Fault Tolerance

(StarbucksMan274)

WARNING: This story contains violent crushing scenes and crude language that may not be suitable for people aged 17 and under.

Chapter 1:
“What I Know”

As I look around this city, standing atop the highest building in the town, I see what used to be the center of the world. Grand old New York, they’d say. Pride of America. On and on. Not enough that could be said about New York. Now look at it. There’s nothing left for anyone. Buildings have been brought to the ground, billions have been killed around the world, military resistance has been futile and unsuccessful. My life has literally been ruined. I stand here today, gripping my M16A2 military rifle and occasionally glancing at the flag half tied across my upper arm, thinking of the lost. Holding this firearm is a joke. It can never hurt them. No, they can’t be hurt. I used to be a religious man. Ever since this, well, religion has become a joke. If there was a God, he’s sure as hell pissed at us.
Humans are no longer in control of Earth. I can no longer venture freely out into the streets. My home, almost permanent home, is this building. More or less, the thirty-fifth floor of this building. They haven’t been able to penetrate my haven. Not yet, at least. I have seen more death than an undertaker.
Are they all dead? No, most of them are, but no, not all of them. Some are, like me, scattered across the world, each with their own little retreat. Some have chosen to surrender themselves to the invaders. Those divine figures who took control of our planet. Their servitude to them knows no end. And then there are those who put up a final resistance. There’s probably less of them then us who are scattered. I estimate their numbers to be in the low hundreds. But they know how to survive. They can’t kill the invaders, but they try. To honor the billions that have died. Some valiantly, others not so valiantly.
On my rough, war-torn clothes, I find my ID card for my office, still tucked safely into my pocket. Christopher Prochaska, Administrative Representative. Ha, I laugh, that was a title I’ve abandoned long ago. One that I’ll never see again. Thanks to the invaders, that is.
The invaders are like none the planet has ever fought. None the planet has ever dreamed of having to fight. A group of three of them. That’s right, I have no reason to lie anymore. Three individuals took on an entire planet…and won. We never stood a chance. It’s nothing that we did wrong, however. Our most brilliant tacticians advised us. Our troops were inspired and well equipped. Nothing could go wrong, but it did. The problem was that they were too good. Our equipment was powerless against them. Bullets have probably impacted every inch of their titanic frames.
Why use that adjective? Because that’s the best way I can describe it. These girls, yes, they are all female, have surpassed human limits. They are so gigantic that just looking up at them is enough to give a human vertigo. You can always tell when they are coming. The ground shakes, as if tectonic plates were shifting, and all goes quiet, what little sound there is nowadays. In New York? I’ve come to realize that I’m the only person here.
I feel buildings shaking. Hmm…nothing is going on down in the streets. However, as I collect these thoughts, I can see her. Off in the distance, coming for this city. Many times I have escaped her. Too many times, apparently. She is set on capturing me. For what? The thought is enough to make me cry. I’ve but seconds to remain here. My actions are based on all of the events that led up to this. There are so many, yet they fly by in a heartbeat…

Chapter 2:
“The Invasion”

“Hey, Chris! Been a while since I’ve seen you last.” My friend Larry said over the phone.
“Hey, man. Everything going all right at home?” I asked him in reply.
“Same bullshit. You?”
“Can’t complain. Just wondering if you wanted to go out after work.”
“Where to?”
“That new bar downtown.”
“Hmm…yeah, sure. My wife is at a meeting.”
“All right, I’ll see you there at five thirty, okay?”
“Sure thing. See you then.” I said, handing up the phone. He was a good friend of mine, and I was happy to know he was still looking out for me. The rest of the work day went slowly as usual. Paperwork, e-mails, and phone calls. Finally, I was liberated by the five o’clock mark and quickly left the building. I made my way through cars in the parking garage until I reached my own. I wasted no time in starting up the car and exiting the parking lot.
“…patterns look good. It seems like it’s another great day in grand old New York. And now we take you to Gary Bears for your news update! Gary.” The weatherman said, switching over to Gary. I merged into traffic and continued downtown.
“Thank you. In today’s news, coalition forces are still searching for three individuals who are wanted for breaking into a government controlled laboratory. While officials are not saying what exactly was stolen, they insist that it was extremely valuable and dangerous. Officials say that if they intruders are not found soon martial law may be a viable alternative. We now switch to an audio clip of the President.”
“The stolen property was not planned for use by our troops, however, it could give the enemy a strong advantage. Strong enough to make it a serious issue as far as national security goes. Countries from all over are bravely committing their forces to helping us locate these criminals. I would like to thank these leaders for helping the world.”
I blinked, slightly confused at this broadcast and turned up the volume when I had stopped at a red light. “That was the President earlier today. The National Security council has advised more vigilant watch by law officials and citizens, although they offered no descriptions as to what the perpetrators looked like. We’ll be right back with you after these commercials.”
“Huh, must be pretty tough to have broken into a military base.” I said to myself, making a right turn and parking behind Larry’s SUV. I exited my car, locked it, and walked inside. He was easy to spot. Right there in a bright red shirt, sitting at the bar drinking. I pulled up a stool next to him.
“Chris! Great to see you again. Take a seat and order a drink. God, what a night…what?” Larry suddenly dropped off, looking at the TV.
“This is a breaking news report directly from Long Island, New York! Three girls, positioned in places through out the world, including Washington D.C., London, and Hong Kong, have grown to heights estimated by the military to be around two hundred to two hundred fifty feet. A rushed military response has been issued to combat these girls! We now go live to the scene with John Rutger.” A female reporter said, exasperated. By now, everyone in the entire bar, including me, was looking at the TV. It seemed like a joke.
“We are now giving you live footage of one of the girls,” John said, directing the cameraman to aim at the girl, “who is responsible for this.” Secret Service agents, Marines, and other armed forces were firing at the girl. However, the bullets did nothing. It seemed as if they bounced off of her. She was the most beautiful threat I had ever had the pleasure of seeing. Judging by the looks of the guys around me, I wasn’t alone. She had blond hair that hung down her back in a ponytail, held in place by a red bow. Her outfit was red and black, with golden stripes running down her clothes. It included a white and black top with similar golden stripes.
Her beauty, however, did not mean that she was incapable of killing. She stood on the lawn of the White House, taking the fire and looking down at the building.
“Stop it. I’ve come to speak with the President. I have no use for you.” The girl said, having a soothing sort of tone. The firing continued. The reporter seemed to have no words to say. Shortly following that, the President emerged from the White House, surrounded by armed guardsmen. The firing stopped, leaving a silence.
“What have you come for?” The President asked.
“I have come to ask you for an alliance.” The girl said.
“An alliance to do what?”
“Oh, yes. I should explain myself. My name is Helena Douglas. I represent the organization of my friends and I. We have found that it is too difficult to reason with leaders when you generate no threat. Therefore, we found it necessary to go to such limits. We have come to each of the capital cities of the three strongest countries in the world. This is a world filled with corruption and is clearly in need of a change. We are the bringers of this change. We ask your help in purging these lands.”
“What do you mean by purging?”
“Myself and my friends are the new government. We are the new leaders of this earth. We demand that proper respect be given to us at all times. Anyone refusing to do this must be disposed of.”
“The United States will ally with no man or woman wanting to kill innocents who will not worship the way they please. In our First Amendment, we have a freedom of religion. We are not about to break that!”
“Are you refusing the offer then? All refusals will be seen as hostility.” She said, still completely calm.
“I will not give my hand in terrorism.”
“Very well then. I apologize it will end this way. I suppose there is no other way then. Have great pride in being the first in our purges.” The woman said. The President stepped back from her, however, there was nothing that it did. She slammed her boot down on top of him and his guards, leaving behind a crater in the shape of her boot. It was the start of what would become a struggle to survive.

Chapter 3:
“Pandemonium Threshold”

