Nex (old and bad)

Chapter 1

Aida's tall ears shivered as they perceived a muddle of growls, grunts, and scuffling paws, flicking back at the occasional yap. She was lingering near the fence that enclosed the park, standing tall as she observed the other dogs' play, but not daring to join in.

Her gaze meandered to the right, where all the dogs' masters were gathered around a stone picnic table. She enjoyed listening to masters when they conversed, despite that she could recognize very few words. A familiar voice snagged her attention, and, recognizing him as her friend Pepper's master, she listened in.

"You see the news this morning?" he asked idly, leaning against the table as he fixed his eyes on a woman with whom Aida was unfamiliar.

"Oh, yes, the bit about that so-called Nex bomb," she answered, nodding emphatically. "It makes me nervous, knowing that another country - one we're not on good terms with, I might add - has power like that. Didn't they say they could wipe us all out if they wanted to?"

"That's all a load of bull," another woman broke in, a puff of smoke billowing out from between her thin lips as they released their grip on a cigarette. "They barely know anything about that new element of theirs. I bet this 'Nex bomb' they're threatening us with doesn't even exist! And even if it does, they haven't done enough research to know if it'd actually work. They're just trying to scare us into submission." Those who had been listening exchanged glances, clearly disagreeing with her. However, heeding the scowl that deepened the wrinkles etched into her face, they bit their tongues.

As the masters lapsed into silence, the only sound was that which the other dogs made once more. Aida shifted her attention back to them, crept a few paces closer, then paused mid-step, still hesitant to partake in their games. She glanced at her master for support, who waved her on as she always did. Gathering her courage, the black-and-tan mutt dropped low to the ground and began stalking a pair of wrestling males in quite a similar fashion to that in which collies stalk sheep: crawling forth, then lying flat for a few seconds before continuing. Doing so came naturally to her, for she had shepherd in her blood.

Before she could get very far, however, a nose poking around her hindquarters startled her out of focus, and she spun about to warn the offender off. Ever since a Chihuahua had bitten her there as a pup, she'd been a bit sensitive about her posterior and did not appreciate surprises. As it turned out, the offender was no more than a pup, who shrank back slightly at Aida's unexpected reaction. Swiftly forgiving the little wire-haired terrier, knowing that she couldn't have known any better, she bent to sniff beneath the younger female's tail, cautiously allowing her to do the same. Once they'd both collected some information and introduced themselves she began poking gentle fun at the pup, Karli. Before long, they were chasing each other all around the edges of the park. As they raced past the picnic table, Aida glimpsed a smile tugging at the corners of her young master's lips as she watched.

It was a lovely afternoon for the dogs and their masters alike. Summer was drawing to a close, and the breeze was gentle and cool. It was a leisurely day, so much so that it was almost surreal. For the residents of the small, out-of-the-way town in which the dog park was situated, it seemed impossible for anything to ruin it. Unfortunately, that was not the case.

It wasn't an abrupt change in atmosphere, but, gradually, everyone clued in that something was wrong. By the time the realization spread to the masters, the dogs had ceased to play, and had begun staring anxiously about them, their ears hugging their skulls. Aida and her new playmate edged back towards their masters with their tails tucked beneath them, then peered apprehensively out from behind their legs. The pair of males Aida had tried to approach earlier were now growling softly, and it looked as if they would snap if anyone got too close. The rest - Pepper and two elderly males - appeared too overwhelmed to react. All eyes were widely rounded, and all hackles stood at attention.

For a minute or two, all was engulfed in heavy silence, and the tenseness sparked almost audibly in the air around them. Then, a discordant melody of whines, barks, yelps, and howls swelled from the throat of every dog. The blood-chilling song came not only from those in the park, but every dog in the town. From nearby houses, panicked canine voices rose, muffled by the walls that separated them from the outside world.

Puzzled and perturbed, the masters went to their pets, struggling to calm them, but their efforts were futile; no matter how they pleaded and shouted, they could not snap them out of their panic. One dog lunged at his master, who cried out in shock and pain as his companion's fangs plunged deep into his forearm. He barely had time to react before it happened.

It struck like an invisible tsunami. The blast itself made no noise, lacking the ear-splitting boom one might have expected. However, the sound of car-crashes, toppling trees, and screaming was more than enough to strike fear into anyone's heart. The wave surged over them, and the dogs' blood-chilling song rose sharply in pitch as they were thrown back, breaking up and dying out as they hit the ground. Conversely, their masters barely made a sound before their bodies became nothing but lifeless ragdolls, hurled gracelessly into the air. The force swept on past them, leaving deathly silence in its wake, which was broken only by the soft, terrified whine of the terrier pup.