9 Days Before
P.4: At Dusk It Falls

Within the outer fog, the echoes of screeching reached Vem, startling him as he watched the skies, unable to discern where the sound was originating from.

"That ain't good," he muttered, shining his heavy-duty flashlight through the thick fog.

However, the higher wattage beam could barely make a dent in the dense mist.

He steadied himself after the occurrence, determinedly making his way to his representative's last known location after they got cut off before the news started blaring alerts about the weather.

As soon as that happened, Vem instinctively got into his car.

When he had entered, 'The strange boy' was already in his vehicle, awaiting his arrival, he told him to scurry on home, but the boy wouldn't listen, just as Vem had enough, the boy, formally known as Mier began giving information, even sharing some details that spoke out to him regarding oddities.

"Now we're in this mess," Vem said, trudging through the layered snow. The beam of light sliced through the flowing flakes as he scanned the surroundings, searching for any sign of life he might stumble across.

{●}

Crowley remained unconscious on the cold snowy comforter, his hand twitching occasionally, a sign that he was still trying to fight to wake up. The snow piled on top of him, creating a thick layer of blanket weighing him down, escalating the probability of him losing the battle against the cold.

A figure's silhouette emerged from the dense fog, bravely venturing towards him. The barrier between them dissipated as the figure entered the alleyway, their eyes meeting Crowley's sleeping body.

"Rescue him," a faint buzz passed through the figure's dangling hair.

.....

{●}

"Leave me be, Octavia!"

"You were the only one by that window!"

The chase continued through the snowy fog; Octavia's tracking skills were paying off from her lessons. She could even pick up on the faint echoes of Korith dragging along the cold fog.

"She's getting better," an electrical vibration crossed Korith's path.

Leave me alone, she thought, but the persistent buzz intruded, giving her directions to dip and dodge, although Octavia was still on her heels.

"You're getting better at avoiding things, Korith!"

Korith then dived through a broken window, and Octavia followed right after.

Octavia gripped the side of the broken window, swinging herself around. She slid on the ice perfectly, maneuvering around the corner at a higher speed.

"Why are you even running from me? I simply asked who-" Korith began to bolt as Octavia interrogated her. She left no room for Octavia to close the gap. Octavia knew Korith's moves, but how well did she know her?

Octavia, being a guard trainee, had traversed these streets countless times, and bad weather couldn’t hinder her skills.

She darted through the alleyway, seeing Korith going the opposite way again, trying to outmaneuver her.

Octavia slid into an abandoned car, the sirens blaring muffled sounds in the snow.

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{●}

Meir hunkered down in the frozen silence. His breath, visible in the chilly air. His fingers, numbed by the cold, fumbled through Vem's glove box, finding solace in the odd-looking knife.

His eyes scanned the surroundings, attempting to pierce the thick walls of fog and snow that enveloped him.

Suddenly, the muffled screeches from earlier reached his ears, sending a jolt of fear down his spine. His head jerked back, inadvertently hitting the car window.

He rubbed the back of his head, trying to soothe the pain. With interest, he peeked out the car window, eyeing the skies.

Another wave of screeches stretched throughout the skies, a sudden mysterious force quickly pinning him down, the knife falling down in the crevice.

The force squeezed his chest and sent icy tendrils snaking down his arms. Tremors wracked his body, his muscles contracting involuntarily as he fought against the unseen foe.

Summoning all his strength, Meir managed to grasp the knife, his fingers tracing its cold surface in a desperate search for the rumored "special button" the visions had mentioned.

Each moment felt like an eternity as he struggled against the intensifying cold, his progress hindered.

His stomach tightened in fear, and his knees began to tremble, his vision blurring as the invisible force pressed down on him. With sheer determination, he forced his arm to move, hitting the car chair with a sickening crack that signaled his wrist's painful demise.

Suppressing a scream, he clenched his teeth and willed his other hand to find the elusive button.

His fingers, now guided by adrenaline, located the button. With trembling hands, he pressed it.

In an instant, the knife surged with power, emitting an intense burst of heat that enveloped the entire car. The cold grip that had held him captive dissipated, and Meir gasped for breath as warmth returned to his veins. Jolting upright, he manipulated the knife's controls, creating controlled waves of heat.

Eyes fixated on the intricate details of the knife, Meir marveled at the technology. His fingers traced a small carving on the hilt - a letter "V." The revelation sent shivers down his spine, and he realized he was now in possession of something extraordinary, something that could mean the difference between survival and succumbing to the unknown forces.

