The trees never grew here. The flowers never blossomed. It rained water sometimes, acid other times. The climate was the polar opposite of what a human would call liveable.
The toxic fumes seemed to randomly double the gravity itself in this forsaken land. The weather changed by the hour. Storms, harsh winds, extreme desert heat – This was the land where the rules of nature ceased to exist.
Human occupation had been deemed impossible after thousands had lost their lives in the attempt. Only the strongest creatures – those that had evolved quickly to adapt, had managed to survive. It was a strange sight to these super-creatures, to see 2 young boys walking nonchalantly in their land. Or at least – it would have been, had they not been in constant conflict since their arrival.
The desolate wasteland was once called “Homebush” when humans still roamed freely upon it – These days, its only remaining name was “God’s Graveyard”.
A fat, brown skinned little boy skipped in a jovial manner behind a second, smaller brown boy. The smaller boy had a far more serious glint in his greyish-white eyes. He was lean and fierce. He had a head almost fully covered with jet black hair. The sun glistened off a small patch of hairlessness on his head, a perfect bald patch, into the fat boy’s eyes who was trailing him. It was causing the fat boy much agitation as he squinted ahead.
The smaller boy was focussed on his mission and refused to be detracted from his goal. Lives depended on it. Theirs.
“Vat we huntn’, Brudda?” said the fat one, his voice as squeaky as a 5 year old.
“Food…The Cow should be near.” replied the small boy, before looking at the skies. The winds had changed. It was an uncomfortable calm.
“Storms a-comin’, Sara,” He said, surveying his surroundings tentatively, “We may not eat tonight after-all – looks like acid-rain. Best find some shelter and continue the hunt at daybreak. Go Brother!”
The fat boy called Sara gave the skinny one a dumbfounded look of shock. He was hungry. To be fair, he was always hungry. But the prospect of a fresh hunt being robbed from them was about as disappointing as anything to the rotund rapscallion.
“But…But…KD?!” stuttered the hungry chubby lad, bitter with disappointment.
The two kids, Sara and KD, had lived in God’s Graveyard since youth. Causing a ruckus and growing strong from their harsh environment. The average human would have perished within hours where these two had found a way to survive years. Their whole lives. Average…
It would be accurate to say these two had far transcended what any would constitute as average…
~
The morning dawned with new opportunity for the two brothers to continue their hunt. They were quick to ready once Sara’s groaning stomach awoke the skinny boy from his slumber. They began tracking the cow from the previous night before the sun had even risen – before coming across a sound they had not heard in many years. Another human voice.
“Ahhh…HELP!” shrieked someone in the distance. KD and Sara were quick to react and ran toward the voice. They had not met with another person in years. The few they had met had ventured into God’s Graveyard unaware of the dangers, and their life lines were cut abruptly short. If it wasn’t the animals, it was the weather. If it wasn’t the weather, it was the scarcity of resources. God’s Graveyard was unrelenting in its ability to weed out the weak.
A pudgy boy was cowering before the “cow” they were hunting. He wore perfectly round glasses, had slightly dishevelled clothing and reeked of fear. He appeared to have soiled his pants and seemed resigned to his gruesome fate. Forgivable for an outsider facing a Homebush Cow…
This was no ordinary cow by any means, it was a Great Cow of Homebush. As big as an ancient Tyrannosaurus Rex. The few bovines that remained in God’s Graveyard had adapted to the harshest of climates – into monsters that could hunt virtually any organism in the outside world, and they did so without hesitation. KD was quick to jump into action. He leapt behind the creature and ran/jumped up skilfully towards its head. He had managed to secure a sharp stick and impaled the mighty beast from the head. It only maddened it further. It’s skin was too thick to pierce far enough to kill.
Sara ran to the almost equally rotund boy’s aid, while KD distracted the wild beast. While the beast focussed on removing KD from it’s head, they retreated to cover. KD was soon to follow, using his wit to baffle the large bovine.
