Prologue

2029, the world has fallen to pieces, and over two thirds of the population have been wiped out. A group of young survivors find something that could save humanity from Insanity and her hounds.

I remember the beginning of the end like it was just yesterday. Hundreds and hundreds of planes blotted out the moon as they flew overhead. Explosion after explosion sounded in the dead of night, turning the city that never sleeps into a city turned upside down. I could hear the screams of pure terror, as buildings fell around them, and the wails of those who had lost everything.

It took us a few minutes to pack, all of my family throwing whatever we could into bags. I rushed my family to the door, heading out first to lead the way.

That was the last time I ever saw them.

The next thing I knew, I was sprawled out on the floor, my ears ringing, and my head spinning sickeningly. Which way was up? Was I in pain? I didn't know the answers. I tried to move, but it like my body had become stone, my breathes like knives in my lungs when I tried to breathe. Where was mom? Where was dad? Where was Corey?

The horror of the situation hit me worse than any physical pain ever could. I was alone, my family was dead, and my home was destroyed. What was I going to do?

Suddenly there was a shake on my shoulder, and looked to see a boy hovering over me. His lips were moving, but making no sense.

It took me a moment to understand.

Run. We had to run.

This boy and I have been running ever since.

~~~~~~~~

Crystalline light spread across the floor of a makeshift bedroom in an abandoned home right across the Hudson River. It was one of the few that had not been completely destroyed in the attacks, and provided and comfortable living space for me and my new family. Waking up to the sunshine was a sort of rare phenomenon for me in the past year, as I was usually up before everyone so that I could plan our next move.

I sat up, rubbing the crust out of my eyes and stretching a bit. It felt nice to have gotten so much rest; I had nearly fallen to sleep in the fire the night prior. Pushing out of my sleeping bag, I grabbed my sweatshirt which had been hanging on a nail that had started to rust, and laced up my chucks without socks since I had already walked them all down to strings.

The old house creaked under my weight as I made my way out side to check on my companions. Alice Suzumiya was standing watch on the roof, her eyes trained on the woods behind our camp. I felt a bit better for oversleeping when I found she was on duty, as she was arguably the strongest fighter in the group, and the most focused.

"Alice!" I called to her. "Why didn't you wake me?"

She didn't move at my voice, still keeping watch as she spoke. "Sean and Havi told me not to."

"That's right." I turned at the voice, to see a tall and lanky Indian boy walking towards me with his aluminum baseball bat swung over his shoulders. "You haven't had more than three hours of sleep each night in a month."

"I'm the leader." I countered. "I need-"

"What you need is to be an alert leader. Not someone who can barely keep there eyes open."

I sighed, knowing he was right. Havi was like a big brother to me in that respect, not only because he was two years older at 21, but also because he was the one who could set me straight.

"Where is Sean, speaking of which? and the siblings?"

"Maya and JJ are at the river." Havi explained to me. "Alice has an eye on them if they have a problem. Sean went hunting."

"Without me?" I was a bit annoyed, Sean was my wing man, my best friend. Why would he leave without me?

"Like I said before, you needed sleep."

Suddenly Alice shifted into a fighting stance. "Hounds!"

Author's Note

Please leave comments! They encourage me :3 And please be honest.

Reviews

[Ashley]

I love post apocalyptic stories and your attention to detail is great. The only thing that I saw, besides the small grammar issues, was how you got information across. You're telling more than you're showing. Like saying waking to sunshine is rare for her, you could show that she's not used to it. If you woke first every day you could remember, then suddenly didn't, you'd prolly panic. I would.
Or instead of saying she's walked through all her socks, you can have her pulling on ratty socks that fall apart, so she throws them out and pulls on her shoes without. Its something you can go back and fix later. I wouldn't fix it as you write. It always throws me off when I have to go back and fix anything. Hope I helped!