The End Begins

[BlackcobraXX]

Hey all, this is a story im writing.let me know what you think!

Prologue
Learning the Language

A research team of six, five men and one, young woman, hopped out of the huge army jeep onto the golden sand in anticipation. They had just arrived in the middle of a small desert region, located somewhere near the western border of Iraq. It was a rather hot day, even for the desert, and the red sun was straight above them. Nothing could be seen on all sides except a military base next to a tall hill of sand.
The base was very small: about fifty, one-man tents in rows of ten to the left and two buildings to the right. The first building was where it all took place. It housed the equipment, armory, supplies, and living space for the men to hang out. The other building, situated directly behind the first, was much smaller and only housed the infirmary.
The team stopped a few feet away from the main building where they were supposed to meet the general. They looked at each other, exchanging knowing glances.
“Here we go,” said one of them.
Without another word, they entered.

* * *

A squad of marines had stumbled upon it as they were headed towards a small terrorist camp on the opposite-side of the desert. The squad had been sent to do a little spy work, attempting to find out how many people were at the camp and just what kind of weapons they were carrying. The information this mission would provide was essential for the capture of the camp and the terrorists within it.
The squad returned only a half hour later. They came over the hill of sand, kicking it up everywhere, shouting in for help. The general spotted them through his window on their way down. He immediately left his office in the main building to see why they had returned so early.
“What the heck are you doin’?” he barked at them when they had arrived. “We gave you strict orders to go the terrorist camp and you all come back a few minutes later, screamin’ and shoutin’ like a bunch of drunken fools!”
“Well, Sir…” a rather bulky marine answered nervously, “we were tracking through the desert just over that hill there when we heard a yelp from poor Nelson who was carrying up the rear. Before we could react, we watched him get sucked straight into the sand! We tried radioing him for few minutes, Sir, and eventually got a hold of him! Sir, he’s been sucked down into some temple-like room deep under the sand!”
The others nodded dumbly in agreement. Under normal circumstances, the general would have punished them heavily for disobeying orders. However, a man had just been sucked into the sand…and he was still alive. He had the marines take him back to the spot where they had lost Nelson. After a few minutes searching the area, they found what may have been the top of the temple, just barely poking out of the sand. Huge bulldozers and other construction vehicles were at the site not three hours later.
* * *
That was a week ago. The whole of the temple had been uncovered since then. Nelson had somehow survived, but required extreme medical attention. A book, or codex, rather, had been in his arms when he was found. This discovery had archeologists and historians going berserk in the U.S. The President had the top experts on ancient civilization in the Middle East found and sent away to Iraq in a matter of hours.
These six had only arrived in the country two hours prior to reaching the military base. They were immediately shown to the room where Nelson was being treated after the general explained the details of the situation. Nelson told them everything he knew about the temple and the rooms he had explored while being trapped. There had been some form of written language on the walls that he could not decipher. He then gave them the book, the Codex, which seemed to contain the same kind of symbols as the walls, or so he claimed.
The rest of the day was devoted to finding similarities in this new language with that of other languages of the Middle East, both ancient and modern. None were found. This disappointed the team greatly; however, they were to visit the temple the following day, where they hoped to find some answers.
They were taken to the temple early the following morning. The six found themselves looking down into a colossal pit, the temple standing brilliantly at that bottom. Any person would have described it as a pyramid. That is, in fact, what it looked like except that it had a long hallway sticking out of each of its four sides. It covered over 10,000 square feet of land and was over 1000 feet high to the tip that the marines had originally discovered.
The researchers hurried over to the ramp-like road leading down into the pit. Over fifty trucks could be seen around the pyramid. Men stood around or drove the trucks around, moving piles of sand, dirt, and clay out of the way. One of these men stood near the gigantic entrance, waiting for them.
“Come, come! I am sure you are all very anxious to see the inside!” he called to them.
The team followed the man wordlessly, looking around them in awe, and they entered the fifty foot tall doorway. The man briefly showed them around, pointing out some of the rooms to them and having them meet some people who would help them move the equipment around.
“This is the main room,” he said, leading them into a room that stretched to an immense height. It closed at a point-the point that the marines had found in the desert a week ago.
“We believe that this was used as some sort of pagan god. Some of the artifacts that were found here were interesting, but provided no help in learning about the people who lived here.”
Unfortunately, the day was not very productive. They learned nothing and found nothing that could help them understand the lives these people led. The day after that produced nothing either. In fact, the rest of that week and the next week were both a complete waste of time.
The third week arrived, and the researchers were about to give up all hope in finding anything in the temple. They had recently taken to splitting into pairs and going their separate ways in order to cover more ground. One pair, a medium sized man with a goatee and the young woman, discovered a stone tablet that day, buried deep within the temple. They had found a part in the wall that had become weak with age. It had easily given way when the man pushed on it.
The room was a tomb, stone casket placed in the center. Spider webs covered the low-built ceiling. The stale air was hard to breathe and dust went flying everywhere. They moved to the sarcophagus and shoved the lid off after some difficulty. The woman squealed as a skeleton popped up and small critters scurried out of their disturbed home. The man shuffled around in the coffin, looking all around the skeleton. The tablet had been inside the skeleton’s torso and several ribs had to be broken in order to get it. The man was not much a fan of destroying history, but it was necessary.
All six of the researchers were now looking over one of the men’s shoulders as he ran a scan of the tablet. His laptop hummed quietly, though it pierced the silence of the empty room. It beeped suddenly as similarities between the tablet and other languages appeared. At the top of the list was the ancient Mayan language.
One of the researchers started talking excitedly, “Of course!” he exclaimed. “We named this book so because it reminded us of the ancient texts that we have all studied so often: codices! Why did we not look up the Mayans first? They are, in fact, the people who are most credited for these books.”
“We did not think to check them since they once resided in South America…that’s so far away,” said another.
“I agree. How could it possibly be like the Mayan language when these two cultures could not possibly have coincided? It does not make any sense,” said the woman logically
“I beg to differ,” said the man who had found the tablet. He was sitting a little ways off from the rest of the group. He always did, as he was not the most social. He preferred silence and solitude. The other five looked at him, waiting for him to explain.
“If we assume that the theory of Pangaea is true, it could be very possible that these two cultures were once one in the same.”
He strolled over, closer to the rest of them. He took the laptop from the other man and clicked around for a moment. A map of the world as it is today appeared on the screen. He drew circles around the land in which the Mayas once lived and the area that they stood in now. Next, he started to pull the two land forms together, the Americas and Africa, Europe, and Asia, until he formed Pangaea. A few of them gasped in disbelief. Present-day Iraq and the Mayan empire were now within 1000 miles of each other.
“Now hold on,” said one of the researchers, a tall man with glasses. “There were no people here when Pangaea existed! Man was not created for years after that.”
“How do we know that?” asked the first man. “If we again assume, which I believe all of us here do, that God created Adam and Eve in the beginning…”
He paused momentarily, looking around at his comrades. Each of them nodded their approval in turn. They had all heard the story of Genesis and accepted it as fact.
“There is not one verse saying ‘God created man in the year 4000 B.C.’ or anything of the sort. Most people and historians have traced humans back by mere guesstimating. They have used dates from the times of Kings in the Old Testament, tracing their descendants and hypothesizing how many years each lived.
“What they have failed to take into account is the fact that people in this time did live much longer than we do today. We can find stories of men who lived well into their 500’s! People living that long may very well have had kids when they were over 100 years old! By using this kind of age system, we could find that people did exist during the times of Pangaea.”
No one argued. It was true that people had not taken the fact that people lived so long into account. It had been completely overlooked. People may very well have lived on Pangaea.
“I’m not sure how or why the Mayans emigrated from this area, but I do believe we may be able to find something that may lead us to the answer within these walls…”
The next two hours were devoted to decoding the language using the tablet that was found. At the end of this time, they had a rough translation with a few key parts missing. It read:

And the world…curse...The End…
to see its destruction…God be with them.

They decided to leave it at that for the day. They were all exhausted from the long day’s excitement. All of them slept peacefully that night, glad that something had finally been accomplished.

