11:00 PM
Aion lay on his bed, thinking about the work he and his sister had finished that day. Amidst his thoughts, he suddenly felt like he was forgetting something important. That's when he heard it.
"Προσπαθείτε να με θυμηθείτε υποθέτω? Τότε θα σε κάνω να θυμηθείς? Αυτό δεν θα είναι το τελευταίο που θα σας μιλήσω.... "
That voice—he had heard it before. And now, he remembered what he had been forgetting. But before he could gather his thoughts, the world around him plunged into pitch-black darkness. He tried to move, but his body wouldn't respond. Suddenly, a faint light appeared in front of him, zipping back and forth, as if searching. Then it stopped, floating in place.
Moments later, countless other lights flickered to life on either side of it, stretching endlessly into the void. At first, they all looked the same, but as Aion focused, he noticed subtle differences in their brightness. The lights danced around him in perfect sync, circling as though they were playing with him. For what reason, he didn't know. He didn't even care, entranced by the display.
But suddenly, all the lights froze in place. Then their brightness began to change. Some glowed intensely, so much so that he had to squint. Those lights burst one by one, vanishing into the darkness. Others grew dim, slowly fading away. In just moments, the space around him—once filled with dazzling lights—became an empty void.
Aion stood there, alone in the dark. His heart ached, and without realizing it, tears began to fall down his cheeks. He didn't know why, but he felt as though he had lost something precious. His mind couldn't grasp it, but deep down, his heart seemed to understand.
Then, he felt the void shift. He didn't know how, but he sensed it. Moments later, a majestic blue flame appeared before him. It radiated power, but strangely, it felt warm and familiar. The flame circled him slowly, as if inspecting him, before returning to its original spot. Aion felt a strange urge to speak to it.
"Why are you sad?" he asked, the words spilling out of him before he could think.
The flame didn't respond. It just flickered softly, then, without warning, it vanished into the void, leaving him alone again. Confusion clouded his mind. Why had he spoken to it? Why did the lights feel so familiar?
Before he could make sense of it, a chill ran down his spine. The darkness around him began to freeze, and a small red light appeared in front of him. Unlike the others, this one barely glowed, yet something about it felt deeply unsettling, as if it was both beautiful and empty.
The red light flared suddenly, blinding him. He tried to shield his eyes, but his body was still frozen. His vision dimmed until everything went black.
When he awoke, he panicked. "I… I can't see!" But slowly, his vision returned. To his shock, everything was in black and white.
Without hesitation, Aion sprinted to his sister Selene's room and slammed the door open—only to find it empty. He shouted her name, but there was no answer. Frantic, he searched every corner of the house, but she was nowhere to be found.
She must've gone to the neighbor's house, he thought, trying to calm himself. Rushing to the front door, he flung it open, but what he saw stopped him cold.
The world was upside down—literally. Houses hung in the air, cars jutted out from walls, and chunks of road floated in the sky. The sun, or what looked like a sun, was a halo-like ring, casting an eerie glow over the bizarre landscape.
Aion stood there in disbelief. This... this can't be Earth. But then, his sister came to mind. He turned toward where his neighbor's house should've been, but it was gone—replaced by a gaping hole in the ground.
Panic set in as Aion sprinted back inside the house to grab his gun. Heading for the basement, he opened the door, only to be met with more shock. The basement floor had disappeared, replaced by a vast expanse of sky. He slammed the door shut and tried to steady his breathing.
"What is this world? Why is all of this happening?" he yelled in frustration, stepping back outside.
As he wandered through the black-and-white landscape, he noticed something odd—there were no people. No animals. Nothing. The streets were empty, and the silence was deafening. A sense of unease settled over him, but he pushed forward, determined to find his sister.
Unbeknownst to him, a small red orb of light followed closely behind.
Navigating the strange terrain was difficult. Missing chunks of road and sky made it hard to tell where the ground ended and the sky began. Hours seemed to pass as Aion wandered aimlessly, without any sign of Selene.
Suddenly, the ground beneath him trembled. Massive cracks appeared, and a large chunk of the street broke free, rising into the air. Aion ran, adrenaline surging through his veins. The floating debris seemed to follow him, looming closer with every step. He turned a corner, hoping to outrun it, but it crashed into a nearby house, sending dust and debris flying in all directions.
Through the chaos, Aion spotted his neighbor's house in the distance. Desperate, he sprinted toward it. But before he could reach it, a sharp pain shot through his back, bringing him to his knees. Blood poured from the wound as he crawled toward the house. His vision blurred, and as he tried to pull the object from his back, he felt his strength fading.
The last thing he saw before blacking out was the small red orb of light, hovering close. It surged toward him, plunging into his heart, and everything went dark.