After that… moment.
Call it reflection. Call it a breakdown. I honestly don't know.
I stood up and walked through the rain, my clothes already soaked, my head still throbbing faintly.
— Damn… I should've eaten at school.
My stomach growled.
— There was that burger place nearby…
I checked my phone.
Good reviews.
Cheap enough.
Perfect.
The restaurant wasn't bad.
Warm lights. Soft chatter. The smell of fried food wrapping around me like comfort.
For a moment… everything felt normal.
I sat in a corner table.
A waitress approached—brown hair in a braid, simple uniform, tired but polite smile.
— "Good evening. Here's the menu. What would you like?"
I skimmed it quickly.
— "Double burger, fries, chicken wings… and a large cola."
— "Coming right up."
She left.
I leaned back slightly, pulling out my phone again.
Storm warning.
Severe.
Stay indoors.
Reports mentioned strange incidents during storms.
…I rolled my eyes.
— Urban legends.
Fifteen minutes later, the food arrived.
— "Thank you."
— "Enjoy."
And I did.
I devoured everything like I hadn't eaten in days.
— Damn… this is actually better than the reviews said.
For a few minutes… I forgot everything.
No voices.
No visions.
No fear.
Just food.
When I stepped outside again—
The storm had gotten worse.
Way worse.
The sky was almost black.
Lightning cracked across the clouds like fractures in reality itself.
— "Shit…"
I looked toward the direction of my house.
Too far.
No way I'd make it.
So I did the only thing I could.
I slipped into a nearby alley.
Rain slammed against the walls.
Water pooled around my feet.
The air felt… heavy.
Wrong.
— "If this floods, I'm screwed…"
I sighed, pulling out my notebook and phone.
Might as well do homework.
But then—
BOOM.
A deafening sound echoed from a few streets away.
Metal bending.
Something collapsing.
— "A car crash?"
I shoved everything into my bag and ran.
I wish I hadn't.
When I turned the corner—
I froze.
— "…What the hell is that…?"
It wasn't a person.
It wasn't even something that could be called alive.
It was… wrong.
A massive, amorphous creature stood in the middle of the street.
Its body twisted like melted flesh.
At least sixteen arms extended from it—
Each one with eyes.
And mouths.
Its back pulsed as tentacles writhed outward, dragging across the ground.
Every movement made a wet, sickening sound.
And the smell—
Rotting fish.
Burned meat.
Decay.
In front of it stood a figure.
A person.
Black clothing.
A hood.
Still.
Watching.
The creature let out a sound—
Not a roar.
Not a scream.
Something worse.
A language.
Ancient.
Broken.
Like stars dying.
Then it attacked.
Tentacles shot forward, tearing through the air with violent speed.
The hooded figure didn't move.
Didn't dodge.
Didn't flinch.
Just…
Watched.
— "I don't remember you being this weak."
A woman's voice.
Calm.
Cold.
Almost… disappointed.
— "This isn't fun anymore."
Then—
Fire.
Violet flames erupted around her body.
Her hair lifted, floating like it was underwater.
Her eyes—
They shone.
Like distant stars.
The hood slipped slightly with the wind, but her face remained obscured… like reality itself refused to show it.
She raised one hand.
Her left eye ignited with light.
— "Þanir'is älithir."
The world—
Cracked.
A flash of blinding violet tore through the street.
The creature didn't scream.
It didn't resist.
It simply—
exploded.
Pieces of flesh scattered across the pavement.
The smell intensified.
Rot.
Burning.
Something unnatural.
She didn't stop there.
She stepped forward—
And released a wave of fire.
Everything burned.
Everything vanished.
Nothing remained.
Silence.
Only rain.
Only smoke.
Then—
She looked at me.
My body locked.
I couldn't move.
Couldn't breathe.
Couldn't think.
She smiled.
Slow.
Knowing.
Terrifying.
— "We'll meet again sooner than you think."
She placed a finger over her lips.
— "Shh."
And then—
She disappeared into the mist.
My legs gave out.
I collapsed onto the ground.
Covered in blood.
Not mine.
Not human.
— "What… is happening…?"
A voice answered.
From everywhere.
From nowhere.
— "You are where you're meant to be."
I turned.
There was no one.
— "She is beginning to reveal herself."
— "Who… is she?"
My voice trembled.
— "You must find out."
Pain exploded inside my skull.
I screamed.
— "Everything revolves around her… her existence started it all… she is a darkness deeper than night…"
The voice grew heavier.
Colder.
— "Stop her… or this world will drown in her shadow."
— "Why me?!"
I clutched my head.
— "Pick someone else… I don't want this… I don't want anything to do with this!"
— "No."
The voice sharpened.
— "Only the original sin can oppose her… only another darkness equal to hers…"
My vision blurred.
— "The child of night… will rise…"
— "She should kill him… but she won't…"
— "And because of that… he will suffer… for eternity."
I screamed.
Darkness swallowed everything.
— "STOP! PLEASE STOP!"
I slammed my head against the wall.
Again.
Again.
Again.
— "Make it stop… please…"
The voices repeated:
"Child of sin… condemned to suffer…"
"She will give you a cruel death…"
— "Shut up!"
— "Dark?!"
A familiar voice.
Warm.
Real.
Kimberly.
I collapsed into her arms.
Crying.
And then—
Nothing.
When I woke up—
I was in a bed.
Soft.
Warm.
Safe.
Kim sat beside me, worried.
— "Are you okay?"
I grabbed the glass of water next to me.
Drank.
— "Yeah… just a nightmare."
She didn't believe me.
I could tell.
— "What were you doing out in the storm? You know it's dangerous."
I looked away.
— "Panic attack. I couldn't move."
A lie.
She sighed.
— "Idiot… next time call me."
Then—
The door opened.
Alya.
Her presence filled the room instantly.
Messy cherry-colored hair, soft waves, tired eyes… but still beautiful in a way that made people stare without realizing it.
She hit Kim lightly.
— "Stop bothering him."
Then she hugged me.
Warm.
Gentle.
Too close.
— "If anyone's hugging him, it's me."
I sighed.
…This again.
Kim pulled her away immediately.
— "Stop flirting with him!"
— "Maybe he should marry me instead," Alya said casually.
— "I'M CALLING THE POLICE!"
From downstairs—
— "Breakfast is ready!"
Their mother.
We went down.
Warm food.
Pancakes.
Coffee.
A normal morning.
Too normal.
— "Thank you, Ms. Eliza."
— "Eat well," she smiled.
After breakfast, I helped clean.
Alya watched me.
— "See? We should trade Kimberly for Dark."
— "Shut up!"
Before leaving, Ms. Eliza handed me a bag.
Food.
For school.
— "You need to eat."
…No one had ever done that for me.
Not like this.
— "Thank you… really."
In the car—
Alya stopped at a pharmacy.
Came back.
Handed me a bag.
— "Your meds."
I froze.
— "You didn't have to…"
— "I wanted to."
Her voice softened.
— "You're important to us."
I felt something break inside me.
Tears slipped out.
I hugged her.
— "I don't know how to repay you…"
She smiled.
— "Go out with me tomorrow."
Kim shouted from the backseat:
— "STOP HITTING ON HIM!"
I sighed.
— "Fine… I accept."
The car stopped at school.
Alya smiled.
— "See you tomorrow."
— "Yeah…"
I stepped out.
Looked at the school.
Same place.
Same people.
Same life.
But something had changed.
Because now I knew—
The things I refused to believe in…
…were real.