Chapter 3: The Day It Happen

Kai zipped up his suitcase, taking a final glance around the room. It was strange—he'd waited so long for this moment, for his chance to leave, but now that it was here, a sense of hesitation lingered. He shook it off. It was time to go.

Grabbing his bag, Kai walked downstairs, the house silent except for the hum of the fridge and the soft creak of the floor beneath his feet. His father was sitting in the living room, cigarette in hand, eyes fixed on the TV. Kai stood there for a moment, waiting—hoping, maybe—that his father would acknowledge him. Say something, anything. But the silence stretched.

"Dad... I'm leaving now," Kai said, his voice quieter than he'd intended.

His father didn't turn around. Didn't even grunt in response. The indifference hit harder than any of the shouting had ever done.

Kai hesitated at the door, casting a glance back at his father's unmoving figure. No goodbye. No words. Nothing. Just as it always had been.

With a sigh, he stepped out of the house, closing the door behind him. The air felt heavy, and for a brief moment, Kai wondered if leaving was really the right thing. But he'd made up his mind. There was no going back.

Outside, his friend Hakim waited by the car, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. Kai smiled to himself—Hakim was always there when he needed him. He didn't ask for much in return, but Kai had always made sure to help him out whenever he could.

"Thanks for this," Kai said, throwing his bag into the backseat. "I owe you one."

Hakim waved it off, a grin on his face. "Nah, man. You've helped me out plenty of times. Besides, I'm just glad you're finally getting out of that house. You've earned it."

Kai settled into the passenger seat, feeling a sense of relief wash over him. At least someone cared enough to say goodbye.

As they drove, the streetlights flickered faintly. Kai glanced out the window, watching as the familiar streets of his neighbourhood passed by in a blur. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was off—like the world itself was holding its breath.

The airport was eerily quiet when they arrived. Too quiet. The usual bustle of travellers and announcements over the intercom was muted, almost like the building itself was waiting for something. Kai checked his watch—plenty of time before his flight.

"Looks like you're the only one here, man," Hakim joked, though his voice lacked the usual lightness.

Kai chuckled but couldn't shake the unease settling in his chest. "Yeah... thanks again, Hakim. Really."

Hakim gave him a slap on the back. "Don't worry about it. Safe flight, alright?"

As Hakim drove off, Kai found himself standing alone at the entrance, bag in hand. The feeling of anticipation buzzed in the air, like static before a storm. Something was coming, but he didn't know what.

The waiting area was sparse. Only a handful of passengers sat scattered around the seats, their faces tense, eyes darting to the clock. There was a palpable sense of unease, as if everyone knew something wasn't quite right but couldn't put their finger on it. Kai scanned the room—nothing outwardly wrong, but the quietness, the way people shifted in their seats... it was unsettling.

He double-checked his ticket. Everything's in order. He was prepared for this—prepared for anything. But the feeling gnawed at him, a tiny voice in the back of his mind whispering that maybe, just maybe, something wasn't going to go as planned.

After the long wait, our flight arrives and it was our turn to board it. The airport is filled with silence as we are the only passenger left.

We quickly lined up and went inside one by one with no problem whatsoever. There are only a few dozen of us so it was a quick process indeed. Boarding was smooth. Almost too smooth. The airport had been quiet, but now the silence felt oppressive. Even as he stepped onto the plane, greeted by the flight attendants' polite smiles, the atmosphere seemed heavy.

Kai found his seat, stowed his bag, and settled in by the window. He looked out at the sky—dark, clear, and wide open. The moon hung low, casting an eerie glow over the tarmac. Kai had always liked flying at night; it was peaceful, calming.

"Feels like the calm before the storm," he muttered under his breath with a slight chuckle, but the words felt heavier than they should.

As the plane began to taxi down the runway, Kai leaned his head back, closing his eyes. Just a few hours, and he'd be in Sabah, starting his new life. Finally free. No more stress. No more yelling. The gentle hum of the engines lulled him into a light sleep.

RUMBLE

Kai jolted awake. The plane shook violently, and the cabin lights flickered. For a moment, he thought it was just turbulence, but then the thunder cracked, loud and close—too close.

The flight attendants rushed down the aisle, their calm façade cracking as they struggled to maintain order. People were yelling now, panic spreading through the cabin like wildfire.

"Attention all passengers, please remain seated and fasten your seatbelts. We're experiencing unexpected turbulence due to a storm front—"

FLASH—A bolt of lightning illuminated the sky outside Kai's window, followed by another deafening rumble of thunder. The storm wasn't normal.

Kai gripped the armrest, heart pounding. He had been ready for anything, or so he thought. But this... this was chaos. The plane lurched again, and he heard someone scream from the back. Oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling, dangling in front of terrified passengers.

"This is insane!" a man a few rows ahead yelled. "We're gonna die!"

Kai fumbled for his mask, pulling it over his face. His mind raced. How did this storm come out of nowhere? The flight had been smooth, the sky clear just moments ago.

The plane lurched violently to the side, and for a heart-stopping moment, it felt like the entire cabin was being ripped apart. The shrill sound of metal groaning under pressure filled the air, followed by a loud crack that reverberated through the fuselage. Overhead bins flew open, spilling luggage into the aisle as passengers screamed, their voices rising into a cacophony of panic.

FLASH

Another bolt of lightning lit up the cabin, casting long shadows and turning terrified faces into pale masks of fear. Kai could barely make out the people around him—the flight attendants frantically running to secure loose objects, passengers gripping their armrests, knuckles white with tension. The entire plane was shaking so hard it felt like it would tear apart at the seams.

