100: beginnings

"When does it begin?" the nymph asked, her eagerness subdued in a gentle voice.

"Any moment now," came the reply, as a pair of arms wrapped around her waist from behind. A warm breath sent a shiver down the petite youth's spine, as her companion blushed a little at his awkwardness.

Before she could reply, a streak of bright light flashed across the sea of stars above, as a pair of smiles revealed the stargazers' awe. Soon another flashed, and another, until the shooting stars lit the entire sky.

"And this is only the beginning..." he continued, gazing ever skyward...

099: travelers

Leaning against the mossy boulder, the young woman smiled as the breeze tousled about her chin-length, chestnut hair. Raising an elegantly-crafted mechanical arm to brush the bangs from her eyes, she could she the white tips of waves in the distance. Beside her, a small kitten purred, curled-up in slumber and hidden amidst the tall grasses. A hand of soft skin reached down to run fingers through the fur, as the young woman chuckled at her companion.

In the distance, a pair of robotic wanderers were drawing closer. Patiently the nymph waited, waving at the familiar travelers...

098: fear

Cowering in the shadows, the man in business attire whimpered, his wide eyes illuminated by a single strip of light. A leather briefcase fell to the paved ground, as a hollow, cackling voice echoed in the alleyway.

"Remember me, good sir?"

From a creeping shadow came forth a scarred hand, wrapped in bandages soaked with blood and other fluids. Reaching for the briefcase, the shadow knelt before the older gentleman, moving with a mockery of grace.

"It seems you've dropped something, good sir..." came the cackle once more. "It would be a shame if something happened to it, good sir..."

097: newspaper

Cautiously sipping his morning tea, Bernard nonchalantly took a seat at the small kitchen table, picking-up the scattered remains of the newspaper in hopes of finding employment. As his eyes darted across the pages, one particularly curious advertisement caught his attention:

Wanted: four other robots with strong sense of justice. Must have the ability to merge with a fifth robot into a giant mechanical hero. For more information, contact...

Slowly, Bernard placed the newspaper down onto the wooden table surface. Setting the cup of still-steaming tea on his lap, he began to wonder...

Was he a robot, too?

096: bounty

The torrent had ceased. Stepping-out from the outcropping, the stranger in a long coat and wide-brimmed hat turned skyward. A chuckle escaped from some part of him, though his face seemed frozen in contemplation. Scratching his chin, the stranger returned his attention to the ground, hiding under the black halo around his crown.

Sure enough, the footprints were still preserved, even in the mud. Even in the distance, what little could be seen hinted at their preservation amidst the downpour.

The stranger smiled, returning gloved hands to his pockets. There was still time, as he started to walk...

095: feline

Perched on the windowsill, the feline stared out into the early morning haze, hoping to see beyond the condensation upon the glass. With much deliberation, the impatient kitten leaped down onto the cool hardwood floor below, landing gracefully. In the adjoining room, he spied the young woman with chin-length hair and a glowing mechanical arm, sitting at a small table and tinkering with electronic equipment. As nimbly as possible, the feline bounded from the floor to her warm, inviting lap, purring loudly to divert attention from the inventor's machinations.

Gentle metal fingertips, thwarting his plan, lulled him to sleep...

094: bomb

Every jerking movement of the second hand brought another bead of sweat upon his brow. Hands working diligently, independent of the trembling eyes above, he started to feel threads of consciousness snap away; fingertips free of his own control continued about their task.

The dim glow of digital displays shifting frantically from screen to screen forced him into a hypnotic state, the anxious affect giving way to a meditative, almost vacant stare. Wires had been pried from beneath cables, severed with mechanical precision, and yet the flashes of numbers still burst onto the screen.

In one second, the world ended.

093: vision

In dream, the young man had seen her, all aglow and radiant in some mysterious light. Though he had never seen the girl before, she was all too familiar to him, as she approached his dark corner of the abyss. Gently, she pressed her fingertips to his cheek, smiling unlike anything possible in the realm of consciousness. A soft giggle wrapped around him, as the dreamer reached to touch his vision's smooth cheek...

Startled, he awoke, the light of day still hours away. Beside him, something stirred beneath the covers.

There the young woman lay, smiling as though still dreaming...

092: lethargy

Wrapped tightly in her blanket, she peered out from within her down cocoon, eyes sensitive still to the early light of dawn. Across from her blinked the confused alarm clock, no longer sure what time it was or ever had been.

Great, she thought, the power must've gone out.

A reluctant hand slid out from under the covers, reaching for a small, black electronic device. A tinny chirp was soon muffled under down, followed by a muffled sigh of disappointment.

Rolling clouds of thunder soon stole the dawn light away, as the blinking numbers vanished.

Great, she thought, falling asleep...

091: wanderers

Wandering amidst the ruins, two lumbering figures--one short and round, the other tall and slim--scanned their surroundings with unblinking eyes. The taller of the two, clutching a long, tattered cloak to its dented, bronze body, cupped slender fingers around its featureless visage in thought.

"Do you remember where it was?" came its crackling voice, in a dignified tone.

The smaller, lacking a cloak and resembling a steel ball with disproportionately small limbs, paused to survey the landscape with its single eye.

"No clue," it bellowed in reply.

The taller narrowed its eyes, nodding. "Then onward we must journey..."

090: death

Deep breath after deep breath, but still no avail. Holding the small firearm in one hand, the other busy clutching his gushing abdominal wound, the fugitive peered around the corner at the distant shadows. Closer still, with each breath, as much to them as he was to darkness...

With each beat of his heart, the menacing shadows grew larger in the dim alley light. There were no more clips, and the fugitive knew that time was in just as short of supply.

In the edge of sight, a broken piece of metal glinted, taking-on a crescent shape.

"Time's up."

089: endurance

A flower blooms between sidewalk cracks, as another siren is heard echoing in the distance, getting ever so much closer. Pedestrians and other human traffic step out of the way, mysteriously avoiding the bloom without even catching a glimpse of the petals through a wandering eye. Perched upon the concrete, surrounded by artificial structures, the lone splash of green stands defiant, sending out the subtle message to the minds open enough to detect the floral whisper hiding beneath the siren.

"You may be here, on my land," it said, "but soon, all this land will one day be green again..."

088: heartbeat

"So...how do you feel?" came the quiet question, her bright eyes twinkling in the lamp light. Beneath a layer of knit cloth, the girl's eager heart beat so strongly that it could burst at any moment...at any word.

With a deep breath, the boy let out a frustrated sigh, pacing about the tiny room. "I don't know," he began, "I mean, I've made so many mistakes in my short life..."

Beneath a sweater, a sternum buckled.

"And yet, for all they've hurt...they've been worth it, just to find you."

The girl's smile burst open like a heart...

087: gone

In the dim glow of the streetlights, he stood a shadow in the torrent. At any moment, he looked as though he'd drop to his knees, just like in the old black-and-white films where the hero is only moments from tear-streaked blasphemy, echoing into the silent city night.

Here, the city wasn't silent.

Here, the shadow just started skyward, out of place in a world not meant for motion pictures. At any given moment, he could slump over onto the pavement, staring skyward with unblinking eyes filled with rainwater and saline.

And that's when the truck hit.