Apocalypse

Chapter 1

I remember the fires. That was only the beginning. Fires, tsunamis, earthquakes. Everything that was speculated to happen, well, it happened.

Six Months Earlier

I woke up in my bed to the sound of the fire alarm blaring.

"Mom? Dad?" I yelled groggily down the hallway, waiting for one of them to go replace the batteries in our smoke detectors so that I could go back to sleep. It was my junior year and I had the SATs the next day. I'd prepared in every way I could to get a solid score, and now the only thing I needed to accomplish was a good nights rest. No one responded. "Mom!" I yelled a little louder this time. It wasn't until I sat up from the half-asleep state that I heard the screams. So many screams. Everywhere around me, sirens blared demanding to be heard. I stood up quickly and threw on a sweatshirt before heading towards my door and out towards the living room. I took a look at one of the family portraits I'd drawn when I was little on the fridge. There were arrows pointing to my Mom, my Dad, and me, Teagan."Mom! Dad!" The fear in my voice was evident, but the extent of the situation hit me quickly when I noticed the view from the windows. Fire, everywhere. In every direction, smoke billowed up from the homes of my neighbors I'd known for years, and that I'd played with on the streets when I was a kid. I'd heard of terrible fires in California, but I didn't expect that they would spread to Colorado. It looked like doomsday. I immediately ran to my parent's bedroom. "Mom, dad, you guys wake u-" There was no one in their bed. Tears crept into my eyes as stepped towards the shattered window opposite their bedroom door. "Hello?" Once again, no one answered. It wasn't until I got closer that I noticed the blood. It dripped down the edges of the broken glass and onto the plush carpet below me. Tears flowed out of my eyes like clockwork. I sprinted out of their room and quickly throughout the rest of our home. I checked their room one last time. Nothing. They were gone. I backed away slowly and ran to my room. I emptied out my school backpack and grabbed everything I could. I knew that my house would be smoking soon enough based on what I'd seen and that I needed to get out of there as soon as possible. I'd find my parents once I was safe. I changed into some leggings and tennis-shoes before grabbing an extra change of clothes, more warm layers, and blankets as well as a couple of snacks and water to hold me off until I made it to a gas station that hadn't been affected. I grabbed my keys and took a breath before heading out to my car.

My eyes burned as the clouds of smoke hit them. I covered up my nose and mouth with my sweatshirt and ran towards my car. I couldn't help but notice the Suburban that belonged to my parents sitting in the driveway with the doors open and the engine started. What happened to them? Various possibilities ran through my mind, but I did my best to focus on getting the hell out of there. As soon as I got into my car I turned on the ignition and cranked up the AC, I'd begun to sweat from the heat. I hesitated before backing up and debated going back into my home to check for my parents one last time, but I decided to keep going. 

I couldn't see anything but fire and smoke. The trees all over the mountains were up in flames and the houses smoked out of the windows. Part of me wanted to get out and see if there was anyone I could help, but my fear got the better of me and I reasoned that the fire department would send reinforcements soon enough. I was surprised that there were only about 10 cars on the road. Hopefully, most people had escaped sooner, but it hit me how abrupt the fires had been. I didn't know much about forest fires, but if they'd spread from California, shouldn't the authorities have known?

I cranked the dial on my stereo to one of the various news stations.

"Authorities are recommending that citizens affected by the fires head out of their cities and find other housing options for the nigh-" I switched the channel.

"Currently, California is experiencing massive earthquakes, the most destructive that have been recorded, well, ever. Authorities are also warning of large hurricanes off the coast of Florida." I turned down the volume when I heard a large booming sound above me. Thunder? My guess turned out correct as I noticed the large pellets of rain start to come down in the sky. Hopefully, that would help with some of the fires. I couldn't see very far ahead of me, but I continued down the highway.

I drove for thirty minutes until the smoke began to clear up. I was about forty miles away from my house at this point, and I honestly had no idea what to do next. I'd tried calling my parents, but it seemed like cell service was out. I pulled over on the side of the road and turned up the radio again.

"Everyone, find shelter, if you are not inside a house or a car, find a way to protect yourself." The reporter seemed scared. "California, Nevada, Florida, Colorado, everywhere right now, it's, it's all dangerous. All the disease centers, they've been compromised. No one knows what's happened. Why all these disasters have happened all at once. The death rates are higher than some wars. People are reporting disappearances everywhere. The government is initiating a state of emergency. All I can say is, stay safe. Find people, find food, find water, find shelter. Stay alive."

It really was a doomsday.