Monica and Katie headed straight to the kitchen to grab some drinks, while Tyler stayed by Ralph's side. He kept an arm around Ralph, noticing the cold sweat covering his body. Ralph's eyes were bloodshot and his breathing was jagged, though he seemed a bit more composed than before. Ralph glanced at the wall clock—it was 9:00 AM. He turned to look at Tyler, who was sitting there with a small smile.
"You believe me, right?" Ralph asked softly.
"Yeah, I believe you... but please, don't do this again. Seriously, what were you watching last night?" Tyler asked.
"Horror... about a zombie apocalypse," Ralph answered shortly, looking straight ahead and bowing his head.
"Hmm... with Monica?" Tyler asked.
"Something like that... but she only stayed for half of it then went home," Ralph replied briefly.
"Uuuh... must be nice, childhood friends... always together," Tyler teased.
Hearing those words, Ralph went stone-cold silent. The words coming out of Tyler's mouth were exactly what he had heard in his dream; the only difference was the setting.
"Too bad I'm single, so I don't have anyone to spend my time with," Tyler added suddenly, leaning back comfortably on the sofa.
Suddenly, Tyler's back was hit hard by a foot. He turned to see Katie standing there, holding two glasses to give one to him.
"Ha! It's your own fault you're single... right, Ralph?" Katie said with a grin.
"Geh... Katie... you heard that?" Tyler asked.
"Duh. You just told Ralph you were jealous because you wanted a childhood friend... well, what do you think is sitting right next to you?" Katie asked as she sat down, resting her elbow on Tyler's broad shoulder.
"You're different. You're not that kind of childhood friend," Tyler shot back.
"Whatever, same thing," Katie replied casually.
Hearing the banter between Tyler and Katie, Ralph became even more certain his dream was real. He began to replay every detail in his head. Monica sat down next to him and handed him a lunchbox. Without waiting, he opened it; the contents were exactly as they had been in his dream.
"Cheeseburger, sausage, and fries," Ralph said.
"Yep! Your favorites. Since we're skipping school, you might as well eat now," Monica said cheerfully.
"The rain," Ralph muttered.
"Huh?" Monica, Tyler, and Katie asked, all turning to look at him.
"Around 11:00 AM... right when we would have had lunch break at school... the rain will start. And right before that, lightning," Ralph answered.
"Dude, what are you talking about?" Tyler asked.
"There's no way it's going to rain. The weather forecast said it would be clear all day," Katie added.
"Just wait and see. As soon as the rain starts, I need all of you in my basement," Ralph replied.
Tyler, Monica, and Katie traded looks. They stayed silent, not arguing, just staring at Ralph as he began to eat with his eyes glued to the TV. They spent the next few hours in the living room, scrolling through their phones and waiting for Ralph's predictions.
Two hours later, at 11:20 AM—"blaar"—a massive crack of thunder echoed, and a light drizzle immediately began to fall. Tyler stood up and walked to the window. He pulled back the curtain and saw the sky turning dark. He turned back to Ralph with a look that clearly asked, "How could you possibly have known?" Monica and Katie stared at Ralph with expressions that were hard to put into words.
"Let's go to the basement," Ralph said, standing up.
"Ok... I believe you," Tyler said.
"Let's go, everyone," Monica said, standing up.
"Yeah... let's move," Katie added, joining them.
The four of them headed straight for the door under the stairs and descended into the basement. Once his friends were down, Ralph shut the basement door tight. As soon as they reached the bottom—"ding"—all of their phones chimed with a notification. They opened them and were instantly hit with shock. Someone had posted a photo of a black sphere emerging in space with several helicopters approaching it.
The caption read: "Oh my God, what Ralph said is true."
Tyler, Monica, and Katie immediately turned to look at Ralph. He was sitting there, paralyzed by fear, rubbing his palms together and tapping his feet against the floor. Monica sat down right next to him and wrapped her arm around Ralph's. Ralph could feel her trembling. He looked over and saw Tyler and Katie holding each other in front of him, both completely silent.
"Ding." Another message arrived on their smartphones. The four of them opened it to find a video sent five minutes earlier.
The footage showed the giant sphere in the sky deploying massive cables that fired lasers. A voice screamed, "Run!" as countless hatches opened on the black orb. A swarm of cables—tens of thousands, maybe millions—poured out, twisting and gliding through the air like snakes, snatching up anything in their path, including people. Suddenly—"crash"—every single one of their smartphones shattered. They fell to the floor, smoking as if they had just exploded.
"It's started," Ralph whispered, his voice shaking.
"I'm scared," Monica muttered, clinging to Ralph.
"Damn it... I'm so sorry, dude. I should have stopped your mom from leaving earlier," Tyler said, looking down. He clenched his fists so hard they shook, his face twisted with regret.
"It's not your fault... nobody would have believed it until they saw it for themselves," Ralph said, defeated, not daring to imagine what might have happened to his mother.
