Yesterdays Gone: SEASON TWO (THE POST-APOCALYPTIC SERIAL THRILLER) (Yesterday's Gone)

from its mammalian shell.
    When the humans left the room, It left John’s husk through his mouth, then floated in the air, in its true form, like liquid smoke, lighter than air, flowing back into the house, in search of a fresh host.
    It had forgotten how good it felt to be in its natural state.
    But it needed a human body in order to fight. And It was itching to fight. It was surprised to have become so embroiled in such petty human matters as vengeance. Perhaps It had spent too long in its human wrapper, and had taken on a few of the species’ lesser qualities. Nonetheless, It wanted revenge. Now.
    Brother Rei would pay for his betrayal. The humans were a wretched species, and It was tired of waiting to extinguish them. It would kill them all, except the child, Luca, and perhaps the new visitor, Boricio. There was something about them It needed to understand.
    Whatever It was waiting for, whatever the voices promised, would have to wait. It needed to feed – NOW. It flowed past Brother Eric, who stared, eyes wide in horror, at Its true form.
    Brother Eric reached for his rifle, and and fired a shot, but guns had no effect on It in this form.
    It flowed faster, snaking through the hall and drifting up the stairs, sensing the perfect new host, laying crippled in bed, practically dead – The Prophet.
    Brother Saul, one of The Prophet’s right hand men, stood guard in front of the door. When Saul saw It coming, he screamed.
    It entered Saul’s mouth, finding his core in seconds, taking over the shell and using it to open the door to The Prophet’s room.  
    The Sanctuary’s self-righteous leader lay in bed, nearly dead thanks to whatever Brother Rei had done. It knew Rei was plotting something. It had allowed it, even, not really caring much for the games of mortals, as It had more important things to plan.  
    It didn’t realize that Brother Rei would betray John , though.
    It left Saul’s body, floating out and over The Prophet’s bed, gathering strength before bursting in through the man’s mouth. Then in It went.
    The Prophet put up a decent fight, but was no match for It , who seized control within a minute.
    The Prophet stood from his bed and stretched out its new husk, feeling exhausted and frail. It didn’t like this husk; it was obese and felt tired. But this was the husk that was most useful at the moment, the one that would make people obey.  
    It looked down at Saul, who was gasping for air, looking up at The Prophet with a confused, scared expression.
    The Prophet stepped past Saul, then went forth into the world to wreak havoc.  
    It walked down the stairs, still in his pajamas, past several of The Prophet’s followers, staring with wide-eyed disbelief. They were surprised, and mortified, “Sir, your mask,” one of the men said.
    The Prophet felt no need to hide his burned face any longer.  
    “You’re okay, Prophet! Praise The Lord; it’s a miracle!” another said.
    The Prophet ignored everyone, leaving through the front door and approaching the main gate.
    Brother Roderick stood guard, the only one on gate duty. He held a rifle at his side, and a vest with ammo, ready for war at a moment’s notice. He was The Sanctuary’s best shooter by a mile. When Roderick saw The Prophet coming, he straightened his back and stood taller, “How can I help you, Prophet?”
    The Prophet locked onto the man’s gaze until he was subservient to any command.
    “Give me the keys to the gate,” The Prophet said.
    “Yes, sir,” Roderick said, handing him the keys, unable to resist The Prophet’s instructions.
    “Now, go forth and kill them all, except Boricio and Luca.” The Prophet flashed images of the child and Boricio into the man’s mind, in case he didn’t know who was who. “Kill the other guards first.”
    “Yes, sir,” the man said, then marched toward the main house and opened fire on the guard perched on top. Then he turned and took out the next guard. The third guard managed to get a shot off, but it missed. The puppet’s shot didn’t.  
    A woman in front of the women’s house screamed, followed by another. Roderick opened fire, cracking the woman’s skull open in one shot. He then marched toward the main house, firing upon men as they emerged.
    The Prophet turned his back on the violence and went to the front gate, slipped the key into the lock, sprung it, then pulled open the gate.
    More gunfire erupted in the distance behind him as guards returned fire on Roderick.