Black Letter

The wind howled at the sky, whipping through the narrow streets and tugging at the assassin's tightly wrapped cloak. The heavy shadows of the dark night consumed his figure as he stalked down the narrow path between buildings.

This is a good night.

His family would be pleased. The night's objective would be easy. The docks were just in view, and he could see the rigging flailing wildly in the wind, hear the protest of the creaking wooden ships. He was like smoke, flowing swiftly and silently under the torrent of the wind.

A doorway opened, and a figure hesitated from within its threshold, the imposing weather threatening and wild. A resigned posture, and his characteristic hat was removed from his head, clenched tightly in his hands. Its long slender feather whipped wildly to and fro. He foraged out into the harsh night.

Comfort in consistency. The assassin recited one of his rules of behavior, and detached himself from the shadows to pursue the receding figure.

A turn, a twist, a double back, he's being careful. Normal for the target, but fruitless. He was a god of urban stalking.

A vacant alley, he positioned himself around a corner, leaning casually against the wall. His target walked past. The jacket tail whipped nervously in the wind.

As he passed, "Every?". His target spun slowly, surprised. A whirl of motion, the grinding of boots on the cobblestone street. Open hand, edge of palm, the soft yielding of flesh. He fell to the floor, a pile of clothes and twitching flesh.

The assassin knelt, and felt Every's pulse. Adrenaline, slowing, still alive. He rifled through the jacket's inside pockets, and pulled out a sealed letter. A sharp smile, a triumphant sensation. The assassin paused to let the feeling linger, and then backed slowly into the shadows.

The war would be any day now.

Ice

The sounds of breathing pushed in. Cold seeped slowly through the surface of the suit. Stars drifted slowly through the view, slowly spinning again, in the same pattern. Time ticked by slowly... breathing.
Frost was building up on the glass view, branching and feathering slowly towards the center. There was no more fuel left, it had all leaked out on the impact. Plenty of air, that's what the suits were good at.. enough air for years. But the cold, the chilling cold couldn't be helped.
A little number on the heads up display said 10 km/s. I couldn't feel it. I couldn't see it.. couldn't see anything but those damn stars.
Closed my eyes, a soft touch. A gentle caress. Words whispered. Meaningless, distant, no more than memories. But the sensation, the brush of her hair...
A tear welled, drifting slowly away, slowly freezing into a shining sphere. She was safe. Did it matter? No, not quite, not at this point. But it did... irrelevant. It was a bad decision, the only regret. Life is too short for regret. It was too late now.
A malfunctioning component sparked briefly, lighting up the dark interior of the helmet, and scoring a mark into the butterfly wings of the frost. He cursed, a futile gesture, but a necessary one.
Smart retorts, sharp and biting, playful and harmless. Hunching intently when taking a picture. Hair clinging to her neck after a long run. Powerful gaze of triumphant discovery. Too much, too little. So far away. Another tear drifted slowly.
He removed the helmet, ignoring the soft alarm noises. The air hissed out of the suit, spraying into the dark void of space.

The helmet drifted slowly away, spinning ever so slightly. Never.

He evaporated in the atmosphere of a small, newly formed planet, 1.7 billion years later.

Ship launch

A flare in the evening sky. A rushing of wind. The glint of the falling sun on the ocean waves. It was the last launch of the evening, before the spaceport shut down for the incoming storm.
A smattering of rain fell upon my face as I watched the ship lazily trail out through the atmosphere. The clouds were coming fast now, hiding the sun on the horizon. I could hear sirens behind me, wailing and crying their distress. The sounds of the distressed panic rose over the barrier of trees.
I dug my bare toes into the sand, tracing the smoky contrail of the spaceship with my finger. The last of earth's finest were aboard it, fleeing total destruction. Who knows what planet they were bound for, somewhere peaceful, hopefully.
The ship vanished into the thickening clouds, punching a hole through them, just large enough to make it through unscathed. A breath found its way through my lips, and the tension escaped my clenched limbs. At least they were safe.
If only we hadn't... But that's futile, to wish for things that couldn't be. These were the last moments of my life. I may as well enjoy them.
I sat down, brushing away some sharp shells from beneath me, and gazed out towards the spaceport. The lights from the city glinted from its towering spires, flickering with its distraught colors. The ocean waves lapped peacefully in front of me, oblivious of it all.
I liked that. That was comforting. Maybe the ocean would still be here afterwards.
Ashes drifted down onto the beach around me, like snow. Some were still hot, burning with an orange glow. They drifted and swirled, and rested upon the restless waves with a hint of steam.
I closed my eyes, and leaned back gently, feeling the sensation of the burning flakes against my skin. The last sensations I'll ever feel. Enjoy the little things.
The rain started again, for real this time. The cool sensation of the rain quickly contrasted with the burning flakes, and I opened my eyes.
The sky was now filled with lances of fire. Burning chariots streaked across the sky, flames trailing behind them, quickly turning into a trail of thick, black smoke.
The rain stung my eyes. So many of them. They snaked their way towards the horizon, to the city behind me, to the ocean, to the seaport. Each of their trails held purpose, drive, confidence.
A tear dripped down my face, indistinguishable amongst the raindrops that covered my face. I smiled softly, and wiped it away, glancing quickly at the ground. It was all so pointless.
I could feel the tremors in the ground as the spheres of fire landed. I stood again, slowly, and watched them splashing into the ocean. Different noises from the city now. I ignored them, and watched as the shining towers of the spaceport fell to the ground. Their delicate structures leaned as the fireballs crashed into them, toppling with a gentle grace.
They sparkled as they fell, cutting wires, and letting loose the violent nature of the electricity that powered it. How quickly they were destroyed. So many years of construction, gone in an instant of spectacular beauty.
I shivered, and clung to myself. The rain was cold.
They liked their destruction to be personal. Up close, one on one. We humans waged our wars at a distance, we preferred to never know who it was that we were killing. We would feel for them if we did, it makes it hard on us. They killed up close because they needed to know, they needed it to be fair, they needed it to remember how terrible it really is.
Sometimes it was just necessary.
The ocean surged as they rose from the water. They pulled their massive bulks from its clinging grasp, and lumbered purposefully onto the beach. One in front of me stopped, and looked down, towering far above me.
Its metal frame dripped, and rivulets of water streamed down its elegant curves. Seaweed clung to it like a spiderweb. It knelt gently to the ground before me, and bent so we were face to face.
I smiled gently, and closed my eyes, tilting my head back. It looked so sad...