms? We’re players, not spectators!” Yobah shook Pam’s glove in front of the glass barrier.

“I don’t care who you are. This is the Pamlost! And no one gets in here once it’s started! Now like I said, you can try your luck in the pit. Now get the hell outta my face!” As the ticket taker said this he spit all over the glass barrier.

He then proceeded to wipe it off with the palm of his hand.

“Come on Pam, and get your bat handy, you may need it!” Yobah grabbed Pam’s arm at the elbow and pulled her into the gates and into a massive crowd.

Pam looked up and what faced her took her breath away. The wall she walked through doubled as makeshift bleachers for one side of The Field. Large batting cages blocked off the rest of the sides. Hundreds of people were desperately climbing them in attempt to seal off one of the prime game seats.

The “Lord’s Lairs” as they were called were old sofas that were coiled to the cages with chains. Anyone who got up there had the ultimate view of the game for the entire game. It was seemingly a small reward for the risk you face in attempting the climb. In many cases people would finally reach the top only to see the teams going back to the locker rooms. Sometimes nobody even made it.

At this particular moment, a rather aggressive young man took a running go at the fence. He got to the base and leapt up over the first layer of people and onto another person’s back. He tore this person off the wall while holding on with one hand and stepped on a pregnant woman’s face to get a boost up to the next layer. Another determined climber noticed his rate of ascend. Just as the speedy boy got beside him he kicked him with both feet right in the ribs, and contently watched him plummet to the ground. Pam stared in astonishment as the whole scenario unfolded in a matter of seconds.

“No time to wait Pam, we must move quickly through these masses. And hold onto that bat tight, you can expect people will want one of those in here.” Yobah bent his knees into a perfect batter’s position and swung as hard as he could, decapitating a screaming Silverbacks fan.

He began to run at an alarming rate and Pam took off behind him. She wasn’t five strides into her sprint when a bloody gray hand reached out and grasped her bat. The sudden yank flung her to the ground but she never let go of the bat. On one knee she yanked the bat out of the crazed fan’s hands and struck his head spinning it a hundred and eighty degrees. Yobah’s hand grabbed her arm and set her back on her feet.

“Go!” Yobah pushed Pam in ahead of him and as they made their way through the crowds it became increasingly harder to push through.

“We’re almost there Pam, you have to let out all of your energy and anger against the Silverbacks. The bat is a part of you, so use it like an extension of your body.” Yobah lifted his bat and rotated the end in small circles. He looked at Pam and nodded.

It was a blood bath.

Every soul in that Pit wanted those two bats and they would do anything at all to get them. Everybody had swarmed Yobah and Pam. They were fighting for their lives to get to the locker room where the rest of the team was waiting.

“Are we close to the Locker room yet Yobah?” Pam yelled to Yobah as she broke a crazed Silverbacks fan’s leg with her bat. The fan let out an agonizing whelp and fell to the ground holding his wound.

“Through this door Pam!” Again Yobah grabbed Pam and led her into a bright blue door that read “Maintenance Only”. “Finally,” he went on “Through here,” Yobah opened a door and light bled into the hallway. “The Locker room.”

“Yobah! Pam! My god you had us shitting!” Dwayne Digby leapt up from his seat and jumped on Yobah giving him nugies and slapping his back. “And Pam, let me just say it is such a pleasure to-.”

“Be in my presence, I have been such an inspiration to your generation. Yaya I know.” Pam rolled her eyes and smiled at Dwayne. “Now quit the small talk, baby. We gotta softball game to win!!” Pam pumped her fist into the air and as she did the rest of the team jumped up and let out a victory cheer. Everyone put on their gloves, and cracked their knuckles and opened the door to The Field.

The umpire’s voice bellowed over the cloud like a scratched record of god himself. “After a small delay, we can announce that the Lionhearts are now ready and making their way out of the locker room and onto The Field. A new addition to the team this game, we have a lady named Pam!” Half of the crowd cheered at the sound of Pam’s name. Evidently most of the people in The Pit booed and hissed at the sound of her name. “Let’s get this game off to a quick start! First up to bat for the Silverbacks is Winsloe! And on the mound we’ve got Dwayne Digby! Batter up!” The teams quickly took thier formations. Yobah instructed Pam to take first base, and he went over to third.

Dwayne wound up and threw a perfect curveball that curved just enough to clock Winsloe in the cheek. It split open and some blood shot out of the wound. A sound of cringing came from the fans, and one fan could be clearly heard yelling. “You’ll get it for that Digby!”

More disgruntled fanfare went on, and slowly everything toned down to the regular screams of agony and thuds from people falling off the fences.

“One out! Zero Balls! Batter up!” The umpire took a step back and let the back catcher crouch down in front of him.

Clive, the next Silverbacks batter stepped up to the plate and scuffed his shoes on the white rubber beneath him. Clive looked up at Dwayne and spit casually, yet so hard that it hit Dwayne right in the eye. A laugh came from the crowd as Dwayne whipped the phlegm from his face. He wound up; lifting his front leg high, then extended it and let go a jet of a pitch. A tail of turbulence could be seen in the ball's wake as it flew towards Clive.

