Sky of Dust: The Last Weapon

by Joshua Bonilla

  “Disaster,” Mary mumbled under her breath as she put her hand across her forehead.

  “Having fun yet?” My dad’s voice rung over my shoulder.

  Mary looked up with the “Are you serious?” look.

  Peter shook his head in apparent pity.

  “Ohh. That bad, huh?” Dad said in a sympathetic voice. “Don’t worry. There is still the rest of the night. The party is just getting started.”

  The band stopped playing and President Reeves took the stage.

  “Ladies and gentleman, I am pleased that all of you could join us here today to celebrate our Independence Day. Although our country is fractured, we have chosen to carry on our hopes and dreams. We have chosen to stand as equals for the common good of humanity. It is truly an honor to lead such wonderful and motivated people. Without you and your sacrifices, we would not be where we are today. Thank you, all of you,” the President spoke. “Now, everyone grab a partner, as we celebrate our accomplishments.”

  President Reeves nodded to the band, and they started to play a slow song.

  “Do you two mind if I borrow Mary for a bit?” My dad asked with a grin.

  “I thought you danced for work?” I asked.

  “She works for me now,” Dad replied. “It’s work.”

  “I would love too.” Mary held out her hand, and my dad pulled her up.

  I put my head on the table. I really did not want to watch.

  “I think I am going to head to bed soon,” I told Peter.

  When he did not respond, I lifted my head and noticed he was no longer there. I turned and watched him being led to the dance floor by a pretty girl about our age with light brown skin.

  “Here I am, talking to myself,” I told myself out loud. It did not matter because I was the only one not dancing.

  I lowered my head on the table and listened to the music play as the footsteps moved in sequence.

  A few minutes later, I heard a cough, like someone trying to get my attention.

  I opened my eyes and could just make out the bottom of a blue dress lined with crystal.

  I put on the best sick face I could and sat up.

  “Are…are you all right?” Abigail’s smile faded and was replaced with a look of worry.

  I felt even worse. She was having a good time, and I just ruined it by playing sick.

  “I think I ate something bad,” I lied. I’m so going to hell.

  “Do you want something to drink?” Abigail asked, looking concerned.

  “No thank you,” I replied. “I’ll be fine.”

  “Look,” Abigail said as she gracefully lowered herself into the chair next to me and faced towards me. “I just never got to really say thank you for the dress.”

  “No big deal,” I told her with a forced smile.

  “It is a big deal for me,” Abigail told me. “I know I shouldn’t care so much about getting a new dress, but this is the only time I can really…have fun. I just…really appreciate what you did for me. I will pay you back.”

  “Listen, don’t worry about it,” I assured her. “You saved my life on the way here. You deserve it.”

  “You saved my life too.” Abigail flushed. “Since you own the dress, I thought you should at least…dance with it…me.”

  Floored. Absolutely floored. One of those moments when your inner you is standing up screaming at all the people ‘See that!? What now!?’ like you just proved everyone wrong.

  I imagine I had a stupid look on my face, but she was busy looking at her fingers.

  Be smooth, I told myself.

  “Sure,” I told her.

  Good job, keep it up! My inner voice motivated me.

  I stood up and extended my hand out to her.

  No! Wipe your hands off first! My inner voice yelled. Too late.

  To my surprise, her hand was sweaty as well. But it was the softest thing I have ever touched.

  Danger avoided!

  I pulled her up, and we began to walk to the dance floor.

  I forgot to lift one of my feet all the way up as we were walking, and I stumbled for a second.

  Smooth as crunchy peanut butter, my inner voice mocked me.

  “Shut up,” I told myself under my breath rather loud.

  Luckily, Abigail did not hear me. I glanced over, and she was positively glowing. I should not have looked. My stomach was doing back flips, and my legs started to get heavy.

  I thought I was about to faint. I probably would have too, but, once we arrived in the center of the dance floor, fireworks were launched over head. The sound scared me, and I squeezed Abigail’s hand.

  “You haven’t seen fireworks before, have you?” Abigail asked.

  I looked at her, and every part of her glowed in the colored light.

  “No. I have only seen pictures,” I told her.

  She smiled and put her arms around my neck. I hesitated for a second and placed my hands on her waist. I could feel her breath and her heart beat. It was so rapid I thought it was me.

  “Thank you,” Abigail said.

  I looked over her shoulder and spotted my dad and Mary a few feet away, both grinning giving me the thumbs up.

  “I just want you to be happy,” I managed to reply without my voice quivering too much.

  She was opening her mouth to say something when several loud explosions rocked the dance floor. At first I thought it was just fireworks going off, but people began to run and scream.

  Chapter 21

  I looked up, and I watched the far side of the glass ceiling begin to collapse in towards the ground like a wave.

  I grabbed Abigail’s hand and pulled her behind me as people began to panic.

  Several more loud explosions erupted around us, and glass began to rain down.

  Black ropes fell from the sky, and people in black suits began to slide down.

  As they landed, they began firing automatic weapons into the crowd.

