10-06-2023, 05:17 PM
“Aww no no no no, come on you son of a bitch!” Rod begs.
The truck is jerking wildly, it was inevitable - the dreaded stall. It had finally run out of gas.
This was not their day.
“Goddamn piece of shit!”
Milly was not amused.
“You said another swear.”
“Well it probably won’t be the last.” he assures.
He tries restarting the engine but the wires have nothing to work with. Alex and Beth are
already unloading the back.
“Here we go.” Rod says to Milly.
They all congregate at the back of the truck before departing.
“Let’s have some water and be on our way.” Rod insists.
Beth fills the cup for her husband.
“This is suicide. I mean, I know we can’t stay here but we will never - “
“Then we’ll die together.” Rod interjects.
He finishes the drink and passes the cup back to Beth. He takes up his weapons and starts
walking towards the enormous rock formation in the distance - Uluru - their destination.
Chatter on the shortwave spoke of resistor camps being set up around the sacred site. For whatever
reason - the abominations wouldn’t go near it, maintaining what some claim as a ten kilometer perimeter.
If one could make the treacherous journey, it was indeed a safe haven - but it was still nearly
a hundred kilometers away.
Beth grabs the wagon handle and chases after Rod - Milly beside her, Alex close behind.
“Hey, hey!”
Rod ignores her.
“Wait a goddamn minute!” she demands.
“Now mommy said a swear.” Milly points out.
Rod stops and turns to face her.
“I want a gun.”
He scoffs.
“We need to keep moving.” he adds, dismissively.
“Look, we have no idea what’s between us and the place we’re heading. We’ve already crossed
paths with unspeakable tragedy. Better three shooters than two. I want a fucking gun!”
Inches apart - eyes locked in a tense stand-off. Rod, with his best poker face, reaches into
his left pocket granting her request. He grabs the business end and extends it to her.
“The bullets come out here.” he says slyly, tapping the barrel.
He resumes marching. Beth stares at the weapon - its cold, shiny black sheen - then hurries
it into her pocket and continues pulling the wagon.
Thirty minutes later - Rod notices the highway ahead bending to the left - he stops and wipes
perspiration from his forehead.
“We gotta get off this road.”
The rest of the family come to a momentary halt.
“I’ve seen a map before, this highway crooks and turns, it’ll add at least twenty-five unnecessary
kilometers to our trip.”
He points to the towering rock.
“We’re going there - and the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.”
“You mean through the bush?” Beth challenges.
“We’re out of food, dangerously low on water with at least two days of travel left - cutting corners
is our only hope.” he says with conviction.
There were no dissenting opinions - in fact, not one of them spoke against the idea.
“I’m thirsty.” Milly says sheepishly.
“Get her a drink.” Rod says, putting his feet into motion.
Beth fills the cup halfway and hands it to her daughter. Milly empties the cup and gives it
back. She and Alex begin walking, Beth gets herself a drink. Alex stops several feet away to
wait. She notices the tap on the jug is leaking.
She fiddles with it but water continues seeping out. Spotting a small scrap of paper in the
wagon, she balls it up and plugs the nozzle. It works. She sighs deeply and follows her family
into the desert.
After an hour, they come upon a shallow canyon with massive boulders positioned at the
opening. Rod stops short of the entry point.
“Eyes open, barrels up.”
Each of them ready their weapons. Beth lays her machete in the wagon and pulls the gun
from her pocket.
“Stay close.” she cautions Milly.
She nods, moving slowly behind her mother, clutching a plush bear toy to her chest. Then as
if on cue - the left rear wagon wheel breaks off. The vessel stops dead in its tracks.
“Goddamn piece of shit!” Milly exclaims.
They all stare at the little girl - then break into laughter. Milly kicks the wagon several times to
vent her frustration.
“Good thing there’s not much left. Pack up the ammo, we’ll take turns carrying the water.” Rod says.
Beth divides the munitions between her pack and Alex’s, then lifts the water jug - panic strikes - it’s
much lighter than it should be. She raises the large plastic container to confirm. Looking into the
wagon, the paper plug lay in a small puddle. Their last few liters gone.
