Colt, Robyn and Tristan were your normal run of the mill teenagers. Tristan, the youngest of the group was found talking to Jason, the store owner of P. Dex's in the North Street Mall. Colt was chugging down a chili-dog at the food court while Robyn watched him.

"You know, that will, like, totally make you fat," an air of "Valley Girl" found in her voice. "I'm going to look for a pair of earrings. Like, be back later!"

"'Kay," was all that Colt managed as bits of chili flew from his mouth as he choked down the last of his hot dog.

Robyn, looking disgusted, walked off towards The Void. Tristan walked up to Colt in the food court holding a very expensive object the size of a bubblegum package with the suction cups dangling from the side.

"What is that?" asked Colt, snatching the object out of his hands.

“For your information,” piped Tristan, “it is a mental equalizer.”

“A mental what?” queried Colt, examining the object three inches from the end of his nose.

“Want to be smart?” asked Tristan.

Without a second notice, Tristan grabbed one suction cup, stuck it to Colt’s forehead, while sticking the second one to his own. He then turned the dial on the small box towards himself.

“This is undoubtedly the most proactive invention I have ever come across.” Shocked, Colt removed the suction cup attached to his forehead, “What the hell just came out of my mouth?”

Tristan broke up laughing as Robyn pulls a large pair of hoop earrings out of her pocket. “We need to leave, like, now.”

Tristan, still giggling, says, “That is undoubtedly the most proactive idea I have ever come across.” Colt glared at Tristan mumbling something sounding like he was still hungry.

Robyn pulled out her cell phone intent on calling a Taxi, when Jessica strolls out of the mall behind them.

“What’s up?” called out Jessica as she strode in the direction of her car, “You guys want a ride home?”

“Be better than a smelly taxi ride and save me ten bucks,” Robyn agrees and climbs into the front seat of Jessica’s bright purple Le Manz.

“Are you gonna stand there all day or do you want a ride home too?” Robyn calls to the other two, still standing at the front entrance.

Tristan and Colt look at each other for a second, then hot-foots it over to Jessica’s car.

“Thanks for the ride, Jess,” says Colt

“No problem, just don’t ever call me ‘Jess’ again. Where to guys?” Jessica asks.

“Going to Pony-boy’s house,” says Tristan with a slight snigger glancing to Colt.

“Alright, alright!! Settle down back there,” Colt had Tristan in a half-nelson. “I like those earrings, Robyn. Where’d you get them?”

“The Void. Oh, and thanks. Really easy to get, too,” Robyn said, putting the large earrings in her ears. Tristan glanced to Colt, glad to see the same expression of confusion on his face as well.

“What are you talking about? You didn’t steal those, did you?” Tristan asks.

“No, no I didn’t,” a look of dishonesty etched across her face.

It was a little after four in the afternoon when they pulled into Colt’s driveway.

“Thanks Jess,” said Robyn, climbing out of the car, “what do I owe ya?”

“Nothin’, really. Just help me out at The Void. There’s a dress there that I really want. Very schway.” Waving, Jessica departs, speeding insanely fast towards the main road.

“Shall we?” says Colt, indicating the three should go inside. Colt walks around the back with the other two. Lifting the mat, Colt takes a small brass key and unlocks the back door, replacing the key back under the mat.

“Hey, Mom! We’re home!!” calls Colt from the back door of the huge two-story house. No answer returns to him as he makes his way over to the refrigerator, intent on making himself a snack.

“Help yourself guys,” splatters Colt, spraying the other two with bits of bread and cheese.

“No, that’s alright. We’ll just head upstairs,” says Robyn, a look of total disgust on her face. Tristan and Robyn headed upstairs to their old hangout spot in the attic. Robyn immediately plops herself down in the cozy Chintz armchair as Tristan makes himself comfortable in front of a blank computer screen.

