Apocalypse

”PLEASE!”, Hornibrook shouts. “Think about your comrades! Your FRIENDS!”

The ground shakes as the Ones Above squabble over godly matters. Mixer looks at Hornibrook with a distant look in his eye. He looks at his watch and immediately realizes that time is running short.

”I’m sorry”, Mixer sighs. “I’d explain myself, but you’d never understand. You never listened to me when I was among you.” He turns his back to his former squad and moves toward the Old Gear, Siren Key in hand.

“MIXER! STOP IT RIGHT NOW!”, Rena bellows, as she readies her laser bow and aims it directly at Hornibrook’s head.

”Hornibrook“, he growls silently, “If you value your lover’s life, then I would suggest you tell her to drop her weapon immediately.”

“Rhea! Stop! I’m trying to talk to him!”, Hornibrook pleads.

”Don’t you think we’ve done enough talking?!?!”, Rhea roars. “I’ve never liked you, you know that?”, she snarls at Mixer.

Mixer ignored Rhea for a moment. He analyzed the beautiful, and very old architecture of the Lioness Sanctuary, then turns back to Rhea with a devious smile. He chuckles. “Yes, Rhea. I’ve gathered as much. You‘ve always looked down on me, even as children, even when there was never any reason for someone like you to treat me the way that you did. From the moment you looked at me when we met at the farmer’s market in Edgartown, you saw me as inferior. And I will admit that for a time, your strength was far greater than mine. But while you’ve tried to play mother to a group of spoiled, entitled, talentless royal children, I’ve learned techniques and seen things that you couldn’t even begin to fathom. I’m far above you.”

Rhea smacked her teeth. “Well, you’ve certainly become a lot bolder, talking about my students like that. Would you like to test that theory?” She pulls the string on the bow back as far as she can. “That you’re stronger than me?”

Mixer lets out a deep sigh. ”If her fingers come loose, I will kill her the same way Wayne killed Amelia”, Mixer tells Hornibrook.

”WHAT DID YOU SAY?!?!”, Rhea barks at Mixer. He shakes his head and places his hand on his sword, ready to draw it.

”GODDAMN IT, MIXER!”, Hornibrook howls, his teeth flashing with blinding white rage. ”DO WE NOT MEAN ANYTHING TO YOU?”

”No, actually. You don’t”, Mixer coldly asserts. “You were never my friends. Don’t try to force nonexistent memories upon me. When I truly needed you both, you pushed me away just like everyone else.”

Hornibrook’s eyes widen, tears flowing freely down his face. “Push you away?”, Rhea asked, perplexed. ”We saved your life. I SAVED YOUR LIFE. Even when I didn’t want to.”

”Well then I guess you don’t have that problem anymore, do you?”, Mixer retorts with a evil smirk.

Rhea laughs aloud. ”I guess I do-

The ground shakes once again, this time powerfully enough to open small cracks in the ground, and to unbalance the former squad. The Ones Above angrily shout at each other with enough force to frighten lions into submission. Their constant infighting was the source of myth, said to be world-ending in its titanic nature.

“They never stop”, a feminine voice echoes through the room. Mixer recognizes it immediately. “It’s like we don’t even exist to them.”

”Alexandra”, Mixer utters.

”Mixer”, Alexandra responds. “What is troubling you? You seem so upset. It’s been so long since I’ve gotten to see your face.”

”You are RUINING this family, d’you hear me?!?!”

”Everything I do is FOR this family. Don’t get mad at me because you’re too stupid to see that!”

”Don’t call me ‘stupid’, you damn prick! You can’t even see how you’re screwing up our finances- GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME!!!!!”

“Please, tell me what’s wrong“, Alexandra pleads. Mixer studied the woman he once believed to be the love of his life. She slowly inched her way toward Mixer with a deeply worried look on her face.

”My”, Mixer muttered. “You’re even more beautiful than I remember“, he recounts in a lifeless, monotone, robotic voice.

“Do you wish to save the world, my old friend? Or destroy it?”

“Yes. You know what troubles me.”

”Do YOU know what troubles you?”, Alexandra suggests cryptically. The two stare each other down intensely.

”I don’t have time for these riddles”, Mixer scoffs as he made to turn around.

The grounds shakes again, enough now for open small cracks to open. Rhea and Hornibrook look at each other with anxiety as Mixer and Alexandra stare holes into each other.

“PLEASE! Think about this! You barely paid off the sharks last time! It’s time to let it go. My kids need to have a normal life!”

”We can have a life that’s better than normal, honey. I have a plan that’s gonna make all this shit seem trivial. I PROMISE.”

“Please! I just wish to talk to you.”

“There is nothing left to say here”, Mixer respond.

“Mixer! Please listen to me. You don’t know what you’re doing-“

The ground shakes even more violently than before. Pillars from the sides of the room fall and shatter on the ground. The warriors evade debris and multiple fissures open in the ground.

”I’m tired of you thinking you can disrespect me!”

”And I‘m tired of having to cover for your ass! I’m not going to let your sickness destroy my kids!

”Oh, you fucking- I’M NOT SICK! I FEEL AMAZING! I AM THE BREADWINNER OF THIS FAMILY AND I JUST FUCKING PROVED IT! AND YOU ARE NOT GOING TO CONTINUE DISRESPECTING ME!!

”OWWW!!! YOU‘RE HURTING ME! STOP!”

