The End of The Beginning.
Chapter One.
I was lying on my bed, with a bottle in my hand and pills inside my body. I wondered how much creativity I was destroying with each sip I took, while taking yet another, followed by more pills. I felt the mixture go deeper inside of me, intoxicating me even further, and resting in my stomach.
In the distance I heard someone calling faintly to me, the words hard to distinguish. Finally I began to make out some of it: "Hurry... Coming... Escape!" It is fairly obvious what it is I am hearing, a warning.
I stood up shakily, picking up my worn, tattered old leather jacket, it fit like a glove. I checked for my keys then stumbled out of my room. On my way out I tripped on God only knows what, almost sending myself crashing down the hard wooden stairs. I regained my balance, and made my way towards the front door, stopping on my way to once more look around my dingy home, before leaving for the last time.
It was a dump. It looked like a bomb had hit it, magazines scattered everywhere, left half open on the floor, half-eaten pizza left on the table, couple of empty cans lying on their side next to it, more trash thrown on the disgusting green carpet, not cleaned for so long that it made a sick noise whenever you took a step. Soaked through with bear and coke.
The wallpaper was faded blue, with patches ripped off revealing previously used the yellowey orange wallpaper hidden underneath. Covered up so no one would see.
When I left my house I was astounded by what I saw before me. It was as though the apocalypse has gone by without allowing me the satisfaction of being a captivated audience. I looked around me, the trees are all burnt to a crisp, no leaves, just black sticks coming out of the ground. The houses looked as though they are the victims of a bombing raid, holes in the walls, some missing roofs, doors blown out, and there were bodies lying everywhere. I turned, and was surrounded by decaying, burned black bodies of mostly nameless strangers, some missing limbs, some half-burnt, faces frozen in fear. Or what was left of faces, anyway.
Before I was given the pleasure of fully appriciating all that is around me I heard a sound, similar to an army riding into battle on horse back, or a gang of Hells Angels. Before could even think I started to run, the fire of self-preservation still burning like so many of the people around me.
I looked around me, there was a car with its door open, bad paint job, more faded blue with patches, only this time rust instead of old wallpaper. Another way of showing its age. The driver was still at the wheel, keys still hanging from its hand like a christmas decoration, twinkling and shining. I dragged the body from the seat with one swift heave, and started the engine, heading to no where in particular.
I drove for hours, not knowing or caring about my destination. I just wanted to get away. I had a bottle in my coat, and I drank from it. More likely than not everyone I had everyone I had ever known or loved was dead, I had no reason to try and continue, but I did. To deal with what was around me I kept myself intoxicated. I looked out of the window, everything around me was decaying, burnt, the sky a strange red-brown colour, and the ground turning to desert.
"Everything that was beautiful is gone"... I thought this over and over, realizing that everything beautiful was dying anyway, this just sped up the process.
As far as I could tell I was the only person now alive, so the only reason I had to go on was to try to find others. I realized this was a cliche exercise in futility, as even if anyone else did survive, they were more likely than not someone I would not want to find.
I stopped the car at a gas station, it was wrecked like everywhere else, looking like someone had petrol-bombed it or something. I was tired, and trying to keep myself inebriated while at the same time trying to logically come to terms with what was happening. I had not slept for a long time, and now was not the time to try. I could still hear that horrible noise faintly behind me in the distance, It was obvious that that had something to do with this 'apocalypse', and it seemed as though it was coming for me next.. Let it come, it was not as though I had very much left to do in this dead world anyway.
I got out of the car and began to look around. The people who worked there were dead, burnt to a cinder like the others outside my house. I leaned over and stared at what I finally learned was an old man, it was hard to tell because there wasn't much left of him. I stared at him for a moment. I discovered that I was not disgusted by this site at all, which I already knew, but also I felt absolutely no pity for him.. The only thing I was upset about was that I missed the main event, I wished that I had been able to see and know clearly what had happened.
I picked up what I needed from the gas station; food, drink, gas, alcohol, and headache pills. I climbed back inside the car again, dumping what I had got into the back seat, noticing yet another body as I did this. It was lying in the back seat, also burnt, a scorched look of pure terror in its face, a young woman, maybe trying to hide in here from what had happened, maybe not. I wondered how she had managed to get into this state and the car had stayed in its current condition, which wasn't exactly a great condition, but still far from destroyed. But I didn't have time to think anymore, I simply dragged the body out of the car and left it on the side of the road before starting the car and driving away again. I had to head for somewhere big, like a city, or possibly a secluded area. Possibly there would be survivors in a place out of the way.
I started the engine, and decided to drive until I found a road sign.
I drove for hours, I'd forgotten I was escaping or trying to find survivors, I didn't care, I just wanted to drive until I reached the end of the world. I swallowed a handful of pills, had another shot, all the while trying to maintain control of the car, although only just managing it. So I gave up, parked the car at the roadside, and stopped everything.
What was the point in me trying? Everyone was dead. I looked out of the window at the desert surrounding me, as far as I remember it used to be grass, there were never any actually deserts anywhere near where I lived before all this happened. It was empty, but then again it always was, really.
I didn't want to think, I didn't want to remember any of this, or anything before this, or anything whatsoever. I just wanted to be numb to the world, some sort of robot that could handle everything around me in a logical and practical way.
But how can you logically handle the apocalypse?
You can't, it's what you least expect. Years of hearing people badmouthing religion had made me immune to the very thought of the apocalypse, let alone the possibility of it happening. What should I care? I was just some little shit looking for a simple way out, I didn't want to be sitting here, in the desert, with nothing around me but liquor and pills, knowing that everyone I had ever known and loved was dead.
I started the car, and turned it around.
I had to confront everything head on, I had done enough running to last me a lifetime.
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