The Only Way Forward

The lady was at it again. Her petite, hunched over figure was unmistakable. She was engaged in a deep conversation as always, however, her partner was nowhere to be seen. She had been doing this ever since Marina moved into the building. It did not matter how cold or warm it was outside, the lady was always there talking to no one in particular.

This morning, the woman had arrived in front of her building at precisely seven thirty, just when Marina was heading off to work. She had tried on a few occasions to engage with the lady and find out who her relatives were, so they can pick her up. But the woman never spoke to her, she would always fall silent and just stare at Marina, her eyes narrowing as if she was studying her every line, which made her very uncomfortable.

Anyway, there were far more pressing concerns around this time of the year. No one knew exactly when, only that they will be announcing the location of the annual Culling each week of November.

From the start of the month, every populated area around the globe was a possible target and everyone was packing bags with necessities. So was Marina, she had her backpack ready to go at any point and was dragging it with her to work every day.

The government never announced the exact date and location, as the whole place will be abandoned within the hour, so it was always a nasty surprise just before the holidays, which made those who survived ever more grateful to see yet another Christmas.

Just as Marina closed the front entrance door, the woman appeared in front of her, staring intently as usual. Marina jumped from the start and tried to sidestep the lady carefully, but the lady blocked her way again.

“Can I help you?” Marina asked warily. The woman’s eyes were darting left and right as if she was looking around to see if anyone else was around, but they were all alone. The woman finally spoke.

“When you see the first one, do not go with it. Go with the second one. Look for the green light and go to it.” Then she simply stepped away and started rummaging around her black plastic bag.

Whatever Marina expected the woman would say, she could not predict this cryptic message. Granted, they were the words of a mentally ill old lady, who probably had dementia, but it still unsettled her for the remainder of the day.

After her shift was done, Marina headed back home. The old lady was still there, this time among some parked cars talking animatedly to the air in front of her and gesturing with her hands as if she was explaining something to someone. The moment Marina came close to her she stopped talking and just followed her with her pitch black eyes. She was not sure what was going on today, but was also far too exhausted to stay around and try to engage again.

She spent the night doing her usual routine. Marina loved spending the last half an hour before bed on her balcony, enjoying the night sky and the tiny splashes of light dotted all over it. She made herself some chamomile tea and sat down.

It was nearly one in the morning, but sleep was evading her tonight. She still felt unsettled for some reason and could not shake the uneasiness that had come over her from this morning.

Just as Marina began rising from the plastic chair, a ray of bright green light shot right up into the sky. It looked as though it was coming from the beachside of the city near the caves she so loved to go to as a child. This was incredibly coincidental Marina thought.

Then she remembered If there is indeed a green light, was the rest of what the old lady said also about to come true? Just as the swirl of thoughts was making her dizzy, the siren that was installed in each city, town and village when The Culling began started blaring. This could only mean one thing – her city was selected.

Her worst nightmare was about to come true and her hometown was about to turn into a blood bath. Somehow the old lady knew what was about to happen here tonight and was offering Marina salvation. She had to make her way to the green light at all cost.

The Culling began as the last desperate measure in attempts to reduce the population on Earth. Five years ago, governments around the world came to a grim decision in secret. The planet cannot sustain all life on Earth, so they began to introduce all sorts of measures but with no luck. It was already too late.

Fires were a norm now and temperatures were rising with each passing year, so the governments introduced The Culling – a complete obliteration of the population of a randomly selected location. Last week it was a small village in the UK and this week it would seem is the entire city of Varna.

Marina did not even put on her clothes; she just grabbed the pre-packed bag, put on her trainers and winter coat, and proceeded to run out of the flat.

When Marina reached the corridor her neighbors were already pushing each other and fighting to get out of the building, it was absolute mayhem. It was even worse on the streets; cars were crashing into buildings and driving on sidewalks. Some families were huddled inside their homes, crying and holding each other tightly waiting for the last minutes of their lives to arrive. Others saw this as an opportunity to do anything they wanted and to whomever they wanted.

