I'll never forget his eyes

A sudden flash of light...airwaves knocked me from my feet...intense heat...engulfing flames sucked every iota of breathable air leaving only charred remains in its path. Then a loud crack and a sonic boom followed by silence. I opened my eyes and saw only darkness. My mouth was parched. The heat was unbearable. My skin was boiling. I tried to stand, but I was too weak. I tried to crawl but to where I know not. All I wanted was someplace cool...someplace wet. I wanted water. I strained my ears hoping for the sound of something familiar. Nothing. I felt around me for anything I might brace myself against and I found something that might work. I pulled it closer to me. It was about three feet long and heavy. It was wet. I explored it with my hands and soon discovered it was the severed leg of someone. In disgust, I cast it aside. What has happened to our world I screamed?

I rolled over on my back and looked toward the sky. For the first time in my life, I could see the Milky Way and thousands of stars. They must have bombed us finally. It must have been a big bomb because there are no sirens, no lights, no signs of rescue. My breathing was becoming more labored, shallow, more frequent. My lungs must have been damaged during the initial blast. How could they not have been? We had no warning. No time to prepare. Why did someone feel the need to drop a bomb on me? I did no harm to anyone. I've never hated anyone. I've always tried to share happiness and love wherever I went. And now I lay somewhere burned, gasping for breath because someone else decided to kill me and others like me. "Why can't I breathe?", I gasped again. I wiggled over to my side and started breathing better. I took in a deep breath before thinking I must have a collapsed lung or something. "Stay off my back.", I said aloud.

The entire city was gone.

I crawled and reached a street curb. There was something overturned there that I used to help me sit up. It was then I could see the extent of the damage. The entire city was gone. It had been leveled. There were fires everywhere as far as I could see. I tried to stand but could not. My leg was too badly burned. I found an old shopping cart near me and I tore the hinged back of it off and sat in it like a wheelchair. I rolled myself to the end of the block and found a shattered fire hydrant spraying water like a beautiful fountain. I rolled into that fountain and sat there taking in big gulps of water and washing away the filth and grime from my body. It was then I noticed I still had my grandmother's heart-shaped locket around my neck. She had given it to me just this morning as a gift for me to give to my new bride. I held it in my hand and gazed at it and wondered if my grandmother and my bride had survived. My thoughts turned to my finding them when I heard voices.

I still had my grandmother's heart-shaped locket around my neck.

I looked around and saw two men approaching me. One of the men said, "This one is still alive". The other replied, "Not for long. He's lost his leg and he's bleeding out fast." "What's he holding in his hand?", said the first one. "I dunno. Roll him over and let's see. Check his pockets for valuables too."

I felt them roll me over on my back. I tried screaming, "Not my back. I can't breathe.", but no words came out, only groans. One of the men opened my hand and saw the locket and quickly snatched it from around my neck and put it in his pocket. The other man rifled through my pockets and removed my wallet and some other things I had. Only then did he make eye contact. I'll never forget those eyes. They were cold, hard, and ...