Episode 4: Awakened in Fear

The night sky over Jakarta suddenly felt darker than usual. Heavy clouds hung low, covering the city like a shroud of death. The normally warm air now blew cold, seeping into the bones.

Gathan jolted awake, his breath ragged. Cold sweat trickled down his temple despite his body shivering. His heart pounded faster than usual, as if his instincts were trying to warn him that something terrifying was approaching.

"Damn… what is that sound?" he thought, sharpening his hearing.

Outside his window, a low growl echoed faintly, followed by heavy footsteps reverberating in the distance. It felt like something massive was creeping through the city's narrow alleys, lurking in the shadows.

With slightly trembling hands, Gathan reached for his phone. The screen lit up, but there was no signal. He tried calling Aisyah, then Delisha, but the calls immediately dropped.

"No network. Damn it!"

He rubbed his face roughly and took a deep breath. His mind raced, trying to push away the fear creeping into his thoughts.

Elsewhere, Jasmine had also woken up. Her tired eyes stared at the dark ceiling. Silence. Too silent.

She slowly sat up in bed, her heart beating faster than normal. The rumbling noise that had once been faint was now growing louder. It wasn't the sound of rain, nor traffic—something deeper, heavier—something that shouldn't exist in this city.

Cautiously, she walked to the window and peeked through the curtain.

Her eyes widened.

In the distance, under the dim glow of the streetlights, a massive shadow darted between buildings. Its movements were unnatural—too fast for something of that size. Every step it took made the ground tremble slightly.

Jasmine swallowed hard, her body frozen.

"What the hell is that?"

Her hand reached for her phone on the desk, trying to call someone, anyone—but just like Gathan, her network was completely dead.

Screech!

A rough scraping noise outside her window made Jasmine step back in panic. She took a sharp breath, her eyes fixed outside. But all she could see was darkness.

"I need to get out of here."

On the other side of the city, Gathan finally decided to leave his house. He grabbed his black jacket and a small flashlight from the desk. Taking a deep breath, he slowly opened the front door.

The air outside was colder than he expected—almost unnaturally so for a Jakarta night. The streets, usually filled with the hum of traffic, were eerily quiet. Only the wind whispered softly, carrying a strange metallic scent.

Gathan stepped forward, his eyes scanning the surroundings.

Empty. No people. No sounds.

Only the faint growls creeping closer.

In the distance, a loud crash echoed, like something heavy falling from above. Gathan straightened up, trying to pinpoint the source.

Then, from a dark corner of the street, a massive shadow emerged.

His heart dropped.

The figure was as tall as a streetlamp, its shape too distorted to fully comprehend. Glowing red eyes flickered in the darkness, and its long claws scraped against the walls with a sharp screech.

Gathan couldn't move. His throat went dry.

Then, the creature turned its head.

Their eyes met.

Screech!

The creature bolted toward him.

"Shit!" Gathan spun around and ran as fast as he could, his heart hammering wildly.

Elsewhere, Jasmine heard the sound of frantic running outside her house. She peeked through the window and saw someone sprinting under the dim streetlights.

"Gathan?" she whispered, her eyes widening.

She grabbed a sweater and rushed out of her room, carefully opening her front door. But just as she stepped outside—

Bang!

From the end of the street, something leaped at Gathan, slamming him onto the ground. Jasmine clapped a hand over her mouth, suppressing a scream.

Gathan groaned, struggling to get up, but something massive loomed over him. The creature crouched down, sniffing the air as if trying to recognize its prey.

In desperation, Gathan reached into his pocket and pulled out his flashlight, shining it directly into the creature's eyes.

Hiss!

The beast let out a high-pitched shriek, recoiling violently from the light. In an instant, it leaped back into the darkness.

Gathan didn't waste his chance. With shaking legs, he pushed himself up and ran toward Jasmine, who stood frozen at her doorstep.

"Get inside!" he yelled.

Jasmine hurriedly flung the door open, and as soon as Gathan rushed in, she slammed and locked it tightly.

They both stood in the living room, panting, staring at each other.

"What… what was that?" Jasmine whispered, her voice barely audible.

Gathan shook his head, still trying to catch his breath. "I… I don't know. But we can't be alone. We need to find the others."

Jasmine bit her lip, her mind racing. If they couldn't use their phones, the only option was to find Aisyah and Delisha in person.

Outside, the rumbling noise grew louder.

Something even bigger was coming.

And they had to move—fast—before it was too late.

Nights in Jakarta were never truly quiet. The sound of honking cars, humming engines, and the dazzling city lights were always a part of life. But tonight was different. Tonight, Jakarta was silent.

