Chapter 3: Aftermath
The first thing Luna registered was the sky—a deep, unnatural violet that made her stomach twist. Then came the sound—distant, muffled, like waves crashing in the distance. Then came the pain, sharp and unrelenting, radiating through her limbs. Her head throbbed, a dull ache settling behind her eyes as consciousness clawed its way back.
The world around her was eerily silent, save for the occasional crackle of fire and the groan of metal settling into the earth. Smoke thickened the air, stinging her throat as she forced herself to move. Something warm and wet trickled down the side of her face—blood, she realized. Her own.
She turned her head, every movement sending a fresh wave of agony through her body. There was no wreckage, no bodies, nothing. The plane was gone, as if it had never existed. Only Luna and Adrian remained, alone in the vast emptiness.
Panic seized her chest as she searched for the only person who mattered. "Adrian!" Her voice was hoarse, barely more than a whisper, but she forced herself to call again. "Adrian!"
A cough. Weak, but there.
Luna dragged herself toward the sound, ignoring the sharp stab of pain in her leg. Through the smoke, she saw him—his face streaked with dirt and blood, his eyes fluttering open. Relief nearly overwhelmed her.
"Luna?" His voice was ragged, but he was alive.
She reached him, gripping his hand. "I'm here. We're okay. We're okay."
But even as she said it, doubt gnawed at her. Because the truth was, they weren't okay. Not yet.
As Luna and Adrian adjusted to their surroundings, the violet sky above seemed kind of beautiful yet terrifying. The strange glow that surrounded them was not just light—it was alive, swirling and shifting like an unseen force watching their every move. The air hummed with an unfamiliar resonance, the very fabric of this world different from anything they had known. At that moment, one thing was unmistakably clear—they were no longer home. They were somewhere unfamiliar, deep in the middle of a dense forest with towering trees stretching endlessly in every direction. The air carried a strange scent, something earthy yet tinged with an unfamiliar sweetness. As Luna took a cautious step forward, Adrian suddenly stiffened.
"Did you hear that?" he whispered, his eyes scanning the trees.
A sound—low, guttural, and unlike anything they had ever heard—echoed through the forest, sending a chill down their spines.