End Of The Line // Ralph Dibny

Chapter 34 - Helpless

As expected on our way in we had to pass through lines and lines of protestors harbouring around the perimeter with signs demanding for them to shut it down. Though passing through them seemed to prove to be a quite difficult task. After many polite attempts from my father and I, we were about to resort to more of a... let's say physical approach when my phone dinged stopping our plan.

I pulled it out and with a heavy sigh read the disappointing words that the machine had already been turned on, my heart sank a little when I looked up to the sky and my surroundings and nothing had changed or happened. I suppose that was a good thing though.

With a heavy heart I called my dad over and told him the news, "I'm sorry for making you drive us here, we might as well just go," I sighed.

He placed his hand over my shoulder fatherly, "I know this meant a lot to you, no need to apologize."

As I stared up into the cold night sky an icy drop of water hit my face, and another, and another until the whole sky started to rain down on us. Normally I liked a nice shower but this was slowly becoming a downpour.

"We should get going, we'll catch a cold if we're out here too long," he broke the minute of silence and guided me towards the car. Several loud crackles of thunder rattled the sky and shook the earth as we broke into a run to shelter.

My hair and clothes were soaked and I used both hands to try and pull down my hood so it didn't fly off in the wind.

We jumped into the car and shut the doors quickly, the rain struck the roof like a drum and I watched from the safety of the vessel as pedestrians around us also scampered for their vehicles. We both relievingly sighed glad to be in here as I felt the heat turn on.

Absentmindedly I reached for my bag but my hands were met with empty space, "Aw, Fu-" I cut myself off remembering my dad's morals on swearing, "-Frick."

"What?" he asked.

"I think I dropped my bag in all the commotion..." I hesitantly said while furiously scavenging the area, praying that I left it here.

"Willow-"

"I know! Stupid careless me," I opened the door to get out.

"No stay here, I don't want you slipping or getting lost in this mess. I'll be right back," he said and got out of the car, closing my door behind him as he left.

I stared out the window, my eyes sharply following his figure, but even through my focus his figure inevitably got drowned out by the tons of water plunging down from above.

Little did I know, that when the building exploded with a deafening sound, that moment was the last time I would ever see my father again.

Or so I thought.

...

He's alive. He's here. He's...

a psychopath.

My eyes shot open and gazed at the unfocused dusty brown room for a couple of seconds before my brain registered the pain spiking around my body. I harshly coughed as I inhaled a now dusty and demolished room. Cursing under my breath I used my right arm to push my self up, though, within seconds of applying pressure to it, it collapsed under my weight.