Goodbye Sky Harbor

by Mathis, Philip Brian

  Back in Phoenix, Col. Posey had arrived at Sky Harbor earlier that same morning, before the attacks. The night before, Gen. Baumgartner was kept busy entrusting all military personnel to help set up metal sheds extending from the airport’s main concourses. Most of the Army’s main supplies and equipment had arrived from Luke air force base before the air raids had begun. The patrons still inside the airport at the time began asking questions, becoming more and more panicked as time went on. Those questions were finally answered, and those feelings of panic turned into mass chaos once the bombs started falling.

  Sky Harbor had been mostly salvaged other than a few missiles hitting out by the runways. Unfortunately, a piece of shrapnel from one of those missiles struck the General’s neck while he was attempting to get everyone inside. Col. Posey at the time was in the hangar trying to keep order amid the confusion as he was currently unaware. Once the bombing was over and everything started to calm down, the colonel was eventually notified that the General had been killed.

  As the General’s second in command, Col. Posey was now in charge. It didn’t take long for the colonel to assume command as he immediately gathered all military personnel into the same hangar. The colonel announced to everyone that the General had been killed in action and that he would be taking over in the interim. Following the announcement, he ordered a small group of men to head inside the airport and shut down all operations and inform everyone that the Army would be assuming full control. The colonel then started organizing multiple departments including medical into the airport to start setting up accordingly. The colonel decided that he would use Sky Harbor as one of the first refugee sites and began ordering platoons to head out to surrounding towns within a thirty-mile radius of Phoenix. For the next few hours the airport was going to be turned into a massive make-shift military base just like the Green Zone had been back in Iraq. As the night went on, the Army began setting up additional refuge sites all throughout the city, including hotels and hospitals. The colonel spent the rest of the afternoon and into the evening, attempting to get in contact with headquarters for future orders. Nobody was quite sure if the Chinese were going to return with another debilitating air raid. The country was currently in uncharted territory.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Meanwhile, back in Genesis’ room, Kuruk was trying to eradicate as much information from Creed as possible. He sounded just as anxious as his sister when she grilled him with her own inquiries. “So, what the hell man?” Kuruk asked.

  “What?”

  “Do I really have to ask?”

  “Ask me what?”

  “Back at the school, you know?”

  Creed and Genesis gave each other a daunting glance. “So, you saw that?”

  “Yes Creed, I saw you fly. You were flying, with my sister, in the air. FLYING!”

  “Alright, calm down.” Genesis interrupted. Kuruk paced around the room until Genesis was forced to get up from her brother’s bed to stop him. She guided him towards her bed and sat him down right next to her. “Yes, he can fly. He can also move items, break bricks, and apparently manipulate force fields now. Something he failed to tell me about.”

  “Hey, that’s not fair. I didn’t even know I could do that. It just happened.” Creed sat there on the bed looking over at Genesis with a snide expression before Kuruk barged back in.

  “Well can someone please explain to me how in the hell you are able to do all this?”

  It was the one question he knew he simply couldn’t answer. Creed sat there on the bed and let out a sigh.

  “I have no idea to be honest with you. It all started earlier this week. Your sister was being bullied by Garrett and his buddies down the street. They threw her bag in the tree. Your sister climbed to get it, the branch broke and I just – I don’t know, I just flew up and caught her. It just happened, and I have no idea how to explain how it’s possible, same as I told your sister.”

  “That’s so wicked man.” Kuruk exclaimed.

  “Then, a couple days after that I was in my backyard just messing around when I just flicked my wrist in excitement, and out of nowhere, one of the bricks flew out of the house. I mean, and then your truck –”

  Kuruk quickly looked over at Creed. “Wait, what about my truck? You mean the tailgate? That was you?” Creed nodded and Kuruk broke out into anxious laughter. He stood there looking at Creed trying to ponder all that he had said so far. It was a lot to take in and even though he witnessed some of his abilities, it all still felt undoubtedly surreal.

  “And what about a force field?” Kuruk was now remembering back to what his sister had earlier confessed.

  “That is just the newest development. It’s hard to explain the feeling or much of anything really. I just felt the bomb hit the ground from behind us and I simply grabbed your sister and just crouched right there on the ground. The next thing I know, there was glowing red light all around us.”

  “So, you’re like a real-life superman?” Kuruk announced.

  “What is it with this family? I swear you two are identical.” Creed exclaimed.

  “Oh, come on, I’m just having a little fun.”

  “Seriously guys, what am I going to do? Now other people have seen it for themselves. Everyone’s going to know, my parents, everyone.”

  “Creed, you could use this.”

  “What do you mean?” Genesis gazed at her brother suspiciously with squinty eyes. Just then Kuruk knelt in front of Creed as if he just solved the meaning of life.

  “Think about it bro. You could single handedly defeat these fuckers all by yourself.”

  “Who?”

  “The Chinese, who else did you think I was talking about?”

  “Are you listening to yourself?”

