Chapter 2: Labyrinth, Eclipse, part 1

_ Yesssss- said Sharon screaming, both kiss for a long time, until the darkness takes them by surprise, they stop kissing, but Sharon, who has a master's degree in Astrophysics, does not allow her boyfriend to look up- Wait my love! This darkness is because of a solar eclipse, it is very rare! Astronomers had not detected an eclipse for this date.

_ How strange! By chance, do you carry the special glasses to see eclipses?

_ Yes, and to your surprise, I bring two, so we can see the eclipse together.

_ That's my girl! This special day we will be able to enjoy what you love so much, an astronomical event, now that we are engaged.

_ Don't believe it my love, it worries me, there has not been an unpredictable eclipse since science can already detect them.

_ I understand you my love, I am a meteorologist and although we give the weather forecast, there are times when it fails.

_ Okay, let's not waste time and go see it before the moon goes away.

The moon looked red like blood, like crimson cloth, like blood. It didn't look black!

_ Honey, how is it that a solar eclipse where the moon should look black looks red? Besides, it's much redder than the last lunar eclipses!

_ I don't know my love, but... it seems... it's getting very close, it seems like it's getting closer to Earth.

There was confusion everywhere, and also fear, at first, many were excited when they saw how red the moon looked, but many began to faint from fear when they saw that the moon was getting redder and bigger. Time passes, 5 minutes, 1/4 hour, 1/2 hour, an hour, and the eclipse continues!

Several reporters approach Sharon, but Iris was the one who managed to take control of the interview.

_ Good morning, I'm Iris Patterson, here with astrophysicist Sharon Malenfant, sister of the innovative engineer and creator of the Airspace-Wanderer, Jawara Malenfant. Dr. Malenfant, these astronomical phenomena, as we see them, excite more than 95% of the world's population without the need for them to be professionals in Space Sciences or Earth Sciences like you, with your knowledge, intellect and experience, why do you think this phenomenon that has already terrified many is happening?

_ Good morning, thank you Iris for the interview, the truth is, although many or almost everyone believes it, scientists do not know everything, this phenomenon is outside of technicalities and astronomical terminology, no eclipse to date had lasted so long, and well, the minutes continue to pass, the duration time increases and the moon has not yet retired, before continuing, please, for your safety, do not look up, the specialized lenses to see these events are not designed for an event like this.

_ Wait! New information is coming in about the eclipse: There are droughts all over the Earth! Doctor Dellinger, future brother-in-law of Jawara Malenfant, do you think there is any interpretation to these events?

_ Thank you Iris, first of all, heed the warning of my fiancée, Doctor Sharon Malenfant, do not look up, I repeat what my future wife said: scientists do not know everything, in technical terms and meteorological terminology, it may be out of the question, what I can recommend is that please, let all the scientists of the Earth join together and mainly, see what the experts like environmental engineers say about how to produce water, the great advantage we have is that we can still communicate, the media are intact, or at least so that the news reaches, because it would be the first to disappear, since it is a human creation, and ecosystems are not created by man and they are already the first to be affected. If it were something worse, from the first 10 minutes all this would have already happened so please, stay calm, lock yourselves in curfew while the event ends, I don't think the moon can bear it, or, what do you say Sharon?

_ The moon is not Mercury or Venus to withstand so much time in that position, so something would have already happened to the moon, the moon is almost on par with the Earth and the Earth moving a few millimeters forward would burn, and moving a few millimeters back would freeze and the entire human race, flora and fauna will become extinct, and all natural resources, in short, there would be no life, and there is still life. Please, listen to my fiancé and stay calm. The news is running and all humanity knows... look! It's my brother Jawara Malenfant, he can tell us what else to do.

_ Mr. Malenfant, you recently did something innovative, do you think this could be something similar to what you talked about in your graduation speech and your Airspace-Waanderer project?

_ It is really quite a paradox, but what is important now is that you follow the advice of my sister Sharon and my future brother-in-law Joshua: stay calm.

World leaders reassured people with their

speeches, the president of the United States was giving a calming speech to as many people as he could worldwide, the authorities were trying to keep things calm as best as possible and there was a curfew, but the people, now that a large part of the world knew Jawara Malenfant because of the fact that her speech "Life is a journey but sometimes it is a labyrinth" was playing in all the media, but there were many controversies, since the girl who was against her speech and her project made her position viral on social networks, many turned against her, but many others supported her, others remained neutral, etc.

Blossom comes to reassure Jawara.

_ Hello my love, I hope you feel calm, it is not your fault, no one can control something like this. In order to focus on other things, did you know that Joshua and Sharon got engaged today?