THWACK. Clive sent it ricocheting back at Dwayne at double the speed. He had no time even to jump out of the way. The ball shot straight through Dwayne’s chest, and as blood pumped out of the hole into the outside world his body slumped to the dirt. Some cheers came from the crowd, but mostly there was silence. Clive took his bases. As he passed first base he winked at Pam, she flipped him the bird and spit at his feet.

The score was now one to zero for the Silverbacks.

“Get up here ya sally we ain’t got all day!” The umpire yelled to Squiggly the next and final batter for the Silverbacks. “And pitching this round will be the lady of the day, Pam!” The ump bent his finger at Pam in a come-hither manner and Pam walked from first base to the pitcher’s mound.

“You can do it Pam! Don’t even think twice about it! You got it inside you!” Yobah yelled his words of encouragement. The crowd began to chatter and become restless. Anticipation grew for Pam’s performance.

She watched for the back catcher’s signal and thought to herself, “Two fingers, shake it off. Three fingers shake it off. Middle finger… Now we’re talking.”

Pam nodded and began to wind up for her pitch. She had a beautiful form and threw with outstanding finesse. The ball passed like a bullet yet soft as a feather and hit perfectly in the back catcher’s mitt. Squiggly from the Silverbacks was frozen in shock staring at where the ball passed the plate.

He had to be thrown aside before the game could carry on.

“Brief intermission! The score remains one to zero for the Silverbacks.” The Umpire walked off to a small booth and opened a flask. He drank back most of the contents in one hearty gulp and slid it under his vest.

Pam and Yobah were in the dugout with the rest of the team. Some of them were mourning over Dwayne’s dead body. Others, like Pam were more concentrated on the task at hand. Making good use of their turn at bat.

“Pam, I want you to relax when you’re up to bat. You’ve got nothing to fear, trust me. The Silverback’s pitcher next inning is a man named Duncan. He has a mean knuckle ball so watch out for it. If you think his ball may hit you then do anything you can to dodge it. As you saw earlier, once you get hit, you’re out.” Yobah tossed Pam a batter’s helmet, and yelled, “Let’s do this!” to the rest of the team. Everybody leapt up, and ran back onto The Field.

Pam was the first of the Lionhearts up to bat. She walked confidently up to the plate and took her mark. She stuck out her behind, bent her knees, and squinted at Duncan the pitcher.

“Let’s play ball!” The Umpire screamed right into Pam’s ear.

Duncan’s pitch was straight and true. Yobah bit his lip because he’d seen first hand what Duncan’s pitches could do.

THWACK. Pam knocked the ball way over the fence and one lucky fan in one of the Lord’s Lair caught her ball.

The crowd went insane. Everybody was cheering and hollering. The boos from the Silverbacks fans could barely be heard. Pam dropped her bat and took her bases. People threw things to her, like fake flowers, and water containers. One person even threw a baby.

Men with large brooms cleaned up the mess, and the game carried on.

Yobah took the plate next. His batting had always been the pride of the team. He wailed the ball straight ahead, making Duncan jump out of the way. The outfielder for the Silverbacks tried to catch the ball, but it ripped right through his glove and his hand. The happy fanfare ensued.

The final batter for the Lionhearts was not so lucky. Duncan’s infamous pitch finally did it’s worst and he broke the bat sending splinters flying in every direction.

The batter shrugged it off, because in his opinion, it could have been a whole lot worse.

“The score is one to two for the Lionhearts at the halfway point! No intermission this time! Let’s play ball!” The choice was the umpire’s to make whether there would be intermissions or not. He normally allowed one per game and he had already given it after the first inning. It was up to the teams to manage themselves well to battle fatigue.

First up batting in the third inning was Salomon. He was a big dirty man who had been in the Silverbacks since the very start. He set himself aggressively to the right of the plate and sneered at Yobah, who was pitching this inning. Salomon was doing some practice swings, trying to show off his speed and strength. Yobah got the signal he wanted and the pitch was off. The ball whistled as it flew through the air. It was flying straight like an arrow when suddenly the ball swerved as if it had a life of it’s own. The ball swerved around Salomon’s swing and clocked him right on the head, instantly knocking him out. The crowd cheered profusely again. It seemed the favor had turned to the Lionhearts and the Silverbacks morale was diminishing.

“Good one Yobah!” Pam jumped up and down on first base cheering for Yobah’s signature Swerveball.

Yobah pointed to her, signifying he was dedicating his next pitch to her.

A massive man stepped up to bat. It was the Silverbacks secret weapon, Dire Straight. He was a seven-foot monstrosity of a human and his actual skill in softball was extremely debatable. He loomed over the plate and provided shade for the back catcher and umpire. Yobah’s eyes grew wide and he looked over at Pam. He pulled the collar of his shirt and loosened it off with one finger. He pitched.

Yobah’s ball seemed dwarfed by Dire’s bat, and Dire hit the ball away with relative ease. It flew long and high soaring over the fence. A fan in the Lord’s Lair caught the ball only to be pushed by his jealous friend off the top.

