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Description
World's End

Brandon Holliday

The room was silent. The darkness was soft but shrouded everything, casting a twilight gloom upon the modern blue furniture set, a couch, loveseat, and chair, all aligned along two walls of the living room. The white silk curtains covering the bay window veiled the pale light of the moon and stars outside. Everything seemed peaceful, serene.
A glance outside told a much deeper story.
The houses across the street were partially destroyed, some still smoking; the last traces of a destructive group of people as they had passed by not long ago. The sky held a distinctive red tint, the only remainder of the 24-hour-long meteor shower that had streaked across the heavens just two days earlier.
The bodies of two young men lay at the open front door, one with a missing eye and the other with only one arm, as well as a hole through his chest. Blood still leaked from their wounds, with the exception of the stub which had previously been an arm, and the bodies were still warm. The grass of the front yard near their bodies was churned and disturbed, as if someone had torn it up.
Two more people were there as well, sitting on the couch across from the door. The boy, not older than 21, leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, looking at the floor. A sleek black sword, designed for ornimental purposes but used as a weapon, lie at his feet. He wore blue jeans and a dark grey T-shirt, and his red facial hair had become scruffy in the weeks since he last shaved. His hair was short and red with a tint of blonde. He wasn't very muscular, but he was lean and toned, a side effect of his new-found abilities. The woman next to him, obviously older, was staring blankly out the window. She looked to be in her early thirties but was in actuality about 40 years old. The recent weeks had taken their toll on her, as her face was worn and looked weary. Dark circles surrounded her eyes and her medium-length brown hair was dishevelled. She wore a pair of black pants with a red sweater that was clearly too big for her, and a dark blue teddy-bear housecoat overtop of her clothes. A plant hanging from the ceiling by them was thriving, and seemed to be leaning towards her as if reaching for her with outstretched limbs. Its vibrant healthy green hue was a stark contrast to the dark and bland surroundings.
Bo remembered the day it had happened, replaying it over and over in his head. It would never leave him.
It had all started two weeks ago, early in the summer months. People had started to act weird, not themselves. Hallucinations and paranoia became commonplace. Three days in, and the people affected by the unexplainable conditions started to die. There was no warning...they just dropped dead. Some would fall ill first, but they would eventually meet the same fate. And it was happening all over the world. Every television station, every radio broadcast, even most internet sites flared with activity on the topic, covering nothing else. People had panicked. They wanted to know what was happening, how it could be stopped, or at least how to survive it. "Ebon Death" was the name the media gave it, in referance to the Black Death epidemic of Europe's history.
Doctors found it impossible to tell what it was that was causing these random deaths. The victims were people of all races, all genders, all ages. After only a week, hundreds of millions of people had died worldwide. That number grew into the billions. Power grids failed, no longer having the man power to maintain them, and riots began to break out. Bo remembered those quite vividly, for Calgary had been just the same as any other city in Alberta, or any other city in the world for that matter. Its size only made the riots worse, since there were three times as many people here as in most other cities in Canada. He and his mother, Candice, had been fortunate enough that their home hadn't been assailed. Unfortunately, however, the Ebon Death had claimed the life of Bo's little sister. His brother had been in British Columbia at the time so they didn't know what had happened to him, but Bo was not so naive as to think his fate had been any different. He remembered having to stop his mother from commiting suicide when it happened, and she had remained distant and silent ever since. He guessed she had snapped, and now her mind simply didn't work the same.
