The Secret

Chapter 22: ...of The End

It's the beginning of the end. As this dying man tells us that everyone including our loved ones are dead, I realize it's the beginning of the end as I breakdown.

"It's all my fault." I say as my knees fall to the ground and Nelly tries to comfort me.

"It's not the end." She says. "Maybe there is a chance your father is still alive and maybe there is a chance my parents are alive. We can't give up now."

I look up at her, having listened to everything she said, as I realize I need to have hope.

"Thank you." I say. "Let's go."

"Are you crazy?!" The injured man says, not having completely ran off yet. "Did you not hear what I said?! Everyone back there is dead and going there would only get yourselves killed as well!"

Nelly and I look at each other with a worried face as the man abandons us and runs off.

We slowly walk in the direction towards the city, as we are on the outskirts of the city, in my neighborhood.

"What if he's right?" I ask.

"We'll have to find out." Nelly says.

"I suppose so. If we die, we die. I just hope my father is alive." I say.

After saying that, a flashback comes to mind. I'm in the bottom level of a dark parking garage at dawn.

"Where is he?!" I yell at a man who is after the secret. "Where is my father?! You promised if I showed up here alone, with the secret, that you would bring my father."

"I said I would. Future tense." The masked man says. "Give me the secret."

"Alright, fine, but you must give me my father." I say, handing him a small safe.

"What's this?" He asks.

"Inside it is a note with the secret on it." I say. "However, you can't get to it unless I give you the combination to the safe first. There it is, you have the secret. Give me my father and I'll give you the combination."

The masked man thinks for a second until he looks up, nodding. His guards come and grab me, dragging me to their black van.

I immediately start kicking and I kick both guys in the stomach and they let go. But they don't let me go without a fight. One of them holds their stomach, wincing in pain, as the other comes towards me and tries to punch me in the face. I dodge, causing him to get angrier as he puts the other fist up and I block it. He then kicks me in the stomach. Once. Twice. They then grab me and I am too weak to continue. These guys are big.

"What are you doing?!" I yell.

"We're taking you to your father." They say.

"That's not part of the deal! You were supposed to bring him to me! Not me to him!" I shout as they throw me in the back of the van and tie my hands behind my back.

I fall on my face as I hope my father is alive, and I fall unconscious.

In the present, we have arrived in the city and hide behind a building. We see mindless zombies that are supposedly human walking in unison.

"What has Jeremy done?" I whisper.

"He's turning the whole world into his mindless slaves." She says.

"That's what that man must have meant when he said they're all dead." I say. "They're mindless zombies, no longer in control anymore. This is terrible."

We look up and see Jeremy floating above them, flying in a bright white light, which is the earth's energy that had once been the secret.

From behind the building, Nelly and I look and search to see where our loved ones are. I spot Patrick, my friend who didn't betray me and I also spot Rob, who once had tried to kill me for the secret. Nelly looks desperate as she searches for her parents and I return my gaze to the crowd and I spot someone I was hoping wasn't there. Someone I was hoping got away.

Tears are brought to my eyes as I see him and whisper his name, "Dad?!"