The Purging

They are coming

“I...I’m not sure. Please, my father has a ton of money. You can have whatever you want, just please, please let me go.” She stretches her hands out at her captor and pleads, “For God’s sake, just name it! Tell me what you want!”

Rubbing his hands together and licking his lips the monster chuckles lightly, “You have nothing I want, insect. No amount of money or favours could ever make you more than a bag of meat in my eyes. However, there is something that I need.” The girl’s face lights up and she excitedly blurts:

“Of course, anything, anything you want!” Razor sharp fingernails wrap tightly around her neck, and Kagan lifts the girl off the ground, holding her aloft directly in front of the camera.

“What I need, you miserable wretch, is to set an example for the rest of your worthless species.” With that, he squeezes and pulls, shredding the windpipe of the terrified girl. Shuddering like a leaf, she grasps at her neck trying desperately to stop the sudden rush of blood flowing from her freshly opened jugular vein. A waterfall of claret spilling out down her front, arterial splashing on the lens, Kaley desperately stretches out her hand off frame and mouths the words ‘help me’.

Now standing above the quickly expiring human, Kagan rears back with his right hand, and plunges it through the back of her ribcage. A deafening crunch echoes in the room, as Kagan twists his arm back and forth inside her torso. Pulling his hand back out, he produces her heart, displaying it proudly to the camera. With a smile and a wink he shoves it between his lips. Mouth wide open, he chews the organ into paste and swallows it, twitching with delight the entire time. Having finished his refreshing snack, he licks his lips and fingers, displaying for the first time his long, thin forked tongue. It darts from digit to digit, cleaning them of any remnant of his kill.

Picking up the husk of his now expired meal, he tosses her backwards over his shoulder. Kaley’s lifeless body bounces off the back wall and lands head first on the floor behind the sofa. The thunderous sound of her neck breaking brings back the pleased expression on Kagan’s face. Surrounded by the gory tableau he has created, clothes and couch now drenched in blood, he returns to his announcement.

“We chose this decadent socialite as the first casualty for good reason. She is a shining example of all that so disgusts us about your world. Moreover, we want you all to realize that there are none among you who are safe. Regardless of how much you have, where you live, or who your daddy is, you are not safe. The kings in your midst will die just as readily as the paupers. There will be no peace talks, no negotiating, and absolutely no mercy. I am not here before you to declare war. That would imply you have some hope of survival. This is a courtesy. I am merely notifying you of your impending extinction.”

He steps back and seats himself back down on the sofa, crossing his legs and cracking his knuckles, “I am however a sporting man. To take you by surprise would be the act of a coward. The attacks will commence a week hence. So ready your militaries and kiss your loved ones goodbye. Those of you who have unfinished business, now would be the time.” His gaze shoots sharply to the right, eyes widening, “Oh yes, where are my manners? I’d completely forgotten. To our cousins of the other ancient tribes; your cooperation is appreciated but unnecessary. If you, like we, have the desire to see Homo Sapiens time on this earth come to an end, then by all means join us in our glorious cull. I will be available for parlay for the next few days if you’d like to coordinate with us. I must however caution you that any and all interference on your parts will be met with swift and decisive retaliation.” He then stands up as tall as he can, takes a step forward and executes a theatrical, low bow. “I look forward to hearing from all of you. By the time this is over perhaps the world will return to way it used to be. To the way it was always meant to be. But for the time being, from me to all of you, human and otherwise, good night. And more importantly, good luck.” He caps off his speech with a wink, and the screen fades to black.

After going online, the video receives few hits at first, but internet buzz quickly mounts. Major news outlets around the world feature it in nationwide broadcasts. Much of the audience treat it as a ridiculous hoax, a publicity stunt perpetrated by a bored little rich girl with a penchant for drugs and no respect for authority. In the media circus that follows, her father is sought after for comment but is nowhere to be found. Friends of the victim post numerous video responses claiming up and down that she disappeared from her bedroom two weeks prior and hasn’t been seen since. As the hours pass by, the hits keep going up but the public consensus is not to worry about it.

Two days after the initial video is posted, a website appears, bloodwillflow.org. It features the original clip along with a host of new content, much of which are videos featuring other pale skinned and red eyed faces. Some are cataloguing firearms and sharpening knives, others calmly discussing the proper way to butcher or bleed out a human being. The page’s principal draw is a clock, ticking down to seven days exactly after the posting of Kagan's blood soaked public address. As the timer grows closer to the zero hour, public reaction remains by and large benign. Isolated pockets of doomsday enthusiasts aside, humanity treats it as nothing more than a joke made in very poor taste.