THE NIGHT THE WORLD CHANGED

Ethan woke abruptly, his chest rising and falling in uneven breaths. A vague unease clung to him, the remnants of a dream slipping from his grasp like water through his fingers. It wasn't like his usual restless nights—this had felt… different. Heavy. Like something had been watching.

He exhaled sharply, rubbing a hand over his face. The room was still dark, the faint glow of the city slipping through his window blinds. The alarm clock on his nightstand read 11:57 PM.

Something felt wrong.

The air in his apartment was thick—like the silence before a storm. He sat up, the quiet pressing down on him, wrapping around his skin like an invisible shroud. Outside, the usual city sounds—the distant hum of traffic, the occasional honk of a horn, voices from the street—had dimmed into an eerie stillness.

Then, the world lurched.

A low, resonating hum filled the air, not from any speaker or siren but from everywhere at once. It was deep, vibrating through his bones, rattling his windows. The lights flickered wildly before bursting, leaving his apartment shrouded in darkness.

Then came the noise.

Distant at first, like a rolling tide of chaos crashing into the city. Car alarms blared, people screamed, the unmistakable sounds of shattering glass and twisting metal filled the air. Ethan's pulse quickened as he stumbled toward his window, his breath catching in his throat at what he saw.

The city was in panic.

The streets below, usually orderly even at night, were now a scene of utter confusion. Cars had stopped in the middle of the road, their drivers standing outside, staring upward. Others were running, their terrified shouts lost in the cacophony.

Then he saw them.

At first, they were just shapes—shadows that moved in ways they shouldn't, flickering unnaturally between buildings. But as the streetlights flickered, Ethan finally saw them clearly.

Creatures. Unnatural creatures.

Some skittered on all fours, their elongated limbs moving in jerky, unnatural motions. Others stood tall, their bodies shifting like smoke and shadow, their glowing eyes scanning the streets with predatory intent. They moved through the city with an eerie silence, broken only when one of them struck.

A piercing scream tore through the night as one of the creatures lunged, its clawed limbs raking across a man who had been too slow to run. Blood splattered onto the pavement, and the man crumpled, unmoving. The creature let out a clicking, distorted sound—almost curious—before turning its glowing gaze toward its next victim.

Ethan's stomach twisted as he backed away from the window, his breath shaky. This wasn't a riot. This wasn't a power outage or some freak event. This was something else.

And then it got stranger.

The hum in the air grew louder. A pressure—an unseen force—pressed down on the world. Ethan clutched his head as his vision blurred, a weightless, dizzying sensation overtaking him. He wasn't the only one.

Across the city, people collapsed, clutching their heads, gasping for breath as an unseen presence filled their minds.

It wasn't words. It wasn't sound.

It was understanding.

Somewhere, unseen, something—someone—had made a choice. And those chosen would never be the same again.

Down on the streets, people began to change. Some gasped as warmth spread through their bodies, their veins glowing faintly with unknown energy. Others fell to their knees, overwhelmed by the power now coursing through them.

A man raised his hands, and fire burst forth, illuminating the darkness with an orange glow. Another staggered back, only to realize the pavement beneath her feet was cracking, shifting at her will. A woman clenched her fists, and the air around her rippled, releasing a shockwave that sent debris flying.

It was happening all over the world.

People—ordinary people—were awakening to powers beyond their understanding. And the creatures—the things lurking in the night—were not stopping.

Ethan pressed his back against the wall, his mind racing. His hands trembled, not with power, but with sheer uncertainty. He didn't feel different. He didn't feel chosen.

Suddenly, the space around Ethan lurched.

A sharp pull, like something had yanked the very air from his lungs, distorted everything in his vision. The world folded—not like a blur or a trick of the eye, but as if reality itself had been bent, twisted into something momentarily unrecognizable. His stomach churned at the sensation of weightlessness, his body freezing up as an oppressive darkness swallowed him whole.

And just as quickly as it happened—it was over.

The void vanished, reality snapping back into place like a rubber band. The faint hum in the air faded, replaced by the distant sounds of sirens and terrified screams. Ethan staggered, his breath uneven.

Except—he wasn't in his apartment anymore.

Cold air brushed against his skin. The rough texture of pavement pressed against his bare feet. Bare feet?

His eyes darted downward. His heart skipped a beat.

He was standing outside, clad only in his boxers and a wrinkled T-shirt.

"What the hell—" His voice came out hoarse, cut off by his own confusion. This wasn't the hallway of his apartment complex. This was outside.

His mind raced to piece together what had just happened. Had he blacked out? Sleepwalked? No, that didn't explain the warped sensation, the feeling of being pulled through something unseen.

Before he could process any further, a sudden wave of exhaustion settled over him—not overwhelming, but noticeable. His limbs felt heavier than they should, like he had just finished a long workout. Drained.

It wasn't crippling, but it made his legs ache with the simple effort of standing. A dull pressure sat at the back of his skull, urging him to sit down. To rest.

"Click! Click!"