“This p.o.s. is so outdated,” complains Tristan, removing his contacts and replacing them with over-sized glasses while turning on the computer screen, “Stupid Zeneron processor is so three months ago.”

“Well, it’s good enough for my family, who aren’t computer nerds like you,” shoots back Colt, sitting down in front of a small television on an old, moth-eaten recliner.

“Hey Colt, napkin!” Robyn barks to Colt, tossing him a roll of paper towels. Mustard stains were still evident on his very pronounced face.

“Like, I never noticed this before,” Robyn said, glancing over to an old chest of drawers hidden in a ominously dark corner of the attic.

“Mom must have put that up here today while she was cleaning house,” Colt said, getting up from his recliner to check out the old dresser.

Face previously glued to the computer screen, Tristan gets up to help move boxes and blankets from around the dresser, huge glasses slipping off the end of his nose.

They uncover the old dresser. Colt mumbles something about it dating back to the early 1800’s.

“I hate it when you mumble! Speak up!” Robyn snarls to Colt, still sitting in her armchair, flipping through an old magazine.

“Where’d you find that out?”

“It’s on a plaque on top of the dresser,” says Colt. He whistles, “This thing does look a little old. And you may have heard me if you had come to help.” Opening the top drawer of the dresser, Colt reveals balled-up socks, ranging in color from white to gray from age.

“Ewww...” says a disgusted Robyn, shifting the socks around looking for anything else that specific drawer may hold. She closes the top drawer intent on opening the second when Tristan sits down in front of his computer screen again, distressed that the old dresser didn’t have any flashing lights or keypads. Robyn opens the second drawer revealing hard-back books looking as if they dated back to the 1700’s, maybe even earlier. Noticing a small black book stuffed roughly into a corner of the drawer, Robyn pulls it out and starts to examine it.

“Books!!” exclaims Tristan, making the other two jump. Abandoning his computer screen and keyboard, Tristan rushes towards Robyn, grabbing the black book from her hands. He pulled a silver PDA out of his left hand pocket and swiped down the front of the black cover.

“It says that the book dates back to 3000 B.C., but that’s impossible,” Tristan reads from his PDA. Putting the silver device back into the pocket he always carries it around in, Tristan opens the black book looking for a date, an author, or any form of writing indicating that this book was previously used. Robyn grabs the book back from Tristan.

“Maybe I can use this as, like, I dunno, a diary or something.”

“Yeah, you need to keep track of the things you’ve stolen,” says Colt, eyes returned to the television show he was watching.

“Yeah... Right...” Robyn responds, flipping through the pages expecting to see some form of text, but instead, a small folded-up piece of parchment fell to the floor.

“What’s this?” colt asked, bending over from his recliner to pick up the battered piece of parchment. There was no visible writing on the outside of the folds. Colt unfolded one flap. As soon as he did, his television show that he was watching turned into a black screen, and then returned almost instantly with static “snow.”

“What happened to the TV? I was watching a show,” Colt’s question was immediately answered when the television came back with a very important-looking newscaster.

“We interrupt this broadcast-“

“What broadcast??” Colt asked the television.

“Shhh!!” was the response of Tristan and Robyn, who were now glued to whatever this man on the television had to say.

“-to inform you that the eastern region from Maine to Florida, stretching as far as England and parts of Europe have been replaced by what appears to be binary code, the basic language of all computers.” The screen was then replaced by what appeared to be New York. But instead of skyscrapers towering over everyone, there was ones and zeros stretching towards the still-blue sky. The old newscaster continued to ramble on about how physically unsound this replacement was.

Colt, Robyn and Tristan were now transfixed on the little piece of parchment just once unfolded in Colt’s hands.

“Like, do y’think any of that...” Robyn pointed to the television, “-could have anything to do with that?” she then pointed to the parchment in Colt’s hand.

“I dunno. Seems like it,” Tristan said, dropping his usual air of genius.

Colt unfolded the rest of the parchment. the world folded in upon itself and everyone died.