Well, I plan on this being the last (and longest) story I type about 2p Italy... maybe, I might decide to write some more (if I get enough people liking this one and the other two) but I'm not sure. Please, review it and tell me what you think. This is kind of a bit of a rough draft so I will be going back and making changes so if you like it enough, favorite and follow please and thank you. Hope you enjoy.
The golden dawn kissed the broken earth, casting shadows upon the ground. A gentle sun rose into the sky like a mighty giant. All across the land, ruins lay scattered from a relentless war. Buildings were reduced to rubble, and bodies peppered the ground. The smell of burnt soil and skin hung in the air like fog. All was silent, except for few lucky survivors walking in between the carcasses, looking for signs of life.
"Another dead one over here." An old farmer called out. With the help of his sons, he moved the body into a freshly dug hole. Person after person, they began to clean the field. It seemed as if they were getting nowhere. As soon as one body was buried, another one was found. They cleaned for days, getting seemingly nowhere. The land that was once a town was now dust. Rock, wood, metal, and glass littered the ground. Everything was burnt to a crispy black color.
"Father, one of them is alive!" One of the sons yelled. Everyone ran over to check on the poor man. His back was moving up and down slowly. The farmer turned him over, and almost fainted at the sight. Where his stomach used to be, was nothing but a hole, filled with maggots other insects. The family ran from the sight. The old farmer sprinted to the nearest tree and vomited. The stench arose from the body and filled the air. The family quarantined it and stayed as far away as possible.
For almost a week they continued to clean and search. They looked over the bodies for any supplies that could be of use. Watches, shoes, and anything else that could be salvaged. At the end of each work day, the family would regroup and eat from cans that lay scattered across the area. The next day, they awoke with the sun and continued to clean. This was no way to live, but eventually, they could clean up the field and use some of it for growing crops. The old farmer was still unwilling to part with the land. He kept hope that they would find a way to survive.
On the first day of the second week, they found a stray dog. Its ribs were showing through its fur. A horrible smell followed the mutt. There was patches of blood around his mouth where he had been feeding on the bodies. The poor creature was sick and dying. The family grabbed an old log from a pile. With a swift swing, they put the animal out of its misery. The search continued in complete silence. Hundreds of bodies were carried to piles and burned, others were buried.
That afternoon, they had tall fires raging in different spots. The flames licked the flesh from the bones, then, turned them black. The family could do nothing but watch as the people they once knew were reduced to ashes that floated with the wind. Smoke filled the air, choking the family with the stench of death. They had to abandon their own fires in order to keep breathing. A few of the boys watched from a distance to make sure the fire wasn't out of hand, but even then, would it matter? There was nothing for it to burn anymore. Buildings were completely destroyed. there was nothing left to catch on fire.
By the fourth day of the second week, the family was running out of places to put the dead. There were still thousands of bodies involved in the massacre, and nowhere to put them. The family noticed the bodies were starting to bloat and turn purple. Vultures swarmed the area, enjoying a feast upon the flesh. Pests filled the field, doing what mother nature intended them to do. It got to the point that the family could no longer move the bodies. They would just fall apart at the touch. They gave up cleaning. Nature would do its course and destroy the decay.
There was no more supplies left. The family had began to fight over resources like food and water. They lived like animals now. Their world had been destroyed. No matter how badly they wanted it, their old lives would never return. They were no longer Italian citizens anymore. They were just a few homeless beggers. looking for their next meal. One of the sons saw this, and couldn't live with that fact. In the middle of the night while everyone else was asleep, he grabbed a sharp piece of glass and cut open his wrists. He allowed himself to bleed out as he lay in one of the body holes, waiting to be buried in the morning.
At the end of the second week, the rest of the family decided to move on. There was nothing left for them there anymore. Their house was destroyed, forcing them to sleep under the cover of stars. They had already buried or burned all of their friends and family, or at least, as many as they could before the rotting set in. They would stay one more day to gather supplies, then they planned to journey to the north, where hopefully they would find refuge. However, most of them believed that they were the only ones left. All other human life had been wiped out. They could search around the globe, and not one person would be left standing. They were truly alone.