The unnatural sound crawled into Ethan's ears, sharp and erratic, like bones snapping in quick succession. His eyes darted forward, the weight of his exhaustion momentarily forgotten.

Chaos had swallowed the city whole.

Fires raged, their orange glow flickering off shattered windows and overturned cars. Shadows moved unnaturally between buildings, and the streets were filled with distant screams, punctuated by the sounds of metal twisting and glass shattering. The world he had known hours ago was gone—replaced with something nightmarish.

Then, he saw it.

A creature stood a good distance away, its form partially shrouded in darkness. It was wrong, its body shifting slightly as if reality itself struggled to contain its existence. Its elongated limbs twitched, its too-long fingers curling and uncurling with unsettling precision. Glowing slits where eyes should have been fixated on Ethan, its head tilting in eerie curiosity.

Then—it moved.

Its body blurred for a fraction of a second before lunging forward, closing the distance between them at terrifying speed. The air felt heavier, thick with tension, as Ethan's instincts screamed at him to move.

But his legs felt slow. His body was still sluggish from whatever had happened to him.

The creature was already upon him.

Instinct and Chaos

Ethan's heart hammered in his chest as he sprinted toward his apartment building, his bare feet slapping against the cold pavement. The surrounding cacophony of screams, destruction, and inhuman clicks drowned out even his own frantic breathing. He wasn't far—twenty meters, maybe less. He could see his window, the faint glow of his apartment lights mocking how close safety seemed.

Then, something pierced into his mind.

"I suggest you duck."

A deep voice—not his own.

"What?!" Ethan barely had time to react, let alone question the impossibility of someone speaking inside his head.

"DUCK, YOU FUCKING MORON!"

This time, the voice roared.

His body moved before his mind could catch up. He threw himself downward, his momentum not stopping, his knees grinding painfully against the rough pavement. A sharp sting flared up, but it was nothing compared to what could've happened.

Because in that very instant—the creature flew past him.

A blur of twisted limbs and snapping jaws soared over where his head had just been, missing him by inches. Its movement was too fast, its intent unmistakable—it had lunged at him, aiming to end him in one precise strike.

Ethan's breathing hitched. He almost died.

His hands trembled against the concrete as he lifted his head, his eyes tracking the creature as it landed, its grotesque body twisting unnaturally to reorient itself.

And then—it turned to face him again.

Ethan barely had time to process what had just happened. His scraped knees burned, his heartbeat thundered in his ears, and the dull exhaustion still clung to him like a weight, but none of that mattered.

Because the creature was already recovering.

Its twisted body landed in an unnatural crouch, limbs bending in ways that made Ethan's stomach churn. It twitched violently, its head jerking toward him in one swift, predatory motion. The glowing slits where eyes should have been locked onto him with renewed hunger.

The few screams still echoing in the night came from nearby—not a massive crowd, just scattered voices. Most people were still inside, unaware or too afraid to come out, but the ones caught in the streets? They were dying. Ethan could hear other creatures moving, their distorted clicks blending into the night like an eerie chorus.

But he had no time to focus on anything except the one that wanted him dead.

His apartment's entrance was so close. Five meters. A short sprint. If he could make it inside, maybe—maybe—he could shut himself in, call the police, do something.

"You need to move."

The voice returned, its deep tone almost amused despite the urgency.

Ethan gritted his teeth. What the hell was this voice? Why was it in his head? He couldn't question it now—not with death standing right in front of him.

The creature lunged—faster than before.

Ethan knew he wouldn't make it. His legs, already sluggish from exhaustion, felt even heavier now. His body was slowing down at the worst possible moment.

"Move."

The voice echoed in his skull, but this time, Ethan couldn't obey.

The monster's jagged claws shot toward him—

And then—reality cracked.

For a split second, space itself seemed to shudder. A jagged tear—dark and shifting—appeared right in front of the lunging creature. It had no time to react.

One second, it was there.

The next—it was being ripped apart.

The rift swallowed it whole, but the moment its limbs touched the distortion, it ruptured. The creature exploded into countless fragmented pieces, its inhuman screeches cut short as its remains scattered into the air—only to fade into nothing.

Then—the rift closed.

Ethan staggered forward, his vision swimming as a crushing wave of exhaustion crashed over him. His head throbbed. His limbs felt like dead weight. It was like something had been pulled from him, drained in a way he couldn't explain.

"What… was that?"

He had no time to think about it.

His body screamed at him to rest, but he forced himself forward, stumbling toward his apartment entrance. The distant screams and chaos still filled the night, but he didn't stop to look.

His legs burned as he climbed the single flight of stairs to his apartment door. He reached into his pockets—only to realize his keys were inside.

"Shit…" He muttered under his breath, bending down and lifting the edge of the welcome mat. His fingers closed around the cool metal of his spare key. Thank God he always kept one here.

With shaking hands, he jammed the key into the lock, turned it, and pushed the door open.

The moment he stepped inside, he shut the door behind him and locked it—twice.

Then, he leaned against it, panting heavily.

His mind was racing. His body was drained. His hands trembled.

Something had changed.