ARMAGEDDON

Chapter 2

“ Wake up wake up wake up, ow,” Dan said, pinching and slapping himself. He figured this had to be a dream from one of the many zombie movies he had been watching lately.

All Dan wanted right now was to just wake up from whatever nightmare this was but nothing seemed to be working.

“ Hey ! Hello ?! Anybody?! “ He yelled, his voice echoing into a distance without a response, “ well that's a bummer,” he said, his tone falling.

While Dan stood, hands akimbo in the middle of the street wondering what next to do, the sound of something like a growl reached his ears.

“ Easy there,” he said , touching his stomach and realizing he didn't have breakfast before leaving the house.

He heard the sound again, this time deeper and louder. His heart skipped a beat when it became obvious that those sounds weren't coming from the hungry worms in his stomach.

He slowly turned around to see who his new company was - or what.

To his utter shock, standing behind him was the most hideous creature he had ever seen.

Standing at roughly human height, and just a few feet away, was a creature with sleek, obsidian-like exoskeleton eyes—glowing, locked onto him.

Dan froze on the spot, his widened eyes moping at the monster before him as it inched closer and closer with malicious intent. A million thoughts flooded his mind. Could this day get any worse ?

This was the second time in one day he was staring death in the face.

“ What the hell ?” Dan muttered to himself, his eyes fixed on the monster and his heart almost leaping out of his mouth.

He took a few steps back and off he fled. Like a reindeer, he dashed through the empty desolate streets of what he now knew to be Seal city. The same city he left behind in a speed train.

With his heels almost touching the back of his head, he took a hard right into an alley and with the corner of his eyes he could see that that thing was still very much after him. It was fast - too fast.

Crap ! What am I gonna do, I have to lose it ! His racing mind puzzled.

“ Ahhh ! “ Dan yelled, quickly sliding to a stop when he saw what was before him.

Another one.

Now he was surely doomed. He turned around and the first monster was right there. Caved in, he had nowhere else to go.

“ Am I in hell? This must be hell,” he whispered to himself, sweat beads trickling down his face from his forehead.

Without any further hesitation, the two creatures dashed towards him. That was the moment he felt a strange heat right above him. It was like the sun suddenly got five times hotter. Even nature itself was against him, or so he thought.

Two blazing balls of fire bursted out of the sky and landed on each of the monsters with a ‘ boom ‘, stopping them in their tracks. Their partly burnt bodies rolled to a stop as Dan removed himself from their path immediately.

Just as they slowly tried to make it back to their feet, their limbs wobbling, a figure wrapped up in flames descended seemingly from the sky, striking a deadly finishing blow to one and incinerating the other with a burst of fire from his hand like a massive flame thrower.

Dan stared at the scene with his eyes widened and his mouth opened, only a few inches away from a heart attack. The roasted bodies of the monsters gave off a vile stench that soon penetrated Dan's mouth and nostrils.

“ Ugh ! That is disgusting ! “ He lamented, wearing a frown and pinching his nose.

“ Quick ! Follow me ! “ yelled the man who just saved Dan's life. The flames on his body were slowly disappearing but his face remained hidden under the black hoodie and face mask he was wearing.

He zoomed off into one of the wrecked buildings not too far from where they were while Dan trailed behind. He had no idea who this creepy fellow was or what was even going on but he thought following him would be his best bet. Besides, who knew how many more monsters were out there waiting to rip him apart.

They hurriedly came into a small scattered but well hidden cubicle in what looked like the basement. Now, Dan was sure they were clear and out of sight of any monsters, but he couldn't shake the thought of the possibility that he was in the room with one.

“ Who are you and what the hell is going on ?! “ Dan yelled in shear terror, “ what, are you supposed to be some angel? I'm dead aren't I ? “

“ Shhhh, “ the hooded guy whispered gently but steadily, his hands pressed against a table and his head buried between his shoulders, not even turning around to face his interrogator.

“ Of course. I died in that train didn't I? And this is my punishment for all my wrongs yeah? “ Dan whined.

Just then, the hooded guy raised his head and stood erect, as if something Dan said caught his attention.

“ The train. It's happening again, but something's not right, “ he said in a low and heavy tone.

Dan scoffed, “ something's not right. Did you not hear a word I just said?” He replied.

The strange man finally turned around, inched closer to Dan who only got more nervous with askance in his eyes. The man took off his hood to reveal a black short flowing and roughened hair. He pulled down his face mask and chills ran down Dan's spine.

It was like looking into a mirror. Yes he looked rough and more miserable but the resemblance was undeniable. The mysterious man standing before Dan turned out to be his exact replica - like some doppelganger.

“ Impossible, “ they both muttered.

Dan began, “ this…this doesn't make any sense. Why the heck do you look like me ?! And how can you…” he paused, when his eyes fell on a picture set on a small wooden table he recognized.

It was a picture of Lauren.

“ Lauren,” he whispered, inching closer to the picture, his eyes locked on to it in curiosity.

Next to this photo was a couple of photos laid out in no particular order. One had Felix's half - smirking face with his forefinger pinning his glasses in place.

The next picture was that of he and his mother. She was sitting on a wheelchair with a faint smile and her hand on Dan's hand on her shoulder.

The woman had been diagnosed of a severe paralysis, leaving her future uncertain. Ever since, she tried to make the best of every single day she had left to live.

“ Wh…what happened? Where is every…? “ Dan stuttered before he was interrupted.

“ They're gone. Everyone's gone,” said the stranger.

“ Gone. What's that supposed to mean ? And why do you have their…”

“ They're all dead !” yelled the stranger, after which a brief hush swept through the room. “ What's the last thing you remember ?” He asked, picking up a newspaper from the floor and handing it to Dan, who was still caught up processing what he just heard.

Whatever nightmare this was, he had certainly seen enough for one night and he was more than fed up.

First, he's involved in super train accident that should have killed him, only to wake up in an apocalyptic Seal city where hellish beasts try to make lunch of him, then he gets miraculously rescued by a blazing man wearing his face and now, everyone he loves is apparently dead.

He slowly looked into the newspaper, his hands struggling to maintain a firm grip on it. The headline read,

‘ ARMAGEDDON AS ALIEN INVASION ROCKS SEAL CITY '

The date of its publication read, ‘ 9th November, 2025 ‘