With a distant rumble, the ground shook and the urge to turn round and discover the source of intense heat became overwhelming. A bright white flash, Jemima's arm went up to shield her eyes. No use, the light shone through showing her bone like a burning X-ray. Blackness, the intolerable heat had melted clothes and skin alike leaving a putrid smell in the air. Before anyone could think, move or act it was over. The nuclear blast wave had stripped the land of life leaving only crushed remains of a once peaceful community. Seconds it lasted, ending christmas forever.
The dog who had run away lived however as he had fallen into an old disused bomb shelter. "How convenient" he thought