The next day was the most hectic by far. While trying desperately to fill in the missing pieces, interruptions kept slowing them down. The Vice President visited to check on their progress early that morning (and he was quite pleased with the results), a general came down midmorning to see if they needed any help (he simply refused to take “no” for an answer), and military units were positioned all over the temple for safety precautions (that were unneeded since there was no civilization for almost 100 miles in all directions).
It was not until late in the afternoon that the six researchers started to catch on to how this ancient language was formed. From what they could tell, the ancient Mayas actually started many, many years before Europeans discovered them. They began in present-day Iraq millions of years ago. Some of these Mayans decided to journey on and make a new “colony” elsewhere for some reason that had yet to be determined. Then, Pangaea separated into the present day continents and, over time, the Iraq Mayans were influenced by nearby cultures. Thus, they took on some of the more common Egyptian hieroglyphic shapes and tweaked them slightly to meet their needs. These new symbols were then added to their language, creating the language of the Codex.
The laptop hummed excitedly as Egyptian characters were added to the language. The research team watched it for several minutes before the computer completed its work. Then, they had to match up the modified characters with the original Egyptian ones. This took several hours since some symbols had been changed completely.
When it was all said and done, dusk had fallen over the desert, yet none of the team was even thinking about sleep. They were now using their model language and translating the stone tablet piece by piece. Midnight came and passed. It was almost 3 a.m. when it was finally finished. The six researchers poured over the screen. It read:

And the world will face its greatest of perils.
Slowly, the earth will rip itself apart because of this curse.
The End is near.
May those who live to see its destruction be redeemed.
May God be with them.

