Flight of the Raven Pt. 01

They had tears in their eyes too. Crap, they probably hadn't thought about it either.

"There's no point thinking about it. We can't do anything yet. All we can do is survive. Okay? We can't think about our families. Trust me, we have to think about the things we can control. We have to remain focussed." I said, wiping my tears away.

Even I realised that I was talking more to myself than to Cathy or Tone, but I didn't care. It was the only thing that stopped me charging out into the ash. To my mother.

Cathy was nodding though and so was Tony. Evidently they both agreed with me.

Cathy had wiped her tears away too and said. "You're right Luke, we hav--"

The TV interrupted her with another of its recorded pieces of crap. One more and I would smash it, I decided. "This is an emergency broadcast! Please wait in a safe place where you can hear this message. This is an emergency broadcast!" Wait a minute. This was a different one!

"John, turn it up!" I shouted, running forwards so I could get a better look at the screen.

John didn't ask. He simply leaned over and turned the sound to full. After a few minutes of the broadcasts we had turned the sound down slightly to save our ears.

"This is an emergency broadcast!"

silence. The tension in the air was palpable.

"This is an emergency broadcast!"

Maybe I would just smash the thing now. That did the trick.

"Citizens of the United Kingdom." The British flag on the blue background was replaced by what seemed to be a conference room of some kind. There was a single desk with a middle-aged man in a suit behind it. Both the walls and floor were a dark blue, similar to the background from earlier. I didn't recognise the guy but he was looked like he worked for the government. What the fuck was I thinking! He was giving an emergency broadcast to the country. Of course he was part of the government.

When I was done berating my own stupidity the man started talking. "This broadcast is being aired on every channel we have available, and being shown to all within our borders. At ten to three this afternoon tragedy struck our nation, and the World. The eclipse, aptly named 'Hell's-Warning'. Happened. We had been assured by the best astronomers in the world that the eclipse would be no threat to our planet. Obviously, they were mistaken. If you're watching this broadcast then you have no doubt suffered through the initial effects of this phenomenon. Earthquakes, heavy-winds, burning ash showers and the 'pain'."

A few people grimaced at the mention of the 'pain', obviously recalling the horrors they had witnessed.

"We still do not have sufficient data to ascertain why certain people weren't affected like the others and why a few people survived, while most didn't. Our initial figures place the percentage of people affected, by what has been described as 'Hell-Fever', at around fifty percent, and about one percent of those affected survive. All we know conclusively is that the light wave, emitted from the eclipse, causes 'Hell-Fever' when it passes through humans, while animals and other living organisms seem completely unaffected. We are also unsure as to why the ash does not have any permanent physical affects on humans. It appears that while a few people have died from extreme exposure to the ash -- everyone else seems fine. We believe, but are by no means certain, that if you are not burnt enough to induce death then you will make a swift recovery with no known physical after affects. However, despite this being the case with humans, the ash does have significant lasting affects on the rest of the world. We have verified that the ash causes damage to both natural and man-made structures, permanently burns animals and other living organisms, can cause fires and can even spoil water sources."

That's strange. I wonder why the ash affects humans differently from everything else.

"We have confirmed reports of huge holes in the ground, dubbed 'Hell-Holes', with cracks in the earth spreading outwards from each hole. Our belief is that the 'Hell-Holes' are being caused by the frequent earthquakes. They have a diameter of only three feet or so at the moment, but each quake seems to enlarge them. The cracks are a lot smaller, being only around a foot wide at their thickest sections and barely noticeable at their furthest points. However, these are both spreading and becoming larger with each quake."

"Both the cracks and holes are emitting a kind of flame, but we are uncertain as to its exact properties. All we can verify is that the flames are incandescent, a reddish-black colour, a uniform height of a little under one meter and are exceedingly hot. Under no circumstances should you approach these flames. We have acquired reports of people attempting to jump through them to escape the ash, and have been found as blackened husks on the other side. The fires appear to be stable and have not increased in height -- despite the increasing size of the holes and cracks. However, we have verified information stating that the flames are increasing in width so as to completely fill the growing cracks and holes. We are unsure as to how many of these 'Hell-Holes' there are and what their purpose is, but there seems to be one in every major town and city throughout the nation -- a few unconfirmed reports also indicate that a few are in rural, unpopulated areas."