  The people scattered liked trapped rats. We had nowhere to run.

  I took a deep breath, and time slowed down.

  My eyes darted from one end of the enormous room to the other, taking in every entry point, rope, and enemy that had dropped in.

  I then located Peter, Mary, and my dad, who were all located within shouting distance.

  “HEY!” I screamed to get their attention.

  Slowly, their heads turned towards me.

  “Get them,” I mouthed. They all nodded slowly.

  I released my hold of time, and we all sprung into action like it was second nature.

  Peter took out his watch and slid it on his wrist. He picked up a handful of long glass shards, placed them between his fingers, and made a fist.

  Peter then launched himself forward as a soldier rounded on him and began unloading his clip into Peter’s chest. The soldier did not stand a chance. Peter slammed his glass fist into the soldiers face, and the soldier collapsed.

  He looked at his hands and shook off any feeling he had, grabbing another fistful of glass to continue the battle.

  Mary reached down and pulled out two pistols from between her legs and extended her arms to full length, firing two shots in separate direction—two more soldier fell. She turned and ran to the opposite side of the room where the damage was greatest.

  “Separate!” My dad yelled to Abigail and me. He pulled on the familiar watch. “I will take care of whatever is up there letting them in. I will be back as soon as I can.”

  Then he disappeared. I mean, he literally deflated from existence.

  “Go help Mary!” Abigail yelled to me. “I will help out Peter!”

  Abigail had already strapped her watch on and was breaking a circular table top off the legs and holding it like a shield.

  She ran full speed into a soldier with his back turned and sent him flying into the buffet table.

  I had no watch. It was just me, and I know I could only handle my abilities in short bursts without it.

  I sprinted towards the other side
of the room, grabbing a steak knife along the way.

  I spotted a soldier aiming towards a group of people pinned against a wall.

  “HEY!” I yelled at him.

  Time slowed as the soldier began to turn like he was encased in jello. I ducked down to avoid the swing of his rifle and chose my mark. I let time return, and my blade slid into his side.

  I did not want to see him die, so I turned and ran towards Mary.

  She was making progress for sure. Soldiers were crumpled on the floor among the innocent people that they had slaughtered.

  I heard a loud explosion from above; then a fireball lit the sky just enough for me to see a helicopter nose diving.

  BANG!

  The helicopter slammed into the ground just before the ceiling. I hope it was not one of ours.

  The next thing I remember was the air being knocked out of me as I skidded through the glass on the ground.

  A soldier with a wound on his right shoulder pinned me to the ground and removed a knife from his breast, raising it to stab me.

  I slowed time, but it was fading quickly. I managed to free both of my arms from under his knees and grab his arm that held the knife.

  Time returned, and I was using every bit of strength I had to keep him from skewering me.

  I felt my strength give as the blade crept closer to my face. I tried to scream for help, but I couldn’t make a sound.

  Over the soldier’s shoulder, I saw a boy looking at me. It was Casey. He just stared at me, with no expression, like he was deciding if I was worth it.

  “C-Casey,” I managed.

  Casey disappeared behind the soldier.

  As I exhaled, my strength gave in, and the soldier made progress.

  BANG! BANG! BANG!

  The soldier sat up straight then collapsed on me. I had pushed him partially off when I looked up.

  Casey was standing with a gun pointed directly at me.

  We stared at each other for a moment. He had me where he wanted. I could not do anything.

  Casey lowered the gun and dropped it. He calmly turned and walked through the chaos out of site. I sat up, too weak to move further as I watched the battle wage around me.

  To my surprise, other people had joined in on the fight. People in suits had grabbed guns and were firing at the soldiers. There were even a few people who obviously had abilities that were plowing through soldier after soldier.

  The girl that Peter had danced with, the one with light brown skin, was bobbing and weaving, somehow making every soldier she touched stiffen up and collapse to the ground.

  My focus shot back to Mary, who was now crouched behind a metal buffet table as soldiers advanced on her. She must have been out of ammo because she threw both of her pistols at them from cover.

  My eyes darted to see if there was anyone who was close enough to help, but there wasn’t.

  Just then, my dad seemed to inflate into existence as he swung a knife, burying it in a soldier’s chest.

  Then my dad vanished again and popped up at exactly the same time next to another soldier and twisted his neck.

  He did this about ten more times, disappearing and reappearing, until all soldiers were sprawled on the floor.

  Dad stood on the stage and looked around. I got up and made my way over to him. I saw Mary emerge from behind a table, and she headed towards the stage.

  We climbed up and joined my dad just as Peter and Abigail approached.

  I turned, and for the first time I could see the devastation.

  The ceiling had almost completely caved in, bits still dangled from the ceiling like a time bomb. Helicopter blades extended into view where the chopper had crashed.

  But worst of all were all the bodies scattered across the floor as the glass reflected back a red sky. Hundreds of people lay dead or wounded, screaming in pain. People cradled their loved ones and pleaded for help. Almost everyone had been cut from the falling glass.

  The only one that did not seem physically harmed was Peter, but his eyes seemed sunken in and glazed over.