The team looked at each other, eyes wide. They weren’t sure if what they were reading could possibly be true, but they knew where to find out… the Codex. They all ran towards there camp at full speed, anxious to decrypt it. They arrived moments later and went to the lockbox they kept it in. Only those six researchers knew the combination to the box. It had a strange combination with both numbers and letters. One of them inserted the password quickly and opened it.
The Codex was missing.
At that moment, all trust for the other five left each of the researchers. One man grew bright red with rage and burst out.
“No one leaves until it is found! I refuse to let such an act go unpunished!”
“I could say the same for you, sir! Maybe you took it!” another bellowed.
“Ugh… Men!” exclaimed the woman in frustration.
“This doesn’t exempt you from trial, missie!”
“Are you calling me a little girl!? I’ll have you know I’m just as capable as any of you…if not more!”
“It’s on now!” exclaimed another man.
The quiet man with a goatee sat quietly to the side, watching all of this take place. He didn’t say a word. He hadn’t taken it, of course. He did, however have a good idea who had taken it. He let them fight for some time before breaking them up and calling HQ.
Their entire project was canceled within the next two days. Each of the researchers went about their daily lives, the thought of the End only sitting in the back of their minds like a pile of useless knowledge. All information concerning the event was carefully stored under the highest security possible until the Codex was found.
Only one of the six researchers was happy with the way things turned out. The Codex was now in his possession. His plans were finally able to take place. The final key was his. Now all he had to do was wait for the End.



~~~i might post more later.also, if you want to read more or check out my other stuff, go to my homepage.the link is in my profile.i would appreciate it if you signed my guestbook there with encouragment or suggestions.thanks!!
BlackcobraXX

[Wing Rider]

This story is pretty good; I like how you've arranged events although a bit more depth could make it even better. It's pretty mysterious too.

[BlackcobraXX]

yeah, ive had that suggestion many a time.i was never that great with details and descriptions.once i finish the whole thing, i think ill go back through and add a ton of deatil tho.thanks for reading!

[BBallForLife]

Great story so far. I like how you use present day situations like the War in Iraq.

[Borael]

looks good, I usually dont like the modern war stories but this is still good.

[BlackcobraXX]

1
Another Normal Day

Rath Sigmund was a rather normal boy. The only thing that was odd about him was his name; he doubted that he would ever find someone with a name remotely similar to his. That was the extent of his abnormalities, however. He was just fifteen years old as of July and was now half way through his freshman year in high school.
Rath was a tall boy, almost six feet. He had long, dirty blond hair. His deep brown eyes gleamed with purpose. He was very thin for his age, yet he seemed to have some muscle. His small nose pointed up very slightly at the tip and his lips were thin. Though he was tall, he wasn’t lanky; his arms and legs fit his torso perfectly.
Rath lived in a small suburb of New York City, almost an hour away. He had quite a few friends, more than any guy could ask for. He wasn’t what someone would call popular and yet nowhere near unpopular. Of course, both of these “social groups” were extremely overrated at his school, just like almost any other town in America.
His first period class was History, taught by a Miss Breach. She was, by far, the meanest teacher Rath had ever had in his life. Her nose pointed upward awkwardly, giving her a very stuck up appearance. The class seemed to be endless. Rath would try to get some extra sleep during class, with no prevail (Miss Breach loved yelling at him for putting his head down). His only friend in the class was Kelly Smithe, a quiet girl around most people, but as loud as the rest in company of friends. When embarrassed (which was quite often), she would grow bright red in the face. She was also a quite tall girl with long blonde hair.
Rath’s next class was English. This was the class that Rath found easiest. He would have called it boring, but for the people in the class. He had two, really close friends here: Erik Mand and Kevin Andrews. Erik was Rath’s best friend and had been since the fourth grade. The prankster of the group, he would often trick his friends into strange, yet rather amusing, stunts. He was part Arabian, but still had white skin and his long brown hair reached down to his neck in the back and almost covered his eyes.
Kevin was the athletic guy. He competed in football, baseball, basketball, and, at one point, soccer. He was also a very good TPer as Rath found out soon after meeting him. They went on nightly missions quite often. He was a tall, thin boy with short, dark hair and dark brown eyes. He almost always had a smile on his face and was almost as tall as Rath. Almost.
The class began and Rath looked out the window, hardly paying attention. It was November, coming close to Thanksgiving Day. However, it was not very cold yet and there had been no sign of snow. It was just another normal day of a normal week. Nothing happened there. Rath liked it, though; it was the people who lived there that made it the best.
Rath started to think of all of his friends as he sat there. There was Branson Ellington, who was the smartest of them all, and Jarrid Summers, one of the funniest and most random guys Rath had ever met. Ren Lakota, a silly but smart girl, was always competing to beat Branson in academics (even though he could have cared less). Kelly was best friends with her; they were almost always together. She had brown hair and was a bit shorter than Rath and Kelly.
Jarrid’s younger sister, Jaedan, got along well with them as well. She even got along with her brother, most of the time anyway. She was a year younger than them, in eighth grade. Her blonde hair (it was naturally a bit darker, but she had it colored lighter) reached her shoulders. She had quite a resemblance to Jarrid.
That was “the gang” as they sometimes called themselves. When asked who they were going to do something with, they would simply respond, “the gang,” and everyone knew who they were talking about. A few other friends would float in and out of it, sometimes joining them and other times doing their own thing.
One such girl, Ellen Kenneth, was a fun-loving, red-headed girl who was into all the church activities (which Rath also attended on a normal basis). She went to the same church as Rath normally; however, her dad often brought her around to other churches. Most of his friends went to church elsewhere, but Rath had a few friends here and there at his church.
Another guy, Tad Intle, was one such friend. Just as funny as Jarrid, he had had some fun times with Rath. His real name was actually Tadworth, but only his mom called him that when she was really angry with him. Rath had heard the name used a few times. He was once one of Rath’s best friends, but since they were at different schools now (Tad was in eight grade as well) things had slightly changed. He didn’t see Tad as often, but he still had fun with him when he was around.
Lastly, but definitely not least in Rath’s mind, was Kitiara Mist, another girl in eight grade. Kitiara was always on Rath’s mind and the mere mention of her name sent butterflies through his stomach. He liked her… a lot. As obvious as he thought it was, only Ellen actually knew what he thought of her. She was a good friend of Kitiara and had this kind of bond with Rath where they seemed to know exactly what the other felt or thought. Even though they had such a tight bond, Rath was quite afraid she had let his feelings for Kitiara slip.
Snapping back into reality, Rath noticed that everyone was looking right at him. Once upon a time, he would have grown bright red in embarrassment. With age, he had grown much more outgoing, though, and didn’t mind having attention drawn to him.
“Maybe I will have to repeat the question,” stated Mrs. Venture, his teacher, glaring at him. The bell rang loudly, dismissing them.
“Saved by the bell, mate!” called Erik from the other side of the room. Rath grinned and followed him out of the classroom quickly, avoiding Mrs. Venture’s deathly gaze.

The rest of the day went by rather slowly and nothing interesting happened until just before ninth period. Rath turned a corner with Erik and saw Mitch Hyde, the biggest bully Rath had ever met, trying to get to Ben Jamieson’s lunch money…again. Ben was a short boy who was picked on often. Rath and Erik, however, had befriended him last year and offered to help him whenever they were around. The two friends glanced at each other for a mere second and then approached.
“Leave him alone, Mitch,” Rath commanded.
Mitch turned, glaring. The huge boy moved towards Rath and placed his ugly face close to Rath’s. Rath tried hard not to gag; Mitch’s breath was repulsive. It smelled like he hadn’t brushed for over a year. He grimaced as Mitch spoke.
“Why don’t you make me, Sigmund!”
Rath held his ground, showing he wasn’t scared of the bully (just his breath).
“Or how about you, Mand?” he dared, turning to Erik. The bully flared for a moment longer. He clenched his fist and brought it up for a blow.
Rath sprang into action from behind, grabbing Mitch’s arms. Erik swung his leg under Mitch in order to trip the massive body. Without his arms for balance, the big lout fell hard. Rath, Erik, and Ben hurried into the classroom before Mitch could retaliate.
Mr. Hugo, their biology teacher, looked at them and smiled, “Try not to hurt him too badly, alright boys?”
Rath and Erik smiled. Mr. Hugo was their favorite teacher by far for obvious reasons. They found their seats near the back of the room at one particularly big lab table.
“Thanks again!” Ben said, turning to them. “I don’t know what I’ll do without you guys when I move…”
Rath exchanged an uneasy glance with Erik. Ben would be moving to Pennsylvania very soon. They were worried about him. What if he didn’t make any friends down there? What if he was picked on every day? Rath prayed that wouldn’t happen.
Jarrid, Branson, and Ren joined them a few minutes later; they all sat at the same table. This was very useful. They could talk about whatever they wanted while they “worked.” Mr. Hugo didn’t care as long as their work was turned in on time.
