The city lay silent. The broad strokes of glass and steel pepper the horizon. A small corner shop lay in solitude, a sign hanging still upon aged wood. Shelves lay bare. A single item here and there leave a striking contrast to the spaces now ladened in dust and rodent remains.
Down the road, a much larger store lay silent. Beyond it, an entrance to a mall. The store reads, "All-Night Pharmacy". It was commonplace in this city. Inside the mall, decorations lay sleeping. The once hustle and bustle, the energy of life, long passed these halls.
And yet, amongst this silence, a tiny spark of life remained.
"ECHO, ECHO!!"
A young man laughed, walking alongside a small statured girl.
"So, what'd you like for dinner tonight Fel?"
"Oh please, call me Bee. Cause tonight, I'm gonna be collecting honey."
Laughter filled the cave of man-made ingenuity. It was a strangely liberating experience. Being alone amongst an empty expanse. The only ones left to rule this kingdom of abandoned glory.
"You know Fel, I lived most of my life in hiding. Too afraid to go to places like this. But I gotta say, without all the people, it's pretty awesome!"
"Ehhem. You mean, with ME, it's pretty awesome?!"
"You know it Fel!"
"Your ribs still hurting Vince?"
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
"Not as much thankfully.. That cream and painkillers really did the trick."
• • •
Riding down the streets in a trolley. Eating way too much chocolate. Forgetting there's no running water when running to the toilet at a McDarvy's. I began to feel like I was finally living a life. Fellabee and I had found a place for ourselves. A place we can call home, together.
"You know, whatever happened out here. Maybe it was just what we needed."
Fellabee looked me in the eyes, and with a long, hard stare, kissed me. Her tiny lips pressing against mine like a soft grape.
"Honestly, being made a Queen wasn't something I-"
Before she could finish her sentence, a familiar spark shot into her mind.
Within a matter of moments, a sprawling tree of networks opened up inside her being, and she grasped her head. A familiar feeling overwhelmed her. It had been so long since-
"Systems online. Aether net operational."
Her eyes widened several fold, and before I could speak, she grabbed my hand and looked around.
"What is it Fellabee?! Did something happen?"
"Th-the aether net.. How.. It's online.. My linker just notified me?!"
Taking my focus off of Fellabee, I raised my head steadily and looked around.
"Wait.. Weren't we just.. In the city.."
Somehow, the air felt denser. The concrete walls that once surrounded our views, had been replaced with an eery, dark sea.
Droplets of water, black as night, dripped upwards toward an eternal abyss. The lightless expanse above us stretched out in all directions. Gigantic fangs lined the horizon. What were once skyscrapers, were now the teeth of an abyssal, towering maw.
"Something's wrong Vince..", Fellabee said with a shaken voice.
Her vision now augmented with horrific sights.
"Th-they're all dead..", she whimpered. Collapsing onto my palm.
My feet began to feel soaked in a thick, wet substance. As if the saliva of a colossal beast had began digesting its prey before crushing it into a fine paste.
I felt frozen. Waves of shock periodically spiraling through my veins, when suddenly, Fellabee began convulsing. Her veins had began glowing a crimson red.
Not knowing exactly what to do, I panicked and ripped off the linker.
A few moments of silence passed. Her body had gone completely still. I held her tiny face upon my fingers and gently cradled her. My heart was pounding with fear. My ears had began ringing, and amongst the silent sea of black, I had a vision.