  I looked down over the people, who I noticed were looking up at us. A few times they would avert their gaze and walk away.

  “Mary,” my dad said as he removed his watch and handed it to her. “Why don’t you help some of the people with their wounds? The rest of us can start moving the bodies.”

  ***

  We dragged the bodies of men, women, children, and soldiers to one corner of the room, while the rest of the people began to head back to their homes.

  Only a few dozen remained to help manage the bodies, as well as a handful of mourners.

  I had long lost my dinner, and everything seemed like a dream.

  “Look at this,” my dad called to everyone.

  He knelt down and flipped the bottom lip of one of the soldiers, revealing a bar code.

  “This is a Renatus Guard,” he told us. “The ones who didn’t die right away took a cyanide capsule.”

  “You mean the East attacked us?” I asked.

  “Most likely not,” Dad responded. “They gain no benefit from attacking us. There is no profit in starting a war with us in which they would lose their source of income.”

  We all stared at him, not following what he was saying.

  “They make money off of people. So sending people to die is not in their best interest,” my dad clarified. “No, these Guards were bought.”

  “It is a warning, Bret!” President Reeves called as she walked over, almost slipping on glass and blood. “They are telling us that they can touch us at home.”

  “I agree,” my dad said. “It seems like they are getting bolder with their attacks. This was meant to shake us. Terrorism.”

  President Reeves scanned the bodies and closed her eyes like she was out of options.

  “I want you to get the Cell team ready in two weeks,” President Reeves instructed. “We don’t have much time left to get Renatus to join us before it’s too late.”

  My dad nodded to her, and the President walked towards some people mourning.

  “Okay guys, listen up,” my dad announced. “Let’s meet at my place tomorrow morning. I understand if you want to back out. It will be very dangerous, and we don’t have much time to train you.”

  He looked at everyone’s faces, and no one objected.

  “What about Casey?” Peter asked softly.

  Dad looked at me then said, “Let him know that it’s his decision if he wants to help or not.”

  I know Casey had changed, and the incident with the gun did not make me feel comfortable having him guard my back, but it was not my decision to make.

  Peter nodded.

  “Why doesn’t everyone go get some rest?” my dad suggested.

  One by one, we trickled back to our apartments.

  Dad and I were the last two to leave the destroyed ball room.

  Tonight’s attack had left a lot of images building in my head that I just could not process. The images of all the people kept creeping up in my mind. I tried to shake them away and think of something else, but it was no use.

  We walked back in silence, too exhausted both mentally and physically to even speak.

  Dad opened the door and let me in first.

  A wave of nausea swept over me, and my head pounded. I had tunnel vision, and I closed my throat as the metallic saliva started to build up. I opened and closed my door behind me and threw myself over the toilet and let it all out.

  I flushed the toilet and grasped the side of the sink to keep myself steady. I looked in the mirror and saw the terror on my face. I was only a kid. How could this happen to me?

  I slowly tried to strip off my tattered tuxedo, but I had no strength. I turned on the shower and climbed in, letting the hot water slowly cover my body.

  I turned off the water and let the heat melt away my tight muscles. My mind replayed what had happened over and over again. Then I realized there was nothing more we could have done. We tried, and we had stopped the Guards
when no one else did.

  With the small boost of motivation, I was able to finish taking off my tie and shirt. I stood up and dried off, making sure to get into some sleeping clothes this time.

  I climbed into bed and tried to keep my mind busy, but nothing seemed to work. Then I remembered Abigail before all of this happened—how happy she was, and how we were finally able to connect. I focused on these memories, and soon I dozed off to sleep.

  Chapter 22

  Just like the morning before, I woke to the opening and closing of the door.

  I slid out of bed and put on some appropriate clothes. The wet tuxedo I wore last night still lay in a puddle of pink tinted water. It reminded me that what happened was real.

  I opened my door, and to my surprise everyone was already here. They sat around the table, holding cups of a brown liquid that smelled bitter.

  “Hey,” I croaked weakly.

  Then I noticed Jason sitting next to Abigail.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked in an unintentionally rude manner.

  “Jason is part of Cell team,” Dad replied for him. “He has been for a while. In fact, he was the only one who stayed after last night.”

  Jason and I held eyes for a moment. Another person I could not trust on the team.

  Peter and Casey sat next to each other. Peter looked a bit nervous, and appeared like he was trying to avoid being close to Casey if possible.

  Casey was zoned out, just looking at the table, not making a sound or the slightest movement.

  “Well, it’s just the seven of us,” my dad announced. “President Reeves said she could provide the drop off and extraction. But once we are in, we are on our own.”

  “Great,” Jason mumbled. Abigail shot him a nasty glance.

  Dad ignored him.

  “We have about two weeks, maybe a little more, to get all of you in shape,” my dad continued. “You will be taught how to fight, think on your feet, and how the enemy thinks. You will have to memorize everything about the Renatus HQ for us to be successful. This is to protect our home, and, for most of us, it’s a little more personal.”