{●}

Lin wandered through his dream, the familiar summer camp spot of his childhood now cast in an eerie light. The atmosphere was heavy with anticipation as storms loomed, and a faint gray cloud hung in the air.

Raindrops began to fall, gently pelting his outstretched hand as he tried to escape into the memory of better days.

Amid his reverie, other campers arrived, their figures blending into the misty surroundings. Among them, Lin spotted Opel's and Kel's faces, expressions of shock mirroring his surprise.

"They go camping here?" Lin whispered to himself, a faint unease settling in his chest as he watched the group disappear into the depths of the campsite. The dream world seemed to blur the lines between reality and imagination, leaving him with a lingering sense of disquiet.

{●}

Kel found himself trapped in a surreal dreamscape, a dense abyss stretching infinitely. He attempted to reach out, but his words echoed back to him, unheard by anyone but himself.

In his mind, he replayed memories of carefree summer breaks spent with Lin and Opel, days filled with what he affectionately called "stupid shit" - the kind of moments that made him feel truly alive.

Suddenly, the abyss transformed into a blank nothingness, and Kel felt himself being transported into a vehicle with unfamiliar faces. A voice, eerily similar to Opel's, broke the silence.

"Why are you here?" it questioned, its tone laden with an unspoken significance.

"Opel?" Kellic turned, his eyes locking onto his friend, who sat beside him, bags, and a trail bag surrounding him.

"That's me, but answer the question," Opel responded cryptically.

Perplexed, Kel searched for an explanation in the darkening sky outside. "Rain clouds are rolling in," he observed, pointing to the ominous clouds gathering on the horizon. Opel, however, remained silent, his gaze fixed on something beyond Kel's sight.

"It's getting to Kel. It's already too late for me," Opel's voice resonated, carrying an air of resignation. "I was supposed to be the fighter in the group, but you're the one hanging on the most, Kel."

The car came to a sudden stop, jolting Kellic back to the present. Opel stepped out of the vehicle, his eyes scanning the surroundings for a safe spot. A sense of foreboding hung in the air as he turned back to Kellic, his expression grave.

"Don't come with us," Opel warned, his voice low and serious. "You shouldn't, anyways."

With those ominous words, the car door closed, and the lush greenery faded back into the dark fog, leaving Kellic stranded with his thoughts, lost in the enigmatic depths of his subconscious.

{●}

Rin exerted all her strength to drag the unconscious boy to safety, pushing him through a broken door window before crawling in after him.

"I'm sorry..." she whispered as he hit the floor with a thud, surprisingly not waking up from the fall. She dragged him to a cozier part of the house where a group of survivors had taken refuge.

"Who's this?" demanded an authority figure with torn clothing, eyeing the newcomer suspiciously.

"He was buried under a blanket of snow. He could have died out there. I was just helping," Rin defended, shooting a glare at one of the guard members who doubted her intentions.

"He might be one of those...things," added another guard, voicing the fears that haunted them all.

"No, those things looked like they were invisible!" The leader of the group settled the argument.

"Almost like...visible -"

"Static," the boy suddenly woke up, perking himself up, the snow gently falling off of him.

The group jumped back, some instinctively reaching for weapons - blades pulled from the fireplace, glowing with a fiery intensity.

"A heater..?" Rin said with a gesture of confusion, trying to make sense of the situation, then shrugged it off. "Sorry for the fright. Did I say something wrong?" The snow-covered hooded teenager got up, placing his hand on his knee to lift himself. He rubbed his head as he fully stood up, inspecting his hands for any signs of injury.

"So, going to tell us your name?" the leader pointed the knife threateningly, exuding an intimidating aura.

"Apologies again. Name's Crowley," The snow finally melted off him as he stepped closer.

"Yeah, okay... names Clysita," she greeted with a mixture of intrigue and suspicion, recalling a list of names that had appeared on the classified screens.

She extended a warming hand, but Crowley declined, a faint voice echoing in his head telling him not to let her touch him. He stepped back into the colder section of the room, his hand instinctively going to his neck.

"Sorry," he said again, his eyes flickering with an unspoken fear. He noticed a slight shift in the air, and goosebumps rippled down his spine. Suddenly, he leaped backward into the warmth, grabbing onto the rim. Clysita, acting quickly, readied her knife again, sensing the same unease in the atmosphere.

The sky screeched, shaking the house with an unsettling vibration. Snow floated in the air, carried by static fields. The screeches grew louder, trembling down the spines of everyone stuck within the storm's presence.

The group covered their ears, trying in vain to block out the deafening noise, but it seeped into the finite crevices of their hands, shaking their bodies uncontrollably.