"Put on your oxygen masks!" a flight attendant shouted, her voice barely audible over the roaring wind outside. The plane felt like it was being tossed around like a toy, buffeted by winds that seemed to come from every direction at once.

Kai grabbed his mask, his breath coming in short, shallow bursts. Around him, the chaos seemed to blur, but his senses sharpened. This wasn't normal. The storm, the lightning, the way everything was spiraling out of control—it felt like something was targeting the plane, pulling it into the eye of the storm.

The cabin plunged into darkness for a moment, followed by flickering emergency lights that barely held back the overwhelming sense of doom. The air was thick with the smell of fear, sweat, and burnt metal.

BOOM—The sound of an explosion from the rear of the plane echoed through the cabin. A woman's scream cut through the air as the tail of the plane ripped away, exposing the back rows to the swirling storm outside. The suction was immediate—papers, bags, and even a few loose seat cushions were sucked out into the night, disappearing into the violent wind.

"Oh my God, we're going to die!" someone yelled. Panic spread like wildfire. People were unbuckling their seatbelts, running toward the front of the plane, clawing at the seats in desperation. A child cried out for their mother, but the sound was lost in the chaos.

Kai pressed himself against his seat, instinctively trying to make himself smaller as the madness unfolded around him. He clung to the armrests, knuckles aching, trying to stay grounded in the overwhelming horror that was unfolding. The air was cold, freezing, and it cut through his clothes like knives.

THUNK—An overhead bin slammed down, nearly hitting a man a few rows ahead. The oxygen masks dangled uselessly as the pressure dropped. People struggled to breathe, their eyes wide with terror as the cabin continued to shake violently. The pilot's voice came over the intercom, but it was garbled, barely intelligible above the chaos. Something about bracing for impact. But there was no impact to brace for—just the slow, inevitable disintegration of the plane.

Kai looked out the window again, and through the chaos, he saw it—the moon and the sun, hanging impossibly in the same sky. The light from both celestial bodies flooded through his window, casting a strange glow over his face. It was like time slowed for just a moment, everything around him fading into the background. The storm raged on, the wind howled, but in this brief second, it felt like he was the only one in the world.

His skin tingled again, that same strange feeling from earlier—but stronger this time. The light from the moon seemed to pulse, and his heart raced as if it were responding to something he couldn't see. He blinked, his mind struggling to understand what was happening. This wasn't normal.

And then, another flash of light—this time from the sun. It hit him like a wave, washing over him with warmth that contradicted the freezing cold inside the cabin. For a brief moment, everything seemed to stop—the wind, the shaking, even the screams faded into the distance. Kai felt as if he were being pulled into something—a force he couldn't explain.

It was just him. The light didn't seem to touch anyone else.

The plane groaned, the metal frame twisting and buckling under the pressure. Kai could see the cracks forming in the walls, feel the vibration beneath his feet as the floor threatened to give way. The storm outside had become a swirling vortex of clouds and lightning, and the plane was right in the center of it.

CRACK—The sound of the wing breaking off sent a wave of shock through the cabin. The plane tilted violently, throwing passengers and debris into the air like ragdolls. Kai's body slammed against the side of his seat, the belt digging into his waist as he struggled to keep from being thrown into the aisle.

More screams. More chaos. People were being flung from their seats, crashing into the walls, into each other. The lights flickered once more and then went out entirely. Total darkness enveloped the cabin, broken only by the occasional flash of lightning.

Kai's breath came in short gasps, his mind spinning as he tried to make sense of what was happening. How was he still alive? Around him, the devastation was complete. He could hear the snapping of seatbelts, the sound of metal being torn apart, the desperate cries of passengers.

BOOM—Another explosion, and this time, the entire left side of the plane tore away, exposing the passengers to the storm outside. The wind howled through the cabin, freezing and violent. People screamed as they were pulled from their seats, sucked into the void. Kai watched in horror as bodies disappeared into the night, swallowed by the storm.

But he was still here. The light from the moon and sun still bathed him in that strange, protective glow, shielding him from the worst of the storm.

It was almost like the storm was avoiding him, as if some invisible force was keeping him tethered to his seat while everything else was ripped apart. His heart raced as the realization hit him: this storm, this chaos—it was meant for him. The moon and sun weren't just bystanders in the disaster. They were part of it. He had been chosen, somehow, by forces he didn't understand.

FLASH—Another bolt of lightning, but this one seemed to arch toward Kai's window, striking just outside. The electricity surged through the plane, and for a moment, Kai felt a strange surge of energy pulse through his body. It wasn't painful—just... powerful. Like he was being filled with something beyond himself.

He looked down at his hands, which seemed to glow faintly in the dim light of the cabin. What was happening to him?

The plane was barely holding together now. With each passing second, another section of the fuselage gave way. Kai could feel the entire structure of the aircraft disintegrating beneath him. The wind was deafening, the cold biting into his skin, but even in the chaos, he felt a strange calm settle over him.

THUNK—The plane tilted one last time, the nose pointing straight down. In the distance, Kai could see the ground rushing toward them, but instead of fear, all he felt was clarity.

This wasn't the end. Something else was waiting for him.

As the plane fell, Kai heard the voice again—calm, soothing, like it had been there all along, waiting for him to hear it.

"Congratulations, Kai. You are the chosen bearer of the sun and moon."

The plane plunged into darkness, but as it did, the world around him shattered. Through the cracks in reality, Kai could see glimpses of something else—a new world, strange and unfamiliar, forming in the distance. The storm wasn't the end. It was the beginning.

BOOM—The final impact never came. Instead, everything went silent. Everything except for that one, lingering thought:

A new world is coming.