Where is everyone?
I raced down the hallway toward the gym. The powerful hum had lessened, but it was still so loud I could hardly focus. I wiped a trickle of blood from below one ear. A whistling sound echoed deep inside my head. Did my eardrum burst?
A muffled scream yanked my attention toward the front of the school. At least I thought it was a scream. With the vibrations threatening to rattle the flesh off my bones, I couldn’t be sure.
Heart pounding in rhythm with the hum, I came to a halt, trying to decide what to do. Shelter in place. Hide until the police come. That was our school policy. It had been drilled into us every time another nut with a gun made the headlines somewhere. But where is everyone hiding?
I looked for an open door. The floor shook beneath me. I knew I should hide, but my feet kept moving toward the empty foyer. Soon I found myself running. I had to find someone, anyone. Maybe they’re outside.
Slowing to a trot, I held my breath, listening. The hum had been replaced by something else, something worse.
Not one scream, but many.
I stopped in front of the cracked glass entrance doors.
My mouth fell open in disbelief.
The sky appeared as tattered as a paper snowflake. “The fabric between our
dimensions is shredding—” Dr. D’s words echoed in my head as I stared through the window. Many of the sky holes were little more than slits. Others were huge, ragged,
I raced down the hallway toward the gym. The powerful hum had lessened, but it was still so loud I could hardly focus. I wiped a trickle of blood from below one ear. A whistling sound echoed deep inside my head. Did my eardrum burst?
A muffled scream yanked my attention toward the front of the school. At least I thought it was a scream. With the vibrations threatening to rattle the flesh off my bones, I couldn’t be sure.
Heart pounding in rhythm with the hum, I came to a halt, trying to decide what to do. Shelter in place. Hide until the police come. That was our school policy. It had been drilled into us every time another nut with a gun made the headlines somewhere. But where is everyone hiding?
I looked for an open door. The floor shook beneath me. I knew I should hide, but my feet kept moving toward the empty foyer. Soon I found myself running. I had to find someone, anyone. Maybe they’re outside.
Slowing to a trot, I held my breath, listening. The hum had been replaced by something else, something worse.
Not one scream, but many.
I stopped in front of the cracked glass entrance doors.
My mouth fell open in disbelief.
The sky appeared as tattered as a paper snowflake. “The fabric between our
dimensions is shredding—” Dr. D’s words echoed in my head as I stared through the window. Many of the sky holes were little more than slits. Others were huge, ragged,
gaping. Through each opening elongated globules of matter oozed down like strings of
cloudy rain. The matter fell harder and faster until the ground was covered with slick,
writhing puddles. From those puddles strange humanoid creatures arose, hissing. When
they left their pools of muck, the sound was like a thousand leeches being pulled from
wet skin.
As they emerged from the glassy soup, the area was flooded with watery-gray, garnet-eyed creatures. Everything in sight dripped; even their black-slashed mouths and jagged silver teeth oozed with slime.
Dr. D was right. I had to get underground. Back to the basement!
I wanted to run, but my feet felt glued to the floor. The syrupy downpour coated power lines and broke branches from the sycamores as surely as if they’d been covered with ice. I saw people crumpled on the pavement, dead. Others hung from stalled car windows, moaning. As I watched, one of the gray creatures picked up a man and dragged him, screaming, across the street.
As quietly as possible, I backed away, determined not to attract attention. I wanted to turn and run, but I was terrified, afraid to turn my back on the huge, naked creatures that were now headed toward the school. The sound of their bare feet sliding across the wet ground matched the shushing sound of the rain.
I blinked and rubbed my eyes as they came closer.
Strange blue-black tattoos pulsed beneath their glistening skin.
I spun around and sprinted down the hallway toward the basement. Yanking open the
doors, I tripped back down the stairs into the darkness.
Afterthoughts:
In this chapter, Jack is on the run, but when he stops to take stock, Kansas blasts their iconic song into his head. "Carry On, Wayward Son."
Does anyone know why the title of the song is "Carry on Wayward Son," when they obviously sing "Carry on MY wayward son ..." I really don't know. Do you?
As they emerged from the glassy soup, the area was flooded with watery-gray, garnet-eyed creatures. Everything in sight dripped; even their black-slashed mouths and jagged silver teeth oozed with slime.
Dr. D was right. I had to get underground. Back to the basement!
I wanted to run, but my feet felt glued to the floor. The syrupy downpour coated power lines and broke branches from the sycamores as surely as if they’d been covered with ice. I saw people crumpled on the pavement, dead. Others hung from stalled car windows, moaning. As I watched, one of the gray creatures picked up a man and dragged him, screaming, across the street.
As quietly as possible, I backed away, determined not to attract attention. I wanted to turn and run, but I was terrified, afraid to turn my back on the huge, naked creatures that were now headed toward the school. The sound of their bare feet sliding across the wet ground matched the shushing sound of the rain.
I blinked and rubbed my eyes as they came closer.
Strange blue-black tattoos pulsed beneath their glistening skin.
I spun around and sprinted down the hallway toward the basement. Yanking open the
doors, I tripped back down the stairs into the darkness.
Afterthoughts:
In this chapter, Jack is on the run, but when he stops to take stock, Kansas blasts their iconic song into his head. "Carry On, Wayward Son."
Does anyone know why the title of the song is "Carry on Wayward Son," when they obviously sing "Carry on MY wayward son ..." I really don't know. Do you?
