The Fallout

Ashes float down from the night sky as I make my way through the dense trees of the forest. The last known green space in this gods forsaken land will possibly be my resting place if I don't hurry.

Glancing up, as I take a short rest, I see the moon glowing through the curtain of falling ash. I would think it pretty if not for the red haze drifting through the night sky from The Fallout, it's what we, the ones that remain, call the event that almost killed all life on this world.

Shaking my head I can't dwell on the past as my present is in danger; I have to keep moving.

As I ran through the trees the only possession I was able to take was the most precious to me. The weight of the golden heart shaped locket around my neck is the only thing left of my love. My heart aches to see him again, but I know it is impossible as silent tears slide down my dirt encrusted cheeks.

I have to move faster because I hear them behind me. "She went this way, hurry!"

My heart skips a beat as I recognize that voice. Why? My own brother hunts me now? We are the only survivors in our family, but yet he wants me dead to. He, as well as the others in the camp, think me a monster. I am not, but that doesn't stop the hatred, the bloodlust in their hearts. They want to blame someone, why not the widow of the man they deemed a monster.

After The Fallout there were changes in the land and the people. Some developed different types of abilities while others became something else. I would have laughed at the mere thought of any of this if I had not seen it with my own eyes. Red eyes, sharp teeth...it reminded me of the old monsters from the stories before The Fallout...

I was one of those that developed an ability and I used this within the camp I lived in. I have not done anything to deserve this hatred!  I scream inside my mind. I help those who need it. I heal those who are sick, and this is what I get in return!

My tears dry, sorrow no longer heavy in my heart, anger remains.

"How could they," I hissed as I continued through the dense trees using the moon as my guide to lead me out of the valley.

I stopped for a moment to rest when I didn't hear those angry voices and leaned against a charred tree. "Mira...” what was that? I looked up into the trees, but nothing hid among their dark branches.

As I turn, I can see an opening in the trees and beyond that I only see shadows. It feels as if I am being drawn toward the darkness by something...familiar.

"Mira come to me...”  The voice flows through me once again; the richness warming my body.

"Could it be?" I whisper as I make my way to the opening, pressing the locket to my chest. As I walk through, I glimpse a dark figure at the center. My feet move on their own as they float toward the shadow. My heart stops as I see the silhouette, I cry out in joy, disbelief. "No, I saw you...! You cannot be my Nicholas!" Tears stream down my russet cheeks.  I moved closer hoping this was not a dream.

The dark figure smiles down at me; the shadows hide him in darkness as a dark cloak covers his shoulders. His dark hair blows around him covering his body in strands of ash and darkness.

"Please do not cry, my love. I have come back for you."  His voice is a gentle caress against my heart. "They could not keep me away from my heart," he lifted a gloved hand and gently cupped my cheek.

Leaning into his touch, I look up into his eyes, seeing swirls of silver as he gazes down at me. "I thought you were dead." I whisper as I step into his open arms. He holds me close. Warmth surrounding me, the bitter cold disappearing; the sounds of her brother and the others are no more...

"Those bastards hurt you, I saw them..." my tears began to flow once again.

"Shh, my love …" His voice flows through me as I snuggle closer. His eyes drifted to the locket that rested against my chest and smiled, "you still have it." His voice gentle in memory

I nod as I lay a hand over the pendant, "the only thing left of you when they took you..." I clutched it tightly in my hand. "I want them to pay for what they did to you...," my voice soft, bitter.

Nicholas chuckles as he smiles down at me and that is the moment I saw them. His eyes fading to red, glowing like rubies. His teeth, white and sharp, glistening like pearls in the moonlight.  I know what he is, and I am not afraid.  He is my husband, my love, my life.  I see love in his eyes as I smile, tilting my head.

The other's feared him because of what he was turned into because of The Fallout; like the monsters in the old books, he needs blood to live and they saw him as a monster because of that. Even though he had never hurt anyone in that camp.

Red eyes shine with love as he looks at me.  "They will," he lowers his head, sinking his fangs into my willing neck.

I moan in pleasure as his voice caresses my mind, "Yes my love, they will all pay with their lives.”