“Water’s empty.” she announces, holding up the jug.
Rod spins around to meet this new obstacle.
“We had almost two gallons, what the hell happened?”
Beth doesn’t know what to say. He storms over, grabs the container and glances down into
the wagon. Beth wells up.
“I thought I fixed it.” she says, tears trickling.
Rod is furious. He flings the jug against the canyon wall.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he barks.
Milly drops her bear and covers her ears.
“You were already upset and we were losing time!” she pleads.
“You’ve just killed us all!”
The screaming match continues several more seconds.
“Stop it! Both of you!” shouts Alex.
Rod kicks the wagon, flipping it over.
Beth attempts to compose herself.
“Where’s Milly?” Alex asks.
“Oh God, Milly!?” Beth calls out, looking in all directions.
They arm up and begin the search. Piercing the eerie silence - a child’s scream. The three
race towards the sound at the mouth of the canyon. They surround the cluster of huge
boulders - ready to fire - but they are paralyzed by what emerges. They were not prepared
for what they were seeing.
It lumbered into view - covered in filthy, matted fur - filling the air with the stench of rot
and decay. One of the most dreaded abominations.
A hybrid of Silverback gorilla and Kodiak bear origins. Its face gnarled and unnatural - like
a forced fit of jigsaw puzzle pieces. Rearing up on its hind legs, the twelve-hundred pounds
of murder stood over ten feet high. The behemoth clenches Milly, small and lifeless, in its jaws.
The beast bites down and shakes its head violently side to side, the poor child’s body falls
to the ground in pieces - her blood painting its broad chest, her entrails dangling from its
frothing mouth. It raises its paws into the air and thunders a roar that reverberates off
the canyon walls. There could be no Hell worse than this.
Beth issues a blood-curdling scream and collapses, wailing and convulsing in the dirt.
The father and son open fire with everything they’ve got. The grotesque creature is down.
Rod blankets the beast with flame as it lay beside his young daughter’s remains.
https://imgur.com/BmVp7QJ
"There is No God Here" - Third in the four-part series 'Chimera'.
Mixed media on plywood. My 133rd painting.
The truck is jerking wildly, it was inevitable - the dreaded stall. It had finally run out of gas.
This was not their day.
“Goddamn piece of shit!”
Milly was not amused.
“You said another swear.”
“Well it probably won’t be the last.” he assures.
He tries restarting the engine but the wires have nothing to work with. Alex and Beth are
already unloading the back.
“Here we go.” Rod says to Milly.
They all congregate at the back of the truck before departing.
“Let’s have some water and be on our way.” Rod insists.
Beth fills the cup for her husband.
“This is suicide. I mean, I know we can’t stay here but we will never - “
“Then we’ll die together.” Rod interjects.
He finishes the drink and passes the cup back to Beth. He takes up his weapons and starts
walking towards the enormous rock formation in the distance - Uluru - their destination.
Chatter on the shortwave spoke of resistor camps being set up around the sacred site. For whatever
reason - the abominations wouldn’t go near it, maintaining what some claim as a ten kilometer perimeter.
If one could make the treacherous journey, it was indeed a safe haven - but it was still nearly
a hundred kilometers away.
Beth grabs the wagon handle and chases after Rod - Milly beside her, Alex close behind.
“Hey, hey!”
Rod ignores her.
“Wait a goddamn minute!” she demands.
“Now mommy said a swear.” Milly points out.
Rod stops and turns to face her.
“I want a gun.”
He scoffs.
“We need to keep moving.” he adds, dismissively.
“Look, we have no idea what’s between us and the place we’re heading. We’ve already crossed
paths with unspeakable tragedy. Better three shooters than two. I want a fucking gun!”
Inches apart - eyes locked in a tense stand-off. Rod, with his best poker face, reaches into
his left pocket granting her request. He grabs the business end and extends it to her.
“The bullets come out here.” he says slyly, tapping the barrel.
He resumes marching. Beth stares at the weapon - its cold, shiny black sheen - then hurries
it into her pocket and continues pulling the wagon.
Thirty minutes later - Rod notices the highway ahead bending to the left - he stops and wipes
perspiration from his forehead.
