This is my entry in NaNoWriMo, and I intend to continue it until it's finished. Just posting the prologue right now, until I have something concrete to post.
Sleepless
0 A.B.
That sound always got to him. The "ding", as the elevator reached the next floor. It was a bit of a pet peeve, but still, how could anybody find ENJOYMENT out of that sound? Who decided that they would make a "ding" whenever the doors opened?
"I really fucking hate elevators," he mused, looking out the glass at the metropolis below him, "especially when I'm inside of one."
Fourty-two. . . . . . . fourty-three. . . . . . . fourty-four. . . . . . . fourty-five. . . . . . . and, after what seemed like eons, fourty-six. It always took so damn long to get up fourty-six floors. Well, then again, the fact that he COULD travel fourty-six stories above the ground was a marvel in itself. But, in this day and age, was that honestly such a marvel? People were flying to the moon for holidays now.
Current Date: April 24th, 2028, 1:48 P.M.
Stepping out into the warm, climate-controlled food area, he scanned the tables for the people he was here for. They were most likely near the Warren's, eating some of those delicious fries. Those delicious fries. . . so mouth-wateringly good, even if they clogged your arteries, much akin to children bending a garden hose to stop the water from flowing.
As he slowly snapped out of his fry-induced trance, he realized that his friends had been not four tables away from him. Smiling warmly at the three sitting there, he gracefully made his way over to them. He had always had a graceful air about him; the way he moved, talked, and interacted with people in general was very feminine. Quite a contrast to his appearance.
Nearing the table, his hunch was proven correct; Warren's fries, burgers, and from what he could tell, Spritzers. Oh, they were so predictable. Always with the Spritzers.
"But is that really such a bad thing? I suppose predictability isn't so bad, when it comes to something as simple as food. . . . Goddammit, I did it again. I'm not a fucking psychologist, or anthropologist, or any of that. I need to stop questioning all of this shit. It isn't hel-"
His thoughts were cut off by a hot, greasy, fry hitting him smack dab in the eye. Closing his eyes, while hearing the laughter from his friends, he stiffled the urge to scream obscinities at them. Realizing they had most likely done this because he had stopped mid-stride (as he usual did when hypothesizing about certain things), he put on a smile, and opened his eyes.
He was met with an almost complete darkness. Looking around, he closed them, and opened them again. This time, there was light, but it wasn't the artificial light his eyes were used to. It was natural light, from the outside. "That's weird. . . who turned out the lights? And why did the Dimming Windows stop. . . dimming?"
Area: Victoria, British Columbia
Population: 5, 320, 600
"Hey, guys, what's going on?" he asked aloud to his friends nearby, even though he couldn't see them all too clearly. The eldest, Leon, offered him a simple shrug of the shoulders. He could hear the confused, panicked murmurs around them, and he noticed people looking around. Food menu's were off. Stoves and ovens were off. The only sound was people talking, which was definitely unusual, even for a food court.
"Let's go look outside. Maybe there's maintenence going on," the younger girl, Riza, offered. Nodding fervently, the group walked towards the windows, which were already full of people looking about. The group pushed their way through the crowd, looking out below.
Everything outside seemed normal. Hoverjets flying about, people taking CommuRides from the hoverbuses to the mall. It all looked normal. So why is all the electricity out in here? What was going on? It definitely wasn't maintenence. A glitch in the system, perhaps?
It was at that moment a giant "woosh" sound was heard. From the outside, inside, everywhere.
The screams soon followed.
Location: West Skye Mall, 46th Floor, Food Court
Everything began to fall out of the sky. The hoverjets just stopped, and began dropping earthwards. The eVOscreens shut off, with the cheerful advertisements for clothing, soft drinks, and free ice-cream now gone. People on CommuRides were either falling earthwards on them, or off of them. And that's when Hoverbus #75-C came into view.
Still flying, but dropping at a rapid altitude, he noticed that people were pointing and screaming. Tilting his head, his eyes picked up on why; the bus was thirty metres away. And it was going to crash directly where he stood.
"RIZA! LEON! MARZA! FUCKING RUN!" he screamed, but his voice was lost in the sea of screams around him. Everybody had turned to run, almost in the exact same instant. He couldn't make out any of his friends, anywhere. "RIZA?! LEON?! MARZA?!?!?!" he screamed again, but to no avail. His cries were muffled by the hundreds of similar cries encircling him. And then the pushing began.
