The Gloaming

Chapter 5: A History Lesson

Two Days Later... 50 Days to the Fade

Jared was seated in the plush chair on Jensen's right, smiling as he watched little Emily preparing to entertain her Unkie Jen. The first time she'd called him that in front of Jared, Jensen's ears had turned a bright red and he'd complained how Emily was making him look like a wuss. Little Emily had merely shook one tiny finger at Jensen and stated that she would spank anyone who tried to hurt her Unkie Jen. Jensen didn't have the heart to complain any further after that.

Jensen had asked her how school was going and Josh, who had significantly mellowed out when it came to Jared, had told them that Emily had won the lead in the Annual Gloaming Extravaganza. Every year a school is chosen to provide the entertainment for the event and whatever town or city that school is a part of, gets to host the 3-day long event too. It was considered a great honor, and any town or city that got picked always went out of its way to make it better than the year before.

At every "Glonnual" as it was also called, one thing always expected was when children that had been handpicked by school officials and city leaders, according to their school records and nominations, performed a short skit that told the story of the First Gloaming.

Emily got what Jared and Jensen thought was the most important part of all, she was the narrator. Others thought that being in the actual enactment and getting to act it out was more important, but Jared and Jensen both reassured her that everyone knew that nothing ruined a First Gloaming Play than a bad narrator.

Jensen had then encouraged Emily to practice on them seeing as how there was nothing better to do. And so, the little girl was standing on the low coffee table in the seating area of Jensen's private room with her Dad close by in case she lost her balance or got too close to the edge.

Jensen smiled delightedly at Jared when Emily threw her shoulders back, raising her chin proudly as she prepared to begin. Jared felt as if the air had been punched out of his lungs. He still wasn't used to how one of Jensen's dazzling smiles left him dazed and weak at the knees. He didn't think he'd ever get used to it.

Jared blinked and shook his head slightly, turning to give Emily his full attention, while trying to subtly readjust himself in his suddenly too tight jeans.

"Seventy-four years and eight months ago, the Gloaming Star appeared in the night skies. As it drew closer to our little planet, panic brewed on the streets of large cities and rural towns alike. Many lives were lost in the chaos and martial law ruled the land. The best scientists of the time all predicted that it would impact our planet and that the Earth would not survive it. But then something happened to the Gloaming Star... something many called miraculous."

Clasping her hands before her, a look of amazement on her little face, Emily stepped a little closer to the edge of the table and held her hands out, palms forward in a dramatic gesture. Her father stiffened as she came close to the edge of the table. But then she stepped back with an wide-eyed expression on her face. "It began to slow down as it reached the outer edge of our solar system!" she said in an awed voice.

Despite having heard the story many times in his lifetime, plus the myriad movies and shows about it, Jared found himself enthralled with the little girl's routine. He glanced over at Jensen and found him watching Jared with a bemused expression on his face. Jared smiled questioningly, but all Jensen did was give him a litte smile, then turned to look back at Emily. His brow crinkled slightly in confusion, but Jared also turned back to continue watching the little girl.

"Together, with their allies, America sent out manned spaceships to investigate the comet as it drew closer and closer, still coming but at a slower pace. First reports and images sent back reported that the comet wasn't a comet at all, but an amor... amorph... amorphous ball of glowing light that was very, very big. Too big to measure. Just as it was nearing Earth's space, teller-scopes from Earth showed a beam of golden light shooting from it and into one of the three ships sent to examine it. At first, it was thought to be an attack of some kind. But it wasn't. It was the Gloaming. Two American astronauts; 1st Engineer Mary Campbell and Commander John Winchester were the very first to be glommed. The two had only just met on this mission. Their initial attraction to each other was strengthened by the Glow."