“Come on, Aly, this way!” I tried to fight down an amused smile as I followed my younger sister Jane around yet another turn in the funhouse, this one towards the exit.

“I still can’t believe you made us stop here. Eighteen years old, leaving for college in a month, and you choose to stop at some ridiculous roadside attraction.” I frown as we step outside only to be greeted by absolutely no one. Strange… I think to myself, but shrug it off as I drop a $5 bill into the ancient looking tip jar nailed to the wall beside the door before making our way across the deserted parking lot to my car.

“Oh come on, it was fun! And isn’t that the point of this trip, fun? And to hang on to my childhood just a little bit longer?” She looked at me, her teasing smile hidden slightly behind a pout.

“It’s a tourist trap, and that guy was a weirdo!” I grouched, before letting myself lose the fight and allowing a smile to finally break free across my face. “But you’re right, and it was fun.”

“Ha!” She shouted in triumph, climbing into the passenger seat. “And alright, the dude could have eased up a little on his enthusiasm for wormholes or whatever, but it’s his job to sell it!”

“A little?” I rolled my eyes and turned the key in the ignition.

It wasn’t until approximately two hours later when the need for gas prompted me to look for a gas station that I realized how desolate this area seemed to be. Not only have I not seen another vehicle but I haven’t passed by anything that would imply the existence of human inhabitancy. No towns, no stray buildings or rest stops on the side of the highway… Looking around I didn’t even see power lines or telephone poles. Panic started to set in as the needle got closer to the ‘empty’ line. Finally, as if by magic, a single building appeared just over the hill, the large sign reading ‘GAS’ feeling like the holy grail at that moment. I let out a sigh of relief as I pulled up to the pump before my car could die. After filling up the tank I roused Jane, telling her if she needs something to get it now because who knows when we might see another sign of life.

“I’m not sure we’ve found one now…” she said skeptically, eyeing the rundown building. I laughed in agreement before heading in to pay.

I was glad Jane opted to stay outside as the lone man at the counter looked at me appraisingly while I paid for the gas, some water, and a couple packs of rather strange looking jerky.

“We don’t get many people round these parts.” He stated, eyeing me up and down.

“Yeah, I’m getting that impression…” I replied, noting the decrepit state of the store.

“Well, since the wars, there ain’t many people round anywhere.” He said, stepping a little closer.

“The what?” I questioned blankly.

“The Morbianic Wars? The Uprising? Wiped out a gigantic chunk of the human race about sixteen years ago…?” He spoke as if I should be locked up in an asylum.

“Right…” I replied much the same way. “Well, thank you, but I’m just gonna…” I trailed off as I walked out the door.

“Get in the car!” I snapped urgently towards my sister as I passed her. Fortunately she had the good sense not to argue.

“Are you okay?” She asked as she slid into her seat. Peeling out of the lot and back onto the road I finally relaxed enough to respond.

“Yeah, that guy was just… wacked out of his mind on something.”

“Must have been something crazy, you look freaked!”

I tried to keep calm for her, but staring out the window I started noticing things I hadn’t before, like the fact that the sky had a tinge of purple to the blue, and massive dead spots and what appeared to be burnt out rubble in the fields. It wasn’t until we finally came across the first sign of life since the gas station, what appeared to be a large black dog if it weren’t for the hooves and the horns suddenly bolting down a hidden path on the side of the road that I turned to see Jane staring back at me in shock.

“I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore.”