Memento Mori

Chapter 1: Fait Accompli
Over two years ago, on a sunny noon in Kingshead...

"HEY! ZOOMER!" Came the holler of a familiar voice from outside amidst a steady stream of knocks. I jolted out of my nightmares and up from my bed.

As I tried to open my eyes, the sunlight invaded and knocked the sleep right out of them. It now permeated every inch of the room, so I could only surmise it was about noon. I opened my window to investigate the source of the sounds which dared wake me from my sweet sleep, and was greeted by a rock to the face.

"Rise and shine, baby!" Said the familiar voice, unapologetically. A display both annoying and heartwarming characteristic of my neighbor and best friend.

"Last I checked, I didn't hire you to wake me up, Solomon! If by any chance I did, consider yourself unemployed!" I shouted at him, feigning anger. Honestly, I can't see how the guy could make anyone mad.

"I did a great job, though! Besides, today's the day we check out the secret spot! All the grown-ups are gone!" He replied, unfazed.

I remember. We've been  longing to reach the top of Kingshead since we were tiny lads, about five years old. All the big, menacing guards would always threaten to tie us to a crate and set us adrift, though, so we didn't do it for a while. Today was THE day!

"Alright, alright, I'm coming..." I said, trying to contain my excitement as I jumped from the window to the ground. Solomon was a jocular young man, and it reflected in his choice of clothing; a plain white tank top, sack shorts tied with a box belt, and comfy boots.

"Don't break any bones, lazy landlubber!" He jested. A staid teenager myself, it was these lighthearted jokes that kept me going. The pervasive usual hustle and bustle of the Kingshead barracks invaded my ears, and the day began. Due to the lack of adult supervision, little kids were running amok, with some older siblings giving chase to no avail. It was the way I liked things, though.

"Hey! Hey! Mr. Thoomer!" Said the voice of a small child... from somewhere. "Down here!" They added. I looked down to see a boy no taller than three feet, and holding a pristine wooden sword up to me expectantly. "Can I hath your autographs?"

"Wow, another admirer! Do they ever stop, Zoomer?" Joked Solomon. Now, while being constantly badgered by obstreperous kids would annoy the average sixteen year-old, I had a weak spot for these kinds of things. Using a small rock I picked up, I managed to carve "Z00M3R" into the sword. Once I returned his toy, he gave us a beaming smile and ran off, presumably to show off to his friends.

"I can't imagine saying goodbye to a life like this, really." I said to Solomon. "Maybe if you woke up earlier, you'd get to live this life more!" Replied Solomon jokingly. He was a good part of this life too. As we walked up the steps to the fort, built ostentatiously by EITC Grunts to please their bosses, I tried to make sense of the nightmares I'd been having earlier. I could only hear, and all I heard was shouting, crying, lots of it - but progressively less, and less, and less - until there was nothing. Maybe I'm just being paranoid...

"So, fellow Swashbuckler, what do you think awaits us up there? Money, fame?" He asked, with a touch of dramatic to his question. "Don't run away now - we'll find out when we get there!" I replied, even though I was likely more uneasy than him.

As we traversed the long, winding paths of the top of the fort, we could see the settlement much more clearly. Kids dueling with their toy swords, others digging through EITC crates, and some looking from their balconies at the sky through a toy telescope. It's our own small little world with so much going on inside it. Suddenly, however, this world of ours stopped moving.

"Say, Zoomer, what's that over there?" Asked Solomon, with a trace of fear in his voice, pointing at the sky. It could barely be seen initially, but as it grew, we could tell there was a light engulfing the sky. I stared at it, almost transfixed.

"Look out!" Shouted Solomon. He pushed me away, and a light ray engulfed the area he was standing on. I scrambled desperately to get to cover, and from there, I looked down in horror at the bedlam in the settlement. For only a split second, I could see it: the lights of all our friends and neighbors shining brilliantly, and then vanishing. I waited my turn.

It never came.

Almost as if a joke by some god, a wooden sword fell from the sky and dug into the concrete column I was hiding behind. I could see the word "Z00M3R" carved haphazardly into its side.

Solomon is gone. The kids are gone. Our friends are gone. There's a massive hole in the sky, in the ocean, and in my soul.

There's also nothing. I went from confusion, to fear, to nothing. Our settlement is absolutely desolate. Everyone is gone.

''And, from that day on, a part of me would be too. ''