Nizam and Azzam, twin brothers who were usually full of energy and never stayed still, woke up almost simultaneously. Both felt something was off. The air inside the house felt heavier than usual, as if something unseen was watching them.

Azzam fumbled around the side of his bed, searching for his phone. The screen lit up briefly, then went dark again. No signal.

"Damn, power's out," he muttered, his voice hoarse from just waking up.

In the bed beside him, Nizam tried turning on the lamp, but the switch didn't respond. The room remained in darkness.

"What the...? Why is everything dead?" he asked, his tone more serious than usual.

Azzam got out of bed and walked toward the window. He pulled the curtain aside slightly, his eyes scanning the street outside. Usually, at this hour, there were still a few vehicles passing by—maybe an online motorcycle taxi or a patrol car. But tonight? The streets were empty. Too empty.

"Bro... why is it so deserted? Jakarta is never this quiet."

Nizam joined him. His eyes squinted, trying to catch something in the darkness. No streetlights, no lights from the neighbors' houses.

Everything was dead.

Meanwhile, their older sister, Nafisah, had woken up earlier. She sat in the living room, staring at her phone screen, which also showed no signal. Nafisah had a habit of reading the news before bed, and lately, the headlines had been getting stranger.

First, reports of a mysterious outbreak in several countries, causing people to vanish suddenly. Then, rumors about secret experiments in major cities—whispers of something terrifying being tested in places hidden from the public.

But were they just conspiracy theories? Or... was something much bigger happening?

Nafisah felt her heartbeat quicken. She grabbed a flashlight from the table and turned it on. The small beam flickered for a moment before stabilizing, illuminating the living room, which felt colder than usual.

Suddenly, a faint rumbling sound echoed in the distance. Nafisah tensed.

"What was that?" she murmured.

She stood up, approached the window, and peeked outside. Her eyes immediately caught something that made her blood run cold.

In the distance, a group of people was walking slowly down the empty street.

At first, Nafisah thought they were just ordinary people who had woken up due to the blackout. But the longer she observed, the more she realized something was wrong.

They walked strangely. Not like normal humans. Their movements were too stiff, too slow, yet… eerily threatening.

And the most terrifying part? They made no sound.

Normally, when a group of people walked, there would be murmurs, conversations, or the clear sound of footsteps. But this? There was nothing.

Only a suffocating silence.

Nafisah swallowed hard. Her fingers clenched tightly around the edge of the curtain.

"Nafisah, what are you looking at?" Nizam's voice startled her.

She turned around quickly, her face pale.

"There are… people outside," she whispered.

Azzam walked closer, peering through the window. The moment his eyes landed on the figures, his expression changed drastically.

"Bro… those aren't normal people," he whispered.

Nizam felt the hairs on his arms stand on end. His breathing grew heavier. That uneasy feeling intensified.

Then, something happened.

One of them—a tall, thin man—suddenly turned his head toward their house.

And in an instant, his head twisted completely backward.

A sickening crack echoed in the silence.

Nafisah's eyes widened. She clapped both hands over her mouth, suppressing a scream.

"What the hell is that?!" Azzam whispered, his face turning ghostly pale.

Nizam slowly backed away, feeling his legs tremble.

The man remained standing there, his head still twisted at an impossible angle.

Then, with a movement that was far too fast, he started walking toward their house.

No.

He was running.

Nafisah gasped. Her mind instantly commanded her body to move.

"TURN OFF THE FLASHLIGHT!" she whispered harshly.

Azzam quickly switched off the light while Nizam pulled both of them away from the window. Nafisah tried to steady her breathing, but her heart pounded too hard.

Outside, the heavy footsteps grew louder.

They held their breath.

Then, the sound stopped.

Silence.

Too much silence.

No one dared to move. Nafisah pressed her ear against the door, trying to listen for anything outside.

Then—three loud knocks echoed through their house.

"Knock. Knock. Knock."

They froze instantly. Nafisah covered her mouth, Azzam's hands turned ice-cold, and sweat trickled down Nizam's back despite the chilling air.

The knocking came again. Louder.

"Knock. Knock. Knock."

And then, a voice—one that didn't sound human.

"I… see… you…"

The voice was deep. Shaky. Unnatural.

Azzam squeezed his eyes shut. Nafisah bit her lip, while Nizam clenched his fists, his body rigid.

Then, suddenly—

The knocking stopped.

They looked at each other, dread filling the room.

And then, something scraped against the outside wall of their house.

Like long claws dragging against concrete.

"Screeeech… Screeeech…"

Nizam felt his heart nearly leap out of his chest.

Then, in the darkness, they heard it—

A laugh.

A hoarse, broken, echoing laugh.

And then—

Everything went silent again.