I hear distant growling, and someone is whispering my name in a frantic manner.

“Oi,” comes a completely different voice, low and rough.

I feel something nudging my shoulder. My sore shoulder.

I sit up with a gasp and cringe, holding my shoulder.

Gus is next to me growing. Not growling at me, growing at the man standing above me. He’s dressed in long sleeved black overalls and has some sort of aeration mask strapped to his forehead.

“This facility is supposed to be evacuated,” he says. “Miners are supposed to be off property until we give the green light for radiation.”

He’s holding some sort of monitoring equipment. It’s a Geiger counter, I realize. Because uranium—duh!

I pet Gus, shushing him, and he eventually calms.

“Yeah, sorry, we’ll get out of your way.”

The man pulls his mask down and straps it to his mouth, then turns to leave.

“Jack,” whispers Xeno. “You should send him and take that equipment.”

It's not a bad idea. Something to detect radiation could come in handy. I get out of bed and make the decision. I reach out and grab the back of his exposed neck. He has a second to turn back and look at me before he’s gone.

I try to catch the hand held Geiger counter before it hits the floor, but I’m too clumsy and it’s too early in the morning.

Gus immediately scurries over to sniff the pile of clothes and equipment.

“Come on, boy,” I say, picking up the Geiger counter.

I give the pantry and kitchenette a final scour, stuffing my pockets full, and find two racquetballs and two racquets in a drawer. Something else that might come in handy.

When I open the door I’m surprised by how windy it is. There’s not a cloud in the sky but the wind feels unnatural. It’s so strong I have to guard my face with my forearm to protect my eyes from dirt and debris. It nearly throws me off balance twice on the way to the parking lot. Gus sticks close to my legs.

“We’re going to have to wait this out in the Grotto,” yells Xeno over the wind. “No way we’re making that climb in this.”

“Agreed!”

I see a handful of others dressed in the same outfit as the man that woke me up, but they’re all occupied by their respective tasks. There’s three white, unmarked vans in the parking lot now. If any of them see me they pay no mind.

We make our way to my truck. Gus seems a little hesitant to jump in, at first, but after a little prodding he hops in gingerly.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

“Woo!” I say, closing the door. I turn to Gus, who’s sitting on the passenger seat, panting. I strap his seatbelt on and give him a pat. “Welcome to the end of the world, boy.”

—•—•—•—

Gus slides to a halt in the dirt, racquetball in maw, bouncing off the side of my blowup air mattress I’ve set up on the ground.

Xeno’s appendage shoots out of my hand towards the dog … and grabs hold of the ball. Together they wrestle for it until Gus gives up. The dog spins around three times as Xeno makes a show of cocking his long, whip-like body back, then tosses the ball like a bullet against the wall of the grotto.

Xeno snaps back into my hand and starts laughing.

“This is so much fun. Why didn’t you tell me dogs could be so much fun, Jack. Oh, Good boy! Yes, get it. Good boy, Gussy Goo!” he shouts, as the dog tackles the ball near the crystalline wall.

I’m laying flat out on the air mattress, bored out of my mind. “It’s been two days,” I say, looking out the cave entrance. The grotto is deep enough that we’re protected from the worst of it. “Is this wind ever going to let up?”

The dog comes sliding back and the two repeat the ritual of play fighting for the ball.

Xeno wins, tosses the ball, then snaps back in. “It’s been calming down,” he says. “Give it one more night. Oh, such a good boy, yes you are!”

—•—•—•—

“Alright,” I say, slowly removing my hands from the explosives mounted to the top of the vessel. “I think we’re set.”

The weather today is perfect, with the sun overhead—the best weather we've had in a long time. The view from up here is breathtaking; we can see everything. It took three days of relentless wind, but it finally calmed. It takes nearly another half day of hiking with heavy bombs strapped to my back to reach the top, but we make it.

“Let me review every step in your memory of the tour one more time,” says Xeno.

Bark, Bark, says Gus.

“That’s right, boy,” says Xeno. “We’re going to pop the top so we can extract the marble. But remember, it’s not a ball. Don’t swallow it. Jack, we have to make sure he doesn't—”

“Xeno,” I say, wiping my sweat drenched face. “Are the bombs set up correctly or not?”

“Oh, right. One second. Okay, you’ve removed them from the magazines, check. We have the connectors in place, good. The red laches are set to open. The electrical components are set to green, so … Yeah. I think we’re good to go.”

“You think?”

“I’m not a demolitions expert, Jack, all I have is your one memory of some hairy guy doing this with his back to you, and you weren’t even paying close attention. You keep looking at some blonde chick in the front row of the tour group.”

I let out a breath and stand up, stretching out my back. I desperately need a massage, but I don’t think I’ll be getting one any time soon.

Bark, Bark, says Gus.

“Don’t be rude,” says Xeno, scolding the dog. “Jack is not going to defecate in his pants. He’s very confident in what he’s about to do. Aren’t you, Jack.”

I pick up the remote detonator and start making my way towards our designated cover spot.

“I still don’t believe you can actually understand the dog,” I say. “I think you’re making it up.”

Xeno scoffs. “Typical human—to think you are the only species on the planet capable of something as beautiful as language.”

“Come on, boy,” I say, ignoring Xeno’s snarky jab.

About a minute later I’m sitting down, my back against a massive, fractured crystalline structure. It’s about one-hundred yards away from the explosives. I hope to the progenitors it’s far enough away. There’s nothing else up here for miles that is even remotely wall shaped.

“Batteries?” say Xeno. “There should be two double AAs in the remote detonator.”

I pop the bottom of the handle off, confirm, and snap it back in place.

“Okay, I say, so I just pull this trigger, right? Come here, Gus, stay right with me. Under my legs, that’s a good boy.”

“Hold down the safety release,” says Xeno. “Yep, right there. Okay now pull the trigger. But please, make sure whatever you do, do not—”

BOOM!