_ Oh gosh! I didn't imagine that you would be the one to give me the news, in fact, maybe I should have waited but, I think that now is the time- Jawara takes out an engagement ring- first of all: Blossom, I know that many put too many challenges in our relationship because it's been two years since we formalized our courtship, like questions about why you are not married yet, if you are going to have children, how many, you know, very personal things, even our best friends, but what matters to me is what you and I know why: as far as possible, we wanted to be sure that we would live happily despite each other's imperfections, because compatibility is not how much we look alike, but mutually, how much we know how to face with patience and insight the defects or the things you would tell about the other, and I know that I love you and too much, because I already loved who you are, and I am eager to continue knowing the beauty of your personality, not just your physical beauty, and that's why, Blossom Malenfant- Jawara She kneels down and takes out the ring- will you marry me?

_ Yes! I want to be your wife- Jawara puts the ring on her and they both kiss- it's wonderful to have found someone who loves me as much as I love him. I mean, you. And yes, we are different in too many things, but I still care about what I already know about you, and I love your personality, I love your virtues, I know that many will say, what a lucky girl! She found a very handsome man, brown hair and light blue eyes, but for me, although I don't deny it, physically what I liked about you were your beautiful eyes, that beautiful look, but now that I know you better, now I love you, and that love will be much more real and stronger as I get to know you much more being married...

_ I think that if I hadn't taken these photos, Jawara would kill me- said Yadir, who took a bunch of photos with his camera without them realizing it. - Now in the middle of this strange eclipse, two couples get engaged! Don't go doing it because you assumed it was the end of the world.

_ Oh Yadir! - said Jawara letting out a sigh - I didn't even ask you for these photos, but well, no one understands you.

_ Come on! You know that I love photography, and I would never take inappropriate photos of you or Blossom, I just know that you would want to remember this moment and day when you and Blossom got engaged.

_ The perspective is different, friend- said Blossom- I'm surprised that you're so calm given the situation.

_ Don't believe it, I'm very scared and anxious, but I'm calm because despite the reports of droughts, nothing serious has happened. I'm not a scientist, that's why I'm more worried about knowing why things happen... Wait! Here come the friends.

_ Wally! How good it is to see you, friend- said Jawara

_ Anyway, my girlfriend is coming with me.

_ Here we are- said Jessie, Wally's girlfriend- so much uncertainty scares me, before, we enjoyed these astronomical events a lot, and now, many are even fainting from fear.

_ We have to go!- said Sharon- we urged the others to go to curfew and the authorities have already ordered it.

Everyone went home, Sharon was able to turn on the television to see what was happening in the world, hearing and seeing so much news exhausted her, but she kept watching it. And he saw how people suffered, many even committed suicide just by seeing the possible end of the world.

Jawara's speech continued everywhere, but instead of unifying, it divided. Even though he wanted to unite people, it only caused more and more divisions. No one was prepared for what was coming, not even him.

Sharon continued to observe the eclipse from his house, writing his theories and applying the scientific method, consulting with other experts in using other methods to be able to reach a better conclusion. Everything seemed to indicate that things were going to calm down. The droughts were the only thing that happened. The effects of a drought stopped and only damaged 5% of the ecosystems worldwide. Scientists, agricultural engineers, and agromechanics achieved much more by creating

water, and that is why many ecosystems, which seemed like they were going to die, were saved, they created more things in their knowledge of science, philosophy, creativity, technology, much more were united, it seemed that everything was being unified, as if there were "Peace and Security", far beyond the Olympic Games, beyond unifying races and nationalities through sport, but, was there really peace? Everything was still in the middle of a labyrinth, others protested, others saw it as peace, others clung to their religions, religious leaders, others clung to political leaders, others to their philosophies, and the thing did not stop, human intentions were good, but no one knew what was really coming, something much darker than what humanity had "prepared" something more terrible than what has been seen throughout history, something much more devastating than the deaths and the effects, the consequences of what Hitler did, something more than the extermination of many innocents, something that even the most powerful and brave warrior, was going to make anxiety take over him, and make him lose his sanity.

Sharon got tired of watching the news and her social media, as did Jawara, even social media lovers stopped watching them and cancelled their accounts at all costs, tired and very scared of seeing everything that was happening in the world, the memes ceased to exist, now everyone was talking about very serious things, and those who wanted to make sarcasm out of things and those who said that what they were promoting or what Jawara said in his speech that reached the entire world population was absolutely ridiculous, still had no idea, not even Jawara, of what was coming.

A young man, a year younger than Sharon, named Andrei, who was an internist, saw everything that was happening with his brother Jaidev, who is a great lawyer.

_ Everything seems like it could already be the end - said Andrei. Andrei was in the center of the United States practicing his profession as a doctor in a prestigious hospital in the area of ​​internal medicine. And Jaidev worked in a law firm near the hospital where Andrei was.

