Apocalypse Of The Gods

Chapter 2- Transform

Alora’s POV

   Aziel and I reached the research lab after running for what felt like forever. We saw vehicles everywhere in the streets along the way that were no longer running. It was strange seeing the city this quiet. It was so still it didn’t feel right. The red cloud that had been over the city was now gone and all that was left was a gray sky. 

   We ran through the parking lot of the research facility and up to the glass doors, stopping at the entrance and trying to open the doors. They were locked and we looked inside through the glass to see if there were people inside. We saw no movement in the building and the parking lot was full of vehicles. There should have been people, if they were still alive. 

   Aziel started knocking on the doors while I looked around the entrance for a call button. I found it around the corner of the space where the door is and pressed it then waited. I got no response so I pressed it once more just to make sure. There still was no answer and I had a feeling there weren’t any people left alive inside. 

   I stepped back up to Aziel and placed my hand on his shoulder. He stopped banging on the glass door and looked down at me. 

   “I don’t think there’s anyone left here,” I told him softly. 

   He looked back into the building and huffed out figuring I was right. We turned to walk away from the entrance to the building. We decided to go over to the grassy area off to the side of the building to see if either of our cell phones had service. But there was nothing still. I had this strange feeling we probably would never need our cell phones again. 

   I sat down on a large rock close by to think and to rest from running so much. My chest felt heavy at the moment and suddenly my skin started to itch and burn at the same time. 

   I scratched my arm and looked down at the itchy area. It’s then that I noticed that my fingers and fingernails had turned black and the color was traveling up my forearms quickly. I gasped and looked up at Aziel. I knew my eyes were wide and I was panicking. My heart was racing in my chest again in fear. I felt that if I panicked any more it would burst inside me. 

   “What’s happening to me?” I cried. 

   His face showed the same amount of panic that I held in my chest. My eyes started to burn and I rubbed them before looking back at my brother afraid it would be the last time I would ever see him. 

   “Alora, your eyes,” he gasped out. 

   “What about them?” I asked in horror. 

   “They’re not dark blue anymore. They’re icy blue almost silver,” he said in amazement. 

   Whatever was happening to me was different than what had happened to all the other people I had watched disappear. So what was happening to me if I wasn’t dying? 

   I looked back at my arms to see what looked like black feathers starting to grow out of my skin starting at the elbows running up my arms. I gasped again in shock at what I was seeing. What was happening to me right now? Was I turning into a damn bird or some kind of circus freak? 

   I stood up in a panic and reached out to Aziel. He held me at arms length studying me and what was going on. I started to cry again, worried that I would be left alone as some type of freak and he would be left alone without me. 

   I felt a sharp pain in both of my shoulder blades and reached back to touch them. Aziel turned me around to look at what I was reaching for. I felt him lifting my shirt up over my shoulder blades, wondering what he was looking at or for. 

   “Take your shirt off,” Aziel instructed me. 

   I stripped my shirt off and held it in my hands. I looked down at my stomach to see nothing but small black feathers covering my body. This made me cry even more. I always felt that my body was beautiful but now… I don’t know. 

   The sharp pain in my back suddenly grew making me struggle for air. It grew more intense and I screamed out falling to my knees, shaking from the pain. I felt like my back was being opened up and was bleeding. Suddenly I felt the searing pain grow and my back actually rip open. I screamed out once more at the pain I felt. Then I saw them, large black bird wings with white tips surrounding me.  

   I stopped crying and wiped my face. I looked at the wings, realizing that they were mine. All the pain I had felt was now gone. My skin no longer itched and my eyes weren’t on fire. I reached out and touched the black glossy wings in amazement. 

   I stood up off the ground and turned to face my brother. His eyes were wide and his mouth practically on the ground, it was hanging open so far. I stretched my wings while looking at them. I wondered if I could really fly with these things, but I wouldn’t leave my brother here alone. 

   I looked back at him to see his skin color fading on his hands. He rubbed at his eyes while facing me. When he dropped his hands from his face his eyes were no longer dark blue, they were now red. His pupils were bright red.

   White feathers were starting to grow on his arms and he scratched at them then looked down. He looked back up at me with a big smile. He was excited to be changing like I had. 

   “I’m changing like you did,” he says in happiness. 

   “Yes. Your eyes are no longer blue now either,” I inform him. 

   “What color are they?” He asked in wonder.

  “Red.” 

   He nods his head before stripping off his shirt. There were feathers now covering his chest and abdomen. He hissed as the pain in his back took over. I watched as he doubled over and his white wings shot out of his back. He screamed out at the same pain I had felt just moments ago. When he stood back up and stretched his wings out I saw gold tips on the edges of his white wings. 