"Thank you, Ralph... if we hadn't come here, we'd probably be facing the same fate as everyone back at school," Katie replied.
"I tried to warn everyone, that's why I sent that message... it's only natural they didn't believe me," Ralph replied, looking down.
"Don't blame yourself, Ralph. None of this is on you," Monica said.
"Thump." Suddenly, a noise came from above them. The four of them instantly went silent and stared at the ceiling. Tyler moved closer to Ralph while holding Katie's hand. They could hear footsteps upstairs—and it wasn't just one person. There was also the sound of something shifting and scratching across the floor. Ralph quickly covered his own mouth and then Monica's. Tyler did the same, covering his mouth and Katie's beside him. The atmosphere became terrifying; Monica, Tyler, and Katie turned deathly pale and began to shake.
"Thump... thump."
Suddenly, a sound erupted from the water pipes in the wall. The four of them stood up instantly, staring at the plumbing behind them in total silence. Slowly, they backed away from the pipes because they heard something inside them. Ralph glanced at the basement window and immediately moved to close the curtains.
Without warning, the basement lights flickered and died. The four of them huddled together, with Monica and Katie sandwiched between Ralph and Tyler. Then, the room fell back into a heavy silence. Ralph could still feel Monica clinging to him right at his side.
"Bwoooong."
Suddenly, a holographic interface opened right in front of Ralph's face. Startled, he gave a small jolt. The interface displayed the following:
*************************************************************************
Quest: Save at least four people closest to you (0/4)
Quest Failed.
Penalty:
1. Cannot restart and save those closest to you.
2. Loss of half your humanity and soul.
*************************************************************************
"Huh," Ralph muttered in his head. "Smooch." Suddenly, he felt a pair of lips kissing him. "Click." The lights flickered on. Ralph's eyes went wide. Monica was kissing him—but only her head remained, now half-robotic. She was still hugging his body, yet her head was detached, supported only by a mass of cables. He glanced over and saw Tyler and Katie hanging, wrapped in a swarm of cables that looked like a massive nest of snakes.
"W... what is this?!" Ralph screamed.
[Skill Werefenrir Transformation activated.]
Suddenly, a blinding light erupted from Ralph's body. His pupils turned blood-red and his muscles surged. Monica's head was thrown back away from him. "Crack... crack." The sound of breaking bones filled the room as Ralph's body was violently reshaped. White fur sprouted, covering him from head to toe, and his face elongated as his skull shifted forward into a long, lupine snout. A bushy white tail burst from his lower back. He had transformed into a massive Werefenrir.
"Awooooooo!"
Ralph let out a deafening howl. He lunged at the cables, biting through them until they snapped, then tore the rest to shreds with his razor-sharp claws. Tears streamed from his fierce, red eyes as he saw Monica's head and body lying lifeless. He saw Tyler's remains—which had been butchered before they could even be reassembled—fall to the ground, followed by Katie's body, which turned out to be only half-intact. Once all the cables were destroyed,
"Awooooooo!"
Ralph howled again, but this time it was the cry of a wounded, mourning wolf. As he transformed back into a human, he collapsed, sobbing and screaming in agony. Suddenly, the holographic interface appeared once more:
[ Convert soul into Shadow Wolf? [Yes] [No] ]
Ralph wiped his tears away. His shaking hand reached out and pressed Yes. Immediately, three spheres of light emerged from the bodies of Monica, Tyler, and Katie. The three spheres entered his body, and another interface screen popped up.
**********************************************************
Profile:
Name: Ralph Wolfe
Age: 17
Level: 10 (1,300 / 13,000)
Strength: 2,000
Agility: 1,500
Constitution: 2,200
Soul Collection: 3
**********************************************************
Active Skill:
1. WereFenrir Transformation (Stats + 100,000) (Cooldown: 01:23:30:09)
2. Summon Shadow Wolf
**********************************************************
Passive Skill:
1. Far Sight
2. Super Smell Detection
3. Martial Art Mastery
4. Silent Movement
**********************************************************
Ralph was shocked. He tapped the interface to read the skill descriptions. When he finished reading about Summon Shadow Wolf, he opened his palm and held it out. Suddenly, three black voids opened on the ground. Three wolves emerged: one massive Direwolf and two normal-sized wolves, but with red and blue fur.
All three wolves had glowing red eyes. Ralph's tears began to fall again. He immediately knelt down and hugged the three wolves in front of him. They looked confused, as if they didn't know what was happening, but Ralph knew exactly who they were. He held them tight, a final moment of warmth before his humanity faded away completely.
Afterward, Ralph looked at the interface still floating before him. He narrowed his eyes, filled with rage. He remembered the news saying that the AI satellite didn't belong to the government—it belonged to a massive corporation called Pandora Tech. He immediately set that company as his target while searching for other survivors.