Chereads / Echoes Beyond the Horizon / Chapter 4 - Chapter 4: Echoes in the Air

Chapter 4 - Chapter 4: Echoes in the Air

Mia stretched on the couch, her legs dangling over the edge, as sunlight trickled in through the window. The apartment was unusually quiet, save for the faint hum of the refrigerator and the occasional chirp of a bird outside. Ryan sat cross-legged on the floor, flipping through a magazine with a furrowed brow.

"You think that beggar ever goes home?" Mia asked suddenly, breaking the silence.

Ryan glanced up. "The blind guy? Who knows? Maybe he likes standing out there all day."

"Yeah, but doesn't it seem weird? Every red light. Always there. Never asks for anything. Just... stands there," Mia mused, twisting a strand of hair between her fingers.

Ryan shrugged. "People are weird. Maybe it's his way of meditating or something."

Mia didn't reply, her mind drifting to the dream again. The fragments were still vivid: the sky splitting apart, the ground trembling, and that deafening silence before everything shattered into nothingness. She shook her head, trying to dispel the thought. It was just a stupid movie.

"Want to go for a walk?" Ryan asked, sensing her unease.

Mia nodded. "Yeah, let's get some air."

---

The streets bustled with the usual mid-afternoon energy. Vendors shouted their prices, kids darted between their parents, and the occasional screech of tires punctuated the air. They strolled past a large electronic billboard broadcasting a muted news segment.

The anchor gestured animatedly to a map in the background, but there was no sound. The map appeared distorted, with a strange glowing circle around what looked like Earth, though the image was static.

"You'd think they'd fix that screen," Ryan muttered as they passed.

Mia glanced back, the circle catching her attention for a moment before the billboard flickered off entirely.

"Hey, what do you want for dinner?" Ryan asked, tugging her attention away.

"Anything but pasta," Mia replied absently, her eyes scanning the shop windows they passed.

---

As they turned a corner, the faint sound of a man humming caught Mia's ear. The beggar sat cross-legged near a lamppost, his head tilted back as if basking in the sunlight. His hands rested on his knees, palms up, and his face wore a serene expression.

Mia slowed her pace.

"Why do you think he hums like that?" she asked.

Ryan followed her gaze. "Maybe it's his way of staying sane."

The beggar paused his humming, his head swiveling slightly in their direction, though his milky eyes didn't focus on them. "It's closer than you think," he murmured, his voice gravelly and low.

Ryan frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

The beggar didn't respond, resuming his humming as if they weren't there.

"Let's just go," Mia said quickly, pulling Ryan's arm.

---

Back at the apartment, Mia couldn't shake the man's words. "It's closer than you think." It looped in her head like a broken record, though she had no idea what he meant.

Ryan flicked through channels on the TV, settling on a nature documentary. "See? No weird dreams here. Just birds."

Mia smirked, sitting beside him on the couch. The documentary narrated the migration of a flock of geese, their path stretching over continents. As the camera zoomed out to show their journey, it lingered on Earth from above—perfect and unbroken.

Mia stared at the image, her fingers tightening around a cushion. The geese disappeared into the distance, and the scene transitioned to a serene sunset.

She sighed and glanced at the coffee table. Among the scattered magazines and snacks was the DVD case from Faded SIGNALS. Its worn cover stared back at her, and something about it felt off.

Leaning forward, she picked it up and turned it over. Her eyes froze on the back. At the bottom, in tiny, almost unnoticeable print, was an image of Earth: cracked, fragmented, and surrounded by an ominous red glow.

Below it, the tagline read:

"Do you really have time... or is it already gone?"