  “Dude, you can fly. You have the ability to generate some sort of force field and move objects, you could probably even turn their guns inside out, or something like that –”

  “- Okay stop it.” Genesis interrupted.

  “Seriously Creed, how heavy of an object can you move?”

  “I said stop Kuruk. Are you seriously asking my boyfriend to fight the Chinese, possibly get himself killed? Is that what you would like -”

  “No – that’s not wh- “Kuruk blatantly paused midsentence. Genesis already knew what had just slipped out. All three of them stood frozen there in the room. Creed looked up at Kuruk with sudden realization before slowly backing away. “- Wait. Boyfriend?” Kuruk inquired.

  “Yeah, sorry.” Creed smiled bashfully. He even thought to himself how this must be an interesting way to find out your sister is dating her best friend.

  “And when did this begin? And why didn’t anyone tell me?”

  “Oh, grow up, it just happened. And you honestly didn’t see something like this happening?” Genesis proclaimed. Kuruk nodded there in the room. “Well that’s true. I guess if anyone deserved to date my sister, it’d definitely be you.”

  “Thanks.” Creed replied hesitantly.

  “Well okay, so tell me more about this super strength?” Kuruk asked.

  “Oh my God, drop it.”

  “Why don’t you let him answer for himself?”

  Creed exchanged glances between Genesis and Kuruk. He was a little taken aback by the serious look on Kuruk’s face. Creed wasn’t even sure he even wanted these abilities. Kuruk’s insistence over the matter was one of the reasons why he was guarded about anyone knowing. “Are you generally being serious right now?”

  “I’m just saying why not. Isn’t that what happened in all those comics? Isn’t that what super heroes do? I mean Captain America with the Nazi’s.”

  “Yeah but this isn’t the comics.”

  “I can’t believe you just said that.” Genesis responded. “You do know how dumb you just sounded.”

  “That’s just it,” Creed intercepted the conversation. “I’m not a super hero. I’m just not that guy. Yes, I have these so-called abilities, but I haven’t even fully figured out how it happened, why I was
gifted with all this in the first place.”

  “Alright, alright calm down bro. I’m sorry; I just guess the inner nerd came out for a second.”

  “Well, we still haven’t discussed what we’re going to do now?” Genesis wondered.

  “I don’t know.” Just then Creed’s cell phone rang. His Dad was calling him back. Creed quickly answered the phone while Genesis and Kuruk looking on anxiously.

  “We’re going to leave in a little bit, okay?” Creed said.

  “Alright, yeah. Alright, love you too.” Creed then hung up the phone and the three of them all exchanged uncertain looks.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Later that evening Creed received another phone call from his dad. His father wanted to let him know that they were starting an immediate evacuation of surrounding cities to various safe zones within Phoenix. Meanwhile Genesis and Kuruk were all sitting in the living room watching the news with their dad, anxiously waiting for additional news from across the country. Minutes later Creed appeared from the back yard and slowly walked into the living room and sat down next to Genesis on the couch.

  “So, my dad just said they’re now having everyone evacuate to Phoenix.”

  “Yeah they just had a report about it while you were outside.”

  “Hey, so you think the military knew about this attack the whole time then?” Kuruk asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, with the planes we saw flying in at the airport?”

  “Yeah that was a bit strange.” Genesis added.

  Creed sat back on the couch attempting to process everything that’s gone on in the last day. Everything was all a mess, and with each new incident, he couldn’t keep his incessantly pivoting thoughts from shifting so sporadically. As he sat there mulling over the surreal realization the country was at war, his mind then randomly averted back to the eerie possibility that a good number of people witnessed him fly away from the school. What a crazy week, he thought. The stock pile of mental stress was really hitting an all-time high for Creed. And it didn’t seem like it was going to be slowing down anytime soon.

  As everyone sat there on the couch watching the reports continue to come in on the television, Creed couldn’t help but think back to Kuruk’s recent inquiry. Did the military really know this was going to happen? Why wouldn’t they have warned anyone?

  “Jesus Christ man, this is crazy.” Kuruk announced.

  “It’s all like a bad dream.”

  “Well we should probably get headed out to Phoenix before they start banging on our doors. Creed’s parents probably want to see him out there soon anyway.”

  “Alright, well let’s go then.”

  Kuruk, Genesis, and Creed all stood up from the couch. Simultaneously the news headline was now reading China invades the eastern coastline. The anchors solemnly continued to put on their calmest faces amidst the growing fear these reports were resonating. They would ever so gently offer a weak smile while reading the seemingly endless reports, which were most likely being handed to them by even more anxious producers. The same people who were probably pissing themselves in the corners off-screen. Genesis finally turned off the television while Kuruk struggled to wake up their father who had passed out.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Dad, they’re telling everyone to head over to Phoenix.”

  “I’m not leaving, are you kidding me?”

  “We have to, come on.”

  “I’m not going anywhere Kuruk.”

  “They’re going to come and make you leave; you want them to do that?”

  “I don’t give a shit. Let them come, this is my house.”

