There was not a sound in the suburbs. The night was still and dark. A hushed and quiet calmness presided all around as the melodious and soothing sound of an orchestra of crickets harmonized and filled the air. Pure bliss to the half-asleep boy genius laying on his bed. He smiled to himself as he basked in his euphoric revelry of nature which he so often studied under a microscope. But it wasn't just the constant chirping of crickets that made him so giddy. He had just got his first real job as a clerk in a local pharmacy. Sure, the hours were long and the pay was modest, but it was an income nonetheless. He suddenly gained a step of independence he had sought since he started attending the University.

At first his plans had been more ambitious. He wanted to rent his own apartment near the campus where he was attending and own his own car. Just about as gun-ho as any kid who gets out high-school is. But because of the set-backs in the economy those plans were quickly put into perspective as the price of housing sky-rocketed. Still he was not discouraged. He knew that all things must past, and this was no exception. So as for now, he thought about the future as he lay quite snugly in his room he had occupied since he was five.

He felt his eye-lids get heavy and the darkness began to creep around the outer-rim of his vision. But suddenly, he was startled awake. In the distance the menacing sound of airplane motors radiated through the sky. He was suddenly filled with a dazed since of worry. He had heard planes go over head before, but not in the volume or magnitude that he heard now. He opened his eyes and cautiously went to the window to investigate the sound. Overhead the roar of the motors became intensely loud. The black sky obscured their appearance, and only by the noise could he disseminate where they were. He made a rough estimate that about 10-20 planes flying towards the east. "What could they be?" he asked aloud, half expecting some answer to be given. As the noise became louder, a knot formed in his stomach. In the back of the mind he raced with fear, but he kept his composure as he peered outside and listened to the air-planes. Soon they were the closest they had been. The wind could be heard buzzing off the propellers. Then, just as it had started, it became fainter, fainter, until the planes vanished into the night where they had come from. "Strange..." he remarked as he set himself down and breathed a sigh of relief. "You get to frightened," he scorned himself, "you do the same thing with lightning storms. You always expect the worse." He said these words to scorn himself, but secretly it was to reassure himself as his hands were still trembling from anxiousness.

He climbed back in his bed and began to try to consul his mind enough that he could go to bed. He had a test tomorrow, and it was important that he not miss it. How much he loathed that class sometimes. The teacher was so sporadic. A little here, a little there, and then piles on the homework. He hated not knowing what was coming or going as the teacher often changed her assignments around and butchered his scheduled agenda which he kept in such good order. At one point he erased so much the page tore. "Stupid old fuddy...duddy..." he loathed as he gave out a rather large yawn. Then, he heard the buzz again. It had returned. This time his heart was quite at ease. "Returning so soon?" he asked half-jokingly. Only this time, it wasn't the huge armada. It was just a faint distorted whistle of sorts. He listened a moment at the strange buzz that from the confines of his room resembled the buzz from a hearing test. Gradually the buzz became higher pitched. Higher, higher, until it became a faint whistle. Then the whistle started descending and started to get louder. Edd sprang from his bed now scuttling over to the window yet again. Suddenly the whistle became a siren than rang a terrifying alarm. From out of seemingly nowhere, the siren became deafening loud as it descended upon Edd who now ducked for cover. Before the siren could reached it's climax however, there was a thunderous explosion. Dust and debris filled the air all around the neighborhood as it let out a deafening "bang!" followed by the hollow cracking of tree bark and limbs.

As the dust cleared, Edd made his way through the haze that now covered his entire house. He stumbled down the staircase, frantically trying to make his way to the front door. He delicately grasped the oaken railing as he had so many times before and turned immediately left into the hall-way leading to the front door. He felt a panic suddenly sweep over him, as he bolted to the door, keeping his ear keenly focused on hearing another whistle. Then he heard his mother's voice calling from within his parent's bedroom. "Eddward!" she yelled as she went into a coughing fit because, "Eddward!" she cried out again, her voice now very hoarse.

"I'm right here mother! I am going outside!"

"Don't you dare leave this house young man or you're grounded!"

The threat was ignored as he opened the front door and walked into cul-de-sac. There a host of other citizens were making their ways through the now dispersing dust. Then he heard the voice of his long time associate pierce the silence, "What the hell just happened?" Out of the dust came the lowly and squatted figure of Eddy. His eyes were squinting and he was thoroughly vexed by the confusion of the situation.

"Eddy!" Double-D called.

He heard the voice through the shadows and began to make his way towards it. "Double-D?"

"They finally came into each others view as most of the dust was now gone revealing a huge crater the circumference of about 50 feet and the depth of about 2 feet peering up from the middle of the cul-de-sac. Beneath it was the smoldering ruins sewer line which had ruptured but what seemed to be an explosion, causing a foul stench to permeate the air.

"Jesus!" Eddy exclaimed. "What the hell is happening?"

"Hell if I should know." Eddward retorted. Beginning is junior high they had grown more lenient with the amount of cussing they did around each other.

Suddenly the whistling returned. Double-D didn't think, he was being driven on pure adrenaline. He lunged on Eddy screaming, "Hit the Deck!" Another explosion detonated with another ferocious "Bang!" and filled the air with debris yet again. Only this time, it was much more extensive. When Double-D looked up from the ground towards his dwelling he only saw the silhouette of what appeared to be his house. But as the dust rolled away, he realized, it wasn't there. As it dawned on him, the only words he could utter was, "Mom...Dad..."