The Rising | Chapter One

ONE | DARK PARADISE

Every time I close my eyes
It's like a dark paradise.
- Lana Del Rey


I only have one cup left to wash and then I am done. I look at the pile of dishes beside me and the floral patterns on them remind me of the past; when all was good and normal. I shake the memories away and return my attention to the porcelain cup Phillip has been drinking out of for the past six months.

I scrub it clean and then rest it to dry with the other plates and such. I wipe the counters and the table, making sure no crumbs have evaded the cloth. I finish up the rest of the chores under the watchful eye of our only candle and then slowly make my way up the cabin stairs. They creak and groan, which use to tire me, but now I see it as a sure warning in the event that our cabin would be breached.

A small breeze welcomes me when I step on the landing and I peer inside Phillip's room to see if he is moving, but he isn't. Not yet. Maybe not ever? I try to drown those thoughts but they always seem to resurface every now and again.

I gently close the door and make my way to Maggie and I's room, which is nestled between the bathroom and the room I just visited. The cabin isn't very big but it has managed to keep us safe and away from them since the Rising began.

The flame flickers in the breeze as I set the candle on the small crate besides my bed. I'm careful not to wake Maggie - waking her from her sleep has brought many a fights in the mornings, which is something I prefer to avoid. While keeping that fact in mind, I tiptoe towards the window to close it when I feel Maggie's eyes on me. I stop at once, and turn to her.

"Why do you insist on going to bed so late, Katherine?" Maggie says, pulling herself against the headrest. "I couldn't sleep either, don't worry." She continues, a smile forming on her face. Maggie; with that pretty white hair, those wrinkly eyes, and her fiery temper. An ancient tree with young leafs, my mom would have said.

The breeze catches me again. I return Maggie's smile and continue towards the window where I close the shutters and lock the cold winds out. The climate has never been the same and as I peer out the window, I can't help but to say the same about the landscape.

"Where are you, Katherine?" Maggie says, noticing my silence.

"Back home. With my parents and siblings. We're playing horseshoes in the backyard for Louis' sixth birthday." I don't look away from the window, from the barren view in front of me; the dead trees, cracked earth, and continuous fountains of hot, liquid magma that erupts from it. I prefer to be at home, before the Great Earthquake and the Rising of the ghostly creatures.

Maggie doesn't understand that.

"Come to bed, child. It will only give you nightmares to think about that."

"Yeah, you're right." I sigh and make my way back towards my bed. I blow the candle out and snuggle into my blankets. "I don't know what Phillip and I would do without you, Maggie."

"You're welcome, sugar. Now get some sleep."


***ECHOES OF THE WASTELAND***