Chapter 4

  Ash’s breath echoed in the silent hallways, each exhalation a jagged, desperate rasp. His heart pounded in his chest, the rhythm of panic reverberating through his limbs, urging him to run, to escape. But his legs felt like lead, each step heavier than the last, his body unwilling to obey his frantic mind. The oppressive darkness of the corridor seemed to close in around him, swallowing him whole as the faint flickers of distant lights provided little comfort in the vast, empty space.

  The world felt distorted—bent out of shape—like an illusion made real. His thoughts scattered, moving in frenzied circles, too fast to hold onto, too erratic to make sense of. There had been no choice but to leave the relative safety of the classroom, no choice but to see if there was some way to find a way out. But now... now he was paying for it.

  A soft thudding sound came from behind him, rhythmic, growing louder, faster—closer.

  Ash’s stomach turned, a cold wave of dread washing over him, his body freezing in place. He didn’t need to look. He could feel it. Something... someone was coming. The unmistakable sensation of a predator on his heels.

  The monster. The thing that haunted his every thought.

  He had seen the way it moved before. The primal grace, the inhuman speed. The predatory drive that propelled it forward. Something so far beyond human capability that the laws of nature themselves seemed to bend. It shouldn’t have been possible, but there it was. Closer now.

  Ash’s mind raced, but it was too late to formulate a plan. Panic swelled like a tidal wave, swallowing him whole. His breath came in jagged gasps as he spun around, forcing his legs to move again. Run. Run. RUN!

  But the hallway seemed to stretch on endlessly, its walls closing in like a vice. His muscles burned from the effort, the exhaustion starting to catch up to him, but still, he ran—too afraid to stop. The pounding of his heart, the sound of his feet hitting the floor—it all blended into one horrid cacophony. Behind him, the monster's footsteps were a grim reminder of the imminent danger.

  Then, without warning, a sharp burst of movement.

  The monster reached him.

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  Time seemed to slow as Ash felt something brush against his shoulder—a breath, a whisper of movement. He turned, but all he could see were those eyes. Those red eyes—glowing with malevolent hunger. There was no mercy in them, only cold, calculating predatory intent. Those eyes weren’t just looking at him; they were looking through him, into the very core of his being. It was as if the monster knew him, understood him. And it was terrifying in its familiarity.

  Ash’s legs buckled beneath him, his body faltering under the weight of his own fear. A strangled cry left his lips, but it was too late. His vision blurred, and the next thing he knew, he was falling—a deep, sickening descent into darkness. The last thing he saw before the world went black was the figure of the monster, looming over him like a twisted deity, its face framed by the crimson glow of its unearthly gaze.

  ---

  When Ash opened his eyes again, he was back in the classroom. The stillness hit him first—its cold, suffocating silence pressing down on his chest, making it hard to breathe. His heart pounded in his ears, not from fear of the monster, but from the panic of his own disorientation. His body was stiff, his clothes damp with the sweat of a nightmare that was still clinging to him.

  “So it was a nightmare”

  The world felt real again, but it was a strange, uncanny realness. His head throbbed, as though the remnants of that dread had followed him back into this reality. He couldn’t shake the lingering sensation of those eyes. Had it been real?

  He glanced around.

  The classroom was dimly lit by the faint glow of streetlights outside, casting long shadows across the room. His classmates were scattered about, some sleeping in their seats, others huddled together, whispering in low tones. Despite the relative quiet, the air was thick with tension, suffocating in its oppressive weight.

  Who could sleep soundly in the middle of an apocalypse?

  Mia, the class rep, was leaning against the wall by the window, her eyes wide and unblinking, scanning the horizon outside as though waiting for the next disaster to unfold. Ben, the ever-impulsive one, sat in a corner, tapping restlessly at his phone, though it was clear he wasn’t actually looking for anything—just trying to fill the empty silence with something, anything. Tony and the others were curled up in their seats, trying to sleep, but it was obvious that none of them had found any true peace. Not here. Not now.

  Ash ran a hand through his hair, shaking off the lingering disorientation. It was just a dream, he thought. Just a dream.

  But even as the words formed in his mind, he knew they weren’t true. The sensation of the monster’s presence—the way it felt like he was trapped in its gaze, like his soul itself had been seen and measured—was far too vivid to simply be a dream. No, it had been something far darker. Something real.

  He rubbed his face, trying to push the thought away. There were more immediate things to worry about. The food situation, the growing sense of hopelessness, the uncertainty of survival. But in the back of his mind, that red gaze burned through him. And it made him wonder: How long before that thing finds its way back to this room?

  His eyes flicked over to his friends. Ben was still muttering something under his breath, his hands jittering nervously as though he couldn’t quite stop moving. Tony and the others—still, they were all too quiet. Too withdrawn. And Mia, the ever-competent leader, looked like she was holding onto something inside herself, just barely keeping it together. There was no room for vulnerability here. Not now.

  No one could truly rest. No one could escape the fear, the uncertainty that clung to the air like smoke.

  Ash felt the weight of the room pressing on him, suffocating him, and for a moment, it felt like the walls were closing in. He didn’t know how much longer they could go on like this. How long until we snap?

  He closed his eyes, forcing himself to breathe deeply. Tomorrow will come. And when it did, they would have to face it all over again. The monsters, the hunger, the madness of this world. There was no going back.

  For now, though, he needed to rest. He needed to prepare. Because whatever came next,

  Ash knew one thing: the real fight was just beginning.