Class began a few moments later and Mr. Hugo gave a short lesson about DNA. He handed out a worksheet and let them work the rest of the period. Halfway through class, Rath glanced at the teacher. The man was well built, normal sized. He had short wavy hair that was black, although it had quite a few strikes or white through it. He was sitting in a rolling chair at his computer, clicking around as usual. That’s almost all he ever did. His friends would sometimes think about what on earth he could be doing, but never came up with any good ideas. Rath’s curiosity finally got the better of him and he got up quietly. His friends eyed him; Rath put a finger to his lips. They continued to watch in silence.
He edged his way to the opposite side of the room and moved closer to the computer from behind Mr. Hugo. Rath thought he saw him do a quick movement with the mouse, but decided he imagined it since the man didn’t turn around. The man was simply playing Solitaire. Rath couldn’t believe it. He felt like a spy who just failed his mission.
“Curiosity can sometimes lead to trouble, Mr. Sigmund,” Mr. Higo said solemnly without even turning around.
“How did you-“
“I was once a boy, too, believe it or not, a very curious one at that. I know how your mind works, Rath.” He spun his chair around to face Rath.
“If you don’t mind me asking…what do you do on there all the time?” Rath asked innocently.
The man stroked his goatee thoughtfully. His dark eyes twinkled brightly.
“If I was to tell you, then you would never be able to wonder what I do. Without wondering, your imagination would turn to nothing. Then you would become a worthless person in a world full of worthless people. It is those people who think and imagine who go far in this world, Rath. Remember that.”
The man turned back to his computer a moment later, leaving Rath staring. He walked slowly back to his seat. Mr. Hugo often gave odd reasons for things he did or didn’t do, but this among the strangest. Rath’s mind was spinning with thoughts now. As he sat down, he realized that was the teacher’s goal in the first place and it had worked well.
The bell rang obnoxiously, dismissing them from school. The mood switched from boredom to anxiety within the second. The weekend had arrived.

“Do you have any plans for tonight, Rath?” his mother asked when he arrived home a half hour later.
He set his book bag down by the table where is mother was sitting. They were in the dining room. His mother was engulfed in some papers for work that were spread out everywhere.
“Yep. We’re going to Jarrid’s to watch War of the Worlds.”
“Who’s going?” she asked, as all good mothers do.
“The gang,” Rath said flatly. His mother nodded and Rath went into the kitchen to grab a “snack.” A snack to Rath, however, was more like a meal. He ate constantly, but never got wider. His dad said he was just on a growth spurt, though Rath never seemed to get taller either.
He arrived at Jarrid’s house first, three hours later. It was a fairly new and quite big house. They lived in one of the biggest subdivisions in town. Their pool was a favorite summer hangout for the gang as well. Greeted at the door by Jaedan (and the dog, Rath was sorry to say), he was shown into the kitchen. She was pleased to see him, he could tell.
“Hi, Rath,” said Mrs. Summers. “Want to get some pop from the garage for tonight?”
It was more of a command than a suggestion, but Rath happily went anyway, Jaedan in tow. They returned with hand and pocketfuls of Coke and Mountain Dew and set them on the table. Then they headed for the living room to see what Jarrid was up to. He was sitting on the couch next to Ren, who had apparently arrived while they were in the garage. The pair was silent the moment they saw Rath and Jaedan, however.
Jarrid broke the silence a moment later, “Um, why don’t we set those over here on the table…”
He reached out to help Jaedan and headed to the table. Rath and Jaedan exchanged uneasy glances; they had interrupted something… Rath looked over at Ren. She was blushing furiously, a very unusual thing for her. She bowed her head and acted like she was fixing her contact.
Kelley arrived minutes later: “Hey, best bud!”
She threw her arms around Rath. He smiled. Kelley was always happy to see everyone. Erik, Branson, Kevin, and Ellen arrived soon after. Tad came next. Rath had wondered if he would show up, and was pleased to see him.
Jarrid put the movie in and the DVD menu popped up. Just as he was about to hit play, the doorbell rang yet again. Rath was up in a second, “I’ll get it!” Ellen rolled her eyes.
Rath opened the door. There stood Kitiara, as beautiful as ever. She smiled brightly at him. Her long brown hair seemed to shine in the light. Rath’s heart skipped a beat.
“Hi, Rath. Hope I’m not late. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to come,” she said as he showed her in.
“Well, I’m glad you did,” said Rath, a grin on his face.
Kitiara beamed, and then headed toward the living room. She sat in a chair on the opposite side of the room after saying “hey” to everyone. Rath ended up on a couch between Tad and Jaedan. Rath sighed; another unlucky night, as usual. The movie began.
He barely paid attention. Among the parts that he did watch, he heard “end of the world,” “extermination,” and saw such pain of the separated families as he had never seen before. He decided he would have to watch it on his own sometime, when he wasn’t so distracted. He kept glancing at Kitiara, sitting so far away it seemed. No matter what he did, she wouldn’t leave his mind. He daydreamed of her…
“Rath!” hissed Jaedan. Rath snapped into reality, looking around frantically. The movie was almost over, a half hour left. Jaedan motioned him to look to his left. Jarrid’s hand was intertwined with Ren’s. Rath grinned at Jaedan.
“Never going to let him live that up, are you?” he whispered.
“Of course not!” she said, giggling.
The movie ended, a happy ending as usual. Rath wondered if he would ever see a movie with an unhappy ending. He smiled to himself. He knew he wouldn’t.
He ended up giving Kevin, Erik, Kelley, and Kitiara. The girls were first; Kitiara second.
“Bye, Kitiara,” said Rath as she stepped out of the van. She waved and headed up to her house.
In the end, Kevin and Erik spent the night at Rath’s. It was a long night of laughs and games. Rath and Erik couldn’t stop laughing as Kevin screamed at the TV screen while playing videogames.
“You’re not supposed to hit me off the screen, you stupid, pink puffball!” he yelled.
Risk was another favorite. The game lasted a total of four hours. Kevin had taken to holding onto only Iceland and put every last army he received on it. Erik finally crushed him after fifteen turns. Rath simply watched and laughed as Kevin did some crazy dice rolling techniques.
Finally, around 3:00am, the three friends claimed sleeping spots and slept…until Kevin jumped on Rath and World War III began around 3:30.

2
Strange Happenings

Rath hated Monday’s. He forced himself out of bed around seven. Pouring a bowl of cereal, he sat down to eat. His younger brother had just finished and had left his bowl out…again. Rath took care of it half-heartedly, pouring the disgusting, soggy cereal down the drain.
It was then that his cell phone vibrated. He flipped it open to find a text message from Branson. It read: turn on the news.now! Rath did as he was told.
The woman on it was halfway through her report: “—these strange tornadoes are multiplying throughout Russia. It seems that they have more of these monstrous winds now than the total amount of tornadoes in Russia’s history. The people there have no idea how to protect themselves from such a threat and are suffering greatly. The dead accounted for has already peaked 2000 with thousands more injured. We now go the scene with Russian meteorologist, Geran Vadgravitz:”
A man appeared on the screen. He was standing in a field a few miles from the devastating sight of an obliterated town. The camera began to show so blips of a closer view. Three tornadoes could be seen, swirling around and ripping buildings from the ground with more ferocity than Rath had ever seen before. People could be seen running everywhere trying to escape. They obviously had no idea that they should be underground. Rath saw a car get ripped up from the ground. It landed on what seemed to be a small child, screaming in terror. Rath winced. Then he saw a few grazing cows get swept up into one of the monstrosities. Loud, agonizing moo’s could be vaguely heard in the background. Rath’s mouth hung open as the small, white-bearded man spoke.
“We believe that these tornadoes are an act of a strange northern wind that we discovered just yesterday,” he said in a strong Russian accent. “The cold wind seems to have changed course sometime late last night which caused it to travel towards us instead of back to the North Pole. Somehow, a much warmer current has come from the south at the exact same speed. They passed over each other earlier this morning and created these outrageous winds, something that has not occurred for millions of years.”
“How many tornadoes have been spotted thus far, Professor Vadgravitz?” asked the woman reporter, her picture appearing in the corner.
“It is quite hard to tell actually. Our estimate, however…is over 5000 throughout the country.”
Rath dropped the remote and fell onto the couch. He turned it off a moment later as they went into more technical explanations of the event. Wow.I’ll talk 2 u @ school, he texted back to Branson.

The tornado outburst seemed to be the topic of the day. The whole Biology class was dedicated to it in ninth period.
“Now, I know weather isn’t really what we have been studying; however, due to recent events, I feel we should discuss it,” said Mr. Hugo, looking around. “How many of you listened to the news this morning?” Rath raised his hand along with some fifteen others. “Good, then I suppose you heard that scientist babbling on about wind temperatures and whatnot?” They all nodded. “Well, I am quite afraid to say it is simply not true. All of that was just to make it look like they knew what was going on. Not a bad attempt, actually, and I am sure it convinced most of you. They really have no idea what is going on, though.”
Several kids started whispering excitedly. They couldn’t believe Mr. Hugo would go against the meteorologist. Rath glanced at his friends uncertainly. They seemed just as surprised.
“I can prove it to you!” exclaimed Mr. Hugo a moment later, commanding silence instantly. Everyone looked up intently. The tall man pulled down a world map.
“As you can all clearly see,” he said indicating Russia, “there is no way warm, southern winds could have penetrated these mountains, at least not throughout the entire country anyway. No, these tornadoes are no natural disaster…Class, this is purely an unexplained phenomenon, something that simply should not happen. This is unearthly.”
His eyes seemed to sparkle knowingly. Rath could tell he knew more than he was saying. His curiosity was almost overwhelming. He was going to find out what was happening no matter what.