   His feathers climbed up his neck and stopped at his jaw line. He still had the hair on top of his head but it was no longer black like it had always been. It was now white. His face was still the same as it had always been and I figured mine was still the same also. 

   I grabbed at my long hair to find it was still there and was still black. I touched my neck and felt the soft feathers there also. I sat on the ground wondering what my feet might look like. I took my shoes off along with my socks to find my feet were now as black as my hands but I no longer had toes. It was like I was now wearing a boot that moved and flexed with my movements. The bottoms of my feet were tough so I could run or walk with no problems over any surface. 

   Aziel must have been watching me because he took his socks and shoes off also to find the same thing I did. His feet were white not black though. I wondered what the rest of my body looked like but that would have to wait until I was by myself. 

   I thought it was fitting that we would look this different. We were twins but we were as different as night and day. I now looked like the night and he looked like the day. 

   “Do you think we can fly?” he asked, raising his eyebrows at me. 

   “I don’t know but I want to try,” I told him with a smile.

   He nodded his head and we both found large rocks close by to stand on. I stretched my wings out wide, bent my knees and as I jumped up I tried to make my wings flap. My wings moved but I didn’t catch the air I needed. I failed at my first attempt. I ended up landing on the ground on my face hard. I got up and shook it off. 

   I watched as my brother attempted to fly next. He landed on his butt on the rock he had been standing on. 

   “Ouch,” he growled out. 

   I climbed back up on the rock I had been on and squatted down really low. I was going to give this jump my full power this time along with the full power of my wings if I could. I looked over to see Aziel doing the same thing. We should do this together like we do so many other things. 

   “On three,” I said. 

   He nodded and said, “One.” 

   “Two,” I said. 

   “Three,” we said together as we booth shot up off the rocks we had been squatting on. 

   We both used our wings and soon we were above the treetops that were close by. I wasn’t scared at the moment. It seemed like this was meant to happen and I felt calm. 

   I felt the wind under me helping guide me. We both watched the birds close by trying to mimic their movements. The only thing was that the birds had tails where we didn’t. I was glad to see animals were still alive after the radiation. 

   We both flew to a spot that seemed to be calling to us out in the middle of nowhere. We swooped down to a clearing surrounded by woods that we seemed to need to go to. When we landed there, I spotted several others walking up. There were others that seemed to have been changed, mutated, just like Aziel and me.  

   We shared a look of uncertainty and wondered why all of us were here. We then looked back to the others that were approaching. When all of us had stopped moving and were in close proximity to each other I decided that we all needed to work together to figure out why we were here, what had happened to us, and what we needed to do? 

   Before I could speak it felt like an electrical current started to rise in the area. Weapons materialized in front of each of us from this unknown current. In front of me suspended in mid air was a spear and short sword. I reluctantly reached out to touch them. 

   My gaze went up to Aziel’s and we locked eyes and nodded to one another. We both grabbed our spears and swords at the same time. I looked around at all the others. Everyone had some type of weapon in their hands. I opened my mouth to ask if anyone knew what was going on and a booming voice rang out to answer my silent question.  

   “All of you have questions. Here is what has happened.”

   I was looking around for the source of the unknown voice as everyone one else was. I couldn’t see anyone new to the group and no one was walking up. No one's mouth was moving with the voice so I was stumped as to where it was coming from. 

   “Radiation has consumed the world. Some humans have died, some have survived. The thirteen of you are different from any of the others. You are half human and half ancient god. You mutated to survive and help the human race. You need to find them and keep them safe. There are now Titans and monsters taking over the world that will be after the last of the humans and you.”

   “So we are a type of new god?” I asked out loud. 

   “Yes, Alora. Use the blood that runs through you for the greater good. All of you are now warriors for the weak.”

   I looked around to everyone. None of them looked intimidated or worried. Everyone looked proud and ready to do what we needed too. I had no idea how to use the weapons in my hands but I would learn if this was my destiny. 

   Internally I was wondering if I was ready for something like this. Then thought back to what I had watched as I ran through the streets of the city. Our old lives were lost and long gone. The only thing we could do now was move forward and help others.  

   “What do we need to do first?” I asked. 

   “I’m glad to see you taking the lead Alora. First you will need a large city to house and protect people from threats.”

    I nodded my head and then the presence that was with us was gone in a flash, just like it had appeared. I took this time to look around at all the other gods close by realizing that we were born for a higher purpose and we had a lot of work to do.