Kyle West - Darkness

“Is that man you?”

Elias said nothing, neither confirming nor denying this.

“You ask advanced questions — questions even my own disciples do not ask. You have seen much of this world, that is clear. The Voice has yet to fully reveal her purpose, so I can only show you the truth I know. Truth is like a seed — if you plant and nurture her, she will grow and bear fruit for all to enjoy. It takes but one storm, one tempest, to sweep that seed away before it takes root. But once the truth takes firm root, she grows into a mighty tree that not even the strongest storm can topple.”

I didn’t understand why Elias was telling this parable. And I didn’t understand why he was so convinced that Askala was truth. She wanted to kill us all, to conquer the Earth. All she cared about was unlocking the Secrets of Creation, which would allow the Radaskim to control the universe — if even that was true. Earth was just one of thousands of stepping stones the Radaskim would take in their goal to conquer the universe.

But how to explain this to Elias? Any effort would be pointless. If Askala controlled him, as I thought, then there was no way he would believe me. He would think I was the crazy one.

I had to try, though. I had no other options.

“There are two of these Voices,” I said. “There is the one you follow, and there is another. They are eternally at war, these two. In fact, it is called the Eternal War, and it has been going on for millennia upon millennia.”

Elias nodded. “Yes. She has told me some of what you speak — but I am wary, Alex. You have knowledge that even I do not know.”

“What I’m trying to say is…” I paused, trying to make sure I wasn’t going too far. “She might not be the answer you seek. This Voice is only trying to conquer the world and couldn’t care less about us. It’s all about them.”

I felt my words were lost on Elias, and that came as little surprise. He only smiled, shaking his head.

“No. You have it wrong. Askala is saving the world. I, too, fought this truth. Things went much better — much better — once I accepted it.”

“She is saving the world by destroying it.”

“Yes!” Elias said. “Ragnarok was aptly named. In Norse mythology, Ragnarok was the day the gods had their reckoning, where the world was destroyed in fire and smoke. So it has come to pass on Earth. We had become arrogant, with our towers, our entertainment, our riches. It sickened those above. We were made low, but from the ashes will rise the New Humanity — one joined in purpose with the Voice from the Great Beyond.”

“That…is one way to look at it,” I said.

Elias nodded. “With Askala is her son, Chaos. The spread of his wings and his children’s will blot out the sky. He is less like a bird and more like a reptile, yet both of those things at one time. His scales are pink and glow in the sunlight like some unknown gem. He has a long neck and tail, and glowing white eyes.”

Elias looked at me, wondering at my response. I saw no harm in telling him about what he had dreamed — the only question I had was how he could even know about these things, unless he had seen them at some point.

“I have seen that one,” I said. “There are many like him, only smaller.”

“The End is near, then,” Elias said. “You have given me everything I need to know. The Ascension must begin immediately.”

I hoped Elias did not plan on starting any bloodshed. But when you were dealing with a madman, they played by their own rules and no amount of logic or reason could dissuade them from their aims. History was rife with examples of men killing others all because they believed themselves to be Chosen Ones.

“I will agree with you on one point,” I said. “The end is coming.”

Elias stared at me coolly. Finally, he held out a large hand. Regrettably, I had to take it. The hand was cold.

“I believe we have much to learn from each other,” Elias said.

Elias let go of my hand, and began walking away. He kept his head faced toward me.

“Come. I want you to meet the Community.”

Elias led me from the chamber we had been standing in into a dark tunnel. I paused at the threshold as Elias walked on. He did not turn back; he merely walked deeper into the tunnel, illuminated only by pale bulbs casting everything with a sickly yellow light. About fifty feet distant, Elias half-turned, a shadow within shadows. I noticed, then, decade-old dried blood caked onto both sides of the walls. It was as if that blood had been painted. Tell-tales splatters hinted at some sort of struggle, long ago. A struggle the Community had not cared to clean up after.

There was little else to do but step forward, following after Elias. At my approach, he turned and continued to walk.

I tried to ignore the blood, which had likely come from the “Realization” Elias had spoken of fifteen years ago. Why they’d decided to leave it there, I had no idea. I decided not to ask about it, instead walking quickly down the tunnel until I caught up with Elias. We walked shoulder-to-shoulder for a few moments before he broke the silence.

“We number thirty-eight right now,” he said. “Including children.”

“Children?”

“You shall see.”

The thought that this man had children was horrifying in and of itself.

We had come to the end of the tunnel, which opened up into a large chamber. It was another recreation room, only larger, filled with about fifteen women. Three sat on a couch in the center of the room — two took up another couch, while the rest stood, all facing the door, as if they had been waiting for Elias. Or, perhaps, me.

I scanned the faces, but I saw that Elias had told the truth: there were no men, not even among the children.

I had no idea what to do in that moment. I only stood there next to Elias, unmoving.

“This is the Community,” he said. “The Chosen of the New World. When the time comes we will leave the darkness behind and strike into the light. The world will be remade once more into a land of green and warmth. The cold and gray shall pass away; a new era shall dawn — the rebirth of humanity begins here.”

All of the women stared at with vacuous eyes. Except for one.

She stood in a far corner by herself. Her blue eyes burned with extreme hatred, even as the others look flat and lifeless. It was an anger she didn’t bother to mask — the kind of hatred that could only be nursed by years of pain and resentment. She was perhaps twenty-five years old and had long, unkempt brown hair.

Elias, however, did not heed the woman with the burning blue eyes.

“How much longer?” one of the women asked confidently. She was tall, with blonde hair, and was perhaps thirty-five years old. She sat on the couch between two other women. I instantly pegged her as a leader. “Are these the Outsiders you prophesied about?”

Elias said nothing for a moment, then slowly nodded. “Yes, my dear Lyn — the Outsiders have come. The End draws near.”

Instantly, the room broke into excited — and perhaps frightened — whispers. The woman who had been staring angrily at Elias now looked shocked. Her eyes fell to the floor. I had no idea why she grabbed my attention so much. Maybe I was looking for anyone who could come over to my side. I needed any ally I could get. I had no weapon to defend myself with — nothing but my bare hands. Running was my only option, but how far would I get? Bunker 84 was the home of everyone here, and I wasn’t familiar with it. I would be running blind.

I was outnumbered. All I had were the words in my mouth. Any challenge to Elias’s authority would probably lead to my getting killed. But his talking about prophecy and dreams — these sounded like abilities that could be imparted by the xenovirus. After all, I had dreamed things about the Wanderer because of the Elekai virus inside of me.