Blue Evening

He knew that leaving the cell phone behind would be the wisest choice to make. That couple was calling their daughter before… being killed. It is chaos even for adults and young adults like them… how will a child cope or even act in this chaos?

Will his sister… be okay in all of this? His father? His mother? Will he even survive? With a side glance, the reason he is alive now: is Elliot. He froze when the dragon appeared and debris fell.

Ever since this mayhem started, he has been such a dead weight… "I feel like shit." Never in his life had he felt such helplessness and impotency. "Hope K.J and the others are okay…" Despite everything, they are not the type to go down easily.

Looking at windows is the natural thing to do when you catch a car ride, yet… Lawrence couldn't bring himself to stare at them. Not when a pandemonium is raging around them. How do things go so insane, so fast?

"I want to sleep…" For all of this to be a nasty nightmare, just a night terror, but there is no denying the truth, this is not just a nightmare or a trick of the mind. It is somehow all real, everything that is happening there is real.

Without a warning, Elliot hit the brakes, almost sending Lawrence forward. "What happened?" he just spaced out for a few moments. How could something like this happen in just a few seconds!?

"Lawrence, just what the hell is that thing?" Surprisingly, worry cracks in his friend's voice, as he points towards something ahead in the road. From the air, something materializes. Big as a bus, with thick, black, and blue fur.

As more of its body appears, its true form is revealed. A species of giant hound, with shining green eyes. The windows blow with rage, strong enough to start moving the car they are in with their strength and speed.

His entire body froze in grim realization, a giant black hound, strong winds. A— "Elliot! Cover your ears with anything! Don't dare to listen to anything!" They do not have time if it is what he thinks it is.

Hastily, Lawrence picks his AirPods, sticking them deep inside his ear, and putting the loudest music in his playlists. His eardrums felt like they would rupture and leave him deaf.

The hound looks at the sun, preparing to do something. Elliot doesn't move at first, confused and surprised, but obliges, putting his own AirPods.

They look at the car's windows, and suddenly people and monsters fall to the ground, spasming and jerking. Their hearts race without any good reason, besides the giant dog. Beating so hard that it may as well jump out of their chest.

Cold sweat runs through their faces, as their eardrums are overloaded with sound, to drown the world outside the car. Anticipation and fear, overwhelming fear clouding their vision and mind, a malevolent grasp holding their muscles.

Blood starts to drop from their eyes, nose, and mouth. Lastly, their hearts skip several beats, as overwhelming fear grasps at their very being, with the bodies of monsters and people alike vanishing into thin air, into nothing, leaving only the corpses of the already dead there.

Without any warning or reason, the giant hound vanishes, just like it had come. Lawrence forcefully takes the AirPods, feeling as if his eardrums would burst at any moment, with them pulsating and ringing inside his head.

Looking to his side, Elliot didn't seem much better. Throwing his weight against the seat, the white-haired young man stares at the car's ceiling, trying to recover from just what happened.

Holding his mouth, he notices something wet and warm in his hand. Looking at the rearview mirror, blood is dripping from his eyes and nose. "We didn't hear the howl… yet… we are affected?"

He had underestimated how devastating the supernatural howl could be to a human being, and even to those red goblins. They stay there, for a few minutes, recovering from the supernatural event.

"Lawrence… what was that?" Elliot asks with a neutral voice, staring blankly at the scenery before them, free of the living, raptured by that thing. Truth to be told, he only has a theory of what it is, but if it turns out to be the truth, which he thinks it is…

"A Cu Sith. A hellhound, if he barks three times, and you listen, you drop dead." The most direct explanation, no details are needed to understand what this thing does to a person. The sight before them already tells how destructive these barks are.

With a hollow laugh, Elliot gives a weak punch to his arm. "All of that mythology trivia came in handy, huh?" He tries to pass a playful tone in his voice, but it sounds hollow, he is too tired for it.

With a second more attentive glance at his friend, his eyes and nose are bleeding. "That thing messed us up… we didn't even hear it barking." What else to expect from a hellhound? The fact they survived is a miracle.

They stay there, looking at the void before them for a few minutes. "Can you drive, Elliot? I don't want to see this… scenery anymore." Although the living disappeared, the dead are still there, in plain sight.

"I think so. I don't want to see this, either." Turning on the car, they drive away from there. Without a second thought on stopping. Shaking his head, the white-haired young man takes his phone, checking his notifications. A new one pops up, a message from his sister.

"Hey, brother. Shit hittin' the fan 'round here. Monsters appearing and all. I managed to deal with some of them already. Don't worry about me. Keep yourself safe, 'kay?"

