Elias immediately lost interest. You got me hyped up just to read a spam comment?
Even arguing with AustralianNapoleon online would’ve been a better use of time.
Just as he was about to power off his phone, another notification popped up.
[1 New Notification from MiMail]
He tapped it zily, just to clear it off his screen—until a certain detail caught his attention.
<1 New Message from a Hidden Email Address>
Wait, can that even happen?
Elias instantly suspected another scam—or worse: a malware virus. Cyberattacks had been happening more frequently these days.
Just the thought made him panic, and he quickly swiped the notification away.
Hold on… what about my MiMail account?
It was linked to his MiTube channel. His tiny follower count aside, it was something he’d spent years building.
Still reeling from the sudden stress, another problem smacked him in the face.
His phone… shut down.
And he knew it had more than 80% battery left. It had never frozen or crashed before.
A second ter, the screen flickered back on—bright blue this time.
Text appeared, eerily familiar.
[Would you like to be a beta tester for our upcoming version release?]
Elias spped his forehead. I’m screwed.
It was a phone he’d bought back in high school. Back when he had a part-time job—low pay, sure, but still a pay.
This phone was his st little luxury.
Sure, he still had a ptop and an old VR rig for streaming.
But come on…
That setup was over a decade old. It practically belonged in a museum alongside dinosaur bones.
Elias rubbed his temples and closed his eyes.
Maybe he was just imagining it.
He opened them again and stared at the screen.
[Would you like to be a beta tester for our upcoming version release?]
Still there.
“Ah …fu*k. Stupid malware. Stupid phone. Stupid video. Stupid devs.”
He gnced back at the screen again.
[Would you like to be a beta tester for our upcoming version release?]
Still the same?!
Grinding his teeth, Elias seriously considered smashing his phone on the floor. Not like it would make a difference anymore.
But he held back.
Taking deep, steady breaths, he calmed himself.
First, maybe check if the phone’s still under warranty. Maybe. But would they even cover damages from user negligence?
Yeah, no chance. Frustration crept in again.
“Alright, you little prick. You win. How much do you want, huh? I’ll pay cash. But I want to pay you face-to-face. Let’s see the coward hiding behind that screen.”
He’d read somewhere that hackers could even access victims’ front cameras. Maybe this was the best way to get a reaction.
Still—nothing happened.
[Would you like to be a beta tester for our upcoming version release?]
Same message.
This son of a bit*h
Without thinking, Elias hit ‘Yes.’
[Great choice!]
Finally, the message changed.
[You are now our 100th beta tester]
[Beta tester slots are now full]
[New version release begins in 3…]
[2…]
[1…]
Then—his screen went bck. Elias’s eyes went wide with panic.
But—his phone powered back on!
No blue screen.
No weird message.
The first thing he did was swipe left and right, frantically searching for the MiTube icon.
And when he found it and opened it, he exhaled sharply.
It was still there.
His little channel, still intact. All his hundreds of videos, untouched.
Then, carefully, he navigated back to the home screen and looked for the MiMail icon.
Swallowing nervously, he tapped it.
N-No messages?
There was nothing. No trace of a message from any hidden address.
Was that… just a hallucination?
Still dazed and bewildered, Elias suddenly felt a soft tickle—a bck feather nding on his thigh.
At that moment, the world fell silent. No traffic. No neighbors chatting outside. Not even the low hum of his ancient ptop.
The air felt heavier, thicker.
A crow—no idea where it came from—had perched itself on his tiny bed.
Wait a minute.
“A crow…?”
The bird opened its beak. But instead of a caw, a robotic voice came out:
“Final version of Kingdom of Ash is now starting …”
Elias’s head spun. His vision blurred.
*#*
Elias couldn’t even remember falling asleep.
Or if he had ever truly woken up to begin with before this.
Everything felt off.
Malware. Beta test. Crow.
He tapped his temples. This is what I get for drinking before bed.
His head spun as he sat up.
He stumbled over to the window, pulled back the curtain—and was greeted by a sight even stranger than before.
He froze for a few seconds, swallowed hard, and gnced at the wall clock.
It was… still 12 p.m., wasn’t it?
Then why was the sky outside glowing a deep blood red?
M-maybe it’s just overcadt
Maybe it was some kind of atmospheric event. Something scientific—refraction, or whatever.
Elias knew exactly what could ground him in a moment like this.
His usual post-nap routine: checking social media.
A few funny banter clips and meme posts immediately popped up on his feed.
A smile tugged at the corners of his lips.
Until he scrolled down further.
One of his friends had shared a video with a loud, dramatic caption:
[...is this God’s wrath? Is the end of days upon us?]
Curious, Elias clicked it. The video sted three minutes.
The same red sky appeared on the screen—identical to what he’d just seen. And then, something even weirder showed up.
A pnkton.
The tiny kind. Microorganisms invisible to the naked eye.
Now imagine those things blown up. Not just a little—massive. As tall as half a grown adult.
And the worst part? They had human-like bodies. Arms. Legs. Muscle.
The ‘pnkton-man’ casually strolled past the camera.
What the heck?
Some kind of camera filter?
But this friend wasn’t a content creator. Not a prankster. Just a regur online buddy with a stable real-world life.
And suddenly posting something like this?
As expected, the comments were full of rage.
[Nice try, fraud.]
[Your editing sucks worse than a middle school project.]
[Quit the internet and go touch grass, you clown.]
Elias couldn’t be bothered to read the rest (though, honestly, he agreed with a few). He backed out of the video.
And kept scrolling.
Only to find more and more clips with the same eerie vibe.
Out of his 120 online friends, nearly all were posting about it.
Red skies. Humanoid pnkton. End-of-the-world chaos.
Is this some kind of new trend or something?
Then, a video from a verified local news account appeared.
“...the global red sky phenomenon has triggered widespread panic. Hysterical citizens are flooding the streets in search of safety. There’s been no official word from the governent. Until further notice, please remain indoors and keep your loved ones close.”
Elias swallowed. W-wait… this is real?
Knock! Knock!
A sudden, strange knock.
And Elias might’ve brushed it off—if it had come from the door.
But it came from the window.
Which was on the fifth floor.
And there was no balcony outside.
M-maybe some kids were messing around, throwing rocks
Or maybe a drone crashed.
His brain scrambled to make sense of it—each theory more ridiculous than the st.
But still, he forced himself to stand and look.
And came face to face with a pnkton.
A giant, humanoid pnkton.