Dead Clouds

Chapter 2 (1/2): Unexpected Forecast

Sound and taste returned to Gold before his vision. Nube City roared with animacy. People shuffled up flights of stairs racing for arriving trains, students raced through traffic trying to reach their morning classes, and numerous other civilians engaged in the various adventures the city had to offer. A mix of cold air and coffee curled into a ball of flavor over his taste buds. He slid his tongue over his lips and tasted the morning.

The chilly temperature was an anomaly in the city. Temperatures as high as seventy-five were usually reached before eight o'clock. Many perceived aberrations in the weather as an admonishment from the gods. It was their way of commenting on the acts of the living. Ensuring that people lived correctly.

Slowly, Gold lifted himself off of the ground. His muscles never seemed to contract, however. It was almost as if he floated to his feet.

His vision blurred as if he was looking underwater without goggles. Sometimes straining his eyes helped and other times it only exacerbated his condition. People looked like the inside of lava lamps. Distorted and jumbled. After several hard scrubs with his palms, he managed to regain some workable level of vision.

Finally, the world around him was clear. The rancid scent of garbage, the bland brick walls of an alley, and the unfamiliar faces shooting through the grimy path. No one noticed him. Despite standing in the center of the alley, people seemed to walk through him. He never felt so invisible.

"Why am I here?" asked Gold in a scratchy tone lacking his usual vigor.

He trained his eyes on the faces of the people entering the alley and realized that they all glanced at the ground before stepping around him. Their expressionless faces changed instantly. Some grimaced, some covered their mouths, and others merely shook their heads and grumbled that the world wasn't as peaceful as it used to be.

This provoked Gold to follow their eyes and glance down.

The memories crashed into him. They arrived in quick flashes that sent trembles down from his sandy blonde hair to his toes. He saw the convenience store. He saw Katy. He saw the three men. He saw the knife.

When the memories faded, he saw the blood. The dark blood that stained the concrete around his shoes. The contents of his stomach crawled up his throat and peeked at the blood through his mouth. His body convulsed, but nothing splattered to the ground. He wrapped his arms around his stomach and wheezed as his eyes bulged out.

"I was stabbed," said Gold, running his shaky hands across his tracksuit top, "But? Why don't I?"

His hands searched his abdomen for punctures, but everything was solid. He rubbed his fingers and they were dry. There was no blood on his fingers. There was no blood on his tracksuit. He was spotless despite the blood stains beneath him.

"Was I dreaming?"

But he quickly shot that idea down. The setting was too familiar. He recalled the events that occurred inside of the alley he was currently standing in.

His survival stunned him. Raising his head above, he studied the fluffy white clouds circling in the sky. He reasoned that the gods had spared him. A heat circulated within him. He smiled with his lips before unleashing a wider smile full of brilliant teeth.

"The gods would never punish the righteous," said Gold holding a closed fist close to his chest, "This isn't the end after all."

He pivoted towards the alley exit so fast that he never noticed his feet never making contact with the ground. Soon thoughts of justice replaced the horrid memories from the previous night. A look of determination colored his eyes. He planned to locate the men, who attempted to murder him the previous night, and bring them to justice. Nube City wasn't safe as long as killers prowled the streets hurting people indiscriminately.