Episode 3: A Strange Night

The night wind blew stronger, rustling through the tree branches. The streetlights, usually bright, flickered weakly before going out completely, leaving creeping shadows stretching along the roads. Jakarta, normally bustling, now felt like a ghost town.

Inside their respective homes, Aisyah, Delisha, Gathan, Jasmine, Abib, Arka, Nafisah, Nizam, Azzam, Queensha, Seno, and Sagena all felt something strange.

Aisyah sat at her desk, staring at the flickering bedroom lamp. She bit her lower lip before standing up and slowly walking toward the window. The night sky was darker than usual, almost like an endless abyss. The streets outside were eerily quiet—no sound of vehicles, no human voices.

"Why is it so quiet? This is Jakarta... there should still be honking, the sound of motorbikes..." she thought.

Her heart pounded faster. She grabbed her phone and tried calling Delisha, but all she heard was a disconnected tone.

"No signal?" she murmured.

In her room, Delisha stared at her phone screen, which displayed Call Failed. She nervously bit her thumbnail, an old habit when she was anxious.

"This is so weird... The signal here is usually strong," she muttered.

She glanced toward the window. The white curtains fluttered slightly as a breeze slipped through the gap. The night felt colder than usual. She pulled her blanket tighter, trying to ignore the unease creeping into her chest.

Jasmine, sitting in her art-filled room, felt a strange disturbance in her mind. She gazed at the window with a puzzled expression.

"Why is it so dark outside?" she whispered.

Her hand reached for a paintbrush, twirling it absentmindedly in the air. Usually, painting helped calm her, but tonight, something felt off.

Suddenly, a CREAK came from the window.

Jasmine flinched, her eyes widening. She turned quickly, seeing the window tremble as if something was trying to open it.

"Hello?" she called out, barely audible.

No response.

In a quiet dojo, Abib stood in the middle of the room, his eyes locked on the slightly open door. The night breeze drifted in, carrying an unusual scent—a faint metallic odor, like blood.

He frowned and cautiously approached the door.

"Is this just my imagination... or is something really out there?" he wondered.

A distant rumbling echoed. He felt a subtle vibration on the dojo floor.

"What is that?" he murmured.

Arka, usually absorbed in his gadgets, now stared at the black screen of his computer. He tried turning it back on, but nothing happened.

"Don't tell me there's a blackout," he groaned, drumming his fingers on the desk.

Just then, his laptop screen flickered on by itself. But instead of the usual startup, it displayed a white static screen with trembling black lines.

His heart sank.

"What the hell?"

Suddenly, the screen showed a blurry image—a tall shadowy figure with empty white eyes standing on an empty street, facing his house directly.

Nafisah, who had been watching the news, suddenly saw the broadcast cut off. The screen turned black, followed by red text appearing:

"Do not leave your house."

Her eyes widened.

"What the hell is this?"

Her hands gripped the edge of the table, body frozen. She turned toward the window, and at that moment, she felt an overwhelming sense of being watched from the darkness outside.

Nizam and Azzam, sharing a room, sat quietly on their beds. Both sensed something was wrong.

"Did you hear that?" Nizam whispered.

Azzam nodded. "It sounds like... something really big is walking outside..."

They exchanged nervous glances. Then, suddenly, a deep, thunderous noise echoed—closer than before.

DUMM... DUMM... DUMM...

Their window glass shook violently.

"Shit, Nizam, we need to hide!" Azzam yanked the blanket over himself while Nizam peeked through the curtain.

Outside, something massive moved in the distance. Its silhouette was unclear, but its towering figure was far too large to be human.

Queensha, Seno, and Sagena still couldn't shake off the strange encounter from earlier.

Queensha sat on her bed, still wearing her outdoor clothes, as if ready to run at any moment.

"What was that sound back there? Why did it feel like something was following us?"

Seno lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling, unable to close his eyes. Fear crept into his chest, no matter how much he tried to ignore it.

Sagena sat at the edge of his bed, tapping his fingers on his knee. He couldn't shake off the nagging feeling that something was terribly wrong.

Then, the sound came again.

CREAK... CREAK...

Heavy footsteps outside each of their homes.

They held their breath.

At that very moment, all of them heard the same thing.

The footsteps grew closer.

Then...

Tok... tok... tok...

A knock on the door.

That night, Jakarta felt more terrifying than ever.

