Torrents of Tears

The tears of the endless cloud pour down in torrents, silencing all other sounds. The rain covers the land as far as the eye can see and the dark clouds do not give the impression of letting up anytime soon. They cackle with energized laughter, the laughter of Zeus. Night has fallen and the forest that is under attack from an unrelenting waterfall attempts to keep itself in one piece. The dirt road that leads deep into the woods is facing possible destruction and is impassable by cars. The man-made path finds its end at a small house. Deep inside what is left of the home hides a child close to adulthood. One more year and that child will become a woman in the eyes of the world, but to her she'll always be a child. Her name is Jayden Hurst.

She sits alone in the dark home waiting for someone, anyone, to come save her. The reality of it is that she doesn't even know what she wants to be saved from. Maybe it is from the endless torrents of sky-tears, or maybe it is from the endless torrents of her tears. She's crying with the world, yet alone at the same time. The sky is crying because the weight on it is too much for it to handle, so it breaks down and lets some of that burden fall. Jayden is not so lucky. Crying is what seems to have gotten her into this mess. There's an idea in her head that is blooming because of the tears and it's starting to make her believe that the entire world hates her. At this point, she'd believe that even her white hair wants to rid itself of her. It is falling out after all, but it's for a different reason. Maybe it is because she hates herself.

Far away, someone comes for her. Anakin Donovan is what he was named when he entered this strangely familiar world. He will be her earth if she will be his sky. He'll absorb all of her pain and create something new, something beautiful, but only if she allows him to. His dirty-blonde hair is kept short so that he never loses sight of what he's aiming for. In a sense he is the lightning tosser himself, for lightning goes from the ground to the sky, connecting them for a split, but powerful, second. It will take more than Zeus' powerful lightning bolt to save Jayden now. Slowly, but surely, the sky is falling into nothingness without the earth holding it up.

Anakin's car pushes through the downpour, but eventually gives in. The Oldsmobile rolls to a stop, leaving Anakin overwhelmed by the limitless rain. He stays sitting in it, trying to figure a way to travel another mile before getting to the all too familiar dirt road. It's a path he's travelled many times, normally without much tangible reason. All of a sudden the route is impossible to pass, but that isn't going to stop him. Jayden wouldn't have given up on him, so he isn't going to give up on her when she needs him most. The car door is violently pushed open against the will of the endless torrent of tears. Anakin prepares himself and jumps out into the pummelling rain. He pulls his leather jacket over his head and begins running in an attempt to make up for some lost time.

Meanwhile inside of the small house, Jayden places pots under the holes in the ceiling to collect the water. The drops of water cause the kitchen to be overcome by a loud crashing sound. Jayden quickly retreats from the room and disappears into the living room where the roof is more water resistant. Close to no drops fall from the ceiling in her living room and candles are swiftly lit around the room, replacing the artificial light created by the electricity. Unlike most houses, Jayden's house does not lose power during severe storms, but it often seems like it does because the residents always shut off all electronics. They always fear that a lightning bolt will strike the house and cause them to explode. Whether this is possible or not, Jayden follows the tradition and allows the warm light of the multiple flames to dry some of her tears. Still crying, she lies down on the couch and contemplates suicide.

Just as she begins to consider suicide as a serious option, Anakin reaches the halfway point before he reaches the dirt road. He begins to feel sky-tears fall on his head, where his jacket is covering him, and realizes that the rain beat holes through the leather. Exhaustion overwhelms him, but instead of stopping and giving up, he throws the jacket away and begins to run even faster. Worry washes over him as he nears the dirt path. His mind starts to consider that he might not make it to Jayden at all. After a short while of running, Anakin reaches the dirt road, which has become more of a rushing river than a road. He seriously considers turning around, but takes a step into the rushing water nonetheless.

Jayden wanders about her house with a small flashlight, looking for something that her father used to keep for self protection. She knows that he hid it somewhere in the house before he passed away, but never told anyone where it was. No one quite understood why, but no one really cared all that much anyways. Jayden slowly makes her way towards the stairs that lead down into the basement. She sees a small light reflect back and starts to sprint towards it. She doesn't notice the side-table until it is too late. She trips over it and disappears into the watery darkness.

Anakin comes up for a breath and clings desperately to a tiny tree that is hardly even rooted into the ground anymore. Suddenly giving up seems like a good idea, but it's too late to turn back now; he has to finish this. The raging current pulls at him and the tiny tree. In moments both are dragged under.

Jayden bursts from the water and finds her way towards the first floor. She climbs out of the flooded basement and realizes that her flashlight is at the bottom of the staircase. She considers diving to get it. Instead she finds herself walking away. The blinding dark surrounds her, consumes her, but in the distance the candlelight can be seen. She follows it and finds her way back to the couch, where she will hide away for the rest of the night. Without her flashlight, she can't navigate through the house. Having given up on finding her father's prized possession, she repositions herself on the couch, trying to escape a strange solid lump in a cushion. In an instant she realizes what the lump might be and tears through the pillow, only to reveal a small pistol. Now she has the means to meet the end.

Anakin resurfaces, having found stable footing. The raging current tries to pull him away again, but his strength keeps him solid in his resolve. In the very near distance he can see the glow of the candlelight through the trees. He slowly starts to take a step, fighting the torrential currents. He succeeds and continues to sluggishly make his way across the newly found river. Anakin bursts free of the crushing grasp of the flowing sky-tears and takes a breath once back on land. His break is cut short when he remembers the danger that Jayden is in. With all of his remaining energy, he sprints towards the candlelight.

“Nobody is coming, Jayden.” The confused teenager convinces herself. “The world will be so much happier after you pull the trigger and cause the worthlessness of you to go extinct.”She tells herself, subconsciously recognizing the words as lies. If only her subconscious could scream out the truth before it's too late. Knowing that this is the end, Jayden cries even more as she brings the cold metal chamber to her temple. The storm outside worsens, but far off in the distance a quick moving light approaches. Jayden goes to pull the trigger.

“Jayden!” Anakin yells out to her as he breaks through her glass sliding door, causing her to drop the gun in shock. The gun goes off and shatters the leg of an unstable table. It crashes to the ground, along with the candles on top of it.

“Anakin...” Jayden says in a daze. He doesn't say anything in return, but just smiles instead. He walks over to her slowly, exhausted from his trek to reach her. She stands up and mimics his slow walk. They meet each other in the middle and turn so that the broken glass door is to their side. A gentle smile stretches across Jayden's face as she stretches her arms out. He mimics her movements this time and the two teens find themselves hidden from the torrents of tears within each others arms. Lightning strikes, connecting the earth with the sky.

-Zero