The crowd swallowed him whole, pulling him with them in their frantic dash to escape from the oncoming doom. But it was too little, too late. They wouldn't escape, not with the bus so close to them. "FUCK! I'VE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE, THEY'RE ALL PROBABLY WAY CLOSER TO ESCAPING THEN I A-"
It was then that his ears picked up on her voice. She was screaming. Screaming for help. His help. Turning his head, he saw her behind him in the crowd. He saw the tears streaming down her face. And then their eyes locked. That's when he turned, fighting against the crowd.
"RIZA! HANG ON! I'M COMING FOR YOU!" he shouted to her. Fighting for every single inch, he clawed his way back towards her, as she screamed for him. She let the crowd be her driving force, pushing her towards him. They were close - so very close - to each other.
Finally, she was within grasp. He could hear her calling to him.
"---el-!"
she needs help.
But he could not fight the enroaching crowd anymore.
"R-n--o!"
i need to help her.
He felt everything around him pulling him back, as though they disagreed with what he was doing.
she needs help.
He reached out, like a child trying to hold on to their favourite toy.
"Ren-lo!"
she needs help.
He could feel her hand close tightly around his.
i need to help her.
He cried out in relief, pulling her to his body. Her warmth was like that of an angel.
i have her.
Losing himself in her embrace, he prayed to God they could stay like this forever.
i have her.
However, his prayers weren't to be answered. He could hear reality calling him back, a lost child screaming for it's father. How he wished he weren't a fit parent, and that somebody else would take it from him.
i have her.
we need to leave.
He broke his focus on her, for a sound filled the air. A quick crack of glass, and her calling out his name in fear. Was it fear? Yes. Her voice was masked in the fear.
"RENELO!"
The sound of an explosion filled his ears. They were ringing. His eyes filled with a darkness that was very unfarmiliar to him.
we're going to die.
"RENELO!"
And then, there was nothing.
PLEASE, CRITICIZE. I find this to be acceptable, but I want to improve on things. And, as you can clearly see, I need improvement. I plan to improve the detail greatly when I can, and with that, the length. I know there's much more that needs work, so. . . HELP ME. PLEEEEEEEEASE. DEAR CHRIST.
Sleepless
0 A.B.
That sound always got to him. The "ding", as the elevator reached the next floor. It was a bit of a pet peeve, but still, how could anybody find ENJOYMENT out of that sound? Who decided that they would make a "ding" whenever the doors opened?
"I really fucking hate elevators," he mused, looking out the glass at the metropolis below him, "especially when I'm inside of one."
Fourty-two. . . . . . . fourty-three. . . . . . . fourty-four. . . . . . . fourty-five. . . . . . . and, after what seemed like eons, fourty-six. It always took so damn long to get up fourty-six floors. Well, then again, the fact that he COULD travel fourty-six stories above the ground was a marvel in itself. But, in this day and age, was that honestly such a marvel? People were flying to the moon for holidays now.
Current Date: April 24th, 2028, 1:48 P.M.
Stepping out into the warm, climate-controlled food area, he scanned the tables for the people he was here for. They were most likely near the Warren's, eating some of those delicious fries. Those delicious fries. . . so mouth-wateringly good, even if they clogged your arteries, much akin to children bending a garden hose to stop the water from flowing.
As he slowly snapped out of his fry-induced trance, he realized that his friends had been not four tables away from him. Smiling warmly at the three sitting there, he gracefully made his way over to them. He had always had a graceful air about him; the way he moved, talked, and interacted with people in general was very feminine. Quite a contrast to his appearance.
Nearing the table, his hunch was proven correct; Warren's fries, burgers, and from what he could tell, Spritzers. Oh, they were so predictable. Always with the Spritzers.
"But is that really such a bad thing? I suppose predictability isn't so bad, when it comes to something as simple as food. . . . Goddammit, I did it again. I'm not a fucking psychologist, or anthropologist, or any of that. I need to stop questioning all of this shit. It isn't hel-"
His thoughts were cut off by a hot, greasy, fry hitting him smack dab in the eye. Closing his eyes, while hearing the laughter from his friends, he stiffled the urge to scream obscinities at them. Realizing they had most likely done this because he had stopped mid-stride (as he usual did when hypothesizing about certain things), he put on a smile, and opened his eyes.