Early in the morning, all of them spread out across the obliterated town on one last supplies run. The old man's niece walked around, trying not to look at the faces of the dead. As she walked, she muttered a prayer under her breath. Pieces of glass crunched underneath her torn shoes. Her body was covered in sores from the bombings. She was lucky to be alive. Just before the final bomb hit, she ran from her house. She had just enough time to arrive at her grandfathers house before the bomb went off. It was just them now. She didn't have any parents, or siblings. Everyone was gone.
"O God, you have bound us together in a common life. Help us, in the midst of our struggles for justice and truth, to confront one another without hatred or bitterness, and to work together with mutual forbearance and respect; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen" She mumbled under her breath. More glass crunched beneath her foot as she took small steps. She walked through the maze of collapsed buildings. It wasn't long before she began to let her mind wonder. Her mind wasn't keeping track of where her feet were, and eventually, she made it near the bombing site.
"Dear lord... O God... Our father in heaven..." The young woman began. She sighed and sat down on a rock that had survived. "Do you even exist?" She looked up at the sky. A few fluffy clouds hung over her head, and behind them was a vast blue sheet. The sun was shinning brightly, causing the clouds to glow. "O-Of course you do. For who could create such beauty?" She whispered. Eventually, she rested her head in her hands. "Then again, what kind of God would force us to live like this... like rats in a sewer." She kicked a pebble. It rolled and found its way to a body near her.
It only took her a moment to recognize the outfit. It was a military uniform. She recognized the black shirt. He was part of the Italian army before it wasted away. If he was in the military, then that meant he had supplies. Her head shot up and looked around her surroundings. They were close to where the bombs were first dropped. She didn't have much time left before she started to feel the effects of the radiation. Quickly, she ducked down and ran over to the body, turning it over. Her hands ran over his coat, looking for pockets. She found a knife, a water canteen, some matches, and a picture. She stared down at the face. It was him while he was alive. He had light brown hair and eyes that matched. He looked like he was happy during his life.
Slowly, she started to say a prayer over the body. She began to gather broken pieces of wood for a fire. After a few minutes, she had him surrounded by the logs. Something still didn't seem right though. She wandered around, looking for the last pieces. It was as if she couldn't do it without some sort of flower wit him. She had to show respect. Eventually, she had to settle with using his knife to carve a flower into one of the logs. He wouldn't be needing the matches anymore. She lit one and finished her prayer. Gently, she put the picture on his chest and folded his hands over it. He looked peaceful in death. The woman hoped that his soul had found its way to heaven. She struck the match and looked up at the sky.
"And may the lord watch over you and guide you into his light. In Jesus name, Amen." She finished. Just as she was about to light the match, a few logs fell. "Darn it." She said softly. When she went to put the logs on the pile, the wind began to pick up, blowing out the match. The picture was almost blown from the body. The woman looked up at the sky. The fluffy, glowing clouds had turned sinister and dark. Lightning cracked across the sky, followed by the boom of thunder. She quickly gathered the items from her gathering, but noticed something strange.
She looked down at the man slowly. His chest was moving. Pink was filling in his cheeks, and slowly, that pink turned into a dark tan. His hair began to darken quickly, to a dark brown with a red tint. The woman cowered back against the rock she once sat on. A look of terror was glued to her face. Life was beginning to fill the dead body. The wind howled around them, swirling the dust around in clouds. Just when the woman was about to run, she heard something.
The man let out a slight groan. His head rocked back and forth, trying to wake up. He gave a loud gasp, as if trying to find air. Once it filled his lungs, he was breathing like any normal person. His eyes were twitching, not open yet. The woman stumbled over to him and looked down at were only a few differences and they were slight, but they were there. He had changed. This wasn't the same person that was just laying before her. He was alive, and a new human being.
"H-Hello?" the woman squeaked out. His head rolled towards her, facing her, but his eyes still refused to open. She saw his mouth open slightly. Quickly, she poured a bit of water from the canteen in his mouth. Water ran down his cheeks as he gulped it down. He panted as the canteen was removed from his mouth. Miraculously, his body began to move, starting with his feet and working its way up. The woman hunched over him eagerly.
The man opened up his eyes a crack. His vision was blurry, but there was a woman next to him. He blinked a few times before he fully opened his eyes. The woman's face went pale the moment she saw his eyes. She let out a loud shriek of fear and ran away from him. He sat up quickly, a little too quickly though. His head began to spin. His eyes wondered to where he saw the woman run to. There was a blurred image of her hiding behind the rock. She was shaking as she clung to the rough surface.
