THE MEMORY LOSS

Ethan Graves never intended to return to Ravenshade. The town held nothing but bad memories—shadows of a past he tried to forget. But when his younger brother, Daniel, vanished without a trace, he had no choice. He gripped the steering wheel as he drove through the thick fog, the road ahead swallowed in a ghostly haze. The radio crackled before cutting to silence, sending a chill up his spine.

People had been disappearing from Ravenshade for decades—always at 3:33 AM. No bodies, no clues, just an empty bed, a vacant chair, a missing soul. The townspeople called it The Vanishing Hour.

Now, Daniel was one of them.

Ethan parked in front of their childhood home. It was eerily still, untouched since his last visit. As he stepped inside, memories flooded him. The scent of old wood, the faint creak of the floorboards—it was as if time had frozen.

Daniel's journal lay open on his desk. The last entry sent a shiver down Ethan's spine:

"They whisper from the dark. They call my name. If you read this, don't stay past 3:33 AM."

The air felt heavier. A cold draft brushed against Ethan's neck. Then, his phone vibrated on the desk. UNKNOWN NUMBER: Leave while you can.

The message was clear. But Ethan wasn't leaving.

Chapter 2: The Warning

Ethan spent the next day asking questions, but the townspeople avoided him. Their expressions darkened at the mention of Daniel's name. He found himself at Holloway Café, where an old woman, Mrs. Holloway, studied him with wary eyes.

"You shouldn't have come back," she muttered, placing a cup of coffee in front of him.

"You know what's happening, don't you?" Ethan pressed.

Mrs. Holloway sighed. "The Vanishing Hour is real. People disappear. No one remembers them once they're gone."

Ethan frowned. "What do you mean, no one remembers?"

She shook her head. "The town forgets. It's part of the curse." She hesitated. "If you don't leave, you'll forget too."

Ethan wasn't afraid of curses. He was afraid of losing Daniel forever.

Chapter 3: The First Encounter

Determined, Ethan stayed up that night, poring over Daniel's notes. At exactly 3:33 AM, the temperature in the room dropped. His breath came out in white puffs. The static hum of the air grew deafening.

Then came the whispers.

Ethan turned toward the hallway. The shadows stretched unnaturally along the floor. A low, distorted voice whispered his name. Ethan…

His heart pounded. A tall, thin figure emerged from the darkness, its face obscured. It took a step closer. Ethan's legs refused to move. His phone screen flickered to life—3:34 AM.

The figure disappeared.

He had survived the night.

Chapter 4: The Truth Unveiled

The next day, Ethan uncovered an old newspaper article about Black Hollow Asylum, a facility that once stood on the outskirts of town. It had been shut down decades ago after a failed experiment in dream manipulation led to the unexplained disappearances of patients and staff.

Daniel had circled a single line in red ink: "They exist between seconds."

Ethan felt the weight of the truth—people weren't just vanishing. They were being pulled into another plane of existence. And once they were gone, reality erased all memory of them.

But Ethan refused to forget Daniel.

Chapter 5: The Ritual

Using the journal's notes, Ethan set up an ancient ritual, one that could force open the veil between worlds. At 3:33 AM, he lit the candles and whispered Daniel's name.

The shadows in the room began to twist. A portal—a dark abyss—opened before him. Cold hands grasped at his arms, pulling him in.

He fell.

Chapter 6: The In-Between

Ethan landed in a place that defied logic. The sky was an endless void. Time didn't exist. Figures moved in the darkness—people, trapped between realities.

And then he saw Daniel.

His brother's face was pale, his eyes hollow. "Ethan? You shouldn't be here."

"I'm here to bring you back."

Daniel shook his head. "You can't. They won't let us leave."

The whispering voices grew louder. The faceless figures turned toward them, moving with unnatural speed. Ethan grabbed Daniel's wrist and ran.

Chapter 7: The Escape

Ethan pulled Daniel toward a glowing doorway—the only exit. The shadows shrieked, clawing at them. They were seconds from reaching safety when a voice, deep and ancient, echoed:

"You cannot take what belongs to us."

With one final push, Ethan and Daniel dove through the portal.