It wasn't until later that the scientists had theorized a connection between the approaching meteor shower and the Ebon Death. The meteors would not hit the Earth, but they would pass by so closely the very weather was affected by it. And as the meteors grew closer, what remained of the planet's population started to exhibit strange abilities, like those found in comic books. They were all different; where some people discovered they could move in the blink of an eye, others found out they could fly or move through solid objects. Some of these people went mad, others tried to hide their abilities. But most used their newfound power to fight, kill, destroy, and pillage in some struggle for power or dominance. After all, with most people dead, a society that had collapsed, and no government in sight, there was almost no one to stop them. Humanity, in the span of two weeks, had become a species of animalistic hordes of murderous survivalists. Bo had remained at home the entire time, staying by Candice's side in case she decided to do something they would both regret, and to protect their home from looters.
Of course he wondered what had become of his friends and other family members, but until things settled down he wasn't going to leave.
And so it came to this; the red skies, the shattered buildings, the abandoned streets, and the two dead bodies at the front door. The bodies of the firestarters, the two who had chosen the wrong street to go down, and the wrong house to plunder. The bodies of the freaks who could create and control streams of flame. And Bo, and his mother, were essentially the same as those two.
He had discovered his own abilities two days ago, or rather had become aware of them. At the time the meteors were still flying overhead, so brightly night ceased to exist and so closely the pavement became warm to the touch. The first thing he had noticed was some sort of change in his mind, like a locked door had suddenly been flung open and he had only to walk through it and discover its secrets. Some sort of change had occured within him, and deep down he knew exactly what it was, and how to use it. But somehow he couldn't quite grasp it, like a word on the tip of the tongue, or a memory he could only vaguely recall.
Then he had noticed a change to his body. The change wasn't visible physically but he felt it and knew it. His muscles were more taut, and his reaction time had considerably increased. He was quicker, more balanced, and had near-perfect agility. He had only just discovered his other ability mere minutes ago, and it admittedly confused him to some degree.
His head moved up and he glanced at the bodies heaped ten feet ahead. Before, when they had been people, live and well, he had done something to their heads. One of them had cried out, and Bo remembered something within him snapping apart, like a padlock breaking open. He had made some sort of movement with his hand as the man shouted at him and could literally feel the waves of sound passing through the air before his moving hand, vibrating the hairs on his arm. Without even thinking he had redirected the sound of the man's shout right into their heads. But more than that, he had somehow enhanced the sound, made it louder, more violent, because both of the men had immediately withdrawn and clutched at their ears in pain. And with that little bit of experimentation the door blocking part of his mind flung open completely, engulfing him in the blinding white light of his potential.
After that, he had learned of Candice's ability. Before he could even move against the firebenders, Candice had moved forward and thrown up her hands. Before Bo's eyes, and behind the two young men, the front yard had erupted with growing plants and trees. The minute forest of greenery had impailed the two men, one through the back of the head and through his eye, and the other through the chest, and then just as quickly the plants had shrunk back into the ground as Candice shrank back onto the couch.
So, Bo knew, they were both freaks. And, he guessed, almost everyone who had survived the Ebon Death had done so only because they had evolved, they had been the only ones able to develop the new abilities.
After an hour of contemplation Bo finally moved. He walked slowly to the bodies and shoved them outside with his feet and hands. All of the sickness at seeing death and carnage had long ago left him, and now he was as numb to death as perhaps Death itself. He closed the door and leaned against the wall beside it. He knew they could not go on living like this. The meteors were past, and no more people were dying. At least not from the Ebon Death. Calgary, and indeed most of Canada, seemed mostly empty. Better, Bo thought, than the turmoil that had preceded it. And he knew that now was the time to act. This situation had to end, and finding more survivors was the key to that achievement.
He turned to his mother, a spark of resolve in his mostly-lifeless gaze. Hope was not lost yet. He was going to leave. He was going to see first hand what had happened to the Earth while they had stayed hidden safely away in the darkness.