"A few minutes ago we received messages from our embassy in Australia. We have been informed that the light from the eclipse has reached Sydney, and that many of the effects we had warned them of have started occurring there. We have received a number of similar messages over the last hour; it is quite clear that the entire world has experienced its first taste of 'Hell's-Warning'. The British Government is doing everything in its power to combat this disaster. We ask that you please stay calm, remain inside, keep warm, and wait for federal assistance. We have mobilised all aspects of our military forces and will re-establish safety and order for our nation."

When he had finished speaking the man put a hand to his ear and cocked his head, as if listening to something. I guess he had a communication device in his ear or something. After a few moments the man straightened again and faced the camera.

"We've just received a live-stream video coming from Rome -- where we believe the light from the eclipse reached first."

He nodded his head, presumably after receiving some more orders.

"We are going to cut to the report. Please do not cease viewing this broadcast."

The screen went black for a second and then a view of what looked like the Colosseum came into focus. The video quality was remarkably good considering the enveloping red light that was covering the screen. Unfortunately, that wasn't a good thing. For on screen was a hole in the middle of the Colosseum. A hole around three feet wide. A hole with reddish-black flames leaping up from its depths. A hole with a small red claw grasping the edge. A 'Hell-Hole'.

Wait. What?

A red claw!? What the fuck is that thing!

The screen had zoomed in on the hand, there was audio too, but I think it was Italian. I didn't particularly care. There was a red fucking claw consuming most of my attention.

The claw moved. I heard a few people in the room gasp. The claw was blood-red and had three points with sharp-looking, black tips.

The camera man moved closer. We could now clearly see the claw moving. Clawing its way further out the hole.

Seriously, how am I able to joke about something like this.

After a few seconds another claw joined the first -- looking identical. A few more seconds and we could clearly see two short, stubby arms attached to the claws; covered in sagging crimson skin.

The camera man stepped forward again. Smart guy, I thought. Get closer to the clawed, red arms emerging from a hole in the earth -- emitting flames that burn people to a crisp. Yep, good move dude.

A minute passed with the arms no longer moving forward. Then another earthquake occurred. The camera shook along with the ground as the man crouched down. I guess he didn't want to fall down and risk breaking the camera.

Despite the shaking the camera was still directed at the hole and I could clearly see that it was growing. After the quake ended and the camera was still the reporter zoomed in on the hole again. It was now around four foot wide. The two arms... Weren't there. Weird.

Apparently, the reporter had similar thoughts to mine as he stepped closer to the hole again -- attempting to locate the arms.

As he stepped forwards a form burst through the hole's flames -- directly in the camera's view.

I'd never seen anything like it before. The thing was about two feet tall with sagging, red skin covering its body, a pair of small, black-veined wings sprouted from its shoulders, it had two short, stubby legs with black hooves instead of feet, the clawed arms we'd seen earlier were attached to its fat stomach, two small, black horns protruded from its brow, it had large, unlidded, completely green eyes that were glowing softly and a long, purple tongue was sticking out at the reporter cruelly.

Holy shit.

A full second must have passed in silence. The demon stared at the camera, while we stared at the demon. Unfortunately for the reporter -- the pause only lasted a second.

A few people screamed, someone beside me fainted and many others shrank back from the screen as the demon came alive once more. It flapped its wings using the momentum to accelerate faster as it ran towards the camera, and the silly sod still holding it.

A flash of red covered the screen briefly and the camera fell. The lens cracked as it landed, but it still worked. Sadly, so did the audio. We heard what sounded like a man screaming and the cackling of some mad beast; then a ripping sound.

What the fuck was that?