“Shit! It’s Armageddon! Run for your lives!” Some man in the bar yelled. No one really needed told to do so, though. I was running away, leaving my friend behind. I must have sprinted faster than I ever had in my entire life to my car. I started it up but was presented with the problem of getting out. Cars were packed in and traffic laws were no longer in effect. People were running across the streets, which only complicated matters.
“Damn, what to do…” I said to myself. The radio also told some grim news, in accordance with the invasion.
“…estimated already at a thousand. Hundreds more are missing! Rumors have it that the invader, Helena, is heading towards New York. The military has been deployed and martial law is in place. Evacuation orders have been given. We will stay on the scene with you as long as possible!” The reporter said, not in her usual calm voice.
“She’s coming here? I have to get home! But I’ll never get there alive in this mess, screw this, I need to go now!” I reasoned with myself, in a panic. I ran out of the car, taking my keys. Seeing as cars were now plowing through people, I decided staying out of their way was a good course of action. I ran for what seemed like a good five minutes, before stopping outside my doorstep. I was in such a panic that I dropped my keys in the process of finding the house key.
After I had picked them up, I got inside and locked the door. It was then that I began moving stuff down to the basement. Everything that I could possibly pick up, I did. My basement was fuller that day than it ever had been. And I thought myself ready to survive an attack. Faintly, I could make out frantic knocking on my door. I sprinted upstairs to see who it was. I had barely opened the door, when Larry began hysterically talking.
“Chris! You’ve got to come with me! Stores are opening their stocks to the public. We need to get crap to survive this thing!” He yelled, constantly looking over his shoulder.
“Won’t it all be gone? What with all the people rushing in and out.’
“Most of them, yeah. But a buddy of mine is holding out for us. He can only do so for so long.” He explained to me. I nodded and ran with Larry a couple of blocks away to the food store. No one was there, except for a few stragglers. Larry’s friend saw us and opened the doors for us.
“Take as much as you want. After you leave, I’m opening this up and getting out of here.” The man said, walking quickly back to his office. We got shopping carts and went down the aisles, taking as much non-perishable food as we could fit. After we were satisfied that we couldn’t fit anymore, we wheeled the carts out into the parking lot. Suddenly, a woman’s voice was projected probably over the whole of New York.
“Citizens of New York! I am ordering you all to come and worship us! There are no alternatives. Do not resist! Any man or woman found doing so will be killed!” Helena’s voice yelled. We felt the ground vibrating beneath us, similar to an earthquake. We stood there, frozen to the spot. We watched as she walked into New York, crushing everything beneath her. Seeing her on TV and in real life were two different things. I had never felt such fear in my life. Larry screamed, unable to keep his cool. This caught Helena’s interest, as she looked to her right, spotting us. I was almost crying.
“Citizens! Have you decided to abandon your government and join me? Your leaders have led you to corruption and ruin. However, there is hope with us!” She said, smiling. My mouth wouldn’t move, much like the rest of my body. Larry was similarly stricken. The military was quite proficient in taking over where we had not. Military jets, foot soldiers, tanks, and artillery began to surround her. We did the only thing that was appropriate for us to do. We ran, listening to the heated exchange of words.
“Helena! By order of the United States Armed Forces, you are ordered to surrender! We will not ask again before opening fire!” A soldier yelled, through a megaphone.
“Do not use such a tone with me. I am trying to save you men from a corrupt government. I will open the same offer to you as I did the men back there.” Helena said, still calm.
“We will not hear it! Open fire! Take down the tyrant!” The man yelled. Shells, bullets, and missiles all bombarded her. I had never seen such ferocity in soldiers. However, I could tell something was going terribly wrong. When the soldiers began swearing and retreating to cover, it became apparent to me that Helena was no average enemy. Not one part of her showed any sign of damage.
“There’s another one coming!” Larry hissed to me, pointing to my right. As he had said, another girl was coming through the city. This one was wearing a purple sort of ninja suit I had never seen previously. As for her looks, she presented purple hair with an odd sort of bandanna. She, like Helena, was enormous. This seemed like a dream to me.
“Gentlemen, meet my close friend and co-worker, Ayane. Go ahead and introduce yourself dear.” Helena said to Ayane, who smiled in return.
“My name is Ayane. My background and the rest of my name is of no concern to you. Be content with the knowledge that I will annihilate any of you that pose a threat. Now, you aren’t going to pose a threat, are you?” Ayane said, ending with a sort of pleasure.
“C-Cease and d-d-desist!” The soldier ordered, stuttering terribly. It was at that point that Ayane and Helena started ripping through the soldiers, stepping on them, kicking them, swatting at them, whatever was easiest, it seemed. I was still frozen to the spot with Larry. It, to me, was hardly conceivable. An entire military platoon had been wiped out. We watched as Helena turned her attention to us.
“Ayane, these two men were the first ones I met in New York. Gentlemen, this is Ayane, as I’m sure you already know. I will need a quick answer. There’s an entire world ahead of us.” Helena said to us, gazing down. I wasn’t sure exactly what to respond. There was no way I wanted to worship them, however, I didn’t want to die either. I then just decided to go along with Larry. We would make it together.
“Please…just let us go! We don’t want to be part of this!” Larry pleaded, getting down on his knees. Tears were welling up in his eyes. I thought of the family he had. He had a lot more on the line than I did.
“I am not going to let you go just like that. You either support or don’t support us. Which is it?”
“I don’t want to be on either side. I just want to live the rest of my life…” He began again, but stopped when Ayane picked him up with her two fingernails. I distantly viewed him. There was nothing keeping him there except his shirt.
“If you’re not on either side, well you aren’t on ours. You understand that?” Ayane said to him. I couldn’t make out his reply. But, from what Ayane did next, it was easily observable that he didn’t say he supported them. With a flick of her wrist, Ayane sent the man flying through the sky towards a large red building. I lost sight of him before I saw what happened to him. While Helena and Ayane were distracted by Larry’s fate, I made a run for it. I dashed madly, not having a clue where I would go.
“You can run all you want. I’ll be back for you. Might not be for a while, but know that I will be back, and that you will not survive.” Ayane called to me, laughing. Like Larry, I was crying as I sprinted into town. I stopped inside a local rundown Laundromat, well out of their line of sight.

Chapter 4:
“Great Crusade”

I rammed through the door and fell onto the floor, destabilized by this action. While lying on the downed door, I wondered what I could do. I recapped what just happened. The military, all of them had failed in their attempts to kill her. If firearms and explosives couldn’t kill her, what would? Could they be killed was a better question, I thought bitterly.
“I’m screwed…” I said, my voice shaky.
“Who’s there?” A man called.
“Chris.” I replied, for some reason expecting him to know me.
“Chris who?”
“Does it make a difference? I’m not one of them!” I shot back. A man came out of a room near the back. He was aging and bald, but, judging from the M249 machine gun that he was holding, he wasn’t helpless.
“Why are you in such a hurry?”
“If you haven’t noticed, we’re under attack! The entire world! Should I not be in a hurry?” I questioned, getting up off of my knees.
“I guess so. Sorry, just a little bit stressful.”
“That’s fine. I understand. What do you need?”
“I’m not sure. A safe haven from them, I guess.”
“Shit, don’t we all? What’s happening outside? Can you get a glimpse?” He asked me. I nodded and looked out the door. I caught sight of Helena and Ayane moving through the city. People were screaming so I assumed they were getting killed. A military garrison opened fire from a building, which immediately caught Helena’s attention. She kicked the building. Her foot went through the building itself, however, the building still stood. Smiling, she took the top half of the building off and dropped it to the ground, freeing her leg. The gunfire stopped, so I again made an assumption that the soldiers had died. Not wanting to see anymore, I walked back inside.
“They’ve begun. New York is officially being destroyed.” I said, looking at the ground. There was no response from him. I looked up. He was standing completely still; his face had no more color in it. I followed his eyes to the window. I saw Ayane’s boots impacting the ground, on a direct course for our Laundromat. I dived out the doorway just as she crushed the building beneath her.
I was promptly covered with wood, dust, and other miscellaneous light things. I lied completely still until I heard her footsteps fade away. I took that chance to get up and dust myself up. Turning around, I viewed what was my safe haven. It was destroyed, nothing at all was left. What would I do now? I supposed it would be best to go back to my house. I calculated that it would take about ten minutes, walking, to reach it. With no other alternatives, I set off through town, thinking the buildings would cover me. I began my silent walk, observing the once great city. Instead, buildings were toppled, particularly towards the former military garrison. There were few intact bodies. Most were decapitated, mangled, or worse. I had never seen so much blood and destruction in my entire life.
I continued into my sixth minute of walking, knowing my house was near. As I crossed past a skyscraper, a piece of cloth fell over my head. Astonished, I took it off and looked at it. It was an American flag. Or half of one anyway. I was holding it out in front of me, when blood began dripping on it. I looked up. It was a long way up, but there was no mistaking it. Larry’s body was impaled on the flag pole, sticking out from the seventh story. The other half of the flag had his head through it. The sight was enough to tear anyone down. However, despite my want to stay, I knew I would end up like Larry if I did not continue. In recognition of him, I tied the bloodstained half of the flag across my upper right arm.
I set off through the rest of the city at a fast jog. The sun was no longer shining down directly on us. It began its descent. I rounded a corner quickly but soon stopped dead in my tracks. I had come within twenty feet of running into Ayane’s boot. I hid in a nearby doorway, waiting for her to pass. She stood still though, seemingly looking for something. I felt Helena coming towards her. Her voice confirmed my fears.
“Ayane, you needed something?” Helena asked.
“Yes. The sun is setting. We’ll have to find the military before then.” Ayane said, scanning the ground.
“You think they’ll find us? There’s an entire city to cover. Besides, they have no idea that…”
“Still, better safe than sorry. I don’t want to have to die in my original form when I have the power to destroy like this.”
“I suppose you are right. Come, let us make this quick. Meet back at the rendezvous point as planned.”
“What of Christie?” Ayane asked. That was the first time I had heard that name. I heard everything regarding Helena and Ayane, however, Christie was a big blank. I hoped to God that she would come to New York as well.
“She’s going to be all right. She did mention having a flawless plan, as she put it.”
“Okay, let’s drop some buildings.” Helena suggested. The two walked off, fortunately, in the opposite direction of my house. I pondered their conversation, as I continued my run towards my house. Something happened to them at night. From what I understood, it made them vulnerable. While the thought of appealing to the military was enough to make me abandon my run to my house, the thought of being discovered and killed with this information made me drop that idea. I reached the road that my house was on, but that didn’t matter now. Every house and building was destroyed.
“Now what…” I said to myself, looking at the sky. Night was coming on quick.