Description
World's End

Brandon Holliday

The room was silent. The darkness was soft but shrouded everything, casting a twilight gloom upon the modern blue furniture set, a couch, loveseat, and chair, all aligned along two walls of the living room. The white silk curtains covering the bay window veiled the pale light of the moon and stars outside. Everything seemed peaceful, serene.
A glance outside told a much deeper story.
The houses across the street were partially destroyed, some still smoking; the last traces of a destructive group of people as they had passed by not long ago. The sky held a distinctive red tint, the only remainder of the 24-hour-long meteor shower that had streaked across the heavens just two days earlier.
The bodies of two young men lay at the open front door, one with a missing eye and the other with only one arm, as well as a hole through his chest. Blood still leaked from their wounds, with the exception of the stub which had previously been an arm, and the bodies were still warm. The grass of the front yard near their bodies was churned and disturbed, as if someone had torn it up.
Two more people were there as well, sitting on the couch across from the door. The boy, not older than 21, leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, looking at the floor. A sleek black sword, designed for ornimental purposes but used as a weapon, lie at his feet. He wore blue jeans and a dark grey T-shirt, and his red facial hair had become scruffy in the weeks since he last shaved. His hair was short and red with a tint of blonde. He wasn't very muscular, but he was lean and toned, a side effect of his new-found abilities. The woman next to him, obviously older, was staring blankly out the window. She looked to be in her early thirties but was in actuality about 40 years old. The recent weeks had taken their toll on her, as her face was worn and looked weary. Dark circles surrounded her eyes and her medium-length brown hair was dishevelled. She wore a pair of black pants with a red sweater that was clearly too big for her, and a dark blue teddy-bear housecoat overtop of her clothes. A plant hanging from the ceiling by them was thriving, and seemed to be leaning towards her as if reaching for her with outstretched limbs. Its vibrant healthy green hue was a stark contrast to the dark and bland surroundings.
Bo remembered the day it had happened, replaying it over and over in his head. It would never leave him.
It had all started two weeks ago, early in the summer months. People had started to act weird, not themselves. Hallucinations and paranoia became commonplace. Three days in, and the people affected by the unexplainable conditions started to die. There was no warning...they just dropped dead. Some would fall ill first, but they would eventually meet the same fate. And it was happening all over the world. Every television station, every radio broadcast, even most internet sites flared with activity on the topic, covering nothing else. People had panicked. They wanted to know what was happening, how it could be stopped, or at least how to survive it. "Ebon Death" was the name the media gave it, in referance to the Black Death epidemic of Europe's history.
Doctors found it impossible to tell what it was that was causing these random deaths. The victims were people of all races, all genders, all ages. After only a week, hundreds of millions of people had died worldwide. That number grew into the billions. Power grids failed, no longer having the man power to maintain them, and riots began to break out. Bo remembered those quite vividly, for Calgary had been just the same as any other city in Alberta, or any other city in the world for that matter. Its size only made the riots worse, since there were three times as many people here as in most other cities in Canada. He and his mother, Candice, had been fortunate enough that their home hadn't been assailed. Unfortunately, however, the Ebon Death had claimed the life of Bo's little sister. His brother had been in British Columbia at the time so they didn't know what had happened to him, but Bo was not so naive as to think his fate had been any different. He remembered having to stop his mother from commiting suicide when it happened, and she had remained distant and silent ever since. He guessed she had snapped, and now her mind simply didn't work the same.
It wasn't until later that the scientists had theorized a connection between the approaching meteor shower and the Ebon Death. The meteors would not hit the Earth, but they would pass by so closely the very weather was affected by it. And as the meteors grew closer, what remained of the planet's population started to exhibit strange abilities, like those found in comic books. They were all different; where some people discovered they could move in the blink of an eye, others found out they could fly or move through solid objects. Some of these people went mad, others tried to hide their abilities. But most used their newfound power to fight, kill, destroy, and pillage in some struggle for power or dominance. After all, with most people dead, a society that had collapsed, and no government in sight, there was almost no one to stop them. Humanity, in the span of two weeks, had become a species of animalistic hordes of murderous survivalists. Bo had remained at home the entire time, staying by Candice's side in case she decided to do something they would both regret, and to protect their home from looters.
Of course he wondered what had become of his friends and other family members, but until things settled down he wasn't going to leave.
And so it came to this; the red skies, the shattered buildings, the abandoned streets, and the two dead bodies at the front door. The bodies of the firestarters, the two who had chosen the wrong street to go down, and the wrong house to plunder. The bodies of the freaks who could create and control streams of flame. And Bo, and his mother, were essentially the same as those two.
He had discovered his own abilities two days ago, or rather had become aware of them. At the time the meteors were still flying overhead, so brightly night ceased to exist and so closely the pavement became warm to the touch. The first thing he had noticed was some sort of change in his mind, like a locked door had suddenly been flung open and he had only to walk through it and discover its secrets. Some sort of change had occured within him, and deep down he knew exactly what it was, and how to use it. But somehow he couldn't quite grasp it, like a word on the tip of the tongue, or a memory he could only vaguely recall.
Then he had noticed a change to his body. The change wasn't visible physically but he felt it and knew it. His muscles were more taut, and his reaction time had considerably increased. He was quicker, more balanced, and had near-perfect agility. He had only just discovered his other ability mere minutes ago, and it admittedly confused him to some degree.
His head moved up and he glanced at the bodies heaped ten feet ahead. Before, when they had been people, live and well, he had done something to their heads. One of them had cried out, and Bo remembered something within him snapping apart, like a padlock breaking open. He had made some sort of movement with his hand as the man shouted at him and could literally feel the waves of sound passing through the air before his moving hand, vibrating the hairs on his arm. Without even thinking he had redirected the sound of the man's shout right into their heads. But more than that, he had somehow enhanced the sound, made it louder, more violent, because both of the men had immediately withdrawn and clutched at their ears in pain. And with that little bit of experimentation the door blocking part of his mind flung open completely, engulfing him in the blinding white light of his potential.
After that, he had learned of Candice's ability. Before he could even move against the firebenders, Candice had moved forward and thrown up her hands. Before Bo's eyes, and behind the two young men, the front yard had erupted with growing plants and trees. The minute forest of greenery had impailed the two men, one through the back of the head and through his eye, and the other through the chest, and then just as quickly the plants had shrunk back into the ground as Candice shrank back onto the couch.
So, Bo knew, they were both freaks. And, he guessed, almost everyone who had survived the Ebon Death had done so only because they had evolved, they had been the only ones able to develop the new abilities.
After an hour of contemplation Bo finally moved. He walked slowly to the bodies and shoved them outside with his feet and hands. All of the sickness at seeing death and carnage had long ago left him, and now he was as numb to death as perhaps Death itself. He closed the door and leaned against the wall beside it. He knew they could not go on living like this. The meteors were past, and no more people were dying. At least not from the Ebon Death. Calgary, and indeed most of Canada, seemed mostly empty. Better, Bo thought, than the turmoil that had preceded it. And he knew that now was the time to act. This situation had to end, and finding more survivors was the key to that achievement.
He turned to his mother, a spark of resolve in his mostly-lifeless gaze. Hope was not lost yet. He was going to leave. He was going to see first hand what had happened to the Earth while they had stayed hidden safely away in the darkness.