Lightning thrashed, and the snow that floated dropped, accompanied by another six inches of snow each time the bolt snapped repeatedly in the distance. The thunder shook the house, resonating with the skies' agony, the screeches sounding like a mourning family member.

In an instant, it became silent, the eerie noise vanishing as swiftly as it had come. The survivors were left in stunned silence, their senses heightened, waiting for the next unpredictable move of the relentless storm.

{●}

Vem was sluggishly sprinting in the snow, trying to find a lead to where the representative might be. As he hurried, a car alarm suddenly blared, accompanied by a young woman's grunt echoing through the snowy air.

"Isabel?!" Vem stopped in his tracks, questioning the source of the grunt.

"Korith~! Come back here right now!" The voice grew louder, more urgent. The car alarm abruptly ceased, replaced by a loud bang. Vem moved toward the commotion, worrying about his co-worker's safety.

He caught sight of dyed hair. "Nope, not her," he muttered to himself, continuing toward the noise, determined to resolve the situation and bring them to safety.

"Stop running, Korith!" The lady collided with Vem, sending both of them sprawling to the ground. Korith seized the opportunity and dashed into an alleyway, leaving them both on the ground, massaging their heads from the impact.

Quickly, Korith covered their tracks, leading potential pursuers in the wrong direction. She blended into the distance, guided by the persistent buzz echoing in her mind: Find Him.

“Are you okay?” Octavia was the first to speak, getting up to help Vem to his feet, as his face becomes noticeable, a feeling like she’s seen him before festers.

"Yup," Vem grunted as he was lifted.

“Names Vem, I’m a private investigator.” He firmly places his hat back on, her thoughts from eight days ago rises, believing she’s seen someone wearing this exact hat as they talked to Korith.

"Oh, not yet - but I'm going to," she smirked, rubbing her wrists to warm them.

"Names Vem, I'm a private investigator."

"Ah - Names Octavia," they greeted. Vem began discussing the chase he had just witnessed but was abruptly cut off by the sharp, piercing noise of the screeching. As it intensified, they both struggled to maintain their footing, their spines tingling with fear as goosebumps rippled down their skin. They clutched their ears, trying to block out the unbearable sound.

A series of lightning flashes cut through the darkness, accompanied by deafening thunder.

Their bodies froze in the cold, muscles giving way from the struggle. Octavia fought through the pain, adrenaline surging as she mustered her strength. With a sudden burst of energy, she heaved Vem inside a nearby building, grunting and shouting with pain as her muscles protested the effort.

Epinephrine took over, her pain disappearing beneath the rush. She ripped sleeves and extra cloth, tying them tightly around both of their heads. Placing her hands firmly over her ears and Vem's, they huddled together, instinctively driven by the need to protect themselves from the relentless assault of sound.

{●}

The structure's fingers stretched, reaching almost to Kellic's height. His body twitched in spasms, his facial muscles contracting involuntarily.

The skies screeched, lightning tendrils trembled around the structures, arms reaching down, zapping the fangs. violet electricity danced down the ridges, connecting to the stones on the ground, forming a web of pulsating energy. The electric buzz created an eerie orchestra that echoed through the abandoned school, its walls now rubble remains.

A symphony of horrific screeches and crackles troubled Lin's sleeping face. He twitched and tightened with each thunderous shake, the disturbance evident even in his dreams.

A small harmonic buzz passed within Lin, comforting the unsettling disturbance.

The lightning strobed throughout the school, flashes of light so intense they seemed to flicker the very fabric of reality, the image distorted as thunder roared in the distance.

{●}

The sudden silence that followed the intense screeching was deafening. The group in the room exchanged bewildered glances, their ears still ringing from the echoes of the sound. Clysita lowered her knife, her gaze flickering between her companions and the hooded teenager, Crowley.

"What the hell was that?" one of the guards whispered, his voice barely audible amidst the lingering quiet.

"I don't know," Clysita replied, her eyes fixed on Crowley, searching for any hint of an explanation in his demeanor. "But I have a feeling it's connected to all this chaos."

Crowley, his hand still pressed against his neck, nodded in agreement. "I've heard that sound before... back in the fog. It's like something's tearing at reality itself."

Rin, her grip on her makeshift weapon tightening, spoke up. "We can't stay here. We need to find a way out, away from whatever the hell is happening outside."

The others nodded in agreement, their fear now replaced with determination. They gathered their belongings and cautiously made their way toward the exit, keeping their eyes peeled for any signs of danger.

"We have another place, stay close." Clysita looked at the group.

