Chapter 3: 'The Foundations of Apocalypse' Part 1

What he saw in his father's eyes that day will never be forgotten. The memory is still there; buried deep in his memories waiting to come out and explode like a mine in a war field. It is still there...

It is still there...

It will always be there...

His guilt...

...

...

Suddenly he opened his eyes as he felt the rattle of the van. For a moment his memories felt blurry, but he quickly regained a sense of himself. He looked around and watched as the van moved through the chaotic streets of this city at a moderate speed.

Explosions and screams of people could be heard in the distance. Flapping of those winged creatures could also be heard high in the sky while everything around him was filled with lifeless bodies and pools of blood. That's when he remembered how it all happened. That young military man who was helping the children and women who were still near the area at that time helped him escape from that place.

'How could something like that happen?'

How that young military man looked at the destruction with eyes of sadness. How everything went to hell in just a few minutes.

This can only be described as a bizarre tragedy. A tragedy out of a nightmare that continues to spread around the world like gunpowder in the wind. The image this place gave was nothing short of surreal. Anyone who saw this would definitely believe this was the apocalypse. 

Sam understood this, he understood how ridiculous and horrible this was. He was still worried about his father, and now out of nowhere he found himself in an army soldier's military van surrounded by children and women, something that made him very uncomfortable. He didn't know where to look as, seeing so many women near him, his body instinctively contracted into the corner of the box to hide in fear.

'None of this makes any sense...'

It certainly didn't make sense, but now it was all real in front of his eyes.

...

"It happened an hour ago..."

Suddenly a boy between ten and twelve years old sitting on the floor of the truck bed next to him spoke to him. The boy had short, tousled brown hair; his eyes were green like glistening emeralds and his white skin was dirty with dirt and dried blood; his light blue T-shirt, like his face, was stained with blood and his shorts, the color of the same dirt, brown, were torn on the right leg. In addition, on that same leg, the boy had a bandage covered in blood. With all those features put together, the expression on his face was nothing but fear and guilt.

Perhaps the child didn't want to keep quiet to avoid feeling more fear or simply his innocence prevented him from seeing that all this was worse than his little mind could comprehend. 

Sam could see a small glimmer of hope in the boy's eyes. Still, even though this child wanted to engage him in conversation, Sam didn't play along. He responded with a curt silence at the boy's words.

"That big brother dressed as a military man helped me. I see he did the same with you."

Sam just looked at the buildings without responding.

"He was the first to help everyone..."

While everything had turned into complete chaos in a matter of minutes, while people were killing each other, that little boy watched it all in horror. It was just over an hour ago that it started. Those beautiful and bizarre creatures started talking to the people in the streets. And as if it were a horror movie, the whole of humanity panicked.

'The apocalypse' shouted some as they entered to rob the stores in the shopping area. Trying to defend themselves, people began to fight.

"No... he was the one who wanted to help..."

That young soldier desperately began to protect the women and children. However, all the memory of this boy is very blurred because of the shock he experienced.

He contracted his legs against his own body and put his arms on his knees. He ducked his head and hid the expression on his face between his arms and knees.

"My name is Thomas, what's yours?"

The boy asked, but Sam still didn't answer. Instead, he just looked away silently thinking over and over what to do next. He doesn't even know where they are going. This could be a trap, but risking getting out of this van and being attacked by someone was out of the question.

The boy continued to insist.

"It's rude to ignore people. Didn't your mom ever teach you to look at people when they talk to you? Didn't she ever teach you to answer when they ask you a question? If so, your mom failed to educate you."

"Will you shut up?"

Finally. A few words came out of Sam's mouth, who already seemed annoyed by this boy's insistence.

"Tell me your name and I'll stop bothering you."

Sam sighed...

"I don't have a name, no one has a name. No one has an identity. It's no use asking someone's name if it's not going to do you any good. Even you, all of us here, are nothing and you could already see it with your own eyes. So stop nagging, you're pissing me off."

"So, if we have no identity, tell me what your parents usually call you?"

"What did I just tell you...?"

He stopped as he saw the expression on Thomas' face. The boy was not looking at him with fear or concern, for he really wanted to know. Seeking to fill his little mind with information to forget the horror he had to go through an hour ago.

It all seems like a dream, none of this could be real, but it's definitely happening....

In the end, Sam gave up very easily and answered:

"Sam... My father calls me Sam."

The boy smiled and extended his hand.

"Nice to meet you, Sam."

This was his greeting to him. Both of them, due to various circumstances, find themselves alone in this world. When you are alone, you must seek the companionship, the warmth of others. That way you won't die in sad, cold loneliness. That was what being a 'human' in the worst conditions was all about.

Sam saw it, his face showed no emotional reaction to this, but even though his mind was now in constant conflict and he is in despair deep in his heart, not even knowing what to do, he reached out and accepted the boy's greeting. He squeezed the boy's hand gently.

'This is not something I expect at any time. It's not something I want. I don't know how to feel but, at least now, I should accept that this is all real. That this whole nightmare is real... that my father is not by my side to take care of me like he usually does.'

