Chapter 2
We reach the building, panting. Izzy bends over and places her hands on her knees, gasping for breath. I grab her hand and we reach the doorstop. I turn my gun towards the light hovering over the doorway and click the trigger. I don't blink. Izzy gasps and shields her face with her arms, ducking. The glass rains down in shatters, but bounces off of an invisible barrier. As Izzy looks around confusedly, I knock on the wooden door seven times, 2 times, 13 times, and 4 times. I blow on my knuckles, rubbing them as the door opens.
We rush inside and I say, "New recruit, guys. Her name is Izzy." A single light bulb flickers on as someone pulls the chain. A dozen and a half people crowd around us. These are the people I found while looking for human beings for the past few days. I also found 3 stray dogs, a cat, and a hamster family. There is Kyle, Jason, Fabio, Shark, Synthia, Emberly, Harry, Germaine, Hilary, Quilla, Willa, Bella, and Juniper. And about 5 other adults that we don't talk to. I think they're traumatized; all they do is stare at walls while hugging their knees, rocking back and forth. The room is clean, none of the aliens have gotten in. Yet. There's a force field around the apartment building for this specific reason; to ward off paranormal monsters. I don't know who was crazy enough to install it, but I'm happy that we're not being eaten from the inside out. (Oh, forgot to tell you, the year is 3029. Lots of cool inventions have been made and now we're even more advanced than most alien races.)
I sit down on the couch, sighing. I rub my back, tracing my tense muscles around and around. Izzy sits next to me, a small smile on her face.
"Thanks for rescuing me," she says, "I wouldn't have survived if you hadn't helped me out of there." She leans against my chest and I feel my face turn scarlet. I feel her cut hair against my collar bone and her soft hands rubbing my legs. I feel super embarrassed and I try not to move, afraid to startle her. We stay like that throughout the night, and I feel myself ease. Izzy falls asleep, breathing calmly. While she is asleep I trace her jaw, humming under my breath.
***
I wake up, feeling drowsy and not remembering what happened last night. I look down at Izzy still snoozing on my chest and I remember. I sigh with content and realize what time it is. I look at my watch and shout out loud. Kids fall off of their bunk beds, moaning and whining. Izzy sits up and looks at me, abashed.
"Want to come with me to find more people?" I ask. Izzy grins and nods excitedly.
We leave, saying bye to the children. The kids wave to us as we use the transportation devise. The invention allows your body to transport your atoms so you can use it to go into someone else's house. Sure, it always feel a bit weird and there were some incidents, but all in all, we don't have to use stupid cars anymore. Besides, it runs on carbon dioxide, so all you have to do is breathe on the scanner for a solid minute and it can transport 5 people. I take out my checklist from my backpack and check off the Fiera Building. I stare at the three last options. The library, the school building, and the indoor park. The places me and my friends hung out all the time. My brain freezes for five seconds and pictures zoom in my mind, the tears building up in my eyes. I wipe them away and snarl, squeezing my eyes. Izzy looks at me, concerned and I give her a forced smile.
We go to the library first. I enter, looking at my shoes, trying not to look at the lion where when I was little, I rode on it, pretending that it would pounce into the sky, leaving Earth and all the people who thought I was an idiot. I hear my heart pumping blood in my ears and I reach for the doorknob, shaking violently. I press my hand on the knob for a full 5 seconds and I open it, smelling the aroma of the musty, yellow pages. Izzy and I step in, and are immediately ambushed, tied together with rope.
I feel myself panic, but I calmly say, "Friend or foe?"
"How should I know? What's your name, bitch?" a voice comes from the shadows, with a menacing growl.
"Alexander Graham and Izzy." I say, with a grin. "Art thou shalt give thou's name?"
"Alexander?" the person comes out of the darkness, gasping.
"Quentin?! What the hell, man?!" Quentin is an old pal of mine, a grade higher than me, but my best friend, anyways. He usually carries around three important objects: his soft, golden hair, his mischevious grin, and his baggy clothes. All of those are gone. His hair is dirty blonde and straw-like, his grin is replaced with a tired frown, and his baggy clothes are now tight pants and a camoflauge shirt. tightly woven around his upper half. I stare at him in awe. He used to be a tall skinny kid, but now he's like... a muscular guy! His muscles stand out and a black ribbon is tied around his head. His arms are filled with scratches and bruises.
"Dude, I'm so glad you're still alive! I've been living like shit around here! There's no food, no water, and no heat. I was about to hang myself when you guys came in!" Quentin says, smiling.
"Quentin, is there anybody else here?"
"Yeah... the others are here along with the librarian, the cheerleaders, the jocks, and a family of five."
I sigh with relief. My bros were alive: Eric, Nick, James, Bill, and Vector! And Ms. Phos! But... then again, there were still Lila, Ella, Cila, and Ophelia, the cheerleaders. Then Jack, Hector, Xavier, and my enemy: Jayden. I see people gathered around an impenetrable wall of bookcases. I find a small entrance and duck my head on the way in. The fort is basically a circle of bookcases, two bookcases high and four bookcases forced on the top, so that nobody can come from above. Nighteen people huddle around a fire. I near the people, and see that books and papers are thrown into the fire: hundreds of information destroyed for warmth. I find myself next to an elderly woman and look at her. It was Ms. Phos! But... it couldn't be true! Ms. Phos was in her early thirties; this woman looked like a century old! Heavy bags weigh down her eyes and wrinkles are pressed into her face. Her black hair falls down to her waist, silver hairs ruining the effect. Her clothes are ripped and torn, and they look dirty, messed up by dirt and spit. She looks miserable, unlike all those days of smiles and happiness of my childhood. I tap her gently on the shoulder and give her a hug.
She gasps out loud and hugs me back, tears streaming down her face. "Alexander..."
"What's wrong, Ms. Phos?"
"I have a secret that I only know... I am a seer. But the real secret is that I know your dreaded fate."
"What is it Ms. Phos?"
"You... are going... to die."
"WHAT THE F*CK?!" I whisper/scream, waving my arms and my eyes popping out of their sockets.
"Tis not my decision, Alex, tis the Fates. Tis the Fates..." Ms. Phos collapses, slumping over, so that she lies on her stomach.
"Ms. Phos!" I shout. "MS. PHOS!" I turn her over, pressing my hand to her heart. I feel no beat. Hatred and coldness fills my heart, the madness controlling over me. This happened the day my parents died.
I feel my fingers become nimble and long and my hair disappear. My skeleton grows and stretches, the pain unbearable. My eyes glow red, and I see only in the bathed red. I let out a huge bellow and the cheerleaders screech with horror. Izzy stares at me with disbelief. I have become a monster without hair, a long, nimble, naked creature that thirsts for misery. I howl and drink in the gloom, black substance appearing in my mouth. I hear a bang and look down. Izzy has tried to shoot me. Nice try. My skin is impenetrable; I am the messenger of Satan, no one can defeat me. Not even that stupid dog, Cerberus.
I press my head to the ground, listening for the moans of agony. I hear none. I snarl and froth in the mouth. I let out another howl and bound out of the library.
