Chapter 1
Stepping out of my car, my stomach rumbled at me. It has been quite a while since I have gotten something to eat from this place. I lock my car and walk up. I am greeted by the aroma of food as I step into Fuzzy’s, and I step up to order. It would seem that so far there aren't really very many people here for the lunch rush. I quickly go up and smile at the cashier.
“I would like a grilled chicken burrito and a soda.”
“Ok, anything else?
“No thanks.”
“That’ll be $13.43.”
I pay for the food, then I pick up the device that will shake and tell me when my meal is ready, and I walk to get my soda. The bubbling beverage is sweet, and I go to sit down. I wait for a bit over 5 minutes until the food is ready, nursing my beverage all the while. As I get the food, I recognize the person who gives it to me.
“Hector? Hector Flores? How are you? It’s been a while since I’ve seen you around! Where have you been?”
I met Hector in the gym. We used to work out together from time to time, even though he was about 10 years older than me.
With a warm smile, he replies, “You know, I’ve been running this place. I’ve been pretty busy since they made me the manager. The pay isn’t half bad, but it’s a lot of work. How about you, Jason? Have you graduated from college?”
With a sigh, I tell him, “Not quite. I’m close, but there are still a few courses I need to finish before I can get my certifications.”
“What are you still doing in college? I seem to remember you telling me you were going to figure out what you wanted, then do it.”
“Well, I figured out what I want to do. I want to be a personal trainer. It fits me; I want to help people with their health, and it seems to be the best fit for me.”
“Good for you, Jason,” he says. His smile makes my mood better, and I want to keep talking to my old friend, but before I can, he says, “I’m sorry I can’t talk to you more; I have a few things to do in the back. Is your phone number still the same?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Maybe we should have a drink sometime; bring some of the guys together again. For old times sake, you know?”
I smile and then say, “I would like that very much. Soon it might not be possible. I am thinking about moving sometime after I graduate.”
He rubs his beard and then says, “We will have to sooner rather than later then. See you around Jason.”
We both walk away. I sit down, and he walks into the back. I enjoy my burrito and soda as I begin to eat. Soon the burrito is gone, I get up and then I leave. As I open the door, a cold wind hits my face. I don’t really like winter. There isn’t any snow, but soon there might be.
As if by fate, it begins to snow. Great. Just perfect. I don’t want it to snow just yet, but there is something strange about this snow. There are no clouds in sight, and the snow is not cold. It disintegrates on impact with anything it touches. The moon is full, and it is tinted red. It shouldn’t even be visible; it’s just after 12. Something is undeniably wrong.
I run into Fuzzy's.
“Hey, you can’t go back there!” The cashier says.
“Hector! Hector! There’s something going on outside! It’s raining ash, and the moon is visible and red!”
“What? What do you mean? That’s strange, but nothing to get so up in arms about.”
“You don’t get it; it is white like snow, but it has no texture and is dissipating on contact with everything it touches. The moon is visible like in the night, but it is clear blue outside of the moon. Something is wrong.”
“Well, that isn’t exactly normal, but it isn’t something to panic over.”
“Hector, remain vigilant. I’m going home, and I’m going to see if it’s on the news. We don’t know anything about these particles. I’ll see you later. Oh wait, one more thing, you haven’t changed your phone number, have you?”
“I did; you probably need my number if you want to contact me." He pulled out his phone and then said, “I’ll send you a message... did you get that?”
“Wait a moment… yep, I got it.”
“What about your other friends?”
“Oh them? I had a little… falling out. Before you say anything, no, it wasn’t a big thing. We just stopped talking so much. I made a few mistakes, and they stopped contacting me, and I didn’t contact them. Bye for now, Hector.”
“Ok. I see. I’ll see you later. Drive safely and say hi to fluffy for me, would you?”
“Will do,” I say as I turn around and walk away.
The drive home isn’t long, and soon I make my way into my apartment. My roommate moved on, and I’ve been looking for another one. The only reason I could afford this apartment is because I had a roommate, and now that I don't, I’ll be in trouble soon if I can’t find another one. I get my keys from my pocket as I open the door. My cat is on the back of the couch. She jumps down and walks up to me, rubbing against my leg.
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"Oh, hi fluffy. How are you? How are you kitty kitty?”
She meows in response, and when I pick her up, she cuddles into me. Some cats aren’t as friendly as my fluffy is, but she is the most friendly cat I have ever met. I pick up the remote and turn on the TV. One of the amenities my apartment gives me is a number of channels. I don’t have a large TV, but it suits my needs. The first news channel seems to be reporting on the strange particles.
“It would seem that these particles are a global phenomenon, as well as the moon. In the places where the moon can be seen, it is red for unknown reasons. Some have begun to say the end is near, and the ‘blood moon’ rising is just the start. Scientists are puzzled by both of the phenomena, but so far they seem to be harmless.”
I walk over to my bedroom and sit down at my desk to open a book. I have some homework to do.
Several hours later.
