"TEN MINUTES REMAIN… PREPARE FOR SALVATION"
The blaring sound of the announcement brought a man lost in a crowd to his senses. He was being thrown around by the furious jostling of the mob as it fled from the green light growing behind it. Finally catching his stride, the man began to think about his very uncertain future and the circumstances surrounding it.
The light was coming from one of the Sever Spores forced upon humanity by the Interlopers. The other-worldly visitors never actually explained what the detonation process would entail. The only clarification they offered was that detonation was to take place in the human month that corresponded to the number of the GQC.
Seeing as how the Interlopers arrived on January 1st, many of the residents of GQC-6 viewed it as a blessing. Even if they were separated from their family, they at least had time to try and establish a foothold in their new home and prepare for the detonation of the spores.
Unbeknownst to the man and the other residents, the Sever Spores were set to detonate on a random day in the month. Additionally, the sever spores would be released into the city at random locations. No one was safe; not the government officials locked away in their bunkers, the elites who hid at the peaks of their skyscrapers, the common folk who lived in the center's crowded interior, and most certainly not the underprivileged who lived in the slums on the outside of the wall. The only compensation was that the residents were promised at least a one day warning. It would give everyone at least a chance to prepare themselves.
However, on June 1st, to the sheer terror of the residents of GQC-6, the first warning rang out, signaling the 24 hour countdown until the detonation of the spores. On such short notice, everyone in the city was caught off guard and thousands of flash mobs were formed as people tried to get away from the freshly released spores.
"SIX MINUTES REMAIN… PREPARE FOR SALVATION"
Lost in thought, the man was too unfocused to stay with the crowd, eventually falling to the back. Regardless, he continued to press forward, not keen on finding out what 'salvation' meant.
'We're too close' He thought.
'Whatever this 'Sever' energy is, we are definitely going to be drowned in a great deal of it. Maybe I should ditch the streets and try to find a building to hide in. It's not a bad idea actually... I won't have to wrestle my way around others to get away from the crowd. It's not like anyone is crazy enough to not be run-'
The man's pondering was cut short by the image of a lone woman holding an infant in her arms. Despite being in the heart of the crowd, she wasn't moving. Strangely enough, she was actually looking in the direction of the spore, as if she was mesmerized by its glow. Seconds flew by and the man moved together with the crowd leaving the woman behind.
"FIVE MINUTES REMAIN… PREPARE FOR SALVATION"
With each step that came after passing the woman, the man's mind was thrown into further turmoil.
"FOUR MINUTES REMAIN… PREPARE FOR SALVATION"
The inner struggle in his psyche forced the man to slow his steps. At the same time, he was asking himself a cascade of questions.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
'What is she doing?! We should ALL be moving away from that thing. She has a baby! She should be at the front of the group! I'm sure she's probably just tired from carrying the infant, if I look back she'll probably be following close behind.'
"THREE MINUTES REMAIN… PREPARE FOR SALVATION"
Consumed by overwhelming guilt, the man spared a glace back towards the light only to see the mother flying towards the glow with an intensity that could only be described as desperation.
Horrified by the woman's strange decision to run towards the imminent explosion, the man took off after her. He hoped he could catch up and convince the woman to find a spot to hide.
"TWO MINUTES REMAIN… PREPARE FOR SALVATION"
To the man's surprise, he wasn't making up any ground on the woman. He could only hope to keep her in his sights as he trailed her almost superhuman strides.
"ONE MINUTE REMAINS… PREPARE FOR SALVATION"
Eventually, the man caught sight of the source of the glow. The spore. It was smaller than he thought, no bigger than the size of a basketball. He doubted that such a small mass of energy could somehow affect the entire area.
He would soon find his doubts proven unfathomably wrong. Losing sight of the woman in the green radiance, the man stopped. It was too late to turn back now but he didn't have the courage to push forward and lose himself in the eerie light.
"WARNING... SALVATION IMMINENT"
The man had to know.
'Why did she come here? Why...Why am I here? Something is..... wrong.'
As the spore's brightness grew to match that of a star, the man threw himself to the ground and curled up into a ball, bracing himself for what was to come.
One second passed.
Then another.
A full minute passed before the man had steeled his spirit enough to lift himself off the ground. Looking around, the green light flooding the city had disappeared, replaced once again with the the reflected light of the moon.
Where was the explosion? He knew there was supposed to be no physical damage, but he just assumed that was an exaggeration made to make everyone more comfortable with being near alien bombs. Since the man was unharmed he scanned the street for the person who brought him to the spore in the first place.
Only a couple yards in front of him, he saw the young mother on her knees, gently holding the baby she had so fearlessly brought to the epicenter of the detonation zone.
Announcing his presence with loud footsteps, the man slowly approached the woman. As he grew closer, she turned to look at him. The look she had on her face was enough to freeze the man in his tracks.
Tears were streaming down the woman's face and her lip was quivering. Her whole body was shaking in a fit of shock. Unlike her, the baby in her arms was absolutely still, almost as if it were a doll.
'The...The baby is dead?"
He tried to think of something; anything to say to comfort this woman who had lost her world. The silence continued as the man tried and failed to find the right words. He failed miserably so the only words he could offer were those of a short consolation.
"Miss...I...I'm so sor-"
"WAAAAAHHHHHH"
Out of nowhere the infant in the woman's arms exploded into an energetic fit of crying, making his discomfort known to the world. Completely caught off guard, the woman almost dropped the child. Regaining her senses, she clutched him tight to her chest as tears of joy gushed from her eyes.
"My boy, he's...he's crying!"