Till Death

They looked into each others’ eyes, reciting their vows, deliberately, yet sweetly.

As they exchanged their rings she also gave him a heart-shaped locket that was passed from generation to generation, from mother to daughter to be given to their loved one during their wedding ceremony as a symbol of their eternal love.

Once they were pronounced husband and wife, a piercing sound in the distance took everyone’s eyes off the bride and caused hearts to pound and stomachs to sink. They all knew it. It was the sound they dreaded and the sound that they trained for every day during their elementary school years. It was the announcer of utter chaos and destruction.

Trained as they might, nothing could prepare them for the real deal. The guests ran out in chaos. Every warning they had been given as children was forgotten as they began piling against the door while the building started to crack under its own weight.

As the pieces of the church fell and flew and the wood creaked, the husband grabbed his bride and hid under the altar, protecting her with his own body. Smoke started to fill the air, not only was the building collapsing but as it did so, the candles that flew astray lit the nearby curtains and any nearby ribbons and dresses on fire, and as the guests struggled against the door.

Shrieks of fear and pain ensued adjoining the sounds of the sirens, making the shrieks sound almost natural.

The main dome fell on top of the altar forming a cocoon that protected the newly-weds. After what seemed like an eternity of pain and panic, Death filled the smoky ruins and the bride and groom found their way out of the cocoon to discover that their whole world had collapsed alongside the church as everyone that they knew and loved had perished.

As the demise of the building was complete, the sirens appeared to grow louder, destroying any hope that they may have held on to, that anyone else would survive.

They walked hand-in-hand stepping on the fallen stones, disoriented, finding disfigured faces and hands held aloft peering through the rubble.

They decided to find their way to their bunker, Grandpa Steve had been right. He had always warned of imminent doom and built a bunker after the second world war. They knew they could seek shelter there. It was only ten minutes away, just enough time. They could make it. But, when they arrived at the bunker, much to their dismay, it was full of survivors fighting, some to the death, for any scraps of food that they might be able to salvage.

Edouardo remembered the words his grandpa spoke, “if there is a war, and a nuclear bomb is detonated, get inside. You have ten minutes. Find the bunker, or a basement, worst case scenario, stay in the middle of a building. Wait nine days before fleeing into the woods, follow the water. It will guide you to nearby towns.”

But now, there was no bunker, and there were no buildings standing. Leaving them no choice but to seek shelter in the neighboring forest. It was a long and grueling walk to get to anything resembling a safe place as most of the trees at the edge of the forest were burnt down. It wasn’t until nighttime that they reached any semblance of safety. Despite it being night, the sky glowed red, for remnants of the mushroom cloud that enveloped nearby towns continued to expand. Their lives were spared. For now. But, through the fatigue, they were acutely aware that the radiation would soon ravage their bodies. As they fought their way through the brush, the only thought that each had was the safety of the other.

Once they found what they deemed to be a secluded location, they began to dig frantically. Knowing, that a mere three feet would mitigate the damage of further radiation.

Once they dug, what eerily resembled a grave, they could no longer stay awake. A few hours later, when they awoke and clarity overcame panic, they realized that a small creek was just a couple of feet away.

They ran to the water and washed ash soaked bodies and clothes, their only regret was that they had not noticed the water sooner, knowing that it was too late to successfully decontaminate but hoping for a miracle.

Edouardo, an avid fisherman, grabbed fish out of the creek with his bare hands, never in his life, would he have thought that angling would have been an option, nor that he would be agile enough to succeed. Yet, the desperation paid off, and he caught enough for a day’s meal.

But as the hours pass, dizziness and disorientation begin to take hold and they begin to walk without clear direction, hoping to find somebody. No more than ten hours later, Edouardo was no longer able to walk and extreme fatigue had set in, leaving Sophia to use every ounce of her own strength to drag him along the creek bank in search of any signs of civilization. She tried to gain as much terrain as she could, but soon Edouardo's weight and a sense of despair overcame her.

She looked at her husband one more time and fell on her knees. He was trying to say something but life left him before he could say anything. She then noticed that he was holding the heart shaped locket and crawling down next to him, she put her head on his shoulder and held his hand with the locket’s chain intertwined with their hands.