Ah. Right. Blood had sprayed in a great arc in front of the camera and was now dripping steadily down the screen, obscuring our view. Poor guy. Maybe he shouldn't have walked so close to the fiery pit of doom. More ripping followed; then the sound of crunching, as if bones were being broken, assailed our ears.

Another red arm could clearly be seen dragging its way out the hole, while a tremendous roar thundered through the connection into the room -- causing several people to shield their ears with their hands.

However, even that roar was drowned out as a huge quake occurred outside, shaking the whole building.

Then there was nothing. Silence. Darkness. I surmised that the latest earthquake must have knocked out the school's electricity. The TV was off and the the only light came from the weak, reddish glow of the eclipse, shining eerily through the windows, and the small strip lights above the doors of the cafeteria. They were a fire exit so I guessed they had batteries for if the power went out -- or something like that. Strangely enough, it wasn't something that particularly interested me.

I wasn't sure why it was so quiet though. I was sure there'd be screaming...

There we go...

The room erupted into a cacophony of shrieks. Students and teachers alike upended chairs and tables in a mad rush to escape the room. John and a few of the more level-headed teachers were attempting to calm people down, but they were insufficient to stem the tide of humanity that wanted out. I'm not sure why so many people ran from the room -- screaming and wailing all the way. I guess a few of them simply 'snapped', while the others probably thought anywhere would be better than here. I didn't particularly blame them; so I sat on a table, quietly watching the chaos unfold.

In a matter of moments over a hundred people had fled the room -- their screams echoing in the hallways of the school. From my vantage point atop the table I even saw a few people fleeing outside. Where they were going I could only guess. I don't think they knew themselves. Thankfully, the ash had stopped falling just before the broadcast started; so at least no one outside would be burnt to death by those oppressive cinders. Hopefully.

Well, on the bright side, at least there was more space now.

John had sent a few teachers round the school to try and entice people back to the cafeteria. Yea, fat chance of that working, but I kept quiet and let him do his thing.

A few minutes passed until the squad of teachers returned. Empty-handed -- obviously. We just saw a real-life actual demon for fucks sake. The people who ran were already in shock from the pretty horrific events the eclipse had forced upon them, and now they'd seen a demon. Their trauma had just been strengthened by what they had seen on the broadcast. We weren't going to get them back. I didn't particularly like it, but they needed time -- a lot of time -- if they were going to crawl back to sanity, and by the looks of that report. Time was something we had very little of.

After John had spoken to the teachers he'd sent out, he walked over to me. Kate clinging to him like he was a life line.

He spoke in a pained voice. "I'm not sure if we can do anything about the people that have left. I spoke to Mr Woodlock and he told me that they seemed. How do I put it. Addled? I just don't know what we can do about all this." He let out a long sigh as he looked at me. Hoping for an answer.

"What is that?" He spoke before I could respond to his earlier question, gesturing at me with his hands.

Did he just gesture at all of me? This was a little confusing... Ah right. The suit.

"Ah, well John, Cathy pointed out that my clothes were in tatters after shielding her from the ash; so I put on some spares I had in my bag." I replied, turning slightly so he could see my backpack. I really didn't want to have a conversation about why I owned a black combat outfit. I was already in a position of 'responsibility' -- I certainly didn't want any more.

"And honestly John, we can't do anything for those that have fled. Some things require professional help. Some things require a great deal of time. This takes both to deal with, and quite frankly we don't have much of either." I told him, hoping he'd leave it at that.

If there's anything I've learnt today, it's that nothing seems to go my way.

John spoke up once more, obviously sensing the veiled warning in my tone. "What do you mean? About time?"

Sighing, I asked him what the time was.

After looking a bit confused John decided to go along with it. He looked down at his watch and told me the time was four thirty.

"Right, so the eclipse happened roughly an hour and forty minutes ago." I paused, looking him dead in the face. "In that time over four hundred people of a school of six hundred -- including staff -- have either died or gone crazy. This eclipse will last for twenty four hours. We have just over twenty two hours of this shit still to go through, and who knows what the fuck will happen afterwards. We just saw a demon. That wasn't a clever use of digital manipulation. That. Was. A. Demon. The emergency report said there were holes in every town, city and even some rural areas. That means that somewhere in London, there's a 'Hell-Hole' like the one in Rome. That means that somewhere near us is a hole spewing forth demons. Do you understand?"

