The wind was howling, it's hot air beat against the universe, flaming several greens with monstrous figure in orange and red. The ground was cracked, buildings were torn apart. The old magnificent skyscraper was now dusty, filling the windows with sands and vines including cracked holes. Before this, it was standing tall, blazing under the lights but now, it is slanted. The colourful billboard crashed into the other building, just right above the roads filling the ground with dangerous scrapes of glass harming whoever who walked through it without good shoes. For some moments, the wind stopped only to be accompanied by the sound of cracking glasses nearby. The very thin air had become mankind most greatest enemy. It wasn't just hot, but it was deadly.

Jax heaved and panted as he jogged up the rocky hill made out of none other than two cars stacked up like flapjacks, joined by a few fallen rocks. His forehead was filled with sweat streaming down like rivers and his hair was unruly. His brown eyes were tired from the continuous running day and night. Jax leaned onto the wall of the stone only to jolt up cursing at the heat coursing through his skin from the back. His fingers fiddling into the pocket of his trousers, producing a bottle of water he managed to salvage from a shop which had collapsed underground three yards from where he is now. Jax squatted down on the ground looking out at the cracked roads and buildings.

"Great way to spend my lunch time." Jax mumbled in particular to no one.

For three months, he had been running around trying to survive under the scorching sun. Ever since the rain stopped after a massive thunderstorm, the crops began to dry, the lands began to crack, and humans went insane like cockroaches running away from its attacker or a housefly flying in circles avoiding the spatula. Jax watched them grew mad. First, it started with a sharp piercing scream from the person. Next, their eyes began to bleed, then their nose. Their teeth started falling out. It was a painful death. They walked around like a ghost till their skin began to tore bit by bit.

Having those memories in his mind, Jax let a soft chuckle to escape his lips, his fingers brushing the bridge of his nose. No, they weren't zombies like in World War Z or even The Walking Dead or even from Train to Busan, but to him, it was worst. He closed his eyes, recalling his own witness. It was his one and only family member. He had made sure she survived, made sure she would stay alive like him, but her immune was so weak that slowly she began giving in into the heat. It was one night, while they were both taking refuge under a building, the skies had been filled with stars, but the ground was still hot. So, after searching, they found a cool spot and began to rest. Then, it happened.

She retched in the middle of the night. Blood pouring from her mouth as if someone had ripped her throat out without mercy. Then, she started screaming at the pain, rolling onto the ground. When she turned to look at him, her eyeballs were filled with blood, blood pouring from her nose and her teeth started to fall out as he watched the gums dried up. Somehow, Jax felt like it wasn't just the heat, but it was a certain kind of virus in between the heat. After a few moments, she stopped talking. Her legs found their way up from the ground as she began to walk under the skies, the moonlight gleaming on her torn skin as the skin shed like snake's skin and she walked losing herself on the roads.

After almost some time of dozing off into his bubble of dreams, Jax was snapped up from his reverie, his brown eyes caught sight of a figure running away from a creature behind them. Now, this is new. Jax had seen humans going crazy but he had not seen animals chasing after them. Taking a step forward carefully, Jax noticed a black dog, it's mouth baring as its skin began to tear bits by bits. It was then he realised that animals and humans both have different effect by the heat. Looking around, he noticed a rock, his hands immediately reached towards it ignoring the heat burning on his palms as he aimed it directly onto the dog which whined before rolling onto the ground. Taking another stone, Jax aimed it towards the dog again hitting it right at its head as the animal turned around running to the opposite direction.

Jax panted. His shaky hands reached out pushing his bangs backwards as it stood rooted on the back of his head because of the sweat forming in between his hair. Quickly, he climbed down the stones, his shoes made a thud sound once it landed on the soil as he ran towards the human who was already kneeling on the ground. It had been weeks Jax had a partner or seen a survivor among these streets. Now that he had found someone, he would not risk a chance to gain a new friend. Running alone in the heat felt hopeless especially when you knew you would not die any sooner.

"Hey." Jax started kneeling down next to him, "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

They weren't a reply from the man except for panting sounds escaping from his lips. When he looked up, Jax realised that the boy's lips were bleeding. His lips were cracked from dehydration. Feeling pity, Jax reached down to his pocket producing the bottle of water handing it to him. Without hesitation, the boy gulped down greedily swallowing the whole bottle of water emptying it. Jax patted his back gently. The boy had jet black hair and cerulean blue eyes almost similar to the skies. When the bottle was finished, the boy gulped, his arms reached up wiping his lips with his long sleeve shirt gently. His blue eyes darted around before looking directly in Jax's brown ones.

"Thank you for helping me out." He stated before holding onto Jax's offered palm and stood up next to him, "I am fine. Thank you for the water. My name is Alex."

Jax nodded, "Nice to meet you, Alex. If you don't mind me ask, where did you come from?"

