Infinite Testament by Greg Ness

floor,
creating a puddle.
    “The pain must be unbearable,” X said with a hint of
laughter. “The ironic thing is this weapon is the same one I used to kill
your father. The same blade. The same end.”
    In one last moment of defiance, Mikey, half-alive,
muttered, “Kiss my ass… Russell.”
    X punched Mikey in the face with such a force that his fist
crunched his bones. Mikey’s head whipped back and his skull crashed and
collapsed on the concrete behind him. X took the blade of his staff and
pierced Mikey in the heart just for good measure.
    Mikey was dead. It was a noble end to a heroic life.
    2:45 PM
    Lisa Binsby was at her best friend Gina’s house. Gina
was another A-lister in Hollywood and lived across the street. Together,
they watched the news in disbelief. The whole city had lost its
mind.
    “Do you think it’s true?” Lisa asked
Gina.
    “I don’t know.”
    They watched on the screen as Hollywood Boulevard was
slammed with cars that had added an extra lane to the streets by driving on the
sidewalks. The police were trying and failing to calm the battling
crowds. Suddenly, a rioter came into the frame and struck the camera,
causing the feed to die.
    “My God,” Lisa muttered.
    Gina asked, “Do you think I should call my Mom?”
    Lisa turned toward Gina in surprise. “You haven’t
talked to her in years.”
    “Which is why I should call her right? What if it
really is the last day of the world?”
    Gina had a point. “Yeah, you’re right. You
should call her.”
    Gina left the room to get her phone. Lisa dreaded the
thought that it might actually be the end of the world. There were people
she needed to talk to. Most notably, Stephen Pandora. She had a
chance just a week earlier and blew it.
    Now it was too late.
    3:00 PM
    Moros stood at the bonfire with hundreds of people around
him. The mood was celebratory. There were people playing bongos,
flutes, and other percussion instruments. Anyone not playing an
instrument was either dancing or building the fire. The dancers were full
of life, injecting energy into everyone around. The fire builders threw
anything into the fire they could get their hands on. While everyone was
having a good time, Moros simply stood and watched.
    Moros took off his backpack and looked at it. It was
blue with white straps. Despite being flimsy and torn up, it had held up
remarkably over the years. It was in the exact condition that he received
it.
    Moros hugged his backpack and held his face against
it. “I’m sorry,” he uttered to himself.
    Without thinking about it any longer, he tossed the
backpack into the fire. He watched as the flimsy blue cloth and all of
its contents gradually burned up and disappeared. He fought back the
tears that were begging to come out. Unable to continue watching, Moros
turned around and fell to the sand. He gripped a chunk of sand that
slipped through his fingers. The tears running down his cheek were a
culmination of years of regret. “I’m so sorry.”
    He stared at the sand. His rational mind called
him. Crying wasn’t going to help. He needed to get to the water.
    Moros picked himself off of the sand. Reflected in his
glossy blue eyes, he could see the backpack’s existence shredding away.
He whispered, “I wish I would have listened to you.”
    Wiping his eyes, he turned away from the bonfire party and walked
toward the ocean. The beautiful sight of endless water used to evade
him. He had failed to understand what was so great about it.
    They told him he’d get it one day.
    They were right.
    He finally understood.
    3:15 PM
    It took what seemed like forever for Stephen Pandora to
lead his minivan out of traffic. His team of Campbell, Miles, and newly
acquired Guide to the Stars, Balwant, was finally about to reach their
destination with a whole eighteen minutes to spare.
    “Turn here,” Balwant pointed.
    Stephen made the turn and found a massive gate in front of
them. There was a security house with an on-duty officer