Creeping Shadows

A fishing village braces itself for what appears to be an incoming storm. From the horizon, a black fog could be seen approaching shore. Fishermen kept their nets and retreated home but not before noticing the dead marine life that surfaced. One curious fisherman observed a nearby lifeless fish from his boat. It was rotting, but some of its meat melted off revealing its bones. He tried to pick it up but immediately dropped it. He looked at his palm and saw burn marks.

“Oh no.” he said as he saw the dark clouds go nearer.

He grabbed his paddles but before he could retreat, a huge whale surfaced and knocked the man off his boat. He popped out of the water and gasped. The colossal creature before him was already dead. Half of its body was already rotting exposing its huge skeleton from the rear. The shore was too far and with no faster means to escape, the fog swallows him. A few hours later, so was the entire village.

Nearby communities were alerted of a ravenous fog that was spreading faster on land. Panic ensued. A nearby village attempts to evacuate.

A man and his family attempted to flee the doomed area via horse-pulled wagon when he heard screaming. From his horse, he could see that the fog had come in contact with his wife and daughter. The father watched in horror as the fog dissolved their flesh before his eyes.

“Daddy!”

The panicked father kicked the horse to run faster but in his rush, the fog had dissolved the cord that connected the horse and the wagon. He heard another wail of screams as he fled away. For a short while, he looked back at his dying wife and daughter whose eyes have already left their sockets. Their bony arms were raised reaching for him. In horror, he looked away and fled. The fog had engulfed them as he ran further.

The city has become crowded with the influx of survivors. Streets were filled with cars and people trying to escape on foot.

-----

“The fog is still far,” the news reporter said. “Scientists have calculated that at its current speed, it will take 3 days for it to reach the city.”

I pressed the remote control and the TV shut off. I stayed atop a mountain in a mansion away from the chaos. Looking out my window, I could see the crowded streets. The thought of it made me shiver. I expect a helicopter to pick me up soon. I feel that my rank has given me an unfair advantage.

I took out a lighter and made a few puffs of smoke to ease myself. At the other side, I see my lab gown hanging. In anger, I threw my lighter at it and set it on fire. I stomped on the cursed cloth to vent out my frustration.

It was all my fault.

I decided to watch TV again. Maybe the fog died down by now.

“Satellite photos have indicated that the source of the mysterious fog was from a nearby island.” The memories of my expedition a few months earlier flooded me. They know. I jumped off the couch when I hear a ringing. I looked at the CCTV. There were people at the gate. In pity, I allowed them in.

-----

                They narrated me stories of their travel and how they hear of a mansion that wasn’t fully abandoned by its owner. Some of them sobbed as they describe how they lost their loved ones. One woman stayed in the corner holding a bundle of cloth.

                “Ma’am?” I called for her attention. The others looked at her. She seems about thirty plus but barely escaped the fog. Burn marks were all over her along with withered flesh.

                “It’s okay, little one,” she spoke to the pile of wraps. “We’re safe now.”

                She started coughing heavily. Blood spurted out of her mouth. One man who looked like a medical expert approached her trying to help.

                “Stay back!” she yelled. Bloody tears dropped from her eyes. The fog. She must’ve inhaled it.

                “Ma’am, I’m a medical doctor,” the man reasoned.

                The woman however screamed profanities and was about to attack him. The others and I held her back. The bundle fell unveiling a child’s severed arm. The woman kept crying reaching for the arm. Eventually, we let her go. As she picked up the arm, she sang a lullaby to it.  Slowly she collapsed on the floor and died. But not before staring at me accusingly. Someone took initiative to close her eyelids that still looked at me.

                What have I done?

---

We watched the news unfold on TV. We were horrified to learn that the fog was spreading faster than predicted. I figured that the summer heat allowed it to diffuse rapidly.

“Are we safe?” one survivor asked me.

“The fog is too dense,” I told her. “It can’t reach high elevations.”

“How do you know?”

The survivors stared at me. It was only a half truth. The fog is normally too dense to rise any higher but the rising temperature made me unsure now.

“I’m so sorry…” I began to cry.

---

                The city was now consumed in shadows which slowly rose towards my home. Luckily, the others and I were already in the helicopter.  I looked on to the city as we flew higher.

                Nobody made eye contact with me. As my mansion shrinks from view, I vowed to stop the fog before more lives will be claimed.