The Eclipse

THE ECLIPSE 

By Camille Clarke 

This story might be sensitive to some readers. Please use caution. 

” What's going on here? Help me!” Aaron screamed at the mirror in the school's bathroom. He was glad everyone was in class. Something was wrong with him.  

Aaron called his father. He had to get out of the school's compound.  

He saw hair started to grow on his hands then his limbs began to grow. He looked in the mirror. He looked different. He could hear the students typing in a classroom, a fly in the window, someone swallowing spit in their mouth. Maybe his father knew what was going on with him. This was not normal. 

His father, Jake, immediately answered the phone. Aaron shook his head in desperation.  

” Where are you? Didn't I tell you to stay home? You don't bloody listen when people speak to you. Get your ass home now!” his father shouted. 

Aaron felt tears beginning to fall from his eyes.” Father help me! I need help. I need you. Something is happening to me. My hands are getting long.” 

” Just get home now!” Jake shouted. 

Suddenly, he could feel his mouth getting longer and his teeth felt sharper than normal. 

” Oh my gosh!! What am I going to do?” He drove his car down a street near his house. He was doing 100 kilometers in a 50-kilometer residential area. He hoped he didn't get a speeding ticket. 

His father ran to his car and hurriedly took him inside. 

Aaron turned around seeing the solar eclipse, the moon was beginning to cover the sun. His irises enlarged. His nails were beginning to curl and all of a sudden, he felt the need to howl. The moon was beginning to position itself between the sun and the earth. 

Their house was in the path of totality. It was going to be four minutes of darkness. 

Aaron looked across the road and his neighbors who stood outside were wearing eclipse glasses. The rooster was crowed at Mr. Johns house and his dog was running in circles. The whole street was filled with the howling of the dogs at their neighbors' houses. 

” Come! We don't have time to be gazing,” his father led him down to the basement where his mother, Elizabeth, was waiting.  

” Aaron baby,” she said with tears in her eyes,” I am sorry. I didn't know it would happen to you. I thought it might skip you.” 

” Hurry!” Jake gave Elizabeth the shackles for his legs.  

The room was ready for him. It was time. The full eclipse would last four minutes. Elizabeth looked through the basement windows. It was dark outside. She saw stars in the sky. 

” Oh my gosh, oh my gosh,” they were changing fast. She helped them with the chains. She ran outside and locked the door. She heard the chains rattling and they were howling. 

She made sure the door was latched properly. 

She had hoped that Aaron would be a normal person and the werewolf genes would not be passed down to him. His father's clan lived in an area on the outskirts of town. 

Aaron and Jake had changed quickly into a werewolf. His arms had chains and so did his legs. He tried to rattle the chains and they would be loosened on the wall. He growled in anger. All types of feelings overtook him. This was new to him. He looked at his father and began to realize he might have to do this every month. He remembered his father told him stories of werewolves. He thought it was just some make believe story his father told him.  

Elsewhere, a crowd of men stood around the President in the Oval office. The Minister of National Security, Ed Palmer, decided that it was the right to tell the President, Matthew Washington, about the fables and myths of lycanthropy. He was led to the bomb shelter, room 556, that was underneath the Whitehouse. 

” Now tell me this again. Why did you hide this from me? So now we have werewolves running around,” Washington barked at the minister. 

” It has two men on the compound that have the curse. We believe they are using this to cause havoc in the Whitehouse. We have them secured at the moment,” Palmer said. 

” What is really going on here? So, it has vampires also?” Washington asked out of the blue in an awry way as he cocked his head. 

” Umm,” Palmer answered. 

” I am not surprised. We have shit so just add some piss to that. So, there are vampires alive as well. Now tell me what the fuck else I should know about,” he shrugged and moved his head back and forth. 

” We kept it a secret because we did not expect to intercept any today. The majority of the time it occurs at night, but it is happening now. It is plausible deniability,” Palmer said. 

” Now what else is there? What else are you all hiding from me? So now we have fucking werewolves and vampires. What else am I missing out on? You tell me now! So, all along we have these things running amok and no one can tell me that I have to worry about these things also? You are the Minister of National Security. “We are supposed to be a team. I don't want to hear any more about plausible deniability. So, we have the eclipse,” Washington just gave him a look. 

” There is more to this than that. So far it wasn't a problem until this eclipse was expected,” Palmer looked down. He did not want this information to fall in the path of other ministers who were here. 

” Really?” Washington asked. He looked around at the bomb shelter. There was an area for computers in the middle of the room, and other controls. Chief of Staff, Mark Goldberg, and Vice President, Avery Connor, joined them. 

Palmer told the staff to lock the doors. 

Washington looked at the door which was a titanium eight-inch door and some other exits. One of the rooms contained pantry products and freezers. He cocked his head at Goldberg to join him. 

” I need a drink. Make it happen,” he said breathing a heavy sigh. 

Washington looked at the monitors and realized they were under attack.