This is the story of a boy named Raj.
An ordinary boy… at least, that's what everyone thought.
Raj wasn't particularly talented, but he had one thing most people didn't—he didn't panic easily.
While others overthought everything, Raj had a strange habit of facing things head-on… even if he had no idea what he was doing.
That day, he was walking home from school, hands in his pockets, lazily kicking a stone on the road.
"Should I play games first… or survive my mom first?" he muttered to himself.
"Tough choice."
Then—
He stopped.
Something felt… wrong.
The air was heavy.
Too quiet.
Raj slowly looked up at the sky.
And froze.
A massive, burning meteor was tearing through the clouds, heading straight toward Earth.
For a second, everything went silent inside his head.
Then he clicked his tongue.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
He took a step forward, eyes locked on the sky, and shouted,
"Hey! That thing up there—tell me I'm hallucinating!"
People around him looked confused at first.
Then they followed his gaze.
And just like that… everything changed.
Screams.
Panic.
Chaos spreading like fire.
But Raj didn't move.
He kept staring at the meteor, his jaw tightening.
"…So this is how it ends?" he muttered.
Right then, someone grabbed his shoulder.
It was Alok.
"Bro…" Alok said, his voice trembling but still trying to sound smart,
"I think humanity finally ran out of good karma."
Raj shot him an annoyed look.
"Seriously? End of the world, and that's your dialogue? At least say something cool."
"I am saying something cool!" Alok protested.
Raj let out a short laugh—dry, sharp.
"Yeah? Then say it louder. Maybe the meteor will get impressed and turn back."
Alok blinked.
"…You're not scared?"
Raj looked back at the sky.
His expression didn't change.
"Of course I am," he said quietly.
"I'm just not running."
Around them, people were losing control—running, crying, calling their loved ones.
Some even dropped to their knees.
But Raj stood still.
Watching.
Waiting.
Far away from Earth, in the cold emptiness of space, a group of figures dressed in black surrounded an old man.
The old man was barely standing.
His breathing was uneven, his body worn down by time itself.
And yet… his eyes were calm.
One of the black-clothed figures stepped forward, a mocking smile on his face.
"So this is it, Human Emperor?" he said.
"After all these years… you finally get to watch your entire race disappear."
A few others chuckled.
The old man didn't react immediately.
Then, slowly, he spoke.
"Disappear?" His voice was weak… but steady.
"You talk as if you've already won."
The man smirked.
"Haven't we?"
The Emperor let out a faint breath.
"Millions of years ago," he said,
"when gods and demons turned existence into a battlefield… I chose to run."
There was no shame in his voice.
Only truth.
"I brought my people here.
Hid them.
Protected them."
He lifted his gaze slightly.
"I thought distance would be enough."
A pause.
Then his eyes sharpened.
"I was wrong."
Silence fell.
Then he looked straight at one of them.
"Kumbh."
The man stepped forward.
"It's been a long time," the Emperor said.
Kumbh nodded slowly.
"It has.
Long enough for your hope to die."
The Emperor smiled faintly.
"…Hope doesn't die that easily."
And then—
Something changed.
A pressure filled the space around him.
The Emperor began gathering what little strength he had left.
Energy twisted and compressed around him, unstable and terrifying.
One of the black-clothed figures stepped back immediately.
"Wait—something's wrong."
Another one's voice shook.
"He's not trying to fight… he's—"
"RUN!" someone screamed.
In an instant, they scattered.
But the Emperor didn't move.
He raised his hand… and formed a small, glowing sphere.
It didn't look destructive.
It looked… quiet.
Kumbh's eyes widened.
"…No."
For the first time, his voice broke.
"That's not an attack," he said.
"That's a formation…"
Realization hit him like a shock.
"You're sending them away."
The Emperor's lips curved slightly.
"With what little time I have left…" he said softly,
"I can at least give them a chance."
Kumbh clenched his fists.
"You're burning your very existence for this."
The Emperor didn't deny it.
Instead, he looked toward the distant blue planet.
Earth.
"I was never trying to win," he said.
"I was just trying to buy time."
And then—
He released it.
The sphere shot toward Earth like a silent promise.
Kumbh stood frozen.
"…You really are insane," he whispered.
The Emperor let out a quiet laugh.
"Maybe."
His body began to fade.
"But not wrong."
And just like that—
He was gone.
Back on Earth, the meteor was close.
Too close.
The sky burned.
The air trembled.
People screamed.
Cried.
Prayed.
Raj stood there, unmoving, staring straight at the falling destruction.
"…Guess this is it," he said under his breath.
Then—
Light.
Blinding, endless white light swallowed everything.
Raj's eyes widened—
And then—
Nothing.
Silence.
Absence.
Every human… gone.
A second later—
The meteor struck.
And Earth…
ceased to exist.