Genesis

This led me to realise something of profound importance. We didn't know shit about the planet. If it had a sea, or mountains. Or fauna. Nothing at all. Just a small stretch on its surface was all we knew.

Basically, we didn't know what to expect. And that part unsettled me. But I would die a thousand deaths rather than show this to Vanessa. I would rather die in front of her rather than have her doubt my conviction to keep her safe. I would protect her from whatever or die trying.

We cuddled by the fire. Having prepared as much as possible, we waited for the storm to come. Together.

She wouldn't even let me move. She held me around her. She leaned her head into me. Like a woman that wanted to feel me protect her would. Like a woman that felt a total woman with me would. Like a woman that loved me as a man. Her man. I could almost feel it.

But she didn't say it.

I almost asked her.

I never did.

Maybe it was for the best. Some things are better left to be said when they must. Not before. Not after. But who said that was not the moment for that to be said?

***************************************

The weather was getting worse. Cold and winds. Soon, the first spurts of rain. Heavy rain, but a heavy atmosphere makes it sluggish and its droplets small, so in the end not that different from Earth's. Good as well that I fortified the dome. It wouldn't have made it before, but now it seemed to hold well. No leaks of wind or water.

Vanessa never left my embrace. She just held me around her during the whole thing. She only left me to put wood into the fire. Then back to my embrace, refusing to let me leave for anything. If I needed something, she would go and get it, and then come promptly to my embrace again. As if she wanted me to be her protective shield, her armour. Not the knight, but the very armour.

All and all, the knight in the shining armour bull has some semblance of basis, ok. But what makes the knight what he is, is the armour. Without it, he would be in DEEP shit. The armour makes him what he is. It is as if Vanessa knew that. I was not her knight. I was her armour. With a heart. For her. Who needs the knight when one has that?

To be honest, I never, ever, felt so fulfilled as a man as that moment. I understood that a base part of our own existence is hard-wired in our DNA, and consequently our brains as well. I couldn't help wanting nothing else than to be the protector of MY woman. And she was that. At least that was what I felt, and that was what she showed me she felt too. And I decided I didn't want this to end. I was so elated to be her protector. I would gladly give my life to protect hers. I knew it to my core.

Then we heard that awful noise.

Like a symphony from hell. On the lows, the thunder. Mid and hi-range, the winds and the sound of the forest being beaten by the air masses. On the high range, the rapping of the rain. And yet, through all that, something else. A sound like no other. A looming sound, probably coming from outside the forest. Different. Very threatening. At a very deep level.

I had to see what it is.

Vanessa hang on to me for dear life.

-"Josh, don't go!"

-"I need to know where this sound is coming from."

-"Don't leave me!"

-"Vanessa, you know that I love you. I would never leave you. But I truly need to know what we are up against."

-"I am scared. Please don't leave me alone!"

-"Vanessa, what's wrong?"

She held me so tight.

-"I... I don't know. It is some shitty feeling that I can't seem to get rid of. I feel that if you leave this door, I'll never see you again. And I... I can't bear that thought. Please don't go!"

And she cried. She wept like a child. I really wasn't prepared for this.

So she loved me after all? Or she was afraid for her survival in case I was hurt or died? Or both?

Well, whichever option was to be taken, the result was the same. She was scared for me. And that gave me strength, and conviction to protect her, even more than before.

-"Babe, listen."

She started composing herself.

-"I need to know the source of the sound, because I need to keep you protected. I do not have a deathwish. But your safety is all important to me, and I have to ensure it in any way I can. And you know what they say: Knowledge is power, right? I have to know. So that I am empowered to look after you. So..."

I never finished that phrase. She took my breath away. The most intense kiss.

-"My beautiful man. My sweet, sweet man."

She let me breathe.

-"Please be careful. And come back to me right away, ok? I need you right here, with me."

I started to the door.

-"Josh?"

-"Yes?"

-"...please be careful. I need you."

-"No worries, babe. I'll be fine."

And left the dome.

She didn't say she loved me. She said she needed me. Which of course is true.

Stop being a sentimental little woosie and do your fucking job, Romeo! Or should I say 'Juliet'? Better now?

***********************************

It was very cold outside. The rain was as heavy as expected, but not the tragic thing that I thought when we first arrived in this world. It actually was the one thing that seemed to be common between this world and ours. The rain was pretty much the same. The thick atmosphere counteracting the higher gravity. Fine by me, boss.

