The first creature ran up to him with a screech and a snarl. Lazarus backed up a few steps but Sammy launched his large body at it. They met in a booming crash and Lazarus couldn't see who was the victor for the creature slashed with its talon hands and Sammy with his big body moved in front of his sight, blocking his view. He heard a crunch and saw the creature was caught in Sammy's jaws. His dog snapped its neck and threw it away.

Blood splattered the ground in torrents. The creature stopped moving. Lazarus sensed something behind him. Turning, he saw one of the creatures scrambling toward him, moving on all fours like a spider. Without thinking, he swung the small axe at it. He felt the axe sink into the creature's neck, biting and cutting, and deep red blood showered upwards like a geyser.

Something started to happen to him. In his wonderment, he felt something akin to power flow in his body. Magic, he was thinking. Holding his free hand aloft he pointed at the nearest creature. A powerful wind blasted at the beast, sending it flying backward. It hit a crumbling brick wall with a thud, destroying the barrier. He turned to see several of the creatures surrounding Sammy.

Running, he pointed toward some of the creatures, flinging them away like leaves. Sammy dispatched the remaining creature with a snap of his jaws. Lazarus stood close to his dog. Sammy was breathing hard, looking for the next attack, but none came. Lazarus held the bloodied axe in his hands and looked at it in a with a mix of horror and bewilderment. "Good boy. Let's get out of here."

He bent down and wiped the axe on the ground. Lazarus felt crude and sad. Even if he was rescued and the world went back to normal, he couldn't see himself sitting in a cubicle again. They walked out of the area. He saw the dead creatures lying mute in various prone positions of death. His magic did this, and he would need to learn how to use and control it.

As they left the area he sensed Matthew was traveling toward him as if they had some communication between them. Yet he was not sure why he felt that way. He also felt something, a need, a drive to find a place he glimpsed in his dreams, a dark place with large cylindrical objects and a place hidden from time and memory that could only be recalled as a legend.

Lazarus noticed the ground changed from cement and asphalt to rocks and earth. Several of the trees still stood with their roots showing. They traveled to a park, large by the look of it, with a small lake that was filled with all types of debris.

He smelt the foul smell again, coming from the tepid waters of the lake. He veered away from the foul smelling water but Sammy kept on looking at the lake. He thought he saw something swimming inside its dirty waters. They moved toward a round cement enclosure where there was a kid's playground. He saw remnants of a metal swing and a monkey bars structure. A few of the poles stuck out at odd angles. He hadn't been to a park since he was in high school.

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Lazarus walked by the monkey bars and then the swing. His mind wandered to the last time he was on a swing. It was the day after graduating from Hoover High. He sat on the leather harness. His hands grasped the metal chain links, fingering the cold metal with his fingertips. He barely swung. Next to him was his friend, Cindy. She was also moving slowly.

He was going to college at Long Beach and Cindy was accepted to college back east. She was smart, much smarter than him.

He said, "You are going to do great things."

Cindy looked at him. She flicked her long blond hair. He’d known her since they were in grade school together. They lived a few blocks away from each other.

"You are, too," she said.

They sat in silence for a little while. Lazarus was feeling foolish. He knew he would miss her, but he didn't want to say it because if he did he would do something stupid like tear up and cry. But he knew this was the best thing for her. Cindy was destined for greatness. She was the head cheerleader with the brains of a Mensa student. Cindy was always invited to the best parties. She was dating the captain of the football team. He was not sure why they were friends. They had nothing in common.

"You’re just saying that. I’m not like you."

"Look, I’ll keep in contact with you. Don't worry. We will still be friends."

"I’m not worried. But if you forget to contact me it’s fine."

"So, what are you going to major in at College?"

Lazarus said, "I don't know. What are you going to do?"

She swung a little bit more. "Nah. I think I can swing higher than you."

"Hah, no way."

Lazarus wondered where Cindy was and if she was dead or alive. But, he thought, she must be alive. He saw her in his vision. He shook his head and kept walking. The day turned into dusk with the sun slowly moving down on the horizon. If Lazarus stared upwards at the clouds and the sun and didn’t notice the apocalyptic landscape before him, he would be amazed at the sight. The sky was a deep red crimson with highlights of orange and deeper cerulean blue creeping along the edges. The clouds were white and puffy like cotton candy, so beautiful and abundant and close to the ground that he thought he could have plucked them out of the air and tasted them.

"Sammy, we need to find a place to stay for the night, and some dinner."

They’d had a light lunch of crackers a few hours ago and his stomach growled for more. Sammy wagged his tail. He barked and took off.

"Where are you going?"

The dog ran out of sight, coming back with a bag of chips in his mouth.

"Where did you find this?"

Sammy nodded. He followed the dog to another store now open with its contents vomited on the ground. He checked and made sure there were no Grogs waiting to pounce on them.

"So, what should we have for dinner?"

Lazarus found several cans of spaghetti, canned hams, bottles of water and some knives in the wreckage. He also found a saucepan.

"We shall have a good dinner tonight, if we can light a fire."

Sammy barked and pawed the ground. Looking down, Lazarus saw lighters on the ground. He wondered how Sammy knew this.