Walking to school what could go wrong?

Ring Ring Ring

Slam!

"Arguh."

From the bed, a teenager no older than 15 was seen waking up.

Alex dragged himself out of bed, his skinny frame shivering in the morning air. In the bathroom mirror, a mess of dirty blonde hair fell over his blue eyes. He ran his fingers through it half-heartedly—'good enough for school, at least.'

Walking down the stairs, he then spots his mother making breakfast.

"Morning, Mom."

"Morning, sweetie. Breakfast will be ready in a couple of minutes."

"Thanks, Mom."

Sitting down at the table, Alex looks at the TV, which has the local news on.

"Breaking news: Another body discovered in Benton Harbor this morning marks the fifth victim in two months. Despite police assurances, residents question their safety as the killer remains—"

Click

The TV then suddenly turns off.

'Another one? Really. I swear Mom said this town was safe.' Alex thinks while turning to his mom.

"No need to watch news like that this morning. Here, enjoy. I made eggs and ham just as you like." Alex's mother hands over the plate.

"Thank you."

Nodding, Alex's mom eats her own breakfast.

"Any plans after school?" His mom asked, sliding a plate of eggs in front of him. Alex perked up. "Yeah, heading to Randy's. He finally got that PS5 he's been bragging about."

"Well, tell Randy I said hi, and do be a good sport and come back around 6:30. Your father should be home by then."

"Okay, I will."

Finishing his plate, Alex puts it into the sink and then heads off to the door, grabbing his school bag.

"Bye, Mom." Alex tries to leave quickly, however.

"Wait! Give me a hug first."

"Mom!"

"Oh, don't be shy."

Taking Alex into a big hug, Alex's mother smothers him in her love.

"Okay, I'm happy now. You go ahead and have a good day. Love you, sweetie."

"Love you too, Mom."

Walking along the sidewalk to school, Alex reaches the city park. Standing just outside the gate, two boys can be seen.

"There you are. We've been waiting ages for you." A fellow teenager wearing glasses and having rather long hair for a boy teases.

"Oh yeah? Cause you really want to make it to Small's class, huh?"

"Now, now. I didn't say anything about that, did I?" Randy defends himself, smiling.

"I, for one, like Small's class. Her work is the easiest." The other teenager, who was rather tall for a 15-year-old, commented.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out his phone.

"Besides, Randy's right. You're 5 minutes late today."

"Tch. That's just because you're here so early."

"Not my fault my dad thinks when he has to go to work, I have to go to school too." Max scoffs.

Randy, having enough, interrupts. "Shut it, both of you. If we don't get going, we're going to be late."

"Fine, fine. Lead the way."

Walking down to school, the three boys argue and banter with one another, just like any other day.

However, today is not like any other day. No, today was the day of the Autumnal Equinox, a day to begin the reign of fall.

Not much is celebrated on the Autumnal Equinox, but hey, it's a day that you should know about, especially since from now on, the whole world will learn to fear the fateful day.

As the teenagers were walking to school, all was swell and great, except unknown to them, the world they knew was slowly changing.

The trees shed their leaves like they were racing winter, shadows stretching where sunshine should have been. A cold fog crept along the ground, curling around their ankles. Alex shivered, goosebumps rising on his arms. 'Should've grabbed a jacket,' he thought, but something told him this wasn't normal autumn chill.

"Yo guys, isn't it kind of dark all of a sudden?" Randy, looking around, acknowledges.

"Yeah, now that you mention it, it does," Max tells.

"Kind of freaky, no?" Randy jokes lightly.

'Kind of? No, it's really strange and makes no sense.'

Alex, not sure of what is going on, ponders. "Is there a solar eclipse happening today or something?"

"No, nothing that I know of," Randy tells.

"Well, it has to be something, right?" Max, whose hair on his arms is standing up as if his body was telling him something is wrong.

Slowly walking deeper onto the path that they take to school, the boys, on high alert, take note of the surroundings.

The trees, once full of life, are now hollow and lack the warmth they once gave. Now they are nothing more than husks of their former selves.

The light that radiated the air was now dark, with all that was left being the light from the streetlights.

The sounds of the once bustling city were no longer around; all that was left was the echoes of the night.

As they continue walking down the sidewalk, the sense that something wasn't right keeps growing in the back of their minds.

RUN

The hairs of everyone standing up high and alert. The strength in their legs vanishing like thin air, a knot growing large in the pit of their stomachs.

'Why can't I move?' Looking down, Alex sees his legs shaking in fright.

RUN

Rolling down the back of their heads, a cold sweat hits the spines, sending signals along their nervous systems.

'Move, damn it!'

RUN

A scraping sound echoed from the alley—like nails on concrete. Alex's breath caught in his throat as something emerged. At first, it looked almost human-shaped, if humans had arms that hung past their knees and stood twice as tall as streetlights. The thing unfolded itself, vertebrae crackling as it straightened, and Alex's mind screamed that this wasn't possible, couldn't be real.

