THE MOMENT
"Brady?" Dennis was startled to see his teenage nephew standing in his bunker with a heal potion in one hand and a wooden staff in the other. Dennis lived in his own world and Brady's family looked down on any time he spent with his uncle. They claimed that his loose grip on reality was a bad influence for Brady; but, they couldn't watch him all the time.
They didn't get to chat often, but Brady had heard enough strange tales to doubt his uncle's sanity too. But, the one thing he knew he could count on was Dennis' bunker. It was real enough for the whole family to complain that he lost his marbles by building it. And Dennis made sure to keep Brady updated on the access code, in case of an emergency.
That morning, Brady woke up to an emergency. A loud ruckus startled him awake, and he saw his parents trying to break through his door with neon green smiles glowing on their faces. Their skin became a dull, sickly green and their eyes looked vacant. Brady had seen enough movies to recognize their behavior even if the green glow was new; they were zombies.
Brady knew better than to try and fight his parents down. He was out the window by the time they broke through his door. He ran to his neighbors first. Mr. Smith charged out of his open garage as soon as Brady walked by. The old man moved like he hadn't needed a cane as long as Brady had been alive and the glowing smile on his face could be seen beneath the red, dried blood.
Brady reached his uncle's house with a small horde of zombies in pursuit. His parents, old Mr. Smith, and a half dozen other adults seemed to lose interest as soon as Brady stepped foot on his uncle's property. He ran screaming to the back yard and did not notice the zombies stop, then meandered away.
He rushed into the bunker without looking back; but, he was surprised once inside. Uncle Dennis always talked about how prepared he was for anything. He always hinted at weapons and supplies without giving any details and now Brady knew why.
The interior of the bunker almost resembled a storefront. There was a single counter in one corner and shelves of staves, swords, potions, elixirs and all kinds of jewelry lined the walls. He picked up a bottle with a viscous, sparkling red liquid inside it and swirled it around. Then, a long staff caught his eye. It seemed to energize Brady as he wrapped his hand around it. Then, he heard his name.
"Uncle Dennis!?" Brady whirled around to see his uncle staring at him with a casual grin. He was a short, round man with a shaved head wearing his pajamas.
"You okay to be here?" Dennis asked. His first thought was to make sure that Brady wasn't in trouble. Brady had a confusing morning, but despite the items in his hand, he could not forget why he was there. Explanations could come later, his uncle seemed too relaxed to know what was happening.
"ZOMBIES!!" Brady yelled.
"No way, really?" Dennis chuckled. He glanced out the door behind him. "I gotta see this," he grinned and moved to walk out.
"WAIT!!" Brady yelled and grabbed his uncle to stop him. But, Dennis shrugged him off, then smiled and encouraged him to follow. The strangest thing was that Dennis spoke like he believed Brady; but, he still wanted to put his life in danger. "They'll tear you apart! I saw Mr. Smith eating someone!"
"Oh, gross..," Dennis stuck his tongue out with a 'blech' expression, then shook his head. "...it's cool, they won't come on my property," he said. Then, he walked out of the bunker.
Brady couldn't help but follow; he did take the staff with him though. He liked the way it made him feel when he held it. He walked to the front and was surprised to see over a dozen zombies standing around. They were staring at the sun and none of them were aware of Dennis or Brady standing a few feet away. Once he was close enough, Brady realized the glowing green smile was gone from their face.
"They're cured... I think?" Brady said. He started forward; but, this time Dennis stopped him. He shook his head, then he pointed at the sun.
"They're asleep. But, if we step out of here," he gestured down at the end of his lawn. "We'll get their attention real quick."
"How do you know that?" Brady asked. He was starting to wonder whether his uncle was crazy at all. It helped that he had proof in his hands. "And what the hell is this!??" he shook the staff.
"Oh, Right! Almost forgot why I came out here. C'mon!" he whirled around and dashed to the back faster than when he wandered out to see the zombies.
"Don't worry about the zombies," he said as they entered the bunker again. "It'll wear off in a few hours, and everything will be back to normal. That's a temporary strain," he said as he began collecting items off the wall.
"What?" Brady asked. He was inclined to believe his uncle's casual attitude towards them, but he was still beyond curious. He wanted to ask for more details, but, suddenly there was another person in the room. Brady's attention had been following his uncle as he flitted between the shelves. On one turn of the head, there was suddenly a rainbow-haired teenage girl standing in the center of the shop. Luckily, Dennis spoke up before Brady panicked.
"Sorry, Monday," Dennis shrugged at the teen as he walked behind the counter. "My last Empowering Staff was attuned accidentally," he said. The girl turned towards Brady and raised a rainbow eyebrow.
"Recently," she said. "Still time to cleanse it...," Dennis shook his head, and for once, he didn't chuckle.
"Not cleansing my family for a few million nanos," he said.
"But, we had an agreement...," Monday replied. Dennis shrugged.
"Life happens, he thought he was in danger and I can't blame him for that. I can have another one ready in a week if you want to wait." Monday narrowed her eyes at Brady, then she turned to Dennis. A rainbow crown of glowing light appeared over her head.
"I don't want to...," Monday paused, and she shook her head. The rainbow crown disappeared. "..wait. I'll find it somewhere else, thank you." Then she dropped a black rectangle at her feet and sunk into it. She disappeared and the pile of items that Dennis had gathered was gone too.
"What the hell just happened? Who was that? Where did she come from!?? WHAT'S GOING ON!??" Brady yelled. Dennis shrugged, then he grinned and nodded at the staff in Brady's hand.
"C'mon," he encouraged Brady to follow him to a back room. "Forget all that unimportant stuff, you're about to learn magic."