Impact

The sun was setting when Adam crossed the street and an archaic gate guarding the entrance to the forest. The place was deserted at this hour and Adam wanted to calm his mind before he reached home. He jogged up the hill, following a winding, moss-covered alley.

While running, Adam listened to the noises of the animals coming from the distance. The zoo was nearby, at the center of the forest. Even its denizens seemed restless in Adam's ears.

When he reached the top of the hill, the last rays of sunlight shone on the clouds. The eastern part of the sky was already claimed by the night. The only bright spot in the otherwise dark sky was the asteroid.

Adam gazed upon it and shuddered. He recalled the strange vision from before. He knew it was a mere illusion created by his tired mind, but at the same time, it felt real to him. Adam wondered for a minute if he was going to become one of the mad prophets too.

The asteroid slowly approached Earth. He reassured himself that in the next few days it would pass and everything would go back to normal.

Now though, it looked back at Adam ominously, like an eye of some otherworldly beast, ready to pounce on its victim.

He quickly shook this feeling and started running again. He wanted to spend the rest of the evening with his family.

Adam had a wife and a daughter. He loved them more than anything else, and he did everything he could to provide for them and ensure their happiness.

When he reached home, Carol had just finished making dinner. They ate it and watched a movie together. Later, Adam gently tucked Susan to sleep and returned to his wife.

They chatted about the events of the day, the deal Adam had struck with Smith amongst other things.

"You don't even like Smith. Why did you take this deal?" As they were talking, Carol pouted and turned away from Adam.

"Because it's too good to pass up," Adam ruffled her hair and chuckled. "Besides, I have to provide for my family, don't I? Especially when it gets bigger," he put his hand above his wife's belly.

"Now, why don't we hit the bed? It's getting late and I have to get up early tomorrow."

"You wish!" Carol snickered. "You are going to clean yourself first. I can feel not only how much but also what you drank with Smith. I might let you into the bedroom when you're finished."

Adam woke up early in the morning covered in sweat. The vision came to him again in his dream. He was unnerved and even a little scared.

He didn't have the time to dwell on the matter though. He had to attend a hearing before the district court in Tarnow, one of the smaller towns in the province.

Adam had just reached the town when the sky behind him brightened for a second. Looking back, he wondered if someone had flashed long lights at him for some reason, but the ray was too powerful to be a car light.

A minute later his car radio went silent and his cell phone started vibrating furiously. He reached for the cell to check what happened when a trembling voice coming from the radio broke the silence.

"We have just obtained the most urgent news. The asteroid fragmented into several shards. I repeat, the asteroid fragmented. Its pieces changed their course. They will strike Earth at various places in approximately an hour," the voice broke down at the end of the message. "May God help us all," the message ended and the radio began playing music again.

Adam hit the brake abruptly when he heard the speaker. The car behind him also stopped, bumping gently into the back of his car. The driver in front of him wasn't that lucky though. He crashed onto the next car with full force.

The street instantly turned into a big mess and the sounds of multiple impacts came from around. Adam grabbed his cell phone and left the car. Maneuvering between the cars, he reached the sidewalk safely. He looked at the street and saw a scene of madness.

Multiple cars collided with each other, their drivers screaming and yelling either from pain, anger, or terror.

Adam reached for his cell and the first thing that popped on the screen was a country-wide message from the government's Crisis Management Centre.

It confirmed the radio news and listed the locations that would be struck by the shards, one of them between Cracow and his current location.

Adam quickly dialed Carol's number. The call didn't go through though. All he could hear in the speaker was static. He checked the phone and noticed that there was no reception at all.

Adam banged his fist against the building wall in anger. "Shit! Okay, think Adam, think! What should you do right now?" Adam tried to calm down racing thoughts and think logically. A rough outline slowly formulated in his mind.

He wouldn't be able to reach Cracow before the Impact, as the message had called it. Not with all the cars stuck on the streets and people running around in panic.

He would leave the town on foot and try to find a car on the way. The first thing he had to do though was to somehow contact Carol and then find a safe place to wait for the Impact.

Afterward, he would reunite with his family and keep them safe.

***

There were fifteen minutes left when Adam got to a higher part of town. He believed that he would get better reception here. Just as he reached for the cell phone, it buzzed on its own.

Adam saw his wife's name and immediately answered the call.

"Honey … hear … Adam! … can you … at home! … safe … love you." He could barely hear her voice through static, most of it too unclear to understand. "I can hear you! I will get to you!" Adam shouted while tears welled up in his eyes. "I love you too" He whispered before the call was cut off.

Adam breathed deeply and smoothed his jacket. It calmed him a little bit. Knowing that his family was waiting safely at home for him, he could now take care of himself.

He was running again, looking for some kind of open space to stay until the Impact. Adam assumed that waiting in a building or a cellar could be dangerous, even fatal. He didn't know how big the shards were, nor what would happen when they struck.

He surmised that it was best to stay away from buildings and other tall objects.

Carol and Susan were at the zoo when the warning about the Impact showed up. Susan was six and this year was the last opportunity for Carol to strengthen their bond.

Her daughter would soon start attending school, and Carol would be busy with the newest member of their family. As such, Carol spent most of her time with Susan.

The little girl was running around animal enclosures, while Carol was sitting on a bench, reading a book, and listening to the soothing sounds of the forest.

Her peace was interrupted by a buzzing of a cell phone. Carol ignored the annoying sound and checked up on Susan. She was watching peacocks at the moment, glued to the cage bars.

Carol looked at the sky and the dreadful asteroid. To her surprise, it wasn't there. In its stead, a few dots of light appeared, growing bigger with each passing second.

The zoo sound system came to life at this moment. It broadcasted a message similar to the one sent to everyone's phones.

Carol saw the panic unfold. Some checked their phones in disbelief, but most of the visitors began running around, looking for the shortest way to the exit. She reached Susan in the blink of an eye and grabbed her hand tightly.

They ran together toward a side entrance, and upon reaching it, they saw the staf leaving the zoo in a hurry.

Carol and Susan quickly reached the road leading to their home. Halfway there they stopped to catch a breath.

Carol took out her cell and dialed Adam's number while they were resting.

The call went through but she heard only static.

"Honey, can you hear me?! Adam! If you can hear me, we will be waiting for you at home! Please, be safe. I love you," Carol didn't know if her husband had heard her but she needed to say what she felt anyway.

Carol took Susan in her arms after they had finished resting and ran to their home.

They reached it safely five minutes before the Impact. Carol locked the door behind her and led her daughter to the living room. They crawled under the dining table and hugged closely.

Adam found the right place five minutes before the Impact. A large square filled with grocery stalls, a local market of sorts. When he reached it, he saw people running around and grabbing everything that wasn't nailed to the ground.

"Illusion of civility crumbles" Adam chuckled silently. The world suddenly grew brighter, all the noises drown by a deafening roar. A giant flaming arrow flew over the town and vanished in the distance.

Adam kneeled and hid his head in his arms. He covered his ears, closed his eyes, and prepared for the worst. A giant explosion bloomed on the horizon, followed by a shockwave and an ear-piercing rumble. The earth creaked and trembled beneath everyone's feet.

When the shards struck, a strange wave of light rose from the depths of Earth and shot into the sky. For a fleeting moment, the blue planet turned golden, surrounded by a blinding halo that disappeared in an instant.

Adam lost consciousness and his limp body hit the ground when the light vanished. Every living being inhabiting Earth blacked out and the planet itself stopped for a second in trepidation. The dawn of a new era was upon it.