At least, one less thing to worry about… right? "Why did I worry about her? Ha. Knowing how she acts, she must be dealing with stuff way better than I…" If she managed to kill monsters already and didn't freeze… "A young sister shouldn't have the leg up over her older brother, Laura…"

"Hey, Lawrence, do you see what I'm seeing?" Calling his attention, Elliot points quickly at a wolf's maw made of black flames rising to the sun, as if trying to swallow it. He doesn't know what it is. A wolf swallowing the sun is too much.

A roar echoes in the sky, somehow reaching them despite the distance. An unwelcoming sight appeared in the skies once again. The wyvern on the skies once again, but this time with the black and blue hound on its back, gnawing and crunching its wings.

"This is bullshit. Let's take a detour!" Steering the wheel in another direction, Elliot stomps on the accelerator. Tempted by curiosity, Lawrence looks back, to see what is happening.

The giant beast roars once again, being taken down from the skies, hitting the city as the "Cu Sith" jumps from its back, dissolving into thin air like the time before. A shockwave spreads from where it fell, a loud impact reaching them, even with the distance.

"Why does this crazy shit keep on happening!?" His friend screams at the top of his lungs, visibly altered by the sight. Who wouldn't be after seeing a wyvern being taken down from the skies by a demon dog?

…

Just as they get away from the wyvern landing, crowds and panicked people start to appear again, making driving hard, and detours needed to avoid running over the panicked pedestrians running away from monsters.

What should've been a quick trip to the park, ended as a maze run through the chaos and mayhem, taking detours for their survival and to avoid crashing down on other desperate drivers.

"The entire city is plunged into chaos!" That would be an understatement. A few hours ago, another explosion of black flames raged through the sky. Things are becoming more and more chaotic as time goes on.

Without any control, Lawrence thinks out loud: "Where are the army, the police? Where are they?" A snort echoes from his side, Elliot grimacing, showing clear disdain on his face.

"What do you think they are doing? Trying to save themselves first, the politicians and billionaires first, us normal people get damned to this hell." Those harsh words, but ones he is also inclined to agree with, seeing the escalation of events taking place around them.

As they finally approach the Blu Evening Park, the sight changes. Fewer people running or dead, and more monster corpses in great piles, brutally killed by someone. "Or something." Either way, something intelligent has been fighting the monsters.

Some were burned, others just maimed, others bent into strange positions, clearly brutalized. Right at the entrance of the park, they exit the car. The sky burning dark red, with dozens, maybe hundreds of monsters dead and in piles.

"Maybe the others got here?" A faint and useless hope, he knows. Yet a part of him still wants to think the ones that killed those monsters were his friends, and they succeed at reaching the park like them.

Taking the pocket knife out, Lawrence looks into Elliot's eyes. An understanding between them. They entered the park, their guard held up high. Right at the entrance, many monsters lie dead, put on trees' branches.

Others were against the benches or machines across the park, their heads smashed and limbs bent into unnatural positions. As they progress, more corpses appear, in greater piles than the ones outside the park. Someone has been busy, killing them.

Green and red goblins, hounds of many types, and more beasts. Lawrence pitches his nose, the horrid stench of the corpses hitting his nose. As they follow the piles, they reach the center of the park.

Surprisingly, it is "clean" in comparison to the path they took— just a few bloodstains, but no corpses. There, someone calls for them. "You guys are late— I thought you wouldn't come." A tired voice, but one they know well.

"Kyrie, you are okay—" He looks towards the direction of the voice. Kyrie is there, without his characteristic hoodie. His pants were torn and ragged, the same as his shirt, its red color mixing with blood and gore, not his, probably from the monsters.

A great sword resting by his side, right next to him, James, sitting on the ground, a tired look on his face. Near them, Spencer, Tyler, and Cain, barely holding themselves together. "What the hell happened to you guys?"

In answer to this, the quintet shares a soft laugh. "Too much shit, Lawrence. Too much shit." By their beaten and roughed look, one could guess what they went through. Every one of them appears as if they exit straight out of a war zone— seeing the surrounding massacre, it is a fit comparison.

"Catch!" Spencer throws two cans toward them, and without effort, Lawrence picks them up. The can is almost at room temperature, looking at it, is an energy drink can. Classic flavor. "Let's forget this for now. We have a hangout to finish, hm?"

Yes. The start of this strange day. The plan was to hang out with friends and enjoy the Sunday. Not try to survive the apocalypse. How things have derailed… "Did you also bring snacks?" Spencer shows a backpack, full of chips, snacks, and energy drinks.

Well, at least they could make a "feast". "Say, there is a nice spot up there. We will get a clear view of the sundown." The redhead says, pointing to a slightly higher point of the park, connected by a staircase.

