The thing about the end of the world/civilization/whatever is that it is a laughable concept that never, ever, ever occurs.
Until it does.
Then, well, it ceases to be funny. You go into shock. Was that a fucking nuclear cloud you just saw? Well, rub your eyes and look again. Holy goddamn shit. It is.
What direction? South? LA? What should you do? Cell phone? Family? Friends? Maybe it's just the one nuke. Maybe this was another act of terrorism. Maybe somehow a terrorist sneaked a suitcase nuke into LA. Can they do that? Fuck, you don't know. It's not like you're a nuclear physicist.
Jesus. You can't believe this is happening. (By the way, you've been standing stock still for about 2 minutes now, not doing shit.) You've gotta call someone. Anyone. People must know what's going on. But when you call your mom, she doesn't know shit either.
Oh. Shit. You remember that there were rumors of nuclear silos built around here. You've got to get to the hills. You've got to get your friends and family and get to the --
What's that?
I don't feel anything anymore. All I see... is light.
*******************************************************
You awaken. You can't move. Something is pinning you. Your eyes hurt. It is dark.
Time passes. Your entire body aches. You cannot move. One finger is all. Something is wrong with you.
You hear something. A voice. Calling.
You can't make it out.
Hell? Someone is saying something about hell.
You strain your ears.
"Hellooooooo?"
"Hellllloooooo? Is anyone..."
The voice fades. Passes by.
Darkness again.
****************************************
You awaken. You open your eyes. No change in the darkness.
Something has woken you. A scraping sound. Something, or someone, is above you.
Light. It sears your mind. You shut your eye.
Eye?
A voice.
"Holy shit. He's alive."
A hand touches you. Pulls you up.
"Mister, are you ok?"
You open your eye. A man, bedraggled, stands before you. Behind him is a woman, and a small girl. The woman looks franticly around, eyes darting left and right. The girl is hispanic, both adults are white.
The man is holding you up.
"whaaa", comes out of your mouth. You are surprised to hear your own voice.
The man leans in. "It's the end of the fucking world, brother. Listen. We've got to get out of here. They're everywhere now, and --"
His head explodes. Right there, in front of you. Gore and brains splatter onto your face. You stagger backward, but your legs do not support you. You fall, and from an angle see the woman scream. Your ears only register a high pitched whining noise. She lets go of the girls hand and runs. She makes it about 10 steps or so, out of your field of vision.
There is a blip in the noise.
Her body slumps back into your vision, onto the ground, headless. Blood squirts for a moment from the neck.
The girl is looking at you. Her eyes are huge.
You pass out.
************************************************
It is later. Much later. Your body registers that it has slept for some time.
You pull yourself to a sitting position.
First things first.
You raise a hand to your face. A probing finger touches your left eye.
Nothing. A hole. A socket.
Pain hits you. You vomit suddenly, onto the ground.
Slowly you raise your head and take in the area around you. Featureless rubble. You barely recognize the sign of the shop you were standing in front of when you saw the blast on the horizon. It is badly burnt.
The girl is nowhere to be found.
Choking back more bile, thirst hits you like, if you'll excuse the pun, a tidal wave. You get to your feet. Your clothes are badly burnt. Parts of you feel weird, but you manage to stand.
Turning a slow 360, you see nothing and no one for what appears to be miles. Your sense of direction is shot.
Hills. Hills to the west. They are on fire. Smoke obscures them.
You orient yourself.
"They"?
You cast your eyes around. A lead pipe. Bending, you pick it up. It seems solid.
***********************************
Location: Northern California, ruins of your hometown
Health: Poor-Severe (Possible unknown internal injuries) Left eye destroyed
Assets: Lead Pipe, rags, contents of wallet
Skills: None that would be useful spring to mind. Damn the school system!
Members in party: none
***********************************
Actions:
1. Search for the girl, both verbally and with what sight remains to you.
2. She'd only slow you down. Let's get the fuck out of here. South is probably a bad idea, so... >N
3. Perhaps you should head for those hills? They are on fire... but... if anyone is alive, they should be there. >W
First option to receive 4 votes will be explored. The others will be forever lost.
Author
Topic: The End (Read 57503 times)