After removing her silver wristwatch engraved with diamonds, she put it atop the molave nightstand beside her bed. It was past midnight for over an hour. Lying on the silken mattress, her porcelain skin brushed against its smooth fabric. A lingering mist filled her dimly lit room, slightly sweet, slightly warm, matching the soft red glow of the capiz shell lamp.
Her eyelids… no, her entire body, urged her to succumb unto the night's solace. But her mind was in a state of unrest..
Tweet! Message! You got a message!
"He's back."
Finally! she thought.
But they were not the ones she was expecting—not her bodyguards nor, definitely not, her deceased husband. She would probably jump out the balcony if that happened.
Reflected in the peephole was a fisheye view of the inspector from earlier—the one in charge of her robbery case.
She opened her room, releasing her alluring fragrance into the hotel lobby. But the inspector stayed stoic, not much can be said to the junior behind him—blushed and flustered. He held a document in his hand.
'Warrant of Arrest'
The senior inspector spoke, "Mrs. Costa, you are arrested. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in court. You have the right to an attorney, and if you cannot afford one, one will be appointed for you."
She looked around. Only two people. Then she looked again at the inspector. She froze, and forgot about whatever she was planning. The inspector was staring at her with a deadpan expression.
"I'm fragile, please take care of me." In a second, she was wearing silver police cuffs.
I'm gonna kill those two..
***
"Those two went missing?"
"Yes, avoid entering that alley until the authorities find them," said the guy with a blank expression while distributing the pictures of the two missing bodyguards.
"Why not ask my brother?" It was Charlotte, sticking a poster on the beam.
"He's not interested."
"For sure—its too much for that chicken." A kid in the background spoke in Broken-Prosperan. He was paid 5 Peas to help in distribution.
"What did you say?!" Charlotte pulled her shirt sleeves, ready to send it to the poor kid.
Dominic spoke again while holding Charlotte's back shirt, answering in a flat tone. "It's true."
"What?!—"
Before Charlotte lashed out, Dominic continued, "That is the reason he thrives in this place—by avoiding unnecessary conflicts."
"But conflicts can't be avoided all the time, right? What if someone dragged him, and he can't outrun it?"
This kid really has a death wish, huh! "Don't raise flags on my brother!"
Dominic held both arms of the wildin' Charlotte and answered in monotone."No one would want to touch an informant."
Dominics expounded his answer in his mind. Rico had created an environment where he could move freely. He ensured he was on good terms with every group in this area....
"What if it's something like, you know, a monster?" A genuine question from a kid.
Charlotte miraculously calmed down—and wheezed.
"You believe in those? Grow up. KID!" She laughed while slapping the pasted poster on the wooden beam, her stomach starting to hurt.
The boy wanted to hold back his rebuttals, but her laugh pushed his buttons. He sneakily walked away, shouted, and ran—
"You're shorter than me tho."
Of course, Charlotte chased after him like a lion on a hunt. Palm-size lion.
As for Dominics— he had already paid Charlotte earlier. The evidence they got from the phone were more than he expected. Thus, His superior gave him a bonus. Which he divide for 10 equal parts for his team. Charlotte recieved 2,000 Peas.
But his job was nowhere done, After the distribution, he decided to search for the missing persons himself.
He approached the concrete alley… but before his feet set on its shades, a loud howl vibrated in his ears. Like a blast, it even moved his hair. It was not only him—a portion of the slum area heard it. The sound startled a group of people that are already desensitized by loud noises every day—unnatural.
It was followed by a shout from a shaking voice, raspy and loud. It was trying its best to intimidate whoever he was shouting at.
"Get away from me!"
Crunch!
A gut-wrenching scream echoed on the concrete walls.
"HELP!"
The alley amplified the already loud scream.
Crunch!
It quieted down—too quiet, one could hear their own heartbeat.
Not for long, a faint sound crawled into Dominic's ears—a wet gnawing and low growl from a feasting animal.
Dominic was ready to back away. Although he had not seen whatever that is, His instinct was shouting at him. Of course he would follow it—It is the reason he came back alive from that war.
He planned to call for backup from their headquarters. He would use the search as an excuse.
All of a sudden, a new voice—shouted full of enthusiasm. It was Rico.
Given the sequence of noises earlier, Dominic understood; Rico was in danger.
Forget about being careful—he moved forward.
It was logical if he had to save Rico. It wasn't out of concern. It was a debt he had to pay to Liz—his mentor.
