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Description
I wandered the abandoned streets alone, no people in sight. I glanced behind me. Good, no sign of the mutants so far, maybe the radiation killed all the people instead of hideously transforming them. I shuddered, of all the horrors of war, why? Just why did they have to create such a terrifying weapon? Looking around at the blackened remains of the city, I doubted the possibility of survivors. Nevertheless, I adjusted the crowbar I had slung over my shoulder.
After these events, one couldn’t be too careful.
I walked carefully through the wreckage of the once thriving metropolis, each step crunching as I made my way towards the heart of the city. A warm wind blew as I assessed the damage. Little bits of ash floated through the air, no doubt the remnants of the city. In the center of the city, the once high and mighty buildings were reduced to dust, areas that I was familiar with, such as the city hall, the movie theater, the government building where my father worked, all lay decimated by the effects of the bombs.
The bombs.... The weapons that destroyed all I ever knew....... My friends, my family, killed by them....... Then the soldiers came through...... I tried not to think about it, yet it burned in my mind. A feeling of helplessness came over me. No one left..... Plus, there’s the reason that the whole response was triggered. I felt around in my pockets for the item in question. Good, it was still there.
I slowly made my way to the district that was the mall, and started searching. It must be here! It must! I scoured the sooty ground, trying to find what I was looking for, when my thoughts were interrupted by a moaning noise, subtle at first, but soon rising into a crescendo of wailing. I twirled around just in time to see a mottled black hand headed right for my face.
I swung the crowbar around, and hit the creature in the ribs, it swayed off to the right, and fell over on the ground, hopefully dead. The wailing persisted, I glanced around the wreckage. There were maybe a dozen of them, human-sized monstrosities, with leathery dried skin. Their faces were distorted and warped, with elongated arms and the burnt remains of clothes clinging to charred flesh. But it dawned on me, the worst part was, that underneath it all, they were once people.
I gritted my teeth. Of course, mutants! I readied my crowbar. One lunged at me, arms outstretched. I brought the crowbar down upon it’s head. It fell to the ground, leaking some kind of bodily fluid. I impaled another through the chest, and swung it around into another mutant, knocking it away. Another charged, I dodged and kicked it aside. However, it wasn’t dead, it soon recovered and started attacking again. I held off the mutant’s attacks, the burnt hands ever so eager. I backed up, panting, when I heard crunching footsteps from behind.
I dived out of the way of another mutant, running towards me as fast as it’s charred legs would carry it. I turned around just in time to see it collide with the one that was previously attacking me. I wasted no time, and made short work of them. However, there was still moaning. I ran away as quick as possible, trying to lose them amongst the ruins of the city. Now if only I could find-
“Oof!”
I tripped over something hard embedded in the ground. I looked closely at it. It was a metal cylinder, the type used to hold gas and such. I smiled, I’d found what I was looking for. I grabbed the end of the canister, and attempted to yank it out of the ground. It took a few tries, but I managed to get it out. After taking a look at the partially destroyed label, I tried to find a way that I’d be able to haul it around. I tied a piece of rope that I had with me to the container, and slung it over my shoulder.
Now, if only I could get out of this area.
Suddenly, I heard a screeching noise from behind me. I groaned. Not more mutants......... I readied my crowbar, yet there was nothing at all there. It was rather disconcerting not being able to see where my enemy was. I scanned the ruins, yet there was no one. I stood there, wielding the crowbar, still as a statue. I heard a rustle to my left. I jumped and swung it sharply. Where, where were the creatures? Maybe it was just my imagination-
Suddenly, something jumped out of the ashes and made a beeline for my face. I reacted just in time, bringing the crowbar up to block my face. Fast, but not fast enough, I realized that there were claw-like marks on my arm. I didn’t have time to waste, because it went for my face again. This time, I swung down, pounding the monster into the rubble. However, it just came back for more. I knocked it backwards, and that was when I got a good look at what I was fighting.
I looked......................human. Almost human, except for the sharp claws protruding from the tips of the fingers, and the sharp teeth poking out of the edges of the mouth. The skin was turned to a grayish-blue color. It’s eyes snapped open, and that’s when I realized its most striking feature. It had no pupils, no iris, nothing at all except for blank yellow.
It lunged towards me, heading for my throat. I tried to knock it to the ground, but it dodged very easily. It kept on coming, no matter what. I couldn’t keep this up forever, and I was starting to feel the strain on my body as I pushed myself to stay alive. If only................. Wait, yes! I took the end of the rope in my hand, and took a lunge at the creatures legs. As I expected, it jumped into the air. However, I snapped the canister upwards, so that it hit it right in the middle of it’s chest. It thrashed wildly under the weight of the metal, until I delivered the final blow to the head that killed it.
I rolled it off the creature and kept on going.
After a few minutes of slowly shuffling in the same direction, I determined that I came to the right place. Slowly, I took out a red balloon from my pocket. I sighed, after all I’d been through, after all that happened, It was hard to believe that this was what caused it. Kneeling down next to the canister, I put the balloon on the nozzle, and unscrewed the top of the container. I stopped when I had the right amount and tied the neck of the balloon. Sighing gently, a song played in my head as I released it into the air.
99 dreams I have had,
In everyone, a red balloon,
It’s all over, I’m standing pretty,
In this dust that was a city,
If I could find a souvenir,
just to prove, the world was here,
And here it is a red balloon,
I think of you, and let it go..........