He landed with a thud and the game carried on.

“Final inning!” The Umpire yelled, “The score is two to two and up to bat for the Lionhearts is Will Villa.” Hooting and whistling came from the crowd. It seemed Will was quite a ladies man.

Will walked on to the plate and banged his bat off on his shoes. He then stuck out his behind and circled his bat behind his head.

The Silverbacks’ pitcher spit out some chewing tobacco and wound up for the throw. It was a perfect pitch and a perfect strike. Will hung his head in shame and walked slowly off The Field. Regular busy chatter came from the restless fans that couldn’t wait to see the outcome of this revolutionary game.

“Let’s get this show on the road!” The Umpire belted. “Next up is Yobah!”

Yobah cracked his knuckles and picked up his bat from the dugout. He walked out to the plate and the crowd chanted his name. He looked around and signaled with his hand for everyone to quiet down, and they did.

The pitcher rolled his eyes and shook his head, then without warning threw a fastball straight at Yobah’s head.

THUMP. He hit Yobah in the neck and Yobah let out a scream of pain and fell down holding his neck in both hands. The crowd booed and threw flaming shit and rocks at the Silverbacks pitcher.

“Yobah! No!” Pam ran out of the dugout and knelt at Yobah’s side. “Oh my god, are you okay? Can you hear me?”

“I’m okay, I’m okay, that hurt like a mother though.” Yobah removed his hand from his neck and his neck was covered in a dark blue and purple bruise. In some areas the blood had broken the skin and trickled down to his shirt collar.

“I’m sorry to lay this on you Pam. But it’s up to you. You’ve got to get this point. For all of us, please.” Yobah struggled to one knee and Pam helped him the rest of the way up. People in the crowd clapped for the first time as Yobah was walked back to the dugout by Pam.

Pam made sure Yobah was sitting down safely and she grabbed her bat and took her place at home base. “Bring it on you sloppy mother fucker!” Pam yelled to the pitcher. She was clearly deeply angered by the dirty playing she just witnessed. Driven to the point of cussing and insulting. But she didn’t care, he had hurt her best friend. And now he was going to pay for it.

She pointed her finger to the upper left fence where people had been for the first time helping one another into the Lord’s Lair. Here there was a growing Lionhearts fan section cheering with banners and signs reading: “We *heart* Pam”, etc. Everybody in that section waved and jumped as Pam pointed to them.

Pam brought her attention back to the pitcher, who was about ready to go. He wasted no time in pitching and sent a fastball hurdling towards Pam.

BOOM. It was like an explosion when Pam hit the ball. It was a home run the second the ball left the bat and everybody knew it.

Immediately the pitcher threw down his glove in hate and ran at Pam. Before he could get ten steps Lionhearts fans and team members alike rushed The Field and tackled him. Pam ran to first base and as she stomped on it all the fans and the rest of her team lifted her up and carried her around the bases like a queen.

She had saved the day.

“Where’s Yobah? I’d like to see Yobah please. Could you put me down?” Pam was set down softly on the ground and she hurried over to the dugout. She saw Yobah there with his back turned to her. “Yobah! I did it! I got a home run again!”

Yobah turned around. He had an ear to ear smile on his face. “You did so well, I knew you would. Now there is only one more thing to take care of.”

Yobah stepped aside and on the dugout bench there was a case. In the case was a spiked baseball bat. “We’ve got a large collective now and this would be the greatest time for us to triumph over the Silverbacks.” He took the spiked bat from the case and beat it in his palm.

“I know what you must do. But I think I’ve done all I can do here. I’d really like just to go home and soak in my glory.” She winked at Yobah and elbowed him jokingly in the rib.

“You understand right? I’ve already been through so much. I’m desperately tired, I really just need to rest. I’m sorry I can’t fight with you.”

“You need not apologize for anything Pam. You’ve already done much more than anybody ever expected of you. You’ve risen above all adversity and shown the world that you really are a force to be reckoned with. All the Lionhearts thank you, we could not have done this without you.” Yobah gave Pam a hug and she felt him slip something in her back pocket. “You will get home quicker if you go out this way.” Yobah opened a door that was behind him and urged Pam into it.

“I’m a better person now that I’ve met you Pam. Thank you.” He shut the door behind Pam and she was left in darkness.

Pam woke up with a gasp. She looked at her clock. It read eight thirty.

She yawned and swiveled over and put her feet on the ground. They landed right in her fluffy slippers. She felt strength when they were on her feet.

Her pyjamas were rather askew; the buttons weren’t lined up and the pants were on backwards, giving the impression that she had no part in putting them on.

She got up and felt something in her bum pocket. She took it out and found it was a baseball card. The card had a picture of her on it swinging a bat wildly. She couldn’t understand where it had come from. But for some reason she knew she’d seen that uniform somewhere.

She turned it over. Instead of a detailed statistical analysis of her career, it simply said:

PAM – Rookie Season 2099.

Batting Average – 100%

THE END.