[ WP ] `` When suddenly , the lights go out . Everywhere ''

`` When suddenly, the lights go out. Everywhere.'' 
 
 I remember this being the part that scared me the most as a child. I remember when I my father stood up over the fire as he said it. He had such an intensity in his eyes that it almost seemed believable. It sent chills down my spine each time he told it. 
 
 The funny part about it now, after ten years, I was getting chills at the wrong part of the story. 
 
 The year is 2022 and I just turned sixteen. We buried my father several months back due to a drunk driver. I thought I'd have more time to grieve before they came and turned the world into what it is today. 
 
 We do n't know what they are. We do n't know if they're creatures, beings, aliens, or perhaps God. What we do know is that the sky was blacked out by them. Think of the darkest night you can and multiply it by a hundred. Solar powered calculators did n't work, the ocean did n't have waves, and high powered flashlights could only make a dent in the surface of the dark. 
 
 The one benefit we had was the fire was our best resource. For some reason, unknown to us, is gave us the best visibility in the dark. On top of that, it guaranteed survival while in the dark. We noticed one night that one fire protected a room, but without that fire, we may lose three people in the middle of the night without ever knowing. 
 
 After they blacked the sky, everything stopped. Everything that we depended on stopped. We were in the stone age and blind. It took so long to discover what we know now. The cost of is beyond any war we've fought. 
 
 I remember holding to my mother's and brother's hand as we tried to walk through the dark. My mother dropped something and tried to find it and in a instant she was gone. No screams, no struggle. Just gone. I lost my brother a week later. I was alone in the dark for five years. 
 
 I've been with a group of people for five years now. We have n't lost anyone in two years due to our set up. We passed through the remnants of my old hometown and I insisted with them to let me see my fathers grave. After a few hours of searching I managed to find it. 
 
 I never visited my fathers grave after the headstone was made. Seeing it now felt more like he was preparing me for what was to come. I placed a candle on his headstone before returning off to my group. 
 
 *'' May hope guide you through darkness when the lights fail you. `` *
