K - Prologue

It was a cold November night, and coughs echoed down the streets of Coniston. Parents stumbled out of bed and flicked on the bathroom light, only to stare in horror at their reflections. Large boils marred their faces, with pustules erupting, staining the skin blue underneath. Children shivered with fever and moved in their beds restlessly, silently crying tears of blood as the itchy blue spot started spreading across their bodies.

The next morning, the town was in hysterics as the symptoms spread and worsened. The mayor feebly made his way outside supported by his son. He spoke gentle, soothing words to console the crowds, but he could feel deep within that he was already too late.

The local clinic was filled with pleading mothers and demanding fathers until the doctor fell ill. Coughs were replaced by weeping that night as adolescents sat by their family, tending to them, and watched them slowly transform into nothing more than bloated, blue corpses.

By the end of the week, everything was quiet. Inside of the Lafite house, the mayor took his son’s hand and placed an antique pocket watch inside. “It is your responsibility now Gavriel, do you understand?” he breathed into his son’s ear. It wasn’t until Gavriel nodded that the mayor finally let go of his hand and closed his eyes.

It was almost midday by the time all of the corpses had been gathered and placed in the middle of the forest. Gavriel stood by the newly made pyre, his back straight and his head bowed slightly. He remembered the last promise he made to his father, the last words they ever exchanged, and clutched the pocket watch he inherited a few decades too soon. He glanced up at the survivors, at the young, haunted faces, and felt the responsibility weigh heavily on him.

Meri sat on her roof and watched the smoke trail from the forest into the sky. She didn’t go to pyre that morning, and she knew that if she had, the judgmental eyes of the survivors would follow her every move. Instead, she sat in vigil alone, imagining that the crisp breeze was carrying her mother away, back to their old home in the city. She observed as the smoke started to die down until it was merely a weak wisp.

“So this is how our normal life ends,” she said to no one in particular. “Starting with a bang and ending with a whimper.”