The Awakening

by Ryan Sova

  The day passed by peacefully. Detective Grant and Garry spent their day entertaining Jesse. Then, her bedtime at last came and Detective Grant put her in bed for the night. Detective Grant then took a seat on the couch and found a movie on Netflix for them both to watch. Afterward, it was time for the evening news.

  The news covered the same topics that had been going on now for the past month. While Detective Grant and Garry were watching the news, Anna returned home. She carried out her same routine of asking about Jesse, taking a shower, and then going to bed. Detective Grant soon joined her in the bedroom.

  After Detective Grant went to bed, Garry stayed up to watch some late night comedy. He was watching Late Night with Seth Meyers when the show was suddenly interrupted by a Special News Report.

  The news report was concerning a string of violence and rioting that had suddenly broken out on a massive scale in every major city of the United States. Also, coinciding with this violent outbreak, traffic accidents were being reported in staggering numbers. More than two-hundred thousand major accidents had been reported on every major highway across the US in the last hour alone. As a result, traffic was at a complete standstill on every major highway across the entire nation.

  Garry paused the news report on the DVR. He then turned on Detective Grant’s computer. Once it was finished booting up, he double clicked on the Google Chrome App and started running random searches. These searches included things such as:

  Mass rioting, London

  Mass rioting, Paris

  Mass rioting, Hong Cong

  Mass rioting, Frankford

  Garry read articles under each search category as quickly as he could. As he continued reading, his level of horror intensified. This is happening everywhere, he realized.

  Garry ran to Detective Grant’s bedroom. He flipped the light switch on and yelled, “GET UP, BOTH OF YOU! YOU NEED TO SEE THIS!”

  Inspired by the tone in Garry’s voice, Detective Grant and Anna jumped from their beds and ran, following Garry to the living room. Garry then grabbed the remote and rewound the Special News Report. He then played it for everyone in the room.

  Anna gasped and then whispered under her breath, “Oh my god.”

  Garry then paused the report and turned to Detective Grant and Anna, “This is no random act of violence! This is happening in every major city of the world at this precise moment! They have also blocked off all of the major highways in not just in this nation, but everywhere worldwide. This is a calculated attack and they have just cut off everyone’s means of escape! This is the beginning of the end! We are all being exterminated!”

  Detective Grant then asked, “What do we do?”

  Garry responded, “Gather everything we need, we're leaving now!”

  Anna responded, “But where will we go?”

  Garry responded, “While the two of you are gathering our things, I will pull up Google Earth and see if I can find some island in the middle of nowhere that is completely devoid of people. That is where we will go to hide.”

  CHAPTER 23

  Garry had never felt so hopeless before. His only joy now was that he had managed to bring Detective Grant and his family to safety before everyone else in the city had been killed. Before leaving, he had found a secluded island to hide Detective Grant’s family in. Garry still found the name of this island ironic though. It was called the Henderson Island.

  The island was located out in the center of the Southern Pacific Ocean between South America and Australia. It had a dense cover of trees and was about three and a half miles wide from east to west, and about five miles long from north to south.

  While Garry was locating this island on their computer, Detective Grant and his wife quickly loaded some their last minute supplies. Detective Grant also packed a few guns and some ammo after Garry had shown him the island that he would be taking his family to. Detective Grant’s reasoning was that he wanted to be prepared just in case they ran into any dangerous wildlife on the island.

  About a day after Garry had fled from Norfolk with Detective Grant and his family, he returned again to the city. Before making this journey, Garry had half hoped that his interpretation of the Special News Report might be somehow wrong and that everything in the city would still be life as usual. What Garry ended up returning to, though, was a ghost town.

  Doors had been forced open, windows had been smashed, houses had been ransacked, and not a soul could be found in the entire neighborhood. After a few minutes of wandering the streets, Garry returned again to Detective Grant’s home. The living room window had been smashed and the front door was wide open. After spending a few minutes in the house, Garry realized that nothing had been taken. Some objects in the house had been moved and even damaged, but it seemed like the only thing that the intruders were after were living bodies. Once the intruders had determined that no one was here, they moved on.

  After a while, Garry decided to turn the television on. He was curious if regular TV programming was still running. He was especially curious if any television stations still carried the news. What Garry would find, though, was more than he could have ever imagined.

  It seemed that all television stations had been discontinued after the attack, with one exception that is. A single news program was still running. This news program was unlike anything Garry had ever seen before. The news program mapped out locations where humans still lived. It also used satellite technology to locate humans that were currently in hiding, in real time. This type of information was aired on a twenty-four-hour live news broadcast and was the only television programming that was still offered on any station. This news program also listed a number of radio stations, which supposedly gave the same type of information on a continuous round the clock basis.

  It was clear to Garry at that moment that all nations on Earth now belonged to the Master and every bit of technology they had was now at his disposal. The satellite images that were being broadcast on the news were of military quality. The undead were tracking these poor souls using their fucking heat signatures. These people had no chance of escaping pursuit! Even Detective Grant and his family who were hiding under a cover of trees on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean would not stay hidden for very long.

