PREFACE

My eyes flashed uncertainly through the crowd if I was right everyone was gone. Vanished. My family, gone and all because of me…I let my thoughts drift when a voice rang from behind me, calling my name. I spun around staring at the blank faces… what was I doing? All these people had just had their lives flash before their eyes. I was alone. But I am not helpless. I stared through the faces searching the crowd for that one thing—Dust. There was Dust.

PART ONE

FIRE

1

GRAY SKIES

TAYLOR

My breath was ragged and my feet ached as I ran down the rocky path. I gripped to the baby with my life while dodging bullets, a cave came into view and I knew instantly that was my destination, but then it struck me. What was I doing? I stopped and dropped the stupid doll. This was pointless. I walked away leaving the crying baby doll on the ground.

“Lord, Taylor, are you really going to drop an infant?” the voice boomed over the intercom. I looked at myself; I was in a white dress that ran past my ankles, I grimaced.

“Do you think that I’m going to be wearing a long white dress and have a baby when we’re attached? Really!” I exclaimed stomping away angrily. I was turning sixteen in about a week and everyone expected the world to end when the war ended. And that was expected on my birthday. Some party, huh?

“We’re just preparing you, Taylor.”

Yeah for what? Life? I thought and stormed away. Megan came running over to me smiling. Her black hair was thrown back into a pony tail trailing over her shoulders, and her smile faded once she saw my expression.

“The dress not workin’ for ya?” she asked looking at my dirty dress. I nodded and smiled, passing her by. Megan watched me walk away for a moment more then she walked down the dirt path. I pulled my hair out of the bun and let my hair brown hair fall to my shoulders. This was ridiculous, I didn’t need such crap in my life, and this was adding onto the stress of taking care of five other kids. Megan was eleven and a big help. Then she had her twin sister Morgan, Megan, Morgan sound familiar? They were identical twins, you could tell them apart easily though. Megan was always hyper, she bounced off the walls if you locked her in a room and she was talkative, always made a conversation, could always cheer you up and always was cheerful.

Morgan on the other hand… Morgan was darker she had straighter hair, and rarely smiles unless some one cracks a really good joke, that makes fun of popular people or celebrities. Oh, and if so one gets hurt. She’s not fun to be around in the morning or late at night. Megan and Morgan are basically opposites, if you can tell.

Nikki (Nichole) is fourteen and barely talks to me. Can you feel the love? I don’t know what her problem is, but for the ten years I knew her she was nice and never forgot anything you told her, and that could be a bad thing.

Claire is four going on five on none other then my birthday, in a week. So it would really be crappy if the world ended on five year olds’ birthday. Claire is a sweet-heart she always hung around Nikki when she was around. Now she clings to Megan. She always carries around a stuffed bear that is a tan brown and extremely soft.

And last but not least Sarah. Sarah is nine and a half years old and she is a total geek. She couldn’t get her head out of books; she was always creating random stuff and that was pretty impressive. She knew about the Earth and she knew about everything else. She as like a nine year old genius and she had a lot to say.

My eyes ran down the roads and the ally’s finally finding our cottage, sorta. I looked tiredly around to see if anyone was out side. Nope. I rounded the corner and through the small forest, following the stream until there was a small clearing in the trees and then you would see a small wooden cottage in about a three minute walk. I stomped through the overgrown grass almost losing my footing in the trees dug up roots. My bare feet ached and my stupid white dress was getting caught on almost everything. I looked down at it. The bottom now was brown, and so were my feet. And they still throbbed in pain.

Finally after stumbling through the forest I found my way to the clarling and I came to the nice sun-warmed grass.

“Oh, ywour back!” Claire came running up to me, grabbing my hand and dragging me toward the house. She picked up her bear and kicked the bouncy-ball into the house, and continued to drag me inside.

The shads were down and the inside was dimmed. There was on the hushed noise of the television in the living room. Morgan emerged from the kitchen holding a glass of water; she gave me one look then narrowed her eyes in wonder.

“Wow, looks like the test went well,” she smirked circling me slowly, then finally she stopped and leaned back against the counter.

“I bailed. It was retarded,” I answered Morgan nodded slowly, “Too white,” she muttered then walked into the living room slowly. I smiled softly and rounded the corner and spotted a surprise.

“Well, well, well. Look whose home,” I crossed my arms and stared at the figure on the couch.

“Hmm, I wouldn’t be talking, aren’t you suppose to be home in about an hour?” Nikki didn’t take her eyes from the TV, not even a hello.

“Hey Claire,” she said, instantly Claire ran from me to Nikki gathering her in a five year old hug. She muttered something I could hear, but Nikki just smiled—Nikki smiled? Wow. This was huge. I rolled my eyes and walked into my room, I have had enough of this dress.

Dark clouds began to roll in and the sky looked like and old gray and white movie.