Morning came too fast.
I barely slept, even though I kept telling myself the videos I saw last night were some kind of online prank. But the images stayed stuck in my head. That blank face. Those empty eyes. The sign he held like a warning from nowhere.
It is near.
The sunlight coming through my curtains looked almost gray. I sat up slowly, rubbing my eyes. My room felt heavier than usual, like the air got thicker overnight. I reached for my phone before I even got out of bed.
More videos.
More sightings.
More of the same man in more countries.
Brazil.
America.
Russia.
Germany.
Mexico.
Nigeria.
Japan.
Every clip looked the same no matter the place. The same clothes. The same stillness. The same hollow eyes.
Except one detail changed.
People were starting to collapse near them. Some fainted. Some screamed. Some clawed at their skin until someone pulled them away.
I felt my chest tighten. I tossed the phone aside and stood up.
When I stepped into the living room, my mom was staring at the TV with a spoon halfway to her mouth. My dad was still in his pajamas, leaning against the counter with a confused frown. My sister sat cross legged on the floor coloring another page of her little princess book.
"What is going on outside," my dad whispered. It did not even sound like a question.
The news showed an aerial shot of a street in America. People were running. The camera shook. A woman screamed offscreen. And in the center of the chaos stood one of those men. His face was turned straight up toward the helicopter like he could see the camera perfectly. His hand slowly lifted the sign again.
It is near.
My mom grabbed the remote and switched channels. Different country. Same scene. Same man. Same sign.
"Turn it off," I muttered.
She did not. She only stared harder, like she was afraid if she blinked the screen would show something even worse.
The reporter's voice stuttered as she tried to explain something about new incidents around the world. People gaining strange abilities. People collapsing in the streets. Strange attacks that made no sense. There were unconfirmed reports of someone in Brazil controlling flames. Another rumor about a woman in Russia freezing the air around her. Someone in Nigeria who spoke to something no one else could see.
People online already called them the Seven Wonders. I did not know what that meant then. I only knew it sounded wrong.
My dad turned away from the TV.
"Everyone needs to stay inside today," he said quietly. "We are not opening that door for anything."
He sounded serious, more serious than I had heard in months.
For most of the morning the house felt tense. My sister still colored her pages like nothing in the world was different, humming her usual little tune. My dad paced from window to window. My mom kept scrolling through her phone even though every new video made her face a little paler.
I sat in my room and pretended to watch YouTube, but my mind drifted constantly back to the sign.
It is near.
Near what?
Near where?
Near us?
Around noon the power flickered. A soft pop came from the hallway light. Everything went dim for a second. The house hummed like something heavy pressed down on it.
I heard shouting from outside.
When I peeked through the blinds, I saw a man running down the street barefoot, one shoe still stuck behind him. His skin looked blackened, almost melted in patches. He stopped in the middle of the road and lifted his head sharply, like he was sniffing something in the air. His arms twitched.
Then he sprinted toward the nearest house.
An abnormality.
That was the only word that came to me.
I backed away from the window so fast I hit the shelf behind me. My heart hammered in my ears. I grabbed my phone and ran into the living room.
"We need to turn off all the lights," I said before I even caught my breath. "There is something outside."
My parents exchanged a look. A serious one. The kind parents only make when they know something is far beyond their control.
My dad locked every door and closed every curtain. My mom held my sister close while she kept asking questions no one answered. I stood near the hallway, feeling the pressure in the air grow heavier and heavier.
The light flickered again.
Once.
Twice.
Then we heard it.
A clicking sound against the outside wall. Slow at first. Then faster. Like something sharp tapping rhythmically.
My dad whispered, "Do not make a sound."
I tried to swallow, but my throat was too dry.
The tapping stopped.
For a moment, we thought maybe it left.
Then something slammed against the front door. Hard enough to shake the frame. My sister screamed and my mom covered her mouth. My dad stepped forward like he would somehow hold the whole house up with only his hands.
Another slam.
And another.
Then the wood cracked.
Before anyone could react, something burst straight through the door. A shape that used to be a person but no longer looked human at all. Its skin was half melted, sliding off in places like hot wax. Its eyes were wide and wild. Its breathing sounded like air forced through broken glass.
The thing lunged for my dad first. He shoved my mom and sister behind him and grabbed a chair, swinging it as hard as he could. The chair broke instantly. The creature grabbed his arm. Smoke rose where its skin touched him. My dad screamed in agony as his flesh darkened like burnt charcoal.
I ran forward instinctively, but my mom pulled me back.
"Yen, stay here."
Her voice shook, but she tried to sound calm for me. She always did.
My dad collapsed to the ground. His eyes still open but empty. The monster turned toward my mother next. She screamed and pushed my sister behind her.
The floor shifted under us.
At first it sounded like wood creaking. Then concrete from beneath the floor rose upward like jagged spears. They tore through the boards and pierced through everything above them. One shot up so fast I barely saw it. It struck my sister straight through the chest.
Her little coloring book flew upward, pages fluttering.
My mom fell to her knees beside her. The spikes kept growing, piercing her legs, then her body. She reached toward me with trembling fingers, but her hand fell before she touched me.
I could not breathe.
I could not speak.
My whole world froze.
Time itself stuttered, cracking around me like warped glass. Everything slowed. The monster turned its head toward me. Its movements became syrup thick. Its voice sounded far away, like something underwater.
I watched my family die in less than a minute.
And all I could do was stand there, helpless, trapped between seconds.
When time snapped back to normal, the shock hit me like ice water. My knees buckled. Tears blurred my vision. The house shook with every breath the creature took.
It stepped toward me.
Each footfall soft, but full of murderous intent.
I backed up until my shoulder hit the wall. My hands trembled. My mind screamed run but my legs would not move.
The monster leaned forward, its melted face inches from mine.
The fan above us spun slowly.
Dust drifted through the air.
My family lay silent on the floor behind it.
I felt my power surge again, uncontrolled, desperate, like a reflex.
The creature reached out…