  Garry sat on Detective Grant’s couch for hours watching this program. He didn’t want to move from this spot. There was literally nothing that he could do. Everyone who was not already dead would all die soon enough. No one, not even Garry with all of his magic, would be able to save them. With all the power that Garry had, at this moment, he felt totally powerless.

  Garry rose from the couch after several hours of reflection, tears were now streaming down his face. He screamed to the empty room, “HEY YOU!

  “VOICE INSIDE MY HEAD!!!

  “YOU SAVED ME WHEN I WAS ABOUT TO BE KILLED BY ZOMBIES!!!

  “YOU SAVED ME WHEN I BECAME A FUGITIVE!!!

  “SO SAVE ME NOW!!!

  “WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO???

  “TELL ME WHAT I’M SUPPOSED TO DO, GOD DAMN YOU!!!”

  Garry dropped to his knees and wept bitterly. He would spend the rest of the day on his knees in Detective Grant’s living room before finally collapsing to the floor. He would eventually wake up with rug burns on his face the next morning. No answer would ever come from any of his pleadings.

  In his dreams, the past had been no less depressing. Nephal was now working with King Noah to look at different possible futures on the hope that they might find a future in which they don’t all die. Nephal was not having any better luck, though, than the king ever had in that regard. The countdown to doom was now only two weeks away for Nephal.

  For Garry, the countdown to doom had already come and gone. Garry was now in the aftermath of the apocalypse. He rose from the floor and walked to the kitchen. Detective Grant’s family had left all their perishables like milk, eggs, lunchmeats, and cheese in the fridge when they left. Garry poured himself a bowl of cereal. While he was eating, an ide
a finally came to his head.

  This whole time, Garry had been trying to figure out a way to stop this undead plague, to keep it from spreading and to destroy those who were already infected. Garry still had no idea how to do this. But that didn’t necessarily mean that he was completely powerless either. There might be a way to still help those who haven’t been killed yet, even if I can’t stop the dead masses, Garry suddenly realized.

  My magical powers allow me to do some rather extraordinary things. I can pick up vehicles and toss them around as if they weighed little more than a feather. So if I can do all that, maybe I could grab hold of all these satellites and pull them out of orbit? After all, I might not be able to stop the undead masses, but I can still be a pain in the ass for them!

  After he had finished with his breakfast, Garry started devising a plan to make this idea become a reality. The first problem that Garry would face was that he didn’t know where any of these satellites were. In order to exert his telekinesis powers on any of the satellites, Garry would need to know exact locations.

  Garry teleported to the roof of Detective Grant’s house. He stared up at the sky, trying to figure out where all of the satellites might be. He knew that there was no way, (aside from breaking into NASA headquarters) that he would be able to find out that kind of information. After several minutes of pondering this question, he thought to himself, maybe there is another way that I could find these satellites. I could just ask the elementals to show me where they are.

  In magic, all spells start with a greeting. This greeting can be compared to when humans greet each other during social settings. If there are several people in a room, you need to address the person that you are referring to by name so that the correct person knows that you are referring to them. Now, if you don’t know the person by name, you have to get that persons attention in another way. Such as, “Hey you, the guy over there in the yellow t-shirt, yeah you.”

  With magic, the concept is very similar. When you call out to an elemental, you have to clearly point out which one you are referring to. Sometimes, a bit more introductory explanation is necessary so that the correct elementals know that you are talking to them, such as the “Hey you, the guy over there,” example demonstrates.

  Such greetings are fairly simple when you are casting basic spells and the elementals that you are talking to are right there next to you. But when you call out to elementals that are far away, the greeting process becomes much more complicated. In addition to this, the amount of willpower you expend using long distance magic becomes much greater as well. This can also be compared to a social setting. When you are speaking to a person right next to you, you can speak very quietly and get your message across. But if you are trying to speak to a person who is at the other end of a football field, you will have to scream at the top of your lungs to get your message across.

  Garry prepared himself for casting spells that would be taking place in both the Thermosphere and Exosphere layers of the atmosphere. Fortunately, Nephal had already received some training in the casting of long-distance spells, as this was a requirement for attaining the rank of Master. However, none of Nephal’s training had quite prepared Garry for reaching this far into the sky.

  Garry made his first attempt. This attempt failed. Between the sheer distance of this spell and the fact that Garry had never before tried to cast a spell like this, he was having a rather hard time getting his message across. Garry tried again and failed a second time. He was getting discouraged. I’ll never be able to get this right, he thought! Garry then tried a third time, when, suddenly, his mind was taken to the exact locations of more than a thousand satellites. Good, this is at least a start, Garry thought to himself excitedly!

  Garry then focused on one of the locations that the elementals had given him. He cast his spell, trying to grab hold of this satellite and pull it out of orbit. It worked! After his first successful attempt, Garry realized that he would only need to exert a very small amount of force to completely throw these satellites out of orbit. Garry continued, destroying a second, third, and fourth satellite.