“I’m telling you, he knows something! I think he knows why those tornadoes appeared!” Rath exclaimed after class. A few of his friends were watching him uneasily.
“You’re just imagining it, Rath,” said Jarrid finally.
“Who really knows what goes on in that guy’s mind? Maybe he does know something…” suggested Branson.
“Oh com’on! You don’t really believe it’s what he said, do you? An otherworldly phenomenon? Seriously, he’s just trying to scare us,” said Ren matter-of-factly.
“Well, I…I believe him!” exclaimed Ben hesitantly. “Mr. Hugo has never lied to us before!”
Everyone looked at him. Rath grinned, glad for some support. Erik remained silent.
The group split up then, thoughts swirling through their heads.
They each went to their lockers to pack up for the day. Rath headed downstairs with Erik whose locker was just a few down from Rath.
“You were awfully quiet up there. What do you think?” Rath asked him as he took out his English book and shoved it in his bag.
“I’m not sure…but I have a really bad feeling in my gut, Rath. I don’t think this is the end of it. I think…it’s just the beginning.”
He grew quiet. Rath looked up at him. His face was solid. For once, Erik wasn’t joking.

Nothing else happened that week until Friday. Rath had no idea until he arrived at school. Greeted by Kevin, Jarrid, Ren, and Kelley by his locker, he was instantly being shouted at. They were all talking excitedly, though Rath could not make any sense of it. After almost a minute, they got the message through. Hawaii had been covered in snow and the temperature had dropped to that of Antarctica.
“That’s…not possible! Hawaii couldn’t…I mean… it can’t…” Rath fell silent. Erik had been right. Russia had been just the beginning.
“There go my hopes of a tan that the girls would fall for…” Kevin said sadly. Rath couldn’t help chuckling. The bell rang and they all took off for class.
“Unfortunately…I must read this to you all. The principal demands it. Not much good it will do you though. Waste of time if you ask me…” said Miss Breach when class began.
STUDENTS!
In light of recent worldly events, the school board asks that these precautions be explained in case of an emergency. If a code red is issued, you are to get into the nearest classroom immediately and follow the instructions of given by that teacher. It is also advised that you discuss some precautions with your families. Thank you and have a nice day!

“How encouraging…” muttered Rath. The girl next to him, Courtney Weis, giggled.
“My thoughts exactly, Mr. Sigmund; however, if you speak out of turn again, you will serve detention!” the teacher threatened.
Rath looked down. It really was a pointless warning. It didn’t help anyone at all, just gave some “guidelines.”
Mr. Hugo dedicated the class to the recent disaster yet again. No one complained; it meant no homework. Mr. Hugo talked about the same thing he did Monday: otherworldly phenomenon, how reporters were making up explanations to keep people calm. Rath saw that glint in the man’s eye again. He was going to have to talk to him about it soon; he just didn’t know how to go about asking.
The weekend arrived and no disasters occurred. Rath and Branson went to Kevin’s basketball game that Saturday. The moment the ball was put into play, a tall boy from the other team took it, dribbled down, and scored a three pointer. It was going to be tough game to win, Rath could tell. The score stayed even for quite some time after that: one team scoring, then the other matching it.
About a quarter of the way through the game, Rath noticed Kitiara sitting on the other side of the gym. She was by a girl Rath didn’t know that well named Lilly Tucker. Rath turned to Branson in order to suggest moving, but Branson beat him to it: “Com’on, I think we can get a better view from the other side,” he said. Rath was puzzled by this, but didn’t argue.
“Hey!” said Branson when they arrived near Kitiara and Lilly.
“Hi, guys,” said Kitiara. Lilly just got a little red. The two boys sat on the bleacher behind them. They talked and cheered Kevin on.
In the fourth quarter, Lilly mention the Hawaii and Russian incidents: “I’ve heard that Hawaii remains unchanged and people are dying from the cold.”
“It’s true, and some of the tornadoes in Russia haven’t yet ceased. They’ve destroyed half the country!” said Rath.
“It makes me wonder…how long until something strikes New York…?” asked Kitiara. Everyone grew silent, each thinking about that disturbing truth. The buzzer went off; their school had won. They got up to congratulate Kevin, forgetting Kitiara’s comment momentarily. They had no idea how close to disaster they were.

“Only two more days until four-day weekend!” exclaimed Erik that Tuesday morning.
“Yeah, and lot’s of good food!” said Jarrid, licking his lips. Thanksgiving weekend was but two days away. None of the friends could wait, and the days seemed to drag on. It was certainly going to be a promising weekend. Such excitement spread throughout the school. Rath even forgot about the disasters…until Biology class.
Mr. Hugo had the TV switched on when they entered fro class that day. It was another news report showing enormous hail storms in Egypt. Ren, along with several other girls in the class, gasped and looked away as some bloody victims of the storms were shown. Mr. Hugo turned it off a moment later when a rather gruesome scene appeared, revealing a man that had a huge chunk of ice embedded in his head and a slimy eyeball hanging from it. He sighed and began class. He didn’t mention the event once throughout the entire period.

“Hey, Rath! Can I get a ride home?” asked Erik after class.
“Sure, if you don’t mind walking to my dad’s office. He’s taking me.”
“Yeah, alright.”
They exited the school. A very gloomy sky awaited them; no sun could be seen. It almost looked like it was going to rain. Many other kids feared this, too, and were hurrying home to avoid the weather’s wrath. The office was a few blocks away from the school and it promised to be a twenty minute walk. The two boys walked quickly, hoping to reach shelter before the clouds let loose.
“So, hail storms…what next I wonder…?” asked Rath hesitantly a few minutes later.
Erik looked up at him, his eyes full of fear. “I told you the tornadoes were only the beginning.”
“I know. That’s what scares me. How did you know, Erik?”
“I told you already,” he said, obviously taking offence. “It was just a gut feeling.”
Rath gave up. Erik seemed to be telling the truth. He usually spilled by now if he wasn’t. They walked in silence now, arriving at the train tracks a few seconds later. There were two sets, so a train could pass through there going either way, with three-foot wide pathway between them. Rath looked both ways and saw no trains. The two boys began to cross. They crossed the first track and arrived at the pathway.
Instantly, a train shot past them on the track ahead, traveling at a speed far beyond the limit. Rath and Erik jumped back in fright and surprise. They both swung around to get to safety. They bolted towards the other set of tracks. Suddenly, a second train, traveling just as fast as the first but in the opposite direction, started to speed by. They were trapped in between two, out of control trains.
Rath heard a crashing sound and watched in horror as a car was thrown up into the air by the train. The two boys flew to the ground, hands over their heads. The train that had crashed the car suddenly burst into flame. Erik screamed in pain as a fiery wheel from the car fell on his arm. Rath groaned. Rocks from the gravel under the trains were flying up into the air and falling all around.
His feet grew hot suddenly; the rubber soles of his shoes were melting. The heat from the fire on the train was becoming more intense by the second. The temperature was rising uncontrollably and Rath began to sweat profusely. Kicking his shoes off quickly, Rath peeked to see how Erik was faring. He was unconscious, probably due to the pain, but looked alright. The tire had rolled off of his arm, thankfully, for it was now a puddle of melted rubber.
Suddenly, something fell in front of him with a loud thud! Rath opened his eyes hesitantly, and let out a blood-curdling scream. A lifeless, burning man was staring into Rath’s eyes. Rath shut them tight. That sight was embedded in his head now and he could not be rid of it: the man’s burning hair, his open mouth, fixed into the position of a wild scream, and his eyes…oh, the eyes.
The man’s eyes had torn into Rath’s own, begging for help that would never come. The fear Rath saw overwhelmed him. The pain was unbearable. Rath knew what he had seen in those eyes. He had just looked death in the eye. He had watched someone die a very horrible and even more painful death, something a boy of his age should never see. Unfortunately, he had, and he would never be the same again.
Rath suddenly began to feel emotion overcome him. He thought of the people who might have known this man that now lay dead: his wife, his kids, maybe, his friends. The grief these people would face was ghastly, yet Rath had witnessed the worst of it. The life had been torn from the body so ruthlessly and quickly. Thoughts flooded Rath’s head in that single moment: Could I die now as well…and Erik?
Time seemed to stop in that moment as fear gripped him. He felt hot tears streaming down his face as reality set in. He was about to die. No one would be able to help him. There was just no hope left. Rath tried to hold onto life, hanging on every last breath that he took in. He coughed, inhaling smoke and began to suffocate.
Rath screamed again with what little breath he could muster as something sliced into his back. He turned his head and saw glass all around him. A pool of blood was growing next to him. He realized, in utter horror, it was his own. All he could see was the bright glow of fire now. He heard the monstrous trains still rumbling…then another explosion.
All went dark.

~~Chapters 1 and two up.thanks for all your encouragement!!! once again, you can go to my main site through a link in my profile. I hope you enjoy =)

[BlackcobraXX]

any thoughts?i know the story seems to have taken on a completely different front.but it gets better.

[BBallForLife]

It's still good. I hope to see more.

[BlackcobraXX]

3
Thanksgiving Day

It was late at night when he awoke. His eyes flickered; everything was a bit blurry. He saw light above him. A low murmur could be heard.
“He’s waking up!” screamed someone suddenly.
More excited voices. Then the pain set in. Rath screamed, finding himself back in reality. He was surrounded, lying on a hospital bed. His mom and dad and brother, Daryl, were sitting near him in some quite uncomfortable chairs. Kevin, Branson, Kitiara, and Ellen were right up front with them. Jarrid, Jaedan, Kelley, and Tad were behind them, watching with smiles. Ren was trying desperately to see, but had gotten caught behind Tad; his height was no match for hers. Then Erik started to hobble over. He didn’t look too bad. A few bruises and cuts could be seen and his arm was in a cast. The tire must have done that.