  “Fine.” Kuruk threw his hands in the air in exasperation and walked towards the front door. “God he’s so stubborn.”

  “We can’t leave him Kuruk.” Genesis insisted.

  “Well then you try. He doesn’t want to go.”

  “DAD.” Genesis yelled across the room.

  “What?”

  “Let’s go, we’re leaving.”

  “I just told your brother, I’m not leaving. This is my house, if the military has a problem with that, then let them come in here and force me out, but I swear to you right now, that they will have to put up one hell of a fight. And same goes for those Chinamen. For centuries foolish men have squabbled over selfish and greedy bullshit and the hell with them if they think I’m going to inconvenience and displace myself for their causes. I’m going to be in my house. I’m going to be comfortable, and I’m going to be happy.”

  Kuruk rolled his eyes and opened the front door. Genesis sighed before turning towards him. Creed just stood there awkwardly smiling at what Paquala was preaching. As irrational as his rebellious outburst might’ve sounded, he found a lot of amusing truth to it. “Come on guys.” Kuruk commanded.

  “Well we’re going Dad.” Genesis murmured.

  “Alright, well you guys be careful.”

  “Take care, Mr. Woods.”

  “Hey Creed” Paquala shouted. Creed turned and saw a more reserved look on Paquala’s face. His eyes were worn but it was overshadowed by his thoughtful grin. “Take care of Genesis for me, will you?”

  “Yes sir, I will.” Creed replied.

  They both nodded at one another. Paquala then turned back towards the television as Genesis grabbed for Creed’s hand and guided him out the house. As they closed the front door, they could hear Paquala yelling from inside. “Who the hell turned off the television?”

  The drive out that evening was hauntingly different from all the other times in years past. The only thing about the journey that was similar was the sun making it seem like the city was on fire, just like in the past. The smoke was still permeating through the air from the recent air raid making it seem like the End of Days. The solemn drive was quieter than usual. Everyone’s eyes weighed heavier than usual as they drove through all the debris surrounding the roads. Creed was still attempting to process everything; he basically started the whole process back up from where he left off, back at Genesis’ house. Understandably the three of them were starved for answers and unequivocally marooned with dismal thoughts about the recent events while they viewed the damage left by the bombings. How could something of this magnitude ever happen to a powerhouse like the United States? This type of thing happened in third world countries that didn’t have such a proper democratic process like ours. But not here. There was always that accusation throughout history that the United States were big bullies. Yet it always seemed like almost every leader at least pretended to strive for peace. Growing up it always appeared that the United States was always trying to help others. At least on the surface anyway. However, if the conspiracy theorists were right, and our government really did force peace and policies upon other countries right underneath our noses, then it would completely justify some harrowing feelings towards the U.S. Either way, these next few days or even weeks, were almost certainly going to be some trying times. No one in the truck knew exactly what to expect, but then again, neither did anyone in the country.

  The traffic was now starting to pile up as the friends started making their way closer to Phoenix. The sun by now was completely out of sight and the only view left was that of an endless river of cars trying to enter the city. A few random flocks of people had decided to walk or take their bikes, passing the cars in a steady pace.

  “I bet you all those people walking will make it to where they’re going before we do.” Kuruk claimed.

  “Yeah, the city is going to be packed, do you think we’ll all fit?”

  “I’m not sure. I guess we’ll find out.”

  “Geez, what a nightmare.”

  While Kuruk stared ahead, Creed and Genesis both gazed out at all the people making the long trek towards the city lights. A lot of the trucks waiting in line had their beds filled with additional people. Kuruk could see headlights approaching quickly from the rearview mirror. Just then, military hummers and trucks drove right past them from the side of th
e road. A few seconds later, another small group of hummers passed them up going in the opposite direction. Creed rolled down his window as people continued passing the truck. He spotted a couple walking by and attempted to get their attention.

  “What’s the latest news?”

  The couple turned towards Creed who was waving at them. They both paused for a moment before finally walking over towards the truck. They looked like a couple of older hippies that just got out of the Woodstock festival. Their clothes were kind of dirty and aged but more vintage in a way. The husband was wearing some kind of bag around his shoulders that looked empty. Creed wondered if either the couple didn’t really own much at all, or that was all they had left following the bombing.

  “We’re not sure about anything as of right now. They just telling us to head towards the city, I’m assuming the same as you guys. They sending the entire town, the whole lot of us.” The older man said.

  “Where you guys coming from?” Creed inquired further.

  “We’re down around Tempe. I was out with my wife in front of our little air stream when the planes started dropping them bombs. There was nothing to do but hide out by that oak tree on top of a hill by our place. Luckily, they didn’t hit anywhere near us. A few hours later those military guys be driving around, told us to get in their truck; said they were evacuating everyone to Phoenix. I told ‘em we’d get there ourselves. Told ‘em go and help others that might be needing it. I packed a few fruits from our garden here in this ole knapsack. Don’t need much really. So now we just making the journey to the city. God what a big mess this all is. I haven’t heard much of anything else, except some rumors is all.”