The once silent and eerie night was suddenly shattered by a distant rumble. At first, it was faint, like thunder whispering behind the clouds, but it grew louder, as if something massive was creeping toward the city.

Across Jakarta, teenagers awoke from their sleep—confused, alert, and filled with an unexplainable fear.

In Aisyah's Room

Aisyah sat up in bed, her heart pounding erratically. Her hand fumbled for her phone on the nightstand, hoping for a response from Delisha. Each unanswered ring only made her more anxious.

"Pick up, Delisha… pick up," she murmured, her voice barely a whisper.

Suddenly, the call connected.

"Aisyah?" Delisha's voice came through, slightly breathless.

"Do you hear that sound?" Aisyah asked quickly, standing up and walking toward the window.

"Yeah… I don't know what it is, but it's giving me chills."

Aisyah peered outside. Normally, from her window, she could see the flickering lights of distant cars. But tonight, everything was pitch black. As if the city had lost its soul.

"Del, this is weird… The streets are empty, but Jakarta should still be busy at this hour."

Before Delisha could respond, the rumbling grew louder, causing the window glass to tremble. The call suddenly disconnected.

"Del? Delisha?! Damn it!" Aisyah looked at her phone—no signal.

Then—BLAM! The power went out.

Aisyah flinched, her chest rising and falling rapidly. The dimly lit room was now completely engulfed in darkness. Only the sound of her own breathing and the distant rumble remained.

It felt like something enormous was approaching.

In Delisha's Room

Delisha sat frozen on her bed, staring at her phone screen, which now displayed a dropped call message.

"No signal… God, what's happening?" she whispered.

Outside, the wind howled. Her white curtains fluttered wildly, creating the illusion that something was peering in from the outside.

Click.

Her heart nearly leaped out of her chest. That was the sound of her bedroom door handle moving slightly.

"Mom?" she called out, her voice trembling.

No response.

Holding her breath, Delisha slid off the bed, cautiously approaching the door. She pressed her ear against the wooden surface—silence. But her instincts screamed that something was on the other side.

Just as she reached for the door handle—

BOOM!

A deafening noise erupted from outside her house. Delisha stumbled back, hitting her desk. Posters on the wall trembled, some falling to the floor.

"What was that?!" she gasped, her eyes widening.

Her heartbeat pounded so hard she could almost hear it. She knew, whatever it was… it wasn't normal.

At Gathan's House

Gathan's eyes snapped open, his heartbeat racing. He had just fallen asleep when the rumbling had startled him awake.

Sitting up, he pulled back his window curtains and gazed outside.

But all he saw was darkness.

"The streetlights are out too? Something's really wrong…" he muttered.

Then, a faint shadow flickered at the far end of the street.

He squinted. Was it a person? Or just an illusion from sleep deprivation?

Slowly backing away from the window, his hand searched for his phone on the desk. But when he turned it on, only a black screen appeared.

"Dead too?"

At that moment, the rumbling grew louder—and now, it wasn't just a sound.

The ground beneath him trembled.

At Abib's Dojo

Abib stood in the center of the dojo, his sharp gaze fixed on the slightly open sliding door. Outside, the wind blew fiercely, carrying the intensifying rumble.

His fists clenched, ready for anything that might enter.

Then, footsteps echoed outside.

"Who's there?" he called out, his voice deep and alert.

No answer.

Abib stepped closer to the door, peering outside.

The street was empty. No one was there.

But just as he was about to close the door, something moved in the corner of his eye.

A tall shadow.

Too tall for a normal human.

Abib froze. His breath hitched.

In Nafisah's Room

Nafisah bit her lower lip, trying to calm herself. The news broadcast she was watching had abruptly cut off before the electricity went out entirely.

Outside, the night wind whistled eerily. She hugged herself, feeling an unusual cold creeping over her skin.

Then, something caught her eye.

In the distance, across the street… the lights of the houses flickered strangely. Like a pattern… like a signal.

"A code?" she whispered.

But who was sending a signal at a time like this?

And… who was it meant for?

Across the City

The rumbling was no longer just a sound.

The ground began to shake.

Floors vibrated softly at first, then more violently. Doors creaked. Windows rattled.

These teenagers, who had been separated by their own lives, now shared one thing in common: fear.

They didn't know what was coming.

They only knew one thing—

Tonight was not an ordinary night.