“You alright?” Rath asked.
“Yeah…just the arm. Doc said it would be only three weeks. Apparently it wasn’t badly broken,” he answered.
“And me?” Rath asked, trying to see what damage he had managed to receive.
“Not bad…” said Kevin hesitantly.
“Yep, just a few scratches…bruises…and a burn on your left leg,” said Jaedan, trying to sound cheerful.
They were hiding something, Rath could tell. He slowly looked at each of them. They all looked nervous or solemn. Rath looked to his father.
“Well,” said he said, noticing Rath’s stare, “there is one more thing…”
He helped Rath to stand. Rath realized he was shirtless… and cold! He grew a little bit red of embarrassment. No one seemed to care though, so he quickly regained himself. His father turned him around. He noticed a few girls turn their heads. Kitiara had obviously not seen it yet, and she let out a small gasp.
“Your…Your back, Rath,” she said breathlessly.
Rath turned his head, trying to see. His mom brought a big mirror over. Rath stared into it, eyes wide. He suddenly felt the searing pain. Falling to his knees, he let out a low growl. Rath flashed back to the incident, right before he blacked out. The glass…that glass had cut into his back.
“What does it look like…” Rath ventured.
Branson took out his phone and snapped a picture of it, then handed the phone over. Rath wasn’t sure what to make of it. It was odd looking for sure. It didn’t look like shards of glass had made it though:

for picture see attachment





Rath marveled at how distinct the mark was. It looked as if someone had used a knife and sliced the mark deep into his skin. The cut was definitely deep. Rath also noticed a few stitches etched over the lines. Amazingly enough, the cut seemed to have almost healed, even though he had just received it that afternoon. This was no normal scar.
Everyone left soon after that; it was after nine and it was a school day the next day. Many hugs were given to Erik and Rath, and then they were off. The two boys were required to stay, however. They were in too much pain to sleep, though.
“How do you suppose…?” asked Rath
“Well, my parents were here earlier before you woke up and they said that this wasn’t the only case. From what the news was saying, trains all over the United States went berserk. They have all of them stopped now.”
“That’s…awful…Did…anyone die?” Rath asked hesitantly, knowing the answer.
“Over 29,000 nationwide; 300 in the two trains we were caught in.”
Rath gaped. So many people…killed ruthlessly; and this wasn’t even a war.
“Oh, by the way, one of the nurses told me someone was coming to visit us tomorrow.”
“Who?”
“Not a clue. She was really uptight though and said we had better be on our ‘best behavior’”
They laughed. They were in high school and still being treated like little kids. Still looked at like children by society. Rath supposed it was just normal, but he did feel older now, even older than he did that morning. It may have had something to do with witnessing and being a part of such a brutal accident. Rath had even watched someone die. That must have added quite a bit of age.
A nurse walked in, scolding them for still being up. She handed them both some pain killers and left after doing a few quick checks. She didn’t say anything, but her eyes had grown wide when she saw the incredible healing of the scar on Rath’s back. She quickly hurried off.
“Could I…see your scar again?”
Rath looked at him. He warily agreed and shed his shirt. Erik walked over, eying the scar. Rath began to get the chills a moment later and, deciding Erik had had enough viewing time, threw his shirt back on.
“I think…I’ve seen it somewhere before,” said Erik, swallowing as if nervous.
Rath looked him in the eye. Erik was sweating hard. His eyes showed fear, though he tried to hide it. But his eyes revealed even more than that; it was as if he was lost in a memory. His lip was quivering very slightly, almost impossible to notice. A tear was forming in the corner of his eye. Rath had never seen him like this before… ever.
Vmbt vmbt! Vmbt vmbt!
Rath glanced at Erik one more time, and then made his way over to his bedside table. His phone was vibrating; it was Kitiara.
“Hey, Kitiara,” said Rath, answering it.
“Hi. Sorry if I woke you up or—“
“No problem,” Rath interjected.
“I just wanted to…I’m worried about you. That cut…was so deep. And earlier, when I first heard you were hurt…I don’t know…are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” he lied. “Just hurts a bit.”
“Only a little bit?”
“Just a smidgeon,” he said sarcastically.
They both laughed.
“Well, I’m really glad you’re ok,” said Kitiara. “I guess I’ll talk to you later; you need your sleep!”
“Yeah I suppose I do…oh, Kitiara?”
“Yeah?”
“I er…I’m really glad you called; means a lot to me,” said Rath, changing his mind.
“Oh…you’re welcome. Good night, Rath.”
“Night.”
Rath sighed. He had been so close to telling her how he really felt. Why did he change his mind? Erik intruded into his thoughts.
“Looks like someone has a little crush they he forgot to mention!” said Erik.
Rath turned to face him. He was grinning like a little boy on Christmas. Rath was puzzled by the sudden change in mood. Rath realized he had just turned red. Picking up a pillow off of his bed, he launched it at the other boy.
“Hey!” exclaimed Erik. “If you’re not going to tell me yourself, of course I’m just going to rub it in when I do find out.”
“Good night, Erik!”


Awaking to bright lights, the boys sat up quickly, rubbing their eyes furiously. A nurse had opened the shades and it was obviously past nine. She rushed them out of bed, telling them to get ready quickly; their guests would be arriving shortly. They showered, dressed in some funny-smelling hospital clothes and waited on their beds. The next thing they knew, one of the most famous people in the United States was sitting in a chair, eying them. The Vice President had walked in moments earlier, surrounded by CIA agents. They were obviously taking no chances. Rath gasped a moment later, realization kicking in. But what could he want with them?
“Mr. Vice President! It’s a pleasure!” said Rath quickly, shaking the man’s hand. Erik did the same, using his unscathed arm.
“Sit down, boys,” he said wearily.
He talked to them for the next hour. He asked them questions like: “How did you feel during the incident?,” “What do you think of the other disasters around the world?,” and “How did it happen?” Then: “Rath, I also heard that you received quite a…mark…on your back?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Could I see it, please?”
Rath begrudgingly shed his shirt again, exposing his skin to the cold of the hospital room. He turned around slowly, allowing the men to see it. The old man did not blink or gasp, only stared. He turned his head in order to face another man.
“Ginn, do you recognize this…scratch?” he asked.
“Hmm,” said one man, who was standing directly behind the VP. “Yes, sir! I saw something like that when we were working in that temple, over in Iraq. If I’m not mistaken, it was on that tablet…I think I could remember what it means...” He thought a moment, eyes fixed on the scar. “Got it. It might be a little rough in translation… but I think it means ‘the end is near.’”
“As I feared…” said the VP. The old man looked up into Rath’s eyes. He looked sad, as if he had just received the gravest of news. “Take some pictures of the scar. We may need them.”
Some men jumped to obey. Rath stood patiently as men snapped pictures of it from all angles with several different types of cameras. They all hurried out when they had finished, leaving the VP and Ginn alone with the boys. They looked at one another a few moments.
“What now?” asked Erik; Rath could tell he had become impatient.
“We will be in touch before this is over I’m sure. You boys have been a great help. Good day,” said the old man. At that he turned and left, Ginn behind him.

Erik was having his arm examined in another room when another visitor arrived. Mr. Hugo asked many questions that the Vice President had. Rath answered them patiently, nonetheless. The teacher grew even more interested when he saw the scar.
“How did you get that?”
“I’m not really sure. I think glass from the car windows came down and sliced me. That’s the only thing that I remember that actually landed on my back.”
“Strange that pieces of glass should leave such a…mark,” said Mr. Hugo.
They were both silent for a few moments then. Mr. Hugo merely stared off into space, his mind clearly in another world or time. Rath looked at him curiously. The man did know more than he led on.
“I’ve been meaning to ask you something,” said Rath.
“Ask away then,” said the man, snapping back into reality.
“You know more about these…events than you lead on…don’t you?”
He looked at Rath. His eyes showed no surprise and he certainly was not mad. Rath decided he looked curious. The man stroked his beard, trying to find the right words.
“Nothing gets past you, Rath. I suppose you might as well know. You are…in this,” he said slowly, eying the scar. “I was a member of a research team before coming here. It was three years ago… A few of us had been sent to investigate an ancient temple, uncovered in the desert of Iraq. We stayed there for a few weeks. One of my comrades found a type of…codex, I suppose you could call it.
“Each of us got a turn with it, to see if we could decipher any of the strange markings we found written inside. We all tired; we all failed. We gave up, putting the Codex into a safe that only our researchers knew the combination to. Our work continued for another week or so before we found anything else. That’s when I found a stone tablet. The same kind of language as the Codex was written on it.
“As I examined it, I found a small connection with both Egyptian and Mayan symbols. Using this new discovery, I began to decode the tablet, the rest of my group surrounding me. It read:

And the world will face its greatest of perils.
Slowly, the earth will rip itself apart because of this curse.
The End is near.
May those who live to see its destruction be redeemed.
May God be with them.”


“So these people…they knew this was coming?” asked Rath, soaking all of this information in.
“I fear so…It starts with these disasters, but it will only get worse from here on out.”
“What about the Codex?”
“Well, after I read the tablet to my colleagues, we headed back to the camp so that we could decode it. I am very sorry to say it was missing.”
Rath was taken aback by this. Hadn’t Mr. Hugo just said that only those six could open it? Rath looked into the teacher’s eyes questioningly.
