That guy: Cash or credit

Leaves billow, the wind whipping them to and fro in patterned chaos, encircling me. Dust whimpers, trembles, and flees in my wake. This once populated highway is now carnage. The pinnacle of destruction. Asphalt torn asunder from its frame, steel beams strewn across the once hearty lane of commute. All around me are the abandoned remains of high rises. Mans attempt to reach the heavens, to free himself from the earthly bond, crumble in step with the soft padding of my worn, slave produced coverings. Each placement of my feet brings the culmination of a civilizations struggle down around me. The sky is an uncanny shade of vibrant red, although it goes almost unnoticed with the layer of heavy, choking clouds pouring in, black as the heart of the master they serve, engulfing what little light remained. I stop in the middle of the road, pure ruin surrounding me, and i blink. Even with my eyes closed, in the microseconds it takes for them to snap open again, i can feel him in front of me, waiting. My eyes open, and of course, there he is.


Balder.

Satan.

Cthulu.

Balkoth.

Zalgo.

Whatever name you give him stands unneeded. His presense alone permeates me. Swallows me. The endless cold, the rampant devastation around me.


He reaches a gnarled hand out.

I feel my arm lifting from my side, gently, gingerly moving to accept his offer....







"Sir?"

My head whips around. The sudden light hurts my eyes.

"Sir, are you ok? You've been standing there for almost an hour..."

I turn back. The full length mirror shows only me, and the glaring colors of reflection from the storefront.

"Sir, if you're not alright, I can have an ambulance here in a few minutes..."

I wave him off. He wanders away to go attend to someone else.
I stare into the mirror, searching for a vision, a glimpse, anything. But all I see is me, and my shiny new shoes.

I place my old shoes ceremoniously in the new box, gently tuck it under my arm, and walk up to the counter.

"Did you find what you were looking for, sir?"

I knod, and step back, pointing to the new shoes on my feet.

"I'll take these ones. They're gonna take me far."

"Thats wonderful, sir. Cash or credit?"