(no subject)
Missiles
"It's huge, Sir."
"It sure is, boy."
"How long do you figure we have before it makes its way over here, Sir?"
"Couple of minutes at most."
The young man sat in his chair, looking out the large window. Behind him, the older man stood with his back and shoulders straight, his chest puffed out. They were both entranced, never taking their eyes off what lay on the other side of the glass. They spoke without ever even glancing at one another, always staring forward.
"A pity the missiles didn't work, Sir."
"A pity indeed. Finest missiles we'd ever engineered."
Beyond them the room was deserted. Papers were scattered all over the desks and the floors, chairs were toppled over, and computers were left running, their screens blinking softly in the dim lighting.
"But that's just how life goes sometimes, boy."
The silence echoed against the corners of the large room, amplifying itself over the two men. For a little while neither one said anything, and the silence, heavy as lead, stuck thick in the air.
"Why didn't you run, Sir?"
"Nowhere to run, boy. Anybody who thinks they can outrun that is fooling himself."
"I just couldn't turn away, Sir. It's beautiful."
"Sure is, boy. It sure is."
A few stray beams of sunlight shone in through the window and onto the floor, flickering by the men's boots. The light danced about quickly, shaking in and out of existence as something outside obscured the sun in a violent flurry.
"Think anyone will make it, Sir?"
"For their sake, I hope not. It'd be a shame."
"I couldn't imagine that, living after it, Sir."
"It'd be horrible. It'd be hell."
The sunlight vanished altogether, and the room began to grow darker. A deafening hum tore through the silence, and the computer screens shattered. It was now pitch black, inside and out. The men became seamless shadows in the darkness. Their eyes didn't budge.
"No, boy, this is all there is. Death - it's all that's left."
A hot white light suddenly tore through the window, inundating the room. Its blinding radiance consumed everything, the walls, the chairs, the desks, the computers - it was all lost in the burning whiteness. The men's figures slowly began to fade, growing indistinguishable, until they too vanished in the light.