Todd sits on the roof of his apartment building, watching. He watches the sky and sees it darken, sees the clouds rolling in. He knows it’s going to happen soon. He closes his eyes and feels wetness mist on him. Some would think it was rain, but he knows better than that.

He climbs back down and walks along the streets until he is under the street light in the corner. He stands under it and watches the empty streets, hears doors locking, arguing, and crying. People are scared, he thinks. People don’t know what’s coming.

He sees a figure walking towards him. He smiles as his brother comes into view. He walks under the street light with him.

“Will,” He says. “We are ready.”

Will nods, and walks away. Todd follows and they walk. They walk until they come to Will’s house. Will goes to the porch and lifts up the rug, un-latching a cement door. They climb in and Todd shuts it behind him, sending them into darkness for the next 36 hours.
Sitting on the floor, Will lights some candles and the glow flickers each face in and out. They look at the fire, look at the melting wax. Todd blinks and then rolls his eyes to the back of his head, the front going white and shiny. His mouth falls open and he tilts his head back, making a gagging noise. He reaches up his hand and points his finger up, his nail stretching longer. He sticks his nail to the back of his throat and scoops up a droplet of blood. He shakes his head and his eyes roll back into place and his nail shrinks down again, the droplet of blood still on his finger. Will sticks out his tongue and Todd lets the blood drip onto Will’s taste buds. He swallows and then shudders, hunching his shoulders.
Something ripples through his body and his eyes go blood shot, completely red. His eyes pool over and blood drips from them, down his cheeks. He blinks a couple times and holds his hands out in front of him, palms facing upwards.

Todd picks up a lighted candle. The orange glow flickers over Will’s pale, bloody face. He tilts the candle until a drop of hot wax lands on the palm of Will’s hand. The flesh steams and the white wax soaks in, creating a charred hole. A bubble forms out of the hole in Will’s hand and then it pops, sending green flakes everywhere and showering the two brothers, burning their skin.

They grin and take turns eating the fire until the 36 hours are done.

--


The cement door opens and Todd and Will step out, dressed in all white and their eyes jet black, pools of tar.

They walk to the city and look around, smelling the burnt houses, apartments, stores. The phone lines hang in the air, swinging softly in the air. Sparks fly out of the lines and land on the cracked ground.

A lone dog walks along the street, sniffing the ground for the remains of its dead owner. The bricks of the buildings are black and crumpled. One car sits on the street in front of Todd’s apartment. It’s his car; of course it didn’t get destroyed. Will and Todd walk over to the apartment building and climb up until they got to the roof.

Will steps right onto the edge, his toes barely off. His white clothes are sprinkled with ash. Todd steps up next to him and they stare up to the sky in sync.

Their skin starts cracking and red seeps through the lines, staining their shirts and pants. The wind picks up and their hair blows violently against their faces. They both grin two bloody grins, then they crumble into the ground, leaving nothing but a pile of dust that gets blown away into the dead town.