Sky

Just as Jesus walked on water, we walked on scorched earth. The black mud swallowed our feet, and we trudged on, unaware that with every step we took, we were getting closer to trouble.

The rain finally stopped. I realized we were somewhere in the middle of a riverbed left by the Oder River, which had flowed here for centuries.

There were two of us: me and my brother Piotrek, who was ten years younger than me. I think children should have happy youth and adolescence, but instead we were wading through this mud, looking for food. Any food. If I found a dead crow, I'd eat it too. But that's just a man's dream. I didn't want to tell my brother that if we didn't find some shelter by dusk, any kind, maybe a rock crevice or something, anyway, if we didn't, we were done for. And goodbye life, hallelujah.

And all because of that damned meteorite. He farted far away, but before anyone could react, he was finished. That was the moment the turtles escaped from their cages, Piotrek would say, in a joke no one laughed at anymore. "I have no idea if anyone survived in our city, or rather, in the ruins that remained. In any case, if anyone is still alive, they certainly won't wonder if it's ethical or not, but we'll be a tasty morsel for them. Why didn't that damn meteorite leave us food?

And a miracle happened. In the distance, I saw something that looked a bit like a rock, a bit like... a bridge?

" "Piotrek! See that rock? We're going there," I called to a boy about a hundred meters away to the right.

"It's happening.

It's amazing, he's treating it like a game. After all, just a few days ago we survived the apocalypse of St. John or the Holy Prostitute. I have no idea how I survived, or how Piotrek survived." Anyway, we're alive and trudging towards something you could call a rock. And if I remember correctly, it should be Christmas today and at least thirteen degrees below zero. Sure, as for the quick dusk, everything's the same as before, but I'm not used to thirty-degree heat in December. I imagined it differently.

Something stirred.

I stopped. At first, I was about to throw myself flat on the ground, but I abandoned that thought and probably stood still, like a hare (an animal now of historical significance). And nothing. I was just lifting my foot for another step when, far behind me, I heard a scream. "

Is this the end?" I thought.

I turned my head, expecting a gang of half-naked women rushing towards us with forks, but instead I saw something I'd never seen in my dreams, not even the most twisted ones. A large earthworm held something screaming in its mouth.

In the mouth? No, that's the wrong term. More like the part with the huge teeth, and the scene looked as if some dinosaur had risen from the dead and caught the guy with the fork rushing towards us. Good dog, but won't that whore rush towards us any minute?

"Piotr!! Move!" I screamed at the top of my lungs and ran (try running while waist-deep in water) towards the pseudo-stone.

And yet! I rejoiced in my thoughts, and that gave me strength. The pseudo-stone was a bridge, a fallen one, admittedly, but still a bridge. Piotrek was behind me, within arm's reach. I jumped onto the bridge and was just reaching out to my brother when something huge emerged from the black mud, something that grabbed Piotrek by the waist and lifted him high. I heard a scream and a cry. I experienced all sorts of emotions at once, from sadness, love, and despair to savage hatred.

"Leave him alone, you bastard!" I screamed, but it didn't help.

I must have fainted, because I dreamed of dinner. There was chicken and potatoes. And for dessert, shortcrust pastry.

"Here, eat," I heard words from another world.

"What?" With those words, I seemed to encompass the entire universe, including its creation and understanding.

"Eat it, or it'll get cold."

I felt a warm bowl in my hands, with a pleasant scent that irritated my sense of smell.

I opened my eyes. I had hoped to find myself in some place full of people, some shelter, but instead I found myself in something that, thanks to the candle standing a few meters from my bed (the kingdom behind the bed), looked like a basement or a hallway.

"Where am I...?

" "Does it matter?" the voice replied. "Be glad that antisocial creep didn't eat you."

"My brother...

" "I know, I saw it," the voice replied, "but you're alive, and that's important. " "

What good is a life like that

?" "You can go back there anytime, but that's not why I saved you, especially since I'm still feeding you from my own supplies. I need working hands, that's all.

" "And what do you need my hands for?

" "To kill a bug and then eat it. Simple, right?

" "Indeed.

Messiah, because that's how he asked to be addressed, had a plan. Luckily, the plan wasn't codenamed Messiah or Icarus or anything else that reminded me of antiquity. He simply had a plan. He drew a device on the wall that would kill the monster, the problem was that he had no building material. Considering the cataclysm, the machine was supposed to be built of wood or some other material used by people from the Stone Age. We live in such an era, except that one tiny flaw is the lack of trees on the surface."

Messiah explained to me that there's a whole system of basements and their nooks and crannies here, including the inhabitants. Strangest of all, everyone communicates with each other and lives in a truly civilized world. It's truly hard to believe. Why do you need a civilized world if everything above is in ruins? And there's nothing to eat.

"What about the food?" I asked. "

Don't worry about that

." "Wait a minute... you mentioned you need hands to work. If there's a civilized world here, why do you need another pair of hands, especially hungry ones?

" "Don't waste your energy asking stupid questions, boy.

The basement had a door.

" "When will I meet other people?

" "I didn't say anything about people," Messiah replied.

"So who are you communicating with?

" "With the inhabitants

." "But not with people?"

He didn't answer.

"Aha." I knew from the start there was something wrong with him, but for now I preferred not to pursue the matter until... something came of it.

"What's behind the door?

" "A passageway.

" "To?"

"Exactly," the Messiah replied, showing no emotion.

"Really?

" "What would you like to see?

" "Something nice

?" "For example?

" "For example, my house with my family inside.

" "You're welcome, but remember, I'm not responsible for what you see."

I stood before a door that looked like a stable door. I hesitated whether to open it or stay here with the Messiah and his worm, who was somewhere on the surface hunting all forms of remaining life. I had no idea where that surface was; I'd lost my bearings.

I knocked. There was no echo, but rather a sound like someone tapping on the wall.

Curiosity got the better of me. I pulled the latch, and it didn't even creak.

I saw a green meadow. I started running, then tumbling and rolling, swinging through the grass and flowers. It was all so real, and the door was left somewhere far behind. Why worry?

"Is all this real, or is it just a figment of my imagination?" – I asked myself.

It depends on your perception capabilities – suggested a voice in my head.

– So who do I owe this transformation to? After all, a few days ago I didn't feel like living, and now? Now...

– To me – I heard a voice, but this time it was coming from the door. I looked in that direction. The Messiah was standing there – you've been saved, that's all, go and find your family.

– So I'm physically dead, right?

– You could put it that way .

– Who are you, exactly? Saint Peter at the gates of paradise?

– You can call it that.

So I was devoured along with Piotrek, so... will I find him here? So why was I lying in this black basement, and why did the Messiah say he needed healthy hands, and... no, too many questions.

"Too many," the Messiah said, and then closed the door.

I was sitting on the grass under the open sky. It was very blue.