They escaped with ease thanks to the quick movements of the skinny young warrior.
~
The boy previously under siege had a very doughy physique, and seemed very slow in his walking pace. Even Sara with all his excess mass was outwalking him considerably. It caused the two brothers frustration as the boy just kept stopping, walking slowly and talked to prevent them gaining any traction on him while leading him out of their land.
“I’m Shabz. I got separated from my Papa. He is a great scientist. We were doing research on the ecosystem of God’s Graveyard.” he said, matter-of-factly, “You know. They say anything that can survive out here becomes super-strong beyond limitations of any normal human. You two must be amazing…”
Sara was instantly fond of this suck-up employing newcomer and quick to join his side. KD stared watchfully and with uncertainty though – while guiding them out. He was tentative about what this chubster’s true intentions may be, and why he would wander so willingly to certain doom to get it.
“Beware the Greedy hand of Man” His Mother had once told him when Sara was still and infant.
~
They had guided the poor lad to the outskirts of God’s Graveyard. Danger was far more limited out here – as the animals of God’s Graveyard sensed the weakness that resided outside their domain and avoided it altogether. They had all adapted to be the warrior species of the planet and would not sully themselves outside God’s Graveyard.
The three boys sat the borders at a large clearing outside the jungle. It was like the edge of two different worlds merging. An Oasis without conflict. An hour of the fat guest talking to Sara while KD sat stoically passed, before a mechanical sound greeted their ears. Something unfamiliar to KD and Sara, but that gave Shabz reason to smirk slyly.
An enormous man cruised into the clearing riding in on a roaring motorcycle. He pulled over and took off his helmet.
Jym Seabrook, Scientist and Geneticist slid off his motorcycle. A neat, auburn coloured beard covered his face. He had gigantic thighs, scantily flaunted VIA bush-man shorts and a T-shirt. He had a fairly portly belly and wore a bush-man’s hat.
“Daddy!” squealed Shabz, a wry smile appearing on his face. He ran to the fat scientist’s side and looked back at his two saviours with a devious glint in his eye. “Look what I found!” he said, a devious glint in his eyes.
It happened so suddenly. White vans had enclosed around KD and Sara.
A group of scientists appeared as if out of nowhere and surrounded the two. They wore white lab coats, and had ominous smirks on their face. They were armed with batons to subdue their would-be prey.
Jym began to speak. “You two best surrender if you want to avoid being hurt. I very much wanted to meet some human survivors of God’s Graveyard. I heard rumours there were but a few that remained. What a delight” he said, giddy with excitement. Shabz joined him by his side. KD glared at him, hatred in his eyes. Sara was confused and hungry. The situation seemed tense and hopeless to the dynamic duo.
An old man stepped out of one of the trucks expectedly. Old was possibly an understatement as this man was practically a decrepit fossil. He was mostly balding, and worse thick glasses. He wore a neat blue sweater and it seemed like a gentle breeze would knock him over.
“Jym…take a new page, and with a red pen – rule a margin…” he murmured, clearly unaware of his surroundings and completely senile.
“Dammit, Old man! Get back in the truck, this isn’t a damn classroom” yelled Jym Seabrook, turning his attention to the old fossil.
“Now repeat after me – “je m’appelle-”-“ replied the old man out of context, before being interrupted.
“This isn’t French Class, Grandpa McMurtrie” squeaked Shabz, exacerbated at the distraction being caused and wondering why his father had brought him along.
It was too late. KD sensed his moment. This distraction he needed had come at a most opportune moment. He rammed head –first into a scientist whose attention was on the old French teacher. The scientist crumpled instantly and lost consciousness.
Sara quivered in fear as KD took down one scientist after the other. KD’s eyes darted quickly between the participants in the enclosing circle of people – looking for some weakness.
