Explosion
No one had ever told him how silent it was.
Explosions were supposed to be loud- a loaded gunshot cracking through the air, a raging fireball careening into the ground. Big, bold, earth-shattering.
He hadn't expected the utter silence.
Time stretched on in front of him as the power core was overloaded- taking out everything within a hundred feet- maybe even more.
He wouldn't know, wouldn't be around for the full impact. He couldn't be more than 5 feet away from it.
In his peripherals, he could see his brothers, as if frozen in time. Brave and defiant, facing death head on. Steadfast and awed, hands shaking for what they had just done. Frightened but determined, eyes glued to the explosion.
They should have stayed on the ground. They shouldn't have come. This mission was suicide from the start.
This was a mistake.
And without warning, the long, stretched-out moment in time suddenly snapped.
As if the world hit "play", he felt the rush of heat burn his skin, the light of a thousand suns- white hot, reflecting off every surface.
The heat sucked the air from the room, scorching his lungs, the light so bright he could no longer see.
Then there was nothing.
Nothing but silence.
A/N: 2003 Exodus