Although they will never admit it, they are both frightened by all of this, but in this situation the best thing they could do is get along.

...

...

After a few more minutes, the van pulled up in front of a large school. From the back of the van it could be seen that the large building was four stories high, painted in a silver color and with large green gardens all around it. All around the place were long bars that functioned as walls and, at the front of it all, was the main entrance, the same door made of well-kept black bars, protected from the corrosive passage of time.

Two soft knocks were heard against the box.

After that, the young soldier, named James, opened the back hatch of the box saying:

"We're here. We are gathering all the refugees in this school. It has been the longest two hours of our lives, but we will be able to protect you in this place. Please come down carefully and enter the facility immediately. My colleagues we are gathering everything we need to keep you safe and sound."

"Your colleagues?"

Sam asked. James nodded.

"We acted immediately after people started attacking each other. We don't quite understand what's going on, but it looks like a lot of us weren't affected by whatever's going on."

"The apocalypse...I say it that voice in my head."

Sam got out of the vehicle and helped him get Thomas out as well. James appreciated that gesture and looked at the women and children entering the school.

"It seems we all heard that voice, albeit with time differences. Two hours ago, apparently I and some in my squadron heard the voice. Maybe we were among the first or because the 'feathered ones' started interacting with the others. Even with me..."

"And what did they say to you?"

"... That creature asked me if I repented. If I did, I could follow God's way."

"Then you too..."

Sam lowered his gaze and looked at Thomas. The boy nodded his head, affirming that he too heard the voice and spoke to that winged creature.

"You think those things could be angels?"

James hearing that laughed as if to ease this tense situation. Before answering, he looked at the road for a second and showed a slight expression of concern.

"Whatever those creatures are, I wouldn't know what to tell you. They all had wings, they were all asking the same question. Then there was the red armored rider on his red horse who rode through all the carnage as if none of it was happening. If this really is something related to John's Apocalypse, then there is no hope for any of us."

Because the end of the apocalypse is something no one will be able to avoid.

"Anyway. Looks like we got to chatting a lot. You must go inside and take shelter in one of the classrooms. For now we're the only ones doing this. We've already lost communication with our captain. The only thing left for us to do is to act on our own autonomy."

"I see..."

Toru looked down. There was something he wanted to ask him, but after seeing that this soldier's intentions were sincere, he felt guilty for being so selfish and hypocritical. However, the kind soldier looked at him and understood that this boy wanted something more.

"You can ask me for anything you want. We are here to help. Really. So don't worry."

Sam thanked him inside his mind.

"This is a slightly stocky man with shoulder-length hair and a padlock beard. He's my father. If you see him, tell him I'm fine, not to worry about me."

"I understand. Can you tell me your name and your father's name?"

"Names..."

Thomas looked at Sam as if he was already predicting what Sam was going to say about identities and names, but what he heard next made him a little angry. Enough to want to punch him.

"My name is Sam. My father's name is Simon. Please, I beg you..."

"It's okay. I won't forget."

After that, Sam walked through the door next to Thomas. For a moment he looked at the soldier closing the hatch of the truck bed. You could tell he was a good guy, a sincere person who didn't want to see anyone else suffer.

"Ouch!"

Suddenly he received a blow to the arm. The blow wasn't strong enough to hurt him, but it did hurt. This prompted him to look Thomas in the eye, who was finding it a little difficult to walk because of the wound in his leg.

"We just met and you're already confident enough to do something like that?"

Thomas glared back at him.

"You play hard to get, but when something's bothering you you're not afraid to throw your beliefs in the trash. That's horrible. You're an idiot, you know that?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"I mean you gave your name to big brother without complaining."

"Big brother? Why do you call him that?"

"Because he acts like a big brother. And don't change the subject on me."

To Sam this was, to say the least, curious. This kid was acting too confidently, so much so that it was even uncomfortable.

'His name is Thomas..."

But while this kid was scolding him, he for some reason kept that name deep in his memories.

No one has an identity, that was always a self-belief, but....

What about this kid? He is acting so friendly, but really this was nothing more than a defense mechanism created by a lived trauma. The truth is that this child is broken....

-Two hours ago-

The streets erupted in chaos, with people running here and there, screaming in desperation as the 'feathered' ones were approaching people, talking to everyone casually.

In the middle of it is a child. Kneeling on the hard, cruel pavement, over a pool of blood that was getting bigger with every passing second. 

In front of him is an angel, a beautiful, masculine-looking angel with hair as long and white, as white as snow itself. That angel wore a luxurious armor-like combat outfit with silver and gold accents, with black boots and a silver sword in the scabbard strapped to his waist. His eyes were silver like that shining sword and his gaze as cold as ice. Above his head, a glowing ring hovered.

The angel seemed to say something, but no one ever heard it.

In the boy's arms, surrounded by this tragic apocalypse, lies the lifeless body of his mother. At his side is a knife and nearby is a man fleeing in despair.

As if time had stopped inside his little mind, the boy whispered:

"Mommy..."

After that, everything Thomas remembers became a blur....

To be continued...