He was met with an almost complete darkness. Looking around, he closed them, and opened them again. This time, there was light, but it wasn't the artificial light his eyes were used to. It was natural light, from the outside. "That's weird. . . who turned out the lights? And why did the Dimming Windows stop. . . dimming?"
Area: Victoria, British Columbia
Population: 5, 320, 600
"Hey, guys, what's going on?" he asked aloud to his friends nearby, even though he couldn't see them all too clearly. The eldest, Leon, offered him a simple shrug of the shoulders. He could hear the confused, panicked murmurs around them, and he noticed people looking around. Food menu's were off. Stoves and ovens were off. The only sound was people talking, which was definitely unusual, even for a food court.
"Let's go look outside. Maybe there's maintenence going on," the younger girl, Riza, offered. Nodding fervently, the group walked towards the windows, which were already full of people looking about. The group pushed their way through the crowd, looking out below.
Everything outside seemed normal. Hoverjets flying about, people taking CommuRides from the hoverbuses to the mall. It all looked normal. So why is all the electricity out in here? What was going on? It definitely wasn't maintenence. A glitch in the system, perhaps?
It was at that moment a giant "woosh" sound was heard. From the outside, inside, everywhere.
The screams soon followed.
Location: West Skye Mall, 46th Floor, Food Court
Everything began to fall out of the sky. The hoverjets just stopped, and began dropping earthwards. The eVOscreens shut off, with the cheerful advertisements for clothing, soft drinks, and free ice-cream now gone. People on CommuRides were either falling earthwards on them, or off of them. And that's when Hoverbus #75-C came into view.
Still flying, but dropping at a rapid altitude, he noticed that people were pointing and screaming. Tilting his head, his eyes picked up on why; the bus was thirty metres away. And it was going to crash directly where he stood.
"RIZA! LEON! MARZA! FUCKING RUN!" he screamed, but his voice was lost in the sea of screams around him. Everybody had turned to run, almost in the exact same instant. He couldn't make out any of his friends, anywhere. "RIZA?! LEON?! MARZA?!?!?!" he screamed again, but to no avail. His cries were muffled by the hundreds of similar cries encircling him. And then the pushing began.
The crowd swallowed him whole, pulling him with them in their frantic dash to escape from the oncoming doom. But it was too little, too late. They wouldn't escape, not with the bus so close to them. "FUCK! I'VE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE, THEY'RE ALL PROBABLY WAY CLOSER TO ESCAPING THEN I A-"
It was then that his ears picked up on her voice. She was screaming. Screaming for help. His help. Turning his head, he saw her behind him in the crowd. He saw the tears streaming down her face. And then their eyes locked. That's when he turned, fighting against the crowd.
"RIZA! HANG ON! I'M COMING FOR YOU!" he shouted to her. Fighting for every single inch, he clawed his way back towards her, as she screamed for him. She let the crowd be her driving force, pushing her towards him. They were close - so very close - to each other.
Finally, she was within grasp. He could hear her calling to him.
"---el-!"
she needs help.
But he could not fight the enroaching crowd anymore.
"R-n--o!"
i need to help her.
He felt everything around him pulling him back, as though they disagreed with what he was doing.
she needs help.
He reached out, like a child trying to hold on to their favourite toy.
"Ren-lo!"
she needs help.
He could feel her hand close tightly around his.
i need to help her.
He cried out in relief, pulling her to his body. Her warmth was like that of an angel.
i have her.
Losing himself in her embrace, he prayed to God they could stay like this forever.
i have her.
However, his prayers weren't to be answered. He could hear reality calling him back, a lost child screaming for it's father. How he wished he weren't a fit parent, and that somebody else would take it from him.
i have her.
we need to leave.
He broke his focus on her, for a sound filled the air. A quick crack of glass, and her calling out his name in fear. Was it fear? Yes. Her voice was masked in the fear.
"RENELO!"
The sound of an explosion filled his ears. They were ringing. His eyes filled with a darkness that was very unfarmiliar to him.
we're going to die.
"RENELO!"
And then, there was nothing.
PLEASE, CRITICIZE. I find this to be acceptable, but I want to improve on things. And, as you can clearly see, I need improvement. I plan to improve the detail greatly when I can, and with that, the length. I know there's much more that needs work, so. . . HELP ME. PLEEEEEEEEASE. DEAR CHRIST.