"L-Lucifer walks the earth." She muttered to herself. The man looked at her curiously and confused. He tried to stand up, but his legs were weak. There was a strange tingly feeling in them. Blood was still trying to find its way through the body. He began to stretch the parts of his body that he could feel, and eventually, he was able to sit up. His arm reached out towards her. He needed help. He couldn't stand up on his own. The closer he got to her, the more violently she began to shake.
"Back demon. Go back to the hell that you crawled out of. I shall not let the soul of the unholy one taint me!" She cried out. He winced a bit and rubbed his ears. They were so sensitive to even the smallest sound. "Crawl back to hell Lucifer. I am a child of God, and nothing shall change that." She exclaimed. Quickly, she began to pray loudly. He raised an eyebrow. The tingly feeling finally left his legs, so he stood up and walked over to her. His legs were like jelly still, but at least he could walk.
"What... are... you... doing?" He asked. His speech was slow, and hard to understand. His mouth was still a bit fuzzy on most things, but at least it was working at all. The woman screamed again. This time, her family heard it. The old farmer and his family came running to her aid. The moment they saw the young man standing in the field, completely unharmed, they dropped their make-shift weapons. All of their mouths hung open as their eyes rested on the miracle boy who survived the bombs.
"My boy, you survived the blast? But how? It happened just a few streets over from here?" The old farmer took a step closer to the new man. The woman ran towards her uncle and grabbed his shirt. He looked down at her and gently pat her back. His grip was firm and protective, but still gentle enough to be calming. "What has gotten into you, my dear?" He asked quietly, now petting the back of her head. Her voice and body were shaking. She was having a hard time getting the words to come out of her mouth.
"H-He didn't survive the blast. Grandfather, we must pray for our souls. Demons walk the earth." She cried out. Everyone had their eyes on her. "I saw him. He was as dead as the others, but as soon as the storm started, he came to life like a monster from a nightmare!" Tears filled her eyes as she spoke. Her cousins ran over to him and held him down. The poor young man stat under a pile of living people, scared and confused. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine that he was somewhere else. The only problem was, he had never seen anywhere else. This was the world he was born into.
"Boy, is this true?" The old man limped over to him and looked him over. There wasn't a single scratch on his body. He wasn't skin and bones like everyone else. He looked like he had never missed a meal in his life. His body was covered in muscle, and not a single rib was showing through. There was a bit of dirt on his face, but other than that, he was clean. He was impossible. There was no way he could be alive, yet there he was, standing before them.
"I... don't... know." He whispered. The old man lifted his head and tried to get a good look at him. His sons stood him up on his feet and held him firmly in place. Slowly, the young man opened his eyes and looked at the man. All at once, the people screamed. The loud noise made the man wince and close his eyes again. What was wrong with him? Whenever he opened his eyes, people ran in terror from him. He opened them again and could see around him. Quickly, one of the sons put his hands over them. The young man was surrounded by darkness. When the woman screamed again, he quickly closed his eyes like a turtle retreating into it's shell.
"You really are a demon." The old man said in a hushed voice. A few of his sons rang in with their input. "Lucifer has come for our souls." "May the lord have mercy on us." "God protect us from sin." Some of them mumbled out. Others began to pray. The young man opened his eyes again slowly and looked at all of them again. He could feel his mouth now. He could feel his tongue, his teeth, his lips. He slowly stretched his jaw out and made a few humming noises to get used to the sound of speech.
"Please, just listen to me." He said softly. All at once, the people started to yell at him. The young woman held up a cross, the boys all had their heads bowed in prayer. One of them even through a bottle at the young man. It barely missed his head by a few centimeters. The new young man cowered away from them. He didn't know what he did wrong to these people, but whatever it was, it must have been something big. Even if it was him who wronged them, how could he remember. He just woke up there. He didn't know who he was, where he was, what day it was, and why he was there. He was just as lost and confused as they were, perhaps more so.
"I don't know what you are talking about. I am not a demon. My name is not Lucifer. I am not the devil." He said quietly. The old man shook his head and held up a small piece of reflective metal. Silence hung in the air once again. The family was tensed up as they looked at the stranger. He looked at each of them carefully Finally, the young man stared at his reflection. Dark reddish brown hair, tan skin, one odd curl sticking out from the side of his head, and then he saw what the were seeing. His eyes were glowing bright magenta.