'RUN! YOU NEED TO RUN, ALEX, RUN!'

RUN

Turning out the corner, the demon looks at the boys. Its face, one that looks humanoid, has a tear from where the mouth should be. The tear leading down to the chest of the demon.

RUN

The bone-chilling feeling permeating into the atmosphere like a hand wrapping along your neck. Breathing no longer a choice but a privilege taken by the demon.

RUN

Slowly, the mouth of the demon opens, showing a wide range of teeth, each sharper than the rest. As if smiling, the demon crooks its head to the side, glaring.

RUN

The creature's jaw unhinged, splitting its face in a way no mouth should move. The roar that followed wasn't just sound—it was pure wrongness given voice, rattling Alex's bones and shocking his frozen muscles into action. "RUN!" The word tore from his throat before his brain could catch up. His feet were already moving, sneakers pounding against pavement as survival instinct took over.

As they bolted down the street, their feet pounding the pavement, the demon's roar echoes behind them like a beaten drum.

Following the path they originally took, the trees once still and hollow seem to grow in the darkness, reaching out, trying to grab them.

Randy, not expecting the tree to reach out, almost clothes-lines himself.

"What is happening!" In a panic, Randy, trying to understand what is happening, yells in fright.

"I don't know! Just run!" Max yells back.

Thump

Thump

Thump

Alex's heart thunders under his rib cage as if it itself was trying to escape the demon. His breath becomes short and ragged gasps, as the cold air burns his lungs.

'Where, where do we go.' Alex, trying to come up with an idea to survive, questions where to go. 'Police station? No, too far. The Fire Station? Yes, that's close!'

"Guys, run to the fire station!" Alex yells.

"Got it!" Max, who is leading them, turns down the street towards the station.

Except, instead of the station being in view, laying in the middle of the street is a large corpse that makes the demon following them look small.

Through the chaos, Alex spotted something impossible—a woman perched on what looked like a throne of shadows, one leg crossed elegantly over the other as if she were at a café rather than sitting atop a monster's corpse. She rose with liquid grace, her movement too smooth to be natural. The throne dissolved at her gesture, darkness flowing back to her hand like it was being poured in reverse.

Her dark purple hair cascades just past her shoulders, crowned by a small witch hat with no brim. She is wearing a short cloak that accentuates her frame. Her red eyes beam across the street, staring daggers at the boys.

Reaching to the side of her waist, she pulls out a silver short sword that gleams in the dark. Its silver valor shines as the lady takes her steps down from the corpse.

Touching the emblem placed upon her modest chest, it glows a light blue softly. Jumping from the corpse, the lady floats in the air like an angel coming down from heaven.

Her hair fluttering in the wind and cloak flapping makes her look like a vixen of the night. A charming allure radiates from the lady like one beckoning for attention.

'So pretty...' Lost in the charm of the lady, the boys, like moths to the flame, are helpless in watching as the vixen floats down.

So lost that the boys even forget about the demon riding on their tail. However, unlike them, the demon seems to be able to resist the tempting offer of the vixen.

Roaring in pain, the demon lunges at the vixen in desperation. Its claws swipe through the air with great speed.

CLANK

Smashing into the silvery sword, the demon's claws seemingly stop before any real damage could occur. Its once vibrant and horror-filled eyes now hollow, as if it was a statue.

"Shh, go to sleep, child." From the mouth of the vixen, a soft voice like one from a pampered mother telling you it's time to sleep.

The eyes of the demon fall, and its mouth closes. With a flick of the wrist, the silver sword flashes through the air, cleanly lopping off the head of the demon.

THUD

The head falls to the ground, leaving a trail of dark blood flowing like honey. Sheathing the sword, the Vixen turns to the boys, smiling sensually.

Stepping towards the boys, each step leaking charm, her aura encapsulating them. Standing within arm's reach, the vixen walks around the boys, her natural aura arousing their nostrils.

"It seems to me you aren't slaves of the Behemoth but aren't students of the academy either, hmm." Taking out an orb from a bag, the vixen touches it to the forehead of Max.

The orb pulsed against Max's forehead, its soft blue light stuttering before dulling to an ashen grey. The change was subtle, but the woman's reaction wasn't—her seductive smile vanished, replaced by something sharp and serious that made Alex's stomach drop. Whatever that color meant, it wasn't good.

Double-tapping the emblem on her chest, it lights up white.

"Captain Graves, I need your assistance. I have a possible code day on my hands here." Vespera, the Vixen whose voice lost all charm, turned serious.

Coming over the emblem radio, a rough voice with subtle static echoes. "Location?"

"Sector 7, Court Street."

"On my way." With a soft hum, the emblem stops glowing.