What was illogical was, Why Rico hadn't heard the initial screams and howl.
He knew if he did, That guy would run away in a heartbeat.
He held a handgun in front. His fingers were already on the trigger—clearing every corner he turned.
He was calm but quick. His eyes slowly adjusted in the dark alley.
WOOOF!
A terrifying howl, fiercer than ever—The previous howl was a puppy compare to it.
His ears rang. It was a nostalgic sensation for Dominic. It was the same ringing from a bomb exploding just a meter away. No, it was worse.
The green became blue, the red became purple, then it returned to normal. His consciousness was shaken, something that didn't make sense.
It was near
He pushed forward and turned left...
What he saw was beyond his understandings—at least its silhouette. He was trained in the wild, in fact he fought in a wild. Yet never he had seen something like that.
Bang! Bang!Bang!Bang!... He emptied his gun. No pauses between shots.
Each—hits the target.
In all honesty, He clicked the trigger before he saw its entirety.
The silhouette of the best gradually shrank, morphing into the image of a hazel-brown dog.
However, Meters away beyond the shrinking image of the beast. There was a man casually picking something from the corpse of an old man.
He heard a whisper in his mind. It was not a mere instinct this time—it was a voice that resonated within his mind.
'Shoot'
Dominic threw his gun and took his other one.
Bang!Bang!Bang!Bang!..
No pauses between shots.
Those were precise shots, yet they didn't hit the target.
Wait—it did! But the bullets just sparked as soon as they made contact with the man's body.
The man glared at Dominic and made a face. Too bad, Dominic couldn't see his smirk in the dark. But he saw the man holding an green luminescent object and there's another two hanging on his belt.
The man turned his back on Dominic and jumped towards the opposite side of the alley maze. He's moving on four legs.
***
These events happened as follows:
Dominic checked Rico's condition.
He called an ambulance. His request was rejected.
He called his team for back up, But the clock is ticking...
[Transferring 98.7%]
A group of slum teens arrived. They tended to Rico's wound.
[Transferring 99%]
They came to an agreement: 'Quickly ask for help from the slum quack doctor.'
Dominic was left with Rico.
[Transferring 100%]
Rico died.
[The meltdown begun]
Animals howled. Birds swarmed above, casting shadows beneath—almost like an eclipse, but the sky was clear.
The earth growled like a beast that felt threatened.
It gradually increased—from a tremble… to shake… then earthquake.
This time no alarms were heard. They just stopped working.
But it was not only the ground that was moving. The vibration resonated on humans.
It was not in their flesh—it was within their consciousness. The body had to follow, and sync with their soul.
From tremble… to shake… then convulse.
It was maddening and indiscriminate.
Slum dwellers, commoners, the middle class, the working class, politicians, elites—they were writhing on the ground.
The tremor intensified, like someone laughing so hard they began to quake—as if the catastrophe was mocking humanity.
As they should, human were sprawled helplessly on the ground while decades, centuries, millennia of their progress crumbled beside them.
---
The ground split like a molting pupa. But emerging from the earth were not wings.
Caves and ravines were formed, swallowing towns—mainly slums for some reason.
Mountains rised in the flatlands. Fountains as high as mountains emerges, Turning Cities into lakes.
Trees shot up from the ground, or rained from the sky. They devoured the crumbling civilization, transforming it into a sea of forest and vegetations.
And the remains of humanity,
They were fed to the beasts, They're supposed to.
[e-error!]
[ERROR!]
[ERROR!]
Humanity survived! The prayers were answered.
Well, for the remaining thirds.
***
Beings appeared in the middle of communities, some in front of chosen individuals.
Not descended. They just existed right there...
They 'spoke' in language that did not exist in this plane. Words that could not be heard by mortals, but somehow resonated in their consciousness.
It was the same 'voice' someone 'heard' when they were thinking or reading in silence.
*Fret none, humans—*
Said a pale green orb, Nowhere circular as it changed shapes in unpredictable manner—wrapped in white translucent linen—No, the linen was part of it's existence.
*For thou shalt be redeemed.*
It was 'heard' by everyone who survived—at least those who kept their soul intact.
---
/ Hi, from Hue to you :D The 'words' were different to each individual, example—Charlotte heard: "Don't be afraid humans, You will be healed."
Whoever reading at this point, thank you ^^ I hope you're having fun.
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