_ We can't know- said Jaidev- I only know that I'm worried about Fatima and Denahi (Jaidev and Andrei's siblings). Since Dad and Mom are no longer with us, it seems like Faty and Denahi are complete strangers.

_ I spoke to them one day, individually, they told me that they don't want to be near us because they feel responsible for the death of our parents, and that they don't deserve us to love them, you know, they're our younger siblings and that's why I feel even more responsible to take care of them.

_ They're adults now, Andrei, both are now in college, you and I are already professionals, and don't forget that we have an older sister who passed away, a year older than you... you know that.....

_ Don't mention her name! - exclaimed Andrei furiously.

_ Andrei! What's wrong with you? Why do you mention her as if you hate her? She was very small, just a child when she died.

_ But she died because she disobeyed our father! He told her that she should not be separated from him, and she was easy for him to leave, she let go of his hand and ran away and he tried to catch up with her, and for that reason, he saw in a terrifying way how a car kidnapped her and found her dead body the next day. Of mom and dad, the one who suffered the most from her death was our father!

_ You say that as if our mother had not been hurt by her death, she was also her daughter, her firstborn!

_ Yes, I do not deny it, but she accepted it faster, of course, in quotes, but dad until his death never stopped crying for her, every night he spent crying for her. And mom had to constantly prepare a tea for him so he could rest, even sleeping pills, not even a treatment calmed his pain.

_ Now I understand your feelings better, my brother, your situation is not that you hate Sh... sorry, our sister, you don't hate her, what hurts you is that you saw the unbearable and endless suffering of dad, and it is logical, don't think that I was happy to know that she was no longer there, and I didn't like to see where my dad ended up either, he was my father too and I still suffer a lot from his death.

_ I don't think it hurts you more than his death hurt me! But mainly, I don't think it hurt you more than I did to see him suffer like that, a man doesn't cry for anything.

Jaidev, in his great compassion and great brotherly affection that he felt for Andrei, gave him a strong hug, he understood that he was suffering a lot, and without expecting it, Andrei burst into tears, a cry similar to that of his father, his father, had a very very very deep voice, Andrei also had a deep voice, but softer and more compassionate.

Suddenly, they felt a 4.6 magnitude earthquake and very visible surface cracks could be seen, practically knocking them both to the ground.

_ Holy crap! - Jaidev exclaimed

The eclipse continued, it didn't seem like

The sun was about to stop, the sun was not coming back, the moon was not setting, but Jawara decided to stay calm, now that he was happy that he had made a commitment.

_ There are many responses to your speech - said his friend Alexander

_ There are responses and many have been in your favor but others against you - said Melanie, his friend - but stay calm friend, we trust you, the United States government has taken drastic measures, now, it has authorized that the curfew is no longer necessary, it will be a decision. And our decision is to support you.

_ Thank you, friend, where is Wally?

_ Right here! How could I leave you alone right now? You know, I have had to work hard with the "Truth Walker" to detect the alien presence.

_ You love to invent things, friend - said Jawara - but I do not believe in alien existence.

_ How? - said his friends unanimously.

_ I don't believe in alien existence, I know that in outer space there may be many infinite things that are worth investigating from the scientific field, but I don't believe that alien life exists, I don't believe in the existence of the end of the world, we are simply seeing an astronomical event never seen before, stay calm and you will see that things will turn out well.

_ Things will turn out well? Or so you think? - said Joshua.

_ What do you mean?

_ Look at the world! People are very afraid, so we can't afford to say that a cataclysm will never come, in fact, I think that in one way or another, we have all prepared ourselves, but we have decided to prepare in our own way, to build underground arks like the ones that world leaders built many years ago, and individually we have learned to survive or subsist in our own way, but I don't think it is enough to be confident, we are on the verge of something much bigger, something worse than we could imagine.

_ And how do you know?

_ My brother - said Sharon - I know that you have the makings of a very powerful leader, you were born a natural leader and you became one, but that doesn't mean that you are better prepared than everyone else to face an Apocalypse, this could be the end, of course, not necessarily of the human race, but there is an end of something, but my fiancé is right, there is something much worse, something darker and more sinister than humanity could imagine.

_ Calm down, my sister! I know it's very difficult for you, but you should know that everything is under control, if the world could remain calm....

_ I wouldn't say that! - said Denahi

_ Who are you? - asked Alexander

_ My name is Denahi Winterhall, I have analyzed the world, it is surprising that even incurable social media addicts are already afraid of them because of so much catastrophic news that happens in the world!

_ And thanks to the fact that they abandoned them, they have already regained peace, young Winterhall, nothing happens! - said Jawara with extreme pride, his father was right, letting your ego get too big for what you are would divert you from the best goals despite good intentions - humanity is calming down, and even if the end of the world were to come, we are prepared.

_ That remains to be seen - said Denahi.