October 10, 2045
A seemingly ordinary day on Terra.
*Beep... Beep... Beep...*
The alarm rang insistently, but its cries went unheard. "... Mi... W... Mi... Michael!" A woman's voice echoed through the small two-bedroom apartment as she knocked on the door. Michael remained silent, dead asleep.
Deep in Michael's dreams, he found himself walking down a terrifying hallway in his school. The sky was a crimson red, and clouds as black as coal loomed overhead. Reddish rain fell outside the window. He moved cautiously, heart pounding, fear gripping him. Suddenly, a jarring squeal echoed through the halls, and something approached from the stairs.
"Nope," Michael muttered, his voice trembling as he darted into the nearest classroom and closed the door behind him as quietly as he could. Inside, he heard the muffled sound of someone trying to stifle a scream. Turning, he saw clusters of hastily arranged desks and glimpses of a person hiding within them, sobbing with fear. Michael hesitated, understanding that approaching might cause more panic. He had to hide as the footsteps drew closer.
The creature entered the room. It had a jagged glass panel near the doorknob, stretching from the top right of the door to the knob itself. Michael felt its presence, sensing it scanning the room. "You're not welcome here," the creature growled in a jagged, high-pitched voice.
Michael's heart raced. How could such a thing happen? What did it mean? The creature smashed the glass panel, making Michael jump. It reached out and touched Michael's head. "Don't interfere," it whispered, paralyzing him with fear. Sweat poured from him like a waterfall; his body refused to obey his commands as he hyperventilated.
"Or! I-will-end-you!" the creature threatened.
Everything became a blur. Michael woke up, drenched in sweat, gasping for breath like he'd run a marathon. His scream echoed through the apartment, alarming his sister, who burst into his room.
"I heard a scream! What's wrong?" she asked, rushing to his side.
Michael, still panting heavily, began to calm down. His eyes shimmered a cosmic green before returning to normal. Seeing him covered in sweat and his body temperature high, his sister's anger melted into concern.
"What happened? Why did you scream? Why are you like this?" she asked, checking him over.
Michael recounted his nightmare, but his sister couldn't fully grasp it. She saw the impact it had on him, though. "First, take a cold bath," she suggested, her face full of worry.
As Michael soaked in the bathtub, he reflected on his dream. That creature had spoken to him—there was no doubt about it. How was that even possible? His body felt stronger yet lighter, his senses sharper, as if chains had been lifted. He sighed in relief, taking a deep breath. "What the hell was that?" he muttered as he got out.
"I called your school and told them you'll skip the first classes," his sister notified him as he emerged from the bath. He went to his room to dress and then joined her in the living room.
"How are you feeling now?" she asked.
"Strangely enough, I feel better," Michael replied.
"Good. If you experience anything strange, reach out to me, okay? And keep this necklace on at all times," she said, handing him a necklace.
"S-Sure," Michael stammered. The moment he touched the bracelet, his vision blurred and then cleared. Rubbing his eyes, he thought maybe something had gotten in them.
"I'll be going now," she said, heading for the door.
"Right," Michael replied, watching her leave. "Strange," he muttered.
Michael ate breakfast, then left for school, deciding to put the morning's events behind him. He wore the necklace his sister gave him, mesmerized by its gem as he walked. "I wonder what it is," he mused.
He didn't rush to school since his sister had called ahead. "Damn, I can't miss my finals because of this," he muttered, kicking a stone. November was a week away, and he didn't want to mess up his twelfth-grade finals after working so hard to keep his grades up.
Entering class after two periods, he wondered why he even bothered coming. The class was half-empty; chemistry students had been called for extra sessions with exams around the corner.
"Yo, it's Aussie!" a boy called out from a group at the back of the classroom. Michael had somehow earned the nickname "Aussie," short for Australopithecus, due to an incident in biology class.
"Chh, whatever," Michael remarked, setting down his bag and laying his head on the desk.
"Yo, you good, G?" Trent called out as he approached Michael. Michael's friend and neighbor had noticed the sour mood radiating from him. "You even came late."
"I'm not dead," Michael muttered, lying on his crossed arms.
"Here," Trent said, placing a couple of papers on Michael's head before walking away.
"What's this?" Michael asked, not bothering to lift his head.
"Past question papers," Trent replied over his shoulder.
Michael shoved the papers into his bag and went back to sleep. That nightmare—if that's all it was—had tripped him up, leaving him feeling mentally drained. "Should've skipped school," he muttered to himself as the chemistry teacher entered the class. She was followed by two students from another class, each carrying heaps of papers. This session was going to take a while.
"Good morning, class! As you all know, I've requested to have you for the rest of the day, so get ready. We'll go through a lot of content today," the teacher announced.
The class groaned collectively. They had four more classes, each 45 minutes long, which meant three hours of chemistry.
"After the first two periods, we'll take a break, then come back and continue. We'll do revision during the first half and go through past papers together during the second half," she explained as the two students handed out the papers.
Michael received a paper from one of the students and was shocked. He had never seen this girl before, but she looked exactly like the girl from his dream. "Strange," he thought, but the teacher's rambling brought him back to his senses.
"*Yawn* And tomorrow, we've got maths to deal with," Trent said as he and Michael walked home together.
"Yeah, I'm not coming tomorrow. You have a good one," Michael replied.
"What? No fair! Why do I have to go?" Trent protested.
"It's not my fault you suck at maths," Michael teased with a smile.
"You're just lucky because your brother-in-law helps you out with it," Trent retorted.
"Doesn't matter who helps me out, as long as I'm sorted," Michael said nonchalantly.
"Lucky bastard. You'll see when the results come out—I'll score an average grade," Trent declared.
"Wow, not even hoping for high scores? What low standards," Michael mocked.
"I know my limits. Anyway, you going to see what's-her-name?" Trent's expression turned slightly lewd.
"None of your business. Besides, that ended a month ago, remember?" Michael replied, trying to hide his discomfort.
"Yeah, and I saw her coming out of your house last week," Trent teased with a lewd smile. "It's cool; I won't say a thing, though."
They had stopped at a traffic light, waiting for it to turn green. Michael's eyes shimmered a cosmic green color. As he looked, he saw the lights turn green and stepped forward. Suddenly, it was like glass shattering. He faintly heard Trent calling his name and a car horn blaring, snapping him back to reality. The light was still red, and he was in the middle of the road. The driver was shouting something, and Trent called out to him, but he didn't hear a thing. He quickly scurried to the other side, realizing what had just happened.
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