Chapter 5:
“Night’s Embrace”

I stood my ground, staring at the destroyed row of houses, pondering my next action. The sun was sinking lower and lower into the horizon. I felt the rumbling of the ground beneath me. I looked for cover. There was nothing to speak of so I ducked. It wasn’t enough.
“On your feet!” Ayane yelled at me, stopping. Helena stopped too. I rose, staring at the ground.
“You…you’re that man from before!” Helena realized. I shook my head.
“Yes you are! I know it!” She said. Ayane picked me up with her one hand. It was a horrifying experience. There was nothing but two hundred to two hundred fifty feet below me. Staying with her wasn’t any more preferable.
“I told you we would find you. Escaping us is treason. We will have you executed.” Helena said. They were both staring at me.
“How would you like to die?” Ayane asked, smirking.
“N-No!” I said.
“Yes, your actions are unforgivable. Death is the only option for you…” She said, being interrupted by Helena. She whispered something to Ayane, which I surprisingly couldn’t hear.
“Okay, we are willing to give you a second chance to redeem yourself. You are going to serve us.”
“You don’t appear to need any help.” I replied.
“Watch your tone!” She reprimanded.
“Ayane! The sun!” Helena said, scared. It was nearly dusk. Light was scarce. I felt Ayane’s grasp on me lighten.
“It’s already starting! Let’s move!” Ayane yelled. She balled me up in her fist and took off. They started running somewhere. I was unable to see out, so there was no way to know where we were heading. It seemed that Ayane’s fist was getting smaller. Within the minute, I was bigger than her fist. She must have known that too, because she dropped me. I barely realized what was going on when I saw the ground, incoming fast. In an attempt to save my life, I grabbed a hold on the fabric on her leg. I continued to cling for my life as she and Helena were in the process of running and getting smaller. I looked up at her. I was nearly as tall as her leg now so I let go. I rolled a little bit, but was back on my feet soon enough.
I madly dashed after them, not even considering any consequences. We ran through another destroyed section of town. The two of them were now my size. They rounded a corner into an alleyway. I made the turn only to stop. The alley branched off in five different directions. I heard a clatter around the leftmost corner and footsteps. Having a good feeling, I ran straight for that section. Sure enough, they were running again.
“Christie! Hurry!” Helena yelled. I quickly turned another corner to find myself facing a gun barrel. I stopped and backed up against the wall. A white-haired woman who I suspected of being Christie had no emotion on her face, but she kept the weapon pointed at my heart. I was afraid to move, so afraid that I stood there. Helena approached Christie’s side.
“Why?” She asked me. I really didn’t know why. I couldn’t find out what had driven me to pursue them.
“I don’t know.” I admitted, not realizing how stupid that actually sounded. Ayane laughed.
“You just decided to give chase because you felt like it?”
“I…really don’t know!” I said.
“Helena…we should dispose of him. He knows now.” Christie said. I looked at her pleadingly. While doing so, I spotted that the rifle was not loaded. Helena looked at me. It felt as if she was searching for some reason not to.
“I suppose you are correct. Very well. Do as you choose.” Helena said, turning her back and walking towards Ayane. Christie took a clip off of her belt and loaded it. She aimed, but then looked at me from around the gun.
“P-Please miss! Don’t shoot!” I cried out. She frowned and shook her head. I wasn’t sure what that meant. Little wonder. She raised it again and pulled the trigger. Instead of a blast, she got a metallic clanging noise.
“Jammed…” She said, beginning to clear it. I wasn’t about to wait for her to shoot again. I took off.
“He’s getting away! Stop him! He can’t tell anyone about that!” Ayane shouted. I made a slight right at the intersection and went into an open shop door. Once inside, I hid under a table in the back room. I heard footsteps, however, they were distant and walked past my haven. Feeling safer, I raised my head quickly. It hit into the top of the table I was hiding under.
“Damn…” I said, rubbing my head. I heard a large clatter and the table collapsed, pouring tons of assorted things all over me. I was trapped and felt my grip on consciousness loosen. The girls were in there within the minute. Even though they wanted to kill me, I still reached my hand out, as if hoping they would drag me out.
“Ha! How unfortunate. You be a good boy and enjoy your death!” Ayane said, smashing the heel of her boot into my hand. It hurt, but I was too weak to withdraw it. My eyes closed, and I drifted off into sleep.

Chapter 6:
“The New New York”

I awoke to find myself still buried under the rubble. Before freeing myself, I was astonished to hear almost nothing. I heard the girls’ footsteps, however, there was little more. No people, no cars, it was as close to silence as I had ever known. I managed to squirm out of my temporary prison and walked out of the shops. Where there had once been buildings obstructing my view, it was now clear. For some distance, all I could see was toppled buildings and those that had been damaged. I hadn’t an idea of what to do. I did have an advantage though. They thought that I was dead, which helped me get past my fears of them hunting me down. I ran for a little while, without the faintest idea of where I was heading to.
My mind had never been so blank before. I didn’t know where I could turn for help or where to start looking for them. The closest thing I could find to help came in the form of a small electric golf cart. I didn’t ask myself what this was doing here, but I instead started it and tried to backtrack to my area of town. While driving, I spotted Helena. She was no longer in her vulnerable, normal form. No, she had reemerged her gigantic self. It was still somewhat surreal that this could be happening. Not that I had any doubt it had happened, no. I quickly made a turn into a section of New York that had a few buildings for cover. I drove through the streets, having to take numerous turns to avoid large, impassable heaps of building. The cart ran out of charge right in front of a large, gray building. I got out and looked it over. It was around eight stories tall and had a dull gray paint. Most of the windows were broken, however, that didn’t matter to me. This would be my safe haven.
I had been a New Yorker for some time, however, amid all the destruction, I was clueless as to my whereabouts. My stomach growled at me, urging me to eat. This was an office building, so I decided to move around me, looking for a restaurant or supermarket. My prayers were answered when I stumbled upon a fair condition fast food restaurant. A series of generators were powering the establishment. I ate a little bit, a double cheeseburger and some French fries, before gathering as much as I could carry into bags before I thought to leave. I was reaching for the door handle when I heard Helena approaching, pleasantly humming some tune. As she passed my position, I heard rumbling and felt towers of rock and metal hit the ground around me. I stayed frozen to my spot until I heard her leave.
When I finally left, debris was scattered everywhere, and I was lost again. I took a right, thinking it was where I had come from. Twelve minutes I walked until I realized that I was going in the wrong direction. As I made my way back, I pondered how long I could keep this up. Eventually, I would run out of food or something to that nature. It would be a slow death from there.
“Hey, you there!” Helena screamed. I yelled in fear I had been detected. My fears were right. I froze; it was a common reaction still.
“Hands above your head and turn around.” She ordered. I did so slowly, keeping my face to the ground. Helena took up one knee to observe me. I knew it was futile trying to hide my identity.
“You were supposed to be dead!”
“I…” I said, starting before I even had something to say. Helena lifted up her boot and positioned it over me. She was going to stomp on me. Was this how it would end? To die like an insect? She brought it down slowly until it just touched me.
“Realize how close to death you are now?”
“Y-Yes!” I said, terrified.
“I should kill you here and now. For all the trouble you’ve caused me, for escaping, for knowing our little secret…”
“No! Don’t!”
“But, for some reason, I keep telling myself no. Life plays the funniest tricks.”
“Don’t kill me!”
She smiled and put her foot back at her side. “I’ll spare your life…for a price.”
“What price?” I asked, unsure of her intentions.
“You take me up on that servant offer, and I’ll let you live. Otherwise, this will be the end.”
“Yes! Anything! Don’t kill me!” I breathed, relieved. The new question raised in my mind asked if it was preferable to live rather than to die. I guessed it all depended on the work I would be doing. She knelt down and extended her left hand to me.
“There’s a schedule to keep. Let’s get going.” She said. I hesitated. My life would be fully in her control if I was to just walk into the palm of her hand. She must have known what I was thinking because she said, “I am not going to wait for you. You said anything. Now, unless you’d like to receive the punishment that liars get, you will come with me. Now!” I nodded and walked quickly into her hand. She set off towards wherever without another word. I looked at the city through the cracks between her fingers. New York was destroyed. There was nothing more to the city I loved.

Chapter 7:
“Titles”

I remained inside Helena’s palm, cramped and scared. We hadn’t been walking for long, but I was tired of being in there. As if she knew my thoughts, she opened her hand and set me down on top of a building. I looked from her to the city. I was not sure where we were.
“Now, you have had the pleasure of knowing me this long. I think we should introduce ourselves. My name is Helena. I am your ruler. I would highly recommend you calling me Lady Helena. I think that is fair, wouldn’t you agree?” Helena asked me.
“Yes, Lady Helena.” I said, nodding.
“Good,” She smiled, “I’m not sure exactly what Ayane or Christie would have you call them, but you’ll have to ask them yourself. It seems odd to me, but I don’t yet know your name.”
“M-My name is Chris.”
“Chris what?”
“C-Christopher Prochaska.”
“All right then, Mr. Prochaska. I am sorry to inform you, but you will not have much work to do. Most of it is for us. Once we accomplish it, you will be able to begin fulfilling your purpose.”
“What are you talking about?”
“We are clearing this city out to make quarters and a beach for us. It’s not as if anyone needs it anymore.”
“So…in the meantime, what am I supposed to do?”
Helena giggled. “I like you. Always focused on the task ahead. I want you to look out into the city. Tell me which building you would want to live in and on which floor.” That was definitely not one of the things I was expected, but I followed her orders. I laid vision on the nicest building in town. It was a new hotel that was undamaged. I had read reviews, and it seemed nice.
“That one,” I pointed out, “the hotel over there.”
“Oh, nice choice. That will be our residence at night. As far as room assignments go…” She began, when the ground started shaking.
“Helena! Helena!” Ayane yelled. I looked around Helena to see Ayane running towards us.
“Ayane, what is it?” Helena asked.
“I wanted to give you an update. We’ve located, according to Christie, five hundred and eighty-two military bases in America. Out of those, none were left standing. I’m sure there’s a few out there that have yet to be destroyed, but for the most part, the American military is finished.” Ayane said, smiling with accomplishment.
“Excellent! Continue with Christie and see what else you can get done. As for tonight, the hotel will be the meeting place. Bring weaponry and meet when ready.” Helena said, showing her the hotel. Ayane nodded. She spotted me in the process.
“Hey! You were supposed to be dead!” She exclaimed. Ayane approached the building.
“Ayane, he’s sorry and is willing to trade his freedom for forgiveness. Isn’t that right, Chris?” Helena said, looking back at me.
“Yes!” I said, scared of Ayane, who looked unconvinced.
“Apologize to Miss Ayane, Chris.” Helena said to me as if instructing a five-year-old child. Ayane put her hands on her hips and looked down at me, glaring at me.
“I-I’m sorry…Miss Ayane.” I said. Saying this was humiliating. Even though there was no one to ever hold this against me, it made no difference. A subtle smirk began forming on Ayane’s face.
“Can’t he do any better than that?” She asked Helena, who laughed.
“Go on, you heard her, Chris.” Helena prompted.
“P-Please accept my a-apologies, Leader Ayane…” I tried again.
“Creativity! Come on, I want to hear it!” She yelled at me, laughing. I had no idea what she meant. It was scary to me, judging from Helena’s expression, it was scary to her as well. She nodded back at me though. I thought of all the titles I had ever heard. I put them together in an attempt to satisfy her.
“Supreme Ruler Ayane! I beg your forgiveness!” I said, kneeling down. Ayane stopped laughing and let a satisfied smile show.
“Not bad. Not bad at all. You’ll be all right for the position.” Ayane said, shrugging. She took a long look at me before walking off. Helena watched her leave with a concerned expression. I wanted to ask Helena if Ayane was always like that, but she was her friend, and offending her friend wasn’t a bright idea.
“Ahem…yes. Come, you have to prepare your room.” Helena said, picking me up.

