Chapter Two: His silence is my own
Dark colored planes started entering PontyPandy's airspace. Sam watched them from the top floor of the fire station. A dark feeling started to grow in his stomach. The horizon soon became filled with bright light. Sam held his arm over his eyes to keep some of the light out. He watched as it engulfed the small town. Sam gasped. He rushed downstairs to try and check on his brother. He felt the ground underneath him shatter. He gripped onto the ledge trying desperately to hold on. "help!" shouted Sam. He continued to cry for help. His voice slowly becoming lost in the incoming destruction.
Sam snapped awake. He sat up all the way on the couch panting. Elvis slowly stirred from his sleep. "Sam? What's wrong?" he asked. "nothing. I just had a nightmare is all." The wind howled rattling the windows. Dark orange mist swirled in front of the yellowed glass. Elvis pulled away from Sam allowing him to sit up all the way. "I want you to stay here with Arnold. I'm going to head out and see if I can't find anyone else. We'll also need extra supplies if we are going to stay here for a long time." Elvis nodded. He clenched the blanket firmly in his hands. Sam headed downstairs. He grabbed his firefighting uniform off the hook. It was lightly covered in dust. He shook the dust off it. He then put it on. He grabbed his helmet off the shelf. He wiped the dust from it before putting it on. He let out a small sigh. His uniform felt foreign to him now. It had been ages since he last put it on. He carefully made his way outside.
Magma welled up from the cracks in the ground. The sky was still covered in a dark orange haze. Sam carefully walked down the hill. He couldn't help but get this sense of dread. He hated the fact that the town was like this now. Sam checked the various houses and buildings. He did manage to find more supplies for them to use. What disturbed him was the lack of living persons in the town. "this is ridiculous." he muttered. "I better head back. I can't leave Arnold and Elvis unprotected for long. Something tells me that I shouldn't linger here any more than I need to." Sam headed back to the fire station. He walked up the stairs and into the lounge. Elvis was sitting on the couch. "How are you feeling Elvis?" he asked. Elvis could only nod. True terror was painted clearly on his face. Sam walked over to Arnold who was reading a book on sign language. "what's up with Elvis? He was talking to us yesterday." Arnold lowered the book he had in his hand. "his condition got worse while you were away. Elvis went outside to stretch his legs when he tripped and fell into one of the holes. When he landed he came across a child corpse. He got scared and well, that's how he went silent." explained Arnold. Sam paled. "were you able to identify the body?" Arnold stayed quiet. He dropped his gaze. "was it, someone, we knew?" Arnold nodded. Sam gritted his teeth. "damn it!" he spat. "I'm so sorry, Sam," whispered Arnold. "I tried everything I could for them. I wasn't able to revive them." Sam sniffed. "not your fault. This whole damn war has turned everything into a mess." Arnold placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm going to go out and make sure they have a proper burial. I'll be back."
Sam sat down on the couch with Elvis. Elvis looked up at his mentor. He shifted uncomfortably. He hated the fact that Sam hadn't said a word to him. He nudged Sam's side gently with his shoulder. Sam snapped out of his thoughts. Elvis tilted his head to the side. "I'm fine, Elvis. Look why don't we try to watch some TV?" he suggested. Elvis shrugged. Sam got up from the couch. He needed something to distract him from the news that he had just heard. The dish on the roof of the fire station still worked surprisingly. The dish was able to pick up on a faint satellite signal. Sam flipped it over to the news. He had to know about what was happening in the rest of the world.
BBC News at 12
The UN plans on meeting today to discuss the effects of nuclear warfare and possible housing for the refugees. War is still flourishing in other parts of the world including out on the open waters which has made fishing unsafe. Health officials have urged citizens to not eat any of the shellfish due to radiation concerns. Health officials have also urged citizens to stay away from infected areas. Officials are worried about the latest strain of infection that has been sweeping the world.
If you see anyone with signs of the infection please contact your local law enforcement.
Sam gulped painfully. The disturbing news was kind of hard to swallow. Elvis shrunk closer to Sam. He buried his face into Sam's side.
People are blaming the war on extreme terrorist groups and Moonblood organizations. Leaders of the Moonblood organizations have stated that they had nothing to do with bombings. They've also agreed to meet with the UN to discuss this matter.
Sam turned the TV off. "the whole world has gone mad." he whispered. He looked down at Elvis. He wrapped an arm around him. "don't worry. We are safe here." Deep down Sam felt a sense of hopelessness growing. By the gods did he was that statement was true. He wanted to give Elvis some sort of hope that things were going to be okay. It troubled him that he wasn't able to do that. In fact, he started to question his own logic. He felt less like a hero now. Arnold soon came back. He dusted the soil off of his clothes. "the deed is done." he took a quick look outside. He noticed that the sky outside had darkened some. "we better get some rest. No sense in being tired."
Arnold got his cot set up near the window. Sam got his set up near the stairs in case anyone tried to break in. Sam listened to the sound of Arnold snoring. He found it hard to really sleep. His body was on edge from the news he had just heard. He pulled the blanket tighter around him. A storm of emotions was growing within him. He couldn't keep the tears back anymore. He allowed himself to shed a few. He felt a set of arms go around his waist. Sam wiped his tears away quickly. He turned over onto his side. Elvis had cuddled up to him. Sam stroked his hair gently. He pulled Elvis close. The two of them slowly drifted off to sleep in each other's arms.
Sam laid on his side in the middle of the street. His whole right side completely screwed up. He slowly started to open his eyes. Fire danced around him. Magma pooled up in the freshly made cracks. Water spouted into the sky creating an orange-colored rainbow. Sam coughed as he tried to sit up. His sides immediately started to hurt him. Bits of glass covered his body. He carefully dusted them off. "hello?" he called. "Hello?! Anyone here?! Charlie?! Sarah?! James?!" all he got was silence. The wind howled swirling the orange mist that hung heavily in the air. Sam staggered out of the house he had been in at the time of the explosion. He nearly fell to his knees when he saw what it was like outside. Houses and buildings had been leveled. Some of them continued to stand like jagged fangs amongst the destruction. His foot stumbled across something soft. He looked down only to fall over backwards. The bodies of his family members laid in front of him.
Sam panted sitting upright. He held his face in his hands as he tried to shake off the dream he had just witnessed. He tried to deny what he saw. "they have to be safe." he whispered. "they have to be." He covered Elvis up in the blanket. He decided to sit on the steps and keep guard. There was no way that he was going to go back to sleep anytime soon.