“We gotta get off this road.”
The rest of the family come to a momentary halt.
“I’ve seen a map before, this highway crooks and turns, it’ll add at least twenty-five unnecessary
kilometers to our trip.”
He points to the towering rock.
“We’re going there - and the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.”
“You mean through the bush?” Beth challenges.
“We’re out of food, dangerously low on water with at least two days of travel left - cutting corners
is our only hope.” he says with conviction.
There were no dissenting opinions - in fact, not one of them spoke against the idea.
“I’m thirsty.” Milly says sheepishly.
“Get her a drink.” Rod says, putting his feet into motion.
Beth fills the cup halfway and hands it to her daughter. Milly empties the cup and gives it
back. She and Alex begin walking, Beth gets herself a drink. Alex stops several feet away to
wait. She notices the tap on the jug is leaking.
She fiddles with it but water continues seeping out. Spotting a small scrap of paper in the
wagon, she balls it up and plugs the nozzle. It works. She sighs deeply and follows her family
into the desert.
After an hour, they come upon a shallow canyon with massive boulders positioned at the
opening. Rod stops short of the entry point.
“Eyes open, barrels up.”
Each of them ready their weapons. Beth lays her machete in the wagon and pulls the gun
from her pocket.
“Stay close.” she cautions Milly.
She nods, moving slowly behind her mother, clutching a plush bear toy to her chest. Then as
if on cue - the left rear wagon wheel breaks off. The vessel stops dead in its tracks.
“Goddamn piece of shit!” Milly exclaims.
They all stare at the little girl - then break into laughter. Milly kicks the wagon several times to
vent her frustration.
“Good thing there’s not much left. Pack up the ammo, we’ll take turns carrying the water.” Rod says.
Beth divides the munitions between her pack and Alex’s, then lifts the water jug - panic strikes - it’s
much lighter than it should be. She raises the large plastic container to confirm. Looking into the
wagon, the paper plug lay in a small puddle. Their last few liters gone.
“Water’s empty.” she announces, holding up the jug.
Rod spins around to meet this new obstacle.
“We had almost two gallons, what the hell happened?”
Beth doesn’t know what to say. He storms over, grabs the container and glances down into
the wagon. Beth wells up.
“I thought I fixed it.” she says, tears trickling.
Rod is furious. He flings the jug against the canyon wall.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he barks.
Milly drops her bear and covers her ears.
“You were already upset and we were losing time!” she pleads.
“You’ve just killed us all!”
The screaming match continues several more seconds.
“Stop it! Both of you!” shouts Alex.
Rod kicks the wagon, flipping it over.
Beth attempts to compose herself.
“Where’s Milly?” Alex asks.
“Oh God, Milly!?” Beth calls out, looking in all directions.
They arm up and begin the search. Piercing the eerie silence - a child’s scream. The three
race towards the sound at the mouth of the canyon. They surround the cluster of huge
boulders - ready to fire - but they are paralyzed by what emerges. They were not prepared
for what they were seeing.
It lumbered into view - covered in filthy, matted fur - filling the air with the stench of rot
and decay. One of the most dreaded abominations.
A hybrid of Silverback gorilla and Kodiak bear origins. Its face gnarled and unnatural - like
a forced fit of jigsaw puzzle pieces. Rearing up on its hind legs, the twelve-hundred pounds
of murder stood over ten feet high. The behemoth clenches Milly, small and lifeless, in its jaws.
The beast bites down and shakes its head violently side to side, the poor child’s body falls
to the ground in pieces - her blood painting its broad chest, her entrails dangling from its
frothing mouth. It raises its paws into the air and thunders a roar that reverberates off
the canyon walls. There could be no Hell worse than this.
Beth issues a blood-curdling scream and collapses, wailing and convulsing in the dirt.
The father and son open fire with everything they’ve got. The grotesque creature is down.
Rod blankets the beast with flame as it lay beside his young daughter’s remains.
https://imgur.com/BmVp7QJ
"There is No God Here" - Third in the four-part series 'Chimera'.
Mixed media on plywood. My 133rd painting.