Alex chuckled, "Nothing seems familiar to me anymore, Jax. I remembered an old oak tree just before the entrance of my city but now, everything had either been burnt down to ashes or dead." He coughed before looking at him, "What about you?"

"I came from the Helium City, North from here." Jax stated, " I was at school when this the fire started. Then, everything came falling apart. My home was burnt, the people back in my city went nuts like tortured specimen." Jax explained, his palms now situated by the side of his waist.

"Sounds terrible. It is going to get a lot worst from now on. The temperature had not been going down. It's getting hotter each day." Alex explained, his blue eyes looked towards the horizon. His black hair was pushed upwards, wet and clammy, some sticking to the side of his face.

"It is," Jax stated as he took out a pair of gloves putting it on his palms turning towards Alex, "Let's get going. We should find ourselves some food and drinks from the buildings."

Alex nodded tightening the cloth around his palms, "Drink mostly." He chuckled and added, "So, since we have just met each other, why don't we buy some time talking to each other. Tell me about yourself then, Jax. Like maybe what kind of student were you in school."

Jax turned towards him, "Mind you, we don't have any water with us. If we keep talking our throats will dry out, Alex." He spoke heading towards the boy who was standing behind him, "How long have you been out here?" He questioned and before Alex got a chance to speak, Jax interrupted, "Alone to be specific."

Alex looked away, his blue eyes met the ground, "Just a few hours? My elder brother was taken away by the heat." He spoke walking next to Jax not wanting to lose a company and added, "Then, I started running when the dog appeared out of nowhere."

Jax walked ahead, his ears attentive to what Alex had said. There should be a time for mourning, a time to pray for the boy's loss but again, there was no time too lose. Jax stopped awhile watching as Alex stood by his side and he spoke, "I am sorry for your loss, Alex. But, we cannot stay out here without water. Come. Let's find some water first, alright."

Alex nodded without protest. The boys arranged their steps carefully in between the cracks of the rock, slipping themselves in between cracked buildings to reach to the cooler part of the universe. There were scary creaking sounds as they began to step in it, but the cracks were lesser here, signifying that it is cooler than before. Jax breathed out heavily before he spotted a dusty shop where the windows were cracked. He patted onto Alex's shoulder pointing towards the direction with a smile on his lips.

"Let's get some water and food for the days, Alex." Jax spoke as he began to arrange his steps to the shop with Alex.

Breaking the window with a nearby stone, Jax pushed the window cracks aside. They began climbing into the shop. The air was cool and breezy. It was so much cooler compared to the air outside. The glasses of the refrigerators were broken, the cans scattered on the ground, some burst bottles, the stain of melted ice cream on the metal ground. Alex spotted a large shelf of mineral bottles. His dry throat was demanding for more water, but he looked at the date and threw it aside. Jax picked it up unscrewing it and drank half of it before handing it to Alex.

"I know what you are thinking. It's expired. But, Alex we got no choice. I have been out for three months and that..." He said pointing towards the bottle Alex had taken from him and added, "Had been my survival. We got to drink. We don't have a choice."

Jax noticed a backpack filled with books. He began emptying it before stuffing bottles of water into the bag. Glancing around, he spotted another bag throwing it to Alex, "Here, get some biscuits and water. It would keep us survive before we found a next Heaven like this."

"How did you survive without a backpack for three months?" Alex questioned stuffing some unexpired cookies into the bag.

Jax chuckled as he picked up a knife from the shelf, "I had a backpack. It was taken away from me while I was on my way out. I met a group of men fighting among themselves. They were probably searching for food and water. When they saw me, I ran but they caught me by my bag, so I had to let it go. Don't think I am an Angel or a Hero. I am still human, and water is still needed in me."

Alex picked up the knife nearby, slipping two in his pocket before he looked up, his blue eyes eyeing Jax's figure. Unlike him, Jax is muscular. He had broad shoulders. Though he had eye bags underneath those brown eyes, he looked energetic. He was wearing a thick blue jacket, his palms covered in gloves, his hair was falling over his face as it dried, and he was clean shaven, but Alex was pretty sure he doesn't have any beard on his face. Unlike him, his own jawline was slowly covered with short hair which would form into beard if he didn't trim or shave. Jax's trousers were filled with pockets, one filled with a knife, the other one with a half empty bottle and his boots were thick.

Jax flinched from his spot when he heard voices from the outside. He patted Alex on his shoulders signalling for the boy to follow him as they hid near the edge of the shop where the shelves were. Two men walked into the shop with a woman armed with guns. They had scars on their face and necks and a visible black tattoo shaped like a lion. Jax pointed towards the window signalling for Alex to follow him. After he had climbed out, Jax helped the younger boy out but the boy stumbled forward when he missed a step by the window and they landed with a thud.

"Run! Run!" Jax whispered loudly as he dragged Alex together with him when Jax's sensitive ears caught the sound of gun being fired.