The group walked in silence. K.J and James were the least beaten up, with the former carrying a strange one-edged sword with its blunt edge resting on his shoulder. Those two, different from Spencer, Tyler, and Cain, are drenched in blood

Surprisingly, there is no other sound inside the park besides the sound of their footsteps against some of the bloodstains on the ground. "Just what you guys have gone through to be able to massacre so many of them?"

Besides the sword in K.J's hand, before this day he never would be able to wield a weapon as tall as him— yet it is the most unsurprising thing of this insane day. They walk silently through the stairs, enjoying the silence.

For a few minutes, Lawrence even forgot he was holding an energy drink. "Better open then with everyone else." Opening his now would be awkward. As they reach the higher point, Kyrie sticks his sword on the ground and rests his arms against the fence.

Cain sits on the ground, with Tyler copying K.J's stance. Elliot and James standing parallel to each other, as Spencer goes out to give the rest of them an energy can and snacks. One thing common to them all is that they are staring at the red sun going down, staring at the horizon.

"So, what is the plan, this?" Elliot asks, popping up his energy drink. An exhausted sigh comes from Kyrie, who adjusts his position, to open his energy drink of orange flavor. Cain stands in silence, just viewing the sunset.

"I have been to one of the evacuation points. If it still is standing, we can go to it. If not, guess being in the city isn't that bad. Despite those things coming our way." The redhead leaves a small chuckle through his mouth as he speaks.

On the horizon, a wave of monsters flying and running their way, like an endless flood. A cloud of beasts… they won't get a moment's rest if this cloud is anything to go by. "Evacuation, huh? Who is evacuating people out there?"

Inquiries Elliot, a bit of suspicion in his voice. "The militaries. I think it is our only chance to get out of here if they are still here." Elliot snorts, as Kyrie continues to drink his energy drink. The others seem to think about it.

"Can you guide the way, then? After we are done here. If they are still in the city, it is better to go with them." Surprisingly, the one to raise his voice in question is Spencer. Going with the military is indeed a good choice but…

"I won't go with you, sorry. After we are done, I'll go search for my sister and parents. They are out there." Despite the danger, it is the only right choice in his heart— His sister still is in this city, and god knows what situation she is in. Lawrence can't abandon her like that.

Unexpectedly, Tyler raises his voice. "I will stay with Lawrence. Some people need help. I can't leave them alone, not when I know I can do something about it." The desperation in his heart subdued. He won't be alone, at least.

"I will also stay, I don't trust the military. I think there is something fishy about all of this." Unsurprisingly, Elliot raises his vocal opinion. Leaving just James and Cain to say what they will do.

Either way, it doesn't matter. They won't be able to cross paths after this. "One last cheer for us as a party?" This draws a laugh from everyone, who raises their energy drinks like glass bottles.

"CHEERS!" Kyrie and Spencer will take different paths from theirs, and only God knows what is going in in Cain and James' heads. As far as they know, this will be their last time together.

Staring at the sunset on a horizon filled with beasts, they drink energy drinks and eat snacks, as if the world hadn't changed so much in a few hours, as if things were still like before. As if they won't be separated.

The last normality of their lives, before the incoming pandemonium. They would enjoy the little piece they have, the calm before the storm. "Say, Kyrie. What happened to your hood? You would never part with it willingly."

A happy and uncharacteristic chuckle leaves K.J.'s mouth. "Yeah. Gave it to a girl. She was roughed up by some green freaks." A clumsy smile plastered over his face— he must be feeling good about himself for saving someone.

In a playful tone, Elliot tries to break the ice. "So, was she a pretty girl, Kyrie? You scoundrel!" K.J drops his smile, looking like someone punched him in the face. Did Elliot hit a sore spot? Did something happen?

"Elliot… she is a middle schooler." Even Lawrence couldn't keep a small chuckle, seeing the punchline of the incoming joke. Looking around, Tyler hides his face, looking away, while Spencer tries his best to keep a neutral expression.

"Kyrie, I expected this from Benjamin, but of you?" K.J almost choked on his energy drink, while Cain let a burst of howling laughter out of his mouth. Even the Stoic James has a slight smile on his lips.

Both Tyler and Spencer start to laugh, trying to hide their faces— to not laugh directly at Kyrie. Elliot, did his best to keep his laughter at bay. "G-guys! Is not like that! Fuck you, Elliot!"

Unable to keep his laughter at bay, Lawrence joins the group, closing his eyes while trying to not drop or spill his drink. "Et tu, L.L??" Everyone laughed. As if the world around wasn't burning.