However, the ground was muddy, and slippery, and the higher gravity made it so much worse to walk on. One wrong step meant that I could easily end up with something broken. And that would surely mean a very dire future for both of us. I couldn't risk it. So I watched my fucking step. Thank God for the torch I held, made of firewood.

The one thing that was pretty unique to this world was the firewood. There was something in it that kept it going, no matter the water. One could put the firewood in the pond, and it still would burn until there was none of it left, even in the water. There was no stopping the fire.

As I reached the outskirts of the forest, the sound was becoming more and more intense and all-consuming. I couldn't see anything at first. But then I started seeing some weird movement in the horizon, slowly approaching.

What the heck is that?

Lightning. The flash illuminated the whole plane outside the forest for a small fraction of a second. However, it was enough.

My blood froze.

I never have seen anything like that. If the horror movie effects teams saw what I had just seen, they would rate their own pathetic attempts at horror as nothing more than worthy of F-, as in 'fuck that, we are not even qualified to suck'.

It was a moving wave of nightmare.

Creatures that cannot be thought of. A moving, quivering mass of huge insect legs and limbs, visible from quite some distance away, moving at a steady pace towards us. I wouldn't even want to imagine what they would do to us once they arrived.

There was only one option for us to be saved. Fire. The only thing that they are not used to, the only thing they cannot fight. No creature on Earth can fight fire. This, however, wasn't Earth. Still, no other solution came to mind. I would have to gamble and see.

I had to act now.

I started with the tree right next to me. I set fire to the branches right over me. It caught fire right away, and started spreading upwards. Then I went to the next tree, and then the next. I did not stop at all, until I surrounded the whole forest. All the outer trees were on fire. It took me a long time.

I ran towards our dome.

Vanessa was in. She was in a bad shape.

When she saw me, she jumped up and came to me and hugged me.

-"God you are back! I was so worried! What took you so long?"

-"Vanessa, I have something very bad to tell you."

-"...what?"

-"I have set the forest on fire. It will all be burnt down to the ground by the time the storm is over. It will be no more."

She stood back.

-"What?! Wh... why? Why would you destroy something so beautiful and... and important for our survival? Are you out of your mind, Josh?"

-"Vanessa, there is something very bad coming our way. I don't even want to describe it. It is the worst thing I have ever seen, and it comes with the night, to annihilate. There is a good chance that the forest was done for anyway."

-"...so, you lit the fire because?"

-"On Earth, fire is the only universal constant. Every single creature fears the fire. And has done so from the age of the dinosaurs and before, till our present time. This is the only weapon that we have to survive. Provided the fire lasts until the storm passes, or the day comes, or they monstrosities decide to leave. Whatever comes first."

She tried to take all the bad news in.

-"Monstrosities?"

-"You can't imagine."

-"But what about the rain? Won't it put the fire out?"

-"No. The firewood here is special. It cannot stop burning until it has completely been spent. The rain will not affect the trees in burning. And the ring of fire they create is the only thing between us and them."

-"What happens then?"

-"We'll be fine. We'll see what we do, when this is over with. One thing at a time."

She was truly shocked.

-"Vanessa?"

-"Wh...what?"

-"I need you to trust me."

Pause.

The grand leap of faith.

-"I trust you."

Thank God.

-"I trust you with my life, Josh."

And she hugged me again, and kissed me to seal the contract. She was placing her life in my hands. It was up to me now.

-"Let's get out of here. We'll go to the pond."

I never said anything else. She gathered everything she could, and so did I. We left the dome. Outside, all hell was breaking loose. The monstrosities were approaching, the fires were approaching as well. All from all sides.

I took Vanessa to the pond. I told her to wait, came back to the dome, took the rest of the stuff, and some firewood, and started going back to the small lake. A few seconds after I stepped out, a tree started to fall.

I ran for my life.

A branch hit me.

The pain was from yet another world. Sheer agony.

The sound of the monstrosities was approaching. However, they did not seem to cross the front of the fire. Seems that my little plan was working... for now.

I made myself get up. The pain was something I had never imagined before. Still, I took everything I could, and limped towards the pond.

Vanessa saw me. She understood that something was not right. At all.

-"Josh? My God, Josh!!"

She screamed. And ran towards me. Grabbed the stuff from my hands, threw it all towards the pond, and helped me move. She half-carried me to the centre of the small lake. Then she gathered the firewood around us. A slow-burning circle on the water, around us. And she hugged me for dear life. I did the same.