As they stepped outside, they were greeted by a surreal sight. The snow-covered landscape stretched out before them, the sky above a swirling maelstrom of dark clouds and crackling energy. The air was charged with an otherworldly static, making the hair on their arms stand on end.

"We need to keep moving," Clysita said, her voice firm despite the unease in her eyes.

{●}

Kellic's abyssal dreams faded, replaced by the sensation of gripping a car handle. With a firm press, the door swung open, allowing a rush of summer breeze and the scent of fresh air to flood his senses. The dream shifted into vivid reality as he retrieved his bags from the car, dashing toward Opel and the others.

"Wait up!" he called out, his hand waving enthusiastically as he hurried to catch up with his friends, effortlessly managing his luggage.

A distant mumble caught Kel's ears. They camp here? he wondered briefly but dismissed the thought, focusing on catching up to Opel, who had turned around.

"So you followed, after all. I guess it's not too late - we just need to hur-" Opel's words were interrupted by Kellic's dismissive retort.

"Oh, shut up. Stop trying to sound all deep and spooky. We're just going camping," Kellic teased, memories unfolding into words.

"Okay, okay - but I'm telling you, the mosquitoes are horrible over here, I'm telling you," Opel responded, their conversation flowing as they continued down the path toward another opening. Kellic's recollection sharpened. This is the first time we met Lin/Lenny here...

{●}

Kel's body flailed and convulsed, contorting in the worsening flickering reality. Lightning devoured the skies above, tormenting thunder echoed across the field, and the world seemed to slowly asunder. The snow lifted, wil-o-wisping between frames in a surreal dance.

Abruptly, everything ceased its violent motion. The skies cleared in the middle, the fog dissipating to reveal the twilight beauty above. Kellic's body plummeted, falling so rapidly that his arms and legs fluttered helplessly.

An unknown presence made itself known, a bright, foggy figure with tendril-cloud wings that attached to the skies, formulated.

With effortless grace, the ethereal caught Kellic's falling body, lessening the tension of his descent.

Gently, the "angelic" foggednoid placed Kellic's body on the ground next to Lin, both battered from the trauma they had endured. The entity hovered above the field, raising their arms. A gust of warm, tendril-filled breeze flowed throughout the school, healing everything in its path and somehow restoring time itself.

The angelic entity surveyed the fog-covered area. The neighboring districts remained oblivious to the unfolding events. Taking this as a sign, the presence executed her final task, even though it meant dissolving into the air. Despite the consequences, she acted without hesitation.

Bringing her hands together, she formed a complex gesture with clouded fingers and tendrils. Her plan came to fruition, and "reality" flashed, twilight transforming into night.

Everyone remaining in the area fell into a deep slumber.

A platoon of neighboring tower guards rushed in, swiftly taking care of any lingering matters before any unwanted information could leak. They blocked the perimeter, barricading it and forming a solid formation to prevent any unauthorized access.

Meanwhile, Sam and a few other towers 'captains' patrolled the city, manipulating the situation by planting and removing objects and orchestrating a cover-up that would unfold in the public domain.

{●}

Lin assisted his parents in setting up the campsite, where the large tent felt like a miniature home. Soon, Kellic, Opel, and their friends approached, their laughter and excitement filling the air. Kellic and Opel introduced themselves, with a bit of teasing and playful wrestling.

"Hey, nice to meet you guys - I'm Kellic, and this is Opel," Kellic struggled to recall the other names, which were a blur in his mind.

"These are Areom and Dean, my brothers," Opel chimed in, nudging Kellic and engaging in friendly banter.

The two groups joined forces, combining their camping gear into a makeshift village.

As night fell, they gathered around a shared campfire, sharing cheesy ghost stories and recounting their "life experiences," mimicking adult conversations.

The campfire flickered, casting a warm glow on their faces.

The trio of friends, sitting close together, discussed their plans after the camping trip and how they should hang out more often. The conversation flowed seamlessly beneath the twinkling stars, marking the passage of time.

"Hey, I'm going to sleep. Are you guys joining us in the tent?" Lin inquired, sensing a slight unease and loneliness.

"No, sorry... we're going to stay here," Kellic replied. "Just going to stay up a bit longer."

"Alright, have a good night, guys. See you in the morning!" Lin bid them farewell, but a strange feeling settled within him. He turned back, contemplating his new friends before heading to the tent.

"I'll be joining you soon, man!" Kellic whispered back to Lin, his words carrying a deeper meaning.

The dream gently transitioned into a warm, comforting haze, enveloping them all.

Lin embraced the sensation as the dream shifted, becoming more surreal and dreamlike, allowing his memories to flow along the gentle path.

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