  The very small amount of force that was needed to pull these satellites out of orbit completely made up for how far away they were. Garry pulled down the first three-hundred and twenty-six satellites, after which he was too tired to go on. He now had just enough energy left for one teleport spell. Garry cast his spell and then collapsed on the island where Detective Grant and his family were.

  When Garry woke up the next morning, Detective Grant asked him about what had happened while he was gone. Garry relayed everything that he had seen to Detective Grant and his wife. Detective Grant and Anna continued to discuss these things with Garry as they ate breakfast that morning. Then Garry went back to work. In time, it became necessary to teleport to different locations around the world in order to better target all of the different satellites. Garry also had to repeatedly ask the elementals to locate new satellites as he continued to work. After he had destroyed another two-hundred and eighty-seven satellites, Garry returned to the island again to rest.

  Garry would continue with this attack day by day for the rest of the week. Finally, after a week and a half, he had succeeded at destroying all of the world’s satellites. Garry then turned his attention to airports and airbases across the world. He had already destroyed the dead’s ability to use satellite technology, next he would take away their ability to fly.

  Garry spent the next three days destroying every aircraft that he had the strength to. In that amount of time, though, he had only managed to attack two airfields. This is pathetic! I’m not even slowing them down anymore!!! How the hell am I supposed to stop a whole damn army by myself?

  Nephal was coming to the end of his rope as well. In just one more day, the final attack would come and the Kingdom of Noah would fall. Nephal had now seen this destruction several times. He had been desperately working with King Noah, trying to find a future that might hold the secret to their survival, a future that doesn’t end in their total extinction. But it was hopeless, Nephal had failed. Just like King Noah had failed before him.

  In recent days, King Noah had been prone to having angry outbursts. This was uncharacteristic of him and was most likely brought on by the current state of affairs and the imminent doom that they all faced. The rest of the council and their new allies from the Vestillian Empire searched day and night across the kingdom and had still found no trace of this army that would be attacking from inside the Kingdom of Noah tomorrow.

  Karn and some of the others openly doubted and disbelieved King Noah and Nephal’s visions, stating that, “Such an attack is just not possible.”

  Nephal had also recently teleported to his home and had brought his family and Eliak’s mother and youngest brother back to Bragsdale. He had not been given permission to do so, but just didn’t care anymore. This was Nephal’s last night on Earth and he wanted to spend that night with his family.

  King Noah had been furious at Nephal’s defiance but did nothing about it. After all, what was the point, everyone was going to die tomorrow anyway!

  The general feeling that Garry had whether he was awake or asleep was that of hopelessness. Doom was coming for them all and there was nothing, absolutely nothing, anyone could do to stop it.

  CHAPTER 24

  Nephal was standing on the wall, looking at the horizon over the Vestillian and Yessitic Empires. It was so peaceful this morning. Nephal treasured this moment. He knew that it wasn’t going to last much longer. Nephal looked out again, this time in both directions, in front of him and behind him. There was no sign of the dead army on either side.

  Karn complained, “This is ridiculous! No one is coming! We are just wasting our time out here!”

  Nephal was joined on the wall by every sorcerer of the Kingdom of Noah and of the Vestillian Empire. In total, there were one-hundred and twenty-two sorcerers standing on the wall. On the ground just inside the gates, a massive army of soldiers had been assembled. This
army consisted of seven-hundred and fifty-thousand soldiers. Everyone in this army was armed with a sword, a shield, and a spear. The men in this army were standing as sentinels, guarding the gates.

  Nephal noticed his two friends, Atonick and Eliak, standing nearby. He walked over to talk to them. When Nephal got closer, he took notice of Eliak’s robes. He now had a full set of white symbols. Nephal was astonished, “You’re an Acolyte now?”

  Eliak responded with a smile on his face, “I passed my test two days ago.”

  Then as an afterthought, Eliak added, “Thank you for bringing my mother and brother to Bragsdale yesterday. It was good to see them again…before the end I mean.”

  Elsewhere on the wall, the other sorcerers were making quiet conversation with each other. A few, like Karn and some of his associates, continued to complain. The army that was positioned just inside the gates remained in place and in formation for another two hours.

  “This is bullshit, I’m gone,” Karn said in irritation.

  Karn started chanting a teleportation spell, when King Noah interrupted him, “Wait another five minutes and you will see the armies charging the gates, just as I have foretold.”

  Karn shot back, “Five minutes you say? Fine, I’ll give you your five minutes, but then I’m taking my men and leaving. You can play out your next fairytale without us!”

  The sorcerers waited. Some were anxious, some were nervous, others were impatient. Then something came into view from both the distant east and the distant west. As the men and women on the wall continued to watch, the armies became clearer. Bodies were now emerging from the forests of the Yessitic Empire. They were also emerging from the great hills of the Vestillian Empire, as well as from the distant planes due east. The army from the west (which was coming from inside the Kingdom of Noah) was much smaller than the army coming from the east but, even so, they were still large enough to be a serious threat. The armies from both directions were charging at the gates, moving rapidly as they went. They were both set to arrive at the wall simultaneously.