The Sun Awaits [Short Story]

Chapter 2: Peaches and Crystals

         I walk along a fallen building; it's a black, shiny block with blue hues from the floodlights above. They shine the never-ending blue light that is the only thing keeping me from not being completely blindly sighted in this dead world full of black.

It's honestly the same routine every day. Wake up, eat, get to the roof, and when the lights start to flicker, find a place to sleep away the blackout. It's pretty simple. It's been the same with and without Sophia. Along with the search for the sun, there is always the chance of meeting a few ghosts, which aren't scary at all. I think of them more like unhappy souls, slumping around, living in their unlived rests of their lives; werewolves, which are never a treat, because even during the day, they don't transform, since there is no sun to be found. Marilibots, a robot bug that I've seen rip the flesh right off a werewolf in seconds, leaving it in a pile of bloody bones. They hunt in packs killing off whatever they find, even though they are only the size of a giant bee, or a small bird.

I mentally slap myself, "Stop Thinking". I snap out of my thoughts and focus on what's happening right now. I hear a small thump. I see the building slowly slip away from the wall on the other side. I break into a run and sprint across the shiny, black building, my sneakers kicking up a thick layer of dust that has built up over the many days, months, or years that I've been in here. I finally reach the end of the building, which is slipping further and further away from the building next to it. I realize that the window frame that I'm supposed to run through is too high now, and I'm going to have to jump or else I will fall however many hundred feet it is to the ground below. So, I keep running and I'm a meter away from the frame. 3.. 2.. 1...Jump! I spring upwards off the ground, landing on my feet in the building. I don't think to check myself for any scratches or cuts, and keep heading to anywhere that goes up.

I find a stairway and climb upwards, slipping on a stair on my way up, and then realizing it was my shoelace that caused me to fall. I hobble up the next two stairs and tie it, then reaching into my drawstring bag for something to eat. I rummage through it, feeling for anything. I finally pull out a small can of peaches. I decided it would be better to carry a lighter bag around. I sit down on the floor, putting my bag back on my back. I open the can and sip out of it, then chewing on a peach slice when it falls from the steel can and into my mouth. I never realized how hungry I was until now.

The building is dark, so I shake a small crystal around my neck, allowing it to shine a green light that will give me a small, but fair amount of light. I see a ladder in the green glow, and climb up its rusty, grey poles. One crumbles beneath my step. I jump at the sudden movement, but keep climbing. I reach the top and realize that my hand is drenched in peach juice, which I still have yet to finish. I sip out of it one more time, before throwing it into the blackness below. I wait a second, then hear it bounce off something with a small clash, then the sound fades as it tumbles down farther into the emptiness below.

The world around me is dark, only the dimly lit rooftops of buildings show in the floodlights' blue glow. Most of the buildings are lower, or the same height of one I'm standing on, which I'm a little downed about. But taller buildings loom in the blackness, their outlines illuminated by the floodlights. I see the closest one, spotting a beam that leads to it. I clench my jaw, I hate beams, and I'm pretty sure you know why. If you don't, let's just say that I haven't had the best of experiences with them.

The beam is no longer than a beam those gymnasts use, or whatever they're called – my balance, has been a little off lately, and I almost fell off a roof yesterday, which could have led to a split-second death – I slowly crossed the beam, knowing that one wrong step, tilt, or focus drain could lead to a quick death.

I finally reach the other side of the building, and breathe again, closing my eyes as the air fills my lungs. I start pacing on the rooftop, pondering on what to do next. Then all of a sudden, a familiar buzzing fills the air. I count the seconds from when it started, 6.. 7.. 8.. 9.. and on the number '10', the lights flicker around me, the darkness engulfing me for a split second. Two more flashes and the blackout starts.

Using the small light from my crystal, I find my way into a building, then I sit down against a steel wall, closing my eyes as I try to regain energy for tomorrows journey. I restate the same thing in my head over and over again. Its my mission, my dream and my destiny. The Sun Awaits.