KD was winning. He had subdued all the scientists through sheer brute force. Even unarmed, his upbringing in the harsh climates of God’s Graveyard had given him superhuman strength. He had twice the strength of a fully grown male who had dedicated his whole life to the fine craft of martial arts. Only a surprise could overcome the hardened warrior…His eyes turned to the miscreant that had led them here. Shabz.
Shabz slowly started stepping backwards, tears forming in his eyes. What chance did a human child have against a monster who was raised in such terrain.
Sara’s eyes were stuck at a point behind KD. “Brudaaa!!” he wailed in a high pitched voice.
An enormous shadow had crept up from behind and within an instant it was all over.
Sweaty, glistening thighs crushed KD from the neck – slowly draining him of access to oxygen. He was completely at Jym Seabrook’s mercy. The size of those thighs made it obvious they were inescapable. The power, and strength of them combined with getting the surprise jump on the young ten year old. The stench of sweat upon them was nauseating and KD was losing consciousness. He saw Sara cowering and frozen with fear. There was only one hope now…
KD knew he was done…but Sara could still get away. His little brother still had a chance.
“RUN, Sara! GO NOW!”, yelled KD, drawing in what little oxygen he could.
“GO Brother!” he yelled. Sara hesitated. He always obeyed his big brother, but this felt wrong.
“GO BROTHER, NOW!!!” He commanded, his neck firmly locked within the scientists thighs.
Sara struggled to move one foot, than the other. The fear was truly numbing for the ball shaped 5 year old. Jym Seabrook had high thighs tied restraining KD. Shabz may have been older than Sara – but he knew he stood no chance and did not give chase.
“GO BROTHER!” he could still hear the echo’s reaching him from the forest.
Tears were falling from his eyes. There was a great sadness and pain causing him to clutch at his chest. It wasn’t physical. He had lost something invaluable this day.
“Go Brodda…Go Brodda” he kept repeating as he wept and ran. The words were becoming garbled and meaningless.
“Gobraah..Gobraahh”
“Gobba…Gobba”
He had escaped. But into an unfamiliar world he would have to face…all alone.
~
He was running for days, maybe even weeks before he came to a gigantic signpost. His tears had long since dried up and his eyes were completely swollen – inhibiting his sight. His throat was scratchy, his skin dry & patchy. Starving and thirsty – it was highly fortunate he was met by his first trace of external civilization. A signpost.
He squinted hard at the sign for several seconds, deep in thought and analysing the words on the board meticulously with his swollen eyes. It took a whole minute for the young brigand to realise he had never learnt to read and was in all actuality –a complete illiterate. Little did he know the board read:
Now entering the City of Lidshire.
McDonalds – 200 metres
He walked not far past the sign board, before coming upon a lone, massive palace. Golden and red – it was a sight of true beauty. Something the jungle surviving young Sara had never witnessed in his lifetime. As he walked closer to the structure, he noticed someone standing outside.
A man with fire red hair, wild & bushy, and white paint on his face – stood outside a large building. He was coolly smoking a cigarette while leaning against a pole. He was wearing a yellow jumpsuit with red and white striped sleeves. His attention turned to Sara.
“You look hungry Lad.” said the clown, looking curiously at the rotund rapscallion.
“Gobba…” muttered Sara, meekly.
“Come with me. I’ll get you fixed up, son. You can eat as much as you want here.” said the Clown, flicking his cigarette to the ground and stepping on it with his oversized feet. He had a big, benign smile painted on his face. Sara trusted him for some reason.
As the clown made his way to the entrance, he paused before pushing through the door.
“Oh, the name is Ron by the way.” He said, looking back at the quiet boy tailing him. Sara looked back quizzically at Ron. An awkward silence ensued, before Ron continued through the door. The sweet smell of food aroused all of Sara’s senses in the brief instance the door was opened. Something was cooking. Something quite delectable indeed. Salvation…
He looked up at the clown’s house.
A Big Golden insignia “M” beamed back at him, and with it – hope for the future.
Up Next: Back to the story – Saralax the All-Consuming Dies in the Ring