PLEASE! I was on my knees begging for the slab, while texting him my pleas. He responded with, "Take whatever you want. I don't care." I smiled happily. After all, once I read this, I would become smarter—I knew it.
Suddenly, a pulsing sound came from the weird pod that had teleported into the house. The thing labeled "CORE" glowed with a blue aura and began pulsing rhythmically. TFR looked down and pointed at the pod. I stared at it in confusion. With each second, the pulsing sound grew louder, almost like a heartbeat.
The pod's window suddenly latched open. And within a moment, everything was sucked in.
It happened so fast I didn't feel it. The last thing I saw was nothing. I only heard a faint, distant scream, and then… darkness. A void of nothingness.
I couldn't see. I couldn't feel. I couldn't hear anything—not even my thoughts. It was as if I was stuck in a place where time and existence did not exist.
I could only think. But I didn't know what I was thinking. It was dark, and only dark.
And then, in an instant, the silence shattered. A racket of loud noises erupted all around me. It sounded like people talking—voices layered over each other, growing louder with every passing second.
Suddenly, I was flung forward, gasping for air as I hit the ground hard.
The first thing I saw was a massive white building towering in front of me. It glistened under the sun, almost blinding me with its brilliance. The sounds of walking, distant talking, and the bustling city filled my ears. I was lying at the base of a big iron gate.
Before I could comprehend what had happened, the slab fell from the sky, hitting me square in the gut. Soon after, the crack in the air widened, and everything came tumbling out: wood, doors, windows, tiling, a bed—and then TFR.
Wait. TFR?!
The crack in the air sealed itself with a faint shimmer, and everything went still.
I gasped for air, coughing as I tried to gather my bearings. TFR looked around in confusion, his eyes darting from the rubble to the towering white building ahead. He turned to me, our eyes locking briefly, before he looked beyond me at something even more amazing.
I followed his gaze, twisting my neck to see what had caught his attention.
It was the White House.
"Woah," TFR murmured, staring in amazement. "How did we get here…?"
I chuckled nervously, still processing the sight. It was surreal—larger and more imposing than I had ever imagined. "It's bigger in person," I muttered.
Behind us, the crowd of people moved along the streets, oblivious to the rubble or the bizarre events that had just unfolded. Not a single head turned toward us.
Before I could fully take it in, TFR started clapping. I froze in confusion.
Out of nowhere, a loud, piercing alarm rang out, reverberating across the area.
It was deafening.
TFR crouched down, covering his ears, his face twisted in pain. I winced, trying to block out the sound.
A robotic voice echoed through the air, coming from the White House: "Evacuate."
The word repeated over and over.
"Evacuate. Evacuate. Evacuate."
Suddenly, a woman from the crowd screamed at the top of her lungs.
She was wearing a purple shirt and leggings, and her face twisted in terror as she pointed toward something I couldn't see. A man dressed in a black uniform with a helmet approached her briskly, holding an object in his hand.
It was too small to make out clearly, but his grip on it was firm, deliberate.
The woman's screams grew louder, more desperate. And then, he did something—something I couldn't quite catch.
The woman collapsed to the ground, lifeless.
TFR bolted toward her, kneeling down beside her motionless body. I followed, my heart racing as dread crept over me.
"What…" I stammered, staring at her pale, bloodied face.
A dark crimson stain spread from her head, pooling on the ground beneath her. Her eyes were wide open, but there was no light in them. Her skin was pale and lifeless.
TFR's face twisted in horror.
"Wait… but that would mean…" My voice wavered, cold and uncertain. "That man… he killed her, didn't he?"
I turned to the crowd.
No one stopped. No one screamed. No one even glanced in her direction. They kept walking as if nothing had happened.
TFR's fists clenched, trembling with barely contained rage. He couldn't speak, but his actions said it all. He punched the ground hard, over and over, his knuckles reddening with each strike.
"WHY AREN'T YOU DOING ANYTHING?!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, my voice echoing across the busy street. "ARE YOU ALL JUST GONNA WALK PAST HER? THERE'S SOMEONE DEAD HERE!"
Nothing.
Not a single person reacted.
TFR pounded the ground again, a guttural sound escaping his throat. I could feel the anger radiating off him.
We were both in shock.
Does no one really care…?
NARRATOR
For the first time in SOB and TFR's life, they saw the true face of reality.
They experienced anger beyond capacity.
And for the first time in their lives, they saw death.