After I said that, a strong wind came; birds flew away, and dogs far away started barking out of nowhere.

I looked up at the night sky. Strange—the meteor trail still didn't disappear.

I looked more closely and felt a shock. No, that couldn't be real. What was happening right now? The meteor trail was spreading slowly from left to right. It looked as if the meteor had just sliced through the night sky, and now the true sky was revealing itself inside the expanding strip.

Inside it was darkness itself. It was the blackest black I had ever seen; it was so dark it consumed the light—no star could salvage that blackness.

The trail spread further until it stopped. From a distance it looked like a huge, glowing oval in the sky, almost like the shape of an eye. The edge glowed in the meteor's colors, while in the middle that deep darkness spread. Everything around this oval went still. No wind, no sound, only that shining shape in the sky.

After a few seconds, a small bright point began to appear in the darkness. It grew slowly, became rounder, stronger, and brighter—until it became a large circular point of light. It looked like a pupil, as if the sky itself had opened an eye. The light inside it moved slightly, as if it were blinking or watching the earth.

I stood there and didn't know what to do. Was that God? I mean, three weeks ago I remembered seeing a crazy guy at the station on my way to school. He yelled that the end was near and to turn back to God before it was too late. But they all said that, didn't they?

To be honest, I wasn't even ready to talk to Him now. He would definitely have been angry with me for not getting my life together with the life He had given me.

Suddenly, red, glowing particles appeared around the eye. They looked like tears that were slowly falling. With every tear, the light began to flicker. They looked liquid—almost like glowing drops of blood. They drifted slowly downward, as if the sky were crying. The red drops flowed like rain, but much slower, and each of them left a fine, luminous trail in the air.

I just stood there and stared up. The drops drew closer, more and more of them, until one fell right in front of me. I watched it glow in the air and then hit the ground.

In the next moment, the drop began to move. The red liquid crept across the ground, drew together, and grew darker—from bright red to deep black. Then, suddenly, a shape rose out of it.

I stepped back. In front of me stood something that had just been a drop—now it looked like a living, dark creature. It slowly lifted its head, and I had the feeling it was looking at me.

Suddenly, this creature let out a scream so loud I thought my eardrum was about to burst.

"The fuck?" I took a step back and started running.

Faster than I ever had before. Down the street, past shuttered shops, past the corner bakery with its glass already shattered. My feet hit the pavement like drumbeats. My chest burned. My legs screamed. I didn't stop.

I couldn't.

Screams erupted behind me. People were dying. Buildings collapsed. A man sprinted past me with blood on his hands, shouting something about his daughter. I didn't stop to ask. Another blur dashed across the sidewalk, chasing him.

No. Not chasing.

Hunting.

And then it saw me.

Shit. I had to run. I didn't want to die yet. I didn't want to die as a nobody. I had just promised myself to change. Please God, if you could hear me, give me one more chance.

I turned down the alley behind the gym. Narrow, tight, steep. Dumb move. Halfway through, I realized—

Dead end.

"Shit." "Shitshitshit."

This demonic creature ran behind me until it stopped. Its steps grew slower and slower, as if it took pleasure in seeing me terrified.

I raised my hands like that would help. My voice barely came out.

"Please don't."

The creature lunged.

Suddenly—

A blinding light.

Something pierced the air with a sharp crack, and a golden spear slammed into the creature's torso, pinning it to the wall beside me. It didn't bleed. It just convulsed, glitching even harder, then disintegrated into smoke and sparks.

I dropped to the ground, gasping.

Before me stood a shape, glowing so bright I had to shield my eyes. As it came near, I saw two big wings on its back.

Is that a fucking angel?

The shape came closer.

"Endure a little longer, Aleksander. You're nearly safe."

I froze. "You—how do you know my name?"

It didn't answer.

Then he vanished. No flash, no noise. Nothing.

Had God heard my plea? Had He given me a chance to live?

I sat there for a second, heart pounding.

My hands were shaking. My legs barely worked. But somehow, I stood up.

Everything hurt. I walked. Through the empty streets. Through the smoke. Through the shattered remains of my town.

The buildings were hollow. The air was thick with ash. Somewhere, a phone kept ringing. No one answered.

A woman lay motionless under a broken streetlight. Her eyes were open. Her mouth, too. No sound came out.

I stepped over her.

One block later, a car burned in silence. Another creature crawled across the ruins like a drunk centipede made of glass and teeth. It didn't see me.

I kept walking.

My mind had stopped trying to make sense of anything. I was just... moving. Waiting for it to end.

Then I looked down.

A glowing circle spread beneath my feet. It looked like something people in movies would draw at rituals. In it were symbols I didn't recognize, lit up one by one.

"Holy shi—"

The ground vanished and I couldn't see anything. I just felt like I was falling somewhere infinite.

I couldn't feel my body. My thoughts scattered. Was I dying?

No. I hope not.

If this was death, it should've been darker. Quieter. I should've seen something. My parents. A memory. Anything.

Then, impact.

Hard stone beneath my back. Cold air in my lungs. I gasped, twisted onto my side, and coughed like I hadn't breathed in years.

What the hell just happened?

I opened my eyes.

Blue.

The sky was blue.

Not unzipped like before. It was blue, bright and peaceful.

I blinked.

I sat up slowly, my whole body trembling. My shirt clung to my chest, damp with sweat and dust. I wasn't dead.

I was somewhere else.

And I wasn't alone.

Voices surrounded me—hundreds of them, maybe thousands. I turned my head and—

"Damn."

A massive crowd.

People packed shoulder to shoulder across a wide, grass field.

Some people were crying. Others were screaming. Most were just... frozen.

Everyone looked just as lost as I felt.

Men in office suits. Women in hospital gowns. Teenagers with school bags. Toddlers. Seniors. Everyone.

And mixed in with them…

"What the hell am I looking at?"

Elves. Fucking elves.

You know these creatures from fantasy movies and games. Tall, elegant people with long ears, glowing eyes, and clothes that shimmered like magic had barfed all over them. 

And I just stood there.

My legs wanted to collapse.

This isn't Earth.

"Is this a dream?" My voice cracked. "Did I finally go crazy?"

No one answered.

The ground beneath us pulsed.

A voice echoed through the sky. Not from speakers. Not from anywhere physical. "You have been spared."

I froze.

"The creatures which destroyed your worlds will also come for this one."

My stomach twisted.

"You have six months."

Murmurs rippled through the crowd. Someone shouted, "Six months for what?!"

The voice ignored him.

"Unite. Learn. Survive. Or perish, like your world did."