His face paled visibly in the dim, reddish light as he listened to me. His eyes widening after I'd finished -- evidently figuring out the unthinkable implications of my answer.

"Actually, it's worse than that Luke." Tony said softly from my side, evidently having heard our entire conversion. Cathy appeared too, once more attaching herself to my arm, clearly privy to our discussion as well.

I had a bad feeling about Tony's answer, but someone had to ask. "What do you mean Tone?"

He spoke softly, but with a feverish speed. "Well, I play a lot of games, and I read a lot. Especially fantasy and sci-fi stuff, but I've read a lot of mythology as well. Anyway, I've seen pictures, faced them in video games and even read about them."

Cathy interrupted him. "Them?"

Tony looked a little embarrassed when he saw our confused expressions and continued. "Yes, erm. Imps. The thing that crawled out of that hole... The thing." He gulped. "That killed that reporter."

"I don't..." I stopped -- thinking. Shit. Suddenly, I understood where he was coming from. "So if that was an imp. Which would mean those holes really do lead to Hell, or some other nightmarish plane. Then things can only get worse. In every game I've ever played imps are always some of the weakest demons. The holes are small, but they're growing, so it stands to reason that the first demons out would be the smallest ones. The weakest ones."

Tony finished off my rambling. "Which means, we'll be seeing far worse creatures than imps emerging from the holes. We have another twenty two hours of the eclipse. Another twenty two hours for those holes to expand. Who knows what could come through if they continue growing at their current rate."

I realised, by their downcast faces, that our assessment of the situation may have caused more harm than good; so I resolved to at least partially allay their fears.

"Look, while our theory may be right. It might also be the furthest thing from the truth. We have no way of knowing for sure, this is all just conjecture at the moment, so lets stop acting as though our fates have been sealed."

Unfortunately, I judged my speech was rather unsuccessful due to the silence that had infiltrated our group.

After what seemed like hours John elected to break the reticence. "I suppose you're right. Worrying isn't going to help us get through any of this." He let out a great, long sigh. "Well, let's take just take this one day at a time shall we? Heh. Or one hour at a time..."

I had to hand it to him. That joke was perhaps the worst bit of gallows humour I'd ever heard, but it did break the tension.

Smiling slightly I asked. "So, what's the plan?"

John cringed, but answered my question. "Well, I think that we have to take this one step at a time and be as flexible as possible. However, right now I don't see that many options open to us. It's either stay or go."

Kate suddenly spoke up, the first time I'd seen her talk since this morning. "Stay! Daddy we have to stay! There... There are things outside. Please, I can't go outside. Please!"

That was weird. What did she mean about things outside? Well, at least she doesn't sound like a chalk board being scratched to death by a rabid squirrel any more. Yea, I should really work on my analogies.

John hugged her to his side, trying to comfort her. A few moments after her outburst and she was back to her silent, withdrawn state.

John continued with his line of thought. "A vote." he said simply, while his arms remained protectively around Kate.

"A vote to decide what to do?" Cathy asked, evidently not thrilled with the idea.

"Yes. I know its not the best plan, but honestly we only have two real options. Either we stay here or we decide to go somewhere else." John gently shushed Kate as she tried to interject after hearing talk of leaving again. "We still have around two hundred people here, a lot of those are students of this school. Of my school. I will not make a decision on their behalf that could get them all killed, or worse. We need to give everyone the option and then stick by the majority decision." John finished, glancing at each of us in turn as if willing us to argue.

Silence once again smothered the room.

After a few moments of almost suffocating muteness, I could stand no more. "Okay." I sucked in a breath. "While I don't agree with you, personally I feel that someone has to make decisions for the group as a whole. I do see the need for action, and perhaps a vote could take everyone's mind off things best left unsaid, at least for a time." I looked at John. "Let's get to it."