“There is really only one way for it to have disappeared,” he continued. “One of us must have taken it. We did, of course, realize that at the time. Everyone’s bags and tents were searched by a few marines from the camp nearby. We found nothing. The Codex simply vanished. To this day, it has not been found…and quite frankly I have no idea how it could have disappeared like that. Not one of us left that camp.”
“Who were the people with you?”
“Well, me of course and there was Ginn, who I believe you met this morning. Professor Stockholm, who passed away sometime last year, and Miss Merryweather did not do it for sure. She was with me all day and the professor was way too dedicated to history and its artifacts. Then there was Dr. Garrity, who now resides in Chicago, and lastly, Mr. Summers.
Rath nearly choked on the saliva he had been swallowing. He coughed a moment and then burst out, “He never said anything!”
“We were sworn to secrecy on the matter, Rath. The only reasons I am telling you are first, the vice president has taken interest in you and second, I think you can be trusted. This does, however, mean that you may not tell anyone. You may not even tell your friends, Rath…for the time being anyway.”
Rath nodded, trying to sort through all of this new information. He had heard it a few minutes ago, but now it started to sink in: the end. Everything he knew and loved, everything he could see and hear, everything that was around him would cease to exist as he knew it. Everyone would die and go to Heaven or Hell. But this was not what Jesus had said would happen, was it? He was supposed to come and take them to Heaven before the earth had destruction wreaked upon it.
“I must go now, Rath. See you after break.”
“One more thing, Mr. Hugo.”
He turned, waiting.
“That tablet…it said something about a curse.”
“You don’t miss a thing, do you boy?” he said, chuckling. “Well, I believe that the Codex may hold all the answers to our questions: What the curse is, why it has been set upon us, and how this is all going to take place. We must find it if we have any hope for the future. Happy Thanksgiving.”
He left without another word.



Rath and Erik were released from the hospital not an hour later. Rath did not even mention Mr. Hugo’s visit to Erik. He feared that his friend may ask too many questions…ones that he had been forbidden to answer. He could not risk it.
They were very happy to be rid of the hospital outfits and relished the fresh air as they walked outside to meet their parents. They quickly wished each other a happy Thanksgiving and departed with their parents. Rath was sent straight to bed when he arrived home; they were to travel to the city the next day. Rath’s grandparents lived there, in a small home in the outskirts.
Rath awoke feeling refreshed and most of the pain had subsided…all of it except that of the burning scar on his back. He swallowed some more pain killers when he went upstairs for a small breakfast. Washing them down with some orange juice, Rath grabbed a Pop-tart out of the cupboard and started to get ready.
The family left an hour later, piling into their minivan. Rath found himself wishing to be somewhere else the entire ride. His brother, Daryl, wouldn’t stop asking questions about the accident…over and over again. He didn’t seem to tire of the story and was only quiet when their father turned up the radio. He stayed on a news channel for a little while. Surprisingly enough, there were no new disasters. The man only droned on about a private meeting between the president and vice president, a rare occasion since they were often separated in case of attack.
The trip dragged on and on. Though they only lived an hour outside of the city, the traffic was making it near impossible to enter the city as they got closer. Many people were trying to get in to see their friend and families. Rath began to slip in and out of consciousness. They finally arrived, almost and hour and a half later than they hoped.
“There you are! We were beginning to wonder where you were!” exclaimed Rath’s grandma when they crawled out of the van. She hugged his mother first and eventually got around to all of them.
“It was the traffic, Mom,” said his dad. “It’s a madhouse out there.”
“Well, come on then. Grandpa’s almost done carving that turkey! It’s a big one this year; Rath and Daryl will have to eat more than usual!” said Grandma with a smile.
Splendid aromas filled the entire house. Raths mouth watered hungrily as he hurried to the kitchen. After the hospital food, he was ready for a good, home-cooked meal. His grandpa slipped him a slice of turkey when he arrived and then gave him a hug.
They were all settled down to eat within the next ten minutes. They joined hands, and Rath was selected to do the prayer: “Make it good!” his grandfather winked at him.
“Lord, we gather here today as a family,” Rath began, “to give thanks for everything we have been given by Your gracious hands. May we remember everything you have done for us this day and be thankful.” He paused a moment, then, “May You be with those who are suffering losses in these times of disaster. I thank you that Erik and I only emerged with minor injuries. May You be with us in the End. Amen.”
“Amen,” said the rest of the family.
“What was that…about the end?” asked his father as he passed the rolls to Daryl.
Rath was taken off guard for a moment. He just realized what he had let slip. He regained himself quickly, pretending to lick his spoon. “Oh, just, you know…when we die and go to Heaven,” he said, coming up with and excuse on the spot.
“Odd that you would think of that” said his mother.
“Yeah…” he trailed off as he started to eat his turkey.

4
Thief Revealed

Time passed rather quickly after that. The weather was beginning to warm up as March ended. The flower buds were beginning to show and the days grew steadily longer. Birds had returned from there winter retreat and appeared regularly in the morning to sing their songs.
Not much had occurred in the way of disaster. An iceberg near Greenland broke off of its main land that caused quite a flood in northern Canada and endangered local ships. Mr. Hugo thought that it was just a natural effect of global warming, however, and did not look much into it.
The tornadoes in Russia had disappeared the day after Thanksgiving; however, Hawaii was still frozen over. Many of the natives had moved to California for the climate they were more used to though a few had stayed behind. The ice storms of Egypt had also ceased, but not without leaving its mark. Many pyramids were in ruin.
Rath once ventured to ask Mr. Hugo about the sudden end of disaster. He shrugged and merely said, “Keep your eyes open, boy. This is far from over.”
Rath had somehow managed to keep his discussion with the biology teacher a secret, though he was anxious to tell his friends. He wondered how long he would have to wait; Mr. Hugo had said he would be able to tell them at some point.
Ben had moved away over Christmas vacation. They had a huge party for him the day before he left. It was a great time. They each said their goodbyes that night. After they had finished, Ben looked at them all.
“I hope to see you all again someday… We can still talk at least, online or whatever…”
Rath thought he saw a single tear in his friend’s eye as he said that. He knew it was going to be hard for the boy. He had to a new town, far away, and make new friends.
Rath had decided that the scar across his back would never leave him. It was still as discernible as the day he had received it. Fortunately, it had stopped hurting sometime in January. Erik was completely healed by now, of course, without a mark to show for it.
The scar, however, had made Rath slightly more popular, whether he liked it or not. Many kids knew him now, kids that Rath had never met in his life. They had all heard about the scar, or seen it, or read about the Vice President’s visit to see him. The local newspaper even requested an interview, which Rath accepted after he saw the fair sum of money they had offered him.
Lilly was now showing up to more and more things with the gang. At first, Rath thought that Kitiara was inviting her; but the girl would show up sometimes when Kitiara did not. This made Rath wonder…who was inviting her?
Rath continued to sit by Jaedan every movie night, not because he liked her, but rather because it made it more interesting. She always said exactly what was on her mind, which made interesting conversations and brought up a few laughs.
As time passed, Rath’s feelings for Kitiara only grew. He talked to her a bit more often since November. He remained too shy to tell her how he really felt though.
Rath was dying to ask Mr. Summers about the Codex and his expedition to the temple, but he knew that he couldn’t. Mr. Hugo had said that he was not supposed to know about any of these things. The first time Mr. Summers saw Rath’s scar, his eyes had gone wide in both surprise and horror as he grasped the meaning of the symbol. He had left the room quickly, muttering something about making a call. Rath was sure that call would be to Mr. Hugo or another of the research team.
Life was pretty normal now. The school year would end in a little over a month, and teachers were already expressing the importance of finals. Some kids were all ready studying, Ren included, but Rath did not see the need to study; it wasn’t even May yet.

It was Friday, just after the bell had dismissed them from school, when Branson ran up to Rath, out of breath. After a moment, Branson told him the news: “The Red Sea has just dried up! There’s no water left whatsoever, and it was perfectly normal this morning!” Rath glanced over at Erik who was collecting his books. His eyes had widened at the news. The disasters were beginning yet again. Rath managed to slip away from his friends a few minutes later. He went straight to Mr. Hugo’s room, receiving a dirty look from Mitch along the way. The bully was quite flustered. With Ben gone, he didn’t have anyone to pick on.
Mr. Hugo was sitting at his desk, watching a reporter try to explain the disaster. She was making up an unbelievable story about how a rift had opened up somewhere in the sea, sucking all of the water down into it. M. Hugo switched it off.
“Why are they starting again?” asked Rath a moment later.
“The man sighed. “Look at it like this: It’s like when you start a lawn mower. You pull the lever to start it. When you first try, it makes a sound, trying to start up; but it doesn’t quite get there. Try it again and it will probably start.
“November was that little choke where it tried to start. Now, it could choke again, or it will really start…for real.”
“So it could be worse this time?”
“It could be very much worse, Rath. In fact, I expect it to be. My dear boy, you have seen nothing yet. “
He fell silent a moment. “When will you see Mr. Summers again?” the teacher asked.
Rath was caught off guard by the sudden change of subjects, but recovered quickly, “This Tuesday. I’m going over there after school.”
