05-The Beast

A wet dog smell assaulted my nose, a heavy weight pushed against my chest, and something dry and crusty covered my forehead. Muddled memories of a dog jumbled around in my brain like a jigsaw puzzle missing most of the pieces,

“Bobby?” I asked confused,

“Get off me Bobby,” I commanded softly, the weight didn’t move. Memories came to me in flashes, a growl, a whimper, messy handwriting on a small page. A beast in the church, my breathing quickened as I remembered all of what had happened before I went out cold, I struggled against the weight, opening my eyes all I saw was darkness so I closed them again. I started to panic as the weight didn’t shift, I was madly shoving at it every way I could but my left arm was pinned so the only proper one I could use was my right. After a few minutes of frantic pushing I managed to move it just enough so I could get my face out of the shaggy mass that I was beginning to realize was the beast. I lay there panting and slowly opened my eye and uttered a small gasp, a grinning skull with empty eye sockets seemed to sneer at me, a raggy priest’s uniform hung around it. I averted my eyes unable to cope with the sneer of its face. I was under the animal and from what I could see we were in front of the alter. I gasped wondering how I survived. For the better part of the next hour I struggled under the beast trying to get free. Finally I managed to shift it a little and roll out from underneath. Standing I looked down at it. All of the fear it put into me while it was alive was gone, the power it had held was now wasted. The animal itself just looked like a bigger version of Bobby and I wondered why I’d killed it, a howl from outside the church reminded me. A cool evening breeze brushed past my knee’s, I quickly crouched down and tried to find the knife matted in the creatures fur, every second felt like an eternity almost as if I was waiting for the next beast to stalk behind me and have me for it’s meal. Goosebumps from the breeze prickled on the back of my neck and down my arms, I needed to find the knife and fast. My hands ran along the fur wishing that I would hit something hard praying to God in his run down church that he would help me. I guess I got my wish because within a few seconds I found the hilt and pulled. It came out with a sickening snick. I became aware of the receding light from the windows and stood up shocked wondering what happened to the day. Ignoring the light I bent down and wiped the drying blood on the animal then slid the knife into its sheath. Walking to the door seemed to take and age. I didn’t want to be doing anything. I wanted to go home and see my brother and sister, maybe this was all a dream. Soon I would wake up and have to go to work to pay for my mothers booze. Anger bubbled in my belly at the thought and I pinched myself. The pain told me that it wasn’t a dream. I sighed and looked outside. Instead of gravestones there was now just grass, and a weedy gravel path. I sighed, I couldn’t see the road and I had no idea where I really was. I turned around back into the church and tried to figure out how I could block the doorway, nothing came to mind so I went into the priest’s part of the church. The walls were old and slightly crumbling but I couldn’t really do anything about that. I closed the door carefully behind me and went into his kitchen, a single door led into a hallway. I decided not to go down it instead closing the door and settling down in the same place I slept the night before. I got the blanket out of my bag, it smelt damp but at least it would keep me warm. I lay there listening to the loud calls of the birds and animals outside the church. I didn’t want a repeat of this morning so I kept my knife near me. A part of me knew that getting away from the animal today was pure blind luck, I wouldn’t survive another attack but the hopeful side of me shut it out. My breath fogged out above my head I pulled my bag over to me and got out my diary pen and torch. Turning to the page after the one the priest had written in I saw more in the same handwriting.

Thank you lord,

My faith is renewed. I don’t know how but the church stood while everything else was damaged. I opened the doors today and called out to all that could hear to come to the church. The girl’s siblings turned up, Lucas I think the boy’s name is was asking for his sister. She’s disappeared the night of the blue flashes. They said they would stay until their sister turned up. 5 other’s are staying with us.

Aldis is in my prayers wherever she is.

I looked at the next page. There was more that the priest had written,

Aldis the girl appeared again exactly the same as the night of the flashes. Her siblings were so happy to have their sister back. But it didn’t last long. They tried to wake her but she wouldn’t come out of her slumber. She slept the sleep of the dead, except she was still breathing. The light from the windows turned a baleful white. The other three decided to leave. I advised them not to but they didn’t listen. As soon as they opened to door they disappeared but the door looked as if it had never been opened at all. I don’t know what is happening but I am sure that God is doing this for a reason. Our food supply will last us for another year but water is our more pressing concern I only have enough for the next month. I hope this has all ended by then.

I sighed and turned to the last page not wanting to read any further. It was blatantly obvious what had happened they had run out of food and starved to death. Dejected I started to write my next entry into my diary.

_{Dear Diary}

_{I went to sleep last night and woke up with everything weird. Nobody was here; the church looks as if it’s been abandoned for 100 years. I don’t know how this is possible, but it seems to be. The priest is not just a skeleton at the altar. A giant dog the size of a car attacked me! I’m alive; although I’m not sure if that’s a blessing or a curse it’s going to stay that way though. Tomorrow I’m going to go home, hopefully something is still there. I want the family blade for protection. Plus I might be able to find some food.}

_Aldis

I put the pen down and waited for the ink to dry. Closing everything and putting it in the right places I wrapped my blanket up closer to me to keep the heat in as much as I could. After a while I fell into a shallow and restless sleep. I waking at every sound near the church and almost having heart attacks every time.