Then it happened.

The huge fire-front encircled the lake. The trees on the banks started falling, towards the water. Both of us were scared shitless. Thank God we did not get hurt by the falling trees. They just kept slowly burning on the water, a few meters away from us. We were mid-circle.

Outside the trees, the monstrosities gained ground. We could see them. The heat from the burned firewood kept them away for now, but the rain and wind would change that soon. Thankfully, the burning trees around us kept the temperature pretty high, and they were slow burning, which means that they would be kept at bay for somewhat longer. They would buy us time.

The monstrosities came closer and closer. They were truly as hideous as I had seen them before. Their momentum had very much subsided, but not their rage. Or hunger. Or both.

Vanessa was beyond terrified. She could not even speak. She just hugged me for dear life, not daring to utter a syllable. Afraid of giving them a greater incentive to attack.

I just held her, and kissed her. And whispered to her:

-"Don't worry, babe. We will be fine."

All the while imagining every which way monsters would cut me to pieces before eating me, or the other way around. I couldn't bare to imagine the same for Vanessa though. I just couldn't.

Soon, the first gigantic centipede-like monster started to touch the burning firewood that surrounded us. It was burned and hissed in pain. Still, it stayed put. A little while later, it tried again, gaining a bit of more ground. The same was happening all around us.

They kept coming. Slowly. But steadily.

Vanessa was weeping silently, in absolute horror. And yet, I was stroking her back and telling her, in her ear:

-"Don't worry, my love. It will pass. We will be fine. Trust me."

And the monsters came closer. Angrier, hungrier than ever.

Vanessa openly crying, fuelling the desire in the monstrosities. Me, comforting her. Them approaching.

When they were on the burning trunks, just a few meters away, I knew it was the end. I accepted it.

-"Vanessa, I love you."

And I kissed her.

And she kissed me back. And we closed our eyes.

Waiting for the inevitable.

The monstrosities louder and closer than ever.

I could feel them a few meters away, readying themselves for a quick, well-earned meal.

Sudden silence.

Commotion.

The sound of the monstrosities departing. In haste.

Light? Yes.

Day? Yes!

Day!

Day!!

DAY!!

We are saved!!

Vanessa collapsed in my arms, crying uncontrollably.

I, a mass of nerves, doing the only thing that kept me sane after this rendezvous with hideous, certain death.

-"Vanessa, I told you to trust me. See?"

And she bawled her eyes out. In happiness. And kissed me all over. And cried some more. Never leaving me, never letting me go.

Maybe she actually loved me!

___________________

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CHAPTER 4

___________________

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Our forest, our home, didn't exist any more. Burned trunks of trees all over, and some burned corpses of insect-like monsters of various shapes and sizes, all above XXL, scattered around the place.

We couldn't stay there any more.

Where to?

I was ready to suggest further up North, but I saw the stars, and saw something I hadn't seen before. They were pretty much in a similar configuration as when we arrived here.

Which means that our arrival here was not as coincidental as we thought. We arrived at dawn. And survived till the next dawn. We passed the test. With flying colours.

I hoped that the whole thing sent the right vibrations to my head, because I had this nagging feeling that we needed to go back to the ring. As fast as possible.

-"Vanessa, I think we should go back."

-"To the ring?"

-"Yes. I don't know why, but I have a feeling we absolutely need to be there now. I feel like we passed the test. Now we go home."

-"You think so?"

-"Yes. I hope I am right. If I am not, we know what comes ahead, we will face it the same way. But I think we have a shot at going back."

There was no more need for stalling. We took everything we could, and started walking. We walked very faster than before.

It only took a few hours to reach the ring.

**********************************

It was a mess. Everything was scattered everywhere from the storm. We couldn't even pinpoint were it originally was.

Shit.

Vanessa saw the remnants of a wall which used to be in the middle of the ring. The one I had rolled. It is rather difficult for a storm to move walls of concrete. So I had a point of reference.

I used it to see where the ring should be. I drew large lines on the ground, the places that, theoretically speaking, Vanessa and I occupied when we arrived. I also tried to fix the rest, but that was impossible. If we ever went back, some buildings would collapse, due to the shearing of the spherical shell. It had probably cut off parts crucial to their structural integrity.

A very high-pitched sound. A glow from underground. It was time. We took our designated positions, in full haste.

-"Josh!"

-"Yes?"

No sound.

Explosion of colours. The same, beautiful colours. But now, I have seen such colours before.

