Godead

LXXII

Claude froze in place, looking to Blair through the heavy, pouring rain. Moments later, he closed his eyes, giving the young policewoman a warm smile.

"Blair...," he said softly. "Thank you. I—" As he spoke, a sudden burst of thunder broke through the sky. As the wind and the rain whipped up, zombies drew closer as Abby approached, towering over Claude and Blair.

"...How touching," Abby said curtly. "But I told you before, cop lady. Claude is mine." Just then, Abby swiped her wing, knocking Blair thirty feet away.

"Blair!" Claude exclaimed, watching Blair tumble down the street. As Claude went to chase after her, Abby grabbed him by the hair, dragging him back.

"...Claude," Abby said menacingly, holding him up as she stared at him from behind. "...Honestly. What did I ever see in you? You're just so weak."

Abby stood in the darkness and the rain, Claude unable to escape as she held him up with one arm. As Blair lay in the street, the policewoman caught her bearings, slowly rising to her feet. She squinted her eyes, still weak from Abby's attack.

"Claude...!" Blair said gently, wracked with pain as she slowly limped toward the boy. As Abby noticed her approach, she paused, a faint, cold smile forming on her lips.

"...Blair. Ever the brave civil servant, I see. Despite being wounded and unarmed, you just keep coming," Abby said. She then turned to Blair, suddenly holding Claude out in front of her. "But in the end... you can't save anyone!"

Suddenly, Abby raised a hand, thrusting her arm as it fiercely pierced Claude's chest. Blair stopped dead in her tracks, face going pale as her eyes grew wide. Time stood still as she warily looked on, watching in shock as Abby's claws stuck straight through Claude's chest. Blair lightly trembled, pupils shrinking as she gaped in horror at the sight.

"Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!" she screamed in anguish, eyes wide in utter disbelief.

Claude hung motionless in the air, Abby's arm impaling him through the chest from behind. The boy weakly looked down, noticing something red pulsating in her hand. As his vision started to fade, Abby gave a cold, wicked smirk.

"...Well. What do you know? Looks like you lack a heart of gold, after all," she said. She held the boy's beating heart, squeezing it as it burst in front of him. She then dropped the boy to the street, whipping her arm out, flinging a long trail of blood. Claude then fell to his knees, suddenly crashing face down into the street.

As he splashed into the wet, cold asphalt, Claude fell motionless, vision dimming as his hearing began to fail. As he felt the cold sensation of the wet street against his cheek, Blair struggled to his side, collapsing to her knees moments later. She worriedly turned him around, tears in her eyes as she yelled his name, shaking his shoulders.

Claude's weary eyes met hers, the boy giving her a final, warm smile as he raised his hand. As Blair sat frozen in place, her eyes went wide, feeling Claude's finger gently brush her cheek. Seconds later, his arm fell to the ground, body going limp as the seventeen-year-old faded away.

As the sounds of the falling rain slowly stopped, Claude lay motionless, body cold as he lay in total darkness. After a long silence, the boy warily looked up, seeing nothing but emptiness around him. He weakly sat up, rising to his feet as he stood in the void. He called out to the darkness, finding that his voice made no noise. He slowly started to walk, seeing nothing. Hearing nothing. He steadily increased his speed, soon running as he felt himself filled with dread.

Was this what death was? Was this what the afterlife was all about? A state of running in fear and panic through a state of cold and darkness? Claude continued running. He ran and ran until he couldn't run anymore. As he ran out of breath, he suddenly stopped, falling to his knees in the void.

As the boy sat alone in the dark, a faint light suddenly appeared off in the distance. As Claude looked up, it slowly drew nearer and nearer. As it steadily approached, Claude paused, noticing a familiar girl staring down at him.

"...Lucy!" Claude said, voice returning as it echoed through the darkness.

"Claude. You've returned," she replied, arms folded in her usual, Lucy-like way.

"Lucy... I'm sorry. I tried to avenge you, but... I failed," Claude said. Just then, a pair of additional lights appeared off in the distance. As they slowly approached, Claude looked over, recognizing who they were.

"...David! Linda!" Claude said, recognizing them as the young newlyweds who died at the police station.

Just then, several additional lights appeared around him, illuminating the darkness with a warm, golden light. Claude sat in silence, looking around at the familiar people surrounding him. Lucy. David. Linda. Travis and Sara. Michelle, Stacy, and Charlene. Reuben and Elsa. Jake, Caroline, her father, and countless others Claude recognized. All were people who died during the apocalypse. All of them Claude knew, some he liked, some he didn't care for.

As Toby and Doctor Flood stood with a sneer, a girl slowly made her way through the crowd. As her light drew near, delicate footsteps echoed through the silence. Claude looked up, weakly watching as a familiar girl looked at him.

"...Claude," she whispered, voice kind and gentle as she stood in the darkness of the void.

"...Zoe!" Claude replied, voice trembling as Zoe smiled down at him.

"I've been waiting for you, darling. I knew you'd return," Zoe said, extending her hand out to him. Claude weakly blinked, fighting back tears as the boy slowly took her hand. As the girl gently helped him to his feet, Claude paused, looking around at the large group of people scattered around.

"...Is everyone here?" he asked.

"Yes. It's time to go, Claude," Zoe said, her voice a calm, soothing whisper. Claude looked over to her, slowly looking around one last time.

He eyed each person surrounding him, searching for a certain little girl amidst their ranks. Her name was at the tip of his tongue, but for some reason, Claude simply couldn't remember it. In fact, he couldn't remember much of anything, anymore.

All he knew was the little girl was nowhere in sight. Claude didn't know why, but for some reason, her absence put him at ease. He then turned to Zoe, the two gently smiling as they warmly looked to each other. They then held hands, soon disappearing off into the darkness.

And with that, the life and times of teenage drifter Claude Graves came to an end. Abby, whom he once maintained such forgiveness for had killed him, Blair weeping in pain as she clutched his lifeless corpse beside her. As Claude's blood spread and dissipated over the rainy street, Abby stepped forward, towering over Blair as the policewoman held Claude tight.

"...That's right, maggot," Abby said coldly, tilting her head at Blair. "...Cry."

Blair bit her bottom lip, violently cringing as she shot Abby an icy stare.

"Damn you!" she shrieked, voice cracked and broken.

"Yes. It hurts, doesn't it? It hurt, as well, when Claude put a bullet in my head. Now weep, child. Weep for me. Weep as I wept after my mother used to beat me. Weep as I wept after my stepfather used to rape me."

As Abby spoke, Blair suddenly gave pause, looking to the towering girl before her. As lightning lit up the sky, it illuminated Abby's face, a twinge of madness gleaming in her crimson eyes.