04-I am not worthy

Unease gnawed at my gut. I opened my eyes the sight confused me, a gentle white light shone into my eyes, blinding me slightly, I put up my hand to shield them, and looked around, the walls were crumbling, the couches and coffee table was gone. So was the carpet. I stood up slowly the wooden beams of the roof were sagging and I could see holes in parts of it a strange light shone through it the same light that was bathing me in a warm glow, the carpet I slept on was now dirt, nothing remained not even the underlay. My bag was still in the same place, although it looked older, where the coffee table was my dairy was now sitting on the floor the pen and ink beside it. Everything looked older the diary was curling in on itself, and the pages where yellowing. I turned to the bag, it looked okay nice if a little worn. I had no idea what had happened but already my survival instincts where kicking in, as well as a worry for Lucas and April. I went and picked up the diary, I opened it to the last page I wrote in. The ink was fading and the paper was yellow, but there was something else not quite right, indents on the other side. I turned the page quickly. Someone with a really messy handwriting had written in the diary, the ink was old and fading just like the rest but I took no notice, I was too caught up in what it said.

To whomever reads this,

God’s wrath has finally come upon us. The end of the world is nigh, and all of us have caused it. Forgive me father for I have sinned I have not headed your call, I thought I was a man of God. I thought wrong. We are all DOOMED. An angel appeared to me last night in the form of a girl I once knew. Full of innocence and hope. She asked me to do one simple task, I failed. I know she was an angel because she said the Holy Lord’s Prayer with me in Latin, no girl these days would know it. Alas forgive me Lord I have failed you; she disappeared without a trace this morning leaving her bag shoes and book here. I can see it happening in my head, the end. It’s playing over and over, there is a bright flash of light and every human dies. Inner cities are reduced to rubble in seconds. I can feel it; everything waits with baited breath for the Human plague to be rid of on this world.

Forgive me.

Forgive me.

For I am not worthy.

That was all it said. There was no doubt that the priest wrote it. I let out my breath realising that I was holding it in. I ran over to my shoes and put them on, showing the diary, pen and ink into the bag I closed it and went into the interior of the church. It looked almost the same as it had the night before apart from the layer of dust coating everything, but it felt, eerie. I shivered, not with the cold and felt Goosebumps travel the length of my spine. Trying to remain calm I slowly went to the double doors. I had a sudden feeling that if I opened them something bad would happen. I realised I would need protection of some kind I had no idea what had happened but from what was written in my diary I decided to make it clear that I did have a weapon. I opened my bag again and rummaged around for the knife Lucas had put in there for me; once I got it out along with a small sheath I put it on my belt. My heart started to race as I put my hand on the door, I pulled the knife out carefully, the silver blade glinted in the dim light from the stain glass windows, the handle was carved bone rough but easy to grip. I pulled on the door slightly it opened just a crack; I could feel my heartbeat pounding through my ears. A small sliver of white light shone through the cracks lighting up the church and blinding me; when my vision returned sunlight was peeking through the open door but an instant later a big shape blocked it back out. My breath caught in my throat. I froze like a rabbit in the glare of headlights. Something sniffed, it sounded big, I stayed where I was, and it sniffed again. Then a deep rumbling growl shook me back to my senses. Whatever was on the other side of the door, it was big, very big. And it sounded hungry. I took a small step backwards; the thing growled again I took another step back. Quick as a flash the door slammed backwards with enough force to break the hinges, the door went flying missing me by a millimeter. My hands started to shake as I saw what was in front of me; it was like a gigantic shaggy dog. It was as tall as me and full of muscle, I knew there was no way I could fight this or run. I decided to make its meal as unpleasant as possible. Holding my shaking hand in front of me with the knife in it I growled in the most animal way I could. A cloud covered the sun, and it started to get dark really fast. The beast’s eyes looked me over. It growled back challenging me.

“You want a fight!?” I yelled at it, meeting its challenge,

“I’ll kill you, you hungry prick!” I thought of my mother trying to hit me and the fires of anger in my belly roared up covering everything else.

“Come get me!” I screamed. The beast didn’t know what to make of me; I could tell it usually had to chase to get its meals. I was confusing it. I screamed wordlessly at it. It growled, I screamed again, my vocal chords were getting hoarse. It whimpered, reminding me of Bobby, I stopped screaming, and that was all it needed to decide, it pounced. I sliced. It hit me and I realised that I couldn’t win I was going to die. A hot liquid landed on my face, the beast whimpered in pain. Then all of its weight collapsed on me and I knew no more.