Chapter 8:
“Nighttime Action”

Helena’s idea of preparing a room was not what I had in mind. She watched me through windows as I installed an electric generator, a keypad locking panel on the outside of my room, bars across my windows. She then made me test it all, to make sure there were no mistakes. She had been carrying me across town to get more gas and food when we noticed the sun setting. She quickly set me down in front of the building as she began her process of shrinking. Ayane and Christie were coming towards us, but they were shrinking, so I lost them behind the buildings. We all met up in the lobby of the hotel. Christie and Ayane had their rifles and had got a M15 General Officer’s pistol. I only knew this because my friend had gotten jailed for stealing one when he was younger.
“That’s good enough. Great job today.” Helena said.
“Yeah, we got a lot accomplished.” Christie replied, looking at Ayane.
“So…what are we doing about him?” Ayane asked.
“Come, Ayane help me restrain him.” Helena said, taking my left wrist. Ayane took my right, gripping it very tightly. We walked up the stairs to the fifteenth floor. It was easy to tell which one Helena had set aside for me because of the equipment I installed. Christie opened the door to allow Ayane and Helena to lead me into my room. They let me go and stood by the door.
“This is his room. I have observed that this all works perfectly, and there is no chance for escape.” Helena said, motioning to all I did. Ayane and Christie looked around and agreed.
“Well then, good night. Let’s go look around a bit.” Christie suggested. They walked out, locking the door behind them. I heard them program a code into the keypad, locking the door. I watched the door for a couple of seconds, almost hoping for it to open again. I then sunk to my knees. I had ensured my servitude to them for tonight at least. I had never done a job so perfect before. Then again, I had never been threatened with death for failing. I did what was natural and looked for an escape route. The windows were barred with steel bars. The door was not the usual light wood door. She got some kind of metallic door. That was protected by a keypad scanner. Perhaps there wasn’t a way out.
I got up and walked over to the bed. Miserable, I laid out and stared at the ceiling. My eyes began to close and sleep started shutting down my brain.
Suddenly, I sat upright all at once. I had two options. Stay here and hope tomorrow would be good. Or I could try getting out. Since I had no desire to work all day, I got up and looked around my room. I looked for anything that could help me. I saw nothing. I moved on to the bathroom. Again, in the bathroom, there was nothing. Feeling defeat already, I glanced up at my flickering light in my room. Shadows seemed to be dancing across the tiled ceiling.
“That’s it!” I deducted. The ceiling was the most likely escape route. I got a chair from my counter and put it up. I popped the tile out of the ceiling and, barely, lifted myself up into the ceiling. From there, I moved into a ventilation duct. I was out of my room and heading away from them. Looking down, I spotted the hallway of my floor. Helena, Christie, and Ayane were sweeping through the rooms uninterested. I watched them intently, hoping to gain some knowledge on how to defeat them.
“There’s nothing! It’s a hotel! Can we stop this?” Christie sighed.
“Are you sure? A hotel this nice must have a security staff!” Ayane questioned.
“Positive! In the remote chance he does escape, do you honestly believe he is going to waste time with us? Hell no! He’ll be gone.”
“Which is the complete opposite of what we want him to do!” Helena exclaimed.
“I know that! Still, that just verifies what I said. If you want him to die with the information, then kill him!”
“Christie! How could you be so cold?” She asked.
“Cold? Together, we have wiped out billions of people, both civilians and soldiers! And you want to talk about being cold?” Christie laughed. Helena looked hurt but did not have anything else to add. I took a left through a vent leading to that room, in an attempt to hear more clearly.
“So, the question is simple. Are you willing to play with him longer and risk all of our lives? Or do you want to continue without fun and be safe?”
“Christie…” She said, looking at the ground. I found an outlet in the vent and was now on top of the ceiling above them.
“Enough! It doesn’t matter, at least for now! He’s trapped and…” Ayane interjected, but stopped suddenly. I thought that they were whispering since she stopped, so I crept over to the light. However, I stepped on a weak tile, and, as a result, a loud creaking noise came out of it.
“What was that?” Helena asked. Bullets shot through the tile I had accidentally stepped on. The noise was unexpected, and I instinctively yelled.
“Who’s there?” Ayane called. I kept my silence.
“Announce your name or you will be killed. You have five seconds.” Christie said, walking around beneath me. I was saved the trouble of announcing my name because I fell through the ceiling and on to a bed. They spun around to face me. I could tell that had made them angry. Together, they approached me, each glaring with some sort of anger.
“Christopher,” Helena started, angrily, “I trusted you. I let you stay by yourself, foolishly thinking you would accept your fate. You have gone back on your word too many times. I think it’s time you were shown the error of your ways. Come dawn tomorrow.” Without another word, they escorted me back to my room. Instead of leaving me in alone, they all got chairs and watched me on the bed. I tried to sleep. But it was impossible considering I had three girls who wanted me dead watching and the execution tomorrow.

Chapter 9:
“Execution”

At six o’clock the next morning, they finally stopped conversing with each other and faced me with devious grins. I looked out the barred window to see the sun cresting over the horizon. Helena walked in front while Christie and Ayane took up restraining me. I was led out into the open city. There, we stood, each of them awaiting the inevitable sun rise.
I lost track of time, but after the longest time in my life of waiting, it came. Each of them began their growth. They stood around me and grew to their maximum heights. Once they had stopped, I was surrounded by three two-hundred feet or so girls. Helena wasted no time. She picked me up, gripping my body with her fist and pinned me against a building quite hard.
“Now, Christopher. I hope you understand what you were messing with back there. After all we’ve been through, you can show nothing but cowardice.” Helena said, frowning. I had nothing to add. I didn’t think there was anything that could be said on my behalf.
“From the very beginning, you continue to run. I have found you every time. Do you not realize that it is inevitable? You can’t escape us.”
“Uh…” I said, still not sure on what to say.
“I had high hopes for you. Extremely high. You have proven me wrong for the last time. It is now your moment. I hope you have enjoyed life!” Helena said. With that, she drew back her free hand. My eyes widened; I had to think of something. There must be something that would get me free. I looked around. Nothing but city and water. Then I remembered her plans. I had an idea. It would cost my dignity, but it was better to surrender that than my life.
“Wait! What if I can justify my reasoning?”
Helena stopped, looking utterly confused. “What is there to justify? You were spying!”
“I know, but I have a reason behind it!”
“Well, out with it!” Christie said, folding her arms.
“I remembered you telling me about your beach plans, and, um, I always, thought that…you know…um…you were…pretty…and, um. I just wanted to know when it would be done, because…” I stuttered terribly. It wasn’t all a lie. I had to admit Helena was beautiful, quite possibly more so than anyone else. However, that was far from the reason I was out of my room. Christie and Ayane looked at each other with semi-angered looks. Helena, fortunately, was not angry. She seemed to be flattered by the remark. She smiled and giggled.
“Ah, you people and your sexual innuendos. I guess I couldn’t blame you.” She said in self-appreciation. It worked, perhaps not as I would have hoped. Then again, I wasn’t in the position to be nitpicking. Her grip loosened on me, but she did not let me go. Christie also took notice and was enraged.
“Are you stupid? He’s the source of all of our worries! You are sparing his life because of some perverted dream?” Christie protested. Ayane crossed her arms and nodded. Helena put me on the roof of that building and seemed to be defending me.
“Hey now! Easy! If what he says is true, then there is no reason to kill him, and he should be allowed to live!” Helena said, shaking her head. Ayane, I guess, had also had enough of my lies.
“Helena, I promised when I followed you into this that I would obey your every command within reason. I am not about to break that promise. However, I still think that this is by far the worst decision you’ve ever made. I will listen and let him live. I want you to promise me.”
“Promise what?”
“Promise me that you will let me kill him if he escapes again. If he stays with you, I will not kill him.”
Helena nodded. “That’s reasonable, yes.” My life was saved again. Christie cast a menacing glare at me and turned around.
“Let’s get on with this then. I’m guessing we’re taking Europe…”
“Wait,” Ayane interjected, “Let’s take Asia!” Christie looked at Ayane, confused.
“That’s not how we planned it out. Europe is more of a threat…”
“Please, Asia first. I just want to…” Ayane started to explain when Helena motioned her to silence.
“Ayane, you are one of the most dangerous threats to the world. I want you to use that power to annihilate the military. If this is about your sister…” Helena said, looking at her.
“Listen! I’ve lived in her shadow longer than any of you have ever had to endure! You don’t understand how much I’ve waited for this day! The day I overpower Kasumi and finally rid her from my life! It’s come and her time is now!” Ayane yelled, angrily. From behind Ayane, Christie rolled her eyes. Helena took a deep breath before speaking.
“All right, Ayane. I’ll let you go after Asia. On the strict condition that you wipe out all Japanese resistance.” Helena conceded.
Ayane made an evil smirk. “Consider it done.” She did not even wait for Helena to dismiss her. Ayane ran off towards the west. Christie shrugged and shook her head.
“Christie, you can start on Europe today. I don’t think wiping out British military resistance is too much to ask of you.” Helena said, professionally.
“Not at all. It’ll be done come tonight.” Christie said. She ran off towards the Statue of Liberty and dove into the water. She was then swimming off towards the United Kingdom.