Description
I wandered the abandoned streets alone, no people in sight. I glanced behind me. Good, no sign of the mutants so far, maybe the radiation killed all the people instead of hideously transforming them. I shuddered, of all the horrors of war, why? Just why did they have to create such a terrifying weapon? Looking around at the blackened remains of the city, I doubted the possibility of survivors. Nevertheless, I adjusted the crowbar I had slung over my shoulder.
After these events, one couldn’t be too careful.
I walked carefully through the wreckage of the once thriving metropolis, each step crunching as I made my way towards the heart of the city. A warm wind blew as I assessed the damage. Little bits of ash floated through the air, no doubt the remnants of the city. In the center of the city, the once high and mighty buildings were reduced to dust, areas that I was familiar with, such as the city hall, the movie theater, the government building where my father worked, all lay decimated by the effects of the bombs.
The bombs.... The weapons that destroyed all I ever knew....... My friends, my family, killed by them....... Then the soldiers came through...... I tried not to think about it, yet it burned in my mind. A feeling of helplessness came over me. No one left..... Plus, there’s the reason that the whole response was triggered. I felt around in my pockets for the item in question. Good, it was still there.
I slowly made my way to the district that was the mall, and started searching. It must be here! It must! I scoured the sooty ground, trying to find what I was looking for, when my thoughts were interrupted by a moaning noise, subtle at first, but soon rising into a crescendo of wailing. I twirled around just in time to see a mottled black hand headed right for my face.
I swung the crowbar around, and hit the creature in the ribs, it swayed off to the right, and fell over on the ground, hopefully dead. The wailing persisted, I glanced around the wreckage. There were maybe a dozen of them, human-sized monstrosities, with leathery dried skin. Their faces were distorted and warped, with elongated arms and the burnt remains of clothes clinging to charred flesh. But it dawned on me, the worst part was, that underneath it all, they were once people.
I gritted my teeth. Of course, mutants! I readied my crowbar. One lunged at me, arms outstretched. I brought the crowbar down upon it’s head. It fell to the ground, leaking some kind of bodily fluid. I impaled another through the chest, and swung it around into another mutant, knocking it away. Another charged, I dodged and kicked it aside. However, it wasn’t dead, it soon recovered and started attacking again. I held off the mutant’s attacks, the burnt hands ever so eager. I backed up, panting, when I heard crunching footsteps from behind.
I dived out of the way of another mutant, running towards me as fast as it’s charred legs would carry it. I turned around just in time to see it collide with the one that was previously attacking me. I wasted no time, and made short work of them. However, there was still moaning. I ran away as quick as possible, trying to lose them amongst the ruins of the city. Now if only I could find-
“Oof!”
I tripped over something hard embedded in the ground. I looked closely at it. It was a metal cylinder, the type used to hold gas and such. I smiled, I’d found what I was looking for. I grabbed the end of the canister, and attempted to yank it out of the ground. It took a few tries, but I managed to get it out. After taking a look at the partially destroyed label, I tried to find a way that I’d be able to haul it around. I tied a piece of rope that I had with me to the container, and slung it over my shoulder.
Now, if only I could get out of this area.
Suddenly, I heard a screeching noise from behind me. I groaned. Not more mutants......... I readied my crowbar, yet there was nothing at all there. It was rather disconcerting not being able to see where my enemy was. I scanned the ruins, yet there was no one. I stood there, wielding the crowbar, still as a statue. I heard a rustle to my left. I jumped and swung it sharply. Where, where were the creatures? Maybe it was just my imagination-
Suddenly, something jumped out of the ashes and made a beeline for my face. I reacted just in time, bringing the crowbar up to block my face. Fast, but not fast enough, I realized that there were claw-like marks on my arm. I didn’t have time to waste, because it went for my face again. This time, I swung down, pounding the monster into the rubble. However, it just came back for more. I knocked it backwards, and that was when I got a good look at what I was fighting.
I looked......................human. Almost human, except for the sharp claws protruding from the tips of the fingers, and the sharp teeth poking out of the edges of the mouth. The skin was turned to a grayish-blue color. It’s eyes snapped open, and that’s when I realized its most striking feature. It had no pupils, no iris, nothing at all except for blank yellow.
It lunged towards me, heading for my throat. I tried to knock it to the ground, but it dodged very easily. It kept on coming, no matter what. I couldn’t keep this up forever, and I was starting to feel the strain on my body as I pushed myself to stay alive. If only................. Wait, yes! I took the end of the rope in my hand, and took a lunge at the creatures legs. As I expected, it jumped into the air. However, I snapped the canister upwards, so that it hit it right in the middle of it’s chest. It thrashed wildly under the weight of the metal, until I delivered the final blow to the head that killed it.
I rolled it off the creature and kept on going.
After a few minutes of slowly shuffling in the same direction, I determined that I came to the right place. Slowly, I took out a red balloon from my pocket. I sighed, after all I’d been through, after all that happened, It was hard to believe that this was what caused it. Kneeling down next to the canister, I put the balloon on the nozzle, and unscrewed the top of the container. I stopped when I had the right amount and tied the neck of the balloon. Sighing gently, a song played in my head as I released it into the air.
99 dreams I have had,
In everyone, a red balloon,
It’s all over, I’m standing pretty,
In this dust that was a city,
If I could find a souvenir,
just to prove, the world was here,
And here it is a red balloon,
I think of you, and let it go..........