I See

Inspired by Max Richter's "Infra 1" from the album "Infra"

The screen flashed and morphed it’s broken mess of black and white. A high, sharp beep sounded out through the static. Gregory couldn’t tell if it was Morse code, some machine's code unrecognizable to him, or just random soundings that formed no pattern. A few seconds went by, then a man flashed on the screen. He looked to be a news reporter type, but it was hard to tell at such a short, blurry glance. His two words seemed to be part of a longer statement, but only these two muddled with the static and beeping. He said “…one dozen…” The screen went back to jumbles of static. A couple seconds later, he appeared again. This time he said “…million…” in the same cut-out fashion as last. Again, static returned. The beeping continued. The colors of contrast danced with and bounced and fought within the television screen. Then once again, the man reappeared on screen for but a second, and uttered his first two words. “…one dozen…” Then,  “…million…”

Suddenly, he was standing in the middle of a two-lane road. There were cars stopped all around him. Some people had gotten out, and stood facing to the North. The others hadn’t had time. Time seemed nearly suspended, and simply slugged along for a moment. They all faced North. They saw fire. It rolled along the landscape, swallowing everything up as it made it’s way towards Gregory and those near him. He saw it swallow up trees, bushes, flowers, and the very land it’s self. He saw birds hover in the air until they were covered by the blanket of red, then they simply disappeared. Closer it came. The buildings engulfed cast away their windows. Cars bloomed in a glorious flash of fire. Closer. He saw a man setting on a public bench. He simply watched the fire approach, like Gregory did. It was hard to tell from a distance, but the man seemed well-aged. He wore a trucker's cap, a brown denim jacket, and simple jeans. He rested his hands upon a cane, and his head on his hands. Gregory watched as the flames inched closer, until it ceased his existence, just like the birds. Finally it was but a few yards from Gregory. From his peripheral vision he saw those to the side of him who had gotten out of their cars. They too, watched. Only watched. It came. Inch by inch. His mind hadn't had time to wrap around what was happening. It was only taking in information right now. Nearer and nearer. Then, he felt it touch the tip of his nose.

Author's Note

I just jotted down everything I saw while listening to the song, which is one of my favorite things to do haha. So any criticism and/or tips are encouraged and welcome. Thanks!