Chapter 10:
“Session”

Helena watched Christie until she faded into the distance before turning back to me. Her usual smile wasn’t on. I had never really seen her smile as she was now. I couldn’t quite place the expression.
“So is this why you were chasing after us? For a crack at me?” Helena said, grinning. I wasn’t aware I had convinced her that much.
“Uh…yeah. I-I just couldn’t let you go…” I lied. She looked at me for a little bit, seeming to study my expressions. After, she looked out over the infinitely stretching ocean. As I watched her, I wondered just how much of a lie I told. Something in my mind told me that what I had said was not all a lie. Why did I waste my time with her? Was there something I wanted? She turned back to me.
“The ocean is very interesting, don’t you think?” She said finally.
I blinked, unaware of why should would ask this. “I never have given it much thought.”
“Despite anything that bothers us, it’s possible for it to remain completely calm. All of the living things in there go on without a clue or care as to what the people on land do.”
“Uh…”
“Anyhow, you had inquired as to our beach project, well, we have a schedule. We expect to wipe out the remaining forces tomorrow. Christie and Ayane have already dealt with much of the world the first day. So, the day after tomorrow, I guess.” She said, still looking out at the water. I studied her face. Something didn’t seem quite right.
I was just about to say her name when I remembered the whole title business.
“Lady Helena…” I said. She turned around to face me.
“Hm?” She asked.
“I-I just wanted to know…why…this happened…”
“What happened?”
“This whole…world-takeover thing.”
“Were you not listening? I said quite clearly that we are doing this to purge the world. We have been chosen to reform the world and lead it.”
I didn’t believe she was telling me the truth, but I wasn’t about to question her. “All right…” I didn’t understand why I felt this way. She had killed many of my friends and family, destroyed my favorite city, and brought my city to the ground. My entire life’s work was for nothing now. Yet, I wasn’t mad at her. I felt somewhat secure by her.
Suddenly, I heard gunshots. Tons of them. They began impacting Helena, surprising her as well. A myriad of people were on the street firing. I estimated around one thousand. Helena frowned and started killing them off. She reduced them to nothing quickly. All except for one soldier who she picked up.
“What the hell do you think you are doing?” Helena asked him, furiously.
“Protecting our rights!” He yelled.
“Who do you work for?”
“I am part of the rebellion that will oust you and your friends! We will reclaim the world! You will never break our will.”
“No?”
“Never!”
“I guess I’ll just have to settle for the next best thing…” She said, shrugging. She then used her thumb to break his spine. He screamed horrifyingly. She then grinned and dropped him to the ground. His body fell into the ruins of a building.
Helena and I spent the next five hours talking about nothing. However, most of it was filled with silence that I could not stand. After the fifth hour passed, Christie returned from Britain. She got out of the water and shook some of the water off of her. She didn’t look happy, so I assumed something went wrong with her assignment.
“Christie, done already?” Helena asked, turning away from me.
“Yes, but we need to talk now.” Christie replied, impersonally.
“What’s wrong?”
“Him.” She pointed at me. Helena looked back at me, confused.
“Why?”
“You are getting soft. You have let your guard down for one man. I think you are letting your emotions get to you.”
“What makes you say that?”
“He knows, Helena. He knows what we have prevented anyone else from knowing. You should kill him and keep us safe. If he escapes and is able to relay that to the right people, we are dead. Yet, you risk it. You risk all of this operation for him. If you cannot kill him, I will.”
“Christie, he’s just a friend…”
“He’s an enemy, damn it! He has the power to destroy you, me, Ayane! Whether or not you see it, I don’t know. It would be different if it was just you, but it’s not! It’s all of our lives! I will not see my death.”
“You’re overreacting!”
“Maybe I am! I will tell you one thing! If you do not kill him right now, I’ll do it for you!” Christie threatened. She grabbed me off of the building and held me in her right hand. Unlike Helena, her grip on me was suffocating. She held her hand out over the ground.
“Christie!” Helena gasped.
“He’s your problem! Do it!” She said. She forced open Helena’s hand and dropped me in it. Helena looked down at me and turned around. I saw her look down and mouth the words, “Don’t worry.” I didn’t know what she was talking about.
“Will you or will you not do it?”
“Yes! Fine! Watch!” Helena yelled. She pinned me to the building and rubbed her wrist. She then launched it right over top of me, with her fist missing me by a foot. Discreetly, she snuck me inside her sleeve. From here, I rolled backwards as she raised her arm. I grabbed on to a string somewhere near her elbow. I realized that she would have it down basically all day, and if I didn’t find a better place to stay on, I would fall to my death. I jumped from the string onto her arm. She must have felt it because she let her arm down to its usual position. Not wanting to die, I inched my way up her arm slowly until I reached her shoulder. I thought it would be best to lie down here and not risk Christie. It was really tight in there, however, it beat being dead. As I thought about just where I was, I laughed. I could never have imagined lying on a giantess’s shoulder, hiding from her friend.

Chapter 11:
“Liberation”

“Christie, what’s wrong? That’s what you wanted, is it not?” Helena asked. I guessed Christie was surprised or something.
“I’m not…I mean…there’s nothing wrong! Why would there be?” Christie stuttered. There was an uncomfortably long pause.
“I’m sure you have security issues you can be attending to. I want to be alone.” Helena said, coldly.
“R-Right.” Christie replied. She was off; I heard her footsteps fading into the distance. Helena did not move for a good twenty seconds after I could not hear Christie any longer.
“Okay, you can come out of there now.” Helena giggled. I inched my way across her collar bone and up her neck through her silent cries of, “That’s tickles!” She picked me off of her neck and set me down on top of the same building from before.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know she would be so adverse.” Helena said, looking Christie’s vague direction. She didn’t even have the time to say anything else before I heard something else. Footsteps. Except, they weren’t the booming ones from Helena, Christie, or Ayane. No, these sounded like normal people’s footsteps. Only there were tons of them. I heard them pounding against the pavement. They sounded as if they were coming this direction. Then, amidst this, a man yelled, “Freedom for our people! Do not fear death! Instead face it and destroy it!” I saw them in the distance. Helena was intrigued by this and watched. I saw them as they got closer. Most were people dressed in their everyday clothes. However, there were scatterings of military personnel within their ranks. They neared us and stopped.
“You! Helena! Surrender the innocent and surrender yourself! We have come to end your reign of terror! We will take you for the good of the world!” The man in the front declared. Helena smirked. “Your words mean nothing to me. What kind of weapons do you have? These are the same that the United States used. They didn’t work for them. Why should they work for you?”
“Enough, villain! Attack her for the good of liberty!” He yelled. The group began firing while stepping back. Then, groups began breaking off from the main one, but that stopped quickly. Helena was worried about the main group and ran through them. I watched her kill them off. Blood spattered everywhere and screaming went along with it. I never wanted to hear another bone crack after what I heard then. I was watching the battle with all of my concentration for about ten minutes when someone came up from behind me.
“You, we’re moving now!” He yelled at me, pulling me at my collar. I nodded and ran off towards the edge of the building. He then hooked a clip onto my pants and did the same for him. He tied a cord to a pipe and, together, we rappelled down the side of the building. We rejoined five other soldiers at the bottom when we discarded the rope. The soldiers and I ran off deeper into the city. I was completely lost. After we got too tired to continue running, we started what turned into a two hour trek.
After the two hours had passed, we arrived at a gray fortified building. The soldiers stopped outside, looking at me.
“Go in. We have to stay here. Just follow the hallway.” Another man pointed out. Two other soldiers stood by the doorway, but they weren’t the easy going type. They were the kind that would shoot you for looking the wrong way. I kept my head down and entered through the doorway. I kept moving down the hall until I reached a small room with what looked like senior military people. They were highly decorated with medals and sat down in metal chairs.
“Take a seat.” One of them said, pointing to a chair at the opposite end of the room. I did as he said. There were three of them there.
“So, you’re it, huh?” An older man asked me.
I had no idea what he was talking about. “What?”
“They’ve spoken highly of you. Said you’re the one who’ll end this war.”
“I still don’t follow.” I admitted.
“Enough! Mr. Prochaska, my name is Lieutenant General Tarents. To my left is General Bradley and on my right is General Williams.”
“Um, it’s a pleasure…”
“Quite. Do you know that we have killed thousands of people just to get you here?” He asked me, staring me down. I frowned. No, that couldn’t be right. No way. I knew what he was saying was true though.
“Sir…”
“However,” The man on his left cut him off, “we didn’t save you just to bitch at you.” He cast a glare at Tarents.
“We rescued you, son, because they say you’re the only one in this whole goddamned world that knows their weakness.”
It seemed so stupid of me not to have recognized that purpose. “Yes, I do. They seem to get their power from the sun. At night, they return to their normal states. Come sunrise, they’re at it again.” The officers looked at each other, mystified.
“Of course, that’s why we don’t get shit from doing those night recons!” Williams sighed.
“Son, you may have just saved this world. So forget about them people, okay?” Bradley said, putting his hand on my shoulder. I looked up and nodded.
“Get some rest in the back. We’ll be back to discuss with you tomorrow.” Tarents instructed, showing a back room with bunks. That night would be one of the most restless nights of my life.