I felt her. She is somewhere around here. I hope she can feel me.

Black.

Thud.

Excruciating pain.

***************************************

My ears ready to blow.

I feel my blood getting ready to boil.

The atmosphere so thin. Where is the oxygen?

I cannot breathe...

Pull yourself together man! This is home!

Light...

The thunder in my ears...

A voice from the outside world.

"Are you alright, young man? Please respond!"

A loud cracking noise.

The nearby building starts to collapse.

Shit! Vanessa!!

I get up. Too easily.

And run towards the building that is ready to crumble under its own weight, having had a good portion of its structure shaved off by the material snatched by the ring and not returned.

People exit in panic.

Vanessa!!

The guard wants to stop me.

I toss him aside like a rag doll.

Shit, I forgot. I am strong now. I truly hope I haven't hurt him. He is not to blame in this.

I cut through the river of people fleeing for their lives, and head towards the lockers. I see her, sitting beside what used to be her locker. She sees me. She smiles. Her eyes smile. Her heart seems to smile too.

I smile back. In kind.

The roof starts to crumble.

I jump ahead. Manage to cover her before a big slab of concrete falls on us both.

Black.

****************************************

Light.

Different. Not the one in the journey. This is different. White.

A tunnel.

In there, I see her.

She was waiting for me.

-"Vanessa? Where are we?"

She smiled. A warm, loving smile. God I love her.

-"This is the only place I could come to meet you again."

-"I don't understand."

-"It is the afterlife, Josh."

-"But I saved you! How can you be here?"

-"You did, as you always did. You gave your life for me. You didn't make it. A terminal coma. I had to see you. So I came here."

-"Why did you come here?"

-"I wanted to tell you that I love you."

I felt all warm inside. And so impossibly sorry.

-"And you had to cross to this place to tell me?"

-"Yes. And tell you that if you are not down there with me, I don't want to be there either."

She looked at me with those seas of eyes, and her heart spoke to me, filling me with all the love I could ever need. And I doubted her. What a moron.

-"But then, you are annulling my offering to you. I offered you life, and I gladly exchanged mine for it. Why didn't you accept it?"

-"Because I don't want it if it doesn't include you. It has no meaning. I don't want your gift. It is you that I want in it. If you are to die, then lets be together here."

-"I don't understand..."

-"On the planet, I didn't know what I was feeling. I was attracted to you, but I wasn't sure. And then, you did all these incredible things. I understood that you were so much more than what you seemed. And then, the incredible love-making. And those eyes, looking at me with the love that moves mountains, or goes against the minions of hell and prevails... It was plain for me to see. I loved you back. I wanted to tell you all this before we came back to Earth. But I guess I ran out of time. And then, the collapse. I would have died a happy woman, happily waiting to tell you here, when you came over. I would wait for you. A lifetime is not something that long over here. But even then, you gave your life for me. And I never had the chance to tell you. I love you. As much as you love me. And I will be wherever you are."

-"How did you get here?"

-"I OD'ed myself with insulin. I am in a coma, just like you."

-"Is it recoverable?"

-"I don't know. Maybe."

-"Is mine?"

-"I don't know either. Maybe."

Pause.

-"Josh?"

-"Yes, my love?"

-"You were right about the incident. There was something huge happening."

-"What?"

-"The experiment saved life on Earth! A Gamma-ray burst hit the sun, causing a huge solar flare, which in turned altered the magnetic field of the Earth. A small fraction of a second after the experiment started, the burst passed over Earth. The rotation of the source was in relativistic speeds relative to our location, so it took just a small fraction of a second for the burst to pass Earth and leave. The Sun's magnetic field, as well as the the altered magnetic field of the Earth, due to the solar flare, and the huge power of the electromagnetic forces created by the experiment, helped focus most of the radiation of the portion of the burst allotted to Earth, like a system of magnetic lenses, to the black hole in the accelerator. Thus, the radiation was prevented from contaminating the planet and sterilizing it. Instead, it was funnelled to the super-spinning artificial black hole, which grew much bigger than anticipated, and triggered the creation of a spherical wormhole, twice. First and second time on location was only a few moments later, but on our part it was so much more. Which means that the laws of physics are not the same everywhere, as you suspected. Time doesn't flow in the same way everywhere. Obviously it flowed so much faster for us than on Earth. Of course, only us know this. This is the privilege of afterlife. You get to know so much. Time is unimportant here."