I get up from doing my homework, and stretch. I make my way over to the door, and stop to pet Fluffy as I walk through. Her soft white coat feels nice on my hand as I pet her, and she lets out a small meow, which I have learned, means she likes it. I then leave the room. The TV is still on, but there isn’t anyone on the screen. In fact, the screen is black. I pick up the remote and try to turn on the TV again, but to no avail. I pull my phone out of my pocket and turn it on, and go to CNN. All it reads is: Good luck.
I open my blinds and look around my neighborhood. Much of it is gone—not rubble, void. There is a quickly spreading void around the area, consuming the land and taking much of what is around me. The surrounding area is just this flat, inky-black expanse. For some reason, it is avoiding my house. I quickly pull out my phone and call Hector.
RING RING. RING RING.
"Jason? What is it? Are you okay?”
"Do you see what is going on?”
I hear a sigh from the other end before he says, “Yes, I know. For some reason, the shadows have been unable to take my place too. There are 15 of us here. None of our cars made it. What about your car?” He pauses for a moment before saying, “Did you get any information from the news?”
"My car was in the parking garage, but it’s gone now. I checked CNN’s website. It is completely blank. All it says is ‘Good luck’.”
"I don’t know what’s going on, but we will need good luck if we are to make it through... whatever this is. The others are calling their families and most of the calls are going nowhere. I called about 60% of my contacts and was making my way through the list with voicemails. I was about to get to you.”
“I’ve been working on homework for the last two hours, I was hoping it would just quickly blow over. When did this happen, and what did I miss?”
“The main thing you missed was the shadow tremors. Some people call them void tremors; others just call them holes. Anyways, they began to leak this pure darkness that began covering and dissolving the world around us. It is falling apart; many people have fallen to the shadows. I have believe that some larger buildings survived. There should be public school today, and because it’s the work week, a lot of people in other buildings should have survived hopefully. We have spotted several buildings in the distance, very far away and hard to see.”
I pause for a second, the shock of what he told me sinking in. Shadows? Fallen? Void tremors? I find it all ridiculous, but it is staring me in the face. I look around outside and spot something I didn’t see at first because it blended in. A large crack in the space. One of the void tremors, and it’s still leaking that awful darkness into the world around me. My parents… my friends… how many of them survived?
“Jason? Are you still there?”
His words snap me out of my thoughts, “Yes… this is… a lot to take in. Are they dead? Or somewhere else? We may yet find out. Call the rest of the numbers on your phone. I’m going to go search the rest of my apartment section to see if anyone else is here.”
“Ok, will do. I’ll call you again at a later time.”
He then hung up, leaving me with my thoughts. How could this happen? What even is this? I open up my phone app again and start calling the numbers and leaving voicemails, telling them to call me back. I go from top to bottom, passing over each number. Only two picked up out of the 30 numbers I have put on my current phone. My sister and my boss from when I worked at a Walmart.
He was a good guy, stern, and kind to the people who worked for him. My boss was in Walmart when it happened. There are roughly a hundred people where he is, and each of them has managed to call at least three people on their phones.
My sister was at my parents house when it happened. She is older than me and was visiting them. They were out on errands while she was on a walk. She made her way home after she saw a void tremor. It scared her, and I understood why.
After I called everyone on my contacts, I searched the other 3 apartments in my section of the building. The rest are out of reach for now, separated by quite a few feet of void. I didn’t expect to find anyone, but on the second door, after ringing it repeatedly, someone answered, yelling at me.
“I’ll be there in a second, jeez. What’s going on… what the heck is all that?”
He looked straight past me to the outside world, his eyes wide. He looked like he had been sleeping.
“Were you going to sleep through the end of the world?” I asked him mockingly.
He rolled his eyes before looking me in the eyes. “Jason, I work the night guard shift. You should know that.”
I looked closer at him, and then I said, “Do I know you?”
"Sorry; I just woke up. We met once at that barbecue. You know, the one the landlord held that one time.”
“Oh yeah, what is your name again?”
“I am Alexei Vassilievich Petrov.”
I can’t hold back my laughter; this man is a large guy, a mustache and all, and I laugh as I say, “Alexei Vassilievich Petrov. Are you Russian or something? That is the most Russian name I’ve ever heard. I’m so sorry.” I say as I laugh.
“Anyways, you should go call everyone you can on your phone. See who you can find. Also, you want to know what’s going on?”
He looks more amused than mad, and nods.
“It’s fine; laugh all you want. I find the name funny myself. Yes, I am Russian. I immigrated here shortly after the fall of the Soviet Union. I’m 54 years old and barely avoided joining their army.”
I apologize again to him but he just waved it off. I then explained everything to him. He nodded along all the while.
“I see. I’ll do my own research, assuming the internet still works. I'll see you later.”
He closes the door. I then walk away. I try the last door. No response. I walk back to my apartment solemnly. So much loss in one day, so many people… dead? Probably. But I will remain hopeful until I have to change.
As I open the door to my apartment, I hear a small ding. From all directions. I have a very ominous feeling with the voice that follows.
Ding. This world has been tainted by shadows… preparing countermeasures. Infusing world with fragments… completed. Calculating current inhabitants survival chances… low. Preparing countermeasures… completed. System built. Humanity, good luck and tread lightly.
End of chapter