Chapter 12:
“Ambush”

I was awoken at eight o’clock in the morning by Tarents. He was dressed in the same military officer uniform from yesterday.
“Let’s move. We have a lot to discuss. If we are quick about it, this war can be over tonight.” He replied, shaking my shoulder. I nodded and hopped out of bed, excited to hear any plan that would end this. He led me to the room from before, and we sat down identically to yesterday.
“Well, we thought about the information you’ve given us. Most people think the military takes months to decide on a plan. Most people are right, too. However, what most people want now is an end to this all. They want an end now. We are preparing to send scouts to track them and relay their position to a task force that will them that night. Then, we will have the much thirsted for victory.” Williams said, standing up and folding his hands behind his back.
“Not to be rude, but it sounds like you have everything worked out. Why was I even summoned?” I asked.
“A sharp man you are. We wanted to extend an invitation to you to be part of the squad that kills them. You’ve gotten the most crucial intelligence ever acquired. It is only right that you have the pleasure of seeing it through.”
I thought about it. Seeing the death of the people responsible for killing so many. But then again, Helena wasn’t exactly the first person I wanted to witness dying. I thought about standing behind soldiers as they fired into them. And Helena’s cry, “Why? Chris!” It would definitely seem odd of me not to go. I was about to answer yes when Tarents held up his hand to silence everyone. They looked at the hanging light above us. Its cord was shaking slightly. Every time it did so, a small tremor would shake the ground beneath us. In accordance with that, we heard a soldier outside scream, “They’re here! Fire! Keep the generals safe!” No one moved or did anything but listen to the cries and gunfire. It died out, leaving only the small earthquakes.
“Generals! Exit the building if you want to live. We will give you ten seconds before we destroy the building!” Helena declared, anger lacing every word.
“Come on! Let’s get out of here! A little chance of survival is better than none at all!” Tarents said, jumping up. We all agreed. They ran out, with me following behind. It really didn’t matter to them like it did to me. They were all unknown people. I was top on Helena’s list of people to die. I was sure of that.
We exited to find ourselves looking at an angry Helena. With her hands on her hips, she reminded me of an offended goddess. I could tell that she knew who I was from the way she looked at us.
“You have caused much distress. Every one of you! Christopher, I’m…forget it. I won’t bother.” She said, suppressing anger. Not one of us spoke. I was particularly scared too. None of this would have happened if I had only stayed with her.
“On the ground, hands behind your heads. This ends now.” Helena said. Again, we followed her orders. I felt tears coming to my eyes. It was going to end. None of my knowledge would be given on. I shifted so I could look up at Helena. She raised her boot, and I felt time stop. All of my encounters rushed to my head. If I accepted death like this, all of the deaths would be for nothing. I had to make something out of this. Time resumed its normal state. Just as I saw Helena launch her boot down at the ground, I rolled out of the way. A cloud of dust rose from the impact site, masking my escape. I sprinted into a densely packed business district, although most of it was leveled.
“Who’s that?” Helena asked, seeing me. Then, it hit her.
“Chris! No! You’ve gotten away too much! I will finish you for betraying me!” This did nothing but fuel my incentive to run harder and faster than I had ever run before this. The buildings got taller and taller. She stopped running after me. While running, I snagged an M16A2 rifle off of the ground. For what reason, I didn’t know, but it was reassuring to me.
“Where are you? Come out!” She growled. I had lost her again. I did not rest, however. I continued running until I reached the doorway to a building. I froze, listening to Helena’s fading footsteps. I stood up and dusted myself. Looking around, I saw this to be a fairly intact office building. Wearily, I motivated myself to climb up the staircase. I let my body go on auto-pilot as I ascended the staircase, leaving me in a sort of trance.
Five minutes later, I was pulled into reality again by a small pain in my legs. There was a sign next to me that read: “Floor Thirty-Five”. I walked through the door and into the area. Office cubicles were all that remained here; the employees they housed were long gone. Papers and various other office equipment littered the floor. I, with nothing else to do, took to my task of preparing an area to stay.

Chapter 13:
”My Story”

As I look around this city, standing atop the highest building in the town, I see what used to be the center of the world. Grand old New York, they’d say. Pride of America. On and on. Not enough that could be said about New York. Now look at it. There’s nothing left for anyone. Buildings have been brought to the ground, billions have been killed around the world, military resistance has been futile and unsuccessful. My life has literally been ruined. I stand here today, gripping my M16A2 military rifle and occasionally glancing at the flag half tied across my upper arm, thinking of the lost. Holding this firearm is a joke. It can never hurt them. No, they can’t be hurt. I used to be a religious man. Ever since this, well, religion has become a joke. If there was a God, he’s sure as hell pissed at us.
Humans are no longer in control of Earth. I can no longer venture freely out into the streets. My home, almost permanent home, is this building. More or less, the thirty-fifth floor of this building. They haven’t been able to penetrate my haven. Not yet, at least. I have seen more death than an undertaker.
The ground rumbling beneath my feet shook me out of my thinking; it’s a grave reminder that I still have her to deal with. I will resist and persevere. My first reaction is to run. But the more I think of it, that’s all they want me to do. Run, just keep running. It might buy me a day or two, but for the long run, it’s lethal. They will hunt and hunt until they find and eliminate me. And until they confirm me dead, the hunt continues.
I ran into my home, took cover behind a wall, and watched Helena as she made a pass. I hadn’t seen her here since my last encounter. I gravely thought that my home may have been compromised. She took a look at my building, shook her head, and continued on. From this point, something clicked inside my mind. Something that hadn’t for a while. I thought of my position, in an abandoned office building hiding from the reason I wasn’t making more money. She has killed so many people with the assistance of her friends.
“Tonight,” I muttered to myself, “tonight…it’s going to chance. I…will finish this…tonight.” Part of my mind said that those were quite possibly the bravest words I had ever spoke. The other ninety percent said that I was an idiot for even trying. Then again, it was that part of my body that had pushed me here. It was the most impromptu decision of my life, but I was going to stick with it. I would succeed. Only because failure meant death.

Chapter 14:
“Striking Back”

I carefully made my way to the top of my home. Helena must have definitely known I was still here because she paced back and forth down the street, looking in every building. I crouched down and hid behind a thin, very low cement wall that surrounded my building. I rehearsed my plan in my mind. I would jump from the building onto Helena. I would wait for her to begin her transformation. From there, I will eliminate her, Ayane, and Christie. It was simple, but hard to execute.
Helena turned around to make another pass. I waited for the right moment. And then I made the first and, hopefully, only leap of faith in my life. As I soared through the air, I took another look at her body. It was sounding repetitive, but I could still not get over how huge she was. Putting this aside, I landed on her shoulder and, from there, made my way to the collar on her outfit and hid there. I watched from her perspective as she made at least fifty more passes, still watching vigilantly for anything that led to me. After this, the sun began its descent. I waited as she stopped to observe the sun. Helena quickly made her way to another hotel that was relatively close to the one I had picked out. She was not accompanied by Ayane and Christie, however.
She waited there, leaning against a building. The sun eventually sunk below the horizon, and it started. Just as she began thinking, I leapt from her shoulder to the roof of the building.
From there, I cautiously observed as she made herself into her vulnerable, human form again. Once she was at her normal height, she looked around before walking inside rather quickly. I didn’t hesitate. I quickly made my way into the ventilation system, which, due to disarray the city was in, was not powered. I dropped in quietly, but the vent soon gave way to my weight and dropped me through a ceiling on the top floor. I stayed completely still listening for Helena. I heard nothing, so I insisted to myself that she was unaware of my presence. I stealthily exited the room I was in and moved out into the hall. I quickly went down the stairs and was just about to try the next floor when I stopped. I heard something in the building. That something was a tapping sound. Footsteps. I entered the door and quickly went into a nearby janitor’s closet. Helena, in a minute’s time, had entered the same floor, walked into a room, and shut the door.
I quietly exited the closet and stood in front of Helena’s door. I gripped my rifle and took a deep, quiet breath. This was it. I planted my foot on the door and kicked hard. The door gave way, as it was not locked. I found Helena, lying on a bed. She got up, terrified.
“Christopher!” Helena yelled, startled.
“That is correct. Helena, as a citizen of the United States, I cannot allow your reign of destruction to continue. I will end you now.” I said. I had expected a more thought-out line to come out, but it didn’t.
“Chris, just put the gun down. We can work this out…”
“There is no working it out! I…I won’t let you continue!” I shouted, shaking my head. I knew what I had to do now; I was so far into this that I had to shoot her. My body still refused, finding sympathy somehow. Helena didn’t have anything to say. I couldn’t have blamed her.
“Tell me, Chris. What do you plan on doing after you kill me?” She asked me. It was a good question.
“I’m…I don’t know…”
“You people are a lost cause! You need us! Chris, put the gun down. You are making a big mistake.”
“The only mistake that was made was on my part! Letting you command me about like some kind of dog! No more!” I said, rage finally coming out. I had it now. I had everything I needed to pull the trigger. Helena looked at the ground, a sad look upon her face. She folded her arms behind her back and walked to the window. I followed her with my gun barrel.
“This is it then? This is how it will end. I had a feeling that you would be the one to do it. Better you than some unknown man, I suppose.” Helena said, staring out the window. She then walked up to me and knelt down folding her hands behind her head and looked up at me.
“Go on then, Chris. If you are so intent on killing me, do it.” She said. I had never intended for it to go down like this. I held the barrel to her head and came within a centimeter of pulling it. Even though she rightfully deserved to die, I felt terrible about doing so. Within my mind, my brain was in shock. It couldn’t tell me what to do. I hesitated longer, going on a minute. She looked up.
“Chris, what exactly have you come here to do?” Helena asked.
“I’m…here to stop you!”
“Then stop me. I offer myself before you to kill. You can kill me easily and be done with it. You have waited about a minute with the gun. You haven’t killed me, though.”
I needed an excuse to sound powerful. It was then that I remember a reason I was glad I hadn’t killed her.
“Ayane and Christie! Where are they?”
“Oh, them…I can’t say I know. I haven’t spoken to them since the last time you saw us…speak.” She said, depressed. I couldn’t kill her. We both knew it. It’s just that she was still intimidated by my weapon. I wanted terribly to find away out of this, an easy way out.
“Helena!” I said, crying and throwing my weapon aside, “Stop it! Stop killing people and help me fix this!” I hugged her, getting on my knees to do so. She returned it.
“Chris, you know I can’t. I’ve gone too far; I’ll be the first to admit. It is only now that I truly realize what I have done. I’m wanted dead by everyone on this planet. I have my suspicions that even Ayane and Christie want me dead. Death is the only viable alternative for me. Your world will never be the same. Together, we have killed an estimated ninety percent of its total population. It is now, unjustly, your duty to rebuild.”
I shook my head. “No! There has to be…a way.” Even as I said this, I knew it was true. Helena could never return. They had definitely gone too far. She let go of me and walked to my firearm. Helena pointed it at me.
“H-Helena!” I said, stepping back.
“Now, Chris. You have come here with the intent to kill me. You will either fulfill that, or I will ensure your death.”
“Helena, what are you saying? No, we can fix it. We can make it better!” I yelled. There was no logic in what I said anymore.
“Chris…I don’t know if I ever told you….or even ever showed it. But…I love you…”
This only made it harder to kill her. I was speechless. I buried my face in my hands The only thing I could say would have been “I love you too”. But those words would never reach her. I heard two thuds. When I looked up, Ayane was standing over Helena’s corpse, holding a silenced pistol and some sort of grenade in her hand.