“Good. I think it is time you try to find out the whereabouts of the Codex. He may know something.”
“Do you have any idea where it is?”
“Well, since November, I have decided that either Ginn or Dr. Garrity must have it. Mr. Summers may have the final piece we’re looking for.” Mr. Hugo winked at him, and then showed him out. “Be careful. Only trust those you know well or you may find yourself in deeper trouble than you can climb your way out of. “

The next day was an interesting one, Rath decided. Jarrid, Branson, and he decided to film a video. They also invited a more recent addition to their group, Wesley Rino. He was sometimes, but could be a little too loud sometimes as well. He loved being random almost as much as Jarrid. They named the movie The Quest. Basically, it showed the four boys running around the entire town, doing random, yet seemingly fun, things. They stopped at the police station and practically begged the chief to get in on the film and wear a big sticker on his forehead. They climbed a hill and rolled down, and then, stopping at McDonald’s, they filmed themselves playing in the gigantic Play-Place.
Then, they all headed to Wesley’s house to hang out and watch their video. It was highly entertaining. Jarrid suggested showing it at the next movie night; the others obliged. They got bored after awhile and turned on the TV. They saw a commercial for The Day After Tomorrow which was coming on in two hours.
The boys quickly called everyone up and had the entire gang coming in an hour. They would watch The Quest and order a pizza before the movie started. Not long after, everyone arrived. They arrived in the following order: Branson, Jarrid, Wesley, and Rath (seeing as they were already there) and then Kelley, Ren, Erik, Kevin, Jaedan, Kitiara, Lilly, Ellen, and lastly, Tad.
Everyone went into the living room. Rath stayed behind in the kitchen to order the pizza. While he was doing this, a girl walked in. She was much shorter than Rath, with a darker blonde hair and brown eyes. She smiled a little at Rath, then grew red and left. Rath recognized her as Wesley’s sister, Linn.
Rath finished placing the order, and then returned to the living room. To his surprise, Jaedan seemed to have picked a seat so that Rath could not sit by her for once. She winked at him when he entered and gave the slightest nod to her left to the last remaining spot on a couch made for two people. The other side of it was occupied by Kitiara. Rath’s stomach seemed to start jumping around as butterflies overwhelmed him.
“Come on! Sit down, Rath!” said Kelly loudly. Everyone promptly turned to look at him. He took his seat, trying to keep cool. Kitiara turned her head towards the TV, but Rath just caught her smile and slightly blushed cheeks. The Adventure began. The gang got a real kick out of it. About halfway through the forty minute video, Kitiara leaned over close to Rath’s ear.
“When did you guys do this?” she whispered.
“Just today,” he answered. Rath noticed that when she sat up again, she was a little bit closer to him.
The video ended a little while later and the pizzas arrived. They all ate heartily, and quickly, while laughing at Jarrid, who was pulling a few stunts on the slick wooden floor of Wesley’s kitchen. They returned to the living room then, only a few minutes until the movie was to start; no one had changed places. Wesley switched off the lights. The movie started. Eventually, it came to a part where snow wolves were attacking a few of the main characters. The fast paced background music kicked in. Rath chuckled to himself when Kelly squealed.
Suddenly, Rath felt someone’s fingers fit into his. He looked down at his hand, then up, into Kitiara’s eyes. His stomach exploded with butterflies and his cheeks began to burn. A smile slowly spread on her face. He smiled back and began to feel less shy. Then, she leaned over and laid her head on his shoulder.
“I really do like you, Rath,” she whispered in his ear.
“I like you too…a lot.” He didn’t stop smiling the rest of the night.
The movie seemed to fly by after that. It ended about an hour later and the credits began to go through. Rath reluctantly let go of Kitiara’s hand. She sat up; Rath could tell she didn’t want to, though. Rath looked around. No one was watching the credits; their eyes were on him and Kitiara.
Kitiara flushed red. Rath, surprisingly, did not. “Well, good movie, huh?” he asked, trying to avoid embarrassment.
Kevin laughed, Ellen high-fived him, and Jaedan ran up and hugged him telling them how excited she was for them. Then the girls did the same for Kitiara. Rath looked at Kitiara; she looked back. They smiled and hugged each other.
Then, suddenly, the TV screen went white. The sudden color change caught everyone’s attention and they turned to it promptly. A reporter appeared on the screen a moment later.
“We are sorry to interrupt the current program, but we have just received important news of sudden disaster in California. Earthquakes have immense power, ranking a 6.0 or higher on the Richter scale, have erupted. If you live in California, or in one of its neighboring states, we highly advise you to take safety precautions immediately! We now go to Amanda Nicholson, who is in Los Angeles surveying the damage.”
Another reporter, Amanda, appeared. What Rath saw behind her, though, shocked him. It was, for lack of better words, mass chaos. Buildings had literally fallen over. People were running everywhere, bloodied or terrified. Cars, fire trucks, and ambulances shot by the camera, trying desperately to escape or help those in need. A man covered in blood was shown on a stretcher; he seemed to be missing a limb…or two. Rath stood up quickly and stalked over to the television, switching it off.
He then faced his group of friends, breathing hard. All eyes were upon him. Some of them looked frightened while others showed no expression. Ellen looked sick. Rath took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Then, he said, “We’ve all seen these disasters. Some of us have even experienced them.”
He stopped for a moment, wincing; the scar on his back seemed to sear with pain. He also noticed Erik grab his arm defensively.
“This is only the beginning…There will be more of them. If something happens here, we must stick together: all thirteen of us. No matter what happens. We’re all the best of friends, and we have to help each other through this. We can do this, guys. We can survive through anything that comes at us.”
Rath stopped, waiting. No one stirred or said a word. Rath watched them all silently. Please…someone, anyone agree with me, he thought.
Finally, Kitara got up from her spot and came to him, putting her hands around his arm and holding it close. “I’ll be with you,” she said softly.
“And me, mate, to the end,” chimed in Erik, standing up and joining him and Kitiara. Soon everyone in the room was in one big huddle. They were together, as one. Rath looked around and saw fear of what was to come, but also a new hope that they might not face it alone. Jarrid looked straight at him, and nodded ever so slightly. Rath gave a weak smile in return. They were all in this together now.

Tuesday arrived. The day seemed to drag on as Rath anticipated his after-school plans. He may find himself a step closer to the Codex that seemed to be so closely linked to all of the catastrophes and possibly his scar. Finally, the bell of ninth hour rang. Mr. Hugo winked at Rath on the way out.
He arrived at Jarrid’s house twenty minutes later. Mr. Summers wasn’t going to be home for another two hours or so, he found out when inquiring Jarrid. So, Rath tried to push it to the back of his mind for awhile. While waiting, the two boys faced off in a round of Dance Dance Revolution. It was a videogame that provided a dance pad, which you had to do different step moves on. Out of five rounds, Jarrid won four of them. Rath decided never to try out for any dance team.
Then, they went up to Jarrid’s room. Jarrid played guitar for awhile while Rath messed with the keyboard and sang a little bit. They even discussed starting a band with some of their other friends, though it never got much farther than discussion.
Rath heard the front door open and Mr. Summers walked into the room a moment later. “What are you boys up to?”
“Just playing,” replied Jarrid. “We were just finishing. Want to get online, Rath?” He took his guitar strap off and replaced the guitar on its stand.
“Yeah, sure,” said Rath. Jarrid started for the study.
“I’ll be right there!” called Rath. He turned to Mr. Summers, who remained standing in the room. “Can I ask you something?”
“I think you already have,” Mr. Summers chuckled. “Shoot.”
“Do you have any idea what happened to the Codex?”
Mr. Summers’ eyes grew wide in surprise; he obviously did not expect Rath to ask anything of the sort and was even more taken aback by the fact that Rath knew about the book. “How did you-“
“Mr. Hugo told me everything. After he saw my scar, he said I had a right to know.”
“I see,” said Mr. Summers slowly. “Well, I was just as baffled as everyone else upon the disappearance of the Codex. The only thing that I do know is that it could not have been Robert Ginn; I was with him all day working on digging up anything we could find. But that can’t be very helpful.”
“It makes all the difference in the world!” Rath exclaimed. “Mr. Hugo had it narrowed down to Ginn and Dr. Garrity. So, if what you say is true, then Garrity must have taken it.”
“Well,” said Mr. Summers after a moment, “I will have to go to him immediately. The Codex… Rath if we had it, we might know how to stop the world from ending. I must pack; I will be leaving for Chicago first thing in the morning.” He ran out of the room and disappeared from Rath’s line of sight.
“Rath! Come on!” Jarrid shouted from the study, obviously impatient. “Why were you talking to my dad?” he asked when Rath entered.
“Oh, I don’t know. He was just asking how my family is doing,” said Rath. He felt bad for lying to one of his best friends, but now was certainly not the time to tell Jarrid.
Jaedan came in a moment later. “Did you know Dad was leaving on business tomorrow?” she asked Jarrid.
“No!” exclaimed Jarrid, surprised. Rath shifted in his seat uncomfortably.


~~~~chapters 3 and 4 up.let me know what you think.if you wish to see chapter 5, it is up on my mainsite.there is a link to this in my profile!!thanks

[BBallForLife]

WOW! You have extremely long chapters, but other than that, it's great.

[BlackcobraXX]

thanks.just dropping by.been a bit slow on writing lately.but i do have one more chapter up on the main site.drop by and look! URL in profile =)

[HumanInfiltrator]

I'm loving it. Not quite done yet. But will catch up over the weekend.

[BlackcobraXX]

hey all.just letting you know that i have up to chapter 6 posted on my main page.the link is located in my profile.thanks and enjoy =)