Glassed

Everything was burning. The sky was a dark maroon, and there was no sun. The only light she was afforded was a dim, red glow that barely managed to pierce through layers of ash, dust, and radioactive particles that choked the atmosphere. Cain had never been on a glassed planet before, but the reports she had read about the topic were spot-on. She imagined Hell would be quite similar. She only hoped the aliens responsible for this wanton destruction would meet a similar fate eventually. 
Cain stopped her jogging advance to look back from where she came. The city she narrowly escaped from was wholly engulfed in still burning flames. She had managed to protect a large group of civilians on their way to the few remaining escape shuttles left. She had seen the shuttles take off, successfully, only a few hours prior. Now she was alone, as the continent around her burned. At least those civilians were able to make it off-world - as for her, she wasn’t so sure yet. She turned back forward, and continued to jog.
Her suit’s onboard geiger counter had been on a frenzy since the red fog rolled through, and she had since relegated its tick-ticking sound to the back of her mind as she continued on. She was extra thankful for her fully sealed Mark V armor - Cain knew she would have been dead without it; likely suffocated from the lack of oxygen in the air. The suit had been working extra hard to scrub the outside air of ash and pollutants before she breathed it. She had wondered how long it could keep up. 
Suddenly, the pitter-patter of rain filled Cain’s ears via her helmet’s internal speakers. Her geiger counter joined in, blaring with an intensity that she had not witnessed before. After only a few moments, the rainfall escalated into a storm.
Cain now found herself in the middle of a radioactive and ashen torrential downpour. 
She picked up the pace; now sprinting through the rocky deciduous area, avoiding trees and large boulders in the process. She needed shelter, before her armor and its systems started to fail under the extremely hazardous conditions she now found herself under. Cain scanned the horizon, looking for any evidence of a cave, building, anything. The rain was loud and intense, and her vision was even further obscured. She kept on forward, faintly noticing a rocky outcrop to her right. She steered towards it, blasting a path through the vegetation. Slowing to a jog, she came around to the front of the outcrop, and noticed the rock lead into a shallow cave just tall and deep enough for her to seek refuge inside. 
Cain ducked and activated her helmet’s lights. The cave was barren, but it looked to be the nest of some indigenous creature a long time ago. She entered the cave, using her free hand to feel the one edge of the cave before sitting down against it. Cain exhaled a deep breath she didn’t realize she was holding, and looked back outside. The rainfall was less intense, as the cave helped muffle the sounds. Cain tipped her helmet back, and allowed it to rest against the cave wall. She was safe, for now. 
Category: CBrando89