The Shatter [ON HOLD]

1

I am entering this story into the SciKick contest!

My world is dead. The trees are dead, the sun is dying, and most of the humans are dead. Me, however, I am very alive. But not for long. I know I'm going to die soon, and I accept that. I'm going to live my life however I want to though, seeing as there is really nothing more to screw up. Except the search droids, of course, but the really need a bullet to the circuitry.

My favorite place in Saint Paul is the ruins of the Saint Paul Cathedral. It was one of the first things to be destroyed by the flares, closely followed by the rest of human made Earth. This place is different to me though. The structure is in tatters, but the life of it stands strong. It's like the building is alive. I might sound crazy, but it's hard to describe.

When I arrived at the cathedral, there was something across the old road that I had never seen before. It was a giant glass dome. It does sound strange that I had never seen it before, and there are no other people to build it, let alone that fast. I decide not to think about it. If I'm going crazy, why do I have to know it?

I walked closer to the dome. It was in perfect condition. Not a single shatter that I could see. There was a boy inside. He was wearing a green shirt that said JUST DO IT, rough looking blue pants, and red shoes with white laces. Compared to my ripped grey jacket, shirt, and pants, he was dressed fairly nicely.

I rapped on the glass, trying to get his attention. I screamed and yelled "Who are you?" He stared at me like he had seen a ghost. "WHO ARE YOU?!?" I screamed. I couldn't hear him, but I read his lips. He was saying How are you there? Are you a ghost?

A familiar buzz came from around the corner. As the search droid turned the corner, I flashed the boy a twisted smile and took off. I dragged my hand across the glass as I went, and he ran with me. When I reached the end of the dome, I gave him a wave and kept running.

---

When I got to my family's house, or what's left of it, my little sister Lucy ran up and hugged me. "Ansley!" she shouted. "Did you lose all of those search droids?"

"You bet I did!" I said, picking her up and putting her on my shoulders. "Did you get dinner tonight?"

"Daddy did," she said. "He found an old farm with potatoes and carrots and everything!"

I smiled. It had been weeks since I had a full meal, but the rest of my family always did. I let them have mine. Ever since Mom died, I took care of them. "Wow!" I said. "That'll last weeks!"

"I know!" she squealed. "I got to pick the potatoes!"

"Well I can't wait to eat them!" I replied. "I have to do something though. I'll be back for dinner."

"An," she said. I could hear no fear in her voice. She is so much stronger than me, though I would never show it. "Don't die, okay?"

I didn't respond.

---

There was no obvious way into the glass building. I looked all over, but there weren't any doors or openings. I only saw one solution- break in.

The fog on the glass had returned where I had seen the boy before. I hoped to see what the inside looked like if I rubbed it away, but I just saw him. He was sitting this time, staring out at me. When he saw me, he jumped and pointed to a bat behind me.

I gave him a puzzled look. "Baseball?" I said. Then I realized what to do. I picked it up, jumped, and smashed it against the glass.

The bat broke.

He looked disappointed, while I had an idea. I motioned for him to stand back, pulled out my pistol, and shot the glass. There was a big crack, but it didn't break. At least until I hit it with half of the bat.

Glass shattered all around me. I ran behind the dumpster for cover, and just in time. A search droid zipped behind me, completely ignoring the falling glass shards. After the last piece fell on the ground with a clink, it felt like everything was silent.

I walked into the glass building, which was more like another world. It was another world. We were in front of a big building that looked like the old cathedral. It was whole again, and there was green grass behind me, and there were cars. I hadn't seen a working car since the world ended. The boy was covering his face with his hands, but when he looked up he relaxed a bit. "Hi," I said, "my name is Ansley. Who are you and what is this place?"

He said, "Uh, my name is Evan... We're in Saint Paul..."

"No, that's Saint Paul," I said, pointing back out to my world. "Where am I?"

"Saint Pau--" He was cut off by sirens, but not the radioactive waste siren I'm used to. Just in case, I pulled my old gas mask I had found in a museum out of my bag and put it over my face. "What are you doing?" Evan asked, looking panicked.

"It's my gas mask."

"Um, okay... Can you take that off please? It's kind of scaring me." He did look scared.

"What," I replied, making my voice even raspier than it normally is in the gas mask, "you're afraid of gas masks? I might just keep this on."

He looked really uncomfortable. "Do you not like me?"

"Not one bit. So what are the sirens for?" I asked Evan.

"Well," he said, reaching back to scratch his neck, "it's usually when there's a security breach in the city..."

"You think it's me."

"I think it's you, yes," he said sheepishly.

I slipped off the gas mask, running my hands through my hair. "Go ahead, run away so you don't get in trouble. I don't care. I'll just go back into my world now," I said while walking towards the shattered glass wall.

A pair of hands gripped my shoulders, followed by others. Something was held over my nose and mouth. I clawed at it, but it wouldn't budge. "Wait!" Evan. "Wait, no--"

That was the last thing I remember.