Chapter 15:
“From Within”

I couldn’t believe it. Ayane had killed Helena. She looked down at her corpse, smirking.
“She outlived her potential. Cracking up at the end.” Ayane said, stepping over Helena.
“You…” I said, not even knowing where to begin. Helena, for an enemy, had meant quite a deal to me. There was nothing to tell me how to feel. She was my enemy and died. That made my quest all the easier. However, I had just now realized that she loved me. Thanks to Ayane, I would never get to tell her that I did too.
“Shut up! I’m not Helena! If you think for one second that I’m going to get all bubbly over you, forget it! I have killed more than enough to know that you are good for nothing. You still hold the knowledge to our downfall. There will be no escaping for you this time.” Ayane was definitely ready to kill me. I knew there was only one thing that would help me now. That thing was lying next to Helena, my rifle. I stood up slowly, watching as Ayane’s pistol followed me.
“So, I think we’ve established that you will die. How would you like to give me a little fun before you die? I think that may make the end a little easier.”
“Fun?”
“Oh yes,” She smiled, “You and Helena were quite the lovebirds. Why don’t you let a little bit of that out? I’d be more than happy to help.” Where this was coming from, I couldn’t say. I had an idea. All at once, I ran up to her and began kissing her, much to her surprise. She didn’t offer any objections, but joined in with me. I waited for her to ease up a little. She did so in about three seconds. I then charged through her, knocking her down and causing her pistol to fly of her hands and under the bed. I reached my rifle and pointed it at her. She stood up and looked at me. She didn’t say anything but shook her head.
“You are a master of deception.” She said. I waited no longer. Swallowing hard, I shot at her. Three bullets impacted her. The gun stopped firing and clicked three more times when I let go of the trigger. Never being in the service, I had no idea what it meant. Two in her stomach and one in her head. She screamed one last time and fell to her face, dead. I dropped my rifle and stepped back. Killing someone felt a lot different than I had thought. It made me feel like a criminal. She was dead and wasn’t coming back. I had to shake the feeling as I remembered there was one other person I needed to take out, Christie. I picked the gun up again and walked out the door. I glanced down at Helena. By her, a small pocket watch displayed the time, eleven thirty.
“Helena…I will end this…” I still didn’t understand why I felt the way I did.
I nodded to her. “I love you.” With that, I pressed on looking through the building. I covered every hall, every room, and everywhere else inside the building. Christie wasn’t there. It was a huge problem for me. I needed to end this tonight. I walked back to the scene of the short shootout to check the time. Before entering, I checked the watch; It read out two forty in the morning. I walked into the room to find Christie inside, sitting on the bed. She spotted me and laughed.
“So, Ayane and Helena couldn’t take you? Doesn’t surprise me. Helena always let her emotions get in the way. Ayane was just a young girl, careless and arrogant. You’ll find me more up to your level.” Christie said, getting up slowly. I took out my weapon and aimed for her.
“What’s wrong? Don’t want to talk it over? Don’t want to learn anything about your ex-girlfriend?”
“Don’t ever talk about her! You know nothing about that!” I yelled.
“I know plenty. Probably more than Helena did.”
“I don’t care! This is it! Say your last words!”
She frowned. “Why did you only shoot three times?”
“Because the gun stopped firing.”
“This is lucky, even for me.”
“Enough, die!” I said, boldly. I had no regrets about killing her. I pulled the trigger, but it clicked three times again. As Christie smiled, it dawned on me. It clicked because there was no more ammunition left.
“You were saying, Chris?”
I threw the weapon aside. I knew I had to kill her somehow, or else she would do the same to me. I saw Ayane’s corpse and the grenade she had in her hand. I knew that it would cost me my life, but I had to see it through. To save all of those people, I would have to pin Christie so it could blow up and kill her. It would kill me as well, but it was for the better. I ran to Ayane’s body and snatched the grenade out of her hand. After this, I ran straight at Christie and knocked her to the ground. I wasted no time and pulled the pin. It didn’t explode, instead it released a white gas. Of course, it was just my luck. The grenade was a gas grenade. I fell asleep on top of Christie, still holding the grenade.

Chapter 16:
“Race to the Finish”

I groggily opened my eyes. Before I even had the time to do this, I felt a strong force in my stomach push me away. It was then that I fully awoke from my short slumber. I heard Christie get up and run away. I knew I had to chase after her. Before I did so, I grabbed Ayane’s silenced pistol from under the bed. I ran past Ayane and Helena’s bodies, still lying in peace. The clock next to Helena read out six o’clock in the morning. Feeling the need to keep time, I grabbed the watch and pocketed it. That meant I had to beat Christie. I sprinted as fast as my body would allow me to go, but Christie won, beating me by ten feet to the front door. She rolled through the glass and continued to an open portion of the city, where the sky was not obstructed by buildings.
I chose to ram through the door instead and gave chase. She still beat me. I wasted no time; I either shot and killed her now, or I risked whatever wrath she would put on me in her two hundred foot form. Helena wasn’t here to save me now. I held my breath and steadied the gun as the sun appeared from the horizon, shedding light on us. I fired. The bullet impacted her left arm and crushed upon impact. That meant one thing. I was too late.
“Shit…” I said to myself, backing up from Christie. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, as if she was inhaling some sweet scent. I kept backing up away from her. It wasn’t long before she reached her intended height of around two hundred feet, give or take twenty feet or so. Christie opened her eyes and laughed. She looked down at me, scaring me severely.
“Chris,” She laughed, “you can’t win! And now, I will ensure my safety.” Christie slammed her foot down close to me, sending me tumbling end over end from the sheer force. I scrambled to my feet and kept running. I headed back into the hotel.
“I’m not stupid like Helena, Christopher! I will not let you escape!” She yelled. She began hitting the buildings, her hands coming through the weakened structure. Large pieces of concrete fell through floors and even through the basement. I did the only thing sensible at that time to do, run. I ran out of the building and into a nearby doorway. As Christie seemed to realize I wasn’t in there anymore, I contemplated where I should head next.
“Let’s see,” I thought aloud, “if I was a giantess, where would I least expect me to hide?” The question made me laugh at myself; however, this was anything but a laughing matter. She would expect anywhere away from her that gave a lot of cover, so I needed to reverse that. A solution dawned on me. It might require me to hitch a ride again, but if it stopped her from destroying the planet, hell, I was all for it. I ran into a building near the hotel she was now looking through, to see if she killed me. I quickly sprinted into the office building and up the stairs. I finally reached the top floor as Christie decided I had moved on.
“Come on out, Christopher. I rule your fate!” Christie called, smiling. I prepared for another jump. She walked to the building I was in and put her fist through it. I agreed with her though. It was a logical place to hide. She crouched down to look for me through the window. I jumped off of the ledge and aimed for her shoulder. I fell short. I realized that I had undershot the distance, and I was now falling off of a building with nothing but asphalt below me. Fortunately for me, I reached a better target, a small coat pocket on Christie’s black jacket. Nothing was in there except me and some kind of ninja dart, its tip filled with a green liquid. She stopped and stood up straight, laughing.
“Think you can outsmart me, Chris? We’ll see how smart you really are soon.” She chuckled, hitting into a few more buildings. I was on her blindside. There was nothing to do but wait now. Tonight, it would be over, no excuses.