The caves were just as she remembered and the green light was emitting from a strange, occult-looking green circle that was drawn on the ground by the caves’ entrance. The old lady was sitting on a rock right next to it. Inside the circle, there was a figure that kept changing colors. Marina thought she had to be dreaming.

This humanoid creature was dark-skinned, naked, and with red eyes. It looked like the figure of a human woman, but when Marina blinked it was an impossibly white-skinned man with red eyes. They kept doing that every time she closed her eyes, looked away, or blinked. Marina started to back away. Whatever was going on here, it did not look like a way out.

“Do not fear them, girl. They have come for you and you alone.” The old lady spoke up without even glancing at Marina.

She tried to steady her voice and stop herself from trembling, but in the face of something impossible, you lose control of your own body, and so with a shaky and raspy voice she said “What are they? Where have they come from?”

“It matters not now. All will be explained in time.”

“What do you mean when you said they have come for me? Why?”

“I have been watching you, Marina. You are a kind soul. They told me to leave, that this city will soon be slaughtered. I probably should have left, but I am old, a new world should be experienced by someone with a future ahead of them. I asked them to take you instead. They do not trust easily but agreed to meet you here and decide if they will take you. Only one of them will, and it is up to you to decide who you go with if they accept you. You will however be choosing a side as these two are representatives of a species that has been at war with each other since before dinosaurs walked the Earth.”

“How do you know all of this? How can I possibly choose a side in a war that I know nothing about?”

“We do not have time for this. The soldiers will be upon us soon. Both of them have decided they will welcome you into their ranks, so you must choose.”

“I have not even spoken to them, how do they want me already?”

“They read hearts; they know every single emotion you have ever had. Both have found you worthy. Make your decision, quickly now, girl!”

“You want me to go to a war-torn world I know nothing about with beings I know even less of? How is this any better?”

“Because there you will have a chance at survival. The military has the city surrounded. People may try to bargain, hide, fight and escape, but no one ever has and you know it.”

“Fine … Can you not tell me who I should follow at least? Who would you pick?”

“I already said what I needed to say. The rest is up to you, my dear.” At this Marina remembered that the woman had indeed told her what to do.

When you see the first one, do not go with it. Go with the second one.

But who was first? The first one to have come here? How could she know this when they were both here already when she arrived? And they keep swapping, so how would she know? There had to be a way to figure this out.

They appear in the same spot. One looks female and the other male. One has very dark skin, almost black and the other is so white, if it was snowy, she would not be able to tell he was here. They also seem to blur within one another when they swap. They are the same species but are at war and have been so for millions, if not billions of years. They reminded her of … Yin and Yang in a way. Just like what is described in ancient Chinese philosophy texts. Entities that represent opposite forces, which are actually interconnected. This was a long shot but it was all she had to work with.

If this was indeed the case, Yin would represent darkness and be the first to have been born as the universe began, before life and light. She is supposed to go with the second one - Yang. Those were certainly not their names, but it had to be the correct answer.

Marina came closer to the green summoning circle where the two creatures were appearing one after the other, looked back to the woman, and thanked her with a nod.

Marina then waited for the white-skinned man to appear and when he did, she lifted her right hand toward him in offer. He smiled and took it, gently pulling her toward him. When she was fully inside the circle, he carefully wrapped his arms around her. It was strange, but she felt oddly comforted by this, despite the horror that was unfolding only meters away from her and the fact that she was going to an unknown world and abandoning everyone and everything she ever knew and loved.

Marina looked up into his red eyes and suddenly her mind went blank. She had the strangest feeling that she had somehow left her body and was falling into an abyss.

They had not gone anywhere. This was the same beach and the same caves; the only difference was this odd man. She tried to speak, but he put his hand over her mouth and suddenly sprang into action, he grabbed her hand and started running as though they were being chased by starving wolves.

The beach may have looked the same as before, but Marina knew in her heart that her old world was gone and whatever this new one had to offer, she had to be brave and face whatever comes, for the kindness of a stranger who gave up her own life for hers, cannot and should not be wasted.

Marina’s heart sank when a thought occurred to her.

I did not even ask for her name …