The First Ash Day

The air felt too thick to breathe.

It was as if the entire city had become a broken gas mask.

Sohan wasn't running.

He was just walking.

In the streets, corpses were still warm.

Buildings were collapsing, one after another, without a sound, just dust.

The sun hadn't disappeared... but it had stopped "radiating."

Half of it was there. Half of it was damaged.

It was as if someone had extinguished it with their hand.

A gray light covered everything.

Fine ash began to fall, not like rain, but like burnt ice.

People's feet dragged themselves through the streets.

Some tried to call...

Some screamed their children's names...

Some just sat there, as if waiting for the end of the world.

And Sohan... still walking.

His mind wasn't thinking, it was just executing.

His goal was simple: to reach any enclosed space.

Anywhere that wouldn't fall on him.

He found a small store. The door was broken.

He entered.

The smell was terrible.

Maybe someone died here... or about to.

He found a small battery-powered refrigerator and opened it.

Nothing edible.

He opened the cash register drawer and found a lighter, a kitchen knife, and a box of tissues.

He took them.

He didn't know why, but he felt they were important.

From outside, he began to hear footsteps... heavy... unsteady.

He cautiously stepped out from behind the shelves.

On the street, a man was walking.

But he didn't look normal.

His face was gray... as if covered in a layer of sticky dust.

His eyes were open... unblinking.

And his mouth was slightly open... as if he were whispering... but making no sound.

The man stopped suddenly.

He turned his head toward the store.

And Sohan, frozen behind the shelf, understood...

This thing wasn't looking for food... it was for light.

The strange man, or what remained of him, stood in the middle of the street.

His body wasn't moving... but his neck slowly turned until he was facing the store squarely.

Sohan's eyes met his.

No life in them.

No death.

Just ash... swimming in a radiant white.

He didn't move.

He didn't scream.

Sohan had read in a novel that panic causes paralysis. He had never believed it.

Until now.

His hands still gripped the knife.

His breathing ragged.

And the man... or "the thing"... began to walk.

One step.

Then another.

Then he stopped.

As if something stopped him.

As if a dim light inside the store, coming from a worn-out emergency light bulb, was keeping him away.

Sohan turned.

Just one light bulb...small...pulsing a faint red flash from the emergency battery.

He looked again at the creature.

It retreated.

It didn't run away... but it slowly moved backward, as if the light was burning it.

Then... it disappeared into the thick gray fog, mixed with cold, damp, and panic.

Sohan sat on the ground.

He hadn't felt any real fear until now.

But now?

The hand holding the knife... began to tremble.

Not because the creature was nearby.

But because it wasn't alone.

An hour passed... maybe more.

The outside was getting bleaker.

The ash was getting heavier... making a phantom sound in his ears.

He decided to leave the store.

But not onto the main street.

He chose a back road, an alleyway littered with debris, broken lights, and discarded trash cans.

Still, it seemed safer.

After several minutes, he reached a small park behind a building.

In it was a small shelter for children... now in ruins.

But its roof was still intact.

He decided to stay there.

At least, it would protect him from the ashes.

He lit the lighter and sat down by the wall.

His hands were under his armpits, trying to keep his body warm.

Suddenly, he heard a voice.

"Hey... help me..."

He flinched.

From the back gate of the garden... a little girl crawling with difficulty.

Her body was covered in dust.

Her knees were bloody.

She was carrying a small bag on her back.

"Where... where are my people?" she asked in a trembling voice.

Sohan didn't reply.

A torrent of questions raced inside him.

Is she hurt?

Is she real?

Is she one of... "these" people?

But her tears and the crack in her voice made it clear.

She's a child... just a child... in hell.

He ran to her.

He carried her inside and gave her a light jacket.

He said, "My name is Sohan."

She looked at him with fear-filled eyes.

She said, "I'm... Nayla."

At that moment, something fell from the sky.

Not ash.

But... a burning piece.

A real piece... of the sun?

No.

It was a burned body.

It was wearing a uniform with the inscription:

> "Solar Observation Station - Sector 9"

His body exploded seconds after he hit the ground.

But his face was still clear.

And his eyes... were open.

They were looking at Sohan... as if asking something.

As if... warning him.