“Mixer!”, shouted Alexandra, who was hanging from the ceiling, claws struck, “There’s so much you don’t understand.“

”I understand enough.” Mixer hops across the stairs, now split apart from the force, but is cut off by Rhea, who shoots 5 arrows at Mixer faster than most can react. Mixer deflects them all with ease and teleports around Rhea, who desperately tries to get her butterfly blades out in time to defend herself. She slashed her blades at Mixer, which shatter on Mixer’s emerald saber upon contact. He kicks Rhea square in the chest, sending her flying in the process. Hornibrook leaps from the entrance and used a dragon spell in retaliation. Mixer moved out of the way, energy exploding behind him as he clashes swords with his former friend. The two are struggling when all of a sudden General Jamison with all five of his heads, burst through the wall and kneed Mixer in his side, sending him across the room. The 12th Divison of the Fair Patrol storms through in flank formation, with Rhea beginning to recover and Alexandra lowering from the ceiling.

”MIXER! YOU’VE GONE FAR ENOUGH!”, General Jamison bellowed thunderously. The Fair Patrol soldiers move into position.

Mixer looks around and comtemplate his options. “Mixer!”, Alexandra shouts. “There are things you need to know! About the Ones Above! There’s no need for you to activate the Old Gear!”

”Humor me, then! Since you don’t seem worried in the least, tell me: why shouldn’t I stick this key in and finish it off? We’re at their mercy every day we live!”

”Please, listen to me”, Alexandra pleaded. “The Ones Above created this world specifically so that we could survive in it. Look at the cracks on the ground.” The ground was coming back together, almost as if it was healing. “We would have been destroyed a while ago if we couldn’t survive.“ Alexandra smiled with a nervous reassurance. “Please, come back. I am sorry about the way things ended between us.“ Mixer’s hardened gaze began to loosen. “We still have time to fix things. You aren’t too far gone. You still time to chan-“

A mug falls from the top of the dresser and shatters. The cries of Michael’s mother were enough to shake the foundations of the house. Startled, Michael gets up from his bed and makes toward his bedroom door. He picked up his black notebook, small and worn, and left his room on route to the kitchen. The shreiks of his parents grew louder as he came closer to the kitchen.

“Don’t come another fucking step closer, you BASTARD!”, Michael’s mother snarled with a knife in hand as her son stepped into the room.

”Alex“, Michael’s dad responded calmly, “you are going to make me upset. Put the knife away.”

Michael’s mother laughed aloud. “Well, you make me upset EVERY FUCKING DAY. How does it fe-“ An furious gaze reverted to fearful in a millisecond. “Oh, my God.” She did her best to perform a facade of things being well, tossing the knife into the sink. ”Hey! What’s up?”, she exclaimed nervously.

“Hey, buddy!”, Michael’s father shouted enthusiastically that could save anyone from the jaws of death. “What’s going on?”

“My mug fell”, Michael responded.

”Oh, really? The mug you won at the carnival?“ Her fake concern over the mug was nonetheless masked by her heartbreak over her shattered family. “Here. I’ll come back to clean it up in a second, okay? G0 back to your ro-“

“Hey”, Michael’s father blurted. He handed Michael a broom. “Clean it yourself, okay, bud?”

”What the hell is your problem?”, Alex curses as she snatched the broom away. “He’s 7.”

”HE will not be 7 forever. I really wish you would quit babying this kid.”

”Well, he wouldn’t have to clean up his mug if you didn’t shove me into a goddamn wall”, Alex muttered, voice breaking throughout.

“Michael, go to your room and stay out of the glass.” Michael’s father turned to his wife. “I need you to give me my wallet right now.”

“Why? So you can put us in debt again?! We just managed to keep the house from being foreclosed. Use your head, Ryan! You are ruining this family! OUR. FAMILY.”

“I know I’ve had some bad bets”, Ryan lamented. “But I promise I have a plan this time, and if it works we will never have to work again! I just need you to trust me.”

“You’re one of the WORST gamblers I’ve ever seen!”

”You only need to win once. I won this time!”

“Ryan, please, listen to yourself. It’s only $20,000! It’s not like you’ve won the lottery. We have enough money now to do more than survive, but not if you piss it away on your gambling problem! I won’t let-”

“I don’t give a shit about what you THINK you won’t let me do!“ Ryan roars as he snatches Alex by the hair.

”Ryan, stop. You are HURTING me”, Alex croaked meekly.

”I told you that I have a plan, and I am GOING TO SEE IT THROUGH. You need to tell where my wal-“

“DO YOU NEVER THINK ABOUT YOUR BROTHER?!?!”, Alex shouted through tears. “DO YOU CARE ABOUT ANYONE BUT YOURSELF?!?!”

”Tell me WHERE THE FUCKING WALLET IS!!!”, Ryan screamed as he tossed his wife into the cabinet under the sink.

“STOP HURTING MY MOM!!!!”, Michael shrieked as he attacked his father with kicks to his ankle. In one sudden movement, Ryan turns around and backhands his son, nearly knocking him out.

”NOOOO!!!” Alex cried. ”WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!?!?” A young boy is heard crying from another room. “Harry”, Alex muttered as she started to stir.

Michael’s father grabbed his son by the face. “I’ll be good and goddamned if I let you disrespect me too.” He dropped his son to the ground and picked up his notebook. “You’re gonna help me at the shop from here on.” He walked to the garbage can and slammed the notebook in it. “That means no more writing in that stupid notebook all day. You’re going to WORK. THAT is what real life is like.”

As Alex slowly rose to her feet, tears streaming down her face, and his baby brother Harry howling at the top of his lungs with no sign of stopping, Michael sat up, barely familiar with where he was, with a planet-sized explosion going off in his head, with billions of voices crying in agony, as his only outlet, his only means of escape, was disposed of, like insignificant trash.