Chapter 17:
“Queen of the Light”

I spent the better part of twelve hours listening to Christie destroy the city, talk to herself about what she was going to do to me, and hum some music I hadn’t heard. It dwindled down to six at night, so I readied myself to spring on her. Christie stopped moving and destroying stuff. I waited confused. Eighteen seconds later, her hand quickly shot into her pocket, gripped me, and pulled me out. I was shocked to say the least. Christie, with one hand, held me out over the ground. There was nothing but destroyed buildings for as far as the eye could see. I saw what she had done. Christie had known I was there, and so, destroyed any possibility of escape.
“Do you think I’m blind? I’m surprised you thought yourself so secure.” Christie said, opening her fist and putting me in the palm of her hand. I did think that I was safe.
“I’m not going to bother asking you what you were doing. I know your plan. Hide on me until I begin to shrink. Then you follow, corner, and kill me. Guess that’s not going to work out now!” She said, laughing.
“Chris, I have known you would be the one to kill us for some time. You always go back on your word. Oh, I can’t believe this is happening. I didn’t know how much longer Helena would continue to interfere. I have waited for this day so long. I have patiently waited for the moment I will kill you. Look out there! There isn’t anywhere for you to run or hide.”
“I don’t need to run! Not anymore. I will face you and defeat you!” I said, invigorated.
“You are facing me! Defeat me then!” Christie challenged, putting me down on the ground. She knew what I meant, however, it hadn’t worked out. There was nothing I could do to hurt her like that. Christie sat down, letting her legs out. They went way past me, stretching on. Christie then put her shoes together, creating a prison for me.
“Let’s see you do battle! I haven’t seen any action in a while. Defeat my index finger to advance on!” Christie said, putting her finger down on the ground. Out of desperation, I actually looked for a weak point on her finger. That search turned up nothing. I wanted to fire, just to see if she had lowered her guard, but I wasn’t willing to risk precious ammunition. She moved her finger towards me slowly. I was left without a course of action except pulling back. Christie smiled and poked me. It took no force for her, but it blew me back five feet. I was back on my feet soon enough, so she poked at me again, laughing to herself. This time, I grabbed onto her finger. She jerked it back and forth, eventually knocking me to the ground.
“Come on, Chris!” Christie said, using her finger to pin me to the ground. She lied down.
“You can’t hurt me. You wouldn’t hurt me.”
“You’ve taken away my friends and family. I’m going to avenge them through you!” I shouted. She pressed harder, taking away my breath shortly.
“You don’t want to do it though. I can tell. You want nothing less than for me to just surrender to you. You don’t want to shoot me.”
I didn’t understand. She understood that I wasn’t in this to kill them. I hated the feeling of taking a man or woman’s life.
“It shows. In everything you do. How you always hesitate and take the time to talk. That’s respectable, though.”
“You know nothing of respect! You’ve destroyed the planet!”
“Kiss me, Chris.” Christie said, smiling. I was caught completely off-guard by this. I hadn’t a clue why she would ask such a thing. That was irrelevant though. Christie had lain down on her stomach and had her face towering over me. The usual smile changed to one of seduction I hadn’t seen her wear, although I guessed it was hard to use it when you’re committing mass murder. She brought her lips closer to my body and closed her eyes. I didn’t know what to do except remain there.
Her lips made contact with my body, covering the half of my body that wasn’t covered by her finger. I found it easy to appreciate her now. Her warm lips, mint-scented breath, smooth skin. Almost everything a guy could ask for. Towards the end of ten seconds, she ran her tongue over my body slowly. Christie brought her head up again and reopened her eyes. I stared at her face, barely believing what happened.
“Was it good for you too?” Christie asked, seduction still deep within her voice. I wasn’t about to lie for three reasons. First, if I had no desire to say no because my body wouldn’t let me deny her. Second, she would probably kill me if I said no. Third, I wasn’t in the mood to lie to myself. I nodded slowly.
“See, you don’t want to kill me. You won’t kill me. Let me live, and there will be plenty more of that.” She giggled. I was about to say something. I didn’t know what, but I was saved the effort. The watch in my pocket went off. The sun was buried behind the ocean. Christie got off of me and ran, shrinking quickly. I chased after her. I didn’t know if I was still man enough to kill her. Didn’t matter, though. I was going after her. At this stage, I couldn’t let her get away.

Chapter 18:
“Falling”

With Christie’s fast shrinking, I didn’t fall too far behind her. I kept running after her, much to my body’s protest. We ran all the way into a part of the city she hadn’t destroyed. After we flew past building after building, she finally ran out of steam in a dark, dead end alleyway. The only thing illuminating us was a single street light. She panted a little bit, hands on her knees. I had to eliminate her, so I had no such luxury. She looked up at me.
“Christie…” I panted.
“Chris, let’s not do anything stupid. We can work this out.” She tried, nervous. She hadn’t mentioned her promise of seduction she had made just ten minutes ago, which meant it was a fluke. I took out my pistol.
“I’m sick of this! I don’t want to kill you, just as you said, but I have no choice. I don’t want anymore destruction or killing. And the easiest way to end it is to kill you!” I said, advancing a few steps. She stood her ground.
“Last chance, Christie! Help me or die!” I yelled. I wasn’t going to let my feelings get in the way. I, and the rest of the world, was better off without her. If it meant I had to dirty my soul, that’s just me. And it wasn’t just me on the line. Christie gripped something in her pocket. I had a feeling it was the ninja dart. Probably a knockout serum, I thought. She wants to put me to sleep. Christie rolled off to the side and threw the dart at me, impacting my shoulder. As she got up, I shot her five times, putting her down to the ground, bleeding terribly.
“You won’t have your way with me this time,” I said, pulling the dart out, “I’ll wake up from your little serum and reconstruct the world. You won’t.”
Christie laughed, coughing a little. “Foolish man. You won’t wake up. That’s the point. That dart was filled with a deadly poison. You have but ten minutes to live at the most. I’ll see you in hell.” She laughed more. The bullet flew out of my weapon and silenced her laugh. She died with a smile on her face. It was fitting. Her dead body collapsed onto the cracked pavement and relinquished its last movement. I watched her, expecting something else. It seemed too easy, but it was done. Lighting streaked across the sky along with dark ominous rain clouds. The moon shone through on us, it seemed, exclusively. Everywhere else was very dark. Rain began pouring down, drops running down Christie’s face, as she lay on the pavement. I felt the poison she had talked about kicking in.
I cried to myself, looking up at the sky, rain drops falling into my eyes. Why did it have to end like this? I had done a good thing, saving the world. Why did I deserve to die? I shook this from my mind and thought about the better. After all, the world was now safe, for now. People would rebuild and society would take off again. I had brought in a new era. Maybe that was taking it too far, I didn’t care. As these thoughts brought a faint smile to my face, I tripped and fell onto Christie’s still warm body. I tried to summon the strength to get up, but there was nothing to summon. She had got me. I couldn’t shake her voice in my mind, “I’m not stupid like Helena, Christopher! I will not let you escape!” I felt my eyes close as I stared into the sky. Rain poured down on us. We had gotten each other. Our little feud ended on that day.

Chapter 19:
“Aftermath”

I walked down the street; a hell of a rain storm was coming down. Haven’t seen anything like it in a while. Me and my buddy, Tim, were looking for the source of a shooting. Things were mildly upbeat. We had found Ayane and Helena dead in a hotel, both were dead from gunshots. That left only Christie. Suddenly, I felt my mouth drop.
“I think we found it…” I said to Tim. Lying in the only moonlight in town was a man and a girl.
“Christ! I think that’s the girl, Christie! That giant chick! She’s dead!” Tim yelled, alarmed.
“Looks like they got each other…” I deducted, viewing the gun with the spent clip and the dart lying on the ground. I felt bad for the poor bastard, whoever he was. He had saved us all, at the price of his own life. That’s what heroism was all about. I didn’t know what to do. The scene looked like it was written in stone to happen. A man and a girl, dead, under the only moonlight, with rain coming down like bullets from a M247.
“We should report this to command and get it cleaned up.” Tim suggested, stepping back.
“Tell them that we confirmed Christie dead. Leave the bodies. This just wasn’t meant for us.” I said. He shrugged, and we walked back towards base. This was the start of something good, I thought.

Epilogue

The New York City reconstruction project began ten days following the deaths of Christopher Prochaska, Christie, Ayane, and Helena. Plans were made to make a statue of Chris.

Christopher was identified by his ID card found in his pocket from a subsequent search of the scene.

The poison was identified to be the same as the United States uses for lethal injections.

Helena, Christie, and Ayane’s bodies were recovered and cremated by a group of men in full combat armor. They were never identified. The men, in addition to cremating Helena, Ayane, and Christie, raided a destroyed military base and destroyed all records in there. To this day, there is not one living person that was able to reproduce the formula the girls used.

Hallmark made an unofficial holiday named Christopher-mas. People complained because they thought the name was stupid.

Other countries insist it was the United States’ fault for the entire incident, however, they have been unable to say why.

International treaties, passed only days after the end of the war, clearly forbid the making or even attempts at reproducing the formula.

The two soldiers that originally found Chris and Christie have told stories about it many times. Each one seems to vary greatly from the next one. When asked what really happened, they are not sure they can remember.

Christie, Ayane, and Helena had succeeded in their goal of changing the world forever. No one, no matter where they lived, has been able to say they were more scared in their lives.

After reconstruction was completed and the reports of the incident were finished, they were seized by top military officials. There has been no one granted access to them.

A man attempted to break in to seize them. He was never heard from again.

END